Far From a Sweetheart

Posted on Sun Jan 26th, 2025 @ 10:43am by Lieutenant Adrianna Baciami

2,204 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Stars Around the Well

“Ma’am, do you have a moment?” A small and meek ensign stood at Adrianna's office door.

Adrianna looked up and nodded, before continuing to read some reports, multitasking, “of course Ensign Giles, everything ok with the readouts?”

The ensign smiled, and nodded. Giles has been grateful that Adrianna had allowed her to join the more senior members in looking over the readouts for their current mission. Sure, she was being supervised and everything was being checked by someone else too, but it gave her experience. “Oh, yes, that's all fine. I actually wanted to talk to you about a personal matter.”

Adrianna looked the cadet over and pushed the reports out of the way, giving the ensign her full attention. Adrianna could see there was a nervousness surrounding the looming conversation. “Alright, shut the door and take a seat,” Adrianna said softly, trying to calm the cadet down.

The ensign did as told before settling into a seat, shifting nervously. “They've not found out, have they?” Adrianna asked, cutting through the silence.

Giles shook her head chuckling, “oh, gods no. They don't suspect a thing. And, can I just say, whilst I appreciate being your mole when it comes to the Lower Deckers, I must admit that I don't think I will be going into Intel. But I wouldn't have known unless you had given me the opportunity.” Giles waved Adrianna off, “actually, there is a hiccup. There are some engineering ensigns who have seen how you act with your husband and friends. They are starting to see you as a bit more human. As it says in literature: the peasants are revolting.”

Adrianna chuckled, genuinely amused, “Madonna, it was only a matter of time, ensign. Don't get me wrong, a lot of the rumours are based on fact. I used the likes of that fear and admiration to my advantage. I don't use it as an ego boost.” Adrianna let her guard down a little to show the ensign just how serious she was, “if it happens it happens.”

“Actually ma'am,” Giles shifted a little, “they are looking at potentially outing it– for their advantage. They've never seen you follow through with true punishment for crossing you, they think that they'll be able to get away with a bit more. With you being pushed to second, I think it may lead to unsafe practices.”

Adrianna cocked her head to the side a little at the insight, thinking on it. The ensign had a point and this far out and deep into a mission, they couldn't afford for anything to not run like clockwork. She had an idea, “the lower deckers have regular boxing matches and fighting classes, right? Ask them to nominate someone to fight me. If they win, I'll stop doing bed checks. I'll hand it back to Tactical and Security to do. If they lose– they all owe me a favour, to be cashed in at any point during the remainder of this mission. I probably won't use it, to be fair, but they'll live in fear of me cashing it in. Plus, either way, the crew could use a bit of entertainment and an outlet. This mission has been very taxing up to this point.”

“They'll probably nominate Reyes,” the Ensign nodded standing up, “I think he's in tactical, but he wants to be a marine. He's huge, ma'am. Are you sure?”

“The biggest always hit the mat with the biggest this,” Adrianna nodded.

***

The makeshift arena in the Arcadia’s gym hummed with energy as the crowd pressed close to the edges of the boxing ring. The rumour mill had been working overtime, and when Lieutenant Adrianna Baciami agreed to face Ensign Marc Reyes, the strongest and most intimidating of the crew’s lowerdeckers, the buzz became deafening. Reyes was a towering figure, almost seven feet of solid muscle, his physique a testament to countless hours of training. In contrast, Adrianna stood barely over five feet, her slim frame the complete opposite of the ensign’s bulk. Yet there she was, standing in the ring with a quiet confidence that sent a ripple of doubt through the audience.

Reyes smirked, his eyes scanning her as though he were humouring a child.

“Don’t worry, Lieutenant,” he said, his deep voice carrying over the murmurs of the crowd, “I’ll take it easy on you.”

Adrianna tilted her head, her expression neutral save for the slight upturn of her lips, “I was about to say the same to you, Ensign.”

A whistle blew, silencing the room. Reyes lunged, his massive arm swinging in a wide arc aimed to end the fight before it began. Adrianna moved like water, slipping beneath the blow with a dancer’s grace. Her elbow snapped up, catching him in the ribs with a sharp crack. He stumbled, surprise flashing across his face.

The small crowd of lowerdeckers roared, half in support of Reyes, half in shock at the Lieutenant’s speed.

“Come on, Reyes!” someone shouted, “she’s just warming up!”

Reyes gritted his teeth and charged again, this time aiming to grapple her. His hands reached out, but Adrianna pivoted, using his momentum against him. With a fluid sweep of her leg, she sent him crashing to the mat. The impact shook the ring, and a collective gasp filled the gym.

Reyes scrambled to his feet, frustration clear in his expression. He swung again, faster this time, but Adrianna caught his wrist mid-swing. In a blur of movement, she twisted his arm behind his back, forcing him to his knees with an audible grunt of pain.

“Yield,” she said, her voice low but commanding.

Reyes growled, struggling against her hold, but she tightened her grip, adding pressure to his shoulder.

“Yield,” she repeated, her tone unchanging.

“Fine!” Reyes barked, slapping the mat in frustration.

Adrianna released him instantly, stepping back as he rose to his feet, rubbing his shoulder. The gym was silent, the cadets staring in stunned disbelief.

Reyes turned to face her, his expression a mix of respect and begrudging admiration. “You’re stronger than you look, ma’am.”

Adrianna gave him a small smile, brushing an invisible speck of dust from her sleeve. “And you’re slower than you think, Ensign. Work on that. Would you like another round now that you are warmed up? Remember, you win and I quit harassing the lower decks.”

