by Saxon Andrew
• • •
RJ entered the large office and saw every inch of wall space was covered with monitors. Admiral McArdle stood and said, “Admiral Dunhan, please join us.”
RJ walked forward and saw an empty chair next to Angel. He sat down and McArdle began issuing orders to the staff. He looked at Angel and smiled. Angel’s head tilted, “I’ve not seen you smile like that. Are you and candy an item?” RJ chuckled and nodded. “That’s wonderful, Sir. Congratulations.”
RJ nodded and said, “I know that staying busy will help you deal with what you’re facing.”
Angel looked around and sighed, “I suspect being busy will not be an issue.” RJ laughed and the officers around them looked at him. RJ raised his hands and shrugged.
• • •
The debriefing was nightmarish. Every minute detail of every recording made during RJ’s mission was examined intently. Every report completed was copied toGrady and every senior admiral in Britannia’s fleet. A copy was also sent to Supreme Fleet Commander Connor in the Colonies. Finally, the day to present the findings arrived and Grady arrived along with every fleet commander to hear it. RJ and Angel were brain dead at the end, and they were given a day to prepare to answer any questions that might be asked that weren’t covered by the report.
RJ looked at Angel as they left Fleet Operations and RJ said, “The best way to get ready is to go home and sleep!” Angel nodded and RJ shook his head, “If anyone can come up with a question not covered in the report, they should be given a medal.”
Angel burst out laughing, “I don’t think there will be many questions directed at us.” RJ laughed and gave her a hug.
• • •
RJ was sitting in his chair when Angel showed up. “Did you have trouble sleeping?”
Angel shook her head, “I almost over slept; thank heavens for the third alarm. RJ chuckled as the room was called to attention. Grady and Maranda entered the conference room. Kendal and another Admiral from the colonies entered the room with Maranda and Angel whispered, “Who’s the man?”
RJ whispered, “That’s Admiral Tarangelo. He commands the Carriers.”
“I thought Admiral Connor commanded them.”
“She commands all of the Colony forces. No one knows the Carriers like Admiral Tarangelo.”
• • •
Grady said loudly, “At ease, take your seats. Admiral McArdle, you may begin your presentation. The presentation took three days to complete and at the end Admiral McArdle asked, “Are there any questions?”
RJ was wrong. He and Angel were barraged by numerous questions from the attending admirals and most of them dealt with his final battle against the alien Attack Fleet. After an hour, Grady stood up and the room silenced. He glared at the Senior Admirals and said sternly, “I can see that most of your questions being directed to Admiral Dunhan basically questions his judgment in attacking the alien fleet.” Grady paused and saw he was right by the expressions of the Senior Admirals. He turned to RJ and ordered, “Tell them why you decided to attack that fleet.”
RJ stood up and looked around the room before saying, “I saw that it boiled down to two choices. If I failed to prevent the aliens from detecting my warships, then the Britannia Aliens would change their attack plan. If that happened, they would go after Earth before the Fagan.”
“Why did you believe that?” an Admiral quickly asked.
“They would see that stealth ships that were not part of the Stealth Civilization were attacking them, Sir. They know that the Fagan do not have stealth technology and they would believe our ships came from Earth. They would attack Earth first because it would represent the larger danger to them. I decided that before I would endanger a million Garrions in the coming war, their capabilities of the Garrion Cutters would have to be determined before the war kicked off. I put the safety of our warriors ahead of Earth. If I chose to not attack that fleet, we would have sent them in against the Planet Killers not knowing if they would survive.” The room was silent, and RJ continued, “I took every precaution to prevent the aliens learning about our technology, but it was a risk I was willing to take.”
The room remained silent and Maranda said, “My carriers were directly ordered not to take part in any combat operations, but you ordered them in to take on the alien’s surviving planet killers.”
RJ turned to her, “Did you learn anything of value from them entering the fight?”
Maranda stifled a smile and replied, “Yes, I did.”
