Chapter 7 Chapter Six
"Where are you going, Dahl?" Duvall asked.She and others were in the middle of the aisle of the Angelis V space station, looking at Dahl who suddenly left the team and walked elsewhere. "Come on, we're on vacation," she said, "let's get drunk."
"And then have sex," Finn said.
"Get drunk and have sex," Duvall said, "in no particular order."
"Not that there's anything wrong with that order," Finn said.
"Oh, I bet you never had a second date with anyone," Duvall said.
"I'm not talking about me," Finn reminded her, "I'm talking about Andy, who left us."
"Yes!" Duvall yelled, "Andy, don't you want to get drunk and have a good time with us!"
"Oh, sure," Dahl agreed, "but I have to do a hyperlink first."
"Can't you settle things first on the Intrepid?" Hansen asked.
"This must not be known to the Intrepid," Dahl said.
Duvall rolled his eyes, "It's with your new love, isn't it." She said, "I said, Andy, you've been very boring since you got obsessed with that Jenkins. It's like hatching an egg for ten days in a row. Think hard. Pull yourself together, you morose wretch!"
Dahl smiled. "I promise I'll get to you soon. Where are you going?"
"I've booked a suite at Hyatt Station," Hansen said. "Meet there. We'll say goodbye to sobriety soon."
Pointing to Hearst, Finn said, "For him, it's saying goodbye to being a virgin."
"Okay," Hurst said, and laughed.
"I'll be there soon." Dahl assured everyone.
"The sooner the better!" Hansen said, and he and several other people walked along the aisle laughing and playing.Dahl watched them leave, turned around and walked towards the sales area, trying to find a hyperwave communication station.
He found one in the nook between the coffee shop and the tattoo shop.It was not much bigger than a telephone booth, and there were only three communication terminals in it, one of which was still broken.A drunken crew member from another ship yelled and occupied another, and Dahl quickly connected to the third terminal.
"Welcome to the Ultra Wave Communication System." A row of letters was displayed on the display, and the starting price for a communication was listed.Five minutes of communication was enough to wipe out his weekly salary, but Dahl wasn't surprised.It takes a lot of energy to open the space-time tunnel to connect with another terminal ten light-years away.Energy is money.
Dahl took out an anonymous chip that he had been holding in his hand, because he really didn't want to swipe his credit account.He put the chip in the payment sensing area.The terminal read the information of the chip, and then a "send" window popped up.Dahl reported a communication number from when he was in the Spaceship Academy and waited for a connection.He was pretty sure the one he called was up.Yulian ensures that all the spacecraft and space stations under it work and rest according to the standard interstellar time, otherwise the differences in time zones and day lengths will make everything impossible.But the Spaceship Academy is located in Boston, Dahl doesn't know how many time zones there are from here.
Someone answered the call, audio only. "Whoever you are, you're interrupting my morning run," she said.
Dahl smiled. "Good morning, Kathy," he said. "How is my favorite archivist?"
"My God! Andy!" Kathy said.Moments later, Kathy Zane appeared smiling on the screen, behind her.
"You're running along again," Dahl said.
"It's not easy to get lost running along the red bricks," Kathy said. "Where are you?"
"About 300 light-years away from you, every inch of land is communicating with you via hyperwave," Dahl said.
"Understood," Kathy said curtly, "what do you need?"
"The Spacefleet Academy Archives should have blueprints for all the ships in the fleet, right?" Dahl asked.
"Yes," Casey said, "of course, all the spacecraft that Yulian admits to serving."
"Is it possible that these drawings have been altered or tampered with?"
"From the outside network? No," Casey said. "The archives are not connected to the wide area computer network, in a way to prevent hacking. All data must be manually manipulated by the archivist. Yes It’s kind of job security for us.”
"Maybe," Dahl said, "may I trouble you to send me a copy of the Dreadnought's drawings?"
"I don't think it's a classified document, so it shouldn't be a problem," Casey said, "but I probably need to make some changes in the information base of the computer and armament system."
"No problem," Dahl said, "I'm not too interested in that anyway."
