The tempo on the bridge picked up as each station checked then double checked their status reports from throughout the ship. Captain and Doctor Rivers watched as the well-oiled team went about their jobs of preparing the Conestoga for departure from Camadin. At one point, Rivers glanced over at Commander Bradley. The security chief was examining a bare patch of skin on his left forearm. Checking out a spot for the tattoo that will represent this voyage, no doubt, Rivers thought to himself.
Chief Engineer Deckard contacted the bridge to let the captain know that he had reached his duty station and was standing by with his personnel. Rivers signaled his comm officer to open a channel to Camadin's Colonial HQ.
"Camadin Colonial Headquarters, this is Captain James River. TCV Conestoga is preparing to break orbit. Thank you for your hospitality. We'll see you next time we're out this way. Conestoga, out!" Rivers signaled Bynes to cut the connection.
He glanced around the room once more. "Alright, everyone let's go around the horn and report on system statuses. XO, if you please!"
Commander Meaghan O'Reilly rose from her station and took up her position near the captain. She called out each station and acknowledged their report. The process went by quickly and soon, she turned to the captain to report, "Sir! All stations report green and ready for departure!"
Rivers returned her smile. "Very well, XO. Ladies and gentlemen, take 'er out!" Rivers said to his pilot and navigator. "Take us home!"
Power was fed to the sublight engines and the Terran Colonial Vessel Conestoga trembled then began to move forward. As the giant ship gained speed, she began to move away from the planet named Camadin. With that, the Conestoga and her crew broke orbit and began their long voyage home!
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Thank You!
Thank you for purchasing and reading this e-novel! If you enjoyed this e-novel, I invite you to take a moment to visit Amazon.com's website for this e-novel and leave a product review. I'm always eager to hear from my readers! And don't forget to tell your friends!
And while you're at it, I hope you take a moment and find another of my e-books to enjoy!
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Glossary
Bridge — The command and control center of a star vessel, often located on the upper most deck of the ship.
Brig — A compartment aboard a star vessel used by Security to incarcerate personnel who violate ship's rules and regulations.
CI — Abbreviation for Command Implant. See Neuroelectronic Linkage Implant.
CIN — Abbreviation for Command Implant Network. See Command Implant Network.
Command Implant (CI) — See Neuroelectronic Linkage Implant.
Command Implant Network (CIN) — Neuroelectronic network shared by all command personnel aboard a star vessel. The CIN allows command officers to communicate swiftly and silently between each other.
Comm Unit — Small, hand-held personal communications device used aboard star vessels.
EPS — Abbreviation for Emergency Pressure Suit.
EPS-E — Abbreviation for Emergency Pressure Suit-Engineering.
Emergency Pressure Suit — Lightweight, short-term encapsulating suit designed to protect a person during a contamination or depressurization event.
Emergency Pressure Suit-Engineering — An Emergency Pressure Suit designed for use by Engineering personnel during an emergency aboard ship. These suits are more rugged than standard EPS and are tailored for the individuals who will wear them them.
FTL — Abbreviation for Faster-than-Light; used to describe the Faster-than-Light drive system aboard star vessels.
Faster-than-Light (FTL) Drive — Invented in 2073 following the Yellowstone Event, FLT creates a localized instability field around a star vessel allowing it to exceed the speed of light.
Fleet Security — A division of the Terran Colonial Fleet responsible for providing training and personnel to protect Fleet assets and personnel.
Med Center — See Medical Center. Also called Sick Bay.
Medical Center (Med Center or Sick Bay) — The primary medical facilities aboard a star vessel.
Medical Injector — A medical instrument designed to transfer injectable medications through a patient's skin using pneumatic pressure.
Neuroelectronic Linkage Implant (Command Implant) — An electronic device implanted beneath the skin and in contact with the wearer's skull. It provides a link between the wearer's mind/brain, the ship's computer system, and other wearers. Senior officers aboard each star vessel and required to have a Command Implant.
Sick Bay — See Medical Center. Also called Med Center.
Stasis — The process of placing living organisms into a timeless/motionless state. See also Stasis Pod.
Stasis Pod — A small compartment/mechanism capable of placing organisms into a timeless/motionless state. See also Stasis.
Stunner — A shipboard weapon designed to project a beam of coherent energy capable of rendering a human unconscious without causing damage to the ship or ship's systems.
Sublight Drive — An ion propulsion system powered by energy derived from nuclear fusion reactors and designed to propel spacecraft at speeds below the speed of light.
Tablet — Portable computing and remote access device tied wirelessly into a star vessel's primary computer system.
Terran Colonial Fleet — Earth Government's space exploration and colonization agency; composed of thousands of spacecraft ranging from short range, sublight craft and faster-than-light star vessels.
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Other Books by Jeffrey M. Fortney
Fiction:
The Arizona State Guard Series
Bloody Border
Target Terror
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The Terra-Bravo Saga
Chaos on Terra-Prime
Foothold on Terra-Bravo
with K.M. Fortney
Crisis on Terra-Bravo
with K.M. Fortney
Non-fiction:
Honing Your Instructional Skills:
9 Steps for Improving Your Teaching!
These e-books are available in a variety of formats through:
- Amazon.com/Kindle-eBooks
- Smashwords.com
- Barnes&Noble (b&n.com)
- Apple iBooks Store (via iPad or iPhone)
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About the Author
Jeffrey M. Fortney is a former U.S. Air Force firefighter and fire service training instructor. He began writing stories as a youngster in 1970. His parents encouraged his writing by buying him a manual typewriter. He has published seven novels and one how-to book.
When not writing science fiction, military action/adventure, and political thriller stories, he pays the bills by working as a senior technical editor and photographer for the world's leading publisher of fire service training materials.
He is happily married to Julie Fortney, his bride of over 30 years. They have 4 children, 5 grandchildren, and 2 dogs.
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