ShipCore

Alex and Elis strolled through the Hackjob’s corridors. The path from the CIC to the ground forces section wasn’t that long. It was a deliberate design choice to centralize critical areas. The moonlet had seen a lot of structural changes since it fell into Thea’s hands. Alex eyed the hallway critically. Reworking things for the mission had been one thing she had taken seriously.

All the vital components clustered in a single bulkhead. Easier to defend internally, yes, but also a potential weak point. A well-placed warhead would cripple multiple systems at once. Not great, but she wouldn’t have picked that without the upsides.

The moonlet’s sheer size meant hitting that single spot was very unlikely, and the bulk of armor and rocky mass around it meant that it would almost require a direct hit or very oversized munition to puncture. Internal security was also a concern because of the potential need to house large numbers of refugees.

Refugees that couldn’t have access to the critical areas on the moonlet. Potentially tens of thousands of refugees.

Alex’s lips tightened. If the Hackjob ever came under direct fire from hostile warships, she’d have failed as a commander, anyway. The vessel was a fleet base, an industrial hub, a carrier—not a frontline combatant.

Despite her requisition of additional armaments that put the firepower levels far higher than the Tears ever had been capable of carrying. Weapon emplacements and D-Field emitters dotted the moonlet’s vast surface. It never hurt to be prepared, even if—hopefully—those defenses would never see use.

As they approached the ground forces section, Alex’s thoughts turned to the upcoming mission. Nu Crateris was an unknown quantity now. Corporate or Solarian occupation wasn’t out of the question. They needed to be ready for anything.

Alex glanced at Elis. The other woman was already looking at her with a grin. “Lost in your head again?”

“Not really, just thinking about the best way to put the Hackjob to use.” Alex shook her head, but couldn’t quite suppress a smile.

“Maybe a little?” Alex admitted with a laugh.

“I hope we brought enough support personnel,” Elis mused.

Alex nodded slightly. “What about your ‘special’ team? Got everyone you wanted before we left? I should have confirmed that with you, but everything else…”

“Yep, got them. I would have pinged you if there was a problem.”

“I don’t know why it’s such a big secret,” Alex said.

Elis chuckled. “If you really wanted to know, you could check the personnel logs.”

“But you made a big deal of it,” Alex grumbled.

“Well, it is sort of a surprise now.”

Alex let out a puff of air. “Exactly! I hope it is a good one...”

“I think you’ll be pleased,” Elis assured her.

They passed through a set of heavy blast doors leading into the ground forces module. Alex’s HUD highlighted a side compartment with its own thickly reinforced doors. They flashed green, confirming their secure status.

The power armor and other weapons were locked away inside. It was still accessible by those he needed to service or use the stuff for training, but the security made sure that either Nameless or Thea confirmed anyone entering was supposed to be there.

The next section of the hallway opened up into a wide gymnasium that acted as a hub for the module.

Alex’s HUD quickly tallied the personnel—86 in total. A bit over a fifth of their ground force. That was a lot less than might be expected but also a lot of personnel considering their robotic GAI units that were available to be controlled via NAI interface. There were almost ten thousand of those, although it would be a mess if they needed to deploy them in a military context.

Hopefully four hundred would be enough to handle the human touch part of any refugee or humanitarian operation…

Elis led them towards one corner, where a smaller group was assembled around a mat.

Two combatants tapped knuckles then moved apart, but it was their contrasting sizes that drew the eye. The larger one had darker skin and her first strike sent the smaller lithe girl doing a back flip and then follow up low kick.

The sound of the rapid series of blows that followed snapped through the space.

Recognition dawned. “Tasha—Hikari?” Alex turned to Elis, eyebrows raised. “You pulled the ‘specials’ from my training cadre?”

Elis grinned. “Figured they’d be the best fit. People we could trust, since they knew you personally.” She shrugged. “Believe I was right. They’re inexperienced but talented.”

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Alex blinked, refocusing on the match. Hikari darted around Tasha’s sweeping strikes, a blur of controlled motion. The familiar dance of strength versus agility played out like it usually did, although it looked like Hikari had narrowed the gap considerably. Tasha was looking much more pressed, and what if her endurance gave out?

A voice cut in from behind. “About time you showed up.”

Alex’s head snapped around, eyes widening. “Instructor Riley!”

Riley’s smile held a hint of wry amusement. “Platoon Sergeant, now. Bit of a strange step from Drill, but I guess nothing about this post is very standard.”

