Runs In The Family

by Kevin Ikenberry

  “You make it sound like it’s a problem.”

  “Hardly.” Munsen smiled. “We’re treading new ground. There are at least sixty imprints and officer candidates that have a similar strength of impression criteria. Based on our observations of young Captain Shields, we’ll see if this theory is correct. That we can not only capture and pass instincts and skills, but also behaviors and values. If we can do that, we may have a chance.”

  “We’re certain of the Greys intent?”

  Munsen frowned. “No, we’re not. But we know that they’re coming. It’s only a matter of time, and the handful of good officers and NCOs we have imprinted and out in the force aren’t going to be enough. We need more, and we don’t have them. For whatever the Greys want, they are sparing no effort. We’re looking at a full-scale attack in a matter of weeks. They’ve completely plundered the outlying planets of the Outer Rim. For all intents and purposes, they’re creating a constant supply route and positioning the logistical elements they’ll need for a prolonged conflict, despite the fact that they outnumber us a thousand to one.” Munsen snorted at the impossibility of it all. That history could repeat itself so many damned times.

  “What was that for?”

  “You’ve done this before.” Munsen fingered the glass. “Well, sort of. Position logistics and get our people in place to mass our combat power. We launched a massive air superiority campaign and then attacked. The Iraqis folded like paper. Now, we’re back to fighting a war with ungainly warships and untrained ground troops. In World War Two, we got by because of the collective values and beliefs of men who knew the cost of inaction as much as the cost of their actions. Our world has evolved, and with it we lost that sense of cost, that sense of duty to each other. That is what we need most.”

  “And you think she’ll be ready?”

  “Yes, I do. From what I’ve been able to observe through my sources we’re seeing a huge jump in confidence, strategic thinking, and tactical knowledge. Hypnosleep has been particularly successful and she is more than ready to command a company of troops now.”

  “But what else? You’re unsure of something.”

  “You tell me.” Munsen shrugged. “In your day, you had a same-sex relationship and the military threw you out on your ass.”

  “Have you considered that she’s not in a same-sex relationship because her lover is not human?”

  “Yes. But from the perception—” Munsen started, then stopped.

  “Perception is not nine-tenths of the law in this society. You want to bring back old behaviors and values, but you’re not clearly thinking about the impact on our society if you do. Captain Shields is doing what she wants to do because of love, and that love will help shape her thinking and her actions. It will broaden her.”

  “Her relationship with Tallenaara could be detrimental to her command.”

  “What was that? The Styrahi’s name?”

  Munsen replied. “Sorry, thought you knew that already. Her name is Tallenaara.”

  “Oh yes, of course.” The voice paused. “How could this relationship be detrimental?”

  “Some of those under her command will not understand it, and those above her that are imprinted could cause problems.” Munsen paused. “Especially the longer the relationship continues.”

  “You know that it cannot last very long by the Styrahi standards, and because of that she will bear some emotional weight. I agree with you that it will help her in the long run. As for those above her, I believe that is where you said you would protect her.”

  Munsen sipped his scotch. “You think this relationship will bring about the same sense of desire, or need to take action?”

  “She’s already talked herself into action on several occasions. Think about the girl you met at Eden Academy and then take into account your observers watching her walking around Libretto City, watch her hypnosleep sessions, and tell me that she isn’t learning the necessity of protecting what she loves and holds dearest. Her parents never taught her that.”

  “You should have heard their responses to her vmail about joining the TDF.” Munsen chuckled. “Mommy could have come straight from Berkeley back in my day. A total peacenik. Daddy took it better, especially with the realization that if we’re combing the academies of the Outer Rim for officers, things are really that freaking bad.”

  “As for her training, has there been any tactical development from the imprint?”

  Munsen nodded. “Her sessions have been better than I’d hoped. She is retaining a lot of knowledge in a very short time period. Her memory is almost photographic, and her recall is tremendous. The thing I’m worried about the most is something that I don’t think we can ultimately train.”

  “And what is that?”

  “Her heart,” Munsen said. “Can she fight against all odds and do what has to be done while losing people and assets all around her? Will she be able to function, but also make the difference I’m counting on her to make? If she stumbles, there is no way to approach Fleet to redesign combat forces. If we don’t better address the Greys order of battle, we’re going to lose more people than necessary to protect Earth.”

  “What else do you require of me?”

  Munsen drained the glass. “Nothing more, sir. We’ll continue to observe and see if she meets the requirements. We don’t have much time to play with. Ticonderoga is two weeks away, and by then the balloon will have gone up across the Outer Rim. After that happens, everything resides with the commanders on the ground to make things happen and keep this war as far from Earth, Styrah, and Vemeh as possible.”

  Munsen reached to shut off the communications console to close the private call with his deputy officer on Earth. “If we fail to stop them out here, we will not stop them on Earth. Not without some serious help. I believe they’re on the way to Libretto right now. The TDF doesn’t agree with me, and they’re sending the fleet to Rayu-Four. In two weeks, we’ll know for sure.”

  * * * * *

  Twelve

  “Again.” Tally menaced over her. “You cannot feint like that and expect a trained opponent will not detect it and counter the maneuver. Always have a backup plan.”

