Chapter 8 - Can John and Alyssa save the troubled Latina?

The Invictus followed the course laid in by Alyssa, making quick and determined progress towards Port Heracles. The communications officer who contacted them sounded surprised that the Assault Cruiser was a civilian vessel, but such things were not totally unheard of. He granted them docking clearance for docking bay four.

The Invictus stalked closer, before gliding into the docking bay under Alyssa’s careful hand. It was a tight fit, but with her skilful guidance they avoided any mishaps. Lateral thrusters fired as their ship eased up to the docking gantry, and once they had finally made gentle contact, docking clamps locked them securely into place.

“Nice job,” John said, admiring her handiwork.

“Thanks,” she said, smiling up at him. “Flying something this huge is so much fun!”

They headed out of the ship across the docking gantry, and then up an elevator into the Spaceport proper. Although not on anywhere near the same physical scale as Olympus Shipyard, this spaceport had a large retail and trading emporium, so saw a lot of traffic from independent traders. Those traders included a broad selection of space-faring aliens, which had Alyssa whirling around wide eyed to take them all in. She gawped at the exotic creatures, marvelling at their bizarre shapes and colouring.

John leaned over to the gawking teen. “Try not to be too obvious,” he whispered into her ear quietly. “Some of these species don’t like to be stared at.”

He smiled as he watched the curious young woman darting furtive glances at the various different aliens, whilst trying to be discreet. He looked around himself, and noted that the Kintark were conspicuously absent.

Excuse me, young one, a melodic voice sounded in Alyssa’s head. She whirled to see a dark green, solid looking, gelatinous blob stopped at her side, waiting to pass by.

“Oh pardon me!” she exclaimed, before stepping out of the way. The creature squelched past, followed by a pair of robotic humanoid porters that were loaded down with boxes.

It is of no consequence. Be well, young one, the kind melodic voice chimed again.

“What was that?” she asked John quietly, as soon as the creature was out of earshot. It had no ears, so she hoped it couldn’t overhear.

“That was a Bolon,” John explained. “They are a friendly species, but communicating with them is very difficult as they can’t speak. They use the robots as interpreters when trading.”

“Ah ok, thanks,” Alyssa mumbled distractedly. “How very interesting...” she thought to herself.

John led Alyssa to the Terran Federation medical facility where Calara was recuperating. John nodded courteously to a couple of soldiers standing guard outside, and they were ushered into the reception area of the facility. The walls and floor in the facility were blindingly white, which took a little getting used to.

The receptionist was a middle aged woman, who looked up from her work at her console, and smiled at them in welcome.

“Hello, can I help you?” she asked the smartly dressed visitors courteously.

“We’re here to see Calara Fernandez,” John replied, bracing himself for questions if it turned out that she had been hauled off to the brig.

“Certainly sir, one moment,” the receptionist replied, before scanning through a list of names on the console.

“Ah yes,” she said, finding Calara amongst the list. “May I see your identification please?” she requested politely. John and Alyssa handed over their IDs’, which were scanned by a nearby reader, logging them as visitors.

“Take the elevator up to floor three, Lieutenant Fernandez is in room 347,” the receptionist said, passing back their IDs, and pointing to the elevators in the corner of the room. “I’ll let her know you’re on your way,” she added kindly.

John and Alyssa thanked the receptionist and then walked over to take the elevator up to the third floor. The hospital was well sign posted, and they found room 347 easily. John knocked politely on the door.

“Come in!” Calara’s excited voice drifted out from the room.

He opened the door, and saw Calara standing by a desk, turning to face them as she closed the call with the receptionist. Alyssa glided past him, and the two young women came together in a warm embrace.

“Oh! It’s so good to see you!” Calara gasped, delighted to see her visitors.

“You too!” Alyssa exclaimed, a beaming smile on her face. “You look so much better!”

Calara reached up to touch her nose self consciously, still swollen from the break that had been straightened. Her black eyes had mostly disappeared now, and John could see that the young Latina was actually very pretty. Unfortunately her lack of sleep made her look very tired, with big bags under her eyes.

John moved forward to greet her with a hug, and she moved into his arms, holding him tightly. “Thank you for saving me, both of you,” Calara mumbled into his chest. “You don’t know how good it is to see you.”

