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RP: 4th Fleet (NSN) [Off Duty] Standing on Ceremony

Lisa saluted to Leon again and quickly ran back, sitting next to Bernhard again. Her eyes were glued to Flint Vanderhuge. But where others felt respect and awe, she felt curiosity. How could this large man come to existence. Sure Id-sol were big, but this? She leaned across the Bernhard to whisper to Laura. "Hey girl, you see what I see?" She asked.

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Alex still smiled and turned her head to Phaedra. "Let's have a chat when this is over Wolf. Okay?" She asked her quietly.
 
So -that's- why they call him Vanderhuge. Henry was in awe at the thirteen foot tall ID-SOL - who was also the freaking Grand Admiral. In his experience, he'd only see them grow eight feet tall, maybe nine feet optimistically. Thirteen feet tall was just ludicrous to the barely-six-foot tall marine.

He decided to remain quiet in the face of such a huge man. He could probably crush heads and snap Nekovalkyrja in half with those hands. He hazarded guesses that only made him more on edge and in awe.
 
"Let's have a chat when this is over Wolf. Okay?" asked Alex quietly.

Phaedra nodded in response, but her eyes remained on Admiral Vanderhuge; she was anxious for him to begin speaking.
 
It wasn't Flint who was going to be doing the speaking, apparently; the large ID-SOL simply returned a single, silent nod to Valken as he passed by. The Rear Admiral took the chair next to Flint, with the female officer watching him until he finally found himself seated. When she was satisfied, the woman turned back and cleared her throat, addressing the room through the microphone stood at the end of her podium.

Several of the camera crews had already set themselves up, their newsanchors chattering amongst themselves growing immediately silent as Violetta gathered their attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Today, we are gathered here to bear witness to a very special service. I, Admiral Violetta De Luca of Nepleslia's 1st Defense Fleet, am here with the honor of representing the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Fleets, on behalf of the three Grand Admirals themselves," Admiral De Luca stated plainly, her voice laced with justified authority, but not haughtily so. The woman's deep violet eyes kept a straightforward gaze as she continued on.

"I am here today to recognize one Dominic Valken, the Rear Admiral of Nepleslia's 4th Fleet. Admiral Valken has, through many trials and tribulations, shown an exemplary measure of dedication to Nepleslia and her interests," Violetta went on with her speech. "Admiral Valken's involvement in the Kennewes Offensive, although short-lived, was greatly beneficial to our eventual victory. His professionalism and leadership saw a costly but instrumental success in the evacuation of the Tange System, and the strength of his patriotism and devotion to our cause has seen the men and women under his fleet through several skirmishes."

"The Nepleslian Military High Command recognizes Admiral Valken's capabilities and accomplishments, and wants every officer and soldier to know that such dedication and skill is always worth rewarding," Violetta allowed herself to show a measure of satisfaction, a smile appearing on her face as her voice grew in anticipation. "Grand Admiral Flint Vanderhuge and I have come here in-person today to award Rear Admiral Dominic Valken an honor highest amongst honors," the female officer turned slightly to look at Dominic for a moment before turning back with a nod. "A promotion of rank and status, from Rear Admiral, to the prestige, glory and great esteem; the position of Nepleslia's fourth Grand Admiral, continuing to serve as the leading fleet commander for Nepleslia's 4th Fleet."

Violetta beckoned for Valken to approach the podium before reaching below the wooden pedestal to retrieve the briefcase she had previously brought on-stage. She set the case down flat atop the podium, waiting for Dominic to reach her before opening it. Flint continued to sit silently, watching the proceedings beneath the rim of his cap.
 
Valken approached Violetta slowly, interested in the time dilation as he took his last steps as a Rear Admiral. In a few brief moments, he would reach the the pinnacle of his career.

He nodded to Violetta when he stood before her. "Thanks for not making a long speech," he whispered, trying to smile and failing. It felt too forced for such a solemn occasion. More gravitas, more... dignity seemed appropriate. So he just gave up on smiling and looked his usual, somewhat grumpy self.

