We’re going to have to bring a whole new group of fighters into existence. As you can see, it has become a problem of the first magnitude, but it is not your problem. We will deal with it.”
“Actually, as First Knight, it might very well become my problem. I might insist that it does. We’ll see.”
The training was everything Otis promised and more. The men were issued stun guns in addition to their personal blasters. Stunning was the preferred method of defending one’s self in the training area, otherwise the whole area would become devoid of life. If a blaster was used by mistake, penalties in the time-honored form of extra physical training befell the unlucky soldier.
Target practice with all manner of weapons was the primary goal of the first month of training. Everyone’s aim was expected to be perfect, whether it be a gun, a knife, or any number of other Empire weapons, most of them simple and old fashioned rather than highly technical and modern. Hand to hand combat was practiced to a certain degree, but the humans could not match the strength of the cats and didn’t have to find out the hard way to know it. Instead, hand to hand focused primarily on identifying the most sensitive zones on many different alien bodies and the weakest spots on body armor.
Early on, Josh’s men paired up with Otis’ cats into teams consisting of six Great Cats and six Terrans, as the men from Earth began calling themselves. The teams proved to be too large and unwieldy and were soon divided in half, doubling the number of teams, each consisting of three cats and three Terrans.
About one-tenth of the cats were Protectors, the rest Guardians, but the Terrans could detect no differences between them and were not told who was which.
To everyone’s surprise, guard duty became the most hotly sought after activity among the Terrans, so much so that Josh had to work out a rotation among his men to ensure everyone spent at least a minimum amount of time in the classroom. All manner of creatures lurked in the wild, but the greatest challenge came from the cats themselves. Cats from the instructor cadre roamed at will, and they took pleasure in surprising the unwary. Josh’s men quickly tired of being made to look inept, always on the losing end of the Great Cat’s sneak attacks and. With his permission, they began actively patrolling the surrounding countryside and setting up ‘hide sites’ from which they could warn others. The hide sites, when constructed properly, and Josh’s men were superb at the task, virtually blended into the surroundings. The instructors soon found themselves forced farther from the main group, and they were eventually forced to plan coordinated attacks in order to get through.
The Terrans had brought Ghilley suits with them from Earth and spent every spare moment preparing themselves to blend in with the countryside. It became a game for both sides, sometimes a dangerous game as many cats and Terrans fell to stunners, but in the end Josh’s men proved their mettle against these cunning teachers.
Otis changed tactics during the third week, sending out six-man/cat teams instead of just the Terrans. There was some disgruntlement among Josh’s men following this announcement – competition had been fierce among the men on the teams, to the point that wagers had become commonplace.
Mike, a hunter since childhood and anxious to prove his mettle, got plenty of opportunity to learn the basics. His team, consisting of himself, Josh, and Sergeant Jacobs, was paired up with Otis, Jessie and one other Great Cat. At Otis’ insistence, knowing that Mike and Josh would spend more time around the Queen than any of the rest and that they might someday find themselves cut off from other support, they focused on the basics: marksmanship and small team tactics. They patrolled, but they spent little time in the hide sites.
Mike clearly dragged down his team’s performance. He was no match for Josh or Jacobs, both tough veterans of many missions, both hardened warriors. No one was surprised: there was just no way he could catch up on their years of experience, nor was he expected to. But as he had aboard ship, Sergeant Jacobs never let up on him, always demanding better performance. And he got better, much better. In addition to improving his skills, Mike got tougher. Gone were any vestiges of underlying fat from his many months aboard ships. He was in better shape than most soldiers on Earth, and he became reasonably well-skilled in the basic skills needed by Protectors.
The Terrans had brought advanced thermal vision goggles with them from Earth, and the goggles proved extremely helpful. The Great Cats had for eons depended on natural selection to hone their skills, preferring to operate unencumbered by advanced technology. They quickly found themselves at a distinct disadvantage in the dark. Though they could move faster and more quietly, they could not see as well as the Terrans. Josh’s men, on the other hand, had specialized for years in night fighting and were as comfortable working in the dark as they were during the daytime. They, in fact, preferred the advantages offered by darkness.
In addition to hand signals, the Terrans and Great Cats developed a fairly refined vocabulary of simple commands. At Josh’s urging, Otis agreed to equip everyone with miniature earpieces, thereby bringing the Terrans’ hearing abilities to a level with the cats. Whispered commands, even in the dark, previously only heard by the cats, kept the whole team in the loop. The Terrans’ night vision advantage, coupled with the cats’ hearing and daytime vision advantages, produced great respect among the instructors, something Otis himself had not foreseen. The mixed teams truly offered advantages, even without the likes of the Chessori to stir up the pot.
The final week of the first month was spent entirely in the field. Individual teams spread out over many square miles planning, executing, and defending against attack.
They moved to different quarters for the second and final month of their training. The new quarters were a partial replica of the Palace on Triton, with vast rooms, smaller personal chambers, and many, many corridors. The training was intense as they focused on learning skills they would need among the civilized worlds, some simple, some highly complex. By the time Otis was done with them, they knew how to operate doors and food dispensers, how to fly and fight from air cars, and they practiced clearing corridors, stairways, and rooms one by one, all the things necessary to find, protect, and remove the Queen from danger.
A full, heavy squadron of Chandrajuski’s ships arrived as their training ended. The ships were staffed with a number of Trexler’s Terran pilots and gunners still learning to work the ships. If the Chessori attacked again, these ships would do their best to hold off the enemy until help arrived.
Mike, tanned, fit, and much more confident of his own personal abilities, followed his men as they boarded another of Serge’s cargo ships for his return to Shipyard and Ellie. His vacation was over; it was time to start looking at the big picture again. He didn’t know what had transpired in the seven months since he’d left Shipyard, but he knew that things never stood still around Ellie. He fully expected to be thrust right back into crisis after crisis. That was okay, provided Ellie was by his side. A long and dangerous road lay ahead, yet a grin of satisfaction found its way to his face as he stepped over the threshold into the ship.
K rys
Chapter Fifteen
The arrival of Buskin’s squadron at Shipyard brought instant attention from ground controllers. As soon as they emerged from hyperspace, they were challenged. Otis had not given Buskin a password, but it turned out that he didn’t need one. The Great Cat Borg came on the communications link, and his loyalty was not questioned. He was told that they needed to go to Parsons’ World instead. That added another few days through hyperspace. When they completed the last jump to Parsons’ World, they were astounded. Many, many Empire ships were spread throughout the system, and they were acting oddly, as if they were in training. Some looked like they were fighting, but no shots were being fired.
Borg came on the communicator again and they were cleared in, but they picked up an escort of two squadrons during the final week.
Buskin’s squadron was not permitted to land. An inspection team came aboard, then Rappor was permitted to land while the rest of the ships remained in orbit. Rappor left her berth on the cruiser with only Buskin and Krys’ crew aboard.
Six Great Cats, three from Rappor and three of the Queen’s Protectors, met at the bottom of the ramp, then Ellie approached the ship escorted by Admiral Jons. Krys, very uncertain of herself, walked down the ramp by herself to welcome the Queen. The moment Ellie saw her, she screamed and ran to the ramp with her arms open wide. Krys, too, opened her arms, and the two embraced.
Ellie stood back from her. “You’re older. I knew you would be, but it’s still a surprise. You look well, my daughter.”
“You haven’t changed at all,” Krys blurted out. “Still as beautiful as always. I feel like I’m home again,
