Page 35 of Volunteer 4711

CHAPTER18

COMMANDER

In the morning,Volunteer 4711 arrives as usual. I greet her, already dressed.

“I got up early,” I explain.

“You should have buzzed me,” she says, and I can see that she is curious as to what is going on.

“Last night, I was up late with my officers; I think we have a plan the other fleet will not refuse. I did not want to wake you when I went to bed.”

“I hope you didn’t sleep in your uniform,” she says sharply.

I resist smiling and change the subject. “Today, I need you to answer all my correspondence. Do not worry about the other fleet. However, this evening I will be dining on the other commander’s ship. I will take you with me. There will not be food for you, so please eat beforehand.”

“I understand. Is there anything else?”

“Do not read or answer any messages from the government about your case with the farmers. Mark those and leave them for me.”

“I will not read them or reply.”

I leave my quarters as Volunteer 4711 sits at my desk to begin her day.

* * *

That evening, Volunteer 4711 looks anxious as we take a transport over to the other commander’s ship. I want to reassure her, but I do not want to make her look weak in front of the others. I realize that the only time she has probably ever been in a transport was when she was taken to the Home Planet and when I took her from the farm. It is no wonder she is fearful to be on one again. I make eye contact with her and give her a slight nod to let her know she is safe.

When we arrive, my attention is drawn from her to the other crew as we disembark. They are already greeting me as their new commander, which is a good sign that they will join our fleet, and then we really will be a force in this sector of the galaxy to be reckoned with.

I am met by the other commander, who leads me and my people to his officers’ lounge and dining room which are connected. I cannot help but notice the number of females he has in the lounge. This is not how I like to run my ship, and I suspect the rumors were true about his sexual appetites, but hearing and seeing it are two different things. However, if he joins my fleet, he will have to give the females up or marry them. By Silver law, he is allowed to have five wives; maybe that is what he and his males will do, but this wantonness will stop. It disrupts the flow of work.

I notice the other Water woman is also in the lounge with the other females. She is dressed similarly shamelessly, and it makes me wish I had not brought Volunteer 4711. I do not want anyone even to compare them. My valet is an honorable female, but it is too late to send her away now. I only wish she did not have to see this.

I am served a drink by a female wearing a questionable amount of clothing and then get into a lengthy conversation about defense strategies with Imperial Beta ships. I hardly even notice when my first officer approaches and asks me for a private word.

“I cannot find Volunteer 4711,” he tells me quietly.

I look around the room, and he is right. She is not here, and our trackers are blocked on this ship. “Maybe she went to the bathroom, but still have our ship check that she is still onboard.” I myself cannot go looking for a servant, but it is not like her to leave. Especially on a ship, she is unfamiliar with.

I look around for the other Water woman, and she is not here either. I wonder if they have gone off somewhere together. I call one of my officers over and tell him, “Volunteer 4711 is with the other Water woman. Go find my valet and bring her to me discreetly.”

My officer nods and leaves. My first officer tells me that she is still on this ship and her life sign is strong. That assures me a little. To not look like a fool, I enter into a conversation about current diplomacy, or lack of it, with our own government and the rumors that the Imperials are putting pressure on Silvers to sell their Water people volunteers. This is a conversation that interests me, so thankfully, it distracts me from thinking about Volunteer 4711’s whereabouts too much.

Twenty minutes have passed, and neither my valet nor my officer have returned. We are sitting down to dinner now. I am concerned, but I cannot show it. For the first time, I am confronted with the truth that my fondness for my valet goes beyond my appreciation for her loyalty to me. And I cannot stop thinking about what I will do if someone on this ship harmed her.

CHAPTER19

VOLUNTEER 4711

I amsurprised to see so many other females in the other ship’s officers’ lounge. The other human woman immediately approaches me.

“If you have a minute, I have a gift for you.”

“I can’t imagine you have anything I want,” I reply curtly.

She takes out a handheld communicator, which I’m shocked she is allowed and shows me an image.

“How did you…?” I ask.

---