Federation Headquarters

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>((Alright, im bringing in Miki early, but as an NPC))

You should give life rather than taking it away. Thats low.

Zero took a step back as the scores came in, and where the targets were hit. As soon as they were, Zero reset the system and hit all the correct targets in their center of mass, memorizing the times and their positions and time relative to where he was standing. To top it off, he was holding his rifle with one hand and didn't even look. His scores were much higher due to where he shot. A closer look showed that each target had his heart blown out their back. The growing crowed whooped like they did for Johana, but non of the men grabbed their groins.

A kiss to the groin by your own Captain, and a kiss to the heart by everyone's favorite man!

Show off as always, Zero hefted the rifle on his shoulder and checked it back in, then lead Johana out of the firing range, then slowed his pace to match hers.

Hmm... I have some Idea's, but you may not want to hear them... You know how to pilot anything? I've seen a fighter target range as I was comming in. I can let you take the Normandy out for a spin.

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A shuttle carrying a handful of new navy personell, including the grinning and happy Miki Hawke. She was sitting on her knees looking out a window at the blue planet. Inside the cockpit, the pilot made contact with Enterprise.

Enterprise, this is shuttle 343, carrying ner recrutes for the Navy, requesting permission to land.</sub>

[/i][/center][/sub]

[Crazy O]

On the bridge one of the ATF officer flipped a switch to open a channel with the shuttle. "Shuttle 343, promotion granted to land in Hanger Bay two. Welcome to the Enterprice." The officer said before flipping off the channel and turning to the X.O. "Sir, the newbies arrived." The ATF officer said. The XO nodded and headed down to the hanger bay.

Johana almost broke out in laughter when he suggested she take the Normandy out for a spin. "I haven't flown a ship sense the last time I had sex. But I am sure it is like riding a bike, you never forget." She said when no crew members were within ear shot." Then it hit her, that was seven years ago. "FUCK! Has it been that long." She said out load not meaning it. She followed Zero into the elevator and took it down to the hanger deck. As she walked off the elevator she noticed the shuttle had landed. She looked as rookies poured off. "Give me a second, then we can go foul around in your ship." She said jokingly as she watched the knew recruits file out.

The XO walked in at the same time and over to the recruits. Remaining a step back from Johana. Once they were all out Johana gave them all a salute then spoke. "Welcome to the Enterpise. For those that have not hear I am Captain Johana Kay and this is my ship. This here is Executive Officer Blackstar and he well be introducing you to the ship and giving out duties assignment. I have one rule on my ship, trust and follow your heart. That is all I can ask of you in the end." She said before turning around and walking back over to Zero. "Ready to go?" She said looking at him.

X.O. Blackstar step up. "Okay recruits, if you well follow me I well lead you to the conference room to give the real rundown of the rules, along with give you your bunk assignments and hand out your duty scheduled he said as he headed towards the elevator.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>You know, you should have that fixed. I hear a sex-deprived life causes a shorter life.

Zero laughed as the turbolift door's closed and they took a short trip to the hanger. When it opened, Zero caught the landing of the shuttle as landed. After Johana excused herself to meet the rookies who started to come out of the shuttle, Zero trailed after, just to check out what was going on.

One face among the 20 or so recruits caught Zero's eye, and it widened his eyes. Standing not 20 feet in front of him was his old childhood friend whom he haven't seen in years. A smile apreared on Zero's face as Johana introdused herself. As soon as Johana was done speaking, Miki apprearently noticed Zero, as her eyes met his, and widened considerably.

As soon as X.O. Blackwater excused them, she rushed at a full run to Zero, and nearly tackled him.

You jerk, why did you never come back?
Is that how you say hello to me?
No, well... Today I get to, Gray. You left nearly 10 years ago and didn't bother to call.
Sorry, I had other things to do, so you hurry and get back with the group before you are left behind and I get into trouble.
Your in trouble by be right now. Next time we meet, you'r ass is grass, Gray.</sub>

[/b]

Miki wrapped her arm's around Zero's neck and hugged him real fast before chasing off after the group, who were now at the turbolift waiting for Miki. Zero was looking towards the lift, eyes distant as old memories flooded back to him. He was brought back when he remembered Johana spoke something to him.

Hmm?... sorry. She is an old friend of mine, and now I suppose she either has that love again at first site thing, or she's going to kill me. Anyway, lets head off. The controls for Normandy are simple enough to understand. I'll give you the full rundown once I sit you down.

