"What sort of package, Lori?" Jenetta asked.
"It's from central stores, but it's addressed to Admiral Jenetta A. Carver, Base Commander."
"Bring it in, Lori."
Commander Ashraf watched a minute later as Jenetta opened the small package, looked inside, and then dumped the contents onto her desk. A small pile of rank insignias, bearing a single star for Admiral, Lower Half, skidded across the smooth surface.
"Have you been promoted, ma'am?" Lt. Commander Ashraf asked.
"Yes, Lori. It's just a brevet promotion for the remainder of my tour here. Either Admiral Moore or Admiral Burke must have arranged for this delivery. I just learned about it in the message from Admiral Moore."
"Then allow me to be the first to congratulate you in person, Admiral," Lt. Commander Ashraf said with a salute and wide smile.
"Thank you, Lori." Jenetta said smiling. "This promotion means that I'll be going aboard a ship when the Milori approach. I'll have to find someone to take over in my absence. You'll need a replacement also, if you wish to accompany me."
"Yes, ma'am. I absolutely do wish to accompany the Admiral."
"Okay, Lori. Prepare a list of candidates that you feel would be best qualified to handle your duties in your absence. I'll interview them and make a decision."
"Yes, ma'am," Lt. Commander Ashraf said, still grinning.
Jenetta procrastinated for hours before sending messages to her family about the promotion. She didn't even change the insignia on her uniform until she returned to her quarters following dinner. By then, word had spread throughout the station. The clerk who'd filled the order for the insignia and forwarded the package had most likely told a few other crewmen, and that was all it took for the grapevine to swing into full operation.
She delayed the messages still longer by taking the time to change the rank insignia on the rest of her uniforms. She finally walked to the office that was a part of her suite. Sitting at her desk, she tapped the record button on the com unit.
"Message to Captain Quinton E. Carver, GSC Cruiser Octavian from Admiral Jenetta A. Carver, Stewart SC Base. Begin message.
"Hi Dad. I wanted to tell you about my promotion before you heard about it from one of your buddies at Supreme Headquarters. I hope that I'm not too late. Since you're way over on the other side of galactic space, but still much closer to Earth than I, you may have heard already.
"I can picture you getting upset because you think that I'll be stuck behind a desk now, but that's not the case. The rank is only temporary, so I guess that I'll be credited with another first. I'm the first Brevetted Admiral in the history of Space Command, but I'll only retain the rank until the end of my tour at Stewart.
"The reason for the promotion is out of necessity, according to Admiral Moore. We know that an enemy force, consisting of as many as sixteen Milori warships, is headed this way. They've proclaimed ownership of our Frontier Zone and are currently pursuing the Ottawa after having ordered all Space Command vessels to leave or be destroyed. As base commander of Stewart, I'd naturally be in command of the task force preparing to meet the approaching Milori task force, but Supreme Headquarters feels that the captains may feel awkward taking orders from another captain with less time in grade during an engagement that happens away from the station. By promoting me, Supreme HQ feels that the chain of command is more firmly established.
"Ships as far away as Dixon are being diverted to support the upcoming operation so it may even have a ripple effect in your area. I'll continue to send weekly messages for as long as I can, but once we leave Stewart, outgoing com traffic will be limited to official communications only— until after the operation is over.
"I love you, Dad.
"Jenetta A. Carver, Rear Admiral, Lower Half, Stewart SC Base Commander, message complete."
Jenetta then recorded a message to her mother, but left out any mention of the upcoming operation. Instead, she talked about things that they were discussing in their regular weekly messages to each other after giving her the news of the promotion.
She also sent messages to her brothers and sisters. Since they were all in Space Command, and three of them would actually participate in the operation, those messages were similar to the one that went to her dad.
