Juno found herself sitting before a large mahogany desk, Lin Xiang on the other side signing off on paperwork. He’d commandeered another room on the station. This one looked like an official office at least, small, but with large flags and the Special Aeronautics emblem emblazoned on the wall behind Lin’s head.
The emblem was circular, representing the Earth, the cradle of humanity. Letters and the year established were inscribed on the rim of the circle. A saying was written beneath: Wherever your new home may be, never forget. Black, white, gold and silver were its official colors, all colors representative of what we as humans value, and in honor of the first colors used on the space shuttle hundreds of years ago.
Juno suffered through paper after paper, signing away her old life, and signing on to a new one. Pledges were spoken, oaths taken, records swept and refiled. Her old commanders were notified of her leave and the Initiative officers were notified of her new position within their organization, whoever they were. Things were set in motion over the next couple of days.
Everything had moved so quickly, Juno hadn’t really had time to soak it all in, nor the fact that her time as a marine was ending. The paperwork was filed. The proper authorities were notified. Finally, in the same room she’d signed away her life as a marine a couple days ago, Juno stood in front of Lin Xiang one final time for the last of her oaths. As she did, Sergeant Gunnery Juno said her farewell to the Corps.
Lin said, “Your time as a marine has come to an end.” The words cut deep. It felt awkward to hear, scary, like she’d just lost a part of herself.
He continued, “Now you take another oath, a stronger oath, an oath to uphold the values and safety of all humankind. With this oath you accept your responsibility as a human to defend mankind against outside forces, against threats known and unknown, and against itself. Do you accept this role?” Juno would be a soldier of humanity now, outside all chains of command. She would be the first of her kind.
Resolutely, Juno said, “Yes.” Her word was genuine. Fear, anxiety, and hesitance suddenly filled her, but also hope, excitement, and honor. “I, Junotori Sashino, will uphold human values and vow to protect humankind. I will defend against threats inside and out and, above all else, seek to further humanity.”
“Then, I hereby now exonerate you from your duties as a marine. You are freed from service. And, under the authority of the Board for Humanity, I hereby grant you the Office of Special Operations Officer for the Interspecies Galactic Alliance Board. You are a soldier of humanity now, Special Officer Juno. You represent us as a species. Do your duty, and make us proud.”
“The Board of Human Affairs has granted me access to give you all you need, Special Officer Juno. You’ll be supplied best by the Initiative, but that doesn’t mean we can’t send a former marine out with some new gear.” The two of them walked through crowded halls full of astronauts.
“Where are we headed now?”
“To the docking bays. The Board wanted to supply ships of our own to the Initiative. I want to show you the one you’ll be serving on.” The two took an elevator down through the station.
They exited out to a white set of halls where more astronauts and engineers hustled about. The halls here had thick walls of space proof glass on one side. They looked down on the docking bays. Some were empty, while others housed ships of various sizes.
Lin walked her down a particularly busy hallway before stopping at its window. Down below, a ship was waiting in the docking bay. It was a thick blob of shiny metal. A bulbous front housed the cockpit. Thrusters, three large metal tubes with a spike down their middles, stuck out from the back in a triangular shape. The middle was a mass of metal, curved and fat. A simple block was built off either side, each one housing a rotating side thruster.
It was a far cry from a military ship. The thing looked too new, too bulbous and silly, although, admittedly, far more advanced than any ship she’d ever stepped foot on. It was no warship, but the thing was massive, as big as an office building. Sparks shot away from a multitude of engineers working on different compartments.
Juno noted the six fully rotatable, retractable guns on the top and bottom of the ship. It isn’t all about diplomacy, is it?
“She has a name.” Lin looked over a document in his hand, “Voyager 8. A bit nostalgic I think, but I don’t name the ships.” He turned to her. “Her captain is your only CO on the ship. Devanne Carter. He’s a good man, a bit rugged. Critical. But like you he gets the job done. He will be at your team briefing upstairs in about 3 hours.”
“How many other humans will I be serving with?” Lin handed her the documents.
“Hundreds. But, not all of them will be soldiers. There are plenty of scientists, diplomats, and other specialists as part of the mission. As for your unit, I can’t say. A team of sixty maybe. Anything else you want to know will have to come from your human affairs director. I’m sorry. That’s just the way it is.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Juno looked through the documents at the dossiers and mission objectives, briefly. Lin held out his hand and she shook it.
