Shakes' glare turned to Firley, his eyes burning with a silent rage. This man had heard what he had just said and had decided to ignore it anyway; he instantly decided that this kid needed a beating. He didn't even mind the nickname 'Tank': it was applicable and didn't take anything away from the tough-guy visage that he had spent over a decade cultivating, he just didn't like this guy; even less since he had a massive damned rifle that would be covering their backs when they went in.

"You talking to me boy?" He said slowly, purposefully and without pause for an answer. "Cos I'm pretty sure I just said what you're gonna call me." He stood up for emphasis. "In fact, you know what? I'm damn near certain I just told you my name..." He took a step forward, his grizzled forearms seeming to swell as he clenched his ham-like fists. "You wanna know how many explosives I'm carryin'? Lots boy, lots." His sunken eyes darkened as he lowered his head and ran his tongue over his lips, like a lion savouring the kill - and the taste - of a gazelle in it's sights.

With ominous silence he started walking towards the sniper, his veiny arms swinging like trees at his side, his face flashed with marks of red where he struggled to control the blood lust he was deeply mired within. The transport fell silent with expectation, the vacuum of noise being filled only by the soft, controlled breathing of Shakes and the steady grinding of his teeth. He hadn’t had a smoke in almost an hour, he was stuck in a tiny room with kids and a woman who was confusing him and his armour was already making him feel uncomfortable.

As he approached Firley one of the willingly anonymous marines tried to step in his way, possibly because he’d decided that he was going to try and make an impression as this squad’s bad ass. It didn’t surprise Shakes: every once in a while a rookie came along who wanted to take the easy route to respect by beating but a big dude like himself. Problem was that they never succeeded and he had to go easy on them so as not to cripple the rest of the squad before missions; this one was no different – with a flick of his left arm the man went tumbling to the ground leaving Shakes and Firley about a foot away from each other.

Nothing more was said, nothing needed to be said. Shakes grabbed Firley by the front of his fatigues and pulled him in close so that the sniper could smell each of the last twenty cigars that he had smoked, and the whiskey that he had downed earlier. His teeth were like slabs of marble in his mouth: wide and surprisingly bright for a man who enjoyed as many vices as Shakes. Was he going to hit this man? He wasn’t sure. It wasn’t absolutely necessary given he’d made his stance on the name issue perfectly clear already, but he kind of wanted to. It had been a while since he’d properly smacked someone in the mouth – although by his standards ‘a while’ actually meant a few days – and he was actually kind of hoping this guy would give him a excuse.

His fist rolled in the socket at his side as he prepared to turn Firley’s lights out, but another impact on the ships hull sent both of them stumbling in different directions, with Shakes barrelling into the group of men wearing helmets and sending them down to the floor with him. His face flushed: he had just been embarrassed by the damn pilots and their inability to avoid space debris, and given he was now in the mood to punch someone he decided they were the most deserving. He pounded towards the cockpit, shoving Firley in the chest as he went by and sporting a grimace that could have killed. As he burst into the separate room he was ready to raise hell having not considered the legal reprocussions of assaulting a pilot, let alone the fact that they would then be stuck in space with their only licensed driver unconscious. However he spotted Maxine and instantly the anger drained straight out of him as he tried to regain a semblance of self control. He was still furious but was starting to realise perhaps these weren’t the people to take it out on.

"Where the hell did you boys learn to drive?” he said with a degree of venom in his voice. "I dunno if anyone told you, but you’re s'posed to avoid the fuckin' asteroids.”