The Last Hero by Nathaniel Danes Read Free Book Online Page B

of the seats.
    Trent walked over to his bag and dug around for a few moments before pulling out a bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label and four crystal rocks glasses.
    “We are going to be stuck together for a long time in a small space. I thought it would be a nice idea to start our little adventure in a proper manner,” Trent said as he handed out glasses and filled them. “I believe, Captain, that Black Label is your favorite.”
    Befuddled, she said, “Yes, thank you. How did you know, sir?”
    “I have my sources.”
    Simms asked, “Any ice, sir?”
    “Oh, for Christ’s sake, man up and drink it straight Simms,” Thomas said.
    Jones squirmed uncomfortably in her chair. The casual demeanor of her American counterparts conflicted with her British discipline.
    “Sir, when will we receive the mission briefing? I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that we’re anxious to know our mission objectives.”
    “In a couple days, Captain. I want us to be a way down the road before we release that information. It won’t be long. Right now, the Commerce is finishing final checks on the anti-mat drive, deflector array, and inertia dampeners. Then we’ll start accelerating to the Alpha Gate.”
    Simms commented, “The fun begins. I honestly can’t wait to get out there. No humans have gone as far as we’re about to.”
    “Soon enough, but I can tell you that we’re going to be confined for a while. People are going to start getting on each other’s nerves.”
    “Maintaining discipline will be key.” Jones refilled her glass.
    “Agreed, but I also want them to have fun. The cargo hold has been converted into a training and rec area. We’ll train every day, but I want folks to relax and have some fun after that.”
    Thomas said, “I’ve heard some in the unit ask if it is allowed for them to...date members of the Commerce’s crew. If you approve, I a....”
    Simms butted in, “That’s one way to let everyone blow off some steam. These civilian vessels have a far better male to female ratio.”
    The annoyed look Thomas shot at Simms was quickly replaced with shock and amusement when Jones blurted out, “You have my vote. There are a couple of bloody hot men on this ship.”
    Three sets of eyes stared at her. She turned bright red and sat up tall. For her, this represented a serious breach of protocol. For Trent, it humanized the stuffy Brit, bringing a smile to his face. He hadn’t expected her to be interested in men.
    “I...I’m sorry, sir. I don’t usually drink. I think you can guess why, I tend to run off at the mouth. It won’t happen again.”
    “No harm, Captain, no foul. I’ll talk with Captain Chen. After all, as one of my favorite generals once said, “A soldier who won’t fuck won’t fight” Now drink up. I find this,” Trent lifted his glass, “helps get the ideas flowing. Someone refill Jones. I’m really interested in what she has to say.”
    Jones asked, “Who said that, sir?”
    “Patton, and that won’t be the last time I channel him.”
    ***
    In the time leading up to the surprise encounter with the Kitright, physicists discovered stable wormholes could be opened by bombarding points of space containing extremely dense levels of dark matter with intense particle beams.
    These “gates” in turn allowed spacecraft to pass through them, instantaneously travelling to any point in the universe. Or more exactly, any other point in the universe that possessed a high enough density of dark matter.
    Frustratingly, travel between gates, and everywhere else, was held hostage by the law of relativity, shackling space flight to a tedious .999 speed of light. It took the Commerce a year in Earth time to accelerate and decelerate to the Alpha Gate. For the crew, only six weeks passed.
    Any gate could be targeted from any other gate by varying the intensity of the particle beam, as well as the speed and angle of the spacecraft’s entry through the starting gate. However, in order to