Battleship Destroyer (40 page)

Drying the wound off w
ith the other end of the hand towel. He turned around looking at his side of the cabin. Not having unpacked his own duffle bag, he had no idea where any of his things were. He started going through the drawers on his side until he found a pouch and pulled out a spray can and read the label very carefully. He was always cutting or scraping himself as he worked around the Turner Joy and had picked up the can of spray on foam liquid antiseptic healing bandage just to be on the safe side when he had first reported aboard. Though he had not had a chance to use it before this. Jack finally turned back to the Ensign, lifting her breasts slightly though the hard tall peaks needed little lifting. He sprayed the cans contents along the wound from below the far side of one breast to the middle and then around below the close side of the other, filling in and covering the open sore completely with a foam that quickly dissolved into a solid wound filling bandage as Jack watched, keeping her boobs lifted and anything from touching it until it had hardened after a good 10 minutes. Satisfied he pulled her blanket back up tucking it back in around her shoulders then with a smile he turned back to his terminal and went back to work.

Finding that the guys working on the engine had quit for the night. He started going
through the other projects. One was trying to use the black hole effect of sucking any and everything into it and then releasing all the atomic particle energy when shut off into a huge explosion for use as a torpedo warhead. Jack found it fascinating and with the researcher still working on it even that late at night he joined in. Though he was a bit disappointed and intimidated at first to find that it was an older gentleman. He soon lost his fear as the man treated him with respect as they discussed ideas, possibilities and designed systems and planed testing.

An hour later
with the warhead coming along splendidly and the old man finally ready for bed he shut off the terminal and went to bed himself. Finally tired enough to sleep. Satisfied with the new engine for the long range torpedo as well as the warhead that could be used with the fleet and the fighter torpedo bombers to great effect. Now all they needed was an engine for the fighter bombers to allow them to get around behind the enemy close enough to fire them. Only thing was the Red Dwarf did not have the small grav coils needed to convert the fighter engines even if he designed them. Fact is they did not exist yet. At least the old man and him were able to put together a warhead using existing parts in the fleet stores.

Jack's mind kept bouncing to the video of the boat crew
just before they died until his glances at the sleeping Ensign turned to longer and longer looks and finely a vacant gaze and he finally smiled as he slowly fell asleep, succeeding in wiping his mind blissfully blank seeing her angelic face that looked so damn familiar.

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The Ensign woke before revile. Turning over on her side with one hand under her head, she opened her eyes to see Jack sound asleep across from her. She smiled as she stared at him. Happy with the universe around her. Taking a deep breath she slowly let it out as she threw her blanket back off the top of her and the cool air hit her bare breasts. Looking down at herself as her bra fell away and the smile left her face.  Her eyes grew big as they fell on several white dried streaks and blotches across her boob. Feeling her cheek her fingers came away with a gooey sticky mess from a blotch.

Jumping up she grabbed the nearest object she could reach and started beating Jack across the head and shoulders. "You creep! How dare you undress
and use me for a toy you pervert. I am going to have you court martialed you mental creep." She continued to hit him as her breasts bounced in all directions, her bra fell to the deck. He finally rolled out of his bunk trying to get away from her.  Kicking him after he hit the floor. "I hope they throw you out of the air lock you pervert! I hope you enjoyed yourself you low life dog scumbag. “She stomped out of the cabin toward the showers still half naked, her breasts bouncing out in the open, forgotten in her rage, dragging a towel with her kit leaving Jack open mouthed baffled as the cabin's hatch hung open behind her.  The few other officers up that early staring at her huge parading bouncing boobs as she stomped past.

Climbing up off the
deck Jack cleaned a spot off his bunk onto the deck and sat stunned starring out the open hatch and around at the mess, wondering what had happened. Finally realizing what it had to be about, his stomach growled and he decided that he should have just left the bitch to suffer and he climbed to his feet and grabbed a towel and his shaving kit and stopped. The last thing he wanted was to see that crazy bitch again as he rubbed his face and chest. Dropping everything back on his bunk he used the sink across from the cabins head for a quick shave and dressed.

