Fourth Vector Ch. 22

"I couldn't care less if I'm famous anywhere. I had a job to do and I did it," said Jack with a firm glare. "What the people think of me isn't relevant."

"Spoken like a true junior-grade officer. If you're going to play in the big leagues, you'll need to learn to watch the public and their politics," said Reynolds with a sneer. "Ignorance won't save you, nor will a misguided sense of nobility."

"My ignorance aside," said Jack with flared nostrils, "we still need to work together. You heard Admiral Bancroft. This mission is going to depend on our coordination. How are we supposed to do that if we're at each other's throats?"

"That's your problem, not mine," said Reynolds with a lofty expression. "My task force is bigger than yours now, and from what Bancroft has told me, you're going to be the bait for this operation."

"Bait," repeated Jack. "What do you mean bait? What's going to happen?"

Reynolds chuckled. "You'll find out more tomorrow. There are perks of being here on the home front and not off seeing the world. You tend to find out information much sooner. In any event, I fail to see that we need to coordinate our forces to any large degree. You simply need to wait until mine are in place before you spring your trap. We'll take it from there."

Jack ground his teeth. "So you don't want to spend any time on these?" He waved the briefing around. "And what are we to answer tomorrow when they want to hear about our joint efforts?"

"I suggest you memorize it front to back then, Jack," said Reynolds with a shrug. "I already know what's going on so I'm not going to waste my time." Reynolds finally moved past him, heading for the door. It was only once the man's hand wrapped around the handle that Jack felt the need to try one last time to hold to Bancroft's request.

"What if I come to your headquarters this afternoon? You can tell me what you have planned, and I'll go about coordinating my efforts to move with yours," offered Jack. "That way, neither of us look like fools tomorrow in front of the council."

Reynolds made a show of thinking about the request before he finally shook his head. "Like I said, I don't intend to waste my time. If anyone winds up looking like a fool tomorrow, it'll be you. The best thing you can do now Jack is stay out of my way."

Jack opened his mouth to respond but no words came out. It was entirely unnerving to see this type of behavior from a senior officer of the navy, someone whom Jack expected to have a bit more poise and a lot less pride. Reynolds seemed bound and determined to repay him in full for the alleged slight, and there seemed to be no way for him to diffuse the situation.

In the back of his mind, he could already see what was going to happen tomorrow when the council expected a well-coordinated movement from the two of them and received nothing back in the way of planning. Reynolds would have the advantage of being the senior officer, easily deflecting blame back to Jack who would have no recourse to disagree with him publicly.

At this level, rank was everything.

Before he could get out another word, Reynolds was gone, his footsteps heavy against the tiled floor outside in the hallway. Jack sighed reluctantly as he was left alone, seeing no reason for his continued presence. He grabbed the briefing from Bancroft once more and began the walk back to theDestiny.

Once he was back outside, Jack slowed his walk to the ship in order to take in more of the sights of the docks. At this time of day, the port was bustling, and Jack watched as many sailors made their way alongside him, many of them from his own command and rushing to enjoy the time they had in the city. Jack couldn't blame them. He would do the same.

He did notice that he was receiving a lot more extra attention than usual, similar to the attention he commanded inside headquarters. Sailors would stop to watch him, or do a double take after he'd walked by. Many of them he didn't know, and he could swear they didn't serve under his command. Part of him wondered if Reynolds' words were true. Perhaps the stories of his exploits had reached the common people of Java?

He didn't have long to ponder why all those faces seemed to be attracted to his. There was one familiar face that called out his attention along the way.

"Are you back so soon?" called out Luke Ravencross from just a short distance away. "And here I thought Bancroft's golden child might be tied up all day."

Jack started to laugh as he approached the man. "You might want to keep your voice down. Any one of these men might go running back to the admiral if they heard you say that."

Luke scoffed and waved his hand. "Ah, I'll take my chances. Besides, I doubt Bancroft would do anything to the decorated and victorious officers under this command."

Jack chuckled and settled in beside his old friend. Luke had been looking out over the port, not far from a massive hulking battleship that was tied up not far from the task force. Luke pointed her out right away.

"That one right there is theCharles IX. It's one of the newest battleships we have, fresh off the line and newly commissioned," said Luke.

