‘Whatever you want to do, Lutheann. It’s your show,’ Cain said in his thought voice, hoping that he was only talking with the white matriarch.
“These Hillcats are just like you, volunteers. Many of them will join us on the Cygnus-12, go to deep space, explore new planets, and meet new people. If we run across hostiles, they will fight with us. Lutheann fought with me on Concordia. She has taken lives, efficiently, effectively. You will never question her. They will train with us, but they won’t train us. Their commitment and abilities are not in question. They will inspect the ranks. Stand tall and stand by.” Cain ended by putting his arms behind his back, assuming a position of standing rest. He knew there were terms for each position, but didn’t remember them from the myriad of training manuals Holly had inundated him with.
Lutheann led a parade of ‘cats down the bay. They darted between the people, sniffing at various things, looking like they were playing. The largest ‘cat, a tomcat of dark brown with light brown striping, put his feet on Spence’s shoulders. The small human scratched the ‘cat’s sides as the two talked. A bonding. The largest ‘cat and the smallest human. If need be, Spence could ride his friend. Cain wasn’t sure the alternative was possible.
There was one female human and Lutheann directed a ‘cat to her. The two stood side by side before the human broke formation and picked the ‘cat up, grunting with the effort. This one was mostly brown with white splotches. Cain dug into his memory for the human’s name, finally giving up and contacting Holly. Jo, the AI informed him.
Cain followed the ‘cats. “Spence, who do we have here?”
“His name is Tobiah,” Spence said proudly.
“Tobiah. Nice to meet you. You two will make a dynamic team. You understand that sometimes, you may have to carry him.”
“It would be my pleasure. I’ll carry him as far as he needs carried.” Spence looked lovingly at the ‘cat.
“We’ll try to keep that to a minimum. And you, Jo, what’s her name?”
“N’lon. Isn’t she beautiful?”
“We try not to judge. The only question that matters to me is, ‘Is she deadly?’ Do you understand?” Cain asked.
“Yes, sir!” Jo belted out.
Six of the nine humans found their life partners that evening. Cain was pleased. He thanked Lutheann extensively for her help. Most of the ‘cats looked like they were going to stay in the bay with the recruits. That was as Cain had hoped. “Holly! One hour then lights out. The rest of you, don’t leave the bay. You have one hour to read as much of the material as you can. There will be classroom instruction on it and a test. There will always be tests in everything you do. Thanks for a good day, people.” Cain turned and strode boldly from recruit billeting.
He exited the building and turned right, heading for his own quarters, hoping to hit the rack early and catch up on sleep.
“So, not good enough, you say?” a gruff voice came from the shadows. The Space School recruit walked forward, carrying a stick the size of a bat. Two rough-looking young men appeared behind him.
“What’s your name, Recruit?” Cain asked. He’d been on these same grounds as a recruit less than a year prior, but that was also a lifetime of experience ago. Here he was, using the term as a pejorative
“Does it matter, asshole? You thought you could throw me away like a piece of trash?” He smacked the stick into his palm menacingly. Cain wasn’t intimidated. He was angry.
“So, you brought your lackeys. All that means is that there will be three asses kicked instead of just yours, unless they run away, tails between their legs when they see the beat-down I’m going to put on you. Bullies have no place here, or anywhere. So, let’s see what you’re made of, big mouth.” Cain took off his beret and threw it behind him. He raised his hands defensively and balanced on the balls of his feet.
Cain leaned forward, exposing his chin. Big mouth launched a hay-maker swing with the bat. Cain dipped and dashed in after it passed and with a quick jab, punched the recruit in the face. The young man staggered backward, swinging the bat defensively to keep the major from following his attack. The two lackeys spread out to fix Cain between them.
Cain danced back and forth, refusing to give any of them a free shot, but keeping his eye mostly on big mouth.
The yipping and scrabbling of claws on concrete signaled the arrival of some of his platoon. The lackeys looked anxious as they were surrounded by Wolfoids, humans, and ‘cats. Brutus penetrated the circle, strolling until he stood next to Cain. His hackles were up, his fangs exposed. He was ready to put a major hurt on big mouth.
“I have him, Brutus. He’s just a punk who is learning a valuable lesson here. Sergeant! I don’t think those two are authorized to be on these grounds. Seize them!”
Without hesitation, six Wolfoids launched their bodies at the young toughs, knocking them down and pinning them to the ground. The lightning spears added nicely to the demonstration of power.
Cain circled to give himself more space. The bully was backed into a corner and wasn’t going to show weakness. He tightened his grip on his makeshift weapon, spinning it in front of himself as he carefully moved forward. He cut Cain off in one direction, leaving the other open. The major dodged and ended up with his back to the wall. Brutus circled behind the bully, ready to attack when Cain gave the word.
Big mouth swung the bat in a wide circle at Cain’s head. He easily ducked out of the way, but the real attack came as the bully dropped and spun, bringing the full speed of his weapon into the major’s knee. It hit with a sickening crunch and Cain gasped as the pain shot through his whole body. He collapsed as his knee would no longer support him. The bully followed up with an overhead swing as if he was chopping wood, trying to split Cain in half.
