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Vae Victis
© 2020 by Walter Reimer
Thumbnail art by
rabbi-tom
“EVACUATION WARNING. ATTACK WARNING. ALL NONESSENTIAL PERSONNEL EVACUATE TO SHELTER AREAS OF THE STATION IMMEDIATELY. EVACUATION WARNING. ATTACK WARNING. ALL NONESSENTIAL PERSONNEL EVACUATE TO SHELTER AREAS OF THE STATION IMMEDIATELY. EVACUATION . . . “
Devil’s Gate Station was built into and around an iron-nickel asteroid nearly five kilometers across circling a hot blue B-type star. Part of the object supplied the ore smelters in Trojan orbit, while the deep heart of the asteroid provided a haven in emergencies.
The sudden loss of signal on one hyperspace beacon constituted an emergency.
Meredith resolutely shut out the klaxon’s blare and the deep, penetrating voice of the station’s emergency announcement and followed Fuji as the pair joined up with other members of the Kiss Me in the Dark’s crew and other merchanter furs running for the most heavily armored and shielded interior portion of the station. The bull was about her height but more heavily built, and she let him clear a path for her.
Station personnel not engaged in running Devil’s Gate’s defensive arrays shepherded the crews into the shelter while the various captains started calling out to their people, trying to get accurate headcounts.
The captains were summoning their people by shouting the names of their ships.
“Fox Winning!”
“Exciter!”
“Lailin!”
“al-Qudum!”
“Eltingham!”
“Kiss Me in the Dark! Here!” the mare shouted. Meredith started to call out again when a stallion she didn’t recognize suddenly kissed her.
Startled, she took a step backward, wiping at her face with a paw. “What the fuck?!” she yelped.
He was clearly drunk. “Ain’t that what you wanted? You’re pretty . . . “
The golden palomino mare slapped him across the muzzle hard enough to spin him around, and she sent him on his way with a hoof applied to his backside. She turned away as his shipmates caught him before he could face-plant on the deck, muttering angrily, “So help me, I’m changing the name first chance I get . . . “
She started calling out names, and one by one her crew separated from the press of bodies and gathered around her. Only after they were all accounted for did she finally relax.
A vixen in the uniform of a member of the station staff tapped her headset, and an attention signal echoed throughout the room. Everyone gradually quieted and she announced, “We’ve had a beacon destroyed, and your escorts and our forces are moving to intercept whatever’s doing – “
“Fucking Confedders,” a lion sporting a magenta and gold-dyed Mohawk cut to his mane snarled, and there was a murmur of agreement.
The vixen motioned for quiet again. “There wasn’t time to get you all out to your ships, but the station’s leadership pledges that they’ll do what we can to protect your ships and cargoes. We’ve got the map relayed to these,” and an array of monitors mounted on the walls stopped showing advertisements and began displaying the station’s position and the disposition of the defending ships, “and you have access to dormitory space and consumables.”
“How long are we going to be here?” another vixen asked.
The staffer sighed, her brush snapping back and forth. “If I knew, I’d tell you. It’s not a good situation, but based on reports we’ve been getting from Colonial MilComm the Confed’s not attacking stations or planets directly.” She tried a smile. “I’d say we hope you enjoy your stay, but that’d be a fucking lie, wouldn’t it?” The vixen and the other staff members left the room, and the heavy blast doors cycled closed.
Meredith scowled. “Okay. Jax?” The rat cocked his ears toward her. “We need – “ She turned as someone tapped her on the shoulder.
Her head snapped to the left as a roe deer doe slapped her across the face. Meredith shook it off, as the doe didn’t hit her very hard, and she’d had to reach up to hit the palomino mare. “What was that for?” she said indignantly.
The doe, whose jumpsuit sported an embroidered patch showing a generic silhouette surrounded by seven stars, asked, “Did you hit one of my crew?” Meredith looked over and past her to see the stallion she’d slapped standing about two meters further back.
The mare’s tail hiked slightly and her nostrils flared.
She looked down at the doe. “Yeah, I did.”
“Why?”
She could sense her crew starting to take an interest. “The drunk idiot kissed me.”
The doe’s eyes widened and her ears went flat to either side. “Excuse me.” She whirled, took two steps, and yelled “Karim!”
The stallion flinched and his ears went back. “Yes, Latif?”
“Don’t ‘Latif’ me. Did you kiss her?”
“Yes.” He flinched as she took another step toward him. “She asked me to!”
Latif looked back at Meredith, who said, “My ship’s named Kiss Me in the Dark.”
“Stupid name.”
The mare nodded. “I’m not the one who named it, and it’s going to be changed.” She held up a paw. “Not his fault. I smelled booze on his breath.”
Latif gave her a sour look. “Yeah, he’s not a bad husband, until he’s had a few.” She gave Meredith a long, measuring look before extending a paw. “Mendhi Latif, Qixing, Seven Stars Shipping.”
