Witch Of The Federation (Federal Histories Book 2)

by Michael Anderle

  She managed a small excited laugh and let some of that excitement bleed into her voice. “And that is only the beginning. We will focus on finding the right people, not simply anyone who needs a free ride. We know there will be times when we’ll get it wrong, but in the long run, when other companies see that your students are a cut above theirs and fresh—and not from the same old background that they rely on—well then, that’s when things really start to get interesting.”

  From the look on the man’s face, he hung onto her every word as she continued. “All across the world, universities will see what your students achieve and some will follow your example. It will take time, but we will see some of them admitting students solely on merit because, if they don’t, they won’t be able to compete. Your graduates will help pull the Gov-Subs out of the dust by providing opportunities that no one’s thought to provide before.”

  A small smile had appeared on the chancellor’s lips, and he sounded almost breathless. “That is… Well, that sounds amazing. I don’t want to get my hopes up because I’ve never seen it work, but if it does work… I mean, if it really and truly worked, you could change the world.”

  He stopped to catch his breath. “My grandfather and my father instilled one very important lesson into my head. You can grow a company organically. You merely have to provide an opportunity.”

  Elizabeth nodded and smiled at the waitress as she brought their food. “Exactly. And when you offer opportunities to those who simply need help getting into the system, it broadens their whole idea of what the world is like.”

  He took a bite of broccoli in oyster sauce. “That’s right. The difference goes far beyond the training. Once the training is given, new career choices open up and then, each individual is responsible for making it—or not—on their own.”

  He chewed, ate the rest of the broccoli, and sampled some of the beef before he went on. “But when you have situations like that, people do amazing things to make the most of their opportunities and keep that hope alive. They will do anything to not have to go back to the factory or follow their family into a hazardous industry. They’ll work their tails off in order to ensure they stay out of the Gov-Subs and to allow themselves a chance to achieve the better future they’ve always dreamed of.”

  “And that is something the richies don’t understand because their families have already reached the top and there is nothing they can’t do or have,” she added as she lifted her fork. “Now, while we don’t hold that against them, we aren’t here to support anyone but those who strive the hardest to take the opportunity and make something with it.”

  “Of course, to do anything else would defeat the purpose,” the chancellor agreed. “And if they truly are the brightest, they will understand the chance they’ve been given and will be motivated to make the most of it.”

  “Mhmm,” she replied and savored a mouthful of steak. “Lazy geniuses need not apply. I’m here to change the future of mankind. And if someone wants to sit on their ass all day, what good is their mind to me?”

  On the Meligorn Dreamer, Stephanie and the team had joined Garmathiun Hondor of the Triton Quadrant of Meligorn for dinner. She shifted in her seat and found it weird to sit on high-backed stools at the dinner table.

  Then again, the Meligornian tables were kitchen-counter height if not taller. It was their custom and they often struggled on Earth with all the low tables and surfaces.

  Beside her, Lars sat at full alert and his gaze shifted almost obsessively around the room. Marcus sat on his other side, his hands politely in his lap with a slight look of disdain on his face.

  She found his expression odd but chalked it up to the stress of the trip and the days leading up to it.

  Garma sat comfortably on his stool, his robes draped elegantly around him, and his long silver hair sparkled in the ship’s artificial lighting. “So, in theory, all the magic should work together like a dance.”

  She pursed her lips, excited to have a chance to talk magical theory with someone who knew it. “Right, but because each type of MU is so old and has been pulled and pushed for so long, none of them are compatible without being changed first. You have to change the energy back to what it was by winding them together—which makes sense when you think about gMU.”

  He tilted his head to the side and a look of shock crept into his face. “My dearest Lilly, you are quite the savant when it comes to magic. Although I think I was aware of that before. Tell me more about your gMU theories. I like that name for it. We have always called it the Unknown Magic. A shout to the energy that roams every corner of space. We know it’s there but few of us, if any, have ever been able to understand it.”

  Stephanie smiled and took a mouthful of the chicken on her plate. The Meligornian had asked the chefs to prepare human dishes to ensure his guests’ comfort.

  She enjoyed it, and from what she could see, the guys certainly appreciated it. “The gMU is older than both eMU and MU. It is the eldest of the three, the one that brought it all into existence. Which, I think, you knew already.”

  Garma leaned forward, clearly enjoying the conversation. “Well, we had an idea, but even on Meligorn, there is resistance to nailing down facts that go against prominent faiths.”

  Lars smirked and joined the conversation. “So that’s not only a human issue, then?”

  Their host snorted and waved his hands as he replied. “Not in the least. All beings share this natural need to understand. Some do better than others, but they can rarely step back and see the truth of things. Still, there are some who can see the destruction that blind faith can cause and some who can also see the connections between each different understanding.”

  He shrugged. “I don’t believe that science and discovery can kill God, no matter what form people think God takes. I think science and discovery can close the gap a little between all beings and their religious concepts. We resist because we all fear that our truths—the ones we hold sacred inside—will be proved false. That fear alone can lead to a serious uprising.”

