Against the Odds

Chapter Sixteen

Esmay thought about what Kevil Mahoney had said, and the others had said, but none of it satisfied her, and when the nurse told them they could go back into Kevil’s room, she spoke up.

“I think your priorities are all off,” Esmay said. Brun and Kate both looked startled.

“What d’you mean? What could be more important than getting the government straightened out?”

“Putting down this mutiny,” Esmay said. “Look—if you don’t have a loyal military, you’re easy prey. The mutineers may be trying for a military coup. The Benignity says it won’t invade right now . . . but why would you believe them? They admit to murdering one head of state; they say they’ve done it before. They tried to take Xavier just a few years ago. I’ll bet they still want it. And the Bloodhorde—”

“They’re just ignorant barbarians,” Brun said. “They’re not a real threat.”

“Tell that to the people who died on Koskiusko,” Esmay said. “Or the people they’ve hit on planets and stations with their piracy. They’re not as serious a threat to the entire Familias as the Benignity, but I wouldn’t call them negligible, either. They could certainly disrupt trade. And if they got hold of some of our front-line ships and weapons—”

“You think like an admiral,” Kevil said. “That’s not a criticism; we need that input too.”

“I was looking up some history, last night,” Esmay said. “All the way back to Old Earth, political entities had to start with security first, and then worry about organization. Even the old kingships, it said.”

“People gather to a government that makes them feel safe?” Brun asked. “That sounds kind of dull.”

Esmay grinned at her. “Which way would you rather get your thrills, in a sport you chose, or in a war?”

“Point taken. So, the Fleet officer—”

“Former officer—”

“And soon to be again. The officer says look to our security first, which means get the mutiny settled.”

“And then—?”

“And then we see what we have to work with. There’s no way to hold all this together by force, even with the full strength of Fleet.”

“If you’re right, Esmay—and I have to say you may be—then we need to get you back in Fleet as fast as possible.”

“I have no idea how a discharged officer gets back in service,” Esmay said.

“Heris Serrano did it,” Brun said.

“With the help of the Serrano family I don’t doubt,” Esmay said drily, “which I don’t have.”

“You have me on your side, that counts for something. I could tackle Admiral Serrano on your behalf.”

Another ally appeared almost as soon as they were back at the Thornbuckle town house. A servant announced, “General Casimir Suiza.” Brun stared at Esmay, and Esmay, stunned, could not speak for a moment. Then she went to the door.

Esmay’s father, out of uniform, looked just as impressive. “Esmaya . . . I hope you’ll let me in . . .”

“I . . . of course.” She opened the door wider. She could feel Brun’s curiosity at her back and quickly introduced them.

“You’ll want to be alone,” Brun said, standing up.

“Not at all,” General Suiza said. “Please stay—at least until I’ve explained why I’m here.”

Brun sat back down, but gave Esmay a glance.

“Yes,” Esmay said. “Please stay.” Her heart was pounding; her mouth felt dry.

“Esmay—I know I’ve failed you in the past, but I couldn’t sit home and see you in trouble again without at least trying to help.”

“Sit down,” Esmay said, waving to the couch. He sat, and clasped his hands. “How did you get here so fast?”

“Someone sent word when you were discharged—to your home of record, apparently that’s standard procedure—but you’ll understand, it took quite a while for news of that to get to Altiplano. Then I heard you’d gotten on a merchant ship.”

“The Terakian Fortune.”

“Yes. There were delays in contacting Admiral Serrano, because she was in transit and because Fleet wasn’t too cooperative with me in granting ansible access to what they called ‘foreign military.’ The thing you need to know first, Esmaya, is that Admiral Vida Serrano had nothing to do with your discharge.”

“She didn’t?”

“No. She was angry, and so was I, that you young people chose to get married without anyone’s consent. She was angry about what she thought our family had done to the Serrano patrons. But we agreed that history can wait while we deal with the present crisis.”

