{"data":{"id":16325,"title":"AREMIS POST: DAY 627: THE JOURNEY ENDS","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/comm-link\/spectrum-dispatch\/16325-AREMIS-POST-DAY-627-THE-JOURNEY-ENDS","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/16325","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/16325","channel":"Undefined","category":"Undefined","series":"News Update","images":[{"id":6620,"name":"AremisPost_JourneyEnds_1.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/xtz9afd4ryra5r\/source\/AremisPost_JourneyEnds_1.jpg","alt":"","size":585283,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2017-12-13T00:14:37+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/6620","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/6620\/similar"},{"id":26463,"name":"source.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/media.robertsspaceindustries.com\/weozjmuuh3hwh\/source.jpg","alt":"","size":843046,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2019-09-19T15:49:32+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463\/similar"},{"id":27892,"name":"source.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/media.robertsspaceindustries.com\/w3o9r4zgppm77\/source.jpg","alt":"","size":900916,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2021-09-06T14:48:40+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/27892","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/27892\/similar"}],"images_count":8,"translations":{"en_EN":"DAY 627: THE JOURNEY ENDS\n2947.12.12 SET\nby Sean Nazawa\nThe final part in a series following a class of recruits moving through the Navy\u2019s training system.\n\nA business executive has been abducted while in transit from a trade conference in the Xi\u2019an Empire. Advocacy investigators were able to identify and track the kidnappers back to an abandoned comm relay. Intel suggested that they had hollowed out the interior, pressurized sections and transformed it into a small hideout. From a strategic perspective, the hideout was a nightmare: complete visibility against any approach, homemade proximity mines, and multiple bulkheads inside that could quickly be triggered to lock down and trap agents. The Advocacy has turned to the Navy for assistance in rescuing the hostage. A flight of Avengers were deployed to resolve the situation. They were currently keeping a wide berth of the relay, their trajectory insinuating that they were simply passing by.\n\nA harrowing circumstance, for certain, as this type of scenario could easily prove deadly for everyone involved.\n\nThankfully, it\u2019s not real.\n\nThis staged event is the final test that this group of Naval recruits will face before graduation. Although they don\u2019t know this, their performance in this exercise will be reviewed by the Navy and even the Marines to determine where these recruits will be assigned. Intended to be as close to a real world operation as possible, the military have spared no expense in orchestrating the illusion.\n\nThe \u2018outlaws\u2019 are members of the Navy\u2019s 208th Squadron, recently redeployed from active service on the Vanduul front, and many of them are enjoying this bit of entertainment. Bravo Flight leader Commander Harold Rifke spent the days before the exercise coming up with extensive backstories for the other pilots and capturing fake ransom demand vids that he\u2019s been sending sporadically to Divisional Officer Edward Aino, the conductor of this simulated chaos, to forward on to the recruits.\n\nI\u2019m standing with Aino onboard a C&C ship, overseeing the entire wargame play out. Analysts and comms officers coordinate both sides of the engagement. The outlaw chatter is considerably more colorful; the 208th are really getting into their roles.\n\nI watch the recruits\u2019 ships disappear from the hologlobe. Under acting squadron leader Toulo Chalke\u2019s orders, they\u2019re breaking towards the comm relay. Aino listens intently as they relay their positions to each other. He shakes his head and takes a sip of sujin tea.\n\n\u201cTell Rifke to hack their comms,\u201d he yells over to the comms officer coordinating the outlaw channel, then glances at me. \u201cThey shouldn\u2019t give away their positions.\u201d\n\nOver the course of the exercise Aino will continue to throw what he calls \u2018surgical handicaps\u2019 against the recruits. He wants them off-balance, to be the underdog.\n\nI pick out the specific recruits among their brief clipped exchanges:\n\nCallum Weaver is confidently adjusting the approach vectors of his flightmates. This scrawny kid from Aremis has really come into his own since beginning flight training and now acts as the number two for Chalke.\n\nThe acting squadron leader is a bit of a celebrity around the Forges. Even though his father is Beo Chalke, legendary sataball player for Jata SC, and his mother is Valina Razari, award-winning star of Tears of Time and Last Stand of Lidenvald (to name a few), to the recruits he\u2019s just \u2018Paladin.\u2019 The nickname born from an incident that occurred three months ago where Chalke jumped in to help several recruits who were being bullied in the commissary.\n\n\u201cSir, Rifke\u2019s moved two flights to their position. He says they aren\u2019t there.\u201d\n\nAino grins.