Gabatrix: Legacy

"True, but isn't Ome'tci now in the hands of the Aksren clan?"

"Yes. One of the greatest battles to ever occur in Itrean history. Of course, there were profound reasons as to why the Alara'jal clan would lose their prized station."

"The disease....the disease that played a significant role in wiping them out."

"Many reasons," she added and blew a large amount of smoke from her nostrils. "And yes, it's now in the hands of the Aksren clan. A significant factor in why the Aksren are in such an advantageous position as we speak."

She seemed to have enough. Shira's hand flicked a button on the console shutting off the projection. The melody in the room came to an abrupt end. The overhead lights began to illuminate significantly. Even Javier's eyes had to adjust momentarily. But, within a second, he could more appropriately view the room and Shira.

The captain of the UHN Lifen was the typical Shal'rein of the Itreans but with noticeable differences. She was somewhat short, about seven feet in height. Her red and blue jumpsuit uniform seemed to fit comfortably on her. However, she seemed well adjusted to sitting with her shark-like tail that protruded from her rear. Her seat was custom-built to allow proper spacing to prevent it from bending too hard into her tailbone. Javier could further see the black banding strap that held her eye patch over her right eye. Her long, tied-up purple hair radiated from the glow of the ship's interior lights. A few other sets of items lay on the table, including the stopwatch Javier had given her as a gift.

The interior room consisted of that of a single large alcove and bed. There was a metal table, mounted chairs, restroom, displays, paintings of various ships, and multiple closets and cabinets. There was also a rather elegant bathtub that was near the bed. However, the tub and bed had a dark visor tinted screen covering them. This would help prevent other personnel from having their attention drawn to it. In addition, the UHN seal was neatly decorated on the bottom carpet. Technically, the room wasn't much bigger than most rooms, but its layout still helped make it appear larger than necessary.

"Stone seems to be grilling the new recruits," Javier told her.

"He's doing his job," she replied. She took another drag of her cigarette.

"Let's hope that he doesn't do too good of a job. Stone is a bit.....much."

"Quite the contrary, my mate. He is more than perfect for a human of his abilities."

"I hope so. I'm not in the mood to be the one to pass bad news to the families of those new recruits."

"I'm sure of it," she assured him. "A leader can never second guess on their choice of actions. Everything is set. The order committed."

Shira's voice was that of pure acknowledgment. She was methodical in how she spoke compared to Javier's more emotional tone. It was by no means a fault in Javier's personality. If anything, Javier was professional in how he spoke to her, as any officer would in his position. However, Shira's calm demeanor was contagious. There was no inkling of anxiety or distress in her talking.

"They will be coming soon," she said as she doused her cigarette. She grabbed the stopwatch that was on her table and moved it close to her side. "Ready yourself."

"What?" he asked.

"I have not had a chance to talk to our new arrivals yet."

"Ah.... you mean our new pilot and his two wives?"

"Correct. They will be here any minute. It's the final act before we go to sleep."

He nodded. "Of course."

*******

Not far from the CO and XO's stateroom, Mizu was walking down the long passageway, admiring that his feet and weight pressed to the deck. The spinning centripetal force of the ship provided gravity.

On both sides of Mizu were the two Itrean women seen in the shuttle ride yesterday. One of them, the one with the pointed beak and long white feathers, had her arm almost neatly wrapped around Mizu's right arm. Her belly was slightly extended, and she seemed to be taking it easy in how she walked. The other Itrean woman with green scales was slightly ahead of Mizu when she walked. Unlike the other, she seemed more complimentary in her movement and not so tightly woven around her husband. There was a look of happiness on her face.

"This ship is so amazing!" the green Yutilian said with much enthusiasm. Her accent carried the familiar French, Japanese, and Spanish accent to it that many Itreans had.

"It's just a transport, Li'lo," Mizu said.

"Yeah, but it's better than some of our smaller ships," Li'lo argued. "Our room is so nice. Plenty of room for our kids to grow."

"Safe for my egg," the other Itrean woman said.

"It'll be alright, Jenta," Mizu took his hand and tapped her scaly hand. It seemed to assure her. Unlike Li'lo, Jenta still didn't seem fully comfortable with the entire vessel. She was way more cautious with everything.

