Galaxia

by Kevin McLaughlin

  Michi had let go of him in shock. They had won and the company lost! How had anything happened to Tamara! As it begun to register, she had let out primal scream and run back to the conference room.

  “You killed her!” she had shouted as she rushed David.

  Two office jacks stepped up and stopped her. She struggled to reach the CEO, but the two men, without hurting her, simply held her back.

  “Tamara Veal is dead, and that bastard killed her! I want Propitious Interstellar crushed! I want them to pay their penalty!” she yelled at the FCDC lawyer who was still there but gathering up his belongings.

  “And when did his happen, Miss?” he asked.

  “At her lab. When she infected the system. They just shot her down!”

  “So this was not within the last 45 minutes?” he asked without much emotion.

  “I told you, it was yesterday afternoon!” Michi told him.

  “Then, I’m afraid that Propitious Interstellar was not covered by the contract at the time, so there is nothing they are required to do. If you believe the company is liable for her death above and beyond this contract, I suggest you contact the city attorney,” he said, picking up his briefcase and walking past her to leave.

  “You knew,” she accused David. “You knew the entire time we were negotiating.”

  “We had guessed, but until you gave me her name, no, we weren’t sure. I doubt that you are going to believe me, but I am sorry about Miss Veal. I couldn’t bring that up, though, while we were trying to come to a solution. I was afraid you would blow up and order your friend to destroy the rest of the strain.”

  Michi had glared at the man, vowing revenge. But it wasn’t going to happen then and there. With an utmost display of control, she had pulled herself together and without a word, turned and left the building and into the waiting hover.

  Now, with Doug sitting in front of her, she sank to the floor as well. Both friends reached for each other as the tears broke loose, and all the stress of the last few days and the grief of their loss took over.

  Her PA started ringing, but she ignored it. She had lost her fiancé, she had lost her best friend, and at the moment, she thought that cost was too high. Michi had given her all, and that was too much.

  The people of Kakurega—all of them, not just the employees of the company—had won. Things would be better. But to those left behind, to those who had lost loved ones in the attack, to those who had lost property, to the family of Gerile Fountainhead, that innocent jack she had killed in that dark alley, was it all worth it?

  Michi just didn’t know.

  Epilogue

  Three years later . . .

  “Congratualtions, Madame Mayor,” Doug said, handing her another glass of champagne.

  “Not yet, Doug. I won’t be sworn in for another month, but yeah, baby, this is some night, huh? And without you managing my campaign, it never would have happened, so thanks!” she said, pulling him in for a sloppy kiss on his cheek.

  “It wasn’t hard, Michi. You’ve still got your hero status going strong, and with Lowery putting his foot up his ass so many times, it wasn’t hard.”

  “Still, candidates just don’t get elected on corporate worlds when the company is against them,” she reminded him. “Hey, enough of shop talk. We’ve had enough of that for the last six months. Missy is over there at the punch bowl waiting for you. Go give your wife a kiss and take her home. Give Tammy a kiss for me, too.”

  Doug looked over to his wife who blew him a kiss. “You know, she would have been proud of you today.”

  “Yes, I think she would have, despite her lack of respect for authority,” she agreed, knowing he was speaking of their Tamara, not the daughter he named after her.

  He stood there with her a moment, a sphere of silence amidst the cacophony of her campaign headquarters’ celebration.

  “Arinomamade,” he said quietly, the word having become their private motto, something that bound them together.

  “Arinomamade, Doug. Not get out of here. I don’t want to see you until Friday at the earliest. Go be with your family.

  Doug turned to give her a hug and kiss on the cheek. He wandered over to his wife and bent her over backwards, giving her a much different sort of kiss, one that promised much more as soon as they got home. Michi had to laugh. Her Dougie had changed so much from the geeky guy who Cheri had sent over back before this journey began. It may not have been so long on the calendar, but it was a lifetime ago.

  Her PA buzzed, and Michi looked down at it curiously. Not many people had the connect code, and all of them had already called to congratulate her. She didn’t recognize the code and was about to cut the connection, but curiosity overcame her. She slipped the bud in her ear and hit the connect.

  “Madame Mayor-elect, I just wanted to offer you my congratulations,” the voice said, the screen blank.

  Without a camvid, she had to place the voice, and it took a few moments. “David del Solar?” she asked.

  “The one and only,” the Propitious Interstellar CEO said with a laugh.

  “I didn’t expect your call,” Michi said with all candor.

  Michi and David had met several times over the ensuing years, both in his office and at the anniversaries of the signing of the “People’s Compact,” as the contract had been named.

