Orion-42 102

“Attention on deck!” The young man shouted and then taking his own order snapped to attention. A mechanic was kneeling at the threshold, the top part of his uniform coveralls wrapped around his waist and an open tool box at his side. He casually dropped the tool in his hand in to the box, gave a withering glance at the young officer and stood pulling his coveralls back up as he turned to face the commander, “Sorry sir, they pulled me out of my bunk to get this hatch open.”

Catching the insignia as the mechanic slid his left arm into the sleeve of his coveralls, Madison stepped across the threshold, “At ease lieutenant,” eyeing the young officer, “Commander Gilbert?”

The Commander nodded.

Madison pulled a plastic memory stick out of his pocket and handed it to the commander, “Pursuant to Colonial Authority Order 314 I’m taking command of Jump Station Orion-42 on this the 35th of Tereshkova, one-hundred and ten. I’m also to inform you that you’ll be staying on as my XO, your orders are on the memory stick.” Pausing he glanced back as the lieutenant finished getting his uniform in order, “lieutenant walk with me a bit.” Turning back to Gilbert, “I want senior staff in my office, 20 minutes.”

Commander Gilbert stood, mouth agape, and watched Madison walk down the corridor the lieutenant following in his wake. He remained motionless for several moments after the two men disappeared around the corner. He had read Commander Madison’s dossier, but his abrupt manner had not been expected. His thoughts were interrupted by a woman coming through the airlock.

She came to attention as she stepped in front of Gilbert, dropping a heavy duffle at her side she presented her orders. “Lieutenant Commander Brinks reporting as ordered.”

Gilbert plugged her memory stick into his PDA and reviewed the information. “Amanda Brinks, Operations Specialist, you’ll be helping me keep this station running, once we get it running. This is your first billet on a jump station?”

“Yes sir.”

“You spent the last 15 months on the Columbia ring, that’s a research station out in the void?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good you’ll be an asset in getting this station operational. Grab your gear, I’ll show you to your quarters.”

“Yes sir.”

Orion-42 101:Begining

The silvery little space craft made a slow orbit around the Jump Station Orion-42. The ship’s pilot maintained a 20 meter altitude as he studied the outer surface of the ring, occasionally closing the distance to examine a docking port or airlock.

On his second of three circuits his radio chirped, “Commander, the Cruiser Galileo just jumped into L-2 with the last of the shake-down crew and the Specialists to align our station. They expect to arrive this afternoon, and will make preparations to begin testing tomorrow at 800 hours.”

Commander Madison keyed his mic, “Grand. Forward my regards to the Galileo and let the Captain know that he, his senior staff, and the specialists are invited to dinner.” Madison swore quietly after terminating his transmission. Not that the idea of a formal dinner was particularly off putting, he just didn’t care much for the formality. Invariably the captain would be boisterous and full of himself, captains usually were. They were so used to being in complete control that being correct became a way of life and anyone who disagreed with you was wither an idiot or an asshole, generally depending on their rank.

What Madison looked forward to was completing his survey of the station, and returning to his office to finish the day’s paperwork before heading off to his quarters for a few hours of relaxation. He had been running since his arrival yesterday and aside from a few hours sleep had not sat down till he strapped himself into the light fighter he was currently sitting in.

His last assignment had been in a system that was a couple hundred light years from Earth in a system where the Colonial Government had taken over every habitable acre of land, and a few that weren’t. He was second in command at one of the six Jump Stations in the system, it also happened to be the oldest ring, prone to mechanical problems the immense station had taken all of his resources to maintain. As it was one of the earliest rings to be constructed it was also one of the largest, at three kilometers in diameter it dwarfed O-42. He was grateful to have handed command of the station over to the decommissioning team that would dismantle the station and build a new one in its place. As soon as the ceremony was over he caught a transport to his current assignment and took command minutes after he arrived.

****

Standing at the airlock portal Commander Madison watched through the window as the transport slowly closed the distance between itself and the Jump Station. There was a slight bump as the two made contact and a hiss as the docking clamps locked the ship to the ring. Madison immediately reached over to the panel next to the airlock an pressurized the space between. When the red indicators switched to green he jabbed the control that opened the door. As the hatch slid open, a young face appeared in the portal of the stations hatch. The young man’s eyes widened as he caught site of Madison’s rank insignia, and his head disappeared from view. The commander heard some muffled shouting from the other side of the closed hatch. He crossed his arms and adjusted his expression to take on the appearance of a man not happy to be kept waiting. A full minute passed before the young man’s face reappeared in the portal, he smiled than shrugged apologetically. His face disappeared and there was more shouting. After another minute there was a noticeable commotion on the other side of the portal and someone’s back was pressed up against the transparent aluminum. The back disappeared and the hatch hissed open…