Temptation

Month 10 Day 26

0758 Hours

Bugalu

Wishing desperately that this had been one of his days off, Bugalu hung back in the back of the crew when the lift arrived at the bridge. He was not in any hurry to leave the crowded transport, and waited as long as he possibly could before following the others. Space, this is going to be so hard. I always say something to her at shift change. Always! Only now I can’t! Eventually - far sooner than he was ready for it - everybody else had gotten off. Steeling himself, he walked off the lift and started for his station.

“Bugs!” He heard her quiet call and abruptly ceased walking, but stopped himself from turning to face her. “I need to talk to you,” she added.

People were trying to get past him, headed for the lift. He grabbed one at random. “Firoz, would you please remind Mac that I am not allowed to talk to her?”

Firoz stared at him as if he was insane. “Why not?”

“No, Bugs, that’s not-- At least I think it’s...” Her voice trailed off on a note of general confusion.

That was when Bugs saw Smythe at the engineering console. A cold draft went down the helmsman’s back as he realized how close he had come to disobeying an order. Even this—giving her a message through someone else—might be too much for the old man to bear.

Bugalu was surprised, then, by the look of mild confusion on Smythe’s face as the engineer gazed at him and then shifted his attention to Mac. “Oh,” the older man grunted. “I should have told you at breakfast; Lt MacDowell’s confinement has been canceled. Therefore, that stipulation is no longer in effect, either.”

Bugalu could only stare at him in puzzled shock. From her chair, the captain asked, “What made you change your mind, Smitty?” You were quite irate last night.”

Yes, I’d like to know, too. He absolutely was not going to listen to anybody last night. But this morning he’s cool as can be.

The engineer’s face went a little pink. “Yes, well, Lt Wilson informed me that Co-MacDowell didn’t make those items, that she - Wilson - did.”

“So you confined Wilson?” Evans asked with a gloating grin.

Smythe turned a cold look on the helmsman. “No, I did not.”

Evans looked surprised, but didn’t say anything else, and turned back to his station, pausing only to send an impatient glare at Bugalu. Tough. He can wait. I have to be sure...

Smythe went on. “I never told Wilson not to make any such items, so I can’t punish her for having done so.”

“But are you sure MacDowell did not tell her how to do it?” Captain Burke asked, and quickly held up her hand to stop Mac from answering.

What’s she probing for? Although, actually, she’s asking all the same questions I would, if I were her. If I weren’t already sure of the answers.

Smythe shook his head, his face going even redder. “No, she had nothing to do with it.” He cleared his throat. “Turns out I... asked a question that got Wilson thinking along those lines. Meanwhile, I forgot I’d even asked her.”

“I see,” the captain stated. “Well, everything ends well, then. Mr Bugalu, you have 1 minute to exchange pleasantries with Lt MacDowell.”

“Yes, sir,” he acknowledged, and finally turned to face his adopted sister, a big grin on his face. “Then you’ll join me for supper this evening, right, Mac?”

“No, Bugs, I can’t. Not for a few days. I just can’t deal with that mistletoe any more.”

“Oh.” Should have seen that coming. She did give it a good try. If it had just been Tall Bear, she might have been willing to risk it again tonight. But I don’t want to drive her right back to Pa’s brainwashing. “Okay, tell you what. I’ll bring supper to you, and we’ll spend the night in.”

She sighed in relief, one hand nervously clutching the lower front of her uniform tunic. “Thanks, Bugs.”

The captain cleared her throat. “Excuse me for intruding. The mistletoe was only approved for 24 hours. By now they should be in storage, awaiting dismantling by the evening shift.”

Approved by whom? Did she know about them all along? Come to think of it, I didn’t see any of them at breakfast.

Mac’s face lit up in relief with a big grin. “That’s even better. Thank you for the information, captain. Supper as usual, Bugs.” She left the bridge.

Bugalu was humming when he finally relieved Evans. “Wasn’t that a touching scene,” Evans muttered. “She’s not yours exclusively, you know.”

“As usual, you don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The shift-change procedure finished, Evans leaned closer, his voice went even lower. “She picked up a new boy friend last night.”

Idiot. “Did she? Good for her.” The best way to drive him crazy is to be completely unconcerned, no matter what he says. Gnashing his teeth, the other man turned angrily and left.

