Amantus
Copyright© 2026 by QM
Chapter 12
Amantus stepped from the day cabin and was immediately faced with the entire bridge crew standing and giving him a round of applause. Blushing furiously, all Amantus could manage was a choked-out “Thank you,” before saluting, receiving a salute in return.
“You did well, Amantus,” Zaka smiled. “You’ll be able to face anything and cope with it.”
“I was never bored,” Amantus chuckled.
“Captain said to ride you hard,” Dant replied. “The system is gamed against you, so you’ll need every advantage by way of training that we could give you.”
“I appreciate it, truly.”
Back at his cabin, Amantus packed swiftly, realising that, aside from datacores and clothing, he had very little in the way of worldly possessions. No tri-dees, no mementoes, just fond memories. At the start of the relaxation shift, or as everyone called it, the dead shift. Amantus sought out Crendon and Mabis to say his goodbyes.
“We’ll miss you, Mant,” Crendon said as the two clasped arms.
“I’m sure we’ll cross paths at some stage,” Amantus smiled.
“I’m going to miss my bag carrier,” Mabis smiled, though the tears streaming down her face gave away her feelings.
“We’ll meet again, I hope,” Amantus chuckled, accepting a hug.
“So do I,” Mabis replied. “Perhaps before you reach Admiral.”
“That’s a big ask.”
“If anyone can, you can, Mant,” Crendon smiled.
There were other farewells from the people Amantus had come to know, particularly the troopers who had come to both respect and enjoy Amantus’s company as he had trained alongside them. But the time eventually came when Amantus hoisted his pack and walked through the boarding tube to the Base and made his way to Fleet Command and the transfer office.
“Your transfer ship, the Croagh, will be leaving for Conveelt in a thousand rotations,” the Petty Officer informed Amantus. “It’s currently at dock seventeen; they are expecting you.”
“Thank you,” Amantus replied, getting a slight look of surprise when he did.
The Croagh was an assault carrier and by far bigger than any ship, including the trading vessel Amantus had been on. Hence, Amantus was met by a Force Lieutenant, not a Fleet one, his documentation checked, and his perscomp loaded with a map showing the locations of the various facilities he had access to.
“Permission to access a gym, sir,” Amantus requested after a glance at the map.
“A gym?” a slightly startled Lieutenant responded. “Ah, I see no problem, the nearest to your cabin would be two decks down, it’s always open.”
“Thank you,” Amantus replied with a salute, before following the map to his cabin.
The cabin was larger than the cabin he’d occupied on the Lignet but just as bland. However, this was more down to Amantus having little interest in material things, at least these days. Indeed, should he need to write to his mother again, he planned to request that the various ‘distractions’ he’d accumulated be discarded or distributed amongst the servants, should they want them.
‘What changes have come over me these last twenty-five binary cycles,’ he thought. ‘Would I have even recognised myself should I have stepped out from this future?’
Deciding that introspection would get him nowhere, Amantus decided to look at his somewhat vague orders ... to report to the Sixth Fleet transfer office at its headquarters at Conveelt. He also read the notes attached to the map he’d been given on his perscomp, finding that he was restricted from accessing the bridge or engineering on the Croagh, as well as its data library, surprisingly.
‘Good job I brought my own reading material, ’ Amantus mentally chuckled. ‘Though the library ban looks rather petty from the transfer service.’
Pulling on his gym gear, Amantus followed the map to the point indicated by the Lieutenant and saw the gym marked on the stippling. He then opened the door and walked in, only to find himself facing three naked women.
“I am so sorry,” Amantus gasped out as he did an immediate about turn. “Someone appears to have misdirected me.”
“And who might that have been?” came a growl from one of the females.
“I ... I requested gym access from the Lieutenant who signed me in for my transfer to Conveelt. This was where he indicated,” Amantus stammered out, realising the lady troopers could hurt him quite badly under the privacy statutes governing Fleet/Force private interactions.
“Remain where you are whilst I check,” the growl replied. “Your perscomp, please.”
Amantus handed it over after unlocking the security code.
“That moronic shlecker Chave, I might have known,” came an exasperated snarl. “Hold your hand out.”
Amantus did, and the perscomp was returned.
“Thank you ... er ... ma’am?”
“I won’t report this, but this is the exclusive female trooper gym,” the voice replied. “I doubt you saw much anyway.”
“I er ... I have near-perfect memory,” Amantus admitted.
“Why would you be so stupid as to admit that?” came another female voice.
“It’s in my public file, suppose by chance you looked me up?” Amantus replied. “I’d be a dead man walking ... in a sense.”
“True, still, thank you for the honesty,” came a low chuckle. “Treasure the memory. There’s a mixed gym a floor down.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Amantus released the breath he hadn’t realised he was holding.
Looking neither right nor left, Amantus left the female-only gym, went down a level, and entered a mixed gym, noting that neither gym specified gender anywhere. ‘Just glad I’m not in traction right now,’ he mentally sighed.
