What’s in a Name?
© 2020 by Walter Reimer


Thumbnail art by  ahro


“Captain d’Estcourt?” Meredith paused at the airlock connecting the Kiss Me in the Dark to the mooring buoy. The wolverine in the Transcosm jumpsuit smiled when the mare nodded. “I’m Salverez. Me and my partner Kifr are here to fly you down to your meeting.” A fox poked his head out of the lock near her hooves and grinned up at her.

The golden palomino mare found their good humor reassuring, and she smiled back before gesturing to Salverez. “After you,” she said, and the wolverine moved to the hatchway. As soon as he was clear she planted her hooves on the rungs and followed him down.

The buoy had its own artigrav, supplying a common sense of up and down for all three ships. The shuttle was a small executive model, with room for only six passengers and very well-appointed. “Have a seat, Ma’am,” Salverez said, and while Meredith found a comfortable chair by a window the wolverine took his seat beside Kifr. There was a soft noise and a hiss as the hatches sealed and the shuttle pressurized.

Meredith sat back and tried to relax as the two mels up forward chatted with Traffic Control and undocked from the buoy. The shuttle drifted ‘down’ and away from the two docked freighters.

The mare caught herself gazing at the Kiss Me in the Dark until the shuttle swung away from the mooring buoy and began moving toward the planet. For the briefest of moments, she thought that it was a shame that she and the crew were abandoning the old freighter before dismissing the thought. Parting with a place wasn’t a cause for distress, as opposed to parting with friends or family.

The wolverine and fox were both seasoned pilots; the craft deorbited and descended without any trouble at all. Of course, the shuttle was designed for harder maneuvers, but the important passengers they usually carried expected a certain degree of comfort.

Transcosm’s headquarters was a complex of four buildings, and the shuttle came to rest on artigrav on the tallest building’s rooftop pad. Kifr looked out of the cabin as Meredith got to her hooves. “Thanks for the smooth ride, both of you,” she said with a smile.

“Hey, no rough,” the fox said. “You’re a hero, you know.”

Her smile faded into a frown so deep that a shlan would wonder what had made her so happy. “No, I’m not,” she declared. “If anything, my crew is – and we were cornered into fighting.”

Kifr nodded, his ears laying back at her expression and tone. “Sorry.” He glanced back at his console. “Have a good day, Captain,” and he ducked back into the relative safety of the cockpit as the doors cycled open and Meredith took a deep breath of the planet’s air.

God’s Armpit smelled – well, not necessarily better, but different. The mare steeled herself and stepped out into the sunlight.

A buck kangaroo wearing a tan and red checkered suit stepped into the landing circle. “Captain d’Estcourt? I’m Lavrent Khosrau, the chief executive officer.” He smiled and offered a paw.

Meredith matched the smile and shook paws with him. “Pleased to meet you in person, Khosrau-jih.” After shaking paws, the buck gestured for her to accompany him to the waiting elevator. “This is a little unusual, isn’t it?” she asked as they stepped inside.

“What?” Khosrau asked as the lift descended.

“Calling me here to take over a new ship.”

The buck’s ears swiveled. “Ah, I see. No, it’s standard procedure, really. The ship was built in our yards here in the system. You take command of the new ship, and the old one gets towed to the yards to be broken up.”

Meredith nodded, despite the slight pang at the thought of her ship getting scrapped. “That makes a great deal of sense,” she remarked as the lift stopped. They headed down a short corridor and into an office where two more furs dressed in suits, a bovine mel and a thin canine femme, sat waiting. Each seat had a small table beside it, and there was an empty chair for Meredith.

Khosrau settled behind his desk as the golden palomino mare sat down. “Captain Meredith d’Estcourt, these are Xin Renmin, head of our operations division,” and the bull nodded, “and Faradzai Lisa.” The saluki gave the mare a friendly smile, “with Personnel.”

“Pleased to meet both of you,” Meredith said.

“Well, we’ll get to business,” Faradzai said. “If you’ll please open up your padd, Captain, you’ll find the transfer paperwork ready for your signature. Have you decided on a new name yet, or will you still call the ship the Kiss Me in the Dark?” She tried and failed to suppress her smile at the name.

Meredith laughed as she finished unfolding her padd and touching the contact that turned it into a rigid plane. “I will be entering a new name, Faradzai-jih, but I have a few questions first. Who gave it its original name?”

