by Peter Grant
“I don’t know, but I’m going to try,” Wu answered frankly. “I might – might – be able to persuade the Governor, but the Eksalansari is much younger. He’s more emotional, less diplomatically minded. I’ve asked him to allow me to accompany him to Karabak, so I can work on him during the journey and call in a few favors I’m owed from my last visit there three years ago. It’ll take all the influence I’ve got to succeed – and I’m going to need your help to do so, Captain.”
Davis sounded almost pathetically eager. “What do you want me to do, Sir?”
“I need you to formally withdraw the reprimand you issued for Senior Lieutenant Maxwell’s file. It has to be done by signal within the next half-hour, and I need a certified copy of the signal to take planetside with me to show to the Governor and Eksalansari. That’ll remove one reason for their anger. The rest will take all the powers of persuasion I can muster. Fortunately, I’ve had a lot of negotiating experience. Given time, I think something can be worked out.”
Davis’ face went red. “But, Sir, that’ll mean Maxwell will get away with disregarding my orders! What will that do to discipline in the Fleet when it becomes known?”
The Commodore slowly nodded. “I can see how that would upset you, Captain. However, consider the perspective of the Fleet. It can certainly act against a junior officer in whom it hasn’t yet invested a great deal, despite his heroics here and there. However, by doing so it risks destroying the career of a senior officer with twice as much service, who’s already demonstrated command abilities and may possibly attain Flag rank one day.” Not if I can help it, he thought grimly to himself. I’ll be making an entry on your confidential record about this. How the hell did you reach the rank of Captain with such poor judgment, and without learning to keep your tongue under control?
“The Fleet’s invested far more in your career to date than it has in Senior Lieutenant Maxwell’s,” he continued, his face showing nothing of his thoughts, “and it doesn’t like to waste such investments. There’s also the question of a senior adviser from the Department of State. I’m sure people of Mr. Mixson’s caliber aren’t common. Is it worth seeing two such careers destroyed, merely to make an example of a much more junior and less important officer?”
“I take your point, Sir.” Davis’ voice and face were worried.
“Thank you for thinking about my situation, Sir; but what about the medal?” Mixson asked petulantly. “If Maxwell gets away with disobeying orders and receives the Commonwealth’s second-highest award for gallantry in action into the bargain, the Fleet will laugh its collective head off!”
“He’s right, Sir,” the Captain affirmed indignantly. “We can’t have that!”
Wu pretended to think for a moment. “You’ll have to forward the medal citation to the Sector Admiral on Cassius, of course, as per Regulations. I suggest you do so as impartially as possible, choosing your words with care so as to neither support nor oppose it. Leave the decision up to her. In my capacity as a special envoy from the Board of Admiralty, I’ll have a private word with her. I give you my word, Maxwell will not be awarded the Lancastrian Star in Gold for his actions on Eskishi; but by handling the situation like this, you can’t be accused of having blocked the award out of spite.” He made very sure to keep a straight face as he spoke. All that mattered was for his audience to take his words at face value, without considering what he might not be saying.
Davis relaxed, and a smile crossed his features. “That should do it, Sir. Thank you for finding a way out of this that protects us.”
“Senior officers have to work together for the good of the Fleet, Captain,” the Commodore said sententiously. “It’s the least I can do. In fact, Mr. Mixson, it might be best for you to reinforce the perception that you’re neutral in this affair too. How about submitting a memorandum to Captain Davis, suggesting that some form of recognition for Senior Lieutenant Maxwell might be appropriate? Don’t be specific – put it in vague, general terms. The Captain can include your memorandum when he forwards the Marines’ nomination to the Sector Admiral, also using vague, general terms. It’ll make both of you look good. I’ll take care of business on the receiving end.”
“Of course, Commodore, I’ll be glad to help,” the State representative gushed, relief written all over his face.
