The Pi Effect Snippet 4

  Still rendering the next video project, the flashbacks are faster to render than the actual footage. (they are simple up to this point, single pic with FX for the most part) I am up to 12.5 minutes per frame and that is agonizing considering how much is left to go. :P Hopefully it is all worth it in the end!

   I ran into a snag with R2, I went to epoxy the body rings together and apparently waited too long, the JB weld dried in the tubes. So, I ordered a new one. Sigh.

Anyway, on to the snippet!

Chapter 4

 

New Cornwall

 

Governor John Tremethyk smiled as the shuttle settled into its final decent. The fact that he wasn't afraid to take shuttle hops anymore was a nice thing. So too was the new shuttle, New Cornwall 1, as it was called, a blue and white livered shuttle built for exclusive government use.

No more having to take a commerical flight or military one he thought in amusement as he rubbed his jaw. He had a bit of stubble, but he'd deal with it later. It wasn't election time so he didn't mind looking a little scruffy.

He glanced over to Isabel Ferguson, his treasurer. She was one of two of his cabinet who had joined him for the ceremony, the other was Terry Watson, his minister of industry. They were capitalizing on the photo oppertunities of adding additional industry, and of course jobs and taxable income, to the economy.

Everyone was tickled by not one but two modern yards built in their star system recently. The military yard was the big dog, but the new civilian yard that Io 11 had put in was nearly as important.

As was the space station they'd just visitied. The newly-built station was a factory station designed to make components for electronics to supply contractors in the yards as well as space industries across the star system and eventually the sector.

As long as nothing bad happened in the next two years, his next and final term was all but assured. He was pretty sure he would go down in local history as the man who ushered in New Cornwall's renniassance.

Of course it would be nice to secure their position as the sector capital. There hadn't been much on that front yet, but he was still hoping something would come about it soon.

In the meantime, he had a few things planned for beyond his final term. Nothing big, maybe some speaking gigs and motivational things. Dinners, maybe play the stateman thing and family man for a while. But if he could, he'd dip his toe in the bigger political pool. He was still feeling out how he could go about doing that.

He glanced over to the empty seat nearby. Another of his cabinet had hitched a ride up, but he had chosen to stay in space for the time being. Talk about big dogs he thought in amusement.

~~(O)~~

Rear Admiral Caine scratched at an itch behind a furry ear and then went back to looking on to the yard. Commodore Vestri Sindri was near. Vestri and Io 11 had really turned their efforts around. The yard was growing explosively; their only limit was raw material now.

Well, that, credits to pay for it all and bodies to man the ships and yard modules. He flicked his ears and then shrugged internally. The money thing really wasn't his concern, the warm bodies were only partially his problem. Defending it all, now, that was his big concern.

He'd had his small sublight naval force to defend the star system before the Federation had shown up. He now knew how laughable that force was even if the Feds had given it professional courtesy. And his rank! Admiral! But they'd accepted his rank as a part of the process of taking New Cornwall in as a part of the Federation and placing the shipyard there.

The yard wasn't as big as the one in Antigua or in Pyrax. Not by a long shot. But it was a decent cruiser grade yard, and it was designed to grow over time into something bigger should the need arise.

He'd personally love to see it build capital ships but he didn't honestly see the need. Maybe in the future but not now.

His people had been retrained to take on ships that had come in from the Federation. A few hundred had been sent back to Rho to get more polish on them. So far they'd gotten a couple dozen back. He was a bit envious of them, getting the chance at really getting into the navy.

Until he felt the star system was secure and the local pirate threats reduced or eliminated, he was stuck in place. That was fine with him. He enjoyed watching his home grow and change. If he left and came back, it would be hard to accept all the changes that had been rought in his absence.

The first cruiser production run was in full swing. The new electronic factory station that the governor had just christened would play a large part in supplying them components to help speed up production. If there were no more hiccups on the molecular furnace station and transhab station being built, he'd see the yard's construction time cut by a third by the end of the quarter as Vestri promised.

He hoped so, though he was aware of external issues. And he still had the personnel side to deal with.

New Cornwall's Navy had at one time had its own training facilities. They'd had an academy, trade schools, the works. When they had joined the Federation, the navy had been folded into the Federation Navy. Rather than try to adapt the old facilities, the Federation had allocated money and materials to build new facilities.

Those facilities had been christened last year. He was grateful to them, though he was aware there were some ongoing issues. Teething issues with the staff and syllabus for one, minor protests and grumbling from the population were another. He hoped that the Federation had some people keeping an eye on that. He doubted it though; they only had a handful of government and law enforcement people in the star system at the moment.

He made a mental note to ask about that as he sat back in his chair.

Once they had two squadrons of cruisers in his home star system, he'd start to feel like a proper admiral. He knew he wasn't going to get them right away. Sure each ship would go through a series of working-up exercises and builder exercises in the star system, but most were already earmarked for picket or patrol duty across the sector.

What were those people going to see and endure? He couldn't help but envy them too. They were going to be the true investment that his people were putting into the Federation, the sector, and into the future.

In time he knew that the academy and enlisted training facilities would get recruits from all over the sector. So far they'd only had a few from nearby star systems, but that would change in time. He sure hoped so. The time they spent going to Rho was too much. A year in stasis? He could use them here!

His ears flicked. Of course, in five years that might change he reminded himself.

"Penny for your thoughts, sir?" his A.I. asked.

"Just ruminating, Roe, I'm fine."

"Okay. I'm sorry to interrupt but you have a few new files in your inbox."

The admiral nodded as he sat up straight. Having an A.I. in his implants was something he'd gotten used to but still bugged him on a very private level. At least Roe was nice about being there. He'd opted for a dumb A.I. so the ensign was going to grow slow. That was good; he needed an internal yeoman more than a virtual flag lieutenant.

"Okay, let's see what the damage is," he said as he wriggled his fingers and prepared himself for what was to come.

~~(O)~~