Ultraman Daxium

[scikaiju]

Finally reaching through the fist raining down on him he grabbed Kyrieloid by the back of the neck and pulled down. It was enough to get a leg up between them and flip him off. Quickly rolling over he got to a knee and fired off a flash bolt as soon as his opponent got to his feet and faced him. As he held his Stomach Daxium ran in and tackled Kyrieloid into what was left of the building. He punched and chopped at his fallen opponent as he listened to something Ken suggested, which he never done until now, so he back off and fired off another flashbolt, Kryieloid saw it coming this time and the bolt hit the building as Daxium quickly jumped back. Part of the building blew up in a bigger explosion than those watching would have expected. Kyrieloid looked at the burning remains of the house before turning toward Daxium. With an angry yell he charged the light giant again. Daxium was ready for it as he grabbed an arm reaching for him and twisted a bit as he flipped the combined being over his shoulder.



While he was on the ground Kyrieloid held up a fist that startled Daxium. Then a stream of fire shot out that the light giant barely avoided. Getting to his feet Kyrieloid grabbed Daxium by the waist and flipped him over his head. Grabbing his fallen opponent by the neck he hualed him up in the air and slammed him to the ground. Keeping hold of Daxium's throat he hualed him up again. This time Daxium bashed his forearms together and mode shifted into Power mode. Grabbing Kyrieloid's wrist he slowly removed his hand from his neck. Keeping his grip of Kyrieloid's wrist he pulled him close and lifted him over his heads. Quickly locating an empty lot close by Daxium grunted as he threw the combined creature at it. The ground shook a bit as Daxium put his fist by the jewel on his chest. Before he could draw in any extra energy to pull off the Giga Wave Kyrieloid shot up and fired off another stream of fire. Taking the full hit of the blast Daxium fell back to the ground.



Kyrieloid rushed in and kicked Daxium in the side to flip him over. Then he jumped on his back and wrapped an arm around his neck and started pulling up and squeezing with all he had. Daxium struggled to free himself the jewel started to blink. Eventually he got a foot under him and slowly stood up with Kyrieloid jumping higher on his back to secure his grip and add some more weight to the effort. With a grunt he finally stood up and reached up to grab Kyrieloid and slam him to the ground and pounded on his fallen foe a bit before backing away. In the safe zone he had set up so long ago Ken pleaded with his former mentor as he started to get up, “Come on Professor, just stop this already. We don't have to do this.” At the time Daxium tried to contact the light being that was mixed up in there hoping to convince him to do the same thing.



Finally he told Ken, “I'm not getting anything, not my compatriot, not Kyrie, not even the dark being he dragged into this.”



Ken lowered his head, “I know, I feel it to. Whomever they were before all this, they're not there now.” A tear started to fall down his cheek, “Do what you gotta.”



Nodding in the outside world as he backed up Daxium crossed his arms infront of him and shifted to Hyper Mode.Getting into a running stance he drew in energy and waited for Kyrieloid to finish getting to his feet as he extended the light stream whip from his finger tips. As soon as Kyrieloid was standing and turned toward him Daxium made the barest of flinches then in the next instant he was standing behind Kyrieoid who had a line across it's body. The whip retracted as Kyrieloid fell back and exploded. Daxium stood there with his head lowered for a bit before looking up and flying off into the evening sky, “Shiah!”



***
“I saw the orb over there,” Jess said as she and Ryo ran toward what they thought was Ken's location. They slowed down as they spotted him sitting on a rock. At first she was worried after seeing some of the hits that Daxium had taken during the fight. Then she got a good look at his face then hurried toward him with her wingman right behind her. She watched him, Ken didn't even reacted to either of them, Coming to a stop she followed his gaze to where Daxium had finished off his opponent, smoke was still rising up from the spot. She looked back at Ryo and gestured toward her communicator.



“I already talked to Hawk,” he said. Coming closer he looked at Ken who still didn't respond to either of them being there. “Bridge said the program never started, neither Richardson or his assistant were at Castle, they had a function elsewhere and Dr. Williams was in one of the labs the entire time. He apparently never heard something was going down.”



All she need to here was that it wasn't on, Jess immediately sat next to Ken and wrapped her arms around him, “Ken I'm so sorry about Professor Kyrie.”



Walking over Ryo put a hand on his shoulder, “I am too man, I knew he meant a lot to you.”



“Thank you,” he said softly as he gripped one of her arms and closed his eyes for a moment. He leaned into her embrace for a bit before he opened his eyes, “But he did it to himself, all because he couldn't let an idea go.”



“Some people are like that,” Jess told him as she used her thumb to wipe a tear from his face.. She looked over at the remains of Kyrie's home. “I don't know what Daxium accidently hit when Kyrie moved but I'm pretty sure all he had on that project is destroyed now.”



Ken looked with them for a few moments before getting up. As he did so he said, “That was the idea.”



Jess and Ryo looked at each other when he said that. She got up as Ryo went, “Ken, what do you mean.”



“I mean,” he told them as he turned around to face them, “that it wasn't an accident. I told Dax exactly where to aim that flash bolt. Kyrie tried to do something that wasn't meant to be. And there's probably somebody in this fucking organization stupid enough to try it again once they find out about it.”



Jess looked at Ryo, like she told him before he was defacto second in command of Monster Squad and technically could do something to him for destroying what was technically UNDF property. Slowly he nodded before saying, “Damn shame the creature moved, that was a million to one shot from the look of things.”



“Ryo?”, Jess said in disbelief, “You're letting that go?”



“Accident's happen,” he replied with a shrug. “Besides he's not wrong about somebody trying whatever happened here again. It's probably for the best that bit of info got lost in the battle. I'll tell Hawk privately, but I'm sure he'll agree.”



The three of them left for the vehicles that brought them here. While she was going over with Ryo about her riding back with Ken, just to make sure he was going to be all right of course, he looked on not believing a word she was saying. After a bit she noticed Ken had trailed behind them a little just looking at both the Scan Track and his car. When they got closer he stopped where he was, they stopped and looked back at him. Ken looked past them before asking, “What happened to my car?” Ryo started looking to her for help as he stammered out a answer. Jess just pushed him toward Ken as she backed her way to the Scan Track.

 

[scikaiju]

A couple of days later in Castle's medical wing Lunden was hovering around Timothy as he packed his bags. They were finally letting him go today but go where? His abilities were gone, Lunden assured him that it wasn't for good but he knew his face well enough to tell that he was lying to him. His parents practically gave him up when Lunden offered to help him refine his former powers and refine his control. Hell they seemed happy to get rid of him, and more than likely they weren't in a rush to see him again any time soon. And despite what Lunden kept telling him he didn't belonged back at the company either. So where does he go from here? The door opened and Lunden looked over as Captain Hawk came in for a bit, “I'm sorry to disturb you but there's a bit more paperwork for you to sign before they release Timothy. I told them I'd come get you.”



“My hand's going to fall off if I keep signing my name. I'll be back as soon as I can Timothy. I wouldn't put it past the board to sneak some sort of document that says I'm signing over control of my company.”



“All right,” he said solemnly. Lunden put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, at least that was probably his intent. All it did was remind him that he couldn't read people any more.



“I wouldn't say things like that out loud Mr. Lunden,” Hawk said as he held the door open for the man. “Somebody is going to get an idea. Timothy started to turn back to his bag when he caught somebody stop the door from closing out of the corner of his eye. Some red headed woman, who he thought was familiar, held the door open as she watched Lunden and Hawk walk off. Then she waved somebody into the room, Ken, as she finally let the door close.



Confused Timothy looked at Ken and the door, “What?”



All he said as he held up a finger was, “Test run on an idea she had.” He made sure the door wasn't going to open anytime soon before breaking into a small grin as he faced him. “And I wanted to see how you were doing before they freed you. That Lunden guy's worse the the guards at the royal palace. He didn't let in anybody to see you that didn't work for him.”



“I noticed,” Timothy told him. Although part of him was glad Ken at least made the effort to visit. “As to how I'm doing,how do you think?”



“It's gotta be rough,” Ken said.



