Chapter 23: The Battle of Aberdeen
*****
Jack leaned his full weight against the railing of the
Destiny
, looking out to port as the large mass that was Occitania passed them by. The air that evening was cold and brisk, and in some portions of Occitania, he could see snow on the ground already. It had been a long time since he'd seen the continent this close, the object of so much action and animosity over the last year. Now that he was back in Java, he had his next chance to deal them a bloody nose, and hopefully, bring this war to a speedy conclusion.
He turned to look in the direction of the bow, only catching the slightest hint of Admiral Reynolds' force in front of him, his force leading the way to Aberdeen as they made their way along the channel between the two countries.
What should have been a simple task was complicated by several factors, many of them out of his control. Beyond the obvious issue with Galicia, the biggest item causing him frustration was the change of heart in Admiral Bancroft. For years, Jack had known him as the kindly mentor and father figure—the heart and brains of the Javan Navy. Going back to their first interaction at the Academy, Bancroft had always provided the kind of guidance that he needed, whether it was patient or jarring. In times of adversity, it was the one constant he could expect from the older man, and Jack knew the feelings of goodwill were reciprocal.
What a difference a year made.
Despite the ever cordial nature of the admiral's outward persona, this past visit had gone far from Jack's liking. There was a coldness growing in the man, an ever-deepening sense of power lust that had eroded his personality and replaced it with something foreign. Dinner with Bancroft had been an increasingly-bleak affair, punctuated by a bizarre request of loyalty that could only hint at grand and vile designs.
Somewhere in Bancroft's head, something was off. What terrified Jack the most about it was that the man was in overall command of what was to become the largest naval battle in Javan history, one where the wrong order could send all of them to their deaths. It scarcely put him in a good frame of mind as they drifted steadily closer to Aberdeen, and Jack found himself studying the minute details of his part of the plan to make sure he was fully-prepared.
With how his initial reunion with Bancroft had been, he couldn't help but think of Commodore Lucas' warning when Jack was still back in Quiller's Cove. The one about Henrik being a good officer, and the idea that there was more to the story beyond a simple betrayal. Jack had agreed to keep his ears open to the matter while he was home, never suspecting there to be any truth to the statement.
Bancroft's recent actions and statements now put a grain of doubt in his head. Suddenly, Lucas' request didn't seem so far-fetched. It made even more sense when he thought that if he didn't succeed in the next battle, he'd be banned from Java for life.
Needless to say, his heart was heavy as he left the port of Lockhaven and slipped into the narrow channel. Even his women couldn't completely alleviate the growing tensions on his mind, but they surely tried their hardest to succeed at doing just that. At this very moment, Jack had to question whether he had any fluids remaining in his body, or if they had all been sucked out by Abigail's pouty lips or Kat's inviting pussy.
He knew he wouldn't be fully at ease until he figured out what life looked like on the other side of Aberdeen.
That is, if he didn't die in the process.
As he remained stuck in thought, he eventually noticed a launch boat making its way closer to the
Destiny
. Once it was close enough, he could see Luke Ravencross was the only occupant, and the commander jumped out as soon as the boat was raised high enough to the deck. To his credit, he knew Jack well enough to know there was a lot on his mind right now, and he called it from the start.
"Well, aren't you one moody looking officer?" teased Luke as he stopped right beside him. He mimicked Jack's position, leaning against the railing as they both looked over to Occitania. "No need to be upset, we'll have a battle in a couple more days."
Jack started to laugh. Things would always seem simple to Luke, who mostly only thought in terms of naval battles. One more battle here or there and then it was off to the next one. He knew the man to be deeper than he let on, but when you just looked at the surface, Luke could be easy to misconstrue as being single-minded.
"I think the battle might be the easy part," said Jack with a chuckle. "Go in there, shoot at everyone we can and then get out while still remaining afloat. Not much difficulty to that."
"Then what's got you with such a long horse face right now? I haven't seen one like that since I was last at my dopey cousin's farm," said Luke.
"Just the usual," muttered Jack, staying brief on purpose. Luke was one of the few close contacts who didn't know about Galicia. He did, however, know about Bancroft, and any topic of this magnitude was fair game and safe waters for Jack.
"Still thinking about Bancroft, aren't you?"
Jack nodded. He'd broached the subject with him the day they left Lockhaven.
"Don't you think he might've been exaggerating? Surely you don't think that if we lose you can't go back home, right?"
Jack gave him a pointed look. "Bancroft isn't one to mince words. I have to believe that he meant what he said. He generally doesn't like when people try to read between the lines."
"What would you do if that was the case?"
"Hmm?"
Luke looked at him. "Say we lost this next fight. Where would you go?"
Jack took a deep breath. The actual destination was obvious, but it was the journey there that was troublesome. "Back to the West, no doubt," he said after a long sigh. "I'm even thinking about holding the Carinthian and Picard vessels out of the battle as an insurance policy."
"In case we lose and you need transit back?"
Jack nodded.
"Not a bad idea, but you have to consider one thing, Jack."
Jack met Luke's eyes as the man finally cracked a smile.
"We're not liable to lose at Aberdeen, now are we?" asked Luke.
Jack chuckled. "I sure hope you're right. We should have enough tricks up our sleeves between us that we can hope to get the better of the Occies. Obviously, we won't be able to rely fully on surprise, but in that case, we'll have to let tactics carry the day."
"Speaking of surprise, this channel has been awfully quiet as of late," noted Luke. "Aren't we close to the spot where the first invasion took place?"
Jack pointed to the front of the ship. "We're a few miles away actually. We need to keep wide clearance around the site when we go through." Jake looked back at Luke. "The channel is so shallow that we might hit one of the sunken transport ships if we get too close.
