“I just wanted to check in with you as the Marines are here. We’re staying out by the lake, if that’s okay. We’re kind of used to staying together after all this time,” Cain offered.
“Of course! I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m sorry that I haven’t been able to track your progress as we’re still working through Brisbois’s recommendations. He’s suggested a way to jump from deep space directly into the gravity well of a solar system. He’s also refined some of the specs of the EM drive, gaining almost one percent in efficiency. Do you know what that means?” the doctor gushed.
“I don’t, but I suspect that it’s good?” Cain ventured.
“It is incredible, far better than we could have ever imagined. He was right about everything, that research and development was not the place for him. He needed to be in space. We’ve added a couple experimental systems to your spaceship for Briz to play with during the next cruise. We can’t wait for him to get back and share his results with us. This is such an exciting time, don’t you think?” Dr. Johns’ energy was astounding. It seemed like he’d grown younger. Cain wondered if this was a new clone.
“It is an exciting time,” Cain agreed. “I’ll get out of your hair, Doctor. We have some sleep to catch up on, some food to eat, and then train, train, train, until we catch the next the shuttle to the Traveler where we’ll continue to train. I wonder how we’ll do in zero-g.”
“You’ll have to tell me all about it when you get back, but you better hurry your training. I hear your ship is leaving early,” the doctor said, pumping Cain’s hand afresh. The major froze. If it was him, why would he let slip the early departure? Cain was instantly confused.
The major took the opportunity to walk among the terminals, still carrying Brutus, leaning the ‘cat close to each person as he greeted them one by one and made small talk. He stopped at the front of the command center, where monitors hung ceiling to floor and wall to wall presenting a complete picture of all Vii and the human settlements in space.
‘Anything, my friend?’ he asked the ‘cat in his quietest thought voice, focusing to make sure that he projected only to Brutus.
‘No. I don’t like clones, but the attitude in here is positive. No one had negative thoughts when they saw you. I’m ready to go outside now. You are interfering with my nap.’
“Your will be done, little man.” Cain nodded to the ‘cat, and then dodged bodies as he walked with a purpose to the elevator. He needed to update his lieutenants.
Provisions for a Long Journey
Ellie was pleased that her mom had passed the message to Cain. Her former lover had also called her mother back later to talk about the success of the recruiting, also noting off-handedly that it was going better than he expected, allowing for more time training on the Traveler. She shared that information with the captain, including the total number of people and ‘cats that Cain would probably have with him.
“He said twelve!” the captain said loudly, harrumphing his dismay. “Forty-five with twenty-one of those being ‘cats? It’ll be war! You tell the Rabbits what’s coming. I’m not going to do it,” he said emphatically, stomping his foot, which only served to send him spinning out of control.
Ellie chuckled, unsure what to make of the captain’s mini-tirade. “I’ll do it. It’s okay,” she said calmly, trying to soothe Rand’s frayed nerves. “How are we going to pick them up?” she asked, turning serious.
“Once we launch, we have a two-week window in which to conduct our shakedown cruise. I can take the ship anywhere I want during that time as long as I engage and evaluate each of the systems. What’s to say that we don’t take our baby to the Traveler? We can dock and pick up Cain and his folks directly, but none of that can be common knowledge. We simply do it.”
She thought it was a great plan. Skip the opportunities for someone to intercept the platoon. She wanted Cain back on board where he was safe. She wanted him near her as he made her feel better about herself, even though they weren’t together anymore. Ellie hadn’t told her parents. She couldn’t. Even though she didn’t feel like a failure, she knew that her parents would judge her. She felt better than she ever had before. She couldn’t explain it besides knowing deep within what she wanted more than anything else. Ellie wanted to be an engineer aboard a deep space exploration ship.
