Rust Bucket rbu-1

by Atk. Butterfly

  “Don’t I have any say?” I asked.

  “No, unless you want to be disgraced the rest of your life. By the way, I thought you and Annie were going to get married. What happened there?” he asked.

  I explained, “It was supposed to be an affair. She said she was using protection, otherwise I would have used some myself. Then she got pregnant and asked if it would be all right if she stopped using protection to have a child of mine with no obligations. I reasoned out then that she was pregnant, so I said she could have the baby if that was what she wanted. That’s about the whole story.”

  He said, “I see. Well, I understand, but I think you’re missing out on the deal of the century.”

  I replied, “Maybe so, but I didn’t want to get a regular commission because I was related to an admiral.”

  Sergeant Clark exclaimed, “Ah! Of course, why didn’t I reason that one out! My boy, even if you married her, that ornery old man of hers wouldn’t pull a string for you if the two of you were in a musical band! How the hell do you think he got to be an admiral? He pulled his own strings or weight the whole way, just like you’re trying to do. Give it some thought. Being married is a plus towards getting a regular commission for someone in your situation and it doesn’t matter who your father-in-law happens to be. The rich kids haven’t made it that far up the ladder and likely they won’t. They don’t want to spend too much time in the military. Just enough to get some inside information and then get out to make credits. Once you get past them like you were when the truce was announced, then you’re competing against officers like yourself. You’ve got most of them beat hands down!”

  “You mean I was that close?” I asked.

  He said, “Yes. Just wait a few more years. Stick with Pennyweight and bide your time. The war will resume. Then you’ll be able to get that regular commission.”

  I replied, “I’ll keep that in mind. By the way, how’s your father-in-law? I haven’t stopped to see him yet, so I thought I’d ask you.”

  He said, “He’s slowing down. You gave him a lot of reason to believe that we would win, if the politicians hadn’t been paid off to accept a truce so that the rich families could get back to making more credits on the Navy’s back. Anyway, he’d be glad to see you, so drop on by when you get a chance.”

  I replied, “I will. By the way, you’ll have to introduce me to your wife someday, now that I’ve got the time to socialize. I’ll bet you picked a real winner.”

  Sergeant Clark said, “I did and you’ve met her already. You work for her.”

  “Huh? Not Penny?” I asked.

  He smiled and said, “The one and the same.”

  “Sarge, is this a good question to ask here or should we go somewhere else?” I asked.

  “What?” asked the Sarge.

  “Well,” I said as I looked around, “she’s not in the directory. Neither is your father-in-law or his son that you saved. Likewise, the Pennyweight…”

  Sergeant Clark quickly said, “Hold it! You’re right. That’s not the type of question to ask or answer here. Furthermore, I can’t give you an answer. You’re going to have to settle for no answer. Please don’t bring the question up with anyone.”

  I looked at Sarge with a sense of hopelessness and knew that there was something going on in front of me that I couldn’t see. What’s worse is that I was sure it was happening openly without any sort of cover. Yet I was missing it. I answered, “Okay, Sarge, I won’t bring it up.” Inside though, I knew I wasn’t going to stop trying to discover what was going on. My curiosity was strangling me over this now.

  * * *

  Afterwards, I went ahead and visited with the retired Admiral at his surplus store. I made it a point to look around the store at what was carried for sale, yet not one thing didn’t belong there. It was as typical a surplus store as any I had ever been in. We had a nice chat and he thanked me for my efforts during the war. I left after at most an hour, still puzzled by why he wasn’t in the directory. Sarge’s warning not to bring it up was enough to convince me that something was truly going on.

  * * *

  I caught a Yellow back to the company area since as Captain of the Thurman, I could bunk down inside it whenever I wished. On the way back, I let my thoughts wander from the mystery, to Annie, and to what the next war would be like. I didn’t even give thought to my chances of getting a regular commission. For once, my original goal wasn’t my first priority.

  Concerning the mystery, there was little I could do other than keep my eyes open. Maybe I would spot what was happening. About the only thing I now knew was that Penny was also the daughter of the retired Admiral. There were only three invisible people who I knew of and not four. I almost forgot to recheck my directory listing to see if I had disappeared since I was out of the Navy. Was I invisible? I would check on it tomorrow.

  Annie was something I wasn’t sure of. She was bright, daring, and beautiful. She was also slightly self-centered, a liar of sorts, and a manipulator. She also seemed to care for me, but she had let go of me and kept her word about some things. I wasn’t in love with her and had barely given her a thought after our parting. I supposed that I should see how she was doing. I decided that I could do that tomorrow as well.

  As far as the next war, I wondered what I could do for the Navy if the Ape-oids could outrun our ships and possibly outgun them. There might be an historic precedent for someone in that situation. I wondered if I could find it and then apply the knowledge. At any rate, I knew the truce would likely last at least a year to two years simply because the Ape-oids would not only have to develop such weapons, but mass produce them if they were to have a real chance of winning the war. Surely, they wouldn’t think that they could do it with only one ship?

