Salvage a Better Life

Wiggly Sprocket frantically danced on her hooves in some vain effort to keep moving. Every time she looked at the clock, the irate face of Flurry Heart sped her onward in a frantic pace, and yet she was hit by a profoundly irritating roadblock. There was a personnel portal for high level use, and right now, the stubborn receptionist was stonewalling her. “Come on, I’m on official high queen business, let me through!”

The earth mare in front of her looked down her nose at the obvious troublemaker. “You? Please.”

“Come on, I missed the shuttle, and was told this place could get me up there on time.”

The receptionist mentally flicked through her itinerary and for any last minute updates, just to cover her tail, and once more found no one off the list of authorized personnel set to use it all day. “I’m sure they did, but neglected to tell you this is for naval personnel only, captain or above.”

“Well isn’t that lovely,” Wiggly replied with a smirk. “Because I’m an auxiliary captain.”

“Auxiliary she says,” the receptionist scoffed, and rolled her eyes. “Where’s your ident, then? Pegacorns can still have idents right?”

Her ears flattened, and Wiggly grumbled a reply. “Well, yeah. But I wasn’t given one. My ship is docked up there, look it up. It’s the Akira.”

“If you have no ident, how can I prove you are who you say you are?” The receptionist would have called for security by now, but she was bored, and until this impudent pegacorn became a threat, the marines would remain uncalled.

“My face, for starters. Can’t you check that way? Or what about my id number? It’s 1337ba3.”

“First off, surgery exists, so you could have been altered, and second, your id number is missing two digits.”

“What? No it’s not, I made sure to memorize it.” Wiggly’s eyes widened. “Wait, did you add numbers to id’s in the last few years?” All the receptionist did was grin in reply. “Well whatever, my ship arrived yesterday, check the logs. No one would even have time to surgery up my face, let alone my tribe.”

“I don’t have access to flight or docking logs from here.”

“Aarrgg! Oh come on!” Wiggly stamped her hoof as the seconds ticked by. “You know what? I’m gunna call her!”

Arching a supremely amused eyebrow, the receptionist looked Wiggly over. Aside from her wing gloves, the mare was wearing some clean orange-yellow coveralls. When Wiggly did not pull out an earpiece or anything else, the receptionist leaned forward. “Forget your phone?”

Sprocket flared her wings and started wiggling them here and there. “Pah, I am the phone. Now sush.”

The doors sliding open pulled the receptionist’s attention, and revealed Commandant Coiled Strike, and Captain Howling Tempest. The commandant had pestered him enough to share some exploits of the Rainbow Dash, a topic Tempest was reluctant to indulge in, so when he saw Wiggly standing there with her arcing wings flared, he came to a stop. “Ah Miss Sprocket, what brings you here?”

The mare was still trying to sniff out a way to make a call, let alone connect to any sort of queen hotline. She snapped out of her semi-trance like a popped bubble. “Huh?” She looked at the two stallions for a moment. “Oh!” She went red in the face and clapped her wings tight against her orange-yellow clothes. “Sorry, um. I needed to use the portal there to make it to an appointment with Flurry Heart, and this - this nag won’t let me through.”

The receptionist had had enough. “Alright. If you keep this up, I’m calling security.”

“Why have you not let her through?” Coiled Strike demanded with a silent promise of a reprimand.

The harsh tone stunned the receptionist. “But sir, she doesn’t have an ident.”

“You know it is not standard procedure to give auxiliary personnel idents. You should have called my office to verify.” Coiled Strike leveled a heated glare at the receptionist. “She has an appointment with Flurry Heart. I would hate to point a hoof at you if Sprocket arrived late.”

“I’ll have her added to the system immediately, sir!”

Caught between gratitude and the need to leave, all Wiggly could think to do was salute the stallion. “Thank you sir, um Captain Tempest,” she nodded at him in acknowledgment. Coiled Strike smiled and returned the salute, and as soon as he did, she bolted for the portal.

Giving the receptionist one last hard look, Coiled Strike led Tempest away. “My apologies for such a poor showing. It seems my staff have forgotten the policies regarding auxiliaries in their absence.”

Tempest’s thoughts dwelled on the brave, if barely trained, auxiliaries Lilian had been forced to field. Their casualty rates had been as disturbing to him back then as it was now. “Of all the problems to have, I would rather have that, as opposed to needing to call up auxiliaries in the first place.” When Strike gave his muted agreement, Tempest forced a bit of excitement. “Come on then, let’s get that drink I wanted. My flight leaves tomorrow, and I want to taste Victoria before I go.”

