Just Between Friends

[Tabor Nansk 0]

Tabor received the order to use the fighters in a scouting capacity with mixed emotions. He was happy to finally be playing an active role in their current mission, but confused as to why he got the call rather than Will. Will had been acting CAG for months now and Tabor wondered if this signaled a change coming from the Captain “Computer, contact all pilots: Report for mission briefing in 15 minutes.” Then he used his own comm badge for a private channel. “Tabor to Will. Will, meet me outside the briefing room before you go in. We need to talk.” Will frowned when he heard Tabor announce the briefing and then the subsequent summons to meet Tabor prior to it. He tapped his badge, "Acknowledged Tabor. Be there promptly." He got up from the couch, put the book away and then left his quarters. The more Will thought about it, the more he frowned. He was the acting CAG, yet a mission brief came down from the Captain to Tabor and not him? Will found himself with mixed feelings. On one hand, the Captain possibly moving forward with officially choosing a CAG was a very good thing for the squadron. On the other, Will wanted the job and he knew that his best friend didn't want to be within ten clicks of it. He turned the corner and found Tabor waiting outside the briefing room while the rest of the pilots were filing into the briefing room.

Tabor arrived at the pilots’ briefing room and noted with satisfaction that it was full – no late stragglers. In fact, they were early, a good sign Tabor thought. Will came down the passageway shortly and Tabor looked at his friend with a set expression on his face. “I want you to know this wasn’t my doing, but I am going to need your support.” Will nodded, "I understand." He managed to force a small smile, "And if you get the job, well I guess it sucks to be you then." Will couldn't help the slightly hurt look but there was also confusion, "I just wonder what got the Captain to finally move forward with this decision all of the sudden. He had all the time in the world while we were patrolling Benecia but now in the middle of a rescue mission? That doesn't make sense." Tabor stiffled a sheepish look, not wanting to tell Will that he had gone to see Dr. Curtis with a morale issue. It had always been a long shot, but one that apparently had some effect. "Let's go inside before the natives get too restless." Tabor waived his arm in invitation and let Will enter first. Will frowned slightly as he entered. The slight hesitation was not lost on him but he let it go and kept a neutral face as he headed for one of the seats instead of the podium. As he sat, he couldn't help hearing the whispers from the others about Tabor being up front and Will taking the seat. The waiting pilots fidgeted in their chairs as the two men walked to the front of the room, then stared in disbelief and wonder as Tabor took the dias and Will took a seat to one side. "Gentlemen," Tabor began, "first a comment. There are some changes happening in the command structure. Please look at your data padds now." The pilots accessed the small displays built into the arms of their chairs and the reaction rippled through the room. "You'll note that flight groups and wingmates have been reorganized. That includes Lt. Tomlinson and myself." Tabor had used what he had learned during his informal bull-session in the aft lounge to establish new leaders and crews. Some of the pilots looked up with questioning faces. Others, the key players Tabor saw with satisfaction, looked up with a knowing twinkle in their eyes. The moves explained some of the different simulations Tabor had run the pilots through lately. Will lost his neutral facade and frowned very deeply when he saw that they had been split up as wing mates. Ever since Will got Tabor back and restored him to flying status, he put himself as Tabor's wingman every time. "Are you the new CAG?" asked one of not so happy pilots. This was the question that Tabor wanted to avoid, but knew he had to deal with it straight on and get it out of the way. "For today I am. Now let's get started with the mission briefing."

Will found himself growing more and more upset though he managed to keep it from surfacing as he listened to Tabor start. "First off," said Tabor, "This is a mission about mapping. Science thinks they've discovered more of these time bubbles and they want us to get a closer look. Understand me clearly: we are not in a hurry. The Ithaca's been in this anomoly for 25 years. Another day isn't going to change anything. I want you to navigate these bubbles at dead slow. I don't want anyone getting sucked into one of these things because you were going too fast and couldn't extricate yourself if you bumped into one of the surface boundaries. Second, you and your wingman are to stay glued to each other. If someone does get into trouble, I want one of us right there on the spot. I don't want to have to find out someone's missing later at roll call. And third, if you find something interesting, like the Ithaca crew waiving at you..." - that got a slight chuckle out of the assembly - "...call it in and hold position. The Captain's got the final say on what we do from there. Any questions?"

Hearing the chuckles, Will was not amused with anything right now that involved the Captain. Once there were no questions, Tabor dismissed the briefing. "All right, gentlemen, to your fighters. I want to be ready to launch in ten minutes." Will waited until everyone had left before approaching Tabor. Though Will's face was neutral, his eyes told the whole story, he was NOT happy about any of this, "So you're breaking up the brand, eh? Mind if I ask why?" Will kept his tone friendly but it was a bit cold underneath. Tabor thought, next to this, the CAG question was a piece of cake. "I'm an anchor around your neck, Will. I've got more baggage than the Howell's on Gilligan's Island. [no one from this century should know that joke, but I couldn't pass it up!] Believe me, I couldn't ask for a better friend. You gave me your family. But you need to distance yourself from me if you're going to advance, especially if this mission goes south. I don't know what the Captain is thinking, but I get the feeling this is some kind of trial by fire. If things go well and I pass his test, well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. If things go badly, you don't want to be anywhere around me." Tabor felt like he was kicking his pet dog so it wouldn't follow him off to school. He didn't believe a word of what he was saying, but Will had to hear it anyway. And more importantly, he had to believe it. "Go on and suit up. We can talk more when we get back."

Will nodded, "Alright Tabor, if that is REALLY how you feel about it." Will turned away from his best friend and went to the locker room to suit up. It was difficult to put this confusion with Tabor aside, but now he had to focus on the job at hand if we wanted to hope to survive it. As he suited up, he couldn't help but remember Tabor's words and he didn't like the feeling that was developing in his gut. It was the same feeling that he got when Tabor was running loose trying to steal his fighter for some fool mission. Tabor watched Will go and wondered if this could ever be patched up. He gave his friend time to suit up before going to the locker room himself. When he entered the flight deck, he already had his helmet on so he wouldn't have to catch Will's eye. Climbing up the access ladder, he eased into the cockpit and adjusted the restraints. "Tabor to flight group. Taxi into position and hold." As flight leader, Tabor took the lead position in the launch tube. He notified the bridge that the wing was ready to go and was given the ok to launch. "Tabor to flight group. We're clear to launch. Good luck gentlemen." When deck operations gave him the green light, Tabor pushed the throttle forward and hurtled out into space.

Will entered the cockpit and sealed his canopy. After he went through his preflight check and slid his fighter into position for launch, he waited. He turned his head and saw Tabor, with helmet on heading to his fighter. He sighed a bit as he watched Tabor go. Will shook his head, if he didn't love that damned Bajoran so much, he'd hate him. Will smiled at the thought. When the deck officer gave him the green light, he punched his throttle forward and was shot out into space. Once out in space, Will formed up with his new wingman and got ready to do his patrol route. He couldn't resist opening a private channel to Tabor, "Hey CAG-wannabe, stay safe brother. Don't make me have to pull your bacon out of the fire again." His tone was warm. Tabor smiled at the comm. It would be alright.