Aurora: CV-01 (3 page)

“What’s changed?” Nathan begged. “What has changed so much that it would cause you to do a complete turnaround in such a short time?”

His father took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as he rose from his perch and strolled over to stare out the window again. His son was right, the change in his position on the buildup of the Earth Defense Fleet had completely changed over the last four years. And it had caused a tremendous rift to develop between them. The irony of it was that deep down inside, he knew that his
true
position had
never
changed. It was only his
public
position that he had been forced to change. He only wished that he could find a way to make his son understand without exposing the truth. “It’s complicated,” he finally resigned.

Nathan wanted to press, but he knew that ‘
it’s complicated’
meant that his father either didn’t want, or couldn’t talk about it further.

“I have no delusions that you and I are ever going to agree on this,” his father admitted. “Just do me a favor, will you son? No more public shots across my bow until after the election?”

As if on cue, his mother entered the room to end the dispute. “There you are,” she said to her husband as she entered. She suddenly noticed Nathan sitting on the sofa. “Oh, Nathan honey, I didn’t see you.” She kissed her husband on the cheek, noticing the tension in the room. “Am I interrupting?” she asked, knowing full well that she was. Over the last few years, she had developed an uncanny knack of entering the room at just the right moment to break the two of them apart. It seemed impossible, but somehow Nathan was sure that she did it on purpose, and for just that reason.

“Don’t worry, sir,” Nathan assured his father as he rose to leave. “I’ll behave.”

“Nathan,” his mother scolded at his attitude.

“It doesn’t matter anyway. I report for duty on the Reliant tomorrow morning. And she’s scheduled to be underway in a few days for border patrol out in the Oort Cloud.” Nathan kissed his mother’s cheek and gave her a polite hug so as not to mess up her outfit, in case there were more pictures to be taken. “After today the press won’t have access to me for at least a few years. That should get you safely through the election,” he promised his father as he reached out to shake his hand. “Good Luck, sir,” Nathan announced in a show of good faith. The strange thing was, he actually meant it this time.

“Thank you, son.” His father took Nathan’s hand, placing his other hand on Nathan’s shoulder. Despite their differences, the senator dearly loved his youngest child, and was prouder of him than Nathan would ever know. And though he hid it well, the news of his son’s impending departure on a relatively dangerous patrol both shocked and worried him deeply. “Smooth sailing, Ensign.”

Now Nathan too was shocked. For it was the first time his father had called him by his rank. It felt as if he had finally accepted Nathan’s decision to enlist, despite his father’s repeated objections. “I’ll try to keep in touch,” he promised as he turned to leave.

“Yes, please do,” the senator mumbled, more to himself than anyone else in the room.

For a good minute after Nathan had left, the senator and his wife said nothing.

“You have to do something, Dayton,” his wife finally insisted. “You can’t let him go out there. We might never see him again.” There was genuine fear in her voice.

“I’ll try, honey,” the senator promised as he put his arms around her. “I’ll try.”

* * *

Nathan stood at the edge of the driveway, waiting for the car that would take him to the airport to catch the next shuttle back to the academy. The party was still in full swing, with the orchestra playing even more lively than before. He could’ve stayed longer, maybe even got lucky again. But after his father’s big announcement, he preferred to lay low until he could get back to safe ground.

He had grown up in a politically active family, and he had tired of it years ago. And that had been one of the reasons he joined the fleet. For it would get him about as far away from all of this as humanly possible.

There had been few options that had appealed to him. His degree in pre-plague history could have landed him a decent career as professor, if he had continued on for his doctorate. But then he still would’ve been subject to the constant scrutiny that resulted from his father’s public service. And he simply couldn’t imagine dealing with that for the rest of his life.

His sisters all had their own careers, and later had all married and started popping out kids in an effort to build the Earth’s population back up to true industrial levels. But he had grown tired of school, tired of family, and certainly tired of politics. And if he had hung around much longer, that’s probably where he too would have ended up.

