Admiral Lee Chang Commander Task Force 1 in the Phoenix Fleet is reassigned as Commandant OESA Academy Rigil.
There is no more important role than that of getting our young entry level people off to a good start. Their education and training is paramount to our success and serves as the foundation for millions of successful careers. Admiral Chang has served the OESA with distinction for over twenty years. We thank him for his past service and wish him success in his new endeavor. An announcement pertaining to his replacement is forthcoming.
Good Luck Admiral Chang!
Admiral Stephen Nichols.
Twelve hours after that one, the following message was received.
MEMO
From: Admiral Stephen Nichols Theatre Nine Commander
To: All Theatre Nine Fleet Commanders, all personnel Phoenix Fleet
C.C. Admiral George Bryant Mobile Fifth RAC Commander
Re: Phoenix Fleet Task Force One Commander
Date: March 8, 2256
All,
I am pleased to announce that, effective March 20, 2256, Captain Kurt Brubacher will be elevated to the level of Rear Admiral (8) and assigned as Commander Task Force 1 Phoenix Fleet. Though a two-step Flag-level promotion is unusual, Kurt has earned it with his stellar performance record. After more than eight years in various posts within Boots Fleet, Lt. Commander Brubacher was raised to Commander and consigned to the Captaincy of the ESS Shenzhen. Four months into that role, he was promoted to the rank of Captain. After a year aboard Shenzhen, he was assigned the ESS Loki, which he ran for six months before his current nomination. Captain Brubacher was responsible for authoring the two extensive manuals we now use to proof new vessels acquired by Fleets. He was decorated for stopping a rebellion at Rho Corona Borealis. Captain Brubacher has a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, graduating from the War College with the highest marks of any alumnus finishing the General Officer Fellowship Program. We are sure that Rear Admiral Brubacher will display the same tactical, management, and personnel skills in his new position as he showed us in previous ones.
Congratulations Captain Brubacher and our very best wishes.
Admiral Stephen Nichols
So, now I am standing near the side steps that grace the right flank of the stage in the Amphitheatre waiting with El for our promotions. I am not surprised to see the Emperor on the stage. It seems like he is always at the Valhalla.
After fifteen minutes of warm-ups and welcome speeches, I am called to the podium. Admiral Bryant does the first presentation.
"OESA Command Order number 215903-9568
To all citizens within the limits of the Orion Empire comprising all space within a region extending in a spheroid one hundred light-years from the Sol system in all directions, and to the citizens within that region, and all conducting business of any fashion with the Empire let it be known. On Friday, March 14, 2256, the Council and the Secretary of Defense of the Orion Empire, in white paper OESA 215903-75622 paragraph three did approve the nomination of the C&C of the OESA to elevate a member of the service to a Flag Staff rank. This was done with the consent of the Mobile Fifth RAC Commander along with the recommendations of the Theatre Nine and Phoenix Fleet Commanders. This action does require entry of the candidate's name in the Role of Senior Officers. By order of the C&C and Mobile Fifth RAC Commander as prescribed by OESA regulations and protocol, Kurt Brubacher is upgraded to the level of Rear Admiral. Admiral Brubacher is granted all the rights and privileges prescribed in the aforementioned Regulations and Protocol. Any and all serving or engaged with Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher's commands, present or future, and, those conducting business with it or the Orion Empire, shall pay respect, obedience, and loyalty to the rank he holds as prescribed by the law of the Empire. Let it be known that Kurt Brubacher was raised to the grade of Rear Admiral, his name added to the Role of Senior Officers and that this order was signed and sealed, in the presence of witnesses and the Emperor's delegate, on Thursday, March 20, 2256, at Mobile Fifth RAC Headquarters. Signed, Fleet Admiral William Stephenson C&C, Fleet Admiral"
Brian Dickinson C&C, Admiral George Bryant, Mobile Fifth RAC Commander.'
Admiral Nichols came forward. He pinned the two stars flanking the number eight on my right collar point, while Admiral Bryant did the same on my left one. Nichols handed me my new lanyard and braids. Bryant passed me the warrant. They stepped back and saluted. I returned the gesture. We all turned to the crowd of nearly five thousand.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher," Bryant said as the crowd rose to their feet.
