Chapter 28

It was the day prior to Destiny Groups' departure from J1 when James of Sue's Clan contacted the Command Staffs. "Command Staffs, we are reasonably certain that there are two objects headed toward this location. At their current velocity they are about 4 clock cycles from us."

"Okay," replied Keriann, "but we are departing tomorrow at 0800."

"Some of us think these objects turned toward us a short time after we arrived. We only recently verified their destination. Before this we haven't seen any objects that looked even remotely like them moving in our direction. On this basis alone we wouldn't have assigned any significance to these objects.

"However, Intelligence is fairly certain that the freighters were equipped with a tracking device. As we understand it, a device was found by the programmers when setting up the freighters' new controllers and section AIs. In testing the equipment scheduled to be replaced they found that under certain conditions the navigation and propulsion controllers would send a signal to the section AI, but it never arrived. With a bit of detective work they found a controller receiving the signal. It had power and an input line but there wasn't any output. Their first thought was that it was just more evidence of sloppy repair work, so the programmers dropped the code for sending the signal to these devices and then Engineering removed them. When the power was cut to the first one it hummed and got very warm. After that the crew attached a small portable power supply to it before disconnecting it from the ship's systems. The devices were all immediately taken out of the ship and placed in a nearby floating junk pile, after removing the power supply. In space, each generated some heat on being disconnected but nothing else was detected."

"So your suspicions are that these devices may have summoned someone," said Siobhan.

"Yes, but we do admit that the connection is very weak."

"Well," said Rusty, "we could leave a disbursed field of trash, along with the stuff we stripped out of the freighters. First though, let's see if our robots can open one of the devices, at some distance from us."

"So you're thinking of something like the submariners used to do?" said Chester of Keriann's Clan.

"Yes."

"We're game," said Molly's Clan.

"So are we," added the other Command Staffs.

Maureen said, "James get in touch with Alana's Clan. I suspect that Cathal has done something like this before. There are probably others, but they are the first that came to mind."

"We have a couple of exploration probes on our ship," said Jackie of Jackie's Clan. "Wouldn't it be prudent to place them so they could monitor this area for a week or so, and then have them meet us later? It would potentially tidy up determining what happens after we leave."

"I like that," came several thoughts. "We might want to consider this at other points on our trip."

"Okay, then let's be about it," said Sarah. "We don't have much time before departure."

"I'll contact Alana's Clan," said James.

"We'll have our Operations set up two exploration probes and have them in place today," said Jackie.

"Thanks," said James before breaking off his connection.

"We are still on for our conference at 1600, correct?" checked Aoife of Sarah's Clan.

"Yes," replied the Command Staffs.

At 1600, Siobhan said to the other Command Staffs, "We are on the bridge and ready for our conference."

One by one each Command Staff actively joined the telepathic conference.

Casidhe said, "Let me open things with a quick update on the freighters. We have two flight crews, along with engineering support, on FLDC-1, FLDC-2, & FLDC-3. There are sufficient staff on them to operate them manually if it comes to that. None of the tests or checkout data have indicated any issues, but..."

"We understand," said Sarah's Clan. The comment was quickly affirmed by the other staff members. "As we said last night, we are ready to depart because everyone contributed in getting us to this point."

Jackie said, "The probes are nearly ready, the schedule calls for them to be in position by 2200 hours. All of Fiontar's systems are ready and on line. We have no lingering issues."

Molly said, "FLDC-3 is linked to Marthanóir and indicates all systems ready for departure. Its crew is from both Fiontar and us as Casidhe indicated. All of Marthanóir's systems are ready and on line."

Kelly said, "The crew of Iarracht is ready and anxious to be on our way. All ships' systems are nominal and on line. On another issue, some of us have reviewed the data related to the issue James brought to our attention this morning. We are now certain that leaving the debris field is an excellent idea. Several of our crew helped Alana's Clan set it up. It is scheduled to mushroom with a flash 12 hours after our departure."

"We are in the same situation as Marthanóir," said Brittany of Kathryn's Clan. "FLDC-2 is linked to Taiséalai and indicating that all systems are ready. All the crew is on board. All Taiséalai's systems are nominal and on line. We are ready."

The status reports by Phoenix and Eagle were virtually identical to the other ships, as was FÓCT-001's.

"We on Dóchas are as anxious as all of you," said Sarah. "Two of our flight crews are riding on FÓCT-001 even though we haven't seen any issues with its operation. We have set our morning chimes for 0400 to give us a little more time to finalize preparations for departure."

"We will do that as well," replied the other Command Staffs.

"I really don't think we will need morning chimes," said Siobhan, "as I think everyone will be up long before then."

"We decided to do it anyway as it triggers the breakfast sequence. Tomorrow could be a very long clock cycle."

"It will only have 24 hours in it," said Eileen of Siobhan's Clan.

