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Reunion: Chapter 23

Adrian didn't quite believe it a first when he saw him. He had to run his eyes, blink and then check again to make sure that he hadn't gone insane. Even when he was certain that it was in fact what he thought it was, he still didn't think it was possible. He had seen nothing but humans serving in the military. There was nothing but humans in uniform back on Mars. The military was very speciest about who got to serve and yet there was now a Canis in a naval uniform looking at his arm.

The corpsman cut away the makeshift bandage after having Adrian lay back on the gurney. He shaved around the wound that was starting to fester with infection. A small application of medigel along with a fresh set of bandages would prevent further infection along with a shot that was given without warning to Adrian's arm.

The corpsman worked efficiently. His fingers meticulously worked everything like a small show while he wordlessly chewed on a toothpick. He finished taping the end of the bandage around his patient's arm and then stepped back.

"There. Good as new." He smiled, admiring his handiwork and then leaving as quickly as he had shown up when the Captain had called for him. He went back to the mess which had been turned into a makeshift hospital where all of the injured from the battle earlier were being brought to. It wasn't many since the Silver Wolf wasn't the primary target, but enough that all the wounded couldn't be fitted in the ship's small infirmary.

Adrian watched the Canis leave. In the few minutes that he had been there, he had seen four other Canis walk by the door to the infirmary. One was carrying a box with a warning label on it. Another was carrying a weapon and was in full combat gear. He looked a little disappointed. The other two were talking with each other as they went by. All were in uniforms.

"How many Canis do you have on your crew?" Adrian asked Captain Riesha, who was waiting in the back corner of the room where he was reading a pamphlet about STDs.

'Wear protection when in port,' It said on the front cover and had a picture of a man that was way too happy for his own good. He had his thumbs up, and several condom packets in his hand.

"This ship carries four-hundred-and-thirteen souls." Captain Riesha put away the pamphlet and sat on the edge of Adrian's gurney. "Of those, eighty-seven are Canis."

That was a much larger percentage that what Adrian would have guessed. However, only minutes ago, he would have guessed zero. Even Dog was surprised. He hadn't heard of Canis serving in the military after the Dominion took power and implemented their new laws. Crane was still in his set of hard drives that were in the bag at the foot of the gurney. He would need to be downloaded somewhere soon.

"I can see that you're surprised." Captain Riesha successfully guessed. He looked down and picked at some dirt under his fingernails. "Most people are. I take it that you've never been beyond the asteroid belt."

"No," Adrian answered and sat himself up. The gurney wasn't very comfortably with absolutely no support for the Canis' sore everything. "Kind of hard for a Canis to get anywhere. Not long ago, I had never left Mars before. The Dominion has strangled us." Adrian caught the Captain's eye for a moment and then looked away. "Though, you would already know that."

"I do," Captain Riesha nodded. "Everyone is aware of how the Dominion treats Canis. But that's the thing, not everyone is Dominion or supports them. Thier sphere of influence dies beyond the asteroid belt, and their laws aren't so heavily enforced, so it's easier for more idealistic people to hire and recruit Canis."

Adrian listened carefully as the Captain explained more about the political situation. Both he and Dog were shocked to learn that Dominion power had been waning in recent years. Thier popularity was down everywhere but Mar, Venus and their satellites. Beyond the asteroid belt, there was a split in power. The Dominion tried to maintain control, but were stretched too thin and no longer could rely on the Navy since many high ranking officials were empathetic to the Canis, going as far as lifting all restrictions on them and then relying on the Navy to keep the Dominion's personal fleet away.

It hadn't come to civil war, but tensions had been tight for some time, and the Dominion was keeping a tight hold on all information going to their few loyal spots to prevent word of their loss of power from spreading. So far it worked, the population of Mars and Venus were blissfully unaware that thier government was slipping away.

The split was the main reason why the Dominion had to up thier recruiting program and begin forcibly conscripting Canis. They couldn't get support from the regular military to devote troops and ships. Most of the preparations were being funded directly from Dominion coffers. The reason as to why the Dominion was bulking up thier forces was still a mystery.

Adrian began to warm up the Captain Riesha, even going as far as calling him, Tony. They traded stories, and Adrian demonstrated his abilities by moving several objects around the infirmary, much to the dismay of the corpsman who had everything perfectly organized. He immediately kicked them, both Adrian and the Captain. With respect of course.

Captain Riesha took Adrian to gear issue and got him a fresh set of clothes. A single piece jumpsuit meant for Canis mechanics with the extra space in the chest and legs needed for Canis. It was the first piece of clothes that Adrian had which also fit in some time. Most of the clothes he had back on Mars had been scavenged and were meant for humans. It fit him like a glove, and he found that he could make a sling by undoing a button on the sleeve and then clasping his sleeve to his chest. It was unorthodox, but it took some of the weight off his bad arm.

