Laceeya was woken from sleep by the sound of an alarm droning. She quickly sat up with a gasp and threw the blankets off, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. A brief moment of panic fell over her at the apparent similarity to the frightening nightmares she’d had in the past, her breathing rapid and shallow. But no, throwing a glance over her shoulder as she grabbed for her comm, she saw Bren was with her, also sitting up.

  Picking up and thumbing on her comlink, Laceeya connected to the bridge. “Commodore,” The senior bridge officer said as she was already pulling up her uniform pants and tugging on her boots. “Enemy warships have arrived in the Nyar system.”

  “Understood,” Laceeya answered. “Bring the ship up to full battle readiness, I’ll be there momentarily.”

  “Understood, Commodore.” The officer said, signing off.

  “Sounds like your plan worked.” Bren commented as she too was hastily dressing.

  “The first part, at least,” Laceeya said, sliding on the other sleeve of her uniform tunic. “The hard part comes next.”

  “Yeah,” Bren agreed.

  Laceeya sealed her tunic and fastened the collar, and smoothed her hair. “How do I look?” She asked, taking a deep breath and shifting her mindset to prepare for combat. Dark circles remained under her eyes from the stress of recent events.

  Bren smiled. “You look just like the strong Commodore that you are.”

  Laceeya smiled faintly in return. “Let's get going.” She said.

  A moment later they arrived together on the bridge, finding it to be a bustle of activity. Officers and crew were filling in their stations. Apoyarp jogged up from behind, giving Laceeya a brisk nod before hustling over to his position at the helm, taking over from the crewman who’d filled in while he was off duty. Captain Harax stood in the center of the action, barking out orders as the Ethereal’s systems were all brought online from standby.

  A short minute later, all the main bridge crew were at their station, completing the final steps to prepare the ship for combat.

  “Commodore, one of our probe droids in the outer system picked up an enemy flotilla that dropped out of hyperspace,” Captain Harax reported, standing before her, his back straight and tall and his hands clasped behind his back. “They’ve yet to initiate the jump to Nyar Three, ma’am. The defenses at Nyar Three have been notified and are likewise preparing for battle.”

  “Good, thank you Captain,” Laceeya said, inclining her head towards him. “Make sure they hold off on launching fighters or anything that might spook the enemy and scare them off.”

  “Very good, Commodore. I will be sure to let them know.” Harax responded.

  “Good,” She said, wetting her lips as she turned to face the rear of the bridge. The tiredness she’d felt after waking had already been banished from her mind, the anticipation of battle bringing her mind and body to alertness. “Felayun, get the jump to the outer Nyar system ready.”

  “Yes ma’am, already on it.” Felayun replied promptly.

  “Commodore,” Rikal called out, getting her attention. “The other ships of the task force report that they’re ready for battle. Vice Admiral Ilcunor just said his fleet is prepared as well.”

  “Thanks Rikal. Frenara, give me a rundown of the enemy fleet.” Laceeya said. The expectation of combat was already pumping adrenaline through her body. Just like the Ethereal, she too was primed for battle.

  “One heavy cruiser, three cruisers, two light cruisers, a frigate, four corvettes, and numerous gunships,” Frenara stated, consulting his sensor display containing the data sent by the probe droid. “One of the cruisers and light cruisers look like Grysk designs, the others match the Audeenaxu ships we skirmished with at Tryquata.”

  “Understood,” Laceeya replied. Things so far seemed to be proceeding as she’d expected. She took another slow deep breath. This was a chance to deal a blow to the Grysks and their client species, with the advantage of numbers finally on her side.

  But this was war, and war was unpredictable and violent, and even with the enemy outnumbered, she knew the odds of all the thousands of the Hand’s people surviving without a single death was slim. Laceeya swallowed. .

  “Just came in, the enemy vessels have jumped to hyperspace,” Frenara said, peering at sensor data sent by the probe droid.

