The Admiral and the Assistant

Jazen Starfallen sat bolt upright in the sturdy plastic seat, his gaze fixed eagerly on the podium at the front of the hall. His heart thumped. Today was his formal enlistment in the Imperial Navy. Today, he'd be a Navy man, like his father and his grandfather.

He was in a small hall, holding no more than a few dozen people. Glass cases lined the walls, filled with plaques and trophies commemorating the accomplishments of various Naval recruits. A large Imperial flag hung behind the stage.

The commissioning officer, an elderly gentleman, shuffled up to the podium and began sorting through his notes as people continued to drift in.

Jazen fidgeted with his paperwork. His grandfather had been a war hero, and his father a career Navy man. Jazen had spent his childhood listening to the stories of the Navy-- both the exciting and the mundane. He desperately hoped he wouldn't screw this up. Above all else he did not want to dishonor his father or the memory of his grandfather. He wanted to do well in the Navy.

He stared at the people around him. Surrounding him was the usual mix of Terrans and other species: over there was a bulky, bull-like Taurian, and nearer him to his right was a slim, mousy Musculin. There were a few other species he didn't even recognize, for all that he'd grown up on Ceon 12. All types could fit into the Navy.

If they could, he could, too.

"You nervous?" said a fellow next to him. Jazen looked over. A young man with golden curls and a saucy smile lounged in the next seat.

"No," Jazen squeaked.

The young man scoffed, not unkindly. He held out a hand.

"Zan Aven," he said. Jazen shook the proffered hand.

"Jazen Starfallen."

Zan stretched out, managing to look a little lazy even in the uncomfortable chair.

"My dad's making me join," he said. "Says I have to learn about the real world before I can take over the family business."

Jazen nodded, a serious expression on his face.

"My father was a Chief Warrant Officer," he said, "and my grandfather was a Lieutenant Commander," Jazen said. "I want to join and get promoted as far as I can, maybe even be a Captain someday. I want to make my father proud."

"Navy family, huh? That's cool." Zan put his hands behind his head. "I'll probably cap out at Lieutenant or something. Just enough to get Dad off my back. He says I'm too shielded from the real world. Coddled, is what he calls it." Zan waved a hand around carelessly. "And whose fault is that? Not mine, I say. I figure I'll do the minimum stint and get back home so I can start my career."

"Oh, where are you from?" Jazen asked.

"Orlan, on Ceon 12. My dad own the Blackstar Trust Financial Group out there."

"Oh," Jazen said quietly. "So you must be rich."

Zan shrugged.

"I guess. What about you?"

"I'm from Gragua, also on Ceon 12. It's pretty small."

"Ah, planet brothers!" Zan said, slapping Jazen on the back. "What are the chances?"

Jazen shrugged uncomfortably.

"We're in the office in Techterra," he said meekly. "I figure most of us here are from Ceon 12."

Zan grinned at him.

"See, you're a thinker. I like that." He leaned back in the chair. "We should hang out." He sighed. "When's this thing gonna start?"

Zan gasped suddenly. His chair thumped forward. His wide eyes were fixed on a tall, broad-shouldered man who had just walked into the hall. He moved with supreme confidence, and glared over the assembly.

Zan grabbed Jazen's sleeve.

"Full sync," he breathed. "What's he doing here?"

"What? Who?" Jazen asked.

"That's Admiral freaking Stonefist!" Zan hissed, pointing at the man. "The freaking hero of Arcturus!"

Jazen peered closely at the man, then gaped. If you took twenty years and a few dozen scars off, he did indeed look like the recruitment posters that featured the legendary Admiral.

Jazen suddenly felt very small. Why an Admiral-- especially that Admiral-- would show up for an enlistment ceremony was beyond his comprehension.

Instead of walking up to the stage as expected, Admiral Stonefist walked to the back of the hall and sat in one of the uncomfortable seats in the very last row.

"He's the one who defeated the Oryndrax last year in the Alvor system," Zan said breathlessly.

"He broke the conspiracy in Techterra," Jazen said. "That big terror attack in Techterra? They say he captured the man responsible."

"I heard that he can speak the language of the Cryptographers," Zan said. "They say he talks with them all the time."

