Coming Home (Free Fleet Book 2)

by Michael Chatfield

  “So, I know you want to be kept up to date with what's happening with the ship yard and dock. Now, I would have my brother be here, but he's more like Eddie in this regard, the only time that he'll go to meetings is when it's for something he deems interesting.”

  “We should have some coffee,” I said as Shrift's business like manner relaxed. While Kuruvians couldn't drink coffee, they loved the aroma, finding it relaxing. Somewhat akin to candles.

  I ordered some from the mess. Rank did come with some privileges.

  “So, did you find out anything about the rest of your family?”

  “It seems that they all died when there was an outbreak of a 'virus' by some terrorists or another. It allowed the Syndicate to impose martial law and found a massive amount of troublemakers, sending them to the mining colonies.” Shrift looked to the table.

  “Flor will be freed from the Syndicate as soon as possible.” My tone belayed the relaxed position I sat in.

  Shrift locked eyes with me before nodding.

  “I don't doubt it, Commander.” There was silence for a few moments before Shrift also lounged in his chair.

  “So, how's the married life?” he said with a grin.

  I returned it. “It's, interesting.”

  “Even while you two were being pissed off at one another, the entire time training I knew that you liked one another.”

  “There's no way you thought that.”

  “Call it a Kuruvian's intuition.” He grinned as he tried to look all knowing.

  “Why aren't you married, Shrift?”

  “Well, Kuruvians don't marry, we associate with one another, but we move from partner to partner a lot. If we want to have a litter then we actually have to activate our reproductive organs.

  “So, you can't have kids until you want to?”

  “Exactly.”

  “That's just cheating.”

  “We don't cheat. We just don't stay attached to another for long, usually. There are always exceptions, like my parents, though there are only a few.”

  “Why are there fewer female Kuruvians than male?” I asked.

  Shrift grinned. “We can choose our gender. Most that are on ships choose to be male or neutral, as I am. On ships we're brothers. On Flor we're siblings.”

  “That's got to be confusing.”

  “Quite.”

  The coffee arrived and someone from the mess put it between me and Shrift.

  “Thank you,” I said as he made a nervous bob before practically fleeing from the room.

  “Strange,” I said as an alert sounded on my data pad. “One minute.” I sighed as I opened the channel.

  “We found the reporter that leaked the video and such,” Henry said. The person was resourceful. They'd gotten from the Resilient to Hachiro, moving from the trainees to fixing up the video and sending it to Earth through the Free Fleet's communication system.”

  I'd had Henry go through Hachiro. It had taken time, especially with his commandos being stolen for other jobs. “Who is it?”

  “Evelyn Sparks,” he said.

  I shrugged. “Bring her up.” I sighed as Henry cut the channel and I turned to Shrift. “It's never just one thing.”

  Shrift grinned. “Shall we go over what Nancy and my brother are up to before she gets here?”

  “Certainly.”

  “Okay, so we've nearly cleared out the smaller ships up to destroyers. As you said, cruisers that are below a certain standard are being used as parts and then melted down. Shirley is doing a cracking job of mining. She's almost got an output a third of our own.

  “Our miners and refiners times change due to their distances. With the fuel that they’re burning and the amount that we have at Hachiro, we've begun building an atmospheric dipper and refiner for Saturn and Jupiter.”

  I nodded, taking a sip of my tea, Shrift's coffee releasing an aroma through the room. “What about the destroyers and bigger ships of the line?” I asked.

  “Well, making the dipper and refiner has moved back our time line a bit, but we think that within three months we could get them to the standard that they were before the battle.”

  “You mean the standard of the Syndicate which is, basically, it works, has armor and guns?” I crooked an eyebrow and he nodded.

  “Pretty much.”

  I nodded. “I want overhauls,” I said. I felt a twinge of regret for my words. Overhauls would take considerable time, but the ships would then hopefully be close to the condition they were in when they were really part of the PDF or system defense forces.

  “Really? That with triple the amount of time.”

  I nodded.

  “We have one thing going for us right now—training. Add that training with ships that are actually close to fully operational and we have a force multiplier.”

  Shrift nodded.

  “Also, while we're doing these changes, we can make it so that the ships are all universal, making it easier for crew to move from one ship to another without needing special training.” Shrift nodded as he pulled out his data pad and began making notes. The door opened and a woman as well as two Mechas walked into the room.

  “Thanks,” I said to the two Commandos, making it clear that they could leave as I reclined more in my seat and studied Evelyn Sparks.

  ***

  “Listen up trainees!” Yasu said. They were all gathered in the massive running track dedicated to the trainees training and that Yasu had run on thousands of times during her own training.

  Silence overcame the room after a few seconds of hushing.

  “You are no longer on a war footing. You have stories and hopefully some training and useful information that you can share with one another.” She paused for that to sink in before continuing.

  “But you are still trainees. You have a lot to learn and getting an inflated head is one way to get kicked out of the Free Fleet.” Takahashi and the training cadre behind Yasu nodded in unison.

  “Keep that in mind when training.” She turned to her staff. “Commanders, take your trainees.” The training cadre broke apart as they took their isolated squads off to their squad pods and training rooms, and a few began running on the track.