“Rough?”, Timothy repeated in disbelief. “My abilities are gone, probably for good. I can't hear you or sense Daxium at all. You're as blank to me as that wall behind you.”



“You're not the first high schooler to make that comparison about me,” Deep down Timothy knew he meant it as a joke, an attempt to lighten his mood a bit. All it did was make him angrier.



“Don't you get it?,” he snapped. “My power is gone. I'm,” he did not want to admit this, at all, “I'm normal. Absolutely normal.” He sat on the bed completely dismayed at his fate.



Ken came closer saying, “Normal. I think I remember what that feels like.” Timothy just snorted and waved him off. “It's an adjustment. You'll get use to it.” He looked away not believing him. Ken saw it and tapped him on the head to make him look at him. Pointing at his own head he went, “You know who I got living in here. You think this was easy to get use too when it first happened? Let me tell you it wasn't, especially after I joined up with these guys.” Sighing a bit he added, “And Dax wanted me to tell you that he's sorry you got caught up in all this, but he's glad you're relatively okay. So am I.”



“I'm sorry,” Timothy told him, “I'm just scared.”



“Look Tim,” Ken told him, “I never dealt with you exact situation but trust me, I get it. Like I said it's an adjustment. Anybody will tell you that. But most of them don't understand the size of that adjustment sometimes. Maybe listen to those of us who have an idea about how big it's going to be. He didn't reply since the floor was so interesting so Ken went on, “So what are you going to do now?”



“I don't know,” was his reply. “Mr. Lunden says I still have a place with his company. He said I can't be the only one with these sort of abilities. That I could use my experience to help them cope.”



“Sounds like a plan to me,” Ken sat on the bed next to him. He studied Timothy for a bit, “So why does it look like you don't believe him?” All he could do was shrug. “I'm assuming you been in his head, has he given you any indication that you should doubt his word?”



A small, “No,” was his answer.



“Listen to me Tim, a good mentor can help you reach heights you didn't know you were capable of, I had somebody like that back at the academy that I lost recently,” Ken looked sad for a moment.” I'm lucky I got that now with Captain Hawk. I don't think any one else would have pushed me this hard to be better than what I was when I first got here. Unless it was out of his unit. Just give Lunden a chance. I don't think he would be this over protective if he thought you were just a project for him to get famous. Because a lot of guys would in his position.” Before Timothy could respond Ken put a finger to his ear. Then he pulled back his sleeve a bit revealing some sort of device, and clicked something on it twice. “Test's over. I gotta get out of here before Lunden gets back. Think about what I said okay.” He quickly went to the door. Opening it enough to look out out Ken opened it a bit wider so he could slip out before closing it.



Only then did he respond with, “Okay.”



***
In the hallway Ken lowered his head a bit as he past Lunden who was hurrying back to Timothy's room. So far he hadn't noticed him which suited him just fine. He passed a few more intersections before turning into the one Jess was waiting for him in. “Worked like a charm,” he said with a grin.



With a hand on her head Jess went, “I can't believe we pulled that off. I can't believe Captain Hawk agreed to it.”



Neither can I,” He told her. “But your idea works. We should celebrate some how Do you think Hawk would aprove a couple of passes on this short of notice?”



“I wouldn't press our luck,” she told him as she removed a small microphone and receiver from her ear. It was small enough that she could hid it with helmet or her hair if she had to. And it was connected to an inner ear receiver that was currently in Ken's ear. “But I'm shocked. I thought you'd want to try to beat the simulator again.”



He knew it was a joke. A well deserved one considering how many times he'd tried to beat since he's been here.“This is going to come out wrong but you're more fun than that simulator.”



“You're right, that did came out wrong,” Jess told him with a smirk. She put her hands around his waist while he drew her closer. “But it is nice to know I rate higher than that test.”



“You always rated higher, but I think I should give the test a rest.” Hearing this Jess immediately put a hand on his forehead to see if he was feverish. “I'm serious, I saw what being that obsessive about something did to Kyrie. I can easily see myself going down that road if I'm not careful.”



“Never going to happen,” Jess informed him. “You have one thing he didn't. Someone like me to keep you from falling off that deep end.”



With a slight smirk he held her a little closer as he said, “That sounds a tad long term.”



“If you play your cards right it will be,” she smiled back. “So I suggest you behave yourself.”



“Yes ma'am.” Smirking a bit more he looked around to see if anyone was around, “I do seem to recall saying I'd be a willing student.” Jess just gave him a look but didn't try to get out of his grip. “I'm ready for my next lesson if you are.” He leaned in to kiss her.



“There you two are,” Hawk said as he came around the corner. “It looks like the plan worked.”



Just inches from her lips Ken muttered through his teeth, “It's your dad all over again.”



“It's not that bad,” she said softly then they turned their attention to their commanding officer. “Yes it did, I'm just glad we had the equipment on base. It be a nightmare to explain why we wanted something like this.”



“And Lunden didn't suspect anything?”, Ken asked. He had a hard time believing the man didn't notice was being dragged around.



“Not as thing,” Hawk told him. “It helped that there was some more paperwork that required his signature, otherwise I have no clue on how I would have gotten him out of there. But I think a celebration is in order.” Walking forward he reached into a pocket. He surprised both of them when he produced a couple of passes.



Both of them took the offered passes but Jess still went, “Captain?”



Ken quickly spoke up, “Don't question it he might change his mind. Thank you sir. We appreciate it.”



Hawk chuckled, “After the past couple of days you had I think you deserve it. And a little company probably wouldn't hurt. Now those passes aren't for more than one day, so I expect both of you to be back here before midnight.”



Shooting off a quick salute Ken told him, “Yes sir.”



Stepping a little closer he pointed right at Ken. “You better behave yourself.” With that he walked off to somewhere.



Ken watched him leave and went, “What about her? She's going too.”



“I don't have to worry about her,” he shot back. Before long he was around the corner and out of sight leaving them alone again.



Ken started to go after him to argue the point. Jess stopped him and told him, “Come on we're burning free time. Let's go to the diner again, I'll get you the Philly Cheese steak this time around .” Getting a little closer she added, “And maybe, if I'm over my hang up by then, we can make plans for your birthday in a couple of months, but only if you're good.”



Ken looked at her. “Seriously? Just the hint of some birthday 'fun'?You think that's all it's going to take to get me to go with you?” She gave him a sly smile and nodded once. She took his hand as he put his arm around her shoulders and they they headed down the hall, “Well, you're half right.”



ED – Shinedown – Fly From the Inside

 

[scikaiju]

Episode 28



-----

OP – Mercy Drive – Burn in my Light





In a more mountainous region near an agricurltural farm a giant creature, that looked like a giant green mantis with three eyes that Brooks had dubbed Majaba, cried out as a series of explosions hit it and several Razor Wings flew past over head. In response it started spewing a yellow gas. Any effect it was supposed to have wasn't immediate apparent until it sank to ground level. There a few workers who hadn't cleared out yet started clutching at their throats and coughed as they fell to their knees. Before long some of the crops started to wilt as well. One worker in particular was trying to crawl out of the gas before falling on his face. Soon after a Scan Track came to a stop close by. A UNDF solider jumped out with a breathing device covering the exposed part of her face carrying a spare breathing apparatus sprinted toward the worker. Holding the mask to his face she turned it on before checking for any vitals, grateful that they were still strong. “Get going!,” she told the driver. “There's got to be more in there.”



“Right,” the driver said as he drove off. The worker started to reach for the Scan Track as it drove past.



“Easy big guy,” she told him as he got one of his arms over her head and helped him up. “You almost made it on your own. The edge of the gas is pretty close. We can get there on foot. They need to rescue who they can in the meantime.” He nodded as he clutched the mask to his face as they headed out of the gas. She looked back at the monster as more Razor Wings made another run.



“Has anybody been able to figure out where that gas is coming from?”, Hawk asked from the rear seat of Razor Wing One. “If we can stop it from doing that everyone on the ground can breath easier.” No pun intended he thought to himself.



Reid called in an answer. “I think I see a general location but it won't stand still long enough for us to get a lock on it.”



