Blue Horizon 1261

Copyright ©2009 Ted R. Blasingame

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the author.

Cover art © by Simba Wiltz.

Used by permission.

Published by Lulu Press

http://www.lulu.com

Visit the Author's website

http://trblasingame.com

Dedication

To James R. Lane

Thank you for your help

and friendship through this endeavor.

BLUE HORIZON

1261

by

Ted R. Blasingame

Things were not easy setting up a new business, hiring a crew and getting a secondhand ship in order, all while trying to find clients that were unwilling to trust their goods to a new freighter with no history. Trouble and frustration seemed to hamper them at every turn, even after they finally get into space.  Set six years prior to the first Blue Horizon tale, at a time when the ship and business are first put into operation.

Chapter 1

Window Shopping

Merlin Sinclair gulped in great gasps of air, his legs pumping as hard as they could as the gray wolf ran swiftly along a gravel road just outside the metropolitan city of Alucara. The cougar that chased him was gaining and he could hear the cat's panting breath just on his heels. Merlin's legs felt as if they were on fire, their movement hampered slightly by the thin cloth trousers covering over his thick pelt of fur.

The cougar made a swipe at him and the wolf actually felt the air move just behind his brush of a tail. Merlin managed to increase the length of his stride, but in doing so lost some of his momentum. The cougar closed the gap between them; the wolf looked out of the corner of his eyes, instantly noting the feline's flared nostrils and bared teeth near his throat.

Sinclair gulped in another lungful of air, but then the cougar extended a muscular arm, edging past him with a triumphant growl. The wolf grinned at last as his left hand came in hard contact with the rough bark of a large danra tree in sync with the cougar's right hand. Both runners slid to a stop just beyond the tree and looked over at one another with bright eyes.

"Almost…" (gasp) "…beat you…" (pant) "…again…" gulped the cougar as he tried to consume large quantities of air.

"Almost …" (pant) "… is not…" (gasp) "…good enough…" wheezed the wolf in reply.

The bare-chested mountain lion leaned against the thick tree and then crouched down to sit up against it. Merlin bent over with his hands resting on his knees for a moment more before sitting down beside his companion. Both worked to regain their breath as they panted in the shade of the tree.

The wolf looked over at the feline with a wide grin several long moments later. "You're getting faster, my friend," he said. "Maybe when I'm old and decrepit, you may actually outrun me!"

"In that case, old one, I should beat you tomorrow!" Almost as soon as he finished speaking, the cougar began coughing. Merlin laughed and gestured toward him with a hand.

"I may be older than you are, but I'm a sight healthier than you, too."

The feline pulled a handkerchief from the pocket of his trousers and blew his nose into it. He cleared his throat and then spat into the weeds beside him. "Bleh… wretched allergies," he muttered. "Okay, you win, oh fuzzy one. Let me rest a bit before we take off again."

"Take your time," the wolf replied. "My breath still needs to catch up with me."

***

Twenty minutes later, Merlin Sinclair stepped out of the shadow of the tree and shielded his eyes from the Alexandrian summer sun. He really needed a hat, he often thought to himself. That was something his kind was not apt to wear, but it was an invention of the humans that really appealed to him. He'd known only one human in his life, a childhood friend of his father's who loved to regale fanciful tales of adventure to he and his siblings when they were younger, but since all Furs were descendent from humans through genetic tinkering, the men and women of Terra directly affected numerous avenues of life on the other inhabited worlds of the Planetary Alignment.

Although he might bear a name derived from human kind, Merlin bore only a scant resemblance to that race. When he stood upright, it was on bipedal legs. He had two arms ending in hands with opposable thumbs, and he possessed sentience intelligence, but beyond this design, Merlin's race was lupine in origin. His fur was predominantly gray with a subtle blend of brown and black, but his muzzle, throat, belly and the underside of his arms were white. His bushy gray tail ended in a white tip, but his eyes were golden amber and framed by a mask of gray.

He was three hundred years removed from genetic manipulations by Terran scientists, when humankind from that world first spread out among the stars and needed hardy settlers to tame the habitable planets they discovered. Some of the distant colonies failed and others were forgotten until later generations rediscovered the majority of their altered brothers and sisters that were now referred to as Furs. The Planetary Alignment came about from that regathering and united the populations of fifteen worlds from eight star systems.

Under the shield of his hand, Merlin looked over at his companion, a tawny brown cougar with small ears, broad head and a thick tail that swished behind him in agitation.

"What's the matter, Jiro?" Merlin asked in a low-pitched voice. "Are you tired of looking already?"

"It's not that," the mountain lion replied through clenched teeth. "It's these wretched trousers I'm wearing. The tail flap is too tight and I feel confined with the fabric over the top of my fur! I can't say I care for this fad of wearing more clothing than is necessary for modesty. It just doesn't feel natural!"

Merlin nodded in understanding. "I know what you mean, but I think your pants must be made with human fabric. Mine were made locally and they allow my fur to breathe without feeling too confining. You'll get used to them over time."

"Humans!" Jiro Brannon scoffed. "I admit they've thought up a lot of good things, but I don't think coaxing Furs to wear clothing over our natural coats was one of them."

Merlin chuckled. "The humans didn't make us wear these things. Our own people started adopting the practice of wearing cloth years ago for the sake of individuality and modesty. It's only full-body garments that have caught up with us here."

"Maybe so," grumbled Jiro, "but the humans started it. Somehow, I don't think it's going to catch on."

"Oh really? Why are you wearing pants and boots, then? Who made you wear them?"

"I think you did," Jiro admitted with a sigh. "You know me. I have to do everything you do."

The gray wolf twitched an ear and looked at his friend with amusement. "Yeah, you've been mimicking me ever since we shared that hospital room together during the war. I just think you want to be me!"

Jiro grinned and twitched an ear of his own. "What can I say? You're the coolest guy I know, even if we were fighter pilots from opposite sides of the conflict. Remind me again why we're such good friends."

"We shot each other down," Merlin laughed. "I still think it's ironic we wound up in the same hospital room together."

"Yah, but we… uh..." Jiro twitched his whiskers and crossed his eyes. Before his companion could ask, the cougar drew in several short bursts of air through his nostrils and then he sneezed explosively, making a little hop on the tips of his toes. His thick tail swished through the air behind him, keeping him balanced on his feet.

Merlin chuckled.

"Whad's zo phunny?" Jiro asked, digging into a pocket for his handkerchief.

"Your sneezes always amuse me," the wolf replied with a grin.

"Go ahead, laugh ad my plight! I really godda get sumthin for dese allergies."

"Yes, you should. Now, are you ready to see what this place has to offer?"

Jiro blew his nose, returned the folded handkerchief to his pocket, and then hiked up on the fabric flap over the base of his tail with a grimace. "Yeah, I suppose so," he responded in a clearer voice, "but just as soon as we're finished here, I'm taking these trousers back and trading them in for a pair that fits right. They were binding on my tail during our race."

"When we go back to the hotel, I could get my rapier and carve you a better tail flap," the wolf suggested with a grin.

Jiro didn't miss a beat, quelling another sneeze. "Not on your life, fuzz. I know you were a champion fencer before you left Dennier, but you keep that blade of yours away from my butt! I'll trust my trousers with a tailor, thankyouverymuch!"

The wolf laughed, but suddenly felt the urge to adjust his tail through the flap of his own dark blue trousers. A dried leaf stuck to the golden vertical stripe on the outer seam of his right leg, so he brushed it away and then straightened up. Summer had just begun in this area on the world of Alexandrius, although the breezes still carried a hint of the springtime rains.

The row of danra trees that bordered one side of the gravel road they walked along on the outskirts of Alucara afforded shade from the summer sun with wide triangular leaves, but that comfort came to an end at the entrance of a used starship lot. Vessels of varying sizes designed to travel the void between the stars and worlds of the Planetary Alignment were parked in a circle around a small Quonset hut. Freighters, vacation yachts, staff cruisers and private craft sat dusty out in a large field just on the outside of town. Some of the vessels looked as if they'd been there for a long time, judging from the length of the field grasses surrounding the landing gear, but others appeared to have been recent acquisitions.

The two friends stopped just inside the open gate and gazed around at the available vehicles in the middle of an open, undulating field. Jiro scratched an ear and swished the end of his thick tail back and forth.

"One Prairie Dog, one Sakura and three Okami freighters," he said after looking at the lot. "Which one do you want to look at first?"

Merlin peered at the nearest one, a wedge-shaped vessel with ribbed vanes running lengthwise from bow to stern, and a pale red paint job that had faded under some sun. Its landing claws were relatively free of local weed growth, a good sign it hadn't been resident at the sales lot for long. "We may as well start with that one," the wolf replied.

Jiro followed him quietly, casting a critical eye at the Sakura-class freighter as they approached. Without a current commission, the security passcodes for each sale-lot vessel would be clear and left unlocked for potential buyers such as themselves. Even powered down, tiny Siilv batteries would keep the primary hatches in enough juice to operate the panels in any case.

Merlin opened a recessed panel beside the airlock and punched a key marked Open that was written in Standard, the common language throughout the Planetary Alignment engineered to work well enough with the various tongues, lips, throats and voices of the combined Human and Furman races.

Despite batteries that should have powered the hatch, nothing happened… at least not visually. They heard an internal mechanism make a series of clattering noises before it fell silent. Merlin tried again, to the same result.

"I don't think that's a good sign," Jiro muttered. "Next?"

"Next," the wolf agreed. A fat flying saucer with mottled green paint sat in the field just to the port side of the Sakura. "Let's try that one."

"Do you really want to look at another Okami?" Jiro asked. "We've looked at four of them already. I think they're probably the most common freighter design out there."

"There's nothing wrong with common," Merlin replied with a twitch of an ear. "That just means that spare parts are more readily available if something breaks down."

"Yes, but one that's not so common is more likely to be better built and not need as much maintenance," the cougar countered.

"That could be, but if you haven't noticed, the only ships we've seen so far have been of common class designs. We've seen no Icarus-class freighters among those we've looked at and if we did, we're not going to find any of those in a price range I can afford. My investments gave me enough of a return so that we can buy and operate a freighter for our own business, but I'm afraid I can't afford the top vessel out there."

"Yes, but will the door open?" Jiro retorted with a smirk.

Merlin pulled open the keypad cover and gave the primary button of the Okami a tentative tap. The main outer hatch pulled into the hull by several inches and then split apart, its twin panels disappearing in opposite directions.

"Well, at least that worked," Jiro remarked. The inner airlock panels were already open, so they stepped inside the dark opening. The overhead cargo bay lights were already on, so their eyes didn't have to adjust much to the interior. The hold was spacious with a grid of cargo tie-down rings and sensors embedded in the floor. There was an overhead hook and pulley system hanging from a bidirectional arrangement of rolling girders. Numerous storage lockers lined the far wall and it looked like there were also a series of equipment panels on the forward bulkheads. At the aft end of the cargo bay was a thick wall with a solitary door near the back corner. The atmospheric and spatial engine systems would be on the other side. The cargo bay door itself was closed and sealed; it looked as if it would swing upward and retract on huge pneudraulic arms.

"Hello?" Merlin's voice echoed across the empty hold. "Anyone in here?" There was no reply.

"Let's check the engine room," Jiro suggested. Their footsteps tapped noisily across the empty floor as they looked around and made their way to the door at the portside aft corner of the room. Before they got halfway across the hold, the cougar sniffed the air. "I smell cigar smoke," he muttered.

"I thought your sinuses were messed up?"

"I'm sneezing and have a bit of drainage, but my smeller is still working." Jiro sniffed the air again. "Hard to miss that aroma in any case."

When they approached the engine room door, they found it open; they could hear two voices in quiet conversation within, both speaking with a distinct country accent.

"Hand me the number three snake drill. This fastener doesn't want to go into the stringer."

"Grab it yourself, I've got my head and arm crammed inside this other access. It's right beside your tail."

"Ah, there it is!" There was a high-pitched whirring sound, and then a slight clunk. "That should do it."

"Great," the other voice muttered with an added curse. "I think my elbow is stuck…"

"Let me back outta here and I'll help you out."

"I'm usually fairly flexible, but I can't get my weight up off the arm."

"It was always easier to work in zero-gee," the other agreed. "I'll be glad when we can get back out there."

"I'd give this wretched arm for an absence of gravity right now. Ow."

Merlin stepped tentatively in through the pressure door and peered around a bulkhead. He saw a dusty engine control room where nearly every access panel was open, with tools and parts scattered all over the floor and available consoles. The overhead light panels were on, but only at partial power. He saw no one and motioned for the cougar behind him. The two of them gingerly stepped around the debris on the floor, looking for the owners of the voices. Jiro sniffed the air again and then motioned toward an aisle between two huge horizontal cylinders. The cigar smoke was stronger in that direction.

"There!" said one of the disembodied voices.

"Mff… I'm going to have a bruise under my fur," grumbled the other.

Merlin eased his nose around the corner into the aisle and saw two masked raccoons, one kneeling on the floor next to another one sitting back on his tail, gingerly massaging an elbow. More tools and parts were scattered about them, and translucent grease was smeared in places on both of their dark green coveralls.

"Hey, guys," Merlin said tentatively.

Both raccoons jumped. The seated one with a multitude of worn patches sewn onto his coveralls bumped the back of his head smartly on a stanchion behind him; the other scrambled quickly to his feet.

"Hi!" replied the one standing. He said it with a nervous smile, but eased a hand into one of numerous pockets haphazardly sewn onto his coveralls and pulled out a large open-end wrench.

Merlin raised both hands chest high and waved them in the air gently. "Sorry to startle you. We're just here to look over the ships on the lot and heard your voices."

The seated coon picked up a smoldering cigar from a glass tray nearby. He took a puff from it and blew out a white smoke-ring that expanded as it moved away from him. His brow was furrowed as he studied the strangers. "If you're here to steal the copper from this ship, you'd better run for the hatch," he stated gruffly, indicating an old revolver lying on the floor next to the ash tray among the tools. "We'll give you a head start."

"Why would we want your copper?" Jiro asked in surprise. "We're shopping for a whole ship."

"Prove it," the cigar smoker said.

Merlin shook his head and looked down at him. "How can I prove we're out shopping?" he asked with a frown. "Look, we could hear your voices and smell your cigar smoke out in the hold. If we came here to steal copper tubing or wiring, would I have bothered to say 'hey' to you guys, or do you think we'd have left before you noticed us and tried one of the other ships on the lot?"

"He's right," the standing raccoon said with a lopsided grin. He slid the wrench back into his pocket and then pulled out a grease rag from another one to wipe his hands on. "That's Jasper and I'm Jerad. What can we help you with?"

Merlin gestured to the parts and tools around them. "As we mentioned, we're here to look over the ships on your lot, but from the look of things, I don't suppose this one's in any condition to consider right now."

"Not for about a week," Jerad replied with a grin. "We finished the maintenance on the Wiley Post a few days ago, if you want to look at it. The Elihu Frisbie is in good shape, too. Both are used Okami freighters in decent condition. Jasper and I maintain all the Okamis that come onto the lot, but you'll have to talk to Poppy about the other ships."

"With your intimate knowledge, would you recommend an Okami freighter?" Jiro asked, absently scratching his bare chest fur.

"Absolutely," Jerad replied. "It's efficient, aerodynamic and has a decent hauling capacity. They're relatively easy to work on," he added with a side glance at his sibling, "and they're so common that parts can be found on every world in the Planetary Alignment." The raccoon smiled up at the cougar. "The Okami Corporation invested a lot of credits over the past twenty years to distribute them everywhere and price them so potential buyers like you would consider them over others."

Merlin looked over at Jasper. "What about you?" he asked. "Do you share this guy's opinion of the ships you service?"

The seated raccoon took another long puff from his cigar. He maintained eye contact with the wolf until he turned aside to exhale thick smoke in a steady stream. When he looked back over at him, Jasper gestured toward his brother with the cigar.

"What he said."

"Nothing to add?"

Jasper shook his head. "I'm not a salesman," he muttered. "If you want a sales pitch, go see Poppy and he'll extol the virtues of every ship on the lot. I'm surprised he didn't latch onto you as soon as you were on the grounds."

"He must have been looking the other way," Jiro quipped. "We didn't see anyone out there."

"The burrito he had for lunch is probably talking to him again," Jasper muttered.

"Is it really necessary for a starship to be aerodynamic?" Jiro asked. "There's no atmospheric drag out in space and a lot of starships don't bother with a smooth design."

Merlin looked over at him sideways with a chuckle. "It's important when you want to drop into an atmosphere on a regular basis," he answered before one of the raccoons could reply.

"I dunno if you guys looked closely at the outer hull of this ship," Jerad supplied, "but an Okami has no external appendages. All of its antenna, sensors and other systems are all internally housed so they don't burn off with reentry friction. The ships you see with spindly antennae sprouting all over their surfaces either have to retract them prior to atmospheric descent or stay in orbit and land with a smaller drop ship they'd have to keep on board." He spread his arms wide and gave them a big grin. "Just tell anyone from Earth that you're captain of a flying saucer and they'll think you're cooler than cool!"

Jiro canted his head slightly. "Why would they think that?" he asked.

Jerad grinned and shook his head. "The Terrans have been obsessed with flying saucers for ages and they're still fascinated with oofos."

"Oofos?" Merlin repeated.

"U-F-O, an unidentified flying object."

"I don't understand," admitted Jiro. "All starships have identification transmitters on them."

"Don't worry about it," grumbled Jasper, setting his cigar down in the ash tray. "It's a human thing. Listen, we need to get back to work. I don't feel like staying over tonight."

Merlin held up a hand. "Sorry about that. Since this one's not ready, we're going to go take a look at the other ships on the lot."

"Go ahead," Jerad said cheerily. "If you have any more questions, you should be able to find Poppy on the grounds somewhere. He's a ferret and can never seem to sit still, so he's constantly wandering around."

"Thanks, guys," Jiro said as he and his partner began stepping around the tools and parts on the floor back toward the door.

Once they were across the hold and back out through the airlock into the sunlight, the cougar looked over at the gray wolf. "What do you want to look at next?" he asked, stifling a sneeze.

"How about that one over there?"

"Another Okami, eh?" Jiro responded with a smile. "Those little guys gave you a good pitch, didn't they?"

Merlin shrugged and returned the smile. "I was already leaning toward an oofo anyway." The ship they walked toward had a rather large dent in its azure paint job on the leading edge just below the bridge windows, but otherwise it looked unblemished. The name written in curved text over the airlock identified it as the SS Wiley Post.

"Who or what was Wiley Post?" Jiro wondered aloud.

"I believe he was an aviator of some note," answered a new voice.

Merlin and Jiro spun around and found themselves facing a diminutive ferret in a bright yellow pair of shorts, vest and a matching Panama hat. "At least, that's what I've heard," he said with a silly grin, obviously pleased with himself for approaching without their notice. "I'm Poppy Tredrozuto. What else can I tell you about this beautiful bird?"

"What did it hit?" Jiro mused aloud as he glanced back at the dent.

"It was a military communication satellite," Poppy replied. "The Alexandrian Defense Authority wasn't too pleased about it, either. They pulled the captain's operating license and he wound up selling his ship to me when he couldn't keep his business running without it."

"Wow, that's tough. What about her crew?" Jiro asked.

"Took 'em a month, but I think they all finally found new jobs."

"What about that blue one over there?" Merlin asked with a gesture to another Okami parked on the far side of the lot.

"That was a delivery freighter for a baking company. It was only in service a year and is in good condition, as is the Wiley Post, here. My mechanics have refurbished both of them into prime working order. I see you're interested in G-model Okami freighters, and I'm willing to make a deal on both of them." He looked back and forth to both of them and added, "There are two of you and I have two ships – you can start or expand your business in just a single day, each of you captain of your own freighter!"

Merlin held up both hands. "No thanks, we're going into business as partners on one ship!" he said quickly. "We've already looked at several lots to get an idea what I might consider, but I've not yet made a decision."

"Window shopping, are you?" the ferret said with bright eyes. "You need look no further! I have what you need on this very lot! Here, let me give you the grand tour of the Wiley Post."

Chapter 2

Elihu Frisbie

Merlin Sinclair glanced back at the long line of people behind him. The pads of his feet were sore from standing practically in the same spot with only inch-by-inch progression and his lower back ached as well. He tried to stifle a yawn, causing moisture to squeeze out the corners of his eyes. He pulled a light blue handkerchief from the inner pocket of his civilian flight jacket and daubed away the tears of boredom from his cheek fur.

Before he put away the bit of cloth, a dull, nasally voice intoned, "Next."

He looked before him and noted that the person who had been in line at the registration window ahead of him had departed. He smiled wearily and stepped up to the wooden counter, placing a worn brown folder in front of the bored-looking feline who had spoken.

"Hello," Merlin said cordially to her.

"What are you registering?"

"Uhm, pre-owned model-G, Okami-class starship freighter."

"Current registered name and PA number?"

Merlin opened the folder and peered at the top page inside. "SS Elihu Frisbie, PA number 1056. Purchased with transfer of ownership on today's date."

"Seller?"

"Poppy's Quality Starships of Alucara, Alexandrius."

"Buyer?"

"Merlin Marcus Sinclair of Grandstorm, Dennier."

"Previous owner?"

"The Frisbie Baking Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Earth."

The feline tapped his responses into her terminal and went on to ask more questions in a monotone voice. Merlin answered them dutifully, noting that she never once looked at legal paperwork he had brought to her. After nearly twenty minutes, she finally rifled through the folder for the starship's title, ran it through a slow scanner and then laser-etched a rainbow reflective banner across the top edge of the sheet. She pounded it twice with a dried out rubber stamp that barely left a mark, and then shuffled everything into a new folder along with several other forms. She took a new printout and slid it over to him, along with a pen attached to a thin chain with one end adhered to the countertop.

"Read and sign at the Xs," she intoned. "Four places."

Merlin was inwardly surprised that all the transactions for this were required on printed paper with an ink signature. Most everywhere these days, such things were done on slateboard datapak tablets signed with a digital thumbprint.

While the gray wolf looked over the document, the feline clerk took the new folder of paperwork toward the back of the room behind her and set it on top of a stack of similar folders teetering dangerously on the desk of a harried-looking coyote. When she returned to the counter, Merlin signed the final paragraph and then slid the document back over to her. She gave it a brief glance and then thumped it three times with another deficient stamp. She fed it through the scanner and then handed it back to him.

"Take this down the hall to the pumpkin-colored door on the right and then you can fill out…" Merlin listened to her instructions and then trudged down the aisle after the last customer, his head spinning at the amount of paperwork setting up his own business of shipping freight and registering a vessel for it.

When he finally emerged from the four-story stone building in the heart of the Alexandrian capitol, the wolf was greeted by a concerned mountain lion.

"Are you okay?" Jiro asked. "You look like you've had a row with someone, but I can't tell whether or not you won the argument."

Merlin sighed and sat down on a roadside bench beneath a scrawny shade tree. "I'm beat," he replied, "but I got it all done just under four hours. I got the business operating license, registered the business with the bureau, paid the fees, transferred the title of the ship and got it registered with its new number."

"I take back what I said earlier," Jiro muttered, propping a foot up on the other end of the bench. "I don't want to be you."

"I thought I was the coolest guy you knew," the wolf said with a weary smirk.

"You still are, but I'll just hang around on the sidelines and siphon off the coolness. As the head of the business, you get to do all the paperwork and wrestle with the headaches that come from it. All I have to do is move freight and plot our astro-navigation flight plans. That's easy!"

Merlin raised an eyebrow at him. "Slacker. Did you run your errands?"

"Yeah, I traded in my ill-fitting trousers for a pair made locally, as well as some boots, a belt and I picked up a few toiletries. I accompanied Poppy's movers when they transferred the ship out to the spaceport for us, and got the landing pad rental all squared away. I rented a panel van for a week, but if we need it longer, all we have to do is put down another fee. I just checked us out of the hotel and our things are in the back of the van."

"I know it'll be cheaper to sleep in the ship, but until we've cleaned it up, I don't know if giving up our hotel beds was a good thing." Merlin said with another yawn.

"No need to spend any more money on lodging when we have our own beds," Jiro countered. "We can each pick out a cabin and clean them up this evening. We can run out tomorrow and pick up linen for the beds, but for tonight we've got our sleeping bags."

Merlin rubbed his eyes. "Yeah, okay. Listen, I hope your van is nearby. I'm too tired from standing all day to walk far and I'm weak with hunger."

"This way, oh weak one!" Jiro quipped with a wide swept hand toward a parking garage across the street from the building. "I cleaned the filters and then fired up the water heater and reclamation unit over an hour ago, so you should have hot water for a shower when we get to the ship."

"Good, I'll need one tonight, but first I want to eat." He put a hand on his stomach and added, "I'm growling and I'm not even angry."

"Easy now, Wolfie. There's a nice little diner near the spaceport we can stop at."

As they awaited an indicator to allow them to cross the busy avenue, Jiro idly scratched his bare chest fur and asked, "Gimmee the details on the registration."

"SS Blue Horizon, PA registry twelve sixty-one. I listed my hometown of Grandstorm, Dennier as home port, though I don't plan on going back there any time soon."

Jiro snickered. "Blue Horizon? What did you do, just pick the name out of the air?"

The wolf smiled. "Actually, it's from the lyrics of a song I heard a few years back on the military music broadcasts during the Dennier-Mainor Conflict. I remember thinking at the time that it would make a good name for a ship. I forgot about it until I was standing in line, feeling my foot pads hardening."

"If you didn't think of it until then, what were you going to name the ship?" The crosswalk lamp changed and they proceeded quickly before traffic started moving again.

"Originally, I thought about registering it as the Noiré Mooncrest."

"The Mother of the PA?"

"Yeah, that's her," Merlin replied. "I've always admired her bravery and the struggles she went through bringing the rediscovered colonies of Earth together by forming the Planetary Alignment." He frowned when Jiro led him up a flight of steps to the next level of the parking garage. He simply didn't feel like climbing steps after standing all day, but he trudged up with a groan. Fortunately for him, his feline companion stopped next to a van parked right at the top of the steps.

"You rented that thing?" he asked with a raised eyebrow when the cougar unlocked the passenger door for him. The panel van's paint color was indeterminate, being a mottled mixture of faded tan, dark gray and rust. The interior seemed intent on matching the exterior and the fabric on the two seats were so thread-bare as to almost be without a covering at all.

Jiro flashed him a lopsided grin. "I couldn't afford the price of one with anti-grav repulsors, so we'll have to settle with a ground model. I leased it from Rent-A-Ruin rather cheap, but don't let appearances fool you." He started the engine and it ran just as smoothly as any vehicle Merlin could remember. "The chassis may rattle and look like it's going to fall apart, but it drives well." The cougar backed out of the parking spot and then added. "I doubt we'll be able to pick up any girls driving this thing, though."

***

With food in his stomach and a chance to get off his feet for a while, Merlin was in better spirits when Jiro eased the van to a stop beside a fat flying saucer with faded and worn blue paint at the Alucara Spaceport.

Jiro went to the back of the van and pulled out their sleeping bags and luggage he had retrieved from the hotel. Merlin had two large suitcases, but the cougar had everything he owned stuffed into a military duffel bag. Before gathering up his luggage, the gray wolf looked up at the freighter.

"How did she handle when you transported her from Poppy's lot?" he asked.

"From a passenger's standpoint, it was a short hop," Jiro replied. "The flight didn't last long enough to get a feel for anything from the cabin I was in."

Merlin looked over at him. "I figured you would have been on the bridge, now that you're the ship's navigator, not to mention her first officer."

Jiro frowned. "Poppy's crew wouldn't let me, citing that the ship wasn't ours until it was delivered. Once we landed at the spaceport, they handed over the security passcodes and prompted me to change them all immediately. They already had a transport waiting and they were gone within ten minutes of landing."

Merlin was about to reply when he noticed an electric cart approach them from the nearby terminal building. Jiro followed his gaze and set his duffel back onto the tarmac beside him.

A young black bear waved at them when he stopped the cart beside them. "Good afternoon," he said cordially. With a nod toward Jiro, he said, "I've been waiting for you guys to get back so I can finish my paperwork."

"Mr. Koihan, this is my captain, Merlin Sinclair," Jiro said. "Merlin, this is Kodai Koihan."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Koihan," the wolf replied. "What can we help you with?"

"Mr. Brannon here told me that you were having the Elihu Frisbie re-titled today, so I'll need to see your new registration papers to update your spaceport pad rental."

"Yes, of course." Merlin reached into an inner pocket of his civilian flight jacket and pulled out a folded manila envelope. He passed it over to the bear, who opened its flap and thumbed through the documents within. Koihan picked up a slateboard tablet from the seat beside him and began tapping in data with a claw tip. The lightweight tablets all came equipped with a stylus, but most Furs had gotten adept at using their claws on the scratch-resistant screens instead.

"SS Blue Horizon," he repeated to himself, "PA1261…" He remained focused upon the screen of the slateboard for several minutes before he replaced the papers into the envelope and handed them all back to the wolf. "I think that covers it," the bear said with a nod. "Your partner paid up the rental of the pad for one month. If you need it beyond that period, we have weekly and even daily rates available."

"Thank you, Mr. Koihan," Merlin replied. "Once we get her cleaned up, repainted and staffed with a crew, we'll try to get out of your fur and free up the landing pad for you."

"Good luck with all that," said the bear. "I've never done anything like what you're planning, but I can't imagine it happening quickly. Have fun, Captain. You too, Mr. Brannon." He put the cart in motion and took off across the tarmac, narrowly missing an automated luggage trolley on its way to a commercial transport.

"Did you hear that?" Jiro asked with a smirk. "He was the first one to call you captain."

"It's about time," Merlin replied grinning. "I never made the rank of captain in my squadron."

"Congratulations on the promotion." Jiro dug a small card from the pocket of his trousers and handed it to the wolf. "Here are the new security passcodes. The top one will get you in the airlock." He flipped open the cover to the keypad and tapped in the code. The hatch door halves recessed into the hull and slid aside smoothly. "The second one is your temporary pass to get into the computer system. I've already set up a profile for you, but you'll need to create your own passcode once you're in. I checked to make sure that the previous Frisbie data had been purged, but the databanks were already empty. The system has apps for payroll, personnel, supplies, and a business ledger."

Merlin picked up his suitcases and followed his partner into the vessel. "What about navigation charts?"

"I just took a quick look, but they're still in the system." The cougar realized he'd forgotten his duffel and trotted back down the ramp to get it. He tossed their two sleeping bags up in through the open airlock, and when he reentered the ship and closed the external hatch behind him, he found Merlin brushing white dust from both sleeping bags. An abundant layer of fine powder covered the floor of the empty cargo hold.

"I don't remember all this dust when we looked at the ship on the lot," the wolf muttered.

"It's wheat flour," Jiro explained, "a byproduct of a bakery ship. The short flight from Poppy's lot dislodged it all from the ceiling, shelves and anything else it had gathered on."

Merlin nodded with a frown. "Before we can do anything with this ship," he said, "we have a lot of cleanup work to do."

"Yah, I've not been in them all, but the cabins I've looked in are empty of personal effects, though no one bothered to dust or vacuum them before they vacated the ship. Poppy and his raccoon bookends may have made sure the systems were working on their ships, but none of 'em lifted a finger to clean them up."

They walked across the powdered floor toward the lift. It was located on the far wall near the fore end of the deck, marked with a faded red door panel adorned with a thick white arrow pointing upward. "I'm going to have the ship repainted before we take on our first official customer," Merlin mused. "I don't want potential clients looking at the Horizon and wonder if it can get off the ground."

The lift door opened and Jiro chuckled. "The paint is faded and pitted, but I don't think she looks that bad!"

"Nevertheless, I'll hire some contractors to do it next week. In the meantime, we've got to clean the interior and stock the ship with essentials before we can even think of lifting off."

"What color are you going to go with?"

Merlin smiled at him. "You can't have a ship named Blue Horizon that isn't blue," he answered. "We'll use the current scheme, just with a shiny fresh coat to cover up the blemishes and make it look nicer."

They took the lift up to the crew deck, and when the door opened, Merlin saw a trail of white dust on the carpet leading in both directions around the circular corridor. He hadn't really noticed it during their initial inspection of the vessel on the lot, but now that he owned it, the dust, powder and bits of trash on the floor seemed to stand out more. Although the vessel was only a year old, the blue-gray carpet was worn and the light gray walls were smudged. Fortunately, all the overhead light panels worked, illuminating the passageway in a soft white glow.

Across from the lift was a simple sign affixed to the wall bearing the likeness of an old sailing ship's wheel with an arrow below it indicating the direction toward the bridge. They stepped out of the lift and the panel closed behind them. As with the lift door on the level below, this one was red, but the thick white arrow was double-headed, indicating that there were levels above and below it from this location.

"Have you picked out your cabin?" Merlin asked, turning to follow the bridge arrow sign.

The cougar sniffled, pulled out his handkerchief, blew his nose and then shook his head. "Notchet," he answered.

"In that case, I'm going to take the one next to the captain's office room. It's closest to the bridge."

"All the cabin compartments are the same, aren't they?" Jiro asked.

"I believe so."

"In that case, I'll take the one that requires the least amount of cleaning to make livable."

"Slacker," the wolf said with a grin. "Too bad we don't have a full crew; they could help us clean."

"Speaking of that, have you given any thought to the crew positions?" Jiro asked. "Two can fly this boat, but it will take more than just us to operate a business." They bypassed the sickbay and came to a blue door. Upon the panel was the same image of a sailing ship's wheel as they had seen in the corridor outside the lift, but this was painted in tones of gold with brown trim, filling up a large section of the door. It was a signature of all Okami freighters, harking back to the days of sea voyages of long ago. Merlin only gave the door a cursory glance as they passed it and the captain's office next door.

"I had plenty of time to think about things like that waiting in line today." He opened the door to the first cabin compartment they came to and took his bags inside the room. He set them down without turning on the lights and then dug into the inner pocket of his flight jacket for his personal slateboard tablet. He tapped open a note on the screen and handed it to the cougar.

"We won't need that many for ship operations," he said with a claw tip pointing toward the list he had made, "but we'll need more bodies to move cargo onto and off of the ship. We'll need a cargo load master, to be sure, and also an engineer, with possibly a mechanic or two. We'll need a cook, definitely, and it wouldn't hurt to have someone with medical experience too. You and I will do the flying for launch and landings, but the autopilot should be sufficient out in the space between star systems. You've got navigating duties to get us where we need to go, and I know you have more computer experience than I do, so you can keep our systems in working order if any glitches crop up. I'll be promoting the business and securing clients to ship their freight."

"What about an accountant?" Jiro asked, studying the list. "Are you going to keep the books, too?"

"I don't see why not," the wolf replied. "It takes anywhere between three-to-six weeks to get from one star system in the Planetary Alignment to another – longer if going from one end to the other, so I'll have plenty of time to keep the accounting books in order."

"You're going to be one busy wolf," the mountain lion remarked. "If we're going to have extra bodies to move cargo, why not assign some of those duties to qualified personnel? You have a business degree; didn't they cover work delegation in your studies?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes, and I agree that's a good thing. However, there's no need to make someone else do the things I can take care of myself."

Jiro frowned and handed the slateboard back to the wolf. "You're the boss, so I suppose you can call as much stress upon yourself as you want."

Merlin shrugged and put the datapak unit back into his pocket. He touched the pad to bring up the lights of the cabin they'd entered and both of them were stunned into silence. They'd looked at so many Okami freighters in recent days that neither of them had given this final ship a full inspection. The room was a disaster. Whoever had last occupied the compartment either lived like the proverbial pig or had been angry at losing his or her job, trashing the cabin as a last act of defiance. Paper was shredded and strewn everywhere, bits of old food was stuck to the carpet, an unidentifiable greasy liquid had been splashed upon the walls, the mattresses skewed and hanging half off the bed, and bits of glass or shattered plastic littered the floors.

"Looks like my stress begins right here," the lupine captain muttered with a growl.

Chapter 3

A Familiar Face

Merlin pushed his plate away, heaved an audible sigh and stared out the galley window at the thick fog covering the spaceport around them. Jiro looked over at him from across the table and set down the chopsticks he'd been using to eat his breakfast.

"What's on your mind, fuzz?" he asked with a sniffle.

"Fuzzy thoughts," replied the wolf, idly dusting bread crumbs from the collar of his light blue shirt. "I posted ads for the crew positions three days ago and I've not gotten a single response. It's taken us that long just to clean up the bridge, the office, galley, laundry room and our two cabins. I'm sick and tired of cleaning, and I'm frustrated by the lack of help. We've got to have a clean ship and a full crew before I can even start looking for clients."

Jiro snatched up a paper napkin and then sneezed into it. He looked up with watery eyes and wiped his nose. "Let's take a break and go into town," he said. "Since I can't seem to find a local physician who'll see me without a resident address, I need to see what a local drug store might have for my allergies. Then perhaps we can go see a show to get us out of here for a while."

With so much cleaning remaining, Merlin was hesitant to take a day off from it, but agreed that some time away from the monotony might do him some good. "All right," he replied. "Let's get you some drugs and then see what's showing. You want to go see a movie or a live show?"

"That depends upon the live show," Jiro replied with a smirk. "Do you mean live as in a play or live as in table dancers?"

"Okay, a movie it is," Merlin retorted.

"Spoilsport. If we can't find anything to go see, we can always drive over to that university you went to and check out the campus females," the cougar said with a grin. Merlin shook his head with a chuckle, but then stood up to put away his breakfast dishes.

"You gonna wear a shirt this time?" he asked with a raised eyebrow toward the bare-chested feline.

"Not planning on it, no," answered the cougar. "I've got nothing to hide."

"Oh, sorry. I didn't realize that was the reason why you were wearing trousers."

Merlin had to dodge the biscuit that Jiro hurled at him, snickering as he darted out into the corridor.

***

"What about this one?"

Jiro peered over at a brightly colored packet of capsules in the wolf's hand. He read over the miniscule print and then shook his head. "No, I need something in a non-drowsy formula," he replied with a frown. "That is, if you want any work out of me."

"Non-drowsy it better be," Merlin said dryly. "You've got to earn your pay!"

The pair of them stood in a narrow aisle in a local drug store, trying to not to brush plastic bottles off the counters behind them with their tails. The place smelled of vitamins, powders and other antiseptic concoctions under overhead lights that were just a little too bright for the small business.

Jiro looked up curiously when the front door opened with a jingle of tiny bells and watched a trio of suits walk in. All three were canines, two male and one female, all dressed to perfection in business attire. He eyed the woman, a Border collie near his age, admiring her form, but neither she nor her companions looked his way. Despite the suit, Jiro could see her curvaceous figure and was impressed with her endowment. Her tail curved upward toward her back through a split in the back of her jacket, in long fur of black with a white tip that matched the white of her muzzle and the wide stripe between her eyes. She flicked one of her floppy ears as she and her partners walked straight to the manager's office, a small cubicle in the back of the room with a mirrored window set into a wooden door.

"What about this one?" Merlin asked, breaking his focus. The cougar took a small plastic bottle from his friend's hand and began to look over the label.

"No good, look at the side effects."

The wolf peered closely at the bottle and then his eyes grew wide. "That's worse than what you're trying to treat!" he croaked. He stuck out his tongue and then put the container back on the shelf.

It was another ten minutes before Jiro settled on an over-the-counter dose-pack that claimed it would battle the effects of his symptoms while protecting him from further invasion. Unfortunately, it boasted nothing about actually clearing up his sinuses, so he continued to look for something to go along with it.

Merlin resisted the urge to swish his tail behind him with impatience and began meandering around the store while his companion continued to shop. He saw four canines come out of a small cubicle at the back of the drug store and was startled when he recognized one of them.

Unless he was mistaken, he'd known the Border collie at the university he attended for his Business degree several years earlier. He felt a sudden sense of nostalgia and he wanted to go talk to her, but she and her companions seemed to be busily engaged in conversation with the drugstore manager.

He heard Jiro sneeze from another aisle, so he sauntered over to check in on him. "Aren't you finished yet?" he asked with a smile. "You take almost as much time as my sister does when she goes shopping."

Jiro wiped his nose with a handkerchief and held up three medications. "I'b ready," he said with a sniffle. The wolf followed him to the counter and stood by idly with his hands in his pockets while his companion paid for the items. He glanced over toward the Border collie again and let his gaze linger on her form. His mind wandered back to the girl he knew in college and thought fondly of their time together.

After a moment, he refocused his attention and abruptly realized that the collie was looking straight at him with deep brown eyes. Her expression was one of amusement as he swallowed and tried to hide his embarrassment at being caught looking at her. He nodded toward her in apology and then turned away to stand beside Jiro.

The cougar picked up his purchases and then led Merlin toward the door. The wolf's mind had already returned to the female canine by the time they stepped out onto the sidewalk outside the business.

There was a small jingle behind them as the door opened again. Merlin felt a gentle touch on his arm, accompanied by a familiar voice.

"Merlin?" the Border collie asked with hopeful eyes. "Merlin Sinclair?"

The wolf smiled and nodded. "Hello, Samantha," he replied. "You're looking well."

"Hello, Merlin," she replied in relief. "I wasn't sure if it was you in my store."

"Your store?" Jiro asked, looking over the wolf's shoulder at her.

Merlin chuckled. "Samantha, I'd like to introduce you to my friend and business partner, Jiro Brannon. Jiro, this is Samantha Holden, heiress to the Holden Pharmaceutical Corporation that owns the drugstore we were just in."

"Nice to meet you," the Border collie said.

"Very charmed to meet you," Jiro replied, moving around his friend to grasp her hand gently and place a small kiss onto the back of it.

"Don't mind him," Merlin laughed. "He only thinks he's smooth."

"I am smooth!"

Samantha raised an eyebrow at the wolf with a smug smile. "He seems smooth to me," she said. "He gave me a kiss, while you're just standing there!"

"Ah, I forget myself in your presence, milady," Merlin replied, straightening up. He put an elbow in the middle of the cougar's chest and pushed him aside, moving closer to the canine.

"It's been a long time," Merlin said quietly. He put his arms around the Border collie and then gave her a long kiss on the lips that made her tail curl in over itself a little more. Jiro whistled as he watched, eliciting a giggle from Samantha.

She stepped back away from the wolf with a silly grin and then cleared her throat. "Nice…" she said. "I was hoping you remembered me!"

Jiro dug his own elbow into Merlin's ribs. "You two were a couple? Sweet!"

Merlin grinned in embarrassment, but Samantha laughed aloud. "Yes, Mr. Brannon, he and I dated when we attended Alexandrius University together." She looked back over into the wolf's amber eyes and gave him a smile. "What happened to you?" she asked. "I lost touch with you after graduation."

"I wanted to extend my education," Merlin replied at last, "so I moved back to Dennier and signed up for military service to see what they could teach me. I was knee-deep in my new studies when the Dennier-Mainor Conflict broke out."

"Oh my…" Samantha replied. "Listen, I need to get back inside with my audit team, but would you like to join me for dinner tonight so we can catch up on one another's news?"

Merlin made a covert glance toward his business partner. "Uh, sure," he said.

The Border collie caught the look and laughed aloud. "I'll meet the two of you at the Wonderland at eight o'clock and then we can relax over a good meal. My treat."

"I knew I liked you immediately," Jiro said with a smile.

"The Wonderland, eh? Okay, that sounds good," Merlin answered. "We'll see you then."

Samantha leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on the right side of his muzzle. "See you tonight," she said. "Nice to meet you, Jiro," she added.

"You too," the cougar replied. Both males watched her reenter the store and then the wolf turned to go. As they walked back toward the van, Jiro gave his friend a nudge. "Are you sure I won't be in the way?" he asked. "It might restrict things if I'm there."

Merlin looked at him sideways with a smirk. "Personally, I need you there to restrict things, as you say," he replied. "It's good to see her again, but with our different careers, there's no chance in renewing our relationship as it was."

All joking aside, Jiro looked at his friend. "From that lip-smacking reunion, I'm assuming you had an amicable parting. What's the story with you two?" he asked.

The wolf pulled the key to the van from a pocket and unlocked the vehicle. He crawled behind the controls and waited for his partner to get in. He backed the van out into traffic before he spoke again.

"Remember that I told you my folks died on Dennier when I was young and that my brother, sister and I came to live with our grandparents here on Alexandrius?"

"Yeah, Frank and Marion Frost. You introduced me to them that night we got here from Pomen."

"Samantha and I met standing in line at the university to pay our tuition and get our class schedules. Comparing notes afterward, we discovered similarities in our plans. We both majored in Business Management, sharing some of the same courses, and we were often paired off together on assignments; it was only natural that we started dating. Neither of us were exclusive to one another, each of us occasionally going out with other friends, but she and I were often together simply out of shared interests and studies." Merlin chuckled as he made a turn onto another avenue. "I knew her about three years before I discovered she was the daughter of Derek Holden, the late president and CEO of Holden Pharmaceutical!"

"Late?"

The wolf nodded. "Like me, she lost both parents when she was younger. She was raised by a family friend on Sillon who owned controlling shares in the company, but when she got older, she asked to transfer her schooling to her hometown on Alexandrius where her family was originally from. That's where I met her."

Jiro rolled down his window for fresh air and smiled at the wind blowing through his whiskers. "Must have been nice, having a rich girlfriend!"

Merlin snorted. "She always tried to keep that part of her background quiet, which is why it took so long before even I found out about it. Her adopted parents came to visit during our junior year and they offered to take her and a friend out to eat. We wound up at the most expensive place in town, and I felt quite out of place in my humble little suit. I was prompted to order anything I wanted, but I've never possessed a lot of money, so even then I ordered something relatively inexpensive from the menu." The wolf grinned and looked over at his friend. "I had to ask Samantha in a covert whisper how to use the arsenal of utensils lined up on both sides of my plate! Master Tristan must have realized I was out of my element and went out of his way to make me feel comfortable around him and his wife, Guinevere."

"You felt uncomfortable because they had a lot of money?"

"Not just that," Merlin answered, "but I found myself dining with the Silloni Regent! You wouldn't believe the number of royal service guards watching over us."

"Whoa…" Jiro blinked, quite impressed. "You dated an heiress and got to dine with royalty! May I touch you, oh prosperous one? Some of your luck might rub off on me!"

"Yes, knave, you may touch the sleeve of my garment."

The cougar bowed humbly and stretched out quivering fingers toward Merlin's short sleeve shirt. "Ooohhh…." he intoned. Instead of touching the shirt, however, he grabbed a tuft of the wolf's fur between his fingers and twisted it with a cackle.

"Ow!" Merlin yelped. "Careful, I'm still driving!"

"Does that mean I can torment you out of jealousy when you're not driving?"

"No, it doesn't! You stay on your side of the van!"

Jiro chuckled and Merlin couldn't keep the smile from his face. He enjoyed the banter he shared with the mountain lion, an impossible friend who had once been his enemy across a military conflict.

"How did someone from a distant world like Sillon become her legal guardian?" Jiro asked.

"Samantha's grandfather used to take his family to Sillon every few years for special vacations when Derek Holden was a pup. While there, they met Tristan and Guinevere, becoming instant friends; They met up each time the Holdens were there on vacation over the years and kept in touch the rest of the time. Then during one such visit, Tristan's infant daughter, Laura became deathly ill with an affliction that attacked her nervous system. The affliction was unheard of on Sillon, and therefore there was no cure for what she had, but Derek Holden, a chemist and pharmaceutical doctor at the time, recognized the symptoms for what the rest of the Planetary Alignment knew as Altac Syndrome. It was surmised that she likely contracted it from imported fruit she loved from the world of Fyn. Always prepared, even on vacation, Derek carried a vast array of medicines with him. He didn't know if the medicine for Altac Syndrome would even work on Silloni physiology, but at Tristan's behest, Laura was given the treatment. Fortunately, her illness recessed and she recovered in time."

Merlin rubbed his eyes. "Then, three years later, Derek and Amy Holden were involved in an accident on Sillon that left their young daughter an orphan. Tristan fought the Alexandrian authorities to get custody of her, but since he was the regent at the time, he won guardianship over her. From then until the time she became an adult, he and Guinevere raised her as one of their own daughters."

"It sounds like Samantha lived in the lap of luxury," Jiro commented, shaking his head. "She was born to a rich family that owned the largest pharmaceutical chain in the PA. Then when her folks died, she was adopted by the king of Sillon!"

"Not the king," Merlin corrected, "the regent. Master Tristan was appointed ruler over the planet until the orphaned infant prince was old enough to assume the throne. The royal court raised him, but Tristan had a hand in the guy's upbringing and training to prepare him for his royal duties once he was old enough."

"What happened to the king and queen that left the kid an orphan?"

"There was a gas leak in the Palace of the Mists," Merlin replied with a frown. "Seventeen people died, but their infant son was in a climate-controlled room that was unaffected."

"Was the leak suspicious? You know, caused by someone else wanting the throne?"

"It could have been an assassination, but the results of the investigation were kept under wraps and never made public. I don't think anyone was publicly charged, but that doesn't mean it couldn't have been done behind the scenes."

"Wow. Is this Tristan still the regent?"

"No, he transferred control the throne to the rightful heir a few years ago and is now living a quiet life running a luxurious vacation resort a hundred miles south of the Silloni capitol. However, I understand that the young monarch may be turning the throne over to another regent so he can further his education, with possible military training as well. It's hard to do that while running a planet."

"Why don't they offer the regency back to this Tristan, since he already had all those years in experience?"

"They did, but he respectfully declined. However, he's still highly respected, as if he was of royal blood himself. He was well-liked by the people."

"Ah."

Merlin guided the van into the lot of a large theatre complex and searched for a convenient spot to park their vehicle; although they were to meet Samantha for dinner, they still had several hours to kill. After they locked up the van and began walking toward the building, Jiro continued.

"What happened with you and Samantha after graduation?" Jiro asked.

The wolf put both hands into his pockets. "With a fresh Business Management Masters degree, she assumed duties within her father's company; I headed back to Dennier. We promised each other we'd stay in touch, but real life got in the way and neither of us had much time to write. This is the first I've seen of her since graduation."

"It's obvious she's still taken with you," Jiro mused. "Why do you think there's no chance to pick up where you left off?"

Merlin stopped at the automated ticket kiosk, plugged his credicard into the interface and then looked over at his friend. "What do you want to see?" he asked, suddenly realizing they hadn't decided.

The cougar blinked at the non sequitur and twitched his tail in momentary confusion. He looked up at the titles and realized he knew nothing about any of them that were playing. He walked over to a wall plastered with colorful posters and studied them. After a moment, he pointed to one and said, "This one."

Like his companion, Merlin hadn't heard anything about what was currently playing, so he shrugged and punched up two tickets to The Cross Time Café. The kiosk spat out two thin strips of printed pasteboard and then Merlin retrieved his credicard from the machine.

The wolf handed both tickets to the feline attendant inside the lobby and then they headed to the concession booth. Moments later, they walked up a curved flight of stairs lined with burgundy drapery to the balcony of the theatre, their arms laden with movie snacks. There was still some time before the film began, so after they were seated, Jiro nudged the wolf with an elbow.

"What makes you think there's no chance to pick up where you and Ms. Holden left off?" he asked, repeating his earlier question.

Merlin took a sip of his soda and shrugged. "It's hard to maintain long-distance relationships," he said quietly. "Just as soon as I can hire a crew, we get the ship in shape and then secure a paying customer, we'll be off out into space and may not be back this way for a while depending upon our delivery schedule." He watched a few more people trickle into the theatre and then added in a quieter voice, "It'll be nice to have dinner with her for old-time's sake, but it would be pointless to try to turn this chance meeting into something more. Besides, she may already have a mate by now."

"I didn't see her wearing a collar or a ring," Jiro supplied.

The wolf chuckled. "Not all cultures display outward symbols of marriage or engagement," he reminded the cougar. "She may not be married, but with someone as nice-looking as she is, I'm sure she has a boyfriend."

"I dunno," replied the feline. "She seemed awfully friendly with you. If she had a significant other, she'd have been a little more hesitant when you took her in your arms."

"Maybe, maybe not," Merlin muttered. "All the same, tonight's dinner is just that: dinner. Anything more would be hoping for too much."

Jiro grinned. "Hoping?" he echoed. "Yeah, you're still hooked on her, no matter what you say."

"Who said I wasn't?" the wolf countered with a grin of his own. "Yes, I still have an interest in her, but what I said is that long-distance relationships don't work. I would rather not rekindle an old flame only to have to put it out abruptly when it comes time to depart on our business adventure."

"Well, we'll see how it goes tonight, fuzz," the mountain lion whispered as the house lights faded to dark and the large screen lit up. "If nothing else, we'll both get a good meal out of it."

Chapter 4

Dinner Plea

Samantha Holden was seated first, the ornate chair held for her by the restaurant staff, and then Merlin took his seat to her right with the cougar seated across from her. Both males felt out of place in ordinary suits in the midst of the elegance of the Wonderland. A live instrumental ensemble played soft classical repertoire on the opposite end of the large room and the acoustics of the wall furnishings and decorations were arranged so that conversations could be had without the raising of voices over the music.

Jiro tugged at the collar of his dress shirt, mentally muttering curses against humanity for making him wear such a thing over his fur. Likewise, Merlin had a difficult time swallowing. He'd quickly developed a hatred of ties and didn't think it was something he would ever get used to wearing. However, the Wonderland didn't allow male patrons without them, another Terran influence, so the muted amber tie he wore around his neck beneath the collar of his shirt was a necessary evil. He scarcely gave the rest of his immaculate suit a second thought. The tie was the current bane of his existence.

In contrast, Samantha looked comfortable in her elegant, scarlet silk dress. It was simple in design, but showed off her cleavage with a gently sloping neckline without being too obvious, and the rest of the garment fit her curvaceous figure attractively. She looked first at Merlin and then at Jiro in turn, a warm expression upon her features as the wait staff bustled about them.

"I appreciate the two of you meeting me for dinner tonight," she said with a smile. "I would have had to dine alone this evening."

"What about your boyfriend?" Jiro asked abruptly. "Is he away on business?"

Samantha's eyes narrowed and she laughed. "I am unattached, Mr. Brannon," she replied. "Either the males in my life are otherwise occupied with their projects," she added with a direct look at the wolf beside her, "or they are too afraid to ask me out."

"That's a shame," Merlin replied, staring into flames of their candle centerpiece and absently toying with one of the forks next to his plate. "They're oblivious to what they're missing."

Samantha laughed again. She reached out and put a hand on his arm, but a canine waiter arrived to take their drink orders. The Border collie requested a light wine cooler, but Merlin preferred to keep his mind clear and simply ordered an iced tea with mint. Jiro matched Samantha's order and then the waiter was away while another attendant arrived with a large bowl of mixed breads and an assortment of spreads.

When they had once again been left with a moment to themselves, Samantha lightly cleared her throat. "Earlier today you mentioned that you had moved back to Dennier and signed up for military service to further your education," she recollected, "but that was interrupted by the Dennier-Mainor Conflict."

"That's where he met me," Jiro supplied brightly.

"You were in the Dennieran military?" Samantha asked.

Merlin chuckled and looked over at her. "No, Jiro was on the other side. He and I were shooting at one another."

Samantha didn't hide her look of surprise. "Okay, this is a story I want to hear," she said, leaning over the table.

"I was two years into my service when Dennier and Mainor started squabbling over mineral rights in the asteroid belt between their two orbits. I'd already had my pilot training and was flying routine missions for a year, so when both sides started putting armed patrols in amongst the asteroids, I was assigned to the 36th Spatial Flight Squadron stationed on board the SS Shishaldin, a Dennieran battleship."

"Likewise," Jiro added, "I was a flight navigator in the 45th Asteroid Border Patrol, stationed on the SS Veniaminof Mainoran battleship."

The waiter returned with their drinks and then they took time to put in their meal orders. Samantha assured them they could order anything they wished, but both males took care to be reasonable in their selections. When the waiter left, Merlin took a sip of his tea and leaned back in his seat. He listened to the quiet orchestral music for a moment and then continued.

"Although I thought a disagreement over something as trivial as a bunch of space rocks was silly, I followed my orders. I was a good pilot and managed to keep out of trouble, but when the diplomatic talks failed and actual hostilities began to break out between our worlds, the shooting started. Like a lot of us in the military, I had no actual animosity toward our so-called enemy, a bunch of faceless felines from Mainor, so when I did find myself in the midst of a spatial dogfight, I used my skills not to kill, but rather to disable their ships so they couldn't continue to fight against me."

Samantha nodded, but asked, "I agree with your tactics, but didn't that go against your orders?"

Merlin smiled and shook his head. "Not exactly," he answered. "My orders were to engage the enemy if they crossed a virtual line in my area of patrol, but I was never specifically ordered to kill them. Although there were shots fired and there were some deaths on both sides, what we were in was not actually classified as a war, but merely a conflict. Neither side really wanted war, so things were touch and go for a while and most encounters were standoffs. The actual strikes were tentative and usually only focused on military targets if possible."

"I was in a similar situation," Jiro said as he absently pulled on the collar of his shirt with a finger. "My orders were to drive back any Dennieran ships that went into the disputed space, but we were at our own whims on what we did when engaged with an enemy." He frowned and took a drink. "There were a couple of guys in my patrol team who wanted to squash as many lupine pilots as they could, counting it as some kind of badge of honor, but most of us simply wanted to go back to boring patrols and practice maneuvers, even if this was the kind of thing we were supposed to be practicing for."

Merlin studied the flame of the candle for a moment. "Then one day I was ordered to penetrate farther into the disputed area with my wingman and try to drive out interlopers who might be hiding out among the rocks. We flushed out a couple of Mainoran patrol ships and we found ourselves engaged with the enemy." He hooked a thumb toward the cougar and said, "This is the guy I went up against, while our respective partners played tag through the asteroids."

"Yeah," agreed Jiro. "We were pretty evenly matched and neither of us made much headway against the other. I'm not sure who thought of it first, but after a long game of cat & mouse, both of us thought to disable the other's ship so we could go help out our respective wingman."

"He shot me first," Merlin admitted as he buttered a roll, "taking out my attitude control thrusters, but as I was spinning and trying to avoid smashing into rocks, I managed to get off a series of shots on him."

"He damaged my spatial gyroscope, punctured a primary coolant tank, and who knows what else," Jiro explained. "I lost the ability to point my ship where I wanted to go and crashed against an asteroid with enough mass to have its own gravity field and a small amount of atmospheric pressure. I broke my right foot and two ribs in the crash."

"About the time he was crashing," Merlin picked up after swallowing a bite of his roll, "I thought I had my axis spin under control, but one of the damaged thrusters misfired, driving me right into a nearby valley of the same asteroid. I broke my left arm in two places as well as dislocating my right knee and right shoulder. None of our injuries were life-threatening, but they put us both out of commission."

"A neutral Pomen medical ship was in the vicinity during the conflict and we were both pulled from our wrecked planes while we each still had functioning life support," said Jiro. "However, the hospital ship was limited on space so they put us in the same room together. Imagine that! We were enemies that had just shot one another down!"

Merlin laughed at the memory. "Our nurse was a rather large grizzly bear, and she warned us that our injuries were nothing compared to what she would do to us if she caught us fighting!"

"Although this guy shot me down, I was in too much pain to really care anything about getting up out of my bed to box his ears," Jiro added. "All I wanted was my meds and a chance to rest. We were both laid up for weeks."

"We didn't warm up to one another all that quickly," Merlin said with a grin, "but out of sheer boredom and no one else to talk to, we discovered common interests and eventually became friends."

Samantha rested her chin on her hands, rapt with the tale and visualized all they told her. Merlin was amused by her interest and continued while they awaited their dinner. "A week before we were released from the hospital, a cease-fire was agreed upon by both sides and the hostilities between Dennier and Mainor ended with a workable resolution on the asteroid mineral rights."

"That was good," Samantha said quietly. "You didn't have to go right back into the fight."

"True, but that also meant we were out of jobs," Jiro said.

"What do you mean? I thought military service was like being under a contract."

"Yes, but only as long as they want you," Merlin replied, buttering another roll. "With the hostilities resolved, each of our respective governments released their wounded from service as a reduction-in-force effort. When our doctors decided we were healed, we were both released as civilians. They gave us a severance pay and a smattering of benefits, but we were suddenly jobless without a direction on what we were supposed to do."

"Merle was going to go back to Dennier, but my family had moved away to Pomen, so there was nobody for me back on Mainor. I suggested we pool our money and buy tickets somewhere else." Jiro looked up in interest when their waiter approached the table, but the canine bypassed them for another dining party. "Although the conflicts had stopped, there was still tension between the two worlds. I was tired of the pointless bickering I saw on the news and was worried another conflict might flare up out of spite, so I recommended we vacate the star system altogether to let things cool down for a while."

"I suggested we go to Alexandrius," said Merlin. "It was the only other world I was familiar with, so I figured Alucara would be a good place to find jobs. My brother-in-law had helped me make a few investments while I was still in college, so when we got here I decided to look into them to see if I might have some money available to me to live on. When I checked, I discovered that brother William had steered me right. I had a rather large return that had grown with interest over the years. Without a clue about what else we might do, Jiro and I began to formulate a plan so that he and I could go into business for ourselves. I figured my business management degree and military training could be useful."

Jiro licked his lips when several attendants headed their way laden with food, but once again, their table was bypassed for another. Irritated, the cougar crossed his arms and slunk down in his seat.

"That sounds intriguing," Samantha said at last. "What kind of business are you thinking about?"

For the first time since he had initially made his career decision, Merlin suddenly felt embarrassed at his choice in front of the heiress. "Uhm, I bought a secondhand freighter to operate as its captain and pilot, with Jiro as my first officer and navigator," he said in a quieter voice. "Once I hire a crew, plans are to fly all over the Planetary Alignment. I've always wanted to see the other colony worlds of Earth and the income will finance our flights."

Rather than tease him about his plans, Samantha actually looked interested. "Tell me more," she said.

That surprised the wolf. "Well," he drawled as he gathered his thoughts, "I've only been to four of the fifteen PA worlds, Alexandrius, Dennier, Mainor and Pomen. Each planet has its own governments, cultures, traditions and multiple societies, depending upon which part of each planet you land on. I want to see what else is out there. I'm tired of the squabbling between my homeworld and his," he said, indicating the mountain lion beside him, "and I want to see other places. It would be like that vacation you and I took one summer to the continents on the other side of Alexandrius."

Merlin grinned at the sparkle of memory in her eyes. "There are other places to visit, other people to meet, and many sights to see. I don't want to be tied down to a desk job in the same place somewhere. I want to travel and a freighting business is a way to do this. Typically, it takes three or more weeks to travel from one star system to another, depending upon where you go, and I'd give my crew three or four days of leave at each destination before we headed for our next assignment. That gives everyone a few days to go out seeing and doing things after being cooped up inside a ship for nearly a month. Everyone would be free to spend their shore leave as they wished, and that would give me the chance to explore on my own."

"That sounds like a wonderful plan," the Border collie said. "I've been to a few other worlds that you haven't and I have always enjoyed traveling. I actually envy your opportunity to do something like this."

Jiro laughed. "Do you envy the chance to travel, or do you harbor a secret desire to load and unload cargo?"

Samantha snickered. "I can't say I've ever considered cargo moving," she admitted with crinkled eyes, "but if that was the price to get out and see the Planetary Alignment, it just might be worth it."

The cougar poked his friend in the ribs with a grin. "I like your girlfriend, Merle — she has a warped sense of humor!"

Merlin and Samantha exchanged an amused glance at the cougar's reference to their past relationship. The wolf was about to snap off a retort when the wait staff arrived with trays bearing their dinners.

Jiro sat up straight and forced himself not to drool at the food as Samantha was served first and then the two males. The aroma was wonderful and everything looked as if it was prepared to perfection.

The head waiter asked if there were anything else they needed, but no one could think of anything that was missing. They thanked the wait staff and then began their meal in silence.

***

Sometime later, dinner and dessert were finished and the dishes had been cleared away by the efficient staff. The three of them sat at the table sipping the remains of their refilled drinks, the conversation long on trivial topics. The discussion fell quiet for a bit, as each of them turned inward to their own thoughts, their bellies full and soft live music in the air around them.

Merlin had enjoyed the evening, but was already beginning to gather thoughts of wrapping up to head back to the Horizon. Samantha was just as delightful as she'd ever been, and thanks to Jiro's own charming presence, the connection with her remained on a casual, friendly level. Their old relationship had never been perfect, their personalities sometimes clashing, but overall he had enjoyed his previous time together with the Border collie. When he looked up from his introspection, he saw that Samantha was also wrapped up in memories. He looked over at Jiro, who glanced back at him with an amused expression.

"What's up?" he asked the cougar. Samantha looked up at his words.

Jiro chuckled. "I've been watching the two of you get lost in your thoughts," he replied. "I've enjoyed the dinner and conversation, but I think it may be time to make myself scarce to let the two of you have some alone time together."

Samantha swallowed unexpectedly and put a hand out to place it on top of the puma's. "Uh, no," she said hesitantly. "Actually, my thoughts have been elsewhere."

"Elsewhere?" asked Merlin, glad for the change in direction from Jiro's unexpected suggestion.

The Border collie looked down at the napkin in her hand and smiled demurely. "Although we had good times in the past," she said, "I was thinking more along the lines of the future traveling you will be doing with your business."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," Merlin said quietly. "I know you have an office job that will probably keep you from traveling very much. I shouldn't have played up my excitement to see other places so much when you're the one stuck behind a desk. I know you have a better career ahead of you than I do, but it was still insensitive of me… I apologize."

Samantha laughed aloud and then took a quick sip of her wine cooler. "You are forgiven," she said with a smile, "but I was trying to talk myself into making a request of you."