Jack's eyes traveled along the entire breadth of the ship. Slick, modern, and deadly, theCharles IX was the culmination of centuries of Javan naval engineering. Her long guns pointed toward the sky, an imposing size with sixteen-inch openings that were the heaviest of any ship afloat. There wasn't another ship in the world that could go toe-to-toe with the battleship on equal terms.

Jack let out a low whistle. "She's a beauty all right. I'd really like to see her in action."

"I'm sure we will soon, especially once we get to Aberdeen," said Luke. "I asked a sailor that was assigned to her what task force she was a part of. He said Task Force 78."

Jack had a sinking feeling in his stomach. "That was Henrik's old command. And it's been given to your old boss."

Luke raised an eyebrow before the name crossed his lips. "Reynolds?"

Jack nodded. "Indeed. And he really doesn't like me."

Luke smacked his hand against the railing. "I was wondering if you would have to see him. At least that answers that question."

Jack felt the urge to smirk. "And now I have to take shit from an admiral for the move that you and Lucas did. Thanks a lot."

Luke grinned and patted him on the back. "It can't be that bad. After all, we got theStardust and theHorton out of it. Plus you got the best damn commander in the entire Javan navy back under your command!"

"What I got was a lifetime of enmity from Reynolds," muttered Jack. "So you better be looking for ways to thank me."

"I'll keep my eyes open," said Luke before taking a deep breath of air. "Reynolds will get over it eventually. Hell, he'll be happy leading that battleship into action here soon. Once the blockade is broken and he gets his moment in the sun, I'm sure he'll forget all about what some commodore did thousands of miles away."

Jack started to laugh. "Some commodore? Thanks for that."

Luke soon doubled over. "Well, it's true. I can't even mention that you're the commodore with two girlfriends or that might make things worse. Two damn fine girlfriends while we're at it."

A smile started to grow on Jack's face. "Speaking of girlfriends, here comes yours."

Luke turned his attention in the opposite manner as the striking figure of Kim Cross came walking down the railing. The look on her face was coy, and her eyes had been trained on Luke until she realized that Jack was standing there next to him.

"It's okay, Kim," said Jack with a subtle wink. "Sometimes I get distracted by Luke's good looks too and I forget anyone else is around." He nudged Luke which caused Kim to giggle.

"Sorry, Jack," she said quickly. "I just remembered that Luke promised we'd go into the city together, and I didn't think we'd have any other company."

"Well, who am I to stand in the way of your date?" asked Jack playfully. "I should let you two get back to it."

"I'm only teasing you, Jack," said Kim. "What were you two talking about?"

Luke pointed across the bay at the battleship. "That's Jack's new command right there. He's leaving us."

Kim's mouth fell open. "Is that right, Jack? Are you leaving theDestiny?"

Jack gave a soft blow to Luke's stomach, causing the other man to start laughing. "Apparently, Luke still hasn't lost his penchant for games. No, I'm not going anywhere. But that battleship will probably be coming with us when we leave Lockhaven for Aberdeen."

Kim gave a momentary look of annoyance to Luke before training her eyes back on Jack. "I should know better than to accept anything that comes out of his mouth."

Luke grinned. "Yes, you should."

She nudged him softly before her hand slipped into his, and together, all three of them looked back out on the bay.

"Does being home for you two feel as strange as it does for me?" asked Kim finally, breaking the silence.

"What do you mean?" asked Luke.

"Home almost feels different now that we've been away so long. Often times I wondered if I would ever see it again at all," said Kim while taking a deep breath as if to emphasize the point. "Now that we're back, it just hasn't hit me yet."

Jack started to nod his head. "I understand exactly what you mean. When I heard that land was spotted this morning, I kept my eye trained out the window. Once I saw the coast, I almost didn't believe it at first."

"I don't know what you two are talking about," said Luke next while chuckling to himself. "This feels exactly like the Java we left. Who knows when they might order us to go back to the other side of the world again? I'm going to enjoy it to the fullest while I can!"

Jack rolled his eyes playfully while Kim laughed softly. "You'll never change," he said to Luke.

"I hope not. I really like this version of me." He then craned his head toward Kim. "So does she."

