Chapter 11

Chapter 11

            Spot studied the viewscreen, trying to make out any details besides forests and oceans.  There was still nothing to indicate any cities or Cats.  Was Buster really down there?  Or had the Cats destroyed the shuttle and killed all of its occupants?

            “Any word from the surface?” he asked Dash for the hundredth time in the last twelve hours.

            “Nothing, sir.”

            “Any signals to their ships?”

            “Negative.”

            “Tell me the second there is anything, understand?”

            “Yes, sir.” 

            The Cat warships remained above and around them in orbit to prevent them from leaving.  They didn’t show any sign of changing position any time soon.  That meant they could pound the Batpooh into oblivion whenever they chose.

            He checked the sensor readings on his chair displays again.  Still nothing from the sensors either.  They had lost track of the shuttle as it neared the trees, which meant it could have landed or it could have crashed.  From all the evidence so far there wasn’t anywhere for it to land unless it touched down inside the trees.  That was how raccoons lived, but he didn’t find it likely the Cats would do the same.

            Spot sensed someone standing in front of him.  He looked up to see it was Marshy.  She smiled slightly at him.  “Could I speak with you for a moment, sir?  In private?”

            “Of course, Lieutenant.  We’ll use the captain’s office.”

            Spot showed Marshy into Buster’s office.  He didn’t like the idea of taking Buster’s chair as if he were already replacing the captain, but he didn’t see much choice.  He motioned for Marshy to sit down across the desk.  “What’s on your mind, Lieutenant?”

            “It’s more what’s on your mind, sir.”

            “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

            “I know this is a tense situation, but the crew is starting to get stressed.  We’ve been on alert for sixteen hours already.  The crew is going to wear out before much longer.”

            “Perhaps you haven’t noticed, Lieutenant, but we have three possible enemy ships shadowing us and we’re orbiting a potentially hostile world.  This isn’t the time to relax.”

            “I’m not suggesting we relax, sir.  We just need to start giving the crew some rest.”

            “Not until we hear from Captain Bulldog.”

            “Commander—”

            “That is all, Lieutenant.”  Spot waited for a full ten seconds, but Marshy remained seated.  “Dismissed, Lieutenant Ruff.”

            “I’m sorry, sir, but I think you’re endangering the crew.”

            “I’m endangering them?  It seems to me the Cats are the ones endangering us.”

            “Fleet studies have indicated that after being on alert for sixteen hours, efficiency begins to falter.  If the Cats do decide to attack, we’re not going to be at our best.”

            Spot couldn’t dispute her argument; he had seen the same studies.  “What do you propose I do?”

            “Resume rotating shifts.  I’m sure Dash would like a chance to rest.”

            “And not have me pestering him every five minutes?”

            Marshy smiled at this.  “Yes, sir.”

            “If I may, sir, I think you should take a rest too.”

            “That’s not possible at the moment.”

            “You’re part of the crew too.”

            “I have to be here if anything happens.”

            “Then at least take a nap in here.  I can have someone bring a cushion.  You won’t be far from the bridge if you’re needed.”

            Spot considered this.  He couldn’t deny how tired he felt, the hours of waiting for something to happen.  A rest, even a short one, might be beneficial.  He shook his head.  “I don’t think I could sleep now if I tried.”

            He thought Marshy would protest again, but she only nodded.  “I understand, sir.  Perhaps you could at least take a little exercise?”

            “To give the crew a rest from me?”

            “Yes, sir.”

            Spot shrugged.  “I might as well go see your brother.  He might have made some progress with the sensors.”

            “That’s a good idea, sir.”

            Spot stood up at the same time Marshy did.  Before they reached the door, he turned to her with a smile.  “You should get some rest, too, Lieutenant.  Wouldn’t want you to fall asleep when we need to make a quick getaway.”

            “Yes, sir.”

            Though Spot had phrased this as a joke, inside he knew it wasn’t really.

#

            Before he went to visit Dr. Ruff, Spot stopped in sickbay.  He found Dr. Barker on the floor, arching her back towards the floor.  “I don’t mean to intrude,” Spot said.

            “It’s all right.  I’m doing some prenatal exercises.  Want to make sure the muscles are strong for the blessed event.”

            “I won’t interrupt then.”

            “No problem.  I’m done anyway.”  Nina dropped to the floor with a tired sigh.  She held up one paw.  “A little help?”

