Ice and Peace
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Ice and Peace
Copyright © 2013 by Clare Dargin
ISBN: 978-1-61333-547-5
Cover art by LFD Designs
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Kybernatia
Cold Warriors
Ice and Peace
The Cold Warriors Universe – Book Two
By
Clare Dargin
~DEDICATION~
To God for giving me the inspiration for this story
Glossary of Terms
Battle Group/Group
- is the shortened term for a Carrier Battle Group. Consists of an air/spacecraft carrier and its escorts, together comprising the group. The components of the group are usually one air/spacecraft carrier, deep space reconaissance cruiser, two destroyers, one Stealth Frigate, and two Amphibious Warfare Cruisers for the deployment of light infantry.
Bridge
- The area on the ship where the Commanding Officer or the Captain sits to oversee the navigation and welfare of the vessel as a whole. Also called the Conn.
CIC
- stands for Command in Control. The tactical center of the warship.
CNO
- acronym for Chief of Naval Operations. An administrative position in the Pentagon, the CNO is a Four-Star Admiral and is the most senior level officer assigned to the Department of the Navy. A military adviser to the President, the CNO is the highest ranking active duty officer in the U.S. Navy out ranked only by a navy officer who is the Chairman or Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
CS Departure
- Curve Space Departure. Shortening the distance between two points by using gravity to bend space/time to place point a and point b in a direct line with each other and using a worm hole to travel from to the other.
Chain of Command
- is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a and between different military units. Orders are transmitted down from a higher-ranked soldier, such as a commissioned officer, to a lower-ranked soldier such as a non-commissioned officer or enlisted personnel who either execute the order personally or transmit it down the chain as appropriate, until it is received by those expected to execute it.
Chief of the Boat
- is an enlisted sailor on board a naval vessel who serves as the senior enlisted advisor to the commanding officer and executive officer. The COB (as this person is sometimes called) assists with matters regarding the good order and discipline of the crew, and is the equivalent of a Command Master Chief or Command Senior Chief in shore and surface commands
COB
- see Chief of the Boat
Command
- (as in 'Command has ordered us to do thus and so...) the jurisdiction of a commander in a military unit or units regarding a specific area or function. Also responsible for planning the employment of, organizing, directing, coordinating, and controlling military forces for the accomplishment of assigned missions including the responsibility for health, welfare, morale, and discipline of its assigned personnel.
Commanding Officer
- A commissioned officer in command of a military unit, having ultimate authority over it and is given wide latitude to run it as he or she sees fit within accordance to military law.
Commissioned Officer
- A member of the military who holds a position of authority. He is or she receives a commission or given authority to be responsible for duties in a specific position or military unit. Typically he or she is able to act as a commanding officer of a military unit. In the U.S., the position requires a Bachelor's degree, though individuals without college degrees maybe commissioned under certain circumstances through Officers Candidate School but must earn a degree before being promoted to Lieutenant.
Coms
- Device for voice communicating over long distances.
Conn
- To direct the steering or course of a ship. Also refers to the station or post of the person who steers a vessel. Another term for the Bridge.
Convector
- an air conditioner, dehumidifier and heating unit. A temperature controlled device that circulates cold air by using an inverter or warm air by carrying and dispersing it throughout the room.
Cryogenics
- the act of chemically preserving someone using very low temperatures with the intentions of future revival.
Direct Combat
- Engaging the enemy with an individual or a team with weapons while being exposed to direct enemy fire.
Implant
- is a biochemical nano mechanism that can monitor a person's vital signs and track the movements of the individual. Generally given to diplomatic officials when assigned to hostile territories, it enables the wearer to be monitored for his or her own safety at all times. Depending on the sophistication, it can act as both sender and receiver of information allowing the wearer computerized access to a voice prompted system that is able to verbally and non-verbally communicate with the individual via neural and synaptic connections. Because it emits a minute electro-magnetic waves, the wearer may easily be detected by a tracking system.