"Okay, enough out of you," she said while grabbing his hand and dragging him toward the city. "Jack, we'll see you in a bit. We're going to find a place to eat while we're out."

"And maybe a place to sleep too," added Luke, earning a hefty scold from Kim as they both waved goodbye.

Jack waited until they were gone before he turned his attention back out to the bay. Kim seemed to hit the nail on the head in terms of his thoughts, and he was glad he wasn't the only one that felt that way, albeit for different reasons. While he envied the rest of the members of his command getting a chance for a few carefree nights in the big city before they left, Jack was most anxious to retire back to his room and dig into this briefing.

He just hoped he wouldn't have to do it alone. He would understand if Abigail might have pulled Kat on their own sightseeing adventure in Lockhaven, but it would have disappointed him to not have their company while he stressed about tomorrow. There was just something so calming about the both of them. Something that spoke to him on a primal level and caused his soul to soften in their presence.

It was for that reason that Jack grinned upon entrance to his quarters to find two sets of eyes looking back at him immediately.

"Back so soon?" asked Abigail while looking up from the desk.

Kat pushed off of the bed and wormed her way into his arms, placing a tender kiss against his lips. "Finally, we were hoping that wouldn't take much longer."

"I love you both," said Jack with a simple laugh before Abigail noticed he was carrying something in his hands.

"What's that, Jack?" she asked while gesturing to the folder.

Jack held it up higher. "Homework."

*****

The next morning, Jack arrived at the Admiralty headquarters promptly before Bancroft's war council was designated to start. He'd spent a good portion of the night pouring over the admiral's briefing, makes notes where he could for further clarification. He also ran through a few scenarios with Kat and Abigail of how the situation might turn out.

In all, he felt prepared and comfortable with the direction the council might take, but he was still peeved at Reynolds for not wanting to sit down together to discuss it more. Jack just hoped that his preparation would be enough for the assembled admirals.

And what a bunch of admirals they turned out to be. As soon as Bancroft opened the door, Jack had rarely seen more commendations and brass assembled before in such tight quarters. Thankfully, Bancroft was able to play the amiable host.

"Jack, welcome! Let me introduce you to all of them," said the fleet admiral before gesturing to the first man. "You may already know Vice Admiral Walter McKenzie, who led the last raid on the Occitanian capital city of Montauban?"

The gray-haired admiral rose to shake Jack's hand. "Commodore Easterbrook, well met. I've heard all about your exploits in the Vector. Welcome."

Bancroft then wheeled around to another officer with a sharp face and a distinctly large nose. "This is Vice Admiral Harvey Kuntz, one of the old stalwarts of the navy."

"A pleasure, Jack. Sometime, you and I will have to sit down and talk about your time in the Fourth Vector," said Kuntz with a welcoming smile.

"And this rascal here is Rear Admiral Jasper Strong," said Bancroft, pointing to another admiral that Jack was already familiar with.

"Well, well, well, Jack Easterbrook. It's been a long time, hasn't it?" said Strong with an easy grin.

"That it has," said Jack. "It's been . . . fourteen years since that battery assignment?"

"Yes it has, good memory, Jack," replied Strong before gesturing to Jack's rank insignia. "I see the time has been just as good to you as it has been for me."

Jack chuckled. "I haven't had any complaints."

Bancroft then pulled Jack along to see the last two men in the room, both of whom he already knew. "Of course you know my deputy, Clark, as well as Rear Admiral Reynolds. So, Jack, why don't you take a seat over there. We're just about to get started."

Bancroft pulled out a map on the furthest wall and stood up in front of it. The map was of the city of Aberdeen and its surrounding environment. The city was located near the mouth of a long bay that reached all the way into the interior of the Javan continent. Notably, the positions of the Javan fleet, as well as some of the noted Occitanian ships, were plotted on the map. There were several grouped task forces on the map too, the positions of whom Jack was already familiar with from the briefing.

"Gentleman, our task is to relieve the blockade at Aberdeen," started Bancroft as he used a pointer to gesture to the city on the map in front of them. "As you know, over ninety percent of our force is still bottled up in the city, requiring us to be creative with what forces we have left to attempt a breakout. The plan in front of you has been gone over and created with input from all of you, so let's have a run-through."

