Chapter Five

August 18, 2940

“Let’s just make sure that the codes are rotated bi-weekly, then,” Noah said with finality as he looked around his office and made eye contact with his senior security officers. Everyone but Lieutenant Valuri was nodding but Noah wasn’t surprised at Andrew’s frustrated glare. The last twenty minutes had been tense as the seven of them debated the change in encryption protocols and his first assistant had been advocating the position Noah chose not to adopt. The fact that the younger officer was aggravated by Noah’s pronouncement was to be expected considering how passionately he had argued his opinion but Noah didn’t comment. “Are there any other matters?” he said instead. No one answered so Noah tapped at his deck’s console and closed the meeting’s agenda. The others began to stand. “Hold up a second,” Noah said, causing everyone to pause.

“Chief?” Andrew asked.

“I want to talk about something unofficially,” Noah responded. His staff settled back down. “As you know, Commander Devereaux issued some guidance about a week and a half ago regarding the continued education of the crew. He and the captain provided some outlines about mission-critical certifications and everyone was encouraged to narrow their topics of study and tailor their training toward their current ship’s assignment.”

“Right,” Ensign McNally acknowledged. “Stop getting certifications in things that don’t make you better at your job.”

Noah nodded. “In essence, yes.”

“You weren’t too happy about that if I remember correctly,” Andrew said with a slight smirk.

“I wasn’t,” Noah responded. “I made my opinions known to the commander and the captain decided, as is her prerogative, not to endorse my position. Since then, I’ve been reviewing the current areas of study for all security officers and I’ve seen that everyone appears to be following the spirit of what was suggested. I’d like for you to pass along to your teams how pleased I am at our department’s commitment toward the ship’s mission.” Several heads nodded. Andrews wasn’t one of them.

“And…” the junior officer prompted, obviously suspecting more. Noah snorted, amused that his deputy knew him so well.

“And I’d like for you to pass along an off-the-record message from me. I’m pleased, as I said, but I am also concerned. I still think that cross-training is the right answer and, while I am not going to countermand my superiors, I am going to suggest that anyone who chooses to self-study on their off time should consider continuing to work on certifications from other ships’ divisions.” Muttering arose. “I know, I know!” Noah admitted, raising his hands. “Off-hours are precious but everyone in this room does dedicate some of their free time toward certification training. Most of the security department does. I’m just encouraging everyone to consider picking up other skills when they find themselves not on duty but still in an academic mood.”

Everyone on the ship worked toward certifications, studying hard to improve their knowledge. It was a fact of life aboard the Grace that one’s duty shift was often spent working on a new certification while monitoring whatever data was within that particular crewman’s purview. The level of automation and AI involvement meant that nearly everyone had a great deal of opportunity on their shift for education. Said time was utilized. The time outside of one’s duty shift – the leisure time – was a less popular time to be studying but Noah knew that just about everyone still did. It would be improper for him to suggest to his people that they cross-train while on duty; that time was ship time and the captain’s suggestion should be vigorously endorsed. But study during free time? That… was more flexible.

“Alright…” Andrew said a bit skeptically.

“I’m not making it an order,” Noah said. “Like the captain, I’m only making it a suggestion. While on duty, study the skills related to your assignment just like the captain wants. But if people find themselves studying outside of work hours, I would consider it a personal favor if they would contemplate broadening their academic interests.”

“Not sure why all this is necessary,” McNally muttered. “Not like we’re gonna be here much longer.”

Noah raised an eyebrow at the confidence in the ensign’s voice. “Really?”

“Yeah,” McNally said with a shrug, her eyes darting around to see if others would support her. “Everybody says we’ll be home by the end of the year. The captain. Commander Devereaux. We have to stay optimistic but it’s going to happen.” Noah noted a few of the other assembled crewmen nod. He knew that this belief in the inevitability of getting back to AVAL space was prevalent aboard the Grace, especially among the younger crew. They’d all worked incredibly hard over the past half-year and that work, combined with the company line in which no one was to give in to despondency or pessimism, meant that home felt within reach. There were times that even Noah found himself thinking their journey within this galaxy was limited. He knew, deep down though, that those thoughts needed to be informed by reality and not simply wishful thinking.