  Laceeya inclined her head in acknowledgment, chewing her lower lip.

  “Commander Olpheng reports the enemy fleet has arrived at Nyar Three.” Rikal called out.

  Laceeya nodded again. “Good. Get Vice Admiral Ilcunor on the comm.” She stepped over beside Rikal, drumming her fingers against her thigh.

  “Yes ma’am,” Rikal replied, tapping a few keys. “Channel is open.” She said a moment later.

  ”Commodore Laceeya,” Ilcunor’s strong voice came in from the speaker.

  “Vice Admiral,” Laceeya greeted. “Requesting permission to make the jump to the outer Nyar system momentarily. Before we jump to Nyar Three, I suggest we wait for the enemy to get deeper into the planet’s gravity well. We don’t want them getting away, sir.”

  “Granted.”

  Running a hand down the front of her uniform tunic, Laceeya smoothed any lingering creases and squared her shoulders.

  It was time to attack.

  Safiram had rushed to put on his flight suit and gear, and now he jogged across the metal mesh catwalk in the hangar bay towards his fighter. The hatch of the TIE Defender was waiting invitingly open, and climbing down the short ladder he dropped inside, shutting and sealing the hatch behind him.

  The cockpit was mostly dark, but Safiram could find every button and switch with his eyes closed if necessary. Quickly inputting the start up procedure, flipping a number of switches and tapping buttons in the proper sequence, the ion engines roared to life with their reassuring and distinctive sound. He ran over the checklist to make sure all the complicated craft’s systems were online and running optimally.

  Ion engines, repulsorlifts, acceleration compensator, sublight drives, fuel tank, fuel lines, fire control, deflector shields, communications, targeting systems, laser cannons, ion cannons, passive sensors, primary sensors, missile launchers. He nodded to himself, the procedure short and concise thanks to his years of experience in the TIE. Everything was in perfect order. Good.

  His ship was ready, and he was ready. Safiram was calm and confident, but a fire smoldered inside of him. He wanted to make the Grysks pay. His squadmates, his friends, had been killed because of them. He thought of Joak, his best friend, whose life had been cruelly cut short thanks to the Grysks. Yes, they would pay.

  Safiram wanted revenge, he could admit that to himself. His friends had fought and died to eradicate the evil that was the Grysks, and he would carry on that legacy for them. His desire for revenge wasn’t an overpowering distraction, but rather a strong motivation.

  “All fighters, report in.” Safiram said, activating his helmet’s comlink.

  “Katani, everything green and good to go.”

  “Kyst, prepped and ready.”

  “Yocressi, prepared and ready.”

  The other members of the squad checked in, and with that they were ready. Safiram looked out the round viewport of his TIE, into the hangar bay. His ship would be the first out when the time comes. The gargantuan armored hangar doors remained sealed shut, but soon they would slide open to reveal the cold vacuum of space and the battle that would be raging.

  The brief blur of stars settled back into the usual calm of space as the Hand’s ships arrived in the outer Nyar system.

  “Felayun, get the last jump ready.” Laceeya ordered.

  “Yes ma’am.”

  Laceeya stood over the holotable, watching miniature holographic representations of the enemy vessels approach Nyar Three, relayed by the defending forces. Suddenly, the two Grysk warships winked out of existence, as if they were never there to begin with. Laceeya silently mouthed a curse. She’d anticipated one cloaked ship to already be present at Nyar Three.

  Other vessels making use of cloaking technology in the battle wasn’t entirely unexpected, but it certainly added an additional element of complexity.

  “Commodore, the two Grysk ships activated their cloak.” Frenara said. Careful planning and precision would be necessary to defeat them, Laceeya knew.

  She remained confident that there was another cloaked Grysk vessel in the area biding its time, watching and waiting. Biting her lip, she hoped that her instincts were correct, and that the concealed vessel would show itself.

