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Greetings Loyal Readers and welcome back. In this chapter the Guardians look at a way to make trouble. Three birthdays are celebrated. And things aren’t looking good for the Liberty.
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CHAPTER 30
TO STAR BASE 7 (1)
By Douglas DD
Assisted by Zarek Dragon
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7
<Captain’s Ready Room>
0850
Ronnie, Devin, Steve, and Brad arrived early for the 0900 senior staff meeting called by Kyle. Ronnie wasn’t a senior officer, but Engineering was going to be an important part of the meeting. Kyle decided it was imperative that since Ronnie was the chief engineer he should attend.
“Figures we all arrive early and our captain is the one playing loose and dangerous with his timing,” Steve said.
“Give the kid a break,” Devin said. “He’s the youngest of us senior officers and probably needed to get extra sleep to help him be ready for his upcoming growth spurt.”
“That sounds good except Steve and I just had breakfast with him,” Brad said.
“You just had breakfast with who?” Kyle asked as he entered the room. He shut the door behind him and headed to his desk.
“We had breakfast with you, in case you forgot,” Steve said.
“And you should have said ‘had breakfast with whom’,” Brad said.
“Yes, sir, Mr. Kanye. Sorry for my behavior unbecoming of an officer.”
“It’s my job as information officer to make sure we all communicate properly.”
“Since we’re all early, and thank you for that guys, how about we start the meeting early? And thank you for the correction, Brad.”
“Anything I can do to make you a greater captain,” Brad said.
“And on that note, I call this meeting of the senior officers to order,” Kyle said. Devin and Kyle split the meeting chair duties. Devin chaired the department chief and the full crew meetings, and Kyle chaired the senior officer meetings.
Kyle handed a copy of the meeting agenda to each of his senior officers. “We’ll be discussing our strategy for attaching the generator to the Heinlein and carrying it to the Liberty. We want to spend as little time as possible at the space station. The plan Devin and I discussed is pretty much one of load and go.
“Ronnie is going to report on how much he can push the speed protocols without putting the ship in danger. He’s had some discussions with Space Fleet Engineering since 1400 yesterday. We will find out what he learned. Also, Danny will be showing up soon to give a report as well.”
“I have a meeting with Captain Porter, the assistant commander of Space Base 7 at 1000 this morning. That said, let’s get to work.”
Earlier that morning Kyle had asked Danny to give him a report on what he and Steve had planned so far and how he planned to have his bubbas execute the plan. He pushed a buzzer on his communicator and two minutes later Danny entered the ready room. They had all seen each other at some time during the morning. As a result, the greetings were quick and Danny got right to work.
“We know that the Star Base commander wants his shuttle to carry the generator and wants the shuttle to dock at one of the Heinlein’s air locks,” Danny said. “And we know that the Heinlein isn’t built to handle that kind of mass.”
“Why can’t we tow the shuttle?” Steve asked even though he knew the answer. He asked the question to get the issue officially entered into the log.
“And the reason is, the towing process would slow us down, even if we used a tractor beam.” Danny knew that he wasn’t telling Steve something he didn’t already know, and he knew why Steve asked the question. We might just be kids but we aren’t stupid kids.
At that moment Ronnie’s communicator buzzed. He knew Kyle would want him to ignore it, but as soon as he saw who was trying to contact him, he knew he had to answer it. “It’s Space Fleet HQ, Admiral Edwards.” Admiral Edwards was the commander-in-chief of Space Fleet Engineering.
Ronnie hit the answer icon. “Commander Robinson,” he said. As much as Kyle wanted to be annoyed, he knew that Ronnie had to open the channel especially since there was a good chance that the subject of the communication could provide information regarding a subject on their meeting agenda.
There was a pause as Admiral Edwards spoke and then Ronnie responded. “Yes, sir, I understand sir. When will you be sending the report?” Ronnie asked. A brief pause. “Well, I’m in a meeting with the ship’s senior officers. Do you mind if I put our conversation on speaker?”
Another brief pause and this time when the admiral spoke everyone in the room could hear him. “Gentlemen, my congratulations on your proposed changes to the warp protocol. If you follow through on them as indicated, you may follow the first set of protocols until my meeting with Chief Engineer Robinson on the tenth.”