“Admiral Frye informed me that she was forbidden from participating in combat operations, but I overrode her orders and issued a combat emergency proclamation forcing her to do what I ordered.”
Grady turned to Maranda, “How do you feel about what happened, Admiral?”
“I would have busted her out of the service if she refused to do it. She did the exactly right thing, Admiral.”
RJ looked at Maranda and said, “Admiral Frye didn’t hesitate to take part, Admiral and the mission would have failed without her assistance.”
“That’s why she’s been promoted to Fleet Admiral. I can depend on her to do the right thing in trying circumstances. It appears the Admirals in this room aren’t bright enough to see that.”
Grady glared at the assembly and said, “Admiral Dunhan asked for orders on what to do and Fleet Intelligence wouldn’t give him an answer. The alien fleet was close to launching and I told Admiral Dunhan to do what he believed to be best. I support his decision and I’m greatly impressed that he carried out his mission. Are there any more of you that wish to challenge his decision?” The room was silent, and Grady turned to McArdle, “Do you still feel the same way about promoting the Admirals you suggested to lead in the coming war?” McArdle looked around the room and shook his head.
Grady turned to Admiral Alexander, “What about you?”
“No Sir.”
Grady’s expression was close to rage, “What you’ve done here is attempt to diminish Admiral Dunhan’s accomplishment in the hope that by diminishing him you might be promoted. All you’ve done is cause me to question your ability to lead. I’ll be reviewing this meeting and some of you will not continue in your present positions!” The room was deathly quiet, and Grady added, “And for those of you that sat by silently while Admiral Dunhan was being challenged, you didn’t have the courage to speak up and defend him!”
RJ stood up, “Sir.” Grady jerked his head around to him. “Promoting someone else to lead our fleets at this late date isn’t a good idea. The war will be coming soon, and we must get ready to take on the Britannia Aliens. Changing our leadership now is not something we should contemplate.”
The room was shocked and expected Grady to knock this young admiral down. Grady glared at RJ and asked, “Are you sure about that?”
“Sir, not only will the Admiral be removed but any new Admiral promoted to replace them will also have to promote their supporting staffs; it will put us back in our preparations.”
Grady glared at RJ for a very long moment and then his expression softened…slightly, “You’re making a good point, Admiral. It’s going to take some time to teach our fleets how to attack the alien’s blaster barrages.”
“That isn’t an issue, Sir.”
Grady’s eyes widened slightly, “Oh! Why not?”
“Because they won’t be attacking using blaster barrages.” Grady’s head went back slightly, and RJ continued, “The aliens believe the Stealth Civilization attacked their fleet, not Earth. The aliens know that the Fagan and Earth don’t have Stealth Warships. They’ll have no need to use blaster barrages in the coming war.”
“If that’s the case, why should I not demote any of those present?”
“Sir, they’re going to have to teach their fleets how to open fire at an exact moment. When we attack the aliens, every ship in our forces, including the Garrions, are going to have to fire on their forces simultaneously. With two-hundred-thousand Hare Warships and more than a million Garrions, that
is a lot more difficult than breeching their blaster barrages.”
Grady stared at RJ and smiled, “It appears you’ve been putting some thought into this.”
“Yes Sir.”
Grady nodded, “I’ll follow your advice, Admiral. The fleets will keep their current commanders. You and Admiral Coronado be prepared to meet with the Command Staff in the morning.”
“Yes Sir.”
Grady turned back to the assembly and said loudly, “You’re dismissed.”
Maranda walked up to RJ with her two subordinates and asked, “Did I hear you correctly that our Garrions are going to have to coordinate with New Britannia’s warships?”
“Yes Sir. However, in this coming war there isn’t going to be New Britannia or Colony Fleets. They’ll be one fleet working together. I suppose you can call it Humanity’s Fleet.”
Maranda turned to Grady, “I’d like to attend the meeting in the morning.”
“You’re more than welcome to be there.” He turned to RJ and Angel, “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yes Sir.” RJ quickly said, “Admiral Connor.” Maranda turned around. “Your carriers are going to play a vital role in the coming war.”
