Chapter Nine: BUILDING A FUTURE


After exchanging further pleasantries, Mitch sent over a cargo drone with the requested supplies and components for the Sphinx, and the two vessels began the trip back to Gagarin Station. The transit would take almost twelve hours at their present speed, but that was fine, as it would give the Sphinx time to repair her damage, and the crews on both vessels could rest, and recuperate.


It was officially "nighttime" now aboard the Knight, and Moira couldn't sleep. Her little compartment on the habitation deck was as comfortable as she could make it, but it wasn't enough. Ever since she'd left the command deck, she'd been thinking. Thinking about how when she'd been working with David and Mitch, the three of them had meshed well, and she'd been able to use some of the skills she'd sweated and bled for once again… It had really started when she'd called her mother. Their tearful reunion hadn't been what had set her off, but her unease had started to really grow when she'd heard those words… So, will you be coming back to Earth to settle down, and find yourself a man?

She'd not wanted to even think about something like that… After all the time she'd spent training, she'd assumed her first flight would have been followed by more, at least two or three flights, more than enough to cement her place in the history books… But even after the accident and her recovery, now all she could think about was how much of a waste all that training would go to if she just went back to Earth… On the other hand, by all accounts, she should be terrified at even the possibility of traveling to space again, especially all by herself. But I wouldn't be alone… I'd be able to go with… No, can't assume anything, not yet. With a mental shake, she turned over on her cot, and tried to get comfortable.

It wasn't working.

With a grumble, she sat up and ran her hands through her hair, before taking a breath, and centering herself, before ticking off points on her fingers. OK, here's what we know: I trained for almost two years to come out here. I don't want to go back to Earth just yet, not when I can still do so much good. I may not be the first at anything anymore, but I don't want anyone else to go through what I just came back from... It can't be that simple, right? Taking a breath to steel her nerves, she called softly into the darkness. "Mitch?"


Up in the crew quarters, David was sound asleep. He'd turned down the gravity to about .25G, and that, coupled with the mattress topper his cousin had insisted on making for him out of her own wool, had made the standard issue bunk into as comfortable a bed as if he'd been sleeping on a cloud. Naturally, such comfort precluded the use of any sleepwear, but he was alone, so it didn't matter.

He was so deep asleep that he didn't hear his cabin door cycle, or the muffled gasp as the intruder found the gravity to be much lower than normal. He only stirred slightly when he was nudged in the shoulder.

"Hey, David, do you have a few minutes?" a voice asked, before nudging him again.

After an initial adrenaline surge, the human let his rational mind take the wheel. "Moira, what are you doing here?" He asked groggily, before sitting up, and pulling the sheet close up to his waist.

"Sorry, but I wanted to talk before we get back to… Where are we going, anyway?"

"Gagarin Station… (I could swear I told you that on the bridge…) And this couldn't have waited until morning?" the human asked skeptically, taking in his visitor's sleepwear. It seemed she had also chosen to go bare.

"I couldn't sleep." The Skeleton replied, crossing her arms under her breasts, before beginning to pace.

Seeing as his visitor had no plans to leave, David silently brought the lights up to a third, and mentally settled in.

"See, I've been thinking… I trained for my original mission, right? Eighteen months of training, only to basically lose it all in less than twenty-four hours… But then, You and Mitch came to rescue me, and we encountered the pirates… And all of a sudden, my training is usable again!" Here she gestured widely, but then began to pace once more. "I mean, it's not the same, not really. But still, we made a great team, and I can do two things out here I can't do if I go home: One, I can make my training worthwhile. And Two, I can ensure what happened to me doesn't happen to anyone else…"

The skeleton's pacing had caused her to bound off of the deck at several points, before descending back down, and made for a distracting visual, between her hair and… assets… moving about. But David could readily see her argument. He knew he'd feel more than a little cheated as well if he'd spent a year and a half training for something, only for it to all fall apart… And he had to admit, Moira did mesh extremely well with him and Mitch, considering they'd only just met…

"So, if I'm understanding you correctly, you don't want you training to go to waste, which you feel it will if you go home… And you want to… Join the SRS?"

"If you'll have me, absolutely."

"I wish it were that easy, Moira, but you have to understand, the personnel shortage is across the board." Here the human raised a hand to forestall her protests, before turning it palm-up. "On the other hand, as a ship class leader, I do have some say in the policy regarding personnel requirements for a new vessel type, but I'd still have to run it by Command first…"

The skeleton seemed to want to plead her case some more, but relented. "I know, and I'm not asking to just unilaterally be recruited immediately. I'm five years out of date, and I have no training of SRS-specific operations…"

Now Moira leaned on the corner of David's desk, and placed her hands on her thighs, before leaning forward, and looking at the deck. "I just want the chance to prove myself, and to do some good." She said with a shrug.

The human stifled a yawn, and looked introspective. "I can't promise anything. Command may assign you to this ship, they may send you somewhere else. But I can say for certain that we need the help, especially from trained volunteers."

"So you'll help?"

