Innes in Command
Copyright© 2026 by Lumpy
Chapter 11
“ ... straightforward. Lieutenant Wexler has been recalled to Hokkaido for personal matters, and Captain Barrett remains in-system. She won’t reach Shiro for at least ten days, possibly longer. Until then, she has placed me in charge of the detachment once the lieutenant leaves.”
He had gathered the men and women on duty at the moment, including the marines, into the Ops center to give them the news.
“I know this isn’t ideal, and there is probably going to be some concern, since I’ve been commissioned for less than a month, and none of you signed up to serve under an ensign barely out of the Academy, but the mission doesn’t change. We maintain inspections and coordinate with station control to represent the CDF. It’s the same thing we’ve been doing since we got here, so nothing really changes except who signs off on orders.”
He was about to continue when the compartment door opened. Lieutenant Wexler stepped through, already in his formal uniform jacket. His eyes settled on Innes with an amused expression.
“You are getting ahead of yourself, I see.”
“Sir,” Innes said. “I was briefing my shift on the command transition.”
“Your shift?” Wexler let the question hang for a moment. “How efficient of you. However, I believe announcements regarding command structure should come from the commanding officer, don’t you agree?”
It wasn’t really a question.
“I want all personnel assembled in the briefing room in fifteen minutes. Both shifts. Wake anyone who’s sleeping.”
He turned and left without waiting for acknowledgment.
Chief Pierce said, “You heard the lieutenant. Novak, Lind, go roust the off-watch personnel. Tell them full uniform, briefing room, fourteen minutes.”
The two crewmen moved quickly. When things got tense, military personnel tended to fall back on just following orders, which would shield them somewhat from whatever drama was currently happening.
Over the next ten minutes, personnel, many who looked exhausted, having only finished half their rest cycle, filtered into the briefing room. By the time Innes pulled his people off their duties and led them in, the room was packed with barely enough floor space for people to move between seats.
By the time Wexler entered, at exactly noon, all thirty members of the detachment were crammed into the space. Those who couldn’t find chairs lined the walls with their shoulders pressed together, the air already growing warm from too many bodies in too small a room.
Wexler took his position at the head of the table and surveyed the packed room.
“Thank you all for assembling on short notice. I have an announcement regarding the detachment’s command structure.”
The murmured conversations died instantly. Everyone already knew what was happening. Innes had basically already given the announcement to his people, and they had shared the scuttlebutt when they’d gone to rouse the rest of the detachment.
The fastest thing in the navy was a rumor.
“I have received orders recalling me to Hokkaido for urgent business. This reassignment is temporary, but I will be off-station for an extended period. During my absence, Ensign Kingsford will assume command of the detachment.”
Heads turned toward Innes where he stood against the side wall, squeezed between Petty Officer Paquette and a marine corporal.
“Captain Barrett remains engaged with duties in-system and will not reach Shiro Station for several days. If I am still off station when she arrives, I believe she plans to install my replacement, but in the interim, I expect you to maintain current operations exactly as we are already doing them. We have done good work so far, and I do not want to see that record broken just because I am gone. Any questions about operational decisions should be documented for review upon my return. While Ensign Kingsford will nominally be in command, there’s no need to trouble the ensign with matters that can wait. Reserve only items of immediate concern for his attention.”
Innes had to work hard to keep his face neutral. ‘Nominally’ in command and telling them not to bother him with routine matters was making it clear Innes was in command in name only, with no actual mandate.
Wexler was essentially poisoning his command before it even started, not that he should have been surprised. This was the exact kind of thing Innes knew he would do.
“As many of you are aware, Ensign Kingsford graduated from the Academy recently and is still learning the realities of station duty. Your experience and professionalism will be essential in compensating for any gaps in leadership during this transitional period. I have every confidence that the senior enlisted personnel know their duties well enough to keep operations running smoothly regardless of who holds command.”
Wexler turned to Innes. “Ensign, I wish you every success. If anything arises beyond routine matters, contact Captain Barrett immediately. Remember, it is not your place to make decisions outside your explicit instructions. Thank you all for your service. Carry on.”
He walked out without waiting for questions or responses. The door sealed behind him, and twenty-nine people remained packed into a room built for twenty, the silence broken only by the soft hum of the ventilation struggling to compensate.
Innes didn’t move from his spot against the wall. Twenty-eight faces watched him, some curious, some skeptical, a few openly uncertain.
Wexler had done his job well. In a few short minutes, he’d undermined Innes’s entire command before he could do anything to prove himself.
For a moment, he thought maybe he should say something, to try and counter Wexler’s characterization, but it would look defensive, like exactly the kind of overreaction an insecure young officer would make when his competence was questioned.
Better to get straight to business.
“There will be some shifting of personnel to cover the watch gaps, and Chief Pierce will be taking command of the second shift. Anyone with questions about the rotation or anything else can speak with him or with me directly, and we’ll get you sorted. If you have a concern, bring it to us.”
It was a contradiction of Wexler’s instructions, but not exactly direct, so he felt safe in that, since it was ‘necessary’ and ‘operational.’
“Off-watch personnel go back and get some rest, on-watch return to your stations. That is all, dismissed.”
The room began to empty, although the volume ratcheted up for a moment as they all started to talk to one another as they filed out.
Chief Pierce stopped at the door. “I’ll have the roster adjustments ready in an hour, sir.”
“Thank you, Chief.”
Innes stayed once the briefing room was empty to compose himself. The lieutenant had tried to strip him of all credibility before he could even begin. It had been an elegant piece of sabotage, probably designed to show that Innes, or maybe just a Kingsford if Wexler was thinking in broader terms, couldn’t handle a command like this on his own.
Now he had ten days to prove him wrong.
The corridor terminal’s customs checkpoint processed a steady stream of arrivals from the evening shuttle rotation, mostly station workers returning from downtime on Hokkaido, miners from the belt looking for a little comfort before going back to their isolated occupation, or merchants delivering or picking up goods from the station.
Jayden Tan stood near the exit lane reserved for diplomatic and trade personnel, trying to be as calm as he could make himself.
Notice of this visit had only come two days before with one of their cargo ships, and he’d been thinking of it since. While visits from headquarters weren’t that uncommon, they always raised his blood pressure.
The man who emerged from the customs booth wore a simple suit common among the diplomatic corps.
“Welcome to Shiro Station. Please follow me,” Tan said, in a neutral way that would be acceptable when speaking to someone his junior.
They walked through the terminal and into the corridor proper, joining the flow of pedestrian traffic moving between the docking rings and the residential sections. They made pleasant conversation as they walked, talking about home and Tan explaining some of the station. Simple, nondescript topics that would be unlikely to draw anyone’s attention.
The Meryd Trade Office occupied a modest suite in the administrative district of Ring C, sandwiched between the offices of a major Concordian shipping firm and some kind of agricultural cooperative. Tan had no interest in them and had never attempted to learn anything about either business aside from assuring himself that they did not intrude on his duties.
Tan keyed the door. The outer office was empty at this hour, his staff having departed for dinner an hour earlier. He led the way through to his private workspace, a cramped room dominated by a remarkably empty desk and two chairs.
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.