"Do you want me to pick up a souvenir from somewhere specific, or did you have something else in mind?" the wolf asked. "You know I'll do my best to fulfill one of your requests."

The canine reached across to take both of his hands into hers. Jiro peered over the candle at them both, wondering what was up. "Take me with you," Samantha said at last. "I want to sign up as a member of your crew."

Merlin looked at her in surprise, but Jiro grinned and laughed aloud. The cougar startled a couple at the next table, so he clamped a hand over his mouth and then leaned forward over the table.

"Heh… that was a good one, Samantha," he snickered. He reached around and manually closed Merlin's jaw with a finger. "From the look on his face, I think you actually had Merlin going!"

Instead of agreeing with him, a look disappointment of crept into Samantha's eyes. "Jiro…" she said in all seriousness, "I wasn't joking."

Jiro merely grinned back at her. "Uh huh, I believe that the heiress to a multi-billion credit corporation with branches spread across the Planetary Alignment wants to give up all that to become a delivery girl!"

The mountain lion's levity was infectious and a smile spread across Merlin's face. "Knowing you as I do," he said in a lighthearted tone, "I almost thought you were serious."

Samantha lowered her gaze. "You don't believe me?"

"Why would we?" Jiro asked, his smile starting to droop. "It's ridiculous."

"I'm not joking," she said again, looking the wolf. "I am serious. Let me join your crew."

"That's just silly," Merlin said with a straight face.

"Do you want me to sit up and beg?" Samantha asked in a small voice. "I'll do it, if that's what you want. I'll get down on the carpet right now, here in front of everyone."

Jiro snickered, but Merlin saw no humor in her deep brown eyes. A sudden chill went up his spine when he realized she was serious. Samantha looked down at her hands, put her napkin up on the table next to her drink, and then put her hands on the edge of the table to get up from her chair. Merlin reached out and put a hand on top of hers to stop her.

"Why?" he asked in a quiet voice. Jiro's levity faltered and he looked back and forth between the wolf and the canine. "Why are you serious?" Merlin asked again.

The Border collie let out a small sigh of relief and picked up her napkin. "I need a job," she said simply, looking down at her hands.

Before she could continue, Jiro raised his eyebrows. "How does the heiress of the Holden empire lose her job?" he asked incredulously. "Did you insult the whole Board of Directors?"

"No, it's not like that," Samantha replied. "I need a job where I do something. It's my father's company, but I'm not allowed to make business decisions. The Board does that. All I do is sign my name on the memorandums and actions that they have already made decisions on. When I'm not doing that, everyone seems to believe the Holden daughter should put in an appearance at all their stuffy parties and official functions. Nobody cares about me, myself— only who I am related to." She took a sip from her drink and then added, "I have no real power; I'm nothing more than a figurehead."

"I thought you had controlling shares in your father's company," Merlin said quietly.

"I do, but ever since I became an orphaned pup, Master Tristan has been in charge of my family's shares. Even when I became of age, he convinced me that he should continue to handle our business affairs, so when I obtained my degree and joined the workforce of Holden Pharmaceutical, I was given an office, a secretary and a slateboard to sign documents. Aside of the rare audit outing like the one where we met today, that's all I have done since. If I want to do anything else, all anyone will tell me is to sit back and reap the rewards of being the heiress to the company."

"I'll bet you draw a nice paycheck, though," Jiro said. It was a statement made without levity or malice, but the Border collie looked up at him as if the words stung.

"Yes, Mr. Brannon, I do," she said tersely. "I'm proud of my father's business accomplishments, but I would like to do something to earn my pay. Not only do I have a Master's Degree in Business Structure and Administration, I also have a degree in Computer Technology that spans the technologies of several PA worlds! I begged them to let me work in our IT department, but they wouldn't hear of it — 'The daughter of Derek Holden, working in a computer lab? Outrageous!'"

Merlin glanced back at his partner. "She doesn't look it, but Samantha is one of the biggest computer geeks you'll ever meet," he informed the cougar with a partial smile.

"Okay, so she's rich, beautiful and smart!" the feline quipped. "Let's say for a moment that I actually believe you're serious about slumming with us on the Blue Horizon. If your Board of Directors won't let you transfer to a different department within your own family company, what makes you think they'll allow you to leave the company to chase after some other job?"

"That's not their decision to make," Samantha retorted.

"I think they would argue that it is," Jiro countered. "If word got out that the Holden darling ran away to join the circus, I'm sure that would affect public opinion, not to mention the financial market in the company."

"I don't care!" the canine said a little loudly. Several patrons at the other tables turned to look at her in annoyance, so she picked up her drink and sat back in her chair with a frown. Soft music from the small ensemble continued to play as if there had been no outburst.

"Sam," Merlin said gently. She looked over at him, moving only her eyes. It had been ages since she'd been addressed by a shortened version of her name; Merlin was the only one who had ever used it with her outside her adopted siblings.

"I would love to have you join us," the wolf said. Jiro looked suddenly perplexed and Samantha's expression softened, but that only lasted until he continued. "However, a freighter is not the ideal lifestyle for an heiress worth billions of credits throughout the Planetary Alignment. Even if your company allowed you to go off to do your own thing, a cargo hauler is not a glamorous place. Everyone on board will be required to work for their living, no matter what position they hold in the crew; I'm the captain and even I'll be moving boxes and crates when we load and unload the ship."

Samantha bristled and her eyes grew dark, especially when Jiro added, "A freighter's not the place for someone used to money and having people wait on her."

"I don't want you to wait on me! I'm more than willing to earn my keep!" she said hotly. "I'll wear dungarees, boots and gloves, move boxes and get dirty, sweep your floors and cook your meals – anything! It's not like I hadn't done all that in college! If you're concerned about the money, don't pay me – just give me a job to do!"

"You can afford anything you desire, go anywhere you want and do anything you wish," Jiro said with a shake of his head. "Life on a freighter would be limited, potentially boring with the weeks of inactivity between stops, and it might even ruin your place in daddy's company."

Samantha drained her glass and set it down hard on the table top. "Are you even listening to me?" she growled. She locked eyes with Merlin and gripped the ornate cloth napkin in her lap. "Listen… I want you to forget you know anything about me. Give me an application and consider it a legitimate submission for employment. Let me worry about Holden Pharmaceutical." With that, she slid her chair back and stood up. "I'm going to the powder room," she said evenly, dropping the napkin onto the table. "Talk it over between yourselves. I'll be back in a few moments."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and walked stiffly across the carpeted room. Merlin and Jiro watched her go, neither of them daring to break the silence of her departure.

Chapter 5

Navigational Error

"Good grief…" Jiro muttered after Samantha disappeared through the door to the ladies room. "I can't believe she thinks she's serious."

Merlin rubbed his eyes and then put his head in his hands over the table. "Believe me… she's serious," he replied. He looked back over to his friend after a moment. "When she sets her mind to something, she won't stop until she gets it."

"Spoiled rich kid," the cougar said with a snort. "Throws a tantrum when she doesn't get her way."

The wolf stared at him in frustration. "I can see how it would look that way," he replied. "Despite what you think, she's not a pampered pet and is very hands-on in everything she does. I can imagine how restless she must be. Even though she's been around money all her life, she has never liked being waited on. She's too impatient to wait for others to do what she could do herself. As for her money, she uses it to her advantage, but not to extravagance."

Jiro waved a hand around them to encompass the swank restaurant atmosphere. "You don't call this extravagant?"

"A good meal with friends once in a while is not flashy, my friend."

The cougar stared at his companion, letting his jaw drop. "You're actually considering her application to join us, aren't you?" he asked hoarsely.

Merlin leaned forward and dropped his voice where it was barely above a whisper. "Listen, you know as well as I that her company will never allow it – neither will her Master Tristan. Despite that, however, I doubt anyone will be able to talk her out of it; she'll have to make that decision for herself."

A sparkle jumped into Jiro's green eyes. "Ah, you have a plan?"

"The beginnings of one, anyway," Merlin replied in all seriousness. "Let's take her to see the ship. We've made progress on the cleaning, but there's still a lot to do. Let her see how dirty the ship is and how small the cabins are. The ship looks fairly large from the outside, but most of that is taken up by engines and the cargo bay. Let's show her how small the rest of the ship is, with unchanging scenery that she'll be forced to stare at for weeks at a time. As a former military cat, you know what cabin fever can be like."

"When you put it that way, I'm not so sure it sounds good to me anymore…"

Merlin gave him a smirk and the cougar couldn't keep from breaking out into a wide grin. "If she sees the conditions of the place she would be staying in," Jiro agreed with a nod, "she just might give up the idea of joining us."

"That's what I'm hoping for, anyway."

"Time to put on a show," Jiro whispered. "Here's she comes."

Merlin looked up to see the Border collie making her way across the room toward them. She looked down when somebody reached out and touched her arm, and she stopped to speak with someone she apparently knew. She exchanged a few pleasantries and then excused herself to return to her table.

Merlin stood up to hold her chair for her and then returned to his seat. Samantha leaned forward and rested her chin lightly on her hands. "Have you come to a decision?" she asked, masking her expression and body language to appear neutral.

The wolf cleared his throat and replied, "Not yet, but we both agreed that perhaps you should see what you're asking to get into. We can give you a tour of our ship, explain the business to you, and then you can judge for yourself."

"What, no further arguments?" she asked suspiciously.

"Not at this time, no," he answered.

She looked at Jiro. "What about you, Mr. Resistance?" she asked.

The cougar put on his best look of innocence. "As he said, not at this time," he replied.

Samantha studied them both for deceit. She was encouraged that it appeared they were willing to listen for now, at least. However, she was still suspicious. "Okay," she said at last, "but how can I be sure you aren't going to dummy up the ship for me?"

Merlin gave her a gentle smile. "Before we came to dinner, we had no idea you were going to ask to join us, so if you come to look at the Blue Horizon right now, you'll see it as we left off in our preparations – no dummy up."

"Right now?"

"Right now," Jiro repeated.

"Why are you two being so nice about this now?" she asked in hesitation. "I got nothing but a wall of opposition from either of you before."

Jiro picked up his glass. "You told us to discuss it while you were in the powder keg," he said before taking a sip.

"Powder room," Samantha corrected.

"Yes, that place," Jiro remarked with a smirk, fully aware of the words he had used. "We discussed it and agreed upon the tour."

"Sam, I still don't think you'd be happy aboard a freighter," Merlin added, "but if you want to see where you're busting to be, you're welcome to the full tour. We'll answer all questions honestly and let you make up your own mind."

Their waiter came by to refill their glasses, but Merlin put a hand over the top of his and simply shook his head. The coyote departed to arrange for the final check.

Samantha looked pleased, a warm glow spreading through her over the triumph. She was a step closer to the freedom she had always yearned for. She was certain they would make out the ship to be as bad as they could play it up to her, but if the final decision was up to her own judgment, she still had a chance.

***

An hour and a half later, Merlin led Samantha onto the bridge. Jiro had left them at the main hatch to let Merlin guide the tour while he went out to purchase more cleaning supplies, but he had just returned in time to see them enter the command center. The cougar walked onto the bridge behind them and cleared his throat. They both jumped nervously and Jiro smirked at their startled expressions.

"Hey, kids, did you get the beds dusted off?" he asked slyly.

Samantha narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't bother with a response.

"Excuse me a moment while I slap this guy's ears," Merlin growled. He took the cougar by the elbow and dragged him out into the corridor until the door shut behind him.

Once they were alone, however, Merlin released him and Jiro leaned in close. "How's the great disillusionment coming along?" he asked in a whisper.

"Well, she's been fairly quiet throughout the whole tour," the wolf whispered back. "She's asked only minor questions here and there, but hasn't looked very impressed with what she's seen. I've caught her glancing at me a couple times and it almost appears as if she's looking at me in pity."

"Sounds like our plan is working," agreed the cougar.

"We'd better get back in there before she gets suspicious. Act as if I've jumped down your throat for the bed-dusting comment."

"Sure," replied Jiro with a smirk. "You didn't answer the question, though."

Merlin sighed. "You have an overactive imagination. We haven't touched one another since coming aboard, so get your mind out of the litter box."

Jiro grinned, but then dropped it when the wolf turned his back on him and reached for the door control.

Back inside, Merlin stepped into the room and glared back at the cougar. Jiro looked appropriately penitent. "I apologize, ma'am," he muttered. "I was only teasing, but it was inappropriate."

Samantha nodded and let out a small sigh. "Accepted," she replied.

"So, whaddaya think of our little ship?" Jiro asked, hoping to appear friendly. Merlin looked at her too, awaiting her response, but she hesitated before responding.

"I'm sure that once it's cleaned up, it will be a good vessel," she replied with a nod that almost looked as if she were trying to convince herself of her statement. "However, while you two were out in the hall, I took a brief look at your computer system. I don't think you're going to get far with this running your ship."

The wolf and the cougar both looked at her in surprise. "What do you mean?" asked the navigator. "Everything seems to be in order."

Merlin moved to the Border collie's right side when she turned toward the main computer console. Jiro padded up and looked over her left shoulder.

"This system is antiquated and your navigational charts are outdated," Samantha told them. She tapped a few controls and showed them the primary entry information. "There have been four commercial updates to the operating system since this version was released, and the trade route star charts are just as old."

"That's not possible… this ship is only a year old!" Merlin exclaimed.

Jiro sat down at the navigator's station and called up the charts in question. He studied them for a moment with a frown and then looked back at the wolf. "She's right," he said. "The operating system of the flight computer keeps navigational star charts updated every fifteen days to allow for planetary orbits and stellar shift. This hasn't been updated in four years!"

"The ship is only a year old…" Merlin said again. "The baking company bought it new and used it for a year before selling it off."

"Why did they sell it?" Samantha asked.

"Judging from what was on the scattered papers I found in the captain's office," the wolf replied, "I think they had too many ships for their business and the cost of maintaining the vessels and their crews was too much of an expense for their budget. The crew of this one was rather disgruntled at being laid off – and we've found signs of temper tantrums in some of the cabins."

"Do you think their navigator or computer tech may have wiped the computer mainframe out of spite once they'd landed for the last time?" Jiro asked.

Samantha sat down in the chair before the computer terminal and started looking through the systems. Merlin and Jiro watched her breeze through the menus and command lines quietly, watching in wonder as she delved into the technical structure of the specifications. This went on for some time and both males were beginning to get bored. Jiro stretched and was about to get up to retire to his cabin when Samantha sat back in her seat with a loud sigh.

"What did you find?" Merlin asked.

Without looking at either of them, the Border collie stared back at the console. "We can only assume you're correct about the disgruntled crew wiping the mainframe," she said. "I did find login data of the installer on the current operating system and navigation data for someone named Poppy Tredrozuto. The logs were dated only a month ago."

Jiro and Merlin exchanged looks. "Poppy was the guy who sold the ship to us," the cougar said.

"It's likely that this old operating system and data might have been an old backup that Poppy installed so he could sell the ship," Merlin surmised. "Can we get a current system and install over it?"

Samantha looked over at him. "Yes and no," she answered.

"Uh oh," muttered Jiro.

"I can't tell from here if it was switched out by the crew or if the ship was originally equipped with it, but it appears the central processing unit of your computer core is practically an antique." The canine woman gestured toward the console and looked back at the cougar. "You can purchase a current operating system and navigational update package, but I doubt this computer equipment would be able to process it. That may be why this Poppy guy put an older operating system on it; he might not have been able to put a current version on it himself."

Jiro let out a venomous curse, and then immediately regretted it when he remembered the heiress in their midst. "Sorry," he mumbled.

Samantha dismissed the explicative with a shake of her head when she looked over at Merlin's astonished expression. "I'm sure you realize how much trouble you could find yourself in taking this ship out into space with old navigation charts and a computer system that can't be upgraded, only replaced."

The wolf swallowed and then he looked over at Jiro. "She's right," he admitted hoarsely. "We didn't even realize what we had to work with." He rubbed his temples and tilted his head back over his shoulders. "Replacing a starship computer system is going to be expensive…"

"Yeah, but you said you had the money to get the ship in working order with plenty left over to hire a crew," the cougar reminded him. "How expensive can a new computer be?"

"Jiro…" Merlin began.

"Very," Samantha supplied. "A starship's computer controls everything, from navigation, communication, fuel flow ratios and the gravity deck plates, to the air you breathe, temperature controlled storage for the food you eat and the climate to keep you from freezing out in space… and everything in between. You're not going to find a unit like that at your local electronics super store."

Merlin sighed and gathered his thoughts. "Just stocking the ship with basic supplies, equipment and a crew is costing me a small fortune," he said wearily. "I'm not sure I'll have enough left over to cover a major computer overhaul, too."

"In that case," Jiro added, "we may not be able to get the ship up to orbit and in business."

Merlin stuck his hands into the pockets of his trousers and then looked out the forward windows at the nighttime activity over the spaceport. No one said anything for a long time as the reality of the situation sunk in.

After a while, Samantha cleared her throat. Her male companions looked over at her and she had an odd expression on her face. "What is it?" Merlin asked. "Did you find something else?"

"I have a business proposition for you," she said in all seriousness. "I will buy you a new starship computer system, complete with the latest software packages and expert technical installation — in exchange for a place on your crew."

Merlin and Jiro's jaws dropped in unison.

Chapter 6

The Master Plan

The lift came to a stop at the eighty-sixth level of a downtown Alucara skyscraper. The doors opened and Samantha Holden stepped out into a pastel blue corridor where mirrors divided sections of the wall every three meters. The Border collie turned to the left and walked to the third inner door from the elevator. She waved a magnetic cylinder at a small metal disc set into the panel and heard a set of tumblers cycle the lock. The door slid aside and she walked inside her apartment.

She tapped a control and soft lighting illuminated a comfortable apartment that was decorated in simplicity, despite the polished wood floors, marble counters beneath a high ceiling and expensive drapes over the large windows. She had lived there for the past five years, several floors below the corporate offices of Holden Pharmaceutical.

Samantha walked across the room and opened the drapes, revealing a dizzying vista of nighttime city lights far below. She was mentally tired, having been out all day to several local Holden Pharmacies with an audit inspection team, and then the meeting with Merlin and his partner over dinner, only to have her request to join their crew practically thrown back in her face. Afterward, she agreed to a follow them out to the Alucara Spaceport to see the freighter they were preparing for their new business for a tour. Then she spent over an hour entreating them to accept her application in exchange for a new computer system for the ship without which they wouldn't be able to operate.

When that didn't work, she even offered to buy the ship from them, have its systems upgraded, and then put them on it as its captain and crew to make deliveries for her father's company. If the Blue Horizon belonged to Holden Pharmaceutical, the board of directors would be more likely to give her less trouble with the thought of her going along with them.

That idea was shot down almost as soon as it had left her lips. Merlin didn't want to work for another company, plain and simple. It had been his plan to be his own boss, with others working for him.

"A working, healthy computer is just as important to the operation of a starship as its engines," Samantha had told them both. "I can serve as your ship's computer technician; you already know I'm qualified. Let me go with you!"

It seemed the harder she tried, the more resistance she faced, but then Merlin surprised her. With his and Jiro's resolve worn down to practically nothing due to their desperate need of a new computer, he told her that he would accept her offer, but only if she could fulfill one obligation.

"Name it!" she had said. "Whatever it is, I'll do it!"

"I do not want you to ignore your duties — neither do I want an heiress on the run; I've seen that movie too," the wolf had replied with a tired smirk. "I want you to talk to Master Tristan about your wishes. If he then contacts me to give his blessing, then I will accept your application as a member of my crew."

That condition was a blow to her enthusiasm. She knew there would be even stronger opposition from her Silloni master. Although she was an adult and no longer fell under the legal authority of her adopted parents, she still respected them and often sought out their wisdom. Samantha Holden possessed a strong will, but she would never be able to strong-arm Master Tristan into giving his blessing — not that she really wanted to.

Merlin knew her well enough to know that no matter what she offered or how much she pleaded with him, the real negotiation would have to be with her Master. She stopped and actually smiled at herself. To anyone else who listened in to her thoughts, they might think she was a slave to someone on Quet, an ecologically devastated planet where slavery was legal, but on Sillon, Master was an expression of utmost respect. Tristan didn't own her as property, even though he had adopted her into his family, but as a former regent and a surrogate father figure, she respected his opinion above all others.

It was he that she would have to convince that joining the wolf's crew was the right thing to do for her, and she knew it would probably be the most difficult task she had ever been set to do.

Samantha sighed audibly. She loved Merlin in many different ways, but he was not going to make this easy for her. What made it worse is that she knew he was right. If she was going to abandon her current lifestyle for a career out among the stars, she'd better do it in such a manner to retain her close family ties. She had to have their support.

The Border collie tapped her Com unit to life and called up the Holden receptionist desk, which was staffed around the clock to handle incoming calls from other time zones and the other worlds of the Planetary Alignment.

"You have reached the Alexandrian headquarters of Holden Pharmaceutical; how may I direct your call?" answered the voice-only response.

Samantha recognized the perky tones of a receptionist she knew well. "Good evening, Riana," she said.

"Good evening, Miss Holden. How may I be of assistance?"

"I need you to arrange an encrypted tachyon communication with the Dragon Loft on Sillon, please. I need to speak with Master Tristan."

"Yes, Miss. I will buzz you when the connection has been established."

"Thank you." Samantha disconnected the line and walked to her kitchen. She opened her refrigerated cooler, pulled out a bottle of sparkling water and took it back with her to the plush chair before her Com terminal. She set the unopened bottle on the desk and then sat down to await the connection. She rubbed her weary eyes, knowing that she probably should have waited until the following day to attempt this particular conversation with Master Tristan, when both she and her brain were more rested, but she didn't want to put this off. She harbored a likely irrational fear that Merlin would be resourceful, find a way to replace the computer system on his own, get his crew and ship stocked, and then be off out into space before she could find a way to convince Tristan to let her go. She had little time to waste.

Samantha closed her eyes and rested her head back against the seat. Arranging an interplanetary communication could take time, depending upon stellar interference and orbital positions.

A melodious tone startled her and the Border collie opened her eyes in a flash. She glanced at the clock as she reached for the terminal, noting in surprise that a half hour had passed since leaning back in her chair.

"Yes?" she asked after tapping a control.

"I have the connection you wanted, Miss Holden," replied the perky voice. "Local time on Sillon at the Dragon Loft is eight sixty-three in the morning."

"Thank you, Riana. Let me thumb in."

"Yes, ma'am."

Samantha pressed her thumb to a biometric scanner pad on the corner of her desk. There was a brief pause and then the video screen came to life, thanks to instantaneous transmission of tachyon communication. A tiny gold star occupied a spot in the lower right corner of the screen, denoting an encrypted and secure channel. Once she'd thumbed in, not even Riana could eavesdrop.

Filling the screen was the gentle face of a black equine male with a pearly spiraled horn protruding from the forehead above large brown eyes. The Silloni wore a local style slate-gray suit over a broad frame, but the individual appeared relaxed and casual.

Sillon was an oceanless world, the most distant member of the Planetary Alignment, and because its primary inhabitants resembled mythical creatures of legend, a touch of whimsy by their original genetic engineers, the Silloni were usually treated with either respect or awe by the other worlds. While their cultures and technologies were often considered alien, the unicorn-like people were no more or less advanced than those of the other PA worlds. They had their good points and bad, the innocent and the corrupt, but the terrain of their planet boasted the most beautiful and luxurious landscapes; despite the three-month journey at fastest LightDrive speeds to get there, it was often visited as the ultimate vacation spot in the galaxy.

There were two planets within the Goldilocks Zone of the Mytha star system, each of them having developed their own unique cultures, but only Sillon had joined the Planetary Alignment and actively taught its peoples the Standard language. While the distant world was governed by a monarchy, the indigenous population didn't use surnames to account for their sense of person and personality. Tristan didn't need a family name to distinguish himself among his people, although the title of Master had been bestowed upon him out of respect.

"Good Morning, Daughter," the unicorn said in the rich tones of an accented voice. "I am pleased to start my day with you!"

Despite the mental and physical weariness, Samantha gave him a loving smile. "Good morning, Master," she replied cordially, "Although it is late at night where I am, practically tomorrow morning, in fact."

A look of concern crossed the equine face. "To call me at such an hour is not like you, unless your reason is important. You sound and appear as if you are in great need of rest. I am happy you called, but let us get down to business and resolve your problem so you may get some sleep."

Samantha nodded and reached for her bottle of water, her mouth having suddenly gone dry. The container had sweated as it had warmed on the table, leaving a wet ring, but the drink was still cool on her throat. Tristan waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts.

Knowing she could put it off no longer, Samantha began speaking, telling him everything.

***

"No, absolutely not. Your father would have never approved of such a venture."

"Master, I loved my father and respected him, but he can no longer make decisions for me. This is something I have decided for myself."

"This is not a decision you can make!" the former regent said firmly. "Derek Holden invested everything in his business and his family. He was successful with his business. Are you to tell me, young one, that he failed with his family?"

Samantha's eyes flashed, but she did her best to hold herself in check in front of one whom she respected greatly. "I am not a failure, Master, nor would my father think so; it pains me to think that you do," she said in an even tone. There was sudden look of surprise in the Silloni's eyes, but she continued before he had a chance to reply. "I am self-sufficient and reliable in everything I set myself to, but I want a richer life than simply sitting in an office signing papers for decisions I wasn't even consulted for. My skills are underutilized, no matter whose daughter I am. I have more to offer than a bloodline and family name. Despite my lofty position, I have been unable to talk the board into letting me use my skills within my father's company where they would matter, and perhaps, make a difference. I want to live, and I want challenges, but I can't say that I'm doing either right now."

Tristan peered out of the connection at her for a moment. "Let me talk to the board," he said with a nod of his head. "Perhaps I can persuade them to set you up to lead whatever department within the company you prefer so that you may be more beneficial to all."

Samantha shook her head. "My requests have fallen on deaf ears and rejected for far too long," she replied. "If you force them to place me in a computer lab now, they will do so grudgingly. No, it's time I moved on to do what I want to do."

"You are the heir of Derek Holden…"

"…which means I am nothing more than a figurehead," the Border collie retorted. "I may be near the top of the so-called corporate ladder, but I'm more restricted than someone who merely works in the mail room! Sure, I can afford to eat well and dress nice, but what does it matter if I am not happy? I would rather have my mother and father back and live a simple life than have all the credits in the galaxy!"

The black unicorn shook his head in frustration. It had been a while since he had to deal with a rebellious family member. "Mister Sinclair missed his calling," he said. "If he was able to so completely convince you to abandon your duties to join him on a common freighter, he should have been a politician."

"Merlin didn't convince me of anything, so leave him out of it!" Samantha exclaimed. "He was against the idea from the start, for the same reasons you are!"

"Then he is smarter than I gave him credit for," said former regent. "You should listen to him, just as you should listen to me. The daughter of Holden Pharmaceutical does not belong on an interstellar cargo hauler. She belongs where she can be safe."

"Master," the canine said, trying to keep a growl out of her voice, "Holden Pharmaceutical will run just as efficiently without me warming one of its seats. You have overseen the interests of the company as specified in my father's will since he died, working through Mr. Willamette, who has represented us both at board meetings. You two were doing this when I was going to the University and you still work together to keep operations running smoothly. You don't need me to sign paperwork — that job was created just to give me something to do within the company simply because of my name. Let me go, please."

Tristan rubbed his eyes wearily. "How do you think the media will react if they find out you are running away from—"

"I am not running away! I simply want to do what I want to do — for once!"

"You know that is not possible. If you will only think this through—"

"Everyone thinks I am the 'media darling'," Samantha interrupted yet again in frustration. "If the media wants to make something of it, don't tell them I am quitting and joining the circus. Let them think I've decided to spend some of that money I'm sitting on and have gone traveling around the Planetary Alignment! I will stop in at every Holden Pharmacy I am near and put in an appearance for public relations' sake, if you want."

Tristan held up a hand. "For the sake of argument, if you were to go and to use that as your cover story, what would keep you safe from those who would try to apprehend you and ransom you to us for millions? With public knowledge that the Holden heiress is out there for the taking, someone would be following your every move."

For the first time since the conversation began, Samantha smiled. It wasn't a wide grin, but the smile reached her eyes and the corners of her mouth curled up in amusement. "With years of Silloni martial arts training, I think I can hold my own in a fight," she replied calmly. "You saw to that yourself."

Tristan nodded. "This is true, but what of your friend, Mister Sinclair?"

"He can take care of himself. He was a Dennieran combat pilot and he also happens to be a Grand Master fencer. Additionally, his partner, Jiro Brannon, is also a military veteran."

"It appears you have plenty of appropriate responses to my concerns, but I still do not think you are aware of what you could cause by going on such a venture."

"I am aware that the media has never been right about me," Samantha scoffed. "They think I'm a spoiled little rich girl who always gets her way. The last time I got my way was when you agreed to send me back to Alexandrius for my education, and that was only because you agreed with my reasons. Yes, Sillon has great universities of its own, but to take my place in my father's business, I needed an Alexandrian education. Despite that, neither my name nor my money has let me have my own way; it has been more of a hindrance than a benefit in most cases. I can afford all the material possessions I could ever want, but what I want, no one will let me have. My father's company is worth billions of credits across the Planetary Alignment, yet I have no power. I'm nothing more than a high-paid office clerk!"

Tristan stared at her for another long moment. He had never been aware of these feelings she had apparently harbored inside for years, and he suddenly felt regret that she had been forced to live so strict an existence. The young canine woman he faced across the light years was strained with disappointment and fatigue, and she appeared as if she might slide out of her seat at any moment. Part of that appearance might be due to the late hour at her location, but he could see the deep-seated pain and frustration in her sad brown eyes. He swallowed unconsciously, finally nodding.

"What of your friend, Mister Sinclair?" he asked in a solemn voice. "You said that he was against you joining him and his partner in their fledgling business."

The Border collie rubbed her eyes and then looked back at him wearily. "He agrees that my skills would be greatly beneficial to his crew and the operation of his ship, but he refuses to even consider my application for employment unless I have your blessing to go." Moisture rimmed her eyes as she leaned closer to the tiny camera that broadcasted her encrypted image across space to her distant adopted father. "Master," she said in a small voice, "he needs someone with my skills, and I need to be able to use them. He is my dear friend, but more than that, he can provide me with a means to be happy in my life."

"Daughter, could you can be happy living on a vessel such as a cargo hauler? Each voyage you undertake will last weeks out into deep space where there will be no help but what you take along with you in the event of trouble. Even if you were attacked by freighter pirates and made a successful distress call to the Spatial Police Force, it would be unlikely they could be of any assistance in the time you would need them. Upon a freighter, your scenery won't change, and unlike the cruise liners you have traveled upon in the past, there will be no distractions of entertainment to keep you occupied in the long weeks between worlds. You may be friends with Sinclair and his partner now, but there will be no place to hide away from any of them when tempers flare. Even though you will likely enjoy your visits to each world and country where you land, you will have to endure the manual labor of loading and unloading your own vessel before you can enjoy such rewards. Is this the life you envy?"

"I agree that it won't be all flowers and perfume," Samantha answered with a nod, "but I will have a purpose, which is worth more than a lifetime supply of expensive clothing and shoes in my apartment closet. Master… I really want this. More than I have wanted anything else in my life."

The Silloni equine fell silent and closed his eyes, his hands clasped before him on the polished wooden desk beneath his elbows. Without looking at her, he asked, "Besides Sinclair, how many of his associates know who you are and what your heritage is?"

"Just him and his partner, Jiro Brannon."

"Are there any of your own peers who are aware of your recent association with Mister Sinclair and his vessel?"

"I've not bothered to tell anyone," Samantha answered, curious to this current line of questioning. "Truthfully, I have no close friends here in Alucara to confide in. I believe everyone is afraid of getting in close to the heiress."

"In this instance, I believe that is for the best. All right, Daughter. I will give you one year. That should be sufficient to allow you time to travel the Planetary Alignment and experience the life of a blue collar worker. Tell no one of the Blue Horizon. The initial cover story is that you will be returning to Sillon immediately at my insistence. The voyage takes three months in one direction, and you will be staying six months once you are here for family business. This should negate the possibility of constant stalkers while you are away. Following the expected three-month return voyage, you will show up back at the Holden corporate headquarters in Alucara, Alexandrius, ready to return to your duties. Would this be satisfactory?"

Samantha smiled and felt moisture from her eyes leak into her cheek fur. "Yes, Master. I am sure that a year out in space will satisfy my thirst for adventure. When I do return, though, could you please arrange for me to utilize my skills within the company? If I return to a desk and a slateboard to blindly sign memorandums, it won't take me long to become dissatisfied again."

"I promise to work on the board of directors to that end while you are away. It might be best if you travel under an assumed name and try to avoid places where your facial pattern may be recognized. Do not draw attention to yourself and stay away from the media. I will arrange to make sure you have continued access to your private funds. Even if you will be living amid lower-income folk, it does not mean you need to be creditless among them."

"Thank you, Master. You have no idea how much this all means to me." Samantha wiped the tears from her eyes and added, "I really want this. I was determined to go, but I wouldn't have done so without your blessing."

Tristan returned her smile. "You are more like your father than you know," he said. "While I still do not think he would approve, Derek himself was as stubborn as you are. Once he set his mind to something, it was practically set in stone that he would do it. It was such a mindset that drove him to heal Laura's illness when it seemed all hope was lost. However determined you may be, I am honored that you would come to me first before acting upon your plans. It would have divided the family otherwise."

"My family means a great deal to me," the Border collie replied, "whether they be of blood or by adoption."

The Silloni unicorn's expression became uncertain again. "I fear that the more difficult task is still to come," he said.

"Facing the board of directors?"

"No, daughter — telling Guinevere, and your siblings of your plans. As it was with my initial reaction, they will not be pleased, and it will be up to me to convince them to cover for your story. The board of directors must never suspect. Should they find out, there will be severe repercussions."

"Do I have to choose a completely new name?" the canine asked after a moment. "It may be difficult to respond to anyone talking to me if they call me something other than Samantha."

Tristan shook his head with an amused smile. "As long as you stay out of the public eye, you can probably get by with just a different surname. I doubt the general public knows what you even look like, but if you meet up with anyone who inquires about your appearance, play it down as simple coincidence. There are, after all, many Border collies with similar markings. Admit no knowledge of the Holden name. In fact, if you are in need of any medication while you are out, it might be best if you do not even visit one of your father's stores. Go to a competitor. That would further throw off anyone who might be suspicious."

"That would be a good idea until I used my identification when making a purchase."

The unicorn looked thoughtful. "How long until your friend launches his ship?"

"Two weeks, at least," Samantha replied. "Neither Merlin nor Jiro were aware their flight computer needed to be replaced, so that will have to be done before they can take off. They don't even have a full crew yet."

"That will work to your favor," Tristan replied. "That will give me time to have my people establish an identity for you complete with a working background. I will arrange for instant transfers of whatever funds you need into a new account for that identity. As soon as you have chosen a new name, let me know and I will set this into motion."

"Chase. Sam Chase," she said immediately.

"That was quick. How did you arrive at this name?"

Samantha smiled. "That was the surname of the first boy I kissed in grade school, about a year before I came to live with you."

Tristan chuckled, shaking his head. "All right, then, Ms. Chase. I will get on it immediately."

"Thank you, Master," Samantha said once again. "However, I am so tired that I am about to go to sleep here in this chair. I will talk to Merlin tomorrow about our plans."

"Yes, it is time you rested. Give me Sinclair's contact number and I will tell him myself that you have my blessing," the unicorn said. "I will make sure he understands the gravity of the situation and is clear on what he is taking on by accepting. He and his partner will need to maintain the deception of the Chase persona for this endeavor to be successful."

"Good idea," the Border collie replied with a barely-repressed yawn. She gave him the Blue Horizon's registry calling code and then they bid goodbye to one another.

After the call disconnected, Samantha shut out the lights and padded softly toward the bedroom. Despite the late hour, she would clean up with a hot shower before sliding between the cool sheets of her bed.

***

Merlin Sinclair walked in through the door of the bridge on the Blue Horizon. The day had been long and partially frustrating. He'd enjoyed the movie he and Jiro had gone to see, as well as the dinner with Samantha, but her request to join his crew had been completely unexpected and had caused an evening of stress. Although he enjoyed seeing her again, he didn't want to dig up old feelings for her only to abandon them once more when it came time to launch his freighter. As the heiress to a billion-credit corporation that spanned just about every world of the Planetary Alignment, the notion of her coming along was unrealistic.

Unfortunately, she was tenacious and was successful in wearing down his resolve. In almost a panicked, last ditch effort to dissuade her from insane notions, he had appealed to her sense of respect for the one that had raised her. It was absurd to believe she had an iota of a chance to talk Master Tristan into letting her join the Blue Horizon on its voyages. He regretted setting the canine woman onto the equine dignitary, but felt it was for the best.

He went around to the various control systems to shut things down for the night. Without the engines running, there was no need to drain the system batteries any more than necessary for their daily cleanup operations.

As he reached the communication console, a chirp sounded from the board. Sitting down wearily in the seat before the station, he picked up a headset microphone and placed it around the back of his head, a tiny speaker near his right ear and the boom mike around near his lips.

"This is the SS Blue Horizon, PA registry twelve sixty-one," he said into the voice-only system after tapping a control. "What can I help you with?"

A rich, accented voice answered, "This is Tristan of Sillon. May I speak with Mister Sinclair, please?"

"Good evening, Master Tristan," the wolf replied, now fully alert. "I am Merlin Sinclair. We met here in Alucara a few years ago."

"Good evening, sir. I apologize for contacting you at such an hour, but I must speak with you on behalf of my daughter, Samantha."

"Yes, sir. I have been expecting to hear from you, and I must apologize in return for sending her to you."

"Captain, I know you have been an acquaintance of my daughter's for many years, and I am sure she is rather fond of you, but I must make known my disapproval concerning your encouragement of her current wishes."

"Encouragement?" Merlin repeated incredulously. "Sir, I assure you that I did everything I could to discourage her!"

"Yet you promised her a place among your crew if she was able to get my approval. With such a pledge, she stopped at nothing when she entreated me with her desires. She besieged me relentlessly!"

"Yes, sir, that is exactly what she did with me earlier tonight. By sending her to you, it was my hope that she would have no chance at swaying you, and then the matter would be dropped. I am sorry you had to endure her barrage, but I am thankful that she was unable to wear you down as she did with me."

There was a long pause and Merlin suddenly felt a flutter in his stomach. He opened his mouth to speak, but then Tristan finally responded.

"Captain, I— uh…. I regret to inform you that neither of us was successful."

"What…? What do you mean?"

It was Tristan's turn to feel embarrassed. "Cap…. Merlin, son— I was unable to dissuade Samantha from her wishes. Although it is against my better judgment, I am granting my blessing for this endeavor."

Merlin swallowed, hard. "Uh, sir…" he began, "with all due respect to who you are and what you have done with your life and the responsibilities to your world, I know you have been in tighter arguments with political adversaries that were never able to sway you from your stand. How in the name of Heaven did Samantha get past your defenses?"

There was another long hesitation before the former regent of Sillon responded. "She got through me in the same manner as I assume she did through you – straight through the heart."

"Sir, you know that a freighter is no place for the heiress of a billion-credit corporation!"

"Yes, I am well aware of this, and so does she, yet she is still determined to go. Despite my efforts to forbid her to do this, she found a way to twist my resolve. And now that she knows she has won over me, she will hold you to your word to let her go along."

Merlin surprised the Silloni unicorn by chuckling. "Sir, I understand that she has no real power conducting business within her father's own company. Why is this?" he asked. "As easily as she turned us both on our ears, she should be running the show in her father's place!"

"It is possible she would be an effective leader over the company," Tristan agreed, "but then again, no one on the board of directors would be swayed by her tactics; none of them have hearts."

"With her tenacity," the wolf countered, "I think she could probably be a ruthless CEO."

"I must agree with you. Perhaps in time, she will come to the conclusion herself and make a bid for control over her family interests, but at least for the next year, we should give her enough lead to get the wanderlust out of her system."

Merlin tilted his head. "The next year?" he repeated. "I don't understand the reference."

"Ah yes, Captain. As with most heated negotiations, there must be concessions on both sides. In exchange for the opportunity to go along with this madness, she agreed that she would return to Alucara in one year's time. This should prove plenty of time for her to miss her current lifestyle, although I suspect she might even wish to return after only a few weeks in your profession."

Merlin nodded in understanding, although he knew the unicorn couldn't see it. "I begin to see where this is going, although I still don't know how she's going to get the board of directors to agree. Even so, there are bound to be stalkers once the media knows she is out on the town, so to speak."

"Precisely what I brought up in my conversation with her. However, I believe we may have a workable solution to keep stalkers and further related complications to a minimum."

Merlin listened with rapt attention for the next fifteen minutes as Tristan outlined the plan in succinct detail. It would be up to him and Jiro to maintain secrecy surrounding Samantha's true identity, and although the real words of a threat were never spoken, Merlin got the implied impression that he would be held personally responsible if anything disastrous befell the daughter of Derek Holden.

He and Tristan hammered out a few more details and then their conversation finally wound down. Merlin's voice had faltered from sheer fatigue, and the former regent recognized his exhaustion.

"Merlin," Tristan said at last, using the captain's personal name for the first time in the wolf's memory, "I place my trust in you concerning the welfare of my adopted daughter. I know the two of you had a relationship in the past, and I am sure part of that is what is driving Samantha's heart, so as one who raised her as one of my own family, I ask that you take great care of her. She need not be treated as royalty, nor as the heir to a corporation, but simply make sure she is safe from harm. Please."

"Sir, I plan to fulfill this obligation to my utmost ability," the wolf replied. "It is true that she and I dated for a while, but that was some time ago. I think we are both different people now than we were back then; I'm not sure that flame will ever be reignited, but I still care enough about her to make sure she returns safely to her duties in the agreed one-year period… if not sooner."

"Thank you, son. I will rest easier knowing she is in your capable hands, even if I know her own hands are quite capable. Once again, I apologize for contacting you on this so late in the evening there, but you should go now and rest. From what Samantha has told me, you still have much to do before your vessel is ready for launch. My people should have her false identity engineered with a plausible working background within a few days, but you should start using it immediately."

"Yes, sir. I will contact you promptly if anything untoward happens in the meantime. Good day to you, sir."

"Good night, Captain."

Chapter 7

Cold Shower

The cross-town traffic was heavy the next morning, but Samantha managed to guide her dark green aircar through it without getting caught in a stand-still jam. She wound her silent-energy vehicle around the marked pathways through the spaceport to the landing pad where the Blue Horizon rested, waiting the day when it was ready to launch.

She shook her head with a smile when she spied the rusted panel van that Jiro had rented leaving the vicinity of the ship, wondering how it kept from falling apart. Unlike her vehicle and the majority of the other cars, trucks and vans that operated in Alucara, the rental van didn't levitate several feet above the ground using hardy gravity repulsors, but instead traveled on solid pliable tires. It possessed the same clean energy type engine for its propulsion, but due to its constant contact with the streets as it traveled around town, the vehicle was old, worn and dirty.

Samantha parked her vehicle where the van had rested, the car setting down upon four small pylons that flipped out and locked into place before the repulsors faded and set it down gently. She reached into the back seat, grabbed a small overnight case and then stepped out of her car. She was prepared to help the guys with cleanup today, but to keep up pretenses with those in her father's company, she had left her apartment dressed in a cream-colored blouse, navy blue slacks and trim black dress shoes. The overnight case contained appropriate working clothes.

As she had hoped, the airlock hatch was already open to let in the morning air. Jiro had apparently already departed for his daily supply run. She walked in and made her way along the foot-worn trail through the flour dust on the cargo deck to the lift that would take her to the upper levels. She had never seen the inside of a freighter before Merlin had given her a tour of the Blue Horizon, and although he had told her that the Okami vessel was relatively small, the hold seemed cavernous to her. Perhaps it was only because it was empty and echoed her footsteps.

She took the lift up, and when she stepped out into the corridor, she suddenly realized that she didn't know which cabins Merlin and Jiro had chosen for themselves. She was confident that both of them were now aware of Tristan's blessing on her joining their crew, but she was unsure if she could choose her own cabin or if one would be assigned to her. Of such things on an interstellar freighter, she was ignorant on such protocols.

She decided she should ask, rather than just assume, so she left her overnight bag out of the way next to the lift and began searching for Merlin's quarters. She had told her administrative assistant that she would be away for a few days, so she had packed up a few small items to bring with her to the ship. It would be several days before Tristan's people would have a faux identity arranged for her, so the story of her return to Sillon had not yet been implemented.

For now, she was only taking off a few days for "personal matters" and she intended to start helping with the ship's cleanup right away. Once things were officially set in motion, she would pack up her apartment and put everything in storage before embarking on her one-year voyage to the distant world. If she started packing now, it might raise suspicions. In reality, she would have to decide what to take with her on the Horizon and what to leave behind, since the cabins on the freighter were relatively small.

She walked in through one door, but found only an empty room. It had been cleaned up, but was not yet occupied. A full-size bed resided in the back left corner, directly beneath a small rectangular window of thick glassteel. On the opposite wall from the foot of the bed was a built-in book shelf with a small vidscreen mounted midway up from the floor. On the back wall beside the bed was a small desk with a computer screen and keyboard terminal. There was a roller chair pushed under the desk and the drawers above and below were closed neatly. Beside the desk was a closet just large enough to walk inside, but once the racks and the internal dresser were all full of garments, it would seem small. There was a door immediately to Samantha's right that led to the lavatory. An all-species squat toilet was directly inside, sandwiched between a shower stall and a sink counter with cabinets above and below for storage. All in all, the cabin was about the size of a studio apartment without a kitchenette.

She checked two more without finding anyone, but they were also tidy. The Border collie correctly assumed that Merlin and Jiro had made the cabins their first cleaning priorities in case applications for employment were submitted and quarters were needed right away.

The canine opened the door to another cabin and saw an unmade bed with a pile of clothing on the floor beside a cardboard box. Next to the desk was an easel tripod with a stretched canvas that hadn't yet had oil paints applied to it; a sketch pad with several scribbled geometric shapes upon it was propped up against one leg of the tripod. The lavatory door to her right was open and a shower was running.

"Merlin?" she called. There was no answer, but Samantha smiled at a sudden thought. It had been a long while since she and Merlin had been together, and although she got the feeling that he wasn't actively trying to resume their old relationship, she didn't think that he would turn down a shared shower if she kept it casual and innocent. Unlike humankind, most Furs were unconcerned if seen in their natural covering beyond small bits of cloth for simple modesty or adornment.

She quickly undressed, leaving her garments draped over the desk chair. She stepped into the bathroom, pulled open the shower door, and the cougar inside looked up at her in astonishment. Samantha felt an instant lump in her throat as she and the showering navigator gave each other a quick once-over in that brief instant.

Jiro recovered first and waved at her with the bottle of shampoo he held in one hand. "Good morning, Sunshine!" he said with a cheery grin.

Samantha started to back away. "Ah, uhm, I'm s-sorry," she stammered. "I, uh… that is, I m-mean…"

The cougar gave her a calm smile to indicate he wasn't upset, and in a move that surprised even him, he held out an empty hand toward her. "Come on in," he said casually. "The water's nice and warm. It'll help calm your nerves."

Samantha's eyes were wide, but she narrowed them at his invitation. Then she realized that his whole demeanor was simply friendly, and despite his initial glance at her unclothed body, he didn't appear to be lecherous or calculating. Perhaps they had gotten off on the wrong foot. If he was willing to be nice to her after a tense evening the night before, what harm would it serve to be nice in return?

With a shrug, Samantha reached out and took his hand. "Sure, why not?" she said calmly. "Hand me the soap. I'll lather up your back."

Jiro took her hand in quiet surprise and pulled her under the warm spray, closing the door behind her. When he turned toward her in the close space of the stall, she wiped water from her eyes with a smile and took the bottle of thick green liquid from him. "Turn around," she said.

At first, Jiro thought she was embarrassed to be so close to him, but then he remembered the shampoo. "Right," he said, turning around. Samantha poured some of liquid into her hand, and then began to rub it into his tawny back fur. She set the bottle onto a wall shelf and then worked the shampoo up into a lather.

"You didn't seem very surprised to see me," she said as she began kneading the muscles beneath the soap. Jiro closed his eyes under her ministrations and chuckled.

"I was surprised to see you naked and trying to get into the shower with me," he said, "but no, I wasn't surprised that you turned up here on the ship. Over breakfast, Merlin told me about his conversation with your Master Tristan last night." He looked over his shoulder at her and added, "That must have been some sales pitch you gave him, Ms. Chase."

"It wasn't easy," Samantha admitted, smirking at his use of her new identity. She moved to the side to allow the spray to rinse the shampoo off his back. "Anyway, why are you being so nice to me now? You weren't very cordial last night."

Jiro turned around to give her a smooth smile just as she faced the opposite direction, letting the warm water wash over her. "Two reasons," he said. "First, I like the way you worked out plans with your Master. You had an agenda and managed to find a solution that he could live with. If you could pull that off, I figure I could put up with you for a year."

"Uh, thanks, I think; what was the second reason?"

Jiro slid his arms around her waist, pulled her close, and whispered into her ear. "Crawling into the shower with me was a friendly way of mending our fences." Samantha swallowed nervously, keeping her fluffy tail firmly in place behind her, although he hadn't touched her inappropriately.

The cougar didn't seem to realize her pause, but he continued by adding with a chuckle, "With the look on your face when you opened the door, though, I think you assumed you were getting into the shower with Merlin."

"I did," Samantha admitted with a nod, "but you're right. I would rather be friends than be at odds with you."

Still holding her close, Jiro asked, "Why didn't you bolt when you realized you'd made a mistake? I don't figure Merlin would be happy if he knew you were in here with me."

Samantha let out a sigh. "He and I were close at one time," she said quietly, "but last night when you volunteered to go and leave the two of us together, I saw a moment of panic in his eyes. I don't think he wanted to be alone with me." She put a hand on his arm and looked back over her shoulder at him.

"I like you, Jiro, and our shower has been nice, but because of Merlin, I don't think we ought to play. It might harbor resentment, whether or not he wants to get back together with me."

Jiro nodded with a smile, but didn't release her. "Probably a good idea to just be friends for now," he told her, "but you're welcome in my shower any time."

"Thanks, Jiro. You really are a good friend. I can see why Merlin likes you."

The cougar snorted in amusement, turning them both so that the water began to spray his back, rinsing out the suds from his fur. "You have special privileges, Ms. Chase and are the only one invited into my shower!"

Samantha laughed and turned around in his arms to embrace him. "Since we're such special friends now, why don't you just call me Sam? That's what I'm going to tell people to call me for the next year anyway."

"Sure, I— eYiiiieee!" Jiro's eyes went wide and he suddenly lunged forward into her, pinning her to the wall behind her. Samantha felt the water turn cold at the same instant and was glad the bulk of the shower was hitting the cougar instead of herself.

Jiro clenched his teeth and reached behind him to shut off the water. When he felt for the knob, it was not metal he touched, but a hand. He jerked his arm back immediately, almost hitting Samantha in the ribs, and spun around in the small confines of the shower.

Jiro and Samantha both saw a gray and white hand pull back out of sight and then quietly shut the shower door. Neither cougar nor canine dared move for a long moment, both of their hearts beating hard to escape their chest walls.

"Oh sh—" Jiro started to say before Samantha nudged him to remain quiet. The cougar shut off the cold water and then both of them just stood there, water dripping from their fur.

After a couple moments, Jiro swallowed the lump in his throat and eased open the shower door. He peered outside cautiously, fully expecting a fist in his face, but the small bathroom was empty.

"There's only one towel out here," Jiro whispered back at the Border collie. "Let me dry off enough so I can grab another for you from the box out by my bed."

"Okay," Samantha whispered back. She didn't know why they were being quiet, since they'd already been caught in the shower together. It wasn't as if they could hide it now.

The cougar patted down his fur quickly, thankful he was not a long-hair like Samantha. It never took his pelt as long as some Furs to dry, so after only a couple moments, he wrapped the wet towel around his waist and then eased out into the front room. As before, his quarters were empty. The small cabin was not large enough for the wolf to hide from him, so Merlin must have left them alone to get dry and dressed.

He padded to a box at the foot of his bed and picked out a large clean towel for his shower partner.

***

Twenty minutes later, Jiro led Samantha from his cabin and headed straight for Merlin's quarters around the curved corridor. They were both nervous and wondering if either of them still had a job on the freighter. They were certain that their lupine friend would never trust them again.

When they reached the door, it was closed. Jiro gave the Border collie a worried look and then knocked lightly on the panel.

"It's open," came Merlin's muffled reply. Through the door, neither could read the tone of the wolf's voice. Jiro thumbed the door control and then walked in first when it opened. He had no trouble with the concept of ladies first, but if Merlin wanted to lash out, the cougar was going to protect Samantha by taking it for her.

Merlin, however, was sitting calmly at the desk, quietly looking over messages awaiting his attention. The cougar and the Border collie stepped inside and let the door close quietly behind them.

After a moment, Merlin switched off his screen and turned in his chair to face them, brushing a bit of lint from the green shirt he wore. "Hey kids," he said in a surprisingly amused tone. "All dry now?"

Neither Jiro nor Samantha knew how to react to this. "Uhm, yeah," the mountain lion muttered. "Listen, Merlin, we—"

The wolf held up a hand. "Relax, both of you," he told them. "Come on in and have a seat on the bed." Samantha followed her companion mutely, afraid to meet Merlin's eyes. They sat down as directed, both looking down at their feet.

"Was your shower really that bad?" Merlin asked. "I thought the two of you were getting along well, but then again, perhaps the cold water interrupted you."

Jiro looked up at his partner. "You… you're not mad?" he inquired hesitantly. The wolf chuckled, which made Samantha look up at him too.

"Why should I be?" Merlin replied. "Relationships are inevitable on crews going out into space. If two of my employees want to get together, I don't mind as long as it doesn't disrupt the business."

Samantha still hadn't yet spoken, but Jiro swallowed his pride and said, "At the risk of pointing out the obvious, I thought your past relationship with Sam—"

The wolf brushed him off with a wave of his hand. "Samantha and I dated casually during college, but that's been a while ago. Just because she managed to convince me and her Master to let her tag along with us for the next year doesn't automatically make her the 'Captain's Lady'. If you two want to partner up, I'm not going to stand in your way."

Samantha swallowed nervously, not at all sure how she should feel about his seeming indifference to their current situation. The two of them had been intimate in the past, but it didn't appear as if that mattered to him now. She was relieved that he wasn't angry at catching her in the shower with his best friend, but she was surprised to realize that she also felt hurt by that same lack of anger.

"Merlin…" she said in a quiet voice, "Jiro and I aren't…. partnering. We were just making up for our differences last night… with just a shower. We didn't do anything."

"Yeah, I know," replied the wolf with a smile.

"Huh? You know? What does that mean?"

"I overheard your entire conversation."

"You did?" Jiro and Samantha exclaimed in unison.

The wolf nodded. "I'd just returned from dropping off a document with Mr. Koihan and saw Samantha go up in the lift when I stepped inside the hold. I called to her, but she was gone before I could get her attention. When I got up here, I heard her call my name, so I went looking for her." He leaned back in the chair and put his hands behind his head, looking at his partner.

"She left the door to your cabin standing open, and when I walked in, I saw her open the shower and saw her surprise. It was all I could do to keep from laughing at the expression on her face. I fully expected her to bolt out of the room, and I was going to tease her for streaking through the ship on her first day on the crew, but then she surprised me by stepping into the shower with you."

"So then you decided to eavesdrop?" the cougar asked hoarsely.

It was Merlin's turn to look embarrassed. "After the way you two clashed last night, I was curious about your quick reconciliation, so I thought I'd listen in for a few minutes. If things started to heat up, I was going to quietly slip away and pretend as if I hadn't walked in on you." He looked up and gave them both a smirk, "Then I heard you bring me into the conversation, so naturally I had to stay."

"Naturally," Jiro repeated with raised eyebrows.

"When I realized your shower was only a shower, I knew I didn't have to worry about you two."

"You were worried?" Samantha ventured to ask.

The wolf nodded, again looking a bit embarrassed. "You and I did have a relationship in the past, and I confess seeing the two of you together made me hesitate," he admitted, "but I wasn't going to stand in your way if you wanted Jiro. Even when we were together, we were never exclusive to one another. Anyway, I don't want to sound cold or anything, but I've been giving our business a lot of my thought lately, and that has to take priority. When we're locked up together in a metal can out in space for weeks at a time, you have to have harmony in your crew. If you don't, someone's likely to get seriously hurt before you reach your destination. That's something I learned in the Dennieran military, stationed on a battle cruiser for a while."

"So, you knew that Jiro and I weren't doing anything," the Border collie said. "Then why the cold water? You could have slipped away without letting us know you were there."

Merlin's whole face lit up in a grin. "I gave in to mischief," he said. "I simply couldn't resist!"

Jiro let out a long, loud sigh and fell back on the bed mattress, his hands over his eyes. "I don't believe this," he groaned. "You nearly gave us both a heart attack, wondering if either of us still had jobs!"

"Of course you still have jobs," Merlin replied, leaning forward toward them. "I'm not going to run this business by myself, and right now you're the only crew I've got. I need slaves to do my bidding!"

"Right…"

"I was just checking to see if we'd received any job applicants, but still there's been no response to my advertisements for the vacant positions. All I've gotten are answers to pricing queries I've made on equipment and supplies."

Samantha ran her fingers through the fur between her ears, looking over at the wolf with a miffed expression. She frowned at him for a moment and then realized that through it all, he hadn't necessarily dismissed feelings for her. Her eyes softened, but either he was acting or was oblivious to the look she gave him.

Merlin stood up and faced them both with his hands in his pockets, his tail swishing lightly behind him. "Listen, you two. I'm not upset that you shared a shower, so relax; our friendships haven't been damaged. Now — until someone actually applies for a job, we still have to continue cleaning up the ship. The cabins are almost done, but we still have two more decks to do." He looked over at Samantha with a gentle smile and then reached for a bag that sat beside the desk. He pulled out a small wrapped package and handed it to her. "I picked this up for you this morning to welcome you to our crew," he said. "Of course, I didn't know that Jiro would welcome you himself so intimately."

The cougar sat up, gave his partner a lopsided smile and then peered over Samantha's shoulder to see what she had been given. The Border collie gave the wolf a mock sneer, grinned widely as she hesitantly pulled a thin blue ribbon off the silvery gift wrapping, and then peeled off the paper. Inside a long thin box was a pair of canvas gloves wrapped in pale blue tissue paper.

Samantha stared at them for a long moment before she looked up at the wolf in puzzlement. Jiro also looked on, certain he was unaware of some cultural tradition that Merlin must be following.

Amusement flicked across the wolf's features yet again. "They're work gloves, Sam," he said. "Welcome to the working class!"

He fully expected a sarcastic retort, but instead, she flung herself into his arms and hugged him close. "Thank you, Merlin," she said with emotion. "I know you meant it as a joke, but you don't know how much it means to me to be a part of your crew!" She pulled back and then licked him gently on the cheek. "Thank you for the opportunity to prove that I am not some spoiled rich girl to be waited on and pampered. You'll see that I can handle my share of the workload."

"You're welcome." Merlin gave her a quick return hug and then sat back down in his chair. "I've already told Jiro of my conversation with Master Tristan last night, so before anyone else joins our crew, the three of us have to agree that none of us know who Samantha Holden is, beyond what may be public knowledge of the financial sector. Sam Chase is a blue-collar computer technician on a common interstellar freighter called the Blue Horizon."

He gestured to Samantha as she sat down next to Jiro and added, "No one on this crew is to know who you are for the next year. Guard your identity securely, and watch yourself at all times so there are no slip-ups. I shouldn't have to remind you that if it ever leaks out, there would be repercussions for all of us. The Holden board of directors would have my head, your head, and with the help of the media, Tristan's head for engineering the deception. There's more to this than simply giving you a working vacation."

Samantha opened her mouth to counter his last statement, but Merlin continued. "Master Tristan charged me with your safety and I gave him my word that I would see to it, so don't be surprised if I get a little restrictive when we're in the company of others. If I were you, I would start working up a background history for your new identity, so you won't give yourself away in casual conversation. As soon as you have new credentials from Tristan, you should go ahead and move into one of the Horizon's vacant cabins to further your story of going back to Sillon for personal family business by getting away from your apartment. You will want to live with us, work with us, eat with us…"

"…shower with us…" the cougar added innocently.

Samantha smacked the puma playfully on the arm, but then nodded back toward the wolf. "I get it, Merlin. I'll be one of you from this point on. If I use any of my money, it will be only to keep up pretenses of Ms. Holden's daily lifestyle."

"Uhm, speaking of Ms. Holden's money," Merlin said, looking embarrassed.

"Hmm?"

"We still need her money for a new computer system for the Horizon — or none of us will be going anywhere."

Samantha grinned and pulled out a folded sheet of printed paper from a pocket of her slacks. "Despite how tired I was last night, my mind was too active to sleep right away, so I worked up a list of what we'll need and researched sources."

Jiro took the paper from her hands, unfolded it and looked over the list. "I'm impressed!" he said in appreciation. He handed it over to the wolf and added, "Hardware, software and the technical crew to replace it!"

Merlin studied the itemized list and raised his eyebrows. "You're going to order a Geo-21 starship computer structure from Yamato Data Systems? If I'm not mistaken, that's the latest system on the market." He looked up from the paper with a grin. "If you're this productive when your brain is tired, I'm going to have to pay you more than I intended to keep you on!"

Samantha beamed at his praise. "Merlin, you know you don't have to pay me to be a member of your crew. Use your money where it's needed."

"Wrong," the wolf countered. "If you're going to work for me, you're going to be paid. Anyone who looked into our finances would notice that one member of my crew was working for free and that would raise flags of curiosity. I don't want something like that to jeopardize your stay with us, Ms. Chase."

"If she doesn't want a paycheck, you can always give her share to me," Jiro suggested with an innocent smile.

"Nothing doing, mate," Merlin retorted. "You're not earning your pay as it is now."

"What?"

"Sitting around in the captain's cabin, shirking off your cleaning duties, playing with new crew members in the shower…"

"You're not going to let us live down the shower scene, are you?" Jiro groaned.

The wolf smiled with a wag of his tail through the slotted back of the chair. "Nope!"

Sensing an appropriate lull in the conversation, Samantha stood up and headed for the door. "I brought some work clothes with me, but left them out in the corridor. Let me get changed and then Sam Chase can get started on her new job."

"You're getting started awfully soon," Jiro remarked. "Don't you still have a job at the office until you leave on your cover trip to Sillon?"

The Border collie shook her head. "While I may not have the freedom to do all I'd like to do working for my own family's company, one of the benefits of being a Holden girl is that I can take personal leave anytime I want. I stopped by my admin assistant's desk on the way out and informed her I would be away for two or three days." At the cougar's look of confusion, she added, "You don't think I could sit mundanely in that office, mindlessly signing memos or making humdrum visits to our local store managers knowing that a spaceship awaited me, did you?"

"Ah, okay. What reason did you give her?"

Samantha smiled. "I didn't give her one."

Jiro and Merlin exchanged incredulous glances. The wolf shrugged and got to his feet. "Okay then, go change into your work outfit. We have more of this never-ending cleanup to do on the ship."

Jiro grumbled, but stood up too. "We'd be done a lot quicker if we had a crew to help us."

"Yes, it would," Sam agreed, "but you have me now, so it should go a little faster."

Chapter 8

Sparks on the Wind

Samantha's first day on the job was uneventful. Before they began cleaning, Sam used the Com station on the bridge to place the order for the new computer system, software, updated navigation charts for Planetary Alignment spatial traffic and a technical crew for its installation.

Then with her help, they were all able to finish the cleanup on the crew deck. All the cabins were ready for occupancy, sickbay was sterilized and the rest of the compartments were cleaned and straightened. All three worked together scrubbing and disinfecting the galley once again, as none of them could be certain what might have transpired in there by the previous disgruntled crew.

Before they moved on to the other decks, Merlin allowed Samantha to claim the cabin next door to his as her own. Although she didn't have any of her belongings with her besides the clothing in her overnight bag, she made up the bed with new sheets and blankets that Jiro had picked up.

Merlin periodically checked the Com station on the bridge for calls from potential applicants, but there had been no responses. Later that day, a truck from Yamato Data Systems delivered the Geo-21 computer system, accompanied by a crew of technicians. They worked through the night pulling out the old system, and then another shift of techs installed the new one over the course of the next day. A third day was required to load the operating system and configure the settings, and then a fourth for factory-grade tests to make sure all systems on board the ship were operating as they should.

During that time, the upper recreation deck was cleaned and then the ship's trio worked on the cargo deck and engine rooms, a task that daunted them all. By the time the system inspector signed off on the work, however, the interior of the Blue Horizon was spotless. Through it all, the heiress had worked hard doing her share of the cleanup, and to the surprise of both males, neither Merlin nor Jiro heard a single complaint out of her.

Samantha had made an appearance in her Holden office twice to keep up the façade, and a courier from the Silloni embassy delivered an Eyes Only package to her office on the fourth day. Tristan's people had been successful creating a new identity for her, and the few who had been involved were sworn to secrecy. The fabricated ruse to have Samantha Holden recalled to Sillon would break in another day or two, and then Sam Chase would be free to begin her yearlong adventure.

It was late afternoon when the inspector drove away, leaving Merlin, Jiro and Samantha sitting on the edge of the cargo ramp of the open bay door. There was a tang of smoke in the air, but the winds were light and the breeze felt good.

