Duty from Ashes

by Sam Schal

  “Consider yourself lucky it’s just the three of us, Ash,” Ortega said as she made sure the office door was securely shut. “MJ and Kevin managed to convince the others to let them handle this debriefing. But I warn you everyone is ready to go straight to General Okafor to demand an explanation for what happened. So, what did you find out?”

  For a moment, Ash didn’t reply. It didn’t surprise her to learn the rest of the team wanted answers. If their positions were reversed, she’d feel the same way. That was one reason the team was as strong as it was. They looked out for one another, had each other’s back. Hopefully, they would give her and their superiors time to find the answers they all wanted.

  Setting her mug on the desktop, she leaned back, glad Ortega had made sure the door was securely shut behind them. The last thing she wanted was for someone to overhear what she had to say.

  “Nothing.” She shook her head when Ortega started to speak. “When I got to my mother’s office, her aide wouldn’t let me talk to her, wouldn’t even tell her I was there. When I asked how long before she’d be available, he told me he didn’t know.” She paused, giving the others a moment to consider what she said.

  “While I can’t tell you why or what was so important that he wouldn’t even let her know I was there, I can tell you he was tense and worried. More importantly, so was Lt. Garrity when I tried to speak with General Okafor. So I left my report on the sim as well as a request to meet with both my mother and the Commandant before returning here.”

  She lifted her mug and sipped. As she did, she waited. From the troubled expressions worn by the others, she had no doubt they were as worried as was she. But would they come to the same conclusions?

  “The Callusians?” Ortega asked simply.

  “That would be my guess,” Ash replied. “If we’re right, I expect we will be shipping out very soon. So we need to make sure everything is ready. That means not only making sure the Devil Dogs are ready but that we have a line on what happened today and why.”

  “I may have a few answers where that’s concerned.” Ortega produced her datapad and briefly consulted it. “I did a little research into Brodsky and I don’t like what I’ve found so far.”

  Concerned, Ash motioned for her to continue.

  “I’ll start by saying this isn’t the first time he has changed the parameters of a sim without first informing the CO. I’ve uncovered at least three other times he’s done so. Each time, when called on it by the brass, he has responded much as he did today. Two of the instances involved Marine exercises.”

  “Why hasn’t he been disciplined then?”

  Or had he?

  “My sources tell me he explained it away each time by saying he was following orders.”

  “What? Whose orders?” Ash leaned forward, hands on her desk, eyes flashing.

  “Dr. Jay Hines.”

  For a moment, no one said anything. Ashlyn leaned back, stunned. Then Adamson surged to her feet. Anger flashed across her expression. Without a word, she crossed the office to the far wall. For a moment, Ashlyn wondered if the master sergeant was going to put her fist through the wall. It certainly looked like the blonde was considering it, not that Ash blamed her. She’d actually punched the wall in her mother’s office during the retelling of what happened and she had the sore knuckles to prove it.

  “That bastard,” Adamson rasped as she turned back to face the others.

  “Why did he do it?” Talbot demanded.

  “You want to know what he told the brass or what I think his motive was?” Ortega asked

  “Both,” Ash said.

  “According to those I spoke with, Hines ordered the change in mission parameters because he had concerns about the various COs. In each case, they had been on restricted duty prior to the exercise. According to him, the only way to determine whether or not the officers, you included, should have been reinstated to active duty status was to put them into situations where all the stressors would be present.”

  “But she’d already been cleared to return to duty,” Talbot said. “Not only by the medical review board but also by the top brass.”

  Ash nodded, her expression serious. She’d hated the sessions with the shrinks she’d been forced to attend. They’d poked and prodded and kept wanting her to talk about what had happened, not only before her court martial but after she’d been sent to the military prison on Tarsus. One of them had even required her to sit through the vid of her sentencing hearing, just to see how she’d react. But she’d done it and had managed to convince them that she was all right. The funny thing was, she really was all right as long as you didn’t count the occasional nightmare and the need, a very primal need, to see those responsible for the deaths of her people brought to justice.

  “True but, from what I can tell, in each case Hines told the review board that he was against any attempt to return the COs, including Ash, to active duty. Each time, his recommendations were ignored by the others doctors. So he went to the review board with his objections and, when it ignored him, he went to Brodsky. Together they would alter the parameters of the upcoming sims, all in an attempt to prove Hines was right.”

  “What the hell!” Now it was Talbot who pushed out of his chair and paced the length of the office. When he turned back, Ash held up a hand, silencing him.

  “Stand down, Kevin. I knew that bastard had tried to keep me from returning to duty. He actually took his objections to the commandant when the review board shot him down.” She inhaled, striving to keep her temper in check as she remember being called to Okafor’s office not that long ago. “Fortunately, at least in my eyes, she pulled the reports from my primary physician as well as the other doctors who had seen me and the medical review board. None of those records contained any concerns, outside of the normal ones they always have about Marines in general and Devil Dogs in particular, about letting me return to duty. Dr. Ahern was very careful to document not only my medical progress but the reports he’d gotten back from the shrinks. And, no, there was no report from Hines on the record, not that I expected one since I only saw him once.”

