A long minute of silence ensued while the crew considered what’d been said. In the end, though, it was Langella who spoke up first. “And the chancellor signed off on this?”
“Immediately.” Masterson handed him the tablet containing Zier’s seal of approval. “You see, Major, he too understands the importance of this mission.”
Langella studied the document. Then, apparently satisfied, he handed it back to the commandant.
Excellent, Masterson thought, returning to his chair as the crew assumed their posts. Was this a perfect scenario? No. But it was all just a means to a very worthy end. “Helm. Lay in a course for the Rynzer Expanse and prepare to break orbit.”
* * * * *
Chapter 9: Conversations
Turning right onto Redbird Drive and easing off the Camaro’s gas, Danny cranked down his window and surveyed, for the first time in years, his old Miami Springs neighborhood. His heart sank.
A lot had changed in the two decades plus since Danny, his father, and his mother had moved to Tampa for his dad’s psychology practice—most of those not for the better, either. This had always been an older subdivision, sure, but the folks of his time had always taken pride in their homes.
Unfortunately, Danny thought, the same couldn’t be said for the sloppy, low-income tenants of today.
Take the Petersons’ old place on the cul-de-sac, for instance. Built in the early sixties, as most of these houses were, the classic, Spanish-style South Florida ranch had once stood as a crown jewel of the neighborhood—its sweeping stone exterior devoid of any blemish, and its lush Bermuda lawn manicured to perfection alongside a palm-shaded driveway and Mrs. Peterson’s citrus garden. Danny had sampled his first tangelo out of that garden.
Now the house was in a shambles, a hulking mess of a property with peeling, sun-bleached shingles and grime-covered walls, and Mrs. Peterson would be spinning in her grave if she could see her lawn had long since been devoured by sod webworms.
The rest of the street wasn’t any better. The old Boatright place, the Johnsons’ house, the Freeman place…all trashed. Even the old Farm Store where Danny and his mom used to go for ice cream was gone, boarded up years ago and covered in graffiti.
Damn punks, Danny thought, eyes narrowed at the vandalized structure. Then, wanting no more of it, he stepped on the gas and sped toward his final destination: the San Martez Memorial Cemetery.
Bringing the Camaro to rest beneath a huge magnolia at the back of the gravel lot, Danny got out of the car, crossed the courtyard, and started past the first row of plots toward the one he’d come to see: eighth row in, fifth from the front, Celtic cross on the tombstone. He took a seat in the grass beside it, folded his legs, and gave a long, heartfelt sigh.
“Hi Mom,” Danny said, clasping his hands in his lap. “I hope you’re doing okay up there.” He paused with an awkward laugh. “Ah, who am I kidding? Of course you are, right? You, Papa Warren, and Mama Nan. Man, you guys are probably up there right now, kicked back at a picnic table someplace watching Larry Csonka and the ’72 Dolphins wreak havoc on the Jets, absolutely living it up with all the bake-offs, crafts, and Canasta you can handle. All the stuff you used to live for down here before you just…” Danny broke off and swallowed. “Well, before you just couldn’t anymore.”
Seeing a small rock beside his foot, Danny picked it up and examined it then lobbed it across the grounds. “So, I know it’s been a while since my last visit. I’m really sorry about that, Mom, but I’m sure you know I’ve had my reasons. A lot of stuff’s changed, and, for the most part, for the better. That’s way more than I can say for our old neighborhood. Anyway, I’m not exactly around much these days, but I suppose you knew that already. I gotta tell you, Mom, I really like it up there. I mean, I just…feel like I fit, ya know? And you of all people understand what a big deal that is. Lord knows I couldn’t do it here or in Tampa with Dad’s business.” Danny felt his lip curl at the thought of his old man. “Outside of Lee and the others, I never really found it in Tally either. But up there? Crazy as this sounds, Mom, it just makes sense to me. I mean, they really took us in, right from the start, and we’ve come a helluva long way since. All of us! Lee’s got his own command, which, now that I think about it, probably doesn’t surprise you much. You always did like him, and for good reason. He’s a good guy, and sharp—really sharp—which is why he’s bolted up rank as quick as he has. You know that fool finally got off his duff and married Mac? Took him long enough. Oh, speaking of Mac, she’s good, too. Like Lee, she’s a pilot—shocker, I know. But in fairness, she’s still a frickin’ genius with a computer. Lately, though, she’s had to take a leave of absence from the fleet to help her brother through some pretty nasty health issues. He’s better now, I think.”