Captain Riesha then began to give Adrian a tour of the ship while he waited for them to arrive at the rendezvous point and take Vice Admiral Vaslow and Captain Sylvester onboard. They would have many questions that hopefully could be answered for them all. He was still wondering what his father had dragged him into. Was this the start of a coup to overthrow the Dominion. He was no fan of the Dominion and unrest had been on the rise, but he hadn't even heard of rumors about such an act.

Whatever the reasons for dragging him out and away from his station and having him branded as a traitor, Captain Riesha was part of it now, and he had the Canis that everyone wanted, the least he could do was make Adrian feel more at ease. The Canis had been through a lot. Adrian told him much, starting all the way back from Mars when the conscriptions began, to how he was captured, escaped, landed on Earth, shot and then escaped again. It was an incredible journey for one to make alone.

Adrian kept details about both Dog and Crane to a minimum at the behest of Dog, who wanted to ensure they still had some cards to play. Dog saw that there was going to be bargaining in the future. People didn't come out of nowhere and attack the Dominion out of the kindness of thier heart. They wanted something in return. Most likely Crane since that annoying being was the most powerful computer program known to man. Crane could do anything, and that was a powerful asset to have. Best keep some things secret until later.

Captain Riesha was as hospitable as he could. He didn't know what was going to happen next, but he was aware that this Canis would be important later, and the way that he was keeping track of that bag of his made him wonder what was in it and if it was important. He had plenty of time to spare. The Spirit of November had taken longer than expected to retrieve all of the survivors and on top of transit time, it was going to be several hours before the two other officers would be arriving.

The Captain took Adrian from the front end of the ship all the way to the back where the engines were. The crew was very friendly. Mostly because he was with the Captain, but also because they knew that Adrian had been attacked by the Dominion, which was not popular aboard the ship, even before they had gone AWOL. The Dominion was seen as an outside force trying to push thier laws and beliefs onto them. Almost of the people beyond the asteroid belt just wanted to live their lives in peace. Not to be disturbed by some political party that wanted to take away neighbors, friends, thier children's playmate just because they were different. It didn't sit well.

Eventually, they got back to the bridge where Commander Von was. Von wasn't in the command chair even though he was authorized to use it when the Captain wasn't around. He stood in front of it, behind it, to the side, he just didn't' sit down in the chair. When Riesha had asked why? Von merely stated that it didn't feel right to sit in the command chair. It belonged to the Captain, even when not present.

Riesha left it at that. It was no big issue.

"This is Commander Von. My first mate. As you can see, he's Canis as well." Riesha introduced the two Canis together.

"You must be Adrian," Von said. "Your name is all over internal chatter. The good Captain has been parading you around hasn't he?"

"A bit," Adrian said, tail wagging. Everything was great now. No one was shooting at him or swearing revenge about old blood feuds. He felt like he could relax. Even Dog wasn't as alert as he had been for the first half hour aboard the ship. "I don't mind. The ship is amazing. I've never been on one so big before."

"Well, they get bigger." Captain Riesha chuckled and went over to his seat; small grooves ingrained into the white leather to match his ass perfectly. No one else had ever sat at there before. If Von refused, then no one of lower rank than him would sit there either. "There used to be ships called Dreadnaughts. Massive things they were." Riesha outstretched his arms over his head as if it could possibly help the Adrian, who had no idea of what a big ship was, comprehend it better. Not even Dog could really give any information on it, the only person in the past who may have any idea of how large such a ship would be would have been Anderson, but he had never been on one either.

"Adrian." Commander Von said. He was a right down to business kind of person. A perfect match for Riesha's more relaxed mood and attitude. "Why was the Dominion after you. It's not often that they send one of their newer model ships to hunt for one person."

Adrian instantly became nervous, his tail tucking slightly. He didn't know just how much information he should share. If he should talk about his heritage or about Crane, his psionics, anything. How would he tell them? There was a desperate urge to cry and beg for help rising in him, and he could feel a swell in his chest that would become an outburst of emotion. He had been alone for so long. Sure there was Dog, but Dog almost just felt like another part of him instead of a separate entity.

"Are you alright?" Riesha asked. Being around so many Canis for a long time had made most humans aboard the ship experts at reading body language. With the extra flexibility and the additional appendage sprouting out thier rears, Canis were more expressive of their emotions through body language than humans. The folded ears and tucked tail was all that Riesha needed to see to know that Adrian was getting antsy. "You don't have to answer if you don't want." He got up and slowly took Adrian's arm and sat him down in his chair.

"Yeah sorry." Adrian took a deep breath, still feeling panicky. To tell, or not to tell. Spilling his guts felt easy. He could just let everything off his chest. "It's complicated." He rested his face in his palms before sliding his hands down his face, smoothing out his fur.

"I imagine." Captain Riesha stayed with Adrian. Von, on the other hand, noticed that some of the bridge crew had stopped working to see what was going on. The Canis quickly left to settle that.

Adrian consulted with Dog.

