Carpathia IV: Episode 113 - Unexpected Mission
Space, Polaris Deep
With his belly full and mind a little clearer, Amenaru dodged his way through the busy rotunda back to the travel counter. Though he still wasn't sure what he might do, he at least felt less apprehensive about it. Baal did most of the talking at lunch and his relentlessly cheerful disposition had a way of making Amenaru feel that, whatever choice he made, things would work out okay.
Still, the decision remained. Expensive tickets aboard the Aquitania? Cheap tickets on a converted, empire-era cargo ship? He and Kit could take their chances hitching a ride with an Exploration Force ship that was on its way to Andrast, but detours were frequent, sometimes lengthy, and often unplanned. It would be impossible to tell when they'd actually get to Andrast.
At least he wouldn't have to make a decision now. Amenaru's only goal for now was to gather information and present it to Kit to see what he thought. On his way to the travel counter, however, Joust sidetracked him. He swooped down from high above and landed right in front of Amenaru, stopping him in his tracks.
Joust: Lieutenant! I'm glad I caught up with you. You haven't bought any tickets yet, have you?
As usual, Joust seemed to know everything, even things not discussed with others. Amenaru wasn't sure if he would ever get used to that.
Amenaru: Um... Not yet, Commander. I was just planning to gather some information first.
Joust: Excellent! Let's get out of this crowd, shall we?
Like turning off a busy highway onto a quiet side street, it didn't take much to get out of the crowd to a place where they could converse at a reasonable volume.
Joust: I have a mission especially for you, Lieutenant.
Amenaru felt deflated already, for it sounded like his plans for a trip were already being sucked away from him. He did his best to maintain an air of professionalism, without betraying his disappointment, as he inquired further.
Amenaru: Ah, and what might that be, Commander?
Joust: One of the runabouts, the Sunchaser, is due for a refit at the Andrast Shipyard. I want you to take her there.
Amenaru's brain went into overdrive considering the ups and downs of this new situation. The runabout would be free. The runabout would take a lot longer than, say, the Aquitania, but maybe not as long as hitching a ride on another CEF ship. After a few seconds of musing, he noticed Joust now had his hands on his hips, a bemused smirk on his face, and was now tapping his foot impatiently.
Joust: Bit slow on the uptake, I see. While you're on that runabout, you're on duty. Get it?
It took another second for the realization to kick in, but it finally did. None of his leave time would need to be used for travel!
Amenaru: Oh!
Joust: Runabouts require a minimum of three crew to operate safely. As a favor, I'd like to ask you to take Sylvar with you. He hasn't spent any time on a Carpathian planet at all and I think that would be good for him. As for the other, as the senior officer on this mission, you can choose anyone you like. Any other blonde-haired, blue-eyed, long-eared, floofy-tailed person that you'd like.
Amenaru nodded before Joust even finished with his description.
Amenaru: I get it, Commander. I was a little overconsumed with thinking before, but I get it. Thanks so much!
With a smile and a nod, Joust gave Amenaru a little push.
Joust: Of course, you can take Mrs. Tiggywinkle with you. Get going, then! You can depart any time between now and tomorrow at noon.
Amenaru: Thanks again, Commander!
New destination: Kit's quarters, and Amenaru immediately darted away in that direction, ready to share the good news.
NCCS Sunchaser
The docking ports at the station itself were for active ships. The Sunchaser was not one of those and Amenaru, Kit, and Sylvar had to take a shuttle to what was commonly known as the "parking lot," where ships temporarily not in use were kept. A place where the Sunchaser was starting to look like a permanent resident. Grungy hull. Faded, dull paint. Fortunately, it was common practice to inspect the engines twice a month or else they might wonder if they could even get it started.
They had every reason to expect that the interior of the shuttle would be musty and grimy, given the condition of the outside. Surely the first day or two of their mission would be some deep cleaning to make the rest of the trip bearable. To their surprise, what greeted them was not the scent of mildew and stale farts, but orchids and butter cream. Flicking on the lights revealed that a deep clean wouldn't be necessary. It was already done.
