Buried in Space - Part 2

Part 2

The Brain Ship Alpha was the first of three interplanetary system ships that was run by a computer so damn advanced it was simply nicknamed the Brain of the Ship. The AI system had a personality and controlled every computerized aspect of the ship which was basically its body. The purpose of the three Brain Ships are to move through the Sol Solar System on a continuous loop making contact with each outpost, colony, space station, and Earth. The vessel was enormous and held a complement of 3,000 crew with twice that many ship-bots.

The ship made its trip by taking advantage of a fun physics fact of space - the Interplanetary Transport Network. A sort of current through space made up of the various gravitational forces of the different celestial bodies in the system. The ship rides along these paths like a sea turtle riding the great oceanic currents. With internal propulsion systems the ship can take different off-ramps into a new current of gravity. The process was really very energy efficient.

When it came time to make port of call, the vessel never stopped and docked because the power to do so and then start up again would be beyond capabilities. It just very slowly flew by the port and shuttles would streak in and out of the mothership like so many bees in the hive. After passing it would then use some fuel to speed back up again.

There is a week-long window when the ship is in range and all of the transports have to be completed. There is another week when long range voyages can be made between the ship and the port of call which is only for special assignments. It was in that window that the captain had left his ship to go ahead to the colony. After those 2 weeks it's a decade until the next ship arrives. So the flurry of activity and the coordination involved is massive. The Old Earth regime in the colony was trying to pretend for two weeks that all was happy and peaceful in the colony before the ship moved one. We’ll just call that plan a failure.

Passengers from the colony were settled into their new quarters. That’s what it's called on a ship, quarters. Given how small the apartments are it didn’t deserve the name of apartment and quarters would do. Kind of like a quarter of an apartment. At any given time there are 300-400 passengers who have taken a charter on this cruise to be dropped off in a few years at their destination.

Though the passengers and crew had separate areas of the ship for quarters, they each lived in similar set-ups. Super tiny apartments, eat and live in communal areas, and have access to shared open spaces such as the botanical garden which tripled as recreation, food production and air scrubbing. Passengers could spend their time pretty much how they pleased. Some can keep up with their jobs, doing work as contractors for the ship. Some take the time to advance their education. Others just kick back and enjoy the down time. However they spent their time, they were to stay out of the way of the crew, not intrude on the operations side of the house, and to not be a menace in general.

Jessica had only seen David four times in person on the colony but each time was a very memorable experience. She didn’t know why exactly but he was often on her mind. Maybe it was because the revolution got kicked-off because of him and she thought about that a lot. Definitely the guilt that she lived with and tried to accept. But most times she would reminimence or daydream about the times they were together and how it made her feel and that was very disturbing indeed. She was not supposed to desire this man for so many reasons!

Jessica instead tried finding out what happened to the missing, especially since they were days away from being out of instant communication range. Jessica’s life had been about making the missing found again. Now that was over but she still wanted answers, wanted to know everyone was accounted for. Her lawyer back at the colony gave her what updates she could. But Jessica wanted, needed, more info. To get more data she put in public records requests for updates from every department and bureau she could think of. Each request was denied citing security concerns or ongoing investigation. Her last attempt was denied with an in person and very pointed message from the Lieutenant who first found her in the hospital.

“We don’t give intel to the bitch who fucked prisoners.”

The prisoner of most concern being her captain but she wasn’t going to say that part out loud. Jessica took the rebuff and left well enough alone. She didn’t know how to get in the LTs face and make her treat her as a person because most times Jessica had a hard time seeing herself as other than how the LT painted her.

The household AI that Jessica had in her old apartment was installed into her new quarters. The household AI on the colony took care of the essentials. Tracked energy used in the home, made sure the stove was never left on, made grocery lists, played music, and monitored the lifesigns of the occupant to alert emergency services if anything should not register right, say a heartbeat suddenly stops. Jessica’s AI registered enough vital signs such as respiration and pulse, sleep or rather insomnia and eating habits to put up a health alert for Jessica. Suggestion, see a physician as soon as possible.

A person can choose to ignore the health alert and Jessica did just that. She was tired, she was sad, she was adjusting to a new life. She would get through this. There was no danger to life so the AI wouldn’t call emergency services on her. Jessica just tried to settle into a routine. She will take time to rest, she will focus on physical therapy, and she will get through this.

****

David sat up in bed letting the images of his dream fade away, for the feelings from the dream to calm. He was dreaming about Capsilon Colony. David had very mixed feelings about his time there and was working with a psychiatrist to sort through it all. He was back on duty as Captain of the ship but protocol required him to meet benchmarks that are meant to keep him and his crew safe after a hard mission. A hard mission, hah! More like a cluster-fuck of errors starting with his own stupidity. Those benchmarks included therapy and a mental health clearance. A requirement that David was not opposed to. This wasn’t his first hard mission with therapy afterwards.

