Fuzzybootz

No Turning Back - Into the Abyss

Collab with @rawk

Mackenzie returned to the Robotics Bay once she received a clean bill of health from Amara and the creepy medical droid Ruby. Her tools still lay scattered about as she had not yet finished repairing all the Droids set to be used for this trip. The team would just have to deal with one of the geological data gathering droids as the other two were still on the fritz. Quickly she began to pick up her tools and put them away. For a moment she hesitated outside the storage room before putting what needed to go in there away. She had to convince herself that it would not lock her in again. She would never hear the end of this from Amara as it was. A second time would be the death of her.

It only took about 10 minutes to finish her clean up. She now needed to find Chief TreVayne and convince him that she would be useful on the trip. Usually her presence was not necessary on trips like these but that didn't mean she couldn't find something to do. She smirked to herself as she thought about it. The universe was pretty good at putting her where she needed to be and she counted the crew of the Nyx to be lucky she had gotten herself trapped here. It would have thrown off the entire team if those data droids had not functioned correctly.

“Noah, could you please tell me the whereabouts of Chief TreVayne?” She asked as she headed out the door and towards the central lifts.

“Of course, Mackenzie. Chief TreVayne is currently located in the Hangar Bay aboard the R207 Beast Command Vehicle.”
Mackenzie took the central lifts down to the lower level of the Nyx and hooked a left. Several people greeted her as she passed them. She didn't recognise any of them, but she nodded her greets anyway. She didn't stop however and she entered the Hangar Bay. She headed straight for the Beast.

“Pardon me miss.” One of the guards, a tall, lean build, light brown-skinned man who looked to be in his early twenties was stationed outside of the transport’s main entrance stairway and held a hand out while holding a datapad in the other. The stitched name tag on his uniform read J. Edwards. “I need to see your boarding pass please.” His tone seemed firm but was still friendly.

Mackenzie froze in her tracks. “ Ahhh, about that. I ahh, am here to see Chief TreVayne about a little bit of a misunderstanding and why I don’t currently have a boarding pass. I’ll wait here, if you wouldn’t mind paging him for me. The name is Mackenzie, Mackenzie Newton.” She paused for a moment. “ From Robotics.”

“Storage Locker Girl” The guard said matter-of-factly as he began typing something into his datapad.

Mackenzie sighed deeply. No doubt that her predicament had spread across the Nyx quickly. She wouldn't be surprised if she became the butt of many security jokes.” Yeah, that’s me. Now, could you please contact Chief TreVayne.”

The guard smirked at the girl for a moment before nodding in acknowledgement. “Alright, just a minute, Ms Newton.” He said, as switched his comm on. “Chief this is Edwards at the front entrance, over.” The guard continued after confirmation. “There is a ‘Mackenzie Newton’ standing here requesting to see you about a matter regarding her boarding pass, and is fairly insistent.” Again, Edwards paused as he listened, and then a slight smile cracked. “Yes Sir, that would be the same girl.” He said, giving Kenzie a mocking wink. “Ten-Four Chief, I’ll have Ramirez take my post and escort her to you immediately, Edwards out.”

The Agent keyed in a few more things on the datapad before looking back up at Kenzie with his bright hazel eyes. “Well, looks like it’s your lucky day, Ms Newton. Chief TreVayne will meet you up near the cockpit in ‘Briefing Room A’, but don’t worry, I’ll show you the way.” He said, motioning his hand toward the steps leading up into the Command Vehicle. “After you, ma’am.”

“Much appreciated,” Mackenzie said as she walked passed Edwards up the steps she was directed towards. As she walked, she also watched as the hangar bay bustled with activity. There were a few Droids already in use and she took note of them. Amara had not shown her the inside of the bay during their tour but merely pointed it out to her.

Not completely sure where she was headed she looked back to Edwards. “This way?,” she pointed in the direction she thought the briefing room would be.

The Agent nodded and lead the rest of the way down the corridor toward the front of the vehicle, stopping outside a small room marked “Briefing - A”, and addressing the man standing inside who was currently leaned over a small holo-map in the center of the table.

