by Ryk Brown
“Yes, Ensign. What is your question?” Nathan asked.
“Beg your pardon, sir, but how the hell are you still alive?”
Nathan took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as he contemplated how to answer her. “I’m not.”
Nathan’s response was met with eight blank stares.
“I am Nathan Scott, son of Dayton and Marlene, born on Earth in the year 3447. However, the body in which I currently reside is not my original one. It is a clone.”
“You’re shitting me!” Chief Benetti exclaimed. When everyone looked at her, she added, “What? You’re not thinking the same thing?”
“I have no recollection of my death on Nor-Patri,” Nathan explained. “Moments before my death, my consciousness, my memories, everything that makes me Nathan Scott, was uploaded onto a portable storage device provided by two rogue Nifelmian specialists.”
“The clone race,” Aiden realized. “I’ve heard of them.”
“I always thought that was just a rumor,” Sari stated.
“Me, too,” Charnelle agreed.
“The Nifelmians keep to themselves, don’t they?” Sergeant Dagata wondered.
“That’s what I heard, as well,” Ali agreed.
“But you were in a Jung prison, weren’t you?” Kenji challenged. “How were you able to…”
“The how is unimportant,” Nathan interrupted. “And, possibly even classified,” he added, looking at Jessica.
“Then where have you been the last seven years?” Kenji wondered.
“In hiding, obviously,” Aiden said to Kenji. He turned to Nathan and asked, “But why come out now? Aren’t you afraid the Jung will find out and come after you?”
“That could spark another war,” Kenji added.
“That’s probably going to happen with, or without me,” Nathan commented. “As to your other question, I couldn’t just stand by and watch the Dusahn take over the Pentaurus cluster, and God knows how many more systems.”
“Lieutenant Commander Shinoda kept referring to the Dusahn, as well,” Aiden said. “We thought the Jung had invaded the Pentaurus cluster. At least, that’s what they’re saying back home.”
“We believe the Dusahn to be a rogue Jung caste, banished from the Jung Empire centuries ago. How and why they turned up in the PC, and how they managed to get their hands on jump drive technology, has yet to be determined,” Nathan explained.
“And you guys intend to stop them?” Aiden surmised, holding back a look of excitement.
“Precisely,” Nathan replied.
“How?” Kenji wondered. “As far as we can tell, you’ve only got one ship… The Aurora.”
“How many ships are we up against?” Aiden asked.
“We?” Kenji added, casting a disapproving glance at his captain.
“Yes, we,” Aiden insisted, ignoring his copilot.
Nathan looked at Jessica.
Jessica resisted for a moment, not sure if she should be sharing the intelligence with them just yet. “Currently we have confirmed the presence of thirty-six ships in the Pentaurus cluster,” she finally said. “Thirty-three of them are armed, and twenty-one of those thirty-three are classified as warships.”
“And you’re going after them with one ship?” Kenji exclaimed in disbelief. “No disrespect, sir, but that’s insane!”
“We don’t plan on running headlong into a fight with their fleet,” Nathan assured him. “In fact, we have yet to devise any type of plan short of harassing them in order to prevent their spread to other systems. That’s why we needed the gunships. Larger ships have limited jump range. In order to protect our fleet, we must remain outside that range. With the gunships, we can execute hit-and-run strikes, forcing them to protect their infrastructure assets, thereby keeping their forces contained.”
“But that will only work for so long, right?” Charnelle surmised.
“Correct,” Nathan agreed. “Eventually, we will have to strike more devastating blows, before they can build up their forces.”
“Why the fleet of cargo ships?” Kenji wondered. “Why not just create an operating base somewhere?”
“Creating a surface operating base would be costly and time-consuming,” Nathan explained. “And utilizing an existing world that could offer such support would put that world at risk. The Dusahn have already destroyed two entire worlds, neither of which posed any threat. One because their representatives failed to show the proper respect, and the other because the Ghatazhak were based there. Any world safe to operate from would likely be too far away to be strategically viable. A mobile operating base is the only sensible alternative, at the moment.”