"Rah" was the call from the synchronized five thousand voices.
The crowd broke into a loud roar, and thunderous applause as the press slinked forward, in the aisles, each photographer seeking the ideal position, flashes firing in succession temporarily blinding me. They must have captured a hundred and fifty images.
"Okay let's settle down. We have a lot more to go." Bryant called out with both hands raised, palms out. He stepped back, and Vice Admiral Leeds came forward. I couldn't help but note how beautiful she was in her dress uniform. It was impossible not to consider just how much I wanted her. It had taken restraint to wait this long.
'OESA Command Order number 215903-9569
To all citizens within the limits of the Orion Empire comprising all space within a region extending in a spheroid one hundred light-years from the Sol system in all directions, and to the citizens within that region, and all conducting business of any fashion with the Empire let it be known. On Friday, March 14, 2256, the Council and the Secretary of Defense of the Orion Empire, in white paper OESA 215903-75622 paragraph four approved the nomination of the C&C of the OESA and its Mobile Fifth RAC Commander to assign Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher to the position of Commander Task Force 1 Phoenix Fleet. This action was taken on the recommendation of the Commander Theatre Nine and the Commander Phoenix Fleet. By order of the C&C and Mobile Fifth RAC Commander as prescribed by OESA regulations and protocol Kurt Brubacher is assigned as Commander of Task Force 1 Phoenix Fleet, a position outlined and described in the aforementioned Regulations and Protocol. Any and all serving within Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher's Command shall pay respect, obedience, and loyalty to the rank and position he possesses as prescribed by the law of the Empire. Let it be known that, Rear Admiral Brubacher is responsible for all personnel, hardware, and assets belonging to, and/or assigned to Task Force 1 Phoenix Fleet. He is also responsible for the peacekeeping and security of the space in a region delegated by the Commander Mobile Fifth RAC through the Commander Theatre Nine and the Commander Phoenix Fleet, as defined and described in the article twenty-four section three - b of the OESA regulations. protocol. This order was signed and sealed, in the presence of witnesses and the Emperor Edward III's representatives on Thursday, March 20, 2256, at Mobile Fifth RAC Command. Signed, Fleet Admiral William Stephenson C&C, Fleet Admiral Brian Dickinson C&C, Admiral George Bryant Commander Mobile Fifth RAC.'
With that, Admiral Leeds handed me the Phoenix Task Force 1 patches and its Commander's Pennant, then stepped back with her hand outstretched. 'Congratulations, Rear Admiral Brubacher."
Helena stepped forward, beside me, took my hand and raised it in the air.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, I present Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher the Commander of Phoenix Fleet Task Force 1." She called out. Everyone stood again.
"Rah." was chorused by a little weaker chorus, this time, but, the cheers were louder and much more prolonged. The camera flashes poured down on me, again. As it all died, I was about to leave the stage when a voice interrupted me.
"Not yet, Admiral. There's still more.' Admiral Bryant's voice called out from behind.
'Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to present Edward III Emperor of the Orion Empire." He added.