"Yes, I'll do what I can." And now the human felt his tiredness coming back in force. "Well Moira, this has been a good talk, but we both need sleep."

"Oh, yes, of course." She replied, before making her way out of David's quarters, and back down to her own space. Before closing the hatch, she paused, and looked back over her shoulder. "Thanks."

"So, did things turn out the way you'd hoped?" Mitch asked, as she made her way down the corridor. The MI had initially been skeptical of both her reasoning, and her insistence on discussing the topic so suddenly, but Moira had been persuasive.

"I guess we'll find out… But I'm glad I said something now. It means there's a chance…"


Arrival back at Gagarin was a virtual whirlwind, with nonstop congratulations included in nearly every radio transmission. Arriving back in Bay 31, David had been surprised, and humbled to see the entire SRS contingent in full vacuum gear, lined up by rank and department, saluting as the Knight glided through the bay doors. The only person not in an SRS vac suit was Moira's mother, who had flown up from Earth. She was standing right beside the Admiral as the ship had docked into her cradle, and the bay had sealed and re-pressurized.

When they exited from the lower egress elevator, the younger skeleton had been almost tackled to the ground by her exuberant parent. David had wisely given them their space, as the Admiral approached at a more sedate pace. The two men saluted, and then the older man grasped the younger's hand in a powerful handshake.

"Damn fine job, Captain."

"Thank you, Sir. It was a bit touch-and-go in places, but we managed to pull it off."

"Indeed, Sir, the Knight and her attendant systems performed most satisfactorily" Mitch commented from a remote A/V device attached to the shoulder of David's shipsuit.

As they headed away from the reception, the Captain noticed that a group of individuals bearing MHI logos on their shipsuits, as well as another man in a formal suit had entered the bay, and approached Moira and her mother, while the SRS personnel began to be dismissed back to their duties. With one last glance at the two skeletons, David and Mitch went off with their commander. Once they reached a deck-level observation room, they took seats at a small table, and the Admiral began an informal debriefing.

"Again, well done, the both of you. As you saw, there's a contingent from both MHI, and the Space Preservation Society, wanting to get their hands on the Icarus. The visuals you sent back in your initial report have them practically salivating."

"Thank you, Sir, it was a fairly straightforward assignment, right up until it wasn't," the MI commented, a dry tone in his normally mellow voice.

David took that moment to speak. "Just curious, Sir, but what's to be done about our personnel shortage? The crew of the Sphinx were incredibly helpful in the latter parts of the mission, but without the assistance of Miss Brooks, there were several points where it could have gone quite badly for Mitch and I."

"You're right, Captain, there is a personnel shortage… But I can sense there's a bit more than you're letting on." The Admiral wasn't stupid, he'd seen the look the human and mamono had shared, but waited until an opportune moment to broach the subject. "I did notice the look you gave Miss Brooks as we left. Made a connection, did you?"

"I wouldn't go that far, Sir, but she's indicated that she wants to join the SRS. And she does have most of the basic requirements we're looking for. Between the existing need for qualified personnel, and the possibility that the Knight class may perform better with a second organic crewmember, I believe she'll be an asset."

"Good."

"Sir?"

The admiral took a moment to enjoy his Captain's confusion, before he relented. "Did I ever tell you the story of how I met my wife?" He asked, taking a moment to glace out the observation bay window at a certain yellow-suit… Sensing that both man and machine's interests were piqued, he continued. "It was during the attack on Phobos Base by a faction of what would later become the Red Claw. Yes, the same group that the Patrol units you called in are currently mopping up in the Oort Cloud. She was just a regular maintenance tech back then, and I was in logistics. They hit us in the middle of the night shift, and cracked the main dome. She was in the residential hab, and I was in the supply depot. Somehow, she ended up in the supply depot, claims she squeezed through the vents to get there, barely made it before they cracked the hab as well. Between my access codes, and her knowledge, we led those Claw soldiers on a merry chase until reinforcements arrived." Seeing the look on David's face, he continued. "My point is, that two are often better than one, no offense, Mitch."

"None taken, Sir. There are many areas where my abilities are supplemented by the assistance of organic personnel."

"It's not a coincidence that when a man and a mamono meet, there is often a connection. It may get romantic, it may not, but the potential is always there. I could go on about fraternization, and the like, but the synergy partners can create makes that a tricky subject. Not to mention that we aren't a military organization, despite being armed like one." Now the Admiral's tone turned serious. "In the end, it's up to the testing board, and personnel departments. I can't guarantee anything, but I will be reporting on the personnel situation to central Command. I'll be sure to include any operations data, after-action-reports, and other information you deem relevant."

David could feel himself relax somewhat at the Admiral's words. He still wasn't sure where the Admiral had been going with his story, but at least he'd be able to do right by Moira, and give her a fair shot at achieving her goal. "Thank you, Sir."

The Admiral offered a small smile, and then they were back on track. "Now then, let's continue. During the initial cruise out from Gagarin, where exactly did you encounter the RV Sphinx?...