Three Square Meals Ch. 129

Calara glanced up at John, seeking his approval.

He chuckled and patted her on the back. "I wouldn't dare to disagree with our resident fashionista. Besides, Alyssa's right. Jack knows we were at war with another Progenitor; I think it's only fair to update him on recent events."

"Thanks... both of you," the Latina said quietly, embracing John and Alyssa.

They shared a smile, then Alyssa glanced at John's rumpled outfit. "Don't worry, I picked out something for you too..."

John laughed and rolled his eyes, then left Alyssa to help Calara get ready. He returned to his old bedroom and spotted the clothes draped over Faye's leather chair in the corner. This was the first time he'd been near the high-backed seat since it had been rescued and he ran his hand over the leather, feeling the natural grain beneath his fingertips.

The leather chair had just been a comfortable piece of furniture until Faye made it her own, the purple sprite sitting there every evening to watch over the crew while they slept. It struck him as a perfect metaphor for Faye; the chair starting life as just a functional object, before being imbued with much greater significance and meaning after being cared for by the people around it.

*We've dropped out of hyper-warp on the outskirts of Sigma Octantis,* Jade warned him. *We'll be docking with the Damocles in three minutes.*

*Thanks, honey,* he replied, shaking off his maudlin thoughts.

John quickly stripped off his clothes and dressed in the slacks and shirt that Alyssa had chosen. He smiled as he slipped on the shoes, appreciating the thought she had put into the selection of clothes. While the trousers were dark blue and the shirt white, the cut reminded him of Terran Federation military dress uniform. He'd look very similar to Jack and Mateo if they removed their formal jackets.

*Well spotted, handsome,* Alyssa said, with a hint of satisfaction.

*I'm on my way,* he told her, fastening up the last of his shirt buttons and striding out of the bedroom.

The girls were leaving Calara's quarters at the same time and he looked at the brunette in surprise. He wasn't sure how Alyssa had managed such a miraculous transformation in seven minutes, but Calara looked casually elegant in a mid-length skirt and blouse. There was no disguising the fact that the Latina was a stunningly attractive woman, but the clothes presented her beauty in an understated way.

"You look lovely," he said, lightly kissing Calara in greeting. "Alyssa got it just right."

She blushed and looked down at her outfit. "Really?"

"When he sees you, Jack's first thought will be pride at having such a beautiful daughter," he replied with a smile. "But you don't look intimidating, you just look naturally gorgeous."

"That's what I was aiming for and she made it easy," Alyssa said, winking at her girlfriend. She slipped her hand into John's. "Come on, we don't want to be late."

John offered his other hand to Calara, then they walked along the corridor to the grav-tube.

"Do you feel better after a rest?" he asked the blonde beside him.

"Oh, so much better, thank you!" she gushed, beaming brightly at him as they stepped into the red anti-gravity field.

"You were only out for two hours," he noted with a wry smile. "If you oversell it, I'm really going to start worrying about you."

Alyssa's melodic laughter echoed around the grav-tube. "Alright, you got me. I admit, I was trying to reassure you that I'm okay... but I am fine, honestly." She made eye-contact with him and continued, "I just don't want to go anywhere near that black metal."

"That's perfectly understandable," he said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "Oh, you missed quite a bit of excitement while you were asleep. We found out a lot of new information."

"I know; the girls have been filling me in," she replied with a twinkle in her eyes. "Knocked-up Maliri blue... how fascinating."

"What was that?" Calara asked, darting an inquisitive glance at the blonde.

"The colour of John's aura," Alyssa explained. "The closest Rachel could describe it was the blush in the Young Matriarchs' cheeks when John knocked them up."

The brunette smiled and bumped John with a hip. "You've moved on from Terran girls now?"

"It's not that... I just haven't got any pregnant yet," he replied, making Calara blush.

Alyssa studied her girlfriend's rosy cheeks, then shook her head. "You see that? I'm glad you went with the blue. Imagine if your aura had been knocked-up Terran pink? I think I'd have to find myself another Progenitor to serve."

"Pink hex shields, pink eldritch fire... you don't reckon I could pull that off?" John asked, pretending to frown indignantly.

"She's right, that would be embarrassing," Calara said, before bursting out laughing. "Can you imagine how Larn'kelnar would have reacted to that?"

John and Alyssa couldn't help laughing as they pictured it.

