Enemy of my Enemy (Horatio Logan Chronicles Book 1)

by Chris Hechtl

  When he was out of the compartment he looked around him. He wasn't certain how to get back to where he needed to be. He closed his eyes and accessed the map icon on his HUD. It immediately put up an image of where he was. He frowned and then scanned the map, zooming in and out until he got a general idea of where he needed to go, and the route he should take. He nodded once and then minimized the map.

  “Easier my ass,” he muttered, not ready to admit that having a map on hand or in this case in mind was a good thing.

  It sucked in a way that his class time was coming to an end. He'd found he had liked it to some degree. The interaction, the fresh vibe that the staff and students did—they were ever mindful of him and deferential to his rank, but it was so different than it was in Bek! He shook his head.

  The hyper calculus and other advanced math courses he could handle, and once he figured out how to use the tools in his implants, it should go a lot easier. He could handle the gravitics courses easily since he'd taught a few. Granted what he was learning in San Diego was considered advanced theory in Bek since they didn't have the hardware to reproduce the same results. But they had been aware of it.

  They had also been aware of hyperdrive tech, and for the first century after the admiral had left, the academy had taught hyper and other classes as mandatory. Only a shift in priorities had changed it to a series of electives. He regretted not taking any. At the time, he hadn't seen the need. Playing makeup was a little embarrassing for a man of his rank.

  At least he looked younger he reminded himself. Some of his hair was coming back; he was bulking up with muscle mass, which had required more gym time to keep it toned. His appetite had picked up too. He burned more calories but burned them efficiently according to the doctors.

  He'd lost the tummy fat he'd started to develop. One hand instinctively brushed his tummy. It was melting away as his body adjusted to all the changes the doctors were putting it through. It was all something he needed to get used to. If he could get away from the navy for a weekend, he wouldn't mind seeing what sort of changes it did to attract the fairer sex. He nodded to a few middies. The human and ape females smiled and ducked their heads. All of them were wise enough to get out of his way.

  And how much fun having a lot more stamina again would mean. He envied Horatio that. He'd never tangled with Moira; they were near the same age and hadn't traveled in the same circles. Now he was regretting that lapse.

  Oh well, if not on Anvil, perhaps he'd get a chance to go to that casino liner before they left or baring that get some downtime in Bek.

  He snorted. Seeing as how they were behind schedule and needed to make up time, he was most likely going to get off time in Bek after they got everything sorted out and humming smoothly. Which … he grimaced. It could take years, he thought as he navigated along the corridors to the hyperspace wing.

  ~<><{<^>}><>~

  On the weekend, Zek took time off to heal. He was starting to regret authorizing the old-fashioned surgical procedures; they seemed to take a lot out of him. He didn't mind the NeoVerpine Commander Fox taking personal charge of his case. He'd clearly underestimated what needed to be done; Caroline had finished up her working-up exercises. They were just waiting on him and the convoy to come in.

  He shook his head, trying to put the problem out of his mind for the moment. He needed to relax. The casino ship was on the other side of the star system, and since he didn't want to burn up most of his time in transit each way, he settled on taking a tour of Anvil Space Station since it was conveniently closer.

  Once on board though, he wasn't impressed with the docks or the overall design, but he was curious about how the mining station had evolved over the centuries. A fellow patron recommended he see a few things so he made a list. Fortunately, the list was short.

  His first stop was to see the civilian college campus. He stopped at a wall with a plaque dedicated to Admiral Irons, Commander Matilda, and others who had worked on getting the college restarted. There was a list of names of the first graduates, but he passed them over.

  A scratch band and dance was going on in the college's park so he kept to the outskirts and just listened for a bit. It was some sort of mix of electric and hick that turned him off so he kept moving on.

  He checked out the college's academy annex but the middies were out and about, most likely off duty attending the concert or perhaps on duty attending as extra security. He shrugged such considerations off. “Sir, this is a restricted area,” a passing guard said. The guard was in a civilian uniform, so he wasn't a marine. Most likely he was campus security Zek thought. The admiral eyed him for a thoughtful moment and then pulled out his ID. The guard scrutinized it and then patiently redirected him to other areas.