Thaddeus met up with Felin on a landing pad for the central spite of the moon base. They were set to meet with the commodore within the hour, and he was having to hold his nerve. His body ached, and it wasn’t just his age anymore.

Felin departed the shuttle carrying a heavy brown suitcase. Upon reaching him, she grunted with the case’s weight. “It is done sir, I brought four ‘volunteers’ for the test.”

Thaddeus claimed the case to ease her burden. “And this is the PX7?” She nodded. “Excellent.” He wanted to say more, but didn’t trust the noisy shuttle to drown them out from any surveillance. “Today will be a fine day. Get them ready while I inform our host.”

As Felin walked past him, he saw freshly drawn runes on her wings; something easily missed with them folded against her back.

Wiggly burst into the drafting room of the naval station completely out of breath. “I’m not late!”

Flurry Heart was currently surrounded by floating coffee cups, and had Morales’ hologram in front of her. “Just a moment, good sir.” Flurry checked the clock. By one second. “So glad you could make it. I almost thought you had gotten lost.”

“No, just traffic issues, your highness.” Wiggly glanced at Morales who bowed to her in silence.

“Ah.” Flurry sent her cups flying over to a refrigerator. “No matter, come, come.” She looked towards Morales, and dipped her head. “You’ve been a great help, please, eat anywhere you like for the rest of your stay, my treat.”

“You are too kind, your highness.” Morales bowed once more to Flurry Heart before looking to his friend. “Miss Wiggly, my apologies for missing you this morning.”

By now, Wiggly had stepped up to a polite distance to the queen. “I nearly lost my face melting under those masseuses, don’t worry about it. Have fun out there.”

“Such a world has a million and one delights, it is still a bit overwhelming to have my cup runneth over. I’ll see you soon.”

After he ended the call, Sprocket looked around to take the area all in. The drafting deck was bereft of anything to make room for all mounted holographic projectors. She saw a drone vessel being depicted above Flurry Heart with multiple systems being shown separately. The power network, maintenance corridors, coolant system, control wiring, all of it was pulled into their own different holograms for the queen’s purview.

Wiggly bowed upon reaching Flurry Heart, only for the alicorn to huff and wave the gesture away. “Oh don’t bow. We’re not in public now are we?”

Pulling herself back up, Wiggly was left utterly baffled and stammered a reply. “B-b yyyour highness, tha-uh…”

“You are the one who returned my son,” she retorted with firm conviction. “And did so with no thought of reward. As far as I’m concerned, I would be glad to call you a friend.”

“F-friend? You?! I… wow.” Sprocket was completely at a loss. She rubbed the back of her neck to buy time to process the very idea of it.

For Flurry’s part, the proclamation was heartfelt, but a small part of her was guilty in using it to remain on familiar terms with Twilight’s new life. She was practically a second mother. It doesn’t feel right having Twilight bow and scrape to me, no matter if she remembers none of it in her new life. She gave Wiggly some time to come back to her senses before clearing her throat. “Wiggly?”

Sprocket squeaked and jumped a bit at her name. “Oh right, the work. Sorry.” She flew over to stand next to Flurry Heart. “How do you want to do this?”

“Well my friend, we always start with the mission package.” With a few piles of magic, Flurry cycled through the displayed systems like a wheel. “An entangled comms unit with several spares. So the vessel is little more than an extended long range survey drone. This’ll allow us to control the drone the whole way there. I would like for you to build the FTL system to the dimensions of the hull.”

The request served two purposes for Flurry Heart. The first was to see what Wiggly’s education in the field was, self-taught or otherwise, and as a treat to watch her old foalsitter work if the first proved true.

Wiggly floated up to orbit the scaled down hull before eyeing the other systems. She studied every nut and bolt as if she was rebuilding the Cloud Jumper. “How do I control the holograms?”

Flurry Heart waved a wing in front of herself and a custom holographic keyboard materialized. “Like so. It can offer resistance if you prefer.”

Wiggly landed and looked at the keyboard with a critical eye. “So that’s my opening.” She flared her wings and concentrated.