"Ah, thanks for the laugh, girls," John said as they reached Deck Nine. "I needed that."

They grinned at him and the trio walked out into the corridor towards the airlock.

*John, we're being hailed by the battleship Porphyrion,* Jade informed him. *Admiral Zelig wants to speak with you.*

*It's not a good time, Jade,* he quickly replied. *Can you tell him that I'll call back in about ten minutes?*

*Will do, Master!*

They reached the airlock and John glanced back down the corridor. "Is it just us? Jack and Mateo have met Dana, Rachel, and Jade before... I'm surprised they're not here at least."

"We'll all get together in the Officers' Lounge for a drink in a few minutes," Calara explained. "I thought it might be easier to settle my family in first, then we can do the introductions later."

"Fine by me," John agreed amiably.

He glanced through the airlock porthole and saw grey titanium hull outside, letting him know that they'd docked with the Damocles. Putting his hand on the DNA reader, he watched as it scanned his genetic code, the outer airlock door spiralling open a moment later. The Terran Federation cruiser opened its own airlock in response, revealing Calara's father and eldest brother, both men wearing their naval uniforms.

"Permission to come aboard, Admiral Blake?" Jack asked, snapping a sharp salute.

John saw the new rank insignia on his jacket and smiled as he returned the salute. "On one condition, Commodore Fernandez; you're a guest in my home, so let's forget about rank while you're aboard the Invictus."

"Alright, I think we can do that," Jack said with a smile. He turned his attention to his daughter. "Callie, it's wonderful to see you again!"

She stepped forward and gave him a big hug. "I love you dad... I really missed you."

"Hey... we only saw each other a week ago," he said, surprised by her emotional reaction.

"I know," she said, giving him a shy smile. "Oh, congratulations on your promotion! I was thrilled for you when I heard the news!"

Jack looked embarrassed. "Thank you. The Fleet Admiral is convinced it was long overdue."

John heard the flicker of doubt in his father-in-law's voice, but decided to speak to him about it later. Turning his attention to Mateo, he smiled when he saw the new rank insignia adorning the man's jacket. "Congratulations to you too, Commander Fernandez."

Mateo saluted him and said formally, "Thank you, Admiral Blake."

"The same applies to you, Mateo. It's just John while you're aboard my ship, alright?"

"As long as you don't mind, that's fine by me," Mateo said, giving him a cautious smile.

"Hi big brother," Calara gushed, giving him an affectionate hug.

"Hey Callie."

She pulled back and looked at him askance. "What's up with you? I thought you'd be over the moon about your promotion."

He sighed and picked up his kit bag. "I am and I was offered an amazing new posting in the Terra defence fleet... but it was hard saying goodbye to Emily. She got really upset."

Alyssa glanced at John and raised an eyebrow.

John coughed to get Mateo's attention. "Commander Fernandez, please can you inform Lieutenant Campbell that I'm temporarily reassigning her to the Invictus for the next 24 hours. I'm sure the Terra defence fleet can use a good medical officer; I'll speak to the Fleet Admiral and see if we can arrange a permanent transfer."

Mateo gaped at him in shock, unable to believe his ears.

Calara laughed and poked him in the chest. "You heard the Admiral... step lively, Commander!"

He grinned and handed his kit bag to his sister. "Just give me five minutes! I'll help her pack!"

"That was kind, John, thank you," Jack said, clapping him on the shoulder as he watched his son sprint for the elevator.

"What good is being an Admiral if you can't throw your rank around to help your friends," he said, smiling back. He glanced at Calara and added, "Can I leave you in your daughter's very capable hands? Admiral Zelig asked to speak to me, so I might as well get that over with while we're waiting for Mateo and Emily."

"Of course," Jack agreed.

"Hey, Jack," Alyssa said with a warm smile. She caught him by surprise with a very friendly hug. "I'm so glad we were around to take you back to Jericho; it'll be wonderful having you stay with us."

He looked flustered and took off his peaked hat. "Err thank you, Alyssa. It's lovely to see you too."

The blonde flashed a triumphant grin at her girlfriend when she saw his reaction, making Calara roll her eyes. "Dad, I'll introduce you to the rest of the crew once we've got you settled in your quarters. Have you eaten? I can make you some supper if you're hungry."

"I'm fine thanks, Callie. The Damocles' senior officers held a farewell dinner for me just a few hours ago..."

