SET Initiative

Addie leaned against the wall for a moment, just grinning down where Alex had gone before straightening up and nodding to Austin, holding out her hand for him to take. "Yeah, c'mon."

When they stepped off of the lift, the massive window was immediately visible. Addie felt her jaw drop, and her eyes widen.

It was breathtaking, to put it simply. She released his hand and moved closer to look out. After a few star-struck moments, she glanced back at him. "Austin, this is just.." She laughed. She was speechless! It really was something incredible, all of the stars just spread out in front of them.

Austin grabbed Addie's hand and headed towards the lift.

Once they stepped off, Addie's reaction was priceless. Austin let go of her hand and watched her step forward in childlike wonder. He himself had seen the view a few times, although Earth seemed so small now... The only other times he had seen the stars like this is when the ship was in orbit just above Earth's atmosphere.

He walked after her to the window and smiled. "I know, it's breathtaking." Everything seemed to be moving by so slowly. It reminded him of how small the ship really was. Ants running across a kitchen floor. A massive, massive kitchen floor.

Austin tentatively put an arm around her shoulder. The last time he had looked out of a window into endless space, it was before the doors to the control room burst open and Addie's leg had been snapped in two.

Now it was beautiful and peaceful. Endless. They'd come a long way to be here.

Addie had only seen the cosmos from Earth, usually in the back of a truck in the middle of a pasture. But this was just..unbelievable. She just stared out in wonder, until his arm around her brought her back to reality. Her hand opposite him reached up to lace her fingers with his, and she scooted closer to him.

"Austin, this is amazing. I don't think I've ever felt.more insignificant in my life..and I couldn't be more glad."She finally tore her gaze away to look over at him, grinning brightly. For the first time since they had met, she actually looked calm, comfortable. Happy, even.

Austin looked back at Addie with a grin. "I feel the same way."

~~~~

The years went by quickly. Austin had warmed up to Addie's family pretty well, although her oldest brother was still a bit standoffish for some reason.

Addie was moved into a slightly larger and further away living quarters on the other side of the second level. Austin visited often- Many times late at night. Nightmares were frequent. Sometimes all that was required was a hug and a reassurance the she was okay. Other times he'd need to talk to her, or just have another person pressed against him while he slept.

The visions became increasingly scarce as time went on. Austin still had the occasional nightmare, or temporarily forgot he wasn't fending for his life, but Addie helped him through a lot.

It was peaceful for a while. Everything kind of blended together. Books were read, coffee was had, and a lot of time was spent on the upper deck looking out over the galaxy and the vastness of the stars.

~~~~

Nearly two and a half years ago, the two had been trapped on a ship without any help. The engines were down, power was out, and Infected crawled the entirety of the place.

Addie's clock read 3:42 AM Central Time. A soft knocking came at the door.

As the time went on, life was..almost normal. She had her family, and Austin, and it was more than she could have wished for all of those months on earth.



It was true, Austin often came late at night, or early in the morning, but Addie never said a word of complaint. Whatever she could do to help him, she never hesitated. Besides, she was more than happy to have someone sleeping next to her, especially Austin. The two if them had become incredibly close in the two amd a half years since they were rescued.

When the gentle knocking at her door woke her, she rolled with a quiet groan. Tugging the blankets back, she got to her feet, heading for the door as a hand pushed through her sleep- ruffled curls. When she opened it, she yawned, expecting Austin again. "Hey, come on in.. you alright?"

Austin was behind the door, as per usual. He had some baggy sweat pants and a grey tshirt on. The lights outside of the room were off except for the dimmest ones, but the dark circles and tired nature of his face was visible. He smiled slightly and stepped inside.

"Hey.. Just double-checking that you're not dead." It was kind of embarrassing to still be having this level of panic attacks still. Well, for him anyways. He could function during the day, but at night, sometimes he lost his grip on reality. His thoughts would take him back to a world where every living thing existed to kill every other living thing.

Austin swallowed. "Can I... Can I sleep here tonight? Again?" His eyes shifted and his head was slightly hung forward.

