by Chris Hechtl
The government had also been reorganized with the governor of Bek B being voted in by the people there. A popular vote between the Bek A and B governors led to who was chosen as president and vice president. Most of the time Bek A's greater population meant that it invariably went to Bek A's candidate but not always.
Resentment had built and simmered for some time, which was why the fleet in Bek B was not only there to guard the star system in case of an attack but also to keep a lid on things.
However, Bek B had become something of a dumping ground of Admiral Childress and Draken for their recent administration. They had transferred people and ships that they trusted marginally or who were allies of people they'd forced out of the service there. Many officers and enlisted were too stubborn to get the message to get out of uniform.
Rear Admiral Sharp Reflexes considered himself one of them. The T'clock was a famous carrier admiral whose honorable streak had rubbed Admiral Childress the wrong way. He'd refused to countersign destroying a couple of promising officer's careers and had been sent off to Bek B to reconsider his defiance since he had refused to resign. If he resented Admiral Irons’ freeze on all flag officer promotions, he never said anything out loud. Many knew that he'd been on the cusp of getting his next star when Childress had taken command.
As senior officer in the component, it was his area of responsibility. There were several other rear admirals in the star system, but he had them all by time in grade. He wasn't surprised when the local media outlets began to go over the story. His staff checked the pulse of the component to get a feel of where the political winds were going. There was deep resentment over Childress; there had been for some time. Many were excited that Childress had been relieved, but that excitement turned to resentment when they found out he had refused to step down.
It became clear that Bek B was in favor of the Federation and Admiral Irons. It took a night of soul searching for him to realize he was too. How to act was the question he asked himself internally the following morning.
@
It took three weeks to get Admiral Logan's message to Lieutenant Commander Alice Walengrad on Albacore in Bek B. She knew something was going on; the captain had locked the communications department down. But the email had come in encrypted from Rear Admiral Logan, which had surprised her. He'd been promoted? She shook her head as she opened the file.
Her face went from a curious expression to clouds and darkness as his orders and report of his arrest hit her. “What the frack?” she muttered, shaking her head. “Great,” she said softly, feeling her shoulders itch like she was being watched. Most likely ONI was watching, but damn.
She was one of two commanders who had been sent with the other personnel on Caroline under Admiral Zekowitz and then Commodore Logan's command to upgrade Bek's military industrial complex and shipyards. Or, at least get a start on the upgrades since it would take more than just them to make it all happen.
Instead, they'd been treated like pariahs and given shit jobs far from what their orders had intended. Weaver, her chimera counterpart, had been shuttled off to logistics of all things! She grimaced in memory. It had taken a lot of work for her to get back to where she wanted to be as a chief engineer of a ship. Her keys and knowledge had allowed the ships she was on to get minor upgrades despite the ban on them from the brass. Which was why they'd done so well in exercises. That had sparked something of a rebellion in some of the fleet.
When the brass had found out what she'd done, Albacore had been transferred to Bek B—out of sight out of mind apparently. She shook her head.
It had taken a lot of hard work to cement her relationship with the crew and to make her feel less like an outsider and more like a member of the team. She was afraid all of that was going to go up in smoke when she read the news from Bek A. Given that the admiral was under arrest, it wasn't good.
“Chief engineer to the captain's ready room at your earliest convenience,” a text message appeared on her HUD, surprising her out of the beginning of a funk.
“Mother Fracker,” she muttered as she made her way through the ship. “Make a hole!” she called out angrily as she made her way through the ship. “Down ladder, make a hole!” she called out when she got to a ladder. She slid down it by gripping the railings; something she would have reamed out anyone else for doing when it wasn't an emergency, then went on to find the captain.
The captain had sent her a brief text through the ship's network, what amounted to a summons. And when the captain said, “at your earliest convenience,” you damn well better be quick about it. It wasn't wise to keep the tiger waiting. He could use anyone as his personal scratching post.
