Starspeaker IC (Closed for silvertongue217)

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera caught the towel with a laugh.
"That is a threat I can live with!" She told him as she dried off. She went into her room and retrieved a fine, sheer red silk robe, putting it on before making for the dining room.

"I'm famished!" She said as she took a seat. She looked down at the food and grimaced, not PEACe's best offering. She sighed, tucking in, it was the best she was going to get that night.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera caught the towel with a laugh.
"That is a threat I can live with!" She told him as she dried off. She went into her room and retrieved a fine, sheer red silk robe, putting it on before making for the dining room.

"I'm famished!" She said as she took a seat. She looked down at the food and grimaced, not PEACe's best offering. She sighed, tucking in, it was the best she was going to get that night.

 

[silvertongue217]

"If it makes you feel any better the kitchen will be done in a day or two" Jase said coming in having put on a pair of simple longue pants. He slid into the seat next to her pulling his own plate forward before tucking in.

"I dont get why your food is so bland any ways" Jase remarked looking at her and raising an eyebrow "your PEACe you can have the best chefs come on and cook for you" He reminded her eating and watching her curiously.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

"Some people already find my position excessive without the bonus of top chefs. I don't want to go crazy on fine foods when this is what we feed everyone else. And it is an expensive endeavour to keep all of PEACe up, running, fed and clothed. Remind me to introduce you to our accountants." Vera said with a shrug. "Besides, it wasn't until you came into my life and showed me what real food could taste like that I learned how terrible this truly was. You spoiled me! I grew up on this gruel." Vera said, taking another bite of her dinner.

 

[silvertongue217]

"well I think the goverment and the universe can handle you and I eating good food" Jase remarked shaking his head and eyeing the food in disgust. He made a mental note to request better food and to stock his kitchen well for the two of them.

"Ugh I cant eat this shit" He said shaking his head and pushing it away. He got up going over to the mess of a kitchen before bringing back some food from his ship.

"Sorry babe but cant do it" He said sitting down and handing her some before digging in.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera watched as Jase left the room, his lack of tolerance for the food obvious. He retrieved some food that he must have brought from the Falcon and gave it to her. She took it gratefully, and gave an appreciative hum as she tasted it. Much better.

"Would the PEACe food even cater for the nurtrients that your body needs now?" Samantha asked, appearing beside them, leaning against the table beside her.

"It is set to nourish the average person's nutritional needs," Vera said with a shrug.

"Right, well that isn't good enough. You need more than that nutrient wise. You either need to take supplements or get better food."

Vera waved a hand dismissively.

"I'm serious!" Sam said, waggling a finger at Vera in annoyance "You are already putting too much stress on your body, if you want to carry these twins for as long as you can you need to take better care of yourself."

"What do you mean for as long as I can?" Vera asked, looking at Sam with a frown.

"Twin pregnancies rarely carry to term. The longer you keep them in the better. I'll work out your nutritional needs now and see what we can do."

Sam fluttered out of view and Vera sighed. Leaning back into her chair.

"Jase, you mentioned you were a twin?" Vera asked. She hadn't wanted to probe the night before, but she was curious. She usually made a point of avoiding overly emotional topics with him, but their relationship was strong enough now that she hoped he might feel comfortable sharing with her. She knew she certainly had nothing left to hide- and she loved the newfound freedom of it all.

 

[silvertongue217]

"Samantha is right you know" Jase said nodding at her words and then back at his food "why do you think I keep feeding you my food instead of the shit PEACe has decided to give you"

"Babies and twins even more so take up more nutrients" He told her leaning back "you need to go see a doctor some one you can trust samantha knows all this stuff and can act as one if need be provided you listen to her" Jase remarked.

"I did" Jase said his brow furrowing at the topic "but he died in the womb it is rare but it happens" He said with a wave of his hand "You take care of your body right and that wont happen" He told her reaching out and taking her hand.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera's forehead creased at the thought of losing one of her babies. She had only just learned of their presence a month ago, and was yet to truly meet them, but the thought of losing one? Devastating. She squeezed Jase's hand.

"Alright," She said, bringing his hand up and kissing it before letting go and continuing with her meal. "Sam, tell me whatever I need to do and I will do it. Maybe when we reorganise my schedule we'll be able to fit in some time for proper meal breaks."

She turned to Jase.