\n\nSuddenly the outlaw comm channel explodes. The five ships that stayed back to guard the relay start calling out targets. The recruits drop the pretense and transition into combat updates. I hear Lyssa Vale, the brawler of the recruits, immediately mixing it up with the outlaw pilots.\n\nTalkative on the comms, Vale is one of the most dedicated recruits I\u2019ve seen. She is constantly pushing herself to a ridiculously high standard, putting hour after hour into sims, perpetually drilling herself and whoever she can loop into her training regimen. It seems to be paying off though; she\u2019s ferocious in a fight.\n\nThe outlaws at the relay hold their ground as long as they can until virtual laser fire from the recruits finally take them down. With Vale providing cover, Weaver exits his ship and leads a pair of pilots into the relay to secure the hostage. They hope to finish their risky EVA before Rifke and two flights of outlaws race back.\n\nThe rest of the exercise is a single protracted brawl. The recruits do their best, but eventually the seasoned combat pilots of the 208th turn the tide. Weaver\u2019s the last holdout, but he gets taken out just after he gets the hostage back to his ship.\n\nSeven outlaws remain, the hostage is dead and the entire recruit squadron has been eliminated.\n\nTwo hours later, the recruits have gathered in Aino\u2019s classroom for their debriefing. The room\u2019s drenched in silence. Lyssa Vale is still wired from the op. Her leg bounces up and down as she glares ahead into space. Weaver aimlessly flips through his mobi. Even Chalke looks disappointed until he finally settles back in his seat and breaks the silence.\n\n\u201cWell, we almost had them.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlmost isn\u2019t good enough,\u201d Vale mutters.\n\n\u201cC\u2019mon, Vale, you took out what, six? Seven?\u201d Chalke seems intent on raising the spirits in the room.\n\nThe door suddenly opens and Aino strides into the room. He cuts a path to the front, powers up the system and loads all the captures of the exercise. He\u2019s got everything: individual pilot cams, hologlobe recordings, comm chatter. For the next four hours, he walks them through the wargame, step by step. He grills them on each decision, why they made the choices they made, and what they would change in retrospect. There was no chastisements. No judgment on the actions of his recruits. It was purely objective analysis.\n\nThe recruits, however, seem locked in the loss.\n\nAino suddenly stops. He looks over the glum faces of the recruits in the room and shakes his head.\n\n\u201cYou all need to grow the [redacted] up,\u201d he mutters, tossing his pointer onto the desk.\n\nThat gets everyone\u2019s attention. Aino draws out the pause and sits on the corner of his desk.\n\n\u201cLet me tell you all something. This job? The missions that you\u2019ll fly? Any one of them can be a one-way ticket. It doesn\u2019t matter if it\u2019s the most routine patrol in the world, there\u2019s always a chance that something could go wrong and one of you won\u2019t come home. Now, I know you\u2019re all sitting there, pissed off that you didn\u2019t succeed. Let me let you in on a little secret: you weren\u2019t supposed to. We did everything we could to stack the odds against you. Wilkes, remember your missile pod jam? I did that. Teague, your weapon overheating wasn\u2019t an accident.\u201d\n\nThe recruits exchange confused glances.\n\n\u201cYou all saw failure, but I\u2019ll tell you what I saw. I saw a squadron, working together, executing orders with precision and excellence. Chalke, you broke an engagement with an easy kill to drop flares and protect Kelso. Vale, you\u2019d pick fights with pilots to get them away from teammates that were in trouble. Hell, feeding us the wrong position over your comms was genius. I thought we were gonna lose the op because of that.\u201d\n\nThe recruits chuckle. Weaver gets some pats on the back. Aino smiles at them before he continues. It\u2019s the first time I\u2019ve seen him smile at his recruits.\n\n\u201cYou all did good. Yeah, you didn\u2019t succeed. You lost people. But that\u2019s the real lesson here. As a Navy pilot, you\u2019re gonna be in these circumstances a lot. What we\u2019re trying to do is condition you to act rationally in impossible situations. That doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re always gonna make the right call. The real trick though, you gotta learn how to keep going. I know a lot of pilots, some of the finest pilots I ever flew with, who would rather be the one who gets punched out then have to go on without one of their squadron. You gotta be smarter than that. You gotta do your best. You got to look out not only the people beside you, but also for the civilians you\u2019re protecting. Sometimes it\u2019ll work out. Sometimes it won\u2019t. Either way, you gotta pull yourself together and hit the next mission with a clear head. Now, I wish I could tell you how to do that, but you gotta figure that out for yourself.\u201d\n\nAino studies the faces of the recruits.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve trained a lot of pilots, but I\u2019ll tell you, I\u2019ve never seen a class help each other as much as you do. I hope some of you get assigned together, but if you don\u2019t, I hope you take that attitude to wherever you land because you all have something special.\u201d\n\nThe room is silent for several moments. Someone gently knocks on the door.