With the bridge emptied of midnighters, the captain asked, “Mr Smythe, I could have sworn this was your day off. Is there a reason for you being here, or did you merely forget that?”

Smitty slowly turned from watching the engineering console. “Actually, captain, I’d like a few words with you.”

“Sounds serious,” she half joked. “How is our course, Mr Bugalu?”

It was her standard query at the start of each shift, and after a quick glance at his controls, he gave her his standard response. “We’re on course and at speed, Captain.”

“Very well. Smitty, come into my office.”

Lack of Clarity

Month 7 Day 31

0659 Hours

Smitty

“We talked in the messhall, captain,” Smitty stated as they boarded the lift.

“That’s not the place to discuss a crew member’s performance,” she returned as 3 more people lunged to join the crowd already in the lift.

Smitty paused. Did I forget somebody’s performance review? “Who?”

Jane gave him a cold look as the lift let 2 people off, giving the rest of them some breathing space. “Yours, possibly,” she muttered. “I’ve hardly seen you for 2 weeks, and when I have, your mind has been light years away.”

It can’t have been 2 weeks. Can it? “I can explain, captain.”

This glance was colder, and her voice lower. “I’m sure you can. Once we get to a place where we can talk.”

Another stop disgorged most of the remaining people, but 2 lieutenants accompanied them to the bridge, where the lift opened onto bedlam.

“Mac, what did you say to Oakhurst last night?” Bugalu asked from the helm.

Evans stopped arguing with Abdulla to face the newcomers and blurted, “Captain, she was late to her station!”

“I’ll handle this!” Abdulla hissed at him, and faced them, suddenly calm. “Mr Smythe, Lt MacDowell is my subordinate, so it should be me who investigates her failure and decide what her consequences should be.”

True, but Colleen’s assigned to Evans’ bridge, and he’s charged with keeping the midnighters in line. I hate turf wars like this.

Jane didn’t have any misgivings about wading into the middle of this mess. “Mr Evans, make yourself clear. You only have one female assigned to the midnight bridge, but there are a number of females on the day bridge, so which female do you mean?” Abdulla hid her surprise better than Evans.

“Ah... M- Lt MacDowell was 15 minutes late, captain.”

“9,” Abdulla corrected. “I checked the record!”

Evans glared at the day shift officer. “When she did arrive, she was still putting her hair up in a, a half-hearted bun.” Jane considered Colleen’s red hair, and he added, “She fixed it during her lunch break.”

“I see,” Jane stated. “MacDowell, did you oversleep?”

“No, captain.”

“Get engrossed by a project?”

“Not one of mine,” Colleen stated.

“Somebody else’s project?”

Her green gaze looked at him, slid to the captain, then the floor. “I don’t know,” she whispered.

“What were you doing?” Jane asked, and Smitty could hear a touch of testiness in her voice.

“Talking.”

“Who with?”

“Lt Oakhurst.”

“Rags?” Abdulla turned to Smitty. “I thought Negron was testing her.”

“Oakhurst is one of yours?” Jane asked, also turning to him. “What’s she being tested on?”

“Ah... computers. Negron was supposed to test and train her, but made a mess of it, so I handed it to Oakhurst.”

“I see.” Before she turned away, Jane’s eyes told him they would speak of this again. “Surely Lt Oakhurst didn’t make you late for duty.”

Colleen raised her head. “Not on purpose. I’m sure it wasn’t on purpose. We were talking, studied some schematics. He pulled up a program and told me there was a bug in it he couldn’t find. I didn’t really believe him, but I found 2. And one I wasn’t sure was a bug, but it didn’t feel right. Couldn’t tell him about that one, because a man said he was reporting in. That’s when I saw the time and raced-“ She sighed. “But I was late.”

Smitty stared at her. “You ran from engineering to the bridge in 9 minutes?”

“With a stop at her quarters, too, most likely,” Jane added. “If she wasn’t in uniform.”

“Of course,” Smitty agreed, but the thought only made it harder to believe.

“It... wasn’t quite midnight when I left engineering,” Colleen corrected.

“Jane leaned back on her heels, her eyes on the ceiling as she thought. “Mr Evans, I assume you bring this to my attention because MacDowell has a habit of being late.”

Evans’ cheeks turned ruddy. “I didn’t say that, captain.”

“Not yet a habit, then. How often has she been late during the last 6 months?”

