First Journeys Chapter 19

After a day of classroom instructions, there was another dinner. Instead of China and silverware, there were rectangular stone slaps and long thin hook like utensils. The Nogoll Instructor mounted his floating disc and said.” As I mentioned yesterday, we will teach you to use the utensils of other cultures as well. While there are Fleet standard procedures for everything and Fleet Standard equipment we want you to learn as much as possible about other cultures. If you can use the sum of your cultural knowledge in some future event by not insulting members of a new species and thus prevent war, then you might think back on your Academy Dinners and thank us for trying to educate you.

"Today we are learning how the Attikan Culture eats at a formal event. The hooks represent the claws and are used to tear your food into smaller manageable bits. The food we serve today is also Attikan style. Those of you who can’t eat this will be presented with lookalike substitute food tailored to your metabolism.”

Two-Three who had found a seat next to me snickered.” I wonder what they will serve me then, as I can’t eat anything.”

The Nogoll instructor turned on his platform responding to the Non-Corp’s question, proofing they somehow monitored our conversations.” You will still learn how to use the utensils and pretend to eat. Your suit is equipped with a lock mechanism and the food will simply disintegrate. Many Non-Corps went through the Academy before you.”

They served the food that looked and smelled like slightly cooked carrion.

The Nogoll said.” It is imperative that you understand that you will be ambassadors of the Union when you meet other civilizations. Eating and the sharing of food is an important part of many cultures and can break down barriers. We want you to learn to accept what you might find disgusting without showing it. Now we don’t want you to eat poison or something harmful and you can in such cases decline partaking, but never show disgust or any other negative emotion when you are served foreign foods.”

The Nogoll suddenly gagged and almost threw up, and more and more cadets started to look sick, those who had noses tried to hold them close. Before I could ask what was going on I too got a whiff of the most horrible stench I had ever smelled. It was so bad my stomach turned and it took all my will power to keep the heaves down.

The Nogoll finally managed to say.” What in the Holy Mountains rocks is that?”

The Cadet who had introduced himself as Elly earlier on said proudly.” Gelatinous Pulse stink maggots. I wanted to celebrate the safety of my family and surprise you all with a wonderful delight!” The Elly had a wrinkled gray skin, a long triangular shaped head and two large triangular ears. Along with the deep set yellow eyes he almost looked like a furless Nubhir Wolf, except he did not have a teeth filled snout but an underarm long hose like trunk and his voice sounded just like mine would have if I talked through a long hose or pipe.

Holding his furry paws before his nostrils the Nogoll said.” To every rule there is an exception. We scrubbed, scanned and searched you. Where did you get these?”

" There was a snack machine in the hall, sir and I watched it being stocked and so I asked if they had any Elly Snacks. They man stocking it got me a whole case. I gladly share with everyone!”

“No need Cadet, but you helped me to make a point and showed us that we all, me included, need to learn to keep our reactions better under control. To make my point, were you offended by my reaction to your offering, that was meant as a present?”

“Offended, no of course not, it takes us Elly years to get used to the smell and kids react just like you do, but I do understand what you trying to make us see, Sir.”

“Well now please eat your Maggots fast and put them away so I can continue with my instructions and…” He stopped and threw his hands in the air.” No not tonight, I am an Instructor for a long time and have taught thousands of new Cadets to accept seemingly revolting foods and tonight you taught me a lesson, so tonight we forget about the eating utensils and I just instructed the kitchen to serve Pizza. The one food I learned almost everyone likes.”

The Cadets greeted the announcement with a cheer and as it ebbed off some lonely voice somewhere said.” I don’t like pizza.”

Right after the wakeup call and a hurried shower, the Nogoll inspected us and found hundred things wrong with the uniforms. He was only satisfied when the last Cadet looked exactly like regulations required, then he said.” You are lucky Cadets as we are not the Marines. You would already made 200 pushups for every problem I found on your uniforms, but we too put great emphasis on personal fitness. Now it seems quite difficult to find a common denominator and a training regimen that is equally demanding on all of you but the Academy found an elegant solution to the problem. We simply train you hard and it is your responsibility to keep up. ”

For the first exercise we had to get up where the transparent dome that encased the entire academy areal rested on a Duro-Crete ring. The foundation ring was about 5 meters wide and as I learned exactly 12 kilometers long and 10 meters high. The transparent material split the ring more or less in the middle and created a two meters wide ledge on the inside of the dome. The foundation wall below the ring had doors in equal intervals I had entered the Academy a few days ago through one of these. Over a ladder we had to climb up onto that inner ledge and then they simply made our group of ten cadets run around that rim. Other Cadet groups lifted weights, climbed robes attached to scaffolds or carried boxes up and down the stairs leading from the domes perimeter to the Applicant roads. My group included an Elly, the Non-Corp and the Garbini, four humans and two Attikan. I did not know the names of the others yet. I learned that the circumference of the pressure dome of the Academy was exactly 12 kilometers. I considered myself a decent runner and had a good condition from swimming and diving.

The Attikan, the trunk nosed Elly and the Humans had no problem with this exercise and for the first two rounds it was actually like a little contest between me and the two Attikan. They reminded me a little of Terran Wolfs. As the Wolf was the Olafson herald animal it was one of the Earth animals I knew and I had made a point to check them out during a Virtual Zoo Visit. The Attikan had the same kind of short coarse fur, except around the shoulders and up their necks where it was much longer. Their snouts were much shorter than that of a wolf and their ears not pointed but round. Both Attikan were as tall as I am and very muscular. They walked like a Wolf would walk upright and on their toe tips, their heels were much higher up the leg. To support their upright walk they wore boots with enormous high heeled wedge like soles to support their tip toe walk. The one with the gray fur and the black dots introduced himself as Pure and the one with brown fur and black horizontal fur stripes listened to the name of Fectiv.

Fectiv and I ran at head to head and he laughed in a coughing manner. "Your fast human, but you couldn’t keep up with a Attikan if I ran for real.”

I kept a good pace and regulated my breathing .” Well then my new friend, I think we need to run for real then.”

“How about to that second flight of stairs leading to Applicant road four?” He suggested. I estimated it to be about 500 meters from where we were right now and I said. “Let’s go for it!”

He dropped and ran on hands and legs, like a real wolf did and truly took off in a burst of speed. I sprinted as fast as I could, at school I ran the 400 meters at 49.56 and that was decent.

Still the Attikan beat me by many lengths but I almost kept up with the other Attikan. The rest of our group was far behind. After I caught my breath Fectiv put his paw on my shoulder.” You are fast human! I think you could run with an Attikan Family.”

“I am not so sure. You look quite fresh and I am pumped.”

