BORN OF HEROES

— by Jeff Karamales

Chapter 12
 

“Atmosphere in five….four…three…two…one,” Elias called out from the pilot’s seat. The ship shuddered slightly with mild buffeting as it encountered the beginnings of the thin layer of toxic air that enveloped Quet. The view beyond the glassteel panels of the bridge became red-tinged as the vessel’s shielding dispersed the heat of friction with the thickening air.

  “Shields holding steady,” Saul said, his eyes scanning the array of instruments on his console.

  “We’re cleared for a landing at Stonefall,” Cerise informed the Captain and rest of the bridge crew from her station at communications and sensors. “Pad six.” She sounded irritated as she spoke.

  “What’s wrong?” Elias asked, turning his head to glance at his wife.

  The black vixen had her arms crossed and a frown of disgust on her face. “Totally unprofessional,” she said, glaring at her console. “It took over twenty minutes for me to raise someone, then when they finally answered it was like I was interrupting something more important than their job. If I had a tech that behaved like that back at Grandstorm I would have had them fired on the spot!”

  Elias and Saul looked at each other and grinned.

  “Welcome to the backside of the PA,” Saul quipped. “Most of the individuals on this world are fairly selfish. It’s what you sort of expect from a world that allows slavery. If it weren’t for the Micronite that’s mined here, the planet would be abandoned save for the scum of the Alignment.”

  Elias followed the course given by Saul through the information that was relayed from Stonefall Air Traffic Control. Within minutes the starport was visible in the distance, a series of dim, sporadically placed lights not far from the gaping maw of an open pit mining operation that, even as the sun set, was throwing plumes of dust into the hot, still air. The lack of illumination for the landing pads was mute testament that the starport personnel had other priorities than proper maintenance of their facilities. Fortunately Elias could compensate for the lack of guide lamps by using the circuitry imbedded in the viewports to provide an enhanced image of the port proper.

  With a confidence born of years flying large ships, Elias brought the freighter in over the starport proper and cut forward thrust, using deft touches to the attitude thruster controls, spun the Guiding Angel on its axis and set the ship down. Odette had been watching the process and was caught by surprise when her Captain and Saul began shutting down various systems. She hadn’t felt even the slightest bump as the huge vessel settled on the thick concrete pad marked with a large number six in fading and chipped luminescent orange paint.

  “I think we’ll forego purging the tanks while we’re here,” Elias said as he unstrapped from the pilot’s chair and stood. “I know the filters would be able to handle the toxins in the atmosphere, but I’d rather not carry the stench of this place with us until our next planetfall.”

  Saul nodded, also unfastening his restraints. “I couldn’t agree more.” The jaguar then called the rest of the crew for debriefing on the recreation deck. “So, I’m going to make the assumption that we’re going to begin searching for the Lucky Star while we’re here?”

  “Definitely. I want to find the rest of the passengers and crew of the Mintaka. It’ll take all of us to do that.” Elias said as he paused next to Cerise’s station. “Do you think that you can access the ATC net from here and possibly track down where the Lucky Star might be docked?” he asked the vixen.

  Cerise snorted with disdain and pointed at her display screen. “This first alphanumeric sequence tells me what net we’re in contact with. See…Stonefall, which is attached to the four main air traffic control hubs for the northern hemisphere. This sequence tells me that their primary ATC computer is a Mardu Cybernetics model, specifically an old MC 323 Pinnacle. State of the art…35 years ago. If I can’t direct access it, I should be able to hack in to the system.”

  The fox smiled. “That’s my girl. Just don’t leave any tracks that lead back to us.”

  “If I can’t get out clean, I’ll just make it look like the system was breeched by every terminal on the planet.” Cerise beamed with warmth at her mate. “Did you want me to join the rest of the crew, or should I go ahead and get started?”

  “Go ahead and get started. The sooner we can locate the Lucky Star, the better our chances are of getting everyone back from the Mintaka.” Elias gave his wife a quick kiss before exiting the bridge, letting the petite female work without distraction.

