by M. K. Eidem
"She's lying!" Vaine insisted.
"You make visual recordings within your establishments?" Masala's eyes widened with shock.
"Of course!" Cali couldn't believe he would think she didn't.
"Then show it to me," High Navarch Pergram ordered.
Cali lifted her wrists, reminding them all that she was still restrained.
"Remove those!" the High Navarch spit out. The guard that had shoved Cali instantly moved to obey the High Navarch.
Cali rubbed her wrists for a moment before she looked to Jamis and gestured to the dark surface before her. "I'll need to access your system."
Jamis leaned forward, and after touching a few spots, the area in front of Cali lit up. His eyebrows shot up when the talented fingers she'd run over his body just a few dark shifts ago began to fly over the table's smooth surface, accessing the Star Base's system without him telling her how. Soon the wall behind her became the interior of The Brink.
Together, the room watched as Vaine Masala walked into The Brink. She paused for a moment, her gaze scanning the room, then she smirked and headed toward the large, glowing bar. Nearing the bar, she shouldered her way between two males and placed herself in front of Cali.
"Phoc wine."
Cali's only action was to slide a chip reader in front of Vaine.
Vaine glanced down at it and sneered, "Start a tab."
"No."
"Listen, you Earthan bitch, I'm General Masala's oldest datter. If you don't serve me, he will destroy you."
Taarig knew what happened next; he'd been in The Brink when all this had occurred. So instead, he watched Vaine and her tad. While Vaine sat up straighter and seemed to have no problem with others witnessing her conduct that night, her tad flinched and seemed to sink lower into his chair.
"I don't care if you're the datter of the rukking High Navarch. You're on the restricted list. You pay, or you don't drink."
Vaine, whose tail was already angrily swishing from side-to-side, pulled her fist back and swung at Cali. Everyone in the room gasped in shock when Cali ducked then swung out with her arm connecting with the outside of Vaine's, sending it back into the Phoc's face.
"Ruk!" Vaine said.
Before she could recover, the massive green arms of one of The Brink's Protectors wrapped around Vaine and lifted her off her feet.
"Cali, you okay?" the Protector asked.
"I'm good."
"Let me the ruk go, you Galaian bastard!" Vaine cursed as she struggled in the Protector’s arms.
"What do you want me to do?" the Protector asked.
"That's it, Vaine. You just got yourself banned. Good luck getting a drink on any Star Base from now on. Get her out of here."
Cali froze the screen with Tay carrying Vaine away, an ugly snarl on her face.
Silence reigned in the room as every eye focused on Vaine, who still sat ramrod straight, a defiant expression on her face. "What?!"
"I would say that answers the question as to who assaulted who," the Supreme Chairman's gaze bored into Vaine.
"How could you lie to me about something like this?" Masala hissed at his datter.
"I didn't lie! You saw what happened. She caused me to be injured."
"You injured yourself," the High Navarch said in disgust, then looked to Cali. "You are cleared of all charges, Khatun Baker, and have my deepest of apologies that any of this occurred." His gaze shifted around the room. "Now, if that's all."
"Your general invoked Article 89," the Supreme Chairman said quietly.
"He what?!!" Cali watched the High Navarch swallow hard as if there were something lodged in his throat before croaking out. "Clear the room. Everyone out except the Commanders and Masala."
"Khatun Baker will also remain," the Supreme Chairman's words had Cali slowly lowering herself back into her chair, her gaze going from him to the High Navarch, who she could tell was displeased.
"Why does she get to stay and not me?!" Vaine openly whined.
"Vaine, for once in your rukking life, just shut up and do what you are told!" Masala ground out, glaring at his datter.
Vaine stared at her tad in shock. Obviously, he'd never talked to her that way before, but she quickly recovered and, with a huff, spun on her heel and stormed out of the room, followed by the general's security detail.
Once the door slid closed, the High Navarch spoke again. "Now, what's this nonsense about invoking Article 89."
