by Ryk Brown
Nathan took his brother’s hand firmly and shook it once. “Give my best to your family, Eli.” He let go of Eli’s hand and gave him what appeared to onlookers as a brotherly hug. Eli’s hands dangled at his sides in disbelief as Nathan whispered in his brother’s ear. “So long, asshole.”
Nathan released his still shocked brother and stepped aside to smile and wave at the cameras that were watching from the walkway near the main house. Then he turned and got into the back seat of the car that had just pulled up behind him.
And that, is the last time I’ll have to play that game.
CHAPTER 2
Despite a slight hang-over, Nathan arrived at the Academy Flight Complex bright and early. The previous night’s events had only served to remind him of how desperately he wanted to leave it all behind and start anew. Today, he would leave the surface of the Earth, not to return for several years. It was the perfect way to begin his new life.
The complex was unusually busy that morning, as most of the graduates from the Academy’s North American campus were also departing for new assignments. As he worked his way through the crowd, he saw many familiar faces, as they bid farewell to fellow graduates and underclassmen. It had been a long four years for them all, during which most had formed significant bonds.
The graduates were leaving everything they knew behind, only to be cooped up inside big, metal, high-tech boxes hurtling through space. It was both exciting and frightening at the same time. All these young men and women, from every walk of life and every corner of the North American continent. Each for their own reasons had left their lives and their loved ones behind. They had endured exhaustive education and grueling physical training. And many of them had failed along the way, forced to return home in disgrace.
And it wasn’t just on this continent. There were similar scenes playing out on Fleet Academy campuses in both Europe and Asia. Each of them were turning out hundreds of graduates per year. And still it was only a fraction of what was needed for the Earth to build an adequate defense. For the Jung controlled the resources of four of the six core worlds, as well as many of the lesser colonies out on the fringe.
But still the volunteers came in droves each year. And those not accepted to the Academy contributed in other ways. As ground forces, trained to defend against surface assault. Or as workers and technicians, who built the ships needed to defend the Earth from space. But they all shared the same sense of purpose. They were defending their burgeoning homeworld as it rose from a thousand years of darkness and despair.
As he waited in line to check-in, Nathan thought about his Academy roommate, Luis. They had become the best of friends during their time at the Academy. And Nathan was quite certain that he would not have graduated had it not been for his friend's support. Luis had been assigned to the Intrepid as a Tactician and Weapons specialist. But since the Intrepid was not due back for a few weeks, he had chosen to spend time with his family in South America before departure.
Nathan had envied Luis in that sense. He had such a strong and supportive family. They had been from a relatively remote and impoverished area. And they had yet to reap the full benefits that the knowledge found on the Data Ark had already bestowed upon the more populous regions. Had it not been for the exhaustive efforts of fleet recruiters, Luis’s unique gifts might never have been added to the fleet’s growing ranks. And Nathan would’ve missed out on a very important friendship.
“Next!” The voice interrupted Nathan’s reminiscence.
“Ensign Scott, Nathan R,” he reported to the officer at the check-in desk before reading off his service number. “I’m scheduled for the next shuttle up to the Reliant.”
The duty officer punched in Nathan’s information, pausing to compare his face and description against the one displayed on his computer screen.
“I’m sorry, Ensign. But it seems there’s been a slight change in your orders,” the officer reported.
“Sir?” Although this kind of thing was not uncommon, it still caught Nathan by surprise.
“You’re still scheduled for departure, but not to the Reliant.” The officer looked up at Nathan, smiling. “You’ve been reassigned to the Aurora.”
“The Aurora? But I thought she wasn’t even in service yet.”
“They bumped up her trials. She’ll be underway within a week or two. That’s probably why you got reassigned. She needs crew and the next class won’t graduate for six months.”
Nathan wasn’t sure what to think. He had been studying the specifications on the Reliant for weeks. He had even spent extra time in the simulator familiarizing himself with her flight characteristics. He didn’t know anything about the Aurora, as most of her specs were still classified.
The duty officer noticed Nathan’s dismay, and tried to help. “Hell, you should be happy. The Reliant’s a slow old girl. She can barely make half light. I hear the Aurora’s FTL’s will get her up to ten times light. You’re going to be traveling faster and farther than anyone has in nearly a millennium!”
“Yes sir,” Nathan responded, bewildered by the thought. He had wanted to get away from Earth, and this would surely do it.
The Orbital Assembly Platform was the largest structure to be constructed in space since the recovery began. Positioned in high orbit, the platform was capable of building or repairing two ships simultaneously. Nathan remembered that the facility had been constructed more than a decade earlier, just after the Earth had learned of the Jung Dynasty’s take-over of the core systems. Since then the platform had produced six ‘Defender’ class warships, starting with the Reliant.
Those ships had since seen a few upgrades, including improved sub-light propulsion systems as well as more powerful rail guns. Many had wanted to fit them with the new faster-than-light propulsion systems that had been constructed using designs found in the Data Ark. But giving the heavy warships FTL capability was a hotly contested issue on Earth these days.
