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"You look the perfect picture of relaxation, sir," Garfield said with a smile.

"I'm just enjoying the calm before the storm."

"Storm? The weather is calling for average temps and clear skies for several days."

"Not that kind of storm. I'm talking about the political kind."

"But everything seems calm enough. The protests are over, the brass hats didn't hold you responsible for any of the trouble here, and we've been promised more personnel. Things seem to be rosy."

"We've been promised more people because we're going to need them. As soon as they start awakening those hundred eighty thousand sleepers, this planet is going to go from a quiet little outpost to a Mecca for entrepreneurs looking to cash in on the new opportunities here."

"But that will be the worry of the Outpost Commander, not you."

"Right now I'm worried they might stick me with the job."

"What about Carver?"

"Yeah, what about Carver? No one seems to know. I saw a news piece yesterday that said the newsies on Higgins are complaining because they're not allowed to interview her. Hell, they say they can't even find out where she's being cared for. She's not in the base hospital nor any of the usual care centers. Holt won’t even discuss it with them other than to say she's not available for interviews. The scuttlebutt is that she's still in a coma and not expected to recover."

"But she's a Carver. Don't they have some special healing power or something?"

"Perhaps her injuries were too extensive even for that. Anyway, if she doesn't make it back here, I'm afraid they might stick me in the CO spot until someone else can be appointed."

"Aren't you there already, pretty much?"

"All I really have to worry about right now is this base. And that's fine with me. There's no way I want that Dakistee Outpost CO job. You know me— I'm not good at dealing with civilians, politicians, or newsies."

"Few military people are."

"Carver is. She's the ideal candidate, if she recovers."

"Wouldn’t it bother you to be subordinate to someone with lower rank?"

"She's an O-4. That's just one pay grade behind me. And she's the clone of a full admiral with all the same capabilities and knowledge of Admiral Carver. No, it doesn't bother me to report to her. I'm happy to have her to run interference for us, and perhaps she can get us some of the appropriations money I've been asking for. I just hope she recovers and gets back here soon. This planet is going to implode in the near future and I don't want to be the one stuck holding the reins when it does."

Chapter Twenty-Six

~ January 29
^th
, 2286 ~

"This is Neal Neally, reporting outside the Space Command Judicial Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia where the court-martial of Rear Admiral Donald M. Hubera has just concluded," the reporter said to the oh-gee camera focused on his face from a meter away. The judicial building could be seen in the background. "Reporters were barred from the courtroom, so my information comes from a Space Command document with key highlights prepared for the press.

"The trial was not a lengthy one, but it was paused for six weeks until the court-martial of Captain Robledo was concluded, owing to complaints of prejudice and innuendo filed by Admiral Hubera's civilian attorney. As has already been reported, Captain Robledo was found guilty of all charges and remanded to the prison colony on Saquer Major for the remainder of his life. He will be housed in the same, no-visitor detention block as the former Flag Secretary of Admiral Elersey, Captain Dumona, who was found guilty of similar charges back in 2268. Two other senior officers, whom it was proved also accepted bribes or payments from the Raiders, were likewise incarcerated at that time. Admiral Elersey was censured and dismissed from the service for incompetence. In this new case, no other Space Command officers were found to be complicit with Captain Robledo.

"Admiral Hubera has been found guilty of the charges against him, but, owing to his lifetime of excellent service to Space Command, the court decided he will only be reduced in rank to Captain and permitted to retire from Space Command. We do not yet have a copy of the proceedings log, but I understand it shows that Captain Robledo was at least partially responsible for provoking Admiral Hubera into taking the actions he did.

"This is Neal Neally, reporting live from the Space Command Judicial Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. We'll bring you additional coverage as new information comes our way. Good day."

* * *

"It's a shame Donald allowed his opposition to Admiral Carver be so inflamed by his Flag Secretary that he lost control of his better judgment," Admiral Moore said to the other admirals as they ate lunch in their private dining room. "And we'll never know just how long it's been happening. Robledo might have been inciting aggression towards Jenetta and her sisters for years."

