The Clones of Mawcett (53 page)

Christa and Eliza came immediately to rigid attention, as did all the officers in the room.

“By special order of Space Command Headquarters, I'm pleased to announce that Christa Marie Carver and Eliza Kathleen Carver, having satisfied the educational requirements of Space Command's Northern Hemisphere Space Academy, are officially graduated from that fine institution, and inducted into the Galactic Space Command with the rank of Ensign.” The Admiral administered the Space Command oath of loyalty, and then said, “Congratulations, Ladies.”

The Admiral saluted Eliza and Christa and they returned the salute.

“Remain at attention, please,” Admiral Holt said.

“Christa Marie Carver, for conspicuous service to the Galactic Alliance, by selflessly endangering your life while acting as a decoy so shuttles carrying confiscated equipment would not fall into the hands of the Raiders, you are immediately promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade on this 3rd day of October, 2272.”

The admiral took a Lieutenant (jg)'s insignia from a box and pinned it on the right epaulet on Christa's uniform, handing her a second. Then he saluted her and she returned his salute.

The Admiral next moved over to Eliza.

“Eliza Kathleen Carver, for conspicuous service to the Galactic Alliance, by selflessly endangering your life while acting as a shuttle pilot to escape from Raiders with confiscated equipment, you are immediately promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade on this 3rd day of October, 2272.”

The admiral took a Lieutenant(jg)'s insignia from another box and likewise pinned it on Eliza's uniform, handing her the second. Then he saluted her and she returned his salute.

“The room shall be at rest,” the Admiral said. “The ceremony is complete.”

Eliza and Christa turned to Jenetta and all three had tears in their eyes. They hugged without regard for what anyone thought. Then the other officers moved in and congratulated the two women.

With the ceremony over, the other officers began to leave after offering their congratulations. Jenetta turned to the Admiral to see if they were dismissed.

“Stand by, Commander, until the room is clear.”

As the last officer left and the doors closed, leaving only Jenetta, Eliza, Christa, and Captain Kanes with the Admiral, the Admiral said to Eliza and Christa, “Ladies, Captain Kanes has requested that one of you be assigned to his section. Knowing that Commander Carver has several times stated her preference for a shipboard position, and knowing her competence in that regard, I told him that I would ask you before making any assignments. Do either of you wish to work in the Intelligence Section?”

“Thank you, sir,” Christa said, “but I'd prefer a position aboard a ship. I thank the Captain for his offer though.”

“I feel the same way, sir,” Eliza said.

“I expected as much. Very well.” Handing each woman a data ring attached to a card with her name, Holt said, “Lt. Christa Carver, you will report to the captain aboard the GSC battleship Chiron for bridge duty when it arrives in port in one month's time. Until then you'll report to Captain Kanes for temporary duty in Intelligence. He feels that if you have a chance to work there you might have a change of heart.” The admiral paused and looked at Eliza. “Lt. Eliza Carver, you'll report to the captain aboard the GSC battleship Bellona, currently in port, for bridge duty assignment. You two ladies are dismissed and may wait in the outer office for Commander Carver.”

The two new lieutenants came to attention, then turned and left the office. Jenetta stood there, unsure of what was about to come.

“Commander,” the admiral said, “have you had enough of lounging around?”

“Very definitely, sir.”

“Good. Captain Kanes has a little trip in mind and he'd like to discuss it with you.”

“Yes sir. Am I being assigned to the Intelligence Section?”

“Just temporarily. Captain Kanes feels that your contact with freighter officers while on Dixon might be useful in drawing up a plan of action. Then he'll travel with you on the Prometheus when it leaves. It's due to dock here in about four to six weeks.”

“With me, sir?”

“Yes, the Prometheus will spearhead the project.”

“Am I being re-assigned to the Prometheus, sir?”

“Oh, did I leave that out?” Admiral Holt said innocently, with the hint of a smile. “Yes, you're being re-assigned to the Prometheus. I'm sure that doesn't upset you, eh?”

"No sir. Absolutely not. Is Commander Eaton being assigned elsewhere?

“No, he'll remain on as second officer.”

“Then what will I be doing, sir?”

“You're replacing Commander Tighe, who's been promoted to the rank of captain and given his own ship, the Austin, a new destroyer being launched in about six months. He's been filling your position on the Prometheus during the past year and a half, so as to get some experience in battleship operations, while waiting for his ship to be completed at Mars.”

“My position?”

“Yes, the position that Captain Gavin promised to hold for you.”