“Well I use four legs and Attika has vast planes, bigger than some planets oceans and in our stone age Attikan had to run away from Zinools when we tried to snatch their kill.”

I wiped my mouth and grinned.” I bet your planes are not as big as the oceans on Nilfeheim.”

“You know Attika?”

“Not really but Nilfeheim is all water, except for a few specks of rocky islands.”

He laughed.” I wonder how you learned to run so fast on a planet without land to run on.”

“My world freezes over for seven years and you can run on ice just fine.”

An instructor came floating up to us.” Being faster than the others doesn’t mean you can stop running. It just means you have to do more rounds! Now get moving!”

So we started running again but at a measured pace. From up here I could look outside and see the planets yellowish brown cracked surface .Everywhere groups of Cadets engaged in a physical exercises, supervised by black uniformed Instructors. Pure didn’t talk very much and I asked Fectiv about it. He turned to his friend and then back to me and said.” He is a Striped, they never say much. It’s nothing personal." Pure curled his chaps revealing a row of sharp incisors.” And he is a dotted they talk way too much.”

Remembering Mix I said.” What does the showing of teeth mean for an Attikan?”

Pure made a few faster steps to catch up.” There are hundreds of ways to show your teeth. Right now I was trying to insult Fectiv, not in a real bad way though. You see how he put the ears and his tail, that means he understood it was not serious. Now if you see an Attikan with the Neck fur all standing up and the chaps up as far as possible, that is as serious as it gets.”

Pure glanced down the rim.” Not that I feel very comfortable running so high up and that you can see because my tail isn’t doing much, but hanging down.”

Fectiv said.” I am not exactly feeling all that well either, but I manage and I am very pleased you want to know about Attikan, maybe you can tell me what it means when a human raises the bushy fur remnants above their eyes. My Union teacher was a human and he did it all the time.”

“It could mean surprise if it is both eye brows and amazement if it is one.”

As we talked we made it around the rim and caught up with the others. I reached Two-three and he complained as he noticed me.” While I don’t have muscles that could get tired, ita lot of concentration to keep the legs moving that fast.”

" What do you mean by concentrating?”

“I don’t really have legs you know. I must visualize every movement, be it a finger move or a leg and then put some of my energy in that visualized shape and then change the shape to mimic muscle movement. What you do sub consciously takes an awful lot of thinking on my part. Especially since the instructors turned off the Computronic module that normally does that for me.” He actually stumbled and I caught him.” You see I get distracted and I mix up my legs.”

“I bet you do just fine floating in a sun and I would not know what to do!”

“I would show you of course, but I think Potsema our Garbini friend is in worst shape.” I looked behind us remembering passing the Methane breather. The Garbini struggled visibly on his six walking tentacles. One of the instructors mocked him.” Come on you slow invertebrate, you got six legs. Moving slower than a Shaill without a Grav Sled.”

To me the instructor yelled.” Don’t slow down Olafson. Don’t let those slow misfits keep you. You’re fast! Show them how it´s done!”

I still slowed down and fell next to the Garbini and said.” Are you alright?”

He had a distressed sound in his voice.” The Instructor said he fails me if I don’t make it all the way around at least once. It is hard for me to stay on my tentacles walking on a flat surface when I walk! I can’t run that far, we live in trees. We are not meant to run, you see I don’t have bones, just muscle and without the Exo-skeleton that we use normally to walk, I am screwed. I wanted to be an Officer so badly.”

“That reminds me of an old friend of mine and many stairs. He had only bones and no muscles. How much do you weigh?”

The Garbini’s tentacles shivered.” I think about 95 kilos under one Gee.”

To the instructor I said.” You won’t fail him if he makes it once around right?”

“If he completes at least one round he will pass.”

“Potsema you got lots of Tentacles to hold on, let me carry you! He didn’t specify how you going to get around the circle.”

The Garbini stopped.” Are you serious?”

“Don’t argue I don’t have that much breath to spare!”

It was a weird feeling to have his tentacles worm around me, but I simply ignored it, thought about the stairs of Hasvik and told myself at least I could see an end here and it was not cold as I was back then when I had to climb those narrow icy stairs. I ran with the Garbini on my back trying to fall in an energy saving rhythm as much as possible. He did not feel heavier then that sack of Soak stones I had dragged up the mountain side of Muspelheim, but then I had grown since then and that episode felt like it happened a life time ago. I was drenched with sweat but we made it once around, twelve kilometers with a Garbini on my back wasn’t as fun as I thought it would be. The physical training instructor who had mocked the Garbini awaited us and said.” Well the Garbini made it but your Non Corp Buddy hasn’t. Well maybe there is another Non Corp in the next class.”

I tried to catch my breath and stemmed both my hands against my knees. I saw Two-Three about a 1000 meters ahead, struggling keeping his legs moving.” How long does he have?”

“I give him two hours to but he never going to make it at that pace.”

“I wonder why you doing this. He has no legs you know!” Then I ran to get the Non Corp.

After I reached him and I explained to Two-Three that I wanted to carry him he said.” But why would you do that for me?”

“Odin’s beard! ” I yelled.” Get on my back and don’t argue! I simply hate unfair situations!”

The Non Corp was surprisingly light and not more than perhaps twenty kilos and half way round Pure caught up with me.” I can help too, let me take Two-Three for the rest of the way!”

We made it in good time and I grinned at the Instructor, who was a human and said.” I guess you don’t have to wait for the next class. This one still has a Non Corp!”

“We see if we have a Neo Viking after the next exercise!” He responded and led us to a large framework of interlocking metal bars about ten meters of the ground and 20 meters long. Looking much like a horizontal metal ladder attached to horizontal ones at each end. ” I think the next station is self explanatory. You see those sand bags, there are ten for each of you, get them over to the other side, without touching the ground. It doesn’t matter how you do it.”

The Non Corp said. “If we had some conveyor system that be the ticket.”

“That’s a good idea, Two Three, that is how we going to do it .I grinned and the Garbini waved his tentacles.” Of course we do the same as we did with the water sleeve in the queue!”

The other cadets easily grasped the idea and with a cadet sitting in equal spaced intervals on the scaffold we formed a chain and simply passed the bags along and the Garbini showed his skills at the end carrying four bags at a time and a cadet who was afraid of heights all at once.

They gave us similar tasks all day long without a lunch break. At the end of the day I had cramps all over and felt sore in muscles I didn’t even know I had.

The Nogoll instructor gathered us together and said. "Each of you has strengths and weaknesses and you all are only as strong as the weakest of you. Today you learned and demonstrated that by working together all obstacles can be mastered. I am proud of you all, you showed some great team work. Now you have exactly 12 minutes to shower and get into formal uniform and meet me at the Dinner hall.”

