Gateway To The Universe: In Bad Company

by Craig Martelle

  I’m disappointed, TH, the dog started. We had my arch enemy in hand and you let those creatures protect him. After he drew the blood of your litter? You should be ashamed.

  “Don’t be an ass. I already have one of those,” Terry replied. “Next time, big man. Next time we’ll put that little orange cretin in his place. What do you think of that, boy?”

  Dokken barked as he looked up at Terry Henry Walton. The dog’s eyes sparkled under the artificial lights.

  The door to the quarters closed after Char and Kurtz left the room. “You used to look at me like that,” Char said playfully.

  “Whoa, buddy! Look at that. Without even trying, you got me in trouble.” Terry scratched behind Dokken’s ears before turning back to his wife, wrapping an arm around Char’s waist.

  “You were in trouble well before that dog showed up.”

  I’m right here, Dokken said.

  Char leaned toward the dog. Dokken looked away, falling in behind Char. He trotted alongside Kurtz, warily watching the man.

  What are you in for? the dog asked.

  “In where?” Kurtz replied as he looked around, wondering where the voice came from. It was the first time anyone had talked with him through the new chip in his head.

  Does no one watch movies anymore?

  “No, whoever you are. I have never watched a movie.” Kurtz looked around him, trying to zero in on the disembodied voice that seemed to project directly into his brain.

  This is the hand I’ve been dealt, Dokken lamented.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Kim, Kae, Cory, Marcie, Auburn, and Ramses stood in a small group outside the room with the Pod Doc. Ted had brought up the holo screens, put on a headset, and was fully immersed in an intellectual orgy. A normal person would have run screaming from the experience.

  Ted looked to be in heaven.

  “Smedley says that they’re ready any time for the next batch,” Kaeden said.

  “Dad said to wait. That’s what I heard anyway,” Kimber replied. Ramses shrugged. The least vocal of the FDG’s senior officers, when he did speak, the others listened. Auburn distanced himself from the operational issues within the FDG, except when it came to getting ready for the next op.

  He had to rethink his position as the ship and the EI seemed to already supply everything.

  But he knew the warriors. If they weren’t held accountable, they’d lose everything while operating in the field. Everything except their weapons. Terry and Marcie had beat it into them that the first and last thing they always checked were their weapons.

  The Force’s weaponry was antiquated by Federation standards, but it was what they had. Auburn’s mind drifted away, thinking of upgrades, improvements, a better, more lethal way ahead.

  And he became afraid. There were plenty of ways to die on the ground, but the opportunity to die in space in combat with aliens were magnified a hundredfold. His wife would be in the middle of it all.

  “We need to get ship suits for everyone,” he blurted, interrupting their conversation. Kim, Kae, and Marcie looked at him oddly.

  “In time,” Marcie said. They’d been on the ship less than a day.

  “No,” Auburn replied. “We are in space right now. If anything happens to the ship, we need to be ready. Ship suits will give us time to find safety. I hear that space will kill you as quickly as being trapped underwater. I don’t want you to die!”

  Kimber smiled at her husband. “Trust me when I tell you that I don’t want to die either.”

  “Check in with Smedley and see what needs to be done and who you need to talk to. Make it happen, Auburn. And that’s a good point. Kae, look into weaponry. Kim and Ramses, look at the education schedule and see what the hell we need to learn. We don’t know anything about what’s out there. We liked to think that we were big and bad, but I expect when we get out there, we’re going to find that we’re the weak sisters. We’ll have to surprise them or this journey will be over before it starts.”

  “You mean that I have to test fire and evaluate what we might be getting as new weapons? Wow. Sucks to be me.” Kae grinned and his eyes darted back and forth as he tried to contemplate what kind of weapons people with space technology might have.

  His sister had to rain on his parade.

  “Technology that can take us to space, and the only thing you can think of is high-tech weapons.” Cory put her hands on her hips and shook her head at the others. “Maybe we can talk with them first.”

