he adventures of the Star Traveler Andromeda that started in Among the Stars, Beyond the Farthest Planet, and So Far From Home, continues in the final chapter The Voyage Home.
"Captain would you explain why you gave technology to a race that by today's standards are very primitive?"
"Primitive Admiral? That is a subjective term. Yes, the Brin did not have space travel and that might make them primitive to many worlds. But let me assure you Admiral, the Brin were in many ways advanced."
"How do you figure that?"
" When they were chased from living on the surface of their world by raiders, they forged a life underground. They used coal to make fire to cook their food and heat their homes. They harnessed the natural gas to light their world and even had the presence of mind to use raw diamonds to magnify that light." Kate stated. "Yes we gave them shield technology so that they can now live above the ground and are protected from the raiders that were still trying to attack them. We gave them a protected area so they could hunt, fish and generally enjoy the sunshine for the first time in several years."
"What did they give you in return?"
"We now have a communications tower there which extends our range. In addition they gave us several hundred pounds of raw diamonds. Those diamonds were divided up with each crew member and many civilians on boards like the Teachers, Cooks, Medical Personnel, and Day Care workers. Some we used to enhance our own shields."
"You had no right to give those diamonds to your crew. They should have been brought back to Earth."
"Who would we give them to, Admiral? You? You did not earn them. My crew and the Marines earned their reward. Or are you so full of yourself that you feel any spoils should be given to persons who did nothing but sit on their asses while we were out there?"
"You are getting above yourself Captain. Remember you are talking to superior officers." Admiral Wilson snapped.
"You may have a greater rank, Admiral Wilson, but you are superior to no one. Least of all me." Kate snapped back.
"We are getting off track, here." Admiral Tacher stated. "Captain, while on Brin, you had your first battle with the Limari?"
"Yes sir we did. That is when we also discovered that the Limari were responsible for the attacks on Verna and Gellary. They attacked our ships that were running patrols. After the battles we liberated one hundred fifty two Vernan males. They were reunited with their families on our return trip."
"Whose idea was it to use the raw diamonds to enhance your shields?"
"Colonel O'Malley's. She integrated the diamonds into the shields matrix on Brin. She worked to do the same on Andromeda, but met roadblocks and it was not until our last year that she was able to get them to work."
"The tower on Brin was the last one you erected. Why is that. Surely there were other planets in that area."
"Yes sir there were. Unfortunately due to the conditions on those planets we were unable to erect towers on the next three. Not even on their moons. Volcanic ash, poisonous atmosphere or sub zero temperatures made it impossible to work outside the ship. Maybe someday protective domes can be placed on the moons with heat generators so that communications can be established. We did not have the capability to do that."
"We will take that suggestion under consideration, Captain." Admiral Tacher stated.
"Now about Terra. We have your report about your kidnapping and the eventual downfall of their government. Captain you were not sent into space to topple governments."
"No sir we were not. But everyone of you should remember how not so long ago the greed and corruption of one political party almost caused the destruction of Earth. The same was taking place on Terra. To borrow a phrase from Colonel O'Malley, "We found out where the twenty first century Republicans disappeared to. The officials were working with the Limari to keep the citizens as slaves. Men and boys were taken against their will to work in the factories and mines. Women and girls were forced into prostitution. We were gassed and held captive by the Premier and Limari who planned to drug us into senselessness and turn us into prostitutes."
"But you were able to get away."
"Thanks to Colonel O'Malley being prepared for any contingency." Kate stated with pride.
"Did she really have a hidden arsenal on her?"
"Not an arsenal, Admiral, but enough to give us a fighting chance once we escaped from that room. She had a hidden knife in the toe of her boot, knives in her belt, guns in each of her boots and one in a hidden pocket of her tunic. Not to mention a flashlight and small tool box."
"You make her sound like some sort of super hero."
"If by that comment you mean she had the intelligence and foresight to not go into a situation without protection and a back up plan, then yes she is a super hero. One that I am extremely happy to be related to."
"Yet while on Terra, she almost died for what the fifth or sixth time."
"Yes and it all comes back to those damn orders she was given. She pulled the target off my back and placed it squarely onto her own." Kate stated angrily." The Joint Chiefs had no right to put that on her."
"Really Captain, remember who you are talking to."
"I wish I could forget it Admiral. Almost every damn time she was hurt, it was because she was protecting me."
"Would you care to explain that 'almost every time' comment?"
