Table Of Contents

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The Frontiers Saga Part 2: Rogue Castes

Episode #14: A Line in the Sand

Copyright © 2020 by Ryk Brown All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

CHAPTER ONE

Nathan was exhausted, physically and emotionally. The last twenty-four hours had been some of the most difficult of his life. Millions of people had perished as a result of his actions. It wasn’t like he’d pulled the trigger himself, nor had he any reason to suspect such a horrific thing would happen. But that didn’t make him feel any better. Years ago, in his first life, he had returned the sons of Ancot back to their families. Those young men, most of whom had been doomed to die as cannon fodder for the Ta’Akar, had been given a chance to lead normal lives again. To find mates, to have families, to have a future. Now that future was gone, not just for the sons of Ancot, but for all of her people. One man had decided to sacrifice millions to protect something he had had no right to possess in the first place.

Nathan wondered what Lord Dusahn had felt in that moment. Frustration? Anger? Outrage? Defeat? Possibly even guilt? Probably none of those. Nathan suspected that, to his opponent, it was simply a numbers game. Takara was his seat of power. Corinair was merely an extension of that world, adding additional infrastructure and workforce. Ancot, which was mostly agrarian, was a cheap source of food. There was nothing on either Ancot or Corinair that could not be obtained from one of the worlds within the Takar system. Lord Dusahn knew this long before he gave the order that ended Ancot’s existence. Nathan was certain the Dusahn leader had felt nothing.

The problem was that Nathan did.

“Good morning, Captain,” the Ghatazhak guard at the door to the command briefing room greeted.

The comment took Nathan slightly aback. The Ghatazhak were not a talkative bunch, at least not outside of their own ranks. Those standing guard were even more tight-lipped, rarely saying anything other than announcing his presence in the room. “Good morning, Sergeant.”

Nathan took his seat at the head of the table. With the guards no longer announcing his arrival, his command staff, much to his liking, no longer stood for him. Another useless tradition struck down. “Good morning, everyone,” Nathan greeted, although his tone belied the sincerity in his statement. There was nothing good about this morning. It was the morning when he would learn the true consequences of his decisions.

Nathan quickly scanned the faces of his command staff. They all appeared to be in similar moods. “I don’t suppose anyone wants to go first?”

“The Ghatazhak suffered no casualties,” General Telles reported. “A few injuries but nothing major. I’m also pleased to report that our new battle gear performed flawlessly. My analysis of all Ghatazhak combat telemetry confirms that, without the CAP system, our losses would have been about fifty percent.”

“So the rest of this meeting will be bad news, then,” Nathan commented.

“I would like to add that the Ghatazhak fully support your decision to withdraw. The Ghatazhak do not fight battles that cannot be won. The moment you learned that our objective could not be achieved, and held, you changed tactics without hesitation. I would have done the same.”

“Thank you,” Nathan replied. “However, I suspect your men were less enthusiastic about it.”

“While they may have been disappointed, I assure you that they quickly came to the same conclusion I did, once they had all the information.”

Nathan looked at Vladimir. “Commander?”

“We have considerable damage to the port flight deck,” Vladimir reported, “as well as multiple hull breaches along the port side. Most of them can be closed in a week or so and the affected compartments repressurized, but the flight deck will take months to fully rebuild.”

“What about the port catapults?” Jessica wondered.

“Most of the damage is aft of the port large transfer airlock,” Vladimir explained. “We’ve sealed off that airlock for now. I can get the forward port flight deck operational in a few days if we close her forward blast doors and seal them.”

“That would make it into a hangar bay,” Cameron realized. “Are you suggesting we operate with only one recovery deck?”

“I’m telling you what we have and what we can do in both the short and long term,” Vladimir explained.

“How many birds do we have left?” Nathan asked Commander Verbeek.

“Fifteen Super Eagles, four Reapers, two Diggers, and two Ranni shuttles,” Commander Verbeek reported. “We’ve got things set up well enough at the Aitkenna spaceport for now, and we’re conducting standard aerodynamic takeoffs and landings to save on propellant until Corinair’s refineries are back online.”

“The Forenta will arrive tomorrow with a full load of propellant,” Cameron reported.

“If you need us to, we can run the air wing with just the starboard flight deck,” Commander Verbeek insisted.

“I think we’ll keep you on Corinair for the time being,” Nathan told him. “We lost nearly half the Nighthawks, and Corinair has virtually no defenses right now. Better to keep as many fighters on the surface as possible until we get some jump missile launchers installed.”

“Understood,” the commander assured him.

“If we need to move you to a different combat theater, we’ll use the Gervais and the Inman,” Nathan added.

“Yes, sir.”

“Both are being loaded with supplies as we speak,” Cameron added. “If you have any special requests, let me know, and I’ll forward them to their load masters.”

“How long do I have?” the commander asked.

“They’re scheduled to depart this evening.”

“I’ll get right on it,” Commander Verbeek assured her. “I’ll speak with the Corinari and Gunyoki pilots as well, and see if they need anything.”

“How many Gunyoki did we lose?” Jessica asked.

“Thirty-four,” Cameron reported somberly. “Once those additional ships surprised us, they went after them with a vengeance. Without their sacrifices, we might not be having this conversation right now.”

“The rest are bunking with us down on Corinair,” Commander Verbeek added after a pause, “at least until you send them home.”

“I’d like to keep them handy until we’re back up to snuff,” Nathan stated. “What about propulsion and maneuvering?” he asked Vladimir.

“Both are fully operational,” Vladimir assured him. “Power generation as well. We should have all shields fully operational in a couple of days, and all weapons by the end of the week. However, we’re going to be down to two forward tubes a bit longer. The entire power trunk along the ventral port side was damaged. The tubes and the plasma torpedo generators are fine; we just don’t have any way of sending power to them.”

“Could we jack them into the starboard lines?” Jessica wondered.

“Yes, but you’d have to fire them all at fifty percent,” Vladimir explained. “The result would be the same amount of energy spread over a greater number of torpedoes.”

“What about the jump drive?” Nathan asked.

“We were lucky,” Vladimir replied. “The damage to the port aft flight bay only took out two emitters. We can compensate by increasing power to nearby emitters, but that greatly limits our single-jump range.”

“How far can we jump?”

Vladimir looked uncertain. “According to Aurora, no more than fifty light years. But we can jump repeatedly, so that should help.”

“So we still have the same single-charge range, it just takes longer,” Nathan surmised.

“Unfortunately, no,” Vladimir replied sheepishly. “One quarter of jump energy banks were located just below the port aft flight deck. They were destroyed as well. I estimate our single-charge range to be about two hundred light years.”

“How long will it take to replace them?”

“We have to rebuild the port flight deck first,” Vladimir explained, “so again, months. As an intermediate step, I can set up a temporary bank of cells someplace and maybe increase that single-charge range to about three hundred light years.”

“We need a minimum of five hundred,” Nathan insisted.

“That will require use of the port forward flight deck,” Vladimir told him. “That’s the only place with enough room at the moment.”

“How long would it take?” Cameron wondered.

“I would have to create a new power trunk and run it from the bay to the port longitudinal trunk. That will require cutting through several bulkheads.”

“How long?” Nathan begged.

“At least a month,” Vladimir replied. “Less, if we can get SilTek to manufacture the energy cells and the power trunk for us. Our fabricators are already busy enough.”

“That will basically turn us into a heavy cruiser instead of a carrier,” Cameron pointed out, skeptical of the plan.

Nathan sighed. “I don’t see another way,” he insisted. “We’ve got worlds to protect, and we can’t protect them if we can’t reach them in a hurry.” He looked back at Vladimir. “We can defend ourselves, right?”

“Yes,” Vladimir assured him. “Other than the number one and two forward torpedo tubes and the port catapults, the only other weapons we lost were one of the port midship heavy turrets and a few point-defense turrets. Everything else is good.”

“Repairs might go faster if we jumped to SilTek,” Cameron suggested.

“I’d rather stay put until Corinair’s defenses have been stabilized,” Nathan insisted. “Besides, it would take too long in our current state. Corinair is the Dusahn’s most likely target at the moment. At least we can defend her.”

“With the Glendanon alongside to support external repairs, we should be fine,” Vladimir insisted. “However, I’ll take all the help I can get.”

“I’ll put in a request to SilTek for the energy cells and power trunk,” Cameron stated.

“Don’t bother,” Nathan told her. “I’m planning on heading there myself after this meeting.”

“You are?” Cameron asked, surprised.

“I’ll need a list of all needed repairs and what assistance we might need to get back to full readiness to take with me,” Nathan told Vladimir.

“Just ask Aurora,” Vladimir replied. “She’s very good at such things.”

“Have you received a report from Doran?” Nathan asked Cameron.

“Yes. The major reports three hundred and thirty-two KIA, fifty-seven wounded, and fourteen still unaccounted for. Most of those were probably lost in the tanks when they were obliterated from orbit. Not really anything left.”

“How many tanks did we lose?” Nathan asked.

“Twenty-seven, with eleven more heavily damaged,” Cameron replied. “With Commander Prechitt gone, Major Montrose has assumed command of all Corinari and has declared martial law for the entire planet until their unified government is reformed.”

“Any estimate on how long that will take?”

“No idea,” Cameron replied. “He still hasn’t determined how many of their key cabinet ministers were executed and how many survived. Worst-case scenario is that they’ll have to hold elections to fill positions, which could take months. Overall, Corinair was pretty lucky. Most of the planet was relatively untouched by the battle.”

“What about the Glendanon?” Nathan asked.

“I spoke with Captain Gullen this morning,” Cameron replied. “Most of his damage is superficial, thanks to the Weatherly. A few shield emitters, three point-defense cannons, and damage to one of his cargo shells. They did lose two boxcars, though. That’s going to make it harder to move cargo.”

“The Corinari captured several Dusahn cargo shuttles, as well as a few troop shuttles,” General Telles stated. “Perhaps they could be adapted?”

“We should at least look at their technology,” Cameron suggested.

“Agreed,” Nathan replied. “Let’s get one back to Rakuen so Abby and Deliza can take a look.”

“I’ll have the Manamu ferry it back as soon as they’re done unloading the Corinari’s support gear,” Cameron promised.

“Has anyone had a chance to check the tunnels being built on Corinair?” Nathan wondered, looking at Lieutenant Commander Shinoda.

“I have,” the lieutenant commander assured him. “Once we were able to survey the planet from orbit, we detected at least twenty other wells being drilled, other than the ones in the cities that we were already aware of.”

“Wells?” Nathan wondered.

“That’s what we’re calling them, now that we know they’re roughly perpendicular to the surface and not parallel.”

“Why so many?” Nathan asked. “Weren’t there only about twenty work sites on Takara?”

“Twenty-three,” the lieutenant commander corrected. “Fewer on Ancot.”

“Ancot is considerably smaller than Takara,” General Telles stated. “However, both have extensive volcanic and seismic activity beneath the surface. Corinair does not.”

“I wasn’t aware that you were so knowledgeable about Corinairan geology,” Nathan commented.

“I am Ghatazhak.”

“So their rocky planet saved them?” Jessica surmised.

“A greater number of fracture points were probably required to destroy the planet, and the rocky mantle likely slowed their progress,” the general explained.

“So, if we had attacked a week later, we might have lost both worlds,” Jessica concluded.

“Or a week earlier and we would have lost none,” Nathan countered.

“The project on Ancot was finished eleven days before our attack,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda pointed out.

“There’s no way we could have attacked before we did,” Cameron insisted, looking at Nathan. “You know that.”

“I do,” Nathan admitted, “but that doesn’t make it any easier.” After a sigh, he continued. “We may have liberated Corinair, but the cost was too high. We cannot make that mistake again. I will not make that mistake again.”

“Nathan…” Cameron began, but stopped when she saw the look of determination in her captain’s eyes.

“I take it you have a plan,” General Telles realized.

Nathan glanced around the room at his senior staff. “I intend to ask the Jung for assistance.” Another look around the room confirmed his suspicions. Every single one of them, apart from the general, was shocked.

“Nathan, the Jung still believe you’re dead,” Cameron reminded him. “Convicted and executed on Nor-Patri, broadcast to their entire population. If you show up on their doorstep asking for help, not only will they kill you on sight, but they’ll have an excuse to attack Earth again.”

“They already have an excuse to attack Earth again,” Nathan argued. “Assuming they haven’t already.” He looked at Lieutenant Commander Shinoda. “What does our latest Sol intel show?”

“The latest intel from the Sol sector is at least two weeks old,” his intelligence officer reminded him. “The Sol Alliance has attacked more than twenty Jung military installations, and not just along the border, but deep into Jung territory.”

“What about civilian casualties?” Nathan asked.

“So far, we estimate them to be light,” the lieutenant commander replied. “However, we have no direct recon data from Jung space. We’re basing that on media transmissions from Earth, which are likely more propaganda than fact.”

“I doubt Galiardi cares much about collateral damage to Jung civilians,” Jessica insisted.

“Regardless,” Cameron interrupted. “How are the Jung supposed to help us? Assuming they didn’t shoot you on sight, that is. Their ships don’t have jump drives. It would take them years to get here.” Cameron looked at Nathan, a terrifying realization coming over her face. “You’re not planning to give them jump drive technology, are you?”

“No, but I would if it came to that,” Nathan replied.

“Then what do you expect them to do?”

“I’m going to ask them to make me a caste leader.”

The room suddenly became deathly quiet…until Cameron spoke. “I’m afraid to ask the next question.”

“You’re planning on fighting him, aren’t you?” Jessica concluded, shaking her head. “Big mistake, Nathan.”

“I’m not planning on fighting him right away,” Nathan pointed out. “As long as we can keep the Dusahn contained, I’ll have time to train. Eventually…”

“That guy has been training since he could walk,” Jessica insisted. “You could train for years, and he’d still kill you with one hand tied behind his back.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Nathan replied.

“The captain has shown a remarkable improvement in hand-eye coordination, situational awareness, and tactical analysis capabilities,” General Telles pointed out. “His physical abilities have improved as well.”

“Yes, that’s all true, but…”

“Do you have a better plan?” Nathan asked Jessica.

“Yes! Have them make me a caste leader! I’ll kick his fucking ass!”

“I mean you no insult, Lieutenant Commander,” General Telles began. “Your combat skills are quite impressive, but Lord Dusahn is more skilled and more experienced. Furthermore, he has a considerable strength advantage.”

“Strength is meaningless,” Jessica argued.

“At times, yes, but not at all times. I am not even certain that I could defeat him.”

“Well now you’re really causing me to question my decision,” Nathan admitted.

“Good, because it’s crazy,” Jessica insisted. “Have them make the general a caste leader!”

“It has to be me,” Nathan insisted.

“Why?” Jessica demanded.

“Because he is Na-Tan,” General Telles explained.

“Oh come on!”

“He’s right,” Cameron realized, not happy about it.

“You too?” Jessica wondered, surprised by Cameron’s agreement.

“That’s why you came and got me, isn’t it?” Nathan challenged. “So that I would inspire others to join our cause?”

“Yes, but…”

“Rather than having this debate now, how about we wait until we’re certain this idea is viable,” Nathan suggested, cutting her off. “After all, we are basing this on the words of an enemy officer.”

“A dead enemy officer,” Jessica pointed out.

“How do you intend to verify his claims?” Cameron wondered.

“By asking someone who should know,” Nathan replied. “Gerard Bowden.”

“Uh, he’s not here,” Jessica reminded him.

Nathan looked at Cameron.

“When we left, he was still at Fleet Intelligence,” Cameron told him.

“Commander Bowden is considered the leading expert on Jung history and customs,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda said. “I interned with him for two years before coming to the Aurora. If anyone would know, it would be him.”

“Any chance he’ll talk to us?” Nathan asked the lieutenant commander.

Lieutenant Commander Shinoda sighed, thinking for a moment. “I’m not sure, to be honest. It took him years to prove himself to command. A few of Galiardi’s key advisors worried that he was a Jung plant meant to mislead us.”

“How loyal do you think he is to Galiardi?” Cameron asked.

“I know he doesn’t like the admiral, but other than that…”

“Any chance he’d talk with you?” Nathan asked.

“He knows I’m on the Aurora,” the lieutenant commander replied, “which technically makes me a traitor. So your guess is as good as mine.”

“So he’d be no more likely to talk to you than to me then,” Nathan surmised.

“Probably not.”

“You just talked yourself out of a trip home, Lieutenant Commander,” Nathan replied.

“Probably for the best.”

“You’re going back to Earth?” Jessica asked, again surprised.

“We’re going back to Earth,” Nathan corrected.

“As much as I hate to admit it, it would be a good idea to talk to Bowden, first,” Cameron admitted. “If only to be certain that this insane plan is even feasible.”

“Precisely what I was thinking,” Nathan agreed.

“You’re obviously going to need the jump sub. Unfortunately, we’re down to only four Reapers and two boxcars, and a jump sub won’t fit in a Ranni shuttle.”

“That’s why I’m going to SilTek,” Nathan replied. “I’m going ship shopping.”

“Oh, please tell me I’m going with you,” Vladimir begged.

“Sorry, Vlad, you’re needed here,” Nathan told him. “Besides, I’ve got a more qualified shopping guide in mind.”

“I know you don’t mean me,” Jessica stated.

“No, but you’re going as well.” Nathan looked around the room. “Any questions?”

“Any chance we can talk you out of this?” Cameron wondered.

“None,” Nathan replied as he rose. “Jess, we’re wheels up in one hour. Cam, you have command while I’m gone.”

“Great,” Cameron replied.

* * *

Lord Dusahn wiped the blood from his dagger, the same one he had used to kill his brothers long ago, as he stared down at the body of his minister of finance. Once he was satisfied with the blade’s cleanliness, he sheathed it at his side. “Remove him,” he instructed the guards at the doors of his conference room as he returned to his seat. He looked around the room, measuring the shocked expressions of his advisers and ministers. “Does anyone else wish to tell me something cannot be done?”

General Sourn, the eldest in the room, was the first to speak. “I have been alive too long to worry about meeting your blade, my lord. I shall only tell you what I believe to be the truth. If that earns me your wrath, so be it.”

“Then you miss my point, as usual, my dear general,” Lord Dusahn told him. “I did not kill him because he told me what he believed to be true, but because he was unable to see any outcome but failure. I have no use for those who see only limitations.”

“Limitations are a reality, my lord,” General Sourn replied. “Unpleasant though they may be, I believe you know this to be true.”

Lord Dusahn brushed the old general’s comments aside. Sourn was of the same old guard as General Hesson. He too had served Griogair’s father, and his father’s older brothers before him. As a child, Griogair had revered his father. As an adult, he had come to understand why the Dusahn had failed to overthrow the Jung leadership castes and had also failed to establish a new empire after centuries of roaming the galaxy. Limitations. Lack of conviction. Lack of inspiration.

“What I know,” Lord Dusahn continued, “is that no great empire has ever risen beyond their limitations without first believing that those realities are but mere challenges to be overcome.”

General Sourn looked down, being careful not to let his disdain for his leader’s arrogance become too obvious. “We have three destroyers, all of them well past their prime. A half dozen gunships and about sixty octo-fighters. Our ground forces number less than ten thousand. The only thing preventing the Karuzari Alliance from seizing the system is the Chekta protocol.”

“Precisely.”

“These are the limitations I refer to. Minister Mogen was correct. Our best hope of survival is a strong economy, and that will be even more difficult now that our primary source of food no longer exists.”

“Are you questioning my decision to use Ancot to send a message to the Karuzari?” Lord Dusahn asked.

“No, my lord. I am merely making statements of fact. This system has more than enough arable surface to provide sustenance for the masses, but production facilities must be established in new locations, and quickly. Hungry people will not work, and starving people will riot. If this happens, the results will be the same as if the Karuzari were foolish enough to test your resolve by invading. We must care for the empire we have, first. Only when it is strong can we look to expand once again.”

Lord Dusahn flashed a sinister smile. “It is wise of you to sit at the far end of the table from me, General Sourn.” He pulled his knife from its sheath and laid it on the table before him, then slid it toward the center with enough force to push it beyond his reach. He then looked at the eyes of his staff, noting the fear in their faces. These men were not true leaders. They were merely men who thought they were infallible but had yet to be executed for their failures. “Perhaps now someone will be strong enough to rise above these perceived limitations and suggest a course of action that will restore our dominance in this sector.” Again he surveyed their expressions, waiting for one of them to speak. The one who did was not the one he had expected.

“My lord,” Lieutenant Jexx began, his voice cracking with uncertainty. “If I may?”

Lord Dusahn looked at the older men in the room, a look of disappointment on his face. “A lieutenant is the first among you to speak?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Go ahead, Lieutenant. Speak without fear.”

Lieutenant Jexx swallowed hard, unsure of himself. “Perhaps we are looking at things the wrong way.”

“How do you mean?”

“General Sourn speaks of limitations and their realities. While it is true that they exist, as you so wisely state, they are only challenges—obstacles yet to be overcome. The reality is that we have traded places with the Karuzari. We are now the ones who are struggling to survive. Perhaps we should stop thinking like an empire and start thinking like a rebellion. Perhaps we should use the Karuzari’s own tactics as our guide?”

Lord Dusahn studied the young lieutenant, his brow furrowed in concentration, his gaze piercing the junior officer’s eyes. “Elaborate,” he finally said.

The lieutenant swallowed again. “We start our own guerrilla campaign. We strike quickly and often. We harass their defenses, giving them no time to build, no time to rest, no time to feel comfortable. Most importantly, we give them no time to engage us. We keep them on the defensive.”

“To what end?”

“To distract them from our true objectives,” the lieutenant explained.

“And what might those objectives be?” Lord Dusahn asked, growing impatient.

“First, we must maintain our presence in the cluster, to make sure that the nearby systems understand that they are still under our control. Second, we must establish regular trade with systems in the Pentaurus sector.”

“You want to conduct trade with worlds we once conquered?” Lord Dusahn questioned.

“Technically, we never gave up control of those worlds,” the lieutenant pointed out. “Nor did we exert any level of Dusahn rule over them, other than taxation. They all remained self-governing, with nothing more than a small outpost of our own, which, I might add, are still in operation. All those worlds are still members of the Dusahn Empire; we just have yet to overhaul them to fit our needs. We only reduced the frequency that our ships visited those systems in favor of other priorities. I suggest we continue to let them govern themselves and start exporting goods to them in exchange for goods we need. Improve their overall profits and quality of life, so to speak.”

“That will make us appear weak,” he said, waving a hand in dismissal.

“With all due respect, my lord, at the moment, we are weak. When one is injured, one must have time to heal. An empire is no different. We need to rebuild our defenses, grow our forces, and build new warships. All of this requires resources.”

“We have all the resources we need in this system,” Lord Dusahn argued. “We do not need to go crawling to our former subjects.”

“It is not their resources that we need, my lord, it is their loyalty. This can be purchased two ways: by threat of punishment, or by profit and security. Profit and security are much better motivators.”

Lord Dusahn glared at Lieutenant Jexx. After a moment he said. “Is that all?”

“Almost,” the lieutenant replied. “We must also discover the source of the Karuzari Alliance’s sudden increase in technology…and eliminate it.”

Lord Dusahn examined the others in the room as he considered the young officer’s words. “Clear the room,” he stated calmly. “Everyone except for Commander Jexx.”

* * *

Dylan opened the door, and his jaw dropped. “Captain.” He looked around, half expecting to see guards standing by to take him away. “Did I do something wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Nathan replied. “Did you?”

“Uh…”

“Relax, Dylan, I’m kidding,” Nathan assured him, noticing the young man’s nervous expression. “May I come in?”

“Uh, sure,” he replied, stepping aside. He watched as Nathan entered and sat down at the desk.

“Studying the Aurora’s specs?” Nathan asked, noticing the ship’s schematics on his view screen.

“Uh…I was just trying to figure out ways that your AI could tie into more noncritical systems, to be of more use to you. I can stop if I’m not supposed to be…”

“It’s okay,” Nathan assured him. “Close the door and have a seat. I need to talk to you about something.”

Dylan looked uncertain. “Me?”

“Yes.”

“Okay,” he said, shutting the door and heading for his bunk.

“Your character in the sim…”

“That wasn’t me,” Dylan interrupted. “You know that, right? It was just based on me.”

“I know. You said, I mean he said, that he knew everything about the XK series ships. Is that true? Do you know everything about them?”

“Sure,” Dylan replied, relaxing a bit. “Well, maybe not everything, but more than most people. Probably more than anyone. Except maybe a sales droid.”

“What about other ships?” Nathan wondered. “Do you know about all of SilTek’s ships?”

“I suppose so,” Dylan replied. “Although I have a lot more experience with the XKs. I mean, virtual experience, of course. To be honest, I’ve never actually set foot in one. Hell, I never even left SilTek until this assignment.” Dylan looked crossways at Nathan, his curiosity piqued. “Why are you asking me this?”

“I need a ship.”

“You have a ship,” Dylan replied. “A big one, and a slick one, at that.”

“Yes, the Aurora is a very good ship.”

“I mean, the mashup of technologies is phenomenal…”

“Unfortunately, she is also in need of repair, and even if she wasn’t, I can no longer take her wherever I wish. She must stay close to the worlds she is sworn to protect. Especially now.”

“I can see how that might be a problem,” Dylan agreed. “So what do you need from me?”

“Advice.”

“From me? About what?”

“Ships,” Nathan replied.

“Which ships?”

“SilTek ships.”

“Why SilTek ships?” Dylan wondered.

“Because they’d probably be quicker and easier for your people to modify to fit our needs.”

“Good point,” Dylan nodded.

“So can you help me out?”

“My friends are never going to believe this,” Dylan laughed. “What kind of ship are you looking for?”

“Well,” Nathan said, turning to the view screen and typing something on the keyboard. “Something like this.”

Dylan rose from the bunk, moving closer to the screen. “The See-eye-eye-ki?”

“Yes, but it’s pronounced Say-key.”

“Interesting ship,” Dylan said, examining the general specs. “Kind of outdated, though. She doesn’t even have grav-lift systems.”

“She was a good ship, though,” Nathan recalled fondly.

“Was?” Dylan asked, sitting back down. “What happened to her?”

“Long story,” Nathan replied. “Does SilTek have anything like her?”

“Not anything that looks like her,” Dylan replied. “Grav-lift systems do away with the need for low-drag designs and aerodynamics. But I’m assuming you’re not talking about looks.”

“No, I’m thinking more about size and utility. Maybe even something a little larger than the Seiiki. And we’ll need to be able to arm her. Anything come to mind?”

Dylan leaned forward, studying the specs along the side of the Seiiki’s general data page on the view screen. Well, the Toresh shuttles are about the same size, maybe a bit smaller. I’m not sure. But you said you wanted something a little bigger, right?”

“Preferably.”

“I don’t know,” Dylan said, thinking. “Maybe a Lorenza-class? They’re definitely bigger. They’ve got a ton of cargo space inside. But you probably want something that handles better than that. Lorenzas are flying pigs, and their engine placement makes them impossible to maintain while under way. That’s why I always used the XKs in Night Runner.”

“There really is a VR game called Night Runner?” Nathan wondered.

“Oh yeah. I’ve been playing it since I was about five. That’s how I know so much about spaceships and their systems.”

“I see,” Nathan replied, thinking. “What about the XK? That’s the one we used in the sim to escape SilTek, right?”

“Yeah, but…”

“Seemed like a decent ship.”

“They’re great ships, but they’re nothing like that,” Dylan insisted, pointing at the Seiiki on the screen.

“I don’t know,” Nathan said. “I didn’t get a chance to look around her much, but best I can remember, she handled okay, and she was larger than the Seiiki.”

“A little larger, yes.”

“And they already have jump drives, right?”

“Yes, but the XKs are pretty old designs,” Dylan warned. “Don’t get me wrong, they’re still great ships, at least the ones that have been updated and properly maintained. But we’re talking old, here.”

“How old?” Nathan asked.

“The first ones were built over a hundred years ago. They don’t even make them anymore.”

“When did they stop production?”

“About seventy years ago, I think.”

“Are there a lot of them still in service?”

“A few dozen, I suppose. Even more of them in the boneyard.”

“The boneyard?”

“It’s where they park ships that are past their prime. They button them up tight, with all their systems intact in case they need them later. But that never happens. Eventually, everything that goes to the boneyard gets disassembled and recycled.”

“Then we shouldn’t have any problem procuring one, should we,” Nathan decided.

Dylan looked at him with skepticism. “Captain, I love the XKs, but we have newer ships that I’m sure corporate will let you use.”

“Even if I’m likely to destroy it?”

“On purpose?”

“No, but I do plan to take her into harm’s way,” Nathan warned. “Are you saying the XK is a bad choice?”

“Not at all, actually. They’re rugged, have plenty of power and plenty of cargo space. And they’re very easy to work on, even while under way.”

“Then they sound perfect,” Nathan declared enthusiastically.

“But any XK you get is going to need a lot of upgrades,” Dylan warned. “Even if you get one that’s still in service and has been well taken care of.”

“Then it’s a good thing I have access to an XK expert, isn’t it,” Nathan said, smiling.

Dylan’s eyes widened. “Me?”

“Who else?”

Dylan laughed. “I’m honored, Captain, really, but my mom will never let me go flying off on some dangerous mission with you.”

“She let you come here, didn’t she?” Nathan countered. “Where we’re going next isn’t any more dangerous than that… Well, not much, anyway.”

“Uh, she thinks I stayed on Rakuen while the Aurora went into battle,” Dylan admitted sheepishly.

Nathan looked at Dylan crossly. “You’re going to have to tell her the truth sooner or later, Dylan.”

“I know…”

“But perhaps you shouldn’t lead with that confession when you ask her for permission to help us on the XK missions,” Nathan added, his smile widening.

Dylan looked at Nathan, his eyes wide in disbelief. “I’m betting you got in trouble a lot when you were my age.”

“I got into my fair share of mischief,” Nathan replied, rising from his chair.

“I’ll bet.”

“Pack your bags, kid. We’re wheels up in thirty,” Nathan added as he headed out the door.

* * *

Multiple jump flashes appeared in the sky above Aitkenna, each one followed by faint booms as the air at their arrival points was suddenly displaced. Two seconds later, alert sirens began blaring all over the city, alerting its residents of the danger coming from above.

“The Glendanon is pulled in tight along our port side,” Cameron told Nathan as they entered the Aurora’s bridge. “She’ll stay there until we get our port shields back up. We’re close enough to the planet that nothing bigger than an octo is going to be able to hit us from planet-side.”

“You’ll probably need to work out some sort of a separation maneuver with Gullen, in case you have to get under way in a hurry,” Nathan suggested as they turned the corner to head for the ready room.

“Already done,” Cameron assured him.

The trim lighting all around the bridge suddenly turned red, and an alert klaxon sounded.

“General quarters,” the Aurora’s AI announced. “Incoming missiles. Point-defenses activated. First impacts in fifteen seconds.”

Both Nathan and Cameron immediately turned on their heels, heading back into the bridge. Cameron went straight for the tactical console, as there was no tactical officer on duty at the moment.

“Eight inbound,” the sensor officer reported.

“Corinari are reporting octos over Aitkenna, attacking the spaceport,” Naralena reported from the comms station as the captain passed.

“Shields have already come up,” Cameron announced as she stepped up to the tactical station. “Point-defenses are firing…two down…”

“Glendanon’s point-defenses are firing, as well,” the sensor officer reported.

“…Three down…”

“Comms, confirm that everyone on Aitkenna is scrambling,” Nathan instructed.

“The Glendanon is asking if they should break formation,” Naralena reported.

“…Five down!”

“Negative,” Nathan replied. “This could be a ruse to get us to expose our port side. Tell Gullen to stay put.”

“Three seconds!” the sensor officer warned.

Nathan tapped the comms console on the arm of the command chair next to him. “Brace, brace, brace!”

The ship rocked as the last two missiles made it past the point-defenses of both ships and slammed into the Aurora’s dorsal shields.

“What the hell is going on?” Jessica exclaimed as she stumbled onto the bridge, bracing herself against the comms station as she made her way to tactical. “Didn’t we just kick their asses?”

“Apparently they don’t see it that way,” Nathan commented. “How bad?”

“Dorsal shields took two hits,” Cameron reported. “They’re drained but still good.”

“Another wave!” the sensor officer reported.

Dusahn octos dove toward the Aitkenna spaceport, their four twin-barreled turrets spitting bolts of plasma energy at the rows of fighters parked on the surface. Dozens of vehicles raced across the tarmac, ignoring the red rain of death as they tried to get pilots to their ships.

Four Corinari combat tanks, wisely positioned to defend the makeshift fighter base, swung into action before their operators had even climbed aboard, their AIs snapping into action due to the foresight of their programming.

The AIs of the Sugali fighters were equally capable, firing up their reactors and flight systems in anticipation of the arrival of their pilots. Unfortunately, many of them would never get off the ground.

The ungainly looking octo-fighters targeted the fighters first, tearing through the unprotected Gunyoki and Eagles, and pummeling the AI-activated shields of the Nighthawks. The octos attacked in groups of four, jumping in from high on one side, sweeping across the compound as they fired, then pitching up and disappearing behind blue-white jump flashes. Their attack was relentless, with the next wave appearing at random cardinal points before the previous wave had completed their pass.

“Port shields are down to sixty percent!” the XO warned from the Glendanon’s tactical station.

“They’ll hold,” Captain Gullen insisted as the ship rocked from another missile impact against their shields. “As long as you don’t let any more missiles get through.”

“It’s not like I’m not trying, Edom,” the XO defended. “This would be half as hard if we could break formation and get more guns in play.”

“You know we can’t do that, Justan.”

“I’m just sayin’.”

The Nighthawk pilots jumped from the open-top vehicles as they slowed, running as they hit the ground. Red bolts of plasma walked across the surface, blowing holes in the tarmac and sending debris flying in all directions.

Talisha flinched as bits of concrete sprayed across her as she ran, chased by the bolts of energy raining down from the enemy fighters approaching from behind. All around her, she could hear the sounds of Sugali engines spinning up and the metallic ringing of energy bolts striking their shields. Suddenly, the shields of a nearby Nighthawk failed, flashing brightly, its shield emitters bursting with sparks as they overloaded. The next shots found the fighter’s unprotected hull, slicing into it and finding its propellant tanks.

The shock wave knocked Talisha to the ground, nearly rendering her unconscious. Scarred, scraped, bleeding, and ears ringing, she managed to get to her knees, despite the numerous points on her body screaming in pain.

Talisha tapped the comm-unit on her wrist, yelling into it. “Leta! Drop aft shields! I’m coming in!”

“Understood,” her AI acknowledged.

The bombardment suddenly ended, the attacking fighters having reached the far side of the spaceport and starting their climb in preparation to jump. Talisha fought through the pain and climbed to her feet, stumbling toward the aft end of her fighter as two nearby Gunyoki fighters began to lift off the ground.

The lack of incoming fire lasted only seconds, as four more Dusahn octo-fighters jumped in, attacking this time from the west. Talisha picked up her pace, breaking into a sprint as the two Gunyoki fighters turned to climb but were met with a barrage of red bolts of plasma as nearly every weapon on each of the four fighters targeted them. Their shields flashed brilliantly, but their lack of an AI to power up their reactors prior to their pilots’ arrival meant that they had insufficient power for both liftoff and shields. Both ships would never get under way. Their shields failed, and their hulls were torn open by the incoming fire. One ship exploded outright, the shock wave knocking the other already unstable Gunyoki sideways. The second Gunyoki fighter took debris hits from the first, causing its port engine nacelle to fail. The ship leaned over, struck the ground, and then plopped down, its hull rupturing on impact. Its canopy automatically jettisoned, and the pilots tried to climb out, but they were consumed by the fireball that was ignited by the next few weapons impacts.

Talisha continued running as hunks of red-hot metal from the exploded Gunyoki fighter fell around her. Her hands over her head, she managed to cross under her Nighthawk’s aft shield line just as a large piece of burning debris slammed into the shield above her, causing it to flash brightly. “I’m inside the shield perimeter!” she yelled over her wrist comm as she continued around the fighter to the open clamshell cockpit.

“Raising aft shields,” her AI reported. “Reactor at ninety percent. All systems are ready for departure.”

“Auto-launch as soon as I’m in!” Talisha replied as she reached the open cockpit. “Jump once the cockpit is sealed!” she added as she climbed up inside.

The clamshell cockpit still wide open, and Talisha only halfway up into her seat, the Sugali fighter began to lift up off the ground, her grav-lift systems humming loudly. The ship rotated toward the southeast, turning toward the next wave of fighters that had just jumped in.

Talisha climbed into her seat as the ship rotated and began sliding forward. With her left hand, she pulled her restraint bar down over her while, with her right, she slapped the cockpit close button. Her eyes widened as she looked in her ship’s new direction of flight, spotting the four Dusahn octos heading directly toward them, plasma turrets blazing. “What the hell are you doing, Leta?” she wondered as the two halves of the clamshell cockpit closed around her.

“Dusahn targeting systems are less effective at higher closure rates,” Leta explained as the interior cockpit lighting snapped on and the inside of the canopy seemed to become transparent. The view of outside now restored, her cockpit lit up with the bright flashes of red as the incoming fire slammed into her forward shields.

“Jumping,” Leta announced. A second later, she added, “Clear of attacking craft. Shall I come about?”

Talisha breathed a sigh of relief. For the moment, she was out of danger. But only for a moment. “I’ve got it,” she replied, grabbing the flight controls and entering an aggressive turn to port.

“They’re pounding our dorsal shields,” Jessica warned from the Aurora’s tactical station as the ship rocked from another missile impact with their shields.

“If they bring down our dorsal shields, we’ll only have two shielded sides left,” Cameron added. “We’ll be vulnerable.”

“Naralena,” Nathan called, “tell the Glendanon we’re going to start a slow, ninety-degree roll to starboard, and we’d like them to maintain relative position to us as we roll.”

“Aye, sir.”

“That should help keep those missiles off our dorsal shields.”

“Ready when you are, Captain,” Josh said.

“As soon as…” Nathan stopped mid-sentence, realizing that the incoming ordnance warning alarms were no longer sounding. “Sensors, status?”

“No targets other than the octos in the atmosphere over Aitkenna,” the sensor officer replied.

Nathan turned to tactical next, looking at Jessica and Cameron.

“Threat board is clear,” Jessica reported.

Talisha rolled out of her turn and immediately pressed the jump button on her flight control stick, transitioning ahead fifty kilometers and back into the area of the Aitkenna spaceport. But instead of finding four to eight Dusahn octos actively attacking the base, she found nothing. Nothing but fires, secondary explosions, and multiple plumes of smoke rising from the destruction below. So short and recent was the attack that the smoke had yet to move downwind of the battered spaceport.

“There are no enemy contacts in the area,” her AI reported.

“Leta, expand your scan range. Are the octos in orbit?”

“Negative,” Leta replied. “I have also tapped into Corinair’s global surveillance satellite network, and there are no enemy contacts anywhere over the planet.”

Talisha keyed her transmit button. “This is Razor Three. Who else is up?”

“Razor Thirty-two is up.”

“Razor Fourteen is up,” another pilot replied.

“Tekka Nine and Ten are up, climbing to orbit,” Suli Noma reported from her Gunyoki fighter. “Dota Five and Eleven should be up shortly. We’ll take high cover for now.”

“Understood,” Talisha replied. “Control, Razor Three. Get anyone you can up and keep them up until we know this is over.”

“How bad?” Cameron asked Naralena.

“Four Eagles destroyed,” Naralena replied. “Also, eleven Gunyoki and six Nighthawks. Forty-three dead, fifteen wounded, so far.”

“Still no contacts,” the sensor officer updated.

Nathan sighed. “They’re going to keep hitting us at random intervals.”

“Why?” Josh wondered aloud. “I thought we had a cease-fire?”

“Because he’s got Takara wired,” Jessica pointed out. “He knows he can lash out at us anytime he wants, and we can’t do a thing about it.”

“He plans to chip away at us a little at a time, just like we did to them in the beginning,” Nathan added. “That’s why I have to fight him.”

Josh turned around. “You’re going to fight him? Isn’t he some kind of expert in hand-to-hand combat?”

“That’s what I hear,” Nathan replied.

“Uh, no offense, Cap’n—I mean, you can fight and all—but you’re not, like…”

“Like what?”

“Well, if it weren’t for Marcus and Dalen and me, you would’ve gotten your ass kicked on more than one occasion over the last five years.”

“That was Conner, not Conathan,” Nathan joked. “But that is a good point. I guess I’ll have to take you with me.”

“Where, to fight Lord Dusahn?” Josh exclaimed in surprise.

“Maybe not that far. But I do need a pilot to fly me to SilTek. I have a lot of studying to do along the way.”

“That I can handle,” Josh replied.

“You too, Loki,” Nathan told his navigator.

“Ranni shuttles only need a single pilot,” Loki reminded him.

“Someone’s got to keep an eye on Josh while I’m in the back studying.”

“You’re still going?” Cameron wondered.

“You said it was a good idea to talk to Commander Bowden first, just to be certain my plan was feasible,” Nathan reminded her.

“I believe I said your insane plan,” Cameron corrected.

“Then I guess everything is as usual,” Nathan said as he headed for the exit. “Call your relief crew, gentlemen,” he called back to Josh and Loki. “We’re wheels up in ten.”

CHAPTER TWO

Josh followed Loki onto the Ranni shuttle and into the cockpit. “What are you doing?” he asked when Loki took the pilot’s seat.

“I’m far more qualified to fly these than you are,” Loki replied as he began powering up the ship’s systems.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“No, I’m not,” Loki insisted. “Now sit down and get comfortable; it’s going to be a long flight.”

Josh stood there for a moment, unsure of what to do.

Loki finally stopped what he was doing and looked at him crossly. “Sit.”

“This ain’t right,” Josh complained as he plopped down in the copilot’s seat.

“You need to fly second-seat more often if you’re going to be a well-rounded pilot,” Loki commented as he continued starting up the ship’s systems.

“Hey, I spent five years flying second-seat to Connor, which wasn’t easy.”

“What wasn’t easy?” Nathan asked as he entered the shuttle.

“Nothing,” Josh replied, looking back over his shoulder as Nathan, Jessica, and Dylan climbed aboard. “I hope you packed a lot of food. It’s nearly four days’ journey to SilTek,” he added as he turned to face forward again.