Abdulla waited for his response. If she doesn’t like his answer, she’ll dig through the records for proof. Because I’m sure she’s kept an eye on those records all along.

Evans’ mouth worked a bit, and then he stated, “This was her first time.”

“Her fir-“ Jane took a sharp breath, her mood changing. “Why mention it? I would expect you to reprimand her and be done with it.”

“I did! I mean, I would have, but she refused to tell me why she was late!”

“Not important when it’s her first tardiness in 7, almost 8 months! If it became a habit, then you might dig into the excuses! You are relieved, Mr Evans. You may leave the bridge.”

“Yes, captain. Thank you, captain.”

As the midnight helmsman left, his face red, Jane held up her hand to hold the 2 communications officers in place. “Mr Bugalu, did you ask MacDowell something about Lt Oakhurst?”

“Yes, captain, I did,” the helmsman replied.

“Did it have any bearing on her being late?”

“I... didn’t know,” he returned. “I spoke out of surprise.”

“That she spent time with Mr Oakhurst last night?”

“No, captain, I was there when he asked her to finish her test.”

“What was your surprise, that made you speak of it?”

Bugalu cleared his throat, stood to face her. “When I signed in at my post, I received a message from Lt Oakhurst in which he apologized for having Mac -Dowell break our date yesterday.”

“Oh.” Jane dismissed the distraction. “Smythe, MacDowell, my office.”

Now what? She dismissed Evans’ complaint. He followed the women into the captain’s office, but when Jane stood behind her desk, Colleen didn’t sit. Smitty took a position next to his subordinate. Jane’s attention shifted from Colleen to Smitty and back again, as if she didn’t know which of them to start with.

“Oakhurst should have started the test early enough to get done before your shift began,” Jane stated.

“I didn’t think it would take that long,” Colleen answered. “He approached me in the rec room just after C shift started.”

Jane turned to him. “8 hours?”

“I’ve never taken that long, not in 1... sitting. But Oakhurst, uh, hasn’t had as much practice.”

Jane considered him for a moment. “I thought you conduct the tests.”

Smitty tried not to blush. “Somehow, that didn’t work, in this case. Besides, it’s good the seniors get some practice at it.”

“Perhaps Oakhurst isn’t ready, if his tests last so long.”

“I don’t-“ Colleen started.

“Wait your turn.”

“Yes, captain.”

“Originally, Negron was testing MacDowell. Negron’s not a senior.”

“They - Colleen and Negron - had a disagreement about computers. I thought if he tested her, it might assuage his opinion of her.”

“Instead, he botched the job, and you turned it over to Oakhurst.” She sat down, but neither of them followed suit. “When?”

“What?”

“When did you give the assignment to Oakhurst?” she asked impatiently.

“Ahh, yesterday morning.”

“I suppose we should give him points for wanting to get it done, and for not waking her up to do it.”

“I... believe he was asleep on B shift,” Smitty stated.

Jane looked up in surprise. “Asleep. What shift is he on?”

“D shift,” Colleen stated, and hurriedly lowered her burning face. “Sorry, captain.”

Jane didn’t take exception to the interruption, this time. “Smitty, if you’re going to have other people test her, make sure they understand they can’t make her late for duty.” She abruptly turned her attention to the girl. “He’s not expecting to continue the test today, is he?”

Colleen didn’t answer. Smitty’s hand twitched at his side. Green eyes glanced up, and she realized the question had been directed at her. “I- I don’t know. Nothing was said, but I... was in a hurry.”

Jane sighed. “I instructed Lt MacDowell not to get so caught up in her projects - one of which is for you, after all - that she has no social life. Now she not only was late, she broke a date, and that isn’t fair.” She reached to turn on her computer. “Can’t imagine why he felt the need to move so quickly.”

“I- I did tell him not to take 12 days,” Smitty admitted.

“Where did 12 days come into this?”

“Negron took that long to turn in his report.”

“How long was the test Negron gave you?”

“Ahhh, 5 meetings. None of them more than an hour,” Colleen stated.

“Smitty, I understand your desire to have good people on your team, but part of your job is to prepare them for the next step in their career. If they can’t test someone and turn in the results within acceptable parameters, then somebody is not doing his best for them.”

How did Colleen being late become a back mark against me? Not that Jane’s wrong. I get so comfortable with my team, I forget to teach them the non-engineering aspects of the next job they’ll someday have. “Yes, captain. I understand.”