Danny shifted on his legs. “Link’s good. He runs a bomber squadron assigned to the AS Keystone. Got a wife and a pair of kids, too, if you can believe it. That pretty much leaves Hamish as the last single guy on our crew. Still, most of us agree he married the Corps years ago. Fitting, I think, given his family’s legacy in the military and all.”
Danny glanced upward to see a blot of gray clouds forming overhead. There was a storm coming. “Guess that just leaves me. I enlisted, too. Got sergeant’s stripes and my own unit, and everything now. But just so we’re clear.” He waggled a finger. “I totally could’ve been an LT by now if I’d sold out and gone officer, but I just couldn’t do it. Chalk it up to whatever you want. Dad’s pretentious sense of elitism, maybe. But there’s just something about being one of the guys on the ground—a ‘man in the mud’—that got to me. Oh, and FYI, I’ve got a fantastic group around me, in case you were worried. My CO, Sergeant Major Noll, Anders, Reegan, all of them first-class guys who totally look out for me.”
Danny leaned back on his hands. “That, I suppose, brings me to the last part of my life which, if I know you, is probably what you want to hear me talk about. You’d really like her, Mom. I mean it, you really would. She’s smart—way smarter than I’ll ever be—not to mention classy, and thoughtful, and kind, and selfless…” His eyes met the ground in a momentary twinge of guilt. “Well, I guess to frame it another way, she’s everything that all of the others weren’t. Listen, I know you couldn’t have been proud of me after you were gone. I mean, let’s face it. I was pretty much an idiot when it came to women and relationships. Hell, throw in a psych degree and I could’ve been Dad.” Danny cringed. “But Madisyn wasn’t having any of that. Not one bit. From the moment we met, she made it abundantly clear that she took crap from no one, not me nor anybody else. It took a while, but in time, she was just the kick in the ass I needed to straighten up and fly right. Oh, and her family really likes me, too. Her Dad, Rick, is a phenomenal guy. We don’t get to hang out much because he stays pretty busy…He’s kind of the Auran president. But he’s a retired solider and a single parent himself, which is to say he’s got a lot in common with us. Seriously, Mom, any time we’re together, he goes out of his way to make sure I’m included in stuff…you know, to make me feel like part of the family, different worlds and last names or not.”
Hearing a crack of thunder roll in the distance, Danny stood up, dusted himself off, and fished a small, black-flocked jewelry box from his pocket. He opened it and faced it toward the headstone. “I can’t do much about the different-worlds part. But the name thing? That I can change. She’s the one, Mom. She’s the one you always hoped I’d find, and I wanted you to be the first person I told about this. I just…” He looked up at the sky and then back to the grave. “I just wish you could’ve been here for her to meet when I finally did.”
Then, tucking the box back into his pocket, he leaned over and kissed the headstone as the first trickles of rain slid down the marble. “Next time I come down, I promise to bring her with me, okay? In the meantime, say hi to Mama Nan for me, and tell Papa Warren the ’Phins still need a frickin’ quarterback! Oh, and Mom?” he said, turning to go. “Wish me luck so she says yes. Love you and see
ya soon.”
* * * * *
Chapter 10: Reality Check
“Oh…my…G…” Katie couldn’t even finish. She just stared, dumbfounded, at the first deep-space shuttlecraft she’d ever seen, in the hanger bay under PGC-East.
“Beats the crap outta flying commercial, huh?” Mac said, standing next to Lee and Madisyn.
Katie didn’t move a muscle.
“Wow,” Mac said. “She’s really gonna freak out when the Larrin hits hyperspace.”