  Takahashi came up beside Yasu. They worked together, but there was a lack of personal interaction between them, for now it was only business.

  He used me in order to try and prove Salchar's inability to command. He twisted what I saw until I only thought of him as a cheating bastard, Yasu thought as she felt a nasty taste in her mouth.

  “Shall we have people finish the battle damage training quickly?”

  Because they've already been taught it, Yasu mentally finished. “Make it so.”

  Takahashi looked almost as if he was working up the courage to say what was on his mind.

  After a few seconds Yasu turned to him. “What?” She was unable to hide the coldness of her tone as Takahashi's nervousness disappeared and he straightened as if under review like the trainees.

  “I wanted to tell you I was wrong in what I did,” he said.

  Yasu hissed. “Don't you think I already know that?” Takahashi didn't recoil from the words, but Yasu knew they hit home as the man kept talking.

  “In wanting to look after my commandos, I thought that only I was the best commander for them. I thought that Salchar would just get them killed, that they were a number to him.” He looked to the floor. “And while a lot of them have died, I saw how every single life to Salchar is much more than a number. I saw how he uses everything in his arsenal to keep his people alive.” He turned to look Yasu's burning eyes, his own open as he smiled a little bit.

  “I saw how he loves you, and that he will be there for you no matter what. You have found a good family, Yasu. Mecha Tail, while being great fighters, are no mere friends. They work so well together because of their complete trust in one another. A trust that few families of blood can reciprocate. Your father would be proud that you found people that you can grow with and not just train wi
th.” With that Takahashi bowed before leaving an emotional Yasu in his wake, who turned to see the last of the squads being guided to some new training.

  When did I become so caring about words and feelings? Yasu thought as she wanted to run to James, have Salchar melt away and have his arms wrap around her and never let her go. She turned to go to the training commanders office.

  How was I so blind? She thought back to her time as the Blade Mistress and when training had begun and she had fought James.

  She smiled to herself as she got into her office, its window overlooking the track.

  “The one thing that went right was marrying that dolt,” she said, smiling and thinking of no other man she'd want to have by her side for the rest of her life.

  She saw Takahashi giving a lecture off to the side of the track and her line of thinking soured.

  “I'm going to have to figure out a way to look past his idiocy. He was doing it for his people, as blind as he was, and he also cares for me.” She sighed as she sat at her desk and opened her hatch.

  “Natsuko, Taniko,” she said as the two sisters walked in.

  Both of them were a couple of the deadliest people in existence, despite their girlish appearances, and completely loyal to Yasu.

  “What are your thoughts on Takahashi?”

  “Good fighter,” Taniko said.

  “Emotional, makes him falter.” Natsuko.

  “Preffered weapon...”

  “...Sword.”

  Yasu held up her hands as the two started finishing one another's sentences.

  “What do you think of the man?” And for once the cold looks of the sisters broke as they looked at one another.

  Yasu smiled, she couldn't help feeling motherly over the two. She was, after all, the one that had found them as toddlers about to be killed for not pick pocketing enough, by gangsters. She had raised them the only way she knew how, with fighting. I guess it's time I taught them about people.

  She stood.

  “Alright, you two, you're going to have new training.” To someone else the girls looks would have been one of neutrality, but to Yasu they were practically rolling their eyes and saying “Come on, we're already the best damned fighter's you've got.”

  “You're going to work for Hachiro's theatre.” She grinned as the two looked confused. Hopefully, movies and dealing with people constantly will have something of an impact, she thought as Natsuko spoke up.

  “But who will look after you then, mistress?”

  It was Yasu's turn to look unimpressed.

  “Takahashi.”

  Taniko's expression said, Bout time.

  While Natsuko's was, Are you sure?

  Yasu nodded to the silent questions. Trying to humanize the Sato sisters and be friends with Takahashi, I think I'm going space crazy.

  Chapter Gaining a Press Officer

  Evelyn had been surprised by the speed with which the Free Fleet had gone through their fleet, trainees, and then Hachiro. Altogether, it was a lot of real estate to cover. Yet they'd done it meticulously, giving her no where to run. That said, she didn't make it easy for them to find her even as she'd come to that assessment.

  They'd dragged her out of some duct, frisked her, and then taken her to Resilient. She knew the corridors and the familiar smell. It's strange how we gain connections to a place where we thought we might die, she thought as she was made to face the back wall of the bridge. She was then ushered into the conference room behind the bridge.

  “Thanks,” thee Commander Salchar said to the Commandos who saluted before leaving, Salchar tossing them one in return.

  The man looked perfectly at ease with an unbound woman that had recorded him in battle and had hid in his fleet. The Kuruvian Shrift shrugged before continuing to work on his data pad, he obviously didn't think what was going on was any of his business.

  “Want anything? Water? Food?” he asked as she looked for any signs that he was overly mad. He looked as if he was sitting on a tropical beach sipping a Mai Tai for the way he acted.

  “Water might be good.”

  He grabbed a water bottle from his leg and he threw it across the table. She grabbed it and sat down, squirting the contents into her mouth.