  After a quick stop at the cabin he shared with Cerise, Elias made his way to the lift and the third deck. The only ones that weren’t present yet were Stram and Rutger, which was understandable as there were still things that the pair needed to do in engineering. Melise was following true to form and just like she had done on the SPF Scimitar there was a pot of coffee waiting for the crew upon touch-down. Next to the stainless steel urn was a carousel of mugs in forest green with the ship’s logo beneath outstretched wings embossed in silver. It was tradition for all ships that Elias had served on to have customized mugs, and he saw no reason not to continue the tradition. Even now there was a shelf in his and his wife’s cabin that had a mug from every ship that he’d ever served on.

  Elias made his way to the aft view ports that doubled as large vidscreens and sipped at the steaming beverage held in his left hand. He openly wore his sidearm to emphasize that while they might not be in uniform, they were on the clock and things were about to become very, possibly even deadly, serious.

  Even as the lift opened to reveal the badger and his assistant, the intercom chimed and Cerise’s voice came from the speaker. “I have the information you wanted, Eli-umm, Captain.”

  With a surprised look, Elias stepped to the intercom and thumbed the microphone button. “Go ahead and give it to me. The others can hear, and it will save me the time of having to repeat the information.”

  “The Lucky Star is landing here in about three hours according to the ATC computer net. They’re coming in from an extended run from the direction that we found the Mintaka. Looks like we beat them here. Anyway, fortune is smiling upon us. The ship is going to be putting down on pad seven. I’ve already got a link to their communications frequencies and I’m recording all of their communications.”

  “Thank you, Cerise. Continue monitoring and keep me informed.” Elias switched off the intercom and turned to the rest of the crew. “Well, boarding just became easier. Randy, I want you and Mel to suit up. Marked battledress and armor. Same with you, Sonja,” the white fox said looking at the spaniel female. “Back up team is myself, Treena and Odette. Once things are secure, Randal’s team will board and secure the crew. Randy, get out into to town and see if you can rent something large and dark colored. We’ll need to transfer the prisoners away from the starport. We can’t do a direct transfer to our brig. There are too many prying eyes here despite the lack of floodlights.

  “Saul, you’ll be piloting the other ship. Find us a rendezvous location that is out of the way. We’ll fly both ships out and get the hostages onboard away from possible witnesses, then lock the other ship down for an SPF salvage and recovery team. Any questions?”

  The boarding team simply nodded, but it was the Doctor that indicated he had a few. He waited until Elias nodded for him to speak.

  “I suppose that I’ll have to wait until we meet at the rendezvous before I can ascertain the condition of the captives?”

  ‘Unfortunately,” Elias told the tiger. “The Lucky Star and her crew are about to go missing, and it would be highly suspicious if we had crew running back and forth from our ship to theirs. The assault team will be going with Randal to get the transport, wearing civvies and their gear in duffle bags. They’ll change before heading back.” Elias then thought of something. “Saul, you’ll be going with them. As soon as you have the crew in custody, go ahead and lift. If there are any questions, use your SPF authority, but be subtle. That should quell any stink that ATC might raise. And I want helmets and visors. Anonymity is frightening and a valuable psychological weapon. Until the entire crew of the Lucky Star is secured, I want everyone in body armor at the very least and armed. Stunners are the primary weapons, but everyone will also have standard firearms. Got it?”

  Everyone nodded or spoke softly in agreement.

  “Let’s get to it, then,” Elias said. “We have less than three hours. And remember, you’re all professionals. I expect this to be nothing but by the numbers.”

  “By the numbers but not the book?” Lena quipped, trying to bring a little levity to the sudden tense air surrounding the Captain and crew.

  Randal looked down at her and gave her a wide smile. “Bunny, we’re writing the book as we go,” he said, chucking her lightly on the chin.

  “Which begs the question as to where you want me?” Lena asked. “I don’t think the Cherub will be much help this time around.”