Jiro looked up at a Carico class freighter that launched from a nearby landing pad. Its golden-brown rectangular shape reminded him of a large snack cake and his stomach rumbled in response.

"How about some supper?" he suggested.

Samantha perked up. "The Blue Horizon is ready for business," she said. "The ship is clean, there's a new computer system to control it all and the painters will be here tomorrow to give the outside a fresh coat of interstellar paint. Perhaps we should go back to the Wonderland to celebrate."

Merlin stood up and stretched. "That would be nice, as well as appropriate," he said, "but I'm simply too tired to dress up. Would it be okay with you two if we just go back to that little diner up the street outside the spaceport grounds?"

Samantha looked disappointed, but she understood. "Yeah, that's fine," she replied. Jiro simply nodded and got to his feet.

The wolf walked over to the main hatch, stepped inside and then set the controls to close the great cargo bay door. As it swung down slowly on large hydraulic arms, he closed up the airlock and secured it with the passcode.

They had to wait until the bay door was closed completely, and then Samantha led them toward her car.

"Let's walk," Merlin said. "It's just a good stretch of the legs, and perhaps by the time we get back, I'll feel more like doing something tonight."

"Yeah, okay. Let's go," Jiro said, rubbing his eyes. Samantha positioned herself between the males while they made their way across the tarmac. She looked over at the cougar and studied him for a moment.

"I've not heard you sniffling or sneezing today," she said to him. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, the meds have helped, but if I skip a dose, I can feel it coming back. I think it's all the danra trees in the area that are getting to me." He looked up and gestured toward bits of fluff that floated gently on the air currents. "One of the waitresses at the diner told me last week that this is the time of year the danra release their seeds on the wind."

They walked on, idly chatting as they left the spaceport and sauntered up the sidewalk along the main thoroughfare. Merlin and Samantha tipped their noses to the sky almost in unison at a strong waft of smoke. Before either could say anything, Jiro stopped in his tracks and pointed toward a building a few doors up from them.

"The Yum Diner's on fire!" he exclaimed, taking off at a run. Merlin and Samantha followed behind, but all three stopped in front of the building a quick moment later. Flames were licking out the top of the two-story structure, and smoke was just starting to push around the seams of the front door.

"Call the fire department!" the cougar yelled. Without waiting for a response, he ran to the front door and flung it open.

"Jiro, wait!" Samantha shouted. Smoked billowed out of the door, and heat followed the inflow of oxygen, but the navigator put his nose and mouth into the crook of an elbow and then darted inside.

Merlin whipped out his DataCom and connected quickly to City Dispatch. He gave a quick rundown of what he was seeing and then hung up when they were finished with him. Almost immediately, he heard klaxons go off at the nearby spaceport.

Samantha wrung her hands together as they stared at the burning building. Merlin wanted to run in too, but he knew that was a foolish thing to do. Jiro had no guarantee that he would be safe. In fact, it was highly unlikely he would come back out unscathed.

People from other shops around the neighborhood were gathering on the opposite side of the street, and all heads turned to look when fire trucks appeared around the corner at the end of the avenue.

Before the firefighters arrived, however, an explosion rocked the street, blowing out the windows and front door of the diner. The concussion knocked Merlin and Samantha to the ground and shattered shop windows all across the avenue. Gawkers scattered, running for cover from raining debris.

The wolf rolled over onto his side, gasping for breath, and then he reached out to check on Samantha. She coughed and brushed bits of blunted safety glass from her fur, but otherwise appeared unhurt, despite other jagged debris nearby that had just missed them.

Firefighters from the trucks rushed in, got them swiftly to their feet and helped usher them farther away from the building while others began rigging their hoses. A pair of canine firefighters approached the ruined front door, arms up to adjust their face shields against the heat as they prepared to go in. More sirens wailed in the distance as additional fire trucks and ambulances raced to the scene. Local police officers began pushing back the gathering crowds to give them room.

Samantha held Merlin tightly as a canine medic checked her over for injuries, and a Golden Retriever cop took details from the wolf on everything he knew, which sadly wasn't much. The Border collie's eyes were rimmed with tears, knowing that Jiro had been inside when the explosion erupted.

"I don't see how he could have survived it," she said with a cracking voice to the cop beside her. "He – he just rushed in. I don't – don't know what made him do it!"

Merlin put an arm around her and looked at the Retriever as the firefighters began shooting water in through the openings of the building. "We've been going to the Yum Diner for a couple weeks and our partner was friendly with all the waitresses in there," he explained.

"Hey!"

Merlin and Samantha looked around frantically, but then the cops and the medic looked up at the voice that called out to them.

"Up here! We could use some help!"

All eyes went to a window in the second floor of the burning building. In the opening was a soot-dirty cougar with his arms around two feline women, both of who were dressed in pale yellow dresses with smudged and dirty white aprons. All three of them were gasping for fresh air from the outside, but smoke shrouded around them through the window. Shouts went up from the gawkers and people began pointing at the trio.

An ursine firefighter ran to one of the large trucks and pulled a small platform from a rack on the back. He swiftly unfolded railing bars, slipped them into receptacles around the edge, and then stepped up on the platform. Operating controls on one of the upright bars, gravity repulsors beneath the platform came to life and the black bear guided the floating dais up to the window. Waves of heated air from below made the unit hard to steer, but he managed to get right up to the window sill.

When he reached the trio, he swung open one of the railings and held out a gloved hand to them, "I'm afraid I can only take one of you at a time," he said, "but this is the quickest way to get you down."

Jiro nodded and helped a short lynx beside him up through the window. "Take her first," he said through a fit of coughs. "We'll be here when you get back." He looked at the domestic cat on his other side to make sure she was okay. She clung to his side, afraid to let go.

The firefighter helped the lynx get in beside him and then he secured the railing. "I'll be right back!" the bear assured the remaining pair. The floating platform dropped quickly and the lynx closed her eyes from the rapid descent.

There was sudden crash behind Jiro and the woman, and both turned abruptly to see a section of the floor behind them collapse onto the lower level amid sparks and burning embers. The fire was drawing closer and the heat was almost unbearable.

"Hurry!" Jiro called down to the ursine firefighter. "The floor's caving in up here!"

The floating platform landed and Samantha jumped to her feet. She rushed to the lynx and helped her off on shaky legs. As soon as she was clear, the bear took the platform back up to the window as quickly as it would go.

"Here, come sit with us on the curb," Sam told the short feline. The lynx clung to her arm coughing and allowed herself to be led while the medic from the ambulance approached with an oxygen canister and a shaped mask for a feline face. He knelt down, turned a small valve and placed the mask up over her nose and mouth. The lynx inhaled, coughed violently, and then sucked in more oxygen.

Merlin stood up, his head finally clear, and looked up over his shoulder toward the floating platform descending again. "I'm going to run up to the corner market and grab some water bottles for them," he said, looking at the medic. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah, go ahead," the canine said distractedly.

Merlin turned and ducked under the yellow police tape, scooted through the crowd, and took off running up the street toward a market that he and Jiro frequented. Other small crowds dotted the sidewalk and street, customers and business clerks peering down the avenue to gawk at the fire, and he had to weave through them. At the market, he reached for the handle of the storefront door. The door was locked.

Merlin pressed his nose up to the glass with a frustrated frown and peered inside.

"Sorry, mate," said a coyote in a white work apron from the nearby crowd. "I've locked it up for now. The fire might spread up the block and we've got to be ready to go."

"I need water bottles!" the wolf explained. "Three people were pulled from the burning building and need water. One of them is my friend."

The coyote youth shook his head, swiveling his gaze to watch another fire truck approach the scene. "Sorry," he repeated.

Merlin grumbled beneath his breath and placed himself between the clerk and the scene down the street. "The fire hasn't spread to any other buildings yet," he growled, locking eyes with the merchant, "but the people down there need the water." The coyote set his jaw firmly and opened his mouth to argue, but then the freighter captain's face softened as he added quietly, "Please."

The clerk sighed and nodded. "Okay," he said, digging into the pocket of his apron. "Let's make this quick."

"Right!"

Once the door was open, Merlin dashed to the wall coolers while the clerk unlocked his register. The freighter captain returned with several bottles of chilled water and set them on the counter. The coyote rang them up and then took Merlin's credicard while the wolf bagged the items himself. They finished the transaction a moment later and then Merlin ran out the door toward the fire.

At the yellow police tape spread around a wide perimeter behind the fire trucks, a red vixen barred him from ducking under the tape.

"Stop!" she commanded. "Stay behind the tape."

"That's where I came from!" Merlin complained. "I just ran up to the market to get these for the survivors." He opened the plastic sack in his arms to show her the bottles.

The red fox fixed him with firm stare. "That story's not getting you past me," she said.

"But, that's—"

"Listen, it's too dangerous further in. Just stay out here and gawk with the rest of the rubberneckers."

"Officer, please let him through!" called out a voice behind the vixen. She and Merlin turned to see Samantha waving at them. She sat on the street curb between two soot-smeared felines and a couple of rescue workers.

The officer turned back to Merlin and then lifted up the yellow tape. "Okay, go in," she told him, "but be careful and get out as soon as you can get your friends mobile."

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you!" He padded over to Samantha as quickly as he could and then handed a bottle to each of the cats. "Here," he said. "This should help wash the grit from your throat."

"Thank you," rasped the lynx.

The black and white domestic cat on Samantha's other side took the bottle meekly as both rescue workers got to their feet. One of them trotted off toward his emergency vehicle, but the other turned to Merlin and put a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" the German shepherd asked him.

"Uh yeah," Merlin replied, "but I wasn't inside."

"No, but your girlfriend here said both of you were knocked over from the concussion. How's your hearing? Your eyes?"

Merlin glanced quickly at the girlfriend reference, but Samantha was talking quietly with the domestic cat to keep her calm and was not looking his way. "My eyes feel dry, but that could be from all the smoke in the air," he answered distractedly.

The rescue worker pulled out a pen light and examined the wolf's amber eyes. "What about your ears?" he asked again.

"I dunno," Merlin replied honestly. "I think there's a ringing in my ears, but that could just be the fire trucks or sirens from the ambulance coming up the street and the crowd behind us."

"Your eyes are clear, alert and tracking my light okay," said the rescue worker. "I'm not finding any debris. Any other injuries?"

"Not that I know of."

"I'm going to check you out anyway. Please hold still." Merlin did as directed as the canine gently probed through his thick fur all around his head and neck. After a moment, the German shepherd sat back and said, "All right, I think you'll be okay. That fireman is bringing down your cougar friend now, so let me attend to him."

"Yeah, go ahead." Merlin looked up in time to see the ursine firefighter lowering the platform to the ground. Jiro was leaning heavily against one of the side rails, coughing hard into the crook of an arm.

Merlin's first impulse was to rush to his friend's aid, but the medic moved first and held him back with a firm hand. Without a word to him, Merlin knelt down in front of the lynx. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked her gently.

The feline looked over at him with tired green eyes and nodded quietly. Soot, dirt and bits of wood splinters were in her fur and her whiskers were drooping. The wolf looked around for something to use as a rag, but found nothing but debris all around, so he pulled the shirt tail from his trousers and quickly ripped a section from the bottom of it. He doused the cloth with water from another bottle and then gently began cleaning around the woman's eyes and mouth. The lynx closed her eyes and leaned into him as he worked, saying nothing.

Paramedics from the ambulance rushed over them just as the front section of the diner collapsed in on itself. Two firefighters with hoses were nearly buried in the rubble, but both managed to dash away just in time. New flames licked out around the debris and more hoses were opened up into the structure.

One of the paramedics knelt down in front of the waitress with Samantha, but the harried feline buried her face in Sam's shoulder and refused to talk. "I think Jessica's in shock," the lynx said quietly.

The paramedic, a male lion with broad shoulders, turned to her. "I know this has been traumatic, but can you tell us what happened?" he asked.

The lynx swallowed, but nodded. "We were getting ready for the lunch crowd and I'd gone upstairs to get fresh napkins for the dispensers while Jessica was in the large refrigerator refilling the butter pats."

"How many people were in the café?"

"Two others, I think - Thom, our cook, and Mr. Jameson, a regular customer who comes in every morning to read his paper over coffee and a muffin. I don't think anyone else was in the dining area." She gestured toward the cougar behind them, who was being looked over by the other paramedic and the rescue worker. "Jessica said this guy came running in and found her stumbling out of the fridge."

"Any idea what started the fire?" Samantha asked.

The lynx frowned and hung her head. "No, but I'd guess Thom started a grease fire on accident. He's done it before, but it never got out of hand like this before."

"The fire spread too fast!" Jessica the domestic cat said at last, still clinging to Samantha's arm.

Jiro nodded in confirmation toward the back and white cat. "I tried to get her out, but we got hemmed in by burning chairs and tables. Then she told me her coworker had gone up to the store room on the second floor, so we went looking for her. The fire spread up the wooden stairs faster than I thought it would, but then the explosion took out the staircase altogether!"

"What caused the blast?" Merlin asked.

"Probably the container of cooking fuel Thom keeps in the kitchen," the lynx replied in amidst a coughing fit. "He hated going back and forth to the store room, so he kept some down under the counter." She looked over her shoulder at the building and suddenly shuddered. "We should probably warn the fire fighters that that there's a barrel of it in the back."

The leonine paramedic helped the lynx with an oxygen mask with a worried face. Merlin read him correctly and got up to inform the firemen of the fuel barrel. All three felines were treated for smoke inhalation, but the black and white domestic cat seemed to have suffered the most.

Merlin approached two firefighters wrestling a large device onto the floating platform that had been used to rescue the felines. From what the wolf could see, it contained a softball-sized metal sphere connected by copper tubes on both sides to large metallic caps that were bundled together by a steel frame of steel rods. A white tiger looked up at the approaching wolf with frustration.

"Sir," he said with a growl, "you'll need to get back behind the yellow tape for your own safety."

"I'm with the party rescued from the second floor," Merlin told him. "One of the waitresses said there's a barrel of cooking fuel inside a back store room, larger than the one that exploded. The paramedic thought you should know."

The other firefighter, a broad-shouldered bull, looked up in alarm. He got to his feet and then rushed around the fire trucks to find his commander. "Thank you," said the tiger. "You should get your friends and the paramedics out of the area, just in case the fire gets to the fuel. I've got to get this ready."

"What is it?"

"It's a Serizawa Oxygen Destroyer," replied the tiger as he turned back to the platform, "but we can't use it until everyone is out of the building."

There were shouts from the crowd and Merlin looked up to see two firefighters carrying a limp canine dingo between them. They headed straight for the paramedics, so Merlin left the tiger to his business.

The medic treating the felines unfolded a stretcher onto the ground and helped the firefighters lay the dingo down on it. The man was unconscious and badly burned.

"Mr. Jameson!" The lynx was horrified, but she turned to the firefighters and grabbed one by the coat tail. "What about Thom?" she asked. "Did you find our cook?"

"No, ma'am," replied the Dalmatian with a frown. "We looked all through the kitchen and dining area, but this fellow is the only one we found. I'm afraid but to tell you that the blast in the kitchen likely caught him or the second floor buried him when it collapsed."

Jessica shrieked and then buried her face in Samantha's arms, sobbing in remorse for the death of their coworker. Suddenly, there was shouting that drew everyone's attention. It was the Fire Chief, ordering everyone back away from the building. He saw the paramedics and their patients, and ran to them.

"We need you folks to clear out as quickly as you can!" the large grizzly exclaimed. "The fire has spread to the back store room and we're afraid the fuel containers there may explode. You won't be safe at this distance if it does!"

"What about the fire?" Jiro wanted to know as he helped Jessica to her feet.

"As soon as everyone is out, we're going to drop a foaming generator into the building; it will destroy all oxygen in the air in there, snuffing out the fire."

One of the firefighters who'd brought out the dingo turned to the grizzly. "Everyone's out, chief. We were the last."

"Okay, get these people out of here." The Fire Chief turned on his heel and ran toward the white tiger.

Jiro led Jessica away, while Merlin and Samantha helped the other waitress step around scattered debris, leaving the paramedics to pick up their gear and secure the dingo canine to the stretcher.

Behind them, the white tiger gave his chief a brisk salute and then activated the floating platform, the oxygen destroyer at his feet. Jiro looked over his shoulder and watched the firefighter rise up into a smoke blackened sky. Burning embers sparked as they ricocheted off the tiger's fire resistant garments, and the man was thankful for the glassteel shield over his face for protection.

Buffeted by the superheated waves of air, the tiger guided his small craft up over the inferno, racing against time to deploy his cargo before the fuel canister below might ignite. He positioned the platform directly over the burning building, hoping he could stay in place long enough to do his task and escape potential barbeque.

Waves of heat tried to push him higher, but the gravity repulsors fought to maintain the altitude programmed into their tiny computer processors. The firefighter knelt beside the device and primed its charge. Then, he lifted the cylinder and stumbled to the railing beneath its weight. He fumbled and dropped the heavy unit over the side, nearly following behind it as the safety rail collapsed beneath him.

The oxygen destroyer disappeared through what was left of the roof while the tiger fought to reach his feet. He struggled with the control panel, nearly passing out from the heat, and then took advantage of the rising waves to assist in pushing the platform upward. Concentrating on the task of surviving, he didn't witness the reaction below.

Before the device fell the full distance into the flame-engulfed building, a series of frothing bubbles quickly erupted from both ends of the cylinder. Fed by a combination of available oxygen and heat, the bubbles coalesced into thick translucent foam that rapidly expanded throughout the flames, following the greatest concentration of fire. The froth continued to swell further and further until it filled the entire burning structure and spilled out onto the surrounding street and alley, hissing loudly. The foamy gel darkened and thickened as it used up all the available heat and oxygen, depleting its resources.

Farther down the avenue, the feline waitress turned in her flight with the cougar and looked back at the building. The former diner now resembled nothing more than a scorched and smoldering blackened marshmallow; had there been anyone left inside, they would have surely suffocated beneath the foam.

Jessica choked back a sob, but then screamed out in horror, wailing at the sight before finally shrieking the name of "Thomas!" The cat broke away from Jiro's arms with a cry and stumbled over a concrete curbing toward the diner, but instead of getting up again, she wrapped her arms around a newsstand box and wept in heart wrenching sobs.

Burdened with the stretcher, the paramedics were unable to stop to help her, but a police officer watching the proceedings from the nearby crowd ran to her side. The waitress clung to him and allowed him to lead her away to safety.

Moments later, the small party set down in a narrow alley that was relatively clean of trash, but with high brick walls that would shield them should the explosion occur despite the thick coating of oxygen-depleting foam.

One of the paramedics began rudimentary treatment of the dingo's burns, while the other turned to Jiro and the lynx. Worried of a repeat reaction with the remaining waitress, the lion held out a gentle hand toward her. "Are you alright, Miss?" he asked quietly.

The lynx looked up at him and took his hand after a moment of inner inspection. "Yes," she said quietly in a scratchy voice. "I should think I will be okay with rest."

Samantha, who had been quiet for some time, leaned forward with a water bottle. "Do you live nearby?" she asked. "We can walk you home."

The short feline took the water gratefully, letting the cool liquid slide smoothly down her parched throat, and then shook her head. "No, I live across town," she answered humbly. "I commute by metro bus. It's a small place, barely large enough for more than a bed, but I think I'll enjoy crawling into that bed tonight."

Jiro coughed into the crook of his arm and wiped his stinging eyes. "Sliding into bed sounds like a good idea," he muttered. "First a hot shower, and then I think I'm going to turn in early tonight." He glanced back toward the mouth of the alley where red and yellow lights from the emergency vehicles continued to alternate upon the brick walls. "I think I've lost my appetite for now. Merle, if you and Sam want to go find another place to eat, go ahead. I'm going back to the ship."

"Why don't we all go back," Merlin suggested. "We can just have something delivered tonight."

"That sounds like a good idea," Samantha agreed. She turned to the lynx and asked, "Would you like to join us for tonight? We have a ship at the spaceport where you can clean up and rest. It's not far."

Merlin and Jiro exchanged looks, and then with an imperceptible nod to one another, the wolf turned to look at the small feline. "You're free to head home, if that's what you want," he said, "but we have plenty of hot water in the tanks and clean sheets on the beds. It's not far."

The lynx looked up with moisture in her eyes. "I – I don't want to be an imposition," she said with hesitation.

"Nonsense," Jiro said. "There are plenty of cabins with door locks, so you'd have all the privacy you need for the night."

"You're also welcome to join us for supper," Samantha said. "Our treat."

The waitress hung her head for a moment and then looked back up with a weary, but grateful expression. "Thank you," she said quietly. "I really don't feel up to changing buses three times to get home tonight."

Merlin looked over at the paramedic who had listened to the exchange quietly. "Will this be okay?" he asked. "We've already given our statements to one of the police officers."

The lion nodded. "I think this little lady will probably be in better hands with you good folks than making her way home alone tonight. As long as the police have your contact information, I don't see why you can't go on now." He glanced over his shoulder toward the alley entrance and said, "I think the danger's passed."

"Thank you," said the lynx.

"My name is Sam Chase," the Border collie said, taking the feline's hands in her own. "What's yours?"

"Ivy Sparks," replied the waitress.

"Well, Ivy whom we found amongst the sparks, this brave cougar who came to your rescue is Jiro Brannon and our captain here is Merlin Sinclair."

Ivy gave them each a look of gratitude, and then she leaned forward to give Jiro a gentle lick on the cheek. "Thank you for coming in after us," she said quietly. "That was very kind of you."

Jiro smiled at her and put a hand upon his bare chest. He gave her a small bow and said, "The pleasure's all mine, Miss Sparks. I'm just sorry your diner is gone. I enjoyed going there. Your wait staff has taken good care of me, so hopefully for tonight, we can do the same for you."

Ivy chuckled and turned back to Samantha with a hand up to her cheek. "He's a smooth one, isn't he?"

"Yeah, that's what he certainly believes," Merlin quipped with a grin.

Samantha swatted the wolf on the arm and shook her head. "Don't mind him, Ivy. He thinks because he's our captain that he has the right to voice his opinion at any time."

"Of course I can," Merlin countered. "Until I can fill in the rest of my crew, these two yahoos are the only ones I have to boss around!" He stood up and offered a hand to the lynx. "Seriously, though. We're about three blocks from our ship. Are you up to the walk?"

Ivy took his hand, stood up on surprisingly stable legs and then looked up at him. The tops of her ears barely came up to his chest, but she seemed undaunted by his height or her shortness in stature. "I think the walk will probably do me some good," she replied. "It'll help me get more fresh air into my lungs. If you will lead the way, I will do my best to follow."

"The guys can lead," Samantha said. "I'll hang back to make sure you don't falter."

Jiro got to his feet wearily and headed toward the street. "I think we'd better get back while I can still stand," he said. "I think I just hit the proverbial wall."

"C'mon," Merlin said to his friend. "I'll talk to keep you awake along the way."

Ivy took a last look and sighed at the giant marshmallow that oozed where the Yum Diner used to stand. She was not looking forward to the conversation she would have to have with the owner, Nomm Yum. If the Siamese cat hadn't yet heard the news, he'd likely try to contact her or Jessica as soon as he did – not to check on their well-being, but to demand an explanation. Without the diner, she was now without a job and she would have to look for employment as soon as possible. There were hundreds of food establishments in Alucara, so she had to hope that she could find something quick enough.

Samantha said something to her, but she had to shake herself from her thoughts. "Huh?" she asked. "Sorry, but could you repeat that?"

The Border collie gave her a smile. "I was just asking about your dress size. While you're getting cleaned up, I can run out to a clothing shop and get something for you to change into."

Ivy looked down at her waitressing uniform. The pale yellow dress was smudged with soot and grime. The white apron over the dress was so filthy that the cartoon image of a smiling kitty holding a knife and a fork was barely visible. Her left sleeve hung in tatters from her shoulder and the hem appeared scorched. She bit her bottom lip in sullen thought, wondering just how awful and disheveled that she must look.

Feeling humbled by the collie's generosity, she mumbled her sizes, but Samantha's hearing was good enough that she understood without having to ask her to repeat. Finally, the lynx looked up at the taller canine and asked, "Excuse me for asking, because I don't want you to think I'm ungrateful, but why are you being so nice to me?"

Samantha shrugged, but then realized how flippant it must look to the short feline. "You looked like you could use a friend," she said simply. "I have the extra credits and I don't mind helping out someone who could use it."

Moisture rimmed the waitress' green eyes and she hastened to wipe them before her tears mingled with the grit in her cheek fur. She tried to use her apron, but it was too dirty to be of help. Instead, she simply brushed at her face fur to groom it into some semblance of order as they walked.

"Thank you," she said quietly. "I'm grateful for your compassion." Samantha opened her mouth to reply, but Ivy cleared her throat and gestured quickly toward the guys in front of them. "What are they talking about?" she asked.

Properly distracted from further discussion over the lynx's current state, the Border collie turned an ear toward the males and then nodded. "Those two are partners in a new business, but they're having trouble finding a crew for their freighter. I joined the crew about a week ago, but so far, there've been no other applicants."

"Freighter? Is it a large boat?"

"It's a space freighter," Samantha explained. "If we can get the business going, we'll be hauling cargo back and forth across the Planetary Alignment. We just finished getting the ship all in order, but we still need a crew of about eight or nine to run the ship and move the cargo." Ivy fell silent for a moment and Samantha thought she looked tired. "I'm sorry, but it's another couple blocks until we arrive."

The lynx looked up at her. "Huh? No, I was just thinking. Listen, Sam, was it? May I ask your captain something?"

"Of course," said the canine. "Merlin, wait up a moment!"

The gray wolf stopped to look back at the ladies, and Jiro leaned up against a signpost proclaiming that the lane they traveled parallel to would turn into the spaceport main entrance.

"Getting tired?" Merlin asked the lynx. "We're not far from our ship."

"Captain, Sam was just telling me about your business, and I was wondering if you were taking applications for a cook?"

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I suppose so," he replied with a nod. "However, did Sam tell you that it's only a freighter? It would hardly be a glamorous position, one I assumed would be one of the last spots to be filled."

Ivy lifted up the grimy apron and gave him a sad smile. "It's been a while since I've been glamorous, Captain," she told him. "I doubt the pay could be much worse that what I was making at the diner."

"Do you have cooking experience?" Merlin asked. "I don't mean to belittle you, but that wasn't your position at the diner."

The lynx chuckled. "Yes, Captain, I have cooking experience. However, that position wasn't available when I put in my application with Nomm Yum, so waitressing is the best I could get with him."

"I see. Let's get moving," the wolf said with a glance back at his partner. "Jiro looks like he's about to put down roots next to his signpost and I know you've got to be tired on your feet after working your shift."

Merlin tapped the cougar on the shoulder and the feline navigator looked at him wearily. "Is it time to go to school already?" he muttered.

"Almost, son, but you need a bath first."

"Okay."

"How did you wind up working at this diner if you live across town?" Samantha asked as they continued walking toward the main gate of the Alucara Spaceport.

"Well, that's kinda complicated how that came about, but I've only been working there because I've been stuck in Alucara without a way to get back to Fyn."

"You're from Fyn?" Merlin asked over his shoulder.

"Yeah, I've always wanted to travel off my own homeworld to see other parts of the Planetary Alignment and managed to scrape up enough money to come to Alexandrius. I'd been here once before with my folks when I was a kitten, but this was my first time on my own. Then, three days after I got here, I lost my money and my return ticket."

"Ouch! Were you traveling with anyone, friends who could have loaned you enough to get home?"

Ivy shook her head. "No, I was traveling alone."

"That's never a good idea, even under the best conditions," Merlin said.

"Yes, I learned that lesson. I'm still learning it. I've been here almost a year. I'm fairly sure my apartment back home has been cleaned of my belongings and the place leased to someone else by now." The lynx took a few quick steps to walk beside the wolf. "Captain, may I submit an application for your crew?" she asked. "I'm afraid I'm not big enough to move much cargo, but everyone will need to eat and I'm familiar with various appetites for herbivore, carnivore and omnivore."

Merlin nodded. "My original plan was to stock the galley and just let everyone prepare their own meals according to their individual tastes, but… if we had regular mealtimes to gather around, I admit that it would help bring the crew together when everyone might just keep to themselves otherwise."

"Exactly," Samantha agreed. "You said yourself that a bunch of people would need to get along if trapped inside a ship for weeks at a time. Food has always been a good way to bring people together to get to know one another."

"Okay, you've convinced me," the wolf said with a nod to the lynx. "We could use a shipboard cook. However… I can't promise you how soon we'll have a delivery to Fyn, so you may wind up doing more traveling than you originally intended."

Ivy chuckled again. "That would be preferable to waiting on tables here for an indeterminate amount of time."

Merlin nodded, but a look of frustration crossed his face. "Besides the three of you, I still need five or six more to round out the crew positions before we can launch, so I'm afraid we're not yet ready for an onboard diner. I was hoping to leave by next week, but I promise to give you a call as soon as we need you."

"Merlin," Samantha said quickly, "Ivy's out of a job. I think she needs something right away."

"True, but—"

"Waiting until launch time wouldn't be very wise, anyway," the Border collie continued. "The galley is clean, but it still needs to be stocked with everything: food, ingredients, pots, pans, plates, cups, utensils, and so on. All this will need to be done before the ship is ready to depart."

"Yes, I suppose that's so."

Samantha gave the lynx a pat on the arm with a smile. "Here's what we'll do," she said. "You can pick out a cabin this evening, and after you've had a good night's rest, you and I will go shopping for the ship's galley the first thing in the morning. What better way for two women to become friends than to go shopping together?"

Ivy smiled back at her and said, "I would like that very much." She turned to thank the wolf, but the expression in his eyes made her pause. He was irritated at Samantha for jumping ahead of him with a potential employee. However, the look vanished quickly when Merlin realized that Sam was correct in this instance and his expression softened.

They rounded a chain-link fence and he raised a hand; her eyes followed where he pointed. Sitting on a landing pad near one of the spaceport buildings was a flying saucer with worn and faded blue paint.

"If this is where you really want to be, there's your new home and place of employment, Ivy Sparks. Welcome to the Blue Horizon."

Chapter 9

Exposure

When Merlin opened his eyes the next morning to the sunshine streaming in through the window of his quarters, there was only one thing on his mind. Coffee. The gray wolf had long had trouble waking up in the mornings and coffee was the one sure-fire way to bring his sleep-addled brain out of its lethargic fog. His favorite was Kidwell, a simple breakfast blend, but he enjoyed many different coffees from around the Planetary Alignment and he was always willing to try new ones.

Like many of his kind, Merlin saw no reason to sleep in cloth garments. His fur and the lightweight sheets of his bed were more than enough to keep him warm during the night, and when he sat up to slip on a pair of sandals, he gave no thought to anything but the coffee awaiting him in the galley. The wolf rubbed his eyes sleepily, curled his tongue in a wide yawn and shuffled out the door.

Without even realizing it, Merlin had already been on board the freighter long enough that he made an immediate right turn outside his cabin door and padded around the circular corridor directly to the galley, all with his eyes closed.

As soon as he entered into the room, however, his eyes came open with a smile. "Mmm, that smells wonderful…" he muttered. While the galley was not yet stocked with anything, Merlin had kept a coffee pot, grinder and several bags of coffee beans on the kitchen counter since his first night on board. The brew had already been tended and a fresh pot sat ready for his cup.

"Oh, my…"

The wolf looked over at the far end of the single long table that occupied the galley. The room was well-lit from the morning sun through the long, unpolarized glassteel window. Ivy Sparks sat at the end, a half cup of coffee on the table before her. She was dressed in a simple set of pale green shorts and an oversized shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, but her matching green eyes were wide as she looked at him in surprise.

"Good morning," Merlin said with a smile. "Did you sleep well?"

She nodded, but appeared distracted.

The wolf raised an eyebrow at her expression. "Mind if I have some of that coffee?"

"Uh, help yourself…" the lynx replied.

As he walked across the room to grab a cup from the cabinet, he felt her eyes upon him, but it wasn't until he stepped behind the solid counter that he realized what had her preoccupied. Aside of his sandals, the captain hadn't dressed before leaving his quarters.

"Oops…" he muttered in sudden realization. Ivy blinked rapidly and then looked up into his face, her mouth partly open in quiet astonishment. "Sorry about that," he told her. "I apologize for my thoughtlessness."

The lynx closed her mouth and swallowed. "Is… this typical of your mornings?" she asked slowly.

Merlin laughed and picked up the coffee pot. He shook his head and filled a cup. "No," he replied with a smile, "this is not typical. I just needed my coffee and was thinking of nothing else when I got out of bed."

"I'm sorry," Ivy said, suddenly staring down at her own cup. "I guess being in a metropolitan city like Alucara for the past year, I've forgotten there are still a lot of people across the Planetary Alignment who have not yet followed example by wearing clothing over their fur."

Merlin sipped his coffee lovingly, and then looked over at her again more seriously. "I am in the habit of wearing clothing, but I slipped up this morning," he said. "Again, I apologize. Jiro's not so accepting of clothing over his fur, however, but he does wear enough to keep himself covered for modesty. I should follow his example." He took another savoring sip of his brew and then added, "Will you forgive me?"

Ivy looked up at him and allowed herself to give him an impish little smile. "I forgive you," she told him, "but don't let me stop you if this is how you wish to present yourself on your own ship. I'm only the hired help… Besides, the scenery's not bad."

The wolf grinned openly and set his cup down on the counter. "At least you know I'm not shy," he replied. "As I said, however, this is not typical of my behavior. In fact, I'm not likely to forget it again after this."

The lynx chuckled and picked up her own cup. She took a sip and then glanced up at him. "Did I make your coffee okay? It's all I could find in here."

Merlin smiled and lifted his cup. "Smells and tastes great, Miss Sparks. After you and Sam finish your shopping spree today, I'll be glad to have more than just coffee in here. Normally, for breakfast, we would go up to the street to this little diner we know…"

Ivy's expression fell and she suddenly looked tired. Merlin set his cup down and sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "It appears I have a deficiency of consideration this morning."

Ivy nodded and heaved a heavy sigh of her own. "I'll get over it," she muttered. "Despite how tired I was last night after my shower, I couldn't go to sleep right way. I kept thinking of poor Thom. His girlfriend isn't going to take his death very well."

Merlin curled his bushy tail around his nether regions and then moved out from behind the counter to sit down at the table beside her. He put a hand on top of hers and patted it gently. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said quietly. "I'm sorry I mentioned it."

The lynx took a deep breath, but managed a sad smile when she looked up at him. "If we haven't launched by the time they hold Thom's memorial services, I would like to attend. I may have felt stuck working there, but he was a good coworker."

"Sure." Merlin stared out the window at the sparse overhead clouds and quietly watched the contrails of a starship's atmospheric engines as it departed the spaceport. Both of them sat silently for a long while before Ivy finally composed herself.

"Captain," she said after a moment, "thank you for this opportunity. I don't know when I'll ever have the chance to go back home to Fyn, but I promise I will give you my best work while I am here."

The wolf looked over at her. "After the nickel-tour last night and hearing us talk about the business over our delivered supper, you're still willing to stay with us?"

"Yes, Captain," she replied. "You offered me a better salary and benefits than what I was getting from Yum, and the job comes with a place to stay at no extra charge. How can I top that?"

"You told us last night during supper that you've been trained as a gourmet chef. I still don't understand why you weren't working at a classier place than a diner."

"Believe me when I say that was the first thing I tried when I realized I needed a job," Ivy replied. "However, everyone demanded Alexandrian references. No one would accept my résumé with Fynian experience." She leaned closer to him, as if afraid someone would overhear. "Alexandrius and Fyn may both reside in the habitable zone of the same solar system, but there's always been a bit of prejudice here against Fyn as being a poor and undesirable planet. Just because we're not as technologically advanced doesn't mean we're stupid," she said in distain. "We developed the Falstar LightDrive system on our own without Alexandrian help, and interstellar travel is hardly a backwoods science experiment."

Merlin leaned back in his chair. "I wasn't aware that Alexandrius harbored such feelings for Fyn," he said. "After my folks passed away, my siblings and I came here from Dennier to live with our grandparents who had retired here. I was a resident until after college, but I don't ever remember hearing anything about this."

"I doubt you would," Ivy replied, getting up from her chair to grab the coffee pot. She refilled Merlin's cup and then her own before speaking again. "The Alexandrians think of themselves as the social center of the Planetary Alignment and look down their noses on us poor Fyns."

"Wow," Merlin mused. He sipped at his coffee and his face relaxed into a smile. "Mmm, that's good coffee. It's the same blend I've made many times, but I think you did something to it differently."

Ivy gave him a sly smile. "That's a family secret," she said.

"What did you do, add one of your whiskers?"

The lynx laughed out loud. "No, I didn't add anything," she confessed. "You just have to know the right temperature to have the heat before you put on the pot to get the best flavor out of the beans."

Merlin took another sip and savored the flavor. "I have your contract on my slateboard back in my office," he said in a mellow voice. "As soon as I can get your thumbprint on it, I can start having my coffee this way every morning!"

"That sounds like a good deal to me," replied the short lynx. She looked at a dainty wristwatch in the fur of her left wrist. "What time does Sam get up?" she asked. "She wanted to take me shopping before the painters arrived to start on the outer hull."

"I dunno," the wolf admitted. "She may be in the shower with Jiro again."

Ivy's green eyes widened. "Oh! I didn't realize the two of them were together," she said. "I rather thought…" her voice trailed off when Merlin looked over at her at the words she was about to speak.

"You thought she was with me," he said dryly.

"Uh, yeah. With both of you being canine types, I just assumed…"

Merlin waved his hand idly. "It's a common assumption, so don't let it bother you. Actually, Sam and I used to be a casual pair when we were at the university together, but we've not been a couple for a number of years now. We're close, but we're just friends and now she's one of my employees."

"Ah, okay. So what's this about her and Jiro showering together… again, you said?"

The wolf chuckled and just shook his head. "I won't go into the whole story, but on her first morning on board the Horizon, she heard a shower running from an open cabin door and thought it was me. Thinking she and I might still have our old connection, she decided to share the shower, only to discover it was Jiro instead!" Ivy's eyes crinkled in amusement. "Standing there naked in front of her already in the shower, Jiro thought to tease her by inviting her to join him. To his surprise, she did!"

The lynx put a hand up to her mouth. "And they told you about it?" she asked incredulously. "I think I would have kept it a secret!"

Merlin snickered. "They probably would have, but neither of them thought to shut the door; I found them in there together."

"What did you do?"

Merlin gave her a big smile. "I reached in and turned up the cold water!"

"You didn't!"

"I certainly did. Scared them both."

Ivy leaned forward onto her hands. "Weren't you mad?"

"Not at all," Merlin replied after a brief hesitation. He set his cup down on the table and shrugged. "Sam and I aren't a couple anymore, but we had a good parting, so if she wants to pair up with Jiro, that's their business. Of course, I had to convince them of this, but if any of my employees want to get together, it's okay by me, so long as it doesn't disrupt the ship's operations."

The lynx sat back and looked at him for a long moment, clearly unconvinced about the stated feelings between the wolf and the Border collie, but as a newcomer, she didn't feel it was her place to voice her opinion. Finally, she relaxed and gave him an impish smile.

"I don't know what to think about the males on this ship, Captain," she said cryptically.

"What are you wondering?" he asked.

She narrowed her eyes and smiled at him. "Jiro exposes himself to Sam on her first day on board, and then you do the same to me on my first morning."

Merlin stared at her in disbelief, but then he returned her grin. If she was game to banter, so was he. "To be fair, it was Sam who first bared herself to Jiro, so if you want to even the score..."

Ivy's mouth dropped open and her voice squeaked when she asked, "Is that a requirement prior to signing my contract?"

Merlin laughed aloud. "Not unless you just want to, Miss Sparks! Garments are not required on this ship, but it might be rather disruptive without them. No need to panic; I'm simply teasing you."

The lynx shook her head and then the two of them laughed heartily together. Ivy reached out and put a hand over his, smiling widely. "Thank you, Captain," she said with a contented sigh. "It's been about a month since the last time I truly laughed."

"I'm just glad you didn't laugh when I walked in the door…" Merlin replied with a smirk. "That might have crushed my self-esteem."

"Captain—"

"Stop right there," the wolf interrupted with an upraised finger. "I know I'm your new employer, but please don't feel like you have to address me by title all the time." He gave her a smile and put a hand up to his chest. "My first name is Merlin and I usually respond to it more readily than I do with a title I've only had for a couple weeks now."

The lynx held out a hand with a smile. "I am pleased to meet you, Merlin. Likewise, you may call me Ivy, or even Sparks, as you wish."

"There, that's better." The wolf shook her hand then picked up his coffee cup again. He lifted it up to his lips and drained it completely. "Mmm, that's good."

"Want another cup?" Ivy asked.

To her surprise, Merlin shook his head. "No, I think that's enough for now," he said, rising from his seat. "I need to check for messages and then get ready for the painters."

"Be sure to put on some britches. You might distract the painters from their work."

Merlin grinned and whipped his tail around so that he covered himself moderately. "Smart aleck," he quipped. "I can see we're going to get along well."

Ivy simply smiled back at him and took a sip from her cup.

***

Forty-five minutes later, Merlin stepped onto the bridge and brought up the room lights. He was freshly showered and dressed in a pair of casual blue pants, a beige shirt and black boots designed for his feet. He was well groomed, and charged with his morning coffee, he was ready to face whatever the day threw at him.

He glanced out the forward windows and the morning light reflected from the near-invisible circuitry within the glassteel panels that would turn them into information vidscreens when activated. Activity was already in full swing at the spaceport around them, but he ignored it to concentrate on the controls before him.

The wolf leaned over the com console to check the daily messages. The Blue Horizon was not equipped with video communications, set up solely for audio and text contacts. There were three voice messages awaiting his attention. The first was from the foreman of the paint crew, advising they would be there to begin their preparations in approximately an hour from the current time. The second message was the response to a shipping query he had sent out to a potential customer, but they declined the services of the Blue Horizon; he didn't have a service record to promote since the ship hadn't long been in operation. Merlin deleted the message with a frown and then called up the next. It was time-stamped as having been received in the past ten minutes, and as he listened to it, the frown disappeared from his features.

The wolf sat down at the controls and initiated a call-back on the contact number. The connection was made almost immediately.

"Hello?"

"Hello, may I speak to Leonardo Durant?"

"This is Durant. How may I help you?"

"I'm Merlin Sinclair, captain of the Blue Horizon. I just received your response to a call for crew positions on my ship."

"Captain Sinclair! Yes, thank you for calling back. I would like to set up a time when I could submit my résumé and tender an application as an accountant for your business."

Merlin swallowed nervously. It was the first response to his advertisements he'd received. "I would be happy to meet with you as soon as you are able."

"I am free all day today, but I will need directions to your office."

"My office is located on board my ship, Mr. Durant. We are currently stationed at pad number 39A near the Freight Terminal of the Alucara Spaceport. I am expecting painters for the outer hull today, so I am likely to be here all day. Feel free to drop by at your convenience."

"Thank you. I will see you in about an hour."

"I am a Dennieran gray wolf and will be around here somewhere. If you don't see me, ask anyone you see at the ship and they will find me."

"Until then, sir."

"Good bye."

***

Not quite an hour later, a large cinnamon-furred bear unfolded himself from a small cab at the freighter terminal and stood up to pay the driver. He was dressed smartly in a charcoal gray suit with a medium green tie, and he had a large manila envelope tucked under one arm. The cab departed a moment later, and the ursine newcomer turned to look at the freighter.

He took a long look at the vessel on the launch pad and noted the activity surrounding it. An even dozen workers was setting up cleaning equipment to knock all the dirt, dust and interstellar debris from the pitting in the ship's outer hull. The captain he was to meet had mentioned plans to have the ship repainted, so this must be their preliminary work. Three of the workers prepared power washers up on floating scaffolding near the top of the vessel, but they had not begun their task.

The cargo bay door was sealed tight, and it looked as if the main airlock was too. As he approached the retractable walk ramp, the hatch cycled open and a gray wolf stood just inside, looking out at him uncertainly.

"Mr. Durant?" asked the wolf.

The grizzly thought this person appeared to be nearly fifteen years younger than he was, but he appeared confident and didn't seem intimidated by the bear's greater height. "Yes, sir. I take it you are Captain Sinclair?"

"That's right. I asked the painters to hold off until you got here, but there may be a delay when it's time for you to leave."

The grizzly looked down at the wolf with a pleasant smile. "I have no other engagements today, if that becomes the case."

"Very good," the wolf replied. "Let me tell the foreman they can get started and then we can go inside." Durant nodded quietly and then the captain signaled to a thin canine. The German shepherd padded over to the airlock and the wolf nodded to him. "You can begin at any time, Dietrich," he said. "I'm going to seal up the hatch."

"We'll get started right away, Captain. I will contact you when we have finished."

"Thank you."

The canine walked away and let out a sharp whistle to get the attention of his workers, so Merlin turned back to the bear patiently waiting for him and gestured toward the airlock. "After you," he said politely.

Durant walked up the ramp and ducked his head to enter through the open hatch. Merlin followed him inside, and when they were past the inner airlock panel, the wolf closed it with controls at the side and sealed the chamber lest paint fumes try to seep inside the unpressurized compartment.

The bear looked around the empty bay, looking across the hold and then up into the support beams to a cargo crane above. "Your ship has a sizeable holding capacity," he said quietly as the wolf led him across to the lift.

Merlin nodded. "I doubt we'll ever be filled to that capacity, but it would pay nicely if we did."

"I wouldn't discount it," Durant replied. "I've worked on a few freighters in my time and you would be surprised by how easily a load can take up all your available space."

The lift door opened and Merlin led him inside. "You've served on a freighter before?" he asked curiously.

"Several," the bear admitted, "but only on Pomen cargo air lifters that never left the atmosphere. My first job on one was as a deck hand, and I was load master on the last three. However, when my contract expired, I decided to go back to school to earn a degree, rather than sign up for another run with Captain Renaldo. He was a good captain with a decent head on his shoulders, but I was ready to move back into educational circles. Almost as soon as he released me, I moved here from Pomen for the universities."

The door opened and Merlin led him out into the circular corridor. He turned left and took him to his office. "Is load master the position you are applying for, Mr. Durant?" he asked as he gestured toward a large chair in front of the wolf's desk.

The grizzly sat down, trying not to grimace when the seat felt a little snug on his back side. He was used to such things being inadequate to his size and he sat forward slightly on the edge of the chair, balancing himself with a shoe lodged up against a desk footing. Merlin took his own seat behind the desk and looked at the bear politely, oblivious to the newcomer's precarious position with the chair.

"No sir," replied Durant. "Although I have that experience, my expertise is better suited for accounting. I have my degree and I am a licensed Certified Public Accountant." He set a manila envelope on the desktop and pulled out a brown folder. He slid the folder across the desk to the wolf and added, "Here are my references."

Merlin picked up the information and glanced over it with interest. After a moment of quiet reading, he set the folder back on the desk and looked over at the bear. "I'm impressed by your credentials, Mr. Durant," he said, "but I am curious. Why would an established CPA apply for a job on a space freighter?"

The grizzly gave him a gentle smile, almost looking embarrassed. "To be honest, Captain, I've missed a life of traveling, and when I saw that you were starting up a new business, I felt we could benefit one another. You will need someone with experience to manage your books, and I would get to travel again."

The wolf narrowed his amber eyes at him, the corner of his mouth crooked up in a half smile. "There's more to this than just traveling, isn't there?" he asked.

The bear looked surprised, but nodded without much of a hesitation. "I don't know how you knew, but yes. My clientele has been declining in recent months due to new Alexandrian software designed to simplify financial structuring and management. Due to this decline, it's been difficult maintaining enough income to support the rental of my office and staff salaries, so I've been on the lookout for either a partnership or a fledgling business that might need my experience."

"Hasn't there always been home software out there like you've mentioned?"

"Yes," Durant admitted, "but this latest variety is especially well-designed and has gotten enough good press that it's gained an unusual amount of popularity. I’ve tested it out, and unfortunately for me, this piece of programming can do everything as well as it claims."

Merlin raised an eyebrow and leaned forward to rest his arms upon the desk. "If this software is as good as you say, perhaps I should consider using it myself." The grizzly froze, sitting perfectly still, his breathing shallow, and he felt a cold shiver course its way down his spine. I've said too much, he thought to himself in alarm.

When the wolf was sure he had the bear's full attention, he gave him a subtle wink and sat back in his chair. "However, I can't say I would trust all my finances to a computer routine. Too many things can go wrong; I think I would rather have someone with experience handling my books."

Durant felt the blood rush back into his head and he almost felt light-headed from the slight scare the wolf had given him. He knew that the captain was simply toying with him, but the momentary fright had been real.

Merlin picked up the folder once again and looked through the information, purposely allowing the bear time to recompose himself. He'd seen the brief panic in the fellow's eyes and almost regretted his moment of mischief. Looking over the references, he was impressed with this grizzly's qualifications. Naturally, he would call on the listed references, but he already found himself liking this guy.

He pulled a pen and notepad from a desk drawer and scribbled several lines onto the top sheet. He handed this to Durant.

"If you are interested, this is what I can pay for the position you have applied for, including the benefits listed below. It's paid per-voyage."

The bear glanced over the information and nodded. The salary was practically textbook standard for a ship's accountant, and the benefits of a crew membership were also typical to what he had in the past serving on the airline freighters. It was no more or less than he expected and he was prepared to accept. However, before he could voice a reply, the wolf held up a finger for his attention.

"I have an additional offer, if you're willing to listen," Merlin said. Curious, Durant simply gave him a nod to continue. "In reference to what you've told me, I would like to take advantage of your other skills."

"Other… skills?"

"Sure. With your experience as a load master, you could fill that position right away. It would come with its own salary, of course."

The grizzly raised an eyebrow and had to readjust himself on the edge of his seat. "Sir, you are aware that my experience as a load master does not include a star freighter. I've never had to calculate weight distribution for a vessel leaving an atmosphere."

Merlin smiled. "Did any of your air lifters ever make their deliveries at suborbital trajectories?"

"Many times," Durant answered. "It was often the most economical route. But, what does…." The bear suddenly stopped and nodded. "Ah, I see your point. There should be no real difference in this case."

"Exactly. Load distribution for an air lifter or a star freighter is the same. Once a ship is out into space, the placement of the cargo is not so critical – only while in an atmosphere does it become important. My computer tech has also supplied us with a load master’s slateboard with the latest calculation software."

"Your offer is intriguing, Captain, but I'm not sure how well I would do doubling up with two major positions on the ship."

The wolf nodded. "A typical flight between star systems within the Planetary Alignment is three-to-six weeks, dependent upon where you go. A load master's duties would really only be required at the beginning and end of each voyage, freeing you up during the rest of the journey to work on the books."

"Yes, I suppose that's true," admitted the grizzly. "How about a counter-proposal? You could contract me as your accountant, but let me just try on the load master's hat for one or two jobs. If things work out without conflicting with one another, then we can talk about a contract for the secondary position."

Merlin nodded. "If that's what you would like to do, I have no problem with the arrangement. All members of the crew will be helping to move cargo on and off the ship when the time comes, so whether you are moving it as load master or simply as a crew member, the only difference will be that as a load master, you'll be directing where the cargo is to be placed based upon sensor readings from the deck transmitted to the slateboard."

Durant chuckled with a nod. "Yes, I suppose so. Okay, if you consider my application, Captain, I would be willing to assume both positions."

Merlin held out a hand to him over the top of the desk. "Welcome aboard, Mr. Durant. You've just been hired as the Blue Horizon's newest mate."

The grizzly looked at the wolf's proffered hand in quiet surprise. Without even checking to make sure his references were legit, the captain had accepted him on face value alone. He took the wolf's hand with a pleased expression and shook it twice. "Thank you, Captain Sinclair. I accept."

The commander glanced at a desktop clock and said, "I'll work up your contracts this afternoon and have them ready for your thumbprint later today. It will be a while yet before you can leave the ship due to the painting outside, so how about a tour of the ship?"

"I would like that, Captain."

The wolf grinned at him. "You are welcome to call me Merlin," he said. "Since we'll be spending a lot of time together on the ship, it's probably best if we are casual right off. Do you prefer that we call you Leonardo or Leo?"

The bear's eyes darkened for just a moment. "Sir, this may sound silly to you, but I have never cared for my first name. I was named for my father's brother, who later turned out to be an arrogant and cruel … uh, embarrassment to the family. If we are going with preferences, I prefer everyone to call me Durant."

"Okay, Mr. Durant," the wolf replied with a nod. "We can do this."

It was the grizzly's turn to smile. "No need for mister. Durant by itself will be fine."

Merlin nodded with a lopsided grin. "I can understand that. I have trouble with people calling me Sir as well. There are only three others in the crew right now, but two are gone to buy supplies to stock up the galley. Let's see if we can locate my first officer so I can introduce you to him, and then you can meet the others later." Both of them stood up and then Merlin added, "I'm sorry about the chair, Durant. We'll make sure we get some furniture that you'll be comfortable in."

"Thanks, I appreciate that." He left the folder of references on the desk and followed the wolf out into the corridor. "If you don't mind me asking, when should I report for work?"

Merlin was about to tell him to check in sometime the next week, but then he remembered Samantha's insight with Ivy. "Well, until I can manage to hire the rest of my crew, the Horizon won't be ready to take on customers; however, it wouldn't hurt to start work on the books with a box full of receipts I've been keeping. We also need to get the business account set up properly so we can process new employees as each one is hired. You can begin work just as soon as you think you'll be ready to tackle the job."

Durant nodded. "I think getting started now would be a good idea, rather than waiting until we're ready to launch. It should only take me a couple days to settle my affairs and then I can jump right in. Will I have an office on the ship, or will I be working from the bridge?"

Merlin looked up at him. "Well, there is a load master's office down alongside the cargo bay. We can go take a look at it now and then you can determine whether or not it can double as an accountant's desk."

Durant held out a hand. "After you, sir."

Chapter 10

Bookends

Jiro peered into a dark access panel with a flashlight, his eyes squinting against the glare. He traced a row of relay switches in a narrow aisle and frowned at the stickers labeling each one. None of the engineering symbols meant much to him, but he felt he should recognize a bad breaker when he saw one.

The cougar scratched his bare chest and then thumbed off the flashlight, shoving it into the back pocket of his trousers. One of the switches appeared offset, so he lightly bit his bottom lip as he reached for it.

Outside the engine room, Merlin and Durant stepped from the cargo master's office and into the Hold. The grizzly held an oversized slateboard tablet in his hands and studied the readouts as they walked across a floor embedded with sensor pads in a standard grid pattern. The electronic device received signals from the sensitive sensors to aid in weight distribution when loading freight into the ship for transport.

The overhead lights of the cargo bay suddenly flickered, and then they heard a feline shriek emanate from the engine room. Without looking at his companion, Merlin took off running for the adjoining compartment.

"Jiro!" he called, dashing through the open pressure door. Durant ducked his head and stepped in behind him. The pair rounded an aisle corner and found the tawny mountain lion dancing a jig, the short fur along his tail standing out at all angles. He cradled a hand to his chest and moisture leaked from his eyes as he filled the air with Mainoran curses.

"Jiro! What happened?" Merlin asked.

The cougar stopped jumping and leaned back against a large coolant tank behind him, his head tilted toward the ceiling. He opened watering eyes and looked over at his companions. "I was trying to find a bad relay for the external venting fans," he explained with a strained voice, "and found a live connection instead!"

"Do you need medical attention?" the grizzly bear standing beside the captain asked.

Jiro forced himself to pull his hand away from his chest to look at it. He saw no blackened, smoking stump of fingers and realized he probably wasn't as hurt as badly as it felt it was. He flexed his fingers and then shook his head. "No, I don't suppose so," he replied with a grimace. Then he looked over at the bear. "Are you a doctor?"

Durant chuckled. "No, sorry. I'm an accountant."

Merlin shook his head at his friend's plight and said, "This is Jiro Brannon, our first officer, navigator and failed electrician. Jiro, this is Durant. He's our business accountant, as well as cargo master."

Jiro rubbed his fingers tenderly and nodded toward the newcomer. "Double-duty, eh?" he said with as much of a smile as he could muster. "Did Merle sit up and beg to get you on board?"

Durant smiled. "As a matter of fact…"

"…I didn't," Merlin finished quickly. "Durant has skills in both areas but neither is likely to interfere with the other. I offered him pay for each job, and he accepted with a little coaxing."

"You didn't offer me two paychecks for being first officer and navigator!"

"That's right, you slacker!" Merlin quipped. "You get extra pay for being second in command anyway."

Jiro gave the wolf a smirk and dropped his hand to his side, shaking his fingers vigorously. "Now my hand's asleep," he muttered, "or I'd shake hands with you, Mr. Durant."

"Thanks, but just call me Durant. It's what I'm used to."

"First name or surname?"

"Surname," the grizzly replied with a sigh.

Jiro gave him a disarming smile and said, "Welcome aboard, Durant."

"Thanks."

"Did you find the relay you were looking for?" Merlin asked, glancing at the panel that Jiro faced.

"Notchet. It may take me some time, since I don't have the skills of those raccoons we ran into at Poppy's."

"Okay, keep looking, but stay away from live connections," said the wolf with a grin. "We don't need a crispy cougar."

"Want to help me look for it?"

"Sorry, but I promised Durant a tour of the ship."

"Now who's the slacker?" Jiro grumbled. "See you later, Durant. Nice meeting you."

"Likewise."

***

Merlin returned to the compartment next to the bridge that served as his office. Durant was visiting with Jiro in the galley, the bear's tour completed and the cougar having given up on finding the relay for now.

The wolf kicked off his boots, leaned back in his chair and then propped his bare feet up on the corner of his desk. He rubbed his eyes and then nearly jumped out of his fur when the DataCom unit on his belt gave out a loud chirp. He fumbled with the clasp for a moment before finally tapping the control to answer the line.

"This is Merlin Sinclair," he intoned into the DC unit's miniscule microphone pickup.

"Captain Sinclair? This is Dietrich Pence."

"Hello, Dietrich. Is there a problem?"

"No, no problem. I just wanted to inform you that we have completed cleaning the outside of your ship. I'm sending my crew to lunch for now. We'll begin painting in about an hour and a half from now, so if you need to leave you ship, this will be a good time to get out into the open air. You also have two lovely ladies waiting out here to come on board, but you'll need to cycle your hatch for them."

"Thanks, Dietrich. Go on to lunch, and then let me know when you're ready to begin painting so I can reseal the ship."

"Will do. See you in a while."

Merlin closed the connection and then tapped up the frequency of Jiro's DC unit.

"Talk to me," came back the cougar's voice after a moment.

"Dietrich just informed me that his crew has gone to lunch and that the girls are back, waiting to come aboard. Since we can leave the ship for the moment, please meet me at the main hatch. I'm heading down there now."

"Do they need help bringing up supplies?"

"I'm sure they do, but I had a field trip in mind for you and me afterward."

"Field trip? Oh boy! Are we going to tour the girls' dorms at the university?"

Merlin stepped into the lift and then tapped the button for the lower level. "Not quite, Romeo. Just meet us down at the hatch."

"What about Durant?"

"He's welcome to help if he wishes, but he doesn't officially report in for a couple days."

"We'll see you at the front door."

***

"Good morning, ladies," Merlin said cheerily. Ivy looked up from her handbag with a wide smile. She was dressed in a white blouse patterned with green leaves and blue flowers, a pale blue skirt that just brushed her knees, and a pair of sandals designed for her feline feet. Beside her, Samantha was similarly dressed in a mint green blouse, darker green skirt and sandals. It appeared that in addition to shopping for the galley, the girls had purchased a few items for themselves as well.

"Good Morning, Captain," Ivy replied with merry eyes. She looked as if her morning had indeed been a good one. Samantha was also smiling, but there was something in her manner that immediately alerted the wolf that she had something on her mind. He didn't have time to mull it over long. Both females looked up at the figures that appeared behind him.

Jiro lightly shoved Merlin aside with a grin, nearly propelling him off the edge of the walk ramp. Durant reached out quickly and grabbed the captain's belt, keeping him upright.

"Thanks," Merlin told the grizzly. Then he cuffed the back of the cougar's head with a scowl.

Jiro trotted down the ramp and then gave a flamboyant bow toward the women. "Welcome, ladies," he said with an exaggerated high society accent. "Welcome bach to the mah-nor!"

Ivy curtseyed with a giggle. "Thahnk yew, kind sur," she replied. Jiro laughed aloud and Durant smiled at the playful exchange. The cougar gestured the grizzly forward and introduced him to the diminutive lynx while Merlin pulled Samantha off to the side.

"What's up?" he asked in a quiet whisper.

Samantha's eyes were smiling as she tried to keep her voice down, but a warning klaxon went off at a nearby launch pad as another ship fired its thrusters to take off from the spaceport. "I received a call from Ms. Holden’s administrative assistant that she is needed right away. It seems that her Master requires her return to Sillon for urgent family business. She will need to return to her apartment, change clothes, and then report in to the office to make the arrangements for a year-long absence."

Merlin tried to keep the smirk off his face. "When does she leave for Sillon?" he asked.

"Tomorrow evening. A Silloni transport will be lifting off at 8pm.” She leaned in closer and added, “She has already received a large, sealed envelope that I believe contains new identification material that Master Tristan's people here on Alexandrius put together, but she told her admin that it was just a new slateboard for the trip.”

The cruiser headed for the sky, leaving the tarmac much quieter for conversation. They dropped their voices to whispers while Jiro, Ivy and Durant continued with their own introductory discussion.

"No doubt my departure is already being whispered throughout the office," Samantha said with a knowing grin, "but I will still need to make a formal announcement to the staff before I begin my preparations."

Merlin nodded. "What if someone there feels it's their duty to escort you to the Silloni transport? How do you intent to fake your departure?"

"I already have that covered," the Border collie replied. "Once I'm on board, I will cover the white areas of my facial fur with black powder to alter my appearance at a distance, and then change into a used set of worker coveralls and a dirty hat. Then I'll slip out with the launch prep crew Tristan will have in place just for that purpose. Once I'm safely away from the transport, I'll just catch a luggage tug across the spaceport back over here. The transport will be making a legitimate return to Sillon, and my luggage they load will contain nothing more than gifts for the family that I will pick up tonight, so if anyone tracks the ship, they will see it on its long travel back home."

"Sounds like you have it all covered," Merlin said with a nod. "Okay, since you probably won't be back tonight or at all tomorrow, let me introduce you to a new hire before you go." He led her toward the others and then gestured toward the large grizzly bear.

"Sam, this is Durant, our new cargo load master and business accountant," he said. "Durant, this is Sam Chase, our computer tech and supply officer."

The bear stepped forward with a pleasant smile and offered his hand to the canine. Samantha took it with a warm smile of her own. "I am pleased to meet you, Ms. Chase," Durant said.

"Likewise, Mr. Durant," said the Border collie, "but you may call me Sam. We'll be working together, so I hope we can be friends."

"I would like that, Sam. Just call me Durant, please. No need to be formal with me either," responded the bear with a smile at them all. "I am looking forward to getting acquainted with everyone." He glanced over to Samantha's car, where bags and boxes filled up the back compartment. "May I help bring in your supplies?"

"Thank you, Durant. We would appreciate your help," replied the lynx.

"That would be great," Samantha added. "As soon as we get everything on board, I need to go take care of a family situation that has arisen, and I probably won't be back for a couple days."

"Nothing bad, I hope," Jiro said.

Samantha shook her head with a smile meant for everyone present. "Nothing drastic," she answered, "but it's likely to be time consuming."

Merlin gestured toward the supplies in the vehicle. "Let's get everything moved so she can be on her way." Then, to her, "Remind your father that he still owes me twenty credits."

The Border collie looked at him strangely, but he gave her a subtle wink out of view of the others and then she remembered her role to play as Sam Chase with a fabricated family history.

"I'll tell him, but I don't think he'll oblige you," she said with a grin.

***

On the outskirts of Alucara, Merlin guided the rented panel van along a gravel road bordered on one side with a row of triangle-leafed danra trees. He pulled in through an open wrought-iron gate in the fence that surrounded Poppy's Quality Used Starships in the middle of an undulating field of prairie grass. He drove in amongst the various pre-owned vessels for sale and then parked up next to a small, weathered Quonset hut.

The wolf exchanged glances with the cougar beside him and then stepped out of the vehicle.

"I wonder which one they're working in today," Jiro mused quietly, peering around them at the ships. Out on the prairie with nothing to act as a wind break, the only sound they heard in the vicinity was the strong breezes.

"I don't feel like poking through each ship," Merlin replied, pocketing his keys, "so we should just go inside and ask Poppy."

"Hello sir! I'm Poppy Tredrozuto, how may I help you two…" said a short ferret in a dark blue pair of shorts, vest and a matching Panama hat. He stepped out of the hut and frowned suddenly when he recognized his visitors. "No!" he squeaked, holding onto his hat in the wind. "All sales are final!"

Merlin matched his frown, suddenly remembering the condition of the ship and its computer system, but he shook his head and waved a hand in the air. "We're not here for a refund," the wolf said quickly before the lot owner could launch into another tirade. "We just want to talk to your mechanics."

"You're not?" asked the ferret suspiciously. "What do you want them for?"

Jiro looked down at him. "Relax, Poppy, it's nothing personal. We just need some technical information on one of the systems that we can't seem to figure out. Since you have two Okami experts, we figured we'd drop in and pick their brains."

"Oh, okay… just so long as you leave their brains inside their heads. Don't hurt them, please."