  Bored, he turned his attention outside the college. His self-appointed tour hit some of the high spots on the station. There wasn't a lot to see; it was just a mining station after all. It might have a higher than recommended population, and it wasn't serving its primary function anymore, but it was still just a mining facility.

  He was impressed with the museum, however, when he found it on a wall directory and decided to take a peek. He paid the entrance fee and then walked the white-washed giant compartment at a slow pace, drinking in the sights and sounds.

  The museum was a giant cylindrical shaft. In the center was a massive cluster of what had to be holographic emitters. The patrons walked around on an upward spiral patch around the open shaft about 120 meters high. Displays were along the outer wall, but there were also small meter high displays on the inner wall at different points. Some of the displays were interactive. Many just had a voice talking about a subject on display.

  It amused him that a lot of the museum was dedicated to old Terra. Apparently, that had come about during the star system's brief flirtation with Xenophobia that had ended a few short years ago. He did his best to ignore the misgivings surrounding its creation in order to study the subject matter.

  The whale as the centerpiece was quite nice he judged. It was not a real whale of course, but a hologram. It swam in place for a bit. Factoids popped up about the whale. It was a blue whale, the largest animal to exist on Earth. After a few minutes, the whale's avatar swum upwards in a leap that took it through the ceiling. It was quite breathtaking to see since bubbles and a rush of air came with it. Once it was gone and the bubbles faded, upward fish returned briefly, then scattered. The set changed subtly to something else. As he watched a giant squid rose out of the depths of the floor like it was coming out of some vast undersea canyon. When it was fully in view, the hologram froze and more factoids appeared like comic talk balloons. It rotated in place, a full 360 over a good five minutes. A minute after the rotation completed, the factoids faded and then the video continued.

  The squid seemed to feed for a few moments before a great splash from above drove it into the depths with a blast of ink. Chasing it in the dive was another massive whale, this one bigger than the squid with a blunt bow and sharp conical teeth in a seemingly small jaw under the massive head. It swam after the squid and out of view.

  He turned away as the lights came up. He walked the floor of the spiral. He was amused to see replicas of snail shells and other fossils, but then it changed to works about evolution, history, and art.

  “It's quite amazing that they managed to cram all this in,” he murmured.

  “Yes, but it's all biased,” a fellow patron said. He turned to the Neochimp. She eyed him. “You aren't from around here. Your first time? You look familiar,” she said.

  He smiled politely, keeping his teeth covered. “I'm from Bek actually.” Her eyes widened briefly. “What's the story here? I noticed the dedication plaque at the bottom but didn't get a chance to read it,” he admitted.

  “Well, if you must know,” she drawled. She motioned for them to continue. He noted she had a couple of chimp children with her. They seemed rambunctious and drawn to the activities that sparked their interest. Most of those were the interactive displ
ays. In between interacting with the kids or calling them to order, he picked up some of the history of the museum.

  “The people who started this, or I should say restarted it, were a bit … snooty. Hoity toity if you get my drift,” she said. “They originally wanted the entire college campus, but Admiral Irons put a stop to that,” she said.

  “College …,” he frowned. “So this is a part of the station's renaissance?” he asked. She nodded. “Interesting,” he drawled.

  “The richy rich people on the upper decks have had their art museums for centuries. Most are private collections. A few lent their pieces for display here,” she turned and indicated a lit piece of artwork on the wall. The wall was covered in pieces of art, most of it 2D an old Zek judged. “They weren't too happy to find out Admiral Irons had pointed out that they were replicas, copies of the original works that never made it off Terra,” she said.

  He nodded.

  “Anyway, as I was saying, the rich people wanted a place to have more parties. They were apparently bored with their old hangouts and wanted something more … sophisticated,” she shrugged.

  “I see,” the admiral said.

  “You're not one of them are you?”