Admiral Tarangelo said, “You intend to use them as attack Carriers.”
RJ smiled, “Yes Sir, I do.”
Maranda turned to Richard and he said, “I think Admiral Dunhan intends to stop any of their message probes from getting back to the aliens.”
Maranda’s eyes widened, “There will be millions of them.”
“I know, Sir,” RJ responded.
Maranda laughed, “This should prove to be interesting. See you in the morning.”
Kendal remained behind and she walked up to RJ, “Congratulations, Kendal.”
“I owe a lot of it to you, RJ; you forced me to take a good look at myself.” RJ smiled and Kendal hugged him, “I hate to run but I don’t have much time to visit my parents.” RJ’s head tilted and Kendal smiled, “I’m moving back to New Britannia when this is over. I belong with my family. Mom wants me there now.”
She walked away and Angel nudged RJ on the arm, “That was pretty ballsey challenging the Fleet Admiral.”
“He was making a mistake, Angel.”
“Even so!”
Candy sat in the gallery watching the presentation and she was prouder of RJ than she could express. No one had ever challenged her father and got away with it. Now it was time to tell her parents about RJ.
• • •
Candy caught her father in a conversation with Admirals McArdle and Alexander. She waited for him to complete the conversation and he turned and asked, “Can this wait, Candy?”
“No Sir. I’m headed back to my ship.”
Grady sighed and said, “Give me a moment.” The Admirals nodded and Grady walked away, “What’s the problem?”
“Dad, RJ and I have decided to get married after the war. I need you to tell Mom.”
Grady was shocked silent. After a moment he said, “When did this happen?”
“I’ve been on New Britannia for two days and we made the decision during that time.”
“AND YOU DIDN’T TELL YOUR MOTHER!?”
“Dad, I knew RJ was going to be the center of this presentation and I didn’t want you treating him any different than you would the other admirals.”
“That wouldn’t happen!!”
“I know, but the other Admirals would believe you did. It’s better this way.”
“That’s some husband you’re getting, Candy.”
Candy’s smile was huge, “I know, Dad. He forgave me and I thank the fates every moment.”
Grady hugged her, “He’s getting some wife as well, Candy.”
“I hope to make him proud of me. I love you, Dad.”
Grady went back to the Admirals and said, “An issue has come up.”
Chapter Seventeen
RJ and Angel met with the Senior Admirals from New Britannia and the Colonies the next morning and told them the tactics he believed they should employ in the coming war. The Admirals asked numerous questions seeking to find holes in his plan but after several hours Grady looked around the room and said, “I think Admiral Dunhan has devised a good plan. What do the rest of you think?”
Wade shrugged, “I believe he’s right in how we should confront the Britannia Aliens.” Wade looked at McArdle and he shrugged, then nodded.
Maranda spoke up, “Grady, someone is going to have to take responsibility in making sure all the elements of this attack are coordinated and makes adjustments on the fly. I’ll be tied up with the Colonies fleets, are you able to do it?”
Grady shook his head, “I’ll have the same issue, Maranda.”
Maranda looked around the room and said, “I believe the best one to make it happen is Admiral Dunhan; it’s his plan.”
RJ’s head went back, and Grady raised a shoulder, “I agree, Maranda.” Grady looked around the room, “Does anyone have an objection?”
RJ immediately spoke up, “Sir, I am not qualified to do this! All of you have far more seniority and experience than me!”
Grady ignored him and repeated, “Are there any other objections?”
McArdle and Wade smiled, McArdle spoke for them, “I think that is an excellent idea, Fleet Admiral Connor.”
RJ stood up, “Wait a minute!!”
