Righteous Reign The Series: E-version Boxed Set Edition

by Thomas J. MacDonald

  "We'll be right there." He responds.

  Ten minutes later they report at my door looking like Frick and Frack. Nguyen is relatively short, and Captain Levinson is quite tall.

  "Take a seat, gentlemen. And, shut the door please, Can.' I say as I motion towards the conversation area. 'How do you think you're doing as the Captain of the ESS Thor, Arthur?" I ask him as he’s taking his seat.

  "I don't know, sir. I am really not sure." There is puzzlement in his voice.

  "I have to evaluate you as a weak Commander, Captain. But, it's not entirely your fault. You were promoted through three levels very quickly as Fifth Mobile went through the expansion. My feeling is that you weren't ready for either of the last two promotions. What do you think?" I asked him.

  "I am really not sure, sir. I do feel over my head a lot of times." He answers.

  "Well, you are going to get a second chance. You will be relieved of command of the ESS Thor and demoted to Lt. Commander. You will be assigned as the fifth shift Bridge Commander on the ESS Loki. You will get some training here. In a year, we will reevaluate and see if we can make you a Commander and a First Officer. Hopefully, you'll be trained and ready for your own Command a couple of years after that. How does that sound, Captain?" I ask.

  "It's disappointing, sir, but it is also a considerable relief. I do feel the Thor is too much for me. And, the experience has actually reduced my confidence level. It will be a little embarrassing, though. But, in the end, I still believe I'd have to say you're right - and thank you." The young officer responds.

  "If you remove your eagles, I will pin your new insignia on your collar. Commodore Nguyen will have all your stuff moved over. Report to Captain Elasima on the Loki. He's expecting you. And, don't worry about the embarrassment. Everyone will accept you in a little while. And, in a few years, no one will remember - when you're back on a bridge of your own ship.' I finished as I pinned on the new rank jewelry. 'Commodore, can you stay, please? You go find your new Captain, Lt. Commander. You're dismissed." I said as he rose.

  The young man left the room and closed the door behind him. I waited for a minute until he entered the lift.

  "Well, what did you think?" I asked Can.

  "That was very smooth. You fired him, and, he felt like you did him a favor." The Commodore said with admiration apparent in his voice.

  "The trick is the self-evaluation. People having trouble are honest if you ask them for their own evaluation. Some make excuses at first, but you can usually turn those, too. The other thing is showing the positive side of a move that results from this kind of situation.

  Anyway, I will be posting all the announcements, now. As soon as they are public, you should start your move. When Anna Arce gets here, we will do the warrants right here. I will issue you Loki Group Commands, but you will have to transfer Thor commands to her. You know the procedure." I instructed.

  "If you'll excuse me, Admiral, I will get going." He said.

  I nodded as I began typing.

  MEMO

  From: Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher Commander Phoenix Task Force 1

  To: All Phoenix Task Force 1 personnel

  C.C. V. Admiral H. Leeds Commander Phoenix Fleet

  RE: Pending changes in Task Force I

  Date: April 3, 2256

  All,

  I would like to advise you all of the following Staff changes.

  Effective March 31, Amrit Singh was relieved as COS Task Force 1, demoted to Lieutenant, and reassigned to an engineering position.

  Today, Captain Arthur Levinson has been relieved of Command of the ESS Thor. He has been reassigned as a Bridge Officer on the Loki.

  At fifteen hundred hours this date, Commodore Can Nguyen will be reassigned as Commander Loki Group.

  Also at fifteen hundred hours this day, Commodore Anne Arce will take Command of Phoenix Task Force 1 Thor Group Command. Anna has already commanded a Group, in Boots Fleet, for a considerable time. She has a stellar record.

  At 3:00 PM this afternoon, Captain David Simmons will join Thor Group as Captain of the ESS Thor. Captain Simmons comes from the ESS Espanola which he commanded for the last eighteen months.

  Commodore Arce and Captain Simmons are husband and wife.