The palomino mare took it. “Meredith d’Estcourt, you already know my ship. Transcosm,” she added, gesturing at her shirt.
“Oh yeah. You were the one who ran a blazer on that Confedder. You really twine tails?” Meredith nodded, and received a grudging nod in reply. “Not my cup chai, you know what I mean, no offense?” The mare shook her head and the two smiled at each other.
Leaving the doe to work out her marital issues, Meredith turned and nearly took a step back, surprised to see Fuji standing right behind her. The Komodo monitor gave her a coy look and said, “If we get married, I hope you won’t feel like beating me.”
Meredith winked. “Depends on what needs to be beaten.” A sudden giggle, and they turned to see Ginny making jerking motions with her fist as the rest of the crew snickered. Elroy rolled his eyes at his wife’s antics.
“Hey, everyone, Jax said, and the rat pointed at one of the screens. “Look.” The word spread like ripples in a pond, and soon all of the various crews were watching as the battle unfolded.
Hammer and its companion ships were doing a creditable job holding off repeated attacks on the cargo ships they’d been convoying, while the station’s defense craft were doing the same job. “Have they done their parlor trick yet?” Hui asked.
Burton put a paw to his chin. “Haven’t seen it yet.”
“’Parlor trick?’” someone from another ship asked.
Hui grinned. “The station gets a lot of its power from the local star.” The femme nodded and the bear said, “The collector farm converts the light to microwaves and beams it to the station and the factories. But,” and his smile turned nasty, “what if you point that at a ship?”
The femme caught on immediately and grinned.
The Confed force had no ship larger than Hammer, but after inflicting as much damage as possible, the Terran ships broke off the attack and inphased, leaving behind three of their number as expanding clouds of debris and a fourth holed and drifting. Five station and Colonial ships had been destroyed, and the Hammer itself had been badly damaged.
Alert warnings sounded as the Confed ships returned, followed by an echelon of Kashlanin ships. Cheers rose from several ships’ crews as the remaining Colonial ships rallied.
Caught between the two forces, the Confed group was destroyed or disabled.
The cheers died down as the station began displaying its assessments of the various cargo ships. Scattered groans or cheers heralded whether a ship had been damaged or destroyed, or had been left intact by the battle.
Meredith scanned the list, running a finger down the screen as her crew crowded around her, and with a sinking heart she read:
TCS-1257 KISS ME IN THE DARK TRANSCOSM DAMAGED
© 2020 by Walter Reimer
Thumbnail art by
rabbi-tom“EVACUATION WARNING. ATTACK WARNING. ALL NONESSENTIAL PERSONNEL EVACUATE TO SHELTER AREAS OF THE STATION IMMEDIATELY. EVACUATION WARNING. ATTACK WARNING. ALL NONESSENTIAL PERSONNEL EVACUATE TO SHELTER AREAS OF THE STATION IMMEDIATELY. EVACUATION . . . “
Devil’s Gate Station was built into and around an iron-nickel asteroid nearly five kilometers across circling a hot blue B-type star. Part of the object supplied the ore smelters in Trojan orbit, while the deep heart of the asteroid provided a haven in emergencies.
The sudden loss of signal on one hyperspace beacon constituted an emergency.
Meredith resolutely shut out the klaxon’s blare and the deep, penetrating voice of the station’s emergency announcement and followed Fuji as the pair joined up with other members of the Kiss Me in the Dark’s crew and other merchanter furs running for the most heavily armored and shielded interior portion of the station. The bull was about her height but more heavily built, and she let him clear a path for her.
Station personnel not engaged in running Devil’s Gate’s defensive arrays shepherded the crews into the shelter while the various captains started calling out to their people, trying to get accurate headcounts.
The captains were summoning their people by shouting the names of their ships.
“Fox Winning!”
“Exciter!”
“Lailin!”
“al-Qudum!”
“Eltingham!”
“Kiss Me in the Dark! Here!” the mare shouted. Meredith started to call out again when a stallion she didn’t recognize suddenly kissed her.
Startled, she took a step backward, wiping at her face with a paw. “What the fuck?!” she yelped.
He was clearly drunk. “Ain’t that what you wanted? You’re pretty . . . “
The golden palomino mare slapped him across the muzzle hard enough to spin him around, and she sent him on his way with a hoof applied to his backside. She turned away as his shipmates caught him before he could face-plant on the deck, muttering angrily, “So help me, I’m changing the name first chance I get . . . “
She started calling out names, and one by one her crew separated from the press of bodies and gathered around her. Only after they were all accounted for did she finally relax.
A vixen in the uniform of a member of the station staff tapped her headset, and an attention signal echoed throughout the room. Everyone gradually quieted and she announced, “We’ve had a beacon destroyed, and your escorts and our forces are moving to intercept whatever’s doing – “
“Fucking Confedders,” a lion sporting a magenta and gold-dyed Mohawk cut to his mane snarled, and there was a murmur of agreement.
