Strife: A Red vs Blue Fan Fiction

Stop and Listen [pt. 2]

May, 26, 2546

Mother of Invention, UNSC controlled space

12:02

♤¤♤¤♤

Italy and I didn't have much time left before we left when we started to look over our assignment, maybe an hour, a little less than and hour I should say. Neither of us, just judging from Italy's posture and her odd silence, were eager to do this with each other. It was hard enough on the both of us because of the strain, the tension, that was left between the team and I.

I found myself not able to speak to her right away, almost afraid to break that silence between us. It was just her and me; I hadn't seen a single member of our team since the brief run in with Germany in the Director's office a bit earlier. I hadn't even seen a single Alpha Company member, either. No one, not even just a worker roaming the halls. That's rare, seeing no one like this. Eerie, creepy, especially when I felt like anything I could do would get my head chewed off by a silent Blondie who only threw occasional glances in my direction.

"Ireland," I jumped at the sound of my name, my eyes snapping towards her in an instant. She closed her mouth and stared at me for several seconds, her brows furrowed in confusion. She sighed and shook her head, her signature smirk playing at the corner of her lips. "I've been looking through the assignment," I waited for her to continue, but she didn't stayed silent. Her eyes weren't on me, but on something in the seat beside me...

"Oh," I muttered, slowly reaching out to grab the mini-data pad, tapping the screen to power it on. I looked up at her. She just had a small smile on her face with her eyes closed. I scanned over the text on the screen, getting the general gist of the assignment. Sabotage a reactor in an former-Innie controlled city, basically.

"The city hasn't been inhabited in five years. Not recorded, anyways. But why here? There's been no insurrectionist movement spotted in or around the city since the citizens were moved out of there in the initial attack. There's no need for us, right?" I muttered the last several words, puzzled. I racked my brain to try to find the answer to my own questions, but no matter which direction I went, I couldn't find it, not a single one.

Italy nodded once, closing her eyes for another moment before looking back up at me. "There has to be another reason, besides the reactors there. But that's all he has specifically said here," she motioned to the data pad with a quick gesture of her hand. "We have never had a mission quite this simple. I'm not so sure how I feel about this one, Ira. It just gives me the creeps, getting pushed out to a supposedly deserted city, to destroy something that doesn't have any sort of value to us."

She was right, very very right. I fiddled with my fingers, twisting them around each other, tapping them on my leg, on the data pad, anything to keep my hands busy while I tried to think, tried to imagine, why we were getting sent there of all places he could send us that were more beneficial to the Project.

Also, knowing him, there was a reason for everything that not quite everybody knows about. He picked us, number two and number three of Bravo Company for a reason. If it really was that simple - go in, sabotage something, get out -, why not send just a single person? He has before, with small errands like this, to my knowledge, anyways.

It was always impossible to understand that man. I couldn't read him in the slightest. So stoic, so emotionless - unless it's anger -, so impossible to know what he's thinking or what he's gonna say. So... unpredictable in plentiful ways.

I stared down at my gloved hands for a minute or two. "It doesn't make sense," I finally murmured, looking back up at Italy, who's eyes were once again glued to the screen of the data pad, her eyes moving across each line of text over and over again, shifting in her seat. Her foot was beating against the floor and her fingers tapped her knee, playing out a silent song in her head.

She tossed the data pad to the side. Her eyes widened when she heard it hit the seat beside her and bounce off the surface and on to the floor with a loud crack. She snatched it up off the floor with one hand, closing her eyes as she turned it over to where the screen was facing her. She peeked open a single eye, then both with a over-drawn sigh of relief as she turned it to face me.

Perfectly fine, thankfully. I tried not to laugh at image of her terrified face as she heard it bounce off the seat and on the floor. My attempt at remaining quiet was in vain. I chuckled nonetheless, earning my self a glare and a grin all at the same time from Italy, who hugged the data pad to her check and stood up, tucking it under one arm.

"I guess it's 'bout time we leave now, Ira. Get your stuff and meet me in the hangar."

♤¤♤¤♤

A/n: Totally did not right this chapter to an hour of a Doctor Who reconstructure. Not at all.

No, about 40 minutes of one. XD

On another hand, I have to apologize again, don't I? For leaving when I have not even a full section of this group of chapters. Ooooh, it's definitely continuing for another.... AT LEAST two chapters. I'm sorry, don't kill me, I love you guys. You're allowed to virtually hit me if I disappear for another month. [ totally did not just spell mongo for month just then XD ]

I'm just having one helluva time trying to get my mind back into writer-version-of-Seekers. It's hard, lemme tell you. I've had MAJOR writer's block for AWHILE now, and I'm just now starting to get over it. My proof of that is my journals we have to do in my history classes.

At the beginning of each class period I have with this particular teacher, she assigns journals that we have to do and turn in at the end of the week. This last week, she assigned really, really, good journals, unlike her usual boring ones that I answer in a single sentence. No, just one of the five journals this last week took up a little more than half a page, so I filled an entire paper, front and back, with mini-mini-stories. The time travel one.... welp. I'll let you guys imagine what I, unfortunately, cannot explain right now.

Well. I'm back to rambling.

I hope you guys stick around for a PART THREE OF THIS SET OF CHAPTERS. IT WILL NOT BE THE LAST.

hehe, love you XD

-Seeks