"So, you should be on board the Intrepid," Casey said, "and you should be able to get blueprints directly from the ship's database."
"Yes." Dahl said, "But some systems on the ship have been changed, so I think it will be more useful to compare with the original drawings."
"Okay," Kathy said, "I'll do it when I get back to the archives, at least in a few hours."
"No problem." Dahl said, "Also, please do me a favor and send it to this address instead of my work address in Yulian." He reported a string of alternate addresses, which were when he was still studying at the Spaceship Academy An anonymous account registered with a public service provider at the time.
"You know, I have to register a request for information," Casey said, "including the address of the recipient of the information."
"I'm not going to do this without Yulian's knowledge," Dahl said. "I promise it's not an act of espionage."
"It's not convincing to say that from someone who doesn't use his own communicator but uses an anonymous public terminal to connect with old friends," Casey said.
"I didn't make you treason," Dahl said, "I swear."
"Well," Casey said, "we're good friends, but my job duties don't include espionage."
"I owe you a big favor," Dahl said.
"Then buy me a meal the next time you're in town," Casey said. "The life of an archivist is eerily peaceful, and you know, I need a change."
"Honestly, at this point in time I'm seriously considering becoming an archivist," Dahl said.
"It's useless for you to please me." Casey said, "I will pass on what you need when I get to the office. Now you should go offline before your credit card is maxed out."
Dahl smiled: "Goodbye, Casey."
"Goodbye, Andy." After Kathy finished, the contact was broken.
When Dahl arrived at the suite he had reserved, he found that an unexpected guest had also arrived. "Andy, I think you already know Captain Kerensky," said Duvall in a meaningful tone.She and Hearst were being surrounded by Kerensky's arms.The two appeared to be supporting Kerensky. "Sir," Darl said. "Andy!" Kerensky greeted vaguely, then broke away from Duval and Hurst, staggered forward, and patted Andy on the shoulder with his hand without the glass, " We're on vacation! So don't care about rank. Now, to you, I'm Anatoly. Come on, say it again." "Anatole," Dahl repeated. "Look, it's not difficult at all, is it?" Kerensky said, throwing back his head and gulping down the wine. "I'm far from having enough," he said, staggering away.Dahl looked at Duval and Hester with a complicated expression. "We bumped into him when we entered the hotel, and he just followed him like a leech," Duval said. "A leech on alcohol," Hurst said. "He was dead drunk before we got there." "Boozy leech," Duvall added. "He put his arm around my shoulders so he could hit his chest. Whether he's a captain or something, I want to kick his ass." "The strategy now is to kill him until he's too tired to bother Duvall," Hurst said. "And then we dump him in the laundry chute." "Hell, he's here again." Duval yelled dissatisfied.Kerensky almost scrambled and crawled back to the side of the trio, and his traveling route was crooked.He paused to straighten himself up. "Give him to me," Dahl said. "You mean it?" Duvall said. "Of course, I'll take care of him until he becomes unresponsive," Dahl said. "Man, I owe you a blowjob," Duvall said. "What?" Darl didn't respond. "What?" Hearst was also unaware of the situation. "Ah sorry," Duvall explained, "in the Marine Corps, if someone did you a favor, you had to tell him you owed him sex. If it was a small favor, it was a flight , the middle one is oral sex, you have to sleep with someone after being helped a lot. It’s just a habitual way of expression.” "Understood," Darl said. "I've got to be clear so it doesn't really make you happy," Duvall said. "That's more normal." Dahl said, turning to Hearst, "What about you? Do you owe me a blowjob too?" "I'll think about it," Hurst said. "I seem to hear something, oral sex?" Kerensky staggered to his feet at this moment. "Oh, well, once," said Hurst decisively. "Excellent," Dahl said, "see you two later." Hurst and Duvall moved away immediately. "Where have they been?" Kerensky blinked slowly. "They're planning a birthday party," Dahl said, "why don't you sit down and rest, sir." Dahl pointed to a sofa in the room. "Anatole!" Kerensky said emphatically, "God, what I hate most is when people call people by military rank when they are on vacation." He sat down heavily on the sofa, and miraculously didn't spill a drop of wine. . "We're all brothers in service, right? Oh sure, and some are sisters." He looked around for Duvall. "I like your friend very much." "I know." Dahl said and sat down. "She saved my life, you know that," Kerensky said. "She's an angel. Do you think she likes me?" "No," Darl said. "Why?" Kerensky cried out in pain. "Does she like women, or something