The vixen motioned for quiet again. “There wasn’t time to get you all out to your ships, but the station’s leadership pledges that they’ll do what we can to protect your ships and cargoes. We’ve got the map relayed to these,” and an array of monitors mounted on the walls stopped showing advertisements and began displaying the station’s position and the disposition of the defending ships, “and you have access to dormitory space and consumables.”
“How long are we going to be here?” another vixen asked.
The staffer sighed, her brush snapping back and forth. “If I knew, I’d tell you. It’s not a good situation, but based on reports we’ve been getting from Colonial MilComm the Confed’s not attacking stations or planets directly.” She tried a smile. “I’d say we hope you enjoy your stay, but that’d be a fucking lie, wouldn’t it?” The vixen and the other staff members left the room, and the heavy blast doors cycled closed.
Meredith scowled. “Okay. Jax?” The rat cocked his ears toward her. “We need – “ She turned as someone tapped her on the shoulder.
Her head snapped to the left as a roe deer doe slapped her across the face. Meredith shook it off, as the doe didn’t hit her very hard, and she’d had to reach up to hit the palomino mare. “What was that for?” she said indignantly.
The doe, whose jumpsuit sported an embroidered patch showing a generic silhouette surrounded by seven stars, asked, “Did you hit one of my crew?” Meredith looked over and past her to see the stallion she’d slapped standing about two meters further back.
The mare’s tail hiked slightly and her nostrils flared.
She looked down at the doe. “Yeah, I did.”
“Why?”
She could sense her crew starting to take an interest. “The drunk idiot kissed me.”
The doe’s eyes widened and her ears went flat to either side. “Excuse me.” She whirled, took two steps, and yelled “Karim!”
The stallion flinched and his ears went back. “Yes, Latif?”
“Don’t ‘Latif’ me. Did you kiss her?”
“Yes.” He flinched as she took another step toward him. “She asked me to!”
Latif looked back at Meredith, who said, “My ship’s named Kiss Me in the Dark.”
“Stupid name.”
The mare nodded. “I’m not the one who named it, and it’s going to be changed.” She held up a paw. “Not his fault. I smelled booze on his breath.”
Latif gave her a sour look. “Yeah, he’s not a bad husband, until he’s had a few.” She gave Meredith a long, measuring look before extending a paw. “Mendhi Latif, Qixing, Seven Stars Shipping.”
The palomino mare took it. “Meredith d’Estcourt, you already know my ship. Transcosm,” she added, gesturing at her shirt.
“Oh yeah. You were the one who ran a blazer on that Confedder. You really twine tails?” Meredith nodded, and received a grudging nod in reply. “Not my cup chai, you know what I mean, no offense?” The mare shook her head and the two smiled at each other.
Leaving the doe to work out her marital issues, Meredith turned and nearly took a step back, surprised to see Fuji standing right behind her. The Komodo monitor gave her a coy look and said, “If we get married, I hope you won’t feel like beating me.”
Meredith winked. “Depends on what needs to be beaten.” A sudden giggle, and they turned to see Ginny making jerking motions with her fist as the rest of the crew snickered. Elroy rolled his eyes at his wife’s antics.
“Hey, everyone, Jax said, and the rat pointed at one of the screens. “Look.” The word spread like ripples in a pond, and soon all of the various crews were watching as the battle unfolded.
Hammer and its companion ships were doing a creditable job holding off repeated attacks on the cargo ships they’d been convoying, while the station’s defense craft were doing the same job. “Have they done their parlor trick yet?” Hui asked.
Burton put a paw to his chin. “Haven’t seen it yet.”
“’Parlor trick?’” someone from another ship asked.
Hui grinned. “The station gets a lot of its power from the local star.” The femme nodded and the bear said, “The collector farm converts the light to microwaves and beams it to the station and the factories. But,” and his smile turned nasty, “what if you point that at a ship?”
The femme caught on immediately and grinned.
The Confed force had no ship larger than Hammer, but after inflicting as much damage as possible, the Terran ships broke off the attack and inphased, leaving behind three of their number as expanding clouds of debris and a fourth holed and drifting. Five station and Colonial ships had been destroyed, and the Hammer itself had been badly damaged.
Alert warnings sounded as the Confed ships returned, followed by an echelon of Kashlanin ships. Cheers rose from several ships’ crews as the remaining Colonial ships rallied.
Caught between the two forces, the Confed group was destroyed or disabled.
The cheers died down as the station began displaying its assessments of the various cargo ships. Scattered groans or cheers heralded whether a ship had been damaged or destroyed, or had been left intact by the battle.
Meredith scanned the list, running a finger down the screen as her crew crowded around her, and with a sinking heart she read:
TCS-1257 KISS ME IN THE DARK TRANSCOSM DAMAGED
Category Story / General Furry Art
Species Horse
Size 74 x 120px
File Size 47.8 kB
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