"Why? Have they done something wrong that we're not supposed to know about?"

Poppy looked up at him and gave him the wide, cheesy smile of an experienced salesman. "Of course not," he said quickly. He leveled a short arm at a pale tan flying saucer that hadn't been there during the wolf and cougar's first visit. "You can find them somewhere inside that one," he said. "If you're looking for a second ship, that one is in prime condition – probably the best one I've ever acquired!"

"No, thanks," Merlin replied. "One's enough. Thank you for your time."

"You're welcome! Be sure to send business my way if you hear of anyone else looking for a ship!"

"We'll do that," Jiro said over his shoulder as he and his companion walked across the lot toward the tan freighter. Then under his breath, he added, "I'll warn anyone I meet about your cleanup efforts…"

It didn't take them long to locate the pair of raccoon mechanics. The vessel's large bay door was open and both were just inside at a control panel with its circuit boards pulled out and arranged haphazardly across an anti-static mesh sheet on the floor of the hold.

"No, this one goes there, Jerad. Look, it's clearly marked ay-one-three-three, zero-six-five."

"Okay, I missed the double digit."

One of the raccoons looked up when Jiro walked up the loading ramp toward them. Merlin had one foot up on the extended ramp, adjusting his boot. "Hello," said the mountain lion.

"Hi, guys," said the one with a multitude of pockets sewn onto this dark green coveralls. "You back to buy another ship?"

The other one glanced up over a smoking cigar and then grimaced at the sight of the cougar. "They're probably here to demand their money back," he muttered. "Give it up, boys. Poppy's got the tightest fist on his credits as you'll ever find."

Merlin stepped up the ramp and stopped beside his partner. "Well, we are here to relieve him of something, but it's not money or another ship."

Jerad knelt and put a circuit card down on the sheet, his eyes never leaving the newcomers. "Uhm, what are you after?"

"Actually, it's you we came to talk to," Jiro said with a smile.

"What for?" growled Jasper, cautiously picking up a pointed tool. "You can't blame us for whatever you found on the ship you bought."

Merlin looked over at his companion with an amused expression. "Is everyone feeling guilty here today?" he asked the raccoons. "Poppy said almost the same thing when we asked him where to find you guys. Relax, guys. We're just here to make a proposition."

Jerad wiped his hands on a shop rag he produced from a pocket. "Sorry, wrong gender," he said with a snicker.

Merlin shook his head and Jiro looked back at him with a smirk. "Right… Listen, when we were here before, I overheard you two discussing a desire to go back out into space. If you were serious and you're still looking for a ship to crew on, I could use a chief engineer and a mechanic on my freighter."

Jasper raised an eyebrow and then gave a quick glance at his brother. "We were serious," he admitted slowly, "but we really haven't been looking."

"Well," Jiro said with a smile, "we've just finished putting the Elihu Frisbie into good order, only she's been re-registered as the Blue Horizon. It's in ship-shape shape, cleaned and stocked from top to bottom. It's also getting a new paint job as we speak."

"We've replaced the computer core system with the latest mainframe, operating system and software," Merlin added, "but I still need to finish out my crew positions. I can pay standard freighter salary for your skills, plus full insurance and medical benefits."

Jerad's face lit up, but Jasper grabbed his arm with a warning glare. "Give us a moment," he said over his shoulder at the wolf. Then as an afterthought, he pointed toward the circuit boards on the deck and added, "Don't touch anything."

He pulled his brother all the way across the cargo deck to an office on the far side of the hold and then shut the door behind them. Merlin shrugged and then sat down on the loading ramp, swinging one leg. Jiro leaned up against the airlock frame and crossed his arms.

"Do you think they'll join us?" he asked.

Merlin stared out at the other ships on the lot a moment before he replied. "Hard to tell," he muttered. "The one with all the pockets seemed willing - Jerad, I think - but I don't know about the other one, Jasper."

"Would you want both of them on your ship?" Jiro asked quietly. "You've already said you preferred we hire someone we can get along with. Do you think the grumpy one would fit in?"

The lupine captain looked back up at him. "I'm not planning on a crew fur-pile, but if he's willing to keep the ship maintained for us, yeah, I'd consider adding him to the crew. We'll never find a group of folks who are going to get along at all times."

"Yah, that's true."

They heard the far office door open again and watched the brothers approach them across the hold. Neither was smiling. Merlin got to his feet, and the one with the cigar stepped forward, looking up at him. "We appreciate the offer, but we couldn’t possibly get away anytime soon. Thank you, but no."

The wolf frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that. I need mechanics that are experienced with Okami-class freighters, and you guys fit the need perfectly."

"Yeah, thanks for considering us," said Jerad apologetically with a slump to his shoulders.

Jiro sighed. "If you know of any other qualified mechanics who would like the chance to get out into space, please have them contact us. We can't launch until we have the positions filled, so we're kinda grounded for now."

"Sure, we'll do that," Jerad replied, sticking his hands into two of his many pockets.

Merlin gestured for Jiro to follow him back to the van. As soon as they were back inside the vehicle, the wolf closed his eyes and then rubbed a temple in frustration.

"C'mon, let's get back to the Horizon," he said. "Perhaps Ivy or Durant may know any local engineers who might be up for the task." He started the van and then guided the vehicle back out to the gravel road.

Chapter 11

Shared Heartburn

Durant pointed up toward the forward leading edge of the newly painted Blue Horizon. "They missed a spot there," he said. Ivy looked up to the ship's nose, wondering if a vessel completely circular could have a nose on it. She spied a patch of faded blue paint beneath the bridge windows while the taller grizzly beside her gave the rest of the paint work a critical eye.

The contractors had just departed, leaving Durant with the invoice, and although the outer surface was already dry, the lynx was hesitant to touch its shiny surface. The vessel had been painted two shades of blue; it was dark navy over all, with a lighter blue in a wide band around the outer perimeter, framing the windows of the crew deck and the ship's running lights.

"Won't the new paint get scorched the first time we enter an atmosphere from space?" Ivy wondered aloud.

Durant smiled down at her. "It would if we didn't have shields to combat the heat of reentry," he explained. "In addition to propulsion, the LightDrive engines power a high-intensity bubble of energy around the ship whenever it's in flight. This deflects space debris while we're out in space so something, say the size of a marble doesn't punch through the ship like it was made of soft butter while we're traveling at extreme velocities. It also deflects and dissipates the heat buildup of hitting a planet's atmosphere."

Ivy crossed her arms and then put a hand up underneath her chin. "If that's the case, how did the hull get pitted if it was so protected?"

The grizzly nodded. "The shield is usually not active once the ship is down inside an atmosphere, so things in the air are still a hazard. Although the LightDrive is shut off during a planetary descent, the shield system is still powered until the danger of reentry has passed. The LightDrive isn't reactivated inside an atmosphere, so when the ship is using its standard atmospheric engines, it's still susceptible to stuff in the air. Even freighters like this make deliveries from place to place while still on the same planet. I think Jiro said this one belonged to a bakery, so I'm sure it did a lot of traveling inside an atmosphere."

The lynx looked up at him. "I feel like I'm in school again," she said with a frown. "I'm sure it's a lot more technical than you say, so I appreciate you simplifying it for me."

Durant shook his head. "Don't take it personal, please. I've served on a number of Pomen air freighters where it was necessary to explain things plainly to the transient crews, so it's just my habit."

Ivy put a hand on the bear's arm and smiled up at him. "Don't worry about it. My appreciation was genuine. I can whip up some really complex dishes in the galley," she said, "but when it comes to science and space, I freely admit that I'm sorely uneducated."

"Excuse us, but is this the ship belonging to Captain Sinclair?"

Startled, Ivy almost jumped into the grizzly's arms. She and Durant looked behind them at a pair of raccoons, each dressed in dark green work coveralls, one pair worn and patched, and the other with pockets sewn onto just about every possible place. Both raccoons seemed amused at the grip the lynx had on the bear's arm.

"Sorry," said the one with all the pockets. "I didn't mean to startle you." He said it with an infectious grin, and Ivy couldn't keep herself from smiling in return.

"Apology accepted," she said, "and yes, this is Captain Sinclair's ship."

Durant gave each of the coons a nod. "What can we help you with?" he asked.

"We would like to speak to your captain," said the one with the patched coveralls. He pulled a previously burned cigar from a shirt pocket with one hand, a lighter from another pocket with the other, and then lit up the end beneath his cupped fingers. "He's not expecting us, though," he added.

"Uh, sure," Durant said. He led them all to the port side of the vessel to the main airlock and then walked up the ramp to the nearest intercom control. He didn't know which compartment the wolf might be on board, so he tapped the ship-wide intercom and said, "Merlin, please come to the main hatch. There's someone here to see you."

The response was almost immediate. "I'll be right down."

While they waited, the coon with the pockets held out a small hand. "I'm Jerad Porter and this is Jasper, my brother," he said. "Are you part of the Horizon's crew?"

"Yes, I'm Ivy," replied the lynx, shaking the raccoon's proffered hand, "and this is Durant."

Jasper stepped forward and offered his hand as well. After the greetings were over, he stepped up into the hold of the ship and then sauntered across the empty deck toward the engine room. Durant looked perplexed.

"Uh, Mr. Jasper, I don't think you should go in there without the Captain's permission," the grizzly called after him.

Jerad grinned and waved a hand casually in the air. "Oh, it's no problem," he said merrily. "We're the ones who worked on this ship before Captain Sinclair bought it from Poppy."

Durant's expression turned dark. "Are you the ones responsible for trashing the place?" he asked. "I heard about all the cleanup they had to do when they got the ship from you."

"No, no!" Jerad quickly assured him. "That was done before Poppy even got it! We only made sure the engines and primary systems were operational enough to sell it!"

"Hello, Mr. Porter," Merlin said as he walked up. "What can I do for you guys?"

"Captain," Ivy interrupted, "this guy's brother just went off into the engine room."

Merlin raised an eyebrow and glanced back inside the empty cargo hold. "What's going on?" he asked the remaining raccoon. "Did he leave a tool in the engine room? We've already done extensive cleaning in there."

"No, sir, he's just looking around," Jerad replied. "Captain, we've decided to take you up on your offer."

"What offer?" Durant asked curiously.

Jerad grinned widely and then flashed a casual military salute toward the wolf. "The Porter brothers are reporting for duty, Captain!"

Merlin crossed his arms. "That's odd," he replied with a frown. "I thought the Blue Horizon didn’t fit your personal timetable."

Jerad's salute wilted and then he stuck both hands into his pockets with a shrug, uncomfortable under the wolf's suddenly intense gaze. "I would have signed up on the spot if it hadn't been for Jasper," he replied in a quiet voice. "He wanted the job just as much as I did, but he didn't want us to appear too desperate to accept right away. He wanted us to wait a bit before we agreed, to make it seem as if we had reconsidered."

"Would you believe that I have already filled those two positions?" Merlin asked without emotion.

Jerad's face fell. "Ouch."

Durant looked surprised at this news, but before he could say anything, Ivy looked at Jerad and asked, "Ouch?"

The raccoon swallowed and he studied his scuffed boots, unwilling to meet anyone's eyes. "We just quit our jobs with Poppy," he muttered. "He wasn't very happy with us for jumping ship while in the midst of repairs and practically threw us out the gate before we could get our things into the pickup truck."

"Ahoy, Captain!" Jasper called from across the cargo hold. He headed toward them, his cigar trailing a thread of blue smoke behind him. Merlin said nothing until the raccoon reached them.

"I assume my brother told you why we're here," the coon said to the wolf.

"He did, but you're too late," Durant said, crossing his thick arms.

Jasper looked alarmed. "What's that mean?"

"The captain has already hired someone for the positions," Jerad supplied.

"Who?" Jasper demanded in a strained voice. "We quit our jobs for this!"

Merlin merely looked at him. "Your brother admitted that you purposely mislead us when we came to visit you this afternoon."

"Yeah," the raccoon answered slowly, looking sick. "I didn't think you'd find someone else so fast. It's only been four hours."

"Did I deserve that?" asked the captain with a cold look. "I came to you in good faith, but you felt it necessary to slap away my hands as a bargaining tool."

Jasper pulled the cigar from his mouth and stared at it with a sigh. He mashed out the embers on the bottom of his boot and then brushed away the end before putting what was left into his shirt pocket. "No, I suppose not," he agreed quietly. "I'm sorry, Captain." He looked over at his brother with a frown. "Come on Jerad. Time to start looking for a job. Maybe Mercy's Garage is hiring. She's good, but I've heard she's been away on personal business a lot lately and that little guy who works with her has been swamped."

"Good luck," Ivy offered in a small voice, feeling bad for the raccoons.

"Thanks," the brothers replied in unison. Merlin, Durant and Ivy watched them shuffle quietly back to a green pickup truck that was parked next to the Jiro's rented van.

Just as Jasper reached for the driver side door, Merlin called out to him. "Report to work by 0800 tomorrow. I'll have your contracts ready to sign first thing in the morning."

Durant and Ivy looked at the wolf in sudden surprise, and Jasper stared back at him with a puzzled expression, but Jerad's face spread into a wide grin. "A-ha!" he said with a laugh.

Not sure he had heard correctly, Jasper walked slowly back over to the captain. "I thought you said you'd already hired someone," he said.

"Likewise, I thought you said you didn't want the job," Merlin replied coolly. Then he held out a hand to the raccoon with the hint of a smile. "I can also play that game, Mr. Porter. I never said that I had hired anyone. I only implied to your brother that I might have already filled the positions. So, shall we call it even?”

Jasper swallowed the lump in his throat and then he gave the wolf a smirk. He took Merlin's hand and nodded. "I suppose I deserved that bit of heartburn, Captain," he admitted with renewed strength in his voice. "I'd say that squares us, if you're still willing to take us."

Merlin nodded as Jerad took up a position at his brother's side. "I'm glad to have you join us," he said, "but think twice before you decide to pull something like that on me again. I can handle a joke, and I've been known to play a few pranks on my own, but I'm fully serious when it comes to my business."

"I will remember that, Captain," Jasper replied, relief evident from his features to his posture.

"Thank you, sir," Jerad said enthusiastically. "You won't be sorry you hired us!"

"Well then," Merlin said, now at ease, "since you guys are already familiar inside and out with an Okami freighter, there's no need to give you a tour. You can stake a couple of unclaimed cabins for yourselves once you report in the morning, and then we can see about getting your things on board."

"Begging your pardon, sir," Jerad replied, "but everything we own is in the truck. Part of the bargain working for Poppy is that he let us bunk on board any spare place in one of the ships on the lot, so long as we kept the cabin clean for potential customers to see when they came through."

Merlin narrowed his eyes. "Are you the ones responsible for the mess on the Elihu Frisbie?"

Jerad repeated the performance he had given Durant earlier. "No, no!" he quickly assured the wolf. "That was done before Poppy even saw it! We only made sure the engines and primary systems were operational enough for him to sell it! Because we saw the insides of an Okami every day of the week, we were bunking in the Prairie Dog freighter on the back of the lot for a change in scenery. Hardly anyone ever looks at that one, so we figured it would be the easiest place to set our bedrolls each night."

"Okay," Merlin replied, "go ahead and move in. I'll get Jiro to help you move your tools on board while I work up your contracts."

"I'll give 'em a hand," Durant volunteered.

"I thought you had to go wrap up things at your office before you started working here?" Ivy asked. "I appreciated your help taking the galley supplies up, but don't you need to go soon?"

The grizzly smiled. "I don't mind," he said. "It helps build initial friendships. I'll just call for a cab after we're done."

"Thanks, Durant!" Jerad exclaimed merrily. "If you want, I can drive you home in the truck when you're ready."

"Thank you, I would appreciate that."

Merlin looked over at the pickup truck and noted the amount of toolboxes and personal effects that filled the back. "Why don't you drive on up into the cargo bay," he suggested. "That will make unloading your things a little easier."

"Great! Jasper, hand over da keys!"

Chapter 12

Personal Preparations

Late the next night, one of the spaceport's automated luggage carts slowed to a stop near the unloading zone of the Blue Horizon's closed bay door. A shadow detached itself from the back of the cart and then padded quietly to the ship's airlock. The cart pulled away after a pre-programmed wait and then headed toward its next destination.

Samantha flipped open a flush panel, tapped in her passcode, and then the main outer hatch pulled into the hull to split apart, its twin panels disappearing in opposite directions. The inner compression door was open, but she hesitated before going through. She peered around the corner slowly and then studied the empty cargo deck, but there was no one in sight. She didn't want to have to explain her clothing and makeup to anyone on the crew, but the cavernous compartment was quiet. She ran as lightly as she could toward the lift door after she had closed the hatch behind her.

She repeated her cautious look around the corner of the lift door when it opened on the crew deck, but as before, no one was in sight. She could hear voices coming from the galley at the aft curve of the circular corridor. She walked quickly to the door to her cabin and then let herself in.

Once inside with the lights on, the Border collie stepped into the restroom and peered at herself in the mirror. Black, powdered dye had transformed her monochrome face and throat to solid black. She pulled a dirty cap from her head and set it on the counter, and then she removed the grease-stained, gray work coveralls she had been wearing over her undergarments. She undressed completely and turned on the faucet to the shower. While she waited for the water to heat up, she studied herself in the mirror. The white fur of her belly and chest stopped abruptly at shoulder level. She hoped the dye powder would wash out easily enough. Once she was clean, she would join the others in the galley and mingle with the growing crew.

Just before she turned back to the shower, Samantha gave her reflection a triumphant smile. Everything had gone according to plan without a hitch. The Holden branch manager and two subordinates had accompanied her to the spaceport to see her off. In addition to several business crates labeled for Master Tristen, a clerk had taken her four large suitcases on board. Sam bid farewells to her escort, and then the airlock of the cruiser closed with her inside. Ten minutes later, the flight preparation crew departed the craft through an aft airlock away from the small crowd, and then the vessel launched for the distant world of Sillon a few minutes later.

Back at the terminal, Samantha had watched her escort head back to their limousine, and then she thanked the flight preparation crew for their help with their instructions. They were completely trustworthy, but were unaware of her real plans for staying behind after the ship departed.

The Border collie stepped into the warm spray of the shower and proceeded to clean off her disguise. Samantha Holden had left the planet. For the next year, there would be only Sam Chase on board the Blue Horizon.

***

When Durant returned to the freighter the next morning, he immediately began looking for the lupine captain. After a search throughout the freighter, he realized that during his tour, Merlin had never taken him up to the recreational deck, the uppermost level of the vessel. He walked back to the lift door and thumbed a button set in the wall at waist level. The panel slide aside and he moved inside. He tapped a button labeled "3" and the lift door closed. The cubicle hummed as it moved upward.

The door opened again seconds later and he stepped out onto the ship's top deck. A large curved window faced ship's forward that was equipped with near-invisible circuitry that allowed it to double as a window or a vidscreen for broadcasts, movies or other recorded programs. There was an instrument terminal below it as secondary monitors for systems of the ship. Lush blue carpet covered the floor and ceiling, and light brown siding was molded to fit the circular walls of the room. There were comfortable chairs and couches dispersed at random around the large chamber, with a tiny kitchenette occupying an area at the aft section of the room.

It seemed like the recreation deck would be a nice spot to get away from regular ship's operations, but despite the small amount of furniture, it was largely empty. Several storage lockers occupied the aft wall where extra equipment or recreational items could be stowed. A sealed emergency escape hatch was in the ceiling in the back near the kitchenette, and eight glow panels fit flush along the ceiling in a standard grid. These were currently off; the morning sunlight provided ample illumination through the vidscreen window.

Seated on opposite ends of a couch were Merlin and Samantha, each with their shoes off and resting casually while looking out the window at the spaceport traffic. They were talking quietly, and neither appeared to be aware that anyone had come up on the lift.

"Good morning," he said quietly, not wanting to startle them. Merlin's hand rose to wave back at him without turning around, but the Border collie looked up over her shoulder at him and smiled.

"Good morning," she replied. "Did you get your business squared away?

Durant picked up a chair with a wide seat and moved it so that he could sit down facing the others. "Yes, it was easier than I expected. The two on my staff had already secured other jobs and were just waiting for me to release them, and it only took us a day to box up everything and clean out the rental office. The few clients I had left have been transferred to associates I recommended in the city, and I have all my records on my personal slateboard."

"Glad to have you back with us," Merlin commented drowsily after taking a sip of coffee from a cup he held with both hands. "You can get started on the books at your convenience. I have everything in my office."

"Sure, I can get started right away. Where is everyone else?"

"I gave them the day off," replied the wolf. "I haven't been successful securing our first client but the ship is stocked and ready, so there's nothing for anyone to do until we have a delivery to make. As soon as I can wake up, I'll be diving headfirst into aggressive PR footwork to see if I can't get someone to hire us, even if it's just place to place here on Alexandrius."

"What seems to be the problem?" Durant asked.

"No one wants to trust a new freighter with no service history to deliver their goods," Samantha answered.

"I've got to find us some work fast," Merlin added. "Prepping this ship, stocking it with just the necessities, and putting it into order has all cost me more than I realized. My account is dwindling, and if we don't generate some kind of income, I'll be out of credits before we can lift off."

"Merlin," Samantha said hesitantly, "you know that I could—"

The captain glanced quickly at the grizzly and shook his head quickly. "Not now, Sam. Not here."

Realizing that she'd been about to repeat her offer to buy the business from him to make deliveries for her company in front of Durant, Samantha crossed her arms and closed her mouth. The accountant looked from one to the other quietly, wondering what was up between them.

"Well," he said to break the sudden awkward silence, "I'll get started on the books, if you'll let me have everything. I'll need access to your business account, too. Perhaps I can work up a budget and find a way to stretch your credits."

"Right," Merlin replied, stifling a yawn. He slipped on his boots, stood up, and then led the grizzly toward the lift door, leaving Samantha with her thoughts.

After they had gone, the Border collie pulled up Durant's chair, tossed one of the couch pillows onto it, and then stretched out her legs to prop her feet upon it. Although Merlin had said that the ship was stocked, she knew that it would take more than just basic supplies to get them through weeks of travel time. With his dwindling personal account, Samantha suspected he wouldn't be able to fill out the ship's supplies for long, so she began to form a plan.

To the general public, Samantha Holden was on her way to the faraway world of Sillon, but Tristan had ensured that Sam would have access to her personal fortune through a secondary account. Using her own funds without Merlin's knowledge, she would purchase the rest of what was needed to fill out and pad the ship's stores. She wanted more than just food and toiletries. There was more to life than just the necessities.

***

"What do I like to do?" Ivy asked with a finger up to her chin. She sat across from Samantha in the booth of an ice cream shop a few blocks from where Yum's Diner used to be, the establishment lightly crowded with a lunchtime rush.

Jerad sat beside the lynx, carving his mound of vanilla ice cream with a fork into the likeness of a mountain he had seen in a movie. "This means something…" he muttered quietly.

"It means you're playing with your food," Samantha chided with a chuckle. Jerad glanced up at her with an easy smile, but then Ivy looked back at the Border collie.

"I really don't have any hobbies," Ivy said. "I enjoy reading, relaxing in a bath and watching StellarNet, but I am usually so busy with work that I rarely have time for anything else. When I get home from a day of work, all I try to do is relax."

Samantha shook her head. "Once we finally launch, Merlin said a typical voyage from one star system to another within the Planetary Alignment is around three or four weeks on average, but longer in some instances. You won't be serving customers all day long as you would in a restaurant, so you're going to find that you have more free time than you'll know what to do with," she said. She looked over at the raccoon. "What about you, Jerad? What do you like to do?"

The short mechanic shrugged. "I read technical manuals, build useful tools of my own, tinker with spare parts and hone my sneaky-sneak skills," he replied.

Ivy looked sideways at him. "Sneaky-sneak skills?"

Jerad reached into a leg pocket and pulled out a rolled up vinyl pouch. He untied its worn leather strap and unrolled it on the table beside his ice cream bowl. Inside was a set of twelve shiny instruments of various delicate order."

"What are those for?" Samantha asked curiously.

The mechanic lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "They're for picking locks and throwing tumblers," he explained. "Sometimes they come in really handy."

"For what?" Ivy asked suspiciously.

"I told you that Jasper and I used to work as mechanics in a used ship yard. Sometimes the ships that Poppy bought had locked cabinets and panels that the previous owner neglected to hand over the keys to."

"That sounds reasonable," said the lynx. "What's so sneaky about that?"

"Nothing," Jerad admitted, "but there are other times when I need parts that we can't get without certain permits that Poppy refused to apply for, so we sometimes had to acquire them ourselves."

"Acquire…?"

Samantha shook her head with a frown. "He means that he steals them, Ivy, probably from local shops or warehouses."

The lynx snorted scornfully. "That's not very nice, mister," she said, turning back to the remnants of her banana sundae before it melted further. "I don't approve."

Jerad merely shrugged his shoulders as he put away his gleaming tools. "It's moot now anyway. We don't work for Poppy anymore and the captain will be paying for any of the systems we might need to keep the ship operational."

Neither Ivy nor Samantha made any further comments on the raccoon's practices, but the Border collie jotted a few notes onto the screen of a slateboard and then looked up at Jerad.

"What about your brother?" she asked. "What does he like to do?"

Jerad took a bite of his ice cream and thought for a moment before he spoke. "Aside of his cigars, his biggest passion is playing music."

"Music?" Ivy repeated in surprise. "Forgive me for saying this, but your brother doesn't look like the musical type."

The raccoon smiled at her. "No, I doubt anyone would think that," he said, "but he spends a lot of his spare time either listening to music, or trying to recreate what he's heard on his instruments. He's actually really good… but don't tell him I said that!"

Samantha smiled. "What does he play?" she asked.

"Just about any wind instrument and some others, though he doesn't actually own many. He's got a flute, clarinet, umpberlat, recorder, ocarina and a sonoragem, mostly because they're all small and can be easily transported."

"Wow," Ivy said, clearly impressed. "What kind of music does he play?"

"Classical, jazz and other instrumental types, though we both like Ganisan arias too."

The lynx smiled. "I wouldn't have thought the little guy would have the lung capacity for wind instruments."

"Don't be fooled," replied Jerad with a twinkle in his eyes, lifting a spoonful of ice cream to his lips. "He can blow hot air with the best of them!" Samantha scribbled more notes in her slateboard and then set it on the table. "Wot's tha fer?" the raccoon asked with a mouthful of his ice cream.

"If we're going to be holed up together on the ship for weeks at a time, I'd like to know what everyone likes to do," she answered.

"Are you the morale officer too?" the raccoon asked.

Smiling, Samantha shook her head. "Not really, but that's not a bad idea."

"Okay, Sammie," Jerad said with a smirk, "it's your turn. What kind of things do you like to do?"

The Border collie took a drink of her strawberry milkshake and then said, "I like to watch movies… particularly old classics. Earth and Kantus seem to be the leading movie-producing worlds, and I've discovered that I really enjoy the escape, immersing myself in the tales they make. I also read a lot of fiction. Of course, when I visit another planet, country or city, I love shopping!"

"What girl doesn't?" agreed Ivy with a smile.

"I also maintain online correspondence to keep up with new and updated computer technologies across the PA," Samantha added. "I love learning new things. It keeps my mind sharp."

There was a tiny series of beeps and Ivy looked down at the delicate watch in the fur of her wrist. She touched a stud on its side and then stood up. "I need to start getting ready for Thom's funeral," she said quietly.

"Do you need a ride from the ship?" Jerad asked. "I can take you in my truck."

The lynx smiled at him as she gathered up the bowl and spoon onto her order tray. "Yes, I would appreciate that," she said.

"Okay, I'll go get cleaned up too," said the raccoon, "and keep you company during the services."

"Thank you," Ivy said with emotion. "It will take me about an hour to get ready."

"Let me get a lid for my shake," Samantha said, "and then we can all head back to the Horizon in my car."

***

Jiro looked up from his desk at the open door to his quarters. Samantha stood there with a slateboard tablet in her hands, smiling in at him. "May I bother you for a moment?" she asked.

"Sure, come on in," the cougar replied pleasantly. He gestured toward his bed, indicating that she could sit there. "What's on your mind?"

The Border collie took a seat, but gestured back toward the entrance. "Do you always keep your door open," she asked in a teasing tone, "or were you hoping someone would stop in for a shower?"

The navigator laughed aloud. "The room is small, so an open door sometimes helps with the illusion my quarters are larger," he said. "Although, I should probably close it when I go into the shower so no one else will think it's an open invitation – especially now that we have more folks on board." Samantha grinned, feeling at ease around the cougar. "So, what can I do for you and your slateboard?" Jiro asked.

The Border collie held up the device. "I've been going around to each of the crew to find out what they like to do in their spare time," she told him. "We'll have several weeks of travel time between stops, so I thought I would stock up on some things before we finally head out."

Jiro frowned. "I heard Merlin say that his account was getting thin," he said. "Can we afford hobby material?"

Samantha shook her head. "Probably not, but this is something I'm doing on my own, with my own funds."

The cougar leaned forward. "I understand what you're doing, but I don't think Merlin would approve," he said. "Spending that kind of money could attract attention from the rest of the crew. You're supposed to be playing the part of a blue-collar worker, remember?"

"Yes, I remember, but who's to say I didn't have an extra few hundred credits saved back that I decided to use on my own? We're all still strangers here, but I would like to think I could help out enough to keep everyone from getting too bored on the journey. If someone gets cabin fever from inactivity, they're likely to get irritable and hard to live with, and there's no place to get away from the rest of us on a ship this small."

"Yeah, okay," conceded the navigator. "I won't say anything to Merlin about it, but if you go overboard getting things for the crew, he's bound to notice."

Samantha nodded, satisfied that he accepted her reasoning. "Now," she said with a smile, "what is it that you like to do in your free time?"

Jiro turned back to his desk and picked up a paper sketch pad he had been working on when she had arrived. "I'm an artist," he said, handing her the pad. "I like to draw, paint and sculpt, but I don't have a kiln onboard to fire any sculptures I might create, so I'll be limited to what I can do with a pen or a brush."

The canine looked at the geometric shapes adorning the top few sheets of Bristol. "What is this?" she asked.

Jiro shrugged. "I've been trying to come up with a logo for the Blue Horizon," he said. "I want some kind of emblem that can be associated with the business for customers to become familiar seeing."

"That's a good idea. These are interesting. Have you shown these to Merlin?"

"Not yet," the cougar replied. "I want to choose one and refine it before I present it to him. Trouble is, I like them all and can't seem to make up my mind."

Samantha studied the designs for a moment and then she held one up to him. "I like this one the best," she told him. "You have these two emblems intersecting one another, and if you put each of them in a different color, the contrast can complement each other." She smiled and added, "I think it would look good on our stationary, if we had any."

Jiro didn't return the smile, but instead studied the one she had chosen with a critical eye. "You know, I think you're right," he said after a moment. "I just might go with that one."

Pleased, the canine woman set the sketch pad in her lap and began to flip through the other pages. He had created drawings of the ship's exterior, some of the internal compartments, and even light sketches of the various crew members. When she came to one in particular, she paused and stared at the drawing in surprise. It was a pencil sketch of herself in profile, and done in surprising detail. He had captured the emotion in her eyes with a slight parting of her lips, and Samantha wondered what she might have been looking at when he had frozen this moment in time in his mind.

She finally tore her eyes from the image and glanced over at him with a look of amazement. He sat there quietly smiling back at her, pleased that she seemed touched by the drawing.

"Wow…" she breathed at last, putting a hand up over her heart. "You do have a talent!"

"Thank you," he said politely. "You may have that one, if you wish."

Samantha shook her head. "I don't think I should," she replied, humbled.

"Why?"

She smiled. "If I kept a picture of myself, it would seem rather vain, don't you think?" she asked.

Jiro blinked. "Uh, yeah, I suppose so."

"Give it to Merlin," she suggested, "or keep it for yourself, but I appreciate the honor." She looked past his shoulder and saw a covered easel next to his desk. "What's under that?" she asked suddenly.

The cougar looked over his shoulder, snagged a corner of the draped cloth, and flipped it up gently. The cloth fell to the side, revealing an unfinished oil painting. In the foreground was a depiction of the Blue Horizon in flight, but only a small section of space and a smattering of stars surrounding it had been completed. The rest of the canvas was unpainted.

Once again, Samantha stared in awe, and then she smiled. "You've really gotten into this whole Blue Horizon project, haven't you?" she teased.

"Yeah, I suppose I have," the cougar replied with a chuckle. "I've never been part of the foundation of a business before, and despite all the cleanup work, it's been fun. Of course, we'll have to see what happens when we actually get a client." He gestured toward the painting with a nod. "I haven't told Merlin yet, but once we finally get under way and we're on board for the next weeks of travel time, I want to see if he will let me paint this as a mural on that large blank wall in the galley."

"I think that would touch up that room nicely," Sam replied with a smile. "You should do it."

"Thanks," Jiro said, standing up to recover the painting. When he turned around again, he saw the Border collie taking a few notes. "What else can I help you with?"

She looked up at him. "Any other hobbies?"

"I tend to read a lot of adventure novels," he told her, naming off several well-known authors, as well as a few that Samantha had never heard of. "I've only read a smattering of each of their books, so you're likely to find a bunch that I haven't read yet."

Samantha finished her notes and then stood up. "Thanks!" she said. "This is exactly what I needed." She looked around the room and added, "Is there anything else you could use for your cabin that we've not picked up already?"

Jiro shrugged and then looked over at his bed. "Yeah," he said after a moment of thought. "I could use two more pillows. My shoulders are wider than the thickness of the pillow I have, and I sometimes get a strain in my neck."

The canine studied his bare shoulders with a critical eye. "One pillow in addition to the one you have should be sufficient for your neck," she said. "If you try to sleep on three pillows, I'm sure you'd get a crick in your neck from too much thickness."

The cougar grinned. "The third pillow is to wrap my arms around when I sleep," he admitted. "I sleep on my side and it gives me something to hold onto when I'm in bed alone."

Samantha raised an eyebrow at him. "How about a large stuffed teddy bear?" she quipped.

"Just a pillow, thank you," he returned with a smirk.

Samantha laughed and made another mark in her notes. "Okay, two extra pillows it is. Anything else?"

"Nope, that should do it."

"Okay, I still have Merlin and Durant to talk to, and then I can go shopping."

"Are you taking Ivy with you again?" Jiro asked.

"No, she's getting ready for her friend's funeral," Samantha replied. "Since I'll be using my Holden funds, I think it'll be best if I go alone anyway."

"Probably a good idea. Have fun shopping."

"Okay, see you later, Jiro." With that, the canine turned and walked out of the cabin's open door. She turned the corner and walked right into the short lynx, knocking her into the wall. "Oh my goodness!" Samantha exclaimed. "I'm so sorry!"

Ivy swallowed and brushed a hand over her face as Sam picked up the feline's fallen purse from the floor. "It… it's okay," she said. "I heard you talking and was going to ask you something, but I didn't expect you to dart out of the room like that!"

Sam handed the purse to the lynx. "I'm really sorry about that," the said again. "I should remember to look both ways before merging into traffic, I suppose."

Ivy smoothed out her light tan blouse and pleated skirt. "I'll be okay," Ivy replied with a nervous smile.

"Now," the Border collie said, "what was your question? Did you have something else to add to my shopping list?"

The lynx lowered her voice and gestured down the hall. "May I talk to you a minute, in private," she asked.

"Okay," the canine said hesitantly. She trailed after Ivy a little ways down the corridor, away from the open door of Jiro's quarters.

The short cook leaned against the wall, her hands behind her back. "I… uhm…"

Sam watched her curiously, but gave her time to say what she needed to say. Ivy seemed to study the Border collie's face for a moment before she spoke. When she did, she was still hesitant.

"I… overheard you and Jiro talking," she mumbled. "His door was open."

Samantha shrugged. "That's okay," she said. "We were only talking about my plan to pick up hobby materials for the crew, the same thing I discussed with you and Jerad. That wasn't anything private."

"Are you sure?" Ivy asked quietly.

Sam went over her conversation with Jiro in her mind. She didn't recall saying anything to him that could be considered private. She had a good memory for remembering the details of conversations and nothing stood out to her. Then her eyes grew wide.

"Ivy," she said quietly. "Please tell me what you think you heard."

The feline cook fidgeted under the other woman's questioning gaze, but then she met her eyes and answered. "I was watching an Alucara news broadcast a little while ago," she said, "and I saw a local interest story about the daughter of the Holden Pharmaceutical bigwig who was leaving Alexandrius for Sillon for a year-long leave of absence. I thought the woman in the photo they showed looked familiar, but I couldn't place where I had seen her until a moment ago – when I heard you say something to Jiro about using your Holden funds for the purchases."

Samantha continued to stare at the lynx for another moment before she could find her voice. "That… that's just a coincidence," she finally managed to say. "I… uh, sold my home computer system to Holdant's Electronics last week, and was going to use that money."

Ivy raised an eyebrow at her and then shook her head. "Sam, I'm not that clueless," she said. "I don't know why Samantha Holden would pretend to fly away to another world, when she's posing as Sam Chase on a common freighter."

Samantha closed her eyes for a moment, leaning heavily against the wall. She let out a heavy sigh and then looked over at her companion. "Okay, how much?" she asked, crossing her arms.

Ivy tilted her head, puzzled. "I don't understand."

"How much will I need to pay you to keep quiet?" Samantha answered bitterly, knowing her reply was admittance to the feline's statements.

A nearby door opened and Jerad stepped out into the corridor, wearing a faded suit of charcoal gray. He smiled at the women and walked quickly over to them. "Hi, are you ready? If we're going to make it in time through traffic, we'll need to leave in a couple minutes." The feline cook glanced quickly between him and the Border collie, but before she could answer, the raccoon noticed Samantha's combative posture. "Uh, what's going on?" he asked in a quieter voice.

Ivy put a gentle hand on Jerad's arm. "Just some girl talk," she told him. "Could you wait for me at your truck, please? I'll be down in just a moment."

The mechanic looked back to Sam, and she gave him a slight nod. "Okay," he said, fighting the urge to bite his bottom lip. "I'll see you outside." Subdued, he walked quietly around the curved corridor toward the lift.

"I need to go pay respects to my friend," Ivy whispered to her remaining companion. "We'll talk later."

"Ivy…"

The lynx shook her head and then whispered very quietly, "In response to your question, the answer is nothing." She pretended to lock her lips with an imaginary key, and then she left the canine woman alone in the corridor with a cacophony of thoughts.

Chapter 13

The Human Adventure

"SS Blue Horizon, PA registry twelve sixty-one," the gray wolf recited into tiny microphone of the Com system headset. "This is Captain Merlin Sinclair. What can I help you with?"

"Captain Sinclair, my name is Connie Davies. I would like to speak with your ship's medical officer, please."

"I'm sorry, Ms. Davies," Merlin replied, taking a seat at the station, "but I currently don't have a medical officer on my crew. Is there something I could help you with?"

There was a light chuckle on the other end of the voice-only connection. "I was hoping you might tell me something like that," said the woman. "Captain, I am calling in reference to your advertisement for crew positions, and I would like to submit an application as a medical officer for your space ship."

Merlin looked up in surprise, staring out the forward windows of the bridge at the spaceport activity all around the ship. "Yes, ma'am," he answered with a grin to himself at his recent fortune hiring crewmates for his business. "The Blue Horizon is docked on pad 39A at the Alucara Spaceport."

"Pad 39A? That's a stroke of good luck. I'm in the second-floor canteen of terminal thirty-nine right now."

"I know where that's at," Merlin told her. "I'll meet you there in ten minutes and we can discuss your application."

"I'm in the booth just inside the front door on the right. I'm a redhead in a tan skirt and white blouse."

Merlin looked puzzled. "You have a red head?" he asked. "Uh, what species are you?"

The woman gave another light chuckle. "Sorry, captain. I should have said that I am a red-headed human."

The wolf smiled. "Ah, I see. I've not seen many humans here in Alucara, so you should be easy to spot. I am a Dennieran gray wolf."

"I'm looking forward to meeting you, sir."

"I will be there shortly." In a light attitude for his good fortune, Merlin disconnected the communication and got up from the seat. He saved the flight checklist he had been writing up on a slateboard and then headed for the door with the unit in one hand. As soon as he stepped out in the corridor, Jiro and Samantha spotted him from a nearby open doorway.

"Merlin!" Jiro called, beckoning him toward them. "We need to talk!" Both he and Samantha looked seriously troubled, but the wolf shook his head.

"I'm on my way to meet someone in the terminal building," he told them, heading straight for the lift.

"Merlin!" Samantha tried. "We have a situation…"

The captain stopped, lifted his free hand to chest level, and splayed out his fingers. "Listen, you'll have to take care of it and tell me about it later. I'll be back in a bit, hopefully with our final crew member."

Without waiting for a response, he turned and strode to the lift. As the timing would have it, the carriage had already returned to the crew deck, so he was inside and gone before the others had time to stop him again.

When the wolf reached the outside airlock, he stepped out into a ray of evening sunshine filtering in through a mostly cloudy sky. Heartened by the prospect of filling the final crew position for his ship, he decided not to bother walking across the tarmac to the terminal building, so he pulled out his set of keys to the rental van and took the vehicle instead.

Moments later, he strode in through the front doors of Canteen Thirty-Nine. He looked to his right for a redheaded woman and found her almost at his elbow. She smiled up at him over her shoulder and then she stood up.

"Ms. Davies?" he asked. "I am Merlin Sinclair."

"Connie Davies," she said in a small voice. "I appreciate you seeing me on short notice, Captain Sinclair." The woman was short, barely taller than Ivy Sparks, but her straight hair of fiery red hung to her waist, her bangs cut straight across her forehead. She held out a hand to him, and the wolf took it politely.

"I'm pleased to make your acquaintance," he replied. He gestured toward the booth and the woman returned to her seat. Merlin sat opposite across from her and set his slateboard on the table before him. "How are you this afternoon?"

Connie gave him an easy smile with soft gray eyes. There was a smattering of freckles across her nose that tried to draw the wolf's attention, but he kept his eyes firmly locked on hers. "My day has gone well so far," she answered lightly, toying with a soda glass on the table in front of her. "I would like the trend to continue."

Merlin returned her smile and clasped his hands in front of him on the table. He was about to speak, but a tall coyote walked up to the table with an order pad.

"May I get something for you, sir," she said with a smile over bright green eyes.

"Kidwell coffee, please. Black," he answered.

"Yes sir. I will have it out in just a moment." She walked away and then Merlin looked back at his companion.

"The position you wish to apply for is on an Okami–class freighter called the Blue Horizon," he told her in a straightforward manner. "A typical crew consists of eight or nine individuals, but at the moment I have six working for me." He paused when the waitress brought his coffee. He took a sip with a friendly smile and then nodded appreciatively. The canine woman left to attend another table.

"How much time do you spend out in space?" Connie asked.

"Well, the business is new, so we've not yet launched on our first delivery," Merlin began, "but a typical voyage should typically take three or four weeks, depending upon the distance involved crossing to specific locations across the Planetary Alignment; some could take longer. I will be giving the crew three days of shore leave every time we land, excepting for deliveries made from place to place within a single planet's atmosphere. Salaries will be paid per voyage into each person's account."

"That sounds good," the woman replied with a nod. "Are there any other humans in your crew, or are they all lupine?"

Merlin shook his head. "We have a thoroughly mixed crew," he answered, "but you would be the only human on board. There are two raccoons, a lynx, a cougar, a brown bear, a Border collie and a wolf, that being myself. I am assuming you have experience with multiple Fur physiologies?"

Connie nodded. "It would be pointless to apply if that wasn't the case," she replied.

The captain gave her a lopsided smile. "True," he said. "May I ask why a registered nurse would want to sign up onto a cargo freighter? I'm sure you could get better work at a local hospital or clinic."

The woman shrugged and returned his smile. "That's simple, really. I have always wanted to go out into space for adventure."

Merlin chuckled and took a sip of his coffee. "On a common freighter such as mine, the most likely adventure you would find there might be treating mechanics' burns or removing splinters from crew fingers when loading cargo on wooden pallets."

"I don't look at it that way, Captain," Ms. Davies countered. "Space may be vast and relatively empty, but it's sure to hold mysteries and adventures that even a mundane cargo freighter is likely to have. I have plenty of hobbies and interests to keep my time occupied during the quiet times, but the dream of getting out into space has been a longtime interest."

"Well, I agree that we probably need more than just a First Aid kit on board," the wolf replied. "I enjoy the space travel myself, so I can understand your wish to get out there." He looked down at the slateboard on the table before him and tapped out a few commands. He turned it around, slid it toward her and said, "This is the standard crew application and contract, so you can take a look at them here and fill out your information. The salary for the position you want is listed at the bottom of the contract, as are the standard benefits for my crew."

"Thank you." The woman began reading the information before her and Merlin gave her time by drinking his coffee and idly gazing out the café's large glass window across the room that looked out across the spaceport.

The canine waitress had refilled his cup and brought him a cinnamon roll before Ms. Davies finished reading the contract and filled in her information on the application. Merlin wiped his muzzle with a paper napkin, and then his fingers, looking up at her with a friendly smile.

"All done?" he asked when she slid the slateboard toward him.

"Yes sir," she said in a slightly excited tone. "The contract and salary look good, and I have no questions on the benefits."

The wolf glanced over her references and nodded, feeling good about this. "I will check your refs later," he said with a smile, "but would you like a tour of your ship for now?"

The human's eyes lit up. "My ship?" she asked excitedly. "Have I been hired?"

Merlin smiled. "Checking your references is just a formality, Connie. If you're willing to take a medical position on a freighter, as well as take responsibility to help move cargo, I don't see why you shouldn't join us."

"May I sign my contract now?" she asked. "I accept!"

The captain laughed aloud at her enthusiasm and slid the slateboard back over to her as one more person agreed to work for him.

***

"Are you going to be okay?" Jerad asked the lynx seated in the passenger seat of his work truck. He guided the vehicle along the lines painted on the spaceport tarmac toward the Blue Horizon, but had to stop momentarily when an automated luggage cart crossed his path on its way to a public transport that had just landed.

Ivy looked over at him with a smile and nodded. "Yes, I'm fine now," she assured him. "Thom's funeral was simple, but respectful. He and I were not really close, but I'm glad we went. Thank you for taking me."

"Anything for a friend," the raccoon said with a smile. "You were really quiet on the ride back."

"Sorry, I just have something on my mind," she replied.

"Is it because of Sam?" Jerad asked as he continued on toward their ship.

Ivy looked up sharply. "What do you mean?"

"I got the impression that I interrupted a disagreement between you two."

The lynx fell quiet, choosing her words carefully. "I inadvertently offended her," she said with the simplest of explanations, "and I was trying to apologize."

"Ah," replied the raccoon. "I hope it'll be okay, but it's better to find out what sets people off before we launch out across the cosmos with them. I like Sam and hope you two can still be friends."

Ivy gave him a gentle smile. "I think we can," she said. "You shouldn't worry about it."

"I'll worry about it if I want to!" the mechanic quipped with mock seriousness. The stern expression looked out of place on his face, and it made the lynx laugh aloud. She had not known him for long, but this raccoon’s face simply looked more natural with a smile. Jerad grinned at her with bright eyes, pleased to have amused her.

He pulled the truck up to the designated parking area near the ship. Jiro's van was gone, but Samantha's car occupied the spot next to his truck. When Ivy unbuckled her harness and started to get out of the vehicle, she noted that her companion kept his seat.

"Are you coming in?" she asked.

Jerad shook his head. "I should try to sell my truck before we get our first customer," he replied. "There won't be room on the Horizon to store it once we start filling the hold with cargo, and I doubt we'll be back in Alucara for a while."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea, but shouldn't you discuss it with your brother?"

"Why? The truck's mine. He lost his little car in a card game a few weeks back, but I'm master of my own vehicle!"

Ivy frowned. "He's a gambler?" she asked.

"We both are," Jerad replied with a smirk. "I'm just better at it than he is."

The lynx sighed and shook her head with a smile. "I keep finding out more and more about you each day."

"Stick around for a while, and you might learn some of my dark secrets!"

Ivy laughed again. "I dare say I will. Okay, I'm going inside so you can go con someone into buying your truck."

"It shouldn't be too difficult," Jerad mused. "The truck's in good working order."

"Too difficult for what?" Ivy asked, walking away. "To sell it, or to con someone to buy it?"

The raccoon grinned again. "Take your pick!" Once she was away from the vehicle, he backed out and retraced the route back out to the spaceport exit.

When Ivy started toward the ramp, she was startled to see Samantha standing just inside the airlock, her arms folded across her chest. Her face may have been unreadable, but her tail swished behind her in agitation. The lynx frowned, looking up at her.

"Hello, Sam," she said quietly.

"Hello," replied the canine in a neutral tone. "How was your… outing?"

Ivy swallowed her nervousness and walked up the ramp toward the other woman. "It was simple, yet respectful," she said, repeating what she had told Jerad earlier.

Samantha stepped back inside the compression chamber to allow the lynx entrance into the vessel. "Uh, Ivy… when you get changed, may I have a few minutes of your time?"

The feline looked up her with a gentle smile. "Of course," she said, taking a peek at her delicate wrist watch. "It will be a while before I need to start preparing supper."

"Please let me know when you're ready," the Border collie said.

"Come on up with me now," Ivy replied. "We can talk along the way."

Samantha put a hand lightly on the cook's shoulder. "I would like to continue our earlier discussion," she said. "I'm sure you understand that I would like a private audience with you."

"Of course. We can talk in my cabin."

The female pair walked to the lift in silence, their footsteps echoing in the empty cargo area. On their way up to the next level, Ivy broke the quiet with a casual question. "Do we have a customer yet?"

Samantha shook her head. "Not as far as I know. Merlin's getting frustrated, but he's holding it well." They saw no one else on their way to the lynx's cabin, so they went right in. Samantha was going to wait outside, but Ivy waved her inside. She locked the door behind them for privacy.

The canine took a seat at the computer desk. Ivy pulled a casual, pale yellow dress from her closet and then stepped into the lavatory to change.

After a moment of quiet, Samantha looked down at her feet and said, "Now that you know who I am, what do I need to do for you to keep it quiet?"

Ivy stepped out of the lavatory, adjusting the back of her skirt around her short tail. "I'm not asking you for anything," she told her.

"Why not?"

The lynx gave her a friendly smile. "Sam, that's not who I am. Maybe you're in trouble for accounting problems, a threat against your life, or you are running away from a lover, but it's really none of my business. I probably wouldn't have made a connection between you and the newscast if I hadn't overheard you and Jiro talking. Another week and I doubt I would have even remembered enough of the newscast for it to mean anything to me by then."

Samantha's frown stayed in place. "If you figured out who I am… then why did you tell me you knew, if not for extortion?"

Ivy took the woman's hands in her own, giving her an easy smile. "Because you're my friend," she replied. "I've only known you for a few days, but you've been nice to me and we've gotten along well; we're going to be spending a lot of time together on this ship, so I would like to continue our friendship. Honestly, I just wanted to let you know that I am aware of whom you are, but if you want to keep others from knowing too, you and Jiro should guard your conversations behind closed doors."

"Ivy… I, uh…."

The lynx shook her head. "I don't need to know what's going on with you, and I won't ask you to trust me with your story. I'm good with secrets and will keep your identity to myself, but there's no need to give me any more details. You can trust me not to breathe a word of it to the captain or the rest of the crew."

Samantha finally sighed in relief. "Thank you, my friend," she replied with emotion. She held onto the lynx's hands and said, "I appreciate your silence, but in truth I'm not in any trouble, and Merlin already knows about me. My reasons for hiding out are not as dire as you're assuming, and you'll probably just think I'm silly when you hear them."

"Oh?" Ivy shook her head and then chuckled. "No, there's no reason to tell me. I can keep your secret."

"Actually, I think if you know what's going on, it will probably be easier for you to keep that secret," Samantha countered.

The lynx stepped to the bed and scooted up to the head, her back resting against the curved wall behind her. She wrapped both arms around her pillow and then gave her companion a friendly smile.

"Okay then," she said. "I'm ready to hear your story so I can call you silly."

***

Connie Davies hugged herself and made a small pirouette in the middle of the small freighter cabin that Merlin had assigned to her. Their tour of the vessel finished, the captain had excused himself to put away his slateboard and make a visit to the bridge, and the red haired human woman was alone in the room.

Making a life out in space had been a dream of hers since she had been a small girl watching cheesy science fiction programs. She knew the shows were fictional and that real life out between the stars was typically boring and uneventful, but she wanted that experience for herself. The only space flight she had ever taken was when she had immigrated from Kantus to Alexandrius with her boyfriend six years earlier, and she had loved the full three and a half weeks it took the transport to journey there. Until she had browsed the local classified ads during her lunch break at the clinic where she worked, there had never been another opportunity to get back out into space. It was true that she made enough money to live on, but it was not enough to afford a space cruise.

In a dead-end position for a job she really didn't care for, Connie felt that the advertisement was her lifeline to leave Alexandrius. Her boyfriend long gone after some other woman, she had no other ties to this world, and since the clinic only served other humans, she counted herself fortunate to be accepted on a ship staffed with Furs.

She preferred their company to her own species, but she was not as experienced with anthro physiologies as she had purposely led the captain to believe to get the job. As the wolf had originally supposed, a cargo freighter would be unlikely to need medical services beyond that of a First Aid kit. All she would have to do is help move a little cargo on and off the ship once a month and the captain would gladly pay her to just sit around and travel the stars.

Connie smiled to herself. If she had known how easy it was to join the crew of a space ship, she would have done it some time ago.

Chapter 14

All for Nothing

Connie felt giddy as she watched the various crewmembers gathering into the small galley. The recreation deck was of ample size to hold everyone, but she suspected the captain had called the staff meeting here so it could lead directly into whatever supper their cook had put together for them all. A long countertop spread across the majority of one end of the room with the kitchen behind it, dishes and utensils decorating its surface. Mouthwatering aromas issued from the kitchen and a lynx busied herself with her preparations while waiting for everyone to answer the captain's summons.

On the wall across from the door to the room was a clear window that faced aft of the ship. Evening sunlight filtered in, but glass polarization kept it from getting too bright. Merlin casually leaned up against the blank wall opposite the window with his arms behind him.

The woman sat at the end of the room's single long table. She had only been introduced to a couple of the crew, so she sat amused as each of the others wandered into the galley and showed surprise at the human's presence.

Although all Furs were descended from humans altered by genetic engineering three centuries earlier, there seem to be many more Furs than humans spread out across the Planetary Alignment; this was ironic since the original purpose of the Furs was to establish starter colonies on habitable worlds prior to the mass exodus of humanity following to ease the population burden of Earth. There were human-predominant cities and communities on each of the PA worlds, but they were in the minority on every planet but Earth and Kantus.

Jiro sat to Connie's right, chatting idly with a female Border collie she hadn't yet met. Across the table from him was a large grizzly bear. He was taller and larger than anyone else on board was and was talking pleasantly to a small raccoon seated next to him. The coon's green coveralls had pockets sewn onto most available spaces on the front and sides, and it appeared there was something in each of them.

Everyone looked up when another raccoon entered the room and plunked himself down at the last empty seat across from the other coon. He pulled a metal cylinder from a chest pocket, extracted a cigar from it, and bit off one end, but the lynx behind the counter threatened him with a dowsing if he lit that thing in her galley.

There were chuckles all around as he frowned and returned the tobacco cylinder to his pocket, but then he nodded to the wolf. All eyes went to Merlin.

"Okay, everyone, I want to introduce you all to our new medical officer," he said. "This is Connie Davies."

The woman smiled nervously and waved her fingers toward the others. "Hi," she said. Others returned her wave and then turned their attention back to the wolf, but the raccoon with all the pockets continued to smile at her.

With an extended finger, Merlin pointed to each individual in turn. "Jiro Brannon, Sam Chase, Durant, Jerad Porter, Jasper Porter, and…" pointing toward the kitchen, "…Ivy Sparks." The lynx waved with a wooden spoon in her hand, but a bit of sauce flung off the utensil and hit the end of Jerad's nose. The raccoon crossed his eyes to look at it, and then licked off the thick drop with a smirk.

"Mmmm, I think that tastes just about right," he said to the cook. "Don't change the recipe."

"Are you tasting the sauce, or your own nose dripping?" Jiro teased. Jerad's eyes went wide and then he laughed aloud heartily. He knew he was going to get along with the cougar just fine.

"Ewww!" Samantha cringed, swatting the navigator's arm. "That's not what I needed to hear right before supper!"

"What's the matter, Sam?" the cinnamon-furred bear quipped. "You don't want a little extra flavor in your soup?"

Connie listened to the exchange for several moments in amusement. This was the kind of group she wanted to be around, not like the stuffy ingrates back at the clinic. She turned to look at the wolf with a grin. "Are they always like this?" she asked.

Merlin twisted his lips into a smirk. "They're shaping up to be," he replied of his growing crew. He rapped his knuckles on the tabletop twice to get everyone's attention. Once it was quiet again, he nodded toward the woman and said, "As a registered nurse, Connie will be responsible for our health while on board the ship. We've already stocked the sickbay with the basics of First Aid, medications and vitamin supplements, but she will provide the skill to take care of us. Before we get underway, it would be a good idea if each of you spends some time with her to discuss any allergies, ailments and your medical histories. The better she knows us, the better she can help us."

"The better she knows this group," Jasper retorted dryly, "the quicker she'll be running away." Connie looked over at his grumpy demeanor, but she could see the hint of a smile in his eyes.

Merlin gestured toward the gathered crew. "If you want to give a speech, now's the time."

"If you want to run, now's the time!" Jerad snickered.

"She's under contract, so no running," the wolf countered, shaking his head.

Connie smiled and looked out across to the others. "I'm looking forward to getting to know you all," she said. "All I ask is that you give me time to get used to being among you."

"Welcome to the Blue Horizon," Samantha told her.

Jiro nodded and reached over to put a hand on her arm. "Glad to have you with us," he said.

Others around the table voiced similar sentiments, but when it grew quiet again, Ivy announced, "The meal will be ready in about ten minutes."

Conversations started up again, but after a moment, Jerad looked toward Merlin. "Any idea when we'll be launching, Captain?" he asked. As that was a common question most of them had been asking lately, all other discussions ceased as everyone's attention moved back to the wolf. Merlin laid his ears back and looked down at the table with a frown. "That's not a good sign," Jerad whispered.

"No, it's not," the captain confirmed in a low voice. "I had hoped to postpone this topic until after we had eaten." He looked around at his employees, quickly gathering his thoughts. "Now that I have a full crew," he began, "I'm afraid that all of our preliminary work might have all been for nothing."

"What's happened?" Jerad asked first, beating three others to the same question.

"Nothing has happened," Jiro said, putting his chin upon crossed arms on the tabletop. "That's the problem."

"Jiro's correct," Merlin replied. "I am running out of money, and even after weeks of diligent PR work, I have had no luck securing our first customer. Everything from the purchase of the ship, registration fees, ongoing rental of the van and the spaceport pad, the repairs, the cleanup and stocking of the ship, to the salaries of my crew has all tapped my financial resources."

"What seems to be the problem?" Connie asked. "I thought cargo haulers were in constant demand across the Planetary Alignment."

"They are," Jiro muttered, "but no one wants to hire a green captain and crew."

"As a new business, we have no service record to promote," Samantha added. "Clients want someone they can trust to transport their goods light years across the galaxy safely. They don't want to pay someone to take a load of their merchandise with the prospect that the ship could just take off with it and disappear to places unknown. It's a matter of trust, and that only comes from a good service record."

"So what are we going to do?" Durant asked. "I've seen the account, and the numbers are looking anemic."

Merlin swallowed and heaved a loud, audible sigh. "I had hoped it wouldn't come down to this, but I have to warn you that if I can't secure a paying customer within another week, I may have to let you all go – without us ever leaving port."

"Let us go?" Jasper spat vehemently. "Well, that tears the rag off the bush!"

"Ah, no!" Jerad whined.

"If that happens, you will get paid," Merlin assured him.

"Well…" Jiro muttered, head still down on his arms, "if it comes to that, at least the ship should fetch a better price now that it's in better shape than it was when we bought it. Perhaps a new owner would retain us all as its crew and keep us together for the business."

Jasper stood up and leaned on the table. "I should have known something like this would happen," he grumbled, glaring at the wolf. "You've made promises you can't keep!"

The captain's throat tightened at the thought of being openly challenged, but he had to fight it since the engineer was essentially correct. What did he know of promoting their services? He held a business degree, but it hadn't been of much help finding customers, despite all the recommended marketing and promotional tactics he had used. He had run out of ideas and was starting to get desperate.

"Cancel our contracts," Jasper growled, "so Jerad and I can go groveling back to Poppy with our ears down and tails tucked firmly between our legs. We may have to beg for our jobs back, if he's not filled our positions already."

"No," Merlin said firmly. "Not yet. You still have jobs with me for now, and you will be paid for that time. I've not given up, and neither should you, but I wanted you all to know the situation in the event of a worst-case scenario."

"Surely there's something else you haven't tried," Connie offered with a soulful expression, a bit of panic in her voice at having her personal plans scrubbed. "We've got to figure out some way to get a client so we can launch!"

"I'm sure there is," the wolf conceded. "Jiro, Durant and I will be brainstorming on this tonight, but if any of you come up with something I haven't thought of, I'm willing to listen."

There was a loud bang and everyone looked back to the kitchen. Ivy had dropped a steaming pot of vegetables on the counter a little too hard next to other food-bearing containers. Embarrassed, she turned quickly to hide the moisture in her cheek fur. "Supper's ready and on the counter," she said over her shoulder after wiping her eyes on her apron. "I'll get cups for your drinks."

Thankful for the momentary distraction, crewmates got up one by one to pick up plates and serve themselves cafeteria-style from the bounty that Ivy had prepared for them. Merlin let the others go first, taking an empty seat at the table.

Getting to her feet, Samantha looked at him, but it was impossible for her to misread the thoughts behind his troubled eyes as he gazed back at her. He was already reconsidering her original offer to buy his ship and hire the crew to make deliveries for Holden Pharmaceutical. It would kill his dream to have his own business, but it would keep his personnel employed.

His stomach cramping into a knot, Merlin realized he had lost his appetite.

Chapter 15

Who's Giggling Now?

Jiro adjusted his thick tail through the slotted opening in the back of his cloth folding chair and muttered whispered obscenities concerning the chair's designer. He and his captain sat in the shadow of the Blue Horizon on its starboard side out of the morning sun, the noises of the spaceport all around them to mask their conversation. Merlin held a slateboard in his lap, the tablet's screen glowing faintly as the wolf pored over the information before him.

"I don't believe you're going to find any more clues staring at that thing," the cougar told him. "I think you should accept Sam's offer so we can get on with our business plans."

Merlin looked over at him as if his partner was mad. "Jiro," he said with a furrowed brow, "for the last time, I am not going to sell the business to Samantha! Despite the bad news I gave everyone last night, there's got to be another way."

The wolf's bare-chested friend waved his hands in the air, his fingers splayed out. "Stop before you get your tail in a knot; that's not what I meant!" He pulled the slateboard from the captain's hands to get his full attention.

"What are you blathering about, then?"

Jiro heaved an audible sigh. "I meant Sam's other offer after last night's staff meeting," he explained. "She volunteered to front you the money to hire a promotional agency to help us find customers."

"Oh, that," Merlin muttered. "I appreciate her willingness to donate her credits behind the scenes, but I've got to do this without her bailing me out with her fortune." He grabbed the slateboard and gave his partner a sideways glance. "If we don't stand up on our own, we won't stand on our own."

"Merle, what is it with you and your resistance to money?" the navigator asked in exasperation. "I thought earning money is why you wanted to go into business."

The wolf turned to look at his friend, eye to eye. "I'm not against earning an income. I'm just resistant to taking Sam's money to get myself out of trouble!"

"So why accept it as a gift?" Jiro asked. "Consider it a loan that you will pay back once clients start paying us to move their goods."

"A loan."

"Exactly! It's common for new companies to take out startup loans to get their businesses going. The difference is that I doubt Sam will charge you an outlandish interest rate."

Merlin relaxed back into his seat and rested the slateboard on his knees. "A business loan. I suppose I could accept that," he finally replied. "That's a better idea than anything I've been able to come up with. I'll need to write up our policies and requirements, and then take them to a local promotional agency as soon as possible, maybe this afternoon. I don't care what kind of shipment we take, as long as we're up and flying before I completely run out of funds."

Jiro smiled, ruffling the fur between Merlin's ears with his fingers. "Finally! He sees reason!"

Merlin was about to retort when a klaxon sounded loudly. An approaching cargo carrier stopped to hover over the empty landing pad on the Horizon's starboard side. He and Jiro watched as an Okami freighter painted in deep purple settled to the ground amidst a cloud of dust.

Jiro covered his eyes with a hand and his partner began coughing into the crook of his elbow, silently wishing the klaxon alarm had given them more time to prepare for the sudden windy dust storm of the ship’s landing thrusters. Once the other vessel had powered down and they could hear again, Merlin wiped his eyes and then brushed the dust from his face fur.

The wolf glanced back over at the new arrival and suddenly chuckled. "We should hope that Jerad doesn't look out his cabin window and see the name of the ship that just landed."

Jiro could easily see the large, white block letters on the cargo bay door of the adjacent freighter. "Giggling Ghost?" he read aloud. "Why, did he used to serve on that ship?"

"No, it's not that," Merlin explained. "I was chatting a little with Jasper before we turned in for the night, and he told me that his brother was superstitious. He'll probably do something to ward off against the spirits of that ship when he sees its name." Jiro looked at him with a strange look, and Merlin grinned. "What's the matter?" he asked. "Are you surprised that Jerad is superstitious?"