Alex’s spine straightened instinctively. “This mission is important. We need to get the resources Meltisar needs or…”

“Yes, we’ve all had our own briefings,” Riley nodded. “I think we’re all just a little surprised about who’s leading it, although I suppose it makes sense with you being a NAI. Others were pretty shocked about that.”

Alex winced, and a flicker of unease settled in her stomach.

Riley knew because she’d been there during the Admirals’ interrogation after her near-kidnapping. But for the others, the revelation would have come much later, after the takeover.

She hadn’t polled the rest of the training cadre about how they had felt about things. She hadn’t even talked to them, really. It hadn’t really been in the cards, considering how pressed everything had been.

If they didn’t hold that against her, or a grudge, that was a bit of relief.

Her gaze drifted back to the mat. Hikari had gained the advantage, pinning Tasha’s arm. The lighter woman expertly used the leverage. But the fight was still one blow from being over. One solid grip from Tasha, and the fight would reverse.

Alex’s HUD flickered. Nameless projected estimated movements and heuristic statistics of the fighters’ movements, right down to the kilo newtons behind each blow or strike.

Hikari’s agility had sharpened while her strikes had become more precise. Tasha’s raw power flowed with a newfound finesse. They’d clearly honed their skills since graduation.

A flicker of doubt crept into Alex’s mind. They were talented recruits, yes, but still green compared to seasoned veterans like Elis or Riley. Would it be a detriment that familiarity trumped experience in their selection?

She pushed the thought aside and glanced at her sister. Elis knew what she was doing. Second-guessing her judgment wouldn’t help anyone.

“Attention!” Riley’s voice cut through the air.

Hikari and Tasha froze mid-grapple, eyes widening as they spotted Alex. The panic in their expressions melted into recognition, and Alex felt a wry smile tug at her lips.

It was bittersweet. Tia wasn’t here.

Neither was… Rachel. Or Jessica.

That emotion she swallowed down and pushed away with the help of practice.

“At ease,” Alex said, her voice steadier than she felt. “Good to see you both.”

Hikari and Tasha grabbed towels, wiping sweat from their brows as they approached.

“How’d Elis manage to rope you two into this?” Alex asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Elis scoffed. “Hey, I didn’t ‘rope’ anyone—”

Hikari’s laugh cut her off. “She said it was important. That you needed people you could trust.”

“Never expected this kind of gig after graduation,” Tasha added, “but it seemed too big to pass up.”

Alex nodded solemnly. “It is important.” She kept telling people that. How important it was. She felt like a broke record. But it was not a lie that everything was on the line.

“We never bought that smear campaign anyway,” Tasha said, her tone fierce.

Hikari snorted. “I’d have decked that reporter too. Great kebab ad, by the way.”

Heat rushed to Alex’s face as the memory of her IFRB confrontation surfaced. They had watched that? Of course they had.

Alex’s stomach threatened to growl. She hadn’t eaten in a while and now would be a good time. Maybe? “Speaking of kebabs, any chance we could take a break from training and grab something to eat?”

Tasha and Hikari’s jaws dropped. Riley coughed, her eyes widening. “That would be a... significant breach of protocol, Captain.”

Alex’s shoulders slumped. Of course it was. The captain socializing with enlisted personnel like this... what had she been thinking?

Elis spoke up, her tone matter-of-fact. “Who cares?”

All eyes turned to her, eyebrows raised.

“Look,” Elis continued, “discipline is important. But nothing about this situation is standard.” She gestured around the gymnasium. “These are probably the only friends and peers Alex has on this entire ship. She needs that support more than rigid discipline right now.”

Alex felt a lump form in her throat. Elis understood, in a way only a sister could.

“Besides,” Elis added, “we don’t have to broadcast it. Send for food, eat in the officer’s mess. Simple.”

Alex let out a shaky breath, a weak smile tugging at her lips. “I’d like that, but...”

Riley ran a hand through her hair, sighing. “Fine. Why not?”

Alex blinked in surprise.

Hikari and Tasha exchanged grins. “Yeah, why not?” Hikari said, her eyes sparkling. “Captain by day, dumb 2nd place recruit at night!”

“Watch it,” Riley hissed, but there was no real heat behind her words.

A laugh bubbled up from Alex’s chest, unexpected but welcome. For a moment, the weight of command lifted from her shoulders. She wasn’t Captain Myers, NAI, or even Omega. She was just Alex, surrounded by friends.

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