After dealing with the medical staff, explaining what that whole event had to do with the Republic intelligence, I was let go with only a couple of paperwork in the infirmary.
I got out as the staff began working on searching for electronic devices, covering and removing the dead body from the bed. It was another successful mission, and I really wanted to relax a bit after notifying the Navy HQ.
I asked the lone pilot to get out of the cockpit for a minute and grabbed the comms headset.
"Olympus Navy HQ, this is Commander Kagan travelling with Martian Flight 17."
"Commander Kagan, Olympus Mons Navy HQ; please wait a minute. The Grand Admiral will be on the line in a few seconds."
"..."
"Hello there, Commander. Is everything alright?" This was the Grand Admiral.
"Yes, sir. I have successfully eliminated the agent. We are now searching for any communication devices on his body." I reported.
"Great work, Commander. So far, the folks at the intelligence agency did not find any other Federation agents in your convoy, or among the embassy personnel. However, be on the lookout. Continue with your former duties, Commander. Make sure to report your status once you arrive. Any questions?"
"How long do you expect my mission will be, once we are at the embassy, Admiral?" I asked.
"I don't know, depends on how fast the diplomacy progresses. You could ask our envoy about it, but it could be perceived as a disrespectful question, so I suggest you refrain from doing that."
"Like she would care..." my inner voice somehow came out.
"What did you say, Commander?"
"O-oh, nothing." I said, and lightly coughed. "I will go back to my duties, sir."
"Very well, Commander. Headquarters, out."
I got out of the cockpit, thanked the pilot for his patience, and went to figure out where my new cabin was. After I found it, I got inside and sat on a bed.
"A long day, isn't it?" I started talking to myself. "Well, I guess there are no real concept of days when you are off-planet, but still..."
"Hmmh... Commander?" This was not my voice. I jumped up and away from the bed.
"What the actual hell are you doing here!?"
Seeing Nuan here with me was a surprise. How couldn't I notice her when I got inside?
"Not a great guard you are, eh?" she said as she got out of the bed and sat on the corner.
"Shut up, I just wasn't expecting YOU to show up. What if I pulled out my gun?" I asked her.
"You would love shooting me, wouldn't you?" she jokingly said.
"I sure would, Miss VIP." I answered.
"After everything that happened recently, I decided that... it could be wise to have the security close to me; so in the end... I wanted to stay at the same cabin. The crew rearranged the passenger cabins for me."
"Stop showing off."
"What? Are you even listeni-"
She noticed how messy her clothes were, and immediately covered herself with the blanket.
"Perv." she said. I sighed.
"Am I obliged to stay with you?" I asked. I was annoyed, and this was expressed with the tone of my voice.
"Uhm... No?" she said. "But please do!"
I didn't reply and started walking away to get out of the cabin. Nuan quickly stood up and caught me.
"Don't go! This is a security matter!"
"Is it, though?" I replied.
"It IS!"
I could bet everything that if I went away, she would do something to herself to get me to stay with her.
"Fine." I said. "But... just don't mess with me."
"Okay." I could barely hear her answer.
I looked around every corner of the cabin very carefully. After that, I adjusted the air vents for minimum circulation and locked the cabin's door. After placing a couple of infrared sensors in front of the door, Nuan went to her bed and I went to mine.
"What are you doing?" Nuan asked me.
"Sleeping." I said. "I need sleep too, you know..."
"But what if something happens when you are asleep?" she asked me.
"Gah, I am the one who's supposed to be paranoid!" I said. "Besides, I installed alarms. If there is an intrusion attempt, I will know. I even have the ship's internal cameras routed here."
"Oh..." she said. "Okay."
I finally closed my eyes to sleep in peace... hopefully.
"Commander..."
"..."
"Commander?" This was Nuan again. I had no idea how much time has passed.
"Yes?" I replied.
"Are you asleep?"
I looked at the time. Only ten minutes have passed. I have been asleep for... perhaps less than five minutes.
"I was asleep until you woke me up." I replied Nuan. "What is it?"
"Nothing." she said. "I was just... checking."
I slowly rolled around in the bed to give her a deadly glare. I did not talk, and she just froze looking at me. Her eyes slowly rolled down, and she averted her gaze. I rolled back the other way and closed my eyes again.
- - - - -
The alarm went off.
I instantly jumped out of my bed, pulled my gun out and took position to shield Nuan. There was someone at the door.
"STOP RIGHT TH-"
"NO! COMMANDER!"
It was Nuan herself near the door. She had been a little too close to the door, causing the intruder alarm to activate. She was covering her face with her arms, scared of my reflexive response.
"You idiot!" I said. "I really would love to shoot you this time."
I deactivated the alarm. The room went silent again, but... I could now hear Nuan crying quietly.
"Hey." I said and came closer to her. "Hey, are you listening?"
She was sobbing.
"Hey." I kept trying to talk. "It is okay. There is nothing to fear."
She kept crying, and didn't say anything. I didn't know what to do. She was probably very sleepy, both the alarm going off and having a gun pointed at her... Of course she was scared a lot.
Eventually, she stopped crying and wiped her tears.
"Are you okay?" I asked her. She nodded. With a sudden, unexpected move, she put her head on my chest. I wanted to do something, but I didn't know what it was I wanted to do. I was confused, off-guard.
I... wasn't trained to deal with this.
"I'm..." she spoke. "I'm okay."
She got back a step, wiped her tears again and looked away. I was frozen.
"Don't think of anything weird." she said. "I have to pee."
She quickly ran out of the cabin; this time, tripping the outer layer of alarms just outside the door.
That moment, the ice caps of my brain melted away.
"Are you ****ing kidding me?"