Sandstorm {Discontinued}{Rewritten}

10. The Legendary Screw Up

Sara was right, when she had said Rip planned on tearing the team a new one. The captain was standing in the bridge, leaning against the office door frame, waiting for them.

He scowled, when he spotted the team. Deserey figured he'd be upset about them starting a fight, but he looked even more pissed than she was expecting. She looked down, already knowing they were going to be screamed at again. She really hated the screaming...

Rip clapped his hands slowly, laughing bitterly. When he spoke, his words were cold, like a harsh winter night. (Which sucked, because Leonard was the only Cold she agreed to working with.)

"Here, here!" Rip cheered, sarcasm dripping from his voice like venom. "Now, you all deserve a hearty congratulations!"

The team moved into the bridge silently. Jax and Dez sat in the chairs, while everyone else gathered around the console. No one spoke, as they listened to their captain's lecture.

Rip shook his head, looking angrier and angrier the more he talked. "Not only did you fail to capture Savage, you exposed yourself and your powers to him, giving away the element of surprise for now and all of time." He threw his hands up in the air, fed up. "Well done, team!"

Ray sat across from Deserey, looking a little put out. She frowned, feeling the guilt settle its way into her heart, like a vacationer returning home, cozying up after a long, tedious trip. This time she really had messed up. Sure, she hadn't been the only one, but it still hurt, getting yelled at for it. Now, she was sure, Rip was going to send her back home. Now, he definitely knew she was useless. That it had been a mistake to let her join the team.

Carter shrugged. He glanced around the room, before speaking up to defend the team. "We don't need the element of surprise. We know he's in Norway, so let's find him and --"

Rip cut him off with an abrupt wave of the hand. He walked to the console at the center of the bride with a huff. "Unfortunately, we have larger problems than Savage," he hissed. "If only you would have listened to me about the dangers of upsetting the time line!" He was rigged, practically shaking with fury. Rip banged his hands on the console in frustration.

"What are you talking about?" Kendra asked, sounding fed up herself. Rip's attitude was clearly starting to annoy her.

Rip turned to her with a snippy reply. "Well, while you were busy saving Norway from nuclear annihilation  --"

"You're welcome Norway," Mick butted in.

"-- Savage sent one of his cronies back to the site of the arms sale," Rip continued, ignoring the arsonist. "Anyone care to guess what he found?"

There was a pause, as the team glanced around the room. Deserey frowned, not really sure what Rip was referring to. She still had her sand bag. Sara and the crooks still had their weapons. Nothing was missing.

Ray was awkwardly playing with the arm of his suit, when he frowned. Apparently, he had noticed something wrong with it. He moved his arm to get a closer look, before slowly lowering it again. "...Oops."

Deserey remembered the snap she'd heard, when Ray was fighting one of those baddies near the bomb. Her eyes widened, realizing a small piece must have broken off his suit. That's what had made the noise. But the piece was so small she hadn't noticed it amongst all the chaos. She sighed, her heart feeling even heavier than before. How could she have been so blind? Now, Ray was going to get into even more trouble because of her...

Gideon's glowing blue head appeared above the console. "I am unversed in modern American colloquialisms," the AI said. "Is 'oops' slang for 'oh sh-'"

"Yes!" Rip grumbled, cutting the curse off and sending Gideon's head into hiding once more. Deserey envied the robot. She wished she could just disappear whenever people started laying into her.