Star Rover-Chosen to Die (Lens of Time) (8 page)

Gibbs looked at the others, “He was impressive during the battle.” Gibbs looked at Angel, “You will have a Fleet Commander’s Jukebox built for you and it will be delivered shortly. You should go and meet with your brothers and start planning how to get your units trained to make maximum use of the new systems.”

Angel saluted and did an about face. She left the room and then started sprinting to her shuttle. She needed to tell her crew what had happened and tell Stone about his promotion. He was going to be ecstatic.

A
ngel arrived on board and went straight to her quarters. She used her communicator to call Captain Stone in and waited for him to arrive. She was afraid of her new position and elated at the same time. Captain Stone came in and she had a huge smile. He saw it and smiled, “They let you stay!”

“Not really.” Stone’s smile disappeared. “They’ve promoted me to Rear Admiral and gave me a fleet to command. I’ve requested that you take command of the third unit and they agreed to promote you to Commodore. You’ll take command of the Wellington and I’m going to be given a Fleet Flagship.”

Captain Stone went to attention and said, “I humbly refuse the promotion, Sir.”

Angel stared at him with her mouth open and managed to say, “You what?”

“I refuse the promotion, Sir.”

“Why?”

“I am your Executive Officer; wherever you go, that is where I should be.”

“But…but…”

“I’m sorry, Sir.”

Angel stared at Stone and saw something in his eyes. “How old are you?”

Stone’s head went back and he said, “Twenty five, Sir.” Angel nodded and Stone said, “Why do you ask?”

“I’ve been blind, haven’t I?” Stone’s face showed his anxiety. “How long have you felt like this?”

“About six months, Sir.”

Angel nodded. She looked at Stone and said, “I really need you. The third unit must be commanded by someone that will fit in with me and my brothers. You are the perfect choice to do that. This crew needs you. You have to take the position.”

Stone looked at the floor and shook his head, “If I have to take command of the third unit then you will have to stay and I’ll go to another ship. Why do you have to take a new ship when this one is perfect for you? Can’t Fleet modify the Wellington to be your Flagship?”

Angel looked at Stone and said, “That is a great idea.”

“The crew will be extremely happy if you can make that happen, Sir.”

Angel looked at Stone and said, “So everyone will be happy except you.” Captain Stone nodded. “What is your first name, Captain?”

“Bret.”

“Well Bret, do you really think you can be happy following in my shadow?”

“As long as you’re the one making the shadow, I can.”

“Then you are going to have to find someone else to take the third unit that would be able to work effectively with us. You will be promoted to Commodore; my executive officer will have that rank. However, if you can find someone to take the position, we will stay together.”

Bret started smiling and said, “Let’s see who I can find.”

Angel came around her desk, walked up to Bret, put her arms around his neck and kissed him hard. She stepped back and smiled, “Go see what you can do.”

Bret’s smile was huge and he said, “Yes Sir.” Angel watched him go and felt her heart beating faster. Some diamonds are right under your nose; she should have seen this one. She went to her panel and contacted Admiral Gibbs, “Sir, would it be possible to modify the Wellington to be my Flagship?”

“Hold on a moment.” Angel waited and after three minutes, Gibbs reappeared and said, “No, not really.” Angel’s face showed her disappointment and Gibbs said, “However, you can move your crew to the new ship when it arrives and it will assume the name Wellington. Will that work?”

Angel smiled, “That would be perfect, Sir.” The panel went dark and she touched her lips. Come on, Bret; find somebody. I want another kiss.

• • •

“Admiral, I think I’ve found a great candidate to Command the third unit.”

“Tell me about them.”

“Her name is Elizabeth Banks and she is currently the commander of a Squadron of Rovers.”

Angel’s eyes narrowed, “You couldn’t find someone in the Jukebox hierarchy?”

Bret shook his head, “Sir, we need Commanders that are excellent pilots first, great command skills second, and everything else third. She has all the attributes that would make her a success in our organization.”

“Who does she report to?”

Bret blew out a breath, “Admiral Kune.”

“How does he rate this Captain?”

“She’s at the top of his short list to promote.”

“He’ll never agree for us to interview her.”

“Uhhh, I sort of went around him.”

