When I woke up I was confused and lost. I felt all kinds of strange; physically, mentally, even emotionally.
Years of training had me clamping firmly down on any emotional consideration. I forced myself to tense and relax my major muscle groups sequentially, taking stock of my body.
What I discovered shocked me greatly. And, to be honest, scared me a little.
And I had never been one to be scared.
My body didn't hurt. Anywhere.
Pain had been my constant companion for almost three decades. Osteo and Rheumatoid Arthritis, more than a hundred broken bones, 8 orthopedic surgeries, numerous dislocations, sprains, strains, and tears had taken quite a toll on me.
The lack of pain had me examining every part of my body that I could without drawing attention to myself. I was still uncomfortable, not trusting what was going on.
What I found surprised me.
Not only did I not hurt anywhere, I felt great; and stronger than I ever had in my entire life. I could breathe again! I felt absolutely no traces of the COPD that had been plaguing me for around a decade.
Further shock and confusion came from the fact that I now had a full set of REAL teeth, not dentures.
What in hell is going on? I asked myself rhetorically.
But what was really bugging me was that I felt so, well, YOUNG again.
Based on the fact that I wasn't going to learn any more just laying here and the fact that I was confident that I was in good enough condition physically to handle whatever came my way, I decided to 'wake up' and examine my environment.
My eyes were actually quite crusty with sleep.
After sitting up and cleaning my eyes, I was interrupted before I could start examining my surroundings.
"Welcome back to the land of the living, sleepy head," a warm, feminine voice teased. "I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to wake up. I guess there are SOME ways you are a typical teenager."
I turned to find a brunette woman who appeared to be in her early thirties. And my mind was screaming 'MILF!' at me.
She was about 5'2" or 5'3", 130, and very curvy.
When I stood up, my body autonomically stretched exaggeratedly from laying down too long.
The woman blushed furiously.
"I guess there is another way…" she trailed off unable to finish her sentence. And she was equally unable to pull her eyes away.
I looked down to see what she was staring at.
Oh shit! And that's why I had never worn boxers!
I had 'morning wood' and it was announcing itself through the fly of the boxers.
'What the HELL?!'. I thought as I looked at my manhood. 'When had I ever been that well endowed?'
"Uh, sorry, I, uhm, just woke up," was all I could say.
"Apparently. Just, uh, put that thing away and get ready," she replied distantly, still unable to look away.
I had always been comfortable with nudity, so this didn't exactly bother me. And the fact that she wasn't looking away had a rather pronounced effect.
I got harder. And it caused the woman to whimper. Not being able to stop myself, I made it jump.
This was too much and it caused her to come to her senses.
"Put it away and get ready. We are on approach," she ordered, trying to sound stern. Unfortunately for her, the lust in her eyes completely took any possible sting out of it.
I looked around the room. It looked like the cabin on a cruise liner or something. There was even an open door to a bathroom. And open luggage.
Never one for passing up opportunities, I decided to take a shower while it was available. Completely ignoring the woman, I stripped off the boxers and t-shirt I had been wearing.
"What do you think you are doing?" she demanded.
"What you told me to do," I replied non-challantly. "Taking a shower and getting ready." Not waiting for a response, I walked int the bathroom and turned the shower on. I purposely did not closing the door.
When the shower was warm enough, I got in. Typically, the shower was not nearly big enough for me.
Whatever was going on, and no matter what had been 'fixed', I was my normal size of six foot six. I would have to guess that I was heavier than my usual 240 pounds, just because of how much more muscle mass I had now.
Thankfully, the shower did have a hose so I didn't have to scrunch down to wash my hair.
When I got out, the woman had left the cabin. Examining the luggage, I assumed that it was 'mine' since the clothes would fit me. Unfortunately, I only found boxers in the way of underwear, so I put a pair of them on. I dressed in a pair of jeans and a pull-over shirt, with a pair of duty type boots.
I gathered what seemed to be the 'dirty' clothes and packed them appropriately and closed up the luggage.
Not having anything else to do, I left the room to see what I could find out.
Outside of the room I found a corridor. And several doors that were identical to mine and evenly spaced down the corridor in both directions.
My initial impression of a cruise liner seemed pretty accurate.
I started walking, content to explore at a sedate pace. It didn't take me long to find out just how wrong my impression had been. At least in some aspects.
