Chapter Six: Inevitability
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All anyone from the fleet could do was watch as being in simple close proximity with the Gantarin ship had destroyed the Odyssey. The commanders of the fleet had taken actions against the Gantarin's but everything had happened so fast, they had hardly any time to react.
The explosions had gone off and only mere minutes to consume both vessels into its abyss of death and darkness. Each captain of remaining vessels of the fleet was in utter shock as they witnessed the happenings before them. It was clear from the first explosion that a rescue attempt rescue attempt couldn't be possible without losing another ship in the Gantarin's last archaic stand to fight.
Aboard the Legacy, Firth tore his eyes form the debris and to his captain. "Orders Ma'am?" For a few fleeting moments she said nothing. Amelia just stared, daggers shooting from the rage clearly shown in her eyes from the veracity of the situation.
"Get every Captain on board the Legacy now." Pure calming fury showing through in her voice as she spoke. "I want to know how they knew we'd be here, let alone how they destroyed the Odyssey so easily."
"Aye Captain." Firth replied and set out about his duties.
"This shouldn't have happened." Amelia said in an undertone to herself. She stared out past the dust and into the wreckage, or what very little of it there was left. There was nothing else here; all lives had been taken in that last act. Amelia knew, above all else, what had her rage stirred to its breaking point, and that was the last act of mock desperation for the Gantarin's. They flew under a white flag of surrender. Attacking under such circumstances was not unheard of in history but it was uncommon.
'Then again,' Amelia thought 'they were Gantarin's; Almost as ruthless as the Procyan's. What should I have expected'
As Amelia walked back to her stateroom her thoughts were interrupted by her first officer advising her that the other Captains were ready to board.
"There is no reason this should have happened! How could their weapons systems have advanced so far? They very well matched our own, even before they blew themselves up!"
"We couldn't even detect a trace of their explosives, they've found a way to mask it somehow."
"How they even knew we'd be here eludes me. The only thing I can think of is they may very well have spies amongst us again. It would explain how they've no become brave enough to attack us."
"Of course they have spies! Everyone has spies! The question is how in the world they broke through our government's security… Again!"
These were only a few of the arguments placed by the fleet's commanders as well as Admiral Carson when they had all arrived on board the Legacy. The most anyone could fathom was that, yes there were Cyran or Gantarin spies in their government once more, but what was less likely no one wanted to believe; The possibility of traitors amongst them, in the midst of the fleet itself.
Only a compliment of three had been non-military personnel that sailed with the fleet; Doctor Delbert Doppler, Tiberius Redkin, a battle tactics advisor who had been working alongside the royal navy two decades, and Captain Aéden's nineteen year old son, Jonathan, who had been on his final field exercise before graduation from the Interstellar Academy. As privilege as an honor graduate, he was able to serve on a real battle mission. Regrettably though, he had witnessed his fathers' demise as well as the demise of the Odyssey.
Tiberius Redkin had been the only of the three to seem likely to commit treason, but alas, Redkin had perished aboard the Odyssey. The loss of his life would take its toll on certain militaristic aspects, but the fact that there was no way to tell if he was a traitor or not would unsettle the minds of many. The information that Redkin held was invaluable.
Their meeting adjourned with the orders that they would continue their venture as planned. But wary eye would have to be kept watch. Any suspicious activity would be reported immediately.
As her fellow Captains left the Legacy, and the fleet had gotten underway once more, Amelia stepped into her stateroom and upon doing so she was met with minor discord; random items had fallen from her desk to the floor, and somehow the glass cabinet that she had kept Arrow's belongings in had broken and his effects strewn out onto the floor.
Any other random items waited until she replaced the last physical remnants of her most cherished friend. Amelia bent down to pick up his hat and old pistol and stood up to replace them back at their rightful place. Scanning the floor for the last thing missing, she spotted a small leather-bound book that she'd remembered Arrow had been reading at the start of the voyage to Treasure Planet. The book lay open at her feet and the dedication could partly be seen from her view. When Amelia picked up the book the inscription caught her eye.
This book is dedicated to my
Loving fiancé Delbert; for if
It weren't for his encouragement
Id have never had the will to finish
this book in such trying times.
The dedication had caught her off guard, and as it did, what she found out early this morning returned to her. The events of the battle had pushed this all from her mind, but now her muddled thoughts returned to her.
Did she dare will herself to look at the cover? Amelia knew she would see what she didn't want to, for she knew exactly what name she would find there. When she finally flipped the cover shut there it was; the name that Arrow had said, and she knew it was very possible the same woman whom Granger had mentioned. The bottom of the front cover had read, 'Juliana Tierm'.
Many things were running through her mind at once. Delbert previously being married; Delbert previously having been married and not ever mentioned a word of it to her; the fact that the book in her hands was written by this woman, the probability that it was not; a dent in their voyage so early on; the destruction of the Odyssey and its crew and the possibility that there might be a traitor in their midst, for how else would the Gantarins have known their destination and where to meet them.
Amelia set the book back into its proper place with the rest of Arrow's old things and set to placing her stateroom back to the way it was. When she was finished she noted that it was well after lunch, but her appetite was for not. That day she only left her cabin to complete her rounds, where Delbert was nowhere to be seen. She suspected that he was below deck and forced her mind back to her watch of the ship.
It was late and things for the moment were peaceful as Amelia walked the deck of the Legacy. The majority of the crew was asleep below deck, save the helmsman for his nightly shift. Since the battle late this morning, things were sailing smoothly. That is, until her shift ended.
Amelia, after being relieved from her night watch, found that she did not desire to return to her quarters. Instead she found herself standing alone at the bow of the ship. Her mind had finally begun to settle as she took in the brisk, cool, air of the starry night. She appreciated the solitude she was invoked in at the moment, but that solace was due to not last forever, and she knew it very well.
