BORN OF HEROES

— by Jeff Karamales

Chapter 15
 

The Luna Duchess was an elegant looking ship that was tricked out in reflective silver paint with crimson and gold trim. It looked opulent, and even as the Captain of a Q-ship himself, Elias would have been amazed at what she actually was if he hadn’t known beforehand. It’s smooth, almost organic, lines formed a lifting body design, though it had more view ports than he thought was prudent. Docking was simple, the pilot of the other ship was smooth and confident, and the meeting of the two crews was something of an event.

  Because of the material and equipment transfer that was going to take place, the Star Hopper class yacht had docked with the Guiding Angel’s cargo hatch. No sooner had the heavy hatch cycled open then Elias was met by stunning golden furred she-wolf who stood in a way that radiated a casual comfort with who and what she was that seemed completely natural.

  “Permission to come aboard, Captain?” the she-wolf asked.

  Elias smiled. “Permission granted. Welcome aboard the Guiding Angel. I’m Elias.”

  The gold colored wolf took his hand and shook it with firmness giving him a huge smile. “I know who you are, Captain. I’m Galina Carver. It’s a pleasure to meet the Great Pioneer!”

  Elias gave her a quizzical look and she laughed musically.

  “It’s what the rest of us are calling you. You got to be the first so that the rest of us pirate hunting captains could learn from you. Sandy’s told all of us about you and made sure that we know the only two bosses any of us have are him, and you.”

  “Um, thanks. I think?” Elias said.

  Before anything else could be said in exchange, Randal came out from around the Cherub and broke into a true smile.

  “Galina? Is that really you?” the large wolf asked.

  “Randy? Wow! Nobody told me you were on the Angel!”

  Elias was forgotten as the two wolves embraced even as they insulted each other with fervor, but there was an underlying warmth that was confusing to say the least. The insults died off with final exchanges of ‘Flea bitten cur’ and ‘Inbred mongrel’. When they parted, the two saw the confused expressions on Elias’s face, mirrored by others of both crews.

  “Sorry, Captain,” Randal said with reddening ears. “This is my cousin Galina. Galina, you’ve met my Captain, Elias Tivnan.”

  The she-wolf laughed again. “Yeah. Just did. You’ll have to forgive us, Elias. We’ve been doing that since we were kids. It used to drive our parents nuts! They always thought we were going to break into a fight because of it, which of course made our little contests that much more fun!”

  “And it also helped me to learn what every brand of soap in the known universe tastes like,” Randy added with an expression of revulsion accompanied by a shudder. “Or paddled. You know, you used to start these little things, how come you never got paddled?”

  Galina smiled. “Girls have more delicate posteriors.” She then turned to fox still staring at them with a perplexed look. “Sorry. I haven’t seen Randy for about four years. Now then, what do we do first? Prisoner transfer, tour each other’s ships, or cargo?”

  Elias shook himself, seeing a side of his combat leader that, like the music, he was unaware of. “I suppose we should get the cargo first, then a tour each other’s ship. That way it’ll be easier to get the prisoners moved without having to ask for directions.”

  “Mmmm. Decisive. I like that in a male,” Galina said with a smile.

  “No dice, cousin. He’s spoken for,” Randal said with a raised eyebrow.

  Galina frowned. “Well, poop. Your mate doesn’t like sharing, does she?”

  “No. She doesn’t.” Cerise walked forward with a DataPak in her hand. “Sorry. I’m one of those possessive types.” The ebony vixen extended a hand and the she-wolf shook it. “I’m Cerise. Pleasure to meet you, Captain.”

  “Please, call me Galina. It’s really my pleasure to meet all of you.” She looked back at Elias. “And double poop. I don’t suppose there are any brothers, are there?”

  Elias shook his head. “Only child. Sorry.”

  “Triple poop. Well, I guess there’s nothing else to do except getting your special delivery over. Randy? Do you want to go give my First Officer a hand? I’m sure that he’d appreciate the help.”

  “No problem. What are we moving?” the gray wolf asked his cousin.

  “Oh, no. I’m not going to ruin the surprise for you. Elias, you and your mate want to come and see? I think you’ll really like this!”

