“Are you ready, Dixon?” Jana asked Fletcher as they walked up the stairs together, headed out to the airstrip to meet the plane that was bringing in General Anders and her team.

  “As I’ll ever be,” Fletcher answered.

  His stomach was one big knot. He was caught between wanting to throw up and pass out. His mom was coming to Vesi Station, the armpit of the Mixed… Yeah. That might be close to one the few things he didn’t think would ever happen, and he was kind of terrified of it. Because she wasn’t just coming for a friendly visit. No. General Anders was coming to tear the place apart and dig into every decision that was made during the attack by the Unhumans. And unfortunately for Fletcher, he made basically all of them while Jana and Palacios were busy drinking and panicking.

  So, putting it all together, that meant his mom, who already considered him a giant disappointment, was now tasked with going over every choice and order he gave while the station was under attack, and then she got to make a ruling as to what happened to him as recompense for all the soldiers who died under his command. Perhaps the only thing worse than a conversion facility in his mind was an eternity in solitary confinement, and he had a nagging feeling that he might very well end up there after the investigation was through.

  The urge to throw up grew stronger as he considered the possibility of being trapped in that tiny cell, all alone with just his thoughts and nightmares for company. Oh deities, please let her go easy on him just this once.

  “Dixon, straighten up. Come on,” Jana said from beside him as they stepped into the cool morning. She was wearing a proper uniform for once.

  Fletcher had on his uniform as well, and despite the cold winter air, he was sweating bullets at the apprehension of seeing his mother again for the first time in well over eight months.

  Palacios was already out there, taking out his nerves on anyone within earshot, yelling ludicrous, nonsensical orders. Fletcher decided he preferred the Major drunk.

  Jana took up one side of Palacios and Fletcher the other, and they stood there staring at the dot in the sky that held their guests. Nobody knew for sure how long the investigation would last, but Walters told them to expect to host the General for at least a couple of weeks.

  A couple of weeks trapped in a place as small as Vesi Station with his mother hovering nearby, judging everything he’d ever said or done sounded about as miserable as any situation could be short of being taken by the Unhumans and converted. But Fletcher was hopeful that he could stay busy enough to avoid her for the most part. There was still so much to do, and they’d only barely gotten all the supplies he requested so they could start to make real repairs to the base.

  And most of the personnel had fallen back into their old habits of sitting around and ignoring chores, which meant Fletcher still had to do quite a bit of the work himself. He didn’t mind. Working kept him from thinking too much or remembering all those nights of fighting and the dead bodies that came with them. He didn’t put much pressure on the others to do things since everyone had their own ways of dealing with trauma. If people wanted to drink away their problems, Fletcher wasn’t going to argue with them given there weren’t many other options at Vesi for processing those kinds of emotions.

  The plane rolled to a stop in front of them. It was bigger than the usual supply plane, but that wasn’t surprising given it was carrying a general.

  “Attention!” Palacios called out as the door lowered.

  Fletcher stood up straighter, putting his hand up in a salute.

  Seven others were on the airstrip with them, Hernandez and his team of four to handle any cargo it was bringing in while the rest were guards who left their towers to provide an official welcome. Fletcher thought it was stupid to pull their watch just to make a better impression on a woman who would definitely not care about something as minor as that. Probably.

  Then again, Fletcher didn’t know his mother all that well, especially when it came to her preferences in the military. All he did know was that she was brutal, unforgiving, and straightlaced. She loved rules and protocol, and Vesi Station was the exact opposite, full of people who cared nothing for orders and command.

  Yeah. This was going to be a total disaster.

  A group of seven people walked out of the plane. His mother was at the front with her typical cold demeanor and tight bun. Just behind her to her right was Major Simpson. The other five were people Fletcher didn’t recognize, but he’d never really bothered to meet anyone associated with his mother so that wasn’t all that surprising.

  Hazel walked up to Major Palacios, her green eyes scanning him up and down.

  “General Anders, welcome to Vesi Station. It is an honor to have you here, ma'am,” Palacios said, still maintaining his salute.

  “At ease, Major,” she said. She glanced around. “I see you pulled out the full welcoming committee for me.”

  “It’s all we could spare, General, but I assure you, everyone here is pleased to have you and your team with us.” Palacios dropped his salute, and Fletcher and the others did the same.

  “I’m sure they are.” Hazel’s face remained an unreadable stone. “This is Major Simpson and Captain Naeku. They will be assisting me in my investigation while Sergeants Sosa, Ibara, and Johnston will be inspecting the base. Lieutenant Teller is my assistant who will handle organizing interviews with all personnel.” Hazel gestured to the people behind her. “We are here strictly in an observational capacity. You and your officers will continue to manage the facility.”