"You know what I mean," replied Sarah sticking her tongue out.

"Did you just stick your tongue out at me?"

"Yep, you bet."

"I would rather feel it, and hopefully soon."

"I am game. Perhaps while we are traveling to J2. How about half of us visit your ship while some of you come here."

"That is a great idea."

"Yes, it is," said Molly. "We were trying to figure out a way to exchange visits during this next segment if things are quieter than the last one."

"We will be looking forward to it," said Aoife. "We do need to keep each other appraised of when we go visiting. It should be obvious through our link, but..."

"Agreed," replied everyone.

The Command Staffs chatted until the evening chimes sounded on their ships.

"Looks like it is time to freshen up for dinner," said Kathy.

"Yes," came the replies.

"We will be on the bridge by 0700 and intend to start the departure sequence at 0730," said Sarah. "We will raise the level of our link with all of you when we get up."

"Agreed," replied everyone.

"Let's get ready for dinner," said Conan. "Have a great evening and sleep well as tomorrow will be as smooth as silk."

"Do I hear a prophet?" questioned someone which was followed by laughter.

When the laughter died down, everyone said goodbye.

It was 0400 the morning of departure when the morning chimes sounded on all ships in Destiny Group. Many were already stirring before they sounded; in fact many of the crew were already eating. Everyone was excited. For some it was because they wanted to see how much better the freighters would perform. Many looked at their departure today as putting them one step closer to Celia System.

When Sarah's Clan entered the dining room at 0500 they were surprised to see some of the crew already cleaning up their breakfast dishes. After taking a closer look, they could see that many had already finished their breakfast.

"Wasn't breakfast scheduled for 0500?" asked Terry.

"I thought so," replied Janet.

"It was," replied Eryn of Nicola's Clan.

"Most of us turned in early last night as we wanted to be prepared, this could be a long day," added Róise of Muireann's Clan.

"Okay. We could have our morning conference before we eat, as it will likely be short," said Jill.

"Nope," said Sarah firmly. "We will follow our schedule as it was laid out." Her sharp reply drew several surprised looks. Seeing them she continued, "We have a schedule, along with associated check lists. These provide us with a path to get under way with few, if any, errors. Rushing the schedule invites errors, and we don't have any reason to increase our risk."

"Commander Sarah," said Eryn, "you make an excellent point." The use of 'Commander' resulted in Sarah raising an eyebrow. "As excited as we are, rushing our departure would likely invite Murphy, and we don't need to encourage him. It would be a different matter if it was a call to 'battle stations'."

Sarah replied, "Where did the title 'Commander' come from?"

"You are one of the Commanders," replied Eryn.

"No. I am simply one member of one of this family's Command Staffs."

"Sarah," said Rusty, "she is correctly using the title Commander to formally address you with respect to the operation of this ship." Sarah frowned. "Most of us understand why you responded the way you did about the title. Your concern, and in fact our concern, is that titles can build barriers between groups of people."

"You're right."

"I understand your concern," replied Eryn, "in fact we all do. However, there are times when it seems inappropriate to not include your title along with your name."

"And you're right," said Sarah. "My apologies. I shouldn't have responded the way I did."

"Could we discuss the use of titles as a family?" asked Eryn. "We have organizational charts for each of our ships which designates roles and duties. In every case, there is a name or group associated with a position. Perhaps titles or functional names need to be a part of the org chart."

"Certainly," replied Rusty. "Why don't we schedule it a couple clock cycles into the next leg of our journey? That will give us time to get things settled so that everyone can take part. I take it you have some ideas."

"Well yes, but they are only preliminary."

"I take it you've eaten," said Terry.

"Yes."

"Well, time is marching on, so Eryn, why don't you and the others in your group come sit with us while we eat. This way we can bat around some ideas and concerns."

"Yes, ma'am."

Once they were eating Rusty said, "Eryn, beyond Sarah's response to you, what prompted your interest in adding titles and ranks to our family structure?"

"First let me assure all of you that none us want to create a situation that builds barriers between any of us. When there weren't as many of us the lack of rank or titles was not an obvious issue. We knew everyone well enough to instantly recognize them and we knew their skill set. When anyone moved to a different set of duties, or a different position, all of us immediately knew about it. Now that our family is much larger, it is difficult to keep up with the changes. This is now compounded by us being spread across our ships."

"So you are looking for a visual clue of a family members' level of authority and specialty to augment your telepathic information."

"Basically, yes. In our discussions, we all feel that it is a good idea to not use the titles and ranks as they were used on Earth. Well there are a few exceptions, perhaps Admiral or Commander. Our one preference is for each member of a Command Staff to have the rank of Admiral. 'General' seems inappropriate as we are really a navy, with space as our ocean."

"So using 'Commander', was to test the waters?" questioned Erin. When Eryn blushed, Erin and the rest of Sarah's Clan laughed.