"I think I'll almost miss his haranguing," Admiral Platt said. "It was quite tedious at times, but he often enlivened an otherwise dull afternoon."

"I'll miss him," Admiral Hillaire said. "I often enjoyed his repartee on various issues."

"Now that surprises me," Admiral Bradlee said. "You two always seemed to be ready to duke it out."

"That was part of the fun. He'd get my blood boiling and I'd do the same to him. As Evelyn says, he usually enlivened things, although he could be tedious at times."

"I suppose we'll have to prepare a slate of potential candidates to fill his seat," Admiral Ahmed said.

"Perhaps not," Admiral Moore said. "I've been informed that things are finally moving ahead on Nordakia. As you know, the Academy there has reached full enrollment and all officers in the Space Force now speak Amer fluently. They are required to use Amer exclusively when aboard ship. Space Force officers who failed to commit the Space Command Handbook to memory have received a separation date. They'll be moved to the space merchant services. Once that happens, we'll be able to begin the merger of the Space Force with Space Command. Admiral Yuthkotl will join us here as a member of the Board."

"It's been a long time coming," Admiral Plimley said.

"Yes. It was a shame we couldn't have Admiral Carver take over the transition as we once planned," Admiral Ressler said. "I have no doubt it would have sped the process immensely."

"It's a shame neither of her sisters had sufficient rank to take on the job," Admiral Woo said.

"Speaking of Admiral Carver," Admiral Bradlee said, "perhaps we should consider bringing her here to fill Donald's seat, even though Admiral Yuthkotl might be joining us. None of us are getting any younger and we need to begin infusing some new blood into the Board."

"The problem," Admiral Platt said, "is that she's still very much needed in Region Two. And since we've never assigned anyone to Region Three, she's handling that workload as well. I doubt we could free her up out there. Who else could hold that part of space together as well as she has?"

"If we assigned someone to Region Three," Admiral Woo said, "we'd have to find them a fleet somewhere and we just don't have the resources for a third fleet right now. It's far better to have Jenetta in control of both territories for the time being. That way she can send her ships where they're needed. I see it as the most effective use of our ships, even if it does place an incredible strain on the Second Fleet and on Admiral Carver."

"I received a note from her yesterday," Admiral Moore said. "She's on the way to Higgins to see her sister."

"Is there any update on Commander Carver's condition?"

"No. The last word from Admiral Holt was that she's still comatose."

"Being comatose for two months is not a good sign," Admiral Hillaire said.

"Her head wound was extremely serious," Admiral Plimley said. "The shoulder wound wasn't too bad, but the lattice wound to the abdomen had to be. Since it was under her ribcage, it had to have passed completely through her body. The blood loss from the torso and shoulder wounds, combined with the damage from the head wound, would kill most people."

"Is Admiral Carver intending to come here?" Admiral Bradlee asked.

"She didn't mention it," Admiral Moore said, "but I'm sure she will if we request it."

"I think it would be good to get a personal update on Regions Two and Three. We haven't spoken in person since the start of the THUG war. I'd like to hear her personal assessment of the situation there now. There must be things we should know that she can't put into official reports."

"Very well," Admiral Moore said. "I'll send her a note requesting she stop here before going back. She'll probably want an opportunity to see her family on Earth anyway after having traveled so far to see her sister."

* * *

Without requesting it, the Ares received a straight-in flight path by Higgins SCB Approach Control. It was just one of the perks always afforded to visiting admirals. Jenetta was on the Admiral's bridge with her aide, Lt. Commander Ashraf, in addition to a communications chief, a tactical officer, and navigator, but the ship was naturally being piloted from the Captain's bridge.

As the ship drew near the docking ring, Jenetta had the tactical officer 'erase' the walls, overhead, and deck. It was like approaching the station in a glass bubble. Only the seating, consoles, and grid lines on the deck gave some perspective of where the floor actually was. It would be far too easy to get disoriented without the thin red lines on the deck, so even the tactical officer had no control over them.

