Gateway To The Universe: In Bad Company

by Craig Martelle

  Dokken appeared and stood on his back legs, putting his front paws on Terry’s leg. He nodded to the screen. Char stood on the other side with her arm draped casually over Terry’s shoulders.

  “That means you, too,” Char said, pointing at her pack and her family.

  “Count me in,” Marcie said.

  “And me,” Kaeden added as a chorus of cheers followed.

  “Is there anyone who doesn’t want the procedure or who wants to know more? There has to be someone.” No one spoke or raised a hand. “Pull one of the officers aside if you want your privacy. It’s okay. This isn’t for everyone. That damn Smedley is in my head.”

  The German Shepard nudged his arm.

  “And you, too, Dokken.”

  “You’ll see on the schedule that half your day will be spent in one of two classrooms. Think about how big the universe is. We’re playing catchup, people. We’re in this together. Knowledge is power. We are sorely lacking right now, so these classes will be the most important thing we do for the next few weeks.” Terry looked at the speaker. “Smedley. How long until we get where we’re going?”

  “I’m sure I can’t answer that.”

  Terry cocked his head. Even Dokken looked at the screen in surprise.

  “It’s math. Aren’t you supposed to be good at that stuff?”

  “I can do the calculations, but I don’t know to where you’re referring. Do we have any more stops on Earth after this? No. Are we going to match orbits with the ArchAngel II? Yes, and transfer the executively royal passengers. Then we’ll travel to the Annex Gate at best possible speed. Through the gate into Yol space, then conduct a second gate jump to the Onyx Station from which we’ll embark a few specialists before a final jump to the Dren Cluster where I was told will be the base for your operations.”

  Terry’s head swam with the locations. He didn’t know where any of those places were.

  “Show us a star chart with these locations highlighted.”

  Instantly, a starfield appeared. There was a huge yellow hand with ‘you are here’ written on a pointing finger. Terry sighed, but the image zoomed out and rotated, then zoomed back in to focus on that area. The image expanded and did a fly-through to the next stopping point.

  The ship lurched almost imperceptibly as it took off.

  “Did we miss our last chance for someone to change their mind on going into the Pod Doc?” Terry asked.

  “People always change their mind, TH,” Smedley said patiently while the group in the rec room continued to study the star charts that the EI displayed to orient them to Federation space. “But they can no longer leave the ship, unless they want to space themselves, jump out an airlock, as it may be.”

  “As it may be. I hope they were sincere in signing up. We shall see.” Terry turned back to the main screen. “Colonel Marcie, Majors, the word has been given. Carry out the plan of the day. Walton out.”

  “Sign me off, General,” Terry told the EI. The screen went blank. “What do you think, Dokken?”

  Terry scratched the dog behind its ears as he smiled into Dokken’s dog face.

  You know you look pretty stupid when you do that, Dokken told him.

  “I don’t care, you butt-sniffing nematode,” Terry replied matter-of-factly.

  That’s how it’s going to be, huh? Name-calling is so passé, TH.

  “Fine. Have it your way,” Terry declared in a deep voice. “What’s next, Dokken? Maybe you can take us to the captain of this tug?”

  Sounds good. Dokken leaned into Terry’s hand and twisted his head as the colonel’s fingers found a good spot. The German Shepard dropped his front paws to the deck and shook vigorously. Terry stood and held out his hand. Char took it and they walked out, side by side, partners on the next phase of the journey.

  ***

  “Looks like you guys are first,” Marcie told the Weres and the Forsaken. Timmons looked closely at the list. Using a finger to stop the scrolling names and roll it back to the first group.

  “And you,” Timmons told Marcie.

  She pointed to Kaeden, Kimber, Auburn, Cory, and Ramses. “And you guys. We’re second.” She pointed back to the pack. “Looks like you have about one minute to make your appointment. Better not be late.”

  Timmons and Sue took one last look at the map and strolled away. Timmons was first through the door and immediately turned right. The rest of the group chuckled.