The fact was, he had needed a change, and a drastic one at that. Military service had never even been a consideration in the past. But the idea of joining the fleet and living out in space, only making it back to Earth every few years? Well that was enticing enough that one slightly drunk night with his buddies was all it had taken to get him to sign ten years of his life away. Even if it had meant another four years of school before getting off the planet.

But the Academy had gone by quickly, and it had been far more interesting than college had ever been. The physical and combat training had been fun as well. Nathan had never considered himself to be athletic, but had discovered he was far more adept at such activities than he would have thought possible. He never considered himself a ‘super-soldier’, but he could hold his own with most of his class.

It had been the simulations that had given him the most trouble. At first, they had been more about hands-on training than anything else. And in that he had excelled. But when they started testing his ability to make command decisions, he felt awkward and unsure of himself. In more than one simulation he had failed to act quick enough to avoid abrupt and catastrophic conclusions.

Nevertheless, he had passed his practical exams in the command simulations. His roommate at the Academy often joked that Nathan’s unusually consistent good luck had gotten him through the sims. And Nathan knew that his friend had been at least partially correct.

So he had graduated the Academy and had been rated as both a navigator and a pilot. He was looking forward to his upcoming duty on the Reliant. She was the fleet’s oldest cruiser, and although she had never fired a shot in anger, she had seen several patrols, having been in service for more than a decade. And with a crew of over 300, Nathan would be just another name on the ship’s roster, probably serving on a backup flight crew on the least favored rotation. And that was fine with him.

“Well, well, well,” his brother’s voice came from behind. “If it isn’t Ensign Scott, the prodigal son, returned home to stir up family dissent one more time.” Eli was a good twelve years older, and he and Nathan had never gotten along.

“Hello, Eli.” Nathan was biting his tongue, trying to remember if there was ever a time the two of them had talked that didn’t end poorly. “What have you been up to?” He was trying to make meaningless small talk, hoping to avoid an argument long enough for his ride to arrive and make his escape.

“Funny you should ask that, Nathan. I should be spending time with my wife and kids, enjoying this wonderful Founders Day celebration. But instead, I spent the better part of an hour bribing a photographer to give up his rather suggestive photos of you and that slut you screwed in the anteroom tonight.”

“Still running image patrol for Dad, huh Eli?” Nathan knew it was the wrong thing to say even as it passed his lips. Eli had always wanted to follow in their father’s footsteps and enter politics himself. But Eli had not been the son blessed with the natural charm required for public life. So the senator’s oldest son had been forced to spend his career chasing their father and putting out his fires. It was a sour pill for Eli to swallow, and Nathan was sure that it had always been the primary cause of their ongoing feud.

“At least I’m not trying to ruin it,” Eli accused. “So, who was she?”

“None of your damned business.”

Eli was obviously exasperated at Nathan’s attitude. “Why did you even show up, Nate?”

“I was invited.”
Hmm, sarcasm, another bad choice.

“Still the troublemaker, I see.”

“Better than being a kiss-ass,” Nathan responded in a matter-of-fact tone. He was already on a roll, so he figured there was little use in stopping now.

“I would’ve thought the Academy would break you of that habit.”

“Funny how that habit only seems to surface when I’m around family.”

“Then why don’t you do us all a big favor and just stay away. Or at least keep your attitude under control until after the election. Do you think you can do that much for your family?”

Nathan wanted to say something more, a lot more. In fact, what he really wanted to do was to punch Eli right in his smug mouth. But there were cameras everywhere, and the car that would take him away from this circus once and for all was pulling into the long circular driveway.

Nathan turned around and stepped up to Eli, standing right in his face and giving him a stone cold stare, the same one he had learned to use when standing at attention during inspections at the Academy. It took Eli by surprise, and for a moment he was unsure what to expect. He had never before seen such a stern look in Nathan’s eyes.