Zero led the way to his yacht's elevator so they can get inside.[/center][/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana watched the interaction somewhat shocked. "So there are others that now you by Gray. I thought I was special." She said in a jokingly sad tone. She then looked at Miki ran off to join the rest of the group. She remembered that age, those emotions. "Remember my warning." She said as she turned and continued on to the Normandy whistling a tone that Zero may or may not recognize. It was the old Republic Naval Academy fight song. She use to whistle it all the time when in school, she simple had stopped when Michael was killed. Every person in the Academy had their own words to the song, most not suitable for for people under the age of 18. Johana's version was just as dirty as the rest of them.

Johana walked up to the cockpit and looked at the controls. "What the hell. When did they start putting these controls into shuttles." She said looking at them. She was going to make an idiot out of her self for sure. She had not flown anything for seven years minus the occasional speed and most of the time she took a taxi. Back in the Academy Michael had taught her to fly a shuttle but that may as well be ancient history. She sat down in the seat and put on the headset. She then waited for Zero to help her through power up procedures.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>You are special, just like everyone else.

Zero laughed as he led the way to the cabin, which seemed like a longer walk than it should have been. Some crew members on the yacht nodded to Zero as he and Johana passed them.

Ah, Cerberus Corperation technology at its finest, and this is no shuttle, but rather officially an escort ship. In all truth, this think could pick apart corvettes and smaller capital ships alone.

Zero leaned over the pilot's chair to bring up a holographic display. Normandy's AI, EDI or ED for short, picked out the display with lasers, effectively forming a nonsolid board that could be used like any normal piece of equipment.

Alright, it may seem complicated, but ED can help you out with anything, but good thing you have me here. Now, this will dumb everything down for you, no offence.

On the holographic board, Zero typed in a series on codes, and simple orders came up, and a picture of the Normandy

Alright, tap on the labled power core, then hit activate, now the engines and do the same. ED, power up the rest of the systems, and release flight control sticks.

The yacht began to hum to life as two flight sticks apeared, one from the chair's right arm, and the other on the left. Swing would allow them to move around. At the same time, foot pettles rose from the floor under Johana's feet.

Alright, take-off is easy for you today, as ED won't let you hit anything, but handle this think like a small freighter rather than a large craft. Cerberus is known for having hidden surprises, and the engines are much better than a stock version. Use the sticks to move and turn, and the foot pettles to watch your roll. Its easy.</sub>

[/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana looked up at Zero and frowned when he would dumb it down. "What can I say, it has been seven years. The last time I flew it was a little puddle jumping shuttle after I returned to the Academy after a week with my boyfriend on Alderaan. Lets just say it was even before my parents time." She said as she powered up the ship. She then looked at the controls and found the channel button. "This is Captain Kay on board the Normandy. Requesting permission to disembark." She said over the channel.

A women's voice came over the radio. "Roger that Normandy, pattern is clear. Have fun out there Captain.

Johana punched in a few commands and slowly maneuvered the stick. Each move was deliberate, but she kept the maneuvers tight like she was taught nine years ago. She then applied forward thrust and the Normandy took off into space. As soon as she was clear of the Enterprise Johana took a deep breath. Now all she had to worry about was traffic, not her ship. "ED, plot a course to fight course and project it on HUB." She said as flew. She turned to Zero standing next to her. "You really do like asses. Because this one has a massive one." She said as she made sure she did not over compensate for small course correction from the HUB projected path. She could not believe how far back the god damn CG was, the Nomandy pivoted almost at its rear. It was a consequence of to much mass in the engines and power plants crammed in the back. It would make it squirrely at max acceleration. "So, what are we going to be doing out her exactly? Because shooting and flying may very be above my skill level." She said looking up at Zero between course corrections.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>Don't worry about overcopensation. Despite the layout, this thing is easy to fly. Compensaters around the entire yacht keeps everything in sync, and the position of the engines allow this thing to swim effortlessly at top speed without twisting any stomachs. Drive it like a normal speeder, unless you want a real show...

Everything was perfectly planned and morphed out for the yacht, and no one knew a Normandy-class stealth star yacht better than Zero, who helped design the entire military line. It had to fly like a normal crafts, so thats how it was designed. One could be going at full speed and turn quickly, and not be jolted or swung around due to the positions of the engines, as they only ran at 100% thrust when turning, part of the compensation. Even now, at a slower speed, all four engines were in perfect sync with each other, and the rest of the yacht.

