“Ma’am? If you’d all like to be together so you can chat, I’ll happily swap with one of the gentlemen on the end,” she offered, trying to look innocent.
Saphya waved away the suggestion. “We’re fine. We can still talk, right, Entara?”
The woman on the other side of Cyndora nodded as she worked out. “Yes Ma’am, no problem. Cyn… I mean the young lady isn’t in the way.”
Cyndora nodded. They knew who she was. So, were they here as an ad hoc protection squad or to pump her for information? From what she gathered about Staller and Muscovy she would have guessed the latter but then Saphya had definitely buffered her with women on either side, so maybe not.
“Do you normally exercise around this time, Ma’am?” Cyndora ventured.
“No, we’re still officially on leave so we’re free to come here at any time. We thought we’d come and work off lunch,” the blonde lieutenant replied smoothly.
In a pig’s eye Cyndora thought. “You’re part of General Crineal’s squadron?”
“That’s right.” There was brief pause, “How is the general feeling?” Saphya had obviously decided to give up the pretense of this being a casual encounter.
“He’s sore but up and about, Ma’am. The doctor says it will be a week or so before he’s fit for office duty and another week after that for flight duty.”
“That’s good to hear. We all respect the general very much. It’s comforting to know that he has someone to look after him whilst he’s injured. Lieutenant Feldea says that he’s in good hands.”
“Yes, Ma’am, I’ll be making sure he doesn’t overdo it whilst he recovers.” The lieutenant nodded, apparently satisfied. That seemed to be about it for the questions and although they talked amongst themselves a little, they didn’t press any more questions on Cyndora. As she wound down her exercise and got off the machine, the six pilots also stopped their exercises.
“Well, time for us to call it a day, too,” said Saphya. Muscovy, Staller and Entara made their way slowly to the door ahead of Cyndora and her guard. The other three looked to be catching their breath for a second but then followed her to the door. They had allowed enough time that they arrived there just behind her. Cyndora didn’t think it was accidental. She now had three pilots in front of her and three behind her acting as guards, and all trying not to look as if they were doing exactly that. The marine at her side appeared amused as they headed down the corridors back to the general’s quarters. As they approached their destination Cyndora saw that another marine was now on duty. Her escort took up station on the other side of the door and the pilots carried on past as if they just happened to be strolling by. The door closed behind her.
Crineal was still on the sofa as Cyndora returned. He wondered why she had a distinct expression of amusement on her face. “Good work out?” he asked, putting down the data pad.
“Yes, thanks,” her lips twisted with a smile. “I had some company.”
“Oh? Do tell.” Crineal looked intrigued.
“About five minutes after I arrived, a bunch of your pilots showed up and decided they wanted to work out on the machines either side of me. A Lieutenant Saphya gave the impression of being the leader, but Muscovy and Staller were there too.”
“Saphya… long blonde hair, button nose?”
“That’s her. She asked how you were doing and said she was glad that you had me to look after you whilst you recovered. The funny bit was that as soon as I finished, they did, too. And three of them went ahead of me and three tucked in behind. They just happened to be heading back this way.”
“Pure happenstance, I’m sure,” he chuckled. “Sounds like you’ve been adopted by the squadron.”
“Oh, great. Now I’m a mascot, too. Do I have to parade?” She wasn’t sure whether she was amused, irritated or touched by the thought. “Did you have a good chat with the admiral?”
Crineal shrugged, causing him to wince; he needed to stop doing that until he had recovered. “Inconclusive. He’s set the court martial for four days’ time.”
“Well, that’s something I guess.” Cyndora looked down at herself and sniffed. “Eww, I need a shower.”
“Time to get undressed again,” he murmured.
Cyndora gave him one of those looks. “If you weren’t injured…,” she said darkly.
“I told you before, no assaulting a senior officer. Shoo… go get less whiffly.” Crineal motioned her towards the bathroom. As he watched her go, he was sure that the swaying of her hips as she headed away was a deliberate act of cruelty to a man in his condition.
The following morning, Crineal woke at a more regular hour, and over breakfast Cyndora asked if she could visit Feldea and the Rec dorm again.
“That’s fine, I’m sure Fel missed you yesterday,” he readily agreed.
“Would it be ok to take a little make-up with me to the dorm today, please?” Cyndora asked.
“No problem,” he mumbled as he ate ravenously.
“And when I get back you get to have a shower, too,” she said wrinkling her nose.
Pausing in his eating, he looked at her. “I’m not that bad, am I?”
“No, but you’re getting that way. So, shower.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
About an hour later, as Cyndora was looking through the menu of the main replicator, the door comm buzzed.
“Major Strieger here to see the general,” said the voice of the guard.
Cyndora looked at Crineal, who was ensconced on the sofa again. He nodded at her and she opened the door. “Good morning, Ma’am, nice to see you again,” she said as Major Strieger came through the door.
“Good morning, Cyndora,” Strieger said before turning to Crineal. “Good morning, Sir. Good to see you up and about.”
“Morning, Major. Have a seat.” Crineal gestured to one of the chairs. “Did you have a good leave?”