The thought of her father and Admiral Serrano concentrating their formidable executive powers on her career gave Esmay a shiver of apprehension.

“Then the captain of the trader ship sent me a priority message from Zenebra, so I knew where you’d be next . . . and here I am. And don’t tell me you don’t need help,” her father said. He glanced at Brun. “Everyone needs help sometimes. You’ve proven your ability and independence.”

“Thanks,” Esmay said, feeling very trapped.

“But I can ask you what Admiral Serrano can’t. Do you want to get back in Fleet and command ships, or would you rather go back to Altiplano? Or settle in the Familias as a civilian?”

“Space,” Esmay said without hesitation. “But what about—”

“First things first,” her father said. “That was first—finding out what you wanted. They weren’t going to draft you against your will. Then the next complication is, your status as Landbride. Their regulations and our Landsmen’s Guild are both clear and unequivocal. I’ve argued the Landsmen’s Guild into the grudging agreement that you can resign in absentia, and Luci can be invested without delay—we will need several locks of your hair—” He looked at it. “If you could manage even a short braid—”

“Of course. And do I need to sign anything?”

“I brought the Order of Renunciation . . .” He gave her a long look. “Esmaya . . . I want you to know that you will always be welcome at home; Luci says that too. She’s still managing your herd; your Starmount award grant will always be yours. Your children—should you and Barin have children, which I hope you do—will be welcome there, as well, and considered legitimate heirs to the estancia.”

Her eyes stung with sudden tears. “Father—I do love the land . . . and Altiplano . . .”

“I know that. And Altiplano is very proud of its hero.” He took a big breath and sighed. “Thank God you’re not shutting me out—I was so afraid—”

From the distance of several years her anger now looked more like a local storm than a planet-circling cataclysm. He had been wrong; he was trying to make amends. A last niggling voice in her mind pointed out that he faced considerable difficulty in securing the Suiza place in the Landsmen’s Guild if she hadn’t cooperated, but she suppressed it. He did love her; his convenience wasn’t the only measure of worth.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she said, surprising herself because it was true. She had been baffled, and now she had an ally of no mean ability, one who was not trapped in a hospital bed. “Are you going to send the braid and certificate back to Altiplano, or carry them?”

“Carry them. Both Luci and the Landsmen’s Guild believe the Landbride’s Hair must not be consigned to the post like any ordinary object. I will need to make an ansible call back, to tell them you’re willing, and then I can stay long enough to be sure you get back into Fleet without trouble.”

Esmay was suddenly struck with another problem. “I don’t have but one uniform—the others were in transit when they discharged me, and who knows where they are now?”

“Surely this place has some military tailors who can fit you out?”

“Yes—” She wasn’t used to spending the kind of money it would take to replace all her uniforms.

“Don’t worry,” her father said. “Consider it my belated gift to you. Now if you don’t mind, I should make that call as soon as possible. Luci’s wedding is being held up pending—”

“Of course. There’s a terminal over in the banking center—”

While her father went to make his call, Esmay showered and washed her hair. She didn’t cut it, having a vague memory that the hair must be cut in front of official witnesses. “Do you want us to go or stay, Esmay?” Brun asked.

“Stay, please. I don’t know if he’ll need additional witnesses or not. That is, if you’re willing.”

“I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Brun said. “This whole Landbride thing fascinates me, and it’s not just the fancy dress. I remember my mother telling me about something she’d heard from her grandmother, about customs somewhere . . . can’t think where. Anyway, there it was the man who married the land.”

That sounded obscene to Esmay, but she told herself it was just a different culture. When her father returned, he had brought along the Altiplano docent, the representative who had no Seat on Council, but was allowed to submit minutes on Altiplano’s behalf. Esmay had never met him.

The man bowed. “Landbride Suiza. It is an honor.”

“Docent Faiza.”

“It is my understanding that you intend to renounce your position, in favor of a younger relative. Is this true?”

“It is,” Esmay said.

