Metal Boxes (3 page)

First
Lieutenant Vedrian spoke in an oddly sweet voice for such a massive woman, “Midshipman Stone, I am sure that Hell-and-Back is dying to ask you why you were so confident in taking him on in a fair fight, but he is too shy to ask.”

Hammermill reached across Stone and slapped Heller across the back of the head. “Shy? The day that Hell
-Pless turns shy is the day that I turn in my pecker.”

Vedrian snorted, “From what I hear, Hammer, your pecker don’t do you much good anyway. So what do you say,
navy? Why do you think you could take on Hell and come out a winner?”

“Winner?
” Stone replied with a grin. “Lieutenant Vedrian, I don’t think I could stand up to just one of Lieutenant Heller punches. Even if he missed, the wind would most likely knock me down.” Heller frowned amid the laughter from the other three marines, then a grin broke his face and he guffawed the loudest of the bunch.

Major
Numos caught his breath and said, “Remind me not to play poker with you, boy. I was about half convinced that you must be some kind of super-sailor. Most full grown navy types wouldn’t think of taking on a marine in a one-on-one fight, much less four-to-one.”

“Sir, I wouldn’t know about other
navy types. I haven’t met too many outside of basic training and midshipman training school,” Stone said.

“I didn’t think you had been in very long. When did you get your commission,
son?” Major Numos asked.

Stone glanced over his shoulder at the clock on the arrival and departure board, “Well,
Major Numos, I earned my commission and took my midshipman oath about seven hours ago. So far my navy career has been to catch a shuttle up to the station and wait around here for my next ride.”

Lieutenant
Vedrian laughed, “You are new at this. No wonder you weren’t afraid to take on the marines. You haven’t been around long enough to know any better.”

Stone shook his head. “No
, Lieutenant Vedrian. I was certainly scared to take on the marines. Anyone in their right mind would be, but what is right is right. Grandma would skin me alive if she ever heard I backed down from a fight just because I might lose.”

“Grandma sounds like a
marine,” Heller said.

“No
, sir,” Stone replied. “She is just a common merchant sailor, but from what Grandpa says, when she isn’t listening that is, she took on her share of marines in bars from everywhere to the back of beyond and home again.”

“Where are you bound for,
Midshipman?” Major Numos asked.

“I have been assigned to the U.E.N.S.
Periodontitis, sir. Beyond that I don’t know. The disbursement officer didn’t tell me if I was being permanently stationed on the Periodontitis or if it is just my transport to my duty station. He just told me to hustle up here so I didn’t miss the ship.”

“Typical
REMF,” Heller laughed.

Stone looked confused, “R
EMF, sir?”

Heller said, “
R.E.M.F. Rear Echelon Mother F-”

“That’s enough, Helmet
-Head,” Major Numos interrupted. “Let’s just say the officer in question was an office weenie and let it go at that, shall we?”

“Thank you,
Major. My ears have never heard anything quite like that before,” Stone grinned.

Major
Numos laughed, “It isn’t for you, Midshipman. It is for the Aldamanis. I am sure they have heard marines talking before, but we are supposed to be officers and gentlemen as well.” He nodded to Signora Aldamani.

“
Major, may I ask where you are headed?” Stone asked.

Lieutenant
Vedrian answered with a grimace as if she tasted something cold and bitter, “It is an unhappy coincidence that we are also headed for the Ol’ Toothless.”

“Toothless,
sir?” He asked.

She nodded. “
You haven’t had time to look up the disease periodontitis? All of the fleet calls it the Ol’ Toothless. Not just because of the disease, but from the scuttlebutt the weapons are so-”

“We don’t discuss that here, Vedrian
,” Major Numos interrupted. “Put a lid on it.”

“Well, anyway being on a ship called the Ol’ Toothless still beats being on a ship named after diarrhea or syphilis.
You know what those nicknames are!” Hammermill said with a laugh.

Signore
Aldamani interjected, “Forgive me, but the Periodontitis is a fine ship from what I have been told. Our son is a first lieutenant stationed on her as a procurement officer. He only had good things to say about her and her admiral.”

“Quite right
, Signore,” Major Numos nodded. “Forgive us. We did not mean any disrespect to you or your son. It is just that marines often find it hard to be stationed on warehouse ships.”