John left Jack to catch up with his daughter and headed for the grav-tube, where he floated up to the Command Deck. Jade had moved here from the Combat Bridge and was now instructing Leylira as she had Betrixa. He didn't want to disturb the Nymphs while they were training, but Jade and her sisters all turned to greet him with friendly waves.

"Hey ladies," John said, acknowledging them with a smile. "Just ignore me, I'll call Admiral Zelig from my Ready Room."

"Ignore you?" Jade asked, raising an eyebrow and grinning. "Surely you know us better than that, John."

"I love seeing you, Master," Marika agreed, her gentle brown eyes filled with warmth.

Leylira nodded but remained silent, her predatory gaze watching his every move. John couldn't help feeling like the tigress was ready to pounce at any moment and when she saw him studying her warily, she smiled in triumph. Instead of going straight to his Ready Room, he decided to take the right ramp to pass the Tactical and Pilot's Stations, giving a quick kiss to each of the three Nymphs in turn. The detour earned him happy sigh from Marika, a throaty purr from Leylira, and an affectionate smile from Jade.

John noticed that both catgirls' striped markings were hidden by new outfits. "I don't think I've seen this dress before," he observed, run his hand over the material covering Leylira's back. "Can you show me?"

The tigress rose gracefully from her seat, then turned so that he could get a good look at the body suit. The material clung to her lovely curves, completely covering her upper body except for ovals cut in the shoulders that left them exposed. The outfit cinched at her trim waist with a belt, then ended mid-thigh, leaving a few inches of striped flesh before reaching her black knee-high boots. It was obvious the dress had been tailored with a catgirl in mind, as Leylira's tail fit through a neat hole in the back, the sinuous appendage flicking slowly back and forth.

"What do you think?" Leylira asked, looking at him for a reaction.

"You look fantastic," he replied with a smile. "Nothing beats seeing you in the nude, but when modesty calls for it, this is the next best thing."

The tigress rewarded him with a kiss, her amber eyes sparkling as she retook her seat. "Good answer, Master."

Heading over to his Ready Room, John opened the door and strode inside. *Jade, how's Leylira doing with her training? Is she a good student?*

*She's very attentive and eager to learn, so she's progressing rapidly. I'm confident that it'll only be a matter of days before she'll be competent enough to be left in charge of the Invictus for non-combat manoeuvres.*

*That's amazing, well done,* John said as he took a seat behind his desk. *It sounds like it won't be long before she can pilot the Invictus in battle.*

*Leylira is very aggressive behind a flight stick and I think she'll make a great combat pilot... providing I can teach her to avoid being quite so reckless. The only problem I foresee in the future, is that she's as eager to accompany you on ground missions as me and Alyssa,* Jade said, sounding amused.

John chuckled as he activated the comms interface. *I appreciate her enthusiasm, but she better get used to the pilot's chair. One wild Nymph running amok is trouble enough.*

*I think the way you handle five wild Nymphs is very impressive, Master,* Jade said with a flirtatious lilt to her voice. *We certainly have no complaints.*

*I'm glad I'm keeping you satisfied,* he replied, searching for the battleship Porphyrion among the list of Terran Federation warships in the vicinity.

The call went through and the star-struck communications officer stammered a greeting before transferring him to Admiral Zelig. The winged sword icon of the Terran Federation disappeared, to be replaced by the bearded face of the senior officer.

"It's good to see you again, Nathan," John said with a friendly smile.

"Likewise, John," Zelig replied, nodding to him respectfully. He hesitated for a moment, then continued, "My Tactical Officer spotted you heading inbound on our long-range sensors, but she reported a glitch with our sensor array. The problem seemed to resolve itself and my Engineering team is performing a diagnostic... but the rest of the fleet encountered the same issue. I just thought I'd check if you have some form of signal disruption device installed on the Invictus?"

John shook his head. "No, but we have upgraded our hyper-warp speed recently and your sensors will struggle to track anything that fast. The flickering and data glitches stopped because we slowed down when we got close to the fleet."

The admiral looked stunned. "But that's not possible! I saw it myself... you'd have to be travelling 12 times our maximum hyper-warp velocity!"

"Yet we always seem to be in a rush to get anywhere on time," John said with a wry smile. "So, how's the relief effort going with the Tasmaris Prime colonists?"