Bancroft tapped the map again. "This attack will be three-pronged from the get-go and it will require all of our forces operating in complete coordination. Two of them in particular will need to be in place before the whole ordeal can get moving, but the remaining two forces will operate as one prong once the other two have launched their positions."

"Let's go over major forces. We're going to start with the two groups of the main body of ships in Aberdeen. Vice Admirals McKenzie and Kuntz will assume command of those ships, and both officers be transported by rail to the city following the completion of this council," said Bancroft as he gestured to their positions in Aberdeen.

"Vice Admiral McKenzie will assume command of the force now known as the Second Fleet. This fleet will include ten battleships, twelve cruisers, twenty-five destroyers, and five frigates, which are grouped around the docks on the northern end of Aberdeen."

Bancroft then pointed to the southern side of the city. "On this end, Vice Admiral Kuntz will assume command of the remainder of the ships, now deemed the First Fleet. This force will be twelve battleships, fifteen cruisers, twenty-four destroyers, and three frigates. Your forces will take over the main show once the other two task forces start us off."

"Admiral, what is to be the signal that the fleets are waiting on? How will they know when to engage?" asked Strong.

"By the appearance of the task force in the north," answered Bancroft. "The one that is to be used as bait to make the Occitanians respond."

Jack swallowed heavily as Bancroft gestured to the label of Task Force 21 on the map.

So Reynolds wasn't kidding. We really are going to be the bait.

"Task Force 21 is the smallest of the available forces, but also the quickest since it contains no battleships," said Bancroft as he looked directly at Jack. "Jack's force of four cruisers, four destroyers, and one frigate will follow the coast on the way in and approach from the north around Prescott Island and attempt to work up a storm. I want guns blazing and every weapon in your arsenal firing to get the attention of the Occitanians, Jack. Your force is to get them ready to pursue."

Jack nodded. "I have a few ideas already on how we can draw them out."

In the corner of his eye, Jack could see Reynolds' already rolling his eyes at that statement.

No one else seemed to catch it.

"Good man," said Bancroft before he returned to the map, pointing out Task Force 78, which was to come into the bay with Jack before heading due east and swinging back around, approaching from the west. "Task Force 78 is the final component and the second prong of the attack. Reynolds' force will come in from the west shortly after Jack's arrival, on the other end of Prescott Island. Task Force 78 will come in on the flank of the blockading force as it responds to Jack, thereby forcing the enemy to fire in two directions."

"I like this plan, Admiral," said Reynolds as he pointed out Jack's force on the map. "I especially like the idea of using a lesser officer, I mean force, as bait."

Jack turned his eyes to lock on Reynolds, knowing full well the dig he was trying to get at. It seemed that the other admirals in the room seemed to pick up that something was between them too, and Jack found himself being observed by Kuntz with some curiosity.

"Once both task forces are in place and start to draw out the main Occitanian body, we'll be hoping for a split of the force," said Bancroft while drawing an imaginary line on either side of the enemy ships that ran to Prescott Island in the middle. "Some will go to chase after Jack, while others will go after Admiral Reynolds. That's when our main body will strike."

"The Second Fleet will pursue the ships that take off after Task Force 21 while the First Fleet will do the same with Task Force 78. In so doing, gentlemen, we will not only split the enemy into two groups but then we will envelop those two groups between a hammer and an anvil, crushing them totally. Any questions?" Bancroft looked out at the rest of the group as he put his arms behind his back.

"It seems like my forces are just going to be utilizing hit-and-run tactics," said Jack. "I'm guessing we're to stop running once the Occitanian fleet starts to get bogged down by the Second Fleet?"

"Precisely, Jack," said Bancroft. "I don't expect your task force just to take punishment along the way. Get in there, raise some hell, and then get back out. Draw them with you when you go. The Second Fleet will cover you along the way."

"It seems like the genius of this plan is that we use surprise and local superiority to break their total superiority in the number of ships," said Kuntz. "In light of that, how are we to keep surprise on our side and prevent them from getting advanced notice like they did last time?"

All eyes turned to Bancroft, who seemed a little agitated at Kuntz's question. "Last time, the word got out because of the traitor, Henrik. With him being gone, we have less to worry about."