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It was about 0300 when Burke finally returned to his cabin. He had been up for close to 34 hours straight, kept awake by coffee and stims. He managed to catch a quick shower on theDreadnaughtbut now he was crashing.
The door opened and he stepped inside. He didn't bother to turn the lights on. Dropping his duffel by the door, he stripped out of his BDUs and threw them in the direction of the chair.
Burke had a single room, a luxury for junior officers. Of course, it helped that he was a war hero. Reaching for the covers, he was surprised when his hand brushed someone's body.
"Lights!" He instantly shook off his stupor, unsure whether the other person in his room was a friend or foe.
The body in the bed stirred.
"Lights out," a familiar voice yawned. "It's about damn time you got back."
The room once again faded into darkness and Eric felt a hand take his and pull him into the bed.
In the briefest second that the lights were on, all of the emotions that Eric had buried for the past year came to the surface. He fell into the bed as Maylene's arms wrapped around him.
His lips went to the first patch of skin they could find, her shoulder. Her skin was smoother than he remembered, but that didn't matter.
She was back in his arms.
Her hands pulled his undershirt over his head and pushed his civvies down. Their naked bodies pressed together. As soon as he felt her touch, Eric's cock was erect, but he was not in any hurry.
Eric pulled his lover close. Her breasts were mashed flat against his chest.
The rough texture of her burn scars felt soft against his skin. Her hands brushed his back, causing the hair on the back of his neck to stand up.
Just having Maylene in his arms again made him feel whole again.
At first, Eric had tried to forget about her. A part of him wanted to believe that they just had a wild fling. That their shared loneliness and shared needs had brought them together. The way she left him hurt.
He never got a chance to say good-bye.
But after some time, he realised that if Maylene had told him she was being redeployed, he would have had a hard time letting her go. Her whereabouts (as well as his) were classified and he had no need to know.
They had exchanged a couple of holos over the past year, but never talked over a real-time subspace channel.
To take his mind off her, Eric threw himself into his new platoon. Fleet Admiral von Luck had selected him to be the ranking platoon leader in a new SOLAR Team. They had a good CO and a strong master chief, but also lots of kids who had never seen combat and whose shooting stars were still shiny.
Eric sublimated all of his energy into training the fifteen young men and women under his command to work together as a team. He took some of the younger officers from other platoons in the Team under his wing and showed them the ropes of being a good leader.
All of that was in an effort to forget about the emptiness he felt every night he went to bed alone. He and Maylene only had a few nights together, but he found that he missed her touch. Her smell. The press of her body.
He wondered if he would ever see her again.
Now, there she was, in his bed. Her arms pulled him close. Her lips found his and they kissed desperately.
Eric mentally dialed down the power in his cybernetic limbs so he wouldn't crush her in his embrace.
He was unshaven but it didn't seem to matter to Maylene. Her bio-mechanical fingertips brushed his back, sending a chill through his body.
"I've missed you," she whispered in his ear. Eric kissed her cheek and tasted a line of salty tears. "I'm sorry for the way—"
"Shhhhh," he kissed her lips gently, stopping her from saying anything else. The warrior within him gave way to the lover. His hardened exterior, built up by years of training and killing, seemed to disappear as the woman in his arms pulled his body to hers.
Maylene spread her legs and Eric fell into her embrace. They kissed for a long time. The touch of her cybernetic hands made his skin crawl.
He bit her gently in all the right spots. She cried out softly when he cupped her breasts.
Eric could fell the heat radiating from between her legs.
"I need you inside me," she said desperately.
She was already slick.
His cock brushed against her slit. They both moaned.
Pushing forward, Eric entered her slowly.
Maylene arched her back as he slid his entire length into her.
"Gawd, you feel good," he said as he bottomed out.
She pulled Eric in and kissed him. It was a deep, wet, sloppy kiss. Eric held his cock inside her, buried to the hilt for a long time, savouring the feel of her body against his.
His lover wasn't in any hurry either. They just wanted to be close to one another. To make up for all that lost time.
"Make love to me," she said finally.
Eric began to slowly rock his hips back and forth. Maylene began to match his slow strokes.
The two settled into a familiar rhythm. It was as if the previous year had never passed. Their movements were perfectly in sync.
Neither was in a hurry. Neither wanted anything more than just to feel close to the other. Neither spoke.
