In geosynchronous orbit

15th Fleet Skyport

Flintstone

4606 SPR / 56 days to zero hour

Jackson was twirling the necklace in deep thought while his crew went through docking procedures. They didn’t need his direct supervision.

‚This is stupid, Jay.

Don’t do it.‘

‚What do you mean, don’t do it?

It’s already there!

You’re holding it!‘

His mind was slamming against the proverbial brick wall. For weeks by this point, he had failed to work up the courage to give the necklace to his daughter. What he had made for her was a tiny skyship in the shape of the CSF-Trident.

‚She won’t understand.‘

‚Then make her understand.‘

A soft jolt went through the ship.

„Ship reads: all docking clamps secured and in the green. Number one, Skyport is asking for permission to extend airlock seals,“ his XO relayed.

„Granted. Continue.“

„Yes, sir.“

‚Let’s just take it step by step,

what about that?

You should ask the Princess for permission first anyway.‘

‚We both know you don’t need to ask.‘

‚It’s respectful to do so in any case.

She blames Vanessa for her loss.‘

‚You’ll meet regardless,

so why don’t you ask to go down to her lab,

and then when the professor is there too,

you can ask… okay?‘

‚Maybe.‘

While he thought to himself, the crew had gone through the final stages of docking.

„Sir, ship successfully docked.“

„Very well. Thank you, XO.“ Jackson said, rising from his meditative hunch over his station. He took a good look around the operations room of his ship, the CSF Socrates, mustering his usual self-assured but relaxed stance. „Any word from the recipient of our generous delivery?“ he quipped aloud to the deck, receiving the odd chuckle.

The crew picked up on the lax invitation for banter:

„Some chance the Princess will come to us for a change?“

„Janus will thaw out ‚fore that happens.“

Laughter spread across the operations room, and even Jackson couldn’t hold back a pleased smirk.

„Okay, troopers,“ he began on a deep breath out, walking backward slowly towards the nearest bulkhead. „You know how this works: engines and reactor cycled to idle, restrictions lifted on loose equipment, XO has the deck, and the flag is leaving the ship.“

As he finished, he bowed deeply and received incredibly bored applause as well as a comment about dramatics from a guardsman opening the door for him.

~

Princess Seraphina was, as usual, awaiting him in a comfortably seated corner of the Skyport’s main Lobby — something uniquely possible in Flintstone’s orbit, as no civilians were permitted here.

„How do, Princess?“

She laughed, then replied with a sigh, „Oh, you know. It be. Any newcomers?“

„Not this month. Progress on-site?“

„All in the documentation for my Queenster,“ she said, motioning her crossed-over leg to the table in front of her, where a binder was placed.

„She actually complained to me about you scribbling that across multiple files here or there in your notes. Makes me wish my daughters got along as nicely as you two.“

„In our position, you can’t really afford not to. About next month’s delivery though, there is something I managed to finalize only recently — since my mother felt it prudent not to provide me with a trade minister of any rate.“

„And that would be?“

„A rail network. With close to a hundred thousand souls on the ground by now, military included, transport volumes and travel times are approaching unmanageable magnitudes that Pelicans can barely make up for at this point. They should be relegated to more surgical usage, let’s say.“

„Hm. The cargo ships we have for our little adventure here are too small for entire locomotives, so we would either have to settle on disassembly, or I work my magic to acquire larger ones, depending on what the Queen decides. Mh, may I?“ He motioned to the binder on the table.

„Yes, of course,“ she said, but noticed something about his demeanor that made it clear he wasn’t finished. Once he secured the binder under his shoulder, he seemed to be working up the courage to ask something.

„Then we’re agreed to let her figure this out,“ she finished with a smile.

„Certainly, Princess. There was something I have been curious about,“ he said, all manner of insecurity having vanished as quickly as Seraphina noticed it.

„What about?“ she replied with genuine interest.

„The professor. Since he is here on Flintstone, I always wondered when I would get the chance to meet the man who changed my daughter’s life in such a positive way.“

‘Effortless with words,’ Seraphina thought. ‘Not exactly what he wants, but gets him closer to it.’ The advent of a smirk started to tug on her features.

„For two years we meet every month, and only now you find yourself asking for an audience with him?“

„Well, we were always so busy—“

„Of course.“

„—and I wouldn’t have known what to say to him. Even worked on a speech, which I have since binned.“

The Princess laughed.

„I’m now in camp, let’s just wing it.“

„Well…“ Seraphina began, rising from the sofa. „In that case, we can take my Pelican and head down immediately. We might be intruding on my lovely Adelyn getting checked up on, but I’m sure they won’t mind. If you’d follow me?“ she said, gesturing ahead to where she docked.