"It's not nonsense," the Supreme Chairman replied calmly. "Your general invoked it."
"Only after you suggested it," Cali said quietly, then quickly added, "Supreme Chairman," when he gave her a hard stare with eyes identical to her own.
"So General Masala didn't actually invoke Article 89." While the High Navarch's expression didn't change, Cali saw his shoulders relax slightly.
"He agreed that was what he was doing," the Supreme Chairman argued back, "and now we will address it."
"He doesn't even know what it is!" Pergram nearly shouted.
"Then inform him, and your Base Commanders, since this affects them too."
Pergram's gaze went to Cali, "She doesn't need to know."
"She already does. Unlike the Coalition, Wik Corp doesn't keep important information from our high-level personnel."
That had the High Navarch stiffening again, and Jamis’s and Taarig's gazes were sharpening on Cali. She hadn’t been The Brink’s owner that long, so how was she one of Wik Corp's high-level personnel?
"Inform them, or I'll choose which section to enforce," the Supreme Chairman growled at the High Navarch.
"Article 89 deals with the ownership of the Star Bases,” the High Navarch began while glaring at the Supreme Chairman. It was rare that anyone dared give him an order anymore and even rarer that he obeyed, but he had no choice in this with the Supreme Chairman.
"The ownership?" While Jamis and Taarig were smart enough not to interrupt the High Navarch, Masala was obviously a lot like his datter, which had Cali again wondering how he ever attained the rank of general. "What do you mean? The Coalition owns the Star Bases, Wik Corp just maintains them."
"No, we don't!" the High Navarch gritted out through clenched teeth. "Do you know how much one of these rukking things costs to build and maintain, let alone the time? The Coalition doesn't have the time, skill, or credits to do that. We rent them from Wik Corp. Article 89 was part of the original agreement because the High Navarch at the time refused to have the safety of those in the Coalition forever dependent on the leadership of Wik Corp. He believed other and better options would eventually present themselves."
"He was wrong. There's no better option than Wik Corp," the Supreme Chairman told them smugly.
"There are three actions the Coalition can take if it ever invokes Article 89," the High Navarch continued, ignoring the Supreme Chairman's comment. "Option one, the Coalition repays all the credits it took to build each and every Star Base, of which there are currently twelve with the thirteenth still one hundred standard-years away from being completed. That option would be impossible as it would take every credit the Coalition earns for the next thousand years." He ignored the way Masala's mouth dropped open.
"Option two, the Coalition turns all the Star Bases over to Wik Corp, minus the Coalition's personnel and ships, of course, and we find a different way to protect those species that are part of the Coalition. Something that would be impossible without first building our own Star Bases, which I just explained we couldn't do.
Or option three, in which Wik Corp turns over the Star Bases to the Coalition, taking with it all that is theirs, meaning the businesses, maintenance personnel, and all the mechanicals that aren't Coalition. In other words, we'd get Star Bases on which we'd have to live in survival suits until we were able to make them operational, which again…"
"We would be unable to do," Jamis finished quietly.
"Correct, Commander Dexxirs. Which is why General Masala will be retracting his request to invoke Article 89."
> All eyes turned to Masala, who seemed to have shrunk under the weight of what he had done. "I… I was only trying to protect my datter," he whispered brokenly.
"And put the rest of the universe in peril in the process. Retract your request, General Masala," the High Navarch ordered.
Masala looked at the High Navarch, then pulling down on his uniform jacket, straightened in his chair, and looked to the Supreme Chairman. "Supreme Chairman, I retract my wish to invoke Article 89 of the Wik Corp/Coalition Defense Agreement."
The Supreme Chairman's lack of response had the room's tension ratcheting up as everyone waited for his response. Finally, after what seemed to be an Apreian lifetime, he did.
"Wik Corp accepts the Coalition's retraction." Just as everyone began to relax, the Supreme Commander looked at the High Navarch and continued, "But there will be consequences."
"Consequences?" the High Navarch asked, trying to maintain a neutral expression.
