FSP Snippet 4

 Sitrep: so, BSC3 is coming along. I have the cover firmly in mind, and I'm just about to start Act III. So fun. Hopefully it goes over well. :)

On to the snippet!

Long segment!

 Chapter 3

 

New Tau Metropolis

 

Vice Admiral Shelby Logan was surprised when she was called in to testify before the Promotions Board. She had mixed feelings over it. She was quite frankly surprised that Janice had gotten a hearing so fast. Apparently, the navy was “striking while the iron was hot” and pushing the rebuilding pace as fast and as furious as congress would allow. Either that or something else was going on. Given that the navy was exploding with growth, she hoped it was nothing ominous.

Brad and Rupert had eased through their promotion boards without incident. She hadn't been called to testify directly; Boni and BuPers had handled the passing over of records. Falling Leaf's had been a little rocky but she'd gotten through it. A little scorched but no worse for the wear and hopefully the experience would prove her good in the future.

Thermal's promotion had caught her off guard. Apparently, the Spacebees had put him in for it. Given his recent success in Tortuga she approved of the promotion.

“Look, you are dinging her for her battle record. Honestly, I think that is a load of crap. She did the best she could with what she had. No one in their right mind should expect her to take on a Tauren battle fleet with a handful of ships! Yet she did and fought a brilliant delaying action!” She shook her head in annoyance. “I know Tau has been hind teat. We've been trying to make bricks without straw or as someone said to me recently, trying to spin straw into gold.”

“But you have to admit, she did lose and was forced to retreat,” Rear Admiral Dangar Trout pointed out.

Dengar was a Neogrizzly from Bek. He had no combat experience according to what the grapevine said.

“So? Again, she had nothing larger than a cruiser and escort carrier in her kit. Yet she fought a delaying action against one hundred times her tonnage,” she said and then wished her emphasis would get through. “May I remind you that Admiral White was also forced to retreat or stall an attack? And I can cite other examples, including Commodore Falling Leaf being forced to break the blockade Admiral Ela set up and retreat.”

She paused to survey the group. There were five senior officers, each above the rank of the candidate up for promotion. They served as a check on anyone being submitted for promotion due to a submission out of the zone or due to regular promotion opportunities due to time in grade.

There were four men and one female on this particular board. The board was led by Vice Admiral Jim Adcott, someone she didn't recognize.

She tapped an inquiry to Boni. After a moment, each of the officer bios appeared under their holographic avatar. Her eyes narrowed when she noted the home star system. They were all the same.

She had a feeling the Bekian old boys club was at play here. It was annoying. They were supposed to be above that now. Admiral Irons had come down on them several times in order to hammer the point home that they were all one big happy navy.

“She has so little combat experience …,” Rear Admiral Luna Regula complained.

“Ah? I've seen her record, and she has been in combat more than some officers who has rocketed through the ranks.”

“I meant in command.”

“She has been on patrol as a ship captain and has earned her spurs there. Unlike some other officers who have only ever faced an enemy in a simulator,” Shelby retorted.

That was a rather open shot at the officers. According to their records, none of them had combat experience yet they were dinging another officer for it.

“She spent a lot of time in academia …,” Admiral Dengar stated.

Shelby's eyes narrowed. “Teaching hyper navigation, inner system navigation, helm, as well as tactical courses at the crusher I believe. She also chaired the navigation department at the academy in Pyrax. All the while also serving as helm and navigational officer on Firefly. Your point?”

“That is actually a point in her favor. If I recall, the Pyrax academy was still being built at that time,” Admiral Adcott stated.

“If she is so good, why did she get a base commander billet over a fleet command?” Admiral Regula demanded.

“Because fleet commands are, or I should say, were nonexistent in my AO,” Shelby said testily. This time she was glad Enki didn't transmit her voice properly. “All but two positions were base command billets for flag officers.”

“The other two?”

“Home Fleet here in the capital and TF 4.4 under Commodore Falling Leaf chasing down the pirates,” Shelby replied.

“Ah.”

“And now you want to promote Commodore Yu.”

“I believe she's earned it. I have seen the record of other officers who went from captain to rear admiral in three or four years. Their ships rarely left port.  She, however, crossed into this sector as a ship captain, then served as a captain while hunting pirates before being selected for a base command. She spent the past four years as a commodore in a combat environment. I think she's earned another star. I know she can handle it.”

“Your personal feelings not withstanding?” Regula asked.

