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"Engine room, 3/4 ahead. Stay on course." Antonovich spoke into the intercomms under his white mustache and then waited as the ship slowly responded to his order. "Risso, Dusky, trail behind at half speed in our engine wake. Prep the Orca for landing and undock it as soon as possible." The comms stayed silent for a bit before the captains of the other ships responded, and the two unarmed vessels on either side of the Jack broke off and formed up slowly behind the Jack. Antonovich watched with a small smile as the fleet performed in such an orderly fashion. The month they spent repairing the Jack back at port in the Old World took the toll on the crew's morale, but they were finally sailing the azure seas again. On the starboard side of of the group the green treetops waved from the wind in the distance. The few crew members in the bridge kept their eyes on the radars and comms as they sailed towards the co-ordinates given to them. Finally, the Jack picked up a signal from a nearby fjord. That must be the port of those Russians. Antonovich couldn't believe he would be working again for the Russian government. Or, what remained of it. It filled him both with joy and fear: after all, he was probably listed KIA after his ship sank all those years ago. How would they react now that he was leading a mercenary group? He clutched the comms device with his hands before making up his mind and opening up a channel, revealing their location. "This is Admiral Leskov Antonovich speaking of the MD Pelorous Jack." He hesitated a few seconds before continuing. "Former captain of the Admiral Kuznetsov. I believe you were expecting us."

"Admiral Antonovich, we are transferring you, please hold." On the other side of the line, the operators quickly placed the line directly in the Colonel General's office, but there was a wait. Was it because they didn't have their shit together or because they didn't think he was important enough to contact ASAP? The answer was of course that Veronika Tolstoï, the woman on the other side of the line, knew she shouldn't give the impression that she expected that call too much, else this Antonovich might get a sense that he is more important than he really was. Just as the wait could begin to get frustrating however, there was an answer, along with a request for a visual feed showing the General sitting with a wall of polished marble behind her. "Mister Antonovich. This is Colonel General Veronika Tolstoï of the G.R.U. speaking. Welcome to the new world. I trust you had no difficulties crossing the UN line and finding us?"

The Jack however, had no cameras or equipment that would transfer visual feed. This Veronika would only hear Antonovich, but not see him. What a cyka Antonovich thought as he returned answer in his usual, calm and collected demeanor. "The co-ordinates you gave us were quite precise." He nod, even though the woman couldn't see him. "General, we are distinguished officers off the Russian military,  chit-chat is none of my concern." He pressed the words at the end. "We have wasted fuel and supplies reaching your location. I assume you brought us here to strike a deal, and not for tea time. In case you did, I am afraid to say that our Samovar is broken."

"Ex-officers. With distinguished services but a murky end to said service, working for as you say, 'The Russian Federation' which made way to the Pan-Slavic Union. But as you say, enough chit chat." The woman leaned into the table. "The deal, mister Antonovich, is the same as the one that was struck back on Earth." The one that was talked about in a private place with no recording equipment and thus no proof of which existed. To sink the ships of the other nations present here, to be corsairs working for the G.R.U. in exchange for safe harbor and a buyer for whatever stolen good they pillaged. "But I have to admit, I would be interested in extending the terms of this deal. Re-enlist Captain, put your resources at the service of your nation and you'll receive title of Admiral you've given yourself, along with the advantages of this position. For you and your crew of course."

Antonovich scoffed and turned off the comms for a bit to curse the name of this woman. He didn't like her at all, but a deal was a deal and he honored it. Besides, the Azure Fleet needed the supplies more than ever, and he wasn't going to abandon the needs of his crew because of his personal experiences with this woman. "I am an elected Admiral of my people. Can you say the same?" He remarked as he knew very well he was chosen by all those who now serve under him to be the captain of the flottila. But he had a hunch that wasn't the case for this unbearable woman. "The Mare Delfino belongs only to the highest bidder. I will fulfill my end of the contract, and I expect you to fulfill yours." He stayed silent for some time, almost luring the other party to an answer before continuing. "I will give thought to your offer General. It would be a sad end to our distinguished track record if I chose to pledge loyalty only because of my old title. I am afraid you will have to earn the trust of my crew if you wish to see us frequent your ports on more official terms."

"No." She flatly answered, knowing that to respond either by the lie 'I was chosen based on my personal competences by my superiors who got their position the same way' or the truth 'I killed, tortured, seduced and charmed my way to the top' would both be unwelcomed answers. Ultimately she listened in silence before nodding. "Good. You have your orders and a packet of data containing informations relevant to your mission has been sent to you. Upon your return, we should be able to accomodate you for your resupply needs. I will trust you to manage your operations so the finances balance. Good luck." Nobody wanted this conversation to last any longer than it needed to. The data sent contained any information the G.R.U. had about the other ships that had crossed the gateway, mostly dates and satellite pictures along with suspected bases. In addition, the IFF of the Myr, who had just been sent back to Earth so if they encountered it, the cargo could share any new information it got.

Antonovich wasn't sent out there blindly, it seemed the G.R.U. was hopeful on the amount of damages he could make.

"Antonovich over and out." The captain cut comms and returned to his station. "I can't believe someone like here is in control. And they say Stalin was bad..." He shook his head and then waved for the bridge crew. "Everyone, set sail towards the new co-ordinates. Make sure your stations are ready for engagement." Then he picked up the intercomm and relayed the info throughout the fleet as well. "Engine room, flank ahead, work those engines." After this, waved for his XO to take command and he left the bridge.

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15 minutes later, the fleet made a complete turnaround and were already several nautical miles from the GRU base. The Orca had been towed back into place behind the Russo, and Lisa Ruffolo was waiting on the flight deck of the Jack. "Admiral!" She saluted. "I received your message. The Jack and the Orca are combat ready. Groigar made sure everything was okay in engineering, and just for good measures, we are readying Liu's craft for flight below deck. Hopefully, we won't need to employ her, but it's better to be safe than sorry. We also prepped Ripley for reconnaissance." Antonovich raised and eyebrow after the report. "Sorry sir, Ripley is the name the crew gave for the drone." Finally, Antonovich broke out in a charismatic laugh and patted Lisa's shoulder. "At ease Sarge, no need to be so uptight. I know this is how you keep the crew in shape, but you can spare me the salute. Now how about a drink to celebrate our first contract?" Lisa nod in reply, and the two left towards the makeshift bar housed inside the hangar deck.
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