  And that had been one time too many. There had been something about the man that had rubbed Ash wrong from the moment she entered his office more than a month earlier. Of all the other doctors and counsellors she’d seen, Hines had been the only one who hadn’t gotten to his feet to greet her and try to put her at her ease. Instead, he’d watched with what could only be described as a sneer of disdain as she moved across his office to one of the two chairs in front of his desk. She’d given him a moment to invite her to sit. When he didn’t, she finally took it upon herself to do so, noting the aggravation that crossed his expression as she did.

  The next hour had been an exercise in frustration. Hines had proven, in Ash’s mind at least, that he had no desire to help her cope with any remaining problems she might have had. Instead, he spent the time poking and prodding, trying to get her to admit that she’d joined the military, the Marines in particular, because her parents had forced her to. Then he suggested in no uncertain terms that she’d been insubordinate on her last assignment, deserving the reprimands O’Brien and Sorkowski had put in her record. Worse, he’d tried to make her admit it had been her own negligence that had caused the disaster that had been the Arterus mission. In short, he had taken a page out of the prosecution’s handbook and had run with it.

  Her response, as soon as she’d left his office, had been to contact Dr. Ahern, as her primary physician, and tell him not only that she would not agree to see Hines again but also why. Ahern had been quick to assure her that she would not have to meet with Hines again. There had been something in the doctor’s voice during that short conversation that had caught Ash’s attention but she hadn’t dwelt on it. Now, after the events of the morning, she knew what it was. Ahern hadn’t been surprised by what she’d reported and that was something that, after the morning’s events, bore looking into.

  “I still don’t get why Hines would tell
Brodsky to alter the sims or why Brodsky would do it.” Talbot shook his head, frowning. “It just doesn’t make any sense.”

  “No, it doesn’t. But I have a better question, Kevin. How did Hines even know about the sims, much less know about their parameters?”

  The moment she said it, Ashlyn saw understanding dawn on her companions. Sim missions were not something talked about in public circles, at least not before they had been run. In the case of this particular sim, no one outside of the team, the sim crew, and a few others should have even known about the mission. That Hines had meant there was a security leak somewhere, one that needed to be found before any real harm was done – if it hadn’t already.

  “Damn it,” the master gunnery sergeant said.

  Ash nodded. “That’s why we aren’t about to let this drop. Luce, I want you to write up everything you’ve learned and suspect. I will attach it to my full report and send it, along with a full recording of the sim to both my mother and Okafor. MJ, Kevin, get reports from each member of today’s team and I will include them as well. Hell, I think I’ll copy everything to JAG as well. It’s past time for them to open an investigation into what’s been going on.”

  “Let’s hope they move faster on that than they have everything else,” Ortega murmured in ill-temper.

  “Luce, I need you to do something else for me.” Now she smiled, the predator scenting its prey. “I want you to put your skills in intelligence gathering to use and find out what you can about Brodsky and Hines. See where their paths cross, if they do. If they don’t, then find out how Hines learned about the sim. Talk to Rico Santiago. He might have an idea about what’s going on. Hell, knowing him, he’s already got an investigation running into one or both of them.”

  “You’re right there. Besides, he’ll move faster than JAG once he realizes there is a real problem and, with this breach of security, there is,” Ortega said.

  Ashlyn nodded. Her own frustration with the JAG had been building over the last few weeks. Part of her understood the need to proceed carefully, making sure not only that they had an airtight case against Sorkowski and O’Brien for dereliction of duty, falsifying records and perjury, as well as all the other charges she’d been assured would be leveled against the two she held responsible for the deaths of those under her command. She recognized the need to keep the investigation under wraps as the JAG looked into who else might have been involved in making sure she and the other survivors of the Arterus mission were court martialed and sent to the Tarsus penal colony. But, with each week that passed, it had gotten harder and harder to believe they would give her justice any more than she’d seen when brought up on charges.

  But, fortunately, that might be about to change.

  “Speaking of the JAG, I guess I ought to let you know that Lt. Liu did ask if there might be any volunteers from the battalion, and preferably from Alpha Company, to help with some security details he will be putting together shortly.”

  A smile touched her lips as her companions sat up, suddenly even more alert than before.

  “Ash—”

  Ortega didn’t finish what she had been about to say. Her expression betrayed her conflicting emotions. Hope and dread, determination and resignation: all emotions Ashlyn had experienced since her release from the military prison on Tarsus and, if she were being honest, emotions she’d felt during Okafor’s conversation with the JAG officer in charge of her case. Now all she could do was nod, letting her XO and best friend know she understood.

  “Don’t jump to conclusions yet. Lt. Liu didn’t go into specifics. My guess is that he’s finally decided there’s enough evidence to move against Sorkowski and O’Brien.”

  How much more should she say? These three had stood behind her and for her when she’d been court martialed. They’d fought, often at the risk of their own careers, to prove she and the others were innocent of the charges leveled against them. There were no others she’d trust at her back than them. More importantly, she would trust them to care for her son should anything happen to her and her parents. They deserved to know everything, even if it was only speculation.

