The End of Winter -- Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Crew Rotation

August 3^rd, 2808

Chimera and Misha met in Curt’s office, at his request.

“Behemoth, please turn off your listening and recording of this meeting. Return to normal recording after this meeting ends. Well, Chimera, this is one of those administrative meetings I promised you you wouldn’t have to attend!”

“Grrrr…”

“Actually, this is important. Things are changing fast, and I want to stay ahead of the curve. I want to do something…unconventional.”

“You?” Misha said, “Something unconventional? I’m shocked!”

“Oh, shut up and listen. This is actually a good idea. I want to appoint Behemoth Captain of this vessel.”

“Behemoth? He’s not even a person!”

“Says who? He makes good decisions, and he has more combined space experience than a big fraction of the fleet Captains combined. You’ve talked to him. Is he a real person? Of course he is! And I’d rather have him as my commander than half the other officers I’ve met. Not that I ever said that…”

Misha thought for a bit, and then looked at Chimera and said, “He’s right, you know. This could actually work. The Council has become very fond of Curt recently. If you and I work our combined contacts…we can make this happen.”

“Fine by me,” Chimera said. “I like most machines better than I like most people anyhow!”

“Excellent! Misha, if you could take point on this, that would be great. You’re a bit more…diplomatic…than Chimera. OK, next issue. I have two more captain positions to fill. Misha, are you interested?”

“Are you nuts?” Misha replied sharply “I still don’t know how you suckered Chimera into the Admiral job, but there’s no way you’re getting me into a combat command position again! I’ve done my time! Forget it!”

“OK, OK, I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask. How about Amazona? Smart, dedicated, and she would never get any lip from a crewman.”

“A bit young, don’t you think?” Misha said.

“Well, I guess I have a different perspective, but I don’t see 1500 years old as ‘young’.”

Chimera looked at Misha and said, “She would be good, you know. Like Curt said, way better than half the silly bastards we have in command now (not that I ever said that). She’s smart, she works like a demon, and she’s completely unflappable. I think it’s a good idea.”

“Works for me,” Misha said.

“OK, one more to go. Cygnus is clearly too young, even by my standards, although I may promote him to Commander. Any ideas?”

“Keri?” Misha asked.

“Nah,” Chimera said. “He’d be great, but he’s too good at what he’s doing now. Do you know how hard it is to find competent chimeran officers? Leave him where he is. He loves his job, anyhow.”

“Other thoughts?”

“Let us ponder for a bit,” Misha said.

“OK, you’ve got a day, but that’s it. All this is going to be done before that damned conference.”

“I have a couple of additional items, sir. Oooops…I guess I don’t need to call you that anymore.”

Curt Smiled “I won’t tell if you don’t!”

“You’ve promised I won’t have any admin work to do, and I have complete trust in your honesty and sincerity, but I don’t believe you. I’m going to get sucked into this crap whether I like it or not (Misha giggled). I’d like to bring Ensign Philip on board as an apprentice.”

“The kid you sliced up?”

“Yeah, he’s turned out to be really good. I want to leave Behemoth in good technical hands.”

“You’ll get no argument from me about adding good technical staff, but you’ll need to tell Keri.”

“He’ll get over it.”

“Anything else?”

“Oh, one minor thing. I’m officially promoting you to Vice-Admiral.”

“What?”

“I figured it would be easier for me to stick you with all the admin work and meetings that way. Besides, you deserve it. You’re one of the finest officers in the fleet, way better than most Admirals I know (not that I ever said that). Congratulations!”

“Thank you, ma’am…I guess.”

“Not in private, Admiral. None of this ma’am crap.  I want to be a real person whenever possible.”

“You got it, Chimera!”

 

August 5^th, 2808

Completion day!

“Well, Captain Keri, the performance of your crew has been nothing short of stellar,” Curt remarked.  “Behemoth is now fully operational, and the fastest Grand Imperial in the fleet!”

“Yeah, and you swiped my best cadet to boot!”

“Oh, you’ll get over it. Speaking of personnel issues, I need a third Captain for the new squadron that’s getting put together. Now, you can call me a racist if you want, but I’d like a chimeran if possible. We considered asking you, actually…”

“What?”