"I do intend to tell a doctor, but I don't want to do that until you and I are settled back in here properly. I don't want it to be used against us." Vera looked down at her swollen belly and smiled faintly, "Though I'm growing at an alarming rate already, I don't know how much longer before people start to wonder," Vera laughed.

 

[silvertongue217]

"Oh this should be fun" Samantha said chuckling and shaking her head

"Be nice" Jase warned shaking his head and looking at her before turnign his attention back to Vera.

"Honestly Samantha can serve as doctor hell if I can get portable hard light technology working she could deliver the baby" Jase said ignoring the beam of pride on Samanthas face.

"Though and I dont like the idea of using our babies but us coming forward saying we are pregnant is probably only going to help the cause" He remarked eyeing her "the council seems adapt at spinning love stories at the very least"

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera took Jase's words in and looked at him, considering what he said. He was right, she had no doubt it would add credence to the tale of their whirlwind romance.

"I would just be concerned that it might get in the way of people seeing you for the skills and experience you bring to the position, at least initially? Maybe we can test the waters over the next couple of days, see what your reception is like?"

 

[silvertongue217]

"Oh I am by no means interested in letting the whole fraking universe know" Jase said shaking his head and snorting "but I can see the council wanting to you know for the whole whirlwind romance thing"

He sighed reaching out and rubbing her belly before closing his eyes "come on" Jase finally said getting up and stretching "We have a busy day together tomorrow apparently" he said giving her a ruefull smile.

"shall we go to bed?"

 

[SinisterSpiders]

"Okay, I am around nine weeks now, how about we give it another week or so before we drop another bomb on the council?" She suggested, getting to her feet and stretching. She took their plates over to the service hatch before taking his hand. She smiled at the way he rubbed her belly, enjoying the intimacy of the moment.

"To bed my love," she said, holding her hand out and looking forward to a night spent curled up in his arms.

 

[silvertongue217]

"The pleasure would be all mine" He said with a wink. He pulled her close giving her a long lingering kiss before he picked her up bridal style. He carried her into their room and gently laid her on the bed before waving his hand and dimming the lights"

"Samantha?" Jase asked going towards his side of the bed

"Krysten and I have both got our alarms set" Samantha replied appearing next to the bed "good night you two" She murmured as Jase crawled in and wrapped her around him.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

The next morning Vera woke to the sound of Kryten’s alarm, groaning and rolling over, hating that she had to tear herself from Jase’s arms. She sat up in bed as she watched him get ready for the day. It was early, well before breakfast time in the mess, but it was a necessary evil to wake up so early when one had a position of such responsibility.
“Hey Sam, you think we can have our meeting in here?” Vera asked with a yawn. Sam appeared in the room with her hands on her hips and a smirk on her lips.
“I’m to wait on the Chancellor in her private quarters now?” Sam asked.
“This whole suite is my private quarters,” Vera said with a shrug. Sam sat down on the end of the bed, legs crossed, as she observed Vera.
“Where would you like to start?” Sam asked, beaming with the knowledge that she would have something to occupy her huge capacity of processing space with.
Vera and Sam discussed her schedule and what appointments could and should be delegated out. There were a number of responsibilities that Vera had been doing that were normally part of the General role. Some Vera decided to keep; most of the ones that would involve dealing with the council bullshit. The others she decided would be a better fit for Jase; she had no doubt he was better suited to space fleet, weapons and technology inspections than she was. Sam also reminded her that now they were fully staffed, she could rely on the heads of each department (new and old) to resume their own responsibilities to lessen her load. Vera was pleased with this, it meant she would finally get some time in her office to sort out her own mountain of work.

Then Samantha got onto her case about the pregnancy. She decided it was better to go with vitamin supplements as well as better food. After getting a good long lecture Vera got to her feet. The moment she did the world spun and her stomach heaved. She just managed to duck to the bathroom before throwing up, her body straining with the effort.

"You should start keeping some plain dry food by the bed. Don't get up until you've had at least something small to eat," Sam said with smug satisfaction as she appeared next to Vera.

~*~

By the time Jase had finished his own early morning meeting Vera had escaped to her office, making the final alterations to her crew announcement. She had dressed in another of her looser fitting, full skirted gowns, well aware that there would be many eyes on her that day. She only hoped it would be enough to keep their secret under wraps until they were ready to reveal it.

"Mr. Crestfield and the others are ready for the crew announcement," Kryten announced, Vera signed and got to her feet, transferring the speech to an iris lens that she had set in when she arrived in her office. She got up, brushing the wrinkles out of her dress before making her way to the mess.