David had risen to the rank of captain through the security forces. He had alway been an officer and he had worked towards promotion. He chose those missions that would challenge him and give him better skills. It was also true that the most challenging assignments were by their nature the most dangerous. David loved the part of his job where he put himself between those to be protected and those who would do harm and then taking out the bad guy. He had no illusions about his savior tendencies. He was a person of action, who liked to be out in the field. He thought, and most times was right, that being the captain of a Brain Ship could be a great challenge and not just paperwork behind a desk.

As captain he had a hands-on approach without encroaching on anyone’s decision making. It was a captaincy style that not everyone can pull off. David liked to go into the various departments of his ship and get into how things were going. But he was always very careful to not intrude on the leadership of those departments. David saw his role as keeping the course for the overall mission, being the referee, mentoring his people, making as few command decisions as possible. Most decisions needed to come from the expert with the Captain overseeing the big picture of how one department’s decision affects the others and what that means for the overall mission.

Even though David loved the challenge of captaincy he still itched sometimes to get out and do more hands-on work. So when the communications from Capsilon Colony were making people question what was going on there, he leapt at the chance to get on the ground and do some snooping himself.

David laid back in his bed and stared up at the ceiling thinking about his decision to take on the mission himself. It was his own damn huberouse that led to him leaving the Brain Ship as soon as they were able to launch a long range shuttle to the colony to get there first. He thought he would just scout around and get some intel before the rest of the ship arrived and shuttles began the loading ops. After which he would monitor the fly-by ops from the ground side. He had no damn idea what he was stepping into and that was a mistake that a captain should never make.

On the bridge and in front of his officers he took responsibility for his actions and how it endangered the crew and mission. Everyone was so relieved that they had him back in one peice that they forgave him his misstep. They all understood what a challenge it is to be a captain when you're as active and involved as David is. In private and in therapy, David flogged himsself for being such a fucking stupid idiot.

Dr. Gonzales, the head of the psychology department, one of his bridge officers, and his psychiatrist, pointed out that there is a limit to such self-incrimination and he has used up his allotment. At some point it just becomes self-pity and really a smokescreen to not think about other things that have happened. What else could David be hiding from facing? Oh ya, the incarceration at the brothel.

Who the hell hides away inconvenient hostages at a damn brothel? Only a colony that had gone so far off the rails that they were actually sentencing convicts to serve at a brothel. That alone was enough to show anyone how messed up the government of the Capsilon Colony had become. Among the Council of Interplanetary Governments there was just plain shock and horror, not just from that tidbit but from all of the other evidence that had been presented to the council to justify the government dissolution decision. The Captain and his command team got a unanimous vote of support from the council to have summarily dismantled the old government and started the process for a new one.

David got out of bed and started his morning routine, mind still thinking about anything but the dreams. He thought about the powers that each of the Brain Ships and the command military ship had when it came to interfering in the local government of any installation. Each space station and colony had to be able to function on their own because of the realities of distances in space. Each government had to be able to meet the basic mandates for the functioning of the installation. Keep the water and air clean and running, keep the food being produced, keep the function of the colony or station or outpost being met whether it was mining, refining, surveying, or any other function, and at the core, protect the basic human rights of every person.

Capsilon Colony failed in the core mandate and that failure led to the Brain Ship invoking its power to intercede and declare the current government null and void. Only the second time in the history of the Interplanetary Governmental Group that such a thing had happened. Apparently there was this whole moral superiority complex of the colony’s recently removed government that somehow the new generations were soft and their weakness was going to take down the colony itself. Bizzare.

It was a hard transition moving from a generation that had lived in the most hostile environment possible, an inhospitable rock in space, and the survival mentality that that environment requires. To a new generation that was not as hard and cold as the old timers, who enjoyed their life of a well organized, well ordered colony that allowed for a few luxuries like a person whose profession is just to make art. It was Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and the move from survival to thriving was being held back by those who were exploiting those uncomfortable and scared of change for their own power.

David dismissed his musings as he put on his uniform and went for breakfast. He made a quick note in his dream journal and then pushed the dream away from the front of his mind. Instead he focused on the day ahead of him.

****

The Captain stepped onto the bridge of his ship and stepped into well ordered chaos. The bridge crew consisted not only of navigation and defense systems but of every major department. There were stations for each department throughout the large, open layout room with way too many people at each station. The fly-by ops had many moving parts with a huge to-do list. The only way to get it all done was for all hands on deck and to maintain a minute by minute schedule. The bridge was a busy, busy place.

The Captain was greeted by the hologram of the Ship AI who then announced “Captain on the Bridge!” Every officer and crew member immediately made a salute and the Captain returned it with the “As you were” command. No one else came up to greet or brief the Captain, it was his style that he would come to you and you were to keep working unless you needed him for a command decision.

