by J. Naomi Ay
"You know me, Stevie," the green guy next to him replied. "I still get all nervous whenever your dad calls. I didn't hear a word, on account of my heart was pounding so loud."
"That's okay bro, be cool. He's has that effect on everybody, not just you." Shika turned back to us and waved at the screen. "So we'll see you in a few hours. We'll get you all home by tomorrow for sure. Strange things are going on back there with Gramma Char and Uncle Loman. Uncle Berkan's fighting with Uncle Allen and Aunt Stella. Other than that, everything's just the same. Oh yeah, the good news is, it finally stopped raining, but the bad news is, it started to snow. That doesn't make any sense since it's the middle of summer."
"Nothing in this world makes sense," Taner muttered, "especially when your father is involved."
"Come quickly, Shika," Luci called. "Come as fast as your ship can possibly fly."
"Sam and I will be right there. Hit the ion thrusters, Sammy. Let's rock and roll this baby."
"You got it, Stevie," Sam replied. "Hold on, everybody, we'll be there in jif."
Chapter 20
Joanne
We all stood by the window watching as the Imperial SpaceNavy spaceplane pulled up and tethered alongside. It was sleek and shiny black with gold and silver writing on the wings, an Imperial Crest glowing proudly on the tail. A chute was extended, and it latched on to us.
"Thank the Saint, they are here," Luci breathed, gathering her belongings. "I'm not ungrateful for your hospitality, Captain Zork. It's just I'm so happy to be going home at last."
"I understand," Zork replied. "Don't get me wrong. I've enjoyed your company, but I'm glad you're all getting off and leaving me alone."
"That ship is so cool," RJ whispered. "Do you think we can meet some SpaceNavy boys?"
"Maybe," I replied wondering what good that would do. I was several months pregnant without a degree or a job. What guy would want me now with all my baggage?
"You're Taner's daughter, Jo," RJ insisted. "You're practically a princess now yourself."
"You don't understand. I want to be loved for being me."
"Oh, Jo," RJ scoffed as Katie joined us at the window. She searched the Imperial spaceplane's window for her son.
"Do you see him?" Michael asked, shying away from her just in case.
"I think so." Katie pointed. "That's him sitting on the bridge. Listen Michael, I want to apologize for everything I did to you. I'm sorry. I don't know why I was so out of control. I guess I just took all of my grief out on you."
"It's okay,” he said. “I understand. Strange things happen out here in space, especially when you are already over stressed."
"Friends?" Katie offered, holding out her hand.
"Sure." They shook as the airlock hissed and the cabin door swished open.
"Shika!" Katie called and raced to her son. After she hugged and kissed him, she brought him over to meet us. "This is RJ and Joanne." Even her freckles grew pale as RJ stared up at the handsome prince, her mouth open but not a word escaping.
"Hey." I offered him a little wave.
"Hey," he replied with a wink.
Katie turned to Michael to introduce him to her son, but instead she screamed once again at the top of her lungs. "Michael! I can't believe this! I swear I'm going to shoot you after all!" She stormed off to the SpaceNavy plane without a backward glance.
"What's the matter?" RJ mumbled when she finally found her voice. Now, she turned bright pink when the prince looked at her with eyes even I had to admit were the most beautiful blue.
"No idea." He waved away a cloud of cigarette smoke as Michael lit a cigarette, holding in his hand a pack of Camel's unfiltered, full flavored and loaded with tar.
"She doesn't like smokers?" he asked the Prince while inhaling deeply.
"It's my dad's favorite brand," the Prince informed us all. "Nice to meet you, Dr. Michael, and welcome aboard. Don't mind my mother. She'll get over whatever's bothering her."
"I know," Michael replied and headed to the door. "I'm not worried as long as she stops hitting me."
Then, he winked at the Prince and tweaked his bowtie before disappearing through the airlock. Something strange caught my eye just then. It was something, I hadn't noticed before. When he smiled like that, I could see there was something odd about his teeth. His incisors were too long and crooked in a creepy way.