In the
officers’ mess, Jack grabbed biscuits and gravy, then smothered it with scrambled eggs off the buffet and sat down. He decided that the officers eat pretty well. At least he was getting one last good meal before the bitch ruined what little of a career he had.

A Lieutenant walked up to Jack. "You Ensign Turner?"

Jack looked up at the guy as he was shoveling in a full load of
biscuits, gravy and eggs and did his best to smile at the lieutenant as he slowly enjoyed every aspect of a mouth full of his favorite breakfast. His brother had a habit of interrupting his meals so Jack had developed a method of finishing every bight as slowly as possible before answering. Else chances were, he would not be allowed to finish. Taking a big drink of milk to wash it down he scooped up another big fork full. "Yes Lieutenant Sir." Realizing that the lieutenant was the same one that had tried to kick him out of the engineering chair the day before while calling him names. He stuffed it into his mouth and smiled as he took forever chewing and savoring the bight. Remembering all the times he had made his brother wait with satisfaction. Figuring that the lieutenant had shown up to arrest him even though he thought it was a bit soon but then maybe this ship takes crazy accusations serious. Even without proof.

"What the hel
l are you doing out of uniform Ensign?" The Lieutenant watched Jack slowly chew his food. "Well maybe that explains why the Captain wants you up in her cabin first thing this morning for a swearing in ceremony. So technically you are not quite an Officer yet and should not be eating here but then that is a bridge long passed." Shaking his head back and forth with a smile. "You can worry about picking up a proper uniform afterwards on the way to the training bay. I am supposed to throw you in a simulator this morning and see how qualified a pilot you are."

Jacks eyes grew as big as gulf balls as a smile burst out on his face. Jack forced himself to swallow instead of just spitting it out as he started to get up turning the fixed swivel chair so he could get out.

"Hey slow down Ensign. We have plenty of time. Finish your breakfast. It is going to be a long day for you. We are low on qualified pilots with all the shuttle ships being pulled out of storage to put on runs around the fleet. Something about upgrading the engines on all the transports over the next few days which we don't have pilots for anyway. One reason most of them are still in their docking bays." The Lieutenant sat down across from Jack. "The new transport crews and the pilots are not due in for another week from The Rock. Fresh out of the training ships. That is what we get for stamping out Battleships and fighters like com-phones. The Scab transports have a low priority. Sit tight and slow down, I have not had chow yet either."

Jack finished his breakfast in a few minutes and was ready to go while the Lieutenant sat slowly
enjoying every solitary bight as well as his juice and hot tea afterwards. Jack squirmed in his seat as he tapped the table fidgeting, trying to keep from jumping up and running around the compartment in his excitement. All thought of the Ensigns threat forgotten. The Lieutenant sat smiling, enjoying himself. Mostly at Jack's displeasure at having to wait.

The Ensign walked into the cabin with a towel around her fuming
and immediately picked up the Taser she had dropped and forgotten, ready to zap Jack at the least excuse, expecting Jack to still be sitting on his bunk. "You son of a bitch had the…" Only Jack was not there. The empty cabin echoing her words back to her. Throwing her kit onto her locker as she stepped over Jacks blankets and junk strewn over the deck, folded up her bunk and pulled down her terminal and hit record. "I am officially submitting a complaint against Jack Turner for molestation and possible rape." Pulling out several plastic bags with several swabs and gobs of white goop in them. "I have evidence to submit…"

Her eyes fell on the tube of medicine laying on the partially pulled out shelf at the head of her bed
with the drawer she kept the medicine in, cracked open below it. The Steward had packed her things from the Red Dwarf and unpacked them into the same places on the Currier/tanker. She could not remember using it the night before as tired as she was. Staring at the tube for a few seconds her mouth dropped open as she looked down between her boobs dropping her towel. Pulling them apart to look under them as best she could, at where the open sore from the bra wire strap running beneath them should have been. It just seemed to be getting worse over the last few weeks going from simply an irritating rash then a burn to raw skin and then an open bloody painful sore.  The red line of the open sore was still there but it was covered with something. Touching it, her finger slid over something slippery and soft but firm without hurting herself. She withdrew her hand, rubbing her fingers together and smelled it. Her long shower had washed the soft plastic covering protecting the sore squeaky clean as she rubbed her finger over it again without hurting or drawing blood.

