Free Last of the Immortals (The Jessica Keller Chronicles Book 3) by Blaze Ward Page B

will let her explain.”
    Moirrey stepped up and caressed the hull in a manner similar to how Oz had done. It was almost perverse.
    “You gots a wall of doom comings, ma’am,” she chirped, her accent growing denser as her excitement grew, “yer gon’ reply with every defense missile ya gots loaded. Right shame if a wee somebody blows them all up before they did nothin’, ya knows?”
    Jessica considered the implications and the tactics. It was an incredibly, monstrously expensive way to fight a battle, even by everyone’s normal standards of missiles, primaries, and fighters.
    That would count doubly so when modern training and naval architecture revolved around the fleet escorts, the frigates and the destroyers who escorted the larger vessels, the queens of the battlefield, into action.
    But it was also going to be a very rude surprise for Admiral Wachturm.
    And it would probably only work once.
    They only needed it to work once.
    It would be neck or crown when facing the Red Admiral at Ballard .

Chapter XII
    Date of the Republic June 8, 394 Jumpspace en route to Ballard
    The tiny forward conference room aboard Stralsund was just fore of the bridge, which generally meant it was used more than the primary conference room down a deck and a little aft.
    It was second shift right now, so Arott had his senior officers available while the ship flew through the night of Jumpspace: first officer Doyle MacEoghain, tactical officer Galina Tasse, chief engineer Tiyamike Abujamal, and Stralsund ’s pilot Ya'rah Mhasalkar.
    “Okay, folks,” Arott said to bring things to order and pointed to the folders everyone had brought with them. “You’ve had some time to review the Mischief file provided by Auberon before we left. Thoughts?”
    Galina spoke first. She did that. “On the one hand, Commander,” she said in her brusque tones, “it represents an absolute upheaval in modern warfare, at least until the Imperials come to grips with it and initiate counter–measures.”
    “And the downside?” Arott always expected the other shoe to drop with his tactical officer. That was who she was.
    Galina could have been a model, she had the height and beauty, but she loved to blow things up too much. One of these days she would probably settle down and marry a politician or Fleet Lord. It was not today.
    “It’s completely insane, risk/benefit ratio–wise,” she concluded. “This is Wachturm we’re going to engage. He’ll see through it.”
    “No, he won’t,” the first officer contravened her quietly.
    “Doyle?”
    Arott watched the man take a deep breath, looking for the right words.
    “Okay, everybody knows he’s the best Fribourg has, right?”
    Heads around the table nodded.
    “But have any of you really studied Keller’s Raid ? I mean in detail?”
    Heads shook. These people were professionals. Sensationalism in the media was nothing to listen to.
    “Thought not,” Doyle continued. “I asked a friend in the First Lord’s office to burn me a copy of Keller’s operational report from Lincolnshire and Corynthe . Been reading that every spare moment.”
    Arott looked at his first officer a touch askance. That was getting very fine with ethical standards and legalisms. It was probably the right thing to do, all things considered, but it could be made to look bad in the wrong light. Stralsund didn’t do things that way.
    “What did you find?” Arott asked carefully, knowing that he might be abetting the crime, but unable to look away, like at a traffic accident.
    Doyle tapped the table–top as he made his points. “So, Third Iger , all of Keller’s Raid , culminating at Qui–Ping , then you move on to Sarmarsh IV and First Petron . I compared Jessica Keller to Emmerich Wachturm, since they represent key recent campaigns where they were on opposite sides of the planning.”
    Doyle took another breath, almost pained.
    “I think she’s better than he is,” he said.
    The room exploded in sound.
    “Hear me