Finally, the trio reached the door and came to a stop. Mizu seemed partially uneasy with the idea of meeting the captain. It was not precisely that of fear or anxiety but more of past memories. Shira was a virtual unknown, except for a couple of times that he had spoken to her. She didn't seem cruel, but he knew better, especially regarding how certain officers behaved around him. It didn't help that he had two pregnant women to watch closely.

"Is everything alright?" Li'lo asked him. She could see that he was preoccupied with his thoughts.

"No, it's alright," he replied. "Just....the idea of being back in service with the UHN again. I never really thought that I would get the chance to come back." He looked at the passageway admiring how fresh and clean it was. "I guess it beats having to keep those damned water purifier filters on Earth working all the time."

"You get to be a pilot again! I'm so excited." Li'lo's tail wagged a little bit. Then, she turned around and started to walk backward while she spoke to him.

"Yeah...but, a pilot of what? This ship has no shuttles to fly, and my skills at flying a large transport ship was not what I was expecting when it comes to controlling a ship."

"You'll do fine," She waved her hand at him.

They reached the door to the CO's stateroom. Li'lo only stopped in her walking when she saw that Mizu and Jenta had stopped. The man looked at the door. He didn't notice another man that was walking down the passageway.

"Alright...," Mizu said to himself. "I guess it's time to meet the shark Captain."

His hand reached out to the door panel when he heard the individual that was walking in his direction. He turned to see a man dressed in the familiar red and blue jumpsuit uniform. This person had long blond hair that was neatly tied up. He had a paler complexion than Mizu ever had. The nametag of "Dean" was written on his uniform with the rank insignia of Petty Officer 1^st Class. Li'lo and Jenta both turned to look up at him.

"Umm, hello," Mizu greeted the individual.

"Oh.....hello, man," Dean replied back. Right from the start, his voice and tone resonated with that of a person who was utterly stoned and laid back. He had a profound smile on his face.

"Petty Officer Dean?"

"Whoa.....like.....how did you know my name?" Dean replied with some surprise.

"Uh....it says so on your nametag." Mizu pointed at his uniform.

"Oh...ha, ha," Dean looked at his nametag. "So that's why people know who I am. I kept wondering how they just kept....knowing who I was."

"Umm....right," Mizu gave a confused look at him.

"My name's Dean," he extended his hand to greet him. "Sometimes, people like to call me Doper Dean or Pilot Dean or Petty Officer Dean or.....Petty Officer 1^st Class Dean or just Dean or...."

Doper Dean....Mizu seemed to pause and think quietly to himself as Dean continued giving him a myriad of other names. Finally, he shook the man's hand. It was as if the name Dean seemed to remind him of somebody important. Finally, the pilot finished his introduction.

"Mizu," he addressed himself. "Pilot, coming aboard the UHN Lifen."

"Far-out, like.....I'm also a pilot too. Great to have you aboard, man."

Didn't he already say that he was a pilot? Mizu knew that this man was quirky right at the start. He didn't appear to be mean, however. The man's joviality and kind demeanor were all present, and he seemed like a nice guy. Mizu decided to be cordial to Dean to the best of his abilities. It couldn't be that the man was that stupid or incoherent. Nobody could. Dean looked upon the two Itrean women.

"Whoa, two Itrean women to also come aboard," Dean waved to them.

"Hello!" Li'lo happily greeted him with a wave. "I'm Li'lo. Nice to meet you, Dean."

"Dean...," Jenta greeted him as well. "My name is Jenta. Your name....you have a mate?"

"Totally do," Dean said. "My wife's name is Izzy. She's a...."

"Gersin!" Li'lo clapped and recognized him. "You're the mate of the Gersin onboard."

"Yep, Izzy is like.....really cool and all that."

"We had a chance to meet her already. Iz'tre is so nice. It's so great to have her onboard."

"That's awesome, man. I would totally hang out with her as much as you want. You know....you two look pregnant. Izzy is like.....pregnant too, you know? Hey, Mizu. I think you should know that they're pregnant. You're like.....going to be a total father and all that."

"No....really, Dean?" Mizu replied. "I hadn't noticed." His eyes lightly squinted.

"Yeah, man. Just letting you know that. It allows you to get all prepared for being a parent. Same thing with me, you know? Oh yeah, you can also call me Father Dean too."

How stoned was this man? Mizu had no idea, but it was evident that Dean was a rather unique individual. It still reminded him of somebody that he knew but couldn't put his finger on it. Before he had a chance to think about it further, Li'lo and Jenta continued their conversation.

