Royce

by Frank Carey

  "Every ship except for the Arachnid. You, the Smiths, and the Dobbs have officially logged the most number of rescues for a single disaster in League history. How does that make you feel?"

  I thought about the destruction, the horror, and the sadness. "I wish we could have done more, Director. What we did paled in comparison with the needs of everyone affected by the event."

  She walked up to me and put her hand on my arm. "Everyone involved says the same thing. We're lucky to have you with us, Mr. Aymar. You're dismissed.”

  I walked out of the room understanding what it meant to be part of something larger than I was, a feeling I never had as a member of the royal family. I learned something important about the universe and about myself that day.

  ###

  It was near the end of the Martok Incident, when my first real test occurred. I had gotten my Lead Patrol Pilot wings and was out on a training run with a gaggle of recruits when a distress call sounded in our radios. "Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is Patrol Ship Regulon declaring an in-flight emergency."

  Damn, that was Metta's ship. Metta was part of my group of recruits. I called my second and told her to take the recruits back to the hangar while I dealt with the problem. Once they were safely heading back, I called Metta.

  "Regulon, this is Alanis responding to your emergency, over." The minute I answered the call, all traffic on this channel was moved to other frequencies. The sudden silence was unnerving.

  "Royce, thank the heavens. I need help, buddy."

  "Calm down, girl, and tell me what's up," I said as I homed in on her position. I looked at the station and saw emergency crews moving into fast-reaction stations. Then I saw the LWS Potemkin move in front of the main landing bay. That was bad.

  "Royce, my control system locked, and I'm on a collision course with the Cube at full throttle."

  "Eject, girlfriend, the Potemkin will take care of the rest." Hell, the Potemkin didn't have to do anything except be in the way. Its shields would make short work of the Regulon.

  "No joy on ejection system or backup. The systems-lock has frozen everything."

  Shit. "Hold on girl, Royce is on his way," I said before killing the feed. "Parker, bring up the schematics of the Regulon. Question: can we unfreeze the computer?"

  "Working, sir. Yes, but a reboot will take thirty minutes. Ms. Metta has ten minutes until impact."

  Think, moron. How do you stop an out of control patrol ship? You don't. "Parker, how much time before she's too close to evade?"

  "Three minutes, sir, but her controls are locked."

  "Copy that. What is the location of her primary thruster fuel distribution tank?" I asked as I went to full military power.

  Parker brought up a three-view of the Regulon. On the dorsal side, just forward of the engine nozzles was a flashing dot. "Program position into firing computer and standby."

  "Aye, sir. Position programmed. Sir, you only have a few millimeters leeway."

  "Copy that," I said as I thumbed the mic. "Regulon, get ready for hard gees. Control, Alanis, do you copy?"

  "Go Alanis," the control tower said.

  "I'm going to pierce the Regulon's primary thruster fuel distribution tank. This will cause the fuel to vent perpendicular to the line of travel causing the ship to turn sharply upward, clearing the cube," I said as I programmed the single rocket-propelled bullet in the chamber for just enough thrust to pierce the tank but not pass all the way through. Unfortunately, I had only one shot at this.

  "Alanis, Control. Abort. I say again, Abort. You'll be too close."

  "Parker?"

  "It will be close sir, but doable."

  "Control, I did not copy that last transmission. I..." I said feigning a comm failure.

  Out the canopy, I saw the Regulon heading toward the Cube like a bat out of hell. I pulled back on the stick, rolled, and fired less than a second before impact. I pulled back on the stick as the Regulon rotated upward, missing Hermes and the Cube by a large margin just as the fuel tank emptied. I flew wing for her until the rescue shuttle arrived.

  ###

  "What in the hell kind of stunt was that, Aymar?" the director yelled while Lyscka stood in shocked silence. We were in the director's office where I was receiving my formal ass kicking. "You could have been killed!"

  Been there, done that, but I can't say that. "Ma'am, it was a calculated risk. I felt I had enough time and distance to save Metta and get the hell out of there."

