Chapter 2 "Supreme Commander"

I

    Stein’s fleet reached the capital Minerva on April 10^th of the year 178 and upon setting foot his flagship Stein was met by the exciting cheers of civilians, reporters, officers and politician’s getting stronger the closer he got to the ground which upon reaching greeted him with Dr. Ivan Bromka leader of the revolutionary force extending his hand out for a handshake of the young hero, shake which the media was sure to capture with every camera they had to send out to every media outlet they could as propaganda as to show everyone just how much they were when compared to the enemy. A simple yet effective trick to appeal the masses and its effectiveness was skyrocketed by the fact that Stein himself was a handsome man who man young women looked up to as an idol. Once the flashing of cameras was over the Admiral excused himself and retired alongside one of his subordinates Vice Admiral Tyler Carey to a diner.

      Vice Admiral Carey was a young man of just 26 years of age with brownish hair with a slight hint of red, he had obtained a plethora of accomplishments in battle despite his tender age and he also was a close friend of Stein thanks to their similar age and also due to them having been put in the same assignment two times, one was in an Intel base on a frontier planet while the other was when Carey served as Chief of Staff for Stein while he commanded a small fleet of 200 ships as a Commodore. They often came to this diner to chat with one another and while sometimes Stein tried to make the conversation open to various subjects it almost always went back to the situation they were in and this time was no exception as Stein pointed out to his friend “While we surely will get a small vacation there is no way of knowing how long it will last, our government probably will not attack at the present time but I do not know about the enemy, they probably want to get some extra votes for when their next election happens” 

    Carey looked down to his glass full of whiskey after hearing the words of his friends as he wondered if they even would actually get a chance at resting, to him it seemed like the Old Confederation would most likely attempt an invasion rather sooner than later, he took a sip from his glass and spoke “Well I am sure you don’t mind how long the vacation will be as long as you can see your sister” Sieg nodded in agreement and they continued to talk about the situation at hand however it is stated that this meeting between two was rather plain and straightforward which is strange as both men would later record on their memoirs that they usually spoke about several “risque” topics in the military.  In the end they both went their separate ways that night and Sieg began to get ready for his ceremony the day after for he was to be appointed as the Sub-Supreme Commander of the Space Fleet.

      April 12^th of the year 178, the Stein looked out from the balcony of the hotel he had been temporarily staying into the horizon as the sun that revolved around the capital planet rose making darkness of the night be washed away as if it was nothing until eventually it was impossible to believe that just a few minutes ago every place in which the sun shone there had been no light to illuminate the path on which citizens walked upon eliminated all confusion in the way they walked, making crimes harder to be carried out and just signal the start of the new day even though the day began way before it made itself present for the capital planet was the only one with the same day/night cycle as the former home of humanity Terra although it took longer to revolve around its fixated star. Looking upon the brilliance of such a red giant, Stein thought he wanted to be like the sun a star shining down upon other others, he thought he could seize power for himself but in the end he just forgot about it and began dressing on a completely white uniform, once used only for the most important of celebrations in the military, and this occasion would be no different for it was time for the young man with porcelain white skin to be promoted to Fleet Admiral.

     As the youngest Fleet Admiral in the history of the Confederation stepped out of his hotel he was greeted by his friend Tyler Carey who had come to pick the young Marshal up with his automated car once both men were in the car the Vice Admiral spoke “There are some rumours going around the military headquarters, they say you want to use your position within the armada to abolish democracy and begin your own military dictatorship” having finished his words the Marshal toyed with his unruly hair for a minute before giving his friend an answer “Such rumours are fabricated lies by those who they themselves desired to be Fleet Admirals and should be taken lightly” “Still Siegfried, if the government decides to believe it who knows what will happen” Stein nodded he knew that even if the government decided to believe such rumours with no evidence they would not be able to do much to him for he was too important for the military still he thought if maybe just maybe he should fulfil the expectation of those who circulated the rumour.