The captain suddenly activated the ship-wide broadcast. “I have a little news to share with you all. The Cygnus-12 has been renamed by the SES to The Olive Branch. That means nothing. I am the captain and we are her crew. None of that changed. That is all.” He looked at the microphone on the ceiling, not knowing what to expect from his announcement. He hoped that the crew would take it in stride, as he’d resigned himself with the news.
Briz was working to clear the remainder of the temporary systems when Ellie ran across him in the stairway. He stopped to look at her. She couldn’t tell if he was talking with Jolly or waiting for her to say something.
“Briz?” she ventured, waving her hand in front of his eyes. His lids slowly drooped, and he floated free as he left go of the handhold. The captain’s standing order was that if anyone saw Briz like that, they were to leave him alone. He slept two total hours a day in one-hour naps, generally wherever he happened to be at the time he was tired enough to fall asleep.
Ellie shrugged and pulled herself down the railing, pushing off when she reached the hatch leading to the garden deck. The Rabbits had not yet returned from the shipyard’s space station, and she was pleased to put off to another day the unpleasant duty of informing them about their new guests. The garden deck was big, but big enough for twenty-three ‘cats and two Rabbits?
It would have to be.
She passed a floating Briz as she went back upstairs to the command deck where she went in search of Tandry. The sensor operator was right where she always was, elbow deep in star charts and manuals, although all of it was digital, the screens within her space were nothing but mind-numbing text and pictures of stars that looked all the same to Ellie. The engineer was happy that she didn’t work in sensors as she didn’t find any of that interesting.
“What brings you to my hallowed space?” Tandry asked, pushing out of her seat to give her friend a hug.
“I’m just looking for a little sympathy,” she said to Tandry’s wide eyes and finger roll asking for more. “Cain’s bringing twenty-one ‘cats with him, along with his rest of his people, four times what we were expecting.”
Tandry looked shocked. “Mixial is at that point in her life where she could come into heat. How many of those barbarians are male?” Tandry had grabbed the lapels of Ellie’s jumpsuit and pulled her face close.
“I don’t know,” she said, barely above a whisper, as she looked for a way to escape.
“What am I going to do?” Tandry lamented.
“Hey!” Ellie interrupted. “This is supposed to be my sympathy session. I have to tell the Rabbits about the hoard that is going to invade their spaces. You have to tell the males to stay away from Mixial. Don’t we all have some unhappiness to look forward to!” Ellie said, pushing Tandry away playfully. They each bounced off a bulkhead and casually pulled themselves back to speaking distance.
“Unhappiness? Just call the Rabbits over the intercom about two minutes before the mob shows up. They’ll deal with it. We just need to make sure they don’t have access to their laser pistols. Lutheann will be there to keep both the ‘cats and Cain under control.” Tandry cocked one eyebrow.
“What?”
“The whole ship knows about the late night excursions between you two. Honestly, I don’t know where you find the energy,” Tandry said, feigning disbelief.
Ellie smirked. She didn’t see those visits stopping any time soon, assuming they could get Cain back on board. The ship was a small place and the deployments were only going to get longer. “Yeah, well, it’s complicated,” she offered, not giving more. “Ship’s stores. With that many ‘cats, I think we’re going to need a lot more real meat than what
we may have been planning. And other stores, too. I don’t know what kind of people make up Cain’s Marines, but I expect they’ll eat like he does, a lot.”
Tandry jumped on her terminal and made a few notes. They’d get what they could from the station, but she couldn’t promise anything. “Tell them to bring as much food with them as they can. How are they getting here?” she asked.
“I don’t know that, but I suspect with that many bodies, they’ll come in a shuttle,” Ellie feigned.
“That would be best, yes. They can bring their own supplies to supplement what we would already have. That’ll work. I’ll pass that to Jolly. He handles those kinds of details.”
Ellie nodded and waved, wishing Tandry the best of luck in her studies while diligently avoiding any further conversation about ‘cats. She’d have a talk with Carnesto about avoiding Mixial.
‘You will not,’ came the instant reply.