Nathan took his brother’s hand firmly and shook it once. “Give my best to your family, Eli.” He let go of Eli’s hand and gave him what appeared to onlookers as a brotherly hug. Eli’s hands dangled at his sides in disbelief as Nathan whispered in his brother’s ear. “So long, asshole.”

Nathan released his still shocked brother and stepped aside to smile and wave at the cameras that were watching from the walkway near the main house. Then he turned and got into the back seat of the car that had just pulled up behind him.

And that,
is the last time I’ll have to play that game.

CHAPTER 2

Despite a slight hang-over, Nathan arrived at the Academy Flight Complex bright and early. The previous night’s events had only served to remind him of how desperately he wanted to leave it all behind and start anew. Today, he would leave the surface of the Earth, not to return for several years. It was the perfect way to begin his new life.

The complex was unusually busy that morning, as most of the graduates from the Academy’s North American campus were also departing for new assignments. As he worked his way through the crowd, he saw many familiar faces, as they bid farewell to fellow graduates and underclassmen. It had been a long four years for them all, during which most had formed significant bonds.

The graduates were leaving everything they knew behind, only to be cooped up inside big, metal, high-tech boxes hurtling through space. It was both exciting and frightening at the same time. All these young men and women, from every walk of life and every corner of the North American continent. Each for their own reasons had left their lives and their loved ones behind. They had endured exhaustive education and grueling physical training. And many of them had failed along the way, forced to return home in disgrace.

And it wasn’t just on this continent. There were similar scenes playing out on Fleet Academy campuses in both Europe and Asia. Each of them were turning out hundreds of graduates per year. And still it was only a fraction of what was needed for the Earth to build an adequate defense. For the Jung controlled the resources of four of the six core worlds, as well as many of the lesser colonies out on the fringe.

But still the volunteers came in droves each year. And those not accepted to the Academy contributed in other ways. As ground forces, trained to defend against surface assault. Or as workers and technicians, who built the ships needed to defend the Earth from space. But they all shared the same sense of purpose. They were defending their burgeoning homeworld as it rose from a thousand years of darkness and despair.

As he waited in line to check-in, Nathan thought about his Academy roommate, Luis. They had become the best of friends during their time at the Academy. And Nathan was quite certain that he would not have graduated had it not been for his friend's support. Luis had been assigned to the Intrepid as a Tactician and Weapons specialist. But since the Intrepid was not due back for a few weeks, he had chosen to spend time with his family in South America before departure.

Nathan had envied Luis in that sense. He had such a strong and supportive family. They had been from a relatively remote and impoverished area. And they had yet to reap the full benefits that the knowledge found on the Data Ark had already bestowed upon the more populous regions. Had it not been for the exhaustive efforts of fleet recruiters, Luis’s unique gifts might never have been added to the fleet’s growing ranks. And Nathan would’ve missed out on a very important friendship.

“Next!” The voice interrupted Nathan’s reminiscence.

“Ensign Scott, Nathan R,” he reported to the officer at the check-in desk before reading off his service number. “I’m scheduled for the next shuttle up to the Reliant.”

The duty officer punched in Nathan’s information, pausing to compare his face and description against the one displayed on his computer screen.

“I’m sorry, Ensign. But it seems there’s been a slight change in your orders,” the officer reported.

“Sir?” Although this kind of thing was not uncommon, it still caught Nathan by surprise.

“You’re still scheduled for departure, but not to the Reliant.” The officer looked up at Nathan, smiling. “You’ve been reassigned to the Aurora.”

“The Aurora? But I thought she wasn’t even in service yet.”

“They bumped up her trials. She’ll be underway within a week or two. That’s probably why you got reassigned. She needs crew and the next class won’t graduate for six months.”

Nathan wasn’t sure what to think. He had been studying the specifications on the Reliant for weeks. He had even spent extra time in the simulator familiarizing himself with her flight characteristics. He didn’t know anything about the Aurora, as most of her specs were still classified.