  Elias nodded. “You’ve had the same basic training as the rest of us, so you’ll be with Odette and me on the back up team until we lift for rendezvous. When Saul lifts with the Lucky Star you’ll be his navigator.” He looked around. “Anything else?” The crew was silent and serious but knew what was to be expected of them. “All right. Let’s get to it.”

  Less than an hour later, Randal, Sonja, Melise and Saul sat in a large nondescript cargo truck outside the rusted and sagging fence that surrounded the main landing area of the starport proper. Elias, Odette, Treena and Lena sat in the cargo hold of the Guiding Angel, the hatches shut, but the communications devices in their helmets linked with all of the others through Cerise’s terminal on the bridge. Stram and Rutger were also in the cargo hold, armored and armed as a precaution. Like Lena, the feline engineer assistant was ready to bolt to the other ship if his presence was required.

  Elias had checked his sub machinegun twice, and had a stunner on a hip holster with his Binfurr pistol resting in a shoulder rig. He sat quietly on a short equipment locker that rested between the main cargo hatch and the personnel airlock, both of which were closed. Odette also waited quietly, but Lena was pacing back and forth nervously. Elias could tell that she was uncomfortable with this kind of operation, being far more at ease with flying than possible one-on-one conflict.

  The rabbit was on her twelfth circuit of her pacing between the port and starboard bulkheads, tugging at the collar of her heavy body armor where it was pulling at the fur of her throat and causing chafing to the skin underneath. Elias was about to tell her that pulling and tugging at the neck guard would only make the situation worse when Odette stood up and intercepted the other female.

  “You’re going to cause more irritation by tugging on it,” the bear admonished gently. “Here,” she said pulling a swatch of cloth from the back pocket of her gray fatigues, “try this.” She took the square of slick fabric and tied it into a neckerchief and tucked it down the front of Lena’s throat. “You also have the closures to tight here, and not tight enough here.”

  Odette released some of the tension on the neck closures of the rabbit’s armor, and took in the slack along the sides under Lena’s arms and above her hips. “How’s that?”

  The rabbit moved a few times, twisting her neck and then at the waist. “Much better. Thank you!”

  Odette shrugged. “I’ve done this a time or two. You learn the tricks of getting the armor to sit comfortably. Or as much as possible. I don’t think that the company that makes the armor really takes us girls in mind when they design these things.” She gestured to her fairly ample chest with a grin.

  Lena looked at the larger female. “It is a little constricting, isn’t it?”

  “It is. But it’s better to have it just in case than not.” Odette said. “Trust me on that.”

  Elias only half listened to the interchange between Odette and Lena as he was getting updates provided by Cerise to his earpiece.

  “You just promise me to be careful, Darling,” the vixen said in his ear.

   “Not over the open line, Cerise!” Elias whispered into the small microphone next to his muzzle, feeling his ears grow hot.

  “Nobody can hear this except you, Love,” she said with a nervous giggle. “What kind of comtech would I be if I couldn’t isolate specific receivers.”

  “Oh,” he said. “That’s different then.”

  Then his ears were filled with all of the things that Cerise had in mind for him once all of this was over. Elias was very glad that no one else could hear what he was being told.

  Everyone went silent after a while. Elias had seen it happen before when he had been on other operations. Each individual was going over things in their minds, what their jobs were, why they were doing it, what would happen if things went sour, and an entire inventory of ‘what ifs’. Then Cerise’s voice broke into the thoughts of the rest of the crew.

  “The Lucky Star has just entered the atmosphere. It should be landing in less than 30 minutes. I’ll keep you all posted.”

  “Acknowledged,” Elias said into his communicator, then went back to his thoughts.

  Six minutes after his wife’s alert, the lift doors opened and Lemuel exited. He wore body armor that was marked clearly with a reflective red cross on the front and back and gold caduceus on each shoulder. On his belt he was carrying a stunner in a hip holster that was out of the way as he pushed a wheeled trauma cart with a wide variety of medical devices, drugs, bandages, a portable defibrillator kit and other items that the Doctor might need. He gave the others in the cargo bay a somber look before pushing the cart to next to the cubicle that Randal normally occupied. This position would enable him to get to potential casualties while staying clear of the others until he was needed.