Alyssa stepped up behind her, and they both hugged the distraught young woman comfortingly for a while. After some of the tension had relaxed from her shoulders, they stepped away, with John taking the nearby reclining chair, and the girls sitting on the bed.

“So, Calara, can you tell me more about the trouble you’re in?” he asked gently.

A dark wave of depression seemed to crash over the poor girl, and her shoulders slumped in defeat.

“I’m being charged with ‘dereliction of duty’, and there’s going to be a court martial!” she exclaimed, her voice panicked. Alyssa moved closer, and wrapped an arm around her, supporting her comfortingly.

John took out a small handheld device and connected to the station’s security network.

“He said I’d have to answer for my shocking lack of judgement. That I was to blame for the Corvette being boarded, and all those people being killed!” Calara blurted out, on the verge of tears. “I was asleep at the time though! As the junior tactical officer, I had handed over the next shift to Lieutenant Crowe.”

John had been searching the judicial log for formal proceedings, but he could find nothing logged in relation to Calara Fernandez.

“Who is ‘He’?” John asked curiously.

Calara shuddered with revulsion. “Commander Rupert Grant. He’s in charge of Port Heracles, and has jurisdiction of this sector. He was my commanding officer for a while, before I requested a transfer.”

Alyssa guessed there was probably more to this story, as she watched the Latina visibly withdraw into herself. “Why did you ask for a transfer?” she prompted Calara gently, whilst rubbing her arm encouragingly.

Calara’s eyes were downcast and she looked ashamed. “He ... He kept coming on to me. I kept telling him no, so he threatened to end my career if I wouldn’t go out with him. Then Commander Jericho arrived at the station on the Corvette Griffon, so I applied for an immediate transfer. He accepted, and I joined his crew the next day.”

“This Grant guy didn’t take that well then, I guess?” Alyssa asked speculatively.

“No. When I told him about the transfer, he was furious. He swore at me a lot, and called me all sorts of things,” Calara said, blushing with embarrassment.

John’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “I think it’s time I met Commander Grant,” he said ominously.

They calmed Calara down, reassuring her that everything would be fine, and promising they would be back shortly. She watched them leave, biting a nail nervously.

Alyssa followed along besides John as he strode angrily towards the elevator. He was absolutely fuming with rage, and she had never seen him like this before.

Fucking with someone who has PTSD! he snarled to himself. What the fuck does he thinks he’s playing at?!

Alyssa decided to let John focus on the situation at hand and stayed quiet. She matched his pace as they stormed out of the medical facility, then walked briskly to the Station Commander’s office in the main Terran Federation military compound at the Star port. Alyssa tuned in to John’s inner voice, and was pleased when he calmed down, finally deciding against shooting the Station Commander. John swiped his ID at the entrance to the compound, and the guards waved him inside.

They travelled through a number of corridors in the base until they finally reached the Commander’s office. John opened the door without knocking, and strode purposefully into the reception area.

A pinch faced man in a naval uniform looked up, and saw that two civilians had entered his office. “Yes, what do you want?” he said, making no attempt to hide his irritation.

“My name’s John Blake. I’m here to see Commander Grant, about Calara Fernandez,” John informed the adjutant through clenched teeth.

The man tutted in annoyance, before pressing a button on a console. “There’s a John Blake here to see you about Lieutenant Fernandez, Sir,” he said obsequiously.

There was a few moments pause before a voice on the intercom said “Send him in.”

John and Alyssa walked towards the door, only for Alyssa to be stopped by the adjutant’s raised hand. “Not you miss, you can wait there,” he sneered, pointing at a nearby chair. She was relieved John didn’t carry through with his fleeting desire to break the man’s arm. Well a bit, anyway.

“I won’t be long,” John said to Alyssa, before he turned back and opened the door on the other side of the office, before walking in.

Alyssa watched John enter the room, and saw a portly man in his 50’s slouched behind a desk.

“Ahh, the irrepressible Mr Blake. I read about your exploits in Lieutenant Fernandez’s report, but I’m surprised to find you aren’t eight foot tall and breathing fire. What can I do for you?” Commander Grant sneered.

