The trio lay cuddled up together comfortably in bed. John and Alyssa were both greatly relieved that Calara had taken their surprising revelation so well.
"There is one thing though..." Calara said tentatively after a few moments.
"What is it Calara?" John asked, his voice tinged with concern.
"I still haven't seen the bridge yet! I'm not going to be much good as a Tactical Officer if you don't let me out of the bedroom" she said, grinning impishly.
Alyssa's musical laughter was joined by John's baritone chuckles. "Ok honey, we can go now if you want?" he offered obligingly.
Calara could barely contain her excitement as they got dressed. John waited patiently for the girls to leave the room, before following after them and turning off the lights as he left. The lovely teenagers headed down the corridor to the elevator, chatting animatedly and he admired the enticing sway of their hips as they walked. They stood together in the lift and the girl's chatter fell quiet as Calara's anticipation grew palpable.
The door to the elevator whirred quietly open and they walked out on to the bridge together for the first time.
"Wow!!" Calara gasped, her big brown eyes like saucers as she took in the large oval shaped bridge.
Alyssa darted nimbly up the illuminated steps to the command podium and sat in the Executive Officers chair. She pressed a couple of buttons on her console and the Tactical station, down and to the left of her, burst in to life. Two long curving consoles began to fill with a welcoming glow, as one control panel after another lit up.
John walked up to the awestruck Latina's side and rested his hand reassuringly on her shoulder.
"Take your post Lieutenant" he said to her quietly.
Calara turned to face him as she came out of her reverie. "At once Commander!" she said, her sharp salute and the intense look in her eyes silently conveying her deep respect for him.
Alyssa watched the two and rolled her eyes. She smiled, but stayed quiet, letting them have their moment.
John climbed the steps of the podium and sat in the Commander's chair, watching with a smile on his face as Calara eagerly strode towards her new station. She sat in the elaborate Tactical chair and pressed a sequence of buttons on the armrest, powering up her seat. Holographic targeting arrays sprang into being in front of her, as two illuminated controls slowly rose from the armrests.
Alyssa had brought the Holo-reader with her and she walked down to the Tactical station to offer it to Calara, just in case she needed it to learn how to use the controls. The brunette politely declined and so Alyssa just stood and watched intrigued as the brunette gripped the arm rest controls confidently with each hand.
"This is just like the simulator back at the Academy!", the brunette said excitedly.
She pressed a couple of buttons and large holographic images sprang to life in the middle of the bridge, displaying tactical information for her crewmates to see. An image of the Invictus rotated slowly before them, looking sleek and menacing. Calara flipped a safety switch and then pushed a foreboding looking red button on the top of her right controller.
Armoured panels on the hull of the Invictus began to slide away, revealing the hidden arsenal beneath.
"Weapons armed, Commander." Calara stated, following standard Terran Federation protocol.
"Laser defence net" Calara explained helpfully, as dozens of stubby Gatling lasers spun up, the Image of the Invictus showing their many overlapping fields of fire. "To take out missiles and fighters" she added for Alyssa's benefit, John already being familiar with the assault cruisers capabilities.
"Pulse lasers" Calara said, as the overhead image displayed the broad fire arcs of the turreted laser cannons. "Medium range and designed to take out lightly armoured targets" she clarified for the blonde teenager.
"Beam lasers" Calara stated, as she cycled through the massive firepower at her fingertips. "Long range and powerful enough to punch through heavy shielding". The rotating image in the centre of the bridge showed the six forward facing Beam lasers, each barrel over 30 metres in length.
"Finally the Invictus' main guns" She said, with a gleam in her eye. She cycled through to the last setting, and two pairs of 200 metre long cannons were highlighted on the glowing holograph. It was obvious that the ship had been built around these enormous weapons, with power converters and ordnance feeding rooms built adjacent to them.
"Mass drivers, for when you really want to fuck something up!" Calara exclaimed, her youthful exuberance momentarily getting the better of her military professionalism.
"Want to perform a fire test Lieutenant?" John asked, the young brunette's enthusiasm proving contagious. Calara nodded eagerly.
"XO, any asteroid belts near here?" he asked the beautiful blonde.
Alyssa strode purposefully back up to her console and began searching through the systems closest to their current location.