Spinward Fringe Broadcast 7: Framework (76 page)

Domed and square shelters from the Enforcer
1109 and the Triton were set up on the island they would come to
call home. Logs discovered in a small research bunker told them the
history of the Haven Shore settlement, and it was a peaceful one
with a legacy of zoological study. All the shelters and the ships
that survived since their arrival and through the siege occupied
less than one percent of the land.

The mountain splitting the middle of the
land mass protected half the jungle from a shockwave that blew the
other half flat. Two of the larger shelters took advantage of the
cleared land. They were open domes with frames built inside, but
given time, they would build the interior rooms, and hallways.

The smaller shelters were set on an expanse
of white and blue quartz beach sand. It took the help of the
British military to move and set up in one day. Ayan was proud to
announce a day of rest for New Year’s Eve.

A platform overlooking the beach and
freshwater ocean beyond had been set up. It served as the main
celebration area. The next morning it would take a different role,
as a landing space for shuttles. Ayan sat at an iron wrought table,
drinking black tea, a gift from the crew of the Fair Weather Trader
for prying them from their wrecked ship. It was bright for evening,
like early twilight in period movies she’d seen about Earth.

There were minutes left to the galactic
year, and she smiled at the approach of Liam Grady bearing two
fluted glasses. “It’s not champagne, but it tickles the nose.”

“What is it?”

“I think Agameg said it was Upbub, but he
was pretty busy serving. I asked him if he’d like to take a break,
he’s been working tirelessly on search and rescue, but he seemed
happy tending bar.”

“I don’t think Agameg is happy unless he’s
working,” Ayan said. “Considering the fighting and rescue work over
the last week, I’m surprised anyone has the energy to be here, let
alone dance the new year in.”

She spotted Doctor Anderson through the
dancing crowd at the other end of the platform and cleared her
throat. “Do you mind giving me a moment? Doctor Anderson said he
had something important to tell me.”

“I’ll be back before the year turns,” Liam
said, bending down to give her a timid kiss, but she leaned into it
and pinched his bottom lip between hers before letting go. “You’d
better be.”

Ayan stood and straightened her loose
fitting, white and blue dress before Doctor Anderson was close
enough for a hug. He kissed her on the cheek and smiled at her.
“You look beautiful,” he said as they sat down.

“Thank you,” Ayan said. “I’m so glad you’re
here.”

“I know, and I’m hoping that continues on
after I’ve told you something I’ve wanted to share for ages.”

Ayan was immediately worried, and put her
glass down on the table carefully. “I don’t know what you could say
that would make you unwelcome here. I’ve known you too long, and
there’s something more. I can’t describe it, but you watched me
grow, I know you were there the whole time I was developing. You
brought me into being.”

“I wish I could have been there even before
then,” Carl Anderson said with a note of regret. “Your mother
didn’t want me involved in your upbringing when you were a child,
but I watched.”

“My upbringing, why would you?” Ayan covered
her mouth with a sudden realization. She’d always wondered who her
father was. She recalled stealing one of Doctor Anderson’s scanners
when she was very young during one of her check-ups. Her mother was
furious as she snatched it out of her hands, stopping her from
scanning the room.

“When I met your mother in the outer
colonies, we were both very young. I believed in the research they
were doing in genetic improvements. The ability for a human being
to aggressively cure diseases by being near contagions, to be
influential through pheromones like issyrians, to each be paragons
of our species was very attractive. What it would mean to diplomacy
alone, the possibilities were incredible. We took it too far, but
we didn’t realize that until your mother was pregnant with you and
we’d already performed the modifications. She wanted children so
badly back then, her calling was to be a mother, so when we fell in
love she suspended her contraceptives and, well,” Carl Anderson
shrugged. “Then, you.”

A tear of joy fell from her eye as she said,
“you’re my father,” through her hands. “Twice, you’re my
father.”

“I couldn’t let you go through your
childhood without knowing me somehow, so I had to be your doctor,
at least. And when you were going to be on the First Light, I had
to follow you there.”