  Elias took Cerise’s hand and with Randy, followed the she-wolf to the cargo bay of the other vessel. He couldn’t help but take a look around to see how this ship compared to his. The hull armor looked to be as thick, but what systems he could see appeared to be comparable to what he had on the Guiding Angel. Their cargo bay was much smaller, though, and he wondered where they were storing their interceptor and asked about it.

  “The Crossbow fighter, our pilot named it the Coin Toss, is kept in a special bay between the port and starboard engines. There used to be a dining salon and sauna where it is now, but we told the Colonel that we could do without those if he really insisted on our taking a fighter along.” Galina was speaking in an accent and manner that Elias and Cerise had heard some of the upper class families of Dennier speak with, and it was rather amusing. The she-wolf continued in a vapid tone, “But I told him we absolutely had to have our own staterooms, don’t you know.”

  They all laughed and Galina motioned a human over. He was fairly tall with a lean build though his shoulders were quite broad. He had long brown hair that was caught in an intricate looking braid and ran down his back to sit between his shoulder blades.

  “Elias, this is my first officer Aiden Haskell. Aiden, this is Captain Elias and his mate Cerise. That mutt over there is my cousin Randy.”

  “It’s a real honor, Captain Tivnan. I’ve been wanting to meet you for a while now.” He turned to Cerise, and spoke to her in very precise Dennieran before bowing formally, then continued in Standard. “I’m hoping we can talk once I get your cargo moved over.” He then turned to Randal. “Randy, if you want to follow me?”

  “I don’t know if I should be excited or worried. The last surprise that Gali had for me was an exploding birthday cake,” Randal said as he followed the human.

  “Piffle! That was funny!” Galina said as the two males moved off.

  “Fun for you, maybe. I was cleaning icing out of my fur for three days.”

  “What’s he griping about. I had to clean the house!” Galina complained to Elias and Cerise.” Did you know that icing stains wall paint? You can never get rid of it and have to repaint.” Then she dropped her voice so that only her fellow Captain and his mate could hear her. “It was worth it, though. Before we break dock I’ll show you the pictures.”

  The cargo that was being transferred were five large armorplast crates that were easily seven feet tall and four feet each side and two smaller ones that measured two feet by two feet by five. Each crate rested on a lift pallet and Aiden powered the first one up. It moved easily across the deck, though its mass made it unwieldy, requiring the wolf and human to shift it cautiously. It only took a few minutes before two more followed and the combined crews stood looking at the last two large crates.

  “Tell you what, why don’t you go ahead and crack the next one before you move it,” Galina suggested, a smile on her face. “I really want to see your expression when you find out what these are.”

  Randal gave his cousin a wary look, but said nothing before unsealing the latches and opening the front of the crate. As the panel slid away, Randal whistled low using his tongue against his teeth, Elias gaped, Cerise gasped while Galina and her first officer simply grinned.

  Light from the overhead light panels gleamed dully on the grey armor plating of what looked at first glance to be a standard armored environmental suit, though after closer inspection the unit within resembled a standard armored suit the way a spacesuit resembled a tuxedo.

  The joints were larger than standard, and the incorporated helmet gleamed blackly. The overall color was a gray so dark that it was only a shade or two from being black itself. The whole unit was covered in armored plates and the joints were protected by smaller overlapping lames. There was a selection of weapons secured along the bottom of the crate, with more in the two smaller units, all standard looking Binfurr weapons, that would obviously mount to various points on the forearms of the armor.

  “Randy, you’re drooling,” Galina said, still grinning.

  “Yeah, I probably am. They finally got them working.”

  “Got what working?” Cerise asked. “What is that thing?”

  It was Elias that spoke. “You’ve seen cargo handler exo-suits around the starport, right? This is an amped up version. It‘s designed for extremely hazardous spaceborne and boarding operations. Binfurr Arms has been working on the designs for years, trying to incorporate rigid armor and exo-suits that are completely self-contained.” Elias was just as appreciative of the new equipment as Randy was, and his eyes never left their inspection of the hulking monstrosity.

  “It reminds me of those monsters in that movie we saw that bled acid,” Cerise said with a shudder. “It’s creepy looking.”

  Elias began to chuckle and gave Cerise’s hand a squeeze while the others looked at him in confusion. “Even better! If it has the same effect on pirates it’ll just make our jobs easier!”

