[center][h3][color=00ff00][b]Jack Mallory, X.O.[/b][/color][/h3][/center]
[hr]

The universe must have been trying to tell him something.

"No," the guard said. "Crew only!"

"I am crew!" Jack scowled, presenting his identcard and waving the shopping bags of the various gift shops at the space port. "I'm the executive officer of the Jotunheim, and I had the captain's permission to do some last minute shopping because I'd lost my luggage! Now let me pass!"

The hell he lost his luggage. On the Pournelle, the king of the practical jokers had been Lt. Danny Bryce, his junior. Danny had never messed with him while they'd been aboard. Maybe it was because he was Danny's senior. Or possibly because he'd still been reeling from his divorce from Jackie and wanted to cheer him up? More likely  was it the subpoenas his wife's attorney had slapped on him that revealed that he was a walking, talking camera.

Danny must have thought it was his last chance to play a prank on him, now he was a civilian and departing for a mission that would mean years outsystem. After all, he'd been the man who offered to 'help' him with his luggage for the flight to Norway. Not even his own garment bag had been safe, and he'd brought that on the plane with him! Or so he thought.

"You're crew?" the guard demanded, incredulously taking him in with the flight suit and the old leather "snoopy" flght cap. 
"It's what I had that was warm!" Jack snapped.

The guard scowls, raising his walky-talky to his mouth when gunshots erupted on the far side of the hanger. The others around them panics, bowling the guard over. 

"The hell with this," he scowls, then takes off running towards the ship. Only when he was at the airlock did he realize that others were there with him.

"Go back!" he yells. "Our next stop is years away! Get off the ship!"

The engines began to rumble. Swearing under his breath, Jack jammed his things into a locker, securing it with his finger print, then ran for the bridge.

[hr]

"Captain," Jack called out as he saw her, then nodded at the man standing beside her. "Doctor."

"I was.. held up at the checkpoint," he sighed. "I'm sorry, if I'd been here, we wouldn't be stuck with a bunch of civilians on board. We can try for a patrol boat once we reach orbit to get them off...."

Assuming whoever was trying to get at the Jotunheim hadn't already planned for that.

"Your orders?" Jack Mallory asks, standing at attention with all the dignity he could muster.