Bonds of Brotherhood

[captain_ciro]

He had smiled when he noticed his brother was going to be joining them on their mission. Keleman hadn't gotten to spend much time with his younger brother lately. Their very different duties and training had separated them for a long time. He honestly did not except to see his brother for maybe one more year or even longer. Life and duty had a way of getting in the way. He had never expected to be put in command of the FarStar but it was a chance to continue the path he had been following for a long time.

Do the right thing and keep fighting to put an end to people like this Moff they'll be chasing down. He knows this isn't going to be his brother's first mission either but he felt the urge to go check on him and how Noell is settling in. They have some time and Keleman has a bottle of nog to split. It wasn't exactly the classiest of drinks but Keleman promised himself to get something more fancy when they weren't about to set off chasing down Moff Sarne.

He knew his brother was going to be in the hanger. He had seen the other pilot volunteers for this mission milling in and out. He was familiar with what they could be like. Many he had met over the years insisted on doing their own checks on equipment. He wasn't sure if Noell was like that but they had never really discussed the ins and outs of their respective roles before. They were about to learn a lot about each other that they may have skipped over in the time they had to catch up in the past.

He pauses then his normally stern expression breaks into a smile.

"Noell." He flashes a pleased look. "So," he stretches that out with a playful gleam in his eyes. "You got time for your exceedingly wizard older brother?"

Keleman is trying his best to make this clear he is here as an older brother and not the commander he is expected to be. It feels dorky but he isn't afraid to go that route so he can spend some time with his brother.

Comments

[noell_ciro]

"For at least a few minutes, I'm sure," Noell teased. He looked back to his droid, who chirped at him in an interrogatory tone. "Yeah, keep checking the power levels. I'll be back soon." He patted the droid on the dome, then turned back to his brother. "Maybe we can find a place to sit down somewhere on this crowded ship? I hear a rumor you might even have a whole room just to yourself!"

[captain_ciro]

"I would defend myself but.... old habits die hard." He shrugs finding the teasing makes him feel years younger. They should have tried landing a posting together years ago. Kel knows his brother has a very different sort of career but this feels like something that should have happened before.

This will be good for them.

"Ha! Like I'll actually use the damn place. You know I tend to run on minimal sleep. There's better uses of time." He could do anything but sleep.

"One of the storage rooms isn't being stocked until 0630 tomorrow. We could borrow it for a few. It's roomy enough for a chat and a few drinks," Kel supplies knowing the current schedule without even having to look. "I think we'll be converting it to spare parts for the squadron eventually. You have a chance to meet them all?"

[noell_ciro]

Noell fell into step beside his older brother, carefully stepping over cables that crossed the corridor. The FarStar had some unconventional parts, and getting it running in the limited time they had, with the limited resources, meant there would be some... unconventional jury-rigging, and the cables laid across the middle of a busy corridor was just one sign of such a thing.

"Most of them," he nodded. "I think we'll have a good squadron here. Lieutenant Gorjaye's a solid pilot and leader."

Hotheaded, too, Noell thought to himself, and her style may run afoul of Kel's... but as long as he was here, he was sure he could help facilitate the two of them into getting along.

[captain_ciro]

Unconventional is the nice way of putting it. Kel could see where things would start to really needle the crew. He would just have to run a tight ship to keep things from boiling over. Noell will do fine. He knows his brother can handle himself under pressure which this ship certainly will count if people don't get along well in tight quarters.

"She's something," he grumbles. "That woman doesn't know the meaning of backing down or cooling off. She keeps barging onto the bridge to share one of her.... pearls of wisdom as she calls 'em. I call 'em shots fired."

He has yet to leave a conversation with her without feeling his blood pressure go up. Either they will get along great or he'll want to actually fight her. He isn't sure yet.

"How's she handling the hanger? It looks better squared away than I expected already," he asks to shift away from his own grumbling. That wasn't becoming of him to do that about his brother's superior officer. It wasn't fair to either of them.

[noell_ciro]

It wasn't fair as a commanding officer, but it was absolutely fair from brother to brother.

"She's got it in shape. We'll be doing a run a bit later, let us all fly with each other before we hit actual combat." He hopped over a particularly thick cable run across the hallway. "She knows what she's doing. But I can probably convince her to ease off on the shots fired. Just know that any time she does that, it's because she cares about what's happening. She's seen a lot, and she knows some things. She just doesn't know that you do too... yet."