"With all due respect Admiral, I do not." Kate stated.
"Captain, perhaps you do not fully understand the reasons behind these debriefings. We use these to find out what was done wrong and find ways to correct the problem. Also we can find out what was done right and look for ways to try to improve and what needs to be left alone."
"I fully understand but this is one topic that is none of your business and will not be discussed here."
"If it involved the ship and service personnel under your command it is our business."
Kate jumped to her feet. "Then Admiral you may as well arrange either my retirement, or plan my court martial because that is one story that will not be told here."
"Captain, no one will ask for either." Admiral Tacher stated. "Now before this ends up on a sour note, I think we should break for lunch. We will reconvene at fourteen hundred hours." The Admirals filed out. Admiral Tacher held back. "Captain a moment please." Kate waited until he walked to her side. "Captain..., Kate, I know there was an incident that neither you and Kacey want to talk about. It is not part of the official record, at least not the whole story. I hope some day you will trust me enough to tell me the whole story and trust that it will be completely off the record."
"Maybe someday Admiral."
"We will leave it at that."
Kate left the conference room. She walked outside. Clouds hid the normally brilliant blue. The day matched her mood.
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"Colonel, what ever possessed you to jump from the stinger? You had no way of knowing if the Brin were a warring race. You could have been killed."
"I would not have been killed from the jump General. We were barely fifteen meters off the ground. What should I have done? I was on one side and Kate was on the other with a band of aliens between us."
"You were ordered to stay put, but you chose to disobey that order."
"We were on the ground General and according to General Millhouse, I was in charge. So in reality, my actions were not in defiance of any orders."
"This was a race of primitive beings, yet you chose to help them."
"Primitive according to whom?" Kacey fired back. "It seems to me General Wilhelm, that regardless of whether a race has space capability, is no excuse for not helping out if we had the power to do so."
"What did they do for you in return?"
"Is not their friendship enough? But in addition we erected a tower to extend our communication range and they also gave us raw diamonds. To them they were just pretty crystals that enhanced the lights in their homes."
"What of the battle where you were blown out of the sky?"
"The stingers were running patrols and were attacked. They fought back. Reinforcements were sent in. Between us we took down five of the six raiders. We were able to free over a hundred fifty Vernan prisoners that were used as slaves to mine a very dangerous ore."
"Are you certain they were slaves?"
"They were kidnapped from their home world and in shackles."
"You only have their word that they were held against their will. Is that not true? Is it not possible that these Vernans were working with the raiders?"
"No it is not possible."
"Are you quite certain of that, Colonel?"
"I am absolutely certain General. These men were beaten, starved and in shackles. No one would willingly live their lives that way."
"I do not believe that story Colonel. You were misled."
Kacey jumped to her feet. "ARE YOU ACCUSING ME OF ORDERING MY PILOTS TO ATTACK WITHOUT PROVOCATION?"
"YES COLONEL I AM. YOU WERE PLAYED THE FOOL. WHICH DOES NOT SURPRISE ME IN THE LEAST."
"THERE IS ONLY ONE FOOL HERE GENERAL WILHELM AND IT CERTAINLY IS NOT ME. TWO OF THE PRISONERS THAT WE LIBERATED WERE PRINCE VARNU AND PRINCE WILLECK, THE SONS OF QUEEN DYAN OF VERNA. SOMEHOW THEY ARE NOT THE TYPE TO GIVE UP THEIR LIVES IN A PALACE FOR BEING SLAVES WILLINGLY." Kacey continued to shout.
General Wilhelm jumped to his feet also. "YOU WERE PLAYED, COLONEL AND YOUR BEHAVIOR BORDERS ON INSUBORDINATION. YOU CAN BE COURT MARTIALED FOR THIS."
"THEN DO IT GENERAL. BETTER YET, I HEREBY TENDER MY RESIGNATION. GENERAL MILLHOUSE YOU WILL HAVE MY SIGNED PAPERS ON YOUR DESK THIS AFTERNOON. YOU SIT THERE IN JUDGEMENT OF MY EVERY ACTION AND REACTION, YET YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN IN MY PLACE. YOU HAVE NEVER HAD TO FACE WHAT WE FACED OUT THERE. YOUR ASS WAS SAFELY PARKED BEHIND YOUR DESK." Kacey picked up her hat and started to leave the room.