“
Major, how does that happen?” Stone asked. “I know the Periodontitis is a warehouse and supply ship because of the name. What I mean is how do marines get stationed on a non-combat ship?”

Signore Aldamani answered, “
Midshipman Stone, every vessel in the Emperor’s fleet is a fighting ship, regardless of her normal duties. It would do you well to remember that.”

Stone blushed
and replied, “Yes, Signore. Thank you. I will remember that.”

Major
Numos smiled. “Although what Signore Aldamani says is true, marines are put on warehouse and supply ships because we are some of the parts and supplies that are warehoused and supplied from said ships. The Ol’ Toothless carries a marine unit in reserve and dispenses it as needed. We four officers are assigned to this particular ship to keep control of the marines in transit. Believe me; no one likes what happens when marines get bored.”

“Well, I don’t imagine that is a pleasant sight
,” Stone replied with a chuckle.

Vedrian said, “Hey! I resent that. I’ve been a bored
marine and I am not all that unpleasant to look at.”

All four of the
marines laughed.

“Yeah, ‘In-Bed-Again’ Vedrian, beauty queen of the mud
marines,” Hammermill said.

Stone smiled, “If the
lieutenant wouldn’t mind, I would say she is very attractive. She is very scary, but attractive.”

“Ha! See there, you mutts
,” Vedrian laughed. “Even the navy recognizes beauty when they sees it.”

Hammermill gave Stone a friendly poke in the ribs, “He is a
midshipman, Vedrian. He doesn’t know anything yet. He is so new he is still confused.”

Heller gave Stone a friendly poke in the ribs on the other side, “Yeah, maybe we should get him up into
marine country to teach him some things since we are going to be on the same ship.”

Stone rubbed his ribs. He was sure they would be bruised in the morning. “Well,
sir. I don’t know whether my station is permanently on the Periodontitis or if I am just getting a lift. I don’t know how much time I will have. But, I would like to see around the ship as much as possible, so yes, I would like to see marine country.”

Major
Numos nodded. “It is always best to learn as much as you can about any ship you are on, no matter how long you plan on being there. The Ol’ Toothless is a bit old as warehouse and supply ships go, but it is still one of the biggest ships in the fleet. So, Midshipman, it will take a lot of learning on your part.”

“How big is it,
Major?” Stone asked.

“It is half again
bigger than this whole station,” Major Numos replied. “And that is big, as this station is one of the biggest in this sector of space. I believe most of the military people in this area are waiting on the Ol’ Toothless. The other ships listed on the tote board are mostly civilian ships or smaller military craft.”

Stone asked, “Sir,
how is the Periodontitis going to dock with the station if she is that big?”

Hammermill tapped Stone good naturedly on the back of his head, rattling his teeth. “Mister Moron
Midshipman, ships that size can dock, but they generally just send us a small fleet of shuttle craft. That way us marines won’t have to ride with you navy types and contaminate you.”

Stone rubbed the back of his head, “I don’t get you,
Lieutenant. How could you contaminate the navy?”

“Didn’t you know, Stone
? We don’t get along,” Vedrian replied with a laughed.

Major
Numos stood abruptly. “That’ll do, marines. According to the tote board we have about ten minutes before we saddle up. Empty your bladders now, people. Then, let’s get all of the leathernecks together by the back bulkhead.”

Without so much as a goodbye, they were gone.

Signore Aldamani spoke up. “Midshipman Stone, I don’t want to step on your toes as you have been very kind to us. However, if I might say, some people in the navy frown on fraternization with marines. It might not be a good career move to be too friendly with them, if you get my meaning.”

“I understand, Si
gnore,” Stone nodded. “I am not sure I agree, but I do understand.”

“I would have hoped things
had changed since my time in the navy, but tradition will hold out. And speaking of which, when your shuttle is called, hold back. There isn’t any sense in rushing down to get on board. Tradition says you board your vessel by rank, so I imagine you will be sitting in the last seat of the last row of the last shuttle designated for officers.”

“I believe you might be right,
sir. Thank you,” Stone smiled.

Signora Aldamani spoke, “Please don’t be shy about looking up our son when you get on board your ship.
I am sure he can be a big help if you need anything.”