“No matter how tired or exhausted you are, I don’t want to see you yawn or nod off.” The Nogoll said from his Hover disc.” Imagine you are all at a state dinner and you are guests of honor. Present are the leaders of a potential new member species. There will be an officer or two at each table and you will make polite small talk. Follow the instructions and again, if I see someone yawn or sleep you will fail this exercise and test.”

I whispered to Two Three. “Lucky you, you have no eyes to fall shut or yawn. Do you actually get tired?”

“Yes we do get tired, not in a physical sense like Corporals do, but in a mental one and rest periods are very much necessary to keep a good mental balance. Believe me I am as tired as can be today, but I can help you if you want.”

“Help me? How?”

“I can boost your neural energies, it won’t be like sleeping and you still need nourishment from bio chemical processes, but the electro chemical energies I can increase. Manipulating energies is something we Non Corps do all the time after all.”

He touched my hand and it was as if I had just finished twenty cups of coffee and taken a cold shower. I felt as fresh and alert as jumping naked into a snow drift.” Thor’s thunder! ”

“Be careful though it is only a neural stimulus, and won’t last long. You still need sleep soon.”

“Who needs sleep?” I checked out the Officer that was sitting on our table. It was a female human and I said.” Hello Guest of Honor, how is your planet today?” My mind was racing! I could not stop talking or really sit still! I said things before I could stop myself.

She said with a smile.” I am from Simula Cadet and I would assume everything is fine with it.”

“Oh no, that can’t be true! Your planet is poorer and in miserable shape. For you are not gracing it with your lovely presence!” I didn’t just say that or did I? ” I wonder how you managed to get in to that Uniform Lieutenant, or is it painted on? It appears two sizes to small!”

The only time I felt that way was when I accidentally drank one of Egill’s Cola Vodka mixes and was drunk as a Nubhir Herder.” How can I make small talk with someone so well endowed? It should be big talk, if you ask me!”

She blinked and said.” Are you alright Cadet Olafson?”

“Alright? Of course I am alright. I feel great and not the least bit tired. I can even calculate and add sums in my mind while we talk. It is amazing, I could never do that before!”

Two-Three said.” Oh my I think I overdosed you a little. “Try to drink some water and eat and be quiet!”

The Nogoll said.” Cadet Olafson. Small talk does not mean you have to entertain the entire table. An officer is always tactful and distinct. If I would not know better I say you are drunk!”

“Sir! I had a some water today. What do you call a Nogoll beard by the way? Is it a goatee?”

“Mr. Olafson since you are so fresh and still have so much energy, I think there are lawns to mow!”

“Thank you so much! I couldn’t sit still another minute. How do you mow a lawn? We don’t have those on Nilfeheim.”

An hour later I knew how a lawn was mowed at the academy, with hand scissors and on my knees.

It was late at night, whatever Two-Three had done to me, the effects were long gone and I was all alone on the lawn segment with a pair of scissors clipping green grass with a pair of long handled scissor clippers. The Sun simulator at the top of the dome was off and light was provided by individual lamps lining the applicant roads. The cone shaped Academy administration building was mostly dark only a few windows had lights behind them. In the distance up at the rim I saw a pair of Cadets in Dark green dress uniforms complete with duck bill caps and shock batons walking perimeter patrol.

It was actually only 50 meters till the little groomed tree, that marked the end of the area I had to clip, but clipping grass the way I was, it would take all night. Since the strange energy boost had worn off I could feel the soreness of my muscles and my eyes were sandy and I was as tired as I never had been before, at least that is how I felt. I was tempted to simply lay down and sleep right here. The grass was nice and soft, but I would clip that grass! I also promised myself to not to accept Two-Three’s offers for help unless I knew what he meant to do.

From the building came Potsema, carrying a four clipper tools at once.” I thought I help you Eric. I got lots of arms and it will go faster.”

“I sure hope you don’t get into trouble, for being out here after lights out.”

“No I asked and volunteered that’s how I got these clippers, the others of our section are coming too. Except two of the humans who didn’t want to lose sleep.”

He started clipping and I got a warm feeling as I saw Two-Three, the Elly, Pure, Fectiv and two of the humans of our group coming out all carrying clippers.

We were done in short time and the Nogoll instructor used a metal ruler checked the length of the grass and nodded.” Well done Cadets, now get cleaned up and go to sleep.”

The next day they issued us Pressure suits and made us sweep the landing fields. Working in a pressure suit was exhausting and the fine powdery sulphuric dust resisted sweeping quite stubbornly, of course the Instructors were only then satisfied after the landing field was clean. I wondered what this exercise was for. The Nogoll answered my question by saying: ” It isn’t an exercise. The Commandant likes the landing field clean and here at the Academy we don’t need to use expensive robots. We always have plenty of Cadets.”

After this we had Class again and it was about military courtesy and how to salute, greet, snap to attention or stand at ease.

Admiral Stokes finished his last report and as usual he was among the last. Cheeka was already gone and probably home by now. Her desk was as usual very orderly and organized. He had different assistants before her, but she was by far the best. She would have made a fine Chief. He wondered if she had any of her Cookies left. He was an Ult and had no sense of taste or smell, at least not like humans had, and no Ult would eat anything baked, cooked or fried. It took the Ult much longer than other civilizations to discover and utilize fire, being an amphibious species, and when they finally did it was not used for cooking or heating. Ulta was a warm planet and heating was not necessary. After living almost 3000 years alongside humans and other species, some Ult began to eat steamed meals but it was still considered unusual and out of the norm, but he spend most of his adult life in the Union Fleet and he often thought of himself more human than some humans and adopted many mannerisms and habits. The crunchy buttery cookies sanding up his throat but then dissolving was a pleasurable experience only Cheeka’s cookies could provide. Ah there in the upper left drawer, a box with the light brown flaky baked things, his lower fin folded sideways, that was how an Ult smiled. He sat down with the box of cookies on the desk and ate another one.

The FleetCom terminal started blinking and the Fleet Headquarter Logo surrounded by five stars appeared on the activating field screen. There was only one Officer who had five stars. Admiral of the Fleet Obrock Mc Elligott, it was either him or his office calling. He accepted before the call would be routed to the Main Desk. A handsome second Lieutenant appeared and he said.” Hello Sweet cheeks, my boss wants to talk to your boss is he still in?”

Webb activated visuals and said.” I am flattered you call me Sweet cheeks, Lieutenant, but if your boss wants to talk to my boss, he would have to talk to himself, right?”

