Last Days of Fidenef - Part Two: An Uneasy Exodus
02 Jan 2018XxHyde840xX
Hyde woke up with a dry mouth and a splitting headache, and rolled over with a groan. A quick glance at the clock on the nightstand, the familiar, low hum of the air-circulation system, and a slight smell of dog told him he was in his own bed, in the small loft apartment above The Swordfish Bar and Grill.19:56...Gods it's getting late...at least I made it home last night...
At exactly 23:30 Galactic Standard Time on December 31, Fidenef Alliance representatives had shown up at The Swordfish, in person no less, to deliver the news that pending their "discussions" the other day, they had decided it was in their best interests to surrender their assets, and Retreat from Diabak. The man with the milky eyes wasn't among them.
With the announcement from Admiral Hyde, and a round of drinks purchased to quell the nerves of the shaking representatives, The Swordfish had erupted into one of the most raucous shindigs of the evening to be found anywhere on Diabak. Booze flowed freely, with Pops even breaking out a few bottles of rare hooch from his stash. At one point the bar was so packed that Hyde and his three crew-mates were "volunteered" to serve drinks for a spell. Most of the evening was a blur, but it was a welcome, pleasant change from the blur of constant combat and skirmishes.
I'm just glad we didn't have to go through with last nights plan....if Fidenef hadn't announced the Retreat from Diabak...
He thought of the massacre planned. A New Years gala event, hosted by Fidenef Alliance in their home system was the target. Massive civilian casualties were expected. It wasn't as if they hadn't killed hundreds of innocents during their campaign. With Fidenef Alliance hiding their military assets instead of fighting on open ground they weren't given much choice in the matter. And then there was the ultimatum...With a deep sigh, Hyde rolled back over and smiled at the lightly snoring Zaylah, curled up in the blankets beside him. Her bronzed and lightly freckled shoulder peeked out from beneath the covers.
At least you don't think I'm a monster...
Hyde buried his face in the small of her neck, wrapping his arm around Zayla and pulling her close. He inhaled deeply, savoring the scent of her warm body. She moaned, and smiled slightly.
"What time is it..." A muffled voice said sleepily from underneath the covers.
Hyde chuckled sheepishly. "You don't want to know..."
"Mmmmm....do we have to get up?"
"You don't..." Hyde replied quietly, kissing her shoulder as he straightened himself up in the bed. "But I do. I'll be back in a few hours."
"Hrrrrrmmm.....you suck..."
"I know..." Hyde got out of the bed, making sure the blankets were still covering Zaylah, and grabbed a pair of jeans and and a gray t-shirt, pulling them on quickly, and stuffing his feet into his magboots. He grabbed his dataslate from the table and made his way towards the door "I'll be back soon Zay, you want me to bring u back anything?"
"Coffee...lots.....of coffee."
Hyde smiled and opened the door. "Will do. Be good D.T.!" Hyde's faithful companions ears perked up for a second and then drooped back down. He closed the door behind him and the smile faded from his lips as he made his way downstairs and through the back door into the bar. Pops had long since cleaned up after the lunch rush and had begun serving the dinner crowd, mostly comprised of LSR Operatives. Hyde took his usual seat at the bar and before long a hot cup of steaming black liquid was in front of him, but he barely noticed. His eyes were fixated on the data in front of him.
It was easy at the end. Too damn easy...and too damn convenient that they left LFT 434 as well. They didn't even put up a fight after I met with them the other day. They just left. And that goddamn milky-eyed prick. I guarantee he was behind all of this. They gave up and retreated because he no longer supports them, and the people he works for don't either. But why all this effort to just up and leave? Unless...
"You don't drink that I'm not making you another one ya bum!"
Hyde jerked his head up from the dataslate. "Sorry Pops..." He reached for the cup, still warm and took a sip. "Hell of a shindig last night, huh?"
"You're telling me..." Pops picked up a beer glass and began to polish it. "You and your boys nearly drank me dry! At least the good stuff is still intact, well, mostly." He snickered. "How's yer head feel kid?"
"Like hammered shit, it might feel a bit better if I could wrap my head around this whole campaign against Fidenef Alliance though..."
Pops stopped polishing the glass and set it down, now crystal clear. He picked up another one and frowned. "What do you mean? Half the reason you buggers partied so damn hard last night was because they announced a Retreat."
"Well it's not that I'm not glad this isn't over. We've got a shitload of work to do to repair our public image. Half the sector believes we're terrorists. And the LSR as a whole? People are tired, weary. We got what we wanted...but I have a feeling whoever was pulling the strings behind FA did as well." Hyde grabbed two cigarettes out of an open pack on the counter and lit them with the accompanying lighter. Pops' brand. Hyde had forgotten his upstairs.
"You remember that shady bastard with the eyes I told you about?" Hyde exhaled a cloud of smoke towards the ceiling and offered a cigarette to Pops. "I have a bad feeling we just got the short end of the stick. The whole point of this could have just been a big waste of time, a distraction to keep us busy, and away from something. Sure, we get to re-apply for the LSR to be a sanctioned PMF. But what about the resources we lost in this? The public image we no longer have. That bastard worries me. It won't be the last we see of him."
Hyde put down the dataslate and took a sip of his coffee, tapping the ash of his cigarette into a nearby ashtray.
"You want me to put some feelers out? See what I can come up with?" Pops finished his cigarette, only halfway done, snuffing it out in the ashtray. He washed his hands in the sink before picking up another glass, rag in hand. "You think he's with them don't you?" He frowned, setting the glass down and exhaling deeply. "If you're right..."
Hyde shook his head. "Then this isn't over, and we'll be seeing more of The Club and their agents before too long. Nothing looks shady in the latest batch of transactions and records I had forwarded to me, it looks like FA is really leaving. But they'll be back. Just a matter of when. Stay out of this one Pops, it's bad news."
He finished his cigarette, crushing the end in the ashtray in a soft shower of sparks before draining his coffee. "In the meantime, it's back to the Pleiades for us, and back to bed for me..." Hyde grinned sheepishly. "Speaking of which, would you mind making me a couple cups to go? For Zaylah when she gets up."
"I'm putting it on yer tab, pick me up some of that Harma Silver Sea Rum and we'll call it square. Speaking of the Archon, check your hangar when you get a sec. A few of the Kumo boys came looking for you last night but you and Zayla had already, well, stepped out." Pops grinned and tossed the bar-towel over his shoulder, pausing to scratch his beard. "Said they had a delivery for you, so I had them leave it at your hangar, with an escort of course. Judging by the size of the containers..."
Hydes eyes lit up. "Ooooooh, my Cytoscramblers! Thanks Pops, I'll be back in a couple hours." Grabbing the two cups of coffee and his dataslate off the counter, Hyde stood up and made his way back upstairs, careful not to let the door slam behind him on the way in. Setting the cups down on the table, he kicked off his magboots and slid back into bed.
"Did you bring coffee?"
"Yea, I did...but before that..."
"Hyde, what are you...Ahhh! Get out of here, you...you....mmmmm..."