An Ordinary Day Down in Marine Country

Posted on Wed 29th Jul, 2020 @ 1:58am by Brigadier General Franklin Sinclair & Major Haley Sawyer

1,222 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Resolution
Location: Deck 119 - Gen. Sinclair's Office
Timeline: MD-02, 1330 hours

Captain Haley Sawyer stood to attention alongside her long-time colleague Major Beatrice Cassidy. "You asked to see us, sir?" she enquired of the one-star general who occupied the desk a couple of feet in front of them both. General Sinclair did not have an over-imposing look about him, but Sawyer had learned that he was a no-nonsense commander, who liked both professionalism and formality. A lack of either was not lightly tolerated.

"Yes. Thank you both for coming," Sinclair said to Captain Sawyer and Major Cassidy. "Please, be seated." He gestured at the chairs in front of his desk and waited until both officers had seated themselves. "I had an interesting chat with Lt. Commander Eberstark, the Station's Chief of Tactical Operations, earlier today. Seems he wants to upgrade our fighters' speed and maneuverability as part of a general upgrade plan. That, however, is just the tip of the iceberg. Ultimately, if I understood him correctly, he'd like to institute a coordinated information network between our base and the ships typically traveling through this area of space--not just Federation ships, but also those of allied groups, by which I infer he means the Klingons and what Romulan fleets still exist, among others."

Sawyer glanced at Cassidy. "That seems like a fairly major set of upgrades across the board," she said. "Do we have the technicians on-base to handle it, or will we need to get some additional personnel assigned?"

Cassidy frowned. "We have been working on upgrading the aerospace wing, moving to the F-34 and EW-9 platform. I'm sorry the upgrade has taken longer than Commander Eberstark is comfortable with, but there's a substantial learning curve involved in moving from a Valkyrie or Raptor to a Lightning. Additionally, while the construction of the new fighters and support craft for the wing are being done in the 109 yards, the techniques involved in the manufacturing are highly classified, and only the most secure area of the yards is suitable for the work."

Sinclair glanced at Cassidy. "Major, I'd appreciate it if you'd meet with Commander Eberstark to discuss these concerns with him. He's talking about wanting to switch some aspects of the fighter craft operation to manual control in the interest of increasing speed and maneuverability. He is aware that upgrades are sometimes more annoyance to the pilots than they're worth. He wants to avoid that. Since we're moving to the Lightnings, anyway, it may be that some of his ideas are already being incorporated into their design in more pilot-friendly ways. If that's the case, then he can check fighter upgrades off of his list of concerns and move on to seeking your advice about other things having to do with the overall station defenses."

Cassidy nodded. Sure, she thought. I don't have anything better to do than hold the hand of a Fleet officer who couldn't be bothered to read his classified traffic. Aloud, however, she limited herself to, "Yes, sir, General."

"I'll review the personnel requirements with you later, Major, if that's okay?" Sawyer said, in a manner that suggested this was less of a question and more of a statement of fact. She turned back to the general. "Is this latest focus on the aerospace wing going to affect the standing orders for the ground units, sir?"

Sinclair shook his head. "No, Captain. As far as I'm aware, this just concerns the fighter craft. If that changes, I'll pass the word along immediately."

Sawyer nodded smartly, before adding, "Is there anything else, sir?"

"Yes, actually, there is," Sinclair said. He went to his desk and opened a drawer. "Captain Sawyer, at attention, please. Front and center!"

Haley was slightly puzzled, but rose from her chair immediately, taking a half-pace forward so that her thighs almost touched the general’s desk, and standing smartly to attention.

Sinclair looked Sawyer in the eye. "Attention to orders," he said. "The President of the United Federation of Planets, acting upon the recommendations of the Secretary of the Starfleet Marine Corps, has placed special trust and confidence in the patriotism, integrity, and abilities of Captain Haley Sawyer. In view of these special qualities and her demonstrated potential to serve in the higher grade, Captain Sawyer is hereby promoted to the grade of Major, United Federation of Planets Marine Corps, effective stardate 71040.53, by order of the Secretary of the Starfleet Marine Corps." He came from around his desk, unpinned the captain's two bars and replaced them with the major's gold oak leaf, which he pinned to Sawyer's collar. Sinclair grinned. "Congratulations, Major. It's a pleasure serving with you."

Sawyer knew it wasn't protocol, but she couldn't help but allow a smile to creep across her face. While she had served time-in-post, and was thus eligible, she had never imagined that she would be promoted so soon. But she had worked hard - not just for herself, but for her unit. She had genuinely sought to be the best that she could be and to instill that attitude into the soldiers under her command. And now that hard work was paying off. Pride filled her as she nodded respectfully at the general. "Thank you, sir," she replied earnestly.

"You are very welcome, Major, and thank you for the excellent work you've put in," Sinclair said.

Butch clapped a few times, quietly. "Well deserved, Major Sawyer. Very well deserved."

"Oh, don't get any ideas that we're done yet," Sinclair said to Butch in a fine Texas drawl. "Major Cassidy, come join her."

"Sir," Cassidy responded, stepping forward. "Major Beatrice Cassidy, reporting as ordered."

"Glad you could make it," Sinclair said with a quick smile. "Attention to orders. The President of the United Federation of Planets, acting upon the recommendations of the Secretary of the Starfleet Marine Corps, has placed special trust and confidence in the patriotism, integrity, and abilities of Major Beatrice Cassidy. In view of these special qualities and her demonstrated potential to serve in the higher grade, Major Cassidy is hereby promoted to the grade of Lieutenant Colonel, United Federation of Planets Marine Corps, effective stardate 71040.53, by order of the Secretary of the Star Fleet." He reached into his pocket, where he'd hidden the second rank insignia box, unpinned the gold oak leaf and replaced it with the lieutenant colonel's silver oak leaf, which he pinned to Cassidy's collar. Sinclair grinned. "Congratulations, Colonel Cassidy. I hope you'll forgive me for calling you Beatrice."

"Not today, sir, but likely by tomorrow." Butch winked, showing she was kidding. "Thank you, general." She held out her hand for the golden oak leaf she had been wearing, and turned to Sawyer. "Turns out I have some jewelry I'm not using any longer. Would you like to have it? For luck?"

Sawyer held out her hand and accepted the small insignia. She could, of course, replicate as many small gold oak-leaves as she needed and she'd never been one for superstition, but there was a certain camaraderie about being bequeathed something like this that she appreciated. "Thank you, Colonel," she replied with a smile. "And congratulations to you too."

"My thanks to you both, for your dedication, your service, and for never making my life boring," Sinclair said. He saluted them. "May you continue being a credit to the Corps for many years to come."

 

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