“In accordance with law and custom, belief and practice, it is my duty to be sure that this is indeed your will. If you will excuse us—” His gaze swept the room; Esmay’s father, Brun, and Kate retired into the hall.

Esmay noticed now that he held the paper which must be the Order of Renunciation. Her stomach clenched. Now that it came to it . . . the very feel of the earth beneath her bare feet that morning when she had sworn to protect the land forever came back to her. Could she renounce that? Tears stung her eyes again.

“Do you swear, Landbride Suiza, that you desire this of your own will, that no one has threatened you, or done you harm, or coerced you in any way to renounce your status?” He gazed at her solemnly; Esmay could hear the wind of Altiplano blowing through the summer grass, smell the rich fragrance of the summer pastures. Yet . . . much as she loved it, she did not love it enough.

“I so swear,” she said.

“Do you swear, Landbride Suiza, that your reason for this renunciation is your sincere care for the land of Suiza, and that your chosen successor will, in your unquestioning belief, protect this land better than you yourself could?” Was she sure Luci would be a better Landbride? Yes, for Luci had the undivided heart, as well as the intelligence and the character. The land would be better for having Luci as its guardian.

“I so swear.”

He lowered the paper. “I’m sorry, Landbride . . . though I am not a Suiza, and it has been years since I was home, I had been so proud of you—you made Altiplano famous in a good way.”

“I can’t do both,” Esmay said. “And I was away too long—I wanted to do the best for the land, but I don’t know enough about it. My cousin does. She’s been my agent.”

“Very well.” He picked up the paper again. “Now, I’ll need three witnesses to shearing your hair and your signature.”

Esmay called the others, and they came back. Docent Faiza spread the document on the table, and said, “Now you sign, and then your witnesses—and, Landbride, you must add a drop of blood.”

“Here, Esmay,” her father said. He took a small sheathed knife from his vest pocket. “This is the knife that has been used in the family for generations.”

“Most correct,” Docent Faiza said. “Landbride?”

Esmay slipped the small knife from the tooled leather sheath. She remembered seeing it on her great-grandmother’s desk; she’d always thought it was just a letter opener. She pricked her left ring finger with the sharp tip and squeezed a drop of blood onto the parchment. Then she took the pen the docent offered her and signed her name. Her father handed her the Landbride’s Seal, and she stamped it in blood . . . the most solemn of all seals. Then her father signed, and Brun, and Kate—the oddest collection of witnesses, Esmay thought, which could ever have witnessed a Landbride’s renunciation.

“In the old days,” the docent said, “a Landbride renouncing her position would cut off all her hair, that it might go into the Wind’s Offering. But since you’re going to have to live here, in the Familias . . .”

“They’ve seen bald women before,” Esmay said. “Besides, I can get a wig. If you think it’s best . . .”

“If you’re willing, it would certainly please the older members of the Landsmen’s Guild.”

What Barin would think of a bald wife, if she saw him again before her hair grew out, she didn’t know. But the ache below her breastbone told her this was the right thing to do.

“According to my researches,” the docent said, “they did not shave their heads—merely cut their hair as short as they could. Then they went into exile from their former lands until it grew long enough to touch the shoulders.” A very practical way, Esmay thought, to ensure that the new Landbride had time to gain control without interference from the former Landbride.

“I expect I’ll be away longer than that,” Esmay said.

“It’ll be easier if we braid it,” Brun said. “Here, sit down.”

“Good grief, it’s fluffy,” she said, as she tried to coax the first strands into a braid.

“I just washed it,” Esmay said. “You know that.”

“Well, we’ll have to wet it again, or we’ll have wisps instead of braids. Kate, bring me a bowl of water.”

Docent Faiza was disposed to be solemn about it, but even his solemnity was no match for the cheerfully irreverent banter of Brun and Kate as they struggled with Esmay’s recalcitrant hair. “I know I told you to get a layered cut next time,” Brun said, “but this is ridiculous. Nothing’s the same length as anything else . . .”

