To Touch the Stars (Founding of the Federation Book 2)

by Chris Hechtl

  “And again, an ounce of prevention …” Jack said in a sing song voice waving his index fingers.

  “It is an opportunity to get in at the ground level, Mister Lagroose,” the AI said. He paused to raise an eyebrow. “If handled correctly you could invest in it. Planning ahead as you said. Like you are doing with the construction equipment you have staged in orbit.”

  “I …” he rubbed his chin. “An interesting idea. Yes, it is. I'll look into it,” he said, eyes gleaming.

  “And if Venus becomes viable once more, you may want to extend that scenario further,” the AI suggested.

  “Good point. I'll make a note,” Jack said nodding. “Do you have any other good ideas?” He asked, arching an eyebrow.

  “If I do I will let you know, sir,” she replied.

  “Do so,” he said with a nod.

  -*-*-^-*-*-

  Pinta completed her second set of builder’s trials just as Santa Maria launched. Both ships were to be contracted to carry colonists when a planet was found suitable for life. That meant they both would remain in the core worlds for the time being. The problem was, where to send them.

  Since most of the star systems within twenty light years of Sol were a bust Pinta's contract was up in the air. And since the colonists had yet to come up with a suitable deposit or even get halfway organized, Jack ordered the ship to go to the nearest location of the B-92c Bridge and then back track its course through exterior observation. The ship took on a cargo hold of scientific equipment as well as scientists from Lagroose, Mars University, and other universities to survey and explore the area around where Icarus had jumped to better map the hyperbridge. They needed to refine their understanding of the bridges, and with what Icarus had discovered, it was hoped that they would be able to use their new knowledge to form star charts of the hyperbridge network.

  Once Nina and Pinta returned, he planned to outfit Prometheus, Pinta, and Nina with terraforming equipment as well as advanced plants and a hold filled with animals before sending them off to Rho sector to terraform and explore. The three ships would work in concert for mutual support, using Pyrax as a base of operations. He wanted to send the LGM and Mars U ship Copernicus as possible follow-ons but that was still in the hands of the courts, he thought sourly.

  The UK ship James Cook was finally under construction. They'd had to do a bit of bartering for the deposit, quite a bit more horse trading than the cold hard credit the board had expected. Wendy had come through brokering the deal, but Jack had to remind the board that “the art of compromise means you don't please everybody.”

  The Chinese were sniffing around; they had dropped some feelers at the summit with Wendy that they might be interested in purchasing a ship. Fat chance on that. They only wanted the ship to reverse engineer it and play catch up, Jack thought with a sniff. He might consider licensing them the ship tech they needed, but he was leery of even going that far. So far their track record left a lot to be desired. Trevor and Roman were still fending off their spies on a weekly basis.

  They had finally gotten word on how Pavilion and the others had managed to helm their ships. They'd taken a page from Lagroose with the VR set up to help their helmsman con the ship, but they had also done a bit of genetic engineering of their own. Star Reach had hired some of the Pavilion's helm people in some sort of quid pro quo deal they were still iffy on the details about. It bothered him that they had tinkered with human genetics to suit their purposes.

  The Chinese had apparently hired a group of selkies to con their ships. But with one lost, one looking for the lost ship and possibly lost, and the other ships laid up, they didn't need them. He shook his head.

  “Thinking deep thoughts, sir,” Athena asked.

  “I'm wondering what else is going to go wrong,” he muttered.

  “Now that is maudlin as your wife would say,” Athena replied.

  “Did she ask you to check on me?”

  “No. You are running late for an appointment. And the board requested a reschedule on the meeting this afternoon.”

  “Ah,” he said softly, rubbing his chin. “I'll get to the appointment in good time. It's good to be the boss,” he said.

  “There has to be some perks to go with the headaches,” Athena replied dryly.

  “Exactly,” Jack agreed. “I'm wondering about the ships. It's going well but not as well as I had hoped. And Rho,” he shook his head.

