Brinus was looking at a report on his mother’s triquarter in the living room. She slept in the guest quarters of Brinus’s bedroom. The report read:
The introduction of nicotine class BCD into vending machine cigarettes is successful. Tarken tea products are now 40% more addictive and do 15% more damage to the cellular lining of the circulatory system of humans, using LDL by damaging blood vessels and causing atherosclerosis. Heart attacks and deadly strokes are expected to rise by 200% over the next 30 years.
AA nicotine used in vaping devices has finally been perfected and has the same nootropic effects as ADHD drugs on neurotypical individuals. Damage to the circulatory system has been reduced by 45% furthermore…
There was a cough at the guest bedroom door, and Marci stood at the door.
She said with a scowl, “having fun?”
Brinus took a few pulls off his medical vape. “What the fuck is this?” he exclaimed as the smoke filled his lungs, releasing the vapor into the air.
“The Department of Health report? It’s classified. How the fuck did you break into my triquarter?!”
Brinus laughed and then closed the PDF document. “My birthday ain’t a valid pen number, and Brinus1234 ain’t a valid password. Seriously?! Did anyone tell you not to use the same password for everything?!”
Marci looked down, laughed, and looked up. “I forgot you were a pentestor before joining the Navy.”
Brinus tossed Marci’s triquarter into her hands. “Why is the government killing people?”
“That’s Classified. You need to get to bed.
Brinus put his hands in his face, “I can’t sleep. The ketamine therapy helped, but I can’t sleep without nightmares.”
“Did you try the sleep meds Calnori gave you?”
“Meds are for the weak.”
Marci snickered and then helped Brinus to his feet. “You know what helps me when I can’t sleep? A Hot Fliopian Toddy with Martin Lemon Juice. My butler taught me how to make it when I was a kid. Kitchen! Now!”
Marci and Brinus went into the Kitchen, and she began mixing the drink as Brinus sat on the countertop in his underwear and white T-shirt. “Why are you doing this?”
“Making the drink?”
Brinus snarled, “You know damn well what I am talking about.”
“It is for the good of the Confederacy! That’s all you need to know.” Marci handed Brinus a drink she had just mixed. “Use your magic to warm it up to 100 degrees Celsius.”
“What you’re doing is murder.”
“I’m doing my duty the same as you. Make sure to boil the alcohol for 30 seconds.”
Brinus boiled the hot toddy in his hand with magic and began drinking it. “Murderer.”
Marci sighed and shouted, “You’re making this about other people when you’re really angry about Simmie!”
Brinus finished his hot toddy and smashed the glass against the counter, cutting his hand. “You knew me and Simmie smoked when doing this research! Why would you do this to me and my husband?!”
Marci said with a blank look and a flat tone. “I did my duty the same as you.”
Brinus walked into his bedroom and slammed the door.
----------------------------------------
The next morning, Brinus was sitting on the countertop with his vape pen in his mouth and a cup of coffee in his left hand. He was in a pair of underwear and a white tee shirt. Simmie was on a 48-hour shift in robotics, and Brinus had his first day at the warp core. He also had a bandage wrapped around his hand and planned to go to the doctor later.
Marci came into the kitchen and ordered her coffee in the replicator. “How did you sleep last night?”
Brinus smiled almost in an unsettling way. “Once I fell asleep, I was out. It’s so good to see you!” He jumped down and replicated a second cup of coffee.
Simmie came into the quarters just as Brinus was waking up. He slapped Brinus on the ass, and they kissed for a few moments. “Yo man, how is the new officer!” asked Brinus, running his finger down Simmie’s chest.
“How was your first ketamine therapy session?”
Brinus smiled, “I felt fractal.”
Simmie kissed Brinus on the ear and whispered, “You know, in public, I am your commanding officer, so you can’t love on me anymore.”
Brinus stroked Simmie’s face, smiling. “I know. That’s why I put in for a transfer to the warp core tool maintenance workshop.”
Simmie turned to Marci. “I’m hungry. What’s for supper?”
“I just woke up. Maybe my lady's maid can cook something.” Marci cleared her throat. “What do you want my lady’s maid to make?”
Simmie sat at the booth and began twirling his vape pen between his fingers, taking the occasional draw from it. “I want a salted space pork and white cheese sandwich with the special sauce I made in the fridge. Everything should be in storage.”
Marci snapped her fingers, and a woman in all black, who Brinus didn’t see, came out of the corner. It was as if she came out of nowhere.
“Padcork! Make this man his sandwich.”
“Yes, madam duchess.”
After eating his sandwich, Simmie kissed Brinus again and left for work.
Brinus said to Marci, “I need to get ready for my meeting. For some reason, I do like the new nicotine a lot better, but it is still wrong to make it more deadly.”
Marci walked over to Brinus. “You can quit vaping if you want. It’ll be difficult, but you can choose to not smoke.”
Brinus shrugged. “My commander wants me to smoke less…or, at the very least, be less reliant on it. You betrayed me, and there will be consequences.”
Marci put her coffee down and went nose to nose with Brinus, making a smile fit for a serial killer. “Are you threatening me?”
