Dark as Daylight Ch. 24

Your parents may have had control over you, but that was only by using force. They had to use the whip to keep you in line. They could never use the spoken word to ask you to do something, and get it done. You were too violent, and reactive a child for that form of child rearing. It was either your way, or force of arms against you. What you didn't realize was, you always lost using that tactic. If you had said yes to them, even if you meant no, your life would've been so much easier at home. You never learned how to compromise, which would have been the middle ground. That's what you are missing, honey, you don't know where that middle ground is. With you, it is either black or white, not gray. Left or right, not straight ahead. We are still very young, and we have a lot of time, and a lot of life left to live. Soon we will have 3 children running around us. Both of us will make sure they know where all their parameters are. They will be better than we are. You will be stronger, and they will be smarter than we are."

Zoey said, "Newton have I ever told you that your cousin talks too much?"

"No, you haven't, but what he says makes a lot of sense to me, and when I get home, I believe I have a few things to change about my own behaviors when I get there."

"Oh good, because I know he wasn't talking about me."

"Zoey, if you don't think he was talking about you, I'll go down to engineering, get a big battery, and a few leads. I'll shove one up your ass, and have you hold the other one and a salty solution. I will throw the switch, myself, and hope to see that brain of yours light up. He was talking about you, because my cousin adores you, and wants nothing but the best for you. Think about the things he said, Zoey. Think very hard, and ask for help if you believe you need it."

"Are you telling me you think my brain is up my ass?"

"Zoey, now I'm sure you need help."

"Okay, you two, I don't want a fistfight in here. Let's break this meeting up and go to work."

"I don't know about you, dear, but I am working for the newspaper."

"I don't know about you dear, but I am working also, as captain of this vessel. I am checking on the morale of the crew. Right now, it is suspect."

"I'm not sure about you two, but I am working. As chief engineer, I'm surveying the vessel, room by room, to verify structural integrity. I'm doing this while you 2 are talking about family matters that do not concern me. Possibly, you 2 should talk to Doctor Hanna about your problems."

"As Senior Captain, the 3 of you are full of shit. Get out of here and go to work."

"Yes Monty, anything you say Captain."

Monty asked, "Security, how much of this conversation was recorded?"

"Captain, we started recording when Captain Gordon Luck began talking with Captain Delicious Thyme, and let it run from there. We just turned it off when you called."

"Excellent, mark it properly, and put it in the files for marital training. The new kids coming up wanting to marry may find it interesting, that a couple married for almost 10 years still has problems that have to be worked out."

"Do you want us to make a copy of it?"

"No, just keep the one you have, and the one on the computer, and that should suffice."

"Consider it done, Captain."

Happy Birthday

Today was the 1^st day of a new rotation for everyone on board ship. Everyone was excited, because this was the beginning of a new adventure for them. It didn't matter if you were a captain, and were being sent to guard duty. Guarding the exits, the perimeter, and the brig, were all important duties, and there were procedures to be learned, firearm training to be mastered, prisoner transport to be safely accomplished, and a host of other items in the manuals that had to be learned and mastered.

Even Luck left nothing to the imagination. Everything was written in the manuals he wrote. There were tests to be taken and passed, before you moved on to the next task. They had been on Atwater Luck for 1 of 1 years, and no one had completed every work segment on board yet. To become a master plumber, like Adam, took almost 2 years. It wasn't just learning which valves to open and let the waste water out into the void of the universe, it was also learning how to repair the breaks that occurred properly.

When Adam took his trainees into the nuclear containment area, dressed in radio-active protection gear, to show them how he fixed the fresh water leak on the night of his wedding, he couldn't hear any of them breathing.

He said, "Relax people, your heads are the best areas of your body protected. The radiation is going to attack everything from your chests down. You women will need double mastectomies within 5 to 7 years of being in the nuclear containment unit, when the reactor is functioning above 15%, but don't worry, because Doctor Finch is a plastic surgeon, and he will not leave a scar on your body, only your tits will be gone.