"HOLD COLONEL." General Millhouse ordered. Kacey stopped. "GENERAL WILHELM YOU ARE OUT OF LINE. Colonel please return to your seat." She returned to her seat. "No one will ask for a court martial and I will not accept your resignation. You are correct. None of us know what you faced out there. There will be no further accusations. Have I made myself perfectly clear General Wilhelm."
"Quite clear General Millhouse. There is no secret that I was against your appointment to this mission. I still feel that way."
"Duly noted General Will helm. Shall we continue? Your next stop was Terra."
"Yes sir it was."
"While there you were instrumental in bringing down a corrupt government."
"That was not our intention when we docked there, sir."
"Are you trying to tell us it was just another case of being in the right place at the right time?" Wilhelm asked. "Quite the coincidence."
"For lack of a better term sir, yet it was."
"Can you explain how you managed to get not only yourself and Captain Jensen and two others kidnapped."
"I did not managed to do anything. The senior officers were invited to a lunch meeting with Premier Tott and his cabinet. It was cut short and we were hustled out. In the transport we were all gassed. The women were taken to a separate part of the city, while the men were taken back to the transport center."
"So once again you failed to protect the Captain."
Kacey felt her anger raising again. "We were gassed, General. In the event you did not read the report, we managed to get away with only Lieutenant Commander Torino receiving a cut from a dangerous planter."
"General Wilhelm, you are walking a fine line here. I do not want to have to remind you again. There were four reports submitted on this action. Three of those reports state that you were instrumental in the safe escape." Kacey felt herself blush.
"I did just as I was trained to do sir. That is to be prepared for any contingency."
"You were attacked at the Inaugural Ball. Explain how that came about."
"It goes back to our first day on Terra when we were accosted by the Limari as we looked around one of the shops. One asked if I was the leader and I said yes. They did not see Captain Jensen, because I had Lieutenant Commander Torino take her into another room. They only saw me."
"So once again you took the target away for the Captain's back."
"Yes sir I did. At the Ball I was attacked. I would have been killed if Lieutenant Colonel Anderson had not yelled. Because of his yell I turned enough so that the blade went into my side, where it punctured my lung in two places. If I had not turned, the knife would have gone into my back where it would have severed my spinal cord and punctured my heart. I owe him my life."
"Due to his actions you are here today."
"More than once he has saved my life." Kacey stated.
"Maybe he should have been put in charge of the Marines." Wilhelm stated.
Kacey stood up quickly and glared at the General. "For shits and giggles General, maybe you would like to explain exactly what you have against me. What is it? My age? My sex? My family? Or maybe it is because I broke your son's arm one week before graduation. Because he was drunk and touched me while I was relaxing?"
"You Colonel are arrogant and have an over inflated ego. When you are mediocre at best."
"And you General are a pompous ass. You son got kicked out because nothing he learned in four years stuck in his pea sized brain. For four years they drummed into us to not touch a person anywhere but on the top of the head, yet he got drunk and grabbed my arm."
"THAT IS ENOUGH." General Millhouse shouted. "We will stop here for today. Would you all excuse us?"
The Generals filed out. Wilhelm threw an angry look of hatred at Kacey before he walked out of the door. "Colonel, a minute please." He walked around the table and sat next to Kacey. "Did you really break his son's arm?"
"I did and he has carried a grudge ever since. I thought it would be in my file." The General shook his head no. "Finals were finished, the runs through the canyon were complete. We were hanging around the dorm waiting for the final grades and standings to come out. A bunch of the guys decided to get drunk and celebrate. Mike and I were in our bunks relaxing. I had my headphones on. They came into our room and decided that we needed to party with them. I was in that area between being awake and sleeping. Mike told Peter not to touch me, but he did not listen and grabbed my arm to pull me off my bunk. He startled me and I came up swinging and broke his arm. He was kicked out for that stunt. I thought for sure it was in my file."
"Not a word was listed there."
"I am surprised. I thought it had at least warranted a mention." Kacey joked. "The brass investigated and I was completely cleared."
"Wilhelm has held that grudge ever since."
"Apparently General."
"Kacey he is still a General and part of the debriefing staff. I will try to keep him contained, but please work with me here. No matter how much he baits you please keep a handle on your temper. I will try to get him replaced, but it may not work."
"I will try, General."
"Good. Now get out of here. Go home to your beautiful wife and children."
"Thank you General."
Kacey stood and left the conference room"
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