Eyya Ashfirt

Boom!…..Boom!…..Boom! The waves battered against the metallic wooden hull of the Navy’s Baton plus ship. At the front of the ship was the navigation quarters. It had a orange tinted glass and a compass stacked and navigation and various gears and trinkets. Standing at the front was a man with neatly trimmed salt and pepper hair. He wore a blue and gold overcoat with a white corset underneath. On his shoulder were two golden stars. There was an abacus and a pendulum attached to the navigation pane in front of him. He would occasionally adjust the abacus – and as he did various gears would crank and the ships trajectory and tilt would adjust slightly. Over the sounds of waves and thunder there was the loud groans of an engine fighting against current.

To his right stood a woman wearing a similar uniform but with one moon on her epaulet. She had dark brown hair and emerald green eyes. Her hair was cropped to shoulder length and tied back in a neat ponytail. Her uniform hugged her lithe toned physique and the white corset under he uniform flattened her already small a cup breasts. She preferred it that way – the less feminine features she had the better. Working her way up in the navy had not been easy. Men hated her ambition, aptitude and ability to execute on it. They hated her ever more because she was desirable. They desired her and they hated her at the same time – and she knew it. She had risen through the ranks on pure skill and wit, outmaneuvering most of the men. This success was despite the best effort of the admiralty and her senior officers. The old boys club had applied their collective pressure to keep her down. But she was undeniable, and there was nothing they could do but let her rise.

She was orphaned at a young age and learnt from the streets how to take care of herself. The now salt and peppered haired man to her right was Marcus Ashford and took her in as a young girl. He treated her as his own daughter,helped her learn and guided her. Everything she knew she learnt from him but more importantly he had become the parent she never had.

“We never should have come today” Marcus groaned. But unfortunately it was not his decision. The fleet was commanded by fleet commander Dennis.

Eyya did not reply but pursed her lips. She knew he was right – but there was nothing that could be said. After a short pause she spoke

“The formations have shifted far too much, the map estimations will have shifted more than the accepted margins that were calculated.”. Eyya looked towards Marcus – gauging his reaction Marcus solemnly nodded and Eyya looked back down at the holographic navigational map. One of the main difficulties with breaching the island was that magical energies caused the granite formations in the water that surrounded the island to randomly shift day to day making it impossible to chart any course with certainty. She had spent time studying the old magical texts to understand the energies better. However no one else in the Navy had done so – magic was looked down upon as inferior to technology and primitive.

As if summoned by their good sense Fleet commander Dennis appeared on the screen. He had a hooked nose, balding blonde hair and pudgy belly that was about to burst out of his corset. Next to him was his son Bubby. There was a rumor that Bubby was the offspring of Dennis and his first cousin. It definitely looked that way as Bubby was an even uglier and pudgier version of his father.

“All units, veer right on the coast. Follow pattern as we discussed”.

As secondary commander of the vessel – it fell on Eyya to respond

“Sir – according to my calculations the formations should have shi-” “Your input is noted. Eyya. Now follow orders and keep the formation”. In the back of the video Bubby sneered. The entire planning for the operation was handed over to Bubby – with the intent of promoting him as the commander of his own ship. Unfortunately his planning was shit.

Eyya turned to Marcus “We cant do this its going to damage half the vessels – and ours the worst. Its both incompetence and sabotage”.

Marcus turned and looked to her. His blue eyes were gentle but firm with resolve. “My dear – you are of course right. But if I break formation now the damage to the other ships would be severe and many more people would die”

“And is that our problem?Their captain made these decisions and we don’t have to take responsibility for the whole fleet! They clearly put us in the position and want us to take the highest damage”

“I can steer our shape to take the brunt of the granite without taking any fatalities and protect the others. No one else can do that”

Before Eyya could get another word in Marcus veered the ship to the right.