[captain_ciro]

"Good. Saw who you have. I'm not familiar with all their records yet but..." His brother smirks very faintly. "Gorjaye certainly didn't actually have anything bad to say. That's high marks."

Kel gives a nod of thanks as they arrive at the supply room. There are a few crates sitting about that someone put there just to keep them out of the way. He recognized the serial codes he could see as the ones for the wiring they had needed. Not what this room was meant to hold but it would do for now and they were big enough to sit on. Not bad for a space to share a drink.

"I get the impression we're all feeling each other out. Lots of names I recognize from the rebellion....others not so much. Mixed bag of loud personalities on a ship with tighter than usual quarters. We'll make it work. Hey, this time we have rations! Luxury dining right there." That last bit may have been a joke.

[noell_ciro]

"And they're not even moldy!" He laughed, taking a seat opposite his big brother. They could laugh about it now. A few years back, fighting the Empire on their homeworld, it wasn't quite as funny then... though they'd tried to make light of it. "Or, wait, no, not mold... 'gourmet Dolomar seasoning,' right?"

[captain_ciro]

His brother actually lets out a choked laugh that comes off as a wheeze.

"I just had to deal with the very seriously written out request, on the correct forms for once, to not have Dolomite seasoning on the ship," Kel explains around a laugh. He arranges himself on a crate to sit and open the bottle. They don't have glasses but that is fine. This is not a drink that requires any pomp. Just people to drink it.

He offers his brother the first sip.

"Young communications officer. She's a bit like us. Former rebel. Incredibly serious and by the books. She even made sure to attach a report on the 'dangers' of too much Dolomar seasoning for preserving rations longer. I thought it was a joke. It was not. You'll be in good hands during night flights if she takes everything that seriously."

[noell_ciro]

Noell took a swig and handed the bottle back to Kel. "It's quite the motley band we've got for this mission, isn't it?" he asked. "New Republic military, civilians... at least one former Imperial..."

He gave a rueful chuckle. "You've got your work cut out for you."

[captain_ciro]

Kel takes a swing enjoying the way it hits him. This drink packs a punch.

"And every single one of them agreed that Sarn is an SOB. Imagine being such a karking son of a gun everyone agrees on that." He grumbles letting his teeth click together as he really thinks about it. The Moff really is a peice of work.

"I think we've got a decent group. Get them working together and we'll do something special. I can see it in every single one of us. Something better than if we went it alone."

Kel wonders if he's becoming an idealist or just sees hope more easily.

[noell_ciro]

Noell, though, recognized what he always knew was there in his brother: a fierce unwillingness to back down. Kel could seem quiet, but to believe that to be passivity would be a mistake. Keleman Ciro was someone who never backed down from what he believed was right. He was thoughtful and introspective, but under that was a fierce fire that would never be quenched.

Back on Dolomar, Kel would have been content to find his way in front of a flickering computer screen for his whole life. Noell was the academy athlete, the flirt, with a busy social calendar, parties and hot dates. But when the Empire cracked down, it was Kel who was the first one to step up. Noell followed in his big brother's footsteps later. Kel did it for all the right reasons, right off the bat. Noell followed after, when there really weren't many other choices besides complete capitulation.

Kel was special. Noell hoped he'd someday live up to his brother's example. He had grown a lot since those hotheaded days of youth. It was only a few years back, but war had a way of changing a person. So many friends lost in so short a time.

Who would be next? Noell himself? Maybe even Kel?

All the more reason to appreciate the moments they have together. Any moment could be their last.

"You'll make it work," Noell smiled. "I know you. Nothing will stop you from bringing out the best in people." He took the bottle back and took another swig, then offered the bottle back with a wink. "You even managed to get the best out of me."

[captain_ciro]

"You were already outstanding," Kel rumbles giving his brother a small look of pride. He is proud of his brother. Keleman had learned a long time ago what a good person looked like. The wart had taught him how to look someone right in the eye and know who they were.

"I know this wasn't the life we imagined but you took it and made something good out of it." They both did just in different ways. Kel wouldn't ever deny that he had to struggle to get here. It was all hard work. He would instead challenge people to join him in this. Dare to be better.

"I'm proud of you. I know Mom and Dad are too." It had to be said. Their parents had no idea what to make of having two sons in the military. It was a lot given everything that had happened both during the Rebellion and even now. Kel didn't think asking them what they thought at this point would be healthy but he knew there was pride in their family. He could work with that.