\n\n\u201cCome in.\u201d\n\nRifke pokes his head in.\n\n\u201cSorry, sir. I didn\u2019t mean to interrupt.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s all right, commander,\u201d Aino says as he stands and grabs his pointer. \u201cWhat can we do for you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, sir,\u201d Rifke opens the door and steps inside. Some of the other pilots from the 208th are outside. \u201cWe were wondering when you were done debriefing these Rorys, if we could treat them to some drinks. Vanduul don\u2019t fight as hard as they did.\u201d\n\nAino looks at his class. He gives a quick motion with his head for them to go. All the recruits slowly file out of the class to the cheers of the combat pilots outside.\n\nWeaver lingers by the door, then turns back to Aino.\n\n\u201cThank you, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cGet the hell out of here.\u201d\n\nWeaver smiles and leaves.\n\nI wait as the door slowly clicks shut. Aino starts to quietly collect his things. I feel I have to say something.\n\n\u201cThat was a nice speech, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cWas it?\u201d Aino finishes packing up, then looks at me. \u201cWhat I said should have terrified them. The other DOs like to say the Rubicon is the first moment they land on Kilian, but if you ask me, it never stops. Doing this job every day will challenge you to your core. The Navy has been my single greatest pride and has broken me in ways that even I can\u2019t see.\u201d Aino pauses. \u201cBut they\u2019ll see. Everybody does.\u201d\n\n* * * * * * * * * The class of 2947 graduation ceremony is held in the late summer on Macarthur and features over two thousand graduates in a variety of capacities. The flight academy alone is responsible for over two hundred. Aino surprised me and arranged for me to sit with the rest of the Divisional Officers for the ceremony.\n\nI can see Arley Finn and Yen Hardigan, the two DOs from that first day on the tarmac that introduced me to the intense journey that Naval recruits faced. As I watch the proceedings commence, I can\u2019t help but reflect on the variety of people I\u2019d met on this incredible journey. All committed to the core tenets of the Navy and protect people like me.\n\nThe entire graduating class stands and repeats the same Oath that has been uttered by every Navy member for centuries:\n\nHear and witness that I do solemnly pledge, mind and body, that I will serve and protect the United Empire of Earth against all who would seek to harm it and its people.\nThat I will faithfully discharge the duties asked of me, and when called upon, I will defend the Empire with my life.\nThat I will be the sword and the shield. That I will not falter nor fail, but fight and win.\nThat I swear to do all in my power to act as a guardian of freedom and justice, as a champion of honor and valor, and as a true and proud member of the UEE Navy.\nI finally spot Weaver, Chalke, Vale and the rest of my friends all clustered in the crowd, relishing each word of the Oath. And when they finish, their journey (and mine, I suppose) is over.\n\nThey are official members of the UEE Navy.\n\nI talk briefly with Callum Weaver after graduation, just a brief conversation while he waits to receive his first posting, but I ask him about that first day on the freezing tarmac of Kilian. When confronted by DO Hardigan, Callum said that he was joining to \u201cnot feel helpless.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo,\u201d I ask. \u201cDo you still feel that way?\u201d\n\nThis scrawny kid from Plantock River, only a couple hours from my house here on Aremis, who survived the horrors of the Vanduul attack, thinks about it for a few moments.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t think that feeling ever goes away \u2026 but now I know I\u2019m not alone.\u201d","de_DE":"TAG 627: DIE REISE ENDET.\n2947.12.12.12 SATZ\nvon Sean Nazawa\nDer letzte Teil einer Serie nach einer Klasse von Rekruten, die sich durch das Ausbildungssystem der Marine bewegen.\n\nEin Gesch\u00e4ftsmann wurde auf der Reise von einer Handelskonferenz im Xi'an-Reich entf\u00fchrt. Die Ermittler der Anwaltschaft waren in der Lage, die Entf\u00fchrer zu identifizieren und zu verfolgen, bis zu einem verlassenen Comm-Relais. Intel schlug vor, dass sie den Innenraum ausgeh\u00f6hlt, Abschnitte unter Druck gesetzt und in ein kleines Versteck verwandelt hatten. Aus strategischer Sicht war das Versteck ein Alptraum: vollst\u00e4ndige Sichtbarkeit gegen jede Ann\u00e4herung, selbstgemachte Ann\u00e4herungs-Minen und mehrere Schotten im Inneren, die schnell ausgel\u00f6st werden konnten, um Agenten einzusperren und einzufangen. Die Advocacy hat sich an die Marine gewandt, um Unterst\u00fctzung bei der Rettung der Geisel zu erhalten. Ein Flug von Avengers wurde eingesetzt, um die Situation zu l\u00f6sen. Sie hielten derzeit einen weiten Bogen um das Relais, ihre Flugbahn deutete darauf hin, dass sie einfach vorbeikamen.\n\nEin ersch\u00fctternder Umstand, denn ein solches Szenario k\u00f6nnte sich f\u00fcr alle Beteiligten leicht als t\u00f6dlich erweisen.\n\nGl\u00fccklicherweise ist es nicht echt.