Left rather curious, Flurry Heart held back the obvious question for a bit. She watched as Sprocket’s wing-fingers wiggled every so often and lightning danced as if it was alive. To Flurry’s bemusement, the keyboard vanished, and Wiggly looked up to an empty space above her. Without any perceivable input, a holographic tube much like the one on the Akira’s bridge appeared. “We’ll have to start with the point where Morales will charge the system. Now, since he won’t be staying, we can place it on or outside the hull as a detachable piece. Wiggly brought down the hull to place the tube in the middle of the drone’s dorsal side. “From here, we need to add sensors so he can remotely push the thing into hyperspace. It’s not efficient, but it’s faster than having the drone fly over to a natural entry point. Also need to thread the ship as evenly as possible with one inch pipes…”

Wiggly went on explaining every detail down to the last millimeter. Flurry Heart offered a word or two to keep the pegacorn going, and didn’t bother raising her question of control over the holograms. For Flurry, watching Wiggly fall into a rhythm was like a balm upon her heart. Tiny things like the way Sprocket pronounced words, the way she let off a little giggle when talking shop, there was even an underlying similarity in ship design, but what held Flurry in an emotional vice was the sheer love Sprocket displayed for the art.

This project had simply been a convenient excuse to put Wiggly in front of a ‘drafting table’ of sorts. It wasn’t long before the pegacorn was offering constructive criticism in carefully placed flaws Flurry had left in the design. The FTL system had long since been implemented barely half an hour in. The pair had moved on to creating a new ship from the keel up. This is what I missed most. We made so many designs together. Many won construction contracts too. Even with all her centuries, Flurry Heart was finding it increasingly difficult to hold back her joyful tears.

She so dearly wished to hug Wiggly tightly and never let go. But she had made mistakes with Twilight’s second life. Ones she was hellbent on avoiding. Take it slow, Flurry. We have time to be a family again.

“Wiggly?” Flurry Heart asked to break the mare out of her rambling about thrust to weight ratios. When the mare stopped to listen, Flurry pressed a burning question. “What do you plan to do next?”

“Next?” Wiggly parroted as her train of thoughts had to switch tracks. “I’m going back to Lilian for one. I need a mass nullifier so they can rebuild our portal station. After that…” One thought hammered Wiggly rather quickly. “I want to help get rid of those damned pirates that killed my family and nearly my home station.”

Righteous anger, now that was something Flurry Heart tried to temper among her fellow alicorns. But that was only because of how far reaching their power and authority went. Here though, it was something Flurry could get behind. “A just cause.” Flurry hummed aloud as she idly looked over the completed design. “And what about after that?”

Letting off a whistling breath, Sprocket dug back beyond the call for justice. “If… if I really had to pin it down on one thing… I want to remake the Akira into a mobile repair shop. Going system to system fixing ships or drafting new ones from scratch. Maybe even camp out at one system for a while to get a drafting contract. I know Live Wire will want to attach a restaurant to it so customers have a place to eat for quick fixes and the like.”

“Drafting new ships…” Flurry Heart looked over the gravity system Wiggly had designed. It had some rough edges, and Flurry wasn’t sure if such saturation of the hull was necessary, but the raw talent was still there. “I would love to see what work you produce. But let us focus on today’s matters. I’ll be joining you on your return to Lilian.”

“W-what? But your highness, it’s too dangerous! Even if the Akira and the Rainbow Dash together could beat them, there’s still the Waylan. If they show up, it could be in force.”

“All the more reason to do the same, and quickly.” Flurry grinned with righteous fervor. “Morales informed me that the gravitor and the system built for him is just for convenience, and that it is possible to enter hyperspace without it. I have already put a call out for my mother to redirect five drone carriers for this purpose. They should rendezvous with the Akira when you arrive. From there, your ship should be able to guide the task force to the nearest natural entry point. If Morales was accurate, and if we leave by noon tomorrow, we’ll be in Lilian before next week.”

Wiggly was paralyzed by excitement, and she needed a few moments to shake it off. “That would be amazing! Last I heard, the pirates didn’t have anything larger than a destroyer, and only one or two of them. Drones would be perfect against them while the Akira delivers the knockout kick!”

“I thought as much.” Flurry saved the designs, and wiped the holograms clean. “I will also be requisitioning a few bulk freighters worth of supplies, and a portal construction flotilla. If Lilian is in even half as bad of a shape as Captain Tempest claims, you’ll need all of it.” Flurry was glad to see the euphoria from Wiggly was on full display. “But as for me, I will join you on the Akira. Lilian needs to know they have not been abandoned. A little danger is of small concern for my personal safety.”