“Yes, Sir, right up until I got back here and found out you’d tried to get yourself killed,” Strieger grumbled as she sat down.
“That’s what happens when you go on leave and I have to keep myself occupied.” He grinned at her.
“Kafe, Ma’am?” inquired Cyndora.
“Thank you, I’d love one,” she replied appreciatively.
Crineal noticed she kept looking back and forth between himself and Cyndora. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Major?”
“Can’t I just want to check on your health, Sir? As a faithful and worried subordinate?” Strieger tried to give herself a righteous air. Cyndora held out a cup of kafe for her and then handed Crineal a cup of tea.
Cyndora took in the looks between the two pilots and figured it was time to make an exit before someone suggested that she should head to the gym again. “Sir, could I make my visit to Lieutenant Feldea now please?”
“Of course, take the guard with you,” he said picking his data pad. “I’ll get a temporary one.”
She smiled at him and went into the bedroom to pick up her purse and the few bits of make-up she’d put to one side before returning, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek and heading off to medical section, guard in tow.
Strieger watched all this in silence as she sipped her kafe.
Eventually Crineal sighed. “Go ahead, Major, I’m sure you’re dying to.”
“I have no idea what you mean, Sir,” Strieger smiled innocently at him. Crineal growled at her. “She seems very sweet, though.”
“She is. I like her.”
“I knew I should have let Muscovy and Staller keep that pool going,” Strieger murmured.
Crineal looked at her quizzically, “And what pool would that be?”
“I am still considered off duty, right, Sir?”
He nodded. “Just give me it to me straight, Stri.”
“They were taking bets on how many times a day on average you got laid, Sir.”
Crineal sat astounded for a moment and then laughed. “I don’t know whether to court martial them or give them a commendation
for keeping me entertained with their antics. I take it you shut it down?”
“Yes, Sir. I wish I had asked them who pegged you for nine times a day though.”
Goggling at that he stared at her. “What do they think I am? Some kind of holo-porn star?”
Strieger smiled at him mockingly. “They have great faith in you, Sir. I should have just placed a bet myself and walked off with the money.”
“Oh, and what marvelous feats would you have me down for?”
“Actually, Sir, I would bet on zero. And I would have taken the pool,” she said watching him carefully.
Crineal pursed his lips. “Do you have so little confidence in me, Major?”
“On the contrary, Sir. I have great confidence in you. I just don’t think you’d be taking advantage of Cyndora like that.”
“And how did you come to that conclusion?”
“She has a separate bed, she looks happy and secure, and you give her lots of privileges. But the thing that convinced me most was sitting here with you.”
“And what’s that?” Crineal asked curiously.
“You just don’t have that happy smug look of a man getting laid on a regular basis.” Crineal choked on his tea. “So, I had to ask myself why you’d take on a recreation assistant, protect her and pamper her, without wanting to get her into bed. The only thing I can figure is that she’s an old friend or lover you knew from before you joined up.”
He sighed. “I really need to get you your own squadron to keep you more occupied. You’re wasted as my second.”
“I wouldn’t say that, Sir,” she paused, “you know you’re risking an awful lot if someone finds out about this.”
Nodding somberly he looked at her. “I know. I just couldn’t stand to think of her in the rec areas when I could help her.”
“Just tell me what I can do to help, Sir. You may not be sleeping with her but you’re looking more at peace with yourself than I’ve seen in a long time and that’s worth anything I can do.”
“Thank you, Stri. I surely don’t deserve someone as good as you.”
She gave him a grin. “Well, of course not, Sir. No one deserves someone as wonderful as me.”
He chuckled. “You might want a word with Lieutenant Saphya though. She turned up at the gym yesterday with a few others including Muscovy and Staller. Someone seems to have organized a private guard force for Cyndora. I’m not sure if it’s good intentions or something else, but if Mus and Stal are involved then I think we should find out.”
“I’m on it, Sir. Probably Saphy heard about Cyndora and decided to show her support of the general’s woman. You know how protective she is.”
“Yeah, she’s going to make a good squadron leader,” he mused.
“So, tell me about Cyndora,” Strieger said, easing back to get more comfortable.
Crineal took a swallow of his drink before starting. “We worked in the same office on Earth together, before the Empire arrived. She started a few months after me. We’re about the same age so we became friends, always chatted a lot. Sometimes took lunch together. But that’s it. We were just really close friends. She had a boyfriend so, even though I fancied her, I wasn’t going to intrude.” Strieger nodded. “Then the fleet showed up and the world fell apart. She left the office a couple of months afterwards and we drifted out of touch. I heard she’d ditched the boyfriend.”
“And then?” Strieger asked quietly, sensing there was more.
“The rebels bombed my home city flat. All my family and friends were dead. I thought I’d lost everyone. As soon as I recovered I enlisted in the Space Corps. I was lucky and got selected for pilot training and then even luckier to be assigned to Sarclax’s squadron. He was a general then, before the emperor made him a lord for his distinguished service. I rose quickly under him and became his aide, seeing things that no one else did.” He sat silently for a moment. “And then I saw Cyndora down in that cargo bay. A part of my past I thought was gone.”
