by Sam Schall
TAKING FLIGHT
An Honor & Duty short story.
SAM SCHALL
Hunter’s Moon Press
Also by Sam Schall
VENGEANCE FROM ASHES
DUTY FROM ASHES
HONOR FROM ASHES
Written as Amanda S. Green
NOCTURNAL ORIGINS
NOCTURNAL SERENADE
NOCTURNAL INTERLUDE
NOCTURNAL HAUNTS
NOCTURNAL CHALLENGE
SWORD OF ARELION
Written as Ellie Ferguson
HUNTED
HUNTER’S DUTY
HUNTER’S HOME
SLAY BELLS RING
WEDDING BELL BLUES
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Amanda S. Green (writing as Sam Schall)
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.
Hunter’s Moon Press
Cover design by Sarah A. Hoyt
Cover art: soldato spaziale con fucile by fantasyart3d. Licensed through Dollarphoto.com
If you enjoyed this short story, please visit my website for information about upcoming titles.
TAKING FLIGHT
“Get out of the way, damn it!”
A hard hand connected with her shoulder and the young woman stumbled to her right. As she did, she tightened her grip on her kit, doing her best not to drop it or, far worse, hit someone with it. Fortunately for her peace of mind, not to mention her already nervous stomach, she managed to catch herself before she careened into the group of Naval officers moving briskly along the edge of the walkway. All around her, military personnel, as well as a few civilian contractors, made their way to the different docking areas. Most moved with purpose but none, with the exception of the person who had shoved her aside, seemed to have forgotten the simple rules of military decorum.
Second Lieutenant Ashlyn Shaw spared those others a quick glance. Then she turned her attention to the man who had pushed past her. He and his companion wore the daily uniform of the Fuerconese Marine Corps. A frown touched Ashlyn’s lips. It was bad enough one of them had laid hands on her, shoving her out of the way on a public concourse. Making matters worse was the fact they wore the ship patch of the Heinlein, her new assignment.
Ashlyn blew out a breath and glanced around once more. When she did, she fought the impulse to groan. Standing a few feet away was a tall, muscular Marine corporal who also wore the Heinlein’s ship patch. There could be no mistaking the way he frowned at the two enlisted who continued down the walkway or the speculation in his eyes when he realized Ashlyn had caught sight of him. Like it or not, her day was about to get much more complicated. The real question was whether her assignment would as well.
Much as she would like to ignore what happened and hurry ahead to report for duty, Ashlyn knew better. Only a week might have passed since her graduation but she was a Marine through and through. She could almost hear her mother, currently on assignment as a company commander with the Devil Dogs, telling her this was just the first of many tests she would face as an officer in the Marine Corps. Ashlyn didn’t mind tests but did they have to start before she even reported for duty?
Knowing she couldn’t put it off, Ash squared her shoulders and straightened her back. Her commission might be newly minted but she knew how an officer should act. It was something that had been ingrained in her from childhood. She also knew that, under normal circumstances, she would leave the correction of the two privates to a senior non-com. But these weren’t normal circumstances and she would not, could not, let the actions of those two negatively color how others viewed her beloved Corps.
Still, she wasn’t going to react the way the corporal looking on probably expected.
“Corporal Talbot,” she called without looking back. As she did, she wondered if he was surprised she knew his name and she mentally thanked her mother for teaching her to always check for not only rank insignia but name tabs as well. “I believe you saw what happened. Stop those two and stand them off to the side.”
A split-second of silence followed her order. Then the sounds of the corporal quickly moving forward reached her. As he came to stand next to her, he scanned the concourse, his eyes finding the two Marines.
“Silva, Westcott, break left and brace to attention.”
Ashlyn watched, her eyes narrowed slightly, as the two hesitated for a moment before doing as ordered. Once again, a frown tugged at the corners of her mouth. So far, she had two things to discuss with either them or their senior NCO. Probably both. So much for having some time to leisurely settle into her first posting.
“Corporal Talbot, are these your men?” she asked as she slowly walked toward the men, the corporal at her side.
“That’s a negative, ma’am. While we are all posted to the Heinlein, they are in a different unit from my own.”
“Understood, Corporal. However, for the moment, consider them yours.” She turned to face him. “Second Lieutenant Ashlyn Shaw, newly assigned to the Heinlein.” Hearing the soft groan come from one of the two men, she almost smiled.
“Ma’am?” Without making it obvious, Talbot led her a few steps away and turned so what he had to say could not be seen nor heard by either Silva or Westcott. “First assignment, ma’am?”