Captain Hall walked the bridge and poked his nose into every station getting a feel for their level of activity and where they were compared to where they should be in the fly-by ops work. Most were close to being on-schedule and on-task but no one was immune to issues that have just kept cropping up. This current fly-by was full of so many challenges from a missing Captain to a couple hundred distressed and traumatized new passengers that every department was feeling the strain. The shuttle work of bringing cargo and people to and from the ship, which is the core mission of the fly-by, was screwed three ways to Sunday because the reciprocating ground crew had just had a violent government revolt which is not conducive to keeping a tight schedule. The ground crew lags have led to a chain reaction of issues that required a lot of fast thinking and coordination between the thousands of crewpersons.

The Captain was damn proud of how his people met the challenge.

In addition to the fly-by ops that was currently taking up most of the crew's attention there was the on-going issue of what to do about Capsilon Colony’s corrupt government. It’s one thing to give an order like ‘I declare this government null and void. Set up a new one.’ It’s a whole ‘nother wasp nest of issues to make that order happen. As the ones who made the decision it was up to the Brain Ship Alpha to enforce its order and get as much framework in place to create a new government as possible before they were out of range. In a few years a delegation from the Coalition of Governments would arrive at the colony to continue the work but a strong foundation needed to be put into place now.

Captain Hall finished his rounds and went to his first meeting of the day in the conference room. The ship didn't bother with VR meetings whether it was halos or VR headgear. They just had a video and audio for each participant up on one wall. It was good enough and honestly with the vast distances of space there were very few in range to do live communication. While they were still in range they heard from the colony on what they needed, expected, or wanted - with not all three being equal. By satellite relay they played pre-recorded video from any members of the Council of the Coalition of Governments who had a thought on the matter, and they all had several thoughts on the matter.

Captain Hall kept the agenda with help from the Ship AI. He met with various members of his command crew who came and went throughout the day. Each person would come in when their expertise was needed, discussing a litany of issues regarding the colony and fly-by ops, and leave with orders to execute. The only other person who stayed through all of the meetings and video reviews was his head of Legal Affairs. It was from that department that staff was selected to stay at Capsilon Colony to set up a new government according to the interplanetary governmental charter which outlines the core mandates of any functioning government. It was a hard ask but there were enough people willing to make the permanent move on short notice for an impartial committee to be formed.

In a limited way the Captain did have to answer to the Council of Governments on what he was doing. He had their support but not carte-blanche to do whatever he pleased. He was the final say on what happened with setting up the new government but he would have to defend his decisions especially if the special delegation found the colony in even worse shape when they arrived in a few years. The worst case scenario would be for things to get so out of hand that the colony just died with not a person left alive. No one, but no one, wanted to see that happen.

By the time he had put in a ten-hour work day David was so tired of all of the talk that he waved off a dinner with friends and instead made his way back to his own quarters alone. David settled into his couch with a book and tried to just read and not think about that thrice damned colony. But the more he tried to not think about the colony the less he could focus on the book. Fine, he thought, he’ll just work it out.

So to the gym he went to sweat away his frustration. When he got to the gym used by his security team he found a sparring partner. He warmed up and got on the mat ready to grapple his way away from thoughts of the colony. Or more specifically, from thoughts of one person from the colony.

He knew that Jesscia Wellington was on his ship. He knew that she was bunked in passenger block Echo section 23 quarter number E-23-006. He knew that she was keeping a low profile and not making trouble, not that he expected her to. He knew about the decision for her and the operatives in similar situations to be loaded onto his ship and made to pretend that they were all normal passengers. Hell, he had to approve the decision. He recalled the heated exchange with his head of security, Rei Sampson, about letting on-ship that one particular former operative. It was fine to let in the others, security measures could easily be put into place to ensure that they left their spy days behind them, but not that one, surely?

David miss-judged a feint and ended up eating the mat. Damn, he needed to pay attention to what was in front of him. His partner gave him a hand up and they re-set for the next round. At first there was hesitation to the Captain coming to the security’s gym looking for a sparring partner. Everyone knew that he used to be security himself. But it’s one thing to know that that is your Captain’s background and another to have him as your opponent. At first the Captain just sparred with their more senior officers. Once everyone got used to him coming in when his schedule allowed or when he needed to blow off steam the rest of the team was comfortable with trading padded blows. But no matter how comfortable you are with the Captain coming into your workout room there will always be the hesitation to let loose and be the one that injures the Captain when sparring. So while David ate his share of the mat he didn’t often have to go up against someone who was going to really let him have it.

Until a certain lieutenant stepped onto the mat.

LT Sandoval was of medium build and a muscular woman who was the first on the ground looking for her lost captain. She was the one who received the coded texts and waited with growing frustration and fear between each text. She was the one who received the burst of data on that last message and executed the plan to throw the Brain Ship’s resources behind the underground to initiate the revolt of the government. She was the one who found their captain at the rendezvous he had set up in the data burst and from there found out where he had been stashed.