"No, it's not that," the navigator admitted. "I'm surprised you had a chat with Jasper. That grouch never smiles, and I wouldn't be surprised if he always keeps to himself. He doesn't seem the type to just sit and chat with someone, y'know?"

"Oh, don't let his exterior fool you," Merlin replied. "It's true that he rarely starts a discussion, but he'll talk to anyone who includes him in conversation. Jerad also confirmed that Jasper's not a total recluse. He just seems that way until he gets to know the people around him better."

"Ah, okay. I'll give him a chance to—" Jiro trailed off when the sound of raised voices diverted his attention. Merlin followed his gaze and saw a white, long-haired cat with a splash of brown over one ear shouting in the face of a taller red vixen just outside the opening cargo door of the purple freighter. The fox was dressed in pair of form-fitting slacks that displayed her curvaceous figure, accented by a tan blouse that equally complimented her appearance. In contrast, the cat was adorned in a simple set of white hospital scrubs that almost blended in with her fur. The quarrel was heated and their voices were loud enough that the wolf and cougar couldn't help but hear their argument.

The fox waved a hand toward a small crowd of females gathered just inside the cargo door. "Listen, Vanessa, I am sick and tired of the attitudes of this crew, and you're not helping!"

"Not helping!" exclaimed the cat. "You're the one who's always complaining!"

"I wouldn't have to complain if everyone didn't try to foist their cargo duties on me!"

"So what? You're stronger than they are. You can handle it!"

"That's not the point!" retorted the vixen, her hands balled up into fists at her sides. "I always pull my share of the load – and that’s literal! However, I am not going to keep doing their share too! Especially for your little favorite, Annabelle!"

The feline crossed her arms. "Annabelle has special needs," she started.

"Yeah, and her needs are to be lazy!" shouted the vixen. "She's been sweet-talking you for far too long while laughing behind your back about it, but if you want someone to do her job for her, assign it to somebody else! I'm not doing it anymore!"

"You're under contract to do what I say!"

"She is also under contract to work for you, but you would rather she sit around and draw pay for doing nothing! I'll do my share, but not hers, and not anyone else's. You can write that into my contract!"

The white cat stomped her foot and raised a fist at the vixen. "I'll alter your contract, alright!" she screamed at the top of her squeaky voice. "You're fired!"

The fox took a step back, surprise on her face. "Vanessa…"

"I'm through with you!" spat the feline. "You're fired! Get out and don't let me see you near the Ghost again!" Vanessa spun around and took two steps before she stopped and whirled around again. "We're better off without you!"

Merlin and Jiro watched with rapt attention as the vixen took a step toward the captain of the purple freighter, but instead of thrashing her as they expected, the fox adopted a sudden calm.

"You think you'll be better off without me?" She spoke in a quieter voice, but it was still loud enough to carry between the two ships. "You seem to have forgotten who was responsible for securing all the jobs that provided you with nice profits so you can buy all your pretty things," she said evenly. "How do you think you are going to keep a clientele without my talents?"

Vanessa leveled an arm with an extended finger toward her and hissed, "You may have found them for us, but they are my customers who will remember our good service. You have nothing to bargain with, Nichols. Get out of here before I call security to remove you from the spaceport!"

The red fox glared at the white cat for a long moment before the other women in the cargo bay started shouting out for her to scram, punctuated by rude gestures and name-calling. The calm evaporated quickly and then the vixen stormed away from the freighter, her arms crossed over her chest and her teeth clenched in seething anger.

Merlin suddenly jumped to his feet, spurred by a sudden decision. Jiro reached out and grabbed him by the wrist when the captain handed him his slateboard. "Merle, what are you doing?" he asked cautiously.

"Opening the door to opportunity," the wolf replied with a glint in his eyes. "Let me go."

"Merlin, don't!" whispered the cougar. "You don't want to approach a mad female - trust me!"

The captain looked back at him with a crooked smile and pried the fingers from his wrist. Without another word, Merlin walked purposely to intercept the fox and raised his hand in greeting when he got near her.

"Excuse me," he began. "May I—"

The angry vixen was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she hadn't seen him approach and his words startled her. Surprised and caught off guard, her eyes flashed and she struck out to warn away the unwelcome intruder, growling low. Merlin saw the fist too late and tried to duck, but her powerful blow caught him across the shoulder, spinning him around before he tumbled face-first to the tarmac.

Almost instantly, the woman realized what she had done, and the anger evaporated when she dropped to her knees beside the fallen wolf. "Ohmigosh! Ohmigosh!" she chattered, reaching out a hand to turn him over.

A small trickle of blood seeped from one nostril of his snout, and his eyes were clenched tight in pain. He groaned and clutched his left shoulder with his right hand.

"Oh! I am so sorry!" the vixen repeated. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to— I'm sorry!"

Jiro trotted over to them and then knelt beside the wolf. "I tried to warn him not to bother you," he muttered, setting the slateboard on the ground beside him.

The captain forced his eyes open and looked up at his feline partner. "Go ahead and say it," he managed to say through clenched teeth.

Not one to waste an opportunity to needle his friend, Jiro glanced first to the woman, and then back down to the wolf. "I told you so!"

"Thanks too much…" Merlin wiped the blood and a bit of tarmac gravel from his nose with a hand. "Ow," he muttered, holding his hand up so he could see the blood.

"I am so sorry," the vixen said again, fear clouding her eyes as the cougar helped Merlin sit upright. "I'm sorry – you startled me, but I shouldn't have—"

For the first time since the assault, Merlin looked over at her. He grimaced and clutched his injured shoulder again, but tried to give her an apologetic smile of his own. "The fault is mine," he told her. "I shouldn't have gotten too close when I knew you were upset."

"Just as I warned you," added Jiro.

Merlin gave him a look that said, 'enough already' and then shook his head to make sure all the marbles were still inside his head. "Yes, just as you warned me," he admitted.

The vixen looked at him with despair in her orange eyes. "I'm sorry for hurting you," she emphasized with emotion. "You weren't involved in my troubles, and I shouldn't have taken it out on you." Merlin opened his mouth to speak, but she interrupted him. "You didn't do anything wrong," she said. "I'm so sorry."

Jiro prodded the wolf's shoulder. Merlin hissed in pain, but the cougar beside him shook his head. "I don't think anything's broken," he said to his partner, "but I should get you in to Connie so she can x-ray that shoulder."

"Good idea," Merlin replied. The woman helped Jiro get the wolf up on unsteady legs, and when the navigator began to lead him away, she followed beside him to make sure he remained on his feet.

Merlin looked over at her. "I'll be okay," he assured her. "I don't blame you."

"Thank you," she responded quietly.

They walked in silence for a moment before Merlin asked, "What will you do now?"

She met his eyes briefly, and then looked off into the distance. "I'm not sure," she admitted, realizing that the whole spaceport had probably heard her argument with the cat. "I've never been fired before."

"Perhaps we can help one another," the wolf said quietly while they walked around the perimeter of the ship to its port side.

She looked at him with a lopsided smirk. "You want to sabotage her ship for me?" she asked in jest.

Jiro laughed, but Merlin replied with a tired smile, "Better than that." He continued to hold his injured shoulder with a grimace, but he looked over at the vixen and said, "I'm Merlin Sinclair, captain of the Blue Horizon, and this is Jiro Brannon, my ornery navigator and first officer."

The red fox shook her head with a smile. "I haven't heard anyone use the word ornery to describe someone in a long time," she said. "I'm Taro Nichols, formerly of the Giggling Ghost. I would say that I am pleased to meet you both, but not under these conditions."

Jiro grinned widely. "Ornery fits me as well as anything else he could have called me," he quipped.

The wolf tried to smile. "Well, the pain may be worth it, if you'll allow me to talk with you for a moment."

Suddenly suspicious, the fox put a hand up to the tan fabric of her blouse and rested her fingers uncertainly over her collarbone. "You're not going to sue me, are you?" she asked warily.

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Nothing so dire, I assure you."

Jiro looked over at her in quiet amusement. "I believe there was a reason he approached you in the first place."

"Oh!" the woman said in surprise. She hadn't remembered that.

"Perhaps you should talk to her about that after you've been to the sickbay," the cougar suggested.

"Walk with us?" Merlin invited.

"Sure," said the taller vixen. She accompanied them up into the cargo bay and looked around. It was the same model of Okami freighter as the one she had just departed, but the state of its interior puzzled her. Cargo haulers didn't usually stand down at a spaceport with an empty hold for long.

"Where's your freight?" she asked curiously.

"Ah, that's what I wanted to talk to you about," Merlin replied.

"I don't understand."

The wolf told her about purchasing the ship, hiring a crew and getting the vessel prepared for customers, detailing their cleanup efforts, stocking the ship with supplies and a crew, and the growing frustration from his inability to secure clientele.

She listened politely, nodding here and there, but when he finished, Taro looked back out into the empty cargo bay. "You haven't found anything?" she asked. "There are always ways to coax businesses to hire new freighters, especially since those just starting out are usually willing to charge less than an established carrier."

When the trio filed into the lift, Merlin muttered, "I guess we've been looking in the wrong places."

Taro looked over at the wolf with a calculating expression until the lift door opened a moment later. She followed the two males out into the corridor, automatically turning with them toward the sickbay out of habit. "It sounds like you've had quite an ordeal," she said, "but why are you telling me all this?"

"Well," the wolf replied, "I was wondering if you might help us with our problem." He gave her a smile and said, "After all, word has it that you have a rather good talent for securing shipping jobs, and were someone with a lot of contacts throughout the Planetary Alignment."

She looked at him in sudden understanding. "You're offering me a job?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am," the captain replied with a nod when they stopped beside a white door marked with a caduceus, a short herald's staff entwined by two serpents that formed a double helix surmounted by wings. "I believe your talents could get us off the ground."

Jiro opened the door to the sickbay and peered inside the darkened room. "Go on in," he said, handing the slateboard back to Merlin. "I'll see if I can find Connie."

The wolf tapped on the light and then found a padded roller stool where he could sit down. He pulled his tail around into his lap, rolling the stool back so that he could lean against the wall, and then set the slateboard on the floor at his feet.

Taro watched him for a moment, gathering her thoughts. "You're willing to hire me, just like that?" she asked. "No interview?"

Merlin grinned. "Your references, spoken in the heat of an argument, sounded good enough for me. Besides, your former captain was good enough to confirm your claim about getting their customers for them."

The vixen suddenly laughed, feeling relieved that she could laugh after the day she had experienced. "As I am currently unemployed, I would be happy to discuss employment with you."

"Thank you," replied the wolf, absently massaging his shoulder. He settled in on the stool, quickly outlining crew duties and benefits, and when he proposed the per-voyage salary amount, Taro was nodding in agreement. The figure was decent, especially for a fledgling cargo carrier, and it would provide her with an income without her having to begin a search in the local job market. With the Giggling Ghost resting on a nearby landing pad as inspiration, she asked a few business-related questions before she agreed to his terms.

"If you will trust me," she said, finally relaxing against a counter, "I believe I can get in touch with one of my Alucara contacts to see what I can do about securing a shipment for this crew."

"I will choose to trust you," Merlin replied with an expression of relief. He looked around the room, wondering where his nurse might be, and then picked up his slateboard from the floor. He tapped in a few commands on the device and then handed it to her. "If you want to read this over and sign it, you can join my crew right away."

The fox took the proffered unit and began to read over the standard document. After going over the first paragraph, she looked over at him and nodded toward his shoulder. "Before I sign, I think you should know that I am Hestran. If you feel that's going to be a problem, you might want to tell me now."

Hestra was a large, heavy-gravity world in the Centaurus system, the only inhabited planet of its kind within the Planetary Alignment, and sister to Alexandrius and Fyn. It was a mountainous world with only one ocean two thousand miles across that meandered like a giant river near its equator, and all of its indigenous species were stronger and hardier than any others were due to the heavier environment.

Merlin rubbed his shoulder and replied, "If you can keep your strength, as well as your temper, under control, I see no problem with your heritage."

Taro looked embarrassed. "Normally, I am in control of both," she told him. "Today's temper tantrum was brought to you by our sponsor, the Giggling Ghost. Thanks to months of needling, petty bickering and the mood swings of an all-female crew, it came to a head today. Please tell me that you and Mr. Brannon are not the only males on board."

"Mr. Brannon and I are not the only males on board," Merlin assured her. "If you join us, that would make nine in the crew and you would be one of four females."

Taro smiled at him. "That's good to know. I don't have a problem working with other women, but I've always gotten along better with the guys I've known." She fell quiet as she looked over the contract. It was standard, but she had known some in the past who would sneak in small conditions of their own design, knowing that most people wouldn't read everything. When she was satisfied that all was as it should be, she applied her thumbprint signature to the appropriate box, accepting the contract.

She handed the unit back to her new captain and smiled. "Thank you, sir. I really appreciate this."

"After all the frustration I've had trying to find a customer, let me be the one to thank you!" Merlin replied. "If my nurse ever shows up, we'll get this x-ray taken, and then I can give you a tour of the ship. I'm afraid there are only two empty cabins left, but you're welcome to claim whichever one that appeals to you."

"Where is your medical officer?"

The wolf shrugged. "She may not even be here today. I just hired Connie yesterday, and she may have gone into town to square away her affairs so she can move her things on board."

Taro looked around the room and then moved to a latched cabinet. She peeked inside the compartment and then nodded. "This sickbay is just like the one on the Ghost," she said, "and it looks like you're stocked with the proper equipment and supplies for the x-ray machine, at the least. I can operate it, if you want me to do it in the absence of your Connie."

"You can?" Merlin asked, gently wagging the tip of his tail in his lap. "Yes, please. I had a medical technician from a local hospital recommend the standard stock we needed for a starship's sick bay, so I hope we got everything we needed. I'll probably need a lupine anti-inflammatory med, since I'm sure to have some heavy-duty swelling beneath my fur."

Taro frowned at the reminder of the injury she had caused him. "I will take care of you," she promised.

Twenty minutes later, the vixen displayed several x-ray images of the captain's shoulder on the sickbay's wall screen. "I think we're fortunate," she announced after a close examination of the different angles. "I don't see fractures on any of the bones, but there's evidence that heavy muscle bruising has begun. I might have guessed it was dislocated, but that's not the case here."

She looked through several cabinets until she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a white packet with a green cross upon its cover. She smacked the pack between her hands and then began rubbing it around to mix its internal chemicals. She wrapped the cold compress in a towel and then set it aside on the counter. Working automatically without thought, she knelt before him and began to unbutton Merlin's pale blue shirt. When she got to his navel, she stopped when she realized what she was doing.

"What's the matter?" the wolf asked.

"I'm sorry, captain," she apologized with her ears back. "I didn't mean to be so familiar…"

Merlin chuckled. "You mean unbuttoning my shirt for me so you could provide medical attention? My arm is already getting stiff, so I doubt I could get out of my shirt without help from someone. Please, continue what you were doing."

Taro gave him a little smile. She was no stranger to physical contact with a willing male, but never with a virtual stranger who also happened to be her new employer. Keeping her touch light and clinical, she finished with the buttons and helped him out of the shirt. She met his eyes briefly before she reached out and began probing the fur of his shoulder with her fingertips.

When he flinched from her touch, she stopped and picked up the compress. She put it up to the injured area and then affixed it with a roll of expandable bandage wrapped under his arm and over his shoulder. When she was sure it would stay in place without pinching too much fur, she helped him back into the shirt and then buttoned it up for him.

It was while she was searching for the species-specific medication to administer to the wolf that the door opened.

Jiro peered in at them. "There you are," the cougar said.

"Where did you think we were?" Merlin asked with a raised eyebrow. "This is where you left us to go find Connie."

"Oh yeah, about that," Jiro replied. "I got outside and saw her getting into a cab, but I was too late to catch her. Sam and Jerad were leaving to do some running around of their own, and told me that Connie was going to go wrap up her personal business with the clinic."

"Even though I told everyone last night that their contracts might be cut short?"

"Jerad said that Connie told them she didn't care about that. I think she was tired of working for the clinic anyway."

Merlin pursed his lips. "Well then, I suppose I am fortunate that Taro knew how to take my x-rays."

"Yeah, how did that turn out?" asked the mountain lion.

"Just bruising, no fractures," answered the vixen.

"Well, that's good. Have you asked her yet?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes, and she has accepted a position on the crew as our customer liaison, business coordinator, or whatever else you want to call someone who will line up our clients for us. She signed her contract before patching me up, so she's now another slave to do my bidding."

Taro looked over at him sharply, pulling a paper cup from a wall dispenser, but he gave her an innocent smile at the small joke. She got the impression that this might be a common occurrence with him and she simply twitched her whiskers in amusement.

"That's cool," Jiro remarked. "Is she a nurse, too?"

Taro shook her head, handing the wolf a green capsule and the paper cup she had filled with water from the sickbay sink. "No medical degrees," she told him, "but I've seen the equipment used enough that I knew how to operate it."

"If you couldn't find Connie, why did it take you so long to come back?" Merlin asked after swallowing his medicine.

Jiro smiled and then stepped aside, letting the other two see what was out in the corridor behind him. Stacked up on a small, floating flatbed dolly was a number of jumbled items.

"What's that?" Merlin asked.

Taro's face lit up and she rushed past Jiro out into the corridor. "It's my things from the Ghost!" she exclaimed. She knelt beside the dolly and began sorting through the objects mixed in with wadded fabric.

"After Sam and Jerad left, I happened to look over at the other ship and saw your old crewmates tossing your stuff out onto the tarmac. I grabbed a flatbed from our hold and went to retrieve the stuff they abandoned."

"Did they give you any trouble for getting it?" Taro asked.

"Not really," Jiro answered with a smirk. "I guess they figured I was a spaceport janitor and they were only happy for me to cart away your things to the trash before you came back for them."

The vixen stood up with amusement, but then she moved in close to him and gave the navigator a small kiss on his cheek. "Thank you," she said in genuine appreciation. "Some of my trinkets are broken, and it looks like they stepped on and ripped up my clothes, but just about everything I owned on the Ghost is here." She looked over at the wolf and shrugged. "I'll have to do a little shopping to replace some of this before we launch for our first client."

"Since we don't have that customer yet," Merlin replied, "you should have time go shopping for what you need. I can give you an advance on your pay, if you need it."

"I thought you were low on funds," Jiro mused.

"I am, but I am also confident that we'll be launching soon with a shipment for a paying customer." Merlin gave a look of assurance toward the vixen.

"Thank you for your confidence," Taro replied, smiling, "but I have enough in my account to get what I need. However, you might want to use your funds to start stocking up a for a month's supply of food, and charge up the oxygen generators for several weeks of air."

Jiro looked unconvinced. "With all the trouble we've had for weeks trying to find someone to hire a business fresh from the cabbage patch, how can you be so sure we'll be launching soon?"

Taro's easy smile widened to a full grin. From her things on the dolly, she picked up a battered slateboard tablet. She turned it on, and despite its condition, it operated just fine. "This contains all my customer contacts, Mr. Brannon; shipping options, contract details, points of contact on every world of the Planetary Alignment, background information on each of their preferences, and how to get in touch with each of those I know personally, as well as who should be more than willing to continue working with me."

Then, with a small giggle, she waved toward the general direction where the other vessel resided outside on the nearby landing pad. "With this in my hands, the Giggling Ghost doesn't have a single list of clients or their contacts, so that effectively shuts them out of the game. Gentleman, I don't think we will have any trouble finding work."

Chapter 16

Worth It All

Captain Vanessa Mariposa stepped outside the airlock of her freighter and lifted a flush panel beside the structural frame. She thumbed a control and watched as the recessed airlock panels slid together and then slid out to fit flush with the rest of the vessel's hull. The Giggling Ghost's cargo had been offloaded into waiting delivery trucks and she had dismissed her crew for a day of shore leave.

For herself, she planned to visit a local grooming salon for her long white fur and then go shopping for a new outfit. The favorite pale yellow blouse and black slacks she wore were threadbare, a state she never let her other garments reach, but it was now time to replace them.

She heard the sound of a vehicle setting down nearby, and wondered if it was the taxi she had called. Sure enough, it was a cab that rested near the boundary painted on the tarmac, but as she stepped toward it, a familiar red vixen got up out of the vehicle, pulling several sacks and packages with her.

Taro set down some of her packages and paid the driver, but when she picked up her purchases, she looked up and saw her former employer storming toward her and the cab. The white feline approached her with a scowl, her fangs bared and claws extended for a confrontation. With a sigh, the fox set her packages down at her feet and turned to face the captain.

"How dare you come back!" hissed the cat.

Taro raised an eyebrow. "I didn't come back," she responded calmly. "I just went shopping to replace the things that you and yours so graciously destroyed for me. Did you come out to reimburse me for them?"

Vanessa sputtered. "I don't know what you're talking about," she spat, "but I forbade you from approaching the Ghost! I've already changed the security codes, so you're not getting back on board!"

The taller fox picked up her packages again as the cab driver waited with impatient looks toward his next fare, the white cat with one brown ear.

"What makes you think I have any interest in setting foot on board the Ghost ever again?" she asked, walking away with her purchases toward the spaceport landing pads.

Vanessa snorted and then turned to the cab driver. "Wait for me," she told him with clenched teeth.

"Yeah, okay, but I'm startin' the meter on you," the canine driver replied indifferently.

"Stop right there!" Vanessa shrieked at the vixen. She ran to a spot in front of Taro, but the fox simply walked around her to continue on her way. After several steps, Vanessa realized she wasn't heading for the Giggling Ghost, but toward the blue freighter on the next pad. "Where do you think you're going?" the cat asked, walking with quick steps on Taro's right.

The vixen didn't bother to answer Vanessa's repeated demands for an explanation, and took her packages right up to the Blue Horizon's extended cargo ramp. Standing just inside in casual conversation was a cougar, a lynx and a Border collie; all three looked down at them as Taro stepped up toward them with Vanessa in tow.

"Welcome back," Jiro said with a grin. He walked down to meet her and held his hands out to help her with some of her packages. Taro gave him a friendly smile and handed off three small sacks that had been draped over her left wrist.

"Thank you," she replied. Vanessa followed them up inside the cargo bay with a scowl, but in real puzzlement.

"What is going on?" the cat demanded.

The mountain lion recognized Vanessa and narrowed his eyes at her. He stepped between her and the vixen, still holding the package sacks. "Captain, I am First Officer Brannon, and Ms. Nichols is a member of my crew," he said with an even voice, looking down into her green eyes with his own. "You were not given permission to board this vessel, therefore you are trespassing. I suggest you leave right now."

"She works for you?" Vanessa asked the bare-chested puma, her eyes wide and unbelieving.

"She does."

The cat looked over at the smug look on Taro's face. "I just fired you!" she exclaimed, clenching her fists. "How can you have another job already?"

The Border collie had yet to meet the red fox, but Samantha stepped up beside her new crewmate and hooked one arm with her. "She must be incredibly lucky," the canine said with a vindictive grin, "and now she will share her luck with us!"

Ivy took up a position on Taro's other side, but said nothing, choosing only to smile at the other cat. Jiro had just informed them of the situation that brought the vixen to the Horizon's crew, so she merely raised one of her eyebrows at Vanessa, practically daring her to press the matter.

Captain Mariposa looked from one person to the next until her eyes came back to Taro. She grumbled something beneath her breath, but Jiro took a step toward her with a dark look, his thick tail swishing in agitation behind him. "I won't give you further warning against trespassing upon our vessel. Ms. Nichols is a part of this crew, so if I hear of any further harassment toward her by you or your crew, Captain, I will take it further than just a warning."

Vanessa took a step back away from his implied threat, and then retreated back down the ramp to the tarmac muttering obscenities. Then she remembered the running meter in the cab and took off at a jog toward the waiting vehicle.

Taro looked first from the lynx on her left, then to the canine on her right, pleased that they had stepped up beside her without having even been introduced yet. "Thank you," she said with genuine appreciation after the cab drove away with the frustrated white cat. "No one would have backed me up on my previous crew."

"You are one of us now," the lynx replied with a warm smile. "That's good enough for me."

The Border collie tightened her hold on the vixen's arm with a grin. "We want you to feel right at home on board the Blue Horizon," she said. "Besides, I really enjoyed the look on her face!"

Jiro frowned. "That one might be more trouble before we have a chance to get out of here," he said. "This way, ladies." They followed him toward a control panel situated between the main airlock and the cargo bay opening. When he was sure that everyone was safely inside and out of the way, he activated the controls to raise the ramp and close the massive door. "Until we've launched with our first shipment," he explained, "we should probably keep the doors closed so that no vengeful ghosts sneak on board to cause havoc."

"It's eerie how you know her so well after just one meeting," Taro remarked.

Jiro turned back to the red fox, smiling at the three females standing side by side. "Aside from our captain, you are currently the most important member of our crew," he said to the vixen. "We will stand by and protect our valuable assets!"

Taro gave him a puzzled look. "Most important?" she asked. "What do you mean?"

The cougar gestured over his shoulder toward the empty cargo bay with a glance. "With your contacts and public relations expertise, you'll be able to do what none of us have been able to do for several weeks — find freight for us to haul for someone."

"That makes you pretty important," said the smiling lynx.

"Agreed," said the canine. "How soon do you think you can start making inquiries?"

Taro shrugged. "I made some local calls while I was out shopping," she replied, "so I should hear something before the day is out."

"See?" Jiro said to the others. "I told you she was important!"

"Welcome to the crew," the Border collie said, shaking the vixen's linked arm as if it were a handshake. "I'm Sam Chase and this is Ivy Sparks."

Taro looked from one to another, already feeling comfortable around these strangers. "I'm Taro Nichols, and I am very pleased to make your acquaintances, Sam and Ivy."

"Come on," Samantha said, tugging on the fox's elbow. "Let's get you set up in a cabin, and then we can visit in a more relaxed setting."

Taro and Ivy walked with her across the empty deck, leaving Jiro standing beside the closing bay door. When it shut with thunderous boom, the vixen turned to look back at him. The cougar locked down the controls and then cycled the main airlock to close as well.

"Please remember to bring my underwear up to my cabin when you're done," Taro called back to him with a smile.

Jiro looked up at her, and then took a quick peek into one of the sacks he still held in one hand. It was full of vulpine panties made from light and airy fabric, designed to be worn over fur, but allow it to breathe. The fabric patterns were delicate with floral designs. The cougar studied them for a moment and then looked up with his ears flat against his head.

"You… you handed me your panties?" he asked.

All three women grinned widely at his discomfort. "Just make sure I get them all back," Taro teased. "I know how many I bought!"

Jiro closed the sack abruptly and held it down at his side. "You think I want to wear one of these?" he squeaked.

"She thinks you might try to keep one as a souvenir!" Sam called back with a giggle. Ivy hid her laugh behind a hand, but Taro looked triumphant at the increasingly flustered cougar.

The airlock beeped in confirmation that it had locked its outer seal, so Jiro strode toward the females despite their laughter. When he neared them, he held out the sacks. "Here," he said after clearing his throat.

"Ah no," Taro replied, shaking her head. "You offered to carry them, so you can bring them up for me."

Jiro's eyes narrowed at the vixen's teasing tone, and then he sighed with a crooked smile. "Okay, I'll carry your delicates for you."

"Thahnk you, dahlink," Taro replied in an exaggerated accent. Ivy and Samantha laughed aloud at the cougar's expense and then the four of them headed for the lift to the upper deck.

Before they all stepped inside, they heard the airlock across the bay begin to cycle again. Jiro frowned and then said to the ladies, "Go on up. I'll be there shortly." Without waiting for acknowledgement, the cougar started back toward the main hatch, preparing himself for another confrontation with the white cat if that was her trying to get in. The lift door closed and then the carriage took the women away.

Jiro had already traversed the empty chamber by the time the airlock opened. A pair of raccoons stared in at him, and Jerad's face brightened in a wide smile. "Hiya, Boss Two," he said with a waggle of his fingers.

The cougar returned his smile feeling relieved. "Hey, guys. Enjoy your movie?"

Jasper shut the hatch behind them and cycled it. "Bah, it was a waste of credits," he replied. "Too many special effects, not enough story."

Jerad shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, it could have been better," he agreed, "but I actually liked it. Huge mecha battles and lots of spaceship broadsides! Jasper goes more for interpersonal relationships."

"Oh, really?" Jiro responded with a grin.

"Yeah, really. Whatcha got there?" Jasper asked, referring to three shopping bags clutched in the cougar's right hand.

The navigator's eyes widened and he immediately put them behind his back. "Uh, nothing at all," he murmured. Jerad's curiosity came online in full strength, so he tried to dart around the feline to grab at the sacks.

"Whatcha got?" he asked, repeating his brother's query. "Lemmee see!"

Jiro clasped the sacks to his chest and tried to keep them out of the clutches of the shorter raccoon. "No, get away!" he gasped.

Jerad circled around him, keeping the cougar turning this way and that, and then when his attention was diverted, Jasper reached in and snagged one of the bags with a wry smile. The sack tore beneath his claws and pastel colored fabric spilled out onto the deck.

"Ah, what's this?" Jasper said in a louder-than-necessary voice. Jiro looked down in horror as both raccoons scooped up dainty panties in their small hands.

"Ack! Stop!" he exclaimed. "Give those back!"

Jerad darted away several steps and then gave the garments closer inspection. "You won't wear a shirt, but you'll wear these?" he cackled in delight at the discovery.

"They aren't mine!" Jiro yowled in frustration. He made a grab for the panties in Jasper's hands, but the raccoon spun around, holding them out of reach.

"No?" Jasper asked in a rare display of glee. "Are we supposed to ignore the evidence you provide?"

"No!" Jiro exclaimed. "They belong to Taro. I was taking them up to her cabin for her!"

"Taro?" Jerad and Jasper repeated in unison, both of them smiling at the navigator's weak excuse.

"Yes, her name's Taro Nichols," the cougar explained impatiently. "Merlin hired her from another ship this morning, but her former crew destroyed all her clothes out of spite. She just got back from a shopping trip to replace her stuff."

Jasper raised an eyebrow with a grin. "So you say," he quipped. "I suppose you helped her try on these things, too?"

"I didn't go shopping with her!" Jiro shot back, exasperated. "I was only helping her take her things up to her cabin. This is what she gave me to take up!"

"Uh huh…" Jerad teased with a sly smile. "I'm sure a female would let a guy handle her underpants so soon after just meeting… unless she was loose." The last was said in a mock whisper. He looked over at his grinning brother. "I'll wager she's a bunny rabbit," he added.

"I'm not loose and I'm not a rabbit," admitted a new voice, "but those are my panties you're fondling." Both raccoons spun around in unison, coming face to face with a tall vixen standing with her feet planted firmly apart and her hands resting on her curvaceous hips. The look on her face was unreadable.

Jasper's eyes practically bulged from their sockets and he reflexively dropped the powder blue panties with yellow flowers he had been holding. The blood drained from Jerad's face and he nearly fainted from surprise. He swallowed with difficulty and then gave her a forced smile.

"S-sorry," he managed to say, quickly handing three pair of panties sideways to the cougar. Jiro took them and scowled, kneeling down to pick up the other scattered bits of fabric. The original sack was torn, so he stuffed them into one of the remaining two bags.

"I tried to tell them…" he muttered, handing the sacks to the vixen.

"Yes, I heard the whole conversation," Taro replied dryly. "I came back down to tell you something, away from the other girls, and watched these two bandits raid you of my underwear."

Jasper collected himself and gave the woman a stiff bow. "I'm sorry, Miss," he said with chagrin. "We didn't realize he was telling us the truth."

"Yeah, please accept our apologies," Jerad added, effecting a bow of his own. "I'm sorry, too."

The vixen pulled out a pair of panties from the bag and examined it. There was a boot print across the rear end, just below the dip in the waistband that allowed for the base of a tail. "It's a good thing I was going to wash them before wearing them," she stated. "I will forgive you this, if you will do one thing."

"Name it," Jasper said quickly, straightening up from his bow.

"Give your apologies to Mr. Brannon, too. He was the one you wronged more than I."

The raccoons immediately turned in military unison and bowed toward the navigator. "We're sorry," Jerad said first.

"We apologize for doubting you," Jasper added. "Really sorry…"

While the eyes of both mechanics were on the floor, Taro looked over at Jiro and gave him a wide grin, as if she were barely controlling her laughter. The cougar smirked back at her and then gave her a wink.

"All right, guys," he said, putting a mock scowl back on his face. "You're forgiven."

"Good," Taro said, putting a look of acceptance upon her features. "Now, let's start on better footing. I am Taro Nichols, the new customer liaison for the Blue Horizon."

The raccoons looked up at her in relief. "I'm Jasper Porter," said the one wearing patched coveralls. "I'm the Horizon's chief engineer, and this is my brother, Jerad Porter, ship's mechanic."

Taro switched the bags to her left hand and then held out her right. "Happy to meet you two," she responded with an amused smile.

Jerad shook her hand, still looking sheepish. "I hope so," he said. Jasper shook her hand without another word, his tongue feeling rather thick at the moment.

With the introductions out of the way, Taro suddenly chuckled with amusement. "I think that's the first time I've ever had three guys fighting over my underpants. It does make an interesting story for my first day on the job."

"At least you weren't in them when the fighting was going on," Jiro teased. Both raccoons looked at him as if he had lost his mind, but the vixen only laughed aloud.

"That would have made for a more interesting tale!" she replied.

"You… you aren't mad at us? Jerad asked tentatively.

The fox chuckled. "No, you can relax," she answered. "You apologized properly, so you're off the hook."

More than ready for a change of topic, Jasper looked up at her. "Was what he said about you finding a job for us correct?" he asked.

"That's right," Taro answered. "I have contacts with numerous businesses across the Planetary Alignment that I believe will hire the Blue Horizon as a carrier for their goods."

Jasper smiled openly. This was the first good news he'd heard since Merlin had dropped the bomb on them the previous night. The first thing he had wanted to do this morning was approach Poppy about getting their old jobs back, but the slick weasel had only laughed in their faces for leaving him in a lurch. Fortunately for the ferret, there were many hungry mechanics in Alucara looking for work, so he had hired replacements to maintain his ships without having much down-time. The new guys were cheaper yet, so Poppy was in no mood to rehire the Porters. Afterward, Jerad had suggested going to see a movie to take their minds off the whole situation.

Jasper reached out and took her hand in his once more. "I am really glad that you could join us!" he said in genuine appreciation.

"Thanks," said the vixen. "Now, if you gentlemen will excuse us, I need a word alone with our first officer."

"Of course," Jerad said, the familiar grin back on his face. "C'mon, Jasper. I need to go wash my hands of movie popcorn butter."

Taro watched the raccoons until they had disappeared into the lift she had brought down to the cargo deck. Once they had gone, a sudden thought occurred to her and she peered into the shopping bag with a frown. "There's popcorn butter on my panties," she muttered.

"It's a good thing you're going to wash them anyway," Jiro remarked with a grin.

The vixen looked over at him sideways and then sighed. "Between Vanessa's girls and those two, I guess I'm fortunate to be wearing anything right now; I could be standing here bare in just my fur!"

"Oh yeah, I'm saving those mental images," the cougar said with a smirk.

Taro blinked and then shook her head with a smile. "Okay, I can see this is going to be an interesting crew to serve with," she said.

Jiro snickered, and then shrugged his shoulders. "So," he said, looking up at the overhead deck lights, noting that two of them were not working. "What was it you wanted to talk to me about that you couldn't discuss in front of anyone else? Does it have anything to do with your panties?"

The vixen swatted him lightly. "No, smarty, it's work-related."

Jiro sobered up instantly. "Trouble finding work for us?" he asked quietly.

Taro shook her head. "No trouble," she replied. "I got a response on my personal DataCom from one of the inquiries I'd made while out shopping. I didn't want to say anything in front of the others, but I wanted either you or Merlin to know that we have our first client."

The cougar's eyes lit up. "Really?" he asked, hardly daring to hope she was being serious.

"Yes, really!"

"Come on!" he said, suddenly taking her by the wrist. "Let's find Merlin right away. He's been moping about the business for days and this will be just the shot in the arm he's needed!"

They had to wait for the lift to return, but as soon as it was available, Jiro practically dragged the vixen inside. She watched him curiously as he waited impatiently for the panel to open again. Things must have really been tight if this guy was so excited about a simple delivery job.

They had to look in three compartments, but they found Merlin coming out of the galley, brushing crumbs from the front of his dark green shirt.

"Hey, welcome back," the wolf said to Taro when they stopped in front of him.

"Thanks," she answered. Before she could say another word, the cougar grabbed Merlin by the arm.

"Boy, does she ever have something to tell you!" he said with bright eyes.

"Ow! Watch the shoulder, Jiro!"

"Oop, sorry about that."

The captain sighed and then looked up at the vixen, rubbing his shoulder absently. "You have something to tell me?"

Taro gathered her shopping bags together in one hand and gestured casually in the air with the other. "We'll need to assemble the crew on the cargo deck by 1600 hours tomorrow evening," she told him.

"Why? Are we having some kind of ceremony?" he asked, glancing briefly at his wrist watch.

"Three trucks from Praskovia Clothing Exports are scheduled to arrive at four o'clock to deliver seventy-eight crates of Alexandrian garments to the Blue Horizon," she answered. The wolf's eyes grew wide, but she continued before he could say anything. "We're to deliver them to the Handgjorda Kläder Warehouse in Toreboda on Kantus in three weeks, so we'll need to lift off within an hour after we get everything on board and secure. I'll get with the Alexandrius Defense Authority this evening to arrange a launch window."

"Tell me you're serious," Merlin said with a gulp.

Taro smiled. "I'm serious. ©45,000 will be routed into the company account upon receipt of the delivery in Toreboda."

"Forty-five thousand credits!" Jiro exclaimed, tightening his grip on Merlin's arm.

The vixen raised an eyebrow. "Fifty thousand is a fair standard fee to deliver goods from one star system to another," she informed him, "but I offered a five thousand credit discount since we're a fledgling business. I don't know how much down-time you plan to have between jobs, but while we're on Kantus we have another job shipping food goods to the fishing colonies on Crescentis. Same initial fee of forty-five thousand to get their business. I hope that's okay, Captain."

Merlin reached out and grabbed one of Taro's wrists in his good hand, causing her to drop the shopping bags to the carpet at her feet. His eyes searched hers for any sign of deception, and when he couldn't find any, he almost jumped forward to kiss her. Instead, he shook her arm with a wide grin.

"You did it!" he exclaimed with glee. "You really did it!"

The fox smiled back at him. "Isn't this what you hired me for?" she asked in a casual tone.

"Taro, you have just saved my business!"

"I'm glad to hear it," the vixen replied. "This is just the start, Captain. Once we are on our way to Kantus tomorrow, I will forward inquires to my contacts on Crescentis to see what I can line up for us from there. Once we've established ourselves as reliable over the course of several deliveries, we can up the fee to industry standard."

Jiro brushed past the wolf and took a surprised Taro in his arms. If Merlin wasn't going to thank the vixen properly, at least he would. Taro's eyes went wide when he leaned in close, kissed her full on the mouth, and held her firmly up against him for a long moment.

When he pulled back, she grinned at him and then put a couple of fingers up to her lips. "Mm, okay… What was that for?" she asked in a quiet voice.

The cougar shook his head with a smile. "Why, to thank you, of course!"

"Uhm, you're welcome," Taro replied easily.

"You saved more than just the ship," Merlin told her soberly. "I don't think you realize how close I came to deleting everyone's contracts prior to meeting you this morning and letting them all go."

Taro studied him and saw the seriousness in his eyes. "I didn't realize you were so desperate for business," she whispered.

"Yeah, it was that bad," Jiro assured her. "We tried everything we could to draw in a customer, but no one wanted to hire a new ship and crew. We simply didn't have any credentials to promote."

Taro slipped an arm around Jiro's waist, and then threaded her other around Merlin's shoulders, mindful of his injury. "Well, guys, I think it would be safe to say that I'm glad my captain fired me!"

Merlin laughed. "Yeah, me too. I really hope you like it on board the Horizon," he told her. "We have a mixed crew, but it looks like we have a good bunch."

"I already feel at home," Taro said in genuine appreciation. "Thank you for coming after me."

The wolf gingerly rubbed the end of his sore nose and then grinned over at her. "You almost took my head off," he told her, "but it was worth it. Welcome aboard."

Chapter 17

Second Thoughts

When the green and white cab stopped at the marked boundary painted on the tarmac, Connie looked out the window with a frown. The cargo door of Blue Horizon had been wide open when she left. It was now closed. Even the main hatch forward of the cargo door was shut.

Had Merlin already cancelled everyone's contracts? she wondered. In the short time she had been part of the crew, there always seemed to be someone lounging in the open air on the cargo deck, and she had counted on calling one of them out to help her bring her things inside the ship. None of the personal vehicles were parked nearby either; Sam's car and Jiro's rental van were both missing.

The taxi driver, a young jackal wearing only a pair of lightweight shorts and a vest that matched the color scheme of his cab, got out of the vehicle to pull her things out of the back for her. He set out two steamer trunks, four boxes and three large bags. Then, from a pocket of his vest, he pulled out a credicard scanner and handed it to the human woman.

"Twenty five credits, ma'am," he said politely. Connie plugged her credicard into the unit, keyed in the amount plus a tip, and then tapped in her passcode. A tiny green dot lit up, signifying the monetary transfer had been accepted. "Thank you," he said, pocketing the device after a quick glance at the tip. "Have a good day!"

Without having said a word, the nurse stood beside her belongings while the vehicle sped away to its next destination. She stared at the blue saucer for a long moment before another sound drew her attention. A small electric cart approached her, a young black bear behind the controls.

"Hello," he said good-naturedly. "Are you looking for someone?"

Connie gave him a pleasant smile of her own. "Yes, I'm a new member of the Blue Horizon's crew and was hoping one of my crewmates was around to help me take my belongings inside," she replied. "It looks like the ship is locked up tight, but my captain hasn't given me the security codes yet."

"I'm afraid I can't help you get inside," the bear said, "but if it will help, I can take you and your things over to the hatch where you can wait in the shadows out of the sun."

The human woman gave him a sincere smile. "Yes, I would appreciate that. I am Connie Davies, the Horizon's nurse."

The bear stepped out of the cart and gave her a slight bow. "I'm Kodai Koihan," he said. "I manage the landing pads for this section of the spaceport. I was just coming over to see if Captain Sinclair was planning to renew next week. Do you know?"

Connie decided to play ignorant, not informing him of the captain's concerns of having to sell off the ship and cancel the contracts of the crew. "I'm sorry, I don't know the answer to that," she told him.

Koihan shrugged, giving a smile. "Well, at least I can help a friend get her things to her new home," the bear said, turning to pick up one of her trunks.

A few moments later, he pulled up next to the main hatch. While the woman got out and stretched, the young ursine manager offloaded her belongings. When they were in the shadow of the vessel, he picked up a clipboard from beneath the seat and scribbled a note onto a scrap of paper.

He handed this to the nurse and asked, "When you see your captain again, would you give this to him for me?"

"Yes, of course. Thank you for your help, Mr. Koihan," she said.

"My pleasure, ma'am," he replied. "Have a great day!"

Connie watched him roll away across the tarmac and then she turned toward the hatch. The ramp was still extended, although the airlock panels were closed and flush with the hull. She had seen Jiro tap in the security codes in a small control panel beside the door, so she walked up the ramp and pressed on the place where she thought it might be. She heard a small click and a recessed panel beside the airlock flipped open. At the top of the pad was a key marked Open that was written in Standard. Tentatively, she tapped it, but there was no response. Another button beneath the keypad was labeled Call. She pressed it and a tiny amber dot lit up beside it.

"Yes?" said a voice after a brief hesitation.

"Uh, hello?" the woman responded. "It's me, Connie Davies. Could someone open the door for me so I can bring my things inside?"

"Welcome back, Connie," replied the speaker. "I'll be right there."

"Thank you!" the human said in relief.

When the airlock cycled open a few minutes later, the bare-chested cougar looked out at her with a pleasant smile. "There you are," he said.

She grinned up at him. "Hello, Jiro. Could I bother you to help me bring my things inside the ship? Everything I own is out here."

The navigator looked over at the pile of luggage, boxes and bags at the curved edge of the vessel beside the ramp. "Sure," he said. "I'll get a dolly."

The antigrav cargo dolly was too wide to fit through the airlock, so he raised the large bay door just enough so that he could go through without having to bend over. The woman helped him put her things on the flatbed and then followed him up the ramp when he pushed it up to the deck.

"You know," Jiro said once they were inside, "I'm not sure your cabin is big enough to hold all this." He said it in a teasing manner, but Connie knew he was serious as well.

"That's what I was afraid of," she replied. "Until I have a chance to go through it all, may I store some of it in one of the cargo hold's wall lockers?" When the cougar nodded his approval, she added, "Even if the Blue Horizon never gets off the ground, I promise that I won't let the items stay in storage for long. I will try to go through it in the next day or two, and toss out the things that I don't need or don't have sentimental value. I just didn't have time when cleaning out my apartment."

Jiro looked over at her while he reclosed the bay door. In light of Taro's help, he felt that was an odd statement to make, but then he realized that the nurse was unaware they had hired the vixen to help them pull in customers. Rather than spoil the surprise, he decided not to say anything and play along with her assessment. He put on a deep frown and let out a heavy sigh.

"If that's the case, you'd better go through it quickly," he told her.

She looked up at him in alarm. "I thought he said we had another week before he made that decision!"

Jiro quirked up the corner of his mouth in a teasing smirk. "It might take you that long, with all this stuff!" he said with a sweep of his hand over the cart.

Connie narrowed her eyes at the cougar and fixed him with a momentary glare before she broke character and laughed aloud. "Yes — yes, you're right!" she admitted. "I'd better not let it sit long, or the captain may sell it with the ship!"

Satisfied that she could joke about something as distasteful as losing one's job, he grinned back at her. He pushed the dolly to a large wall storage unit and gestured toward its door. "Will this do?" he asked.

She opened the latch and peered inside. The one he had chosen was almost half the size of her cabin. "I might be able to get all my things in there!" she said with a smirk. "Just for that, I'll let you put them in there! All I need to go up to my room is the blue trunk and those two bags."

***

Rather than have everyone meet together in the galley again as a reminder of the last gathering, Merlin decided to hold this staff meeting on the Recreation deck at the top level of the vessel. In preparation, Ivy had assembled a few snacks for the crew and arranged them nicely at the small kitchenette counter on the aft 'end' of the round deck.

The evening sun was not visible through the forward window, but clouds in the distance were such a deep red as to almost hide the running lights of the spaceships landing and launching from the busy spaceport. Merlin stared out the window with hands in his pants pockets as he awaited everyone to show up at the appointed time.

He heard someone walk up behind him and he smiled when he recognized the clunk of tools shifting in oversized pockets. "Hello, Jerad," he said without looking at the raccoon beside him.

"Hi, Captain," replied the mechanic. "I see we have our extra body up here."

Merlin turned to look at Porter and then acknowledged the statement with a nod toward the vixen; she had orange, red and white fur with black from her fingertips to her elbows and from her knees down to her toes. She was dressed in a casual white blouse with the top two buttons free, but the shirttail was tucked neatly into a pair of pressed gray slacks that hugged her curvaceous form. Dainty sandals were upon her feet and the legs of her slacks ended just below her kneecaps. She sat with her hands resting in her lap in one of the oversized recliners, chatting quietly with Samantha, who was seated beside Durant at one end of the couch. The wolf did a quick head-count, and realized that everyone was present and accounted for.

He looked down at the raccoon. "You've met?" he asked finally.

"Yeah, we ran into her this afternoon," answered the mechanic with a silly grin, remembering the scuffle with Jiro over her underthings.

"Ah, good. I will introduce her to everyone else in a moment."

"She's nice. I like her." When the captain only nodded without further discussion, Jerad excused himself, sauntered over to the snacks and picked up a small plate.

Merlin turned back to the window to stare outside, and after a while, the din of the crowd died down, as everyone grew attentive for the purpose of the gathering. Most of them assumed he had called another meeting so soon after the last one to announce that he had come to his final decision, but those who had met with the vixen already knew of her purpose.

When he turned around, he kept his hands in his pockets and all eyes went to him. He gestured toward the fox with just an inclination of his chin. "Would you join me up here at the front, please?" he asked her.

His newest employee got to her feet and took up a position at his right side. He took a hand from his pocket and placed it gently upon her nearest shoulder. "Everyone, I want to introduce you to Taro Nichols." There were a few smiles from those in the know, but everyone else simply watched without interruption. "As a new member of our crew, she brings with her some very important news."

Connie had a sudden intake of breath, her expectations suddenly changing. She tried to suppress her smile, but wasn't very successful at it. No one noticed, though. All eyes were upon the wolf and the fox.

"Taro, please," Merlin prompted.

The orange-eyed vixen looked around the room, feeling embarrassed to be thrust into the spotlight in front of virtual strangers. She swallowed and clasped her hands together in front of her.

"Hello, everyone," she said in a voice that was more stable than she felt inside. "As Captain Sinclair said, I am a new crewmate. I was hired this morning and my primary purpose will be to secure and coordinate with clients for shipping jobs."

"All right!" Jerad exclaimed, but his sibling quickly put a damper on his enthusiasm.

"I'm glad to hear the captain's brought in some outside help," the raccoon in patched coveralls said, "but do you think you'll have any better luck than he has? He's already told us that if we don't have a customer within a week, we will all be out on the streets."

Repeating what she had earlier told Merlin and Jiro, Taro looked at him and said with a confident smile, "Three trucks from Praskovia Clothing Exports are scheduled to arrive at four o'clock tomorrow afternoon to deliver seventy-eight crates of Alexandrian garments for loading into our cargo bay." The raccoon's eyes grew wide, but she continued before he could say anything. "We are going to deliver them to the Handgjorda Kläder Warehouse in Toreboda on Kantus in three weeks, and I have already made arrangements for a launch window with the Alexandrius Defense Authority."

Excited comments and conversations started up immediately, but Merlin rapped his knuckles on the control terminal behind him. "Listen up, you yahoos!" he said over the noise. "She's not finished yet!"

When all eyes were upon her again, Taro continued with a smile. "After we get to Kantus and offload our cargo, the captain has agreed to grant everyone three days of shore leave to let us see the local sights and get some fresh air, but then we will load up food goods and general supplies for delivery to the fishing colonies of Crescentis."

"You've already got another customer?" Durant asked with a surprised expression.

"That's right," Taro answered. "I can give you details if you want them, but I also have two more clients awaiting scheduling for freight transfer in sequence."

"That's four!" Connie exclaimed.

Jerad jumped to his feet and ran up to her. "I don't really know you yet, but I like you already!" he said, shaking her hand vigorously. Following his lead, Connie got to her feet and approached the red fox, with Durant close behind.

Jasper stood up along with everyone else, but it was the captain he approached while the others greeted the vixen. "Well, Captain, I take back what I said earlier," he stated with sincerity. "You kept up your end of the deal and found a way to make the business work. Congratulations."

Merlin nodded. "Thanks, Jasper. I never had any desire to cancel your contracts without finding some way to get us going first. I want this job as much as you do."

The raccoon nodded in acknowledgement. "I don't doubt it, now," he replied. "You can depend upon me and Jerad to keep the ship running. However, now that we're a part of your crew and you have work for us, I have something I can tell you."

"What's that?"

Jasper looked around to make sure no one was close enough to hear. He motioned for the wolf to lean down so he could whisper in his ear, so Merlin pulled up a chair and moved in closer.

"Poppy had us remove the computer core from the Elihu Frisbie and install it into the Wiley Post, since it was the ship in better shape and would be easier to sell," he admitted.

The captain nodded. "I'm not surprised, but we thought perhaps it was the former crew of this ship that did it out of spite for getting laid off."

Jasper shook his head. "The former crew of this ship did trash its cabins, but a potential customer wanted the Wiley Post, if only we replaced the computer system. A nasty virus destroyed the Post's original system, causing the circuits to feed back upon themselves and burn out eighty percent of them. We were just finishing the installation when you and Jiro came by the first time, so we were naturally wary of your intentions."

"Why put an antiquated unit into the Frisbie?" Merlin asked quietly. "It worked well enough to move the ship off the lot, but it wouldn't have handled a fully working vessel."

Jasper nodded his chin. "Poppy made us take the computer core out of the old Prairie Dog freighter on the back of the lot we'd been sleeping in," he explained. "It wasn't designed for an Okami freighter, but would work well enough to sell the Frisbie to get it off the lot."

Merlin sat back. "I might need to pay Poppy another visit before we leave," he said, cracking his knuckles for effect.

The raccoon gave him a crooked smile. "Forget it," he told him. "Read the fine print of the sales contract for a clause that he made sure was in there. You bought the vessel as-is, and with your signature, you agreed that the condition of every system and appearance met your approval prior to signing." At Merlin's dark scowl, Jasper put a hand on the wolf's arm. "Just be glad you had the systems replaced yourself," he said. "Sam told us that you used your investments to purchase a factory new system and had it professionally installed. While Jerad and I are experienced with Okami freighters, replacing an entire computer system down to its core was something we've never done before. The guy who wanted the Wiley Post better hope that we knew what we were doing, but he's the one who demanded the exchange."

Merlin sat back and digested this information. He still had a lot to learn about running his own business, and if Samantha hadn't recognized how bad the condition of the computer structure was, they might have launched out into space and found themselves in extreme danger. For a system that controlled everything on a space-faring vessel, anything from an incorrect oxygen mix, faulty alignment of the astrogation sensors, to invalidated reentry shields could have spelled disaster.

He began to see that he had been ill-prepared for a business out in the hostile void, and was suddenly very thankful for the skills and strengths of every person he had hired for his crew. Working together as a team, this just might work.

The wolf finally nodded toward the raccoon. "Thank you for being honest with me, Jasper," he said with sincerity. The engineer gave him a rare smile, but before he could answer, he looked up. Merlin felt a pair of hands on his shoulders and he glanced up behind him into the brown eyes of Samantha.

"Is our staff meeting over?" she asked, gently kneading his shoulders.

"No, not yet," the wolf replied, getting to his feet. He gave a brief nod toward the raccoon, and then walked back to the front of the room, where the rest of the crew seemed to have congregated to thank and chat with the new employee.

Merlin clapped his hands together twice loudly to get their attention. "Okay, folks, we're not done yet, so please take your seats." Taro looked over at him, but he shook his head. He was finished with her introduction, so he gestured for her to sit as well.

Once everyone had returned to their chairs, recliners or the couches, the wolf wrung his hands together with a pleasant smile. "We are all thankful that Taro has joined us," he said, "and that makes our crew complete. The Blue Horizon is in great shape, thanks to everyone's help, and we are fully stocked with food, oxygen, supplies, tools and personal effects. We will be loading up our first cargo tomorrow afternoon and then we will be on our way. If you have any last-minute preparation or shopping to do, I would suggest you take care of it in the morning, as it will be another three weeks before we make our destination on Kantus. After we are finished here, you will be free to scatter to do what you need to do tonight or in the morning to take care of any last needs. During all loading and off-loading of cargo, Durant will be the lead in operations, so we need you all here no later than an hour before the delivery trucks arrive so he can instruct everyone on how things will go.

"Loading the cargo for flight requires that the weight be distributed evenly in the hold, so it can't be simply stacked at random. The sensors in the floor of that deck will aid in that distribution, but Durant will be the one to direct where it all goes. Now, most of the spaceports we will visit will have rental equipment such as forklifts and power loaders, but we have a high-capacity crane built into the top of the cargo bay, as well as our own dollies and flatbeds in the storage lockers, in addition to straps, chains and other tie-downs. We seem to have a wide variety of body shapes and sizes, so there will be some who can handle certain containers better than others, but I want everyone to work together to make sure we get everything loaded safely. If something is too heavy, get someone else to help you with it, and then if it exceeds your combined strengths, use the available equipment."

He leaned back against the console behind him and absently toyed with one of the buttons of his shirt. "Over the past few days, I have had a chance to meet and talk with most of you. We will all be in close proximity to one another for weeks at a time, so I need to stress the importance of trying to get along with one another as well as possible. Get to know one another. If someone irritates you or makes you mad, I suggest you try to resolve it between yourselves before you come running to me. If it comes to my attention and the strife disrupts our operations, I will step in and resolve it for you – and I make no guarantees that my resolution will be in the best personal interest of either party involved.

"As some of you know, I spent some time in the Dennieran military and our first officer is also a military veteran of the Mainoran forces. Nevertheless, the Blue Horizon is not a military vessel, so I'm not going to impose a lot of strict rules upon you all. However, I am your captain, so if I tell you to do something, I expect it to be done without argument." He put his hands into his pockets and gave them a light smile to take the edge off his last statement.

"It appears we have a good group here, so I don't anticipate having to pull rank very often. I plan for this to be a relaxed atmosphere, so while we're en route between stops, you're welcome to pursue any interests by yourself or with others that you wish to do, so long as it does not interrupt the business or endanger anyone. What we have here is a business, and the end result will always be to bring in credits. If anyone does something that will jeopardize that purpose, we will have a problem, both personally and professionally, and it will be dealt with accordingly.

"I plan to maintain an open-door policy for anyone who needs to speak with me, for any purpose or topic, open or confidential. As second in command, Jiro will be at your disposal for the same policy. If you don't want to go to the captain with your problems, he's here to help you as well. Neither of us are magicians or professional counselors, but we will make a personal effort to work with you to resolve any problems before they get out of hand."

The wolf stood up straight and then arched his back in a stretch that was accompanied by a few chuckles from the crew. "Your one-year contracts state that you are to be paid per voyage upon arrival of said voyages," he said with a smile, "but I have arranged for Durant to transfer a starter fee into each of your company accounts so that you may pick up last-minute needs before we go. You are now free until 1500 hours tomorrow, but you will need to see Durant before you scatter. He has company credicards to issue to each of you that you will use to access your accounts. Okay, that's all I have. Any questions for now?" There were no takers, so he gave them a casual wave of his hand. "You're free to go. See you tomorrow at 1500."

***

The newest member of the Blue Horizon was arranging her new garments in the closet of her cabin when the intercom chirped from a panel on the desk. She moved to the terminal and tapped the Answer control.

"This is Taro," she said.

"Hi, it's Merlin. Do you have a moment to come to the bridge?"

"I will be right there."

Morning sunlight streamed in through the vidscreen windows of the Blue Horizon's command center, with spaceport activity in full operation without. Merlin was dressed in navy blue pants, black jackboots, a thin beige shirt and a brown flight jacket. He stood beside the communications console and looked up at her when she entered.

"Good morning," he said.

"G'morning, Merlin. What's up?"

"After my morning coffee, I always come up to the bridge to check for messages. There was one waiting that was addressed to me, but it concerns you. It's from your former captain."

The vixen raised an eyebrow and then brushed a few stray hairs from her tan blouse. "What did she have to say?" she asked cautiously. In response, the lupine captain tapped a button on the console.

"To the captain of the Blue Horizon," said Vanessa's casual voice from an overhead speaker. "I am Captain Mariposa of the SS Giggling Ghost, the purple freighter currently parked next to yours. As the commander of a space freighter, I'm sure you are aware that personalities sometimes clash and tempers flare. Such was the case yesterday in a disagreement with one of my crewmates. I admit that I can sometimes be hot-headed, and I wish to offer an apology to Taro Nichols for my actions yesterday, as well as extend them to you for being caught in the middle of our argument. Please let Taro know that I have had second thoughts concerning her departure, and that if she will agree to come back to the Ghost, she will be reinstated with a substantial raise that will effectively double what she was getting before. I have a new contract written up and I eagerly await her return. I appreciate your time, Captain, and thank you in advance for relaying my message to her."

The recording ended and then Merlin looked over at her in concern. "Taro," he said in a quiet voice. "You are currently contracted to me now, but if you wish to return to your old crew at a salary greater than what I can pay, I will nullify the contract for you in appreciation for setting us up with our first four clients. I think once we're on our way and established in the business, I can—"

Merlin's words were interrupted by sudden laughter. Taro shook her head with a wide grin. "She's finally discovered that there are no records of our past clients within the databanks of the Ghost's computer," she said in apparent glee. She reached out and put a hand on the wolf's arm. "Merlin, I'm not going anywhere but where the Blue Horizon takes me," she assured him. "Vanessa is not that forgiving to take me back simply because she has had second thoughts. She only wants my clientele list of contacts, and I am sure that she would make up some excuse to fire me again just as soon as we reached our first destination. The double-pay would only last for one voyage, and I'm sure she thinks it would be worth that just to get the list back."

A spark of doubt spread across the wolf's features into a frown. "Did you purposely keep that business information from your captain?" he asked.

Taro's smile never faltered. "Not purposely, no," she answered. "With as many system outages we experienced on a regular basis, I decided it was better to have it all on my personal slateboard tablet, which was infinitely more reliable. That old slateboard and I have been together for quite a while, but it was still on board the Ghost when she fired me. It was someone from that crew who tossed it out on the tarmac with the rest of my things, thinking it would all be trashed. As far as I'm concerned, they gave the slateboard back to me to do with as I wished. They still have three more deliveries they are contracted to make from here, but beyond those, they’ll be on their own."

"You aren't going to accept her offer?" the captain asked tentatively.

"No. I am not. You gave me a better offer, and I willingly signed my contract." She moved closer to the wolf and slipped her arms around his neck, putting her nose up next to his. "I don't normally get chummy with those in authority over me," she said in a whisper, "but if you need further convincing, I'm sure I can think of other ways to properly thank you for hiring me."

Merlin swallowed, but otherwise remained perfectly still, acutely aware of the points of contact between their bodies. She simply smiled into his amber eyes for a long moment, allowing him the time to reply. The vixen was no stranger to the effect her curves had on the opposite sex, and she had often used that to her advantage, but she would never force herself on anyone.

It felt like an eternity before the wolf's brain could formulate a response, and when he did speak aloud, his throat was dry. "Taro… uhm, I think I'm con… convinced of your appreciation. You… uhm, you're welcome."

Taro enjoyed his discomfort, but granted him mercy. She gave his cheek a brief nuzzle and then pulled away from him. "Thank you," she said, moving to the pilot's station and sitting down. "I will return Vanessa's call in a moment, but it's best if I'm alone when I speak with her." It was Merlin's turn to raise an eyebrow at her, so she answered his unspoken question.

"Vanessa Mariposa has a short fuse and an awful temper. She holds long grudges, and I am certain she will swear to get even, so it's probably best you know that if we run into her again, she will be vindictive for taking me and her customers away from her. She won't be a friendly competitor."

Merlin mused on this a moment and then gave the fox a nod. "If it comes to that," he said, "then I'm glad I have someone in my crew who knows her strengths and weaknesses. I am quickly learning that the business I dreamed of having is going to temper me in ways I never thought of. I would prefer not to have an enemy before we even launch with our first job, but if it comes to competition, I'll give it to her."

Chapter 18

Portait of Nine

Fifteen hundred hours. Not a single crew member of the Blue Horizon was late. All they had worked for and worried about now came down to this time. Merlin stood with the rest of his mates, his favorite pair of work gloves clutched idly in his hands while they all listened to Durant's instructions.

The grizzly was dressed in all dark green, apparently his favorite color, but he was oblivious to anything but the oversized slateboard in his hands. He explained that the first three meters of the deck flooring inside the massive airlock was equipped with sensitive yet sturdy sensors to display the weight of each crate brought on board the vessel. With each container weighed, Durant would direct where it was to be placed within the Hold for proper distribution.

With new knowledge of the weight sensors under that part of the deck, all the females in the crew quickly moved away from the area. Weighing the cargo was one thing, but peeking at a woman's weight was not acceptable!

Just about the time everyone understood what was to be expected of each and every one of them, a large delivery truck rounded the corner of the terminal building and came toward the blue freighter. Praskovia Clothing Exports was painted in large red letters in Standard beneath a stylized logo of crossed needles over a thimble. The driver pulled the vehicle past the marked lines on the tarmac and slowed to a stop near the loading ramp. Durant hurried out to meet the truck while everyone else waited in anticipation.

"Is this the Blue Horizon?" asked the driver of the vehicle, a shaggy canine of indeterminate breed. He brushed long white fur from his eyes to peer out his window at the grizzly.

"Yes sir, it is," answered Durant. "We've been expecting you, but I thought there were supposed to be three trucks."

"Actually, it took four trucks to get everything," the canine replied with a toothy grin. "The others are still back at the guard shack getting inspected per regulations. I'm just the first one through!"

"Very good," Durant said with a nod. If you'll back up to the ramp, we can go over the manifest together while we begin unloading your truck."

"Will do!"

By the time the vehicle was turned around, backed into place and lowered to ground level on thick pylons, the second truck arrived. Durant signed for the delivery and began giving instructions to the crew as the first driver directed the second in backing up his vehicle beside the first.

Although the work was work, everyone maintained a jovial attitude throughout the exercise. Once during an approved rest break, Taro noticed that the personnel of the Giggling Ghost were watching the proceedings from the interior of their own cargo bay; there was no joviality from that crew.

By the time that all four trucks were empty and the last of them departed, two and a half hours had passed. Durant continued to direct and help everyone secure plasteel webbing over the mountain of cargo to large rings mounted in the floor. At just a little over three hours, the Blue Horizon was loaded, the cargo was secure and the bay door was sealed.

Inside the Hold, everyone rested against the cargo, exhaustion from the unfamiliar physical toil evident upon them all. After he had given everyone a respite, Merlin cleared his throat to get their attention.

