Rocket Fox: Part Eighteen
Senia went through a check of her gear one last time, making sure she had everything before grabbing a small ruck sack and heading out the door of her room. In the hallway, just like when she was at the academy, Hardy and Clarfax were waiting. Mine you, it two people less than usual. Back in the academy Jadda and Philburt would have been part of this ritual. Still, Senia smiled with the knowledge that even though the ritual had changed somewhat, there was still a ritual to be had.
“Gear’s all ready?” Hardy asked with a grin.
“Thix yearth at the academy,” Senia replied with a chuckle. “And you alwayth athk the thame quethtion jutht before a mission.”
“Better ta make sure ta keep somethings constant, hmm,” she replied with a smile. The three began walking down the long hallway toward the shuttle bay. As they walked, they reviewed their mission status. Transport to Critainia, meet with the head delegate of the City of Knowledge, inquire about the full reason why Main Authority agents are being asked to assist, investigate. Simple enough, though Senia felt there would be a greater need for diplomacy than anything else. And judging from the display of the other agents, outside of Spike and Shauna and maybe a couple of the other Vulpine, the rest of the agents didn’t look like they were all that diplomatic.
“How crowded do you think the merchant lanes will be?” Clarfax inquired as they entered the shuttle bay.
“Shouldn’t be too bad,” Senia replied as she took out a data pad. “I managed to get a traffic manifest from the traffic control here. We should only be meeting the Lionid’s Pride along the way. In the event that we need to dock in their shuttle bay, I took the liberty of having a few goods packed into our cargo hold.”
“As big as our cargo hold is, mind you,” Hardy added, shaking her head. “Bigger then the Mavericks, but she’s still not a deep space vessel, that’s for sure.”
“Does that really matter?” Clarfax said with a chuckle. “I think you still would fall in love with her either way.”
“I know a beauty when I see one,” Hardy said with a grin. As she turned to look over at the Nighthawk, she spied a pair of agents on the tarmac. “Hey! Look who it is. Spike an’ Shauna.” She waved to the pair and called out. “Here ta send us off?”
“More like watch,” Shauna said with a laugh. “We get a good number o’ ships that come an’ go here, but nothin’ like her. That Nighthawk o’ yours is a beauty, that’s for sure.”
“We’re thtill waiting to thee her in action,” Senia said as she and her two friends joined up with Spike and Shauna. “Not that we want to get in a fire fight, but we need to make sure we’ve thtill got our training up to par.”
“True fighter pilots ta the core,” Spike replied with a wink. “B’fore ya head out, me an’ Shauna have a few tips for ya.”
“Aye,” Shauna added with a nod. “Now it’s gonna be hot an’ humid, considerin’ Critainia is so close ta the sun, so it might get a bit uncomfortable. However, the library is up in the northern most location o’ the planet. Cooler, ta help the computer systems run proper an’ make sure that the books remain in good condition.”
“An’ if they ever ask if ye wish fer a mud bath, just politely decline,” Spike added. “Critainians love mud baths. I’m sure I don’t haveta explain why it’s not so good for anyone the likes o’ us, hmmm?” The three pilots nodded with each explanation and custom that came up. It seemed the Critainians had a few. “Now, one place that ye should never go ta, that’s the great hatchery. Critainia might have some beautiful places ta see, but many o’ ‘em are regions steeped in thousands o’ years o’ tradition. The hatchery is one o’ ‘em.”
“I’ve heard of the hatchery,” Senia said with a nod. “It’th the thentral birthing area for the Critainians. New motherth go to one location to lay eggth, and they remain there until they hatch.”
“That’s right,” Shauna said with a nod. “And completely off limits ta anyone who don’t have clearance or don’t happen ta be Critainian. Steer clear o’ there an’ you should be alright. There is one place we do suggest that ya check out, though. An’ it’s not far from the library. The Grand Tea House. Critainians love their tea even more then anyone born on Vulpinia. An’ they the best rose petal tea you’ll ever find.”
“We’ll definitely keep that in mind,” Senia said with a nod. “For now, we betht get moving. We’ve a long journey ahead of uth.” She offered the pair a salute, followed by Hardy and Clarfax, and the two veterans saluted back and bowed just slightly.
Spike began to move to the shuttle bay exit, but stopped and looked to Shauna. “Yer not actually gonna watch her take off, are ya?” Shauna looked back and nodded with a grin. “Ye’ve seen a thousand vessels at least come an’ go from this motherless rock, what difference is this ship ta any o’ the others.”
“She’s a fine ship,” Shauna replied. “Finer ‘n any that’ve come before. Makes you think that you an’ me should put in for a model like her.”
“She takes three pilots,” Spike reminded her. “Who’s gonna be the third?”
“Oh, ya never know,” Shauna said with a sigh, then began to chuckle. “Maybe Range Runner could be the third ta even it out.” The pair looked to each other a moment, then began laughing as they steered themselves toward the shuttle bay exit.
On board the Nighthawk, the three pilots were settling themselves in. Senia knew it was going to be a long trip. At least three days at full impulse, and while she would like to engage the hyper drive, she didn’t want to push the Nighthawk’s engines. They’d have to deal with things as they could. “Engineth powered up,” Senia called out after she buckled herself into her seat.
“Running good,” Hardy replied. “We have stable power distribution.”
“Internal atmosphere enabled,” Clarfax called out. “Sensors are online and ready.”
“Beginning launch,” Senia said as she flipped a few switches then tapped her communications system. “Left-tenant Felix to traffic control, we are ready for launch.”
“We read you loud and clear, Left-tenant,” a voice said over the comm. “You are clear for launch. The sky ways aren’t too bad this time of day, so you’ll have a good ride out of Pau Theta II orbit.”
“Underthtood, traffic control,” Senia replied. “Hardy, open thruthterth on my mark and head for coordinates 165.8.” She waited for a few minutes as the Nighthawk cleared the entrance to the shuttle bay, imagining all the eyes that could see the bay were watching as the Nighthawk began her second flight. The thought made her smile. “Engage, Hardy,” she called out.
“Coordinates 165.8 set and locked,” Hardy replied. “We’re on our way.”
