To Boldy Cum...: Teaser (Reader Plus Short) (Patreon)

I'm hoping to have the rest of this out by tomorrow. Hopefully Tuesday at the very latest. I thought I'd give you guys the opening today though to let you know that it's on the way.

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To Boldy Cum...

“Captain! We are receiving another signal from Bellatrix IV.” Announces the grim faced communications officer. “Lieutenant Commander Bailey’s proposed upgrades to the enviro-shields have worked but the matrix is deteriorating rapidly. According to their estimates it’s bought them three more days at most.”

“It was only meant to buy them two.” Mutters my exhausted chief engineer from the engineering station. “I’ve looked at the situation from every angle. With the resources they have at hand it’s the best we can do from here. If we were there…” She sighs and slumps back in her chair. “Without help, in three days or less the Alliance will lose the Bellatrix Colony.”

“The colony? You’re talking about 1600 men, women and children.” The ship’s doctor says glumly. Looking from the engineer to the science officer and then to me for solutions that we didn’t have he adds again for emphasis. “There are children there, Winston.”

“I am well aware of that, Doc.”

My narrowed eyes glued to the forward display I continue to concentrated on the cylindrical red and gray vessel sitting stationary within the vast starfield behind it as if I might be able to will the inhabitants to bend to my thoughts. In my years in command of the Endurance we had fought technologically superior enemies, encountered galactic horrors beyond the understanding of humanity, unraveled temporal mysteries, survived countless perils thought hopeless, made first contact with no fewer than 3 new intelligent species, and expanded the Alliance’s knowledge of this frontier of space more than any crew before us. And in all of our myriad missions there was only one type that could leave me feeling this helpless. Whenever I saw those dreaded words ‘on special assignment to the Diplomatic Corps’ I knew frustration was sure to follow. Never had my feeling of powerlessness been this bad though. Stuck motionless out here in the middle of an empty sector, this must have been how Shackleton felt when our vessel’s namesake got trapped in the antarctic ice all those centuries ago.

“We’ve been out here for five days now.”

“I’m aware of that as well, doctor!” I bark. “I’ve been right here sitting on my hands with the rest of you.” Turning my chair to face comms I ask. “Still no word on the Resolute?”

“They’re still calibrating their upgrades. Another week minimum before they can push it past Hyperlight 1.”

“And there’s NOBODY else in the sector? A private freighter, a caravan, mining ships, a raider, anything?”

“Nobody willing to fly into that. We’re spread pretty thin out here, Sir. Bellatrix Colony was going to change all that.”

“Fuck!”

“Captain.” To my left my first officer gives me that look to tell me I was being ‘unbecoming’.

With a sigh I shake my head and raise my hand to stop her from giving me my well-deserved reminder of protocol. It could only hurt the mission and morale for me to lose my cool right now. “I’ll be in my quarters.”

She smiles and her voice softens. “Excellent decision, Captain. You need the rest.”

Rest she says. If we didn’t get out of this empty sector in the next 20 hours there would be 1600 innocent souls going to their final rest. After that we would arrive too late, even if we pushed the Endurance to its limits.

Rising to my feet I tug the deep blue jacket of my uniform straight and say. “You have the conn.”

As I head to the lift the doctor goes to follow me. “You want some company?” He says. “I’ve got a whiskey aged on the asteroids of Deneb that’ll knock your…”

“Not today, Doc.” I say as I step through the autodoors. “I need to be alone.”

I turn to see his concerned face staring back. “Fair enough. You know where to find me.”

I give him a nod just as the doors hiss shut. The moment I was alone I punch a side panel. “Damn it!”

There were lives in the balance and all I could do is sit here babysitting this damned delegation. These core world diplomats and bureaucrats just couldn’t understand how things worked out here on the fringe. Sometimes rules had to be bent. Sometimes you couldn’t play it by the book. And sometimes you simply had to write a a whole new book to get things done.

The door slides open on my quarter’s deck just as a chime comes through my communicator. “Go ahead.”

“Sir. The diplomatic team is transporting back.”

“They’re not due for another hour.”

“Correct. But they’re on their way.”

“Understood.” I end the com and stand a moment before hitting the button for deck 10.

Crossing my arms I ponder what their early return could mean. Likely it was either good news or bad. Whether they returned with a treaty or negotiations had ended either way maybe it would give us the opportunity to go save Bellatrix IV. By the time the Alliance’s diplomat and her two aides were materializing on the pad I was there to greet them. The three women step down from the pad. As the aides head for the door the diplomat steps up to me, looks me in the eyes, and gives me a defeated shake of her head.

“What does that mean?” I ask. “Are communications broken?”