“Thank you. Captain Davis, if you’ll be so kind as to prepare that signal withdrawing your reprimand of Senior Lieutenant Maxwell, we need to get it out at once. In fact, I’ll help you draft it. I’ll use it to calm down the Governor. The Eksalansari will take much more effort, I’m afraid – he’s young and hotheaded, after all – but I’ll have a few days to work on him on the way to Karabak.”
~ ~ ~
Steve emerged from the airlock into LCS Cybele’s docking bay and saluted the Commonwealth flag below the ship’s crest on the bulkhead. He felt a stab of renewed sadness as he remembered that the last time he’d done so, Gunnery Sergeant Kinnear had come aboard with him.
The NCO on duty snapped to attention behind her counter. “Welcome back, Sir!” Her smile held genuine warmth. “We’ve heard all about what you’ve been doing planetside. Well done, Sir!”
“Thanks, PO. It’s good to be aboard again.”
“Commander Doibro sends her compliments, Sir. You’re to report to her office at once, please.”
“Very well. You can let her orderly know that that I’m on my way. Would you have one of your working party take my dunnage to my cabin, please?” He gestured at his bags as they emerged from the cargo handling mechanism.
“Aye aye, Sir.”
As he rode the high-speed walkway forward to the administrative offices, Steve glanced over his Number Two uniform. It had come through his time planetside in reasonable condition, but it hadn’t been cleaned since he left the ship. It wasn’t up to his usual standards – or Commander Doibro’s. Given the opportunity he’d have changed before seeing the CO, but her summons left no room for discretion.
The orderly on duty, a Petty Officer First Class, was seated at a desk in the anteroom of the Commanding Officer’s suite. He smiled as Steve walked in.
“Good afternoon, Sir. The Commander’s expecting you.” He pressed a button on the comm unit on the desk. “The Navigating Officer has arrived, Ma’am.”
Doibro’s familiar voice came over the speaker. “Send him in, please.”
“Aye aye, Ma’am.”
Steve crossed the carpet to her desk and came to attention as the orderly closed the door behind him. “Senior Lieutenant Maxwell reports to the Commanding Officer as ordered, Ma’am!”
“Good afternoon, Lieutenant. Take a seat.” She smiled at him, and reached into a drawer of her desk as he sat down. “This arrived a couple of hours ago. I thought you’d like to see it at once.” She handed him a printed copy of a signal.
Steve read it, and was unable to hold back a broad grin of satisfaction. It had an Operational Immediate priority, but was not an operational message. Instead, it stated baldly that the reprimand placed on his record by Captain Davis had been issued on the basis of ‘incorrect information’. Now that the information had been corrected, it had become clear that the reprimand was unwarranted. It was therefore withdrawn with immediate effect and should be expunged from his record.
That’s Commodore Wu’s work! he thought, grinning. He said he’d provide evidence of his bona fides, and that I’d know it when I saw it. This has to be it! However, all he allowed himself to say aloud was, “I’m very glad to read this, Ma’am.”
“So am I. Needless to say, I’ve already removed the reprimand from your record.”
“Thank you, Ma’am.”
“Now that you’re back, I’m going to send you straight out again.” She picked up a thick envelope from the desk and handed it to him. “This contains documents and memory chips for Commodore Wu. He’s already aboard the Eksalansari’s communications frigate, preparing to depart for Karabak. He’ll take these from you, and in return give you a similar package t
o bring back here. We’ll deliver it to the Sector Admiral on Cassius for further distribution.”
“Aye aye, Ma’am.”
“You’ll also deliver the Commodore’s personal steward and his baggage to the frigate. While you’re there, the Eksalansari wants to say goodbye to you.”
“Aye aye, Ma’am.”
“You wanted to see the Qianjin spacers before they left, so I suggest you go on to their ship from the frigate. You’d better ask the galley to pack meals for yourself and your pilot, because I doubt you’ll be back here in time for supper.”
“Aye aye, Ma’am, and thank you. What are our ship’s intended movements?”