  The Imperial Nebulon-B frigate Hailstorm and the CR-90 corvette that sat on defense duty were turning away at the harrowing sight of the approaching enemy fleet, intent on hiding within the protective range of the heavy weapon emplacements on the planet’s surface.

  “Keep me updated on their position in regards to the gravity well, Frenara.” Laceeya reminded him.

  “Understood, ma’am,” Frenara replied. “They’ll be entering it momentarily.”

  “Also, you’ll need to keep a close watch for the cloaked ships,” Laceeya said, noticing on the holotable that starfighters had begun to emerge from the larger Audeenaxu warships. “They’ll have to give away their location to fire, and the second they do, I want you on it and making sure you keep Shyka updated with that data. Got it?” It would require precise coordination and careful monitoring to defeat the cloaked ships.

  He threw a confident smile over his shoulder. “Yes ma’am, I do,” He turned back to study the sensor display. Seconds seemed to crawl by as the enemy fleet drove towards Nyar Three. “The first enemy ships have now entered the gravity well.”

  “Good,” Laceeya acknowledged, running her fingers up and down repeatedly over the seam on the side of her pants. She wet her lips expectantly. “We just need to wait for the cloaked ships to show themselves before we make the jump.”

  “How do we know all the cloaked vessels will make an appearance?” Shyka asked.

  Laceeya pursed her lips. There was no guarantee that they would. “The Grysks’ biggest weakness is their overconfidence,” She explained slowly. “And they also assume that they know more than their enemies. I’m guessing they’ll believe that the battle is won thanks to their perceived numbers advantage, and won’t worry about revealing their ships.”

  “Got it,” Shyka said, nodding.

  Steadily moving in on the small defending force like a pack of nighthunters cornering their prey, the Audeenaxu vessels propelled themselves towards the planet. Laceeya chewed her lip in anticipation, waiting for the flashes of light that would reveal the cloaked Grysk ships. She hated putting the Hailstorm and the CR-90 in such a risky position, even with the ground emplacements protecting them. But if her task force arrived too soon, the cloaked Grysk ships would likely remain hidden and slip away. Blood pumped through her veins, her heart beating noisily in her ears as Laceeya waited on edge. She needed them to open fire to mark their positions.

  Entering effective range, volleys of laser bolts were traded between the opposing forces as the Audeenaxu ships approached. Laceeya grit her teeth, drumming her fingers against her thigh and watching intently for any sign of the cloaked vessels. Finally, bursts of light shot from seemingly empty space, converging on the Hand’s ships.

  That was what she’d been waiting for. “Captain, signal the task force to make the jump, be sure they stick to their assigned vectors,” Laceeya snapped. “Shyka, ready three rounds proton torpedoes in the bow launchers. Target the cloaked Grysk ship on vector 116.”

  “On it, ma’am.” Shyka replied.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  The stars stretched for a split second before refocusing as the Ethereal was pulled back into realspace by Nyar Three’s mass shadow. With flickers of pseudomotion, the rest of Laceeya’s task force appeared on either side.

  “Open fire,” Laceeya ordered, the proton torpedoes streaking away before she even finished speaking. The Ethereal’s turbolasers joined in, pouring streams of brilliant green energy through space into the area that the cloaked Grysk ship had been firing from.

  Ilcunor’s fleet was right behind, making a dramatic entrance. The huge triangular wedge of the Voidhunter seemingly split open the void as it exited hyperspace on its precise vector, a torrential storm of laser fire raining down from it like the wrath of some angry deity.

  “Launch fighters, have them begin attack runs on that Audeenaxu frigate.” Laceeya ordered, pointing to the vessel.

  “Yes ma’am.” Harax acknowledged briskly.

  Bolts of plasma from the Ethereal’s weapons whisked through the darkness of space, and Laceeya observed intently with her fiery eyes narrowed, her whole body tense as she clasped her hands tightly behind her back. Some of the blasts streaked onward into the void, but others dotted space with explosions as they appeared to strike an invisible wall. The proton torpedoes caught up, likewise slamming into the unsuspecting cloaked ship in quick succession, with brilliant explosions blossoming like a flower of death.

