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Chapter One

**The Caliphate of Procyon

Procyon VIIc (New Home), Surface

New Home Military Prison**

May 15, 2550 CE

The rubber ball bounced off the concrete wall, then the floor, and Azukhannja caught it as bounced back to him. It took some doing, as the staff of the prison weren't keen on giving him anything, but he managed to get the ball a few weeks ago. It served to alleviate some of the boredom of being on a twenty-hour lockdown every day, only getting out for meals and a short time outside for exercise. Azuk, however, opted to remain inside in the fitness rooms as opposed to going outside. Simply put, he's built for tropical climates, not the tundra.

Procyon VIIc, or New Home as its better known, is the Caliphate's only extraterrestrial colony. Procyon VIIc is a cold, though habitable, planet around the gas giant of Procyon VII. It had been settled centuries ago, shortly before the Alliance contact with the Tesgno. After contact and after the first settlements were established, it became a testbed of colonization technologies due to the varied climates compared to the homeworld. Had the Alliance not interfered a few decades, the Tesgno would have had interstellar colonies. The Alliance though told them that if they wanted full Alliance membership, they couldn't colonize worlds independently.

But that, too, is the reason that Azuk found himself in a military prison for the last three years. After the incident with the alien ship, the military chose to put him on trial for his handling of the contact. They apparently weren't happy with him firing on the ship instead of, apparently, letting himself get destroyed without resistance. The trial though was just a show. The Alliance had interfered in with that too, and Azuk was sentenced to fifteen years in a military prison on New Home for breaking Alliance first contact protocols by a tribunal of Alliance Navy officers.

Despite being stuck here for the last three years, Azuk was still fine with some degree of routine that he maintained. Three meals a day, even if they were small and very low quality, and an hour for exercise. Rarely did he go outside. The location of the prison on the planet's ice cap meant that it was too damned cold to do so regularly. The arctic Tesgno and some of the, very rare, humans imprisoned appeared to enjoy or at least tolerate the cold.

Because it's a military prison, the fact that everyone had been in service meant that there is some sort of camaraderie even though quite a few are on death row. A constant that Azuk found is that those imprisoned here are due to breaches in Alliance military protocols and law, as opposed to the standard Tesgno protocols. It stopped being a major concern after the first few months, by which time Azuk had gotten used to the isolation and chose not to concern himself with matters outside the cell or his own sentence.

"Tulrikvah." One of the guards said from the door of his cell. Azuk only knew it was a guard, but not their name, because they had been here as long as Azuk has been. "You have visitors."

That was new. In the last three years, no one ever visited. The fact he used a plural was also interesting. Azuk caught the ball as it bounced back to him, then set it down on the bed. He stood up and approached the door of the cell with both hands shown and empty. He learned very early that obscuring the hands usually followed with some form of punishment and then a search of the cell. He had nothing to hide, and therefore there was no reason to let the guard assume he had anything.

The guard opened the door and waved Azuk forward. With a few steps, Azuk stepped out of the cell into the square cellblock. Two floors high, shaped as a square, with ten cells to a side on each level, the whole block could hold about 80 prisoners. Only about half of those are full right now. At the very center is a two-floor security room that could view every cell from the second floor, and then a common area on the bottom. Only one exit led from the block into the rest of the prison. Another exit led into the outside yard for the block.

Without putting any handcuffs on him, the guard pulled Azuk by the upper arm through the cell block. Azuk found that, apparently, the prison's security protocol meant no restraints for low threat prisoners. He had no intention to run or fight, so he let the guard pull him through the blocks to the exit. The guard in the security room unlocked the doors, and then they proceeded through the halls into the central area of the prison.

After spending several minutes weaving through the halls, the guard eventually brought Azuk to the visitation room, setting him down at one of the several benches, where he was told to wait and the visitors would be brought in. It took another few minutes before another Tesgno - which Azuk immediately recognized as Rahimi when he took a closer look - accompanied by a human in a business suit. Both of them took a seat across from Azuk.

"Good to see you're still doing well." Azuk said to Rahimi, only slightly masking his annoyance. She stayed out of prison because her family pulled some strings and kept her safe from prosecution, in exchange for everything fall on Azuk instead. "So what brings you here? Did you feel like gawking at the scapegoat? I doubt you're here to apologize."

Rahimi looked down to the table, not daring to make eye contact with Azuk. "I had an offer for you. Rather, this gentleman did."

"Indeed." The human said in Terran Common. Azuk's translation immediately set to work for him. "I am coming here on behalf of Omniwatch Corporation. Missus Rahimi was kind enough to mention your name. As you know, we just came out of a war-"

Azuk stopped him there. "War?"

"Yes, a war. I suppose you wouldn't have heard." The human said. "The Brakian government decided to begin a seizure of corporate assets. It wasn't well received by the companies, and peace attempts led to open warfare in the Chara System. Heavy losses were sustained on both sides. As such, we're looking to expand our naval aviation forces. Your name came up."