“Shut the fuck up and scan this,” John demanded in a tone that brooked no argument, as he tossed his military ID on to the Station Commander’s desk. He closed the door behind him, cutting off Alyssa’s view.

They were in there for what seemed like forever to the impatient teenager, who desperately wanted to know what was happening. She found that she was too far away to listen in to John’s thoughts, so the silence was maddening. The adjutant kept throwing salacious glances her way, and she suddenly realised the reason why he had asked her to wait behind. She deliberately ignored him and tried her best to wait for John’s return.

Eventually the Station Commander’s door was thrown open, and John strolled out. Alyssa glanced inside the room as she got up to join him, and saw the corpulent Rupert Grant slumped in his chair, his face a mask of fear and dread. The couple walked away quickly, eager to escape from the horrible men.

“I’ve sorted it out,” John said to a relieved Alyssa. “We just need to speak to Calara, and find out what she wants to do.”

They walked back to the medical facility, eager to bring the good news to the troubled young woman.

Meanwhile back at the medical facility, Calara thrashed around violently on her bed, gripped in a terrifying nightmare.

It had been such a relief to see her two saviours again, and she had felt safe and protected when in their presence. When they had gone, she found herself fighting off waves of exhaustion, and had curled up on the bed to try to get some sleep.

The nightmare started as it normally did. The horrific screams gurgled to a halt as the second crewmate died horribly at the hands of the Largath.

“It’s all my fault!”, Calara berated herself. “Those women, and all the other crew died because of me!”

The twisted faces of the surrounding pirates loomed large before her dazed eyes, leering at her and baying for blood. A crude spear was thrust into her hand, and she was dropped awkwardly into the pit to face the hideous creature. Her back was a sheet of agony from where she had been flogged by that demented cyborg, and she struggled to find her footing again as the Largath approached.

She waved the metal pole in front of her, desperate to keep the rampant beast at bay. It was deceptively fast for something so huge, and she had to work hard to keep out of its grasp, as it lunged at her time and again. She misjudged one strike, and the Largath whipped it’s arm to the side, catching her in the chest. There was a sickening crunch as her ribs broke, and she sailed through the air before landing on her back, the wind knocked out of her. Frantically trying to regain her breath, she struggled to her feet as the creature came forward, roaring to the cheering pirates, showboating for them...

“Bzzzzt!”

The insistent buzzing of the intercom woke up the terrified girl, and she was desperately relieved to escape from the nightmare, her heart racing and her chest heaving for breath. She steadied herself before answering the call, and was overjoyed when It was the receptionist again, informing her that John and Alyssa were back. Her heart lifted at the thought of seeing them, and she darted over to the door to watch out for their arrival.

John and Alyssa left the elevator, and turned to walk towards room 347. They saw Calara’s hopeful face looking around the door to her room, and she beamed a big smile when she saw them. She stepped out into the corridor, and ushered them in to her room.

They walked into Calara’s room, and John turned her to face him. “It’s over,” he stated simply, looking into her big brown eyes as she stared up at him hopefully. “You won’t have to face any charges, and there’s not going to be a Court Martial. None of what happened was your fault.”

Calara’s face crumpled with relief as she fell into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably. He held her in a warm embrace, being careful not to aggravate the young woman’s healing wounds. Alyssa stood at his side, and stroked the brunette’s long dark hair comfortingly, her face filled with compassion. They stood like that for some time, until Calara was able to regain her composure. She looked up at them both, with sincere gratitude on her face.

“Thank you,” Calara said fervently.

“You’re welcome,” he replied, as he held her in his arms.

John felt a lump in his throat. This poor girl had been through so much, and then that asshole Grant had made things so much worse. This was serious, he realised suddenly. He needed to report what had happened, and he couldn’t do it from here using the Port Heracles comm network, as Grant might be monitoring outbound traffic.

“I need to report what happened here,” John said apologetically, as the blonde and brunette looked up at him. “Grant isn’t going to get away with the way he’s treated you.”

“It’s ok, I’ll look after her,” Alyssa said kindly, as she smiled at the other young woman.

They agreed that he would come back to meet them after he had visited the ship, and he left Alyssa hugging Calara, murmuring to her soothingly. He made his way back to the Invictus, so that he could use its powerful communication relay to contact Terran Federation Command.

