Blood Impulse

Part 10.1 - PITY THE FOOL

Homebound Sector, Haven System, Base Oceana

By volume, Base Oceana was the largest construct the central planets had ever devised. The main body of the base glittered white, the shape of a spinning top, but the hollow frames of the space docks were what rendered Base Oceana so large. They extended outward, piping air, water and other supplies to ships undergoing repairs.

The entire base had been designed and built to help maintain Command's massive military ships, which were often over a kilometer in length. The orbital facility was equipped to sustain three battleship type vessels and numerous other small ships while maintaining operations as a regular spaceport. Three quarters of the station's volume was dedicated to maintenance equipment and storage, while the rest, the very top and very bottom of the structure, was reserved for personnel operations.

The crown of the station was reserved for military purposes: personal quarters, offices and meeting spaces. The lower tip was shared with the civilian population, run as trade and travel port. Nearly every ship that visited Ariea would pass through it in some measure, so hundreds of ships came and went every day, which made the spaces 'down below' messy, crowded and loud. With all those merchants buying and selling, and people hassling and bartering, Alise Cortana found she very much preferred the crisp, airy surroundings of the military decks.

General Clarke had transferred her to Base Oceana in a temporary layover, waiting for the Singularity to return from patrol. It had only been a few days, but it was strange to linger on a military base with absolutely nothing to do. She spent most of her time on the observation deck or in the training facilities, doing weights or fighting in sparring matches. She called her friends in Eagle's Talon daily, knowing that once she boarded ship it would be a long time before she was able to contact anyone planet-side.

The very thought of such isolation annoyed Cortana. Admittedly, she had been spoiled in her last assignment. Her off-duty hours had been the events of a normal civilian life: visiting friends, talking to family, shopping... But shipboard assignments were not like that at all. Shipboard crews were never truly off duty. Even on shore leave, they could be recalled to the ship without notice by the commanding officer.

And given the nature of said commanding officer, she was not looking forward to it. She would rather not have every minute of her life controlled by someone else, let alone the damned Steel Prince. Shore leave on his ship was likely rare. With a portion of the crew slightly criminal and the Fleet Admiral entirely uncaring of anyone's exhaustion, she did not see an easy duty rotation ahead of her.

Alise Cortana was already tired of it. Her new uniform should have demanded respect. The rank of Sergeant was high among the Marines, but she could feel the looks of disdain given by the others on the observation deck. The fact she had the Singularity's ship patch on the sleeve overpowered any respect that her rank should have earned. That flaming red and yellow sun, once the symbol of a glorious flagship, was now a stigma. Here at high command, crew members wearing that mark were considered miscreants. They were people who should have been expelled from the fleet, but had instead had been sacrificed to the command of the fleet's deadliest officer – a man infamous for his willingness to kill other allied officers.

Still, she tried to ignore the looks of others as she looked out from the station's observation deck. Ariea's blue, green and white planetary marble was low and to the left. Directly ahead of her, the Olympia flew in her somber slate tones. The flagship was the closest military ship in view, sharing an orbital pattern with Base Oceana. Assorted civilian vessels and smaller ships were also visible, but they were mere fleas to the Olympia's massive size.