“A few sandwiches are all I had time to pick up,” Nathan replied as he took his seat.

Josh turned back to look at Nathan again. “Please tell me you’re kidding.”

“Relax, Josh,” Nathan chuckled as he strapped in. “We’re hitching a ride on a boxcar. We’ll be at SilTek in an hour, tops.”

“I’m still gonna need that sandwich,” Josh grumbled, turning away again.

* * *

A blue-white flash revealed the now-familiar shape to SilTek’s defense grid. The cargo pod hauler commonly referred to as the boxcar flipped over as soon as its jump flash faded, then fired its main engines to slow down to the lower orbital velocity. The difference was slight, and the initial burn lasted only a few minutes, after which the cargo bay door opened, and a Ranni shuttle emerged, pulling away smartly. Once the shuttle was clear, it pitched down toward the planet and disappeared behind a flash of light of its own.

* * *

Miss Bindi was standing on the other side of the hangar bay door when it opened.

“Mom?” Dylan called, spotting her. “What are you doing here?”

“You’ve been gone for weeks, Dylan,” Miss Bindi replied. “Can’t a mother want to see her son?”

“Uh…yeah, I guess.”

“A pleasure to see you again, Miss Bindi,” Nathan greeted as the rest of them followed Dylan through the exit and into the corridor.

“You as well, Captain. Transports are waiting for you outside.”

“Are we going somewhere?” Nathan asked.

“Miss Batista would like to hear about the battle firsthand.”

“We didn’t come to give personal reports,” Nathan replied. “We have more pressing business to attend to.”

“Any business on SilTek will be subject to Miss Batista’s approval,” Miss Bindi politely reminded him.

“Of course,” Nathan replied, catching her drift. “Lead the way.”

“End of the corridor and to the right,” she instructed. “Then through the double doors at the end. Escorts will be waiting for you.”

“I take it you’re not coming with us then?”

“I’d like to spend some time with my son,” Miss Bindi replied. “I am not accustomed to his being away from home for so long.”

“I had hoped he could continue to provide consult.”

“Are the Aurora’s new computers damaged?”

“No, they are fine,” Nathan assured her. “I was referring to the pressing business we need to conduct here on your world.”

Miss Bindi looked over at her son.

“They’re interested in XKs,” Dylan told her.

“Your favorite ship,” his mother realized. “I’ll see that he is available to assist you,” she assured him. “Once you finish your business with Miss Batista.”

“Then I guess we should be on our way,” Nathan replied, resigning himself to the inevitable. There was no escaping the politics.

* * *

“Wow,” Nathan exclaimed as their vehicle flew in low over the treetops and out over the open, perfectly manicured golf course. “I haven’t seen one of these in a while.”

“It is one of three on SilTek,” the vehicle’s AI announced.

“I guess golf’s not that popular here,” Jessica commented.

“On the contrary, it is quite popular. But due to the amount of land a good course requires, most play is on virtual reality courses.”

“Must be harder than hell to get a tee time,” Nathan said.

“Reservations are usually set months, if not years, in advance.”

“I believe I’ve finally found a flaw in this society,” Nathan joked.

“Goofy game never made any sense to me,” Josh commented. “Hit a ball with a stick into a tiny hole, then walk a kilometer and repeat.”

The vehicle descended as it approached the central arrival park, settling into a reserved spot near the clubhouse. The side doors opened, and the passengers climbed out, just as an automated cart pulled up.

“Please board,” the cart’s AI requested. “Miss Batista is currently on the eighth green. We will take you to her.”

“Why don’t you two head into the clubhouse and find something to do,” Nathan instructed Josh and Loki. “We’ll find you after we’re done.”

“What if there’s a fee?” Josh asked.

“We’re guests of Miss Batista,” Nathan replied as he and Jessica climbed onto the cart.

* * *

Nathan and Jessica approached quietly as the leader of SilTek made her putt. A gentle tap, and the ball rolled across the green, broke gently left, and then rolled up to the hole, stopping at its edge. A second later, the ball fell into the hole, making a plinking sound.

“You made that look easy,” Nathan commented from the edge of the green.

“I’ve played this course a hundred times this year alone,” Ariana replied as she handed her club to her android caddy.

“I heard it’s hard to get a tee time on SilTek.”

“Damn near impossible, outside of VR,” Ariana corrected as she approached. “Fortunately, my position has its perks. Glad to see you survived, Captain, Lieutenant Commander. Walk with me?”

“Gladly,” Nathan replied. “My position doesn’t provide for much sunshine and fresh air.”

“I was quite disappointed to hear about your stalemate at Takara,” Ariana stated as they began their hike to the next tee. “However, it does indicate that Lord Dusahn feels backed into a corner, does it not?”

“Yes,” Nathan agreed, he and Jessica walking alongside her. “But that’s not necessarily a good thing.”

“How so?”

“Desperate men commit desperate acts, as evidenced by his willingness to murder millions just to save his own skin.”

“It’s more than his skin he wishes to save,” Ariana insisted. “Leaders of empires tend to feel somewhat entitled. It comes with the territory. We believe our decisions are sacrosanct, and that our desires and the desires of those we lead to be one and the same. The truth is that they rarely are.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Nathan told her.

“Which is why I agreed to link our destiny to yours. You seem unconcerned with being a leader. You only care about results. Such leaders are rare.”

“It takes one to know one?” Nathan suggested.

Ariana laughed. “As much as I’d like to think I am one of them, the fact that I get to play this course several times per week while others have to wait months proves otherwise.”

“I expect the responsibilities of your position to warrant some privileges. I also expect this isn’t what you brought us here to discuss.”

“I was wondering what our next move was,” Ariana announced as she walked up to the next tee and took the club offered by her caddy. “We now have an angry enemy surrounded by our fledgling alliance. One whom we cannot attack for fear of causing millions of more deaths, but one who can attack us all he wants, and without fear of significant retaliation.” She stepped up to her ball, settled in, and then swung, sending it flying straight and true down the fairway. “This does not appear to be an improvement over our previous position,” she stated as she handed her club to her caddy and continued walking in the direction of her ball’s flight.

“Granted, it’s not the outcome we’d hoped for,” Nathan admitted as he and Jessica followed her down the fairway. “But there are a few million people on Corinair who are pleased with it.”

“What’s your plan?”

“My plan?”

“You strike me as a man who always has a plan, Captain.”

“You obviously don’t know him that well,” Jessica remarked, only half under her breath.

“The Dusahn have already begun lashing out at Corinair,” Nathan told her. “Their first attack occurred just before we left.”

“How bad?” Ariana asked.

“Bad enough, but we weren’t exactly ready for it. That’s one of the reasons I’m here.”

“You’d like defensive systems for Corinair as well,” Ariana surmised.

“The sooner, the better.”

“We never stopped production. In fact, the moment we received word that the Dusahn Empire survived, we began loading cargo pods for delivery. We should have enough to fill the Glendanon by late tomorrow.”

“The Glendanon is a bit tied up at the moment,” Nathan told her. “She’s helping with the Aurora’s external hull repairs.”

“Those repairs would go a lot faster if the Aurora were here,” Ariana suggested.

“My XO thought so as well. Unfortunately, the mere presence of the Aurora in the Darvano system, even in her battered state, is probably all that is preventing the Dusahn from attempting to retake Corinair. We could use some help fabricating some of the parts we need for repair, though.”

“Of course.” Ariana walked up to her ball, then looked down the fairway at the distant green.

Nathan stepped up behind her. “Wind’s left to right, and you’ve got two traps, one in front and one right. Pop it too high, and the wind will carry it into the sand on the right. Might want to consider laying it up, then chip it in close for a one-putt.”

Ariana looked at him, surprised.

“It’s a par four, right?”

“It is. One that I’d prefer to birdie.” Ariana took the club offered by her caddy and stepped up to the ball to settle in.

“Layup is safer.”

“But I usually bogey the tenth.”

Nathan stepped aside, making room for her to swing.

Ariana looked down the fairway, then swung. They watched as the ball soared into the air, curving slightly left as it climbed. Once it reached its apex and began its descent, the wind carried it right, just as Nathan had predicted. But Ariana’s experience paid off, and the ball landed on the green a few meters right of the hole.

“Nicely done,” Nathan congratulated.

“I take it you play?”

“Not in some time,” Nathan replied. “It was my passion in college, however.”

“We must play a round some time,” Ariana insisted, handing her club back to her caddy.

“I look forward to it,” Nathan agreed. “After we close the book on the Dusahn.”

Ariana smiled as she turned and headed for the green. “Then you do have a plan.”

“I do,” Nathan admitted, following her. “I’m not sure it’s a good plan, not yet. I still have to talk to a few people before I can commit to it.”

“I look forward to hearing about it, once you have all the details worked out,” Ariana told him. “In the meantime, I have a few ideas of my own I’d like to share with you if you’re interested.”

“I’m always interested in ideas,” Nathan replied.

“The Dusahn originally began to expand rapidly after conquering the Pentaurus cluster, right?”

“They did. We managed to drive them back over time.”

“Yes, and now they are limited to a single system. The Dusahn will not sit long for this, I can assure you. This is why they are already lashing out at you. They are testing your defenses, trying to keep your eyes on Corinair, to keep you defending it. In the meantime, they’ll reach out to try to conquer other systems as well. Ones who are not members of our alliance.”

“They don’t have the forces to conquer other worlds right now,” Jessica pointed out.

“Which is why they will try to convince these worlds that it is in their best interest to join their empire,” Ariana explained. “They will spin tales of how your irresponsible actions caused the death of those on Ancot, and people will believe it. They will convince them that you are the threat, unless you show them otherwise, first.”

“You’re suggesting that we try to expand our alliance,” Nathan surmised.

“I am,” Ariana agreed as she took the putter offered to her by her caddy.

“Is it possible that you’re doing so to expand your potential markets?” Nathan wondered.

“Thinking like a businessman, are we?” Ariana laughed as she settled in for her putt. “It is true, I wouldn’t mind access to additional markets. In fact, that’s one of the reasons that we joined your alliance.”

Nathan didn’t respond, waiting for her to finish her putt. When the ball dropped into the hole, he spoke. “Nice putt.”

“Thank you.” Ariana handed her putter to her caddy, then turned to Nathan and Jessica. “You should start with all the worlds in the Pentaurus sector,” she advised. “Especially ones whom the Dusahn had once controlled. They should be relatively easy to convince, given their previous experiences with the Dusahn. But that will not be enough. We should be trying to get every world in every sector surrounding the Pentaurus sector on board, and quickly.”

“You’re looking to squeeze the Dusahn out, aren’t you?” Jessica realized.

“That or force them to play by our rules to survive.”

“You want to let the Dusahn survive?” Jessica couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“No empire has ever existed that did not trample the rights of others to come into being,” Ariana insisted.

“That’s not entirely accurate,” Nathan argued.

“I do not know enough about history to argue the point, but I think you understand my meaning,” Ariana insisted. “If we cannot beat the Dusahn, then we must find a way to coexist with them. If that is the case, then it would be best if it were on our terms, not theirs.”

“There are half a dozen sectors surrounding the Dusahn,” Nathan pointed out. “Each with a dozen or more inhabited worlds. What you’re proposing will take ships and crews. More importantly, it will take time. Time that we may not have.”

“Ships and crews are not a problem, Captain,” Ariana agreed. “Time, on the other hand, is always an issue.”

“I’m pleased to hear that,” Nathan replied.

“That time is always a problem?” Ariana wondered.

“No, that ships are not,” Nathan explained. “We need one. Actually, we need several.”

* * *

“Please tell me this ain’t it,” Marcus grumbled as the five of them stood in front of an XK series freighter, staring up at her.

“I don’t know about this being it,” Nathan replied. “But it is the model that was recommended.”

“By who?”

“A kid,” Josh answered.

“You were a kid when you first came aboard the Aurora, Josh,” Nathan pointed out. “This is supposed to be a robust, easy to maintain, reliable transport platform, with plenty of room in her cargo bays for whatever we need to haul.”

“If you were talking about returning to life as a cargo hauler, I might agree with your choice,” Marcus said. “But you ain’t talkin’ ‘bout haulin’ cargo, are ya?”

“No, I’m not.” Nathan sighed. “You know, this is the first time I’ve actually seen one of these in person. She’s uglier than I thought.”

“I thought you flew one?” Marcus asked.

“In VR,” Nathan replied, “and we were in a hurry, so I didn’t really have a chance to look her over.”

“Pretty sure this thing will handle like a pig,” Josh decided.

“Compared to the Seiiki, sure,” Nathan agreed. “She’s bigger and heavier. Her jump range sucks, though.”

“You just have to know how to handle ships like this,” Loki insisted.

“She’s got an AI that can fly her as well,” Nathan told them.

“Then what the hell do you need us for?” Josh wondered.

“In case we need some out-of-the-box flying,” Nathan replied.

“Like flying through a waterfall?” Josh suggested.

“Maybe not that out-of-the-box.”

“We’re going to need to arm her,” Jessica pointed out.

“Well, she’s already got shields and point-defense lasers,” Nathan replied. “I figure we can pull the crane from the top and remove the docking collar from the bottom, and that will give us a place for two human-operated plasma turrets. And we could put plasma torpedo generators in the cargo bays to feed torpedo tubes along the sides of the forward fuselage.”

“How many bays does she have?” Marcus asked.

“Four cargo and one utility bay,” Nathan replied. “Each about eight by eleven by five meters.”

“She don’t look big enough,” Marcus insisted. “How is there room for power generation, life support, water, and waste processing? You know, all the stuff that keeps us alive.”

“Those are located between the forward port and starboard cargo bays, directly below the common area,” Dylan explained as he came down the ramp from the XK. “Everything else is in the engineering nacelles. Main propulsion, grav-lift, jump field generators, jump energy banks, reactors, all of it. Two sets of everything, so if you lose a nacelle, you can still limp along on the remaining one. Except for the jump systems. You need the systems in both nacelles to jump.”

“Marcus, this is Dylan Bindi, our resident expert on the SilTek XK series light freighter,” Nathan introduced.

“You’re right,” Marcus growled as he pushed past Dylan and headed up the ramp. “He’s a fucking kid.”

“And this one isn’t an XK,” Dylan corrected. “I mean, it is, but it’s the extended version. The XKL. She’s about ten meters wider than a standard XK, and her forward fuselage is a bit longer.”

“Why the XKL?” Nathan wondered.

“Newer systems, better engines, better reactors, and more interior space for the crew. This one’s got four cabins on each side, so you can sleep eight comfortably, or sixteen if you deploy the upper bunks. You said you weren’t sure how you would be using it, so I figured the XKL would give you a bit more versatility.”

“She looks to be in pretty good shape,” Loki commented.

“My mom said to find you a good one,” Dylan told them. “Orders from Miss Batista.”

“I’m starting to like that woman,” Nathan commented as he headed up the ramp. The ramp ended inside the forward airlock, a couple of meters from the main hatch into the ship.

Nathan stepped through the hatch into a two-meter-wide corridor that stretched aft about ten meters. There were four doors on either side of the passageway and a steep stairwell in the center leading to the deck above.

“The crew cabins are in this corridor,” Dylan explained. “Through the hatch at the end is the common room. In there, you’ll find the galley, a large table for dining and meetings, and a medical bay in the corner. It’s also where the lav and showers are located.”

“This go to the cockpit?” Josh asked, looking up the steep stairs in the center.

“Yes, but we call it the ‘flight deck’,” Dylan replied.

“Don’t care what it’s called,” Josh said, heading up the stairs. “As long as it’s where you go to fly this bucket.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Loki promised Nathan as he followed his friend up the stairs.

“They can’t hurt anything,” Dylan assured Nathan. “Everything’s locked out.”

“I remember,” Nathan replied as he peeked inside one of the cabins. “Pretty cramped.”

“How much room do you need for sleeping?”

“Not much, I suppose,” Nathan admitted.

“If you need more room, then you might want to consider the YT-class medium freighters,” Dylan suggested. “They’re about twice the size, but they’re harder to come by since most of them are in service. That’s the good thing about the XK series. They’ve been around forever, so there are plenty of them around.”

“This looks big enough,” Nathan insisted. “Like you said, how much room do you need for sleeping?”

“Where the hell is the engineering compartment?” Marcus yelled from the common room.

“Through…” Dylan started to yell but then thought better of it. He poked his head through the hatch instead. “Through the next hatch and to the intersection. Each nacelle is an engineering compartment.”

“You mean you can work on the engines while under way?” Marcus asked in disbelief.

“Sort of,” Dylan replied. “You can reach just about everything, so you can fix things while in space. But you can’t work on anything past the radiation bulkheads, like the react chambers on the main propulsion systems. But if one of them had a problem, you’d probably just swap the whole thing out on the surface anyway.”

“Of course,” Marcus replied, pretending to know what the kid was talking about. “Through there?” he asked, pointing at the hatch in the middle of the aft bulkhead.

“Yes.”

Nathan pushed Dylan from behind, following him into the common room. “This is pretty roomy,” he commented, looking around.

“It is,” Dylan agreed. “Crews pretty much hang out here while under way. Med-bay is over there, lavs and showers on either side, and the galley is in that corner.”

“Where’s the table?” Jessica wondered, standing in the center of the bay and looking around.

“You’re standing on it,” Dylan said, smiling.

Jessica looked down, noticing a rectangle in the floor, and stepped back off of it.

Dylan stepped over to the wall and pressed a button. The table rose slowly out of the floor, coming to standard sitting height in half a minute. “It has two height settings: stand-up or sit-down.”

Jessica pulled one of the swing-out seats from under the table. After examining it for a moment, she pulled on the ring around the back of the stool, causing it to expand into a seatback. “Slick,” she commented as she sat. “It’s more comfortable than it looks.”

“It would have to be,” Nathan chuckled.

“They usually retract the table during maintenance,” Dylan explained.

Nathan moved around the table, pausing to open a door and inspect the port lav. “You said there were two heads?”

“Heads?” Dylan wondered.

“That’s what we call a bathroom on a ship,” Jessica explained.

“We call them lavs. Technically there are three. The two here have showers. There’s one with just a toilet and a hand sink at the back of the flight deck.”

“It’s definitely got more living space than the Seiiki did,” Jessica commented.

“Holy fuck!” Marcus yelled from the aft corridor.

Nathan immediately headed toward him, stepping through the hatch and heading aft. There was another corridor, about six meters in length, with a single hatch on either side. Nathan made his way to the end, where he found an octagonal intersection with corridors going at least fifteen meters to both port and starboard. “Where are you, Marcus?”

“In here!”

Nathan stepped through the aft hatch, following Marcus’s voice. The next compartment was even more spacious, with a retractable ramp at the back and overhead storage racks around the upper portion. “Jesus, this is a big cargo bay.”

“Fifteen by ten by five,” Dylan replied. “This is the utility bay. The four cargo bays are just as big.”

“If this is the cargo ramp, how the hell do you load the other bays?” Marcus wondered. “There are no cargo doors.”

“Each cargo bay has its own loading ramp and full-width clamshell doors to make loading easier,” Dylan explained. “A lot of times, they use the loading crane as well.”

“I have to admit,” Marcus nodded. “It seems to be pretty well thought out.”

“The XK series was the first SilTek ship to be completely designed by engineering AIs,” Dylan explained. “The first one was designed nearly one hundred and fifty years ago.”

“Nearly as old as you,” Nathan teased Marcus.

Dylan’s eyes widened. “You’re a hundred and fifty years old?”

“I got scars older than that, kid,” Marcus grumbled.

Dylan stumbled a moment, still in disbelief. “Well, you sure don’t look it.” He looked at Nathan. “How long do you people live?”

“Same as you,” Nathan assured Dylan. “He’s just odd.”

“Cap, you gotta see this,” Josh called over Nathan’s comm-set.

“What’s up, Josh?” Nathan asked.

“The cockpit on this thing is huge, and it’s really decked out with all the latest gizmos. Hell, we’re not even sure what half the shit up here is for.”

Nathan looked at Dylan. “Think you can set my pilots up with that game of yours? What did you call it?”

“Night Runner?”

“That’s the one.”

“Then you’re thinking of using an XK?” Dylan asked, holding back his excitement.

“I’m thinking this one will do nicely.”

“Cap’n,” Marcus objected, “don’t you think we should go over her a bit more? Maybe fire up the engines and take her for a test flight or something?”

Nathan looked at Dylan. “Is this ship flight ready?”

“Uh…” Dylan checked his tablet. “She’s in for reactor core swaps and some retuning of her jump field generators, but that’s about it.”

“How long does that take?”

“A week or two I think,” Dylan replied.

“Perfect,” Nathan exclaimed, clapping his hands together. “That will give us time to make some modifications, and give Josh and Loki time to learn to fly her.”

“Modifications?” Dylan asked as Nathan left. “What modifications?”

* * *

“We need anti-aircraft weapons more than we need jump missile launchers at the moment,” Major Montrose explained over the vid-comm.

“My instructions were to get as many jump missile launchers operational on Corinair as possible,” Mister Ayseron reminded them.

“The major is correct,” General Telles insisted. “As long as our fighters are stationed on the surface rather than on ships, they are vulnerable to attack. The Dusahn know this and will continue to whittle away at us.”

“Those fighters are what’s preventing the Dusahn from attempting to retake Corinair,” Major Montrose stated. “Their ground forces on Takara number over ten thousand, and that’s not including the Zen-Anor. They have plenty of shuttles that could jump in and land troops. Anti-aircraft emplacements will not only protect our fighters, but they will protect our cities from invasion.”

Cameron sat behind the desk in the captain’s ready room, listening to the discussion. “I agree that we need AA emplacements, but we need jump missile launchers just as badly. The Dusahn still have two destroyers. If they sent them both at once, they could inflict significant damage to the surface of your world before we could drive them off, let alone destroy them, which I doubt they would hang around long enough for us to do.”

“I thought one of them was damaged,” Mister Ayseron said.

“Yes, but it’s only a matter of time until they have it back in action,” Cameron replied. “We need to be ready.”

“Can we bring the Orochi back?” General Telles suggested.

“Not until sometime tomorrow,” Cameron replied. “But we could only bring over a few at the most. Until the Aurora is repaired, we have to stay put. We can defend Corinair, but not the other worlds. So the Orochi need to protect the Rogen and Orswella systems for now.

“What about the Gunyoki?” Major Montrose wondered.

“There are only one hundred and eighteen of them jump-equipped at the moment. Until we get the Gunyoki upgraded with long-range jump emitters, they’d take too long to move between systems,” Cameron explained. “Besides, half of them are here already. I’m afraid we’ll have to make do with what we have for now.”

“Then that brings us back to the need for more anti-aircraft weapons,” the major stated.

Cameron looked at the SilTek engineer. “Mister Ayseron?”

“The launchers on the next load of mobile launchers could be replaced with anti-aircraft weapons for now. However, those weapons would have to be created, and all local fabrication systems are currently being utilized.”

Cameron sighed. “He’s right. We can’t retask those fabricators just yet.”

“In the meantime, I have ordered all our remaining tanks to be relocated around the Aitkenna spaceport, but they are not designed for the task. If the attacks on the spaceport continue, we will have to move those fighters onto ships in orbit, where they will not be able to deploy as easily.”

“There is another way,” General Telles suggested.

“I’m open to anything at this point,” Cameron admitted.

“We could attack the Dusahn instead of waiting for them to attack,” the general suggested. “At the very least, it would tie up their forces defending their own assets.”

“That would put our forces at risk as well,” Cameron countered.

“And of course, there’s that whole ‘I’ll destroy Takara before I go’ thing,” the major reminded them.

“That is only a protection against being conquered, not attacked,” General Telles insisted.

“Can you ask SilTek to start making anti-aircraft weapons to ship to us?” Cameron asked Mister Ayseron.

“Of course.”

“Thank you,” she replied. “In the meantime, I’ll discuss this with Captain Scott, and I’ll have our intel people start working on potential strike targets on Dusahn assets. Thank you, Major.”

General Telles waited until the vid-comm was off before speaking. “If left unchecked, the Dusahn will attempt to retake Corinair; you know this.”

“I do,” Cameron assured him. “And so does Nathan. That’s why he went to SilTek.”

* * *

Nathan stood in the middle of the XK’s bridge, admiring the layout as Josh and Loki studied the consoles. “You’re right, this is a nice bridge,” he agreed. “Nothing like the beat-up one from the simulation.”

“Night Runner is a pretty old game,” Dylan told him. “They never bothered to update it, so all the XKs are the original, quad-pod, interstellar versions.”

“What does that have to do with the simulation we were in?”

“They probably used the modeling algorithms from Night Runner for the XK in the sim,” Dylan explained. “The older versions are the ones that are always in for maintenance anyway, so it sort of makes sense.”

“Did any of you bother to look at the squawks on this ship?” Marcus asked from one of the secondary stations. “They go back for longer than any of you have been alive. Hell, this bucket has been in for maintenance six times this year alone.”

“That’s not unusual,” Dylan insisted.

“It is in my book,” Marcus argued. “It means someone wasn’t taking proper care of her.”

“Flight crews don’t maintain their own ships,” Dylan said, laughing. “They just report the problem at the end of their run, and fleet maintenance takes care of it.”

“Ain’t no one doing preventative on the go?”

“Of course not,” Dylan explained. “Preventative maintenance is performed according to a schedule. That’s how you prevent failures from occurring during flight.”

“Apparently not,” Marcus argued, looking back at his screen. “Not by the looks of this ship’s squawk list.”

Dylan moved over to Marcus to take a look at the list himself. “Those are all routine, non-critical items.”

“Maybe, but it points toward a poor overall condition. When this much shit breaks down, it means somethin’. Trust me on this.”

“Maybe he’s right,” Jessica agreed. “Maybe we should look at a few other ships.”

“We can, of course,” Dylan assured him. “But I don’t think their maintenance logs are going to look much different. All of these ships are cared for by the same people and in the same way. They know what they’re doing. In fact, back in the days when flight crews maintained their own ships, there were far more critical failures. There hasn’t been a single XK lost in more than fifty years, not since the fleet maintenance program started for all SilTek cargo vessels.”

“Probably robots taking care of them,” Marcus grumbled.

“As a matter of fact, yes,” Dylan replied.

“Not makin’ me feel any better, kid.”

“Well, are there any ships that are completely operational and ready for use?” Nathan asked.

“XK series? No. In fact, there are only four of them on SilTek at the moment,” Dylan explained, looking at his tablet. “One One Four and Eighty-Seven are both due for full nacelle refits, so they’ll be down for nearly a month each. One Zero Two is getting her cores swapped as well and won’t be ready any sooner than Seventy-Three.”

“Seventy-Three?” Nathan wondered.

“This ship,” Dylan explained. “XK Seventy-Three.”

“Not XKL?”

“They just refer to them all as XKs,” Dylan replied.

Nathan sighed. “Maybe we’d better stick with this one,” he told Marcus. “What about the modifications?” he asked Dylan. “When can we get started on those? We need guns where we’re going.”

“Where would you put them?” Dylan wondered, almost afraid to ask.

“I was thinking on the top and bottom of that vertical octagonal tube in the middle of the ship.”

Dylan looked concerned. “I’m not sure cutting holes in the hull is such a great idea.”

“Where exactly are we going?” Marcus inquired.

“First, Earth,” Nathan replied. “And if all goes well, Nor-Patri.”

“The Jung homeworld?” Marcus asked in disbelief. “If all goes well, we go to the Jung homeworld?”

“That’s the plan,” Nathan told him.

“Well, Cap’n, as the chief of the boat for this broken-down barge, it’s my duty to inform you that your plan sucks.”

“I never said it was a good plan, Marcus,” Nathan said as he headed for the stairs. “Just a plan. Come on, kid.”

“Where are we going?” Dylan called after Nathan as the captain started down the stairs.

“We need engineering droids. We’ve got work to do.”

* * *

“An impressive list of modifications you are proposing, Captain,” Miss Bindi said, looking over the items on the tablet before handing it to her boss.

“I assure you they are all necessary,” Nathan promised.

“I believe you may be taking advantage of our wager.”

“On the contrary,” Nathan disagreed. “I’m merely following Miss Batista’s advice.”

“My advice?” Miss Batista asked, looking over the list herself. “The XKs have been the backbone of our cargo fleet for more than a century. Had I suggested that you get a dozen of them, and permission and resources to heavily modify them, I think I would have remembered.”

“You suggested that we get as many new allies as possible, as quickly as possible. This is how we’re going to do it.”

“With light freighters?” Miss Bindi questioned.

“With small, versatile, well-armed ships that can be operated by small crews,” Nathan explained. “With them, we can reach out to other worlds in all directions at once.”

“I see you’re proposing that we refit them all with long-range jump emitters as well,” Miss Bindi noted.

“Those are critical. If we’re going to convince people to join our alliance, they have to see that we can move about quickly over long distances. They have to see that they won’t be out on the fringe—that every world will be treated as a core world. They have to see that we can respond to their needs in minutes, not days. That we are flexible and able to adapt to the varying needs of our members. The XKs are just a start. They’re a way to get some sort of uniform fleet with which to present ourselves. They are not the end solution by any means. We’re still going to have to build a real fleet. But that’s going to take time and planning. As you said, time is always a problem. Your XKs are the solution to that problem.”

Miss Batista thought for a moment. “I said time was always an issue, captain, not a problem. But I do see the logic in your plan. Nevertheless, refitting a dozen ships will take time, and I was under the impression that you were in a hurry.”

“I’m not asking for all the ships now,” Nathan pointed out. “I just need the one, and as quickly as possible.”

Miss Batista did not look pleased. “Very well, Captain Scott. We shall provide what you ask, but on one condition. This fulfills our payment for the wager.”

“What do you mean?” Nathan asked.

“I mean, the free ride is over. The wager was everything you needed to defeat the Dusahn. Now that we know that isn’t possible, SilTek no longer has an obligation to provide this alliance with unlimited resources.”

“What about the protection of Corinair?” Jessica asked.

“We will provide you with one more planetary defense system, just like the ones we are completing for the Rogen and Orswellan systems.”

“And the Aurora?” Nathan added.

“The Aurora as well,” Miss Batista assured him. “But that is the end of it. “We will provide you with twelve XKLs, fully modified to your specifications,” Miss Batista agreed. “But we will not bear the cost of their operation. For that, you must get all members of this alliance to agree to share in its operating costs.”

“You want us to run it like a business?” Jessica realized.

“That’s precisely what it is,” Miss Batista stated firmly. “It’s time you realized this.”

Nathan took a breath, letting it out slowly as he contemplated her recommendations. “Point taken,” he finally admitted. “I don’t suppose now would be a good time to ask for one more favor?”

“You may always ask, Captain,” Miss Batista graciously replied.

“This favor is more of Miss Bindi than of SilTek,” Nathan began.

“You wish to have my son on your crew,” Miss Bindi concluded.

“How did you know?” Nathan wondered.

“He couldn’t stop talking about you and your alliance, and about what you planned to do with an XK,” Miss Bindi explained.

“Then you’ll let him come with us?” Nathan asked. “We could certainly use his expertise.”

“Can you assure me of his safety?”

Nathan sighed. “I’m afraid I can’t. It’s not that I plan on taking the ship into harm’s way, but space travel is inherently dangerous. There are simply too many variables beyond my control for me to make such assurances.”

“Thank you for your honesty, Captain,” Miss Bindi replied. “Unfortunately, I may not have a say in the matter. Dylan will be of legal age in a few months, at which point I will not legally be able to stop him. In fact, his original intention was to attend flight training and serve in our own defense forces. If I prohibit him from going with you now, he will undoubtedly resent me for doing so for years to come.”

“I can promise you that I will do everything within my power to protect his life, just as I do for all those whom I command.”

“And perhaps a little extra, I would hope.”

“Dylan’s a good kid, and I see a lot of potential in him. I promise he will have plenty of supervision.”

“Thank you.”

“Then we have reached an agreement?” Miss Batista wondered.

“I don’t believe you’re leaving me much choice,” Nathan complained.

“It’s called a strong negotiating position,” she told him, her voice dripping with satisfaction.

* * *

“I hope you’re right about all this,” Jessica muttered under her breath as they exited the lobby of Miss Batista’s office. “Fielding twelve ships and crews for diplomatic missions is not exactly a high priority right now.”

“She’s right, Jess,” Nathan replied. “The only way we’re going to contain the Dusahn is by getting every world within their practical jump range to become part of our alliance against them. Assuming I don’t kick his ass before then.”

“Now I know you’re hallucinating,” Jessica joked. “I’m just not sure that it’s wise to spend what little winnings we have left on a dozen ships that won’t help us defeat the Dusahn in battle. Especially now that we have to defend Corinair as well.”

“We have to think long-term, Jess. Getting those ships and building up our alliance, especially in the Pentaurus sector, will keep the Dusahn from expanding at least long enough for me to train to the point of having a chance at beating him in a fight. If we play our cards right, I may not need to fight him.”

“How do you figure?” Jessica questioned as they exited the building and headed for their vehicle waiting nearby.

“Put enough strain on their economy, and the Takarans will bring him down from the inside.”

“He can still blow up the planet,” Jessica reminded him.

“Yes, he can,” Nathan agreed as they climbed into the vehicle. “Soroso shipyards, pad eighteen,” he told the vehicle’s AI.

“Soroso shipyards, pad eighteen,” the AI confirmed. “Estimated travel time is twenty-seven minutes. The vehicle will depart once all occupants have fastened their seatbelts.”

“I don’t think you can count on that happening any time soon,” Jessica argued as she fastened her seatbelt. “I’m pretty sure Caius was way worse than old Griogair Dusahn.”

“I’m not saying it will happen overnight. It could take years, even decades,” Nathan replied as the vehicle rose off the ground and began its climb-out. “And if it never happens, then it will be because the Takarans are happy living under Dusahn control. I’m fine with that as long as the Dusahn aren’t holding them hostage.”

“Then you’d give up? You’d let the Dusahn Empire continue to exist, despite what they’ve done?”

“Containment may be our only option,” Nathan pointed out.

Jessica thought for a moment, looking out at the massive corporate campus as it fell away from them. “You don’t really believe that, do you?” she asked. “That we’ll have to just live with the existence of the Dusahn Empire?”

“I sure as hell hope not,” Nathan replied. “But I’m not going to continue to wage war if the end result will be the complete destruction of Takara or worse. Sometimes, diplomacy is a better solution than violence.”

“Ironic, coming from the guy who was once trying to escape diplomacy.”

“Trust me, the irony hasn’t gone unnoticed,” Nathan assured her.

* * *

“And you enlisted to get away from politics and responsibility,” Miri chuckled as she picked at her dinner.

“Yeah, didn’t quite work out as well as I’d hoped,” Nathan admitted.

“How are you going to staff twelve ships?” Miri wondered. “It can’t just be anyone. It has to be the right people, especially the captain. He or she will be representing your alliance.”

“Cam, Robert, and Gil to start.”

“Cameron and Robert, I can see, but Gil? He’s a bit gruff, don’t you think?”

“Trust me, he knows how to turn it on and off at will.”

“Well, that’s four ships, not twelve.”

“It’s a start,” Nathan argued. “Besides, it’s going to take time to get the ships properly upgraded.”

“What all do you have to do to them?” Miri wondered.

Nathan pushed his empty plate away, leaning forward, elbows on the table. “Shields and sensors need to be upgraded, weapons need to be added, launch and recovery systems for jump comm-drones need to be installed, and of course, all their jump drives need to be upgraded to the long-range variant, which requires changing their reactors to mini-ZPEDs, which we don’t have a lot of at the moment.”

“How long is all of that going to take?”

“I had a long conversation with one of SilTek’s engineers a couple of hours ago. He estimated a month, assuming he can get a full crew assigned to the project.”

“For all twelve ships?”

“Oh God, no,” Nathan corrected. “That’s per ship. Considering that SilTek is not charging us for the refits, I can’t really ask them to dedicate more droid power.”

“I don’t see how you could possibly find the time to adequately train for this.”

“According to Jessica, it’s impossible,” Nathan replied. “But I don’t even know if the idea is viable at this point. I still have to go to Earth and talk to Gerard Bowden. Even if it is viable, I’d still need help from the Jung, which is the last thing I want to do at the moment.”

“Doesn’t sound like you have any good options at this point.”

“The only truly viable option at this point seems to be finding a way to force the Dusahn to behave and be happy with their own little empire,” Nathan admitted as he took another bite of his dinner. “Not exactly an option I’m crazy about.”

Miri continued picking at her food, not saying much.

“Not hungry?” Nathan wondered.

“Just tired, I suppose. PT wipes me out.”

“How’s that going?”

“Well. I’m up to a mile on the treadmill. I’m not going to be setting any speed records anytime soon, but that’s the farthest I’ve been able to walk in one outing since I woke up.”

“Baby steps, I suppose.”

“That I can do.”

Nathan studied her for a moment. “Something else is bothering you,” he decided. “Spill.”

Miri sighed. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Look what it’s cost you. Look what it’s cost us. Our entire family. Is it really worth it? Even if you’re successful, how much more is it going to cost you?”

“Where is this coming from?” Nathan wondered.

“Haven’t you ever thought about just walking away from it all? Settling down, getting married, having some kids, and just letting the rest of the galaxy do what it’s going to do. Surely the thought has crossed your mind once or twice.”

“I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t,” Nathan admitted. “Hell, I almost did when I first learned who I really was. I was on my way out of the Pentaurus sector, headed as far away from the Dusahn as possible.”

“That would be more in line with the Nathan I grew up with.”

“That would be more in line with the Nathan who was executed by the Jung,” Nathan admitted.

“What are you saying?” Miri wondered. “You wanted to die?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. It was all very overwhelming at the time.”

“You appeared to be handling it just fine back then.”

“Appeared being the keyword. Inside, it was killing me. The thought of endless conflict with the Jung was more than I could handle. Remember, I went to space to escape responsibility, not find more of it. I suppose, in a way, surrendering to the Jung was my way of not only solving a seemingly unsolvable problem, but also escaping responsibility once and for all.”

“Then why did you come back this time?” Miri wondered. “No one would have blamed you if you hadn’t.”

“I don’t know,” Nathan told her. “Something inside me just changed. Like turning on a light. One minute I’m flying away from the responsibility, and the next I’m flying toward it. Maybe it was guilt. Maybe it was me wanting to find out who I really was. Or maybe I was finally accepting my true fate.”

“Which is?”

“To follow in our father’s footsteps, by always doing the right thing.”

Miri pushed her plate aside, thinking. “How do you know if what you’re doing is the right thing?”

“You don’t, not really. You just do what feels right and hope that in the end, it is right.”

“So you don’t even think about it first?”

“I used to,” Nathan admitted. “Hell, the first time around, I over-thought everything. I agonized over every decision. A lot of times, I had no time to think things through, and then I would second-guess myself for days or weeks afterward, which didn’t help.”

“What about now?” she asked.

“This time is different,” Nathan told her. “I had five years as Connor Tuplo. During that time, I didn’t have the weight of the galaxy on my shoulders, just my ship and my crew. I learned to trust myself, to trust my instincts. More importantly, I learned to live with my mistakes and learn from them, rather than letting them torture me. It helped that I wasn’t being held to such high standards. I was surrounded by people who made mistakes and forgave me for mine. My mistakes didn’t cost lives, just credits, mostly. I got a chance to walk before running. But that was only part of it. The rest came when I was transferred from my old body into this one.”

“What do you mean?” Miri wondered, growing more curious.

“Everything works better in this body. I think more clearly and more quickly. I’m more confident. I learn much faster. I can see all the angles and calculate all the possible outcomes in a fraction of a second. Half the time, I don’t even realize I’m doing it. I just suddenly have the answer. I’m even better physically. Faster, stronger, better hand-eye coordination, better proprioception, better awareness. Everything, better.”

“Is that normal for a clone?”

“Not according to Doctor Sato,” Nathan explained. “Normally, the cloning process improves the subject’s ability to take the upload of their consciousness without any memory loss. But this is accomplished over generations. Doctor Sato was trying to do this over a small number of clones. This body is the fifth copy, but only the second one to receive my consciousness. Clones two, three, and four never gained consciousness. She thinks that may have something to do with it, but she has no evidence to support that hypothesis. Now that Corinair is liberated, she can rebuild her original lab and continue her experiments.”

“She’s going to make more of you?”

“No, I’ve had enough body-jumping for one lifetime. This is the body I plan to stay in.”

CHAPTER THREE

Moving quickly, Cameron entered the bridge, responding to the ship-wide call to general quarters. “Report,” she barked as she passed the comms station.

“Missile attack,” her tactical officer replied. “Twelve missiles jumped in about one hundred clicks out. Aurora automatically activated our point-defenses and sounded general quarters.”

The warning alarms suddenly ceased.

“I take it none of them got through,” Cameron surmised.

“All departments report general quarters,” Naralena announced from the comms station.

“Sensors?” Cameron asked.

“Nothing but local traffic,” Kaylah assured her.

“Threat board is clear,” the tactical officer added.

“Just the one wave?” Cameron wondered.

“Apparently.”

Cameron thought for a moment. “Remain at general quarters for now,” she finally instructed.

“That was easy enough,” the tactical officer commented.

“That attack was not meant to do any damage,” Cameron insisted. “Not from one hundred clicks out. They’re just trying to keep us guessing.”

* * *

Nathan watched as the lead engineer studied the list of modification requests Nathan had given him. Flanking the man were two engineering androids, both staring straight ahead in a slightly unnatural fashion.

“This is an extensive list,” the lead engineer stated as he read. “I’m not sure all of this is even feasible.”

Dylan shifted uneasily as he stood next to Nathan and Marcus, obviously wanting to object to the engineer’s assessment, forcing Nathan to make a discrete gesture to quiet the young man.

“Perhaps your androids would like a copy of the list?” Nathan suggested.

The engineer cast a disapproving glance at Nathan before continuing. “I have a prosthetic eye that allows my engineering droids to see everything I see.”

“Your wife must love that,” Marcus joked, sparking a second look of disapproval.

“It is impossible to give the XKs the same single-jump range as the Aurora,” the engineer decided. “Her reactors could never create the needed power. Nor is there sufficient space within the engineering nacelles for the additional energy banks. The best single-jump range we can hope for is one hundred light years, and even that will be a stretch.”

