Commander Gildaya
Chapter 1
"Ey."
"..."
"Ey!"
"..."
"Ey! Stupid bird!"
Gildaya slowly glanced up, glaring at the Changeling staring at her face. "What?"
"You deaf, or something, pigeon?!" He spat in her face.
Gildaya calmly wiped off the freak's saliva, staring at him with completely uninterested. "No."
"Hey! Dex!" The Changeling turned around. "Leave her! She ain't gonna give ya more than one word, so leave 'er alone! We'll be rid of her soon enough!" Dex smirked, spitting one more time in her face, before walking off into the cockpit with the other Changeling.
Gildaya wiped more off, scowling.
"Alright, Gildaya. Whenever the Changeling's take you, remember, don't even show any signs of emotion. If they see that, they'll exploit it as a weakness and suck you dry."
Luckily, she wouldn't have to worry about that for much longer. This transport ship wasn't going to reach its destination.
"Ey, birdy!" Gildaya sighed, creating an expressionless mask for her face. "We're here! You can go out an' stretch dem kitty legs, and den sit right back down."
She got yanked up by Dex, and smacked with the butt of his rifle towards the door. Gildaya cringed, also biting back an insult that was at the ready. Calm down, Gildaya! You're almost there! Then you can kick these bug's plots back to the hole they crawled out of!
A creaking rang out, and the door screeched open, revealing sloping sand dunes as far as the eye could see. "Do ya business and git back inside! We got a schedule, missy kitty!"
Gildaya glanced up, seeing a glint of light flicker from a sand dune. A small smile appeared on her face. "You didn't really expect it to be this easy, right?"
That cocky smirk on the bug's face disappeared. Dex growled. "What'ch'ou talking about birdy?!"
Gildaya stepped up to him, and smiled. "Call me birdy, one more time."
That cocky smirk returned. "Birdy better learn her place, before I decide to take that sweet little kitty ass for-" Gildaya slammed her foot between his legs. He cried out, and dropped to the ground, clutching his groin.
"I'll give you one chance, to simply let me go. If you don't, you'll be sorry."
Gildaya turned around, and strutted off of the ship, into the warm sand. "You're dead, you bitch!" She turned around, seeing Dex standing back up, aiming his blaster at her.
"I warned you." She saluted Dex. A loud boom ripped through the air, and a hole punched itself into Dex's chest with a single gunshot. He fell to the ground, gasping for air. "Should've let me go."
Gildaya made her way around the sand dune. A figure wrapped in robes skated down from the top. "Gildaya, it has been two long!"
"Fleet Echo! It's been forever!" Gildaya bumped Fleet's hoof, as she took the hood off of her head. Fleet's hair simply fell straight down, cascading around her head. "Since when did you have straight hair?"
"Since when did you smell like a Changeling's backside?"
"Yeah... The Talon's showers working yet?"
Fleet rolled her eyes, chuckling. "We dumped that rustbucket! Way too slow!"
"You don't mean that Lunar Republic ship came in?"
Fleet simply gestured to a plot of sand, before frowning. Gildaya frowned too. "Dang it, Pon3... Pon3! Turn off the damn cloaking!"
"Alright, alright, keep your robes on, Fleety!"
The cloaking disappeared, revealing a massive black ship with blue and gold accents all across its hull. The entire body was slick and thin, perfect for stealth. Plus, this thing looked freaking cool. "She's freaking sexy! What's she named? Talon Mk. 2?"
"Heck no! We all voted, and Talon was a lame name, and needed to be something with a better ring to it. So, meet the Harmony!"
Gildaya grinned a bit, looking the ship up and down. "Harmony, huh?" She nodded. "I like it... But I'm more interested in the interior. Let's see what this baby looks like!" Fleet knocked a few times on the hull, and the bay doors opened, leading them inside.
Gildaya looked around her ship from the galaxy map. It was hers. It was all hers. "Gildaya!" She looked down from the map, noticing her XO, Soarin'! "Man, I lost a few bets."
"What, you thought I wasn't coming back?
"Nah, I wagered you'd smell a bit more like garbage, and less Changeling backside."
Gildaya laughed, shaking her head. "How do you ponies all know what a Changeling's backside smells like?"
Soarin' went to answer, but ended up chuckling. Yeah, Gildaya could probably live without knowing. "Just, you know, please, go bathe. Please. It's burning my eyes."
Gildaya rolled her eyes, shoving his shoulder. "Alright, alright, since you asked so nicely." She walked away from her XO, stepping up to the elevator. Let's see... where do you find the-
"Is there anything I may help you with, Commander Gildaya?" Gildaya backed up, looking around. What the heck... "Oh, I'm sorry, how rude of me. I, am TWI. I am Harmony's AI." Gildaya scowled at that term.
"I hate AI's. So, why don't you do yourself a favor and shut yourself off before I rip out your circuits?!"
"Please! I wish only to help, and will not get in the way of any primary functions. I am merely here to offer tactical support, and help in the secondary functions of the ship!
Gildaya sighed. "Fine. But, if you go crazy, I'm shutting you off!" She stepped back into the elevator, looking at the panel. "Uh, can you give me a layout of the ship?"
"Oh, certainly!" Suddenly, a small purple hologram of a unicorn appeared on the console. "On the fifth floor, or the bottom, we have the armory, vehicle depot, and docking bay. On the fourth floor, we have the engine room, and storage rooms. On the third floor, we have observation decks, crew quarters, life support, medical bay, master computer, XO office, and main guns. On the second floor, the floor you are currently on, we have the cockpit, the galaxy map, and negotiations room with military outlook systems, as well as an adjoining comm room. Finally, on the top floor, we have Commander Gildaya's quarters."
"My own floor, huh? Sweet!" Gildaya pressed the "1" on the panel, and went up the elevator.
Gildaya slowly stepped off, and smiled. It had everything. A big aquarium, nice bed, work area, and... A bathroom! Before I do a thing, I'm taking a shower! She unbuckled and unlatched her armor, tossing it aside. Gildaya stepped in, and twisted the shower's nozzle, immediately feeling warm water pour all over her. "I needed this... so... fricking... much..."
She scrubbed her talons through her feathers, feeling the muck of the Changeling prison wash off. That prison... They tortured her. She was sure the Solar Empire wouldn't have stood for what they did to her... But they already knew what happened in those places... And they still sent her.
Screw those bastards! The Lunar Republic's already better! Gildaya sighed, simply letting the water wash over her. She placed a hand against the wall, trying to steady herself. She was... She was... tired... She needed rest...
Gildaya shook herself, turning off the water. She took a towel, lightly drying herself off. The towel simply dropped to the floor, as Gildaya dragged herself across the room onto her bed.
"Goodnight..."
"Are you sure?"
"Would I lie to you?"
"This isn't the time to play games. The universe thinks their biggest problem is the Tartarus mercs. The Shadows will take care of that ten fold."
"Which is why I suggested her. We both know she's the right one for the job."
"Prove it. Test her. If she fails, then I want you to kill her and move on. If she succeeds..."
"Understood sir."
"Do not fail me, Rainbowlyn."
"Trust me, sir. I'll do what needs to be done."