The crowd erupted into jeers and boos as Reyes looked like he was about to climb out of the ring, his pride bruised but his spirits seemingly intact. Adrianna smirked to herself, letting their whispers wash over her. The rumour of her being a secret sweetheart had been effectively squashed, and the respect she commanded as head of communications was firmly reinforced.

Reyes frozen, genuinely considering it. He stepped back from the rings edge and cracked his knuckles as the referee stepped between them, a smirk playing on his lips. “Fine! I hope you’re ready for this, ma’am,” he said, his tone dripping with overconfidence.

Adrianna simply rolled her shoulders and raised her fists, “I'll go easy on you this time, cucciolo.”

The whistle blew, and Reyes charged, coming in hard and fast. He threw a powerful jab aimed square at her head, but Adrianna slipped to the side with lightning speed. She countered with a sharp kick to his thigh, the impact resonating like a drumbeat. Reyes barely flinched.

“Is that all you’ve got?” he sneered, spinning into a backhand that could have knocked her out cold.

Adrianna ducked, her movements fluid and precise. She stepped inside his guard, driving her knee into his midsection with a sickening thud. Reyes grunted, staggering back a step, but recovered quickly, his size and strength giving him an advantage in endurance.

The crowd roared as Reyes launched into a series of strikes– jab, hook, uppercut– all of which Adrianna either dodged or blocked with expert precision. She stayed light on her feet, circling him like a hungry tiger taunting its prey, looking for an opening.

Then Reyes switched tactics. He feinted a punch and surged forward, his massive arms locking around her waist. With a roar, he lifted her off the ground and slammed her into the mat.

A gasp rippled through the audience as Adrianna hit the floor, Reyes immediately mounting her to rain down punches. Before his fist could connect, she twisted her hips, trapping his arm and pivoting into an armbar. The transition was so fast it left Reyes blinking in shock.

“Not so easy, is it, cucciolo?” Adrianna hissed, tightening the hold.

Reyes roared, using his raw strength to lift her off the ground even with his arm trapped. He slammed her back down, breaking the hold. Adrianna rolled away, springing to her feet as Reyes lunged again.

This time, she didn’t dodge. She met him head-on, ducking under his punch and driving a vicious elbow into his jaw. The crack echoed through the gym, and Reyes stumbled, his eyes momentarily dazed. Adrianna pressed the advantage, delivering a flurry of strikes– elbows, knees, and a spinning kick that caught him across the temple.

Reyes staggered, blood trickling from his lip and nose, but refusing to fall. He roared, throwing a desperate and wild, sweeping punch. Adrianna ducked under it, grabbing his arm, and using his momentum to flip him over her shoulder. The impact as he hit the mat shook the floor.

Before he could recover, she was on him, locking him into a choke from behind. Her legs wrapped around his torso like a vice, her arms cinching around his neck.

“Yield,” she growled, her voice low but commanding directly into his ear.

Reyes thrashed, his massive arms clawing at her grip, but she held firm. His face started turning red and purple, sweat beading down his forehead.

“Yield,” she almost screamed at him, “I want you to watch the disappointment on your colleagues' faces when they watch their hope of being left alone fly away.”

Finally, with a furious growl, he slapped the mat.

The whistle blew, and Adrianna released him, rolling to her feet as the crowd didn't erupt into deafening cheers– they were silent, shocked, disappointed. Reyes lay on the mat, gasping for air, his expression a mix of pain and grudging respect.

“Good fight,” she said, extending a hand to help him up.

Reyes hesitated, then took it, his grip firm. The slight mercy that Adrianna showed him made him cautious, “You’re dangerous, ma’am. For someone so small.”

“I know how to take and give a punch, Ensign. I have a number of older brothers,” Adrianna smirked, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face, “Consider it a lesson to not underestimate your opponent. If you learn to speed up a bit and not get cocky, you will be an amazing fighter. I would have you watching my back.”

Reyes hesitated, his pride visibly bruised. He took her hand, but as she began to pull him to his feet, a dangerous glint flashed in his eyes. Without warning, he lunged, his massive fist arcing toward her head with the intent of delivering a knockout blow.

The crowd gasped, several witnesses shouting, “Reyes, no!”

But Adrianna moved faster than anyone thought possible. She sidestepped the punch and twisted his arm, using his own momentum to force him off balance. In one fluid motion, she swept his legs out from under him and drove him face-first into the mat with a brutal shoulder lock. The impact was deafening, and Reyes let out a guttural groan as Adrianna pinned him to the ground, her knee pressing firmly into his spine. She leaned down, her voice calm but laced with steel.“The fight is over,” she murmured, tightening the hold enough to make him wince, “don’t mistake mercy for weakness, Ensign Reyes or I will make an example of you.”

Reyes gritted his teeth, his struggles weak and futile against her ironclad grip. The crowd fell silent, watching in stunned awe as Adrianna held him there for a moment longer before releasing him and stepping back. Reyes stayed on the mat this time, his head bowed in shame as he muttered with a pained whine, “Yes, ma’am.”

Adrianna turned to the gathered crew, her gaze sweeping across their wide-eyed faces. “Let this be a reminder to all of you,” she said, her voice carrying across the gym, “respect isn’t given; it is earned. And stupidity gets punished.”

A ripple of uneasy laughter broke through the tension, along with murmurs and whispers. As Adrianna stepped out of the ring, the small crowd parted to let her pass, their whispers filling the air once more.

“She’s terrifying.”

“Did you see how she dropped him? Like it was nothing!”

“Definitely not a softy– those engineers must be lying.”

Adrianna smirked to herself as she walked away, her reputation as a fearsome and formidable officer cemented. Whatever rumours had been circulating about her being a secret sweetheart were now nothing but ashes scattered in the wind. Perhaps, for now, she could keep the secret safe. If only they knew her– she was only merely human.

 

RSS Feed