BORN OF HEROES

— by Jeff Karamales

Chapter 55
 

While Elias, Lemuel and Randal were interviewing the prospects for the engineering positions, Cerise, Lena, Odette, Sonja, Pala, and Keena were enjoying a day in downtown Grandstorm shopping for new clothing and the like. Keena took them back to the store that she had been working at when they had run into her months before.

  Then Lena saw a salon and squealed in delight. “I’ll catch up with you all later!” she exclaimed.

  “What are you going to do?” Keena asked.

  The doe grinned. “I’ve got enough in my account with all of the bounties we collected on and almost three months of standard pay so that I can get a permanent bleach design and some spray on dyes. This way I can change the colors whenever I want!” She paused in thought. “I think I’ll even get my ears done, too!”

  Cerise looked at the others. “We’ll ping you when we get done so we can meet for lunch.”

  “You’re going to do it too?” Sonja asked in surprise.

  “Oh, yeah!” the ebony vixen said with a grin. “I’ve been thinking about it ever since I first saw Lena’s dye job before our first launch.”

  Pala fell in with the doe and vixen as they walked arm in arm to the salon whispering to each other with a great deal of giggling while the others headed into the clothing store.

  Keena shook her head and chuckled. “What have you all done to my sister? She would never have thought of doing something like this a couple of years ago!”

  Sonja shrugged before turning to a dress rack, eyeing an asymmetrical dress of deep green and black that would leave her right shoulder bare and had a high slit up the leg. “Don’t look at me. I’m completely innocent.” The Spaniel held the dress up against her front. “Do you think I could pull off these colors?”

  “I think so,” Keena said with a tilt to her head. “You’ve got the build to really set it off, too. What are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking about hitting a club. I haven’t had any companionship for a while and I’m feeling kind of…needy,” Sonja admitted with a slight frown. “I think I really want someone to hold me for a while. Maybe a few other things as well.”

  “You aren’t kidding there,” Odette said with a sigh.

  Keena nodded. “C’mon. I have some ideas and I’ll tell you what places you’ll want to avoid.” The vixen began to go through the different selections, looking forward to dressing up her friends for a night out.

***

   Elias looked at the waiter as he held up his cup for a coffee refill. “So, what do you two think of the last one?” he asked, nodding when the youthful marten acknowledged him.

  “Personally, I still prefer the first two candidates,” Randal said with a shrug. “They have a thorough understanding of all the systems, both are Okami certified so I’m inclined to trust them more, and they were the least…up tight. Not to mention they both have an impressive list of personal and professional references that will be easy to check out.”

  Lemuel nodded. “I have to go with the wolf on this one. That last guy…I know that barking knuckles is a hazard with mechanics, but his weren’t just scarred. He has a habit of hitting things which tells me he might have a bit of a temper. The one before him…I didn’t like the way he was leering at the waitresses or the females that came in.”

  Elias watched as his cup was refilled, mumbling a thanks before grabbing the cream and sugar. “I know it’s going to sound a little weird, but I like the first guy as well. It just seems right to have a panda onboard. Not the best thing to base a decision on, but it’s how I feel.”

  “Go with your gut feeling,” Randy commented as he sipped a cup of tea. “It’s not like we’ll have a problem checking things out on them. I can swing by the regional SPF barracks and do that if you want.”

  “Are you sure it’s no problem?” the fox asked as he nibbled on a bit of pastry.

  “Not at all. I wanted to swing in and say hello to a couple of individuals there, anyway. I’ll have them ping it to your DC and catch up with you back at the estate.”

  The other two watched the wolf get up and leave. “I have some things I want to tend to as well,” Lem said also standing. “I’ll line up a restock of the infirmary and then I want to hit a couple of places for a couple of things for Keena.”

  “Shiny goodies to make up for lost time?” Elias asked with a grin that was mostly hidden by his mug.

  “Of course!” the tiger chortled. “I have to keep the wife happy.”

  “You’re a wise individual indeed, my friend.”

  Lem nodded and pulled out a few Dennieran credit notes until Elias waved them away. “My treat, remember?”

  “Whatever you say, Captain,” the tiger commented in a sardonic tone.