With only a tilt of the head, Azuk processed the idea of a war between corporations. He knew all too well of Earth's companies and their history of warfare, but the idea that they'd fight with a government even now was unusual. It's even more unusual that they'd try to recruit him, but Azuk thought he understood the why of choosing him. Given the trial he had, Omniwatch assumed he had few to no loyalties to the Caliphate left.

They'd be right.

"What's the offer then?"

"It'd be conditional. It just so happens that Omniwatch has been contracted by the Alliance to investigate several unusual signals that appeared to be leading toward the galactic rim. Or at least out of local space." The human said. "It'd be a contract that has you placed onto an Omniwatch ship for the duration of the mission. If your performance is adequate, then you'll be offered an actual contract of employment."

"And you intend to break me out of prison how?" Azuk asked, leaning in and dropping his voice a bit.

"Already been cleared, if you accept." The human paused to smile slightly. "Of course, if your performance isn't adequate then you'll return here to finish your sentence. But, nonetheless, you'll receive the payment for services rendered, available upon release."

"And if I were to say no?" Azuk asked.

"Then I thank you for your time and we go our separate ways." The human said.

Azuk looked around at the guards, then past them at the grey concrete walls that seemed so normal for the last several years. "Fine. I'll do it. Sounds better than being stuck here."

"Good. Your release will be cleared within the hour and we'll have a driver to pick you up." The human said while standing up. "You'll get a proper briefing when you arrive."

While the human left, Rahimi stood up but stood. "You're making the right choice."

"Go away." Azuk said, staring at her.

Once Rahimi was gone, Azuk stood up and motioned to the guard that brought him in to signify he was done, if it weren't already obvious.

New Home Spaceport

As the human said, the release was cleared within the hour, and a driver was waiting when he stepped out of the prison. It was still a long drive from the prison into the planet's capital. Several hours passed in total silence as Azuk sat in the back of the car and waited. When it finally arrived at the spaceport, the Omniwatch vessel dominated the landing pads. It didn't surprise him when the car stopped at the bottom of the ramp.

From what he recalled of the old intelligence briefings he got as part of the PDF, this particular Omniwatch ship appeared to be one of their light cruiser models. From the same briefings, he knew that some models carried small craft. Given that he's being pulled into the corporation for some mission, Azuk figured that it was safe to assume this ship is one of those models. As the car drove closer, he could see the covered bays that would house the craft.

The car came to a stop in front of the lowered ramp underneath the cruiser. Azuk took that as his hint to leave. He grabbed the bag of a few belongings he had while in prison and then climbed out of the car. After sitting in the relatively warm car, the cold air of the tundra made Azuk shiver as he started toward the ramp. As soon as he did so, he caught a glimpse of an armed human Omniwatch soldier approaching, with a hand extended.

"Hold. Ship's restricted. If you're coming aboard, I need your paperwork." The soldier said in Terran Common.

"I don't have paperwork." Azuk said as he came to a stop. He saw the plasma rifle and didn't want to be on the wrong side of that.

"You're the... prisoner?" The soldier asked. Despite the language barrier, the disgust in that word remained evident in even the translation.

"I suppose so." Azuk said. Being 'the prisoner' wasn't a name he was going to enjoy, but he supposed he should have expected as much.

The soldier removed a datapad from a pouch on his hip and tapped on it. Several minutes of silence between Azuk and the soldier continued before the soldier dropped the pad back into the pouch. "Alright, it matches up. Follow me, closely. I'll lead you to your cabin."

Azuk gave a quick nod and moved up the ramp. The soldier still watched him a moment before turning around and walking into the ship. The ramp led into the cargo bay of the ship. Azuk immediately saw dozens of different boxes stacked all around the room. He assumed most were probably food and other supplies. If they were following alien signals, it meant that they were likely going into uncharted space. Anyone else would have responded to the inhabited systems, and the human said that Omniwatch was contracted to do this.

Through the ship, Azuk got several glances as he passed by. He noted the uniforms first, with the black and gold colors, but then the fact that the vast majority of the crew were human. He also knew he should have expected as much, knowing that Omniwatch tended to avoid hiring the non-human species. It took several minutes, up and down staircases, before the soldier stopped at a door among many others. Unlike the PDF ships, Azuk noticed the living quarters of the cruiser had some amenities and luxury. Carpets covered the floors, most notably.

"This is your cabin. You'll receive your new orders on the datapad inside." The soldier said as he tapped the code into the door and it slid open. "Your temporary ID is inside as well and will unlock the door. We'll be departing shortly, but you won't be called on until we make the first jump. I'd recommend settling in and then learning the ship."