Jase and the council members were waiting for her outside the door, and she could hear the buzz of conversation from inside. Everyone had been told to report for breakfast on time due to an announcement, so there would be a lot of anticipation from them to see just what was so special about that morning.

"Ready?" Vera asked Jase, her eyes glittering with a smile just for him. The doors slid open and the chatter dimmed as they walked in. Vera tore her attention away from Jase, putting on her political mask and giving everyone in the hall a warm, open smile.

 

[silvertongue217]

While Samantha and Vera went over the changes to her schedule Jase got dressed in simple fatigues and went to the meeting point with Tomas. It was easy to find (thanks to Samantha) and he was soon ushered into what was clearly a planning room. Tomas and Boomer were already present going over maps and charts.

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you General" Tomas said coming over and shaking his head "I hear your officially take the position today"

"Thats what she tells me" Jase joked shaking his hand "and its a pleasure to meet you finally as well" Jase said nodding his head before turning to Boomer.

"Ready to get your girl back?" He asked nodding at the charts on display

"Hell yes general" Boomer said grinning and moving towards the charts

"Here is what we know so far"

It was a long meeting but a good one. Jase threw himself into the preparations and quickly he and Tomas fell into a repor with one another. Between the three of them a plan was hammered out that involved Jase and Boomer using the Falcon to rescue Avery. The canon that got Vera and Jase onto the station would be used for insertion. They would sneak in rescue Avery and then with her help EVAC to the Falcon. They would (hopefully) not need any back up but the cruiser would be standing by if need be.

"Let me reach out to some of my old contacts" Jase said leaning back and studying the plan "get a bead on her location" He said nodding at each of them before standing up.

"Done with the briefing" Jase thought to Samantha "How bout you guys?"

"All done here" Samantha replied "shes in her office doing paper work and is finishing up"

"Great I will meet her there" Jase thought standing up

"It's been a pleasure gentleman" Jase said to both of them before turning to Boomer "crew announcements is next after im done swearing in your expected to be right by my side promoting you to second in command is going to be my first act as general"

"Understood sir" Boomer said nodding his head

................

Jase reached the entrance before she did which meant that he was utterly alone with the council. He sized them up as they did the same making it awkward between them until Jase finally decided to break the silence.

"No reason to be all nervous gentleman" Jase said trying to hide the smirk "Its almost as if you think I am some past scoundrel come to steal your money"

The tension lessened slightly as some of them grinned and shook their head. He met them all learning their names and shaking their hands. None of them looked overtly disgusted by him but he kept a wary eye on them any ways. He was chatting with them all when Vera finally came up her mind clearly on some thing else as she asked him if he was ready.

"Ready as I will ever be" He said drawing in a deep breath before gesturing at the door "shall we?" He asked sliding walking in with her. The assembled crew shushed as they entered the whispering dying down as they caught sight of him and the council. Jase nodded at the security guards assigned to watch over them and followed Vera's lead as they climbed onto the small stage.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera led Jase and the council into the mess hall, climbing up onto the stage as those gathered fell into a hush. She looked out at the people, eyes surveying them as she took in the mood.

"The universe is in grave peril," Vera begun, cutting straight to the chase and getting their attention immediately. All eyes were on her within seconds, and she continued knowing she already had their ears. " On the fringes of chartered space sits the greatest enemy the universe has yet to encounter, cannibalising a planet in order to power an interdimensional portal. Known as Hive, these creatures wrought near complete destruction on our universe long ago, and they seek to do it again."

It was dramatic, Vera made sure she put every ounce of her own concern and dread into her tone. She captivated her audience with her words, with her gestures, with anticipation of what she would say next.

"This situation, I have explained to our Deserters. This situation I have also explained to the Rebels. But they don't care. They refuse to listen. That is what makes the schism of our force truly tragic. In our hour of deepest need, General Starborn has abandoned us. He is too busy with his political posturing to care for our great need to protect this Universe, as we all swore to do upon entering PEACe!

"To deal with this new threat we need a new plan. No longer can we pretend that our mission is about collaborating with other planets. No, now it is about survival. So we will fight! We will fight for the core planets, for the fringe planets, for all the planets and stations in between. We will fight for ourselves and those we love." Vera's eyes flickered to Jase before she continued, a smile of affection tugging at the corner of her lips.