  Elias finished his coffee, left the money for the tab and a decent tip before heading outside. His monocycle was parked at the curb to the pedestrian walk, the single wheeled motorcycle having been returned to the estate by local law enforcement after the attack on the Guiding Angel. He slipped the helmet on and tripped the interlock and felt the hum as current flowed to the motor. With a quick scan for oncoming traffic, Elias twisted the throttle and pulled out into the street before adding a little more speed than was prudent or legal.

  It only took a few minutes to get to where he wanted and Elias shut the monocycle down and latched the helmet onto the lock strap behind the saddle and walked into the office he parked in front of. A mouse looked up at the fox and gave him a well practiced, though no less genuine smile.

  “Welcome to the offices of Blue Horizon Freight. I’m Cindy. How may I help you?”

  “Merlin wouldn’t be around, would he?” Elias asked with a curious and friendly expression.

  “Do you have an appointment, Mister…?” the mouse asked with a cautious glance, her hand slipping towards the alarm button under her desk.

  “No. Not really. I was Major Tivnan of the SPF. Now I’m just Captain.”

  “Elias? Is that you?”

  Turning at the sound of his name the fox couldn’t help but break into a wide grin. “How you doing, you old space tramp?”

  The wolf dropped the paperwork that had been in his hands on the edge of the desk next to the hallway that led to the back offices. The two canids shared a quick embrace complete with back slapping and laughter before they parted, arms about shoulders, Merlin Sinclair turned the fox towards the reception desk. “Cindy, this is Elias. Elias, my invaluable office manager, Cindy. The rest of the staff’s out getting a late lunch.”

  “Pleased to meet you,” the mouse said with her smile growing warmer by several degrees.

  “Likewise, ma’am,” the fox said.

  “Oh, no! Just Cindy, thank you very much!” the female said with a laugh.

  “When did you get in?” Merlin asked still grinning. “I know Sam will be glad to see you and Cerise!”

  “Last week. I’ve been spending a lot of time over at Okami,” the fox told the other. “Getting my ship in order, of all things.”

  Merlin steered his friend away from the desk. “Pirate hunter?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper and an interested look in his eyes.

  “Not this time. I’m out. For good. The Van Connor operation was it for me. Strange thing was when I tendered my resignation almost all of my original crew came with me.” He leaned against the desk. “Cerise and I want to keep flying, so we’re going to be running a specialized secure courier business.” He rubbed at his muzzle scar in a self conscious gesture. “It seems that Okami had a salvaged hull undergoing a refit that would suit us quite nicely for a bargain price.”

  Merlin cocked a smile. “You got the Angel back?” he asked in surprise.

  “They’re finishing up the details now,” Elias confirmed. “I’ll be renaming her, though,” he said, his smile slightly subdued.

  “You know, secured courier wouldn’t be a bad idea,” the wolf commented. “I’m having Taro accept passengers for a little extra income. I know there are some out there that would prefer something over a liner that’s safe. Do you want some assistance in lining up clients? We have a pretty detailed data base now. Not to mention a solid reputation. A few recommendations could help out a lot. There’s no reason that you should have to struggle like I did my first time out. First it was cleaning the G model freighter from the bakery company that owned it, then getting a new computer core, a proper one with updated charts…should I mention the lack of clients?” Merlin asked with a laugh.

  “Well, why don’t you and Sam tell us all about it when we take you out for dinner tonight?” Elias suggested. The fox’s expression grew serious. “Merlin, I…I really owe you for what you did that day…I don’t know if I’d dealt well with it if anything had happened to you and Sam…I…”

  Merlin shook his head and put his hand on the other male’s shoulder. “Elias, it’s in the past. I can’t tell you how relieved we were to hear that you two were safe. And now you won’t be throwing yourself into danger which means the two of us can breathe easier as well!”

  Elias smiled and nodded. He would give his life for any of his friends, and counted Merlin and his wife Samantha in that small group. “Just wait until you see the kits,” he said trying to change the conversation to a lighter topic while he worked on the lump that had formed in his throat. “They’re mobile now and an absolute handful and I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

***

 Everyone was thrilled to see Merlin and Samantha, who was showing with the litter she carried, which meant of course all of the females were surrounding her and making quite the fuss while the Border Collie gushed over the twins, leaving the males alone to talk as the group got together for drinks at the estate after Elias and Cerise returned from taking the other couple to a quiet supper between the four of them.