The major rolled forward, and the stick hit the ground where he’d been. He wrapped one arm around the bully’s leg and twisted, throwing the young man off balance. As he fell, he used the bat as a pile driver trying to crush Cain’s head. With deft twist, it was a glancing blow which still brought stars flashing across the major’s eyes.
He rolled away from the young man and found the wall to help pull himself upright. He leaned heavily against it, blinking to clear his head. The bully sensed blood in the water and came in for the kill. He swung the death dealer, but Cain was against the wall. He pushed off and the bat hit the wall hard. The major wrapped his left arm around it and knuckle-punched the bully in the throat. The major took the bat away as he hopped forward on one leg. Big mouth gagged and choked, unable to draw a breath. Cain used the bat as a crutch, holding himself upright as he punched the bully in the face. The man was holding his throat, unable to defend himself. Cain punched him again and he went down.
‘Holly, get a couple med bots here immediately!’ Cain told the AI via his neural implant.
‘They are already on their way, Master Cain. You’ve managed to attract quite a crowd.’ Cain looked around and saw the entirety of his platoon, a number of Space School recruits, and even one of the instructors.
‘Holly, do you have video of that, starting when those three jumped me from the shadows? If so, send it all to Admiral Jesper, in raw form, before the director or anyone else can edit it or delete it.’
‘Done and sent, Master Cain,’ Holly confirmed.
The young man was starting to turn blue from lack of oxygen. Cain didn’t care. It wasn’t his job to care for his enemies. “Form up!” he yelled to his platoon. The Wolfoids who were holding the lackeys hesitated. “If you two idiots run, the Wolfoids will hunt you down and break every bone in your body, do you understand me?” The men nodded.
“Sergeant, form the platoon!” the major repeated, using the bat to help him hobble to the front of the formation.
“Recruit Ascenti, if you would be so kind as to keep one of your ultra-sharp eyes on the criminals, I would appreciate it. So, what did we learn here this evening?” Cain winced as he shifted. He was trying not to show his people how much pain he was really in. He hoped
that he looked stronger than he felt.
“That Marines kick ass!” Spence yelled. The Wolfoids started howling and the humans yelled. Cain smirked, but shook his head.
“Don’t get drawn into battle against superior odds,” Recruit Starsgard said. Cain pointed to him and nodded.
“Look at me! I’m combat ineffective. I failed you, by not seeing the upcoming fight. How can two easily defeat three? By splitting them up and taking them one at a time. I was lured into a bad position by my ego. This is a difficult lesson that you can learn from me. We aren’t gladiators! We will be the new Marines. We will set the standard for all who follow. Today, we learned that there are those who don’t agree with our mission. I think it is to bring peace to the universe. They think that we are to be used against the populace of Vii, a power grab by the SES, the Council of Elders, or who knows what. I’ll bare my soul to you. I hate fighting. I wish that I never have to do it again. But that’s not the nature of the universe. We will be ready to fight if we have to, then we will make it quick, overwhelming, and it will be decisive. Sergeant, get the platoon into their racks. It’s bedtime.” Cain finished with a nod to acting Sergeant Stalker.
“Aye, aye, sir,” Stalker intoned, her vocalization device not carrying the full force of her mental words.
The med bot was tending to the bully’s throat. He’d passed out, which made him easier to work on. His color was already improving. He’d recover. Cain was glad of that. He didn’t want a war with the director or the Space School. He needed their support.
The other two men stood there, inching their way away, hoping to make a break for it. Brutus stabbed a claw into one of their calves. The man howled as if he’d been skewered. Cain’s face clearly showed the claw marks from Brutus’s earlier comeuppance. He felt his head, there was a welt from the impact of the bat and a scrape that was matting his hair into it. The thought of the injury made him angry again.
‘Holly, send a security bot for these two. I don’t see anyone from the school who’s willing to raise a hand to help,’ Cain said bitterly. A med bot asked him to sit down so it could evaluate the injury to his leg. Getting on the ground was an exercise in how much agony the major could endure. As he tried to move his leg, pain shot like Wolfoid lightning bolts, straight through his body and into his brain.
When he finally sat down, his head throbbed unmercifully. The world was reduced to pinpoints before his eyes. He laid back and promptly passed out. Brutus stood next to him. He was joined by four other ‘cats, who stood guard while the med bot worked. It immobilized the leg, cleaned the wounds on Cain’s head, iced the bump, and carefully put him on a stretcher that materialized behind the bot.
Brutus jumped onto the stretcher, careful not to impact Cain’s injured leg. They passed the security bot as Cain was being towed to the med lab. When they arrived, big mouth was in the main area as the surgery equipment worked on his throat. The med bot that hauled Cain to the lab removed the brace on his leg, cutting away the major’s newest uniform. He’d realize later that he was ruining uniforms at the rate of one per day. At least the fabricator could recycle the ones he destroyed and turn them back into something he could wear.
When the work on the bully was completed, they moved him out of the main room. Brutus watched carefully, wanting to be certain that he didn’t come back with Cain drugged and on the table. The bots cleaned the skin around his knee and then cut into it where the tibia had been shattered, sending bone splinters through the meniscus and into the tendons under the kneecap.
