Chapter 5

An alarm sounded in the room where James and Laura were snoozing. James’ hand came up and slapped the alarm clock down, silencing it. The man groaned before he yawned, his mouth creaking open slowly as he came awake. Laura sighed to herself as she too woke up, stretching her arms over her head. The pair sat up and shared a kiss before moving to get dressed.

“Now that is something that I could get used to!” Laura grinned as she slipped back into her dress, getting ready to head to the galley.

“You won’t hear any complaints from me! This happening on the regular is something I won’t shy away from myself,” James agreed as he hopped into his pants.

“But of course, this is until either of us meet that one,” Laura reminded him.

“Like I said, no strings attached with us. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have ourselves some beastly sex with each other,” James responded as he finished tucking in his shirt.

“Si! I look forward to such...” Laura started before she was interrupted mid-sentence.

‘James Brighton, please report to the Captain’s Quarters. James Brighton, report to the Captain’s Quarters, immediately,’ came a voice over the loudspeaker.

“Well, I guess we’ll have to pick this conversation up later, yeah?” James wondered.

“Si, we will! I need to head to the Galley anyway and help prepare the evening meal. See you after your shift?” Laura asked.

“That you will!” James promised. With a quick peck, the pair hopped out of the room and went their separate ways. While James was rested to some degree, he hoped that Captain Greyheart wasn’t after another romp. It’s not that he wouldn’t want it, but that he was a little out of starch at the moment. Smiling regardless, James hurried along, not wanting to keep his captain waiting.

Laura skipped along towards the Galley, happy as a clam and high on the endorphins coursing through her system. She passed a few crew members on the way to the Galley, whom she greeted cheerily. The looks on their faces were pure bewilderment until they remembered who she had come aboard with. Figuring she had herself some time with James, the crew members chuckled as they moved along.

The Italian woman stepped into the Galley and saw Gertrude already puttering around, getting the food prepped for cooking. There were a few other helpers there, plus one whom Laura knew very well.

“Ottie! What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be on bedrest?” Laura asked her friend as she walked up and hugged the woman.

“I spoke with Doc Zelda and she told me that since I was fussing so much today, that I could be discharged early. Besides, I wasn’t going to sit still in bed all day. You know how I get if I sit for too long,” Ottilia replied as she hugged Laura back.

“I guess that this means I won’t have to work as hard in here then,” Laura giggled as she went for an apron that was hanging on a nearby peg.

“But that means you still have to work. This dish won’t cook itself, you know!” Gertrude grumped as she pushed away a lump of dough that looked like it was too dry.

“What is for dinner tonight?” Laura wondered.

“Trying to make some noodles to go with a red sauce, but I can’t seem to get the consistency of them right!” the cook huffed.

“Are you trying to make spaghetti noodles from scratch?” Laura asked as she rolled up her sleeves.

“Yeah! I thought I had it right that one time I made it, but it’s been kicking my ass for the last hour!” Gertrude complained.

“Permit me, ma’am. I can make them for you,” Laura smiled as she stepped up to the counter and started putting together the ingredients she needed. Gertrude almost protested, then smacked herself in the face!

“Of course! You’re Italian! You’d know how to make these things!” Gertrude sighed happily.

“Ottie, can you do anything with that dough Gertrude put together?” Laura queried as she eyed the dough that Gertrude had been working with.

“Hmm,” Ottilia humphed to herself as she picked it up and inspected the dough. “I might be able to make a serviceable loaf of bread from this. Do we have any garlic?”

“Yes! Just over there in the pantry, on the second shelf!” Gertrude told Ottilia, and the woman smiled as Laura walked her through the steps to make proper spaghetti noodles.

James walked up to the door of the captain’s quarters and knocked on the door. He could have tried just walking in, but that was a bad idea, as Captain Greyheart could have other guests inside.

“Enter,” came Michelle’s silky voice in reply.

“You wanted to see me, captain?” James asked as he stepped into the room. He noticed that both Ernie Sr. and Jr. were there, with some of the plans he had taken from the Marino Airfield. Seeing this spelled out what was going on, and James couldn’t help but smile.