Quickly becoming more reserved, Sprocket tried to politely express her concern. “W-with respect, your highness, are you sure that’s for the best? Why not arrive on one of the carriers or the portal fleet? That would still give you a grand arrival without undue risk.”

For a few moments, Flurry Heart debated on if she should divulge an open secret to the uninformed mare. Yet her affection for the mortal won out. “I understand we keep this sort of thing suppressed, but I’ve died before.” She could only give a partially amused half-smile at the shock on Wiggly’s face. “If you recall from the tale of Terra, Celestia and Luna returned to life without being scrubbed clean. Apparently, Terra has taken a liking to us alicorns because the same gift was granted to me as well.”

Having no real reason to doubt the high queen, Wiggly was left in awe. “That’s - I don’t even know… Um, did it hurt?”

Laughter peeled away from the elder mare. “Oh very much so. I’ll spare you the details, except that my mother was rather cross with me when I returned. Now, I have orders to give, and a nature walk I’m probably late for. I would prefer to leave for Lilian no later than the first thing in the morning, but as I said, noon will likely be our shove-off time.”

“Yes, your highness-” A firm glower from Flurry made Wiggly swallow the lump in her throat. “I mean, F-Flurry Heart. I - I did have a requisition list I wanted to bring back with us. Including some crew.”

“Give it to the quartermaster, and I’ll make sure he’ll have it delivered by this evening. I’m sure I can drum up enough volunteers to recrew your vessel with some generous sign-on bonuses.” Flurry Heart started to leave, but stopped short. “I look forward to visiting your fix-n-dine one day.”

The vacation was as sweet as it was short. Yet Wiggly couldn’t find herself lamenting it much. She felt the need to keep busy, to get her hooves dirty, and no spa in the galaxy could offer her the satisfaction of working on her ship and home. “I’ll have the others ready to go by then. If I know Winter, I suspect she’ll use any excuse to leave that nature walk early.”

A light giggle escaped the ancient mare. “I suspect you’re right.” Lingering for just a bit to truly look at Wiggly, Flurry Heart had so much she wanted to say, so much she needed to tell her long-time friend. But she had to turn away and leave Wiggly alone.

As Flurry departed and thought up and sent off a series of orders, she ached to have her aunt back. To be able to rest her head on Twilight’s withers and talk about her petty troubles like a filly again. It was a service no one else could fulfill; not to Flurry Heart.

By the time Flurry Heart had passed through the portal and was on a personal shuttle to the forest, her orders were given and the wheels of the Initiative were moving. But a question almost as old as her filled her with doubts. Her fellow alicorns had various answers, but Flurry wanted a new one. So she keyed up a call for Mote.

The android answered after the first ring with surprised friendliness. “Query. High Queen! What can I do for you?”

“My apologies if I’ve interrupted something. I am not calling you on any official business.” Flurry saw the mechanical cathrex was sitting down, but that was all she could see.

“Dismissal. Nonsense, your highness. I am at your service, no matter the issue.”

Returning the polite smile, Flurry Heart made a show of blushing. “I thank you. Now, this is rude for us, but I feel I must ask; how old are you?”

The cathrex tilted her head at the odd question, then became a bit withdrawn. “Statement. I was born the day after the Fall. I’m afraid if you wish to know how the Combine’s splendor once was I am a poor choice. I can only offer you shadows and ruin.”

Born? Flurry decided not to pursue her choice of words. “I see. Thank you for the answer. May I inquire as to how long your xenotype typically live?”

For a few seconds, Mote was unsure of how to properly respond. Then it clicked as to the queen’s real question. “Assumption. You wish to know how my type make friends even as we outlive generation after generation, yes?” Flurry Heart’s pained expression was all Mote needed to see.

“Regret. I’m afraid I can’t help you as much as I would like to. When we were molded to reflect organic life, we truly went as far as we could go without becoming flesh and blood. We too suffer the effects of age. Unlike a normal machine, it is not so simple as to replace a gear or change fluids. My brain, as it were,“ she laid a hand over the tablet slotted in the middle of her chest, “can only be repaired, not transplanted.