A new voice caused
Stone to look up. “Midshipman Stone? Get on your feet, Mister Stone.” A tall, somewhat heavy junior ensign stood over Stone.

“
Aye, aye, sir.” Stone scrambled to his feet.

The
junior ensign said, “We are on the same shuttle. I require you to carry my luggage aboard.” He dropped his duffel at Stone’s feet. “Maybe carrying a little extra baggage will teach you not to play patty-cakes with the grunts.” The man turned and walked away without another word.

Stone replied anyway. “
Aye, aye, Ensign.”

A
second lieutenant stepped up to Stone and dropped his duffle bag. “You should also have reported in when you came into the area.”

“Yes,
Lieutenant, but my orders said to report in to the duty officer on the Periodontitis. Who should I have reported to here, sir?”

The
lieutenant snapped back, “You should have hunted down the highest ranking navy officer in the room to see if he needed anything.”

Another
lieutenant dropped his luggage on the small pile at Stone’s feet. “For that matter, Midshipman, you should have presented yourself to every naval officer in the room to see if you could have been some service to anyone. Now, you can carry my luggage as well.”

Other
ensigns and second lieutenants lined up to drop off their bags and duffels. Each officer gave Stone some small piece of ‘advice’. In short order, there was a fairly large pile of bags.

The last officer balanced a backpack on the top of the pile. He said
, “Midshipman Stone, if this bag doesn’t get aboard the Periodontitis or is scuffed up in any way, I will see that you will spend your entire career in the navy moving boxes around in a warehouse.” The man leaned in close, “I mean it, Mister. Don’t screw this up or I can guarantee that you will end up on third watch in the most boring warehouse position I can find for you.”

C
HAPTER THREE

Stone looked at the pile of luggage stacked around him. He sighed, nodded to the Aldamanis, and left the waiting room. He trotted slowly down the corridor heading to the main hall, checking each side hallway as he went.

He
spotted what he was looking for and skidded to a stop. Lined against the bulkhead was a row of luggage carts. He popped open a small access panel in the front of the second cart, unspooled a thin cord and plugged it into a port on the back of the first cart. He then slaved a third cart to the second. He calculated he would only need three carts, still, he slaved in a fourth cart. He had been taught at an early age that when moving cargo, you can never have enough loaders, carts, tie downs or extra hands.

Stone grabbed the controller for the first cart and powered on all four carts
. With a quiet hum, they rose as one and hovered easily. He noticed the second cart had a slight list to the starboard, but since he would not be using it for long it would be serviceable. Any such defects on his family’s ships would cause a write up and the cart would be immediately sent to maintenance. He guided his small train back along the corridor. He did not realize he was humming in harmony with the carts. This was an activity he was used to doing, unlike most of the things the navy had been trying to teach him in the past months.

He slid the carts to an easy stop next to the pile of luggage
that had grown slightly in his brief absence. Most of the military personnel had cleared the area except the cluster of marines along the back bulkhead.

Signore
Aldamani smiled at Stone. “I didn’t know those carts could be tied together. That is a pretty handy trick, Mister Stone,” He said.

“Thank you, Signore Aldamani.
The real trick is going to be getting all of these bags stacked on the carts. I don’t suppose my shuttle will leave without me. After all, they wouldn’t dare take off without their junior-most midshipman.” He smiled.

Aldamani stood. “Well, Mister Stone, I may be old, but I am not so old that I can’t toss a few bags. Let me give you a hand.” His eyes suddenly flicked to look behind Stone.

Stone ducked and spun about. Major Numos and about thirty marine officers had stopped behind Stone. He had not heard a thing.

“Pretty quick reflexes,
son,” Major Numos said. “It was not quite good enough to catch a marine, but impressive enough.” He grabbed a duffel bag from the pile and tossed it onto the luggage cart and walked away. Each marine grabbed a bag from the pile, tossed it onto a cart and walked away.

First
Lieutenant Vedrian grinned at Stone and gave him a quick wink as she tossed a duffel on the pile. They ran out of luggage before the last of the marines filed by, so the last few marines rearranged some of the baggage, balancing the loads.

“Wow! Thanks
, marines,” Stone said.

Second
Lieutenant Hammermill was the second to last marine in line. He nodded at Stone and said, “That should do it, navy. Get a move on or you are going to miss your shuttle.”