I was on a liner of sorts, just not one that I was expecting. Or I even thought possible, for that matter.
We were in space!
"Mister Hawk?" a young woman asked. She was wearing what I took as the uniform of the ship's crew.
"Yes?" I asked in reply.
"Your Guardian, Miss Kinzer, asked me to inform you that if you have completed your packing you may join her in the observation lounge off the bridge," she stated.
"Yes. Please, lead the way," I stated, hoping to not give myself away.
I still had no idea what had happened to me or was going on. My plan was simply to 'go with the flow' until I got some answers. I didn't want to rock the boat until I had more of an understanding of my situation.
The 'stewardess' led me to the observation lounge.
"Thank you," I said sincerely.
Entering, I found my 'Guardian' along with about ten or so others waiting inside.
"I figured that you wouldn't waste time in getting here for this, Alex," she teased.
"Yeah, I couldn't stay away from you any longer," I quipped back. This caused her to blush profusely, especially since some of the others had obviously heard it as well.
When I was closer to her, she playfully slapped my hand. "You are a SCAMP!" she said, trying to be quiet.
"And you love it," I returned at the same volume.
She tensed, then forced herself to relax, purposely turning to watch the Bridge.
I looked as well, needing answers.
We were coming up to a planet, and although it was similar, the land masses were clearly not those of the planet that I called home.
I had to admit though, space was beautiful. I could definitely get used to being here. Watching the Bridge crew operate truly was fascinating for me and I intently watched everything they did closely while still watching the view outside the ship.
Even the flames of re-entry were beautiful and exhilarating for me. It did have a more somber effect on some of those in the Observation Lounge though. I could even smell the fear from two of them.
Once we landed, my 'Guardian' ushered me up from our seats and out of the lounge.
"Let's go, Alex. Your future awaits," she said with a smile.
When we got to the passenger exit, there was a steward waiting with our luggage. I was rather surprised by how much luggage there was. Even some boxes.
"Ma'am, the rest will be delivered per your instructions," the steward informed her.
"Thank you," she replied before gesturing him to follow us.
When we entered the terminal, there was a woman in a uniform that I was shocked to realize that I recognized.
'No FRAKKING way!' I thought.
She was holding a sign that was typical for meeting people you did not personally know in a transportation terminal. It read 'Janet Kinzer/Alexander Hawk'.
"I guess she is here for us?" I stated with a chuckle.
Janet looked at me strangely. "That was the entire point of bringing you here, wasn't it?" she asked with naked sarcasm. "To get you tested and try to get into a Viper?"
Hiding my surprise, I simply nodded.
When we went up to the woman wearing the uniform of the Colonial Fleet, Janet spoke.
"That's us, Lieutenant," waving at herself, me, and the luggage cart.
"Welcome to Queenstown, Picon. I am Lieutenant Beth Nichols, and I will be your guide and contact while at Fleet Headquarters," she said in introduction, while eying the amount of luggage questioningly.
Janet chuckled. "This is literally everything that Alex owns. I am quite confident that this will be successful," she stated with utter confidence.
"I will take your word for it, Miss Kinzer. But, to be honest, there isn't a need for it or room for it at this time," Lt. Nichols informed her bluntly but neutrally.
"What will he need for now?" Janet asked.
"You both will need clothing for about a week, as well as hygiene and personal items," Nichols replied.
"Both of us?" Janet asked with surprise. "I was unaware that I would be involved," she added.
"Yes, Miss Kinzer. My understanding is that Mister Hawk is still a minor," she looked at me questioningly as she said this. "As such, he must be accompanied by his legal guardian throughout the testing."
"I don't actually have to do all that, do I? Just be present?" Janet asked with concern.
"No, Ma'am. Just be there. You have already signed the required permission and release forms."
After we sorted the luggage, Janet had the steward take the remainder to wherever the rest of Janet's things were.
We road in something very similar to a HMMW-V (Humvee), and twenty minutes later were at a typical entry gate into a military installation. The Lt. showed her ID to the sentry and Janet showed him her ID and some legal documents.
The sentry briefly looked at the documents then waved us through.
We drove to a building that had a sign that read 'Colonial Fleet Application and Testing, Headquarters Division'.
After entering, we were met by a Master Chief.