“That’s right, Corporal.” Because she could almost see him mentally cringing at the thought of what a butterbar could do to embarrass herself – or worse, alienate the two Marines – she smiled slightly. “Corporal Talbot, don’t worry. I know the way things work. I will make sure these two understand they need to remember what it means to be a member of our beloved Corps and then I will leave it to you to dole out whatever else you think needs to be said or done. But that will be the end of it. Once onboard, this incident will be forgotten as long as they don’t screw up again.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Praying she wasn’t about to step into it, Ash moved to stand before the two who had shoved past her. She might be a butterbar, probably the lowest of the low in the eyes of most non-coms and senior officers, but she was also a Marine brat. Her parents were both in the Corps. Her maternal grandfather and his father before him had been as well. If that wasn’t enough of a pedigree, her parents and grandfather had been Devil Dogs, the elite SpecOps force for the Corps. She would do nothing to bring shame on them, on the DDs or on the Corps as a whole. That meant proving her worth as an officer from day one, which this happened to be.
“Gentlemen, tell me something,” she began, her tone almost conversational. “Is there some reason you were in such a hurry?”
The red-headed Private Westcott swallowed hard, once. “Just trying to get to the ship, ma’am.”
“I see.” She took a moment to let him see her checking the state of his daily uniform. When she reached out to flick a piece of lint from one shoulder, he flinched. Interesting. That was enough to convince her he had not been the one to shove her to the side. “Are you under orders to get there ASAP?”
“No, ma’am.”
“So you just decided the best course of action was to push your way through those on the walkway without taking into account who you might be laying hands on?”
Neither man said anything. They didn’t need to. Not when their reactions spoke volumes. Perspiration broke out on Westcott’s forehead and upper lip as what little color he had drained from his face. Silva, on the other hand, looked as if his temper might get the best of him. That was something to file away for future reference but, for today at least, she nee
ded to defuse the situation.
“Here is the deal, gentlemen. Consider yourselves counselled on the proper behavior of a member of our beloved Corps. I recommend you not go barreling through a crowd again without at least warning people in front of you to clear a lane. It would be better yet that you have a good reason for doing so. The next time you shove someone, it might not be a lowly second lieutenant but someone with enough brass and braid to make your lives really miserable. Am I clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good. As far as I’m concerned, the matter is closed. I won’t be discussing this with anyone else as long as you don’t screw up again. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you, ma’am.”
“Very well, gentlemen. Consider this little incident forgotten.” She turned to Talbot. “Corporal, I leave it to you to make sure they understand.”
“Ma’am.”
Ashlyn nodded and continued on her way. As she did, she smiled slightly to hear the corporal asking the two if they had lost what little mind they had been born with. She had no doubt Talbot would have more than a few choice things to say, including reminding the two how stupid it was to piss off the brass, even if that brass was a butterbar fresh out of the Academy. Nor would it surprise her if he said something about how pissing off said butterbar would increase the possibility that newly minted officer would make a mistake in the field, one that could get them all killed, simply to prove she was an officer worthy of wearing the uniform of their beloved Corps. While that might be true of others, she was determined not to let that be her fate.
“Welcome onboard, ma’am,” the BBOD said as he handed back her ID and orders half an hour later. “Colonel Degrassi left orders for you to report to him as soon as you’ve stowed your gear. You will find the location of your quarters as well as the colonel’s office have been downloaded to your comp.”
“Thank you, Ensign.” She put away her ID and orders and quickly made her way to the bank of lifts across the bay.
An hour later, Ashlyn stood in front of Colonel Zachary Degrassi, Marine CO for the Heinlein. At her side stood Second Lieutenant Constance “Never call me Connie” Mumby. Degrassi, a dark haired, dark skinned man who looked like he didn’t know what a smile was, stared at them from across his desk. Everything she had seen so far proved he was as gruff and tough as her grandfather warned. From what her grandfather told her of Degrassi’s service record, she knew she could learn a lot from him, as long as she didn’t get herself bounced off the ship. After the way the day started, she wasn’t going to take any bets one way or another.
“You two may have graduated near the top of your class at the Academy, but that doesn’t mean squat now. You don’t have any real world experience and just enough book learning to make you dangerous, not only to yourselves but to those men and women you will command,” Degrassi said. “If you haven’t heard it before, hear it now. The best thing you can do these first few weeks of your duty onboard is to keep your mouths shut, your eyes and ears open and learn from your senior non-coms and senior officers. They not only have the experience you lack but also the respect of the men and women under them.”
He stood and moved around his desk. “And don’t think your studies have ended just because you graduated. You will find your schedule of classes downloaded to the comp in your quarters. I expect you to ask what questions you might have of the other officers and non-coms but the work is to be yours. If I find out you have been getting someone else to do it for you, you will not like the result. Understood?”
“Sir, yes, sir!”
“Captain La Grange runs a tight ship but that is nothing compared to what I expect of my Marines. You may have thought Master Gunnery Sergeant Davila a mean son-of-a-bitch back at the Academy but he has nothing on Gunnery Sergeant Anisimova. You may outrank the good gunny, but you will do whatever she tells you to because she has not only your best interests at heart but also those of the Corps.
“The last thing I want to hear is that a couple of butterbars fresh out of the Academy think they know more than those who, no matter what their rank, have earned the right to call themselves Marines through battle. Do I make myself clear?”
