by Daniel Gibbs
“Um, no…” Taylor said, clearly flustered. “I thought two friends could break bread together. Sorry.”
Ruth immediately felt ashamed of her behavior as he turned to go. “I’m the one who should be sorry. I’d be happy to eat with you. I’ll find us a spot on the atrium, and you get some grub. Deal?”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay, I’ll get something and be right up.”
“See you in a few, Robert,” Ruth said with a smile as she walked out of the mess. Meanwhile, one of the commandos was throwing darts into a portable board they’d set up on another table, and were cheering on one of their members as he chugged a shot before each throw. Boys will be boys. She couldn’t help but to roll her eyes.
43
“For some reason, I expected this to be… different,” Angie said as she walked through the door that David held open for her, taking in the sight of the restaurant they had entered with white linen tablecloths, waitstaff in tuxedo shirts and bowties, and magnificent architecture.
David smirked and walked up to the host stand, which had a small sign on it that said, “Canaan Prime Steakhouse.” “Reservations for two, under Cohen,” David said to the hostess.
“Right this way, Colonel Cohen.”
David grimaced, not wanting to be recognized so readily in public. Forcing it down, he instead focused on Angie, and realized that while she was pretty, she had gone all out on dressing up. “You look beautiful this evening,” he commented to her with a grin.
“Third time you’ve said so,” Angie replied with a grin on her own. “If I’d known this was all it took, I would’ve been getting exclusives out of you for months.”
David rolled his eyes and sat down at the table the hostess had led them to after Angie had taken her seat first. “Thank you, ma’am,” he said to the hostess.
“My pleasure. Please enjoy your dinner.”
After she had left, David picked up from Angie’s earlier comment. “What did you expect to be different?”
“Well, when you think of a kosher restaurant… I mean, what comes to mind for me is a small hole in the wall serving cucumbers and coleslaw with big sandwiches,” Angie replied.
David laughed. “Kosher food is just as high end as any other type of food. It’s all in the way you prep it. That, and don’t try to order a cheeseburger.”
“You think I’d order a cheeseburger at a place that sells high-end steaks?”
David smirked. “Well no, but…”
“Gotcha,” Angie replied with an evil little grin. “You’re so easy to trip up with that Boy Scout routine of yours. I thought it was fake for the longest time.”
David’s eyebrow shot up, involuntarily. “You thought I was fake?”
“I’ve found most people are self-serving. I still haven’t found any evidence you are.”
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I thought you were just another airhead reporter looking to smear the CDF when you showed up.”
Angie snickered. “I guess we each found out the other wasn’t quite what we thought.”
“So true,” David replied. “I was told the bone-in ribeye here is amazing.”
“I might try it. I haven’t had a delicious steak in a while.”
“Steak isn’t served often on military ships. Most of the time on the Rabin, I was happy to get a hot meal.”
“That was the destroyer you commanded, right?”
David nodded at her. “Yes, for all of about seven months. I loved that ship.”
“But now you’ve got a much bigger ship,” Angie commented.
“Yes, but there’s something about the first ship. Walking through the airlock and hearing the computer announce, ‘Commanding Officer, Yitzchak Rabin arriving.’” David smiled. “I know my dad would’ve been proud to see me there.”
“You still miss him?”
“Every day.”
“My mom and dad live on one of the frontier planets. They rough it… eschew as much technology as possible. Heck, my father hunts the meat they eat most of the time,” Angie said.
“Sounds like an interesting upbringing,” David replied before being cut off by the waiter.
“Greetings! Thank you for joining us this evening. What can I start you two off with?”
“I’d like a glass of water, please,” Angie said.
“Same for me,” David finished.
“I’ll be right back with two waters, and some of our famous pickled cucumbers and coleslaw.”
Angie couldn’t help but smirk as the waiter left. “I guess all kosher restaurants serve cucumbers and coleslaw?”
“Pretty much,” David deadpanned. “So back to this frontier planet. No running water or power?”
Angie’s eye’s narrowed. “We had power and water, and a GALnet connection,” GALnet stood for Galaxy Net, a network that ran between all of the planets in the Terran Coalition. “It was just different. They didn’t have normal jobs like you, and I do today. My dad built houses, and my mother cleaned them. I loved my childhood, though.”
“Mine wasn’t quite like that. We lived in the heart of the Terran Coalition, on Canaan. After my dad died, Mom wouldn’t move back to New Israel. She stayed in the same house. Still there, in fact.”
“So a normal childhood, then?”
“Except for Dad never coming back from what was supposed to be his last mission,” David replied.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”
“No, it’s okay. I made peace with it a long time ago. My father did what he needed to do. Funny thing is, I always thought I needed to be a rabbi. Then I ended up being a pretty good soldier.”
“What happens after you’re done with the military?” Angie questioned.
“Well, I hope it’s in time to settle down, have children, and figure out how to use a plow,” David said with a broad smile.
Angie smirked. “Somehow, you as a farmer doesn’t quite work.”
“It’s a metaphor,” David answered, a bit flustered.
“You see life beyond all this, someday?”