       Upon the vehicle reaching the National Defence Headquarters in which the promotion ceremony would be taking place, Carey and Stein were met by various media reporters encircling the area around them as an Ensign named Emil Fox opened the door to their car allowing the young admiral to step out with the wind moving his magnificent golden hair leaving everyone at the sight without any words, it is said that for that time his hair and skin and the radiance they give off illuminated the path of those lucky enough to see it. Stein looked around him to the reporters, soldiers and civilians’ speechless gaze as he began to walk through the space made for him until the entrance of the Headquarters ‘ doors where the Secretary of Defence Dieter Overath was waiting for him. Dieter was a man of thin complexion with a cold look in his demeanour, he often seemed like a person to act upon logistics and disregard moral actions however in all trueness he was one of the most capable men in the revolutionary force and the sole reason why he became Secretary of Defence was due to he himself being someone who disregarded his own life as meaningless an would always put everyone else above him whether a citizen, a politician or a solider to him his only reason in life was to help them and allow democracy to survive.

       Dieter was not the only man awaiting for the newest Marshal, he was accompanied by the 72 year old Fleet Admiral Raphael Dalton who at the present time commanded half of the space fleet, he was said to be an extremely capable tactician on and off the battlefield however his age had slowed him down causing his reactions to enemy attacks to become slower and less effective this caused him to lose 17,937 ships in a battle against then Rear Admiral Karl Odenwitz in the year 174 when Karl used his small force to use a basic quick and run tactic which proved to work due to Dalton’s slow reactions, however that is not to say he had become incompetent  for in that very same battle he evaded losing more ships by baiting the enemy into believing they had left their rear wide open and then encircling the fleet and completely annihilating it was then discovered that the fleet they had beaten at the time was that of Vice Admiral Dean Hopson the son of Admiral David Hopson and not Karl’s fleet but they still decided to return to their homeland instead of fighting Karl before suffering any more casualties.

    

       The Supreme Commander of the Space Fleet, 57-year-old Fleet Admiral Connor Konev, also joined him on the door. Connor was a sound tactician on his younger days bringing alongside Dalton many tactical victories to their side however it is said that once he became a Fleet Admiral he became more egotistical and began to think only he was right in his thinking. He was brining down the fleet however there was nothing that could be done about it for he had been an important vassal of the military for a long time. Sieg had hoped that with his promotion Connor would be kicked out but he was heartbroken after learning that his promotion meant the resignation of Marshal Dalton for he was a man he had tremendous respect towards, but in the end while saluting Connor seemed to be looking at him with small disdain in his eyes while Dalton gave him a faint smile.

II

    The room was full, the media, citizens, and soldiers in the crowd. On the stage there were the two Fleet Admirals wearing their special white uniform used only in the grandest of occasions with various members of the High Council all there to see the grand ascension from Admiral to Marshal for Siegfried Stein. This was the to be the most important moment of life after all nearly every important person in their side of the galaxy was there and among the sea of their stars he was to be the shiniest star of them all, he was the guest honour and he was to become one of the most powerful men in the military. He was ready to go on stage but instead of him taking the stage, first there was a speech by the secretary of defence.

    Clearing his throat as the citizens at his front waited and the officer alongside the politicians looked intently at the man, “My fellow compatriots. Why did nearly a million people pass away on battle? Why did the now Fleet Admiral Erick Stalder fall to the enemy fleet? I’ll tell you why, to protect the democratic ideals of our founder, to restore righteous order to the galaxy and to bring an end to corrupt ways of the leeches hanging to our just name of Galactic Confederation of Planets. In order for all of us here, for the people in distant planets and for those at the other side of this war, they passed away so we can fulfil our dreams, so we can live on our hopes, so the spirit of freedom and liberty can continue to soar through all of space. Their sacrifice will not be forgotten and they will be forever remembered as heroes but in order for that we must first win, we must first sacrifice everything we have as they did, we must do it so we can live on, so we can make our founding fathers smile on Valhalla and for that we need an appropriate leader for the troops, someone who can rally their forces and make them bring upon the dawn of a new age, and for that I present to you the new Supreme Commander of the Space Fleet, Fleet Admiral Siegfried Stein!” as the claps and cheers begun, the young Marshal made his way to the podium to deliver a speech of his own when he turned his eyes for a moment to see his sister on the front row looking at him not with happiness but with regret as he kept walking.