Azuk said nothing as he walked past the soldier into the cabin, hitting a button and closing the door behind him. He only guessed the door button, and was somewhat amused by hitting the right one. Inside though he found the cabin to be very small. At a quick glance he guessed it had to be smaller than the cell he was just pulled out of. There was room only for the cot and a small desk, plus a tiny shower and bathroom area in the back. A small closet rested against the wall. On that desk sat the datapad as well as the ID card. Azuk looked over the card, finding his picture already on it. It was odd, but it seemed normal for Omniwatch.

He picked up the datapad and held the power button to turn it on. It took only a minute to boot up, displaying the Omniwatch logo like all Omniwatch electronics. Instead of their normal operating system, it went to what read, at the top, as an internal system. Immediately as it started it opened a program that showed Azuk's employee record as well as multiple links to different things. He hit the one that read 'Assignment'.

The screen immediately changed over to the assignment. It read 'ODV Valiant', but then had the orders below that. He was assigned as just one of the pilots for the onboard squadron. No special rank or title other than Lieutenant. What was different, however, was it also named his craft. He apparently would be flying an 'Omniwatch Prowler Mk. IV Interceptor'. The Prowler was the official name for the Tesgno interceptors like he had flown. It was rarely used, preferring 'interceptor', but Azuk found it interesting. The fact it said 'Omniwatch' though told Azuk that they probably reproduced the interceptors in their own design.

Looking at the fact all of this was up, and the fact that it barely been a few hours, it dawned on Azuk that they had known he'd say yes to the job offer. Immediately he felt a surge of aggravation that they'd presume what he'd do, but it did fade away into acceptance because, ultimately, they were indeed correct. He did have to admit that Omniwatch did know well what he would do. They gave him an opportunity he couldn't logically turn down and they probably knew it.

Azuk set the datapad on the desk then proceeded to go through the rest of the cabin. He noted the closet first. He slid the metal door back and saw four jumpsuits hanging up. If it were as he expected, they were probably made to fit him correctly. To try to confirm that, he pulled one down and held it up in front of him. Just from a glance it was indeed tailored to the Tesgno digigrade physiology, and almost exactly his size. He wouldn't know for sure until he actually put it on.

The ship rumbled more noticeably, and Azuk knew it was probably just launching from the planet now. He hung the jumpsuit back up. He'd change into it once he was actually needed. Azuk closed the closet and then sat down on the bed. Despite everything being a bit smaller, the bed at least was comfortable enough. He also knew in the back of his mind that anything would be better than a two-inch thick mat.

Azuk decided now was as good a time as any to take a nap. He pulled his legs up and laid down on the bed. It must have been to a Terran standard, as his feet just slightly off the far edge of the bed. Still, he only pulled his legs in and got comfortable that way. Sleep came easily on a better bed, especially now that he had a proper job again.

**HR 683 System

ODV Valiant**

May 17

It had taken two days for the Valiant to make its jump from Procyon to HR 683. Close to Procyon, HR 683 was once the prime candidate for Tesgno extrasolar colonization. Two worlds, both relatively cool but about the size of Great Home, were supposed to be the new settlements for the Tesgno only a few decades ago. Instead, the Alliance intervened and told the Caliph at the time that he couldn't settle the planets if he wanted to continue seeking membership in the Alliance. The colonization projects immediately ceased, and the public spoke out against the act only to be silenced by Alliance peacekeepers and Tesgno troops.

Azuk sat in the cockpit of his interceptor as they drifted through space. He had gotten the briefing of the mission the first day. As the human had said in the prison, they were investigating alien signals leading toward the galactic rim. Five systems were noted, and all five would be investigated for anything out of the ordinary. Each scan was estimated to take one or two days, and until then the flight teams would be on external patrol with the cruiser. Out here nothing was expected, but there may yet be pirates for some reason according to the briefing.

The Mark IV interceptor Azuk got, indeed, was a complete reproduction of the Tesgno interceptor he once flew, but built by Omniwatch and with all the relevant upgrades that they could afford. The engines, Azuk noted immediately, were far more powerful, the armor plating thicker, and all the electronics updated to Terran standards. Most of the weaponry was the same. It still carried the 30mm cannon. Instead of a pair of antimatter missiles, Omniwatch managed to equip it with four of them in the hidden bays. The rocket pods, instead of simple HE warheads, had been upgraded to antimatter warheads as well allowing a lighter rocket with even more power than a conventional warhead. New, however, were also graser pods mounted on the inner wings which fired bursts forward, as an alternative to the cannon. The power supply was upgraded to facilitate that as well from a Tesgno fission core to an Alliance standard heavy fusion core.

Yet, despite the upgrades, Azuk was having déjà vu of his last mission in Procyon. He was locked into autopilot with the Valiant holding a formation with the rest of his squadron. Like Procyon, two pilots were out and the other six were inside. Unlike Procyon though Rahimi wasn't his wingman. He specifically asked that she never be put out there with him for the flights. He found it odd it wasn't questioned however, as if they knew why.