The compromise had been the construction of two new ships, the Celestia and the Aurora. Both were in the final stages of construction, and were due to begin their shakedown cruises within a few months. These new ‘Explorer’ class ships, while still well armed, were designed to serve as ships of exploration and diplomacy, as well as providing defensive support if needed. It was believed that this new class of ship would appear less threatening than the older Defender class ships. Hence the United Earth government felt more comfortable giving them the ability to travel at superluminal speeds.
It had taken several hours for the passenger shuttle to climb up to the platform’s orbit. For Nathan, it had been a difficult, and uncomfortable journey. Besides being slow, these older shuttles were cramped, poorly lit, and poorly ventilated. And the ensign next to him still smelled much like the spirits he had consumed during the previous night’s Founders Day celebration. The only way Nathan had to pass the time was to stare out the view port at the Earth below. And to make matters worse, the shuttles were not equipped with artificial gravity plating, since they spent no more than a few hours at a time in weightlessness. Despite numerous zero-gravity training exercises, Nathan had never quite gotten used to the sensation of floating, and neither had his stomach. Luckily, he had managed to make it through the flight without having to use his emesis bag. And he was quite relieved when the shuttle touched down on the flight deck and rolled into the hangar bay, the familiar sensation of gravity sweeping over him.
As Nathan entered the boarding area, he could see his new home, the Aurora. She was smaller than the Defender class ships, by as much as a third. He could only see the upper half of her from this deck, but he could already see that she was far more sleek in her design. Nathan found himself drawn to her, moving away from the boarding line to stand closer to the large view ports where he could gaze upon her more closely.
She had a long snub bow that spread out in a gentle curve on its way aft. Around her middle, her lines tapered inward briefly, before flaring back out to make room for her over-sized main pro
pulsion section. Nathan could not help but notice that her disproportionate drive section looked like it had been stolen from a larger vessel and slapped onto her stern.
Starting at her bow, the topside of her hull rose at a gentle slope, angling upward on its way aft, and up from her sides towards her centerline, until she abruptly became flat on top. It was like a gentle hill with a flattened summit. And on the aft side of this hill was a sharp drop, into which the opening to the flight deck was situated.
“Reporting for duty?”
“Huh?” Nathan turned around and saw that everyone else had already boarded and he was left standing alone.
“Are you reporting for duty, Ensign?” the officer at the boarding desk repeated.
“Oh, yes sir. Ensign Scott, Nathan R.” He saluted smartly.
“Ah, yes. A member of our freshly appropriated crew.” The officer checked his display before continuing. “Very well, Ensign Scott. Your quarters are on C deck, cabin one fourteen. I suggest you stow your duffel and report to the quartermaster on E deck to pick up your duty gear. There’s an orientation meeting in the main briefing room on B deck at fifteen hundred. If you hurry, you should have time to grab some chow before then.”
“Yes, sir.” Nathan instinctively went to salute again, but the officer held out his hand instead.
“Welcome to the crew, Ensign.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Nathan picked up his bag and headed through the large open hatchway onto the boarding ramp. The ramp was enclosed in a tube that extended from the platform out to the Aurora’s main boarding hatch. The upper half of the tube was clear, giving Nathan an unobstructed view of the ship outside as he approached.
Like most ships in the Fleet, the Aurora’s undersides were dark-gray and her uppers off-white. As he walked through the dimly lit tube, Nathan could see dozens of workers floating about outside in the vacuum of space. Clad in bright-red spacesuits, they went about performing various assembly tasks on the exterior of the ship. In addition to the workers, there were several work pods, each looking like large coffins with windows and arms. Attached to the ends of long, spindly, articulated arms, they moved pieces about the ship to be fitted into place by the floating red workers.
As he neared the end of the boarding tube, he could see the hull of the ship around her boarding hatch. To the left of the hatch was the ships name and registry number, ‘UES AURORA, CV-01.’ Nathan paused, staring at the name, feeling the need to appreciate the moment.
“Touch her,” someone said from inside the ship.
“Excuse me?” Nathan looked through the hatchway and saw a stern looking master chief, watching him from just inside. He was dressed in combat fatigues, with Special Operations patches on his shoulders and a gun belt around his waist.
“Touch the outside of the ship, before you set foot on her,” the master chief explained. “It helps remind you what she is, makes her real.”
Nathan looked at the master chief like he was crazy. “Are you kidding me?”
“Hell, no! Every soul serving on this ship has to touch her outsides. It’s bad luck if you don’t.” The chief paused, waiting for Nathan to follow his advice. “Go on!” he said abruptly, startling Nathan, “She ain’t gonna bite ya!”
Nathan reluctantly touched the hull of the ship just below her name. He didn’t actually believe the master chief, but figured it couldn’t hurt to play along. The hull was smooth and cold to his touch, its finish perfect and untarnished. And surprisingly to Nathan, it did seem more real after touching her, like she was alive.
“That’s eight out of ten!” the master chief laughed to the clerk behind the security desk just inside the boarding hatch. “I’m on a roll today!”
Nathan frowned at the master chief as he stepped through the hatchway and onto the ship, walking through the airlock and into the entryway. “Ensign Scott,” he reported to the clerk sitting at the security desk. “Requesting permission to come aboard.”
