<USS Avalon> "Echoes in Darkness"

Echoes in Darkness
Anthony Manson
and
Jayden Cross


The order came in. Finally, after months of planning, everything was going to 
fall in place. With one exception Anthony never anticipated to be put into this 
high risk act. He closed the message, erased his tracks and deactivated the 
terminal as he got up from his seat and left sickbay. The man was clear, he 
wanted Anthony to get her to join them. 'Why' wasn't any of Anthony?s business 
apparently. But the Ullian did care, he'd have power once everything worked out.

"Computer, locate Jayden Cross."

"Ensign Cross is on deck seven, section twenty-two,"replied the computer. 
Twenty- two sounded right, it was her office, away from the labs.

Jayden was curled up asleep on the sofa of the office. It had taken hours for 
her mind to stop turning long enough to sleep, but she was no good working, so 
she kept trying. The last thing the ship needed was someone experimenting with 
intelligent bio-weaponry while sick. Sick of mind, sick of heart... it was all 
the same. She was jolted awake by a presence standing over her.

"Dammit, Anthony," she gasped, it taking her a moment to recognise her cousin. 
"Wasn't one haunting today enough?" Jayden threw aside the blanket and sat up, 
running her hands over her face, feeling the ick from all the tears that had 
dried. Her lip felt swollen where Vevay had hit her. 

Anthony frowned with angry eyes tracing Jayden's jaw, he took Jayden's hands 
away from her face. Cupping her chin, "Who did that?" 

Giving him a defiant look, Jayden attempted to jerk her chin from Anthony's 
grasp, but he held her firmly. "It wasn't Eli," she said coldly, unsure why she 
felt the need to defend him. To escape an 'I told you so' lecture was the only 
logical thought. 

"I didn't say that, Jay. But if not him..." He let her go as he ran through the 
possible people would do such a thing. And then it hit him, "Vevay, wasn't it?" 
He sat next to her as she scooted. 

"Yeah." Flat and dead came the response. "You were right. They played me, they 
broke me, I'll live. Skip the lecture and just leave me the fuck alone, okay?" 

"I?m sorry," Anthony said with a sympathetic tone, "You'll live, but right now, 
I know what you're going through." He picked up her emotions, outside she was 
this weakling he was seeing more and more each passing day. Inside she burned 
with fury and she was suppressing it. "Maybe if there was a way to get them off 
this ship," Anthony started again, lightly, as though to suggest a simple way 
to end all her problems, "Maybe if we can get them to leave?" Leave, Anthony 
projected. 

"Leave?" Jayden blinked, shaking her head. She leaned over on Anthony's 
shoulder like she used to when they were teenagers and another crush had broken 
her heart. Anthony had changed a lot since then, bitter... and even more bitter 
thanks to Alder. "I want to leave. I'm requesting transfer to the Belaio on the 
front lines. They could use my expertise." 

"No, not you, Jay. Them. I could get someone to transfer them off this ship. 
You'll never have to worry about them anymore." Anthony instinctively squeezed 
her gently while he played at her mind. Never worry about them. "You'll have 
peace, again." Peace. 

Never worry... peace... "I want to leave. Come with me." 

"No, you can stay here, Jay. There are opportunities here. You can have more 
than you realise." Anthony frowned without her seeing. It was not turning out 
the way he had planned. But he kept at it, with a small change. Opportunity. 
Power. Safety. 

Safety... "This ship is bad, Anthony. The people, all wrong." Narrowing her 
eyes, Jayden turned an evil grin towards him, "We should just kill them all." 
She said it in jest... at first. But the thought of Vevay's blood all over 
Elijah and his ultra clean white gloved tested room was appealing. 

Anthony gave a smirk, "Wouldn't life be so much easier if that were possible?" 
Easier life. Better place. Home. He projected out again. Her emotions were 
rising, but they were more fantasy than realisations to just how real the 
possibility was. 

"Yeah..." The word trailed off, but the thoughts didn't. "Anthony? Will you 
help me?" 

"Do what?" Justice... Revenge. 

The thoughts echoed in her mind. "Kill them." 

"I... suppose," Anthony replied, "but you... we... could do a lot more." Power. 
Safety. Revenge. Anthony repeated those projections lightly along her thought 
patterns. Take what is rightfully yours. 

Rightfully mine... what's rightfully... "I want my life back. My pride, my 
dignity. I want revenge. We're going to kill them. They deserve it. I deserve 
it." A weight seemed to lift as her thoughts turned to murder. 

Anthony nodded carefully, realising anymore projected thoughts might just make 
Jayden do something too prematurely. Who Anthony answered to- for the time 
being- wouldn't like that. Giving her a hug, "We'll talk later, alright Jay? 
Get something to eat, and try and have a relaxing day as much as you can." 

"Don't go," she whispered, clinging to the one comfort left in her life. 
Thoughts of revenge were quickly replaced with a fear of being alone again. 
Even if he said nothing, did nothing, she just wanted someone there. Someone 
who wasn't going to fuck her over and take her life away again. 

Anthony looked at her. He really hoped Jayden had a purpose to be in all this. 
Sitting back down, "For a little bit then." Take what's yours. Take your life 
back. 

"I'm taking my life back, Anthony," she whispered, laying her head against his 
shoulder and closing her eyes. "I'm taking it all." 


                
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