The pilot Azuk flew with he had spoken to a bit while aboard the Valiant. The pilot is, like most of the squadron, human. He didn't remember her actual name, but her callsign is Andromeda. From the little they talked, she was born on Earth in the United States. She described her hometown as "a polluted shithole full of criminals", then immediately compared it to Great Home with a laugh. She said that she had joined up with Omniwatch when a recruiter came through when she was 15. Despite being young, she also was alone and was able to sign the contract that got her the rest of her education and then she opted to fly for the company. From there she never stopped it brought her to today.

Of course, she then laughed a bit at Azuk as he told his story right after hers when she asked. Unlike all that, Azuk had grown up in the jungles of Great Home tending to his family's farm. Being the younger of his brothers, and among the weaker ones, he got to fly the family's crop duster. Wanting to go somewhere else, he joined the PDF to stay close to home and serve his people. He became a pilot because, in his younger mind, he thought that being a pilot would mean more respect. And then he got sent to prison and now he was with Omniwatch temporarily. Of all the pilots Azuk had met, for some reason he liked Andromeda far more than the rest. She seemed more normal, as most of the others all came from Alliance military backgrounds.

"Stripes, got anything over there?" Andromeda asked.

Azuk had gotten an upgrade to the Tesgno translation implant he had. The Omniwatch surgeons put him under for the short surgery and replaced it with the far more modern Terran version, allowing a more rapid translation as well as allowing understanding of written language alongside the spoken. It integrated seamlessly, and it made understanding Terran Common much easier.

Like when he flew for the PDF, Azuk decided to make 'Stripes' his actual callsign. He is after all the only Tesgno with stripes in the squadron. "Still clear." Azuk said. "Not sure what you expected."

"Something happening would be nice." Andromeda said. "But I guess we're in the middle of nowhere. Fat chance right?"

"We're getting paid to sit here though." Azuk said. "I can't complain that much."

"That's fair I guess." Andromeda said. From there, silence reigned for several minutes. It took Azuk by some surprise when she finally spoke up. "So, I got to ask. You and the other cat. I hear you both have a history."

"Where did you hear that?" Azuk asked, masking any discomfort with the topic.

"Alright, I didn't hear it, but I can see it. I can't explain it. But you avoid her like the plague. I thought you cats were all about community or whatever." Andromeda said. "What, is she a failed lover or something?"

That made Azuk laugh loudly over the comms, taking several seconds to calm down and stop blowing her headset out. "Sorry." He said as he started to get control back. "Sorry. Right, real answer now. No, she's not. She was my wingman back in Procyon." He expected Andromeda would say something, but he continued when she didn't. "When the incident happened that put me in prison, she got a deal that kept her out of prison and I took all the blame. She's nobility. That's how she got that."

"Ouch. That explains a lot." Andromeda said. "Yeah you said that incident had you fighting that alien ship or something right? The one that made waves on the news for a bit?"

"That's it. I think that's why were both put on here since we both have experience with it, just in case." Azuk said. "Hopefully these scans don't have us chasing that thing."

"I don't know. Fighting a dreadnought would be fun. I mean, we have the firepower to take one on, from what you told me." Andromeda said. "It wo- Contact... bearing 150 degrees. 140 thousand clicks. Radiation burst. Must have dropped out of FTL."

Azuk looked down at his sensors and saw the blip as well. He was quick to deactivate the autopilot, only to see Andromeda doing the same as he took manual control of his interceptor. They were deep in the system, which meant it wasn't a hyperdrive.

"Control here. We have the contact." The flight controller on the Valiant said. "We'll be contacting them. Standby."

Azuk fired the afterburners of his interceptor, speeding into his position to Andromeda's left wing. For now they were proceeding at interception speed toward the contact. If they continued at this, they would be on top of the contact within 30 minutes. If they had to, they could fire the FTL drives and put them nearby immediately. The change in course meant just to be a show of force rather than an actual move to attack.

"Unknown craft, be aware you are approaching an Omniwatch expedition group. Your course has put you on intercept with us. Divert immediately or we will respond with force." The flight controller said, allowing Azuk and Andromeda to hear the communication so they wouldn't be delayed in passing along information. Several minutes of silence passed with the ship not responding but instead continuing on its course. "This is your final warning. Divert course or we will open fire." Again, nothing happened for several minutes. "Flight, you're clear to engage."

Andromeda laughed a bit. "Damn right. Azuk, get the FTL up. Jump to this waypoint. We'll hit them up close." With just that, Andromeda paused to activate her FTL drive and jump away.