Flying is easy, shooting is as well. For now, focus on your basics. See that group of civilian crafts? Go give them a scare.

Zero sat in the co-pilot's chair, ready to take over if things got out of hand, which they shouldn't. A craft like this was much simpler than one would think. All Johana needed to do was relax and guide the ship rather than focus on total control of it.</sub>

[/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana looked at Zero when he told her to go scare civilian transports. "You joking right. You do realize that I am in fact the Captain of the Federation Navy's flagship and an admiral of the Federation Navy." She said as she adjusted her course to avoid traffic. She brought the ship to a stop just outside the combat course. She looked out at the course then at Zero. "Your joking right, I could not fly a X-wing through that at low speed and hit those targets. How the fuck am I suppose to do it in this." She said with a smile. She was no pilot, she knew this when she join the academy, she knew this when she dated Michael, she knew this after Michael was KIA, and she knew this when she joined the Federation.

Meanwhile back on the USS Enterprise X.O. Blackstar took the rookies to the briefing room. "Welcome to the Enterprise. On board this ship we take responsibility for our mistakes. Normally making a mistake while bad is accepted if you pony up to it and learn from it. When people try to blame others, cover their tracks or hide the mistakes is when shit really goes bad. In front of each one of you is a datapad with all military regulations and expected behavior for a navy personnel. I expect you all to read it and memorize what you consider to be most important." He said to the rookies. "Okay lets get started by getting your rooms and duties." He said. He started going down the list in alphabetic order. It was clear that the majority of the recruits were either pilots or mechanics. "Crew woman Hawke, Miki. Your assign to room 124 deck seven. You well report to the bridge at 1600 hundred hours for second shift on the helm." Blackstar said to the young women when her reached her name. He never did explain that crew members shared rooms with three other crew members in built in bunks and that they was no gender segregation. This was standard on most military craft of the Federation but if they did not know this it they would see soon enough.

Blackstar finished the going through the rooster. "Okay, you are free to go. If you need a map of the ship download one to your datapad for the computer in the back." He said pointing to the computer in the back of the room. "And their is one more thing. The Captain has made a request that all crew members on board the Enterprise spends three hours a week in their choice of combat training. This can be firing range, boxing, fensing, other martial arts or what every you can think of. This is not an order but simple a request. I will answer questions her for the next thirty minutes then you may find me on the bridge should you require me." He taking a seat and waited for the shit storm of newbie question.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>Its easy. I will give you a demonstration just this once, then you can try. Captain or Admiral, this is a civilian craft, so let loose and have some fun, and hold on tight.

Zero hit a key, sending piloting controls to him, and started to manipulate the yacht like no one else, showing expert piloting skills without a stick or pettals, as he was relying solely on a seemingly complicated console and holographic pad, and started to head towards the shipyards rather than the civilian crafts.

Warning klaxons went off as they flew literally into the yards, but there wasn't even a bump as the yacht moved effortlessly, showing its lack of overcompensation for how it was set up. After about 30 seconds, Zero sharply turned the ship around in a very small area, and rushed back out into the relative safty of open space. He was cracking up.

Life passes one away if they dont live life like that. If you really don't want to be here, you can take us back to your floating city.

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Miki listened to the X.O. as he some things and and gave them their assignments, and times to be there. She checked her watch, and had plenty of time to explore the ship. She didn't have any belongings to speak of, so there was nothing to pack around, and her spair uniforms would be in her room when she finally made her way there.

Just to make sure she wont get lost, Miki downloaded the map into her small datapad, ad left the brieding room, skipping happily down the hallway, seeming and acting like a teenager rather than a young woman.</sub>

[/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana looked at Zero and punched him in the shoulder. "You jackass. There is no reason to scare others like that. If you want a thrill lets go fly around in the asteroid field." She said in a somewhat upset tone. She quickly got up out of the seat and walked over to the back wall of the bridge. She pushed a button on the bulkhead and the blast doors closed. She walked back over to the pilot seat but turned to Zero. "There, now we are alone. No need to keep up appearances." She said as she thought about taking the controls. She reached out and placed her hands on them. "And if you start teasing me and calling me Admiral, I well gladly start calling you Gray Roma in front of everyone. I still see myself as a captain no mater how much more paperwork and responsibility was piled on top of it." She said as she took the controls and headed towards the asteroid field.