  “Definitely beyond anything Lewis and Clarke dreamed up,” Athena replied. “Quite the long logistical pipeline,” she said.

  “Yes. So anything we send has to be basic and essentially self-sufficient. So we better be damn sure the planet is stable before we start putting people on it,” he mused, tapping his chin with his fingers as he thought about the problem. The other problem is the wear on the ships.”

  “And the transit time involved. Though it is one-third the transit time to the one thousand light year marker you had originally been saddled with.”

  “True.”

  “The dolphins have been great about helming the ships,” Athena observed. “With the discovery of the beta band by Prometheus, ships should be able to travel faster.”

  “Except when they are in a bridge,” Jack replied. He stopped as his nostrils flared.

  “Speaking of Prometheus,” Athena said then paused. Jack turned from the view out his wall screen to the ceiling and the nearest camera. “There has been an opening. The chief engineer has decided he doesn't want to go to Rho. He quit.”

  “He quit?” Jack asked, surprised.

  “He did indeed, which has opened up a rather large hole in her chain of command. Captain Ford requested Miss Roak to fill the slot, but she is the XO of Santa Maria. That would amount to a demotion. Miss Roak suggested Miss Isley Irons, her best understudy on the Icarus.” The AI pulled up Isley's bio and put it on the screen in a window as well as on the desktop screen.

  “I've heard of her. Vaguely,” Jack mused.

  “As you know she is an Irons. You have the family history there with them,” Athena said. He nodded. “She is also a friend of Doctor Hannah Castill. They went to college together briefly. She babysat your children with Miss Castill when Miss Bonny was on maternity leave,” she reported.

  “Ah, now I'm remembering her. A little.”

  “She was two decades younger then, sir,” Athena replied, substituting the face for Isley's younger face. He finally nodded. “She is quite the engineer. She's had a checkered past moving around the sublight ships, tugs, yard, and stations before settling into Icarus. Chief Roak gave her top marks,” Athena reported, highlighting some text for him to view.

  “That's not how I remember her. I seem to recall something, an incident they had?” Jack asked. “And I'm not seeing it in her file.”

  “She also comes highly recommended by Magnus Templeton and Captain Peck,” Athena said doggedly.

  “Still not following, but they are related to the incident,” he said, scrolling through the woman's file. “Nope, not seeing it,” he said.

  “Perhaps because it is of a highly personal nature and a possible subject of a sexual harassment complaint if the young woman ever decided to sue?” Athena asked helpfully.

  Jack looked up as his lips thinned. “Now you are humming my tune,” he said, sitting back as he played with the tablet's stylus. “I seem to recall a nasty briefing from Legal after Icarus returned.”

  “They wanted a face-to-face briefing. You were otherwise occupied, so you got the watered down canned version,” Athena said. He grunted. “It is a moot point. Firing her or paying her off would not have done any good. In fact, based on her personality profile she would have been highly offended. She is loyal to the company and to her job. I can't see anyone else doing it better than her.”

  “Where is she now?”

  “She was slated for a position on Santa Maria, but when she volunteered for the Daedalus recovery mission, the slot was filled in her absence. She was a bit put out over that.”

&n
bsp; “And you said she's loyal?”

  “She is currently taking some family leave time but is scheduled to work with the Mister Saint Joy on the design board. He's requested someone with practical hands-on knowledge of the ships for some time, ever since the loss of Mister Dugan. Those that have been assigned to the group haven't lasted more than a few years.”

  “I thought Captain Peck was going to do that?”

  “Captain Peck has retired and gotten married. His XO Mister Templeton has also married but is still interested in remaining with the company. He is a spacer at heart. For some reason he is avoiding returning to Earth,” the AI said with dry wit. Jack frowned. There was something there, he thought.

  “Go on.”

  “Mister Templeton could use the time on the board since his wife is pregnant and not a spacer,” Athena said. Jack nodded.

  “That sounds good. Have Mister Templeton fill in the design board's void.”

  “And Miss Irons?”