The man sat upright and became all business.” Oh sorry Sir! I did not mean any disrespect. I thought I am calling Ms. Hopkins.” Stokes remembered that Cheeka’s last name was Hopkins since she dissolved her last marriage contract.” My assistant went already home and I will ask her tomorrow if she feels offended you calling her not by her proper name. Now get me connected to the Admiral.”

“Yes Sir, right away!”

Mc Elligott was in his office holding a golf club and standing before a simulation that transferred the rear of his office into a luscious green golf course with old looking buildings in the distance. “Ah Webb, there you are. I was not sure if you were still in the office or not. I know you usually are and so I called. Turn on your Avatar and join me for a few chips, I just received this new Simulation of St. Andrews. It now even captures the smells of Scotland.”

“I was on my way out when you got me Sir. I am not good at that human game!”

“You are the best darn Ult golfer in the entire Union and you know it. There are humans who wish to be half as good as you.” Elligott however turned the Simulation off and handed his club to the robotic golf bag and turned on his Avatar instead and appeared in the anteroom of the Academy Commandant’s office.

Webb was long enough around humans to be able to differentiate and recognize even subtle facial expressions and body language. The Old Admiral was an old man even before the Guardian had made him immortal and so his appearance of an old man had been frozen in time and he always appeared like a wrinkled white haired man with a slight bend stature. While he wore the Uniform jacket of a Fleet officer with all the decorations and rank insignia the highest ranking officer in the fleet had, he wore a skirt. Not that anyone knowing Obrock ever use the word skirt, but the word kilt. It was the traditional dress of the Highlanders, a special tribe from Earth. The kilt, the single malt scotch whiskey, the socks and black shoes were the famous trademarks of the Immortal Admiral. Every school kid in the Union knew about these things, but Webb was certain that only very few knew where the original Scotland was or the meaning behind those trademarks. Elligott walked to the big windows and said.” I do have a few things I wanted to discuss with you and it is official business too, more or less, but we still need to go golfing again. And no simulation either but right at the real St. Andrews.”

“I have been there three times now with you, Sir. You should come with me to Ulta, we do have our first Golf course there as well and it is a very scenic 6449 Par 67 course.”

“Send me an invitation and actually follow up, and I be there!”

Webb ate another cookie and waited for the old man to come to the reason for his visit.

Mc Elligott pointed out the window. “I am not interfering with Academy business, but I would like to know why there are ten cadets all by themselves painting one of the already red Applicant roads red again.”

“Because one of them hid a Gelatinous Stink Pulse Maggot in one of the lesser liked instructor’s back pocket and there was a considerable disturbance when said instructor, took his break came up here, sat down in the Officers mess hall and squashing the maggot.”

Elligott chuckled. “That is a good one. They had to air out the Assembly at Pluribus for two days after the Elly had that cultural specialties lunch almost all new members hold and only about fifty delegates showed up for the feast and all species without noses or sense of smell. I see there is an Elly among them, was it him?”

“I am pretty sure, but when we asked who did all ten stood up and insisted they did the deed.”

“That’s a pretty tight group for three day old Cadets.”

“Very unusual indeed and it is that Neo Viking, the blonde one down there who was the initial cause to get them stick together.”

“Neo Viking you say? Olhausen, Olbertson…Olafson. Is his name Olafson?”

Webb stopped putting another cookie in his mouth.” Yes Eric Olafson, that’s his name. Do you know him”

“Not really, no, but his name turned up before and there aren’t many Neo Vikings this side of Nilfeheim, I think Richard had interest in him if he hasn’t forgotten by now.”

“What official business is it that you wanted to discuss, Sir?” Webb was disappointed to find out he just ate the last cookie.

" Well since there is an Elly in that group and he seems to get along with the others, even making Academy pranks, I think I take those ten down there.”

“You take them?” Webb said and leaned forward.” Where?”

“Oh silly me, I forgot to tell you. The Yokuta want to celebrate the Union Victory over the Nogoll. The Yokuta are a virtual unknown species that until know slaved for the Nogoll in a star system named Arlicherb. The Nogoll ruled with iron fist over the Yokuta for over 300 years and now they are free. They are a Tech Level 3 society and technically or cultural quite unimportant, but I rather have the Yokuta join the Union as them being turned by the Kermac or have another Free Space system were Pirates can hide and exploit the natives.”

Webb nodded.” I can understand that. I know this corner of space quite well, as it is right in front of Arsenal’s front door so to speak and I am certain the Kermac know about the Yokuta and just wait for the Union to leave, turn them into a thrall species and regain control over an important system they had lost due to the Nogoll, but what does all this have to do with Plebes Cadets, barely 4 days in the Academy?”

“The Yokuta heard 300 years of bad propaganda about the Union, and they don’t trust us. But they do trust the Elly who are genetically related to them. The Yokuta Tribal Council wanted to talk to a young Elly who made friends with other Union species. The Yokuta believe youth speaks the truth as they didn’t have enough practice to lie like adults and Elders. Now I see an Elly best buddies with Humans, two Attikan, a Garbini and a Non Corp. I would have preferred a fully trained Ensign, but these are the first joining, right?”

“There are sixty that made the entry qualifications, and a few thousand joined Basic training so I heard from the Space Naval School for Enlisted Personnel.”

“Put two more Elly in that group down there and remove two of the humans and have them report at the Landing field at 0800 tomorrow morning. Issue full dress Uniform. The whole affair will last only a day and they be back in time to be ferried to base camps.”

Webb used his PDD and made it an official order and had the Admiral sign off on it then transmitted his orders to the instructors.

Ealy did not make it to Kermac Prime he had received an order from the First Billie to head for the Tilbahr dust cloud and await orders. The Tilbahr cloud was 14 light years from The Nog and within TLFAX range. His reconnaissance units reported that the Kermac main system was swarming with Kekall and Hythagh Battle Ships. The Kermac had obviously prepared for such an eventuality. His orders had him miss out on the big battle in the Ontbe System. Only a handful of small courier ships had made it out and joined them here at this secret Nogoll rally point. The survivors told him that the new Rear Admiral had the Erba System surrounded with Thor Gun Boats and used long range sniper Translocators ,and fast Fighter attacks without committing his Capital units who in turn attacked Erba and ‘The Nog’ simultaneously. There were no news of Erba or ‘The Nog’, Erba was just one planet and a handful of ships. The Nog was the Nogoll home world, it was where the Holy Mountain was. The reconnaissance ships he had sent to reconnoiter around ‘The Nog’, had not returned. He was close enough for TLFAX but none of his coded messages were answered. Then four hours ago a message came: ” All remaining independent Nogoll forces, ‘The Nog’ has fallen. The Holy Mountain is desecrated by foreign troops and the bones of the Ancestors are ground to dust under the boots of Union Marines. I am Sreal the 2nd of the Itsna Dynasty and I am the last. Fight, seed terror and death among our enemies! You will not last but make them whisper the name Nogoll with fear and remember it for generations!”