The Chief of Security nodded at the younger crewman’s words but let the silence grow. All eyes turned to him and he made an effort to appear pensive. “You know,” he said quietly, “I agree with the captain and the commander about the importance of being hopeful. We’re far from home and things could turn out badly if we start believing we’ll never make it. Hope motivates us to move forward. But I think you may be misconstruing the captain’s words. She wants everyone to hold firm to the belief that we will make it but she hasn’t promised it will be soon. We don’t know when we will get home. It could be by the end of the year, sure, but it could also be a long time from now. We have to be honest about that or else we may not do the things we need to do to get home. Like study or explore or make hard choices. It’s better to be honest about the challenging situation in which we find ourselves because that’s the only way we can see things clearly. Be hopeful, yes, but be honest. That’s why I think the cross-training is important. If we are going to be here for a while…”

“Then being able to do lots of different jobs becomes really important,” Andrew finished. “Builds redundancy and makes it easier on the ship if something bad happens to some of the crew.” No one said anything more and Noah felt the air leave the room. He looked up and made eye contact with everyone present.

“Right,” he confirmed. “And this is the security division. Our job is to protect the crew and the ship. We got to look out for threats that others don’t see and we need to take steps to minimize those threats where we can.” That seemed to do it and Noah watched as the others sat up a bit straighter and their eyes filled with the light of understanding. Then he smiled. “Alright. Pass along my message about cross-training during off hours. Come to me if there are any issues. You’re all dismissed.”

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*****

“We’ll be docking in ten minutes,” Hiromi said from the pilot’s seat, various notifications crossing Noah’s console to indicate his security subroutines were actively looking for threats. The Grace had finally made it to their next port of call, a large space station designated in their Syndicate records as Freeport Gamma Tango. The Bridge’s viewscreen showed the massive structure orbiting a large gas giant and Noah noted nearly a hundred vessels docked at the grey metallic structure. It looked much like Freeport Mauve, though the Syndicate notes indicated that the alliance of species managing this port was different from their former destination.

“Their trade master has sent over the appropriate codes?” Captain Ó Faoláin asked.

“They have,” Commander Devereaux announced. “I’m already communicating with the buyer. We should be able to offload our cargo soon after docking.

“Great,” the captain responded.

The past week had been uneventful, for the most part, with the Grace swinging by a unique-looking nebula and an odd binary-star gravity well to investigate. Specialist Ivanov and the science team hadn’t spotted anything that contributed to their journey home, however, so the readings had been cataloged while the Grace continued onward. Noah didn’t mind. He knew that there would likely be a lot of galactic phenomena that would require at least a cursory glance by the crew as they continued to look for a way home so the lack of results didn’t faze him. “My scans suggest no threats,” he reported.

“Data synch finalized,” Lieutenant Uba added.

“Alright,” Captain Ó Faoláin said as she stood from her seat and turned to look at the junior officers on the Bridge. “I have a bit of a surprise to announce.” Noah felt his stomach tighten. He was not particularly pleased about this surprise and had made sure to note an official protest in his own log earlier that morning. Glancing about at the junior staff, though, Noah could see that everyone looked intrigued. How unfortunate.

“Ser?” one of the navigators prompted. Cait grinned and tapped at the control next to her seat. It opened a channel throughout the ship.

“Crew, this is the captain. We are about to pull into Freeport Gamma Tango and Lieutenant Cellar, Commander Devereaux, and I have already lined up some trade goods that we want to purchase and transport elsewhere. This next trade run will net us a nice little profit and we are already spending some of the credits we’ve already earned on ship supplies and other necessities. However, we’ve been in this galaxy since February and it’s already the twenty-fifth of August. Everyone on board has worked very hard to contribute to the success of our mission to get home and I am incredibly proud of everyone. Having discussed the matter with Commander Devereaux, I have decided to open up personal credit accounts on the Grace for every member of the crew and will be depositing a small sum of credits within those accounts momentarily. We’re going to take some shore leave here at the station and the credits in your accounts will allow you to make some purchases at the station. Consider this your overdue payment for a job well done. The commander will be sending out notices shortly regarding shore leave rotation. Ó Faoláin out.”

The Bridge crew immediately let out a whoop of enthusiasm and Noah watched as huge grins spread across everyone’s face. The crew had not had any sort of shore leave, having spent every waking hour on board the Grace since coming out of stasis. The fact that they would get to walk on an alien station with credits in their pocket was sure to be met with eagerness throughout the ship and Noah watched as enthusiastic discussions broke out across the Bridge between junior officers planning for their unexpected time off. “Captain?” Noah asked loudly, catching her attention. “A word?”