  Suddenly, a Grysk light cruiser materialized where the laser bolts had been exploding against nothingness. Her body relaxing slightly, Laceeya nodded to herself with a small sigh, noting that the Ethereal’s attacks had already bitten deep into the light cruiser’s armor. Clearly the cloaking device must draw considerable power from the ships systems, requiring the vessel’s shields to be lowered.

  Now that it was being assaulted, the Grysk commander was hastily trying to bring up his defenses after the considerable damage from the turbolasers and proton torpedoes had torn into its unprotected hull.

  Ponderously shifting their bows to face the newly arrived threat, the Audeenaxu ships turned. Their spectrum lasers were cutting through the vacuum towards the Hand’s fleet, joined by trails of missiles as they sped from launch tubes.

  Gazing through the port side viewport, Laceeya saw explosions cover a Grysk heavy cruiser near the Voidhunter. The Star Destroyer had poured its momentous level of firepower into the location of one of the Grysk ships, and after a short moment of a fierce barrage the cloaked heavy cruiser appeared, explosions tearing through its armor as the massive octuple barbette turbolaser batteries served their intended purpose of shredding through capital ships.

  Cleaving through Nyix-alloy armor, eight powerful bolts of plasma burst from each of the octuple barbette turbolasers, cutting into the ship and sending atmosphere spewing out to fuel the flames. Ion cannons and other turbolasers joined the attack from the Star Destroyer, turning the unshielded heavy cruiser into slag.

  Timing their arrival just right, the Hand had been able to mark the locations of the cloaked warships as they fired, saturating them rapidly with turbolaser volleys and torpedoes. The Grysk vessels didn’t even have time to maneuver far enough to avoid the barrages assailing them. Caught off guard with its shields down and under an onslaught from an Imperial-Class Star Destroyer, the Grysk heavy cruiser didn’t last long, breaking apart dramatically as its reactor blew.

  The bow hangar doors had ground open, revealing a sliver of space between the mandibles of the Ethereal. Safiram saw the stars blur and settle, the disc of Nyar Three in the distance, and a group of Audeenaxu warships directly between it and the Hand’s forces.

  “Major, launch your squadron and screen against enemy fighters.” Harax’s clipped yet gruff voice sounded over his helmet comlink.

  “Yes sir.” Safiram replied, immediately launching his TIE Defender. He accelerated between the mandibles of the Class-546B light cruiser, the built in repulsors rapidly increasing the speed of his craft.

  Safiram glanced down at his sensor display, noting the locations of friendly and enemy forces alike, leaning his ship into a turn. He pointed the nose of the Defender to head off towards a group of enemy fighters that were arcing towards Shadow’s Bane.

  It was the first battle in what felt like ages with the Grysks or their client species where the Hand had overwhelming force. Safiram found it to be a welcome change from the usual norm of the Hand being outnumbered by the seemingly endless waves of Grysk client species.

  The squadron of Audeenaxu starfighters was running on a course perpendicular to Safiram’s present heading, intent on avoiding the point defense fire from the Hand’s capital ships. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he lined up his sights on the first fighter of the group, waiting a second to near and acquire a firmer targeting lock before pressing the firing trigger.

  Bolts leapt from the barrels on the Defender’s wingtip, lancing outward to strike the rear of the Audeenaxu craft. The electrostatic barrier absorbed the hit, and the pilot reacted immediately, throwing the fighter quickly into a steep dive to get clear. Safiram nudged his yoke forward to angle his TIE downward slightly, keeping the enemy ship lined up in his targeting brackets.

  Again squeezing the trigger, the Audeenaxu fighter wasn’t as fortunate as it was initially. With its electrostatic barrier knocked down by the first volley, Safiram’s careful and exact attack pierced the hull of the ship, a powerful burst turning it into an expanding cloud of fire and shrapnel.

