Chapter 10[]
Dead Man's Hand: Family Values[]
Lazy S Ranch
Ia Drang, Kowloon
Bucklands Province
Lyran Commonwealth
December 7th, 3057
"What you all doing?" Joker asked as she made her way into the tastefully decorated sitting room.
"Jay's trying to explain to me how he managed to fit into a Panther without it bursting apart at the seams." Kelso laughed, "Still not convinced."
"That just shows lack of imagination on your part." Aung rumbled, unhappy his word had been brought into question.
"I got a letter from home." Scilicorn help up an envelope with the official ComStar seal on the front.
"News from the homestead, huh?" Joker made her way over and carefully lowered herself into a seat, "Things settled down around there yet?"
"Hard to tell: no actual fighting as such on Woodstock its self," her friend gestured to the letter, "But a fair bit of pro-Capellan sentiment seems to be growing suspiciously fast."
"You know, we're not going anywhere for a few months at the very least." Joker lent forward slightly, Kelso and Aung pausing their conversation to listen in, "You could go home, check in on your family, if you'd like."
"Thanks for the offer, boss, but I kind of burned most of my bridges on the way out." Scilicorn shook his head, with an unmistakable edge to his words, "Only my kid sister is still talking to me. If you can call the occasional letter to my MercNet account that."
"We're all here because. Well, we have nowhere else to go." Kelso added, "Jay almost killed his CO, I... well, let's just say that theres a well connected young man who had a problem taking 'No' for an answer who's not going to be continuing his family line. Fate may have brought us together, but we stay together because, well, who else would have us?"
"Ain't no place I'd rather be." Aung chimed in with a nod.
"Sorry to tell you this, boss, but you're not getting rid of us that easy." Scilicorn smiled, "Like we said before; where you go, we follow."
"Here's forty shillings on the drum." Kelso placed her hand on the table.
"To those who volunteer to come." Aung placed his hand over hers.
"To 'list and fight the foe today." Scilicorn topped theirs, all three looking to Joker.
"Over the hills and far away." she added her hand on top. Reaffirming their bond as a team, "It's the hormones that are making me cry, okay?"