Rude Awakening
#1 of Jupiter (Every Dog has his Day)
So I started on my second draft of Jupiter as I've decided it needs a second draft. I've had a subtitle since I made this story s I've decided to add it. Jupiter (Every Dog has his Day). I also decided that I want to put the divisions back in so I also added titles to them. This is Chapter 1. I didn't add that much to it. I did fix some things. I hope its better.
The feeling of shifting sand beneath his feet, the sun washing down upon his face, the wind blowing through his gray fur. It was heavenly. There was peace within the turbulence of the world, but there was something missing. A figure approaches from his right blocking the sun's rays, casting a shadow over him. He looks up to see two piercing green eyes staring back almost as if he was peering deep into his soul. He smiles, the moment had become complete. His muzzle mounted mouth opened to utter only one word, "Jupiter." That's when the com-buzzer jarred him from his sleep.
"What is it" he basically grunted to the panel left of his head in his small cabin. He didn't even bother to open his eyes for he knew it wouldn't help in the darkness of the room as he had left it when went down to get some sleep.
"Sorry to wake you captain, but we got a distress call from a research post and we're the closest ship." The officer on the other end was obviously taken a bit aback by the abrasiveness of his captain's response to his intrusion.
"How far out are we?"
"At max Hyperspeed, it would take us twelve hours sir." He grumbled a curse at the situation he had been put in, not that it was the officer's fault. Going on standard Federation Galactic time with its 100 seconds per minute and 100 minutes per hour, twelve hours was a very long travel time.
"Sound general quarters and I'll be up in a minute."
"Yes sir."
Commander Rorshawk Scott Dubois hit the button for the lights and opened his eyes. He got up and stretched his way out of his bed. He then hit the button that folded the bed back into the wall. He looked in the mirror as he dressed, being careful not to mess up his uniform as he withdrew it from the small wardrobe, and cursed the position he was in again. Why did he have to be born so damn talented?
He had been top of his class at the St. Lou Navy Academy and went onto his first command to being hero of the battle of Bryst-19 and then savior of Extol Colony. That got him here at the rank of Commander and second-in-command aboard the cruiser HMS Valeria. Its mission was to be on patrol in the Lars-pan straight which was a stretch of systems on the far side of Federation space. The Federation had no need to be out here.
The Valeria was part of special task group that was in charge of ensuring the safety of all Federation holdings out here, which was dozens of secret research posts and small fledgling colonies. They needed at least a fleet to their job and there wasn't a fleet to be found. Twelve hour hyperspace rides was a short trip to get to someplace of any importance in the Lars-pan straight, even with a slightly broken hyperdrive.
He took a glance into his gray, almost silver, eyes and sighed. He had never asked for this and had never wanted to be in such a situation. He brushed back his head fur and grabbed his jacket and hurried out into the hall. There was no need to call general quarters and then make them wait. He did stop outside his room to glance at the room across from his and the name plate that read "Captain's Quarters" and once again sighed as he got in the lift pushing the fingerprint enabled button that would order it to the bridge.
"Captain on the bridge" announced the marine sergeant whose post was outside of the lift door. He looked forward at the bridge as they stood at attention to greet him. It wasn't a terribly large room lined with the crew stations. Standing above the crew were the watch officers looking over to make sure the crew did their work and to be there as a reference.
"At ease people we have a mission to prep for and we have less than twelve hours to do so." They all returned to what they were doing and he strode over the command position which on Federation ships was in the middle of the bridge to give him full range of command over the command staff. Standing there was his second-in-command Lieutenant Commander Bullis Armstrong waiting for him to finish his approach.
"Captain," said the same voice that had been a voice of reason on countless mission aboard this ship before, "there really isn't a need for you to be here you could go back to bed, I can send for you when we are closer."
"No Commander, in situations like this it is the CO's duty to be with his men to insure that things go smoothly. We don't know what we are heading into, that's a Federation military research facility. It's located within a garrison which means five thousand troops with armor support and a turbo laser defense grid. None of the merc' groups around here would be dumb enough to attack such a place and pirates, while they would have more interest in looting one, aren't big enough to try something like this."
"Then we are either dealing with someone new and professional, or they've decided to start grouping up." Rorshawk sighed because if that was true then they were in very big trouble, especially after what happened the last time.
"Lieutenant Byres, pull up the intel' on all the merc' and pirate groups within the sector around the research base."
"Yes captain" replied the officer in front and to the right of Rorshawk in the crew pit. That was another thing the Federation liked to do in its capital ships. The bridge was set up with the command post in the middle on or slightly higher than the actual level and the crew stations in two pits running alongside it so that the watch and division officers could see what everyone was doing as they walked along the "Command Deck." Then the helm was placed in the forward most post with no obstruction so that they could hear and be heard clearly. "I have the information right here Captain."