“But, nine gunships, against twenty-one warships?” Kenji didn’t like the odds one bit.
“Yeah,” Chief Benetti agreed. “And what if they have more ships that you don’t know about?”
“That’s entirely possible,” Nathan admitted.
Specialist Leger raised his hand meekly from the far end of the conference table. “Excuse me, sir?”
“Yes?” Nathan said.
“Why?” Specialist Leger asked.
“Why what?” Nathan replied.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Yeah,” Chief Benetti agreed. “You were in hiding, weren’t you? You were safe and sound, right?”
“What kind of a question is that?” Aiden remarked, annoyed.
“No, it’s a fair question,” Nathan insisted. “And I have an answer.” He looked at the young specialist as he answered his question. “Because it needs to be done.”
“But why?”
“Come on, Ledge,” Aiden begged.
“Because if we don’t, the Dusahn will spread to the next sector, and then the next, and so on. Because more people will die. And even more still if we end up fighting them later, instead of now.”
“But why you?” Leger asked.
Nathan sighed. “I could say ‘because a handful of people once risked their lives to save me. And then they risked their lives again to bring me back to life.’ And I could say ‘because they asked me to lead them.’ But that would only be a small part of it. The truth is, I would have taken the fight to the Dusahn without them asking. Because it is the right thing to do.”
“Why are you telling us all this?” Kenji wondered.
“Because you have the right to decide for yourselves, whether or not you want to join us,” Nathan explained. “I know that Ensign Walsh here volunteered you all on the spur of the moment, and under considerable duress. In doing so, he was overstepping his authority as your captain. While I would welcome you all, I want each of you to make that decision on your own, and not have someone make it for you. I will be asking you all to risk your lives, possibly on a daily basis. That is not something I take lightly, and neither should any of you.”
Aiden looked at the others at the table, then back at Nathan. “Then, I take it the lieutenant commander has cleared us?”
“That decision now rests with me,” Nathan informed them. “If you choose to join us, you will be breaking your oath to the Alliance, just as the crew of the Aurora has done, and just as Captains Roselle and Nash have done.”
“What about you?” Aiden wondered.
“To my knowledge, Terran law does not recognize clones, so technically my allegiance ended with the death of my original body.”
“Then just transfer us all into clones of ourselves, and kill our original bodies,” Aiden suggested, half joking. “Problem solved.”
“Not as easy as you might think,” Nathan assured him.
“What happens to us if we decide not to join you?” Kenji asked.
“Anyone who does not wish to pledge their loyalty to the Karuzari, and join us in our fight against the Dusahn, will be transported back to their homeworld as soon as is practicable,” Nathan promised.
“Oh, that will be loads of fun,” Chief Benetti said. “The interrogations, the dishonorable discharges… Hell, we might even face charges.” She looked at Aiden
. “Thanks a lot, Aiden.”
“Don’t listen to her, nobody likes her much.” Aiden joked. “I’m in.”
“Why am I not surprised,” Chief Benetti grumbled.
“Me, too,” Specialist Leger added.
“I’m in, as well,” Ali joined in.
“What the hell,” Sergeant Dagata agreed. “After all, we’ve come all this way.”
Aiden looked at Kenji. “Just think of all the stories you’ll have to tell your children someday.”
“If I survive,” Kenji replied.
“Count me in, sir,” Charnelle said.
“Me, as well,” Sari added.
Aiden kept staring at Kenji.
Kenji sighed in resignation. “Well, I can’t very well let you all go it alone. Without me, you’ll probably do something stupid and get everyone killed on the first mission.”
“You mean, like bouncing a gunship off a planet?” Nathan commented.
“Yeah, like that,” Kenji chuckled.
Nathan smiled. “Welcome to the team. You should probably remove those Alliance patches from your jumpsuits, though. After all, in the eyes of the Alliance, you’re deserters, and in the eyes of the Dusahn, we’re all terrorists.”
“You really know how to sell it, don’t you, sir?” Kenji commented.
Nathan’s smile only grew wider.
* * *
“You wanted to see me, sir?” Commander Kaplan said as she entered the captain’s ready room on board the Aurora.