"I love this sensation," Ashraf said to Jenetta.

"It makes you feel sort of god-like, doesn't it? I mean, it seems like you're whisking through the ice-cold vacuum of space without even an EVA suit."

"Yes, it reminds me of when I was small and we kids would sit on the front fender of my grandpa's oh-gee truck on his farm back on Earth. No noise, nothing obscuring your vision, just the wind rushing gently across your face and through your hair."

"I can get you a fan if you want," Jenetta quipped.

Lori smiled and said, "That's alright, ma'am. I can do without. Besides, there's no wind in a vacuum."

"True," Jenetta said, smiling.

"Welcome to Higgins, Admiral," The affable face on the large monitor said, as the ship docked.

"Thank you, Brian," Jenetta said from the command chair on the Admiral's bridge. "I hope you haven't arranged a pretentious greeting ceremony."

"No more than what is minimally required for a visiting admiral who recently brought peace to the entire GA."

Jenetta smiled slightly and accepted that some small ceremony was required. She would bear up and attempt to curtail it as quickly as possible.

When Jenetta stepped from the docking platform into the docking ring proper, a small band began to play and spectators began to scream her name. She smiled and waved, although the worry about her sister kept her from getting into the mood. Still, she performed her role adequately and delivered a small speech, then thanked everyone for their enthusiastic welcome. Her security detail kept her admirers at arm's length because she had feared bringing her Taurentlus-Thur Jumakas, Tanya and Cayla into the throng. The hundred-sixty-pound cats were always nervous in crowds and their fierce protective nature could be problematic if someone not in a Space Command uniform got too close.

When at last they could get away, she climbed into the open-topped limo and waved to the crowd as it sped away.

"That was what you called minimal?" Jenetta said to Admiral Holt.

"That was about as minimal as the PR office would accept. They cited me chapter and verse about the length of the speeches and the band size required in the regulations until I told them to go hang the regulations and cut everything in half."

"Thank you. Now tell me about Christa. Your notes haven't given me any details. The news reports say she remains in a coma."

"Wait until we're in my office, please."

"Brian, what's going on?"

"My office, please, Jenetta."

"Very well."

When they arrived at Admiral Holt's office, all he did was nod to his aide and walk down the corridor. Jenetta followed along behind and held her tongue until the doors had closed behind them.

"Now, why all surreptitious behavior?" Jenetta asked.

Holt took a deep breath and released it slowly. "Jenetta, it's my sad, sad duty to inform you that Christa died in that shootout on Dakistee. According to the doctor, she bled out in minutes. The man who shot her died just a meter away, allegedly by her hand. Her laser weapon caused massive internal injury to him and he probably expired before she did."

"Christa's dead?" Jenetta said as the shock reached down and took ahold of her. "But she's supposed to be in a coma here at Higgins."

"I didn't want anyone to know until you heard the news first, in person. Even the Admiralty Board doesn't know she died. They still believe she's in critical condition, lying in a coma."

Jenetta walked to one the overstuffed chairs that faced Holt's desk and sank down. "You know, when you've been in as many fights as I have and you always come out unharmed, or at least minimally harmed, you almost begin to believe you'll live forever. Thousands of people have died around me over the years— millions if you count the enemies of the GA, so it's a shock to realize you're still mortal. Christa was born in a unique manner, but I loved her as if we had shared space in my mother's womb and grown up together. I remember the hug we shared just before she left on this mission. I feel like a part of me has just died, which I guess it has since she was my clone. And now— I have to tell my family she's gone." Jenetta hung her head as grief took hold.

Holt sat down in his chair behind the desk and tapped a button on his com unit. "Send her in," was all he said.

A few seconds later, the door to the corridor opened and a Lt. Commander entered. Jenetta looked up, then jumped to her feet in surprise.