“Are you kidding me?” Dylan blurted, unable to contain himself any longer. “Put the energy banks in one of the cargo bays or place them outside on the hull.”

“That is not an acceptable solution,” the lead engineer insisted.

Nathan studied the engineer’s face for a moment, checking that he was actually human. “Why not?”

“All engineering systems must be contained within the engineering nacelles for safety reasons.”

“Why?” Nathan asked again.

The lead engineer cocked his head to one side, a confused look on his face. “Standard design protocols dictate safety standards. The engineering nacelles are able to be jettisoned in the event of catastrophic failure, protecting the rest of the ship from destruction.”

“I’m willing to take that risk,” Nathan told him.

“I am not.”

Nathan looked at the man crossly. “It was my understanding that you and your team would be working under my direction.”

“That is true, but…”

“No buts,” Nathan interrupted. “Figure out a way to get me a single-jump range of five hundred light years.”

“Even if we put all the energy banks on the exterior of the ship—which I am vehemently opposed to doing—the mini-ZPEDs would never be able to generate the necessary levels of single-burst energy required for such a jump.”

“Then we need to install bigger ZPEDs,” Marcus suggested. “Did you ever think of that?”

“You said you wanted the first ship ready in two weeks,” the engineer reminded him. “It is my understanding that you do not possess such devices, meaning they would have to be reverse-engineered from an existing unit and then sized up appropriately. In addition, their overall structure would most likely require modifications in order to fit inside an XK’s engineering nacelle. Once all of this is accomplished, the units would require extensive validation testing before installation, as well as equally extensive flight testing.”

“How about we just build them, shove them in there, and give ‘em a whirl,” Marcus suggested.

The SilTek engineer looked at Marcus a moment, his brow furrowed. “Give ‘em a whirl?”

“I believe he is suggesting that we skip the validation testing and go straight to flight tests,” Nathan explained.

“That would be incredibly risky,” the engineer warned.

“I’m willing to take that risk as well,” Nathan assured him.

“Again, I am not.”

“Why am I not surprised,” Jessica opined, also unable to contain herself.

“Good thing for us that it isn’t your decision,” Nathan stated. “Now, I suggest you and your people get started. You have a lot of work to do.”

The engineer did not look pleased. “I will require a mini-ZPED to reverse engineer.”

“No need,” Nathan assured him. “The specs are in there.”

The engineer tapped his data pad, advancing to the next file. “Ah, I see.” Without another word, he turned and walked away, his two android assistants in tow.

As soon as the engineers were out of earshot, Jessica spoke again. “Can I slap them around a bit?”

“Captain, those guys are useless,” Dylan declared.

“Surprisingly, I agree with the kid,” Marcus added. “‘Cept I’d call them fucking useless.”

“His androids are AIs, right?” Nathan replied. “Shouldn’t that help speed things up?”

“That’s the assumption everyone makes,” Dylan explained, “and it’s wrong. Those three are XK engineers. The droids are programmed to maintain the XKs not redesign them. Their AIs are very limited. They aren’t even self-learning. They’re basically robotic maintenance techs, which means they’re programmed to follow standard maintenance procedures. And that engineer couldn’t design a decent toaster, let alone a larger ZPED. There’s no way they’re going to get you under way in less than a month.”

“I’m not sure we have much of a choice,” Nathan admitted. “I was barely able to get the ships and materials to modify them. Besides, we’ve got SilTek so busy fabricating defenses for Corinair, they can’t spare more than a few engineers for the XK conversions.”

“I can get you plenty of engineers and techs,” Dylan assured him. “Ones way better than that idiot.”

Nathan looked at Dylan, a skeptical eyebrow rising. “Where?”

Dylan looked around, making certain no one was within earshot. “Subvert,” he whispered.

Nathan’s expression changed, his brows now furrowed. “Are you saying Subvert actually exists?”

“What the fuck is Subvert?” Marcus grumbled.

“SHHH!” Dylan warned, looking around frantically.

“I thought they were just a VR thing,” Jessica added.

“They’re a who, not a what,” Dylan corrected.

“Then who the fuck is Subvert?” Marcus demanded.

“Can we please stop saying the ‘S-word’ out loud?” Dylan exclaimed.

“Sorry,” Nathan apologized, looking at Marcus and Jessica.

Dylan glanced around again before continuing. “They are an underground movement that opposes our government’s passive defense policies. They believe we need to build warships that can take the fight to the enemy, to discourage future attacks.”

“Wait a minute,” Jessica interrupted. “If they were part of the simulation, and the simulation was controlled by your government, then your government knows about them, right?”

“Oh, they know about them,” Dylan confirmed. “Hell, they’ve known about them since before I was born.”

“Then how is it that they’re still around?” Jessica questioned. “Especially considering how tightly monitored everything is on this world.”

“Well, they are pretty clever,” Dylan insisted. “However, most of us believe that our government allows them to exist and develop.”

“Like a pressure release valve?” Jessica wondered.

“Either that, or they’re hoping that they’ll develop offensive capabilities that would deter continued attacks, especially by the Benicasi and Yachi.”

“And give SilTek plausible deniability,” Nathan surmised.

“They’ve got dozens of really sharp engineers and hundreds of geeks like me as techs. I’m sure I could get them to help out. I mean, this is exactly the kind of thing they’ve been trying to make happen themselves.”

Nathan looked at Jessica, then Marcus. “What do you think?”

“Hundreds of little shits like this kid running around?” Marcus grumbled. “I think I’m gonna need a lot to drink. I also think you’d best hold onto my guns ‘til we’re off this rock.”

Nathan looked at Dylan, smiling. “Start making calls, kid.”

“Yes!” Dylan exclaimed, turning to head inside the ship.

“We need to get a message to Cam,” Nathan told Marcus and Jessica. “She can send the ZPEDs that we pulled from Striker One’s wreckage to us. That should save us a few weeks right there.”

“Do they even work?” Jessica wondered.

“Vlad checked them out long ago,” Nathan assured her.

“They won’t power a long jump,” Marcus reminded him.

“No, but we can use them to series jump all the way to Earth and back,” Nathan explained. “And they’ll fit inside the nacelles with room to spare.”

“Even if that works, it’ll still take us four or five days to get to Earth,” Marcus pointed out.

“Better than waiting a month to get there in a few hours.”

* * *

“Duan!” the man called urgently as he entered the mining colony’s administration office. He looked around the room, scanning the faces of the usual staff, not seeing the chief administrator among them. “Where is Administrator Suliva?” he demanded from the nearest person in the room.

“I am here, Pentor,” Duan called from the far corner as he stepped through an open door.

Pentor looked somewhat relieved by his leader’s appearance but moved toward him with unexpected urgency.

Duan’s expression changed to one of concern when he noticed his friend’s level of anxiety. It was not uncommon for the section leader to get worked up about something, but today he seemed uncharacteristically bothered. “What’s the problem this time, Pentor?” he asked, hoping to calm the man down a notch.

“They are here,” Pentor declared as he joined his leader.

“Who is here?”

“The Dusahn.”

“The Dusahn come every week to pick up ore, Pentor.”

“On transports, yes, but unescorted. This time, that is not the case.”

“Can you blame them?” Duan asked, still attempting to soothe his friend’s frazzled nerves. “They just repelled an all-out invasion. One cannot blame them for taking precautions. I expect transports will be accompanied by fighter escorts for some time to come.”

“How about a destroyer escort?” Pentor asked.

Duan’s brow furrowed. “Now, that is unusual.” He sighed. His morning had taken a dour turn. “Perhaps we should greet them,” he suggested, hoping to keep a positive outlook. “I assume they will be arriving on pad one,” he added as he headed for the exit.

“They have already landed,” Pentor replied as he followed the chief administrator. “On pads one, two, five, seven, and nine.”

The chief administrator looked back at his subordinate as he exited the office and entered the main corridor. “You have alerted security?”

“I have,” Pentor assured him. “I have instructed them not to take any overt action unless directly attacked.”

“Amend that order,” Duan instructed. “They are to leave their sidearms in storage and are not to stand in the way of any Dusahn soldier.”

“Duan!”

“There is a reason they have chosen to make a show of force,” Duan insisted, interrupting his subordinate. “If we give them an excuse, they will kill everyone who stands in their way and make slaves of the rest.”

“Are we not already slaves?” Pentor argued. “We barely make a profit as it is…”

“But we are alive to enjoy that meager profit. That is what matters most.”

“Does it?”

Duan stopped in the middle of the corridor, just shy of the main intersection, turning back to look his subordinate in the eyes. “We are miners, Pentor, not soldiers. We sell ore to anyone who buys it. If not the Dusahn, then the Takarans, or the Corinairans, or even the Karuzari Alliance. Empires come and go, my friend, but they all require ore.”

“Ore can be mined by robots,” Pentor reminded his leader.

“Which must be built,” Duan replied. “I expect the Dusahn have higher priorities at the moment.”

The sound of approaching footfalls caught the attention of both men. Duan stepped out into the main intersection, spotting at least twenty Dusahn soldiers marching confidently toward them. He took position in the intersection, straightening his jacket in preparation to greet whatever officer the Dusahn had sent to intimidate them.

Four tight columns of Zen-Anor troops in black and crimson combat armor approached the intersection, sending miners and administrative staffers scurrying for safety behind closed doors.

Duan braced himself. It was not the first time that a Dusahn officer had come calling, pumping up his own ego at the expense of the subjugated. But when the first two lines of Zen-Anor troops stepped aside to reveal the officer they were escorting, the Dusahn officer’s identity caught Duan by surprise. “My lord,” he exclaimed, immediately bowing his head in respect. He hated the man as much as any miner on Juntor, but he knew what happened to those who did not show the leader of the Dusahn the respect he felt he was due.

Lord Dusahn stepped forward from within the squad of elite Dusahn warriors, dressed in a Dusahn officer’s uniform, sporting the rank that he alone held. A look of disdain on his face, the Dusahn leader came to stand confidently before Duan and Pentor. He immediately noted that, while the one man’s head was bowed in respect, the other’s was not.

Lord Dusahn scowled at the second man for a moment, then turned his attention to the first. “You are the leader of this facility?”

“I am, my lord,” Duan replied. “I am Chief Administrator Suliva.”

“And the name of the man who does not show respect for his leader?” Lord Dusahn asked, his eyes locked on Chief Administrator Suliva’s.

“This is Pentor Ashkey, one of my most trusted section leaders,” Duan explained.

“Too bad,” Lord Dusahn stated calmly as he removed the glove from his right hand.

“My lord?” Duan asked, fearing the answer.

In the blink of an eye, Lord Dusahn jabbed out with his right hand at Pentor, plunging his fingers into the man’s neck, piercing the skin on either side of his larynx with thumb and fingers, and ripping out the entire structure with a quick yank.

Pentor’s eyes grew wide, his face instantly frozen in terror by the sudden, brutal act. His face paled in half a second as blood gushed from the gaping hole in his neck. The next second, he was on the floor, staring up at both his killer and his friend as his life left him.

Duan stood there, mouth agape and eyes wide, as he watched his friend die on the floor in a pool of his own blood.

Lord Dusahn dropped the dead man’s larynx on the floor next to his body, then pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the blood from his right hand. “I trust his replacement will understand the need to show proper respect.”

Duan had no words at first. Finally, he managed to stutter, “To what do we owe the honor, my lord?”

“I am visiting all the worlds of the cluster this day,” Lord Dusahn explained as he wiped the blood from his hand. “I wish to make certain that everyone understands that they are still subjects of the Dusahn Empire and, as such, are expected to continue to behave accordingly.”

“Of course, my lord,” Duan replied, feigning shock that anyone might think otherwise.

“I also wish to remind you all that while my fleet may have suffered losses, we still possess the ability to destroy any world we choose by simply pushing a button…should that world give us cause.”

“I assure you, my lord, the people of the Juntor mining colony have no desire but to live in peace and provide as much ore as possible to the empire.”

Lord Dusahn looked down at the corpse on the floor, dropping the bloody handkerchief on the dead man’s face. “That is good to hear, Chief Administrator Suliva,” he said as he put his glove back on. “Just make certain all of your people feel the same way,” he added, before turning to depart.

* * *

Cameron entered the port large transfer airlock, where Vladimir was inspecting the welding work that had just been completed. “You’ve already finished welding the doors shut?” she asked as she approached.

“Those engineering droids that SilTek sent us work fast,” Vladimir replied, admiring the welds. “They do very precise work. Look at those beads. They blend seamlessly into the bulkhead plates.”

Cameron paused to look at the beads. “I’m assuming you didn’t call me down here just to look at the quality of the welds.”

“I think we should install a door here,” Vladimir told her, pointing at the airlock doors.

“You want to install a door in the doors you just welded closed?”

“Just a small one,” Vladimir explained. “Maybe four by four meters.”

“You’d need an airlock.”

“This is an airlock,” Vladimir reminded her, his hands spread wide.

“Not any longer,” she argued. “You just welded the outer doors closed. This entire compartment is now going to be part of the main hangar bay. Besides, why do you need a door here?”

“If we install one of SilTek’s pressure shields across the flight deck outside, we can land a small ship there and walk right out to it as if it were inside the ship.”

“You can walk out there,” Cameron replied. “No way I’m going to.”

“Pressure shields work,” Vladimir insisted. “SilTek has been using them for years.”

“Good for them. I’d rather have a solid wall, thank you.”

“How are we going to transfer people and supplies onto the XKs?” Vladimir asked her.

“Through the docking port on their ventral side.”

“Nathan’s putting gun turrets there.”

“He’s not going to have a docking port?” Cameron wondered. “Is he crazy?”

“He’s moving them to the dorsal side, forward of the common area. But that will take time. Besides, it won’t be big enough to move anything larger than a person through. With a pressure shield across the aft flight deck, they could land half inside the shield perimeter, and we could just walk out there and transfer whatever we like. We could even perform external repairs out there, all in a pressurized environment.”

“What about the temperature?” Cameron asked.

“It might be a little chilly or hot, depending, but we can just install a few circulation units to cycle the air in here with the air out there. Aurora has done the math; it should make the temperatures livable.”

“I thought those shields were meant to be used across a flat opening,” Cameron said.

“We can repair just enough of the dorsal and port hull over the flight deck to create an alcove. That will give us a flat opening.”

Cameron thought for a moment, then sighed. “It would be an advantage; I’ll give you that. Not exactly a high priority, though.”

“If I use the SilTek droids, they can get it done in a hurry, and they won’t even need pressure suits,” Vladimir suggested.

“Don’t you need their help installing the new energy banks in the forward bay?” Cameron asked.

“That’s mostly grunt work,” Vladimir insisted. “Bolting things down and wiring them up. We have dozens of volunteers from Corinair who can help with that.”

“Very well,” Cameron decided. “Make it happen.”

“I’ve already got the droids started,” Vladimir admitted.

“I thought as much,” Cameron replied, one eyebrow raised. “By the way, I received a message from Nathan. He wants the two ZPEDs that you pulled from Striker One’s wreckage.”

“I was saving those to be used as emergency power reactors,” Vladimir protested.

“He needs them to run the first XK until SilTek can custom build some larger ones. I expect you’ll get them back, eventually,” she added as she turned to depart.

“Doubtful,” Vladimir replied, scowling.

* * *

“Thank you for meeting with me,” Nathan stated politely to Miss Bindi as he sat down at her table in the small restaurant. “This is a nice place. A little far from your office for lunch, though, isn’t it?”

“Long lunches are one of the perks of my position,” she told him. “I come here often to meet my husband for lunch, as it’s near his office.”

“What does your husband do?” Nathan wondered as he looked over the menu.

“He’s an installation logistics specialist for our defense systems. It’s his job to plan installations in the most efficient manner possible. A properly planned installation greatly increases our profit margins.”

“He must have an eye for detail then,” Nathan commented.

“He does. That’s where Dylan gets it from.”

“Not from you?” Nathan wondered. “I would think someone in your position needs to have an eye for detail as well.”

“I’m more of a people person,” she told him. “My talent is in reading them and trying to determine their needs and motivations.”

“A handy skill for a negotiator.”

“One that I sense you possess as well,” Miss Bindi insisted.

“I suppose it’s something handed down to me from my father, and his father, and so on.”

“A long line of negotiators?”

Nathan smiled. “Politicians, actually. My family has been in public service since before the bio-digital plague.”

“Why aren’t you in politics then?”

“I tried to escape that line of work by going into space,” Nathan said with a chuckle. “It seems to have backfired. What do you suggest?” he asked, his attention back on the menu.

“I took the liberty of ordering the seafood sampler platter for the both of us,” she told him. “All the best the eleven oceans of SilTek have to offer. I hope you don’t mind?”

“Not at all.”

“So what was it you wished to speak with me about?” Miss Bindi wondered.

“The other day, Miss Batista told me that I needed to start running our alliance more like a business. I was hoping you could offer some insights into that statement.”

“You say you come from a long line of politicians?”

“Yes.”

“Well, politics and business are basically the same. Both seek to gain power and influence,” Miss Bindi explained. “The difference is that, in business, everyone knows that the goal is profit. In politics, they pretend it is not. They hide behind the pretense that they are serving the public, when they are truly serving themselves.”

“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that,” Nathan admitted. “And for the most part, I’d agree with you. However, there are at least a few who truly do seek to do good, at least in the beginning.”

“And that is where politics goes astray,” Miss Bindi insisted. “When one pretends to be something they are not for too long, they begin to believe their own lies. The office becomes more important than what they might do with it. In business, profit is expected, so no one is surprised when profit is made.”

“You’re saying that business is not corrupt?”

Miss Bindi laughed. “Of course not. Anything involving human beings has the potential to become corrupted. That’s where our AIs come in.”

“Wait a minute,” Nathan interrupted. “How’d we get on AIs?”

“An AI has no ego, no hidden agenda. An AI simply analyzes an equation and deduces an answer.”

“So you follow the decisions of your AIs?”

“Not always,” Miss Bindi admitted. “But more often than not. At the very least, we always consult their analysis prior to deciding. That’s how we keep our own egos, and our own human frailties, from leading us into bad decisions.”

“And this works?”

“Not always,” Miss Bindi replied. “I mean, we are still human, and despite our best efforts, our own emotions still have great influence over us.”

“Then why consult your AIs at all?” Nathan wondered.

“Because they can calculate all potential outcomes without bias in a fraction of a second. Knowing all potential outcomes is what allows us to make sound decisions. They may not always be the right decision, but the results almost never surprise us.”

“And what did the AIs tell you about me?”

Miss Bindi smiled, turning to look out the window a moment. “Our AIs were undecided about both you and your alliance,” she finally admitted. “‘Not enough data’ is what they said.”

“Really.”

“Even with AIs, sometimes you just have to follow your instincts.”

“Is that what you did?”

“That’s what Miss Batista did. I advised her against joining your alliance. Nothing personal, mind you, but we just didn’t know enough about you at the time.”

“That’s why you concocted that whole simulation,” Nathan surmised.

“That was actually General Pellot’s idea,” Miss Bindi corrected, “but I did endorse it. Again, you have my apologies on that.”

“Hey, we survived,” Nathan replied. “To be honest, I probably would have done the same thing in your shoes.”

“I sense that you’re not being honest about the purpose of this meeting, Captain,” Miss Bindi said.

“Very astute,” Nathan replied.

“People person, remember?”

“That would be why I wanted to speak with you,” Nathan admitted. “I was hoping I could steal you away from your employer for a while.”

“For what purpose?” Miss Bindi wondered.

“To help me set up our alliance…as a business.”

Miss Bindi smiled. “Are you offering me a job?”

“More like a project at the moment. But who knows? Any chance you’d be interested?”

“I might,” Miss Bindi admitted. “I do like a challenge, after all. I would have to speak with Miss Batista, of course.”

“Of course.”

“And I should point out that some might see it as a conflict of interest. After all, I am an employee of the SilTek corporation.”

“And SilTek is a member of this alliance,” Nathan pointed out. “They will benefit from an alliance built on a strong foundation.”

“Fair point,” Miss Bindi agreed as the server arrived with their lunch.

“Then you’ll speak with your employer?”

“I shall,” Miss Bindi promised. “But after we eat.”

* * *

Twelve flashes of light appeared in the early morning light, high above the Aitkenna spaceport. Within seconds, alert sirens warned of the incoming threat.

Twenty-three Corinari combat tanks immediately came to life, their AIs snapping on their shields and throttling their reactors to full power. In near unison, the tanks swung their turrets toward the approaching missiles, raised their twin-barreled guns, and opened fire.

The sky lit up with bolts of red-orange plasma streaking upward from the tanks as they lashed out at the approaching danger. Brilliant flashes of yellow appeared overhead as the plasma bolts found their targets, blowing the Dusahn missiles apart in fiery explosions.

Eighteen seconds after the first missile appeared, the threat was gone.

“Flash traffic from Aitkenna Command,” Naralena reported over the intercom built into the ready room desk. “Dusahn missile attack. Single wave of twelve. All intercepted. No damage, no casualties.”

“Any sign of a second wave?” Cameron asked.

“Negative. Aitkenna defenses are staying at condition one for the moment.”

“Very well,” Cameron replied, switching off the intercom. “They’re persistent, I’ll say that.”

“Their intent is not to inflict damage, but to keep us on the defensive,” General Telles told her.

“Yeah, that’s what Shinoda thinks as well. Although I don’t see why. We’re in no condition to attack, and even if we were, what would be the point? We can’t retake Takara without putting it at unacceptable risk.”

“Their attacks are likely designed to keep us watching for their missiles instead of watching them.”

“You think they’re up to something?”

“The Dusahn are always up to something,” General Telles insisted. “At the very least, they will be trying to solidify their hold on as many worlds as possible before the people on those worlds get any ideas.”

“Maybe the cluster systems but nothing more. They couldn’t possibly hope to maintain control over worlds beyond that. Not with only two destroyers.”

“There are other ways to get worlds to cooperate. Ones that do not involve the use of force.”

“You think he’s going to try to strike business deals with them?” Cameron asked in disbelief. “He hardly seems like the type.”

“It is true that the Dusahn are more likely to conquer and take what they wish. But with that ability removed, they have no other option.”

“They can survive just fine with the resources they have.”

“Indeed they can,” the general agreed. “But rarely is surviving enough for those who dream of empires.”

“Then Miss Batista is right,” Cameron decided. “We need to start building alliances with as many nearby systems as possible, as quickly as possible.”

“The problem is that we are currently at a disadvantage,” the general insisted. “Now that we have destroyed the Dusahn’s ability to easily conquer other worlds, the level of danger to nearby worlds has been greatly reduced. We will have to offer them more than protection.”

“Like what?” Cameron wondered.

“Prosperity,” General Telles replied. “That is what the Dusahn will be offering.”

“The Dusahn offering prosperity,” Cameron stated. “We are truly living in an upside-down reality.”

* * *

Nathan and Jessica watched as Marcus directed the crane to lower the first mini-ZPED down into the empty reactor bay in XK Seventy-Three’s starboard engineering nacelle.

“Captain, I must protest,” the lead engineer began as he approached.

“What is it this time, Mister Payton?” Nathan wondered.

“Your engineer—and I use the term loosely—refuses to replace the main power trunk with more appropriately rated cabling.”

“Did he give you a reason?”

“Only that it wasn’t necessary,” Mister Payton replied. “Something about it being faster to just put in an extra heat sink between the reactors and the jump field generators.”

“There you go.”

“Captain, while a heat sink will work, it is hardly the best approach. Should that heat sink fail, your jump range will be limited.”

“How long would it take to replace the main power trunk?” Nathan asked.

“An additional week.”

“I’m afraid I’m going to have to side with Marcus on this one, Mister Payton. We can’t afford an extra week.”

“But captain…”

“I’ve made my decision, Mister Payton,” Nathan insisted, cutting him off.

The SilTek engineer turned and stormed off in a huff as Dylan walked up, followed by two other young men.

“That guy is a PE,” Dylan stated with disdain.

“A what?” Jessica asked.

“Procedural engineer,” Dylan explained. “If there’s not a procedure on how to do it, he can’t get it done.”

“I take it that’s a common thing on SilTek,” Jessica stated.

“You’d think otherwise, what with all the AIs and such,” Nathan added.

“AIs have made us lazy,” one of the men accompanying Dylan declared.

“Captain, these are my friends, Lan Zeller and Del Shelton.”

“From the simulation,” Nathan realized.

“That wasn’t actually us,” Del insisted.

“I know,” Nathan assured him. “Then you’re not actually with…”

“The organization that we don’t speak of in public,” Dylan interrupted.

“That would be the one,” Nathan replied. “What can I do for you gentlemen?”

“They’re here to help,” Dylan explained. “Lan is a much better engineer than Payton. And Del’s pretty good with propulsion and maneuvering systems, as well as being an excellent pilot.”

“Real or simulated?” Jessica remarked.

“Both,” Del replied confidently.

“Del test flies all the converted P-Seventy-Twos,” Dylan bragged.

“I appreciate the offer,” Nathan assured them, “but I thought you said you could get dozens of people to help.”

“They’re coming later, a few at a time, over the next couple of days,” Del explained. “We thought it would be less conspicuous that way.”

Jessica smiled. “I like them already. They’re sneaky.”

“Very well,” Nathan agreed. “Show them around, Dylan.”

“Yes, sir,” Dylan replied enthusiastically.

“Oh, and try to stay out of Marcus’s way. Probably better for all concerned. Those SilTek engineers have already got him pretty worked up. No need for any of you to take the fallout, at least not on your first day.”

“Will do,” Dylan promised.

Nathan and Jessica watched the three young men walk away, headed toward Marcus and the SilTek engineering droids. “Five minutes?” Nathan asked Jessica.

“Until he kills one of them, or just scares the shit out of them?” Jessica chuckled.

* * *

“Jump complete,” Ensign Lassen announced as the Falcon came out of its final jump. “We’re now just inside Sol’s heliopause.”

“It’s been a while since we’ve been here,” Sergeant Nama said. “Starting passive scans and signals collection.”

“Let’s get everything powered down for a cold coast,” Lieutenant Teison ordered. “We’re going to be here for a while.”

“I hope you brought lots of vid-flicks, Riko,” Ensign Lassen said as he powered down their systems.

“You know I did, Tomi.”

* * *

Dolce Vinnion was old; old enough not to fear death. For him, death was an end to all his suffering. Death was the great equalizer. It was the one thing that no one could cheat. Death could be delayed but never escaped. Eventually, death came to everything.

It was this knowledge, this acceptance of the inevitable, that made him able to stand in the presence of one of the most dangerous creatures in existence: a man who believed he was above all other living things.

“Why have you come, my lord?” Dolce asked as he and Lord Dusahn strolled one of the many paths separating one crop from the next on the small farming moon of Haydon.

“Your people are lucky,” Lord Dusahn commented as he looked out across the rolling hills of grain. “Sunshine, fresh air, an abundance of water. Your entire world is simple yet complete. You have all you need to be happy, despite having so little. I envy you.”

“You live in a palace surrounded by servants,” Dolce replied. “How is it that you envy me?”

“Yours is a peaceful life. Your responsibilities are few. Your worries are few. The simplicity of your life is what I envy more than anything else. That and the simple beauty that surrounds you. I have been to many worlds, and few are as truly stunning as this little moon.”

“Is that why you came?” Dolce wondered. “To breathe our air and walk our dirt paths?”

“If only my life was so simple,” Lord Dusahn sighed. “I came to ensure that the people of Haydon know of their importance to the Dusahn Empire.”

“We are but a small ag world.”

“You are too modest, Dolce. You produce ten times what your people need. Because of this, your lives are good. Your people are healthy. Your futures are secure. This must bring you great pride.”

“Do you speak this easily with all the leaders of the worlds you control?” Dolce wondered.

Lord Dusahn smiled. “You are a special case, old man. I feel I can speak freely with you. I find that quite liberating.”

“The words of leaders are often used by those they lead for the purposes of judgment.”

“You understand what many do not,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“You claim the people of Haydon are important to the empire. Are we suddenly more important than we were yesterday?”

“You play games with me,” Lord Dusahn said, smiling at the old man. “Surely you’ve heard by now.”

“Of the fate of Ancot? Yes.”

“A sad thing,” Lord Dusahn said, hanging his head. “It pained me to destroy that world. It was nearly as beautiful as this one.”

“Then why do it?” the old man challenged.

“Their population was rampant with spies and saboteurs,” Lord Dusahn replied. “Had they not been so tightly woven into Ancot society, I might have spared them. But the Alliance forced my hand. Had I spared Ancot, Corinair would thrive and likely threaten all that we are trying to build.”

“And what is that, my lord?”

“A better life for all, of course.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Don’t test me, Dolce,” Lord Dusahn warned playfully.

“It was not my intent, my lord.”

Lord Dusahn sighed. “Without Ancot’s exports, Takara is facing shortages. That is what makes Haydon so much more important to us now.”

“Takara has plenty of arable land.”

“It does,” Lord Dusahn agreed. “But it will take time to cultivate and will require a major shift in the workforce. I need that workforce to rebuild our fleet.”

“Perhaps you should strengthen the foundation of your empire before trying to build another floor,” Dolce suggested.

“Wise words, old man,” Lord Dusahn agreed. “That’s precisely what I am attempting to do. But we will require the help of worlds such as yours, and Juntor’s, and Borne’s, as well as many others, if we are to succeed.” Lord Dusahn paused, turning to look Dolce in the eyes. “I hope I can count on the people of Haydon.”

“We shall not give you cause to destroy us, if that is what you are asking,” Dolce promised.

Lord Dusahn smiled. “That’s what I like about you, Dolce. You don’t fear me.”

“I’m too old for fear, my lord.”

* * *

Nathan examined his opponent carefully as the two of them squared off against one another. Unlike Jessica or General Telles, his usual training partners, Corporal Vasya was actually smiling, as if this was some form of entertainment.

Nathan jabbed with his right fist toward the corporal’s face, testing Kit’s reflexes. As expected, they were excellent, and the Ghatazhak easily brushed Nathan’s hand aside, still smiling.

Two more jabs, and then a combination followed, all of which were also brushed aside with ease. Then they came. A sudden flurry of fists, and Nathan found himself on all fours, gasping for breath, his nose bleeding.

“I said not to kill him,” Jessica scolded from the sidelines.

“I held back,” Kit insisted. “He just wasn’t ready.”

“I thought……we were……warming……up,” Nathan managed to spit out.

“That’s why I was holding back,” Kit replied.

“Maybe hold back a little more,” Jessica suggested.

“Thank you,” Nathan said as he got back on his feet.

“How are we going to toughen him up if we hold back?” Kit asked.

“Toughen me up?” Nathan wondered.

“Training you to fight isn’t enough,” Jessica explained. “We have to train you to take a beating.”

“I thought the whole point of training was to prevent being beaten.”

“Which is precisely why we have to train you to take one,” Jessica insisted.

“You’re not making any sense,” Nathan told her.

“If you enter a fight with the mindset of protecting yourself from a beating, you will miss key opportunities,” Kit explained, “ones that could be the difference between winning and losing.”

“Okay, I get it,” Nathan said. “It’s like in hockey. If you’re afraid of getting checked, your eyes are on the guy going into the corner with you instead of on the puck.”

“What’s a puck?” Kit asked.

“Are you ready to continue?” Jessica asked Nathan. “Go ahead and light him up again, Kit,” Jessica instructed.

“What?” Nathan objected.

“But start easy,” she added. “Just give him a light beating for now.”

“I’ll do my best,” Kit promised with a smile.

Nathan raised his guard again. “This is not how I saw this day going.”

* * *

Alert klaxons sounded throughout the Aurora, and Naralena’s voice echoed through the corridors, calling the crew to general quarters.

Cameron came charging up the ramp onto the command deck, moving at a fast pace toward the bridge.

“Report!” she barked as she entered the bridge.

“Another missile attack, sir,” the tactical officer reported. “Aurora snapped into action as soon as the first wave appeared.”

“Third wave just jumped in,” Kaylah reported from the sensor station. “Opposite direction from the first two. Twelve inbound. Fifteen seconds!”

“Two down!” the tactical officer reported as the ship’s point-defenses fired away at the incoming weapons.

“Aurora,” Cameron called as she headed for the command chair. “Channel all available power to the shields that are about to be hit.”

“Five down!”

“Already done, Captain,” the Aurora’s AI replied.

“Six down!”

“What direction did the first two waves come from?” Cameron asked.

“Eight down!”

“Starboard dorsal,” Kaylah replied. “From the direction of Takara, just like before.”

“Ten down!”

“Aurora, be ready to switch power back to starboard dorsal shields,” Cameron added.

“Understood.”

“Brace for impact!” the tactical officer called over the ship-wide loudspeakers.

The ship rocked as one of the last two missiles struck their shields and detonated.

“Port ventral shields down to forty percent!” the tactical officer warned.

“Where did the other missile go?” Cameron wondered.

“The Glendanon maneuvered closer in and took the hit,” Kaylah reported.

“Damage?”

“Minimal,” Kaylah replied. “Another wave! Starboard dorsal! Five seconds!”

“Aurora?” Cameron called.

“Channeling power to starboard dorsal shields,” their AI responded.

“Brace for impact!” the tactical officer warned again.

Again the ship rocked, this time with three impacts, the last of which nearly knocked Cameron out of her seat.

“How many was that?”

“The last wave was eight!” Kaylah replied. “The Glendanon’s point-defenses took out four of them, and we took out one.”

Cameron waited a moment, expecting her sensor officer to report another round of missiles coming at them, but that call did not come. “A two-pronged attack means they’re using their one good warship for the opposite strike angle.”

“Why now and not before?” the tactical officer wondered.

“That’s a good question,” Cameron replied, rising from her command chair. “Maintain general quarters for ten minutes,” she instructed as she headed for the ready room. “Stand down after that if there are no more attacks.”

“Aye, sir,” the tactical officer acknowledged.

“Load up a jump comm-drone,” she instructed Naralena as she passed. “I want to send a message to Captain Scott.”

* * *

Jenno Motto sat quietly at his desk, flanked on either side by his lieutenants. When the door burst open, and the black and crimson armored Zen-Anor entered, neither he nor those standing with him so much as blinked an eye.

The Haven Syndicate had dealt with its share of gangsters. To them, the Dusahn were no different. Just with better uniforms and more guns than most.

“Gentlemen,” the greeting came as the Zen-Anor stepped aside and revealed the man they guarded. Lord Dusahn stepped forward, his swagger as confident as ever, despite the fact that his once powerful fleet had been reduced to one of the smallest, weakest fleets in all the quadrant.

Jenno said nothing, but his emotionless expression spoke volumes.

Lord Dusahn knew his usual tactics would prove useless with the Haven Syndicate. They had been one of the few worlds with which threat of force had wielded little influence. “You’re probably wondering why I’m here.”

“We know why you’re here,” Jenno stated. “You’ve finished intimidating the cluster worlds, and now you hope to do the same with us.”

“Nothing could be further from the truth,” Lord Dusahn insisted. “Mind if I sit?” he asked, taking a seat across the desk from Jenno.

“Actually, I do.”

Lord Dusahn ignored him. “The first part is true, of course. I did remind the cluster worlds who rules them, but I did not come here with similar intent. I do not make the same mistake twice.”

“Then you admit that your first attempt to conquer Haven was a mistake,” Jenno surmised.

“My mistake was in misidentifying how best to motivate your little syndicate. People such as yourself see profit as a means to power, rather than the other way around. I should have offered you a lucrative business arrangement. I am here to rectify that error.”

“We’re not interested,” Jenno replied.

“You haven’t even heard my offer,” Lord Dusahn protested.

“The Haven Syndicate does not wish to do business with the Dusahn Empire.” It was the first time Jenno showed any sign of emotion.

“Name your price, and we’ll pay it,” Lord Dusahn boasted.

“Had you said those words ten years ago, we might have listened,” Jenno replied. “Now, with so many worlds having jump drive technology, the market is big enough that we can afford to pick and choose our customers. And we do not wish to do business with those who enslave others.”

Lord Dusahn laughed. “You don’t see the irony here, do you? Your entire labor force is nothing more than slaves.”

“Working off legal debts incurred by their own choosing,” Jenno corrected.

“Under conditions far more harsh than on any other world.”

“It is what it is.”

“Did it not occur to you that I should have ended your life when you did not show the appropriate respect when I entered?”

“Had you taken any action against me, it would have been your last,” Jenno insisted.

Lord Dusahn looked at the men standing to either side of Jenno, then at his own Zen-Anor troops standing behind him. “You’re a bit outnumbered.”

“Beneath you sits a warhead,” Jenno told him. “One that failed to detonate during your first visit to our world many months ago. Should something untoward occur during your visit, it shall not fail to detonate a second time.”

Lord Dusahn smiled. “You have good intel.”

“And my intel tells me not to trust the Dusahn Empire. And the Haven Syndicate does not do business with those who cannot be trusted.”

Lord Dusahn did not look pleased. “You should choose your words more carefully, Mister Motto. There is a warship parked in orbit above your world.”

“Your only warship.”

“And yet more than enough to wipe your world from existence.”

Jenno leaned forward, disdain in his eyes. “You are a wild animal that has been backed into a corner. That is why we choose not to do business with you.”

Lord Dusahn said nothing, just stared back with equal disdain. He wanted to reach out and snatch the arrogant bastard’s larynx and rip it out of him. But the leader of the Haven Syndicate was well prepared. Lord Dusahn knew that he had been backed into a corner, and despite his overwhelming firepower, he had no option but to accept their refusal…for now. “You are making a grave error, my friend.”

“It would not be my first,” Jenno replied. “I shall not be insulted if you must cut your visit short.”

Lord Dusahn flashed a menacing smile as he rose, turned, and headed out the door without another word.

Jenno watched as the Dusahn leader departed, his elite bodyguards in tow. After a moment, one of his men spoke. “You do know they’ll destroy us.”

“A week ago, I would have agreed with you,” Jenno stated. “In fact, a week ago I would not have refused them. But with most of their fleet destroyed, they may be forced to operate differently.”

“Does a koranta not show its fangs when cornered?”

“We shall see,” Jenno replied. “We shall see.”

CHAPTER FOUR

Cameron stood next to the Aurora’s tactical station, not bothering to take her seat at the command chair given the brevity of recent attacks.

“No more contacts,” Kaylah reported from the sensor station.

“Threat board is clear,” the tactical officer added.

“Stand down from general quarters,” Cameron ordered. “Set readiness condition two. If there are no further threats after fifteen minutes, stand down to condition three.”

“Understood,” the tactical officer acknowledged.

“Captain on the bridge!” the guard at the entrance announced as Nathan and Jessica entered.

“Any damage?” Nathan asked.

“None,” Cameron replied. “Just the daily harassment from the Dusahn. This one was easy, only a single wave of eight. Yesterday, they threw three waves of eight to twelve at us, and with much closer arrival points. We took several hits, but no real damage then either.”

“This has got to stop,” Nathan decided. “If we can’t attack them, they shouldn’t be able to attack us.”

“You’re expecting the Dusahn to play fair?” Jessica laughed.

“No, but they need to learn that there will be consequences to continued attacks against us, or any of our allies. To be honest, I should’ve responded to the very first attack.”

“What do you propose we do?” Jessica asked. “We’re still in no shape to attack.”

“We can lob jump missiles at them just as easily as they lob them at us,” Nathan insisted. “In fact, we can do it even more easily.” Nathan turned to Cameron. “Do we have Orochis back yet?”

“Yesterday,” Cameron replied. “Four patrolling here, four in the Orswellan system, four in the Rogen system, and four standing down on Rakuen. The plan is to cycle them through on one-week rotations. Three weeks on, one week off.”

“Good. And the Gunyoki?”

“Same thing. Rogen command has put replacement ships in action, so we’re back up to one hundred, all equipped with grav-lift systems so they can operate from surface bases. Twenty-five cycling patrols in each system, and one group on week-long stand-down.”

Nathan thought for a moment. “That should be more than enough,” he decided. “Naralena, get the commanding officers for the local Gunyoki squadron and the Nighthawks on comms, and patch them into my ready room. The next time the Dusahn send missiles our way, we’re going to have a little surprise waiting for them.”

* * *

Del Torman, Prime Minister of the Palean Commonwealth, felt trapped. He hated the Dusahn and all they stood for. Thousands had died when they had first invaded his world months ago, despite the fact that little to no resistance had been offered. For the past few weeks, they had only been visited twice by their warships—warships that no longer existed.

Minister Torman longed for the old days, back before jump drives. Interstellar distances had always acted as the perfect buffer between worlds. Those distances gave them months, sometimes years to make decisions such as these. Those distances allowed them time to prepare for the consequences of their actions. But now, the very distances that once protected them threatened them on nearly a daily basis. Their militia, which had been one of the best planetary defense systems in the sector, was practically useless. Their economy could not support the development of systems designed to defend against jump-capable warships and weapons. They were a relatively simple world, one that depended on ships from other worlds for trade.

It wasn’t just Lord Dusahn who knew this. The Palean Council knew it as well. At the moment, the vote was split, and Prime Minister Torman held the deciding vote. A vote against Lord Dusahn’s offer held the risk of military reprisals, though less severe than before. The Karuzari had all but crippled the Dusahn’s fleet of warships, but the risk was still there, and his world had still not fully recovered from the initial invasion. A vote for Lord Dusahn’s proposal meant a boost to their highly stressed economy. It meant more jobs, greater profits for Palean corporations, and a better standard of living for their people.

But at what cost? Cooperation with the Dusahn would be akin to supporting them; the very thought sickened him.

Unfortunately, he had to do what was best for his people, his own personal feelings about the Dusahn aside. Sometimes, you had to dance with the devil to avoid being burned.

“The vote is tied, Prime Minister,” the council recorder reminded him. “How say you?”

Prime Minister Torman looked at the council recorder, then at Lord Dusahn, who was standing at the podium at the center of the chamber. “The people of Palee accept Lord Dusahn’s trade proposal, and we welcome and appreciate this opportunity to benefit both our worlds.”

Lord Dusahn forced a smile. “Thank you, Minister Torman. The Dusahn Empire looks forward to doing business with the people of Palee. Our ministers will be in contact to make arrangements, so that we can immediately begin fair and equitable trade.”