“We should finish offloading supplies for the Engineers by tomorrow afternoon, following which we’ll head back to Cassius for the next load. I’m told we’re going to make two or three more round trips with relief supplies, then load everyone and all their equipment and take them back to Cassius. I expect that’ll keep us busy for the next two months or more.” She heaved a sigh. “So much for our extended liberty period. We’ll just have to wait until this is over. On the other hand, we’ll need more maintenance than usual after our extended period of hard work, so we may end up with twice as long in dockyard hands and twice as much liberty.”
“Here’s hoping, Ma’am.” Steve rose to his feet. “I’d better change into a fresh uniform before I see the Commodore. I’ve also got to get something out of the ship’s safe.”
“Good idea.” She nodded towards the signal he held in his hand. “I suspect Commodore Wu is in your corner. Having got to know him during the voyage here, I can assure you there are no flies on that man.”
“I’m very glad to hear it, Ma’am.”
Inwardly Steve hugged Wu’s promise to himself. If the Commodore had achieved this much already, it was a very good omen for what he might accomplish over the next three months. With luck, Wu would be back by the time Cybele finished her final round trip to Eskishi… and then Steve would find out what the next few years might hold in store.
July 12th 2850 GSC, evening
Steve was surprised to find the Eksalansari and the Commodore waiting for him in the communications frigate’s docking bay. The space seemed cramped, diminutive after Cybele’s spacious facilities; but then, he reminded himself, the transport outmassed the frigate many times over.
He drew himself to attention and saluted the Karabak flag on the bulkhead, then turned to the Eksalansari. For a moment he was nonplussed. He was senior in military rank to the prince, so technically the younger man should salute him; but on a Karabak ship, Fleet protocol might not be in effect. To add to his confusion, the prince was wearing a civilian suit.
The Commodore saw his confusion and stepped in. “Here the Eksalansari ranks as a Prince of the Blood,” he said with a smile. “Both of us salute him.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Steve grinned as he saluted Iskander, and the prince laughed aloud as he gave a half-bow in acknowledgment.
“As far as I’m concerned, Lieutenant, I’ll always owe you a salute. After all, I wouldn’t be alive to salute anyone, or return any salutes, without your help.”
Steve made a dismissive gesture. “That’s in the past, Eksalansari. Protocol is forever.”
“Don’t I know it!” They shared a rueful glance before Steve turned to the Commodore and saluted him. “Thanks for the ‘evidence’ you provided this afternoon, Sir. I look forward to seeing what happens in three months’ time. I brought this for you from Commander Doibro,” and he handed him the envelope. “Your steward and dunnage are aboard the cutter as well.”
“Excellent! I don’t have an office aboard this ship, but if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I’ll take this to my cabin, to check whether there’s anything needing action on my part before we leave in an hour. I’ll bring an envelope back for you to deliver to the Commander.”
“Yes, Sir. Let me call your steward, and he can bring your baggage to your cabin.”
All was bustle for a few moments as the cutter pilot helped the steward unload the Commodore’s bags, then the two of them set off down the main passage. The prince watched them go before turning back to Steve.
“The Commodore tells me that if the Sultan, my father, approves of what you did, he might allow me to attend training courses with the Marines at your Sector Base on Cassius, or even on Lancaster itself. What’s more, he says that if the Commonwealth concludes an anti-piracy accord with Karabak there may be opportunities for joint missions – Karabak personnel serving aboard Fleet ships and vice versa. Wouldn’t it be fun if we could serve together one day?”
“I’d enjoy that very much. Who knows? In a few years you could be leading a company of your troops in boarding operations from my ship.”
“I promise you, I’ll do everything I can to make that happen. The Governor’s also spoken about that. He’s written to my father praising your actions, and suggesting that in the light of the Fleet’s assistance to Eskishi it might be appropriate to consider closer ties as a gesture of gratitude.”
“Let’s hope his arguments are persuasive.”
“I think they will be, and I’ll do my best to support them. What’s next for you?”
