Multiverse 1

by Chris Hechtl

  <-----/^----->

  The Space Duck crew arrived at the Cape Suzette colony a week and a half later. Once they were in the atmosphere, the bear set a course for what looked like a wall of cliffs. Rebecca frowned but didn't say anything when she spotted the narrow slit.

  “Like taking candy from a baby,” Baloo said. “Or punching a virgin's tight…” he stopped when Rebecca ahemed behind him. He chuckled, looking over to the cub beside him. Kit smiled. Baloo felt a small hand smack him upside his head, knocking his hat off. He laughed, picking it up. “I didn't know you cared, Beckers,” he said.

  “I don't. Now don't teach him your bad habits,” she growled. “Manners, honestly,” she sighed in exasperation as he chuckled.

  It was a narrow path through a series of fortresses lining the walls of the canyon. Baloo radioed a complex series of passwords to get through.

  “I want those,” she snarled.

  “Keep dreaming then. I'm not handing them out. It's captains only,” he said. She fumed, clearly pissed. He hummed, ignoring her sulk.

  The uninitiated on the bridge gasped as they caught sight of the circular harbor teeming with industry. Buildings stretched off into the distance, they went right up to the ring wall sheltering that side of the capital city. “This is your captain speaking, I'd like to welcome to Cape Suzzette, capital city,” he said proudly.

  <-----/^----->

  Rebecca set them up on milk runs. Most were inner system light freight runs around system. Baloo was annoyed. It used up fuel, but she had a point. It got them money and contacts.

  Rebecca learned about going EVA and its dangers when they had to patch a hull leak caused by a meteorite. “See, the shields aren't all that great, basic radiation shields really. The new ones are hoops that deploy all around the ship. We've just got the big ring. That left our bow and aft exposed,” Baloo explained to her.

  “I see.”

  “Don't go moving the tacks around. Weld slow. Use the hammer and dolly to get the crinkles and dents out as you move. If you tack around and then try to weld it all up, it'll be all messed up, and you'll have a lot of filler,” the bear explained, patiently guiding her.

  “This isn't really my thing.”

  “You wanted to learn. Giving up so easily?” he challenged.

  She growled and bent over, getting back to work. She stopped when he held her hand and then looked up at him.

  “Give it a minute to cool,” he explained. “You can't go throwing a lot of heat at metal like that, it won't take, or worse, it'll make a mess. That's why welding jobs can take a while. Patch jobs like this,” he shook his head. “Just be glad it was a glancing shot and not full penetration.”

  “So, it didn't get in? Go through the bird?” she asked.

  “Oh hell no. Had it done that there would have been a blow out on the other side. Plus a heck of a lot more damage for Wildcat to fix. That's why he's inside and we're out here,” he explained. “He's busy calibrating the sensors and fixing the misaligned fuel injectors on the port nacelle.”

  “I…”

  “Don't worry about it; he's got Kit helping. Kit's good in EVA.”

  “I know that,” she said testily. She got back to work.

  <-----/^----->

  The runs were simple, bringing stuff up to orbit, bundling it together, then playing tug to haul it all to the asteroid belt. Some cargo was more delicate; things like fresh food had to go up last. They had to transship the cargo from their cargo bay to an asteroid mine.

  Once that was done, they had to go back for a more dangerous package. The laser drill was quite powerful, and dangerous in the wrong hands. Baloo admired her spirit. She learned to respect him and his knowledge despite his laid back seemingly lazy attitude. He was good though; she grudgingly had to admit that.

  He was also great with the cubs. Molly loved him, riding his shoulders and hugging both him and Kit. Kit was settling down, as was Mowgli. They'd never be fast friends, but the two got along on a project as long as an adult was around to referee. She'd talked with Bagheera briefly, pointing out that Mowgli was jealous. He had in turn promised to talk to the child.

  Baloo, however, didn't play favorites; he treated all the cubs with good humor no matter how tired he was. He was fatherly to all of them. They returned the affection, which made things harder on Rebecca. She wanted to make it work, but she realized she couldn't just treat Kit, Baloo and the others strictly as employees. The group was too tight knit for that. It threw all her carefully laid plans out the window. Professor Qanta's point about that now seemed obvious. He'd been right; his real world knowledge had told him that. She'd had to learn the hard way.

