Exiled soldiers

"Well," Josh said. "This is slightly expected."

"A little," Spike said. "So, Commander, what are you doing here, if I may ask?"

"Turns out, Fire team Lone," Palmer said, "I was transferred to you guys."

"Yeah, someone tranq me," Ken said. "There is no way in hell the Captain would transfer the Spartan Commander on Infinity to a Fire team unless she was in charge, and it's pretty much a rule that I'm the leader of this team."

"Well, he did, Ken," Palmer said, crossing her arms. "And I saw your little picture collection."

"Oh god, kill me," Ken said, getting a pat on the shoulder from Josh.

"He can't hear you in Slip, Ken."

"Then I'll find an airlock and jump."

"No need, Ken," Palmer said. "Compared to other stuff I've seen, that isn't the creepiest thing."

"Seriously, Commander," Josh asked. "I mean, seriously?"

"Yep," Palmer said. "And as for the chain of command issue, Lasky said that this Fire team has its own chain. I lead the other fire teams, but I'm second in command of the team."

"That's going to be confusing later on," Elegance said, going back to her natural form.

"Probably," Josh agreed. "So, given that, Commander, how are we supposed to address you?"

"Palmer, like everyone else does," Palmer said. "So, what took you all so long?"

Josh shrugged as he and the others, including an extremely nervous Ken, walked in. "Just getting something to eat and showing Twilight and the others how to use the suits," he said. "Oh, and I have no idea what to do with Ken right now. In your position, at least. In mine," he said, turning to face his friend, "Ken, just be glad she didn't shoot you in the nuts, or something worse. And I know she's right here, but how about you wait on asking her out?"

This got chuckles form the three new Spartans, nothing from Palmer, and a slight smile for Ken. "Or, seeing as how we were in the same squad on Draco-III," Ken said, "I could do so now."

"I thought I remembered you, Ken," Palmer said. "Only one on the team I missed being transferred from."

"Wait, I was?"

"Yeah, you were," Palmer said.

"Explains her reaction to you and the rest of Crimson being caught on Requiem," Josh said. "She was more hostile then usual. Guess we know why, now."

"Right," Ken said. "So, um, Palmer-"

"The answer right now is no, Ken," Palmer said. "This is the first time we actually talked since we were on the same team. It'd be best if we actually got to know one another before doing so."

"Oh," Ken said. "I guess I can live with that."

"So, what to do now," Spike asked.

"Well, we got cards," Josh said. "That is, if you guys want to play something."

"What'd you have in mind," Elegance said, "because I don't know about the other two, but I'm a shark at cards."

"An old game of BS," Josh said. "Basically, you lay a number of cards down, and if someone calls BS and they're right, you pick up every card put down, and if they're wrong, then they pick up the cards. You in?"

"Sure," Elegance said, shrugging. "What about everyone else?"

"I'm in," Spike said.

"Second," Twilight said.

"Third," Ken said.

"Don't have anything better planned," Palmer said.

"Then let's get this started," Josh said, going over to the wall and pulling a small, fold-able, round table, and setting it up in the middle of the room, and taking a deck of poker cards out of one of his pockets. "Prepare to get your asses kicked."

"We'll see about that," Elegance said.

One hour and thirty minutes later

"Goddamn it," Josh said as Elegance got rid of her last card for the second time, resulting in her victory for the second time. "How are you this good?"

Elegance shrugged. "Comes with being a changeling," she replied. "My kind's excellent liars."

"And I suddenly have less trust in you," Ken said.

"In general, or with cards?"

"Cards," Ken said. "I have yet to see anything for the field other than what you can do with the suit, and the guns, and that stuff is pretty average, and very, very hard to fake to someone who knows that stuff."

"I thought you and Josh didn't know the basics for the thrusters," Spike said with a smirk.

"Oh, ha fucking ha," Josh said. "We know how it works, we just don't know how to explain that shit. We aren't engineers."

"If we were, we'd be in the vehicle bay right now," Ken said. "Don't get me wrong, we know how to do field repairs on our armor, every Spartan does, but our specialization isn't engineering."

"Guess that makes sense," Twilight said. "So, other than cards, what do you guys do for fun?"

"War games," Josh and Ken said at the same time. "But we need to wait until you guys are actually able to fight before going in."

"How long will that one take?"

"No idea," Josh said. "Given how quickly you guys went today, that may be a week. May be more. Again, no idea."

"There is free-for-all," Palmer said. "To train them, I mean."

"There is no better learning than first hand," Ken agreed.

"So, then," Josh said, "what do you guys say to some FFA tomorrow?"

"I don't see why not," Spike said.

"Then you three had better be ready to get your asses kicked," Ken said. "FFA is my game."