“Chief, this is-”

“Come on over Ms. Newton” The Chief said abruptly while fidgeting with the device that appeared to be malfunctioning, it's holographic images showing up distorted and noisy. “Maybe you can figure out what's wrong with this damn thing.”

Edwards turned to Kenzie and smiled. “Alright...then I'll leave you to it. Good luck.” He gave her a quick pat on the shoulder before exiting back down the corridor.

Mackenzie nodded her thanks to Edwards as he turned to leave the room. She wanted to ask him out to coffee some time, but she realized this was really not the right time to ask.

Gavon looked up from what he was doing to address the woman across the table. “I assume you know a thing or two about holo-tech, so this shouldn't be a problem, right?” He said nonchalantly, with an expression was hard to read otherwise.“Oh, and by the way, welcome to the team.”

“Thanks Sir,” Mackenzie said as she turned her attention to the Chief of Security and casually walked up to the table. “ I am thoroughly embarrassed about the inconvenience.” She paused for a moment as she looked over the image projector. Then without warning she slammed the bottom of her fist into the table twice. The image flickered slightly and then solidified. Mackenzie sighed and continued, “ I'd like to blame someone else, but I can't. Its happened before and it more likely will happen again.”

It had not been too difficult for Mackenzie to convince the Security Chief that she could be useful during the away mission. He didn't seem against the idea to begin with but with knowledge of the misbehaving Droids he seemed apt to have her near by should anything go wrong.

Once that was settled, Chief TreVayne explained how the mission would proceed and all the rules that need to be strictly followed. Mackenzie nodded her acceptance of those rules even though she could only remember about half of them when he was done. She was then dismissed to go get the proper Id Badge and get outfitted for the mission.

A short time later Mackenzie stood aboard the Beast as it was in was in final preparations to launch. She was more excited than she thought she would. Her mind raced with all the possibilities this planet could represent for adventure and discovery.

“This is sooo awesome!” she said to Michael who stood beside her.

No Turning Back - Into the Abyss

Mackenzie swayed gently and hummed ,not so quietly, to herself as she worked. The sounds of the Martian National Orchestra reverberated loudly through her cordless headphones. She sat on a small stool surrounded by an array of tools and Droid bits with her hands wire deep into a droid.

After Amara had offered to show her around the Nyx, they spent a short time exploring the different bays of the ship. Along the way she made several quick notes about certain areas in which droids would be held or working. She also thought it was particularly apt to note the expresso machine in the break room. The last leg of the tour was Amara's medical bay. Mackenzie could see the sense of pride in Amara's eyes they entered. A creepy Droid stood at the back of the room waiting to be needed. Mackenzie had never liked the loom of the medical droids. It was like something from those very old thriller movies.

That was where Mackenzie left Amara and headed back to the common area. The Expresso machine called to her and she couldn’t resist. While she waited she was approached by cute Nyx Engineer. Mackenzie attempted to flirt awkwardly as she was not very good at small talk. They parted ways with the hope that they would see each other again when the Nyx returned from its mission. She then quickly found her way back to the robotics bay to get to work. had not taken her long to find a malfunction in a group of Droids. The malfunction had caused a sensor error and several of the droids kept running into the walls.

Mackenzie stood as she realized she needed another part from the storage room. She bounced to beat of the next song as she crossed the room and scanned her ID to allow her access. It glowed green as the door slid open. She was completely oblivious to the announcement made over the Nyx com system alerting the crew of immediate departure. The door slid closed behind her as it was supposed to be locked for the remainder of the away mission.

The ground shook as Mackenzie went to grab a spare part off the self. With loud yep, she fell backwards onto her butt. Pain seared her forehead and she reached up to rub it. Her fingers became slick with blood as she realized the spare part, now laying beside her, had cut her. She pressed a small button on her arm Datapa to stop her music. For moment she sat there wondering what the hell had happened.

Mackenzie grumbled as she got to her feet and headed back towards the door. She scanned her Id but the door panel just flashed red and beeped out in warning.
“ What the Hell?” She cursed as she tried again. Again it flashed red and beeped.