Having anticipated her doing that, Azuk fired his FTL moments after her. Like he had done many times before with a Tesgno craft, the ship simply entered warp, then appeared moments later right behind Andromeda and about fifty kilometers from the contact. At this range, Azuk could see the shape; it had a smooth, almost organic looking hull. Were it not colored with a white and green coloration, Azuk would almost confuse it for a Brakian design. Its size, Azuk guessed, meant it was a destroyer designation.

"Easy target." Andromeda said. "AMs or want to take a graser run first?"

"Grasers should cut it apart." Azuk said as he hit the throttle to the maximum. With a few button presses, he activated the grasers and linked them to his direct controls. The HUD showed the active reticule, placing it against the middle of the ship. As he and Andromeda rushed at the ship, Azuk waited until about the 10 kilometer range before pulling the trigger on his stick and firing a long burst of graser shots at the destroyer. He pulled up immediately after, flying over the top of the destroyer with only a few meters to spare. "How did that look?" He asked.

As was typical, from the simulations he did yesterday, Omniwatch pilots would stagger strikes to confirm effect from a previous attack on a target. Andromeda was quiet for a moment before saying, "Looks like it was a clean penetration. Another run might disable it."

"Good. Coming around." Azuk said.

With a practiced motion, as the cockpit remained mostly the same from his PDF days, Azuk fired the retrograde thrusters for a short moment while he did a sweeping turn back toward the ship. This was only a trained maneuver to avoid any point defense that may be firing. He noted that this destroyed lacked any whatsoever. It seemed very strange, given how common small craft are in combat. Once turned around, Azuk fired several bursts from range, firing his port and starboard thrusters to strafe down the side of the ship, ultimately firing at what he presumed was the engine compartment. He pulled up again to avoid the ship, and noticed Andromeda pulling off on his sensors as well.

"Looks like you hit the power core." Andromeda said. "I guess we can count that as a victory. One kill for you I guess. Good show Stripes. Let's head back. You do the honors."

Azuk said nothing, but he was smiling to himself. It felt very normal to be back flying, and getting the first kill of the mission also felt good. "Flight Control, Stripes here. Destroyer is incapacitated. Any further orders?"

"Negative Flight." The controller said. "Good work. Return to ship formation."

As they had just done, the two fired their FTL drives and jumped back to the Valiant. Within ten minutes, they were back in formation flying alongside the cruiser. From there the patrol went normally for the next five hours as the ship drifted further into the system on a course that would take it into orbit around all of the planets in the system. The whole eight hour flight covered one outer planet. At the end of the shift, the two returned to the cruiser through the atmospheric shield at the front of the ship, landing easily thanks to the automated system.

Azuk powered down his interceptor as the magnetic clamps kept it in place in the designated location on the flight deck. Satisfied that all the post flight checks were complete, Azuk opened the canopy of the interceptor, air hissing into the cockpit initially as the pressure differential equalized within moments. Once it fully opened, Azuk removed his restraints and then climbed out of the cockpit down the ladder the flight techs moved into place for him once the interceptor came to a stop.

At the bottom of the ladder Azuk removed his helmet. Had it been a Tesgno ship he'd never have done that. The Valiant however has the atmosphere shield at the front, keeping a breathable atmosphere inside while allowing the craft in and out with no problems. He had to admit that all the technology on these ships, compared to Tesgno ones, were rather impressive. He held the helmet under an arm as he headed for the airlock. Andromeda had also removed her helmet as she approached. With the helmet off, Azuk noticed first the smile, then the fact her blonde hair was a mess from the helmet and whatever style she had gone with had fallen apart.

"I'll get the next one." She said as they turned to the airlock. "It was a good kill, but it won't last."

"I look forward to the competition. It was a good flight either way." Azuk said as they stepped into the airlock. Like the Tesgno design of a light cruiser, the inner airlock contained lockers for the suits where they'd be stored after being cleaned. "You're pretty good." He smiled a bit, a habit he was increasingly taking from the Terrans he's surrounded by. "Maybe you'll be as good as me one day."

That made Andromeda laugh. "Well we're off-duty for now. Want to grab a drink? I doubt you want to really go back to sleep."

"No, I don't." Azuk said as he unzipped the front of his suit. Also unlike the Tesgno designs, even though his suit was custom made for him, it had the zipper at the front. It meant easier access in and out of the suit. "I mean no to sleep. Yes, I wouldn't mind a drink. You're buying the first one though. I got the kill."

"Okay, sure, that's fair, but we're going to keep that in place for this mission." Andromeda said as she pulled off her own suit. "Each kill gets a drink from the other person. Given what we're looking for we're either going to be exceptionally sober or exceptionally drunk. I don't know which I'd prefer."

Azuk stuffed the suit into the locker and flipped the sign to mark that it needed cleaning. Right after he removed the jumpsuit he hung up and pulled himself into that. As he had expected when he first saw them, they fit him perfectly, and had a place for his ID in a pocket on the chest. The transparent outside of the pocket allowed easier identification for anyone that needed to see it. The only problem he had with the jumpsuit is that it ended up a bit tight all around compared to the relatively loose Tesgno jumpsuit, but it wasn't really uncomfortable. He also was able to get away with not needing boots while on duty. It's a small mercy.