"Lt. Nichols, I presume that since he is with you, this is who I am supposed to take through full testing?" the older man asked gruffly.
"Yes, Master Chief," Nichols stated simply.
"I thought that I was supposed to be testing a fourteen year old," he replied gruffly.
"He IS fourteen," Janet stated in a tone that I didn't quite pick up.
Mainly because I was too stunned at the fact that I was supposedly fourteen again!
What the actual hell?
"This guy is FOURTEEN?" the salty veteran asked in disbelief.
"Yes, he is," Janet retorted stubbornly, shoving some papers in the Master Chief's face.
The Master Chief just pushed them away. "I will take your and the Lt.'s word for it, Ma'am." He turned to me. "Well, ain't you a big'un? It will actually make the physical part of the testing more straight forward. I was going to do it first, but I will have the written testing done first."
"Why is that, Master Chief?" Nichols asked curiously.
He chuckled wryly. "Simple, conduct the part of testing that the candidate is most likely to fail, first. Then I ain't wasting anymore of my time than is absolutely necessary, and I can get back to my actual job of training young officers," he replied unabashedly.
Janet just laughed at the crusty veteran. "You are wasting your time with that thinking," she told him heatedly.
He just gave her an indecipherable look before continuing.
"If you will follow me," he stated more as an order before walking off. He led us to an office that read 'Aptitude and Equivalency Testing'. Entering he looked at the Petty Officer behind the desk.
"Jablonsky, get this kid tested. The works." The Master Chief ordered roughly before practically stomping out, not even waiting for a response.
"Well, I guess we should get you tested then," the young woman said jovially, unaffected by the Master Chief."Do you have the documentation?" She asked, looking back and forth between Janet and me.
But it was Lt. Nichols who pulled a packet from a briefcase that I hadn't realized that she been carrying and handed it to the Petty Officer.
"This is everything you need, Petty Officer, and it has already been verified by Admiral Corman's office and the Judge Advocate General," Nichols informed her.
The young Petty Officer had arched an eyebrow at this and started going through the packet. "This will take me a bit if you all would care to take a seat," she said, gesturing to a sofa and chairs set up as a waiting area.
"Can you please tell me where a restroom is?" I asked, really wanting some time alone to process everything.
She gave me directions and I excused myself.
I was thinking about everything that I had seen and experienced and wasn't really paying attention to where I was going. When I walked into the bathroom and I just walked up to the sink. Out of habit, I looked in the mirror.
And I froze up completely. I wasn't even aware of the scream that came from behind me.
Some time later, I woke up lying the a cold, hard floor and to an upset woman knelling by my head.
"Good. You are finally awake. Now, would you care to tell me why you are in the women's restroom?" she asked pointedly.
"Women's Restroom?" I asked in confusion. "Oh, damn! I didn't mean to, Ma'am! I am SO sorry!" I said truthfully. "Do you know what happened to me?"
"When I first saw you, you were looking in the mirror, but then you froze up. Even before an Ensign screamed like a little girl," she added, clearly chastising the guilty party who was out of my sight.
"Then you passed out and here we are. Are you OK? I don't think that you hit your head when you fell, but I think that I should check you out," she said in what I had to call a 'professional' tone.
"I think I am fine. I just got a little out of sorts after my trip here," I said trying to diffuse the situation and buy a little time to process what I now 'knew'.
I had the knowledge and memories that I had woken up here with. The fifty year life I had lived before. But now I also had the memories and knowledge of the fourteen year life that I had lived up to this point in this 'universe' or whatever this was.
"I should probably get back to my guardian," I said reasonably. "She is probably getting worried by now."
"Your 'guardian'?" The woman asked me in confusion.
I realized that she was wearing a Fleet uniform. With Major's pips. She looked pretty young for a Major. In fact, she didn't look as old as Nichols did.
"Yes, Ma'am, I am here for testing, but I am still technically a minor," I told her in a tone what I thought about being a 'minor'.
"You are underage?" somebody I couldn't see behind the Major asked in shock.
"I'm fourteen," I replied blandly.
"Where is your guardian?" the major asked, ignoring my age for the moment.
"With Lt. Nichols in the Aptitude and Equivalency Testing office," I answered.
She nodded then stood up, holding her hand out to help me up. I took her hand, but didn't exactly let her help me much. She noticed but didn't comment.