“Resignation. If you were cathrex, you would know I am nearing my twilight.” A serene sorrow fell over the android’s features. “Explanation. My manner of speech, where I preface my intent, is a sign of the early stages of xellion. A condition I was afflicted with while we were marooned. It will claim me if a violent end fails to do so.”

Flurry gasped and covered her mouth. “I’m terribly sorry. Had I known…”

Shaking her head, Mote’s gaze went distant as she took in the sights around her. “Placation. There is nothing to forgive. How could you possibly have known? Outside of Morales, I haven’t even told my crew yet. Tales say it could have been cured in our zenith, but it is impossible today.” Taking in a long deep breath of sweet air, Mote finally refocused on Flurry Heart. “Query, in light of your question, may I speak frankly?”

“Absolutely,” Flurry Heart offered without reservation. “I have found that speaking one’s mind is vastly more productive than metaphor and euphemism.”

Mote dipped her head in gratitude. “Statement. I do not envy your immortality. Life and the death that follows it, is the greatest gift my type was given. Knowing that I will one day expire is what gives me the strength to endure xellion until my time is up.

“I have lived a rough life. When I am reborn without the scars I carry,” Mote replied with a note of whimsy. She seemed to… relax. As if she had been standing all her life, and was finally allowed to sit down. “Apology. Forgive me, your highness, you wanted one answer and I gave you the opposite.”

“There is nothing to forgive,” Flurry parroted with a knowing, respectful nod. “I - I do at times envy such liberty that true reincarnation offers. But I have made my peace with it. Aunty Tia considers it reductive to think of our lives as merely preparation for sharing tea with a god. But at the same time…” Flurry looked distant for several moments as her thoughts struggled to find the right words. “I am looking forward to it. To converse with a god on a level far above what we are doing here…” Flurry shook her head as her imagination ran wild. “But that is a long way off, and I worry it will only get more lonely the longer I follow this path.”

Mote thought for a few moments, long enough that Flurry to almost end the call. “Statement. Perhaps there is something I can offer you then.” She held Flurry’s attention. “You care deeply for Wiggly Sprocket. Do you not?”

Being caught so bluntly threw Flurry for a loop, but she caught herself quickly enough. “I care for all of my subjects.”

“Observation. Please stop me if I cross a line, but during our talks yesterday, I saw you constantly stealing glances at my captain. I couldn’t understand it at the time, but your expression was much like how a jane looks upon her mother. Love it seems is something we display very similarly, I have seen.” Mote moved on quickly as it looked to her that she had tread upon one of Flurry Heart’s nerves. “You just met, and I told myself I was mistaken. But you see, xillon changes how I see the world as well. My sight becomes more clinical, machine-like. I can see the tiny differences that separate romantic love, with a child’s love. I see the signs of embarrassment from being cast so openly. I would have missed it all entirely but a few years ago.”

Huffing at the absurdity of being so clearly seen, Flurry Heart looked down, almost in shame. Mote remained silent as Flurry sat there. Eventually, the alicorn looked back up. “Had I known who I was talking to, I would have been more guarded. You have the right of it, and I must insist you not tell her this.”

“Statement. Consider it encrypted.” Mote went so far as to zip her mouth shut. “Hypothesis. I admit, I wouldn’t know what to make of your reaction were it not for one thing. You see…”. Mote placed a finger on her chin, and hummed in thought. “The method we use to retain someone’s memory and personality when undergoing strand weaving. It expels the spark while tethering it to the body so it doesn’t get lost. When Morales and I supervised Winter Gale and the first round of volunteers at Lilian we saw what pony sparks looked like. Wiggly Sprocket stood apart like a bed of flowers in a desert.” Flurry Heart’s eyes narrowed and she became tense. “Her spark was more akin to a flame in pony form and it spoke to her.”

“Her… own spark spoke to her?”

“Excitement. Very curious indeed, no? Wiggly described it as a winged unicorn of lavender flames who called herself Tea.”

Flurry’s expression instantly became stoic. She had to or else she would have lost every scrap of self-control. “You’re either well informed, or a marvelous charlatan.”

“Assurance. I have no intention of scamming the very ones who can help restore my people’s prosperity. That - is something I will leave to the politicians and merchants.” She tried to force a laugh, but it fell flat in her ears. “There is a method our police use to speak to the sparks of victims who are in medical stasis, or are about to die. I strongly suspect Tea would be accessible that way. If you wish, I can give you this technique.”