"Weird," I said, though no one heard. Instead, we picked up our bags and headed to the door to say goodbye to Captain Zork. He was standing by the cockpit looking sad and forlorn.
"Are you sad to see Katie go?" RJ asked.
"Not at all," the Captain scoffed. "Believe me, I'm glad she's gone. Her ball-breaking reputation is still intact. I'm sad about my Andy who is undergoing surgery. Those Rehnorian engineers said, it's required to fix my engine. They had to update my droid's software and patch a bunch of holes that left Andy vulnerable to all sorts of viruses and infections."
"Okay, Captain Zork," a Rehnorian Engineer called out just then. "Turn her on. You're ready roll. You're system is now running the latest OS. You've got twice the security and three times the processing speed. You should be really happy with your plane's performance."
"Alright." Zork sniffed loudly, and pressed a button.
We heard a whine and crunching sort of noise, and then on the vid in front of us a fuzzy image appeared. She was a young brunette with long dark eyelashes. She had a heart shaped face with ruby red lips, and a button nose. Her big brown eyes blinked with confusion as she yawned and stretched on the screen.
Zork gasped, and his tongue nearly fell out of his mouth. "Who the heck are you?" he barely managed to say.
"Why Captain Zork," she declared in a sexy sultry voice. "I am Sandy, your new virtual assistant."
"Goodbye, girls." Captain Zork pushed us out the door. "Have a good trip. Enjoy your journey home. It was nice to meet you. See you another time. I'm coming Sandy. Don't do anything without me, darling."
RJ and I grabbed hands and walked through the chute.
Captain Zork's freightplane sailed off in the other direction as the SpaceNavy plane turned around and took us to a starship. Katie stayed in the cockpit with her son while the rest of us sat in the salon and ate our lunch.
Afterward, I stared out the window as we approached the Queen of Rozari.
"She's pretty, isn't she?" a voice behind me said. I turned to see the co-pilot who had rescued us along with the Prince. He had spiky red hair and a pale lightly green complexion. He was cute in a cuddly kind of way. "I'm Sam." He held out his hand.
"Joanne." I put mine in his and then something magical happened as we stood there. It was as if I had a dream of the future or a memory of something that hadn't yet occurred. I saw my little girl and me walking with Sam. We were heading along a path with white roses on either side and in front of us was a clear blue lake surrounded by benches. In the lake, there were some ducks paddling around. My little girl tossed crumbs to them from the sack of day old bread. Sam and I sat on a bench and shared some kind of green sandwich and green soda, and then I looked at my watch and knew it was time to get back to work.
"I'll see you at dinner," I told Sam and my daughter, Carolie.
"Don't go, Mommy." My little one ran back and hugged my leg.
"It's alright, baby. I'll be back before you know it and Daddy's going to read you your naptime story. Grandpa Taner's coming over to dinner tonight and then afterward, we'll walk to the park with Aunt RJ."
Then, the dream faded away, and I was once again staring at the starship, although now, I was swaying dizzily on my feet.
"Are you alright, Jo?" Sam held me against his chest. I nodded and glanced again in the window panes. It must have been an illusion, but I thought I saw Michael right outside. He winked and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Oh, I'm so sorry," Sam cried. "I didn't mean to hug you like that. You just looked like you might fall over on your face."
"Oh, I'm falling alright," I agreed, "for a SpaceNavy pilot in uniform.
"
Sam blushed deep green and held me even tighter. "Did you know your mom saved my uncle's life? If you'd like, I can tell you all about it."
"I didn't know," I replied. "But, I'd love it if you would share. I want to hear as much about my mom as I possibly can."
Sam started telling me stories that began on the Allied Spaceforce starship and ended somewhere in an asylum on Derius II.
"So they left the asylum in a van and then…"
All of a sudden, I became nauseous while Sam was still speaking. The bile rose in my throat as all that fancy lunch came right back up. I puked all over Sam, making a mess of his uniform, not to mention the mess I made all over my own clothes.
"I'm so sorry," I cried and puked some more.
"Don't worry, Jo," Sam said and made me sit. We waited while RJ ran for towels to clean us up.