When their coupling ended, it wasn't because their sexual desire was fulfilled. It was because they fell asleep in each other's arms. Their loneliness was forgotten. Their need for each other sated, Eric and Maylene held each other all night, not wanting the morning to come.
*************************
"General, I think you should see this."
"Thank you, captain." Taking the report in his hands, Lieutenant-General Aleksandr Kravchenko scanned the sit rep. Cursing under his breath, the general turned to his aide. "Mickens, send a message to Fleet Admiral von Luck with my compliments. We're going to lose Iridian and Mombar unless we reinforce them now.
"Aye, sir."
"Colonel Pauley, begin drawing up two plans," Kravchenko said to his chief of staff, then emptied his coffee mug. His voice was grave. "One is for reinforcing the Levari Six system and one is for abandoning it. I want both on my desk in four hours. In either event, I want the Seventh MEF at condition two tomorrow morning. Either we're going to rescue Three MEF or we're about to be the new front line."
She had expected this response and had already instructed the staff to begin working on such contingencies. "We're not just going to leave them out there, are we, sir?"
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Kravchenko replied.
"Sir," one of the communications techs interrupted, "Fleet Admiral von Luck for you."
He picked up the handset, not wanting this conversation broadcast over the HQ speakers. Colonel Megan Pauley was privy to only half of the conversation. On one level, she liked what she heard. It meant that they weren't going to be hanging Marines out to rot. On another, though, she thought about how many lives this rescue mission would cost.
When General Kravchenko hung up, she could see the warrior's fire burning in his eyes. He barked orders and the Marines around them eagerly jumped to obey. "Cancel the plans to abandon Levari Six. There will be a meeting for all Seventh MEF and Task Force 114 staff at 1530. The first units will depart at 0800 tomorrow. Sergeant Major Ellis!"
"Aye, sir!"
"Tell the kids it's our turn to kick some asses."
"Ooh-rah, semper fi!"
The room began to buzz. After sitting around on the sidelines for close to a year, the VII Marine Expeditionary Force was about to see action. Amidst the excitement, Colonel Pauley saw dread on the faces of the older officers and NCOs. They knew it wouldn't be long before they would be ordering young men and women to die.
She saw it in General Kravchenko's eyes as he stood before her. He spoke softly so only she could hear him, "Look over the intel reports, Megan. The Alliance is moving the Fourth Army into this sector and they are probably headed to Levari Six. That's four corps and probably half the ships they have in this sector. If we don't get dug in there soon, we're going to be up to our armpits in the shit and the cavalry will arrive just in time to keep them from looting our corpses."
"Aye, sir."
"Sector command is giving us the 11th Infantry Division plus two brigades from the 127th Armoured Division, but we'll still be outnumbered on the ground. I'll establish a forward command post on Iridian. You and General Ibrahim will be our eyes in the sky from theGemini." His eyes darkened. "Sector command thinks this might just be a diversionary attack, but we're not giving up that system. We've got to hold until the Second Army and the sector fleet can reinforce us and drive them back."
"How long?"
"I don't know," the general replied. "But we're going to pour ships and Marines into that system until either they break or we do."
*************************
"So what do we do now?" Eric asked softly.
Maylene's head rested on his shoulder. Her hair, which had grown out and was just barely regulation, tickled his chest. He turned and kissed the top of her head.
The question hung in the air for a long time. Neither wanted to think about it, yet it was something they could not ignore.
What do I want?Eric asked himself and the answer wasn't obvious. What he knew was that he didn't want Maylene to disappear on him like she had before. But what were the alternatives?
The Navy didn't plan around individuals. She was a fighter squadron commander. He was a special warfare officer. There wasn't much overlap between them.
As he held her, thoughts that were dangerous to his career raced through Eric's mind. He was sure Maylene was thinking the same things. They just didn't want to say them out loud.
Her body felt so warm next to his. They lay there, sharing precious little room on the small twin bed. Their limbs were entwined, their bodies smelled of sex.
"We could—" she started and then the comm buzzed. Both groaned.
Eric rolled out of bed and went to the holoprojector on the desk. "Burke."
"Sir, sorry to wake you so early." It was Chief Hayes. She had a foreboding look in her eyes. "Something big is about to go down. Kellerman and Ski say they heard something about an invasion in the Levari system."