Surgery to remove the bone chips and stitch 3D printed replacement material into place took four hours. The bots finally closed the wound, and wheeled Cain into the recovery area. The bots tried to chase Brutus out of the room, but he won that battle. He didn’t know that it took Holly’s intervention to allow him to stay.
When they moved Cain to recovery, they put him next to the bully, who was already awake and aware. He struggled to get up, working his way bit by bit until he was standing beside his bed. He dragged his IV as he leaned toward the major. He wrapped a big hand around the major’s throat, but didn’t have a chance to squeeze as Brutus slapped four claws into the young man’s unprotected groin. He dropped to the floor, ripping his IV out on the way down.
Brutus continued to dash and slash, never standing still as he shredded the man’s flesh. The bully was screaming and the med bot was attempting to get to him, but Brutus continued his unrelenting attacks. Big mouth stopped fighting as a lake of blood appeared beneath him. One of Brutus’s cuts was deep enough to do real damage, ripping open an artery. The bot dragged the body from between the two recovery beds and carried him back into surgery.
When Stinky and Pickles arrived, they were furious that the school didn’t take better care of Cain. They were mad that they weren’t notified until hours after the incident. They informed Holly that anything related to the Marines should be passed to them immediately. From then on, they vowed that one of them would always be with the major.
They also thanked Brutus, praised him for his stalwart defense of their friend.
The ‘cat huffed. It was a full-time job.
The Training Regimen
Cain was trapped in medical for a full week. At least they moved the heavily-stitched big mouth to a different place where a security bot kept watch over him. They never saw the other two again. Holly was mysteriously silent regarding their disposition. Cain would not have cared except that people kept turning up to try and hurt him. He was getting tired of it.
Stinky and Pickles took over the training, running the squads through the obstacle course, through classroom training, and through more physical exercises. They didn’t attempt the hard-ass routine that Cain was able to pull off. They were learning as they went, so they decided to show the old movies of Marines from Earth, give them a sense of the honor, courage, and camaraderie that they had back then and that the Cygnus Marines would reestablish.
Cain kept in contact with his lieutenants and his platoon, watching when he could by using his neural implant. The bots ran him through physical therapy where he wasn’t allowed to use his implant, cutting him off from the world, but Brutus was there, whenever Stinky or Pickles were not. Cain decided that not being alone was a good thing.
‘Where do we go from here, Bee?’ Cain asked.
‘Forward,’ was all Brutus would say.
There was always forward. Cain’s mission and the goal of the Cygnus Marines never changed. Secure the freedom of the explorers, carry liberty to all corners of the universe. A tall order, to say the least. There was a great deal of forward in front of them.
Cain talked with the admiral almost daily during his rehabilitation to shape his strategic understanding and selfishly, to get to the bottom of the attacks, but to no avail. They were no closer. It was almost as if the attacks didn’t happen. No conspiracy. A coincidence on a universal scale. Maybe it was just Cain. Maybe he made people so angry that they wanted to kill him.
But Androids didn’t have feelings. They had a program. If it weren’t for the Android attack, Cain might have dismissed it all as a coincidence. Lizard Men, too? No. He was convinced that someone was coordinating the efforts against him. The only being with significant enough reach was Holly. The SES controlled Space School and the Traveler, but not the Lizard Men.
‘Holly, how would you know if someone was tampering with your programming, running something in the background that you wouldn’t be aware of?’ Cain asked the AI, always preferring straightforward conversations. He laid out his reasons for asking.
‘That is an interesting question, Master Cain. My first response would be that I don’t think so, but I can’t believe in coincidences. Once is statistically possible, but three times is beyond any believable calculation. It cannot happen. I am a very complex creature, so I have to devise a way to search and find things that I should not be able to find. Why, Cain! This will be quite the intellectual challenge, probably the greatest that I’ve had in your l
ifetime! The last time I was challenged to this degree was during the time of your great-great-grandparents, when they devised the pure-heart test and the safety protocols. We’ve been working to refine the safety protocols…’
“Who’s ‘we’?” Cain asked out loud, then switched back to his neural implant. ‘Who’s ‘we,’ Holly?’
‘I will have to get back with you, Master Cain. I am like a Wolfoid following the scent.’ Holly closed out before Cain could reply. It gave him hope thinking that Holly had not been subverted. He wondered how long it would take the AI to scrub his systems looking for hidden programs running without his knowledge.
In the interim, Cain had a job to do. On day six of a seven-day stay, he stood and walked without pain, although his knee felt stiff. He had kept the big mouth’s bat, determined to use that as his walking stick. As the med bots descended on him, trying to get him to stay, he ordered them to stand down. He strolled past the bots, Brutus at his side, and into the great outdoors.
He breathed the fresh air fully, enjoying the smell of the grass and trees. He set his jaw and strolled, using the makeshift cane to reduce the weight on his bad leg.
From the day’s training schedule, the platoon had already been at the obstacle course for two hours. Cain headed there, trying to hurry, but Brutus wouldn’t let him. He listened to his new mentor.
Cygnus Expanding: Humanity Fights for Freedom (Cygnus Space Opera Book 2) Page 13
