Interlude II: Epistolary Romance

…I'm so glad for your letters, Bron. You keep a part of me connected to Earth. I get so focused on the challenges facing me, here, on Armor Seven, that there's a risk of forgetting what it's all for. It's good to hear that Rico and Mary are working through their troubles. They get along so well, and are so much alike, it has to catch them off guard when they disagree strongly about something.

I was able to find a recording of the follow-up amnesty hearing. You were right, Konda did great on the historical research, and I was impressed by the way Rico used his sense of humor to respond to the nastier questions from the opposition faction on the commission. The way he kept his cool and his smile really made them look bad. Of course, I saw that you downplayed yourself again. It hit me really hard when you shared how important you thought it was for the disarming Zentraedi to be given choices about their future. I remember feeling so hopeless after I was injured; feeling like I had no control over my life. You were the one who convinced me to believe in the future again, to believe that there were still important choices ahead of me. The resettlement process going forward for the Zentraedi is a huge step for Earth. The work you three are doing is so important to everyone's healing. Don't forget that.

You have no idea how much extra work there is, now that Johnson made me XO. The demands of keeping up my own training and overseeing the needs of the cohort are as intense as anything I did during the war, but I can count it a blessing that nobody is shooting at each other. May is starting to come out of her shell, and I think she'll go far. The Zentraedi are having an easier time of it too, now that Captain Petrovich has ordered his people to back off. There's still a lot of teasing and pranks, but it's not so hostile and cruel anymore. That's important, because our first real flights out in space start tomorrow, and we need to be focused and ready.

I don't have much free time, but when I have the chance, I go through the book. I still can't believe you snuck it into my bag without me noticing! I'm not sure where you found a hardback compilation of Jonathan Swift stories and essays, but it couldn't have been easy to locate in Monument. There's something special about the feel and smell of the paper that you can't get from a tablet. Thank you!

I go through these days, with hardly any time to think about anything beyond what's in front of me, and then I'll see something, or hear something, and then I'll see your face, hear your voice. I might feel like smiling, or laughing, or crying. I never want those feelings to go away. I'll find I have two or three minutes to spare, and I'll pull up one of your messages again, and re-read it for the twentieth time. That new world you talked about us sharing- I want it so badly. I'll put forth whatever effort it takes to make it real, until I can feel your arms around me again, knowing that this time, you won't have to let go.

Yours in love and hope,

Vanessa

Next time… Information High, Variable Fighter, and burnout…