  Mairin rolled over on the grass and got to her knees. Every fiber of her body hurt through the afternoon combatives workouts, but Mairin knew she was getting better. She was ready when Tally’s foot swung in hard toward her exposed ribcage. Mairin caught the foot and twisted, sweeping Tally’s other bracing leg away and bringing down the taller Styrahi. Tally rolled immediately to disengage her foot from Mairin’s grasp, but Mairin was having none of that.

  Tally swung her free leg in an attempt to catch Mairin’s neck, but failed. Mairin rolled out and put her foot under Tally’s chin and pushed. Tally was just tall enough that Mairin couldn’t quite get the extension she wanted on Tally’s chin, but she held her position as Tally reached for purchase and found it in the kmorra, the Styrahi fighting garment, and pulled. Mairin kept her hold on Tally’s leg, but lost her position on Tally’s chin.

  Now though, Tally was exposed. Mairin dropped the leg and quickly ducked under the arm grabbing the back of her garment. She pinned both of Tally’s arms with her knees and put a sharp elbow under Tally’s chin.

  “Good,” Tally grunted. “Gremmana.”

  They separated, stood, and bowed to each other. Mairin smiled. “Better today?”

  Tally wiped her brow. “A little.” They’d fought each other hand-to-hand for the last six days, for two hours or more in the afternoon sun and stopping only when the clouds of the afternoon nahalla bore down and lightning chased them inside. Mairin learned Styrahi combat discipline firsthand. She pitied anyone that fought them in battle. Tally taught Mairin how to more accurately fire a rifle, how to win a hand-to-hand engagement, and more tactics for defeating an unsuspecting enemy than Mairin ever expected to learn. Tally pushed, and Mairin pushed back to the brink of her mental and physical strength.

  Mairin laughed and sat on the grass cross-legged to st
retch. “And every day I hurt a little more.”

  “Discomfort in training means less bloodshed in battle.” Tally grinned and sat across from her.

  “You’re my drill sergeant now, Tallenaara?”

  Tally laughed. “Hardly. Just a Styrah proverb.”

  Mairin leaned into a stretch, focusing solely on her breathing and the warmth of Helios, the Libretto star, on her back. She’d fought well today, putting her frustration and anxiety to use. A message flashed in her neurals, and she sighed. “My ship is ten days out.”

  Tally sat up and placed her hands in her lap. She frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that, cariad.”

  “Me, too.” Mairin looked long into Tally’s eyes. “I don’t want to go.”

  “But you have to, and there is a part of you that wants to go. Don’t deny that, Mairin.”

  “I won’t. But I mean it. I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave you.” Tears welled up and she wiped them away. They wouldn’t help now.

  “You’re not saying goodbye now, are you?” Tally smiled.

  “No,” Mairin said, and after a moment she smiled. She crawled across the grass and snaked an arm around Tally’s neck and kissed her. “I’m not saying goodbye at all.”

  Tally grinned and returned the kiss. “There’s no reason to say goodbye.”

  Their lips touched and Mairin breathed against Tally’s cheek. “Just love me.”

  “I will, cariad,” Tally said and nuzzled into Mairin’s neck.

  Later, they washed each other in Tally’s expansive tub, and playfully teased each other the way lovers do. Mairin finally went to dress and rifled through her bags for just the right outfit. She’d moved to Tally’s home, leaving behind the too-perfect world of Libretto City and its distractions. Her days were spent reading, writing, and getting to know the impulses and instincts her imprint could give. Making friends, really, so that every time she felt a pull or a conscious thought not even close to her own she would recognize and understand it before acting.

  Long runs through the forest and long swims in the lake helped to blend Mairin and her imprint into something very different. Looking in a mirror, Mairin could see the physical changes she’d mapped in, but there was a change in her mannerisms, and a look in her eye. Something akin to experience, like she’d seen the universe and wore her journeys well. Mairin liked it, and it made accepting her impending departure a little easier.

  Ten days, Mairin thought. Just enjoy it. You may not have anything like this for the next two years. She stepped out of the bedroom in a simple blue dress and sandals that clattered against the rich wood floors. Tally was already outside, sitting on the veranda watching the rain with a cigar in her hand. Mairin slipped outside with a smile. “I love a good storm.”

  Tally nodded, her eyes distant. “Me too.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Ten days.” Tally raised a hand to her cheek and smoothed away a tear that Mairin had not seen. “Ten days and you’re going away, and I may never see you again.”

  Mairin sat on the lounge chair and touched Tally’s face. “I’m supposed to be the weak one, love.”

  Tally snorted. “And I’m not supposed to be in love with a human.”

  Mairin smiled. “And ten days from now I’ll leave here in love with you and wishing I could come back to you every waking moment. Wishing I was here watching the rain and sitting in your arms.”

  “Cariad,” Tally said. “If I’d have known I’d feel this strongly—” She paused and Mairin snuggled into her arms.

  After a long moment, Mairin sighed. “I’m scared. I couldn’t say it earlier.”

  “You’ve no reason to be scared. I will be here.”

