Celesta Wright, having been Accari’s superior on the Ares, made sure she was kept aware of his progress every step of the way through his training. The file entry for his rank change had barely cleared Admin when she submitted her request to have him transferred to the Icarus. After training he’d been serving as her first watch OPS officer since and, like when he was at the nav station, he seemed to have a knack for the OPS position, instinctively knowing what information needed to flow up to the captain and what could be pushed back or rerouted. Celesta wished that she was still in contact with Jackson Wolfe if for no other reason than to let him know how his protégée was excelling, but it was like he’d just disappeared without a trace.

“But while we’re discussing what you may or may not have heard through your backchannel sources, Ensign, what else might I find interesting?” she asked while he vacated the command chair.

“The negotiations aren’t going well,” Accari said seriously. “Apparently this new species, they call themselves Ushin, are either masters of the runaround, are hiding something, or the communication methods R&S devised aren’t as flawless as they claimed. These are some of the things the admiral would like to discuss with you in person.”

“I see,” Celesta said neutrally. “While I thank you for your trust in me, Ensign, I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t offer some warning to you.”

“Ma’am?”

“Even on the bridge of a Fleet destroyer, that is some fairly sensitive information you’re bandying about,” Celesta went on. “My office is always available and just remember, there are ears everywhere and not all of them friendly.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Accari was no wilting flower. He accepted the criticism like the professional he was and offered neither an excuse nor an apology. Celesta found it refreshing and hoped that she’d be able to mentor him around all the pitfalls many officers fell prey to that tended to stunt their careers. More and more, Ensign Accari showed himself to have the raw talent and grit to command a starship of his own someday, and it’d be a shame if that potential was cut short because he was trying to pass on a bit of intel to his captain and the wrong people overheard him.

She’d only just begun to get herself organized when a sharp, staccato alarm began chirping from the com station behind her. That particular alarm meant that a com drone had appeared in local space and was broadcasting a general alert for any Terran ship within range and could mean anything from a threat detected in the area to a recall order. She resisted the urge to get up and check on the message herself while her com officer decrypted whatever data the drone was sending.