When they were done, Esmay had little tufts standing up where the braids had been, and even her father and the docent couldn’t keep a straight face.

“You should be glad we’re your friends, Esmay,” Brun said. “If we wanted to blackmail you—”

“I’ve been teased about my hair all my life,” Esmay said. “You can’t embarrass me that way. And now that I know what a good hairdresser can do—”

“Now,” the docent said, getting formal again, “I wish you the best of luck in your military career, Esmay Suiza. You have brought honor to Altiplano, and I’m sure you will bring more.” He rolled up the document, tied a black ribbon around it, and handed it to Esmay’s father.

“You’ll join us for some refreshment?” General Suiza said.

“Forgive me, General, but I cannot at this time. Later perhaps?”

“Of course. I expect to be here several days.”

The planetside headquarters of the Regular Space Service comprised a warren of buildings that radiated from the back of the Ministry of Defense, tunneling under and bridging over streets and tramways and throwing out subsidiary departments into odd corners of other governmental offices. Esmay, her father, Brun, and the docent of Altiplano began at the front end, at the Ministry of Defense, where a harrassed staff immediately announced they were in the wrong place. “Try recruiting,” one receptionist said. “It’s in the Michet Building.”

“It’s a personnel matter, not a recruiting matter,” General Suiza said.

“Oh—that would be the Corvey Building, but you have to go through security first. That way—” She pointed.

“That way” led down a long hall that wound to the right, then back to the left, and finally led them up a ramp to an elevated walkway along one side of a courtyard; down below, two people were talking, leaning on some kind of ornamental column. At the far end of the walkway, they came to the first set of guards.

“We’re looking for the Corvey Building,” General Suiza said. “They said it was this way.”

“You don’t have any ID tags,” the guard said.

“Do we need ID tags?”

“Visitors are supposed to get ID tags at the kiosk by the entrance.”

“There wasn’t one,” Brun said.

“Right by the State Street entrance—”

“We didn’t come in the State Street entrance; we came in the Lowe Street entrance.”

The guard frowned. “You’re supposed to have ID tags to come in that entrance at all. Wait here.” He stepped back and spoke into his comunit; they couldn’t hear what he said; his eyes never left them. Then he stepped forward again. “Which sept are you?”

“Barraclough,” Brun said without hesitation. “Why?”

The guard changed expression. “You’re—you’re the old speaker’s daughter . . . .you’re Brun Meager!”

“Yes,” Brun said. She sounded slightly truculent.

He beamed at her as if she’d just handed him a fortune. “I never thought I’d get to meet you. You look different in that suit; I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you right away. And these are friends of yours?”

“Yes,” Brun said.

“Oh, well, then, I’m sure it’s all right. If I could just see your ID, to have it on the records . . .”

Brun handed it over; Esmay was appalled. If they called this security—! She was glad Kate had decided not to come with them.

“That’s fine, sera . . . milady?”

“Thank you,” Brun said, without clarifying her status. “Are you sure it’s all right? We don’t want to get you in any trouble.”

“No, sera, that’s quite all right. It’s an honor to be of service. If your friends don’t mind, I’d like to put their names on the roster . . . will they need independent access? If so, we should get them some tags made up.”

“Certainly,” Brun said. “This is General Suiza, from Altiplano—his daughter Esmay Suiza—you may remember that she saved my life—”

The guard’s gaze rested briefly on Esmay, then slid quickly back to Brun. “Yes—of course—the hero of Xavier.”

“And the Docent of Altiplano, Ser Faiza.”

“Docent?”

“Diplomatic status,” Brun said, as if she’d always known it.

“Ah . . . yes, thank you, sers and seras. Sera Meager, I know it’s an imposition, but if you wouldn’t mind—my wife’s a big fan—” He fumbled in his pockets and pulled out a crumpled shopping list. “Would you sign it?”

“Of course,” Brun said, and scrawled her name with the stylus he offered.