Amantus went through his regular exercise routine on autopilot, his thoughts elsewhere, mostly considering whether the incident he’d just been through was malicious or idiocy. However, they eventually turned to Conveelt and the Sixth. ‘Frustrating,’ he mentally chuckled. ‘Whilst I doubt I’m destined for a Fleet tender, the system I work under sucks for information.’
“Ah, we’ve found the pervert,” a female voice broke Amantus’s mental meanderings.
“I beg your pardon?” Amantus replied, before recognising the three women he’d ... disturbed before.
“Just checking you found here,” the woman smiled. “Name’s Janta, this is Lura and Teci,” she indicated.
“Amantus, and again, sorry about that.”
“It’s ok, we know it wasn’t deliberate and we’ve dealt with the moron responsible,” Teci replied.
“Ah, moron, so not malicious, I did wonder,” Amantus chuckled.
“Yeah, Chave’s not one of the smarter ones, if an officer,” Teci shrugged.
“Family connections, we think,” Lura added. “But now facing a talking to for misdirecting an officer of Fleet to a woman’s gym.”
“Don’t worry, you won’t be called,” Janta added at Amantus’s worried look.
“That’s good,” Amantus smiled. “I doubt I could add much anyway.”
“So, where are you off to?” Janta asked.
“Conveelt and the Sixth,” Amantus replied, noting that several in the gym were now observing the group.
“That’s who the Croagh is off to join,” Lura replied. “Know which ship yet?”
“No, I just have orders to report to the transfer office,” Amantus shrugged.
“Odd, from what little I know, they normally tell you.”
“I’m an involuntary,” Amantus explained. “Fleet tries to pretend I don’t exist.”
“Ah, one of those,” Janta nodded. “We get a few who join the Force after they offended the wrong person.”
“So, Amantus, who did you offend?” Teci asked as the group moved to the benches at the side.
Amantus went through his story, parts of it making the women smile, other parts making them frown.
“Twenty years, wow,” Lura finally said when he’d concluded.
“And you never touched her?” Teci added.
“Nope, I’m no saint, but I’m not stupid either,” Amantus admitted. “If I had and it became known, I was a dead man. Honour killings of the offender have been permitted.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously, I’m here to hide the fact that it wasn’t a noble who deflowered her,” Amantus admitted. “Her father believes her ... or rather needs to believe her, so here I am.”
“You nobles are just weird,” Janta snorted.
“I’m not a noble,” Amantus chuckled. “Not any more, I lost that too.”
“I’d be planning a revenge ... though twenty years...”
“My family still quietly supports me,” Amantus admitted. “But not openly, as they have their name and reputation to protect.”
“So not planning a revenge then?” Lura asked.
“Yes, but I might die out here first, or not come up with a working plan,” Amantus shrugged.
“Who needs a plan? Just spread rumours,” a puzzled Teci replied.
“To bring down the system that did this to me?” Amantus chuckled. “I doubt rumours will work.”
“Wow, you don’t think small, do you?”
“I might fail ... but, as you said, twenty years is a long time ... and I might not.”
“What would you change the system to?” Janta asked.
“Something fair, something monitored to avoid injustices like my case,” Amantus shrugged. “But, I haven’t really formulated anything, or met all the right people yet.”
“Well, good luck, I guess,” Janta nodded. “We’re getting dinner now, grab a shower and join us.”
“OK.”
The canteen was huge, though Amantus found Janta, Lura and Teci easily enough, he was surprised to find they were all junior officers. Still, this time, they walked in a pool of silence to the serving hatch and then to their table.
“Is it because I’m Fleet?” Amantus asked. “The silence that is.”
“That’ll be part of it,” Janta smiled. “Mostly it’s because you’re a male talking to us.”
“How’s that odd?”
“We don’t tend to ... socialise with men,” Lura chuckled. “So they think we’re saffos.”
“Are you?” Amantus queried. “Not that it bothers me.”
“No,” Janta chuckled. “Just sick and tired of being hit on by a bunch of men, some of whom struggle with the word no.”
“Ah, gotcha,” Amantus nodded. “Surprised being an officer doesn’t keep them at bay.”
“You’d think so, but occasionally...”
“Keep your perscomps on record a lot?”
“Yep, though to be honest, it’s not as bad as we’re making it out to be,” Teci chuckled.
“So, why the interest in me?” Amantus finally asked.
“Your reaction,” Janta smiled. “You were actually embarrassed at catching us naked, and then honest enough to admit to your good memory.”
“It was a hell of a surprise, I have to admit,” Amantus replied with a wry smile. “I’m also well aware of just how strong you troopers are and what you could have done to me. Plus, my upbringing conditioned me not to barge into a ladies’ room.”
“Quite the gentleman, aren’t you?”
“Yep,” Amantus chuckled. “By training and nature.”
“So, which one of us do you want first?” Janta asked bluntly.
“Sorry?”
“You’re a male, we’re females, we’d like to get laid by someone who won’t boast of another notch on the beamer,” Janta explained.
“Er...”
“Come on, Amantus, it’s not like we’ll run into each other again, despite being in the same Fleet,” Lura chuckled. “Plus, you have your own cabin.”