"We will fight for the rebels, for the deserters, and for the people in this universe who are unable to protect themselves! We will fight for our universe!"

A roar of cheers and applause erupted from the crowd, Vera surveyed them with her eyes, daring them to take up her challenge.

"To do this, to ensure the safety of all that we hold dear we need leaders who care about the fate of our universe more than their own political posturing. So today we thank General Starborn for leaving us! We thank him for the opportunity to replace him with somebody who actually cares about the people we protect! A number of promotions have been made to fill gaps left by the deserters, they will be announced shortly, but the one I came here to announce personally is the appointment of our new General.

"Our new General is someone who cares deeply about every part of this universe, not just his own section of it. He came to us despite a chance of great personal risk, and because he understands the danger we are facing. He brings with him excellent piloting skills, deep knowledge of space, genius level skills in weaponry and other technology, but most importantly he brings his voice of honesty and humanity. He is dedicated to making sure no one falls through the cracks, no matter where they come from or what they have done. Our new General will be Jase Crestfield.

"Together, General Jase Crestfield and myself will form a partnership strong enough to see us, to see everyone in our universe, through the greatest challenges we have ever seen. We will face every challenge thrown at us, and we will be victorious!"

Vera reached out, bridging the gap between her and Jase and grasping his hand. She raised it then, turning to their people with an air of confidence and triumph as most of the people in the mess cheered and whistled their approval. She then smiled at Jase as the cheering died down, letting him know mentally that he was free to address the crowd gathered before them if he wished to.

 

[silvertongue217]

"wow your girl friends pretty good at this" Samantha quipped as she and Jase watched Vera expertly take the stage. She moved witgh purpose and dedication and in minutes had the assembled crowd eating out of the palm of her hand.

"Your telling me" He thought back to Samantha resisting the urge to watch her move. He kept his eyes on the crowd scanning and watching them as the Empress plied her skills. Not a single one of them looked bored or disinterested and the look they gave her clearly showed they were willing to die for her.

The same way he felt

He intertwined her hands with her and raised them trying his best to look charming as the assembled crowd exploded in cheers and laughter. He looked at all of them shaking his head as the weight of his new position hit him.

These were his men now

"me speak" Jase thought looking over at her before sighing "I suppose I should"

He moved forward clearing his throat and regarding them all

"I dont think I can say it better than our Empress here and I wont try to" He said gruffly "My name is Jase most of you know who I am but a lot of you dont know what I have seen I was there when the bastards broke through the gate and I saw first hand the power and destruction they have I came back with the Empress because I know now more than ever we need to be united to face this threat over the next couple of weeks you will all be seeing me you may all get to know me personally as I get us ready for this threat I can not promise you much but I can promise you we will be ready for these bastards" he said nodding before stepping back.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

The crowd listened with eager anticipation to Jase's words. There were so many of them that would be wondering what he was doing in their midst; a known smuggler, albeit one of the best in the universe. When he had finished speaking, Vera gave him a wide smile and a nod of appreciation before turning back to the crowd.

"I will now hand over to Councilwoman Fierra to divulge the details of the promotions. I thank you all for your continued dedication and service, and wish to extend my congratulations to those up for promotion. Together, we can conquer any challenge thrown our way!"

Vera stepped back, allowing Fierra to step forward. She took Jase's hand and let him out of the mess hall. They had a press conference to prepare for, and she still had to change her hair colour back to black.

"So, how was that?" Vera asked Jase as they walked back towards their suite.

 

[silvertongue217]

Jase shrugged shaking his head "I dont think I will ever be able to speak like you did up there" He said winking and bumping their hips together.

"Reporting as ordered sir!" Boomer said joggging up and saluting to him before nodding at Vera "Ma'am"

"Right by my side right?" Jase asked laughing at Boomer

"As you ordered" boomer replied returning the grin before nodding at Vera "Thank you Ma'am for helping with Avery I know she aprecaites it"

"We can give her the run down of our plan later" Jase said with a wave of his hand "we have a press release to get to Boomer let all the fleet commander know I want to see him tomorrow please"

"Aye sir" Boomer said running off as Jase and Vera walked

"So I suppose you have an official outfit for me to get into?" Jase asked

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera smiled at Boomer's enthusiasm. He had always been the kind that was enthusiastic, with more energy than he could sometimes handle. She figured it was what made him a good pilot. His excess energy was best harnessed in the cockpit- able to focus on a dozen streams of input at a time that would give most other people a headache. He was one of the best, perhaps even able to hold his own against Jase's skills. Vera was glad that Jase had chosen to promote him; he was truly deserving.