The man said, clearly as an afterthought, “And you, Sera Suiza? My wife bought a cube of Sera Meager’s rescue—”

Esmay fitted in her signature under Brun’s—she couldn’t think of a gracious way to refuse—and wondered if the 2 p. crts. on the list under her name was crates, carrots, or something illegal.

The guard waved them through double doors into another corridor—a bridge over a street—and at the far end another guard opened the matching doors for them. “Sera Meager? It’s an honor—I’m calling ahead so you shouldn’t be stopped again, just go down this ramp, turn left, take the first corridor to the right and keep going . . .”

Brun, in what Esmay considered an excess of honesty, said, “But weren’t we supposed to go through security?”

“Oh, you don’t want to bother with them,” the man said. “They’re backed up at least three hours processing recruit clearances from that new intake that came in overnight. My wife works in catalog over there; she called to tell me she had to work overtime tonight. You’d be sitting on a bench until dark, most likely, and besides—they’re just not very helpful.”

Esmay closed her mouth on the comment that security was not supposed to be helpful, but thorough. She had no more desire to sit on a bench for hours than anyone else.

“What you do,” the man said, “is just go along here, and then out the door at the end, and straight across the Sif Memorial Garden to the side door of Corvey. Don’t go in the front; they’ll make you go back through security. Go in that side door; I’m calling Bev, and she’ll be expecting you.”

“Thank you,” Brun said.

The Sif Memorial Garden was only a small courtyard with a plinth in the middle, two straggly trees, four flowerbeds, and two benches. Straight across—with a detour around the plinth—brought them to the side door of the Corvey Building, where a woman let them in.

“Sera Meager! I’m so glad to meet you! And you, of course, Sera Suiza. Although I should know your rank; I just don’t remember—”

“Sera’s fine,” Esmay said. She could see, in the corridor ahead, figures moving about in the familiar uniform.

“I have temporary tags for all of you,” the woman said. She pulled out four violently pink tags, with little clips attached. “These are only day passes; I believe your permanent passes will be ready this evening or tomorrow.”

After all this confusion, Esmay was prepared for almost anything, she thought. Except for the discovery that her discharge hadn’t yet been transmitted to Headquarters and therefore they couldn’t reinstate her.

“Why not?” she asked. “Can’t you at least take my application, and the proof that I’m no longer a Landbride, so when it comes in—”

“Well, we could, if it weren’t for the mutiny. See, we have to run everything like that past the Judge Advocate General’s office, and right now they’re having some kind of snitfit because the admiral in charge disappeared, and they think he’s part of the mutiny.”

“And that means—?”

“It means they won’t take anything from us without a complete file. For the complete file, we’d need a copy of the discharge order, with the file number an’ everything, and your PR-S-87, your personnel file—”

“Isn’t there a copy of that here?”

“Yes, of course. But it may not be complete, because your most recent evaluations may not have been forwarded yet. I can’t think why the discharge wasn’t, unless it was cancelled—”

“Cancelled?”

“Well—if someone overruled whoever signed it, when they got it, then they might have sat on it until you showed up and they could tell you. Let’s see, where were you discharged?”

“Trinidad Station,” Esmay said.

“Oh, dear.”

“What?”

“You haven’t heard? Trinidad was sacked by the mutineers several weeks ago. We can’t get any records out of them. Do you have a discharge order?”

“Yes . . .” Esmay took it out and handed it over.

“Umph. Some people can’t even sign their names legibly . . . I’ll call up your file, and we’ll see how out-of-date it is . . .”

Her file was up-to-date only as far as the ill-fated leave to visit Barin and his family. “Nothing here about a discharge,” the clerk said. “The emergency orders that sent you from there to your next ship are here, but no more.” He paused, looked thoughtful, then said. “If the discharge hasn’t gone through, Lieutenant, you may actually be down as AWOL. You’d better go check with Personnel Assignment; I can’t access their server from this station. That’s in 2345. In the meantime, I’ll ask what we’d better do about clearing this discharge up when we don’t actually have it. Our CO’s in a meeting, but he’ll be back in the office any time now.”

