Tara was a little leery of what the she-kats wanted as they pulled her toward a very nice and big kitchen. They had her take a seat, offered her something to drink and some really tasty bake goods just made that morning then the gloves, as they say, were off.
“How close are you and Chance?” the tabby’s mother fired the first salvo.
“We’re friends.”
“We know that but is there something more that ties you together?” it was his sister’s turn.
“I....I’m not certain. I know he loves being with me and the sex is great but....I can tell he’s not giving me all of himself so I haven’t either,” she admitted quietly.
“Hmm, Chance is slow to commit to anyone. He had girlfriends in school and some while he was an Enforcer but he never got serious with any of them and whether he even went out much once he’d been booted and became a SWAT Kat, we don’t know,” his mother sighed.
“I can answer that, no girlfriends, only casual flings nothing more. His life was far too dangerous and his secret had to be kept so only his friend Jake was his confident,” Tara told them.
His mother shook her head. “That’s not healthy.”
“I know and it’s taken me some time to get him more involved with things outside his job and crime fighting. It’s gotten better since the omegas are out of the way but still he holds back,” the she wolf sighed, sadly.
“I would normally say, give it time, but that’s an issue now. Exactly how much time is there left before your ship leaves?” his mother asked.
“Honestly? I don’t truly know. The captain hasn’t given a date yet as there are still some loose ends to tie up here first. Jake and Commander Feral are traveling the world with their significant others, seeing the sights and taking pictures to carry with them before joining the crew. That will take about a month. Then there’s the possibility of your UN signing the request to join the Galactic Alliance, so....” Tara shrugged, “.....it could be as much as four months or more before we leave.”
“Why did you mention Commander Feral?” Chance’s sister, Belinda, asked, puzzled.
“Oh, Chance didn’t tell you?” Tara asked, surprised. Heads shook. “I see, well, the commander met and bonded with my team leader Lt. Kam. Feral will leave with us to be with his mate.”
“Huh?” Belinda blinked at the she-wolf in confusion.
“It means one of them is an hermaphrodite, dear,” her grandmother answered her unasked question, smirking.
“Oh! Uh who would that be?”
Tara smiled. “Commander Feral.”
“Oh no way!” Belinda blurted, shocked.
The she-wolf just shrugged and smiled.
“Okay, that’s just too weird for me. Anyway, so Commander Feral and Jake are traveling so you two do have some time then?” Belinda asked, firmly moving away from the disturbing subject of the Chief Enforcer’s odd sexuality.
“Uh, yes....perhaps, though it’s important to him to be with his family and I don’t want to intrude on that. If he decides to come with me, I don’t want him regretting any moment he has with you. After all, I will have plenty of time with him if he goes but if he doesn’t, I don’t want to get too attached,” Tara said, pointedly.
His mother had been about to interrupt and say she was welcome to stay, but then subsided as she heard Tara out. “Oh, I see, I can understand and those are valid reasons. I can see how difficult this is for you and it’s not fair to have to put your heart completely in someone you may have to leave,” she sighed in agreement.
Tara nodded heavily.
“What a mess! I like you but I can’t encourage you to be with my brother if he doesn’t go. Makes sense now why Chance is holding back.” Belinda sat back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest in vexation.
“It is indeed, my dear. Poor Chance. We want him to stay because we haven’t seen much of him over the last seven years or so but at the same time we want him to be happy. That’s why we send our kittens off in the first place,” his grandmother mused, sadly.
“Yes, but we never sent them off into space. When they’re somewhere on the planet, we know we’ll connect at some point in time, but in space.......he might as well be dead,” his mother moaned.
“Oh, but being in space doesn’t mean being cut off completely.....” Tara objected.
“Yes, we heard he could come back but it might be years in between,” Belinda broke in, face unhappy.
“Well, yes that’s true for in person stuff but communicating is not. You see when you get a space station set up here, it will have a state of the art communications system that reaches light distances. When your planet is hooked up, you can speak with loved ones nearly anywhere in the galaxy. The only catch is it might take anywhere from a few minutes to hours or days depending on the distance for a signal to get through but really no longer than that and it’s video not just sound so you can see each other. Also, you can send electronic mail, just like the e-mail you send to each other now by computer,” Tara explained.
“Really? How awesome. Then it won’t be such a hard separation after all. I don’t think Chance knows this or he wouldn’t be so upset or have such difficulties in making a decision!” Belinda exclaimed.
“Oh?” Tara blushed as she realized she’d never mentioned this to Chance. She felt like an idiot. “I’m so sorry. It just never came up until now and I feel so stupid not saying anything as I am a communications officer.” She rolled her eyes in annoyance at herself.