“Keep trying Commander,” Hawk told him. Ending the communication he looked at the pilot in front of him he went, “I wonder how things are going on the ground Bill.”



Bill nodded as he hit his communicator and opened a link to Razor Wing Two, “Ryo have you checked on them yet?” The “them” in question being a particular individual, and the only way any of them thought of to describe him without giving anything away on the chance they were accidentally overheard.



“Doing so now,” he said. He checked one of his scanners and activated a new function that was covertly added to all the Razor Wings just recently. On it was the location of all the ground troops and the status of the area around them. He located one dot in particular, watching as it made it's way to a spot behind the creature, as they recently planned, as it joined in turning green with the others. Mainly to the person behind him he said, “He's in position and the immediate area is clear.”



Nodding Jess reached into her helmet and activated the microphone hidden under it. “Ken it's show time.”



On the ground and away from the gas Ken reached into his sleeve and clicked a button on a device that was on his wrist a couple of times to indicate that he understood. Yet he still looked around despite the all clear, more out of habit after doing this alone for so long than anything, before reaching inside his jacket. “Let's do it Dax,” he said as he took out the Spark Magnifier and held it over his head.



Majaba turned around as a column of light appeared, soon to fad away to reveal the giant hidden withing. He took a quick defensive stance and shouted out his usual, “Shiah!” before charging at the monster. It stood there and took the shot as Daxium nailed it with a solid forearm shot. It's head rocked to the side but it started spewing that gas again. Daxium quickly jumped back to avoid contact with it. Then Majaba leap through the gas cloud and struck the giant with it's claws. Spinning around from the contact Daxium barely reacted in time as the creature tried to swing the claws at him again. Blocking them with his forearms He kicked it back and took a step back himself to fire off a Flashbolt that exploded against it's body.. Crying out in pain the creature jumped high into the air.



Daxium tried to keep an eye on it but it kept going up until he lost it in the sun momentarily. By the time he located the monster again it was already on the wat back down and slashed him with both claws as sparks rained off the giant from the impact. Grunting in pain as he recoiled from the blow he took a couple of steps back and Majaba jumped at him again knocking him to the ground. It leaped up high in the air again and pointed the tip of those claws at him as it came down. Daxium rolled out of the way as those claws impaled themselves into the ground. Getting to his feet the giant spun around with a kick to the head that rocked it again. While it was stunned Daxium quickly grabbed it. After a brief struggle he was able to get a good enough grip to lift the bug monster over his head and slam it to the ground.



It started spewing the gas again forcing Daxium to back away. Ready for it this time he quickly sidestepped out of the way when it tried that surprise jumping attack again. Majabe started jumping around the giant, trying to disorient him enough to attack again. This worked for a bit then Daxium stopped and jumped up himself, Flying straight up into the air and flying off. Majaba soon realized he was gone and stopped jumping and looked around. It turned around as Daxium flew in and slammed into it at full speed. Both of them crashed to the ground causing the dirt under them to rise up in a cloud, obscuring them from view for a moment. As the dust settled Majaba flew out and slammed into side of one of those mountains. Once fully visible Daxium set up and quickly fired the Dimensional Storm Ray, destroying the creature in a massive explosion.



Holding his chest for a moment Daxium looked around, trying to sense if Brooks was anywhere close by, before looking up at the sky and flying off, “Shiah!”



On the ground Reid was giving out orders to those around him. “Keep looking people. Some of the workers are saying people are still in the area because they couldn't get out in time. Anybody who had been in the affected area stay out of it for now. Try and lend aid to those we rescued so far as the rest of us head in and try to locate them. And try to see if you can get the last known location of those we're looking for while you're at it. The more starting points we have the better we can search the area.” The men in front of him quickly saluted and confirmed his orders. Once they were gone he added to himself, “And pray we're not too late.” Whatever that gas was it was pretty deadly. There was already a couple of causalities that they were currently aware of from it. And there were talks of burning the crops in and around the affected area as well.



Personally he couldn't wait for this monster nonsense to be over with already. He looked around and saw Ken come jogging up to him. “You're late Scott,” he said going into full commander mode.



“Sorry Commander,” he said as he removed his helmet. “I was making my way around what's left of that cloud. I didn't grab a rebreather in the rush.”



“That was probably a wise choice,” he admitted looking at the cloud still hanging in the air. “But next time take a quick moment and think about what you might need in these type of situations.” He gave him a light, friendly slap to the chest with the back of his hand. He looked away and didn't see Ken wince from the blow. “Go help with the ones we've gotten to so far. The others will tell you my orders regarding them.”



“Yes sir,” he said with a quick salute. Once he was gone Ken started rubbing his chest, yeah this one was going to hurt for a while all right. To Dax he muttered, “No offence buddy but can you react a little quicker next time. Hiding these injuries is starting to become a pain in the ass.” He looked up to see the Razor Wings were still flying around and tried to pick out a particular knowing he couldn't from this distance. Holding his helmet under his arm he reached into his sleeve again and clicked the device three times. The signal he and Jess agreed on to tell her that he was okay since they knew he was being monitored now. He rubbed his chest again, well relatively okay.

 

[scikaiju]

Later Jess walked into one of the work labs in the garage area. Like she thought Ken was there working on Windam again.While she was glad he had something to keep his brain occupied, at least something that wasn't the engineering final that he was still obsessed with despite what he said after the mess with Kyrie. But he was spending so much time with the robot part of her was wondering if she should be getting jealous of the attention he was giving it. A small, very immature part that she thought she grew out of long ago. But a part of her none the less, and one she wasn't listening to. She never felt that way back in high school when they originally dated and there was no need to start now. Still he noticed her quicker now than he used to back then so there was that. She offered him a small wave and a smile when he did so. He returned the smile but his hand were currently occupied holding what looked like one of Windam's arm. “Hi Jess, he said. “just give me a quick moment.”



“Take your time,” she told him as he started reattaching said arm to Windam. She came closer saying,“Since you're working on a different body part I'm guessing you and Bridge finally figured out that little problem he was having.”



“Well Bridge and Emiko did,” he told as he concentrated on hooking up the proper connectors. “I was right, it was software related. It took them a couple of hours but they found out what it was. One single line of code was the problem, can you believe it?”



“My dad always said the more complicated something was the easier it was to screw it up,” she told him.



He snorted before muttering, “Ain't that the truth.”



Going on she said, “So I can believe it.” Studying the robot a bit she looked over at him, still looking like a kid in a candy store working on it. “I overheard Bridge getting excited about something Emiko was telling him about Windam earlier. Something about an adaptive program, like he can actually learn.”



“Yeah,” Ken said suddenly looking excited himself. He stepped back from the machine going, “Watch this.” Looking at the robot he said, “Windam, be a bud and get me that screwdriver on that table behind you.” She raised an eyebrow as the Machine turned around and made it's way to that very table. Windam looked down at the objets on it then picked up the very thing he asked for. Ken pumped his fist slightly when it did so and turned back toward him. It came forward then held out the screwdriver for him. He took saying, ”Thank you,” then he held out a fist. Jess watched as Windam made a fist as well, then bumped it against his. Them both of them pulled their fists back while opening them up. Grinning like an idiot he looked over at her. He lost some of that grin to confusion as he saw her expression, “What?”



Still in disbelief she went, “You taught him to blow up a fist bump?”



“Yeah,” he went like it was the most obvious thing in the world.



“If Greenberg only knew before he gave him to you,” she told, mainly in a teasing way..



A little too defensively he told her, “I'm just giving him a little more personality. Besides he learned what this was, and some other tools.” Then he used that screwdriver on something in Windam's shoulder joint. “It's not like I got him screwing around or anything.”



“Ken, you know I'm messing with you right?”, she told him. “But let's be honest here, you might not have been the only person to think of it, but you're the only one who would have gone through with it.”



