Past, Present, and Future (2176-2194)

By B.B. Irvine

"Interstitial short stories" include Ecurba’s rescue of 31 kids during Operation NESTKNOCK (2176), his meeting of a daughter he did not know he had (2194), the full closing of the circle between Admiral Xiu-Li Chen and Captain Priti Fareyes (2192), and Admiral Chen’s meeting with “Katsavr’s Qitten” (2194).

• Language: English
• Publisher: B.B. Irvine
• Release date: Apr 16, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301853021

B.B. Irvine

B.B. Irvine was born in New York City in 1959. He graduated from the High School of Music and Art N.Y. (1976 music), New York State University at Stony Brook (1980 B.A. liberal arts), and in 1982 received a certificate as a Physician Assistant from the Bowman Gray School of Medicine in North Carolina. He has worked in settings including emergency medicine, AIDS research, and addiction treatment in New York City where he lives. In 1994 he earned a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do from Grandmaster Richard Chun. His novels and screenplays evidence his knowledge of people and frequently weave medicine, science, history, romance, and martial arts into the action.

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Past, Present, and Future (2176-2194)

The Spacer Series: Book 9.1

by B. B. Irvine

Copyright 2020 B. B. Irvine

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Chapter 01 – Introduction/Table Of Contents/Notes

These are interstitial Spacer Series stories spanning years 2176-2194. Each is an exploration of places, people, and moments within the Human Sphere, from unique adventures not yet commented upon in the books (or in a future still ahead of the main series) to events spoken of only indirectly (all e-books available via Barnes & Nobles e-books, and @ smashwords.com).

These stories (underlined titles below) fit in to the Spacer Series this way:

Mariposa (2173) - The Spacer Series: Book 01

Conflict (2176) - The Spacer Series: Book 02

PAST

Chap. 02: The DRAGONHAND Mission (2176)

Events on IWG-CS SWIFTSURE during Operation NESTKNOCK. Occurs during time period within Conflict (2176) Spacer Series: Book 02.

Darkeyes (2178) - The Spacer Series: Book 03

Chap. 03: An Unexpected Awakening (2178)

Once more defying death, Xiu-Li Chen has survived again… with a little help. Occurs during time period within Darkeyes (2178).

VICTORY Saved (2179) - The Spacer Series: Book 04

Phase Change (2180) - The Spacer Series: Book 05

Qet Contact (2180) - The Spacer Series: Book 06

GREATSTAR Lost (2181) - The Spacer Series: Book 07

Chap. 04: The Smallest Survivor (2181)

Captain Ecurba is not the only human who can rescue a Ceti Cat from death, as Doctor Shi-Ming Dao discovers. Occurs during interval between Greatstar Lost (2181) Spacer Series: Book 07 and Qet Toccata (2181) Spacer Series: Book 08.

Qet Toccata (2181) - The Spacer Series: Book 08

PRESENT

These occur during interval between Qet Toccata (2181) and The Secret Navigator (2182).

Chap. 05: When Prior Claims Call (2182)

An armed squad of Qet visit Ecurba and Qet-Sia as they are vactioning on Deepstrike, where Ecurba discovers them holding a magpistol to Qet-Sia’s head.

Chap. 06: When The Past Calls Armed in the Present (2182)

A Niv assassin has been sent to Deepstrike to kill Ecurba for his actions against the Dirge family (see Qet Toccata (2181) Spacer Series: Book 08).

Chap. 07: Delicacy and Diplomacy (2182)

Not even the ship is safe for Ecurba anymore: a diplomatic crisis after an attack against a Qet must be solved in as tasteful a way as possible.

The Secret Navigator (2182) - The Spacer Series: Book 10

Chap. 08: Another A.O.S. Audition (2182)

That pesky Assembly Of Sentients audition room has kidnapped Captain Ecurba again, claiming this time no one can interrupt their chat. Wrong!

Chap. 09: A Premiere Event (2183)

With SAS VICTORY visiting in Sol System, Captain Ecurba is present on SENIVRI Plat for a charity event at the multi-system premiere of the KATSAVR holovid.

