I noticed only Hwista and Acclo were on the bridge. The other two must have gone to rest in order to swap over. Made good sense. Acclo saw us first and came over. “Captain, as we have more crew members, I took it upon myself to allocate people to positions. Elyek can make any necessary adjustments when they return, but here is what I propose. Hwista there is piloting the ship. They’re excellent, much more accomplished than me. I’ll be good enough in a pinch; I am a fast learner. In the meantime, I am acting as they copilot using the next workstation, which is purpose-built for the task.”
“Cool. I saw Elyek over there quite a few times. That explains it.”
“It does, yes. I have made sure all of our weapon stations are manned, as we have many enemies. We are heading into dangerous territory, are we not?”
“Yip, we are. Totally agree with your foresight,” I replied.
“There are various simulations that the weapon users can run through. They are like games. Miraek found them hidden away and has ensured they are accessible with ease, so now on-duty weapon operators can practice with these tools.
“With your permission, we will run nine-hour-shifts on all systems. Although I believe Calegg will be piloting for 18 hours. Correct?”
“Correct.” I replied.
Acclo leaned in conspiratorially. “Hwista is a far superior pilot.”
“Funny story, Acclo. Elyek has the greater expertise, and yet Calegg remains our chief pilot. Maybe while you’re all co-piloting, you could iron him out a little.”
Acclo gave me a confused look. “Shouldn’t we have the best people for the job?”
“Once upon a time Ember and I were stranded alone on a planet, no money, no friends, no pilot.
“Calegg was a ship engineer who could fly a little. He got us off the planet, and has managed to save us a few times since. He is solid, reliable and a founding member of the Uprising. As such, he’ll be given the respect he deserves.”
“I can see why you are keeping him as pilot. Although I disagree with your decision, I appreciate the loyalty you have shown to your comrades. On reflection, I think it means more.” Acclo paused, looking as though they were processing something. “I find I agree with your decision after all. I will make sure Hwista and the others support Calegg as much as possible. It does bring up another matter, the engineering terminal. Some of the Veiletians with us are competent engineers and should be of use. However, Calegg also operates that terminal while piloting. Although that may have been your only option prior to our arrival, it seems foolhardy for Calegg to continue being stretched too thin. I hope you don't mind, but I have set up a roster system that covers all of the positions on the ship. I have not filled in every position, as I am aware that we may have more Veiletians coming on board.”
“More humans too, potentially,” I informed them.
“More humans?” Acclo said, cocking their head to one side.
“Sure, like me and Ember. We’re going to bring some of them onto the Uprising from the Thoth and Seshat, and possibly put a few Torax and Veiletians on each of those in return. Providing people are happy to go of course; no one has to go anywhere they don’t want to. We just felt it would benefit each ship to have a diverse crew, and to appreciate what each race has to offer.”
“Yes, this does make sense.” A look of concern crossed their face. “The four of us who came to the bridge won’t be going anywhere?”
“No. I'm more than happy to keep you guys here. I’m thinking, maybe the others who are not as emotionally tied to the ship are gonna be amenable to moving ships?”
“Yes. I'm sure they will be fine with that, provided they are treated as fairly and respectfully as they would be here.”
“You make a valid point about how people are treated. I know for a fact there are some knob-heads among the humans. However, I’ll give the ships’ captains explicit instructions to ensure your people are treated well. I’ll also ask you to liaise with the others of your race to get a feel for how they're received. Let me know if there are any problems and I will fix them.”
“That is good to know, but there is only so much even you could do. You don’t operate capital punishment, do you?”
I laughed. “Good god, no. But let’s just say I fucking despise bullies. Understand one thing, the Uprising is about standing up to bullies. Anyone caught abusing their place will be given the same treatment they see fit to dish out.”
“I hope that is true. I have seen many abuse their power, and it has been ignored by those above them.”
“I can only act if I know about it. As long as I’m made aware, I’ll deal with the issues that arise, personally.”
“I’ll take you at your word, Captain,” Acclo said, half-bowing.
“You should too,” Ember said from my side. She’d been unusually quiet until this point. “This lunk once ruined his entire life to stop someone being bullied, yet he still seems to have made it his calling. Some people never learn,” she smirked.
“I think I have seen and heard enough to put my trust in Captain Shaun,” Acclo replied.
Ember nodded, and continued to talk. “I’m really impressed with you making a roster for our bridge crew. The further we go, the more we are going to need full-time weapon coverage. I’m particularly interested in this game,” she grinned, and I did too.
“Yeah. That sounds kinda cool.
