Revenge of the Heir

Return to Base

Eric and Holly finally made it up to their suite, and he had to hide his amusement when she saw that they were on a level with only 4 doors on the entirety of it.

"What is this?" she asked as the 4 doors were in a square.

"Penthouse suites." he replied simply knowing they had 4 on this level.

"Why do I get the feeling we will need to discuss the money issue sooner rather than later?" she asked him as he opened the door and she stepped into the honeymoon suite. She saw that the suite was split into multiple rooms, and as she looked around she could not find a bed, as she had intended he take the bed.

When she opened the door to the sleeping area however, she saw that the bed was made into a heart.

"What is this?" she demanded as he sat on a small sofa and she saw a lot of bags from the shop they had visited earlier.

"This would be a suite for us to sleep in." he said innocently knowing what she meant.

"The HONEYMOON SUITE?" Holly demanded as he could see the fire in her hair.

"Is it?" he asked playing like he didn't know.

"Oh don't give me that innocent crap. You knew full well this was the honeymoon suite before we got here." she said as she sat across from him.

"Your point?" he asked her.

"There is only one bed." she said to him embarrassed.

"I assumed as much, however there are no other suites available in the city. There is a large convention in town apparently. Dinner could have been different, but why not?" he asked her.

"Are you sleeping on the couch for two weeks?" she asked as he looked at her.

"Afraid you wouldn't be able to keep your hands off of me?" he asked making her blush more.

"That is not the issue." she said turning beet red.

Eric smiled as he leaned forward. "You are not the only one." he said looking at her seriously.

"Only one what?" she asked him.

"That has never been with someone in that way." he said as she turned even darker red.

"How???" she trailed off making him chuckle.

"Did I know?" he asked making her nod as he shrugged. "Didn't actually know. What would you have done had I actually gotten a ring and proposed?" he asked as she looked at him surprised.

"Run screaming?" she asked as she laughed. "I am being silly, aren't I?" she asked as she looked at him.

"We do not have to do anything you do not want to do. For now this is the only option, if you are still uncomfortable come Monday we will find another hotel that has openings." he said as she blushed again.

"It's not that I don't want too, I just wasn't expecting the honeymoon suite." Holly admitted not blushing as deeply as she admitted it.

"I thought it was kind of ironic, considering the dinner we had with your family." he said as she blushed a little at that.

For two weeks they spent playing and having fun in New Vegas, as both had decided they wanted to save themselves for when they were actually married. Despite sleeping in the same bed the entire time, and her even wearing some seductive nightgowns, they both held to it.

The plane deposited them back on the base the night before they had to report the next morning, and Eric realized he was already missing being with her.

Training that morning proved interesting, as it was a research base and they were not necessarily focused on the physical aspect of serving their Empire.

They found themselves waiting for General Knight, as they had not yet received their assignments as to what they would be researching.

As soon as he entered he looked at the two of them. "We won't have to worry about any unplanned pregnancies will we?" he asked making both of them blush.

"No sir." Holly replied quickly.

"Lt. Colonel Dawson, you are assigned to medical research under Colonel Danners. Building 7, section 4. I believe he requires his personnel on site by 0900, however you may tell him that if you are late that I delayed you. Dismissed." he said as she saluted him and left the room.

"You have presented more of a challenge to place, and it was only recently decided you would not be placed on a team. In fact you will be selecting your own team, and what you will be working on." General Knight said as he looked at Colonel Christensen. "It is fortunate you two would not have been placed in the same division, but we still do not like fraternization among the ranks when they are stationed in the same base."

"Understood sir, and I assure you it is not, not will it be an issue. We did go on vacation together, but there was no fraternization in that way sir." Eric told him as he was a little stunned.

"Battalion 15 Battalion 1 is in need of a Commander. The research team was recently redeployed, so you will be building the battalion from almost the ground up. We have a list of projects that are awaiting distribution, and invite you to review them and decide which one you wish to take. Good luck Colonel." Knight said as he made it clear Eric was dismissed to begin looking through the projects.

That evening he had found 3 that were intricately linked, and he knew that the right team could solve all 3 at once. He knew the personnel was going to be more difficult, as he would need several disciplines working together. He began the proposal to combine all 3, and was surprised when Holly knocked on his door and walked in.

"How was your first day?" she asked him as she came in and sat on his bed.

"Interesting, they gave me a battalion and told me to select my project." Eric said as he sat back and looked at what he had so far.

"Same, he said he had a dozen teams working around the clock, and a platoon that needed a new commander and project." she said as she sighed. "Mess opens in 20, would you like to join me?" she asked him as he nodded.

"Might help me think while I work on this for a little longer tonight. I do not even have personnel yet." he said as they walked through the hallway after he locked his door.

The next day Eric was summoned to the Generals Office, and he reported wondering what it was he had done. He could not think of anything, as General Knight summoned him inside. Eric walked to the center of his desk and saluted. "Reporting as ordered sir." he said before standing at attention.

"Your proposal is very interesting, I do not think many people would have connected those projects the way you did." General Knight said as he flipped through the proposal for a minute. "Missiles, Rockets, and Artillery Rounds, how do you intend to tackle all 3 at once?" he asked knowing they were closely related.

"Sir, the parameters for both are to make a new system that can be used interchangeably. The Artillery although not directly attached to the other two, could benefit from a technology upgrade as they have not been in nearly 300 years. The technology is similar enough that we should be able to achieve the range upgrades that they want." Eric said as he knew it.

"Agreed, and as much as I wish I could grant you approval, I have to inform you that a new project came in last night. It is perfectly suited for your expertise, and you will have a split research team. Civilian and Military alike, and it is a priority for President Tycho. We need to establish a presence in space once again, and there are several projects needed in order to make it a viable option." General Knight said.

"We are going to need to collect the debris that is making obtaining orbit an impossibility. I assume that we will not be using traditional launching technology?" he asked.

"No rockets like they used in the old world, you know the laws. Nothing that can be used to control weapons of mass destruction." Knight said.

"Yes sir, that being said the first thing we will have to design is a launch system, as well as engines for the vehicle that fall within the proper bounds." Eric said as he had a degree in rocketry. It would be difficult to make something that would make it to the lowest reaches of space, in order to begin collecting debris.

"How long do you think it would take?" General Knight asked.

Eric looked at the file, and remembered a launch system that had always been theoretical. "There is one system we might be able to use, as long as we use some modern tech with it. The question would be if we would ever be able to use it to launch living payloads. I would need 30 days and a small team to determine if it would be possible." Eric said as he thought of what specialties he would need.

"30 days, and we will want a full report. What would you need?" he asked.

"If my idea works, we will need atleast a mile of magnetic track that is as flat as possible. Ultimate length would probably need to be 20 or more miles that eventually lifted the vehicle to a launch trajectory. Again, it would have to be something we answer in testing over the next 30 days. A launch vehicle with a payload would need to reach speeds of nearly 30,000 miles per hour when it leaves the surface without independent propulsion. I have a few ideas on how to achieve it, but we would need thrusters for space operations." Eric said as he considered if it could be achieved.

"My assistant has a stack of files for experts in the fields for your consideration. They are pooled from both Military and Civilian sources that are approved to work on this project as well as the necessary clearances. This program is classified need to know, and until they have been selected there is none. Dismissed Colonel." General Knight said saluting him before he went to his large stack of paperwork.