FUTURE

Chap. 10: Isaac (2190)

Chap. 11: Together Forever (2192)

Chap. 12: Emily E. Matara (2194)

Chap. 13: Qatsavr’s Qitten (2194)

Chap. 14: Heroes Of Space Day (2194)

Past, Present, and Future (2176-2194) - The Spacer Series: Book 9.1

Nothing But Niv ( 2173-2194) - The Spacer Series: Book 9.2

And now…

Past, Present, and Future (2176-2194)

Chapter 02 – PAST: The DRAGONHAND Mission (2176)

2 July 2176

IN TRANSIT to PROCYON A/B – THE GEM ISLES

IWG-CS SWIFTSURE / IWG-HTC DRAGON

ECURBA

How’s it going, Thucydides?

I looked at Oliver Bernardoha, perplexed. "Thucydides? Who told you that one?"

Bernardoha shrugged. You know, Ecurba, I’ve read some history myself.

"Really? Which one of his did you read?"

He laughed. The one on Galinda’s ‘to be read’ book list.

I chuckled. I thought so.

She was his oldest love and first wife, a very smart exobiologist who had paid for her schooling through modelling fees, and still funded certain expeditions that way. She was also mother to his oldest daughter, now eight, and two boys, five and three. If Oliver Bernardoha ever settled down for good, I thought it would be with Galinda on Cape Of Velvet, at Beta Hydri; but he was still open in all other systems, including our next one, the Gem Isles (the asterhab/platform colony at Procyon A/B) – once the secret operation we were now on was over, of course.

Also assuming (a.) we survived and (b.) got shore leave locally (would we fly the flag or beat an inglorious retreat?)

Bernardoha laughed. Well, it fits you, although I think you’re just trying to avoid something by writing another of your past history papers at this point in time.

That ticked me off, but it might be valid. I’m just trying to cope. A short paper on whether naval tactics of the past were valid in deep space combat following the recent Battle Of Hellhole in February wasn’t a waste of Fleet time, however.

You know she’s trying the best she can, E.

"I know it." That was, in fact, my argument. In addition to a draft-copy paper about theories of battle for my head, I also had all of the bruises, scrapes and cuts to prove how far we were from success in the tactical training exercise. I was the one who had been running an obstacle course created daily by the ineptness of the guide who was supposed to lead our team on my first tactical mission ever. Believe me, I feel it right down to my bones every night.

Bernardoha snorted. He was the one flying virtuSims in a flight chair, taking our old cargo starship SWIFTSURE (with added stealth measures) in to sneak-dock with an enemy asteroid training base (which I would then invade with three other people to rescue a schoolroom full of kids, right before the base was attacked), then flying us out through a very small clear area corridor for us within the attack.

I didn’t begrudge him that for a moment, because Bernardoha would have to fly SWIFTSURE into the teeth of our own side’s incoming attack on the Organization of Planetary Projects asterhab base.

I could never do it – I’m not that good a pilot in space.

We had a tiny corridor within the incoming ordnance attack lines through which we would fly out, but no one could vouch for how clear it would actually be in the event, or for how long… especially if there were any delays at all in exiting the O.P.P. structure itself. Space ordnance generally has little ability to change course once launched, and that also includes if it is knocked off an intended course by a collision with another missile, slug, piece of debris, or enemy counterattack/attack ordnance. Our escape corridor opening would start degrading from random contacts within the attack wave as soon as the second wave launches began. If any premature detonations happened, clearance assurances would drop early.

Bernardoha was a really, really good pilot, one of the best, and he derived his own personal satisfaction from the process of plotting his course and then flying it himself. He had other interests besides being a pilot, and was not interested in being a fighter pilot or serving on the helm of a major ship. He preferred cargo hauling, because that let him fly a starship to planetary systems with regularity, rather than being on call or subject to the uncertainty of a large ship’s types of mission orders and schedules, especially in wartime.