“That is awesome news, sir. Thank you for your quick response. We will use it only as you indicated.”
“Commander Robinson, please read the report I will be sending you today regarding the November 10 meeting. It is vital that you understand what is being done by the Space Fleet Engineering Chiefs between now and then.” Edwards was addressing Ronnie as Chief Engineer. “That’s all for meeting on speaker. Commander Robinson and I will resume our private chat.”
When Edwards informed Ronnie that their chat was complete, Ronnie signed out as per the guidelines of Space Fleet protocol. “I will read the report upon reception and confirm that I have read and understand it.” Pause. “Yes, sir, I will contact you along with Captain Robinson and Operations chief Steve Boyer at ten hundred on Tuesday, November 10. Chief Engineer Robinson, out.”
“Okay, what was that about?” Kyle asked once Ronnie had ended the communication.
“It was about Space Fleet Engineering informing me that more changes will be made beyond what we asked for,” Ronnie said.
“Will there be a special message arrival protocol?” Brad asked. Information Services handled ship’s communications.
“Long, short, long, long signals followed by my personal code: RCER22.”
“It will be taken care of.”
“Any idea of what the engineering protocol changes will be?” Kyle asked.
“I am pretty sure the modifications to the warp speed restrictions we asked for will be implemented in the communication being sent to us,” Ronnie said. “But Edwards hinted more was going to be announced in our Tuesday meeting. Unless it wasn’t, of course.”
“Say what?”
“That’s the admiral’s way of saying the final decision should be made today, but there are apparently a few issues that still need to be resolved.”
Ronnie and Kyle had met with Admiral Edwards regarding the protocols the day before and were pleased with the quick turnaround. But that didn’t mean they were going to be pleased with the protocol changes.
“The fact that the admiral wants to talk to you about those modifications in just a couple of days tells me that they won’t be as significant as we were hoping for,” Devin French said.
“Well, as my father is fond of saying, more shall be revealed,” Kyle said. He checked the time and said, “I will be meeting with Captain Porter in twenty minutes.” Captain Andrew Porter was the second in command of Star Base 7. “On our side Devin and I will be the only ones meeting with him, so I am dismissing the rest of you.” On that note everyone but Kyle and Devin rose to leave the ready room.
Kyle stopped Steve and Brad before they could leave. “My agreement with Captain Porter was that our meeting would involve only ourselves, his chief aide, and my first officer. However, I want Brad to connect the Expo Meet communication with the operations receiver so Steve can listen in.”
“I can do that,” Brad said.
The receiver in the captain’s ready room was capable of receiving Expo Meet as was the one in Steve’s office. What Brad had to do with Steve’s receiver was set it up s o it would receive the specific Expo meeting between Kyle and Captain Porter.
“And I’ll be ready to listen in. I assume you’ll want me to report to you with my take on the meeting after you guys are done,” Steve said. “I also assume you’re willing to accept the wrath of a fellow officer in case you get caught.”
“I can think of two reasons why that shouldn’t be a problem. One reason is that Brad will make a perfect connection which means we shouldn’t get caught. The second reason is that I’m willing to bet that Porter will have an officer on the star base other than his chief aide listening on his equipment. But they must be entered into the captain’s log, just like ours have to be,” Kyle told them.
“That is complex beyond belief. Nothing like complete trust among Space Fleet officers.”
“One of the things I learned from Hal during my captain’s training is that when it is stated that only certain officers can participate in an Expo Meet conference other senior officers can be set up in a private office to listen in. It was when they go to Priority Alpha that only the officers who will be officially listed as participating in the Expo Meet conference could participate in any way.”
“Which makes it even more complex. But I guess that makes us okay then,” Steve said.
“As long as you don’t allow anyone else into your office while the conference is live.”
“Understood. Leave it to Space Fleet bureaucrats to come up with something like this.”
Steve left for his office and Brad left for the Communications Department to arrange the feed to go to Steve’s office.
1000
<Heinlein Captain’s ready room and office of the Assistant Commander of Star Base 7 (with listeners in other locations)>
The two officers had agreed to abide by Space Fleet procedures and that the officer with the least seniority would initiate the contact between the them. That meant that Kyle would be the one to initiate the contact, which he did at precisely 1000.
