Lines Crossed Chapter Three
GRID Traveler Trinity: Lines Crossed
Author: J Carrell Jones
Table of Content
Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Sean made his way to Top Deck. What he needed was to keep his mind busy. The next staff meeting was hours away and Sean had nothing to do but wait. Time. Not his only enemy, but up there. “Top Deck,” Sean said as he entered the lift. He had several seconds of thought to himself before he reached the bridge, then, Deck chatter hit as the doors opened. Sean felt better as he always did when he heard Deck chatter. Top Deck was his sanctuary, his escape. He spent way more hours here than anywhere else. He stepped out and walked over to the command section.
Dawn was in her seat. She looked up. “Captain, bored?”
He smiled, “Yeah, something like that.”
“Well, since you’re here, I have the list of transfers. One you might be interested in is a brilliant Ensign for Engineer. She’s gonna be Pulse wet dream for sure.”
Sean sat in the command chair and tapped out a command on his CRT. He slowly scrolled through the entire list of transfers. About half-way down he came across an Adriana Newton.
Dawn watched as Sean scanned down the list. She knew when he reached Newton.
He looked up. “Seriously?”
“Scores are off the chart. Number one in class.”
“Really?”
“She transferred from the Barack.”
“The Barack is top of the line.”
“First week she increased engine efficiency by 8%, read her bio. Very interesting.”
He did. Father’s name, Sean. Mother’s name, Adrunia. She read like a Mary Sue with too many coincidences.
Sean looked up. “When do we get the transfers?”
Dawn answered, “Sometime tomorrow. Gonna be an interesting mission this time around.”
“The least.” Indeed Sean thought. First Loggar and this fixation on magick, then Adruqu showing up as an Ensign. Coincidence? Hardly. The Necronians mastered time travel epochs ago. Nothing was a coincidence to them. They created their own circumstances. But this begged the question. What is about to happen?
“Captain?” Kirkland, the Chief Comm Officer said. “Message coming in from GC.”
“Coding?”
“Standard, but marked for Captain’s eyes first.”
“I’ll take it in the ready room.”
Kirkland nodded and tapped out a few commands on his CRT.
“Code is Charlie Echo Zero One Zero, sir.”
Sean nodded as he walked into the main ready room. He sat at the main console and typed in the command code to play message.
The CRT displayed the familiar GRID logo. A moment later Command General Whithaven appeared. His face was service weathered and his voice was raspy. Sean hoped GRID service would be kinder to him in his later advanced years.
“Captain Blakemore,” the General began, “All is well I hope. News of your recent activity have not gone unnoticed and we appreciate your service and loyalty to GRID Com. Upon receipt on this message GRID Ship Reginald L Johnson will be re-designated as Explorer Cruiser. You are the commanding officer. Counsel is Dr. Kathy Loggar. Your missions will be defined by mentioned counsel, but you are the ultimate authority backed by unanimous consent of GRID Command.”
Interesting, Sean thought.
The Commanding General leaned forward. “Sean, unanimous consent.” He leaned back. “May the wind remain steady at your back. CG out.”
And that was it. Extraordinary. CG and GC gave Sean a blank check. The CG so much as told Sean that he had official backing from GRID Command as well as unofficial backing from the Most High Council. Sean reminded himself that this “new” council had been loyal to Kathy – could still be, but to give a nod and wink to him meant support was only as good as the next wink and nod. Sean tapped out the Ship Intercom on his CRT. “Dr. Katherine Loggar, please report to Top Deck at earliest convenience. Repeat. Dr. Katherine Loggar report to Top Deck at earliest convenience.” He signed off and smiled. That would make her and everyone else wonder. Normally he would have tracked her down like a puppy. Things change. For better or worse time would tell.
Loggar was in her quarters, misty eyed and full of pity, when Sean’s voice came over the Intercom. His voice was neutral but something changed. She had cycled through a list of woes when her message light on her desk blinked rapidly. She walked over and keyed in the ‘read message’ command on her CRT. The GRID Command logo appeared on the main screen. Command General Whithaven’s face appeared. He smiled slightly, which let her know things were still in her favor. “Dr. Loggar. The Council approves and grants you full access to the Johnson. The Johnson has been re-designated as an Explorer Cruiser. Captain Blakemore will remain ultimate authority of the Johnson but has been ordered to follow your counsel. Captain Blakemore has unanimous support of GRID Command. I hope all is well with you. CG Whithaven, out.”