“I don't understand. I thought that Commander Eaton was permanently assigned to my old position?”

“That's right. Commander Eaton was placed in your old position. Commander Tighe was placed in your new position. Immediately after being promoted to Commander, and following Commander LaSalle's unfortunate accident, you were named as First Officer of the Prometheus to replace her, but since you were temporarily assigned to Dixon, Tighe was assigned to fill in for you. He joined the ship when it reached the Mars shipyard.”

Jenetta was stunned. “I'm to be the First Officer on the Prometheus?”

“You already are the First Officer. You were listed as being on temporary assignment to Dixon, and you've been listed as being temporarily assigned to Higgins since completing your tour there. I'm glad we're finally able to complete these assignments. Captain Gavin keeps asking me when he's getting you back.”

“Yes sir. Thank you, Admiral.”

“Report to Captain Kanes tomorrow at SCI. He'll free you up when the Prometheus arrives and Tighe leaves the ship. That's all, Commander.”

“Yes sir,” Jenetta said smiling, then added in a soft voice, “Thank you, sir.”

The admiral smiled.

“Sir, what about my two cats?”

“Space Command permits all officers to keep one pet as long as that pet is kept in the officer's quarters, and the pet doesn't become a nuisance.”

“Yes sir, but I have two. I can't split them up. They provide company for each other when I'm not in my quarters. I fear that one may rip things up if left alone for too long.”

The Admiral snorted slightly. He couldn't dictate such policy exemptions aboard a ship commanded by another officer. “I'll speak to Captain Gavin and tell him that it's all right with me if, and only if, he concurs.”

Jenetta smiled and said, “Thank you, sir.” She came to attention, then turned and left the office. She now understood why Commander Eaton had been promoted into her old position aboard the Prometheus before it even left Dixon, and the hurt that she had felt disappeared in the blink of an eye. She chastised herself for the small feeling of resentment that she'd secretly harbored since learning about it during the dinner with the officers of the GSC destroyer San Francisco.

Eliza and Christa were waiting near the corridor door in the Admiral's outer office. They'd helped one another put the insignia of rank on their other shoulder while waiting, and added the line officer insignia to their collars that they'd found in the same small box.

“Well, Lieutenants,” Jenetta said peremptorily, “are you going to open the door for your Commander, or just stand there with silly grins on your faces.”

Both women came to attention, and then Christa waved her hand at the door sensor, opening the door to the corridor. As Jenetta walked between them, one of them suddenly swatted her on her backside as she passed. She paused only briefly and then ignored it and kept walking. Eliza and Christa caught up with her and fell in on her left side since she was the senior officer.

It was still too early for lunch, so the three women returned to Jenetta's quarters in the BOQ. With so much good news, they had to tell somebody, so they sat together in front of the com terminal and sent a message to Mom and Dad, filling them in on all that had happened in the Admiral's office."

As the message was dispatched, a signal indicated that an incoming message was waiting. Jenetta hit play and the screen lit up with the image of a smiling Mikel Arneu.

“Hello, Angel. Belated congratulations on your promotion. I thought we had you when that Tsgardi captain sent word that he'd captured you near Mawcett. Imagine my surprise when I learned that he only had a copy. And that stupid Tsgardi couldn't even hang onto a duplicate, despite being ordered to chain her to a wall with real chains. Then one of my subordinates came up with that failed plan to draw you away from Dixon so that we could capture you. You must tell me some day how you saw through that. I'll be sure to ask you before we wipe your mind. Sorry about the assassination attempt, by the way. The people responsible went against orders in an effort to curry favor with an Upper Council member. You won't have to worry about any of them ever bothering you again. Oh, I'm reserving three places at the resort now. I'll be seeing you.”

Jenetta slapped the screen down on the com unit. “We'll meet again, Arneu. But next time, you'll be the one chained to the wall.”

~ finis ~

*** Jenetta's exciting adventures continue in: ***

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Appendix

This chart is offered to assist readers who may be unfamiliar with military rank and the reporting structure. Newly commissioned officers begin at either ensign or second lieutenant rank.

