Riss Series 4: The Riss Accession (24 page)

Stenberg.>

Stenberg
appeared on the monitor almost immediately. "Good morning, Leader Reese.
As you probably guessed, the last several days have been spent discussing the
incident on the
Sea Eagle
. I have to
agree with Admiral Kephalos that you are a lightning rod for trouble." He
held up his hand to forestall any comments, which was unnecessary as I agreed.
"I've had correspondence with Admirals Plimson and Wattson, and we agree
General
Alojzy
, Admiral Franz, and Captain Singleton exceeded their authority. While
Admiral Kephalos wasn't directly involved, his attitude and comments about you
contributed to your unacceptable treatment. While I didn't agree with your
response, Wattson believes it may have saved your life or at least prevented SAS
personnel from killing SAS personnel." He paused, appearing to wait on my
response. When I didn't say anything, he continued.

"Admiral
Wattson has promoted Gebauer to full Rear Admiral. He will arrive tomorrow and
take responsibility for the operations here at Freeland. Kephalos and the
Sea Eagle
are being returned to Eden.
Wattson thought you would concur."

"I do.
Admiral Gebauer is an outstanding officer whom I respect. He will be able to
relate with those men and women who hate or fear the Riss. He did and still does;
however, he also understands the war is against the Aliens and not its allies,
who are necessary if we are to win the war. I think he is an excellent choice.

* * *

"Well,
Commander Iglis, you invited me for coffee because?" I said, sitting in
Iglis's office sipping on a chocolate flavored kaffa.

She tried not
to smile. "I happened to procure this special brand of kaffa which I had
heard you enjoyed and thought to share a cup with you."

"It's
delicious. The first time I tasted it was while waiting on a summons to Admiral
Plimson's office."

"You know
Admiral Gebauer arrived two days ago. You probably aren't interested, but the
word is he's met with every captain, XO, and army colonel on Freeland. His
message has been something like:

"I never liked the Riss-human project and
thought introducing a parasite into a human body an abomination.
I hated
the idea of Riss-humans in the SAS navy and did everything I could to discredit
the then Lieutenant Reese.
So I
understand if you feel the same way. But I have nothing against the Riss. They
are
an amazing people
. Ironically,
if it hadn't been for people like Reese, we would never have them as allies.
And their technology is saving thousands of SAS navy and army lives. And
although I am still uncomfortable with Riss-humans, I respect Reese. I'm not
asking you to like the Riss or the Riss-human concept, but as long as you are
in the military, you will obey orders or suffer the consequences. Reese is the
Leader
of a nation allied with the SAS and
critical to winning the war. As such, she will be accorded the same honor and
respect due a Fleet Admiral."

"Yes,
that is what I expected. Good officers grow and adapt.
He's exactly what
Freeland needs at this time."

* * *

Gebauer.>

"Good
morning, Leader Reese. I'm sorry for the delay, but it has taken a few days to
settle in. I was hoping we could meet and discuss Riss training and
certification. I don't guarantee everyone loves you, but I think everyone
understands who's the enemy and who's the ally." He smiled.

"Congratulations
on your promotion. In my opinion, Admiral Wattson made a good choice. I think
you are the right man for this assignment. And I'd be happy to meet with you to
discuss how the Riss can best support your mission on Freeland."

"Thank
you, Reese. Regardless of anything else, I believe we respect each other's
commitment and can find solutions that are mutually beneficial. Is tomorrow at
thirteen hundred hours on the
Red-Tail
Eagle
acceptable?"

"Yes. If
you don't mind, I will bring my XO, Sheva."

"I think
that is a good idea. Sheva is a well-known captain. I think some of my captains
might like talking to her. Until tomorrow," he said and cut the
connection.

"Sounds
like fun, I think," Sheva said. She had been on the Bridge with me
discussing the stations and getting to know her Bridge-sisters.

"I've
found that pretending there isn't a problem or ignoring it and hoping it will
go away doesn't work. People need to see we are human. We aren't blood-sucking monsters
or disease carriers and don't morph into anything."

"But we
are alien."

"Yes,
they tend to see us as aliens, but we are humans who are hosting other
intelligent beings. We haven't lost any part of our humanity. We've each gained
a partner."

"That's
true, I guess. But you seem to think like the Riss... so much so they let you
speak for them," she said, frowning slightly.

"Most see
the Riss as dumb animals. In fact, they are a very old and mature race. The
longer someone is exposed to them,
the more likely
it is you will
see their philosophy as the evolution of civilization and agree with
them."

stop call you little one. Grow up fast.>

being young. More fun.>

Nothing take apart now.> Image of Gorillai and me sitting in rocking chairs
watching others play.

Sheva's voice
jerked me back to her. "I must admit: in the end, it was their philosophy
that made me want to become a Riss-human and be part of their nation."

* * *

I was
surprised when I exited the shuttle into the
Red-tail
bay
to find a captain waiting.

"Welcome
aboard the
Red-tail,
Leader Reese.
I'm Captain Gallager," he said with a broad smile. Although older, his
dark red hair had no gray, his clean-shaven face had few wrinkles, and he
looked to be in
good
condition. "I was interested in meeting you in person and
ensuring you had everything you needed. If you don't object, your Ghosts will
be docked in the Shark bay. We've heard a great deal about them, and everyone
is interested in seeing them.
On the radar
, it looked like your shuttle was
traveling alone."