Loggar realized she had been holding her breath during the message. But there it was. The Johnson was her’s through Sean. She bit her bottom lip as she dissected the message. ‘Ultimate authority, her counsel, unanimous support.” All very powerful. Of course Sean would have ultimate authority. This was a military craft. But unanimous support? She supposed she should have been happy, but she wasn’t. Not entirely. Unanimous support. From the full council. Sean had the confidence of The Most High Council. Her council. The one loyal to her. Then she remembered Sean asked her to report . . . report to Top Deck. Usually he asked if she would meet him on Top Deck. No doubt it was related. She walked into the bathroom and prepared herself. After eyes dried, hair re-combed and skirt adjusted she was ready. She was still hurt and worried but she was also The Most High Goddess.
Collins considered Loggar’s offer. She hadn’t accepted, nor did she reject it. The Most High allowed the Goddess to have up to ten individuals as part of her immediate circle. She could also have more than one circle provided the circles never met or didn’t have easy access to one another. This way she could separate commune and covenant without risk of cross prejudice. She could maintain Inner circles within circles, of course. She could take on more than one lover within the circle. It was understood that one, two, more or everyone was a potential lover to the Goddess. It was her choice and by joining her circle you acknowledged that. It was also understood that anyone who was Goddess’ lover could become sexual partners with anyone within the circle. Collins wondered if the Captain was aware of that clause. Probably not, which got Collins thinking of the Captain in a way she hadn’t before. Like Dawn, Collins was bisexual with strong leanings toward women, but potential sex with the Captain? Just by the Goddess making the offer she’s forever changed the way how she sees him. Just then she heard over the Intercom, “Dr. Katherine Loggar, please report to Top Deck at earliest convenience. Repeat. Dr. Katherine Loggar report to Top Deck at earliest convenience.” The lack of emotion did not escape her professional ear. The Captain was upset and mad and Loggar would have to just deal with the Captain’s mood.
Collins walked over to a shelf of hard-copy books. She pulled out, “Goddess’ Way.” It was The Most High rules and regulations guide book disguised and written as a fantasy romance novel. The first edition was printed in the 21st century. Each Goddess had the option of revising the book. Loggar’s edition was the 25th, but Collins preferred the 6th edition, which she held in her hands. Loggar’s edition was next to a book on horticulture. There was nothing wrong with the Loggar Print. It read well. It was neither overly exciting, like the 2nd edition, or overly boring, like the 16th edition. But the 6th edition was the best. It covered everything. Sex, drugs, governance, punishments, rewards, hiding in plain sight, interacting with outsiders, and dealing with threats from within and without. Collins turned to the chapter dealing with circles. Goddess Fey stressed that circle members must be lovers of each other – male or female. They had to regularly engage in promiscuity with one another to satiate their individual urges. When it came time to please the Goddess they could be selfless and give in totally to her thirst, whims, and pleasures. The Loggar edition had circles more for counsel, guidance, and communing, which wasn’t bad actually. Collins flipped through a few more pages and decided she should re-familiarize herself with The Loggar print. She pulled the edition off the shelf and turned to circles. The first paragraph read,
“It was in the evening hours when the Goddess reached the inner chamber. Her circle was waiting for her. She chose her counsels carefully. Some lovers, some close friends, some challengers. All would have to satisfy her needs on this night. She was the focus and her appetite for carnal consumption was especially heightened.”
Collins closed the book and decided she needed to talk to Sean. She walked out and headed for the nearest lift.
Sean couldn’t actually say he was in a bad mood. It’s been worse, but it’s also been better. He only had to wait about ten minutes before Loggar emerged from the lift. He stood up and met Loggar half way. She reached him and stopped. Both stared at one another for several seconds. Deck Chatter stopped. Another handful of seconds went by. Sean said, “As you were people.” He turned toward the main conference room. “Kathy, please follow me.”
Loggar nodded and followed.