She was the one who found the name and location of the buyer who had been purchasing her captain’s services.

When she confronted Jessica Wellington in the hospital it was all she could do to hold her temper in check. Mainly she succeeded because the woman had already taken a hell of beating. But the LT felt almost cheated of the beating she wanted to give. Especially when that woman tried to act like it was all just a part of a mission. That she was just a currier passing on the messages. That she didn’t do anything wrong. That got the LT’s temper spiking through the roof.

What was worse was that woman was on this ship! And, she actually was trying to get info on the convicts in the brothel system, like she cared about what happened to any of them. The LT couldn’t prevent what happened to the captain at the hands of that woman but she can and will prevent her from getting those hands on any more victims.

The LT and the Captain both had a hell of a lot of anger to work off so she stepped onto the mat and sparred with him like she meant it. And he had to focus on what he was doing otherwise she would make him eat half of the damn mat. It was a good workout for both of them.

Afterward they sat quietly, showered and changed, eating their post workout meals. Gotta replenish the electrolytes and boost the proteins. David broke the silence first.

“You have a mean right hook,” he said.

“Thank you, sir.”

He shook his head. “No, I mean that you seem to be on edge, a little too aggressive.”

She just looked at him. She kept the expression cool, neutral.

“Want to talk about it, lieutenant?”

“I guess I’m just still working through my anger.”

“Anger?” he prompted, taking another bite of his protein bar.

“Ya, anger.” she said.

They sat in silence a little more before the Captain got up to clean up his mess from the post workout meal. “Can you keep the anger from interfering in the job?” It was a necessary question. A security LT who was spoiling for a fight was not the safest person.

“Yes, Sir. I’ve got a handle on it. I just let it out a little too much today on the mat is all.” she responded.

David just nodded and left it at that. She had a command structure and he was ten jumps up that structure. He could question but unless he wanted to undermine his leadership structure he needed to back off until he had more reason to interfere. Instead he will have a private word with Sampson.

****

Back in his quarters David just flopped into bed. He was eye-burning tired. Between the long day and hard workout he was ready for sleep. But even in sleep he wasn’t free of his thoughts. No, here they get to come out and play and express themselves as dreams.

David dreamt of skin the color of almonds with a scent that intrigued his baser instincts. He dreamed of a soft moan as he touched and stroked and the resulting faster breath and longer, louder sounds from her. He dreamt of being with this woman that both intrigued him and enraged him. He wanted to not give in to her, he didn’t want to feel this way. He wanted it to be a mechanical, necessary fuck. But he couldn’t resist the temptation to caress her down her spine because he was sure that, yes! he was going to get that exact reaction. He wanted to bury himself into her, marry their bodies together, move in unison until they both couldn’t take any more but holding himself back until she called out to him that she was ready and then he could let himself loose. To lose himself in her and with her.

David sat up in bed with a gasp, body in a sweat. He lay there, breathing hard, staring at nothing. He hated these dreams and he wanted more than just these dreams. Ya, his feelings about the brothel, about being with Jessica, were complicated.

****

A couple of weeks went by and Jessica’s household AI started becoming more insistent about its suggestion to see a doctor. Instead of settling into her new life she just became even more withdrawn. The ship had flown out of instant communication range. She had never been so far from her family that she couldn’t just pick up a phone and call or text. The last day for instant communication was a big day in the passenger quarters. The ship had been through this before and made sure there were plenty of announcements and bandwidth so that everybody got in that last call to home before the line went dead.

Since then Jessica had been more and more listless. She just couldn’t seem to find anything to interest her. She couldn’t access any new info on the colony or what became of the people she had been tracking. She had given up on official requests since the LT had been there every time to deny each request. Instead she turned to other ways of gleaning information from public sources. But until a report was released there was no new information to find. With that last bit of focus gone she was simply lost as to what to do with herself. She never had issues with self confidence before. Not until she started making choices that made her question her morality.

When Jessica finally gave in to the household AI she made an appointment to see her primary care physician. Why did she give in? Because it was too much effort to keep fighting with a damn AI.

At the appointment they went through the usual concerning her leg. How was the therapy, how much function has she regained, how is she doing getting around the ship with a cane? It’s easy enough in passenger quarters if you don’t venture too far from common areas. Then the doctor reviewed the health data from the AI. Diagnosis, depression. Treatment, you need to see a psychologist.

****

Jessica sat across from the psychiatrist and tried to think how she should act. She had never been in therapy before and didn’t know what to expect, but that was just a small part of her nerves. The main part was that she was supposed to talk about herself, about her life, about her actions as an operative. Staying alive and hidden in plain sight for five years means you know the role you're supposed to play in the given situation and you don’t break from character. Here and now, she was supposed to be herself. But what the hell did that mean any more? The fact that she couldn’t answer was probably why she was supposed to see a psychiatrist.

