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It was a momentous decision, he thought to himself. Important not only for him, but for his team as well, affecting their future work in so many ways. If he chose wrongly, maybe it would ruin their team and endanger future missions. He needed to make sure whatever he decided was carefully thought-through, as he couldn't afford his first action as new S.P.D. B-Squad Red Ranger to be a mistake.
He looked at the pile of applications for the open position and recommendations from the Commander, and began to sort them into piles on his new large desk. A definite asset of having a single room, it went through his mind, a large desk, unoccupied by weird-looking technique stuff, comics and magazines, and computer-turned-toasters, not to mention real toasts. Not that Bridge had never paid attention that his stuff hadn't slowly crept from his desk-half to Sky's, he had, in fact. But still, a large desk, for him alone, clean and so completely tidy, was definitely a nice, comfortable work place.
And it looked as if he needed the space. Six applications, as it looked from all over the galaxy, and four recommendations from Cruger, mostly for cadets of lower units. Unwillingly he had searched for familiar names, but none appeared. He had nearly anticipated to find Sophie beyond the applicants, and he would have considered her case thoroughly, but there wasn't any document from her. And application deadline had been closed an hour ago, the only ones that could still enter the process were recommendations from any higher ranking official.
But something made him careful about the recommended candidates, mostly because they already were part of a team, and promoting them would mean destroying said team. He knew how that felt, he had just recently lived through it. For all their differences, and all their problems, and all the jealousy from his side that had been involved, Jack had been part of their team, maybe even their team's heart. They had functioned together, had learned to be partners in and out of duty, and slowly even friends, something that Sky had deemed impossible in the beginning. And now that Jack had left, he suddenly felt insecure about being a Red Ranger, a fear he would never share with anyone. Jack had left a hole for him to fill, and even if he had done a good job as Blue Ranger, and he was still confident in his leading abilities, he would have to prove them anew, maybe not in front of the others, but in front of himself. He would have to prove to himself that he could be a Red Ranger worthy of Jack's position, with his own way of leading, without forgetting what teaming up as another one's second had taught him.
But because he now knew what being a second meant, the decision wasn't necessarily simpler. It had, actually, only set higher standards. As the second, the key quality was reliability. A second had to know his team just as well as the leader, had to know their strengths and weaknesses, and had to be the one the leader would go to if he needed advice. And now he should take a complete stranger on that position, someone who he would have to learn to work with? He was used to working with Jack and Bridge, when required, just as Z and Syd were used to working with each other. Not that he didn't see the chance and challenge in adding someone new, bringing in fresh thoughts and fresh air and learning to work with someone else. But still, the second man was a confidant for the leader, and he wasn't sure how to confide in someone new.
But it didn't help, he had to make a decision. He had agreed with Cruger to filter out three candidates which would be invited for a test phase, and the one that worked best with them would get the position. But still, even filtering out three would be a tough decision.
He had been right in thinking that all four recommendations were C- and D-Squad cadets. He knew them by sight and name, had even trained one of them on occasions. They all had outstanding marks, but they all were young, the D-Squad hardly out of academy. He wasn't so sure about them, all of them had a functioning, working five-men team. Should he really take one of them, thinking that they could be easily replaced just because they were that young, and that inexperienced? Or should he try to preserve the unity they were working on, and give them the chance to grow as a team, just like he had gotten them?
Something within him heavily voted for the second option, though it was not his brain. His brain told him to consider at least the older of the C-Squad candidates, since that guy, Jonas, already had field experience and seemed to be a responsible cadet according to his files and records. Had even been honoured for special services once as he had rescued bravely an old man from a burning house. On the other side, that guy was nineteen. Four years their junior. Should he really anticipate that Jonas to co-lead a squad much older than him, much more experienced, and much more … special than his team? Actually, when he looked at it, that Jonas was leading material, for his own squad. Because he new them best, better than Sky himself and somebody else. For his team, Jonas would be a perfect candidate for Red. But for B-Squad... sighing, Sky decided to put Jonas' file on a pile with possible candidates, and dismiss the other three recommendations.
The applications were much harder to read, mostly because Sky didn't have any idea about the people behind the application. He was cautious with the young cadets, fresh from academy, though. There were two: a girl from Delta Vega, top-graded in academy, outstanding assessments in all physical tests. But she was seventeen. And her application letter sounded very ambitious. He was cautious with the ambitious, he knew from own experience that over-ambition could ruin a perfectly fine character. A bit ambition was fine, but a second also needed patience, and looking through the file of the girl from Delta Vega, he decided that she needed patience. And a bit of time in a lower ranking squad to sort out her own ambition.