Flurry Heart was at a loss for what to do for the first time in a century. “…I think.” She paused. As dearly as she wished to speak with Twilight Sparkle instead of just her reincarnation, Flurry wasn’t sure if it was even ethical to do so. But in the end, her heart couldn’t refuse. “Show me.”

Thaddeus stood in a den of snakes. He, the commodore, and the inner circle of captains all stood in attendance at what used to be a party hall. Today, its dance floor was host to a small pedestal where a weak transmitter was located. Dark stains of blood and bile marred the floor around it, as well as the panicked scratches on the soft resin of recent victims. The Commodore had stopped bothering to have the stains cleaned up after the first few trials.

Presently, four people were shackled around the pedestal, a centuari, a satyr, a wing-less drake, and a kirin. All of whom were dead men walking, be it unpaid loans or angering the wrong people. It hardly mattered to the captains watching from the VIP room overlooking them. Felin however, had made sure these four would have been on death row if the moon still cared about proper law and order.

The Commodore had his grand plush chair situated where he could watch the condemned closely. The transmitter below could only reach a few feet, making him perfectly safe in his nest.

Thaddeus was nervous and wanted to pace, but he held back and tried to keep his mind focused on imagined games of poker. Eventually, Felin made an appearance on the dance floor with a nurse and the suitcase in hand.

“It seems the show is about to begin.” The Commodore rotated his chair to fix the old admiral with an expectant look. “I hope your serum works as advertised.”

“I was assured by the chemists that it would.” Thaddeus fidgeted a bit, but kept his composure.

Nodding with a slight smirk, the Commodore waved the captains away from their drinks to watch. Then he grabbed a microphone. “Miss Felin, if you please,” he commanded with a casual gesture.

Felin opened the case and had the nurse inject the test subjects. The drake remained close by to ensure the nurse’s work was honest. The subjects had been beaten and battered to the point of whimpering, passive compliance. As the nurse worked, the Commodore’s finger twirled around the prominent red button he had installed into his chair. Felin was well within range, and the Commodore glanced at Thaddeus when his finger passed over the button. He smirked at Thaddeus’ growing unease. “So, this vaccine of yours, where did you get it from?”

Thaddeus held his chin as he thought it over. “Felin and I used what money we had to cobble together a crew of chemists.”

“Oh don’t give me that look. You destroyed a single freighter and didn’t even bring back any scraps. You’re lucky I pay you at all.”

“Oh yes, very.” Thaddeus rolled his shoulders and let off a stress releasing sigh. “Perhaps if today's test meets your approval, you’ll pay me well enough to make it worth the effort.” It sounded believable enough because it was the truth, just not all of it.

The Commodore’s grin widened on his face. He waited until the nurse and Felin retreated to a safe distance. “I would certainly hope you’d know better than to waste my time.”

By now, Felin and the nurse were done and stepped away. “Commodore, we’re ready down here.”

“Excellent.” He pressed and held the button for several moments before releasing it. The test subjects flinched from the expected horrific death to come. Seconds passed with bated breath. Slowly, one subject risked opening his eyes to check himself.

Not one was suffering. Both Felin and the nurse approached the subjects to verify the matter. When the nurse announced not one of them were harmed, the gathered captains were muttering between themselves as ideas blossomed forth. However, the Commodore held back. “Not even a month after we discover a truly alien weapon, and you slap dashed a vaccine in some back-alley drug lab?”

Flashing a sheepish smile and a halting laugh, Thaddeus tried to sell the lie. “I was just as surprised as you are now. I was told the weakness of the weapon is that its target is so specific that some carefully targeted shielding is all that was needed.

“Is that so?” The Commodore’s paranoia raged within him. “Then you do it.” He fixed a stern glare at the aged admiral. “You trust your product, yes? Take a dose and weather the weapon.”

Others might have been shaken by such a demand, but Thaddeus was a veteran of a hundred battles, and he cared not for his own life, only his honor. So he adopted a stony expression and bowed his head. “As you command.”

Thaddeus marched down the stairs and approached a nervous Felin. The conversation had been too far for her to hear, but his arrival told her all she needed to know. Yet with the nurse standing right next to them, she could not speak her mind. “Sir?”

“A personal demonstration is in order,” was all he was willing to say out loud.

the Commodore broadcasted to all three of them. His tone was unnaturally coy.