by J. P. Larson
“Not necessary,” she told him. “If you look in the right place, you should be able to see us.”
Alex looked out the view port. All he saw were stars and empty space.
“We’re about ten klicks apart,” Gray told Alex. “Your navigation computer stopped your approach exactly where we were when you pinged us. You must have good equipment.”
“Thanks. So where are you?”
“We moved away a bit. Captain wants to check you out once more. She says no one is stupid enough to travel around space as defenseless and ill-prepared as you seem to.”
Alex was offended but wasn’t in much position to complain. “Captain will be along in a minute, Mr. Swanson. Maybe you can tell me about your hyper drive problems while we wait. Or would you prefer I just go digging for myself? It would be more efficient my way.”
“I keep careful logs,” Alex told her. “Should I just send them?”
“If you’ll let me scan you for hostile intentions first,” Grey told him. “I don’t want to have to clean viruses out of the ship’s systems.”
Alex groaned, then sat back and nodded. Grey’s touch wasn’t as subtle as Captain Dawson’s had been, but she was thorough. Finally he felt her withdraw, and he thought he should start breathing again.
“I can transmit now?” he asked her.
“Receiving,” Grey told her, tight lipped. Alex punched some buttons then looked at the view screen again. The woman still looked angry.
“First officer? Miss Grey? I don’t know what to call you.”
“Ms. Grey is fine,” she told him icily.
“Ms. Grey. Look, I don’t know what I did to annoy you, but whatever it was, I’m sorry.”
“Mr. Swanson,” she told him quietly. “I am going to miss my mother’s birthday while we mess around fixing your ship. I promised her we would be back in time, but this delay means I’ll be two days late, assuming we can fix your ship. We’re here helping you at great annoyance to ourselves, and you can’t even show a little appreciation.”
“What did I say?” he asked her.
“What were you thinking about?”
Alex thought about it for a moment and realized he resented these women, resented needing their help, and resented the repeated invasion of his mind. "Ms. Grey, I am sorry. I am not used to asking strangers for help. And your enhanced skills make the situation that much more intimidating for me.
Grey’s expression softened.
“Well, you might be terrified of us, but at least you haven’t been thinking like most of the men we have to deal with when we space out. I can accept your apology. And I’ll even alleviate some of your fears. Contrary to all the thoughts in your head, we are not slavers. We run our planet our own way, and we run our ship our own way. We would be much happier seeing you on your way than have you disrupt our routine. And as for why we run things the way we do, well, here’s what women have to put up with when they let men in control.” She paused, looking at him expectantly.
Alex realized she was actually waiting for his permission, so he nodded once. He felt Grey’s mind infiltrate his own again. Memories, someone else’s memories, began flooding in. It was dark, and he felt rough hands on him, felt a heavy body holding him down. He tried to scream, but couldn’t.
And suddenly, Grey’s mind pulled away.
Alex caught his breath and looked at Grey. “You have my deepest apologies, Ms. Grey. I really do appreciate the help.” He paused then asked her quietly. “Was that you?”
“No, it wasn’t, Mr. Swanson. No man will ever do that to me.”
“Well, again, I really appreciate your help.”
“You’re welcome, Mr. Swanson. Captain is here now.”
Alex watched Grey climb from the chair in front of the view screen. He waited patiently then saw the dark-haired Captain Dawson resume her old seat.
“Hello, Captain,” Alex said quietly. “Ms. Grey has been updating me.”
“Quite thoroughly I understand,” Captain Dawson told him. “You appreciate why I need to check you carefully.”
“Yes, Captain, I do.” Alex sat back, closed his eyes, and nodded once. He felt Dawson’s mind touch his briefly, linger in a few spots, then withdraw.
“That’s it?” he said after a moment.
“We’re a lot closer together,” she told him. “I don’t have to use a hammer at these distances. When we’re in the same room, you won’t even feel me if I don’t want you to.”
“But now you know I’m no threat to you?” Alex asked her.
“Didn’t Ms. Grey just inform you all men are a threat?” she asked him pointedly.
“Not all men,” Alex said quietly. “Not even most men.”
The woman pursed her lips for a moment as she decided if she wished to continue this thread of the conversation. She made her decision, signaling with a shrug. “If you follow our transmission, we can rendezvous, Captain. And I can see you’re dressed more appropriately for guests.”
Alex blushed again, but avoided glaring at the view screen. “You’re easy to tease, Captain,” Dawson told him.
The navigation computer gave Alex a new heading to Jane’s Gift. The thrusters kicked in briefly. “You can begin pinging,” Dawson said. “Don’t bump us. And turn your ship’s thermostat down to 16 degrees C. We’re used to a little chill when we work.”
“16 is fine, and I won’t bump you, Captain,” Alex assured her. Dawson cut her transmission.
Docking in deep space by hand is a tricky maneuver. Alex let the computer do most of the work, but kept his hands near the overrides, just in case of a glitch. He watched as the Pride approached the much larger Jane’s Gift. There was no glitch, and the two ships mated with nary a bump or dent.