“NOAH, let me out of here.” She demanded. Nothing. Quickly she checked her data pad. NOAH it seemed was disconnected from the Nyx at that moment.

“Fuck!” It suddenly dawned on Mackenzie. The only reason NOAH would disconnect from the Ship was if the Nyx had left the Ark altogether.

In an act of pure frustration and desperation Mackenzie began pounding on the door in the hopes that someone might hear her.

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

Hey guys. So sorry but It looks like Im gonna have to drop out. RL has me too busy to post currently.
@poohead189

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

Ill have something up soon. It might be about a week though since I am packing for a major move.

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

No Turning Back - Into the Abyss

Old Friends Reunited

Part 2

Collab with @Subject Zero

Mackenzie almost gasped aloud when Amara embraced her. It was a mark of tenderness that Amara rarely if ever showed, and for a moment it caught her by complete surprise. Mackenzie was sure that she had only ever seen Amara hug her father once in the entire time she had known them. It wasn’t that Amara had ever been callous by any means, but being reserved was just a thing that Amara was. Mackenzie, her glasses pushed slightly off her nose, finally relaxed and wrapped her own arms around Amara.

“ I, uh, was transferred three days before, Uh, we left,” Mackenzie said with a hint of sadness in her voice. The attack hadn’t been discussed much since the Ark had jumped into Hyperspace. They were all still in shock and mourning. Even mentioning the Devastators brought some people to tears. Mackenzie had spent a few weeks aboard the Citadel. A seed of nausea sat at the bottom of her stomach every time she thought of the fact that it, like a few others, had not yet launched when the attack had begun.

“Seemed that the Vitae had an opening in Robotics they needed to fill” Mackenzie smirked. That was the truth, but she had a creeping suspicion that it wasn’t the whole truth. Her encounter with Michael only strengthened that conviction. “I am sorry; I should have messaged you as soon as I was aboard. Things just got, Uh, busy”

Amara couldn't help but feel somewhat upset. If Mackenzie had been aboard the Vitae for three days before launch, that meant she had been here for almost a week and still hadn't contacted her. She could understand it, though. Kenzie had a habit of getting wrapped up in her work and losing track of time. With everything that had been going on lately, Amara understood why it had taken her friend so long. Everyone was busy and preoccupied with so much other stuff.

“Well, you're here now. That's all that matters,” said Amara with the slightest smile. But then she realized something and she looked back at the Nyx. Mackenzie may have been there, but she was about to leave for the planet. Her smile faded for a brief moment but it reappeared when she turned back to her friend and then said, “We need to catch up but...uh..” She through a thumb over her shoulder at the ship and added “It's going to have to wait I'm afraid. I'm about to head down to the planet.”

“No, worries,” Mackenzie chuckled and pushed her glasses back into place. “That’s kinda why I am here. I Gotta do a diagnostic check on those FSX-30M Droids heading down to the planet. Wouldn’t want anything to malfunction on the very first mission.” She continued as she stepped up next to Amara so they could both look at the impressive ship.

“Dig the Uniform, by the way. Although, could they have made it any tighter? You look like you're gonna have to carry a big stick” Mackenzie jested even though she knew Amara didn't always find her jokes amusing. The last few minutes had been a little too unnerving and She wanted to get back to the way things had always been.

Amara ran a hand across her torso as she felt the form-fitting uniform. Her eyes dropped to the floor in mock embarrassment but she couldn't help but smile at Kenzie's joke. She actually liked her uniform, despite how tight it looked. It allowed her a full range of motion, which she appreciated, given how much running, jumping and climbing she did on an average day.

The uniform was pretty revealing in its tightness though and she definitely got some looks. Hardly anyone did anything more than look, however. Half because of who her father was and half because they knew Amara would probably kick their asses. She played along with Kenzie's joke though and said with a wry smile “Well, you know me. I have to do that even without the uniform.”