“Good. You’re dismissed.” Jane was working on her computer, sorting email, probably. Colleen had disappeared. He looked around the office in confusion. “She left while you were mulling over what I said,” Jane stated.

“I see.” He didn’t understand how the girl could have left without him realizing it, but she had, and her absence left a twisted ache in his chest that reminded him, somehow, of his first year at the Academy. He started for the door and then paused. “What did you want to talk about? Before that hullabaloo on the bridge?”

Jane looked up from her screen. “If you’d heard anything from MacDowell about that technual she’s translating for you.”

He gave her a broad smile. “She sends me an update every morning. A few words haven’t yet been translated, but the schematics are starting to make sense.”

“If you’re going to try building one of their transporter ray machines, don’t do it in engineering. Find an empty room.”

“I’ll look,” he agreed, and left.

Cause for Celebration

Month 6 Day 31

0755 Hours

Lt Abdulla

When Abdulla exited the lift and entered the bridge, she was surprised by Mac’s huge, enthusiastic smile. I don’t think I’ve seen Mac’s full smile since her first month aboard. It’s very good to see it again.

“Good morning, Abs!” Mac greeted warmly as she approached communications.

Abdulla gave her a mock frown as she began the shift-change check of the equipment. “I don’t suppose it’ll do me any good to tell you for the thousandth time that I don’t like being called that.”

Mac shrugged her left shoulder, then her face took on a mock stern look, and her voice moved half a tone higher in pitch. “I know! You just can’t get through to that Mac! She never listens! Why, I’ve heard it said that Bugs doesn’t like being called Bugsy, either. But he’s given up trying to change that wretched, inconsiderate habit of hers.” Mac’s broad smile flashed again and her voice returned to normal. “Maybe you should get used to it.”

Abdulla shook her head and changed the subject. “I heard a rumor that you passed probation. Congratulations. You must have had better luck without me being there. Did I… unconsciously add to your stress level?”

Mac considered the question, but didn’t answer directly. “Have you seen Bugs this morning?”

That change of subject might mean I hit a nerve of some sort. “Should be on the next lift, I imagine. You know how crowded they get at shift change.”

“That’s why I usually take a back route.”

She knows a route to get here using Jeffrey tubes and maintenance passages? I suppose it can be done, I just never bothered to think about it. “Lt. MacDowell, you are relieved.”

“Thanks. Just in time,” Mac said and surged out of her seat to throw her arms around Bugalu as he walked by. “I passed, Bugs!” she said quietly but with joyful enthusiasm.

“Let me breathe!” he requested hoarsely.

Mac immediately loosened her hug, which let him suck air into his lungs. “Sorry. I forgot, in my excitement.”

“I don’t think you broke any ribs.” He smiled and slipped his arms around her shoulders. “But you didn’t need to tell me that; I was there. Still, I’m surprised by your joyfulness this morning. That wasn’t your reaction at the time. I distinctly remember your utter lack of appreciation for the reason for the movie being interrupted.”

Her nose wrinkled in disgust. “That was nonsense! That wasn’t a proper test!” Her smile returned. “I took the test on duty last night, and I passed! Smit even said my answers ‘caught his attention’.”

Abdulla stared at the friends in surprise. On duty? Smythe would have been asleep! Should have been, anyway. Abdulla saw the lift door open yet again, and Mr Smythe stopped short to give the 2 friends a frowning glare. The captain, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to them and walked over to sit in her command chair. And that isn’t the reaction I would expect from the captain upon seeing a couple embracing on the bridge, either. What is going on?

“I knew you could do it,” Bugalu told his friend.

Smythe finally walked forward, uttered, “Not here and not now, lieutenants,” as he walked past them. Mac reluctantly released the daytime helmsman.

“After my shift?” Bugalu whispered. He had only partially released her; he still held her hands.

“Sure,” Mac agreed. “I might be sleeping. Or if I’m not home, check the library. Kolla wants lunch, and we might get carried away exploring some idea or another.”

“Sit down, Mr Evans, you haven’t been relieved,” the captain instructed sharply.

“But Captain-“ The captain must have given Evans one of her looks, because he didn’t pursue his protest. Instead, he returned to his seat at the helm.

“Gotta go.” Bugalu let go of Mac. “I’ll find you.” He headed for the helm, where Evans waited impatiently. Mac turned to leave.