Once the door closed Sean resisted the urge to embrace Loggar and passionately kiss her. This rift was killing him. He motioned for Loggar to sit at the table. He had Cookie make them a salad lunch with strawberry truffles on the side.
Loggar sat and waited for Sean to sit.
He did but remained silent. He placed his napkin across his lap and began eating. She followed. During lunch he poured her a glass of wine. After both had finished he pushed the tray of truffles toward her. His eyes never strayed. During the entire time he never smiled. After Loggar bit into her second truffle he cleared his throat. “Goddess.”
All her doubts faded away. Sean was mad at her, but he stilled loved her and that was alright. This strange man sitting before her, she thought, guards his thoughts well. He does not shout or scream but what he does, his actions and gestures, speaks loudly with high volume. She knew her mistake and Sean was letting her know he knew. He drew a line in the sand and would not cross it.
“Sean . . . my Sean, I . . . I . . . we need to find a solution to how the nanobots behave or we will find a way to turn them off.”
Sean exhaled, then smiled.
Collins stepped on to Top Deck. Dawn was sitting at the Captain’s station. She looked up and greeted Collins. “Doc, what’s up?”
“Is the Captain alone in his ready room?”
“Dr. Loggar is in there with him. Cookie sent up lunch earlier.”
Collins frowned.
“Karen, what’s wrong?”
“What makes you think something is wrong?”
“Because I know you, that’s what.”
Collins thought for moment. “Dr. Loggar is forming a circle and . . . “
“Really? I hope she asks me to join, I’d love to fu . . . “
“Dawn!”
“What? Being part of a circle is great, even if it’s a local covenant.”
“So, why hasn’t there been many on the Johnson?”
Dawn laughed, “There are lots of small deck circles. The one I’m waiting for hasn’t been started yet. It’ll have a certain Doctor as the center . . .”
Collins paused. “Me? I’m no . . . Goddess?” Her mind raced. She knew everyone on board, follower or not, looked to her for advice. She was the Ship’s Doctor, of course. Everyone had to see her eventually. Including the Captain. “Am I?”
Dawn smiled and nodded. “That’s why we love you. Everyone has always thought of you as our Goddess.”
“How come I didn’t know?”
“Can we say, oblivious? Which in itself is good. We figured eventually you’d realize it and form your own.”
“Wow. How come you never suggested it?”
“Let’s see. War, Crisis after crisis, Captain’s depression, then his depression, and oh yeah, his depression. Then our faithful trip to Necron. And here we are.”
Collins smiled. She’d kiss Dawn if they hadn’t been on Top Deck.
“Did Loggar invite you?”
Collins nodded.
“Are you going to accept is the big question?”
“I don’t know. I was going to talk to Captain, first. There are so many things he may or may not know. I . . .”
“You’re scared.”
“What?”
Dawn chuckled, “You’re scared and you think the Captain is this innocent young boy who won’t be able to handle sharing his woman with others.”
“Nonsense . . . I am just . . .”
“Frightened.” Dawn laughed softly. “The Captain is still a man with two brains. The term Horned God is not referring to something above his eyes.”
“Would he be willing to share her with another man?”
Dawn nearly laughed out loud. “She’s calculating, but not stupid. The circle will be made up of women. If we had been planet side, then yeah, there’d be a few men. But on a battle cruiser, with a bad ass Captain? I’d see transfer imminent in the poor sap’s future.”
Collins nodded.
“The other question is, would you be able to share him with other women?”
“What?!?”
“You heard me. Would you be able to share the Captain? Once you crossed that line how far are you willing to go?”
Collins blinked rapidly.
“We all know you like him, which is why we wondered why you never formed your own circle.”
“But . . .”
“Karen, I know. The Captain and I have history, but that never stopped me from being loyal.”
Collins stopped mid thought. “I thought it was all rumor.”
Dawn leaned in close. “Imminent danger and threat of dying the next hour can bring people closer. Sure I love the Captain, but I also like him. I was sad the day we stopped but it never changed my feelings or a wish to have some more. If Loggar invites me into her circle, please oh please suggest it, I’ll enjoy every second again.”
Despite herself Collins laughed. “You’re wicked.”
Dawn smiled and licked her lips. “All this talk has gotten me heated up. What are you doing tonight?”