  She was learning to swallow her pride, which was hard. With Baloo, sometimes very hard, he could be so exasperating at times, sometimes on purpose. His insufferable smugness got on her nerves. She did find that it was fun sometimes to bicker with him.

  <-----/^----->

  When Baloo had a close call grinding a plate smooth, he got a bit cut up. The plate had apparently slipped. She'd scolded him, and he'd just waved it off. She had seen the blood and wanted to rush him to the ER, but he wouldn't have it. He brushed the injuries aside, but she in turn wouldn't have it. The last thing she needed was him sidelined or have workers comp on her ass.

  She had realized months ago he was the lynchpin to the ship, to her entire future. She patched him up, thinking deep thoughts. If anything happened to him, she'd be in trouble. It also brought home how dangerous space was. He watched her in bemusement, flexed his paw, and then thanked her. When he realized she was troubled, he let her have her space and left.

  She tossed in her sleep, thinking of what would happen to Molly if she'd been hurt. It bothered her. It bothered her a lot. But the thought of the old bear getting hurt…she realized the cubs weren't the only ones getting affectionate with him. She writhed in her bed in denial. She didn't need or want that complication!

  <-----/^----->

  She rented an apartment behind a waterfall in the capital city to give them some space and for her to regain her mental equilibrium. It was beautiful. Molly, Mowgli and Kit stayed there while the ship was in dock. The men stayed on the ship. When she realized how almost feral Mowgli and Kit were, she insisted all the young were home schooled.

  Kit at first wasn't interested, but when she tailored his schooling to space and navigation, he took more of an interest. She snuck in math lessons whenever she could. Baloo was a surprising help; he'd talk stories of history and that got the two cubs interested in learning more. She taught them how to look the information up on the internet.

  Mowgli was a handful, the worst of the bunch. He'd settled after a month though, had his first crush on a Hindu girl a few doors down. Suddenly he was very interested in learning, much to Rebecca's amusement.

  She smiled slightly, realizing it for what it was. Men needed a guiding hand of a woman to keep them going, to motivate them properly. A face that sailed a thousand ships was quoted to her by Kit when he showed her his history report. She snorted.

  <-----/^----->

  While Rebecca and the cubs were busy, Baloo and the crew made regular runs up and down, moving goods to and from orbit. The milk runs were fun for Kit for once or twice, but the day in and day out routine palled quickly. He realized being a spacer wasn't all fun and games; there was real work involved, sometimes boring tedious work. Kit managed to fly once with Baloo, but even that got boring so he stayed in the capital city. He didn't like the schooling Miss Cunningham had arranged, but it beat the boredom.

  “I feel like a yo-yo,” Baloo grumbled.

  “Or someone yanking your chain,” Bagheera agreed. “For once in my life, I'm envious of the kids and being in school.”

  Baloo chuckled. “Me, I'd rather fly. Even if it is up and down,” he said, clearly disgusted.

  <-----/^----->

  But Baloo eventually needed fuel. He argued with Rebecca, but she kept putting him off or ignored him. She finally notice
d when he complained and then flat-out refused to make another run on a quarter tank of fuel. That led to a budget argument. “Lady, you don't buy just enough fuel; you never know how much you'll need!” Baloo said, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

  “Ha!” she said pointing a finger in his face. I can calculate fuel expenditure just fine! As long as you two don't hot dog it!

  “And?”

  She stared at him in confusion; her excitement about being right fading. “And? What do you mean?”

  “And if we get shot up? Run into pirates? A solar storm? A leak? What if we get hit with a meteor? Or a blow out? Had a leaky seal once; cost me big time.”

  “Um…” she frowned.

  “Then of course there is the whole cooling your heels while some bureaucrat clears the space lanes to let you dock. That can cost you too, especially if you get on the jerk's bad side.”

  She nodded. She'd gotten into one radio argument and the petty bastard had made the Duck wait for nearly a day before he left shift and another person took over. She'd finally handed the radio over to Baloo who sweet talked the jerk into letting him dock. It had cost the bear a beer, but it had been worth it.