Sylvar: You had me worried when you told me what to expect. This is kind of nice.
Amenaru: Believe me, this is not what I expected.
Kit: Maybe Commander Joust sent in a cleaning crew.
Sylvar: That would be awfully nice of him. I wasn't looking forward to the cleaning part.
Amenaru put Mrs. Tiggywinkle on the floor and she immediately trotted off down the corridor. Each dropped their bags by the door and went about inspecting the cockpit area. Two seats, two windows facing forward, and a wraparound instrument panel, all bright and squeaky clean.
Sylvar: I've never seen control panels like these.
Amenaru: They're pretty old. The last time I saw anything like this was on an Academy training ship.
Amenaru took a seat in the command chair on the left and, with some careful thought and a little hesitancy on this old-style console, started tapping the buttons.
Amenaru: I'll go ahead and do core startup and pre-flight system checks. Sylvar, you can do a quick visual inspection of the engine room. Make sure there are no six-foot spiders in there or anything.
While Amenaru continued to set up the system checks, he suddenly realized that no acknowledgement came from Sylvar. Amenaru turned, finding Sylvar still standing where he was before, but this time looking like he was about to pee himself.
Sylvar: H... How big did you say?
Amenaru giggled, in spite of trying not to, but the look on Sylvar's face was too funny.
Amenaru: Just a little exaggeration humor. We don't get spiders that big. There shouldn't be any spiders in there at all.
Sylvar let out a deep sigh. Amenaru didn't realize he had been holding his breath.
Sylvar: That's good. You had me worried.
Fully recovered from his fear, evidently, Sylvar ran off to the engine room while Amenaru continued setting up system checks.
Amenaru: Kit, you should get the other console set up as you like. A big difference between these old consoles and the new ones is that these don't sense you when you sit down, so you have to hit a switch on the top right to flip it to your settings every time.
Kit: That will take some getting used to, but I'm sure I'll be fine.
Mostly working in silence, with the occasional question here and there, each did their task to get the Sunchaser ready to go. With the consoles set up and the core fully warmed, all that was needed was a final systems check.
Amenaru: Alright, everything's green. Kit, contact the station and request departure clearance.
Kit: Requesting clearance, Captain.
This sent Amenaru's ears aflutter.
Amenaru: Captain?
Kit: Sorry. Habit. Should I not call you that?
Amenaru thought it sounded rather nice, actually, but he still felt a little unsure if it would be appropriate. Still, a few weeks shouldn't hurt.
Amenaru: Um... I don't mind. Only if you want to.
Without answering directly, Kit glanced at his console.
Kit: Clearance received, Captain.
Amenaru grinned heartily as he tapped as his console.
Amenaru: Okay, then, thrusters until we clear the parking lot and then we'll set course for Andrast at Q5.
Since the parking lot was a good distance away from the station already, it only took a couple of minutes to clear the area and activate the quantum engines. They were on their way.
Amenaru: I see from the schematics that this runabout is configured for cabins rather than bunks. That's nice. Let's go take a look. Pick any one that you like.
Sylvar: I hope they have windows! I like watching the stars go by.
Sylvar ran toward the stern and opened the first door he came across.
Sylvar: Bwa ha ha ha ha! This room is for you and Kit!
Amenaru and Kit both looked at each other and then got out of their chairs to see what Sylvar was talking about. By the time they reached the door, Sylvar was still singgering, and it was easy to see why. Inside was a queen size bed all dandied up in red, satin sheets with white, lacy ruffles around the edges and matching, heart-shaped pillows. Even the nightstands were adorned with dainty, white doilies.
Amenaru: Joust. How does he do it?
Commissioned art in this episode from:
AvareonArt
Zelbunnii
Less_End
Thatwildmary
Colourbrand