The agenda for the Expomeeting was the procedure for transferring the Liberty’s new generator from the space station to the Heinlein as well as a specific problem that Porter thought Kyle should be aware of.
When Captain Porter heard his receiver buzz, he answered immediately. “Captain Andrew Porter,” he said formally.
Kyle decided to be less formal with Porter, which was his way of saying that the fact Captain Porter was an adult didn’t intimidate him. “Good morning, Captain Porter. Kyle Robinson calling as requested.” Kyle then waited to see how Porter would react to his lack of formality.
Captain Porter was actually pleased by it. It meant that the young captain of the Heinlein wasn’t intimidated by an adult officer. It meant that he considered them to be equals.
“Good morning, Kyle. Please feel free to call me Andy.”
Kyle let out a quiet sigh of relief. His gamble had paid off; he and Andy Porter would be working as equals. “I will do so,” Kyle said. “I’m assuming you want to discuss the arrival of the Heinlein this coming Monday.”
“You are correct in that assumption, Kyle. I would like to know your schedule and your plan for transloading the Liberty generator. I also would like to warn you of an issue that will probably occur upon your arrival. It is an issue that you will need to be prepared for.”
Kyle had predicted Andy’s first two expectations, but felt his breath catch when he heard he would be receiving a possible warning. A warning about what?. While his impatient teen self wanted to know what the warning was about NOW, his well-trained captain self knew he needed to let Captain Porter tell him in his own good time.
“First, I’d like to talk about our schedule,” Kyle said. “The last communication between our operations departments set the ETA at 0800 on Monday, November 9.”
“That is correct,” Andy said. “I worked with our operations after your chief engineer made it clear that the Heinlein couldn’t be pushed any harder and would have difficulty making the 0700 ETA. We made 0800 the final ETA and informed your engineering and operations departments. Is that satisfactory?”
“They have already approved of the new ETA.”
“Excellent. You should be aware that the admiral will be sending you a communication in which he will strongly suggest that you do everything within your power to arrive by 0700, which was our original agreed upon time.”
“Understood,” Kyle said. And it sure wasn’t the time I’d agreed on. “Perhaps you can save the admiral the effort by letting him know that the 0700 arrival is not possible.” Kyle wondered how often one officer lying to another officer happened. Oh well, I hope that very soon I’ll be able to make the lie a moot issue, Kyle mused.
“I will inform him as soon as we complete our meeting,” Captain Porter said. “But since 0800 is an hour later than the original arrival time, don’t hold your breath expecting him to be a happy admiral.
“It looks like it’s now time for us to discuss how the generator will be transloaded to the Heinlein,” Porter went on. “You are, of course, aware that Admiral Ivanovich wants one of our shuttles to haul it from the star base to the Heinlein. The generator is currently tied to a portal on the star base. The shuttle will connect to the generator and haul it to the Heinlein where the shuttle will be tied down at one of your air locks. This will give the shuttle crew access to your ship during the trip to meet the Liberty.”
“I’m afraid that is something we won’t be able to do,” Kyle said.
“It is what the admiral expects you to do.”
“I don’t mean to sound snarky, but as I’ve already told N…Admiral Ivanovich, our science and operations departments calculated that the combined mass of the star base shuttle and the generator will put too much strain on the hull of my ship.” Kyle had started to say Nicky but caught himself in time. He had enough problems without sticking his foot in his mouth.
“I understand what you’re saying,” Andy Porter said.
“What I don’t understand is that since the construction of the generator is modular why the module parts that are no longer functional can’t simply be replaced by using spare parts or replicating the parts. My chief engineer brought up that issue when we first learned that the entire generator would have to be replaced. He had his theory, but I want to see what someone with your experience has to say.”
“That is an excellent question.” Andy was becoming more and more impressed by Kyle Robinson and his crew. “The problem, Kyle, is the age of the Liberty and, as a result, the age of its equipment. Both generators failed for the same reason.
“An overheating of the core overwhelmed the generator’s fail safes, causing massive part failures which compromised the structure of the entire generator. The result was a catastrophic failure. The generator can’t be brought back online by simply replacing just the original failed part. The entire generator needs to be replaced.”
“That’s almost exactly what Ronnie, my chief engineer, told me,” Kyle said. “He also told me that kind of failure is close to impossible on Explorer class ships or the newest basic Space Fleet ships because their fail-safe equipment is, well, close to perfect.”
