All That Glitters Ch. 44

"The size of our ships is due to the massive power that we can generate from the Marilon/Aruna generators," Junelliya explained. "Without those, we could not make ships of this size with the capabilities that we have."

"And OUR people will be able to make these vessels?" the Asoc queried.

"That is the contract that has been offered, Asoc. It awaits only your signature before it can be enacted," Fayad assured the Asoc.

"We shall place you, your Seneschal, four of your retainers, and your personal guards in this room from where we can watch our departure," Fayad told them. "The remainder of your people will be brought to either the galley or the theatre whichever they choose. It will only take us twenty minutes to get to The Wanderer."

They boarded the people as the other ministers entered the VIP shuttles that had been sent down by The Wanderer. They were ready to go in less than half-an-hour. The vessels lifted off and headed for orbit, the Asoc and her mate watching on the large 3D monitor in the Multi-purpose VIP Room, where the screen was split in half to show the bridge and the view the nose cam provided. The Asoc was impressed with the imagery that the monitor put out, as it allowed for the Asocans to use all aspects of their vision, which encompassed more of the infrared and ultraviolet wavelengths, yet it still gave a clear 3D image.

They watched as the captain requested permission to lift from Planetary Control, the ship lifting smoothly into the atmosphere.

"Pilot, take us up," Bellany ordered.

"Aye, ma'am," the Pilot replied. He pushed.01 percent power into the exterior gravity plates, lifting the ship off the ground, and retracting the landing struts.

"Landing struts retracted and secure, ma'am," the Pilot said. "Boosting power to the exterior grav plates."

The Pilot slowly added a total of three percent power to the grav plates sending the ship up at increasing speed. He began to feel friction on the wings and engaged the computer to evaluate the wings responses. He got a favourable response.

"Sufficient friction to the wings, rotating," he said, using thrusters to point the nose of the ship upwards as the wings engaged in the thick atmosphere of the swampy planet.

"Elevation has exceeded 3,000 meters," Science called out.

"Roger. Pilot engage the sub-lights at minimum thrust," Bellany ordered.

"Ma'am, the sub-lights are engaged at.5 percent, we are accelerating," the Pilot said.

"We have reached Sonic Minimum at 15,000 meters," Science called out.

"Roger that, Pilot, bring the sub-lights up to five percent," Bellany said.

"Ma'am, we are now at five percent thrust, accelerating to maximum atmospheric speed," the Pilot indicated, and a few moments later, "ma'am, we have exited the atmosphere. Pointing us at The Wanderer."

"Roger, let me know when we are fifty kilometers out from The Wanderer," Bellany stated.

"Ma'am, we are now fifty kilometers from The Wanderer," Science indicated several minutes later.

"Wanderer, this is The Trine, requesting permission to board, over," Capt. Bellany said over the net.

"Wanderer, roger. You are authorized the same berth as previously. The Gara-Hinn is active, make your entrance slow, over."

"Trine, roger that. We are approaching your starboard flank now, out.

"Slow her down to under two meters per second as we approach the barrier, pilot," Bellany ordered.

"Aye, ma'am," the Pilot returned.

As the guests watched, the ship approached the open hatch. A shimmering barrier could just be made out as they approached the opening. The ship shuddered slightly as it passed through the Gara-Hinn shield and slid gently into its berth. The Asoc was surprised to hear popping noises from the ship similar to when a shuttle passed into the atmosphere of a planet.

Junelliya smiled at the surprise the Asoc showed. "We have an atmosphere barrier we traded from the Pod-Drran. It allows us to enter and leave shuttle bays without having to deal with atmospheric depressurization or pressurization. That is a major plus for our large vessels, Asoc."

The Asoc blinked twice in surprise. "We had no idea that you had such capabilities!" she said, her obvious surprise showing. The size of the Wanderer had surprised the Asoc as she was expecting something near the same dimensions as Djinaëte vessels. This ship was considerably smaller.

"All large new ships and orbital stations are being built with this new capability under licence from the Pod-Drran," Fayad explained. "We are also in the process of renovating older vessels and stations to retrofit these capabilities. With the number of existing stations and ships that we have, this will take some time. Liramor-23 has just had this added to all of its ship berths, even the ones designed for large vessels."

"Shall we enter the ship, Asoc?" Junelliya asked.