Lord Dusahn turned and marched out of the Palean Council chambers without saying another word, his Zen-Anor protection detail turning to follow with practiced precision.

Once the chamber doors closed, one of the council members spoke. “I hope we do not regret this decision.”

Prime Minister Torman sighed. “I am certain that someday we will.”

* * *

“Marcus, right?”

Marcus turned around, already angry that someone had interrupted him yet again. “Who the fuck are you?”

“Del Shelton,” the young man introduced, holding out his hand in friendship.

“You’re one of the subversives,” he said, returning to his work without shaking the kid’s hand.

“Uh, something like that, I suppose.”

“Whattaya want? I’m kinda busy.”

“I have an idea for a modification to your ship,” Del explained. “Well, it’s not really a modification as much as it is a strategic use of space.”

Marcus cast an angry look at Josh, who was working on the other side of the XK’s docking collar. “You put him up to this, didn’t you?”

“Don’t look at me, Pops,” Josh chuckled. “I don’t even know the guy.”

“I think we have enough work to do, kid,” Marcus grumbled, already set on ignoring him.

“This wouldn’t really be much work at all,” Del insisted. “Just the installation of a few automated overhead docking clamps inside the forward cargo bays, and maybe a combination propellant and electrical umbilical.”

Both Marcus and Josh stopped working, looking at Del.

“A what?” Marcus snapped, becoming more annoyed with each passing second.

“An umbilical,” Del repeated.

“For what?” Josh wondered, becoming interested.

“A P-Seventy-Two Lightning.”

“What the hell is that?” Josh asked.

“It’s a fucking race car,” Marcus laughed. “What the hell are we going to do with a race car?”

“Lightnings are not race cars,” Del corrected. “We call them pocket fighters.”

“What’s a pocket fighter?” Josh wondered, becoming more intrigued at the use of the word fighter.

“With just a few modifications, a P-Seventy-Two racer can be turned into a jump-capable, short-range fighter. One that is small enough to fit in your cargo bays.”

“Cool!” Josh exclaimed.

“Not cool,” Marcus argued. “Stupid! This ain’t a carrier, kid.”

“Maybe not, but based on what I’ve been told, you don’t really know what the mission profiles are going to be for these ships. So why not make them as versatile as possible?”

“How well armed are they?” Josh asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” Marcus snapped. “We ain’t gonna carry them.”

“Twin wingtip-mounted pulse plasma cannons, two rocket pods carrying twenty self-guided flechette rockets, and two swarm pods,” Del replied. “Along with the usual countermeasures one would expect.”

“Cool,” Josh replied.

“Shut up,” Marcus scolded. He looked at Del. “How the hell can you fit that much firepower on a tiny little racer?”

“External mods,” Del explained.

“Nice idea, kid,” Marcus agreed, “but we don’t have time to build pocket racers.”

“You don’t have to,” Del explained. “We already have eight of them finished and twenty more in the works.”

“You’re building attack fighters on a world that refuses to build offensive weapons for itself,” Marcus stated. “I’ll give you points for balls, kid. But I’ll have to subtract them again for being stupid.”

“They could slide right into the bays without any modifications to the doors. All you need to do is install the mooring system inside the bays, and create a way to rearm and refuel them,” Del told him. “You’d have yourself an on-demand fighter escort.”

“That would be awesome!” Josh insisted.

“I told you to shut up!” Marcus barked.

“Could you at least pass the idea on to Captain Scott?” Del pleaded.

Marcus sighed. “I’ll tell him,” he promised, “if you go back to building that missile launcher system.”

“Deal,” Del agreed, smiling.

Josh watched as Del left. “I like him.”

“You’re an idiot,” Marcus grumbled, returning to his work.

* * *

The sights, sounds, and smells of the morning on the moon of Haven were the same as any other day. Amber light cast unnatural shadows across the dusty landscape. People bundled in heavy, brown clothing designed to protect them from the dust moved about as they started their day. The aroma of fried molo was everywhere.

Primarily a mining colony, Haven’s only spaceport was always busy with harvesters and cargo shuttles coming and going. Customers from all over the Pentaurus sector came to Haven for the cheap ores harvested from the parent planet’s dense, rocky rings. Even with the time and distances involved in interstellar travel, most worlds found it cheaper and easier to get their unrefined ores from Haven. The advent of the jump drive made it all the more cost effective. Now, populated worlds need not dirty their own planetary systems with mining operations, nor risk the lives of their own people by exposing them to the dangerous process. Haven had all they needed.

The Haven Syndicate had laid claim to the system centuries ago, having left the safety of the burgeoning Takar system. The Takaran population expansion had been rapid, and the need to reform their rocky planets into hospitable worlds had robbed them of safe access to more local resources.

Over the centuries, the syndicate had grown and had not only became the premier provider of ores, but also a place where the indebted could escape even harsher punishment for their unpaid balances. Many had served sentences lasting several years. For those who survived, some wore it as a badge of honor, others as a shame that was never spoken of again. For those who were born on Haven and lived out their lives there, it just was what it was. Home.

The one thing Haven never seemed to be, however, was a place of strategic importance. Although it was not far from most inhabited systems in the Pentaurus sector, it was far enough removed from the common shipping lanes that the few empires that had come and gone since the sector was first settled had never shown much interest.

Until now.

Countless flashes of blue-white light appeared in the amber skies over the Haven spaceport. Small, almost imperceptible weapons descended quickly toward the surface, adjusting their course as they fell. One by one, in rapid succession, the weapons found their targets. Without favor, the weapons destroyed defenses as they swung into action, ships as they took off and landed, and support buildings all around the spaceport.

The second wave came less than half a minute after the first but did not target the spaceport. Instead, it struck infrastructure. The main power plant, the propellant refineries, and the water reclamation plant—all succumbed to brilliant yellow-orange explosions.

The third wave was the worst. It targeted neither defenses nor infrastructure. It targeted the population. Hotels, restaurants, apartment buildings, schools, hospitals…even the miner’s guild building—all wiped from the surface.

Within two minutes, Haven City was turned into a pile of burning rubble, littered with the scorched bodies of people whose only crime was living. The only building still standing was the Haven Syndicate’s headquarters. Survivors from the outskirts of the city and the country molo farms further out would speculate for years to come as to why the syndicate survived. The Dusahn could have glassed the entire planet in minutes had they chosen to do so.

To the syndicate, the reason was obvious. The Dusahn wanted them to see the price of direct opposition. More importantly, they wanted the other worlds in the Pentaurus sector to see it.

* * *

Nathan sat patiently, listening to Vladimir give his report on the Aurora’s ongoing repairs. The commander had been late to the morning briefing—likely due to any number of problems needing his attention—and was the last department head to give his report.

“So long-range jump capabilities will be back to one hundred percent in a week?” Cameron asked.

“Maybe five days, as long as we don’t have any more issues with the port power trunk,” Vladimir replied. “It would have been sooner, but since we are not going to rebuild the missing hull section above the port aft flight deck, we had to relocate a few emitters.”

“How long until the first XK will be ready?” Cameron asked Nathan.

“A week to ten days.”

“That soon?”

“Young Mister Bindi found us a few extra hands,” Nathan explained.

“A few?” Jessica laughed. “The place is crawling with them.”

“Marcus must love that,” Cameron decided.

“Well, he hasn’t killed anyone yet,” Jessica replied. “Not that he hasn’t wanted to.”

“Actually, I think he kind of likes them,” Nathan insisted. “They’re constantly showing up the SilTek engineer and droids, and Marcus hates them even more.”

“Josh is highly entertained by it all,” Jessica added, amused just thinking about it.

“The original plan was to just get the jump range improved enough to get us to Earth in less than a week and do the rest when we got back,” Nathan explained. “The SilTek engineers insisted that there was no way to get more than two hundred light years per jump out of an XK. It took the Subvert volunteers all of an hour to prove them wrong.”

“I think I like these guys,” Vladimir decided.

“You would,” Nathan agreed.

“What kind of range will you get?” Cameron wondered.

“Three hundred single-jump; six hundred one-minute,” Nathan replied. “One-hour recharge per bank.”

“That would get you to Earth in just a few hours,” Cameron realized.

“Yes, but unfortunately, we won’t have that range for our first trip. That kind of range will require larger ZPEDs and additional externally mounted energy banks. They’ll be doing that on a pair of engineering nacelles while we’re gone and then swap them out with ours when we get back.”

“They can swap out entire nacelles?” Vladimir asked, surprised.

“It takes about a week,” Nathan told him.

“What was the final armament package you decided upon?” Cameron asked.

“Four short-barreled mark three plasma torpedo cannons, uppers and lowers on each side, tucked just inside the nacelles,” Nathan began. “They’ll also have single mini-jump missile launcher tubes on either side, each with two twenty-missile magazines so we can have different loads to select from. Unfortunately, there’s not enough room for independently aimed launch turrets, so the ship will have to be pointed in the general direction of the target to launch.”

“That’s still a formidable offensive package,” General Telles stated.

“That’s not all,” Nathan continued. “They’ll also have six twin-barreled mark one turrets, all of them human operated. Top and bottom of the mid-section, one on the outboard edge of each nacelle, a nose gun, and a slung-down tail gun that will be operated from the open utility bay.”

“So the tail gunner will have to wear a pressure suit?” Cameron asked, a bit surprised. “I wouldn’t want to man that gun.”

“Actually, the utility bays on the XKs already have a pressure shield across the opening. The operator will be able to stand in a pressurized bay and fire through the shield.”

“I’d rather wear the pressure suit,” Cameron insisted.

“I don’t blame you,” Jessica agreed. “You can bet your ass I’m not going to be operating that gun.”

“What about point-defenses?” General Telles wondered.

“Ten mini-laser turrets, controlled by the ship’s AI,” Nathan replied.

“So basically, the XKs will be heavy gunships,” Cameron deduced.

“In the sense of size and crew requirements, yes, but there’s still one more weapons system we plan to carry that takes it beyond a heavy gunship. We’re loading a pair of P-Seventy-Two Lightning pocket fighters, equipped with Subvert’s swarm tech.”

“Pocket fighter?” the general asked.

“They’re basically beefed up, flying racecars,” Nathan explained. “Single-seat, twin plasma pulse cannons, and flechette rocket pods.”

“What is swarm tech?” Cameron wondered.

“Each pocket fighter carries thirty drones a little larger than your fist. They’re AI controlled, and each drone has its own miniature warhead. The AI directs them to attach to key locations on an enemy target and then detonate in the most destructive sequence possible. Since the pocket fighters can penetrate most energy shields, once inside, they can release the swarm and then jump out, letting the drones take out the target’s shield emitters. I figure a single XK equipped with pocket fighters can easily take down a couple destroyers or cruisers.”

“Perhaps we should consider integrating this swarm technology into a shield-penetrating jump missile?” General Telles suggested.

“My thoughts exactly,” Nathan agreed. “I’m planning on talking to Abby and Deliza about that later today.”

“You’re going to Rakuen?” Cameron asked.

“I’m hitching a ride on the Inman when she jumps back this afternoon. There are a few things I need to discuss with them.”

“I am curious about one thing,” General Telles stated. “Obviously, you will have to offer something other than protection to entice the worlds of the Pentaurus sector to join our alliance. Especially now that the Dusahn have had their strike capabilities curtailed.”

“But not completely curtailed,” Nathan pointed out. “According to Miss Bindi, the best way to entice other worlds to join our alliance is to improve their economies and their quality of life.”

“How do you plan to do that?” Cameron asked.

“That’s what I plan to talk with Abby about.”

The trim lighting in the command briefing room suddenly turned red, an alert klaxon sounded in the corridor, and Naralena’s recorded voice called the ship to general quarters.

Nathan tapped his headset as he quickly rose from his seat, along with everyone else. “Report?”

“Incoming missiles,” Naralena replied. “Aurora is defending.”

“On our way,” Nathan assured her as he and the others headed for the exit.

* * *

“Captain on the bridge!” the guard announced as Nathan, Cameron, and Jessica entered.

“Two waves of eight so far,” the tactical officer reported as he stepped aside to allow Jessica to take his station.

“You’ve got this,” Jessica told the lieutenant, staying near the comms station so as not to crowd the newly promoted, young officer.

The lieutenant nodded, returning to his station. “Both waves were from the same direction, arriving ten seconds out. Two struck the Glendanon’s shields; the rest were intercepted by point-defenses.”

“That’s pretty good for ten seconds,” Cameron commented.

“I told you giving her automatic defense rights would pay off,” Nathan reminded Cameron.

“Yeah, well, I’m pretty sure keeping all our point-defense turrets charged and ready twenty-four seven helps.”

“We can’t keep that up forever,” Jessica said. “Those weapons need to be serviced from time to time, or we risk losing them completely.”

“Third wave,” Kaylah reported from the sensor station.

“About time,” Jessica scolded as Josh entered the bridge and passed by them on his way forward.

“Not like we’re going anywhere,” Josh grumbled, still looking half asleep.

“Point-defenses are firing,” the lieutenant reported.

“Same direction and range as before,” Kaylah added.

“Eight missiles again,” the lieutenant reported from the tactical station. “Four down…”

“Two more waves!” Kaylah interrupted. “One from starboard, one from directly ahead! Ten and twelve seconds!”

“Aurora, feel free to strategically cycle shield power,” Nathan instructed as he moved forward to take his place in the command chair.

Both Cameron and Jessica stepped forward, preparing to assist the lieutenant at the tactical console if needed, now that the attack had intensified.

“Sixteen more missiles inbound!” Justan reported from the Glendanon’s makeshift tactical station. “Point-defenses are engaging, but there’s no way we’re going to get them all!”

“Five seconds to the first impacts!” the sensor officer warned.

Captain Gullen watched the overhead display to his left, noting the incoming missile tracks. “Divert power to forward shields,” he instructed. “Be ready to divert back to starboard shields after initial impacts.”

“It’s going to be close,” Justan warned.

Captain Gullen activated the ship-wide intercom. “All hands, brace for impact!” he warned.

A second later, the first missiles struck.

“The Glendanon took six simultaneous impacts to her forward shields!” Kaylah reported from the Aurora’s sensor station. “They’re down to twenty percent!”

“That wasn’t another harassment attack,” Nathan concluded. “They’re trying to take the Glendanon out so that she can’t support us.”

“Two more waves!” Kaylah added. “Wave one to starboard, twenty seconds out, coming over the horizon! Wave two directly ahead, thirty seconds out! Eight missiles in each!”

“Aurora is engaging the inbounds with point-defenses,” the lieutenant reported from the tactical station.

“Son of a bitch,” Nathan cursed. “Comms! Tell the Glendanon to break orbit and jump immediately!”

“Aye, sir!” Naralena acknowledged.

“Three inbounds down!” the lieutenant added.

“Josh, be ready to translate downward hard!” Nathan added.

“Four down!”

“Channeling all available thrust into downward translation thrusters,” Loki reported.

“Six down!” the lieutenant counted as the Aurora’s point-defenses blasted away at the incoming missiles. “Seven!”

“Glendanon is powering up her jump drive,” Kaylah announced. “Fifteen seconds to first impacts.”

“As soon as the Glendanon jumps, translate downward as hard as you can,” Nathan instructed.

“I’m ready,” Josh assured him, his hand on the controls.

“Five seconds!” Kaylah warned.

“Nine down!”

“Glendanon is jumping!”

“Translating down hard!” Josh followed.

The view of the planet on the main view screen began to rise, creeping upward toward them at an ever-increasing rate.

“Brace for impact!” Nathan called over the ship-wide intercom.

The impact never came.

“Last six missiles passed overhead!” the lieutenant exclaimed from the tactical station. “They’re headed away into open space!”

“Keep an eye out for another wave,” Nathan instructed. “Comms, send word to all elements in the counterstrike package. It’s time we put an end to these attacks.”

“Aye, sir,” Naralena acknowledged.

“Restore a stable orbit,” he ordered Josh.

“Already on it,” Josh assured him.

“Let me get this straight,” Ensign Weston said as he buckled into his seat. “We’re going to jump around the Takaran system, trying not to get our asses blown off by octos, just so we can relay strike orders to the Orochi, who are waiting at a safe distance?”

“That’s about it,” Lieutenant Haddix replied as he powered up their Reaper’s systems. “Everything ready back there?”

“Eight mini-jump comm drones are loaded and ready for deployment,” the ensign assured him as he checked his side of the console. “Flight, Reaper Six, ready for departure.”

“Reaper Six, Flight,” the controller replied. “Your call sign is Bird Dog. Cleared for immediate departure and jump-out. Report via JCD when on station.”

“Flight, Bird Dog, departing,” the ensign replied over comms.

“Let’s go have some fun,” Lieutenant Haddix said, pushing the throttles forward slightly, causing the Reaper to lift up off the Aurora’s forward starboard flight deck and begin accelerating forward toward the exit.

“It would be a lot more fun if we had eight missiles back there instead of comm-drones,” the ensign insisted.

The Corinari and Rakuen pilots had been expecting a call to action. Having received their orders yesterday, they knew what was expected of them; they just didn’t know when. But the moment they learned that another missile attack against the Aurora and the Glendanon had commenced, they had moved to their ships in anticipation.

Talisha Sane waited patiently in the open cockpit of her Nighthawk. Her reactor was already spun up, and Leta, her AI, was active. To her right and left, nineteen other Nighthawks were also spun up and ready, their pilots waiting patiently, their cockpits open like the gaping jaws of some mythical sea creature.

On the other side of the tarmac, a mere twenty meters away, twenty of the considerably larger Gunyoki fighters were also waiting for word, their pilots standing outside the ships. The Gunyoki fighters, which were tanks compared to the smaller, sleeker Nighthawks, were renowned for their uncomfortable seats. They were designed for a zero-gravity environment and had little padding. Talisha found it comical that the Rakuen engineers had not thought to improve the seats when they installed grav-lift systems, thus making the Gunyoki able to operate from the surface. By comparison, the seats in the Sugali fighters were lounge chairs. But the moment both ships got into space, the Gunyoki fighters definitely had the advantage. They were larger, heavier, better armed, and built to survive. In addition, they were quite maneuverable, and in an unpredictable fashion.

Talisha’s admiration of the legendary defenders of Rakuen was interrupted by her AI.

“Corinari control is transmitting the action signal,” Leta reported over the cockpit’s speakers.

Talisha grabbed her helmet from its resting place on the bulkhead behind her flight seat. “Close it up and prepare for combat departure,” she instructed her AI. “Here we go.”

Aiden and his crew had begun their patrol cycle only a day ago, and already he was bored out of his mind. The endless cycle of jump-scan-jump was mind-numbing. The only things breaking the monotony were the randomization algorithms that staggered their jump timings and scan-point variations. To add to the insult, their likelihood of detecting an inbound warship was miniscule. The most they could hope to achieve was to detect threats parked outside their patrol area, waiting for the right moment to attack. Given the Dusahn fleet’s current state, the odds of them sending anything other than jump missiles anywhere near the Darvano system were astronomically low.

The only thing giving them purpose was the fact that they were creating a perceived threat to the Dusahn. As long as the Orochi were present, and as long as they were constantly on the move, their missiles could be launched against a Dusahn asset at any moment. This was especially important while the Aurora was still under repair. The Orochi might not be able to prevent the ongoing missile attacks, but they were certainly doing something to keep the Dusahn from sending in their only destroyer to finish her off.

Having finished reviewing his morning reports, Aiden made his usual morning visit to the bridge before beginning what he called his ‘ship walk’. For lack of anything else to do, walking through the entirety of his ship allowed him to keep eyes on everything and to maintain contact with crew members, which his regular duties rarely provided.

“Good morning, sir,” Lieutenant Deln greeted from his position at the Orochi’s helm.

“Morning, Poray,” Aiden replied, coming to stand behind the man. He ceremoniously gazed out the forward windows, taking in the usual nondescript starfield that seemingly never changed, despite their constantly changing position. But it was part of the routine he was establishing for himself, and it would end with gazing out the tail gunner’s station.

“Jump flash,” Ali reported from the sensor station. “Twenty clicks to starboard. Comm-drone.”

“Are we at the comms exchange point?” Aiden asked his helmsman.

“Negative, sir,” the lieutenant replied. “We’re still two jumps away from it.

“Incoming message,” the comms officer announced. “Flash traffic from command.” The comms officer looked to her captain. “Strike orders, sir.”

Aiden smiled. “This day is looking up.”

“This sucks,” Sami complained as she watched the Nighthawks and Gunyoki jump away from the Aitkenna spaceport. “We should be up there.”

“We are all that’s protecting this base at the moment,” Commander Verbeek reminded her.

“I know,” Sami assured him. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“I don’t much like it myself,” the commander agreed.

“I hate to admit it, Verbee, but I liked flying the Nighthawks better.”

“What?” the commander questioned, surprise.

“Don’t get me wrong. I’m an Eagle driver through and through. I just wish we had more jump range so we could get into more fights.”

“Careful what you wish for, Sami,” the commander warned, smiling.

Samita looked at her commander, suspicious of his smile. “What are you smiling about?”

The commander’s smile disappeared. “Nothing. Nothing at all.”

“Bullshit,” she accused. “Spill.”

“Captain Scott’s working on something,” the commander admitted. “Actually, he’s working on several things, but one of them will affect us…directly.”

“Are we getting upgrades?” she asked.

“Not exactly,” the commander replied. “I can’t really say much beyond that, as everything is still in the design stage. Let’s just say that I’ve had a bit of input.”

“If you’re trying to get my mind off the depressing fact that we’re not joining in today’s strike…” Sami paused a moment, looking at her commanding officer. “…It’s working.”

“New contact,” Kaylah announced from the Aurora’s sensor station. “Comm-drone.”

“Incoming message,” Naralena followed. “Bird Dog is on station.”

“All strike elements are in position,” the tactical officer reported.

“Signal all elements,” Nathan instructed. “Execute as planned.”

“Aye, sir,” Naralena replied as she prepared several jump comm-drones to carry the message.

Nathan looked at Cameron. “It’s not easy standing by and watching others fly headlong into danger.”

“Now you know how I feel every time you stick me in a command and control position,” Cameron replied.

“It’s your own fault for being so good at telling everyone what to do,” Jessica teased.

“We all have to play to our strengths,” Nathan stated. “Yours is organization and planning,” he told Cameron.

“And keeping you two in line,” Cameron replied.

“I’d say you pretty much suck at that,” Jessica decided. She looked at Nathan. “What’s my strength?”

“You’re fearless. You charge into hell, fully expecting to kill the devil without suffering so much as a scratch.”

“Some would call that a fault,” Cameron said.

“If you don’t have the skills to back it up, sure,” Jessica agreed.

“It’s your skills that make you so fearless,” Nathan insisted.

“I’m pretty sure my brothers could tell you a few stories from my youth that would challenge that assumption,” Jessica told him.

“I’ll be sure to ask them.”

“What’s your strength?” Cameron asked Nathan.

Nathan smiled. “My charm, what else?”

“Transmission from command,” Talisha’s AI announced. “Execute strike as planned.”

Talisha settled into the seat of her Nighthawk fighter, cinching her restraints down a bit more. “Okay, gentlemen, time to go to work,” she called over comms.

“I’m afraid there are no gentlemen out here,” one of the other Nighthawk pilots corrected. “Just a bunch of Corinari.”

“My mistake,” Talisha chuckled. “First group on me, second group on Kendrix. Ten second intervals, and remember, we’re just here to get their shields down. Once they’re down, get the hell out of the engagement area and back to Corinair.”

“Why can’t they just use shield busters?” one of the Nighthawk pilots wondered.

“Low on inventory, I suppose,” Talisha guessed. “They didn’t bother to tell me.”

“We take the risk, and the missile boys get the glory,” another pilot said.

“That’s why we’re Corinari.”

“Ten seconds to strike zero,” Leta warned.

Talisha glanced at her jump navigation computer display, checking that it had plotted her jump parameters. The first jump was crucial, as she needed to arrive just far enough away from the target to have time to decelerate to the proper shield penetration speed before the target detected their approach. “Here we go,” she said as she watched the jump clock count down to zero.

“Coming up on launch point,” Ledge reported from the Orochi’s tactical station. “Fourteen on the rails and targeted, all of them set for manual jump.”

“Any update on the target’s track?” Aiden asked his communications officer.

“Nothing yet.”

“Launch on schedule,” Aiden instructed his XO.

“One minute to launch,” Ledge updated.

“As soon as the missiles are away, increase speed to keep up with them,” Aiden instructed his helmsman. I want to make sure we stay in comms range in case we have to update the targeting data at the last moment.”

“Yes, sir,” Lieutenant Deln acknowledged.

“We only have a five-minute window to update,” Ledge reminded his captain. “Standing orders are to launch at zero plus seven, update or not.”

“I know,” Aiden assured him. “I just want to make sure we keep our options open, that’s all.”

“Ten seconds,” Ledge updated.

As with every missile launch, Aiden felt the need to visualize their target. No one had told him to do so, it was just what he felt he needed to do. As a Cobra gunship captain, he saw what he was shooting at, who he was killing. But as a missile ship, he had lost that perspective. For some unexplainable reason, he felt the need to see his enemy, even if only in his mind’s eye.

“Launching fourteen,” Ledge reported.

Aiden looked out the forward windows of the Orochi’s small bridge as fourteen jump missiles streaked away from either side.

“Missiles are away,” Ledge reported.

“Accelerating,” the helmsman added, pushing the main engine throttles forward.

Aiden glanced at the mission clock as the missiles began to converge in the distance ahead of them. The launch was right on time. “If you get a targeting update, don’t bother reporting it to me first,” he instructed his communications officer. “Just transfer it directly to tactical.”

“Aye, sir.”

The jump flash subsided, and Talisha found her projection canopy filled with the image of the damaged Dusahn destroyer in orbit above Takara. There were no bolts of energy lashing out at her, just the two-kilometer-long warship surrounded by a dozen Takaran repair crawlers attempting to close the gaping wounds in her hull.

“Target shield threshold in five seconds,” her AI warned.

Talisha glanced at her flight dynamics display, checking that her speed was slow enough to pass through the target’s shields. Her cockpit filled with a brief flash of pale yellow light as her fighter slipped through the destroyer’s shields.

“Rockets locked on shield emitters,” Leta reported.

“Fire all rockets,” Talisha instructed her AI as she reached for her throttles. Flashes of orange lit up her projection canopy as twenty small, self-guided rockets streaked away from under her nose, twisting toward their targets as they left.

“Rockets away,” Leta added.

Talisha jammed her throttles forward, causing her ship to lurch ahead in rapid acceleration. A second later, the destroyer’s point-defense turrets opened fire, sending deadly bolts of plasma energy her way. Without a word, she pitched upward and to starboard, heading for the nearest shield barrier.

The rockets found the destroyer’s nearest shield emitters, detonating on contact in a series of small explosions that disabled every emitter nearby.

Talisha held her course, refraining from jumping out for as long as possible, hoping to draw the target’s point-defenses to her in order to buy the next Nighthawk to jump in a few extra seconds to launch their own attack before becoming the next target.

Red-orange bolts of plasma slammed into her fighter’s port and aft shields, flashing them brightly and rocking her ship violently.

“Port shields at sixty percent,” Leta warned.

Talisha glanced at her tactical screen as the next Nighthawk jumped in nearby. A quick tap of the jump button on her flight control stick, and she suddenly found herself several light minutes away, in clear and open space, with no enemy threats on her displays.

The entire attack run felt like an eternity. Talisha glanced at her mission timer, noting that her attack run had taken precisely ten seconds, just as planned.

“Signal from Bird Dog,” Delan reported from the Gunyoki fighter’s back seat. “Twenty octos just launched from the surface and are jumping up to the destroyer’s position.”

“Tekka squadron, six points in pairs,” Jenna instructed over comms as she altered her ship’s course. “Don’t worry about killing them, just keep them off the Nighthawks.” Jenna checked the range to the destroyer on her tactical display, then dialed up the same on her jump range selector. “You ready, Dosne?” she asked over comms.

“Dialed in,” Dosne replied.

“Jump in three,” Jenna instructed, counting down the last two seconds in her head.

Jenna pressed the jump button, transitioning her Gunyoki fighter from their staging point to high orbit above Takara, only ten kilometers from the damaged destroyer.

“Four octos at three five, ten up relative, passing under the destroyer,” her weapons officer reported from the seat behind her.

“I see them, Delan,” she replied, adjusting her course to intercept. “Dosne, take the two on the right.”

“Got it!” her wingman replied.

“Locking port rockets on the left octos,” Delan reported.

“Eight clicks,” Jenna said to herself, checking the range to targets again.

“They’ve spotted us,” Delan warned. “Turn to intercept.”

“I’ll go right and split them,” Dosne suggested.

“Going left,” Jenna replied, yanking her flight control stick to the left as she jammed her throttles to maximum. “Be ready on those rockets,” she warned her weapons officer as she adjusted her jump range down to four kilometers. She quickly yanked her throttles back to zero thrust, then twisted her flight control stick to the right to swing her nose around as she pressed the jump button.

A flash of blue-white light, and the Gunyoki fighter was four kilometers to port of its original intercept track, forcing the two left-most octos to adjust their course to starboard. She glanced at her tactical screen, noting that her wingman had performed the same maneuver, drawing the other two octos in the opposite direction, splitting the flight of four into two flights of two.

Her nose came around to point at the left-most pair of octos, and Jenna twisted her flight control stick back to the left to stop her yawing motion. As planned, her nose was now pointed in the direction of the pair of octos attempting to intercept her. “Now would be good,” she told her weapons officer.

“Firing port rockets!” Delan announced as he pressed the launch button.

A plethora of small, self-guided rockets burst from the Gunyoki’s left rocket pod, after which the fighter disappeared in a flash of blue-white light, just as red-orange bolts of plasma energy lashed out from the Dusahn octos’ multiple turrets.

The flurry of rockets launched by the Gunyoki fighter crossed the few kilometers to the targets in seconds, striking one of the octo’s shields and lighting them up as the other octo jumped to safety. The remaining octo rolled to turn, firing its engines, but was struck by energy weapons fire from a Gunyoki that suddenly appeared behind him.

“Nicely done, Dosne!” Jenna congratulated, “but we’re not supposed to destroy them, just lead them away.”

“Any reason why we can’t do both?” Dosne chuckled in reply.

“I suppose not,” Jenna admitted as she started a sweeping turn back toward the engagement area. “I’m jumping back to you,” she told him. “Find us another target to tie up.”

Talisha came out of her second attack jump half a kilometer from where the Dusahn destroyer’s shield perimeter should have been. “What the…”

A split second after her arrival, her shields flashed with the impacts of incoming fire, and her Nighthawk fighter shook violently.

“The destroyer’s shield grid is no longer active,” her AI reported calmly.

“How many emitters are down?” Talisha demanded

“Eighty-two percent. The target is unprotected.”

Talisha pulled back on her flight control stick and rolled to starboard, pushing her throttles all the way forward to accelerate toward a clear jump line. “Razor Leader to all Razors! Signal Buster! Signal Buster!”

“Jump line is clear,” her AI reported.

Talisha tapped her jump button, jumping clear of the engagement area.

“Razor Leader, Bird Dog,” Ensign Weston called over comms. “Copy Signal Buster!”

“Taking final target fix,” Ensign Weston reported. “Transferring data to comm-drone.”

Something to the right caught Lieutenant Haddix’s eye. “Oh shit.”

His copilot instinctively looked at the tactical display. “Four octos on an intercept course!”

“I see them,” the lieutenant replied as he jammed the Reaper’s throttles all the way forward and started a hard turn to port.

“They’re firing!”

“I’ll worry about the octos!” the lieutenant insisted as their Reaper rocked from the incoming energy blasts against their shields. “You just be ready to launch that drone the moment I jump!”

“It’ll be ready in five seconds!” the ensign assured him.

Lieutenant Haddix pulled out of his port turn, rolling immediately in the opposite direction and pitching downward as he dialed up a new jump range.

“Drone is ready!” Ensign Weston announced, arming the launch sequencer.

“Jumping!” the lieutenant replied, pressing the jump button on his flight control stick.

A split second later, their Reaper found itself in a different part of the Takaran system, a few light minutes away from their previous position.

“Launching comm-drone!” the ensign announced.

On the side of the Reaper’s utility bay, a long rectangular door popped open, and a mini-jump comm-drone quickly slid out, hanging from an extended track. The clamps on the track opened, and the drone fired its engine, accelerating away from the Reaper and turning toward its first jump point in the series that would take it to its final delivery point. A few seconds later, it disappeared behind a tiny, blue-white flash of light.

“Comm-drone has jumped!” Ensign Weston reported earnestly. A warning beep sounded, and the ensign glanced at the tactical display. “They’re back on us! Time to do some of that pilot shit!”

“Hang on!” the lieutenant replied, rolling into his next wild maneuver.

“One minute to Buster!” Jenna called over comms. “Don’t break until the last second!”

“If those missiles come early…” Delan started to say.

“They won’t,” Jenna interrupted as she rolled into a turn and pressed her jump button.

A pair of octos appeared, turning toward her to attack. Jenna pitched her fighter down slightly, dialed in a new jump distance, and then jumped again, coming out behind and slightly below the Dusahn fighters. She killed her throttles and pulled her flight control stick back hard, flipping her ship over and putting her nose toward the pair of octos which were now peeling off in opposite directions. “Light them up, Delan,” she instructed.

“Firing rockets,” Delan replied from the back seat.

A flurry of yellow flashes appeared on the right side of the Gunyoki fighter as the engines of multiple rockets fired, sending the weapons streaking out of their pod. The rockets’ own guidance systems immediately kicked in, and they steered toward the fleeing octos; half of them to the left, and half to the right. Two seconds later, as the rockets closed in on their targets, the Dusahn fighters jumped away, escaping destruction at the last moment.

“Damn it!” Delan exclaimed, realizing the octos had escaped unharmed.

Jenna adjusted her flight control stick, applying counterthrust to end her reverse-pitch maneuver, settling her nose forward again as she continued to advance toward the now unprotected Dusahn destroyer in orbit above Takara. A flip of her weapons select switch, and Jenna pressed her firing trigger, sending bolts of plasma from the massive cannons on the front of her port and starboard engine nacelles.

“What are you doing, Jenna?” Delan asked, both surprised and concerned.

Red-orange bolts of plasma energy leapt out at them from the destroyer’s point-defenses, slamming into the Gunyoki fighter’s shields, lighting them up and rocking the heavily armored vessel.

“If we don’t attack, they might realize they’re about to be hit with a missile strike and jump away!”

“We don’t even know if they can jump!” Delan reminded her.

“We don’t know they can’t!” Jenna argued. “It’s our job to sell this!” she added as she rolled her fighter with wild abandon, cannons blazing.

“We can’t make a dent in that destroyer’s armor by ourselves!” Delan insisted, hoping to convince his headstrong pilot of the folly of her plan.

“You’re right!” Jenna agreed, pressing the transmit button. “All Tekkas! Attack until Buster! Attack until Buster!”

“One minute to max delay,” Ledge warned from the Orochi’s tactical station.

Aiden glanced at the mission clock, growing impatient with each passing second. The longer they went without a targeting data update, the lower the chance their missiles would find their target. “Anything?” he asked, looking at his sensor officer.

“Nothing,” Ali replied.

“I’ll need ten seconds to update the missile targeting data based on the original target track,” Ledge reminded her.

“Update at the twenty second…”

“Contact!” Ali interrupted. “Jump comm-drone!”

“Incoming transmission,” the communications officer added. “Signal Buster. Transferring track updates to tactical.”

“Recalculating,” Ledge followed.

Aiden glanced at the mission clock. They were fifteen seconds from the point that their missiles would jump automatically, using the original targeting data if not updated.

“Transmitting updates,” Ledge added.

“Jump the missiles when ready, Ledge,” Aiden instructed.

“Missiles have received the updates and have confirmed,” his tactical officer replied. “Jumping all missiles!”

Aiden glanced at the mission clock again. The missiles had jumped four seconds prior to their maximum jump delay point.

Jenna swung her Gunyoki fighter into a spiraling turn to port, choosing to stay in the engagement area in the hopes of drawing in as many Dusahn octo-fighters as possible. “How much time?”

“Fifteen seconds,” Delan replied before the last word came out of his pilot’s mouth.

Jenna rolled out of her turn, pitching down just enough to ensure she had a clear jump line under the destroyer, then fired her main plasma cannons one last time for good measure. As she fired, four Dusahn octos jumped in just ahead, diving down next to the destroyer and paralleling its course in an obvious attempt to intercept Jenna. The first two octos turned outward from the crippled destroyer, opening fire on the Gunyoki and lighting up her shields.

“Six more just jumped in on the destroyer’s port side!” another Gunyoki pilot announced over comms.

“Five seconds!” Delan warned, practically pleading.

“Buster, Buster, Buster!” Jenna instructed over comms as she moved her finger off the firing trigger and over to the jump button on her flight control stick. “Suckers,” she snickered.

“Multiple jump flashes!” Delan yelled from behind her. “Fourteen of them!”

“We’re outta here!” Jenna exclaimed as she pressed her jump button. A moment later, the destroyer, the octos, and the planet below were nowhere to be seen. Before her were only the distant stars.

Delan’s head fell back against his headrest, his emotions spent. “You like this shit, don’t you?”

Jenna chuckled. “Beats the hell out of the races.”

The Dusahn destroyer swung its point-defense turrets away from the vanishing Gunyoki fighters, which had been swarming about them like flies only seconds ago, toward the fourteen incoming jump missiles. The guns on the near side, which had already been somewhat pointed in that direction, immediately opened fire, taking out more than half of the inbound weapons in the first eight seconds. But it would not be enough, for the missiles had jumped in only ten seconds from impact.

Eight jump missiles made it past the destroyer’s defense perimeter. One by one, they struck the hull of the doomed vessel. The first missile struck the bow of the ship, detonating on contact in a brilliant, yellow-white flash of light.

Before the first flash could fade, the second and third missiles plowed into the already damaged midship areas of the destroyer, driving into her several meters before they too detonated. The detonations were far more subdued in appearance, but having exploded from inside, outer portions of the destroyer’s hull went flying outward with the force of the explosion.

The next two missiles missed, passing just above the dying warship’s topside superstructure. The remaining missiles found the aft section, breaking it wide open with a series of secondary explosions.

The destroyer broke apart in spectacular fashion, sending debris in all directions with great fury, while the octo-fighters in the vicinity began jumping away to escape the blast. At least six octos never made it out, being struck by the debris or consumed by the escaping gases that flashed over them.

A series of secondary explosions deep within the various sections of the destroyer continued to break her apart as the two missiles that had missed the warship found the Takaran atmosphere and auto-destructed in yellow-white flashes.

“Jump flash,” Kaylah reported from the Aurora’s sensor station. “Comm-drone.”

“Incoming message,” Naralena added. “From Bird Dog. Message reads: Target destroyed. No friendly losses.”

“Outstanding,” Jessica exclaimed.

“Too bad the other destroyer wasn’t there,” Cameron added.

“Hopefully, one will be enough to make our point,” Nathan replied. “Naralena, prepare a message for the Dusahn. Message reads: Attack us or any of our allies, and we will rain down hell upon you, regardless of the consequences to Takara.”

Naralena looked up from her console at Nathan. “Is that it?”

“That’s it.”

“Loading message into a comm-drone,” Naralena replied.

“I would’ve called him a few names just for good measure,” Jessica decided.

“That’s why we let you shoot the guns and not do the talking,” Nathan joked.

CHAPTER FIVE

Dylan’s eyes widened as the XK tilted about as if it were precariously balanced on the tip of a spear. The view of the shipyard outside the windows of the ship’s cockpit swayed to and fro, rising and falling at the same time. “What the hell are you doing?” he exclaimed from the copilot’s seat.

“Just trying to get a feel for her,” Josh assured him, wrestling with the flight controls. “She really fights you, doesn’t she?”

“She’s not fighting you! She’s trying to keep you from crashing!”

“I don’t crash,” Josh insisted as the ship continued to rock. “I might occasionally execute a less than ideal landing, but I never crash.”

“Well there’s a first time for everything,” Dylan exclaimed, reaching for the controls as the ship was about to slide into a nearby crane.

“Don’t even think about it!” Josh barked as he adjusted his controls and leveled the ship into a stable hover.

Dylan turned his head slowly to the right, noting that the crane was less than a meter from his side cockpit window. He turned back to look at Josh but said nothing.

“Relax,” Josh told him. “We didn’t hit anything.”

“Please tell me you meant to do all of that.”

“All of what?” Josh asked, feigning ignorance.

“All of that,” Dylan replied, moving his left hand about in the air to simulate the way Josh had been flying.

“I told you I was getting a feel for her.”

“Couldn’t you just fly her out normally? Maybe get some altitude before using extreme control inputs?”

“Trust me, those were not extreme control inputs.”

“Maybe you should learn how to fly her normally before you try anything out of the ordinary,” Dylan suggested, almost pleading.

“If I wanted to fly her normally, I’d just punch in the destination and let the auto-flight handle her. But that ain’t flyin’, that’s piloting, and that’s boring.”

“And safe.”

Josh looked at him. “You do know this is VR, right?”

“Of course I do,” Dylan assured him. “But to get the most out of VR training, you have to act as if it’s real. And trust me, it’ll hurt like it’s real if you crash.”

“Yes, but only for a moment,” Josh replied, an odd look on his face.

“Loki was right,” Dylan decided. “You’re twisted.”

Josh smiled. “How do we scoop this thing?”

“Scoop?”

“You know, drop the tail down low and jam the throttles to the wall,” Josh explained.

“Why would you want to do that?” Dylan wondered.

“For a rapid departure, what else?”

“But that would probably cause damage to the spaceport.”

“If you have to leave in a hurry, then you probably don’t give a damn if you damage the spaceport,” Josh replied as if it was obvious. “Plus, it will take out anyone at the LZ who might be shooting at you.”

Dylan stared at Josh.

“What?”

“I take it you often have people shooting at you during departure?”

“On occasion,” Josh replied. “Not so much lately, but you never know.” Josh looked at his controls again. “Why won’t the tail drop?”

“The flight-assist system is designed to keep the ship level during its initial climb. It won’t allow you to alter the pitch attitude until you reach safe altitude.”