  The rest of the group chuckled as well.

  “All right, Randy. Get in and power it up,” Elias instructed.

  “Unless you want to throw some training wheels on, first,” Galina added.

  Randal shot his cousin a dark look and with the human’s help finished dismantling the crate and inspected the unit.

  “Looks fairly straight forward,” he said quietly. “Hmm. Hinged backplate. Let’s see what we’ve got here.” He was talking to himself as he went over the suit then tripped the releases for the suit’s access through the back. The entire rear section of the main body opened upwards, and the wolf inspected everything before stepping into the suit. “Power, water, rations and oxygen stores. Not bad.”

  Aiden, unable to contain himself, stepped up and began pointing out certain features.

  “Yeah. See? These are all standard cartridge units, and you can quick-change them without having to break seal,” he said pointing with a finger at the features.

  The gray wolf nodded. “I like that. Makes sense for extended operations. Hmm. Even has waste receptacles. They thought of everything, didn’t they?” he asked the human.

  Aiden nodded. “They did everything but make it so that it can scratch your back, though you can always do what I did.”

  “You show me how to scratch my back after being locked in one of these things for a few hours and I’ll name my first born after you,” Randy said with a look of profound respect.

  “No he won’t because he’ll never get married,” Galina commented.

  “Shut up, Gali.”

  Aiden laughed. “It’s really simple. Come here. You have to see it to understand.” The human led the way to a cubicle that lit up when the human approached and had an armored suit identical to the one that had just been uncrated, though there was a large cartoonish heart with a detailed illustration female skunk in the middle of the red symbol on the right pauldron and the words ‘Cleo’s Pet’ in metallic gold script underneath. He unlatched the backplate and showed the wolf his solution to an itchy back.

  Randy laughed until his eyes started to water. “Why didn’t I ever think of doing that?”

  “Necessary ingenuity?” Aiden offered with a smile. “I was assigned to the testing team when we got the first units. While I was running field trials with one of the prototypes, a latch got torqued and I was stuck in the thing until the engineers could run out with a can opener. Of course, that also prompted the um, sanitary facilities as well. I should have known not to have that last cup of coffee. But there you have it.”

  The others crowded close and saw that the human’s answer to the problem of an itch was simple and brilliant. Velcroed to the smooth padded lining of the backplate was a section of rough outdoor carpet that one would normally find around a swimming pool.

  Without any further hesitation, but a very wide grin on his face, the gray wolf went back to the armored suit and slid in, he activated the power up switch with his chin and closed the backplate. It sealed with a hiss and everyone took a step back as Randal got situated.

  “Ah. Here we go. Can you hear me?” the wolf asked, his voice sounding out over an external speaker that made his voice sound mechanical and cold.

  “Loud and clear,” Elias said, giving the wolf a thumbs-up gesture.

  “The controls are fairly standard compared to the suits that we’re all used to. There are a couple of icons that are different…oh. I see. They’re for the weapons systems. Hmmm. Full Heads-Up-Display. Magnetic and programmable compass. Decent emergency equipment... strobes, flares.. All right, here goes.”

  They all watched as Randy took a step, then another. It wasn’t as clunky as Cerise expected, and realized that the wolf had probably logged hundreds of hours in spacesuits, even though this was a powered unit.

  “It’s really no different than wearing a standard armored environmental suit,” the wolf said over the speaker. “I have to admit that it’s a little strange not to be supporting the weight myself, though. I feel as flexible as I would be if I weren’t wearing it.”

  “Go ahead and move the other crate and the accompanying munitions over to the Guiding Angel,” Elias told the wolf. “That should give you a better feel for it. Later this duty shift you can run some tests outside. Maybe we’ll even see if Aiden can go out and play with you.”

  The human looked at his Captain and gave her a pleading look. “Can I please, mother?” he asked in a childlike manner.

  Galina patted his cheek. “Only if all your chores are done and you finish your supper, dear.”

  Galina took the others through the two decks of her ship, and Elias had to admit that the Luna Duchess was far better suited for holding the prisoners from the Incubus than his ship was. The cells were located under the bay that held the Crossbow heavy fighter with only one access point instead of being on the same level as the crew’s quarters.