Space Command Officer Hierarchy:

Admiral of the Fleet (5 Star)

Admiral (4 Star)

Vice-Admiral (3 Star)

Rear Admiral – Upper (2 Star)

Rear Admiral – Lower (1 Star)

Captain

Commander

Lt. Commander

Lieutenant

Lieutenant(jg) “Junior Grade”

Ensign

Space Marine Officer Hierarchy:

General (4 Star)

Lt. General (3 Star)

Major General (2 Star)

Brigadier General (1 Star)

Colonel

Lt. Colonel

Major

Captain

First Lieutenant

Second Lieutenant

The commanding officer on a ship is always referred to as Captain, regardless of his or her official military rank. Even an Ensign could be a Captain of the Ship, although that would only occur as the result of an unusual situation or emergency where no senior officers survive.

On Space Command ships and bases, time is measured according to a twenty-four clock, normally referred to as military time. For example, 8:42 PM would be referred to as 2042 hours. Chronometers are set to always agree with the date and time at Space Command Supreme Headquarters on Earth. This is known as GST, or Galactic System Time.

Admiralty Board:

Moore, Richard E - Admiral of the Fleet

Platt, Evelyn S. - Admiral - Director of Fleet Operations

Bradlee, Roger T. - Admiral - Director of Intelligence (SCI)

Ressler, Shana E. - Admiral - Director of Budget & Accounting

Hillaire, Arnold H. - Admiral - Director of Academies

Burke, Raymond A. - Vice-Admiral - Director of GSC Base Management

Ahmed, Raihana L. - Vice-Admiral - Dir. of Quartermaster Supply

Woo, Lon C. - Vice-Admiral - Dir. of Scientific & Expeditionary Forces

Plimley, Loretta J. - Rear-Admiral, (U) - Dir. of Weapons R&D

Hubera, Donald M. - Rear-Admiral, (U) - Dir. of Academy Curricula

Ship Speed Terminology:

Plus-1 - 1 kps

Sub-Light-1 - 1,000 kps

Light-1 - 299,792.458 kps or (c) (speed of light in a vacuum)

Light-150 or 150 c - 150 times the speed of light

Hyper-Space Factors:

IDS Communications Band - .0513 light years each minute (8.09 billion kps)

DeTect Range - 4 billion kilometers

Sample Distances:

Earth to Mars (Mean) - 78 million kilometers

Nearest star to our Sun - 4 light-years (Proxima Centauri)

Milky Way Galaxy diameter - 100,000 light-years

Thickness of M'Way at Sun - 2,000 light-years

Stars in Milky Way - 200 billion (est.)

Nearest galaxy (Andromeda) - 2 million light-years from M'Way

A light-year - 9,460,730,472,580.8 kilometers (in vacuum)

A light-second - 299,792.458 km (in vacuum)

Grid Unit - 1,000 Light Yrs² (1,000,000 Sq. LY)

Deca-Sector - 100 Light Years² (10,000 Sq. LY)

Sector - 10 Light Years² (100 Sq. LY)

Section - 94,607,304,725 km²

Sub-section - 946,073,047 km²

Mission Descriptions for Strategic Command Bases:

Strat Com 1 – Base - Location establishes it as a critical component of Space Command Operations - Serves as home-port to multiple warships that also serve in base's defense. All sections of Space Command maintain an active office at the base. Base Commander establishes all patrol routes and is authorized to override SHQ orders to ships within the sector(s) designated part of the base's operating territory.

Recommended rank of Commanding Officer: Rear Admiral (U)

Strat Com 2 – Base - Location establishes it as a crucial component of Space Command Operations - Serves as home-port to multiple warships that also serve in base's defense. All sections of Space Command maintain an active office at the base. Patrol routes established by SHQ.

Recommended rank of Commanding Officer: Rear Admiral (L)

Strat Com 3 – Base - Location establishes it as an important component of Space Command Operations - Serves as homeport to multiple warships that also serve in base's defense. Patrol routes established by SHQ.

Recommended rank of Commanding Officer: Captain

Strat Com 4 – Station - Location establishes it as an important terminal for Space Command personnel engaged in travel to/from postings, and for re-supply of vessels and outposts.

Recommended rank of Commanding Officer: Commander

Strat Com 5 – Outpost - Location makes it important for observation purposes and collection of information.

Recommended rank of Commanding Officer: Lt. Commander

No attempt has been made to show the thousands of stars, planets, and moons in this small part of G.A. space. The only purpose of this two-dimensional representation is to provide the reader with a feel for the spatial relationships between bases, systems, and celestial events referenced in the first three books of this series. The mean distance from Earth to Higgins Space Command Base has been calculated at 90.1538 light-years.

.jpg and .pdf versions of the above map are available for downloading at : http://www.deprima.com/ancillary/agu.html

should the names be unreadable in your printed or electronic media.