  Kae continued to grin and shrugged unapologetically.

  Marcie pursed her lips. “We’ll do what we’ve always done, what we had to do, but this time, we’ll have more information and more support. It won’t be just us with our asses hanging out.”

  “I agree with Marcie,” Terry Henry Walton said as he strolled up with Char and Kurtz in tow. Cory immediately dropped to a knee to welcome Dokken.

  I like her, the dog projected to all of them.

  “Of course you do,” Terry agreed. “We all do because she keeps us grounded.”

  Cory ignored the platitudes and continued to scratch Dokken’s neck.

  “What’s the plan, Colonel?” Marcie asked officially.

  “Get the Pod Doc cranked up and get back to work bringing our people into the technological fold. If we can communicate better, then I’m all for it. The chips help us to understand the aliens. They’ll also help us to communicate in the field. Imagine what our ops would look like if everyone had access to everyone else? No more carrying comm devices. Smedley assures me that we won’t have any more inadvertent Pricolici conversions because he knows what to look for.”

  “What if we find more people who have the Were genes?” Ramses asked.

  Terry and Char looked at each other. They’d been thinking that to fight a determined enemy in unknown conditions, they needed Were strength. Char nodded almost imperceptibly.

  “We’ll ask for volunteers,” Terry said softly.

  Marcie bit her lip and closed her eyes. “Okay,” she replied, before heading back into the space where Ted was fully embroiled with holo screens, scrolling data, and flashing images.

  “For fuck’s sake, Ted! You’re going to give me a seizure!” Marcie yelled, shielding her eyes to pound on his shoulder until he put the holo screens down.

  Ted looked angry but continued to scan the data. He muttered something, but Marcie expected he was commiserating with the EI and not talking to her.

  “Start running the people through, Ted. No Were conversions, but document who can be converted so we can talk with them, see if we get any volunteers to expand the pack. I’ll start sending people to you.”

  “Already on their way!” Kimber shouted from the corridor.

  “Uncle Ted, you will be able to do the mods, right?” Marcie asked, spinning Ted around in his chair. He waved her off.

  “Child’s play. There is so much more that we can do. I see the possibilities. I just need to tweak a line of code here or there…” Ted started mumbling to himself as he raised his holo screens.

  Marcie pounded on his shoulder again. He lowered the screens and let out a long, exasperated sigh.

  “Only the chip and the standard mod everyone else got,” Marcie declared as she leaned close to the Werewolf.

  “Standard mod? Do you even know what you’re saying?” Ted asked in surprise. Marcie stood back, confused.

  “There hasn’t been two alike! There is nothing standard about this. Now go away and let the adults get to work.” Ted waved dismissively as he spun his chair around.

  At one hundred and fifty years old, Marcie should have been amused by Ted insulting her youthfulness. She looked mid to late twenties, a blonde-haired and blue-eyed beauty. Lean and hard with a mind shaped toward military operations, and gifts, like being able to see into the Etheric dimension and draw power from it, that helped her lead the Force de Guerre against those who sought to destroy humanity.

  And sometimes, different targets presented themselves.

  M
arcie balled her fist and reared back, aiming a haymaker at the back of Ted’s head. Terry lunged forward and caught her hand, but he was off-balance.

  As she started to swing, the momentum threw TH forward, landing him on top of Ted before rolling to the floor.

  “You deal with him!” Marcie snarled before storming from the room.

  Ted straightened up and looked oddly at Terry Henry lying on the floor. “What are you doing down there?” he asked.

  Terry sat up and looked coldly at Ted. “The comm chip and basic healing as a first step. Collect your data for recommendations on what other mods can be done, but don’t make them. Do you understand me? Don’t make me send Felicity in here to watch over you.”

  Ted scrunched his face as he tried to think of a retort, but nothing came to mind. He waved TH away as he’d done with Marcie. “Fine,” he conceded.