“Yes, Mr. Brighton! It seems these blueprints you lifted will be of great use to restoring and rebuilding our fleet of planes!” Michelle stated enthusiastically.

“Glad to be of service, Captain Greyheart! Would you care to hear the plans I have for restoring your fleet of fighters?” James posed.

“Please, by all means!” the redheaded woman enthused.

“Well, the first thing I would do is take apart each plane we have that is not in service, and do a full rebuild of each one from the ground up. To do so, we will need the blueprints of each plane, along with a materials and parts list. Once we have those, we can the deconstruct each plane, replace what parts need replacing and then put it back together,” James stated.

“A lengthy process to be sure, but one which I approve of doing! I would assume that you have such blueprints and parts lists, gentlemen?” Michelle asked as she turned to regard the Black men.

“We do, ma’am! We can pull what we need from the manuals and such that we have and put together such lists in no time!” Ernie Jr. told her.

“The catch is getting ahold of the correct materials, then making them to size once we have it all,” Ernie Sr. replied.

“That is something that we can look into at our first port of calling in the Indigenous Lands. If I remember right, there were a few metal suppliers that could provide us with what we need,” Captain Greyheart responded.

“If that’s the case, then with enough hands, it shouldn’t take us too long to get these planes skyworthy!” James said with a grin.

“What of these designs? Are there any that could be put to use?” Michelle questioned.

“Hmm. Let me see what is here that could be of use,” James replied as he looked over the blueprints. He flipped through several ideas until he saw one that grabbed his attention.

“I’m thinking maybe this one would be a good place to start,” James told the woman, as he brought the blueprints to their attention.

“That one? Pardon me Jim, but isn’t it a little ... small?” Ernie Sr. queried.

“Small is the point! If you have a craft this small, it will require less materials to build, be easier to maintain and smaller craft have one advantage that bigger craft don’t,” James told them.

“Which is?”

“They are much more maneuverable than larger planes. If you can make tighter turns and outmaneuver your enemies in the skies, then you are the one with the advantage. Sure, regular planes might have bigger guns and such, but it doesn’t matter one bit if these little guys are on your tail, knocking you out of the sky,” James argued.

“The boy makes a fair point. While the planes we have are good planes, evading fire and having a good deal of maneuverability is essential in winning any engagement. So, Mr. Brighton, what would you need to put together a prototype for this plane?” Michelle questioned.

“Well, I’d have to do a full accounting of all the materials we would need to build the frame, along with a solid engine that I can tinker with. I can have a full parts list ready by tomorrow, and have a loadout of what would be needed for repairs in two days,” James replied.

“Then come to me in two days with the entire list of materials, and we will see about getting what we need to make the fleet battle ready again. We will be putting into a main travel hub within that time, so I will expect to have the list in hand when we arrive,” Captain Greyheart told him.

“You will have it, ma’am,” James swore. “I’ll start working on the lists and gameplan first thing in the morning!”

“Pardon me, captain, but how are we going to pay for these materials? It’s not like that patrol job paid us very much. There was also what we ... took, but even that wasn’t much,” Ernie Sr. reminded her, a bit leery that James knew of their illicit activities to break Raeni Black out of jail. A smirk flicked across Michelle’s lips and she reached into a desk drawer and pulled out a gold bar, plonking it on the desk.

“I have a couple of these on hand. Courtesy of Mr. Brighton here. I’m sure a few of these will secure what we need and put us all in the black, yes?” Michelle questioned with a chuckle.

“That it will, captain! That it will!!” Ernie Sr. gaped as he took in the sight of the gold brick. He, along with every other man and woman on board, knew the price of gold was high. If the captain had a few of these, then they would be sitting pretty for a couple of months and have an upgraded fleet to boot!

“I trust you and Jr. will keep the source of this gold a secret? No need to have young James here draw any more attention than is needed,” Michelle stated seriously.

“They’ll hear nothing from me, ma’am! Jr.?” the elder man asked his son.

“No, ma’am! Not a peep from me! I swear it!” the younger of the Black men said with a salute.

“Very good. Assist Mr. Brighton in whatever capacity he requires. I want to have a solid plan in motion by the time we arrive at the trading post. Dismissed,” she told the three men.