"Yes, Ghosts
are one of the many miracles Freeland has produced for us. I appreciate you
meeting us in person. I'd like you to meet Sheva, who will soon captain the
Elpis
."

"Nice to
meet you, Sheva. You have a good reputation among many of the commanders here
on Freeland. If you'd like, I'll give you a tour of the
Red-tail
after the staff meeting. She's the newest Heavy, and I'm
rather proud of her."

"We would
like that, Captain," I said as we made our way out of the bay, up to the
second level and down a long corridor where
two
Wasps stood guard. When we entered, a
large group of captains stood in small groups talking. Gebauer left the group
he was with and came walking over to us.

"Leader
Reese, Sheva, I assume you were not bothered on the way over."

"No, Admiral.
It was very uneventful. Thank you."

"Ladies
and gentlemen, if you would take your sea
ts," he said in a raised
voice.
After
everyone was seated, he continued.
"For those who may not have met her, may
I introduce Leader Reese. Leader is a position rather than a rank, as the Riss
have
no ranks. But
as Leader, Reese, who is also the captain of the
Mnemosyne
, speaks for every Riss. The other lady is former Captain Sheva,
who
many of you may know or have
heard
of since she's had a long and distinguished career
in the SAS. I've asked Leader Reese here to discuss our upcoming training in
preparation of forming task forces and joining the war. Leader Reese," he
said and sat.

"Freeland
is more than a staging area. It's where the SAS is transitioning peacetime cruisers
and personnel to wartime—"

"Cruisers
are war machines, and we serve in the SAS military."

"That's where
the confusion comes in. Before we fight in a war, we assume we are ready for
war because we are in the military and command war machines. That makes us
dedicated to the security of the SAS and willing to give our lives in defense
of the SAS. But does that make us ready for war?

"How many
in this room have been in a war? How many have been to the war college and
graduated
With Comment
? Are your cruisers
a match for the enemy? No one doubts your bravery. But when you destroy an Alien
cruiser or fighter, you are killing a copy of an intelligent being. When they
destroy your cruiser, they are killing real humans—comrades in arms,
friends, mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers... Our ships must, therefore, be
better than theirs, and you must meet them knowing their weaknesses if we are
going to win the war.

"Here in Freeland,
your ships will be upgraded with the latest technology we have, and Admiral Gebauer
will run exercises that have proven effective in battles with the Aliens.
Questions?"

"You are
implying that our ships aren't the equal of the Aliens’," a woman captain
said, more like a challenge.

"Their
cruisers are a match for our hunters. Their firing rate is faster, their ECM as
good as a Heavy, and their fighters the equivalent of manned missiles. And we
have no match for their
Medusa
class
cruisers. Without the new technology and training, an SAS task force couldn't
destroy one."

That started a
lot of whispered conversations and disbelieving looks.

"Leader
Reese is right. The Aliens are intelligent, have excellent ships, and centuries
of battle experience. We are at war with a technologically advanced nation, not
a few mercenaries with modern weapons systems. It will require the combined
forces of the SAS, UFN, and the Riss if we are to stand a chance of
winning."

"What do
these new missiles do that the standard SAS missiles don't?" an older
Captain asked.

"First,
they don't replace the standard SAS missiles. They supplement them. They were
designed for the Riss cruisers, but they proved effective in battle,
so
they are
being added as an option."

"I hear
only the Riss can use some of this technology?" the other woman captain in
the room said, watching Sheva. "And you refused to provide every ship with
Riss."

"Some of
the technology requires the use of Riss mathematics. The Riss have no secrets
from the SAS. I have and will continue to provide Riss to teach it to
interested and capable individuals. But like any advanced mathematics, it takes
time to learn, and not everyone has the aptitude to learn it."

"Why do
we need to learn it? You
could
just provide Riss."

"The
technology is available to the SAS, and the Riss are willing to help those who demonstrate
they want it. Admiral Gebauer and I have agreed to provide a training seminar
to determine cruisers eligible for Symath technology. Riss will be assigned to
those cruisers until the crew feels confident to manage on their own. This is
the procedure Admiral Wattson approved when forming the Echo task forces.
Twenty-three of the fifty-six cruisers on Echo qualified and have Riss
assigned."

The
discussions went on well into the evening. I had to admit I encountered no
direct hostility, although
to Thalia
it
was
obvious not everyone liked me.
Afterward, Gallager gave Sheva and me a tour of the
Red-Tail
.

* * *

"On the
surface, the meeting went very well, but walking around talking to people, they
expressed a lot of hostility toward Riss-humans and the Riss," Sheva said
as we sat in the shuttle on our way back to the
Mnemosyne
.

"Yes, that
is why I won't assign Riss to every SAS or UFN ship. Too many of those people
will act on their prejudices.
In most cases
, it will be verbal abuse, but
inevitably, Riss will be physically assaulted and possibly killed. I won't
subject the Riss to that kind of environment. I will assign Riss only to ships
were they are wanted and respected for the intelligent, gentle people they are."

"I
understand."

* * *

The next three
months went by with relatively few incidents. The captains and crews knew they
were being evaluated for inclusion into
new task
forces which would be deployed to Echo,
and senior captains knew their potential for a promotion to rear admiral, lower
rank. The first month was mostly classes on the new missiles and seminars on
Symath. Gebauer did schedule a match every other day between the
Elpis
and three or four SAS cruisers.
The idea was to expose the captains to the new missiles, demonstrate their uses
and effectiveness, and to give Sheva an opportunity to practice.