“Yes, Commander,” Cameron replied. “Please, take a seat.” Cameron paused a moment, waiting for the commander to sit before continuing. “How are things going on the Mystic?”
“Slow, but we are making progress. Changing over from a cruise ship configuration to a residential and support ship is proving to be more difficult than we originally anticipated. Now that the Glendanon has finished building us our own fabricator, things are starting to move a little faster. In another week, we’ll get our second fabricator.”
“What are you fabricating?” Cameron wondered.
“Mostly structural and compartment stuff. We’ve been breaking down the luxury suites, and turning them into family suites. We’ve also been reconfiguring the spa areas to become part of medical. Once finished, we’ll have a nice little hospital going. That will take the role of health care for the fleet off the Aurora.”
“What about creating defenses?” Cameron asked.
“Once we get the second fabricator, we’ll make two more on our own. Then we’ll start cranking out point-defense turrets. One of the specialists from Lawrence who was working for the Ghatazhak provided us with a nice, compact little design. Each turret is self powered, and wirelessly controlled. We can literally slap them on the outside of the hull wherever we see fit. I’ve got him working on a field-of-fire plan as we speak.”
“How long until you have basic defenses operational?”
“A few weeks, at least. It only takes a couple days to build one. My best guess is that it will take at least twenty of them to give us a sixty-percent intercept rate.”
“Sixty percent?” Cameron looked concerned.
“I know, but it’s a start. We should be able to get that up to at least ninety in a couple months.”
“Maybe if you dedicated all of your fabricators to the production of PT turrets…”
“We thought about that, Captain,” the commander said. “Problem is, the Mystic is more important than you might think. We snagged her just in time. The people were not happy all cooped up in cargo pods aboard the Glendanon. We still have a long way to go yet, but just the knowledge that we’re working toward something is making a big difference in morale across the fleet. And the extra elbow room isn’t hurting, either.”
“Sounds like you’ve really got your hands full over there,” Cameron said.
“Yeah, I know I haven’t been around much, and you’ve had to pick up my slack. I apologize for that, sir. I’ll try to delegate a bit more of my responsibilities to my department heads on the Mystic, so I can spend more time aboard the Aurora.”
“About that… I’ve decided to make some changes around here,” Cameron said.
“Changes?”
“I’ve decided that it would be best if you were transferred to the Mystic as her full-time executive officer.”
“Captain, I can do both jobs, really,” the commander insisted. “I just need a little more time to adjust, that’s all.”
“This isn’t about you, Lara,” Cameron explained. “It’s about what best serves our mission. You said it yourself, the Mystic is far more important than we realize. What you’re doing for that ship, and for all of our people, is far more important to our mission. And you are the perfect person for the job. You’re quick to solve problems, you adapt to change in the blink of an eye, and you’ve never met a rule you couldn’t find a way around when needed. That’s exactly what the Mystic needs right now.”
“Of course, sir,” Lara replied.
“You do like your role on the Mystic, don’t you?”
“Actually, I do. I really do. It’s probably the most challenging thing I’ve ever done. And I’ve got some great people over there…for civilians, anyway. But I can’t help feeling like I’ve let you down, Cameron.”
“Not at all, Lara. I’m quite proud of what you’re accomplishing over there. In fact, I’m going to recommend to Captain Scott and General Telles that, in the Aurora’s absence, you should take tactical command of the fleet.”
“I’m honored, sir,” Commander Kaplan replied. “I won’t let you down.”
“I know you won’t.”
“Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?” the commander asked.
“Yes, that’s it,” Cameron assured her, a bit of melancholy in her voice.
“Then I guess I’d better pack up my things, and move over to the Mystic,” the commander said, rising from her seat.
“I’m going to miss you around here, Lara,” Cameron said as she also rose. “You’re probably the best XO I’ve ever had.”
“Thanks, Cam. I’m going to miss you, as well.” Commander Kaplan turned to exit, then paused, looking back at Cameron. “By the way, who’s going to be your new XO? Please tell me it’s not going to be Vidmar.”