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Laura continued to watch with fixed interest. Violetta was so pretty and mean at the same time! How could Laura emulate that? After all, the only one she had really opened up to, after he had forced his way in, was Bernhard and he was leaving. And all the new guys weren't worth her attention. Though the ID-SOL might be fun to annoy.

As he sat next to her, Bernhard got a strange tingling sensation. Like somewhere, somehow, puppies and kittens were in miserable pain as they watched some terrible drama unfold.

--------------

In orbit, the sailors aboard 4th Fleet's warships broke open dozens of barrels of rum and whiskey and started slinging them back with toasts to the newest Grand Admiral. Now the Fleet wasn't simply a minor Fleet. They had a Grand Admiral and that was excuse enough to celebrate and get uproariously drunk on the tons of illegal booze they had seized.

One of the few sober ones left on the ship was Captain Valencia Ironside who watched from her command chair with a grin. This was definitely a good occasion, even for her. It meant that the prestige of the Fleet, and by extension the flagship, was increased. NSS Dauntless, Flagship commanded by Valencia Ironside, Flag Captain of Dominic Valken, Grand Admiral of Nepleslian. Could it get any better? A pay bonus sounded like a great addition actually.
 
Sigma said:
He nodded to Violetta when he stood before her. "Thanks for not making a long speech," he whispered, trying to smile and failing. It felt too forced for such a solemn occasion. More gravitas, more... dignity seemed appropriate. So he just gave up on smiling and looked his usual, somewhat grumpy self.
Click to expand...

"Grand Admiral Vanderhuge felt that a longer ceremony was unnecessary, given your previous position," Violetta remarked in a low tone as she watched the man approach. "And I believe our defense of Rok'Veru should come as quickly as possible, as well."

Violetta De Luca opened the briefcase in front of her, retrieving two items in short succession. In her left hand, a simple, small redwood box; a medal case common in Nepleslian military ceremony, no doubt holding the new Grand Admiral's updated rank pins and commendation. In her other hand, Violetta held a folded article of clothing; the distinguished uniform of Nepleslia's highest ranking officer, the Grand Admirals Jacket. However, unlike the one Flint Vanderhuge was wearing, Dominic's jacket did not have the telltale swatches of pronounced fur lining the shoulders. Violetta handed the jacket to Valken before gripping the red-hued medal case in both hands in front of her.

"As many of you may have noted, Grand Admiral Valken's new uniform jacket does not have two patches of fur lining the shoulders," Violetta explained, turning back to the crowd of soldiers and handful of reporters while Dominic examined his new jacket. "This is because, as a Grand Admiral, Dominic Valken will have the privileged of choosing his own type. Over the years, tradition has stated that the Grand Admiral chooses the origin of his decoration based on his own preferences."

"Grand Admiral Flint Vanderhuge, for example," Admiral De Luca motioned with a single hand over to Flint, who sat up straight in his seat with his arms crossed as his address. "Upon receiving his promotion, the Grand Admiral traveled to Kohana and hunted his beast of choice on his own accord-"

"Kohanian Kodiak," Flint answered shortly in his seat, flashing a grin at the progression of soldiers before the stage. The fur on his shoulders of thick and dark-brown, with a slight sheen that flashed the hues prominently. "Largest predator on the planet. Well. Second largest. At least until after I left."

Violetta nodded once, her accommodating smile wavering slightly; she wasn't expecting to be interrupted, but Flint answered for himself well enough. The female officer cleared her throat before continuing, reaching out with the medal case to present to Dominic as she spoke. "Grand Admiral Dominic Valken. These are your new rank bars, and your Grand Admiral commendation medal. You are not required to find your own decorative shoulder ornament, also," Violetta reminded him with caution. "When you have made a decision, speak to your military supply officer and High Command will see it delivered to you. And... congratulations, Grand Admiral. You deserve this."

Violetta took a step back after Dominic accepted the box in her hands, presenting him a respectful salute.
 
