This Corner of the Universe (2 page)

Had
the tunnel been a rarer Type B tunnel, the trip would have been much shorter. 
These infrequent tunnels connected two star systems while still having
literally one entrance.  The distance between the two connecting systems was reduced
to zero.  When positioned at a Type B tunnel point, a starship could activate
its tunnel drive to create the tunnel effect and it would simply appear at the
connecting system immediately.  Consequently, star systems with a Type B tunnel
point were coveted and quickly became major economic and strategic
powerhouses.  Nearly all of the well-developed core systems had Type B tunnel
points.  For Heskan, the trip from Third Fleet headquarters in the Titan system
to Anthe, home of Task Force 3.2 under Rear Admiral McMurray, had been
instantaneous due to the Type B effect.

During
his travel to Narvi and technically while still on leave, Heskan tried to relax
as best he could but found it difficult.  He had never held a command billet
before and even though his years as first officer on board
Derringer
were
event-filled, the short time he had assumed actual command of the frigate was more
along the line of command by pure instinct rather than the methodical day-to-day
operations routine of a ship’s captain.  He had also had the majority of the
crew’s support when he assumed command, earned through his two years of hard
work as the first officer. 

Heskan
stared at the starscape on his cabin’s view screen without seeing it, lost in
thought. 
This will be different, a command I’ll have to build from scratch. 
The second I step on board Anelace, I’ll be “The Captain” and I can’t show any
doubt.   The Captain always knows what to do even when he has no idea what to
do.  Please, just let me have a good first officer and boatswain.  If I have
those two things, I’ll be fine.  If either one works against me, it’s going to
be a long patrol.
 

Heskan
had such problems earlier in his career.  As a lieutenant, junior grade (jg), a
petty officer second class had constantly undermined his authority in the
weapons section aboard
BRS
Fearless
and Heskan had been too inexperienced
to put the hammer down early to stifle it.  Yes, he had finally come around and
corrected the situation but not before months of problems and low morale in his
section. 
I won’t make that mistake again.  Hopefully, I’ll never have the
chance to.
  Promotions past petty officer first class were difficult to
come by and self-serving people such as that PO2 were usually “weeded out”
before attaining the higher rank. 
I
w
ish the same were true of
officer
s, Heskan thought ruefully
.  It seems the more politics enter
into promotion consideration, the more successful the “me-first” officer crowd is
in achieving promotion… and there’s a lot of politics in field and flag rank
promotions. 

Heskan
knew he had plenty of time before he had to worry about such things since he
was a mere lieutenant. 
A long way to go and besides, I don’t care about the
rank, I just want to be a good ship’s captain
.  His thought process had
come full circle as he re-opened
Anelace’s
crew files once again on his
datapad. 

The
Brevic Republic classified the Narvi star system as an outlying system.  It was
developed but only enough to support the sole habitable planet’s main economic
activity, agriculture.  The actual star of Narvi was an orange dwarf more
properly known as a K2V, an orange sun two-tenths toward a red main sequence
star.  With slightly less mass than the Terran sun, it also produced less heat
and emitted less light.  As a result, the habitable zone of the Narvi system
was closer to its star than was the case in the Terran system.  The first planet
in the system, Narvi-1, was actually hotter and drier than Terra but still
environmentally habitable for humans.  Since Narvi-1 could sustain human life
without extensive terraforming or domed cities, it was assigned a name by the
Brevic government, Hulda.  The two other, more distant planets in the system,
Narvi-2 and -3, were too cold and without breathable atmospheres and, hence,
proper names.

The
civilian Model D11 transport Heskan traveled in exited the tunnel point and
entered the Narvi system.  The brief sensation as time and space re-oriented from
tunnel space to normal space was nauseating even to the most experienced spacefarer. 
Seconds elapsed as the nausea passed and the ship’s computers rebalanced for n-space. 
A chime rang through the ship’s quarters and the transport captain’s voice came
over the speakers.  “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Narvi.  We are currently two
point four light-hours from Hulda and accelerating to our cruising speed of
point one-five light.  That makes our estimated docking time at her orbital sixteen
hours.”

Heskan
slept for half of those hours and then rose to eat a hearty breakfast and look
over his uniform.  While Lieutenant Durmont shared the same rank as Heskan, he
would have command authority over him by virtue of his position as a planet-side
commander. 
It’s a good thing Durmont’s a sharp officer because he’s going
to have to make do with a lot less now that he’s losing nearly half of his
system fleet.  He can’t be happy about that and hopefully he won’t take it out
on me.

The
atmospheric craft ride from the orbital station down to the surface of Hulda
was uneventful and the craft touched down at the port of the planet’s largest
city.  Heskan began sweating immediately as he stepped out of the artificially
regulated environment of the shuttle and into the blazingly hot sun.  Walking quickly
to the spaceport, relief washed over Heskan as he was once again introduced to
air conditioning. 
How the hell do they work outside in that heat?  Who in
their right mind would come here to farm?
 

