Post Mortem

[Nicole Decker]

"Already got our best on it." Nicole said as she walked in and handed Cartwright a padd. "Your team did good work, I may call you in if we need something fished out of the lake again. SHIELD will be using Marines a bit more going forward." she glanced at Noella. "You do realize that I'm going to have to post a guard on you going forward. Male or female?"

"Got anyone a little younger and single?" Noella said with a wink.

"I can find someone." Nicole said with a wink. "Undercover of course, so boyfriend girlfriend protocol would be a good idea."

[Lydia Cartwright]

"Well, I can tell when I'm not wanted," Lydia announced. "Since I'm in the Capital I ought to check in on Ethan. I haven't seen my brother in far too long. Until next time mister president."

[Nick Ryder]

"I appreciate it. Still it's kind of an order when I tell you and your men to come to the Club sometime. I gave myself all kinds of honorific and actual powers since clearly things fall apart when I'm not around." Nick said with a chuckle. "Seriously though... come by. I'm developing something new and need people. Continuing what Julie and Malcolm set up, Alpha Section... the first line for this threat. Omega Section the last line, when things go entirely fubar. SHIELD, keeps the threats at bay. Main difference, Alpha is made up of everyone we can trust. Alliance, Federation, Imperium, Narlins, whoever... because this threat that Dominus poses, it affects us all." he whispered. "And besides, I way over ordered stuff, I had no idea the guy I bought the Club from had already put in a huge order and well, some stuff doesn't sit and age, so no better disposal than a bunch of thirsty Marines."

[Ethan Talon]

She laughed, "We ain't Jar Heads. We're Squids." She winked at Nick and was gone.

- Earlier -

Ethan stood at the podium. Flag draped coffins layed out before him. On a table next to him was an empy urn sitting upon the Narlin flag. A memorial to Empress Kahlina Starbreeze.

Before him were those dignitaries that seemed the most important. Leo Ryder being the closest. Major Caitlyn McDonough a little ways away from him next to Commander James Daniels of Sigma Station.

Dougal had assembled a color gaurd for the occasion. Twenty straight backed Scotsman in full kilt and plaid. Their Scots bonnets adoned with a single eagle feather.

In the center of their formation they held banners of the Alliance, Marines, TA Navy and the regimental colors of the 78th Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The rest were armed with bagpipes and drums.

Ethan cleared his throat. "In times like these I think we all need to be reminded why so many people made this ultimate sacrifice. I ask that you all stand to honor all of our fallen from the beginning."

After everyone stood, a solitary snare drum tapped out a cadence. After a few bars a lone bagpipe wailed the beginning of the Alliance anthem. At the chorus the entire band joined in both feeling mournful and inspiring at the same time.

As the last notes faded Ethan checked his notes one last time and dove into the eulogy. "Growing up mom introduced me to the Christian Bible. It made sense to her. She was Catholic after all. It didn't make sense to me. How could one guy be three guys? And some sort of magical man in the sky seemed far fetched.

"But, when I was held by the Imperium, death all around me. My arms and legs blown off. I was at my lowest. I may have given into the temptation like so many others to just end it as quickly as possible if not for the love of a woman, and a simple passage from the bible. Psalm 34:17, 'when the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles'.

"I had troubles. We all have troubles. We have lost so much. Mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, and close friends.

"But, we fight evil so that what we have built does not become destroyed. We make damned sure that their sacrifice is not in vein. We pick up the flag and continue the charge. We face the forces that would destroy us just a bravely. We seek out and destroy all evil we can find. We honor their sacrifice. We give it meaning. There's little worse fate than a meaningless death. We fight on.

"I'd like to end this by reading to you the names of our fallen." He hesitated, adjusted his notes, and cleared his throat before reading off the sizable list of names. Each name becoming more difficult to say as his throat closed with emotion, but he forced his way through it. With a simple nod Ethan left the podium as the band played Amazing Grace. Dougal's tenor coming through clearly as he sang the song.

[Nick Ryder]

Nick held onto Alice's hand during Ethan's eulogy, as much as he wanted to say something, for the first time in his adult life, he really couldn't come up with anything to say that either he had already said or that wouldn't cause him to break down. But after Ethan spoke, he got up the nerve to approach the podium. Clearing his throat he looked out at the sea of faces.

"There isn't too much I can say that I haven't already said. I know, it's a shock, Nick Ryder can't ramble on for an hour like he usually does." Nick said and gripped the podium. "My father always told me that death is just a part of life, that we don't get out of life alive. My mother, like Ethan's, instilled in me a great amount of faith. I am positive someday I will see my father again, that I'll see everyone we lost again. It's up to us to keep the faith that this isn't the end. This isn't it. We have yet to fight and I am... happy to announce, that the killer of these men and women." he gestured to his father's coffin and those of his guards and those that died on Sigma station. "Was found today and is currently on his way to a deep dark hole of his own, he's still alive, but he may wish he was. Revenge is not the answer, eye for an eye... but we do believe in justice AND in saving lives." he closed his eyes and composed his thoughts for a moment. "But our dead can rest knowing that their killer will not take further lives." he looked at Jon and Bella. "I have also decided what path my... future will take. President Price and Director Decker and I have been discussing, while we were handling Bartyn... the formation of a new Intelligence gathering agency to find Dominus, anticipate his future actions and save some lives in the process. Alpha Section will be working with all branches of the military, our planetary and alliance intelligence agencies, Naval, SHIELD, Armed forces as well as those of Narlin Intelligence, New UFP and... Imperium. This threat affects us all and as such we all need to work together. Like the old movie Brazil said often, 'We're all in this together'. We're not a faceless, soulless bureaucracy, we have a face, we have a soul, we have a heart and we're going to work together because it's the right thing to do."

He looked at Kahlina's little memorial. "And because there are dark days ahead, but... like the old saying goes, it's always darkest before the dawn. Let's hope our dawn comes soon. May whatever deities all of you believe in look down on Terra Alpha and the Alliance and bless it, because we need all the help we can get."

[Ethan Talon]

A low rumble was heard, and overhead a flight of four fighters approached flying just over the treetops. Two Navy, and two Marine fighters. Their engines configured to increase their roar. It made sure that all knew they were approaching.


As they closed in on the memorial service the Marine pilot in the second wing leader position peeled off from the formation. The fighter shot straight up, and rolled towards the west flying towards a hypothetical sunset. The remaining three fighters with their "missing man" continued on with their level flight until they were out of sight.

The color guard played the Alliance anthem once more, but this time without the somber overtones.