Page 158 of Return of the Nine

Vida and S’rin came to take her to dinner and Derion smiled. “Same time tomorrow, Miss Senior?”

She nodded. “I am going to get the hang of this before we leave. I promise.”

He nodded. “I have no doubt.”

It was routine by the day that they were ready to launch. Derion greeted her in the morning and they had breakfast together while discussing the information found by the probe.

The afternoon was spent on the simulator and Ianka had managed to take off, fly and engage in battle manoeuvres, as well as landing. She wasn’t graceful but she could get them where they were going.

The evening meals were spent with Vida, Ziggy and any other Gaians who had time. Late in the night, she answered the knock on her door and went out with Derion again for her exercise.

The day of the launch, she had her bag with her when the knock on her door told her it was time.

The flight time would be twelve hours. The larger ships had more power than the probe and could travel far faster.

She opened the door to see Vida and S’rin. “Morning, Veed.”

Vida smiled weakly. “Would you like some breakfast?”

Ianka chuckled. “Please. Never miss an offered meal. That is my motto.”

Vida laughed. “It always was.”

They linked arms and went for breakfast before the rest of the day shift had stirred into action.

It had less the feeling of a last meal and more of a holiday gathering. There was hope as they discussed the mission and Vida kept tearing up.

When she was escorted to the shuttle bay, S’rin stopped her with a glance and he bowed deeply. “Come home safely, sister.”

She bowed in return. “Take care of her and do not let her get too excited until we return. I expect a tense family dinner when we get back here. You will get to meet our parents, and though they are not talented in the same way Vida and I are, they can see things you could never imagine.”

She smiled softly in remembrance of her functionally blind parents and their vision that went far beyond the physical.

Vida lunged at her and squeezed her tight. “Take care of yourself. I want to see all my family together, not in pieces. I am going to see everything you do, so take care or I will kick the tar out of you when you get home.”

“Yes, Veed. I promise I will take care.” She whispered it in her sister’s ear and she heard Vida sob. “Vida you did the hard work; now, let me do my part.”

Vida leaned back and swiped at the tears in her eyes, moving back against S’rin.

Before she could start snivelling on her own, Ianka turned and headed for the walkway that extended into the ship she would be ensconced in. Derion stood aside as she entered, and once inside, she nodded to the guard on her left.

“To the right and down the hall until you see a staircase. Go up the staircase and then turn left.”

She nodded. He had briefed her the night before. As commander, he was the last one into the ship, because the moment he was in place, they would leave. She needed to be strapped in before he sat down or she could tip over.

Ianka kept on track with his directions, and after ten minutes, she was sitting in the cockpit on a jump seat with her bag stowedin a locked shelf behind her. She needed the contents of the bag for the mission and wanted to keep them close.

Two other members of the Fury were on the command deck and they linked to the probe that Ula had sent out and used that for telemetry. The moment that Derion was strapped in, they started the engines and the ship began to move.

Ianka was fascinated by the flight. It was so different from lifting off from a world. There was no pressure, no discomfort, only a slight indication of motion before all exterior signals ceased.

Humming to herself, she followed the motions of the crew and unbuckled her launch harness. She unlatched the storage box and removed her bag, fishing out the tablet with the information programs that she wanted to watch. She had twelve hours to kill and she was finding the history of the Nine fascinating.

Derion smiled and got to his feet. “Miss Senior, this is Uradik and Morwil. They will be at your disposal if you require anything. Medical is ready if you want to take a nap.”

She smiled. “I am fine. I can stay awake and alert for a few days if needed. I don’t need to use the bed in medical. Will this documentary disturb any of you?”

Uradik and Morwil shook their heads. Derion shrugged. “It will be fine. What are you watching?”

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