Dishonourable Discharge: Grace Augustine

94

Ivory jumped, dropping her book on the floor as the door to her bedroom slammed. "Jake I don't know if you've ever heard of this thing called knocking before but you should give it a try."

Jake snorted. "I tried it once, it wasn't for me."

"What do you want?" Ivory asked, rolling onto her stomach.

"Your help. The RDA have landed."

The woman jerked upright immediately. "What?"

"I don't know how long they've been back but it looks like they've made some kind of base. There's a supply train and everything."

Ivory bit her lip. "So what do you need me to do?"

"I want to attack their supply chain. They're using a maglev, if we bomb the track then they're not going to be able to get what they need anymore."

Ivory raked a hand through her hair. "Where do I come in?"

"You're the only one who has military training, I want you to help me on the ground, we're going to strip the train of the supplies."

"Have you told Grace that you want to do this?"

Jake shook his head. "No. But the clan are all on board."

Ivory rolled her eyes. "You can't put off telling her things because you're worried she'll yell at you."

"I was hoping you'd be able to tell her," the man's voice was sheepish.

"Yeah I'm not doing that. Good luck though!"

Jake groaned.

"Go on. If I don't hear any screaming I'll know you didn't tell her." Ivory waved the man in the direction of the door. "I'll help. If you tell Grace."

"Fine. But if she murders me you're the one who's going to have to clean my blood up."

"I can live with that," Ivory picked her book back up. "Go on, go tell her."

"Jake is a fucking idiot," was the first thing that Grace said when she walked into the lab.

"What makes you say that?" Ivory asked, looking up from her desk.

"He wants to bomb the RDA's supply train like they can't hit back with twice the fire power."

"If their supplies are hit and we take whatever's left over they're not going to have as much to hit back with. And that's if they choose to hit back at all, for all they know we've got the upper hand. They've only just come back, the people on the side of the Na'vi never left." Ivory picked up her mug and gulped the last of her coffee down.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Grace's voice was serious.

The woman sighed. "I don't know what I think. But I know it's much safer than when we tried to beat the RDA last time. I really do believe that we could have the upper hand if we plan it properly."

Grace dropped into the empty chair beside her girlfriend. "Are you planning on going with him?"

"I said I would. Are you going?"

"No. I wouldn't be any help in that situation and I don't want to get in the way of everyone else getting in and out."

Ivory nodded. "I'll let you know what the plan is before we leave."

The redhead rubbed a hand over her face. "I'm not going to stop you from going but don't you dare get yourself killed."

Ivory cracked a small smile. "I'll try not to."

"I mean it. Bring a walkie talkie with you and keep in touch with me if you can."

"I will do," Ivory promised. "It shouldn't be like last time. They've not got the same number of people. Hell's Gate belongs to us now and they're not going to know the Pandoran terrain like the Na'vi do."

Grace gave a grudging nod. "I still think Jake is an idiot though."

"Sure you do."

The redhead was silent for a moment, biting her lip.  "If you're going to do this I have a condition."

"What?"

"You have to promise me that if things get too dangerous you leave immediately. I can't go through what happened last time ever again, it was the worst day of my life," Grace's voice was unusually earnest.

"I promise."

Grace slid an arm around her girlfriend's waist, pulling her as close as she possibly could even though Ivory was already practically on top of her.

"Are you trying to suffocate me in my sleep?" Ivory pressed a kiss against Grace's bare shoulder.

"I'm too tired to do that tonight. Ask me again tomorrow."

Ivory snorted. "I'll be sure to remind you," she was quiet for a moment, listening to the sound of Grace's breathing. "I'll be okay, you don't need to worry about me."

"I wasn't worrying," Grace said insistently.

"So you're just behaving like a python for your own entertainment?"

"Fuck off." The woman grumbled. "Alright I am worried. I'm scared shitless actually but you can't really blame me after last time. I don't exactly relish the memory of finding you in the forest bleeding to death."

"I won't go if you don't want me to."

"I don't want you to not go on my behalf. You're your own person and you can make your own decisions. Just keep in touch with me if you can but don't do it if it's going to distract you and get you shot."

"If I was the one getting shot it would make a change."

"I've only been shot twice," Grace pointed out.

"Twice is more than enough for one person," Ivory's hand strayed to the lumpy scar tissue that covered Grace's abdomen. "The blood also made Norm puke," she added as an afterthought. "He did wait until he knew you weren't going to die to do it though."

"How thoughtful."

"Not really, he got sick on my favourite jeans."

Grace struggled to smother a laugh. "Sorry me getting shot was such an inconvenience."

"It really was. And twice? You know that there are better ways to get my attention right?"

Grace couldn't hold in her laughter. "Oh you bitch."

The person in the next room thumped on the wall making Grace laugh even harder.