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All Roads Lead To Sol...Unless Stated Otherwise: Chapter 1
Posted By: S7N<n.j.r.jones@brighton.ac.uk>
Date: 12 June 2003, 10:55 PM
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Section 1: Unless Stated Otherwise
Chapter 1
2000 Hours, March 16, 2547 (Military Calendar) /
151st Street, Downtown New York
Earth
The busy street took Manny by surprise as he stepped out into the cold night air. Locking the door behind him, he made off down to his right, passing a group of Chinese women who seemed like they were up to no good. As he passed them, one of them mumbled something to him. He ignored them and carried on his way. It was the first night he'd had out in three months; the rigorous training he was being put through hadn't taken its toll yet, but the two-day leave he had been granted showed him how hectic his life had been since he enrolled.
He ran his fingers through his sandy hair, letting the cool air pass through it. It felt good just walking at his own pace, no one barking orders at him, no one to answer to every time he did something he shouldn't have, and best of all, no need to wear a uniform. Though most active army personnel wore their dress uniforms on leave, he had decided that it wasn't for him. He didn't want people asking him about the war, or had he seen any action. And it would be embarrassing to him to have to say "Sorry, I'm a cadet."
The super-scrapers above him made him feel at home again. He had grown up down here in the heart of New York. He arched his neck and looked up at the towering monoliths, focusing on the neon lights littering the sky as poster-blimps rolled passed, advertising off-world opportunities. The skywalk, which he was ambling down was forty stories above ground, but the blimps were way too high for him to read. Reaching an elevator, he tapped the "down" button and heard a voice say "the elevator is on level forty-nine and shall be proceeding to levels forty-five, forty-four and forty-two before reaching this designated floor."
Manny took no notice of it and leaned back against the metal railing that stopped people from falling off the skywalk. People passed through the space between him and the lift doors, and as he watched the stream of people buzz by he began to daydream.
He had joined up to the UNSC last year because of his brothers death a month prior. His parents had been devastated, proud but devastated. Being their only child now, Manny felt it his duty to take up where his brother left off. And had the training not been going so tough, he would have been proud to be serving. At the tender age of 19, Manny had dropped out of college to take up his brother's reigns. The only difference was, his brother had become some what of a hero in their parents eyes, and Manny felt like he wouldn't be able to live up to their expectations.
He yawned and ran a hand across his chin. It shocked him to feel a substantial amount of stubble there. He had shaved every day for the passed three months, as regulations permitted, but the regime hadn't stuck when he came back to New York. He was here to let his hair down, have a good time. New York was a time for partying, boot camp was a time for rules and regs. The lift chimed from across the walkway and the lift doors slid open to reveal a single, lone female.
At first, Manny was taken aback by how beautiful she was. She had long brown hair down to her stomach, piercing brown eyes and darkly tanned skin. A small, button nose sat neatly above her red lips, and the angles of her face made her that more stunning. She wore a long blue dress that accentuated her curvy figure, and he noticed ample cleavage bobbing out over the slit in the dresses front. One thing he also noticed was that she was staring right at him. She smiled as recognition finally settled into Manny's brain.
"Well, you gonna get in or shall I keep going down?" she said, her voice low but incredibly sexy.
Manny chuckled and winded around the passers-by into the lift. He came to stop in front of her and couldn't help but take in her smell.
"Wow!" he said. She smiled at him and leant forwards to push the lift buttons, brushing her naked arm against his as she did so. The movement, probably totally innocent from the woman sent tingles down his spine. The woman's name was Sarah McCain, a trainee at his boot camp. He had always thought she was good looking, but had never seen her in anything other than a vest and combats. They had chatted a few times, but nothing too serious.
He had kept himself to himself over the three month period and had chatted little. In fact, he didn't really have any real friends at the camp, only people he chatted to regularly, so his comment must have sounded a little too friendly. But she seemed to bat the comment away as if it were nothing. The lift started to move down as the two settled back against the lift wall.
"So what are you doing here?" she asked. She turned to look at him, leaning against the lift wall with her arms crossed over her chest, lightly pushing her cleavage out that little bit more.
"I live here." He replied, trying to concentrate on her face, as oppose to her breasts. "Have done all my life."
"Really? I thought you were from Detroit." She smiled. "I never knew you lived up here. I thought only the rich people lived around here." The comment stung a little, but he let it go.
"What do you mean? Who said I wasn't rich?" he put on an expression of mock anger, then eased into a smile.
"No, no," she shook her head "I meant you didn't look the type."
"Looks can be deceiving. I mean, just look at you." He looked down as he said it, not wanting to look her in the eye, then realised what a state he must look. He wore a white t-shirt and a pair of old jeans and trainers. He didn't exactly look at his best, but she hadn't said anything yet.
"Yeah, I noticed." She paused and looked him up and down. "So, where you headed?"
"Just out, find bar, have a few drinks." The lift stopped suddenly and two men in suits got in. They spotted Sarah straight away, looking her up and down, giving approving looks. Of course the looks turned to one of obvious disgust when they saw him. He ignored then and turned back to Sarah. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you lived here either."
"I live on the forty-second floor, flat number seven. Me and a couple of old friends bought it a few years ago."
"You must have a lot of money to do that." He exclaimed. She was only one year his senior, so it was either rich parents or one hell of an inheritance.
"Yeah, our parents got it for us. All we have to do is pay cleaning costs and electricity supplies. How about you?" she shifted her weight, and Manny could have sworn she slightly shuffled towards him. "You a spoiled little rich boy, or have you been working double shifts since you were twelve?"
He chuckled at the comment. "No, it belongs to my folks."
"You live with your parents still?" she seemed taken aback.