The other young cadet, a guy from Nebula, instead sounded as if he wasn't really sure if he really wanted to be S.P.D. Earth's Blue Ranger. Sky again blamed it on inexperience. The boy, Irodin, was eighteen, good marks, not outstanding, but seemingly really well trained in a more physical sense, and not too confident. Maybe that wasn't a problem. But inexperience together with no confidence sounded too risky for a Blue Ranger. The guy could start out in a lower squad as well, learn about his assets and his weaknesses and know how to use them, and maybe he could be a reliable second to someone else then. But definitely not to Sky.
Sky admitted to himself to already have a bit of headache when he turned to the next two applications. One of them was simply ridiculous, a hardly trained soldier from quadrant two-three, a battling ram, maybe, but without any people skill. Sky dismissed him quickly. He couldn't need anyone without a proper education at an S.P.D. academy.
What left him with three files to look through, and up until now only one possible candidate.
A girl from Nebula's B-Squad. As reason for her transfer wish she argued with incompatibility with her team. Nobody seemed to understand her good intentions, she argued, and Sky put her file silently on the “discarded” pile.
By the rule of number he now had only three possibilities left, he could stop now and invite them all and just see. But the decision was too important to not read the last two. One was again from Nebula, a guy their age, up until now reserve for their C-Squad. Sounded reasonably experienced, reasonably educated, but there had to be a reason he had only been reserve, hadn't there? Maybe problems with team-work, or below average physical capability. But at least, that guy sounded like a candidate for invitation, so that Sky could see for himself why the guy, Belthor, had only been reserve.
The last one was a girl again, from Earth this time, and Sky didn't consider her even a second. Her file read that she had once been in a squad, C-Squad, and had been fired. She looked for a second chance, after she had worked as a waitress for years. Maybe she would have deserved a second chance. But not as the second of the Earth's leading Ranger team.
All in all, it was all very frustrating to Sky. Yes, Jonas and Belthor were something. But they both weren't... guaranteed to be the right choice. He didn't feel sure about them both, but they were the best choices they had.
Not at all happy with it, and not at all sure, Sky gathered the files and decided not to wait too long and speak with Cruger about his decision to invite only two candidates. He left his new room, head buried in the file of Jonas again, and went for the command centre. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he hardly recognised that he nearly collided with someone, a leather-gloved someone carrying a box with something. Bridge.
He was distracted for a second from his files as his eyes were drawn to the box. “Hey... don't I know these from somewhere?”
“You should, in fact, know these from somewhere, because I found them in your cupboard, or should I say your former cupboard considering you moved out in the morning”, Bridge gave back cheerfully. “And they can't be mine, because if they were, they'd be computer magazines and not football magazines; and it would be strange if someone else had stuff deposited in our room. Wait. Actually it's just my room now, until we get a new Blue Ranger, and even then it wouldn't be our room anymore as in saying yours and mine, but...”
“I get it, Bridge, thanks”, he said determinedly, but something within him chuckled. He would miss the messy second half of the desk, he knew it, there would be a day he would miss it. Maybe not too early, but someday he'll find himself missing having to share a room with Bridge.
His now ex-room-mate, however, only shrugged. “Whatever, I thought you'd like to have them back. But you seem busy, so I'll bring them along later, or you'll fetch them when you're done with whatever you were up to before we nearly collided.”
“No, it's okay”, Sky decided. He had still time to get the files to Cruger, even if he cared for the magazines first. He wasn't too eager to present his decision to the Commander, maybe because he wasn't too happy with it. Before he could choose otherwise, he nodded in the direction from which he had come and Bridge followed him.
“I'm curious, are those the Blue Ranger applicants? You already chose one?”
He sighed again, and turned around. Bridge seemed to be all curious indeed, eyes wide open and focussed on the files in his hands, and smiling slightly. “Not really”, he returned. “They're all … I don't know. Too ambitious, too insecure, too young, too... inexperienced, already having a squad... It's difficult, more than it looks”, he admitted as they entered Sky's new room, and Bridge placed the box with football magazines on the desk.
“You'll find the right one”, Bridge replied with his own special form of genuine confidence, “We all trust you, I mean I do, and I know it's the same for Z and Syd.”
“In the end, we all decide”, Sky said, shaking his head a bit in defiance. “I have chosen possibilities, but in the end, whoever I take has to work with all of us, and I will hear your opinion on anyone who Cruger and I invite to a test.”
They kept silent for a second, Sky again in thoughts of his two possible candidates. If he himself wasn't confident in them, how should his team be? He would hear them, but it was at first his decision, and he had to be 100% sure his decision was good.
“Even if not”, Bridge said suddenly, more quiet than usual, and Sky looked at him, a bit confused. “I mean, even if you decide on your own, and don't ask us. You said you'd follow anybody whom Cruger named the new Red Ranger. I say we'd follow anybody who you'd make your second. I trust you, you're a good leader.”