Addie smiled sleepily at him. She was in a similar pair of sweats, most likely one of his that she ahd ended up with. Shutting the door when he was inside, she reached to touch his arm gently. "Of course.. you know you don't have to ask." She slid her hand down his arm to take his hand, leading him towards her bed.

Once he had joined her, she immediately snuggled up to him, head against his chest. She knew it was hard on him, and all she could really do was just quietly be near him, let him know she was alright. She shifted up to peck his cheek with a quick kiss. "I'm alright.. Tr and get some rest for me?" She smiled, doing her best to reassure her boyfriend. At least, she was pretty sure that, after probably close to three years total, they were official.

After a few more minutes of silence, she tilted her head up to look at him. " Austin, do you just want to start staying here at night?"

Austin sat down on the bed and turned over to lay on his back, grateful for Addie. Her head was on his chest now, and he sighed.

His arm came to rest behind her back, under Addie's neck. "I'll try. Shouldn't be too hard." Tonight wasn't especially bad, there was the typical nightmare filled with blood and gore, but there was something else. Austin decided he'd discuss it with Addie in the morning, since they were both tired right now.

He glanced over at her when she spoke. "Hm? That sounds good." Did Addie ever struggle with nightmares like he did? What did she really think about everything? Austin couldn't recall a time when she came to him for comfort or help with any mental struggles she was going through. Had she struggled through her problems alone?

Austin's thoughts kept him occupied for a few more minutes before drowsiness overcame him. He was asleep soon enough.

Addie chuckled quietly as he quickly drifted back off to sleep, relieved that it came so easily for him now. Settling down a little more comfortably, she shut her eyes, and soon faded off herself.

Addie wouldn't dream of telling Austin this, but she was almost a big a wreck inside as he was; she was haunted even still, day and night, of what had happened, especially of those two little boys they had been forced to leave behind to their fates. She knew how much he himself was struggling, and couldn't possibly weigh him down with her fears and problems.

Hours later, Addie woke, groaning. Her head was just killing her. For a few minutes, rather than getting up, she buried her face against Austin, huffing, before forcing herself to sit up, at least. Rubbing her face with her hands, she sighed, and glanced around the room. The clock showed it was closer to noon, and shejust flopped backwards again, sighing. She didn't want to do anything.

Rolling over to face him, she reached a hand over to gently touch his cheek. "Hey, wake up, sleepy head."

It was hard to tell what time it was without a clock: In space the sun doesn't really rise and set like it does back home. The lights came on in the main hallways, but in the rooms people could do what they wanted.

Austin slept soundly the rest of the night- No nightmares came his way. Soon, he felt a hand on his cheek and his eyes fluttered open. A smile crept across his face when he recognized Addie.

"I'm awake. Just don't wanna be up yet. Five more minutes."

Addie smiled, nodding and brushing her thumb against his cheek before sliding from the bed, heading to her bathroom to shower, and get ready for the day.

Austin would get more than five minutes; probably twenty minutes later, the red head appeared, hair hanging in damp ringlets, sweats and t-shirt replaced with snug black pants and a similar shirt. She moved to curl up beside him again, pressing a kiss to his cheek now. "You ready to get up yet? We can go get something to eat."

Austin sighed and closed his eyes again when Addie left. Twenty minutes was ample time to feel refreshed- Sometimes even a small amount of time was all that was necessary.

He made a kissing motion with his lips when she kissed his cheek regardless of whether or not he touched her. "Coffee first," said he. Just sitting in the room with a steaming cup of joe was... Therapeutic. He didn't want to go out and be amongst people just yet. Austin turned his head and yawned, sitting up. "If you want to go get some..." He glanced at the clock, "... Lunch, I don't blame you. I can catch up in a bit."

ADdie shook her head. "No, I'll wait for you." She grinned, pecking his cheek once more before sliding out of bed, to make him his coffee. If it was one thing Addison was good at, it was taking care of Austin. She knew exactly how he took his coffee by now, and of course, when she handed him his mug a few minutes later, it was perfect, albeit a bit hot.

She had her own mug before long, and joined him on the bed again, leaning back against the wall at the head, sighing quietly as she took a sip of her steaming beverage, hand not holding the mug resting on his knee. After she had taken a few sips, she glanced towards him with a smile. "You fell asleep pretty quickly last night, thankfully."