"Ensign, may I presume that you aren't worried about a lost teenager?" the Major asked the ensign who had apparently been the one to scream at a male being in the restroom. "I would highly suggest that you get that under control, Ensign, because only in areas with public access are the restrooms separated in Fleet," she added pointedly.
"Understood, Major," she replied uneasily.
The Major then physically guided me out of the restroom and back to the testing office.
Upon entering the office, the Major located Lt. Nichols and Janet.
"Lt. Nichols, I presume? And you must be this young man's guardian?" the major asked pointedly.
"Yes, Major," Nichols replied at the same time Janet said "Yes, I am." Janet's tone was decidedly more defensive and a little possessive.
"Well, I might suggest you let him get a little rest before testing. Not only did he end up in the wrong restroom, he had a little incident and fell. With your permission, Ma'am, I would like to give him a once-over," she said to Janet.
It was now that I realized that the Major had medical insignia.
"Major, I am perfectly fine, I assure you," I stated firmly. "I would much rather get the testing started and over with."
"I don't know about the rest of it, Ma'am's, but things are ready on this end to begin testing," the Petty Officer inserted slightly timidly.
"Are you ok?" Janet asked me worriedly.
"I am fine, I promise," I told her firmly.
"Fine, start your testing," Janet stated to me, but for everyone's benefit. "If there are any issues, Major, I am certain that Lt. Nichols can direct us to you," she added a little curtly.
Not dissuaded or intimidated in the least, the Major focused on Lt. Nichols, "What program is he being tested for?" she asked directly.
"All of them, Ma'am, but primarily for OCS and FTP," Nichols answered with forced neutrality.
The Major turned back to Janet. "Actually, I will be giving the young man a full examination and work-up quite soon," she said with slightly officious tone. "I am the senior Medical Officer for these programs."
Then she left.
In the end, it was almost four months before I began any physical testing; much to the surprise of everyone in the testing offices and Lt. Nichols. The reason that it had taken so long was that they 'tested me 'til I couldn't pass'.
And that took quite a bit. Technically, they had run out of ways to test me in most areas before I couldn't pass something. The only real exception to that was in the medical field.
After all, other than combat and first responder type first-aid, I had never had any sort of medical training.
We had even been assigned to temporary family housing on base. This had somewhat caught Janet by surprise. She had never had a 'Guardianship' assignment last this long. She came in after something fairly catastrophic and took care of the surviving children, finding the best situation for them, and moving on.
But, as nothing had been done other than testing, we still didn't know what was going to happen.
One thing that had somewhat surprised me was some of the tests that I had been given the last month. They were what I suspected were final exams for college courses and specialized training exams. Some of them were very clear-cut, and others I could only guess at their intent.
But, I didn't voice my thoughts about this to anyone.
When the written tests were finished, I went to the medical section to receive a full medical work-up and a physical exam that would cover the requirements for general service, flight, advanced engineering, and even Special Operations.
I definitely did not tell Janet about any of that. She seemed to be getting more and more possessive and protective. I couldn't quite figure out what direction she was going, and until I knew, I wasn't going to jumpstart anything.
The medical side only took a week, but it was three weeks later before we were contacted. I figured that was because they hadn't been able to decide what to do with me.
When we got word, it was for Lt. Nichols to bring us to the Headquarters Complex and the office of Admiral Compezanno, the Fleet Chief of Naval Personnel.
For some reason, I had the thought that this was more of a show than substance, but I wasn't sure how or why.
When we were shown into Admiral Compezanno's office, it was only to be shown out his private entrance and into a private corridor. Apparently, all of the senior Admirals had private entrances to their offices.
When we exited the private corridor, it wasn't an office. It was a conference room, and one that was heavily secured, there was blatant anti-eavesdropping equipment inside the room and some extremely serious looking Marine sentries in full combat gear.
They had heavily scrutinized everyone's ID, even mine. I now had an official ID. Fleet had arranged it through the local authorities.
There were six people waiting inside, all in uniforms, but there were some differences. Five were Admirals that I hadn't met yet. One was a Marine General. Two of them I was pretty sure I knew who they were. The Admiral of the Fleet and the Chief of Naval Operations were public figures.
