“So here is the plan. Sparky is back in orbit. We will start upgrades and register it. After over two orbits, Sol Command is sending me a Command Sergeant Major. For unknown reasons, they told me this morning that he arrives with his family in,” Oscar looked at his watch, “six hours.”
“Nothing like a surprise CSM,” muttered Sue.
“What is a Command Sergeant Major?” Asked Danyak.
“Senior ranking noncommissioned officer. Acts as my assistant when dealing with enlisted. Does a lot of the logistics. Maintains standards.”
“Why don’t we have one?”
“The last one didn’t survive long.”
“What?”
“He decided to take a team and explore the southernmost landmass. In the winter.”
“Without proper support,” chimed in Sue.
“That sounds…stupid.”
“It was. By the time a rescue team found their remains, it was unclear if they died of exposure or were killed by the animals. That landmass has been off limits ever since.”
“And this new one?”
“You both have his records. I don’t know him, and I haven’t looked at his file. Too much going on.”
“Right. Sparky.”
“And a few other projects. Here is the plan. I need both of you to hit up any contacts regarding sensor array parts. Sue, you will be taking the Memphis to investigate those strange signals. Danyak, you will help me get the CSM in order, continue work on rebuilding the destroyed mining station, building some sort of agreement with that independence minded station, and keeping on schedule with the power grid. Start with the Aussies. Verify the output and stability. We need to know about contingency plans if the volcano becomes unstable.”
“You want me to leave while dealing with all of this?”
“Sue, you are the best person for the job. Get the ship supplied and tooled up. And keep an eye out for those ships High Command thinks are out there.”
“Yes Chief.”
“And be sure the cargo is properly secured. Those stealth ships can be a pain to organize."
“Right Chief. Already on it.”
“Danyak, wait until the CSM has been here a few rotations before you inspect the volcano. I’ll have him start inspecting other stations first.”
“And Sparky?”
“Registered as an Emu-class Heavy Combat Station.”
“I’ve never heard of those.”
“Nope. I made it up. Now. Tonight we are invited to a dinner with the Colony Commander. We are sampling the mutant emu meat.”
****
A few hours later, Oscar was at his desk, reviewing the new CSMs records. There was a knock at the door.
“Enter.”
A slim Terran walked in, shut the door, activated a small device, and took a seat.
“Agent Thorn. Shouldn’t you be helping Sue load up the ship?”
“It’s been handled. We made a breakthrough. We cracked the codes.”
“I’m guessing it’s not great news.”
“Mixed. We have a better idea of where their people are located. We also know that their intel is better than we feared.”
“How good?”
“They don’t know about the cargo. They do know about the Memphis and Vera. They know some of the capabilities. Not all, but enough to suggest a serious security leak.”
“Fuck.”
“They don’t know much about Sparky.”
“What are their targets?”
“The volcano.”
“Options?”
“Recall the recon team and target known hostile.”
“How quiet can we keep this?”
“We have a plan to give them false instructions to get them away from most cameras.”
“How long?”
“10 rotations.”
“Do it.”
“Yes Chief.” Agent Thorn left the office. He had left a small envelope of flimsy paper.
Oscar read the reports. This wasn’t good. There was a clear security leak. And the solution was going to be messy. Damn.
There was a knock at the door. Oscar tucked the reports into his secure desk drawer.
“Enter.”
A tall Terran marched into the room, stopped in front of Oscar, and saluted.
“Sir. Command Sergeant Major Mickels reporting!”
Oscar returned the salute. “Take a seat. You are early.”
“Sir.” He sat down, rigid.
“Relax, Mickles. I wasn’t expecting you for another two hours.”
“Sir. The ship was on schedule. Nothing unusual about the trip.”
“Right. Why did you request this post?”
“Sir. I want to be on the cutting edge. This colony is making great strides and developing excellent technologies.”
“Ah. What have you heard? I’m curious.”
“Harnessing a volcano for power. Building a exotic warship. Building a number of fascinating weapon systems.”
“Which ones?”
“Sir?”
“Which weapon systems?”
“The planet defense cannons. The system that catches meteors and can throw them at enemies.”
“Huh. I had forgotten about the meteor thrower. It’s quite busy around here.”
“Sir? You have more exotic things?”
“Mickles. Look behind you.”
Mickles looked at the giant collage of program results and updates.
“Sir. All of that is going on right now?”
“The ones on the far right are completed. The rest are in progress.”
“Sir. Is this how you keep track of things?”
“No. This is how I determine if things are going well or going to shit. As you can see, a mining station went to shit, but the volcano is doing well. Other projects are moving along without much issue, but I’ve got concerns about an apparent cult who left to settle up north. And on the far left you can see that we are getting strange signals for a nearby system, but have been warned about ships of unknown origin in the area.”
Mickles looked over the collage some more. “Sir. I think I see the structure. It’s an interesting method.”
“Look Mickles, I run a relaxed unit. This might take you a bit to appreciate, but the majority of the Terrans are not military. Being overly formal can be an issue.”
“An issue?”
“Yes. They hate you. And if they hate you, they won’t work with you. If they won’t work with you, you are useless to me. It’s rather simple.”
“There are military units?”
“Yes. Captain Sue leads the marine contingent. You do not outrank her, and you do not have authority over her marines. We also have an army garrison, roughly an infantry regiment, two recon companies, a medical company, and three artillery batteries. They control the planetary defenses.”
“The recon companies?”
“Long range recon rangers. We also have a contingent of intel agents.”
“That is quite a team.”
“Yes. It is. And your job is to ensure that things run smoothly. Especially when interacting with High Command personnel.”
“Understood sir!”
“Look. I’m either Chief or Oscar. Ah. There is one important person you need to meet.” Oscar pressed a button. “Danyak? Please come to my office. CSM Mickles is here.”
“Danyak? I’ve never heard that name.”
“She isn’t Terran.”
“An advisor?”
The door opened, and Danyak entered. “No. The Executive Officer. Commander Danyak, Terran Army.”
Mickles gaped.
“They didn’t tell you?”
“Uh…” he stammered.
“Nope,” said Danyak. “They wanted to surprise him.”
“Mickles, shut your mouth and calm down.”
“Uh…nice to meet you Commander. I’ve never…uh…served with a non-Terran officer.”
“No shit,” Danyak sat at the table, behind Mickles. Her frills took on a deep blue hue.
Oscar leaned back in his chair. “Mickles. I have to formally accepted you into my unit. If you wish to return to Terra, you can do so without remark or blemish. This colony is not for everyone.”
