It is good to know that you come from a family with a tradition of serving the Armed Forces, Mister Theodopholus Alexander. You will receive the questionnaire soon. But don't expect a mere surname to help you, no matter how famous it is.
Admiral George R. Hall
Theo mused at the emphasis on the cover letter in his application packet. It was unusual, to say the least, to see an Admiral personally addressing a request to enter the Academy.
Apparently, Chief Bilbrey had flagged his application for special attention.
"Well," Lord Alexander thought to himself, "that whole business of my being the younger son of Earl Stirling might have seemed that I was trying to influence the decision. On the other hand, father did tell me that a certain segment of their Lordships resented the fact that he had to resign right after the short list for Commodore was published."
It hadn't been Captain James Alexander's fault. Henry Alexander had died in his sleep the day before his Centennial birthday, and it had been just as much James' duty to ascend to the Earldom, even more so, than to become Commodore. It was just that some people didn't approve of the loss to the Service.
Muttering to himself as he set about entering the data, Theo said, "I wonder if Admiral Hall knew father personally."
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
Between courses in Astrogation, Shiphandling and Engineering, running five miles a day, small arms and boarding tactics training, and a hundred other things, the Academy was proving to be just as dogged as his older brother had promised.
On the bright side, he had been drafted into being an Assistant Instructor in the Social curriculum. Being raised in Bretonia's upper crust allowed him to help the other Midshipmen to learn proper social graces, which forks to use, etc. It didn't get him out of anything else or grant any special priveleges, but, at least there, he didn't feel like a total novice.
Added to that was dodging people hoping to make "connections" because of who he was. Theo was by no means shy, but he had learned at a young age that there were people that wanted to be "friends" not for friendship's sake, but for advantage. He'd slowly been getting to know some of the other middies, but it was a cautious process.
His last thought before drifting off was to set his N-Net to wake him 15 minutes earlier so he could polish his boots.
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
Theo stood, wearing his dress uniform for the first time, at attention in the ranks. After a speech about the promise he and his fellow middies represented, and the duty they were about to assume, they were ordered to raise their right hands.
"....and to obey the lawful orders of the officers appointed over me. I shall uphold the honor of the Crown though it cost me my life.
I so swear!"
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
Flight school had been a bugger, but callsign Angel had come through with a solid sense of achievement. Theo knew that simulators and training flights could only take you so far, but he had done well and earned his callsign by "saving" two of his flight mates from being "killed" when they got too cocky and tried to take liberties with the senior instructors.
Commander Jameson had made him watch every Crash and Burn vid Flight School had to show what his antics might have caused, then run him through flying sims until Theo couldn't see straight. The extra drill, and the criticism that went with it, had made a noticeable improvement in his ship handling.
Now, standing in HMS Harlow's boat bay and watching the controlled chaos, sudden shock struck like a hammer as he internalized the fact that he was Ensign Alexander, Bretonian Armed Forces.
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
From: Their Lordships of Admiralty, Office of Personnel Management
To: Ensign Theodopholus Alexander
Subj: Temporary Assigned Duties (TAD), HMS Stirling
1. Due to a recent escalation of activity by the Gauls in the Dundee system, Her Majesty's Navy finds itself in need of additional pilots. You are hereby ordered and commanded to an indefinite TAD assignment aboard HMS Stirling.
2. Assignment includes all equipment, including your currently assigned Templar. Report to HMS Stirling as immediately as possible. You will assume duties as directed by Flight Operations.
3. Good luck, and good hunting.
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
Theo stood in the small state room shower, steaming rising all about him.
He'd fired his first shots in anger today, and lived up to callsign Angel, both as a warrior and as a rescuer. Saving both his own wingmen, and the Gallic pilots, had been well worth the time, but he knew there were more than nine crewmen aboard the cruiser.
He thought he better understood what his father had been trying to tell him. They were the enemy, but, they were still people. It would never do to forget that. Father's quote of the original Winston Churchill made much more sense now; "In War: Resolution. In Defeat: Defiance. In Victory: Magnanimity. In Peace: Good Will."
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
The Templar settled onto the docking field with a lurch. A soft shushing sound indicated that the hatch seal had popped.
As Theo crawled out of the cockpit, his crew chief, Petty Officer Bollard, strode up. "Bloody hell, m'Lord. You go out drinking and decide to drive home through the ice fields? She looks like you let my uncle's mastiff play with it."
Alexander scrubbed his face with his hands, then looked at the disgruntled PO. "I ran into a pirate that made a pretty fair imitation of a light cruiser, chief. I couldn't chew him up, and he couldn't get enough of me to keep me from coming home. Doesn't mean he didn't give it his best shot, though."
The three spacers that served as crew for Bollard began working on the Templar, evaluating damage, looking at ammo levels, etc.
Bollard watched them for a moment, then lowered his voice. "You listen to me, boss. I want the number of times you bring her home to be equal to the number of times you take her out . I can always get another bird to work on, but we only got so many pilots to go around. I happen to be getting used to you, so you just keeping bringing her back. Alright?"
Throat constricted, Theo looked at the older man and slowly nodded.
We all have an Angelic and a Demonic side. Use of them determines good or evil in the end.
I hope this finds you in good health. Thank you for your last letter. I appreciate the updates on the family, and miss them a lot.
As you can see from the message header, the military still has that quirky sense of humour you warned me about. Some joker in Personnel seems to have found it amusing to send Earl Stirling's son out to HMS Stirling as a duty station. I am not complaining, though. It is a good post and my mates are a good, if slightly mazzo, crew.
As with any chain of command, I have been getting a fair amount of scut work. The wing had to replace one of its bombers, and I got elected to head back to the core worlds and pick it up. Apparently, they do this so that the pilot has time to determine whether there are any significant glitches on the flight. Lord knows, I would have thought it would be cheaper to send the thing out on the regular supply run.
Anyway, during the trip RTB, I encountered a privateer. Father, this crew was above and beyond. I know they have speckled reputations, but, for who they are, you could have used these lads as role models for getting the job done. I really think they need to be heard. I thought, with you being on the Naval Affairs committee in the House of Lords, I just thought you might want to know.
Tell mum not to worry too much, even though we both know she will anyway. (letter wanders off into family details)