  “Of course, ma’am. We will cooperate fully and provide everything you need.” Palacios gave a slick smile. “We’ve ensured you and your team have a set of private quarters for your stay, and I will personally see to it that you all have every possible comfort.”

  Fletcher wanted so very badly to roll his eyes. Palacios couldn’t be more fake and annoying, and it was such obvious schmoozing that he was shocked Hazel didn’t call him out on it then and there.

  “Ah, and of course I’d like to introduce First Lieutenant Jana, my right hand, and our newest addition to the station, Second Lieutenant Dixon,” Palacios continued, gesturing to both of them.

  “I’m honored, ma’am.” Jana gave a big smile, obviously buying into Palacios’s buttkissing plan.

  Fletcher nodded, keeping his face neutral. “General.”

  Anger flashed through Palacios’s eyes, but Fletcher ignored it, staring at his mother and wishing he was quite literally anywhere else. Was it even legal for her to run the investigation against him? Surely there were rules against that kind of thing, but apparently Hazel managed to skirt them. Or maybe they let her do it anyway since they knew she’d be harsher if he was involved, not lighter.

  For the briefest moment, Hazel glanced in his direction, and Fletcher stiffened. But then her gaze passed, moving onto other things, and he could relax again.

  “Allow us to escort you to your rooms. Sergeant Hernandez and his team will handle your things.” Palacios gestured to the base entrance.

  “Ibara and Johnston will take care of our luggage. There are other supplies for the station,” Simpson said.

  “Of course.” Palacios’s smile faltered for only a moment.

  Major Palacios led the way inside, followed closely by Simpson and then Hazel and the rest of her team. Jana mixed in with them while Fletcher took up the rear, counting the seconds until he could escape from this awkwardness and get back to doing things that mattered.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  They just exited onto the first floor where all the quarters were when the lights flickered and then turned off completely, leaving only a few of yellow emergency lights to illuminate the corridor—not even enough for most to see properly since a lot of the lights had been broken during the explosions from the battle this close to the surface level.

  [Dark Vision: Active]

  Fletcher’s radio crackled to life—he wore it on his belt since someone had to keep the base running even with a general around.

  It was Norton who spoke, one of the few who was allowed a radio. “Uh, Dixon… I think I might have done that. I was just trying to get the distillery back up, and then…”

  Fletcher winced at the mention of the stupid distillery. He distinctly remembered telling them that they would have to wait until after the investigation to start up their booze factory again, but clearly the need for drink outweighed their desire to provide a good impression to the visiting officers.

  “Yeah. I see, or rather don’t see,” he replied into the radio. The entire group looked back at him, and he had a feeling Palacios was back to staring daggers into him. He rubbed his forehead. “I’ll take care of it. But don’t go installing equipment without permission, got it?”

  “Sure, sir,” she said in a teasing manner.

  Fletcher replaced the radio and looked to Palacios. “I’m going to see about fixing the lights, with your permission, Major.”

  “Go,” Palacios said in a tight tone.

  “Isn’t electrical work a little below your pay grade?” Simpson asked as Fletcher pushed past to head towards the maintenance room.

  “We all help out where we can,” Fletcher muttered.

  Simpson probably said more, but Fletcher didn’t hear it thanks to those grenades in the catacombs two months prior. At this point the ringing was just a part of his life.

  Leaving the base’s distinguished guests behind, Fletcher jogged down two floors to the central electrical room. The tools were waiting just inside the door, but no one else had bothered even coming to check on things. Everyone just expected him to do all the real work, and he just did it instead of trying to argue or force someone else to do it. Not to mention he wasn’t even sure if anyone else even had the skills to help with this kind of problem. Maybe Hernandez, though his speciality was in vehicles, not electrical wiring.

  Fletcher wasn’t all that good at electrical work, but he had learned enough from Kenzo and his personal projects around the base that he managed to get the lights back on, though it took far longer than it should have.

  [Dark Vision: Inactive]

  Once that was done, he dropped his tools off at the door and marched to the room being used for the new distillery. As he hoped, Norton was in there along with a couple others, already back at work with their equipment.

  “Norton, what on earth do you think you’re doing? I thought we agreed to hold off on this until after the investigation was through?” Fletcher asked, putting his hand out to stop her from working.

  “No. You said you wanted us to wait. I told you I’d think about it. And I did. But a girl needs a drink. I’m sure that the general and her team will be happy to have refreshment as well,” Norton explained.

  Fletcher massaged his temples. “I need you to not do this kind of crap, just for a couple of weeks. It’s stressful enough for everyone without mishaps from your moonshine business.”

  “Alcohol relieves stress. I’m doing this for you too, Dixon.” Norton smiled at him.

  “You’re not going to stop are you?”

  “Not a chance.”

  He shook his head. “Fine. Just try to keep the mess down to a minimum. Please.”