"They also think there's still a monster living in Loch Ness," Burke said softly. This was nothing new, and in fact the rumour mill turned out at least two or three invasion stories a week.
Chief Hayes's smiled went away quickly. "I've heard the rumours, too, sir. The Marines are on the move, though. They're already packing up. The entire Seven MEF . . . and then some."
The part of him that wasn't talking to his platoon chief vaguely heard Maylene's pager going off. Burke thought for a second. "Get the platoon together after Traylor's funeral. I'll talk to Commander Stickle and we'll see if we can separate fact from fiction."
"Hoo-yah," Chief Hayes said, she was reaching for the switch but stopped. "Oh, and by the way, they cleared Wonder Boy for visitors today. I'm going to take Zipper down to see him later."
"What time?" Lieutenant Burke looked over at his lover, who was scrolling through her datapod with a worried look on her face.
"Probably not until later this afternoon. I'd say around 1600."
"Count me in," he replied before hanging up.
Maylene looked up at him, a cross look in her eyes.
"What is it?" Eric asked.
"The fleet's on the move," she said, reaching for her uniform. "All leaves have been cancelled. I need to get back to theArk Royal."
Eric caught her hand. He pulled her close. Their embrace seemed desperate. The war was catching up with them.
"When do you weigh anchor?" he asked softly.
"1440."
"That leaves us almost eight hours . . ." His lips brushed her ear lobe.
"I have to go . . ." she whispered. Maylene tried to pull away, but Eric wouldn't relax his embrace. He didn't want to relax his embrace.
"Maylene . . ." his voice broke as it trailed off.
"I know, Eric," she melted into his arms. They felt so strong around her.
The two stayed like that for several minutes. In their minds, each replayed the last time they parted. Neither wanted to leave the presence of the other. But the Navy had other ideas. The war had different plans for them.
Eric savoured the feel of her breath on his chest. His arms held her close, not for his sake—his hands couldn't feel the softness of her skin—but because he knew she wanted to feel his arms around her.
The silence between them was deafening. The chrono on the desk ticked off the minutes.
"Marry me," Maylene said finally.
For a moment, Eric was struck speechless. "What—?"
"Let's get married," she pulled back. He looked into her mechanical eyes. As strange as it sounds, he could see the love and tenderness and hope in their soft blue glow. "Tomorrow . . . Today . . . Right now."
He stammered, unable to reply.
"Eric," she paused for a second, trying to find the words. "I'm sorry for the way I left you last time . . . I shouldn't have just bailed out on you. . . . I've missed you so much . . ."
Her lips started to quiver and her voice nearly broke. If she still had tear ducts in her eye sockets, they would have been wet. Eric pulled her even closer.
"I love you," Maylene said. "I love you, Eric. . . . I know we can't be together . . . at least right now . . . But I don't . . . I don't want to be without you."
Eric didn't reply immediately. He clutched his love to his chest. His eyes watered as he held her. He didn't want to be without her, either.
"How can we make it work?" he asked longingly. The TSN didn't plan for people. The Navy planned for war. They sometimes honoured requests, but made no guarantees.
"I don't know," she whispered.
"Maylene," Eric said, gathering his thoughts. "I love you, too. This last year has been the hardest one of my life . . . But you don't want me. You don't want to be married to a SOLAR. Our lives aren't easy. Not easy on us. Not easy on our families."
"Do you love me?" she asked. Her eyes seemed to bore into him.
"Yes." His voice was barely audible.
"Then we'll make it work," she said simply.
Eric started to reply, but he could not refute her basic logic, nor her determination. He also could not deny his own desire to be with Maylene. The devil was in the details, though. She was a VR pilot. He was a special operator. They came from two different worlds. Worlds that often didn't mix. Still, Eric only had to look as far as his parents to see a marriage that endured despite the demands of the service.
She could see the hesitation in his eyes. But she could also see his steely determination. "So . . . will you marry me? Be my husband."
"Yes," he replied, trying to smile through the almost permanent stoic mask. "Yes . . . I want that. If you'll have me, Maylene."
"I will," she said warmly. They kissed tenderly. "If you'll haveme."
Eric kissed her harder. His hands went to her breasts, their clothes forgotten. She pulled back and began to laugh. A deep, joyous laugh.
"What's so funny?"