\n\nDieses inszenierte Ereignis ist der letzte Test, dem sich diese Gruppe von Rekruten der Marine vor dem Abschluss stellen muss. Obgleich sie nicht dieses wissen, wird ihre Leistung in dieser \u00dcbung durch die Marine und sogar die Marinen wiederholt, um festzustellen, wo diese Rekruten zugewiesen werden. Das Milit\u00e4r, das einer Operation aus der realen Welt so nahe wie m\u00f6glich kommen sollte, hat keine Kosten gescheut, um die Illusion zu inszenieren.\n\nDie \"Gesetzlosen\" sind Mitglieder der 208. Staffel der Marine, die k\u00fcrzlich aus dem aktiven Dienst an der Vanduul-Front versetzt wurde, und viele von ihnen genie\u00dfen dieses St\u00fcck Unterhaltung. Bravo-Flugleiter Commander Harold Rifke verbrachte die Tage vor der \u00dcbung damit, umfangreiche Hintergrundgeschichten f\u00fcr die anderen Piloten zu erstellen und gef\u00e4lschte L\u00f6segeldforderungen einzufangen, die er sporadisch an Divisionsoffizier Edward Aino, den Leiter dieses simulierten Chaos, geschickt hat, um sie an die Rekruten weiterzuleiten.\n\nIch stehe mit Aino an Bord eines C&C-Schiffes und beaufsichtige das gesamte Kriegsspiel. Analysten und Kommunikationsoffiziere koordinieren beide Seiten des Engagements. Das Ge\u00e4chtete Geschw\u00e4tz ist wesentlich bunter; die 208. kommen wirklich in ihre Rollen.\n\nIch sehe zu, wie die Schiffe der Rekruten aus dem Hologramm verschwinden. Auf Befehl des amtierenden Staffelf\u00fchrers Toulo Chalke brechen sie in Richtung des Kommunikationsrelais. Aino h\u00f6rt aufmerksam zu, w\u00e4hrend sie ihre Positionen an einander weitergeben. Er sch\u00fcttelt den Kopf und nimmt einen Schluck Sujin-Tee.\n\n\"Sag Rifke, dass er ihre Kommunikation hacken soll\", schreit er zu dem Kommunikationsoffizier, der den Kanal f\u00fcr Gesetzlose koordiniert, und blickt mich dann an. \"Sie sollten ihre Positionen nicht verraten.\"\n\nIm Laufe der \u00dcbung wird Aino weiterhin die so genannten \"chirurgischen Handicaps\" gegen die Rekruten werfen. Er will, dass sie aus dem Gleichgewicht kommen, dass sie der Au\u00dfenseiter sind.\n\nIch suche die spezifischen Rekruten unter ihren kurzen, kurz gefassten Austauschen aus:\n\nCallum Weaver ist zuversichtlich, die Anflugvektoren seiner Mitstreiter anzupassen. Der d\u00fcrre Junge aus Aremis hat sich seit Beginn der Flugausbildung bestens bew\u00e4hrt und ist nun die Nummer zwei f\u00fcr Chalke.\n\nDer amtierende Staffelf\u00fchrer ist eine kleine Ber\u00fchmtheit in der Gegend der Schmieden. Obwohl sein Vater Beo Chalke ist, legend\u00e4rer Sataballspieler von Jata SC, und seine Mutter Valina Razari, preisgekr\u00f6nter Star von Tears of Time und Last Stand von Lidenvald (um nur einige zu nennen), ist er f\u00fcr die Rekruten nur Paladin. Der Spitzname stammt von einem Vorfall, der sich vor drei Monaten ereignete, als Chalke eintrat, um mehreren Rekruten zu helfen, die im Kommissariat schikaniert wurden.\n\n\"Sir, Rifke hat zwei Fl\u00fcge in ihre Position gebracht. Er sagt, sie sind nicht da.\"\n\nAino grinst.\n\nPl\u00f6tzlich explodiert der verbrecherische Komm-Kanal. Die f\u00fcnf Schiffe, die zur\u00fcckblieben, um das Relais zu bewachen, beginnen, Ziele zu rufen. Die Rekruten lassen die Vort\u00e4uschung fallen und wechseln in Kampf-Updates. Ich h\u00f6re Lyssa Vale, die Schl\u00e4gerin der Rekruten, die es sofort mit den gesetzlosen Piloten vermischt.\n\nVale ist einer der engagiertesten Rekruten, die ich je gesehen habe. Sie dr\u00e4ngt sich st\u00e4ndig auf einen l\u00e4cherlich hohen Standard, setzt Stunde f\u00fcr Stunde Sims ein, bohrt sich selbst und jeden, den sie in ihr Trainingsprogramm aufnehmen kann. Es scheint sich aber auszuzahlen; sie ist w\u00fctend in einem Kampf.\n\nDie Gesetzlosen am Relais halten ihre Stellung so lange wie m\u00f6glich, bis sie schlie\u00dflich durch ein virtuelles Laserfeuer der Rekruten niedergemacht werden. Mit Vale als Deckung verl\u00e4sst Weaver sein Schiff und f\u00fchrt ein Paar Piloten in den Staffel, um die Geisel zu sichern. Sie hoffen, ihren riskanten EVA zu beenden, bevor Rifke und zwei Fl\u00fcge von Gesetzlosen zur\u00fcckkehren.\n\nDer Rest der \u00dcbung ist eine einzige langwierige Schl\u00e4gerei. Die Rekruten tun ihr Bestes, aber schlie\u00dflich drehen die erfahrenen Kampfpiloten des 208. das Blatt. Weaver ist der letzte Verweigerer, aber er wird ausgeschaltet, kurz nachdem er die Geisel wieder auf sein Schiff gebracht hat.\n\nSieben Gesetzlose bleiben \u00fcbrig, die Geisel ist tot und die gesamte Rekrutenstaffel wurde eliminiert.\n\nZwei Stunden sp\u00e4ter haben sich die Rekruten in Ainos Klassenzimmer zu ihrer Nachbesprechung versammelt. Der Raum ist schweigend durchtr\u00e4nkt. Lyssa Vale ist immer noch verkabelt von der Operation. Ihr Bein springt auf und ab, w\u00e4hrend sie vorw\u00e4rts in den Raum starrt. Weaver bl\u00e4ttert ziellos durch seine Mobi. Selbst Chalke sieht entt\u00e4uscht aus, bis er sich endlich wieder auf seinen Platz setzt und die Stille bricht.\n\n\"Nun, wir hatten sie fast.\"\n\n\"Fast ist nicht gut genug\", murmelt Vale.\n\n\"Komm schon, Vale, du hast was ausgeschaltet, Sechs? Sieben?\" Chalke scheint entschlossen, die Stimmung im Raum zu erh\u00f6hen.\n\nDie T\u00fcr \u00f6ffnet sich pl\u00f6tzlich und Aino geht in den Raum. Er schneidet einen Weg nach vorne, schaltet das System ein und l\u00e4dt alle Aufnahmen der \u00dcbung. Er hat alles: individuelle Pilotenkameras, Hologlobe-Aufnahmen, Comm-Chatter. F\u00fcr die n\u00e4chsten vier Stunden f\u00fchrt er sie Schritt f\u00fcr Schritt durch das Kriegsspiel. Er erkl\u00e4rt ihnen jede Entscheidung, warum sie die Entscheidungen getroffen haben, die sie getroffen haben, und was sie im Nachhinein \u00e4ndern w\u00fcrden. Es gab keine Z\u00fcchtigungen. Kein Urteil \u00fcber die Handlungen seiner Rekruten. Es war eine rein objektive Analyse.