“Well, congratulations. You’re an astronaut. Unfortunately, Special Officer. I have to leave you, now. You’re in better hands. Good luck.” For once, the Assistant to the Commandant saluted Juno, who shot her hand up in habit. Lin then parted, disappearing down the hall. Juno stayed with the ship for a while, watching the engineers work. Her mind wandered.
She’d never been in charge of a ship and crew before. Marines only settled in ships, not commanded them. Looking through the dossiers hadn’t calmed her mind. A new unit. What would they be like?
The briefing room was deep in the station. After taking some time to clear her head, and gather some materials, Juno found her way there. By the time she made it, the briefing was just about to start.
At the door she stopped and heaved a big sigh. Here we go. A brand new life. She pulled the latch, and the door soundlessly slid open.
Inside was a fairly large room, walls blank and white like the rest of the station. A huge table took up most of the space. Positioned around it were what looked like soldiers, or mercenaries, and a couple of specialists in military wear. The uniform for this new outfit was black. A black short sleeve shirt for soldiers with camo pants patterned in black, white and gray. Standard crew wore straight black. Officers wore dark blue uniforms of a different nature. Less military. More formal. It was what Juno was wearing when she entered.
The men and women around the table were packed in together tightly, with pages, papers and black duffle bags, probably luggage, stacked on the table and floor. It looked like they brought everything they owned. At the moment they were relaxed, some idly chatting, others busy with some kind of work. At the end of the room was a clear spot at the table. A clean stack of documents and a tablet sat next to a mini projector already on. There was no image. Instead, a blank white box shone on the wall.
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That was the captain’s place. He wasn’t here yet.
Some people in the room looked up at her as she entered, expecting another soldier or specialist. When they saw her uniform they stood and saluted. Then, everyone rose to their feet and saluted her.
Trying to hide her surprise, Juno gave a quick salute back. “Carry on,” she said, entering the room. She wasn’t used to that. Nor, was she used to the awkward air around the room now that she’d entered. Juno would have to get used to both. She was an officer now, a leader, and that garnered both respect and discomfort.
That being said, she struggled to find a place for herself. Juno debated whether or not to find a place to sit near the captain’s area, or among the crew. She instead opted for standing at semi attention near the door until the captain showed up. It would be a bit awkward, but would establish her authority to the new group.
There were a lot of young faces in the crowd, mid twenty somethings, but most looked seasoned. Veterans, or specialists with long careers. It drew up excitement in her.
Juno was used to working with veterans, sure, but her job as Gunnery Sergeant had her mostly working closely with the green marines; the newbies, the eighteen, nineteen, twenty old ‘too nervous or excited for their own good’ marines. These were men and women in this room, all of them, and they looked serious.
Juno hid a smirk. She might like this job after all.
The door slid open quietly and in walked a man she recognized from the dossiers. It was Captain Devanne Carter.
“Attention! Captain at hand.” She called to everyone, and then stood at full guard. Everyone in the room stood abruptly as he entered. The Captain didn’t ease their postures until after he walked over to his spot at the end of the room, sorted through some documents in his hands and set them down. Then, he crossed his arms behind him, looking at everyone in the room in turn as he spoke.
“Welcome to the Interspecies Galactic Alliance. And welcome to my Task Force. You are here because you are the best of the best. So am I. Our mission focuses on the expansion of human interest and the promotion of interspecies relations. We, your new unit, are a task force. That means if shaking hands is an option we shake hands. If it isn’t then make them shake our hands, by any means necessary. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!” The room sounded off. Captain Carter was a thick, muscled man, fit, mature. His arms looked as round as a tree trunk. He was dark skinned with short cropped hair, faded, and his eyes were dark, dark brown. His expression was not a friendly one.
Juno could tell he was prior special forces, but also that he was more than that. Carter was a seasoned leader. His posture, his speech; he knew exactly how to use his authority.
“We all come from different places. Expeditionary forces, army, navy, marines, deep space aeronautics, but we are unified now under one banner. Our old allegiances are gone. Put them to rest. Today, you work for me, you work for our director. You work for the task force and the Initiative. But don’t you ever forget you work for humanity first. Got it?”
”Yes, sir.” Juno answered. This was getting interesting. She’d assumed the assignment would be stale somehow, full of bureaucrats and politicians, studies and surveys. Somehow, she thought the red tape would be worse here than in the marines. That feeling was dissipating.