"I guess that means we have a wedding to plan," she smiled and kissed him again. "And Daddy always warned me about Navy guys . . ."
They collapsed into each other's arms, their worries temporarily forgotten.
*************************
"I've got some good news, some bad news, and some more good news," Lieutenant Burke said to his assembled SOLAR platoon. Since returning to the base, things had happened very quickly for not only this platoon, but for the entire Team. A major reorganisation was taking place, a result of a shake-up in the sector's entire special warfare community.
The room fell silent. Everyone looked around uncertainly. They were all in their dress uniforms, having just attended Traylor's burial in space. There was a silent melancholy hanging over the group. Each accepted that some of their comrades might die or be injured and they accepted Traylor's death stoically. That didn't mean they liked it, though.
The fourteen men and women in the room had spent most of the last year together. They were the "plank owners" of the re-constituted SOLAR Team 6 and they had come to know each other better than they knew their families. Through constant training and combat, they relied on one other, and without exception, each trusted the others with their lives.
Hanging over all of them was the impending campaign. No one knew exactly what was going on, but everyone knewsomethingwas up. The platoon's orders hadn't come through, but they all expected to be thrown back into the fight.
"First the good: We're being taken off the line. I think everyone here has at least six weeks of leave and you are ordered to take it. You've earned it. I know everyone has heard about the Levari 6 campaign and we're not a part of it. Go home, catch some R and R. Do anything that doesn't involve the Navy." He paused and looked around the room, making eye contact with each member of his platoon. "Now the bad news. . . . Team 6 is being broken up."
He waited a moment to let that sink in.
"Most of you will be spread out to some of the other platoons, but Admiral von Luck is putting Team 23 back together and some of you will be headed over there with Commander McComas to help stand up the new Team. Some of you are due for an instructor tour somewhere. The rest of you will be stuck with me on Team 6." Burke pulled a stack of files out of his briefcase. "Now for the other good news: promotions and orders."
One by one he called the men and women forward, passing out orders and giving promotions to those who were due. He handed out stripes and told a funny story or two about each, which often brought some good-natured ribbing from the rest of the platoon.
"H-M-One Danielle Martin," he called.
"Aye, sir!"
"Your exceptional service as lead petty officer of SOLAR Team Six Alpha Platoon has earned you the rank of chief petty officer," Burke smiled broadly as she stepped forward. "I have your orders here: you will be platoon chief for Charlie Platoon, SOLAR Team Six. Congratulations, Chief!"
"Hoo-yah!" she replied. There was enthusiastic applause from around the room. No SOLAR in the platoon worked—or played—harder than Martin.
Of all the jobs in the Navy, being a chief petty officer is what it was all about. In many ways, they are the "glue" that holds the service together. The officers may run the Navy, but it's the chiefs who own it. Within the SOLAR Teams, there was no job more important or more revered than the platoon chiefs. Now, Martin would be joining their exalted ranks, something she had spent the last 14 years of her life aspiring to.
"Chief Sonya Hayes!"
"Aye, sir!"
Burke paused dramatically for a moment to make her sweat. Hayes was the kind of platoon chief who came along once in a blue moon. Efficient and smart, she knew when to be the platoon's mother figure and when to be its taskmistress. Some of the platoon feared her more than God and at the same time loved her more than their sisters.
"You are due for promotion to senior chief petty officer," he said before pausing again. "However, on my recommendation, you arenot being promoted."
There was a collective gasp in the room. Burke smiled inwardly. It was the tradition of the SOLAR teams to promote platoon chiefs after one deployment to make room for a new chief. Often they would go on to serve a staff tour or serve as instructors at BUD/S or some other training school to pass along their wisdom to the next generation of special operators. Of course, that was in the peacetime navy. With the war going on, those traditions tended to fall by the wayside as the Teams found themselves understaffed and overworked.
"You are not being passed over, either . . . Chief Hayes, you are the best platoon chief I have ever had the pleasure of serving with, and I couldn't let you go to waste," he smiled and pulled out two envelopes. "I've got two sets of orders for you. You get to pick one and I'll burn the other. Oh, you can still take the promotion if you want it. You'll get a transfer to Coronado and you can torture kids at BUD/S. Or you can take what's behind door number two: another tour as a platoon chief. Of course that means you'll have to babysit a new lieutenant . . ."