She got the chief of the Psychology Department because of the sensitive nature of the discussion, herself. Because of who she had been in the colony, the primary care doctor's referral to therapy had been flagged by security. It was always a possibility that Jessica and any of the other operatives would need therapy when they were ready. But who they saw had to be cleared for that level of intel. The only way to make therapy work is to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but truth. You can’t do that if your psychiatrist isn’t cleared to hear your classified secrets.

So here Jessica sat, unsure of how to be, in front of the department head who was also a damn bridge officer. Yup, Dr. Gonzales most definitely had the credentials to hear her classified secrets. Hell, being a bridge officer meant that Dr. Gonzalez probably knew more about the underground and its operatives than Jessica did. It also meant that Dr. Gonzalez worked directly with the Captain, with David, and that was a shame she did not want to open and explore with this woman. Instead Jessica started out with something else entirely. Her leg. Ya, that’s good. Dealing with a 40% functioning leg and the challenges of getting around a ship with the aid of a cane or on a bad day just staying in her quarters. Let’s talk about that.

Dr. Gonzales was happy to go over whatever Jessica was willing to discuss but she wasn't fooled for a minute that the depression and the pain in Jessica’s face was just because of the leg. So she dug. And Jessica gave up one more nugget; anger. Anger at the doctors that let her leg be this bad in the first place. Jessica spoke about being taken to the ER and having emergency care. But once she was stabilized and it was determined that she was a Good Citizen caught by the mob, well, now her pain would just have to take a back burner. It wasn’t until the pain got screaming bad that someone did imaging on the leg and found the clots but by then it was too late. The tissue in the area had died and needed to be removed.

That anger was real and the pain did need to be discussed which got them through a few sessions. By then Jessica wasn’t really willing to discuss any more of what had happened on the colony. Not with Dr. Gonzales. Not with a bridge officer. Not with someone who saw David everyday. But the good doctor knew when a patient was holding out.

On her next visit Jessica limped into the office with her usual careful gait. Each step was precise, each movement planned. It helped Jessica focus on the here and now as well as avoid painful falls. Dr. Gonzales settled them in with a few prelims; how are you feeling today? Let's check in with our goals. But instead of letting Jessica set the topic of conversation Dr. Gonalez said “I think we need to talk about your work as an operative, the work that took you into the brothels.”

Jessica was stunned and sat in her chair just kind of processing how she should respond to that. What is the safe answer? Is there any safe answer? What did Dr. Gonalez want or expect?

“I know I’m being blunt and I apologize for that.” Dr. Gonzalez said. “But I do think we are about to hit a barrier on what you are willing to talk about. And we need to talk about all of it if you're going to meet your goals. I know the problems with the leg and with first doctors was traumatic and is important. But it’s not all of what’s bothering you about the colony, is it?”

Jessica tried to think but couldn’t get past “Damn. I mean, just, Damn!”

Dr. Gonzalez looked at Jessica with a look that could be x-ray vision and Jessica squirmed a little under that look.

“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, but sometimes therapy is a very uncomfortable place. That’s why it is a safe place. So you can be vulnerable and know that you will be safe here.”

“Safe from what?” Jessica asked. She knew what she was afraid of, the good doctor's condemnation.

“Safe from judgment,” said the doctor. “Everything you say here is not only confidential but I have the clearance to hear anything you have to say. And everything is between us.”

Jessica looked away from the doctor's face and just focused on her burning eyes and the tightness in her chest. She will not cry, she will contain herself. She could give in to what the doctor is asking for, the first hand account of her role at The Rose. But could the doctor really be so objective as to put her health first and help her find a way to make peace with what happened? How can she do that? Other than her lawyer back in the colony Jessica has had no advocate, no friend, no ally. She is a traitor who got away clean. The bitch who fucked the prisoners.

Jessica fought off her tears and decided to just fucking go for it. She would just rip off the bandaid and tell all. Let the doctor respond in any way she wanted but when she couldn’t keep up the pretense that this was a safe space with no judgment then at least these sessions will be over.

Pulling on the anger to bolster her nerves, Jessica turned back to the doctor. “If you have the clearance to hear what I have to say then you have the clearance to read the reports. Most likely, you have been a part of more than one discussion concerning the events in the colony including the underground operatives and the work they did. You already know about my work with brothels.” She wanted to add You already know that it was me that fucked the captain while he was held prisoner but couldn’t get the words out. Jessica’s breathing was tight as fought to keep control.

Dr. Gonzalez just looked at her calmly and said “Yes, I have been a part of a number of discussions. Including the events at the various brothels. You visited three on a regular basis, right? Why don’t you tell me about that?”