When she found him, there was a marine at his door. It was protocol, but she didn't like how nervous the Neodog seemed. He nodded once to her when he saw her and then knocked on the door.
“Enter,” a voice said. The corporal opened the hatch and then stepped aside to let the chief through.
“Ah, Chief, nice to see you. Were you busy?” Captain JG Zedd, a massive Neotiger asked, looking at her inquisitively with golden feline eyes. Alice turned and dogged the hatch and then took a seat he pointed her to.
“Minor paperwork, Skipper. You know how it is, the fleet floats on paperwork, coffee, and slush hydrogen.” the captain's ears flicked at her. “I was catching up on correspondence as well, and well …,” Alice shrugged and grimaced, looking over to Commander Tomar Kaltic, the XO. The Neogorilla looked back at her impassively.
“I take it you heard about the broadcast?” the captain asked dryly.
“I did,” Alice replied guardedly.
“How?”
“I received an email from Admiral Logan.” She studied his reaction. He just twitched his whiskers. “He passed on a copy of his orders and a warning that he was being arrested. He passed on a suggestion to keep my head down.”
“I'm not sure it is that easy. Where do you stand, Commander?”
Alice took a deep breath and then exhaled. In for a penny, in for a pound it seemed. “I'm an officer of the Federation Navy, sir. I'll do my duty.”
The captain's ears were erect and straight at her. She felt like she was being stalked. She could feel vibrations coming from him. She wasn't certain if he was growling or purring; his expression was completely neutral. “As am I,” the captain finally said ever so softly.
“Then … why am I here, sir?” Alice asked, looking from him to the XO. “The last time I checked Admiral Irons is in command of the fleet. He is the Chief of Naval Operations and the Commander in Chief. He gave an order.” She paused to stare at him, expecting to be stuck in the brig or out an airlock.
The captain sat back slowly and hooked an elbow over the back of the chair as he considered his statement. He looked over to the XO and saw something there. Alice looked, but the captain's head turning back to her caught her attention. He nodded as he sat forward once more, eyes intent on her. “And I don't believe in cherry picking which orders I like to obey. Apparently, Admiral Childress didn't figure that out. Now he wants everyone to obey his orders to the letter, while he ignores the orders from the president of the Federation. I'm not for that.”
“Sir?” the XO asked cautiously.
“We'll have to figure out where everyone stands in the ship and then in the fleet. But can I count on you, Commander?” the captain asked, looking directly at Alice.
“Yes, sir. I'll do my duty,” Alice replied with a nod.
“I never thought you wouldn't. Okay. Send the next person in, Tomar,” the captain said to the XO. “Dismissed, Chief. Let me know if there are any problem children in your department.”
“Aye aye, sir,” Alice replied.
The Neogorilla nodded once to the captain and then to Alice. Alice rose smoothly from her seat and left without a backwards look. She wasn't certain what she had just gotten herself into. She did oddly feel some relief at being out in the open.
@
“Skipper, what is going
on?” Tomar asked carefully when they were alone. They'd run through the entire ship's company, even the Marines. He had a feeling the captain was not for Childress. What that meant long term wasn't something he really wanted to think about. He knew as an officer he shouldn't shy away from such things, but he was mortal.
He'd already adjusted his thinking to go with the flow. It was a survival trait.
“Isn't it obvious? I'm feeling out the crew.”
“And then?”
“I don't know,” the tiger replied. “And no, I don't like that either,” the cat stated with a shake of his head. “I need to know where the crew stands.”
“Be sure of your footing before making a move. But what move, sir?” the gorilla asked.
“Where do you stand?”
“I'll follow orders, sir,” the gorilla replied instantly.
“Good. But it's more than that,” the cat said, growling softly to himself. “Admiral Childress and his supporters have put us in an uncomfortable situation. We're in a mutiny state as the message said. And yes, I'm aware they tried to block it. But we got it anyway. That message is hitting the fleet like a hammer.”
