Gray Panthers Captain Short Blade (22 page)

“Captain Short Blade! Good to see you again. This is Colonel Bernis, the base commander. He wanted to meet you before you left,” General Walker said as Short Blade and Poland got out of the limo to shake hands.

“It’s good to see you too, General Walker,” Short Blade replied. “I apologize for taking a day longer than expected, but when I finally found Commander Poland he was next to dead. His wife tried to murder him. I had to make sure he was healthy enough before I could let him return to duty.”

Both officers looked first at Short Blade, then at Poland, and then broke into laughter.

“I can sympathize,” Walker said. “My wife has threatened to make me disappear many times during my career.”

Short Blade listened in surprise as the officers continued laughing, confusing him even further. “Um, gentlemen, could we proceed to the shuttle, please?” he said, wanting to be on his way. “We can all fit comfortably in the limousine.” Sticking his head into the open window of the limo, he told Jose, “You can return to the Orient. I should be safe on the base with these gentlemen. Thank you again for all you did for Commander Poland.” He shook Jose’s hand and Jose got into the chase car with the rest of the security detail.

“Would it be possible for us to have a look inside your shuttle before you leave?” Walker asked, sounding like a little boy with a mix of excitement and anticipation in his voice.

Short Blade held back a small grin and acted as if he were pondering the request. “It will need to be a brief tour,” he finally answered. “We really are behind schedule, but it’s the least I can do for you gentlemen after you allowed me to park on your flight line.”

The limo pulled up to the shuttle and Short Blade was the first to jump out. The others almost had to run to keep up with him.

“Phoenix, please open up. I have two guests and a new crewmember, Commander Poland.” Short Blade turned to the three men and waited as the hatch to cargo bay one opened. “Come aboard, gentlemen. Please excuse the smell of cattle manure. We haven’t found a way to get rid of the smell.”

“This is my baby!” Poland practically shouted. “Remember, I told you I helped design a long-range shuttle? This is it! I bet you cleaned the bay and the air filters, and when the smell was still there you probably even vented the storage bay. Am I correct?”.

“You’re correct, Commander Poland. Do you have a solution?” Short Blade asked, his ears perking up in anticipation.

“The storage hold has an air filtering system that normally takes care of any problems. With a cargo of cows, you most likely had a little excess methane build up. The secondary air filter got contaminated when it was engaged. Then, when the hatch was opened to vent the bay, the air system was closed automatically.”

Poland bent over and pointed to a small vent in the deck. “That vent was supposed to be in the bulkhead, but we had to install it in the deck because of other systems that were already in the bulkhead. Guess we never anticipated a cow crapping in it.”

The two Air Force officers listened in amazement.

“Sir, you designed this shuttle? We—the Air Force, that is—have been trying for over a year to design something like this. How were you able to do it? Would you be willing to design one for the Air Force?” Walker asked, his face plastered with anticipation.

“Thank you, General Walker. I had the assistance of an AI. Initially, I was working on it as an exercise to keep my mind sharp. Then the AI became aware of what I was doing and assisted me until we had a full concept long-range shuttle.”

“Do you still have a copy of the plans that we could see?” Walker asked. 

Poland rubbed his chin in contemplation for several moments before finally replying. “I’m sorry, gentlemen. If I were to do that, I’d be in violation of my commission in the Gray Panthers. It could even be considered espionage.”

Short Blade decided it was time to end the conversation so they could get going. He softly gave the command to start engines.

“My apologies, gentlemen, but we really must be going. Unless you’d like a free one-way trip to my home world, I have to ask you to disembark now.”

Phoenix had been monitoring the conversation and turned off all inertial dampeners, causing the shuttle to slightly rock and shake.

“Thank you for the tour, Captain Short Blade. Commander Poland, are you sure we can’t entice you into joining the Air Force?” Walker asked in jest, though he hoped for an answer he really didn’t expect.

“General, before I was a commander in the Gray Panthers, I was an officer in the Navy. If there was more time, perhaps you could get the Navy to recall me to active duty, but by the time you could do that, I’ll be off-world. It’s been a pleasure meeting you, and you as well, Colonel Bernis.”

Poland stood at the hatchway, making it obvious that he was going to close the hatch once the two officers departed.

“Excellent job, Phoenix. Please re-engage the inertial dampeners before we take off,” Short Blade said, nodding to Poland to follow him as he entered the passageway to the cockpit. “Commander, you did an outstanding job when you designed this shuttle. Perhaps after you’re done refurbishing the Beater we can find another position in my organization that would be suitable for your talents.”

Poland shook his head yes as he tried to take in every aspect of the shuttle, comparing what he had designed to what he was seeing.

“This is one hot baby, Short Blade. I’m glad to see how it turned out. How has it been for you operationally? Have there been any problems I should know about?”

Short Blade smiled, happy to once again be on board his shuttle. “There’s only been one incident. The AI can’t find shit in the secondary air filter. The shuttle’s AI should have realized there was a problem. It did identify the problem in the primary air filter, though.”

“I can design a similar sensor for the secondary filter and incorporate it into the same system as the primary air filter so it won’t be overlooked again. Phoenix, will you need my assistance or will you be able to take care of the upgrades on your own?” Poland asked. He resisted laughing, expecting the AI to say something off-color.

“Your assistance won’t be necessary. I can correct your design flaw easily. Secondary air filtration systems will show their status with primary air filtration systems when the upgrade is complete. The necessary resources are available, so I can begin the upgrade immediately,” the AI reported.

“If it won’t interfere with our mission to get back to the ranch, and Captain Short Blade approves, then go ahead. I’m not sure if I’m in the chain of command yet,” Poland commented, enjoying the banter with the AI—especially when he could pull its leg.