“No, it’s not going to be Vidmar. In fact, he’s no longer going to be the Aurora’s CTO.”
“Really?” Lara looked quite pleased. “Who’s replacing him?”
“Lieutenant Commander Nash.”
“Jessica?” Lara looked surprised. “I thought she was a lieutenant.”
“She was. But I can’t very well demote Vidmar, and I can’t have someone of lesser rank as his supervisor.”
“I’m so loving this,” Lara exclaimed with a smile. “I wish I could be here to see the look on his face when you tell him.”
“I already did,” Cameron told her. “You would have enjoyed it.”
Lara laughed. “So, who is going to be the Aurora’s next XO?”
“I am.”
“What?”
“I’m turning command of the Aurora over to Captain Scott.”
“What?” Lara’s jaw dropped. “Jesus, Cam, I know he’s Nathan Scott, and all, but this is your ship. Are you sure you want to just hand it over?”
“Do I want to? No. But for this rebellion to work, it must be led by Nathan Scott, and he must lead it from the bridge of the Aurora.”
“Then let him stand on the bridge and impress people while you run the ship,” Lara suggested.
“I plan to,” Cameron agreed, “but as XO, just like you did with me.”
Lara sighed. “I sure as hell did not see this coming.”
“Actually, I did,” Cameron admitted. “The moment I saw his face in that message, I knew I’d be handing my ship over to him to command.”
Lara thought for a moment. “Do you really trust him that much, Cam?”
Cameron thought for a moment, then smiled. “Actually, I do… I really do.”
* * *
It had taken only a few minutes for Nathan to pack up his personal belongings from his cabin aboard the Seiiki. Surprisingly, in the five years he had lived aboard her, he had collected very little. Some clothing, shoes, a few sidearms, and a collection of vid-plays and music files that all fit on a single data chip. Along with a few personal mementos, he possessed little of importance. The Seiiki herself had been the only possession that meant anything to him, and although she would still belong to him, she would never be the same ship again. She was about to become a tactical combat ship, capable of flying a variety of missions for the Karuzari.
He sat for a moment, looking at the blank walls of his cabin. Despite the fact that he would be back aboard her for any number of missions in the near future, this cabin would no longer be his. In fact, none of the cabins would belong to the individual members of her crew from this point forward. The ship would be based on the Aurora. Her cabins would be gutted to hold reactors for various weapons and shielding systems yet to be installed. The Seiiki would no longer be a home to anyone. She was about to become a ship of war.
The side of him that was Nathan saw the advantages the Seiiki brought the rebellion. She was fast, could jump forever, and could carry at least fifty Ghatazhak in her cargo hold. Once armed, she would be quite useful indeed. But the Connor side of him saw the ship as his home…the only thing he’d ever had any control over in his wayward life. The Seiiki represented a dream he had once held. A dream of growing his business into a multi-ship operation, perhaps in some distant system that had yet to be introduced to the wonders of the jump drive. Had he taken the Ghatazhak’s fuel, supplies, and repairs, and run as he had originally intended, he would already be well on his way to finally achieving that dream. Not just for him, but for his crew, as well.
Nathan sighed. His crew.
He rose to his feet and went to the desk, pressing the intercom button. “Josh?”
“Yeah, Cap’n.”
“Have everyone assemble in the galley. I need to talk to the entire crew.”
“Straightaway, Skipper,” Josh replied.
Nathan reached down and picked up the flat holo-chip on his desk that he had missed during packing. He held it in his hand, tapping its surface with his finger to activate it. A three-dimensional image of him and his crew standing in front of the Seiiki’s cargo ramp, just before departing on one of any number of runs they had made together, appeared before him. He could almost hear the banter between them. Marcus ridiculing Dalen and Josh. Josh calling Marcus an old man. Neli trying to maintain peace between them all, and Connor, standing in the middle of them, a smirk hiding behind his scruffy beard and tangled mess of hair. It had been a good life, but it was time to move on. He was no longer the same person. He was no longer Connor Tuplo, but he also was no longer Nathan Scott…not entirely. He hoped that his experiences as Connor made him a better Nathan. Only time would tell.