Commandant (The United Federation Marine Corps Book 8) Read Free Page A

return to Prometheus Station , the “Doughnut,” and the homeport for the ships in the task force.
    “Water under the bridge, Hector,” Captain Plummer said.  “Or that saying about the horses and the barn door.  We’ve already committed mutiny, and the consequences of that are death, whether we return the Kravitch or not.”
    “We didn’t commit mutiny!  He did!” the commander continued, pointing at Ryck.
    Corporal Glukhov, the Marine whose Ruger Ryck had taken, took a step forward to stand at Ryck’s shoulder, hand on his holster.  Ryck waved him back.
    “The general may have pulled the trigger, but not one of us objected.  I personally applauded his action, something I hadn’t had the guts to do myself.  But according to the FCMJ, [3] our inaction, much less sitting here discussing the situation, is compliance, and that is still a capital offense.  Right, Commander Quintos?”
    “Right, sir.  I’m afraid we are all complicit in this from a legal standpoint,” Lieutenant Commander Quintos, the task force staff judge advocate agreed.
    “Gentlemen, I appreciate the situation I’ve put you in.  And if you arrested me,” Ryck said, as all six Marines converged behind him upon hearing that, “I would not resist.  I may not be the expert that Lieutenant Commander Quintos is, but I imagine that would stand all of you in some good.
    “We have saved Ellison for now, at least.  And as Commander Fields has told us, the Ellisonians picked up the emissions as the planet buster powered up and have raised a hue and cry to the Universal Assembly.  I would have to think that an interdiction is off the table for the moment.  So I’ve done what I needed to do and am willing to face the consequences.  I can’t think of any reason why all of you should suffer the same fate as me.”
    A number of faces in the wardroom looked like they wanted to take him up on the offer.
    “Bullshit, General.  You had the guts to do what was right, and I cannot stand by and let you hang for that.  And I am not willing to accept that the hangman’s noose is, in fact, inevitable.  We simply need to get to neutral space until this shakes out.  You are a hero, and I, for one, am proud to be here with you now,” Plummer said, his voice heated in his excitement.
    “And if you are wrong?” Ryck asked, his voice calm.
    “Would you do it again, sir?” Plummer asked.
    “Yes.”
    “And so would I.  We saved 12 billion people today.  That’s 12 billion !  And if I do have to hang for that, well, I swore an oath to protect the Federation, and that’s what we did.  Not those politicians who ordered the interdiction, but the real Federation, the citizens.”
    “And for those here who disagree with you?” Ryck asked.
    “We’ve already got 14 men in the brig.  If anyone else wants to join them, I’ll swear that they resisted us, and when we figure out how to transfer the prisoners off the ship, they can join them,” the ship’s CO responded.
    Ryck looked around the room.  All eyes were on him, waiting for what he had to say.  Ryck had been resigned to the fact that he would be arrested and ultimately executed.  He’d committed the cardinal sin for the military:  he’d mutinied.  But now he’d been given a glimmer of hope.  His mind churned with ideas on how he could get the Brotherhood involved, how he might save not only his skin but also the skin of the men sitting around him.
    Is it worth it, though? he wondered for a moment.  What if things blow up and get out of control?
    His life, even the life of those here on the bridge, were really meaningless in the grand scheme of things.  Yes, Hannah and the kids would grieve, as would the families of the men with him.  They would all be branded as traitors, bringing shame on their families.  But what were the lives of the 30 or so officers and senior staff gathered there with him?  Were they worth the potential disaster of a full-fledged mutiny?
    Then he