‘Carnesto! You will not take advantage of Mixial,’ Ellie said determinedly, having waded into her third successive unpleasant conversation. It’s not my day, she thought.
‘”Take advantage of” is such a barbaric thing to say when two ‘cats express their love, albeit for a brief period of time,’ Carnesto retorted. The black ‘cat was somewhere on the ship, but Ellie didn’t know where. He hated zero-g, but with her on board, he had decided to return. He didn’t much care for the space station either. He was angry that he hadn’t gone to Vii with Cain and Lutheann. Twenty-one ‘cats! How glorious.
‘I warn you, Carnesto. You keep yourself under control!’
‘I am always in control, unlike you and Cain, if I can bring that up.’
‘You may not,’ she said plainly. ‘You will need to help the new ‘cats assimilate to life aboard the ship. Then, if you fall in love, I may consider not giving you a hard time about it,’ Ellie countered.
‘I am already in love, with all of them,’ he said without pause.
‘Carnesto. Seriously, what are your dalliances going to do to me?’ Ellie asked.
‘Give you an idea of what yours do to me, my dear,’ the ‘cat said smugly.
Ellie had no comeback. She hung in the corridor outside sensor suite one, wondering how she’d handle the emotional overload. Maybe I’ll visit Cain more often, she thought, not unhappy with that image.
Launch into Space
The first night’s celebration on the beach was impressive. In addition to what the lieutenants were able to gather, Dr. Johns sent an entire feast, including the serving bots to make it a formal affair. Some of the workers from the command center joined them, mingling with the Marines.
Cain ordered the uniform hardware for his people, the logo of the Cygnus Marines and rank insignia for corporals and above. With the maintenance shed a few steps from the lake, a maintenance bot delivered his order in less than thirty minutes.
The major called the platoon into formation where they reenacted the pinning on, but this time, they had something to pin to the Wolfoid harnesses and to the collars of the humans and the Lizard Man. Ascenti wouldn’t wear a device until they could figure out whether he would wear anything or not. For the Hawkoid, the greatest form of protection was his ability to fly unhindered. They gave his device to Bull, who put it next to his on his harness, so Bull wore two Marine logos–a lightning spear crossed with a trident, Vii behind, with a shooting star racing past the north pole.
The ranks were simply a single red slash for the corporal and two for the sergeant. A single silver bar for the lieutenants to differentiate them from ensigns who wore a single gold bar. A captain would wear two silver bars and the major wore his gold leaf. That was it for the Cygnus Marine ranks. Simple enough for the small contingent of space warriors.
Dr. Johns showed up at the event. The lieutenants both were initially cold until Cain whispered to each that Brutus said it wasn’t him. They made amends by finding nice things to say about the Space Exploration Service. The platoon had no idea so they were honored that someone from the Council of Elders would attend the pinning on ceremony and congratulate them.
Major Cain could not have planned it better, but he was sedate throughout, haunted by the thought that if it wasn’t Dr. Johns, then who could it be? Was the director of Space School acting on his own? He didn’t know where to begin his search, now that he had to start over. He’d let it go and trust to the presence of his platoon, of the ‘cats, and of the many friends he seemed to have made at New Sanctuary.
The night ended with Pickles carrying Stinky into the lake, dunking him, and turning him loose. The squads came to their rescue, turning into a melee that overturned a table along with sending the entire platoon into the lake. Bull tried to run the major down and knock him into the water, but with a dodge and a hip throw, he sent the over-sized Wolfoid head over tail into the water.
Grace and Jo decided that it needed a woman’s touch, which got both of them deep sixed, too. The major watched warily as he strolled to the small pier, walked to the end and jumped in. He treaded water in the deepest part of the shallow lake and waved everyone to him.
“Is there nowhere safe from one of your speeches?” Stinky cried.
Cain splashed him as the water churned with dog-paddling Wolfoids and humans casually treading water. Ascenti perched nearby while the ‘cats had not changed position. Frolicking in the water wasn’t an activity that Hillcats would participate in, no matter what.