“Its original captain,” Xin replied. “She retired some twenty years ago.”

Meredith nodded. “And the ship is faster than the Kiss Me?”

“Sixty percent faster, and the engines are twenty-percent more efficient.” The mare’s ears flicked and the bull grinned. “The new designs are great. I hope, though, that you don’t plan on taking it into battle.”

The mare shook her head emphatically. “I got forced into having to fight that Confed ship,” she said, “and it was Deus’ own favor that kept us from getting killed. I don’t plan on getting in any more fights, even with a new ship that is armed.” Meredith smiled to take some of the sting out of her words. “Transcosm’s in the business of making money, not war, isn’t it?”

Khosrau laughed. “Quite right. So, take your time and look over your contract.”

She had already reviewed the high points on the trip to God’s Armpit, and reading through the final version merely confirmed the terms she’d seen. Higher pay for everyone, increased bonuses for on-time or early shipments . . . there were only two blanks on the document, the ship’s name, and hers.

She’d had plenty of time to think of an appropriate name for the new ship, dispensing with anything suggestive or belligerent.

Now, it came to her and she wrote it in quickly, and followed it up with her name and thumbprint. The three company heads looked a little surprised at the speed with which the completed contract appeared on their padds.

“Well!” Khosrau said. “An interesting choice of name, Captain d’Estcourt. Operations will put it on the hull, if you like.”

“Maybe later, Khosrau-jih. I still have to transfer my effects, and we’ll get started on getting used to the new ship.”

“Great,” Xin said. “I think you’ll like this new design.”

Faradzai added, “And your leave will begin after you’ve approved the ship for flight.”

“Thank you all, very much,” and Meredith folded up her padd and shook paws with all three before leaving the office and heading back up to the shuttle’s landing platform.

The trip back up to the mooring buoy was smooth, and after thanking them for the flight Meredith started to climb up into the buoy’s lock, but flinched backward as a pair of her crew went past with something heavy carried between them. “Hey!” she said.

“Oh, hi Captain,” one of the handlers said. “Sorry about that.”

“Just watch where you’re going, please,” she said, and went into the Kiss Me to pack.

She had her carryall and three empty boxes allocated for all of her belongings, but she ended up using only the bag and two cases. It was a holdover from her time in the Navy, where crew space was more at a premium. The mare glanced up when she saw Jax standing at the threshold. “Yeah, Jax?”

The rat swished his tail. “We’re on batteries and external power,” he reported, “and all data files have been scanned and transferred.”

“Good. No problems?”

He shook his head and smiled. “Everything’s been moved. You and I are the only ones still aboard.” He looked at the boxes. “Need a bit of help with that?”

“No, I’ve got it,” she said. “Do me a favor, though?”

“Sure.”

“Have everyone gather in the dining area on the new ship, and get a headcount to make sure that no one’s still over here.” She winked. “I have an announcement.”

His ears flicked. “A new name?”

“Yeah.”

He sketched a salute with his right paw. “All right, Captain,” and he left.

Someone had dialed the artigrav down to about three-quarters, making moving a lot easier. The carryall was slung across her back and she gave her quarters another look before picking up the boxes and carrying them out. The Kiss Me in the Dark’s airlock door closed behind her as she left the ship.

The interior of the new freighter was done in soft, antiseptic white; it could be colored depended on the crew’s tastes. Her new quarters were larger, and to her pleasure she actually had a window to look out of. Of course, there was literally nothing to see when the ship was in hyperspace, but it would be nice when they were in orbit around a station or planet.

She thought of unpacking, but dismissed the idea. She had an announcement to make, so she headed to the dining area.

Fuji was standing by the door, and the Komodo monitor winked at her as she entered. The others all looked at her expectantly as Jax said, “All crew present and accounted for, Captain.”

“Thank you, Jax.” She smiled at the others. “Everyone settling in all right?” Several nodded, and the mare said, “Good. I want to let you all know that I’ve completed the transfer paperwork. This tub’s ours, now.”

Vinzen Garry put up a paw. “Same name, Boss?” the Scottish Fold asked.

“No,” Meredith said flatly. “The ship’s new name is A Quiet Life.”

There was a pause as it sank in.

Jemel Fikset said, “Sounds like a prayer, almost.”

Meredith nodded.