  “This way,” Sue said, nodding to the left. Timmons looked both ways and grunted. He walked past the group with his head held high.

  “You passed the test,” he told them.

  Shonna and Merrit followed, then Aaron, Yanmei, Joseph, and Petricia, with Ted and Felicity bringing up the rear.

  “I’m not sure about this,” Petricia whispered at Joseph.

  “If it makes you feel any better, I’m not sure either, but we do what we must. If I’m to understand correctly, the Pod Docs created the first of our kind and many since. We are the unsanctioned. But there are those like us who would follow Michael’s strictures, if we only knew what they were.”

  Petricia shivered with worry. She remained uncertain and nothing Joseph could do would alleviate her concerns. He couldn’t be reassuring when he was as in the dark as she was.

  “I’ll go first, my love,” he said. It was his way, a way of life he’d been born into.

  Chivalry lived on.

  At least in Joseph’s heart. Terry had done the same thing earlier. Even though the women didn’t need protecting, that was how their men had always been and always would be. Char had protected Terry as often as he’d protected her. But she let him have his way.

  When it suited her.

  Petricia was much younger than Joseph, but who quibbles about the difference between a century or four? Joseph would have it no other way.

  She opened her mouth to argue with him, but he smiled at her. Who was she to refuse that?

  The group trudged through the hallway, walking markedly slower the closer they came to the space where the Pod Doc was located. The lab-coat wearing technician was waiting for them. His arms were crossed and his foot beat a staccato against the corridor’s deck.

  “I’m first,” Marcie called as she approached, but Joseph rushed past the group.

  “No. I’ll go before the rest as I expect I’ll be the most challenging.” Joseph took his wide brimmed hat off and looked at the man.

  “I expect you will be,” the technician replied after looking closely at the Forsaken. The man waved at the large group to follow him in. He did the math in his head. Fourteen people at roughly ten minutes each….

  It would be a while before this group finished. He had expected them to come in smaller groups.

  Joseph climbed into the Pod Doc and the door shut. Petricia and his friends watched the equipment silently. Less than half of them had gone through the process. Marcie, Kim, Kae, and Ramses had received the nanocytes and programming from Akio’s Pod Doc, which was on its last leg.

  The process that was taking ten minutes on the War Axe had taken them six months using the roughly-repaired older technology.

  It was a new age. A better age where they would fly to the future on an alien ship with technologies they had never dreamed of.

  Ted could go for weeks without talking to anyone, but here, he saw nirvana. “Can you explain the interface of this system, how it takes the person’s data and reconfigures the nanos?” Ted asked as he looked at the computer station that the man occupied.

  The technician only watched the status indicators on the screens. He wasn’t interacting with process. Ted scratched his chin in wonder as he explored the possibilities.

  “These upgrades are being handled by ArchAngel herself,” the man said with a smile. “Smedley is helping, too.”

  Ted nodded as his mind disappeared into the data streams scrolling in front of his eyes. The man was talking, but Ted didn’t acknowledge him. Felicity tapped the technician on the shoulder.

  “He can�
��t hear you,” she drawled.

  “But, but…” the man stammered, pointing to Ted sitting two feet away.

  “He can’t. Trust me on this. We’ve been married for a long time. He has gone inside that magic box of yours. My husband may never return.” Felicity looked forlornly at her Werewolf husband.

  The latch clicked on the door to the Pod Doc.

  ***

  You sumbitch! Dokken ‘yelled’ and took off running. He slid through a sharp corner and slammed into the wall before scrabbling to find purchase and dashing forward.

  Terry and Char were in hot pursuit because they weren’t sure where they were going. As long as their guide was running, they were running.

  Dokken ran face-first into a door that slid closed right in front of him. He tore at the obstruction, ripping at it with his paws.

  “What are you chasing?” Char asked.

  That damn cat! He is my arch enemy, a nemesis the likes of which has not plagued humankind for untold centuries, Dokken declared.