Looking up she saw the can of spray
foam wound bandage sitting on the back side of the shelf with the medicine tube in front of it. "Hey you moron. I have a prescription for medicine for the damn bra burn."  She thought for a few seconds and then picked up the tube and read the labels fine print then typed in the name of the medicine. Reading she shook her head. "Not for open wounds." Looking down she noticed the wet washcloth and blotched towel in the corner. "Evidentially the idiot can read better than I can." She picked up the can and read the label biting her lip. Sitting down on her bunk she started feeling the sore below her boobs again shaking her head as she sat down on Jack's bunk without thinking.

Finally
taking up the tube of medicine, she smelled it and wrinkled up her nose. Then she opened the plastic bag and smelled it wrinkling her nose again and smiled as she shook her head. "Shit! Just when I figured out how to really hate him along with his brother." She tried to pull her knees up into her chin placing her feet on the edge of Jack’s bed in front of her but her boobs got in the way until she pushed them to the side enough to let her hug her own legs and put her chin on her knees as a tear ran down her cheek sitting on Jacks bunk completely naked.

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Jack scanned the screens in front of him packed with information on the boat he was piloting as he approached the Red Dwarf. The shuttle lock loomed ahead of him filled with rows of shuttles as he headed for the trap through the large hatch in the side of the ship. The trap was a short tube of smaller and smaller grav-rings for catching high speed Shuttles boats, fighters and torpedo bombers making landing large numbers of boats and fighters fast and easy. The ship's side thrusters fired as Jack thought about it without him consciously having to move his hand. The shuttle turned to head for the opening. He had done this hundreds of times before in The Game and hardly had to think about it. Which was amazing to him every time he turned around.

Jacks comm
watch sounded. Slapping at it with his opposite hand's finger, a voice bellowed out of it. "Ensign Turner. Will that torpedo engine fit into the fighters?"

"
What?" Thinking about it he shook his head. "Well. Yes I think so Captain but you can't throttle it much. Once you reduce the thrust below 75% it is about as efficient as a fire hose. Other than that the fighter would have room to add armor around the engine in each of the fighter’s two engine bays. "Thinking for a few seconds as he made corrections to the shuttles course without thinking. "The bigger fighter torpedo bombers will take 4 clustered together in each of the two engine bays with what I would think would be the range of a destroyer using the old mass tanks."

"But we do not have any of the right coils to convert any do we?"
The Captain said hoping the opposite.

"Yes sir. We do not.
The only coils we have in the fleet close to what we need are not powerful enough to make a sub ion engine. I had to design new ones from the wire up but I do not know if they are even mass producible yet and I have heard that the surviving ort cloud factories are running at full capacity for coils as it is. That is if they will even work as small as they are. I really need to do some testing on a live engine first sir and actually an engine designed for the fighters and bombers would be much more powerful than the torpedo engines who small size limits there power. You would be able to throttle it as well. If we are going to start designing new coils, the ion Engines for the Battleships would be a hell of a lot more powerful if we started from scratch. Give them a real kick in the ass." Jack turned the shuttle around and slowed it down a few hundred feet per second and checked the alignment of their approach from habit not having to really think about it as he whipped it back around to face forward. "But then the deck grav coils would have to be replaced as well to keep the decks at 1 Gee and I can't see how we can get any more power out of them without increasing their size making it impossible to retrofit them into the existing deck pits." Thinking about it as he slid the shuttle a little to the side to align with the trap. "But then we just may be able to…"