“Nothing in this business is perfect. But the equipment is newer, experience has allowed us to build better equipment, and maintenance is better,” Andy said. “Even when new, the equipment on the Liberty’s class of ship wasn’t nearly as good as what we have now. And what you kids have on the Explorer class ships is better yet, one reason why Space Fleet will be using the same class for its newest ships.”
“Thanks for taking the time to explain the situation to us.”
“I’ll tell you Kyle, you and your engineering team knew exactly what was going on. All I did was confirm that you were right. I’m impressed by the work and diligence of you and your crew.”
Kyle felt a glow of warmth pass through him as he listened to Captain Porter’s praise. “I’ll be sure to pass it on to the crew members involved, especially my chief engineer.”
Porter then quickly changed the focus and the mood of the virtual meeting. “Now for my warning.”
“Which is that your commanding officer plans on taking command of my ship for the rescue,” Kyle said.
“Oh my. It appears the admiral has already informed you of his plan.”
“You mean he didn’t tell you that he had told me of his plan?”
“That is exactly what I mean. He never told me that he had informed you of his plan.” Kyle could tell that Andy was pissed and was now certain that he had an ally in his struggle with Admiral Ivanovich.
“I have turned off the feed going to my chief of staff,” Andy said. “That said, what, if anything, have you planned to do about the admiral’s plan?”
“I can tell you quite a bit, but I need you to swear as an officer and a gentleman that nothing of what I am going to tell you will come to the attention of Admiral Ivanovich.”
“I can do that, providing I get you to swear that you will tell nobody other than your senior officers that I am aiding you.”
“I swear as an officer and a gentleman that only my first, second, and third officers as well as my chief engineer will be aware of your assistance,” Captain Kyle Robinson swore.
“And I swear as an officer and a gentleman that what you tell me will stay with me until such time as you give me permission to share it with whomever may need to know,” Captain Andrew Porter swore.
“First of all, I wasn’t honest with you about our arrival time. While the change to 0800 was approved by Admirals Mirah and Diamond, they both knew it was a ruse.”
Admiral William Mirah was the Space Fleet Admiral in Chief and Admiral Marshall Diamond was the Director of Space Fleet Logistics. “Because those two are at the top of the Admiralty food chain, Admiral Ivanovich had no choice but to agree to the new ETA,” Kyle said. He didn’t have to mention that his father, who was the Director of the Explorer Program, was lurking in the background.
“What is your current ETA, and what is the purpose of the deception?” Andy asked.
“Remember, you swore to keep this between us.”
“Considering who the admirals backing you up are, I would be slitting my professional throat by going back on my word. And even without them, I like to think my word is gold.”
“The plan is to arrive at 0500 and transload the Liberty’s generator onto the Heinlein.”
“Damn. I was not expecting that,” Andy said. “What do you expect to gain by doing that?”
“We expect to gain the safety of our ship,” Kyle said. “Admiral Ivanovich’s plan simply won’t work and is a danger to our ship.”
Andy liked how Kyle called the Heinlein “our” ship rather than “my” ship. “Now, I have two questions.”
“Ask away.”
“How is it you can set an ETA two hours earlier than the original ETA you said you ship couldn’t meet because it was unsafe.”
“Recent communications with Admiral Collin Edwards, the Director of Space Fleet Engineering have told us that the protocols that kept us from being able make the original ETA have been loosened after thorough testing. That will be made official on November 10 but we should receive permission this afternoon to use the new protocols for the rescue mission. I have instructed my Chief of Information Services to send a copy of the new directive on my command when you’re ready to receive,” Kyle said.
There was a twenty-second pause as Andy fussed with something on his desk. When he finished, he looked up and said, “I’m ready.”
Kyle pressed a button on his desk and Brad sent the documents to Andy’s desk. Andy looked them over for a couple of minutes. “I’m impressed. It’s great that they updated the protocols just when you needed it done.”
“It’s not a coincidence, Andy,” Kyle said. “Commander Robinson, my chief engineer, and I, along with Admiral David Bowman of the Explorer Program asked for the review of the protocols. What you received is only the first phase. More research is being done as we speak.”