Jessica couldn’t sit still sitting any longer. She shot to her feet and then regretted the move when she almost fell. She grabbed her cane and began a slow but angry pacing on one end of the room. The pain in her leg from not being careful was good. It was a sharp, clear pain that focused her anger.

“What do you want to hear, doctor? Do you want to hear how I was a Patron, a buyer, and I bought humans? How I was an elite using money stolen from others to buy human flesh for my own selfish and a-moral fun.” The last word was said with as much derision as possible. Jessica stopped pacing but didn’t look at the doctor. She stared at the wall art without really seeing it.

“That characterization of what you did is what the critics say about those in your position. I’m asking about your own thoughts and feelings on the matter.”

Jessica decided she couldn’t handle this conversation. The bile was rising in her stomach just thinking about it. She shook her head angrily “I won’t talk about this.”

The doctor rose and stood near Jessica. Close enough but not too close. Jessica appreciated that careful distance. “I know I was being blunt about this, that I was pushing this conversation. It’s okay, we can stop. You don’t have to say anything else about it.”

Jessica carefully turned to look at the doctor. Did she really mean it? She wasn’t going to keep digging? At least for now but not forever. Jessica felt that now was the time to tell the doctor her greatest concern. She might not get another chance or really the courage.

“You should know from the reports that I was the one who was with the Captain at The Rose. I know that what I did there was terrible. I know that you’re a bridge officer working with him. I don’t expect you to forgive me or to give me a judgement-free space for me to talk about that.” There, that should be blunt enough.

The doctor just stood there, looking stunned, for a moment or two. Then she said “I am a doctor and every patient of mine has the right to a safe space with me. No judgment. I promise.”

Jessica’s chest became tight again and her eyes gave that warning prickle. She just looked back at the wall art and gave a curt nod. It was the best she could do. After a moment the doctor walked away to give her space to regain her composure. Once she did Jessica came back to the couch, no longer welcoming the pain in her leg. Without much fanfare the doctor called an end to the session with one piece of homework.

“I understand how my being a bridge officer and working daily with the Captain can be hard for you to open up to me about your interactions with him. But I do want to assure you that your healing is my priority. Please consider if you can open up to me on all of your experiences. If you truly feel that you can’t then I will find you a doctor who isn’t as close to the Captain as I am that you can work with.”

Jessica just nodded and left the therapy room, taking one careful step at a time. Considering the doctor’s words and where to place each step and the cane.

****

As the ship gained distance away from the colony and the fly-by ops fever wore off, the ship settled into its long cruise mode. The long cruise mode is when the day before will be the same as the day after. The crew takes some much needed rest and relaxation with leave days away from work, spending that extra time with family for those with spouses and children on board. School is back in session as regular lessons have been suspended. Hobby groups began to meet again. In general, routine became the motivator of the day.

The passengers also settle into their new life. Being aboard the Brain Ship Alpha is an amazing adventure! Until you realize, you're in a tin can cruising between ports in the vastness of space. Dull and routine has a whole new meaning.

Security takes this time to remind everyone of the rules, the boundaries, and the consequences. After all, this is not their first group of new passengers settling into a long-haul cruise.

Fleet and Passenger Support Services start focusing on their mission of providing a positive experience for everyone aboard with recreation, education, and work opportunities. The FPSS has their banners and posts everywhere. Hobby shop is open today!! Learn a new skill and make new friends!! Job openings!! Singles Dance Party!!

The most popular place on the ship for recreation is the botanical gardens. Situated in the center of the ship The Gardens is encased in a glass dome and features a variety of Earth native fauna and flora. The Gardens are more than just for sightseeing. It is also a part of the air and water reclamation systems, educational for those in school, and even food production. Most of the air is scrubbed by single cell algae and most of the food is from high yield plants in the hydroponics bay but The Gardens do their bit. The creators of the ship were insistent on providing something green and natural in the midst of all of that metal. There was too much evidence for the effect of nature on the human brain to dismiss the importance of green, growing things. So the way to incorporate The Garden was to make sure it had multiple functions.

The food for instance is grown specifically for holidays. The staff at The Gardens will advertise what food they will be growing to take center stage at the holiday coming up next. The children at the school would all take part in assisting with taking care of the crop. And there would be a big to-do when it came time to harvest. It was actually pretty successful in focusing the passengers and crew into a community spirit.

****

Jessica decided she needed some fresh air and headed to The Gardens. The air inside of The Gardens just seemed more fresh and fragrant, in a good way, then the air otherwise. The colony has some open, green spaces for public use and enjoyment but nothing like the botanical gardens. There were tropical flowers that were brilliant colors, a desert room where everything had a stark beauty, and even a wooded area. The fauna were mostly insects such as the butterflies and bees but also a few smaller reptiles and mammals. Jessica just loved to sit and feel the energy of the space around her.

