The bridge of the ship was on red alert in a combat simulation. Beyond the view from the bridge were two fighter craft, triangular-shaped with two thrusters in the back. They made strafing runs at the ship and posed a threat with two plasma throwers and a proton launcher each. However, that’s all that could be said about them; there was little information to go by. Brinus’s instincts were at their highest, and his ship and crew were his top priorities.
Brinus sat in the captain’s chair. His pupils were dilated, his mouth was dry, and his palms were sweaty. The bridge was on red alert and battle stations. Suddenly, two fighter crafts came into the viewscreen. Brinus felt the urge to scream out, Warp out of the system, and perform a damage assessment. However, he took a moment to breathe and cracked his knuckles.
After opening his eyes, he said, “Commander! Run to the engine room and take command of the battle bridge!”
The AI commander saluted and left. Brinus was sharp and focused as he gave his next order. “Weapons officer, fire torpedoes at coordinates 43.62.-45 on the Z axis! on my mark!”
The fighter started a strafing run when Brinus screamed, “Fire Torpedoes!”
Two tricobalt torpedoes flew from the port-side torpedo launcher and destroyed the enemy fighter. Brinus and the other AI officers on the hologram deck cheered in triumph.
“Settle down, everyone! We still have another fighter out there.”
His physical PTSD response kept him clear-minded and the battle meditation tactics he was taught kept him from spiraling.
Suddenly, a random ship jumped out of warp in front of the ship. Brinus, in a heightened physical and mental state, yelled, “Fire torpedoes and phasers at the enemy ship. Destroy them!”
The ship exploded and then the simulation ended abruptly. Brinus fell to the floor as the bridge dematerialized.
In the tower, the lead training officer and the head of the holoroom were at the top of the tower in the control booth.
“Woodstack,” said the lead training officer. “Where did you mess up?”
Brinus was stunned for a moment. He closed his eyes and took a series of deep, calming breaths. He breathed in and out slowly and cracked each knuckle on his right hand one by one. He also put all of the weight on his feet and took a few moments to relax and deep breath with his eyes closed. Taking a moment more to reorient himself, It took a a few minutes for him to answer.
He said after opening his eyes and popping a piece of chewing gum in his mouth, “I didn’t follow the rules of engagement, sir. I fired on an unknown ship without identifying what or who they were, sir.”
“What kind of ship was that?”
He shrugged.
A hologram of the ship appeared and Brinus’s heart began beating fast. If he were a captain and it was a real combat situation, he would face court martial. The ship was a Vendalfi passenger vessel that carried 250 Vendalfi 1st class passengers.
“I killed a bunch of rich Vendalfi.” Brinus popped his gum. He had a blank look on his face to cover up his fear. However, his hands shook, his pupils were fully dilated, and he shook slightly. What will happen to me?
“Why don’t you reflect on your mistake in the brig? Tomorrow, we will have a mock trial. Since this isn’t a real court martial, the admiral won’t be here.”
Four navy troopers came into the holoroom and surrounded Brinus. He was put in handcuffs. The corporal said, “You are under arrest for violation of Section two of the military code of justice. You are not obligated to say anything however it may harm your defense if you do not mention, when questioned. something you later rely on in court. Anything you say will be taken down in writing and used as evidence against you. Do you understand?”
“Yeah, you stupid idiot. I’ve been to jail before.”
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An hour and a half later the prison was musty and quiet as it was almost midnight. A smell of mildew came from the wet concrete after a rainstorm. Brinus had been strip searched and booked into a real jail cell. He needed his medication but knew they wouldn’t give it to him.
Brinus was in prison scrubs in the brig pacing back and forth biting his nails. Two of his cellmates stared at him. The holding cell was quiet but large. It had eight bunk beds and was a concrete room with bar doors.
“Bro chill. You’re making me nervous,” said one of the inmates.
“I need a vape!” exclaimed Brinus, chewing on his nails.
“Dude man, just ask the CO for a vape pen. Quit pacing or I’ll cut you.” He pulled out a long shank from his pocket.
Brinus smiled at the thought of fighting and said, “Go ahead. Cut me. See what happens.”
The third bunkmate looked at the bunkmate, threatening Brinus. “Bruh, do you know who that is? You’re gonna get your ass kicked.”
“Go on! cut me! See what happens! I need a good fight,” said Brinus, licking his lips and with an unsettling smile plastered across his face.
A good fight was exactly what the doctor ordered today and this man was going to give it to him. Brinus rubbed his hands with glee and laughed at the thought of doling out an ass kicking. He actually enjoyed fighting in the ring—only this time he would be fighting to stay out of the medical ward. Life-and-death steaks were refreshing. Thinking of how much he wanted to put someone in the hospital ward, he laughed.
The second man didn’t know if it was the look on Brinus’s face, or the twinkle in his eyes, or his overly eager demeanor, but there was something unsettling about the smile plastered across his face and his body language.
