Jewel of The Stars: Season 1 Episode 1: Earth's Remnant

Chapter 9

Braxton strode down the hallway of the administration deck in the crew-only section of the ship. He was already more at home.

The first officer, Maya Rice, had met him at his cell and was escorting him to the meeting. She was a short woman with a kind face and slightly greying hair, but she carried herself well.

"So our ships intercepted the aliens at Alpha Centauri?" Braxton asked.

"For a time," Maya answered.

"Good thing they had time to mount a defense. If Earth had been caught unawares, it might be facing annihilation rather than occupation."

Maya nodded slowly.

"I still wish I was out there with them."

"I understand. I served in the military myself for a number of years," Maya said. "But that was a while back."

"Oh? What ship?"

"The USS Yellowstone."

"What class was she?"

"Titan."

"Nice. The Hobart was a Defender class. Old as a wrinkled grandmother, but just as dependable."

His chest expanded. He hadn't felt this alive in ages. This was his chance to make a real difference. The Captain was wise to bring him in.

They reached the meeting room. Maya opened the door and held it for him. He nodded and walked in. The room was bigger than he'd expected. Conference rooms on military craft were always cramped.

"Take a seat." Maya beckoned to a spot on the far side of the table. The captain arrived moments later and stood at the head of the table.

"Good evening, everybody. I've asked Commander Braxton White, formerly of the Royal Australian Space Navy, to join us. He'll be my military adviser."

He turned to Maya. "Firstly, I'd like to recognise that our first officer has military experience of her own, but Commander White's experience is more recent, and he rose to a higher rank. I hope you understand, Maya."

"I completely agree, Captain." Maya nodded. "We can all benefit from the Commander's input in a time like this."

"I should introduce the rest of the staff," Captain White said. "You already know our security chief, Jaylen Banks".

The man who'd guarded him in his cell dipped his head. Awkward. Braxton nodded to him.

The captain continued. "This is our chief engineer, Sarah McLaughlan." A twenty-something woman with short sandy hair gave Braxton a wink. His heart forgot to beat, for just a moment. She wasn't a textbook beauty, but there was an intensity in her eyes he'd have loved to explore ... if he were a few decades younger.

"Our cruise director, Glen Price." A man in his thirties, stiff in his suit and tie, flashed a plastic smile. Braxton forced himself to return it.

"And our resident physician, Doctor Rashona Clarke." A dark-skinned woman with dreadlocks gave him a toothy grin.

"It's nice to meet you, Commander White," she said in a thick Jamaican accent.

"Right. Now that's out of the way, we need to make some decisions." Miller said. "The universe has become a dangerous place. The council of world leaders have advised us to get as far away from Earth as possible. We haven't detected any alien ships in our immediate vicinity, but that may change."

"You can count on it," Braxton said. "This was the initial thrust. Their primary objective was to take our home world. A ship like ours, all alone in the middle of nowhere, would be of little interest. Now they've taken Earth, they'll send ships back out to pick off the remaining vessels, stations and colonies one by one."