“Captain, here’s my morning report,” Smythe stated.

“Thank you, Mr Smythe, for being so prompt.” Capt Burke’s response was louder than she usually spoke, and she immediately added, “Congratulations, Lt MacDowell.” Mac stopped moving forward and turned around, her green eyes round with surprise. The captain twisted in her chair to smile at the redhead. “I don’t remember if I said it last night, so welcome to the crew of the Fireball.”

Mac seemed uncertain how to react. “Th- Thank you, captain.” The captain turned away, and Mac’s full smile emerged once again. Her hands formed a few movements in Abdulla’s direction before she whirled and bolted through the closing lift doors.

Abdulla’s mind sorted and eventually translated those hand movements. She chuckled, then slapped a hand over her mouth to keep the chuckle inside. She glanced at Smythe, who stood near the engineering console, his gaze on the closed lift. He walked over to communications. “What were those hand signals, lieutenant?”

“It’s an ancient Amerind sign language, sir. Yellow Dog uses it quite a bit, and I’ve seen Tall Bear use it, too, now that there’s somebody else aboard who knows it. Mac knows it better than I do, but I’m fairly certain she told me I’m stuck with her now.”

“Stuck,” he muttered. “Yes, I guess we all are.” Smythe took a step away, told her over his shoulder, “I’ll be in engineering.”

Abdulla stared as he left the bridge. He usually says that to the captain, not me. And Evans was rebuked for attempting to hurry Bugalu’s taking the helm? What a morning this has turned out to be. And no wonder Mac was so full of joy this morning. ‘Maybe you should get used to it,’ she remembered the redhead saying to her. Abdulla’s smile faltered. Well, maybe I should. That’s how she treats all her friends. It’s only people she doesn’t like who she calls by their full name. But no one else gets to call me that!

Personally Involved (Part 2)

Month 6 Day 31

0145 Hours

Capt Burke

Previously:

Jane stood up. “Stay quiet. I’ll go get her. And don’t fall asleep, or I’ll personally approve her promotion.” He didn’t answer, so she assumed he was following instructions to be quiet. She walked to the door to the bridge, which opened for her.

Jane stopped, surprised to see 2 men standing behind MacDowell at the communications console. The men were talking and laughing, while the redhead worked. “Lt Evans,” Jane greeted as she moved forward. “If communications has a problem, I would expect Lt Adams to handle it without your supervision.”

Red-faced, Evans turned, muttered, “Yes, captain,” and headed for the helm.

That left Adams slack-jawed and looking guilty. “What problem with communications have you been called up to solve, Mr Adams?”

“Ahh. Mac- Lt MacDowell hasn’t told me yet,” he stated.

“Lt MacDowell?” Jane asked.

The girl looked around and was surprised to see Jane on the bridge when she should have been in bed. “Captain, is there a problem?” She pulled a small speaker from the ear closest to the captain.

The speaker is traditionally worn in the other ear, although every person assigned here has a pair of them. She could be wearing both, which would indicate she didn’t care to listen to the 2 men standing behind her. “I assume Lt Adams is here to solve a problem with the communications equipment that you could not fix.”

MacDowell made a short, rude noise. “Communications is working perfectly, captain. I’ve been listening to Yukosk radio stations, learning more of their language.”

Most would just let the translator do the work at this point. And since these people speak and hear at a frequency we can’t speak or hear, that makes sense. But MacDowell still wants to study their language. “There isn’t any problem with communications, Mr Adams.”

“Ahhhh...” He obviously does not have any acceptable reason to be here.

“Still, it’s good that you’re here. Adams, relieve MacDowell at communications. I need to see her in my office.”

“Me?” Adams asked in disbelief. “At communications?”

Jane gave the engineer a cool stare. “You have been cross-trained on the equipment, right?”

“Yes, captain, but... it’s been a while.”

“Try to remember how it’s done,” she instructed. “Come along, MacDowell.” Assuming the girl would follow, Jane walked back to her office and paused next to her desk for a slurp of coffee. Good, I can't see Smitty. I don't hear any snores, so I hope that means he's still awake. She turned and smiled at the redhead. “Would you like some coffee? I just made it.”

MacDowell stood in front of the closed door, looking uncertain, and slowly removed the speaker from her other ear. “No, thank you, captain. I never acquired a taste for it.” She took a step forward. “Have I... done something wrong?”