Once they were both dressed, Azuk and Andromeda left the locker room, making a left to step into the ship's corridors from the flight deck. Azuk had explored some of the ship, learning only where a few locations were. He had learned his way from his cabin to all of the vital locations such as the medical bay, though he spent very little time doing anything outside of his cabin. Rarely he went up to the pilot's recreation room to speak with the pilots there, but otherwise he avoided everyone until today.

Andromeda led the way through the ship, obviously knowing it better than him, and within minutes had them at the clear doors into the ship's bar. Inside the bar changed from the metal floors and walls to wood floors and wood walls, lending a sense of class and refinement that was largely lacking from the majority of the cruiser. Azuk doubted that the wood was genuine, given how expensive it is to bring to space, but he had to admit it all looked rather good. He did a scan around the few patrons and saw no one that he actually knew. That, too, was rather good.

As the two approached the bar, the bartender showed up from the backroom. Taking Azuk by surprise, given he had seen no others on the ship, the bartender appeared to be a Brakian, and one of the vulpines at that. "Well, that's a new face." The bartender said. "Haven't seen a cat around here lately. What'll it be?"

"I'll just get a whiskey, one of the Earth ones if you got it. I'll pay for this cat's first whatever he chooses." Andromeda said as she took a seat on one of stools.

Azuk sat down next to her and looked over the different alcohols behind the bartender. He didn't want to admit it, but he rarely ever drank. On top of that he had been in prison for three years, so drinking was never going to happen there either. "I suppose I'll take the same." Azuk said, mustering some confidence in that. The bartender just nodded as he looked through the bottles. "I must ask, what's with the Terran fascination with Earth, exactly?" Azuk asked, noting how she asked for an Earth whiskey. "I know it's the human homeworld, but I thought Mars was the capital?"

"It's hard to explain." Andromeda said after a moment. "I know you guys have Great Home and New Home. Imagine if New Home became the capital and Great Home was just kind of there. Earth isn't really important anymore, but it's... you know, it's home. It's where humanity came from. It has a special meaning. Things from there are increasingly rare, what with the fighting going on down there."

"Fighting?" Azuk asked.

"Ah, right. Great Home has a unified government." Andromeda said, pausing when the bartender said their two drinks down on the counter and then moved down to help other patrons. She took a sip of the whiskey and showed barely a reaction to it. "Watered down... Anyway, Earth isn't unified. There's a few big states fighting each other trying to be that unified government. Only a few signed the Alliance Charter, and those that didn't are the ones fighting for the most part. Europa Federalis is in perpetual war with the Arabs, the United States is constantly in-fighting trying to keep North and South America under control. The Pan-Asian Commonwealth is fighting with the Indians. It's a mess."

"I can see why you'd want to leave." Azuk said.

"Add on top of that a planet with a devastated ecosystem thanks to centuries of pollution and abuse and you have a barely livable dirtball." Andromeda continued. "And despite it all, it's still our ball of barely habitable dirt. That's why the Alliance is based on Mars."

"And why things from Earth are a rarity and valued?" Azuk asked.

"More or less. I don't really expect you to understand it all, but it's just a kind of connection we have. You know, we're all over space now, but we all came from one place. It ties us together. It's kind of nice. I don't see many Tesgno or Brakians out here, but I imagine that despite it all that same attitude must persist. Right?"

"No." Azuk said immediately, now taking a drink of the whiskey, and coughing as soon as it began to burn in his throat. Even if it was 'watered down', as Andromeda had said, it still was stronger than he was used to.

"Well, I guess I understand that kind of." Andromeda said. "Anyway, enough of that depressing stuff. What about Great Home? Tell me more about your people. You're really the first Tesgno I've spoken to for more than a minute or two."

"It'd be a long story. Are you actually ready?" Azuk asked as he set the glass on the counter.

"Yeah, please. I told you a bit about Earth. You could do the same."

Azuk cleared his throat. He hadn't been asked about Great Home before, let alone how things are done there. "Great Home isn't quite unified either. The Caliphate of Procyon controls most of it, but there's a few islands in the Tomatov Archipelago that's still independent. They're deemed irrelevant though, so there's been no campaign to take them. Otherwise, the current Caliph is descended from other Caliphs leading back to Caliph Mahid who led the Great Home Crusade, crushing dozens of other states and unifying most of the planet over the course of about two decades of war. He was notable for imposing religious law in the wake of his conquests and forcing conversions. Depending on who you ask, this could either be good or bad."

"What do you think of it then?" Andromeda asked as soon as he paused for a moment.