Shortly after a second TLFAX message came: “This is Captain Asril of the white Nogoll, I was made the temporary military governor of ‘The Nog’. The Black Nogoll rebels of Erba confirm the end of the Itsna dictator ship. Hagurr the poet and dissident was successfully and unharmed freed from state prison and want to run for election to be the first democratic elected Billie of Nogoll history. We know that there are still Nogoll forces out there, you have no supply bases, and your old government no longer exists. Come home lay down your weapons and help in the process building a new free Nogoll and a free ‘The Nog’. You will be treated as honored enemies and face no harm or shame. However all Units and Nogoll troops that do not surrender and continue to fight will be considered Pirates and not enemies and will be dealt with as criminals.”

Ealy opened ship to ship and spoke :“Traitors! White Nogoll back on the Nog, traitors! Hagurr this pacifistic weakling who could not attract a single nanny, now wants to be first Billie, traitors! Sreal the second has not surrendered and gave us an order! We will fight and carry out his will to the last ship and Billie!”

His scanner operators confirmed the approach of a Union Fleet. They needed to hide, wait for a good moment and strike at soft targets, not slug it out with a space fleet in open combat.

But only two ships made it with him and out of the Dust cloud, able to outrun the Union sensor beams. All was lost, he would go home to Arlicherb. Sneak in with a dozen small boats, hide out in the old mountain base and make plans to make the Union and the traitors pay somehow!”

Lieutenant Ovil, our white furred Nogoll instructor said.” Today we will exercise in our extensive pool facilities. We want to make sure that all those cadets who possibly can will learn how to swim.”

For once there was good news in the morning! I thought and looked forward to wet my gills and swim and dive.

Potsema wiggled with all his upper tentacles.” I know Garbini can swim. My brother learned it but I am still terrified!”

I put my hand on his shoulder and said.” No worries we are all there and help you.”

Fectiv cuffed me and said.” Let’s see if you can beat me swimming! I was reading up on Neo Vikings you know! You are supposed to be amphibious!”

“You read up on Nilfeheim?”

“Pure and I wanted to know more about you. It is Attikan tradition to honor a friend by learning about his home and family.”

“That is a good tradition and I will do the same tonight about Attika.”

Two Three was also excited.” Water, have I told you how much I find liquids fascinating?”

The Elly, both Attikan and almost said simultaneously.” Yes!”

Then we laughed and Potsema asked.” What is so fascinating about it? Isn’t a sun’s surface sort of liquid too?”

Two-Three rung his hands try to gesture something and then said.” It is not easy to explain. A star is all chaos, nothing is orderly and an only held together by magnetics and gravitons. Do you know how long it takes for a photon that is created inside a star to reach the surface and actually escape? That photon travels at light speed no less.”

Pure dropped one of his hears and scratched behind it.” It should be almost instantaneous, even the biggest star isn’t big when it comes to light speed right?”

Two-Three sighed. It can take many years before it reaches the surface. Being bounced around, bent and deflected. You see not even orderly light is orderly and straight inside a sun. Water is liquid but it follows very simple rules and inside all the molecules are orderly and in long chains. You have no idea how much I enjoy being with all of you and in an orderly world.” He stomped his suited foot on the floor.” I just love solid things!”

Potsema snaked a few tentacles around Two-Three.” The whole academy thing started out pretty scary, but now I think it is great.”

The Elly crossed his stumpy looking arms.” You squiggled Eric and now Two-Three. I think it is my turn next! I wasn’t hugged by a female in ages!”

I raised an eyebrow.” Potsema is female?”

“Yes I am, you did not know?”

“No I did not really look at you in terms of gender at all. How do you tell a female from a male Garbini?”

“There are many ways. I have light brown and red fur and ten tentacles. Males have eleven tentacles and usually black or gray fur and never any red.”

“I now know I should have paid much more attention in school and most of all not secretly skip the Neural uploads with Captain Ironhand or Navy Magazines.”

Fectiv’s tail swished.” You managed to switch discs during upload hour? Our teacher was always checking!”

“I could have never done it with Mr. Walters but we had a different teacher the last few years and Mr. Flensburger was not as hard to fool.” I frowned.” Now I know I should not have done that. You all know stuff about each other and I can’t even tell a female Garbini and know nothing about the Elly.”

“Don’t feel bad. I know little about humans yet!” The Elly said.

Our white furred instructor looked at his PDD. “Cadets assemble in Corridor B before the escalators and wait there. Following Cadets are to report in full dress uniform, cover and side arm at Applicant road two Dome Exit hall at 0700: Olafson, Eric, Ak Pure, Ak Fectiv, Potsema Pe, Onli Nevar…”

I cursed my luck. Whatever we had to do wasn’t swimming. I was certain that Swimming and dress uniforms did not go together, the names he called were the others of my new group of friends. Except we had now three Ellis in the group and Hanlin and Bergdorf, two humans walked grinning to the escalators. Pure rippled the upper part of his snout and around the nostrils.” I sure wonder what they cooked up for us. Dress Uniform and side arms. I never heard they issue side arms to Cadets until year three.”

Fectiv pointed at Purse’s snout and said to me.” That’s how an Attikan shows surprise by the way!”

The Elli looked all alike to me and one of them said. “We Elly do this when we are surprised.” His trunk retracted almost completely into his skull and his voice sounded meek and high.” If an Elly gets too excited or surprised we can choke on our own noses!”

The other two Ellies shook their trunks back and forth and one of them said.” This group seems fun!”

A new instructor we had not seen before, he was human send us through an auto dresser and we all emerged in perfect fitted, pressed real black navy uniforms with golden closure snaps, all that was different was a big green ring around the sleeves and no rank insignia at all. Dress uniform consisted of a stiff collar black shirt with buttons, a waist coat with a diagonal cut collar that was half way flapped down and the inside of this was white contrasting with the otherwise black uniform, The diagonal flap could be raised and fastened with a series of golden colored snaps. The black pants ended in also black all terrain boots. There was a white belt with the Union Fleet symbol on the belt buckle. There was an empty holster for a gun and two loops for some missing equipment. Black gloves and a white hat with black duckbill (called cover) The human instructor carried a PDD checked us all at least five times, then he was joined by two more who went over our uniforms made me wear the gloves that came with it and barked at Pure to do the same. No one really told us what was going on. Two Three leaned over and said.“I think we are going to a state funeral or something like that.”