  Elias was silently pleased. It would be easier for the Doctor to treat any injuries as they happened rather than getting a victim up to the infirmary. Elias stood and readied himself for action, settling his visored helmet over his head and lowered the faceplate so that his face was obscured by the reflective material. Not only would the helmet conceal most of his features, the inner surface also had a small Heads-up-Display that would be able to provide various bits of information, the unit was also capable of  low-light and thermal imaging while protecting his eyes from any sudden bright light sources.

  “Five minutes until touch-down,” Cerise said, her voice sounding far away and tinny to Elias.

  “Captain, we’re starting our approach,” came Randy’s voice over the comm channel. He sounded calm and confident. “The lack of floodlights should enable us to get within easy striking distance of their main airlock and cargo hatch.”

  Elias toggled the switch to his radio with his chin. “Understood, Randy. Good luck.” Without waiting for a reply, he then switched to an all unit channel. “This is it, boys and girls. Get ready.”

  The few minutes it took for the Lucky Star to land seemed to last forever to the fox. He shut down all of the interior illumination to the cargo bay and hit the switch to cycle the airlock hatch open before taking a step back with his sub machinegun at the ready on a tactical sling and his stunner pistol in a two-handed grip. Through the light enhancing capabilities of his helmet, he could make out the van that Randal drove in varying shades of green. The light enhancing display tended to rob what he saw of any depth, but it wasn’t the first time that Elias had used amplification equipment and he knew how to compensate for the flat, monochrome world he now saw.

  Figures in rigid armor with the Spatial Police Force Star and Sword shield emblazoned on the breastplate caught the faint light from around the ships and starport and glinted as the four individuals of his crew made their way towards the Lucky Star.

  A sudden wash of illumination outside accompanied by a faintly audible hiss-clank! Indicated that the crew of the Lucky Star had opened their airlock and there were a few words spoken that Elias couldn’t make out followed by a rough laugh then the snarling zzzraappp! of a military grade stunner being discharged. As if that were the signal he had been waiting for, Elias and the others with him poured out of the airlock to cover their comrades a scant fifteen meters away.

***

  Randal trotted towards the antiquated Sakura freighter in a half crouch, a Binfurr PDSC-7 stunner carbine at his shoulder, and a 10 millimeter sub machinegun slung across his back in case he needed something more powerful. He was less than forty feet away from the ramp that led to the ship’s personnel airlock when it cycled open. His visor immediately compensated for the sudden illumination coming from within the vessel, saving his eyes from being dazzled. There was a figure silhouetted against the light coming from within the ship. The figure traded words with someone that was out of sight inside the ship and laughed bracingly before turning. He was still laughing when he turned and saw something moving towards him from the darkness.

  Without hesitating, Randy’s finger took in the slack on his weapon’s trigger and sent a beam from the stunner’s muzzle at the figure with an angry sounding zzrraaappp!, the silvery colored discharge catching the figure in the chest. Before the target began to fall, Randal was up the gangplank and shouldering the unconscious but still standing individual aside, sweeping the cargo bay with eyes and weapon moving as one. There were two others in the cargo bay, both easily within the arc of the wolf’s carbine.

  “SPF! Stand down and surrender!” Randy barked, his voice sounding mechanical and ominous as it issued from his helmet’s external speaker.

  The two individuals, one of them a female hyena, the other a canine of mixed parentage, stood gaping at the armored figure that was suddenly before them, unable to move.

  Randy felt rather than saw Melise and Sonja enter behind him, taking up covering positions. It left him free to focus his attention on the two pirates.

  “Are you Anya Garand?” the wolf asked, his weapon not wavering in the slightest. There was no answer from the hyena, but she winced visibly when her name was spoken and Randal knew that he was looking at the Lucky Star’s Captain over the sights of his weapon. “Anya Garand you and your crew are under arrest for the crimes of piracy, abduction, reckless endangerment, attempted murder, illegal seizure and crimes against a minor. Your ship and captaincy are revoked under Planetary Alignment Articles of Interstellar Law, Section 12, Subsection 6 of the PA and Spatial Police Force Charter until a Planetary Alignment Tribunal ascertains your dispensation.