"I'm so embarrassed," I sobbed into my hands. "You see, I'm pregnant with a little girl."
"Are you serious?" Sam cried. "That's fricking cool!"
"Really? You think it is?"
"It's totally awesome!" Sam declared. "It's like a dream come true. I'm so happy for you and me. You see, on Talas where I am from, puking up on someone twice is a sign of eternal love."
Chapter 21
Taner
I was looking for RJ. I wanted to ask her to accompany me to dinner with the Captain this evening. Joanne had declined, preferring to dine with that young Talasian pilot in the ship's bar and grill. Madame and Prince Shika were attending our dinner as well as Luci and her son. Viscount Marik was now a full commander and the third highest ranking officer of this ship. I had insisted that Dr. Silverman be included in our little affair. Initially, he had declined, but after repeatedly assuring him that Madame's gun had been removed from her possession upon boarding the ship, he at last consented to join us.
"RJ?" I found her in the sickbay tagging along behind Dr. Hannah as she wrapped a bandage around a young spaceman's foot.
"Now don't make it too tight here, RJ," Hannah was explaining. "We don’t want to cut off circulation which is already hampered by the swelling." She glanced up at me and smiled shyly. "Do you want to try, RJ? I'm sure Ensign Williams won't have any problem with you practicing on him."
"Nah," Ensign Williams replied. "I've got all day. Just remind me never to kick any more walls in the Sim Center. You ever play Imperial Quest, RJ? It's so lifelike I ended up hurting myself for real."
"Sounds fun, sort of," RJ replied as Hannah washed her hands and came over to shake mine.
"Hello, Lord Taner."
"Dr. Hannah," I bowed politely. "Perhaps you would like to join our little tete a tete supper this evening?"
"Oh, I couldn't." She blushed and looked away. "Steven's mom is there. I just feel like an idiot when she's around."
"Ah Hannah, that's absurd. I know Madame would like nothing more than for you to join us."
Hannah smirked doubtfully and then glanced back at RJ who was now wrapping Ensign William's arm.
"I'm into mummies," RJ explained. "First, I went through a vampire stage, then a zombie stage and now it's mummies."
"She's a teenager," I commented.
Hannah smiled wryly and then shook her head again. "I can't, Lord Taner. It's just too weird for me. Steven and I are great when we're here on the ship, but to go there, it changes everything. I'm sorry."
"Steven…Shika…is a wonderful young man regardless of who his parents are."
She turned her eyes away. "Even if I start to feel comfortable with his mom, there's still his dad. I don't think I could ever, ever feel at ease around him."
Just then Michael emerged from one of the operating suites. He was holding a device that I recognized from my years at SdK.
"You guys are still using the oldest version of this," he said before glancing up at me. "Oh hi, Taner. You ought to request an update. It's kind of strange how you ended up with such an old unit on a practically brand new ship."
"Well, you know bureaucracies," Hannah shrugged.
"Do I ever," Michael sighed. "Hey, did I hear Taner say you're coming to dinner with us tonight?"
"Well, actually no," Hannah demurred.
"Aw, come on. You can sit next to me. I promise I'll be the biggest idiot there."
Hannah laughed.
"Seriously," Michael insisted. "I can practically bet that I'm going to do or say something that is going to send Katie over the edge. She's either going to hit me, dump her water glass in my lap, pour soup over my head or maybe all three at the same time."
"Katie?"
"We were very informal aboard the freightplane," I explained. "You see, Hannah. You have nothing to be afraid of. If Michael can handle it, certainly you can too."
"And I'm going too," RJ called. "Katie wasn't nasty to either me or Jo."
Hannah looked carefully at each of us. "Ok," she shrugged. "I'll give it a try."
Our dinner was informal dress as none of us had brought anything other than the most casual of clothes. The Captain, Marik and Shika all wore their uniforms while the rest of us dressed in jeans. Michael even omitted his bowtie for the first time.
"Hello, Hannah," Katie called when Shika and Hannah entered the Captain's dining room. She came forward and held her hands out to the girl. "I'm so glad you could make it. Don't worry, we're being totally laidback tonight."