  “See? Classroom versus reality, Becky. You need to account for the unexpected or it will ruin you. Like it did me.”

  “You? You're a lazy slob!”

  “I'm many things, Becky. A good businessman, admittedly not.”

  She had her hands on her hips. “Nice of you to finally admit it! And don't call me Becky!”

  “Fine, Beckers. Whatever you say,” he bowed to her. “Would your majesty care to accompany me to Loi's for fuel?” the bear asked, dripping sarcasm.

  “I'd better or you'll spend all day there, and we have a schedule to keep,” she growled.

  “Don't worry, the food's great. High, but good. And they have some awesome beer battered pretzels. You can dip in the honey mustard; I'll keep the blue cheese,” he said rolling his eyes and running his long tongue around his mouth. He rubbed his tummy. She rolled her eyes.

  <-----/^----->

  They arrived at Loi's. It was a rundown asteroid station. It looked like an island in the sky. There was an outer ring where ships and shuttles were docked. Once they staged the Duck's hyper ring a safe distance away from the station in the parking zone, they came in to dock. “Isn't it something?” Baloo said, admiring the view as they orbited around the station, waiting for their turn to dock.

  Rebecca was clearly not impressed with it, wrinkling her nose and back to her snooty act.

  “It's atmosphere,” Baloo said in defense. “Ambiance! If it works don't fix it!”

  “Ambulance you mean,” she growled as he settled the Duck in a berth. Elves hooked up the mooring lines. Robots went to work cleaning the ship's ports and hooking up fuel lines. Mowgli seemed at home with them, tussling and horse playing. They roughed him up, but he giggled the entire time so it must be okay, Rebecca thought. Bagheera oversaw the operation; he took a high spot on some crates and laid on his stomach and rolled his eyes.

  The elves were all business; they were the newest species to the Federation to be accepted as full sapient members, so they had a lot to prove. They weren't a member of the growing Predator lobby though, so that was a relief.

  The baboons tried to pull Molly and Kit into it, but Rebecca sternly picked her cub up. She didn't want to have anything to do with the baboons and their massive teeth. They tended to be bipolar, one minute nice, the next all mean and in your face. She wasn't sure why this Loi had hired them. She felt Molly wave goodbye with her pudgy hand over her shoulder. Kit looked on, then up to the two adults. He stuck between then as they moved off down the transfer tube to the inner station.

  “Come on kids,” she dragged Molly and Kit through the transfer tube and into the bar. “Stay close kids,” Rebecca said nervously, looking around.

  The patrons looked at her as the room quieted. After a moment they snorted and went back to what they were doing.

  “Tourists,” a Walrus Selkie said from a nearby table.

  Rebecca turned to set him straight, but Baloo waddled up behind her and got between them. “Becky, Kit, Molly, I'd like you to meet an old friend,” he said, waving to a neo-orangutan wearing a garish Hawaiian shirt and a straw hat. “Loi!”

  “My, oh my, is that Baloo the bear?” the orangutan said with a southern drawl, setting a cup aside. He turned and swam up the great metal trunk that seemed to look like a tree, then swung on vine-like cables over to them. He dropped in front of Baloo and then peered at him suspiciously. “You got the creds this time?” he asked, rubbing his chin.

  “Yes,” Baloo said, rolling his eyes.

  “All right then!”

  They met Loi; The bear and Orangutan did a dance, “A shoo shoobe do from me to you…” and a secret handshake that involved a lot of bumps and high fives. The kids and Rebecca were amused by the antics of the two old friends. Baloo made introductions. Loi buttered her up, calling her mon chéri chéri as he kissed her hand. She jerked it away. She caught the soft growl from the big bear. She looked up, for once amused by Baloo's apparent jealousy.

  “So, seen your aunt lately?” Baloo asked.

  “Don't even go there man, honestly,” Loi drawled, rolling his expressive brown eyes. “Don't even joke about Loise man, really.”

  “Yeah, she is a handful of an aunt isn't she? I wondered how she and Don would get along? She always loved a man with an accent,” The bear said, teasing the orangutan. He patted his buddy on the shoulders.