Angel shook her head, “What did you do, Stone?”

“I asked Admiral Gibbs to send us the top rated Rover to assist us in training our pilots. She’s arriving in an hour.”

Angel shook her head, “You’re just asking for trouble going around one of our senior Admirals. You know I can’t interview her; you’ll have to sell her on the idea.”

“I know, I know. It’s worth a try.”

Angel shook her head again, “You’re probably right; Admiral Kune would never allow her anywhere near us if he knew we were interested in her.” Angel paused, “Are you sure she’s that good?”

“Her piloting scores at the Academy were only two points lower than yours.” Angel’s eyebrows went up. “The sailors under her command would die for her. She’s really something, Admiral.”

Angel nodded and said, “Good luck.”

• • •

Bret sat in the ready room close to the Rover Launch Tubes and said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Captain.”

“Thank you, Commodore. I’ve been told you want to use me to improve the skills of your Rovers.”

“That’s right, Captain; but first, tell me how you feel about flying a Rover instead of a Jukebox Battleship.”

Dizzy smiled, “I would hate to have to fly a ship that big. The Rovers are incredible in their ability to accelerate and maneuver. I really love flying the Rovers.”

Bret knew his work was cut out for him, “Have you seen the new Jukeboxes perform?”

“I’m currently assigned to a fleet of them. They are an improvement over the last model.”

“They’re really incredible in what they can do, Captain.”

Dizzy stared at Bret and tilted her head, “I thought I was here to talk about Rovers?”

“Captain, I want to make you a proposition.”

“Oh, what is that?”

“I want to promote you to command the third unit in our new fleet.” Dizzy stared at Bret and he saw her frown. “Captain, we are going to be on the front lines taking on the most challenging missions.”

“That is the only thing I find even remotely interesting in your offer. You can transfer my Rovers here and we’ll fight with you in our ships. I have no desire to have anything to do with the Jukeboxes.”

Bret knew this was his only shot and he spent the next hour attempting to change the Rover Commander’s mind. Finally he said, “I wish you’d think about it, Captain.”

Dizzy smiled and said, “I have, and the answer is no.”

“Thank you for coming.”

Dizzy stood and saluted Bret and he returned it. She turned to leave the room and stopped. She looked back at Bret and said, “I’m flattered you want me so much; so I’ll not tell Admiral Kune you tried to take me from him.”

Bret smiled, “Thank you, Captain. I know he’d be unhappy if he found out; however, I really wish you’d think about it.” Dizzy smiled and left the room. Bret pushed the communication button and said, “Admiral, she’s refused the position.”

“Couldn’t tolerate flying a slower ship, could she?”

“She clearly loves the Rover’s performance.”

“Where is she now?”

“She going to the landing bay to go back to her command.”

“Notify me when she lifts off the floor.”

“What are you going to do?”

“You know I can’t interview her without her requesting it. However, I think she’ll listen to her ship.”

“Her ship?”

“Just let me know.”

“Yes Sir.”

• • •

Elizabeth walked through the corridor into the landing bay and saw the sailors on this ship were sharp. They were active and all of them appeared to know what they were doing. The Lieutenant in Command of the landing bay came forward, went to attention, and saluted her. Dizzy returned the salute and he said, “Sir, we’ve run a diagnostic on your ship while you were meeting with Commodore Stone and found a chip in the rear blaster was defective. We’ve replaced it and it’s good as new.”

Dizzy smiled, “Thank you, Lieutenant. That’s really good work to have done it in such a short time frame.”

Lieutenant Aldun nodded and said, “You’ve been cleared to leave, Sir.” Dizzy nodded and went into her ship. Aldun watched her go and shook his head; that Rover Captain had one of the most beautiful smiles he had ever seen.”

• • •

“She’s lifting, Sir.”

Angel nodded and pulled her combat visor down as she punched the battle stations alarm. She immediately silenced he klaxons and left the lights flashing. She looked at the microphone on her visor and set it to play throughout the ship. The crew heard her when she said, “Captain Banks.”

Dizzy’s computer said, “The Admiral is calling you.”

“Put her on the speaker.” Dizzy heard the Admiral say her name and she said, “Yes Sir?”

“I want to thank you for coming and meeting with us; it’s always good when different commands work together.”