“So how did she end up here?” Strieger inquired gently, sipping her kafe.
“Went back to live with her parents, not keen on the empire because of its annexation of Earth. Then her mother and sister were beaten up by our security forces for no good reason during a sweep of the area they lived in. So, she joined the rebels. Then got caught. Forty-five year sentence. She opted to become a recreation assistant to knock twenty years off the sentence and avoid an Imperial prison.”
“So, you hate the rebels, she hates the empire. How’s that working out?”
“Tricky at first… it caused a lot of friction. But I was able to persuade her that the rebels weren’t what she thought.”
She looked impressed. “How did you manage that?”
“You don’t want to know. Trust me.” Grimacing, Crineal took a last drink from his cup before putting it down.
“And how do you feel about her now?”
“We’re back to being friends, I think. I don’t want to push it further than that though. If I asked and she said yes and we ended up in bed together, I’d always wonder if it was for the wrong reasons.”
“Wise man. That would wreck your relationship. And if she comes to you?”
“Then we’d talk about it. I think she’d need to do some convincing. But I already told her that. So I’m giving her as much freedom as I can whilst trying to make it clear to her that I’m not attempting to buy her affections.”
“Feldea thinks she likes you for all the right reasons and the lieutenant is a smart girl. I think if Cyndora comes to your bed, it’ll be because she wants to.”
“So you don’t think I’ve been behaving like a damn fool hero trying to rescue the distressed maiden?” Crineal asked with a self-deprecating smile.
Strieger laughed musically. “Oh, Sir, you always behave that way. It’s just not obvious to anyone not close to you.”
“It’s nice to know I have your support,” he said ruefully.
“So, you really think that Del’Tarim will be found guilty?” she asked, changing the subject.
“I’m certain that imperial justice will prevail.” He gave her a smile that Strieger knew meant that he was completely confident of victory because he’d already assured the outcome.
“Well,” she said putting her cup down and rising from her chair. “I’d better go and find out what our darling pilots are up to and try and keep them busy so that they stay out of mischief.”
“Thank you, Major. And whilst I may think you’re wasted as my second, I surely appreciate having you in that spot.”
“You’re welcome, Sir, and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but here,” and with that, Strieger left to round up the squadron.
Cyndora waved to Feldea as she entered the med bay and felt a warm glow at the genuine smile that lit the lieutenant’s face.
“Cyndy!! How are you doing? And how is the general? I didn’t expect you to visit with having to look after him and all.”
She gave Feldea a hug. “I’m sorry I didn’t make it yesterday, but I’ll make sure that I visit as usual from now on. The general is doing better, so he said he can spare me for visits.”
Feldea grinned mischievously at her as Cyndora sat down. “No need to worry about that. The doc is releasing me tomorrow, so I get five days leave. But don’t feel bad about missing yesterday. You’ve made me popular, so I’ve not lacked for company.”
“Oh? And how did I manage that?”
“Well, I’ve had every Hera pilot who’s back from leave come and visit me to see how I am,” she paused giggling, “and, just coincidentally, asking all about you.”
“So it’s your fault I had a guard of pilots with me in the gym yesterday?” she asked giving her fellow redhead a mock glare.
“Wow… really? Who was there?” Feldea looked both amused and concerned.
“Lieutenant Saphya seemed to be the ring leader but Muscovy and Staller were there, too. Along with a few others.”
“Saphy is ok. If she was in charge then they w
ere there out of a genuine concern for you. She grilled me for an hour yesterday morning.”
Cyndora started to feel a touch of panic. “What did you tell her?”
“That you were really sweet and cared for the general and how much I liked you.” She looked worried. “Did I do wrong?”
“No, Fel, you’re fine. I… I just didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea about me.”
“Awww, honey, I can see how much you care for the boss and that’s all the squadron wants to know about. You’re making him happy because you care. And that means we’ll all stand by you.” She patted Cyndora’s hand comfortingly. “So… I’ve been reading a bit. What do you know about saris?”
An hour later, Cyndora walked into the Rec dorm and went over to Jaydea’s bed where her friend was napping. She poked her in the ribs. “Wake up, lazy butt.”
Jaydea’s eyes snapped open. “Cyndy!!!! Don’t do that!” swatting at her friend’s hand. “Sheesh, girlfriend, you’ve been here less than a month and you’re already a legend around here.”
Looking around she noticed that several people were watching her with thinly disguised interest. She spotted Marshalla and waved to her. The woman took that as an invite and got up to join them.
“Hey Cyndy. How’s it going? Been hearin’ about ya.”
“Oh?” she said looking nervous.
Jaydea spoke up. “We heard they’re gonna try a commander, and a noble at that, for raping you.” Her eyes were wide in disbelief. “Is that true?”
Shaking her head, she put her friend straight. “He didn’t rape me. He did assault me and would have tried to rape me, but the general stopped him. He called in a security team and had the commander arrested.”
Crineal Chronicles 1: In Hera's Service Page 20
