Ripples

The commanders argued amongst themselves. Susan Kemp was outraged. Jim Parker found Markov's arrival hilarious, calling it melodramatic. Maureen Kendle said nothing. She sat frowning at the crystal table, clenching her hands together in front of her.

It was Melanie Rocker that was the first to get to her feet. 'See you all tomorrow,' she said.

'Are you going?' Penning said.

'Yes.'

Penning pursed her lips, her nose twitching with irritation. 'Don't you think we have things to discuss?'

'Not really. We have a new general. We'd better get used to it. I still have operations to run.' She walked around the edge of the table and headed for the door.

Penning sat back in her chair, her thin blonde eyebrows rising as she opened her mouth to speak. 'Well, that's a pragmatic, approach,' she said.

'She's right,' Drefnig said. He stood up and faced them all. 'There's not much we can do about this tonight. If Lord Hades has decided that Thompson is not coming back then it's out of our hands. General Markov is here to take her place. We need to recognise that as a change in the command structure, and we need to act accordingly.'

'He didn't answer our questions,' Susan Kemp said, leaning forwards on her elbows. 'Who does he think he is? He's only been here five minutes and now he's gone again, leaving us with more questions than we had before.'

Drefnig shrugged and walked around the table. 'I'm sure we'll find out more in the coming days. There's nothing we can do tonight. Get some sleep. Tomorrow will bring what it brings. When we know more, we can discuss it then. So far, we don't have enough information to work with. Markov is our general. Accept him as such. Engage him one to one and get to know him. Tonight he gave his speech to a group of strangers. He'll continue to treat us like strangers until he comes to know us as individuals. Accept him as our leader. Talk to him. Serve him. If we do our duty, he will come to see our value.'

Penning watched Drefnig, dreamy green eyes admiring him from afar as her mouth hung just a little open. Harris reached across and gently lifted her chin with his index finger. When she glared at him, he winked in return.

'I'm going to my quarters,' Drefnig said. 'I suggest you all do the same, unless you have active operations to attend to. Tomorrow's going to be a busy day.'

'Aren't they all?' Richard Vanmarek said from the doorway.

Drefnig nodded. 'You missed quite a meeting,' he said.

'So it seems,' Vanmarek said with a cheeky smile. 'I watched most of it on the live visual logs. It looked interesting. Nobody got punched, right?'

'Not yet,' Drefnig said. 'But I'm not taking any bets on how long that will last.'

Vanmarek laughed and Drefnig raised one hand to wave at nobody in particular as he walked towards the door. Penning smiled into her hands.

'You should get some sleep too,' Harris said to her as he rose from his own seat.

Penning regarded him between her fingers, lifting her head to get a better look at him. 'I was thinking of taking a walk,' she said.

Harris squinted in her direction. 'Be careful you don't come across any tall dark strangers, won't you?' he said.

Penning blushed, freckles flushing around her nose. She kicked his boot under the table. 'At your age, you should have been in bed hours ago.'

Harris grunted and walked away with a smile.

Most of the other commanders had already started leaving the Orange Room. Kendle and Kemp remained in their seats, staring at each other. Parker was staring at the ceiling. He looked as though he hadn't noticed that the meeting had ended. Lance strode out of the door, muttering curses under his breath, and Harris followed close behind him.

When Harris reached the door, Vanmarek took his arm and pulled him to one side. 'So, what do you make of all this?' he said.

Harris regarded him with amusement. 'You're interested in my opinion?'

Vanmarek folded his arms across his chest and adopted a neutral expression. 'Of course not. It's just that you're so old, you've probably seen this kind of thing five times already.'

Harris rubbed his grey flecked beard. 'You're like a son to me, Vanmarek.'

'Really?'

'Yes, you're a disappointment. You make a lot of noise and you contribute little.'

Vanmarek laughed. 'So, what did you think?'

'I think Drefnig's right. General Markov will treat us like fools so long as we are unknown to him. I think he'll give everyone the default status of traitorous bastard until proven otherwise.'

'You think we should buddy up to him? Loosen him up a bit?'

'Something like that. Once he gets to know us as individuals, rather than just faces in a room, he'll be easier to deal with. He might still be an asshole, but a more reasonable one, perhaps.'

Vanmarek stuffed his hands in the pockets of his combat trousers and leant back against the wall. 'Okay. Shall we take him in sequence? Who goes first?'

'I'll find him first thing in the morning. I'm up earlier than you sleepy kids anyway.'

'Okay, grandpa. I'll track him down after you. Will you talk to Drefnig about it too?'

'I'll speak to him tomorrow. I'm sure he'll want to be in on it.'

'Good.'

Harris set off walking down the corridor. Vanmarek watched him go, whistling a happy tune to himself.

'You seem happy,' Kemp said, stepping out of the Orange Room.

'Tonight, I saw the Albatross,' Vanmarek said.

Kemp shrugged. 'It's just a vessel, like any other.'

Vanmarek shook his head. 'It's beautiful, like nothing you've ever seen before.'