Trailed by her support group, Esmay headed off for 2345—up a lift and down another long corridor. Once in Personnel Assignment, she gave her name to the clerk and explained briefly that she was trying to straighten out her records. He called up her name, and let out a long whistle.

“You’re in trouble, Lieutenant. You overstayed your leave, and we have you listed as a deserter. I’m going to have to call this in to the Judge Advocate General’s office; please do not try to leave. Here—you were notified twice—” He turned the screen so she could read it. First there was a message addressed to her on the transport Rosa Gloria, pointing out that she had not reported for duty as ordered at Harrican and warning that she would be considered AWOL if she did not report in within 24 hours and a deserter if she had not reported within seven (7) days. A second message to the same address informed her that she was now considered a deserter and should turn herself in to the nearest Fleet facility or face pursuit and arrest. Both time limits had long since expired.

“Great,” Esmay muttered as she read it. “Now I can be prosecuted for desertion after being thrown out on my ear . . .” Then, to the clerk, “I never got those notices; I wasn’t on that ship because I’d been discharged.”

“Do you have proof of discharge that predates this notice?” the clerk asked, as if he were sure she did not. “We should have had any such discharge in our records, which would have automatically cancelled this notice.”

“Good thing we made those certified copies of your discharge certificate,” Brun said. “Maybe we should have made more.”

Esmay handed over one of the copies, and the clerk compared the dates and consulted a graphic of relative dates. Sure enough, she had been discharged at Trinidad well before she was supposed to have reported at Harrican. The clerk nodded. “Well, then, you’re cleared of these charges presumptively, but I’ll have to get it signed off . . . just wait right here. If you leave, I’ll have to assume you’re deserting again.” He disappeared with all the documentation.

“I didn’t desert the first time,” Esmay muttered to the floor.

“This is stupid!” Brun said.

“No, it’s the military,” General Suiza said. “I hate to admit it, but even in Altiplano, we have mixups like this. Of course, there I can usually cut through it in less time, but even generals—and admirals, obviously—are at the mercy of clerks at times.” He looked around the office. “I’m going to get us some chairs; we may be here awhile.” He left before Esmay could say anything.

“He reminds me of my father in some ways,” Brun said. “Pretty much unflappable.”

Esmay did not mention that Brun’s father had been capable of flapping quite a lot when Brun was in danger. In a few minutes, her father returned with two chairs.

“Here. Have a seat. This is actually a magic trick, because if we get at all comfortable, they’ll be back to tell us to go somewhere else.”

Sure enough, Esmay and Brun had only just relaxed with a sigh when the clerk bustled back in.

“There you are—where’d you get those chairs? There aren’t supposed to be any chairs in here—”

“I brought them,” General Suiza said. “I’ll take them back.”

“You shouldn’t have,” the clerk said. “Lieutenant—or Sera, since you’re not a lieutenant now—Major Tenerif is trying to access your personnel record to see if that discharge certificate is genuine—it’s not the original, you know.”

“They have the original down in 1118,” Esmay said. “I left it with them, because they hadn’t received anything on the discharge yet.” She wondered just how soon after she’d left the mutineers had hit Trinidad Station.

“It’s most irregular,” the clerk said. “You’ll need to speak to Major Tenerif.”

“Is he free?”

“Well, not now—he’s on the horn trying to get your records.”

But at that moment, a major emerged from behind a screen. “Suiza?”

“I’m Esmay Suiza,” Esmay said.

