by Bob Mauldin
After a tour of the ship, and a good long look at the fighter in the bay, Victor was ready to go back. “That fighter is the old model,” Stephen said. “The newer, faster version, twenty of them, are still out there.”
Victor shrugged. “I’m an engineer. I can guess what the new one’s look like. And I am going to see one, sooner or later. Right now, though, I have to finish getting this project up and running. One more year, and you’ll have a very insistent volunteer.”
Taking Victor back to the transporter room, Stephen said, “I’ll go back down with you. One of the most amazing sights in the world is to see someone beam out. And you know there are no hidden gadgets. It’s your own house, after all.”
As they stood there, Transport Control beamed in a young crew woman. Victor, agog, said, “I am going to find out how that works! Really, Stephen, there is no need to go down with me now. I’ve seen what a beam-in is like, I’ll assume a beam-out to be much the same.”
Agreeing that it was, Stephen shook his friend’s hand. “We’ll be back in about a year. I’ll be in touch as soon as we make orbit. Good luck, Vic. And be ready to take a ride next time.” Gesturing to the on-duty tech, he watched Victor beam out.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Lucy decided that she hated command. Actually, it was okay, in a way. When she was just in charge of the third shift, night watch as it was called, it was cool. Most of the time all she had to do was sit there and maybe order a course correction, but that was before she found out what Simon’s definition of rank and command structure really meant.
Her own never fully understood, or maybe never fully realized, idea was that everybody on the first two shifts would be senior in rank to her. Simon, on the other hand felt somewhat differently about the matter. The problem was a simple matter of misunderstanding. Simon hadn’t realized that Lucy didn’t fully comprehend her own position and hadn’t realized that her position was all that important in Simon’s world-view.
She thought she was just in charge of the third stringers, sort of. Simon had to explain the facts of life to her when Galileo left for Earth, leaving Kitty on board Orion. Now Wing Commander Hawke, she was going to oversee the formation and training of the defense network around Orion. This left a gap in the command structure of Galileo for the voyage home.
Commander Walker was in charge of the Research and Development division and Commander Miller was senior Communications Officer, also overseeing factory operations when Galileo was in construction mode. With the Captain being the Captain, Duh! Lucy thought, working her way through the logic, that was all four of the Firsters. “With Wing Commander Hawke on board Orion and since Commander Walker isn’t a line officer and Commander Miller is ... working in other areas, that moves you to First Officer,” Simon had told her when he called her to his office the day before Galileo left for Earth. “And you have been in actual command of this ship, eight hours a day, seven days a week for quite some time. Let me ask you a question, Lucy. Who better to run second shift and be First Officer than someone who has experience running third?”
“But…” Lucy searched desperately for an answer. The reality of what the Captain was asking her finally struck home. “I can’t run second shift! I mean, Sir. Everyone on the second shift bridge team outranks me.”
“Not anymore, Commander,” Simon said. Smiling, he slid a small case across the desk to her. Hand shaking slightly, she picked up the black velvet case, guessing what was inside. She opened the lid to reveal the gold eight-pointed stars of a full commander.
Her mind churning, she looked from the stars in her hand to the man behind the desk several times before she could formulate a response. To her horror she heard herself ask, “Do I get my bridge team, Sir? I’m not sure I can do this without them. I mean it’s not all my doing that our shift runs so well. I depend on them a lot, Sir.”
Simon smiled, “I appreciate your loyalty, Commander, but the fact is that to do so would effectively demote those already on second shift for no apparent reason other than favoritism. And that is not going to become a practice aboard any ship I have control over. Do I make myself clear?” He ended on a firm note that almost sounded stern even to him, so when the new commander silently nodded, fear evident on her face, he relented.
“This is going to give you a broader range of experience, Commander. Learning to work with others is a part of life. Besides, your new team is expecting you on the bridge at fifteen hundred hours tomorrow.” He smiled at the nervous Lucy. “Relax, Lucy. I’m going to give you the same advice an old sergeant gave me way back when: if you act like you know what you’re doing, most people will believe it. Confidence breeds confidence, Commander, and you need to project it. Now, this bridge team is pretty much intact. They did lose their helm Officer to Orion, though, so you can bring yours over. That way you will have at least one familiar face on the shift until you get used to the new ones.”
The thought of David Sipes sitting at Helm did calm her some, she had to admit, but getting used to the new position and faces was going to be a bitch.
She had thought the move to second shift was going to be a problem, but whatever she expected never materialized. The bridge team was polite to her, calling her “Ma’am,” and following instructions without hesitation. She did get a few sideways looks that she thought could have been her imagination, but she was never certain. The few times she met her old team in the rec room was the only time she got to let her hair down. They did razz her unmercifully about her promotion, but she knew it was all in fun. Nevertheless, it had been a hectic week, absorbing the new situation. Rob Greene was feeling the same since he was promoted to Lucy’s old position.
Her trip home to see about getting some of her friends to join up had been interrupted by a strange incident. First, as with most of the people aboard Galileo, she had had to convince her family that she was indeed safe, well and something other than insane. In some cases that took a bit of doing, but Galileo’s technical magic and other crew could usually assist those crew needing special help in that department.