\n\nDie Rekruten scheinen jedoch in den Verlust verstrickt zu sein.\n\nAino h\u00f6rt pl\u00f6tzlich auf. Er schaut \u00fcber die m\u00fcrrischen Gesichter der Rekruten im Raum und sch\u00fcttelt den Kopf.\n\n\"Ihr m\u00fcsst alle das[redigierte] nachwachsen lassen\", murmelt er und wirft seinen Zeiger auf den Schreibtisch.\n\nDas erregt die Aufmerksamkeit aller. Aino zieht die Pause heraus und sitzt in der Ecke seines Schreibtisches.\n\n\"Lasst mich euch allen etwas sagen. Dieser Job? Die Missionen, die du fliegen wirst? Jeder von ihnen kann ein One-Way-Ticket sein. Es spielt keine Rolle, ob es sich um die routinem\u00e4\u00dfigste Patrouille der Welt handelt, es besteht immer die M\u00f6glichkeit, dass etwas schief gehen k\u00f6nnte und einer von euch nicht nach Hause kommt. Nun, ich wei\u00df, dass ihr alle da sitzt und sauer seid, dass ihr es nicht geschafft habt. Ich verrate dir ein kleines Geheimnis: Das solltest du nicht. Wir haben alles getan, was wir konnten, um die Chancen gegen dich zu nutzen. Wilkes, erinnerst du dich an deine Raketengondelst\u00f6rung? Das habe ich getan. Teague, deine Waffen\u00fcberhitzung war kein Unfall.\"\n\nDie Rekruten tauschen verwirrte Blicke aus.\n\n\"Ihr habt alle ein Versagen gesehen, aber ich sage euch, was ich gesehen habe. Ich sah eine Staffel, die zusammenarbeitete und Auftr\u00e4ge mit Pr\u00e4zision und Exzellenz ausf\u00fchrte. Chalke, du hast eine Verlobung mit einem einfachen Kill abgebrochen, um Leuchtkugeln zu werfen und Kelso zu besch\u00fctzen. Vale, du w\u00fcrdest K\u00e4mpfe mit Piloten austragen, um sie von Teamkollegen fernzuhalten, die in Schwierigkeiten waren. Verdammt, uns die falsche Position \u00fcber deinen Kommunikationen zu geben, war genial. Ich dachte, wir w\u00fcrden deswegen die Operation verlieren.\"\n\nDie Rekruten kichern. Weaver bekommt ein paar Klapse auf den R\u00fccken. Aino l\u00e4chelt sie an, bevor er weitermacht. Es ist das erste Mal, dass ich ihn seine Rekruten anl\u00e4cheln sehe.\n\n\"Ihr alle habt das gut gemacht. Ja, das ist dir nicht gelungen. Du hast Leute verloren. Aber das ist die wahre Lektion hier. Als Navy-Pilot wirst du oft unter diesen Umst\u00e4nden sein. Was wir versuchen zu tun, ist, dich dazu zu bringen, in unm\u00f6glichen Situationen rational zu handeln. Das bedeutet nicht, dass du immer die richtige Entscheidung treffen wirst. Der wahre Trick ist jedoch, dass du lernen musst, wie man weitermacht. Ich kenne viele Piloten, einige der besten Piloten, mit denen ich je geflogen bin, die lieber derjenige sein w\u00fcrden, der ausgeknockt wird und dann ohne einen ihrer Schwadronen weitermachen muss. Du musst schlauer sein als das. Du musst dein Bestes geben. Du musst nicht nur auf die Menschen neben dir achten, sondern auch auf die Zivilisten, die du besch\u00fctzt. Manchmal wird es funktionieren. Manchmal wird es das nicht. So oder so, du musst dich zusammenrei\u00dfen und die n\u00e4chste Mission mit einem klaren Kopf treffen. Ich w\u00fcnschte, ich k\u00f6nnte dir sagen, wie das geht, aber du musst das selbst herausfinden.\"\n\nAino untersucht die Gesichter der Rekruten.\n\n\"Ich habe viele Piloten ausgebildet, aber ich sage dir, ich habe noch nie gesehen, dass sich eine Klasse so sehr gegenseitig hilft wie du. Ich hoffe, einige von euch werden zusammen eingesetzt, aber wenn nicht, dann hoffe ich, dass ihr diese Einstellung zu dem Ort habt, an dem ihr landet, weil ihr alle etwas Besonderes habt.\"\n\nDer Raum ist f\u00fcr einige Augenblicke still. Jemand klopft sanft an die T\u00fcr.\n\n\" Komm rein.\"\n\nRifke steckt seinen Kopf hinein.\n\n\"Tut mir leid, Sir. Ich wollte nicht st\u00f6ren.\"\n\n\"Es ist in Ordnung, Kommandant\", sagt Aino, w\u00e4hrend er steht und greift nach seinem Zeiger. \"Was k\u00f6nnen wir f\u00fcr dich tun?\"\n\n\"Nun, Sir\", \u00f6ffnet Rifke die T\u00fcr und tritt ein. Einige der anderen Piloten vom 208. sind drau\u00dfen. \"Wir haben uns gefragt, wann Sie mit der Nachbesprechung dieser Rorys fertig waren, ob wir sie mit ein paar Drinks verw\u00f6hnen k\u00f6nnten. Vanduul k\u00e4mpft nicht so hart wie sie.\"\n\nAino schaut sich seine Klasse an. Er gibt mit dem Kopf eine schnelle Bewegung, damit sie gehen k\u00f6nnen. Alle Rekruten gehen langsam aus der Klasse und jubeln den Kampfpiloten drau\u00dfen zu.\n\nDer Weber verweilt an der T\u00fcr und kehrt dann zu Aino zur\u00fcck.\n\n\"Danke, Sir.\"\n\n\"Verschwinde von hier.\"\n\nDer Weber l\u00e4chelt und geht.\n\nIch warte, bis die T\u00fcr langsam einrastet. Aino beginnt leise seine Sachen zu sammeln. Ich glaube, ich muss etwas sagen.\n\n\"Das war eine sch\u00f6ne Rede, Sir.\"\n\n\"War es das?\" Aino packt auf und schaut mich dann an. \"Was ich sagte, h\u00e4tte ihnen Angst einjagen sollen. Die anderen sagen gerne, dass der Rubikon der erste Moment ist, in dem sie auf Kilian landen, aber wenn Sie mich fragen, h\u00f6rt er nie auf. Diese Aufgabe jeden Tag zu erf\u00fcllen, wird dich zu deinem Kern herausfordern. Die Marine war mein gr\u00f6\u00dfter Stolz und hat mich auf eine Weise gebrochen, die selbst ich nicht sehen kann.\" Aino h\u00e4lt inne. \"Aber sie werden sehen. Das tun alle.