“I’m on my way to say goodbye to the Qianjin spacers. They’re also leaving tonight.” Steve decided it would not be appropriate to mention the jade knife, now resting in his briefcase inside the cutter, chained securely to his seat. “After that my ship has to finish unloading her cargo, then it’s back to Cassius to collect another load. We’ll be shuttling between here and there for the next couple of months.”
The young man frowned. “Surely it must be terribly boring for a man of action like you to be stuck making cargo runs?”
“Not at all.” Steve’s voice was very serious. “Remember, amateurs study tactics. Professional military people study logistics. Cybele is an integral part of our logistics chain. It’s impossible for a major Fleet like ours to conduct space warfare, including security operations like those of the Marines on Eskishi, without having many more support vessels than it has warships. There are no supply depots or warehouses in space. We have to bring everything with us, or rendezvous with resupply vessels. Operations like this are valuable training for what will happen in wartime. What’s more, I’ll serve on warships again in the future. Knowing the logistics involved in our operations will help me plan them better and make the best use of available resources.”
“I see. From that perspective, your job certainly makes a lot more sense.”
“It’s that way for all Fleet officers. More than half our career assignments, both shipboard and planetside, will be to logistics, support and training posts, so that we bring our operational experience to them and take our knowledge of them back to operational units. We’ve been rotating our personnel like that for a very long time. It keeps the whole Fleet on its toes, and also gives us a chance to relax with our families for extended periods in between off-planet assignments.”
“I’ll keep that in mind when it comes to my own future postings.”
“Will you stay in the military, or take up Royal duties in due course?”
The Eksalansari shrugged. “I’m the youngest son, so there aren’t many duties left over after they’ve been divided between my two brothers and my sister. I expect I’ll stay in the military for at least the next five to ten years. After that, we’ll see what my father has in mind.”
They heard footsteps approaching down the corridor, and the Commodore came into the docking bay once more. “Here you are,” he said cheerfully, holding out an envelope to Steve. “Please give that to Commander Doibro. Distribution instructions are inside.”
“Aye aye, Sir.”
“All right, young man. I’ll see you again in two to three months, by which time I hope to have interesting news for you.”
~ ~ ~
Steve was surprised to find another reception committee waiting for him in the freighter’s docking bay. It comprised both Captains and both First Mate
s, as well as Mr. Jiang and Mr. Kwok, the pilot who’d been with him aboard the cargo shuttle.
Captain Chun, as the senior man, spoke first. “Welcome aboard, Lieutenant Maxwell. I understand we have you to thank for the gift of this ship.”
“No, Sir, I merely suggested it. It was the Governor’s decision.”
“That may be so, but I doubt he’d have thought of it without your prompting. Once again, we owe you our thanks.”
Steve smiled. “And I owe you mine. Without all of you I couldn’t have achieved much either planetside or on the cargo shuttle, much less survived!” He patted the briefcase in his other hand. “Can we talk privately somewhere? I have something else for you.”
Jiang’s eyes flared with excitement. “Is it…?”
“Not here!” Steve warned hastily.
“Of course,” Chun agreed, but his voice was trembling too. “Let’s go to the bridge. There’s a meeting room opening off it. We can talk in privacy there.”
They took the high-speed conveyor forward. As they passed several entrances to personnel pods inserted into the ship’s cargo holds, Steve was unsurprised to see two Qianjin spacers guarding each one. They were armed with Eskishi-issue carbines, obviously to help control the rebels and their families inside if necessary.
“I’m surprised the authorities let you bring your weapons aboard,” he commented. “I’d have thought they’d want them back.”
“They probably did, but we didn’t ask their permission. They let us load the cutters to bring us up to orbit, so we simply loaded a little more than the manifests indicated.”
Steve smothered a chuckle. He didn’t blame the Dragon Tong members at all. For the next couple of weeks they’d have to control over a thousand rebels and their families, then disembark them on a planet they’d never heard of and knew nothing about. The weapons might be needed to keep order during the process – not to mention making sure the passengers left the ship whether they wanted to or not, once they realized the nature of the planet Bairam had chosen for them.