"Yes, your general and his datter have caused a great deal of inconvenience today. Right now, I am supposed to be meeting with the Paramount."
"The…the Paramount?" Cali saw the High Navarch blanch. It seemed even the Coalition's most powerful official was scared to upset the Paramount of the Zagreus.
"Yes. The Paramount will want an explanation, and he isn't as forgiving as I am. Therefore, because of the general’s and his datter's actions, he and his entire family shall face the same consequences as his datter."
"You mean we're all going to be on Wik Corp's restricted list?" Masala looked at him in disbelief, his mind racing at how that would affect him and the rest of his family.
"No. Your datter isn’t on the restricted list; she has been banned from all Wik Corp establishments everywhere. So, the rest of you shall be, too, but not just until Pilot First Class Trudo's debt is satisfied, but until I’m satisfied."
"What?" Masala wasn’t the only one who gasped in shock. Cali did too. Why was her dad doing this? Yes, Masala had hugely overstepped his authority, and yes, his datter was a spoiled pain in the ass, but to ban an entire family because of the actions of two. In one way or another, Wik Corp owned most of the universe.
"But to show that Wik Corp isn’t entirely heartless, I will allow General Masala to leave on the ship he arrived. His datter, on the other hand, will have to find other transportation."
"What are you talking about?" Masala questioned, "My ship belongs to the Coalition."
The Supreme Chairman looked to the High Navarch, who, through tight lips, finally said, "So that the upper ranks of the Coalition always have the most advanced ships, we lease them from Wik Corp."
The Supreme Chairman drove the point home, "Which means you are banned from using them also."
Chapter Twelve
"Thank the Gods!" Mae exclaimed as she hugged Cali. "I was so worried I'd messed it all up."
"You didn't." Cali hugged her back reassuringly. "You did everything exactly as I told you to, which is why I'm back so soon."
"Really?" Pulling back, Mae searched Cali's face.
"Really. Everything is good. So," Cali looked around the bar taking in the number of patrons, "is there anything I need to handle, or have you got this?"
"I've got it." Mae walked beside her as they headed to the concealed door of Cali's quarters. "There is one thing I need to know, though."
"What's that?"
"How many waitresses do you want to hire? I've already received twenty applications."
"Really?" Cali gave her a surprised look. "That many?"
"The Brink has always been a good place to work, but since you've taken over…"
"Since I've taken over what?" Cali encouraged when Mae trailed off.
"Well, word has gotten around about how well you're treating your staff, that you gave Tay and me your old quarters, and how you hired Hamm and found a den for him when no one else would. And…"
"And?"
"And how you caused Vaine to punch herself," Mae couldn't help but giggle at that. "It seems like most can't stand her. They just never said anything because of who her tad is."
"Oh," Cali felt her cheeks start to heat. "I guess I didn't think anyone would notice. Or care."
"Because of you being Earthan." Mae completely understood what Cali had to be feeling. Galaians also weren't highly thought of within the universe.
"Yes."
"Well, all I have to say is that after meeting you, I wish there were more Earthans out here."
Cali felt her eyes fill at the sincerity in her friend's voice. Few people other than her family cared whether she lived or died. But Mae did. It made Cali's deception all that much harder. "Thank you, Mae. Ten."
"Ten?"
"Hire the best ten and get them trained. I want all working before you deliver this little one," Cali gestured to Mae's stomach.
"Alright, I'll go through the applications and pull out the best ones, then you can okay them."
"No."
"No?"
"You're the manager now, Mae, and one of your responsibilities is to manage the personnel of The Brink. So, you choose, and you hire. I'm only going to step in if I feel it's necessary." With that, Cali put her hand on the bio-scanner and entered her quarters.
Cali knew she'd shocked Mae, not only with making her responsible for the hiring but with her abrupt departure. But Mae was going to have to get used to the heavier responsibility, especially if one day she was going to be the owner of The Brink, which Cali was going to make sure happened. As for her abrupt departure, Cali wanted a moment to herself before her dad contacted her, which she knew would be happening soon. He was going to want answers she hadn't been able to give him in the conference room.