A quick glance on Bridge's hands told him he was wearing his gloves still, and an audible chuckle told him his former room-mate had noticed his look. “I don't need to be a psychic to see you're not comfortable with that decision you have to make, man”, Bridge said.
Someone who knows me, someone I can rely on, it shot through Sky's head. It had to be someone who knew the team, their strength and weaknesses, was experienced and reasonably confident and could work with any of them... why... “Why haven't you applied for Blue Ranger?”, he heard himself asking before he could think his thoughts until the end. His eyes met Bridge's, who looked at him, genuinely puzzled.
“Me? Ehm.. I don't know...”, he shrugged, and began to smile. “Was there a deadline? Of course there was a deadline, there are always deadlines, we want to fill that position quickly, I guess. Actually... I haven't thought about it at all, and now deadline's obviously up, so no need to waste thoughts on it. If thoughts could be wasted, that is, which is actually not strictly true, since thoughts are energy and energy is conserved; fundamental law of physics... wait, if there's energy-conservation, and thoughts are energy, there has to be a thought-conservation law, hasn't there? A fundamental law that tells us that...”
Sky sighed heavily, as Bridge went on and on about something that quickly slipped Sky's mind. It wasn't that he understood what the other Ranger spoke, or better rambled, about. But still, Sky found himself chuckling. Maybe the decision he had to make wasn't so hard after all.
…
“I take it you have made your decision, Cadet Tate?”
“Yes, Sir”, Sky saluted, and Cruger nodded approvingly, even if only a slight bit. He had thought about it after Bridge had left for the cafeteria and some toasts. He had found a solution he could perfectly live with, and had revisited all files again under new premises. “And as B-Squad Red Ranger, and therefore higher ranking than the position to be filled, I have a formal recommendation to make.”
“A recommendation for the Blue Ranger position? I'm listening.”
“I recommend Cadet Bridge Carson, and therefore ask for permission to test a potential new Green Ranger instead.”
Sky had chosen his words and tone carefully, he knew that Cruger himself had not recommended Bridge for promotion in the first place. But he was sure he would be adamant about his decision, the only one able to make him take someone else was Bridge himself, if he chose to remain Green Ranger.
“You are aware that I could have recommended Cadet Carson if I deemed him fit for this position?”, Cruger replied sternly, and fixated Sky with his measuring stare. “And you have just yesterday proclaimed that you will, in the future, always go along with my decisions as Commander?”
“Yes, Sir, I know that. But, if I'm allowed to explain”, Cruger nodded slightly, and Sky went on, “I have thought about all recommendations of yours and about all applicants from other academies, and about the duty of a Blue Ranger, which I know myself. I am quite sure the most of those ten possible candidates would make fine rangers, some now and some when their time has come. But the B-Squad Blue Ranger would have to be my second, and I want someone to fill that position who I know can work with me and my team, and someone who can lead the team in my stead. And even if you have not recommended him, I think Bridge would fill that role.”
“And what do you intend to do with the position of the Green Ranger, Cadet Tate?”, Cruger added, matter-of-factly.
“I have already looked through the files again, in search for someone who would fulfill the different premises of the Green Ranger, and I think there are three I can support.”
“And these are?”
“Belthor Ikstan, the reserve Ranger from Nebula would be worth testing and Irodin Dan from Delta Vega. He seemingly lacks confidence, but I think he could mature given the chance. Not directly as a Blue Ranger, Sir, but as Green Ranger he would have still time to grow. From our own sources I support Jonas Aubry from C-Squad, though I admittedly have doubts of tearing their team apart, as they have worked together for two years already.”
“I understand your thoughts Cadet Tate, and I appreciate that you speak in favour of your comrade. And, to speak the truth, I am glad you made the decision for your second yourself.”
Sky wasn't quite sure if Cruger indeed smiled. In the last minutes he had gone auto-pilot, to speak reasonable about his arguments without thinking about whether it pleased the Commander or not. Sometimes, he had learned that, one had to speak his mind instead of blindly following the rules and orders, and it was not as if he had defied the rules. He indeed had the right to recommend someone, he had searched the handbook again to be sure that this rule existed. But now, the Commander's half-smile looked suspicious to him.
“Sir...”, he started, measuring his thoughts and words, “Did you want me to recommend Bridge myself?”
Cruger gave a small nod. “Actually I had hoped that Cadet Carson would apply himself. But given the fact that this is Bridge Carson, it was too much to hope for, I guess.” Now the Commander grinned, and Sky was quite sure about it.
“Does this mean...”
“That I approve of your choice, and about your decision to find a new Green Ranger instead.”
…
It was Syd and Z he first told about the new Blue Ranger, just because he wanted to see the priceless surprise on Bridge's face when he was promoted in the evening. He exchanged a knowing glance with Syd when Bridge started what remotely sounded like a very drawn-out thank-you-speech, and was perfectly fine with that decision. Thinking about it, it had not been tough at all.