Lisa looked at Laura and grinned. "That jacket will look awesome on admiral. Hey how about we put money together and buy him some fancy cane too?" She asked.

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Alexandra smiled. Seemed to her like admira- no, Grand Admiral Valken deserved it. THere was not much else to do then to stand up and starting with the applause. Hopefuly others will join.
 
Others, Marines and sailors, followed Alexandra's lead began to rise and applaud the new Grand Admiral as well.

As it settled down, Valken's lips curved into a slight smirk. "I must admit that my physical prowess does not match Grand Admiral Vanderhuge. So I hope you'll forgive me if I don't go hunting my shoulder decor." Some of the audience laughed politely. "As long as it looks cool!" Laura shouted.

"Have no fears about that, Marine!" Valken replied heartily.

"But credit where credit is due. This promotion is a reflection on the hard work made by everyone in the Fleet since I took over last year. I want you all to recognize that you are the ones who have remade 4th Fleet just as much as I have. A year ago, rumors abounded throughout the Corps and Navy about shady deals and illegal operations. Those days are gone and we have proven ourselves in the crucible. Many of you were present at Tange, Operation Dynamo, a year ago. Then Operation Plunder. And most recently, those Marines who took part in the operation to rescue my brother's family. If you took part in that, stand and be recognized."
 
Taking the lead, Phaedra rose to her feet. She snapped to attention and saluted the newly appointed Grand Admiral.

"Cavaliers!" said Phaedra to spur the rest of the squad into standing.
 
Zyv joined into the applause, albeit he was not amongst the first to do so. The man had never been big on pubic displays and Valkens promotion did not cause much cheer in him, if anything he began to wonder about the future, whether Nepleslias newest Grand Admiral would decide to prove his worth by taking on dangerous assignments for example, or he'd be given them no matter what he thought.

The admiral (grand admiral Zyv reminded himself) moved on and thanked the soldiers who did the dirty work which was a nice touch, Rakowski found himself admitting, and than he asked those taking part in the most recent assignments to stand.

A good point for profanities Rakowski found himself physically and mentally mute for a second. Stand. In front of the entire fleet, bah! Anybody who would be watching this? No. Just no.

However as he had no choice in the matter Zyv followed his sergeant’s example and stood at attention, snapping a sharp salute as he did.
 
Laura stood up sheepishly, barely noticing how a few other Marines from other squads were equally uncomfortable standing out. "A fancy sword or gun cane! I've seen those on sale," Bernhard added over the applause.

After a few moments, the Marines returned to their seats.

"I must ask you all to be diligent in your work over the next weeks. Party hard tonight if you must but tomorrow we will be preparing for long-term combat operations. Officers will be briefed when we have all the necessary information. Admiral De Luca, Vanderhuge, any closing comments before I dismiss the Fleet?"
 
Neither Lisa, nor Alexandra stood up. They were not present when rest of Cavaliers saved the Admiral and his family. They were both not happy about it. Lisa was off planet visiting her family and Alex was in medical facility, completely out of reach.

"Ooooh sword-cane!" Lisa said to Bernhard. "That sounds so cool. Let's make it vibration yama-dura blade with mono-molecular knit, so he can acutally use it. It won't be that , but I just want to see look on Admirals face, when he gets it!" Bernie could see, she was really excited about the idea. Normally Nepleslians are all about gun, but Gun cane can shoot only one round or few very small rounds. Sword can be used until you break it in half, which is not so easy.
 
Henry made his salute. He'd done it many times before for many other men and women, including his chiefs and officers. This time was a little more special. Coronation was one of those moments that gets marked down in military history. Grand Admiral Dominic Valken. There's a title that was befitting of a man of that caliber.

He sat back down quietly and contemplated the rest of the evening. Sitting down with Volkov and Rui, getting tactics and strategies worked out for keeping things cohesive between their different leadership styles and skillsets. And if there was time left in the evening, he'd review some blueprints he ordered from a site on the InterNep and try and build something.
 
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