Noah indicated her office and Cait nodded, issuing a few commands to Commander Devereaux before leading Noah into her private space. “I know what you’re going to say,” she began as soon as the door closed.

“Captain,” Noah said with controlled anger. “I want to re-raise my object. I just think that—”

Cait interrupted. “I know, but I’ve made the decision. I heard you out yesterday when I broached the subject with the senior staff and I know you are concerned. But the crew is tired and worn out. They need a bit of a vacation.”

“I’m head of security. I don’t like the idea of letting members of the crew wander around an unknown alien station. It’s a perfect opportunity for disaster. We don’t know these people and—”

“Your concern has been noted,” the captain said with a raised hand. “But I’d been thinking about this for the past few days – ever since our evaluation of the binary-star gravity well turned up nothing of note – and I think the risk is worth it. This station has a really good safety record, according to the Syndicate, and it appears they spend a lot of energy and time on making the station safe for guests. As we discussed yesterday, we are going to restrict the crew to certain decks and specific areas and no one is allowed to go by themselves. We’re also going to limit how many are allowed on station at any given time.”

Noah let out an unhappy huff. “I still think it’s a bad idea.”

The captain shrugged. “Well, then, consider it like this. We can’t do a lot of hand-holding out here. Our crew is full of barely trained cadets but they have to learn how to swim sooner rather than later. We have no idea what we might face in the next few months—” Cait paused and took a deep, contemplative-looking breath “—or years so we need to provide opportunities for the crew to take on responsibilities. Being responsible enough to go to an alien station with some funds in one’s pocket and without a senior officer looking over your shoulder is the perfect chance for most of them to gain confidence and a bit of self-reliance. If something bad happens, it’s better we deal with it here in relatively friendly space than somewhere in the deep dark when the ship’s safety and the lives of everyone are at risk.”

Running his hand through his short hair, Noah grunted. “That makes sense. I’m still concerned, though.”

“Be concerned. That’s your job.” Cait patted Noah on the shoulder. “But try to treat yourself when you go to the station, alright? You’ve been in a mood since your discovery about the Blackbird. Get a nice meal or buy a nicknack or something.”

Noah glared. The captain laughed.

*****

“So where are we going?” Hiromi said a minute later after sliding up to Noah’s station. He was triple-checking his security log and issuing a few last-minute orders to his team when he glanced over to his friend. “I was going through the station’s database a few hours ago out of curiosity and it looks like they have a huge bazaar in their trade district. Lots of little stalls that sell all kinds of crafts and stuff. I want to check it out.” Noah shrugged without committing. “Come on, it will be fun.”

“I’m not sure I really want to go over there,” Noah responded as Hiromi began to tap the polymer casing of the computer unit. “I think I’d rather stay here and monitor the crew. If something should happen…”

“Nothing’s going to happen,” Hiromi said confidently. “Besides, it looks bad if you stay on the Grace. If you’re not confident enough to go over there and mingle with aliens, why should any of the younger members of the crew do it?”

“I’ve already mingled with aliens,” Noah countered as he reviewed the latest report from the airlock security system. “On Falm’shma.”

“And I didn’t get to go,” Hiromi needled him. “And I was so jealous. Are you really going to make me miss this opportunity? I want to go hang out in the bazaar and buy stuff.”

“You can go without me, you know?” Noah said, slightly irritated.

“I could,” the chief pilot said immediately, “but I won’t have a good time if I know you’re over on the ship all moody. Might as well not go, then, since my trip would be ruined.”

Noah gave the young woman a flat stare. “So, you’re refusing to go if I don’t go?”

“Yep,” she said with a wide smile. “And I’ll hate you forever.”

“I hate you already,” he muttered.

“Whatever. I’ll make sure Bastien has us listed for shore leave at the same time, alright?”

“Fine,” Noah sighed. “Fine. But you have to buy me a treat when we’re over there.”

“Done!” Hiromi rapped her knuckles on Noah’s station and turned back toward her own. There were still some final matters to attend to before she could leave the bridge and Noah, having his own responsibilities, quickly put his friend’s antics out of mind. He did smile, though, as he began signing off on the latest tactical update.