The smooth faced young boy with the soprano voice had grown into a confident, determined ship’s captain, who was literally impressing the hell out of Captain Andrew Porter, who was a Space Fleet veteran and not an easy man to impress. Any doubts he had about backing Captain Kyle Robinson to the hilt were gone.
“Do you have a plan for pulling off this deception?” Andy asked.
“Yes, I do,” Kyle answered with total confidence. “But to pull it off, I will need your assistance.”
“I’m ready to provide it.” A day ago, Andy would have replied, “You’re on your own, kid.” But now, he looked at the young boy who was mature beyond his years, his reply was, “Tell me what you need, captain.”
Kyle then told Captain Porter his plan to transload the generator from the star base to the star ship. A day ago, he wouldn’t have trusted the man to help him set his breakfast table. And now he was entrusting him with a mission that went against the strategy of the commanding admiral of a star base. The forty-two-year-old captain and twenty-two-year Space Fleet veteran and the thirteen-year-old captain and not quite three-year Space Fleet veteran both understood that they were putting their careers at risk.
1300
<Holodeck>
Areas 1 and 2 of the holodeck were set up for a triple birthday party. Perry Fox, the holodeck manager has worked his usual magic in setting up the main areas to celebrate the birthdays of Akage Enzan, and the Wilson twins, Mark and Matthew. All three of them were dependents and attended the ship’s school. Akage had turned twelve on the fifth but volunteered to put off his big celebration for two days so he and the twins could have a big party together.
Akage had turned twelve on Thursday. He lived with his father Kage, who was the chief of Tactical Security. Akage was taking the advanced classes taught by Ali Bakabazi, the school’s chief instructor. He was also taking two virtual classes transmitted from Space Fleet Academy which he had started on October 28, just after the Heinlein’s official launch. This was his start in the academy’s Explorer Program training curriculum which was scheduled to become his entire curriculum by mid-March.
Mark and Matthew were the twin brothers of Science Chief Logan Wilson. He was given guardianship of the twins when their parents were killed in a boating accident. The Twins were taking their instruction from Ali coupled with visual classes transmitted by the Space Academy prep school. They were also spending two hours each Tuesday and Thursday learning the ins and outs of the science department.
The party was a loud affair featuring lunch and two large cakes specially baked by chief baker Jackson Davis. Ali had given the ship school’s students an extra hour for lunch so they could help celebrate the birthdays of three of their peers.
Kyle and Danny arrived together fifteen minutes after the start of the party. They wished the birthday boys happy birthdays and complimented them on their hard work at school. They chatted with Kage and Logan, the boys’ guardians, and each enjoyed a slice of cake. Logan told Kyle he wanted to see him as soon as the party ended at 1400.
“It’s interesting that the birthday boys’ guardians are both department heads,” Ali noted.
“It gives the boys a good grounding,” Kyle said. Just as Kyle finished his cake, Devin French arrived along with Steve Boyer. Kyle greeted them and they each congratulated the birthday boys and grabbed some cake. After they finished, Kyle, Devin, and Steve set their forks and plates in the dirty dish tub and said their goodbyes to the birthday boys. Kyle headed for the captain’s ready room and Steve and Devin went to the Operations Department office.
As the birthday party wound down, Koji and Duskin walked over to the twins and gave the birthday boys a special Happy Birthday wish.
“Thanks. You guys are great,” Mark said.
Koji and Duskin gave the twins an invitation. “Duskin and I want for the two of you to spend a night with us, but it can’t be tonight,” Koji said.
Mark: “That is wild dog. I think we both…” Matthew: “…want to do it.”
“What is wild dog?” Duskin asked.
“Something so good that it’s really special.”
“I get it,” Duskin nodded. “Did you get it, isthasy?”
“I got it,” Koji said.
“Isthasy?” Matthew asked.
“Draconian for brother.”
“When can it be?” Matthew asked.
“I’ll have to ask our opsolas and you’ll have to ask your isthasy if we can do it, first.”
“Opsolas means fathers, right?” Mark asked.
“Very excellently good,” Koji grinned.
“If our ickysa says yes and your hopsilas say yes, where will we do it? I mean there are going to be the four of us plus them,” Mark said. Koji and Duskin diplomatically ignored his mispronunciations.
“Because opsola Kyle is the captain we have a special room we can use for something like this.”