Dizzy smiled, “Indeed it is, Sir.”

“However, I have a small request to ask of you before you go.”

Dizzy’s eyes narrowed, “What is that, Sir?”

“I know Commodore Stone has discussed changing some tactics with you and you don’t agree with his view. Is that correct?”

“It is.”

“Well, I want you to move your ship one thousand yards in front of the Wellington and attempt to escape.”

“What?”

“I’ll accept your position on the tactics and you won’t hear from me again if you’re able to move your ship further than fifteen hundred yards away from me as I chase you.”

Dizzy smirked, “Admiral, that isn’t really a contest.”

“Good, then you won’t mind demonstrating your skills. Just open the gap five hundred more yards and you can jump away and go about your business.”

“Admiral, you can’t be serious?”

“I’m sending you a countdown. We’ll start this exercise in thirty seconds.”

The crew of the Wellington heard the conversation and everyone on board tightened everything down and buckled themselves in tightly to their chairs. The Admiral was going to try and run down a Rover. They all turned on the monitors at their stations so they could watch what happened. The Rover Pilots on board offered bets on how long it would take the Rover to escape and betting was wild and furious.

• • •

“Stumble, go to full power.”

“Already there, Dizzy. This Admiral needs to be taught a lesson.”

“Let’s not embarrass her too much; make a hard climb and then go hard left. We’ll accelerate away and not stick around to listen to her whine.”

“Yes Sir, this is going to be fun.”

Dizzy nodded and watched the countdown hit zero. She felt the ship go vertical and then make a hard left. She looked at the display on her panel and saw the distance between the giant Jukebox and her ship had been cut to eight hundred yards, “STUMBLES! WHAT’S GOING ON?”

“That ship cut the corner on both turns, Dizzy. The distance is now down to seven hundred yards.”

“Go to full speed.”

“I already have! It’s gaining on us.”

“I’ve got the controls!” Dizzy took the flight controls and began spiraling away from the pursuing white giant behind her. She dove, reversed course, banked right, and turned ninety degrees vertical.

“Distance is now four hundred yards.” Dizzy gritted her teeth and savagely whipped the Rover into a flat spin and dove out of it. “Distance is now three hundred yards.”

Dizzy continued to fly her Rover at incredible speeds and angles trying to escape the giant Jukebox Battleship stuck on its rear. Finally, she decided to try one last maneuver. She accelerated at full speed straight ahead and was shocked to see the giant close the gap even more. She made a hard right turn and came to an instant stop. She expected the giant ship to fly right by her. It stopped with its bow less than twenty yards away from her bridge window. Dizzy shook her head and heard, “Thank you, Captain; that was very enlightening. You may return to your command to fly with your Rovers.”

Dizzy stared at the giant white ship next to her port, “Stumbles, what happened?”

“Dizzy, that ship is faster and more maneuverable than me. If all of them are like this one, I may be out of date and no longer useful.”

Play back the recording of what happened. Dizzy leaned back in her chair and watched the giant run her down.

• • •

Bret stood up from his Combat Chair and rubbed his neck “I was pretty certain you were going to crack the ship’s spine during that flight.”

“The ship won’t do anything that would damage it; however, you were right; that Captain is a great pilot.”

Bret stared at the small Rover holding station next to the bow and said, “What is she doing?”

Angel stared at the wall monitor and said, “I hope she’s as smart as you say she is. I’ll soon know.”

“How?”

“Permission to come aboard, Admiral.”

Angel looked at Bret, “She’ll want to discuss what just happened. That will allow me to have a talk with her.” Angel pressed a button, “Permission granted, Captain.”

• • •

Dizzy flew her Rover into the landing bay and exited the ship’s portal. She stepped on the floor and found everyone in the landing bay applauding and cheering her. She looked at Lt. Aldun with her eyebrows lowered, “What is this about?”

“Sir, the crew just watched what happened and you did an outstanding job of flying your ship. All of our Rover Pilots on board are highly impressed with your skills and the rest of crew thinks you are one of the best pilots they’ve ever seen. You were fantastic.”

“But I lost.”

“Yeah, but the Admiral had a faster and more nimble ship than you did. It took her longer to run you down than our own Rover Pilots.”