  Char helped Terry Henry to his feet. “Ted,” she said quietly. “Don’t make me beat the living crap out of you.” She let that sink in before continuing. “Again.”

  Ted put his head down and watched his screens. His eyes flicked to Char and back to the monitors as he waited for her to go away.

  “Send the next lot in,” Terry said, brushing himself off.

  First to step through the door was Valerie and next was Robin. Ted saw the two Vampires and sneered at Terry and Char. “You want me to do the standard mod on the Vampires. Let me see, where will I find one in the system? Oh, that’s right, there isn’t one!” Ted harrumphed.

  Terry and Char held each other back, before deciding it was time to go. They’d had enough of Ted. When there was less technology in his life, he was much easier to get along with. Ted had never understood people, but with the ability to completely immerse himself in technology out of the wildest science fiction, they figured that they’d already lost him.

  They figured that Felicity already knew that Ted was gone.

  Smedley, my man. Don’t give me any new Pricolici, no matter what Ted tells you to do, but keep a list of what mods each person would be best suited for or most easily capable of getting.

  >>I accept my orders according to the chain of command on the War Axe. Captain San Marino’s orders are the first priority followed by those of Colonel Terry Henry Walton and then Colonel Marcie Walton.<<

  Thanks, General. Is Dokken on that list anywhere? Terry asked out of the blue.

  >>Of course not.<<

  All praise to the EI programmers, Terry relayed through his comm chip while smiling.

  >>I don’t understand,<< Smedley replied.

  No need. Thank you for the insights, Smedley. We’re going to talk about a lot of stuff later, the future of the FDG kind of stuff. We’ll need your input. I hope you can sit in.

  >>Although I cannot physically sit in, I can attend and would be happy to.<<

  What makes you happy, makes me happy.

  >>I’m not exactly sure about that,<< the EI supposed.

  Terry closed the link. Valerie was staring at him. “Well?” she asked.

  “Take off your clothes and get in the Pod Doc.”

  “You would like me to undress, and you ask with that tone of voice?” She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Manners sure aren’t the same in space.”

  “Use the privacy curtain,” he told her and pointed, not even smiling at her joke. They walked out. “When you’re done, you’re done for the day. Tomorrow, we’ll spin things up starting in the rec room at oh-seven-hundred.”

  Terry, Char, and the others left the Vampires, Sergeant Garcia, and three other FDG warriors standing there wondering what was going to happen next.

  A few steps down the corridor, TH stopped and turned. “Garcia, monitor the groups as they come through and in-brief them to reduce the anxiety. Make everyone feel comfortable with the process.”

  Garcia nodded and said, “Yes, sir,” even though he had no idea how to do that, having not gone through the process himself.

  ***

  Valerie didn’t feel any different with the comm chip in her, but had to wonder at it. Anything in her body just felt weird, even if it could supposedly translate so that she could understand aliens…and dogs. That was the weirdest part. Growing up, dogs had been rare enough to feel almost magical. Now she could talk with a dog, from what they told her? The idea sent a shiver down her spine. It was kind of creepy, even.

  At her side, Robin was moving her arms about in windmills, breathing deep, and then started jumping.

  “The hell are you doing?” Valerie asked.

  Robin laughed. “These upgrades, I mean…damn. Is this how you always feel?”

  “Ah, that. Basically, ever since I got Michael’s blood, yes. It’s like a new body, right?”

  “A new body, a new soul. I feel like I could conquer the world.”

  “Let’s stick to conquering whatever planet or spaceship or whatever these guys sic us on.”

  Robin laughed. “Deal. You think that’s how it’ll work? They point us at a target, we take it out? Sounds like we’re basically a fancy form of heat-seeking missiles.”

  “I’ve been wondering. I mean, we came up here for a reason. I’m just not sure yet if that reason is the same reason they wanted us.”

  “But we’ll do our duty?” Robin asked.

  “We’re here, right? And whatever it is, I trust Michael and BA. Even if we’re glorified assassins, I have to imagine that’ll mean we’re contributing to a stronger Etheric Federation, and therefore, a safer Earth.”