“But, Chimera said you were too good where you are, and that you loved your job.”

“Well, Admirals, I’m honored by the consideration, but Chimera’s right. I do love my job. I’m the senior technical officer for the entire Imperial Service. How much better can it get than that?”

Chimera said to Curt, “You know, this bastard is making me jealous.”

“Yeah, me too!” Curt said.

“OK, back to business. Captain suggestions?”

“You know,” Keri said, “there is this guy who’s a senior Commander a couple of sectors over. A bit young…less than 1000 years…”

“Watch it! Remember, I’m only 58!”

“Sorry, sir! Anyway, he’s really good. His actual name is Nimitz, but they call him Moose, because he’s abnormally large for a chimeran…about 6 feet tall and 250 lbs.”

“Two hundred and fifty pounds? Jesus! You little guys are intimidating enough as it is!”

“Yeah, Moose doesn’t get a lot of grief in bar fights. Let me see if he’s available.”

“Chimera?”

“I know this guy, Curt, even though it’s been a while. First Class. You could do far worse.”

“Alright, then. Captain Keri, I will look forward to the results of your inquiry, and thank you again for your outstanding service!”

“You are more than welcome sir. It’s actually been fun working with the two of you…even if you did swipe my best cadet.”

“Oh, quit whining,” Chimera said. “You’ll get over it!”

 

August 6^th , 2808

“Misha, a word please?”

“Sure, what’s up?”

“Who’s actually running this conference that’s coming up?”

“Well, it’s a little vague. There was a huge clamor of interest, and the Council agreed to the conference, but it’s a little vague as to who’s running it.”

“Great. That means no one is running it…and that means we have to run it…and that means…”

“Oh no, you don’t! We are not going there!”

“Misha, I’ve done my homework here. You are hugely respected throughout the Ancient world. More than I had even suspected, actually. Never mind your sheer technical competence, if you run this, it will work. And we need it to work. The entire political structure of the galaxy is being re-ordered, and we are at the center of it. And you are the best one possible to make this happen.”

“Grrrrrr…”

“So, you’ll do it?”

“Yes, I’ll do it, you slimy bastard! I’m starting to understand how you suckered Chimera into the Admiral job…”

Curt wandered over to the security station, and said, “Amazona, I trust you are well!”

“Well indeed, sir!”

“What’s your power level?”

“Well, with all the excess power from the Reagan, I’m up to 100%.”

“Excellent! Amazona, I have some new challenges for you.”

“Bring ‘em on, sir!”

“You know that a new Guardian/AIS squadron is being created?”

“I’d heard rumors, yes sir.”

“Well, it’s real. I’m looking for a Captain I can trust for one of the vessels. Interested?”

A very short pause, then, “Absolutely!”

“Excellent! I know you’re a little young for this by Ancient standards, but I’m only 58, so what the hell. You’ll be getting a brand new ship, the Resolution, fresh off the line. Also…”

“Sir?”

“I need you to help Misha with a project. We have this conference coming up, and if we don’t run it, it’s just going to be a mess. Intellectually, Misha could eat any of the attendees for lunch, but her physical stature is an issue. But, if the two of you worked together, the striking physical contrast would be enough to get everyone’s attention. Plus, these events can get a little rough sometimes. With you as Misha’s escort…well, let’s just say I’ll be able to sleep well at night. So, can I get you to do this, Captain?”

“Absolutely, sir! Working with Captain Misha is always an honor.”

“Excellent! I’ll leave it to the two of you to work out the details.”

 

August 7^th, 2808

“Curt?”

“Yes, Misha, good morning!”

“Damn, you are always so cheerful!”

“Only when things are going well. When people are dying, I tend to get a little testy.”

“Well, OK, I get that, but I have good news! Commander Nimitz, Moose, has accepted your offer as the third Captain in the squadron!”

“Well, damn, that is good news! OK, get his furry butt out here straight away. I want us as integrated as possible before that damned conference.”

“You got it!”