"It wasn't intentional. Commander is a naval rank. Using any of the three we mentioned brings some preconceptions with them. We don't know if the preconceptions would be a problem or not, which is in part why we should discuss it as a family."

"Oh. We agree," replied Aoife. "I think when the family discusses this everyone will see the growing need for it."

Tara said, "One aspect that we should consider is that we are currently organized as if we were a military unit. Today, in many respects, we are. When we settle on A-Celia our organizational structure will probably change. In fact there is a group currently looking at what that structure will be. It would be nice to have a clear relationship between the organizational structure we use on our ships, and at our settlements."

"We hadn't thought of that aspect," said Eryn.

"Have you looked at what the Connemare did?"

"Yes. They had a mix of nobility titles, military ranks and job titles. There didn't seem to be any clear organization to them. It is quite a confusing mix."

"Eryn," said Rusty, "let's take this approach in preparing for our family meeting. At the moment the date for it is flexible, but we want to have it before we are half way through the next stage. Between now and then let's have your group talk to Amy's Clan and those who arrived with them about the Connemare structure. Take a look at the details of at least the Iridien, Atewa and Monque Worlds organization. With all of that in mind put together a presentation on the topic. You should close the presentation with a proposal, which could be simply a series of ranks or titles associated with levels of responsibility. You could provide names for all the different levels of responsibility, or just a few, depending on what your research shows. Where you provide names, you may want to give a reason.

"Once you have all of that sorted start a topical area on our network. The first step with the topical area would be to provide your presentation and references. The second part should be a collaboration section where the concept can be discussed."

"Wow. It will take us a long time to do all of that."

"Let me just say this," replied Alison, "many hands make tasks light. Share your thoughts and ideas with your friends and workmates. Many will likely assist you with the project as it is very worthwhile."

"You're right. I am sure our discussion already has others considering the issue."

"A benefit of our openness and telepathy," said Sarah.

"Eryn," said Rusty, "setting the time is up to your group. By having the family meeting before we are half way through the next leg of the journey should give us the time to have a firm idea of what we want to do. There is really no rush and if we need more time, then we need more time."

"Guys, we need do our morning meeting so we can go to our duty stations. We have a departure to get underway."

"Aye, Aye, Ma'am," replied several of those nearby which was quickly followed by laughter from their group and those around them.

While Sarah, Aoife, Rusty and Tara walked to the front of the room, others in Sarah's Clan quickly cleaned up their tables.

Reaching the front of the room, the four said, "Good morning Dóchas crew members."

"Good morning, Command Staff."

"As all of you know, we will be departing for J2 at 0800." The four had hardly finished when the crew broke into loud cheering. When it quieted down they continued, "We have allotted half an hour for our morning meeting so we would like to limit our discussion to immediate issues. Who has the first one?"

It was quiet for several minutes as no one spoke up.

"Okay, are there any other items to bring forth?"

After a few moments, a crew member stood up causing a few sighs before he said, "We used a lot of our reserve supplies to overhaul the freighters. How long before we have our manufacturing operations on them running?"

"After we transition to FTL, the intent is to begin once we know everything is functioning at an optimum level. Projections are that it will be less than two clock cycles. Is there a problem?"

"Only that we are so low on some items that it could make responding to an emergency difficult."

"We're aware of that. As far as we can determine manufacturing on the freighters while in FTL has not been done before. We know of no reason why what is planned will not work. If it doesn't, then we will extend our stay at J2 so that critical items can be replaced. This will be true for J3 and J4 as well."

"Thank you." The crew member sat down.

"Anything else."

Sarah's Clan waited several moments before saying, "Okay. Since no one has an issue to raise, let's adjourn until tomorrow at 0800. Let us prepare for our departure."

Sarah, Aoife, Tara and Rusty had hardly finished that thought when many crew members began leaving the dining room. When they got back to the rest of their clan, their children were waiting for them.

Keri said, "Moms, Dad, we will be working in various departments today rather than going to the learning center. See you at lunch."

"Okay. We understand your desire to do something besides study, but we think you should continue spending most of your time in the learning center."

"Oh. We intend on doing that. Working in the various departments has given us a better understanding of some of the course material."

"Good. We will likely have lunch on the bridge. If you're free, why don't you join us there?"

"We will," came a chorus of voices as the children left. "We'll bring lunch up with us."

Without a word, Sarah's Clan followed them out of the dining room heading toward the bridge.

By 0700, Sarah's Clan were at their consoles on Dóchas' bridge.

"Command Staffs," said Rusty, "our link is now fully open."

"Confirmed, as is ours," responded each Command Staff in turn.

"Destiny Group, begin the transition to cruise formation."

"Aye," replied the Command Staffs.