“Whatever bruh, just stay the fuck out of my way, you little bitch.”
The second guy sat back down on his bunk.
Brinus leaned against the bunk and began shaking his legs and playing with his fingers. The COs came in and a new kid was brought into the cell.
“Are you ladies okay?” asked the CO looking directly at Brinus.
“I think the blond kid needs a vape.”
The CO looked at Brinus and asked, “Do you need a vape pen, Prisoner 4546?”
“No, sir. I quit vaping six months ago.”
The CO laughed. “Your call. I saw you pacin’ on the camera. I’ll be back in an hour to check on y’all.”
Brinus looked at the new kid. He asked aggressively, “Where are you from?”
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“Tangio? The City of Caloria?”
The second bunkmate laughed. The third bunkmate sighed.
Brinus screamed in the forth bunkmate's face,“No. I mean, what are your colors?”
The bunkmate looked confused.
Brinus got into the cellmate’s face, thrusting his finger into his chest. “Who are you with!? Tell me, before I kick your fuckin' ass!"
Four COs came into the hallway outside of the holding cell in full riot gear. “Prisoner 4546, put the prisoner down. This is your only warning.” All four of them pulled out their shock sticks and charged them up.
Brinus dropped the prisoner, who fell to the ground. “Go fuck yourselves!”
“Prisoner 4546 calm down or we will put you on a psych hold!”
Brinus looked at the guards. “Okay fine. I'm cool. I'll cool down."
Brinus sat down on the bench and began doing a meditation techinuque he leanred in therapy. Breathing in and out deeply and picturing being with his husband and tangent on a beach walking at sunset.
“Simulation Ended.”
Brinus screamed, “What the fuck?!”
The room went pitch black and Brinus stood in his prison scrubs in the secondary holosuite after a few seconds in total darkness. Brinus had no idea he was in a Simulation and felt his palms become sweaty. He really thought he was in jail.
The lead training officer just looked at Brinus, rolled his eyes, and then said once the lights were restored, “I feel like I don’t need to explain what happened in the jail cell. I think you know what you did wrong. Although you did get control in the end which shows progress. Go, change out of the scrubs. Take a day to decompress. We will run the next battle sim in 36 hours. Hopefully, a day with the psychiatrist will teach you better stress management tactics. Dismissed midshipman.”
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Half an hour later, Brinus stood in front of the cigarette vending machine cigarette vending machine with a card reader at the Mess Hall. He was looking at what he wanted to purchase. Putting in a credit chip in the coin receptacle, it fell through.
Brinus noticed it shrank by 40%. He cussed and then tried again with a different credit chip. Same result. He cussed again and slapped the side of the machine. He put in another credit chip and then it fell through. He took a moment to meditate and began deep breathing.
Brinus looked up and saw the .
Two midshipmen came into the vending area. “Bro, are you okay?”
“I am goin’ boxin’.”
The two midshipmen looked at each other and shrugged. Not their problem as far as they were concerned.
Brinus knew why the coins shrank. He didn’t really want to smoke and his magic was protecting him. He was just trying to buy cigarettes because of his psychological addiction. He still hasn’t broken the neurological addiction six months later. That was the point of these crack-like cigarettes. They released four times as much dopamine as traditional cigarettes from Earth.
He walked into the locker room of the dojo and removed his uniform shirt, pants, shoes and socks. He put on his navy gym shorts and began wrapping his hands and feet in on the locker room bench.
A random midshipman and his friend walked in and saw Brinus. One of them said, “Should he be allowed in the men’s locker room? What if he’s a creepy voyeur?”
“Seriously bruh?”
The two midshipmen began undressing in the locker room next to Brinus and putting on workout clothes. Brinus was focused on wrapping his feet first. However, the two cadets didn’t bother to keep their voices down.
“I heard before the war fed gays would dance naked in the streets in front of kids while celebrating their sexuality. Is that true?”
Brinus snorted with disgust.
The other midshipman rolled his eyes and growled. “I think that was a bit exaggerated. Most celebrations in the Federation discouraged nudity and most people didn’t bring kids. You really need to fact-check. They did become overly exclusive towards the collapse but it started as a way to rebel against the system.”
“You’re from the federation, right?”
“Yes. I fled after they killed my parents for being enemies of the state. I used to be a turbine worker at a power plant in Klostron Four.”
“Oh, your parents were gay?”
“They were college professors who taught gender studies courses at one of the top universities. I joined the Navy after Pattaban took power.”
He turned to Brinus. “Hey, my name is Tom. You’re Smokestack Helios right? Do you wonna grapple with us?”
Brinus flashed his screw you smile. He said in a sadistic voice, “You sure you wonna grapple with a queer like me? You never know. I might be a pervert.” Brinus made a creepy laugh.
Tom rolled his eyes and his nostrils flared. “Come on, bruh, it isn’t like that. I wish to apologize for my friend’s behavior earlier. He isn’t used to certain things like I am.”