Unfortunately today she had an obstacle to entering The Gardens, her favorite LT. LT Sandoval stepped in front of Jessica as she walked up to the entrance.

“You can’t go in there right now.” the LT stated.

Jessica just looked at her. She had had just about enough of the LTs attitude and with her therapy she had stopped internalizing the LT’s attitude towards her. “I’m not even going to ask why because I already know that you have no right to bar me from a public area. Move.”

The LT’s temper spiked and she stepped into Jessica’s personal space getting into her face. “I have every right.”

“You have zero reason to keep me out of a public space. Either you move or I will file a complaint of harassment against you.”

The LT narrowed her eyes. “It’s not harassment for me to do my job.”

“It is harassment if there is a pattern of obstructionist behavior without just cause. Now move.”

“Is there a problem here?” The voice came from inside of the entrance as the Captain walked out of The Gardens. He took in the tableau of his LT and Jessica Wellington facing off and the growing crowd of onlookers.

“No problem, sir.” the LT said, stepping back.

At the same time Jessica was saying “A review of my complaint will determine if there is a problem or not.”

The Captain turned his attention to Jessica. This was the first time he has been face to face with her since the colony. With his full attention on her and her on him there was that quiet moment when it feels like everything else around you just drops away. There is only this one other person in front of you and you want to just drink in the sight of them.

Jessica looked at David and thought that he looked good, more than good, he looked himself. She didn’t know him outside of the bedroom in a robe and mostly not even the robe, so she probably shouldn’t have been so certain that this was his true self. But the uniformed captain in front of her had an air of being centered that she had not seen before. She was happy for him.

David took in the sight of Jessica and also thought that she looked good. But no, that’s not quite right. She looked worn, tired, and with a tight control to her posture that seemed to him to be a brittle control. His first thought that she looked good was maybe that it was so good to see her again. Which was not the response he was expecting from himself.

The Captain said in a quiet voice “You are putting a complaint against one of my officers?”

Jessica understood the wording, that he was backing his people and a complaint against them was a complaint against him. Fine, he want’s to play like that, just fucking fine.

“Yes. She is preventing me from entering a public space with no cause. If I’m such a security risk that I can’t go into The Gardens then I should be charged with a crime. So either charge me or let me pass.”

The Captain turned to his LT. “My protectee is out of the area so you can now go in.” said the LT carefully not looking at the Captain. She needed a reason for denial of entry and said what first came to mind. As soon as she said it she wished she could take it back because she knew that it was not going to fly.

The Captain looked at his LT taking in her answer for a couple of moments and then turned back to Jessica. “My apologies for the inconvenience, Ms. Wellington. Please enjoy The Gardens.” Jessica gave a curt thank you and walked past doing her best to walk without a limp and with a straight back. David watched her for a moment, watching her walk with the cane. He realized then just how much effort he had been putting into not running into her. Pushing that thought away the Captain turned back to the LT.

“Lieutenant, I am not your protectee. This is not a bodyguard assignment. You are here because it is protocol for a little extra security to be in place when anyone of the command crew comes into the public spaces as a part of official duties.”

“Yes, sir.”

“As for restricting access to any of the crew or passengers, I do not know of anyone who has an active flag against them, unless I am wrong in that, Lieutenant?”

“No, sir.”

“Go back to the security offices and let Lieutenant Commander Sampson know that you are to be given duties that keep you in the offices until a full review of the pending complaint is complete.”

“Aye, sir.” and the LT turned and walked away. She was angry but she obeyed the direct order from the Captain.

David turned and looked back into the gardens but Jessica was out of sight. He then left the garden grounds with a lot to think about. The behavior of his LT for one. How had things gotten this far without anyone noticing, or had people noticed and nothing was done? Because there is no way this behavior today was out of the blue. News to him but not news to somebody in the chain of command. And why was that? But mostly, he thought about how much he hated the sight of Jessica walking with that damn cane, the lines of sadness on her face under the controlled anger, and how much it bothered him that he cared about those things.

****

Jessica put in that complaint and it was reviewed by the Security Department Head, the Officers Union Rep and the department’s Legal Liaison. The Captain sat in on the review interview but to observe only. The panel went through each instance of harassment as outlined in the complaint. Each instance of being denied access to public records, the confrontation at the last time that Ms. Wellington made a request and the LT made her remark “We don’t share intel with the bitch who fucks prisoners.” finishing with the refusal of entry into a public space.

LT Sandoval sat on her side of the table facing her superior officers and was asked to confirm, deny, and add any information as relevant to each instance. She kept it simple and straightforward. She had done a threat assessment and determined that Ms. Wellington, based on her behavior in the past, posed a danger to the convicts in the brothel system. That her remark at the final record request was unfortunate. And that the denial of entry was a judgment call to protect a command officer which was within her role of security.

“For the threat assessment, is that documented?” asked LCDR Sampson.