"I only remember a few people who have come to my attention like Kurt Brubacher. They are all in this room, right now. There's Admirals Bryant, Williamson, Dickinson, Tonaka, Stephenson and Nic
hols. Now, there's a group of new ones on the way up. Admiral Stevens, Vice Admiral Leeds, and Rear Admiral Brubacher are the latest additions to this list. I have personally signed the warrant for awards for all of them, before. These are all wonderful people who give their all and risk their lives for the Empire, each and every day. Usually, I am called to speak of heroism or bravery. These people have all shown that. But every once in a while someone comes along to contribute something else important to the Empire. I can think of George Bryant coming up with the idea for the communications system we use in space, today. He sped up the travel time of a message by five times and made it possible to receive it while in FTL flight. That's a pretty impressive engineering feat for a tactical genius commanding thousands of people. Then there was Admiral Nichols who found a way to do patrols that improved efficiency by fifty percent, at a time when we were struggling to meet our obligations in the Empire. The complex ballet dance is still known as the Nichols Patrol Maneuver years after he devised it. And, all the Fleets use it in their patrols. Now, Rear Admiral Brubacher comes along. We have been receiving and doing shakedowns on vessels since the formation of the service. Everyone did a pretty good job. Few had died over nearly two centuries because a ship was faulty when it went into service. But it was all hit and miss, and everyone did it differently. That is until Kurt Brubacher wrote a manual for Testing and Shakedown of New Carriers and another for Non-Carrier class vessels that standardized the process and ensured we check, stress, and certify each and every sub-system of these ships before putting them on active duty. And, he provided reports for a Carrier that is now the standard for what the result should be and how they should be presented. His report on the ESS Loki is five hundred ninety-seven pages, and he issued four hundred and twelve certifications of the vessel and its systems. The testing was exhausting for the participating team but ensures we have taken every measure possible to come as close to guaranteeing the safety of a new vessel as is mathematically feasible. We were all so impressed that the manuals, reports, and certifications are now referenced in the OESA Rules and Regulations. It is presently the standard way all vessels are proofed for active duty.
Some time ago, it became apparent that these creative contributors deserve some kind of recognition. So, we created an OESA award known as the OESA Award of Excellence. It is presented to a member of the service for a significant non-combat related contribution. Those types of offerings usually improve safety, efficiency, or average vessel lifetime. So, they are evaluated, and a substantial financial award is attached to the warrant. These people do these things to improve the service, not for reward. I would bet that most people in this room did not know this honor existed. It has only been bestowed twice before. But, now we'd like to present it to a deserving person.
"OESA Command Order number 215903-9570
To all citizens within the limits of the Orion Empire. By order of the C&C and Mobile Fifth RAC Commander as prescribed by OESA regulations and protocol, Kurt Brubacher has been awarded the OESA Award of Excellence for his selfless contributions to the OESA and the Orion Empire. This action was in response to the creation and standardization of a method of proofing new vessels before putting them into active service.'
He read the order as I stood in front of him at attention. Then, Edward III pinned the medal on my left breast pocket. Edward handed me the warrant as Admiral Bryant stepped forward and passed the Emperor an envelope which he relayed to me. 'Congratulations Kurt, we sincerely thank you for such a valuable contribution. I heard about the condition of the Loki. We could have lost six thousand souls. You did a great job." He said as he shook my hand vigorously to boisterous cheers from the crowd. Edward sort of guided me. We both turned to face the crowd and the flashing cameras.
The rest of the day is a blur. All I could think of was Helena. I sort of wandered through it all, until the dance floor opened up after dinner. We did several slow dances tightly entwined. I know I blushed when Admiral Bryant's voice came from beside us on the dance floor.
"Now, this really brings back memories, doesn't it Marie?" He said as they laughed.
I could feel the heat in my face - and Helena's red, too. The blush was a dead giveaway. I do remember congratulating Captain Elasima, sometime after that.
...................................................................................................
All the Fifth Mobile Fleets and the autonomous Frigates are parked around the Valhalla. Savign boards the Loki at eleven hundred. She comes to my new office. I have made Loki the Task Force 1 Flagship.
"You are looking mighty spiffy, Admiral." She says as she lifts my right collar point just a touch.
"How are you Savign?' I asked as I shook her hand vigorously. 'Grab a seat and take a load off." I finished.
"I'm fine, and the Shenzhen is remarkable. The entire team misses you, though we're all very proud of you. We were so happy about the promotion. Thanks for inviting us to the shindig. We all thought it was very thoughtful. What else is new?" She asked in a strange tone, insinuating she actually knew something.
"Not much, really. I've got a lot of problems. I'm missing a Group Commander for Loki Group. And I need to find out the condition of my staff. I don't even know if I have a Chief. If so, I don't know if the Chief is any good. I may need a lot of people." I answer, trying to avoid the inevitable.
"Come on - you know what I mean. We all saw you climbing all over that Admiral. Looked like love to all of us." Savign tries to simulate a sly grin. She never could smile.