“And what exactly is ‘safe altitude’?” Josh wondered.

“It depends on the facility,” Dylan explained. “In most cases, it’s at least three hundred meters.”

“Well that sucks,” Josh replied. “What about the throttles? At what altitude can I jam them to the wall?”

“What wall?”

Josh rolled his eyes. “As in ‘all the way to max power’. Jesus, I thought you played some kind of smuggler game?”

“Sorry, I’m just not familiar with all your euphemisms.”

“The throttles?”

“Flight-assist automatically applies forward thrust incrementally as you climb,” Dylan explained. “The higher you climb, the more the thrust, until it reaches max power. Once you get above the facility’s MDMA, it will allow you to adjust the pitch manually, as well as the throttles, but only within reason.”

“MDMA?”

“Minimum departure maneuvering altitude,” Dylan explained.

“You and Loki are going to get along swell,” Josh said. “So you’re saying this thing can’t be scooped?”

“No, it can’t,” Dylan confirmed.

“Well that’s gonna need to be fixed.”

“It’s not broken,” Dylan insisted. “It’s a safety feature.”

“A safety feature that might someday get us killed,” Josh insisted. “We need to make this ship full-manual capable.”

“This is a cargo ship, Josh,” Dylan reminded him.

“Not anymore, she ain’t.”

* * *

The duty officer tried not to appear nervous as he read the message from the Karuzari.

Lord Dusahn sat silently, staring at the duty officer.

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Commander Jexx stated, shooing the officer from the room before their leader’s wrath found an easy target in the young lieutenant.

Once the lieutenant had left the room, Lord Dusahn spoke, his tone clear and concise. “I want the Karuzari eliminated. Every ship, every weapon, every officer, every janitor, every world that supports them—I want them all wiped from existence.”

“We do not have the firepower to do so, my lord,” Commander Jexx reminded him. “Not yet.”

Lord Dusahn’s menacing stare turned to the commander. “We are down to a single destroyer and thirty-two octos. If we do not strike now, we may never be able to.”

“If we destroy so many worlds, the other systems will surely ally against us,” the commander argued.

“Then we will destroy them as well.”

“We cannot destroy everyone,” Commander Jexx pointed out. “There will be no one left to rule.”

“Fear is the ultimate motivator,” Lord Dusahn insisted. “Not security and profit, as you suggested. Destroy a few worlds, and the rest will bow before us and bend to our will.” He looked at the commander. “It is the way of the Dusahn.”

“It is the way that got us banished from the empire we once served,” the commander replied, immediately regretting his choice of words.

“Careful, Commander,” Lord Dusahn warned. “Do not let your sudden favor relax your tongue to the point of losing it.”

“Apologies, my lord,” the commander backpedaled, “I only seek to calm your understandable anger and frustration. These arrogant inferiors must be eliminated. It is simply the method and the timing that we could further discuss.” The commander paused, reading his leader’s change in expression before pressing further. “So far, every world we have contacted has agreed to trade relations, with the exception of one, which we have already punished.”

“A decision that you did not wholly support,” Lord Dusahn pointed out to his advisor.

“Not the act of punishment, just the targets.”

“What would you have us do?” Lord Dusahn wondered. “Return later and beg?”

“It might have been better to blockade their trade with others, forcing them to do business with us.”

“I prefer a more direct approach,” Lord Dusahn replied, dismissing his advisor’s opinion with a wave of his hand. “The other worlds of the Pentaurus sector will now beg us to conduct trade with them, so as to ensure their safety.”

“I’m sure you are correct, my lord,” the commander replied, sensing that his leader was growing impatient with his differing viewpoints. “In the meantime, may I make a suggestion?”

“As long as it doesn’t involve cowering before our enemy,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“We must protect our remaining warship, as it will be needed to destroy whatever world is providing the Karuzari with its new technologies. I believe we should keep it on the move and never stay in one place long enough to be attacked.”

“We also need it to maintain a military presence throughout the systems we currently control,” Lord Dusahn pointed out, annoyed that the commander did not recognize the fact.

“The two goals are not mutually exclusive, my lord,” the commander insisted. “The Nan-Sala can jump between Dusahn-controlled systems in random fashion, at least three cycles before needing to pause to recharge. This too can be done unpredictably and at obscure points within Dusahn-controlled space. Furthermore, the Karuzari’s message provides us with an opportunity to negotiate a cease-fire.”

“Out of the question!” Lord Dusahn snapped.

“Please, my lord, I beg you to hear me out,” the commander pleaded. After a pause, he felt it safe to continue. “A cease-fire would allow us some measure of protection while we rebuild our forces. All we ask for is to operate our empire as we see fit, and in exchange, we will no longer attack Karuzari assets or their allied worlds.”

“The Karuzari have the upper hand at the moment,” Lord Dusahn pointed out. “There is no reason for them to agree to such a thing. They will demand that we cease and desist all military expansion.”

“They will agree,” Commander Jexx insisted. “They have no choice. They cannot defeat us without risking the lives of every Takaran.”

“Then you believe Captain Scott is bluffing,” Lord Dusahn concluded.

“I do,” the commander confirmed. “Captain Scott knows that we still have the ability to strike any world.”

“But not destroy them.”

“Complete destruction of member worlds is not necessary,” Commander Jexx insisted. “The infliction of damage and the loss of life on any semi-regular basis is enough to prevent most worlds from allying with the Karuzari. The only thing Scott has to offer is protection against us, which he cannot provide, given our failsafe. It is simply a matter of utilizing the stalemate that you so wisely created to our greatest advantage. I believe that a cease-fire is the tool to give us that advantage.”

Lord Dusahn thought for a moment. “You realize the Karuzari will suspect that we have no intention of honoring a cease-fire any longer than necessary.”

“Of course, my lord,” the commander repeated. “But it will buy us the time we need to once again gain the upper hand against our enemy, which we shall do.”

Lord Dusahn turned slowly about in his chair, eventually coming to stare out the massive window behind him. “A cease-fire is not the show of strength our people will expect,” he finally said. “Many will see it as a weakness, as an admission of failure.”

“Or as a clever move by a leader wise enough to know when diplomacy is more deadly than force.”

Lord Dusahn continued to gaze out the window, admiring what was left of the gardens after the attack a few days ago. “Perhaps there is some wisdom in your recommendations,” he finally admitted. “I will consider them further.”

“Thank you, my lord,” the commander said as he bowed and backed away toward the exit.

* * *

After getting misdirected twice and wandering the complex for several minutes, Nathan finally found Abby in one of the prototype labs. She was hunched over a metal table, along with several Rakuens in white lab coats, studying a partially disassembled device.

“Finally,” Nathan sighed, closing the door behind him as he entered the lab.

Abby straightened up and turned around, spotting Nathan. “Captain, I had no idea you were coming.”

“Last-minute trip,” Nathan replied as he walked over to her. “What’s all this?”

“Another prototype emitter.”

“Kind of big for an emitter, isn’t it?”

“We’re trying to scale them up for larger vessels,” she explained.

“Why?”

“The more emitters used to create the jump field, the more power required to create the field, and the greater the amount of power that must be dumped into that field in order to jump the same distance.”

“So a larger ship can jump the same distance using similar amounts of power as a smaller ship,” Nathan surmised.

“Something like that.”

“I wasn’t aware you were working on this,” Nathan admitted.

“I’m not,” Abby insisted. “They are,” she added, pointing to the group of Rakuens leaning over the table. “We got the idea from the XKs you’re modifying. They create a jump bubble that doesn’t adhere to the shape of the hull like our jump fields do.”

“What are you going to use it for?”

“Well, for example, if installed on the Aurora, you could adjust her jump ‘bubble’ to surround a neighboring ship and jump it with you.”

“Kind of like what the jump tugs do.”

“Yes, but without the need for an emitter net or extension arms. Just dial up a field bubble big enough to engulf both ships, and you’re ready to go.”

“Interesting,” Nathan replied, “although I’m not sure how that’s going to help us out at this point.”

“That’s why I’m not working on it,” she smiled, turning to the others. “Try adding another layer of tritium to the array spreaders.” Abby turned back around and began walking toward the exit. “So what brings you?”

“I can’t just stop by to say hello?”

“What is it, three hundred light years from Corinair to Rakuen?”

“Three hundred and forty-seven point six,” Nathan corrected. “So just a few minutes out of my way.”

“You’re too busy to stop by just to say hello.”

“Yeah,” Nathan agreed, a sense of longing on his face. “I sometimes miss the life of Conner Tuplo.”

“Always broke and always broken?” she asked as they arrived at her office.

“The good old days,” Nathan replied, smiling.

Abby opened her office door, gesturing for the captain to enter. “If you’re here to ask about the mini-jump missiles, we haven’t been able to create a shield-penetrating version yet. We just don’t understand the grav-lift tech well enough yet to scale it down properly. And you’ve got SilTek pretty busy at the moment,” she stated as she followed him inside.

“Yeah, I threw another one at them recently,” Nathan admitted.

“Such as?”

“Modifying and upgrading twelve of their cargo ships to use as a starter fleet for our alliance,” Nathan explained.

Abby looked surprised as she took her seat behind her desk. “Then you’re really planning on going through with this whole Alliance thing?”

Nathan also sat, but with confusion on his face.

“I figured it was just until you defeated the Dusahn,” Abby explained.

“The Dusahn have not yet been defeated.”

“It was my understanding that they created a stalemate of sorts.”

“Against a direct assault, yes,” Nathan admitted. “But not against diplomatic and trade warfare.”

“I see. And the twelve ships will help you with this?”

“That’s what I’m hoping,” Nathan explained. “The plan is to get as many worlds as possible to join our alliance, starting with the worlds of the Pentaurus sector.”

“You’re going to try to isolate the Dusahn?”

“Contain would be a better word.”

“Don’t embargoes often start wars?”

“We’re not looking to interfere with their trade with other worlds, as that would be ineffective,” Nathan explained. “The systems they currently hold are easily capable of supplying them with all that they need. It’s more of a delaying tactic.”

“Delaying until what?” Abby wondered.

“Until I figure out something better.”

“I see. Am I the one who can provide something better?” she asked with trepidation.

“In an indirect way, I suppose,” Nathan replied. “Now that the Dusahn’s ability to wage war has been curtailed, we need to provide something for our allies other than protection.”

“Such as?”

Nathan took a breath, adjusting in his seat to begin his pitch. “When I began my life as Conner, the jump drive was just beginning to filter out to the worlds outside of the Pentaurus cluster. Mostly, it was via recently jump-enabled ships from Corinair and Takara. At first, they tried to control the technology, trying to maintain a position of dominance in the interstellar transportation business throughout the sector. But they were fighting a losing battle from the start. It only took a handful of entrepreneurs to realize that the theft, and then sale, of jump drive technology was a quick and easy way to jump start their own financial empires. By the time the Seiiki was born, jump ships flown by at least a dozen different operators were plying for business. In the beginning, it was great. Demand was high, and supply was low; but that changed. By the time the Dusahn invaded, we were finding it difficult to get regular legal runs. Too much competition.”

“I don’t see how this pertains to your alliance,” Abby admitted.

“What you have to realize is that most human-inhabited worlds don’t have interstellar capabilities of their own. Not even linear. Most colonization expeditions cannibalized their seed ships to support the initial settlement. Even with fabricators, it takes centuries for a world to become industrialized to the point of being able to support interstellar travel. That makes those worlds dependent upon visiting transports and independent operators for interstellar trade. So independent operators have the run of the market and charge whatever they think they can get away with, and the customer has no choice but to pay, as they have no idea when the next ship will come by or how much that ship might charge.”

“And you aim to change all that?”

“I do,” Nathan replied.

“How?”

“By providing a transportation network,” Nathan explained. “One that would link all member systems together with regular, affordable cargo and passenger service.”

“That’s a tall order,” Abby worried. “Especially considering how far apart some of your member systems are.”

“That’s where I’m hoping you can help out.”

“Again, how?” Abby repeated.

“How’s that jump gate idea of yours coming?” Nathan asked.

Abby took a long slow breath, releasing it in an equally long sigh as she leaned back in her chair. “You do realize that the jump gate idea is just a theory, right?”

“So was the jump drive.”

“One that took ten years to turn into a prototype,” Abby reminded him.

“So you’re saying it may take a while,” Nathan surmised.

Abby thought for a moment, drawing another breath. “If I had unlimited resources and assuming my theories are correct, then I might have a working prototype in a few years.”

“Well, that’s not bad,” Nathan replied, feeling optimistic.

“That’s just a prototype,” she reiterated. “You also have to take into consideration the scale of the thing. Just because it can be done doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to do it. Science doesn’t exist in a vacuum. We don’t have unlimited resources that allow us to work on whatever we feel like. There is usually a need for something which science is looking to fill.”

“Such as a convenient method of transportation,” Nathan surmised.

“The problem is that you don’t yet have a need that justifies the cost of building and operating a jump gate network,” Abby explained. “First, you must create the need.”

“And how do I do that?” Nathan wondered.

“Well, you already have a number of jump-capable cargo ships in your fleet,” Abby reminded him. “Use them to start regular interstellar service.”

“The beauty of the jump gate is that you don’t need to build jump ships,” Nathan explained. “As long as a ship can reach a nearby gate, it can get pretty much anywhere within the network.”

“I understand that,” Abby replied, “but you’re proposing we build a bridge when we don’t yet have enough traffic to justify a ferry.”

“Nevertheless, I do think you should continue your work on the jump gate idea,” Nathan suggested. “At least on the theoretical side.”

“It’s too intriguing of an idea for me not to,” Abby admitted.

* * *

“Whatcha’ got, Ken?” Cameron asked as she entered the Aurora’s intel office.

“Data dump from one of our recon drones,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda replied, pointing at the slideshow of images being displayed on one of the view screens hanging from the overhead.

Cameron studied the images. “Looks like a war zone,” she decided. “Where is this?”

“Haven.”

Cameron looked at her intelligence officer, surprise on her face. “How long ago?”

“Images are from a few hours ago. Based on the number of burnt-out fires, I’d guess the attack was within the last twenty-four hours.”

“Dusahn?”

“The blast patterns indicate missile strikes,” the lieutenant commander explained. “But we won’t be able to confirm that until we conduct an old-light scan, possibly as far back as a day.”

“Get it done,” Cameron instructed.

“That’s not all, though,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda told her. “Look at this.”

Another image appeared on the view screen. A single fused concrete structure several stories tall, with a comm-array on top and automated gun emplacements on the rooftop corners. The odd thing was that all the buildings around it were destroyed.

“That is the only building still standing in Haven City,” the lieutenant commander stated.

“That’s the Haven Syndicate’s headquarters, right?” Cameron surmised.

“It is.”

“Why leave them standing?” Cameron wondered.

“I’m guessing the Haven Syndicate pissed off the Dusahn, and this was their reaction.”

“Why not level them as well?” Cameron wondered. “Or why not just level that building, and let the chaos that would likely follow destroy everything else?”

“To send a message?” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda suggested.

“That would be my guess,” Cameron replied. “How many people lived in that city?”

“Last estimate was about sixty thousand.”

Cameron sighed. “Hell of a price for a message,” she said as she turned to exit. “Let me know the results of your old-light scan.”

“You got it,” the lieutenant commander replied.

* * *

Nathan stared out the large, forward-facing windows of the Manamu’s galley, enjoying the view of Corinair slowly growing larger as they approached.

“Captain Scott,” a female voice called from behind.

Nathan turned around, spotting a woman about ten years his senior sporting a jacket with the ship’s name emblazoned on the shoulder patch.

“Sheba Madrid,” she introduced, holding out her hand. “I’m CO of this bucket.”

“Of course,” Nathan replied, standing to shake her hand. “A pleasure to meet you. My XO speaks highly of you.”

“I heard you’d hitched a ride with us,” Sheba said. “It must suck not having the Aurora at your disposal.”

“It does make me a bit antsy when she’s not up to snuff. I’m just glad we were able to get all the medium cargo ships upgraded to the long-range jump systems. This is a lot more comfortable than riding in a boxcar.”

“I suspect so,” Captain Madrid agreed. “May I?”

“Of course,” Nathan replied, gesturing for her to sit. “I’m surprised you’re not on the bridge for approach and rendezvous.”

“I’m letting my second officer manage things as much as possible,” she explained, taking a seat. “He’s a bit green and needs more experience being in command during important cycles. The only way he’s going to get it is if I let him.”

“Makes sense.”

“Besides, I don’t expect to be running this ship forever.”

“Going somewhere?” Nathan asked, leaning back in his chair.

“I’ve got family on Yaratru that I’d like to get back to. This assignment was only supposed to be temporary, as a favor to the owner of the Manamu. Her former captain had to resign quite suddenly. A legal matter of some kind. I was only supposed to be here for a few months. Then the Dusahn came along, and…”

“I know what you mean,” Nathan agreed. “Have you been flying long?”

“About thirty years, give or take. Yaratru years, that is. I have no idea how that would convert to Earth years.”

“You don’t see many female ship captains in the Pentaurus sector.”

“Not around the inner worlds, I suppose. Most of my time was on a sleeper ship, making runs between Yaratru and Juntor.”

“Then you’re much older than you look, I suppose.”

Sheba smiled. “Seventy-three next month. In Yaratru years, of course. For a sleeper pilot, that’s a baby.”

“How’d you end up in command?”

“Did a good job, I guess. My last assignment before I retired was as the second officer on the Careb Morlean. When she went in for a jump drive upgrade, I called it quits. Got married, had a couple kids. Like I said, the only reason I took this job was as a favor.”

“Too bad,” Nathan replied. “According to Captain Taylor, you’re a natural.”

“Maybe, but I’ve had my fill of space travel.”

“Can’t say that I’ve had my fill just yet,” Nathan admitted.

“You must like the punishment, being in charge of everything.”

“Oh, I’ve had my fill of that. I just like being in space. Traveling from world to world, seeing new people and cultures.”

“Well, when you run the same route between the same two worlds for thirty years, it gets old.”

“I suppose so.” Nathan looked out the windows again as the Manamu closed in on the Aurora and the Glendanon, orbiting side by side over Corinair. “Looks like we’re about to rendezvous.”

Sheba also gazed out the windows. “It never ceases to amaze me just how big the Glendanon is. We were lucky to have her on our side.”

“Yes, she’s been an incredibly versatile platform,” Nathan agreed.

“You know, the Manamu could actually fit inside the Glendanon’s cargo bay. Hell, if she were just a bit bigger, the Aurora could probably fit inside her.”

Nathan looked at the Glendanon, his head cocking to one side as a smile came across his face. “Now why didn’t I think of that?”

* * *

“Time to show off more welds?” Cameron asked Vladimir as she walked across the port large transfer airlock. “I see you installed the door within a door. Where’d you get it?”

“From a broken-down cargo ship on Corinair,” Vladimir replied, “but that’s not what I wanted to show you.” He reached for the door control panel.

“Wait!” Cameron warned.

It was too late. Vladimir pressed the button, and the small cargo door split open vertically, sliding open to either side.

Cameron looked pale as a ghost, her eyes wide. “Are you insane?”

“What? It’s perfectly safe!” Vladimir insisted.

“You could have at least warned me!”

“And miss that reaction?” Vladimir laughed. “Take a look; it’s incredible.”

“Can’t I just take your word for it?” Cameron suggested.

“You’re the XO. You’re supposed to know every inch of this ship.”

“That generally refers to the interior of the ship,” Cameron replied, following him through the door.

“Well technically, this is the interior,” Vladimir corrected her.

Cameron moved cautiously, breathing as if she were taste-testing the air. “It’s a little chilly.”

“About a ten-degree difference. More, the closer you get to the edge.”

“That’s a big difference.”

“According to the SilTek engineers, we can create a secondary shield that will not only serve as a backup, but also help normalize the temperature. I still have to install additional circulation systems to cycle the air in here with the air in the next bay.”

Cameron strolled slowly out toward the glowing, blue shield perimeter, both frightened and in awe of the technological marvel. “This is unbelievable,” she said half under her breath. “It’s almost invisible.”

“I still have to add the coloration emitters,” Vladimir explained. “Once they are working, the whole thing will have a semi-opaque, blue tint to it. That will make its location more obvious.”

“I want a three-meter-wide warning border with a bright yellow terminal line along the inside edge of the shield line,” Cameron told him.

“The inner shield will have a mild electrical charge to remind people of the shield’s presence,” Vladimir advised her.

“Will that prevent people from walking out into a vacuum?” Cameron asked.

“No, but it will hurt like hell if they try.”

“Then I still want a warning strip on the floor,” she insisted. “On the inboard side of those doors as well.”

“Understood,” Vladimir replied, knowing there was no use in arguing with her once her mind was set.

“And make sure you get complete pressure change testing without anyone in here when the barrier is penetrated. I don’t want to risk any more lives until we’re certain this thing works.”

“Look at it,” Vladimir argued. “It works.”

“Complete pressure change testing,” she repeated, casting a serious look Vladimir’s way as she headed back toward the hatch.

“Understood,” Vladimir replied, rolling his eyes as she passed.

* * *

Captain Gullen studied the data pad containing the changes to the duty schedule proposed by his executive officer.

“Since the Aurora decided not to replace the hull over their port aft flight deck, we were able to finish their hull repairs ahead of schedule. The current list of fabrication requirements means we can end the mandatory double-shifts.”

“This is still a very big fabrication list,” the captain noted, after advancing to the next page on the data pad. “I don’t see how you can hope to keep up without running the fabricators around the clock.”

“Oh, we’re still running them around the clock,” Justan insisted. “But by scheduling the long fabrication cycles for the night shift, we can cut the teams in half and have each team monitor two fabricators. That means we can reduce the required double-shifts to once every three days.”

“That still means no one gets a full day off for a while.”

“No one on this ship has had a full day off for months,” Justan reminded his captain.

“I was hoping that would change sometime soon.”

“Well, this would be a step in the right direction,” Justan stated. “And once the Aurora is repaired, we’ll get some of her Corinairan volunteers to help run the fabricators. Maybe then we can cycle one or two people a day for shore leave. Just about everyone aboard has family on Corinair.”

“Am I interrupting?” Nathan called from the door into Captain Gullen’s ready room.

“Captain Scott, come in,” Captain Gullen greeted. “This looks good, Justan,” the captain added, handing the data pad back to his executive officer. “Is there anything else?”

“No, sir,” Justan replied. “A pleasure to see you again, Captain,” he said to Nathan, before exiting the compartment.

Nathan nodded at the XO as he departed, then closed the door behind him.

“I don’t like the looks of that,” Captain Gullen commented as Nathan secured the door and took a seat across from Captain Gullen’s desk. “It’s never a good sign when a visitor wants to close the door.”

“Information is both a useful and dangerous thing,” Nathan told him, “especially when it is speculative.”

“Speculative?”

“I was curious about something,” Nathan began. “The owners of this ship are Corinairan, right?”

“Some of them are Corinairan,” Captain Gullen corrected. “A ship the size of the Glendanon is never owned by a single person or even a single business entity. Ships this large are usually built by a group of investors who form a corporation specifically for the purpose of financing its construction. Once the ship is operational, it is either leased to a shipping company or, as in the Glendanon’s case, an operator is hired to manage the ship’s operation, preferably to create profit for its investors. Why do you ask?”

“Well, now that Corinair has been liberated, I expect that the Glendanon’s owners would be wanting her back,” Nathan explained. “But if you’re saying that not all of her owners are on Corinair, then that complicates matters a bit.”

“Yes and no,” Captain Gullen replied. “There are forty-seven investors in all. Twenty of them are Corinairan, eighteen of them are Takaran, and the remaining nine are from Palee, Volon, and Ancot. Seeing as how Ancot is no longer, I suppose we’re down to forty-six investors, which is bad.”

“Why is it bad?”

“Investors never agree on anything,” Captain Gullen explained. “That’s why they always prefer to have an odd number. Prevents tie votes. Nothing worse than a ship stuck in port because her owners can’t agree where to send her next.”

“Have the Glendanon’s investors contacted you?”

“They have. That’s how I know how many of them survived.”

“There were originally more than forty-seven investors?”

“Oh yes,” Captain Gullen laughed. “There were originally three hundred and forty-nine of them. Over the years, many of them sold their shares to one of the other investors. More than a hundred were lost during the reign of Caius and his fall. There were still nearly two hundred investors prior to the arrival of the Dusahn.”

“What effect will such a radical drop in the number of investors mean for this ship?” Nathan wondered.

“Well, obviously her profits will be reproportioned,” Captain Gullen explained. “However, the cost of operation will now be borne by a smaller number of investors, which will make it more financially challenging for those investors, especially if the economies of their worlds are unstable, as most of them probably are at the moment.”

“What do you expect them to do?” Nathan wondered.

“At the moment, nothing. The fact that your alliance is covering the cost of operation is of benefit to them.”

“But their investment isn’t generating any revenue.”

“No, but it isn’t costing them anything, either,” Captain Gullen pointed out. “And this ship is being maintained in good working order, again without costing them anything.”

“Then the assignment I was thinking of giving you might be in their best financial interests.”

“And what would that assignment be?” Captain Gullen asked.

“I was thinking of making the Glendanon into a ferry ship.”

“A ferry ship?”

“Now that the Dusahn’s ability to conquer other worlds has been reduced, we need something other than protection to offer potential allies.”

“Then you’re hoping to expand your alliance?”

“The Pentaurus sector has been through a lot over the past few centuries. Imagine what this sector could be had Caius not risen to power, or had the Dusahn not invaded.”

“To name only two.”

“Precisely,” Nathan agreed. “And it is not only the Pentaurus sector. The Rogen sector, the Ilyan Gamaze, and God knows how many others have suffered through similar experiences. There are dozens, likely hundreds of human-inhabited worlds spread all over this part of the galaxy. Some of them are thriving, fully industrialized, and complete with interstellar capabilities, while others are struggling to survive. If we could connect them for the purposes of commerce, trade, and humanitarian support, imagine how much better everyone’s lives might be.”

“A noble idea, to be certain,” Captain Gullen agreed. “However, many of those ‘struggling’ worlds left industrialized ones because they didn’t want to live that way. They may not wish to be part of your alliance.”

“And no one will force them to be,” Nathan insisted.

“And you think that some sort of ferry service, using this ship, is the answer?”

“Connections with other worlds will provide all worlds with what they truly need. Support. Support for their economies, their populations, their medical or industrial needs, or whatever. All of this can be accomplished by connecting them with regular, affordable transportation services.”

“Which would likely be better accomplished with a fleet of smaller ships, like the Manamu, Inman, and Gervais.”

“None of those ships have the interior volume that your ship has,” Nathan pointed out. “The Manamu, Inman, and Gervais will be useful, but a ferry is the key. Your ship is large enough that smaller cargo ships, ones that do not have jump drives, can hitch a ride with you, allowing the smaller worlds that cannot afford the cost of acquiring and operating their own jump ships, to access the interstellar marketplace.”

Captain Gullen considered the idea for a moment. “I suppose this could work for a time,” he decided, “but the more your alliance grows, the less efficient a single ship will be, even one the size of the Glendanon.”

“It is only a temporary measure,” Nathan explained. “Eventually, we hope to replace the ferry concept with a network of jump gates, through which non-jump-capable ships can be jumped to distant systems. Imagine being able to take off in a simple surface-to-orbit shuttle, fly through a gate in high orbit, and then land on another world in another system. Minutes, in an STO shuttle! You could literally live in one star system and commute to work in another hundreds, if not thousands, of light years away!”

“It is difficult to envision,” Captain Gullen insisted. “Are you saying such a device is possible?”

Nathan sighed. “We don’t know yet,” he admitted. “Theoretically, Doctor Sorenson believes it is possible. But even if it is, it will take years to develop, and decades to deploy. In the meantime, a ferry system is the best we can do.”

“Again, a single ferry will only suffice for a short period of time.”

“There must be other ships the size of the Glendanon out there,” Nathan insisted.

“Perhaps,” Captain Gullen replied, “but none that I have heard of. At least not in this quadrant. That has always been the Glendanon’s biggest advantage. There are no other ships in the area that can haul as much cargo as we can, or as large a payload.”

“And just as this ship once provided the link that saved Earth, it will provide the link that brings peace and prosperity to the galaxy,” Nathan stated confidently.

“Assuming that you can convince the investors to agree to your plan,” Captain Gullen reminded him.

“They did so once before.”

“They did.”

“So what’s the first step?” Nathan wondered.

“First, you need to speak with the ship’s operator and get him on your side.”

“How do I do that?”

Captain Gullen smiled. “You just did.”

* * *

Lord Dusahn and his advisor walked through what had once been a perfectly manicured garden. Now it was in a state of chaos, just like his empire. “This was my place of refuge,” he said to no one in particular. “Now it is a reminder of my failures.”

Commander Jexx looked concerned. He had never heard his leader speak of failures, at least not in himself.

Lord Dusahn looked at his advisor, noticing his furrowed brow. “Failure can be a good thing. If used properly, it can be an excellent motivator. It can force one to see past their own reality; to see truths they had otherwise ignored.”

“Of course,” the commander agreed, not knowing what else to say.

“I imagine you have seen the recent intelligence reports on our population?”

“I have.”

“Your assessment?”

“The people are scared,” the commander stated. “Perhaps not to the degree that intel suggests, but if we don’t act, they will be.”

“And what do you suggest?” Lord Dusahn asked, testing his young advisor.

“The Karuzari have offered us a de facto cease-fire. If we take no aggressive actions, they will not attack us. We should use that to our advantage.”

“Yes, by building up our fleet,” Lord Dusahn agreed.

“Yes, my lord, but not our combat fleet. We must build up our shipping fleet. We have only five jump-capable cargo ships. That is barely enough to keep goods flowing between cluster worlds. If we are to trade with even more worlds, we will need more cargo ships, as well as ways to protect them.”

“Protect them from whom?” Lord Dusahn wondered.

“Pirates?”

“They wouldn’t dare.”

“The Karuzari, then,” Commander Jexx said. “The traditional move is to cut off an enemy’s trade.”

“They will not do so,” Lord Dusahn insisted. “Not as long as we have the failsafe device.”

“Perhaps, but the people do not know this, and we cannot tell them, not with loyalties so strained. It would guarantee an uprising.”

“Which our Zen-Anor would quell.”

“Our troops number only a few thousand, and our Zen-Anor a few hundred. If properly organized, or possibly even supported by the Karuzari, a rebellion could succeed.”

“I believe you underestimate the ferocity of the Zen-Anor,” Lord Dusahn commented.

“I hope you are correct,” Commander Jexx said. “But perhaps it would be more prudent to prevent it from happening to begin with. It was you who said that a strong empire is built on a strong economy. A loyal population also requires a strong economy. A strong economy requires trade, and trade requires ships.”

“We cannot build more ships any time soon,” Lord Dusahn stated, “and we cannot steal them from others. Not if we hope to trade with them.”

“There is a place in the Palee system,” the commander explained. “A small moon with a tenuous atmosphere. On it is a massive graveyard for old ships. It is where the Karuzari got their fleet of fighters during Earth’s war against the Jung. Perhaps there is something there that we could purchase for our use?”

“Any ship that can land is too small for our purposes,” Lord Dusahn insisted.

“They have larger ships in orbit as well,” Commander Jexx said. “Or so I am told.”

“Perhaps we should take a look, then,” Lord Dusahn agreed.

“Yes, my lord; however, it might be wise to keep our identity…unadvertised.”

Lord Dusahn exhibited a rare look of surprise. “You wish me to go in disguise?”

“The Paleans have already rejected our trade proposals,” the commander reminded him. “They may feel the same about selling their old ships.”

Lord Dusahn sighed, pausing to gaze out across the battered field of flowers. “How far the mighty have fallen.”

“Only the mighty can fall and rise strong again,” the commander added.

“You know your Koryayan.”

“With all due respect, my lord, it was not Denga Koryayan who said this, but your great-grandfather, Anian Dusahn.”

“Yes, he was quite fond of hearing himself speak,” Lord Dusahn replied. He took a deep breath, drawing in the disappointing smell of the ravaged garden. “To Palee, then, to purchase some broken-down, old cargo ships.”

“I will make arrangements, my lord.”

CHAPTER SIX

“What time are we leaving?” Jessica asked as she double-timed it down the corridor toward Nathan.

“The Inman leaves for SilTek at fifteen hundred,” Nathan replied as he continued toward the command briefing room.

“How many days will we be this time?”

“Two; three at the most, I hope. Why? You got a hot date?”

“Ania’s birthday is Friday,” Jessica replied. “I was hoping to get back to see her.”

“How’s she doing?” Nathan asked.

“She likes Rakuen. It took a while for her to adjust. She’s not used to attending school. But she’s making friends, so that’s good.”

“Your mom probably enjoys the break.”

“Yeah, well, she’ll be a teenager in a few years, so she needs to spend time with kids her own age, not her grandma and grandpa.”

“Teenager, huh. That should be fun.”

“Not if she’s anything like I was,” Jessica admitted as they entered the briefing room.

“Yeah, I’ll bet you were a handful,” Nathan teased. “Remain seated,” he told those already in attendance before they could stand. “Commander, when’s my ship going to be ready?” he asked Vladimir as he took his seat at the head of the conference table.

“We’ve finished replacing the damaged power trunks for the port forward jump array,” Vladimir began. “Port aft has been a bit more challenging without the hull over the port aft flight deck, but we’ll have that finished in a few more days. Having the pressure shield helps a lot. Workers in pressure suits can walk through the shield to get parts.”

“So a few days?” Nathan asked.

“We still need to replace about a dozen jump emitters and then do some calibration testing before we can clear her to jump. So a week at the most.”

“Good work,” Nathan congratulated. “I know you’ve been running your people hard.”

“They’ve gotten used to it,” Vladimir assured him.

“Lieutenant Commander,” Nathan said, turning to look at his intelligence officer. “I’m hoping you have plenty to report. Let’s start with local intel. What have we learned about the attack on Haven?”

“We have confirmed that it was a missile attack and that those missiles came from the Takar system.”

“No surprise there,” Jessica commented.

“Surface or ship launched?” General Telles wondered.

“They appeared to be surface launched based on trajectory, but we couldn’t confirm that without sending our drones deeper into the system. We didn’t think it was important enough to risk provoking another attack.”

“Good thinking,” Nathan agreed. “Any idea why they attacked them?”

“The official word for the people of Takara is that the Haven Syndicate made overt threats against the empire, and the empire responded in order to protect Takara,” the lieutenant commander explained.

“Takarans have never much liked Haven,” General Telles added. “So they probably accepted the explanation as fact.”

“It may have been factual,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda opined. “The Haven Syndicate has used force or threat of force against those who could not defend themselves in the past. So it’s not beyond belief that they might see the Dusahn, in their current state, as someone they can bully.”

“That was a mistake,” Nathan commented.

“Indeed it was,” the lieutenant commander agreed.

“It may be the motivation we need to get the syndicate to join our alliance,” Jessica suggested.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda told her. “The Haven Syndicate has always been very independent. They don’t trust anyone, not even their own.”

“I think I might be starting to like them,” Jessica joked.

“If they’ve already been hit hard, what are you planning on offering them as an incentive to join?” Cameron asked Nathan.

“Same as everyone else,” Nathan replied. “Protection, access to the Data Ark files, and use of an interstellar cargo and ferry system that will give them access to trade with all the other worlds of the Alliance.”

“A ferry system?” Cameron wondered.

“We’re going to turn the Glendanon into a long-range jump ferry,” Nathan explained. “Smaller ships that don’t have jump drives can land inside and be ferried to any point on the circuit. This lets all worlds, even those without interstellar travel capabilities, trade with others.”

“Such access should stimulate the economies of all worlds in the Alliance,” General Telles surmised.

“It should increase their standard of living as well,” Nathan added.

“Most of the worlds in the Pentaurus sector already have cargo ships with jump drives or were serviced by ships such as yours before the Dusahn arrived,” Jessica reminded Nathan.

“Once the Dusahn arrived, their ships either joined us or were confiscated by the Dusahn for their own use. Currently, all those worlds are isolated, with no way to get the necessary items they cannot produce themselves. That’s why we need to offer to reestablish that connectivity.”

“Will the Glendanon be enough?” Cameron asked.

“In the beginning, yes,” Nathan replied, “but not for long. We need to get all our medium cargo ships upgraded to long-range jump drives. Between them and the Glendanon, we should be able to handle the shipping needs of all worlds for at least the first few years, until something more robust can be created.”

“And the Glendanon will continue to be available to us?” Cameron asked.

“That will be up to the Glendanon’s owners,” Nathan admitted, “but we’re working on it.”

“It’s going to be a huge logistical challenge, coordinating the shipping between so many worlds so far apart, and it’s only going to get more difficult as the Alliance grows,” Cameron warned.

“We have no intention of maintaining the system forever,” Nathan explained. “I’m hoping that Abby’s jump gate concept will eventually replace it.”

“Jump gate?” Vladimir asked, having never heard the term.

“She thinks it might be possible to create a gate that would apply a jump field and initiate the jump event on a ship passing through the gate,” Nathan told him. “If she’s right, we could build a network of gates connecting all the worlds of the Alliance.”

“That would be amazing!” Vladimir exclaimed. “But how could she possibly make it work?”

“I didn’t waste time talking about the science,” Nathan told his engineer, knowing Vlad would have a million questions. “Most of it would have gone straight over my head anyway. Besides, it’s all just theoretical at this point. She hasn’t even started computer modeling. Assuming it is possible, I expect we’re looking at least a decade before the first gates are up and running.”

“I would think that SilTek’s AIs and their automated fabrication capabilities could speed things up,” Cameron commented.

“Hopefully,” Nathan agreed. “However, the Subvert volunteers seem to think the SilTek AI engineers are bound by too many procedural limitations and are not true AIs in the sense one would think.”

“That’s Nathan’s long-winded way of saying that the SilTek AIs don’t know how to ‘think outside the box’,” Jessica explained.

“Assuming it does work, it will change the human interstellar landscape even more than the jump drive,” General Telles opined.

“Imagine being able to commute between worlds hundreds of light years apart using nothing but a personal STO shuttle,” Nathan commented.

“It does boggle the mind,” Cameron admitted.

“Anyway,” Nathan said, ready to change the subject. “What have we learned about the current status of Earth? We need to know what to expect before we go.”

“The Falcon returned yesterday, after a three-day cold-coast of the Sol system,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda began. “They were able to penetrate to within forty light hours, which is pretty good considering how heavily patrolled the system is these days.”

“Galiardi has over a hundred Cobra gunships at his disposal,” Cameron added. “He doesn’t trust long-range sensors, so he probably has them patrolling around the clock.”

“The Falcon had to execute several micro-stealth jumps to avoid detection,” the lieutenant commander continued. “But they collected a lot of good intel. It seems that Galiardi has been taking out Jung assets on a regular basis. He started with military targets: shipyards, armories, fuel depots, that sort of thing. He must have managed to get some good deep recon, because he’s been picking off Jung warships within Jung space. Some of them on the far side of Jung territory.”

“Those ships would take decades to reach Earth,” Jessica commented. “He’s just trying to piss them off so they’ll try to strike back. Then he’ll have an excuse to wipe them out.”

“Actually, he’s being quite smart about it,” Cameron corrected.

“He’s acting as if the Jung already have jump drive technology,” Nathan surmised.

“Or might soon acquire it,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda added. “That’s what the pundits on the netcasts are saying. At least the ones who support Galiardi.”

“That’s pretty much everyone, isn’t it?” Jessica surmised.

“Not everyone,” Cameron corrected.

“Actually, according to the netcasts, the people of Earth are pretty much split, and it’s causing a lot of problems for Galiardi. Remember, he’s had the entire planet under martial law for months now, making himself the de facto leader of Earth, and therefore the entire Sol Alliance. That alone made most people dislike him. In fact, his successful attacks against the Jung are what have been winning the hearts and minds of his supporters.”

“But he’s picking off unsuspecting targets and killing them from a distance,” Jessica insisted. “How can that be inspiring?”

“He may be killing targets in a cold, disconnected fashion, but his propaganda videos show otherwise.”

The lieutenant commander picked up a remote and pointed it at the large view screen on the wall. A series of images that looked as if they were straight out of a recruitment campaign appeared without sound. Precise missile strikes; bridge crews in tense battles, brave young men and women fighting evil-looking Jung soldiers in dazzling firefights as Sol Alliance forces mowed through black-and-red-armored enemy soldiers.

“Jesus,” Jessica exclaimed. “What was the name of that vid-flick? The one starring that blonde guy and that scary bitch?”

“Star Commandos,” Nathan recalled.

“Star Commandos!” Jessica exclaimed. “That’s the one. That’s what this looks like!”

“That’s about as real as any of this footage is,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda confirmed.

“It looks very convincing,” General Telles commented. “I am certain the public believes every second of it.”

“Fifty-fifty,” the lieutenant commander replied. “Like I said, half the population hates Galiardi and doesn’t believe anything coming out of his mouth.”

“Good to know not everyone on Earth is brainwashed,” Cameron said.

“There have been quite a few calls for armed resistance,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda continued. “There have even been attacks against Earth-based Alliance assets. The pro-Galiardi netcasters insist these resistance groups are fronts for Jung covert ops.”

“No doubt fed that line by Galiardi’s people,” Jessica concluded.

“No doubt,” the lieutenant commander agreed.

“How much of an impact are these attacks having?” Nathan wondered.

“Minor, but they are happening all over the planet, so it’s not just a few locals here and there. Everyone seems to think that they’re globally organized, but so far, no one is offering any proof of that claim.”

“If Galiardi is taking out Jung targets with ease, then why are so many people against the attacks?” Nathan wondered.

“Opposition started when Galiardi decided to postpone the election of a new president until after the war. Some believe he is just using this war, dragging it out to solidify his power. They say he is preparing to run for president himself, as the man who destroyed humanity’s greatest enemy. Others fear that he’s backing the Jung into a corner, leaving them no choice but to strike with everything they have left. Many believe the Jung have already launched their attack via long-range FTL weapons, and that long after they are defeated, those weapons will reach Earth and destroy it. They argue that technology has gotten to the point where interstellar war is no longer a matter of winners and losers, but rather who dies quickly and who dies slowly.”

“There may be some truth to that,” Nathan agreed.

