6 Days Later. 04:30 Bridge

The trio of ships was in the process of docking at Ronald McNair Memorial Station. Ship operations had largely been normal. Everyone on board the ship, irrespective of their status or rank, was very wary of the food they consumed. Only one minor case of food poisoning had been reported.

“Sir, the station clamps are engaged. We’ve also achieved a soft seal on the docking port. The hard seal will be achieved in minutes,” Rich said.

“Thank you, Rich. Head to the airlock and have Andern go with you. I want the two of you to scan all the food we’re storing.”

Rich looked at John with a slightly confused look.

“The military must’ve either taken the lowest contract from someone that had incompetently prepared the food, or someone repackaged old food. I don’t want a repeat. Everything is to be opened at the station. Bad food is to be rejected. Nothing spoiled is getting brought on board.”

“Understood,” Rich walked toward the bulkhead and headed down the open hallway to where Andern was.

John pressed the intercom button on his chair, “Good morning. The second shift is to follow Rich and Andern and bring in food. No spoiled food is allowed on this ship. If the station’s quartermaster has any concerns direct them my way. The third shift is to assist what’s left of the first shift to make the ship ready for leave.”

John stood up and walked to the central terminal in the room, “Shore leave will begin after the ship is made ready and our food stores have been restocked. We will have forty-eight hours of leave. The military has not reserved rooms for us, but there are several hotels in the commercial district. We have received a deposit in our Naval accounts for our stay here. Be smart with your money and time while on the station. That is all.”

John pressed the button to shut down the intercoms. He shook his head and muttered some expletives under his breath. He turned to see Lieutenant Lori Nicks standing in the bulkhead.

“You couldn’t have predicted what happened. This isn’t a negative look on you at all cadet. It’s a bad look on the Navy and the company that packaged that food.”

John smiled, “I’m keenly aware of that ma’am. But the Navy’s misstep is costing us two days onboard these ships, and six days of wasted time. That’s what I’m pissed about.”

Lori looked surprised, “Most cadets I’ve had in the past look for the easiest way out. You’re an odd one Cadet Lief.”

“Lieutenant, something stinks about that distress signal. I hope my gut feeling about that is wrong, but if I’m right…”

“Then commissioned officers and enlisted crewman of the Navy will step in and solve it.”

“I’m not convinced that the state of our Navy and the leadership within it is up to the task,” John said leaning against the console.

“Bold words for someone that’s just a cadet. I read your file; you’ve seen more action than many of our officers. But you’re not all-knowing and I worry that your confidence, which borders on arrogance, is blinding you to what your superiors can achieve.”

“I hope your right, for all of our sakes,” John walked over to the wall and switched the personnel communications screen, “But I can’t shed that feeling I have.”

Lori nodded and walked down the hallway. John took a deep breath but that did little to settle his mind. He still felt like something was working in the background, and it was going to explode in their faces soon. Just as John was about to contact Andern a message came in.

“Hey captain, we are bringing the food onboard now. Nothing out of the ordinary to report,” Andern said.

“Nicely done, we’ll divvy out the food when it gets here.”

Kevin’s face appeared in the connection, “The umbilical was just connected. Kori just powered the ship’s core down. After the food is distributed, we can disembark and begin shore leave.”

“Well done,” John said before ending the call.

He stood there alone and sighed. John switched the screen to the Naval communication screen and typed in ‘Sao Paulo’ into the destination. Then he pressed enter and waited.

“Sao Paulo here, how can we assist Memphis?” the voice said.

“I need to speak to Cadet-Captain Vernon please,” John said.

“Give me a moment, he’s off duty. May I ask who’s speaking?”

“Cadet-Captain John Lief.”

The screen flashed green, and a holding symbol blinked in front of him. John turned back to the console in the center of the room and logged out of it. He hadn’t turned around before hearing Patrice’s voice.

“Hello. A bit surprised you reached out to me. Did you get loaded with spoiled food as well?”

John laughed, “How bad did y’all get hit?”

“Over half our food was bad. We’re three hours away from the Venusian Observational Station.”

“We lost well over half of ours. We are going to be restocking here in a matter of minutes. We scanned everything before we brought it on board.”

Patrice smirked, “I told my guys to do the same thing. So, what are you reaching out to me for?”

