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“Yes, Charlotte, I know.” I smiled at her. “But I’m the training officer and I know what you need to do to make able spacer and it doesn’t involve taking the ordinary spacer exam first.”

“You don’t have to take them in order, sar?” she asked, her curiosity fighting with her disbelief.

I shook my head. “Nope. If you can pass it, it’s yours. Half a brain and a decent study regimen makes able spacer pretty easy.”

Juliett frowned. “I didn’t think it was that easy.”

“Ah, but you didn’t have me to help you, now did you?” I asked with what I hoped was an endearing grin.

“No, sar, that’s true. I didn’t.”

I shook my head again, to try to clear out the bees. “Okay then, we’ll just have to do what we can and tough out the stuff we can’t. You have any problems with that?”

They exchanged another glance and shrugged. “No, sar,” they said almost in unison.

“Okay, then. Back to the question that started this. Yes, it’s entirely proper for you to help clean the mess deck. You use the mess deck. It’s one of the common areas of the ship, and while it’s attached to the galley and the messmates have some responsibility of keeping the space up to snuff, there’s nothing in any rule, order, or custom that says you can’t help them. Anything from stacking your dishes, to running a wipe across a dirty table, to picking up stuff that’s been dropped on the deck. It’s all good.”

The both nodded and shrugged a little. “That makes perfect sense, sar,” Juliett said, “but what if some people won’t help?”

“What about them?” I asked.

“We’ll be doing things for their benefit, sar,” she said.

“Ah, that’s actually not true. As long as you’re getting the benefit, say from a clean place to sit and study with your friends, then what do you care what’s going on with this hypothetical freeloader?”

Charlotte piped up with, “But he’s getting something for nothing! That’s not fair.” She added, “Sar”—as a kind of afterthought.

“What’s your point, Ms. D’Heng?” I asked. “If the incremental cost to you is nil, and you’re willing to work for what you want, what’s the problem with a freeloader as a byproduct?”

“It’s not fair,” she said again.

“Not fair to whom?” I asked her.

“Well, to the people who did the work, sar. To have somebody just come in and take advantage of that work without…I don’t know…paying…” she said, petering out a bit at the end.

“Okay, try this on. Juliett, let’s say you have planetside liberty and want to go to the beach, but you need to rent a ground car to get there. What does it cost you?”

Juliett nodded. “Well, sar, I guess that depends on the system, but probably somewhere between twenty and thirty creds.”

“Exactly, and what would you get in return?”

She didn’t think very long before saying, “Use of the vehicle and a day at the beach.”

“So far, this is fair?” I asked Charlotte.

“Yes, sar,” she agreed.

“Okay, so, Ms. D’Heng wants to go to the beach, too, and your car can carry the extra load without any problems. How do you handle that?” I asked.

Juliett spoke first. “Well of course she can come with me.”

“I’d offer to pay for fuel or split the cost of the rental or something, though,” Charlotte added.

“Okay and we’re still fair?” I asked. “If she splits the cost of the car, she has some interest in what you do with that car, Juliett. Are you going to accept her payment?”

“I don’t know, sar,” she said, thoughtfully. “I never thought about it.”

“Fair enough, but now that I’ve raised the issue, what do you think?”

“I’d probably be grateful for a contribution to the fuel fund, sar,” she said at last. “But I’m not sure I’d be willing to give up control of the car by accepting a shared payment for the rental.”

Charlotte was thinking very hard about this idea. I saw the intensity in her face.

“Okay, so the two of you work out a deal. Whatever it is. Now suppose Ms. Nart wants a ride. She just wants to go out to the beach and doesn’t even a ride back. You going to make her pay, too?”

“Sar, I’m already tired of these negotiations, and we aren’t getting any closer to the beach,” Juliett said as understanding began to dawn. “I’d probably just tell her to get in and we’ll drop her off. We’re going that way anyway.”

“But it’s not fair, if I had to pay, sar,” Charlotte said.