“Damnedest thing I ever heard of,” the major said. “I’ve called JAG, and they’re willing to agree that you are not, at present, a deserter, but that still leaves a mess. Either the discharge was valid or it wasn’t. If it was, you’re completely clear of charges of desertion, and you’re a civilian. You’d have to apply to enter Fleet as a civilian, with a lapse in service and a considerable blot on your record. If the discharge wasn’t valid, or was cancelled somewhere in the process of completion, then it’s worse. You could be reinstated, of course. If you’re reinstated as of the date of discharge, which would be normal if the discharge were shown to be a fake, then you were actually on active duty when the notices of AWOL and desertion were sent, and the defense that you’d been discharged prior to that is no longer valid. You’d have to stand at least a judicial inquiry to ensure that you were not at fault, that you had reason to believe you’d been legitimately discharged, that it wasn’t some plot you’d cooked up to avoid duty in time of war.”

“The discharge certificate—”

“Well, yes, you have one, but it would still be a matter for a formal inquiry. If you’re reinstated as of this date, that means something has to explain the gap, besides the loss of time for pay and promotion consideration. And it’s messed up the assignment process. Someone else took over your slot; we can’t bump them out just because you showed up.” He shook his head. “We need you combat-experienced people, but we do not need a mess like this. And you need a friend in high places. You don’t happen to know Grand Admiral Savanche, do you?”

“No, sir,” Esmay said. “The only admiral I know is Admiral Serrano—Vida Serrano.”

“Ah. Her. Well, if the Serranos are behind you, that might help. But scuttlebutt has it they’re peeved with you.”

“Some of them,” Esmay said. She was not about to say more about her relationship to Barin unless she had to.

“You’d better hope she’s not one of the peeved ones,” the major said.

Fleet Headquarters planetside had access to Fleet ansible communications, but it took the combined efforts of Esmay, Brun, and General Suiza to convince someone to try to reach Admiral Vida Serrano, who had just taken over at Sector VII. When they finally did, her response was terse: “Reinstate her at once and get her out here where we need her. Mutineers attacking civilian ships . . .”

It took more than that one message, but by afternoon the next day, Major Tenerif was much more cheerful about the situation. “JAG’s dropped the desertion charge; apparently it’s been decided the discharge was a valid order when you got it, but a mistake at a higher level, and it didn’t get here because of the mess at Trinidad. Someone’s probably in a lot of trouble, but not—at this point—you. However, we do have some urgency in getting you back to duty. When can you be ready to travel?”

“Pay and allowances?” murmured General Suiza.

“Oh. Of course. I guess, if you haven’t been paid since—that would be before you went on leave, right?—and did your luggage catch up with you? No? Then you’ll need some things, I imagine. Well, we don’t issue pay here, but over in the Bursar’s division, you can get any monies owed. But can you be ready to travel in—let’s see, it’s already 1500—two days? That will put you aboard our next transport to Sector VII.”

“Yes, sir,” Esmay said. She would find a way, she told herself.

“Good. We already cut your orders—you’re going out to Sector VII to command Rascal, an upgraded patrol class.”

“Command a ship? Me?” Esmay’s voice almost squeaked.

“I don’t see why not,” Brun said.

The major shrugged. “We’re short-handed, Lieutenant. You’re the next qualified person on the list. And you are command track—”

“Yes, sir. Sorry, sir. It’s just—a surprise.”

“That’s all right.” The major allowed himself a small smile. “We’ve had similar reactions from some other younger officers who weren’t aware they now qualified for ship command.” He turned to the clerk. “Get those orders cut for shuttle transport day after tomorrow.” Then to Esmay. “You’ll want to get your credit updated before you leave. I’ve already told the Bursar’s office to expect you. . . .”

“Thank you, sir.”

On the way to that office, new orders in hand, Esmay couldn’t feel that this was real. From utter disgrace to ship command in one day?

“I still can’t believe they gave me a ship. I’m only a lieutenant—”

“Who has commanded ships in battle . . . What do you want, Es, an engraved invitation?” Brun asked. Then she mimed shock. “This is an engraved invitation.”

“Protocol . . . I don’t know all the protocol for it . . .” The memory of that hasty and scrambled assumption of command on Despite did not reassure her.

“That’s what fast-tapes are for. What about uniforms?”

“Right. Bursar’s office, then the tailor’s . . .”