  “A cat,” Char said slowly, putting her hands on her hips. Terry reached for the panel beside the door. “What are you doing?”

  “We’re going after that cat!” Terry declared, looking determined.

  “Why?”

  “Because Dokken is my friend and he has an arch enemy somewhere beyond that door,” Terry explained patiently, relaxing and smiling.

  That’s a good boy. Now use those thumbs of yours to open this door!

  “Hey, buddy, I’m starved. Where do we eat? Did you know that we brought a few tons of real beef, the best on the planet?” Char asked the German Shepard.

  What’s beef? Dokken asked, turning his head back and forth as he looked at Char, the door behind him forgotten.

  “Meat. Domestic, organic, possibly even orgasmic if you’ve never had it before. Weathers family nurtured. It’s a treat better than any treat you’ve ever had before.”

  Better than bistok?

  “I don’t know what bistok is, but I suspect beef is better. You know what I am. When I’m in Were form, I can’t get enough beef. It’s like delicate fingers dancing over your tongue, sending joy directly into your brain.”

  I’m not sure what we’re waiting for, Dokken said excitedly as he trotted off. Terry took Char’s hand and they followed the dog, expecting that he knew where he was going.

  A sound behind him said that a door had opened. An orange cat leaned out, casually licking a paw and wiping his face. Terry used his free hand to give the cat the finger.

  Char looked at him, wondering.

  “He’s our arch nemesis,” Terry stated firmly, tipping his head back for emphasis.

  “Do you want me to change into a wolf and chase the scary kitty away?” Char said in her most concerned voice. Terry hesitated. “You’re thinking about it!”

  “Am not! But he’s our arch nemesis.”

  “No. He’s not. He’s a cat and a dog doesn’t like him, but can’t be anything more than an arch enemy. An arch nemesis? That would have been Mister Smith, and things didn’t end well for him.”

  Terry snarled. Mister Smith had haunted his dreams for decades, but when he, Akio, and the pack caught up with the Forsaken, Paris had trembled under the onslaught. Marcie had ended the Vampire’s life with a keen sword stroke.

  While Terry, Char, and the others watched. That was how most of the enemies in Terry’s life had died. Defeated and whimpering. That made TH smile. He and Char were still alive and kicking.

  And they had a dog again, even if he did talk back.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Valerie and Robin walked through the corridors of the War Axe. Valerie carried her trusty sword—an old European blade passed down to her. A bracelet of simple silver glittered from Robin’s wrist—a memento from her father, one he had given her after they had relocated in New York. They had taken the news of her going into space quite well, considering the fact they had lost their daughter once to Vampires before finding her again.

  When she had explained the reason for her going this time, they had nodded, given her the bracelet, and made her promise to bring their alien enemies hell.

  Valerie still wondered if they had understood what Robin was getting into. Hell, she wondered if she really understood it herself. She had a feeling this was going to be one crazy ride.

  Other than that, they carried nothing from their old lives. What use did they have of old belongings in space?

  They followed the directions that Michael had given them and arrived at the recreation room. Inside, they found two platoons from Colonel Walton’s Force de Guerre—FDG—milling about, working out, waiting.

  One face in particular was a welcome sight to Valerie. There, in the middle of the recreation room, was Sergeant Garcia. The man had been sent by Colonel Walton to help set up New York’s military, but had stayed and done more for the city than many of its citizens could claim. She had been sad to see him head back west with his FDG buddies, so finding him here was certainly a pleasant surprise.

  Garcia saw them come toward him. He let the weight rack settle back to the stack. He looked to have been bench-pressing well over three hundred pounds, and Valerie gave him a nod of respect.

  “Valerie!” he called, giving her a broad smile.

  “Trying to bulk up in case there’re hotties in space?” Valerie asked. “You know, I’m going to have to ask the colonel about how he feels about you hitting on the aliens…”

  “You want to talk to me about love lives?” he laughed, then shared an awkward silence with the two.

