I felt restless as I sat in my chair. The jump drives were charging for our final jump. So far we had yet to determine the cause of our communication blackout. With every passing hour Lan's theory seemed to be more credible. I checked on the status of the jump drive. We still had a half hour before the drive was charged. I was having trouble focusing my thoughts so I stood up and left the bridge. I walked aimlessly through the corridors, talking with crew members along the way. I had spread the word about the upcoming leave and there was a definite excitement in the air. I was asked by several people about our lack of communication with the rest of humanity. My only reply was that we were working on it.
I had long ago discovered that those who manned the bridge knew what was going on more than most, so they were often the biggest gossip spreaders. If there was something I didn't want the rest of the crew to know, I had best not say it out loud while on the bridge. Gossip tended to spread like wildfire and was often blown out of proportion. Everyone on board needed this upcoming leave.
I arrived on the bridge five minutes after the jump drives had charged. Everyone was anxiously waiting for my return. I sat down and performed a final systems check. Once I was satisfied that everything was functioning properly I said, "Take us home."
The moment we arrive, Lt. Edwards called out, "Ships inbound. It looks like dozens of them."
"Friendly or hostile?" I asked.
He took a moment to respond. "Computer just confirmed they are friendly." There was a collective sigh among those present. "Most of the ships are Tuleeririan with a few Terran ships mixed in."
"We're being hailed" the communications officer said.
"Send it to my station" I replied.
A moment later, Admiral Vaehil's face appeared. "Admiral Ryan, good to see you are alright."
"It's good to see you too, Admiral Vaehil. I thought you were on your way back to Narrisal."
"We were, until we realized you weren't responding to our messages. Both our people weren't able to contact you either."
"We've been having communication problems"
"We were just about to go searching for you when you didn't show up on schedule."
"We encountered some Zrynt along the way and decided to exact a little revenge."
"Terrans are never happy unless their fighting" he said while shaking his head. "Speaking of which, I don't know how you have survived as a race."
"What do you mean?"
"A few moments trying to communicate with your leadership was all it took to make me want to kill them. Their ignorance and stubbornness is beyond comprehension."
I cut him off before he could continue. "I appreciate your concern for our wellbeing. Straightening out my people is the first thing on my list."
"I wish you luck. I'm going to take my fleet, as well as the ships that were providing protection and take them home. We're galactic neighbors now, so should you need anything we are just a jump away."
"Safe travels my friend. We'll join the fight as soon as matters at home are settled."
The transmission ended and Shahae walked over. "I'm going to travel with them" she said quietly. "There are matters to discuss with Queen Shaniir. Since we are close it will be much easier to see her in person."
The prospect of Shahae leaving filled me with sadness. "Go take care of things" I said reassuringly. "I have plenty here to keep me occupied." She thanked me and darted out of the room. I'm sure she was excited to go home.
"She is a strong and beautiful woman" Commander Morozova said, making me jump. I looked to right side and saw him standing next to me. The man was quieter than a ghost when he wanted to be. "It is good to have someone to care about, yes?"
I could feel my ears burning. I had no idea that my feelings were that obvious. "She is truly remarkable" I said, hoping to placate him." He seemed satisfied and went back to his position guarding the bridge. I waited for Shahae's ship to launch before giving the orders to move on. It would take another hour to reach orbit. Five minutes after Shahae left, I received a transmission.
"Jack" Shahae said as her face appeared on my screen.
"Miss me already?" I asked.
"I can't contact Narrisal" she said seriously.
My smile quickly evaporated. "When di d we lose contact?"
"Admiral Vaehil has been in almost constant contact since he arrived. He said that everything went dark as soon as we arrived. He didn't pay attention to it at the time because of the excitement of our arrival. Something on the Unity is causing this blackout."
"Unless the Zrynt found a way to tamper our ship or install some kind of device that means it has to be the Teludan."
"How could that be? The ship has been dead for millions of years."
"I don't know, but I'll do everything in my power to find out."
"Good luck Jack" Shahae said as she ended the transmission. A moment later, the Tuleeririan ships vanished.
I sent a message asking my battleship commanders to meet in my office. I also sent a separate message to Lisa asking for her presence as well.