The nervous human instructor said.” We are now handing out fully functional and fully loaded Union Fleet Standard TKU Side arms. Since you are not instructed in using them properly you are prohibited from touching them. The same goes for the swords and the daggers that are attached to the loops on your belts. While these are ceremonial weapon they are real, if I see anyone of you so much as touch his weapons you will wish not to have been born.”

After a while there were more instructors around us than cadets and they all were nervous. While we didn’t stand in attention we weren’t really able to talk to each other. Everyone carried a PDD and a clip board tried to look important.

We were at one of the Academy Dome entrances, wide doors in the Duro-Crete wall underneath that rim we had used for our first PT exercise. Behind the doors was a waiting room with benches, vending machines, bath rooms and an air lock that allowed access to the space field beyond at the outside of the planet.

Someone yelled, “Admiral on deck.”

We weren’t exactly old hands and except for Two-Three none of the Cadets including me did anything. Two Three looked around.“Where is he? Is it a real one?” A Lieutenant hissed. “Did you not hear? Attention, Cadets!”

“Now that was something they had already told and taught us and I put myself in the required rigid posture.

From the Academy building and up the stairs to where we were came an old man. He walked briskly and without difficulties, despite his apparent high age. He wore a black Uniform jacket just like ours, but instead of pants he wore a red skirt that ended just above a set of knobby knees. Among the first instructions we had was a lecture about rank insignia and if I remembered right this was a Five Star Admiral. I was certain even the fleet did not have all that many of those and this most likely explained the nervous Instructors. What it did not explain was what we were doing here, but this was the career I had chosen for myself and I would have to stand in attention before higher ranking officers all my life from now on.

The old man said. “At ease Cadets.”

One of the instructors behind the Admiral slapped his hand before his face as one of my human comrades actually sat down and one of the Elly took his jacket off. Fectiv waved at the Admiral.” Nice to meet you Sir. The other human cadet went straight for the Admiral. “Do you think I can get an autograph, Sir? You are the Mc Elligott Immortal are you not?”

Pure snorted.” No I don’t think he is, the Immortal Admiral has a scar and is taller.”

“Attention!” One of the Instructors yelled red in his face and we responded as we had learned.

The old Admiral glared at the Lieutenant. “If allow men to be at ease you don’t put them back into attention. I can see they are greener than their uniforms and then he said to us. “I am Admiral Mc Elligott. I am the Admiral of the fleet and I am the other Immortal. The old and wrinkly one, not the tall and famous Admiral Stahl.” He waved his hand.” Be at ease but don’t walk away and listen to what I have to say.”

He gave us a moment.” I am fully aware that you are brand new Cadets and that you just yesterday received your first drill instructions as how to stand in attention and it appears they had not entirely covered the subject of how to stand at ease.”

Pure spread his paws.” They did mention it but at the very end and they wanted to continue today.”

“I am glad they mentioned it then Cadet. Now we all will take a little three day trip to a nearby planet system and it will actually be your very first real mission as Union Fleet personnel. It is not a training exercise or a test but a real diplomatic mission.”

That did get my attention and I listened closer.

“We are invited by the Yokuta and they requested more or less you to be present, by that I mean a cross section of Union Youth that just begun to serve and they want to hear from you what it means to be a Union citizen and a Union Soldier.”

He reached in a pocket and produced a black and brown object, he fiddled with the thin, and I thought was probably a pipe. I had seen a few of those in use by fisher men and Snapper herders. He put one end between his teeth.” While you can’t tell them much about being Officers or soldiers yet, you can tell them why you chose this career. I want you to be honest with them, but try to be positive. Goal of the whole thing is to tip them towards a Union Membership.”

One of the Elly padded the palms of his hand like appendixes together. “I know of the Yokuta. I think they once were a Colony of ours or something like that, but they are in Galactic Council space and the Nogoll won’t allow us to visit them.”

The Admiral put a small flame to the other end of the pipe and produced a small cloud of blue smoke, much to the utter fascination of most of the Cadets and some of the Instructors too.

Elligott appeared to be pleased about the cloud.” This has changed, the Black Nogoll at least as you knew them no longer exist, they have been defeated and the Yokuta are their own masters once again.”

He looked at something like a wrist PDD and turned to one of the Instructors.” Be a good lad and check on the USS Shetland, she is bound to be here by now and it is not like Captain Mackenzie to be late.”

“Yes Sir!”

Then the Admiral turned back to us.” Now we are not the Nogoll or Galactic Council and there is no real reason for us to remain in that system and with the Yokuta after the victory celebrations are over. We can’t simply establish a military base or install Orbital platforms. We can’t even use one of the planets as the Yokuta have reached Tech level three and it is their system.” He puffed another cloud of smoke and this time I got a whiff and it smelled not like any smoke I knew.

“Now you may wonder why the Union really needs another Star System or is so eager to win the Yokuta over instead of them seeking membership on their own or not.”

One of the Elly who was slightly taller than the rest said.” I can think of a few reasons.”

Elligott’s bushy white eyebrows shot up.” Do surprise me, Cadet!”

“The Yokuta being on their own could either be taken over by the Kermac or opt to be protected by the Free Space Treaty and deny the area for both Union and Kermac but open it wide for pirates as it would create a direct connection to the Honaster expanse and basically something like a corridor of free space.”

“Zounds! Cadet you managed to surprise me and that isn’t easy! That is exactly the reason. How come you know that?”

“My father is the representative of my world and belongs to the Elly delegation and I was always interested in these things.”

“We need to talk Cadet. You know there is an Officer specialization in Intelligence services you might like!”

I paid no longer attention to the conversation. A part of the mustard yellow sky darkened and then through the swirling clouds a huge man made mountain descended. It was just like when I saw the USS Ragnarsson for the first time. Standing on a planet surface gave a true sense of scale to this behemoth. It was wedge shaped like most of Union battle ships that had been designed and built after the Modular Design Reform, incorporating technologies of all member species but making logistics and repair easier and more stream lined. In bold letters it identified itself as the USS Shetland and next to it the Union Flag. The hull classification code was BBG-32 and if I remembered my nights reading and watching fleet and ship specs it was a Super dreadnought and two of these could, according to the magazines I was reading, take on the Devi.

I would be aboard that monster on an official mission and wearing Union Uniform!

They made us line up before the air lock doors. A transparent covered gang way rose from the surface and connected with the battleship and a slide belt carried us up. To me it was like stepping in the sacred halls of Valhalla.

A high whistling sound was heard and they made us line up in a neat row and stand in attention. The Admiral approached a small statured woman with short cropped gray hair and 4 golden rings on her Sleeves and said.” Captain Mackenzie permission to come aboard with ten Cadets and two Academy Instructors.”