            “How thoughtless of me.”  Spot took her paw and then held in a grunt as he hefted Nina up.  Her puppies would be coming any day now.  That was unless the Batpooh was destroyed first.

            “Why don’t we have a seat,” Nina said, motioning Spot to her office.  He couldn’t resist a yawn.  “You look a bit worn out.”

            “Lieutenant Ruff just said the same thing.  She things we should stand down a bit.”

            “You don’t agree with her?”

            “I don’t know.  What’s your medical opinion?”

            “Medically I’m not sure.  But my female intuition tells me that Lieutenant Ruff is a sharp biscuit.”

            “She is, isn’t she?”

            “And very attractive too.”

            “Is that your female intuition?”

            “I think it’s pretty obvious.  She’s young, attractive, and intelligent, everything you could want in a mate.”

            “A mate?  I think it’s a little premature to talk about that.”

            Nina smiled at this.  “I suppose it is.  You hardly know each other.  But my female intuition tells me you would make a great couple.”

            Spot said nothing for a long time.  Then he sighed.  “Was it difficult for you and Captain Barker to be together on the ship?”

            The look of sadness that crossed Nina’s face made Spot regret the question.  “It was hard at first.  We tried too hard to pretend we didn’t care for each other.  But whenever Bob called down here or paid me a visit, I could see that look on his face and I knew.”

            “After what happened, do you regret it?”

            Nina shook her head.  She put a paw on her bulging stomach.  “Not at all.  Bob and I have been happy together and we’ll find a way to get past his accident.”

            Spot nodded.  He knew Captain Barker and Nina were both very strong-willed.  If anyone could make it through something like this, it would be then.  “Thank you for the female intuition.”

            “You’re welcome, Commander.”

            “I don’t suppose it’s told you where Buster is?”

            “Not yet, but I know he’ll be fine.  A Bulldog always gets his way.  You should know that.”

            Spot thought of Buster’s father, who had spearheaded building a new capital.  Yes, it wasn’t so easy to kill a Bulldog.

#

            Dr. Ruff’s lab bore little resemblance to the storage lab it had been.  Computer displays took up three walls, plus most of the fourth.  In the center, the doctor and his assistants were plugged into a central terminal.  Spot suppressed a shiver, knowing that they were communicating with each other through electronic signals far faster than anything short of telepathy. 

            He hated to disturb them, but he didn’t see much choice at the moment.  He didn’t need to ask Dr. Ruff to unplug; the doctor did so before Spot had the chance to say anything.  “Good morning, Commander.  I trust you’re here to inquire about Captain Bulldog?”

            “That’s right.  Any luck with locating him yet?”

            “I’m afraid not.  My team has explored every possible way to configure the sensors.  There’s no way we can penetrate their defenses.”

            “Defenses?  What kind of defenses?”

            One of Dr. Ruff’s assistants—or perhaps all of them—brought up an image on one of the screens.  It showed the trees the Batpooh had detected, but they were colored light blue instead of green.  Dr. Ruff pointed to them with one paw.  “We’ve detected an energy field within the trees.  It’s powerful enough to deflect all of our attempts to penetrate it.”

            “Within the trees?”

            “It’s possible these aren’t really trees at all but merely artificial devices meant to camouflage their civilization from prying eyes.  Another possibility is that the trees are real but wired with relays to project the energy field.”

            “There’s no way of determining which it is?”

            “I’m afraid not, Commander.  Not without a closer analysis.”

            “You mean getting on the ground?”

            “That would be far more efficient.”

            “But impractical.”

            “At the moment, yes.”  Dr. Ruff motioned to his assistants.  “At the moment we’re trying to dissect our readings and determine the nature of this energy field.  That might allow us to find a way to penetrate it.”

            “I see.”  Spot took Dr. Ruff’s arm to pull him gently away from the others.  “I hope you don’t mind, but there’s something personal I’d like to discuss.”

            “Of course, Commander.  How can I be of service?”

            “Do you think it would be inappropriate if your sister and I became better acquainted—as friends?”

            “You wish to start an interpersonal relationship with her?”

            “No, nothing like that.  Just as friends.”

            Dr. Ruff stared blankly at Spot, though Spot knew the doctor’s brain was processing the information furiously.  “I don’t see any harm in it, Commander.  I believe you and Marshmallow would be a suitable match.”

            “Marshmallow?”

            “That is her given name.  She changed it when she came of age.”

            “I don’t blame her,” Spot said.  It was the first of many facts he hoped to learn about her, provided the Cats gave them the time.