    Once on the podium the Fleet Admiral looked around his surroundings, the civilians were awed at his lustre, the media was doing all they could to capture the moment and the soldiers almost all of whom were now under his command were rallying on cheers and applause but still his sister did not look as a woman exploding on joy, she did not look happy at all for her little brother having climbed to the top of the mountain on such a short time. This was due to her never really approving of her brother joining the arm, she herself had always been one to not understand war and the reasoning behind it but once her father was taken away by the chaos of the war she found herself as a hater of war, she even began an anti-war campaign which had obtained a lot of media credit but lost its steam once it was known that her little brother was joining army, she never once stopped her brother from enlisting and some even say had she gone ahead and asked him not to that Stein would have probably not enlisted and therefore history would be drastically different, she however stood silent to the issue and allowed her brother do what he desired until the situation they were in occurred. 

    Sieg had a small moment of hesitation, was he doing something wrong he though, “No, I am doing this to protect the life of innocent people but, aren’t I also giving power to incompetent leaders?” this thoughts crossed his mind briefly until eventually his lips parted slightly before he finally opened his mouth and spoke “I am Fleet Admiral Siegfried Stein, from now on I command one half of the space fleet in order to combat those who pursue battle against us and to defend the life of every citizen of this country. That is all” it was a brief speech and once most politicians on stage seemed to dislike with the exception of Dr. Ivan Bromka who had been leading the revolution since it’s birth, the Fleet Admirals Dalton and Konev both had polar opposites for reactions with Konev meekly looking away and Dalton applauding the young man, as for the crowd, the hundreds of “nameless” soldiers, the citizens, the media outlets, those watching at home through their television and even Sieg’s sister clapped and cheered to the words he had spewed out for he had said exactly what the people wanted to hear and he was willing to make the sacrifice no politician would have done for them.

    Siegfried bowed to the people before turning towards the exit of the stage leaving the politicians alone, this made several of them including the Secretary of Defence become slightly bitter towards him for he was the guest of honour yet he had just left them out on the cold  as if they did not matter enough to be with so the revolutionary leader decided to take matters into his own hands as he stood up and dismissed the ceremony ending it on a note that left a strange taste on people’s mouth. Was it bitterness towards the politicians? Was it the feeling of security with a man as Sieg defending them? Were they not now giving too much of their hopes and adoration to a military man? Couldn’t this therefore allow him to become a dictator? They kept thinking but nothing really came from such thoughts. After the ceremony Sieg left the building saluting Vice Admiral Jakob Thomas before making his way to meeting his sister face to face for the first in some time.

III

      The young marshal looked through the sea of the people, looking for the sister who had always been so dear to him until among the hundred of civilians who had been there a shining glow like that of gold began to appear as his face turned in a smile as the Fleet Admiral began to run making space for himself in between the people who did not move out of their way after seeing his person running until he finally saw his sister as she turned around to greet him with a hug between the two, it was the first meeting between them in a long time and the emotion of Siegfried’s embrace could surely be felt by his sister, having finished their meeting they retired from the scene to go towards the house in which Sabina had been living in completely alone for quite some time now and they used the time it took to get there to catch up one another and what they had been doing although Sabina herself hadn’t been doing much as her brother would send her a part of his salary for her living expenses while it was only a small fraction of it the salary Sieg had been obtaining was quite large and as such she had no need to work which became the reason she decided to take on old fashioned hobbies such as the act of knitting, while the actual contents of their conversation continued varying like this there was unrest in between high military officials as recently there had been a resurgence on anti-war movements and many have led to conclude that Sabina Stein was the person behind this resurgence as such the officials saw this as Sieg trying to help his sister bring down the military’s power.

     As their meting continued it turned it of not much meaning apart from the two seeing each other again, however as they talked through the streets of the city up to Sabina’s residence there was another similar ceremony to the one they just had, it was occurring at the other side of the corridor on the capital planet Millnieun on its capital Guinness City named after the founder of the Confederation in this ceremony the Secretary of Defence gave an speech nearly identical to that given on the rebellious side of the Confederation in fact the ceremony itself was quite similar in many aspects with the difference being that the one promoted here was now Admiral Skye Hyde who was being labelled as a hero for having saved the lives of many although she could not stop thinking that the fact they celebrate being alive undermines the thousands of soldiers who lost their life thanks to her and Karl’s commands even if she did in fact save the fleet from total annihilation. She just like Stein made a small speech although this time it was just to her fleet which had been replenished to be a full fleet although it was still going to barely be 11,200 ships, her speech was so short that no official record exists although most people agree that the message was mostly that of “Let’s not die”.  She unlike Stein though decided to stay until the end of the ceremony and even stayed behind for the media to take pictures with her alongside the politicians at the scene this gained her some favour by them which could prove to be useful in the future.