“Permission Granted, Admiral!”

The two officers walked to the side and talked to each other quietly. Then they left and one of the Instructors told us to relax but not to leave the area.

We were in a large room, an illuminated sign on the light gray walls identified it as Crew boarding and assembly room eighteen. The first thing I noticed was the smell of metal and that indefinable scent of new machinery, the deck plates vibrated barely noticeable, making this mountain of metal feel as if it was alive and that faint hum of unimaginable energies below all the voices, orders, footsteps and generated sounds.

“What has gotten into you? You stand there like an oaf with a dumb grin on your face” One of the human Cadets said. I remembered his name was Bennett Waite and he was one of those people you meet and you don’t really like from the start, he always snapped and seemed displeased with anyone around him, but maybe he had some personal issues to deal with and so said, raising my hands.” All this! We are aboard one of the biggest and most powerful battle ships. There are over eight thousand beings serving on her right now and almost eight million tons are going to lift of, accelerate at 450 kilometers per second to the square and go Trans light!” He nodded.” You are an idiot! What else would it do? It is a space ship after all. I wonder how you managed to even get past the pre entry exams!”

“If you don’t like me, simply stay away. If you keep insulting me I am going to do something about that.”

“There isn’t much you can do. We are not allowed to fight, go take a swing at me and you get kicked out.”

“Is it something I said or done to you that makes you so aggressive?”

He shrugged.” Not really, I just don’t like your face!”

I took a deep breath and said.” Whatever your problem is, it isn’t mine.” I left him standing and went over to Two-three.” I guess I am the only one excited being on a ship of this size for the first time.”

He turned his mirrored face plate and as usual I saw my own face reflected in it.” I am excited too, I just felt a little of the energies flowing all around us and it is absolutely incredible. On a sun energies everywhere and in a state of chaos. Here the same power is harnessed in orderly streams, channeled and controlled to the last iota. I could stand here for days and simply feel that!”

Pure came over and offered me a Candy bar.” It’s granola and raisins, your favorite. I got it from the Ninio, that’s our Elly by the way. He can’t eat it as he has no teeth and I don’t like them as I don’t have enough molars.”

“Thank you!” I took the bar and said.” What do you mean by our Elly?”

“Well the one that was with us since the start. Stinkbug hiding Elly! The others are new.”

The only other human cadet approached and pointed with a shy grin at the granola bar.” Do you have another one?”

“No I don’t. I already ate the one they handed out this morning for breakfast but you can have that one if you like.”

He took it with a thankful nod.” I am four days in this Navy of ours and I am hungry ever since.”

“Don’t you think we get enough food?” I wondered.

“We get enough food alright but no time to eat it. I am always half done when they call us off.”

The vibrations of the deck plates changed ever so slightly and I said.” We’re talking off!”

He chewed and blinked.” How do you know?”

“The rhythm of the vibrations has changed.”

“I feel nothing.”

Pure knelt down and put his paw on the deck plates.” Now I would lie if I really feel much but there is some sort of vibration.”

Two-Three said.” The power flow has increased drastically, ever since Eric said it.”

One of the Elly not far from us joined our conversation and said.” I never thought a human could feel these vibrations, you can?”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Waite was suddenly there.” This isn’t some primitive Elly rust bucket but a Union Battle ship; there are no vibrations you could feel!”

I turned to him and said.” I am not sure what your problem is but I suggest you take your attitude and your insults somewhere else.”

“What is it with you Olafson? You are human! You fraternize with all those non humans! Without us they be Kermac Slaves or turned to ashes by the Y’All!”

He snorted and walked away.

There was an uneasy silence in the small group. Potsema the Garbini who was at the other end of the room came over, put two of his tentacles on my shoulder and said. “We all going to get a tour of the ship I heard.”

Pure growled with his teeth exposed and his neck fur above the collar of his suit standing up.” Attikan needed no human help to ascent and conquer our star cloud!” He was talking directly to me!

Even though the Elly was quite alien, I was certain he was angry as well.” Elly ships are neither rusty nor primitive.”

Two-Three held up his hands.” Calm down friends. Eric certainly isn’t like that. I have heard of the Purists but they are less than a fringe group and quite illegal to be in the fleet.”

Fectiv growled back at Pure.” The Non-Corp is right. We had even a class on that and he is the first one ever to act that way.”

I sighed.” I am not sure what to do about it! I don’t like to rat someone out, but the day before yesterday we all swore the Academy oath and I take oaths and such things very serious!”

Potsema asked.” I have no idea what is going on, but I am on Eric’s side.”

Ninio said.” No one questions Eric, Potsi, he’s fnartkty.”

A man in black uniform we had not seen before called our attention and said.“I am Chief Petty Officer Luke Ashby and since you are in a military limbo regarding your ranks you can call me Luke or Chief. I am here to take you on a little tour of the Shetland. She is has the honor to be the flag ship, despite that everyone thinks it is the Devastator.

“The USS Shetland is the first of the Vision Class Dreadnought but officially designated as Super Arsenal Ship, meaning this lady is packed with the most advanced weapon systems our combined cultures came up with and the first class using Attikan Engines.” He pointed with his flat hand towards Pure and Fectiv.” I see there are Attikan Cadets. Any chance one of you is an Engineer or plans to be one?”

Pure stepped forward.” I am of the Jilkari Planes Pack and we are all engineers. I am expected by my pack to become an engineer in the Fleet.”

“Excellent! I am sure you will be able to exchange a few words with our Chief Engineer then who is an Attikan too.”

He asked us to follow him and for the next five hours we went through the enormous ship and saw engineering and sick bay, Fighter decks, and Auxiliary Craft Hangars and Science labs. After a lunch break we saw more of the ship.

While each department was of great interest to me and I regarded the tour as perhaps the best day of my life so far, I still hoped we would see the bridge, but we did not and the Chief told us that the Captain did not want half civilians on her bridge as she put it.

The Translocator turrets were impressive and we came just right to see a deployment drill. Robotic arms and conveyor systems fed the pre fire chambers of the TL cannons with bomb casings. Gunnery crews both robots and living beings wiped the bombs with white rags out of dispensers in a breakneck speed. While the smaller TL Cannons were fully automated the big ones were loaded manually and the chief gunner wrote a name of the shell. On this triple cannon turret it was a Pertharian. He only wore a white undershirt and black pants, like all the men in his crew. He explained to us after the drill.” The Translocator Cannons are both the oldest and the most advanced weapon system in our arsenals. It is a product of a Tech Level eleven society and we barely understand how they work. Yet we use them now for over 500 years, with only minor improvements to ammunition, loading technique and energy distribution.”

