Victory and ridicule. That is what Hall saw in McIntire's eyes. That... rookie has reached the position of Commodore thanks to him, and this is how he pays back? Literally, as this wasn't about honour, but about investment. A man who was supposed to support him now supports his enemy. On the other side, maybe he had a reason to. Perhaps he calculated that it would be easier to climb to power by serving the one in power with dedication, instead of fighting against her. Competing at who serves O'Brien better was, according to Hall, not an option, as that would imply playing her game, allowing her to manipulate the players from her unreachable height like an obsessive puppet master. But on the other hand, Hall could not think of any other way to reach his aim. He prepared his cards in one sleeve, but also a dagger in the other one. Making O'Brien think that he has been tamed was Hall's plan. When her guard is down, he will strike.
"You are too kind, Fleet Admiral. Too kind to the Gauls, in your wish to be kind to us. We are members of the Admiralty, I am even a Knight, and we are supposed to make more out of less better than any other soldier. My fleets will contribute with 20% of our logistics ships and 30% of our marines. We are not planning to board anything soon, should the Freeport 1 case be settled. I will lobby, and you know I am good at that, the Rheinland government to order their military to attack Dresden, in which case some weight will be shifted off of my fleets. This will allow me to send you a squadron consisting of two destroyers, four gunboats and a proportionate wing of fighters and bombers. Nevertheless, I will still need that scanning equipment for Poole, as the system is suspiciously filling up with pirates, from unknown sources. If you think that I can contribute more, ask."
He mockingly turns towards McIntire, looking at him from a height, as if his eyes are victoriously whispering: "Can a peripheral fleet lead by a mere Commodore match these contributions even in your dreams?"
Surprise was the first thing coming to his mind regarding Halls action. Many things are to be expected of Hall, but playing along was not one of them. In his world it surely made sense to give up on his position to gain a moral victory though, be it as insignifficant as showing someone he regards as lesser his place. But one thing Hall was showing everyone at this table now was that he saw McIntire as a danger. The target of Halls mistrust just was not sure yet if it was of help for the cause or of danger for himself.
Nevertheless Hall just contributed an important deed to the effort of gaining Leeds back, maybe loosing this little game was of use for the greater good.
Slowly taking his eyes off of Hall he turned to the Fleet Admiral, prepared for Halls smugness.
Hall is right, we will have to contribute more to gain the upper hand. The Essex fleet is able to contribute 25% of its marines, Dublin is a rough turf and we can not be sure of what we will face in the next months considering the secure Gallic position in Edinburgh. I can order 15% of the logistic division ships to the north, along with a few fighterwings and some Churchills along with their escorts. I can not contribute more heavy units, the danger of leaving an open flank is too high in this system and I will not take the risk to open the doors to New London for the enemys of the Kingdom.
The Essex fleet is not the biggest, I can not compensate too many ships considering the Gallic fleet sits in the next system.
He could nearly feel how Hall kept his eyes on him, satisfied of what he just heard. He did not even cast a glance at him but rather let his view wander through the round.
Michelle raised her eyebrows as she wrote these items down on her notepad, A little concerned that they may be competing amongst themselves, she conformed it regadless, leaving herself a note to keep an eye on how the respective fleets hold out over time
Admiral Hall, please do not think I'm being kind to you. I do not wish to leave our sides undefended so the organised priates and other terrorists may take advantage. However, if you both believe you can suitably continue in your operations, then we will continue the construction of the new assault group, with your additions taken into account. Thank you both.
I believe this brings this meeting to a close. I will activate all committed Merchant Navy assets on their newest task poste haste. We will convene in a month to appropriately evaluate how this has effected our fleets, and how quickly we can move forward on this. Time is not on our side.
![[Image: 396AUfe.png]](https://i.imgur.com/396AUfe.png)