The Seneschal worked to quickly set up the guards and the Asoc's retinue as the shuttles with the Ministers arrived in the ship berth. The trio led them up the ramp to the reception area where their hosts awaited them.

They were met by a single, short, female warrior who was wearing a plum coloured outfit with three strange looking weapons at her sides. She turned and guided them between two rows of Marines in full ceremonial dress, lined up along a red carpet that led to the front of the reception area.

A dark-skinned officer near the front, holding a thin bladed weapon, snapped a command, and the Marines came to attention and brought weapons in front of them in a salute. The officer brought her blade in front of her face, then lowered it to the deck, back in front of her face and then brought her blade parallel to her body, as the Asoc's entourage reached the people lined up in the middle of the reception area. The officer barked another command and the Marines came to parade rest. The precision of their movements was unlike anything that Asocan's warriors would do.

The Asoc realized she was looking at a well drilled military team...On a private vessel? She wondered.

"Asoc, Asost, Ministers of the Asoc's Government, may I introduce Raymond Clark and Liea Samson, the owners of The Wanderer and your hosts," Fayad introduced his friends.

The Asoc looked around the large reception area. There were several large, 3D monitors mounted on the walls. One was showing the large bridge of the vessel. Another was showing local space and the planet below. On the wall behind their hosts an image of a human in colourful clothing with strange wording over it that her translator was unable to make sense of. Under the image was the name 'The Wanderer'. The image was of a walking human looking up at stars as he appeared to be stepping off a cliff. It was an amusing image. She noted that the crew were wearing patches on their right breasts with the same logo. So, the ship's crest then.

Seeing where the Asoc was looking Raymond spoke up. "The crest of our ship, the name is under the crest while over the top is the inscription 'quaerere et invenire' which means 'to search and discover' in a human language that is long dead."

"Your ship is a private yacht yet you still search for new things with it?" the Asoc demanded.

"When you are as rich as we are, Asoc, you find that you need something in your life to amuse yourself," Liea answered for her partner.

"Did this ship cost much to build?" the Asost inquired.

"This ship was retired from the Union Navy. We purchased it and had it refit as our private yacht. The total cost of its refit was nearly 750 million credits, Asost," Liea replied, surprising the Asoc.

"What would such a ship cost new?" she asked, curiously.

"As a Naval vessel, a ship this size would be in the area of 2.5 billion credits. As a commercial vessel, somewhere between 1.3-1.5 billion credits. As a private yacht, built from scratch, in the neighbourhood of 3 billion credits, Asoc," Raymond answered.

"Is he your mate?" the Asost asked of Liea.

"No, he is my business partner," Liea returned, with a smile.

One of the ministers spoke up with, "You must do good business to afford such a vessel."

"Let's just say that we could afford to buy many vessels of this size and opulence without worrying about the expense," Liea explained, again surprising the Asoc and her entire delegation.

"Momma!" came a call from a little voice. The Asoc turned to see two children in the arms of two females, both reaching out to be held by their respective mothers.

Hanalei picked up the child that the Asoc recognized as Ikekia. Surprisingly, Junelliya picked up the other, smaller child as strange flying creatures landed on the shoulders of the trine.

"Huwl< ana, Asoc (welcome Asoc)," Ikekia said in her tiny voice, surprising the Asoc and all of her entourage, even though the pronunciation was off slightly.

"Shurl antel, Ultar, (thank-you child - actually 'tiny one')", the Asoc returned. "Very good, Ikekia. You have been practicing!"

The child smiled in delight at having been praised by someone new.

"Forgive me, Junelliya, but I thought that Ikekia is your child?" the Asoc wondered.

"She is, Asoc, as is Zarrenia. If you remember, we are a married trine, while Ikekia is not of my body, she is of my family and is as much my child as Zarrenia is," Junelliya explained.

"Sharrenia?" the Asoc spoke the name (Asocan's are unable to properly say 'Z' because of the shape of her mouths).

The little girl clapped her hands at the sound of her name and lifted her arms to the large female. The Asoc reached out and picked the child up, who quickly cuddled into the crook of her arm, surprising the Asoc.

"Hug!" a tiny voice demanded loudly, as Ikekia lifted her arms and wiggled her finger. The Asoc smiled and took the child into her other arm, getting a hug and a wet kiss from Ikekia, who then cuddled into her neck and made the strangest of sounds.