Azuk ignored it, intentionally, and continued. "Still, Great Home is fairly unified but it's not without dissent of course. The rise of the nobility and their growing influence has increasingly corrupted some otherwise republican ideals. Remember what I said about the other Tesgno on board? This is one example. They got away with punishment because they are nobility. I am not so I was sent to prison. I'm rather glad to be away, if I am honest."

"And so you took the offer from Omniwatch." Andromeda said. "Have to say that's as good a reason as any to leave. What will you do if you get the contract with Omniwatch and get pardoned?"

"I'll probably never go home again except to get a few things. Maybe I'll get a home on Mars." Azuk said with a laugh. The idea of moving to Mars was mostly a joke. Going from a solely Tesgno world to an almost entirely human one would be foolish.

"What about your family?" Andromeda asked.

"They're going their own way and it's my duty to make my way in the galaxy by any means. I'll keep in contact, but I don't need to stay close." Azuk said. He did actually miss his family more than anything else so far, but he knew it was safer to say otherwise. "They understand. It's how we live."

"Must be kind of lonely. I can't imagine if I were the only human on a ship of cats." Andromeda said. "I might be friends with them, but it's not the same. But, hey, at least you have that other Tesgno around."

"I wish I didn't." Azuk said, growling lowly at the thought of Rahimi. Azuk and Andromeda both drank quietly. Andromeda had finished her drink fairly quickly while Azuk sipped at his. The silence lasted for almost half an hour before Azuk finished his drink and set it down on the counter. The bartender asked if he wanted another, and he turned it down. Finally Azuk broke the silence. "What is your name?" He asked Andromeda.

"Really?" Andromeda said, laughing. "You really never did ask my name this whole time since we met. Alisha Bassani."

"Alisha. Got it. So why Andromeda for a callsign?" Azuk asked.

"Well we're already in space." Alisha said. "So I can't pick a star or planet name without seeming small. But we haven't gone to another galaxy. Imagine if we could though. So I chose that callsign because it seemed fitting and sounded good. Why Stripes for you?"

Instead of giving an immediate answer, Azuk just turned to stare at her with an expression that could be read as 'really?'. "Because I am covered in spots like one of your Terran leopards, clearly."

"Yeah yeah, fine." Alisha said as she stood up from the stool. "Anyway, I doubt you're going to drink another one, and I had to get to a few things. It was good talking with you. Let's do this again sometime."

Azuk stood up right after her. "Indeed. I'll make sure to get a few more kills so you can buy them all for me." He said with a smile.

"Yeah, I am sure." Alisha said. "Stay safe out there if you get a shift without me around."

Azuk nodded and said, "Likewise."

Without another word, Alisha walked out of the bar. It immediately dawned on Azuk that that left him with the bill for the drinks. While he should have been annoyed, he still had to commend the misdirection that made him not notice her doing that. Before stepping away, Azuk fished a ten-credit chip from his wallet and dropped it on the counter before leaving the bar as well.

May 18

The night had passed quickly, and the morning came far too soon for Azuk. He was getting back into schedules, especially on military time. It wasn't particularly annoying, but it was definitely jumbling the schedule he had adjusted to in prison. On waking up, he checked his orders and saw he had a late patrol instead of the midday patrol he had yesterday. He did the math in his head, and found it did match up if each two pilots went out on normal eight-hour shifts.

Azuk spent the day finding anything to do to kill the time while he was waiting on his flight shift. From working out in the gym to getting more sleep, the patrol always seemed far away. He didn't mind waiting around for his job, but he hated having to wait because his schedule was different than he was used to from just the day before. He knew he should have expected it, but he rather enjoyed the midday assignment.

When the shift came, Azuk found he had a different wingman this time. Another human, but this one male, was replacing Alisha for now it seemed. On seeing Azuk approach, he gave a quick look over Azuk. "Well, at least you look capable." He said. "I'm Jack. Callsign's 'Trades'."

That callsign made Azuk narrow his eyes at Jack, annoyed already at the stupid joke he made in picking a callsign. He had heard it several times while on the Valiant, and seeing it made a joke was just annoying. "Azukhannja Tulrikvah." Azuk said to Jack. "Or Stripes."

"I wonder where you got that name. The gibberish I mean. Stripes is obvious." Jack said, laughing at his own joke. "Well hey, I never flew with a cat before. Let's see how you do right? Ali said you took out a destroyer. Maybe you're as good as me."

"Let's just get to the interceptors." Azuk said, walking past Jack toward the airlock and the suit lockers. He knew this was going to be a very long shift with this Jack flying with him, unless Jack stayed quiet while they were out there.

Azuk and Jack both suited up in silence, and proceeded through their pre-flight checks in silence as well. The silence persisted, much to Azuk's pleasure, through the first hour of the patrol. It gave him time to pay attention to all of the gauges and watch for anything abnormal. It also gave him time to think about things, mostly of his plans. He knew with the one kill he was probably going to stay out of prison.

