The rest of the walk was somewhat uncomfortable. Let’s say that a fast walk with highly advanced mechanical legs is slightly faster than a normal human’s jog speed. I catched up to Ricardo, which made him try to up his pace but in the end the result was something that seemed like an older kid playing tag with his younger siblings and not catching them on purpose.

We arrived at another, bigger tent, while the clapping was still reverberating throughout the whole camp. Most of the accompanying soldiers were gasping for air, and even Ricardo had an irregular breathing. When we arrived, I saw that there were some people here, and a face I knew as well.

“Oh hey Lai” I said.

Corporal Lai stood there for a solid couple of seconds, wide eyed, and then rushed to my side.

“Commander! How are you?! Are you feeling fine, are you in pain somewhere?!” She said nervously, even stuttering her last words.

I was taken aback by the sudden reaction.

“Calm down will you? I’m fine, as good as new, never better” I said dismissing her worries with a hand wave.

She calmed herself, I don’t know if by my words or just remembering that she was an acting officer of the army. She coughed and straightened herself, making a formal salute.

“Corporal Lai Lian, reporting in!” She said seemingly in high spirits.

I chuckled and patted her back.

“Yeah yeah, at ease”

“Why wasn’t I informed of the Commander’s waking?” She asked Ricardo, with some reproach in her voice. I saw Ricardo contain himself before blurting out what was probably some profanity.

“She just woke up, the Commander requested a change of clothes and we immediately brought her here” He answered with a contained voice.

Lai directed her view to him, and then to me.

“Commander, please follow me, I have a change of clothes ready for you” She said as she pointed out to a division inside the tent, which was big enough that a small ship could fit in easily.

“Please wait here Lieutenant Commander” I said to Ricardo, and did as she said, and went with her.

She lifted a cloth that was functioning as a door and signaled me to enter. After we both went in, I saw that this was a room really well equipped. A bed, a wardrobe and what even looked like a portable basin. I saw Lin, trying to get an answer and she noticed, smiling slightly.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“This was prepared as your tent, Commander. The colonists were eager to provide us with this for you”

“Please convey them my thanks, right now i don’t think they’ll be able to hear me with the clapping” I mumbled in a low voice but enough for her to hear me. She let out a soft laugh, and pointed at the wardrobe.

“I equipped it with some clothes for you, Commander, brought directly from the ship. Some of them are mine, so please forgive me if they are not your fit”

“Oh, thank you Lai”

I walked up to the wardrobe, and just as she said, there were several changes of clothes there, including underwear.

“Do you want me to leave?”

“Nah” I answered nonchalantly as I took off the rag I had for the only piece of clothing on me, getting completely bare once again, although in a completely different situation. I used a piece of fabric that looked like a towel to clean off the rest of the membrane that was on my body, leaving the towel like a soiled diaper which I tossed to the ground. Then I selected the first underwear I could put my hands on and put them on.

They were a perfect fit, so those we mine, probably. The thing with military clothing is that they all look the same. Next, I grabbed the only t-shirt available, only to see that it was a bit short for me. This should be Lai’s. It wasn't uncomfortable, just a bit tight on the chest area.

“Do you mind?” I asked her. I would have put it back but i just wanted something light, and almost everything here were jumpsuits.

“Please go ahead Commander”

I finished up with some military cargo pants and a black sleeveless jacket. It felt like I was back on the UN-Charon, as this type of clothes were what I wore while assigned there. Those were great days, truly. But no time to waste on memories, as there’s probably a lot of issues with the present at the moment, given the circumstances.

We left the room and came back to where the rest of the people were. Ricardo and the other soldiers were standing firm at the entrance, some outside warding it even. And there were some people with ordinary looks seated down in the few chairs inside.

One of them, an old guy with the white beard and hair combo, nodded at me when we crossed looks, and I did likewise.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you Commander Zsofia” He said with a raspy voice.

“Call me Lilith, mister…?”

“Arven Bast” He said with a weary smile “I’m the elected mayor of this colony, and please let me thank you on behalf of every single one of us, for you display of bravery on the field, you truly saved us”

I smiled back at him “Just don’t start clapping, or break into song”

He laughed at my joke, and pointed at a chair right in front of him. I sat down, understanding his meaning.

“We are eternally grateful to you and your crew for your help, and please direct my thanks to your superiors” He continued. “If you need anything we can provide, we’ll do our utmost during your stay here”

“Much appreciated Mayor Bast, and yeah, i’ll tell the old bastards, don't’ you worry”

He looked at me with a weird expression when I expressed my opinion of my so-called superiors, but moved on.

“We were worried that almost five earthen days had passed without you waking up, we feared the worst but…”

“Wait, I was out five days?”

Everyone looked at me, realizing i hadn’t asked and no one had told me.

“Oh yeah you just woke up, i’m sorry for bringing up the matter”

“No...don’t worry about it” I said, trying to ignore the matter.

Hallie, please include this type of information as well.

PLEASE?!

[...Acknowledged]

“So, what were you saying?” I asked, hoping for everyone to forget about my question.

“Right, so, i understand you might need to stay a few more days for healing and repairs, so don’t hesitate to rely on us… and i ask for your patience if you hear our youngest mention you by a rude nickname, they are also grateful to you but don’t know how to express it properly”

I raise an eyebrow at the comment, too specific to be an isolated matter.

“May I know what’s the nickname?”

“I don’t want to insult Commander… but they are calling you the Brass Devil”