"Thank you…uh…Madame," Hannah curtseyed.
"Call me, Katie. And no curtseying allowed. Shika, get Hannah some wine. What are you standing around for? Did you forget your manners?"
"Yes, Mom." Shika winked at Hannah. "That's her Mother voice. She also has a Captain voice and an Empress voice. You'll learn to distinguish which is which and respond accordingly."
"If you get them wrong, she might shoot you," Michael mumbled, nursing a drink from the bar.
"Let’s all sit down," I offered, encouraging them to eat before this conversation veered off in the wrong direction.
Hannah and Shika sat next to Luci and Marik while Katie sat at one end of the table and the Captain at the other. RJ sat next to me. The one remaining chair was taken by Michael, and unfortunately, it was on the left side, next to Katie.
"You're left-handed, Michael?" Katie frowned as Michael picked up his fork.
"Yes, Your Imperial Highness, but I'll change to my right if it'll make you feel better."
"I've preordered the dinner," the Captain interrupted. "Our Master Sergeant Chef has been experimenting with different cuisines. He has prepared some unique dishes just for you, Madame."
"Oh? Great!" Katie smiled and raised her eyebrows. "This should be interesting."
We all murmured something appropriate as the appetizer, red stuff on toast was presented.
"I despise toast points," Luci said, and then apologized to Marik. "No offense against your mother-in-law, dear, she's really a lovely woman."
"None taken," Marik grumbled and swallowed not only his but Luci's, Katie's and Hannah's appetizers. RJ tried hers but quickly spit it out.
A soup course was served, and there was nothing overly offensive in it, so it was eaten by all while RJ explained in vivid details her interest in mummies. Following that a salad was set before us. Michael picked up a leaf with his fork and then pushed the whole dish aside.
"I'm sorry, but I don't like this," he declared. "I don't like grass or things that cows should eat. I'm really more carnivorous, especially when it's fresh."
Katie glared at him while the rest of us just looked confused. The main course arrived and unfortunately, it was some kind of pasta with another type of creature broiled on top. RJ looked at me with horror as I tried to determine if the creature was fowl, fish or meat. Katie poked at it with her fork.
Marik took a bite and declared it “Not too bad,” while Luci and Hannah daintily picked at the pasta underneath.
"Um," Shika asked the Captain who was poking at his own creature. "Any idea what this is, sir?"
The Captain winced slightly and apologized
. "I'm sorry, Madame. I had no clue what the chef was preparing. Perhaps, we should send this back and order something else?"
"No, this is good," Michael said, cutting a large piece with his knife. He put it in his mouth and chewed it loudly. "I know what this is. This is a derivative of the genus Rattus family, a subspecies of the superfamily Muroidea. It's delicious especially with this sauce." He picked up a piece that had a long skinny tail and bit into it. "I used to have this all the time when I was a kid."
"I'm going to be sick," RJ screamed and jumped up from the table.
The rest of us leapt from our seats as well.
"This isn't funny anymore!" Katie shrieked and picking up her plate, dumped the whole mess into Michael's lap.
"Oh oops!" Shika cried and pulled Hannah to the door. "I guess we were wrong about dinner with my mother tonight."
"I'm sick of this," Katie continued yelling. "Change back. Change back now! I've had absolutely enough of your humor!"
"I don't know what you're talking about.” Michael shrugged as Katie dumped her water glass on top of his head. "See I told you this would happen, Taner. At least she ate her soup."
"Madame!" I raced around the table and grabbed her arms. "This is enough. Stop this, I beg you." Unfortunately, it appeared she had become totally unbalanced.
"Leave me alone, Taner," Katie shouted, shoving me away. She picked up the other plates on the table and tossed them at Michael. "You don't realize what's going on here. Can't you see who this actually is?"
"Michael Silverman?" Luci squeaked. "Caroline's doctor?"
"Michael Silverman!" Katie scoffed as Michael was drenched in food. "I don't know how you did this, but I want it to end right now."
"I'm good with it ending!" Michael cried, crossing his arms in front of his face trying to defend himself from Katie's culinary onslaught.