  Stephanie nodded. “Right. Or a sudden outbreak of death, whether from war or like the time in the mid-2000s when the seven thousand seven hundred churches all waited until the stroke of midnight and everyone killed themselves. They believed they were giving their lives for a worthy cause. But yes, I see your point. I still believe that simply because you fear the truth does not mean you shouldn’t continue to seek it out.”

  “I very much agree with you,” Garma replied and raised his glass to clink against hers. “And that is why what you’re saying about gMU is so interesting. It’s a really simple concept but because it’s so different to what’s currently taught in the education system and because pursuing it would draw money away from the Federation, there won’t be any conferences or informationals about the opportunities it presents.”

  He seemed excited to discuss the theories she had and she was thankful she had found someone she could discuss it with, without having to be the teacher, the student, and the researcher.

  She understood that discovery was the entire reason for what she did and that learning about her magic—how to use it and how it worked—was her main purpose. Sometimes, though, like with Brilgus and the ambassador, it was nice to connect with another being who understood some of how it worked. It was even better to get a different perspective from someone who didn’t treat her like some kind of magic-wielding anomaly.

  She and Garma talked for hours and barely noticed how much time had passed. Stephanie happened to look at Lars as he covered his mouth during a yawn, and this made her glance at the clock on the wall. She was mortified “Oh, my gosh. It’s so late! I’m sorry, Garma. I didn’t mean to take so much of your time.”

  He glanced up and his eyes widened when he saw the time. “It is late. I am also sorry. I was so lost in our discussion that I have kept you well past the time when I should have let you go.”

  He stood slowly and surveyed the half-asleep team.

  “Let me s
how you to the door, and my apologies for keeping your team up so late.”

  Stephanie followed his gaze and immediately saw her guys needed sleep. They tried desperately to stay alert and not complain.

  Garma thanked them for allowing him to keep them so long and invited them to come back anytime. She hoped she would have another chance to speak to him because his insights had been really helpful.

  After he’d shepherded the team to their suite, Lars walked Stephanie to her room. Before she stepped in closed the door behind her, she turned and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, dude. I needed something like that tonight.”

  He yawned again and nodded sleepily. “That’s my job, lady. Keeping you safe and listening to MU theory. I am now an expert.”

  She laughed and waved before she secured the door and went to bed. Excited or not, she was definitely exhausted.

  “It all looks really good,” said Roger, the chief engineer, when he’d checked the readings on the screen.

  Engineer First Class Cameron Bruce nodded proudly. “Thank you, sir. We’ve busted our nubs down here to make sure everything is on the up and up and we were ready for anything.”

  Roger shook his hand. “I know you were on the Peter Travers last year when they were attacked by pirates. I’m sorry you had to go through that. Hopefully, this trip will be smooth sailing. Speaking of which, the captain’s ordered the FTL Transition for sixty-four hours from now.”

  Cameron frowned with obvious confusion. “I’m sorry, sir, but wasn’t the Transition scheduled for one-thirty hours?”

  He nodded. “Word’s only just come down. The captain says we need to beat the official course from Federation Control, so we’re transitioning early. We need to make sure the engines are ready.”

  The younger man squared his shoulders, always obedient, even if he thought the order was hazardous or dangerous. “Will, do, sir. They will be ready to go two shifts beforehand.”

  The chief gave him a grateful smile and slapped him on the shoulder. “I know you would, but it’s the end of your shift, so I’ll get it started. You can finalize it when you clock back on in the morning. I’ll take over now and let you take an early mark. The heavens know you’ve earned it.”

  Cameron brought a knuckle to his forehead. There was no way he would argue with that. He left the engine room and headed for his bunk.

  As soon as he was out of sight, he paused to wipe the sudden sheen of sweat from his forehead. This was an unexpected hitch. They would not like this. Not one little bit.

  He reached the end of the corridor and took the stairs to the crew common room two at a time. Grateful he was one of the first off shift, he headed directly to his shared quarters and hoped to beat his cabinmate in.

  Relieved to find the space empty, he pulled his console out and kept a close eye on the door while he sent off a quick message about the “game.”

  Worried the door would open any moment, he tapped the message out, trying to be quick but also to not make any mistakes. It was an extremely important message that had to be sent as soon as possible.

  The game needs to finish early as he won’t be available to play after. STOP.

  With that done, Cameron paused and stared at the console before he unplugged it and stashed it in the back of his locker.

  As he released it and pulled out a clean shirt and shorts to sleep in, Anton crashed into their space.

  “Are you still up?”

  “Not for long,” he snapped in response. “It was a long shift and we have a longer one tomorrow.”

  Anton snorted. “Yeah. I heard. An early transition to top off a long week. I hope there are no more surprises on this trip.”

  “Me, too,” he agreed and headed to the door. “I’m gonna hit the head before I hit the hay.”

  His bunkmate gave him a lazy wave of acknowledgment. “I won’t be far behind you.”

  Cameron breathed a sigh of relief and left, glad the other man didn’t seem in the mood to chat. Their departure had been unusually hectic, which meant everyone was tired.

  And that made it really good for him.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Stephanie woke to the sound of a hundred tap dancers executing the cha-cha on her door. “What the hell?”