  Effective April 7, 2256, Commodore Anita Enzulio will assume the post of Chief of Staff of Phoenix Task Force One. Commodore Enzulio was the Chief of Staff for Quadrant 2, but developed an urge to see more of the Empire - to our good fortune. She will have the daunting task of bringing the Staff Offices up to standard efficiency. Please assist her in any way you can. She speaks for the Command in most matters.

  On a special note, the incident with the Staff Offices of the Chief of Staff has led to an extensive investigation and remedial actions. Teams are on site from Fifth Mobile RAC JAG offices and Fifth Mobile RAC Accounting Audit Services. This incident could result in some persons being criminally charged. Please bear with the investigating staff, and assist them, if asked. Your understanding in this matter is appreciated. The incident nearly grounded Task Force 1.

  Rear Admiral Kurt Brubacher

  Anna was piped aboard with David in tow, at fourteen-ten hours. They appeared at my door ten minutes later. I invited them in and notified Can. We spent the next thirty-five minutes chatting. I broke it up at fourteen-fifty-five, so we could get everything together. Helena arrived for the quiet ceremony. I read the warrants assigning them to their commands and congratulated them. Then we did all the transfer of operational Command Codes. Everyone excused themselves to go and supervise the coding percolating down through their operations.

  "That went well, Admiral. You have sure accomplished a lot in a few days. In fact, your stamp is all over this Fleet, already. A lot of people have taken notice. You should be very proud." Helena said softly as she stood very close to me.

  "I'm just doing my job. And, I wouldn't want to let the girl I love down." I responded softly.

  "I've got to go. But you'll get your reward tonight." She said as she let the back of her hand brush my groin as she turned toward the door. I almost groaned out loud.

  ....................................................................................

  I feel like it's the holidays, today. First, the two investigative teams advised me they were finished. When I inquired, they informed me that both Chan and Singh would face charges. Singh was actually hiding the embezzlement for Chan. A third person in the warehouse would be charged. That was a Chan scam, too. He used the Leading Crewman to help remove materials from the storage. Then, Chan offloaded the goods and sold them on alien planets. Singh colluded in that operation, too and received his “cut” for everything. Singh and the young crewman would be taken, now. Admiral Chan would be arrested at the Academy on Rigil by OESA security forces. Next, I was advised that Commodore Anita Enzulio was being piped aboard and welcomed by El. She reported at my door ten minutes later.

  "Welcome Commodore you are right on schedule. This is the best April 7 anyone could have. It's like a birthday. Have a chair and relax. I've already announced the appointment, but I have to give you Command Codes. That means your team will be down until you issue to them. I will assemble them. We don't expect you to work today, but we need this meeting now. In a closed space alone or with other Senior Officers, you may call me Kurt. May I call you Anita?" I asked the attractive late fortyish woman. I broadcast a message to the entire staff office to assemble in the same configuration as before, in the amphitheater, in fifteen minutes. I advise El so, he could allocate the room.

  "Yes Kurt, you may. And thank you for the pleasant welcome and the warm smile." She said as she took a chair.

  "I just received the reports on the audit and the Jag investigation. The losses are accounted for, so your team won't be hindered by them. Three people are headed for prison. My predecessor, your predecessor, and a Leading Crewman from the warehouse are facing trial and the stockade. Two are on their way, with JAG. The third, Admiral Chan, is being arrested on Rigil, tod
ay. So, the office may need a lot of reworking, but you are starting with a clean slate.

  "I have been leading your team as best I could. I do not pretend to know your job, but based on my needs I could direct them clumsily. I have also been handling my own appointments, orders, directives, announcements, and memos which have not gone through your office, for the last ten days. There was no way to maintain or establish a protocol under the circumstances." I finish.

  "No problem, you had difficulties to work around. We'll try to get things ship shape as quickly as possible. Shall we go?" She said with a bright, warm smile.

  I rose, and we exited the office. We were joined at the lift by Admiral Leeds.

  "Off to the amphitheater?" She asked.

  "Yes, Admiral. This is Commodore Anita Enzulio the new Task Force 1 Chief. Commodore, this is Vice Admiral Helena Leeds. Where are you headed, Admiral?” I asked.