  “I’ve already sent word out so when you’re finally ready to launch you should have plenty of clients bidding for your services. My office staff is also willing to help out with an advertising campaign for the services you offer,” Merlin said as he held an after dinner coffee.

  “I wouldn’t have expected help from…well, I don’t suppose you’re really a competitor, are you?” Lemuel said.

  Merlin laughed. “Are you kidding? The best way to drum up business and keep things flowing smoothly is with competition. Besides, the services that you’re going to be offering are different enough that it isn’t competition at all. I move bulk cargoes, not secure courier work unless it’s a small package or person, and I try to keep that as quiet as possible.”

  “And Merlin still has more work than ships,” Elias said as he dunked the ice cube of his soda with a claw tip. “When are you going to expand your fleet?” the fox asked with a grin

  “When I can convince you to join the company,” Merlin answered with a grin just as wide.

  “At least our cargo can take itself of the ship, for the most part,” Randy commented with a chuckle.

  “That’s always helpful,” Merlin agreed.

  Eventually the ladies rejoined the rest and Elias had to keep from staring at his wife’s new fur style. She had sweeping shapes that seemed to spiral and flow in her fur in bright purple that went well with her gown, having finally given in to her desire for a bleach and dye job like Lena had when they all shipped out together for the first time. The fox found that as far as he was concerned it accentuated her already substantial beauty. She even had the pattern extend to her lush tail fur and a small design accent under her left eye.

  “You know, it would mean a lot if you and Sam could make the christening,” Cerise told the wolf and Border Collie. “She’s getting delivered to the starport day after tomorrow.” The vixen looked to her friend, “If you feel up to it, that is.”

  “Are you kidding?” Samantha asked with a wide smile, her eyes sparkling. “I wouldn’t miss it! I’m not so close to my delivery date that I have to worry about going into labor just yet.”

  “Have you had cravings for odd, hard to find foods as bad as Cerise did?” Pala inquired with a pleasant expression.

  “Boy, has she ever!” Merlin said with a chuckle. “Do you know how hard it is to get green shell Crescentis oysters this time of year? Sam normally hates those, but not lately.”

  “You must tell me where you found fresh Crescentis green shells,” Pala purred. “I haven’t had those in far too long!”

***

   The night was far better than the last time the friends were together and the visit was extremely enjoyable for all. When Elias and Cerise retired for the evening it was with warm feelings of contentment. Elias had made sure that the twins were indeed asleep and taken care of in the room next door and lay in the bed of Cerise’s old room.

  “Poor Sam is going to have her hands absolutely full!” the vixen said as she hung up the gown she’d been wearing and spoke to her husband from the bathroom. “She and Merlin are going to have at least four pups!”

  “And I thought we had our hands full with two,” Elias chuckled. “I don’t know if I could handle four. And I’d hate to see the toll more than two would have on you.”

  “So would I,” the black fox agreed fervently. She stepped out of the private bathroom and stood in the doorway with her arms up, hands on either side of the frame. She was completely unclothed and looked pointedly at her mate.

  “I was wondering how far the pattern went,” Elias said swallowing hard. His eyes bulged as Cerise walked slowly back into the room before doing a pirouette, her tail wrapping around her legs as she spun, her arms over her head. She turned it into a pounce as the vixen launched herself at her mate. To further add to the dyed patterns Cerise had braided a purple ribbon into her long hair.

  “I take it you like the new look?” she asked archly, nuzzling her mate’s throat and nipping at him playfully.

  “Oh yeah,” he breathed.

  Cerise leaned close and put her mouth close to Elias’ ear. “Show me how much,” she whispered before her tongue flicked out to lick the edge, enjoying the flirtatious love play.

  It had been a while since the pair could simply be together without other considerations putting pressure on both of them and each enjoyed the night thoroughly.

— NEXT CHAPTER —

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