“Look what the ‘cat dragged in!” DI Katlind barked at the team as they approached. The ensigns rushed forward to slap hands with their Discipline Instructor.
“Thanks, Briz,” she said in a normal tone. “I have to admit that your support made the difference.” She nodded to Dr. Johns, who was walking with the team and the three ‘cats.
“I am glad you approve of your new shipmate, and there’s one more surprise.” Dr. Johns pointed into the chamber where the Lizard Man Peekaless examined the equipment connected to one of the recliners. “Your first stop is the Traveler, but once you arrive, you’ll turn around and transfer to the shipyard along the asteroid belt. Then you’ll board the Cygnus-12. Once out of the construction dock, you’ll test the new EM Drive within our solar system. After that, you’ll fly beyond this system’s gravity well, to interstellar space. The Cygnus-12 is the only ISE-capable ship that can also travel within the well!” the doctor shared excitedly, before continuing.
“Once outside our system and with sufficient dark matter is surrounding the ship, you’ll bank it into the engine. And then, you’ll be able to engage the ISE! It’s so exciting. I really wish I were younger so I could join you. The newest engine will take you farther than we’ve ever gone before.” Dr. Johns beamed at the group. Cain didn’t think the old doctor looked like he wanted to go along. He seemed perfectly happy within the New Command Center, indoors, with all that technology and comfort at his fingertips.
His time had come and gone and he was happy to pass the responsibility to a younger generation. One of his former clones had led the team that discovered the interdimensional space engine. From that single event, the entirety of the new Cygnus space program was born. Dr. Johns continued to be cloned, but each time he returned with a shorter and shorter lifespan. Fresh from the cloning tank as an old man, he always joked that his genes were tired.
There was some truth to that.
The nine new crew members destined for Cygnus-12 took their seats within the matter transfer chamber. They were joined by two humans, one reporting to the Traveler for work and one visiting his parents who’d chosen to live there. It was a diverse group, with different duties, different goals, each living life as they needed to for themselves and their families.
Cain liked the world that his ancestors had created. Braden’s first goal had been to find Old Tech to trade for untold riches, but his goal changed once he met the southerners. After that, he opened a trade route and established free trade throughout the south. On the journey, he discovered the Old Tech he’d been searching for, but realized the world wasn’t ready for it, although they could benefit greatly from it. Together with Micah and their companions, they established the safety protocols to prevent another civil war like the one that nearly destroyed all of humanity. All these years later, the protocols were still in place and although there would always be differences of opinion and downright hostility, there were ways to resolve it without resorting to open warfare.
Even if the worst happened, combatants couldn’t use Old Tech to wage war. There were too many checks and balances, not the least of which was Holly himself, the Artificial Intelligence who was instrumental in saving the ancients’ knowledge.
Cain looked at Ellie as Holly ran through the instructions–don’t move, stay relaxed, don’t touch anyone else. The usual. Cain wondered how different things would have been had he not joined the Space Exploration Service. He suspected they would not be better. He felt that he was on a path to realize his full potential. He knew, deep in his heart, that he was destined for things beyond Vii. Aletha both held him back and drove him. He was angry with her, for just a moment, then settled into his usual sadness when thinking about her, so far away.
All this as his eyes were locked on his wife. She smiled at him.
‘If I wasn’t strapped into this chair, I’d come over there and scratch you stupid!’ Lutheann told him over their mindlink.
Cain glared at the shimmering white ‘cat, not knowing whether to be angry or confused. He settled on confused as the room faded to black.
They woke up three days later in the matter transfer chamber on the RV Traveler. The wall slid aside, revealing the exit where Hermes and Lieutenant Simonds stood patiently.
They almost made it without someone saying goodbye to their breakfast, but when Lutheann and Carnesto both started gagging and coughing, Briz lost it, followed closely by Tandry. Cain was fine, until he stepped into whatever foulness had been the ‘cats’ breakfast. He tried to turn away as his mouth watered and his light breakfast threatened to make an appearance. He couldn’t hold back the tide and heaved mightily, arching the chunky orange mess into Leaper’s pelt. The Wolfoid jumped and shook, spraying puke everywhere.
Ellie, Katlind, and one of the new crew members were the only ones to escape unscathed. The lieutenant had to walk away, whether to laugh at the slapstick comedy or to avoid joining the heave-fest, Cain didn’t know and didn’t care as he finally made his way from the chamber, spattered with spew and his boots covered in slippery goo. Stinky looked less than amused.
Once they were in the open air of engineering, Lieutenant Simonds held a hand over his nose as he talked with them. “I think we need to get you cleaned up and then we’re in a hurry. This transfer took three days. There was a meteor storm that got in the way of the data stream. So, yes, you are a day and a half behind schedule. Get cleaned up while we process the chamber for your next transfer. There’s no time to put you on a shuttle. Make sure you drink plenty of electrolytes. I’m not sure you should eat anything. The transfer process doesn’t seem to be too kind to this group.” The lieutenant was serious with his jest, so he escorted them to a crew lounge, where they could shower, order new uniforms from the fabricator, and get the required drinks.