else?" "She's married to her job," Dahl said. "Oh, that's great, she's married." Kerensky obviously didn't hear Dahl's words clearly, and took another big gulp of his drink. "Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Dahl said. Kerensky made a no-brainer gesture with his free hand. "How did you recover so quickly?" Dahl asked. "What do you mean?" asked Kerensky. "Do you remember being infected with the Merovian plague?" "Of course," said Kerensky, "I nearly died." "I know," Dahl said, "but in a week you'll be leading a field team that includes me." "Yeah, I recovered, you see," Kerensky said, "and they found a cure that worked." "Yes," Dahl said, "I'm the one who gave Commander Kim the treatment plan." "Is that you?" Kerensky exclaimed at Dahl, and then hugged him tightly.Kerensky's wine spilled from the glass and trickled down Dahl's neck. "You saved my life too! This room is my savior. I love you all!" Kerensky cried. "You're welcome," Dahl said, pushing the sobbing captain away from him as gracefully as he could.He realized that everyone in the room was deliberately restraining themselves from watching the farce on the sofa too obviously. "I would like to say that even with the treatment that worked, you recovered surprisingly quickly. You were also badly injured during the field mission we were on together, but within a few days you were fine again .” "Oh, actually, you know, modern medical care is really good," Kerensky said, "and I've always had a strong ability to heal myself. It's a family tradition. It's said that one of my ancestors was at Stalin's Goller fought in the Great Patriotic War, probably took twenty Nazi rounds, and still marched toward enemy lines. That doesn't sound real, man. I guess I got the gene too." He looked down. empty glass, saying, "I've got to get some more." "Thinking of the frequent injuries you have suffered, it is really gratifying to have this kind of self-healing ability." Dahl said boldly. "Yeah!" Kerensky suddenly became emotional. "Thank you! No one else noticed! I mean, what the hell is this all about? I'm not an idiot or anything Something, but every time I go on a field mission I'm dying. Do you know how many times I've been through, like being shot or something?" "A total of three times in the last three years," Dahl said. "Yeah!" said Kerensky, "there's other shit besides that! You know what's going on. Damn Captain and Kim must have a voodoo doll that put a curse on me, or something like that stuff." He sat lost in thought, and then anyone could tell he was falling asleep. "Voodoo doll," Dahl woke up Kerensky, "you think so." "Uh, no, not literally," Kerensky said, "otherwise you'd be stupid, wouldn't you. It's just a feeling. It feels like any mission the Captain and King thinks is going to go wrong, they're going to Say, 'Hey, Kerensky, here's a field mission that's perfect for you.' Then I have to go out and come back gutted. Half the time I'm doing this. Stupid things you don't understand, don't you think so? I'm a navigator, man. I'm a damn good navigator, and I just want to... navigator, do you understand?" "Why don't you tell the captain and Kim what you think?" Dahl asked. Kerensky sneered, and tried to say with trembling lips: "What on earth can I say?" He said, shaking his hands awkwardly like a cat: "'Oh no, I can't do it, Captain, Commander Kim Officer. For a change, let others get their eyes poked!'" He stopped, was silent for a while, and then continued, "Actually, I don't know it myself. Every time I receive an order, I think it's quite reasonable. ,You know." "No, I don't know," Dahl said. "Every time the captain asks me to go on a field mission, somewhere in my brain always accepts it subconsciously." Kerensky said while trying to figure it out. "I've always been very confident and took it for granted that a navigator would take medical samples or fight killing machines or whatever. When I got back on the Intrepid I couldn't help but ask myself: 'What the hell am I doing?' It's all ridiculous, right?" "I don't know." Dahl repeated that sentence. Kerensky was in a daze for a while, then came back to himself. "Anyway, go to hell, huh," he pulled himself together, "I'm alive, on vacation, and with my saviours." He turned shamelessly at Dahl again. Shouting shamelessly, "I love you, man, I really love you. Let's go get another drink and find some girls to play with. I want a blowjob, do you want a blowjob too?" "No," Dahl said, "I've got two people waiting for me." "Oh, all right," Kerensky said, "very good," and snoring hard, his head buried in Dahl's shoulder. Dahl looked up and saw his four companions looking down at him. "You all owe me a blowjob," he said. "Let's have a drink then," Finn said. "Deal," Dahl said.He glanced over at Kerensky. "What are we going to do with Sleeping Beauty?" "There's a laundry chute right outside the door." Hearst said expectantly.