“Can I convince you and your wing to come out to Jupiter?”

Patrice looked confused, “Why would you want us out there?”

“We received a couple of falsified distress signals. We are unsure of their original, but I suspect the Alliance or Mercantilists did it. The Topeka and her wing are here investigating it,” John said as he crossed his arms and leaned against the console.

“That still doesn’t answer my question.”

“We may not like one another but we both know, as much as it may pain either one of us to admit, that we make a good team. Six corvettes are a hell of a lot better to have than three in a firefight.”

Patrice looked down for a moment but then looked up again, “Why put my crew and I in danger?”

“If I’m right, and you know my track record on that, then you’d share in that success. If I’m wrong, then we just annoy the local miners and freighters by buzzing them. Then y’all can say I’m a paranoid jackass.”

Patrice looked like he was thinking about the proposition hard, “I’m not going to make a decision for my wing alone. I’m in, but if my peers say no…”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, I’m not sure they will buy it. I’ll also talk to Pierre since his wing just docked here. If my guys are in, I suspect they would be too.”

“Cool. Send me a message one way or the other,” John said before terminating the connection.

John walked out of the bridge and down the corridor to the airlock. While this wasn’t a class of ship he wanted to be assigned to, the intimate size of the ship was quite handy. You didn’t need to plan ahead and determine how long it would take to get from place to place. Or find shortcuts or hidden routes to your destination as you would on larger ships.

Andern and Rich were pushing the grav-lift containing the three pallets worth of food. John ordered that everyone pick at least six meals. After picking their meals they went to their rooms to store the food and then got back in line. They did this four times before the rest of the food was to be stored in the dining area.

Once the food issue was properly sorted John gave a short speech to the enlisted crew and cadets that were present. They were to have fun but be smart. Anyone that would be detained by station police would be held by station police in cells. Should they be allowed to reboard the Memphis they would lose all recreational and communication privileges.

With that John’s captain duties had been fulfilled and shore leave was ordered. John was the last one off of the vessel. He picked up his backpack and slung it over his back. He wanted to get accommodations set up for him and Alice. Then he really wanted to have a drink with his wife and friends.

Thursday. 11:30 (Station Time) McMurdo’s Bar and Grill

The cadets from all three ships had found their way to the same sports bar. It wasn’t a coincidence that it was the first one they saw upon entering the commercial wing of the station. The cadets were all thirsty and desperate for some freshly cooked food.

The couples were also ecstatic at being able to see one another. John had smiled and thought that it appears that absence does in fact make the heart fonder. He later amended his theory that it only applies to these couples definitively but could apply to others.

“Did you really ask him for help?” Kristin asked, “He’s an asshole.”

Joeng joined in from the table behind them, “Rich asshole specifically.”

“Six or nine corvettes beats three. And we did good things during wargames together.”

“Still makes my skin crawl working with that jackass,” Andern said nonchalantly.

“Did you ask for Terry’s help?” Nathan asked with a smirk.

John shrugged, “I did. Also warned him about that distress signal. I received a two-word response. ‘No. Thanks.’”

“What a dickhead,” Jessica said before taking a big gulp of beer.

Their waitress and three other employees walked out with plates of food, “Uhm, where’s the big guy that ordered the double bacon cheeseburger with a fried egg on it.”

“Yo,” John and Nathan said simultaneously.

“She said big guy Nathan, that’s not you,” Brian said laughing.

“Bitch please,” Nathan snapped back.

“Oh, there are two of them. Ok got you guys checked off,” the waitress said.

Three chaotic minutes later all of the cadets had their food in front of them. All of the cadets were practically drooling at their meals. It was the first time in three weeks that they were able to have a fresh meal. The age-old argument, whether or not fried eggs belonged on burgers, would flare up again. John had a stalwart defender in Nathan as the two battled against the forces that would deny people a heart attack burger.

Fresh beers were brought out mid-meal. John set his burger down and wiped his hands with his napkin and reached for his fresh beer. He took a giant swig of it and leaned back in his chair.

“You know, I actually kinda liked those corvettes. The food sucks but it’s surprisingly spacious inside.”

“The food was awful, especially since half of it was fucking spoiled, but everything else about the ships is legit,” Kevin said smiling, “Though I’d rather not be part of the chain of command. Like at all.”

