Carpathia IV: Episode 72 - Going Rogue
Space, NCCS Shadowdancer, Bridge
Aire drummed his fingers on his armrest waiting for a response from the Admiralty. It was hours since he gave his last update to Admiral Zhang and she was clear that input from the Carpathian government would be required before they could do anything else. Until then, all he could do was sit and wait for the creaky wheels of government to turn.
So engrossed he was in waiting, Aire almost didn't notice the beep coming from the communications console.
Tayet: Incoming communication from Admiral Zhang, Captain.
Aire nearly jumped out of his chair.
Aire: On viewer.
The moment Admiral Zhang appeared on the viewer, Aire started scanning her face and body language, looking for any sort of hint that good news might be incoming. Alas, he found none at all, which, given her lack of enthusiasm, suggested there wasn't good news to give.
Aire: Any news on Kit, Admiral?
Teri: Nothing good, Captain. The tokki consider the matter an internal affair and Lord Anai is unwilling to push the issue. When we drew up the agreement to allow tokki to serve in the Exploration Force, this was not a contingency for which we planned and there's no procedure for what to do if a tokki enclave takes one of their own from our ships.
Aire grew frustrated, enraged even, but did his best not to show it.
Aire: Admiral, surely there must be...
Admiral Zhang held up her hand and shook her head slowly.
Teri: I know, Aire. This is a horrific act, but there's nothing we can do about it without the support of our government and, as I already mentioned, Lord Anai is unwilling to press the issue. All I can do is work with the Admiralty to try to change her mind. Until then, your orders are to resume your mission.
Aire gritted his teeth, but couldn't think of anything to counter Admiral Zhang's orders.
Aire: Understood, Admiral.
Teri: I'll let you know immediately if anything changes. Zhang out.
Just like that, Admiral Zhang disappeared from the screen and the bridge felt quieter and lonelier than it had ever felt before. Aire sighed deeply before giving his next order.
Aire: Helm, resume course. Commander, you have the bridge.
Aire strode briskly to his ready room and entered, rounding his desk and dropping into his chair with a sigh. The bridge would never be the same without Kit, especially not like this, and right now, being Captain was the worst thing he could be. The fight with the vashta was nothing like this, thinking it would be easier if Kit had died. He also wondered what kind of effect this might have on other tokki serving on his and other ships. That those like Rhalma could simply come and spirit away others would have a chilling effect on tokki like Kit.
The door chime sounded, sending a twinge of irritation straight down Aire's spine. Before he could tell whoever it was to go away, the door opened, revealing a rather flustered Nalma on the other side.
Aire: Actually, Nalma, now is not a good...
Nalma stumbled into Aire's ready room, nearly falling over, as though he had been pushed. In fact, he had been pushed, for Aire caught sight of Joust's smiling face and he gave him a jaunty wave just before the doors slid shut.
Aire: What's on your mind, Lieutenant?
Nalma shuffled to a chair in front of Aire's desk and sat down.
Nalma: I'm worried about Kit, Captain. I feel responsible for him.
Understandable, Aire thought. This was also a chance for him to ask a question that burned in his mind.
Aire: What are they going to do to him?
Nalma: He won't be on that pirate ship for long. He's mono, and they hate that. In a few days, at most, they'll take him somewhere else and force him to undergo what they call conversion therapy. A monotype tokki, especially one as strongly monotype as Kit, not only prefers a single partner, but will feel deeply violated forced to be otherwise. That's exactly what they're going to do. They're going to, what you would call, rape him until he likes it. As you can imagine, it's not only unbelievably cruel, but it also doesn't work. Kit will never be the same again.
Aire bit his lip, at a loss for words. How could one respond to that? Nevertheless, there was something else he wanted to know and now was a good time to ask.
Aire: Tell me about this pirate ringship.
Nalma: I've learned from our operative that it's a raggedy piece of junk. The external sensors barely work. It's on the edge of tokki space where there's little monitoring. I dare say, it wouldn't necessarily be easy to infiltrate, but it is definitely doable. None of my clan's ships would be able to get near it, though. The Saveas are surely spying on us as much as we're spying on them.
Aire: If it's unregistered, why doesn't the tokki government seize it?
Nalma shrugged.
Nalma: To be honest, for most tokki, if it's not causing them any trouble, they prefer to ignore it. That's one of the reasons why the Saveas have been able to get away with being the way they are for so long. They know precisely how to come just up to the line without crossing it. I never believed they would go this far, though. I was honestly enjoying antagonizing Rhalma when he was here, and I feel horrible now that I know what was happening while I was smiling.
Aire did his best to listen while keeping his own intrusive thoughts at bay. When Nalma finished, silence prevailed while Aire tried to make sense of his jumbled mind.
Aire: Thank you, Nalma. If there's nothing else, you can return to your station.
Nalma nodded and rose from his chair.
Nalma: Yes, Captain.
As Nalma left the ready room, Aire sat motionless, staring at nothing in particular. Even as he looked around the room, he didn't really see anything until his eyes landed upon the action figure of Blue. "Always do what is kind," Blue said to him. These words stuck inside Aire's head, now overriding all other thoughts like a virus. Then, he thought of Commodore Amaranth's words from before the Vashta battle. "Don't ever forget to pay attention to what's happening right in front of you." Adell's words that day were solemn, full of regret, and Aire was becoming more sure by the minute that he was facing one of these moments right now.
Aire sat up in his chair and tapped on his desk twice, as though putting a coda on his decision, and muttered to himself.
Aire: This will be the shortest Captaincy of all time.
Aire rose from his chair and pulled his uniform straight.
Striding briskly from his ready room door to his chair, with all eyes upon him, Aire called out his first order.
Aire: All stop.
Teek immediately shifted his throttle lever into the stop position.
Teek: All stop, yes Captain.
As Aire sat in his chair, he looked around for Commander Joust and found him attached to his usual position on the ceiling. Ramei was also at the engineering console, just where he was hoping.
Aire: Ramei, I understand that the long range communications and transponders are down. How long until they are repaired?
Ramei jerked to attention and turned to Aire with his mouth hanging open, seemingly trying to form words but not knowing what to say. At the same time, Joust skittered across the ceiling to a position just above Ramei.
Ramei: What? There's nothing wrong with the...
Before Ramei could finish his sentence, Joust released his hands from the ceiling and hung upside down right in Ramei's face, arms folded across his chest and eyes narrowed. He grunted at Ramei like an annoyed dog.
Joust: Mwruff!
Pinning himself to the back of his chair, Ramei looked around for guidance, first to Joust's menacing face and then to Aire.
Ramei: Um... a few... hours?
Joust spread his wings and leaned further, mere inches from Ramei's face, grunting again more dog-like this time.
Joust: Woof!
Ramei's ears fluttered as though they themselves were panicking on their own.
Ramei: Days! A few days, at least!
To Ramei's relief, Joust seemed satisfied with this answer and returned to his usual position on the ceiling.
Aire: Very well. Get to work on that and keep me updated.
Ramei: Yes, Captain!
Ramei darted from his chair to the lift at the back of the bridge.
Aire: Teek, prepare to lay in a new course. Nalma will give you the coordinates.
Commissioned art in this episode from:
AvareonArt
Zelbunnii
Thatwildmary
Colourbrand
