The battle lasted a few hours with us leaving the squadrons behind as we chased the last few enemy ships that managed to wriggle away from them. With our speed and firing range, they couldn’t wriggle loose from us. Then I did something unusual.
I said, “Heather, go ahead and tell the enemy where we’re going. I want to scare the piss out of him! Set course for Bragh.”
“With pleasure,” she said with a smile. Then she started telling everyone that we were going to the Ape-oids home planet to bombard the hell out of it.
We got recalled before we reached it.
Chapter 26
That time when the war ended, it wasn’t a truce. It was a surrender as the Apeoids suffered losses greater than before. They couldn’t afford to rebuild all their industry again so they surrendered before the Rust Bucket could rain destruction upon them again as they realized that their sudden surprise attack had failed. They hadn’t counted on us making a weapon so superior to what they thought was a giant step in technology. They also didn’t have a history of warfare that was as varied as ours. They were stunned at first when our squadrons and fleets met the challenge of superior weapons with superior tactics that kept the playing field nearly level.
Although the Ape-oids surrendered, there were a few die-hards who continued to attack until they were destroyed or became pirates. On Beulah, the Ape-oid soldiers didn’t believe their own leaders’ messages to surrender. They valiantly fought to the last Ape-oid soldier.
Annie and the children were safe in their cavern. They were on hand to greet me when I arrived back at the Pennyweight Shipping Company, even though the last of the Ape-oid soldiers were still being hunted down. The cadets had trained hard and well at the Academy. The first half of the war did us a favor by cleaning the Academy of almost all of the rich kids, leaving a lot of openings for dedicated young men and women who wanted a career in the military. The time in between that constituted the truce was enough time to get the Academy on a full footing once more, despite the politicians. Consequently, the Ape-oids ran into a meat grinder when they tackled the cadets.
I was faced with a slight predicament when I got home. I finally had a regular commission in the Navy and could stay if I so chose to. Not only that, but I was just a step below Admiral. However, I discovered that if I chose to stay in, the Navy was going to make me Commandant of the Academy.
With the war’s end, Captain Clark became Sergeant Clark at the Academy once more, to my bewilderment. Regardless, I sought out his advice on what kind of a decision I should make once I found out that the military intended on making me Commandant of the Academy if I stayed in the Navy. I had pictured myself more as being in charge of a squadron in space, not behind a desk or in front of a class. It was either become Commandant or remain with Pennyweight whose secret was still hidden from me.
Sarge said, “Dave, it’s good to see you or should I call you sir as my boss?”
I replied, “Don’t get funny, Sergeant or Captain Clark. You’re quite a chameleon. I came to ask for your advice as a friend, so it’s Dave.”
He said, “Fine, then call me George. I’m getting tired of trying to know what we should call each other, too.”
I replied, “Suits me, George. Since you already know what the Navy is offering me, you know what my two obvious choices are. I get to either come back to the Academy and sit behind a desk or return to Pennyweight. At least, I’ll see more action than the Navy, as you once put it so grandly to me. Can you give me your insight into this?”
He said, “Dave, I don’t know now what’s best for you. I never did before. I merely showed you a route to get what you wanted when the main road was blocked. You finally achieved your initial goal. You achieved a lot more in getting to it. You might have wound up here at the Academy anyway as its commandant had you graduated and stayed with the Navy. Then you wouldn’t know of any other career choice and I guess there wouldn’t be a need to make a decision. Anything I say isn’t going to make a difference either way. The real question is what will make you happy the most? That’s something only you can decide. Then you’ll live with your decision.”
Chapter 27
I said, “I’m advising you that if you’re really serious about getting your commission, then keep on trying. I’m sorry that you have to leave the Academy. So, even if you won’t be able to return, you still have options available that are alternate routes to your goal.”
The cadet asked, “Admiral, did you ever find out the mystery behind the Pennyweight Shipping Company?”
I replied, “Son, there are more mysteries in life than the ones we create. Just keep your mind active and you’ll see that there are plenty of them for everyone.”
Addendum:
Universal Rights Bill of the Union of Planets
1. All individuals have equal rights under the law.
2. All individuals have the right to regulate their own bodies according to their own wishes and beliefs.
- parents of minor children will be presumed to have the right to guide their children in such functions until substantial proof is furnished showing inability or unwillingness on the parents’ behalf.
3. All individuals have the right to pursue a lifestyle of their own choosing in private and public so long as it does not:
- cause physical harm to another individual, business, or government.
- cause outstanding physical harm to the environment, unless the individual erases such harm to the environment afterwards through restoration.
- prevent the ordinary conduct of other individuals, business, and government.
- government may not support nor restrict any particular lifestyle so long as it does not violate the rights of others.
4. All individuals have the right to worship or not as they choose:
- the government at all levels may not support nor restrict any religion so long as the religion does not violate the rights of individuals.
- businesses may not support, be associated with, nor restrict any religion.
- religions may not support nor operate any businesses in competition with ordinary business nor interfere with the conduct of ordinary legal business or the rights of individual citizens.
5. All individuals have the right to move about freely without restriction except in such cases where the government is acting to protect vital interests by establishing a defense base or other facility where security is required in order to protect the government and its people.
6. All individuals have the right to communicate with other individuals.
7. All individuals have the right to associate with whomever they choose in whatever numbers they may choose so long as they are peaceful.
8. All individuals have the right to own and carry personal weapons in any manner as well as use them for defense.
9. All individuals have the right to freely elect any and all public officials who represent them:
- elections cannot be postponed nor cancelled by action of the individuals elected into public office.
- election districts cannot be designed to keep any political group in or out of power and shall be as compact in design as is possible taking topography into account.
10. All individuals have the right to address their concerns to the government.
11. All individuals have the right to know all charges being placed against them at the time of arrest for all criminal cases.