If she could have been more snide Shelby thought, irritated. “What does that mean? Yes, I served with Commodore Yu. She has served under me during this deployment and is an exemplary officer. Her record reflects that.”

“And that is time. Thank you for your input, Admiral Logan,” Admiral Adcott the chairman of the hearing stated.

“Thank you for allowing me to share it,” she replied evenly as she regained her temper.

“This concludes this hearing,” Admiral Adcott said. There was sound of a gavel.

Shelby sat back and relaxed. One by one the images of the flag officers around the table winked out until only one remained.

“And now that it is over with and everyone else is out,” Admiral Adcott said, “I hope you didn't take the adversarial approach too personally,” he stated.

Shelby blinked. “I did a bit,” she chuckled. “I'm realizing it now.”

“Ah. Well, we do have to dot the I's and cross the T's. And we have to make sure that there is no undue favoritism going on.”

“I see.”

“You did spend some time with Commodore Yu, first on Firefly and then under your command in Tau. It is only natural to favor her.”

“And yet she is a commodore. I don't see it as favoritism when other officers who lack any combat experience are flag officers now,” Shelby pointed out again.

“True, and I admit I am one of those officers. But the point stands,” Admiral Adcott stated. “So, if we bust your chops, it's nothing personal; we do it to everyone.”

“I see,” Shelby said again. She kept her voice neutral even though she knew that it would come out that way on the other side anyway.

“Okay, and now that I'm done with that, what do you think Eru's chances of holding are?” Admiral Adcott asked as he changed the subject.

Shelby grimaced. “Honestly? I'm not sure,” she said carefully. “That's no knock on him.”

“He does lack combat experience,” Admiral Adcott stated.

“Yes. And he's cocky as hell,” Shelby replied. She rolled her eyes. “And a tad stubborn and pig headed. He is a pain.”

“The whole Third Fleet versus Fourth thing. I heard about that. Some might be worried about overconfidence,” Jim said. “I know a large part of that confidence is from his time as a fighter jock.”

“Probably,” Shelby replied with a nod. She frowned. She didn't want to undermine her junior officer, even if he was a bratty stepchild on loan. “I know a lot of people think he's got it since Janice managed to finally stop Broken Tooth with far less.”

“That she did. His force is unblooded.”

“Exactly. They have no combat experience.”

“Well, a few of the pilots and crew who served against the pirates might argue with you there,” Jim replied.

Shelby nodded at the mild rebuke. There had been a light reshuffle as units from Second Fleet were occasionally promoted to other fleets to share their wealth of knowledge and grow the institution. “I'm not knocking them. I admit, I made a general statement. They do lack experience against the Taurens though. But they have trained with the information that Janice and her people as well as others had won by paying in blood and tears for.”

There was a long silence as her fellow flag officer digested that.

“True,” he finally said.

“Janice learned about Broken Tooth, and even though he was later reinforced with carriers, she still managed to attrition him. The retreat in Sparkling Seas helped to set up the victory in 63,” she said. “I am concerned about how Eru is handling things there, but I'm trying to not interfere.”

“Why?”

“It is his AO. He knows the players in his command. If he doesn't want to intermingle the two units, that is his decision. He has his reasons, and it isn't right to second-guess him and micro-manage.”

“True to some degree. But sometimes you have to give a wayward commander a mild hand slap to get them to wake up and use all of the tools in their toolbox effectively,” Jim said.

Shelby nodded. “Yes. I'll take the suggestion under advisement.”

“But you won't do it,” he said.

Shelby cocked her head. “There is an expression …”

“You can lead a horse to water?” Jim asked.

Shelby smiled. “Exactly.”

The admiral's avatar surprised her with a brief smile. Apparently, he'd either hit the emoji symbol or Enki had interpreted a real smile.

“Are you going to hold Danvers in the capital? I know she's had her share of screwups. I heard about that Cluster frack.”

Shelby frowned thoughtfully. He was referring to Danver's delay in the cluster when she's first arrived. She'd more or less forgiven it at this point. “At the moment, I'm considering it or sending her on to one of the two star systems between here and 63 to act as another roadblock if …” her voice faltered.

“If Eru screws up and is forced to fallback you mean?”

“Something like that,” Shelby said as she felt slightly lame about the statement. “No plan survives contact with the enemy.”