He padded a light blue metallic cylinder of about two by one meter. “This is a Giga load Anti Matter Fusion Bomb. The Casing is blue to indicate a test or dummy bomb. You don’t want to handle Anti Matter even in as save as possible conditions if you don’t have to.”

Two of his men, a Human and a tall Andorian came and wiped the casing with rags while it rotated on its axis. “It looks antiquated but is absolutely necessary. These special rags are antistatic and remove any possible loose metal particles from the casing. This task is usually done by robots and machines, especially at small load Translocator Gatlings, but with these big babies it is done as a second control by hand. Now I tell you why!”

The scenery changed! Alert sirens blared and a voice thundered:” Battle stations all hands battle stations!”

Men started running through auto dressers emerging in full combat armor. Others went to the bomb elevators and cannon controls. Through all this, the Gunnery chief and our guide remained relaxed and calm, and said to us. “Just remain where you are!”

A speaker voice thundered.” Giga Loads authorized! Prepare Salvo!”

A red case came up the conveyor and the two gunners did not wipe it and it was shoved into the cannon breech, the thing closed and an explosion in slow motion proved that it all was just a Holo recording. ” One in a million chances that a static charge or a metallic interaction interrupts the magnetic containment of the antimatter, a slight unbalance and the stuff touches positive matter and…” He pantomimed an explosion which was quite impressive given that he had four arms to do that. ” Force fields can contain a small explosion to some degree and special force field generators are on standby at each cannon big or small but having one of these ignite before beamed off, is not a good idea. Since the introduction of the TL 46 ships were lost to this. We haven’t lost a single one in the last fifty years and we like to keep it that way. The last control is done by living beings. Takes an extra moment, yes but when they start fighting with these big boys, they usually don’t need more than one per enemy ship. ”

INTERLUDE

Nine Nogoll armed Trans light Boats made it disguised as Yokuta ships back to Arlicherb. Even thought there were Union ships in the area, they did not know how to differentiate between the primitive Yokuta ship signatures and the Nogoll boats simulating them. You did not rule over a planet and its civilization for almost 300 years without learning a few things about the local culture. Ealy had almost hundred battle trained and revenge hungry Nogoll Billie warriors with him, armed to the teeth with Kermac Line Blasters, explosives and enough Anti matter charges to cause serious damage to landed Union ships.

The Nogoll gathered in an old abandoned Mountain base, that actually had been a military base of the Yokuta from the time before the Nogoll invasion and they had fought among themselves. Under Nogoll rule, they did not need any military of their own, as the Nogoll prohibited the Yokuta to be armed or train in any sort of combat. Ealy remembered the mountain base as he had followed sixty Yokuta rebels, only a few years back and had them all executed of course for being rebels.”

The base was master fully disguised between rocks and boulders and inside the mountain itself. Undetectable by visual means and thanks to rich magnetized ores and minerals very hard to detect with scanners.

He was not sure how good Union Scanners were, but even if they were much better, who would look for Nogoll on this world now?

He had supplies for about ten month if they rationed it carefully. Eating emergency rations for ten month was not something anyone looked forward too, but then no one had big illusions to live even that long.

This mountain base was supplied with electric power by a water turbine and there was little danger to run it, the whole world was using similar primitive power sources and one more would not make any difference.

Now was the time to decide what to do. The longer they stayed the greater the chance they would be discovered and none of them wanted to experience a Union marine assault on the mountain base. He was almost certain the Yokuta would file for Union Membership anyway. The lean brothers of the Elly were not stupid and frankly the Union would offer them tremendous benefits without asking much in return.

Cust, his second in command was in his herd for over twenty years and a dear friend. Cust, also had settled on Arlicherb, had several Nannies, kids and a nice estate with hundred Yokuta servants keeping his estate in good repair while he was in space, pulled on his coarse chin beard as he always did when he was thinking.” We need some intelligence as what is planned and where the Union ships are. ”

“I am listening to local radio broadcasting. We don’t have any of the Yokuta 2D screens for their visual media.” An Engineering Billie said sitting before an antique Yokuta receiver.” They are expecting the Union Flagship and some very high Union Guests by tomorrow. There are festivities planned and the execution of 20 captured Nogoll and 45 Yokuta collaborators.”

Someone cursed.” Whatever we plan, there is no way we are going to fool Stahl! The Devastator is indestructible, at least with what we got along and with her comes the entire first fleet, and many thousands of marines.”

The Engineer laughed.“It’s not Stahl. It is the Admiral of the Fleet and the newest Union Battle ship.”

Cust smashed his hairy three fingered fist on the table before him.” They are not going to overdo it with security, so not to scare the Yokuta. I bet they asked the Admiral to bring along a bunch of kids. This is our best and only chance for revenge! We kill the Admiral, his delegation and every Yokuta Elder.”

“No we should capture the Admiral and use him as a hostage to get access to that new ship. I am sure it is loaded with Translocator Cannons! The Kermac will welcome us with open arms!” A Weapons Officer said.

“The Kermac have sold us out!” Ealy cursed.” If we ever got to Kermac then with blazing canons! We lost home and families because of it. We are homeless Nogoll following the last commando of our First Billie to certain doom! Die we must that is certain, let our deaths be meaningful and with as much impact as we can inflict.”

All the way in the back of the conference center were two Nogoll billies, not officers but chosen because of their strength and fighting abilities. The rest of the crew had remained in the two capital ships now hiding on a moon in an unpopulated neighbor system. Uley and Harel would rather have stayed with the rest and once the Commander and his fatalistic officers met their fate, surrender to Union forces and be home on ‘The Nog’ in a few weeks. Of course neither one of them wanted to openly say so. Ealy would have no qualms executing them for treason or cowardice. Ever since the war had started the Commander led them from one catastrophe to the other and now he was on a suicide mission. The way they talked there was not even a chance of survival. They wanted to die! Yes it was all bad and horrible what the Union did to them, but neither Uley nor Harel had big estates or large Nannie herds, but Uley did have family on The Nog. He whispered to Harel:” It’s easy for him to order us on a suicide mission, I wager my right horn he is going to remain behind to plan further actions and perhaps even return to the ship, before the attack is made!”

“You don’t have to wager your horns. I am sure he will announce to go back to the ship anytime soon, while he leaves some of us behind.”

“What do you think is better? Dying for sure as a hero no one will remember or dying trying to get home?”

“Just be careful. He has the Nunthu glow in his eyes, he’s not on the side of the sane anymore, but the other officers will do what he asks and kill anyone who is a coward.”

The Nogoll prepared the costumes and bio flex masks, to make them look like locals and four of them were send ahead to reconnoiter. Harel was picked as a volunteer and he chose Uley.