"I want to tell them." He said in his head where at least he was safe from eavesdropping. Not even another Reader would be able to get in. Dog made sure of that and at times would even bring up images of a sign that read 'BEWARE OF DOG.' The joke went over Adrian's head, the sign being from a time even before the Dominion.

"I don't know," Dog replied with a growl. "They are nice, and my first impressions are good. I'm still weary about their intentions. They want something or maybe thier boss. This Captain doesn't seem to know anything. Every time you get a read on him; it comes up with nothing, and I wouldn't even touch his first mate. He's a Scrambler. Don't ever try and get in thier heads. They'll hit you back hard."

"I've never met a Scrambler." Adrian thought back. He had met plenty of the other psionics that existed, but not a Scrambler."

"Good thing. The best way to describe them is as a failed Reader. Instead of gleaning information from the mind harmlessly like you do. They grab the mind and tear it to shreds. They could turn a man into a carrot if they wanted to. I suggest not pissing him off." He directed Adrian's eyes to glance quickly at the Canis that was patrolling around the workstations with his hands behind his back. He kept a straight posture and an expressionless face that spoke 'No Bullshit.'

"May not be easy if I don't tell them anything." The Canis had been upfront with his question. "You were fast to trust Crane, why not these people?"

Dog could only chuckle. Only if Adrian knew everything about his past lives. Dog would share it all if he could, but it was too much for one mind to handle. "There are reasons to why I trust Crane. Reasons that I'll be more than happy to share whenever we have a few days, but not now."

It was then that Commander Von came back.

"Sir." He said, somehow sounding more serious than before. "Transmission from the Spirit of November. It seems urgent."

Riesha gave a worried glance to Adrian before looking back to Von. "Go ahead and put them through."

A quick command and a few moments to hit the right buttons and the massive screen at the front of the bridge flickered. The image of star lines quickly turned to one of an older woman with red hair tied in a tight bun and deep worry lines appeared.

"Vice Admiral Vaslow." Captain Riesha greeted the Admiral.

"Captain Riesha." She gave a quick nod and looked at the place that she expected to see him. Instead, she looked directly at Adrian in the command chair. She was about to say something, but caught herself and instead spoke about what she was originally going to say. "I'm sending over new rendezvous coordinates."

"May I ask why?" Captain Riesha put himself in the line of sight between the Admiral and Adrian so that he became the center of attention and not Adrian. "My nor I have any idea what is really going on. I'm doing this because my father sent me here. I need to know what's happening before I can begin moving my ship again and potentially endangering my crew." Said crew was now looking up at the Admiral expectantly.

She sighed. "Well, I was going to wait until the rendezvous so we could all talk face to face, but this will do if you insist." She cleared her throat. "This is going to be a coup. Plain and simple, the final objective is to overthrow the Dominion." She folded her hands in front of her, and a Canis appeared behind her.

"Captain Riesha."

"Captain Sylvester." Riesha acknowledged the Captain of the Spirit of November. He had been expecting the Canis. He was always close to the Admiral. He was to her as Von was to him. The Canis stayed in the background, not saying anything else.

Admiral Vaslow cleared her throat. "There's always been resistance to Dominion rule for some time. Years ago, it was an outspoken group led by a Canis back on Mars. She took her people to Earth, claiming that she had a way to stop the Dominion there. Sadly, the Dominion intercepted them, killing most of them right there. The survivors fled and hid, keeping the resistance alive. I personally never expected the day to come when you father would give me a call me in the middle of the night and tell me to move my ass into gear and go to Earth to pick up a Canis with a package vital to the cause."

Adrian looked down at the bag with Crane's hard drives for a moment.

"Not a lot of people know about the history of our little crusade here, but there are enough angry people in charge of big ships like the ones were in that we have the capability to finally bring down the Dominion. I'll explain more later, but this is a very summarized version."

Captain Adrian scratched his chin, absorbing everything that he had just heard. "I understand now. I'll meet you at the new coordinates and if you don't mind answering one more thing? Why the change in rendezvous?"

The Admiral's eyes narrowed, and she shifted her position slightly. It was both good news and bad news. "You know of the Dominion fleet that had been massing up?"

"Who doesn't? It's hard to hide the movement of that many ships. Practically half of the Dominion's ships." Riesha had been keeping track of it along with many of his peers. The Dominion was keeping something a secret, and it scared him when secrets involved enough ships to incinerate a planet's surface.

"I had a contact in the fleet. Someone I trusted to feed me information. He informed me that all of the conscripted Canis from past year were being brought there along with massive amounts of military hardware. He couldn't figure out the exact reasons for this. I just lost contact with him."

"Were we to expect a welcoming party at the previous rendezvous, ma'am?" Commander Von asked.

She shook her head. "I didn't lose contact because he was caught and was compromised. Contact was lost because the fleet jumped away. They jumped somewhere. Whatever they were planning to do, they're doing it, and we need to take advantage of their reduced strength as soon as possible."