"Dóchas," said Joyce, "moving to lead, shifting to departure orientation. FÓCT-001 off port side, stern down, 60 degrees from plane."

Joyce's comment initiated the transformation of their defensive array into cruise formation. As Dóchas moved from its position in the defensive array, the other nine ships began shifting their positions at the same time.

Both Eagle and Phoenix were on the x-axis of the array. Eagle began to rotate in the direction of departure. Once Dóchas was ahead of Phoenix, Phoenix along with FLDC-1 began to move. Just as they began to move forward, Eagle completed its rotation and began moving toward its position just to the rear of Phoenix.

Taiséalai and Iarracht were above and below the line of departure on the z-axis. They rotated toward the direction of departure, along with FLDC-2. Once in the correct orientation, they began to move in the direction of departure at a slightly slower pace than the others.

Fiontar and Marthanóir were on each side of the line of departure on the y-axis. Along with FLDC-3, they rotated toward the direction of departure. Once they faced the correct direction they began to move forward, along with their linked freighter. Moving forward they closed the distance between them and moved in behind Eagle and Phoenix, positioned so that they weren't in their wake.

Once Fiontar and Marthanóir were in front of them, Taiséalai, Iarracht, and FLDC-3, increased their speed. As they moved toward Destiny Group, they shifted their position relative to each other so they were correctly orientated when reaching their position behind Fiontar and Marthanóir, without being in anyone's wake.

On Dóchas' bridge a monitor showed the ships changing position. As the ships in Destiny Group moved into their optimum position, their image on the screen turned green.

When all the ships were in position Rusty said, "Sentry status."

"Sentries indicate area clear," replied Terry.

"Recall sentries. Recall cruisers," said Rusty.

As the sentries and Badb cruisers were recovered, each ship reported their status. At the same time the Badb-2 cruisers moved to their assigned position. The consoles on each bridge gave a visual confirmation when each ship had reached its position.

"FTL minus 10," said Sarah.

"Dóchas to Readiness Level 2."

"Readiness Level 2," replied Sally as the alarms began ringing on the ship.

"FTL transition to begin on the mark," said Rusty. "5... 4... 3... 2... 1 ... Mark."

Sarah's Clan watched the monitors as Destiny Group began its transition to FTL.

"Passing FTL 1," said Jill.

Sarah's Clan continued to watch the monitors as they approached Factor FTL 4. This transition was unlike their first. All the ships maintained their position in the formation throughout the transition to FTL 4.

"FTL 4," said Janet. "All ships reporting a green status."

"Destiny Group entered FTL in the center of the time window dead on course," said Joyce. "Arrival at J2 in 20 clock cycles."

Two hours later, Sarah said, "Dóchas move to Readiness Level 4."

"Readiness Level 4," replied Terry as the chimes began sounding indicating the change.

"I am sure everyone knows how well the transition went," said Jill, "but we should make an announcement."

"Command Staffs, we were thinking of making an announcement regarding the transition," said Sarah's Clan.

"We agree."

"Okay. Do we want to try doing it together?"

"Sure."

The eight Command Staffs said, "Órarduine, our transition to Factor 4 FTL went very smoothly thanks to all of your hard work updating the freighters." When they finished making the announcement, each Command Staff could hear cheering on their ship.

"Command Staffs," said Casidhe, "just to make sure everyone is aware, we will begin some additional maintenance work tomorrow on FLDC-1. All items are routine in nature. In two clock cycles, Engineering will begin bringing the manufacturing units on line for those items we need to replace."

"We are following the same timetable," said Violetta of Kathryn's Clan.

"So are we," said Tina of Jackie's Clan. "From what I have seen of the lists of maintenance items for the freighters, none of the lists are exactly the same."

"She's right," added Casidhe. "These are basically normal maintenance items that we didn't have time to do at J1, but weren't significant enough to hold up departure. Expectation is they will all be completed in three or four clock cycles. None of the work will interfere with the manufacturing or other operations.

"With the completion of these items, we will begin our scheduled maintenance sequence."

"Thanks for the update," said Sarah's Clan.

"Melissa," said Tara of Sarah's Clan, "did you crew the freighter the way we talked about?"

"I believe so," replied Melissa of Siobhan's Clan. "We have 4 teams working twelve hour shifts. They consist of 4 on the bridge, 2 in navigation, and 6 in propulsion. That way they have a significant amount of time with their clan between shifts. Those on the bridge are qualified for cruiser command."

"I take it that the other freighters are staffed the same way."

"Yes," replied both Chanel of Jackie's Clan and Rebeca of Kathryn's Clan.

Rebeca added, "On the last leg, and to an extent during the repairs, the crew members working on the loaned freighters found the environment uncomfortable after an extended period. We have double checked the atmospheric parameters and they are identical to our ships. It is too early to tell if it will last, but since we began preparations for departure the crews have indicated that the environment has improved."