The Last Ship~ Season 1

Chapter 8~ Two Sailors Walk Into a Bar

Hearing the Russian Admiral's call over the radio was like a breath of fresh air and a hovering storm cloud at the same time. Fresh air because I knew where Chandler was. Storm cloud because he was stuck with the damn Russians! I growled. Very angry wouldn't begin to describe how mad I was. I was livid! I was furious. I was ready to kick some Russian ass! "Why I oughta, where's that son of a bitch! Let me at 'em!" I roared. "Please tell your ship to mind his manners." The Admiral said. I hissed. "I want conformation that Captain Chandler is alive!" I managed through gritted teeth. "I'm here Nathan." I heard Chandler briefly. "There you are. Now, you have 10 minutes to hand Dr. Scott and her vaccine over, or I will kill Captain Chandler." The Admiral said. "Why you cowardly, mother fucking son of a bitch bastard!" I snarled at him. "Now, now. No need to get hostile. Just give me what I want, and I will give you back your captain." He replied and the line went dead though I continued to shout curses at him through the radio. The Admiral could hear me and he laughed. "Captain Chandler, you must really think about putting soap in your ship's mouth. Those are not nice words." He said to my captain. Chandler looked at his captor in distain but said nothing though his eyes clearly said nasty but fitting you sick bastard! The Admiral was not pleased and sent him down to the cell beside Tex.

Dr. Scott came onto the bridge then. She had the vaccine. "Well done!" I praised her. "I couldn't have done it without you Nathan." She replied modestly. To the XO she said "Look, I have the vaccine, it's me they want. Besides I'm not useful on this ship anymore. He can have me in exchange for the captain and Tex." I was shocked and forgetting protocol, shouted "Rachel, have you lost your mind?! You do this and you'll be his slave for life until he kills you!" "He'll chase us to the ends of the earth. It's the only way to get rid of him, once and for all." She replied. I knew then what her plan was. "Yes, oh yes." I hissed. The XO grinned as well. "We'll equip you with the right tools." He said. "Can I um, sink the spoils?" I asked with a grin. The XO laughed. "Yes, Nathan you may." He replied. "YAY!" I squealed. Dr. Scott laughed. "I'll be back in time for breakfast." She said. "You'd better." I growled. She gave me a pat and left for the lab.

By nightfall, she was off. She'd be picked up by helicopter outside of radar range of the Russian ship but no matter, unknown to the Russians, we had a bearing on their radio call. "This'll be fun." I said. "Let's just hope it works first before you go crazy, alright Nathan." The XO said. "Yes sir." I replied, just refraining from calling him captain. While technically he was in command, I wouldn't call him captain unless I confirmed Chandler was dead. I prayed hard that wasn't the case. I had no radio contact with my crew for some time but I knew that Chandler and Tex were probably staging a breakout, Lt. Green was causing chaos in the engine room and Dr. Scott was doing a diversion in the lab. Things were pretty tense as we waited. After what seemed like forever, a flash of light caught my eye and I turned to see a ball of flame erupt over the horizon. "OH YEAH BABY!" I yowled. I waited for several minutes to ensure that the escape team had made it safely out of range, then armed a pair of missiles. Unable to resist, I opened a channel. "This is the USS Nathan James calling the SMS Kirov, do you read me over?" A faint but discernable voice responded. "Nathan, quite a dirty hand you have there." It was the Admiral. "No more dirty than the tricks you played on us." I replied. "But I think I speak for both white and black when I say, checkmate. Goodbye." I said and fired. Barely 2 seconds later, kaboom. Kirov was nothing more than a burning hulk sinking into the sea. As one of my missiles had struck the bridge I assumed the Admiral would go down with his ship. Or what was left of him anyway. "Nice shot!" The XO laughed. I grinned and let out a victorious yowl. "Easy there tiger." Chandler said as he climbed aboard. "Sorry captain, couldn't resist." I replied with a smile. He chuckled and before I could say anything, he stroked my side gently. "It's alright Nathan, you're forgiven." He said. I sighed in relief. "Thank you sir." I replied. Dr. Scott had the boat placed in front of my bow and she kissed me fiercely. The boat driver politely looked away but I could see he was trying and failing to hide his smile. "I was told what you did in the lab. What was it you said before you killed that officer? Nathan's compliments." I smiled. "That was very brave of you, Rachel. Very brave." She shrugged. "I just did what I had to do." She replied. I chuckled. "You're too modest." I said. "And you're too praising." She replied. "In other words, you're perfect for each other." Chandler put in. I rolled my eyes. "Thanks for the input cap." I said, blushing. He smiled. "Anytime, Nate." He said. "Nate?" Dr. Scott asked. "Eh, an old nickname mom gave me." I replied. "I like it, it's cute." She said. I giggled and ducked my bow. Having the crew laugh at my antics only made me blush harder. "Aww, cute." Dr. Scott cooed. "Ah, shut up." I laughed and nudged her. She just kissed me in reply.