  “Tell her to … no,” Jack scowled then settled himself. “Contact the XO and captain of the Prometheus. Since the ship is undergoing resupply, they should be on board.”

  “Neither are signed out as on leave, sir. They are on board.”

  “Ask them to interview Miss Irons with an eye for the chief engineer slot. It is ultimately their decision,” he said.

  “Very well, sir. They are doing interviews with a few of the neo primates who want a position as well. I will send the email.”

  “Good,” Jack said as he rose to his feet. “Now I'm off to … what is it again?”

  “Your physical. Your wife arranged it,” Athena supplied helpfully. Jack's expression soured again.

  “Joy. You'd think being married to a woman who happens to be a doctor would have kept me from doing that crap,” he muttered as he left his office.

  -*-*-^-*-*-

  Isley was all smiles when she reported on board Prometheus. “It seems like we've seen you before,” the bosun, Sayed Narood, teased her with a half-smile.

  “I'm like a bad penny. I turn up everywhere, Chief,” she said with an irrepressible grin. He snorted and then took her space bag.

  “I'll see that this gets to your quarters, ma'am. You best go see the skipper,” Sayed warned her.

  “Aye aye, Chief,” she said with mock professionalism, practically bouncing. He shot her a moderate glower then shook his head as she kept grinning. “Sorry, excited,” she said.

  “I see that,” he said dryly, handing her bag off to a nearby steward. “That's it?” he asked, turning back to her.

  “I'm a spacer. I travel light,” she replied with a shrug. He nodded. “I do have a couple of crates coming in later though,” she admitted. “If the skipper and XO sign off on me,” she said.

  “Well, you best be about it, ma'am. Don't keep them waiting,” he warned.

  “Aye aye, Chief,” she said, taking off at a trot.

  “Well, you are certainly chipper this morning,” the XO said in passing. Isley pirouetted and shot her a grin and jaunty salute. “Carry on,” Adel said, saluting her with her steaming coffee cup.

  When she got to the captain's office, she stopped and knocked on the hatch. After a moment a voice called out. “Enter!”

  Isley came in, slightly subdued. She came to attention before Captain Ford's desk. It was a modest affair, metal covered to look like a teak design. The walls were covered in a thin bamboo veneer. There were a couple paintings of sailing ships around the room as well as a model of a ship on the corner of the desk. She noted an easel and covered painting in the corner.

  “Settling in?” the captain asked mildly. She'd already gotten the report that the new chief had boarded. She'd also heard from the grapevine that she had been seen grinning from ear to ear over the assignment.

  “No, ma'am. I'm just happy to be here, ma'am. Permission to join the ship's company?” she asked formally.

  “Sit,” the skipper replied, looking at the monitor in front of her. “I'm looking at your records. You don't seem to sit still long.”

  “Except Icarus, ma'am,” Isley reminded her as she sat down.

  “Well, there you didn't have a choice,” the captain said. “I need someone reliable. Someone who knows the ship's systems inside and out and can take over if there is an emergency. So not only do you have to be proficient in engineering, but also ship handling as well,” she warned.

  “I can handle it, ma'am,” Isley said. “I got up to speed on the changes to the ship's systems the last time I was on board and during my leave time,” she said with a shrug. “I actually prefer space. I admit I am weak on bridge duty though,” she said.

  “I see that. Back to the bouncing around …” the captain frowned. “I need a stable relationship. Someone who isn't going to gallivant off if they get bored or pissy. And I need a smooth working ship.”

  “Aye, ma'am,” Isley replied, nodding dutifully. “Ma'am. With all due respect, I signed on to Icarus because I wanted to do so. Even when they explained to me that the mission plan was to be seventy years,” she said. The captain frowned thoughtfully at that reminded. Isley paused and then shrugged. “I guess you could say I am finally getting the chance to do what I'd dreamed of. To see new worlds, go where no one has gone before,” she said feeling a bit lame.

  That evoked a half smile of amusement from the skipper. Isley noted the approval in the other woman's green eyes. “A Trekkie? An honest to goodness Trekkie?” She asked, teasing Isley about the Star Trek reference. She set the tablet down in front of her.