"An official outfit?" Vera snorted, looking at him with her eyebrow raised. "Not as such, I didn't want to dare try to get you into a uniform," She explained. "Though I did get you a little something, it should be waiting in our suite."

"And I have no doubt everyone will come to love the honesty in the way you think. My speeched are pointedly rehearsed, contrived and scripted. You can balance that. You have a natural charm about you...." She winked at him.

When they got back to their suite the person had arrived to alter her hair colour. Vera asked her to wait for a moment while she dashed into her bedroom and picked up the paper-wrapped parcel on the bed. She went out to Jase, holding it out to him, hoping he would like her gift. It was a http://g03.a.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1moTh...ont-b-Leather-b-font-font-b-Jacket-b-font.jpg, she had noticed he had a love of leather. She had the uniformers emboss his rank into the upper sleeves, five stars in a circle to represent his position of General. She was looking forward to seeing him in it. As well as taking it off him at the end of the day.

"I hope you like it!" Vera said, taking the seat that the hairdresser had prepared and allowing the woman to do her work. She watched Jase with keen interest.

 

[silvertongue217]

Jase rose an eyebrow noting her enthusiasm

"I am sure I will" He replied finally favoring her with a small smile. He sat down across from her carefully smoothing out the papper before he began to pick at it. He did not tear into it but rather picked apart the paper until the whole thing finally unfurled and the jacket was revealed.

"wow" he murmured breathing in the fresh leather as he stroked the material "amazing"

He got up pulling it out and admiring it, his pleasure clear on his face. He pushed his own jacket off pulling it on and smoothing it down as he grinned at her.

"Perfect" he said touching the stars lightly "and just right" He said leaning in to give her a kiss that made the hairdresser giggle.

"Yes Yes you look very dashing" Samantha said appearing aside both of them "Jase one of your contacts got back to you I think we know where Avery is"

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera couldn't help the smile that took over her face, her eyes raking over Jase in approval as he tried his new jacket on. When he kissed her, with the hairdresser behind her she stiffened, but the hairdresser's giggle softened her body yet again. Her heart fluttered at the display of affection, something she was still getting used to.

"You go," Vera said to Jase, "When I'm finished up here I'll come and find you. We should arrive at the press conference together. I hope you weren't too attached to the brown hair. I'm going back to black!" she warned.

 

[silvertongue217]

"You got it empress" He said winking and walking to the door before pausing to turn "I did always think the Empress was hot" He told her with a sly wink before stepping out of the door.

He walked to the press conference room pausing to check the coordinates his contact managed to give him. It was for a asetroid belt that had known imperial activity. It was a promising lead, promising enough that he sent the coordinates for Boomer and told him to arrange a recon of the area. Done with that he leaned against the bulkhead waiting for her to join him before going into the conference room.

 

[SinisterSpiders]

Vera laughed at Jase's words as he left the room, the hair dresser joining in with another giggle.

"He sure is dashing," she said, a dreamy tone to her voice, Vera hummed in agreement. "Oh! Am I allowed to say that about the General? Sorry Chancellor!" The girl spluttered, her hands freezing in their combing of Vera's hair. Vera laughed again.

"Honesty is always the best policy," Vera said with a smile, "just don't let him hear you say it or he'll get an even bigger ego!"

~*~

Twenty minutes later Vera made her way to join Jase in the conference room. Some of the council members had already arrived, and they had five minutes before the press would be allowed into the room. Vera had remained in the same outfit, but now had her signature black locks loose and flowing over her back and shoulder. She gave her hair a shake, looking at Jase.

"Still hot?" She asked, giving him a suggestive grin as she took the seat next to him. When she did, her stomach gave a flip and she felt dizzy.

"Eat something before the conference," Samantha advised. Vera frowned, reaching into her pocket before grabbing a pack of biscuits and taking one. She offered one to Jase as well.

 

[silvertongue217]

"I don't thinks its possible for you not tp be hot" he murmured opening the door for her. He followed her in noting the council already gathered. He took a seat next to her and laughed at Samantha's words.

"She annoying you yet?" Jase teased ignoring the finger Samantha gave him. He instead turned scanning the security forces he had put into place.

"Make sure they know every one is to be scanned for weapons before they come in" jase murmured to sa!mantha