“Don’t beat yourself up Tara, at least you know now and it should make things far easier for all of us. I want Chance to go if his heart is into it and what an opportunity it will be. I don’t want him pining for his partner, you, nor regret not going. He’d be like a bear with a sore tooth,” his mother snorted, feeling better about this possible separation now than she had when she’d first learned of it.
“Thank you, dear......we are so grateful you were willing to talk with us. It has made the thought of letting Chance go much easier,” his grandmother said, smiling warmly.
“I’m pleased I could be of help. Guess I do need to speak with Chance, though, about this before leaving today.” Tara also needed to speak with Captain Ing on the whether such a space station was closer to being realized, too.
Now that the more urgent matters had been addressed the females began chatting like old friends. Tara wanted to know more about Chance’s kittenhood and his favorite things and his kin were only too delighted to tell her all the juicy tales. But they also worked at getting to know her more as well, especially if she became one of the family in the future.
~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~
Meanwhile, in the living room, the males plied Ing with many questions about life aboard the Wotan, what life was like on his home world and other worlds, then, finally, as the scent of dinner began filling the air, asked the most pressing question on their minds.
“Captain, if Chance went with you then is it true it might be years before we see him again?” Dereck asked, seriously.
“If you mean in person, yes it could be that long but if you mean being able to speak with him, only as long as it take your world to accept being apart of the galactic community, get a space station set up, then communication will be easy between us,” Ing explained.
“Huh? But how? You will be light years away?” His grandfather demanded, stunned.
“That matters not, sir. Our modern communications systems are quite capable of spanning the galaxy with ease. However, the greater the distance the more the delay in signal which could be as little as a few hours, a day or as long as a month but you will be able to speak to each other. It’s video and of excellent quality, so it will be just like you were in the same room and not separated by light years. You can send letters like you do now, only electronically. It’s easy,” Ing told them then turned to Chance. “Didn’t Tara tell you this?”
“Uh, no. The subject never came up then I got so wrapped up in trying to make this decision, I simply didn’t think to ask, honestly,” Chance said, blushing. He felt rather stupid as well. He had just assumed he’d be separated completely from his family. This changed things significantly.
Ing smiled knowingly when he saw Chance expression ease and guessed why. “So, does this make going into space a bit easier?”
Chance nodded his head distractedly. “Yes, a little, though I still want to spend time with my family as we’ve been estranged for far too many years.”
“Of course, I completely understand. I can tell you we may be here for another four months before departure as your UN has asked me to stay. They think they will be in accord very soon and want me on paw for the signing. So enjoy your family and give me your answer then. Alright?” Ing asked, feeling he would be seeing the young tom on his crew for certain, if he read him right.
Chance smiled, relief pouring off him. “Thank you sir. I’m glad I’m not going to be rushed and it will be so cool if our world does sign. But could you tell me what you plan for me?” Finally, asking the question that had been troubling him besides leaving.
“Ahh.....well, as you know you’ll be trained as a shuttle pilot of course but then we have to test your other abilities to see what fields you’re interested in and have an aptitude for before I can make any further decisions.”
“Oh, that makes sense. Is it possible I might qualify for an insertion team?” Chance asked, eagerly.
“Quite possible. You have many of the traits necessary for one but you have at least a year’s training first,” Ing warned him, gently.
Chance rolled his eyes at that but smiled. He was feeling much better already. Perhaps this wouldn’t be such a hard decision after all.
Pleased his visit had been successful, Ing relaxed and answered all the other questions they peppered him with until they were called to dinner. It was an excellent feast and he enjoyed the conversation.
Tara was seated beside Chance so she had an opportunity to speak with him finally but learned the Captain had preempted her.
“I’m sorry I didn’t even think to tell you about that, Chance,” she said, blushing.
“That’s okay. We both had other things on our minds,” he said with a smirk. She blushed at his obvious innuendo while his family looked on, smiling. She caught his mother winking at her and blushed even harder. At least they all approved of her, that made her feel warm and accepted.
~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~
While Chance was making his decision and his partner was traveling, Calico Briggs was still working hard to clean up the mess Mayor Manx had made while in office.
It was now more than a month or more since the Mayor was ousted and Callie took his place. The Archive Report of the Year 2000, became the talk of the city as a censored version was released to the public letting them know what had been going on and what was now fixed.
For weeks afterward, the report was the number one subject of the talk show host circuit and news stations as well as around city hall.
Candidates were submitted to replace all the members of the city government that had been indicted. It was an exhausting business ensuring their backgrounds were clean of any stain from the shadow organization Callie was certain had been behind the scandal. Every candidate was screened and thoroughly investigated by a division within Commander Sharpclaws command.
After that news had died down somewhat and, had taken more than a month to happen, only then did Callie announce the other shocking news she’d been holding onto. At a special press conference at city hall she dropped another bomb on the public.
