8
Mia, Two Days Later, BattleshipResolution
“Settle in and settle down, everyone,”General Jennix called.
The Starfighters and other crew members serving on the Resolution who would be involved in the mission moved into chairs lined up in rows around the meeting room. I guessed there were about twenty present and at least double that amount of people attending remotely via the comms covering the walls around the room.
“To make introductions. From Arturri, we have General Aryk and the Starfighter pilots. They will be known as Group One. From Eos Station, Captain Sponder is leading the shuttle pilots.” The general paused. “Where is Captain Sponder?”
I didn’t see the jerk on the screen either. It had been two days since I’d met Kass’s former commanding officer. Sponder had been an asshole, and it was clear he hated Kass.
That fact did not bother me. Sponder was one of those guys who always felt the need to throw their dicks on the table and get out the measuring tape. I’d met plenty of jerks just like him back on Earth. Hot hunks. Creeps. Dedicated soldiers. Uptight commanders. Rebels. It seemed people were people, no matter what planet they were on.
Kass, for his part, hadn’t mentioned Sponder since that initial encounter. After our mission, we’d gone back to our quarters and rested, as protocol required. But Kass had made good on his promise of taking me again once we were in bed. He'd bathed me, had food brought to our quarters, then sexed me into unconsciousness. I wasn’t sure if that was how Jennix wanted us to rest, but it was a great way to fall asleep. I was now fresh, relaxed, and ready for another mission.
“We don’t know, sir.” One of the shuttle pilots under Captain Sponder’s command answered the general, and I pulled my wandering thoughts back under control. This was a huge mission. Important. If something went wrong, it wasn’t going to be because I missed something or made a mistake. Not again. Never again.
Jennix sighed. “Very well. The shuttle pilots are Group Two. They will be running supplies and evacuation operations from the launch bays on the Resolution. General Romulus and the Starfighter Titans are Group Three. They will focus their attack on the IPBM production facility once the MCS team takes down the shield and their moon-based defense systems. Captain Dacron and her medical teams are Group Four. They will set up a triage area in the Resolution’s cargo bay until we gain ground control on the planet. Once that is done, they will set up in Alpha City, under the largest dome. I am General Jennix, in command of our new Starfighter MCS team. Several squadrons of fighters from other battleships as well as air support for the assault will be under my command. We are Group Five.”
Each group appeared to be in rooms similar to ours and stationed somewhere around Velerion. I didn’t recognize any faces except for Jamie’s and Alex’s, who were seated behind their general, Aryk, on one of the screens. I wanted to wave and say hi, but I knew that was bad. Sex on the Phantom at the end of a mission was one thing. Interrupting General Jennix to give a shout-out to a BFF during a briefing was another.
“As usual, to simplify, all leaders will be identified solely by their group, meaning for this mission I am Group Five Leader.”
Heads nodded. I was thankful because I was terrible with names. If I had to remember them to communicate, I’d be in big trouble.
“Here is what we know,” Jennix continued. She motioned to Graves, and a large, three-dimensional hologram appeared in the middle of the room. The image was of a barren planet that looked like nothing but black rocks with a few, small domes built on the surface. The planet had bluish ice caps on each pole and one large moon. I glanced up at the screens to see that identical formations had appeared in front of each group.
I leaned toward Kass and whispered in his ear.
“What is that on the planet? Ice?”
“Yes. The Vega System contains large amounts of water.”
“Why is it blue instead of white?”
“Methane.”
And I was done with asking questions. Chemistry was not my area. Still, the planet was oddly beautiful with its dark rock and bright blue caps.
“Why is Jennix leading the mission?”
“Because the MCS group has the data, sets the parameters and requirements for the mission. Identifies the resources needed. The battleship will also act as the forward operations center, close enough to offer support but just out of range in case those missiles detonate. So, Jennix is in charge,” he whispered back.
That made sense.
General Jennix cleared her throat and looked straight at me.
“Sorry, General.”
She continued. “The data collected by the Starfighter MCS pair indicates the location of the IPBM production facility is Velerion’s colony, Xenon. As most of you know, Xenon was overrun by Dark Fleet forces eight months ago. With the catastrophic losses to our Starfighter teams, we have not been in a position to launch an assault and regain control.”
I assumed the history lesson was for me and Jamie, the only two outsiders in the room. However, we also happened to be Starfighters critical to this mission.
Whispers came from all groups, and Jennix allowed everyone a moment to process the information. While I hadn’t been in space long, the IPBM issue had been a problem since Jamie had been captured. No one had been able to discover the precise location of Queen Raya’s stockpile or production facility. Until now.
“Our colonists have also been under Dark Fleet control for the last eight months. Xenon’s moon base was converted into a planetwide defense system. Once we knew where to look, we sent multiple drones to the planet in order to scout out what we might be up against.”
Jennix waved her hand in the air and the holographic planet became larger, but the single moon grew exponentially until we were looking at a long, arc-shaped base of some kind that rested on its surface. It looked like a giant black centipede with a tall, arching back.