“And you brought me back,” Ayan said, her
breath catching mid-sentence.

“I couldn’t let you go,” Carl Anderson said,
a tear rolling down his cheek.

Ayan stood up, knocking her chair over and
bumping the table as she crossed to him and embraced her father.
“Thank you,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

* * *

Zoe squealed and giggled as she swung high
between Ashley Lamport and Minh-Chu Buu. They walked along the
beach, him in swim trunks and her in a bikini. The night was
surprisingly warm, and the cool air coming off the water was just
enough to make it comfortable without vacsuit-style clothing.
Watching the toddler turn the pair of them into a jungle-gym, and
being with Ashley, who surprised him by being a person he could
enjoy a comfortable silence with, was better than Minh thought he
deserved.

The Samurai and Skyguard Squadron members
who weren’t on patrol overhead had staked out their beach
encampment by landing their fighters and shuttles in a half-circle.
Light rods sticking out of the sand, holographic feeds from the
main dancing platform and the Triton’s party in the Botanical
Gallery lit the space just enough. The Warlord was on the beach
just past the group.

Zoe spotted Panloo with several other
nafalli and struggled to be free of Minh-Chu and Ashley. “Okay, you
can go,” Ashley said, releasing her. Minh-Chu followed her example
and the gap between them was closed a few steps later.

Ashley’s hand found his as they watched Zoe
scamper up the beach and leap onto Panloo’s back. “She’s so happy
with her,” Ashley said.

“She’s still crazy about you, though,”
Minh-Chu said.

“I know,” Ashley said. “Every time I visit
her she lets me know.”

They walked silently for a while, holding
hands and looking down the shoreline. They were getting close to
the old mismatched chairs they’d set up, stuck partway into the
sand on the edge of the waterline. Behind it was a shelter for
two.

“You’re quiet,” Ashley said.

Minh-Chu almost reacted by offering an
expression from his extensive collection, but smiled and looked at
her instead. He’d never seen anything more amazing than her looking
back at him with a half-smile, her dark eyes expectant. “You’re
beautiful.”

Ashley laughed and kissed him briefly. “You
were about to say something else. I could see it.”

“Just words,” he replied. “Words that would
fall out onto the sand and wash away.” He turned on his heel and
caught her in an embrace, which improved with a long, warm
kiss.

Ashley pulled away reluctantly after
encouraging whistles from the pilots sitting around a few
holographic images from the capitol of Kambis and the Triton.
“Okay, before we turn on Crewcast privacy mode, I’ve got a New
Year’s gift for you,” she said, breaking away and running towards
their seats.

Minh-Chu chased after her, enjoying the
view. His mind raced, trying to think of something he could give
her in return. To his relief, it didn’t take long for him to think
something up. “We only gave gifts on birthdays where I come from,”
he said when he caught up to her.

“We gave every New Year’s Eve, even if we
had to make something ourselves,” Ashley said.

“Okay, then I’ll go first.” Minh-Chu smiled
and pulled his pilot’s jacket from the shelter. “This has a lot of
history for me now,” he said as he put it around her shoulders.
“It’s yours.”

She looked surprised for a moment before
excitedly wrapping him in her arms and kissing him. “It’s too
much,” she said.

“Maybe it is?” Minh-Chu said with a
surprised laugh. “But I’m glad it’s been given, and it looks better
on you.”

“I’ve always wanted to be a pilot, even
dreamed of flying fighters sometimes,” Ashley said. “But, um, it’s
hard to explain.”

“No one ever told you that you were a good
pilot?” Minh-Chu said.

“Captain did, but this is so much more. This
jacket’s been on you for ages. This has been with you through
everything.” Ashley kissed him soundly and said, “thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he replied. “Now where’s
mine?”

She jumped giddily out of his arms, rifled
through her pack, and came back with a box the length of Minh’s
forearm. “The box got really mooshed, so I just tossed it, but
anyway, pull the loop on the top,” she said.