I guess the InterWorld Group Space Fleet Northern Sector Command Division and Admiral Custer Beria thought I was the perfect officer to be in charge of the cargo ship Bernardoha was piloting, despite his technical seniority in time and rank when I joined IWG-CS SWIFTSURE last year as a freshly Earth Space University-graduated Ensign.

Bernardoha was perfectly happy with that. He just liked to fly, and if the InterWorld Group made me the senior command officer, so what? I didn’t fly the ship, and orders were orders, no matter who they came from, or their messenger (me). He just liked to fly, and rank did not affect his great plan to have well established homes in each system he could live in at the end of multi-week hyperflight jumps from one system to another. So far, that was two that I knew of.

He liked me, which helped.

I had never had enough knowledge to give any input about piloting, and I knew it (that was fine with me). I was perfectly happy to keep it to something simple like, We have orders for Cape Of Velvet next, and then we’re heading for Earth. Greatly respecting his abilities and technical seniority, I was always trying to be careful how I gave him orders, which amused him.

I was in turn a project of sorts for him, being as I was just another Command Division menu writer who was also writing current Fleet theory papers on the side, continuing my work from Earth Space University. It meant Bernardoha usually called me by a writer’s name, sometimes pretty far out, often from the Golden Noir area – perhaps reflecting his own ideas of the best time in history to be in a tramp freighter on a flight to exotic ports. With ten Sol human colony sunstar systems to visit besides Sol, plus the Platforms being built in interstellar space, every port in space is exotic, one way or another.

That was partly why I also liked the duty, at least until three and a half months ago, the day we received orders to Darkworld, at Epsilon Eridani, for ship conversion duty.

01. 14 March 2176 / NORCLIP Plat

It was on a Friday, the 14 of March – not quite the Ides, but close enough.

The IWG-CS SWIFTSURE was at NORCLIP Plat, one Standard Unit north of Sol, awaiting next destination after a twenty day stay at Earth System.

I was in the Moonside Café with Bernardoha when he said, Fekk. It was quiet, and in dread.

What?

That’s Wil Tejeda and his cousin, Captain Tejeda, he said softly.

Problem?

Captain Tee is in civvies, so he’s operating undercover.

Maybe he just likes to be comfortable.

Bernardoha took a deep breath. "Believe me, Ecurba it’s the perfect camouflage for him. It’s unheard of."

Maybe he’s on vacation – no, hunh, same reason?

"Very good, Philip Marlow."

No, that’s a character. You mean Raymond Chandler.

He gave me a look. Please try not to volunteer us for anything stupid, sir?

I frowned, but then the Tejedas were sitting down at our table.

Hey, fellas, sorry we’re late, said Wil rather loudly, looking over at Bernardoha. What’s up, man?

Doing okay, Wil! Yourself?

Same as ever! Kids are good. How are yours?

Great.

"Great! Well, this is Steve, my cousin. He’s a virtuSim designer."

The other Tejeda gave Wil a rather sour smile, then looked at us. We’re developing a war game where a player runs different sorts of liners, you know, the range from cargo to passenger, even tactical. At this point he looked at Bernardoha. I hear from Wil that you’re the best all around pilot ever – I mean, from deep space topological calcs for pinpoint hyperflight, to realspace true time space screaming.

Bernardoha nodded. Thanks. I think Wil’s sort of exaggerating. He gave Wil an "I’ll get you later, chum" smile.

Captain Tejeda leaned over. And last year’s intercept evasion at Asterion?

Bernardoha frowned. "Yeah, well, I suppose I’m lucky, too. He looked at me, then at Wil, then at Captain Tejeda. Some sort of piloting job, is it?"

Captain Tejeda nodded. He had a large dark moustache – just like the Mexican hero, Zapata. Dark black hair, dark eyes, and a measured way of speaking, all gave him a thoughtful power. He would be one of those officers whose louder voice version of an order (or rebuke) would be ten times as forceful as any other man’s yells.

At the moment, Captain Tejeda was pleasant, but Bernardoha had not relaxed. Neither had I, since the conversation to date had been oblique as a Noir, yet just as clear.