Lieutenant Simonds raised an eyebrow at Cain and Ellie as they chose to shower together, taking longer than the others. But he didn’t say anything. He had yet to ask out the ensign who was the target of his affections, so he envied those who found love so easily.
If he only knew.
The reason he wanted the others to hurry was so he could show them how the clean-up from the vine infestation was progressing. He walked them past the elevator and continued up the sloping deck of engineering as it rotated within the ship to create an artificial gravity. The lieutenant suddenly stopped and smiled at them.
“Do you notice anything?” They looked. There were no vines and no evidence of where they had penetrated the bulkhead, trailed down the wall and through the catwalk, and then into the floor. He pointed behind them. They’d walked past the area where the vines had made their home for hundreds of years. The damage had already been repaired and engineering was whole once again.
“And it’s all your fault, Ensign Brisbois!” The lieutenant pointed to the Space Star First Class on the Rabbit’s harness. “Not many people have one of those. Wear it with pride.”
“I am,” Briz answered, nose twitching, ears perked and held high. The other members of Leaper’s team slapped Briz on the back, beaming their pride, too.
‘Hungry,’ Carnesto told Ellie. She shrugged and turned away. She felt a gentle tapping on the back of her leg. Carnesto sat there, a forlorn look on his ‘cat face, his black fur gleaming under the artificial lights of engineering.
“How much longer will we be here? Does he have time to go to the Livestock level and hunt?” Ellie asked the lieutenant. Lutheann and Mixial both angled in close, anxious for the right answer.
“He most assuredly does not. Someone took too long in the shower!” the lieutenant blurted out. Ellie turned bright red and Cain looked at the floor, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes, especially those of an unhappy ‘cat.
“The transfer chamber should be clean by now, so we need to go,” the lieutenant stated dismissively, ushering the Cygnus-12 crew members forward.
“Sorry, Luthey, maybe next time,” Cain tried to console the ‘cat.
‘What next time?’ she asked sarcastic
ally. ‘We’re going onto a deep space exploration ship in mere moments, then we fly through a bunch of empty space, until we get to this special empty space, where we can cross a vast distance to more empty space. Then we dither around out there looking for who knows what when you’ve got a hungry ‘cat right here, and the means to address that necessity only a kilometer away. I think humans suck.’
Ellie stared at him, but he refused to blink. Her eyes started to water, but before she blinked, she told him, ‘Better get used to it, otherwise it could be a real long journey.’
‘It’s already been a long journey. Ahhh, I think I’m dying from starvation!’ Carnesto winked as he rolled onto his back, feigning distress. Lutheann pounced on him and raked his chest with half-open claws. The team worked their way around the ‘cats, heading for the chamber.
“They always like that?” the DI asked.
“Yes, they are, DI,” Cain answered, walking hand-in-hand with Ellie, feeling at ease on board the ship, despite the slight disorientation from the spinning deck.
“My friends call me Lindy and since you haven’t noticed, I’m an ensign, just like you,” she said, pointing to the gold bar on her collar.
“Lindy it is.” Cain offered his hand and they shook. “Welcome aboard. We’re about to get our butts kicked in a whole different way.” Cain turned to the Lizard Man. “What do you think, Pickles?”
“About what?” he asked, his vocalization device interpreting the question as matter of fact.
“Going to space! This is the big one, Pickles. You have to be excited,” Cain said with a grin.
“I am giddy and overjoyed, all at the same time.” The device translated the words emotionlessly.
Briz bounced along happily while Leaper kept leaning a little to one side trying to compensate for the unnatural effect on his balance.
“Hey! Everyone hold up,” Lieutenant Simonds interjected, as his unfocused eyes suggested he was communicating using his neural implant. “I almost forgot. Everyone on a deep space exploration ship has to have the neural implant and since you rushed through your training, you don’t have them. We need to get those installed before you leave,” the lieutenant told them. Then he pointed to the ‘cats.
“And you three, here’s a visitor badge that’ll give you access to the Livestock Level. Don’t lose it and don’t eat anything you’re not supposed to.” Faster than the eye could follow, Carnesto had the badge in his mouth and the three ‘cats were running for the nearest elevator. Ellie shared the directions over the mindlink and surprisingly, he thanked her.
The lieutenant ushered them down the corridor that the ‘cats disappeared into, took the elevator to an area between the main decks of the core, then to a small lab. Five of the team went first and received their neural implants, a device the size of a grain of rice that was attached to their optic nerve behind their eye and then interfaced with their brain. They would see a small screen appear in front of one eye, where they could readily interact with Holly or the artificial intelligence on board their ship.
The system had remained unchanged from the time of the ancients, as they had no better technology. Many swore that Holly used what he gathered from people’s minds to keep them under control. Others simply appreciated ready access to the knowledge of the known universe. That wasn’t to be taken lightly and people were only given neural implants for a reason. Access could also be denied for other reasons. Having an implant didn’t mean you’d always have access to everything.
The SES was different. Spaceships were so complex that access to information was critical to sustained operations. At any point in time, any crew member might need information that was out of their specialty. There might not be time to find the right person. Neural implants improved the survivability of the ship and that improved the survivability of the crew.
