She smiled that dazzling smile again, “That works for me. I could always use more friends. I’m not looking for a monogamous relationship right now, either. I just spent six tough years in school and I want to party a bit before I settle down.”
“Okay, Candy, I’d be honored to be your friend. Let’s get inside before this storm catches us out here.”
They rejoined the party. A large relish and canape spread had been set up on a buffet table in the den. Everyone was eating, drinking, and watching the approaching lightning storm. Candy took his glass to the bar to refill it. Kelly made a mental note to slow down his drinking. This local Vidal Blanc appeared to have higher alcohol content than he was used to. It wouldn’t do to get smashed at his admiral’s house.
Mrs. Craddock came over. “Are you enjoying yourself, Kelly?”
“Yes, ma’am, Candy was showing me your plantings. They are magnificent. I was impressed with them when I drove up. I asked who your gardener was. Candy told me you tended them. They really are remarkable.”
“I’ve always liked gardening. I’ve made sure we had a garden everywhere we’ve been assigned. I really like using the local plants. They are so much hardier and vibrant than plants brought in from Earth.”
Candy walked up and handed him his refilled wine glass.
Mrs. Craddock saw that and said, “I should warn you about the local wine. It's a good bit stronger than Earth wines.”
“Mom, I was trying to ply him with liquor and you spoiled it for me. Kelly here has agreed to be my friend. I hinted that he could be more than a friend, but he was a gentleman about it and pointed out that his patrol and deployment schedule might not allow for him to get more serious with me.”
Mrs. Craddock got a little goggle-eyed over her daughter’s last announcement, looked at Kelly, and said, “You’ll have to excuse my daughter, Kelly. We didn’t beat her enough when she was young.”
Candy and her Mom both broke out laughing at that.
Admiral Craddock walked over, “Now, what’s so funny over here?”
Mrs. Craddock spoke up. “It appears that Ensign Blake here and your daughter are friends.”
“Well, Candy is of age. Kelly comes from a good family. Why shouldn’t they be friends?”
Candy said, “Kelly is the first of your officers I’ve met that isn’t so afraid of you that they wouldn’t have anything to do with me. It is a refreshing change.”
Admiral Craddock put his arm round Kelly’s shoulder and told him, “Kelly, it is perfectly all right for you to see my daughter. Not that she would require my consent anyway. She is a bit willful. I don’t know where she gets it from.”
Kelly replied, “Thank you, sir. I consider it an honor to be her friend.”
Admiral Craddock, his wife, and Candy replied in unison, “As well you should.” All three broke into peels of laughter. Kelly noticed that Candy had an honest, throaty laugh. The admiral then said, “Now, let’s rejoin our other guests.”
Kelly trailed along behind, chuckling to himself.
The storm arrived with a fantastic display of pyrotechnics. At times the lightning strikes were so close that they were both blinding and deafening at the same time. One particularly close strike caused Candy to jump into his arms. He had to admit she felt awfully good against him. She was a little slow in disengaging, so he assumed he felt pretty good to her, too.
The storm blew on and the night progressed. About 2200, CMDR Okanma and his wife expressed their gratitude to their hosts, said farewell and left for their quarters. This started the exodus. The unofficial protocol for one of these receptions was to not be the last person to leave. This sometimes made for a bit of creative jockeying around the front door. Admiral Craddock asked Kelly to hold on for a bit, making him the last to depart.
Mrs. Craddock and Candy moved the party detritus into the kitchen. The admiral motioned for Kelly to follow him into his study and Kelly tagged along. He waved Kelly to a large wingback chair in front of the fireplace and walked out of the room. Kelly perused the decorations and awards on the walls. He also checked to make sure the chair wasn’t an antique. The admiral came back a few minutes later with the unfinished bottle of Vidal Blanc and a wineglass. He closed the door behind him, poured wine into his glass and offered the rest to Kelly. Kelly topped off his glass and waited.
“Don’t worry, I didn’t bring you in here to have a father-suitor chat. I want to talk to you about your parents. Do you know they are going to be here in a few weeks?”
“Yes, sir, I got a message from them just before I came here tonight. They said they were coming here for a few months to work on a project for Fleet. They didn’t say what it was.”
“Your folks have worked magic again. They've come up with a way to have almost instantaneous travel anywhere in GR space. We’re going to test it here.”
“Scientists and science fiction authors for centuries have predicted that almost instantaneous travel from point to point was possible. Your folks have figured out how to make it work. It's based loosely on their FTL communications technology, but transmits solid objects, not digital signals. The strategic value of such a system is enormous, but the impact on the Galactic Republic will be almost inconceivable. A series of these set up near the frontier and we no longer have to maintain multiple battle fleets at the far reaches of Republic space. They can be kept at fleet bases outside the reach of K’Rang forces, but almost instantly available in an emergency. Logistics and distance are no longer a limiting factor.”
Kelly was impressed. He had lost track of his parents’ work since he left for the academy. “How does it work, sir?”
“I don’t know the technical details, but the system will consist of a series of transporter gates, essentially giant rings. The production models will be enormous, large enough for two carriers to pass through at the same time. A ship enters at one gate, programs in its travel to another destination gate, and the ship comes out light years away in a matter of seconds. The only limiting factor is that there has to be a gate where you want to go. You can’t use this to go where there isn’t a gate. I'm very much looking forward to your parents' arrival.”
“I am too, sir. I haven’t seen them since my graduation from the Academy.”
Kelly drank his wine at the same pace as the Admiral. When they had both finished, he thanked him and bid farewell. Mrs. Craddock walked him to the door and handed him his hat. Candy walked him out to an awaiting shuttle.
Kelly thanked her for the guided tour and a very pleasant evening. As he climbed into the shuttle, she leaned in and gave him a kiss. She tasted pleasantly of strawberries.
“Don’t be a stranger. I want the opportunity to give those other two girls some competition.”
On that she closed his door, turned, and did a sultry walk back to the house. Kelly’s eyes followed her all the way inside. He punched in his destination and thought about Candy all the way back to the Q.
Chapter Five
The next morning Kelly had breakfast and caught a shuttle to the shipyard, where he identified every bump, antenna, and blister on the Vigilant. After an hour, he felt he had a good handle on all the external sensors. He then went inside and traced every weapon circuit on the ship. This took another hour. The next hour was spent tracing the flight control circuits. By the time his stomach would no longer let him ignore it, he had worked through all primary and secondary flight control circuits. He would have to wait on all the other systems until the refit was complete.
Kelly found a shuttle in the nearest lot and asked it to take him to the Officer’s Club. After a few short minutes the shuttle pulled up in front of the club. He avoided the front door. His coveralls wouldn’t be appreciated. He walked around to the snack bar in back. Feeling a little nostalgic, he ordered a burger and fries. He had a beer while waiting for his lunch to arrive. LT Bell from the Vehement came over.