“But you didn’t have to pay,” Juliett said. “You just offered to chip in some gas money, and maybe Ulla would to, but the point is that I rented the ground car because I wanted to go to the beach. I was going to pay the whole cost until you came along and wanted a ride, and I would have taken you just for askin’,” she said with a grin.

“Yes, but that wouldn’t be fair, so I offered to pay something to help out,” Charlotte insisted.

“Okay, and what if I refused?” Juliett followed the logic without needing my prompting. “What if I said, ‘Don’t be silly! Get aboard. I’m going anyway’?”

“That would be very generous of you,” Charlotte said.

“Not really,” I pointed out. “Just pragmatic. The value of her investment was not changed by your being there. For her the point is to get to the beach. If she decides to let you chum along, what’s the cost to her?”

“Nothing,” Juliett said, “and I might actually enjoy the ride more if you came with me because I enjoy your company.”

“So is it fair?” I asked again.

Juliett was smiling now, but Charlotte was still frowning and trying to process. Finally, Charlotte said, “Under those conditions, I can’t really say if it’s fair or not, sar.” She had a kind of helpless expression on her face.

Juliett turned to Charlotte and said, “It’s not a question of fairness. That’s the point. Your payment or not payment—it just doesn’t matter if I’ve rented the vehicle to get my butt to the beach. My willingness to let you ride with me has nothing to do with whether or not you’re helping to pay. The point is whether or not I want to sit in the car with you during the trip.”

I waited for Charlotte to catch up with that logic.

“So, what has this got to do with cleaning the mess deck?” she finally asked.

“Cleaning the mess deck is the trip to the beach,” Juliett said. “The question isn’t who gets to use the beach. It’s who do we want in the car with us. Just between you and me? Anybody who doesn’t want to help, probably isn’t going to be that much help to begin with so who cares?”

I finally saw Charlotte get it. “Because when it’s over, we’ll be at the beach and we can do whatever we want.”

“Exactly,” I said. “And just like it would be easier if everybody chipped in on the fuel for the ground car, it’ll be easier to clean the mess deck with more people who’ll chip in on the cleaning. Everybody will get the benefit of the clean mess deck, but the more people who help, the smaller the cost for any person.”

“So we should find some more people who’d be willing to help,” Charlotte said almost instantly looking at Juliett.

“Well, I’ve got the watch,” she pointed out, making an ostentatious show of examining the helm console.

“I’ll go check with Penny and Karen and find out when they’re gonna work on it,” Charlotte said. “Then we can ask around and see if anybody else wants to help.”

“Ulla will, I bet,” Juliett said. “First section has evening watch tonight, so that means second will be off. I don’t know about Betts, but I bet Ulla will.”

“Ask him anyway,” I suggested. “He may surprise you.”

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY-THREE
D
IURNIA
S
YSTEM
2358-
J
ULY-18

“So you found my little present?” Mr. Burnside asked when he relieved me at 17:45.

“Sorry?” I really had no idea what he was talking about.

He pointed to the console. “I left you a little something, since you were having so much fun cleaning.”

“Oh, that?” I shrugged. “Forgot all about it, but thanks for your consideration.” I tried to keep my voice carefully neutral.

He just snickered, but then his expression changed as if he’d suddenly remembered something. He motioned me over to the bridge wing where we could have a bit of privacy. “I talked to Apones this afternoon,” he began.

“Really? Something I should be aware of?” I asked.

“Yes, actually.” He paused. “You were out of line,” he said seriously.

“I was out of line?” I repeated it back trying to figure out if I’d seen Apones some time during the day other than when he and Mosler were assaulting Nart. “What exactly did you talk to Mr. Apones about?”

“The little incident in the gym,” he was giving me the stern, superior to junior officer look.

I glanced over to where Mallory was relieving Jaxton and Burnside stepped into my line of sight, backing me up into the bridge wing a little farther and blocking my view.