Helena still occupies my subconscious and most of my cognizant mind. I moved my quarters to the Flag deck, immediately on returning to the ship. We ended up spending three hours in her quarters, but I went back to mine for the last hours’ sleep. I was lucky, my stewards woke me up at seven hundred, or I'd have been late. Elasima had moved my old team, instead of assigning me a new one. He did add three more stewards as allowed a Rear Admiral. Dave Angstrom started them on the right track.
"Okay, don't talk about it in port. Keep it on the Shenzhen. We are a little crazy about each other. That had nothing to do with the promotion. After testing out the Loki, Admirals Bryant, Nichols, and Leeds cooked up quite a scheme to get me through the War College as fast as possible. All the time, they were planning this Task Commander job, but I worked under the impression I was trying to win the Group Commander job. It was all Bryant's idea. He appreciates my skills, and he likes my record. Helena and I were working so close, it was almost predictable. We are two of a kind. I had been on the Loki four months and was more than half way through the war college program, pushing hard for the Group Commander job, when it struck us. But they all had their plan together while I was doing the Loki trials. We kept everything purely professional, until my promotion." I explained.
"You mean - last night?” She squealed.
"I didn't say that. I just misspoke... and...ah...you're drawing conclusions.' I stammered. 'Anyway, I have to get going. I haven't met with my new staff, yet."
"Well, it's been great. Try to keep in touch. Drop a line once in a while. We all still care about you on the Shenzhen." She said as she rose with her hand out. We shook hands, and she left.
I checked the directory. It listed the name Captain Amrit Singh as my COS. I composed an email advising the ships in the Task Force that I needed to see all Commanders, immediately. It took nearly twenty minutes for everyone to shuttle to the Loki and appear at my door.
There was seating room for twelve in the conversation area of the office. But there were eleven ships' captains, two Brigadiers, two Colonels, and a Commodore at the door. I buzzed Dave Angstrom.
"Dave, can you get two office chairs for the desk and three additional chairs in here, quick. And order rolls and breakfast beverages for seventeen. We may be here for a while." I said and clicked off after he acknowledged.
"Everyone in here. We can start with some of us standing.' I said. 'The first issue is the most urgent. I don't want to enter my command codes
until you are ready. Once I do, you are dead in the water until you submit new ones I issue you. Everyone got their pads?' I ask and look up for nods. There is a hundred percent assent, so I continue. 'I will send a blank message to all Task Force One Commanders. You will return it with your name, command name, and rank. That will give me an easy list to work with. I will generate new codes for each of you. Once I have them in the reply messages, I will enter my codes. Then, I will hit send. You can enter your command codes in your pads and issue new ones to your subordinates from here. Advise them to continue the process down the line. We don't want to be out of service for more than fifteen minutes. It's dangerous." I said as I tapped my screen to send out the blank messages.
I started receiving replies in a couple of minutes. It takes a moment to read each one. I would look up and call a name. When a hand rose, I would generate a code for the e-mail and add the name, rank, command, and authorization code issued to a spreadsheet. Once I had all the replies complete and all the codes in the table, I looked up.
"Is everyone ready?" I asked. There were nods all around.
I went to the Change Command app. I punched in the name of the Command and it self-populated a lot of the blocks. I filled in the Officer's name, rank, title and serial number block. After a pause, it prompted me for the permission code. I entered it. There was a pause. "Change of Command successfully completed." Came up on the screen. Then, I went to "Issue new command codes for subordinate commands." All the subcommands came up with an empty block for the code. I selected enter from the worksheet and directed it to the document. The blocks all filled with alphanumeric characters. I checked them against the list. When satisfied, I hit enter. "Subordinate Command Codes successfully changed." appeared on the screen. Then I went back to the mail app selected all and sent the messages out. I could hear enunciators going off all over the room a minute later. People typed furiously repeating what I had done. I kept getting messages from the Command App that, this ship or that command had been activated. Twenty minutes after convening, everyone in the room was reactivated.
Righteous Reign The Series: E-version Boxed Set Edition Page 40