“Somebody else would have done it,” again a little too defensively, then he added, “And had the guts.” His mood changed a bit as he looked at her, “Oh since you're here I can I get you're opinion on something?” Did he he just ask for help? Ken never asks for help. He kept looking at her expectantly so she nodded, not sure what else to do. “Great,” he went on not seeing her confusion, “I've been thinking of adding some weaponry to Windam here considering how messed up he got the last time I used him in a fight.” Which was back in Japan as she recalled. Jess remembered how distraught Ken was when he found Windam right after it was over. “I was thinking about adding some sort of gun.” He took Windam other arm and held it up a bit. “Apparently whomever programmed him originally made him a righty.” She snorted at the thought. Ken actually look insulted, “Don't laugh, you haven't spent as much time with him as me and Bridge have. Ask him to pick up or do something he always does it with his right hand., so it only makes sense to modify his dominant arm.”



“You would have fit in at Tower all right,” she joked, well half joked at any rate. Making a robot right handed sounded like something he might have come up with if his talent was in that area. But he didn't even chuckle, he just gave her a look. “Sorry,” she told him, “please go on.”



“Any way,” he said after a beat, “I was thinking of maybe making this arm replaceable. What do you think would make the gun mount more stable, if I replaced the arm entirely or make it so he could swap his forearm with that gun? I mean they designed him so parts can be easily replaced or upgraded, so he's already modular so there's no extra work there to do. But I'm not sure exactly how stable that connection would be in a fire fight compared to the other way.”



Jess heard all of that, but she was still having a hard time with idea that the request was coming from him, “You are asking for help.”



“Yeah,” he went, looking and sounding confused.



She couldn't help herself, “But you never ask for help. On anything. Oh my God, this is blowing my mind. Did you even ask for help back at the garage you used to work at?”



All the while he had his head down, then he suddenly exploded with, “I'm trying alright!” His outburst caught her completely off guard. She had never seen him this upset about anything. A little more subdued he said, “I remembered how annoyed you use to get back in high school when I tried to do everything on my own. I'm trying.”



She quickly went to him, “Hey, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make fun. I'm just not use to seeing you looking for help on anything.” She looked over at Windam who was oblivious to all of this, apparently, she hoped. “I can see you're trying not to fall into old habits and I'm proud of you, I really am. Like I told you, since you been here I've seen you turn into the man I knew you could be back when we first dated. But you're asking me about a robot that I can barely comprehend how advance it is. Now if you want to talk weapons I'm your girl.”



“It's why I asked,” he told her. Jess had to smile at that



“Hey come here,” she said pulling him a little closer and wrapping her arms around his waist.. “How about I make it up to you with another lesson.”



Like she thought, that perked him up slightly. “I'm always a willing student,” he said as he started to lean in for that implied kiss. Then he stopped and looked at Windam. “Ah, could you look that way bud.” Again she was a little surprised it turned it's head. “Thank you,” Ken told the robot. Then he returned his attention back to her, “Now where were we?”, he asked as she went for that kiss as well.



“I figured you be in here,” they heard Hawk say as he entered the room.



Jess pulled away mumbling, “It is my dad all over again.” A little louder she went, “Can we help you Captain?”



“No I was looking for Ken,” he said, “I figured you'd be close by. But Bridge wanted me to find you and the others. He said you'd find it interesting.”



Standing next to him she could tell he tensed up slightly. She did so too, Did Bridge finally get it? With Captain Hawk waiting for any sort of response she nudged him slightly to get Ken to do so. “I'll be right there.” He looked at her for a moment, she could see the hope in his eyes before he turned toward Windam.



“Windam, go to your recharge station and top off. I'll be back in a bit.” Hawk was caught off guard by the robot's response as it nodded and headed for that station. Apparently he spent less time down here than she did. Ken started to follow Hawk but he stopped suddenly, “Screw it,” he said right before he turned around. Grabbing her by the back of the head he pulled her in for a kiss. She was caught by surprise, so much so it took a second for her to try and push him back fully aware at how uncomfortable Captain Hawk was getting at the situation. Not to mention on how embarrassed she was getting.



Finally getting him away she hissed at him, “He's standing right there.”



He looked at her and went “Don't care.” Then he started out the door. Jess didn't follow right away. Because if she did she was going to kill him.



He passed Hawk, who coughed into a fist a bit before saying, “With all due respect son, that wasn't exactly necessary.”



Ken barely looked at him, “With all due respect sir, stop interrupting.” And he exited the door. Hawk coughed into his fist again before leaving himself.



Jess still stood there a moment, looking over at Windam she told the robot, “I'm going to strangle him.” Then she left, trying to concentrate more on the fact Bridge wanted to see him about something than what just happened.

 

[scikaiju]

Hawk had lead them to their usual war room, like they had in the recent past for dealing with Ken's particular issues. He looked back and went straight in. Jess was about to follow but didn't when she realized he he stopped in place right outside the door. Ken stood there and stared at the door. Hoping it was what he thought it was and then again wasn't sure what he would do if it was, And Bridge wouldn't have called them all in if he didn't find anything.He looked back when he felt Jess start to rub his shoulder to help him relax a bit more. He reached up and grabbed her hand and gave it a quick, grateful squeeze. “Breath Ken,” she said softly, “breath. I'm not carrying you in if you pass out.” He grinned at her joke, grateful that she was there to try and calm his nerves a bit. “Come on,” she took his arm, “it's better to get it over with, no matter what it is.”



“You're right,” Ken told her as he took a deep breath.



“You might want to get used to saying that,” she added with another grin as they walked into the room. Hawk, Ryo, Bridge and Bill were standing around the holotable waiting for them. “Sorry, it took a couple of seconds to talk him down.”



“Completely understandable,” Hawk told them as they took a spot at the table. Bridge literally pulled him a little closer to the station he was at. “Well Bridge,” Hawk began, “we're here, what to you have.”



Pressing a few keys he looked at them and said, “Tell me if any of this looks familiar.” After a few seconds the table started to glow as a creature took shape in the digital background. Ken inhaled sharply as he saw it.



“Isn't that the... ?”, Bill began as he pointed at the image, then his mouth dropped.



Ryo finished the thought for him, “The creature we went after the night we had to bring Ken in.” All of them stared in wide eyed wonder as they watched several Razor Wings fly in and attack the creature. This went on for a bit before a Razor Wing got damaged and the pilot and wingman bailed out and someone new with a ponytail ran into frame, toward the action



“There I am,” Ken said scarcely believing it. “Here it comes.” He gripped Jess's hand in anticipation of what was coming next.



Richardson's voice came from off screen, “Mr. Scott.” He gripped her hand a little more, grateful she was gripping his just as tightly as on screen he looked back. “Good luck, to both of you.” Ken could hardly breath as he watched himself turn back around and raise his right hand in the air and let Dax free to fight the monster.



Ken couldn't speak as the video ended, none of them could apparently. After a few moments of silence Bill was the one to break the spell the video had on them, cautiously saying, “So we got him?”



After taking a moment to compose himself a bit Hawk tried not to grin, but couldn't as he said, “If he tries anything, we got him.”



“Yes!” Ken shouted out as he pumped a fist into the air after slapping the table. Letting go of Jess's hand he immediately grabbed Bridge in a bear hug and planted a big kiss right on his cheek.



Unuse to such a show Bridge tried to squirm out of his grip, “Come on now man.”



Ken didn't let go of him, “Bridge, you magnificent computer nerd, you're lucky everybody is in the room, because I would be doing so many things to you right about now.” And that caused Bridge to try even harder to get out of his grasp.



Not even hiding his amusement over the situation Hawk spoke to the others, “Could one of you rescue Bridge from Ken?”



“I'm afraid to try,” Bill said as he studied the situation. Ryo seemed equally reluctant to try even with Bridge giving both of them a pleading look.



Jess was able to get the poor computer expert free from Ken's grasp. But he immediately grabbed her around the waist , lifted her off the ground and spun around, “Yes!” Looking back at Bridge as he put her down he said, “You have no idea how much I owe you man.”



Wiping off his cheek he kept his distance as he told Ken, “Just don't kiss me again and we'll call it even.”



“I make no promises,” Ken told him, “but okay.”