Heskan’s
trip through the port took twenty minutes.  Fortunately, a passageway connected
the civilian port to the military port so he was spared another walk under the
brutal, orange sun.  Experiencing a quick feeling of déjà vu, Heskan paused at
the door to the office that would undoubtedly hold Durmont’s secretary. 
Let’s
not let the door slam this time, Heskan
, he thought as he entered quietly
with what he hoped was a confident stride.

The
secretary’s office proved empty.  Heskan quickly checked his watch to confirm
that he had arrived during the duty day and began to step toward a chair when
he heard a woman’s laugh from behind another door.  Puzzled, Heskan sat and
then tried his best not to eavesdrop.  The laughter died down and was followed
by low conversation between a male and a female voice.  Minutes later, the door
opened and a female lieutenant walked out of the room tucking her dress shirt
into her skirt.  “Bye, Shane, see you la—” the attractive lieutenant stopped
short upon seeing Heskan.  Immediately she dropped her arms to her side and
looked toward the exit, quickly moving to depart.

What
the hell?  Did that just happen?
 
Heskan stood and then moved toward Durmont’s open door.  “Hello?” he queried as
he poked his head into the office.  He watched as a male lieutenant quickly
moved around his desk to seat himself. 
Were his shoes off?
  “Uh,
Lieutenant Durmont?”

“Yes.
What is it?  Who are you?” Durmont barked. 

Heskan
slowly entered the office.  “I’m Lieutenant Heskan, Anelace’s new captain.”

“Why
don’t you try again, Lieutenant Heskan.”

What?
 
Try again? 
Dumbfounded,
he stated flatly, “Um, Lieutenant Heskan, reports for duty, sir?” refusing to
believe that someone equal in rank wanted him to report in formally.

“Has
the Brevic navy decided it’s no longer customary to salute when reporting in to
a commanding officer, Lieutenant?” A smug smile slowly appeared across
Durmont’s face.

Okay,
jerk, I can play this game
. 
Heskan braced to rigid attention and snapped a perfect salute.  “Sir,
Lieutenant Garrett Heskan reports as ordered.”  Heskan precisely held the tip
of his middle finger so it just brushed the corner of his right eyebrow. 

Slowly,
Durmont returned the salute and only then did Heskan allow his salute to drop. 
“You know it’s courteous to make an appointment and not just drop in on a
station commander, Lieutenant.  You interrupted a very important meeting with
another ship’s captain.  I don’t expect to see you again without a proper
appointment.”

Annoyed
but remaining at attention, Heskan said, “Of course, sir.  I could tell by the
look on her face the meeting must have been a vigorous one.  I bet it was quite
the affair.”  Heskan watched as Durmont’s face flushed an angry red.

“Well,
since you are here, we can discuss your operational orders.  Sit down, Lieutenant.”

Durmont
motioned Heskan to a seat. 
Smallest chair in the room and right in front of
his desk.  Why not just put a child’s chair here?
  “As I said, my orders
are to take command of Anelace and depart to Skathi with Whip.”  Heskan was
about to continue but closed his mouth as he saw Durmont’s head shaking.

“No,
no, no,” Durmont said in the tone of an adult lecturing a child.  “I’m changing
your orders.  Whip will remain in Narvi.”

“I
wasn’t aware that Admiral McMurray had changed…”  Heskan trailed off seeing Durmont’s
head shake once more.

“I,”
Durmont stated and tapped his chest to emphasize his point, “am changing your
orders, Lieutenant.  The situation in Narvi has changed and I can’t spare two
‘vettes to babysit a mining operation.  Whip stays put.  As planet-side
commander, I have authority to adapt orders from headquarters to the existing
situation.  Whip is too valuable where she is.”

Ten
guesses who commands Whip
,
Heskan thought irritably.  “Yes, sir, I’m sure her position under you is quite
important.”

Durmont
flushed again, opened his mouth and then closed it as if reconsidering what he
was about to say.  After a few seconds of pause, he started again.  “Lieutenant,
this is your first command, isn’t it?”

Heskan
bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from saying more and merely nodded.

Durmont
swiveled around in his chair to face the wall screen behind him.  The current
view was set to display what a normal window would show.  With his back to
Heskan, he spoke, “Let me explain how things work out here, son.” 

Son? 
I’m your age, you ass!

Durmont
continued, “I own this corner of the universe.  Pretty soon, I’ll be promoted
and own an even larger corner.  I keep regular correspondence with Commander
Davis on Tarvos and I have Admiral McMurray’s ear.  Both count on me to keep
them informed of how my ship captains are performing.  Of course, any negative report
usually results in the end of said captain’s command.  Are you reading me, Lieutenant?”

Heskan exhaled slowly. 
Don’t
say it, Heskan
.  “Yes, sir, you like to stay on top of your commanders while
continually judging their performance.” 
Oh well, it’s not as if he’s going
to like me anyway.