“Do you think he's been relieved?” the gorilla asked. “They'd almost have to, right?”
“Given someone tried to jam the signal and the chief said that Admiral Logan has been arrested, I highly doubt it.”
“But … but we're talking about Irons here! The president! He gave an order!”
“I know.”
“Why would anyone follow Childress, sir?”
“Why did anyone follow Hitler or any other tyrant across time?” the cat asked rhetorically, shaking his head. “Force of will. Having the right people backing you and fear. People do not want to buck the system. We're conditioned to follow orders normally.”
“Ah,” the Neogorilla said softly.
“Ah indeed. But he isn't. I've always known Childress is a political admiral. He rose up through the ranks of staff. He was the CNO decades ago before he was forced to retire. But now he's back and he's been shaking the patron tree to put his own people in critical places.”
“So … where do we stand?”
“That's what I'm trying to find out. I should have asked the chief for a copy of that email,” the captain said, playing with his whiskers.
“I can ask, sir.”
“Do so. I know she won't be happy to share it, but we need the information, damn it,” the captain said, clenching his fist and then dropping it to bang on the table lightly. “I don't like being in the dark.”
“I don't either, sir.”
“I think Admiral Sharp Reflexes will not follow Childress. There is a reason he was stuck out here. He's a good bug, stiff and honorable, not something Childress wants in home fleet.”
“He's also one of the best carrier admirals,” Tomar murmured.
The cat nodded. “That too. I'll look into the chain of command, feel them out and see where things are going. I have a feeling Bek B will go over to Irons however.”
“All of it?” the gorilla asked, eyes wide.
The cat nodded once as he placed both hands on the table. “All of it. Bek A has lorded over this component for a long time. The industrialists are backing Childress. That hasn't set well with the civilians here. And we've been the dumping ground for people who are not favored by Childress or his friends. That sort of combination is not going to work out so well for him in the long run I bet,” he said with a tight-lipped smile.
“I guess not, sir,” the gorilla replied.
“The question is where we go from here. Which, is a question I've got to ask in the right way of wiser heads than ours.”
The gorilla nodded slowly as the cat rose from his seat. “I'll be in my quarters making calls,” the captain said as he left the compartment.
@
“So, where do we stand? I realize Childress will tamp down on everything in Bek A. Where do we stand? Do we wish to remain in the Federation?” Admiral Sharp Reflexes asked once the senior officers had been assembled.
“Sir?” his chief of staff demanded, staring at the bug.
“I mean that, Captain. We're in-between a rock and a hard place. The CNO has been relieved but refuses to go. So, what do we do about it? Our Republic has been declared in a state of mutiny because he has been refusing to follow orders for some time.”
“So, we need to decide to act? Why us, sir?”
“I think that question is being asked of everyone in the fleet, both here and in Bek A. Most likely at the jump point too,” Commodore Perot stated.
“We're going to see splintering and fractures soon. First in ships, then in the fleet as they choose sides. We need to get a handle on that,” Captain JG Ray Houser stated. The Neoorangutan chief of staff was a former pilot like Commodore Perot and Admiral Sharp Reflexes. Like them he'd risen through the ranks to be first a squadron commander and then CAG before his weight of rank had forced him out of the pilot's seat.
Unlike the flag officers though, he still maintained his flight status and snuck in some flight time whenever he got the chance. The admiral always teased him about being an errant schoolboy when he got back.
“First, we need to know where we stand,” the T'clock admiral said, surveying the room. “Where do each of you stand on this?”
“We follow orders from the chain of command,” Rear Admiral Hilda Nilsson said when no one else said anything for a long drawn-out moment. All eyes turned to her. She was the second highest-ranking officer in the AOR. She had also done a stint in JAG in Command One during her staff time before she'd managed to get transferred back into commanding a squadron of super dreadnoughts. “The commander in chief has relieved Childress and those who follow him. Therefore, they are no longer in our chain of command.”