Fifteen minutes later we were all gathered. "Lan was right" I said offhandedly. It took a moment for my remark to sink in. Lan immediately knew what I was referring to and a smile lit up her face.
"That's impossible..." Andrew started to say before I cut him off.
"Possible or not, the fact is that everyone here lost communication the moment we arrived. I did some checking and they can communicate with the sensors we've been dropping. I wanted to focus on what is going to happen over the next twenty four hours. I'm appointing Lisa as the interim leader of our new home. She will be in long enough to make sure everything is stable and oversee the election of a new council."
"Is it wise to place a member of our crew in such a position? No offense Lisa, but to me it sounds like a military coup."
"That is precisely what it is" said Sofya, coming to my defense. "Earth's leaders have proven that they are unreliable. The Unity was created to ensure peace among our people. With most of the council dead that enacted that order, it is our duty to keep peace until a new council can be elected. I understand your hesitancy, and normally I would agree with you."
"Then why don't you?" asked Andrew.
"Because Admiral Jack Ryan is in charge. We know him better than anyone. Can any of you really believe he has nothing but the best in mind for us?" Silence filled the room.
I cleared my throat and said, "Now, with our upcoming leave, I want to stress to you how important it is that all crew members be on their best behavior. The quickest way to undermine Lisa's authority would be to have the crew raising all kinds of trouble. I don't expect that from my crew, but I want the word passed anyways. I will require you all to check in daily and may have additional tasks for you." I quickly outlined my plans for the next few weeks and dismissed everyone except Lisa. "I would like you to accompany me to the bridge" I said as she started to leave.
As we walked on to the bridge I couldn't help but laugh at the look of awe on Lisa's face. I remembered back to my first time on the bridge and understood just how overwhelming it was. I grabbed her hand and pulled her over to the captain's chair. "I hope you don't mind standing for a few minutes. I'd offer you my chair, but it's picky about who sits in it." I ignored the confused look on her face and pulled up my interfaces. Her eyes lit up as she saw the wealth of information available. I pulled up a picture of our destination and displayed it on the main screen. "Welcome home everyone!" I called out. Several people cheered while most focused on their stations.
"Speaking of which, have you decided on a name for this planet? I'm tired of people complaining about its name."
"I think so" she said timidly. She squared her shoulders and took a stronger stance. "I'm going to propose we name the planet Dunamis."
"First of all, what was with the posture change, and secondly what does that even mean?"
Her face flushed and she relaxed a little. "I've been reading on how to appear to be a strong leader. This morning's reading talked extensively about body language." I couldn't help but laugh. "I'm serious" she said as she playfully slapped my shoulder.
"Dunamis?" I asked.
"It's the Greek word for strength. I thought the meaning was fitting."
I said the word a few times, testing how it sounded. Suddenly I yelled out, "Who here dislikes the name 'Hope' for our new home?" Several hands immediately shot, while most took a second or two. It was clear that the majority of the bridge crew didn't like it. "I see... ladies and gentleman, welcome to Dunamis!"
It took a moment, but most if not all nodded their head in agreement. I turned to Lisa who was shocked by my outburst. "It appears the name is liked." I couldn't help but smile.
"That wasn't quite how I figured it would be announced, but I'm happy to see it meets your approval and that of your crew." He smile wavered as she finished the last statement.
"You will always be a member of the crew" I said seriously. Our moment was interrupted by the communications officer.
"Admiral, we are in orbit of Dunamis."
"Thank you. Have a shuttle prepped and an escort ready to launch. If all goes well, this ship will be empty by this time tomorrow." There was cheering at the idea of a vacation. Especially on a new world where there was much to explore.
I escorted Lisa off the bridge and headed to my quarters. "I thought we were leaving?" Lisa asked.
"I have a surprise for you" I said with a smile. She looked bewildered, but followed me anyways. As we entered my office I said, "Close your eyes. No peeking." I entered my private quarters and grabbed a large suitcase. I had been preparing this box of tricks since I told Lisa about her new appointment. I dropped the heavy suitcase down on the conference table and it landed with a loud bang. Lisa jumped and squealed. She opened her eyes and sought me out.
"What in the..."
