<USS Avalon> Last Minute Advice

Last Minute Advice
Anthony Shimbrodus
and 
Elissabeth Marksbury


Anthony walked into the shuttle bay. It wasn't his time to go running around 
the ship, let alone leave his station, but Alder had it under control. If it 
wasn't for him, Anthony wouldn't be in the shuttle bay. "Packing to leave 
without a word, Elissabeth?" There was a faint smile as he watched her stop 
short of entering the shuttle. 

"Orders are orders," she replied with a sigh. "I barely got to tell Bryce 
good-bye." 

"Where you headed?" He was already closer to the shuttle and he noticed Cazook 
passing by. He instantly frowned, "Okay, give me the short version." 

"Earth." 

"How long?" 

Trying to keep the worry out of her eyes, Elissabeth replied, "I don't know. I 
just received orders to go, that's all." 

"Well, just ring or something. It's not everyday we have people leaving 
unexpectedly." 

She paused, then nodded slowly, wanting to tell him everything. But she hadn't 
even told Bryce a real reason for going. Just that she'd gotten orders to 
leave. Things weren't perfect between them and it was killing her to leave him 
with things not entirely settled. Elissabeth glanced over her shoulder to see 
Cazook inside the shuttle getting ready. 

Unexpectedly, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Anthony's neck in 
a fierce hug. One that let her fear of not coming back be felt. 

"More of those emotions, Marks, and I just might go with. She can't be that 
bad, is she?" The light joke made Elissabeth smirk a little and Anthony stepped 
back a little out of grasp. 

"No," she smiled slightly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." 

"No, it's okay." Anthony shrugged, "Anyway, I guess I have to let you go. 
Better be back soon, Marks, or I?m giving that office of yours to Alder." 

Glancing over her shoulder once more, she turned back and looked at her friend. 
"I'm scared, Anthony." The whisper left her lips as an admission of guilt. "All 
the times I've been sent places and never once thought twice about losing my 
life... and now I'm scared just to go to the damn doctor." She laughed 
pitifully with the sense of pathetic irony. 

"Tough girl like you can't take a doctor like her?" Anthony said with a smirk. 
There was something different about Marks. It was tingling at the end of his 
neck, but he ignored it. "I don't have advice to give, just be calm through 
whatever they have planned." 

"It'll all be fine," she said, more to convince herself. "Honestly, it's 
probably just the fact that for the first time in my life things seem to be 
falling into place and I allowed myself to believe that happiness truly exists. 
In a way, it makes one question their mortality. If that makes sense. When you 
don't have things to hold onto, you don't really care so much about dying." She 
shrugged and then forced a smile onto her face. "Don't you dare give away my 
office." 

"Nice incentive huh?" Anthony made a crooked smile at the corner of his lips. 
"Happiness does exist," he shrugged, "it just works both ways." Nudging her, 
"Now go, before Cazook starts rumbling the engines." 

"Yeah, I see how it is, trying to get rid of me." Smiling, she turned once more 
for a gentle hug. "Don't tell anyone what I told you," she whispered into his 
ear. "Orders to go, is all. This is my problem, not everyone else's okay?" 

"Alright." 

Planting a delicate kiss on his cheek as she pulled away, there was a lopsided 
smirk as she warned, "Behave yourself," with a wink and disappeared into the 
shuttle.



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