David nodded. “Yes, don’t you? I couldn’t go on day in and day out with nothing to look forward to but more combat. Combat is a necessity of our situation, but not something I live for.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“What about you, what do you want in the future?”
“Oh, a decent guy, a few kids, some satisfaction out of my career. Win the lottery,” Angie deadpanned in reply.
David laughed. “That’s quite an impressive list of wants there. We can see about getting Doctor Hayworth to help you win the lottery… on a more serious note, I’ve come to believe satisfaction in our life, which extends to our career, comes out of what we’re focused on. Not saying I have the right focuses, mind you, but I think there’s more to life than whatever career we’re in.”
“Then why are you alone, if you don’t mind me asking?”
David was quiet for a moment. “Because I didn’t want to put another person through what my mother and I had to endure when Dad was killed.”
Angie looked down, then made eye contact with him. “I’m so sorry, David. I didn’t… wow, I’m making this a great date.”
David reached across the table and took her hand in his. “Nothing to be sorry for. It’s something I’ve lived with for many years, and well, in the last few months, I’ve come to realize I’ve been looking at it through the wrong lens. That’s why I fumbled through asking you out.” To David’s relief, she didn’t shrink away from his hand, instead grasping it in hers.
“I’m glad you did.”
“Does that mean I get a second date?”
“You still have plenty of time left to screw this one up, Colonel, sir,” Angie replied with a wry grin. “Don’t get ahead of yourself on the first one.”
Grinning back at Angie, David found himself thoroughly enjoying her company outside of the confines of the Lion of Judah and the war. Over the next couple of
hours, they ate and spoke of many topics, exploring life and their mutual interests. All too quickly, the dinner was over and they were walking down the narrow street the restaurant was located on, headed toward Angie’s parked helicar.
“I must say, not quite what I’d expected all around, David,” Angie said to him as they rounded a corner.
“In a good way, I hope?”
“Very good.”
“How long will you be on Canaan?” David asked, hopeful she’d say “a while.”
“Well, my transfer to the political beat came through, so at least the next two years. There is the presidential election winding up after all.”
“The Lion will be here for another six weeks undergoing refits,” David mused.
“You need to get better about being direct with women,” Angie replied while rolling her eyes but grinning at the same time.
“I’m not exactly experienced in that department,” David said, feeling his cheeks begin to grow warm.
“The answer is yes, and next week would be fine.”
David chuckled. “Well, in that case, I’ll vidcall you and set something up.”
“You do that, Mr. Cohen, and don’t leave me hanging,” she said as she opened the door to her helicar by scanning her palm print on the door. “Take care of yourself.”
“Oh, I just have to oversee a refit. You’ll be doing more dangerous work than me for the foreseeable future,” David replied with a grin as he held the car door open for her. He watched as she climbed in.
“Goodnight,” Angie replied as she settled into the helicar.
“Take care,” David answered, not sure what else to say. Well, that’s not entirely true. What I want to do is lean in and kiss her, but it’s only the first date, and I’d better wait. Hah, she’s right. I have no idea what to do in a relationship. That’d be because I’ve never had one. The door to the helicar closed automatically, and it lifted off without barely a sound. He stood there for a few minutes and then walked back to his helicar, a big grin on his face. That was the most enjoyment outside of my job in I can’t remember when, and I didn’t screw it up! There may be hope for me yet.
44
This ground, so hallowed, is at the same time so peaceful. David walked through the sea of white marble crosses, Stars of David, crescents and stars, among other symbols and tombstones. A simple ritual, he carried with him a single red rose to place on Sheila’s grave. He’d been enough times the location of her plot was forever imprinted on his mind. Every time he set foot on Canaan, David tried to visit her; a small gesture but one that carried significant meaning to him.
David came to a halt in front of the tombstone that had been placed on her grave; a simple white cross, it read “Major Sheila Thompson, Coalition Defense Forces Killed in Action 27 July 2560.” Below that was a verse from the Bible. “No one can have greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends—John 15:13.”
He smiled ruefully as he read the inscription; David was happy her parents had chosen it. It summed Sheila up to a T. He laid the rose on top of the tombstone and sat down in front of it. “Well, old friend,” he began, addressing the tombstone. “It’s been too long since I got the chance to visit you. I know you already know what’s been going on down here, but I find some comfort in just coming by and catching up with you.
“We managed to defeat Seville, yet again. But he got away… I’m tired of him getting away. I want him to pay. Your words reverberate in my mind when the hatred I feel for that man roars to the surface, but it’s so hard to push it back down. I don’t understand why God lets him live. I pray every morning that God will deliver us from this scourge.” A tear rolled down David’s cheek. “Oh, I miss you. I miss you every single day. This would be so much easier if you were sitting in the XO’s chair, offering your advice between those wickedly funny barbs.
