Chapter 5: Traitors

“She has been what?” Admiral Stahl gasped as he looked at the Avatar projection of the other immortal admiral.

“Captain Black Velvet has been arrested by your marines and Commodore Anderson, who you put in charge of the rescue and slave recovery operation is interrogating her now.”

“CENTRON, connection to Commodore Anderson. Priority Alpha!”

The sentient computronic of the Devi reacted faster than a regular request to the Comm desk.

“Anderson here, Sir. I am glad you called. We need more transport assets.”

“Shut up, Commodore. I am calling you on priority Alpha to give you instructions, not to hear your reports.” Stahl took a deep breath. Did you arrest Captain Black Velvet?”

The commodore swallowed hard, having the Eternal Warrior actually yell was not a good thing for certain. “Yes, Sir. She resisted all standard interrogation methods and psionic probes, so I am currently using more conventional methods. This bitch will tell us the location of the rest of her crew. Her ship was a regular slave transporter.”

Stahl took a deep breath.”Go to blue-blue-blue protocol right now!”

After the necessary motions were taken to establish said security clearance protocol, Stahl said.”The woman is a NAVINT asset and not a pirate. She acted in the guise of said pirate to gain access to the smelter moons, her name is Jane Smith. Where are her associates?”

“We keep them in Zero time stasis. There is a disgraced Golden, a genuine Nul. One of them is human; there is a X101 of all beings and the third is of unknown nature, the scan results make no sense. We bathed that vessel with the strongest paralysator settings. It also worked on the Nul by the way.”

“If you harmed the Narth you and me are in a world of trouble, Commodore.”

“A Narth?”

“Release the prisoner immediately, limit exposure. Provide them with a Scorpion at once! Do not send them to your CMO.”

“Aye Sir.”

McElligott was still there, his arms crossed.”It is the second time we do this to her, you know. And this after she liberated almost 16 million slaves. Togar, Dai, Karthanians, Ithe, a bunch of others and no less than 9,822 Union citizens. Not to mention we might have harmed the Narth.”

Stahl leaned back in his seat and made a guilty face, an expression McElligott has never seen in the face of Stahl in all the three millennia he knew the man. “It is on me, I dropped the ball. I should have informed the USS Kilian about the special circumstances.”

“Well if it is any consolidation, I too expected her to come back with a few hundred liberated Union citizens, not the entire population of three smelter moons.”

“We didn’t put into account who went to the smelter moons.”

“Your lucky, she worships the ground you walk on. Let us pray that the Narth is unharmed.”

The Narth was unharmed, but for the first time in all Narth existence, he suffered from what he described a headache. He told me that the Narth Supreme recommended that he meditated and rested for a day period.

I didn’t feel much better. The Commodore and his goons had done a number on me. I did not reveal to them that I was a Union officer because I was under orders to keep that part secret and my requests to make a GalNet call were denied.

An hour ago, Commodore Anderson came storming into the brig and yelled at the Luitenant who had hit me several times, quite hard and told me that he could do it even harder. “Release her at once.”

“Sir?”

“I gave you a direct order, Luitenant. She is not a pirate but a NAVINT asset that used the guise to get access to the smelter moons.”

The Lieutenant made a troubled face and gave me a crooked smile.”I am sure you NAVINT people understand and it wasn’t personal.”

The Commodore released the restraints himself.

I got up, kneed the Luitenant in the groin and as he groaned and bend over, I hit him with my knee under the chin, I spat at him.”Then you will understand that this was personal. You went beyond the acceptable and enjoyed your position of power over a restrained woman, you pervert, I will put you on report.”

I wasn’t sure if there would be a report or a follow-up, considering our unique position and mission. I was given a Scorpion and orders to report to Admiral Stahl aboard the Devastator and under the guise name of captain Jane Smith.

The Devi had an X101 health engineer and he was checking on Circuit to make sure he was alright, Mao remained aboard the Scorpion and so did Narth who followed the advice of the Narth Supreme.

It was Captain Harris himself who escorted me to Stahl’s office.