“Hyperspace?” Katie managed, her gaze still locked on the sleek-looking craft on the platform ahead. “Like…to another planet?”
“Another galaxy, actually,” Lee said.
“Another…galaxy.” Katie gulped and turned to face them. “Oh, little brother, what on earth have you gotten yourself into now?”
Lee laughed and draped his arm around his wife’s shoulder. “You remember that videogame thing a while back? The one that got us the original trip to San Diego with the Phoenix Gaming Company?”
Katie nodded.
“Well,” Lee said, “turns out PGC wasn’t so much a videogame company as it was a front for a training outfit. And the actual game, Mako Assault? More like a job interview.”
“Sooo, what? You guys aren’t video-gaming consultants?”
Lee cocked his head. “No, we consult sometimes, too. To be honest, sis, it’s all a little complicated, but Danny can fill you in on all of that when he gets back from Miami. For now, though, me and Mac have to jet. We launch for our honeymoon in three hours, and Mac’ll need at least two of those to make sure she packed all her flip-flops.”
Mac slugged him in the arm. “So says the jerk with six pairs of cowboy boots in his duffel.”
Katie blinked at the two of them. “You guys are totally not going to Hawaii, are you?”
Mac shook her head and grinned. “Not even close, sweetie. But don’t worry. We’ll take lots of pictures!”
* * *
Five hours later, Katie marveled at the view as the shuttle carrying her and Madisyn passed Jupiter and made its final approach to the AS Larrin, hiding on the far side of the planet. The cruiser itself was incredible, Katie saw. But spectacular as the ship was, she could hardly tear her eyes away from the enormous gas giant below. I’m in orbit around frickin’ Jupiter, she kept repeating in her mind, en route to another frickin’ galaxy. Un…real.
A few minutes later, the shuttle docked in one of the Larrin’s three aft cargo bays and the two women were heading for the lift that would take them to guest quarters on B Deck.
“You okay?” Madisyn asked once the lift began its assent.
“What?” Katie said, snapping out of it. “Who me? Oh, yeah, I’ll be fine. Just…a lot to process, that’s all.”
“Understandable,” Madisyn said. “For what it’s worth, your brother and his friends had similar responses when they made this trip for the first time.”
“Only with a bit more bravado, right?”
Madisyn grinned. “You know your family well. If memory serves, Elton John was sung.”
“‘Rocketman?’”
Madisyn nodded.
“Nice.”
The wall terminal’s bell rang five times before the lift eased to a stop on their level.
“So,” Katie began, grabbing her roller suitcase by the handle and stepping out. “You’re Auran.”
“I am,” Madisyn said. “I was the lead geneticist on the original expedition that came to Earth six years ago.”
Katie couldn’t help chuckling. “Wow. Of all the nerds, in all the towns, in all the world, it’s a riot that you’d end up with my dorky kid-brother and his merry band of barflies for your grand, intergalactic experiment.”
“Oh, their…” Madisyn paused for the right word, “eccentricities were not lost on us during those first few encounters.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Katie snickered.
Madisyn tilted her head. “Jokes aside, I don’t know that we could’ve ever hoped for better than what we got out of the Eight-Two. What they managed to achieve in the span of a mere three months was…” She shrugged. “Well, it was unbelievable, even by our standards.”
“Eight-Two?”
“Yes. The Eighty-Second Logistical Squadron. Or the Renegades, as most know them.”
“Renegades,” Katie said, amused. “Those clowns always did take school spirit to the nth degree.”
Madisyn looked confused.
“Oh, sorry. I’m kinda the black sheep of our family in that I opted to bolt town for med school at North Carolina-Chapel Hill rather than stay home and go to Florida State. So I never exactly joined Seminole Nation.”
“Yes, I think Danny mentioned that,” Madisyn said. “And now you’re in Seattle, correct?”
“Yeah, I’ve been the head of cardiothoracics at King County Hospital for going on nine years now.”
“You’ve got a research background, too, yes?”
“That’s right. Prior to Seattle, I did a two-year postdoc with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in Bethesda, Maryland.” Katie looked back at Madisyn. “That’s part of the National Institutes of Health.”
