There were several space-faring alien species that had tiny empires dotted along the border between the Trankaran Republic, and the Terran Federation. Port Megara was the biggest outpost along the border with Trankaran Space, and this huge Terran Federation Space Station provided a convenient place for them all to meet and trade.
Port Megara was built along the familiar vertical "stack of plates" design used by most distant Terran stations, and like the others they had visited before, the central ring was the largest by far. It housed the majority of the docking bays around its circumference, and there was a steady stream oddly shaped merchant vessels heading in and out of the station. The merchant shipping belonged to the minor space empires in this quadrant of space, and to avoid squabbles breaking out between them, the Terran Federation Navy enforced the peace with a substantial defensive fleet.
As they approached, a flashing light on Alyssa's console let her know that they were being hailed by the station. She pressed the button to accept the incoming audio call.
A slightly bored sounding military communications officer said, "Incoming cruiser, please identify yourself, and your business at Port Megara."
"This is Commodore John Blake on the Invictus, requesting clearance to land. We're visiting Doctor Dylan Fernandez," John answered the communications officer politely.
After a short pause, the comms officer replied, now much more animated, "Please proceed to Docking Bay One, Commodore! It's an honour to have you visit the station, Sir!"
Before the comms officer ended the call, they could hear excited chatter in the background. John glanced over at Alyssa, and said wryly, "Looks like they might have heard of us."
Calara was standing between them on the Command Podium, judging that it was fairly unlikely they would need her at combat stations when docking at a friendly starport. She smiled down at him, and when he held his arms open for her, she sat in his lap.
John smiled back at her and asked, "Enjoying your first taste of the Command Chair, Lieutenant?"
The Latina laughed heartily, and wriggled in his lap, as she replied, "Very much, Commodore, but there seems to be some kind of large joystick affixed to the chair."
"Ah," John replied knowingly. "You just have to slot that into a pert young Tactical Officer, and it's a much more comfortable fit."
She giggled and said, "I'll bear that in mind, thanks!"
She settled in his lap, and John encircled her in his arms as they watched Alyssa bring the Invictus in to dock. Docking Bay One was very large, but their assault cruiser was much too big to fully dock in a station of this size. Instead Alyssa pulled up alongside the station, then guided them in with careful feathering of the retro-thrusters, until the broad docking collar moulded to the Invictus' hull. Several loud clanks signified that magnetic docking clamps were now attached to their ship, locking them securely in place.
Alyssa rose gracefully from her chair, and John put his hands on Calara's waist, lifting her effortlessly off his lap. She regained her feet lithely with a smooth pirouette, and flashed him a broad smile, her dark brown eyes smouldering at his casual display of strength.
He stood up next to her, and slipped his arm around her waist, to gently stroke her lower belly through the figure hugging pencil-skirt she was wearing. He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "That's why we're going to do things differently with you and Alyssa. I know just what gets your motor running, my fiery little beauty." Hearing this, Calara breathed in sharply, her eyes flashing with excitement.
Alyssa laughed merrily and said, "Come on you two, we better get moving. At this rate you're going to want to spend the rest of the morning in bed, and Dylan's waiting for us."
They grinned at her, and nodded at the same time, then the three of them strolled down the illuminated steps of the Command Podium and into the grav-tube. When they reached Deck Nine, they stepped out of the soft red glow, and walked up to the airlock door. John placed his hand on the DNA reader, and the outer airlock door spiralled open, showing the interior of the docking bay beyond.
Calara spotted her brother waiting patiently over on the other side of the docking bay, and she ran over to join him, giving him a big hug. Normally a quiet and reserved young man, Dylan laughed happily as he returned his little sister's hug, and the two of them began to talk animatedly. Alyssa and John glanced at each other and smiled, then walked over to join the two of them.
Dylan was just over six foot, with dark hair, and the same coffee-coloured skin as his younger sibling. He turned to look through his wire-framed glasses at John and Alyssa as they approached, then hesitated for a moment, before standing at attention and saluting John.
"It's good to see you again, Commodore," he said respectfully.
John returned his salute, then stuck out his hand, and smiled at him as he said, "There's no need to stand on ceremony, Dylan. It's great to see you too."
Dylan grinned at him, and shook his hand, before darting a glance to his side as he said, "We have an audience, so I was caught a little off-guard."