  * * *

  The next day started with a whole new outlook for me. I got up from my cabin in the Rust Bucket and was able to eat in its Dining Facility since our cooks were already back in place. I looked forward to some of the best food on the planet and several others, too. I was in civilian clothing and looked forward to the day. Most of my thoughts from the day before were neatly stored away where they would let me do other things instead. For the time being, I would only recall them as they were needed. Nothing had resolved itself in my sleep. As well, I knew that those were the things that would take time.

  For that day, I only had two things planned. One was so easy, I figured that it would only take a few minutes. The other, I wasn’t sure I wanted to do. I had no idea why I wanted to see Annie.

  I finished my breakfast and went out of the ship and through the building to the street. I didn’t have far to go to find a public terminal in order to check the directory. I stepped up to it and spoke my name, expecting to be given a message that there was no listing. Instead, my name came up listed as a civilian who served as a Captain in the Navy during the Ape-oid-Human War. My decorations were listed along with names of the skirmishes or battles, depending on one’s view of such things, in which they were earned. A few things about me were unavailable as being classified defense information. The most glaring things listed as classified were the ships on which I served. It was a perfect hero’s directory listing. My address was given as the address of the building in which the Pennyweight Shipping Company was in.

  To say the least, I was surprised to see that I wasn’t invisible. Nor were Frank and a lot of other people I looked up. Only three people remained invisible to my inquiries. I wondered how many other people were invisible whom I hadn’t met yet.

  If nothing else, that convinced me to go ahead and take a Yellow over to the base to see if Annie would admit me as a visitor. She had information about things and a way of looking at things which I didn’t have. If she would see me, then maybe she would let something carelessly drop in her inimitable way. Perhaps, I would be able to discover if I felt any different about her.

  I turned away from the terminal and was about to walk down the sidewalk to find a Yellow when I realized that Annie was in her h
over at the street looking at me. She was apparently waiting for me to finish using the terminal. My curiosity was itching with a burning sensation that demanded I seek relief. Why was she there?

  “Hi there, sailor! Need a lift?” she asked as I approached.

  “Annie! I was just going to grab a Yellow and see you at the base, that is, if you would have accepted me as a visitor. How are you?” I asked.

  “I’m fine. You’re looking good. Want to go for a drive?” she asked.

  “Sure!” I got into the passenger seat.

  Annie hadn’t kidded me before about her driving. She drove recklessly, just as she said she did. I was gripping the seat enough to turn my knuckles white.

  “You look like you’d rather drive. I’ll pull over and let you take the controls,” she said as she did just that.

  I got out and went around while she slid over to the passenger seat. Then I got in behind the controls. “Where to?” I asked.

  “Would you mind going to the island?” she asked.

  “Okay, the island it is.” I knew where it was by then, so there was no need for her to give me directions as I drove. “I wanted to see you, but I wasn’t sure why.”

  “You are now?” she asked as she untied her blouse to let the wind flail away at her.

  I said, “Not really. I’m still unsure why I want to see you. I thought you were pregnant. You don’t look it.”

  “Oh, silly! I won’t get fat for a few more months. Then I’ll blow up like a balloon for a few months before I give birth. But, don’t fret. I’m definitely pregnant. I throw up about half of everything I eat. I don’t regret it either, even though you didn’t marry me. How about you? Do you regret it?” she asked.

  I said, “I’m still not sure if I did right at the time by not marrying you when I kept to part of our understanding of no obligations. I thought then that it might influence my career unfairly. I’ve since learned that it wouldn’t have, at least not as far as your father is concerned. I understand that your father doesn’t pull strings for anyone. I can respect that.”

  She said, “I guess I should have told you that, but I thought then that you wouldn’t believe me since I lied to you about some other things.”

  I replied, “I imagine you’re right. I probably wouldn’t have believed you on that. I’m glad that you didn’t try to dissuade me then on that basis. Anyway, you saved me from hiring a Yellow to get over to the base and cleared up my mind about whether you’d see me again.”

  She said, “I’m glad about that. I’ll show you a secret when we get to the island today.”

  “Oh? What kind of a secret?” I asked.

  She replied, “I don’t want to spoil the surprise. I found it by accident myself or almost by having an accident.”

  I said, “This sounds like an interesting story.”

  She said, “It is, but it will have to wait until we get there. I don’t want to spoil the surprise.”

  “Okay,” I agreed.

  * * *

  The sun was up enough that the heat was beginning to bake the ground. I parked the hover and was only a little bit behind Annie as she dove into the water after removing the last of her clothes. She had helped me some by loosening the seals on my clothing after I took the last turnoff. We swam a bit before I remembered that she had a surprise for me.

  “What about the surprise?” I asked.

  She exclaimed, “Oh yes! Come on. Back to the hover. That’s the only way to get there.”

  She ran and jumped into the hover without picking up any of her clothes. I reached out to pick up mine and put them on.

  She said, “Don’t! You’ll only get soaked. Leave them there and get in.”

  “Naked? Are you sure?” I asked.

  She said, “We’re not leaving my property. Come on. You’re going to like this.”

  I got into the hover, feeling a little self-conscious for the first time in a long time about being naked. Knowing Annie, she was daring enough to take the hover back off her property with both of us naked and cruise the highways just for fun.

