Annora Doverly reverently stepped on to the bridge of DSS Kingsblade. It was the first time she had ever stepped on to the bridge of a ship of the line as her skipper.

“Captain on the bridge,” Ensign Briggs said with a grin as he carried portable terminals past her. Doverly caught a breath. It was the moment all command officers work towards their entire career. Deep inside she always knew Jason Hunter would be the officer to grant her a first command. He had been guiding her career ever since she was a hotshot medical resident fresh out of flight school. He seemed to take great delight in calling her “doctor” long before she had the right to be so addressed. He also arrived an hour early to petition Skywatch command to assign her to his unit the very instant she reported for duty.

There was something about those fighters that called to her, and before she knew it she was under the command of a cocky razor-sharp lieutenant commander with a promising career start. Flying with Jason Hunter was like being on the winning football team every Friday night. He gratefully accepted his role as the larger-than-life object of myth and exaggeration, and the shadow he cast was big enough to protect all four of his squadron wings. Together, they had already accomplished so much.

And now, in her sixth year after graduating from flight school and only three years after she had passed her command battery, Annora Doverly had the fleet trifecta: The Search and Rescue insignia made her an elite specialist. Her Skywatch Wings made her a rock star. Her degree made her a section chief. And now her rank gave her command.

She couldn’t yet bring herself to sit in the captain’s chair. Kingsblade’s bridge was a good half-again as spacious as Argent’s. There were three helm stations, with the conn on a third level above the rest of the watch. The viewscreen reminded Annora of a sports stadium display. The white and gold appointments around all the instruments gave deck one the appearance of a heavenly temple built around a suitable throne for a leader of heroic men and women.

She absently examined the conn readout. Her designator was already authorized. The vessel’s command computer was keyed to her voice print. That in itself was enough to make her nervous all over again. Only a commanding officer had access to the command computer. It was like having a permanent telepathic link to the very core of a ship. She had the authority to issue literally any order from that console. The sheer power at her command was almost beyond her comprehension. Kingsblade had gone mano y mano with Jason Hunter’s flagship for an interval of nearly twelve minutes, and with the exception of a few dents and scrapes on the outer hull and the loss of a few antennas, this ship, her ship, was still operating at better than 96% combat worthiness. There were only 14 other hulls like it in the entire fleet.

The heavy battleship was designed as the counterpart to the fleet carrier. It was a true capital ship with a pure design. It’s function was as simple as it was lethal. DSS Kingsblade was intended to park itself in orbit over a hostile planet and bombard surface installations until there was nothing left but scrap.

It was clear the crash engineering teams assigned to get the vessel back in shape after the battle had done a magnificent job. Doverly made a mental note to commend them at the earliest opportunity. Just getting from one place to the next aboard this ship took a fair amount of physical fitness and endurance. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like to repair her while underway.

The vessel’s automation systems had been restored to the point where it was possible to navigate, build and repair shields, power the external armor appliques and target and fire the main batteries. Without a full crew, there was no way to run the vessel like a proper starship, but ultimately, Kingsblade’s current mission was to shield Strike Fleet Perseus from any unwelcome surprises at the edge of the asteroid field and the formidable mines it concealed.

Captain Doverly held her breath and took her seat at the conn. She closed her eyes. After a moment’s hesitation she exhaled. She had her orders. She was also reasonably confident Jason would allow her to gracefully relinquish her brevet rank and go back to being an Executive Officer and Medical Officer once the emergency had passed. For now, with the exception of Jayce, she was the only command officer in the fleet eligible to accept a battlefield commission to Captain. Commander Hunter already had a command, and taking her off the bridge of DSS Fury, whatever the justification, would only weaken the Task Force. Jayce belonged on her bridge.

And for now, Captain Annora Doverly belonged on hers. She keyed the intraship.

“Attention all hands. This is the captain speaking. First watch report to the bridge. Stand by to disengage autosystems in exactly ten minutes. Mark.”