  "Calculated? What are you, some kind of math whiz? Our computers threw up question marks when we input the data. Do you think you're better than our computers?"

  I looked at Lyscka and saw her mouthing "No!" Too bad. "Director, I was there, in that cockpit, watching a fellow pilot about to be smeared all over the Hermes' forward shields like peanut butter on warm toast. I ran the calculations, and I took a chance just as I was hired and trained to do. I'm alive, and Metta is alive. You want me to sit out there and watch her die when I know in my gut I can save her, then you can take this job and..."

  "Royce!" Lyscka yelled.

  I stopped and looked down at my hand. It had gone partial elf. I was mad enough to lose shape control. That never happened. Ever. I was through with this shit, so I turned and walked out without a word. I ran down the hallway to an empty room. Once inside, I reverted to my native form before sitting down next to the wall while shaking like a bowl of Jell-O in an earthquake.

  Girls had it so easy. They could only take two forms—human and elf, but not battle elf, like my natural form. When in elf-form, the ladies looked like something from a fantasy novel—friendly, playful, nice—while we males look more like the love child of a shark and a sasquatch. Oh well, thems the cards we were dealt. I wonder if the citizens of the League knew how many of us were running around in disguise.

  "Royce, are you Okay?" Lyscka asked from outside the door. I was still too angry to change back to human form.

  "Boss, I'm fine. I just need a little time to calm down."

  "Okay, as long as you’re all right."

  "Fit as a fiddle," I said as I took deep breaths. I thought about the look little Anna gave me when she saw me. Kids can deal with anything, even space aliens.

  I tried to change again and this time it worked. I watched my hand go human and felt my tail disappear. I found a mirror and checked myself over to make sure the changeover was complete. Convinced all was well, I straightened my flight suit and exited the room. On the way back to the director's office, I ran my resignation speech through my mind. I have no idea if I can watch a friend die, but I will not let it happen if there is a chance I can save them. I wish to all the holies someone would write a book about all this. I reached the door and stopped when I heard voices, calm voices, coming from the other side.

  "In for a penny..." I said as I reached for the doorknob. I'm really going to have to stop using that phrase else people will think I'm from New London.

  I walked in and stood at attention while Ciara and Lyscka continued talking. After a few moments being ignored, I cleared my throat and said, "Director, Chief Pilot, I apologize for the outburst. It was unseemly and unbecoming someone in my position. I offer my resignation effective immediately." I reached up, pulled off my insignia patch, and handed it to Lyscka. She looked at the director as if not knowing what to do.

  "Gimme that," the director said. She grabbed the patch and slapped it hard on my uniform. "Maintenance just figured out what happened with Metta's frame. Someone loaded a bark-borer missile on Regulon by mistake. Partway through her flight, the damn thing tried to interface with Regulon's system, shorting out the controls.”

  A bark-borer? We had those in inventory? A bark-borer is one of the most dangerous civilian munitions ever created. They're used to break big asteroids into little pieces prior to processing. By the Holy Tower of Zed, if that thing had hit Hermes...

  "If Regulon had been allowed to hit Hermes, the resulting explosion would have destroyed her and taken out at least a quarter o
f the Cube. Your actions saved not only Metta, but hundreds of crew and personnel."

  What a time for my father's teachings to suddenly sink in. "No, ma’am. I disobeyed orders to save a single pilot. I..."

  "You will continue to do what you do, and I suspect we will have this conversation again," Ciara said. "The next time I might accept your resignation, or you might be dead, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, get out of here. We both have a lot of work to do." She shook my hand before Lyscka led me out of the office and into the hall.

  We walked down the corridor to the Aerie in silence before Lyscka's curiosity got the best of her.

  "What happened in there? Why did you run out?"

  If only you knew, Senior Pilot. "I got angry at the absurdity of allowing someone to die. I saw the numbers and they were good, but no one would believe me. I have to work on my anger management, I guess."

