Born and Bred

Posted on Wed Dec 29th, 2021 @ 2:32pm by Captain Henry Crow

Mission: Collision Course
Location: Ready Room

"You tired boy?"

Henry looked up at his father as the sun beat down on them. "No Sir."

"You got a lot of work left to do."

"I'll get it done."

His head ached as he tried to focus on his chores.

"Maybe you're not cut out for this kind of life. Maybe you need a cushy desk job where you can look out the window all day."

He felt his temper rising but tamped it back down. "No Sir, born and bred for this."

He continued around the ranch doing all that needed done. Hauling this, repairing that. Feeding the animals and wrapping new fencing around posts. His father didn't believe in the electric barriers, he wanted old fashioned wire.

As he was putting one of the posts in the ground his foot gave way and he landed on his back, his head snapping back into the ground. He felt dazed and could faintly taste blood.

"You hurt boy or are you just taking a rest?"

He couldn't see him, in the bright light of the sun. "No Sir, neither." He tried to get to his feet but couldn't. Struggling he felt a hand on his forearm pulling him into a sitting position.

"Boy, you need to get up now. People need you." The voice was softer, not the blistering tone he'd grown up with. "Yes Sir."

Henry opened his eyes. He was sitting up on the Ready Room floor. The blood in his mouth was still there and his head was screaming. He could hear the klaxons in the distance and the room was bathed in red from the emergency lights.

He forced himself to stand, unsteadily, and felt his way along the wall to the door which didn't want to open but he convinced it to.

"Report."

The Bridge officer looked over but she put her concern to the side. "We were rammed by the USS Marshall. I don't know why but we have injuries across several decks, main power severely disrupted, and hull ruptures on decks five through eight."

He began to reach for his badge but figured that was useless. "Organize engineering teams to get on those holes. Anyone onboard who knows even basic first aid is to help the wounded and..."

He stopped, leaning on a console as his head swam. "Uh, see if you can get in touch with my wife."

The bridge officer nodded. "Right away Sir."

'Sir'. The word rang in his head. Would he be proud of the desk job? Probably not. But that was a worry for another day.