"No, nothing like that." He laughed again, then grinned at her. "My parents left it for me when they moved out. They live out down town now." She nodded an acknowledgement and giggled to herself. "So where you off to?"
"Well, a few of the recruits wanted to see the nightlife around here so they checked into a hotel a few blocks down. I'm off to a bar to meet them. You're welcome to come if you want." Now that was an invitation he couldn't refuse.
"Are you sure they just didn't want to be with you?" Manny wasn't the only red-blooded male at boot camp. In fact, as far as he knew, every man on campus had taken a liking to her, even the drill instructor.
"Well, considering that there are only two men, and four girls, no." she grinned at him, showing off a little gap in between her front teeth. Normally, that may have put him off, but it added to her beauty in more ways than he imagined.
"Okay, I retract that statement!" he said, laughing as he did. They fell silent as the lift halted and the two suited men stepped out into the night air. The lift chimed again and continued its decent. He looked around the lift. It was one of the smaller lifts in the building. He didn't like the big ones, it got too cramped and he hated places with lots of people.
The lift was big enough for ten people, and was brightly lit by an overhead light. The walls and the inside of the doors were mirrored surfaces, so it made the lift look bigger than it was. As he glanced into the door he noticed Sarah staring at him. They locked eyes for a split second before she broke it away, looking down at her feet and smiling to herself.
He allowed himself a smile as well, then turned back to face her. "So, how you finding the training?" a look of disgust worked it's way across her face before she answered.
"Hell must be better than this." They both chuckled at the remark. "Does the drill sergeant have to be that much of an ass hole?"
"I think he goes easy on you. He hates me!" Manny said. The lift came to a halt again and the door opened to the bustling streets. "This is our stop." He put out his arm and offered her to go first, to which she obliged and calmly walked out of the small space and into the fresh air. Manny got a great look from behind as her buttocks moved up and down. God, she was lovely!
"You coming?" she turned back to him, and nearly caught him staring at her posterior. He smiled at her and stepped out of the lift. She motioned to her left and they started down the long street. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and exhaled deeply. As he did so, he was surprised to feel her slip her arm between his, resting it on the top of his wrist. His arm muscles tightened for a split second.
He'd always had a girlfriend or someone he was seeing, and he felt comfortable around women just as much as he did with men, but Sarah wasn't like other women.
"Training's okay, I suppose," she continued. "It's tough, but I suppose it has to be, to get us ready for what is to come. We're in the middle of a war, one which looks like we may not win." Her face looked sad. She stared down at the concrete pavement for a second then looked up at him and smiled.
"Yeah, it's tough. But I don't think this is a war we're going to lose. I mean, we can't. It's the human race, for Christ's sake, we ain't giving up without a fight." Manny felt her move closer to him as she tightened her grip on his forearm. She rested her other hand on his bicep, and lightly stroked it with her thumb. The sensation sent his heart pounding and he felt dizzy with excitement.
He flexed his muscles a few times then relaxed as they moved up their pace. Manny was tall, but skinny. Not skinny in a horrible way, but he wasn't overly big. There was no fat on his body, and he liked to think he was a nice shape. He was by no means weak, and had been in fights with guys twice his size and won.
They strolled in silence down the road, letting the busy street pass around them. Cars of all sorts buzzed by; cabs, lorries, and vehicles of various shapes and sizes passed by, zipping away into the night. Manny missed being home. When he was a kid he and his friend, Dobby, used to race their scooters down this road when it was quiet. They had been caught a few times by the police for under-age driving, but that had never stopped them. The thought brought back a lot of memories, both good and bad. He pushed them to one side.
"Why do people call you Manny?" Sarah piped up. It was easy to hear her through the hustle and bustle of the passers-by.
"Why?" the question made him think for a second. He had been called Manny since he was five. "Well, my name is Jon Manors. I suppose it came from there. It's a childhood nickname, one my friends gave me." He glanced at her. She wore a look of amusement. "Didn't you ever have a nickname when you were young?"
"No, I was just plain old Sarah, sorry." They slowed to a stop. "Well, here we are." He looked at the bar to his right. Above the door a big, blue neon sign read "Callers". It was a bit dingy looking, and the place seemed to be buzzing with atmosphere.
"Callers? Man, this is like my regular bar." Another rush of memories came flooding back, this time all good, some a little hazy.
"Really?" Sarah said "I never been here, I normally go to Lacey's back up the other way."
"Now that is upper class!" he exclaimed. She slapped him lightly on the chest. They stepped into the bar and the familiar smell of smoke and alcohol filled Manny's nostrils. Tables and chairs scattered the walls and the bar was lined with people of all shapes and sizes. They neared the bar and settled into a small gap. Manny rested his elbow on the bar, allowing Sarah's hand to slip down to her side. She glanced around, looking for her friends. The first thing that went through Manny's mind was that she would hate this place, but she had a discreet smile on her face as her eyes roamed the establishment.
"Hey!" a loud booming voice came from behind him. "Didn't you read the sign?!" Manny whipped around and saw a huge barrel of a man closing in on him from behind the bar. The man was tall, fat and ugly. His face was one of anger and his vest was grubby from what looked like years without being washed. "It says no losers!" the man moved closer, coming to a halt in front of him. Manny looked over his shoulder and saw an expression of shock and fear on Sarah's face. He allowed himself a small moment of satisfaction.
"Yeah?" he bellowed back. "Well, it should read no tramps, in which case you wouldn't be here!" as he said this the patrons standing near him took a step back, obviously expecting the small man to get his head trampled on by the whale behind the bar. He heard a gasp from Sarah, and saw another woman nearby cover her eyes. The two men locked eyes.
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