  As far as the cabins that the personnel of the Luna Duchess had, the fox had to admit his crew had much more room. The only concession to luxury was the small hot tub in the salon that served as the rec deck for the new ship and crew. Even while Lena was talking to her counterpart on the Luna Duchess, a snow leopard with intense blue eyes by the name of Elgin Faulkner, her gaze kept drifting back to the hot tub with a longing look that one normally reserved for a lover. Elias had to stifle a laugh as the rabbit casually edged her way towards the tub, then nonchalantly dipped a couple of fingers into the water to check the temperature. Cerise was engaged with Galina, discussing ways the golden furred she-wolf could boost her sensor range and sensitivity, so Elias stepped over to the rabbit.

  “Would you like to see if you can get a transfer, Lena?” Elias asked just behind the rabbit, making her jump.

  “Oh, no, Captain. I was just, you know…” Her ears dropped in chagrin.

  “Yeah. I know. And before you ask I’m not going to have Stram put one on the Guiding Angel. I’d never be able to get you out of the thing.”

  “I’m not that bad, Captain!” she protested.

  Elias laughed. “Yes you are! Who was it that streaked from her cabin naked and wet when we encountered the Mintaka?”

  “Yes…but…you…”

  “Naked and wet?” Elgin asked with a raised eyebrow and grin. “Captain Tivnan? Can I transfer to your ship instead? As a backup pilot?”

  Elias laughed because the crossed arms and pout didn’t help Lena’s defense in the slightest.

  Aiden eventually joined the rest of the mingling crews with another of the Luna Duchess’ members, a female skunk that no one had met yet. Elias noticed that they had their arms around each other’s waists in a very affectionate, but completely unconscious manner. Aiden made the introductions to the crew of the Guiding Angel for her. Finally he brought her to where Elias, Cerise and Galina were standing.

  “Captain Tivnan, Cerise, may I introduce our Weapons Officer, Cleo Cassini? Cleo, this is Elias Tivnan and his mate, Cerise.”

  “I’m happy to meet you,” the skunkette said in a soft voice with a smile that reached her lavender eyes.

  The females fell into immediate conversation, and Elias stole a glance at the human. He could see in the man’s eyes that there was genuine affection for the female he’d introduced and after a few moments, motioned Aiden to the side feigning the need for a refill of his drink. He poured a generous amount of soda into his glass of half melted ice before speaking.

  “This really isn’t any of my business, Aiden, so stop me if I’m crossing the line, but-“

  “But what is a human doing with a fur?” Aiden chuckled. “It’s a valid question, Sir.”

  “Call me by name, Aiden. I may be a Captain, but that doesn’t make me a better individual. I am curious, though. I’ve heard of humans that have paired up with furs, but I’ve never seen it myself. Despite what we tell ourselves, there’s more than a bit of prejudice. On both sides.”

  Aiden rolled his eyes. “You don’t have to tell me, Elias. My family refuses to acknowledge my existence because of mine and Cleo’s marriage.”

  The fox was totally caught off guard by that. “You’re married?”

  The human nodded. “It’s rare. We’re one of the few fur and human marriages.” Aiden took a sip of his drink and looked to where the skunk was laughing along with Cerise and the gold colored she-wolf, his eyes soft. “I grew up in a family that moved from world to world, and while there were other humans, I never met one that really impressed me. The girls that I encountered were busy with status, garnering prestige, I suppose those are all of the normal trappings of teenage life, regardless of species. But I never really cared about any of that. Of course my mother was constantly setting me up on dates with the daughters of friends and acquaintances, but those were awkward at best and traumatizing at worst.

  “I made the break from my family as soon as I turned eighteen, and enlisted in the Academy. My grades had always been good, and I was pegged for Officer School before basic training was over. That’s where I met Cleo. We hit it off immediately. You could always find us together on off time doing everything we could. Then, just two nights before our first postings, we got into a rather heated discussion about an otter that had been making eyes at her and I told her that he was bragging that he would ‘bag’ her before we all shipped. She informed me that it was really none of my business and I had to go out and blurt that I was in love with her.” Aiden laughed at the memory, “I don’t think that I could have stunned her more if I’d hit her in the head with a rock! Then she told me that she felt the same way.