“Not that I know of,” Jane replied. “But you did ask me something this morning... I mean, yesterday, since it’s past midnight. And I finally have an answer for you. Go ahead, sit down. We might as well be comfortable.” Jane sat, and the girl followed her example.

“I- I’m sorry, Captain. I had a... an upsetting evening before I came on duty, and I don’t remember what I asked.”

What did Bugalu do? Not my business. Unless she lodges a complaint. “You wanted to take your test tomorrow. I mean, today. So I’ve decided to give it to you. If you’re ready, we can do it now.”

The redhead gave a lop-sided smile. “A pop quiz? Why not? Lots of people have quizzed me, trying to figure out how I can be so stupid that I haven’t passed yet.”

“I don’t think you’re stupid,” Jane stated as she turned on her computer screen and called up the test.

“Thank you, captain, but-“

“Banish thoughts like that,” Jane instructed. “They are not your friends. Such thoughts erode your confidence, which makes you second-guess what you’re about to say. And that becomes a self-defeating cycle.”

“Bugs... Uh, Bugalu told me something similar a few days ago.”

“Good. I hope you listened. Let’s get started, shall we?” She read the first question. MacDowell’s answer started almost before Jane finished reading. The answer hit all the marks the computer expected, and the redhead added extra details. Sure hope Smitty’s awake and hearing this. Jane read the next question, and again MacDowell’s answer had more details than the computer expected. Several more questions were answered in similar fashion. If Smitty gave extra credit, she’d have more than 100% correct on each question. Jane covered a yawn and looked up when the girl stopped speaking in mid-sentence.

“Sorry, captain.” MacDowell’s cheeks were pink. “I’ve been answering as if Kolla were asking these things. I mean, we all learned the same technology, but she didn’t. I go into far more detail when I explain something to her. It’s kind of like talking to Takor, except I seldom talk technology with him anymore. The Sciss family dynamics, society, religion... those are all so different from human versions. Even after 6 months, I feel I’ve just scratched the surface of learning about them. Anyway, I’ll try to stick to the details the computer looks for, and we’ll get done faster.”

A deep voice came from the darkness around the corner. “No need. I’ve heard enough.”

MacDowell stiffened, her face white. Her eyes looked past Jane and when those eyes grew large, Jane knew Smitty had emerged from the darkness. “Smit!” MacDowell was so shocked, there was hardly any sound to her utterance.

Jane whirled her chair around, saw Smitty refilling his mug. “What did I tell you would happen if you didn’t stay quiet?”

“You don’t have to personally approve her promotion. She’s passed probation.”

The girl jumped to her feet, her face almost matching her hair and uniform. “I told you no!” she hissed at the chief engineer.

“You can’t tell me no now, Colleen. You’ve got the captain involved in this.”

“The captain is not- Wait.” The redhead looked at Jane. “You were ready to approve my promotion? Why?”

“Because you have skill, knowledge and talent. It isn’t fair to hold you back just because there’s one man on this ship you can’t talk to.”

“But he’s the one that matters! He’s the one I have to impress!”

“Impress?” Smitty repeated. “Who said you have to impress me?”

The girl flushed, but Jane wasn’t sure if that meant uncertainty or embarrassment.

Next Time:

MacDowell lowered her face to stare at the floor. “Capt Nash of the Bartholomew. When he heard the assignment I wanted, he gave me a sour grin and said he’d sign the paperwork, but it wouldn’t matter, because once I failed to impress Mr Smythe, I’d be sent back to a tug.”

After the Party

Month 6 Day 25

2357 Hours

Smitty

Sitting at the engineering console on the bridge, Smitty glanced around when the lift doors opened. Don’t be daft, Smitty. It’s only the midnight crew. The partiers won’t come from the lift.

Lt Xylander seemed surprised to see Smitty sitting on the bridge so late, but relieved Lt Garcia and sat down to start his shift without any comment. The surge of activity around him almost made Smitty get up, but he knew if he did, he would pace, and he didn’t want anyone to think he was nervous about... anything.

He didn’t know how much later it was when he heard Lt Evans ask, “Is that smoke? Does anybody else see that?”