  “Be advised that all you say and do are being recorded. As such, you have the right to remain silent. Under the PA Interstellar Law and the pertinent SPF sanction, you will be provided with legal counsel, quartering, medical services and sundries as required until innocence or guilt are ascertained. Do you understand?”

  The hyena shook herself out of her shock and spat vile epithets at Randal and made to draw the pistol that she wore on her right hip.

  Without hesitation Randy shot her before she cleared her sidearm from its holster then swung the barrel to cover her companion.

  “Stand down!” the wolf yelled again, leaning forward so that the muzzle of his carbine was closer to the canine.

  “N-n-no problem! Don’t shoot! I surrender!” the canine said, his hands jerking into the air even as he dropped to his knees.

  Melise had restrained the first body with flex-ties and dragged the unconscious form of the mastiff into the hold. She then moved forward and bound the canine before securing the hyena female. Melise then resumed covering the cargo bay with Sonja as Randal moved forward, his carbine still at the ready.

  Randy leaned close to the dog. “Where is the rest of the crew and how many are there?”

  The dog whimpered a little, doing his best not to lose control of his bladder which felt exceedingly full all of a sudden. “F-four! Th-they’re on the b-b-bridge deck and q-quar-quarter-rs. Please don’t hurt me, please, please!”

  Randal felt a wave of disgust as he looked at the dog. The restrained canine seemed to personify the typical bully mentality that the wolf had seen too much of during his tenure with the SPF. He would be brave and intimidating when there were smaller, weaker individuals around, but when confronted by someone that wouldn’t give in to threats, all of the bravado became inconsequential bluster and posing.

  Randy stepped back and toggled his radio. “We have the cargo bay, Captain. Three in custody and four on another deck. Can you spare two individuals to cover here while we sweep and clear?”

  “On the way, Randy. Are the crew and passengers from the Mintaka onboard?” Elias replied.

  Randy asked the dog and relayed it back. “That’s an affirmative, Captain. They haven’t made arrangements with any of the local slave buyers.”

  Less than a minute had passed before the airlock hissed open under Sonja’s hand, and Elias and Lena entered the cargo bay.

  “We’ve got things here,” the fox said with a nod at the boarding trio. Behind them came Saul, also armored and stunner in hand.

  Randy motioned to the rest of his team and they moved further into the ship.

  In the space of fifteen minutes the rest of the Lucky Star’s crew was bound and in the cargo bay and the crew and passengers of the SS Mintaka had been located, though the presence of the personnel from the Guiding Angel was kept secret. Too much was happening to add confused and angry captives into the mix. Saul had already gone up to the bridge and was powering up the engines for a short jaunt a little over a hundred miles away.

  “We’ll see you at the rendezvous point,” Elias said before leaving through the airlock to get back to their ship. Odette would also be staying on the Lucky Star to assist with security.

  “Copy that, Captain. See you in 20 minutes,” Randal said. He and the others kept an eye on the captives as the heavy panels of the airlock slid shut.

  There weren’t any problems as Elias and his crew transferred the pirates to the first of two cabin suites that were set aside as holding cells. The six that saw their Captain unconscious prudently decided that it was futile to resist and complied with the orders to enter the cabin. A stock of very basic, and fairly tasteless, field rations were available to them. Water was accessible through the converted cabin’s facilities. Bunks were bolted to the bulkheads four high, and there was more than enough space for the seven prisoners. There was no means for opening the hatch from the inside, and there were measures in place to prevent escape by overpowering whoever opened the holding cells in the form of one-way mirrored windows and small cameras shielded in glassteel bubbles.

