Another Encounter (part 2)

Posted on Fri Jul 13th, 2018 @ 10:34am by Lieutenant Bobbie Sue "Bobcat" Hunter & Lieutenant Soren Dillinger 'Speedy'
Edited on on Fri Jul 13th, 2018 @ 10:35am

1,368 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Caught in the Cracks
Location: Fighter Lounge
Timeline: Before "On the Fighter Deck"

[CONTINUED]

[OLD]



"If you were that much of a lady you wouldn't be a grease monkey." Soren replied quickly, adding a laugh before crossing his arms over his chest and continuing. "And I'm only one year older than you, Bobby Girl, so let's not go making up stories about each other just yet."

[NEW]

Bobbie Sue chuckled softly. "Really? I guess it's not the age but the mileage." There were a dozen comment she could make, but each one would only get her in deeper. She gave him a slow once-over and shook her head. He did look good, but she wasn't about to tell him as much.

"As far as mileage goes, I've got you there, but not for why your dirty mind thinks." Soren said with a smirk as he approached her. "When I left Starfleet I became a smuggler and thief. Got a reputation for being the kind of guy who could steal and get you anything. Naturally, this attracted some unsavory people, but it was the kind of people whom put me in my element. From The Syndicate, to the Star Empire, and even the Cardassians, I've work for almost everyone once, so me and Bettie have seen and done a lot. You throw my name out there and you're likely to hit someone whom I've worked for, owe money to, or they owe me money. However, you might also hit someone who wants me dead so its best to only drop my name when you know its gonna help and not hurt you."

She wondered if her Uncle Max knew about Dillinger. Probably, but she wasn't going to ask. "So, what brought you back to Starfleet?"

"A pair of handcuffs and a very disgruntled Security Officer." Soren replied with a smirk.

She laughed out loud. "Honey, if you don't want me going down the rabbit hole, stop throwing carrots."

Soren let out a laugh and crossed his arms over his chest. "Like I said earlier, it was either jail or Starfleet. After a long time of smuggling and stealing I finally got caught. They brought me up in front of a judge and he gave me the choice, which was kinda weird, because I wasn't expecting it. So, I took the one that would benefit me the most. I came back to Starfleet, under the guise that I would only have contact with people from my old life when asked to and I wouldn't break the law while a Starfleet Officer."

"How's that going so far?" she asked, sincerely interested in how he was doing.

"Haven't stolen anything, which I can't seem to decide whether that's a good or bad thing to be honest." Soren gave a slight smirk before letting out a chuckle and uncrossing his arms to slide his hands in his pockets. "Haven't punched anyone in the face as of yet, which is a good sign, although the Chief of Security does have a very punchable face so make of that what you will." He paused slightly before shrugging his shoulders. "At the moment, the only part I find difficult is people taking me seriously."

"Well, it's a good start," she said, grinning. "However, I can see people having trouble taking you seriously if they know you came here rather than go to a penal colony. And threatening to punch someone is not going to go over very well in Starfleet. Trust me, I have family who tried." She still wasn't sure how Max got as far as he did without ending up in a brig somewhere. Maybe one day she'd ask him.

"In my defense, if you met the Chief of Security you would probably want to punch her in the face too." Soren gave a slight smirk before taking a deep breath and continuing. "I was given the chance to come back and I took it. Anyone in my position would do the same thing, but to be fair, I originally started in Starfleet as a top pilot so maybe they are hoping coming back to my roots will put me back in my place, instead of dragging out old and painful memories."

"About that," Bobbie Sue smirked. "How good are you?"

"Good enough to avoid being captured for such a long time." Soren replied with a smile before walking over to a console and tapping on it, bringing up his file, both Starfleet and Criminal. "See for yourself. It's out there for everyone to see... and judge." On the screen it displayed his several achievements and records. It stated he was 2nd in his class and earned a Top Gun status. It also gave a list of his ribbons/metals earned, but what stood out was the Starfleet Flight Cross, the Combat Action, and his Purple Heart which had a link to another pilots file by the name of Tammi Grace.

Bobbie Sue went over to Soren and looked over the file, taking her time to read it over. When she finished, she glanced over at soren before following the link to Tammi Grace's CV.

Tammi Grace's bio wasn't as big as Soren's, but she was just as good. She earned several awards and commendations, but the one that stood out was the Purple Heart, which was awarded posthumously on the same date and for the same incident that Soren got his. There was also a photo of the two of them by their Valkryies. Something very interesting was the registry number on the side of Tammi's fighter was the same as the one that Soren had now. The photo also listed them as Soren 'Speedy' Dillinger and Tammi 'Starfire' Grace, the Starfighter Dynamic Duo."

Soren stood by Bobbie for a bit before walking away after she clicked on the file on Grace. It brought up too much memories, and seeing the Mirror Tammi wasn't any help either. He just remained quiet and walked to a table where he sat down and leaned back.

She saw the picture of the woman and stared at it. She'd seen that face before... It took her a full minute to remember where. Bettie. Soren's AI.

She looked at Soren, pain, sorrow and disappointment washed over her. He'd been in love with this woman. Was probably still in love with her as he'd created his AI in her image. She saw on his face that her death still affected him. And she realized that she was attracted to him herself. A man who was still in love with a ghost. "I understand." She closed the file and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

"Look, Kitten." Soren replied softly before adding. "I'm not exactly a simple guy. It's safe to say I am pretty damned complicated, as well as, broken on many of levels. So I'm not saying I'm easy to understand, but I do know that I'm one hell of a pilot and crazy to boot. So, that should tell you two things. I'm always gonna watch your six and I'll go above and beyond to get the job done. Unfortunately, that other me, has got my head all twisted. Seeing that face and their version of Tammi has put me in a tailspin and I can't seem to get out of it. I do know, and I can't tell you in complete detail because I don't know why exactly, but being around you helps me from hitting the pavement and burning out. You keep me from wanting to crash. You know what I mean? I hope so, because I think I don't know what I mean." He laughed slightly before shaking his head. "Forget it. It's too complicated."

She thought she understood, but as he said, it was complicated. How would she feel if she ran into the doppelganger of someone she loved as a Borg? She imagined it would be pretty hard to deal with. "So it sounds like this is a conversation for another day." She looked around the small fighter lounge. "I'm done here. Shall we see what else needs doing?"

____
OFF

Lieutenant Soren "Speedy" Dillinger
Chief Intelligence Officer

Lieutenant Bobbie Sue Hunter
Flight Leader

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