\"\n\n* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Die Klasse der 2947 Abschlussfeier findet im Sp\u00e4tsommer auf Macarthur statt und umfasst \u00fcber zweitausend Absolventen in einer Vielzahl von Funktionen. Allein die Flugschule ist f\u00fcr \u00fcber zweihundert Personen verantwortlich. Aino \u00fcberraschte mich und arrangierte, dass ich mit dem Rest der Divisional Officers f\u00fcr die Zeremonie zusammensitzen durfte.\n\nIch kann Arley Finn und Yen Hardigan sehen, die beiden DOs vom ersten Tag auf dem Rollfeld, die mich in die intensive Reise der Marine-Rekruten einf\u00fchrten. W\u00e4hrend ich zuschaue, wie das Verfahren beginnt, kann ich nicht umhin, \u00fcber die Vielfalt der Menschen nachzudenken, die ich auf dieser unglaublichen Reise getroffen habe. Alle sind den Kernprinzipien der Marine verpflichtet und sch\u00fctzen Menschen wie mich.\n\nDie gesamte Abschlussklasse steht und wiederholt den gleichen Eid, der seit Jahrhunderten von jedem Marinemitglied ausgesprochen wird:\n\nH\u00f6rt und bezeugt, dass ich feierlich verspreche, Geist und K\u00f6rper, dass ich dem Vereinigten Reich der Erde dienen und es vor allen sch\u00fctzen werde, die versuchen w\u00fcrden, ihm und seinem Volk zu schaden.\nDass ich die von mir geforderten Pflichten treu erf\u00fclle, und wenn ich dazu aufgefordert werde, werde ich das Reich mit meinem Leben verteidigen.\nDass ich das Schwert und der Schild sein werde. Dass ich nicht z\u00f6gern oder scheitern werde, sondern k\u00e4mpfen und gewinnen werde.\nDass ich schw\u00f6re, alles in meiner Macht Stehende zu tun, um als H\u00fcter von Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit, als Held der Ehre und des Mutes und als wahres und stolzes Mitglied der UEE Navy zu fungieren.\nSchlie\u00dflich sehe ich Weaver, Chalke, Vale und den Rest meiner Freunde, die sich alle in der Menge versammelt haben und jedes Wort des Eides genie\u00dfen. Und wenn sie fertig sind, ist ihre Reise (und meine, nehme ich an) vorbei.\n\nSie sind offizielle Mitglieder der UEE Navy.\n\nIch spreche kurz mit Callum Weaver nach dem Abschluss, nur ein kurzes Gespr\u00e4ch, w\u00e4hrend er darauf wartet, seinen ersten Beitrag zu erhalten, aber ich frage ihn nach diesem ersten Tag auf dem eisigen Asphalt von Kilian. Als Callum mit DO Hardigan konfrontiert wurde, sagte er, dass er sich \"nicht hilflos f\u00fchlen\" w\u00fcrde.\n\n\"Also,\" frage ich. \"F\u00fchlst du dich immer noch so?\"\n\nDieses d\u00fcrre Kind vom Plantock River, nur ein paar Stunden von meinem Haus hier auf Aremis entfernt, das die Schrecken des Vanduul-Angriffs \u00fcberlebt hat, denkt f\u00fcr einen Moment dar\u00fcber nach.\n\n\"Ich glaube nicht, dass dieses Gef\u00fchl jemals verschwindet... aber jetzt wei\u00df ich, dass ich nicht allein bin.\"","zh_CN":"DAY 627: THE JOURNEY ENDS\n2947.12.12 SET\nby Sean Nazawa\nThe final part in a series following a class of recruits moving through the Navy\u2019s training system.\n\nA business executive has been abducted while in transit from a trade conference in the Xi\u2019an Empire. Advocacy investigators were able to identify and track the kidnappers back to an abandoned comm relay. Intel suggested that they had hollowed out the interior, pressurized sections and transformed it into a small hideout. From a strategic perspective, the hideout was a nightmare: complete visibility against any approach, homemade proximity mines, and multiple bulkheads inside that could quickly be triggered to lock down and trap agents. The Advocacy has turned to the Navy for assistance in rescuing the hostage. A flight of Avengers were deployed to resolve the situation. They were currently keeping a wide berth of the relay, their trajectory insinuating that they were simply passing by.\n\nA harrowing circumstance, for certain, as this type of scenario could easily prove deadly for everyone involved.\n\nThankfully, it\u2019s not real.\n\nThis staged event is the final test that this group of Naval recruits will face before graduation. Although they don\u2019t know this, their performance in this exercise will be reviewed by the Navy and even the Marines to determine where these recruits will be assigned. Intended to be as close to a real world operation as possible, the military have spared no expense in orchestrating the illusion.\n\nThe \u2018outlaws\u2019 are members of the Navy\u2019s 208th Squadron, recently redeployed from active service on the Vanduul front, and many of them are enjoying this bit of entertainment. Bravo Flight leader Commander Harold Rifke spent the days before the exercise coming up with extensive backstories for the other pilots and capturing fake ransom demand vids that he\u2019s been sending sporadically to Divisional Officer Edward Aino, the conductor of this simulated chaos, to forward on to the recruits.\n\nI\u2019m standing with Aino onboard a C&C ship, overseeing the entire wargame play out. Analysts and comms officers coordinate both sides of the engagement. The outlaw chatter is considerably more colorful; the 208th are really getting into their roles.\n\nI watch the recruits\u2019 ships disappear from the hologlobe. Under acting squadron leader Toulo Chalke\u2019s orders, they\u2019re breaking towards the comm relay. Aino listens intently as they relay their positions to each other. He shakes his head and takes a sip of sujin tea.\n\n\u201cTell Rifke to hack their comms,\u201d he yells over to the comms officer coordinating the outlaw channel, then glances at me. \u201cThey shouldn\u2019t give away their positions.