She felt better after sending the messages, for having completed the chore. Her oldest brother, Billy, still a commander and First Officer aboard the St. Petersburg, might experience some mixed emotions. On the one hand, he would be happy for his baby sister, but on the other, he might feel some jealousy since he's seven years older. Her three other brothers might also experience mixed feelings, but she knew that her sisters would only be happy for her.
Jenetta's morning walk to her office always drew stares. But on this first morning after her promotion, passersby were staring at the shiny gold star on each shoulder that replaced her normal four gold bars.
The troop transport ship ferrying the diplomatic corps arrived a couple of days later with two quartermaster supply ships. But most importantly, the GSC battleship Prometheus was acting as escort to the convoy. Jenetta planned to visit the Prometheus as soon as possible, but a series of scheduled meetings prevented her from getting away. She was preparing to leave for the ship when Commander Ashraf messaged her.
"Admiral, the Captain of the Prometheus is here. He requests a few minutes of your time."
"Send him in, Lori."
Jenetta stood up as Captain Gavin strode into the office and came to attention in front of Jenetta's desk. He saluted as he said, "Captain Lawrence Gavin reporting to the Admiral."
Jenetta smiled and returned his salute. "Welcome back, Captain. It's wonderful to see you again."
Gavin let his smile break through the serious expression that he had been able to maintain until then. "It's good to see you also, Admiral."
"Jen, please, Captain."
"Okay, but only if you'll call me Larry."
"Deal. Care for some coffee, Larry?" Jenetta asked, motioning towards the food synthesizer."
"I could use a cup." Gavin walked over and prepared a mug of coffee. "Anything for you, Jen?"
"Thanks, I'm set," she said as she sat back down behind her desk and picked up her coffee mug to take a sip.
Gavin came over with his prepared coffee and sat in one of the large comfortable 'oh-gee' chairs that faced her desk. Getting comfortable, he said, "It seems to me that you were just a Commander when I left here."
Jenetta nodded and smiled. "You've been gone a long time."
"Only thirty-one months. We expected to be back in twenty, but protection of the diplomatic corps transport and two supply ships altered that. Our return trip took twice as long because of those damn supply ships. Their top speed is only Light-187. I'm sorry that we weren't here for your fight with the Raiders."
"We could have used your firepower, but everything worked out."
"I read the report issued by Supreme Headquarters. Congratulations. You did a fantastic job, Jen."
"Thank you. We were only facing an undisciplined collection of thieves, murderers, and smugglers. Nothing like the enemy that's getting closer with each passing minute."
He nodded. "Yes, I wish that we knew more about the Milori."
"I've studied everything that I could get my hands on. One of our intelligence operatives, Trader Vyx, had some interesting information about them, and Jeff Crosby filed a report about his interrogation of the three Milora that he has in custody."
"How did he take Milori into custody? My message from Supreme Headquarters indicated that the Ottawa was forced to run for it when the Milori started to maneuver their ships to leave orbit."
"The Milori were picked up three months earlier, floating in Tsgardi escape pods after Vyx was forced to destroy the ship on which the Milori were passengers. The Tsgardi attacked his small ship as he left our new outpost in the Frontier Zone and he had no choice. But the presence of Milori in our territory made Jeff Crosby curious. After Vyx reported that he had seen Mil
ori on the Scruscotto colony a year earlier, Jeff requested a deviation from his patrol route to check out reports of Milori on Bajurrsko. I approved it, naturally. After arriving at the colony, Vyx learned from a prospector that the Milori were constructing a military base in the Elurra system. I then ordered the Ottawa to proceed to the system and further investigate the lead. So, Jeff still has the three Milora in his brig, and it appears that they've become prisoners of war now."
"Have you prepared a plan for greeting the arriving Milori?"
"I have a few ideas for a warm welcome. The assembled task force will be comprised of fourteen ships. We'll have a meeting of all captains as soon as everyone is here. Anybody who's late will have to catch up. We can pinpoint exactly when and where the Ottawa will arrive with the Milori in hot pursuit and we have to be in position."