  “Okay, so when do you want to go home? We have shuttles running every four hours still for trainees,” he said as he sipped on something warm looking.

  “Uhh, as soon as possible would be nice,” she said as the door opened in a rush.

  “Ms. Sparks!” She whirled around and was greeted by the grinning but harmless smile of Rick.

  “Haven't you learned to knock at this age?” Salchar asked as Shrift chuckled.

  “Nope, rather like the shock and awe aspect,” Rick responded, Salchar grinning from this.

  Rick walked around to the other side of the table as he looked to Evelyn.

  “So, how would you like a job, Ms. Sparks?” he said with a grin as everyone in the room stared at him.

  “What? I am chief of staff,” he said defensively as Salchar flicked his hair out of his eyes and Shrift shrugged.

  “Why would you want to hire me?” Evelyn asked carefully.

  “So we can have you talk to the people protected by the Free Fleet-”

  “And make some propaganda up that the Free Fleet is awesome.”

  “No, and get the separate races used to one another and comfortable with working one another.”

  “Huh?” she said, looking to Salchar who was sitting back, listening to what was going on. Shrift was still on his data pad.

  “Okay, so these races have never met one another. Other than interacting with the Free Fleet these other planets and solar systems could just not exist. I want you to report on the different systems, religions, really get into the different societies and pull them apart, get people thinking about the other races, and not just their own. Hopefully, it will also give them ideas for trade, such as Earth making technology and Chaleel supplying food stuffs now Earth's been messed up. Or a trade with the Kuruvian's for rare elements and mining assistance,” Rick said as Evelyn sat down.

  “You're trying to link them together in such a way that they care if the other is attacked. That way they will help the Free Fleet grow.”

  “Essentially, yes. You saw that we need people to fight this war, people that we don't currently have. Now, this might sound pretty dictatorial as most political leaders called us,” Rick said and Salchar's expression soured.

  “But as of now, the Free Fleet is the only force that these five races have in hope of protecting them against the Syndicate. Yet we're not tyrannical, no matter what people have said, and we're trying to incorporate everyone into our Fleet so we have a fair system where no race is put ahead of another.”

  “Yet that's you saying it,” Evelyn said as she sat back. Her natural reporting skills making her devils advocate even if she approved of what the Free Fleet was doing, no matter what the political leaders were saying as well as their news networks. After being part of a system where each individual was cared for, she knew that the Free Fleet was the best thing that Earth had going for it. Though, she wasn't going to say that.

  “That's why we want you to do the reporting, a third party to look at not only the races but the Fleet. We want you to see what issues we have, how we're different and similar to other militaries,” Rick said, his look imploring.

  “Yet not in a way that would reveal any military secrets.” Salchar added as Evelyn found herself nodding and biting her lip in thought.

  “What about me sneaking aboard and all that?” she asked hesitantly.

  Salcahr's eyes sparked. “Evelyn, what you did was deceitful and pulled people away from their jobs which might save people one day. We're going to have to learn how to trust one another, so no more lying or messing with people.”

  Don't do this and your out, she silently added. “You have my word.”

  Salchar seemed to weigh her before looking satisfied.

  “We've got some time, so th
ink on the job,” Rick said.

  “Well, she's all yours, the next shuttle is in three hours,” Salchar said as Rick stood.

  “Well, shall we then?” I'm due to meet my wife for some food in the mess. I bet that running around tired you out,” he said as Evelyn stood. She had little choice, and if they were keeping her hostage they were by far the best mannered hostage takers she'd met thus far.

  Rick made sure she looked at the back wall again as a woman that looked as if she lifted shuttles for fun met them with crossed arms.

  “You going to lolly gag around all day?” she asked as she tapped her foot.

  “Well, I was.”

  “No excuses,” she said.

  “But!”

  “None,” she said as her face split into a grin and Rick kissed her.

  “Hello, dear. This is Evelyn Spark, she was the one that made the video.”

  “Highlighted the third tier gunnery on ports sides ineptitude. Off by a full three degrees on that rail gun round!” She huffed as she pumped Evelyn's hand.

  “Uhh, I'm sorry.”

  “Not your fault at all. Thank you for pointing it out. Having it all over Earth will make them the better for it,” she said with a conspiratorial grin as Evelyn found herself smiling at the intense woman.

  “Well, my beautiful ladies, shall we get some food?” Rick said with a grin as Marleen turned and crooked an eyebrow at him. He kept up his smile as Marleen laughed, holding Rick's hand as they began walking.

  “Coming, Evelyn? I do love to see the Commandos playing hide and seek, but it seems it tires them out a bit,” Rick said as Evelyn followed the two. It took her a few minutes to work up the courage to talk.

  “So, how did you two meet?” she asked.

  “Well, I was waiting in the squad pod when this dolt came from the ceiling yelling Geronimooooo.” Marleen simulated the falling.

  “Seems he lost his few remaining brain cells.” Marleen winked at Evelyn as Rick squinted at her, a grin on his face.

  Evelyn didn't know why, but she was already beginning to like the ridiculous pair. At first her questions were slow, and then she forgot where she was and fell into the role of a reporter, something that came to her naturally as she'd interviewed her father before he died covering protests in Africa.