\u201d\n\nOver the course of the exercise Aino will continue to throw what he calls \u2018surgical handicaps\u2019 against the recruits. He wants them off-balance, to be the underdog.\n\nI pick out the specific recruits among their brief clipped exchanges:\n\nCallum Weaver is confidently adjusting the approach vectors of his flightmates. This scrawny kid from Aremis has really come into his own since beginning flight training and now acts as the number two for Chalke.\n\nThe acting squadron leader is a bit of a celebrity around the Forges. Even though his father is Beo Chalke, legendary sataball player for Jata SC, and his mother is Valina Razari, award-winning star of Tears of Time and Last Stand of Lidenvald (to name a few), to the recruits he\u2019s just \u2018Paladin.\u2019 The nickname born from an incident that occurred three months ago where Chalke jumped in to help several recruits who were being bullied in the commissary.\n\n\u201cSir, Rifke\u2019s moved two flights to their position. He says they aren\u2019t there.\u201d\n\nAino grins.\n\nSuddenly the outlaw comm channel explodes. The five ships that stayed back to guard the relay start calling out targets. The recruits drop the pretense and transition into combat updates. I hear Lyssa Vale, the brawler of the recruits, immediately mixing it up with the outlaw pilots.\n\nTalkative on the comms, Vale is one of the most dedicated recruits I\u2019ve seen. She is constantly pushing herself to a ridiculously high standard, putting hour after hour into sims, perpetually drilling herself and whoever she can loop into her training regimen. It seems to be paying off though; she\u2019s ferocious in a fight.\n\nThe outlaws at the relay hold their ground as long as they can until virtual laser fire from the recruits finally take them down. With Vale providing cover, Weaver exits his ship and leads a pair of pilots into the relay to secure the hostage. They hope to finish their risky EVA before Rifke and two flights of outlaws race back.\n\nThe rest of the exercise is a single protracted brawl. The recruits do their best, but eventually the seasoned combat pilots of the 208th turn the tide. Weaver\u2019s the last holdout, but he gets taken out just after he gets the hostage back to his ship.\n\nSeven outlaws remain, the hostage is dead and the entire recruit squadron has been eliminated.\n\nTwo hours later, the recruits have gathered in Aino\u2019s classroom for their debriefing. The room\u2019s drenched in silence. Lyssa Vale is still wired from the op. Her leg bounces up and down as she glares ahead into space. Weaver aimlessly flips through his mobi. Even Chalke looks disappointed until he finally settles back in his seat and breaks the silence.\n\n\u201cWell, we almost had them.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlmost isn\u2019t good enough,\u201d Vale mutters.\n\n\u201cC\u2019mon, Vale, you took out what, six? Seven?\u201d Chalke seems intent on raising the spirits in the room.\n\nThe door suddenly opens and Aino strides into the room. He cuts a path to the front, powers up the system and loads all the captures of the exercise. He\u2019s got everything: individual pilot cams, hologlobe recordings, comm chatter. For the next four hours, he walks them through the wargame, step by step. He grills them on each decision, why they made the choices they made, and what they would change in retrospect. There was no chastisements. No judgment on the actions of his recruits. It was purely objective analysis.\n\nThe recruits, however, seem locked in the loss.\n\nAino suddenly stops. He looks over the glum faces of the recruits in the room and shakes his head.\n\n\u201cYou all need to grow the [redacted] up,\u201d he mutters, tossing his pointer onto the desk.\n\nThat gets everyone\u2019s attention. Aino draws out the pause and sits on the corner of his desk.\n\n\u201cLet me tell you all something. This job? The missions that you\u2019ll fly? Any one of them can be a one-way ticket. It doesn\u2019t matter if it\u2019s the most routine patrol in the world, there\u2019s always a chance that something could go wrong and one of you won\u2019t come home. Now, I know you\u2019re all sitting there, pissed off that you didn\u2019t succeed. Let me let you in on a little secret: you weren\u2019t supposed to. We did everything we could to stack the odds against you. Wilkes, remember your missile pod jam? I did that. Teague, your weapon overheating wasn\u2019t an accident.\u201d\n\nThe recruits exchange confused glances.\n\n\u201cYou all saw failure, but I\u2019ll tell you what I saw. I saw a squadron, working together, executing orders with precision and excellence. Chalke, you broke an engagement with an easy kill to drop flares and protect Kelso. Vale, you\u2019d pick fights with pilots to get them away from teammates that were in trouble. Hell, feeding us the wrong position over your comms was genius. I thought we were gonna lose the op because of that.\u201d\n\nThe recruits chuckle. Weaver gets some pats on the back. Aino smiles at them before he continues. It\u2019s the first time I\u2019ve seen him smile at his recruits.