rather suggestive photos of you and that slut you screwed in the anteroom tonight.”
“Still running image patrol for Dad, huh Eli?” Nathan knew it was the wrong thing to say even as it passed his lips. Eli had always wanted to follow in their father’s footsteps and enter politics himself. But Eli had not been the son blessed with the natural charm required for public life. So the senator’s oldest son had been forced to spend his career chasing their father and putting out his fires. It was a sour pill for Eli to swallow, and Nathan was sure that it had always been the primary cause of their ongoing feud.
“At least I’m not trying to ruin it,” Eli accused. “So, who was she?”
“None of your damned business.”
Eli was obviously exasperated at Nathan’s attitude. “Why did you even show up, Nate?”
“I was invited.” Hmm, sarcasm, another bad choice.
“Still the troublemaker, I see.”
“Better than being a kiss-ass,” Nathan responded in a matter-of-fact tone. He was already on a roll, so he figured there was little use in stopping now.
“I would’ve thought the Academy would break you of that habit.”
“Funny how that habit only seems to surface when I’m around family.”
“Then why don’t you do us all a big favor and just stay away. Or at least keep your attitude under control until after the election. Do you think you can do that much for your family?”
Nathan wanted to say something more, a lot more. In fact, what he really wanted to do was to punch Eli right in his smug mouth. But there were cameras everywhere, and the car that would take him away from this circus once and for all was pulling into the long circular driveway.
Nathan turned around and stepped up to Eli, standing right in his face and giving him a stone cold stare, the same one he had learned to use when standing at attention during inspections at the Academy. It took Eli by surprise, and for a moment he was unsure what to expect. He had never before seen such a stern look in Nathan’s eyes.
Nathan took his brother’s hand firmly and shook it once. “Give my best to your family, Eli.” He let go of Eli’s hand and gave him what appeared to onlookers as a brotherly hug. Eli’s hands dangled at his sides in disbelief as Nathan whispered in his brother’s ear. “So long, asshole.”
Nathan released his still shocked brother and stepped aside to smile and wave at the cameras that were watching from the walkway near the main house. Then he turned and got into the back seat of the car that had just pulled up behind him.
And that, is the last time I’ll have to play that game.
CHAPTER 2
Despite a slight hang-over, Nathan arrived at the Academy Flight Complex bright and early. The previous night’s events had only served to remind him of how desperately he wanted to leave it all behind and start anew. Today, he would leave the surface of the Earth, not to return for several years. It was the perfect way to begin his new life.
The complex was unusually busy that morning, as most of the graduates from the Academy’s North American campus were also departing for new assignments. As he worked his way through the crowd, he saw many familiar faces, as they bid farewell to fellow graduates and underclassmen. It had been a long four years for them all, during which most had formed significant bonds.
The graduates were leaving everything they knew behind, only to be cooped up inside big, metal, high-tech boxes hurtling through space. It was both exciting and frightening at the same time. All these young men and women, from every walk of life and every corner of the North American continent. Each for their own reasons had left their lives and their loved ones behind. They had endured exhaustive education and grueling physical training. And many of them had failed along the way, forced to return home in disgrace.
And it wasn’t just on this continent. There were similar scenes playing out on Fleet Academy campuses in both Europe and Asia. Each of them were turning out hundreds of graduates per year. And still it was only a fraction of what was needed for the Earth to build an adequate defense. For the Jung controlled the resources of four of the six core worlds, as well as many of the lesser colonies out on the fringe.
But still the volunteers came in droves each year. And those not accepted to the Academy contributed in other ways. As ground forces, trained to defend against surface assault. Or as workers and technicians, who built the ships needed to defend the Earth from space. But they all shared the same sense of purpose. They were defending their burgeoning homeworld as it rose from a thousand years of darkness and despair.
As he waited in line to check-in, Nathan thought about his Academy roommate, Luis. They had become the best of friends during their time at the Academy. And Nathan was quite certain that he would not have graduated had it not been for his friend's support. Luis had been assigned to the Intrepid as a Tactician and Weapons specialist. But since the Intrepid was not due back for a few weeks, he had chosen to spend time with his family in South America before departure.
Nathan had envied Luis in that sense. He had such a strong and supportive family. They had been from a relatively remote and impoverished area. And they had yet to reap the full benefits that the knowledge found on the Data Ark had already bestowed upon the more populous regions. Had it not been for the exhaustive efforts of fleet recruiters, Luis’s unique gifts might never have been added to the fleet’s growing ranks. And Nathan would’ve missed out on a very important friendship.
“Next!” The voice interrupted Nathan’s reminiscence.
“Ensign Scott, Nathan R,” he reported to the officer at the check-in desk before reading off his service number. “I’m scheduled for the next shuttle up to the Reliant.”
The duty officer punched in Nathan’s information, pausing to compare his face and description against the one displayed on his computer screen.
“I’m sorry, Ensign. But it seems there’s been a slight change in your orders,” the officer reported.
“Sir?” Although this kind of thing was not uncommon, it still caught Nathan by surprise.
“You’re still scheduled for departure, but not to the Reliant.” The officer looked up at Nathan, smiling. “You’ve been reassigned to the Aurora.”
“The Aurora? But I thought she wasn’t even in service yet.”
“They bumped up her trials. She’ll be underway within a week or two. That’s probably why you got reassigned. She needs crew and the next class won’t graduate for six months.”
Nathan wasn’t sure what to think. He had been studying the specifications on the Reliant for weeks. He had even spent extra time in the simulator familiarizing himself with her flight characteristics. He didn’t know anything about the Aurora, as most of her specs were still classified.
The duty officer noticed Nathan’s dismay, and tried to help. “Hell, you should be happy. The Reliant’s a slow old girl. She can barely make half light. I hear the Aurora’s FTL’s will get her up to ten times light. You’re going to be traveling faster and farther than anyone has in nearly a millennium!”
“Yes sir,” Nathan responded, bewildered by the thought. He had wanted to get away from Earth, and this would surely do it.
The Orbital Assembly Platform was the largest structure to be constructed in space since the recovery began. Positioned in high orbit, the platform was capable of building or repairing two ships simultaneously. Nathan remembered that the facility had been constructed more than a decade earlier, just after the Earth had learned of the Jung Dynasty’s take-over of the core systems. Since then the platform had produced six ‘Defender’ class warships, starting with the Reliant.
Those ships had since seen a few upgrades, including improved sub-light propulsion systems as well as more powerful rail guns. Many had wanted to fit them with the new faster-than-light propulsion systems that had been constructed using designs found in the Data Ark. But giving the heavy warships FTL capability was a hotly contested issue on Earth these days.
The compromise had been the construction of two new ships, the Celestia and the Aurora. Both were in the final stages of construction, and were due to begin their shakedown cruises within a few months. These new