“I’m talking to you, Wang,” he said sharply but softly. “You are not to interfere with my watch standers. Ever. Are we clear?” He bit each word off.

“Interfere with your watch standers?” It shouldn’t have surprised me, but the sheer stupidity of it took me off balance. “Apones and Mosler were assaulting Nart!” I said trying to keep my voice down. “What was I supposed to do?”

“Walk away,” he said. “Apones is on my watch. If there is a problem, you come to me.”

I stared at him.

“Did you hear me, Wang?” he was right in my face.

“You must be joking! You think I’m going to walk away—”

He cut me off with a fast hard fist, once, up under my ribcage which drove me back into the bulkhead and left me trying to suck air back into my lungs. The pain was amazing. I thought I was going to keel over right there.

“Be quiet, Wang,” he snapped. “Listen and listen good. You…do…not…ever…interfere.”

I was sagged against the bulkhead. If he hadn’t been standing so close, my feet would have probably slid out from under me. My world was narrowed to a gray tunnel and aching gut-punch.

After one last glower, he turned and stepped over to the console.

“I have the watch, Mr. Wang. Logged on 2358-July-18, at 17:45 per standing order,” he announced loudly.

Juliett knew something was wrong. Something about the way I was leaning against the bulkhead—or perhaps it was the redness in my face or the way I was trying to wheeze air back into my lungs. She started to say something but I caught her eye and shook my head once, nodding toward the ladder.

I managed to stumble upright and cross the bridge without staggering. I did stumble a little at the bottom where she was waiting and caught me by the arm.

“Are you all right, sar?”

I managed a weak chuckle as her question echoed mine from earlier in the day. It was rather an inane question when viewed from this side. The movement eased the cramp, though, and I was able to get almost a full breath again. “A little disagreement with the first mate,” I said. “Nothing to be concerned about.”

She eyed me dubiously. “Anybody ever tell you you’re a terrible liar, sar?” she asked after a moment.

“Yes, Ms. Jaxton, they have—on numerous occasions. I keep practicing in hopes that some day I’ll get better.”

“Keep practicing, sar.” She glared up the ladder and then looked back at me.

“Ms. Jaxton?” I said gathering her attention. “It’s almost time for dinner mess. Shouldn’t you be heading in that direction?”

“Yes, sar, I was just waiting to see if you’d fall down when you let go of the ladder rail, sar. It’s not often you get to see an officer fall over from ‘a little disagreement’ and I thought it might be instructive, sar.”

I snorted a soft laugh. The sudden contraction stabbed at me, but at least my sense of humor wasn’t permanently damaged. “Have you ever considered the academy, Ms. Jaxton?”

“Me?” she barked in disbelief. “No! What would make you say something like that?”

I shook my head and felt the crooked grin on my face. “No particular reason, Ms. Jaxton.” I let go of the ladder and walked with as much dignity as I could down the passage.

Behind me I heard her snort, but she headed for the mess deck.

I let myself into my stateroom without falling down or throwing up. I heard the shower running in the head, so I sat on my bunk and curled up around the pain, letting myself deal with it for the first time, now that I had a little privacy.

In a few ticks the shower cut off and, after a few more, I heard a soft tap. I straightened up from the near fetal curl and tried to compose myself a bit before I reached up and released the latch.

Arletta was in her terry robe and still rubbing her hair with a towel. “How was—my gods! What happened to you?” she said.

“Oh, hiya, neighbor,” I said.

“‘Hiya, neighbor’? That’s your answer?” She scowled at me, but looked more concerned than angry.

“What makes you think anything happened?” I asked trying to sit up straight, but still feeling my shoulders curling inward.

“Hmm,” she said with a considering tone. “Might have something to do with the fact that you’re sitting there hunched over like somebody kicked you in the jewels and your face looks like you been punched in the gut.”

I nodded appreciatively. “One out of two. Not a bad average.”