“This may work in our favor,” General Telles suggested. “If the Jung are being routinely attacked and see no way of beating Galiardi, they may be more amenable to your request for assistance.”

“They’re going to want something for it,” Jessica warned.

“I’m not giving them jump drive technology, if that’s what you’re asking,” Nathan was quick to proclaim.

“Just checking.”

* * *

Edom stared out the window of the vehicle as it pulled to a stop. It had been years since he had been to the Coulthard residence. Although he barely remembered what the property looked like, he was certain it was not as he’d expected.

“Are you certain this is the place?” his driver asked.

“This is the place,” Edom replied.

“Looks like it’s vacant. A shame, such a nice property.”

“It’s not vacant. There’s a vehicle in the drive, and there are a few lights on.”

“Huh, I didn’t even notice,” the driver chuckled. “I guess that’s why you’re a captain.”

“Can you wait long?” Edom asked.

“As long as you need, Captain. I’d rather sit here than scrub thruster burn off the tarmac.”

“I remember those days,” Edom told the young man as he opened the door. “I don’t expect to be too long.”

“Take your time,” the driver urged, holding up a small bag. “I brought a snack.”

Edom turned and took another look at the place. The house, once an impressive mansion of polished concrete and colored trim, had lost its luster. The yard was not as manicured as one might expect, although it was obvious that it had not been completely ignored. Overall, the property served as a solemn reminder of how much the Corinairan economy had suffered under Dusahn rule.

Edom headed through the gate and up the stony, moss-covered path to the front door. The vines weaving through the latticed awning, side panels, and around the entrance to the front porch showed signs of recent trimming, further supporting his belief that someone still resided here.

Edom rang the bell and waited. After a time, the light on the porch camera flickered on. Edom straightened, facing the camera directly as he gave a polite nod. A moment later, there was a click, and the large door slowly creaked open.

On the other side was a middle-aged woman. She appeared worn, as if life had been abnormally difficult for her as of late. But she carried herself with confidence and nobility, as if she refused to succumb to the hardships that life had thrown her way.

“Forgive the intrusion,” Edom began politely. “I am looking for Ross Coulthard.”

“And you are?” the woman asked, eying him with suspicion.

“Edom Gullen.”

The woman did not recognize his name.

“I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage.”

“I am Annabel Coulthard.”

“Then this is still the home of Mister Coulthard?”

“What is the purpose of your visit?” Annabel asked.

“I was hoping to speak with Mister Coulthard about the future of the Glendanon. He is the majority shareholder.”

Annabel sighed. “I’m afraid my father isn’t taking visitors these days.”

“Your father?”

“I would refer you to his business manager, but I’m afraid we haven’t been able to reach him for some time.”

“Of course,” Edom apologized. “I would have called before coming, but communications at the public level are still spotty at best.”

“Edom Gullen,” a man’s voice called from a connecting room. “It’s okay, Annabel.”

Annabel immediately turned toward her father, who was standing in the connected study, still in his robe. “I told you to stay in bed,” she scolded, moving toward her father.

“And miss an opportunity to hear stories from the captain of the Glendanon?”

Annabel shrugged and sighed, stepping aside. “Please come in, Captain Gullen.”

Edom entered the foyer, spotting the open office door to his right. Inside was Ross Coulthard, founder of Coulthard Industries, one of the largest manufacturing firms on all of Corinair. Once a tall, proud man, he was now of failing health. Just like the home in which he lived, the old industrialist had seen better days.

“Captain Gullen,” the old man greeted, easing himself into his office chair.

“Mister Coulthard.”

“Please sit,” the old man insisted. “I heard the Glendanon had escaped. But when your wife was executed, we feared the worst for your daughter. Is she…”

“My daughter is safe,” Edom assured him. “She is living on a world called Rakuen.”

“Never heard of it,” Mister Coulthard stated.

“I’m not surprised. It is over three hundred light years from Corinair, in the Rogen sector.”

“Never heard of that, either, but no matter. I am happy your daughter is safe.”

“She wouldn’t be, were it not for Captain Scott and the Karuzari.”

“Then it is true,” Mister Coulthard commented. “All the stories we’ve heard about Captain Scott, that he is alive and in command of the Aurora.”

“It is true; he is alive,” Edom assured him. “I spoke with him only yesterday.”

“I won’t ask how that could be. The tale is likely a long one.”

“I don’t rightly know all the details myself,” Edom lied.

“Nevertheless, I am happy to learn that you are alive and that the Glendanon is still around. She is still flying, is she not?”

“She is indeed, and she is doing better than you could imagine.”

“You do not know how happy I am to hear it, Edom,” Mister Coulthard said. “That ship is the last asset I have to pass on to my daughter upon my passing.”

“That’s what I came to speak to you about, Mister Coulthard. The Glendanon’s future.”

* * *

It had taken direct orders from Lord Dusahn, repeated twice, to convince his Zen-Anor detail to stay behind on the ship. Their opposition to the use of a small, unarmed cargo ship to transport their leader into potentially hostile territory had also fallen on deaf ears. The mission was too important to the empire, and their leader insisted on carrying it out himself.

The leader of his security detail was the only person in the empire who was allowed to refuse a direct order from his leader, if he felt it put his leader’s life in undue jeopardy. Because of that, Lord Dusahn had been forced to agree to let the sergeant and one other soldier accompany him, on the condition that they dress appropriately so as not to raise alarm.

Palee was not the most attractive world. Its surface was mostly covered with rocky, mountainous terrain and vast oceans. There was very little flat land, most of which was used for agriculture. Like most human-inhabited worlds, Palee had only one major city, surrounded by several smaller towns. Because of its terrain, and because its pockets of flat land were spread out all over the planet, its surrounding villages somewhat scattered, each surrounded by small fields of feed grains and disjointed pastures for grazing livestock. Dollag, their primary source of protein and nutrition, was the planet’s greatest export. The near-constant shifts between rain and sunshine provided the richest, fastest-growing grasses and produced the healthiest, best-tasting dollag. Both Palean dollag meat and the animals’ various byproducts were prized by most of the worlds in the Pentaurus sector, including those of the Dusahn Empire. The fact that Palee had refused to trade with the Dusahn would be a blow to Takarans, as their dollag meat was far less marbled and tasty. Lord Dusahn was just happy that he had enough of the quality protein in cold storage to last him for years, until he could convince the Paleans to trade with the empire one way or another.

Their ship had landed on one of four small pads carved into the rocky landscape near the Palean ship graveyard. Located at a slightly higher elevation than the facility itself, they had been able to get a good overview of the facility’s layout. He had expected a large, flat, desolate area, like most such facilities. Instead, he found a sea of precariously parked ships, unevenly spaced along the irregular rocky landscape. Like much of the planet, the entire area had once been at the bottom of a sea. Thus, hard sands filled the nooks and crevices between the rocks, forming small surfaces large enough to hold derelict spacecraft, but unable to support agriculture.

Such was Palee. Everything here existed between rocks and mountains. Everything here was either soaking wet or still drying from the last rainstorm. The rocks and abandoned spacecraft were covered with moss and fungus, creating a lingering stench that filled the air and caused many a visitor not to linger.

Still, it was not the worst world Lord Dusahn had visited in his lifetime. In the Pentaurus sector, he had found Haven to be the worst. Dry, dusty, and arid, with temperatures that swung from arctic to hell in a matter of hours. He had done humanity a great service by practically destroying that world’s meager infrastructure. Those who survived should have thanked him and immigrated elsewhere, happy for the excuse he had given them.

Griogair Dusahn had chosen a commoner’s outfit of dark pants and a long-sleeved shirt, along with boots and an overcoat. His intent was to appear as a well-to-do man who had built his business in nefarious dealings that commonly required the use of spacecraft of various types. The more wealthy his appearance, the more risk he would be in. Too poorly dressed, and his interest in a bulk purchase of spacecraft would not be taken seriously. It was a delicate balance, one that he hoped would help convince whomever he dealt with to provide discretion in regards to the local authorities. Despite the fact that he had created a trail of business credentials that encircled the entire sector, if one looked too closely, they would eventually discover the true origin of the funds he would be transferring to this world to complete the purchase.

Griogair actually enjoyed the subterfuge. His entire adult life, from the moment he had killed his last older brother and ascended to his current position, he had but to beckon to get what he desired. The act of tricking others into doing his bidding tickled his sense of adventure in a most unfamiliar way. He had even spent time during the journey to Palee studying several dialects of the Angla language that had once been universal to this region of space and had been resurrected since the fall of Caius Ta’Akar’s regime.

Griogair often thought he might have liked Caius Ta’Akar. The man had some unusual beliefs about how to run an empire, but he was not afraid to use his power to force his will upon his subjects. For that alone, Griogair respected him. He also respected Caius’s father before him, for the creation of the Ghatazhak. The concept of making a soldier more deadly and more loyal through incredible levels of education was an angle he had never considered. That, along with the loyalty programming instituted by Caius, had created near-perfect soldiers. The Ghatazhak did not have the ferocity of his Zen-Anor, but he could see the benefits that the Ghatazhak’s training regimen might bring to his own special forces. He also secretly wanted to fight a Ghatazhak himself, as a test of his own Chankarti skills. Alas, the Ghatazhak were more likely to die in combat than to be taken prisoner; yet another reason he respected them.

Lord Dusahn made his way down the path that wound between the rocks to the front door of the facility’s main office, his two Zen-Anor in civilian attire following behind him.

“One moment, sir,” the Zen-Anor sergeant insisted. The sergeant looked around, then gestured for his Zen-Anor comrade to take a position outside. “Okay, sir,” the sergeant finally told his leader.

Lord Dusahn pushed the door open and stepped inside. The office was unimpressive, with a small, unmanned reception desk and a few chairs. He could see down a small corridor leading to a back door, with doors on either side that likely led to other offices.

Within moments, a man at least twenty years his junior appeared, dressed in shabby, casual business attire. The first thing Lord Dusahn noticed was that Palean fashion was as uninspiring as its landscape.

“Good afternoon,” the young man greeted. “How may I help you?”

“It is my understanding that you sell spacecraft here,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“Indeed we do. Sell them we do. Lots of them. All kinds and all sizes,” the young man spouted eagerly.

Lord Dusahn hoped the young man was not representative of the population’s average level of intelligence. If so, he might have to reconsider reconquering this rock.

“What type of ships are you interested in?”

“Cargo ships, mostly. Preferably ones with some measure of defensive capabilities.”

“Defensive capabilities?” the young man questioned.

“Your name?” Lord Dusahn wondered.

“Oh, terribly sorry,” the young man replied, embarrassed that he had forgotten the first rule of sales. “Beal Dorona, at your service. You were saying you need defensive capabilities?”

“I run a small shipping company, and I am hoping to expand our operations. You know, to take advantage of the lack of available services now that the Dusahn have been run off.”

“Then why do you need defenses?” Beal wondered. “Not that it is any of my business, of course.”

“Let’s just say that I do not believe the Dusahn will give up control of this sector so easily, and since we are risking considerable capital in this expansion, I wish to minimize risk.”

“Certainly understandable,” Beal agreed. “However, from what I hear, the Karuzari pretty much wiped out the Dusahn fleet. Those assholes aren’t going to be bothering anyone for a long time.”

Lord Dusahn felt a surge of anger welling up inside. He wanted to reach out and snatch the insolent bastard’s still-beating heart from his chest. Instead, the only emotion he showed was a raised eyebrow. After a moment, he responded. “The absence of the Dusahn leaves a power vacuum in the rest of the sector, one that will be quickly filled with pirates and other nefarious types. I would not be surprised if the Karuzari themselves didn’t show up offering protection. Besides, I have heard, from reliable sources mind you, that the Dusahn still have quite a few smaller gunships and fighters, all of which could pose a threat to shipping. If my resources were greater, I might be inclined to start my own protection racket,” he ended, laughing.

“I see what you mean,” Beal agreed, laughing along with the strange man for fear of offending him.

“So my time is limited. Do you have what I need?”

“Oh yes, we do. Fighters, shuttles, drop ships, STO shuttles, small and medium cargo…all of them are here at our yards. And if we don’t have it here, we can acquire it from other providers, at a small finder’s fee, of course.”

“What about larger ships?” Lord Dusahn wondered. “I wouldn’t mind having a few medium-sized ships as well, as long as they have their own STO cargo shuttles.”

“Yes, we have several of those. However, they are parked in orbit around Yessin, the fourth planet in the system. I can provide you with the specs on any ship we have, both here and near Yessin, but to visit the ships in space, we would need to make an appointment.”

“I see,” Lord Dusahn replied, displeased.

“Uh, perhaps I can show you what we have here,” Beal suggested, hoping to keep his prospective client engaged long enough to make a sale. “We have an air-car out back so you do not have to climb about the yard. I can show you a few dozen ships in a single pass in less than half an hour, and then you can choose which ones to look at in person. Meanwhile, I’ll send word to my employer and see if he could arrange a tour of some of the ships orbiting Yessin on short notice.”

Lord Dusahn looked at his watch, appearing impatient.

“I promise it will not take long,” Beal assured him. “Some of our ships must be seen to be appreciated. And many of their defensive systems are not listed in their spec sheets—legal purposes—I’m sure you understand.”

Lord Dusahn sighed. “Very well.” He turned to the Zen-Anor sergeant behind him. “Contact the ship. Tell them we will be delayed.”

“Yes, sir,” the sergeant nodded.

“Very well, Beal,” Lord Dusahn said, gesturing for the young man to lead the way. “Show me what you’ve got.”

The young man smiled from ear to ear. “Right this way, Mister…”

“Griosan,” Lord Dusahn lied. “Denton Griosan.”

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mister Griosan. That’s a very unusual name. I don’t recognize the lineage.”

“It’s a long story,” Lord Dusahn replied as he and his underling followed the young salesman down the corridor toward the back door.

* * *

It had taken just over an hour for Nathan and Jessica to travel from the Aurora in the Darvano system all the way to SilTek, more than six hundred light years away. Most of that time had been spent shuttling from the Aurora to the Manamu, from the Manamu down to SilTek, and finally from the space port to the shipyards where the XK was being modified. They’d had the ability to jump long range for several weeks now, and though Nathan had made such jumps many times, it still amazed him.

When Nathan’s grandfather gave him his first flying lesson more than thirty years ago, the Earth had only had FTL capabilities for about a decade, and those had been small scout ships that took months to travel a mere ten light years. Nathan’s initial ride up to the Aurora had taken forty minutes.

Nathan and Jessica stepped out of the automated flying vehicle a good distance away from XK Seventy-Three. Nathan paused, taking in the view. There were at least thirty people and a dozen engineer robots of differing designs swarming all over the ship.

“It’s gray,” Jessica commented, a bit surprised.

“It is,” Nathan agreed.

“We weren’t expecting you ‘til tomorrow,” Marcus said as he approached.

“It was either today or three days from now,” Nathan replied. “She’s looking pretty good, Marcus. How did you choose the color scheme?”

“We figured a base coat of two-tone gray like the Aurora was a good start. Then Loki had the idea of adding white and blue highlights which are common for the Takarans, Corinairans, and Rakuens.”

“I think it’s too busy,” Jessica decided. “I would’ve just left it all gray.”

“I kind of like it,” Nathan disagreed. “I think the palette was a good choice.”

“Why even paint it at all?”

“We’re trying to create a unified fleet, Jess,” Nathan explained. “That means making them all look alike. The same reason we wear uniforms. Besides, we need to do as much as possible to make them not look like converted cargo ships.”

“Who cares?” Jessica asked. “As long as they have the firepower.”

“In politics, appearances are often more important than facts,” Nathan told her.

“Probably why I prefer guns.”

“I’m with her,” Marcus agreed.

The three of them turned and headed toward the XK as they talked.

“How long until she’s ready to fly?” Nathan asked.

“She can fly now,” Marcus replied, “but the entire ship would be in vacuum. We couldn’t make the Cobra ball turrets work, so we had to design entirely new guns. We should be done fabricating all the components by the end of the day, but we’ll still need a couple days to install them.”

“Can you seal the openings up temporarily?” Nathan wondered.

“That’s what we’re doing now,” Marcus assured him, pointing over his shoulder at the people working on top of the XK’s main section.

“What about the rest of the weapons?” Jessica asked.

“We finished installing all eight point-defense mini-turrets and all four plasma torpedo cannons from your brother’s wrecked gunship. So she’s got some teeth, just no fangs yet. She doesn’t have any reach, either.”

“The jump missile launchers?” Nathan surmised.

“Those components have been fabricated as well and are loaded in the aft cargo bays,” Marcus explained as he led them around the stern of the ship. “Problem is the tubes. We need to reroute a lot of systems in order to get a clear run to the exit points on the forward edge of the main section. Hell, we can’t even start assembly of the loading and launch systems until we get the damned launch tube in place. The assembly procedure starts at the aft end of the tube and works forward. It’ll be nice once it’s done, though. The Subvert geeks did a nice job designing it. You can choose from three different missile racks. They even figured out how to make the system load and launch both recon and comm-drones as well.”

“What about recovery systems?” Nathan asked.

“Not enough room to automate that, so we’ll have to recover them through the utility bay,” Marcus added as he pointed to the eight-meter-wide opening at the center of the backside of the ship. “But they installed a pressure shield around the opening of the bay, so that will make recovery a hell of a lot easier. And they cut transfer doors into the sides of the bay, so we can reload the recovered units back into the loading racks after we’ve refueled them.”

“Refueled them?” Nathan wondered, surprised.

“Them boys managed to find room for extra propellant tanks with a three-point refueling system.”

“Why three points?” Nathan wondered as they rounded the forward end of the port nacelle.

“One in the back for recovered missiles and drones, and one in each forward bay for those,” Marcus said, pointing at the open doors on the port forward cargo bay.

“What the…” Nathan spotted the ten-meter-wide opening. Inside the bay was a small fighter, its nose pointing outward. There were tanks above and below its wings, leaving barely enough space for the fighter’s wings between them. On the inboard side was a small platform running along the edge of the cockpit, its canopy slid forward. The platform was connected to some sort of articulating arm and had a retractable set of stairs leading from a hatch landing up high along the inboard bulkhead of the bay. “Are those?”

“P-Seventy-Two Lightnings,” Del confirmed, coming up from behind them. “One on each side.”

“How the hell did you fit them in there?”

“Actually, there was plenty of room for them. The hard part was fitting in the docking clamps, propellant tanks, refueling and charging umbilicals, access ladders, and ordnance storage.”

“Ordnance?” Jessica asked.

“Extra rockets for their pods,” Del explained. “We also managed to redesign the underside of the fighter so we could squeeze in an underhung mini-jump comm-drone. That way, they can still communicate with you from light years away.”

“I thought they could only micro-jump,” Nathan said.

“They managed to boost their single-jump range to one light year,” Marcus explained.

“If we could change out their fusion reactors for mini-ZPEDs, we could get them unlimited series jump range,” Del added. “Currently, they can jump a maximum of one light year, but then they’d need thirty minutes to recharge and jump again.”

“The extra jump range will be a tactical blessing,” Jessica commented.

“Whose idea was this?” Nathan asked.

“Depends,” Marcus replied.

“On what?”

“On whether you like it or not.”

Nathan looked at Marcus.

“It was his idea,” Marcus admitted, pointing at Del.

“It was a good one.”

“You’re going to need a couple of pilots for them,” Del said. “Lan and I are the best around. Actually, we’re the only ones around.”

“I thought you guys raced these things for sport,” Nathan commented.

“These are not the same, and they do not handle the same as the Lightning racers,” Del pointed out. “Lan and I have been doing all the test flying of these. Everyone else has only been flying them in VR, which is a bit different.”

“I thought SilTek’s VR was supposed to be the same as reality,” Jessica said.

“These were made and flown covertly,” Del explained. “We barely have enough flight data on them to be able to model a basic simulation, let alone a full-immersion VR version. We wouldn’t even have a basic sim if it weren’t for Dylan’s help with our AI code. The point is, there are only two people on SilTek who have ever flown them, and that’s Lan and I.”

“Which is why I need you both here, training pilots,” Nathan told him. “We’re looking at a fleet of twelve ships. That means we need twenty-four pilots who can fly these things, as well as fly the XK itself. And if you and Lan are the only pilots who have ever flown them, that makes you the best people to train twenty more pilots.”

“You said you needed twenty-four,” Del reminded him.

“I’m pretty sure Josh and Loki can figure out how to fly them,” Nathan explained. “Them, plus you and Lan, gives us twenty-four.”

Del smiled broadly. “I’ll start lining up pilots to train,” Del promised. “We’ve only got eight fighters at the moment, including these two, and we don’t have the resources to build more.”

“You will,” Nathan promised, “assuming you and your people are willing.”

“Oh, we’re willing,” Del insisted.

The three of them watched Del practically run away, obviously eager to get started.

“They seem to be working out,” Nathan said.

“As much as I hate to admit it, I was wrong about them,” Marcus admitted.

“What, they’re not annoying, little shits?” Jessica teased.

“No, they’re annoying for sure. But they’re hard-working, and they’re good at what they do. Creative as hell as well. We wouldn’t be near done without them.”

“I’m glad it worked out so well,” Nathan said.

“Just don’t tell them I said any of that.”

“Your secret’s safe with me,” Nathan promised.

“I’m not promising anything,” Jessica chuckled.

“What secret?” Josh asked as he, Loki, and Dylan came down the forward boarding ramp.

“Mind your business,” Marcus grumbled.

“Then we can fly her tomorrow?” Nathan asked.

“We’ll have her ready for a test flight by morning,” Marcus promised.

“What kind of test you wanna do?” Josh wondered.

“I was planning on using her to return to the Aurora.”

“For a test flight?” Dylan wondered. “Wouldn’t it be safer to start off small, like an interplanetary jump?”

“Real-world tests are kinda his thing,” Josh explained to Dylan. “Better get used to it.”

“What about the jump missile systems?” Marcus wondered. “It’s still going to take us a few days to finish that.”

“Will all the parts fit inside the ship?” Nathan asked.

“Yeah, but…”

“Can you assemble them in flight?”

“Most of it I suppose.”

“Then we can do some of it on the way and the rest on the Aurora,” Nathan told him.

“How the hell are you going to fit this inside the Aurora?”

“I said on the Aurora, not in her.”

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Marcus grumbled.

“It’ll be fine,” Nathan assured him.

“Captain,” Dylan interrupted. “My mom instructed me to invite you to dinner once you returned.”

“If she doesn’t mind the short notice, we can come tonight,” Nathan replied.

“We?” Jessica asked.

“You’re my bodyguard, aren’t you?” Nathan joked.

“I’ll give her a call and see,” Dylan replied, moving away to make the call.

“Great,” Marcus scowled. “You two go to a dinner party, and I get stuck here working late.”

“I’ll bring you some dessert,” Nathan joked. “Besides, I don’t think you want me working on this ship.”

“Hell no,” Marcus agreed. “There is one thing, though. If we’re going to ship out tomorrow, she’s gonna need a name. Or were you planning on calling her XK Seventy-Three?”

Nathan sighed, thinking. After a moment, he looked at Josh and Loki, and finally Marcus. “How about the KAS Dalen Voss?”

Marcus was silent for a moment. “Sounds like a damn good name, Cap’n,” he agreed, appearing a bit choked up.

“The Dalen Voss it is then.”

After another moment of silence, Josh spoke up. “If I die, can I get a ship named after me? But a cool one, not a bucket like this.”

Marcus rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we’ll call it the ‘KAS Dipshit’.”

* * *

“There were a few ships I found interesting,” Lord Dusahn stated as they returned to the sales office.

“The Orso shuttles?” Beal asked.

“Yes.”

“I thought I noticed an interest there.”

“Their top-loading feature would work nicely with the medium cargo transports you have in orbit.”

“The Twelve Eighteens, yes,” Beal agreed enthusiastically. “With auto-loading systems installed in all four cargo docking ports, the transfer process can be done without pressure-cycling, and without additional crew. A savings of both time and money. And the Orsos are single-pilot rated.”

“I was curious about how the pilots would get from the carrier into their shuttles,” Lord Dusahn commented.

“There is a small, short tunnel that connects the cockpit to the cargo bay,” Beal explained. “However, that means the pilots would have to wear pressure suits, or you’d have to pressure-cycle the cargo bays. I would suggest adding separate external docking ports with direct connections to the shuttle cockpits. I have seen Twelve Eighteens outfitted with additional, pressurized shuttle bays added to them.”

“All things to consider,” Lord Dusahn agreed.

“Shall I schedule you for a tour of the Twelve Eighteens?” the young salesman suggested as he followed Lord Dusahn to the front door.

“I shall have my people examine the specifications you have provided and get back to you,” he replied as they stepped outside. “I am concerned about their inadequate shielding and defenses.”

“The Twelve Eighteens are quite well shielded, and they have two defensive guns,” Beal reminded him. “Surely those would be adequate for most situations.”

Lord Dusahn looked about, noting both his second guard and the unsavory-looking character sitting on the front bench, whom the guard seemed to be keeping an eye on. “It is not most situations that concern me. As the old saying goes: ‘It is better to have the guns and not need them, than to need them and not have them.’”

“We can add them,” Beal assured him, fearing he was about to lose a potential customer. “For a modest fee.”

“I will be in touch, Mister Dorona. Thank you for your time.”

“Of course, Mister Griosan,” the young man replied politely as he backstepped toward the safety of his office. “I look forward to hearing from you.”

As if flipping a switch, Lord Dusahn’s demeanor changed, his usual swagger returning to his stride as he headed back toward his waiting shuttle, security detail in tow.

“I was unaware of your extraordinary acting abilities,” the sergeant stated as he followed his leader up the path toward the landing pad.

“It was all I could do to keep from ripping that idiot’s heart out of his chest,” Lord Dusahn grumbled.

“We have a tail,” the second guard stated, just loud enough for the others to hear.

The sergeant glanced back over his shoulder, spotting the man who had been sitting on the bench outside the sales office. “The path forks just ahead. He may be going to a different pad.”

“None of the other pads are currently occupied,” the second guard pointed out.

“His ride may be inbound,” the sergeant replied. “If he does not fall from our six at the fork, we will act.”

“Keep it discrete, gentlemen,” Lord Dusahn reminded. “There is still the chance that we may be doing business with this establishment.”

The three men continued up the path, passing the fork as they ascended the hillside toward their waiting shuttle. As expected, the man continued to follow them without veering away.

“Still there,” the second guard commented.

“Wait until we round these rocks ahead,” the sergeant stated. “They will conceal our activities from the yard cameras.”

“Understood,” the second guard replied.

Once around the bend and behind the large rocks, the two guards split off and took up semi-concealed firing positions from which to ambush their tail. Lord Dusahn, however, took a few more steps and stopped, turning to face the approaching threat.

“My lord,” the sergeant began to object.

“I will deal with the stranger,” Lord Dusahn insisted. “Take action if you see the need.”

“Yes, my lord,” the sergeant acknowledged, settling into his firing position.

Lord Dusahn stood confidently, his eyes on the spot where their follower would likely show his face. After half a minute, the man appeared, moving cautiously as he rounded the blind corner. The man’s eyes shifted back and forth, spotting both of Lord Dusahn’s guards in their firing positions. His eyes shifted back to Lord Dusahn, a smile growing as he slowly raised his open hands to shoulder height, indicating that he was not a threat.

“State your business or die,” Lord Dusahn stated firmly, his gaze cold and deadly.

“I mean you no harm, good sir,” the man assured him. “I am not armed.”

“Why are you following us?” Lord Dusahn inquired.

“I am known to young Mister Dorona as a trader of their ships, not of those belonging to others.”

“You are poaching his customers, then,” Lord Dusahn surmised.

“Such an ugly word. I prefer to think of it as ‘offering alternatives’,” the man insisted. “In your case, better alternatives.”

“I’m listening,” Lord Dusahn stated impatiently.

“I heard you speak of ships with more robust defenses. Perhaps it is not cargo ships you seek, but ships of war.”

“Such ships are not sold by Paleans,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“I am not Palean,” the man said, smiling more broadly.

Lord Dusahn exchanged a glance with his sergeant. “I’m still listening.”

* * *

“Good evening, Captain, Lieutenant Commander,” Miss Bindi greeted from the open doorway to her home.

“Good evening, Miss Bindi,” Nathan replied as he and Jessica stepped inside. “I hope you’ll forgive our attire. Our basic duty uniforms are all we brought with us. We were not expecting a dinner invitation.”

“That’s quite all right, Captain,” Miss Bindi assured him, closing the door behind them. “And please call me Caitrin. You are guests in our home after all.”

“Of course.”

“And may I call you Nathan?” she asked.

“Please.”

Miss Bindi looked at Jessica.

“Jessica please,” Jessica responded.

“Dinner will be ready shortly,” Caitrin informed them as she led them down the corridor.

“This isn’t at all what I was expecting,” Nathan admitted as he and Jessica followed their host through the palatial home.

“You were expecting the home from the simulation, no doubt,” Miss Bindi said. “I doubt you would have so easily accepted virtual Dylan’s story had he lived in a home such as this.”

“Probably not,” Nathan agreed.

“We used a low-income home design that is common to SilTek for that simulation,” Caitrin explained as she led them into the living room.

“Pretty nice for a low-income home,” Jessica commented.

“We find that quality of life goes a long way toward ensuring loyalty to the corporation.”

“Then why not give everyone a home like this?” Jessica wondered.

“Because the concept of effort and reward is the foundation of any civilized society,” Caitrin insisted. “Without it, workers become complacent, and progress stalls.”

“What about those who do not excel at their job?” Nathan asked. “Are they the ones who end up in the low-income housing?”

“Compensation on SilTek is based on effort, not result,” Caitrin explained as she moved behind the bar. “Besides, citizens are generally matched to jobs that suit their natural talents. Would either of you care for a drink?”

“Yes please,” Nathan replied.

Again, Caitrin looked to Jessica, who nodded.

“What happens if someone doesn’t care for the positions their talents are best suited for?” Nathan wondered.

“No one is forced to serve in a position against their will,” Caitrin explained as she placed three crystal goblets on the bar before her. “However, they do so knowing they might need to work harder than others to achieve the same results. We do have minimum standards to maintain after all.” Caitrin paused a moment, a dark red bottle in her hand. “Does this bother you, Captain?”

“Not at all,” Nathan assured her. “I did not mean to judge your ways. I only wish to understand them.”

“We have found that people are generally happier when they naturally excel at their work,” Caitrin explained as she partially filled each goblet with a blood-red liquid. “Is it not true on Earth as well?”

“I suppose so,” Nathan agreed. “However, it is more about liking what they do or feeling that they are contributing something of value that brings them fulfillment. History shows there are generally two types of workers. Those who need to find fulfillment from their work in order to be happy, and those who find their fulfillment away from work and are perfectly content to do a job that they care little about.”

“On SilTek, such tasks are performed by automation,” Caitrin explained as she brought two glasses out from behind the bar, handing one to Nathan and the other to Jessica.

“Are all citizens of your world required to work?” Jessica asked, sniffing the beverage.

“All those able and in need of support,” Caitrin explained. “For example, the disabled are provided for, and if the position of one partner provides enough to support them both, the other partner is not required to work. They may be forced to live a life of lesser means, but that is certainly within their rights.”

“What about the elderly?” Nathan wondered, accepting a goblet from Caitrin. “Are they able to retire?”

“Our people remain quite healthy in our elder years,” Caitrin explained. “Most continue to work until they are no longer able, at which point they are considered disabled and are provided for.”

“And at what level?” Nathan asked, a bit suspicious.

Caitrin smiled, picking up the third goblet for herself. “I assure you, Captain, we do not punish our disabled,” she said as she took her seat. “They may not be supported at the same level as when they were working, but they live quite comfortably.” She raised her goblet in salute. “To our new working relationship.”

Nathan and Jessica each raised their glasses and took a sip.

“Quite tart,” Nathan commented.

“It is a wine made from sachi berries that only grow in the middle latitudes of SilTek,” Caitrin explained. “It promotes immunity and good health. It is traditionally served to guests and for toasts to one’s health, or to a productive collaboration.”

“Then I take it you’ve decided to accept the position,” Nathan surmised.

“I have,” Caitrin confirmed.

“How does your employer feel about that?” Nathan wondered.

“She was displeased at first,” Caitrin replied. “There are few whom she trusts to negotiate in her stead. However, I convinced her of the advantages of having a Tekan managing the business side of our new alliance.”

Nathan’s eyebrow immediately shot up.

“Do not worry, Captain,” Caitrin stated, noting her guest’s suspicion. “SilTek shall see no favoritism from me.”

“No disrespect intended, Caitrin, but are you certain of that?” Nathan wondered. “After all, you are only human.”

“Agreed,” Caitrin replied. “That is why I intend on using an AI assistant to analyze all my decisions.”

“I’m not sure that makes me feel any better.”

“Me neither,” Jessica agreed.

“And there may be others who oppose the use of AIs in high-level decision making,” Nathan continued. “For example, the Corinairans are quite opposed to the use of artificial intelligence.”

“There are different levels of artificial intelligence,” Caitrin told them. “SilTek does not create what people think of as sentient AIs. While our AIs are able to learn from their experiences, and even correct inefficiencies in their own code, they do not feel. They are only self-aware to the point of knowing their purpose.”

“But using them for high-level decision making,” Nathan continued to object.

“We generally use them in two ways,” Caitrin explained. “Either to provide us with all possible outcomes of a decision, or to suggest the best course of action based on a desired outcome. We have been using them in the administration of SilTek for more than a century. We have found that they prevent us from making biased decisions.”

“Interesting concept,” Nathan admitted. “Still, it may be best to downplay the use of AIs in the beginning, at least until we know how they will be received by our members.”

“I strongly suggest that you make it known from the start,” Caitrin urged. “I would expect anyone intelligent enough to serve as an ambassador for their world to see the logic behind the use of an analytical AI.”

“Good point,” Nathan agreed.

“Now, there are many details we must discuss,” Caitrin stated. “However, I think it best we dine first. My husband should be serving at any moment, and he insisted that his tenna steaks are eaten hot.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“How’s she looking?” Nathan asked Marcus as he and Jessica approached the ship.

“She’s ready to fly,” Marcus replied, blurry-eyed.

“You been here all night?” Nathan asked, noticing his haggard-looking friend.

“We all have,” Marcus replied. “We found a few things that needed fixin’ before we could take her out for a spin, and we didn’t want to disappoint you.”

“What if something goes wrong during the flight?” Nathan wondered. “Are you going to be awake to deal with it?”

“I’ll be fine,” Marcus assured him. “SilTek’s got something similar to coffee. Tastes like shit, but it does the job.”

“Very well.” Nathan looked toward Del and the other Subvert volunteers as they approached. “Marcus tells me I should thank you all for your hard work,” Nathan said to them.

“I didn’t exactly say that,” Marcus grumbled.

“It was our pleasure, Captain,” Del replied.

“How many people do you have here?” Nathan wondered.

“Twelve on this crew,” Del replied. “Another thirteen are working on the nacelle refit, and a third group should be starting work in a few days. We should have your new long-jump nacelles ready within a week.”

“That’s great news,” Nathan exclaimed. “I can’t thank you enough, Mister Shelton.”

“No thanks are necessary,” Del insisted. “It’s been a pleasure working on something where we don’t have to scrounge for parts or wait until we have the funds to continue. Besides, we figure this is the best way we can help defend our world and put an end to the attacks we’ve suffered for decades.”

“I’ll be sure to deal with the worlds that have been harassing SilTek, just as soon as we solidify our foothold in the Pentaurus sector,” Nathan promised. “In fact, as soon as you can get the second XK ready, that will be her mission.”

Del smiled broadly. “We’ll get right on it.”

“Is everything loaded?” Nathan asked Marcus.

“All the parts for the missile launch and recovery systems are packed into the aft bays,” Marcus assured him. “Her tanks are topped, her galley’s full, and all her jump cells are fully charged. Hell, we even got two P-Seventy-Twos loaded up and ready to go.”

“Are you sure you don’t want a couple of Lightning pilots to come along?” Del suggested. “Lan and I are still available.”

“Thanks, but I need you both here,” Nathan explained. “Besides, I seriously doubt we’ll be needing them anytime soon.”

“Well, if you do need them, Dylan can show you how they work. They’re pretty easy to fly at lower speeds. It’s only when you start pushing the edge of the envelope that they get a bit tricky. Their software was designed for racing, not combat. We’re working on revisions, but it takes time.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Nathan said, patting Del on the shoulder as he headed for the forward boarding ramp that hung down under the nose of the ship.

Nathan, Jessica, and Marcus walked alongside the ship. Nathan paused a moment, noticing the name on the side of the ship. ‘KAS Dalen Voss’. He looked at Marcus, a smile on his face. “Very nice.”

“We thought about puttin’ his likeness under the name, but the kid was so damned goofy-looking.”

“That he was,” Nathan agreed, continuing forward.

The three of them reached the bottom of the forward boarding ramp and headed up the incline, ducking slightly to clear the forward edge of the bay above them. Once they reached the top, they stepped through the hatch into the forward corridor. Marcus pressed a button on the wall console, causing the ramp to retract, and then closed the inside hatch.

“All the staterooms are ready to go,” Marcus reported. “We kept all the stacked double-bunks, in case we need the extra room.”

“Good thinking,” Nathan agreed.

“For now, all the upper bunks are full of parts and supplies we didn’t have room for,” Marcus continued as they made their way to the steep stair ladder at the center of the corridor, “on account of the aft bays being packed full of missile launcher components. Once that’s fully assembled, the upper bunks will be clear.”

Nathan was the first up the ladder, followed by Jessica and then Marcus. When he reached the top, he turned to his left, making a one-eighty and heading forward between the rail and the starboard duty station. “Good morning, gentlemen,” he greeted Josh and Loki, who were already in their seats in the cockpit. “Ready to take the Voss for a short trip?”

“More than ready,” Josh replied. “I can’t wait to get off this rock.”

“You don’t like it here?” Nathan wondered.

“Everything is too damned nice and clean,” Josh complained.

“I rather like it,” Loki insisted.

“You would,” Josh replied. “Besides, the Aurora’s got better food.”

Loki frowned at his friend in surprise. “Are you kidding?”

“The food here is too fancy,” Josh insisted. “I don’t need all that crap.”

“We’ve already got clearance from SilTek Control,” Loki reported. “We can lift off whenever you like.”

“Then let’s get under way,” Nathan instructed.

“Now we’re talking,” Josh exclaimed, initiating the liftoff sequencer.

“I don’t understand,” Dylan admitted. “How can a world be ‘too clean?’”

“If you saw Haven, you’d understand,” Nathan replied.

“SilTek Control, this is the Dalen Voss. We are starting our liftoff sequence,” Loki reported over comms as the XK’s grav-lift systems began to hum.

“Dalen Voss, SilTek Control. You are cleared for departure via the Alberre corridor. Departure jump at three thousand meters.”

“Alberre corridor, jump at three thousand,” Loki confirmed as the hum intensified.

“On behalf of Ariana Batista and all Tekans, we offer congratulations on the launch of the Alliance’s first patrol ship, and we wish you a safe journey,” the controller added.

“Patrol ship?” Jessica wondered.

“It works, I suppose,” Nathan decided.

“Patrol-class it is, then,” Jessica replied, taking a seat at the starboard duty station.

The XK rose slowly as Del and the other Subvert volunteers watched. At a meter above the ground, her four landing struts retracted slowly up into her main hull as she continued to ascend. Once her gear was fully retracted, the ship rotated slowly to starboard about ninety degrees and then began moving forward as she climbed.

“She definitely has a smooth, quiet liftoff,” Loki commented.

“Reminds me of the Contra ships,” Nathan said as he gazed out the forward windows. The landscape slowly fell away, and the ship began to accelerate smoothly. He glanced down at Josh, noting that the pilot’s hands were just hovering over the flight controls and not actually touching them. “Trust her, Josh. She can fly herself.”

“Just promise me that I’ll eventually get to fly her manually,” Josh begged.

“Just as soon as we’re certain everything is working properly,” Nathan assured him.

“Coming up on jump altitude,” Loki reported. “On course for our first jump.”

“Jump when ready,” Nathan confirmed.

“Jumping in five seconds,” Loki replied. “Three……two……one…”

A brighter-than-usual jump flash filled the command deck, causing everyone to instinctively turn away.

“Departure jump complete,” Loki reported. “Long jump one of three, in thirty seconds.”

“A little bright, isn’t it?” Jessica complained.

“Yeah, we’re overpowering the emitters a bit,” Dylan confessed. “Something about the ‘bubble’ shape that Tekan emitters generate. We’re going to need to do some tweaking on them.”

“Maybe we need to change out all our windows to the auto-darkening stuff as well,” Nathan suggested.

“All of them?” Marcus grumbled.

“Might as well,” Nathan confirmed.

“Shade your eyes, people,” Loki warned. “Long jump one in three……two……one…”

Again, an overwhelming flash of blue-white light momentarily filled the compartment.

Nathan blinked several times. “Yes, definitely all of them.”

“Long jump one, complete,” Loki reported. “One hour until long jump two.”

“Do we have any reserve jump juice?” Jessica asked.

“Del’s people installed a reserve bank that receives a constant trickle charge, so we always have enough for a quick escape,” Dylan explained.

“How far?” Nathan asked.

“Enough for about a light day.”

“It’s got three range settings,” Loki added. “One light minute, one light hour, and one light day.”

“So we can make fourteen hundred and forty one-minute jumps?” Nathan asked.

“Or twenty-four one-hour jumps,” Marcus told him.

“Or any combination of the two,” Josh added, “as long as they don’t add up to more than a light day.”

“That should do it,” Nathan decided. “Let’s go check out the rest of the ship while we’re waiting for our jump cells to recharge,” he suggested.

“If you don’t mind, I’m going to take a shower,” Marcus declared.

“Good idea,” Nathan agreed.

* * *

Lord Dusahn stood at the center of the small warship’s bridge, carefully examining the displays of the various duty stations while his lead inspector studied the ship’s systems’ readouts.

“Ship-wide diagnostics are complete,” his inspector reported. “All systems are operating as designed.”

Lord Dusahn turned to his second. “Your assessment, Mister Jexx?”

“Calling this ship a destroyer is a bit of a stretch,” the commander, who was also dressed in civilian attire, began. “More a cross between a heavy gunship and a small frigate. They are somewhat underpowered, and we would be unable to maintain shields and full firepower while jumping.”