“Sweet. I so hope we can do it.” Nobody needed a translation for sweet. That usage of the word had been part of the language for decades.
After Koji carefully went over the pronunciation of isthasy and opsola with the twins, the boys promised to keep each other informed on their progress at getting permission for an overnight (or two) as often as they could. They said their goodbyes and Koji and Duskin headed for their quarters while the twins rejoined what was left of the party.
1455
<Captain’s Ready Room>
Kyle sat at his desk, thinking about what Logan had shared with him. His thinking was interrupted by Brad and Steve entering the room. They sat on one of the couches in the back corner of the ready room and Kyle moved to his easy chair. “It looks like you’ll have a chance to test your theory, tomorrow,” Kyle told Brad.
“It’s not completely my theory,” Brad said. “Hal was a big help.” Brad was referring to Commodore Hal Tietkone, who was the Explorer Program logistics expert.
“Don’t be modest, sweet,” Steve said. “It was your idea. Hal just inserted a few details.”
“Whatever. My controller is ready to go to work. At least, that’s what the computer tests show, and Nelson has tested it thoroughly.” Kyle was referring to Nelson Mirah, the Heinlein’s assistant Chief of Information.
“You’re positive the Guardians plan a slowdown tomorrow, right?” Devin asked.
“My source vouches for all of the information he gave me,” Kyle responded. Devin and Steve knew who Kyle’s source was. Even though Brad was the ship’s third officer, he was not on the “need to know” list, which included only the captain, first officer, and second officer. This was nothing against Brad, it was simply a matter of protocol. Even Brad’s husband Steve couldn’t tell him until he got the go-ahead from Kyle.
“The need to know” list that was created for dealing with the Guardian issue had been shaped by Admirals Wiiliam Mirah, Marshall Diamond, and David Bowman. The feeling was that the fewer people who knew who Kyle’s moles in the Guardians were the less chance of an accidental leak. It could be changed as needed by Kyle. Normally Admiral Greg Robinson would be the third admiral in a case like this, but because he was Kyle’s father, he recused himself. Bowman was picked to replace him because he was assigned to the Explorer Program.
The reason the Guardians were still allowed to be active is that Kyle did not have the evidence he needed to prove that they had done anything that went against Space Fleet protocols. Yes, they were pains in the ass and most likely had violated certain protocols, but the proof wasn’t there. The three admirals were doing all they could to help Kyle charge the Guardians with inciting mutiny. The admirals had a personal connection to the affair because of the evident connection of Admiral Harley Benson with the Guardians.
“Do we have any idea when the slowdown is scheduled to happen?” Steve asked.
“Tomorrow, midmorning,” Kyle answered.
“The fact that they are planning this when we are on a rescue mission is such a pile of shit that I think we just arrest their assess now before they do some kind of permanent damage,” Devin said.
“I don’t disagree,” Kyle said. “And security is prepared to arrest the whole bunch if they become more than just a nuisance. Trust me, as much as I’d like to throw the rules and regulations at them, the Space Fleet poohbahs want absolute proof. Admiral Mirah has told me, however, if, in my judgement, they do more than being a nuisance I can nail their asses”
What Kyle really wanted, however, was to have them be more than simply disgruntled crew members. He wanted to have them caught making an actual attempt at taking over the ship. He knew he was taking a risk but had every confidence that he and his senior officers would prevail.
1600
<Ship’s Classroom>
After giving his students their assignments, Ali dinged his desk bell, signaling the end of the school day. While much of the curriculum was independent study, the cadets also had some lessons as a group. That had been the case with the history lesson that ended the day. The subject they were studying was the history of Space Fleet.
“I would like you to finish reading Chapter 3,” Ali said. “We’ll go over the questions together tomorrow.” Because the cadets had varying schedules and responsibilities when not in class, Ali avoided assigning homework outside of reading assigments, writing assignments, or an independent study assignment. He usually gave them time in class to answer or discuss “busy work” assignments.
Right after Ali dinged the bell, Mark and Matthew sought out Koji and Duskin. They were excited that the two extraterrestrial boys were reaching out to be their friends. They had gotten along really well with them as classmates, but it looked like the relationship was moving up from just classmates to classmates and friends.
The boys performed the ancient ritual of fist bumping. They agreed that they would ask to have their overnight after the Heinlein left Star Base 7.