“
Aye, aye, sir. Please convey my thanks to Major Numos.”

Hammermill shook his head, “Nose
wet, navy. Marines are used to doing the heavy lifting.”

Stone turned to say his goodbyes to the Aldamanis, but the couple was hurrying off to hug a
first lieutenant coming down the shuttle boarding ramps. He turned back to Hammermill, but the man was hurrying to catch up to the rest of the marines as they disappeared up a ramp.

Stone dialed the power up a bit on the carts and listened to their attendant hum. With the weight change they had picked up a higher note, except the second cart seemed to be slightly off key. It would definitely have been taken out of service on a Stone
Freight Company ship.

He hummed along as he guided his train up the ramp
and down the long corridor listed on his boarding sheet. The corridor stretched before him. It was turning into a longer walk than he had expected. He spun on his heels, jumped into the air and landed on the first cart’s front edge. There wasn’t much room to sit on a commercial cart, but there was room enough for his skinny fanny.

Once off his feet
, he was able to dial up the speed of the carts and move at a pace faster than he could run. He even managed to overtake a few of the navy officers moving along the same corridor. Each time he slowed just enough to give the officer a chance to climb aboard one of the carts.

He had all four carts crammed with a full load b
y the time he reached the end of the corridor. The weight was not a problem, but there were men and woman hanging all over the four carts. Finally, he eased the power back to a stop when he came upon two enlisted ratings, who were checking boarding sheets and guiding officers to their various shuttles.

Stone waited until all of the
other officers had been directed away before he stepped up to the Master Chief who seemed to be in charge.

“Excuse me,
Master Chief. I am-.”

“Yeah, I know
who you are,” she interrupted. “You are Midshipman Blackmon Perry Stone. Sorry, Mister Stone but you have just been bumped off your shuttle, by a late arriving junior ensign.”

Stone nodded. “Okay,
Chief, I guess I can live with that. However, most of this luggage belongs to the officers getting on those shuttles.”

“
Mister Stone, giving luggage to the lowest ranking officer happens all the time. Only the smart ones bother to get a cart.” The Master Chief said with a wide grin.

“How would someone get a pile moved this big without a cart?”
Stone frowned.

The
Master Chief grinned bigger, “Well, most of the time it is just an extra bag or two. Pardon me for saying so, Mister Stone, but you must have done something to irritate the higher ups.”

Stone
nodded his head, “Yes, I do seem to have that talent.”

The
Master Chief laughed out right. “Well, Mister Stone, you still got the better of them. Not only are you the first midshipman I have ever seen who knew how to tag the carts together, you’re the first I ever saw actually riding on the cart. Plus, you may have earned yourself a few brownie points by giving the others rides. Say, we could lose a few of these bags for you, Mister Stone? If you want?”

Stone grinned back.
“No, Master Chief. I don’t think that will be necessary. Would you point me to where these bags should be loaded?”

“Of course, Mister Stone, however as an officer
you do have another way to load these. May I?” Without waiting for a response from Stone, the Master Chief turned and bellowed. “Hey Kaliban! Grab seven other guys and hustle your cans over here. No, I don’t care who you grab. Get some F.N.G.s waiting to board. Don’t you worry, Mister Stone, we’ll get ‘em all loaded and stored proper.”

Stone handed the controller to a
spacer and grabbed his own duffel off the cart as it whisked away.

“Thank you, Master Chief. Since I have been bumped off my shuttle, may I ask where I should wait for my ride?”

“Well, Mister Stone. That would be up to you. However, if I may offer some advice?”

“Master Chief, I would be grateful for any advice you can offer.”

“As I see it, you are an officer. You have a right to ride with other officers, but those shuttles carrying naval officers are full, as are the shuttles carrying officers from the other services. So, you can order me to call the Ol’ Toothless and have them send a shuttle for just you. That, by the way, is not a good option and I can guarantee it will piss off the old man. Admiral Shalako is a good captain, but sending a shuttle for one lone midshipman does seem like a bit of a waste, even to me.”

Stone nodded, “I agree, Master Chief. What other options do I have?”

The Master Chief looked thoughtful. “Well, Mister Stone, you could ride up in a cargo hauler, but since they are not pressurized and don’t carry atmosphere, I wouldn’t recommend it. What I do recommend is that you follow me and I will get you on a shuttle for NCOs; that is, if you don’t mind riding with the lowly, hairy-legged swine?”