"I heard he married an SS," Jazen said. "I don't know how he did that and stayed out of jail."

"Dude, when you're Admiral freaking Stonefist, you get to do whatever you want."

"I guess so."

They stared at him, along with most of the enlistees in the room. Admiral Stonefist, for his part, kept his eyes fixed on the podium.

"Let's begin," said the commissioning officer, his elderly voice creaking. The eyes in the room reluctantly turned back to the front.

"The Imperial Navy welcomes you all," he began. "The Navy is the backbone of the Imperium. You all are enlisting today to protect the citizens of the Imperium."

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The commissioning officer droned on in his dry, dusty voice, talking about duty, honor, and the glory of the Imperium.

Zan leaned over.

"Do you think he's here to recruit someone for the Ninth Fleet?" Zan whispered.

Jazen tried hard not to glance back at the Admiral.

"From a bunch of enlistees? Doubtful."

"Yeah, well why's he here, then? Maybe there's an assassin in our midst." Zan began eyeing the other enlistees carefully.

"An Admiral wouldn't deal with an assassin directly," Jazen scoffed.

"Why not? He got that terrorist in Techterra. They say he blew the entire top off the Avalon Heights apartment building to get to him."

Somebody behind them cleared his throat meaningfully. Jazen and Zan shrank in their seats a little and fell silent. It had clearly come from Admiral Stonefist. Even so small a sound carried the weight of absolute authority.

The old officer at the podium finally finished his speech, his thin, monotonous voice creaking to a halt.

"We will now have the oath of enlistment," he said. "When I call your name, please come to the podium. Zan Aven."

"Oops, that's me," Zan said, popping up from his seat.

He made his way to the podium.

"Please raise your right hand and repeat after me."

Zan repeated the oath dutifully and sat back down. The officer called the next enlistee.

He went slowly through all the enlistees in the room, swearing each one in.

Zan and Jazen whispered quietly about the recruits around them, mindful of the eyes of Admiral Stonefist behind them. Zan knew many more species than Jazen did, coming from a more urbane area. Jazen was asking about some of the species he didn't recognize.

"What's that one?" Jazen asked, pointing subtly at one of the other recruits.

"That's an Ursine," Zan said. "From the Magua system. They're kinda slow, but don't make one of them mad."

"Oh, okay. What about that one?" he said, nodding at another recruit.

Zan's brow wrinkled.

"I don't know. She's some kind of Saurian, maybe? I've never heard of one with red skin, though."

Jazen's name was called. He went up and swore his oath, and sat back down.

The two began speculating again, but the next name called grabbed their ears.

"Kinnit Longlegs Stonefist," the officer said.

The not-a-Saurian popped up from her seat and walked to the podium with a huge sunny smile. Every eye in the room turned to look back at Admiral Stonefist, then back at Kinnit.

"Repeat after me," the old officer said.

Kinnit repeated the oath in a loud, clear voice.

"I, Kinnit Longlegs Stonefist, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Imperium against all enemies, that I will defend her citizens against any threat; that I give my all, even my life, for the glory and honor of the Imperium. I will serve faithfully with allegiance; I will obey the orders of the Emperor and the orders of the officers appointed over me. This I so swear.""

"Is that the Admiral's wife?" Jazen whispered.

"Well I don't think it's his sister," Zan replied.

The old officer saluted Kinnit, and she ripped an energetic salute back. Then she sat back down.

The commissioning officer ground through the remainder of the names, but quiet whispers circled the room.

"I heard one of the guys behind us say she was a Kobold," Zan said.

"I've never heard of them," Jazen replied. He watched Kinnit, who was watching the dry ceremony with bright, happy eyes. He cut a look back at the Admiral, who was sitting stiffly with his arms crossed. "I guess now we know why the Admiral's here."

"Now that everybody has taken the oath," the old officer said, "I see we have a distinguished guest with us today. Admiral Stonefist, would you care to come say a few words to the new recruits?"

Admiral Stonefist face stiffened, his face taking on the cast of someone who's been suddenly asked to perform a duty they weren't expecting. Nevertheless, he stood and strode to the podium.

"Thank you, sir," Admiral Stonefist said. His gaze raked the crowd, cowing everyone to silence. He began to speak.