  "We’ve met before. But, welcome Anita. I am Helena. I'm headed to the amphitheater to spy on you if you must know.' Helena said with a smile as the two women shook hands. 'Besides, I want Anita and me to be close friends. After you get your house in order, and you find a new Chief, I might be able to entice her to take on my staff. We could trade Kurt." She said with a laugh.

  "It's a little early, Admiral. Anita just got off the shuttle. Besides, she might not want to move. Maybe she'll like the vacation atmosphere. And, perhaps I won't want to part with her." I said with a wink.

  "And, perhaps, I can help you both at the same time. Task Force 1 is in pretty desperate shape, right now. I need two to three weeks to establish processes and get people working with them. From then on, the job will get a little easier every day. Compared to Quadrant 2, both your staffs together are pretty small. I may be able to spend an increasing amount of time with your people, too, Helena. You might end up with two first class Chiefs. Then, you can trade us back and forth as you like." She said with a laugh as we approached the amphitheater.

  "Group!!!" Someone snapped as we stepped through the doorway. Everyone leaped to their feet and came to attention.

  "Take your seats," I said ignoring Helena's superior rank. I had called the meeting, and she'd stated she was just auditing.

  "I would like to introduce you to Commodore Anita Enzulio.' I extended my right hand towards the Commodore. 'She is your new boss. She has my full support and speaks for me in every order she gives or writes, so please give her your full cooperation and endorsement.

  Commodore, our little configuration was for my benefit, when I called a meeting a while back. People are positioned by Department from front to back of the hall. Every fourth seat marks the positioning of another Department. You will note that each Section Head has a place card bearing the unit name and the name of its supervisor. The meeting is now yours." I said.

  "Good morning everyone," Anita yelled into the microphone.

  There was a chorus of sheepish responses.

  "Good morning everyone," She yelled even louder.

  "Good morning Commodore." The crowd roared.

  "Much better, but you can still improve. You must use my name, and you must smile when you reply. My name is Commodore Anita Enzulio -E - N - Z - U - L - I - O,' she said as she turned and wrote it in grease pen on the whiteboard. 'It's on the board now, so you can use my last name. But, if you can't remember, call me Commodore Anita in public. If I am in your branch, and there is no one from any other sector or command in the room, we may talk on a first name basis. But service protocol requires you to pay the respect of using my rank when others are present. That goes for Admiral Brubacher, and even Admiral Leeds. Now, let's try it again. Good morning everyone!" This time it was not a yell, but loud and cheery, as she pointed to her mouth to highlight her smile.

  "Good Morning Commodore Enzulio." A roar echoed back. This time it sounds like happy, not angry, voices, and everyone was grinning.

  "Very Good. You have not had a lot to grin about, lately. I think things have been tough for a long time. Things don't look so bad considering. It seems like most of you went about your business despite Captain Singh and Admiral Chan. That took a lot of strength, and we are proud of you. And, we are proud of the work you did since Admiral Brubacher assumed the Task Force. For a little while, I will come into each office at the start of the day, and say good morning to you so we can practice what we just learned. If you have to smile every day, it will become easier, and you will find the positivity will grow on you. We must get you out of any "Funk" you may have been pushed into, over the past six months.

  And I will tell you there is justice. Admiral Chan, Captain Singh, and a Leading Crewman from the warehouse have been arrested and charged. They are all facing serious jail time. The good thing about it is that none of you got caught up in the embezzlement, and you all tried to do your jobs correctly. The facts bear testimony to that. From here on, you may want to take notes.

  It won't take long for us to straighten things up. You are all competent and capable. The biggest problem will be processes. Did Singh follow protocol, or did he take shortcuts? I will work a little with each department. We will look at the system. We may have to change a few entirely, but we may only have to modify others a little. Still, others might only need to be tweaked. And a lot are probably okay, as they are.

  When you came to Phoenix Fleet, you all had skills, training, and experience that made you a valuable commodity. Tomorrow morning, that's the you I want to meet. Not the person Captain Singh tried to create. We want the pure accountant, lawyer, or encryption specialist.