As we were in the I.S.T. he said.”Welcome aboard Captain Olafson. I don’t really know what exactly happened or what your actual mission is, but I am very proud you have been made captain by the Immortals. I knew you would end up commanding your own ship and who knows maybe the big chair of this ship will be yours again one day. We do have a regular steel container kicking tournament now, thanks to your ship’s last visit.”

I gave him a crooked smile.”I can’t tell you what my actual mission is, I was just beaten by a lieutenant for not revealing it. However I promise I will keep that tradition, should I ever command the Devi again.”

He actually saluted me just before Stahl’s office, I returned the military courtesy and entered after the door opened for me.

Stahl got up from his desk and if I didn’t know better I could have sworn to see something like a guilty expression in his face, I saluted him.”Captain Olafson under the cover of Jane Smith reporting, Sir.”

“Sit down, Captain. How is the Narth?”

“According to the Narth Supreme, my friend will recover. Right now he is meditating and resting trying to get rid of what he describes a bad headache.”

“I can not say it any other way, but apologies for this. It was my fault for not informing the responding units about your special circumstances. The first batch of liberated slaves told the Commodore about Captain Black Velvet. It didn’t help that the slave transport you commandeered was of the same ship type as the Silver Streak.”

He spread his arms.”I am sorry, Captain Olafson.”

“Sir, I understand why it happened. This was a different situation than the one back at Camp Idyllic, but was it really necessary to hit the ship that Narth piloted with the full strength of a ship-mounted F 12 paralysator? The last time, it was an F4 and it did a number on him.”

He sighed sounding relieved, then he gave me a lengthy report on what occurred on Ithe and to Har-Hi.

After hearing what my crew had to face, I chastised myself for letting them fend on their own. This was not what a Captain supposed to do. I could have sent someone else to the Smelter Moons and stayed with the ship and my crew, especially knowing that they faced a serious threat.

Stahl pointed to the cabinet where I knew he kept the cold beer.”Go grab two of them. Girls do drink beer right?”

“Yes Sir, my tastes have not changed.”

While I fetched the beer, he said. “I guess we both are guilty of this, and it is my fault for making it an acceptable exception. This particular way of leading is not very popular and on the verge of prohibited.”

“It is not?”

“No, Erica. Every XO, command school and of course Fleet Command will tell you it is against regulations for a Captain to do and don’t do certain things, but the number one rule is that the commanding officer makes the decisions and no one else. He or she will be responsible for the consequences of course.”

He took the beer bottle and kept speaking. “That does not mean I sanction or encourage your solo missions away from your bridge, where by all common sense you should be.”

I lowered my head.”I know, Sir.”

“I am not reprimanding you or tell you to change your ways. I can’t simply because I more often than not do the same. Even after three thousand something years, I can’t sit back and sent others into action. I also know your mission is quite unique and conventional approach isn’t always possible. You do have an exceptional crew and they did exactly what you wanted them to do. Take care of a situation while you were taking on another.”

I didn’t drink, the immortal Admiral usually could instill confidence in me and he didn’t fail now, but he could not completely dispell my sense of guilt, especially hearing about Krabbel’s lost leg and Har-Hi’s near-death fight with a Star Demon.

I doubted that it was anywhere in the regulations, not even if interpreted very generously and with both eyes squeezed shut, but as we returned to Itheamh and back aboard the USS Tigershark we were hugged, kissed, our hands shaken and greeted. Eyes that could get moist, were shedding tears.

After a while I said.”Guys, guys we are officers and we must return being professionals. Where in the history of the Universe has a Captain ever been hugged by his SHIP?”

I then held Har-Hi’s arm in Viking warrior fashion.”So you decided to kill a Star Demon all by yourself.”

“I am cursed to be a Dai warrior who has a Captain taking on every monster and creature there is, I had to fight something big and dangerous to even the score.” He grinned as he said that, but in his eyes, I saw how serious and how dangerous the fight really was. I squeezed his arm and he did so as well. “Thank you, captain.”

“Thank you, Har-Hi for being the best XO.”

“No, I mean for liberating all those Dai.”

“Truth to be told, my friend they did most of the liberating themselves once the control collars were off.”

His eyes sparkled.”14,000 Dai Than!”