If Zero wanted a thrilling flight it would not give other Captains grief. She looked at the controls and then the field. "Ed, plot the course of asteroids using the active sensors and project the course on the HUB." She said as she took the Normandy into the field. She flew to avoid the asteroids, it was clear she had quick reaction time and reflexes as she maneuvered the ship. This was not to say it was a smooth ride that a season pilot would provide. On several occasion she was forced to preformed hard maneuvers to avoid asteroids and one case she even speed up and flew between to asteroids about to collide. It was starting to get really hairy as they headed deeper into the field but with ED provide the data on the asteroids Johana was managing. Pretty soon however Zero would need to take over and get them out if he did not want his ship damaged.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>Well, Gray Rumo isn't a name I use, and actually, most people would think of you as crazy for calling me that. I dropped that name a long time ago.

Zero leaned back in his chair as he let Johana take over again. He had his feet up on the control pannel up until the point where they were led into the astroid field. It was good up until they started to get in real deep inside the field, then Zero took controls again

Not on the... second date, I think it is.

Zero flipped the yacht around and began to head out of the field. It didn't take long for them to make it into open space... again.

Alright, i'll admit, that was a nice addrenalin rush, but you need to make an orbital insertion someday. Now, i'm starting to get hungry again. I know a good place to eat a few systems away, but I think that you need to get back to work. Hanging out with some air-cav guy like me wont sound too good to some people.

Zero laughed at his joke and let Johana take over again.</sub>

[/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana's eyes widen and she almost went into a panic when Zero called it the second date. "Second date, when did it become a date. And even so when did the first one happen." She said speaking at light speed. "I mean the first sit down chat where we got to know each other a little better couldn't be counted because I was your superior officer. So ya..." She said. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn't be dating, sure he was attractive and it had been a long time. But she was a Captain and he was a soldier, how long could something like that last.

Johana took the controls and started to take the Normandy back towards the Enterprise. "Anyways, you should not worry about my reputation. As my father always said; we all must do what we know in our hearts to right. We can ask nothing more of ourselves or others." She said with a smile. "If I like spending time with you then fuck the rest of the Galaxy." She based her life around this saying. It was the reason she left the Empire, the reason she joined the Federation and the reason Cutter only got an ass chewing for his little stunt on Nar Shaddaa.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>Relax, It was a joke. Jeez. If your gonna cruse around, then joke around. Besides, you don't seem much like the dating type of person to me.

Zero laughed as he put his feet up again, and his hands behind his head. Why, he wondered, did Johana not know when he was joking was a mystery to him, but he guessed only he knew the exact tone he used when joking.

Fuck the galaxy, eh? Sounds painful for either you or the galaxy.

Zero laughed again at his little slightly perverted joke. Right now, he just sat back and let Johana get use to his yacht.</sub>

[/sub]

[Crazy O]

Johana looked at Zero and just shook her head. "And your mind is right back into the gutter. At lease you were not serious." She said as she took the Normandy back to the Enterprise. As she approuched she flipped open a communication line. "This is the Captain Kay requesting permission to the Normandy in port hanger." She said into the microphone.


Several seconds later a voice came back over, "Welcome back Captain. We have received several complaints about the Normandy from civilian freighters. Also you got a message from Oracle." The voice said.

Johana looked over at Zero with an I told you look before she took the ship into docking bay. "Told you that it was bad idea to fuck with those civilian transports. Now I have more paperwork." She said as she climbed out of the pilots seat. Before walking out of the cockpit she walked over to Zero. "I had a good time today. However I got to go to work now." She said giving him a kiss on the cheek before walking off the ship.

[Sir Lord Ash]

<sub>My mind is always in the gutter, haven't you figured that out yet?

Zero laughed as Johana brought Normandy in for a landing. Overall, the Captain seemed to be getting the hang of the yacht, and did a smooth landing.

They will get over it. Its the Black Knights duties to raise hell and not get into trouble, and have fun with your work. I will be here taking a nice nap while I wait for a mission for me.

After Johana kissed him on the cheek, Zero went to his personal cabin located on the upper ridge of the yacht, and passed out as soon as his face hit his pillow. He could pass out anyware if he chose to.</sub>

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