Men, I should've told you to put on a lead jockstrap to protect your dangling participles. I wear mine all the time in here, because my wife attacks that part of my body with lethal force, and I don't like being in pain. You will not lose that part of your body for at least 8 years, so will have fun while you can."

The screams, taunts, and yells hurled at him for the next few minutes made him laugh. He took off his head gear and told them all to calm down. It took them a while, but they did. They looked at him questioningly as he held his head gear in his hands.

"Children, how many of you have completed reading the manual on the containment unit?"

2 of his students raised their hands out of the 13 trainees.

"Marilyn, do we have to wear radiation gear, while we are in the containment unit?"

"Sir, the manual didn't say we didn't have to wear the gear."

"So, you automatically assumed a double negative, we had to wear the gear, is that correct?"

"I'd rather be safe than sorry, sir."

"Did you believe what I said about your double mastectomy?"

"No, not really. If the dose of radiation was that high, I believe I would rather be dead 1^st."

"What about you Joshua?"

"I wasn't looking forward to losing my balls, sir. Like Marilyn, I'd rather be dead."

"Let's have a show of hands from the rest of you. If you'd rather be dead, than have the most important parts of you removed, raise your hands."

The result was overwhelming. 9 of the remaining 11 trainees raise their hands.

Adam said, "I'm going to go out on a limb here and make a wild guess. You 2 are Roman Catholic, right?"

Both men nodded their heads in agreement.

"I find it amazing. You 2 were 8 or 9 years old, when we started on this adventure of ours, and you still hold fast to a religion that you have not practiced actively for 10 or more years. How did that come to pass?"

Victor replied, "Both my mother and father are very religious people. They pray with me, and my siblings, every day. Although I love math and science, if I were back on earth, I would actively consider becoming a priest because of what they taught me."

"Excellent answer, Victor. How about you, Charles?"

"Before my father became a world-renowned scientist, he was a priest. The Vatican would not allow him to pursue his studies because they infringed on areas of the religion, they didn't want him to go. He had to make a choice, either he could follow a religion that restricted his mind, or he could free his mind to see where that religion took him. He chose door number 2. I've learned an awful lot about religion from my dad, and taking my life because I was ill is not something I could do."

"Thank the good Lord, I am Baptist, because if I had a choice of dying slowly from the disease that was eating me up inside, and I had no chance of recovery, I would eat a bullet willingly."

From the rear of the group he heard, "If you dare get that sick, you won't have to eat a bullet. I will kill you. I will cut your legs off. Then I will cut your manhood off. I will reach inside you, grab your heart, and yank it out through that opening. While you're still alive, I will show it to you, as I begin roasting it over a charcoal fire. Don't you ever get sick on me, Adam, you will rue the day you did."

"Ladies and gentlemen, if you have never met the love of my life, and the reason I wear a lead jockstrap, there she is, my dear wife, Laura. I come to work every day even when I'm ill because I know she would kill me, if she thought I was sick.

That bump in her belly is my son, and I'm doing everything I can to stay alive long enough to see his birth."

"That's why I am here, you asshole. He wants to come out and you wouldn't answer your phone."

"Phones don't work in here, baby. Why didn't you go to the infirmary, and have 1 of the aides come here to get me?"

"If you were an aide, and looked at all the warning signs on the entrance door to get in here, would you do it?"

"No, I guess not."

Jeff said, "Why are you 2 still here, instead of on your way to the infirmary to have a baby? I know you love to fight, but I don't believe this is the right time."

Laura said, "Adam, you better pass that kid, or you going to have to talk to me and tell me why."

"Can we go to the infirmary now, please?"

"My contractions are 3 minutes apart. This little guy won't be here for a while yet."

"I didn't realize they came with the time line included. The 1^st one comes anytime, and the 2^nd one comes on schedule."

"Adam, don't make me hit you. You will be lying on the 2^nd bed in there, and you will be in more pain than I am."

"Class is dismissed for the day, and tomorrow. I will see you all here Thursday morning at 6 AM."

There was grumbling about the time, but everyone said, "Yes, sir."

He grabbed Laura around her expansive middle and asked, "Where is my kiss?"