Smitty whirled his chair around and saw 3 areas of blackness forming, coalescing... He smiled in relief, having seen this several times by now. “That, Mr Evans, is the way the locals travel through space.” I’ve never asked how far they can get with that beam. I’d think it only possible for relatively short distances. Hope I’ll have time to ask before we leave.

The blackness resolved itself into people. Smitty was happy to see that the 2 balls containing 2 people each appeared to have functioned correctly, but he wiped the smile from his face. Don’t need any loose lips wagging about nothing more than a smile.

Takor stood alone, wearing its dress uniform, which - other than being white - did not look much like the dress uniforms worn by the captain and Colleen. It stood silently, but Smitty couldn’t tell if it was as uncomfortable as its straight back implied.

“Wow!” the captain exclaimed, removing her hat. “That’s some way to travel! How far can it take you?”

“We’ve only used it between Yukosk and Nalo, our bigger moon,” S’thyme replied. The Yukosk wore bright gray, and the bearded man let go of Colleen’s hand to unfasten the jacket front and take a breath. “We are working to try to reach Qlon, the next planet out, but there is still much work to do.”

Colleen had been standing stiffly at S’thyme’s side when the beam had coalesced. As soon as the alien let go of her hand, she walked over to stand beside Takor.

“I wish we could be here to see you do that,” Capt Burke stated.

“I don’t recommend staying,” Kolla told her. “It could take us years to get ready for the first test. But now that we have a common radio frequency to communicate with each other, we will issue an invitation when it gets much closer.”

“Sounds wonderful,” Burke enthused. “I’ll be waiting. But in the meantime, don’t become strangers. In our culture, friends often send letters to each other. These are short communications where the sender tells the recipient what has been happening in his or her life since their last letter. And the recipient can reply with their own news.”

S’thyme seemed surprised. “This communication frequency is not intended for only formal communications? Between our government and yours?”

“Not specifically. One chan-uh, frequency is typically sufficient for several years of formal and informal communications. After a few years, as our member planets become familiar with your products, it’s likely more frequencies will be needed.”

Smitty let their conversation continue without listening to it. After that first strange conversation in sick bay, he hadn’t had much chance to follow up and have another with Colleen. Bugalu had taken to spending all his off time in sick bay with her, and Smitty hadn’t felt like intruding. What exactly is their relationship? He’s been spending almost all of the last week with her, but before that, he hadn’t made any changes in his... dating habits. His undivided attention seems to be what she needed, since MacGregor released her for duty tomorrow. Actually, today, since she had that celebration down on the planet, and it’s past midnight.

He glanced at Colleen where she stood next to Takor, took another look. She’s standing closer to Takor than I’ve seen a woman do. Most men won’t stand that close to it. It’s as big as Tall Bear and probably stronger.

Takor muttered something and Colleen’s green eyes glanced up at its face as a tiny smile found her lips. She muttered something in return, and Takor’s head crest riffled in amusement as Colleen’s smile widened a nano-inch. The captain’s conversation with the Yukoskians reached a pause, and Smitty heard Takor say, ”You spoke it very badly.”

“I haven’t had any time to practice,” Colleen stated, her smile gone. “I’m lucky I remember any words at all.”

“What are you 2 talking about?” Capt Burke asked. “Did I get something on my uniform?”

“Lt MacDowell told me a joke,” Takor answered. “The words were badly spoken, so I barely understood.”

“Oh. Maybe you should give the entire communications crew lessons in the next few weeks.”

Colleen turned an absolutely bland face towards the captain. “Captain. I know we’re behind schedule, but I didn’t think it would take that long to reach Ulseess.”

“No, it won’t, but-“ She stopped, and her face went rigid. “Mr Smythe didn’t tell you?”

Uh oh. Everybody on the bridge is listening, trying not to look like they are. On this trip, Ulseess is where we would leave anyone who did not pass probation, and Colleen expects to be one of those. Because I never made the time to... Smitty hastily stood. “Captain, I haven’t had a chance to tell her. Yet.”

Jane stared at him. “I see,” she finally said, and her tone said Smitty wasn’t going to wriggle out of this one. She gave the 4 people who had arrived with her a fragile smile. “Why don’t we go into my office for a moment? I believe we have things to discuss.” As she herded them all toward her office, her eyes bore into her chief engineer. “You too, Mr Smythe.”

“Yes, captain.”

S’thyme’s translator whispered, “I’m glad she’s not talking to me,” only to be shushed by Kolla’s translator.