“The Battle
of Phantomhead is the standout moment in hostilities between the Imperium and
the Alliance. Even for a space battle, the hostilities lasted for weeks as new
ships kept arriving and ground forces were deployed. In the end, the Alliance
triumphed, and with grateful thanks to all of the forces who served in that
battle, but a few names always rise to the top when discussing Phantomhead:
General Thaddeus Carter, Colonel Sonya Lyons, Colonel Lee Shen of the marines and
Captain Aarushi Banik, Captain Pyotr Moscovich, Captain Peter Flynn of the
navy.
“For our
retrospective, we’re most interested in Peter Flynn, and the potential for what
many are calling Phantom Syndrome, a collection of conditions psychologists are
still attempting to qualify and quantify. The heart of the matter is this:
Peter Flynn is a highly decorated and capable officer. Many regard him as the Hero of Phantomhead. He served with
distinction on several ships, and went on to command one of the newest, most
advanced ships in the Alliance Fleet. But is it possible that his fall from
grace is a result of battling with the extreme pressures and trauma from
Phantomhead instead of cowardice? Join us in this frank examination over the
next hour as we—”
“Hey!” Ann
protested. “I was watching that!”
“Go watch
it in your quarters, then,” Flynn said roughly as he sat at his console.
“Aww, it’s
okay, Flynn. I understand. You’ve got Phantom Syndrome, so you’re touchy.”
Flynn gave
her a dark look, daring her to say one more word, but Ann skipped away,
literally, unfazed by him. But as she went past him, a thought occurred.
“Ann, this
is old news, why are you watching it?”
“It’s new.
We just got it in the latest dump. That bit was old footage, but they did a whole
new show on you.”
A new show? Why? The events in the Reach.
Could Jacob Enro have leaked some information, or is this the Alliance Fleet
and the news trying to make me look worse?
With a
heavy sigh he resumed the playback.