  Isley blushed a little and suppressed her urge to giggle. “Yes, ma'am,” she said with another shrug.

  “Well, we'll see how that dream works out. I wanted the hot seat, but I wanted to take the helm first,” Captain Ford said with a slightly disgusted face. “There is a reason my nickname was Conn … um … never mind,” she said.

  “Aye, ma'am. As you wish,” Isley said, this time grinning slightly in amusement. Collie “Conniptions” Ford had been well known in the spacer community as a sublight officer for some time before she'd signed on to Prometheus. Her legendary temper hadn't lost its touch. Working with her would be … interesting, Isley reminded herself.

  “Well, I'd be a fool if I didn't sign you on. There aren't many other people who can take the position. You come highly recommended by the bridge team and Chief Roak anyway,” she said. “But,” one manicured finger went up in warning, “I want to remind you about the regs regarding fraternization. No playing around with enlisted. No flirting, I want it professional. Understood?”

  “Aye aye, ma'am,” Isley said, cold sober.

  “Good. Go unpack and then report for duty in main engineering. Since you know the ropes, most of the players, and know the ship's layout you shouldn't need a guide. Get engineering country squared away and ship shape. I want a report on my desk by 0900 tomorrow,” she ordered.

  “Aye aye, ma'am,” Isley said rising to her feet.

  “And you're to report for bridge simulation training after you get engineering squared away. We've got a mission coming up so as soon as we're finished taking on stores and refitting we're moving out.”

  “Aye aye, ma'am,” Isley replied dutifully. There goes sleep, she thought to herself.

  “Dismissed.”

  -*-*-^-*-*-

  Pavilion's colony ship Mayflower caught Lagroose intelligence off balance when the ship was completed faster than they had predicted. Apparently someone had dropped the ball, gotten complacent and not bothered to keep an eye on the ship. Roman was doing a bit of head hunting and house cleaning there.

  Once the ship was out of port, the crew began training. Two days into their builder's trials they had an unfortunate accident and had to return the ship to port. The company was hushed on what had happened and ran its own investigation. Jack hated that. He hated the secrecy. He wished Lynn would work with him, but she probably saw any sign of weakness on her part as an open invitation to attack her. The companies really could work together
when their mutual interests were at stake. Or their survival.

  Lynn, however, was as cutthroat and cynical as it came. She would gladly sell a child if it got her more money or power, he thought darkly.

  Take for instance his relationship with LGM. Their vessel the Octave Béliard had finally been completed as is once they worked out their differences through arbitration. Wendy had been a big help there, he thought, reminding himself to do something good for his little girl. She was turning into quite the business woman he thought with a proud smile.

  Lagroose had given up the terraforming rights to Venus in exchange for a healthy dose of LGM stock. LGM had struggled to divide itself between its three major projects, Mars, Venus, and Béliard. None of their people were ship handlers, so they'd had to hire on new people. Experienced people it turned out.

  Captain Peck had been drawn out of retirement to command Béliard with his wife on as one of the on board botanical scientists. His experience and the extensive time under construction had made her pass her builder’s trials rapidly with flying colors.

  His plan had been revised as usual. Béliard had taken on stores and finished her final checkups before she had left with Nina and Pinta to go to the Rho sector for a planned fifteen-year tour. Santa Maria would follow them shortly, but for now she was laid up with a teething issue in her force emitters.

  He had planned to send Prometheus along with them, but the ship had been retasked to fill in Santa Maria's original mission to Proxima and Alpha Centauri. They were to begin terraforming several of the worlds there, moving them into the habitable zone, then move on to the next. Captain Ford seemed happy with the change of plans. Once Santa Maria got free of the clutching yard dog hands, she'd swap roles with Prometheus to free her up to go to Rho. Once Santa Maria finished her follow-up mission to Tau Ceti, he'd send her to Rho too. Possibly with the first paying colonists he thought.