Recruit: Book One of the Universal Conflict ( Under Constant Editing)

Chapter 12

  The day started early for both Cory and Krystal. Getting out of bed first Cory took a quick sonic shower, dressed then had the dispenser make two cups of coffee. Sipping the hot brew he awakened Krystal by softly kissing her. When she opened her eyes she smiled as he handed her the coffee to start her morning. Today was the day He was going to leave the galaxy, nobody from Earth had been further than the Moon. He had already been farther in a small fighter, He had found the love of his life and was now heading to fight in a war no one on Earth knew about in a galaxy far from his. His life had been turned upside down a month ago. Craziest part was he was enjoying every second of it.        
  "Thank You." Krystal said after she had a sip of coffee, screwing her face up as the bitter brew went down "That first sip is nasty but you can't stop after it."  
"It is addicting," Cory said taking another swallow "That's why I only have two in the morning. Otherwise I end up crashing in an hour or six. Shouldn't you get ready for duty?"                                                           "OH," Krystal exclaimed jumping out of bed "I only have thirty minutes to get ready. Move, please"                                Running past Cory she went into the bathroom to get ready. Twenty minutes later she came out, ready to go. Cory was in awe, most women he knew took hours to get ready to go anywhere.                                         As they left their quarters they ran into the squad, all headed for the bridge to observe the jump. Rufe and Surni seemed especially excited. As it turned out the destination was their home galaxy. Both longed to return and throw off the scourge that had descended on them and save what they could salvage of their societies. Rebuilding them would start once the Ruchkitay were destroyed permanently. Although everyone in the fleet was prepared to fight, these two were downright delirious in their eagerness to start wiping out the enemy of every race in the fleet.        
  Arriving at the bridge T'ilvesh greeted the group and motioned them into the ready room to await the rest of the jump crew to reach the bridge.
  Cory went to the dispenser with Krystal and got several pots of coffee ready for the briefing. Since the squad already knew about and liked the hot brew they helped themselves to cups. The Commander had yet to try it, curious about the fragrant beverage he had heard about from the squad, he then poured a cup for himself.

  "It's an acquired taste." Cory informed him before he took a sip. "It smells better than it tastes but once you get used to it, it's good for a morning wake up."

   "Alright," T'ilvesh said "Duly warned, but I've heard about this from Rufe and Surni a couple of days ago. They like it, so I wanted to try it for myself."

  The Commander took his first sip and let it roll on his tongue before swallowing. Nodding his head in approval he quickly emptied the cup.

  "That is good." He said filling a second cup.

  "Be careful, it's a stimulant." Cory warned "Too much will mess up your nerves and your digestion. Gives you a sour stomach, to boot."

  "How much do you drink during the day?" T'ilvesh asked "I don't want to over do it."

  "Two cups in the morning and maybe one in the afternoon." Cory replied "It all depends on how tired I feel after lunch."

  "Okay, duly noted." the Commander said.

  By this time the rest of the jump crew had arrived and those who had been introduced to coffee by Cory's squad had poured their coffee and were ready for work.

  "Alright," T'ilvesh said "We are going to jump today so you will be under Krystals command this morning. Since she is jump officer, I'll turn the briefing over to her."

  The Commander sat down and picked up his coffee as Krystal stood.

  "We will be doing two jumps as usual. The first to penetrate the barrier. The second to reach the target galaxy." She started "Mochtag, you are going to be our navigator."

  A being who resembled a small centaur with horny nubs on his forehead nodded.

  "Salia, you have scanners."

  A woman of Krystals race smiled and nodded as she went to the console with its row of monitors.

  "Rufe, you have ship readouts."

  Rufe smiled and left for his station.

  "Surni, you're on medical. Hawk tactical."

  The two went to their respective areas.

  Cory and T'ilvesh sat and watched while Krystal took over.

   "Coordinates laid in." Mochtag relayed.

  "Ship systems online and ready." Rufe. said

  "No disruptions in sight." Salia reported.

  "Tactical ready, weapons hot." was heard from Hawk.

  "Medical standing by." Surni said.

  "All stations ready. Prepare for first jump." Krystal ordered.

  Cory watched the others brace in their seats and gripped the arms of the chair he was sitting in. Looking at T'ilvesh, who was sitting back still sipping his coffee, relaxed, Cory loosened his grip.

  "Jump" Krystal ordered.

  As Cory watched it seemed like a hole opened in front of the ship, blacker than the space around them. The next instant they were surrounded by empty black space.

  Turning the ship around Cory saw the Milky Way galaxy come into view. He was awed by the sight of the swirling bands of stars spread before him. He couldn't believe his world wasn't even visible from here, even the sun wasn't easy to see. Krystal pointed out the section of space where the Earth should be.

   "This is amazing!" Cory said "It's absolutely breathtaking."

    "You'll get used to it." T'ilvesh interjected "Unfortunately."

   "I hope not."  Cory replied "It would be a shame to start taking this for granted."

   "All stations prepare for second jump." Krystals voice rang out.

  The cruiser spun to face the destination point as the warping projectors powered up.    As the force that warped space gathered at a section of space, a blackness even darker than the surrounding space began to form.

  "All stations ready for jump." came the reply from all posts on the bridge.

  "Jump." the order came.

  The cruiser moved forward and disappeared into the blackness of the warp disruption.