Now this young woman, Crewman Lisle Gower, hadn’t had that particular problem, but had been in a TGIFriday’s, dressed in civilian clothes rather than the usual shipboard uniform of black pants and a black short-sleeved shirt, with her rank on her collar, when she was approached by an anonymous man and woman asking for her by name. The two had given her this letter and asked her to deliver it to Captain Hawke.
“They acted okay, but kinda stiff, you know?” the crew woman said before Lucy dismissed her back to her recruiting trip. “It did do a lot of good, though. All of my friends got to see a couple of MIB’s give me a letter with the Presidential seal on it and then they all followed me outside and watched me beam up. I was gonna let one come with me to tell the others what happened, but I figured I should wait until later for that. This seemed more important, so I told them I’d be back later and just beamed out in the middle of the parking lot. You said we should be more obvious about it, beaming out that is. Did I do right?”
The implications were clear, Lucy realized, tapping the envelope Gower had handed her on the arm of the command chair. The girl had indeed done right, as Captain Hawke wanted as many people as possible now to know about their existence, feeling that the exposure would help ease the problems dealing with a government that wanted their ship, but they had expected a greater respite before the government began sending this kind of message to the Captain. “Of course, Ensign,” she said, and sent her back down to her friends.
“Well, the only thing to do is to pass the buck,” she mused. She sat there tapping the envelope on the arm of the command chair while she waited for the Captain to arrive. When Simon appeared on the bridge, Lucy handed the envelope to him. “This has to be related to that FBI agent. God, but he’s quick. And didn’t Commander Miller drop him back in Washington? For him to get that,” she gestured to the letter, “and get back to Colorado and get it to one of our people, well, someone grea
sed his wheels.”
Simon tore the end of the envelope open and shook the single folded piece of paper out. Reading it, he looked up at Lucy. “Get Commanders Miller and Walker to the ready-room. And be there yourself, soonest, Commander. Looks like things have just heated up down below.” Lucy stared at him as he left the bridge. If a man could skip without actually doing so, then the Captain had just done a credible impression.
Gayle and Stephen walked into the ready-room and found Simon and Lucy already there. The letter Lucy had mentioned as reason for their summons lay on the table before them. Seating himself, Stephen reached out and slid the piece of paper over so they could read it. “Is this for real? And who would we send? It can’t be you.”
Gayle added, “Hell, no, it can’t. And where would we meet these people? And on such short notice. And I’m not sure I like this phrase. What does ‘in the best interests of all concerned’ mean, anyway?”
Simon lifted his hands in surrender. “Don’t look at me. I’m sure I don’t know. But, there is a way to find out. Stephen, why don’t you set up a meeting at the earliest moment. I don’t want to delay departure any longer than I have to with all these new people on board.”
Taking the business card stapled to the letter, Stephen said, “I guess the lodge would do again. I still have the key I never returned before we took off last time. I’ll beam down and call this special assistant to the Office of the President. I’ll let you know what happens as soon as I can.”
“Brandon Galway. Who is this?” The no-nonsense voice grated out of the speaker.
“I am Commander Stephen Walker of the Galileo, Mister Galway. I am under the impression that we are supposed to talk.” Setting up the meeting was the work of minutes, and when Stephen asked how long it would take Galway and crew to get to the Appalachians, he was told that they had a helicopter at their disposal, just name the place. “Okay, Mister Galway. About five miles past Rawley Springs you’ll see a cut-off into Washington National Forest. Take that about five miles and you come out at a hunting lodge. There should be enough room to land a chopper.” Given an arrival time of an hour and a half, Stephen responded, “Very well, Mister Galway. Just make sure that you four are the only ones there. And unarmed. We have ways to monitor things like that, you know.”
Hearing the arrangements, Simon could only say, “Good work. I want all four of you to have side-arms. The new lasers. Could give an advantage or even things up if your gun ban gets disobeyed. Full uniforms as well.” The roster for the away team broke down to Lucy, Stephen, Gayle, and Commander John Marshall, their Security Chief. All four went to their quarters to change into clean uniforms and draw weapons from the armory.
Keeping track of the air traffic in the area via Galileo’s sensors, the four members of the team were informed that a helicopter seemed to be heading straight for the lodge and would arrive in about fifteen minutes. Lucy, as First Officer, was in charge of the mission and in addition to the weapon on her hip, she was wearing a headset identical to those her other team members wore. That way, everyone could keep track of what the sensor crews were reporting, as well as keep in touch with each other if they should get separated. It was connected to the new comm-link that had been built from some of the plans found in the computer, and was able, despite its small size, to reach the Galileo some twelve thousand miles above.
Ten minutes before the chopper was estimated to arrive at the lodge, the team beamed down to the parking lot outside the two-story ranch-style log structure. Stephen pulled the key from his pocket and opened the front door. Looking around to see that everything was in order, he waved the others in and, pushing the door closed, set about making coffee in the over-sized pot on the divider between the living room and kitchen.