"Well done, everyone. Well done," he told them. "I'm sure we'll all sleep well tonight after we've launched and are on our way." He checked his watch, noting the time. "Since we were unsure how long this would take us, Taro gave us plenty of time and arranged a launch window with room to breathe. It's now nineteen-thirty hours. We still have an hour and a half before our twenty-one hundred departure, but there's something I want to do during that time."

"What now?" grumbled a tired Jasper. He didn't think he had the energy to even light up one of his cigars right now.

Merlin gave him a weary smile of his own. "I want everyone to go get cleaned up and then meet out under the nose of the ship in one hour for a group photo of the crew."

"One hour!" both Connie and Ivy wailed in unison.

"One hour," the wolf repeated.

"That's not enough time to shower, get dressed, and do my hair and makeup for a portrait!" Connie complained.

"Nevertheless, I want everyone outside in one hour. Mr. Koihan has agreed to set up lights and take our picture before we launch. It won't take but a few minutes to do, and then the bridge crew will need to start a pre-launch checklist while the ship is sealed and pressurized."

"We should have done the picture this morning," Samantha stated with a frown, no less distressed by the short amount of time to get ready.

"Agreed," Merlin replied, "but Mr. Koihan wasn't available this morning. "Listen, folks – this portrait isn't going to be published anywhere. It's merely to commemorate our maiden flight together and the only copies of the picture will be in our hands. You don't have to be perfectly groomed and wearing your best garments. We're all tired right after loading the ship, so all you have to do is freshen up a bit for a quick photo."

"Aw, daddy, do I hafta?" Jiro quipped in a sing-song voice.

Merlin sighed loudly and put his hands on his hips. "Yes, and that means everyone! Now, scoot!"

The tired bunch got to their feet, a few grumbling beneath their breath. Despite a stiff shoulder still healing from its earlier assault, Merlin had helped moved as much of the cargo as he had been able to and was just a weary as the rest of them. However, even if no one else wanted a copy of the portrait, he wanted one. As captain of the vessel about to start on its first voyage with this crew, he felt no guilt at forcing his employees into this one event.

***

Mr. Koihan studied the display of the camera and then looked up over it toward the crowd beneath three lights he had erected near the nose of the freighter. The black bear motioned toward Connie and gestured that the human woman should scoot in closer to the rest of the group.

Merlin and Samantha stood side-by side on the opposite end. The wolf wanted this to be a portrait to commemorate the maiden flight of his business, ship and crew, so he struck a stance with crossed arms, trying to look the part of a serious captain. He wore a brown flight jacket over a light blue shirt and darker blue pants tucked into black jackboots; the Border collie was in a tan jacket adorned with fringe, a white blouse and pants the color of dark chocolate. She whispered something to him in a deliberate attempt to make him smile, but he held his pose despite her effort. Beside them, Jiro stood bare-chested as always, wearing only jeans and a pair of sandals. Standing just behind him with one hand upon his shoulder was the taller vixen. Now refreshed, Taro looked relaxed in a long lavender shirt that complimented the red of her fur and hung to her knees. Her pant legs were rolled up above her shoes, giving her the appearance of someone in the midst of spring cleaning. In the middle and standing behind everyone was Durant, the largest and tallest of the group. He wore a stylistic lapel pin on one end of the collar of his dark green polo shirt, and had on brown pants and black shoes.

Jerad walked in from the side with a cushioned stool and placed it on the ground in front of the grizzly bear. Ivy thanked him with a touch on the back of a hand after he helped her sit upon it. The lynx smoothed the wrinkles out of her pale yellow dress and then straightened her kitchen apron so that the cartoon face of a smiling kitty was draped over her knees. Jerad had considered wearing a bright, flowery shirt over denim shorts, but he would have had to wash the shirt first, so he was in his typical green work coveralls festooned with pockets. Not wanting to just stand there looking wooden, the mechanic held a rather large wrench across his hands as a prop. Between him and Connie, Jasper pulled a cigar from the chest pocket of his own patched coveralls and lit it up to a satisfied smile.

Noting that everyone was visible through the camera lens, Mr. Koihan held up one hand above his head. "Okay, folks," he said in a loud voice. "Focus on my fingers and then all together, I want everyone to say 'cheese' with a big smile on your faces!"

Amazingly, everyone complied at once, and in unison, their mingled voices called out, "Cheeeeeese!"

Chapter 19

Thrust Into the Path

"Alexandrius Defense Authority Control has cleared us for launch in three minutes marked," Taro announced. "Durant has also confirmed that the ramps are retracted, the hatches are sealed and the ship is pressurizing." Since the Blue Horizon didn't have a dedicated communications officer, Merlin had asked her to cover the launch since she already had a rapport with the ADA control tower.

"Right," Merlin murmured. The original plan had been for him to pilot the ship with Jiro as his navigator, but due to the limited movement of his stiff shoulder, the two of them had switched places; the captain was seated at the engineering station, exchanging monosyllabic checklist points with the cougar who sat in the pilot seat at the center of the small room. The ship was ready for launch, but they wanted to make sure that nothing was forgotten at this very important stage.

Taro switched on the ship-wide intercom and spoke into a headset microphone she wore. "Attention all hands," she broadcast. "We are go for launch in two minutes, forty seconds. If you are not strapped into a harness, this is the time to get into one. All compartments are equipped with them. If you look to the left of your desk in the cabins, you will see a panel in the wall that pulls out into a small seat. It is equipped with a harness for launches, landings and emergencies. I suggest you strap yourself in now."

The vixen switched off the connection, but instead of stowing the headset into a clip on the side of the console, she left it wrapped around the back of her head to monitor incoming signals. She checked her own harness, and satisfied that it was secure, she glanced over at the two males. Both of them were in theirs as well and the latches looked solid.

"Okay, mate, that's the whole checklist," Jiro said finally. Merlin simply nodded his acknowledgement and double-checked the readings of the engineering station beside him. There was a subtle vibration in the deck plates with the ship's engine reserves building up to full power. There was a full minute until launch, so Jiro mentally matched the seconds as he watched the chronometer on his console. Just before the numbers quietly dropped to zero, Taro gave an acknowledgement to something from her headset.

"ADA has cleared us for launch," she reported.

A green light glowed brightly on his panel and the cougar moved his hands smoothly over the controls. He grasped a pair of inverted, L-shaped guidance shifts firmly and then depressed a thumb switch on the right-hand grip.

"Full power to the launch thrusters," he reported. There was the briefest hesitation, and then the blue saucer-shaped freighter jumped off the landing pad it had occupied for weeks, rising straight up. The sudden increase in gravity pushed them all into their padded seats and Taro's battered slateboard fell to the floor with a clatter.

"Zee plus thirty-five hundred meters," Merlin directed, changing a setting on the navigator's console to his left.

The Blue Horizon rose vertically, going higher and higher, the spaceport shrinking quickly as wispy clouds passed harmlessly by the forward windows. Then when the ship reached an altitude of two miles, the cougar angled the nose up and engaged the main atmospheric engines to slice through the night sky. The inertia dampers compensated automatically for the ship's increasing velocity and the ride was smooth, though they could hear the roar of heated atmosphere against the hull shields.

Jiro glanced over at the Com station and smiled at Taro. When he looked forward at Merlin, the wolf's eyes were glued to a small crescent moon in the dark sky above them. Jiro looked back down at his console and watched an indicator marking their elevation; within moments, the freighter was fast approaching orbital altitude.

A small green dot lit up on the engineering console beside Merlin, and the captain's eyes moved to it automatically. "The ship's artificial gravity deck plates just went active," he reported.

"Thirty seconds to orbital insertion," Jiro responded. "We'll do one-point-five revolutions until breakaway to begin our heading to the Anya Star System." He hesitated a moment and then looked up from his readouts with a frown. "I just realized that our planned route will take us through the Van Conner nebula. Pirates are known to hang out there; do you think we should calculate a route around it?" he asked. "No need to tempt fate on our first journey out."

"Good idea," Merlin replied. "I'll calculate a new trajectory."

"We're now at orbital altitude," Jiro said, altering his controls to level off.

"ADA Control, this is the SS Blue Horizon," Taro reported in monotone into her small boom microphone. "Orbital altitude successfully attained."

"Acknowledged, Blue Horizon," came a reply in her headset. "You are scheduled to be tracked for one and one-half orbits, and then you are cleared for trajectory to Kantus. Your prograde orbital vicinity is currently shared with three vessels, two outgoing freighters, the SS Guarana and the SS Sandburr, and one inbound science cruiser, the SS Steven Squyres. Stay on your present course, good luck and Godspeed."

"Thank you, ADA Control. Blue Horizon, out." Taro readjusted her tail in the slotted opening in the back of her chair and then sat back. "Well, guys," she said, "we're on our way!"

The feline pilot looked over at her with a grin. "Finally!" he breathed at last.

"New course transferred to your console," Merlin announced, lifting his good arm into a stretch. He may not have the navigating skills of his partner, but he had flown enough single-operator ships during his time in the Dennieran military to know what he was doing for such a simple task.

"Thank —" The words caught in Jiro's throat when the deck plates gave a shutter and the stars ahead shifted suddenly to starboard. Disoriented for a moment, the cougar scrambled to check his settings. Everything appeared to be in order, but they were suddenly off course — and going there fast.

"Merlin!" he exclaimed.

"I'm on it!" replied the wolf, looking down at the engineering panel.

Jiro struggled with the controls to correct their heading while the lupine captain worked out the problem. Unfortunately, the ship continued to demand that they go toward the port.

"A starboard thruster is firing, throwing us off course!" Merlin called at last.

"I did not initialize the maneuvering thrusters!" Jiro replied in alarm.

"Get Jasper on the line!" Merlin directed Taro. "Quickly!"

The vixen put the signal on the overhead speakers. "Engine room," said a voice with a distinct country accent. At the same time, Taro received an incoming call over her headset, so she covered one ear against the intercom while she listened to her headset.

"Jasper!" the captain said quickly. "We have an errant thruster firing on the starboard side. It's throwing us off course!"

"Captain!" Taro said over the conversation. "ADA Control is demanding to know why we've altered course! We're heading right for the Steven Squyres!"

Merlin looked out through the forward windows and swallowed hard. They were bearing down on the running lights of an extremely large vessel.

***

Down in the engine room, Jasper scrambled to free himself from his launch harness; the voices over the intercom continued as the bridge crew tried to correct their course. The clasp was sticky and in need of lubricant, but finally released under the raccoon's small fingers. Just as he jumped off the seat, the thrusters fired again in several short bursts and the deck shifted beneath him. The engineer stumbled over his feet, and in losing his balance, he fell hard into the door of a tool locker. He let out a squeak of pain and slid to the floor.

"Jasper!" his twin exclaimed from another seat.

Dazed, the chief engineer shook his head to show he was okay, but clutched his left hand to his chest. In quiet determination, he got to his feet and stumbled against another thruster burn toward a nearby control panel. Long experienced with the layout of those controls, he reached out for a set of toggles and flipped three of them without reading their labels.

***

On the bridge, the guidance shifts ceased struggling beneath Jiro's hands and he suddenly had control again. However, due to the combined speeds of the two vessels hurling toward one another, he had little time to alter course to prevent collision.

"I've shut off power to the bad thruster!" Jasper's voice announced.

In orbit over the dark side of the planet, the Steven Squyres was visible only as a large number of running lights through the forward window, but all three on the bridge could see eerie dark details of the ship's structure as the Blue Horizon careened in closer. Jiro fought the controls and brought the leading edge of the freighter up just enough that the flying saucer fairly skimmed over the upper surface of the science vessel. Neither ship connected, but there couldn't have been more than a few meters between their hulls when they passed in the night.

Taro suddenly pulled the headset from her ears and held it out at arm's length as the captain of the Steven Squyres filled the transmission waves with curses fluent in several languages throughout the Planetary Alignment.

Merlin blinked several times at the verbal onslaught that even he could hear. With carful deliberations, Jiro eased the freighter back to its original flight plan. When the tirade ended, Taro gave a brief explanation and apology to the captain of the Squyres, and then switched quickly back to the controller at the Alexandrius Defense Authority to do damage control with them as well.

"Can you do without me for a bit?" Merlin asked the cougar. "I'll go down to the Engine room to check on things there."

"Are the new coordinates set in the astrogation flight computer?"

"Already transferred to your panel."

"Sure, we'll be fine up here, so long as we don't get thrust into the path of another incoming ship!"

"I should be back before we've finished our orbit."

"Have a nice trip," Jiro replied. Merlin gave him a nod and then the wolf was out the door.

Taro let out a sigh and leaned back into her seat once more, laying a palm flat against her sternum. "Merlin will have to write this down somewhere," she told the feline. "The first launch of his first command began with heart-thumping action…"

Chapter 20

Apparition

"It's only a sprain," the nurse told her patient. "No broken bones from what I can see from the x-ray. You're very fortunate it's only a torn ligament."

Jasper held his left hand up close to his chest, his other over it protectively. "I don't know about fortunate," he said with a frown, "but I'm glad it isn't broken."

Connie walked over to a cabinet, and then pulled out a clean towel and a white packet bearing a green cross upon its wrapping. "I'm going to put a cold compress on it," she said, "and I want you to come back every four hours for a fresh one to keep it cooled down; I want you to keep it elevated, above the level of your heart. I'm also going to give you an anti-inflammatory medication to further help reduce the swelling."

"You aren't going to wrap it up in a bandage?" he asked curiously.

The red-haired woman shook her head, causing her ponytail to sway. To the raccoon, he thought her bound-up hair resembled a long, wagging tail, but only attached to the back of her head rather than to the lower end of her spine. It was an odd visualization.

"Not until some of the swelling has gone down," she replied, popping the white pack between her hands. "We'll let the cold and the meds work on that first, and then we'll bind it up." She kneaded the internal chemicals of the compress together and then folded it up in the towel. Jasper winced when she wrapped it gently around his wrist and then secured it with two thin elastic straps.

Turning back to the counter, Connie opened another cabinet and pulled out a small bottle of green capsules. She dumped one out onto her palm and then filled a small cup with water from the sickbay sink. She handed both to the engineer, which he took quietly.

When she helped him down off the roller stool, she gestured toward the door and said, "I know we just took off, but I want you to get some rest now. Let your brother monitor the engine room and go to your cabin. If you use that hand, it's only going to delay reduction of the swelling."

Jasper sighed and nodded quietly. "Yes ma'am," he replied. He'd sustained enough pains and injuries over the years to know that rest was always recommended with a sprained limb.

"I will let the captain and your brother know you're on limited duty," the nurse told him, opening the door for him. "How long will depend upon how well you treat your wrist."

"Thanks," replied the raccoon. She gave him a nod of acknowledgement and then he headed for his cabin.

***

Merlin stepped off the lift on the cargo deck and momentarily gazed out at the cargo containers secured to the flooring. Durant was on the far side checking the straps post launch and didn't see him. The captain left the bear to his work and followed the curved aisle around the perimeter of the hold to the engine room.

He passed through the open pressure door and took a brief look into the engineer's office, but it was vacant. The wolf smiled to himself, impressed that the raccoons were likely elbows-deep in the machinery already to fix the errant thrusters. He walked further into the engine room along the main aisle, but neither saw nor heard either of the mechanics.

"Jasper?" he called out. There was no reply but the deep rumble of the Liquid Crystal LightDrive system. "Jerad?"

Still no reply. Thinking that they must be out of hearing range having crawled inside an access corridor somewhere, Merlin continued looking for them. He called out several times, but to no response. When he reached the aft end of the compartment, he leaned back against a bulkhead and rubbed his sore shoulder, wondering where they were.

***

Jiro adjusted his controls and prepared to take the Blue Horizon out of orbit. Taro had just relayed ADA Control's acknowledgement on the completion of their one and a half revolutions. A traffic corridor was open and the cougar altered their flight path to take it away from the planet below.

The intercom chirped and Taro reached out absently to tap the answer key. "Bridge," she answered.

"Taro!" exclaimed Jerad's country voice, pitched just a little higher than normal. "TaroTaroTaroThere'saghostinthegalleythere'saghostinthegalleytheshipishauntedandwe'vegottogoback!"

Jiro blinked and chanced a look over his shoulder at the vixen. A look of great puzzlement was on both their faces.

"Jerad, calm down!" Taro ordered, "What's going on – I can't understand you!"

"TellMerlintoturntheshiparoundandgobacktoAlexandriusthere'saghostinthegalleyandIthinkit'sgottenIvy!"

"Stop it!" Taro commanded. "Catch your breath and tell me again, but slower."

The raccoon audibly gulped air and then he tried again. His voice was still strained, but he managed to say, "We've got a ghost in the galley!" He took another deep breath. "I think it's got Ivy!" (gasp) "Turn the ship around!" (gasp) "It’s haunted!" (gasp) "Go back to Alucara!"

"A ghost?" Taro and Jiro repeated in unison.

Although intrigued with the unexpected conversation, Jiro needed to concentrate on the stellar traffic around Alexandrius, so he tried to tune out the agitated raccoon's voice.

"It's a ghost, Taro!" Jerad exclaimed.

"Tell me what you saw," the vixen replied patiently. Before the raccoon could respond, the intercom chirped again. "Hold on, Jerad," she said, before she switched the circuit. "Bridge," she said.

"Taro," replied Merlin's voice, "I'm down here in the engine room, but can't seem to find either of our mechanics."

"Jerad's outside the galley, swearing he's seen a ghost in the galley, but I don't know where Jasper is."

"Did you just say… a ghost?"

"Yeah… He's on another intercom line right now and was just ranting about turning the ship around to go back to Alucara."

"Okay, this is nuts. Jiro is to stay on course, but tell Jerad I'll meet him outside the galley."

"Aye, sir."

Merlin shut off his end of the connection, so the vixen switched back to the previous line. "Jerad, you still there?"

"Still here, but I don't know for how long!" the raccoon replied.

"Merlin's on his way there now," Taro reported. "Stay put."

"I'm watching the door to the galley, but I haven't seen it seep out yet. If it does, I'm going to dig down through the floor in two seconds flat!"

***

"Explain to me why you left the engine room unattended right after launch."

The short raccoon looked up when his captain walked around the curve of the corridor. He was huddled near the floor against the wall, his arms wrapped around his knees, and he had been staring unblinking at the galley door. He ran a hand across his eyes and stood up, visibly shaken.

"Jasper's down there, diagnosing the thruster problem. I came up to—"

"The engine room is deserted, Jerad. I was just down there."

"Jasper's not there?"

Merlin fixed him with a scowl. "No and neither are you. We've just launched and there's already work for you to do. Why did I hire you guys?"

The raccoon laid his ears back and lowered his chin. "Before we can fix a problem, we've got to find out what's wrong," he explained in a quiet voice. "Jasper was doing a diagnostic on the thruster control system when I came up here to help Ivy."

"Even if you didn't have a faulty thruster to repair, you should have been checking all systems to make sure this ship isn't leaking air and that the engines are functioning properly. There are plenty of others to help Ivy if she needed it."

Jerad's eyes suddenly bulged out as he remembered. "Ivy! I think it got her!"

The wolf blinked, caught off guard by the non sequitur. "What?"

Jerad pointed at the nearby door. "Merlin, there's a ghost in there! I saw it with my own eyes! The ship is haunted and I think it's gotten Ivy! We need to go back to Alucara and get an exorcist!"

"We're not turning around," Merlin stated flatly. "Just describe—"

"It was a free floating apparition!"

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Both males turned to see Samantha coming out of her nearby cabin.

"That's what I'm trying to find out," Merlin growled in frustration. He crossed his arms and swished his tail in agitation. "Okay, Porter – tell me what you saw."

The raccoon swallowed and tried to will his heart to calm down, all the while keeping an eye on the galley door. "Ivy was planning to put together a celebratory meal for the crew after our first launch. Once we got up to orbit, I thought I would come up to give her a hand, since Jasper was already taking care of the thruster issue." He pointed toward the closed panel. "When I opened the door, there was a pale, floating apparition looking back at me!"

"You saw a ghost?" Samantha asked with a sudden grin.

"Yes! I swear it! I didn't see Ivy, so it must have gotten her!"

"What did this… apparition look like?" Merlin asked.

Jerad grabbed the wolf by the wrist. "Like a ghost! C'mon! We've got to go back to Alucara!"

The captain snared the mechanic's arm in a tight grip with his free hand and pried it loose. "This is nonsense," he said in a darker tone. Freed from the raccoon's grip, he stormed over to the galley door and thumbed the button on the wall beside it. Samantha accompanied him, but Jerad maintained his position across the corridor.

The door slide sideways within the wall, and Merlin and Samantha looked into a dark room. Floating without any means of support over the long galley table was a nebulous, indistinct patch of white. Samantha grabbed the wolf's arm, but Merlin merely frowned. The pale patch hovered in place, undulating silently, but it made no move to attack them, although it did appear as if an offset pair of dark eyes peered back at them.

Jerad peeked in around them, saw the ghostly apparition and let out a terrified wail. Forgetting the others, he ran up the corridor as quickly as his short legs would carry him, sounding like a junk truck on a bumpy road with all the tools in his pockets. He darted into his cabin and shut the door with his heart in his throat.

Fueled by the raccoon's superstitions, it took Merlin a moment to realize what he was looking at, but when a three-pronged fork floated lazily through the middle of the patch, he chuckled in realization.

"Wha—?" started Samantha. The fork surprised her too, and then she noted that other kitchen utensils and some beans floated elsewhere throughout the room. Merlin suddenly laughed in relief and cast an amused glance back up the corridor in the direction the mechanic had run.

"The gravity's out!" Samantha said with a grin. To prove her point, the canine stepped into the galley and suddenly she was weightless. She reached out toward the nebulous white patch and gently waved her hand through it. She did a slow pirouette in place and then held out the hand toward her captain.

"It's flour," she explained with bright eyes.

"Is there something wrong?" said a new voice.

Merlin looked behind him and saw the short lynx. Although they had only just left the spaceport, she was dressed in a light cotton robe in yellow with tiny blue flowers; she was also barefoot and had a hand resting gently across her stomach.

"The gravity deck plates don't seem to be working in there," the captain answered. "Are you okay?"

Ivy shook her head, but that action seemed to bother her. "It's been a long while since my last launch," she explained as Samantha swam back to the door and then stepped out into the gravity well of the corridor. "I got a little queasy when we took off," Ivy continued, looking embarrassed. "I, uh, threw up on myself…"

Merlin reached out and brushed the fur behind her closest ear gently. "Are you going to be okay?"

She leaned into his touch. "Yeah, I'm not actually sick," she replied, "just feeling the after-effects of the launch. I'll be fine in a few minutes."

"If your tummy is unsettled," Samantha said, "you'd better not go in there. The zero-gee won't do you any favors."

Ivy stepped closer to the door and peered inside. As standard with all starships, her dishes, cookware and foodstuffs were secured in their cabinets, but apparently something came loose during the departure from Alucara. She recognized various kinds of utensils, as well as her fine cooking flour and a few coffee beans floating around the room.

She looked back at the wolf staring in over her head. "Permission to rest a bit before I do cleanup?" she asked.

"Sure, let your stomach settle. I'll get Jerad to clean this up while you're resting, though."

"Thanks, but why him?"

Samantha snickered, but Merlin merely sighed. "He came in here looking for you and saw the floating flour," the wolf replied. "He thought it was a ghost and ran off terrified to his quarters."

"I'd heard he was superstitious, but that was ridiculous," Samantha observed. She looked at Ivy with a grin and added, "This gives me something to tease him about!"

"Well, he gets to clean it up for deserting his post," Merlin growled. Shutting the door to keep anything from floating out and dropping to the hallway carpet, he turned and walked to the mechanic's cabin. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer.

"Jerad, open up!"

"Not until we get an exorcist!" came back the muffle voice.

Merlin leaned against the door frame and shook his head. "The ghost is gone, Jerad," he said to the door. "It's been exorcized already."

"What? I don't believe you!"

"Get out here, Porter. I have a job for you."

"No!"

Captain of the Blue Horizon and the employer of his crew, Merlin thumbed the button to the cabin and opened it without knocking further. Inside, Jerad was huddled up against the wall at the head of his bunk, his pillow grasped tightly in one arm and a small object gripped in the other. He looked up in surprise, but didn't move until Merlin stormed in and grabbed the raccoon's coveralls by the collar. The wolf hoisted him up off the bed and then practically dragged the mechanic out of the cabin into the hallway.

Jerad stumbled, but kept his feet when the wolf released him. The captain towered over him, his ears back, tail up and his teeth bared at him. "While you are under contract, don't you ever directly refuse an order I give you!" he hissed through his teeth.

"Y-yess-sssir!" the raccoon stammered, cowering before the penetrating glare of the alpha wolf's amber eyes.

Merlin stared him down until Jerad turned away his gaze, and then he relaxed the tight grip of his fists. He forced himself to calm down to speak in a normal voice. "Now listen. There was no ghost in the galley…"

"You saw it!" Jerad exclaimed, rubbing his fingers over a flat sphere of plastic. Inside was a preserved four-leaf clover from a past visit to Earth.

Merlin clamped his hand over the raccoon's snout. "Shut up and listen to me," he growled. He didn't release the mechanic, but pointed back down the corridor with his free hand. "The gravity deck plates in the galley aren’t working, Jerad. What you saw was some of Ivy's cooking flour in the absence of artificial gravity."

"Ffflrr?" he mumbled through the wolf's fingers.

Merlin released him and nodded. "Flour," he repeated, "with a few coffee beans and some utensils."

The raccoon seemed to deflate. "Flour…" he said again. The captain led him back to the galley, where both Ivy and Samantha looked at him in amusement. Jerad saw their expressions and felt foolish, but when he looked in through the door, he swallowed with difficulty.

Samantha reached in past him and thumbed on the light switch. The short mechanic studied the sight before him and then turned back to the others. When he realized that Ivy stood beside him, he felt instant relief that nothing had gotten her as he had supposed.

"It's only flour," he reported with a silly expression on his face. "What's everyone so upset about?"

Samantha snickered and Merlin simply shook his head in relief. He took a step forward and put a hand on the raccoon's shoulder. "Ivy didn't handle the launch well and her stomach's a little touchy," he explained. "I'm going to send her back to her cabin to let it settle, but in the meantime, your task is to fix the gravity deck plates in here."

With a new purpose to occupy him, Jerad nodded and looked back at the wolf. "Those are easy to repair," he said, "but down on the surface of the planet, Jasper and I were unaware they weren't working in this compartment. I'll get on it right away."

"Before you do that," Samantha interjected, "it might be best if we clean up the stuff that's floating around, or it will be quite a mess when the gravity is restored." Almost as if to prove her point, a spoon floated out to the doorway, crossed over into the corridor, and then dropped to the carpet where it bounced up against the raccoon's boot.

Jerad bent over and picked it up. "Good point," he said with a frown, clearly not wanting to tackle that particular job.

"I'll go get a couple handvacs and help you," the Border collie told him.

The mechanic looked up in gratitude. "Thank you, Sam!" he said with grin.

Merlin gave a nod of approval when the canine looked over at him, and then she headed back round the curved corridor to the laundry room where the vacuum units were stored. The captain put a hand gently on the lynx's shoulder. "C'mon," he said. "Go rest for a while. They'll take care of things here."

"Thanks, Merlin, but I don't want to waste too much time. It was after 1930 hours when we finished loading the ship, the photo op at 2030, and then the launch at 2100. Some of us haven't eaten since lunch time and I'm sure we have some hungry crewmates on board."

The captain nodded and put a hand on his own stomach. "Yeah, I'm one of them," he said with a gentle smile. "Okay, just rest up until Jerad and Samantha have finished, and then you can put something together. I would recommend something light instead of a big meal, however. We're still operating on the Alucara time zone and it's rather late at night. Our shipboard clocks will gradually adjust to the time zone of our destination on Kantus so that by the time we get there, our bodies will have adjusted to that time as well."

"That's one of the benefits of a long voyage," Jerad added. "Just think of the confusion our bodies would be in if we had instant trips across the Planetary Alignment."

"Exactly," replied the wolf. "Either Sam or Jerad will come to get you when they're finished."

"Aye, sir," said the lynx.

Merlin looked over at Jerad and frowned. "While you're cleaning up, I need to see if I can find Jasper," he mused. "I walked all through the engine room, calling for you guys, and didn't get a response."

"Maybe the diagnostics told him where the problem was and he went to fix it," Ivy suggested.

Jerad shrugged. "That's probably what happened." He rubbed his wrist where the captain had gripped him earlier and then suddenly looked down at it with sudden remembrance. He looked up and said, "Hey, he might have gone to see Connie about his wrist," he said. "He jammed it when the ship was lurching around before he could get the thruster shut off."

The wolf nodded. "Okay, I'll check with her first. Ivy, go rest. Jerad, you—"

"Captain!" Samantha's voice called out. He and both his companions looked back to see the Border collie emerge around the curve of the corridor. She held two hand vacuum units, one in each hand, but she looked bothered.

"What's wrong?" the wolf asked.

"The gravity deck plates in the laundry room are out too!" She held up the vacs and added, "I had to swim through all kinds of junk to get to the equipment locker inside."

Jerad frowned, remembering the flour. "Is there laundry detergent floating about too?"

Samantha shook her head. "Fortunately, nothing like that, just everything else. We've been using the laundry compartment as a catch-all during our cleanup efforts over the past couple weeks and I guess we just forgot to secure that room before we launched. A floating screwdriver tried to take my temperature crossing the room."

Jerad looked amused. “It tried to go—“

“In my ear!” Samantha finished for him, swatting his shoulder with one of the vacs.

Merlin sighed. "Okay, you two get started on the galley. I'll go see Connie about Jasper and then grab her to help me clean the laundry compartment. If Jasper's able to get around okay—"

"He only injured his wrist, not his legs," Jerad supplied.

"—then I'll put him to work checking systems to make sure we really are space-worthy before we get too far from Alexandrius. That thruster control will be his first priority. I imagine Jiro's already taken us out of orbit by now, so the quicker we know we're in good shape, the better. Once you are finished with the galley, Jerad, I want you to get those deck circuits working in these two compartments; make sure there aren't any other rooms similarly affected too."

"Aye sir, right away."

Merlin left the three to their assignments and walked toward the sickbay, consciously aware that he was able to move normally across the floor of the corridor, his feet coming in contact with the carpet with each step rather than swimming in freefall. It was all too easy to get complacent about life in space with the conveniences of technology. It wasn't necessary to wear pressure suits and float along passageways by handrail as it was in the days of space travel before artificial gravity generators were developed.

Despite that it sometimes failed, as it had now, Merlin was thankful for the technology that allowed him to walk normally in his shirt sleeves while in a vessel traveling the sea of stars.

Chapter 21

CHILLY DOWN

Nine days had passed since the Blue Horizon left Alexandrius. Once the gravity deck plates were repaired in two freshly-cleaned compartments, the days and hours passed into routine. The bridge systems were put on automatic with alerts programmed to signal both the captain and the chief engineer should anything come up, and Merlin made periodic checks on the Com system for any messages that might be directed at them when Taro was not at the console; the vixen made numerous calls to associates on each of the worlds of the Planetary Alignment, either lining up more jobs, or touching base to let them know of the vixen's new employment with Blue Horizon Freight.

At first, the individual members of the crew spent time apart in their individual cabins, reading books, listening to music or working with personal hobbies, but boredom set in and the recreation area of the third deck became a common gathering place to visit, play cards, exercise or just be lazy with others. Sam's Movie Time became a favored event every other day and Ivy even made popcorn that the Border collie had added to their food stores when they had stocked the ship.

Over the course of days, it became a common occurrence for most members of the crew to get the names of the raccoon brothers mixed up. Although they had differing personalities, their appearances were almost identical, even to matching irregularities in their fur patterns. Their voices were even similar in casual conversation, each with a country accent underlying their words. About the only things that physically set them apart were their garments and mannerisms. Jasper was often called Jerad by mistake, and likewise with Jerad being called Jasper.

More than once, if Samantha was talking with someone else and she happened to mention one or both of the brothers, she found herself referring to 'the one with all the pockets' or 'the one with the patches'. Without even realizing it, the others picked up on this and they could be heard using it in conversation as well.

One evening when the entire crew had gathered together in the galley for a meal, Samantha got confused between the two, so when she needed a bowl passed to her, she said, "Hey, pockets, pass the potatoes!"

Jerad stopped in mid-sentence in a conversation with Durant over their favorite confections and looked over at her with wide eyes. He picked up the bowl next to his plate and handed it to her with a grin. "Here ya go, Sammy!" he replied.

"Y'know, that's fitting," Jiro mumbled around a mouthful of meat. "It's easier to remember, since his pocket-full coveralls are all he wears!"

Jerad endured a bit of good-natured ribbing over the incident, and for several days anytime someone would see him in the galley, third deck or the corridors, they were prone to calling him Pockets.

When the mechanic walked into the galley for his breakfast one morning, Merlin, Samantha, Taro and Jiro were already seated at the long table. Taro looked as if she was barely awake, and the others were visiting quietly over the remnants of their breakfast dishes.

"G'morning, ya'll," Jerad said with a lazy smile.

"Good Morning, Pockets," Ivy said from the kitchen.

The others chuckled, but the raccoon simply pointed toward her with a grin and replied, "Good Morning back to you, Sparky!"

Samantha's eyes lit up and she looked back at the lynx mischievously. "Oh, Sparky," she said in delight, "may I have another cup of juice?"

Ivy narrowed stern eyes at her, but then she couldn't contain herself and laughed aloud. "Get it yourself, Sammy," she retorted. "I am going to take extra time to burn Pockets' breakfast this morning…"

"Uh oh!" Merlin said in mock surprise. "I'm glad I've already had my breakfast!" He looked over at this first officer and said, "You did inspect the fire-suppression system before we launched, right?"

Jiro nodded. "Yeah, and we might have to activate it to put out Pockets' breakfast!"

The raccoon sat down at the table, a grin on his face from cheek to cheek. He looked over at the lynx, putting his hands together in an act of apology and then bowed his head as if praying. "I sincerely apologize… Sparky," he said with a twinkle in his eye.

The short cook grinned at him and then shook her head. "This isn't the first time I've been called Sparky," she admitted, "but it's been a while."

Jerad put his hands up on the table and clasped them together. "When Jasper and I served on the Savage Clark, it was common for crew members to give one another nicknames."

"Savage Clark?" Jiro repeated.

"It was a Ganisan battleship, but we never really saw any action other than routing a few pirates from the spatial shipping lanes."

"That makes four on board with military experience," Taro said with half-lidded eyes. She rubbed them with a yawn that made her pink tongue curl up, and then took a drink of her coffee.

"Did you have a nickname with that crew?" Merlin asked.

The raccoon nodded and pointed to the band of black fur around his eyes. "They called me Bandit," he replied honestly. Then he rubbed his thumb and forefinger together and added, "I think it was primarily because I took credits from most of them playing cards."

"You cheat?" Jiro asked.

Jerad shook his head. "Nope, I'm just that good!"

"So he says," Ivy said with a grin.

"I think Pockets fits you better," the captain replied, reaching over to tap one of the mechanic's pockets. Something inside clinked together and the raccoon merely smiled in response.

"What about Jasper?" Samantha asked. "Did he have a nickname?"

"Yah, they either called him Patches or Patch," he answered. "He's so frugal with his money that he won't buy new coveralls when they get ripped. He just patches them up and continues to wear them."

"Patches and Pockets," Taro mused. "That works."

"Patch and Pockets," Jiro countered. "Patches sounds like the name of a Calico cat."

Merlin looked over at Samantha and gave her a look of longsuffering. "See what you started," he told her. "Before long, we'll all have nicknames…"

"Sticks and stones will break my bones," Jiro intoned an old saying he had heard from somewhere, "but names will never hurt me!"

Jerad chuckled, but then shrugged his shoulders. "Call me Pockets if you wish," he said. "I've been responding to it the past few days anyway."

While they were taking, Jiro got to his feet and picked up his dishes. He took them to the kitchen, where Ivy accepted them from him with a smile. "Well folks," he said, heading for the door, "I have things to do. See you later."

Merlin looked up at him over his shoulder. "What does the slacker have that needs doing?"

Jiro grinned at him and gestured toward the white galley wall beside him. "I need to prepare this canvas for a masterpiece and then get started on it."

"Masterpiece?" Taro repeated.

"I don't like this large blank space, so I'm going to paint a mural on it," he explained. "I did a smaller version of it on canvas, but now it's time to go up on this wall."

"I don't remember you asking permission to do this," Merlin said with a frown.

"May I have permission to do this?" Jiro asked with a wide smile.

The wolf looked at the white expanse; he had seen his partner's artistic ability and should have no cause for concern. "What… do you intend to paint?"

"Remember that painting of the Blue Horizon in flight that I gave you to hang in your quarters?" the navigator replied. "That was a test image of what I want to put up in here."

Merlin flicked an ear. He really liked the canvas painting the cougar had gifted him, and it was currently affixed to the wall above his bunk. "Sure, go ahead," he said after a moment. "Just try not to ruin everyone's meals with the paint fumes."

Jiro nodded. "No problem," he answered. "I picked up a set of paints commonly used on luxury liners for that very reason. These take a little longer to dry, but there's no noxious smell with them." With the wolf's approval, he gave a small hand wave to those in the galley and then stepped out into the corridor.

Heading back to his cabin, the cougar saw Jasper step outside his quarters and shut the door behind him. Jiro gave him a courteous smile and said, "G'morning, Patch," but he didn't see the raccoon's look of surprise before he disappeared through his doorway.

Jasper stood rooted in the corridor for a moment and then mumbled a few choice words about his brother's blabbing beneath his breath. As he headed for the lift to take it down to the engine room, however, he let a small smile cross his lips, pleasantly comfortable having his old nickname used again.

***

Leo Durant's right ear flicked briefly before his black eyes opened lethargically. The only illumination in the darkened bedroom emitted from a dim green nightlight stared back at him passively, but when he gently exhaled, the pale glow was enough to highlight his breath. His eyes half-lidded, he stared curiously at the puff of visible air for a long moment before closing them again. With nothing more than starlight coming through his cabin window, he was unaware of the time, having forgotten to set up a clock for the voyage, but somehow he knew that it must be in the wee hours of the ship-time morning.

The cinnamon-furred grizzly felt peacefully calm and agreed with himself that more sleep was what the doctor ordered. Closing his eyes, the cargo master drifted back into dreamless slumber, feeling completely relaxed.

***

The ship's nurse awoke at nearly the same instant as the ursine accountant, but her reaction to seeing her breath fog the air before her sleepy eyes was anything but calm and peaceful. A shiver reverberated through her and she huddled deeper beneath the thin sheet that covered the bed. When she had turned in for the night, the human woman had just emerged from a luxurious hot shower and had stripped the bed of all but the sheets to sleep in cool slumber. She had donned only a thin cotton nightgown, but now she shivered beneath the top sheet, curled up fetal to keep her body heat in close.

When her teeth began to chatter, she moaned in frustration and snaked an arm out of the pocket of warmth to feel around on the floor for her blanket. It was out of reach, bunched up on the carpet at the foot of the bed and the furless physician was reluctant to expose her bare skin to the cold night air.

However, when the shivering and chattering continued, she grumbled low in her throat and crawled beneath the sheet toward the other end of the bed. Her fingers finally snagged the thin blanket and she worked quickly to draw the new layer across the lump of her body that had returned to its original warm spot.

The blanket provided only a modicum of warmth, but Connie was thankful for that extra bit of fabric. Unfortunately, the additional layer didn't provide much insulation and the cold in the room sapped further heat from her body in only a short time.

Teeth chattering, the human sat up in bed, gathered the sheet and blanket around her tightly, and then stood up. She was thankful the floor was carpeted, but she immediately searched the dark for her slippers. She found them just under the bed and then shuffled to the light switch. She thumbed it on to half-power and then moved to the computer desk, where she sat down on a padded chair.

She checked the room settings on the monitor and noted that the humidity was low and that the current temperature was only ten degrees Celsius. Connie did a quick mental calculation and determined that the room temperature was around fifty degrees Fahrenheit, but as she studied the readout, the number dropped again slightly. Frowning, she tapped the controls to alter the climate conditions in her room, but there was no noticeable change in the numbers after several long minutes.

Grumbling about the inefficient insulation of her room, Connie moved to her closet and dressed quickly. Moments later, she left her cabin and stepped out into the corridor. The lights were dimmed to simulate early morning hours on the vessel, but after several steps, the woman realized that it was no warmer here than it was in her quarters. Something was wrong, she mused.

Reading the name tags that Samantha had made up for the cabin doors, the nurse quickly found the chief engineer's quarters and rapped her knuckles on it several times. Dressed in flannel pajamas, slippers and a thick Turkish robe, she was still unable to suppress the shivers that hit her while she waited. When there was no response, she knocked again, knowing that she would be waking him from sleep.

When she finally heard movement in the room, there was a sudden muffled curse; she correctly guessed that the raccoon's quarters were just as cold. A moment later, the door opened and Jasper was wrapped up in the blanket from his bed.

"Connie?" he asked groggily, his breath fogging the air between them.

"Sorry to wake you, but something's wrong with the heat on this deck," she told him. "I didn't know who else to tell."

"You came to the right place," the engineer mumbled sleepily. Then he tilted his head. "You said the heat was out on this deck. Is it working on the others?"

The woman shook her head, clutching her robe about her tightly. "Sorry, I haven't checked, but my room's just as cold as this hallway."

"I'll get dressed, grab my brother and then find out what's going on," the raccoon replied.

"Thanks, Jasper," Connie told him with a grateful smile. She knew he wasn't happy to have been bothered in the middle of the night, but as it was his job to keep the ship's systems in operation, he was the one to take care of it. The raccoon disappeared back inside and closed the door behind him.

Unwilling to go back to a cold bed, Connie headed for the galley to make herself a cup of hot cocoa.

***

Wrapped up in a blanket that was too thin for the chilly air, Jiro listened while Jasper gave him and the captain a report on the ship's heating system.

"Only a s-small portion of the heat from the engines is used for climate control," the engineer explained with fogged breath and a shiver, gesturing with a small hand encased in thin work gloves. "The rest of the heat is typically transferred to cooling ducts between the double hulls of the s-ship using a liquid refined on Mainor called trilinax, which is then recy—"

"Are you s-saying this trilling axe s-sucked up all the heat out of the air?" Jiro asked.

"No," replied the raccoon, frowning at the interruption, "but the trilinax is s-slightly volatile and corrosive if exposed to too much oxygen, s-so it is kept in a closed, compressed s-system. We found where a conduit has been leaking trilinax onto the primary conditioning unit. Jerad was able to patch the leak, but there isss now a corroded hole burned in through the s-ship's heating s-system."

"This is why it's so cold?" Merlin asked quietly. Although he hadn't grown a thick winter undercoat in years due to temperate ships and climates, he was still better suited to handle the cooler temperatures than most of his crewmates. He had only added a simple flight jacket over his shirt, whereas the others were bundled up in the sheets and blankets from their beds.

"Y-yess," Jasper replied with another shiver. "With no generated heat, the cold of s-space is bleeding in through our insulation and the heat is dissipating out. From the looks of the corrosion, the heater has been inoperative for the past five or s-six days, but it has taken this long for the outside temperatures to seep in through the hulls."

The lupine captain nodded in understanding. "Can you repair the heating unit?" he asked, glancing at the temperature reading on his desktop computer terminal. The temperature had dropped to three degrees Celsius.

"No, there was too m-much damage, and that's not s-something we carry as spares."

Jiro took off his gloves to blow heated, misty breath into his hands and then flexed his fingers. "You s-said that the trilling s-stuff transfers away most of the heat," he said. "C-can we use s-some of that heat for ourselves?"

The raccoon nodded. "Jerad's down there now trying to s-see if he can safely limit the flow of trilinax through the transfer tubes s-so we can retain more heat, but…" He trailed off when Taro entered the captain's office wrapped up in her own blanket, leaving the door open behind her.

Without a word, the vixen moved between Merlin and Jiro and pulled both of them toward her to share in their personal warmth. The cougar opened his blanket enough to draw her inside, and she looked at him thankfully.

Merlin looked back at the engineer. "But?" he asked, prompting Jasper to continue.

"But… the Liquid Crystal core of the engine can't operate above a c-certain temperature. Limiting the transfer of heat from the engines could cause a s-shutdown if its limits are reached."

"Can the trilinax be re-routed?" Merlin asked. "Instead of cooling it down between the hulls, would it be possible to route it up here and let the excess heat keep us above freezing on this deck?"

Jasper thought about it for a moment and then nodded. "Jerad may have enough extra tubing in the junk he keeps in the s-storage lockers in the hold to put together a radiator of s-sorts."

"Will the tubing handle the compression of the heat transfer s-system you said it operates under?" Jiro wanted to know. "We need a heat radiator of s-some kind, but not if a volatile liquid leaks out onto this deck!"

"We'll have to test them first," Jasper replied. "Even if this works, it may take days for the temperatures to warm up enough for s-standard s-shirt s-sleeves."

"Just keep us from freezing to death," Merlin told him. "We may all have to huddle up together on the recreation deck in the meantime."

"Better to s-stay on this deck," Taro said, speaking for the first time since her arrival. "The decks above and below us will act as extra ins-sulation from the external cold."

"That's a good idea," Jasper agreed.

"How do we s-stay warm in the meantime?" Jiro asked.

Taro put her nose into one of the cougar's small ears and whispered something to him that made his eyes grow wide. The vixen merely giggled at his embarrassed expression and snuggled up closer to him under the blanket.

"Put on more layers," suggested a new voice.

The small group in the wolf's office turned to look at the speaker standing just outside the open door. Connie Davies looked as if she were forty pounds heavier. Even her feet looked like thick sausages beneath her socks.

"What happened to you?" Jasper gasped.

The nurse smiled and looked down at her garments. "I'm wearing about half of my closet," she explained. When the four of them looked at her incredulously, she shrugged her shoulders, something not very noticeable in her current state. "I don't have fur like you guys do! I have to dress in multiple layers to stay warm."

Having recovered from the vixen's private comment, the ship's first officer let out an amused chuckle, but then his eyes lit up with a sudden thought. "You know, I think s-she has the right idea!" he exclaimed.

"What do you mean?" Merlin asked.

"We have s-seventy-eight crates full of clothing down in the hold!"

"Good idea," the captain agreed, "but those are off-limits."

"Why?"

"They belong to our client," the wolf stressed. "We can't just take what we want from the cargoes we carry!"

"What about for emergencies?" Taro asked.

"No," Merlin replied sternly. "We'll all have to do like Connie and dress in layers from our own closets."

Jiro looked at his partner with a deep frown. "My closet is pretty bare," he complained. "I don't think I have the extra layers to put on like s-she does."

Despite the situation, Merlin couldn't help but smile. "I'm not surprised," he said, "since you dislike wearing clothes so much!" Jiro opened his mouth to reply, but then shut it again without a response; the wolf was right.

"Keep your blanket handy," the captain told him. Then he looked down at what looked like a raccoon in a cocoon with a frown. "How soon do you think it will be before you get a radiator built?"

Jasper warmed his nose with his breath reflected by the close blanket. "First we have to see if we have enough conduits to reach through an access hole from the engine room up to here, and then we have to determine if the sections will handle the necessary pressure."

"And if they do?" Taro prompted.

"It will take me and Jerad s-several hours to assemble everything, longer with f-frozen fingers."

"Will extra hands speed up the process," Merlin asked, "or will they just get in the way?"

"If the conduits check out, extra hands will help when we s-start laying the lines," the engineer replied.

"Okay, get started on it right away, and then let me know when you need the extra hands."

"Y-yessssir," Jasper responded, rubbing small his hands together vigorously to create friction. He looked over at Jiro and wondered aloud, "Do you know if any of those crates contain winter gloves?"

"Stay out of the cargo!" Merlin warned. "I'm serious, folks. Nobody but Durant is allowed to touch those crates."

"Does that mean that he can pass out the winter wear?" Taro mumbled from beneath Jiro's blanket.

Merlin looked cross. "If one article of clothing is taken from the cargo, the thief will pay—"

"I have the credits in my account!" Jiro retorted in jest, his teeth chattering for effect. "I'll t-take three b-boxes!"

The captain growled. "Let me put it another way," he stated in all seriousness. "A single filched garment will cost that person his or her job." Everyone in the room looked at him incredulously.

"B-better unemployed than f-frozen dead," Jasper replied with a note of defiance in his shaky voice. The dark look deepened upon the captain's face, but before he could respond, Jasper gestured toward the climate conditions on the computer; the temperature had dropped another degree. "At the rate we're l-losing heat, it may be t-too late to warm up the s-ship by the time we get the radiator built!"

Merlin closed his eyes in an anger of frustration, counting slowly to give himself a moment to control his temper. When he opened them again, four pairs of eyes were watching him expectantly.

"All right!" he said at last with a growl deep in his throat. "I'll allow us to borrow from the cargo for this emergency, but I'm putting Durant in charge of the clothing. I will have him make up a personal manifest of every piece of clothing taken from the Hold, so that we can get everything cleaned and put back in their original crates before we land. No one is to take anything without his knowledge, and everything goes back within their original packaging and labels. I won't have our first customer file a complaint of theft or damaged goods against us."

"That s-sounds workable," Jiro replied quickly. "Thank you."

"Yes, thank you," Taro agreed.

Merlin stared hard at the raccoon before him, and the piercing directness of his eyes made the engineer turn his head to look away. "Thank you, Captain," Jasper said at last.

"Stay warm as best you can in the meantime," the wolf said to them all, turning to leave. "I'll track down Durant to explain the plan to him, but do not touch those crates until he's ready." He nodded to his chief engineer. "Get on the tubes and a radiator as quick as you can. As you have reminded us all, we may not have much time to get it together."

"Right away," Jasper acknowledged immediately.

When Merlin left through the door, Connie stepped aside to let him pass. The wolf said nothing to her, but the look he bestowed upon her gave the woman the distinct impression that he blamed her suggestion for a near-mutiny.

Chapter 22

This Side of Hibernation

Although his consciousness drifted upward through untroubled dreams, Durant felt a dull vibration accompanied by muted sound. It took a moment of silent ethereal swimming before the ursine accountant realized that someone was shaking him. A Herculean effort was required to open his eyes, and when he did, the brightness of the cabin light almost hurt.

He threw an arm up and over across his eyes, bumping someone's hand in the process, and then he felt fingers on his shoulder.

"Drandwagub!"

"Huh? Wha—?"

"Durant! Wake up!" someone said to him again.

The grizzly rubbed a large hand over his face and shook his head groggily. "Whutizzit?" he mumbled, keeping his eyes closed against the onslaught of illumination.

"He acts as if he's drugged," said another voice. "Was he taking any medications?"

There was a chuckle. "I think it's a natural drug," said the first voice. "He's trying to hibernate in this cold."

"Wouldn't it be better to just let him sleep then? He's more equipped to handle the cold than the rest of us are."

"Probably, but I doubt he was preparing for winter by storing up extra body fat. He'd starve to death before he woke up on his own."

"That might means something if he was going to be in here for several months."

"Bears aren't supposed to be skinny. He'd use up what fat reserves he has now before we reach Kantus."

There was another shake on the bear's shoulder and Durant finally shook his head to clear away the fog. "What? What's going on?" he complained, his mind a little more alert. He squinted between his fingers and saw Merlin and Samantha's faces hovering over him.

"Durant, I need you awake," Merlin said gently. "We have a situation and I need your help."

"Jus' ten more minutes…" the cargo master mumbled.

"No, sorry, I need you to wake up, my friend."

Merlin lightly patted the bear's face until the grizzly growled beneath his breath and then heaved a heavy sigh. Durant forced his eyes open and then struggled to sit up. Merlin and Samantha helped him get upright, and then he blinked several times to focus upon them.

"Okay, okay, I'm up," he said with a frown. "What's the matter? Have we been boarded by pirates?"

Merlin shook his head. "No pirates, but we still have a dangerous situation." Now that he had the ursine accountant's attention, he related the events that led up to the current situation.

Durant finally nodded in agreement. "Thanks for waking me, boss," he said after clearing his throat. "I probably would have slept through the rest of the voyage with the temperatures this low, and you're right in that I don't have enough fat reserves built up." He lifted up his pajama top to expose his belly and then he patted it lightly. "I'm a big fellow," he admitted, "but not big enough to survive hibernation."

Samantha gave him a smile and then stretched out a finger to tickle his navel. "Do you think you can stay awake now?" she asked.

Durant snickered, nodding with a grin. "Now that I'm awake, sure," he replied, "but I may need help waking up again the next time I lay down to sleep if it's still this cold."

"I think that can be arranged," Merlin told him. "Do you need some coffee? Ivy has some brewing in the galley now."

The cinnamon furred grizzly stood up to his full height and stretched with a drawn-out yawn, brushing the ceiling with splayed fingers. "I'll get dressed and then will head down to my office after I've had a cup or two of Ivy's coffee."

"Okay, we'll leave you to dress," Merlin replied, but when he turned to go, he hesitated long enough to add, "Thanks, Durant."

"Sure thing, boss."

***

Jasper pulled off his gloves, blew warm breath over them for several moments, and then put them back on. Thanks to the Blue Horizon's cargo, the raccoon wore several layers of clothing beneath his coveralls and was mostly warm, but unfortunately for him and his brother, there were no winter gloves listed on the manifest that would fit their small hands.

The chief mechanic looked over the side of an antigrav scaffold at the top of the primary Liquid Crystal LightDrive engine pod below. He and Jerad were threading a section of one-inch diameter pipe through an access panel in the upper bulkhead of the engine room. Prior tests of the pipe joints satisfactorily withstood the necessary pressure for the trilinax, so they were hoping their plan of rerouting a section of the heat transfer liquid through a makeshift radiator on the crew deck would be successful. Jasper could only wonder what his sibling had originally planned to use it for, but he was glad they had it now.

"Okay, hand me the next section," Jerad requested, holding out an open palm behind him. He stood upon a small stool on the platform, his head and shoulders up inside the access panel. The chief engineer continued staring down into the depths below them, lost in his thoughts. Jerad shook his hand, waiting for another length of pipe, but when he didn't get one, he tried again. "Jasper, hand me the next section, please." Still there was no response from his brother, so the raccoon sighed loudly and exclaimed in a louder voice, "For crying out loud, Patch! Wake up!"

Hearing his old nickname, Jasper blinked himself back to the present and felt sheepish for getting too lost in his brooding. "Uh, right," he mumbled embarrassed. He handed a four-foot length of pipe to his sibling, silently wishing he could light up a cigar. It had been a long time since he had stopped smoking for any length of time, but Jasper knew the dangers of lighting up in an oxygen-rich, compressed atmosphere. He hadn't remembered to pack a nicotine suppressant for the journey, and the withdrawal made him edgy and absentminded. It was going to be a long voyage indeed.

***

Jiro shivered, peering into his closet for the tenth time. He already wore both of the only shirts he owned and his fur itched from being compressed against his skin. Due to this, and feeling that Merlin's reluctance on getting into the cargo was a sound rationale in hindsight, the cougar had refrained from dipping into the freight himself. However, as the temperature continued to drop inside the freighter, he was quickly regretting that decision.

Wrapping the blanket from his bed tighter around his shoulders, the navigator turned around and walked out of his quarters, plowing hard into a short lynx making quiet pirouettes in the corridor.

Ivy twirled around and stumbled into the cougar, but Jiro caught her in his arms before she could fall to the carpet. She looked up into his surprised, but grinning face, and smiled up at him.

"Uhm, excuse me," she said in embarrassment.

Jiro cleared his throat and made sure she was upright and steady on her feet before he released her. "I'm fine," he said. "Are you okay?"

Ivy gathered a borrowed garment around her and tried to affect a short bow toward him. "Yes, I am okay," she replied. "I was just amazed at how such light clothing could feel so warm."

It was only then that the cougar actually noticed what she was wearing. As with the others, she appeared a little thicker than usual due to multiple layers, but each of these layers appeared to be made of a thinner material. The outermost layer shimmered in the corridor lights, a bright blue material decorated with stylistic dragons that hung to her ankles.

"What is that you're wearing?" he asked curiously.

"Durant said it was called a kimono, and is made of something called silk. Although we are shipping it from Alexandrius, he said it was actually from Earth." She untied a wide sash around her middle and opened it to reveal a similar garment of a different material beneath. "This one is called a yukata that's made from cotton, also from Earth, and I have another one just like it underneath. They were designed for humans; the material wasn't meant to be worn over fur, so it's actually warmer, though it's light enough that it doesn't mash my little tail very much – except when I sit down."

Jiro watched as she wrapped the garment and its sash back around her middle, and another shiver went through him. "Maybe I should see if he has more of them," he mused, and then he added, "It certainly looks good on you."

Ivy glanced up at him shyly and gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you, Jiro. That was nice of you to say that."

The cougar raised an eyebrow and moved in closer to her. He slipped an arm around her shoulders and said, "I meant it. That style suits you." He ran his fingers over the slick material and nodded. "It feels nice to the touch, too."

Ivy lingered under the warmth of his arm, but then she pushed him away with a fingertip. "I have to start supper," she said. "Durant's still down there, if you want a few more layers on you. I think he's closing up shop at 1600 hours so he can come back up here for a while."

Jiro nodded. "Despite the extra layers, I would imagine it's still warmer on this deck than the Hold."

"Yes, it is," Ivy agreed. "I'm making Alexandrian beef stew tonight, so that should help warm us up a bit."

The navigator licked his lips. "Mmm, I'm already looking forward to it."

"I'll see you later," the lynx said with a smile. Jiro gave her a small wave and then headed for the lift. Ivy walked around the curved corridor to the galley and then opened the door. The lights were already on, and she looked around until she heard something shuffle on the other side of the long dining table.

"Is someone there?" she asked hesitantly.

"Hi, Sparky, it's just me," replied the captain's voice. Ivy peered around the table and saw the gray wolf on his belly beside an open panel in the wall near the floor, one arm thrust into the opening.

"What's going on?" she asked curiously.

Without looking up from his task, Merlin replied, "I'm helping Patch and Pockets with the heating pipes. The access conduit they're pushing it through is coming out here."

The lynx leaned upon the table, watching his tail swish back and forth as he reached deep inside the hole in the wall. "Are they going to build their radiator in here?" she asked.

"No," he grunted. "We're going to route it out into the corridor where there's more room for the crew, but it should help keep this compartment warm as well."

"Ah, okay," Ivy replied, envisioning the crew sleeping on pallets on the floor out in the hallway. "Do you need anything before I start supper?"

"I could use fingers about six inches longer, if you have any in your cupboards."

"No, sorry. Nothing like that," the lynx replied with a chuckle. "I'd loan you some chopsticks, but I doubt you could grab anything like a pipe with them."

"In that case, no. Go on with your task."

"Aye, aye, Captain, sir!"

Merlin peered over his shoulder at her, and although she couldn't see his nose and mouth, his eyes clearly showed amusement at her response. Something bumped the tip of his fingers from below, so he returned his attention to his work.

***

Durant took another sip from a coffee cup and then shook his head from side to side. He preferred the pick-me-up drink with cream and just a hint of honey, but today he was drinking it bitter-black to get its strongest effects. Despite being up and moving about, the grizzly was still lethargic and had to fight the urge to hibernate. In order to keep his mind clear, he went over his handwritten manifest again, line by line.

When Merlin had informed him of their problem and their plan, he was adamantly against getting into their cargo, but the captain had made it a direct order for the sake of an emergency. As cargo master, Durant was determined to keep their cargo safe, secure and free from pilferage, but the current situation made all that difficult at best.

With the help of Jerad and Jasper, he had rigged a perimeter alarm around the entire cargo stack, and then he set a personal passcode upon it so that he alone could get into the containers without alerting the entire vessel of unauthorized entry. He kept a handwritten notebook in his pocket listing each article of clothing borrowed from the cargo, who had it, which crate it came from, and notes for the proper cleaning of the item. He had everyone's promises that the garments would be properly cleaned and returned prior to landing at their destination.

So far, there had been articles of clothing to fit each and every one of them, but if something had specific cleaning requirements that they wouldn't be able to do on the freighter, he would forbid it to be used. No one had complained at his strictness, neither had anyone balked at the items he had picked out for them. It appeared that everyone was simply glad to have the extra layers to help them all keep warm.

There were only three on board who hadn't borrowed from the cargo, Merlin, Jiro and Connie. Jiro and Connie seemed to be content with what they had, and the captain didn't seem to be as affected by the cold as much as the others were, choosing only one extra layer of garments from his own closet.

Just as the ursine accountant finished going over the manifest one last time, he looked up when someone darkened his door. "Hello, Jiro," he said, reaching for a thermos to refill his cup.

"H-Hi, Ddddurrrant," the navigator replied. "Th-this deck is cccolder than it isssss on the otherssss…"

"Yes, that it is," the bear replied. "You want a cup of coffee?"

"Y-yess, thanks!" Jiro replied gratefully. Durant opened a drawer of his desk for an extra drinking cup and quietly filled it with the black, aromatic liquid. He handed the cup to the first officer, who took it with shaking hands. The cougar sipped at it for a moment, enjoying the warmth it spread down his throat, as well as providing heat for his hands.

Finally, he looked up at the bear, who was watching him quietly. "Durant," he began in hesitation, the warmth helping to quell his shivering, "I have a confession to make, one that I really don't wish to get back to Merlin."

The grizzly raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Yeah…" Jiro took another sip to give him a moment to choose his words. Then, with an audible sigh, he pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders and said, "For the first time since Furs started wearing more clothing than what's necessary for modesty, I have to concede that I need more clothes than sandals and a pair of fur-breathing pants."

In the short time that Durant had come to know Jiro Brannon, he knew that the cougar must be a lot colder than he appeared for him to make such a concession. He had seen Merlin and Samantha tease Jiro on numerous occasions about his reluctance to wear anything more than necessary, but the navigator had always stood rock solid on his convictions… until now.

Simultaneously amused and impressed by Jiro's resolve, Durant set his cup down and then picked up his manifest. He stood up, and in a voice of understanding said, "Come on, then. Let's see what we can find to fit you."

***

Samantha snuggled up to her pillow, trying to find a comfortable spot on a floor pallet made of several folded blankets. She was used to a padded cushion, and although the carpet had its own padding, neither it nor her pallet was as comfy as the mattress of her bed.

The corridor lights had been dimmed lower than usual to allow the gathered crew the opportunity for a normal "night shift" for sleeping. As Ivy had envisioned earlier, once the ship's mechanics had completed the improvised radiator and turned on the flow of trilinax, the crew deck began to heat up. Once operational, Jasper had announced that it could take several days before all the cabins on the deck might warm up sufficiently for short sleeves, so for nighttime rest, the crew would sleep on pallets on the floor of the corridor.

Samantha looked over at the makeshift radiator and had to suppress a chuckle at the image. The thing was no more than a grid of five vertical pipes in four-foot lengths, connected on both ends to a double set of pipes running through the galley door and into an access hole in a bulkhead. If she understood their explanation well enough, the pressurized liquid within didn't do anything more than transfer hot trilinax away from the ship's engines through the pipes, radiating heat on this deck, and then back to a standard system of larger pipes between the double-hulls of the ship, where it cooled before returning to the engine system to repeat the process. The whole thing shook and shimmied with the bottlenecked internal flow, but thankfully, it was quiet.

The Border collie closed her eyes and tried to relax enough to drift off to sleep. The others had already slipped into slumber and Durant's deep breathing beside her was comforting. It might take the whole crew to wake him again, but at least he wasn't snoring as loudly as Jasper was.

Samantha covered her ears with the pillow that was supposed to be under her head, and gave out a little whimper at her frustration in getting comfortable. Almost at once, she heard someone move and she opened an eye to look. Jerad was up on one elbow, reaching for his brother with his free hand. The raccoon gently pushed his sibling's shoulder until the chief engineer rolled over in his sleep, and then he settled back down on his own pallet.

Samantha sighed in relief and then repositioned her pillow, turning onto her side facing the bear. Perhaps she would be able to sleep after all, if only she could get comfortable. She closed her eyes for a long moment, and then she felt someone stir behind her. She tried to suppress another sigh at being disturbed, so she willed herself to relax.

The last one to settle in for the night, Merlin knelt down on his own pallet. With a weary sigh, he stretched out on the blanket beneath him and then pulled another over him. The chill in the air despite the radiator a short distance away didn't bother the wolf, but something seemed missing, lying there on the floor.

He propped himself up on one elbow, thankful that his arm and shoulder were no longer sore, and gazed around the dim light at his crew. Directly in front of him was Samantha, lying on her side facing away from him.

He watched the quiet canine breathe for a moment and then made a quick decision when he saw her tremble with a small shiver. He got up on his knees, repositioned the blankets of his pallet, and then lay back down upon them. Now closer to the Border collie, Merlin snuggled up close to her back and gently put an arm over her.

Samantha's eyes opened, but when she recognized the familiar scent of her longtime friend and felt his warmth beside her, she smiled contentedly and lightly grasped the fingers resting upon her middle.

Chapter 23

Bridge Watch

When Merlin walked onto the bridge, he felt a noticeable temperature drop. Although the corridor was tolerable with the trilinax radiator, the ship's command center didn't benefit from the heat. Despite his thicker coat, the wolf shivered and realized just how insulated the bridge was from the rest of the deck. With the doors closed, three large glassteel windows taking up the forward wall and no active heater, the climate of the compartment was near freezing.

The lupine commander buttoned up his flight jacket and looked around. Save for the lights from active instruments, the room was dark. He tapped a wall control to bring the illumination up to half and then stuck his hands into the pockets of his pants.