“Yes, sir. On each request denied form I stated the reason for the denial.” replied the LT.

“Anything other than what is on the requests?”

“No, sir.”

“Lieutenant, these statements on the request denied forms are not sufficient by themselves.” from Ms. Hao, the legal liaison. “Do you have any corroborating evidence to support these decisions?”

“Only my knowledge of Ms. Wellington’s behavior in the brothels obtained during my time in the colony.”

“In what way is Ms. Wellington a danger to other persons should she receive these documents?” asked Ms. Hao.

“I’m aware of the actions that Ms. Wellington took towards prisoners required to serve their sentence in the brothels. It was my threat assessment that she was looking for more information on them to find her victims.”

The Captain was sitting away from the center of the room but it was hard to miss the tension from him as it ratched up a notch from that last comment.

“Lieutenant, Ms Wellington has not been convicted of breaking any laws either here or in her original colony. What makes you think it is okay to refer to any one as her victim?” asked Ms. Hao very carefully.

The LT kept her eyes straight and her body was tight from anger. “I know what happened in those places. How can they be anything but victims?”

Everyone in the room just waited for the captain to respond to that. The LT paled a little because she knew that she had crossed a line. She was saying what she believed but it was coming out badly. When the captain didn’t say anything, LCDR Sampson continued. “Lieutenant, do you have anything more to add to these proceedings?”

The LT took a careful breath and considered her words. “As a security officer it is my job to make threat assessments and to deny or allow these kinds of requests. I made the decisions I thought were best.”

“Thank you Lieutenant. We will discuss this matter and let you know our decision as soon as it is made. You are dismissed.”

After the LT left the room the Captain got up from his seat and stood in front of the table. “Thank you for allowing me to sit in on the interview.” and turned to leave the room.

“You're welcome to stay, Captain.” said LCDR Sampson.

“No, thank you. I think you should have the space to deliberate and come to your own conclusion.” the captain was tactfully acknowledging that just by him being in the room it could impact their decision and he didn’t want that. What he heard from the LT had made him pretty damn upset and he did not want that affecting the discussion.

As the captain left the conference room and walked through the office he was approached by the LT.

“Sir, may I speak with you for a moment?” she asked.

“No, lieutenant.” he answered. That surprised her. The captain was normally approachable. They had grappled plenty of times on the mat and had chats in the weight room. “Go back to your desk and wait for the panels’ decision.” He waited for the “Yes, sir.” and a salute from the LT and with that he turned and left the room. It was time, the Captain thought to himself, that he started reminding everyone that he was the Captain of the ship and not another officer. Starting with himself.

The discussion was long and the LT waited at her desk with growing tension. When she was finally called in again she was not asked to sit. Instead she stood at attention while she was informed of the decision.

“While security officers have a certain amount of leeway in making professional judgements it is determined that Lieutenant Sandoval had overstepped the bounds of professionalism. The requests for public documents will be reviewed again by a senior officer. The department will issue an apology to Ms. Wellington for the remarks made at the time of those requests and for the inexcusable denial of entry to a public space. The lieutenant is hereby put on notice that she is to have no more dealings with all official matters concerning Ms. Wellington within the security department. It is also highly recommended that unofficial and off-duty dealings with Ms. Wellington be kept to a minimum.” LCDR Sampson put down the statement and looked at his lieutenant.

“As the Head of Security I have a duty to those in my department as well as to every member of this ship, crew and passenger. I have to balance between supporting the decisions of those in my command versus holding them accountable when it’s necessary. In this instance, we do believe you were operating outside of the scope of your authority so an apology will be issued.

“However, we do understand that you were trying to do what you saw as being the right decision. I believe, as my own personal opinion, that you have gotten the facts skewed which affected your judgment.

“Lieutenant, I'll be honest with you. When I first heard about this particular passenger coming on board this vessel I argued against that decision. But since that day I have learned every detail about the colony’s revolution and why there was an underground with operatives in the first place. I have detailed knowledge of the missions and actions of Ms. Wellington and other operatives like her. And I do not believe it is a fair characterization to say that the convicts she interacted with within the various brothels are victims of hers.

“I am going to give you some confidential witness and character statements which I hope will help you come to terms with what you saw on the ground versus all of what was going on there. These statements I will be giving you are for your eyes only and are to be treated as the confidential information they are.

That will be all, Lieutenant. You’re dismissed.”

****

LT Sandoval gave the witness and character statements a cursory glance then closed the file in disgust. She knew full well that people can be manipulated into empathizing with their abusers. As security she is trained to spot a trauma bond for domestic abuse calls. A person can bond with their abuser and defend that person even though they are being hurt. The fact that the leadership seems to not be able to see what is plain as day just means she needs to be more vigilant. Fine, she overstepped at The Gardens. But she knew, absolutely knew without question that she was right about that woman.