A few minutes later, they heard the rising sound of the whirlybird as it cleared a ridge half a mile away. Almost immediately, the sound began to drop down as the craft settled in the precise middle of the parking lot. Lucy, getting updates from above, gave the okay. Even though she was years younger than the others, she had the responsibility of command. Taking time for a deep breath, she remembered the Captain’s advice: that if you act like you expect to be obeyed, in most cases you would be. “Seems like there are five people in that thing, folks. Commander Walker, would you be kind enough to greet them and ask them in for coffee?”
Stephen watched from a window as four men stepped out of the helicopter and, bent over, ran several dozen feet away from the whirling blades. A silhouetted figure stayed at the controls of the idling machine. They conferred in a tight group for a few seconds and then headed for the lodge. Stephen watched them walk up the stone steps and across the wide wooden porch. He nodded to Marshall to open the door as the lead man reached for the doorknob.
Hesitating only fractionally, the four U.S. representatives entered to a scene they didn’t expect. There were four people in the room, all in identical uniforms. And a good-looking blonde was pouring coffee into obviously expensive cups on equally expensive saucers. Stopping just inside the door, a short, stocky man looked each of the Galileo crew over. “Looks like you have a lucrative business going here. I’m Brandon Galway, special assistant to the Office of the President. This is Colonel Michael Babcock, USAF, Steven Mitchell from NASA, and ... a member of the security services.”
Lucy stepped forward, hand extended. “Pleased to meet you, Mister Galway. I am Commander Lucy Grimes, First Officer of the Galileo. With me are Commander Walker, Science Officer, Commander Miller, Communications Officer, and Commander Marshall, our Chief Security Officer. And none of this is ours. Just on loan, so to speak.” As she named each one, they nodded their heads in turn.
Lucy looked the four men over. Galway could have been a line-backer at some time in his life. He had the kind of build any coach would love to see in a defensive formation. The Air Force officer was in uniform and the NASA guy looked the part of a rocket scientist, complete to pocket protector and pens. The unnamed man at the back of the group Lucy faced would never get a second look on the street. Plain in dress and appearance, he would blend into virtually any crowd. Here, he stood out like a sore thumb since Galway had made such a production of not naming him.
He was the first to speak, baiting her, she realized. “Kinda young to be second in command of a spaceship, aren’t you, young lady?” he taunted.
Keeping her temper under control wasn’t the easiest thing to do. Too many times in her short life she had had to defend herself against those who would give her the same kind of grief. “And just who are you and what experience do you have with space ship crews, that you can make that determination, sir?” she threw back. Glowering in anger, the little man started to make a rejoinder when Galway, the obvious leader of their group, silenced him with a wave of his hand.
“Now that we have the amenities out of the way, can we get down to business?” Sitting down at the head of the table that separated the two groups, Lucy waved for the visitors to be seated as well, preempting the right to set the tone of the meeting. She picked up a coffeepot, filled her cup, and set it down as close to Galway as she comfortably could. “Your fourth still hasn’t identified himself, and until he does he can wait outside. I was raised to observe the amenities.”
Galway shifted uncomfortably in his chair and said, “He is a member of a group even I don’t know the name of. Let’s just call him Mr. Smith.”
“Well, that’s very original.” Her sarcasm wasn’t lost on Galway or Smith. “So, tell me, Mister Galway. What is so important that you would want a meeting like this at such short notice? We are due to leave orbit as soon as this meeting is over, so you will forgive me if I don’t have time to spar with you. Tell me what you want and we can discuss the details without any beating around the bush if you please.” The Captain had briefed her on how to handle these people. Make them state their position, that is, and not let them draw her into any confessions, or give away too much.
“First, I want to express my displ
easure at the fact that you people are wearing weapons. That is a violation of the agreement we made prior to coming here,” Galway huffed.
This brought an immediate response from Stephen. “Mister Galway, I asked your group to come unarmed. You never asked the same of us though we would have come armed in any case. We are the ones at a numerical disadvantage here. Now, please state your reasons for asking us here. We can leave any time, you know.”
Taking a deep breath, Galway looked at the little security man and spoke. “We are here to demand that you turn the vessel you found over to your government. It’s the patriotic thing to do, and the law is very specific on this point. It’s called the right of eminent domain. Confiscation is allowed under the laws of the United States. Besides, you have no idea what you have and no idea how to use it. Also, having private citizens in possession of such a thing is a threat to our national security. We have no recourse but to insist on this course of action.” Sitting back in the chair he occupied, he smugly folded his arms across his chest and waited.
Lucy grinned. “The Captain said that you would take that tack. Well, here are some facts for you. Now, he didn’t explicitly mention eminent domain, but I will tell you that, if I am correct, it only applies to things actually in the United States. Our ship was found in what amounts to no-man's-land, some twelve thousand miles above the Earth. Let’s add to that that we do know what we have and how to use it. As evidence of that, let’s play a tape for you. A new one. Commanders Miller and Walker will narrate.” Motioning for Commander Marshall to put the DVD in the player, Lucy sat back. Over the next hour, Gayle and Stephen explained what was showing on the screen. It would have taken far less time if they hadn’t been repeatedly interrupted by the four men.