  Safiram smiled tightly. This was justice for Joak, for all his lost friends and comrades. Maybe the Audeenaxu themselves weren’t directly responsible for their deaths, but they worked with the Grysks. Any way to hurt the Grysks was revenge for them. For all the people that suffered under their evil.

  Safiram threw his ship into a tight turn to starboard to dodge a laser blast and slot in behind one of the enemy fighters. His hands guided the ship through a series of sudden maneuvers as the enemy attempted to escape. As always, Safiram was particularly efficient with his attacks, firing short and hard bursts when he had the target locked in his sights.

  This time was no different. The enemy swung into a spiraling turn to starboard and down. Safiram cut back thrust and stepped on his etheric rudder, wrenching the yoke to starboard. The Defender’s tail kicked out to the left as the ship itself turned to starboard in a dizzyingly tight maneuver. Although the enemy fighter desperately tried to shake him, Safiram remained glued on its tail. Bracketing the craft within his sights, he pressed the trigger.

  Energy shot from the wingtip cannons, impaling the enemy starfighter and turning it to scrap metal. Safiram exhaled a small sigh, checking his sensor display and angling his TIE to reconnect with Katani.

  Laceeya watched from the bridge of the Ethereal with grim satisfaction as the Hand’s ships systematically destroyed the enemy fleet. Streaks of missiles sailed away from Shadow’s Bane, tracing parallel lines through space with their trails. She witnessed the fusillade pound into the third Grysk warship, ripping through its already wounded hull and melting panels with a conflagration of explosions. She could tell by the ferocity of the Hand’s devastating assault that they saw this as an opportunity to deal a significant blow to the Grysks, and to avenge their fallen comrades that had died by their hand.

  “Two rounds of proton torpedoes in the bow launchers,” Laceeya said. “Target the engine area of the light cruiser.” Joined by the Raider-Class corvette Crux and a few of the VT-49s, the remaining enemy vessels were rapidly being saturated by laser fire. Already crippled from the initial attack, the Grysk ship was turning away.

  “On it.” Shyka replied, the twin trails of the torpedoes drawing a line through space. With violent flares of golden-red flame, the impacts of the torpedoes shredded through the hull and internal components. The stern of the light cruiser fractured amidst a cloud of fire, ghostly wisps of smoke rising from the crippled ship in numerous locations.

  After pinpointing the locations of the cloaked vessels when they opened fire, first allowing them to enter Nyar Three’s gravity well and reveal themselves, the Hand’s ships had jumped in on the precise vectors of the Grysk ships. Using the planet’s mass shadow to pull them from hyperspace, they’d arrived in an optimal location for attack.

  Cloaking devices were a powerful and useful tool, but not without their downsides. The significant power requirements meant that the ships’ electrostatic barrier or shields had to be down. Laceeya smiled tightly at the irony of using the Grysks’s tool to her advantage after locating them, pouncing on them and launching a sudden attack on the vulnerable vessels. The Hand’s ships had first focused all their firepower on destroying the Grysk ships, and after turning them to shrapnel, they’d now swapped their attention to the Audeenaxu and were pounding away at their barriers.

  “Apoyarp, roll to present our port side,” Laceeya ordered, then gestured for Rikal to open a channel with the task force. “Commander Denau, focus your fire on the dorsal midsection of that frigate.”

  “Will do, Commodore.” Denau’s voice replied from the speaker. The Raider-Class corvette Crux and the Ethereal had both moved to either side and above the frigate, and rolled to show their narrower side profile. The Ethereal was firing a full broadside attack with all the turbolasers it could bring to bear, with the Crux likewise doing the same. Their positions allowed them to fire down without worry of overshooting and hitting each other, catching the frigate in a crossfire and stitching its dorsal midsection with turbolaser blasts.