"I said no peeking!" I yelled playfully. She shook her head and closed her eyes. I opened the suitcase and extracted a full length dress. The dress was white and rather plain, but it was anything but ordinary. "Open your eyes."
Her eyes opened and she looked confused. Not quite the reaction I was hoping for. "You got me a dress?"
"No. I made a custom combat suit for you." She laughed thinking I was joking, but my lack of laughter stopped her. "Seriously?" she asked, eying the garment anew.
"Why don't you try it on?" I said handing it to her.
She looked it over before saying, "One problem. Dresses like this have to have a zipper in the back."
"Not this one" I said with a smile. I walked over and held the dress up. "Grab the top on both sides and pull them apart." She did and a long slit appeared in the dress. She placed the two sides together and the seam disappeared. She now looked at the dress with a sense of awe. "It gets better. Go put it on and I'll show you the rest."
She stepped out five minutes later with the dress on. The skirt went just past her ankles while the sleeves went all the way to her wrists. "You just had to make it long sleeved, didn't you?" I laughed and motioned for her to come closer.
"Place your index finger and thumb on opposite sides on the edge of the sleeve." I waited for her to position her hand. "Good, now pinch lightly and run your hand up your arm." Her eyes grew so wide I thought they would fall out. As she moved her hand up, the sleeve moved with it. She did the same on the other arm and within seconds had taken the sleeves halfway up her biceps.
"This is amazing" she said. "What else can it do?"
"Before we go any further, I want to reassure you of something." I grabbed the back of her dress and attempted to open it as she had with no effect. "Now you try it." She did and the back started to open. I quickly walked in front of her as she fixed it. "You are the only one the dress will respond to. Now, say you don't like the length of the dress, reach down and grab the hem like you did the sleeves." I knelt down and showed her how to grasp the fabric with her index finger and thumb. "Once you have both sides, simply lift the hem to the height you prefer and let go."
She brought the hem up right above her knees and let go. The dress had responded and was the proper length. "This is incredible" she said. It had been a long time since I had seen anyone so happy. I showed her how to adjust various areas of the dress to allow it to mimic just about every variety of dress I could find. "Does it come in any other colors?" she asked hopefully.
"I'm afraid this is the only one made." I watched as her face fell slightly. "This may not come in other colors, but it can be other colors. Make your left sleeve full length again." I had her place two fingers on her wrist and swipe to the right. A small translucent screen appeared with every color imaginable in several gradients. She tested various colors and watched in awe as the dress changed to each color. While she was playing with the various colors, I walked back to the suitcase and pulled out two more objects. "This is my favorite feature" I said as I held up a laser piston and fired into her stomach.
Horror filled her eyes and she screamed. The dress absorbed the deadly laser, leaving her unscathed. She felt her stomach, trying to find a fatal wound. She looked up at me with murderous intentions. "I'm going to kill you!" she screamed.
"Let's calm down" I said slowly. "The outer layer of the dress is coated with AUT. This is what allows it to change color as well as act as body armor. I'm not quite sure how it all works, but it's something along the line of absorbing some light wavelengths and not others."
I tossed her a tablet which she deftly caught. "What is this for?" she asked.
"That has some more advanced controls for your dress. You can add designs, use multiple colors or even use it as camouflage. It also has a user manual. The rest of the suitcase you'll have to figure out on your own. You can use the time in the shuttle to decide how your dress will look."
"Why are you doing all of this?"
"First of all, you are now the leader of one billion or so Terrans. You should look the part. Secondly, I can't stand the thought of you getting hurt, so I created a combat suit cleverly disguised as a dress."
"Wait, you keep saying that it is a combat suit. Does that mean it has offensive capabilities?"
"I'll let you discover those on your own." Opened the door and said in an exaggerated accent, "Shall we milady? Your destiny awaits."
As she walked through the door she turned and looked at me. "Thank you for everything Jack" she said as she gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and walked out. I could feel my face flushing, especially the area just caressed by her lips.
***A/N***
Sorry I haven't been updating as frequently. I've had very little time in which to write. Things should start to slow down, giving me more time to write. Let me know what you think of the chapter. There is a lot of plot development to do, but I'll try to keep things interesting while I do so. Thanks for all those who vote and comment.
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