Captain Tejeda now looked at me. Is the ship available, though? he asked me.

Nice – he knew I was in technical command of SWIFTSURE, and I had my own choice to make. But how does one answer that question without volunteering? For what, exactly?

Some flight testing. We want to add a few things to the current design, and run some live fire tests. If you’re available for service. Tejeda said it all casually and carefully, not drawing attention to it much.

And giving us – me – an out.

Well, the ship was technically available for service, and it was an IWG Space Fleet ship, not my own. If we got orders, we got orders, but we weren’t available for hire. I looked at Bernardoha, who was checking out girls – and after checking them out myself, I looked back at Tejeda. That depends on what the boss says about it, I said. When in doubt, kick it higher. That ensures it will take twice as long to not happen.

"Aren’t you the boss?"

Only locally. I smiled. There’s always a bigger boss somewhere.

He laughed. Suppose the boss agrees?

We ship cargo. I shrugged. "I mean, we do the job because it’s our job, not just because we like the accommodations. We do what the boss tells us to." I was going to play by the rules on this one, but I wasn’t backing out, either.

Can you keep your mouths shut?

I looked at Tejeda a moment, not liking the way he had put that. He was asking us to volunteer here (I think) – was he a complete idiot when it came to people management?

Captain Estefan Tejeda simply studied me back.

We’re officers in Space Fleet, I said. We have materials training in handling classified data cargo, including its safe and secure destruction, and are both certified in that cargo hauling category. Sir.

Captain Tejeda nodded and looked at Bernardoha. And you?

"Well, Steve, I just like to fly. Especially if it’s tricky. Now, I want to go get laid a few times before we ship out to wherever my ship’s master and commander tells me that we’re going, so I want some lead time before I go." He was in the fighter pilot persona that had gotten many a barfight started, but he was also making it clear what chain of command he flew in – captain or not. Bernardoha’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Tejeda. Unless it’s an urgent package? He was confident and tough, but he was bright as well (a doctorate in Mathematical Physics, Topological Hyperflight Applications, in fact).

There is a slight time cushion. Tejeda smiled. "The bosses will all get involved, so that’s at least a day right there. Plenty of time to see NORCLIP Plat and have some fun. He was pleased, but with a vicious satisfaction. Thanks. I can’t wait to see you guys help kick some ass on that product line. He looked at me. I’ll be in touch. Thanks again."

I nodded.

He had been testing us both, and liked the results.

Bernardoha and I exchanged glances, shook our heads, and watched him go, leaving Wil behind.

Wil looked at Bernardoha. Sorry, Oliver.

Bernardoha shook his head and shrugged. Don’t mention it, Wil. Obviously, you think it’s the craziest flight profile you’ve ever heard.

Wil looked around. "Well, yeah. Can I at least buy you a round?"

Bernardoha was looking at a pair of women placing orders at the barside counter. Sure, I’ll take a liter of fresh brewed chilled Darjeeling tea, sugar syrup on the side.

I’ll take a two liter hot Clipcoast Kona pure brew, I added.

Wil Tejeda smiled and shook his head. Okay.

What’s so funny?

The three of us, drinking coffee, tea and sodas in a bar. He punched in the orders and went over to the caféside counter.

Sounds like the beginning of a bad bartender joke, I muttered, looking over at Bernardoha. I didn’t volunteer us, right, Oliver?

He shrugged. "No, Ecurba. You made it clear you wanted orders. But neither of us exactly said, ‘hell, no.’ So I don’t know. Maybe I did it this time. Bernardoha laughed. What the hell were we actually talking about, anyway?"

I’m almost afraid to find out.

Almost?

Well, orders are orders. No point being scared about them now.

He laughed. Now you’re talking, E. You’ve come a long way from quaking in your boots at Asterion.

I just nodded.

Bernardoha had taken a big risk there that should have killed us, but did not, due solely to the interventions of a Niv ship present to make sure one of our passengers got out of the system intact. He had the same selective recall combat pilots tend to have when it came to fear and mistakes; he had apologized obliquely at the time and then forgotten it all. He recalled it instead as a time when I was nervous and doubting our survival.