“Sir, yes, sir!”
He nodded and leaned against the desk. A moment later, he handed Mumby a data cube. “That contains your duty assignments as well as study schedule. If you have any questions, contact my XO, Captain Akachi. I tend to keep an open door policy but let’s follow chain of command.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Mumby, you’re dismissed. Your first duty shift begins in four hours. Go grab some shut eye and food. Report to Captain Akachi at 1430 hours. He will explain your duties and introduce you to the Gunny then.” He returned the young woman’s salute and then waited as she executed a perfect about face before leaving his office. As the hatch slid shut behind her, he turned his attention to Ashlyn and she fought not to fidget under his gaze.
“Now, Shaw, I understand there was an incident on your way to the ship.”
Cringing internally, Ashlyn did her best to keep her expression blank. She should have expected the grapevine to have reached him but it would have been nice if it had waited just this once. Curiosity about who had said something and why filled her. If one of the privates had come to him complaining or, worse, Talbot, it was going to be a very long assignment. Not that she would ask Degrassi to divulge his source. No, she would find out some other way if necessary.
Please don’t let it be necessary.
“It was nothing, sir, and has been dealt with. I assure you, it will have no impact on my performance.”
When one side of his mouth twitched as if in a smile, she relaxed a little. Surely that meant he wasn’t upset.
“I expect that to be true, Shaw.” He held her gaze for a moment and then nodded, as if satisfied with what he saw. “It just so happens I wasn’t far behind you when everything went down. So I had a bird’s eye view of the events and how you handled them. You made your point without pushing too hard and then you left it to the senior non-com present. You also didn’t make a scene and, believe me, a lot of officers more senior to you would have. Keep thinking like you did then and you should do well on this assignment.”
“Yes, sir, I’ll do my best.”
“I expect nothing less from you.” He reached behind him and produced a data cube he then handed to her. “Shaw, I’m going to be honest with you. There are going to be some onboard who will question your qualifications for this assignment. Not because of your sex or because you are so damned young. All Academy grads are. They will question it because of your last name. They will wonder if your family pulled strings for you. I wish I could say that sort of thing never happens but it does and, all too often, it ends with members of our own being injured or killed because someone’s little darling was in a post they shouldn’t have been.
“I know that isn’t the case where you’re concerned. Your mother, not to mention your father and grandfather, would never have let you accept your commission if they thought you didn’t have what it takes to be a Marine. Your instructors at the Academy wouldn’t have given you the recommendations they did if they had any doubts about your suitability for duty. But others won’t think about that. So be prepared and don’t give them reason to doubt you.”
“I understand, sir.” More than he knew. That attitude had dogged her through the Academy.
“Very well, Shaw. Your duty assignment as well as studies for the next two weeks are on the data cube. You will also find you have been slated to be evaluated in hand-to-hand and weapons over the next few days. Make sure your roommate takes note of her schedule for the same. I want to see where we need to bolster your training before I turn either of you loose with a squad, even if you will simply be shadowing the squad’s real leader – its senior non-com.”
Recognizing the dismissal, she braced to attention and saluted. The moment he returned her salute, she pivoted and left his office, praying he didn’t see the bead
of sweat that ran down her spine. Then, as the hatch slid shut behind her, she smiled. The first hurdle had been cleared and her first assignment as an officer in the Fuerconese Marine Corps had begun.
“God, I’m so tired of doing nothing but boring patrols and sims.”
Ashlyn glanced up at the sound of her roommate’s voice and then looked back down at the report she had been working on. Mumby’s complaint was nothing new. For much of the last four months, she’d been saying the same thing. She wanted to see some real action. They were Marines. Shouldn’t they be used for something more important than patrolling shipping lanes?
There were times when Ash even agreed with her, usually after having been handed yet another defeat in the sims at the hands of the Gunny. Ashlyn had grown up hearing tales about the missions her parents and their friends had been on. But she had also heard about the long boring assignments as well and had taken note when almost every one of those speaking said the latter were the best assignments. They were the ones you came home from.
Still, it might be nice to have some excitement that didn’t stem from running yet another sim set up by the Colonel or one of the other officers or, worse, the Gunny. Gunnery Sergeant Edita Anisimova accepted nothing but the best from her Marines and she made it quite clear that while Degrassi might be the senior officer, every Marine onboard the Heinlein was hers. Ashlyn had learned quickly that when the Gunny said jump, you asked how high, but only after you were already in the air.
There had been a couple of breaks in the boredom. Three times they had intercepted ships suspected of smuggling. One had even tried to evade the Heinlein until Guns had fired off several warning shots, each coming closer to the power plant than the one before. Each time, Degrassi had his junior officers, each under the watchful eye of a seasoned non-com, lead boarding parties to check for contraband. Even though they hadn’t found anything of any real import, Ash knew those missions helped build a rapport with the Marines she commanded.