“Phoenix, Commander Poland is responsible for maintenance of all assets. When the Beater is fully operational, make sure that update is delivered to it. Let me know when the modifications to the secondary air system are complete.” Short Blade was pleased that when Poland addressed the AI he still deferred to him, acknowledging him as the captain.

“Instructions for the upgrades are understood, Captain Short Blade. We’re now close enough to the farm owned by Namid to land if you wish.”

“Yes, Phoenix. Please bring up the view of the landing for us. You can see here, Commander, just how good the Phoenix is by the landing. You did an outstanding job when you designed the Phoenix.”

Poland was about to reply when he saw a slim young woman come into view and light a smudge pot to show the wind.

“Doesn’t that woman know she doesn’t need to do that? The Phoenix can determine wind direction and strength.” Poland sounded upset, as if he wanted an apology for the insult against his creation.

“That’s Namid, our veterinarian. She’s also a military veteran and was used to working with helicopters. She thinks she is helping, and I haven’t had the heart to tell her otherwise. By now, she might think she was the butt of a joke if we were to correct her. I don’t want to hurt her feelings or insult her,” Short Blade explained as the shuttle landed.

Poland looked at the little alien, whom he had learned to respect under different circumstances, and found his admiration continuing to grow.
It should be interesting to see what kind of boss he’ll be,
he thought.

“Come, we should help her get the medical supplies into cargo bay one. She’ll also have additional supplies that Jimmy and Guns requested. I want to keep those separate in cargo bay two.” Short Blade was interrupted as the hatch opened and Namid entered carrying a box half her size. Poland went to assist her and was rebuked.

“I have this one,” Namid told him. “There’s plenty more in the pile next to the closest building.”

Poland moved to the side to avoid getting pushed as she kept going, obviously struggling under the weight of the box.

“Hi. It’s nice to meet you too. You know, if you take one of the grav sleds there in the corner, you won’t have to worry about hurting yourself or dropping any boxes.”

Poland grabbed one of the sleds on his way out, ignoring the hostile look Namid gave him.

“That’s the pompous ass whose wife tried to kill him? I can understand why. Nice to see you, Short Blade.” Namid grunted softly as she lowered the box to the floor, trying not to drop it in the process.

Short Blade began to worry.
It’s going to be a long trip home if these two can’t get along,
he thought
.

Namid grabbed a grav sled on her way out, having to step aside as Poland was already returning with a sled full of supplies. Her face reddened as he looked at the sled in her hands and smiled.

“This should be a fun trip back, Short Blade. Think we need to go back to the Orient and get me a bodyguard?”

Short Blade was forming an answer when Poland began to laugh as he unloaded the sled.
I hate human humor
, he thought as he went to help Namid.

“That’s the Boy Scout you came to Earth for? I hope he was worth the trip,” Namid said as she dropped a box on the sled.

Clearly, she was angry about something, but Short Blade couldn’t understand why she was upset. He decided the best course of action was to get the shuttle loaded and get the trip home underway as soon as possible.

Thirty minutes later, both cargo bays were loaded and Short Blade was relieved that there had been no more arguing between the two humans. Looking at the two dirty sweating members of his crew, he made a decision on the spot.

“I’m going to lock down cargo bay two, since we won’t be drinking alcohol on the return trip.”
That will keep these two from getting drunk and killing each other
, Short Blade figured as the two humans glared at each other. “Phoenix, you may now depart for Glory. I’m going to take a shower and catch up on my paperwork. You two can each take a cabin.”

“Nice meeting you, ma’am,” Poland said with a grin as he ducked through the hatchway and into a cabin, quickly closing it behind him. Namid stood for a moment with her mouth open before going to her cabin. She wished she could slam the hatch.

Awhile later, Poland began to feel pangs of hunger. He left his cabin to check out the chef unit. He was eager to see if it was as good as the one that had been on the Beater.

“Chef, I’d like a six-ounce sirloin steak cooked medium, with a baked potato.” He waited a minute, figuring the unit would request additional information. When it didn’t, he decided to check the cabinets to see what else was available. His discovery of a bottle of wine was perfectly timed, as the unit announced that his meal was ready. Grabbing a glass, he sat down at the table and was just starting to uncork the bottle when Namid entered. Seeing Poland, she looked as if she was going to turn around and leave.

“Look, we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other,” Poland said. “Let’s start over, shall we? Can I offer you a glass of fine wine?”

The delicious smell of steak and the offer of wine were too much for Namid to pass up. “Sure, Commander,” she said as she pulled out a chair. “I want to apologize for my earlier remark about your wife. I was tired and hungry, and I just want to get back to my dogs.”

Poland pushed his plate toward her. “I saw you eyeing my steak. I haven’t touched it yet. Consider it a peace offering,” he said as he got up to order another one for himself

Namid cut into the steak and took a tentative bite. Only then did she realize how hungry she truly was. She dug in, stopping only long enough to sip some wine.

“The steak is wonderful,” she said. “The wine is sweet, but different. I’ve had wine from all over the world, but I’ve never had any that tastes like this.”

Poland took a sip and could tell from the sweet taste that it was a desert wine, but he couldn’t identify it either. The bottle’s label was smeared and illegible. The chef unit announced that his steak was ready, so he got his plate and joined Namid at the table. After taking a bite, he decided that a master chef must have programmed the unit.

“This chef unit is much better than the one on the Beater. I guess it must have the database from one of the bigger ships with a large crew. They tend to make sure the units are well-programmed on those ships—it helps to prevent mutiny,” he joked.

Namid listened to Poland talk until he became quiet and ate. She started to feel a little flush, and then a little light-headed.
I was a bitch to the poor guy,
she thought.
At least he’s single now. Where did that idea come from? I guess he is kind of cute for an old guy.
She reached across the table and put her hand on top of his.