„Thank you! How is Adelyn, anyway? Haven’t seen her since your sister was signed in.“

„Apart from some twitches, she’s all tip-top.“

„Is that some long-term injury from Quitter’s Creek?“

„Nooo, no. Aside from the trauma, she is all healed up from that. The twitches are tech-related. You know… being the first-ever Terran to get it.“

Jackson did not further inquire, thinking of how little Vanessa complained about the new limbs in the year after her surgeries.

~

Traffic was high. Dozens of ships unloaded goods to the planet in transport craft. The Princess and the Marshal remained silent for the transit, which grew more awkward with each passing moment. The closer they got to their destination, the closer they got to the actual point of his visit.

After landing on the research lab’s pad, Seraphina asked out of the blue:
„You hungry?“

„Not particularly, why?“

„We would have to make a slight detour to the canteen and bring something for the professor. He, uh, tends to get lost in his work and forgets to eat.“

„That’s very thoughtful.“

„Well, work with anyone as closely for two years as we have with him, and you start to care for them, regardless of friendship status or not. I mean, look at the two of us. We’ve become pretty informal by now, right?“

„I would like to think so, yes.“

„Won’t be a bother at all. Promise.“

Having acquired the Professor’s lunch, they made their way to the elevator that took them directly to his laboratory. Apart from the humming machinery, the ride down was comically silent. Both of them occasionally glanced over at the other. Seraphina found this most interesting. Over the past two years, every single interaction she had with him was on a completely professional basis. They never had a reason to engage in small talk.

She decided to finally address the elephant in the room and throw him into the deep water:

„So. How’s the daughter?“

„Daughter’s fine.“ He paused for a moment and then added, „…physically.“

‚An invitation to dance, I see? Now I understand why Mother is so smitten with you.‘ „Yeah, same as Adelyn, I suppose,“ she replied, acting as if in thought.

Before Jackson could retort, the elevator finally arrived at the lowest level. The only thing left in front now was a decontamination chamber. Seraphina punched a series of numbers into a keypad, making no effort to hide the sequence. All the while, she mumbled: „Code is usually classified, but you don’t know that, since you were never here to begin with.“

„Oh, of course!“ he replied with a chuckle, as the princess pulled open the heavy airtight door.

„In you go.“

„Thank you.“

While the decontamination cycle automatically ran through its procedures, announced by an automated voice, Jackson circled back and found this to be the best time as any to ask her what he had come here for in the first place.

„While my dear Vanessa has not suffered from the horrors of battle, she is in no way in a good place. I’ve stuck her in the press corps because she inherited my talent for media spin, with no thought to what it would do to her in the long run.“

„How do I play into this?“

„I want to bring her here. To Flintstone. And I am asking for your blessing because she would require Strauss‘ capable hands to look over her.“

„I would never deny someone medical treatment if they neede—“

„Your Grace, I know you blame her for your brother’s loss. For some reason, she is the one you hate for it, and I will not ask you to stop, but I am asking you to find it in yourself to tolerate her presence in these labs if and whenever she needs it.“

Something tore inside Seraphina at the mention of her baby brother.

DECONTAMINATION CYCLE, COMPLETE. The machine droned into the chamber.

She rested her hand on the inside door. Mind racing, trying to keep the tears in. Drowning out the sorrow, that boiled up like a dormant volcano, suddenly ready to spill over.

She looked into his eyes in grim determination and spoke clearly, without gnashing teeth or any audible quiver:
„If you think you must bring Vanessa here because she can’t find happiness elsewhere, then I will not stand in the way of that.“

‚Like no Princess should,‘ she thought.

How she wished she had it within herself to let go of all strength and inhibitions. To tell him he could keep his rotting daughter at world’s end. But she simply couldn’t. It was not the right thing to do. She would think less of herself if she did.

Motioning to the door, she finished with a deep breath:
„She will be tolerated here.“

Before she could open the seal, she felt Jackson’s hand on her shoulder. Turning her head, she saw him looking at her in deep understanding, near tears himself, and not afraid to show it.

„Thank you. Cincerely. Princess.“

A moment passed, then she yanked the door open, fleeing into the laboratory as quickly as she could.

~

They walked into a large examination room, as Adelyn was hooked up to several devices.