  Saul had lifted the Lucky Star 12 minutes after Elias left the starport in the Guiding Angel. Cerise had slugged an encrypted burst transmission to the SPF Mother’s Arms as soon as it was confirmed that the passengers and crew of the SS Mintaka were onboard and would meet them a few hours out from Quet and away from the more common traffic lanes for the planet.

  It had been decided at the last moment that the presence of the Guiding Angel would be kept quiet and the released crew and passengers of the Mintaka would remain on the Sakura class vessel once it was determined that there were no injuries to treat and that the former captives were well fed and in fairly decent condition. The worst of their dilemma was that all of them were in dire need of bathing and clean clothes, which could be handled better on the Mother’s Arms.

  The exception to this course of action were the three individuals that now sat at the galley table with Elias, nursing either mugs of coffee or tea, regarding their host with appreciation and admiration. Captain Rafe Black was a Hestran male, and owned the SS Mintaka. His first officer, also Hestran, was a vixen named Callie Parsons. The third individual was an older human, balding and what little hair he had left was a silver colored fringe that circled half of his head named Chuck Palance. Despite this, Chuck was an imposing figure and like the fox, Rafe, still bore bruising and other marks testifying their attempts to fend off the pirates that had taken them prisoner.

  Orbit had been achieved ten minutes prior then the course set for rendezvous with the SPF ship, and with Melise on the bridge, Elias had taken leave to go speak with the trio. It would be another seven hours before they could meet up with the Mother’s Arms, and Elias wanted to talk to the former captives.

  “I’m happy to hear that you found the others, Captain Elias,” Rafe was saying, the Hestran male was much relieved that the other passengers had been rescued. “What concerns me is that girl the pirates had with them. She took an awful big chance doing what she did. I know that she got hurt before the rest of her crew pulled out.”

  Elias held up a hand. “Don’t worry. Her name is Jenna and she’s well. She isn’t going to be charged, and even has a foster waiting to take her under care when you all reach Joplin. It was because of her that we were able to intercept the Lucky Star, to be honest. You’ll probably see her when you are transferred to the Mother’s Arms.”

  “I’m going to hazard a guess and say that’s also one of the reasons that you wanted to talk to us here,” the human said with a thick drawl. “I don’t recall the SPF ever running regular stock freighters, and with the amount of armor that you have this girl wrapped in…what kind of operation are you folk running?”

  Elias leaned back in his chair. “The idea actually came from historical studies from Earth, Sir,” the white fox said. “Back during one of your wars, surface vessels were suffering horrible attrition rates to submarine and warship attacks until someone had the bright idea of making a warship look like a common cargo vessel called a Q-ship.”

  Chuck slapped the table and burst out laughing. “Brilliant! Don’t know why no one thought of that before? Considering all of the problems since the Siilv War and all of the pirates springing up it sure makes a lot of sense!”

  Elias nodded then noticed the confused looks on the faces of the two Hestrans. “A Q-ship is a warship that’s disguised to look like a common vessel, normally a cargo ship. When the pirates get near…well, they aren’t really ready for what they thought to be easy pickings to suddenly sprout thorns. We are a fully capable combat ship and crew. Which is why the decision was made to keep the rest of your crew and passengers in the dark. The fewer that know what we are, the less chance of it getting out that the SPF is taking operations against piracy to a whole new level. Secrecy is our best weapon right now.”

  Rafe rubbed his chin and nodded as he ruminated over this new bit of information. “Makes sense,” he finally said.

  “But…well, won’t that make this ship something of a target? I mean, Okami freighters this size normally have tempting cargoes for a lot of the privateers out there,” Callie said with furrowed brows.

  “That’s the idea, honey,” Chuck told the vixen. “Picture it. There’s mister pirate…or miss pirate in our case. They’re looking for a nice plum to pick, as Cap’n Elias said, and then ‘whamo’! What they thought would be quick money puts the squeeze on them. I’m going to assume you have some fairly heavy firepower available?”

  “What were you before you became a helpless civilian captive, Sir?” Elias asked, regarding the human shrewdly.