A short while later, John stood deep in thought, as he took the elevator back up to the Space port. He had made his report and recorded his detailed allegations against Commander Rupert Grant. He had lost some friends to PTSD in the past; good men, their lives taken by their own hand. He would be damned before he let anything like that happen to this young woman. The elevator door opened, and he was surprised to run into Calara and Alyssa as they walked towards him from the space port.

“Second Lieutenant Calara Fernandez reporting for duty, Sir!” The pretty Latina said formally, before snapping a sharp salute and standing rigidly at attention.

“What... ?” John said, surprised by her actions.

“I told Calara we had a vacancy in our ship’s roster, after my recent promotion,” Alyssa told him, her beautiful blue eyes flashing mischievously. “She just agreed to join us!”

“Now wait just a minute!” John blurted out, remembering Alyssa’s old job title.

“Uh-uh Commander!” Alyssa admonished him playfully, waving a finger from side to side. “As your Executive Officer, I’m in charge of all recruitment.”

John was about to speak again, but she cut off his forthcoming objection with a piercing gaze that startled him into silence.

“Second Lieutenant Fernandez here, graduated top of her Academy class, specialising in naval tactics,” Alyssa said, before she turned to face Calara. “Lieutenant, summarise your career for the Commander, please.”

“I joined the Terran Federation Navy at sixteen and spent two years at the Academy. My first posting was at Port Heracles, before I transferred to the Corvette Griffon,” Calara informed him, standing at attention, while listing off the achievements and citations of her fledgling career.

“Besides,” Alyssa continued, once Calara had finished. “The Invictus has a lot of big guns. I don’t know anything about ship to ship combat, do you?”

John paused, mulling this surprising turn of events over in his mind. He was a Marine at heart, specialised in ship boarding and infantry tactics. He realised he had subconsciously shied away from anything to do with the Invictus’ gun batteries, feeling a little wary of their massive firepower. A Tactical officer could actually prove to be very useful, and he came to his decision quickly.

“Welcome aboard Lieutenant!” he said to Calara, snapping her a crisp salute, and then smiling at her warmly. The pretty Latina returned his salute, and then smiled back at him happily as she relaxed.

“Yay!!” Alyssa squealed, rushing forward to embrace her friend in a hug. Calara returned the beautiful blonde’s enthusiastic embrace, wincing slightly at the sharp pain in her ribs.

“Oh, sorry!” Alyssa apologised, before quickly releasing her.

They walked over to the window overlooking the docking bay, which offered Calara her first view of her new home. The Assault Cruiser loomed in front of them, taking up most of the view, and Calara took in the intimidating sight of the many weapon banks bristling along the ship’s hull.

“Oh yeah...” she said in a low voice, her head nodding appreciatively, as her mouth formed a wide grin.

“Come on, let’s get you settled in. You’re going to be so happy here, I promise!” Alyssa said eagerly.

The two girls strolled hand in hand towards the elevator that would take them down to the docking gantry, and John watched the departing eighteen year olds for a moment, before he moved forward to scoop up Calara’s duffel bag. He carried it easily over one shoulder, and followed behind them to the lift.

The elevator took a couple of seconds to take them down to the docking gantry, and then the trio walked briskly towards the towering hull of the Invictus. Alyssa pressed her hand against the DNA reader, and the airlock spiralled open for them welcomingly. They walked inside and headed up to the officer’s quarters, while Calara recounted what had happened while John had gone back to the ship.

“So, after Alyssa offered me the job as Tactical Officer on board the Invictus, I called Commander Grant to request the transfer. He offered me an indefinite leave of absence!” she exclaimed, still shocked by how eager he had been to help. “That means I can stay on the ship for as long as you guys want me here,” she added with a happy sigh.

Alyssa grinned at John over the excited brunette’s head as they walked along the corridor on Deck Two. He smiled back at her, both of them pleased to see Calara’s dramatically improved mood. They reached the end of the corridor, and Alyssa pressed the button on the door to the left of the Commander’s room.

“Our room is just over here, so I’d like you to have this one,” Alyssa said, as the door to the officer’s room swished opened quietly. “Then we’ll be close by if you need anything,” she added considerately.