Despite the embarrassment he was feeling over's Ken celebration Bridge still beamed a bit, proud of the fact he was able to get this. “I got lucky,” he told them, “I just happened to check the servers as part of routine maintenance and saw the briefcase was hooked in. I activated the search programs as soon as I saw it.”



Ryo spoke up, “And neither Richardson or his assistant never noticed?”



“Like I told you I designed the security protocol for that briefcase,” he reminded him. “And like I said there's hundreds of copies of this file in that hard drive because it backs up everything daily. I just picked a random one in the middle of the group to make a copy of, they shouldn't notice it any time soon.”



“Guys we have to celebrate,” Bill told the group. “Bridge pulled off the damn near impossible here and took a huge target off of Ken's back.”



“I never thought I'd say this,” Ken spoke up almost giddy, as he finally let go of Jess, “but I agree with Bill. We need to party.” Bridge flinched away a bit as He wrapped a arm around his shoulders, “And the man of the hour is right here.”



“I don't want to put a damper on the situation,” Hawk told them, “But how do we celebrate without giving away what we did?”



“Well think of something,” Ken quickly responded. To Ryo and Bill he said, “Do either of you have a major birthday or event coming up? No? We'll make something up.”



“What are going to do with the video?”, Ryo asked. “I mean we can't just leave it this computer. Somebody else might discover that.”



“You have this on a drive already,” Jess spoke up, “don't you Bridge?



Tapping something on the control in front of him he answered with, “Right here, seemed like a better idea to put it on this than just loading it to our servers. Here Ken, I'm pretty sure this belongs to you.” Unconnecting it from the holotable he handed it to her when she held out her hand. Jess studied the drive for a bit before handing it to Ken who took it with a shaky hand.



“Now we just have to figure out where to keep it in case we need it,” she told him. He barely heard her, his eyes were transfixed on the drive in his hand. After all this time, with this damn video hanging over his head. Now the threat from Richardson was still there, but now he had something to fight back with. Ken had never felt so free in his life.



“Civilian,” Bill spoke up, “Whatever you do, do not lose that.”



“Like I'm going to let that happen,” Jess told him, “Where do you think we should put it? It has to be a place Richardson, Stanberry or Dr. Williams wouldn't even think to look.”



“I...,” Ken began just staring at the drive, almost if he was afraid it would simply vanish if he took his eyes off of it for even a second, “ I don't know. I got to think it over.”



While they were talking Hawk looked thoughtful, finally saying, “Ken.” He and the others looked at him. “how much do you actually trust me?”



Caught off guard it took Ken a moment to respond, “I trust you completely Captain.”



“Do you trust me enough to hold on to that for you?”. Ken looked between him and the drive several times, finding himself growing paranoid all of the sudden. Hawk seemed to sense his apprehension and trued not to force the issue by holding out a hand. But Ken was fully aware that everyone was watching him intently, just waiting to see what he'll do..



And why was he hesitating? Hawk was the first one here to try and make him feel like he belonged in the unit despite the rocky start. Ken had no reason not to trust him. But he had this video hanging over him for so long he didn't want to risk letting it go. Wrapping his fingers around it he brought his hand to his head and closed his eyes. “I trust you Captain,” he said as he opened them back up. Still he was reluctant to hand it over as he finally placed it in Hawk's hand.



“I'll try not to break that trust son,” Hawk told him as he pocketed the drive. “I know that was hard for you Ken. And I wouldn't say anything if you didn't give it to me.”



“I would have,” Bill told him. Ryo quickly elbowed him in the ribs.



“Why don't you all go and grab a late lunch,” Hawk told the group.Turning toward Bridge he went, “Unless there's anything else you would like to share with the rest of us that is.” Again Ken got hopeful, yes he got the video, but there was the whole deal with his communicator that they ust found out about too. A simple shake of his head was all it took to shoot that hope down.He looked over at Jess grateful that she started rubbing his arm. Hawk looked at all of them and said, “Alright then, dismissed.”

 

[scikaiju]

Another day another cavern. Another defeated monster. Brooks sat on a stone, tossing a ball of dark energy from hand to hand, waiting for his masters to contact him. While he did so he silently sat there stewing about the defeat of Majaba. That one was one of his, much like the creature from the other dimension that snuck through when Bemular was sent over that he “boosted” to a more massive size. And much like that one he took it's defeat a little more personally than the others that were lost to Scott and the giant. It didn't matter that the mantis was the first, and still the only so far, creature that he had spotted when those same master once again gave him 'permission' to experiment with his powers once again.



And that more than likely meant they expected his creation to fail, just to buy themselves a little extra time to finalize whatever they were planning. One one hand the logical part of his mind under stood why, or at least a reason he told himself repeatedly. To try and tire the giant out. After so many battles something would have to give with either the giant or Scott. Something that might have happened sooner if Scott didn't reveal his secret to the others. He remember the attitude some of the troops had toward Ultraman when he first appeared, how some of them wanted a chance to take the giant down if given the chance, he doubted that had diminished in the time he was gone. But he was no fool, Scott revealed his secret right in front of Captain Hawk. He would most definitely be on Scott's side if the others discovered the truth, and the rest of the so called Monster Squad would be right there beside him, as would others. They were so lucky they lived at Castle, and therefore extremely protected. Otherwise he would have shown Scott the folly of changing the rules of their little game on him.



Of course there was another reason for the permissions he had been given that occurred to him.One that irked him just as much as loosing one of his 'babies'. It was an attempt to humble him. To make him remember his place as it were. And if that was the reason then they still didn't understand humans, himself in particular, at all. It just made the desire to defeart Scoot and the giant, and show them up in the process even stronger. He looked at the dark energy swirling between his hands. It made an image of the so called Ultraman. Snarling in disgust he clapped his hands together, smashing the image he subconscioulsy created into oblivion. “One day,” he muttered to himself, “one day Scott. That will be you then the last laugh will be mine.”



Sensing something he looked to the side to see the familiar sight of the vortex his masters used to communicate with him from. Getting off the stone he stood where he usually did as he waited for the shape of one of them appear inside it. When it did a voice said, “Avatar.”



“My masters,” he said with a slight bow, careful to hold back any sign of sarcasm as these Zettons did not appreciate it as much as other humans. “Am I correct in assuming the next creature is ready to send over.” He gave a quick glance of the space he was in. It wouldn't fit a full size creature, more than likely it was one that had to grow here as it happened once or twice in the past.



He was caught slightly off guard by the response, “Almost Avatar, Just a little more time is needed. And we highly appreciate you contributions to the process.”



Cocking an eyebrow at that particular statement he wasn't expecting that, much less announcing their appreciation? He had to have fallen into another universe at some point, perhaps during that whole mess with Kyrie and Scott not that long ago. “I am grateful for your kind words masters, but exactly what contribution did I have part in.?”



“For adding to the data we have been collecting on the giant.” Again he was confused. “Ever since his first appearance we have been studying him just in case a moment like this one came to pass. We feel we now have enough usable data in order to finally defeat him and take over your world.”



Now he understood, they were playing the long game here. An extremely long game from the sound of things, and he a mere pawn in said game. “From the beginning?”, he ended up asking. “Since he fought Bemular?”



“No,” was the answer. “From the one right after that one.” From the Gazoto they had him boost to a larger size. Still even without that initial battle, and perhaps including the one against King Joe since that was a creation of scientist on this side of things, maybe even the one against whatever Kyrie and Jamira became since those where rather sudden. Still it was a rather impressive catalogs of Ultraman battles to have at their disposal. “We are programming them into our latest creation as we speak.”



“And how soon will this one be ready?”



“Soon,” came the reply. “But first we have an experiment we wish to preform.” Brooks took a step back as the vortex grew in size. For a brief moment he feared this experiment was going to involve him. But instead of being attack he watched as the figure stepped forward through the portal. Brooks held up his hands as he prepared to stabilized the beings as he had to so many creatures before. But as it took the shape and appearance of the Zettons it held up a hand to stop him. Brooks watched as it studied it's other hand for a moment. It was here when he noticed the blinking light on it's shoulder as the Zetton slowly stepped away from the vortex that returned to it's original size. It looked around the cavern before returning it's attention back to the vortex, “It seems to be a success so far.”