I recall myself being sort of resigned to it: despite doing everything I’d been trained in, exactly as I was supposed to, we were still about to die, and so fast (by a debris strike) that there wasn’t anything to be nervous about – just resigned.

Instead, we survived, and it made us famous at the time, although that was not rewarded in any real way.

It did result in my being put formally in command of CS SWIFTSURE as its master and commander, although Bernardoha was my senior in service time and rank.

When the Niv ship NSS IRASCIBLE offered us help with inspection for damage and repairs, Lieutenant Bernardoha had turned to me and asked what I wanted him to do – where to fly the ship.

He was the pilot, I was an ensign, but I was the Fleet officer in charge of the ship – where it went, responsible for the crew, cargo, all of that.

It had never come up on other cargo runs, where we had informally discussed "orders received for SWIFTSURE" and formulated mission plans together.

The unique situation forced concrete delineations; they remained in place afterward.

Following the Intercept at Asterion, all ship’s orders were for me, as the "master and commander of CS SWIFTSURE." Bernardoha (the ship’s master, i.e. its pilot) and I discussed the orders and formulated an operational plan together, sometimes including engineering or other members of the crew. I was too worried about taking care of my crew to worry much about rank per se, especially when it helped get our jobs done, and SWIFTSURE had a well trained crew of four besides us.

Wil took a walk back with us so Bernardoha could show SWIFTSURE off, and once we were on board, well insulated and secure, Wil Tejeda told us the flight profile, and the part of the mission the lieutenant technically now in charge of it – Lieutenant Ecurba – would be training into for sixty nine days.

First, Lieutenant Oliver Bernardoha would fly a stealth modified SWIFTSURE up to an enemy asteroid habitat training base –

I heard Bernardoha laugh.

– and second, Lieutenant Ecurba would enter it, get thirty one kids out from some sort of school in there, and get them all onto SWIFTSURE –

Oliver Bernardoha and I exchanged a quick look and shook our heads a moment, but Wil Tejeda went on with his Mission review:

Then third, Bernardoha would fly SWIFTSURE out through a very small gap within a full 360 Shell Attack by InterWorld Group ships on the enemy base. Real space would be full of solid ordnance, plasma and beam weapons, all of it directed at the Organization of Planetary Projects asteroid habitat training base behind the escaping SWIFTSURE. The 360 Shell Attack plan had several waves, so there would be a fairly long period of exposure to the risk of being hit by one of our own weapons.

Both of us laughed this time.

Wil Tejeda shook his head.

It’s follow up for Hellhole, guys, he said quietly. And we’re getting two of the best squad leaders we’ve ever seen to be squad pairs for you and the guide, Ecurba. The ex-O.P.P. soldier who’s guiding in you knows the territory very well.

No laughs, and this time the expressions on our faces when we looked at each other were less amused – sort of sickly who, me? grins.

The Battle of Hellhole, they were calling it, an amazing O.P.P. mass attack just two weeks ago on the IWG Deep Space Training Area at Van Maanen’s Star (with no planets in the system, it had been called Hellhole ever since the first platform was established).

At the time, SWIFTSURE had been in Sol System, where I had family and old friends who had friends, and all of them wanted to meet the great Oliver Bernardoha, the pilot who had saved Lieutenant (j.g.) Ecurba’s life at the Intercept at Asterion.

I had been an ensign at the time, promoted a month later in reward, and not home since. They all wanted to meet Bernardoha, but they were very proud of me, too.

With several hundreds of Space Fleet’s brighest killed at Hellhole on 29 February 2176, the tone everywhere had quickly turned serious, and we had all speculated what the InterWorld Group response would be.

Some had wondered whether any response was even possible against ships traveling loose in deep space. Others had pointed to observed O.P.P. losses (two heavy tactical cruisers and a handful of much smaller ships) and suggested that no additional retribution or punishment was needed. Deep space combat was too dangerous and expensive to pursue as policy.