      Once the ceremony was over she went to a local diner were several people were waiting for her including her husband Admiral Karl Odenwitz, her ward Nero Quay whose father was killed on battle 5 years prior and 3 years before Hyde’s and Karl’s wedding, Karl’s upperclassman and friend Naim Qaseem and his family, Fleet Admiral Trung Yin and Hyde’s childhood friend Lieutenant Haylie Kagarmine all this people had been important on her life and all had reunited for her promotion ceremony while they tried to keep the topics of discussion more casual for Nero’s and Qaseem’s daughters sake they simply couldn’t and as such the topic quickly became that of politics.

     “Anyways those politicians sure are scummy people, taking pictures and shaking hands with you for their own personal gain and so they can keep power for a little longer” muttered the Admiral and commander of the 5^th fleet Naim Qaseem to what his wife Therese responded “If those politicians paid no attention towards you then you would feel like they have no respect whatsoever for them and denounce them for it” Naim looked dumbstruck that was not directed towards Hyde and Karl instead it was directed specifically at him, he who barely got any credit since becoming an Admiral, he who everyday complained that politicians had zero respect towards him for always coming back alive as he was opposed to the current government, he who had realized why he was the only one targeted. 

     “Still I do not think any of us should worry too much about them if the military begins to meddle with politics it would be the bad for democracy” this statement was uttered by Fleet Admiral Trung Yin who followed it up by saying “Furthermore the only reason why they were taking so many pictures with Hyde is from what I’ve heard that she will lead alongside Admiral Carrizo an invasion towards the enemy territory to strike them as they mourn the loss of Admiral Stalder.” “What? Who is thinking of doing such a thing? We barely managed to escape the enemy bombardment on the last battle, had it not been for Hyde, my fleet would have been wiped out from the galaxy” Yin nodded as to say he agreed with Karl’s sentiments but in the end he had to point out the major loss of trust by the public on the current government following the last battle. So in the end just like last time they would set people out to die just for a chance at winning the next election. It seemed like a truly despicable act to demand sacrifices and the such in the name of patriotism and freedom, exerting on the masses just how important it is to risk their life for their country all the while they stayed at home drinking with their families all of whom will never do their mandatory military service or if they do then they will never even leave the capital planet thanks to their familiar connections, almost as it didn’t really matter what the were called both politicians and nobles could be bound for corruption and deception.

    As their evening continued with a change of topic which allowed the 14 year old Nero to get more involved on the conversation the doors to the diner opened revealing a man whose shadow was to Hyde and everyone else at their table that of despicability, a man who had no shame and who would do anything to maintain his status and position that man being, that human was no other than the legitimate confederation’s very own Secretary of Defence Joao Pereira who immediately went to the table of the Admiral Skye Hyde to inform her that she should be ready to set on an excursion at any time for a meeting for an invasion plan was to be scheduled soon and would most likely be approved, he then reminded her that she was in the need of an adjutant and excused himself to the washroom, once he had left everyone at the table quickly got up to continue their small meeting at the house of Hyde with the exception of the Fleet Admiral who excused himself saying he was not cut out for spending nights late away from home at least not anymore, as such their meeting continued on what just as the meeting between Siegfried and Sabina could be called uninteresting with the most picaresque thing being Qaseem asking Nero if he wouldn’t like to marry one of his daughters.

    Once everyone had left their home Karl asked Hyde about the election of her adjutant as whoever she chose would need to be someone with great talent not only that but she also needed to choose someone as her Chief of Staff and many more personnel positions although she could just leave this decision to whoever she chose as an adjutant, while she was thinking Karl sprung a surprising suggestion, their own ward Nero could serve as an adjutant. While he would be essentially starting out as an ensign their ward would probably love to be more time with them not only that but he already was someone planning to become a soldier in the future and as such she settled the case in a swift fashion. Her adjutant would make all personnel decisions and that adjutant will be the now Ensign Nero Quay. It is recalled that she had a faint smile on her face as she was apparently looking forward to spending more time with her ward something she hasn’t done a lot for the last 2 years or since becoming an admiral.

Author's Note

Feedback is most appreciated so I may edit later.