  Loi shuddered. “Don’t even go there man,” he said shaking like a leaf. “Outlaws for in-laws!” He threw his hands up in despair.

  Baloo laughed. “Loise is a scout, an EEC pilot. She's single, talented, but eccentric. Also rich, very rich, which allows for her to be eccentric. She has a thing for men with accents.”

  “Ah,” Rebecca said, nodding in understanding.

  “A passionate thing. She doesn't care who it is either; she'll chase them down to the end of the universe. And she's a hell of a pilot too.”

  “Oh boy, is she ever,” her nephew said fervently shaking his head. Baloo snorted.

  “Even better than you, papa bear?” Kit asked.

  Baloo shrugged. “Well, I wouldn't go quite that far,” he said, teasing.

  “Did I ever tell you the time she chased after Khan?” the Orangutan asked. Baloo chuckled, nodding. “That's still going on. He got wise and dropped the lawsuits so as not to get her interest again. I'm still not sure how she got through all his security to his bedroom,” Loi said, shaking his head.

  Baloo chortled, hand over his mouth.

  “But maybe I oughta save the rest of that tale for when little ears aren't around, ya dig,” Loi said, with a broad wink to Rebecca. She nodded in understanding and relief. She didn't quite know what to make of the two goofballs. They were quite a pair.

  The noobs looked around like the tourists they were. The bar and tables had a wood grain finish and brass trim. The place had high ceilings, cables for elves, monkeys, and Loi to swing on dangled everywhere. Birds were up in the rafters, along with view screens set to mimic a blue sky. The illusion was quite good; clouds drifted overhead. The center trunk behind the bar resembled a tree. Everyone was congenial, drinking and socializing even though they are competitors. Some clustered around the sports area, watching the various recorded games.

  The group talked as they took a seat. Baloo snorted as the kids jumped when an elf dropped from the rafters with napkins and menus. A chimp waitress swung over. She hung upside down, patiently taking their orders for drinks before she swung off. The entire time she had been there Molly and even Kit had been twisting their heads this way and that to try to look at her upside down. Molly had even tried to stand on her head. Her mother had stopped her.

  “Interesting perspective?” Baloo joked.

  “You take us to such fascinating places sometimes, flyboy,” Rebecca sighed.

  “It is isn't it?
” Baloo asked.

  “That was sarcasm, Baloo,” Rebecca replied, hand to the bridge of her nose. She felt something touch her and brushed it off. Molly giggled. Then something else did. She opened her eyes to look around. Baloo and the cubs had innocent expressions on their faces. Even Loi was acting all innocent.

  “All right you hooligans…” she shook a finger at Baloo.

  “Hey! I didn't do it!” he said virtuously. Molly giggled. Baloo smiled and picked up a peanut, shucked it, then tossed the shell over his shoulder. He masticated it. Rebecca stared at him, totally taken off balance. She'd been on him about cleaning the Duck for weeks. He'd gotten with her program just to shut her nagging down. And now this. “Baloo,” she growled, clearly gathering for a storm.

  Baloo taught the cubs to throw peanuts on the floor. Rebecca frowned, ready to chew Baloo and the cubs out, but Loi told her it was okay. “See the vents and stuff?”

  “Yeah?”

  “FOD right? Well, I've got filters on everything.”

  “Oh.”

  “It's a roadhouse tradition. So don't worry about it,” he said.

  “Okay,” she said, using a finger to flick a peanut onto the floor.

  The Orangutan snorted. “Now you're catching on,” he said.

  “Slobs, everywhere slobs,” Rebecca murmured, shaking her head mournfully.

  “What bothers me is, why are there so many pirates?” Kit asked, clearly unsure. He looked at a familiar black top hat with a feather in it and then hunkered down in his seat.

  “I'm not so sure myself. I mean, it is lucrative to steal cargo…but why? It's hit or miss right?” Rebecca asked. She turned to the local experts.

  Baloo made a show of looking surprised. “Me?” he asked, looking around. “You sure you want my answer? You may not want to hear it.”

  “Just give it up already, Baloo,” Rebecca sighed.