Two other Admirals struck me as 'desk Admirals'. The last Admiral intrigued me. He was wearing a Black Beret. The Marine General also intrigued me as his essence scream 'operator' as loudly as the Black Beret's.
"Thank you for coming, Mister Hawk, Miss Kinzer," Admiral Peter Corman stated. "I realize that this is highly irregular. I believe that you will understand all this as we proceed," he added while gesturing around the room.
"You have presented us with an extremely unique opportunity with your scores and abilities," he continued bluntly.
"That's obvious," Janet blurted out, "but it still doesn't explain this cloak and dagger nonsense."
"Janet, be quiet," I instructed firmly. "And mind your manners."
Janet was apoplectic, but she remained silent. Corman and Nagala both arched an eyebrow. The two desk jockeys and Lt. Nichols showed shock. But the two operators remained completely expressionless.
Except for their eyes; their eyes showed humor, acceptance, and expectance.
"If I may, Admiral?" I asked Corman respectfully.
He nodded silently.
"I take it that these two Admirals are here for legal and/or CYA purposes? If they are then I suggest that we let them handle whatever it is that they need to do with Janet to cover legalities, then we let them get back to whatever it is that they do. Lt. Nichols can take Janet shopping or something while we get down to business."
My bluntness had caught everyone off guard. Especially Janet.
She started to say something, but I placed my hand on her arm.
"What did I say?" I asked her quietly but curtly.
She blushed in embarrassment and clamped her mouth shut.
Corman chuckled wryly before nodding to the two administrative types.
They each proceeded to get long-winded with legal jargon and bureaucratic double-speak. I let them get it all out.
"So, the short story is that as long as my legal guardian, Janet here, signs a waiver, I can enter Colonial military service and everything is legal?" I asked with a bit of sarcasm.
They both grumbled but nodded in the affirmative.
"Further, once I do join the service, whatever happens after that is between the service and me, correct?" I asked pointedly. "And her waiver can be witnessed by any officer?"
Same response.
"Well then, why don't you leave the waiver with us and then get back to your pressing duties?" I 'asked' in a tone that was anything but asking.
One of them pulled a form from a stack and handed it to me. I quickly read it to verify what it was. It was indeed a waiver for underage entry into military service. And, it was already typed out with all of my and Janet's information.
"Thank you, Sirs, I believe that is all we need from you at this time," I said before looking at Corman.
After a few moments of staring at me, Corman waved them out. Once they were gone, I put the form in front of Janet.
"Sign here," I told her, indicating the proper place.
"But what if you don't get what you are wanting?" she asked, actually worried.
I had to chuckle. "Then they don't get this or me." I answered tapping the form.
"Are you sure?" she asked again.
"Yes, I am sure. Sign this and go buy some new clothes, maybe a nice dress for a celebration dinner?" I suggested.
"Okay," Janet said in surrender. She signed the form and handed it back to me. I immediately folded it and put it in my jeans pocket.
Corman looked at Nichols expectantly. She took her cue and led Janet out of the conference room.
Once it was just the five of us, I looked at Corman.
"Sir, I WANT to serve," I said bluntly, "but I don't want to be in some basic job or posting when I can do so much more."
He looked at me intently for a bit before speaking.
"That is apparent from your being here. What is it that you are thinking?" he asked bluntly.
"Sir, other than getting certified to fly and the opportunity to actually get some Viper stick time every once in a while, my 'wants' have no bearing on what I will do or am willing to do. As my testing has shown, I am quite knowledgeable in many fields. What you don't know yet is that I am equally skilled in as many 'physical' and martial areas." I stated neutrally.
All four of them showed inquisitive expressions openly on their faces.
"Explain," Corman clipped in an order.
"Well, I won't NEED to go through FTP. I can fly already. All I would need is a check ride to give you peace of mind.
Also, I can more than hold my own with any of the Admiral's or General's people in areas of hand-to-hand, marksmanship, and personal combat.
I also have more in depth and varied technical expertise in most areas: engineering, electronics, computers, astrophysics, and biochemistry, among others," I stated with complete neutrality.
"I do fully realize that you will need more than just my say-so on this. All I ask is that you allow me the opportunity to prove myself," I added openly and honestly.
Corman stared at me with absolutely no expression on his face for quite some time. I looked back impassively and patiently waited. I was unsure if he was just weighing the points or trying to 'make me blink'. But it didn't really matter.