“Good people of Megakat City. I know you’ve had a lot to deal with in a short period of time but I have other news I need to relay to you.......
First, Commander Ulysses Feral, our Chief Enforcer for many years is retiring and leaving on the Wotan. In his place will be an exceptional officer, with an exemplary record, Colonel Jason Sharpclaws. He is presently in training with Feral and will officially take over in about four months.
Second, the SWAT Kats are also retiring. Razor has decided to leave on the Wotan but T-Bone hasn’t made up his mind yet. When he does, their secret identities will be revealed at that time. We in the government want to thank them for their unswerving devotion and bravery in protecting us and aiding the Enforcers when we were under siege from the omegas. We are going to miss them but wish them all the best in their new careers.
Third, I know there is one omega left that has somehow left us alone this past year but we know he may blow in at any time.....the Pastmaster. It turns out, he wasn’t just a threat to us but to the galactic community as well. His time portals caused harmful ripples, much like dropping a stone in water, to the fabric of the universe which destroyed other worlds or altered them. Because he is our responsibility, I have been trained as a sorcerer to take care of him permanently. I am the direct descendant of Queen Callista, that last known sorcerer of our world and to me personally, I was given this task. The Arcanians own mystics trained me and are satisfied I can do this. When and if he appears, I will protect you from him and any other magical threat we might face.
Fourth, and last. The UN is close to signing the request to become a member of the Galactic Alliance. What will this do for us if they sign? Well, for one thing we’ll take a decade leap into the future in our economy, medicine, and technology and we’ll be a space port for other races to stop by and trade with us. Eventually, we too may walk on other planets, spreading our species far and wide. We’re strong, smart and brave.....traits they treasure out there and ones that will make us unforgettable and of value to them.
We’ve already made friends with the Arcanians and I hope the Aquains will revisit us too when we are a port of call. For any that are afraid....don’t be. No one will land on our world without our say so. The port will remain in space and we’ll control who comes down. I know your other question is how we can keep those with greater power than us from taking over or landing if they want to. The answer is the Galactic Peace Keeping Force which is a military unit that patrols the spaceways, keeping them safe for travelers. We will have a patrol assigned to our solar system and a smaller force aboard the space station to augment our own Enforcers that will be there too.
I know this is a lot to take in but believe me it’s all good news and something to rejoice in. One last thing. I am running for Mayor with Prosecutor Leo Jaystar as my new deputy. I hope you all have enough confidence in me and him and what we’re doing for you at city hall to elect us.
Now I’ll entertain questions,” Callie finished her speech.
For the next two hours she and Jaystar fielded the questions being shouted at them until most of the important ones had been answered and the more personal and nasty ones were beginning to be sent at them. That was when Callie felt it prudent to end the conference.
She and her deputy escaped to her new office. She replaced everything Manx had with her own touches. It now had a warm and inviting look but also plainly showed this Mayor did much of her own work as there was a spanking new computer on the right hand corner of her desk, two filled file baskets on the far edge of the desk’s surface, a projects file stand stood on top of a credenza that held legal books and other information behind sliding glass standing behind her. A smiling picture of her mate sat beside the file stand as did a flowing green plant.
Jaystar had also changed and updated the deputy mayor’s office to accommodate his own style and needs. A portrait of himself and his family was hanging on the wall beside the door. He never planned on going for such a prestigious position but didn’t hesitate when Callie asked him to do it. His wife and kits were proud and happy for him. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to move again after the election. He was so excited about helping Callie guide this city toward and incredible future that included becoming part of a galactic community. Maybe his own kittens would be traveling in space, wouldn’t that be something.
He brought his thoughts back to his new boss as he watched her make her own coffee. This was a working Mayor. One who cared about her people and doing right by them. It was going to be great working for her. Finished making her cappuccino, she walked back to her desk and sat down with a sigh as she sipped the hot liquid.
“I think that went rather well, don’t you?” She asked him.
“I agree. But we’ll have to see the papers tomorrow to know how the people will react to it,” Leo sighed from the seat before her desk, his fingers intertwined and resting in his lap.
Callie grimaced. “I can tell you there will be an outcry from the fearful and isolationistic types right away. But fortunately, they are in the minority. Most should welcome this new future considering the past we’re leaving behind.” She shook her head and stared out her window. The sky was a gloriously sunny and the day warm despite it moving on to late fall. “I can’t believe it’s been a nearly a year since the Wotan dropped into our lives and changed everything.”
“It’s like what someone once said, it only takes one little action to change everything,” Leo mused.
“That’s certainly the truth. Well, here’s to a bright and shiny future,” she said turning back to him and raising her cup.
“Here, here.” Leo smiled, agreeing.