  A slight tremor vibrated beneath Laceeya’s feet as the frigate admirably attempted to retaliate, but its weapons were inadequate to deal with the multiple threats. The Ethereal’s largest quad turbolasers disgorged shafts of green plasma that speared into the frigate, gnawing through the armor, joined by the rest of the other weaponry.

  The frigate was on the move, thrusters flaring to full strength as it tried to get clear, but the concentration of firepower tore through its electrostatic barrier and ate deeper into the hull.

  Stitching the frigate's side, the Ethereal’s turbolasers viciously ate into the body of the vessel. Nyix-alloy armored plating was superheated and melted, and shrapnel was sent flying. Green bolts brutally ravaged the frigate, turning its flank into a flaming mess of twisted metal.

  Air rushed to escape into the vacuum as decks were penetrated, the laser blasts delving through layers of the vessel, until a huge explosion rocked the frigate as its missile stores detonated. The stream of concentrated laser bolts began tearing straight through the other side of the crippled ship, a large hole blown clean through. Laceeya held up a hand for Shyka to cease firing on the corpse of the vessel.

  “Rikal, broadcast on an open channel,” Laceeya ordered, surveying the battlefield. The other remaining Audeenaxu ships were likewise being routed. “This is Commodore Laceeya. You’re outnumbered and your ships are damaged or destroyed. Surrender, and you’ll be treated fairly.” She waved her hand for Rikal to cut the channel.

  Chewing her lower lip, she watched out the viewport, waiting for a response or any signal that might indicate capitulation. But none came. The few active Audeenaxu ships futilely continued to fire, and one by one they fell. Watching as each Audeenaxu vessel was eliminated, she admitted to herself that she was not displeased at the enemy’s refusal to surrender. It was an excuse to mercilessly exact vengeance for the past blood that had been spilled by them.

  TIEs and Clawcraft hunted down surviving enemy starfighters and gunships that were trying to flee, dumping green plasma bolts into them. Frantically weaving and trying to evade their pursuers, the enemy craft twisted through space.

  But the Imperial ships were vigilant, staying on the tail of the enemy fighters until they too were nothing but scrap metal.

  A few minutes later it was all finished. Laceeya slowly breathed a long sigh. Her fellow commanders checked in, reporting their status. Laceeya nodded to herself in satisfaction and relief. No losses had been inflicted upon her task force. Finally, a victory that felt clean. She felt as if she should experience some slight regret at the relentless destruction of the Audeenaxu.

  Yet they allied with the Grysks, attacked the Varquak and the Hand. She clenched her jaw. The Audeenaxu had killed her people, making it harder to feel guilt over killing them in battle. They hadn’t surrendered when given the chance. She couldn’t spare too much sympathy for them.

  “Captain, secure from battle stations.” Laceeya told Harax, rotating away from the viewport.

  “Understood, Commodore.” Harax replied briskly.

  “Ma’am, Vice Admiral Ilcunor is calling.” Rikal called out softly.

  Laceeya nodded in acknowledgment, taking a step back to the comm station.

  “Commodore Laceeya,” Ilcunor’s voice projected from the speaker. “It seems your plan worked. Hailstorm and Valor sustained damage from the initial attack, but there were no casualties or meaningful damage to the fleet otherwise. You have my congratulations.”

  “Thank you, Vice Admiral,” Laceeya replied. “I appreciate your words, and your willingness to execute my plan. I’m just thankful we had all our warriors make it to the other side, while dealing a major blow to the Grysks. Warrior’s fortune was smiling on us today.”

  “That it was, Commodore,” Ilcunor agreed. “Along with the skills and determination of our people, of course.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  “So,” Ilcunor said with a sigh. “When do you propose we launch the attack on Kwenast? I fear that battle will be far more difficult and deadly.” He added darkly.

  Laceeya swallowed. “I suggest we leave as soon as possible, sir.“ She said.