Calara nodded her head agreeably and they walked into the room. “Wow these quarters are huge! This room must be at least three times as big as my berth on the Griffon,” she exclaimed excitedly, as she looked around the corner. “And my own bathroom too!”

“Decorate it how you like, but please keep it nice and tidy!” Alyssa said, while smiling at her warmly.

“Yes Ma’am,” Calara replied respectfully, as John placed her duffle bag full of possessions next to the door.

Alyssa’s musical laughter filled the room. “There’s no need for all that military stuff, except when making fun of John!” she said with a grin, as she winked at the brunette mischievously.

John grabbed the playful blonde, and tickled her relentlessly until she begged for mercy, while Calara watched them with a bemused smile on her face. John eventually let Alyssa go, and she panted for breath.

“Come on you two, let’s go have some dinner,” John suggested amiably.

“Yes, Sir,” Calara replied automatically, before catching Alyssa’s mock disappointed frown.

“Yes ... John. That would be lovely,” she answered again, glancing at Alyssa for approval, who smiled back at her happily.

John laughed at the blonde good naturedly. “I thought the Executive Officer was supposed to enforce discipline amongst my crew?”

Alyssa looked at him archly. “I thought we discussed what my main role was supposed to be?”

John flushed with embarrassment. “Very good, XO,” he coughed lightly.

They walked off to the Officer’s lounge, all three of them enjoying the playful banter. This was such a change from the rigid discipline enforced on Terran Federation ships, that it came as a bit of a shock to Calara. She soon relaxed though, with both John and Alyssa putting her at ease with their welcoming friendliness. They enjoyed a great dinner, and it turned out John was an excellent cook when he put his mind to it. The trio then relaxed in the comfy chairs of the officers’ lounge.

“This ship is amazing” Calara sighed contentedly, before looking over at John. “You really own this yourself?”

He nodded and grinned happily at her. “After my service in the military, I worked as a trader for eleven years and finally made a big score. This... “ He spread his arms wide “Was the result.”

“Plus he got me in the bargain,” Alyssa said as she smiled at him playfully.

“I guess I did,” John said with a chuckle, and they looked at each other fondly.

Calara stifled a big yawn, and then looked up at them apologetically.

“Sorry to bore you,” Alyssa joked with her.

“No, no! I’m just really tired!” Calara answered hurriedly, worried that she had offended them.

“Relax, I’m only joking,” Alyssa said gently, and smiled at the brunette reassuringly.

“Come on ladies,” John smiled at them both “It’s probably time for bed anyway.”

He stood and then offered each his hand gallantly. Both girls accepted and rose to join him, before they walked back down the long corridor to the other end of the Officer’s Deck. John and Alyssa stopped at Calara’s door, and the exhausted brunette half stumbled into her room.

“Remember, just come and ask if you need anything,” Alyssa said pleasantly. Calara nodded her thanks, and the couple left her to get settled in and departed into the Commander’s quarters.

Calara went into her bathroom and completed her night-time routine, before collapsing onto the big comfortable bed. She struggled out of her clothes and pulled on a big comfy T-shirt, before crawling under the covers and turning out the light. Even though she was tired out, and badly needed to rest, she was scared of the terrifying nightmare that had plagued her every night for the last two weeks. She lay in bed, half dozing but desperately resisting the call of sleep.

She was roused from her half-awake state by the sound of an excited gasp. Calara looked at her clock and saw that it was eleven at night, and she realised had been lying there for around an hour. She mulled over the life changing events of the day, which brought a hopeful smile to her face, when she heard the unmistakeable sound of a lusty moan. Her mind immediately recalled that time back on the Fool’s Gold, when she had stumbled across Alyssa pleasuring the handsome Commander.

Feeling a little guilty, but unable to resist the siren call of the enticing feminine sighs coming from the other room, Calara got up and padded to her door. She had been so tired, she had forgotten to close her door earlier, and she saw that the door to Alyssa and John’s room had been left open too.

“Alyssa probably did that in case I needed anything,” Calara thought to herself, shaking her head in wonder. “How can someone so impossibly beautiful, be so kind and caring as well?”

“You shouldn’t peek on them after they’ve been so welcoming,” The good angel that popped into existence on Calara’s shoulder reasoned piously.

