Chapter 4

The two lieutenants were the last to enter the briefing room, each having made sure every one of their pilots was ready.

Bill cleared his throat, ending all side conversation.

"All right Huskies, as you might already know, we'll be back on the Archangel in two days. I'll assume most of you are already prepared, so there won't be much last-minute frivolity like there was at the beginning of this fight. However, should any of you still have some loose ends to tie up, see me in my office after this meeting."

Bill then picked up a datapad he had left sitting on the briefing room table.

"Now, as you know we took heavy casualties on our last deployment, so we have accepted three pilots from other squadrons, and one intelligence operative with hot flying skills to boost our roster. They'll all have extra skills that I've chosen because of the difficulties we've faced so far. Flying as Husky Three will be Randall Lynx, could you stand please?"

A short, wiry Lynx with scruffy brown fur stood at the back of the room. He didn't look much older than Matt Keeler.

"He's also going to be our squadron's own quartermaster, since it's become evident that we need one." Bill added. "Thank you, take a seat now Randall. Our new Husky Nine is of course recently promoted Lieutenant Pawson."

Fuzzy got some handshakes and congratulations from his squadronmates.

"Husky Ten was transferred from Fang Squadron, her name's Kina Weston. She'll help manage communications and will be doing a lot of work with Fuzzy and Matt in fixing our comm units so they'll be immune to enemy jamming. Please stand, Ms. Weston."

A wildcat seated near the front of the room stood. She had striped fur and a delicate physique, and she had a datacard in her pocket. Obviously a technician of some sort.

Bill motioned for her to sit again.

"To fill Husky Eleven's spot we've gotten someone out of Dagger Squadron, he's a pretty experienced pilot by the name of Carl Henderson. He's going to be our main sensor officer. He'll also be working with Fuzzy and Matt to enhance our ships' sensors, and his own ship will be fitted with specialized sensors, which will relay their data to the rest of us, giving us a God's-eye view of our battles. Please stand, Henderson."

Henderson was a timberwolf with a savage scar running down his left cheek. His mere appearance would have been enough to intimidate, but the Huskies were made of sterner stuff than that.

"And lastly," Said Bill. "Jill Rainier, our new Husky Twelve, just transferred here from Special Ops. She's well trained in ground-pounding, like Perry, and she can help us with covert operations advice."

A squirrel with brown fur stood, the same squirrel who had been raiding the bases of turncoats only a couple of days beforehand. She was well-muscled yet slim enough to remain feminine. A couple of the male pilots of the squadron were immediately taken by her looks, and Bill smirked upon reading the expressions on their faces.

"Thank you Jill. Now the squadron has a new general operations format. For missions with multiple objectives, the Squadron will be arrayed as follows. One flight and Two Flight will alternate between being armed for starfighter combat and anti-starship combat. Due to Three Flight's high level of specialization, it will remain permanently on ground-pounding and ECM or Electronic Support. Husky Nine, in addition to being the flight leader will also act as a permanent escort.

But on specialized operations, the squadron will remain in its old format, being refitted specifically for each mission with the exception of Three Flight which will retain its ECM capabilities. Are there any questions?"

Terry's wing went up.

"Yeah, um, have our lost starfighters been replaced?"

"Good question, Eight. The answer is yes- they have been replaced, but fresh out of the factory, which means that Lieutenant Pawson and his crew haven't been able to modify them to our standards yet. They should be going to our specifications within a couple of days though, so I wouldn't worry about it. Is there anything else? No? All right, I'll be in my office for anyone who wants to see me. Everyone else is permitted to move at will around the base, but a 'no alcohol' rule will be enforced from midnight tonight."

Bill checked through the mercifully few tasks he had to do before getting the squadron together for deployment. His task had been made easier by Lynx's appointment as quartermaster, which meant he only had to deal with administrative duties.

A chime from his door heralded one of those duties. Bill checked a video stream on his computer terminal and saw Flight Officer Benny Swipes standing outside.

"Come on in, Swipes." He called out.

The peregrine falcon walked in briskly, not bothering to sit down at the chair before Bill's desk.

"Sir, I need you to give me a leave permit, for the two days we lave left on Katina."

"Well, it shouldn't be a problem, Benny." Bill pressed a button on his terminal and a printer spat out a green leave permit. "What do you need it for?"

"My girl." Benny said sheepishly. "The whole time we were groundside here she was at Corneria at her folks' place. Needless to say, it'd get awkward if I was to… er… visit her there, you get what I'm saying?"

"Ah." Bill said, without batting an eyelid. "And she's back on Katina now, so you want some close, personal time together, eh?"

Benny nodded.

"Right then, you have all the time between now and two hours to when we leave for the Archangel. Dismissed."

Benny smiled, took the slip of paper and saluted.

"She's actually a pilot in the home guard." Said Benny. "She's always wanted to come with me, but of course I think it's too dangerous."

She'll be coming tonight, I'm sure. Bill refrained from saying his pun out loud, letting Benny out of the office first. Damn, I really do still have the mind of a teenager under all this rough warrior's exterior.

Mere moments after Benny had left, Carl Henderson walked in looking positively furious.

"Henderson, is something the matter?" Bill asked.

"Where is that Falcon?!" the timberwolf demanded. "I'll take his camera and shove it down his throat!"

"Easy, Henderson." Said Bill. "What's the matter?"

"Tennis in gym…" Carl began, then showed Bill his paw. "WHITE CREAM ON MY RAQUET, THEN WHITE CREAM ON MY RIGHT PAW, PHOTO TAKEN, PHOTOCOPIES ALL OVER BASE WITHIN TWO MINUTES!!!"

Bill would have been howling in laughter had Carl not been taking it so badly. Instead he just smirked and punched out another leave slip.

"He got away, Henderson, but you have forty hours to track him down and pay him back. Good Luck."

Carl nodded and stormed out.

Bill shook his head. Benny had succeeded Don as number one prankster, and had just initiated one of the new pilots. Perhaps his squadron having the minds of teenagers wasn't such a bad thing. As he had learned over years of experience, this sort of insanity was the only thing that kept the pilots sane over long, casualty-ridden wars.