“Don’t feel bad, Ensign. At least he only told you to touch it,” the clerk smiled. “He got me to lick it.”
Nathan smiled at the thought. “How do I get to C one-fourteen?”
“First left, then follow the corridor around the hangar bay to the far side of the ship. And welcome aboard.”
“Thanks.”
Nathan made his way down the corridor as it wrapped around the inside of the ship over to the far side of the hangar bay. Every so often, he would have to step through an open hatch to pass through the various bulkheads used to compartmentalize the ship in case of sudden decompression.
The corridor itself was not abnormally narrow, with enough room for several people to pass by at least three abreast. Yet it felt much more cramped, possibly due to the maze of conduits and pipes that were always ducking in and out of walls as they snaked their way throughout the ship.
The inside of the Aurora was no more colorful than her outside, with the usual dark-gray floors and light-gray walls. The ceilings were medium gray, but very little of them were visible due to all manner of ducting and conduit. As he moved between compartments, he kept checking the navigation signs posted above each hatchway and on overhead support beams. Although the ship’s internal layout was pretty simple, the last thing he wanted to do was get lost on his first day aboard.
As he neared his cabin, Nathan passed a tall, muscular fellow leaning against the wall as he flirted with a Middle-Eastern woman in medical attire. The man cast Nathan a quick glance, checking to make sure he wasn’t out-ranked. Satisfied that he did not have to salute, the fellow continued his conversation as Nathan passed. A few more steps and Nathan found his cabin, stepping inside.
The cabin was small, with just enough room for a bunk on either side and a couple of lockers built into the wall between them. Up against the far wall at the foot of the bunk farthest from the entrance was a small computer desk. Above the desk there was a large view screen built into the wall in a manner that made it seem more like a window.
The hulls of all fleet ships were composed of several different layers that together were nearly three meters thick, so windows were not possible. Instead, view screens were designed to act as virtual windows to the outside. Each of them could display the view from any of the hundreds of cameras scattered along the outside of the hull. In addition, they could be used as computer terminals or entertainment displays. The viewer in this compartment was set to its default view, which was of the space directly outside. Nathan stepped closer to look out the virtual window. He knew it was really just a live camera feed, but the incredible clarity made it nearly impossible to tell the difference. Through it, he could see the trusses of the assembly framework that surrounded the ship, as well as the Earth itself as it rotated below.
After a few moments gazing out the viewer, Nathan moved over to inspect the bunks, noticing that each of them also had a viewport built into the wall. The bunks had additional storage compartments above and below, and were equipped with a roll-down privacy door that also enabled the bunks to seal and pressurize in an emergency. In the event of a sudden decompression of the entire section, the occupant could survive inside their bunk for days while they awaited rescue.
The room was spartan and cramped, and had obviously been designed so that nothing would get tossed about during abrupt maneuvers. But the designers had been thoughtful enough to make it as comfortable a space as possible.
Nathan saw that someone else’s duffel bag was already on the bunk nearest the door, so he tossed his duffel onto the empty one against the opposite wall.
“You must be my new roommie!” a voice boomed from behind.
Nathan turned to see the same dark haired man from the hallway. He had a full head of thick, wavy hair, and steely blue eyes. He was a bit taller than Nathan and was obviously stronger. “Yeah, I guess so. Nathan Scott,” he introduced, extending his hand.
“Vladimir Kamenetskiy,” he announced proudly in what Nathan recognized as a Russian accent. The animated Russian shoo
k Nathan’s hand vigorously as he continued. “I am engineer, first class. And, I am computer systems specialist,” he added proudly.
“Well from what I’ve seen so far, you’re going to be busy for the next few weeks.”
“Yes, yes. It is wonderful. This ship has so many interesting systems,” he exclaimed. “I am like kid in candy store, yes?”
“Yeah, I can see how you would be.”
“Yes, yes. This is true. Did you know this ship has four antimatter reactors? And the engines? Oh, they are incredible!”
“Really?”
“Yes! But do not get me started on this,” he warned. “What is it that you do, Nathan?”
“Helm and Navigation.”
“Great! I fix it, you fly it!” he announced, slapping Nathan on his shoulder. “We will make a good team, you and I!”
“I guess so,” Nathan agreed, as he turned to start unpacking his bag.
“No time for that, my friend. We must report to the quartermaster, for we are not properly dressed for this ship.” Vladimir pointed to the Fleet Academy patches they still sported on their sleeves.
Nathan followed his new roommate’s suggestion, leaving his bag on his bunk. “Lead the way, roommie.”
“Excellent!” he exclaimed as they exited the cabin.
Nathan followed him out of their cabin and down the corridor, his excitable new roommate rambling on about the engines as they walked. This is going to be interesting.
The main briefing room was filled with the sounds of conversation, as the newest members of the Aurora’s crew talked amongst themselves as they waited for orientation to begin. A good sized room, it had several rows of chairs in order to accommodate the fifty people in attendance.
“Attention!” the Officer of the Deck ordered. Everyone in the room quickly stood tall and straight, with eyes fixed forward, as Commander Montero, the ship’s Executive Officer and second in command entered the room.