Austin was about to get up and make it when Addie slid out of bed, presumably to go make the coffee. He shrugged and leaned back against the headboard of the bed.

Mmm, instant space coffee. Nothing better. Austin leaned forward and took the cup carefully when Addie brought it in, smiling with a "Thanks," before leaning back again and sipping it. She came in a few minutes later and sat down on the bed beside him.

He shot her a glance when she mentioned him sleeping. "Really? I think I'm getting better at it. Maybe it's cause you were resting there, too." He mused. "I must have fallen asleep before you did, then. How'd you sleep?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, taking another sip beefore replying. "I slept alright, it's always nice to have you around." She smiled faintly, hand on his knee giving a brief squeeze before she moved it to rest in her own lap.

After another sip, she rested her head back against the headboard, a yawn betraying just how tired she really was. After a moment longer, she glanced to him. "Listen, I imagine things will be a bit hectic once we get to Mars, and I know you'll have to report in at your new job..I don't want you to get anxious if you can't find me, with everything going on, so..I got you something." She flushed slightly. IT had taken her ages to track something like it down on the little market going between the two ships, but finally, she had found what she wanted. Reaching over to her single night stand, she opened it, and pulled out a small bundle, wrapped in just plain cloth. Hesitating for a moment, she held it out for him to open.

When he did, there was a dog tag, though instead of the usual information etched into it, she had just had her initials cut into the metal. Her cheeks became even more red, and she glanced down at the coffee in her hands. "I'm sorry, it's probably stupid, but.. thought if you had something with you that reminded you of me, it might help."

He just nodded and smiled. "That's good. I mean- It's good that you slept alright, not that it's always nice to have me around. I mean, I'm not trying to contradict your complimen- Screw it." He laughed and then sipped his coffee again.

"Mmhm, mhm..." Austin nodded in response to her statements about things being hectic once they arrived. "What? Seriously?" Austin's disbelieving tone wasn't one of doubt, but more one of grateful incredulity. The amount of effort it took to even find someone who sold things was a feat. She truly did care about him.

Austin set his mug down on the nightstand and took the cloth package gingerly in his hands. Opening it carefully, his eyes lit up when he saw the dog tag. He cut her off at the word "stupid" with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "It's awesome, Addie. Thank you so much."

Addie turned red at his reaction, incredibly relieved that he liked it. She beamed at him, and leaned over to kiss his cheek right back. "You're welcome, I thought it would help." She just kept grinning brightly. Taking a sip of her coffee, she set the mug down again, and reached for the chain that went with it. After sliding the tag on, she reached around him, still grinning. Once it was looped around him, ahe nodded her approval.

"There.. looks perfect."

Austin watched Addie's hands slide the tag onto the chain and smiled. The tag dangled around his neck.

"It's not exactly a warm body to lay next to... But it'll keep me grounded."

Just then, a sharp rapping came at the door. (No, not Eminem. Like someone hitting the door with their knuckles.) A muffled voice came through afterwards:

"Ms. Scott? Is Austin in there with you?"

Addie smiled lightly, opening her mouth to speak, only to be cut off by the knocking. She huffed, setting her mug down again,and sliding off the bed to walk to the door.

"Yes, he is." She called as she reached to unlock the door, then slide it open, expectant expression on her face as she waited for the young man to speak.

The man was breathing slightly heavier than usual- He'd been in a hurry.

"Um, sorry to interrupt... Something's come up. We've received a transmission from Earth, there's a-" Austin cut him off, sliding out of bed as well. "What? You said from Earth? There are people still there?"

The man shifted nervously. "Y-Yes. I don't know all of the details- I was just told to have you come up to the communications tower to prepare for briefing. They say someone contacted them about two children- Male, who were found. Said they kept talking about a 'robot' man who helped them. We assume they mean a SET operative and the last active one on the planet was you."

Austin took a deep breath, struggling to maintain composure. "Thanks. I'll be right up." The man nodded and smiled nervously, shutting the door once again.

Austin sighed and ran his hand over his head, resting it on his neck briefly before dropping it at his side.

"They're planning to send me back." He frowned and took a sudden interest in his feet. "They want me to go back and find the boys..."