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"Broken Loyalties" by Lady Rainbow
Rating: PG-13 The fallout from the tragedy forces Travis to make some hard decisions. Seven The news of the tragedy spread far beyond Vega. The Consortiums issued their own proclamations of grief and support, the Boomers held their own wake for Paul Mayweather, as per their tradition. They requested both Travis’s and Rhianna’s presence at the wake and both of them joined the Boomers to grieve for one of their own. Captain Sandosh volunteered to shuttle the Mayweathers to the ECS Lysander, a RH-900 tug out of Draylax. Lysander’s captain, Thea Brunswicke, had been a good friend to Rhianna and Paul Senior during the Horizon days. There, in space, almost ninety ships, from tugs, Class-Js and others, gathered to honor one of their unofficial leaders. Lysander’s huge cargo hold held so many people that it was standing room only. Captain Brunswicke broke into her stores of food and drink to accommodate all the guests. There, for six hours, the Boomers shared stories, sang songs, and told their own memories of Paul, the old Horizon, and how the Mayweather family was still an integral part of their not-so-little society. Normally, Travis would have been embarrassed at all the attention, but he was grateful for the sense of solidarity. Paul had achieved a goal with his death that he couldn’t do in life: unite the Boomers into a single entity. “Travis, are you and your mom gonna be all right?” asked Captain Brunswicke. Her pale skin and platinum blonde hair made her stand out from the other mourners. The green-gold eyes reminded Travis of a cat and like a cat, Brunswicke always saw things others ignored. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly. He glanced over at his mother, who sat in a close circle of her friends. “Mom read Tanaka the riot act. She basically told her she was going back to Earth to bury Paul, and that she could take the employment contract and shove it up her—um.” Travis broke off as he realized his voice was growing louder. Brunswicke nodded in satisfaction. “Good for her. I think it’s time we stood up to the Consortiums, Travis. If they don’t have workers to haul their cargo, they don’t have business. Simple as that.” Travis raised his eyebrows and asked, “You’re planning a strike? That’s gonna be complicated, isn’t it?” “Not as complicated as you think.” She smirked and gestured him to follow her. Once they were safely in her office, Brunswicke went on, “Ever since the first meeting on Alpha Centauri, the Boomers have been talking amongst themselves and forging agreements. The ones who aren’t affiliated with any of the consortiums have agreed to start organizing convoys independently of Starfleet.” “Are they working?” “Better than we first believed. Your brother had the right idea, and it would have worked, if the Cargo Transit Authority hadn’t blown Horizon and the others up in a panic.” The cat-like eyes glittered in the low light. “Some of the Boomers working for Altair, Draylax, Aldeberan and Alpha Centauri are rallying to the call, Travis. We’re gonna make them notice and that they can’t treat us like their own personal slaves.” Travis raised his eyebrows. “If you don’t work for the consortiums...can you all find enough work to make up for lost profits? You don’t want to cut off your nose to spite your face, you know.” Brunswicke nodded at the practical question and answered, “There are trade routes opening up as we push the borders, Travis. Not to mention the independent contractors who still need people to haul their cargo. We’ll make do; Boomers help and protect each other.” Her words sent a shiver down his spine. “You want to be a force to be reckoned with.” “Sure.” She shrugged and went on. “You can help us, Travis. You can finish what Paul started. The Boomers need you. This whole thing has gotten us talking to each other, consolidating our base, and we have you to thank for that.” Travis allowed himself an ironic smile. First, Paul felt like he had to live up to me. Now they all want me to live up to him. I think Paul would’ve appreciated the irony. “You’re forgetting something. I’m still the Starfleet representative to the Consortiums.” “Well, since everything’s on hold while Starfleet sorts this out, I guess you aren’t doing much now, are you.” “I’m still assigned to Captain Archer and the Enterprise.” Irritation flared within Brunswicke’s eyes. “Travis, I’m only gonna say this once. You were raised a Boomer, your parents, your grandparents. Your brother. You belonged to the Boomers before Starfleet ever laid claim to you. We need you. No one else is gonna follow someone like me, or Sandosh. We need to hold this alliance together if we’re going to survive. Travis, this was your idea in the first place to network us. You need to see this through.” He sighed. Brunswicke had a point; he had started all this in the hopes of protecting the Boomers. Now it had evolved to something he hadn’t expected. “Thea, if I leave Starfleet, the Boomers lose their voice with Starfleet Command. Who’s gonna go to bat for you with Forrest and all the bigwigs?” She seemed prepared for his objection. “How about someone like Archer? I’m sure you can make him see our point of view. He is a person who plays fair, and he’s well respected in Starfleet.” Again, an ironic smile played on his lips. She hadn’t seen Archer when we spent that year in the Expanse, he thought. Even the straight-arrow Captains end up playing dirty sometimes. “If you ever got to know Archer, you’ll know that no one ever makes him do anything.” “We’ve got confidence in your diplomacy skills, Travis. That’s why you’re here in the first place.” She chuckled. “And you’re in tight with Trieste at EdML, not to mention the Centaurian Security Force’s commandant-in-training.” “Commander Reed?” He scowled. “How did you know about that?” “The Boomer grapevine. You should hear all the heroic stories about the Englishman who single-handedly saved both the master of EdML and the head of Starfleet at the induction ceremony. Remember, we were there.” Travis winced at the reminder. “Reed strikes me as the type of man that would be good to have as a friend, not an enemy.” “You’re right, there.” The depth of Brunswicke’s knowledge disturbed him, as well as her convincing argument. “You’ve given me a lot to think about, Thea, and I promise you, I’ll think about it. There’s just a lot to absorb all at once. Let me take care of Mom and the family, then I’ll make my decision then.” She gave him a sympathetic nod. “Of course.” “Do you mind if I talk to Archer and Reed about this? If I decide to leave Starfleet, I’d owe them at least an honest explanation for it. Plus, as you said, Captain Archer is fair-minded. He’d listen to me, even if he might not completely agree.” “Of course. That's why I brought him up.” Brunswicke smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. “You know, you remind me of your father. Always wanting to do the best for everyone. That’s why we trust you.” He nodded. “Thanks, Thea.” “What are friends for?” “We’d better get back to the wake before someone thinks we fell into a singularity or something.” She laughed at the old Boomer joke. “How many Boomers does it take to get out of a singularity?” “Four: one engineer to completely screw with the engines, one navigator who should’ve looked closer at his charts in the first place, one captain to double and triple-check the cargo, and one hell of a helmsman who gets his ship out of the mess due to his extraordinary skill at the stick.” “Sure, but you’ve got a bias towards the helmsman. I would’ve said, ‘one hell of a captain who singlehandedly inspired her crew to get their asses out of the fire’, ” Brunswicke said with a wicked grin. “All right, Travis. Come on out when you feel ready to face the crowd again, okay?” “Yeah.” Brunswicke headed back to the cargo bay. As soon as she left, he sagged against the doorframe and pressed a hand over his eyes. Paul, I wish you were here. You could be a pain, but I don’t think I realized just how much I miss you now. And for the first time, since the accident on Vega, tears slid down his face. |
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