“I didn’t mind the food that we were eating. My roommate sucked though,” Nathan said.

“Who’s your roommate?” Theresa asked.

“What the hell man?” Andern said as he slammed his beer mug onto the table.

“You snore and talk in your sleep. And you don’t make your bed.”

John smirked, “You got three demerits already because of your bunk. And Nathan picked up one because you were lazy. Please change.”

“What? Why the hell?” Andern asked.

“Read the damn rules you idiot,” Kristin said as she kicked his shins under the table, “It’s in the officer’s code of conduct, deployment duties, and responsibilities section if I’m not mistaken.”

“How were y’all’s ships? Any non-food issues?” John asked.

“Well, there was that spooky distress signal,” Joeng answered in his deadpan manner.

The rest of the cadets laughed. After the laughing died down an awkward silence fell on the group. Everyone quickly realized that while the tone of the answer was comical as hell, the answer itself was anything but.

“I think we all know what would’ve happened had you gone after it. One ship’s crew wouldn’t be here right now,” John placed his elbows on the table and rested his chin on the combined fist he made, “Thankfully we have a smart captain that opted to verify it and speak up.”

“Is it that serious?” Theresa asked.

John nodded his head, “The task force that’s here in the Jovian system has added another half a dozen ships. And they are saying fuck-all.”

“Hence the call for back-up. Shit man.” Thomas said as he finished his meal.

“Well, let’s enjoy the here and now. To fresh food and good friends,” John said as he raised his drink.

The cadets rose their mugs to match. The rest of the meal was boisterous and borderline too loud. When the waitress came back to see if they were ready for the bill John waived her over and told her to put everything on one bill. He told everyone that the meal was on him, but they were on their own with their per-diem and to be smart with it.

Friday. 06:00 Phoenician Resort and Hotel

John rolled out of bed and looked for his underwear and shorts that were on the floor someplace. He hurriedly put them on before accepting the inbound call. He walked out to the veranda and accepted the call on the terminal on the divider between rooms.

“Morning.”

Patrice shook his head, “You look like hell.”

“I think we managed a four-alarm hangover from last night’s activities,” John looked down at his credit chit’s recent activities, “Honestly surprised it wasn’t worse.”

“We’re in. Shore leave is done in twenty hours. Pierre agreed that he’d follow your lead if we had to start fighting.”

“Thank you. I mean it.”

“Your thanks aren’t going to mean anything if your wrong or you get us killed. But you seem to have a knack to avoid both of those somehow,” Patrice forced a smile to come out, “We’ll coordinate with you but we’re about nine or ten days out from you.”

“Good time to grind through all those damned drilled we have to do.”

“Well said. Cya around,” Patrice said before killing the connection.

John sat down on the loveseat and looked out at the view. He smiled as he took in the view. Alice slid the door open and sat next to Jon and rested her head on his chest.

“I presume Patrice accepted because there is no way you’d be smiling with this hangover,” Alice said shielding her eyes from the glare of the light.

“Five-alarm for you?”

“Yes, be quieter. And answer the question smart guy,” Alice gently tapped John’s nose.

“Hold on, I’m not a dog. You can’t ‘boop my snoot.’”

“Just did,” Alice said playfully.

“Yes, Patrice did agree. He talked Pierre into it too.”

“Be safe and smart. And keep us all safe.”

“Will do. What did you want to do today?”

“Stay here for a while. Have breakfast and go shopping.”

The couple stayed on the veranda and enjoyed a quiet morning together. Eventually, they would go inside to clean up and get ready for the day. They walked out of their room and headed to the main floor to grab breakfast.

There was a lone table left in the restaurant in the hotel. The couple took their seats and waited for the waitress. When their waitress appeared, Alice ordered the pancakes and eggs with toast for aside. John, to no one’s surprise, ordered a meal that included three eggs, two large waffles, bacon, sausage, and hashbrowns.

“I hate your metabolism. I love you, but I downright hate that part about you,” Alice said sipping on some coffee.

“Love you too honey,” John winked at Alice.

Alice grunted and shook her head, “That’s another part of you that while I don’t hate it’s terribly unattractive.”

John smirked and shrugged, “I’m not the one pointing out the supposed faults of my partner.”