Just as the men stood up, another buzzer sounded through the ship, telling them it was time for dinner. Michelle smirked, thinking the timing couldn’t have been better as she moved to get dressed for dinner with the officers. The trio of men vacated her quarters, seeking out whatever dinner was to be that night. The woman giggled to herself, as she remembered how men often thought with their stomachs.

The woman sat there for a few minutes, reflecting on the events that had brought the Crimson Sky to this point. She was happy about the recent turn of good fortune, especially in light of the betrayal that Betty had perpetrated. Before they snagged the border patrol job, things had gotten bad onboard the ship. It was to the point where she was certain that at least half the remaining crew would seek employment with other merc groups.

The attempted mutiny had hit them all hard, showing the true colors of those whom they had called ‘friend’. Michelle knew that she would have to step up a few things before their eventual return to the Republic. James Brighton, Laura Marino and Ottilia Natale were fortunate finds, even if their arrival on the ship was a little unorthodox.

So far, she had heard the men rumbling appreciatively at the quality of food over the last day. It wasn’t much, but it was something that would help keep the men’s spirits lifted. If the food quality continued to climb, then there would be far less for them all to grumble about. The mercenary captain made a note to ensure the purchase of quality foods, so the men would have something to look forward to every day.

Gertrude and Flora had done an admirable job of keeping the men’s bellies full, but even their skills only went so far. Having those two Italian girls working in the kitchen had put a quality spin on the grub. There was also the fact that both women were easy on the eyes, a fact that the men aboard noticed readily.

Michelle’s mind wandered back to James and the gold he had brought with him. Him being in possession of five of those bricks had nearly tempted the woman to rob him blind. But she was a woman of honor and her word, so she would only retain three of them, while the other two belonged to James. The money she would get for one bar alone would put the ship in good repair and her crew in good form!

With three, Michelle would not only see everyone fed, watered, watered and fucked, but it would also put their fleet of planes back into fighting shape! A mercenary was only as good as the tools they had and the planes still needed proper refits, badly. If James was as good as he claimed, she hoped they would see them back in the skies in top shape at the end of the month.

For the moment, they would have to rely on what planes were serviceable, along with that new plane that James had flown in on. Michelle had noted that it lacked any sort of firepower, which was a problem she would rectify when they put in at the trading post. She only hoped they had decent guns to mount on the aircraft when they arrived.

Seeing as the dinner buzzer had gone a few minutes ago, Captain Greyheart figured she had best get ready. She stepped over to her closet, selecting a more serious set of attire to help inspire the men. There was a time for using her assets to make them come around, and there was a time to be professional about things. This time, she would be professional, as she intended to instill hope among her officers.

Once she had put on her set of clothes, she looked over herself in the tall standing mirror, making sure everything was in place. Michelle had even selected a specific hat to help add to her imposing presence, thinking it would help win over any doubters. The moment her outfit was as it should be, she turned on her heel and left her quarters for the Officer’s Mess.

James and Ernie Sr. and Jr. made their way to the mess, picking up Raeni and Zhade along the way. The five of them made small talk as they made their way through the ship, keeping the events in the captain’s quarters private. While Raeni could have pried, she knew her boys had things they had to keep to themselves, per the captain’s orders. So, she let the matter lie, figuring that it would all come out in the open when it was meant to.

“Oh, my!! Do you smell that??” Raeni asked, sniffing the air as they neared the mess hall.

“Oh. OH!! I smell ... garlic, and ... some kind of ... meat?” Ernie Sr. wondered as they moved through the corridors.

“I would say that it almost smells like Gertrude is trying her hand at some sort of pasta dish again!” Jr. replied, inhaling the pleasing aroma.

“Whatever she did this time, it smells like she got it right!” Sr. responded with a smile.

“With Laura in the kitchen, you can be sure that she probably did! Italian women know their stuff when it comes to good food! Especially when they’re making dishes they grew up with,” James stated with a smile.

“Oh!! I forgot about that! By the smell of things, they do know what they’re doing!!” Ernie Jr. said as he turned the corner into the mess.