“Good. At ease.” Everyone sat back down, except for Juno who remained standing at half attention. She felt it was her appropriate place now, and the captain seemed to agree.
Over the next half hour, the captain introduced the team, where they came from and why they were assigned to the unit. The assignments were specific, and seemed highly thought out. She had been right too; everyone in the room was a specialist, or an officer of some sort prior.
When the captain came to her at last, he said, “And this is my right hand woman. Second in command, First Officer Junotori Sashino. If I don’t give you the order, she will. Standing before you now is one of the most decorated marines in the history of the service. Survived GB-1,” Some of the soldiers turned their heads with surprise, “Was integral in the Shiza campaign, and has seen more action and kicked more ass than anyone in this room. Excluding her captain. She is your new commanding officer and will be watching your back. After today, she will be your worst enemy and your best friend. Juno?” She met his eye, “You have any words you want to say?”
Juno stepped forward and looked over everyone in the room. What did she say? Did she go inspiring, or did she keep them in line? The captain looked like he’d appreciate the second course. Or should she just keep it simple?
“It’s good to be part of this team. I served with the best back in the marines. All I can ask is that you prove me wrong.” She stepped back. The captain seemed to like the briskness of her speech, though she doubted it inspired anyone.
“Good point. The first officer and I, like many in this room, have not had the good graces of meeting each other beforehand, so we will let our resumes speak for themselves. As it stands, there is enough experience in this room to win a war if we went to one. There will be time aboard the ship to mingle and learn each other’s favorite colors and what our birthday wishes are. Until then, play nice and do your jobs. As for equipment, the Initiative has our gear at this new stations we’re headed for. In the meantime, we have temporary gear on the Voyager 8. Hack it out with what you have until we can refit.
“Lasly, remember you’re now a part of a new mission. This coalition has been attempted before, and it’s failed at every attempt. This time will be different. This is the largest gathering of species to date and we will not be left behind. We will make this work.”
“Yes, sir.” Everyone in the room agreed. The captain then started the briefing. Duties, missions, layouts of ships and technical reads were reviewed.
Halfway through the briefing, the door slid open and a woman walked into the room. She was in the same black camo everyone was wearing. Obviously, she was part of the outfit. Juno recognized her, too. One of the younger officers.
The captain took one look at her and scowled. “Yes?”
“Is this unit 8?”
“It is.” The captain was not amused.
“My apologies for being late. I was lost on the way here, and no one knew the room number–”
“Spit it out, soldier. What do you want?”
“I’m here for the briefing? I’m part of your unit.” The captain stood straight from leaning over a tablet.
“Part of my unit? You sorry…” he muttered under his breath, “You’re not part of my unit. I’ve never seen you before in my life.”
“Sir?”
“I said, you are not part of this unit. Everyone in my unit is here and ready for briefing. Anyone not present is not in my unit. Do you understand?” The woman was mortified. She didn’t know what to do or say. Juno felt a cold sense tingle her neck. The captain reminded her of an old gunnery sergeant she used to know. He was one mean bastard.
“I… Sir?”
“First Officer Juno. Remove this woman from my briefing room.”
“Yes, sir.” Juno moved in front of her, and gently moved her out. The woman didn’t fight. The poor thing looked like she could cry, but she didn’t. She was tougher than that, but Juno didn’t blame her. A simple mistake had just sent her career into flames.
Juno pressed the latch to close the door. It slid silently. There was a frosted glass pane in the door. Juno could see the woman through it as she hesitated before she made a decision. Should she fight for her position more? Should she just give it up? What did she do? The woman eventually disappeared.
Juno didn’t envy her.
Returning to her spot, Captain Carter spoke with resounding coldness, “No one in my outfit is late. In this line of work there are no second chances, no mistakes. Am I clear?”
“Yes, sir.” Everyone understood. Juno understood. It was a common way to get kicked in the head. You don’t get away with being late to a briefing anywhere, at least not without expecting to be chewed out for it. In her position, Juno wouldn’t even have shown up. Then again, the poor woman was thinking the same thing, but her training told her to try anyway. An unexpected casualty.
Another feeling rose in the pit of Juno’s stomach. She remembered that old gunnery sergeant. He was a mean son of a bitch. Effective to a point, but cruel. The captain had a similar attitude. If he was anything like the old gunny, it was going to be a tough assignment, and not for the better.