„All that necessary, doc?“

„You said the twitches have been becoming more frequent of late, so I must compare the sensory data of this very moment to that of when you were doing better.“

„It’s really not that bad.“

„This is not only for the benefit of the patient, but to science as a whole. Every day, we learn more about the long-term effects on both the circulatory and nervous systems, as well as psychological effects. If indeed a pattern emerges between you and the princess, we must assume it will be the same for others in the future as well. If it can be got ahead of, that is valuable to know. Let me exchange the raw data with true and false directly, and you can be on your merry way in just a moment.“

Hyper-focused on his work, Professor Strauss had not noticed Seraphina and Jackson entering whatsoever.

„Download complete! Ah, how much I revel in working with the UNKNOWN. The efficiency is simply unparalleled.“

„Thank…“ – „YOU.“ Two electronic voices rattled out of a speaker from another end of the room.

„Heeeey, Professor, I got your luuuunch!“ Seraphina bellowed from Adelyn’s side, waving around the styrofoam box. „Tasty dry noodles, as always!“

„Ah! Yes! Nourishment, yes, of course. Thank you!“ he exclaimed excitedly, swiping the box from her hands, returning to his computer, and shoveling food into his mouth while typing away.

„He always this undistractable?“ Jackson wondered.

„He’s pretty much in his element right now,“ Adelyn replied, grabbing a hold of Seraphina. „Almost finished here, Princess.“

„Why dry noodles?“ Jackson asks, mezmerized by the Professor’s antics.

„He refuses anything else while he’s working down here.“ Seraphina explained. „Taste, apparently distracts him.“

Jackson shook his head in confusion.

Not a moment too soon, Strauss joined the little group around Adelyn, removing all the different electrodes from her arms, legs, and torso.

„No need to keep you held up in an old man’s cave for longer than necessary.“

„Look who I’ve brought with me, Professor,“ Seraphina said, motioning to Jackson.

„Ah, yes! Mr. Vaccaro. Uhm. Or… should I sir you?“

„That won’t be necessary. You are no subordinate of mine. Jackson will do.“

„You wish to talk about Vanessa, I presume? Terrible what happened, but I’m glad we could help. Brilliant work we did there, brilliant work.“

„Brilliant indeed, Professor. I haven’t had the chance to offer my gratitude to you in person yet.“

„Humbug! Gratitude is what I have for those that see the value in our work and are not afraid to make the same good use of it, that we envisioned. Trailblazers all the same. While not in knowledge, certainly in spirit.“

„We would be taking our leave then, right, darling?“ Seraphina asked, while Adelyn nodded along.

„Come along now, lots to talk about!“ Strauss said to Jackson, waddling back to his meal. „A great exchange of knowledge lies before us.“

Smitten by his passion, Jackson followed quietly, only nodding Seraphina goodbye with a smile.

~

Adelyn and the Princess rode the elevator surface-bound, side by side.

„What was he down here for, then?“

„The child.“ When Adelyn didn’t say anything in reply, the princess added: „She’s going to join us. Here. On Flintstone.“

„Needless to say, you’re not happy about it.“ This time, Seraphina did not reply.

Adelyn moved in front of her, grabbing a hand with both of hers. Looking up, her amethyst eyes met the princess’s tormented sapphire.

„You know… if she’s coming here, there is no doctor who can ever really take care of her other than him. You see that, right?“

„I know. It was a nice gesture of him, to ask. Instead of dumping her on us unannounced, i mean.“

Adelyn drew closer. „What’s on your mind, love?“

Seraphina took a moment to find the words.

„I thought I was over it. But him asking. About her. And her potentially coming here. Every time I would hear about her, or see her, it will remind me of Konstantin.“

„I doubt you’ll ever be over it. He meant too much to you.“ She put a hand to Seraphina’s heart, and the two remained like this for a moment, breathing together.

„I keep thinking… I would be less upset if it was sudden genome failure, or something else that can’t be helped. But this? And… every time I think of him, I see her face on the stand. I don’t know why, and it grinds my gears, but I can’t separate her from the rage I feel. I >want< her to be the scapegoat.“

„Getting the tags on that profiteer would’ve probably helped.“

Seraphina huffed a wet laugh, wiping her eyes, which ruined her makeup.

„And a fucking… Acheronian-basic-bitch-gutter-cruiser gets to snuff him, of all people.“

She groaned at the makeup stain on her fingers.

„No offense.“

„That’s okay. I know what you meant,“ Adelyn chuckled. „Compared to her, I’m far from ordinary at this point.“

„Look at you, Miss Humble-Panties.“

„Mrs.! We swore an oath to each other, did we not?“

„Yes, we did,“ The Princess said and leaned in. „How about I take those panties off of you?“

„Seduction: 100, Princess. Seduction: 100.“