Federation Reborn 1: Battle Lines Read Online Free PDF Page B

enlisted.
    The dog and pony show wasn't just about familiarizing himself with the base and personnel but also to show the flag. To show the grunts that they cared, that they'd better care about appearances and doing a good job. And the admiral's show of approval of their hard work went a long ways towards morale.
    Colonel Forth was a busy man so he passed the tour over to one of his ensigns and then went back to running the base. He had Captains Lyon and Yee as well as the other marine sleepers in tow as he went back to his HQ. The admiral was amused by that but nodded in grudging approval. He'd get along with Forth because deep down he knew both of them were professionals; their differences weren't personal. It was a mark towards the colonel that he knew to delegate despite the slightly implied insult some would have assumed. Delegating the duty to a junior officer just made sense; the lieutenant colonel had his own duties to attend to. Besides, Phil thought with a slight pucker to his lips, he didn't need his hand held.
    During the tour he found out about the Navy SEAL program. He'd heard something about that; he frowned and made a note to check his briefing notes later. The idea amused him immensely, so much that he had to take a visit to the beach after lunch to see the latest group of recruits being put through their paces.
    He watched from the air jeep as a group of squids carried what looked like air-filled ocean boats of some sort over their heads. He shook his head. To some it was a strain; to others it was impossible. But the Neo apes in the group seemed to handle it with pathetic ease. But he could tell from a gorilla's dyspeptic expression that she wasn't at all thrilled about getting into the ocean. He snorted.
    Lieutenant Simpson came up and saluted; Andy then stood at parade rest while the admiral surveyed his command with his eyes. Chief Petty Officer Sho was busy bellowing at the recruits to hurry it up from on top of a boat. The recruits strained as they chanted and tried to pick up the pace. The neochimp hung onto a lanyard to stay upright in the shifting boat.
    They kicked up some sand and dust as they charged past. The Admiral waited until they were further down the beach before he shook his head. “I find it hard to believe you could bootstrap such a program, and marine trainers?” the Admiral tisked tisked.
    The Lieutenant spread his hands apart. He had no problem with the jarheads. They could be sadistic, but they got the job done. “It's what we have to work with, sir. We're training the next set of recruits ourselves. There aren't many though, not many naval personnel in the system interested. We are getting requests from other star systems though. I'm not sure how to handle the requests. How to handle transport and well …,” he shrugged, “the whole process.”
    “Good man, at least you are admitting your ignorance,” the admiral replied in approval. “Though it's not wise to admit it in front of a flag officer,” he stated with a trace of a teasing smile. The lieutenant flinched. He smiled at the SEAL's discomfort. “No harm done I suppose.”
    The lieutenant nodded. “Sir, we need experience. We need combat experience.”
    “You need more training. Yes, combat will come; it is the best learning environment for some. It is the final proof of training. But combat is waste. You'll lose people and the experience they had acquired. So be careful what you wish for. Don't be so eager to die son, no matter how much you want to prove yourself.”
    The lieutenant's eyes flicked, but he nodded dutifully. “Yes, sir.”
    “You know, I think we had a SEAL washout at Lemnos. One of the marines in security, he may have wanted back in; I'm not sure. You may want to give him a call, see what he knows.” The admiral frowned thoughtfully.
    “She, sir,” Commander Garretaj stated from behind them.
    “She?” the admiral turned his frown on the commander.
    “Yes, sir. Sendril, sir, a genie Staff