“What are you going to do when we have our overnight?” Mark asked.
“How about we talk about it after we know for sure what day it will be,” Koji said.
The twins and Duskin nodded. There was no question that Koji was the alpha male of the quartet.
<Captain’s Ready Room>
Kyle ended the meeting with his senior officers at 1533. He told them to take a break and be back by 1555 for a department head meeting. As soon as they left, he ducked into his private restroom and took a piss. When he stepped back into his office he saw that Ronnie and navigation chief Mituti Tudepe had taken seats. Science chief Logan Wilson was right behind them followed by security chief Kage Enzan.
With the return of Steve, Brad, and Devin all of the ship’s department heads were present. While technically department heads, Chief Medical Officer Riku Tatsu and Head Chef Ian McFlynn only attended regular department meetings or special meetings where their expertise might be needed.
The reason for the meeting was the expected call from Admiral Edmonds. He was supposed to explain the change in Engineering protocols that would take effect immediately and the ones still undergoing testing. Kyle, Steve, Devin, and Ronnie were positive they knew which protocols were immediate. The ones still undergoing examination were even more interesting.
They were confident that both sets of changes would make their rescue mission faster and less stressful. They sat quietly as they waited for the Expo Meet communicator on Kyle’s desk to buzz.
Kyle activated the communicator and greeted Admiral Edmonds with his official, “Captain Robinson here. Welcome to the Heinlein Admiral Edmonds.”
“Thank you for your kind welcome, Captain Robinson. Please tell me who is present at the meeting,” Admiral Edmonds said.
“First Officer Devin French, Operations Chief Steve Boyer, Chief Engineer Ronald Robinson, Communications Chief Bradley Kanye, Navigation Chief Mituti Tudepe, Science Chief Logan Wilson, and Security Chief Kage Enzan are present, sir.”
“Thank you, Captain. I know you have a lot to do, so I will make this short. The protocols we discussed earlier will be official effective November 10. But the Heinlein has been given permission by Space Fleet to use those protocols as their standard, which should speed up your trip to Star Base 7. The status of the second set of protocols will be revealed during my Tuesday meeting with Commander Robinson. Questions?”
There were none. The officers now knew that while in warp the Heinlein could go at their current top allowable warp speed for an hour instead of thirty minutes and that their recovery period had been cut from an hour to twenty minutes. The price to be paid was that the Heinlein would have to go out of warp and cool down for ninety minutes every twenty-four hours.
“I believe everything is understood,” Kyle said.
“Then there being no further questions I will be logging out. I will meet Commander Robinson on the tenth and expect to talk to Captain Robinson and First Officer French after that meeting. Admiral Edmonds, out.”
“What do you think, Ronnie?” Kyle asked.
“I think things are now officially better and that we’re going to easily make our planned ETA at Star Base 7. And, I think that when Admiral Edmonds meets with me on Tuesday, things are going to get better yet.”
The other officers expressed their agreement.
“I know that all of the tests to determine a better travel time for us were because of our rescue mission. The Sally Ride ran all of the tests and the new times worked.” Ronnie couldn’t help thinking of Linn Chang, the Sally Ride’s Chief Engineer and their relationship. Never did it occur to them as they enjoyed each other’s bodies that they would find themselves connected on a rescue mission. The other officers expressed their agreement. The tests had been designated secret by Space Fleet.
“Tomorrow our faster protocols might just throw the Guardians planned slowdown out of whack,” Steve said.
“Or they might fit exactly into their plans,” Devin pointed out.
“I say it’s none of the above,” Brad said. “I think our controller will stop them either way.”
“My apologies, love. I should not have doubted you. I agree completely.”
Kyle dismissed the officers. Everybody but Ronnie left, their rumbling stomachs telling them that it was almost dinner time. Kyle contacted Danny. “I’m ready for dinner,” he said. For the time being Ronnie would be eating with the family again.
“So am I. I’ll meet you and the boys in the X-room in fifteen minutes.” The X-room is what the crew had started calling the executive dining room.
<Don Nixon and Everett Belmont’s Quarters>
“Are you sure you want to do a slowdown with us being on a rescue mission?” Everett asked Don.