"They are not frightened of me?" the Asoc wanted to know, surprised.

"Both of our children deal with many different species on Liramor-23. They are used to being in the arms of all manner of people, including Asocans," Hanalei answered.

The creature on Junelliya's shoulder let out a strange sound. "Juneya wishes to greet you, Asoc, will you permit it?"

"I will," the Asoc answered. The creature jumped into the air and floated over to the Asoc's shoulder, where she pressed her head into the jaw of the large female and rumbled a sound of contentment that the Asoc immediately understood that Ikekia was trying to emulate. A warm feeling was infusing the Asoc.

"Asoc, if I could present my senior crew?" Raymond asked quietly. "It is alright if you hold onto the children for a time."

That brought a broad Asocan smile from the Asoc, who found she was missing being with her own clutch.

"The captain of my ship, Helene Degault," he indicated a female in a dark uniform, who bowed to the Asoc.

"Major Thom, the commander of the contingent of Marines that greeted you on your entrance." The male wore the same dark-green uniform that the other Marines were wearing but with the accoutrements of what the Asoc assumed to be a senior officer.

"My ship's doctor, Seito Ayesha." This woman was dressed in a white single-piece uniform that fit her form closely. The Asoc was surprised at how tiny she was, even smaller than the female warrior standing behind Liea.

"Her mate, and the head of my private security, Sean Murphy." The male bowed. He was only a head shorter than the Asoc, but just as broad of shoulder, which surprised the large Asocan. He was dressed in a black single-piece outfit, with several instruments at his hips. Being chief of security, they were likely restraints and other such devices.

"The Ship's Boatswain, the senior enlisted person on board, MCPO Bridget O'Neil," he presented another person in a dark dress uniform.

"My bodyguard, Gillaya." The female had strange looking hair and looked at the Asoc with eyes that seemed to peer into her very soul. A shudder ran up the Asoc's spine as she met those eyes. The female wore an odd medal under her left breast, the same that Junelliya wore.

"Liea's bodyguard, Oshiiru Kimiko Sai-Rai, also known as Kim." The female bowed to the Asoc without taking her eyes off her or her entourage. The little one noted every movement that they made.

"Such a tiny little warrior?" War Dragon Minister Geldan of Intergovernmental Affairs asked with a sneer, she was a warrior almost as large as the Asoc.

"Kim..." War Dragon Minister Kloä> looked at her and nodded his head.

Kim moved, so fast that the Asocan's watching were positive she must have teleported, even though teleportation was only a mythological science. With a bound, she jumped up onto the snout of Geldan and wrapped her legs tightly around them, shutting her mouth closed to prevent her from using her teeth on the attacker.

Kim had the point of her Tanto mere millimeters from the left eye of her opponent.

"This Tanto is long enough that if I pushed it into your eye, it would penetrate your brain. You would lose your sight, and your life, in one motion. Is that what you want?" Kim barked.

Geldan shook her head in the Asocan negative. Kim jumped back from the Asocan, landing on her feet, the Tanto sheathed as she spun in the air.

"If you will all note," Kloä> spoke. "Kim has placed her weapon back into its sheath before she landed on her feet."

Every Asocan eye (and many human) were now fixed on Kim's three weapons, all of which were back at her hips.

"This little warrior is the one who gave me this scar," Kloä> stated touching the scar on his snout. "Despite her size, she is a formidable warrior. You would all do well to remember that each species has different ways of combat, which could very well be superior to our own."

"Are there others on this vessel that could provide a demonstration of combat techniques with Kim?" the Asoc inquired. "I would very much like to see how humans fight."

"That can be arranged, Asoc," Raymond agreed.

"Sir," came from the monitor looking into the bridge. "Planetary Control is requesting that we wait for several supply vessels moving between the planet and the nearby orbital station," the Ex O, Cdr. James, relayed.

"Acknowledged," Degault replied. "They are less maneuverable than we are so it is probably better if we give them a wide berth. How long is the expected delay?"

"It translates to between twenty-five and thirty minutes, sir," the Ex O replied.

"Very well, keep them in our sights," the Captain ordered, meaning the weapons sights.

The Asoc thought about that. It made sense to stay out of the way of the supply vessels moving around them.

"Sights?" one of the Asoc's guards asked.