A new voice spoke out, “Excellent. We will keep this portal open for future reports. Monitor you're situation until then.”



Brook took an unsteady step toward he Zetton, studying it intently. “You can survive in this dimension now?” Considering they needed him to stabilize their creations when they sent them over this was a bit of a shock to him.



Not even looking at him the Zetton said, “It is a new development. One we quickly advanced after your reports of one who was forcibly taken from us. If that human could pull such a feat than it should be a simple matter for us.”



If it was so simple why didn't you do so before now, but Brooks kept that thought to himself. Especially with that Vortex was still open. “A marvelous feat of science if I do say so myself.” He studied the Zetton with some apprehension, why did they feel this necessary to begin with? “But,” he thought fast to figure out what he wanted to say without incurring it's wrath, “seeing it in practice is a bit unsettling to see in person.”



“It is part of a new strategy,” came the answer. “We will show ourselves to the ones that ally themselves with the giant. In an attack right before we unleash our newest creation.” He looked back at the vortex when the Zetton did. He wasn't sure, but Brooks could have sworn he heard some sort of sound and a deep voice growl out a single word.



“Zetton.”

 

[scikaiju]

After having that drive in his possession for the past day Hawk had put it at least four different places in his office so far. Finally letting it rest in the drawer in his desk, but not the one he kept locked. The way he was figuring things he was going to need quick access to it when it came time. He always told those under him that seconds count in a battle situation. And in his mind this was no different, the field might not be something he was used to but it would have been a battle none the less, Hawk had every intention of using this particular “bomb” when the time came because Richardson wouldn't hesitate to use any advantage he had in the same situation.



The chime at his door going off made him glance at that drawer, something he was going to have to try to not get in the habit of. The last thing he needed was to give it's location away by accident. Considering he didn't even know who was behind the door at the moment since he finally had that issue that allowed him to hear what was going in the other room fixed after Janet became his secretary, it would be a even bigger issue if the person decided to get curious at what he was hiding. A worry for another time, he told himself. Since Janet hadn't told him somebody wanted to see him it couldn't be that important. “Enter,” he called out. Unsurprisingly Reid was the one on the other side. He stood as the Commander walked in, “Jason,” he greeted his Beta team counterpart, “what can I do for you?”



“Just came by to drop off a report that got on my desk,” he handed it over to Hawk who raised an eyebrow when he did so. Taking the folder he looked it over for a second before chuckling a bit. “I thought you might find it amusing.”



As he glanced over the report, and he did find it mildly amusing, and slightly familiar at the same time, “I see the good Doctor Williams didn't want you to feel left out in the super vehicle department finally.”



“Apparently,” Reid said as he took the file back. “I know I haven't talked to him about it. So either it was all his own idea, one of my men put the bug in his ear.”



“Trust me, Dr. Williams doesn't need anyone putting anything in those ears of his. After all the times I ordered my guys not to mention some sort of tank or drill like vehicle over an open line in case he overheard it some how.” Considering how he was one of the three listening to Ken when he was in the field that was already a lost cause. “Hell I'm surprised it took him this long to bring it up. He came to me with some prototype plans for the Alpha One almost as soon as the board finally gave it the green light.”



“I haven't heard of anything about it before now,” he said as he took the offered seat. Hawk took the one next to him instead of going around to behind his desk. As causal as this was there was no need to be so formal at the moment. He pulled a disk Hawk had seen out of the folder, “Speaking of plans, he says this as the initial plans for that vehicle. He wanted me and my team's input on it.” Hawk just nodded, Williams made a similar request when it came to the Alpha One. “Which brings me to the main reason why I brought this to your attention.”



Again Hawk just nodded getting a feeling he knew Reid was going, “You want Ken to take a look at it.”



“If it's no trouble that is.”



“Not for him,” Hawk said. “I'm sure he'd be more than happy to help you out.” Here Hawk paused trying to figure out the best way to say this.



“It'll just be me and him,” Reid said, reading his mind. “And maybe one or two others I know for sure don't have a problem with him since he's been here.Admittedly that's a pretty short list,” he added with a slight grin. A small joke seeing how much most of the people here treated him like a pariah when he first arrived. Fortunately it was a lot better lately now that he'd proven himself time and time again.. And in ways only a select few knew about.



“Like I said Jason,” Hawk said. “he'd be happy to help you. I'll ask him if you want, he won't say no to me that fast.”



“No need for that Gabe,” Reid assured him. “I'm only worried I'm going to catch him at the wrong moment, if the rumor mill is to be believed. Although between the two of us,” he leaned in a little, So Hawk did as well. “I'm a little surprised how this budding relationship with Wade has affected him. I mean for a while there I was worried he was going to go crazy from this place. Now he looks like he has a new bounce in his step.”



Rubbing his chin Hawk responded with, “New love will do that in the right circumstances. And I'm sure getting Windam to finally work right had a bit to do with that bounce too.” Not to mention getting a couple of big secrets off of his chest probably worked wonders too, not that he could share that last bit with Ried no matter how much he trusted him. “But I'm happy for them, either way.”



“So am I,” Reid quickly said. “although to be a little honest, I'm a bit surprised you're letting it happen with both of them in your main unit and all. I've overheard a couple of people say it creates a conflict of interest.”



“I think I heard those same people,” Hawk told him with a sigh, “when they thought I wasn't around of course. But I've always told my men that as long as nothing they do has a negative effect on the unit I'll stay out of their affairs. Besides if I broke them up then I might as well go after the other couples in Castle. And that is a can of worms I have no interest in getting into.”



“I don't blame you there,” Reid told him. “Most of the push back against the one talking about Ken and Wade are those same couples. Personally I think it's how touchy feely they been since they been together, almost like they were a couple of teenagers if you listen to the scuttlebutt and all that.”



“From my understanding,” Hawk began leaning back a bit, “They use to date, back in high school I believe. It could be they just feel into old habits Or it could be the new love thing like I said. Give them time I'm sure they'll mellow out eventually.”



“Or a combination of both,” Reid added. “But as you said as long as it doesn't affect the team it's not really our business.” He then looked thoughtful about something. “But I did want to talk to you about something else we talked about briefly. About the possibility of Ultraman being one of us.” Hawk tried not to show his trepidation. Because he was afraid he might have accidentally lead him right to Ken. And he wasn't exactly comfortable with the number who knew now as it was. “Was it because he keeps showing up where we are?”



He really choose his words carefully now. “Ever since he showed up in Japan.” And those were probably the wrong words considering the limited amount of Castle personal who went on that particular trip. Too late to back out now. “If he's not one of us then he's connected to somebody some how.”



“Yeah,” Reid nodded, “I highly doubt he's sitting in the sky somewhere just watching what we're doing and waiting for a monster to pop up.” Looking at him Hawk wondered exactly which parts of his brain were trying to connect the pieces in front of him. “I'm sure you got a couple of suspects in mind already since you brought it up to me.”



“One or two,” he told Reid. “But I don't have any proof one way or another. I made the mistake of accusing Ken of sabotaging the Alpha One with out any concrete proof once. I don't want to make the same mistake with the one actually helping us out against those things.”



“Completely understandable,” he told him. “And considering a good chunk of Beta still wants to take a shot at him I can see why.”



“I have a few in Alpha waiting for Richardson to rescind that particular order as well.”



Shaking his head Reid went, “It's a damn shame. He does so much to help us fight those monsters and this is the reception he gets. I don't blame the guy, whomever it is, for keeping quiet for so long.”



“Neither do I,” Hawk said, hoping that meant he hadn't put two and two together yet about Ken and Ultraman.



“Wish I could tell him I had his back.”



“I'm sure he would appreciate it Jason.” After a bit more small talk Reid took his leave. Once he was gone Hawk visibly relaxed. He came that close to blowing Ken's secret. He had faith in him and he didn't want to tarnish it any by accident. But again how did he manage to keep that a secret for so long by himself?