“Tomorrow is a good time,” Don said. “I mean, think about it. When we get to the Star Base it will take two or more hours to load and secure the generator, so doing the slowdown tomorrow won’t mean shit. Who cares if we get in late, we’ll still get out in good time if everybody works their asses off to get things secured.”
“I just don’t want it to look like we’re going to be late getting to the Liberty.”
“No matter what, we’ll be redlining when we’re in warp and will have to leave warp and cool down all the way to the rescue. One hour more won’t mean shit.”
“I get what you’re saying. I just wanted you to know what you’re thinking.”
“You know how bad I want to take over Kyle baby’s command. No way I’m gonna screw it up. But our captain has no clue that this delay won’t last more than an hour. But it will be a worthwhile hour if the crew can see him whining and crying. They’ll see one more example of why a little boy should not be in charge of a starship.”
“Who’s going to set the device?” Everett asked.
“Barney’s got the device. Him and Wade will be working together and Wade will take over control of the device once Barney sets it. Nobody but us knows that Barney is a Guardian, so him setting it up will work perfectly.”
“I know you said that’s the only thing we’re going to do before we get to the star base and locking the window covers closed is gonna happen after we’re a couple of days out. Will that do it?”
“We’ll see,” Don said. “Locking the covers is guaranteed to get Kyle baby to lose his cool and doing it shouldn’t slow the ship down. It’s a perfect idea.”
They were talking about metal window covers. Usually they don’t cover the windows, but they can be closed either as singles, in groups, or ship wide. They were made of metallurium tetracynate (trade name Gardol).
While looking out of a window eases the sense of claustrophobia that can work its way around a starship, the windows were not necessary for navigation purposes
“Do want to get off before we go to dinner?” Don asked.
“I don’t see why not. It will feel good and help our appetite,” Everett grinned.
The two young teens quickly stripped. Everett flopped on his bed and turned onto his right side. Don dropped onto his left. They pressed their bodies together, kissed, pressed their cocks together, and humped fast and hard. Thirteen-year-old Everett shot first, squirting his light juices over his partner and himself. Twenty seconds later fourteen-year-old Don did his thing, shooting his thicker emission over Everett and himself.
They agreed that cleaning themselves could wait until their end of the day showers. They rose from the bed, dressed, pissed, washed their hands, and headed to the dining room. Don didn’t care how he smelled. Everett was more sensitive about it but decided to follow the lead of his friend and mentor.
Dinner and the evening passed without anybody mentioning smell. They didn’t shower that evening; that could wait for morning. They slept naked together in Don’s bed but didn’t do anything sexual. With a good friend, sexual partner, and ally of his plan naked with him in bed, a Space Fleet admiral as his mentor, and a group ready to bring an incompetent captain to his knees, Donald Nixon had never felt better about life.
2100
<SS Liberty>
Captain Eric St. Pierre sat in his small office with his first officer, Commander Arnie Baker, and his second officer, Lieutenant Commander Sarah Penny, discussing the status of their ship.
“Thanks to our conservation efforts our battery power is holding up,” the captain said. “But for the most part it means mostly cold rations and one contact a day with HQ. Air is our biggest issue. We’ll be switching over to shuttle two’s air supply tomorrow.”
The Liberty had five shuttles. After the complete failure of the generator, shuttle one supplied air and water along with power to keep the ship’s battery charged. While good for longer in the confines of the shuttle, the shuttle’s air, water, and power would only last for two days at most. The big problem was that the battery could not supply the needed power to recycle the ship’s air and water.
The Liberty’s officers had considered abandoning ship and using the shuttles to reach Star Base 7. They consulted with Space Fleet, who told them that their computer estimates told them that their survival chances would be better if they stayed with the ship. The shuttles did not have the range needed for the trip.
And all the major problems they were facing would not be so challenging if it wasn’t for the fact that they were in an area of the galaxy that was just opening up to exploration. It was the reason that Star Base 7 was not yet a center of activity. It was the reason that the nearest starship was ten days away while the Liberty had eight days of water and air left.
To make matters worse, the Heinlein, their rescue ship, was an Explorer Program ship manned by children. St. Pierre knew that Admiral Ivanovich, the star base commander, intended to take command of the Heinlein. At least there would be a responsible officer on board to see that things were done right.
As the Liberty drifted aimlessly, Eric St. Pierre longed to collect his retirement check.
Next: To Star Base 7 (2)