"You have each joined the Navy for your own reasons," he said, his strong voice ringing throughout the small hall. "Some of you for a career, some for duty. Some to see the galaxy." He glanced at Kinnit, and his gaze softened a little. "All reasons for joining are valid. Your reasons for being here are all different. But now you are all part of one family, with one goal and one purpose. You will protect the Imperium. You will stand against her enemies. You will not falter or fall in your duty. You will make the Imperium great, and it in turn, will make you great. Embrace your duty. Embrace your family. Embrace the Imperium." He stood straight and saluted the assembled enlistees.

Jazen's eyes shone and his heart raced. Admiral Stonefist's words had stirred him. He was a protector of the Imperium now. He glanced over at Zan-- even he was looking patriotic after the Admiral's speech.

Jazen stood and saluted the Admiral back, as did the rest of the room.

"All hail the Imperium!" Admiral Stonefist barked.

"All hail the Imperium!" they cried in return.

Captain Minius had a toothy grin affixed to his face. He was clanking around the outside of his ship, making his way to his new prize. As he walked, his feet would magnetically clunk onto the surface, then release automatically as he pushed himself forward. His thinsuit was worn and patched, slowly leaking oxygen, but he didn't have time to patch it more. He had to investigate their captured scrap bloom.

Brutus followed him in his custom thinsuit. Brutus' thinsuit was in much better condition. It had been a custom job, which meant better quality all around.

They made their way over to the bloom. The bundle was tightly bound with the cabling from the crane. Various scrap and trash surrounded a small vessel.

"Okay, Flander," Minius said into his thinsuit radio to the robot stationed on the bridge. "We are here. Do loosen the crane."

The taut cabling relaxed slightly. Minius carefully pulled a springy bundle of crumpled sheet steel off the bloom and handed it to Brutus.

"That will go in the fore storage for our light shred," Minius said. Brutus nodded his huge head, and started wrapping a light netting around the scrap. Minius peeled something else off.

"This are plastic. Aft trash room."

Minius carried on cautiously pulling bits of scrap away from the bloom, working his way toward the hatch of the ship. In spite of his excitement, he worked circumspectly. In hard vacuum, around heavy equipment and scrap of unknown material, even the famously lackadaisical Minius moved carefully.

"Ah, here it are," he said finally. "Brutus, help me up to the hatch."

Brutus took one of the captain's feet in his wide hand. Holding tightly, he carefully lifted the captain toward the open hatch.

"Brutus, you're crushing my ankle."

"I don't want to accidentally lose my grip on you," Brutus replied in his thick, slow voice. "If you drift away out here, I don't know if we can get you back."

"Well you won't drop me," Minius replied. "I can't feel my foot, though."

Brutus reluctantly loosened his grip slightly and navigated the captain closer to the hatch.

"I won't be able to follow you in there, Minius," Brutus said.

"I know. I are just going to look, see if we can repair the ship. Think of it! Think of the price this could bring! We'd live like kings!"

"For a while," Brutus nodded.

Minius didn't respond, he clambered on board. Brutus could hear him huffing through the radio, and felt the vibrations of his movement through the scrap tied to the vessel. Minius was busily banging around through the ship.

"Oh," Minius said finally through the radio.

"What's wrong?" Brutus asked.

"The reactor did burn through the hull."

"Could we patch it?"

"Not a hole this big. The jet did run along the bottom of the hull. It opened the vessel up from stem to stern."

"Oh," Brutus replied. "It's still a big load of scrap, though."

The captain didn't respond, only clanked around some more.

Eventually, Brutus heard the captain gasp.

"What's wrong?"

"The engines are good!" he crowed. "The reactor meltdown must have happened fast. It didn't have time to burn out the engines!"

"What kind of price can we get on those?"

"Price? We'll mount them to the Ocher Dawn! This are an Imperial Interceptor, these are heavy engines! These two little beauties will double our towing power!"

"Ah, so we can pull more scrap."

"And fetch bigger blooms! And the hull, that's full of fine Navy metals. It are not a ship we can repair, but we will be sitting pretty on a great stack of money here soon!"

The captain cackled with glee and continued to search through the burned-out vessel, plundering every usable component.