“I’m aware. I actually referenced some of NIH’s work from the Human Genome Project when I wrote the original Mimic protocol for the Eight-Two.”
This drew a laugh from Katie. “Not even gonna lie. I’d kill to see the faces of some of those researchers when they learned their stuff was being cited by scientists from another galaxy.”
“Ah yes,” Madisyn said. “Pity they’ll never know.”
Rounding the final corridor into a steel-walled pod leading to four sets of rooms, Madisyn directed Katie to the second unit on the right. A modest space in terms of size, the room consisted of the same metallic décor as the rest of the ship, along with a double bed, desk space, private bathroom, and a computer access terminal on the far wall between two portholes.
“All right, Dr. Summerston, these are your quarters for now,” Madisyn said, examining the terminal to make sure everything was in order. “You can access anyone, me included, from here, along with maps of the ship’s interior and pretty much anything else you might need to know—ship’s itinerary, mess hall schedule, menus, that sort of thing. If you have any questions, please do let any one of us know.”
“Call me Katie. Only my patients call me Dr. Summerston. And besides, I’m sure by now you’re on a first-name basis with my brother and everyone else, right?”
“It depends on the setting,” Madisyn said. “In our free time, yes, I call him Lee. In front of other soldiers or our superiors, however, it’s Lieutenant Commander Summerston.”
Katie made a face. “Okay, just so you know…I’m so not calling him that.”
Madisyn chuckled and started for the door. “Very well, Katie. The Larrin is one of our newer cruisers, which means we’ll arrive on Aura in roughly five days. I’m sure we’ll be seeing quite a bit of each other between now and then.”
“Thanks, Madisyn. I really appreciate it. Hey, listen, can I ask you something? It’s kinda personal.”
Madisyn turned back to face her. “Certainly.”
Katie shifted uncomfortably. “Why Danny? I mean, don’t get me wrong, he’s as loyal as they come to Lee and the others. But when it comes to women?” She winced. “You’ve gotta admit, his track record is pretty shady.”
Madisyn’s expression turned thoughtful as she leaned against the dresser. “A lot happened in the first three months of the Mimic Project—not just with Danny, but all of them. It was like once they got here, something clicked for each of them. Like they found something they were looking for.” She refocused on Katie. “How much do you know about Danny’s family?”
Katie shook her head. “Not much, really. I know he doesn’t have any siblings or cousins to speak of, and that his relationship with his dad isn’t that great. Why do you ask?”
“What do you know of his mother?”
Katie shrugged. “I know
she passed away quite a few years ago. Not sure of what.”
“She died of ALS when Danny was nineteen. And he has no relationship with his father because Dr. Tucker was in the midst of an affair with one of his psych patients when his wife turned for the worse. That left Danny as both her sole caregiver in her final days—which got pretty bad, I’d add—and the manager of her estate when she passed.”
Katie cringed. Lee had never told her that story.
“Danny disowned his father’s entire side of the family after that,” Madisyn said, “and given that no one remained on his mother’s side, that pretty much left him an orphan, with the exception of your brother and his friends, that is.” Madisyn straightened. “I never knew my mother. She died giving birth to me. Plus, I, like Danny, had been through a pretty nasty divorce by the time we met, which is to say that, on a lot of levels, he and I sort of got each other in ways that some of the others really couldn’t. Now, regarding his history with women…” She tried in vain to stifle a frown. “Honestly, I don’t know about that. What I can say, however, is that we all deal with pain, grief, and loss in our own ways. For some of us, it’s to seek out affection from anyone who’ll give it to us. For others—” she waved a guilty hand, “—we retreat into ourselves and vow never to trust anyone again. Neither is healthy. Nor, at the end of the day, does either offender have any room to judge the other. It just is what it is. You deal with it, you put it behind you, and you move on, content with who you both are in the here and now.” Madisyn stood back and folded her arms. “Anyhow, you asked ‘why Danny?’ Well, that’s about the best answer I can give you.”
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