 

[scikaiju]

She was almost becoming a regular in the garage level. Almost as soon as she walked in holding a couple of cups of coffee the few that saw her pretty much all pointed to the lab Windam was in. Jess was taken back a bit but she nodded in thanks real quick since her hands were full as she headed for that door. Granted she already guessed Ken was going to be in there already but she was grateful for the assistance. Then she realized the door was closed, and there was no place to set one of the coffees that she could currently see.



One of the workers saw her dilemma and quickly got the door for her, “There you go.”



“Thanks Phil,” she said. Being here so often looking for Ken she did quickly learn the names of the ones he was friendly with. And to be fair Ken tried to do the same with the people on base she was friendly with as well. Fortunately these current friends liked him better than some of her old ones back in high school. She looked back after Phil closed the door behind her. Then she looked over to see Ken wiping something down on Windam. “Was something wrong with him?”, she asked when he spotted her.



Taking one of the offered coffees he told her, “Thanks,” and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “No nothing was wrong, just polishing him up a bit. Windam's has to look his best you know.” She rolled her eyes, yeah that was Ken in a heartbeat when it came to machines.



“I hate to burst your bubble Ken but he's still considered a battle bot,” she said sitting on a free stool.



“Doesn't mean he still can't look his best. You don't want to be all dingy looking facing down a bad guy, do you buddy?” Windam shook his head once in answer. Ken just beamed with pride as he looked at her, “See.”



“You taught him that,” she shot back.



He quickly held a hand up, “Get a stack of bibles, that was all him. Now I'm not a software guy like Bridge is, but that adaptive program they put in him is freakin' amazing. You gotta see this, I was going to show you the other day but Hawk came in. Windam where's your favorite toy?



“He has a favorite toy?”, Jess asked as Windam started looking around before moving in one direction. Then he went to a wall, bent over and picked something up. Walking back over he handed Ken a small figurine of some sort. Jess just stared, “I don't believe it.”



Taking the offered figure he showed it to her, “His favorite toy.” He handed it back to the robot. “I swear he damn near has a personality already. Hell, I thought I was going to have to leave Bridge alone for a few minutes when I showed this off to him. I can't believe they were just going to put him in a display case and leave him there,” he added as he seemingly spotted another smudge or something to wipe down.



She just shook her head at the display she just witnessed, “Okay, all serious here, but maybe you should have been at Tower all this time. Not that I'm exactly sure how much actual work you would have gotten done geeking out over everything.”



“Maybe,” he conceded although still a bit annoyed she brought it up again, “but then I never would have gotten back together with you.” With a slight grin he added, “Sounds like a good trade off to me.”



She got up and wrapped her arms around his waist, “I cannot disagree with your logic there.” He put an arm around her and gave her a quick squeeze. Windam turned his head which amused Ken greatly. She pointed at the robot, “Did he just think we were going to kiss or something?”



“Apparently,” he told her not even hiding how happy he was over the situation. Then he gave her a quick one which caught her off guard a little then looked around the room. He turned back to her smiling, “No sign of Hawk anywhere.”



“Well in that case,” Jess said as she pulled him in for a longer one. She pulled away going, “Been wanting to do that longer than I originally thought.”



“Tell me about it,” he said. “I was almost afraid we're going to be late for homeroom for a moment,” he added as a joke. She was about the say something when the dorr was pushed open with a bang. Instinct made her go for the weapon that wasn't there. Ken got ready for a fight as well but she stopped his head from reaching into his Jacket right away. Then Windam moved and stood in front of them and the person who forcibly entered the room. They both looked as Stanberry, Richardson's assistant stared at them. She felt Ken tense up as he snapped, “You ever heard of knocking?!”

 

[scikaiju]

“I believe I just did,” she told as she glanced at the door as she walked in. “I'm here to inform you this particular relationship is now officially over.”



“You don't have the authority,” Jess told her, “There's no regulation that says nobody in the UNDF can see each other.



“But Scott isn't part of the UNDF, not officially any way. Mr, Richardson has decided that his status as a civilian operative means...”



“Bullshit!”, Ken suddenly exploded and stormed toward her. Stanberry stepped back in surprise, and if she had to be honest a bit of fear crossed her face a little. Jess was a little afraid herself if she had to be honest, She had never seen Ken so angry before. And if he did he never showed it before now. “I don't give a **** what Richardson thinks. My personal life is not his fucking concern,”



“We both beg to differ Mr,”



She didn't even get a chance to finish. “You tell Richardson he can take his opinion and stick it straight up his ass. Sideways. You too.” Then Stanberry looked over at her with a particular look. She was expecting it, Ken having told her about the silent threat when he almost told her and Hawk everything after Brooks escaped. If she was expecting Ken to back down again she was deeply mistaken as Ken took a step closer. Jess couldn't see his face but she was surprised by the near venomous like tone of his voice as he told her, “Test me *****.”



Stanberry took another step back, definitely in surprise this time. “What the hell is going on in here?”, the Chief demanded as he stormed in. Although once he saw Ken he quickly got between the two of them. “You want to help me back him off?”, he asked Jess after a bit. That snapped her out of the stupor she was in as she grabbed his arm and dragged him away from Stanberry. “Now what the hell happened in here?”



“He was going to attack me,” she quickly said, “for no reason.” Which was a bold face lie but how were they going to explain their side of things.



Apparently they didn't have too as the Chief crossed his arms. “Really now, no reason you say? Funny, because I have at least five people who flagged me over who told me you barged in here uninvited and said something that royally pissed him off. And considering the short time I've known him he's been really even tempered so that's really saying something.”



“And this doesn't concern you,” Stanberry informed him realizing he wasn't going to believe her, basically dismissing him. “Go back to what little task you were doing before now.”



“Now she did it.” Ken muttered. Jess looked at him before looking back at the chief. The change in his demeanor was evident to everyone but Stanberry apparently.



“Little task?,” he said evenly enough but something about him finally tipped off Stanberry as she started looking less and less smug by the second. “She call running this entire division a little task. I will not have some over glorified secretary come barging into my section and start throwing her weight around. Now I'd suggest you walk out of here under your own two feet or I'll have the boys and girls under me physically throw you out.” She looked back and a couple of the 'boys and girls' as he called them were at the door. Most of them looking like they were just waiting for the word to be given.



“Mr. Richardson will not tolerate this treatment,” Stanberry quickly got out.



“Well then he can come down here and express his displeasure personally,” the chief told here. “And I'll tell him the same thing. Now get out of here. Phil, Connie,” Stanberry didn't even look back as the two that were called entered the room. She just got this look on her face as she smartly turned around and left, making sure nobody touched her. Finally back at the two of them, “You don't make small enemies do you kid?” Ken just shrugged his shoulders. The Chief just shook his head and left the room himself. Stopping just long enough to examine the door and uttering a small curse before leaving them alone.



Ken's only reaction to the situation was, “That felt way better than it probably should have.”



“Ken,” Jess began, “you know I have your back where Richardson is concerned. But maybe it wasn't the best idea to fire the opening salvo in this situation.”



“She looked at you,” was all he said.



“I know, I saw it.”



“I got sick of that threat,” he went on. “Even if we didn't have the video I still would have done that.” He reached over and took her hand. She gave his a quick squeeze. “I'm not going to have a pompous son of a ***** tell me who I can't be with right after we got back together.” Jess appreciated the sentiment, she really did. It was something she wanted to see since the days his brothers pushed him to get what he wanted. But she was fully aware of the **** storm this particular incident could cause. Then he got a look on his face as he looked at the ceiling as he said, “This is not going to be a fun conversation.” Then he hit his communicator, “Scott to Hawk.” Jess nodded, he was right it wasn't going to be fun but it was a necessary one all things considered. “I just did something sort of not good.”



“I've been getting some reports from the Chief and the garage crew,” he said. Ken just winced. Jess joined in as well. “You want to tell me what's going on before I get upset.”



“I,” he began slowly, then he just got it out, “kinda got into it a bit with Stanberry.”



“God dammit,” was the exasperated reply. Jess could picture the expression on his face just by the tone. “Stay were you are. I'm going to talk to you and any one who witnessed this personally about what just happened.”