  “Very well. We’ll complete a few minor repairs and make sure all our vessels ordnance stores are fully stocked before our departure.” Ilcunor agreed reluctantly. “I’ll be leaving behind a small portion of my fleet, just in case.” He paused for a moment. “I ask again Commodore, do you believe this attack to be worth the risk?” He asked quietly.

  Laceeya felt her stomach turn slightly. She had a sick feeling that it was going to be a costly and bloody battle, that many would die. She swallowed heavily. “I do,” She confirmed gravely. “I’m worried that the battle’s going to be costly. But what choice do we have if they’re manufacturing cloaking technology there?”

  “Very well,” Ilcunor repeated. “You’re right. I don’t like it, but you’re right.”

  “Thank you, Vice Admiral.”

  “One more thing, Commodore,” Ilcunor said. “Your sensor officer has held his position as the rank of Ensign for a couple years, has he not?”

  “That’s correct, sir,” Laceeya replied, stealing a surreptitious glance over towards Frenara.

  “I saw you recommended him for promotion,” Ilcunor continued. “Given his skills, he was already due for one. But with his exceptional performance in discovering the Grysk cloaking devices, he’s more than earned it. He is now Junior Lieutenant Frenara.”

  Laceeya smiled to herself. “Thank you sir, I’m sure he’ll be very pleased,” She said. “He deserves it.”

  A minute later, she stepped up from her chair to walk to the front of the bridge. “I’d like everyone’s attention for a brief moment,” She called out. Across the bridge each officer and crew member turned to look up at her. “I’m happy to say that Ensign Frenara,” She paused dramatically, looking over at him. “Is now Junior Lieutenant Frenara. Congratulations, Junior Lieutenant.”

  Everyone cheered and clapped. Frenara was beaming as he stood up and stiffened to attention before Laceeya. “I’ll grab your new rank plaque in a bit,” She said, smiling with pride at him.

  “Thank you, Commodore, it’s a huge honor,” Frenara said.

  She inclined her head towards him. “You’ve certainly earned it,” Laceeya said. “If it was up to me, you would’ve been promoted a while ago. I couldn’t ask for a better sensor officer.” She smiled warmly.

  “That’s…very kind ma’am,” Frenara remarked. “It’s been such an honor to serve with you. I’ve learned so much, and I couldn’t imagine a commander that cares more about those she leads.”

  “Thank you, Frenara,” Laceeya said. “That means a lot.”

  “So now we have Junior Lieutenant Frenara and Junior Lieutenant Felayun,” Shyka put in, shaking her head. “Going to be tough to keep that straight.” She teased.

  A smile lifted the corner of Laceeya’s mouth.”I think you’re smart enough to handle it.” She joked.

  “Hopefully.” Shyka replied with a smirk.”Might be a little difficult for a simple weapons officer like myself.”

  Laceeya snorted softly. “I’ll write you a little note that you can keep on your console to help you remember.” She said wryly.

  Bren’s smirk grew. “That’s very kind of you, ma’am.” She said.

  “Apologies for making things so confusing for you, ma’am.” Frenara sarcastically joked from beside Shyka.

  “Sorry Frenara,” Laceeya said with a theatric sigh. “Looks like you’re going to have to be demoted. Since it’s too complicated for the Senior Lieutenant here for there to be two Junior Lieutenants whose names both start with F.” The corner of her lip quirked upward in a sly smile.

  “I’m used to being referred to as Ensign anyway, so maybe that’ll just be simpler for us all.” Frenara said with a laugh.

  Laceeya smiled. She was proud of her crew, and Frenara was certainly deserving of his promotion. They'd never let her down before, and she was confident that they never would.

  But Laceeya herself had to be sure that she didn’t let them down, either. They trusted her, as she trusted them. Laceeya had always gotten the Ethereal through whatever danger they’d faced. She found resolve in the trust between the crew.

  Biting her lip, she vowed to keep make sure the Ethereal would emerge from whatever threat they encountered.