ENSIGN (A Starship Hope Prequel)

CHAPTER 7

Dana had only slept a total of four hours per night since her dinner with her father, the cramps in her stomach increasing each day the rift between them grew. Today was the big event—launch day—and all she wanted to do was climb back into her new bunk and pull the covers over her head. Current circumstances and her career being what they were, though, she didn't have much choice. She suspected if she left the Atlantis before launch, she'd be grounded for the rest of her life by those still alive to hold a grudge against her father. He'd burned any chance she had at making it on her own. What could he have done to make them want to punish him for a second generation?

Then she remembered Kristoff. Their commission ceremony was still fresh in her mind, the shock on Kristoff's face when he'd returned to her side, being among the first assigned to a ground team. Her starship assignment had shredded the remains of their friendship, turning it into something unrecognizable. When she'd last seen him on the ground crew of the Atlantis, he'd regarded her with unmasked loathing.

He was right. She didn't belong here, not yet. Dana needed to find a way to prove herself to all of them before she returned on her own terms. Perhaps the launch would be enough, but if it wasn't, she had to be prepared to leave.

"Hurry, you're going to be late," Bonnie told her from the other side of the room, grabbing her tablet. They shared the tiny, undecorated closet that passed for their quarters with two other ensigns who'd already left for their early morning shifts. They each got one drawer to use in the dresser, one cot of the two bunked beds, and a shift-dependent rotation on usage of the bathroom. It had only been three days, but already Dana had vivid fantasies of getting her own room. Bonnie's adaptable personality made her the easiest to live with among the four.

Dana waved her on. "I'll catch up, you go ahead."

"Don't be late again, or Jones will have your backside," she warned playfully, darting out the door.

The ache in her gut had yet to fade with any breakfast, so Dana continued to ignore it. Once Bonnie was out of sight, she packed her duffle, emptying the contents of her drawer into it before sliding it under Bonnie's bunk for later. Her absence would be conspicuous before the launch, so she'd have to stay until then. After she'd proved herself, she'd request an escape pod and return home.

A ruckus out in the corridor forced her from the room, poking her head out to see what the commotion was all about. In the corridor, Wade and another tall man were facing off in what looked to be a promising fight. The blond man opposite him growled something she couldn't make out before Wade threw the first punch slamming his fist into the other man's chin. The reverberating thwack drew more people to the crowd growing around them. The other man lit up like rocket fuel, and lunged for Wade's uniform, tumbling both of them to the floor. The two of them threw their fists into one another grunting through bared teeth. Dana couldn't see much beyond the throng around them until a senior officer arrived.

"Hey! Knock it off, you two!" the chief engineer yelled, appearing through the gathered crowd on the opposite side of the fight. She and another officer quickly got between the brawling pair. She held up a warning finger in Wade's face when he looked ready to lunge for the man again, and addressed the people standing around them. "The rest of you, get to your stations."

"You get caught fighting again, you're both off the ship. Understood?"

The crowd dissipated and the two men at the center of the fight stood apart breathing heavily through flared nostrils.

"You'll both be reporting to me for core clean up at the end of your shifts. You get caught fighting again, you're both off the ship. Understood? The rest of you, get to your stations."