  "Right, anger management," she said while giving me an odd look.

  I wondered if she had seen my hand…

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The apartment filled with steam as I took a hot, hot shower. I had just gotten off a twelve-hour shift, watching while the boffins in the lab ran umpteen tests on an alien whatchamacallit they found on some asteroid in Erdexi space. The Erdexi swore it wasn't theirs, the Halcyons disavowed any knowledge, and the Martok yawned, so it was shipped to the Cube for testing.

  It did nothing but sit there for twelve hours, ignoring lasers, microwaves, radar, multispectral scans, and even a bot with a sledgehammer. One tech even threatened to use an anal probe, but the thing refused to stir, so they packed it up and shipped it to the tombs. Maybe someone will have a better idea a hundred years from now, but for now, we all went home until the next something arrived with an "Urgent" sticker slapped on its crate.

  "Sir, you just received word of a schedule change," Parker said over the SAC. "The birthday party for Lt. Tami has been moved to the quadrant six board room. The time remains unchanged."

  "Shit," I said as I turned off the water and grabbed a towel. "That's on the other side of the Cube. It'll take me half an hour to make my way through the morning traffic!"

  Imagine living in a stack of city blocks interconnected by ramps, elevators, ladders, and escalators. Now, you're down in one corner and your party is at the opposite corner diagonal across the center of the station. Next, fill the space with people, equipment, and assorted bots. It makes navigating New York City during peak traffic look easy. I finished dressing in record time.

  "Sir, if I may suggest an alternate route," Parker said while bringing up a holographic map of the Cube above the dining room table. A red line connected my apartment to the Q6 boardroom. "You will make it with plenty of time if you leave now."

  I memorized the route, grabbed Parker, and ran out the door.

  The Cube is exactly what the name suggests, an immense, cube-shaped space station. Its mission is to investigate and develop technology while keeping the rest of the League safe from the stuff being investigated and developed. To do all of this investigating and developing requires people, and people need stuff like air, water, beds, and corndogs—stuff.

  Parker's route took me through what I like to call Boffin Alley. Here’s where all the scientists, engineers, and technicians live in their off time. My apartment is in the Aerie where the pilots and flight staff live. Parker's route took me through the middle of Boffin Alley, which should be empty this time of day.

  I turned a corner and stopped dead. In front of me, a Goranthi male and a human male had a human woman pinned against the wall. They were obviously preparing to do something morally reprehensible to the young lady. I don't like anyone doing anything morally reprehensible to anyone...

  ...Especially to my sister, Gloria.

  "Sir, you can't..." Parker said with panic in her voice.

  I had one second to figure this out. In human form, I was no match for these two. I can't risk revealing myself to them and the security cameras lining the hallway—where the hell was security, by the way—if I go elf. Got it.

  "Parker, Ghost Protocol," I said. The hallway went black immediately—to non-elven eyes that is.

  I ran up—going full elf as I approached—grabbed the Goranthi by his uniform and threw him the length of the hallway. I heard the satisfying sound of crunching bone when he hit the far bulkhead.

  "Toth, buddy. What the hell's happening?" the human said as I grabbed him and spun him around. "Parker, half-second flash."

  The lights came on briefly, and the human found himself staring at my elven countenance no more than a couple centimeters from his face. I made sure he could see the canines.

  He screamed and passed out. I threw him down the hall to join his companion.

  I changed forms. "Parker, normal lights," I said as I slapped the emergency call button on the wall.

  "Security."

  "This is pilot Royce Aymar, ident 38-98723-01 I need medical assistance and security to this location. There's been an attempted rape, and we have two perps down."

  "Copy that, personnel are on their way. What is the victim's condition?"

  "She's dead drunk, sir," Parker said.

  "Unconscious, but breathing. No damage visible."

  "Copy that, Pilot."

  Copy that. Where the hell were you people when this was happening? I sat down next to her and brushed the hair out of her eyes. She relaxed when I touched her, as if she knew I was there and felt safe. "Parker, any idea what the hell is going on?" I asked as the sound of boots hitting the deck on the run echoed down the hallway.