Amelia finally gave up her aimless stare into the etherium and returned to her quarters. When she closed the door, only moments after she heard a faint knock. Having a good idea already of whom it was she crossed the room and opened the door to face Delbert Doppler. Amelia said nothing but just stepped aside to allow him to cross the threshold.
"How're you feeling?" he asked pleasantly, concern showing in his voice.
Amelia wanted to just cast her normal façade to the winds, just burst out with all the answers there were to that not so simple question. But alas, her only reply was, "As good as I can be."
"You seemed somewhat distracted earlier. Are you sure you are all right?"
"I assure you, I am quite all right Doctor." Amelia said in a harsher tone that what was generally meant. The truth was, actually, she was not. Never in her entire career had she lost an entire ship and crew to anyone, especially those like Gantarin Raiders. And on top of that, in the two years they had known one another Delbert had never once mentioned to her his little secret. She had thought to confront him about it when they returned home from this voyage or at least on the return home, but every time he crossed her mind, so did his past and the question; 'Would he have ever told her?'
Moments of silence elapsed and Amelia thought to herself that it couldn't possibly get much worse of him hiding it from her. She decided to bring it up in a subtle manner, if at all possible.
"I met with Captain Granger again today." She said. Delbert just looked questioningly at her. "He requested to meet with you; says that he wanted to catch up."
Delbert looked a bit taken aback at her sudden break of silence.
"I – ah, I don't think I'd be comfortable with that." He said trying to sound casual, but failing severely. Amelia passed him a analytical glance at his uneasiness of the change of the situation. "We – We didn't know each other that well, really. We were only casual acquaintances in college. I recall helping him through a class or two but that was all, I think."
Delbert's slips of the tongue were resolutely absent, but he was clearly uneasy with the approach she was taking. This did not go unnoticed by Amelia, and neither did his lie.
'Recall helping him with a class or two? Damn you Delbert Doppler.' Amelia thought. She had hoped falsely that he would come out with it, but alas he would have to be cornered. Never had she or would she ever have thought that Delbert could be so tight lipped about anything.
"A casual acquaintance?" Amelia said calmly. Delbert only nodded but he would not look her directly in the eye. It seemed he knew the territory to which she so daringly tread. "Delbert, I hardly believe that a casual acquaintance plays best man to ones wedding."
He snapped his head forward to face her; he was looking her straight ni the eyes now, a surprised look on his face. Delbert stared at her a few long fleeting moments that seemed like eternity. He closed his eyes and sighed.
"You know then." Delbert said looking back at her. It was more of a statement to himself than to Amelia. As he looked at her there was only truth in his eyes and it pained Amelia to see it. He walked solemnly over to a chair and took a seat. This would indeed be a long exchange between he and Amelia. He felt her stare upon him but he said nothing. There were so many things he could say, he should say, but he didn't. He just sat and stared out into nothing.
"I'm sorry I never told you." He finally said.
"Is that all?" Amelia asked. "After two years of having hidden this all you can say is 'I'm sorry'?"
"I never intended to hide that!" Delbert said snapping around to face her. "You honestly can't believe that I tried to keep my having been previously married a secret."
"Then what would you have me believe? You never said anything! Did you ever even plan to?" Amelia said her voice rising, eyes beginning to flame with pent up anger.
"Don't. Don't you dare." He said finally standing up and fully turning around to face Amelia. "I tried to tell you before; more than once in fact. It just – the timing never seemed right."
"Timing?"
"Yes! I'm sorry, but when would you have liked me to tell you? 'Amelia darling, would you marry me? Yes, that's wonderful! By the way I was married ten years ago and she's been dead for about the same time frame. I hope that's ok with you.' Of course I knew you'd overreact about it, that you'd be angry, but I did try to tell you."
"When then?" she said her eyes narrowing to tiny slits where the green in her eyes could barely be seen.
"Right after Arrow died was the first. When I came in here to try to comfort you I'd noticed that book." Delbert replied pointing to the book Arrow had been reading that now resided in the glass case. "She wrote that before we married. I almost told you to let you know I knew an inkling of how you must have been feeling on that night. And then one year ago I tried to tell you, but I didn't. You were called away to some sort of classified business, said it was of utmost importance. I wanted you to have a clear head to do whatever it was that you had to do."
"And you don't think now an inappropriate time when – "
"No – You can't blame me for this right now. You're the one that brought this up tonight, not me! I would have told you, but in a time when we could openly discuss things."
"We can openly discuss them now. Why even lie about knowing Kylan Granger? Did you honestly think I wouldn't have found out?"
"Because I'd have never thought he'd have told you about – I thought I would have been able to – You – you don't know how hard it was each time to try to bring it up. How hard it is to do so now." Delbert replied his voice quieting down some.
"And you don't think I've lost those close to me? You know better than to – "
"Arrow is not the same, Amelia!" Delbert snapped. He had tried to reason with her and he knew what words she was about to choose next. "You weren't in love with him."
His last statement staggered Amelia; she had never seen so much anger in his eyes. That anger was short lived and soon turned to pain. They both stayed silent for a time and without warning Delbert turned to leave her cabin.
"Where are you going?" she said moving to block his path.
"You know now. I'm not going to argue this with you." Delbert sighed. "I'm going to bed. I'll see you bight and early tomorrow morning Captain."
And with those last words Delbert moved aside Amelia and walked out the door. She only stood speechless, alone, in her stateroom. Delbert, however, did not head off to sleep. He only sat at a table below deck in the galley, staring at the wood, not knowing at all what to think.