  Mairin chuckled. “I know. I’m just scared of not being here. Not being with you.”

  “You will be fine, Mairin. You are stronger than you know.”

  At least I know love, Mairin thought. “At least I have you.”

  “You do, cariad. As long as you’ll keep me.”

  Mairin felt a tear beginning to form. “I love you, Tally.”

  “And I love you.” Tally kissed her cheek tenderly. “Now why don’t we just sit here and watch the rain for a little while and forget about starships, duty, being apart. And then I’ll pour us some wine and get a fire going, and you can cook dinner tonight.”

  “You sure you’re ready for that?”

  Tally laughed. “Of course I am. You had a good teacher.”

  In more than one way, Mairin thought with a smile. Her anxiety faded as night fell and she sat alone outside. The fire popped and crackled, the smoke smelling sweet and spicy, and Mairin looked into the twinkling sky. She lit a cigar and sat back wondering what it would be like. As dark and cold as space was, there was so much out there waiting for her. New places. New experiences. She looked forward to it, but she knew there was something more. It gnawed at her slowly, like a slow rolling headache. There was a storm coming. Her ship would come, she’d go out to meet it, and all hell would break loose. There was no way to escape it. She’d been imprinted, created really, for this.

  She caught sight of Tally walking down from the house to the fire circle carrying another bottle of wine. Mairin smiled. From nothing to love, she thought. There was something to focus on, and she decided she needed to do something about it. To make her love a constant reminder, a touchstone, and a reason to come home. She would come back here, to Tally.

  Some way, somehow, she would return.

  * * * * *

  Thirteen

  The pleasantly grim smile of the commanding general filled Thomas Munsen with dread. The reaction never wavered, even after twenty-five years. Breaking up their relationship had been a good move, but one that his former lover still held over him from time to time. One of these days, she’d be in a true position of power as a government civilian. That would be the day he retired. Generals were about as worthwhile as privates in a world where soldiers did only what they were told. “Your efforts are unsuccessful to this point, Colonel?”

  Munsen tried not to frown at the all-too-obvious slight. “So far. We’re talking about making babies, and there’s nothing sure about that, even with two human parents.”

  General Zhaire nodded. “Time is of the essence, Thom.”

  “I’m aware of that, but we’re down to her last hours on Libretto. Unless you’re willing to delay her assignment to a forward unit?”

  “No.” Zhaire shook her head. “I’m not about to subvert regulations for this experiment, old friend. You had a chance, but she is due a forward assignment. The next time she rotates out of rest and relaxation leave, you can try again. Until she gets pregnant, Mairin Shields belongs to the TDF.”

  Munsen nodded. “There are exceptions, though.”

  “Not in this case. We need imprinted leaders out there. Getting our asses handed to us by the Greys, over and over again, is bad press. She reports tomorrow morning as ordered.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Munsen sighed.

  Zhaire grinned. “And you’ve decided on her first assignment?”

  “Yes, ma’am, I have.” Munsen met the gray-eyed stare and spoke slowly. “I am assigning her to the Eighth Tank Battalion.”

  “Under Coffey?” The general blinked in disbelief. “You’re putting a woman in a relationship with a Styrahi in a position to lead a tank platoon under a battalion commander who hates the idea of women in combat and who has thoroughly expunged all Styrahi from his command? You must be out of your mind, Colonel.”

  Munsen replied, “Her ship arrives tomorrow. And she won’t get a tank platoon.”

  “Then what will she lead?”

  “Whatever Coffey gives her. There are some extra vehicles aboard that he’d be crazy not to use.”

  The commanding general reached for her cigarettes, lit one, and blew a long stream of smoke at Munsen. “I’m not happy about this, but I’m not about to request you reassign her. I do trust your judgment, Colonel, but I see her and the progress you’ve reported as
a very critical asset to our efforts to defeat the Greys and protect Earth.”

  Munsen sighed. “We cannot be sure that Earth is a target, ma’am.”

  “Earth will always be a target, no matter how many other worlds like it are out there.”

  Munsen said nothing. That kind of thinking was completely irrational and almost maniacal. Zhaire was a politician at heart, and politicians never change. They only repeat and repeat and repeat the mistakes of those before them. “Whatever the Greys intend, I believe Captain Shields will play a very important role.”

  “Captain? You’ve already promoted her?”

  “Her imprint was a captain, and the connection is so strong I thought it best. Same responsibility factors and command emphases.”

  “She’s prepared to assume this?”

  Munsen nodded. “That being said, we’ve done all we can. The rest is up to her. If she shows up tomorrow morning in uniform and prepared to do her duty, then we’ve adequately prepared her to face whatever will be waiting for her.”

  * * * * *

  Fourteen

  The rain stopped early for Mairin’s last night on Libretto. She stepped onto the patio and triggered a couch to self-dry before she sat. The warm cushion hugged her body, and she leaned back into it for a long moment to stare at the receding storm and the deep indigo sky of a late Libretto afternoon. She would miss the smell of rain and the crisp breezes as autumn slowly arrived. Would she miss this house and the forests, the trails and the water, and everything about this place? Would she ever return? She didn’t know and didn’t linger her thoughts on the subject.