Alex shut down the systems then moved to the airlock. Punching a few buttons, the airlock computer on the Pride negotiated with the computer on Jane’s Gift. Alex told his ship to adjust pressure to match the internal pressure of Jane’s Gift, automatically popping his ears several times. Once the ships were equalized, they were both able to open inner and outer airlock doors, and people could freely travel between the two ships.
Alex stepped to the doorway as it slid open. Standing in front of him, still on her own ship, was Captain Dawson. Ms. Grey and two other women stood behind their captain.
“Permission to come aboard, Captain?” Dawson asked him.
“Of course, Captain,” Alex responded. Dawson strode forward and stood in front of Alex, looking up at him.
“You’re tall,” she told him.
Alex held out his hand. The woman captain looked at it, then reached forward with her own. The two shook briefly.
“Strange custom,” Dawson told him. “We’re recording this. Are you asking our help subject to the terms we discussed previously.”
“Yes, Captain, I am,” replied Alex. “I would greatly appreciate any help you have for me.”
Dawson ran through the terms briefly with Alex agreeing to each of them. “If we are unable to repair your ship,” Dawson ended, “We will leave. You will have the choice of leaving with us or staying behind. Our next destination is Dawson’s Star. You understand and agree to these terms?”
Alex indicated assent, and Dawson invited her crew forward. They entered his ship, each carrying a variety of cases and tools. Ms. Grey wore a uniform similar to Captain Dawson’s: deep blue trouser, white shirt, and a wool jacket. Everywhere man populated space, he brought sheep, and sheep provide wool.
The collar of the jackets held an insignia that Alex assumed indicated rank, but the symbols were unfamiliar to him. Along the right sleeve of each woman was sewn a complex pattern in silver and gold. Alex decided it looked like a knot, with the different threads running under and over each other. Glancing back and forth between the two women, Alex realized the patterns were remarkably different.
The two women Alex didn’t recognize were dressed in coveralls, indicating their probable duties as that of ship’s maintenance. Both women had red hair
and bright, freckled faces. The one on the right was older, appearing to be in her upper twenties. The woman on the left was much younger, maybe late teens or very early twenties.
“Captain Swanson, this is our maintenance crew. Ms. Danforth will be directing the repair of your ship with the assistance of Miss Danforth. Sisters, to confirm their appearance. If you need anything further or have questions, I recommend you discuss them with Ms. Grey. She’s a bit more used to dealing with…”
Alex looked closely at the woman standing in front of him. He smiled, unsure whether the term eluding Captain Dawson was “off-worlders”, “strangers”, or perhaps just “men”.
“Yes, Captain, I understand completely. Thank you for your assistance.”
“You are invited to dine with my officers and myself this evening, Captain,” Dawson told him. She checked her watch. “In just over three hours. If you wish to join us, Ms. Grey will escort you.”
“I would be honored, Captain,” Alex told her. “Umm…” Alex started to form a thought, but then he heard Dawson’s mind directly in his.
Without another word, Captain Dawson turned around and returned to her own ship. Alex watched her close the airlock aboard Jane’s Gift, then he closed his own. One doesn’t leave an airlock standing open.
“Mr. Swanson,” Grey addressed him. “If you will show us to your cockpit and give us a quick tour of your ship?”
Alex showed the women the ship, pointing out the various access panels. Miss Danforth silently opened each panel as they passed them. Alex also detoured through the galley, inviting the women to make use of it as required. They arrived at the cockpit, which was obviously built for one.
The cockpit entrance was an airtight hatchway at the rear of the cockpit. In the depths of space, Alex flew with the hatchway open, the door extended into the passageway and dogged to the wall to prevent it swinging open and closed. The captain’s chair could rotate for easy access, then lock into a variety of forward-facing positions designed to ward off fatigue.
Ms. Danforth slipped into the chair and rotated forward, facing the computers. She punched a few buttons and was told, “Access denied.” She looked over her shoulder at Alex. “I’ll need the master password.” They were the first words Alex had heard from her.
Alex paused. “I don’t keep a single master password,” he replied. “Daddy always told me, ‘Don’t keep your security in one basket’.”
“Let’s start with maintenance records, then,” Ms. Danforth suggested.
“FixHerUp,” Alex said, receiving a blank look in reply. “F-I-X…”
“Right. Diagnostics?”
“IsSheBroken,” Alex said.
Miss Danforth started to smile.
“Navigation?” Ms. Danforth asked him.
“WhereIsShe.”
“Drive systems?”
“GoGirlGo.”
Everyone was smiling. “That seems like a very secure system,” Ms. Grey finally said.
“What do you want me to do?” Alex asked Ms. Danforth.
The woman turned away and began viewing the computer logs. “My sister and I will see what we can see. Stay out of our way.”
Grey and Alex returned to the galley. Alex served tea, and the two of them sat to talk. They discussed their homes, why they were in space, and all the other things two strangers talk about who are trying to kill time while getting to know each other. Alex did his best to be charming while not dominating the conversation, and he decided Ms. Grey was an enjoyable, educated conversationalist.
