The ship rocked away from its motherly embrace, engine burning as it pushed off of the bigger ship. The commander talking with the ship’s pilot, coordinating with the other ships, ordering out position to the respective ships and figuring out their respective parts in the mission. Jimmie sat strapped in like the rest of the soldiers, helmet fogging up by his ragged breaths. He hated these helmets, felt like it trapped him, a cocoon of insufferable, inescapable metal. Which wasn’t far from the truth, thought Jimmie. If anything happened, he wouldn’t be able to do anything to change the fact. That thought scared Jimmie, something that he vehemently denied to himself.

He glanced backwards, noting the positions of his latch, the only thing that he had any sort of control over. The latch leading to a pod that would launch them down to planetside, which could also be used in an emergency.

He let his head turn back, stopping where Dick sat, opposite Jimmie, equally strapped in but looking much better than himself, talking with the other soldiers about some inside joke that Jimmie couldn’t care less about. Dick seemed to notice Jimmie looking at him, as he suddenly whipped his head towards Jimmie, face obscured by the dark helmet on his head.

“Guys, does everyone know the weakness of a Vregmen mech?”

The soldiers quited down at Dick’s question, and just as everyone went quiet, one responded, a big guy in both width and height, maybe two meters tall. A weakness on a battlefield, thought Jimmie, that guy would have a harder time hiding behind cover.

“Ooh ooh, I know this! It’s their mouth-necks! I got to see one of their mech’s at a museum once”

The other soldiers laughed a bit, a joke Jimmie didn’t understand. Dick sighed, but made it obvious that he didn’t mean it and said.

“Bill, you’re supposed to know this from basic training, not through a museum.”

The other soldiers laughed louder at this, and Bill turned roughly towards Dick, straining at his restraint that held him to the seat and loudly grumbled.

“Well, it's not my fault basic training is so boring.”

“Basic training is supposed to be boring you daft idiot. And what boring fuck would go to a museum in this day and age?”

Dick retorted quickly, the other soldiers chuckling, but going silent as they turned their sights on the quiet Bill. Bill leaned back and forth in the seats restraints, creaking ominously from the weight. But when he responded, he sounded happy rather than angry, something that perplexed Jimmie.

“Fuck you Bill, it’s not my fault you're an uncultured swine.”

The other soldiers burst out laughing at that, laughing several minutes before the commander came in and told them to shut up. Then another soldier spoke up, a thin fellow, but just as tall as Bill, asking with a piqued interest.

“Bill, you said something about the Vregmen’s weaknes?”

Dick wiped an imaginary tear from his helmet, exaggerating the motion to gain a few more chuckles from the sitting soldiers.

“Yes yes, sorry Piernov. Yeah, about that. Anyone here who knows how hard it is to hit that?”

One soldier enthusiastically raised his hand, which garnered laugher from the closest soldiers, one stating the obvious, “were not in school anymore Chris”. The soldier who had raised his hand, let it fall back down in shame. Pathetic, thought Jimmie.

“Shut up, you fucking imbecils. Sorry Chris, you wanted to say something?”

Dick said, following up with a few light punches to those nearest him, getting “fuck you’s” back from the soldiers, followed with light chuckles. Then going quiet as they waited for Chris to speak.

“Uuuhm.. Well, it’s.. It’s about one in ten million.. Right?”

The soldier to Chris’s right gave him a light punch as he yelled out “NEEERD”, the other soldiers laughing, Jimmie even chuckling soundlessly, not wanting to be a part of the stupid shenanigans but still finding it funny. Although Dick didn’t laugh, neither did Bill, as they both told the soldier to shut up.

Then Chris said something which Jimmie couldn’t hear, and from the way Dick tilted his head, neither could he. But the soldier next to Chris seemed taken a back, laughing then saying “Sorry Chris, you know I didn’t mean it?” To which Chris said something that made the Soldier laugh again, then laugh even harder as Chris continued to say something in a quiet tone.

“Anyway, yes. As Chris said, one in ten million. Guess who in this company that's managed to hit that shot?”

The whole group turned to Dick, going deathly quiet, breathing from black helmets being awfully loud. Jimmie tensed up, immediately knowing who he meant. Bill spoke up in a surprisingly high-pitched voice.

“wHaT?” Garnering a few laughs. Easing the invisible tension.

“Is it Chris?” The soldier next to Chris asked, pushing an elbow into his flank, sounding very proud, for some weird reason.

“Is it you, Dick?” Piernov said flatly, sounding amused by his own statement. A few others agreeing with him. Dick merely shook his head.

“I heard it was Jimmie?” Chris suddenly said, every head turning to him, then to Jimmie. The ship going quite once again, then swiftly turning their heads back to Dick for confirmation. You could almost see the wide smile underneath Dick’s helmet, gesturing broadly with his hands, then saying.

“Not once, not twice, but thrice!” The whole ship going bonkers by the end, everyone screaming out their disbeliefs, even Chris, as they heard Dick’s proclamation. Then, one by one, they turned to Jimmie, screaming as they asked in a cacophony of yells, asking “if it was true”. The commander even had to jump back into the ship and scream at the soldiers to shut the fuck up.

Then it went silent, every head turned towards Jimmie, waiting for his answer. Jimmie felt annoyed, staring at Dick with a small tilt downwards, knowing where this was heading, feeling immeasurably angry. But he still said.

“Yes, its true.”

But like before, everyone went ballistic, yelling and jumping around in their straps. Bill’s straps even cracked, if Jimmie had heard that correctly. He felt a swell of pride at their reactions, but couldn’t fully boast as he stared directly at Dick, who stared back, his wide smile clear through the black mask.

“Wow, that's a fucking relief” Bill suddenly said, slumping back in his chair, easing himself as far down as his big body allowed. Jimme raised an eyebrow at that, but quickly noticed that many other soldiers had copied Bill. Then Jimmie noticed that the ship had gone quiet, not completely, as there still was a few that would talk, but compared to earlier in the journey, this was like whispers.

Something felt off to Jimmie, he couldn’t put a finger on it. But to him, it felt like the ship were more. At ease? People laughed, but not the forced loud laugther. Fewer “joking” punches and some even trying to talk to Jimmie. Which all found useless as he didn’t respond to anyone.

Jimmie continued to stare at Dick, waiting for him to blow it all up, but.

He didn’t.

Dick remained quiet, even bantering with Bill as they called each other idiots and other stupid stuff. Jimmies tension lightened from his shoulders, and instead, a familiar emotion crossed his thoughts, pushing away his previous anger.

He felt confused, and then stupid because he didn’t know why he was confused. Then he got angry again as he realised that it was all Dick’s fault.

"Fuck you Dick" He thought. Seconds before a blast rocketed the ship, everything turning completely dark.