Battleship Destroyer (15 page)

Jack
had slowly dragged his mother a good dozen feet away from the crowd gathering around his father’s booming voice and everyone’sstares when his Grandfather turned to his mother
.
Pop pried his mother's fingers from around Jack's arm. "Pat, you need to help with these parents and let Jack take a break." Guiding her over to her husband through the group gathering around demanding Jack help them do something. Though Jack could not figure out what it was they wanted him to do. Pop came back and stood beside Jack not saying anything.

Jack heard his brother talking to one of the woman waiting to talk to their father,
using the voice he hated that was several octaves lower than norma
l
when his brother talked to girls. Lower than Jack could even speak. Though the girls seemed to swoon over his smooth stupid words aboard ship. But here it did not seem to be getting him anywhere as his voice kept getting lower and lower. His brother was good at taking no for an answer from women and not even taking a breath before hitting on someone else only feet away. Then to Jack's surprise, his brother found someone that he decided he would not take no for an answer from and started following her around continually trying to talking to her in that deepening voice that did not seem to impress her. Jack realized it was the woman in his company that had not liked wearing cloths.  Bringing an embarrassed frown to Jack for a second as his brother (after she had squirmed away from him trying to touch her several times), grabbed her arm to keep her from walking off yet again and he suddenly dropped to the tarmac clutching his groin as she walked away forgetting about him like the trash he was.

Jack started smiling as his brother laid on the tarmac in pain.
Though he wanted to crawl and hide in embarrassment. Pop saw Jack smiling at his brother's predicament. "About time he got his isn't it Jack?" He said to Jack above the noise of the crowd.

Jack turned
and looked at Pop. "Ya. Too bad it took so long. Hopefully now he will have learned a lesson."

Chuckling. "Don't bet on it son. He has had that lesson many times before and he just keeps on going and going. Like a bunny in a commercial I once saw." Taking a deep breath. "You ready to go yet. There is nothing left here for you I am sorry to say
. Your future is with the Navy now. They will treat you right and fair and they don't change their rules at whims or think you are a moron. You will do fine son."

Jack smiled as he turned around to look at the ship. "It’s a big ship Pop
and I only left it because they did not give me a chance to hide." Looking back at Pop Jack chuckled. "Though I am glad I did come out to say good bye to you and I am glad you are not mad at me for joining up. But I could have done without all the yelling from Dad and Dan and mom hugging me is just strange. Especially in public. Fact is I can’t remember the last time she hugged me. And I am really sick of Dan embarrassing me making a fool of himself." Jack turned to his sister only a few feet away talking up a storm to some hansom guy in a recruit’s uniform with her arm around his as if they had been best friends for years. At least she was not embarrassing him but then she also did not seem to care he was leaving either.

"Sorry Jack but you needed to see it or you would have regretted
leaving. Eventually giving you second thoughts about going and about what you were doing. It is best to close all the doors behind you before you start a new life. Making sure you realize that you have no life to come back to.” Pop started walking Jack away toward the gate leaving his parents to deal with the crowd.

"
The only thing I am leaving behind Pop is one hell of a dept to Dan. I am still kicking myself for IOU’s I thought were work orders he made me sign. In spite of what Dan says, I am not into gambling or throwing tantrums like a 6 year old. Hell, I don’t even know how much in IOU’s Dan has and come to think of it, some of those papers he had me sign were blank.”

“I don’t believe you trashed your cabin or destroyed your ship
in The Game Jack. And I know how hard you have been working around the ship all these years.”

Taking a deep breath and sighing
as he shrugged his shoulders but then looking at his grandfather again, a smile crept into his face as a warm feeling settled into him to finely find out that someone he loved knew how hard he had been working.  “You sure you aren’t mad at me Pop?"

"Never be mad at you boy, you’re the jewel of the family and don't forget that. Your father and brother are the morons of the family
. Don’t worry about your brother and his crap now that you can see it for what it is. Just don’t forget it when you forgive him this time. I will take care of the IOU’s and make sure you have all your back pay back into your account when you want it. Though I don’t think the Navy is going to give you much time to spend it for quite a while.”            

“
Just remember that if I had not bought this ship 30 years ago, your father would be buried in the basement of some company on some God forsaken planet in a dead end job. Your mother would be back on Debenove on her third or fourth marriage, your brother probably would be in jail and you would never have been born. The ship is the only thing keeping your parents married. You go and make a new life and be the best you can be and forget about us. We will be fine. "

Taking one last look at his parents
through the crowd and his brother back on his feet talking to some fat gal with a smile from ear to ear eating up his shit and catching the eye of his sister who waved  halfheartedly with a baffled half smile at him before turning back to the guy she was with. Jack smiled at Pop, gave him one last hug and started walking, leaving the fenced area and heading for the Navy Assault Transport.

He had
barely gotten through the gate when Tom came running up and joined him.  Slapping him on the back as he started walking beside him in step. "I thought you would never leave." Tom gazed at the ship ahead of them as they walked.

A dozen steps later several more
trainees joined them falling in step behind them. The woman his brother had been following around harassing was one of them making him smile. He could not help saying over his shoulder without explaining anything. "And you didn't kill the asshole. I am impressed. Too bad though." She just smiled back at him.

A
hundred feet from the gate half his company was running up behind them, taking their places in a ragged formation behind them and trying to get in step as other companies started forming around the gate to the compound.  By the time they reached the hatch they had marched out of an hour before, three quarters of his companies recruits were behind him with several other companies doing their best to march across the tarmac toward the hatch as well. Jack hoping that his company had not looked as pitiful as they did but knew they probably did.