After a while, Grey cocked her head to the side while looking at Alex. “Your phase inverters are just fine,” she told him. “Something else is wrong.” Alex gave her a puzzled looked. “I just got a maintenance update,” Grey explained, tapping her head. “You have made Sandy’s day. She loves a challenge.”
“Ah, Ms. Danforth,” said Alex. “I’m happy to be of service.”
“I’m tired of sitting here,” Grey told Alex. “It’s almost dinner time.”
Alex stood up, then held Grey’s chair for her, earning a puzzled look, but neither of them said anything about it. Alex led the way back to the air lock. He opened the doors on his side, and Grey opened them on Jane’s Gift. Alex paused at the threshold.
“What’s wrong?” Grey asked him.
“Dawson’s Star territory,” Alex explained, pointing to the ship in front of him. “I don’t know your laws or protocols.”
“And once you step onto our territory, you’re subject to our laws. Just a minute.” Grey took on a fair away look for a moment. “Captain says you have the status of a visiting foreign dignitary and agrees to apply the laws from, say, StarInc Station? You should be familiar with those, and they’re close enough to our own.”
“I just came from StarInc. They allow dueling there,” Alex pointed out.
“Then don’t offend anyone,” Grey replied.
“I’m a man,” Alex countered.
Grey laughed. “A walking offense in itself, I admit. We’ll overlook that for the evening. You have permission to come aboard, and everyone’s waiting for you.”
“We’re early,” Alex said, but stepped forward and keyed the airlocks on his ship to close. “Do we have time for a little tour?”
Grey smiled knowingly. Spacers everywhere shared something in common – a love for spacecraft. Few spacers could resist an opportunity to explore another of these magnificent machines. Sleek-looking or boxy, big or small, slow or fast, none of that mattered. What mattered was the gleam of polished metal, the hum of well-maintained machinery, the glow of navigation computers and hyper drives. Every ship was special and exciting.
Jane's Gift was much larger than Swanson's Pride. The Pride had a single deck, with a single corridor and only 6 rooms: cockpit, engine room, galley, and three cabins. Alex used one of the cabins for himself, the second as a guest cabin, and the third served as his interstellar gymnasium. Storage bins filled available nooks and corners.
The airlock to Jane’s Gift provided access to the lowest of three decks for most convenient access to the holds. The engine room, maintenance and bridge were on the second deck. Top deck held crew cabins, the galley and a larger dining room than Alex would have expected.
“I would encourage you to think mouse like thoughts,” Grey suggested as she and Alex arrived at the dining hall. “Some of the officers don’t like offworlder men.”
“What am I getting myself into?”
Grey laughed.
Dinner turned out to be quite pleasant. Aside from Alex, Captain Dawson and Ms. Grey, there were three other women. Alex actually remembered their names and duties: Ms. Grey, helm, Ms. Wilson, navigation, and Ms Waters, finance. Ms. Grey from helm looked to be in her low twenties. Like the first officer, she had blond hair, and Alex thought he detected the predictable blue eyes. Ms. Wilson didn’t look much older than Ms. Grey. Ms. Waters, the finance officer, was the oldest woman at the table; Alex judged her age to be in her low forties. She had stylish black hair with a touch of gray, which she wore just off her shoulders.
All the officers wore uniforms similar to those of the captain and first officer, each with the requisite braided pattern up the sleeve. Looking between the women, Alex noticed none of the patterns was identical to any other, but those of the Ms. Greys were similar.
“The Ms. Grey’s are cousins,” Captain Dawson informed him when he looked between the two. “There’s a lot of family aboard, including one more Ms. Grey. There’s a chain of some sort relating everyone on board to everyone else, but some of the relations are fairly obscure, and one or two ca
me in as friends of a crew member rather than family.”
Alex knew what helm and navigation were, but was puzzled at finance, so he asked.
“It’s my job to make sure we make a profit,” the woman informed him. “I decide what we’re going to buy at one port and where we’re going to take it. I negotiate both purchasing and sales. I also arrange supplies, pay our bills, and handle all accounting and most legal matters for the ship.”
“She’s very good, too,” Grey told him. “We always make a profit.”
“Um…” began Alex, wondering if she used her enhanced skills to ensure a profit. He felt another tickle in his mind, and looked around sharply.
“My apologies,” Alex said. “I use a lot of automation, and I only carry cargo I either have orders for or know will sell somewhere. I like artwork. I seem to have a good eye.”
Alex managed to stay out of trouble, and the dinner went quickly.
“Well, Captain Swanson,” Dawson told him. “I understand Ms. Danforth wishes to speak with you.”
Everyone stood up. “This was a wonderful meal,” Alex said. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Captain,” Dawson replied.
Grey led the way back to the Pride, the two of them played the dance with the airlocks, and Alex breathed a sigh of relief.
Grey looked at him harshly. Alex noticed her blue eyes had taken on a gray tinge. “You had a nice time. Why are you acting like that.”