"Are you still expecting sixteen Milori ships, Jen?"
"We haven't received any news to the contrary, but it's possible that some may have dropped out. We can really only be certain of one."
"I don't understand the Milori. They haven't even conquered the five-hundred light-years of territory between our outer border and their previously declared outer border. Why would they attempt to expand their border by over eight hundred light years when they know it means war?"
"Perhaps they're just trying to insure that the Galactic Alliance doesn't expand any further. By claiming our Frontier Zone, they establish a new outer border for both themselves and us."
"They have to know that we can't let this challenge stand. And I would have expected them to attack with hundreds of ships, not a handful."
"We might have surprised them by learning about their base in the Elurra system so early. The ships there might only have been an advance guard, assigned the job of setting up bases for the re-supply of their forces once their operation begins. We have to consider that additional ships may already be on the way from their home world."
"Then it's doubly important that we meet this threat now and chase them out of our territory before they can marshal all their forces. Have you decided on a flagship yet, Jen?"
"I thought that the Prometheus might serve that purpose, unless you have any reservations?"
"None at all; I was going to suggest it myself. It will be great having you aboard again."
"I'm really looking forward to it."
"Is there anything that I can do to prepare for your reception?"
"Not just yet, except to have your gunners get as much simulator time as possible. We still have months before the Milori arrive, but we want everyone as sharp as possible."
"I've already had my First Officer step up the training time."
"Who's your First now?"
"Commander Eaton. Tim moved up from Second Officer after you became a Captain. Space Command knew that you wouldn't be coming back as my first officer, but I never expected to have you aboard as Admiral Carver."
"If it wasn't a brevet promotion, you wouldn't," Jenetta said smiling. "The chore only fell on my shoulders because none of the Captains wanted to give up their ships."
A strange expression came over Captain Gavin's face.
"What?" Jenetta asked. "What is it?"
"Is that what Supreme Headquarters told you?"
"Yes. Admiral Moore told me himself."
"Then it's not my place to contradict the Admiral of the Fleet."
Jenetta grimaced. "Come on, Larry. We've known each other for a long time. I've always felt that we were friends, at least as much as possible within the command structure."
Captain Gavin was silent for a full minute as he sipped his coffee and stared into the mug. "I've always felt that way as well." He took another sip and looked up. "Okay. I happen to know that Bill Payton of the Thor, or Andy Novak of the Asuncion, would give up their ship in a heartbeat for a star."
It was Jenetta's turn to be silent for a minute. "Do you think that they'll resent my being promoted?" she finally asked.
"Human nature being what it is, I'd think that there might be some small resentment, but I'd expect it to be directed towards Headquarters rather than towards you. They both know of your intense desire to be back aboard ship. They certainly won't think you've been playing politics to get the promotion."
"Do you think it will inhibit their performance in the upcoming battle? Will they follow my orders?"
"No, and yes. They're both excellent officers and they won't let their personal feelings get in the way of their duty. And if either does harbor any slight resentment towards you, I'm sure they wouldn't be the first. You've climbed through the ranks faster than anyone in the history of Space Command, Jen. You're what, forty-one, now?"
Jenetta nodded. "I reached forty-one in May."
"No one has ever received their flag in Space Command before reaching their fifty-sixth birthday. Discounting your time in stasis, you're really only thirty, and you still look twenty. That's bound to create a certain amount of envy. But the measure of an officer is how well they keep personal feelings hidden, and how well they keep them from affecting their performance."
"How about you, Larry? You're the senior captain among our forces. You should have received this promotion."
"I don't have any envy of your promotion, Jen. I've twice refused to give up my ship to accept flag rank. Until the border expansion, I was afraid that I would only have a few more years left as a ship's captain. I'd assumed that I'd then either take a flag promotion, or retire. But with the GSC rolling out the mandatory retirement age to eighty-five, I have another twenty-one years in space. I intend to remain as a ship's captain for every minute of it, and I couldn't be happier."