“So, any orders from him are illegal. What about Draken or someone who is supporting him?” Commodore Perot asked carefully.
“I'd say they are out too since they refuse to relieve Childress,” Commodore Paulette Fournier said with a shake of her head. The Neochimp was well-known for her time in the cruiser community.
A few heads nodded, but not all. Eventually all eyes turned to Admiral Sharp Reflexes. “Sir?”
“I stand with the Federation,” the bug said quietly. “If that means I stand against Omar, so be it. I never liked him anyway.”
That earned a soft chuckle around the room.
“So, now what, sir?”
“Now we check each of the ships and the other personnel. I want it clear, anyone who can't handle not being tied to Bek A's chain of command during the duration of this mess can resign or they can request transfer back to Bek A. We'll send them when we have the shipping.”
“Which will be a quarter to never. Anyone who goes back will be squeezed for intel until they pop,” Commodore Fournier said grimly.
“True,” Commodore Perot replied with a nod.
“We're going to need to set up a perimeter once we've gotten our people sorted out,” Admiral Nilsson said slowly. “We're going to need to watch the routes between us and them.”
“Fuel is no problem; we've got the tank farms to draw on. Personnel, well, I think a lot of people will want to go with us. Paying for them is going to be a problem, but we can kick it for a week or so. But that leaves …,” Commodore Fournier grimaced as she looked over to the others.
“Engineering and logistics,” Admiral Nilsson replied, picking up her train of thought and running with it. “We're going to be behind in repairs soon,” she warned turning to the admiral. He nodded once. “Every ship in space has to spend time in the yard as a rule of thumb. Most of the repair yards are in Bek A. We've got the small yard and a few repair ships, but that can't handle much. None of our capital ships can dock with them or at least they can't fix everything in them.”
“Can we do something about that?” Commodore Fournier asked. “And what about manufacturing? We're obviously outnumbered and outgunned. Eventually parts will breakdown ….” S
he grimaced at that thought. “How far are we going to take this?”
“First off, any military shipments we can stop now,” Admiral Sharp Reflexes stated, dodging the last question for the moment. He wasn't certain he had an answer right off. “That will give us some parts and deny them to Childress. Also, any materials will have to stop moving to Bek A. We'll have to allow the civilians to focus on their internal economy. We'll have the stuff Bek A is shipping here in the pipeline until they get wise and cut off the flow.”
“They'll love that,” Commodore Perot replied with a snort. “I can see the industrialists in Bek A pitching three shades of snits over that. The economy there will get hit too. But that is going to cause all sorts of headaches for us. We won't have replacements and no replacement ships either.”
“If I know Governor Nibs, she's most likely on her way here, if not right off than soon. I know she'll want to sort the civilian side out on her own. We're going to have enough problems with our own house,” Admiral Sharp Reflexes stated.
“I know someone who might be of some help,” Commodore Yukio Yashido said cautiously. All eyes turned to her. Commodore Yashido was an Asian chimera and usually quiet. She was known for being devious in tactical simulations, however, so there was something to be said about being careful around the quiet ones. “She's on Albacore. I've talked to Captain Zedd. He is for the Federation, and his ship is for the Federation,” she said in a rush.
“That's one ship down,” the admiral said, wiggling his antenna.
“Who is this someone?” Admiral Nilsson asked. “I mean, just one person? How can one person make that much of a difference?”
“She is his chief engineer. She's, well, not from around here,” the commodore said lamely.
“From Bek A?”
“No, from Pyrax actually.” That made a few of the people in the room stare at her. She smiled mirthlessly. “Obviously, she's for Admiral Irons. She was sent here with the group from Caroline to refit the yards and industrial complexes. It just so happens that she's got keys and a wealth of knowledge we can tap into. She's been upgrading my flotilla with just what she could get her hands on with Albacore.”