Eventually, he spoke.
"Thomas, I will leave the flight issues to you," he said before turning to the other two. "You guys can work out any other testing between you. Once each of you are satisfied that his skills and abilities are genuine, we will me again to discuss if and how we will move forward."
Nagala had already nodded. The others responded "Understood, Sir!" in unison.
Corman stood and left abruptly.
"Mister Hawk, with me," Nagala said while standing.
"Yes, Sir," I replied, following him out. The two left had already started talking to each other before we walked out.
"So, Oscar, what do you think?" was all I heard before the hatch closed.
"Do you have a flight suit?" Nagala asked neutrally.
"Not anymore," I replied.
"Why not?" He asked, actually turning to look at me.
"Because I outgrew the last one," I replied with a chuckle.
Nagala grunted.
"Makes sense," he quipped non-committally.
We went into his office and he placed a call.
"Maggie, I'm going to need a custom flight suit made yesterday. Can I bring him to you now?" he asked.
"Okay, we are on our way," he said before disconnecting the call.
"Let's go," Nagala said leading me back into the private corridor and out of the building to a waiting staff car. He gave instructions to the Marines there. One of them drove with the other riding shotgun.
It took us half an hour to get to where we were heading. I wasn't sure where we were because we went in the back door from the alley.
Inside there was a woman that was about 7-10 years younger than Nagala. I got the distinct impression that there was something between them, but I wasn't exactly sure if it was completely mutual.
"Is this who needs the flight suit?" she asked, skipping any preliminaries.
"Yes," Nagala answered. "Maggie, this is Alexander. He apparently grew out of his previous flight suit."
"I see," Maggie stated humorously. "Alrighty then, youngster, let's get to it. You'll have to strip down to your skivvies for me to take accurate measurements," she added with a light smile.
Nagala 'tsked' chidingly. "I see that you will never change, Maggie."
"Well, if you would just make an honest woman of me, Thomas, I wouldn't be allowed to flirt with anybody else," Maggie retorted with a little emotion.
"Ma'am, if you could please, leave it loose enough to wear an old style G-suit under it," I inserted obviously changing the subject.
This definitely got Nagala's attention.
"A what?" Maggie asked in confusion.
"It's a suit worn under the flight suit from the days before inertial dampeners. It basically used air pressure of hydraulic pressure to squeeze a pilot's body to keep their blood in their heads during high gee maneuvers. The real question is why young Mister Hawk here would think that he needed to utilize such things." Nagala stated pointedly, focusing on me for the last part.
I answered with a half grin.
"Because, with a g-suit, I have the option of diverting power from the inertial dampeners to whatever I might need at the time. More thrust, life support, transmitters, or other systems. It also serves as a back-up and permits me to push the envelope."
Nagala eyed me speculatively.
"Take measurements for both. Make a standard one first," he told Maggie.
She took my measurements, but not without murmurs and comments about my muscles and physical fitness that were obviously for Nagala's benefit.
Especially when she was measuring my inseam.
"Oh, my!" she gasped out in genuine surprise. "Thomas, I don't know if this one won't be too much trouble with the ladies!"
Nagala just rolled his eyes.
The measurements were finally completed.
"How soon can you have it ready?" Nagala asked curtly.
"I can put a rush on it, Thomas, but it will cost you," Maggie told him pointedly.
Nagala rubbed the bridge of his nose, clearly not wanting to do this.
"Fine, Maggie. When will it be ready?" Nagala said in surrender.
"About six hours," she replied with a grin.
"Fine. I'll see you then," Nagala replied tensely.
Once we were outside, Nagala gave the driver more instructions.
I was surprised when we drove up to a landing pad with a Raptor on it.
"I seriously hope you aren't full of feldercarb Mister Hawk, for your sake. You are heading up to the Atlantia. My CAG will test you mettle completely. If you aren't up to it, it could very well prove fatal," he said bluntly.
"I will send the flight suit up to you when it's ready. You belong to CAG for now," he added
"Admiral if you could please let Janet and Lt. Nichols know where I am, I would appreciate it," I stated respectfully.
He nodded.
As I exited the staff car, it dawned on me.
After this, my life will be completely different. VERY different. And it wouldn't exactly be easy. But, with my knowledge, I had to try to make a difference.