John darted a look in the same direction, and saw half a dozen men in orange jumpsuits, which identified them as belonging to one of Port Megara's maintenance teams. They all jumped to attention when he looked their way, saluting him with enthusiasm. He saluted them back reflexively, then smiled at Calara's brother and said, "I would have thought it would take more than a handful of engineers to unsettle you, Dylan."
Dylan laughed then said, "That's true, but your growing fame has brought quite a few curious onlookers." He turned slightly and his eyes darted up and to the left, at the back wall of the docking bay.
John followed his gaze again, and saw a clear glass viewing gallery that ran the length of the huge hangar. The entire fifty metre long window was full of people, all eagerly staring into the docking bay to get a glimpse of the Lion of the Federation. He stepped to the side around Dylan, and looking up purposefully, he saluted his audience before giving them a friendly wave. The crowd went wild, and they could hear the muffled sounds of cheering through the reinforced glass. Calara and Alyssa moved to flank him, and waved at the crowd too, beaming sparkling smiles at them. The cheering seemed to intensify, and Dylan watched his little sister, quite bemused.
After a minute of playing to the crowd, John turned to Dylan and said, "Perhaps we could go and have a chat somewhere a bit more private?"
Dylan nodded, then led them through the broad double doors out of the docking bay, and along a corridor into the central section of Port Megara Space Station. "Brace yourselves," he warned them, when they arrived at another set of wide double doors at the end of the corridor. He pressed a button on the wall, and once the reinforced doors had whirred open with the quiet hum of servos, he led them through.
The corridor opened out into a broad plaza, which was designed in exactly the same way as that of Port Medea. There was a central park lined with trees and rows of shops around the edge of the plaza. They walked out into the shopping district, and both Alyssa and Calara drew in their breath sharply.
Unlike the deserted warzone that had been Port Medea, Port Megara was a thriving trade hub, and the plaza was packed with people. Except they weren't meandering around the plaza, browsing for goods, they were all standing waiting for a glimpse of the Lion of the Federation, and two of his lionesses. When Dylan led them into the plaza, the hushed silence was broken by a rippling cheer as the crowd clapped and whooped.
John was shocked, but somehow managed to mask it. He glanced at Dylan a little wide-eyed, and said over the deafening cheers, "What's going on? We've never had this kind of greeting before."
Dylan smiled at him, and spoke loudly to make himself heard, "You've been on the news again! Just last night, actually. I'll tell you about it when we can hear ourselves think!"
He turned, and started leading them through the broad path between the excited onlookers. When they walked out from under the broad balcony on the second level, the noise from the crowd seemed to surge in volume as the people on the top level started cheering as well. John walked through the open area as he followed in Dylan's wake, smiling at the excited people, and shaking the odd proffered hand. He glanced over his shoulder at the girls to check they were alright, and he grinned when he saw that they were loving the attention. Their eyes sparkled with excitement as they waved at the crowd, beaming bright smiles at the onlookers, who cheered for them all the louder.
Dylan guided them through to the elevators on the other side of the plaza, and they gave the crowd a final wave before the doors closed behind them, and the elevator started to descend. John, Alyssa and Calara shared a glance, then burst into nervous, relieved laughter, their bodies coursing with adrenaline after the unexpected encounter with the crowds. Dylan smiled at them while trying to appear calm, but the slight tremble in his hand gave away the fact that he had found the walk through the crowd just as exhilarating as they had.
They sank down through a dozen levels, before stopping on Deck Twenty Seven, and he led them out into a deserted corridor. He walked along ahead of them for a short distance, then pressed his hand on a DNA reader to the side of a set of double doors. The doors swished open quietly, and mellow music drifted out into the corridor.
"Welcome to Port Megara's Officers' Lounge," Dylan said with a smile. "We might get a few curious officers dropping by, but this is going to be as private as it gets. You're quite the celebrities now."
The lounge was deserted, apart from a bartender, who waved at Dylan in a friendly manner. Dylan walked over to some sofas in the corner of the room, then gestured for them to sit, as he took a seat on the sofa opposite. The bartender walked over briskly to take their orders, then strolled back to the bar to make their drinks, leaving them in peace.
John let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding, and said, "You mentioned we were on the news last night?"