"Get me to the infirmary, Adam, or this kid is going to be born here."

"It's okay with me, I've read the manual. As Doctor Finch says, 'You do all the work, and he catches the baby.' It seems simple enough to me."

"Do you remember the night you came home drunk, and parked on the swale?"

"Vividly!"

"Get me to the infirmary, Adam, your son is coming, now."

Even pregnant she was a lightweight. He lifted her off the ground, carried her through the warren of twist and turns of the nuclear containment unit and headed for the door. It was being held open for him by a member of his class.

As he exited with Laura, he thanked Virginia and continued a few steps, until he bumped into a gurney. He stopped, looked around, and found Doctor Lois and a full medical team waiting for Laura.

Lois said, "Put her down, dummy! I can't examine her up there."

He was about to comply, when Laura was yanked from his arms by several nurses, and placed gently on the gurney. He backed away a few steps, not knowing what to do with himself.

Laura yelled, "Don't you dare leave me here alone, Adam. You will have to move to another room if you do."

He approached. "I told you the day we met that I wanted you for life. I told you there would be no one else in my life but you. I'm not going anywhere unless you tell me to go, and then I would go reluctantly."

Lois yelled, "Get her to the infirmary, this kid is on his way."

"Doctor, I'm sorry, but you must be wrong. My wife said this child was not going to be born for 3 or 4 hours, and my wife is never wrong."

Laura screamed, "Adam, you are a dead man."

"I don't see why, dearest. You have it written on our marriage certificate. I'll get it if you have forgotten, but I haven't. In large black letters you wrote, 'I am never wrong,' and signed your new married name after it. Your mother knew it was not a joke. Your father laughed, because he knew my pain was just beginning."

"Adam, I'm going to name your son, Adam. Not Adam Junior, just Adam, because when I get up, I'm going to kill you."

"Should I ask what I did to deserve the death penalty, or just accept it as a 'fait a'complete'."

"I'm having a baby, your baby, and you are annoying the crap out of me. What are you not allowed to do, Adam?"

"When we were on the planet Earth, I was not allowed to annoy you. However, we are no longer on planet Earth. We are on Atwater Luck, and the rules have changed. Since the day we consummated our marriage, we became equals. Do you remember that conversation, Laura? I will repeat it for you, Word for Word, if you'd like."

"Give me a minute, Adam, your son is about to be born."

"Would it be okay if I held your hand?"

"Would it be okay if I crushed it?"

"Be my guest."

"Your pain in the ass, Adam."

"You've been talking to Zoey again, haven't you?"

"Yes, I have, and I haven't convinced her to stop doing that perverted act yet, either."

"If you ever get that far, and you fight Gordon, he will kill you. I say that without having to think about it. You will have changed the equilibrium in his household. He is just getting over the fact that Zoey shot at him from 3 feet away, and missed him. Now, you are taking away that fine piece of ass, and I mean that both ways, and screwing up his love life forever. I will mourn the loss of you for many years baby, but Gordon will be well within his rights to take your life."

"As much as I'd like to say that I am as good as he is, I'm not. Every time I get ready to fight him, I wind up pregnant, and I can't train as hard as I normally would for a fight of that magnitude. After this baby is born, I'm going on birth control pills, and I'm going to train as I used to do with George. I'm going to train like a mad woman, and get ready to fight him within one year after your son is born. It will take me that long to get up to speed."

"I could say all sorts of things that would keep you from getting in shape, but I won't. I will do everything in my power to help you get in the finest shape of your life. However, I don't believe for 1 minute that it will help you. Gordon trains every day, without fail. He is up very early, and trains for hours, before Zoey even opens her eyes. He works a full shift, helps her with the children, and pampers her, because she is pregnant. I have no idea where he gets his energy from, but he is all over this place, making sure everything is running properly every day. Oh, one more thing, he makes sure to get into an argument with Monty, at least once a day. I don't believe he could live without the arguing, or her, without it."

"You do remember how I used to beat you up when we lived together don't you?"

