The Girl in the Tank: Galactic Consortium, Season 1

Episode Seven: The End of Quarantine ch.5

"Thirteen days!" Madsen hooted as Dan returned to his room after the officer's meeting. The other two were there as well, Jensen looking almost as excited as Madsen, Kleppie looking quiet and thoughtful. "Thirteen days and we are home free."

"You haven't even heard the best of it," Dan said. "I got our orders."

"Our orders?"

"Yup," he said. "You all get leave, next week."

"Leave?" they all said together.

"That's right, three weeks worth, though it will be split up. Kavinda is breaking our quarantine next week. We will dock with the consortium base ship in a week's time. Then we all have five days, on their civilian court, their treat. Then we embark on hoppers, small orbital ships and land on Shoshone station on the 30th for the banquet. Afterwards, you are back on leave. You can stay on the station or head down to the surface. Then you get two more weeks of paid leave. After which everyone comes back in through whatever processing station and we return to Norfolk and our next assignment."

"Won't be the Cambridge," Madsen said. They all fell silent and somber.

"Will we even be together?" Jensen wondered.

Dan shrugged. "They are being pretty tight lipped. I don't know. Likely not."

"Still we're getting out of here," Madsen said.

"And we get to see this base ship," Kleppie added. "Wonder what it will be like?"

######

Two days later they were just waking up when Cheyenne called at the door. "Poindexter has your breakfast, guys."

Madsen's face scrunched up as Dan went to answer. Dan fell back, laughing.

"Get it? Poindexter?" Cheyenne was saying, her eyes bright and a goofy grin on her face.

"Holy shit, Walker," Jensen said.

"They did the procedure yesterday," she said. She had eyes, real, biological eyes, in her head. They were each encased in their own miniature round case and bathed in medical gel while the lids grew around them. "They look weird, I know. But I don't care. I'm seeing out of real eyes! In a few weeks the lids will grow back and they'll be just like new."

"Awesome, so awesome," Dan said as he swept her into a hug.

"I know, for the first time I really think I am going to get back to the way I was, be totally healed someday."

Despite grabbing food from Cheyenne's breakfast cart, the men went to the mess hall. They found seats at the back, ignoring the line for food.

"Viewscreen..." Jensen started.

"Wait," someone said.

"Just want to see the morning news," Jensen replied. The morning news here was actually the evening news back home, and they watched it every morning.

"I know, but we got to pray first," the sailor said. He knelt on one knee.

Dan nearly laughed but when the sailor began, his voice was serious. Several sailors followed suit.

"Dear God," he prayed. "Let the news be good. Guide our path home and let peace last long enough for us to make it. Amen."

"Amen," Dan breathed.

The news had not been good recently. The Consortium was at a stalemate with both China and Russia. There had been renewed insurgency in Afghanistan. None of it directly impacted their peace with America, but one never knew and now that they had information about how they would get home, they were all on egg shells.

Jensen started the viewscreen. There was a quiet squabble about which channel to watch. The more mainstream American channel won by a narrow margin, even some of the conservative sailors were starting to suspect that their favorite channel was biased when it came to the consortium and the consortium crew understood the sailors were desperate for news of their home.

And it was good news.

"After three days of intense fighting in the Southern Afghanistan, with insurgents at the outskirts of Kandahar, a stunning turn of events."

"Shit they kicked us out of Syria in three days," Whitman groused. "Now there's nothing they can do?"

"Hush," Jensen growled listening.

"Consortium troops have been active for days, in the high mountains around the region, quietly finding and seizing insurgent bases and supply depots. The campaign, dubbed Operation Shadowrun by Captain Ganaka, wrapped up today. The insurgents hit their first real opposition from Afghan army units, turned back to resupply and found most of their supply line already in custody."

"What's happening now?" the coanchor prompted.

"They are falling back into bases only to find consortium marines with stun sticks waiting. For the most part they are being captured with minimal casualties on either side."

"And what comes now for Afghanistan?"

"Long term? We can't say yet. For now the insurgents are being treated the same way they have treat African rebel fighters and warlords. They take them into custody and then sentenced to work in refugee camps elsewhere for a time."

"And what good does that do?"

"They claim they are trying to break the cycle of violence in these places. Take their guns. Break up the units and make them work amongst civilians for a time. Whether or not it will work long term remains to be seen."

"Are there any early indications in Africa?"

"Mostly positive, to be honest. The captured insurgents have built hundreds of dome cities for refugees. Some of the militants indicate they want to settle there, when there time is served, to live in peace now. Others say they will return home, perhaps they will find new weapons and return to their cause, or perhaps not."

"Word from world leaders?"

"The princess Sarasvat has indicated her sorrow at the small number of casualties the Afghans have experienced. She's also stated emphatically that removing the weapons is more important than capturing the insurgents."

"Seriously?" the coanchor said.

"Look at Somali," the newscaster replied. "The rebel forces there have vowed to keep fighting, with barehands if necessary. But without military grade weapons, peacekeeping forces from the U.N. And the Somali's own government forces are making headway for the first time in over a generation."

"The reaction from other world leaders?"

"Mostly as expected. Our president and European leaders are indicating their support. China and Russia are calling it another assault on our planet's sovereignty."

"Doesn't matter," Jensen said as the news switched to the economy, not nearly as good news. "It's not going to stop us from going home."

"Thank God," Dan said.