WoWS1 Chpt 14

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==Weapons of WarChapter 14==
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Command Deck
HCS Victoria
Nadir Jump Point, Unnamed and uninhabited star system
21st October, 2767
05:44 Unity City Time
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Helen's perspective
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The star field on the screen made for an amazing sight. Enough so I had to admit this whole living and traveling in space thing had it's perks. But at the same time something was bothering me about it. Maybe it was just how much time I had already spent in space was getting to me but somehow the view looked familiar.
Must be from the lack of sleep lately. Between my breakup with Raheem, the head trauma, and all this baggage I was still carrying around I had not been sleeping well lately.
I watched the timer for the next jump. Soon we'd be one jump closer to our destination. Vicky's choice for colony location was something that gnawed at me. It was too close to existing borders for my tastes but I also realized that had it's own upsides. Trade when we got far enough along for one.
It was time. Vicky's higher functions were already offline for the jump. So I set the timer and pressed the button.
/\/\/\/\unreality/\/\/\/\
The process of hyperspace jumping was something that I was rather used to now, but even without TDS it still was unpleasant. Humans just are not meant to experience that and here I was going through it on a fairly regular basis.
As Vicky's higher functions came back up I noticed the screen displaying the outside starfield flicker.
Must be part of the EM effects that were still clearing up.
"Helena, you really should get some sleep." Vicky's voice was a welcome distraction.
As much as there were some people from Niops on board to give the impression of a crew it was rather easy to find some alone time, especially on the command deck. I suspect it is because Raheem isn't the only one put off by Vicky.
"Can't." I answered as I yawned.
"Dream about your sister again?" Vicky probed.
"Worse. My brother. And yeah that one." I shuddered.
The things my own brother had done to me even without everything else would be plenty to give me nightmares. It was all too easy for him to cover it up too. The heir with his own cult of personality and no bodyguards in sight for those so called 'parties' that he would throw.
I hated that I was dredging all this up again.
"Helena..." I hated when Vicky seemed to be at a loss for words.
It made me feel uneasy. An [AI]] with as much information as had been pumped into Vicky? Yeah it always struck me as odd that she did that.
Deborah Williams came up to the command deck.
She had followed her wife out to Niops but the strain had been too much since she was not a scientist and with the collapse of the Hegemony and the Star League all, but collapsed it was a no brainer for her to tag along. She could cook though.
Which is what brought her up here.
"I understand why you think you need to be alone but trust me you shouldn't be. So today I come to you." She smiled.
She was a little overweight but when she smiled she just lit up the room and it was impossible not to feel a bit better by seeing it.
"Still brooding over, Raheem?" She sat the next station over with her own food tray.
"A little. I really thought we had a shot." I answered.
"I get it. I may go for women but I'm not blind. He was easy enough on the eyes and seems sweet enough." She dug out some drink bulbs, tossing one to me in the micro-gravity.
"I sense a but coming." I sigh knowing this is why I like being alone.
"You're Helena Cameron. You've been through something most people can't even comprehend and very few through history have experienced anything remotely similar. A guy who can handle that kind of baggage is going to be a rare one indeed." She shrugged.
I knew she wasn't wrong.
"You trying to suggest a woman can?" I decide to verbally jab back at her a little.
"Not me. That's for sure. If you were actually wired that way I'm pretty sure I know ho you'd wind up with instead." She chuckled.
I realized I was blushing.
Vicky's library of psychological literature was chalk full of examples where people in situations similar to mine would seek romantic or sexual relationships with those that had done similar to Vicky. They also cautioned about how that could be a terrible idea and how those sorts of relationships were rarely healthy or rarely lasted long term with supporting examples. Still the idea had been planted in my head enough that I couldn't help but think about it from time to time and her gestalt remote was certainly stunning.
"Okay, too much I guess." Deborah sighed.
"So any idea what you want to do on the colony?" I recovered.
"Open a little hole in the wall where I can cook for strangers who I can hopefully turn into friends." Deborah smiled again.
I felt my face sag in depression a little. It wasn't hard to figure out why.
Deborah had even pointed it out. I am Helena Cameron. My name alone meant I couldn't have a nice quiet simple life.
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Vicky's perspective
Thank you, Deborah. I know Helena will be quite angry with me when she starts thinking rationally again as she will figure out what I have been pushing her towards. Especially when she learns about the rest of what I have done but the stage is set. Now we just need to make a few more jumps and then we can truly begin.
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