“Nukes…” 

Gavon mumbled to himself, a hint of disappointment laced in his tone as he watched the holographic display of the ship’s “viper” missile head straight for the pursuing Devastator ship.

As much as power like that was needed to contend with such a large and potentially deadly enemy vessel, the use of nuclear weapons was also a very real threat to everyone involved. Granted, it's application was backed by good intentions -namely to save humanity from a rogue entity bent on destroying and conquering- yet the Security Chief couldn't help but think about another facet of nuclear war. The uglier side in which a once prosperous Russia was laid in ruins within minutes, leaving nothing but the memory of radioactive fallout as it drifted throughout the country like a sweeping plague. On the one hand, he had the fortune of not being born during that time, but on the other, had to endure the end result, growing up in a wasteland wrought with hate, despair, and hopelessness...

Red lights flickered on the holo-table console, indicating a direct hit to the enemy's hull, each small warhead hitting it's mark with precision and massive force. A few Dispatcher agents, who were monitoring the events in tandem with their security-related work, cheered and yelled exclamatory victory cries.

“We're not out of the woods yet folks, brace yourselves.” Gavon announced to the room, knowing the blast this close would produce a shockwave that would inevitably impact the Ark and it's systems.

The sudden power flux was minimal however, and ship-wide communication, camera footage, and Agent tracking were interrupted for a time, causing readouts to relay skewed information or simply nothing at all. Moments later, systems began restoring to normal, and what followed was just short of a miracle.

The [b]Judicator[/b] had intervened, supplying the firepower needed for the Vitae to make its long awaited hyperspace jump. Momentarily following, Noah's voice came over the ship-wide intercom, announcing the jump countdown, and an unspoken realization washed over the room that this was really happening.

“TreVayne to all Security personnel…”

Gavon paused for a moment, looking over at Natalie who had stopped what she was doing to return his glance, and as though they read each other's minds, both simultaneously mouthed the words [i]I love you[/i].

“The jump is set, so I'll see you all on the other side. TreVayne out.”

With that, the blinding flash of the FTL hit them as though the sun itself had gone supernova, rattling the ship’s computer systems and structure just enough to cause a few things not secured to fall off of tables, walls, and computer stations. Aside from the bright light that was slowly subsiding, the room personnel were fine as they readjusted their eyesight to check readouts, security status reports, and to reconnect with field Agents.

Gavon, on the other hand, was grabbing at his chest, momentarily stunned and wincing as he propped himself up against the holo-table to slow his unusually heavy breathing. Natalie rushed over to her husband with a worried expression, but Gavon put a hand out.

“I’m fine, just a little light-headed.” He said in a low voice, glancing around the room to see if any of the others had noticed. 

“Ten years of marriage, and you don’t think I know when you’re lying?” She whispered, clearly upset. “I saw you reach for your chest…”

“Nat, I’m fine, just-”

The Admiral’s voice over the intercom interrupted any further chatter as his request for “status reports” started up a new series of work for the Security crew, ensuring that all Agents were accounted for, security protocols were being followed, and audio/video systems were operational. As Locke was finishing up his “sign-off” speech for the moment, Gavon turned to address his second-in-command, [b]Jacen Oliver[/b], who was working with one of the Dispatchers.

“Oliver, you have command for a few minutes. Any security equipment-related discrepancies found need to be quickly relayed to the maintenance crews for repairs and diagnostic.”

“Understood Chief” He said with a puzzled expression, although not wanting to question his superiors motives.

Gavon left the room, with Natalie following a few feet behind, both heading down the small corridor toward the locker room area where he stopped at a refresher station to splash cold water onto his face.

“It’s this god damned artificial heart, Nat.” He finally said, taking a seat on a nearby bench. “I knew it was going to malfunction eventually...”

“What happened though? What were you feeling?” Natalie sat down and put an arm around him.

“I don’t know, but I was perfectly fine up until we hit the jump, and there were sudden palpitations to the point that I thought this thing was going to rip through my chest. I was winded like I’d just run a marathon in a few seconds, and that was about the time systems were coming back online and the bright light faded.”

“Well, I think it’s safe to assume that whatever interference is being caused during an FTL jump, is also affecting your heart’s regulatory protocols.”

Gavon leaned his head back against the bulkhead in disappointment. “And whose to say it won’t happen again? You do realize that automatically makes me a liability to the position?”

Natalie sighed. “Gav, we’ll get it figured out. So far your heart has given you no problems, and on top of that, you’re probably one of the healthiest and most physically active people on this ship. You’ve combat-trained damn near every one of your Agents without any issues, so why are you allowing this ‘slight malfunction’ to pull you down?”

“Because I don’t trust it.”

“Well, if it makes you feel better, go have it checked out, run a few tes-”

“No.” Gavon quickly sat up, shaking his head in protest. “This needs to be kept confidential. I don’t need it leaking out to the wrong people in command, [i]or[/i] to the Admiral for cryin’ out loud.”

“Okay…” Natalie thought for a moment. “Doctor Raidne” 

“The Cryogenics tech?” Gavon snorted. “Are you just randomly picking someone off the top of your head?”

“Will you shut up and listen for a moment?” She said bluntly, elbowing him in the shoulder. “[i]Yes[/i], she is head of the Cryo department, but Doctor Raidne is also a medical doctor and not technically part of the Vitae’s medical team. Which means...she won’t have the same obligations to report her diagnosis to the Admiral, or anyone else for that matter.”

“Fine” He let out a deep breath. “I’ll reach out to her later once we’re through here and the relief teams have reported in. Speaking of which, we need to get back...”