  He smiled again. “No, like I said, I'm not from around here. I'm an officer, and I'll be on assignment soon. I'm just checking out the sights here. Time off,” he said waving to the museum.

  “Well, it's a nice place,” she said. “Not a lot to see. Some people take an interest in the engineering sections, but security frowns on that. A few people check out the tour, that is, the famous people and places tour, the one that takes them around to see where the richy rich live.”

  He nodded slowly.

  “They also take people past some of the places that Admiral Irons stayed at when he was here. The Valdez complex is their biggest draw. I understand security hasn't been happy about it, nor the Valdez family. There has even been a petition to turn their complex into some sort of shrine for Admiral Irons if you can believe it!” she said, chuffing.

  The kids turned to investigate their mother's amusement. She waved them on. They went back to romping and playing tag, annoying a few of the senior patrons.

  “You said you are from Bek?” the woman asked. “What's it like? I'm only asking because my husband and wife are going on Caroline you see,” she said. “Is it as dangerous to get to as they say?” she asked.

  He blinked, then frowned thoughtfully. “The rapids are scary yes. Caroline as a very good helm team though. And each time they go, they map it, and it gets easier,” he explained. She nodded.

  “I'm sorry; I didn't catch your name,” he said, holding out his hand. “My name is Malwin Zekowitz. Rear Admiral Zekowitz. Call me Zek,” he said.

  Her eyes widened briefly. “Sorry sir, I didn't recognize you. I'm um, actually a reservist,” she admitted as she shook his hand delicately. “Oh bother, I'm an ensign. Clennie, sir, Clennie Bailey. My husband is going with you to Bek. Him and Galiet,” she said, practically gushing in a rush to get it all out. “See, Galiet stayed here to get her degree. She got a full PHD, actually two of them, one is in hyperdrive tech and physics,” she explained.

  He nodded. He now could place the name.

  “See, there isn't a room for our entire brood,” she waved to the kids. “So Sylvia and I elected to stay this time. We've had enough time on Destiny and well, I got some work in ops and Sylvia is working the greenhouse here. We want the kids to take advanced courses here so …”

  The admiral nodded in understanding. “I get it. A big family on a ship is rough on everyone, especially when you're trying to give them stability and education. They get to see and experience a lot, but I suppose it's hard on them too. Not so many friends,” he said.

  She nodded. “It is tough. We dumped them on Galiet too. We only saw the two stops, well three when we occasionally went to Gaston. We were on the milkrun. Destiny ran between Pyrax and Gaston or Agnosta, most of the time it was between Agnosta and here,” she said.

  He nodded.

  “The longest run we had was up to Triang. That was with the admiral. I mean Admiral Irons,” she said. He nodded. “We got tired of the routine, and like I said the kids …,” she indicated the ape children.

  “No need to explain,” Zek said sympathetically. He eyed the brood. One of the girls with a red- pocket dot dress and bow in her hair came over to grab her mom's hand and his. She swung their arms and then did a flip. Clennie pulled her up so her feet couldn't touch the ground. Zek followed suit instinctively. The ape girl giggled then managed to grab her mom's dress with her tingle toes to pull herself over to her. Zek let go and the ape girl wrapped herself around her mom's side.

  “Imp,” her mother accused. The ape girl kissed her. Clennie chuckled and stroked the top of her head.

  “I was hoping to see Horatio, um, Commodore Logan before they go,” she said.

  “You know him?” the admiral asked.

  “We've met,” she said with a wry smile as she bounced her daughter. “Mostly in passing. He's a nice guy. Quite busy though, a workaholic like my hubby and Admiral Irons,” she said.

  He nodded.

  “Mama, I'm hungry,” one of the chimps said in a plaintive voice. The others began to chorus in as well.

  “Come on, I've got to get this brood fed. Um, I mean, if you don't mind sir …”

  “I'm off for the day. I don't mind a late lunch,” Zek said. He was actually dreading eating with the brood though. He imagined a food fight in some restaurant and returning rather food stained.