Notes:
When Dahl arrived at the suite he had reserved, he found that an unexpected guest had also arrived. "Andy, I think you already know Captain Kerensky," said Duvall in a meaningful tone.She and Hearst were being surrounded by Kerensky's arms.The two appeared to be supporting Kerensky. "Sir," Darl said. "Andy!" Kerensky greeted vaguely, then broke away from Duval and Hurst, staggered forward, and patted Andy on the shoulder with his hand without the glass, " We're on vacation! So don't care about rank. Now, to you, I'm Anatoly. Come on, say it again." "Anatole," Dahl repeated. "Look, it's not difficult at all, is it?" Kerensky said, throwing back his head and gulping down the wine. "I'm far from having enough," he said, staggering away.Dahl looked at Duval and Hester with a complicated expression. "We bumped into him when we entered the hotel, and he just followed him like a leech," Duval said. "A leech on alcohol," Hurst said. "He was dead drunk before we got there." "Boozy leech," Duvall added. "He put his arm around my shoulders so he could hit his chest. Whether he's a captain or something, I want to kick his ass." "The strategy now is to kill him until he's too tired to bother Duvall," Hurst said. "And then we dump him in the laundry chute." "Hell, he's here again." Duval yelled dissatisfied.Kerensky almost scrambled and crawled back to the side of the trio, and his traveling route was crooked.He paused to straighten himself up. "Give him to me," Dahl said. "You mean it?" Duvall said. "Of course, I'll take care of him until he becomes unresponsive," Dahl said. "Man, I owe you a blowjob," Duvall said. "What?" Darl didn't respond. "What?" Hearst was also unaware of the situation. "Ah sorry," Duvall explained, "in the Marine Corps, if someone did you a favor, you had to tell him you owed him sex. If it was a small favor, it was a flight , the middle one is oral sex, you have to sleep with someone after being helped a lot. It’s just a habitual way of expression.” "Understood," Darl said. "I've got to be clear so it doesn't really make you happy," Duvall said. "That's more normal." Dahl said, turning to Hearst, "What about you? Do you owe me a blowjob too?" "I'll think about it," Hurst said. "I seem to hear something, oral sex?" Kerensky staggered to his feet at this moment. "Oh, well, once," said Hurst decisively. "Excellent," Dahl said, "see you two later." Hurst and Duvall moved away immediately. "Where have they been?" Kerensky blinked slowly. "They're planning a birthday party," Dahl said, "why don't you sit down and rest, sir." Dahl pointed to a sofa in the room. "Anatole!" Kerensky said emphatically, "God, what I hate most is when people call people by military rank when they are on vacation." He sat down heavily on the sofa, and miraculously didn't spill a drop of wine. . "We're all brothers in service, right? Oh sure, and some are sisters." He looked around for Duvall. "I like your friend very much." "I know." Dahl said and sat down. "She saved my life, you know that," Kerensky said. "She's an angel. Do you think she likes me?" "No," Darl said. "Why?" Kerensky cried out in pain. "Does she like women, or something else?" "She's married to her job," Dahl said. "Oh, that's great, she's married." Kerensky obviously didn't hear Dahl's words clearly, and took another big gulp of his drink. "Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Dahl said. Kerensky made a no-brainer gesture with his free hand. "How did you recover so quickly?" Dahl asked. "What do you mean?" asked Kerensky. "Do you remember being infected with the Merovian plague?" "Of course," said Kerensky, "I nearly died." "I know," Dahl said, "but in a week you'll be leading a field team that includes me." "Yeah, I recovered, you see," Kerensky said, "and they found a cure that worked." "Yes," Dahl said, "I'm the one who gave Commander Kim the treatment plan." "Is that you?" Kerensky exclaimed at Dahl, and then hugged him tightly.Kerensky's wine spilled from the glass and trickled down Dahl's neck. "You saved