\n Ioborne Chapter One

\n Gunner sat in the chair opposite his fiance's sleeping body. The stars were out. The pure white husky watched out the window. He could see the orbital station clearly as the night begun to fall and the sun breaking past the horizon lighting the sky.

\n Gunner would be on that station by the end of the day. It was a six year mission. The bonus would be enough for Maggie and himself to get married. They could move out of the crappy on-base housing and into a nice house, perhaps out on Ocean Shores. They would have puppies together.

\n The thought of puppies lingered in his head.

\n Maggie had been in heat for the last two weeks, and they had tried. He could see her reddish curltail as she rolled over in her sleep. Was it the nervousness? Maybe it was the thought of leaving her with a litter while he was away for years? Was it those fertility drugs that the doctors prescribed that only seemed to give him constant migraines? Gunner didn't have the answer to why he faked his orgasms for the past month.

\n The white husky suddenly felt a grip of claustrophobia grip him around the chest. He walked into the small room outside of the bedroom, half meant for living and the other half for dining. He grabbed his uniform and quickly threw it on. His heart rate woke the wetware.

\n "Staff Sergeant Wrey," Bridge spoke, "You're up early, or did you not sleep?"

\n Gunner didn't answer the virtual intelligence, he left the small apartment. Bridge usually reminded Gunner that he had left his keys sitting on the half counter half dinner table, but they both knew that he wouldn't need them.

\n Bridge would normally update Gunner on the weather and other status reports, meetings he would have to attend, even the condition and times for the space elevator launches. This morning, Bridge remained woefully silent.

\n The husky sat down by the curb, and lit one of the last cigarettes, he'd ever have for the next six years. He promised himself, he'd quit when he had puppies. He took a long drag, breathing in the nicotine. His ride was on time for once.

\n ***

\n Corporal James Harrison and Private First Class Duke Rockstead pulled up by the curb. The newfoundland, Rockstead, rode shotgun usually, but today he offered up his normal seat for the Staff Sergeant. Gunner sat down next to the malamute.

\n As they drove toward the launchpad, Harrison was the first to speak, "You left the party pretty early Sarge."

\n Gunner shrugged.

\n "Well, it was pretty lame, did you try any of the wild rice that Duke brought?"

\n Gunner admitted that it was pretty good, a lot better than the other catered stuff that their commander had ordered for the company.

\n "When we get back, Duke and I are going to open up a restaurant back in his hometown," he looked into the rearview and made eye-contact with Rockstead. "Where was that? Middle-of-no-where, Montana?"

\n Rockstead was the silent type. Silent, but could put you through a wall. Gunner recalled the last time that he saw Duke put someone through a wall. It was back before they lifted the ban on homosexuality in the military. Duke saw someone hazing Harrison for being a fag, and Rockstead promptly put them through a fairly strong drywall. Gunner noted that they became inseparatable after that day.

\n They pulled around to the circle drive of their company headquarters, "Staff Sergeant," Harrison facetiously motioned for Gunner to get out, "We'll see you at formation."

\n Bridge posted a notice for a pre-formation meeting in the lower right corner of Gunner's vision. The meeting was nothing more than what he had already expected.

\n The captain, an akita, greeted all the platoon leaders as they walked in. Duke sat among the other five canines. The akita was all set to give his speech, practiced and well rehearsed.

\n "91st Corps of Engineers. It's a monumentous day, and our mission, as you all well know is paramount." Paramount was some word he must have picked up recently, Gunner wasn't quite sure if the captain even really knew what it meant.

\n "Staff Sergeant Wrey," the akita nodded toward the husky, "You and your platoon will be the first there. There are some prefabs that will have been dropped before you, and an outline of the details will be sent to your VI."

\n He continued to lecture everyone about what they already knew, Gunner had already had a copy of his mission details for the past month. The formation was basically the same pomp and circumstance. How paramount the mission was, all jobs were paramount to the paramount mission.

\n ***

\n The bus delivered first platoon to the space elevator platform. Bridge showed some numbers along the left. There was another half hour until they would need to be aboard to make it to the orbital station. Bridge also displayed his itinerary for the next four hours. Once they were on the orbital station, he was to give his platoon two hours to explore the platform before they needed to be at the dock. During which, Gunner would need to see the quartermaster in order to get a few new updated modules.

\n The modules were in the hypodermic spray. Tiny nanites would go to the base of his skull and form new wetware, extending Bridge's capabilities. Bridge seemed to pretend he wasn't overjoyed for the new modifications. Gunner knew better.

\n As he watched Terra turn from the station, he couldn't help but wonder what the next few years will be like. Much of the same as before. His platoon has built several modules on Luna, and Io would not be much more different. They would just have to be more careful with no backup.

\n The station chased the sun, his platoon gathered for their mission ahead. There were things he had wished he had done before he had left. Gunner did not know why he felt sad as he stepped aboard the interplanetary shuttle that would take him to Jupiter. If anyone would ask Bridge, Bridge would have said that deep down Gunner knew that he wouldn't return. That all the steps it took him to get to this point where paw prints in the sand.
\n