The first third of the crew were finishing up their dinner, placing their dishes and trays on the end of the main serving bench. A few of Gertrude’s helpers were whisking the dirty dishes away to be cleaned while putting out clean ones of the next third of the crew. Ernie Sr. had Raeni go and grab them a table, while they grabbed the girls’ food. James assisted in this, helping the Black men with juggling the trays of food and drink.

“Damn! That spaghetti and meatballs sure looks good!” Ernie Jr. commented as he loaded up his and his mother’s plate, while his dad set up his and Zhade’s.

“If you think this is something, wait until you try out the garlic bread!” the unfamiliar feminine voice told him.

Ernie Jr. turned his head to see the girl who was talking, as he didn’t know who it was. The moment she looked up and into his face, time seemed to stop. Jr.’s mouth fell open as he took in the sight of Ottilia Natale. Her hair, her eyes, everything about her. Ottilia was similarly entranced by Jr., staring at the man as though it was the first time she had ever seen one.

“Oi! Ernie!!” the man’s father snapped, jolting the boy out of his daydream.

“Yes, sir?!?” Jr. almost yelped, jolting to attention.

“Others are hungry! Stare at the girls here once your butt is in a seat!” his dad said sternly.

Jr. nodded and went back to collecting dinner for himself and his mom while some of the men laughed at the boy for his moment. Even Ottilia giggled to herself as she went back to work, serving the men their meal. Jr. hurried along, not wanting the food to cool too much, as he knew his mother liked her food hot. He moved to the table where his dad, mom and baby sister waited, with James joining them for the meal.

“Dear, did you have to snap on Jr. so much?” Raeni asked, as she was served her food.

“The boy has to learn that others here need food too, so the line has to keep moving,” Ernie Sr. responded.

“To be fair, it seems like someone caught his attention,” James chuckled before turning to wave at Ottilia and Laura, who waved back before resuming their work.

“Oh! The brunette? Laura?” Raeni asked, giggling at her son.

“Nope. The blonde one, Ottilia,” James replied.

“Aha! That doesn’t surprise me at all! Jr. here has always had a thing for blondes. Ever since Greta Thorvaldsen back in ... what was it? Seventh grade?” Raeni teased.

“Mooooooommmmm!” Jr. whined, as he buried his face in his spaghetti.

“What? You are a young, vigorous man, so I don’t begrudge you staring at pretty girls! I will say though, she certainly is a looker, even with all the sweat and food stains on her,” Raeni stated approvingly. “She was the one you found at the abandoned base, James?”

“Yes, ma ... Mama Rae,” James replied when he caught a look from her. “She was living rough for a while before she happened upon Laura and myself. Good thing we found her when we did, as the cops were closing in on her. It would have been back to the looney bin for her, even though there is nothing wrong with the poor girl.”

“Why would she be sent there? Wouldn’t her family try to get her out?” Ernie Sr. questioned.

“That is something you’ll have to ask her, as it is not my story to tell. I will tell you this much though; her family played politics with another one, while using her as a pawn,” James growled.

“Oh!! The poor girl!” Raeni replied, as she felt a pang of sorrow for the girl.

“She is more than happy to be away family, if you could call them that. Being on this ship might be something new, but she sees it as something that will take her places she’s always wanted to go! Fate, it seems, had already put her wishes in motion,” James finished as he munched on his spaghetti.

“Those girls do look unusually happy! Most people working the Galley tend to have sour looks on their faces, but not these two!” Ernie Sr. noted.

“One thing they love to do is cook! I honestly haven’t had Italian fare this good in years!” James admitted, having tasted food from various cultures before.

“I would say the same!” Raeni agreed, as she cleaned off her plate. She looked over to Zhade, who was stuffing her little face, smearing it with the spaghetti sauce. Raeni and Ernie Sr. had a brief laugh before they set to cleaning the little girl’s face. She had polished off her garlic bread and was eyeing the last piece that was sitting on Jr.’s plate.

“You going to finish that, son?” Sr. asked. “Looks like your sister has her eye on it.”

“She can have it,” Jr. said with a smile, pushing his plate towards Zhade. The little girl smiled and snatched the garlic bread from the plate, munching on it happily.

“What do you say to your big brother?” Raeni questioned her daughter.