“Can we add additional power sources?” Lord Dusahn asked.

“There is space in the cargo holds,” the inspector agreed. “However, we would have to route power conduits to them.”

“They are not terribly maneuverable, either,” Commander Jexx added.

“The quad-cannons more than make up for their lack of maneuverability,” the seller insisted.

“The drain from the quad-cannons is what makes the ship underpowered,” Commander Jexx rebutted.

“These ships were not built as warships,” the inspector opined. “That much is obvious.”

“They were originally built as armed transports,” the seller explained. “Later, the quad-cannons were added, and their cargo capacity was reduced, thus converting them into what the original owners considered to be destroyers.”

“Calling a ship a destroyer does not make it one,” Commander Jexx commented.

“Where did you acquire these vessels?” Lord Dusahn questioned the seller.

“The current owner wishes to remain anonymous,” the seller replied. “Political appearances and all. Surely a man of your status can understand.”

Lord Dusahn glared at the seller.

“All I can say is that they were prizes acquired through an armed conflict between two worlds,” the seller said. “The victor has enough of his own ships and much work to do to recover from the conflict. The revenue from the sale of these ships will help.”

“And the other five ships are in similar condition?” Lord Dusahn asked.

“Indeed they are, Mister Griosan. You are, of course, free to inspect them as well.”

“We shall,” Lord Dusahn confirmed. “If you’ll excuse us a moment.”

“Of course,” the seller agreed, turning and heading off the bridge.

Lord Dusahn waited long enough for the seller to depart the bridge, then turned to his underlings.

“I don’t like them,” the inspector stated plainly.

“Neither do I,” Commander Jexx agreed. “However, they would provide us with additional protection far more quickly than outfitting unarmed ships.”

“The shields are garbage,” the inspector insisted.

“Which is probably why they lost their little war,” Lord Dusahn stated.

“Every piece of technology on this ship, with the exception of its jump drive, is grossly inferior to ours.”

“Yet they are here, ready to press into service.”

“I would not want to take them into battle,” Commander Jexx warned. “Not without upgrading their shields and power generation capabilities at the very least.”

“Then that will be our first priority,” Lord Dusahn decided.

“There are too many points of entry as well,” Commander Jexx pointed out. “They would be difficult to defend against a boarding attempt.”

“That’s one of the things I like about them,” Lord Dusahn admitted.

“Getting them up to our standards will be expensive,” the inspector warned.

“We’d best get them at a good price,” Commander Jexx stated. “Our accounts are not bottomless.”

“I will get the price down to something tolerable,” Lord Dusahn assured him. “Trust me on that.” He turned toward the exit. “Mister Dekkan,” he called out.

A moment later, the seller appeared.

“To save time, you and I should begin the negotiating process while my people inspect the other five vessels,” Lord Dusahn suggested.

A smile came across Mister Dekkan’s face as he contemplated the size of his commission. “Shall we use the captain’s ready room?” he suggested. “I have lunch prepared.”

“An excellent idea,” Lord Dusahn agreed.

* * *

“I thought you were jumping the ship,” Nathan asked as Josh came down the access stairs to the landing alongside the P-Seventy-Two Lightning’s cockpit.

“Marcus can handle it.”

“Marcus?” Dylan said, his eyes widening.

“Relax, the AI’s flying it,” Josh explained. “Marcus is just monitoring it. Whattaya think, Lok?” he asked Loki, who was sitting in the Lightning’s cockpit. “Your big ass fit in that thing?”

“A little tight, but I fit,” Loki replied, ignoring his friend’s jab. “What are these pedals for?” Loki asked Dylan, looking down at the floor between his legs.

“Acceleration and lift,” Dylan explained. “Right pedal makes you go, left pedal keeps you in the air.”

“Sounds easy enough,” Josh commented.

“It’s a little more complex than it first appears,” Dylan warned. “The pedals only work with the grav-drive, so only when you’re in the atmosphere. The further you get from the surface, the less responsive those pedals become.”

“How does it fly in space then?” Nathan wondered.

“That was the hard part,” Dylan stated. “They had to beef up the chassis and wing structures to accommodate the additional propulsion and maneuvering systems required to navigate in a micro-gravity environment.”

“You mean the original version was smaller?” Loki wondered, already cramped enough in the tiny cockpit.

“The cockpit is the same, just the body and wings are slimmer. The fighter versions aren’t actually as fast as the racing versions, at least down low, because they’re heavier and not as aerodynamic.”

“Can’t you just use the main propulsion down low to go faster?” Josh wondered.

“Not a good idea,” Dylan warned. “The altered hull isn’t really strong enough to survive the additional atmospheric friction. That’s why we don’t climb to orbit in them; we jump.”

“So they’re flying tin cans,” Josh decided.

“Tin?”

“A type of metal,” Nathan explained to Dylan.

“Oh, they’re completely composite. Very little metal in them at all,” Dylan assured him.

“Great, they’re plastic,” Josh said.

“Plastic?” Dylan wondered.

“Never mind,” Nathan told him. “Continue.”

“Where was I?” Dylan wondered.

“How do you steer this thing?” Josh asked.

“You have a five-axis flight control stick on the right,” Dylan explained. “Pitch, roll, yaw, and fore-aft and port-starboard translations on the base. Upward and downward translation are on the side toggle on the upper left side of the stick.”

“So pretty standard then,” Josh concluded.

“What about these sliders on the left?” Loki wondered. “Are these throttles?”

“The larger one is your main propulsion throttle. The smaller ones are the power levels for your maneuvering thrusters and your grav-drive systems.”

“I thought the pedals were for the grav-drive,” Loki stated.

“They are,” Dylan replied. “The sliders adjust the amount of available power to those systems. For example, with the accelerator pedal down halfway and the forward power slider at halfway, you’ll probably be cruising along at about three hundred KPH. Put the pedal all the way down, and you’ll be at around six hundred. But push the power slider all the way to the max, and your top speed will be about twelve hundred KPH, depending on atmospheric conditions.”

“So this thing will go supersonic?” Nathan wondered. “Without the space drive?”

“Of course,” Dylan replied, shocked that Nathan was so surprised. “The racing versions are at least forty percent faster.”

“And you race them at low altitudes?” Nathan asked.

“Yes.”

“How low?” Josh wondered.

“Professional level races are flown under a thirty-meter ceiling.”

“Supersonic at thirty meters?” Nathan couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Below thirty meters,” Dylan corrected.

“Do people die in these races?” Jessica wondered.

“Occasionally,” Dylan admitted. “But usually because someone tried to go professional before they were truly ready.”

“I think I may have found myself a new career,” Josh joked.

* * *

“One hundred trillion credits per ship is a very good deal,” Mister Dekkan insisted.

“I am not arguing that it is a fair price,” Lord Dusahn replied. “But paying it will leave me little money for the necessary upgrades.”

“Perhaps you can upgrade them a little at a time, as revenue permits?”

Lord Dusahn resisted the urge to glare at the man or reach out and kill him with a single blow. “Perhaps I should only buy four of them.”

“I’m afraid the price only applies to the purchase of all six ships as a group.”

“Really,” Lord Dusahn commented, annoyed.

“A small fleet of warships has a very limited market. Most buyers are only interested in one, maybe two vessels. Selling them individually would fetch a far lesser profit for my client.”

“And a far lesser commission for yourself,” Lord Dusahn added.

Mister Dekkan smiled. “Ninety-five trillion credits per ship, and that is as low as I can go. I too have mouths to feed.”

“I suspect you feed them quite well, Mister Dekkan,” Lord Dusahn stated. “Ninety-five trillion per ship, all six ships then.”

Mister Dekkan could barely contain his glee. “And how would you like to make payment?”

“It will take me a few days to get an escrow account created and to move funds into that account.”

“Actually, we have an escrow account that we use for such transactions.”

“I would prefer to create one myself,” Lord Dusahn insisted.

“I’m afraid I must insist that you use our escrow account,” Mister Dekkan insisted.

“I will not put five hundred seventy trillion credits into an escrow account of your choosing,” Lord Dusahn replied emphatically.

“I’m afraid it is a requirement of the sale.”

Lord Dusahn rose without hesitation. “Then I shall not waste any more of your time,” he stated, turning to exit. “Good day, Mister Dekkan.”

“Wait…”

Lord Dusahn, his back now to Mister Dekkan, smiled.

“I’m sure my client would be willing to make an exception, considering the size of this transaction,” Mister Dekkan offered, barely able to hide his desperation.

Lord Dusahn turned slowly to face Mister Dekkan again. “Give me three days, and I will meet you here, at these same coordinates.”

“Actually, the exchange will take place at a different location. That, I must insist on.”

Lord Dusahn sighed. “Very well,” he acquiesced. “But how am I to find you?”

Mister Dekkan pulled out a small data card, sliding it across the desk to Lord Dusahn. “This data card contains instructions on how to contact me. Once we have received verification that the full amount is in your escrow account, we will send you the rendezvous coordinates. Once your crews are in place on all six vessels and our people have disembarked, you will provide me with the escrow account’s control chip. Once I have verified control of the escrow account, I will transmit the control codes for all six ships, and the transaction will be complete.”

Lord Dusahn did not look impressed. “I suppose that will have to do.” He looked at Mister Dekkan, his eyes narrowing. “Should you cross me, Mister Dekkan, I will take it as a personal slight and will seek appropriate recompense.”

“I wouldn’t dream of slighting you, sir,” Mister Dekkan assured him. “Just as you would not dream of slighting me,” he added, his own expression becoming somewhat sinister. After a moment, his expression returned to normal. “Would you care for some more kuffel?” he asked, picking up the sampling platter.

“Yes I would,” Lord Dusahn replied, taking another piece of the colorful fruit and popping it in his mouth. “A very interesting taste,” he stated as the sweet juice exploded in his mouth.

“It is quite rare and quite expensive.”

“I don’t suppose you could leave some in the ship’s galley for us?” Lord Dusahn wondered.

“I’m certain that can be arranged,” Mister Dekkan said, smiling as he took a piece for himself.

Enjoy your fruit, Lord Dusahn thought. Your days are numbered.

* * *

“Yawing one eighty,” Josh announced as he twisted the Voss’s flight control stick to the right.

“Why do you insist on doing such things manually?” Dylan complained.

“It’s all about getting a feel for her,” Josh defended.

“I mean, I could see if you were doing more complex maneuvers, but a simple yaw?”

“Does this guy have an off switch?” Josh wondered.

“Just let him do what he does,” Loki told Dylan. “Trust me, you’re not going to change him.”

“But this is an unnecessary risk!” Dylan exclaimed. “Look how close we are!” he added, pointing out the windows at the much bigger Aurora only a hundred meters away.

“You call this close?” Josh laughed.

“I’d suggest you don’t look out the windows when Josh is flying,” Loki suggested.

“You’re kidding, right?” Dylan surmised.

“Works for me,” Loki assured him, his attention on his console, and not out the windows.

The much smaller XK yawed to the right as it slid alongside the port side of the Aurora. As the Voss’s nose came around, its thrusters fired again, arresting its rotation around its vertical center axis. A tiny blast from its dorsal translation thrusters, and it began to descend relative to the Aurora, approaching its new, wide-open port aft flight deck.

“Yaw maneuver complete,” Loki reported, closely monitoring the Voss’s flight displays as Josh manually guided the ship toward its final touchdown point. “Thirty seconds to pressure shield penetration.”

Nathan reached up and switched one of the view screens above him to display the aft-facing camera. He could clearly see the pale blue glow of the shield.

“That’s different,” Josh noted as Loki switched the camera view on the center console to the same, aft-facing camera. “You sure that thing works?”

“We’ve been using pressure shields since before I was born,” Dylan replied. “I’ve never heard of them failing. In fact, we have a modified version over our backyard. It can be cold and rainy everywhere else, and still be warm and dry in our yard.”

“That’s just weird,” Josh commented.

“For us it’s normal.”

“I’m with Josh,” Marcus grumbled. “It’s just not natural.”

“Penetration in three,” Loki interrupted. “Two……one……”

The Voss settled in a single meter above the Aurora’s port aft flight deck, arresting its descent with a single puff from the translation thrusters along its ventral side, its aft end penetrating the semi-opaque, pale blue shield. A brilliant blue line walked across the hull of the ship, followed by a much paler line two meters behind it. The pair of lines continued forward until the Voss fired its aft thrusters, ceasing its advance relative to the deck it was about to touch down upon.

“That’s it,” Josh reported, taking his hands off the controls as the Voss’s motion relative to the Aurora ceased.

“Aurora Approach, Voss has neutral relative hover at one meter off the deck.”

“Voss, Aurora Approach, bringing up the gravity. Prepare for touchdown.”

“I could’ve parked it, ya know,” Josh insisted.

“A ship this size has a lot more mass than a shuttle or a fighter, Josh,” Nathan pointed out.

“Not much more than the Seiiki,” Josh argued, “and I set her down manually all the time.”

“She’s got three times the mass of the Seiiki,” Loki corrected. “And she’s not even fully loaded.”

“I still could’ve set her down myself,” Josh insisted as all four gear touchdown lights lit up simultaneously.

“Are we down?” Marcus wondered, not having felt anything.

“No way,” Jessica commented.

“Not as gently as that, you couldn’t,” Nathan told Josh.

Josh had no reply.

“Shut down and secure the ship, then take the rest of the day off,” Nathan instructed Josh and Loki as he turned and headed aft. “We’re gear up again in twenty-four hours. Shall we?” Nathan said to Marcus and Jessica as he passed.

“This should be interesting,” Marcus grumbled, falling in behind Nathan and Jessica.

Nathan led them down the few steps to the short corridor connecting the operations deck of the Voss to its common room. He stepped through the two airlock hatches and into the common room, skirting around the table at its center and stepping through the open hatch on the opposite side.

Another hatch, and he was in the center octagonal compartment that connected the dorsal gun position, the main cargo deck, and the ventral gun positions. He slid down the ladder to the cargo deck, then headed aft through the next hatch and into the Voss’s utility bay at the aft end.

“You sure you wanna do that?” Marcus warned as Nathan reached for the ramp controls.

“Atmo sensors are in the green,” Nathan told him, pointing at the display.

“There ain’t no bulkheads out there, Cap’n.”

“If Vlad says they work, they work,” Nathan insisted, slapping the ramp deployment activation button with his hand.

“You got a lot more faith in that guy than I do,” Marcus grumbled as the ramp motors sounded and the hatch began to deploy. There was a small hiss of escaping air as the minor pressure differential between the interior of the Voss and that of the shielded area outside equalized.

Marcus felt his ears pop, causing him a minor concern at first.

“I guess I should’ve equalized before cracking the hatch, huh,” Nathan admitted, noticing the look of disapproval on his friend’s face.

“Would’ve been nice,” Jessica agreed, stretching her jaw wide open to equalize the pressure within her own ears.

The ramp passed the horizontal plane as it continued to deploy, and Nathan and Jessica headed out as it cycled to its downward, angled position. Timing their progress just right, they stepped off the end of the ramp and onto the deck of the Aurora just as the distal end of the ramp kissed the deck with a small, metallic thud.

“Welcome back,” Cameron greeted as she and Vladimir sauntered toward them from the forward, covered end of the port aft flight deck.

“I never thought I’d be walking on this deck without a pressure suit,” Nathan commented as he paused to turn around and look at the shimmering, semi-opaque shield cutting across the forward half of the Voss’s center main section.

“You could’ve parked a few meters tighter in,” Cameron suggested.

“We need the room to unload,” Nathan explained.

“Unload what?”

“All the stuff that Vlad and his people will be helping us install,” Nathan replied.

“What stuff?” Vladimir asked.

“Missile launching systems.”

“How soon do you need them?” Vladimir asked.

“Twenty-four hours.”

Vladimir said nothing, rolling his eyes and heading toward the Voss.

“We need our main guns working too,” Jessica added.

Thankfully, no one understood what came out of Vlad’s mouth next.

“How was your flight?” Cameron asked as she, Nathan, and Jessica headed toward the main hatch at the forward end of the flight deck.

“Everything worked as expected,” Nathan replied. “But it was a pretty routine series of jumps. Josh was begging me the entire way to let him cut loose on the controls. I finally let him execute the landing manually just to shut him up.”

“I thought you had a sim for the XKs,” Cameron commented as they passed through the main cargo hatch and into the port large transfer airlock, which was now more of a staging area for various equipment.

“According to Josh, its manual flight simulation is woefully lacking,” Nathan explained. “Not surprising, I suppose, since its source code is from a role-playing simulation.”

“So what’s next?” Cameron wondered as the three of them continued across the bay.

“We plan to depart this time tomorrow for Rakuen.”

“You think Vlad and his people can finish things up by then?” Jessica asked.

“As long as he gets our two main guns working, I’ll be happy.”

“I’d rather we had all the weapons systems operational,” Jessica insisted.

“If they can get the launch tubes installed before we depart, we can work on the rack assemblies on Rakuen.”

“How long are we going to be there?” Jessica wondered.

“Same as here,” Nathan replied. “Twenty-four hours.”

* * *

“Comms,” Nathan called to Naralena as he entered the Aurora’s bridge. “Get Captain Gullen on vid-comm and pipe it into my ready room.”

“Aye, sir.”

Nathan continued to his ready room, followed by Cameron and Jessica.

“The real problem will be getting crews trained,” Cameron said, continuing their ongoing conversation as the three of them entered the ready room. “We may not be able to staff the XKs if the Subvert volunteers are able to crank them out as quickly as you say.”

“There are worse scenarios than having more ships than crew,” Nathan said as he took a seat behind his desk. “Besides, Rogen command has been pushing for more of their people to be crewing the Orochi. They’ve had volunteers from both Rakuen and Neramese in training for weeks now. So we should be able to cycle out some of the non-native personnel from the current Orochi crews for the XKs. If we time it right, it may not even impact our current readiness.”

“But aren’t we just swapping one platform for another?” Cameron suggested. “Maybe our resources are better spent elsewhere.”

“The Orochi are big, lumbering boats,” Jessica argued. “Lots of guns and missiles, yes, but they’ve got very little in the way of mission flexibility.”

“Which is why we need the XKs,” Nathan agreed, pointing at Jessica. “They can haul supplies, ferry troops, conduct SAR ops; you name it.”

“They can’t launch massive jump-missile strikes,” Cameron reminded him.

“No, they can’t,” Nathan admitted. “But I’m hoping that such strikes will no longer be necessary. At least not for the immediate future.”

“If you take crew from the Orochi too quickly, Rogen command is going to be unhappy,” Cameron pointed out. “They’re already complaining that most of their ships are protecting other systems and not their own.”

Nathan thought for a moment. “I guess we’ll just have to upgrade the Orochi’s jump drives as well.”

“That will require additional interior space,” Cameron argued. “Something the Orochi don’t have.”

“Take out a few of their missile launchers or reduce their internal missile storage capacity,” Nathan suggested. “That should make enough room for the longer-range jump drive components.”

“You want to reduce their strike capacity?” Cameron questioned, surprised by his suggestion.

“We’re no longer fighting the war we were a week ago,” Nathan told her. “What we need going forward is flexibility, not single-strike firepower. The more this alliance grows, the greater the possibility that an enemy can lure us to one area while they attack another.”

“An enemy?” Cameron wondered. “You’re expecting someone other than the Dusahn?”

“Aren’t you?” Jessica wondered.

“There are at least three entities who attack SilTek with some degree of regularity,” Nathan explained. “Then there are the Ilyan Gamaze, the Tremen, and let’s not forget that pirate band we had to deal with. That’s just the threats we know of, and across just a few dozen inhabited systems we’re acquainted with. If there are indeed many more colonized worlds out there, then it stands to reason there will be many more potential enemies as well.”

Cameron sighed. “Point taken.”

Jessica looked at both Cameron and Nathan. “Is it just me, or does anyone else ever wonder if we picked the wrong careers?”

“Every day of my life,” Nathan chuckled.

The intercom beeped, and Naralena’s voice came through. “Captain Gullen on vid-comm, sir.”

“Put him through,” Nathan replied, activating the large view screen on the wall over the couch.

The view screen came to life, and Captain Gullen appeared, sitting in his quarters on the Glendanon.

“Captain Scott,” Edom greeted. “How is your new ship?”

“She still needs some work, but she’s space-worthy,” Nathan replied. “Were you able to locate any of the Glendanon’s shareholders?”

“Only one. Ross Coulthard. He is one of the few surviving shareholders, with one of the largest percentages of shares in the Glendanon.”

“Were you able to speak with him?”

“Yes,” Captain Gullen replied. “He was quite forthcoming and is supportive of your plans for the Glendanon. However, he alone cannot grant permission without at least attempting to speak with the other investors.”

“I don’t get it; we’ve been using it without his permission for months now,” Jessica commented.

“Only because the Glendanon’s operating protocols grant her captain the authority to make any decision necessary when unable to obtain permission from the board,” Captain Gullen explained.

“We would have been better off not contacting the shareholders,” Jessica stated.

“If Mister Coulthard is the only shareholder you could find, he should be able to make the decision, shouldn’t he?” Cameron posited.

“Mister Coulthard has promised to do his best to find as many shareholders as possible. He believes that at least a few of them are still alive but in hiding.”

“And if he is unable to reach them?” Nathan asked.

“The board has its own protocols. One of those states that there must be at least two shareholders present in order to vote on any proposed course of action. If two are not present, then the Glendanon must cease operations until more shareholders can either be located or more investors buy in, thus giving the board more than one vote.”

“And what if no other investors can be found, or no one else is willing to become an investor?” Nathan wondered.

“Then the lone shareholder must petition the court to transfer all shares to the sole surviving shareholder.”

“You said Mister Coulthard is supportive of our plans for the Glendanon,” Cameron chimed in. “Why don’t we just get the court to award all shares to him?”

“That is an option,” Captain Gullen agreed. “However, the court would require an exhaustive search for the unaccounted-for shareholders prior to granting the petition. Under normal circumstances, this would take a minimum of six months. At present, who knows.”

“Great,” Jessica complained. “So we’re stuck.”

“There is another legal option,” Captain Gullen continued. “Under times of emergency, the government can invoke ‘right to use’ laws and take control of whatever resources it needs to deal with the emergency. This would include ships like the Glendanon.”

Nathan sighed. “I’d prefer not to go that route.”

“Surely current conditions qualify as an emergency,” Cameron stated.

“Perhaps,” Nathan agreed, “but we don’t want this alliance to be seizing control of ships. It’s a bad precedent to set.”

“There is one other option available to us,” Captain Gullen said. “Assuming Mister Coulthard’s search for the other investors turns up no one, he could sell us half of his shares, thereby giving us equal voting rights as a shareholder, thus meeting the two-shareholder minimum requirements for a lawful vote.”

“Why half?” Nathan asked.

“To ensure that the lone shareholder is not selling a single share to someone in order to rig the vote in his favor.”

“That’s stupid,” Jessica exclaimed.

“Most laws are,” Captain Gullen added.

“How much would those shares cost?” Cameron wondered.

“They would not be cheap,” Captain Gullen warned. “Mister Coulthard is a majority shareholder, and legally the value of his shares would have to be reassessed. Considering all the upgrades we have made to the Glendanon over the past few months, those shares have likely quadrupled in value.”

Nathan sighed again. “Then I guess we have no choice but to wait and see if Mister Coulthard finds any shareholders.”

“That would seem best,” Captain Gullen agreed.

“Let us know if you hear anything from Mister Coulthard,” Nathan added.

“I shall,” Captain Gullen promised, ending the call.

“What do we do if no other shareholders can be found?” Jessica asked.

“We can’t afford to buy half the shares,” Cameron agreed.

Nathan sighed a third time. “I really do not know.”

* * *

Mister Dekkan stood at the front of his ship’s shuttle bay, four armed men spread out to either side, watching as his guest’s shuttle rolled out of the transfer airlock and into the bay. The shuttle turned slightly to starboard, turning to a forty-five-degree angle to him before coming to a stop.

“Entry scans show five occupants, four of them armed,” the guard to Mister Dekkan’s right reported. “The shuttle itself is unarmed.”

The ramp of the shuttle began to deploy, and Mister Dekkan signaled one of the guards to his left to prepare. The guards split into two pairs, each pair moving into position to have clear lines of fire on the shuttle’s hatch as it opened.

As expected, four men appeared, each dressed differently, yet all carrying identical weapons and moving in a fashion that indicated considerable training.

Mister Dekkan’s guards immediately raised their weapons to the ready but without actually taking aim. The guest’s guards did not respond, and their expressions did not change as they took up positions on either side of the boarding ramp.

Finally, the buyer stepped out, coming down the ramp with the same confidence and swagger as before.

“Mister Griosan,” Mister Dekkan greeted in a business-like fashion. “A rather large shuttle for such a small group.”

“Mister Dekkan,” Lord Dusahn greeted in return. “It is an older design, and its systems are quite bulky,” he continued, looking around the bay. “An impressive vessel for someone dealing in used spacecraft.”

“The nature of this particular transaction necessitates such a vessel,” Mister Dekkan explained. “I don’t normally travel with such firepower. I’m sure you understand.”

“Of course,” Lord Dusahn replied. “I trust you have verified the balance in the escrow account.”

“We have been checking the balance every few minutes since you transmitted the monitoring codes,” Mister Dekkan assured him. “Nothing personal.”

“Of course.”

“Was there no pilot?”

“I piloted the shuttle myself,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“A man of many talents. I trust you brought the escrow control key?”

Lord Dusahn reached into his jacket pocket, slowly pulling out a small data chip, holding it up for Mister Dekkan’s men to see before handing it to their employer.

Mister Dekkan smiled as he accepted the chip, immediately inserting it into a small comm-device pulled from his pocket. “This will take a few minutes.”

“I understand,” Lord Dusahn replied, looking around the bay. “This is a fine ship. Well armed as well, I suppose.”

“Very well armed,” Mister Dekkan replied, “and well shielded. I am about to hand you control of six heavily armed vessels, after all.”

“I don’t suppose you’re willing to sell this ship as well,” Lord Dusahn wondered. “I’d be willing to pay top credit for her.”

“This ship is not mine to sell,” Mister Dekkan explained. “If it were, I suspect I would be in an entirely different business.”

“Pity.”

“You know, you never mentioned why you need so many warships.”

“I wasn’t aware that knowledge was required for this transaction,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“It is not,” Mister Dekkan admitted. “I am just curious.”

“Let’s just say that I have been entrusted to protect the interests of a particular system whose import and export traffic is at risk.”

“Then they are to be escort ships,” Mister Dekkan presumed.

“Something like that.”

Mister Dekkan cast a suspicious eye at his guest. “You are somewhat cagey, Mister Griosan.”

“Information loses its value the more people that share it.”

Mister Dekkan smiled. A moment later, the device in his hand beeped, and a small light along the top of the key-chip flashed red. Mister Dekkan’s smile turned to a look of concern.

“Something wrong, Mister Dekkan?” Lord Dusahn wondered. “I trust the key-chip correctly verified.”

“It did, but this red light on the chip…”

“That is nothing to be concerned about,” Lord Dusahn assured him. “So long as you hand over control of the merchandise as promised.”

“I don’t understand.”

“The key-chip has been fitted with a small amount of an explosive compound,” Lord Dusahn explained. “Something my people call tre shaw te. Not particularly powerful, but completely undetectable. Fortunately, the tiny amount coated onto that chip is enough to kill you and anyone around you. Perhaps even damaging this entire deck. Furthermore, now that you have activated it, you cannot move it from this region of space, nor can you move it more than a meter from your body, as either will cause the device to detonate.”

Mister Dekkan looked uncertain.

“You did not think I was going to hand you access to five hundred seventy trillion credits without some kind of guarantee, did you?”

After a moment, Mister Dekkan replied, “I suppose not.” Mister Dekkan took a breath, calming himself. “Then how are we to proceed?”

“My crews have already docked to the airlocks of all six vessels,” Lord Dusahn explained. “Allow them to board and take their positions. Once you have evacuated your men from all six of my ships, you will transmit the control codes, releasing control of the ships to my people. Once you have done so, I will give you the code to deactivate the explosive device on the key-chip. We will depart, and you will be free to retrieve your credits.”

“How do I know that you will not open fire on us once you have control of your ships?” Mister Dekkan asked.

“Surely you have built in a delay cascade on the control codes,” Lord Dusahn stated.

Mister Dekkan smiled again. “I suspect you and I would get along quite well under different circumstances.”

“Doubtful.”

Mister Dekkan turned to the guard on his left, nodding.

The guard touched the comm-set on his ear. “Let the crews board and take position,” he called over comms. “Evac all our people back to the Lintas.”

“The Lintas,” Lord Dusahn stated. “An interesting name.”

“How so?” Mister Dekkan wondered.

“In my native language, it means ‘bringer of doom’. Appropriate for a warship, don’t you think?”

“What language would that be?” Mister Dekkan innocently inquired.

Lord Dusahn smiled. “This could take some time. I don’t suppose you have any more of that kuffel, do you?”

Mister Dekkan did not look amused.

“Surely we can complete this business transaction in a civil manner?” Lord Dusahn suggested. “After all, we are both just protecting our interests.”

After a moment, Mister Dekkan turned and gestured toward the forward hatch. “We shall wait in my quarters,” he said. “But I must insist that you stay close to me at all times,” he added with a smile. “Surely you can understand.”

“Of course,” Lord Dusahn agreed. “But my men shall be accompanying us.”

“As will mine,” Mister Dekkan replied. “As will mine,” he repeated as he led the entire group toward the exit.

Lord Dusahn smiled as he and his men followed Mister Dekkan. Everything was going according to plan.

* * *

Nathan had been back to the Voss several times since they had returned to the Aurora, yet he still couldn’t get used to the idea of an invisible energy barrier as the only thing preventing him from being sucked out into the vacuum of space.

Of course, the same had been true of the concept of jumping across vast stretches of space in the beginning. It had taken dozens of jumps before they no longer made him nervous. Had it not been for the urgency of their situation at the time, he might not have been willing to make the jumps at all. Space was vast and desolate, but it was by no means empty. To this day, he still wondered how they managed to avoid deadly collisions during their jumps. Abby had spent hours explaining the theories behind it, most of which went over his head. Eventually, he’d gotten used to the idea of jumping across the galaxy in the blink of an eye. Therefore, he would get used to pressure shields as well.

“How long until we can lift off?” Nathan asked Marcus as he approached.

“I thought you said twenty-four hours?” Marcus grumbled.

“I meant the next day, not exactly twenty-four hours later.”

“You might want to be a little more exact in the future,” Marcus complained.

“Were you always this whiny?” Nathan commented as he passed Marcus and headed up the ramp.

“I had a lot stored up from all those months of having to be nice while babysittin’ your kin.”

“How long?” Nathan repeated, continuing up the ramp.

Marcus sighed, growling a bit under his breath. “Gimme an hour to close up the ventral access panels on the port side.”

“Thirty minutes,” Nathan insisted.

“An hour.”

“Thirty minutes!”

A string of expletives spewed forth from Marcus’s mouth as he returned to his work.

Nathan reached the top of the ramp, weaving his way between all the components stacked about in the Voss’s center utility bay. Reaching the forward bulkhead, he stepped through into the octagon-shaped center junction. To either side were the corridors that led past the access hatches to the Voss’s four cargo bays, and at the ends were the hatches leading to the port and starboard nacelles. At the center of the junction was a ladder providing access to the dorsal and ventral gun turrets.

Nathan quickly ascended the ladder, stepping off at the main deck one level up. Moving forward, he stepped through the hatch and entered the ship’s common room containing the galley, conference and dining table, lounge area, med station, and the main deck head.

As he continued forward through the common room, the part of him that was still Conner Tuplo couldn’t help but think of how many credits he and his crew could earn with a ship like the Voss. Even with only two of her four cargo bays converted for carrying passengers, she would still be able to haul three times the cargo that the Seiiki had carried even before she was refitted to carry passengers in her upper deck. The Seiiki might have been a better looking and better handling ship, but the Voss was larger and more solidly constructed. The Seiiki had been designed as a private space-yacht. The Voss was a cargo ship from her landing gear up. And she was far easier to convert into a warship.

Nathan passed through the common room and the hatch at her forward side, and into the short corridor connecting the common room to the next compartment. Two steps up, and he was on the Voss’s command deck, moving past the auxiliary stations on either side of the railing around the stairwell leading down to the lower forward deck containing the crew’s quarters.

“What are you doing?” he asked Dylan, who was furiously entering commands on the slide-out keyboard at the pilot’s station.

“Rewriting some of the automated flight maneuvers so that the ship’s AI can scoop it,” Dylan explained with obvious irritation.

“I thought you already did that?”

“It didn’t work right in the simulations,” Dylan explained as he pounded away at the keyboard. “Turns out, there are a butt-load of safety protocols designed to prevent just such a maneuver.”

“Are you sure that’s the best use of your time?” Nathan wondered.

“According to Josh, it is. Apparently, it would be unsafe to go to an unfriendly world without being able to scoop it.”

“Can’t he do it manually?”

“In manual mode, the AI still prevents the pilot from doing anything that it thinks puts too much stress on the ship’s systems. The only way he can manually scoop it now is to shut down the AI completely, which is a very bad idea since so many of the ship’s critical systems are managed by the AI. So I have to convince the AI that scooping it is not unsafe. That means I have to identify every system that would be overstressed by the maneuver and change the safety parameters for them, but only during that particular maneuver.”

“So Josh will have to announce his intention to scoop it to the AI before he does so?” Nathan surmised. “He’s not going to like that.”

“Actually, once I’m done, the AI should be able to anticipate Josh’s intentions without being told. The altitude, the power settings, the flight control stick inputs—it will read them all in a split second and adjust. After a while, the AI should even make the maneuver smoother. After all, it is designed to make a sloppy pilot fly better.”

“Please, Josh doesn’t need any reason to think more highly of his flying skills than he already does,” Nathan insisted. “Find a stopping point,” he added. “We depart in less than an hour.”

“I thought we had twenty-four hours?” Dylan replied, surprised.

“Why is everyone on this crew so literal?” Nathan wondered aloud as he turned and headed down the stairwell.

* * *

Despite favoring the meats of ruminants and fowl that dominated Takaran cuisine, he did very much enjoy the bittersweet taste of the kuffel. “I don’t suppose you would be willing to sell me a few crates of this fruit?” Lord Dusahn asked as he picked another piece from the platter before him.

“Would that I could,” Mister Dekkan replied. “I only brought a small supply with me. The rest is back on my ship.”

“Perhaps another time then.”

“I’d be more than happy to provide you with the contact information for the seller from which I acquired this delicacy.”

“I’m afraid I won’t be out this way again for quite some time,” Lord Dusahn replied.

“A shame.”

The intercom beeped. “Mister Dekkan, the control chip has been verified.”

Mister Dekkan raised the chip from the table, noting that the red light was still on. “Mister Griosan?”

“After the control codes for my ships have been transferred and verified,” Lord Dusahn stated plainly.

“Of course,” Mister Dekkan replied, pressing the button on the intercom. “Transmit the control codes to all six ships.”

“Yes, sir.”

Lord Dusahn reached out and plucked another piece of fruit from the tray. “I guess our business is nearly concluded then.”

The comm-unit on Lord Dusahn’s belt beeped, and he reached down to open a comm-channel.

“All six vessels report they now have full control of propulsion, navigation, sensors, and life support; however, weapons systems show a thirty-minute delay before control will be released.”

“Be ready to depart upon my return,” Lord Dusahn instructed. “I guess that’s it.”

Mister Dekkan looked at the red light on the chip, then back at Lord Dusahn.

“Tre shaw te is a dance performed by the farmers of Dullelax to celebrate the harvest,” Lord Dusahn explained, smiling.

“Well played,” Mister Dekkan congratulated. “However, it might have been more prudent to wait until you were safely off my ship before revealing your bluff.”

The lights suddenly flickered, and the room went dark. A second later, emergency lighting came on, illuminating Mister Dekkan’s stateroom in pale blue light.

Mister Dekkan looked right and left, but Mister Griosan was nowhere to be found. He tapped the intercom, yelling out, “What is happening?” but no one responded. He switched channels, then tried to call out again but found no breath with which to do so, only a terrible pain in the back of his left upper torso.

“You should have been more certain of whom you were doing business with,” Lord Dusahn whispered in Mister Dekkan’s ear from behind as he slowly withdrew his blade from the man’s back. He stepped aside, allowing Mister Dekkan to fall back in his chair, still gasping for breath. “However, I suppose I should be thankful since your miscalculations have handed me this vessel as well. Seven ships, and for nothing but the cost of the journey,” he added as he moved slowly around in the eerily lit compartment to stand before his dying adversary. “A rather good day, I’d say.”

Mister Dekkan could feel the blood spilling out of his heart with each ever-weakening beat. His breath was gurgling with each labored inspiration, and he felt as if he were drowning. Finally, he was able to utter one question. “Who are you?”

Lord Dusahn reached down and pulled the escrow control key-chip from the reader sitting on the desk. “Griogair Dusahn, leader of the Dusahn Empire, to whom your life and the lives of your crew have just been sacrificed.”

“My lord,” a voice called from Lord Dusahn’s comm-unit.

“Report, Sergeant,” Lord Dusahn instructed.

“We have control of engineering, life support, and the bridge. Teams two and four are sweeping the ship for any remaining crew.”

“Well done, Sergeant. Notify all vessels. We depart immediately for the rendezvous point. I want to be clear of this region of space as soon as possible, in case Mister Dekkan had a backup plan.”

“Right away, my lord.”

Lord Dusahn looked down at the now-lifeless body of Mister Dekkan. “A good day indeed.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

Dylan closed his eyes, his head falling back in frustration as the Voss bounced and shook in Rakuen’s dense atmosphere. “How many times do I have to tell you? You have to slow down before you jump into the atmosphere!”

“You worry too much,” Josh replied, annoyed with Dylan’s constant criticism.

“You’re putting undue stress on the ship.”

“The ship can take the stress,” Josh insisted.

“But she doesn’t have to! How can you not see that?”

“Maybe if your Subvert friends had beefed up the shields and the inertial dampeners like we asked…”

“There’s not enough power,” Dylan reminded him. “Not until the upgraded nacelles with the ZPEDs are installed. You know this!” He looked to Loki in desperation. “Would you please tell him…?”

“Don’t look at me,” Loki insisted. “I gave up trying to tell him how to fly long ago.”

“Captain,” Dylan begged as Nathan came into the compartment from behind. “Would you please tell Josh to stop putting undue stress on the ship?”

“How is he going to know what she can take if he doesn’t shake her up a bit?” Nathan replied.

“By her operational specifications,” Dylan insisted, astounded that he even needed to explain.

“Op-specs are written by engineers, not pilots,” Josh chuckled. “Engineers don’t know shit about stresses on a ship.”

“I can’t believe what I’m hearing,” Dylan exclaimed, throwing up his hands.

“Josh is right,” Nathan told him.

“You’re kidding!”

“Look, he’s not going to break the ship,” Nathan said, trying to calm the young man down. “He might damage a few things, cause a couple of cracks here and there, but it won’t be anything that we can’t fix.”

“But why break it if you don’t have to?” Dylan wondered, practically pleading with him.

“It’s called a shakedown cruise for a reason,” Josh added.

“A shakedown cruise helps us identify the areas of the ship that need improvement,” Nathan explained. “Better to discover and deal with them now rather than when our very lives are at stake.”

“But if he just flew the ship the way it was designed to be flown…” Dylan argued.

“Sometimes, the only way to get out alive is to not fly it the way it was designed to be flown,” Nathan said, interrupting him.

“This would be a whole lot easier if we just turned the damned AI off,” Josh insisted.

“Do you know how many things the AI monitors and adjusts every minute?” Dylan challenged.

“Any ship that can’t be operated safely in full-manual mode isn’t worth flying,” Josh replied.

“Perhaps if you just altered the AI’s programming,” Nathan suggested, trying to put an end to the bickering. “Maybe just turn off the flight-assist subroutines?”

“Everything is interconnected,” Dylan explained. “Propulsion, lift, maneuvering, power generation, inertial dampening systems…all of it. Hell, even life support is controlled by the AI.”

“Surely your engineers anticipated an AI failure,” Nathan suggested.

“AI’s don’t fail,” Dylan insisted.

“An AI is a system, just like any other system,” Nathan explained. “All systems are subject to failure. Are you telling me that this ship cannot function without an AI?”

“It can function,” Dylan admitted. “Just not safely. Without the AI monitoring and adjusting things, something critical could get overlooked by the operators. That’s the entire purpose of simulations. In simulations, you can safely subject the system to unexpected stresses and evaluate the effects of those stresses.”

“But a simulation only responds according to design specifications,” Nathan argued.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning it’s going to respond to those stresses the way the engineers calculated it would respond.”

“Of course!” Dylan agreed. “Why do you say that like it’s a problem?”

“It’s not a problem,” Nathan told him. “But it isn’t a shakedown cruise. Flying her beyond her designed performance parameters is the only way to verify what her true performance parameters are.”

“A good pilot plans a flight so that they will not need to operate outside of designed performance parameters,” Dylan argued.

“Why are you clinging so tightly to engineered specs?” Nathan wondered. “I thought you said SilTek engineers couldn’t design a decent toaster. You even called them something. What was it…?”

“Procedural engineers,” Dylan replied. “But I was talking about Mister Payton, not all engineers.”

“Too bad,” Josh commented as he monitored the ship’s descent toward Rakuen’s capital city. “That was the one time I agreed with you.”

“It sounded to me like you were talking about all SilTek engineers,” Nathan insisted.

“Okay, maybe I was, but…”

“You’re good with AI programming, right?” Nathan asked, interrupting him yet again.

“Yes, but…”

“Then figure out how to give Josh full-manual flight control but still have the AI monitor the other systems.”

“That’s going to take days,” Dylan complained. “Maybe weeks!”

“Then you’d better get started,” Nathan insisted.

“Captain!”

“You wanted to be on this crew,” Nathan reminded him.

Dylan threw up his hands again as he turned and exited the compartment down the center staircase.

“Thanks, Cap’n,” Josh said. “That kid was starting to annoy me.”