Chief
Starly stopped Jack at the head of the ramp. "What the hell are you doing worm?" The Chief said as his voice carried out the hatch. "You have another hour to visit with your families before we have to close up the ship for lift off." Looking at Jack and Tom and then the ranks of trainees behind them. "Get your butts back out there now."

Jack wanted to crawl someplace to hide as he stood at attention in front of the Chief
with everyone behind him and no place to hide. His face drifting down to look at the deck with his eyes darting around. The last thing he wanted to do was go back out to his parents and all the people that knew him in the compound. The embarrassment would kill him. "No! Chief Starly."  Jack burst out.

"What the hell did you say WORM!"
The Chief turned to Jack placing his nose up to Jack's nose. Having to duck down to look up at his bowed head. "You get your head up like a worm or are you a maggot? Because if you are still a maggot, I am going to kick your butt out the nearest hatch and off my ship with a dishonorable discharge."

Jack froze
, his face wrinkling up in terror as he slowly looked up into the Chief's eyes straitening his back. His lips started quivering as his eyes clouded up in terror.

Tom took a deep breath.  "We said goodbye Chief. We are ready to start training instead of wasting time."

The Chief jerked over to give Tom the evil eye and then with a disbelieving look, he stepped away from Tom and Jack to look down the company ranks as another partial company marched up to stop at the edge of the ramp next to Jack's company. "You Worms want to train to become crewman?" The Chiefs voice carried out across the tarmac.

He was answered by hun
dreds of trainees yelling as a crowd. Impossible to understand. Then as they paused Jack said taking a few extra seconds to get the courage to join the flock but the flock shut up as he spoke. "Yes Chief. We want to train Chief." Jack's mouth dropped open in shock when he realized he had yelled the words all by himself.

The Chief
turned to Jack staring at him shaking his head from side to side. Then tapped his wrist comm as he peered out at a half empty fenced compound. "Get your butts out of the break compartments. We have worms that want to become Crewmen."  Turning to the company. "You worms look like shit. Cookie scouts can make a better formation than you shit heads. Formations are made up of the shortest to front Starboard and the tallest at the stern to Port. Now get formed up into four ranks properly you worms before I decide you all are maggots and don't deserve to be in my navy."

It was a ripple
effect as Jack's company started trying to follow orders as every company in hearing tried as well with not much success as they kept milling around trying to figure out who was taller than who. Finally the Chiefs and Sargent's started rushing out to find their companies bringing order to the chaos.

With
Sargent's screaming at them they finally formed up properly and started marching around in front of the fenced compound with relatives lining up to watch the formations as more and more recruits left the compound to fall in with their companies. The Sergeants at first shoving the few arriving recruits into their proper place in the formation. Then when several came back at once, the recruits shoved them around until they were in the right place while the sergeants were busy. The Chief saw this happen and the next recruit that came out to join up was left to the company to sort out her placement while the sergeants concentrated on training the late arrivals to march.

A half hour later Chief Starly stopped as Jack's company marched past
the compound finally looking half way decent with the ranks mostly full with only a hand full of hold outs still crying and hugging their loved ones in a compound that was still half full of spectators watching.  Shaking his head he smiled as he sent a Sargent to grab the last of the recruits before they headed shipside then tapped his comm. "Captain, we will have to try this on the next planet. Not wanting to look like shit in front of their families has cut the time teaching them to march to a fraction. Damn good incentive."

Then the Chief noticed a group of civilians walking
through the gate out onto the Tarmac.  He was the closest petty officer to them. Rushing over to them he started shouting at them. "Only military personnel are allowed on the tarmac. Get back into the compound now."

Stopping in front of
the first bunch as more sergeants approached stopping to block them from getting any farther. Then one of the civilians spoke up. "We want to enlist Captain."

The Chief rolled his eyes as his mouth dropped open
. Stifling his automatic answer about being a working stiff while looking around the large group in disbelief. "Ok. You want to enlist?"

"Yes." Said just about everyone in earshot. Then one continued
. "We can see the news and we are not stupid. You want experienced spacers so here we are."

The Chief looked at more men and women filing through the gate, many with packs. Finally taking a deep breath, he hit his comm again. "Captain, we have more volunteers. Think you can delay take off long enough to process them?"

"What Chief? How many
are you talking about?"

"Looks like a good company at least to me sir
but they are one hell of a Hodgepodge in age and everything else. I doubt if most of them have been near a bar or the mall and I see uniforms from ships we have not recruited from." Turning around to look out across the Tarmac and the rest of the port, he saw a steady stream of crewmen headed their way. He was sure they were not family members of the recruits. "Ah Captain. Make that a couple of companies."

"Hold Chief. I will get back to you in a minute."

The Chief stood there for well over a minute before the Captain came back on the line. "Yes it does look like at least a couple of companies.  Have them line up along the fence and get a count. We will be right out. You can tell me how you managed that when we get in orbit so we can do it again. I will delay launch an hour."

The Chief had them line up as ordered and started counting and
getting names. A man stepped out of the line. "Hey Chief. You really going to enlist us?"

The Chief looked at him and smiled. "Ya that is the Idea. You did want to enlist right?"

"Hell yes. I have a cousin on a ship that has disappeared. Someone has to go get him. You got room for more?"

The Chief chuckled. "Ya we have room for anyone that want
s to fight." His eyes narrowed as he watched dozens of wrists come up to make calls. Shrugging his shoulder he started counting again and then watched several more bodies come out of the fenced yard and get into the line he had already counted. Shaking his head he went back and started counting again. Another woman came out and started to cut into the line where he had already counted. Stopping he stared at her.