ImSensor Device
- an electronic device that specifically tracks the location of individuals who have Implants. The device can also give the general health status of the wearer when directly applied to the body.
Medipad
- a device used to chart and record the medical status of a patient.
NCO
- Non-commissioned Officers or non-coms are individuals in positions of authority can be said to have control or charge rather than command per se; the use of the word "command" to describe any use of authority is often unofficial.
Scrivs
- a self contained computer that can access, record, calculate, receive and send data. Used by both by civilians and the military. Scrivs are used extensively in the military because of its ease and portability in the dissemination of information. Once it was able to encoded for the use by key personnel, it became standard across all services.
Superior officer
- is an officer with a higher rank than another officer, who is a subordinate officer relative to the superior.
Thermal Optics
- A visual aid such as viewer in a camera or one mounted on rifle scope that produce y visual displays of the amount of infrared energy emitted, transmitted, and reflected by an object. When viewed through am optic such as a scope, warm objects such as humans and other warm-blooded animals become easily visible against a cooler environment during the day or night.
The Tac Officer
- The tactical action officer (TAO) is responsible for the weapons, sensors, offensive and defensive craft, and propulsion of a ship in the absence of the captain.
Please Note:
Some terms included in this glossary refer to people or things found in the first novel Cold Warriors.
Chapter One
Naval Special Warfare Advanced Cold Weather Training Facility - Detachment Kodiak
.
Chief Warrant Officer Caitlin Keegan opened her eyes, senses on high alert. Something was not right. Sitting up, she swung her legs over the side of the cot and glanced around the barracks. Moonlight streamed into the room, allowing her to see. She wiped a bead of perspiration from her brow. An icy wind from an open window hit her skin, lending relief to the stifling heat. No matter how many times she told them she didn’t need the convector, they never listened.
She walked toward the window and surveyed the landscape. The hairs stood up on the back of her neck, sending a chill down her spine. Outside the window, a single lamppost lit the area nearby. A large Sitka Spruce missing its lower branches cast a long, black shadow over the ray of light emanating from the lamp.
Though her brain told her nothing was there, her gut screamed she was being watched. She tried to tear her gaze away from the dark area under the tree but could not. A breeze rustled the scrubby brush surrounding the base of the lamppost. Glancing at it, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of light come from underneath the tree.
She dove toward the floor. Bracing, she wondered if she was paranoid or going crazy. But then the window shattered into a thousand pieces, sprinkling shards of glass on and around her. Her mind raced as she wrapped her arms around her head to take cover.
“Shit,” she whispered. “Who was that?”
Adrenaline poured into her veins, and she forced herself to focus.
My weapon
.
Calculating the distance to her locker, she knew she had to go for it.
She listened, waiting. Nothing. She tensed her muscles and sprinted. Fire burst through the busted window. She threw her back against the wall beside the small, thin locker.
They must be using line of sight
. If they were using thermal optics, her heat signature would read through the wall and, with the proper ammo, they could kill her instantly.
God, please don’t let them switch to thermal
.
Standing in her T-shirt and shorts, she felt vulnerable and exposed. The idea of never seeing Keegan graced her mind, and panic started to set in. They’d come a long way to be together, fighting through the early days of her waking from her frozen state and finally finding each other again after she’d gone through the perilous missions it took to be a cryo.
Okay, calm down and think
.
She closed her eyes and listened. Nothing. The wind picked up outside, filling the room with cold air, dropping the temperature even more. The change gave her strength.
“Dammit,” she swore, frustrated.
She forced herself out of the corner and stood in front of the locker. The metal door opened with a rusty whine as more shots rang out. She quickly reached in and pulled out her weapon. The small pistol wasn’t much but it was all she had. Caitlin ran toward the window and fired.
***
Two Hours Later
Caitlin crouched, an invisible figure lost in the thick brushwood on the outskirts of the base. Better armed and prepared, she had thrown on her uniform and Arctic weather gear. It protected her against the chill somewhat but then again, as a cryo, cold was never her biggest concern.