  “It wouldn’t surprise me to find out that they’ll be moving against others as well. Lt. Liu has made it clear whenever we’ve met to discuss the case that he believes others are involved in Sorkowski and O’Brien’s operation. He’s been able to tie them to the smugglers and pirates operating in the Arcterus Sector. Their bank accounts, the ones they don’t know he’s discovered, show deposits coming from some more than questionable sources. He has no doubts those two were doing more than turning a blind eye to the illegal activities in the sector. Believe me, he wants the ones they were working with almost as much as I do.” She shook her head, a slight smile touching her lips. “I’ll be honest, as much as I want to be there to see them slap the restraints on both Sorkowski and O’Brien, part of me wants to be off-planet when it happens. The media circus that will follow will be a nightmare I’d just as soon not be part of.

  “And along that line, there’s something I didn’t tell Nolan earlier. We are final push mode. I want the battalion ready to move out at a moment’s notice. That means we all have a great deal of work to do.”

  “It’s about time we got our orders,” Adamson said and the others nodded in agreement.

  “Agreed. But it does mean we have a lot to accomplish and probably not much time in which to do it. I want full reviews of our personnel and your final recommendations on our officers and senior non-coms by morning. If we need to rearrange billets or transfer anyone, let’s do it now, before the shit hits the fan.

  “MJ, I want you to put together the PT for morning. Push everyone, especially the officers. If anyone gives you a hard time about it, send them to Lucinda. I’ll step in if necessary. Just remember that I want every person in the battalion ready for battle. That means physically as well as mentally. Any questions?”

  “Negative, ma’am,” Ortega assured her.

  “There’s one more thing I want the three of you to do.”

  “Name it,” Talbot said.

  “While I need to know what the story is where Hines and Brodsky are concerned, we have more pressing matters. If I’m right, we’re going to be shipping out sooner rather than later. I’ve been expecting our orders to come for the last two weeks. Whether we’ll be sent to try to liberate the Cassius System or to the front lines, I don’t know. But I do know we aren’t ready. There are still slots in the battalion that need to be filled. Hell, there are still slots on my staff that need to be filled. I want the three of you to review the headquarters staff. We’ll discuss your recommendations after the briefings.”

  “Understood.” Ortega turned to the others. “I’ll go have a chat with Santiago when we finish here. Kevin, you talk to the team and let them know the major has things well in hand and will brief them later. MJ—“

  “I know some folks who have had the pleasure of dealing with Hines. I’ll reach out to them,” Adamson commented.

  “Good.” Another knot of tension eased and Ash smiled slightly. Her companions would get the job done, just as they always did. “Now get out of here and get busy. I have a feeling the brass is going to put us through the wringer just as we’re going to be putting the battalion through it come morning.”

  She watched the others leave her office. As the door closed behind them, she leaned back and lifted her booted feet onto the edge of her desk. She was still angry about what happened that morning but the anger no longer consumed her. Now she could channel it and that was exactly what she planned to do. There was a great deal she needed to take care of before she could leave for the day.

  * * *

  The three men looked at one another, silence hanging comfortably between them as they waited for the page to leave. The young man, really nothing more than a boy, sketched a bow in their direction before backing out of the room. A moment later, the reinforced door slid shut behind him, locking out all prying eyes and ears.

  Even so, pers
onal and professional paranoia had kept the three alive and had become such a deeply seated part of their lives that it might have well have been part of their genetic makeup. There was a soft buzz and a quick flickering of the lights as shields went up inside the room. Designed not only to prevent surveillance by artificial means, it would also warn them if anyone tried to tap into the room or if they tried to make entry. It was just one of precautions they had agreed upon before deciding to meet face-to-face. There were simply too many people, both on Midlothian and elsewhere, who would view their current activities with scant favor.

  “Have we received any information from Cassius Prime?” the man sitting at the head of the table.

  “No, but then I didn’t expect to hear anything yet.” The man to his left, Mikhail Federov, reached out and entered a quick command on the virtual keyboard in front of him. He took a moment to scan the information he’d called up before continuing. “So far, everything has gone according to plan. Our allies—” He spat out the word. “—did exactly as told. They took out the orbital defense and communications platforms before starting the planetary attack. As you know, they followed their usual tactics there. They pounded what they could with bombs and then sent in the ground troops. It was a bloodbath and they are now stripping the capital of tech, anything they can sell or use themselves and rounding up prisoners. As I said, all according to plan.”

  “And the courier ship they reported entering the system as the attack began?” Alexander Watchman, Commissioner of Intelligence Services for the Republic of Midlothian, looked from Federov to the third member of their group, Admiral Horace Boniface.

  “We can’t be sure one way or the other, sir,” Federov said. “The reports from Commander Hughes are inconclusive. All he could confirm for us was that the courier came out of hyper right on the edge of the Anubis’ detection range. They didn’t pick up anything on sensors to indicate a message had been sent but we all know the Callusian communications hardware leaves a great deal to be desired.”