John stood in the doorway and stared at the destruction Larn'kelnar had wrought. When the energy beam had cut the Invictus in half, it had scythed through the bedroom, melting the titanium superstructure with ease. Where John's massive bed had once rested against the wall, the room was now open to the elements, giving him a spectacular view of the Arcadian jungle. There was no longer any furniture left in his quarters, as it had all been sucked out into the upper atmosphere as the battlecruiser tumbled towards the planet. John loved that bed, connected as it was with so many wonderful memories... but what he really missed the most was the high-backed chair.
It was so easy to picture Faye sitting cross-legged on the comfortable leather, the purple sprite either singing softly to him, or watching with sparkling eyes as the crew were intimate together. John and Faye never had a chance to consummate their own relationship, having postponed their third date one time too many. He glanced down at the hacking deck he still cradled in his arms and let out a melancholy sigh. John couldn't help feeling like he was letting Faye down... he was holding the essence of her personality in his hands, but he lacked the skills to bring her back from oblivion.
"Hey, handsome," Alyssa said softly, running her hands over his shoulders. She hugged him from behind and whispered in his ear, "The girls are all falling asleep... and you need some rest too."
John nodded wearily and let the blonde lead him back out into the corridor, then into Calara's quarters.
The brunette was waiting under the covers and greeted them with an inviting smile... which faded as she studied the bloodstained couple. "You both look a mess. Let's have a quick shower before bed."
"A shower sounds good," John agreed, reluctantly placing the hacking deck on her desk and stripping off his torn clothing.
Alyssa and Calara padded into the bathroom as he undressed, the sound of pattering water reaching his ears a few moments later. When he followed them inside, he saw the brunette lathering up Alyssa's golden mane, the foamy bubbles turning pink as she washed the blood from her hair. John joined them under the hot water and grimaced as he remembered the blonde being hurled across the Bridge during the attack on the Invictus. She'd suffered a nasty head wound from the impact with the titanium wall and the jagged cut to her scalp had soaked her hair with blood.
He stroked Alyssa's back, watching as Calara rinsed her off. "I nearly lost you today as well..."
"It was just a scratch," Alyssa said with a lopsided smile, all trace of the injury healed by Rachel hours ago. "You should have seen the other guy..."
Both John and Calara chuckled, needing some light relief after the nightmarish morning they'd endured. When the Latina had finished with Alyssa's hair, she turned her attention to John and frowned at the sight of him. Rahn'hagon had broken his nose with that first punch, and while John had healed himself, he was still covered in dried blood. She used a sponge to gently wash his skin, a tender look of sympathy on her beautiful face.
"There, good as new," she said with satisfaction when she was done. "Now you two need some sleep... you're both on your last legs."
"Yes, mom," Alyssa said with a soft smile, as the brunette mothered the pair of them.
They stepped out of the shower and took it in turns using the bathroom's auto-drier, with Calara directing operations. John watched her taking care of Alyssa, who was happy to be fussed over, then relaxed and let the Latina dry him off too. They retired to the bedroom, where Calara peeled back the covers so that Alyssa, then John could climb into bed. She turned out the light and joined them, snuggling up against John and resting her head on his shoulder.
He held both girls close and stroked Calara's back. "You were right before... I've got all the family I need right here. You're going to be a wonderful mother when we have kids."
Alyssa made eye-contact with Calara across John's broad chest and smiled at her girlfriend. "I'll be watching you like a hawk for pointers..."
Calara blushed, then gave John a tender kiss on the cheek. "Now Larn'kelnar's gone, it won't be long until we can finally settle down and start our family."
John felt Alyssa tense, so he hugged the blonde closer. *Don't disappoint her... I'll talk to everyone when we've all had a chance to rest and recover.*
*Okay...* Alyssa murmured in reply, trying not to get too despondent.
John kissed Calara on the forehead. "Get some sleep, honey. We'll talk about the future this evening, after we've all had a rest."
The brunette nodded and relaxed against him, sliding her silky-smooth thigh over his as she tried to get as close to John as possible. Alyssa did the same, but she yearned for that closeness for a very different reason. The two girls were asleep in a matter of seconds, and John kissed each of them on the top of their head as he felt himself getting drowsy. He hated the thought of disappointing Calara and the rest of the girls, but he had a new purpose now and they all needed to prepare for what was to come.
***
Admiral Charles Harris glanced at his watch and frowned. It had just turned 12:15, which meant Lynette was fifteen minutes late to this High Command meeting... and Fleet Admiral Devereux was never late for anything.
Rising from his seat in the oval meeting room, he approached the podium, then turned to face the gathering of Admirals. "Sorry ladies and gentlemen, it looks like the Fleet Admiral's indisposed. Might I suggest we postpone this meeting until later this evening?"
"We could just proceed without her," Admiral Edwin Caldwell said, frowning as he leaned back in his chair. "I'm reviewing the repairs to the Zeus this afternoon."
"8 pm instead then?" Charles suggested, glancing around at the members of High Command. "I know Lynette wanted to hear progress reports from everyone, particularly with regard to streamlining of departments."
Admiral Hugo Chapman gave him a sour look, and pushed his wire-framed glasses up his nose. "I'm not sure that time will be convenient..."
Charles raised an eyebrow and tapped on the holo-interface built into the lectern, bringing up the admiral's meeting schedule. There were a number of timeslots already booked, with Chapman meeting the various department heads within his Research and Development Division, but there was nothing earmarked from eight until midnight.
"Oh look, you're completely free..." Charles said dryly. "If you did have something planned, it obviously wasn't that important; after all, you neglected to enter it into the Admiralty scheduler. I'm sure whatever it was can be rearranged and you'll be able to attend a priority High Command meeting."
Chapman scowled, his lips pressed together into a thin line.
"Does anyone else have any concerns about scheduling?" Charles asked, looking at the rest of the admirals in attendance. He was relieved to see amused expressions rather than resentful ones as they all shook their heads. "That'll be all then. I'll see you this evening."