Zelig did an admirable job of recovering from his shock. "It's going well. We've nearly finished treating all the colonists that were infested with Kirrix eggs and we've managed to drastically reduce the numbers of suicides. I allocated all the fleets' counsellors to assess and support the bereaved parents, and we've had the worst cases on suicide watch. What happened to those families is tragic; I've spoken to them personally to offer my condolences."

"That can't have been a pleasant conversation," John said, remembering how angry the Brecken's World colonists had been.

"High Command deliberately abandoned the Kirrix border. Those people are furious at Buckingham's betrayal and have every right to be," Zelig replied, his expression grim. "I was told in no uncertain terms what they think of the Admiralty for leaving them exposed. They needed to vent their anger at somebody and if it helps distract them from their grief, I was happy to be their scapegoat."

John gave him a respectful nod. "You're a good man, Nathan. Not many senior officers would willingly endure that level of abuse."

It was plain to see that the admiral had been moved by their plight, and now that he let his guard down, it looked like he'd aged ten years. "I just kept thinking about my own children; I can't even imagine the pain those parents must be feeling."

Pausing to consider the cost of a delay, John weighed it against the anguish the colonists were suffering and the decision was made for him. "I'll send some of my Lionesses to help. Please could you arrange for all the grieving parents and all the wounded to be gathered in one location to speed things up; I need to depart as quickly as possible."

*I'll get the girls ready, handsome,* Alyssa responded a moment later.

Zelig looked at him in surprise. "John, I appreciate the desire to help, but those people have been severely traumatised. I've spoken to the medical staff and they said it'll take months of intensive counselling for those people to recover from their grief... maybe even years."

"One of the Lionesses is very sympathetic and will make a big difference," John explained, meeting the older man's startled gaze. "She helped the colonists on the worlds we liberated."

"Alyssa..." the admiral replied, sudden understanding appearing in his eyes.

"Actually, it's someone else you haven't met," John clarified. "Her name's Helene and I think you'll be surprised how effective she can be."

"After we restored the local comms beacon, I spoke to the governors of Brecken's World and Valia Gate," Zelig said, looking thoughtful. "They said you saved them and that the Lionesses were a big help, but were tight-lipped about exactly what happened. I warned them about the risk of suicides, but they said there hadn't been any."

"That's excellent news," John said, smiling inwardly at the governors' loyalty to his Lionesses. "We also managed to rescue the colonists from Menganus IV and sent them back home in a captured hive ship. The nearest comms beacon in that sector has been destroyed though, along with the colony transmitter, so they won't be able to contact you until both are repaired."

The older officer listened with interest. "If you can assist with the Tasmaris Prime colonists, then we'll depart as soon as the last of the egg infestations are treated. We urgently need to restore communications with Menganus IV and re-establish a border presence."

"Sounds like a good plan," John agreed.

Zelig paused and looked at him with concern. "Devereux warned High Command that you weren't planning to return to Terran Federation territory for a month, but then she called yesterday to inform me of your imminent arrival. I assume you're aware of the Brimorian attack on the Callopean Shoals?"

"I am," John replied, his eyes turning cold and hard. "And the attack on Olympus."

Raising an eyebrow, Zelig asked, "Are you planning on dealing with both?"

Knowing how the admiral felt about vigilantism, John was reluctant to elaborate. "Yes."

"I assume you have some unspeakable fate planned for them?"

"Don't waste your pity on the Brimorians or the traitors... neither deserve it," John said defensively, feeling like he was being judged. "You couldn't begin to imagine the horrific atrocities the Enclave have committed over the last century. As for the Terran traitors... they slaughtered thousands of marines in cold blood and tried to murder my friends. Damn right those bastards are going to pay!"

"Shouldn't justice be impartial?" Zelig asked quietly.

John felt his temper flare, then took a deep breath to calm himself. "If this was just about me seeking revenge, then I'd agree; the right thing to do would be to hand them over to the judicial system for punishment." He leaned forward and continued, "But this isn't about revenge, it's about protecting the people I care about."

The older officer stayed silent for a long moment. "By making a bloody example of anyone who dares to cross you?"

"This has nothing to do with my ego," John replied, shaking his head.

"Are you sure?" Zelig persisted. "What about slaughtering all those assassins that attacked you and televising the Invictus levelling their secret base? Or recording Admiral Weber clawing his own eyes out?"