  “Okay, you lot. A snack,” she warned as they came to the top of the museum. The kids cheered.

  One of the brat pack began to chant “churros” which set the others arguing about what they wanted. It seemed everyone had a different opinion and desire. Personally Zek thought the sticky sweet was a bit too much. But then again the hot dogs had questionable meat in them, so he wasn't in favor of them either. The dipping pretzels seemed more up to his speed. “I hate how they've got the snack bar and food carts up here. The kids go for it all the time. Some of that stuff is tooth rotting,” she said with a shake of his head. “I guess I see why though. I mean, it keeps the food out here instead of in there,” she said as she pointed to the way they had come. “Heaven forbid if someone like this lot went in there with sticky fingers and …,” she shivered.

  Zek chuckled but followed them to the food court.

  Chapter 9

  Horatio grinned when he read the latest release of the promotions list. He'd sat on one twice in the past year; it seemed like the promotions were accelerating in a vain attempt to keep up with the pace of the growing navy. He wasn't certain how much of an impact Bek's personnel would have on it though. Some he knew had more experience. It might even slow or halt some promotions all together, some in the forums said, though he doubted it. It might return the pace to what the admiral had set before though, which would be a pity in his estimation.

  Some of the people had earned it. Like Irene Teague, she was on it, up for a promotion to captain junior grade. Good for her, he said with a mental salute to the woman. She'd earned it and then some. So was Captain X'll'rr's promotion to captain senior grade and a transfer to Peru, though that wasn't confirmed yet. He noted a few other familiar names. When he was finished, he set the tablet down and sat back.

  He reflected about Admiral Subert. How he was still struggling with his command. How would things run without Horatio around to smooth things over? Well, Subert was about to find out. Politically he was better off since Walker and the others had been replaced. But it remained to be seen if Subert could handle things on his own.

  He frowned thoughtfully, rocking in his chair. Hopefully, things wouldn't be as rocky as the first couple of months when Subert took over. He closed his eyes in pain. The shakeup had been necessary. He knew that, but it had been painful. It had also been brutal, but that too was necessary. Admiral Subert didn't have the emotional attachment Horatio labored under,
so his judgment wasn't potentially clouded. He would hopefully do right with Pyrax.

  In the end it was no longer up to him to intercede. He had to be the parent, to take a step back and observe from afar, and to let Pyrax grow with someone else nurturing her. He smiled at his whimsical train of thought and then went back to his inbox.

  ~<><{<^>}><>~

  “What's the hold up on Caroline?” Admiral Irons demanded as he entered his office. He flopped down into his chair as Sprite turned from her holographic avatar to follow his progress.

  She'd set up a bot to monitor him but immediately threw her full attention at him.

  “Hello and good morning to you too, sir,” Commander Sprite said with a puckish smile. “Forget your morning coffee this morning, Admiral?” she asked.

  “Can that,” he said, waving a hand. “What's going on?”

  “Well,” Sprite said pulling up the latest SITREP. “According to the logs, the ship is ready. They are waiting on a convoy to arrive; In fact, it just jumped into the star system. It should be another three days before it arrives at the naval station, then another day to unload. After that, another day to finish loading Caroline.”

  “And that's the only thing stopping them?” the admiral pressed.

  “No, not quite,” Sprite admitted. “Apparently, Rear Admiral Zekowitz is having trouble with getting his full implants.”

  “Oh?”

  “It was flagged to you. It shouldn't have been, but it was a legacy protocol that didn't get blocked,” Sprite said. She pulled up the file. “I've received a delete file from Pyrax courtesy of Admiral Subert's office. No doubt he is trying to cover for his fellow flag officer.”

  “Cover what? And weren't we going to talk about promoting Zekowitz?”

  “We were, but the others bogged the promotion board down so he was kicked to the next session,” Sprite stated. She displayed the file for him. “According to this the admiral has problems with nanotech and implants. Psychological problems his former doctor identified before he was replaced.”