"I remember it vividly, my love. However, I never learned how to fight. I learned how to work hard, and satisfy my customers. You never had to do that. You were born into money. Not that that is a bad thing, but it makes us different. You could wake up at any time of the day or night, and no one would say a word to you. I had to be up at 5:30 AM every morning, and leave for work at 6:15 AM to be to my 1^st customer before 7:00 AM. That's how my business grew, and I was able to keep it growing and putting a little money in the bank every month.

You never had that problem. You and George trained when you wanted to. You probably trained very hard, and for very long periods of time, to become as proficient as you are. I don't believe there are 3 or 4 people on this expedition of ours that could be competitive with you, and that includes the guards. However, Gordon is number 1 for a reason, and that reason is Even Luck.

Doctor Luck started that boy's training with Monty when he was 3 years old, and Monty never held back. She trained him like a train wreck every day. They ran before breakfast, they ran to work, they ran home from work, and then she trained him, in the basement of his home, for hours, after dinner 6 days a week. There is nothing Monty knows that boy doesn't know. What's worse, for you, is that he studies everything. If Callie has it in her files, he has studied it. If he finds faults with it, he rewrites the code and changes it, until it's right. Then he has Callie verifying his work, until they both agree that it's perfect. He does this during his working hours, while he is on the bridge. He also trains upcoming captains, and other bridge personnel at the same time. Gordon and multitasking are interchangeable, that's why everyone gets along with him. They never feel he shortchanging them when he is in command.

You know what he's like when you go running with him. He surveys everything he sees. That's how he found that green element we are processing now. Who else do you know that runs 10 miles every single day, without fail, and could probably tell you about every tree, flower and insect along the way? You know it as well as everyone else on this ship, Gordon has a photographic memory, and everything, regard-less of how big or small it might be, he remembers. If you throw a combination of punches and kicks at him, and it gets through and hurts him, it will never get through again, because he will remember it, and defend against it the next time. Baby, you don't stand a chance against that man."

"Adam, I want you to listen to me carefully, before I knock you out, because I love you, and you're right. I'm going to knock you out, because you are not allowed to tell me I'm wrong. It's written on our marriage license, remember?

Gordon taught Newton a new hold, and when Newton fought against Monty, he used it on her. He beat Monty in a matter of seconds, because there was no way for her to break this new hold. Monty had to yield, and she was not happy.

The next morning, when Newton, Monty, Gordon, and I were going to do a training run of 10 miles, Newton made a mistake and called Monty old. You don't do that to any woman, especially not Monty. Off the 2 of them went, at full speed. Gordon and I started out pacing ourselves for the 10-mile run. Gordon projected that it would take 3 miles for Monty to catch Newton and teach him a lesson he didn't want to learn. If we had measured it with a laser, it would have been exactly 3 miles when Monty pounced on that boy, and began giving him a lesson on ethics. As we passed them, she hadn't completed that lesson yet. Poor Newton, I'm not sure how he got back to the unit, but I know he didn't walk back, because she was still working on his legs as we passed them.

I asked Gordon if he would teach me that hold and he immediately said, "Yes."

I said, "If the hold is invincible, why would you teach it to someone else?"

He replied, "It is not invincible. I know how to break the hold, I just haven't taught it to anyone else, yet."

I asked him if he would teach it to me and he laughed.

He said, "I haven't taught you the hold yet."

I said, "The hold is easy. You fake trying to disable your opponent's right knee, so they will favor it. You charge, placing your left foot on your opponent's right hip, slip yourself over their shoulders, bringing both legs behind them. Lock your legs behind the shoulders, bring your arms to your legs and lock them inside, while bringing your torso over your opponent's face and head. Your opponent has nowhere to grab you, or displace you. They must yield in a matter of moments."

Gordon replied, "I love brilliant people. They refuse to see the obvious, just as Newton and Monty did."

I was furious with him. "What did I miss?"

"You are fighting a man, and a man has you in this hold. What is directly in front of you? Think about it, before you answer."

I did, and shouted, "I couldn't do that, that's gross."

Gordon laughed. "Okay, lose the match instead."

"Like hell, I'll bring his balls home, and have them plated in that green stuff."