“I do not mind at all, Master Chief. Lead on, if you please.”

“Aye, aye, Mister Stone.” At Stone’s look the Master Chief stopped. “What?”

“That is the first time anyone has ever said ‘
aye, aye’ to me. It kind of startled me at first,” Stone said.

“I suggest, Mister Stone
, that you get used to new things. If you freeze up every time something new happens to you, you are in for a bad time in the Emperor’s navy. It will all be new, so learn to roll with the changes. Got it, son?”

“Yes, Master Chief. It won’t happen again. Lead on, if you please.”

“Aye, aye, Mister Stone.”

Stone followed the
Master Chief along a row of ramps, each leading to a shuttle. About halfway down, the Master Chief motioned to a Spacer Third Class standing at the head of a ramp.

The
Master Chief said, “You go with this spacer, Mister Stone. She will get you to the Ol’ Toothless.” Without waiting for a response, the woman turned and sprinted back to her post, shouting at spacers all along the way.

“This away here, Mister Stone
,” the spacer said. “You just go ahead and drop your stuff. I will get it in the luggage hold for you.”

Stone followed along, trying hard to think of the slender
, blonde girl ahead of him as just a common spacer, and not as the prettiest young woman he had seen in months. She was also the first navy person he had seen who was about his age.

H
e had been repeatedly and loudly warned there was a vast gulf between midshipmen and enlisted. He had also been told there was a vast gulf between other navy officers and midshipmen. Those vast gulfs were not meant to be spanned. He had taken many classes in the last few months during basic training about sexual harassment and how to treat the opposite sex, both those of the same rank and those who were not. He had repeated each of those classes during midshipman training.

None-the-less, watching the girl’s swaying backside ahead of him, Stone felt the beginnings of an erection. His training officers had sworn he could learn to control the physical reflex, but none of the techniques they taught him were coming to mind. The more he tried to think of something else the worse his problem became. His only hope would be that either his pants were tight enough to hide what was going on, or that he could sneak on board the shuttle without anyone noticing.

“Officer on deck,” the spacer shouted.

Stone snapped to attention in the doorway of the shuttle as every seat emptied with
the occupant rising rapidly to their feet. Stone realized everyone was looking at him. There were a few snickers, but no one said anything.

A senior NCO in the front row leaned over to Stone. She said in a low voice that only he could here, “As you were, Mister.”

“What? I mean, I beg your pardon, Chief?” Stone looked startled.

“That is what you say,
Midshipman,” she said. “Just say, ‘As you were.’ I will take care of the rest.”

“As you were
,” Stone said.

The
chief turned about and faced the shuttle. “Okay people. We have to make room for the midshipman. We still have an empty row in the back?”

Stone nodded and started to head down the aisle. The
chief put a hand on his chest to halt his progress. She glanced down at his chest to read the name tag. “Just a second, Mister Stone. We’ll get you sorted out quickly enough.”

Stone’s erection was getting worse. The
chief was old enough to be his mother, but she was female and her touch re-excited him. He blushed and wanted to turn around, but he knew that young blonde was just behind him. Suddenly, the Chief stepped in front of him, completely blocking everyone’s view of him. She began shuffling people in their seats.

The young blonde spacer tapped him on the shoulder, “Good luck, Mister. I gotta go get your luggage on board.”

“Thank you, Spacer Third Class,” Stone managed to stutter back.

The
Chief had managed to move everyone back a row, maintaining the rank discipline. The lowest ranking NCO was still in the back and rising in rating until they reached her seat, which was now in the second row, instead of the first.

Stone had all four seats open on either side of the aisle. He plopped himself down in the port side window seat. The
Chief leaned over the seat and tapped him on the shoulder.

“Pardon me, Mister Stone?
Would you like to take command of the shuttle cabin or would you like me to handle it?” It was obvious from her tone what her choice would be.

Stone agreed whole
-heartedly. “If you please, Chief. Since you have already established command, I suggest that you continue.”

“Thank you, Mister. I suggest you buckle yourself in. We ar
e going to lift off pretty soon and it is best to get strapped down now. If you need help with it…” Her voice trailed off.