  “Heh. Twenty-one years in the Terran Navy. Mostly fighters and the like before I got kicked to a desk. Sure wish I had something like the little lady you’ve got in your hold when I was flying. Wonder if the SPF would take an old spacer like me to help out on something like this!” Chuck said with a glint in his eyes. “Sure be nice to get back out among the stars as something more than a passenger on a liner!”

  Elias nodded, filing that bit of information away. “You’re right, though. We need to approach the growing problem with piracy and privateering at a different angle. That’s why we’re here. But it also requires that we operate clandestinely. As such, I’m going to have to hold you all to secrecy contracts, which the Captain of the Mother’s Arms will also require. Needless to say, breach of this contract means that you will have all assets, pilot and crew ratings revoked, and a sentence of no less than five years on a Spatial Police Force penal world.”

  “Callie and I will keep quiet about this,” Rafe said somberly. “Truth be told, I’ll sleep much easier at night knowing that your ship is out here.”

  The vixen nodded emphatically. “After this, so will I. No fear of me talking, Captain Elias.”

  Elias turned and looked at the human who only smiled. “One of the problems in growing old and looking even older is that anything you say is dismissed as approaching dementia, lad. No one would believe me even if I told them. But you don’t have to worry about me, either.”

  Each was handed a dedicated DataPak with the terms of the contract, and each of them read it then signed their names before adding a thumbprint on the small scanner attached to the thin devices while Elias sipped his coffee. They then slid the contracts back to Elias who took them in hand and placed them in a pocket.

  “That’s it, then. You’re all free to remain up here on the rec deck. There’s a selection of movies, reading material and the galley is open for you to pick through. Though if you run across a stash of chocolate, I’d advise you to leave it alone or my boarding team’s second will become rather irate, and I can tell you from past experience it’s unpleasant to make her angry, to say the least.” He stood and deposited his cup in a receptacle for soiled dishes. “There is also an open cabin if you wanted to catch some rack time. Unfortunately there’s only one cabin and one bed, but it’s available.”

  The others stood and thanked Elias before he left. He wasn’t halfway down the corridor on the second deck before he heard the rapid pattering of someone exiting the lift and running to catch up to him. Elias turned to find the vixen first officer of the Mintaka approaching. Before he could say anything, the red furred female threw her arms around Elias’s neck and kissed him soundly.

  “I couldn’t make the offer up there, but I’m very grateful for you rescuing us,” she said in a low voice. “Very, very grateful,” she repeated with soft eyes.

  Elias went rigid and tried to pull away, but things happened too quickly for him to stop her, and the vixen also had the superior strength that all Hestrans are born with, coming from a high gravity world. A snarl from further down the corridor caused both foxes to look up. Callie with curiosity, Elias with dread.

  Cerise stood in the middle of the passageway, her eyes hard and teeth bared, the fur around her neck standing straight out and her ears laid back.

  Callie looked at Cerise, then at Elias, her confused expression falling away to one of dawning horror as she noted the matching silver earrings. She leapt away from Elias as if she’d been burned and dropped her head. “I am so very sorry!” she exclaimed. “I didn’t even think that you were paired. I shouldn’t have been so forward. I’m so sorry!”

  Cerise approached and saw that the other female’s apology was sincere and let her hackles drop. “Apology accepted, Miss Parsons,” she said in a terse voice. Then the tension left her posture. “I guess I can’t really blame you after what you’ve just been through.”

  The vixen shook her head. “No. You can blame me. I’ve seen other pairs with similar earrings and should have remembered what it meant. I am such a fool!”

  Cerise put a reassuring hand on Callie’s arm. “It’s all right. I forgive you. Come on. I was going to go get a cup of tea. We can talk about it there.” She added a smile as the other female looked up at her and gave a tentative smile back.

  Elias watched as the two females turned to head back the way he’d just come and tried to get his heartbeat back to something more akin to normal. Then he saw his mate stop and turn to look at him archly. “You, however, are not off the hook. We’ll talk about this after we rendezvous with Mother’s Arms.” She gave a tilt of her head and added icily, “Captain.”