  “Yeah…” Robin pursed her lips, giving Valerie a curious glance before looking back at the sergeant. “Whatever you’re trying to insinuate there, that’s over. This is strictly business.”

  Valerie nodded. “Kill aliens. Save the world. And whatever the hell that means.”

  Garcia chuckled. “Shi-it. I can tell you this much…I’m feeling that much safer knowing you two are on the job.”

  “I can say the same about you and your massive pecs,” Valerie replied. “Just…I’m surprised to see you here. Earth couldn’t handle any more Sergeant Garcia?”

  “I thought the colonel was mad at me for being gone so long,” he admitted. “Turns out, your pal Sandra had told him about me and he was impressed. So I got on the destroyer with the rest of the FDG in San Fran. Two platoons’ worth.”

  “I can’t think of any other non-mods that would deserve it more than you.”

  “Don’t you start assigning labels like that. Up here, we’re all soldiers of the Etheric Federation, am I right?”

  Valerie nodded and Robin replied, “Damn straight.”

  “I’m sorry we didn’t get more of a chance to chat back on Earth, by the way,” Garcia said, offering his hand to Robin, which she accepted and shook with a firm grip that made him wince. “But I can see we’re going to get along just fine.”

  “As long as you can spot me when I bench three times what you were just doing, we’re good.” Robin tried not to smile, which was fun coming from her.

  “No need to start the pissing contest just yet, ladies,” Valerie noted with a chuckle.

  “I was just killing time, actually,” Garcia said, winking at Robin. Valerie winced. Was he hitting on the girl?

  “There’s a big party you’re waiting on?” Valerie asked.

  Garcia shook his head, then motioned toward the others in the room. “Mods. Get this, we get a chip so we can chat with the ship’s EI. Everyone.”

  “Fuck that,” Valerie said. “I’m not putting a chip in me, and I definitely am not letting some EI get into my head.”

  He scoffed. “Yeah, have words with BA over that and see how far that conversation takes you.” He must’ve noticed her go pale, because he laughed. “I thought not.”

  Garcia waved Tyson Kurtz to him. “Lieutenant, these are a couple of the vamps I fought with over in New York.” He pointed to one then the other. “Valerie and Robin.”

  “Nice to meet you. I’m Kurtz.
We’ve been working with the colonels and their tac teams for a while now.” He looked around the room and his eyes came to rest on three others who were fighting over a piece of workout equipment. “Hey, you stupid fuckers, come here! The big one is Edwin. Then Samantha, and finally our tech guru, Nick Rixon. I think Nick is a little behind the power curve when it comes to modern technology, because what we used to think was modern? It ain’t.”

  “I’ll second that,” Nick admitted. The group shook hands.

  “Hey, in our world, technology means you have a wine opener that isn’t your teeth,” Valerie stated with a laugh, noting how Nick failed to think that was funny.

  “And your specialties?” the man asked.

  Robin and Valerie glanced at each other, frowning.

  “Um, killing?” Robin offered in response.

  “Sounds about right.” With a shrug, Valerie added, “That’s what Earth demanded of us. It seems like it’s what BA will require of us too.”

  “Yeah, but you two were something special back there, right?” Nick asked. “I mean, up here…being a Vampire is cool and all, but after the mods, it’s not really a thing. Or, not in the same way it was, right? And here you’re not just killing Weres, Foresaken, or…what did I hear you call it? Non-mods?”

  “I get it,” Valerie replied. “Bigger, badder enemies. I’m not so special.” She glared, until Robin cleared her throat. “Mister Technonuts over here and I are going to get along just great, I can tell.”

  “More women is a plus as far as I’m concerned,” Samantha interjected, clearing the tension. “Hell, the testosterone in this room alone is enough. Girl power.”

  Valerie nodded, then turned back to Kurtz. “I just realized, I have no idea how this is going to work. I mean, are we all on a team, part of some intergalactic strike force or something?

  Kurtz shrugged. “That’s a question higher-ups than me will have to answer. Likely the colonel or BA.”