“But we’re just one ship,” Tiller replied. “How exactly can we be expected to do much in a wartime situation?”
“One vessel can do a whole lot,” Corso replied, “and we have allies. We won’t be alone. Trust me. There’s a lot going on here, son. Some of it you’ll pick up along the way. The rest you’ll gather from briefings. But until then, I need you both to keep you minds open. This is not an assignment for bigots. There’s too much at stake for pettiness.”
“You’ve got the right people,” Vesper said. “We’re happy to be here.” She smiled, nudging Tiller with her elbow again. “This is what I’ve been talking about! This right here! A real purpose. A chance to do something good.”
Definitely not boring, Tiller thought. And new equipment to boot.
Corso led them into a small room directly off the hall. It was then that Tiller realized they hadn’t seen anyone on that deck. That seemed strange. Every other ship he visited had people running all over the place. What’s special about this area? He wanted to ask but kept his trap shut when he saw the Gunnery Sergeant waiting for them.
Tiller snapped to attention beside Vesper.
“I’m Gunnery Sergeant Kenzo Stefan. You call me Gunny. I know who you are. I don’t need an introduction. Today, we’re covering the basics of energy weapon tech and the armor you’ll be wearing. Fortunately for you, it’s simple enough that even an idiot can operate it. Basic familiarity will get you through the next assignment.
“Your records paint a positive picture and they better be real. You two will drill with the rest of your unit later. Right now, you’ll be providing backup when we go down to the surface. I’ve got a requisition order out for an additional twenty people. I got two.” Gunny cast a withering glare at Corso. “So we do what we can.”
“You’ll get the extra,” Corso said. “There’s a specific mindset we’re looking for.”
“I’ll beat whatever mindset is required into these people. Anyway. Come on. I’m taking you to the range. We’ll shoot some things while we’re in transit. The armor fits pretty much the same but has some additional benefits you won’t notice until you’re shot. Other than that, if you can see, you’ll be sufficient for the cause.”
“Welcome aboard,” Corso said. “And good luck.”
Seriously feel like we’re going to need it, Tiller thought. New gear… strange parts on the ship… Aliens. Jesus. He looked at Vesper. She didn’t appear to be remotely moved by the situation. In fact, he knew her expression well. Excitement. Yep. This is right up her alley. I’ll have to catch up.
“Gunny,” Vesper said, “are we at war? I mean, shouldn’t there be a formal declaration? Something the people know about?”
“We’re at damage control,” Gunny replied. “And we’d cause a hell of a lot more damage if we blurted this out to the public. Didn’t you take some astral… nonsense class?”
“Astral philosophy,” Vesper replied, “yes, sir. I did.”
“Then you know better than I do how people would react to this type of information, am I right? They’re not ready. Frankly, no one’s ready for it. Half our crew freaked out during the confirmation and that was after aliens saved our lives. Most of them have come around. Those who didn’t…”
“What?” Tiller asked. “What happened to them?”
“They’re assigned to the station out here,” Gunny replied. “Where they can come to terms with what they know without compromising everything. Like I said, we’re not ready to share this yet. High command’s working on it. Right now, we’ve got another job to do. And that job is to be ready.”
Vesper held up her hand. “For what, exactly?”
“This time? We’re not entirely sure. There’s a distress call, we’re answering it.”
“But if we don’t know what it’s about,” Tiller said, “then why are we going instead of some other ship? Like… a destroyer?”
“We’re the only vessel that can get there fast enough.” Gunny looked at him. “Why? You got better things to do?”
“No, sir.”
“Then let’s focus on getting you up to speed with our gear. I hesitate to call it a crash course but there’s no better way to say it. I’m giving you an hour and a half on the guns before you get settled in and relax the rest of the trip. We’ll be down in the hangar ready for departure after that. Any questions you have, save them for Hans. Alright. Here we are.”
He figured he wouldn’t have long to be freaked out. Certainly not when the Gunny started working them. At least I’ll sleep well tonight. Providing we survive. That cheery thought felt like the perfect step for his first assignment. Well. No boredom. That was the hope. And I got what I wanted. For good or ill.
Chapter 11
Niva continued browsing through the stolen Kahl data, looking for anything of real value. Besides the fact Renz had gone on some secret mission, everything looked fairly standard. Intelligence would be happy to get it. They could plan additional operations. Griel would remain fixed on his personal target.
Even if we can’t find him.
The decrypted data did not have a destination. That surprised Molush more than anyone. He was accustomed to the predictability of Kahl administration. It frustrated him enough to triple check the data to see if something had been corrupted. She let him go off on the tangent. It kept him busy.
A message came in from the Triton. That’s odd. “Commander, I’m picking up a message from the humans. They’re reaching out to us.”
“We’re on our way there now,” Griel said, “what could they possibly want? Go ahead and answer.”
“This is
