It's...

[Dvokr chim Hok 0]

It’s...

 

Head hung in a tongue-in-cheek smirk, Cass replied, “That’s classified.”

 

“Really?” Morrison asked. “Why on Vulcan can’t you tell me?” He drank. The coffee coursing down his throat felt soothing. Her lack of answers to his many questions smacked of teasing. Perhaps she really couldn’t tell him. By the same token parts of his life he hid as well. Perhaps if she asked him something personal he could pull the “classified” card out. Two “It’s Classified” and they would both call it an evening.

 

The Marine captain snickered, the smirk still prominent as she played with the ice cream crusting in her root beer. “Oh, I could tell you, sir. Problem is,” she licked the spoon, then waved it at him as she spoke, “I’d put me in all kinds of trouble and your career... possibly your life... in jeopardy. Sure wouldn’t want that to happen, ruin all that good ‘Fleet training you have?” She paused to gaze at the stars thoughtfully, “Course, if we were never to get back it sure would make for good fireside talk, now, wouldn’t it? Something to look forward to.”

 

Cass watched sparks rise in the backyard campfire’s convection, only to disappear as their glow faded into the night, blending with the smoke as it rose on the breeze. Her spoon poked at the ice cream, forcing the soda to foam into her mouth.

 

“You ever give some thought to not getting back, Commander? Ever thought about what you’d do if we had to stay here and make it our home?”

 

He looked at her and wondered what our she meant, but probably not that one. He must be tired. “Well, first rule is stay out of history’s way. I guess that means finding an isolated place and taking on a new life. Canada, perhaps Alaska. Might be possible to remain here.” While speaking he drilled a stick into the fire, causing even more sparks floating to the sky. This escape away from this ambiguous mission was sorely needed. None of his previous missions went without a break in the action. All of the variables became too much for him to handle. Having company, her company, marked a first for him. “This is the first mission where I have no one back home to go to, just an empty apartment on Earth. Ha, I can leave myself a note.”

 

Cass gave a grinning snort. “Guess if you didn’t find a note back there, then we made it back.”

She paused a moment to lick the spoon before asking the obvious question, “You used to have someone to go back to, then?”

 

He smiled for a moment. “Yes. April. She got tired of my line of work and I can’t say I blame her. Not like going into the city in the morning then coming back for dinner. She left while I was on a mission months ago, a ‘Dear John’ letter.” Morrison paused. “There’s no way to tell if I really left a note or if it survived. Maybe I died before writing it.” The air around the fire filled with silence at the revelation of dying centuries in the past. Sparks continued to float up into the dark sky.

 

“Hard not being able to explain what you do, where you’re going, when or if you’ll ever be back. I gave up on trying to make a relationship work long time ago. Decided that my mom had the right idea, except that if she didn’t give in I wouldn’t be here now. Still, can’t dispute her reasoning. Took me a hell of a lot of growin’ up before I realized where she was comin’ from.” Her Bertaria accent got heavier the more she decompressed from the hyper-vigilism of the day, though every now and then she’d pause, evidently still listening to the team feed.

 

“Much as I missed havin’ a dad, the family on Bertaria is big enough so that sometimes I had too many.” She laughed, staring at the flames while she played with her glass. “Pulled me this way and that, makin’ bets at who’d win out with what I chose to do, who I’d go camping with, who’d climb the mesa with me, who’d....” She left off, pensive, watching the fire die. Then she gave it a poke. “But they haven’t been born yet.”

 

Morrison was a little struck by her candor. Competent for this mission no doubt, but in some ways reserved. Perhaps he misread Cassie initially. Perhaps he’s getting too old for this game. “You have to get over things like that when doing any time travel. I’m not born, you’re not born, is that a distant relative...you can imagine.” He poked the embers as well. “Time, ironically, is what I’ll need to get through this. Nearly turned down this mission, but I could not get her out of my mind, thought saving the Earth would help. Now I’m talking about her.”

 

“You signed on this mission to... save the Earth?”

 

“Ha, maybe that’s a bit too grand. It’s hard to comprehend what would happen if the Apollo mission never happens. The mission is not fitting the mission profile.” Morrison turned to Granger. “The lack of knowledge is dangerous. Challenger needs to find us more to go on. It’s unfortunate we can’t do normal investigation. All of this cloak and dagger.” He managed a muffled laugh. “I don’t know about you, but I’d like to think less about the mission and April and more about getting another log on this fire.” He got up and went to the where a stack of wood piled between two trees lay. Grabbed one log in each hand and placed them into the fire. “There. So...more about you. What made you sign up for this?”

 

“What made me sign up, sir? Hell, it’s my job. It’s what I do. They point, I go; they jerk the chain, I move.” The playful smirk erupted again as she launched into an exaggerated, “It’s class-i-fied.”

 

“The hell it is,” he laughed hard and poked the fire. “Is it also classified as to why you first joined?”

 

“Oh, hell no. Corp’s in my blood, both sides. That, and every uncle and cousin darin’ me to do it,” she shrugged, “how could I resist a challenge like that? And the best part? Mom always said I’d have to be better, work harder, run faster, score higher, think quicker than any man. And I got to admit, I do. Most of the time.”

 

“Competing with a certain man or men in general? Sounds like an old notion. Plenty of women do far better than I. Even a certain Cassie Granger.” Morrison let the complement drift off. He opened another beer and took a swig.

 

Tossing her glass and spoon aside, Cass reached for a beer and popped it. “Men in general. One uncle in specific, but I still have a hard time outdoin’ him. General Tigard? Three times my age and I still can’t outdo him. Think I did once or twice, max.” She shrugged, taking a long pull.

 

“My manners, I should have offered you some, but I don’t want to treat you any differently because you are a woman,” laughed and took a smaller drink. “If you are good you are good.”

 

“Do respect, sir? Not a woman, a Marine.” Her tone was serious but the grin was still there, almost challenging.

 

“Right. Marine.” He looked at her directly. “So how about that first question you asked me. What would you do if we got stuck here and had to made this Earth our home?”

 

“Think I’d move to Australia, live in the outback. It’s a lot like Bertaria, where I grew up. Think I’d fit right in there. Maybe start a colony. Not sure. Figure I’d cross that bridge when it’s time.” She gazed off, like she was leaving something out.

 

“Hmm, So you have thought about it? Interesting. What does a Marine do without the Corps? Becoming stranded here would alter who you are. The Cassie I know would change.” Morrison looked up toward the sky.

 

“We all change, sir. But the Corps and the Marine are one, never separated. Once a Marine, always a Marine. Hell, with the technology they have in this decade I could easily make a new life for myself, manipulate the data, work my way up to Commandant of the Corps. But then I’d be with the Joint Chiefs, and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.” Cass dangled the bottle between her bent knees as she stared at the fire. “Working in D.C., knowing what’s about to happen in the next few decades....” she shook her head and resumed drinking, ending the last sip with a quiet, “Rather be in the outback.”

 

“It’s a good choice. Decently isolated, same language...I think I’d change gears. A simpler life. Try to forget my past.” He thought about that for a moment. “Sounds sad, geez. We should change the subject.”

 

“Given the time, we should probably go in. Folks might talk.” The grin reappeared.

 

“They should be busy,” the Commander said returning the smile. “For that matter what about delta?”

 

“Quiet. Too quiet. But if it weren’t I couldn’t tell you.” She shrugged, “It’s....”

 

“Classified! I know, I know. Ugh!” He beamed a smile in her direction. The thought of asking her any more questions gave him a headache. They both started to walk back to the house. True, others would wonder, but more importantly, they finished their last bottle.