"Weapons sights. We trust no one with the Asoc and her entourage aboard," Degault replied.

The Asoc's personal guards smiled at that, giving nods of respect to the Captain.

"Shall we look at the ship then?" Raymond asked, taking off his jacket and medals and passing them to an aide.

The Asoc noted that while Raymond appeared to be affable and approachable, he was able to swiftly put on airs of authority. It was a trait she expected in all of her senior staff.

The tour was reasonably swift, moving through many of the areas in and around the ship. Whenever they passed a cabin that was assigned to one of her contingent, the Boatswain, MCPO O'Neil, would indicate to that person or persons that their baggage was already in their stateroom.

The Asoc and Asost were placed in one of the larger VIP staterooms, with her necessary staff not far away. As indicated, their baggage was indeed waiting for them.

They took a few minutes to sort themselves out and then moved to the ship's rather large gym, where the expected combat demonstration was set up.

As they entered the gym, they heard Capt. Degault's voice come over the ship's intercom system. "Prepare for jump, now, now, now!"

The Asoc felt an odd feeling, then the captain's voice came back. "We are within 100m of our expected entry point. It will be one hour before we can complete the journey to Liramor-23."

"That fast?" the Asoc asked of Liea, who just smiled at her, giving her a nod. She did not reveal more of The Wanderer's capabilities.

The group approached a couple of large blue mats on the deck. On the mat was the dark female that they had seen earlier and Kim. Both were armed with what appeared to be short sticks a little longer than their lower arms.

"Lt. Ululla Mbibo and Kim will provide the demonstrations of one of our fighting styles," Liea told her guests.

The Asocans watched as the pair began to fight vigorously. They were surprised at the speed and strength of their movements. There was no question that they were actually fighting, even if it was only a practice.

The combat went on for roughly fifteen minutes before Mbibo made a mistake which Kim capitalized on and drove the end of her stick into her throat, stopping just short of causing injury.

A cheer went up from the watching humans and the Asoc knew that Kim had defeated Mbibo.

"Ululla, you owe a lap. Get moving," Liea said with a smile. Mbibo grumbled but took off around for her lap.

"The Track, is actually a means by which this ship could move torpedoes and missiles between the magazines and the bow and stern tubes when she was a warship," Liea explained. "We put in the appropriate cross pieces and turned it into a one kilometer running track."

Surprisingly, Ululla was back less than five minutes later.

In the meantime, several pairs of ship's crew started doing unarmed combat techniques for the Asocans. The losers ran off for a circuit of the track.

Liea stepped onto the mat with Kim. She picked up a wooden sword. The pair began to work hard using traditional Japanese sword techniques. While Liea was good, it was obvious to all who was superior. Kim finally landed a blow on Liea that resulted in her defeat. She, too, had to take a 'victory' lap.

Next came Raymond and Lt. Teusleh, the other Marine Lieutenant. The pair picked up very thin blades they called 'Sabers'. They put on masks and vests and began to fight in traditional fencing techniques. Again, the Asocans were surprised with the speed and ferocity of the combat. Eventually, Raymond got five hits on Teusleh and won the match. Teusleh didn't wait to be told and started running.

"Are these actual combat techniques?" the Asoc wondered aloud.

"The last is not. We use it to teach speed, and reaction times to our people. It is a useful tool if you want people to learn to think and react in combat. We have found that it saves lives." Raymond responded. "It is also fun."

"Fun?" the Asost asked.

"If all you ever do is train, train, train, eventually you will burn out. So, by adding an aspect of entertainment to it, we make it competitive and interesting." Raymond shrugged.

Just then, the large monitor in the gym opened with the image of Capt. Degault on the bridge. "Prepare for final jump, now, now, now!"

Once again, the Asoc felt the odd feeling in the pit of her stomach and then the monitor showed an image of a strange looking space station.

"Welcome to Liramore-23," said Degault.

***********

From their stateroom, the Asoc and her mate looked at the imagery on the monitor showing several dark ships surrounding the station. All of them bristled with weapons.

"They seem to be taking our security seriously," the Asost commented, getting a nod from his mate.

"Are we ready to face our public?" the Asost asked.

She gave him a smile and a nod.

They moved down to the reception area and once again boarded The Trine for the short trip to the station. She marvelled as the little ship slipped through the shield and into space, only to reverse the process as they entered the station.