  The company had twisted and turned the creation of the contract into something so far from the truth that is was awe-inspiring. The contract itself was still inviolate, but the company PR division had created a version of what happened that beggared belief. According to the new version of history, the company had instigated the reforms once their workers’ unhappiness had been brought to their attention. It had been the company that had fought to get the Marines off their planet, and once that was done, they had addressed making life better for everyone, employee or not. On each anniversary of the signing, there was a memorial service for those fallen (and those numbers had been adjusted quite a bit downwards) and the names of all Class Fours who had paid off their indenture that year were posted. The company sponsored parties that were well-attended.

  Michi had put aside her vow for revenge for Tamara. David hadn’t had a direct hand in it. All he had done was withhold that information during the negotiations, and that probably had been smart. Michi didn’t know herself what she might have done if she had found out while Doug could still destroy the remaining Blue-99.

  Still, even if they weren’t exactly enemies, she had just defeated the company-sponsored candidate.

  “I didn’t want to intrude on your celebrations, but I thought a call would be appropriate.”

  “A conciliatory call? I didn’t know that was in you, David.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t call this conciliatory,” he said.

  “Uh, David, have you been watching the newsfeeds? I just kicked your candidate’s ass.”

  “I’m very aware of that. And I congratulate you, even if we may not have put up the best candidate.”

  “Oh, shite, David. Don’t feed me that. You contributed to his campaign. You endorsed him. What about all your dirty tricks?”

  “Michi, you’re a smart woman. Do you really think we would put up a pompous ass like Lowery if we wanted him to win? If I wanted him to win?”

  “What are you saying?”

  “Put it together. I couldn’t very well put the company’s support behind the woman who brought the company to its knees. So, if I could put up someone unelectable, what would that do? I could show that I tried to get someone else elected. All the dirty tricks were not very effective, were they? No, because you could address each one, and no matter what else, the Federation would make sure the actual votes made would be reflected. There’s no tampering with the ballots allowed.”

  “Nice story. But why should I believe this fairy tale?” she asked, not buying it.

  “Because Lowery was so bad. Because we leaked the story about his past psychological treatments. And most of all because I want you to be mayor
.”

  “One again, why?”

  “Since you force us into the contract, our business has never been better. You’ve seen our stocks. We’re up almost 180% since then. Our “good for the people” persona is working. That caught me by surprise, I will admit, but the numbers are there. With increased sales and better worker relations, we’re on a role. And with you as mayor of Tay Station, I think we can work together.”

  “I’m only going to be the mayor. I won’t hold sway anywhere else.”

  “What about governor?” he asked.

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself. Let me be sworn in, first. Besides, I don’t work for you.”

  “I didn’t say work ‘for’ me. I said ‘with’ me.”

  “OK, let me rephrase that. I did not get elected to makes things easier for the company. I will not do its bidding,” she told him.

  “Will you work for what is good for the city?” he asked.

  “Of course.”

  “Then that’s all I can ask for. And if what’s good for the city is good for the company, then we all win. Look, I didn’t plan on getting into it now. I was going to invite you to the board dining room for a dinner next week. I’m still going to do that so you can meet my team, but until then, just think about it, OK.”

  “I’ll think about anything that will help me do my job.”

  “That’s all I can ask for. It’s a new galaxy, and I hope we can figure out how to make it work. Take care, and one again, congratulations.”

  He cut off his side, and Michi stared at the blank PA.

  That was one weird call, she thought.

  She looked up at the room, where the die-hard revelers were still partying. They had worked hard for her. Well maybe not so much for her as for what Michi stood for: a new beginning. She was not corporate. She was an outsider.

  Michi was also smart enough to know that if the company fought her, she would be stymied in whatever she tried to accomplish. Maybe getting in bed with the devil would allow her to do some good. She’d done some pretty nasty things in the past for that elusive “greater good,” so why not consider David’s offer?

  “Madame Mayor! Come here for a drink!” one of her young volunteers, one she was ashamed to admit she didn’t even recognize, called out from a group of about five very happy people.

  She still had the champagne that Doug had given her, so she walked over to join them, a real smile, not a forced one on her face.

  “Thank you for all your help,” she said to their cheers. “It’s only just begun, though. This was the easy part, and now comes the real job. We were elected to make a change, and by St Chuck’s hairy butt, we’re going to do it!”

  THE END

  — — —

  Want to read more by Jonathan Brazee?

  The United Federation Marine Corps

  Ryck’s story starts with Recruit. The time line in this coincides with Captain Lysander in book four of the United Federation Marine Corps series in Captain.

  Get the books in the series:

  The United Federation Marine Corps

  Recruit

  Sergeant

  Lieutenant

  Captain

  Major

  Lieutenant Colonel

  Colonel

  Commandant

  Behind Enemy Lines

  (A UFMC Prequel)

  Additional Series:

  The United Federation Marine Corps’ Lysander Twins

  Women of the United Federation Marine Corps

  The United Federation Marine Corps’ Grub Wars

  Ghost Marines

  The Navy of Mankind: Wasp Squadron

  Call to Arms: Capernica

  The Return of the Marines Trilogy

  The Al Anbar Chronicles: First Marine Expeditionary Force--Iraq

  Werewolf of Marines

  About the Author

  Jonathan P. Brazee is a retired Marine infantry colonel and now a full-time writer living in North Las Vegas, Nevada with his wife Kiwi and twin baby girls, Danika Dawn and Darika Marie. He is a two-time Nebula Award Finalist, a Dragon Award Finalist, and a USA Today Bestselling writer.