“Bull should have been able to easily overwhelm me, not the other way around. So, first thing tomorrow and for the remainder of our time on Vii, we will practice hand-to-hand combat. While on the Traveler, we will conduct hand-to-hand combat drills twice every day for ninety minutes each time. Since we didn’t have that in the training schedule, where do you think we’ll be able to find the time?” Cain asked the leading question. No one wanted to answer.
“Sleep time. You can sleep when you’re dead. For now, we train. Sleep well this night, because it will be one of your last chances to get a decent night’s rest. Sergeant Stalker, no security patrol tonight, but starting tomorrow, four per shift. Now get out of the water and finish cleaning your gear.” Cain waved them off. He slowly swam toward the shore, being the last one out of the water. He was surprised to find Dr. Johns still there and waiting for him.
“You are a much different person than the one I met before. A whole new rank and a whole new group of followers. How will the others take this position?” Dr. Johns asked, showing an intense interest in the major’s career. Cain’s jaw tightened.
‘Still not him,’ Brutus said as a reminder. Cain relaxed.
“Combat on the Cygnus-12 and on Concordia was a reminder of how ugly people could be. I saw what a difference a few good people with blasters could make. With the Marines on board our ships, our first contact experiences can be better managed until we are certain that we’ve made new friends. I have to say that I really liked Albert, Elder from Village Fairsky. He and his people would make incredible allies, friends who we can have a drink with, tell a story to, simply share life. It is a great time to be alive and serving in the SES. Who would have ever thought that we’d find other human colonists, people just like us?” Cain looked into the distance.
“It is a great time to be alive,” Dr. Johns emphasized by reiterating Cain’s statement. “Keep your people on their toes and remember, from me, our first order of business is to make friends. Your unit is to defend our people so they can do their job in making first contact. Here’s to the defenders of peace!” Dr. Johns raised a glass of wine and a server bot materialized with a glass for the major.
“To the defenders of peace! That is something I can drink to,” Cain agreed.
“What if you run across someone with the capability of the ancients? They can blow you away with a single bomb,” Dr. Johns offered.
“Then that would be a problem,” Cain said with a smile. “A problem that I can’t worry about. I would like to think that someone with such ability, and who has survived to this point, will avo
id using that kind of firepower. If we have to fight like the ancients fought, then we’ve already lost. Look what they did to Vii. If it came to that, I believe we would fly our ship into the sun rather than let it fall into the hands of someone who would use nuclear weapons.”
“I like the way you think, Cain. Although you’re young, you are the right person for the job, setting up the Marines to keep our explorers safe. Don’t lose that attitude of yours, because it is people like you who are making this world a better place.” Dr. Johns held out a hand and Cain took it, shaking with the man for the third time that day.
He watched the doctor head for the elevator as his lieutenants joined him.
“You just can’t help yourself, can you? Any chance you get, no matter who’s in the audience, you have to give a speech. Will it never end?” Stinky needled his friend.
“Pickles, what the hell? Why did you ever think it was a good idea to get a Wolfoid wet? Can’t you smell him?” Cain joked.
“No,” Lieutenant Peekaless replied formally before heading back into the water. He and Private Zisk had been out of their skin suits since they arrived and were enjoying the lake water. Although they preferred things warmer, the cool wetness of the lake beat the dry heat of the Sanctuary ruins hands down.
“We have a tough road ahead. Someone is against us, and the rest are for us. I can’t get my head wrapped around what’s going on, but I’m confident, thanks to Brutus, that Dr. Johns supports us and what we’re doing. Regardless, I wasn’t kidding. We need some hand-to-hand combat skills. It looked like a free-for-all earlier.” Cain grinned, slapping the Wolfoid on the back and getting a hand full of sticky wet fur in return.
Cygnus Expanding: Humanity Fights for Freedom (Cygnus Space Opera Book 2) Page 20