“Yes sir, Scott out.” He looked at her and went, “So how screwed am I?”



She really didn't know what to tell him, “I not sure, hopefully calling in and telling him upfront instead of trying to hide things will help. But I wouldn't bet on it.” Ken lowered his head. Hopefully Hawk would believe the two of them and any of those who witnessed what happened

 

[scikaiju]

Hawk had to reluctantly give Ken credit for one thing, he didn't do anything small. And getting into a verbal confrontation with Stanberry was the very definition of a big one. And now he had to be the one to deal with some of the fall out. Right now Ken was in his office waiting for this particular meeting to be over with. And if he was smart he'd stay there until he got back. Normally Hawk would have dragged him along, or at least Jessica, to get both parties involved in fixing the situation. But considering the nature of the situation, and the fact he noticed Jessica's hand hover around the general area her gun was in the field, Hawk felt it was best to leave the two of them out of this. And if what they and the others in the hanger told him was true then more level heads were going to be needed.



Still he wasn't going to walk into this particular lion's den by himself. He didn't even have to make the request, Reid sought him out after having heard what happened., Hawk wouldn't have been surprised if half of Castle heard it by now. And he halfway expected the other half to hear it within the next five minutes or so. But he was grateful Reid volunteered to join him in the meeting. As it was he rather face down one of those giant creatures alone with a half loaded six shooter at this point. And the rather rough patch they had right after Joe's death and the run around with Ken in the beginning was still fresh in his mind as well. He tried not to think about how he treated Ken this entire time, because if he did he would've head right back to his office and grab that drive.



Reid, while not fully aware of the exact details, seemed to sense the inner turmoil he was feeling. “At least there's one good thing,” he said as they reached the door. “things probably won't go as bad as when we confronted Brooks.”



Hawk offered a weak smile, “Never assume anything.” Because the fall out could be much, much worse but he didn't share that thought with him. Opening the door without any preamble they walked right in. Like he suspected Stanberry wasn't in sight. More than likely she was in the other room with Richardson. “Once more into the breach,” Hawk said as he headed for the door that lead to Richardson's main office. Not even knocking he opened the door and walked inside seeing Richardson sitting behind his desk with Stanberry by his side. Reid came in right after and stood next to him as each side studied the other. Breaking the silence Hawk calmly said, “Mr. Richardson, I assume you're aware of the reason I'm here.”



“Yes,” he said leaning back a bit, “a little incident that's been blown out of proportions. Or one aggravated by Scott if you want to get more specific.”



“Funny,” Hawk went taking a couple steps forward. “The way I hear it Stanberry was the aggressor in this situation according to the witnesses I've talked too, including the Chief . And if what they all claiming is true than I'm not sure I can't fully fault Ken for aggravating, as you say, the situation. Now I've already reprimanded Ken for his actions for this situations.”



“I hope you'd do morer than reprimaned him,” Richardson interrupted. “Telling Mrs Stanberry her to fight him him of all thing. What kind of man would say that to a woman.”



“Even if said woman is your bodyguard?”, Reid chimed in. Richardson shot him a look. To his credit Reid held his ground. Hawk hadn't seen a whole lot of people do that for even a second.



“Actually according to Ken,” Hawk quickly cut in before Richardson could respond to him verbally, “His exact words were 'test me' and a particular word generally used to describe a female dog.”



Reid spoke up again, “Since the word going around is that she barged in and told Ken and Wade that their relationship was over per your orders I'd be pretty pissed off as well.”



“I highly doubt she barged in,” Richardson told them.



“Hawk to Bridge,” he said hitting his communicator, “Would you please transmit the footage you found to Richardson's office.” Maybe it wasn't the footage he used to blackmail Ken, but if it would wipe the look of Richardson's face it would be just as good. Not even asking permission he reached over and hit a few switches that activated a hidden view screen in the wall. He stepped back as the footage from the lab started to play. Hawk eyed Richardson the entire time. Naturally he did look away when Stanberry shoved the door in. He turned to Reid. “What did that look like to you?”



“Looked like somebody barging in to me,” Reid told him. Stanberry started to reach for the controls, “No don't stop it yet, here comes the part everybody's talking about.” They watched as Ken walked straight up to Stanberry. Then she looked over at Jess. Here Reid stopped the footage himself. “Now I don't know exactly what's going on here, but that look she's giving Wade here has threat written all over it.”



“In your opinion Commander,” Richardson snapped at him.



“Apparently Ken's as well,” Hawk spoke back up, “since that's when he said what he did. And if I'm being honest I'm seeing a threat in that look as well.”



“So she went a little over board,” was all Richardson could respond with.



“That's more than a little over board,” Hawk told him. “And I don't even know were to begin with this apparent ruling you made over their relationship.”



“It's not you concern Captain, and I'm only using that term for the moment,”



Hawk didn't even blink at the thinly veil threat “And I don't take kindly to the offices interfering with the people under me. They are my concern not yours.”



“Commander,” he said addressing Reid, “perhaps if you were in total command...”



Reid quickly cut off that line of thinking, “You don't want to know the fight I'd be putting up.” Hawk fought hard to keep the smirk off his face as Richardson started sputtering.



“The way I see it,” Hawk told him, “that particular decree had no legs to begin with, because you're either targeting one man. Which would bring you a whole mess of legal problems no matter how hard you tried to spin it. Or you're telling everybody involved with somebody not part of the UNDF that they can't be with that person.”



“That is preposterous Captain.”



“I don't think so. Bridge found that particulat addition you're getting ready to propose to the board to add to the charter. I've read it over several times before I came here, that's exactly how it reads. And the fact you're assistant here tried to enforce it before it was even ratified would add to those legal woes.”



“And we didn't even bring up those who are married to those outside the organization,” Reid added. “While I won't speak for Captain Hawk, I personally would be directing people to send all those lawyers fees from the divorces directly toward you and the board. And seeing how our legal team has spouses outside the UNDF I'm sort of doubting they would be all that willing to help you mediate those matters.”



“Oh I'm sure one or two would do their job,” Hawk joined in. At his desk Richardson's face was getting redder and redder by the second. “Likely not very well but they would do the job.”


“What do the two of you want?!”, Richardson exploded as he stood from his chair. Hawk put his hands on the desk and leaned in so he looked him right in the eyes. Showing him he wasn't impressed at this display of anger at all. After he learned the truth about what happened to Joe, why Ken was really part of his team, no he was going to have to do a lot more than this to get Hawk's attention like he used to.



Calmly he replied with, “What we want if for the higher ups to stop messing with the men under us.”



“Scott isn't under you,” he sneered. Hawk slapping his hand on the desk caught Richardson by surprise as he sat back down at the look he was getting.



“The hell he's not,” Hawk told him. “You said the Civilian Operative program was a second chance. I remember that like it was yesterday. An opportunity for someone who originally fell through the cracks. Ken has more than lived up to that opportunity. Me, Reid, the Chief everybody on base thinks so. You are the first one I know of to say otherwise.”



“I think he's the only person in Castle who thinks that,” Reid said. He didn't wither either as Richardson turn his glare toward him. Like Hawk he didn't looked exactly impressed with the display directed toward him. Reid looked over at Stanberry, “Before I forget,” he reached into a pocket and put a slip of paper on the table and slid it toward her, “It's from the Chief. The bill to fix the door. I believe his exact word were 'She broke it she can damn well pay for it.'”



“Only seems fair,” Hawk said with a shrug when she looked at him. “So what's it going to be? Are you going to back off Ken or do I tell Bridge to go ahead and scratch a particular itch he's been having since Brooks got away? Because he sure there's some secrets still to be discovered.”



His face damn near purple Richardson angrily said, “Fine, I'll forget about that new addendum to the charter, and I'll leave Scott alone. But I will be there when this blows up in your face Captain.”



“I'm sure you think it will,” Hawk told him. “Good day sir.” not even waiting for a response he turned around and lead Reid out of the room. Once out of the hallway he stopped and looked back at the door. “Is it wrong that felt good?”



Reid started shaking his head, “Gabe I knew you had a set but damn that was something else. What if he called your bluff about Bridge?”