Alice glared at John for a moment and sighed, “How much time off will we end up having between semesters?”

John swallowed some orange juice and placed the glass on the table, “Best case scenario is a week and a half. Worst case four days.”

“Care to visit my folks if we have a week of free time?”

“Sure thing. Say speaking of your family, you hear when Paul’s getting married?”

Alice looked at John with a surprised look, “Next year maybe? Honestly haven’t really paid much attention to that talk.”

The waitress then came out and placed their meals in front of the couple. The idle talk stopped and focus was placed on the food. Alice ate her food at a glacial pace compared to John. She was a bit embarrassed at how he practically inhaled his food.

“I need to teach you lessons or buy etiquette lessons for you,” Alice said shaking her head.

“What?” John said with a piece of bacon hanging from his mouth.

“Thank you for making my point,” Alice took a sip of coffee and started to laugh.

The couple finished their meal then made their way to the retail section of the station. John was made bag bitch for Alice as they went shopping. Alice expressly forbade John from looking or purchasing any watches.

24 Hours Later. 01:00 (Ship Time) CNS Memphis Bridge

Shore leave was sadly over. The crews had made their way back to their respective ships. The food stores were made whole once more. Though no one on the ship trusted the food to be any good. Scanners were permanently located in the dining area.

John was reading reports and plotting out where their wolfpack would head towards. When the new plan was finalized, he sent it to their sister ships. Rich was navigating the ship away from the station slowly. The Las Palmas had already caught up to them. The Winnipeg was waiting on clearance to change their vectors and form up with them.

“Sir, I received communications from the other two wolfpacks. They will be arriving here in six days,” Rich said.

“Thank you, once the Winnipeg gets here let’s find something to keep us busy,” John said smiling, “Do me a solid, keep me apprised of the Topeka is in the system.”

“On it, sir.”

“Hey, do we have any lost ship notices in Sol?”

“Uhm, let me check,” Rich said as he switched the screen on his terminal, “Thirteen missing ships.”

“Any military vessels?”

“One. Not coincidently a corvette.”

John looked up from his desk and raised an eyebrow, “Academy or…”

“No sir, Monarch class. Her registry was CNS-CV6421, Albany. She was reported missing with all hands six hours ago.”

“Was she investigating a distress signal?”

“Appears so.”

“Get me the Topeka.”

“This is gonna be a few minutes sir.”

John nodded and continued to work on paperwork. The paperwork didn’t need to be done, and in truth, he was doing the same three or four things. John was full of nervous energy. Something big was happening. The missing ship and fake distress signal had to be tied together, no one was going to convince John otherwise.

Ten minutes later the Topeka responded and opened ship-to-ship communications with the Memphis, “Greetings Cadet, I’m Lieutenant Commander Wolff, how can I help you?”

“Thank you for taking the time to speak with me commander, I’m Cadet John Lief. Y’all haven’t shared what you’ve found or what you’re working on,” John smiled and motioned to the screen, “Not that you’d be normally sharing that information with cadets in the system. That being said, are you aware we lost a corvette due to a falsified distress signal?”

“We’re aware of the lost ship. We’ve got a team investigating it.”

“Rich, secure this line,” John looked over at Rich and paused until he saw confirmation that their communication was secured, “I’m going to have nine Prince class corvettes ready for any assistance. Should my worst fears come to pass we’ll be ready to assist.”

“While the sentiment is appreciated, I doubt very much that any attacks would come here. An outer colony would be far more likely.”

“Agreed, but less effective. If you cut the head off an animal the body will decompose over time. It’s the move I’d make. We aren’t on alert when we should be.”

“Cadet, I’ve been in the game longer than you have. We’ve got this covered. If the Alliance or any of our neighbors tries to attack Sol they will be pushed back and defeated. You would do well to follow orders and if an attack does happen to stay out of the way of the big boys.”

The secured communication line between the ships was abruptly cut. John shook his head and sighed. His warning had fallen on deaf ears. He leaned back in his chair and began thinking. A moment later Rich spoke up.

“I got the distinct feeling that they are a step behind you.”

“Fucking idiots. I’m old so I know better,” John said mockingly, “Send a message to the other eight ships. I want to speak to the captains in five hours.”