" Still the toughest Bitch in the Sandbox. If you keep beating up all the boys you'll scare them off the rest of us." Mackenzie sighed knowing full well "boys" had always preferred Amara over her. It brought back a memory from school, where a boy she had liked was actively pursuing Amara. He and Amara had dated for a while, but it obviously never worked out. It still stung a bit, but she never really faulted Amara. Especially since she never told Amara she liked the guy.

"So a little running and coffee when you get back?" Mackenzie said looking down at her datapad for a moment. She needed to figure out where the Droid storage was aboard the Nyx.

"That sounds great. We should catch up," replied Amara. "I mean, you know...if the aliens don't kill and eat me first." The young medic's dark humor showed again but even though her comment had been a joke, Amara couldn't help but feel both excited and a little anxious about what kind of life forms they might find on the planet. She quickly dismissed the thoughts for now though and half turned back to the Nyx. Motioning with her arm in the direction of the ship, she asked Kenzie "Care for a tour?"

"Absolutely!" Mackenzie said as she followed Amara into the Nyx.

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

@FuzzybootzPardon me if I'm misreading your post, but there's no reason to be annoyed or passive aggressive. We still don't need to make another thread and I won't if there are multiple people against it. I just brought it up because making another might give a bump to interest and let new players not feel like they're leaping into a race that's halfway done.

I'm here to make this fun for everyone so if you feel one way or the other, just let me know. I can keep it in this thread, I don't mind. If I misread though, sorry.

@POOHEAD189

Ahh, I can see how this might be construed as passive aggressive. I apologise. I was and still am honestly confused as to how a new thread will generate interest. Perhaps that's because I am still thinking about this fourm in a way thats a bit old fashioned.

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

Im totally confused as to why a second thread needs to be made, but whatever.

No Turning Back - Into the Abyss

“What do you mean I am out of Creds!” Mackenzie exclaimed in surprise as she stood at the counter of the local Coffee shop.

The Daily Grind was usually jammed packed full of patrons lounging about either before or after their work shifts and today was no different. The owner of the establishment, Lesley Mills, was a member of the Hydroponics team aboard the Ark who also had a fondness for all things brewed. Not only did the shop provide a plethora of different coffee beans, but it also had an assortment of teas.

Mackenzie looked down in embarrassment. Her cheeks had turned a bright pink as she realized the long line behind her was growing impatient. She quickly mumbled an apology and stepped back from the counter. Her mind raced as she tried to figure out how she could have over spent her credits. She pulled out her small data pad to open up her account. She sighed heavily as she reviewed the list of items she had purchased lately. She had always been an impulse buyer. It was something she attributed to her upbringing. She blamed her mother mostly. She had spent much of her youth watching her mother spend lavish amounts of money and subsequently Mackenzie never paid any attention to the cost of things. She supposed she had been doing the same thing as her mother and engaged in ample amounts of retail therapy. Though, she usually spent her money on computer parts and the like verses purses and shoes. Mackenzie accepted the fact that she would have to drink the awful coffee provided in the Ark’s free food stuffs for a while.

Just then Mackenzie’s data pad pinged. She was being paged to the hangar bay that housed the Nyx. It appeared that several of the Droids slated for the away mission were in need of a diagnostic check before heading out. It wasn’t a surprise that extra checks would be made for this very first voyage. Everything was likely to be triple checked as everyone's nerves were on edge. She couldn't help but think of everyone she had left behind when they had dropped out of Hyperspace and the Admiral had made his announcement. She hadn't had many attachments back there, but she saddened at the thought of never seeing Mars again. She may have lived on Earth, but Mars would always be her home. Even now she was reluctant to call the Vitae her Home.

Mackenzie quickly ducked out of The Daily Grind and headed for the nearest transport. She could have sent one of her team to check up on the droids, but she trusted no one but herself to make sure that everything was in working order.

Into The Dark: Mercenaries (Heroes of Fame and Fortune)

Seems that we are slowing down. Thing Is I would really like to write something longer than a few sentences and I can't really do that without some more direction. Perhaps a time skip is necessary to get everyone back together?