my life too! This room is my savior. I love you all!" Kerensky cried. "You're welcome," Dahl said, pushing the sobbing captain away from him as gracefully as he could.He realized that everyone in the room was deliberately restraining themselves from watching the farce on the sofa too obviously. "I would like to say that even with the treatment that worked, you recovered surprisingly quickly. You were also badly injured during the field mission we were on together, but within a few days you were fine again .” "Oh, actually, you know, modern medical care is really good," Kerensky said, "and I've always had a strong ability to heal myself. It's a family tradition. It's said that one of my ancestors was at Stalin's Goller fought in the Great Patriotic War, probably took twenty Nazi rounds, and still marched toward enemy lines. That doesn't sound real, man. I guess I got the gene too." He looked down. empty glass, saying, "I've got to get some more." "Thinking of the frequent injuries you have suffered, it is really gratifying to have this kind of self-healing ability." Dahl said boldly. "Yeah!" Kerensky suddenly became emotional. "Thank you! No one else noticed! I mean, what the hell is this all about? I'm not an idiot or anything Something, but every time I go on a field mission I'm dying. Do you know how many times I've been through, like being shot or something?" "A total of three times in the last three years," Dahl said. "Yeah!" said Kerensky, "there's other shit besides that! You know what's going on. Damn Captain and Kim must have a voodoo doll that put a curse on me, or something like that stuff." He sat lost in thought, and then anyone could tell he was falling asleep. "Voodoo doll," Dahl woke up Kerensky, "you think so." "Uh, no, not literally," Kerensky said, "otherwise you'd be stupid, wouldn't you. It's just a feeling. It feels like any mission the Captain and King thinks is going to go wrong, they're going to Say, 'Hey, Kerensky, here's a field mission that's perfect for you.' Then I have to go out and come back gutted. Half the time I'm doing this. Stupid things you don't understand, don't you think so? I'm a navigator, man. I'm a damn good navigator, and I just want to... navigator, do you understand?" "Why don't you tell the captain and Kim what you think?" Dahl asked. Kerensky sneered, and tried to say with trembling lips: "What on earth can I say?" He said, shaking his hands awkwardly like a cat: "'Oh no, I can't do it, Captain, Commander Kim Officer. For a change, let others get their eyes poked!'" He stopped, was silent for a while, and then continued, "Actually, I don't know it myself. Every time I receive an order, I think it's quite reasonable. ,You know." "No, I don't know," Dahl said. "Every time the captain asks me to go on a field mission, somewhere in my brain always accepts it subconsciously." Kerensky said while trying to figure it out. "I've always been very confident and took it for granted that a navigator would take medical samples or fight killing machines or whatever. When I got back on the Intrepid I couldn't help but ask myself: 'What the hell am I doing?' It's all ridiculous, right?" "I don't know." Dahl repeated that sentence. Kerensky was in a daze for a while, then came back to himself. "Anyway, go to hell, huh," he pulled himself together, "I'm alive, on vacation, and with my saviours." He turned shamelessly at Dahl again. Shouting shamelessly, "I love you, man, I really love you. Let's go get another drink and find some girls to play with. I want a blowjob, do you want a blowjob too?" "No," Dahl said, "I've got two people waiting for me." "Oh, all right," Kerensky said, "very good," and snoring hard, his head buried in Dahl's shoulder. Dahl looked up and saw his four companions looking down at him. "You all owe me a blowjob," he said. "Let's have a drink then," Finn said. "Deal," Dahl said.He glanced over at Kerensky. "What are we going to do with Sleeping Beauty?" "There's a laundry chute right outside the door." Hearst said expectantly.
Notes: