I pushed myself to my feet and went to check on Card. She’d stood in the next stasis pod entrance, her hands pressed to the sides of the opening. I hadn't thought of that; with the slimy stasis gel still on my feet I wouldn't have been able to secure myself anyhow. That reminded me, I glanced down my front; without my shielding active the gel had soaked into my dress uniform. I pulsed my shields for a split second. The wet blobs of gel slid away, but too much had been ground in.

I stood, waved for Card to follow me, and started toward the bay. I needed to debrief Jodi and Wendy as soon as they landed, find out if Jodi had discovered anything inside the Sora. 'Sects evolved constantly, and sometimes they did so in ways that forced us to adapt as well. Thoughts of 'Sect evolution reminded me of the ambush. If the 'Sects found us...

"Echidna, how long until you're ready for a pocket jump?"

"Six days without additional crew dedicated to projector repair, Sir."

"How long if I give you all the trained crew?"

"Just Middle Grade, or Juniors too?"

I shook my head, frustrated anew at the thought that a six-year-old might have more repair skills that I did. I opened my mouth to confirm any capable Juniors would be helping out, but Card's outraged shriek cut me off.

"What kind of flaming clutter are you trying to pull here, Dabig?"

I froze, taken aback more by her tone than her words. Before I could reply, my heart hammered with sudden rage. My augmentation flared, the squeak of compressed air fleeing my clenching fist loud in the silence of the hallway. Ice ran down my spine as fear alloyed with my anger. Card didn't frighten me physically, even when my augmentation inevitably went down a few seconds later. Her insubordination reminded me of the irregularity of my own position. If she pushed at my precarious perch, I'd fall. She'd react according to the book, and the 'Sects hunting us down would catch us and eat us. Worse, no one would survive to tell the rest of the Imperial forces about their new tactics. Every citizen of the Unity would be so much bug chow.

I was not a coward. I would not let terror, either personal or for my people, freeze me in place. I was excellent. I would survive the results of this ambush, return to the fleet, and keep the 'Sects from using this new ambush tactic against anyone else. I would do all of that without laying a finger on Middle Grade Cadet Denny flaming Card. I couldn't lash out at her, but I couldn't let the insult pass, either.

Intuitive Combat Protocols ready; estimated three point two seconds to disable without serious injury.

Augmentation available for point seven seconds; disabling target in that time frame without serious injury unlikely.

Telepathic coercion available; Intuitive Combat Protocol unavailable, target has no explicit defenses.

My options appeared in blood red letters, helpfully laid out by my essie. I shook my head, taking a deep breath as I did so. I had to deal with this now, but I had to get us moving first.

"As I was saying, Echidna, Junior Grade Cadets with appropriate skill sets will be available." I reached out mentally to Guy, but unlike Wendy and Jodi, I hadn't formed a link with him, and I didn't know him well enough to find him, even in a ship as sparsely populated as Echidna right now. "Inform Cadet Delnot he is to reprioritize Cadets with projector repair experience, then certifications without experience. Give me a list as well."

"Flaming... are you just going to ignore me, Dabig?"

"Scan all nearby systems, we'll need to make pocket insertion as soon as physically possible, and we'll need to keep jumping in a sustained fashion. Plot me a route; motion is more important than destination at this point."

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Denny shuffled her feet, I had no idea whether turning to walk away or taking a step to confront me, but it really didn't matter which. Her motion gave me the opening I needed.

"Did I say you were dismissed, Middle Grade Cadet Card?" I spun on my heel to face her while speaking. She froze in the middle of turning away, half stumbling when she tried to recover. Sixteen-year-old Imperials, with random bits just starting to undergo augmentation, rated as clumsier than anything else in Imperial service. I stood, impassive, the weight of my augments giving me stability if nothing else.

"Really, Dabig? You're going to pull rank now, after pulling that stunt and then deciding to throw Juniors on the line?" I stared at her, hiding my surprise at how little fury remained within me. My mantra calmed me more than I thought. Of course, the fragments of my parents’ experiences on the front lines chose that moment to flash before my eyes. I didn't need the slowly strobing blue and pink lights to tell me, but I didn't need to start having flashbacks now either.

When my vision cleared three deaths and numberless kills later, Card stood before me, gaping a little. I don't know what she saw in my eyes, but here as everywhere else I had no choice but to take every advantage I could get.

"I am Captain of this vessel. That is not a subject open for debate. We are under combat conditions and will remain so until we rendezvous with the fleet. You have, not once, but twice, made openly insubordinate comments." My voice hadn't squeaked or roared. I caught the faintest echo of my essie's siren purr, but I supposed I could live with that.

"So, you're going to shoot me? Space me?"

"No. My duty is to see every crew member on this vessel home. That is not open for debate either." I stared at her, willing her to ask the question, silently ordering my essie to prevent any mental contact where I might coerce her into asking.

"Then what is open for debate?"

I curved my lips into the faintest of smiles, the one I'd seen on the Commandant's face when she condemned me to my Captaincy. "Whether you spend the rest of this voyage assisting us or spend the rest of it awaiting trial in a stasis pod."

She'd just come out of a pod. She hadn't escaped trauma going in or coming out. I knew exactly how much she loathed the idea. Her mouth worked, but no words came out, only a pained squeak. I drove the point home.

"Of course, should the worst happen, I can't guarantee we'll be able to set the emergency release on the pods. You may very well be welcomed by a 'Sect luncheon rather than the MPs."

She rolled her eyes, but her tone still oozed fear. "I'm sorry, Captain. With all due respect, that last was over the top."

"Are we going to have a problem, Card?"

She stood there, mouth working, while I forced myself to stillness. Finally, after an eternity of chewing at the air, she found her voice. "I think we might, Captain. I'm sorry. I'll..." She stuttered to a stop. I let her sit there and stew, hiding how the silence ate at me as much as her. I hadn't wanted this. Okay, I had wanted this, to be Captain, but I wanted as the capstone to a career, not as a sudden, unwarranted inheritance.

I wanted to earn it. I still had to earn it, or I wouldn't really think of myself as Captain. I couldn't let someone be insubordinate, but I could choose my responses. Time to start earning my exalted position. I stepped over to Card, my fashion doll feet giving me a few extra inches of height. I didn't want to throw her in a cell, but I couldn't let the situation get out of control again. My height let me loom, so I loomed.

"We might. We might not. I'll deal with that when we come to it. That's my duty as Captain. Understood?"

She frowned. She'd transferred from Command; she recognized my manipulations. She also knew if she didn't play along, she'd wind up in a gel filled box, uncertain whether her release team would include an angry admiral or a starving 'Sect. I shifted, rocking one foot as if to start tapping my toe. Card took the hint.

"Yes, sir. Who's next, sir?"

"Echidna, tell Delnot to send Ross my way; direct him to the next person on my list. I'm sending Card over to him." I looked back at my reluctant subordinate. "If I didn't need every single hand, I might toss you back in a stasis chamber anyhow."

"Yes, sir." She turned to go, stopped, half turned back. "Sir?"

"What is it, Card?"

"Sir, are you sure? About using the Juniors, I mean." The same protest as before. This would be a problem at some point, but for now I had to stick it through.

"Yes, Card, I'm sure. Go." She went. "Okay, let's get the Junior Cadet Captain out of the gel first, she can be our point of contact to them. Lead on, Kid."

A deep red guidelight appeared before me, my essie turning Echidna's directions into a path visible only to me. As I started toward my Junior counterpart's pod, I remembered my earlier question. "How long until we get you ready to jump, assuming current crew release rates and all hands working on your projectors?"

"I can't say for sure, Captain, but... twelve hours?"

"You've got six. Be ready with a jump plot by then."

"Yes, Sir!" Echidna squeaked.

Great; first a brawl with my ersatz ship's doctor, now I'd scared my own ship. Some captain I was turning out to be.