“I will grapple with you but not your friend. Also, my name is Brinus not Smokestack Helios.”
Tom smiled, “Okay Brinus. I am a big fan of your fighting style. The way you took out Jimmy the Cop last week? Amazing.”
Brinus smiled back. “Thanks.”
Tom turned to his friend. “I think you should go.”
The friend snorted in disgust and rolled his eyes, “Gladly.”
He left for the shower as Brinus spat out his gum in the trashcan and dipped his hands in chalk.
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Ten minutes later Brinus and Tom were on the mats in the dojo at the Barracks gym. They were practicing various arm bars and leg locks. The dojo was lined with replicated foam mats and had mirror ceilings. There was a men’s and women’s bathroom with a changing room and a men’s and women’s shower.
Brinus wrapped his legs around Tom’s neck and then squeezed his thighs together. Tom attempted to get out of the triangle choke. But brinus doubled down and squeezed so hard that Tom tapped Brinus’s foot. He let go and Tom collapsed on the ground.
Tom’s face was red and as he lay on the ground spread eagled. Brinus smiled. “You okay?”
Tom said, “I will be. Give me ten minutes.”
“Do I need to tone it down?”
“It’s just a lot more intense than I thought it would be. Give me a few minutes.”
Georgia came into the dojo and sat down on one of the benches. Brinus walked over to her and grabbed his water bottle.
He looked at Georgia and asked, “What’s up?”
“I heard you were grappling and wanted to watch.”
Brinus took another swig of his water. “I see.”
“I heard from my mother’s doctor. They are committing her to an institution today. She was found walking in the streets screaming about a temple spirit giving her magic and trying to perform miracles on kids. One of the kids called 911 and a social worker was dispatched.”
Brinus popped a piece of gum and then said, “I have magic. It ain’t out of the realm of possibility.”
“They tested her for the protein marker and she is negative and she assaulted four kids. She is a public menace and can’t take care of herself. Mental Health admitted her under the Mental Health Act of Five years after the Battle of Tanner Prime.”
“I believe the law states that if someone is a threat to themselves or others around them, demonstrates a consistent failure to medicate themselves under the care of a mental health professional, and doesn’t have a suitable domicile as defined by the Homestead Act, then the state has the right to forcibly admit said individual to an asylum for the duration of their mental illness.”
Georgia buried her face in her hands and cried. “Which means I will never see my mother again.”
Brinus was unsure of what to say. To him, it seemed that it was a good thing. Georgia’s mother was abusive to the point where she joined the Navy to get away from her. He also couldn’t relate to her. Truthfully, when Brinus’s mother went to jail, he was happy that he would never hear from her again. She tried to reach out to him but he blocked her on every social media platform he could and he moved on with his life.
“Why are you so quiet?”
“I’m sorry for your loss.” Brinus went with one of the pre-programmed responses Dr. Calnori taught him in these types of situations.
Georgia looked at him with a blank look he couldn’t read. Is Brinus mocking me or just doesn’t care?
Georgia came up from her seat and slapped Brinus leaving a red hand print across his face. “You bastard!”
She left the room.
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After thirty minutes of Grappling Tom was completely worn out. Brinus punched a punching bag in the boxing gym. His grappling match didn’t give him the release he needed from his pent up from frustration. In all honesty, Tom was a weak opponent. He also saw Tom vaping in the smoking section outside of the dojo.
Brinus kicked the bag with his left foot and gave it the one-two punch with his right hand. He must have been boxing for a while because he began to relax and didn’t notice that the barrack commander was next to him.
She cleared her throat and then he stood at attention, saluting her.
“Woodstack. Your mother was found dead in her cell this morning. The prison has been trying to contact you all day but it seems like you blocked their number.
Brinus took a sip of his sports drink. “Good, the bitch is dead. I don’t care what happens to her body.”
“The prison needs you to claim her body or they will bury her in a charity grave with no funeral.”
Brinus laughed because he felt like it was funny; they thought he cared what happened to her. He laughed for a few moments until he realized she wasn’t joking. He sneered, “Tell the prison they can do whatever they want with it. She isn’t my mother. Now, I just realized I need to get ready to go out with Tom, he invited me for drinks tonight.”
“Your mother is dead. Do you need a few days off?”
“Good. Less trash in the galaxy. Please don’t bother me with this again. See ya.” Brinus waved his hand to say shoo with a mildly annoyed look on his face.
The barracks commander had seen all sorts of reactions to the news of parents’ deaths in her time in the Navy. Occasionally, she had cadets like Brinus who hated their parents. In her experience, they often had the strongest reaction as all of the negative feelings would come back. She knew that for now Brinus was relieved but soon he would be conflicted.
“I am here if you need me.”
“Bye, bye now!” Said Brinus, waving goodbye to her.
She turned on her heel and left.