“Plan for all eventualities. Smart. The gate should be opening shortly though …”

“In another two months or so. It will take a bit for the eggheads to declare it stable and safe to travel.”

“Especially after our recent disaster to Pi,” Admiral Adcott said.

Shelby nodded. “I know. What happened? I read the report but dry reports do not really get all the details.”

“Essentially we tried to push the gate's size limits. We, meaning the navy, and no, I don't know why they were trying to transfer something that big to Pi. There is no need of battle line units there. We now know not to go above something the size of a monitor. Given how conservative engineers are …”

“Ahem, speaking as one I know we are conservative for a reason. Primarily because certain idiots always try to go too far …”

“Yes, well, as I was saying, the powers that be will probably restrict ship size down to monitor or possibly even super dreadnought scale.”

Shelby nodded. “So, I shouldn't plan on any welcome parties for the crews of a battle moon anytime soon? Good to know.”

She was amused to see the avatar of the admiral attempt a belly laugh. She smiled at the image.

“Funny, hilarious. I think my logistics people would have collective strokes if they tried planning a party on that scale,” Admiral Adcott said. His avatar smiled again.

Shelby grinned. “Oh, I think Dolly might be made of sterner stuff. She'd hate me, but she'd get over it. Eventually.”

“Maybe. She'll have fun with just the parties from the fleets that do come—if and when they get there,” Admiral Adcott replied as the banter began to putter out.

Shelby sobered and nodded. “True,” she said for the ansible transmission.

“Well, I'm being thumped for delaying too long. The recess is just about over, and I didn't prep for the next candidate. Take care, Shelby.”

“You too, Jim,” Shelby replied.

“See you around the galaxy,” Admiral Adcott said before the channel was cut.

Shelby sat back and steepled her fingers as she considered the conversation.

“Concerns?” Boni asked her.

“Oh, loads,” Shelby said with a sigh as she let her hands drop into her lap. “Certain parties’ overconfidence and pissing matches are just the ones at the top of the list. Do you know what is going on with the board?”

“The board in what way?”

“I know Jim said it wasn't personal but it still felt like it. Like Janice was being treated unfairly.”

“Admiral Irons lowered the hammer on the board several times over playing favorites with Bekians over veterans. The fact is Bek is the largest population center in the Federation by a large margin. So, they produce the most sailors and officers.”

“And none have combat experience. I don't like the board using her combat experience against her. Yet, they make allowances and make excuses for those who lack the same.”

“True. But those who have combat experience are the ones on the envelope. They are on the edge of the growing Federation and do not have time to politic or return to the Federation. They also get that experience largely by fighting individual battles.”

Shelby nodded. “That is SOP for cruiser action.”

“True, ma'am. But the rank and file still have that mindset that true combat doesn't occur unless it is between two fleets.”

Shelby snorted. “If someone is shooting at you, it doesn't matter if they are in a fleet or a single ship. Combat is combat.”

“True. They are as you said, paper tigers. They can spend years honing their craft in the simulators and in training exercises, but until reality smacks them in the face, it is all they have for a meterstick to prove their worth.”

Shelby nodded.

“Admiral Eru has several incidents on his record to show that he can handle a high-stress situation including time during the Bekian civil war.”

Shelby frowned but then nodded again. “I still don't like it that he hasn't taken advantage of Janice's people.”

“In what way?”

“It is something Jim pointed out. Janice has that wealth of experience. Or, I should say her people do. Her fighter and bomber pilots. Yet, he has her off guarding the Sparkling Seas jump point while his task force is arrayed around the jump point to 64.”

“You do not like the distribution of forces, ma'am?”

“I think he should be inviting the pilots and crews to intermingle and share their knowledge. Cross-pollinate as much and as quickly as possible.”

Boni cocked her virtual head but then nodded. Her principle had a habit of keeping her hands off and trying to lead by example. She usually tried to let someone learn from mistakes; after all, they were the best way to learn … as long as the mistakes weren't too painful.

At the moment though, they were in a state of war. They needed to minimize mistakes. “Yes, ma’am. To their defense they are a bit far apart. They are sharing simulator packages though.” She considered the problem and then shot a back-channel text to some of the A.I. in 63 to push the issue.

Commander Enki received the text and passed it on with a minor rolling eyes emoji in response.

Shelby nodded. “Well, at least there is that.” She slapped her thighs briefly. “So, what's next on the agenda?”

“You have an eleven o'clock meeting and then your usual working lunch.”

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