"Well that was weird." Jack said, breaking the silence. "I had a communications error there I guess. So, hey, we're stuck out here for eight hours unless something happens. What do you want to talk about?"

"I would ask you to tell me about yourself, but I expect I'll be getting an earful for the next two hours." Azuk said without bothering to mask his annoyance at having to speak.

"That would get us through this a bit quicker though, let's be honest." Jack said. "Well I guess I'll answer the question. I'm a pilot, obviously, and I came from the Alliance Navy."

"It shows." Azuk said, reflecting on his knowledge of the Alliance Navy from his trial.

That didn't stop Jack though. "I flew during the fighting in Chara a bit ago. Took out an Omniwatch ship or two, amusingly. Afterward I was discharged and Omniwatch took me despite being in Chara. Kind of strange, but hey they pay better than the Navy so I can't complain."

Azuk would have had a comment about taking money over loyalty, but at the same time he was doing the same thing. "So where are you from then?"

"Braka." Jack said. "Not often you hear that, but I lived in the Terran Quarter. My mother was the Alliance Ambassador there until the fighting ended there just recently. Grew up around a lot of Brakians and a few Terrans. It was certainly interesting. Anyway, I graduated and joined the Navy. My name and mother got me a decent position from the start. So I took to flying. When the fighting broke out, I was flying under the 1st Fleet when it arrived to intervene in the fighting."

Son of an ambassador and Alliance Navy pilot. Azuk could only shake his head. It was like the worst mix of people he didn't want to deal with. "What was it like growing up among people of a different species?" He asked.

Jack was quick to answer even that question. "The Brakians are an odd sort, but I dealt with the more human-like ones. The Terran Quarter was home to the outcasts of the Brakians, so they didn't get the same kind of upbringing of the typical Brakian. They were very human in demeanor. So kind of the same as I expect it'd be among humans, but just with more fur I guess? It's hard to explain."

"Fair enough. So why Omniwatch?" Azuk asked. He wanted to believe that money wasn't the only motivation.

"Omniwatch was the only company hiring after I got my dismissal from the Navy. They were cutting ties with everyone that was in Chara." Jack said. "So Omniwatch was picking up everyone they could. I took their offer and haven't looked back since. My mother doesn't approve, but hey, she doesn't mind the checks I send her."

"I know the Brakians are still independent, you fought for the Alliance, and now you're with Omniwatch. Who are you loyal to, exactly?" Azuk asked. It seemed like loyalty could just be bought by anyone anymore.

"Loyal to whoever wants to pay me I guess." Jack said. "I have my Alliance sympathies of course, but damned if they aren't hard to stay loyal to when you really look at what they pull. Like, you know, they are trying to ensure human dominance by keeping the other races under control, but letting the corps run rampant. If people were left to their own devices, things would be interesting."

"I suppose so." Azuk said. Interesting isn't the term he'd use. Chaotic would be more apt in his mind.

"So what about you?" Jack asked. "What mistakes did you make that brought you to Omniwatch?"

For the first time while dealing with him, Azuk actually chuckled. "I obeyed orders and acted as I saw was the best course of action. So I got thrown in prison and now I am here." He said. "It's not all bad. I rather enjoy the company of most of the pilots."

"Oh yeah, you and the other cat have something going on then?" Jack said.

"I do not understand why you people think that we have something." Azuk said.

Jack didn't hesitate to say, "You're both cats and, well, male and female."

"That'd be like saying you and Alisha are together because you're both human and male and female." Azuk said. "No, I have nothing going on with the other Tesgno. I'd prefer if you all would stop suggesting such."

"Bad history or something?" Jack asked.

"Something like that. Leave it at that."

"I get it. Shit happens. Won't ask anymore." Jack said.

From there, there was a silence for several more hours, with scattered conversation regarding the capabilities of their interceptors. Jack admitted that he knew very little about the Prowler, and even less about the Omniwatch version. Azuk, having flown the native versions, had a rather intimate knowledge of the craft that he shared with Jack. He gave several tips that were usually for more advanced pilots, but in this case he felt more comfortable knowing that Jack was on his level as well. Unlike the day before, no contacts appeared for the duration of the shift.

At the end of the shift, Azuk was almost falling asleep, but he still guided the craft into its dock and powered it all down as he had done many times before, even with a different model of a craft. He had done the math on the way in, and it meant he'd have a whole day off. As it would be the third day in the system, they'd likely be gone by the end of the day and off to a new system.

Unlike the day before, Azuk didn't bother with going to the bar right after flying. His main concern was getting to sleep after a long day of killing time, then a long shift in relative silence. He had a feeling of dread as he knew they'd be departing for the next system within the next day. He didn't look forward to the next system, even though he had no idea what it would hold.