She'd misjudged her dad's impatience because she'd no more than settled down on one of her couches with a glass of wine when her dad's code pinged her link. Knowing he'd want to discuss this face-to-face, she transferred the comm to the screen on the wall.
"Hi, Dad," she said, lifting her glass to take a sip.
"What the fuck is going on, California Rose!" he immediately demanded.
Cali winced slightly at him, using both her names. He really was upset. He'd even reverted to an Earthan swear word. "It's not as bad as it seems, Dad."
"Not as bad…" Paul Baker-Wik'ax gave her a skeptical look. "A Coalition general tried to kidnap you, Cali."
"A misunderstanding. One caused by a manipulative, lying datter. I should have realized Vaine would involve her tad and taken precautions. You won't be telling Mom or the Paramount about this, will you?" She gave him a pleading look.
"That depends," he told her.
"On what?" she asked warily.
"On what you tell me in the next few minutes. I want to know everything."
"You already know all the relevant facts," she said, hoping that would soothe him. She should have known better.
"Then fill me in on the irrelevant ones. Like you being personally involved with this Pilot. Your report said nothing about that."
Cali sighed and took a fortifying sip of her wine before responding. "I didn't include it because I knew it would look like retaliation. Which.It.Wasn't!"
"But you had been involved with him," he pressed.
"Do you really want to know about my sex life, Dad?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"No," Paul immediately denied, "because you're not old enough to have one."
"I'm three hundred and twenty-five years old, Dad," she reminded him. "By the time Mom was my age, she'd already had three offspring."
"I hate it when you do that," Paul grumbled.
"Do what?" Cali asked innocently, sipping her wine to hide her smile.
"You know what. You logic your way out of an argument just like your mother does." He glared at her for a moment then released a heavy breath. "Alright, I know you're old enough to have sex. I just don't want to know about it, but in this situation, I need to know."
Cali sighed, "Alright. Yes, I was involved with Nox, but only briefl
y. He'd been coming into The Brink for about six months, always flirting and making suggestive comments. I knew it was because he thought I was Earthan, but it had been a long time since I'd had sex, and with their tail, well, Phocs are supposed to be skilled lovers." She shrugged her shoulders at his incredulous look. "I was bored, so I decided to find out. The experience was disappointing, to say the least. I only gave him a second chance because I thought it could only get better. I was wrong. I planned on telling him it was over when I got back from signing the ownership transfer for The Brink, but when I returned, I discovered what he'd done and the rest, you know."
"How did he get your worker’s chip?" Paul asked quietly.
"It must have fallen out of my pocket. Triz refused to set up the secondary security I wanted on them, so all Nox had to do was use it. I never permitted him to do so." She could tell her dad believed her. "But I had used it to purchase drinks for him in the past, which was all the Base Commander needed to hear to side with Nox."
"It never takes them much," Paul grumbled. "Still, you should have included that in your report."
"Did Triz when he banned Iantha?" she countered.
"Iantha?" Paul gave her a puzzled look.
"The Bix female Triz banned," she reminded him.
"What does that have to do with your situation?"
"She was banned because she attacked any female Triz fucked after he got tired of her."
"They were involved?" Paul frowned, knowing Triz had never told him that.
"Yes, and I can tell by your expression that he failed to include that in his report."
"He didn't. It seems I'm going to need to start digging deeper into the reports my children give me."
"I don't think that's necessary," Cali quickly said. "It will only draw attention to us if you take a bigger interest."
"That's true," Paul hummed.
"So, we're good?" Cali gave him a hopeful look.
"To a point," he hedged.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that I won't inform your mother or the Paramount about this on one condition."
Cali released a heavy sigh. She'd learned long ago that her dad's 'conditions were often a punishment in and of themselves. "What's the condition?"