"I'll be laying soon," Jenta said. She put her hand to her stomach.

"Well, like.....just make sure not to have it in the ship's galley," Dean informed her. "Somebody might accidentally cook or eat it, you know? Just letting you know because that would be a total bummer, Jenny."

Mizu lightly facepalmed before he nodded. Jenta put her hand to the side of her snout at the very thought of that, but she was catching on quickly as to what Dean was telling her.

"I.....I agree," Jenta replied.

"Oh, don't worry," Li'lo added. "That's why Izzy will be there for Jenta."

Dean looked at Li'lo, and both of them started to nod together.

"So....umm, Dean," Mizu said. "What brings you here? Are you planning on seeing the CO as well?"

"Oh yeah, man," he replied to him. "The Captain was wanting to talk to both of us and like....bring up some things."

"Oh, ok."

"And I'm supposed to like....wait for you guys to finish up talking with the Captain and....remain out here until called in."

"Ok. Well....in that case."

Mizu reached his hand to the door panel while Dean stood away from the door. Jenta remained close to the human as Li'lo composed herself. She clasped her hands together as if she was preparing to meet an important dignitary.

Mizu's fingers pressed the door panel and awaited a response. Within a few seconds, the door slid open. Jenta released her grasp upon her mate as they all stepped inside the CO and XO's stateroom. Mizu did his best to keep himself composed. He could see Shira sitting comfortably behind her table as officer Javier was standing comfortably beside her. He walked in and saluted her.

"Petty Officer Mizu, reporting in, ma'am," he said.

"At ease," Shira waved her hand. She then pressed her fingers together as she laid back in her seat.

As the door closed behind the three, Jenta had her arms wrapped around herself. She lowered her head and feathers to acknowledge the Shal'rein in the room. Then, she politely bowed to her as a sign of respect. Shira was an imposing figure, and the uniqueness of her position further heightened her dominance and importance in the room.

However, Li'lo was a different situation altogether. While Jenta was standing in place, Li'lo tried to walk further into the room. She was a little bit ahead of Mizu. While she moved, she tried to do an overhead arm bow using her right hand. When she did so, the left talon on her foot had snagged onto the carpet. When she continued to step forward, the claw jolted free, causing her to fly forward and staggering her greatly. This essentially tripped her rather hard, sending her flying straight into the CO's desk.

"Ahh!" Li'lo reacted. Mizu had just dropped his salute when he saw Li'lo's collision course with Shira's table.

Suddenly, Li'lo's body and left hand smashed into the metal table with a proverbial thump. This was followed by a light screeching sound as Li'lo's clawed fingers scrapped the alloy. Javier stepped forward to see how she was.

"Ow....ow....owie," Li'lo replied as she shook her head and stepped back. "Oh, I'm so sorry about that."

"Are you alright?" Javier asked her.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Li'lo reacted. She wiped her shirt and dress to recompose herself. "I didn't mean to hurt your table, Captain Shira."

"You do not have to apologize," Shira calmly replied back. She then took the stopwatch that was close to her and neatly placed it back on the table from where she had initially moved it from. "As you can see, you did no damage to my table. I use metal tables, not wood."

Javier had noticed that Li'lo's hand would have landed directly on the stopwatch if she hadn't moved it. He took careful note of that as Shira leaned back onto her chair.

"That's pretty smart of you, Ma'am," Mizu replied. "That's exactly what happened to Admiral Simmon's prized desk back on Mars if I recall your story." He looked at Li'lo.

"Yeah....clumsy me," Li'lo replied with a slight grin. "I don't think he's forgiven me ever since."

"So, that's how that happened," Javier remarked with a slight chuckle from him. "It's good to have you on our ship, Administrator Li'lo."

"I know, right!?" the Itrean woman was jovial. "Ambassador Ifra wanted to make sure that the T'rintar clan government awarded me the entitlement of Administrator."

"Have you all made yourselves comfortable on the Lifen?" Shira asked them.

"Yes, Ma'am," Mizu replied.

"It's great," Jenta added. Li'lo gave an affirmative nod.

"Make sure that you address any issues with the quartermaster if there are any other things you need to take care of," Javier told them. "I would....recommend making sure that you check up with Doctor Folar'sha when it comes to any medical needs."

"Right," Li'lo patted her slightly pregnant belly. "It's good to see both of you. I never imagined that both of you would get your own ship."

"You don't have any issue with serving on a military vessel?"