Grady turned to him, “None of us have any experience in dealing with the alien’s most advanced warships. Name anyone with more experience in dealing with them!” RJ stared at Grady and fought to come up with an idea but failed. Grady waited and finally said, “We are going to take a page from the Britannia Aliens’, and you are promoted to a new position commanding all the New Britannia and Colony forces. Your rank will be War Admiral and you will be in complete command of our response to the coming invasion and all combat operations. I will announce to our forces that the Colonies have recommended you for the position and that we have agreed to their request. War Admiral Dunhan, you need to get moving and start preparing our plans to confront the Britannia Aliens.” RJ sat down slowly, and Grady said, “I’ve sent Admiral Horton back to alien territory and she will be keeping us updated on what they’re doing. I don’t expect them to be doing anything for a few months so you will have time to start getting our forces trained on how to implement your plan.”
Admiral Alexander asked, “I didn’t hear you mention anything about getting involved in the alien invasion against the Fagan.”
RJ turned to him, “That stands. We won’t be getting involved in that confrontation.”
Wade smiled, “Then that gives you more time to get our forces prepared.”
“War Admiral, if there’s anything the Admirals and I can do to assist you, don’t hesitate to ask,” Grady added to the conversation. Grady looked around, “Are there any more issues?”
McArdle spoke up, “Sir, I have an issue with Admiral Dunhan’s former scanning officer.”
Angel’s eyes instantly narrowed. “What is that?”
“He has refused to take the position in training that we’ve assigned him. He requests to stay on board Admiral Dunhan’s ship.”
“Then tell him he will be demoted if he continues to refuse.”
“I’ve already told him that, Sir. He told me to demote him.”
RJ instantly interrupted them, “Sir, I believe that Matt is the best scanning officer in fleet, do you agree with that?”
McArdle nodded, “He’s the best we have, Admiral.”
“Don’t you think I need the best we have to assist me in directing our forces? He’s a lot more valuable there than in training. I need him to bring me up to speed on how to control all the warships involved in the fighting.”
Angel stared at RJ and prayed. After a moment, Grady shrugged, “Admiral Dunhan does make a good point.”
McArdle tilted his head and nodded, “I’ll allow him to retain his rank and stay with War Admiral Dunhan.”
RJ spoke up, “Sir, I need him prom
oted to Full Admiral. I want to make sure all of our fleet officers follow his orders without hesitation. He’ll need the rank to make that happen. I also need Admiral Coronado promoted to full Admiral for the same reason. And while we’re doing this, I’d like to retain my pilot and weapons officer as well.”
Grady stared at RJ and turned to Wade, “Do you have any problems with this?”
“No Sir. But I do recommend that while War Leader Dunhan is developing his plans that they be allowed to train our trainers on what they learned in alien territory.”
Grady turned to him and RJ nodded, “That would be fine, Sir.”
Grady thought a moment and said to Maranda, “Perhaps all of his crew should be Admirals.”
“I agree but I think they need a new rank insignia instead of using a New Britannia or Colony insignia.”
“What would you suggest, Maranda?”
“Their rank insignia should be an image of Britannia and Melbourne overlapping each other with stars surrounding them. The new insignia will have three stars above the planets. One for each of the colonies that left Earth to found Britannia, America, and Melbourne.”
Grady smiled and RJ spoke up, “Sir, I think that every officer in the Colonies and New Britannia Navies should be given one of these new rank insignias to replace the one’s they currently have.” Maranda and Grady stared at RJ and he smiled, “Every officer is very proud of their rank and this new insignia will unite our forces like nothing else could. New Britannia and the Colonies will form a new Combined Force fighting to defend humanity.”
Maranda looked at Grady with moist eyes and Grady smiled, “Can you manufacture them in time?”
“Yes, I’ll even provide shoulder patches for every sailor in our forces.”
Grady turned to RJ, “Keep up the good work, War Admiral.” RJ nodded and saw that Maranda and Grady felt the loss of their home worlds again. The new rank insignias would go a long way to unite humanity against their enemies. He glanced at Angel and saw she was fighting her tears. He stood up and the Senior Admirals went to their feet at attention. They saluted him and RJ returned it. His world had dramatically changed in an instant.