Chapter Text
My Queen, one of your leviathans is sensing an unexpected signal.
It seems to be coming from a terran escape pod.
Oh?
Kerrigan turned to look at Izsha.
Shall we destroy it, My Queen?
No, Izsha… Send an overlord to investigate.
She looked through its eyes as it arrived. It looked like an ejected cockpit, so a smaller ship, maybe-
As the overlord got closer, it could make out the symbol emblazoned on the side… the simple but unmistakable emblem of Raynor’s Raiders.
She squeezed her eyes shut, briefly breaking her connection to the overlord’s vision as well, and exhaled slightly. She didn’t even know what her relationship with Jim was, now, and large parts of her did not want to find out… but she couldn’t abandon his pilot to die in empty space like that.
Well. No sense in half measures.
Izsha, set a course. I’ll handle this personally.
She entered the chamber where the leviathan had placed the cockpit. It was still closed, but she could clearly sense the pilot, definitely alive and absolutely terrified. She felt slightly guilty about the latter, but there wasn’t much she could do about it.
When she entered his line of sight, his panic spiked severalfold and he scrambled through the equipment around him, retrieving a pistol. She quickly reached out telekinetically and jammed the firing mechanism. Unaware, he continued to train it on her, breathing rapidly.
She calmly walked up, briefly inspected it, and pulled on the
Rescue Open
handle. The canopy unsealed with a hiss of equalizing
pressure and whirred open. The pistol clicked repeatedly.
She stood there and very pointedly did nothing until he stopped pulling the trigger. He continued to point it at her, though.
Hello. What is your name?
His panic was too thick to get
anything telepathically.
What‽
That’s an unusual name. Are you sure?
I- Hugo Bates. What the fuck-
He stared.
Where are you?
On your fucking zerg-
What is today’s date?
He started to lower the useless pistol as confusion overtook fear.
…December sixteenth.
What year?
2505, why-
Well, he seemed to be present mentally. Lightning round. You’re a
Raider?
Yes.
Pilot?
Yes.
What do you fly?
Viking.
He seemed to be getting more anxious at this line of
questioning.
Thought so. Calm down, I’m not going to hurt you. Just a
moment.
Jim.
James Raynor lurched, made a startled noise, and spun to see Kerrigan
had taken over one of the command displays again. Jesus
Christ, Sarah!
Sorry.
What do you want?
Well, I seem to have found your lost Viking.
…What?
The image broadened, showing her standing in front of a man with a very strange expression. He was standing in a Viking’s ejected cockpit, staring at Kerrigan.
Under the circumstances, it took a couple of seconds to recognize
him. Oh, thank god. Matt, get over here! And tell me you didn’t send
that condolence letter yet.
Bates stepped onto the deck plating with highly visible relief.
Commander-
Glad to have you back, man.
He patted him on the shoulder and
was silent for several moments. Go get some rest.
Yes, sir.
He continued down the corridor. Raynor’s gaze
followed him until he turned the corner.
He turned back slowly. Sarah was here - she had to be. There was no way-
She emerged from the Nydus worm-like… thing attached to the docking port, wings folded back, hesitant-seeming.
Jim…
I… haven’t seen you in eight months, Sarah.
She winced. I was going to… but you were busy, and then I was
busy, and then you were busy… and then it was September and it would
just be awkward after…
God, that sounds downright normal.
She laughed slightly. Well, we can’t have that.
I dunno, normal seems kinda nice to me.
Normal… as in…?
The words were small, uncertain.
He made a show of not noticing that, one calculated for her to see
through. Yeah, I mean, how long has it been since we went on a
date?
Something about her relaxed immensely, though he couldn’t tell what.
She smiled, an expression that was at once odd on a zerg and completely
natural on Sarah. You know, there’ll be a huge media circus
if anyone sees us.
Hell with them.
She seemed less certain. I don’t want to… bring down the
government. I’m not the most popular person.
We’ll deal with it. Nobody is gonna keep us apart.