“Oh no. You’ll find out soon enough. Most people in the Confederacy are asleep. Technically, no laws were broken, but it'll be embarrassin' anyway.” Brinus laughed and kissed his mother on the forehead. “I got to get dressed. Enjoy your day.”
Brinus left the kitchen laughing like a madman.
----------------------------------------
The workshop
Brinus was in a very good mood, which put Marci on edge. She kept checking on him to see what he was doing as he sang his favorite gangster rap songs. He put extra care into steam, pressing his uniform with cornstarch. He used a Sonic screwdriver and some mineral oil to wash the dirt out of his medals and ribbons. He then polished his steel-toed boots. All the while, he sang his favorite songs and was overly bubbly. He even put on cologne, which was something he never did.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
Brinus reported to his new post and entered the reactor area's control room.
He saluted and stood at attention. “Lieutenant! Midshipman Brinus Helios is reporting for duty, sir!”
The lieutenant put his coffee down and turned in his booth. He saluted Brinus and said, “You realize you’re working in an industrial workshop? Right? You didn’t need to go all out.”
Brinus snickered and then laughed while standing at attention.
The lieutenant frowned. “What the fuck is so funny?”
“Nothing sir, sorry sir.”
The lieutenant looked sideways at Brinus and then said, “We have a power shortage today so you have to run your workshop at low power mode.”
“Sir, Might I suggest that I go into the warp core and make a new plasma ball?”
The lieutenant took a thinking pose and said, “I will take it with the commander, and you'll hear my answer at the end of the day.”
“Yes, sir.”
He went into the workshop and pulled up the list of work orders. The equipment was basically all of his old equipment. The difference was that instead of robotic parts there were machine parts.
First on the list was a plasma filter. Brinus turned on some loud rap music. He then welded a tungsten-cobalt alloy box with a TIG welding torch for a plasma filter. After welding the box, he took an angle grinder to the corners and smoothed out the welds after putting on ear protection. He then cut one circle with a metal saw at both ends of the box. He then welded the pure tungsten-cobalt filter with magic on both ends. He had to concentrate as his magic instructor only just taught him this new ability.
There was a knock on his door. “Computer! cut music!”
Brinus removed his welding mask. “Enter!”
Simmie entered the room. Brinus stood at attention, but his heart rate quickened, and his pupils dilated.
“Midshipman, I need five 20-pound copper ingots within the next hour.”
“Yes…sir.” Shit! I almost called him love.
Simmie smiled and winked at him. “That is all midshipmen.”
Brinus sent a shop assistant to get some copper ore and melt it down while he wrote reports for the two work orders. He had 20 shop assistants under his command this time. Therefore, this command counted towards experience for his chief engineer’s certificate. Brinus throughout the day wrote reports and filled work orders. He built a few items for people who went on smoke breaks or bathroom breaks.
He got a ping on his triquarter that his mother saw the mocking video of her making the rounds. It was a meme video of Marci in the suit of Darth Vadar yelling about betraying her cooperate benefactors for short-term quarterly gains to Princess Leia. Instead of James Earl Jones's voice as Darth Vadar it was Marci's in a comical cartoon voice.
----------------------------------------
At around lunchtime, Brinus smelled the earthy scent of Tarken Tea cigarettes wafting from one of the nonsmoking areas. He came up from his office and used his key card to open the explosive materials room. He followed the scent of cigarettes to find three crewmen and one crewwoman smoking next to some sodium-potassium superoxide and some reactor coolant he had just mixed.
Brinus yelled, “Attention! NCO on deck!”
The four crewmates quickly put their cigarettes out and saluted Brinus. He approached the woman and got into her face. He was so close the spit flew from his mouth onto her face. “What the fuck is your malfunction?!”
The young woman stood at attention.
“What does the marker say on the chemical you’re smoking next to say?!”
“Sir, it says oxidizer 5.1, sir.”
“And what the fuck does that mean, crewmate?!”
“Sir, it means oxygen can be used to enhance or create a combustion reaction, sir!”
He turned to the second crewman, sticking his finger into his chest. “Why the fuck are you smoking next to an explosive and oxidizing material?!”
The crewman went silent.
“I want your excuse now, maggot!”
“Sir, I was having a craving and getting a headache, sir!”
He screamed into the third crewman’s ear. “What does the sign say at the entrance of the door?!”
“No smoking! Explosive, corrosive, and oxidizing materials in the area! Sir!”
He slapped the fourth crewman in the face. “What would happen if an open flame was exposed to hydrogen or pure oxygen gas?!”
“it would explode, sir.”
Brinus leaned into the crewman’s face so close that the crewman could smell the vape juice on Brinus’s breath and hair. “And what happens when an open flame is exposed to an oxidizer?!”
“Sir, it explodes, sir!”
“GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY FACE AND DON’T EVER LET ME SEE YOU SMOKING IN HERE AGAIN!!!”
The four crewmates ran out of the room.
Once the crewmates were gone, Brinus picked up the cigarettes, and once he was out of the room, they disintegrated in his palm from his magic.
He went up to his petty officer first class. “I’m gonna go on a vape break. When I get back, I want the four smokers from the explosives room written up.”
“Yes, sir.”
