Zhao Chen's spot within the whole hover elevator happened to be right in the midst of the women. And though the women were talking with their mouths about the fine points of the T3 Phoenix-class Heavy Carrier Starship, Zhao Chen could sense the smell of gunsmoke amid it.
The captain of T3 Phoenix No.1!
For any ship captain whatsoever, this was a post longed for in her very dreams. If there were a romance beyond that of giant ships and giant guns, then it was this alone: that, at a single command, several thousand interstellar fighters and interstellar drones would go screaming out toward the enemy fleet in one dark, dense mass — that magnificent, heart-stirring sight.
At present, those under Zhao Chen's hand with the ability to contend for this post were Charlotte, Zhao Wan'er, Shen Bing, Chitong, and the wolf-girl Baixue.
Charlotte was, beyond doubt, the finest candidate. She had the ability, she had the combat experience, and she was at the same time a founding-elder-level figure of Zhao Chen's Owl Dragon Fleet; in every respect, and by every factor, she was worthy of this T3 Phoenix.
Zhao Wan'er, too, was a sister Zhao Chen trusted. Though she lacked a bit of real-combat experience, back when she'd commanded the T3 Phantom Assassin-class Light Interstellar Stealth Bomber in battle, her combat and command talent had been laid utterly bare! And what's more, set against the T3 Phantom Assassin, this T3 Phoenix post was somewhat the safer, being at the very core of the fleet, after all. If a fleet's carrier starship were itself to come under threat, then the straits that fleet would be in could well be imagined.
The wolf-girl Baixue had been recommended by Charlotte; she likewise had ability and had skill, but if one spoke in terms of order of precedence, she of course had to rank behind Charlotte.
Shen Bing and Chitong were both ones who'd recently joined the Owl Dragon Fleet, and their abilities went without saying. Shen Bing was the nation-renowned campus belle Zhao Chen had spirited away from the Northstar Academy; Chitong hailed from an interstellar mercenary company that had spent its years knocking about on the edge of danger — her ability, too, went without saying.
Though none of these several women had said she wished to take up the captaincy of the T3 Phoenix, that longing look in their eyes had already let their thoughts show through. Annie's words a moment ago had, beyond doubt, been a stone dropped into this quiet lake. This little minx was deliberately stoking the fire for him.
Zhao Chen looked at Annie standing in front of him, and felt an urge to step up and land a kick. Annie gave a shiver, struck by a chill sense of dread; she rubbed at her belly — probably didn't eat enough at lunch, was her guess.
Before long, the several of them arrived outside the T3 Phoenix's bridge. The bridge door was an auto-sensing virtual light-door, transparent one way. From outside one couldn't see in, but from inside one could see out. And it automatically identified crew clearance. Those present, though not formal crew of the T3 Phoenix, were all senior generals within the Owl Dragon Fleet, with clearance second only to Zhao Chen's — so entering the bridge was, naturally, no problem. Having scanned the identities of Zhao Chen and the others, the bridge door thereupon vanished.
There appeared before them a majestic crimson bridge! As Zhao Chen and the others walked in, looking upward one could see, overhead, a layout of five tiers of openwork structure; and looking downward, likewise a layout of five openwork tiers. The whole bridge was for all the world like a crimson blazing-flame bird's nest, covered all over with patterns. And the command nexus lay in the very centermost area.
The command nexus's functions were much like the T3 Blizzard's, but far wider in scope — for the T3 Blizzard needed only to attend to its own combat, whereas the T3 Phoenix had to command over 1,000 fighters and drones in battle; the strength of the two systems was entirely different.
"Within this bridge there are posts for 100 crew, able to grasp and control any data condition of every department of this T3 Phoenix," Annie introduced.
Charlotte and the others cast their eyes around the whole bridge, and in every one of their gazes was a longing beyond measure. Was this not the very stage of their dreams? The tail behind Charlotte just now had begun to sway without cease. And in Chitong's eyes, too, there showed a rosy glow.
Zhao Chen walked to the position of the command platform and, with a practiced motion, summoned up a hovering captain's chair, and sat upon it. The whole hovering captain's chair formed itself, according to Zhao Chen's body, into the most comfortable structure; and it would, sensing directly by Zhao Chen's brainwaves, move to any position on the bridge Zhao Chen wished to go to. When not needed, it would also automatically retract into the floor.
"I've decided: this T3 Phoenix's captaincy will, for the time being, be held by me; Lilith will serve as my secretary, and Chitong will serve as my deputy captain." Zhao Chen looked at the women and announced his decision.
On hearing that it was Zhao Chen who'd hold the captaincy of this T3 Phoenix, the women felt some letdown — but Zhao Chen was, after all, the Commander, and for him to hold the captaincy of what was, at present, the Owl Dragon Fleet's strongest warship was as fitting as could be. And this T3 Phoenix likewise suited Zhao Chen's standing very well; Zhao Chen was the Commander of the Owl Dragon Fleet, and he could hardly go on charging headlong into the fray commanding a T3 Blizzard as before, could he? That would be a touch unbecoming.
As for Chitong serving as Zhao Chen's deputy captain — that was somewhat out of the ordinary.
"Commander… me, serving as deputy captain… this is a bit… not quite fitting, is it… For me to serve as captain of a T2 Black Rhino is already more than enough." Chitong, just now, was rather overwhelmed by the honor.
"For the moment the people under my hand are somewhat scarce, and your serving as my deputy captain is just right. This is an order — I'm not discussing it with you," Zhao Chen said, feigning sternness.
The other women didn't mind this arrangement either. It was, after all, only a deputy captaincy. Charlotte and Zhao Wan'er might not have minded it themselves; but for women of their standing to come aboard Zhao Chen's starship as his deputy captain would, with the Owl Dragon Fleet short of top-tier generals as it was, be rather a case of great talent put to petty use. Chitong, on the other hand, had only just joined the Owl Dragon Fleet, and still lacked any real sense of belonging. To have her command a T3 warship alone would not quite do; to make her captain of a T2 warship would be a waste of her. And so serving as Zhao Chen's deputy captain was the best transitional post there was.
"I know your thoughts, too. Don't be anxious. This is our first T3 Phoenix, but it will absolutely not be the last. Very soon we'll have a second, a fifth, even a tenth T3 Phoenix. And by then, so long as you're willing, you'll each have one to fly for the fun of it." Zhao Chen made this promise to the women as though half in jest.
But everyone knew well: the words Zhao Chen spoke had, to this day, without a single exception, all been made good on.
10 T3 Phoenix-class Heavy Carrier Starships…
What a sight that would be. Merely to think of it set the blood somewhat aboil.
Zhao Chen sat in the captain's chair and closed his eyes. It was as though he had already set foot in the scene itself: an interstellar fleet, uniformly and wholly of T3-grade warships, at his command, conquering the sea of stars!
No!
Not T3 warships alone — in the future he would possess T4 warships too, and warships mightier still.