  She nodded. “Of course. Just wait until it’s up and running. You’ll be grateful.”

  “I doubt that,” he murmured. “I’m going to check in with Palacios. Will you make sure the guards switch on time?”

  “Yes, sir. I’ll take care of it. Go entertain that oh-so-important general.” Norton pushed him away, handing him a pack of cigarettes in peace offering.

  Fletcher tucked the pack in his pocket and left the room in a huff, rushing up the stairs to Major Palacios’s office. Forgetting manners in his hurry, Fletcher opened the door and walked in, just like he was used to doing for the past couple of months.

  Four sets of eyes turned expectantly to him, his mother’s gaze especially piercing. She sat behind Palacios’s desk, while Palacios, Simpson, the woman he took to be Lieutenant Teller, and one of the sergeants sat on the other side.

  “Sorry, sirs. I just wanted to inform you the lights were back up,” he said hastily. Deities, he looked like a complete idiot. Curse Norton for making this mess in the first place for her alcoholic tendencies.

  “Thank you, Lieutenant. We see that,” Palacios said tightly.

  “If there was nothing else, Major, I was going to go out on patrol in the ruins to check the sensors,” Fletcher said. He needed to get out of this station. Already his mother’s presence was suffocating.

  “Yes. Good idea. Make it a thorough round this time, Dixon,” Palacios replied.

  “Yes, sir. General.” Fletcher saluted and then left the room as quickly as he entered it.

  That had been code for “long” round, and he was happy to oblige. He hadn’t been to see Backup in days, and he missed his dog and the freedom of being in the ruins away from the disaster that was Vesi. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy all the projects, but being in the station made it hard to forget all the terrible things that occurred during those days of fighting, and Fletcher needed space from the memories, even if it was only a temporary reprieve.

  He hit the armory to get a weapon and tactical vest, and then grabbed a set of rations to give to Backup before heading up to the runway where the garage with the single beat up jeep waited.

  As he was putting his things in the back, he went ahead and lit a cigarette, telling himself he was overdue for a proper break. To his displeasure and surprise, someone came up from behind.

  “Going somewhere?” he asked Fletcher.

  Fletcher turned to see one of the sergeants from his mom’s team, Sergeant Ibara. He was a tall black man with the sides of his head shaved while the top was left long, the tight curls were braided into several small braids. He glanced at Fletcher with raised eyebrows.

  “Yeah. I’m headed out on patrol in the ruins. It’s part of the routine preventive defensive measures,” Fletcher answered, pulling the cigarette from his mouth for a moment.

  “By yourself?” Ibara continued.

  Fletcher paused. Right. That was technically against protocol, but nobody else wanted to go with him. More than that, he didn’t want anyone to join him. He liked going out alone and seeing Backup and cataloguing wildlife and working on the sensors in his own time. Not to mention, he didn’t exactly trust the others to have his back given all the other bad experiences he had working with the Vesi Station personnel.

  “No,” he lied. “Backup is waiting for me.”

  Technically it wasn’t a lie, even if he was referring to a dog of all things.

  “I haven’t seen anyone else leave.”

  “They left before you guys got here. They’re expecting me.” Fletcher climbed into the vehicle, determined to make this seem as casual and normal as he could. It wasn’t like he was doing anything evil like selling Mixed secrets. He just wanted a little alone time with the stray dog he half-adopted. That wasn’t a crime.

  “Backup. Uh huh. Alright.”

  “Was there anything else, Sergeant?” Fletcher asked with a frustrated tone, a glowing cigarette between his fingers.

  “I didn’t take you for a smoker, sir.” Ibara glanced at the cigarette.

  “And I didn’t take you to be so nosy into people’s personal lives,” he bit back.

  “Of course. Sorry, sir. Good luck, Lieutenant.” Ibara stepped away as Fletcher started up the engine.

  Fletcher accelerated out of the garage and through the open gate, down towards the ruins, too frustrated to even enjoy smoking. There was so much left to do at the station, but he needed this break. He worked hard, and he deserved a little time to himself. Backup would be excited that he was going to be around for so long this trip, and it would give him plenty of time to keep working out the bugs in the sensor programming. They worked a lot better now than they had when he first set them up, but there were always more errors to figure out.

  And the best part was he was away from his mother’s prying eyes, if only for a little bit. Even if she’d only been at the station a couple of hours, Fletcher desperately needed the space. Yeah. It was going to be a long couple of weeks with her here. But as long as he had his patrols with Backup, he’d make it through. Probably.

  But as for what came after? There was no telling, not with Hazel Anders. He only hoped he wasn’t punished too heavily for all the mistakes that made up his brief time at Vesi Station. But knowing his mom, Fletcher wasn’t going to bank on that.