\n\n\u201cYou all did good. Yeah, you didn\u2019t succeed. You lost people. But that\u2019s the real lesson here. As a Navy pilot, you\u2019re gonna be in these circumstances a lot. What we\u2019re trying to do is condition you to act rationally in impossible situations. That doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re always gonna make the right call. The real trick though, you gotta learn how to keep going. I know a lot of pilots, some of the finest pilots I ever flew with, who would rather be the one who gets punched out then have to go on without one of their squadron. You gotta be smarter than that. You gotta do your best. You got to look out not only the people beside you, but also for the civilians you\u2019re protecting. Sometimes it\u2019ll work out. Sometimes it won\u2019t. Either way, you gotta pull yourself together and hit the next mission with a clear head. Now, I wish I could tell you how to do that, but you gotta figure that out for yourself.\u201d\n\nAino studies the faces of the recruits.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve trained a lot of pilots, but I\u2019ll tell you, I\u2019ve never seen a class help each other as much as you do. I hope some of you get assigned together, but if you don\u2019t, I hope you take that attitude to wherever you land because you all have something special.\u201d\n\nThe room is silent for several moments. Someone gently knocks on the door.\n\n\u201cCome in.\u201d\n\nRifke pokes his head in.\n\n\u201cSorry, sir. I didn\u2019t mean to interrupt.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s all right, commander,\u201d Aino says as he stands and grabs his pointer. \u201cWhat can we do for you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, sir,\u201d Rifke opens the door and steps inside. Some of the other pilots from the 208th are outside. \u201cWe were wondering when you were done debriefing these Rorys, if we could treat them to some drinks. Vanduul don\u2019t fight as hard as they did.\u201d\n\nAino looks at his class. He gives a quick motion with his head for them to go. All the recruits slowly file out of the class to the cheers of the combat pilots outside.\n\nWeaver lingers by the door, then turns back to Aino.\n\n\u201cThank you, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cGet the hell out of here.\u201d\n\nWeaver smiles and leaves.\n\nI wait as the door slowly clicks shut. Aino starts to quietly collect his things. I feel I have to say something.\n\n\u201cThat was a nice speech, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cWas it?\u201d Aino finishes packing up, then looks at me. \u201cWhat I said should have terrified them. The other DOs like to say the Rubicon is the first moment they land on Kilian, but if you ask me, it never stops. Doing this job every day will challenge you to your core. The Navy has been my single greatest pride and has broken me in ways that even I can\u2019t see.\u201d Aino pauses. \u201cBut they\u2019ll see. Everybody does.\u201d\n\n* * * * * * * * * The class of 2947 graduation ceremony is held in the late summer on Macarthur and features over two thousand graduates in a variety of capacities. The flight academy alone is responsible for over two hundred. Aino surprised me and arranged for me to sit with the rest of the Divisional Officers for the ceremony.\n\nI can see Arley Finn and Yen Hardigan, the two DOs from that first day on the tarmac that introduced me to the intense journey that Naval recruits faced. As I watch the proceedings commence, I can\u2019t help but reflect on the variety of people I\u2019d met on this incredible journey. All committed to the core tenets of the Navy and protect people like me.\n\nThe entire graduating class stands and repeats the same Oath that has been uttered by every Navy member for centuries:\n\nHear and witness that I do solemnly pledge, mind and body, that I will serve and protect the United Empire of Earth against all who would seek to harm it and its people.\nThat I will faithfully discharge the duties asked of me, and when called upon, I will defend the Empire with my life.\nThat I will be the sword and the shield. That I will not falter nor fail, but fight and win.\nThat I swear to do all in my power to act as a guardian of freedom and justice, as a champion of honor and valor, and as a true and proud member of the UEE Navy.\nI finally spot Weaver, Chalke, Vale and the rest of my friends all clustered in the crowd, relishing each word of the Oath. And when they finish, their journey (and mine, I suppose) is over.\n\nThey are official members of the UEE Navy.\n\nI talk briefly with Callum Weaver after graduation, just a brief conversation while he waits to receive his first posting, but I ask him about that first day on the freezing tarmac of Kilian. When confronted by DO Hardigan, Callum said that he was joining to \u201cnot feel helpless.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo,\u201d I ask. \u201cDo you still feel that way?\u201d\n\nThis scrawny kid from Plantock River, only a couple hours from my house here on Aremis, who survived the horrors of the Vanduul attack, thinks about it for a few moments.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t think that feeling ever goes away \u2026 but now I know I\u2019m not alone.\u201d"},"links_count":1,"comment_count":33,"created_at":"2017-12-13T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"8 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-05-07 22:57:43","valid_relations":["images","links"],"prev_id":16324,"next_id":16326}}