“Calvin’s gone off the rails too. I worry about him. I covered as best as I could to General MacIntosh, but if he can’t get his head back on straight, I won’t be able to save him. The truth is, I wonder if my head’s on straight. Are any of us mentally well? Thirty years of this war… how any of us have our humanity left is beyond me.” He paused, searching for a different subject. “I finally asked Angie out.” David smiled a bit as he related that information. “And you’ll be happy to know, I didn’t mess up the first date too badly. I don’t know if it’ll work out, but when I think about her, I feel a little less lost. I think you’d like her, if you ever met her. She’s strong, determined, and intelligent. In ways, she reminds me of you. I can sense she’s wrestling inside of her soul with what to believe, and in a way, so am I. I’m no longer sure that God cares about us. Oh, my heart says he does, but my mind isn’t convinced. Why does all this keep happening? I don’t understand.”
David shook his head. “But don’t worry, I’m not giving up. I’ll fight the League to my last breath. The memory of our last conversation sustains me, though I often hope you’ll visit again.” He reached out and touched the tombstone with his hand. “I hope I get to see you again someday, and I pray all of this wasn’t in vain. I keep up the cheery image to everyone else, but with you, I can tell the truth. I’m troubled. I’m terrified we’re going to cut so many corners and break so many moral laws, we’ll end up as bad as the League.
“Colonel Sinclair said something to me last week that really made me think. He said he was a sin-eater when questioned about working outside of the law to accomplish our objectives. I’d never heard the term before, and I looked it up. It's defined as a person that can take on the sins of others. I wonder… is that we become as we kill more and more of our fellow humans? Where does it leave us? I wish I had the answer… but I don’t.”
David sighed and stood slowly. “I’d do just about anything for one more day with you, Sheila. But I want you to know that I’m marching on. One foot in front of the other. I’ll see you soon, one way or another.” He smiled, pursing his lips together. Slowly walking away from the grave, he wiped away the tears. It is worth it. I have to carry on, for the sake of everyone, and if for no other reason than to ensure that Sheila’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.
Dmitry Borisov, director of the League’s External Security Service, walked down a corridor in the League Imperial Navy compound on Earth, specifically in Geneva, which was part of what had been called Switzerland hundreds of years ago. No Naval officer or enlisted sailor had any idea who he was. He was sure of this because none of them got out of his way. If they knew who I was, they’d know I could have them disappeared at the wave of my hand, along with their entire families and everyone they’ve ever known. He craved the power being the director of their intelligence arm brought him; holding the lives of hundreds of billions of people in his hand was the ultimate thrill.
Without bothering to knock or announce his presence, he entered Admiral Seville’s office, walking wordlessly by his administrative assistant and throwing open the door to his inner sanctum.
Seville glanced up from his desk, his eyes flashing. “Director,” he said as he stood.
“Admiral,” Borisov replied.
“I’ve been expecting you to drop by,” Seville said icily.
“Oh?”
“You’re here to tell me how to run the war, aren’t you?”
Borisov closed the door behind him quietly and walked over to a chair that was in front of the ornate wooden desk and sat down without asking. “You think in such small terms, Admiral.”
“I’d warn you to watch your tongue, but I suspect you don’t care what I think or say.”
“Quite frankly, no, I don’t. You think only of destroying the Terrans and someday taking over the League,” Borisov said, watching Seville’s poker face barely move. “I think about taking over the entire galaxy and displacing our… alien friends.”
“You’re reaching, Director. I serve the Social and Public Safety Committee.”
“The Social and Public Safety Committee is led by a group of old fools,” Borisov replied
dismissively. “I’ve nothing but contempt for them. I’ve also little regard for you, except you do seem to have a tactical and strategic mind. Your failing is you’re caught up on defeating these pissant little capitalists we’ve been trying to occupy for so long.”
“The Terran Coalition is the biggest enemy we have,” Seville began before Borisov cut him off.
This idiot can’t see the big picture. Perhaps I can enlighten him. “Admiral, the Terran Coalition, even with their allies, cannot hope to invade our space.”
“If their ideas spread to our outer planets, we could face rebellions. Which would cause us to crumble from within. The League works when everyone has a place, and everyone is in their place.”
“The Terrans are decadent. They try to say everyone can achieve greatness. They call it the human dream, this fantasy that no matter where you’re born, you can get whatever you want out of life if you work for it. Admiral, if you want to win, you’ll work with me.”
“The intelligence community has little to offer,” Seville replied. “The Navy pays for our socialism in blood while the spymasters skulk about in the darkness.”
“You’re fighting a foe that’s a hot air balloon. Knock a hole in the balloon, and it falls to the ground. We must fight them from within. If we pool our resources and abilities, we can use my intelligence network to cause the Terran Coalition to implode from the inside.”
“I find this difficult to believe, Director.”
Borisov smiled thinly. “Everything is interconnected. These primitive religions they have. They weren’t always so friendly and accepting of one another. Old tensions still exist; all we must do is exploit them. Turn them against each other.”
“And you know how to do that?”
“I do.”
“Then what do you need me for?”
“I am but a master of the shadows, as you put it, Admiral. You, on the other hand, have larger ambitions. Let us show the Social and Public Safety Committee the error of its ways, and someday you will attain the position of leadership that you so covet,” Borisov said.