“No, no.” She says. “Nothing that drastic. Just a momentary pause as both sides reflect and reevaluate.” Looking back toward to the transporter she sighs. “Never have I encountered such an infuriating species. Try as I might I just cannot seem to gain even an ounce of respect from them. Every time I think I’m making progress it is suddenly back to square one. We are making steps, but they are baby steps.”

“We don’t have time for baby steps.”

“We have all the time I say that we have.” She says coolly. “Unless you’ve received new orders from the high command?”

“No.” I mutter. “No new orders.”

“Then this ship and its crew is at MY disposal until I say otherwise.”

Had she been a man I might have decked her right there. Keeping my anger in check I say as calm as I could. “A momentary delay? As in days? Even a week would be enough to…”

“No, no, no. We’ll transport back tomorrow at the regular time.”

“Respectfully, Ambassador, the situation on Bellatrix…”

“Captain Wagner.” She cuts in. “You have made your position quite clear and I have noted it. I sympathize with the people of the colony but there are larger issues at play here. Like you and me and every Alliance citizen out here in the frontier, they knew the risks when they signed up.”

“But, 1600 hundred lives…”

“Compared to what? Hundreds of thousands? Millions? The consequences of a spoiled first contact can tilt the course of history for generations. You know this, Captain.” She says, talking to me as if I were a cadet. “We have this one chance to start on the right foot with the Futanis. We cannot mess this up. First contact is always a fragile moment and we will not rush things for the sake of a colony that was doomed from the start.”

“There are children.”

“That is unfortunate.” She says, shutting off emotionally. “Let me do my job so that their sacrifice will not be in vain.”

The tension between us is palpable. The transporter officer shifts nervously in the taut silence.

As she goes to leave I say. “Wait.”

“What is it, Captain?”

“Could you stay on their ship? All we’d need is a week…”

“Out of the question!”

“Then a shuttle. We could leave you a shuttle for you to continue your work while we did ours.”

“Your work IS our work, Captain.” She say. “We will not be left here defenseless. A powerful starship such as the Endurance shows them that we take this meeting seriously and that there could be consequences if they cross the line. A shuttle would be an insult. Besides, negotiations with this species requires a show of strength.”

“They respect more than just strength, so I hear.”

“Excuse me?”

“In the lounge I overheard one of your aides mention that this race has a preoccupation with penis size.”

Her eyes narrow. “You are not supposed to know that. All knowledge of the Futani is strictly need-to-know until I say otherwise.”

“Fine.” I snap. “My point is, we’ve dealt with species like this before. Valuing displays of virility is not a rare trait. Why don’t we send some men across instead? As you know I’ve made first contact numerous times.”

“And it’s a miracle you haven’t caused a war.”

“Then I must be doing something right. Let me try. Give me a chance to save those people. Let me and couple of my…erm…more generously endowed crewmen…”

“Out of the question.” She says flatly. “My team was specially chosen for this mission. We are the Alliance’s best hope for success. It is not a coincidence that there are no males on this envoy. There are norms and customs at play here that you do not understand.”

“Then make me understand!”

“Respectfully. It is above your pay grade.” She says in the infuriatingly cool tone of a dyed in the wool diplomat. “You have your orders. You will leave negotiations to me and I will leave whatever cowboy escapades you do out here to you. Understood, Captain Wagner?”

It was pointless. She wasn’t going to budge an inch. After chewing down the words I really wanted to say I nod. “Understood, Ambassador Hutton.”

With that she spins on her heel and marches out the door. I stare into the closed door for a good ten seconds, my gaze hotter than a welding beam, until I spin the opposite way and step up onto the transporter pad.

“Captain?” The transporter officer looks at me confused.

“Are their shields still down for the transport window?”

“Uh…” He looks down and hits a few buttons. “Yes, Sir. One more minute.”

“Transport me over. Same coordinates as they came from.”

“But… Sir?”

“Is there a problem, mister?”

“Um, no Sir. It’s just…what the Ambassador said…”

“The Ambassador said she’d leave the cowboy escapades to me.” My shoulders rise as the thrill of adventure pulses through my veins. “It’s time to saddle up and go save us a frontier town. This ends in the next couple of hours, one way or the other.”

“Could be your career.”

“For the look on her face.” I nod toward the door. “Worth it.”

He grins despite himself as he starts hitting buttons. “Any point in reminding you that a raygun is mandatory issue for high risk encounters?”

“Do you expect me to blast my way out of an entire ship of men and women?”

“If anyone could, it’s you Sir.”

“Ha! No. I’m not running this one by the book, Lieutenant Devlin.” I say. “I’m writing my own. Let’s just hope it has a happy ending. If things go poorly…tell the commander to leave for Bellatrix without delay.”

“Sir?”

“With or without me.”

He looks up from his panel and stares as my words sink in. “Yes, Sir. Godspeed.” Glancing down he says. “Ten seconds.”

“Transport!”