  The Flag Officer who commands a large body is responsible for all aspects of his Command. That's why Admiral Brubacher has a staff, and that's why he stopped everything and called for an investigation when he smelled something foul. He is the final responsible person for all the Departments you represent. He is also responsible for all the tactical decisions the Task Force has to make. That's why we're here. To lighten his load. We keep his appointment calendar. We take his notes and write promotion and assignment warrants. We edit his emails and write his tactical orders. We filter them down to the Group Level, and we report everything back to the Fleet - all in his name and on his behalf. But, we take those orders, warrants, and messages and look them over and make sure they conform to the protocols in the Rules and Regulations. We edit and get his approval before sending anything out. With all the warehouse withdrawals, payroll distributions, promotions, demotions, attacks, withdrawals, meetings, acquisitions, memos, personnel evaluations, and all the other areas of responsibility, we will handle a thousand decisions a day, in his name. They must convey his meaning without breaching regulations or protocol.

  I only tell you this because, it does not look like Singh had his office doing all those things, so your work level will rise, over the next while. It will grow just to handle what our Offices were supposed to manage in the first place. I can only imagine how busy Admiral Brubacher has been over the last ten days. He had to do a lot of the detail stuff himself. And, in the mayhem, he may have missed some things, like forwarding a promotion or reassignment to payroll and/or human resources. So, we'll go over everything he has done that we should have handled in the last ten days and correct any missteps. From emails I've read, I can remember a few, right off the top of my head. The Admiral had a meeting with his Marine Chief a while back about security. A transcript of that meeting should have been posted with the Task Force amended Rules and Regulations. Another one was an informal gathering he had with Senior Officers that also included security precautions. That should be reason to modify the R&R protocols, too. Once a Commander demands or orders something, it becomes the law of the Command until changed by that or a subsequent Commander. He helped you out over the last ten days, so we will help him out now. Does everyone agree with my plan and assessment?" Anita finished and looked around to a chorus of nods. Many of the nearly three hundred actually looked relieved.

  "Are there any questions? Do you all understand, what I am trying to convey?" She asked
as a hand went up in the front row.

  "Yes... Mary." Commodore Enzulio said as she read the name from the place marker.

  "Commodore Enzulio, I have an observation. May I present it?" Mary asked.

  "Yes, of course. Any observations or opinions you have are welcome. Go ahead." Anita said and leaned forward to listen intently.

  "Commodore, first I want to say we are very thankful you took this assignment. We were all afraid we might get another Captain Singh.' A round of applause exploded. When it stopped, Mary went on. 'We all saw the struggle Admiral Brubacher endured, and we'd have done more if we could. But, we could see he needed to handle most of it because of the possible criminal aspects, and we didn't know about processing all his communication, appointments and orders. I want to say, we all feel sick about this. But, we're happy, too. And, I think we should thank him for all his patience, consideration, hard work, and the loyalty he showed us. I feel we should give him an OESA cheer!" She yelled as she stood with her right arm in the air. Everyone else rose.

  "Rah" The chorus was delivered in the fashion Commodore Enzulio had just fostered.

  "Thank you all. I am finished, so I'll turn this back to the Admiral." Anita projected a bit.

  "Isn't she something? I may not know anything else, but I know how to pick people who do. Do you like your new Commander?" I yelled.

  Marie's right arm rose again as she stood up. Everyone followed.

  "Rah" the chorus was delivered in Anita's fashion.

  "Admiral Leeds is here. I want to bring her up. She will have a few words for you." I said as Helena rose from among them and came forward.

  "Hi, folks.' She was speaking softly. 'You know, it did not occur to me until I heard Commodore Enzulio, just how traumatic all this may have been on all of you. She is so right. We are so proud of all of you. You did your jobs as well as you could under the conditions of the time. And, it's so nice you noticed Admiral Brubacher's efforts. He has worked so hard on behalf of all Task Force personnel and for me. Before becoming Task Force Commander, he had the Loki, and I don't think I'm exaggerating by saying, he took a death trap and turned it into the best ship in the Fleet. And, then he faced all this mess with Task Force 1. Personnel issues caused by rapid expansion, illegal activities, security problems, and unfilled positions.' She paused. Then yelled. "How about a cheer for him?"