  She drove over the water, picking up a little speed. “I was basically driving fast on the lake for the fun of it and because I was bored when I glanced away to look at a strange bird.”

  “Hey, don’t look at me!” I said. “Keep your eyes on your driving!”

  “Anyway, I glanced away and went right into the waterfall just like this!” she said merrily.

  She drove straight at the waterfall. I expected us to be crushed into the lake or to hit the cliff behind it. Instead, we went right on through because of the hover’s speed and into blackness instead of a cliff.

  She said, “That’s how I found this cave! I thought I was done for, but I found this cave instead and stopped. I wasn’t sure how deep it went in. Anyway, I didn’t want to survive just long enough to hit the end of the cave.” She turned on the headlights and continued to drive into the cave. “Anyway, I finally realized that I could turn on the lights and take a look without getting out of the hover in case it was real long. It goes on for a long distance, almost two kilometers and then you wind up here!”

  She stopped the hover and turned it slightly so that I could see the cavern that the tunnel or cave ended in. It was huge and beautiful. She said, “I looked up the coordinates and found out I own this! Isn’t it beautiful? It’s right under my property and I didn’t know that it was here until recently!”

  I said, “It certainly is breathtaking. Annie’s Cavern. Even the name sounds beautiful.”

  She remarked, “I hadn’t thought of giving it a name, but you’re right. That does sound nice. It’s got a beautiful pool that’s fed by the same stream and it’s always this temperature. I went ahead and picked up a few items and brought them here to make it so that I could use it without tripping or falling in the dark. I’ll shut off the hover after I turn on the lights. I hope my choice of lighting is okay.”

  “I’m sure it is,” I said before I saw just what she meant by her choice of lighting. She had used colored lights to illuminate the cavern and make it more breathtakingly beautiful. I stated, “Yes, it is beautiful the way you lit it up.”

  She said, “I’m so glad you like it. Come on and let’s play here for awhile.”

  I wondered if I was being seduced so that I would fall into a trap or even in love, not that I was afraid of either by then. Either her tender trap or love could be a possibility allowed to bloom then, since I was sure it wouldn’t hinder nor help me unduly. “Uh, sure we can play in here. You want to swim?”

  She said, “Oh yes. You’ve got to experience this pool. It makes the lake seem cold.”

  “Really?” I wondered if she was teasing me again. The lake was actually warm. I wondered how warm the pool was to make the lake seem cold. I ran after her and dove into the pool just behind her, discovering that she was again telling the truth. The pool was at least ten to twenty degrees warmer than the lake. I was wondering why.

  She said, “I found out that there’s a thermal pool below it that continually feeds both the pool and the lake. The lake doesn’t have a roof to trap it, so the pool stays a lot warmer. I plan on coming here during the fall and winter.”

  I remarked, “If that’s so, then I don’t blame you. This is a beautiful cavern. If it’s like this all year round, then you have a natural place to enjoy yourself.”

  “I’d much rather enjoy it with you. Have you come to see me because you’re changing your mind?” she asked.

  “I don’t honestly know. I wondered if seeing you would help me figure out what I want. By the way, you seemed to be looking for me. Why were you looking for me? Were you hoping I’d changed my mind?” I asked.

  She said, “No, I was hoping now that you’re not in the military, I could get a ride in your ship, the Rust Bucket that you wouldn’t let me come near before.”

  “Really? You came out just because you wanted a ride in my ship?” I asked in amazement.

  She said, “Yes, I did. I really
want to ride in a warship. I think it would be fun. Daddy would never take me on one. I was hoping that you might.”

  I replied, “I’ll have to think about it and check company policy. After all, it’s still a warship and dangerous to be on.”

  She said, “I’ll sign waivers if it’s required. I just want to ride on one.”

  I said, “I’ll honestly look into it and give it some thought with an open mind. That’s all I can promise you at this time.”

  “Okay, Dave. I’ll accept that for now,” she said with obvious disappointment.

  We played around in the water and later got out of the warm water to lie down on some outdoor lounges she carried into the cavern so she wouldn’t have to lie down on the hard dirt and rock floor. She hadn’t brought much into the cavern, but she had enough to make it comfortable. Apparently, she had installed a solar generator somewhere and ran wire to provide electricity for lights and a refrigerator that held cold beverages and sandwiches. It was just enough comfort to make it worth staying the whole day. About the only thing she couldn’t do inside the cave was get a suntan or so I thought. I later discovered a sunlamp. For use in the winter, she claimed.

  Eventually, she offered herself to me and I accepted her offer once more. I could do far worse than to marry her. With what I had saved in credits, I was almost as welloff as she was, except I didn’t own any land. Together, we’d almost be rich… The thought almost frightened me.

  Me being rich? Become one of those rich families and have a kid who acted like the ones I knew? The thought almost paralyzed me. However, I realized after a few more moments of thought that combining our fortunes wasn’t even near what the rich families had stashed away. I stopped thinking that I would be dooming our child to that kind of behavior. We wouldn’t even get into the top half of the middle class with what we had combined. We would be comfortably well-off and not too worried about where our next meal would be, but nowhere near the accumulation of wealth that the rich families had.