  Her sleepy mutter was greeted with raucous laughter and Johnny’s familiar voice. “Wakey, wakey, sleepy head.”

  She groaned.

  The knocking came again. This time, she threw a pillow at the door as Lars’ voice intruded.

  “Time to wake up, lazybones.”

  “You can kiss my...” Even half-asleep, Stephanie thought it would be better if she didn’t finish that sentence. “Go away.”

  Marcus snickered, and Frog howled with laughter. “You heard her, Lars my man. She asked you to kiss her go away.”

  “Yeah, her go away,” Marcus repeated and his laughter made the phrase sound a lot worse than it could possibly be.

  She rolled over and groped for something else to throw as Frog called again. “Come on, Steph. I know you had a hot date with that old Meligornian guy last night but it’s time to get up and at ’em, sweetie.”.

  Stephanie groaned.

  “I’ll give you assholes sweetie,” she muttered, rolled over again, and yanked her blankets over her head. It didn’t help that she could hear the guys milling around outside or that it wouldn’t be long before one of them did something terminally stupid.

  Like coming in to get her.

  Yeah. That would be really terminal. She sighed. It was probably better if she didn’t force them to try it. She sat up and scowled when her hair tangled across her face.

  She scraped it irritably out of her eyes, hauled herself out of bed, and stumbled toward the door. She’d only made it halfway across the room when it was flung open and Frog led the charge inside.

  They all stared at her for a moment before she threw her hands in the air, turned away, and headed to the bathroom. “Make yourselves at home,” she grouched, “and make me coffee while you’re at it. It is way too early for this shit.”

  The guys were still laughing when she returned and sat in the desk chair, looking as tired as hell. “Why are you here torturing me?”

  “Torture?” Lars sounded hurt. He held a cup up so she could see the steam rising from its surface. “If I were torturing you, I’d do this.”

  He raised the cup to his lips and took a sip.

  Stephanie let her jaw drop and gave a squeak of horror, and the guys fell about laughing all over again. She recovered quickly and stalked over to where Lars was still sipping her coffee while he watched her over the rim.

  His eyes looked tired, but they danced with mischief as she stopped in front of him and held her hand out. “Give me my damn coffee or someone’s gonna die.”

  He paused mid-sip, licked his lips, and smirked. “Can you be the one, Frog?”

  “Hey!” Frog wasn’t amused but everyone else thought it was as funny as hell. She didn’t care, though, because Lars finally took pity on her and handed her what was left of the coffee.

  “If you let Frog live, he’ll order us breakfast,” he said and made sure she had a good grip on the cup.

  “I’ll what?”

  “You heard,” he retorted, and Frog spread his arms and rolled his eyes.

  “Work, work, work,” he grumbled and tried to suppress a grin as he turned to the console.

  Johnny laughed, walked over to Stephanie, and patted her on the head as he sat next to Lars on top of her desk. “Speaking of work, we think you need to do some work in the pod today.”

  Stephanie rolled her eyes and moved her mouth away from the cup to wail. “I just did work in the pod. I did a ton of work and you guys were nowhere to be seen or heard.”

  “Hey,” Lars protested and moved to stand next to Marcus. “We were doing security stuff. Mucho importante.”

  “Mhmm,” she replied and sounded as snide as she could with a mouthful of coffee. She swallowed and added, “I saw you when I came ou
t. Frog had a hat on that said I played the slots and I got more than I bargained for. Which I have to say, is too much to squeeze onto a hat. Nonetheless, I don’t think that’s part of your security stuff.”

  Brenden chuckled and tossed her a pair of jeans and a tee he’d obviously dug out of her closet. “Come on. Throw these on and we’ll take you down. No heavy lifting today.”

  She drained her cup and handed it to Johnny, who happened to be standing closest. “While no heavy lifting sounds good, none of you have what it takes to win against me.”

  No sooner had the words left her mouth than she was hemmed in by the team, each one standing closer than any of them had a right to.

  “Like that, is it?” she asked and couldn’t help but giggle as she drew just enough magic to create a light field of static energy around her.

  There was an abrupt fizz and crackle and the guys leapt back.

  “Ow!”

  “Man, remind me not to piss you off before breakfast ever again.”

  “Sonuva—”

  “I won’t piss her off after breakfast, either.”

  “If she doesn’t cut it out, she won’t get any breakfast.”

  “Do you really want to do that, man?”

  “I’d give her all your breakfasts to watch her do it again.”

  Stephanie had to laugh at Frog. He’d been at the room service console and watched as they’d crowded her, and if he hadn’t been finding them food, he’d have been zapped with the rest. He smiled when they heard a knock on the door to the suite

  “I’ll be back,” he said, mimicking how the lines were spoken in a really old movie. Now that she thought about it, she remembered it was one of Todd’s favorites.

  “Bring breakfast,” she insisted. “You know I get grouchy if I don’t eat.”

  “We have work to do,” Johnny insisted, and she pivoted as blue fire rolled over her hand.

  “Breakfast, or I’ll turn you into a—” She glanced at the door. “Slug. Two Frogs would be two too many.”