“What will happen to them? If I understand they have no Tribes to go back to.”

“My father is with the Union Armada, he is in command of a carrier group. He and other Union Dai are taking care of them.”

“They will be okay with the Okthi part?”

Har-Hi’s face was full of pride. “Father says we are not Okthi, just because Cam Elf-Na sais so. It has to be the decision of the Pale Ones. The hearts of our mothers would have died if they had done so after all.”

“It seems there is still much I need to learn about the Dai society.”

“Yes, Erica there is and I found out I myself have not yet learned all there is to know.”

After that, we had a little reunion party in our Pirate’s Den. Krabbel ensured me that his new leg was just as good as the old one and that he could not even tell which one it was he had lost. I called him a fibber and hugged the big furry spider with much affection.

Then as we arrived at coffee and deserts, I asked.”Any news from the Red Dragon?”

Hans shook his head. “Not directly, but I have intelligence from the Ithe and our NAVINT outpost, the Red Dragon is still right here on Itheamh, sitting on a landing field of the Pragh spaceport. With all the Union fleet assets so close by, he won’t risk activating his engines and revealing an energy signature that is known ton Union authorities.”

I lit a cigarette from Shaka and O’Connell presented me with coffee in my very special and very ugly skull mug.”Well, the big armada keeps moving and will be gone in a few days. Only a few ships remain to assist the Ithe and keep guard till the PUMA process has officially started and more permanent protection can be installed.”

With a shriek that sounded like a venting plasma valve, Fenris our strange mascot fazed through a wall and into the Den. The bugger was noticeably bigger than before and it landed with clicking claws and flapping wings right before me and squeezed his yellow reptilian eyes close as it pressed its head against me.

Shea actually coed and clasped her hands together.”Oh, how cute, Fenris missed you too.”

I petted the little dragon and said.”Is it just me, or is he getting bigger? Anyone has any idea just how big Fenris might get?”

Shea spread her arms.”We do not have any reference data, so to answer your question. No, not really.”

Mao had to tell again how we were captured by Union marines. Shea told us about Stahl being in temporary command of the Tigershark.

SHIP chimed in and said.”The new interim planet governor, Ninety requests to come aboard.”

“Let him in over the landing ramp.”

The big Togar was not alone, he was in the company of Grtonner Icylemh, the former Engine Builder. Both were members of species I had little contact, but I could tell they were ecstatic.

“Captain Black Velvet, the entire planet is celebrating. Not just our liberation from the Karthanian overlords but you bringing back all those that had been sent to those cursed smelter moons.”

Grtonner agreed and said.”Come, all of you and be celebrated. You might be pirates to the Universe, but you are all heroes to Itheamh.”

“We truly appreciate the sentiment.” I said, “ but we rather not be exposed too much. Besides, it was you who was the main factor in all of this. We just tipped the scale, for the changes to take effect a little earlier than they would have anyhow.”

The tall Togar shook his mane.”Open that door once more Captain Velvet, please. There is someone who wants to see you.”

I asked SHIP to do so and outside on the landing ramp stood a little Ithe family. A female, a man and a kid. I recognized Drenc because of Crancy and he came running, not walking or listing to his parents.”You brought him back! You brought back my Daddy!”

I always considered myself in control of my emotions, and the kid was not human. Yet I felt my throat constricting. Our actions were validated by this moment.

His mother was not far behind him. “I too want to thank you and I want to apologize for what I said to you. My husband is back and we seeing a new horizon for us and for the entire planet.”

Ninety bellowed.”It is a small gathering, Captain. Just the ones that know you, let us share a meal and a few drinks. You will go on and do whatever you must do, and my days will be filled with activities to make sure our society stays on the course and until it can elect a new government.”

“Alright, I guess we could celebrate a little. There is a little time until the big armada has passed this system and our special friends dare to move again.”

I remembered the entrance to the wreck being covered with a thick tarp to block any light from escaping. It had been rolled away and the light of many torches and light elements illuminated the place. The sun was had set about an hour ago and the moonless night of Itheamh was upon us.

For the first time, I heard Ithe music, singing and laughing.