----------------------------------------
During his lunch break two hours later, he booked the computer lab. He entered the simulation room and put his key card on the door. Once he arrived at the computer lab, the deafening sound of the coolant system could be heard. A soft hum of machinery echoed throughout the room. The room itself was claustrophobic. In front of the projector was a glass keyboard with the keys projected onto it. There were also two chairs in the back of the room and a table between them with two ashtrays on it. The room had a stale haze, and inside the ashtray were four cigarette butts.
Brinus had to negotiate with the chief engineer. In exchange for this favor, he had to pull a 72-hour shift so he would spend the weekend working in the workshop. He found with the new nicotine, he wasn’t nearly as hungry as before and, therefore, didn’t need as much food. He was also a lot more focused. He began programming the simulation. It took ten minutes to write the program.
Once he was satisfied, he shouted out, “Alex! Run program! I want the data as if the Confederacy did not promote smoking and had anti-smoking policies similar to the Federation.”
A 3D image of a graph appeared, showing the population skyrocketing rapidly, plateauing, and then collapsing to about one-quarter of the current population.
“Alex! Run the same program with old nicotine formulation in the confederacy!”
A graph appeared that showed much slower population growth, but it was still fast. It showed five generations of population growth, a plateau, and then a collapse.
“Alex! Run the same population scenario but with nicotine formula AA.”
This time, the graph showed a much slower population growth. It was much more sustainable and did not see a plateau and then a collapse. However, the average lifespan was 69 years; there was also a 55% decrease in production and quality of life.
Brinus realized he was in the population Marci was trying to quell. His husband was as well. He now knew why he would be on a medical vape for the rest of his life. Brinus cussed and slammed his hands against the computer console.
He heard a knock on the door.
Marci stood in the doorway of the computer lab, leaning against the wall. She had been waiting in an adjoining computer lab. “I see you discovered the secret,” she said with a mischievous smile.
“Why the fuck are you smirking?! What the fuck is so funny?!”
Marci crossed her arms and looked down at the ground.
“I don’t understand. What’s this got to do with the war?”
“What happens when a population grows too fast?”
“People get desperate? Resources are stretched?” He crossed his arms in front of his chest and tilted his head. “What are you saying?”
“They failed to curb population growth, made profit a priority, and spread their industry too thin. People were stuck in school for decades just to get ahead.”
“So…the federation is fucked.”
“They were fucked 40 years ago when we started operation divide and conquer. They just wanted to go out with a bang.” Brinus and Marci stared at each other with angry looks. Then she said, “Oh, I hid your vape juice bottles. and not have consequences.” She tapped his face, and then she laughed manically.
“You’re a crazy bitch, you know that?!”
She began laughing hysterically as she left the room like a funny joke had been cracked only she was in on. "See you at dinner."
He immediately felt hot anger overcome him and slammed his fist into the wall creating a hole.
----------------------------------------
Marci worked on the Naval Academy commencement speech that her speech writer had created. Simmie was asleep in his bed as his shift had just ended. The living room had two brass plated loveseats in baroque style, a hologram projector, and newly polished baroque-style paneling. It had gold leafing on the panels. The room had an overall baroque feeling to it. New darkwood floors were installed over the weekend. The old rug was replaced as it smelled like cannabis and burnt tea. They changed it out with a real rug from the planet Candi, which was priceless. The room had lost its smoky atmosphere. Instead, there was vapor fog everywhere, which smelled like alien berries and earth cotton candy. Marci found it suffocating but said nothing. After all, she didn’t want to risk losing her only heir, even if she didn’t approve of his marriage or his vaping habit.
She used a standard template to make the final edits to the speech. However, she changed a few keywords and just enough of the speech to be undetectable. Honestly, the more she thought of two grown men kissing and sleeping with each other, the more disgusted she became. However, she had to be practical, and hating Brinus and Simmie for their sexuality brought her no benefit...especially when her other male heir was declared mentally incompetent to take office due to addiction issues. In all honesty, she admired Brinus more despite his flaws. Simmie was weak, but Brinus was strong, and she liked his bad-boy side.
Marci heard a knock on the door, and it was Brinus. He entered his quarters and removed his boots, socks, and shirt. He put on a pair of gym shorts and put his dirty uniform in the laundry.
“Hey, Mom, I've been given a three-hour break between my twenty-four-hour shifts. Is Simmie here?”
Marci sighed and crossed her arms, “He is asleep in your bed. If you wanna cuddle with your husband, you first need a shower. You smell like a dirty gym.”
Brinus rolled his eyes and sat in the loveseat across from his mother. “What’cha workin on?”
“The graduation speech for tomorrow.”
“I assume you’re going to use template 4-A?”
Marci Sighed and cussed. “Did you break into my triquarter again?”
“Samul's birthday? Really? And adding a 5 to your password?”
“Why do you keep breaking into my stuff?”
Brinus laughed, “Make better passwords? hahaha.” He sighed and rose from the loveseat, “I’m gonna shower and cuddle with Simmie. I smell like a locker room. See ya’ in a couple of hours.”
“You do you boo.” She flashed her teeth and then began watching streamers on the Holovision.