“Thank ... you!” Zhade said sweetly in between bites of the bread.

“You’re welcome!” Jr. told his sister with a smile.

“Looks like someone likes garlic bread! Lucky for her, I’m too full to finish mine,” James stated as he pushed his plate towards the little girl as well. Zhade’s smile widened, but before she took it, she looked up to her parents with a questioning look. They nodded, and she squeed, grabbing the bread from the plate and chomped it up.

“Fank ... oooo!” the little girl mumbled as her mouth was stuffed full of bread.

“Zhade, what did we say about speaking with your mouth full?” Ernie Sr. asked.

“Sowwy daddy!” Zhade replied before realizing that she should close her mouth.

“So, what are you three going to be up to after dinner?” Raeni questioned as she helped Zhade clean up.

“We’re probably going to head down to the shop and do some planning. The captain told us she was going to get some raw materials to allow us to do the repairs for the planes. Along with whatever else we need for some prototype ideas that we are looking to build,” her husband told her.

“Some of Jr.’s ideas?” the woman asked as she pulled Zhade into her lap.

“Not this time around, ma. James here brought some designs with him, so we’re going to go with what he’s got,” Jr. told his mother.

“Wait, you’ve got some designs you made?” James asked his new friend.

“A few, but I haven’t touched them in a while. Why?” Ernie Jr. wondered.

“Let me have a look at them! There might be a few things that I can help with to make them worth trying to build,” James offered.

“You serious?” Ernie queried.

“I did work at an airfield for almost a decade, so I know my way around planes. Let’s put our heads together and see what we come up with!” James told him.

“I should probably oversee this. Lord knows you two kids might need someone with some experience in these things,” Ernie Sr. offered.

“Ah, boys will be boys!” Raeni giggled as the men stood up to leave. “Just don’t be too long in the shop tonight, hon! Gonna give little miss here a bath, then put her down. Lord knows she’ll sleep heavy tonight with all that food she ate!”

“Yes, dear! I’ll be along in about two hours. Might want to grab a nap, because I’m not sure you’ll be getting any sleep tonight,” Sr. chuckled.

“Dad, boundaries!” Jr. groused as they left the mess. Ernie Sr. just laughed the whole way down to the workshop, as did James, who was enjoying Jr. being grossed out by his parents’ affection for one another.

“So, Captain, you have items of value that you have secured, which will see us back on the rise to prominence?” the bosun questioned.

“Aye, I have! I have also contracted the services of Mr. Brighton, who will not only restore our fleet, but upgrade it,” she told the officers.

“Indeed? How would he do such things? He is but a boy,” Li-Fan Chang replied with an air of disdain.

“That boy, spent the last eight years working at an airfield, as well as being highly educated in the US. Had his mother not been a wealthy woman, he would not have the education and mindset he has today,” the captain told her First Officer.

“I see. Experience is useful and if he got an early start, then he may prove of use,” the First Officer agreed.

“He was also tutored in aerospace design and theory, which is how he was able to design that marvel he flew in. Not to mention that he trained under one of my compatriots,” Michelle iterated.

“May we ask who he trained under, captain? I’ve heard some of the men talk, but I want to hear it from you. Just to be sure the boys aren’t blowing smoke,” the head engineer told her.

“Iron Wolf himself, trained the boy on how to fly. Taught him a lot, apparently,” Michelle told the group.

Hearing this wiped the doubt from their faces and their minds. The men and women there then nodded, as George Vlahos, a.k.a. Iron Wolf was an ace pilot. If James had received his training under that man, then there was no doubt the kid was a good flier. With how shorthanded they were at the moment, they needed anyone who could fly a plane in their roster.

“I retract any previous statements about that boy’s flying skills. He does require training in how to defend himself, though. His swordsmanship is terrible,” Li-Fan told her captain.

“I heard about the utter thrashing you gave the poor boy. I am curious about why you were so hard on him for his first lesson,” Michelle questioned.

“Because he is of a bloodline, that must know how,” Li-Fan stated.

“Oh? Explain,” Captain Greyheart.

“The boy doesn’t know who his father is, but was left a clue by his mother. A clue that compels me to train the boy personally,” the First Officer told her around a mouthful of food.

