“Ma’am—”
“I served a duty rotation as an engineering specialist,” Tehrani interjected. “It’s eight jumps back. As long as we observe the cooldown period—”
“With respect, ma’am,” Hodges interrupted, his eyes flashing with anger, “this ship is thirty years old. Our drives haven’t been through a full refit cycle in eight years, thanks to military budget cuts. You’re risking the lives of everyone aboard.” He crossed his arms.
The outright hostility from her chief engineer shocked Tehrani. He’d always been a bit arrogant, but his current attitude was new. “Major, your objections are noted.” For a moment, she considered dismissing him, but given the forcefulness of his protest, he apparently had a genuine concern. “What would you have us do? Canaan is under attack. We need to get there and join the fight.”
“My sister lives there, Colonel. I know the stakes as well as you. It doesn’t matter if we smear our atoms across two light-years when the ship explodes coming out of a wormhole. I tried to give my recommendation to the XO earlier.” He cast a dirty look in Wright’s direction. “But he rebuffed me.”
Tehrani forced herself not to sigh. “Gentlemen, I don’t have time for your petty bickering. You’ve both demonstrated a lack of respect for the other during the last six months. I’ve tried managing it softly, but guess what. The rules just changed. Either solve this, or I’ll tell you how to work with each other until I can get replacement officers.” Her voice took on the quality of ice. “Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Wright replied crisply.
“Yes, ma’am,” Hodges echoed a moment later.
“With that out of the way… what is your recommendation, Major?”
“Only one jump per ninety minutes. It’ll delay our arrival at Canaan by four hours, but it’s the best we can do, and it still give us the ability to double jump at a critical juncture.”
“Very well. That’s what we’ll do.” Tehrani had learned a long time ago never to second-guess the chief engineer. Push them, yes, but once the ruling came down, accept it as gospel. He or she was almost always correct. “Anything else, gentlemen?”
Silence met her question.
“Very well. You’re dismissed.”
While the senior staff met and the aviation crew worked on rearming the fighters in the hangar, the Alpha-shift enlisted personnel and pilots enjoyed some off time. Justin was among them—after he’d attempted to use the ship’s communication system to call his wife, Michelle, who lived with their children back on New Washington. After the third attempt, Lieutenant Singh politely reminded him that EMCON Alpha was engaged, and violating it was a felony offense under the Universal Code of Military Justice.
Justin brought a meal back to his quarters and consumed it quietly. As he did, he tried to make sense of the day, processing the images of actual combat again and again. Fighters and bombers exploded in front of his eyes, destroyed by his hand. The Spencers weren’t particularly a military family. His father hadn’t served, but his grandfather joined in the opening years of the Saurian Wars, starting in 2376. He recalled the stories of flying unshielded fighters into the teeth of Saurian defenses and the heroic deeds of his grandfather’s squadron.
All of it had led to Justin deciding to join the CDF when he was eighteen. It had seemed like a great way to pay for his college education, see the galaxy, different planets, and areas of space, and enjoy his early twenties. I should’ve realized that signing up for the military meant I might have to fight. Justin’s mind drifted away to the day before he’d deployed for the two-week tour they were on—what was supposed to be his last duty assignment.
New Washington—Spencer Residence
Terran Coalition
12 September 2433
Justin opened his eyes to find his four-year-old daughter, Margaret—whom he called Maggie—standing next to the bed, nearly at eye level. As the mental grogginess cleared, he mumbled, “Good morning.” The bedroom door was ajar, and he vaguely remembered that they had plans to go to the park after breakfast.
She jumped on him. “Good morning, Daddy!” Maggie bounced up and down between Justin and Michelle.
“Munchkin, it’s six in the morning,” Michelle said wearily. “Do you think you could go brush your teeth and let Mommy and Daddy wake up?”
“Are we going to the park?” Maggie asked brightly, as if it were the only thing that mattered.
“Of course we are. I wouldn’t miss it for the world!” Justin replied. He grabbed her and pulled her to him in a giant hug. “Now, do what Mommy said, and we’ll make breakfast in a few minutes.”
“Okay!” Maggie shouted then bounced out of the king-size bed and into the hallway, singing as she went.
“Oh, she is so your daughter.” Michelle laid her head on Justin’s chest. “Are you looking forward to your two-week vacation tomorrow?”
“Vacation? Really?” he replied playfully.
“Oh, come on. You’re going to zoom around the galaxy, going crazy fast in a small fighter, and probably get to shoot up some asteroids or a comet. Yeah, that’s a vacation. Meanwhile, I’ll be getting her to school every morning and staying home by myself, while working full time.”
Justin raised an eyebrow. “It’s not a vacation,” he replied. “But I’ll enjoy parts of it.”
“Uh-huh. Like all of it.”
“Do you know what I’ll enjoy the most?”
“What?”
“Coming home to you and Maggie.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head.
She giggled in reply. “You are so sweet and romantic. Almost cloyingly so.”
“It’s why you married me, right?”
“That, and who can resist a man in uniform.”
Justin rolled his eyes. “And on that note, I’m getting a shower.” He moved out of bed and stood. “Are you coming with us to the park?”
“Yeah. They just opened up that new bike path. You can take her to the fountains while I get some exercise.”
“Deal.”
Twenty minutes later, Justin was shaved, showered, and dressed. He selected a pair of shorts that came to his knees and a purple T-shirt to