Save the ship - get your neural implant, now! Cain joked to himself as if advertising a new pocketknife.
The Wolfoid, Rabbit, and Lizard Man went first as implants for their species were still new. Implant technology had been made for humans, but upgraded in the past century to include all intelligent species. Holly was still refining the processes to tune the implant to the others, so their acclimation would take the longest. First in, last out.
The humans were run through as if it were an assembly line. They spent a total of ten minutes each getting it done, three at a time. The entire process for all was completed in thirty minutes. Cain and Ellie had the misfortune of experiencing the ‘cats making a kill right as they were waking up from the implantation, so their disorientation was magnified. They were given an extra two minutes to figure things out.
Lindy had no sympathy. Despite her assurance to the contrary, she would always be their Discipline Instructor, unwavering in her commitment to keep them from being distracted and losing focus on their primary mission. She seemed immune to the effects of the neural implant on personal balance. The others were shaky as they stood, while she jumped from the bed in the med lab, indifferent to the effects from her new technology.
“I bet Holly’s having a field day with what’s coming through that link,” Cain quipped to Ellie as he tried to fight off the growing headache taking over his mind. He and Ellie leaned on each other as they staggered from the room. When the team was accounted for and declared free to leave, far different than being declared fit for duty, they slowly made their way back toward the matter transfer chamber. Lieutenant Simonds led the way, asking that those with ‘cats request their furry counterparts join them in short order. Tandry contacted Mixial over the mindlink, receiving the ‘cat’s gratified purr in response as she was whiskers deep into the small pig that Lutheann had killed. Tandry hoped that it was wild and not one from somebody’s domestic herd.
She lied to the lieutenant that the ‘cats were already on their way, knowing that the Hillcats would show in their own good time regardless of any external pressure. Cain shook his head, slowly, as the headache persisted, despite drinking water and taking the pills that he was given after the process.
The return trip to engineering seemed to take half the time and before they knew it, they found themselves outside the matter transfer chamber, where they unsurprisingly found no ‘cats waiting.
Lieutenant Simonds raised his eyebrows at Tandry, who grinned and shrugged, holding her hands up in surrender.
“While we wait for an indeterminate amount of time,” the lieutenant said pointedly, “practice with your neural implants. Pull up information on your new ship. Try moving around while you have a window open. I’ll ask Hermes to lock out the terminals in this section so you can’t do any damage.”
They did that, amazed at how easy it was to access the files, bring up pictures, schematics, watch videos, and find information. Briz squatted where he was with a euphoric look on his Rabbit face. His nose didn’t twitch and his eyes remained unfocused as he stared at a spot in the distance, only seeing what was projected into the window before his eye. His big ears flicked, turning as if trying to catch sounds behind him in a world that only he was a part of. The others wondered how they could keep him from remaining embroiled in the technological world that had just been opened to him.
Leaper opened his window, then closed it. Then opened it, then closed it. “I don’t like it. I need to be able to see and it doesn’t process smells at all. How can you assess the situation if you can’t smell anything? Bah! It’s all fog!” The Wolfoid waved a dismissive paw.
The humans seemed to take it in stride, understanding it as a tool to help them with the complexities of keeping a deep space exploration ship functioning. Like Stinky, they felt the window in front of one eye to be disorienting. They played around for a little bit, looking at the file structure and how to find information, but were too anxious to see their spaceship to delve deeply into the world of the AI.
Ensign Peekaless had a unique experience. The others assumed he would become the self-proclaimed historian of their travels. He perused information that only he
could see, nodding and talking with himself aloud, not realizing that his vocalization device was playing his thoughts. “Interesting. Right there. Yes. I’ll add you to my journal. And what is that? Come here, you. Oh, look at that! Interesting. No, that’s not right. If I could delete your silliness, I would. I shall lock you out of my window. Be gone, evil misinformation! Be gone, I tell you. And look at that! Interesting…”
“Pickles. Pickles!” Cain tried to get the Lizard Man’s attention, but decided to leave him be, just until the ‘cats arrived. They all looked at the catwalk expectantly.
Lieutenant Simonds was growing impatient, tapping his foot, arms crossed, and glaring at Tandry, who was frantically negotiating the ‘cats’ return over the mindlink.
When the three of them finally appeared and waddled along the appropriately named catwalk, the team started clapping. Carnesto stopped so he could wave a paw at them as a mocking one-finger salute. He laid down where he was until Ellie threw a small connector at him. She missed but when she reloaded, he acquiesced and caught up with the others to catch the elevator down.
‘What? It takes time to eat four years’ worth of food and we should be sleeping now, not on the longest death march of our lives!’ Lutheann told the group over the mindlink.
‘We’re not going to be gone for four years! That was the old missions. A year, tops,’ Cain answered in his thought voice.
They waited impatiently as the three Hillcats sauntered to them. They were in no hurry to climb aboard the recliner as the last thing they wanted was to lose their hard-earned meal. They strolled into the chamber and took the chairs closest to the exit, hoping to escape before the pukefest began.
Cygnus Rising: Humanity Returns to Space (Cygnus Space Opera Book 1) Page 11