It had been three days since he had last visited the bridge. With the vessel on autopilot and no stops en route to Kantus, he'd seen no need to spend any more time than necessary in the compartment with the climate out of balance.

He glanced around, idly checking the readouts on all the consoles, but when he reached the communications station, he tilted his head at a flashing amber dot. He tapped a couple of commands and then listened to the first of five messages that had been recorded in the absence of a live communication officer.

The first was a call from Merlin's sister on Dennier. Shannon Wallace lived just outside the capitol city of Grandstorm with her husband Bill, a financial advisor for a prominent investment concern. Shannon's message had a twofold purpose; the first of which was to congratulate her sibling on the success in starting up his own business. She had a special gift to send him, but needed to know where to ship it so that it would meet up with him at one of his planned delivery destinations.

The second reason was to inquire if he had any news on the whereabouts of their other brother, Lucas. The younger sibling had abandoned his scholarship in Advanced Applied Computer Sciences to go traveling the Planetary Alignment. Contracted into the Dennieran military, Merlin had been unable to go after Lucas to talk some sense into this irresponsible decision, but now that he was free to travel under his own business, Shannon wished to press upon Merlin the need to keep an eye out for their brother.

The second message was a follow-up to the first. Having received no response to her first message, she had called again to check in on him. Merlin frowned, sorry that he had missed out on talking with his sister. Ever since they'd lost their parents to a violent storm many years ago, the eldest Shannon had taken it upon herself to look after her two brothers, even after they were taken in by their grandparents; she and Merlin had always been close.

As the third message began, the captain sat down in the chair at the com station, sliding his tail through the seat's slotted back. At first, he listened with a smile of wonder upon his features as the caller told of a great need for the services of Blue Horizon Freight, which had come recommended through a business associate. A full cargo of specialized industrial mining equipment was needed on the world of Quet, which had suffered a major environmental disaster three years earlier. As there were very few vessels that serviced Quet, Sydney Micronite Inc. had authorized payment for delivery of the equipment from Ganis to be doubled and sent in advance.

Merlin swallowed, daring to believe that such an offer would be dropped into their laps. Was this virtual goldmine a result of Taro's connections? It had to be, as the fledgling business was barely into its maiden voyage. The call ended with a request for discussion of the contract. The wolf checked the timestamp of the message and discovered that it had been received three days ago, practically an hour after his last visit to the bridge.

The fourth message was from the same business representative a day later, referencing the first message and wondering why there had been no response to their generous offer. Merlin frowned, feeling a shiver course down his spine that hadn't anything to do with the chilly temperature of the compartment. The fifth and final message was time-stamped only two hours ago and was less than cordial. The previous business proposal had been summarily withdrawn since there appeared to be no interest by the captain of the Blue Horizon, without an explanation, apology or even acknowledgement of the offer. It was further advised that the freighting company make no further attempts to bid on deliveries for them, as the Blue Horizon had been written off as a viable method of delivery.

Merlin was stunned. Without even knowing about it, he had lost a double-paying job and had made a professional enemy. As a new company, word-of-mouth on this kind of thing could ruin them before they'd barely gotten their feet wet in the career field. Merlin could blame no one but himself for the loss.

Despite the vehemence of the ending of the message, he knew he would have to do damage control. He sincerely hoped that Taro would be able to assist him in the endeavor. She had many contacts throughout the Planetary Alignment, and if one of them placed a black mark upon a ship that she had recommended, it could tarnish her business associations as well.

With a sigh and a heavy heart, the wolf got up from the seat and headed for the door. He could no longer feel the near-freezing cold of the compartment; the heat of his anger was more than enough to keep him from shivering.

However, the gray wolf hesitated when he opened the door to step out into the warmer corridor. He had lost a well-paying customer due to an unmanned bridge. Did he want to leave it unattended again? He might miss another call.

Merlin furrowed his brow, knowing what he had to do. In preparation for a new thought growing in his mind, the captain didn't shut the door to the bridge, but rather stopped it open to allow the radiator heat to add its warmth to that compartment as well. There was a sudden need to grant the bridge a workable climate.

***

"Okay everyone, listen up!" said the lupine commander of the Blue Horizon. Eight pair of eyes looked up at the captain sitting at the head of the galley table. The remnants of the evening meal were scattered on plates and platters, and light conversation had been in full swing. Due to the radiator and the cook stove of the galley, the room was pleasantly warm. The corridor outside the compartment where everyone had been sleeping for the past few nights was cooler and still required extra layers of clothing to be comfortable.

Satisfied that he held everyone's attention, Merlin picked up a clipboard from a corner of the table. Portable slateboard tablets were more efficient than paper, but there were still times when a hardcopy was preferred.

"Now that we've finished eating and everyone seems to be content," the wolf said to his audience, "I have a couple of business matters to bring up." He glanced quickly at the others and then continued. "Although the climate conditions on this deck are tolerable, the temperatures up on the recreation deck have dropped to the freezing mark. Sparky, Samantha and Connie bravely removed all liquids from the kitchenette a couple days ago, so there should be no further reason to go up there for now. I know it can get boring just sitting in here or out in the corridor with a book, magazine or slateboard, but unless you want to bundle up and watch a movie on the upper deck through fogged breath, I would recommend staying down here.

"Likewise with the cargo deck, although no one but Durant, Patch and Pockets need go down there anyway. I want to express my appreciation to both of our engineers for descending into the coldest compartment on board to periodically to check on the systems, and also to Sparky for keeping us all fed."

Ivy held up a tentative hand and Merlin nodded toward her. "Yes?"

"Captain, just a quick report…" she said, brushing a few bread crumbs from the front of the colorful Japanese yukata she wore. "This is our first voyage in the Horizon together, so we've not yet set any patterns for what I would call a regular routine, but if I can estimate, I would say that we are going through our food stock more quickly than what might be considered normal for a flight across the Planetary Alignment."

"When people are forced to sit inactive for long periods of time, as we have all been doing," Connie said, "extra eating has always been a side effect of boredom."

"Since we're only halfway to Kantus, we might want to start rationing our food supply," Jiro suggested. The usually bare-chested navigator was warm in the winter coat he had been issued from the cargo, but he absently scratched at his fur beneath the garment. "It's bad enough dealing with the cold; I really don't want to worry about constant hunger before we get there either."

Merlin looked over at the feline cook. "How low are we on food?" he asked her.

"I purposely overstocked the pantry in anticipation of midnight munchers," she answered with a smile, "so only that overage has been depleted so far. I think that if we stick to regular meals and cut out the in-between snacking, we shouldn't have to worry about going hungry."

"That's not going to be easy," Durant piped up, looking embarrassed. "With my body constantly telling me that I should be hibernating, I have needed to eat more times a day than normal for me just to maintain my strength. I hate to confess, but I'm Sparky's midnight muncher."

There were a few chuckles around the group, but Jerad held up a small hand and admitted that he'd been pilfering the pantry himself. "As Connie said, it's more of a boredom reflex. Need something to do to occupy your time? Eat!"

"Due to the necessity of maintaining a normal meal schedule," Merlin told them, "we will all need to curb our snacking instincts. I confess that I've raided the galley in between meals a time or three, myself. We'll just have to deal with our boredom in other ways."

Jasper reached into a pocket and pulled out a deck of cards. "Jerad and I would welcome anyone else willing to join us in poker or any number of other card games," he offered.

"Are you playing for credits, Patch, or nuts and bolts?" Samantha asked with a grin.

Jasper narrowed his eyes and gave her a calculated smile. "Credits will make the game more interesting," he said, "but I figure we'll need a few more paid voyages under our belts before any of us have enough to make it interesting enough. We may have to use coffee beans for now."

"I will take this as a financial cue for the next item of interest I had intended to discuss with you all," Merlin said suddenly. All eyes went to the captain, who seemed to fidget before them, the financial reference waving a flag in their minds. The wolf collected his thoughts for a moment before continuing.

"Earlier this afternoon," he said, "I went onto the bridge to do a routine check of the systems. Due to the cold, I have not visited that compartment in several days, much as we have all tried to avoid our own cold cabins. When I checked the com station, I discovered that we'd received several messages from a prospective client, each spaced a day apart. Let me read you a transcript of each one in turn."

Merlin focused on the pages attached to his clipboard and read them verbatim. The first message generated excitement amongst the crew, but when he got to the second, the frowns began to appear. After he read the final message aloud to them, there were expressions of shock, disbelief and anger spread out between them.

When the captain set the clipboard back onto the table before him, he looked around at the faces of his crew. Samantha, Durant and Taro were still looking at him directly, but the others were downcast, brooding in their own thoughts.

In the sudden quiet of the room, Merlin again cleared his voice and then said, "The fault is mine, folks, and no one else's. I should have been checking my bridge more often than I had. This is a mistake that I do not foresee being repeated, because I am now going to set a new policy for our business. From now on, while the Blue Horizon is in flight between one world and another, the bridge will be manned at all times."

"Huh?" Jasper asked with a twitch of one ear.

Merlin picked up the clipboard and held it up as a prop. "We have a crew of nine individuals and I have made up a roster for a new bridge watch. If we each take a five-hour shift on the bridge to monitor the systems and be on the alert for any incoming messages, each person will only have to pull that duty around once every two days."

"What are we supposed to do during those five hours?" Jiro asked with a grumble. "Just sit and stare at the dials?" He was Merlin's first officer, but this was the first he'd heard of this plan.

Merlin dropped the clipboard to his lap. "Take something to do," he answered. "Take a book, a magazine, your knitting or whatever hobby items you may have to help you pass the time."

"That sounds awfully boring," Connie muttered.

The captain curled up his lip. "I would have thought you folks would be more creative in finding things to keep yourselves occupied just sitting in here or out in the corridor for the past few days. We're all dealing with boredom right now, and none of us have the luxury of spending any more time than necessary in our own cabins. It's quite possible that we will be fighting this cold all the way to Kantus, which means we're going to be bored no matter if we are sitting around here in the galley, the corridor or on the bridge."

Jerad folded his arms on the tabletop beside his plate and put his chin upon them, though keeping his eyes on the lupine captain.

"Listen to me," Merlin continued. "We just lost a well-paying job due to the bridge being unmanned, and I'm afraid that word-of-mouth of the incident might hurt our chances with other potential clients, whereas taking that job would have done the same for us on the good side. We can't risk losing another job just because no one is available to take the call live."

"What if you just checked the calls more often?" Jasper asked in an irritated tone. "There's no need for someone to be on the bridge at all times."

Merlin stood up and put both hands upon the table, one on either side of the clipboard. He directed a firm gaze upon the raccoon, but his words were meant for them all.

"Due to the length of our flights between worlds, we are going to be on this ship more than we will be off of it during shore leave. Most of this crew will be on personal time during the typical three or four week journeys we will be taking, using the skills they were hired for only periodically. As I am the one paying your per-voyage wages, I figure that a five-hour shift on the bridge once every forty-five hours fits within the criteria of your job descriptions in support of the business that is paying all our wages.

"Although the primary issue at hand is a missed job opportunity, it occurred to me that there are other emergencies that may come up at any time where someone on the bridge could offset any problems before they actually become problems. What if one of those calls had been a warning of pirates by another ship, or a call for help with someone's life in danger? One of the Planetary Alignment's interstellar laws is that no distress signal is to be ignored by a nearby vessel. With no one monitoring the com channels, we could easily fall into violation, especially if our flight pattern was legally filed and it was discovered that someone died in the vicinity due to our inaction."

"Alright, alright," Jasper grumbled. "You've made your point!"

Merlin stood up straight and picked up the clipboard. "I hate to pull rank already, but as captain of the Blue Horizon, this bridge watch is now policy." He plucked a piece of tape he had ready from the edge of the clipboard and then removed another sheet from beneath the message printouts. He turned around and then taped the sheet to the wall behind him in a clear spot of Jiro's half-completed mural. "Here is the roster," he said. "I will be taking shifts along with the rest of you, and I will even take the first one. You can plan out your extremely busy schedules around the shifts I have plotted out for you and then you can decide what to bring with you to help pass the time."

Taro had remained silent throughout the whole discussion, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach at the ramifications of losing that delivery job to Quet. It had taken her two days to set that up with Sydney Micronite, and she had been wondering why there had been no final response. She was unaware that Merlin had thought along similar lines and knew she had some damage control to perform before word of their inaction spread too far. Her credibility was now on the line.

Chapter 24

The Truth of the Matter

"Captain?"

Merlin opened his eyes at a gentle shake of his shoulder. He looked up into the smiling face of a raccoon, and in his sleep-fogged mind, he was momentarily unable to distinguish which of the Porter brothers had wakened him. He rubbed his eyes and determined that Jasper would never grin like that.

"Yes, Pockets, what can I do for you?" he asked quietly, so as not to disturb the others sleeping in the corridor near the galley.

"Please come with me," the mechanic whispered, crooking a finger to punctuate his request.

Merlin yawned widely, laying his ears back and curling his pink tongue in over itself before he set his blanket aside, and then he got to his feet. Samantha looked up at him, but he gave her a casual wave to let her know she could go back to sleep. She nodded drowsily and shifted the pillow beneath her cheek before closing her eyes once again.

The wolf followed his mechanic wordlessly, trying to focus well enough to put one foot in front of the other. Jerad led him right into the lift, and once Merlin was inside, he punched the bottommost button.

A moment later, the raccoon led him out onto the cargo deck and then spun around to face him with his arms spread open wide. "Ta-da!" he said excitedly.

Merlin raised an eyebrow at him, and then started looking around, not sure what to expect. Nothing seemed out of place amongst the cargo crates they were carrying, the overhead lights looked just as they always had, and the raccoon stood before him in his typical pocket-plenty set of coveralls. The wolf brushed a hand across his eyes and snout and then looked down at the shorter male.

"Okay, Pockets, I give up," he said wearily. "What gives?"

Jerad grinned widely and then did another spin so that the captain could see him from all sides. "You don't see it, do you?" he asked with a snicker.

"What, did you lose weight or something?"

Jerad giggled. "Kinda," he replied.

Merlin let out a long breath and then crossed his arms. "Please don't tell me you woke me up from a nice dream to play guessing games with me…"

The raccoon looked a little disappointed, but then he shrugged and said, "Look at what I'm wearing, Captain."

"Yeah, it's your work coveralls. I don't think I've seen you wear anything else, besides all the layers of win… ter… clothes." Merlin's eyes widened when he finally got what his cheerful companion had been trying to get him to realize. The raccoon no longer wore borrowed clothing, and there was no chill to the air in what had been the freighter's coldest compartment.

"We have heat!" he exclaimed, now fully awake. He smiled in wonder at the mechanic and clapped a hand on the raccoon's shoulder. "How?" he asked. "I thought we didn't have any spare components!"

"No spares, and the primary conditioning unit was too badly corroded to be repaired with a hole right through its middle," Jerad confirmed with a nod.

Merlin gave the mechanic a crooked smile and then tightened his grip on raccoon's shoulder. "Are you going to come out and tell me what you did, or am I going to have to get Taro to tickle-torture you to talk?" he said with narrowed eyes.

Jerad snickered and hesitated, giving the appearance of thinking over that option. When the wolf squeezed just a bit harder, he dropped his shoulder and moved a step away from his captain with a satisfied grin.

"The heating unit couldn't be repaired," he explained, "but I was able to put together something in its place out of the stuff in my junk locker. I got the idea when I was gathering things for the radiator. It's kinda thrown together and we'll need to be replaced when we get to Kantus, but it should keep us from freezing until we arrive. Do you want the technical details?"

"No, but I'm impressed anyway," Merlin told his mechanic in genuine admiration. Then he glanced around the area a moment before looking back down at his companion. "It should have taken several days at least to reheat this deck. How did you do that so fast?"

The raccoon grinned again. "I've had the fabricated heating unit running down here for two days."

"Two days! Why didn't you say something?"

Jerad shrugged. "Jasper warned me not to tell anyone, so no one would get their hopes up in the event it didn't work," he admitted. "I woke up three nights ago thinking about my idea and immediately went to work. It took me a full rotation to assemble it since Jasper wouldn't help me."

"What was his problem?"

"After looking at my scribbled schematic, he didn't think it would function."

Merlin took off his flight jacket, leaving his torso dressed only in a light blue tee shirt. "It feels comfortable in here to me," he said. "How soon before you can heat up the rest of the ship?"

Jerad put his hands in his pockets. "I opened up the valves to the upper decks about the time everyone was settling down to sleep. The upper levels will warm up faster than this cavernous deck, so the entire ship should have regulated climate conditions in a few hours."

Merlin gave the raccoon a sincere smile. "Thanks for your extra efforts, Jerad," he said. "I'll put a write-up about it in your personnel file so it will be flagged when it comes time for an evaluation."

"Wow! Thanks, boss!"

The captain stretched leisurely and brushed a hand across his face once more. "I think it's time I headed back to my pallet," he said after a yawn. "I'll be looking forward to sleeping in my bed tomorrow night."

"As will the rest of the crew," Jerad replied. "G'night, Captain."

***

The first officer left the confines of his cabin, clad once again in just his boots and trousers, although he was currently wishing he were wearing considerably less.

"From one extreme to the other," the cougar muttered to himself, panting in the heat of the corridor. In addition to feeling overheated, his eyes were itchy and his muscles were aching, but despite the way that he felt, it was his turn at the bridge watch.

He approached the blue panel painted with a gold sailing ship's wheel and thumbed the control to open it. All the lights were off in the command center, leaving the compartment illuminated solely by the instrument panels. Soft music played from a console, but the navigator heard nothing else.

"Hello?" he asked quietly, reaching for the light control.

"I'm over here, Jiro," answered a voice.

The cougar tapped on the light to half-illumination and then saw the raccoon sitting at the engineering station, his feet up on the console, leaning back in a chair with eyes closed and hands behind his head. Jasper opened one eye and peered over at him.

"Is there something I can help you with?" he asked.

Jiro waved a casual hand through the air. "I'm here to relieve you of the watch," he replied.

"Is it time already?" the raccoon asked, glancing quickly at an old wristwatch. "It doesn't seem like I've been in here that long." He switched off the music he had playing on the bridge computer and then stood up with a stretch.

The cougar shook his head wearily. "You mean you didn't mind the five hour shift?"

Jasper looked over at him. "Had I been on personal time, I probably would have done the same things I did in here, so I suppose it really didn't matter." He titled his head to the side for a moment, taking a closer look at the navigator in the half light. "Jiro, you don't look so good," he remarked.

The first officer shook his head. "Not feeling well either," the cougar replied with a frown. "I haven't felt like myself for several hours. I'm becoming someone else by the minute."

The chief engineer idly scratched his chin. "Maybe you should go see Connie," he suggested.

Jiro gave him a tired smile. "Can't. It's my turn to watch Merle's bridge to make sure it doesn't go anywhere."

Jasper gifted him with a rare look of compassion. "Go see Connie. I'm good up here for a time yet. If it looks like you might be a while, you can send someone else to relieve me at the watch."

"Are you sure?"

"Yah, I'm sure. Go on to see the nurse. I'll inform the captain where you've gone."

The cougar nodded. "Thanks, Patch. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome. Now go, while you're still mobile."

Jiro sighed and turned to leave. "I'm gone," he said. When he walked back out into the corridor, he heard Jasper's music start up again.

Conveniently, the ship's sickbay was next door to the bridge, in a location mirroring the captain's office on the other side. As luck would have it, Connie was inside, making an inventory list of the medical equipment on a personal slateboard. She wore a matched set of pink hospital scrubs and white sneakers, with her fiery red hair bundled up in a long braid down her back.

"Hi, what can I do for you?" the nurse asked, setting the slateboard onto a counter.

"Not feeling good," the cougar mumbled, sitting down wearily on a padded roller stool. "Hot one moment, cold the next, shaking and aching all over. Itching eyes. Dizzy, queasy and out of breath. I was feeling a little better a few minutes ago, but I think I've hit the wall."

Connie frowned and approached him with uncertainty. She put the back of a hand up to his forehead and could feel the warmth of his skin radiating through his fur. "How long have you felt this way?" she asked, turning toward a cabinet. She pulled out a sealed plastic tube, broke the seal, and then extracted a thin glass tube filled with mercury and marked off in degrees.

"About seven hours," Jiro replied. He looked dubiously at the tube she extended toward him. "What is that?" he asked.

Connie looked at him oddly. "It's a thermometer," the nurse replied. "I want to take your temperature. Open up."

Jiro dutifully turned his head to present her with an ear. The nurse frowned and shook her head. "Open up your mouth, silly. This goes under your tongue," she said.

The cougar looked at her with an odd look of his own. "I've never heard of such a thing," he said. "Is the ear thermometer broken?"

The human woman frowned and stared at him for a moment before she set the glass tube on the counter, picking up her slateboard instead. She thumbed through several menus of the inventory and found something she hadn't gotten to on the list. She read the location silently and the turned to a different cabinet. This one had various medical instruments strapped to the interior of the cabinet. She read the labels and then pulled open the strap of one. The item looked like a small pistol with a tapered barrel.

Jiro watched her patiently as she studied the device, and he was wondering if she had ever used one before. Finally, she switched on the device and tapped a control.

"Okay, here we go," she said, bringing it over to him.

Jiro's frown deepened. "You forgot the sterilized end cap."

Connie gave him a frustrated look and then grabbed the end of the gun. She struggled to pull off the end, but the metal was not made to separate.

The first officer began to doubt what he had read on the woman's background. Despite how he felt, Jiro got off the stool, walked to a cabinet drawer and opened it. From inside, he pulled out a plastic case filled with small wrapped cones. He removed the wrapping from one and then placed it on the end of the device that Connie held. Without waiting for her reaction, he plucked the unit from her hand, tapped a button on its handle grip, and then quietly placed it deep inside his left ear. The nurse watched him mutely until the thermometer gave a quiet blip a minute later.

Jiro pulled the unit from his ear and then handed it to her without a word. Connie took the device and then her eyes widened when she read the number.

"You have a 37.8° temperature!" she gasped. "That's 101.1° Fahrenheit!"

The cougar sighed. Why was she bothered by this? His normal temperature was 36.5° Celsius, so he was barely running a little hot; not even enough for a fever, even.

Connie set down the thermometer on the counter and then walked to another cabinet. She pulled a plastic bottle from a strap on the inside of the door, opened the cap, and then tapped out two red capsules onto her palm. She replaced the cap and container and then turned to a small water faucet. She handed Jiro a paper cup with water and both pills.

"Take these and go get some rest," she told him. "I know we just got out of a deep freeze, but I think the change in temperatures hasn't been good to you. Drink plenty of fluids and keep yourself cool."

Weary and unwilling to give the doctor's knowledge further thought, the cougar nodded and swallowed both pills with the water. "Thanks, Connie," he said, closing his eyes a moment. When he turned to leave the sickbay, the door opened and Merlin stood just outside.

"How are you feeling?" the wolf asked. "Patch told me you weren't feeling well."

"I think he has a mild cold," Connie said from behind the feline. "With your permission, I'm sending him to bed for rest."

Merlin took a look at the condition of his friend and he nodded immediately. "Sure, go on to bed," he replied. "I'll relieve Patch and take up your shift on the watch."

"Thanks, Merle," the navigator muttered wearily, shuffling out into the corridor. Merlin gave Connie a nod and then moved toward the bridge next door.

***

Samantha rapped her knuckles once more on the cougar's door. "Jiro, it's Sam!" she called again. "Open up!"

"…unlocked…" she heard through the door. The Border collie thumbed the door control and the panel slide sideways into the wall. The lights were out in the small cabin, and when she stepped inside, a foul stench immediately accosted her senses.

"Jiro?" she asked tentatively. There was no reply, but then a heartbeat later she discovered why. There was no mistaking the sound of the cougar heaving into the lavatory to her right. The door to the toilet was open and in the light coming in from the corridor, she saw him on his knees over the toilet trough, his thick tail limp on the floor beside his bare legs.

"Oh, Jiro!" Samantha said with emotion. She closed the outside door and then turned on the cabin lights to one-quarter illumination. She stepped around the feline's scattered clothes on the floor and then snagged a wash cloth from the small linen closet. She ran cold water from the faucet over the cloth and then folded it in half after wringing it out.

The navigator could do nothing to acknowledge her as another wave of nausea hit him. Samantha placed the cool wet cloth on the back of his neck and then put a light hand on his shoulder as he threw up again. The heaves reduced the military veteran to a mewling kitten who whimpered as soon as he had enough breath back in his lungs to breath. He coughed and finally pulled back a few inches from the trough, panting heavily.

Samantha took the washcloth from his neck and then gently used it to clean off his face. Jiro never opened his eyes, allowing her to attend him. The cloth was washed off, rinsed and had more cool water applied to it before the canine wrapped it around the back of his neck again.

She waited with him for several minutes, idly leaning against the bathroom counter without speaking. Jiro finally opened his eyes after a time, when he no longer panted for air. He looked up at her wearily, but couldn't muster up a smile for her help. He swallowed and finally forced enough air to speak one unnecessary word, "Sick…" he said.

Samantha squatted beside him, her tail down. "Do you need me to help you back to bed, or do you need to stay in here a while longer?"

The navigator thought it over and then nodded. "Bed," he rasped. Samantha took hold of his arm and pulled it over her shoulders. She helped him into an upright position, and then up on his feet, the whole process slow, but steady. The cougar shuffled his feet across the carpeted floor as his friend helped him get to the bed, and then Jiro curled up on his side facing the wall.

Samantha draped a thin sheet across his body and then pulled his desk chair over to sit down beside him. Both of them were quiet for several moments before Jiro pulled in some air to speak.

"Thanks for your help, Sam," he asked in a raspy whisper. "Was there something you needed?"

"While I was on watch, a call came in from Pomen," the canine answered quietly. "Your father called to let you know that you're going to be an uncle."

"Joni's going to have a cub?" Jiro asked without opening his eyes. "About time."

Samantha chuckled. "Actually, he said there were two cubs, a male and a female."

"Just like me n' Joni," Jiro mumbled.

"You're a twin?"

"Fraternal."

"Who was the first one out?"

"Joni."

"Congratulations, Uncle Jiro," Samantha said with a smile.

The cougar mumbled something, and then cleared his throat to try again. "She and her mate have been trying for years. I'm glad they succeeded."

Sam was about to make another comment, but then the navigator let out a long, drawn-out sigh. She put a hand on his arm and then patted it lightly. "I'll let you rest now," she told him quietly. "I'm sorry I bothered you. The news could have waited until you were feeling better." There was a noncommittal grunt from the feline, so she stood up to leave.

"Sam?" Jiro mumbled.

"Yes?"

"Please send Merle in here. Feeling worse."

"I think you mean that you need Connie," the Border collie suggested.

"Merlin."

"Oh, okay. I'll go hunt him down now. Do you want me to get Connie too?"

“Merlin."

"All right. Just Merlin."

"Thanks, Sam… for everything."

"You're welcome, Jiro. You rest and I'll get the captain."

***

When Merlin left Jiro's cabin an hour later, his face was set in stone. The wolf walked around the curved corridor and then stopped with both hands on his hips beside the white door marked with a caduceus. He stared at the two entwined serpents in the symbol for a moment, preparing himself to go inside.

He reached out for the control button to open the door to the sickbay, but the panel slide aside before he made contact. Connie almost walked into him, her attention focused on the slateboard in her hands.

"Oh! Excuse me, Captain!" she said with an embarrassed smile.

"Hello, Ms. Davies," the wolf said formally. Connie looked up into his eyes, instantly alerted to his tone.

"Sir?" she asked tentatively.

"Let's talk."

The nurse frowned and backed into the sickbay, switching the light back on as she turned toward the counter. She set the slateboard next to a jar of sterile swabs and then faced him, hands clasped together in front of her. Merlin shut the door behind them and then thumbed the lock so they wouldn't be interrupted.

When he looked around at her, his eyes were narrow and the amber of his irises seemed to stir, as if moved by tiny winds. His triangular ears were up and so was the tail that swished behind him in apparent agitation. He didn't know what to do with his hands, so he crossed them over the chest of his beige shirt.

"Have I done something wrong, sir?" the red-haired woman asked in a small voice.

"I just came from Jiro's cabin," the lupine commander said with an even tone. "I went to check in on him, and although his throat is sore from so much sickness, he told me of a disturbing observation." Connie swallowed, but didn't respond, allowing the wolf to continue.

Merlin licked his lips without breaking eye contact with the woman. "First things, first," he said. "Give me your diagnosis on Jiro's illness."

"Uh, sure. He appears to have caught a mild cold," she said in simple terms, repeating what she had told him earlier.

"And what have you done for him?"

"I took his temperature and noted it was quite elevated, so I gave him a couple of capsules to reduce his fever, with instructions on rest and to stay hydrated."

"What was in the capsules?"

Connie's brow furrowed at this line of questioning. "Pilocarpine hydrochloride. It's a common drug."

Merlin sighed. "Pick up your slateboard and take a look at the effects of pilocarpine hydrochloride on anthropuma concolor physiology," he commanded.

The nurse's frown deepened, but she did as told. It took her a moment to bring up the data, and when she cross-referenced it to Jiro's physiological background, she drew in a sudden intake of air. She looked up at the wolf in surprise and saw the thoughts clearly in his golden eyes.

"Ohmigosh!" she exclaimed. "This could kill him in repeated doses!"

The captain nodded. "Why did you poison my first officer?" he asked her pointedly.

Connie's mouth dropped open. "I didn't… uh, I mean, it… it was n-not intentional, s-sir!" she suddenly stammered.

"Intentional or not, answer the question."

"I have dispensed pilocarpine hydrochloride to my patients for a long time, Captain," she replied, the flush of her skin only a few shades lighter than her hair color. "It's a common medication for reducing fevers."

"In humans, Ms. Davies. In humans."

Connie looked down at her hands. "Yes, Captain. In humans. I didn't… know… that it was lethal to cougars."

Merlin nodded. "Please refresh my memory. What did I ask you at your job interview that is appropriate to this situation?"

Caught! The nurse cleared her throat, but continued staring at the hands she was now wringing together. "You asked me if I had experience with the physiologies of Furs," she mumbled.

"And your response?"

"I think I said that it would be pointless to apply if that wasn't the case…"

"Now… answer me truthfully, Ms. Davies. How much actual experience have you had treating Furs?”

Connie looked miserable and wiped sweaty palms on her pink hospital scrubs. "I… I worked part-time in a veterinary office for two years to help pay my tuition going to college," she replied in a near-whisper. "I only treated our customers' pet dogs and cats."

Merlin stared at her for a long minute before he dropped his arms and then passed a hand across his eyes. "Pets…" he muttered. "I will never understand the human practice of keeping other beings as pets in their homes."

"They're non-sapient," Connie said in sudden animation, defending her race. "We take these affectionate animals into our homes to love, cherish and provide a good life for them. They enrich our lives, and studies have proven that those who have pets are often healthier and live longer!"

The captain raised a hand. "Okay, okay," he said with a growl underlining his voice. "That's not the issue here anyway. You lied to me, Ms. Davies, and as a result, you have endangered someone's life." Connie had no rebuttal, so she returned her gaze to her hands. "Jiro told me that you were unfamiliar with a simple ear thermometer and that you wanted him to use a glass tube thermometer instead, something known to be a breakage risk in the jaws of a Fur. If you worked in a veterinary clinic, surely you didn't use those on the cats and dogs you treated."

The nurse let out a gasp and suddenly wiped moisture from her eyes. She gave him a brief, tearful look and then sat down heavily on a padded roller stool next to the counter, burying her face in her hands.

Merlin raised an eyebrow, a sudden suspicion gnawing at him. "You just lied to me again, didn't you?" he asked with the same growl in his throat. "You never even worked in a veterinary clinic."

"I did, but only at the front desk," Connie confessed hoarsely, not bothering to look back at him. "I never even touched the animals."

The wolf sighed aloud and tried to relax the grip of his balled fists. He reached out tentatively and then placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, willing himself not to clutch it in frustration.

"Why?" he asked in a non-threatening tone. "What was the purpose in lying to me?"

The red-haired human woman looked up at his touch, shocked that he wasn't shouting at her. She wiped her eyes again and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I was desperate to leave Alexandrius," she answered in a raspy voice. She cleared her throat and added, "I wanted to get out into space… and like yourself, I didn't think we'd really need anything more than a First Aid kit traveling from place to place. I didn't count on anyone getting sick. I only thought of how unlikely injuries would be."

"What did you think of that when Patch came to you right after our first launch with an injury?"

She shrugged. "Actually, I didn't think anything about it. Treating a sprain for a raccoon limb is virtually the same as a human."

"Did you prescribe anything to him?"

"Just an anti-inflammatory medication."

"Did you look up his physiology before doing so?"

Connie looked down again. "No, sir."

"Fortunately for him, that one worked as you intended."

There was a moment where neither of them spoke, but then the woman looked up at him. "Captain, I apologize. I confess that I have never treated anyone but human beings, and I didn't think through my plan to get a job on board the Horizon. Durant told me that we're still several days away from Kantus. Is Jiro going to make it there?"

"That will be up to you," Merlin said without malice. "That's your job, whether or not you are experienced in the task."

"I don't understand."

Merlin gestured toward the medical offer's desk at the back of the sickbay. "Your task now is to get on the computer and make a connection to the Pomen medical library. The best doctors are on Pomen and they're free with their knowledge to the rest of the Planetary Alignment. I want you to research Jiro's symptoms and cross-reference it with a Mainoran listing somewhere to combat whatever it is he has." He rubbed his chin and looked down at her. "It will be up to you for the duration of this voyage to take care of him. You are not to administer any medication to him without clearing it through me first, and you are to spend every available moment researching his condition."

"Every available moment?" Connie repeated.

The wolf nodded. "For lying to get your job, you are forbidden recreation until you can find a way to help Jiro. Since he is your number one priority, I will even excuse you from bridge watch. Once he's back on his feet, then I would recommend that you start making yourself familiar on how to treat the rest of us for when those times come up."

Connie's eyes grew wide. "You…. You aren't going to fire me?" she asked in a whisper.

Merlin shook his head, but retained his serious manner. "You wanted to be here, and I need a medical officer. Just do your job, even if you have to teach yourself how to do that job."

The woman looked up at him in gratitude. She knew this was unlikely to be his final word on the subject, but for now, she had some research to begin.

"Yes, sir," she replied. "I'll get started right away."

"Very good. Let me know what you find out when you identify Jiro's illness and come up with a treatment. For now, we will keep him resting and try not to do anything else to aggravate the condition."

"Yes sir."

***

Taro Nichols hung up the communications headset on a clip on the side of the console and then rubbed her eyes. She'd been parked in front of the com station for the past two hours and she felt stiff and sore. Not for the first time, she wished her cabin was equipped with a bath tub to sit in and let stresses soak away.

The vixen stood up, stretched and then picked up her old and battered slateboard from the console. She brushed a few shed hairs from her tan blouse and matching pants and then walked two slow laps around the small bridge to stretch her legs. She glanced idly out the front windows at the minus-four magnitude star almost directly ahead of the blue flying saucer before she returned to the com station.

She reached for the intercom button, but the bridge door slid aside. Merlin stepped into the room, leaving the door open behind him. "Captain, I was just about to page you," the vixen said with a smile.

The wolf tilted his head slightly to the left. "Oh?" he replied. "I'm here to relieve you at the watch."

Taro sat down at the com station as Merlin slid his tail into the slotted back of the pilot seat. "Thanks," said the fox. "I could use a break, but I wasn't idle with my time. I have some news for you."

"I hope it's good news," Merlin admitted honestly. "I don't think I can handle more bad news today."

It was Taro's turn to tilt her head. "What bad news?" she asked.

Merlin waved his hand briefly through the air. "Nothing I wish to discuss right now. What do you have for me?"

"Well, it took about an hour of cajoling on my part, but I was able to talk Sydney Micronite into giving us another chance," she replied brightly.

Merlin's eyes widened. "Really?

"Yes, but to get them back, I had to agree to our standard fee, waiving the doubled fee they originally offered."

The wolf absently scratched the fur at the base of his neck. "I supposed that's preferable to losing them altogether," he agreed. "I'm still disappointed that we lost that opportunity, but if it will put us back into good standing with Sydney and counter the possibility of bad word of mouth, it's worth it."

Taro smile. "That's what I was hoping you would say," she told him. "I had to juggle delivery schedules with the three other job assignments we had lined up; it offset everything by three weeks, but I managed to work it out with each of them in such a way that we didn't lose any further jobs or fees."

With an expression of great relief, Merlin stood up and moved two steps across the room to her; he surprised her with a tight hug and a sudden kiss of thanks on the cheek.

They both heard someone clear her throat at the door, and when they turned to look, Samantha was looking in at them, the expression on her face unreadable.

Chapter 25

Issues of Trust

Durant studied the personal manifest he had created on every piece of clothing taken from the cargo. With the exception of one garment, everything had been properly cleaned, folded, repackaged and replaced into the original containers from which they had been taken.

Now that the heaters were working again with Pockets' makeshift replacement core, the crew had no further need to wear extra layers. Although Connie hadn't borrowed anything from the cargo, even she was back in the thin hospital scrubs she was usually seen wearing.

The captain had forbidden anyone from retaining anything from the cargo, but it appeared that one article of clothing had not made its way back. The cinnamon grizzly frowned when he noted the name written upon the line beside it. Perhaps it had merely been overlooked, but now that the Blue Horizon was only a few days away from Kantus, he wanted everything in its proper place. His initial reaction was to bring it to the attention of the captain, but then he decided to handle this personally and quietly.

He pocketed his notebook and then got up quietly from the desk. He left his office and then made his way around the perimeter of the deck toward the lift. Several moments later, he stepped out onto the second level and walked purposefully to one specific cabin. He knocked on the door and waited, but there was no response.

He raised his hand to knock again, but then heard a faint voice through the door granting him permission to enter.

The grizzly thumbed the control and then stepped inside when the panel slid aside for him. The room inside was dark, save for a solitary scented candle burning on the compartment's desk. The computer terminal was dark, as was the vidscreen monitor on the wall. He allowed the door to shut behind him as he let his eyes adjust to the dim illumination.

"Sparky?" he asked quietly.

"In here, Durant,"

The bear tilted his head and looked into the lavatory. The short lynx was seated up on the counter, quietly grooming her fur with a wide bristled brush, wearing only a small towel about her middle. The feline met his eyes with a pleasant smile, but continued to work on her fur.

"Is there something I may help you with?" she asked in a soft voice.

The cargo master leaned against the door frame and suddenly realized he didn't know what to do with his hands. He slid them into the pockets of his trousers.

"Actually, there is," he replied quietly. "It seems that you still have one of the garments from the cargo that we need to get cleaned and returned to its crate." Sparky hesitated for a moment, but then continued brushing without a word. She merely studied him with green feline eyes, her expression neutral. "According to the manifest, you should have a Japanese yukata, pale yellow with lavender highlights and a white sash adorned with blue and white flowers."

"Yes, it occupies a special place in my closet," the lynx replied nonchalantly.

"I am glad you've taken care of it," said the grizzly, "but it's time it was returned."

"I want to keep it, Durant. It has become my favorite garment."

The cargo master frowned and stood up straight, completely filling the doorway. "You know that's not permissible," he told her.

Ivy shook her head. "With so many boxes of clothing, no one will miss it," she said with a subtle shrug of her shoulders.

Durant crossed his arms. "With a detailed manifest, it will be missed, and I'm not just talking about my own list. The customer's list has every crate itemized with descriptions of everything inside, including size, material, product number and even the eventual destination of the garment through its distributor."

The lynx stopped grooming and dropped the brush to her lap. "Can you fix the books for me?" she asked imploringly. "You can make it look like this one was never loaded."

Durant's eyes widened at the boldness of her request. "Sparky…. Ivy…" he said with narrowed eyes. "This is our first delivery. I don't intend to jeopardize our chances for further business with a single missing garment. Just give me the item and I'll forget we even had this conversation."

"No, I want to keep it."

The grizzly looked at her in disbelief. "This is exactly why Merlin initially refused to let anyone borrow clothing from the cargo. He only allowed it so that we might survive the cold."

"Yes, I know," Sparky replied, hopping down off the counter. She almost lost the towel and had to clasp it to her chest to keep from baring herself. "However, I've grown fond of it. The style really suits me."

"Ivy, I don't want to be at odds with you, but if you don't return the garment, I will have no recourse but to report this to the captain. How do you think he's going to react?"

The feline chef looked up at the bear's great height and tried to look cute, but she knew from the expression on his face that he wouldn’t be swayed. Finally, she lowered her head and crossed her arms to match his.

"He would probably dock my pay," she replied.

"He would probably fire you," Durant corrected bluntly. Then he added in a gentler tone, "but if you simply return the garment as you are supposed to, nothing will come of it. Listen, Ivy. The yukata was not yours to begin with. We don't have the freedom of acquisition — that's nothing more than theft. Is this how you operate when you can't get what you want by legal means?"

The feline cook looked up at him and suddenly recalled her reaction to hearing of Jerad's methods of acquisition to get the parts he needed. She swallowed and realized just how close she had been to doing something she didn't approve of in others.

"No," she answered quietly, looking down at her feet. "I… I will return the yukata."

Durant dropped to one knee so that he could look into her eyes at her level. "Ivy, this is the right thing to do. Don't hate me for this, please."

The lynx looked up at him with moistening eyes. "I don't hate you," she replied in a whisper. "You're right – it needs to be returned." Then without warning, she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around the bear's neck, weeping into his fur.

***

Samantha reached out and put a hand upon Jiro's brow, frowning at the heat radiating from the sick navigator. Per the captain's orders, Connie was in sickbay researching the cougar's condition, but with Jiro in such a state, the nurse hadn't wanted to leave him alone. Samantha had volunteered to keep watch over him.

"Sam?"

The Border collie looked down at the raspy voice. "I'm still here," she replied quietly.

"M'throat's dry. Water, please?"

"Of course," she answered. She picked up a plastic water bottle from the floor at her feet and adjusted its flexi straw before placing it to the cougar's lips. She helped hold his head up, and then Jiro sipped and swallowed several times before nodding that he was finished. She put the bottle back on the floor as he settled back against his pillow.

Samantha put her hands into her lap and studied her claw tips, wishing she could do more for her friend. After a moment, Jiro opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling above him.

"You should try to sleep," she said in a quiet tone.

"I can lie here and rest," the cougar replied wearily, "but I can't seem to sleep."

"Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Yeah," Jiro answered after swallowing hard. "Talk to me. Keep me company."

The canine gave him a gentle smile. "What would you like to know?" she asked.

Jiro thought about it for a moment, and then looked at her. "Merle's not said anything to me, but have you two gotten back together?" he asked in a raspy voice.

The smile disappeared from Samantha's face. She looked back down at her hands and then shook her head. "No," she said after hesitating. "I don't think he wants me back."

"Why?"

"I thought… I thought he did the first night we all slept out in the corridor together. He did put his arm around me, but…"

"But?"

"That may have been for warmth when the ship was still cold; he didn't initiate anything else."

"That just means he's a gentleman," Jiro countered. "Why would you think differently?"

"I went to the bridge to send a message to Master Tristan just a while ago, but when I stepped through the door, I caught Merlin with his arms around Taro, kissing her."

"Taro, eh?"

"Yeah."

Jiro was quiet for a long moment. "She doesn't seem to be his type," he said at last. "She's more my type. Are you sure it was her?"

Samantha gave him a look of disbelief. "Unless we've picked up a passenger, she's the only red fox we have on board," she scoffed. Jiro closed his eyes at her rebuff, but the canine continued in a softer voice. "I have no claim on Merlin, other than having known him longer than anyone else on board. It's true he and I once had an intimate relationship, but that was years ago."

"Do you want to get back together with him?" Jiro asked, staring up at the ceiling again.

"I would like that," she admitted quietly, "but not if it’s one-sided."

"Was your original breakup amicable?" His voice was getting raspy again, and Samantha handed him the water bottle automatically.

"Yes, we'd graduated and were headed in different directions. The breakup wasn't due to any friction."

"Then give him a chance," Jiro said after a hard swallow. "I don't know what's up with Taro, but if you want him, you might have to compete for him."

Samantha looked over at him for a long moment, musing over his words. Finally, she shook her head and sighed aloud. "No," she said. "If he wants me, he'll have to come after me himself. I refuse to give in to jealousy."

"For the sake of harmony in the crew?" Jiro asked.

The Border collie chuckled and let a small smile cross her features. "For the sake of my harmony," she countered. She leaned toward him and put her hand upon his brow once again, more for something to do than checking his fever. "Listen," she whispered to him, "when you get back up on your feet and are feeling better, perhaps you and I can spend some time together."

Jiro frowned. "If you can't have him, then you'll settle for me?"

Samantha shook her head. "Not at all," she replied. "If he wants me, then he will have to compete for me." With a sly smile, she brushed her fingers through his bare chest fur. "It looks like he'll have competition at any rate."

Jiro closed his eyes. "Sam, I think you're very pretty," he told her, "but I don't want to get between two friends. If you want to get together with me, that's fine. I enjoy playing, but don't come after me just to get even with him for giving Taro a hug and a kiss."

Samantha sighed again. "You're right, of course. However, don't sell yourself short, Jiro. We may have started out on rocky ground, but I feel we've become good friends in a short time. What if I want to spend time with you?"

Jiro opened his eyes and looked over at her. He was no stranger to playing around with willing females, but he wasn't feeling well and this wasn't a topic he really wanted to pursue at the moment. He reached out and took her by the hand.

"We'll see what happens when I'm feeling better, Sam, but…"

The door to the cougar's quarters slide aside and Connie walked in unannounced.

"I think I've got it!" the human woman said cheerily, holding up a bottle of blue liquid and a shot glass.

***

Merlin stood before Connie Davies, his arms crossed, feet apart, tail up and his ears back. He was a head taller than the human woman was and he stood over her to aid impressing his authority over her.

"I gave you a direct order that you were not to administer any medication to him without clearing it through me first!" the wolf growled through clenched teeth. "Now you come to me to admit giving him a tonic mentioned in an online article you found about domestic cats and it has worsened his condition!"

Connie backed up to the wall of the captain's office, but Merlin stepped forward to maintain his proximity within her personal space. The woman clenched her hands up to her chest and she tried to shrink into herself from his presence. She was unable to meet his piercing gaze, but she couldn't seem to tear her focus away from his bared fangs.

"You are a physician!" Merlin exclaimed, pressing his nose in closer to her face. "Aren't you supposed to heal people? I didn't hire you to kill my crew!" Connie's eyes were wide and moist, her pupils large in genuine fear.

"I-I-I-I-I…. d-d-didn't m-m-mean…."

Merlin snorted, puffing the woman's red bangs across her forehead. He stood up straight, gave her a long, momentary glare, and then stormed out of the office. Connie closed her eyes, slid down the wall to the floor, and cried.

When the lupine captain entered Jiro's quarters, his senses were assaulted by a foul stench. The cougar was sprawled on the floor of his quarters, heaving what was left in his stomach onto the carpet. Samantha rushed out of the lavatory with an armload of towels, one soaking wet and the others dry for cleanup. She dropped to the floor beside the cougar and only then saw the wolf.

"Merlin…" she said weakly. "He didn't make it to the toilet…"

"I can see that," the captain said in resignation, dropping to the floor to lend a hand. With nothing left in his stomach, Jiro dry-heaved, making near-futile attempts to gasp for breath in between. Merlin pulled him up into his arms while Samantha used the wet towel to clean off the navigator's face and chest. The cougar made kittenish mewing noises and he didn't seem to acknowledge the presence of his companions.

Once Jiro was moderately cleaned off, Merlin hefted him up in his arms with a grunt and then headed for the door with him. "I'm taking him to the sickbay," he told the Border collie, wrinkling up his nose. "I've got to get him away from this environment!"

Samantha watched him disappear out into the corridor and then looked back at the mess on the floor with a queasy stomach from the smell. Without waiting for a command from the captain, she returned to the lavatory in preparation to clean up the mess on the floor.

***

When Merlin eased his burden into the sickbay, Connie looked up from the roller stool she sat on in front of the medical computer terminal. Her face was tear-stained, but there was a firmness set to her jaw line that instantly told the captain that she was determined to find the correct treatment for the navigator once and for all.

The wolf scooted past the emergency gurney and made his way in the back room to one of the two hospital beds. He set Jiro down gently upon one of the beds and then moved to the closest intercom panel. He thumbed the ship-wide control and announced, "Taro, please report to Sickbay, immediately."

While he awaited the fox to arrive, Merlin moved to the medication cabinets and began searching. Despite her presence, he ignored the human nurse as he moved about the room. He found a plastic bag of electrolytes and then searched through a drawer for the proper tubing and needle. With the cougar dehydrated from constant vomiting, he needed intravenous fluids.

The door opened and Taro walked in, dressed only in a long white shirt that hung to her knees and a towel wrapped around her head. "Sorry," she apologized for her appearance. "I just got out of the shower. What's up?" Connie was about to reply, but Merlin stepped out of the back and motioned her toward him.

"Taro, thanks for coming," he said in a rush. "You helped me with medical attention before because you were familiar with the equipment from your old ship. Do you know how to properly set up for intravenous hydration?"

The vixen looked confused, and then noticed Jiro lying limp on the hospital bed. "Ohmigosh!" she exclaimed. "Is he still sick?"

"Worse," Merlin said, pointedly not looking back toward the nurse. "Do you know how to do it?"

"Yes, but what about Con—"

"Please do it," Merlin cut her off. "He's dehydrated badly." He led her to the items he'd pulled out onto a counter. "Are these correct?"

Taro looked over the intravenous setup and shook her head. "Wrong size needle," she said. "We'll need one larger."

Merlin put a hand on her shoulder and sighed. "Thank you. Do what you can for him. I'll be back shortly."

"Yeah, sure," the fox replied. The captain dashed out the door, having passed the human without a glance. When the door was shut again, Taro looked over at Connie. "What's going on here?" she asked.

The nurse couldn't meet the vixen's eyes. "My stupidity made things worse," she mumbled. "He doesn't trust me anymore. I'm not sure I blame him, either."

"Here, I trust you. Give me a hand with this."

"No… I'll only wind up killing him, if I haven't already."

Before Taro could counter her statement, Connie ran from the room, leaving the damp vixen alone with a cougar who was taking in rasping breaths.

Swallowing in trepidation, Taro went to work. She had no formal medical training, but she had served long enough on other vessels that she had picked up a good knowledge on what to do in some cases. Fortunately for her and Jiro, she knew how to set up for intravenous fluids.

***

Ivy looked up from a cooking magazine when Merlin entered the bridge. "Hello, Captain," she said pleasantly.

"Sparky," the wolf replied automatically. He moved to the Com station and tapped the intercom. The lynx watched him curiously as he waited, and then the console chirped at him.

"Engine room, Jasper speaking."

"Patch, is it possible to increase our speed so we can get to Kantus quicker?"

"Yessir. We're at standard cruising speed, but I can give you more if you need it."

"Please give me all you can spare without putting the engines in danger. We have a medical crisis and need to get there as quickly as possible."

"Aye, sir, can do, but even at maximum velocity, we'll still be about a day and a half away from Kantus. What's going on?"

"Jiro's gone from bad to worse with whatever sickness has a hold on him. None of us knows what's wrong with him, and so far all treatments have only made him sicker."

"I'll give you all we've got, sir."

"That's all I ask. Thanks, Patch."

"We'll make a few adjustments and then let you know when we're ready."

"Appreciated. Merlin, out."

When the wolf straightened up from the Com station, he looked over at the lynx on watch duty. Her eyes were moist and she swallowed in apprehension.

"Is… is he going to make it, Captain?"

Merlin bit his bottom lip and then scratched the back of his neck. "Honestly, I don't know," he admitted. "It seems all our efforts have pushed him from just being sick to life-endangerment."

"Can't Connie do anything for him?" Ivy asked with a squeaky voice.

A dark look crossed his face, but instead of saying what was on his mind, he merely replied, "She's done plenty. Now we have to rely on hope that we can get him to a proper medical facility in time."

Chapter 26

Broken Dream

The Blue Horizon dropped lightly onto the Toreboda landing pad assigned to them, and then Merlin gave out a sigh of relief. He and Taro began shutting down systems on the bridge, but before the vixen could announce the all-clear to move around, the intercom chirped.

"This is the bridge," Taro responded with the signal routed to the overhead speakers so she could resume systems shut-down.

"Is the captain still up there?"

"Yes, Durant, I'm here," Merlin replied. "What can I do for you?"

"Just wondering what your protocol is for our first landing, concerning our cargo."

"Go ahead and open the bay door, start unlocking the cargo tie-downs, and put away the webbing," Merlin answered. "Taro has already contacted the customer's representative, so she should be coming out to the ship before long to take possession of the shipment. They will provide the transports, but we'll be the ones to offload the ship into them. I'll get on the intercom in a moment and rally the crew to gather on the cargo deck. Once they've assembled, they're under your command until the cargo has been completely offloaded."

"May I ask a stupid question?"

"No questions are stupid. What do you want to know?"

"Will you be helping us move the cargo?"

Merlin frowned. "Normally, the answer would be yes, but now that we're down, I'm going to put you in charge of the crew so that I can get Jiro to a local hospital. We've kept him stabilized the past couple of days, but he's not gotten any better."

"Sure, I'll take care of it."

"Thanks, Durant. I appreciate it. Go ahead and get started, and then make sure the bay door and the airlock are both pass-locked when you leave, yourself."

"Aye, sir. Signing off now."

Merlin and Taro finished securing the system, and then Merlin moved back to the Com station. "All hands, all hands," he broadcast, "Report immediately to the Hold to off-load the cargo. Durant will oversee the operation, so follow his direction. After the customer has taken possession of the shipment, you will be free to do as you will. We have landed on Kantus in Toreboda and shore leave is three days. Be back in plenty of time to load up our next shipment. Take a DataCom with you in case I need to contact you or you need to contact one another. With our rearranged schedule, we will be shipping food supplies to the fishing colonies on Crescentis, and then we will fly empty to Ganis to transport industrial equipment to Quet. We had a few hiccups on our first trip together, so hopefully things will go smoother the next voyage out. Merlin, out."

The wolf shut off the ship-wide link and then leaned back against the console. "Thanks for helping out with the landing," he said to Taro. "With Jiro out of commission, I'm glad you've had flight experience."

The vixen approached him with a smile. "It's always a good thing to have a backup plan," she said. "Vanessa had a rule that all personnel needed flight experience, whether or not it was their main job. That way, even if an epidemic spread through the crew, someone would be able to land for us."

Merlin blinked. "That's not a bad idea," he admitted. "I'm not sure when we'd have the time to teach everyone, though."

"You could always do it during one of our three-day layovers. Give one full instruction each time we land, and then let them go on shore leave once they've learned well enough."

The wolf gave her a smirk. "Yeah, providing the Horizon itself can stand up to trainees launching and landing it over and over!"

"There are always sacrifices to be made!" Taro laughed.

***

When the lift door opened, Connie Davies stuck her nose out into the cargo bay to see if anyone had arrived. Just as soon as the all-clear had been given, she had rushed out to be the first one down the lift. She held the door-open button down so that no one from above could call the lift back up just yet. She listened closely and thought she could hear Durant unlocking tie-down cables, but there were no voices in conversation. It was probably just the cargo master awaiting the crew to help unload, so it appeared she was in luck. The compartment was lit up from the sun outside, so the bay door must be open.

The red-haired woman clutched a small travel bag to her and then soft-stepped around the perimeter of the hold toward the main hatch. She made it without being seen, but before she snuck away from the vessel, she took a last look back into the ship. She'd never thought that her dream to get out into space would have been so disastrous, but now that she was sure to be fired from her job, she thought she would save everyone the trouble by leaving on her own.

She wiped a tear from her cheek and then slipped out into the afternoon Kantus sun.

***

The door to the sickbay opened and Merlin stepped inside. He had a small travel bag with a few of Jiro's personal effects slung over one arm and he set it on the countertop. He looked into the physician's office, but didn't see her.

"Connie?" he called. He heard Jiro grunt at him from the back room, so he walked back there to take a look. He had excused the nurse from cargo duty to help him take the cougar to a local hospital, but apparently she hadn't yet arrived.

The captain busied himself with unfolding a collapsible medical wheelchair, wondering to himself why he hadn't equipped his ship with one that operated on anti-grav discs instead. He finished up the chair by inserting the IV rod behind the seat, and then rolled it next to Jiro's bed.

He leaned over his friend and put a hand on the feline navigator's forehead. The cougar was still warm to the touch, but didn't seem to be as hot as before. Perhaps whatever had hit him had run its course and he was on his way to recovery, but he still needed to see a doctor. A real doctor, Merlin mused silently.

Jiro stirred and opened his eyes. He blinked from the brightness of the room's overhead light panels and swallowed. "Are we there yet, daddy?" he rasped.

"Almost," Merlin replied. "We've landed and now I'm going to get you to a hospital. Connie still hasn't arrived to help me get you into this wheelchair, though."

"Help me sit up," Jiro whispered.

Merlin thumbed a control box on the side of the bed, and one end raised the cougar up into a sitting position. Once he was upright, Jiro motioned the wolf to move away so he could swing his legs around. The captain complied and Jiro managed to get himself into position sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Give me a hand. I think I can get down into the chair."

It took several long minutes to get Jiro down into the wheelchair and the IV bag transferred to the pole on the chair, but they both managed it without a mishap.

"Do you want your boots and a shirt?" Merlin asked. All the cougar wore currently was a pair of jogging shorts.

Jiro studied his toes for a moment and then wiggled them. He decided they didn't feel as if they were going to drop off, so he situated his feet firmly on the stirrups.

"You can bring the boots with us, but I doubt I'll need them until I can walk back."

"What about a shirt?"

Despite how weak he felt, Jiro managed to give the wolf a smirk. "I don't wear one when I'm feeling good. Why would I wear one now?" he said.

"Good point."

Merlin wheeled the cougar out into the front room of the sickbay, but Connie still hadn't put in an appearance. Annoyed, he reached for the travel bag he'd put on the counter, and it was then he saw the note.

"I'm sorry, Captain. I can't stick around to hurt anyone else." It was unsigned, but he recognized the human's cursive handwriting.

Resisting the urge to fill the air with profanity, Merlin grumbled beneath his breath and angrily shoved the note into a pocket before picking up the travel bag.

"What was that?" Jiro asked, taking the bag from the wolf to set it on his lap.

"Connie has broken her contract," Merlin growled. "She's jumped ship and gone."

"Why would she do that?" Jiro asked, genuinely surprised.

The lupine captain realized that his friend knew nothing of what had transpired due to the nurse's treatment of her patient. He opened the door, wheeled his navigator out into the corridor and headed for the lift. "I'll explain on the way," he replied in irritation.

***

Durant signed the manifest with a thumbprint and handed the slateboard down to a short female raccoon that stood beside the door of the fat, bulbous truck she had just backed up to the Blue Horizon's loading ramp. Two other trucks from the Handgjorda Kläder Warehouse were moving into position to back up beside her vehicle, so the two of them moved out of the way.

"Any trouble along the way?" the raccoon asked him.

The grizzly shrugged as they walked up into the blue freighter. "One of our crew got really sick and we had a few system glitches, but nothing we couldn't handle."

"That the guy who got sick?" she asked, pointing to a wolf pushing a cougar in a wheelchair across the tarmac.

"Yeah, that's him with our captain," Durant replied. "Listen, here comes the first of our crew with your crates. I'll let you direct him how you want it loaded in your truck, and I'll go help my crewmates."

"Okay, see ya around."

The first crate arrived on a floating pallet, pushed by the Horizon's mechanic. When the truck driver saw Pockets behind the crate, a wide grin crossed her face.

"Well, hello there, Cutie!" she said to him.

Pockets looked up, surprised to see the other raccoon. She was dressed in common worker pants and shirt, with the buttons open halfway to her navel. Her hands rested on soft hips, one of them clutching a common slateboard tablet.

"Hi!" he responded with a silly grin of his own. "How can I help you?"

The girl studied him a moment and then leaned forward onto the crate he'd brought out. "You can start by giving me your name and contact number, Sailor."

"Why, are you asking me out?" he replied, feigning shyness.

She batted her eyelashes at him. "Why, of course!" she said with a laugh. "I'm off duty just as soon as I deliver this cargo, and was wondering how I was going to spend my weekend."

Pockets grinned at her. "What a coincidence," he said. "I was in the same predicament!"

"I'm Rochelle. Now, are you going to tell me your name, or do I have to tickle it out of you?"

Pockets opened his mouth, but then shut it again quickly. "Hmm," he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes, "I was going to tell you, but that might be more fun!"

"Jerad! Quit flirting and move your crate!" Samantha called from behind him.

Rochelle laughed aloud and stepped back. "Ah well, Jerad," she said flippantly, "it looks like I won't have to tickle torture you after all!"

Pockets cast a glare over his shoulder at the Border collie. "Thanks a lot, Sam!" he called. Rochelle giggled and then helped him push his pallet up the ramp into her truck.

***

Taro pulled on her work gloves and was about to start moving cargo when something pulled on the back of her mind. She knew that Merlin had taken Jiro off to a local hospital, but someone else seemed to be missing. She hopped up on top of one of the crates and then counted noses. Durant, Samantha, Ivy, Jasper and Jerad were present, but she didn't see Connie anywhere.

Durant had been left in the charge, but the cargo master was busy at the moment, so Taro took it upon herself to get their final crew member out there to help. She called for her on the intercom, but after several minutes of silence, there was no reply.

Taro hated to leave the cargo deck when there was work to be done, but the nurse was contracted to help move crates along with everyone else. She took the lift up to the next deck and strode directly for the human's cabin. When there was no response to her knocking, she let herself into the unlocked compartment. Connie's things were all in place about the room, and the closet door was open, but of the nurse, there was no sign. She checked the sickbay next, and then went up to the recreation deck.

While she took the lift back down to the Hold, Taro mused that Merlin must have taken Connie with him and Jiro to the hospital. It seemed logical, but seemed odd that the captain hadn't told anyone about her joining them. Perhaps he'd told Durant, she thought, since the grizzly had been left in charge.

Once down on the Cargo deck, Taro slipped her work gloves back on and proceeded to help the others unload the shipment.

Chapter 27

Catseye

The black domestic feline who examined Jiro was gentle, but thorough. Rather than take the navigator across town from the spaceport to the metro hospital, Merlin had simply instructed their cab driver to take them to the nearest medical clinic.

It was a small facility, staffed by eight, but it was close to the spaceport and was used to serving off-worlders just landed. Merlin sat on a stool in the corner, staying out of the physician assistant's way as she examined his friend.

Jiro blinked rapidly after the effects of the woman's pen light in his eyes, and when he could focus again, the first thing he looked at was her name badge. Tomi Arden, PA.

"Your name is Tommy?" he rasped. "You certainly don't look like a boy to me."

The black cat smiled down at him, her green eyes brilliant against her dark fur. "It's short for Tomilyn," she explained. There was a pleasant thrum beneath her words, making her voice just as smooth as her coat. "Now, I'm going to take a blood sample, and then I'll need a urine sample from you."

Merlin got up from his seat and headed for the door. "I'll give you some privacy," he said quietly. "I'll be right outside."

"Thank you," said the physician's assistant politely.

Merlin stepped out of the room and then headed for the public lavatory. When he finished, he moved to the large glass window at the front of the waiting room and peered outside. Ground traffic on the main avenue was heavy this close to the spaceport, but the clinic was on a side street where it was quieter. This was his first time to the world of Kantus and the differences in architecture, clothing styles, and the bulbous look of the cars and trucks intrigued him. There was no telling how the customs and traditions might differ from what he was used to on Alexandrius or Dennier.

The afternoon sun streamed through the window, warming the wolf's fur, and he closed his eyes for a moment. Not long ago, he and his crew had been in danger of freezing; the sunlight was a welcome distraction from his troubled thoughts.

Before Connie Davies, Merlin had known only one human in his life, a childhood friend of his father's who loved to regale fanciful tales of adventure to his family when they were younger. However, that faded memory couldn't overpower his most recent exposure to a representative of that race of beings. Although the anthro races of the Planetary Alignment originated from humankind through genetic manipulation, Merlin felt no kinship with that furless race.

In just the past three weeks, Connie had lied to him several times, all of which had resulted in Jiro's worsened condition. It's possible that whatever he got might have run its course by now, but the woman's inept attempts to treat a species she knew nothing about may have put the cougar close to death. Fortunately, they had managed to stabilize his condition well enough to get him to Kantus.

Despite all this, Merlin might have forgiven Connie her inexperience once Jiro was properly treated and back on his feet, but when she broke her contract by jumping ship at the first opportunity, she lost the wolf's sympathy completely.

Originally, the lupine captain hadn't intended to hire a medic for the crew, instead believing that a First Aid kit would be all they needed, but after this situation, he knew he needed someone on board full time. He wouldn't be able to afford a fully licensed doctor, but perhaps a medic or a nurse would suffice, providing he could fine one willing to serve on a mere freighter. He only had three days before they launched, so there would be no real shore leave for him on this first landing of the Blue Horizon.

Merlin's frown deepened when he suddenly remembered something else that needed to be taken care of before they took off again. He pulled out his DataCom and scanned the preprogrammed access list for his crew. He tapped in the code for Pockets' DC unit and the raccoon answered almost immediately.

"This is Jerad."

"This is Merlin, Pockets. I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut your shore leave short."

"What, already? We're still unloading the ship and I've got a date this evening!"

Merlin afforded himself a smile. "A date, you say? Wow, and you haven't even left the ship!"

"She's one of the truck drivers for Handgjorda Kläder, a cute little raccoon, and she's the one who asked ME out. Are you canceling shore leave for everyone, or did you just single me out for your evil purposes?"