"Transfer it to my terminal."
"Yes sir." The terminal in front of the Commander sprung to life as the list of known mercenary and pirate groups was generated. Rorshawk scanned the list and wasn't surprised by how in depth the information was because if the Federation did anything right when it moved in to the area; it was that they had scouted it out well. He made quick queries of the force size of all those on the list and noted the larger ones. It would only take at least three of them to join together to have enough troops and air support to tactfully attempt to take out a Federation garrison. That would mean they would need someone tactful, someone that could recognize the potential of an alliance and someone who would know how to use the resources of such an alliance to their full potential. This had to be a worst case scenario for if someone like that existed it would spell trouble for Federation holdings out here.
"Is there trouble Captain?"
"Maybe Commander, I'm not sure yet, but I want the Major to have a team set up and prepared for anything."
"Yes sir."
"I'm going to go see the Doctor, you have the bridge. When I get back I want to have some tactical analysis done and a weapon systems simulation shakedown. I want to know our full capabilities and any weaknesses that might present themselves after the beating we took last time; I want to shore up in case we run into the worst case scenario."
"Then I'll run that through the computer first."
Rorshawk moved away to go out the way he came. "Once you're done you can stand down to stand-by alert." The XO nodded in acknowledgement. He continued on his way into the lift this time he rode the lift down to deck five which held the crew lounge, mess hall, forward battery controls, and the med bay. As he moved through the halls the crewmen there stopped to let him through and gave a salute to which he returned. It wasn't a long trek since the Valeria was only 350 meters in length and only about a fourth of it was designated for crew. The rest of the ship was split up between engineering, cargo, and the small hangar bay which held the landing shuttles.
"Ah captain Dubois, what is it that I can do for you this fine morning" said the lightly accented voice behind the desk that was the doctor's work station in the med lab. Rorshawk stepped farther in and took a seat in front of the desk and looked at the Doctor, Commander Rolando Del Taurus, whose friendship the Commander had come to rely on.
"I think I might be coming down with something Doc."
"Here let me check" he replied while typing the commands for the med scanner Rorshawk knew was built into his surroundings. "Let's see here, Commander Rorshawk Scott Dubois, Anthropoid Canis Lupus, Born 1932 A.A. on the Francian Colony of Hector, entered service on 1950 A.A. at the St. Lou Naval Academy, several commendations on record, and currently assigned as acting captain of the HMS Valeria serving patrol duty in sector 115. Current medical status stressed and very pissed. Medical recommendation of Commander Taurus chief medical officer is to calm down and get some sleep."
"You're hilarious and you should quit the military life and go on tour."
"Damn it Scott, I miss him too." Rorshawk looked beyond the doctor to the cold storage units behind, the one he knew held the man that he had once called captain, one of the few CO's he had had that had shown him the respect he deserved.
"I keep having the same dream" he said not breaking his gaze.
"I'm a doctor, not a psychologist, that's why we have a ship councilor." He turned and glared at his friend. They had first met when he came aboard and needed to have a physical. He had been surprised at the doctor's knowledge of his species and how he had treated him like a person and not just stare at him like he was some beast. It only took half a year to get the rest of the crew to trust him like that.
"I shouldn't have to go to some shrink."
"She's a councilor; all you have to do is talk to her, that's what she's there for, talking."
"That's just what I need, to talk to her and have the ship thinking the big bad wolf has a mental problem, its bad enough that he left me in this situation."
"We're all in this together. It's tough, I get that. We shouldn't be out here, not like this. We have our orders though and command wants out to stay out here until they can send a replacement."
"You're going to bug me until I go aren't you?"
The other smiled "Oh you know me so well my friend, but get some sleep first, Doctor's orders."
"The crew needs me."
"The Crew needs you at your best. Armstrong is a good officer and he makes a good XO. You can leave this to him and go get at least a couple hours." Rorshawk just glared at him. "You know I can put you on medical leave and have you confined to the med bay."
"Fine, you win you old arm twister."
"Old? I'm only a hundred fifteen, not even close to middle age!"
"Keep telling yourself that." He got up and left the doctor pouting to go lay down in his quarters. He didn't even bother to take off his whole uniform, just his jacket and shoes. He set the same panel that had disturbed him earlier to give him an alarm for an hour and a half. Then he let the fatigue take over.
His mind though drifted through the thoughts that had been disturbing him these past few months since the incident. He had been forced into this position by the Naval guidelines and while since he had been the second-in-command he had gotten to know a lot of the crew and it was true that they no long saw him as some abomination, some walking, talking, animal (though what did they think they were). He could still feel the pressure of trying to gain their full trust in command as if the fact that he was six and a half foot tall wolf man made a difference in his command decisions. Maybe... he... should... see the...councilor...