  "No, sir. I am at a complete loss," she said. I could imagine her frowning inside her stylus.

  A dozen heavily armed guards turned the corner and surrounded the two perps while the medics ran over to where Gloria and I were sitting. A guard broke off from the pack and walked over to help me up. Before she could say anything, Director Devlin strode onto the scene. She looked around then walked over to where I was standing and dismissed the guard.

  "Royce, what happened?"

  I stood at attention and delivered a report the same way I would to Lyscka. "Ma'am, I was cutting through Boffin Alley on my way to a birthday Party for Lt. Filomena Tami being held in the Q6 board room, when I came upon the Goranthi and human pinning the young lady up against the wall. She was out, and they said a thing or two which led me to believe they weren't helping her to find her conveyance, if you catch my drift, ma'am."

  The director looked at the two perps being lifted onto gurneys. Damn, no body bags. I have to work out more.

  "Go on," she said.

  Since the first time I met her, I had learned she wasn't human. She was Venlanten, a race rumored to be able to read souls. Now, I don't know if that's true or not, but I was worried she could read minds. If she read mine, she would find a very unhuman mind inside a very human body, so I tried to keep my head filled with human thoughts.

  "I was about to intervene when the lights went out. Next thing I know, I feel something big run past me. I heard a crunching noise followed by a man screaming. It stopped the same time I heard a thud against the far wall. The lights came up, and I saw the two gentlemen against the wall and the young lass on the floor. I hit the panic button, then checked on her. Security showed up soon after I called."

  "Did you check on those two? See if they were dead?"

  "No ma'am. The only thing between them and her was me, so I wanted to keep my distance in case they were faking it."

  A guard walked up and handed her a datapad. She glanced at it. "The Goranthi might live. The human is in deep shock."

  "Ma'am, I ran the route from Tennosh to the outer rim. I've seen their kind too many times. The galaxy will be a better place if they move to the Great Beyond."

  "Their records would agree with you on that point. I don't know how they got in here, but you have my word it will not happen again."

  "Yes, ma'am. Let me know if you need help taking out the trash."

  "
Copy that. Do you happen to know who she is?" the director asked as the medics gently placed Gloria on the gurney. This is where it was going to get sticky. Though my life had been a lie for the last several years, I was inherently a very bad liar. I doubt I had any hope of fooling a mind reader. "No ma'am, no clue." Please, please, please...

  "Her name is Gloria. She's one of three people in this world I consider my best friends. Thank you for helping her.”

  "I did nothing, ma'am. Something beat me to it."

  "Regardless. You may return to your journey, Royce. Have a good day," the director said as she escorted my sister from the scene. Good for you, sis.

  "Parker, get me out of here," I said as I had completely forgotten the route in all the commotion.

  "Of course, sir," she said with a smile in her voice.

  With Parker's turn-by-turn instructions, I made it to the party, though I was late. When I walked through the door, the room erupted with cheers. I looked around and realized they were all staring at me.

  Filamena walked up with a glass of sparkling something and handed it to me. "The director called and told me why you were late. Damn, Royce. Best damn excuse for being late I've ever heard," she said. Then she hugged me while the room erupted once more in cheers.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  I sat in the dark and read a rather steamy romance novel while I waited for the apartment's occupant to arrive. This particular novel dealt with an Alturan couple, so I had to pull up Wikipedia for the occasional explanation of terms.

  On the table, I had placed a bouquet of balloons and a piece of birthday cake from Filomena's party. That should cause some confusion.

  "Sir, are you sure you want to do this?"

  "Yes, Parker, I do. I know it's a risk, but one I have to take. Something is wrong, and I need to know what."

  I continued to read and wait.

  "Sir, our person is approaching. I estimate five minutes," Parker said. She was watching security camera feeds from various hallways and corridors leading to this apartment.