  Jonathan published his first work back in 1978, a so-so short story titled "Secession." Since then, he has been published in newspapers, magazines, and in book format in fiction, political science, business, military, sports, race relations, and personal relations fields. He returned to writing fiction in 2009, and currently has over 75 titles published, 44 being novels. Jonathan’s novelette, "Weaponized Math," was a finalist for the 2017 Nebula Award, "Fire Ant" was a finalist for the 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novella, and "Integration" was a finalist for the 2018 Dragon Award for Best Military Science Fiction or Fantasy Novel.

  Jonathan’s undergraduate degree was earned at the U. S. Naval Academy (Class of 1979), and he attended graduate school at U. S. International University and the University of California, San Diego, earning a masters and doctorate. He is a lifetime member of the Disabled American Veterans, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the US. Naval Academy Alumni Association, and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America where I'm serving as the chairman of SFWA Ed, the organization’s professional education program.

  Jonathan has eclectic tastes, having won awards in photography, cooking, writing, and several sports, earning national championships in rugby and equestrian events. When he’s not writing, he’s reading, cooking, going to the gym, or traveling. He attends quite a few cons over the course of a year, and loves meeting other people who love books.

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  RESCUE TWO: A SEEDER’S UNIVERSE SHORT STORY

  by Dean Wesley Smith

  The impossible search was just the beginning.

  Searching for a lost Seeder Mother Ship with over a million people on board might be an impossible task under normal circumstances, but the Mother Ship went missing over three million years earlier.

  Finding the ship poses immense problems. And the problems only start once they find it.

  An epic space opera tale on a gigantic scale. Another story in Dean Wesley Smith’s bestselling Seeders Universe.

  Copyright © 2019 Dean Wesley Smith

  Rescue Two (this story) is a work of fiction.

  All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Sometimes both.

  All rights reserved.

  One

  Chairman Evan West stood beside his chair on the bridge of Seeder ship Rescue Two, letting the twenty-seven people on the three levels of stations in the command center work in silence around him. He knew that his crew of sixteen thousand were pretty much all as intensely focused as he was at this moment.

  His wife, Tammy, her dark hair pulled back tight away from her face, frowned at her screen one level above where he stood. He knew that tiny frown was not from a problem, but of extreme concentration.

  He and Tammy made a perfect couple, always had. At first, they had been on different ships, doing different missions for the Seeders. But after the mother ship she was on, Dreaming Large, had got trapped in a Void Space pocket and it had taken him over sixteen years to lead Rescue One to free the mother ship, they had decided to be on the same missions.

  And he loved that. Their apartment was large and comfortable and they both had offices. And every day they made a point of eating dinner together to talk over their days. Twice a week they had movie night.

  Those sixteen years she had been missing made him love her even more. Even though it had only been a few minutes for her, she seemed to understand and return the love and agree to the changes.

  After the war with the aliens had been won, primarily by his knowledge of Void Space bubbles, Chairman
Ray, the Seeder who seemed to guide all Seeders through thousand and thousands of galaxies, had given him an assignment.

  Chairman West was to have his ship, Rescue One refurbished and expanded, with the fast speeds known to Seeders, and all modern equipment that had been developed during the war. He was to recruit a crew and then his mission was to find lost Seeder ships.

  Especially two lost Seeder mother ships who had left the original Earth hundreds of thousands of years before and simply vanished.

  Since Mother Ships could smash into a planet and come out the other side without damage, Ray and West both thought the ships had ran into Void Space bubbles, where time didn’t really exist. Those ships could be gone for a hundreds of thousands of years and only a few days would have passed inside the bubble.

  Rescue Two’s job was to try, after all the millions of years, to track those ships and find them and rescue them, or find out what had happened to the millions of Seeders who had been on those two ships.

  Ray had looked at West and said, “Some of my best friends were on those ships, Chairman. Find them. We need them more than ever right now.”

  West had only nodded. It had taken three years to refurbish Rescue One into Rescue Two. And another two weeks to track where the first Mother Ship might have traveled in over eighty years of flight.

  And Rescue Two had not been traveling at top speed, either, but instead going relatively slow to check out some Void Space bubbles along the way.

  Tammy’s expertise was in space mapping through time, dealing with the galaxy shifts and drifts. Extremely high-level math that they had installed extreme levels of computers in Rescue Two just for her and her department.