*  *  *

After
leaving Durmont’s office, Heskan had two hours before his shuttle would return
to Hulda’s orbiting station.  The local time was approaching early afternoon
and the temperature was an alarming one hundred twenty degrees Fahrenheit.  As
he meandered through the military portion of the spaceport, Heskan’s stomach
began to growl, forcing him to search for a suitable place to grab some local
food and drink.

Although
the majority of the crowd was military, a good portion was civilian and Heskan
was unsurprised to see that local fashion leaned toward long sleeves and
pants.  The variety of colors was great but almost all of the material looked
to be highly reflective. 
I guess living this close to the sun must be
terrible for the skin
, he thought.  He entered a restaurant called High
Noon and was seated at a booth near a large, polarized window.  The hostess linked
the menu to his datapad and retreated through double doors into the kitchen. 
What
the hell is a hamburger made from “real Fattle,”
Heskan wondered as he
browsed the local cuisine.  While deliberating between a Fattle Burger and homemade
Sand Soup, his datapad chirped.  Flashing on the screen was a voice comm
request from someone named Lieutenant Kelly Gary.  He opened the request with
the flick of his finger.

“Heskan,”
he said simply.

A
friendly soprano voice answered, “Hello, Lieutenant Heskan, my name is Kelly. 
I’m the commander of Stylet, one of the other corvettes in Narvi.  I happen to
be on Hulda and was wondering if you had time for a late lunch?”

Heskan
continued to scan the menu as he chatted.  “I’m glad you called, Kelly.  Lieutenant
Durmont didn’t give me much information on the other ‘vette captains and I was
wondering about you guys.  I happen to be ordering lunch right now.  I’m at the
mil-port in a place called High Noon.” 
Durmont really should have given me
some contact information for the other captains.  I know a lot of commanders
actually assign someone of approximately the same rank to help new personnel get
situated, make introductions to peers and answer basic questions.  Even if I am
banished to Skathi for half a year, I’ll eventually be back here and us ship
captains will be working together closely then.  A sponsor would have been
nice.

Gary’s
voice answered back without hesitation, “I can be there in about ten minutes.  A
word of advice, the Sand Soup is about as appetizing as it sounds.” 

Heskan
laughed and started to reply but found that Gary had already ended the
transmission. 

He studied
the menu for a few more minutes before deciding upon the Fattle Burger but told
the server that a companion would be joining him.  He then pulled up the
general personnel file for the current captain of
BRS
Stylet
. 
His datapad chugged for a couple of seconds retrieving the data and then
produced a service photo of an attractive brunette lieutenant.  Resting under
the photo was her full name, Kelly Elizabeth Gary, her rank, lieutenant, and her
dates of promotion; she had been a full lieutenant almost three years now and the
datapad listed her current and previous assignments. 
Hmmm, a sight-sprite,
he
thought
.  Lots of posts in sensor sections, a little time in operations like
me, then as a first officer and now her first command
.  Heskan then tapped
on his datapad to call up the specifications for
Stylet
. 
BRS
Stylet
was a Chaperone class corvette, currently undergoing three weeks of maintenance
at the orbital. 
I guess that explains what she’s doing planet-side
. 

A
voice from across the booth spoke, “She’s a good ship although a little nearsighted
compared to Anelace.”

Startled,
Heskan nearly dropped his datapad.  Looking up, he saw Lieutenant Gary sitting across
from him.  “Is Stylet as stealthy as you?  You nearly gave me a heart attack.” 
Heskan smiled and tried not to blush as he thought
, thank God she didn’t see
me staring at her photo. 
“How long have you been here?”

“About
four days.  Long enough for the hangover to wear off from the alcohol binge
necessary after spending time with Durmont.” 

Did
she intentionally avoid my question to spare me some embarrassment?
  “That’s a relief to hear.  I
thought I was the only one that held a special place in his heart.”

Gary
smiled playfully, “Oh no, another ‘vette captain already holds that position…
and probably a few others.”

Heskan
struggled to avoid spraying the ice water he was drinking.  “Yeah, I think I
met her… tall lieutenant, dark hair, has trouble keeping her shirt tucked in?”

“That
would be her, Lieutenant Stephanie Moore.  She and Durmont,” Gary paused to straighten
her back and lower her voice an octave before adding, “have important
counseling sessions necessary for the strategic administration of the security
of this system.”  Gary relaxed and finished, “I’m sure the entire Narvi system
is grateful for their sacrifices.”

Heskan
leaned back in the booth and listened.  He liked Gary immediately with her easy
manner and sense of humor.  She seemed like a kindred spirit out here on the
frontier and he hoped that they’d become trusted sounding boards for each other
and fast friends. 
Just my luck that I’m leaving the system for six months
,
he thought sourly.  “Well, that explains why Anelace is on her own in Skathi. 
Whip was supposed to travel with her,” Heskan shrugged.