"Hmm....yes, but it's different. It's you guys. You make the difference." The feathers rose up a little bit on her head. "Like, I remember defending you in court, Captain Shira. I remember you, Javier. Now here you are. Even Ambassador Ifra seemed happy about the idea of me being with the both of you."

"That's good," Shira explained to her. "I will need your expertise in serving as an ear for the Ambassadors. Unfortunately, it will be needed far sooner than expected."

"Expected?" Li'lo reacted. Jenta's eyes blinked rapidly as she gave a questioning look to Shira.

"I already have an assignment for you at your earliest convenience." Shira reached over and grabbed a small computer tablet before handing it to Li'lo. "I will need you to contact Ambassador Ifra and Ambassador Kane. Inform them that I wish to have a joint training exercise with the warship "Avastier" and "Cetra." I have the list of instructions, how the training will be conducted, and how it will be committed in the tablet given to you."

This took Javier by almost complete surprise. He looked over at Shira and saw that she was earnest about her request. He felt a slight wave of anger but quickly suppressed it to avoid having the others see his reaction. He remained professional. However, the name of the Dome'seeka sounded familiar to him.

"Yes, I'll do that," Li'lo replied with the tablet in hand. "I will make that my first act of the day when I get back to my quarters. If you have any other paperwork that needs to be taken care of in administrative matters, you can count on me!"

"Good. That will be all for the moment." Shira's gaze looked upon Mizu. "Petty Officer Mizu, do you feel competent and capable of performing your duties?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Mizu responded. "Although, I wonder why you need a person like me to fly a shuttle when we don't have any shuttles."

"That answer will come to you very soon."

Javier put his finger to his chin. "Were you able to get in contact with your family?" He asked him.

Mizu's head looked down in disappointment that even Jenta put her hand to him. "No, sir. All my efforts keep getting shot down. The most I've gotten was an angry Batrician guard telling me to go fuck myself."

"I have heard nothing about my friend and historian on Batrice either," Javier added. "I've placed proper complaints to the UWA delegates working with Batrice. The fact that Batrice is making an effort to block all communication to my friend and your family is outrageous, to say the least."

"I will promise that I will make my effort as well," Shira also added. Her fingers were placed together. "I will need you to keep me updated. I would also ask that you don't let this situation cloud your judgment and duties while you are on my ship."

Mizu could see that Shira was directing how the events were going. The very thought of his prior actions on Fort Batrice was assurance that he was a traitor to the Batrice people. He could only pray that his family was alright. However, this was something he was already trying to cope with as it was.

"Yeah....aye.....Ma'am," Mizu replied with unsteadiness in his voice. However, he could see in Shira's eye a form of assurance. There was a form of inner strength that she projected. It was that of hope. This was the person that could tell Fleet Admiral Baxton to stick a finger up his ass if she so desired. He would have to take her word for granted.

"Now, with that said," Shira turned to look at Jenta briefly before looking back at Mizu. Then, she reached the console and pressed a button on it. It opened up a comm channel for those standing outside the room. "Petty Officer Dean, you may enter."

There was a brief pause as the door opened up behind Mizu. Dean that was so patiently waiting, entered the room. He gave a polite two-finger salute in his seemingly happy but doped state. He stood beside Mizu.

"I like.....came and here, Ma'am," Dean said.

Shira waved her hand to gesture to him at ease. However, her focus remained on the two humans standing before her.

"Dean, Mizu," Shira explained. "I have a major assignment for both of you. Mizu, this will be your first and highest priority task coming aboard this vessel. It is as you said. The Lifen has no shuttles. It will be up to the both of you to build the shuttles."

Javier once again showed a look of partial dismay on his face. He could see Mizu's eyes go wide in surprise upon hearing what she said.

"What?" Mizu replied.

"Whoa.....far-out," Dean gave an affirmative nod.

"I need two shuttles for the UHN Lifen," Shira continued. "While it is true that the ship has the ability to disconnect from the ring hub module, we need more. I want to have other means to help extend the ship's operational capability. I will be assigning a small engineering team to work with you. I have placed an order for Mclevar carbon fiber and two sets of Mark 12 UHN shuttle parts, including the tools necessary to assemble the shuttles. Li'lo, among the list of requests on the tablet, also includes a shipment of Higtin alloy. It should be easy to obtain from the Kingdom of Shish since they rely more on cloaking warships than they did hundreds of years ago."