  “We kept in touch the entire time that we were apart and the feelings we had for each other grew over time. We were able to get a posting together after a year and a half apart, and as soon as we could, we got married. I love her family and they have always treated me wonderfully, but mine had the exact opposite reaction. Our visit to my parent’s home on Earth was less than cordial.

  “I think the thing that both of us have learned from our pairing is that love is a wonderful thing, and with two souls that actually care for each other, it really doesn’t matter what the outside looks like. It’s what’s in the heart that matters. Space is cold, Elias, and if you find warmth and affection, treasure it.”

  Elias smiled. “You know, Colonel Brees told me the same thing once. It makes as much sense now as it did then.”

  Aiden nodded. “That and I hate the cold. My early years were spent in Alaska on Earth, and I have never forgotten how wretched it is to lie in a cold bed with wind and snow howling outside the window. I never have to worry about that with Cleo,” he said with an impish grin.

  “So what happens when the two of you settle down and decide you want children?” the fox asked, truly curious.

  “Oh, we’ve talked about that. We’ve decided that adoption is the way we want to build our family. There are more than enough children out there that just need good, loving parents and a safe home. There won’t be any shortage of that from Cleo and I.”

  Elias listened and admitted to himself that he liked this human, and hoped that he and his mate would have a long life together filled with the joy it had now.

  The two then returned to the others and the conversation that had the trio of females laughing so hard.

  After several hours of getting to know each other, the two Captains decided it was time to get back to work. The prisoner transfer went smoothly. While Nolan Rackam complained and whined at the thought of being transferred to another ship, his protestations were suddenly silenced at the appearance of the Luna Duchess’s combat team leader. Alice Toomy was the most intimidating female that Elias had ever seen. The six and a half foot tall mountain lion was curvaceous and attractive, but her gold colored eyes flashed dangerously when the former pirate captain’s whining became too much for her to bear. She cracked her knuckles loudly then pulled a nastily curved dagger from her belt that was adorned with a bone handle. The blade was polished to a mirror finish and began to clean her nails with the tip.

  “You know, I can save the various tax payers that fund this little party of ours a lot credits real quick, if you’d prefer.” The look Alice gave the smaller tom was one of a butcher appraising a side of meat to be rendered into more manageable pieces. “It’ll be a shame about the mess it’ll make, but I don’t mind a little mopping. I haven’t had to swab a deck in a long time. Might be nostalgic.” She reached for the feline male, her blade flashing.

  Nolan cringed back but was blessedly silent after that and did as he was told, though once he was locked into the cells with the rest of his crew, his whining increased until the primary hatch that led to the holding cells hissed shut and silence descended upon the corridor.

  “Not bad. I was simply thinking about shooting him,” Elias said with a smile.

  Alice gave the fox a look that had no emotion to it at all. “Too much noise in this small a space. And the propellants smell.” She then turned and retreated back to wherever it was that duty station as Elias wondered if her attitude was all a show, or for real. Then he decided that he really didn’t want to know.

  The crews of the two ships got to know one another, then each returned to their respective vessels before the ships uncoupled. Elias and Galina would be on a rotating course that would have both ships cruising between the entry nadir of the Faya system and Brandt, though not so far apart that they couldn’t assist each other when the Shiva appeared.

  After two weeks of no activity, it was fairly certain that the Shiva was going to be a no-show, and Elias had to fight down his frustration. Cerise was able to access the air traffic nets of both Brandt and Quet, and verified that their quarry hadn’t landed on either planet.

  Trying hard not to swear, Elias informed the Captain of the Luna Duchess that he was setting course out system for shore leave.

  It was time for the crew to get a break from the routine that had been going for a little over a month and a half, and he needed to give his people a break. Galina agreed that it was a wise course of action and promised to keep the fox informed of her situation.

  With irritation gnawing at him, Elias told the crew to vote on a location for shore leave, then he had Saul plot a course, though they would be on duty during transit and until they made planetfall, the relief from the crew was almost a palpable thing.

  In the end, the popular choice was Crescentis, oddly enough the last known location of the Shiva. Elias couldn’t argue and it was as good a place for downtime as any other. And one never knew what one might encounter in the vastness of space.

— NEXT CHAPTER —

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