“But John’s so handsome and Alyssa is so beautiful,” The naughty devil on the other shoulder countered mischievously. “What would it hurt to take a quick peek? Besides, Alyssa didn’t seem to mind last time!”

The devil had it. The angel couldn’t counter that kind of foolproof argument. Calara crept forward and looked into their room, and her breath caught at the sight in front of her.

John was on his back, with his head towards her, as the dim light in the room cast shadows over his muscular chest. Alyssa was riding him like a cowgirl, and her slim, tanned body moved gracefully as she rocked back and forth slowly. John’s hands cupped the beautiful teenagers big firm breasts, and the pink nipples seemed to point towards Calara enticingly, as though begging to be kissed. Alyssa was leaning forward, her lustrous mane of golden hair flowing around her as she moved. It was clear they were trying to stay quiet, but the couple couldn’t help but make little gasps or moans when something felt too good.

Calara’s thighs ground together, and she felt a surge of arousal wash over her for the first time in weeks. She let out an excited little moan as she watched them with growing excitement.

John was oblivious, totally absorbed with the ravishing young beauty who was riding his painfully hard cock so wonderfully. Alyssa however, heard the quiet moan from the doorway, and looked up under her shroud of blonde hair to see Calara silhouetted in the doorway. Alyssa raised herself up slightly, putting on more of a show for the voyeuristic Latina, and writhed smoothly on John’s lap. She noticed Calara’s hand slipping down between her legs to rub herself in time with Alyssa’s rhythmic motion, and she watched the gorgeous brunette with growing excitement. The beautiful blonde sat up and tilted her head back, brushing her long, lustrous hair away from her face with both hands. She then looked forward and glanced over at Calara, making eye contact with the brunette.

The sight of Alyssa riding John so passionately, had Calara quivering with excitement, and she watched them with feverish eyes as she brought herself closer to climax. Suddenly she noticed that the gorgeous blonde was looking right at her, watching her rub her pussy. Letting out a frightened squeak, and flushing with embarrassment, she made to bolt for her own room, but something in Alyssa’s piercing cerulean gaze had her rooted to the spot.

“Come join us, beautiful,” Alyssa purred seductively, and beckoned the shy Latina over to them warmly. John tilted his head back to see what was happening, suddenly aware of their late night visitor. Alyssa pressed a finger gently to John’s lips with the other hand, silencing any objections, before leaning in close to whisper in his ear “She needs this John.”

Calara moved forward hesitantly, transfixed by those perfect blue orbs, which invited her in.

“That’s right, there’s a good girl” Alyssa crooned comfortingly as she slid up and off John’s massive shaft, before pivoting gracefully, and landing smoothly on her feet by the side of the bed. She walked towards the brunette, her poise and grace reminding Calara of a catwalk model.

The beautiful blonde reached out to take the lovely brunette’s hand, and she led her back to their bed. They turned to face one another, and Calara gasped when Alyssa moved her hands forward to take the bottom of the oversized t-shirt, and gently pulled it over her head. The hypnotic effect of those incredible blue eyes was momentarily broken, but Alyssa moved in and kissed Calara gently, reinforcing her bewitching hold over the brunette. Calara moaned into Alyssa’s mouth as the two kissed tenderly, both of them exploring lovely soft feminine lips for the first time.

John was stunned by the recent turn of events. He had tried to object when Alyssa had beckoned over Calara, worried as he was about her fragile state, after all the trauma she had experienced over the last two weeks. He sat up and turned to face them as Calara came over to the side of the bed, hand in hand with the blonde teenager he loved so much.

He had to stifle his own gasp as Alyssa removed the T-shirt from Calara, and the two moved together to kiss softly. They held each other tenderly, and their youthful breasts pressed together as they held each other, relishing their first kiss.

This was the first time John really had a chance to study Calara’s body in a sexual light, his previous worry for the young woman overriding any such thoughts. She was smaller than Alyssa, probably about 5’6” compared to the 5’9” of the statuesque blonde. She was slim and athletic which he liked, but she was looking thinner than when he had first met her, the strain of the last two weeks taking their toll. Finally, her breasts were a lot smaller than the blondes, probably about a 30B if he guessed right.