Lunch over, and the fives all ready for pilots, I received orders for my next collection run. I assigned half the fives to Jill, and her AI took possession of them, and jumped them over. The other half went to Norden.
Three of us jumped this time, for Lufafluf. I brought Woof and Dorn with me. On the ground we found another four squadrons of fives, which I jumped into orbit. Tamsin looked over the first one, and withdrew, letting me know it was already fitted out for a Lufafluf pilot. So I moved them directly to the two destroyers.
A shuttle was already on its way up, and Tamsin directed it to Carved Boulder, where Woof was waiting for his own people. Once docking was complete, and the pilots aboard, the shuttle started back for the ground, and I sent Woof back to the squadron on his own, after moving a box of jump drives over for his repair droids to install.
Dorm and I moved on to her home planet, which still didn’t have a name, although was unofficially called Dragon’s Nest. There she met another shuttle, with a squadron each of wyvern and dragon pilots. This time I sent over dragon suitable seats with the jump drives. She also headed back to the squadron, with orders to send the dragons over to Fina.
Metunga met me at my next destination, which was his homeworld. Twenty four Excalibur fives were already waiting in orbit, having been flown there by cheetah pilots. I moved each ship into a bay on Metunga’s ship, transferred over the jump drives for them, and he headed back.
I moved on to the Bhockah homeworld, where twenty four more were waiting for me in space with panther pilots, and once on board, my next stop was the leopard and lion homeworlds, where shuttles were waiting with twelve pilots on each.
Haven was my next stop, where the shipyard AI jumped another twenty four Excaliburs on board for the unassigned pilots, and then withdrew from all of them. These ones were fitted out for big cats. Shortly after, another forty eight Excaliburs launched from the shipyard normally, and the senior squadron leader requested jump instructions. Tamsin sent them, and we all jumped back to the squadron in formation.
The four squadrons in space had to wait while AI’s, seats, and jump drives were installed on the forty eight ships I had on board, as needed since half of them had appropriate seats, after which the Bhockah ships jumped themselves to Jill’s destroyer, the leopards went to Fina, and the lions to Dorm.
Having panthers, leopards, and lions on board proved to be interesting while it lasted, as while they tolerated each other, they were not exactly friendly. Jill laughed when I mentioned it, saying that was common among species of cats, and the big cats being the same was no surprise. We’d just have to make sure they could work together in space.
The four squadrons of new pilots had been assigned to Judge, and I found out why when they assembled in their living room. Most of them were inexperienced pilots. I recognized all of the squadron leaders as having been promoted from Claymore or Katana, but the rest were either pilot officers just promoted from midshipmen, or flight officers I recognized as having been assigned to drop ships from midshipmen at the same time we’d made ensigns. I had no idea why I was getting them now.
With twelve squadrons assigned, and an abundance of inexperienced pilots, I was wondering what I was supposed to be doing with them. Which was when I heard footsteps entering the bridge behind me.
“I guess you’re wondering what to do with these squadrons,” said a voice, not unlike Eagle’s accent, but definitely not Eagle.
I looked around, and recognized him. Alexander Brown, and one of Eagle’s original 266 squadron pilots if my information was right.
“Wing commander,” I said to him, waving him into the XOs seat. “Are they all yours?”
“They are, but not the way you think. This is not Buzzard Wing, if that’s what you were thinking.” Buzzard was his callsign. “I’ve been heading up the training program. All the good fighter pilots went to Eagle Wing. There’s more coming along, but you won’t be getting them.”
“We know how that turned out, so I’m not surprised. What are we getting? Have got?”
“A bomber wing. You’re getting pilots who don’t have the fighter pilot mentality. The ones who are more than happy to sit in one place and rain the pain down where they’re pointed at. The ones who accept having a co-pilot who does most of the flying. And, some who will enjoy ground or station actions.”
“Hence the big cats?”
“And the dragons and wyvern. Instead of getting combat troops, you’re getting rookie pilots who will double as shock troops. The heavy weapons for all of them are in development, and you’ll be getting the first batches for your pilots. That includes new sidearms, by the way. Everyone in this fleet will wear two. A for Trixone designed rapid firer, and a heavy blaster for dinosaurs. By the time your pilots are up to speed, you should be fully equipped as well.”
I’d heard the Imperator had his own version of quick firer, but this sounded like something new was being developed.
“Are you staying?”
“Just until the wing is fully assembled and the in space training is completed. My Excalibur is parked where one of your Lightnings was. It’s doing a run for more pilots, along with your other three. I’m afraid these pilots are not even proper rookies. They’ve been in simulators on their home planets, but have never even sat in a cockpit before. I’ll get them up to speed, but this is your command.”
Once again, I was outranked, but still had the command. All the same, his oak leaf wasn’t that big a rank jump from my three bars. And he was used to being second in command, if what Eagle had told me about him was right. It might work.
“When do we get ships for them?”
“Over the next day or so. The ones you picked up from Corona were just the first batch, and they’ve been sitting there for a couple of days now while we worked out the logistics of setting up a second wing this big. You’ll be going back for the next batch later this afternoon. Pilots without them will be going back into the simulators here as soon as they settle in.”
“Who’s running the training now?”
“They imported a few wing commanders who’d been put out to pasture, who’re renowned for their training regimes. I’ve never heard of them, but I’m more than happy to get back to a front line squadron.”
“And yet, you’re not staying?”
“No. Algy and I are working on another new squadron idea. Once we get people capable of leading, we’re going to push that at the Imperator.”
“Good luck with that.”
“Yeah. We’ll need it. You taught Algy some much needed lessons, you know.”
“How so?”
“Your squadron is what he wanted to set up, but he now knows he had no idea what to do with it, and admits he wasn’t the right person to run it. He was pretty pissed originally when Jane formed Navy Mage One, but his time with you opened his eyes, and he freely admits now, fighter pilots are not the right people for what you’re doing. Hence you now getting a bomber wing, with pilots who have a different mindset.”
“As long as he’s happy.”
“He will be, once we get the next idea floated and happening. In the meantime, we’re collaborating on a new fighter design.”
“Have fun with that.”
“We will.”