Collins smiled. “Depends on what happens after that door opens. I’ll be dining out or in.”
Loggar finished the last Truffle when she said, “Sean, you read the Goddess’ Way?”
“A few months ago. I never mentioned it?”
Loggar shook her head.
“It was very interesting. Disguising the manual as a fantasy novel. Brilliant.”
Loggar nodded again. “As you know, the Most High Goddess has an option to form a circle. Actually, Local and Regional Goddesses have that option as well” She paused.
Sean counted to five, “And you are worried?”
“A circle has never been formed on the Johnson.”
Sean nodded. “At least none I know, but then again I had no idea about the Most High before we first met. In fact, a Commander rarely knows the intricate details on board ship. The First Officer knows that.”
“Dawn?”
Sean nodded. “Yeah, if she doesn’t know what’s going on board then it’s not happening.”
Loggar considered that. Later she’d ask Dawn to join her circle as well as recommendations.
“What are your feelings toward Dawn?”
“Kathy, what gives? Are you wondering if I’m sleeping with other women?”
“If I form a circle, you’ll be expected to sleep with at least one other.”
Now that blew Sean’s mind. Expected to have extra-relational sex?
“And so will I. That includes men too.”
Now that was a sobering thought. Would he be willing to share his love with another man? Or more than one as he understood the concept of circles? Would he also be willing to sleep with another man? “Kathy, the Most High never had the military in mind, as far as I know. I’m not sure if I can put myself in that position.”
“Sean, I have a circle within GRID Command.
Sean frowned.
Loggar placed a hand over his. “Though it’s been years since I convened a gathering, it’s something that was and is necessary.”
Sean remained silent.
Loggar placed a hand on his cheek. “My lover and friend. Never worry. I have chosen you as the Horned God. If you ever accept you’d be number two within the Most High.”
Sean gathered her hand into his and kissed it. “Kathy, I know.”
“Then why are you holding back?”
“As being the Horned God?”
She nodded.
“Not sure exactly. Fear maybe. Is it necessary I be one?’
She shook her head.
“Then no rush, right?”
She nodded. “And you don’t have to take on another lover, though I would feel better if you did.”
“Kathy . . .”
She leaned over and kissed him passionately. “The Most High ways are different, Sean. Selflessly they cater to the Goddess, local, regional, The Most High. The Goddesses of our Order are the center of what we hold sacred. We bring life into the Universe. Gaia and Ka, and now whomever we run across ties and binds us as one. That is our way. And I hope you will give yourself totally to that way. “
“If I became the Horned God, then what?
“You’d be invited to join GRID Command. We now control two-thirds voting rights. . .”
“Two-thirds! Control!”
She nodded and continued, “You could pick your own assignments, your own missions, anything Sean. Anything within reason and that could be easily justified. You’d be promoted to Commodore, then eventually Admiral. . .”
“But Kathy, would I have earned the promotions?”
“Sean, GRID Command thinks you have. Everyone on the council said you would have been Commodore years ago if not for the Quail incident.”
Sean felt sick to his stomach.
“They also think you’re the best Captain GRID has produced and you belong out here. At least for another tour or two.”
Sean admitted to himself the Johnson was his place though he would fancy being called Commodore Blakemore. Now that would wad up Robin’s panties for sure.
“ . . . we are still a secret society in how we use power. We hide well in plain sight . . .”
Sean nodded.
“ . . . and we’ve learned to be patient.”
A very sobering statement, Sean thought, but not quite true if recent events are factored in.
“GRID Command unanimously supports you, Sean. Unanimously. Followers and non-followers. So, in a way you are already considered the Horned God by followers and greatly respected by others.”
“Let’s get back to the circle.”
“Okay.” Loggar replied smiling.
“Who would be in it and exactly what would you use it for?”
“Counsel, Sean. I asked Karen . . .”
“Collins?”
She nodded, “To be the first in my circle. I need clinical objective minded individuals in this circle. I’m colored by being too close to Magick. This morning proved that. I need someone not part of the equation.”
Sean nodded in agreement. Then, unexpectedly his imagination went wild. In his mind’s eye he saw Collins’ lovely red hair flowing across his stomach and thighs.