Trexler knew that at the moment his biggest enemy was inactivity. He sought out the captain, and together they constructed a full agenda for the recruits. Language training was a high priority, and Serge had sent several language specialist to get them started. Crewmembers, when available, led groups of recruits on tours of the ship, including the bridge, while others held classes in galactic geography and Empire government. Trexler and his senior staff were offered opportunities to enter the net, and all but Trexler did. He chose to defer his own training, deciding that his presence among his recruits was more important.
Reports from the officers who entered the net filtered down continually, giving hope and confidence to everyone. Yes, it was possible to learn to fly the ship, and yes, it was a lot of fun.
Admiral Chandrajuski greeted Trexler on Parsons’ World and whisked him and his senior officers to a meeting while everyone else got settled into quarters. The second ship landed right behind the first, and Trexler’s 1,000 recruits were a single unit once again.
Trexler was impressed with the program Chandrajuski had thrown together. Not only were lessons and coursework ready, Chandrajuski had thoughtfully arranged for the well-being of the recruits as well. Each received a complete physical, and in some cases, cures for ailments that were just an ordinary part of life on Earth. Glasses and contact lenses soon disappeared – they were no longer needed. Certain pathogens were erased from a large number of these aging warriors, and exercise periods were a required part of the curriculum but with a twist. Elementary language lessons took place during the exercise periods, even when the words were not completely understood. Shouting out proper pronunciation during repetitions was a great way to accustom voices to demands of the new language they would learn, and repetition taught numbers and letters.
Chandrajuski was astounded when Ellie dropped from hyperspace. He, Serge, and Trexler met her as she disembarked from the trader late that same day, her Protectors surrounding her. Trexler kneeled beside them, and she stopped before him in surprise. “Admiral Trexler?” she asked.
“At your service, Your Majesty,” he said, looking up at her with a grin.
She took his hand, forcing him to stand, and just stared at him, then turned to Chandrajuski. “Do you know who you have here?” she asked.
“He’s in charge of the recruits from Earth, Your Majesty. You know him?”
She stepped back to study Trexler, directing her words to Chandrajuski. “Do you remember the admiral who helped Mike and me escape from Earth?”
Chandrajuski’s head swung toward Trexler on his long neck. “You’re him?”
“I am, sir.” He turned to Ellie. “It’s a pleasure to meet you again. Your situation is improved this time, but not by much.”
“Indeed, it is not. Mike said you would likely be out of a job after we left, that there was no approved method in military circles for dealing with aliens, and you’d be sacked. I’ve always regretted that.”
“There were some interesting meetings after you left, but I managed to hold on. I lost my fleet, but I was promoted and given the job of spreading the word of you aliens to carefully selected world leaders. Mike pulled me from that job, too.”
She smiled. “Much to our benefit, Admiral. I’m pleased that you’re here, and pleased that you have heard my call and responded a second time. This time, it must have been by choice.”
“Definitely by choice, Your Majesty. Mike, Reba, and Alexis were all well when I last saw them.”
“I needed to hear that. Thank you. Will you three meet with me in my quarters? I’d like to be brought up to date, and I want to know what I can do here to assist with the training of our newest recruits.”
“Your Majesty?” Chandrajuski said in shock.
“You heard me. I’m going to help. If nothing else, I managed to pick up a little of the language from Mike and Reba, and my Rider is from Jake’s line. It knows the language well. Perhaps I can help my recruits with their language lessons.”
She took Trexler by the arm and walked away, leaving Chandrajuski and Serge Parsons staring at each other in amazement.
Ellie jumped right into the language lessons. Her students immediately focused on the Great Cats accompanying her, so she concentrated her first lessons on them. Expecting to find the training monotonous, she instead found it exhilarating. Within a couple of months, the only language permitted at the training facility was Galactic High Standard except during technical classes where translating devices were required.
When she wasn’t teaching, she was talking. She insisted that, regardless of how full the training schedule was, these men and women from Earth had the right to know the full story, not only of the Chessori and the rebellion, but of the impact others from Earth had already made within her Empire. Schedulers made certain she spoke before every class of recruits, and Mike and Reba’s story became well-known to these warriors. A sense of pride filled them, and more important, she convinced them that they could, in fact, learn this job and make a difference. In her estimation, it wouldn’t be long before their own stories added to the tale.
Serge’s training facilities worked around the clock with the goal of each recruit experiencing the net within the first few days after arrival. Even ships in port were used to bring the recruits into the net. By the end of the second week, some 100 had moved on to weapons training. By the end of the second month, everyone was flying ships in the simulator mode. Detailed training in handling ships and weapons under battle conditions soon followed. Admiral Seeton’s ships, the squadrons he had promised, began arriving at about the same time. Trexler sent half of the recruits into space to continue their training, rotating each half of the trainees on a two week cycle.
In some ways, Trexler’s recruits had the easiest training regimen, but in the long run theirs was the most technically demanding. They had the net to train them, but unlike Mike’s hurried training on Earth, these warriors not only had to learn to handle their ships, they had to learn to function as a battle group, and the standards set by Chandrajuski and his admirals were much higher than Mike had ever achieved.
Two difficult stumbling blocks presented themselves. The first was language. Though language was not an issue in the net, each of Chandrajuski’s ships would be staffed with only a limited number of Terran crewmembers, and they had to function side-by-side with fully qualified Empire officers when outside the net. The second problem was the attitudes of the Empire crewmembers. They were understandably proud of their positions, and they, too, were warriors. They did not relish the thought of turning battles over to newcomers from an emerging world. None of these ships had fought the Chessori, and none of the crewmembers had experienced the scree. Until they did, the Terran sailors had to focus on diplomacy almost as much as training.
Chandrajuski’s staff took care of administration, ensuring the recruits focused only on training, but Trexler and his senior staff could not avoid all administration. Every minute of every day was full for these leaders. Chandrajuski himself was in and out during these months of training, shuttling by fast ship to Aldebaran I and other sectors to meet with various admirals and politicians.
At Ellie’s request, Trexler joined her for dinner whenever he could get away. Rather than giving him a break from his duties as she intended, it usually just meant less sleep for him, but the two of them became instant friends.
“Mike tells me that knowledge of aliens could have a severe impact on Earth culture,” she said as they relaxed before dinner.
“Earth cultures, you mean. We’re like a kettle of soup, with beliefs ranging from one extreme to the other. All the parts go together to create a fine dish, but the individual parts remain just that – individual. Many of our people have no common grounds for coming together.”