Minh-Chu did as he was instructed and, to
his amazement the neck, body, and strings of a light green guitar
folded out of that small piece. “Oh, wow,” he said, sitting down.
There had been little time to have one made with a materializer.
When he had time to materialize one, he denied himself. There was
always a better way to use a ship’s energy.

His fingers landed on the neck with
familiarity and he activated the amplifier inside. The front of the
guitar danced with images of available modes and settings. He chose
a simple old-fashioned electric guitar sound. “Oh, wow,” he
repeated as he heard the familiar crackle of distortion and muffled
the strings.

“Play something, lad,” Frost said as he and
Stephanie approached with a bottle of Upbub and a duffel bag.

“Do you like it?” Ashley asked in a
tentative whisper.

“To truly know the right gift, you must know
the one it is for,” Minh-Chu replied. He looked at Ashley and said,
“I think you know me. We’ve barely had a chance to speak, but I
think you know me.”

She leaned forward and kissed him again. “I
just saw you pretend to play once, silly,” she said against his
lips. “But I’ll take that as a thank you.”

Other pilots were gathering, along with
crewmembers from the Warlord. Minh-Chu could feel nervousness
growing with the crowd, and closed his eyes, letting his fingers
tickle the strings. Before long he found a familiar tune, and,
discarding the notion that it may be too intimate for the crowd, he
let the melody play through him.

With a glance down, he selected classic string
accompaniment and lowered his head. He never liked his own voice,
but he could carry a tune, and, waveringly at first, he did his
best as he sang ‘To Find.’

“Through all time,

through my trouble.

My love whispers,

I’ll return in time.

Through fire,

through the void

Through rain,

through the mist.

You will find me,

if I lose my way.

Through my trouble,

through all time.

Through my trouble,

through all time.

You will find me,

if I lose my way.

Through fire,

through the void.

Through rain,

through the mist.

My love whispers,

I’ll return in time.

Through all time,

through my trouble.”

* * *

Alice entered the bridge of the Warlord
quietly, and saw over her father’s shoulder as he watched a
hologram of Ayan wiping tears away and introducing Doctor Anderson
to Liam Grady. He didn’t have the sound turned on, but Crewcast had
already updated. Carl Anderson was Ayan’s father. The first person
she shared it with was Liam Grady.

“I’m sorry you’re not with her for tonight,
Dad,” Alice said.

He stood, turning the hologram off. He was
back in black, in a Triton-style black uniform with Warlord marked
as his ship instead. His gun belt hung off the shoulder of the
captain’s chair. “Ah, just checking in.” He stopped and looked her
up and down.

To say she was self-conscious in the
mini-dress was an understatement. “Borrowed it from Ashley, she
seemed to really enjoy popping me into different outfits. A little
too much, I think.”

He smiled as he looked at her combat boot
clad feet.

“I couldn’t master the heels, so I ditched
‘em,” she said sheepishly.

“You look beautiful,” Jake replied. “You’ll
either knock them dead or crush them underfoot.”

“Cheap, but funny,” Alice said, chuckling.
“Are you coming?”

Jake turned towards the main tactical
display hologram in front of his seat. “I’ll pass this time, you
have fun.”

“C’mon, Ruby said she was looking forward to
seeing you at the party. You know, pretty, interesting, funny,
Captain Ruby Sima?” Alice said with a wink. “She looks fun.”

“You make it tempting,” Jake said. “You have
fun for both of us.”

Alice crossed the distance with a sigh and
kissed him on the cheek. “You better go down and see some people
after this watch is over. Love you, Dad. Happy ten twenty two.” The
display on her amber coloured bracelet comm told her it was thirty
eighty-seven. The updated software from the Triton didn’t recognize
the Galactic Calendar.

“Happy New Year,” he replied. “Love you,
too.”

She walked off the bridge and stopped in the
hall outside. “You’re sure?” Alice asked one last time, with a
mischievous grin. “I could make the party happen around you.”

“I’m sure, go on,” he said, shaking his
head.

She was torn between keeping her father
company, especially after she almost lost him, and going on to get
to know what remained of the First Light crew. She wanted to meet
them as a human for what seemed like a very long time.