Chief Henry barked, “Listen up!” But when the restlessness continued, he snapped them to attention. “Ten-HUT!” The command was instinctively obeyed. Heals clicked and Henry glared. “Listen UP!”
It was then that Lieutenant Ayres bowed his head and read from his clipboard. “FROM COMNAVSURFLANT, 08 MAY 2010, LT AARON AYRES SHALL REPORT TO NEW DUTY STATION USS CUTLASS, MAYPORT, FLORIDA AS WEAPONS OFFICER EFFECTIVE 01 JUN 2010. BRAVO TANGO”
Silence. He kept his head bowed, looking just over the clipboard at the shoes of the men and women under his command. He lifted his gaze, adding, “My replacement will be named this week. I will not be making the mission to Puerto Rico with you. Any questions?” Shaken, he continued. “We have two weeks to square everything away, get shipshape.” Forgetting that he had already asked, he asked again, “Any questions?”
Julian was stunned. She felt like she was floating above the crew, familiar surroundings now surreal, a spirit. Chief Henry took over, reminding his people about haircuts and preventative maintenance that was coming due, and then dismissed the crew.
“Ten-HUT! Sa-LUTE! DIS-missed.”
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