“Training him personally?” Michelle asked, her eyebrows climbing.

“Aye, Captain!” the Bosun told her. “She let Ernie continue with teaching young James about how to stand properly during a fight. He was also taking him through basic blocks and parries, and to discard the silly notion about flashy and fancy moves during a fight.”

“That is good to hear! Now, I’m certain that a great many of you are curious about what items of value I may have procured. Simply put, items like this, is what I have taken from young Mr. Brighton,” she told the group, placing the gold bar from her desk on the table.

“That kid ... had one of these on him?!?” the Bosun queried.

“He had three. All of which are now ours, which we will use to rebuild the fleet. Something which young Mr. Brighton will be helping with,” Michelle told her officers.

“How did you get these bars from the boy?” Li-Fan inquired, curious about what sort of bargain was struck. Michelle told her officers of the deal she had made with James, detailing what he was to do for them and what he was being allowed to keep. She left out the part where he would fuck her brains out, as they didn’t need to know that.

“I’d say the asking was steep indeed, captain, but allowing the boy to keep his plane and his weapons is more than fair in exchange for the gold,” one of the officers intoned, smiling for the first time in weeks.

“Indeed! I’m not only thinking of all the things we can get that we need, but also some things that we all could want!” the Bosun stated.

“Oh? Such as?” the captain queried.

“Some proper Scotch whisky! Also, some of that good Indigenous ale for the men! Lord knows they don’t like that horsepiss the US calls beer!” the Bosun chuckled.

“On that, I could not agree more! I think our turn of good fortune requires a toast! To the Crimson Sky!” Michelle called out, raising her glass of ale.

“To the Crimson Sky!!”

James, Ernie Sr. and Ernie Jr. were standing there, going over one of the designs that Jr. had come up with a while ago. James had made some recommended changes, which Jr. agreed to, making the plane more aerodynamically sound. Sr. added some of his input, which was incorporated into the design. Once they had made the necessary changes, they stood back and admired the work they had done.

“Now that sort of plane, that’s something I could get behind!” Ernie Sr. stated.

“I would agree! It should fly quite fast and have a good deal of maneuverability! Its overall top speed might be a bit lagging, but this looks like something that could be done!” James responded.

“While it isn’t my original design, I admit, I do kind of like the direction this one is going!” Jr. admitted with a yawn.

“What time is it?” James wondered.

“It’s just after eleven,” Sr. said, pointing at a nearby wall clock. “We should all probably get ourselves some rack time.”

“Especially you, Jim! You’ve got sword lessons with the First Officer early!” Jr. reminded the man.

“You’ll want to get yourself some sleep then, lad! The First Officer does not tolerate anyone being late!” Sr. said in agreement with his son.

“Early is on time, on time is late and late is unacceptable!” James smiled, reciting a mantra his grandfather had drilled into him. “Do you know where I am to meet her?”

“The same spot where she whooped your ass,” Jr. chuckled.

“All right. You might want to get a move on, Ernie. Don’t want to keep your wife waiting too long now, do you?” James chuckled. Both men looked at James quizzically for a moment, before a feral grin came up on Sr.’s face. Jr. just rolled his eyes as James laughed on his way out of the hangar.

He grabbed his duffle and headed for a room nearby that was unoccupied. He found one in short order and surveyed it. There was a single bed, bolted to one of the walls, which had a mattress, sheets, pillow, and three blankets. While James wasn’t cold, he figured things could get chilly, which explained why so many blankets were there.

There was also a small nightstand, which wasn’t bolted down, along with a lamp and an alarm clock. James noted there was a door on the left wall, which he quickly investigated. The room on the other side of the door was a functioning bathroom, with a toilet, ceramic bathtub and shower stall. There was also a closet, which had some basic supplies, such as towels, soap, shampoo, and even some shaving supplies.

While the supplies were a bit dated and the towels a little dusty, James still smiled as he went back to his room. He started unpacking his duffle bag, pulling out everything in it and stowing it in the room. His clothes were easy to put away, as there was a small closet built into the wall right next to the bathroom door. James’ personal items, such as the letters from his mother and his history books, went into the nightstand.