It’s convenient to be able to talk to someone wherever you are, so Curt just said to the air, “Behemoth, a word please.”

“Of course, sir! What can I do for you?”

“I have an unconventional request.”

“You sir? Unconventional? I’m shocked!”

“Dammit, Misha told me the same thing just yesterday! Am I really that weird?”

“Yes sir, but I find it quite refreshing. And, after what we’ve been through together, I doubt you can surprise me much.”

“Well, we’ll see. I want to get you officially commissioned as Captain of this ship.”

“Uh…. sir?”

“Captain…in charge…you know what that means, right?”

“Well, of course, sir, but…I’m not even a corporeal being! I’m just a collection of circuits and databanks.”

“So, that makes you inferior to me how? You make good decisions. Hell, you instructed me when I first landed here.”

You could almost imagine Behemoth blushing. “I apologize for that, sir, but there just wasn’t time. I just did what had to be done.”

“Exactly. So, what do you think a Captain’s job is…making decisions, and doing what needs to be done!”

“Well, yes, sir. I guess that’s true.”

“So, you’ll do it?”

“Not up to me, sir. Nothing like this has ever happened before.”

“I already have Guardian Council approval.”

“What?”

“Combined, Misha and Chimera have remarkable connections. It’s a done deal, but will you do it?”

“Uh, this will be an amazing honor! Yes sir, I’ll do it!”

“Excellent! So, my command staff for the squadron is now complete.”

“If I may ask, who else do you have?”

“Amazona has agreed to command one of the ships.”

“Excellent choice! And the other?”

“There’s this Senior Commander from a nearby squadron called Moose. Real name is Nimitz. Chimeran. He comes well recommended.”

“Hmmm…I don’t really have good data, but the fragments I have about him are all positive.”

“Well, I wanted a chimeran. And, frankly, I wanted a machine, too. Call me a racist if you want to, but this is the right answer.”

“That thought would never occur to me, sir.”

“Then let’s go have fun together, shall we?”

 

August 8^th, 2808

Moose arrived without any particular fanfare. Admiral Chimera met him at the airlock.

“Well, Captain Nimitz! Welcome aboard. We don’t have a lot of time, but Admiral Jackson wanted to get us together as soon as we could. You’ve heard you’re getting the Constellation, yes? New Grand Imperial Class starship, straight off the assembly line?”

“Uh, no ma’am, I hadn’t heard that…damn!”

“Yeah, well, you’ll need to get used to that. Admiral Jackson has a fundamental disrespect for what’s been done before. He makes weird shit happen. He really couldn’t care less about what’s happened in the past. And…(Chimera looked around the hall)…in private, we don’t do any of the sir/ma’am/Captain/Admiral stuff. It’s just smart folks, getting things done. You got it?”

“Yes, Chimera!”

“You learn quickly, kid. That’s good! And, Admiral Jackson is really good with the time issue, probably the best you’ve ever met among Normals. We actually had a meeting once where I sliced off one of his fingers.”

“Bullshit!”

“Fact. Ask him yourself. He finds it more amusing than annoying. Now, we’re going to introduce you to Captain Amazona, the new Captain for the Resolution. Some people find her a bit intimidating.”

Moose looked over himself, and at 6’ tall and 250 lbs, he said, “Admiral, I don’t intimidate easily.”

“Well,” Chimera said, “You haven’t met Amazona!”

“I look forward to it!”

Moose and Amazona met in the break room. Moose was clearly impressed.

“Finally,” Moose said, “someone bigger than I am!”

“And, someone who isn’t intimidated by my size!” Amazona said.

“Why should I be intimidated?” Moose said. “I could cut every one of your limbs off in less than three seconds.”

“Oh, that’s right,” Amazona said. “Well, this is great…the more power you can get in a fight, the better. Welcome aboard, Captain!”

“Thank you, ma’am!”

Curt was just beaming. These guys were clearly going to get along famously.

“Oh, and Moose…” Amazona said.

“Yes?”

“I may not be quite as slow as you seem to think I am!”

“Good to know. But, if we’re fighting together, that really isn’t a problem, is it?”

Moose and Amazona went off together to talk shop.