Jenetta grinned. "I know how you feel. My only excitement from the promotion came when I realized that I'd be able to get off this base and back into space; for a while, at least."
"I'm afraid that you have the same sickness that infects most of the ship's officers and crews in Space Command. We're just never happy on a base or space station. But stick us inside a metal cylinder, hurling through space faster than the speed of light, and we're in our glory."
Jenetta couldn't help but laugh. "True, but I'd hardly call the Prometheus a "metal cylinder."
"It's not inaccurate," Gavin said, chuckling, "when considered in its simplest form, but it is a rather undignified way to talk about such an elegant ship. I'm glad that he can't hear me."
"Larry," Jenetta said getting serious, "if Space Command has two qualified officers out here who would eagerly accept a promotion to Admiral, why do you think they pushed this promotion onto me?"
"I don't know for sure, but I can think of two logical reasons," Gavin said. "If they promoted Bill or Andy, the new admiral would be expected to assume command of Stewart immediately, because once they had an admiral out here, they couldn't very well leave a captain in command of a StratCom-One base."
"That would have been perfect. I could have assumed the promoted officer's position aboard the ship until a permanent captain arrived in a couple of years."
"Yes, it could have worked out that way, but perhaps they really want you to remain in command here. You have a JAG section here. Is the top officer an admiral?"
"No."
"An admiral is always the top officer in a JAG unit on a major base such as Stewart. Only a JAG admiral can adjudicate certain types of cases."
"Or the base commander must assume that role."
"Exactly. And they haven't sent a JAG admiral here, or appointed one from the JAG staff on the base, because they couldn't have a flag officer reporting to a commissioned officer. The admiral would have to assume command of the base, but, a JAG admiral can't be the officially designated commanding officer of a base, just as an admiral from the medical corps or the quartermaster corps can't be a designated base commander. A base commander, like a warship's captain, must come from the line officer ranks."
"So you think that they've gone through all this to keep me on here as base commander?"
"They've had to deviate from
the standardized base personnel configuration considerably to accommodate your remaining on as base commander while a captain."
"It makes sense." Jenetta sipped her coffee before adding. "I mean that it makes sense as you describe the stratagem, not that it makes sense that they want to keep me here."
"Didn't you tell me that Supreme Headquarters had wanted to keep you on Dixon for a full tour, but that Admiral Holt managed to free you up?"
"Yes, I did."
"Well, perhaps they don't want to free you from here yet. You've done too good a job, Jen. They're bending over backwards to keep you here, and in command, for your entire tour of duty."
Jenetta sighed. "I've already resigned myself to remaining here for the entire five years. What's the other reason?"
"If anyone else was placed in command, there's no guarantee that he'd follow your tactical suggestions in the upcoming fight. You have to admit that your tactics are always a bit— unique, and some officers have believed you to be a 'loose cannon' at times."
"Yes. After the Battle for Higgins, my dad told me that half the instructors at the War College felt that way."
Captain Gavin nodded. "The Admiralty Board obviously doesn't share that assessment. Brian Holt's told me that you've impressed the hell out of them with your tactics. So they're showing unequivocally that they want Jenetta Carver leading this campaign, and they'll do whatever it takes to make that happen."
Brightening a little, she added, "Well, it will be great to be aboard the Prometheus for a while. It would almost be like a vacation, if not for the Milori."
"Yes, that does dampen the mood a bit. If the Milori show up in force, I'm afraid that many of us may not be returning from this battle."
* * *
Chapter Fifteen
~ July 16th, 2276 ~
With the Milori threat still seven months away and little to do in preparation for it this early, Jenetta turned most of her attention back to other base business. The Arrosian minister had begun to push for the hearing to continue, and the JAG section had completed the work with the submitted documents, so Jenetta sat down to review everything discovered to have a bearing on the case.
Milor! Page 16