  Elias went to his office with a sense of dread and tried to lose himself in the writing of his report to Colonel Brees with little success. The chime that notified him that someone was at the hatch requesting entry was both a welcome distraction and a bit of in irritation. “Enter!” he replied testily.

  It was the human, Chuck Palance that entered.

  “Bad timing, Captain?” he asked before his face split into a smile. “Or would it have something to do with the conversation that Callie was having with your mate?”

  Elias sighed. “You are very observant, Mister Palance.”

  “Nah,” the human said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “I’ve just spent a lot of time traveling the PA since I retired. I like visiting other worlds and meeting others. Didn’t get to do that much when I was a Navy man. We stuck around the Sol system for the most part.”

  Elias shut down his terminal after saving the beginnings of his report. “So what can I help you with, Mister Palance?” he asked motioning to one of the chairs that sat before his desk.

  “First off I would prefer it if you just called me Chuck. I’m not in the Navy anymore, and I never liked to be called ‘Sir’, and my father was Mister Palance,” he said with a smile.

  “Then call me Elias,” the fox replied, relaxing a little.

  “Fair enough, Elias.” The human sat in the chair closest to the desk and looked at the other with intense brown eyes. “I’ll get right to the point. Do you think that there’s anything that you can do, maybe put in a word with your superiors, to let me help out? Retirement is killing me, Elias. And I think that this little project of yours has some serious merit. I know that I’m a little old, but that doesn’t mean useless.”

  “How old are you, Chuck? If you don’t mind me asking.”

  “Forty four, Terran. Thirty-nine going by the Kantus and Dennieran years.  The lack of hair, and silver color of what I do have left throws most people off.”

  “That’s it? You’re well within the acceptable range for the SPF. With prior service you wouldn’t even have to do much in the way of Academy time, if at all, provided you can pass the physical requirements.” Elias was surprised that the human wasn’t as old as he appeared.

  Chuck nodded. “I know. I’ve already looked into it. But you and I both know that it always helps if you know someone in the organization you’re trying to get into. I know that the SPF is supposed to be egalitarian, but what something is supposed to be, and what it is in reality are often two different things.”

  Elias silently agreed, recalling how quickly Brees was able to get Cerise commissioned without her having to do any Academy time at all. He cocked his head and regarded the man across from him. “Why do you really want to join?”

  Chuck sighed. “I never made time for family, and I’m not really close to any of my kith or kin. I suppose you could say that I’m expendable. But…and this may sound odd, but I want to make a difference out here. There are those out here that need help, and people like me that want to provide that help. It’s a cold universe, and if you furs, and us monkeys don’t work together, the savages are going to eat us all alive.”

  It caught Elias off guard to hear the human refer to himself and his species in the manner that many bigoted furs used to refer to humans.

  “If I’d been smart, I’d have joined the SPF when I was younger,” Chuck continued. “Instead I went Terran Navy, just like my pop, and his pop before him. Too much tradition if you ask me, and not enough gumption. Now here I am on this side of retirement and I feel that there’s a lot more that I could do. A lot more that I’m capable of.”

  The reasons that the man spoke of were similar to Elias’s own reasons for joining the SPF. He thought for a few moments before speaking. “I’ll draft a letter for you. When you get to Joplin, ask to see a Colonel Sander Brees. He’s a lion from Kantus. It’ll be his call on this, but I’ll do what I can to make sure you get to talk to him.”

  Chuck grinned and stood, offering his hand to the fox. “Thanks, Elias. That’s more than I could ask for or could expect.”

  Elias took the proffered hand and shook it. “You’re welcome, Chuck. Now then, I hate to be a bad host, but I really do have to get to my report.”

  The human laughed with commiseration. “So, if I get in, I see that the SPF is as bad for their reports and paperwork as the Navy was…or any other group, for that matter.”

  “Oh, yeah. That, I’m sure, is the one true constant of the universe,” Elias said with a short laugh.

— NEXT CHAPTER —

Unless otherwise noted, all material © Ted R. Blasingame. All rights reserved.