Fubar Part 3

Neve quickly took stock of the room’s occupants. Captain Tril Hruk from Medical, Commander Nigel Clary from Navigation and Lt. Commander Shawn Ellery from Operations all stood at stiff attention facing Captain Fielding. Enchev, the only other officer she’d expected to see, was absent. None of the men acknowledged her with more than a glance and a slight nod.

As Xu entered behind her, she sectioned him off into a remote segment of her brain and strove to dull her awareness of him. The feat wasn’t too difficult. She figured her inexplicable, inappropriate fear of/attraction to the Graei officer couldn’t be as bad as whatever had put the marble-hard expression on her captain’s face.

“Captain Fielding,” Neve said by way of greeting and reporting for service. She took up a post next to the British navigation officer.

Tania Fielding pinned her with a narrow look. “Commander.”

The room fell into silence. Tania directed her attention past Neve’s shoulder, presumably making eye contact with Xu. Neve slid a glance sideways. Nigel Clary wore a blank expression, attentive but betraying nothing. Neve wasn’t sure whether he knew what was going on and possessed an excellent neutral face or whether he was a bewildered as she. Past him, Tril Hruk was even harder to read. Even if he hadn’t stood so much taller than she that she couldn’t see his face from her position, she would have had difficulty because the body language and facial tells of his race had not been among her cross-species studies. Continue reading Fubar Part 3…

Fubar Part 2

After leaving the lounge, Neve fled to the engine deck where sound surrounded her and white noise vibrated through her feet to her ears, muffling the erratic thump of her pulse. Steadfastly refusing to give her brain permission to look back and denying her body leave to react to what her eyes had seen, she threw herself into the gears and bolts that made Mercy run. Uniformed members of the crew worked at their stations, monitoring performance reports and attending to minor repairs as necessary. They looked up as she passed but none stopped her or questioned her presence.

By the time she reached the third sub-level, Lieutenant Dhaji Reese and Lt. Commander Mari Ekehardt were already waiting. Both officers stood at attention when she cleared the stairs.

“Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander.” She pitched her voice to carry through the engine’s drone. “The timeliness of the propulsion upgrade has become critical. I’ve alerted Captain Fielding that we will begin the process immediately. The timeline should span five hours provided we encounter minimal problems. Without the hyper-drive engines, we will have limited life support and mobility since the plasma plant will be carrying the load. It’s going to be crucial that systems are restored as quickly as possible but not so quickly that we make a mistake. You were both briefed on the installation process?”

Ekehardt nodded more quickly than Reese, a sign of her quick habit of agreeing first and asking for details later. “Lieutenant Enchev–”

“Lieutenant Enchev will not be assisting,” Neve said, aborting Ekehardt’s statement. Reese’s features remained expressionless as she delivered the announcement. Ekehardt, however, betrayed her surprise with raised eyebrows. As if to counter the telltale reaction, she pressed her lips together in a tight line. Neve ignored their reactions. “Without Lieutenant Enchev, we are divided into three instead of four. I will supervise–”

Continue reading Fubar Part 2…

Goodbye Neutral Territory (explicit)

Neve stared after the executive officer. She’d had little opportunity for one on one contact with him, as they frequented different sectors of the Mercy and served different shifts. When he did have occasion to be involved in her business, he issued communication via complink or ensign messenger. She wasn’t sure she enjoyed the experience of standing face to face with him, no other distractions present. Staring was unprofessional and Xu Scholen commanded a visual awareness she hadn’t been able to shake since their first meeting. Worse, shortly after the perfunctory introductions Tania had performed upon Neve’s assignment to the Mercy, Neve had indulged her curiosity and taken a closer look at Graei culture. She’d also promptly locked the door on that curiosity. Xu Scholen’s world was a world of sexual excess and intrigue, so dark it left her feeling uneasy just reading about it.

The same unease simmered in her stomach now. She should not harbor such strange fascination for the man. Her immediate supervisor. More than that: a prominent figure among the shadow-enshrouded Graei royal caste. If she didn’t have the buffer of professional relations to shield her–if she had encountered the dark-skinned aristocrat at a space station bazaar or pleasure dock–she would have ducked her head, shied away, and prayed for invisibility. Graei notice was not notice she wanted…in a professional capacity or otherwise.

Seeking distraction from her brief meeting with Xu, and in the interest of granting Enchev a fair chance to set the upgrade course in motion, she gathered herself and left the meeting room. The previous shift’s reports were queued in her docket. By the time she examined the data for activity that would require closer attention, Enchev would have either followed her orders or decided to stand for the consequences. On the way to her station, she retrieved the complink from her pocket and tucked it back into her ear, hoping for good news.

Continue reading Goodbye Neutral Territory (explicit)…

Emotionally & Ethically Compromised

Via the on-board tracking console located next to the lift, Neve located Grigori Enchev on the engine deck. She debated whether she should go to him or issue a summons to her station. Neither option afforded privacy but she refused to grant him access to her private quarters. Even West, whom she both liked and admired, was unwelcome there. Worrying her bottom lip, she tapped a series of access codes into the console and cross-referenced a floorplan of the systems deck with the ship’s heat map. A block of cold space drew her eye.

There. The spacious meeting room reserved for target-world representatives was equipped with both mediascreens and consoles to access the Mercy’s internal operations. She rerouted her course and headed for the meeting room. Halfway there, she touched the tiny transmitter at her ear and said, “Commander Enchev, please meet me at TWR immediately.”

He responded as soon as she released the transmitter. “Can’t. I’m currently occupied. Ma’am.”

Gritting her teeth, she smiled amiably at a passing colleague and said to Enchev, “Delegate. Your attendance is not optional.”

Continue reading Emotionally & Ethically Compromised…

Handbook of the Galaxy: I

HANDBOOK OF THE GALAXY

Note from the Publisher:

The Handbook is designed to give the reader an introductory look at some of the basic historical context and current mores of various cultures within the Galaxy. As such, it cannot, in any way, be considered a complete view of the Galaxy. Here we have tried only to provide a basic introduction for the lay reader, with the hope that any entries which spark the reader’s interest will lead to further research and study on that topic. It is the goal of this publication to present all sides of significant galactic debates, as well as provide balanced and fair reviews of individuals, races, religions, belief systems, educational systems, and other areas of interest.

If you believe there are factual errors in the text, please contact the Publisher at the address below:

ATTN: Handbook Errata
MS 3146
Rezcland Publishing
24912 Marp Bevnig
Vatera, Glognis 43720-65N
Pregzan Six, Scutum-Crux Beta

Continue reading Handbook of the Galaxy: I…

No Time for Seconds

Neve closed her eyes and pillowed her face in the crook of her arm, listening to the ever-present hum of the Mercy’s engines.

Her bed-mate kneaded a knotted muscle between her shoulders and murmured, “You’re still tense.”

“You’re looking for a reason to go again,” she mumbled. “No time for seconds.”

“Sex is a proven relaxant.” Dr. Richmond West worked the heel of his palm over the muscle. He succeeded at loosening it but the physical relief did nothing to distract her from problems she had to solve outside his quarters. And now that she had allowed them back into the front of her mind, she couldn’t shake them again.

Continue reading No Time for Seconds…