He stood in front of them. “We will be meeting the Space Force battleship Washington at the border. Space Command thinks it’s a good idea we exchange personnel.  They will be getting the XO from the Deimos. We will be getting an XO, and her name is Lieutenant Commander Katelyn Sommers.”

“A woman, all right,” Bomber said.

“The admiral thinks we can behave,” Ivan said.

They all laughed. “How long,” Pilot asked.

“We will have her for three weeks.”

“Having a woman on board is bad luck,” Sparks said.

“Women and men have been serving together for a long time on Earth. Maybe our service will be that way someday,” Ivan replied.

“Only if they are sexy,” Pilot said.

“We will be on our best behavior, isn’t that right, gentlemen,” Bomber said. When he took that tone, everyone knew there was no fooling around.

“Dismissed,” Ivan said. 

Washington came into view. Space Force started as a branch of the United States military; all ships were named after presidents. The force was becoming more international with governments from other countries sending people to serve. Bomber was standing behind the captain.

“How will we get her on board if our docking clamps aren’t compatible?” They were made that way, so getting on the other ship and taking control was harder because soldiers had to put on spacesuits and open the hatch manually. 

“She will have to do an EV.”

Everyone on the bridge stared at the captain, knowing it was hazardous. Many things could go wrong, and no one on Olympus had done one.

“Should I get the shuttle ready?”

“No, she should be fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

They all knew what it meant. She had about ten minutes of air. If she didn’t make it through the hatch or bounced off the hull, the shuttle wouldn’t be ready in time.

“I’ll suit up, just in case,” Bomber said.

“Good idea,” Ivan replied.

Ivan pushed the comm button. “This is the captain of the Mars warship, Olympus.”

“Gooday, captain, this is Admiral Towers.”

He was surprised they sent him that he was still in command after surrendering without firing a shot. They taught Ivan’s maneuver at the Space Force Academy. He changed the ship’s transponder to an ore hauler. There was no one on the bridge letting the AI system run everything. When Olympus was a hundred meters from the Washington Ivan launched the shuttles. He had Washington surrounded and with a full complement of Stingers, he could destroy the ship in seconds.  

“Your ship looks in good condition,” Ivan said.

“Yes,” the Admiral responded.

Ivan couldn’t help but give him a little dig since he outsmarted a career soldier twice his age and was an expert in military tactics. 

“Someday, we can meet in person, have a brandy, and swap war stories.”

“Yes, sir.” Ivan had no interest in talking about the war and was glad it was over.

“Take good care of my XO.”

“I’ll do my best, sir.”

“I’m in position,” Bomber said.

“Send her over,” Ivan said.

Bomber was in the ship’s rear, where they loaded and unloaded cargo. He was in a spacesuit. A drone came out of the ship carrying her duffle bag. She came out of a hatch. The two ships were twenty meters apart. She had trouble maneuvering using the blasts of air in the pack on her back.

“You’re coming in too fast. Do you read me?”

If she hit the ship’s side, the impact could kill her, or she would be severely injured. Somehow, at the last moment, she maneuvered right through the hatch. Bomber put up his hands to stop her. She pushed him up against the bulkhead in the zero-g environment. He was stunned for a few moments and then closed the hatch. They went through the inner hatch. When it was sealed, she took off her helmet.

“That was fun.”

She had short blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Bomber thought she was pretty but too old.

“Are you crazy, lady?”

“That’s mam; I’m your superior officer.” She was determined to exercise her authority over these men right away.

“Are you crazy, mam?”

“I must be crazy to sign up for this assignment.”

She took off the suit and was wearing just a bra and panties. She was thin but muscular.

“Getting a good look, soldier?”

“I like my women plump,” Bomber mumbled.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, mam.”

She took a pair of fatigues out of the bag and put them on. Bomber took off his suit and had nothing but a pair of skimpy briefs, and she was checking out the tattoos on his arms, a dragon with red eyes, unit number on the shoulder from training, a tradition for recruits. There were scars on the muscular chest and ripped stomach from being shot and stabbed. He reached down to get the bag.

“I’ve got it.”

“As you wish, mam, follow me to your quarters, and then you can report to the bridge.”

The room was located on the second level. A bunk, desk, wall locker, and private bathroom. She put the datapad on her forearm and typed a message to the Admiral, figuring they had the room bugged because that’s what she would do. She would keep a diary of her time on the ship. They walked down the long corridor until they reached a set of stairs.

“Go up the stairs to the bridge.”

“Sorry I crashed into you, but you can handle it.” She was referring to his size. Bomber was six foot five. His dark hair was cut short, and he had piercing eyes.

“Yes, mam, I’m going to grab some rack time. I’m just coming off the night shift.”

She went up the stairs and looked around the bridge. The admiral wanted every detail of the layout of the ship. There was no information on Olympus, it was all classified. Every detail of Space Force ships, even schematic drawings was available on the web. They bragged about the amenities as a recruitment tool. They looked good but were structurally unsound. The Olympus was built to be indestructible a triple hull design, with five layers of Kevlar in every wall, and a carbon fiber, Titanium shell. When he rammed into the Lincoln it was destroyed t Olympus only had a few dents.   

“Lieutenant Commander, Sommers reporting for duty.”