There had been political dithering that harped about the losses on both sides, allowing emotion while stalling for time, and doing nothing visibly concrete.

On the invisible side, Fleet had been making plans. Even if they were altered between now and mission day, something big was in motion now, assets were needed, assets were being placed for later use, and there was a physical target to hit.

Whatever sort of O.P.P. platship or platform Bernardoha had to fly us up to, and I had to then get inside of, in the present circumstances, it was not a mission I could refuse for us.

Had it been an outright assault on any old target, I might argue SWIFTSURE (with no weapons or hull armoring) was impossibly ill equipped as a tactical ship.

This mission was revenge for losses at Hellhole, where the newest ship IWG-LTC SHARK was broken in half, then the drive section half blew up; flagship IWG RAGNAROK was destroyed, with the Group commodore and most of the local Group command staff killed; on and on... and SWIFTSURE could be stealth modified.

Once stealthed, it could fly in, collect our cargo, and fly out.

That was a cargo run, it was not engaging in any ship-to-ship tactical battles.

Well, except for the ones I might get into while getting the kids out.

02. Plans in Transit

Once everything was formalized, orders were cut for us to transit out to Darkworld, at Epsilon Eridani. It had never been an easy colony to develop and remained small.

I was even given a real Secret – Do Not Open Until In Hyperflight briefing file, (complete with a whole series of coded compuSys files that no one expected to find in the compuSys, and were revealed only when we had entered hyperflight).

It made good sense to pick us for this mission, they would think. I had the right rank at lieutenant (j.g.) and was a disposable officer.

At Asterion, Bernardoha had to fly us through the open area NSS IRACISBLE had just disintegrated through both a tactical debris cloud and the O.P.P. pirate ship the Niv had just destroyed. Hitting that mark (a two thousand meter wide cleared cylinder one thousand meters long) on the fly was an example of pin-point ship handling in realspace, and not at all easy.

Bernardoha was a great pilot, but for some reason Admiral Custer Beria disliked him. I was just another Com Div lieutenant. Putting us on this mission would never lose Admiral Beria a wink of sleep.

The rest of the Operation DRAGONHAND team also made sense – a couple of their many, many expendable Tac muscle officers, and an ex-O.P.P. trooper to guide us: Anne McIntire had been the only O.P.P. trooper taken alive at the Battle of Hellhole on Leap Day, February 2176. The reason for her continued misfortune was having been trained for her mission that day inside of a large asteroid base, somewhere near the Gem Isles.

03. Arrival, Training, and Anne

IWG-CS SWIFTSURE arrived at Epsilon Eridani and Darkworld Base on 4 April, 2176.

Ship Group NESTKNOCK was there; we were assigned to DRAGON Group and attached to the medium tactical cruiser IWG-MTC DRAGON, Captain Estefan Tejeda in command, for a sixty nine day train up for Operation DRAGONHAND.

Anne McIntire was supposed to be a fighting guide, but she was really a sweet young woman who fell for a boyfriend and followed him a bit too far, and was spirited off on an O.P.P. training ship before she accepted that he’d really dropped her.

Since she had Taken The Oath, Anne was now an InterWorld Group citizen and a soldier – but only technically. No one really trusted her, and no one really wanted her on a big ship, where getting into mischief would be easy for her to do, if swayed by the past.

Putting her on the actual ship she’d be riding in on the op – a cargo ship they were going to add stealthing and armor shielding to, called CS SWIFTSURE – got her off of DRAGON or any other major ship, and let her bond with the flight team and the team leader – me.

I would have two very tough Tactical Division specialists along as well. They would each partner with Anne and I, and we would either succeed through outright audacity and luck, or simply flare out and fail, and not make it out alive. They figured even if we were discovered on the approach and destroyed, a mere ten to fifteen minutes of such uncertain warning would not be long enough to prevent the massive, damaging attack to follow.

Anne had learned early on to just pitch in and get to work on treating the bruises or scrape on whatever I