The wolf chuckled. "Just you, Pockets, but I might give this task to your brother instead – that is, unless you two are double-dating."

The raccoon snickered. "Nope, I'm the lucky one."

"Okay, I'll contact him. Enjoy your date, Jerad."

"You gonna tell me what's going on?"

"Before we take off for Crescentis, we still need to get that heater core replaced. Your makeshift thingamajig worked well enough to get us here unfrozen, but we need to replace it with the real part."

"Yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you about that…"

"Oh?"

"As soon as we were in range of the Kantus network, I started looking for a replacement. Okami freighters are common enough, but we're rather limited on what we can get here in Toreboda. The only place in town that has one in stock is a wholesale warehouse, and they won't sell to individual buyers."

Merlin frowned, staring out the window at the side street traffic. "Any alternatives?"

"There's a retail parts shop in Askran, but that's on the other side of the planet from us. I checked, and it would take a week to get one to us."

"A week! We can get a third of the distance from one star system to another in a week's time! Why does it take so long to get a part across the surface of Kantus?"

"Surface shipping, boss. There are places that still use it and it appears Kantus is one of them."

Merlin sighed out loud. "Okay, Pockets. Finish up what you're doing and then enjoy your date. I'll get with Jasper and see if he can come up with any better leads."

"Aye, sir. How's Jiro?"

"He's still getting poked and probed. I just hope he's strong enough for all that. Hopefully they'll find out what's wrong with him so he can be treated properly. In fact, I should be getting in there. Change of plan. Do me a favor and talk to Jasper for me before you leave. You can tell him what all you've done trying to find the necessary part so he won't duplicate your efforts."

"Sure thing, Merlin."

"I'll talk to you later, Jerad."

"See ya."

Merlin pocketed the handheld DC and headed back to the exam room. He tapped on the door lightly, and a moment later, a large cougar stepped out into the hallway. Merlin blinked when he saw him, first thinking it was Jiro, but upon second glance, the white smock and a stethoscope draped around his neck identified him as a local physician.

"Excuse me," the feline said in a deep, resonant voice. "Are you Captain Sinclair? I am Doctor Wilder."

"Yes sir. Is my friend going to be okay?"

"Mr. Brannon has been through a rough time, but I believe he will recover well enough with the proper treatment."

Merlin looked relieved. "That's good to hear. Do you know what's wrong with him?"

The cougar put his hands into the pockets of his smock. "His blood work is still in test, but the medications given him were originally engineered for human physiology, the remnants of which we have to filter out. However, from the preliminary examination, he appears to have suffered from the Blodgett virus."

"I don't think I've ever heard of that one," Merlin replied.

"Most people wouldn't. Preventive treatment in standard PA-regulated inoculations have kept it under control for decades, but on occasion it gets by and snags an unsuspecting feline. If untreated, the infected person could suffer permanent muscular damage."

Merlin's ears went flat against his head and then he rapped his forehead lightly with the knuckles of one hand. "I knew was forgetting something!" he said in sudden annoyance. The doctor looked at him curiously when the wolf gave him a look of exasperation. "I forgot to have my crew inoculated before we left Alexandrius!" he explained.

"Yes, that might have prevented Mr. Brannon's illness," Wilder replied. "How long was he on Alexandrius before he became ill?"

"Altogether about three months," Merlin answered. "He and I were released from military service and the two of us went to Alexandrius to look for work. It was while there that I discovered I had funds available from investments, so we decided to buy a ship and go into the shipping business for ourselves." The wolf looked up at the large cougar and shrugged. "I don't think either of us even thought of inoculations when we got to Alexandrius, and I didn't think of it when I assembled my crew."

"When is your next departure?"

"Three days."

"How many in your crew?"

"Nine… no, eight. I had one person bail after only a single voyage; she couldn’t handle the stress."

Doctor Wilder pulled a notepad from the pocket of his medical smock and scribbled something onto it. He tore off the page and handed it to the lupine captain. "Get with my receptionist before you leave and schedule a time for all members of your crew to get inoculated," the doctor told him. "The annual inoculations are mandatory for all space flight crews and are provided at no cost to you, Captain."

Merlin nodded, folded the note carefully, and placed it in a pocket. "Thank you," he said. "If you inoculate Brannon now, will that cure him of this Blodgett virus?"

"The inoculations are preventive," Wilder replied. "If the tests prove that he does indeed have the Blodgett virus, he can be treated with proper medication. The prescriptions will take about four days to rid his system of the infection, and in the meantime, he will need plenty of rest and room-temperature liquids. He won't have much of an appetite, but the medications will also provide the proper nutrients his body will need during that time. When his appetite returns, his muscles will ache from having suffered this for so long, but he will be tired of being confined to bed. Let him up and feed him. He should feel closer to normal by then, and will get a little stronger each day thereafter. I would recommend some form of physical activity to tone up his muscles again."

Merlin committed the instructions to memory and then held out his hand to the physician with the palm up in a local custom he had read about. "I appreciate your help, Doctor Wilder."

The doctor covered his hand in response. "You are welcome. You should be able to go inside for now. My physician's assistant should have the test results in about ten or fifteen minutes, and then we will have a definite answer to Mr. Brannon's dilemma." An intercom called out his name, so he excused himself and left the wolf to attend to business.

Merlin tapped on the door to the examining room and then stepped inside. Jiro was reclining on the cushioned exam table, talking quietly with the PA. His voice was still hoarse, but he seemed a little livelier than he had been when they first arrived.

"Right between the columns?" Jiro asked, his eyes wide in surprise.

The woman nodded, her face alight. "I only had a meter of clearance on both sides, and even less when the stabilizer went through, but I made it across without a scratch!"

"You weren't disqualified?"

"No," Tomi replied, "but the chief wouldn't let me out of his sight after that!"

Merlin stood just inside the door, listening to their exchange for a moment before he realized what they were discussing. "You'll have to make Jiro tell you about the time he nearly took the wings off his Mainoran flyer going after a phantom blip on his scanner," he remarked after a moment when the conversation lulled.

Tomi Arden turned to him with a smile. "Hello, Captain," she said. "I didn't hear you come inside."

"He's good at sneaking up on you," Jiro told her with a smirk. "He once caught me in the shower with his ex-girlfriend and doused us both with icy cold water!"

Tomi turned to look at the navigator with an upraised eyebrow. "Oh really?" she asked. "What were you doing in…. no, I changed my mind. I don't want to know."

"You two seem to be getting along well," Merlin said with a smile. "I take it you're also a pilot."

The black-furred feline shrugged her shoulders, rocking her knees side to side upon her roller stool. "I was never in the military," she replied, "but I caught the flying bug at a young age. I have experience flying seventeen different aircraft models!"

Merlin was impressed. "How about space flight? Do you have any experience out of an atmosphere?"

Tomi held up four fingers and ticked them off one by one. "Cambridge and Labara cruisers, Okami cargo hauler and the Ulysses firefighter," she admitted, "although it's been a while since I was last off Kantus. I've spent the past three years here at the Sable Gamin Medical Centre, but I usually rent a Skyflitter and fly down to the coast for summer vacation each year."

Merlin sat down in a guest chair in a corner of the small room. "Are you a licensed doctor?" he asked.

"I am a licensed health care professional certified to perform certain duties such as history taking, diagnosis, drawing blood samples, urinalysis, and injections, but all under the supervision of a physician," the woman recited. "That's the textbook job description, anyway, but I'm responsible for a lot more, all for little recognition."

Merlin raised an eyebrow and gave Jiro a look that the navigator couldn't read. "Have you ever considered practicing medicine out in space?"

Tomi laughed. "Not without a pressure suit," she replied.

The wolf shook his head with a grin. "Sorry, I meant as in serving on board a ship."

"I've looked into it," she answered, "but although I have a license to practice medicine and dispense medication, I'm not a full doctor. The only place a physician's assistant could get a job would be serving under a doctor on board one of the large pleasure cruisers."

"Have you tried the Merriam Cruise Line?" Jiro asked.

"No, I haven't," she replied.

"You're obviously familiar with feline anatomy," Merlin observed. "What about other species?"

The woman looked at him oddly. His line of questioning almost felt like an interrogation. "We treat them all here, being close to the spaceport," she answered, suddenly guarded. "We don’t have the luxury to focus on just one species."

"That makes sense," the wolf replied, pleased with her reply.

The overhead intercom speaker called her name and she stood up from the roller stool. "That will be your test results," she informed them. "I will discuss them with Dr. Wilder and then will be right back."

After she left, Jiro gave his partner a pointed look. "What was all that about?" he rasped.

"What do you mean?"

"You've been asking a lot about her background, Merle, and she's noticed. Are you planning to ask her out, or are you just concerned with her medical credentials in treating me after what happened with Connie?"

Merlin leaned against the wall behind him. "I'm not looking for a date," he answered, "but I am looking for a new medical officer for the Horizon."

The cougar raised his head up off his pillow to look at the wolf. "Do you think you can afford her?" he asked. "Those in the medical profession make good money."

"I was paying Connie more than she was getting at her old clinic, and she was a registered nurse," Merlin reminded him. "I don't know what a physician's assistant gets paid, but I wouldn't think it would be as much."

Jiro relaxed against his pillow again, shut his eyes and swallowed against his sore throat. "Go ahead and ask her," he replied, "but I don't think you'll have any luck."

The wolf fell silent, wondering if his friend was right. He mused over his thoughts for long moments, and it was not long before he heard the cougar's breathing slow and deepen.

Merlin closed his eyes too, leaning against the wall, but he was shy of actually drifting off when the door opened again. Tomi walked in alone, a clipboard and several small sheets of printed paper in her hands. She glanced over at the cougar, and noting that he slept, she moved to the wolf.

"Tests confirm that Mr. Brannon does have the Blodgett virus," she whispered, "but the methods that Dr. Wilder explained to you earlier should get him back on his feet. He should fully recover, but since he's been sick without proper treatment as long as he has, it will take time." She handed Merlin several squares of paper. "Here are the prescriptions the doctor has recommended for your friend. So long as he takes them as directed, you should have him back on your bridge within a week."

"Thank you," the wolf replied, pocketing the prescriptions. "I am glad we found the proper place to bring him to for his illness. We were getting very worried."

The feline smiled and nodded. "Helping people is why we are here," she said. "I am sorry that your nurse didn't have the necessary experience to treat Mr. Brannon. I wish you luck finding a replacement."

"Yes, I'm working on that," Merlin replied.

The woman handed him two sheets of paper, one yellow and the other pink. "If you will give these to the receptionist at the front desk, he will finalize your bill and get your friend checked out. Do you have any other questions?"

"Yes, just one," Merlin said with a smile. "Would you like to come to work for me on my ship?"

Tomi chuckled. "I see you have a sense of humor," she replied. "Seriously, were there any further questions?"

Merlin shook his head. "None about my friend's condition," he said, "but my offer was genuine. I need a flight medic on my crew who has experience with multiple species, and since you also have bridge experience on an Okami freighter, you could also serve as a pilot, alternating the duties with Jiro and myself."

Tomi frowned briefly, but then her smile returned, somewhat. "Captain, I don't think you could afford me," she said.

Merlin named the figure that he had paid Connie, and then added a secondary figure for her flight experience. The feline opened her mouth and then shut it again.

"I… uh… I was unaware that flight medics earned that much," she replied in surprise, her tail tip suddenly animated.

"This is fairly standard," the wolf assured her, "and your services would be worth every credit. It also comes with free room and board."

"Captain… I don't think…"

Merlin picked up a business card from the room's counter and pen from his pocket, and then scribbled something onto the card's blank back side. He handed the card to her and said, "This is my contact number. Think it over for a couple days and then you can let me know if you would like to join us. My ship is called the Blue Horizon and we will be loading up with cargo bound for Crescentis in three days."

Tomi glanced at the card, and then back into the wolf's amber eyes. "You're serious, aren't you?" she asked.

"He is," Jiro muttered from the bed, struggling to get up. "When it comes to his business, Merlin is always serious." Tomi moved to the cougar and helped him sit up. Once upright, he looked over at her and took hold of both her hands with a smile. "I know I would be in good hands if you were with us," he said. "Think it over."

The feline frowned and then helped him off the bed, settling him back into the wheelchair he had come in on. "I admit it is a tempting offer," she told them, "but this is quite sudden and I don't think I would be able to just pick up and go. Thanks for asking, but I have other patients I need to attend to."

Without waiting for a response or accompanying them out to the reception desk, the physician's assistant walked out the door, placed the clipboard on a small table, and then disappeared around a corner.

Merlin let out a sigh, and Jiro looked over at him. "I didn't think she would go for it," the cougar said.

"Yeah, you told me so," the wolf muttered. "There won't be much of a shore leave for either of us, I’m afraid. This was my first visit to Kantus and I won’t get to see any of it."

"Sorry…" Jiro said with a frown. "I didn't mean to get sick."

The lupine captain raised an eyebrow at him. "No, it's not your fault that I'm missing shore leave," he hastened to say. "It's my fault for failing to get us properly inoculated, and it's Connie's fault for leaving us in a lurch. Even if I didn't need to take care of you until the others get back, I still have to put out a call in the local ads for a flight medic and hope I have enough time to hire someone prior to our launch window."

Jiro sighed. "Okay, let's pay the bill, go get my meds and then get back to the ship."

Chapter 28

Taro Times Two

The captain of the Blue Horizon tapped lightly on the cabin door of his navigator and best friend. When there was no response, he opened the door and peered inside. The lights were off in the small living compartment, but in the illumination from the outside corridor, Merlin could tell that Jiro was breathing deeply in medication-induced rest. The tawny cougar would be out for several hours at least, so the wolf stepped in lightly and set a handwritten note upon the nightstand beside the bed.

His task completed, the lupine commander headed for the lift, and then took it down to the cargo deck. It had been several hours since they had landed and the wolf was hungry. He remembered seeing a small diner near the spaceport on their way back from a local pharmacy to get Jiro's meds.

Merlin was barely off the spaceport grounds on an avenue sidewalk when someone called to him from the doorway of a nearby storefront.

"Hey, wolf!"

Merlin stopped and turned to look, but didn't approach the speaker, a short canine of indeterminate ancestry in a long coat that looked too warm for the early evening climate.

"You just land?" the dog asked with a smile. One eye seemed wider than the other did, and Merlin could see a few nicks out of the fellow's ears. Rather than answer, he simply nodded, keeping his body language completely neutral.

"I thought so," said the canine. "You look like a newcomer to Toreboda. Where'ya headed?"

Merlin cleared his throat and kept his face expressionless. "Personal business," he replied. He heard a faint noise behind him and he turned just in time to see a black bear swing a sand-filled sock at him. The wolf twisted to the side, having suspected the canine was a diversion, but the makeshift blackjack caught him on the left shoulder, just below his neck. The blow was powerful, and although it had missed his head, it hurt and drove him to the sidewalk.

The bear lunged forward, grabbed Merlin's flight jacket by the collar, pulled him up onto his knees, and in a swift motion, jerked the garment down over his shoulders, pinning his arms to his sides. The wolf struggled, but his strength was no match for his ursine assailant.

Satisfied that the dazed out-of-towner was secure, the canine strode forward and began searching the wolf's pockets. "Your personal business was probably going to cost you money," he cackled, "so we'll do you a favor and take your credits before you have a chance to get taken by anyone else!"

Merlin raised his head swiftly, striking the dog's jaw and causing the guy to bite his tongue hard. He tried to butt the bear's head as well, but the person behind him simply ducked out of the way and tightened his hold upon the jacket.

The canine groaned around his wounded tongue and looked up at the wolf in fury. He reared back to punch his victim for daring to fight back, but his arm was suddenly wrenched out of its socket. The bear looked up in alarm as his partner bellowed in agony, but with his grip on the wolf's jacket, he was unable to dodge the black-furred fist and reddish-orange arm in time to escape injury.

The arm belonged to a slender tod fox, who lightly tapped the bear's forehead with the flat of his palm; the ursine head rocked back and he suddenly lost all interest in holding onto the wolf. The bear fell clumsily onto his back and lay there stunned.

Without his assailant holding him, Merlin nearly pitched backward on top of him, but the fox caught him. "Easy now, mate," the guy told him. "Are you okay?"

He rubbed his shoulder and winced at the pain. It was the same shoulder that Taro had hit three weeks earlier, and although that injury had healed well enough, the new one was no less painful. "Thanks, I will be," was all he could think to say, looking back at his savior.

The red fox was slender, almost skinny, and he was dressed simply in a pair of kaki slacks and a matching vest that was open. The tod gave him a concerned smile. "Best get an ice pack on that."

"Ya broke mah friggin' arm!" the canine wailed, writhing on the sidewalk beside them.

"No, it's only dislocated," the fox calmly told him. "I passed an express-med office back up the street. If you hurry, you can get there before they close up for the evening."

The dog hissed, cradling his arm as he got up to his feet. He spat blood on the ground and then took off running. The bear began to stir, so the fox helped the captain to his feet.

"Let's get you away from here," he said quietly. Merlin walked with him in the direction toward the spaceport, one hand up on his opposite shoulder. "My office is back this way."

"Thank you for your assistance," the wolf said gratefully. "My name is Merlin Sinclair. I'm the captain of the Blue Horizon."

"Pleased to meet you, Captain Sinclair. I'm Taro Brookhaven."

Merlin blinked. "Your name is Taro?" he asked. "That's the name of a vixen who works for me."

It was the tod's turn to blink. He looked over at the wolf with a strange smile. "Taro is a boy's name, Captain. At least it is on Hestra, where I'm from. Is it a nickname you've given her?"

"No…" Merlin replied slowly. "As far as I know, that's her first name. She's a Hestran fox too, but I really don't know that much about her family history." He smiled and added, "I should have known you had the dense muscles of a Hestran. You took out that big guy with barely a tap."

Brookhaven frowned. "Not many of us leave Hestra to get out into the Planetary Alignment, and now I find out that another of us to leave home is a girl with my name. Where's she from originally?"

"Sorry, I don't know the answer to that," Merlin responded with a grimace.

"Do you need any medical attention for that shoulder?"

"I can probably get by with what we've got on board my ship," he answered. "It was only a glancing blow, but it's going to be stiff and sore tomorrow."

"Ah, okay. Do you mind if I ask where were you headed when your friends here stopped you on the street?"

Merlin started to shrug, but the action hurt. "My crew has gone on shore leave, but my first officer is ill and I just got back with him from the doctor. He's sleeping now on prescribed meds, so I thought I'd run out for a bite to eat and do a little shopping."

"Are you looking for anything in particular, or were you just hunting for a trinket shop?" Brookhaven asked.

"Nothing in particular. I just wanted to get away from the ship for a bit. We've been in space for three weeks."

The fox steered him away from the spaceport terminal where they were headed, pointing him toward a small green building beside a nearby parking lot full of ground vehicles of all shapes, sizes and colors. People trickled to and from the building, most of them laden with colorful purchase sacks and boxes.

"The place doesn't look very big topside,' Brookhaven told him, "but there are two more levels below ground with several shops. There's a food court just inside the door, and then there are plenty of things to browse over in the stores."

"I take it you've been there before," Merlin said.

"I work at one of those shops," the fox told him with a grin. "Reynard's Travel Shoppe, For the Traveler on the Go." He laughed and then added, "Of course, all travelers are on the go, but that's the tagline ol' Reynard uses. We're on the second level down."

"Listen, Taro. Is there anything I can do for you in return for helping me today?" Merlin asked.

"Nothing at all, mate," the fox replied. "Nothing at all. I only live a few blocks from here and was on my way in to work the evening shift. I'm just glad I could be of assistance. I've seen those two hanging around before, but I've never seen them bother anyone before tonight."

"They recognized me as a new pup in town," the wolf said. "That's all some people need as an excuse." They approached the door to the green building and Merlin cast a glance behind him, back out across the tarmac. He couldn't see his ship from there, but it did give him an idea.

"Have you ever considered taking a job that would get you back out into space?" he asked. "I could use someone else with your strength on my crew. I own a freighter."

Brookhaven laughed aloud. "Thanks, mate, but I've already gone that route. I hired onto a freighter that was based out of Vashon, the Hestran moon, and served on it for three years." He held open the door for the wolf and added, "It was good work, but I'm glad to have my feet back on the ground for now. I appreciate the offer, but as I said before, you owe me nothing."

Inside the building was a typical indoor shopping mall. No matter where he seemed to go, the malls always appeared the same to him. People of all types were moving to and fro, and there was a constant buzz of conversation all around them. The aromas from the food court made Merlin's stomach rumble in response.

The captain gestured the fox over to the side, out of pedestrian traffic. He smiled up at him and said, 'How about a date with my Taro?" he asked. "I could probably set you up with her."

Brookhaven looked at him. "Nothing against your friend, but if she is using a boy's name, she probably looks like one," he said with a frown.

Merlin grinned at him and pulled out his ID pouch from a back pocket. He slipped out a copy of the crew portrait from their maiden launch and then handed it to the fox. Brookhaven studied the photo for a moment and then sudden interest spread across his features.

"This is your Taro?" he asked, tapping the picture over the only red fox in the portrait.

Someone leaned over his shoulder and said, "Yes, that's me."

Merlin looked up in surprise, and Brookhaven spun around so fast that his tail thumped against the shopping bags held by the vixen.

"Hello," the female fox said in amusement. "I'm Taro, handsome. Who are you?"

Merlin grinned widely, his tail swishing behind him. "Taro Nichols, meet Taro Brookhaven." Someone moved out from behind the vixen and the wolf chuckled. "The Border collie behind her is Sam Chase, and the lynx is Ivy Sparks, all from my crew."

Brookhaven blinked rapidly and then gave them all a lopsided smirk. "Ladies," he said courteously, recognizing some of the shopping bags they carried. "I see you've been supporting the local economy."

"Did he say your name was Taro?" Samantha asked with a wide smile.

"Yes," Brookhaven replied, standing up straighter. "Your captain was just telling me that his vixen had a male's name." His eyes roved over the vixen's curvaceous form, making no effort to hide his interest. "She sure doesn't look male to me."

Taro Nichols batted her long eyelashes at him, having already given his physique a once-over of her own. "I assure you that I am all female," she told him in a throaty voice. "Care to make a personal inspection?"

"Taro!" Ivy gasped at the vixen's boldness.

Brookhaven raised an eyebrow and gave her a cool, calculating look. "How about tonight after I finish my shift?" he asked. "We can have a late supper and then we can take our time exploring the differences between two Taros."

The vixen's lips parted and she put a hand up to her collarbone. Sparky grabbed Samantha's arm and the Border collie choked back a gasp. Merlin smirked at the women, but then the vixen stepped up closer to the fox tod.

"It's a date," she said, planting a very light peck on Brookhaven's cheek. "Where should we meet?"

He gestured toward a nearby pedestal clock that towered over the crowd. "I close up shop in four hours and will meet you by that clock at that time." He picked up the vixen's hand and raised it up to his lips, bowing toward her. He gave her knuckles a small kiss and then he straightened up. "I must get to work now," he said, turning toward Sam and Ivy. "Ladies, it was a pleasure to meet you." Then he looked at Merlin. "I am sorry you had a spot of trouble tonight, but I am glad we met. Take care of your shoulder, Captain."

He gave the vixen another long once-over examination, and then left after gifting her with a wink. Taro Nichols watched him stride away, mesmerized by the swish of his tail.

"Taro's got a date!" Samantha whispered excitedly. "Taro plus Taro — Taro times two!"

Ivy, however, looked over at the wolf in concern. "What spot of trouble? What's wrong with your shoulder?" she asked.

Taro forced herself to remove her attention from Brookhaven's departing backside. "Spot of trouble?" she repeated.

Merlin sighed, nodded and told them what had happened.

***

"What did Other Taro mean?" Ivy asked, walking out into the night air behind her shipmates, "that you had a boy's name?"

All but the vixen had eaten something from the food court, and they had done some shopping afterward. Even Merlin carried a bag of items he had purchased at Reynard's Travel Shoppe. The starry sky above was clear and it was a nice night, despite the noisy aerial traffic over the spaceport. Merlin led them across the tarmac toward the landing pad where the Blue Horizon sat parked.

"Taro is typically a male's name on Hestra," the vixen answered with a smile. "My father's a miner in a small quarry, and he'd wanted all boys to help provide for the family. I was his firstborn, and he and ma already had a name picked out for me. We were a poor family and they couldn't afford even a simple ultrasound when ma was pregnant with me. When they were surprised that I turned out to be a female, my pa grumbled and told the attending midwife that my name was to be recorded as Taro Nichols anyway."

The red fox shrugged her shoulders and put her hands into her pockets. "I was a late bloomer," she said with a smile, "so until my curves filled out, most of the kids I grew up with in Taquit just thought I was given a boy's nickname since I was so boy-like. By the time everyone started noticing that I really was female, everyone was too used to the name to call me anything else."

"Was your father hard on you?" Ivy asked tentatively.

Taro shook her head. "Not at all," she replied. "Despite that he wanted boys and had stuck me with the name he had wanted for his firstborn son, I was daddy's little girl and he tried to spoil me rotten."

"I don't think he succeeded," Samantha said with a smile.

"Well, when you barely earn enough money to support a family, there's not much you can do to spoil a child materialistically. Papa wasn't happy when I left Hestra, and mama said that he cried after I'd gone, but he has since told me that he's proud that I have tried to do something better with my life than work in the quarries." Taro looked up when they passed a row of buildings and she could see the Blue Horizon ahead. "I opened up a savings account when I finally started working regularly, and I still put a portion of my earnings in there for my family, with an automatic transfer going to them monthly."

"I hope you don't harbor anything against your pop for giving you a boy's name," Merlin asked, peering into his shopping bag.

"What is a name?" Taro asked him in a lighter tone. "It's just something for you to respond to when they call you for supper! No, I never felt bad about my name, even when I was a kid. It just didn't matter."

"That's good," the wolf replied, distracted by his purchases.

Samantha smirked at him and said, "Go ahead and put it on, Merlin," she teased.

"You may as well," Ivy quipped. "You keep staring at it."

Merlin grinned back at the ladies and pulled out a black and white nautical cap with an embroidered patch depicting a white life preserver overlaid with a golden anchor. He bit the string tag apart and then dropped the price tag back into the sack. He held up the hat by the stiff brim and stared at if for a moment as they walked.

"Oh, for Pete's sake," Taro chuckled, not at all bothered with the change of topic. "Put it on!"

The wolf laughed aloud and then placed the hat upon his head, situating it between his triangular ears. "There," he said at last. "How do I look?"

Samantha hid her laugh behind a hand, her eyes crinkling in amusement. "Charming," she giggled.

Ivy snickered and shook her head. "I think it looks silly," she said, "but as captain, you can wear whatever you want."

Merlin stopped and stared at them both. "You think I look silly?" he asked. The disappointment in his voice was hard to mistake, and Sparky suddenly regretted that she had said anything.

Taro stepped up close and adjusted the hat on his head for him. "You look like a wolf of authority," she said with a straight face. "A sea captain always wears a hat, and a captain sailing the stars should be no different. I think it looks good on you."

Merlin gave her a look at gratitude. "Thank you, Taro. I'm glad it appeals to somebody besides me."

Samantha laughed aloud and put her arm around the wolf's shoulders. "Don't take it personal, dear," the canine replied. "We're just not used to seeing you wear something that only a human would wear."

"Only a human—" Merlin pulled the hat from his head with a scowl. He reared back to fling it across the tarmac, but Taro plucked it from his hand and put it back on his head.

"Stop that!" she scolded. "Other Taro gave you a good discount on that hat, so you are not going to just throw it away!" She patted his clenched jaw lightly and added, "I'll staple it to your head if you don't wear it now."

The vixen couldn't know that the reason for his sudden dark mood was caused by their human shipmate. The wolf hadn't told anyone else that she had abandoned them, but now was not the time to bring it up. Merlin bit back a sarcastic response and crossed his arms. He gave Samantha a brief glare before he let her giggles calm his nerves. Ivy's eyes were crinkled in amusement, despite her brief moment of fear at his sudden mood change.

After a moment, the wolf smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't care if you think it's silly," he told them. "I am going to wear it!"

"Without staples?" Taro asked with a grin.

"Definitely without the staples."

"I can understand the hat," Ivy said when they continued walking back toward the Blue Horizon, "but what's the book for? It's blank, isn't it?"

Merlin reached into the sack and pulled out the second purchase he had made. It was a large book with a soft leather cover that was dyed navy blue. He fanned the pages, but there was not a word on them.

"When I served on board the SS Shishaldin in the Dennieran spatial forces," he told them, "my captain used to keep a journal of all his adventures so he would never forget the people and places in his life. Now that I have a ship of my own, I thought I might do the same."

"That's a good idea," Sparky agreed. "Our captain should keep a diary."

"Journal," Merlin corrected.

"Dear Diary," Samantha said with a musical lilt, "Today she batted her eyelashes at me. I felt a warmth all the way down to my—"

"That'll be enough of that!" Merlin told her with a smirk. All three females laughed at their commander's embarrassment, and in a simultaneous motion, Taro and Samantha hooked arms with the wolf, and then Ivy hooked arms with Samantha. The four of them walked arm in arm all the way back to the ship, the conversation light and casual.

Once they were back on board and up on the crew deck, Taro excused herself to get ready for her date. Sam and Ivy went back to their respective cabins and the wolf tapped lightly on his first officer's door.

"C'mon in," he heard through the panel. Merlin let himself inside and found the cougar sitting up in bed with two pillows against the wall.

"You look like you're feeling a little better," the wolf told him.

"…and you look bizarre with that thing on," Jiro replied with a raised eyebrow. "Did you lose a bet with Jasper?"

Merlin looked up at the brim of hat with a frown. He reached up to take it off, but then decided to leave it where it was. "No, I bought it for myself," he answered in a miffed tone. "You are going to respect this hat."

"Uh huh," Jiro replied with a smile. He was always on the lookout for anything to needle his best friend about, and the wolf had provided this one on his own.

Quickly changing the subject, Merlin sat down at the desk and set his shopping bag with the journal on the floor at his feet. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

Jiro heaved a heavy sigh. "I feel like I've been run over by a bus, but I've been told I will live."

"Did you sleep?"

"Yeah, in fact I was asleep until about forty-five minutes ago," the cougar replied. Then he gave his companion a look of exasperation. "Did you know that you had the bridge's com board routed through the intercom system?" he asked, scooting down under a tan blanket to make himself comfortable. "A call came in for you while you were out at the haberdashery and the alert signal woke me up. I had to get up to the bridge and answer the call before I could get the blasted noise shut off."

"Sorry about that," Merlin said with a frown. "I thought I'd set it to forward calls to my DC."

"Nope, that didn't happen," Jiro replied. "I was groggy and I think I slurred my words a little, but by the time I got back to my quarters, I was wide awake. I was just about to settle back down again."

"I hope it wasn't a local telemarketer," the wolf replied, scratching the fur beneath his new hat. "They're supposed to be banned from starship frequencies."

"No, it wasn't a sales call." Jiro yawned, stretched, and then closed his eyes. "It was that physician's assistant who examined me this afternoon," he told him. "Tomi called to say she was going to accept the position you offered her."

Merlin looked at the cougar incredulously. "You're serious, she accepted?"

"Serious," answered the feline navigator. "She said would come by later this evening to look over your contract with her, and if all looked satisfactory to her, then she would go settle her affairs and report in before we launch again."

The lupine captain took off the hat and set it on the small desk beside him. He sat back in his chair and closed his eyes, rubbing his hands across his face. "I don't often pray to God," he said quietly, "but I did this afternoon before I left the ship. It looks like I got an answer."

Chapter 29

Sneaky-Sneak

When Samantha stepped off the lift onto the Horizon's recreation deck the next morning, sunlight was streaming into the room. The polarization of the forward glassteel window was shut off, as were the near-invisible circuits within the panel that would turn it into a large vidscreen when needed. Without the light and temperature shielding, the room was nicely warm. She wore a short, powder blue cotton robe that hung to her knees, its belt tied loosely around her middle, and her fluffy tail wagged gently through the split in the back.

She took the cup of coffee she had picked up from the galley and walked toward one of the two couches bolted to the floor in front of the window, intending to relax a bit before heading out on the town. When she approached the couch, she saw a leg stretched out on the floor in front of it. Suddenly afraid that one of her crewmates had collapsed, she stopped short, but Jerad only looked up at her lazily.

The raccoon was stretched out on the floor, soaking up the sun. His discarded shoes were lying nearby and he was dressed in jeans and a casual shirt. He raised a hand to shield his eyes from the bright light and smiled up at her.

"Hi, Sam," he said.

"Good morning, Pockets," the Border collie replied, stepping over him to settle on one end of the couch. "How was your date last night?"

The mechanic closed his eyes and turned over in the sunbeam to warm his other side. "We had a fantastic time," he replied, "but Rochelle had to go back to work this morning, so I came back to the ship about an hour ago."

Samantha smirked. "You spent the night at her place?" Jerad only gave her a satisfied smile and then closed his eyes again. "You frisky little coon," she told him with a grin. She took a sip of her coffee and relaxed into the cushions. "Why did you come back to the ship?" she asked him. "You still have two more days of shore leave."

Without opening an eye, Jerad answered in a lazy voice. "Probably the same reason you did, Sam. It's cheaper than renting a hotel room in town. I can still go see the sights at my convenience, but come back here to sleep, shower and change clothes."

"True."

"However, sometime while we're down, Jasper and I have to replace that bad heater core or we'll be relying on my makeshift repairs for the trip to Crescentis. I'm having trouble finding what I need here, and Jasper didn't have any better luck than I did, so I sincerely doubt they'll have what we need on one of the fishing boats."

Crescentis was in the Lia-Noa star system, a sister planet to Ganis and Pomen. It was a small world of oceans with only islands scattered about as its land masses. Although possessing abundant life in its seas, no sapient life had ever been discovered as having developed there. Over time, individuals from neighboring worlds had set up fishing fleets to harvest the abundant source of seafood to sell and distribute to the other worlds of the Planetary Alignment. Only a loose government had formed to maintain a semblance of order on the planet, primarily to hold a seat of its own in the PA legislature. Small communities had been set up on some of the larger islands, but there were no metropolitan cities.

"What kind of trouble are you having getting the replacement?" Samantha asked.

"There's only one place in town that has it in stock, and it's at a wholesale warehouse. They won't sell to individual buyers like us."

"No one else has one?"

"I located one on the other side of the planet, but it would take a week to get it. We need it installed within two days if we're going to launch on time, and it will take half a day to put it in."

"So what are we going to do? I thought Okami parts were supposed to be available everywhere."

Jerad shrugged his reclining shoulders. "I don't know why there's a shortage of heater cores on Kantus," he answered. "I suppose we'll have to keep my thingamajig working until we get to Ganis after Crescentis. Perhaps the part will be more readily available there. At least Ganis is in the same solar system as Crescentis, so that won't be that long of a journey."

Samantha looked at him. "I'm glad you had the spare parts available to rig up something," she said, "but I doubt it will be reliable for long-term use. Our next cargo won't consist of clothing that we can us to keep warm with in case your thingamajig goes out on us."

"That's why I've been trying to find us a part." The two of them fell silent for a while, both trying to think of alternatives. After a bit, Jerad looked up at her. "With your computer expertise, do you think you could fake a wholesaler's license?" he asked.

"Probably, but we wouldn't have a company account to link it to when they run the transaction."

Jerad let out a sigh and closed his eyes in the warm sunshine again. Neither of them spoke for a long time, but then the canine looked down at her companion.

"Pockets…" she said in a quiet voice, barely above a whisper.

"Hmm?"

"How good are your… sneaky-sneak skills?"

The raccoon opened just one eye and looked at her. A faint smile curled at the edges of his lips. "As sharp as they've ever been," he whispered in return. "What did you have in mind?"

Although they were alone on the deck, Samantha looked around to make sure no one else had come in unannounced, and then she placed her coffee cup on the floor at the end of the couch. She stretched out on the cushions so that her face was close to his, and gave him a conspiratorial smile.

"If I disarm the security alarms, do you think you can pick the lock on the door of the warehouse that has the part you need?" she asked.

Pockets narrowed his eye at her. "Why, Ms. Chase," he whispered, "are you suggesting that we steal it?"

Samantha swallowed. The daughter of a successful, Planetary Alignment-wide corporate giant had never stolen anything in her life, not even as a child.

"Uhm… If we don't have that part, we may freeze to death one night if we lose the heat again," she said quietly. "We have the money for it, but if no one will sell it to us, I think we have an obligation to… appropriate it — for safety's sake, of course."

Pockets grinned at her. "Of course," he repeated. "Do we tell the captain of our plans?"

"Never!" she hissed. "After we've gotten the part and you've installed it, you can just tell him you found a small shop or a salvage yard that had one. I can fake a sales receipt for it."

The raccoon opened both eyes and studied her for a moment. "I'll have no problem with the lock, if you can disable the alarm."

Samantha smiled. "All I need is a few hours to work up an application for my slateboard," she replied. "I'm going shopping in a bit and can pick up what I need at a local electronics market for a good transmitter."

"How about I go with you?" Pockets recommended. "I'll find out where the warehouse is located and we can scope it out in advance. Then we can sneaky-sneak in after dark."

Samantha reached out and touched the mechanic on the tip of his nose. "Be ready to leave in an hour," she told him.

***

Jerad checked his watch and then tapped the Border collie at his side with a finger. The two of them huddled behind a large trash bin half a block away from a warehouse belonging to Foxstone Wholesale, their rented car waiting in a nearby parking garage. Both were dressed in garments of black, and Samantha had applied a black fur powder to the exposed white areas of their arms and faces so they would blend in with the midnight darkness. The raccoon had wondered why Sam would have such a powder, but all she would say is that she had needed it before. This only served to strengthen his respect of her skills that seemed to match some of his own.

Activity at the warehouse had been practically nonexistent since the late night shift had ended an hour earlier. Patient burglars, Sam and Jerad had been quiet in their hiding spot for the past two hours. While the raccoon sat watching the warehouse grounds beyond a chain link fence with a military night-vision ParaScope that could see around corners, Samantha worked with a specialized slateboard she had modified for this occasion. Before the late shift had let out, she had been scanning the Foxstone security systems and recording the signals with an extremely sensitive sensor.

When Jerad tapped her with his finger, she started and then looked over at him with a nervous smirk. "What do you think?" she whispered softly.

"If you're up for this," he replied in a similar tone, "now is the time." The Border collie swallowed and then gave him a nod before she realized he probably couldn't see the action in the darkness.

"Let's go," she whispered.

Without further preamble, the raccoon led his companion along shadows, avoiding bits of trash from the refuse bin to the end of the alley. His eyes missed nothing as he studied the grounds and then padded lightly toward a gate on the back side of the complex. Wildflowers and untrod field grass told the mechanic that it had been a while since this gate might have been used, so he knelt down next to the fence and took out a rolled pouch of delicate instruments from a leg pocket of his black coveralls. There was no moon in the night sky, but the stars gave him just enough light to make a quick decision. He pulled out one instrument, slid it into the key slot of the padlock on a medium sized chain, and the tumbler tripped within two heartbeats.

Quickly and quietly, he returned the tool to the pouch and then back into his pocket. With a delicate touch, he opened the gate, let himself and Samantha inside, and then secured the lock and chain.

"Why did you lock it again?" Sam whispered. "Aren't we going back out this way?"

"Never leave signs of your break-in behind," the raccoon patiently explained, pulling his companion down into a crouch in the tall grass, "Even if only for a little while. It reduces the chances of discovery, and I can open it again just as quickly as if I had the key." He peeked through the grass and planned out a route to the warehouse building. "Now, we need to be extremely quiet from here on in," he told her. "Any questions before we continue? We won't want to do any talking once we get inside, even in whispers. You never know if a bored guard will have sensitive hearing."

"No questions."

"Okay," he whispered. "Let's go."

Both of them stood up to a crouch and then Samantha followed Jerad through the grass toward the building. Several flatbed trailers were parked at the edge of a paved lot, with either flat tires or broken anti-grav repulsors. They crept up between two of them and then Pockets surveyed the open expanse between them and the back of the warehouse. There was an ancient mercury vapor lamp mounted at each corner of the building, but the structure was large enough that the illumination didn't cover the entire back wall.

Satisfied there were no guards in the area, he tapped the Border collie on the knee and then padded out across the concrete toward the building shadows. Once up next to the wall, Pockets crept to a ladder that was permanently mounted to the side the building. Ten feet up, a metal safety cage surrounded the ladder, but there was ample room for the two of them to gain quick access to the roof.

Jerad stopped just below the lip of the roof and used his night-vision ParaScope to check out the scenery. Since the commercial warehouse was unlikely to be the target of many burglars, there was only minimal security. The roof was clear of anything but air conditioning units, vent hoods and a single doorway near the middle of the building.

Old cigarette butts and small gravel crunched beneath their feet as they darted toward the doorway. The door was a simple wood panel surrounded by a brick and mortar box, and a common key lock occupied the center of a round door knob. Pockets was about to apply his picking instrument on the lock, but Samantha stopped him with a touch, pointing out a slender black line around the door frame. She followed it to a small gray box near their feet and then pulled out her slateboard.

She keyed in a few commands to transmit a recorded signal and their ears picked up a small relay trip inside the box. Without speaking, she tapped the raccoon's instrument to indicate he could proceed. The lock and the door were open a moment later.

A stairwell descended into blackness below, and the mechanic pulled a device from another pocket; it looked similar to a common flashlight torch, although its lens was dark and the hand barrel was thick. He wound up a compact spring generator inside, and then thumbed on the torch, but there appeared to be no effect. From the same pocket, he produced a second dark-lensed flash and wound it up before handing it to Samantha. Then from another of his many pockets, Jerad pulled out two pair of eyepieces no larger than Terran tanning booth goggles. He handed one set to his partner, and they donned these quickly. Sam had to adjust the front strap for her broader nose, but when she got them in place, the stairwell suddenly stood out in eerie lavender light through the lenses.

Now able to see their surroundings without giving away their position, they crept down the stairs. At the bottom was another door and Jerad allowed his companion to disable the alarm relay before picking the lock. So far, so good.

He was about to peek out the door when Samantha stopped him with a hand on his arm. He looked back at her, but she sat down on the steps, studying the readout on her slateboard. He sat down on the stairs beside her and peered over her shoulder at the small screen.

Samantha had originally planned to find a computer terminal somewhere within the building, but her slateboard's boosted transceiver had picked up a localized connection to the mainframe. Testing a theory, the Border collie processed the signal through her handheld unit and successfully hacked into the warehouse inventory. She grunted to herself, amazed that the information was so easily accessed; there didn't appear to be even a data firewall in place, and the operating system was an outdated version of one common throughout the Planetary Alignment.

Pockets watched his partner scroll through several menus until she reached the one she wanted. Then with the unit's tiny keyboard, she tapped in a search request for the part they sought. The information came up quickly.

- PART NUMBER: 100-440-0.750-3434-A

- NOMENCLATURE: Distribution Processor Heater Core

- VESSEL CLASS: Okami

- FOR MODEL(S): E, F, G

- AMOUNT IN STOCK: 1 each

- WAREHOUSE LOCATION: Row A133, Bin 065

Without saying a word, she pointed to the bin location displayed on the screen. Jerad nodded and then Samantha put the slateboard into an internal pocket of her black coveralls. They stood up together and then Jerad opened the door just wide enough put the end of his ParaScope. He had to slide up the dark-lamp goggles to see through the night-vision scope.

A few overhead security lamps glowed faintly, but there was no movement that he could see. The raccoon watched patiently for several moments before he put the scope away and slid the goggles back over his eyes. He opened the door to a small squeak and stopped immediately. He pulled out a small canister from a chest pocket and then sprayed a fine mist over both hinges. The door opened soundlessly then, and the burglars crept out into the warehouse. They were near the center of the building, the stairs having exited from a column that also housed restrooms and two small cubicle offices.

The column was surrounded by a large open space where freight trucks loaded and unloaded material along a wide aisle that lead to large doors, with numerous narrow rows bordering two sides. One such truck occupied the aisle, its engine quiet. Surrounding them were several wooden storage pallets with a variety of items upon them in gray plastic tubs.

Now that they were inside and had a location to look for, neither of them knew where to start looking; the warehouse rows were not clearly labeled. They would be unable to stay in contact if they split up, so they remained together and began checking bin rows one at a time. The raccoon was delighted with some of the things he found, and a couple of his larger pockets were soon a little heavier than they had been prior to their visit.

After twenty minutes of growing impatience from a fruitless search, Samantha pulled out her slateboard under the cover of an empty parts tub and sought some reference to the bin arrangement in the warehouse computer system. Jerad leaned back against a wooden crate recessed in a bin and kept watch for the night guard. During their search, they had seen a lone guard make a walk through, but the ferret looked bored and appeared only to be making a token effort to get out from behind his desk for a periodic look. He never came close to the burglars' location, but Pockets wanted to take no chances that the guard would happen upon them merely by coincidence.

Samantha cleared her throat gently and then looked up at the raccoon in triumph. She put away the slateboard and then gestured for her companion to follow. She led him further down the long row where they had stopped and then went over two more aisles after making sure the ferret was nowhere in sight.

Finally, she came to a halt at a bin location and then looked upward. Each bin was a meter square and they were stacked above them ten compartments high. She imagined that a warehouse carriage would stop where they stood and then extend upward to get parts from the upper bins. Fortunately, the one they wanted was only just above the level of her head. Samantha gave Jerad a leg up, and the small raccoon scrambled into an opening occupied by a wooden crate half the size of the bin.

From a long pocket along the leg of his coveralls, Jerad pulled out a short pry bar. He had the crate open within minutes and then set the lid aside quietly. Inside was a metal box with rounded corners and two latches, surrounded by shredded packing material. He was about to pop the latches when he saw Samantha's dark-lamp beam wave frantically. He peered out of the bin just in time to see the Border collie scramble into another bin at floor level and hide herself. He held perfectly still as they waited for the night watchman to amble on along their row. The ferret hummed softly to himself, but he never looked inside any of the bins he passed.

It took the weasel several minutes to make his way down the long row and then turn the corner to continue on his rounds. He heard Samantha let out a nervous breath and then he returned to his job.

With as much silence as he could muster, Jerad pulled open the latches of the insulated container and lifted the lid. Inside was a factory-new heater core. The raccoon smiled to himself, pulled a large cloth shopping bag from a back pocket, and then unfolded it beside him. He eased the mechanism out of its foam packing and then snuggled it inside the bag.

Once that was done, he set it aside, latched the lid back onto the insulated container, and then eased the crate lid back into place. He had been careful not to bend any of the nails when removing the lid, so all he had to do was line them up with the previous nail holes and then mash the lid back onto the crate.

He signaled to Samantha with his dark-lamp torch and then handed the bag down to her. He scrambled down after it a moment later, and then they retraced their steps up the aisle toward the center area of the warehouse, the bag in Sam's capable hands.

It was difficult for the Border collie to keep quiet as they walked along the aisle. She was elated to have been successful acquiring the part they needed for the Blue Horizon; it was the first time she had ever pulled off such a caper, and she knew that she and the raccoon now shared a secret that neither of them could ever divulge to anyone else. However, every time she tried to say something, Jerad would reach up and put a finger to his lips. She kept her silence, but couldn't stop from grinning.

Jerad suddenly put out a hand to stop her, bumping into her stomach. He pulled her back in to the aisle and then gestured ahead of them in the invisible light. Sam crept forward at his behest and peered out into the warehouse. The night-watchman was walking toward the center column where they'd come in. The stairwell door was in plain sight and it appeared the ferret was heading directly for it.

The watchman stopped at the door, fumbled in a trouser pocket for something, and then pulled out a small fob. He thumbed it toward the door, nodded to himself at something, and then inserted a key into the lock. He opened the door, but before he disappeared up the steps, Samantha saw the ferret pull a pack of cigarettes from a shirt pocket. The watchman pulled the door closed behind him and then Sam turned back toward her companion.

"What do we do now?" she whispered.

Jerad thought for a moment and then looked up at her. He pointed toward the outer wall and whispered back, "He appears to be the only guard on duty tonight. While he's up taking a smoke, we can get out through that door over there. We'll just have to be careful outside so he doesn't see us from the roof when we head back out to the gate."

"Okay, let's go."

At the outer door, Samantha used her slateboard to disarm the security sensor and then Jerad picked the lock. They slipped outside, but just as Pockets was about to close the door behind him, he heard a noise. He peeked back inside and saw the watchman come back in through the roof stairwell. The ferret seemed to be struggling with his keys and then the raccoon had a sudden idea.

He closed the door quietly and then motioned for his partner to re-arm the door. When she finished, he looked up at her and gave her a smirk. He reached up, turned the doorknob he hadn't locked again, and then pulled the door open only to close it again quickly.

Warning bells rang out immediately and the excited raccoon took off running across the concrete parking area at the back of the building. Despite the mechanic's shorter legs, Samantha had a hard time keeping up with her partner, toting the shopping bag over her shoulder.

By the time she caught up to him at the gate, he had the padlock and chain loose. She darted through after him and continued running toward the nearby dark alley. Jerad relocked the gate and then rejoined her a moment later.

Both of them leaned against the dirty wall behind the large trash bin, their chests heaving as they gasped and panted from the frantic run.

"Why...?" Samantha asked in a forced whisper when she could finally catch her breath. "You intentionally set off the alarm. Why?" She stripped off her dark-lamp goggles, switched off her torch, and then handed them back to the raccoon.

Pockets grinned at her through his goggles. "Just as I was about to close the door behind me, I heard the watchman return. He looked like he was having trouble with his keys to relock the stairwell door, so I thought I would make him think that he set off the alarm!"

Samantha looked at him with incredulous disbelief. "You could have gotten us caught!" she scolded. "There was no need for that!"

"True," replied the raccoon, putting away the goggles and dark-lamp torches, "but it sure made things exciting! You wanna hang around to see how it takes him to shut off that alarm?" The ringing continued in the distance.

The Border collie snorted at him and gathered up the bulky shopping bag. "Let's get back to the Horizon before they decide to investigate further. If it weren't for the fact that I can't tell anyone about this little caper," she said, "I'd have to tattle on you!"

Jerad stuck his tongue out at her and then led her down the alleyway back to their rented car.

Chapter 30

Gifted

Ivy Sparks walked up the ramp into the open cargo bay door, followed by three young males in their teens, a tiger, a wolf and a red fox. Each wore a green shop apron over their clothes, and their arms were laden with shopping bags.

"You can put them all just inside here," the lynx told them nicely. "My crewmates will help me take them up to the galley."

"Yes, ma'am," said the young tiger. He set his burden on the deck where directed and then trotted back outside to get more while his companions did the same. It took the males several trips out to the delivery truck to bring in all the supplies that she had purchased. While they were working, Durant saw them from the cargo master's office and made his way across the empty Hold. Ivy saw him and gave him a smile.

"Hi, Sparky. What's all this?" the grizzly asked, scratching one of his small ears.

"Food and supplies," she replied. "Merlin asked me to restock the galley before we left Kantus, and since we'll have a quick turnaround on Crescentis, I bought extra for the additional flight to Ganis."

"That sure looks like a lot of groceries," Durant remarked as the young males brought up the last of the items.

"I had to buy a month's worth," Ivy explained. "That makes for a lot of groceries, and I was able to get some of it in bulk."

"Ah."

"Oh, since you're the bookkeeper, should I give you the purchase receipts," she asked suddenly, digging into her pocketbook, "or do they go to the captain?"

"I'll take them," Durant replied. He folded the flimsy sheets carefully and put them in the pocket of his trousers. "This way, we won't have to worry about Merlin remembering to give them to me later."

The lynx turned to face the delivery guys waiting patiently beside the groceries. She handed each of them several bills of local currency and thanked them one by one. All three gave her a short bow and then returned to their delivery truck.

"Would you call some of the others to help me take all this upstairs?" Ivy asked as the truck drove away.

Durant frowned. "Sparky, I don't think all this will go into your galley. We have cold storage lockers over there against the starboard wall, if you want to store some of it there until it is needed. I think that's what they're for anyway."

The lynx looked at him thoughtfully. "Yes, that's a good idea," she said. "When we left Alexandrius, my galley fridge and pantries were full, and I have more now than I did then."

"I'll get a flatbed and then we can take all this over near the lockers. You can cull out what stays down here, and then I'll call for others to help us take the remainder up to the galley."

"Thank you."

Durant and Ivy spent the next few minutes loading up the floating pallet so they could get it all over to the lockers before any of the perishables had a chance to spoil. The grizzly called for help on the ship-wide intercom and then helped his companion separate the goods. By the time that Merlin, Samantha, Patch, Pockets and Taro arrived to help, half of the groceries were stored in one of the cold storage lockers.

Twenty minutes later, Ivy walked into her cabin and sat down upon the edge of her bed, the new groceries and supplies all put away. She slipped off her sandals and pushed them aside, letting her toes curl up in the carpet. When she stood up again, she walked to her closet to change clothes, but when she opened the door, she stopped and stared.

Hanging on a hook on the back of the door was a cloth hanger that held the Japanese yukata she had developed a fondness for during their battle with the cold. The material was thin, but she had worn it on top of other layers, choosing it as her outer garment. It was pale yellow with lavender highlights, and a white sash adorned with blue and white flowers was draped around the hanger stem.

She swallowed in surprise and suddenly a cold chill went up her spine. After the lecture Durant had given to make her surrender the garment she had wanted to keep, had the cargo master actually stolen it for her? She didn't think that the grizzly's personality was capable of such an act, but there was the yukata.

Ivy stretched out a hesitant hand and felt of the material to make sure she wasn't imagining things. Satisfied that it was real enough, she traced a finger along the sash. When she moved the material aside, she saw the edge of an envelope clipped to the sash with a plastic tab.

She pulled out a small sealed envelope, but it was unmarked. Curious, she tore open the flap with a claw tip and then pulled out a single sheet of plain white paper. Durant's neat penmanship was easy to read, and the simple message put a lump in her throat.

Sparky,

Since you liked this yukata so much, I tracked down a store in town that sold them and found the same size and pattern as the one you borrowed from our cargo. I bought this for you as a peace offering, in hopes that we can still remain friends after the incident.

Your friend, Durant.

PS, This style looks good on you.

Ivy choked back a sob and then wiped her eyes. Despite her tears, she couldn't stop smiling. Silly, considerate old bear, she thought to herself. You have just gained a friend for life!

***

With the exception of Jiro Brannon, the entire crew of the Blue Horizon was lined up across the cargo bay opening at the top of the loading ramp. Trucks from Cassini Distributing were due to arrive with crates of food supplies at any moment, and the anxious crew was ready to move freight into the blue vessel.

The Horizon was parked in a section of the spaceport reserved for cargo carriers, and the late morning traffic around them was constant. Ships launched and landed, delivery vehicles roved to and fro, and every time a truck drove along the painted avenues of the tarmac in their direction, ears perked and tails were up in anticipation. After a while of this, the crew began to fidget and ignore most of the traffic around them.

When a small, dark green air truck approached the designated parking spot near the blue freighter, several looked up in interest. The vehicle wasn't large enough for the cargo they were expecting, so the looks in its direction were merely curious. Merlin walked down the ramp toward the truck when two occupants opened the doors and stepped out into the sun, two black-furred domestic felines.

"Good morning, Ms. Arden," Merlin said with a pleased expression. "I'm glad to see you."

The physician's assistant turned to him with a smile, holding a small pocketbook in her hands. She was dressed in a casual pair of slacks and lightweight pink blouse. "Hello, Captain," she replied. 'I hope I'm not too late."

"You're right on time," the wolf told her.

The other occupant walked around the truck toward them and stopped beside her. "This is my brother, Rink Arden," Tomi explained. "Rink, this is Captain Sinclair."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Arden," Merlin told him with an extended hand, palm upward. The male cat covered his hand and gave him a nod without smiling.

"Captain," he said with a raspy voice, "I want you to know that I do not approve of my sister quitting her job to join you out on your space deliveries. However, since I was unable to talk her out of it, I would ask that you please take care of her while she's employed with you."

"I promise to do just that," Merlin assured him. "I don't take any member of my crew for granted. Each one is special with needs, talents and specialties, and I intend to guard each and every one of them, your sister included."

Rink nodded and then turned to his sibling. "Please be very, very careful out there, Sis," he told her, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I've read about pirate raids on freighters and how dangerous they can be when confronted."

Tomi gave him a calm smile. "I think the media embellishes those reports for sensationalism, but I promise you that if we are approached by pirates, I will keep my head down."

"Pirate raids are not really as common as the news would have you believe," Merlin interjected. "She'll be fine."

Rink put both hands on her shoulders and then looked eye to eye with her. "One last time," he said. "Are you sure you want to do this? Dr. Wilder has always treated you well, and I'm sure he would receive you back this afternoon."

Tomi shook her head. "My pay on the Blue Horizon will be more than what I was getting at the clinic, and I think I need a change in scenery. Don't worry, Rink. I'm set on my decision. This is what I want to do."

For the first time since they arrived, Rink allowed a smile to creep across his features. "Once you've set your mind to something, I know I can never change it." He looked over at the wolf and said, "You will need to watch this one, Captain. She's stubborn as all get-out, so be aware of that when you get into an argument with her."

Merlin nodded. "I have already explained my command policies with her, and she has been informed that I have my own stubborn streak when it's needed. However, we've already agreed to work things out together as they arrive, so I think we'll get along just fine."

"In that case, Captain, I will turn her over to you." He faced his sister once more. "Let's get your things on board."

Merlin helped Rink unload two travel trunks and three suitcases, while the rest of the Horizon's crew watched from the cargo bay in puzzlement. The wolf had said nothing to them about taking on a passenger. They watched curiously as Merlin and Rink put the woman's belongings just inside the primary hatch, and then brother and sister embraced in tight farewell hug. Tomi gave Rink a quick lick on the cheek, exchanged a few final words with him, and then the male cat trotted back down to his truck.

Tomi waved as the vehicle drove away, and then she turned toward the wolf, spreading her arms wide. "Well, Captain," she said with a nervous smile, "I'm all yours."

Merlin gave her a look of assurance and then gestured toward the others. "Let's go meet your shipmates."

The wolf's employees gathered around when he waved them to him. "Everyone, I want you to meet Tomilyn Arden, the newest addition to our group. She's our shipboard medic, and she will also serve as another copilot for the Horizon."

Everyone looked surprised. "A new medic?" Jasper asked with a frown. "What happened to Connie?"

Merlin sighed. He'd known this question was forthcoming, and it had put a bad taste in his mouth. "Ms. Davies has left us," he told them with a brief look of annoyance. "When Jiro got sick and her efforts to treat him only made things worse, she confessed that she had no experience with anything but human physiology. I reprimanded her for lying to me during her job interview, but she tried her best to make up for it by attending to our friend. Despite this, her further treatments made Jiro worse and we almost lost him." He shut his eyes for a moment to gather his thoughts, and then removed Connie's final note from the pocket of his trousers. He read it aloud to them and looks of surprise stared back at him.

"I was prepared to keep her on, with the condition that she sign up for an online study course on anthro physiologies, but Connie chose to break away before I could discuss it with her. She didn't even stop to get her pay voucher. She's probably gone into hiding, but if I ever find her again, she could be facing a lawsuit for breach of contract, depending upon my mood at the time." He frowned briefly and then shook his head, looking around at the others. "If any of you needs out of your legal contract with me, for whatever reason, please come and discuss it with me before you do anything this rash." He held up Connie's note for emphasis. "I promise to listen to all grievances and will do what I can to work it out before anyone else jumps ship."

Quickly shifting the tone of the topic, Merlin looked over at the black cat with a smile. "Tomi is the one who took care of Jiro at the clinic I took him to, and he's currently up in his cabin resting, already feeling better due to her help. Tomi's clinic serves all species and she has actual experience caring for the varied species of the Planetary Alignment." Then he grinned widely and added, "I also did a background check on her. She's clean!"

"She smells good, too," Jerad said to several chuckles.

The tall vixen near the back of the group stepped forward with a smile. "Welcome aboard, Tomilyn," she said, extending a hand with her palm up as she had seen Merlin do. "We're glad you could join us. I'm Taro Nichols."

The dark feline covered the fox's hand, beaming. "Thank you, Taro. Please call me Tomi."

Others surged forward to talk with the newcomer, but Durant suddenly looked out onto the tarmac. "Introductions may have to wait," he said over the din. "The delivery trucks have arrived."

Tomi looked over at her new captain. "Do I need to check on Mr. Brannon first?" she asked.

Merlin shook his head. "He was asleep when I looked in on him about twenty minutes ago. Best to let him rest."

Tomi nodded and then dusted her hands together. "In that case, does anyone have an extra pair of work gloves I can borrow? It looks like it's time to get busy!"

Samantha laughed and put an arm around the cat's shoulders. "Come with me," she said. "We'll get you right to work!"

Chapter 31

The Captain's Journal

SS Blue Horizon PA1261

Captain's Journal

First entry.

The Blue Horizon is laden with food supplies for the fishing colonies of Crescentis and is en route to that watery world. Sometime soon, I will come back and chronicle the events leading up to this moment after Jiro and I started this business weeks ago. For now, I will keep it brief, noting that after a few mishaps on our maiden voyage, the crew of my ship is working well together.

Jiro Brannon was once a faceless enemy across spatial lines drawn between our respective planetary governments, but with the hostilities over and common interests discovered, he and I have become the best of friends. He is my first officer, and although he was ill through much of our first voyage, he is getting stronger each day and should be up and about soon.

Samantha Chase, a former intimate from my past, has joined us on our journeys. Although I am trying to play innocent, I know she is trying to rekindle our relationship, but at this time, all I prefer just a good friendship. Perhaps I will change my mind later. I won't go into the particulars of our past in this journal, only to say that despite an initial rocky start during this adventure, I am glad to have her along.

Ivy Sparks, or "Sparky" as everyone is now calling her, keeps the masses fed with a wide variety of dishes that seem to fit everyone's appetites and preferences. I'm not sure how she does it, but her menu keeps the meals from getting too predictable, and she says she enjoys surprising us with new things. Although I do not suspect a romantic interest, I have recognized a good friendship forming between her and Durant, my accountant and cargo load master.

Durant's first name is Leonardo, but he was named after an uncle who later proved to be untrustworthy, so he will allow no one to address him by anything but his surname. When I first hired him, it was to be my accountant, but with his past experience as cargo master I coaxed him to take on a second title, with its own pay to fill that position. He was unsure about the double-duty at first, but with long idle periods between star systems he has agreed that he has plenty of time to take care of both.

Jasper and Jerad Porter are brothers with equal engineering experience that we have taken to calling Patch and Pockets, respectively. Jasper is the more serious-minded of the two and I have made him my Chief Engineer, although Jerad sometimes seems to have more drive in experimentation to constantly improve our systems. He recently saved us from freezing by throwing together a makeshift heater core when the original was damaged by a leaky corrosive, and then once we got to Kantus, he managed to locate and install a new unit when it looked like there were none available to us. He said that Sam's computer skills aided in locating what was needed, and she even assisted him in its installation.

Before we were hired by our first client, I'd had several weeks of frustration trying to entice anyone to trust their goods to a new ship just starting out. Had it not been for Taro Nichols' timely arrival at the eleventh hour, I may have been forced to cancel the crew contracts and sell the ship before ever leaving the ground. Taro has a wide range of contacts throughout the Planetary Alignment and is keeping us in a steady line of customers now. Although I don't want to dismiss any member of my crew, she is probably the most essential at the moment and I am glad to have her among us.

The only real thorn in my side was a human woman named Connie Davies. She lied about her experience during the job interview, and due to inexperience in treating non-humans, her misdiagnoses and ill-chosen drug administration nearly cost us Jiro's life. The sickness was initially my own fault, since I had neglected to have the crew inoculated with PA-regulated shots. The illness that Jiro suffered could have been prevented with the proper inoculations. This has since been remedied, as we were all inoculated the night before we launched for Crescentis.

Before corrective action could be taken to insure that Ms. Davies began online schooling to learn how to treat an anthro crew, Connie jumped ship in breach of her contract. She may have legal action on her hands if I ever see her again, and I may have trouble trusting another human for a while.

Thankfully, Tomilyn Arden, or "Tomi" for short, stepped in on short notice to fill Connie's vacated position as the ship's medic. She was a physician's assistant at a spaceport-side clinic that caters to all Fur species, so her experience was in no doubt. Despite this, the situation with Connie prompted me to have her references checked anyway, but she spoke the truth. In addition to her medical skills, she is also a certified pilot for aerial and spatial vehicles, and has even flown an Okami freighter before, although she never actually served aboard as part of its crew. Everyone here seems to like her and I believe she will fit right in.

As for me, I am in good spirits. I'm the captain of my own ship and crew, and although I have no idea how long this business venture may last, I plan to make the best of it. In addition to bringing in a good income for me and those I employ, this is also giving me the opportunity to travel around the Planetary Alignment to see people and places I have only previously heard about.

Samantha has just showed up at my door to remind me of this evening's movie-night. She has an old classic video that follows the misadventures of a submarine on Earth trying to avoid both sides of a conflict because it was inadvertently painted pink and forced to launch across an ocean in the midst of wartime. It sounds odd to me, but she says it's a well-done comedy worth seeing. We can all use a good distraction during the voyage to Crescentis, and I believe everyone is looking forward to it.

All in all, despite our initial mishaps, things have turned out well. I am pleased.

Reporting this day,

Merlin Sinclair, Captain of the SS Blue Horizon

Table of Contents

Cover

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31