  “That’s all I want,” Robin replied.

  Valerie turned to her and put a hand on hers. “They’ll be fine.”

  Robin nodded, biting her lip. Leaving her parents in New York couldn’t have been easy, but Valerie completely understood her feelings. As much as they loved their friends and family back on Earth, they were meant for big things. They had the power to make a difference in this war, and could never sleep if they just waited on Earth to see what happened.

  “You know I’ll follow you to the ends of the universe,” Robin stated, then clenched her jaw, her eyes looking fierce. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them safe. Whatever. It. Takes.”

  With that, Robin turned and stared out at space, losing herself in thought.

  Valerie considered her friend, feeling like all of this made sense. All of it, except for one part. She used the comms in her quarters to make a personal call to the one she trusted for advice and guidance.

  A familiar face appeared on the screen.

  “Michael, you told me there’d be a place for me in space, but I’m not following how this involves me serving under TH.” She cleared her throat, not entirely comfortable with this topic. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great leader. But since when did I agree to him being my leader?”

  Michael frowned as if this should be clear. “He’s going to be heading up the Bad Company. You want to serve in the Bad Company, right?”

  “Do we?” She shared a confused look with Robin. “We want to kick ass and do our part. Pardon the language.”

  Michael laughed at that, breaking her sternness for a moment before regaining her composure. “Sorry, it’s just…among us, language is something you never have to apologize for. Especially not when the word is ass. You can do better than that.”

  Valerie raised an eyebrow.

  “Right. The Bad Company. They’ll be in the shadows. Collecting intel, doing the dirty jobs, the ones that require people of, er, your particular experience. It seemed a natural fit.”

  Valerie nodded. “I’m not arguing that.”

  “Are you arguing anything at all, other than your confusion as to why someone should be giving you commands?”

  That hurt. Mostly because, as Valerie stood there looking at Michael, she realized it was true. Back home, she had always been the leader, or at least had been ever since breaking out from under her brother and the Duke. Maybe there was something to that thought—she was having issues with any situation that remotely resembled the one she ha
d fought so hard to escape.

  But this was her own issue. Her own problem to deal with.

  “Thank you, Michael.” She turned to go, then paused. “May I be excused?”

  Michael smiled. “You’ll get the hang of all this eventually. Dismissed, though you don’t actually have to ask that.”

  Valerie nodded, walking off with Robin close on her heels.

  “Just like that?” Robin asked.

  “They’re right,” Valerie replied. “TH is smart as hell. His people love him. They follow his orders and get shit done. There’s no reason we can’t do so too.”

  “Except that we don’t need them. We—”

  “No, Robin.” Valerie stopped, then glanced around to be sure nobody was nearby. “That’s the way I’ve been thinking too, I’m realizing. But it’s wrong. We’re part of a larger body now. We might be sharp fingernails or solid fists, but we need the arms and brain and all that to help us strike where it does the most damage.”

  Robin frowned, but after a moment, nodded. “Fine, but know this…I’m following you, because it’s you I know. You I trust. If I follow them, it’s only because you say so.”

  Valerie nodded. “I think that’s good enough, for now. But if I die?”

  “Fuck you. Don’t ever say that.”

  “Fine. I won’t. But you agree this is the right move? Join me in trying not to question it all, please, because if you keep asking questions, so will I. They don’t need doubters, they need warriors.”

  “Then let’s warrior the shit out of them.”

  Valerie frowned, but couldn’t keep the smile from forming. “You’re weird, but that’s why you’re awesome.”

  “Right back at you,” Robin replied, spinning on her heels to lead the way down the hallway.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  The FDG’s senior leadership had their missions, from logistics, to weapons, to training, which left Terry and Char free to explore the ship.

  “How do you know what time it is?” Terry asked.

  Char stopped, cocked her head, and then shrugged. Her eyes unfocused as she talked with the EI through the comm chip.