“Don’t get too happy,” Nathan warned. “He had a point. You might want to become accustomed to flying this ship with the AI’s help for now. It does have a manual mode, after all.”

“Yeah, but it’s not full-manual,” Josh argued.

“It will have to do for now,” Nathan insisted. “If worse comes to worst, we can always shut the AI off and restart it later.”

“But then we’d be learning how to pilot her on the fly,” Loki pointed out. “She probably handles differently without the AI’s help.”

“I have every confidence in the two of you to figure it out if we have to,” Nathan said, turning to head aft toward the common room.

Loki looked at Josh.

“I hate this bucket,” Josh grumbled as they continued their descent.

* * *

Deliza looked up from the view screen at her desk, her expression crestfallen when she saw Nathan at her office door.

“I feel rather insulted,” Nathan said from the doorway. “Should I go?”

Deliza smiled. “I was hoping you were my assistant. He promised to bring me lunch.”

“I can go out and get you something, and then return,” Nathan offered.

“Don’t be silly, Captain,” Deliza replied, turning off her view screen. “What can I do for you?”

“Can’t I just stop by to say hello?” Nathan wondered, taking a seat across from her.

“You’re the leader of the Karuzari Alliance. You hardly have the time to drop by.”

“Yeah, I’m cursed that way,” Nathan admitted.

“Or blessed, depending on your point of view.” After a moment of silence, she became embarrassed. “Oh my God, did you come by just to say hello?”

Nathan was hesitant to answer, afraid he would make her feel even more guilty. “No,” he finally confessed. “I do need your help.”

Deliza relaxed, breathing a sigh of relief. “What can I do for you?”

“I want to buy the Glendanon.”

Deliza’s eyes widened. “Is that all?”

“Not all of her, just a few shares.”

“How many is a few?”

“I don’t know just yet,” Nathan admitted. “Half of them, at most.”

“Any particular reason?”

“We need the Glendanon to serve as a long-range jump cargo ship to make regular runs between all Alliance worlds.”

“You’re trying to provide something of value to members other than protection,” Deliza surmised.

“Dedicated, discounted trade with all allied worlds would be of great value.”

“It would indeed. But buying half share in the Glendanon? I doubt we could afford it.”

“Can you at least meet with the shareholders and see?” Nathan asked. “I’m certain that between the two of us, we can come up with something.”

“Ships the size of the Glendanon are made possible through complex legal and financial structures,” Deliza warned. “Such structures are difficult to navigate, and for good reason. They are meant to protect the interests of all those who have invested in the entity. And those interests are generally quite large.”

“Are such levels of financial interest outside of Ranni’s realm?”

“Prior to the Dusahn, no,” Deliza replied. “Now, I doubt we could buy enough shares to influence the vote one way or another. That is what you hope to do, is it not?”

“It depends on how many shareholders are still alive,” Nathan told her.

“You don’t know?”

“Not yet,” Nathan admitted. “Captain Gullen was able to contact one of them; apparently, one of the largest shareholders. Someone named Coulthard.”

“Ross Coulthard?”

“I believe so, yes. Do you know him?”

“By reputation only. He was one of the richest men on Corinair. In fact, I contracted with one of his companies to build my first production line for the Ranni shuttles. If we have to match wits and finances with Ross Coulthard, we may as well give up now.”

“According to Captain Gullen, Mister Coulthard actually supports our plans for the Glendanon.”

“At zero profit?” Deliza wondered in disbelief. “That hardly seems likely.”

“Profits have yet to be discussed,” Nathan admitted. “However, they cannot be much, at least not in the beginning. We need the cost to the new members to be low enough to be attractive.”

“They will have to be discussed at some point,” Deliza warned. “And the lower the profit margins, the less likely the other shareholders are to vote in our favor.”

“What you’re saying is that we don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell.”

“What I’m saying is ‘don’t get your hopes up,’” Deliza corrected. “But I’m happy to help.”

“Thank you,” Nathan replied. “Now, shall we get some lunch?”

* * *

Dylan squatted next to the open canopy of the P-Seventy-Two in the Voss’s port bay. “Any questions?”

Josh glanced one last time around the cramped cockpit. “This is weapons, right?” he asked, pointing at the control panel on the left side of the forward console.

“Yes, but please don’t touch anything on that panel.”

“What about this one?” Josh asked, pointing at the panel on the right.

“Comms,” Dylan replied. “Two channels. One for general broadcast and one for ship-to-ship.”

“Ship-to-ship is private?”

“It’s encrypted with a rolling algorithm, so yes. General broadcast can be encrypted as well but isn’t by default.”

“But ship-to-ship is?”

“Yes,” Dylan replied, rising to stand. “Just promise me one thing.”

“What?”

“Please use the automated launch and recovery features, at least until you get the hang of flying this thing.”

“I make no promises,” Josh replied, a mischievous grin on his face.

“I’m not giving you the control codes until you do,” Dylan warned.

“Fuck, you’re a pain,” Josh swore, rolling his eyes.

“Yes, I am,” Dylan replied, undaunted. “Now promise.”

“Fine,” Josh acquiesced. “I promise.”

“You promise what?”

“Are you serious?”

“What are you promising, Josh,” Dylan demanded, holding his ground.

Josh’s head fell back against the headrest of his flight seat as he sighed. “I promise I’ll use the automated launch and recovery systems until I get the hang of flying this thing. Are you happy now?” he added, turning to glare at Dylan.

“One seven two five zero three,” Dylan said, turning and heading up the steps back to the common room one deck above. “Have a good flight.”

Josh reached forward and grabbed the edge of the canopy, pulling it backwards over him. The motors sensed the motion and kicked in, sending the canopy all the way aft until it locked into its fully closed position.

As the canopy closed, Josh donned the small, makeshift helmet sitting on top of the forward console. After reaching down and activating the ship-to-ship channel, he called out for his friend in the starboard P-Seventy-Two. “You on comms, Lok?”

“I’m here,” Loki replied over Josh’s helmet comms.

“What did he make you promise to get the control codes?”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. You ready to have some fun?”

“This is a training flight, Josh, not a joyride.”

“Wanna bet?”

“What are we going to call ourselves?” Loki asked.

“How about I call you Loki, and you call me Josh?”

“Works for me.”

“You figure out how to launch these things?” Josh inquired, looking around the console for the launch button.

“Press the command button on your console that says ‘Launch’,” Loki explained. “The AI will do the rest.”

“Crap, these things have AIs as well?”

“Very limited ones,” Dylan chimed in.

“I thought ship-to-ship was private?” Josh said.

“The home ship is part of the ship-to-ship network,” Dylan explained. “I’ll be monitoring your flight from the command deck in case you have any questions.”

“Fat chance,” Josh muttered to himself.

“I’ve already gotten clearance for you from Rakuen Flight Control,” Dylan announced. “You’re both clear to maneuver at will to the southwest, as long as you stay below five thousand meters.”

“Got it.” Josh pressed the command button on the left side of his flight control stick, just above the vertical translation toggle. “Launch.”

The bay doors in front of him began to move, splitting open horizontally and opening up like a clamshell. Twenty seconds later, the grav-lift systems began to hum, and the docking clamps released. The tiny fighter rose up half a meter, then slid smoothly forward out of the bay, coming to a stop in a hover just above the tarmac, directly to port of the Voss’s command deck.

“See how easy that was?” Dylan commented over comms.

Josh looked to his right, spotting Dylan in the Voss’s cockpit window. “Don’t fart in my seat, Dylan.”

“What?”

“You heard me,” Josh reiterated as he took hold of the flight control stick with his right hand and the grav-lift power slider with his left.

“Now pull back gently on the stick to gain altitude,” Dylan instructed. “Once you’re above the Voss, twist the stick to yaw around to the southwest and then gently ease the accelerator pedal in to start your flight.”

Josh grinned at Dylan. In a motion so quick that it was nearly simultaneous, Josh yanked the control stick back and twisted it hard to port, causing his fighter to leap upward rapidly as it spun to the left. A split second afterward, he pressed the accelerator pedal, causing his fighter to lurch forward and pull away from the Voss at an alarming rate. “Damn!” he exclaimed excitedly. “This little bugger can move!”

“Take it easy, Josh,” Loki warned. “Get a little altitude under you until you get the feel for it.”

“Remember who you’re talking to,” Josh reminded his friend. “Where are you at?”

His pedal to the floor, Loki eased his grav-lift power slider forward to the stops, smoothly accelerating his little fighter in an attempt to catch up to his reckless cohort. “Ten clicks behind you and closing fast,” he reported. “The acceleration on these things is phenomenal.”

“Just remember not to maneuver too radically at higher speeds,” Dylan reminded them. “Subvert’s modifications reduced the structural limits during atmospheric operations. That’s why we had to make them forty percent slower than the race versions.”

“Screw that,” Josh declared. “I’m going to see what this thing can do!”

Loki peered out at the vast ocean speeding under him. “Don’t forget you’re a lousy swimmer.”

“Hey, Dylan!” Josh called out over comms. “These things are still aerodynamic, right?”

“Yes,” Dylan replied, uncertainty in his tone. “Why?”

“Watch this.”

Josh activated his maneuvering thrusters and jammed the power slider to maximum.

“Thrusters aren’t for use in the atmosphere,” Dylan warned.

“Fuck! Are you getting telemetry from my ship?” Josh barked as he toggled the drive selector switch on his flight control stick and then yanked the stick back hard.

The tiny fighter sped along only twenty meters above the water, leaving a wake of mist behind it. Its nose suddenly pitched up forty-five degrees, and its main drive lit up, rocketing the ship toward the sky.

Josh felt himself thrown hard into his seat as the main space-drive kicked in, nearly knocking the wind out of his lungs.

“What the hell are you doing?” Dylan exclaimed over comms.

“God…damn!” Josh was barely able to get out as he held his flight control stick back, forcing his thrusters to continue firing and bring his nose higher and higher. Feeling himself about to black out, he eased back on the space-drive’s throttle as his fighter reached full vertical.

“What are you doing?” Dylan repeated.

“I’m looping!” Josh managed to get out, despite his lack of breath.

“You can’t do that in atmo!” Dylan insisted.

Josh continued forcing his pitch-over, easing his space-drive back to zero as his ship passed the top of its arc and headed back down the other side. “I just did,” he added, his breath fully returning.

“You still have to avoid slamming into the water at the bottom of your loop,” Loki reminded him.

“Piece of cake,” Josh insisted.

“Your wings don’t provide any lift, Josh!” Dylan exclaimed.

“I know! I know!” Josh insisted. “I got this!”

“Oh my God, he’s going to kill himself,” Dylan declared.

“No he’s not,” Marcus stated calmly.

Dylan spun around, not realizing that anyone was on the command deck with him. Behind him, sitting with his feet up on the starboard auxiliary station and eating a piece of fruit was Marcus, calm as can be.

“He’s crazy!” Dylan insisted. “He’s going to slam into the water at a thousand KPH!”

“You’re right, he’s crazy,” Marcus agreed. “But he’s also the best damned pilot I ever saw. The kid doesn’t even need instruments.”

“But he doesn’t have any experience or training in those things!”

“He doesn’t need it. He just knows.”

“That’s impossible!”

“I know it is, but it’s true; trust me,” Marcus insisted.

Dylan turned back around to look at the displays. “I can’t watch,” he said, closing his eyes.

Josh held his stick back, forcing the thrusters under the nose of his fighter to continue firing at full power. His ship now in free fall, his altitude quickly fell away as he plummeted toward the topaz water below.

The tiny fighter began to buffet as the thrusters forced his nose past the slipstream of air rushing over it. The shaking became more violent as his pitch continued to change. Finally, his ship’s attitude approached level, and he released his flight control stick, allowing it to return to neutral.

As the altitude readout continued to fall, Josh switched his flight control stick back to grav-lift mode and again yanked it back hard, forcing the grav-lift emitters to go into overdrive. “I sure hope this works,” he said to himself.

Loki sped along, guiding his fighter one hundred meters above the ocean’s surface, staring out of his forward canopy as he watched Josh’s P-Seventy-Two flat-fall rapidly toward the water in the distance. He had seen his friend pull off some incredible maneuvers in a variety of ships over the years, but never had he pushed an unfamiliar vessel this hard on his first time up. “You going to pull up soon, or are you planning on becoming a submarine?” he asked, trying to seem positive as his friend plummeted toward his death.

“I’m working on it,” Josh assured him.

Loki noted the stress in his friend’s tone. “Maybe work a little harder?” he suggested, trying to remain calm. “You’re running out of altitude pretty fast, buddy.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Josh replied as he attempted to manually engage the upward translation thrusters along the bottom of his ship. “Christ, I hate safety systems!” he exclaimed as he frantically tried to bypass the very systems designed to protect him.

“Come on, Josh, pull out!” Loki insisted.

“Fuck this!” Josh exclaimed, reaching over to the breaker panel to his left and slightly behind him. He quickly found the breakers for the AI computers and pulled them, killing the entire system.

“Are you insane?” Dylan exclaimed. “You can’t fly that thing without the AI!”

“I can’t fucking fly it with the AI!” Josh replied as he finally managed to fire the thrusters along the underside of his ship.

At full power, the thrusters struck him in the ass so hard it hurt, but he loved it. Most of the ships he had flown had considerable inertial dampeners that masked the sensations of flight. On the Lightning, they were practically nonexistent, and he felt every bump and ripple of air as it passed around his fighter’s hull.

Unfortunately, the thrusters were not enough. Josh quickly switched back to space-mode and pulled back on his stick again, bringing his fighter into a tail-first free fall. The aerodynamic properties of his ship’s nose no longer helping it pierce the atmosphere, his ship buffeted violently, and it was all he could do to keep her falling tail first.

Again, Josh powered up the space-drive, quickly jamming the throttle all the way forward, unconcerned with the G-forces that were about to hit him.

His main drive lit up once again, pushing him deeply into his seat. Again, the air was forced from his lungs. An enormous weight now lay upon his chest and face, pressing down upon him with what felt like the weight of all the oceans of Rakuen. Before his vision faded, he managed to see one last thing…his altimeter stopped decreasing.

Loki watched in horror as his friend’s fighter disappeared in a cloud of water and steam just before it struck the surface. Then his horror turned to amazement as Josh’s P-Seventy-Two rocketed out of the cloud, streaking toward the blue sky above. “Holy crap!” he exclaimed. “You did it!”

Dylan’s eyes popped open in disbelief. “He did?” He turned to look at the display, noting that Josh’s ship was already passing ten thousand meters and accelerating far faster than a P-Seventy-Two was designed to safely travel in the atmosphere. “Oh my God, he’s insane!”

“He sure as hell is,” Marcus agreed, rising from his seat. “I’m going to get another piece of fruit. You want one?”

“Josh! Are you okay?” Loki called over comms.

Josh struggled to both open his eyes and to take a breath. How he had managed to fight off unconsciousness, he did not know, but his left hand had managed to hold onto the throttle, which he began retarding. As the acceleration eased, his breath returned, and his vision began to clear. A glance at his flight dynamics display told him he had blown way past his five-thousand-meter ceiling and was headed for the edge of space. He eased the throttle back more, allowing his speed to fall and his rate of climb to diminish, his breath becoming easier by the second.

“Josh!” Loki called again. “Do you copy?”

“Of course I copy,” Josh replied as he managed to get his nose level and his ship under control. “Like I said…a piece of cake.”

“I was afraid you’d blacked out from the G-forces,” Loki replied.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Josh said, finally feeling himself again.

“Maybe we’d better head in,” Loki suggested. “Maybe do a few laps around the harbor or something.”

Josh rolled his ship over into an inverted position, looking at the string of tiny islands far below. “I’ve got a better idea,” he told his friend. “Let’s have a race through that island chain down there.”

“Lead the way,” Loki agreed, laughing.

* * *

Robert Nash opened his apartment door, finding Nathan standing on the other side. “Should I start packing?”

“What?” Nathan asked.

“Every time you show up at my door, my assignment gets changed,” Robert commented as he stepped aside to let his guest in.

“Can’t a friend just stop by to say hello?” Nathan wondered as he entered.

“Not when that friend is Nathan Scott.”

“How are you doing?”

“Never better,” Robert replied, returning to his kitchen.

“What are you cooking?”

“Kimba,” Robert replied. “It’s a sort of fish from the northern seas of Rakuen. Expensive but worth it. They live on both the land and in the water. It’s the closest thing you’ll find to red meat on Rakuen. Cook it right, and you’d swear you were eating beef.”

“Smells good. How long are you in town?” Nathan asked.

“A few more days. It’s my group’s down week. But you already knew that.”

Nathan smiled. “You’re just like your sister. I can’t get anything past either of you.”

“So where am I going next?” Robert inquired as he carefully carved up his kimba. “Hopefully a nice, cushy desk job here on Rakuen.”

“Then you like it here?”

“I grew up in a beach town, so this place feels as close to home as any, although the surfing does suck. I’ve never seen such calm oceans in my life.”

“Are you saying you’re ready to retire from space duty?”

“Ready enough I suppose. I’d miss it to be sure, but I’m not getting any younger.”

“How old are you?” Nathan wondered.

“Chronologically, I’m about sixty-three. Biologically, I’m in my forties, although sometimes I feel like I’m eighty. Especially in the mornings.”

“No doubt the result of all the injuries you’ve sustained over the years.”

“More like the crappy racks on the Orochi,” Robert laughed.

“Well, the racks on the XKs are not too bad.”

“XKs?”

“Twelve cargo ships that were donated to the cause by SilTek. We’re turning them into multi-role, long-range jump ships.”

“Armaments?”

“Point-defenses, dorsal and ventral plasma cannon turrets, jump missiles; they even carry a pair of snub-fighters called Lightnings.”

“What’s their mission?”

“To begin with, we’re going to use them to try to recruit more member worlds.”

“I’d heard rumors that you were planning on growing this alliance. Are you sure you want to do that?” Robert wondered.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“A lot of work. A lot of responsibility.”

“I’m not going to do it all by myself,” Nathan pointed out.

“How big?”

“It depends on how many worlds we sign on.”

“I meant the XKs,” Robert corrected.

“Oh. A little smaller than the Orochi. Crew of eight to twelve.”

“How do they handle?”

“Like a pig according to Josh, but we’re working on that,” Nathan assured him.

“Not like the Orochi handle much better,” Robert commented as he placed one of his kimba steaks into the frying pan. “You want one?”

“No thanks, I just ate.”

“Then you want me to command one of these XKs?”

“You, Gil, and Kainan, to start.”

“Kainan’s a good choice. Sharp guy. Gil might be a problem, though.”

“Why?” Nathan wondered. “I mean, he can be gruff, but that’s just his style.”

“He was all set to retire when we roped him into the Cobra caper. Had himself a nice, little sailboat on one of Kohara’s lakes and a girlfriend with a house near the marina. He’s been talking about retiring here on Rakuen and spending his days exploring all her island chains.”

“You think he’d turn the assignment down?” Nathan asked.

“I’m not sure. Just have a plan B before you speak with him.”

“Thanks, I will,” Nathan promised. “How long until the next class of Orochi crews is ready?”

“The current class will graduate in about a month.”

“So if I pull a few COs from your ranks, the impact will be negligible?”

“I don’t think it will be a significant problem,” Robert assured him. “The Orochi are pretty much patrol ships now…right?”

“Hopefully.”

Robert studied Nathan for a moment. “What about the Dusahn?”

“They are contained for the moment.”

“That’s not what I hear.”

“Haven has been their only excursion outside the cluster thus far,” Nathan assured him. “We have made it clear that any attacks on us or our allies will not be tolerated.”

“That’s why you want to get everyone to join the alliance,” Robert surmised.

“At least everyone within reasonable strike range of the Dusahn.”

“You’re talking about dozens of systems,” Robert stated, “quite possibly more than a hundred.”

“One hundred and twenty-seven that we know of,” Nathan corrected.

“With twelve ships? That’s going to take a while.”

“We’ll start with the Pentaurus sector,” Nathan told him. “With the Aurora in the Darvano system, the Dusahn don’t dare venture far.”

“Don’t underestimate them,” Robert urged.

“Then I can count on you to command the next XK?”

“How soon?”

“About a month.”

“I’ll be there,” Robert promised, scooping his finished kimba steak from the pan. “You know, you’ll have to deal with the Dusahn sooner or later.”

“I have a plan.”

“Yeah, Jess told me.”

“I didn’t say it was a good plan,” Nathan admitted.

* * *

“I’ve been looking for you,” Nathan greeted as he entered the Aurora’s intelligence compartment.

“Welcome back,” Cameron replied, her attention still on the view screens along the wall. “How’s the Voss?”

“Port jump-missile launch system is working, as are both plasma turrets,” Nathan replied. “What are we looking at?”

“Looks like some kind of warship,” Jessica commented, coming to stand next to Nathan after entering the compartment behind him.

“It is,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda confirmed. “Seven ships, total; five others just like this one.” He raised his remote and changed images, showing an entirely different ship. “The other six are not a major threat. Underpowered, poorly shielded. Lots of guns but not powerful ones. But this one is a different story.”

“I don’t recognize the designs,” Jessica said. “Where’d they come from?”

“We don’t know,” the lieutenant commander admitted. “We’re working on it.”

“Where they came from is not the issue,” Cameron stated.

“Where did you detect them?” Nathan asked, realizing where she was headed.

“In orbit over Takara,” Cameron replied.

“That can’t be good,” Jessica commented.

“They arrived yesterday, a few hours after you left,” Cameron told them.

“This morning’s recon pass showed that Takaran service crawlers are all over them. They’ve also moved one of their repair platforms alongside one of them, indicating that they intend to do some refit or upgrade to at least one of them,” the lieutenant commander added.

“So the Dusahn have been ship shopping.”

“Even if they upgrade them with all of the Dusahn’s latest shields and weapons, which would take several months, they’d still be no match for our fleet.”

“But they would be a significant deterrent,” Nathan pointed out.

“They’d also restore the Dusahn as a respectable threat in the eyes of neighboring systems,” Cameron added.

“Kind of helps our cause, don’t you think?” Jessica decided.

“Yes and no,” Nathan replied. “Before these ships arrived, we had them completely outgunned. But now?”

“They’re still outgunned,” Jessica insisted.

“But by quite a lesser degree,” Nathan argued. “Do we have any idea of their jump range?” he asked his intelligence officer.

“Not yet,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda replied. “We haven’t been able to get a recon drone close enough to get detailed interior scans, so we couldn’t even guess at the moment.”

“The longest jump range we’ve seen, other than our own, is about fifty light years,” Cameron stated. “So we should assume they have at least that much single-jump range.”

“It’s that larger one that worries me,” Nathan said as he read the details along the side of the image. “She’s practically a battleship. If they put multiple jump drives in her, even at fifty light years, that would make them able to reach the Rogen system in just over a day; Orswella in just over two.”

“There’s no way they’re going to attack any allied systems,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda insisted. “Not after the warning you sent.”

“Unless old Griogair thinks I’m bluffing,” Nathan replied.

“Were you?” Cameron asked.

“Yes,” Nathan admitted, “and no.”

“How long until he upgrades all of them?” Jessica wondered.

“We decimated most of their orbital service and support facilities, so it will be slow going,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda insisted.

“What do you think they’ll do to them?” Nathan asked.

“Based on what we know so far, I’d at least upgrade their power generation and shields,” Cameron stated.

“If they’ve just acquired these ships, then they’re not tooled up for the upgrades,” the lieutenant commander stated. “They’ll have to conduct detailed scans of the systems before they start tinkering with them, and then engineer the upgrades and program their replicators. All of that takes time.”

“Assume they have more capability than we think,” Nathan urged.

“If they just do power and shields, a couple of weeks each.”

“So, if they can muster up the resources to work on all six ships simultaneously, we could be in a completely different game in less than a month,” Nathan realized.

“A more reasonable assessment would be a few months,” Lieutenant Commander Shinoda insisted.

“One thing’s for certain,” Nathan sighed. “I’m going to have to go to Earth and speak with Bowden now and start the recruitment drive later.”

“You can’t hope to fight Lord Dusahn in less than a month,” Cameron questioned.

“Not even if he trained twenty-four seven,” Jessica commented.

“Thanks,” Nathan told Jessica. “I just need to know my options, and the only way to do that is to go back to Earth.”

“That is not without risk,” Cameron warned. “If Galiardi catches you…”

“No worries,” Nathan assured her. “Jess will protect me.”

* * *

Lord Dusahn slammed his fist on the table. “This is not acceptable!”

By now, Commander Jexx had become accustomed to his leader’s behavior and no longer jumped at the slightest inference of displeasure. “This was expected,” he replied calmly. “You cannot adequately assess the readiness of a warship in a few hours, even with the best technical scanners. We fully expected modifications and repairs would be needed prior to putting these ships into service. There is nothing on that list that cannot be resolved, it will just take a little longer than we’d hoped.”

“Meanwhile, the Alliance moves about freely, and we have but one ship to defend our interests,” another officer in attendance stated.

“The Chekta protocol protects us,” Lord Dusahn insisted.

“Against the loss of Takara, yes,” Commander Jexx pointed out.

“The Alliance wouldn’t dare attempt to liberate any of the other cluster worlds,” the other officer insisted.

“Perhaps not,” Lord Dusahn agreed, “but they will attempt to ally with other worlds in this sector, at which point we will have to travel greater distances to find new systems worth conquering.”

“We have jump drives,” the second officer began, before being cut off by his leader.

“The more spread out the systems we control, the more difficult it will be to hold them,” Lord Dusahn continued. “Especially with such a measly fleet,” he added, tossing the data pad containing the list of needed upgrades onto the table before him. “I will not allow Captain Scott to get in the way of our rightful destiny.”

“What do you propose, my lord?” Commander Jexx inquired.

“We must locate the world that is supplying the Karuzari with their advanced technology and conquer it, making all of its technology our own.”

“We haven’t heard from our scouts in nearly a week,” Commander Jexx reminded him.

“They will not initiate contact unless they have something positive to report,” Lord Dusahn insisted.

“My point is that it may take some time to find this world. In the meantime, we must take whatever steps necessary to ensure we are ready to take action when that day comes,” Commander Jexx replied.

“These modifications will take time,” Lord Dusahn said, pointing at the data pad on the table.

“Several months,” Commander Jexx agreed. “During which time we will no doubt find ourselves having to deal with the Alliance or any other entity that seeks to take advantage of our weakened defensive state.”

“They would be fools to do so,” Lord Dusahn boasted.

“There has never been a shortage of such.”

“And how would you alleviate us of this potential problem?” Lord Dusahn asked, realizing that his newly minted commander was leading up to something.

Commander Jexx took a deep breath, knowing that what he was about to suggest would not be well received. “We must seek a cease-fire agreement with the Alliance…if for no other reason than to buy us the time we need to complete the modifications.”

The other officer looked at Commander Jexx, then at his leader, waiting for the explosion of anger that was undoubtedly to come next.

Lord Dusahn stared long and hard at Commander Jexx. “A cease-fire with the intent of negotiating a lasting peace treaty,” he stated.

“My lord?” Commander Jexx asked, suddenly finding himself uncertain.

“Such negotiations usually last months if not years,” Lord Dusahn continued. “During this time, the Alliance will become complacent, confident in their superiority. That is when we shall reverse our fortunes.”

“Very wise, my lord,” Commander Jexx agreed, happy that he was not executed on the spot for once again suggesting what his leader would normally consider a sign of weakness.

“But the negotiations must be with Captain Scott,” Lord Dusahn added, “in person.”

“May I ask why?”

Lord Dusahn smiled as he contemplated the ideas floating in his head. “First, I wish to meet this man face to face, to get a feel for his presence and character.”

“And second?” Commander Jexx wondered.

The smile on the Dusahn leader’s face grew wider and more sinister. “So that I can watch him die.”

* * *

Nathan entered the Aurora’s mess hall and glanced about the room. As expected, there were few people dining, as it was in between normal mealtimes.

In the far corner, he spotted Naralena, sitting alone with a beverage and a muffin, engrossed in whatever was displayed on her data pad.

Nathan moved to the serving counter, pouring himself a mug of coffee and grabbing a small snack of his own, before heading over to Naralena’s table.

“Can I get you something, Captain?” the mess tech behind the counter offered, surprised to see the captain at this time of day.

“This is enough, thanks,” Nathan replied, heading for Naralena’s table.

Naralena felt his approach and looked up from her data pad. “Captain,” she greeted, surprised to see him. “I wasn’t aware you had returned.”

“Yeah, one of the advantages of ditching that ‘Aurora arriving’ crap,” Nathan replied. “May I?”

“Of course.”

“What are you reading?” he asked, making polite conversation.

“Essence of Extremes,” she replied.

“Never heard of it,” Nathan admitted.

“I wouldn’t expect you had,” she chuckled. “It’s a classic Volonese novel about the religious wars that plagued our world a few decades after Volon was first colonized.”

“Fact or fiction?”

“It’s a work of fiction, but it’s historically accurate. It’s more philosophical than anything else.”

“In what way?”

“It examines the belief that one’s cause can be so compelling as to justify extreme measures to achieve their goals.”

“A common human affliction,” Nathan agreed.

“I’ve read it before,” Naralena admitted.

“Not much of interest in the ship’s library?” Nathan wondered as he sipped his coffee.

“Sometimes I just feel like reading something in my native tongue.”

“It must be rough not having anyone around who speaks Volonese.”

“When you speak as many languages as I do, your native language holds less meaning. I just enjoy the nuances of Volonese. It is a very simple yet elegant language, with lots of room for interpretation.”

“Sounds rather imprecise,” Nathan observed.

“It can be, but that is part of its beauty. The way that something is said can make all the difference, though the words and syntax are identical.”

Nathan thought for a moment, a long-lost memory from his teenage years suddenly appearing in his head. “Funny, I remember not being very good at languages when I was young. Now, they seem easy to pick up.”

“How many languages do you speak?” Naralena wondered.

“English, Takaran, Corinairan…Jung, of course. I even know a bit of Gorsa.”

“The old, Palean language? I wasn’t aware anyone still spoke it.”

“There was an old man who ran a bar near the spaceport on Palee. The ale was absolute crap, but his wife made the most wonderful kella stew. I used to go there every time we made port for a bowl of that stew and a hunk of mina bread. I picked most of it up listening to the old man argue with his wife.”

“Interesting. I wouldn’t mind adding Gorsa to my repertoire.”

“Well maybe I can teach you some.”

“Like either of us has the time,” she said.

“Well, we may be spending a few days together,” Nathan told her, “assuming you’re up for it.”

Naralena looked suspiciously at Nathan. “Up for what?”

“An away mission.”

“To where?” Naralena inquired, still suspicious.

“Earth.”

“Earth?”

“That’s what I said.”

“Why?” she wondered.

“I need some detailed information about the Jung, and I can think of only one person who would know.”

“Gerard,” Naralena surmised.

“That would be the one.”

“And you think my presence will make him more willing to provide you that information.”

“That was the idea, yes.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Captain. He and I didn’t exactly part on good terms.”

Nathan sighed. “I don’t mean to pry…”

“He wanted me to stay on Earth with him, but I needed to return to Volon to take care of my father.”

“I’m surprised he didn’t go to Volon with you,” Nathan said.

“That might be because I didn’t invite him.”

“Maybe it’s not such a good idea after all,” Nathan decided.

“It’s probably just as well,” she said. “He’s probably married with a family by now.”

“According to Cameron, he never married,” Nathan told her. “At least he hadn’t when the Aurora left the Sol sector.”

Naralena thought for a moment, skeptical. “How important is this information?”

“Very important,” Nathan assured her. “I wouldn’t be taking the risk if it weren’t.”

“Then there is some risk involved?”

“Very much so,” Nathan replied. “In the eyes of Galiardi and the EDF, I’m persona non grata.”

“Then it’s going to be a covert insertion,” Naralena realized.

“It is.”

“Jump sub?”

“Yup.” He could see the concern in her eyes. “A lot of improvements have been made in them since your mission to Kohara.”

“Why are you going?” she asked. “Wouldn’t it be safer if Jessica and I went?”

“That’s the same thing Jessica said,” Nathan chuckled. “Honestly, yes, it would be smarter if just the two of you went. But I need this information firsthand. A lot is riding on it. Quite possibly everything. And when I decided to take this command again, I swore to myself that I wasn’t going to sit on the bridge and send others into harm’s way unless it was something that I could not do myself. This I can do myself.”

“Apparently not,” Naralena pointed out.

“You get my drift.” Nathan took a bite of his muffin. “Not exactly mina bread,” he noted. “So, you in?”

After a long pause, Naralena replied, “When do we leave?”

CHAPTER NINE

Nathan stepped through the hatch from the port large flight bay onto the pressure shield deck directly aft. As expected, the open-ended bay was busy with technicians and loaders as final preparations for the Voss’s first official mission were being completed.

Marcus was standing at the base of the ramp, watching several of Vlad’s engineers as they attempted to connect the jump sub to the hastily prepared launch sled.

“How is it looking?” Nathan asked Marcus as he approached.

“If those dumb shits could figure out how to install that thing, it’d be goin’ fine,” Marcus grumbled.

“We all loaded up?”

“Fueled, charged, and loaded. Still having problems with the starboard loaders, and the power to the ventral guns keeps dropping.”

“I guess we’ll have to fix it en route,” Nathan decided. “Everyone on board?”

“Still waiting on Naralena.” Marcus shot Nathan a look.

“What?”

“You sure we need her?”

Nathan looked puzzled. “Since when do you have a problem with Naralena?”

“Nothing personal,” Marcus assured him. “I’m sure she’s a great comms officer.”

“But?”

“Shit seems to follow her when she steps off this ship.”

“Superstition does not become you, old man,” Nathan commented, patting him on the back and continuing up the ramp toward the Voss’s utility bay. As he reached the top of the ramp, he spotted Mori and Kit checking the Ghatazhak combat armor lockers, which they had hung on the wall of the utility bay. “You brought your combat armor?” he questioned, heading toward them. “You do realize this is a covert mission, right?”

“Ghatazhak don’t leave home without their gear,” Kit replied.

“You should see the weapons package they brought,” Jessica added as she stepped into the bay through the forward hatch. “Cam’s on comms for you.”

“Button up and get us under way as soon as Naralena arrives,” Nathan instructed as he continued forward.

“What about the jump sub launcher?”

“Strap the whole thing down, and we’ll deal with it en route,” Nathan told her.

“This is starting off well,” she muttered.

Nathan quickly ascended the ladder to the upper deck, stepping through the hatch into the common room and moving straight to the large table at its center. He picked up the remote on the table and activated the view screen on the far wall. “What’s up?” he called to Cameron on the view screen.

“We just received an invitation,” she replied.

“From whom?”

“Griogair Dusahn. Seems he wants to meet to discuss a cease-fire.”

“Right.”

“It’s bound to be a trap,” Cameron said.

“Undoubtedly,” Nathan agreed. “But we have to go.”

“How do you want to respond?”

“Wait a couple of days, then ask when and where. Play along; make him wait. Argue over the details of the meet; that kind of thing.”

“I know how to stall,” Cameron assured him. “By the way, Vlad just informed me he was going with you. Something about the Voss not being fully ready for action and you needing him. Did you ask him to come?”

“Without asking you first?”

“He assures me that repairs on the Aurora are nearly completed and that he is not needed here. So it’s your call.”

“I’m sure he’ll be of use here,” Nathan admitted.

“Very well,” Cameron replied. “Safe flight.”

“See you soon,” Nathan said, ending the call.

“Cap’n,” Marcus called over comms.

“Go ahead,” Nathan replied. The Voss’s automated intercom system didn’t require a comm-set, which was a pleasant change of pace. It had always surprised Nathan that given all the technological advances over the last few decades, the comm-sets on the Aurora were still somewhat bulky and uncomfortable to wear for an entire duty shift.

“Naralena is here, as well as Vlad,” Marcus reported. “He’s carrying a duffel. He comin’ with?”

“Yup.”

“Great,” Marcus grumbled.

Nathan turned and headed aft again, stepping into the center corridor and sliding down the ladder to the deck below. Three more steps, and he was back in the utility bay. “Welcome aboard,” he said, greeting Naralena.

“Where do I put my things?” Naralena wondered.

“You’re bunking with me,” Jessica told her. “I’ll show you.”

Nathan stepped aside, making room for Jessica and Naralena to pass by him, then turned to Vlad. “Playing Mom against Dad? Really?”

“I should get to work,” Vladimir answered sheepishly as he passed.

Nathan watched Vladimir disappear through the forward hatch, then turned aft to face Marcus at the top of the cargo ramp. “Close it up, Marcus. It’s time to go.”

* * *

“Good morning,” Nathan greeted Jessica as she entered the Voss’s common room. “Sleep well?”

“Nobody slept well,” Kit chuckled as he sipped his coffee.

“I did,” Nathan insisted. “I find the bunks rather comfortable.”

“The bunks aren’t the problem,” Jessica told him. “It’s all the vibrations. This ship is noisy as hell.”

“It didn’t bother me,” Nathan said, “but I’ll talk to Vlad about quieting things down once everything else is working properly.” Nathan turned his attention to Josh as he too entered the room. “How are we doing?”

“We’re about halfway there,” Josh replied. “In recharge layover right now.”

“How long until we reach Sol?”

“Around zero three hundred tomorrow, ship time,” Josh replied, heading for the galley on the starboard side of the common room.

“How’s that work for us?” Nathan asked Jessica.

Jessica picked up her data pad, tapping it several times. “That will be around eighteen hundred local time at our insertion point. Sunset this time of year on the west coast is around eighteen thirty, so by the time we reach our egress point, it should be dark enough outside to come out of the water without being noticed.”

“Are we certain this Bowden guy is still living in that area?” Kit wondered.

“According to Cam, he’s been stuck in sig-int analysis ever since Galiardi took over,” Jessica explained. That unit has been stationed in Monterey since before any of us were born, so there’s no reason to believe they’ve moved it recently.”

“That’s pretty weak,” Kit commented.

“That’s the best we’ve got,” Nathan replied.

“How are we going to track this guy down?” Specialist Brill inquired.

“That’s why Kit’s going with us,” Jessica said.

“I am?” Kit said.

“Think you can hack an EDF base personnel database?”

“As long as I’ve got a connection,” Kit assured her.

“Everything is wireless there, so that should be easy enough,” Jessica explained. “We just have to pick up a few comm-units once we get there.”

“How long will it take you to hack that database?” Nathan asked Kit.

“A few minutes, tops,” Kit replied confidently.

“I could do it faster,” Specialist Deeks bragged.

“Bullshit,” Kit objected.

“You look too young,” Jessica told Deeks. “We’re posing as two couples, and Kit is going to pose as Naralena’s husband. An age mismatch might attract extra attention.”

“Seriously?” Deeks asked.

“It would make us easier to pick out of a crowd,” Jessica explained.

“Is that really a concern?” Kit wondered.

“Even with longer hair and a few days’ growth, Nathan is still recognizable,” Jessica insisted.

“Even after seven years?”

“We have to assume that Galiardi knows I’m alive,” Nathan stated.

“We also have to assume that he knows he came back for Abby,” Jessica added. “EDF security, and possibly local law enforcement, will have his likeness on the watch list.”

“No disrespect, sir, but maybe you should sit this one out,” Kit suggested.

“Some things I have to do myself,” Nathan insisted.

“I brought Earth civvies for everyone, so we shouldn’t look out of place,” Jessica said. “But the water is cold there, and our suits don’t provide a lot of thermal protection. So we don’t want to be in the water for long.”

“Then you’d better get us in close,” Nathan said.

“I’ll start prepping the gear,” Kit decided, rising to exit.

“I’ll help,” Deeks added, following his cohort out.

Nathan stared at Josh.

“What?” Josh wondered as he chewed his food. He looked over at Jessica and then back to Nathan before getting the hint. “I think I’ll finish this on the bridge,” he announced as he made a hasty exit back the way he had come.

As soon as Josh left, Nathan turned to speak.

“She’ll be fine,” Jessica assured him before he could ask.

“Are you certain?” Nathan asked. “She didn’t look too enthusiastic about the idea when I asked.”

“Yeah, well, losing Weatherly shook her up. In fact, the entire Kohara mission did a number on her. I think that’s why she decided to go back to Volon instead of staying on Earth with Bowden. She needed time to forget, and Gerard was a constant reminder of that mission.”

“Then perhaps I am asking too much of her.”

“Maybe, but she needs to do this,” Jessica insisted. “It’s the only way she’s going to put it all behind her. Besides, we have no idea where Bowden’s loyalties truly lie. Naralena may be what pulls him to our side.”

“I hope you’re right,” Nathan replied as he rose, “about both her strength and her effect on Gerard.”

“I guess we’ll see.”

* * *

Nathan stood in front of the jump sub, examining it closely. “This is the newer version, right?”

“Da,” Vladimir replied. “Fully automated, pre-programmed, with multi-rendezvous points. All you have to do is select your pickup point and press the button.”

“And it has remote recall, just like the others?” Jessica asked.

“Of course,” Vladimir assured them. “That too has been improved. The system has a tethered, passive comm-buoy that listens to Earth-Net, so you can send it instructions from anywhere on Earth and tell it to go wherever you wish. It even has an underwater travel range of ten thousand kilometers, so there’s a lot more versatility for escape.”

“Let’s hope we don’t need it,” Nathan said.

“It seems smaller,” Jessica decided.

“This is the four-person version,” Vladimir explained. “There are six and eight-seat versions as well, but this size is the only one that we already had a launch and recovery system for.”

Jessica climbed up on the side of the jump sub, searching its topside. “There’s no hatch.”

Vladimir opened a small panel on the port side, just below the canopy, and touched a button. The long canopy split in half, the front sliding forward along its rails while the back half slid aft. “Much better, yes?”

“That will make ingress and egress much faster,” Jessica agreed, hopping back down to the deck.

“I hated that little hatch,” Naralena stated.

“Ready?” Nathan asked Naralena.

“Not really, but what the hell,” she replied, picking up her bag and climbing into one of the two back seats in the jump sub.

Kit was next, climbing up the side of the jump sub, bag in hand, and dropping into the seat next to Naralena.

“Ladies first,” Nathan said, gesturing for Jessica to go ahead of him. As she climbed into the sub, he turned to Vladimir. “You’re sure this apparatus will work? Our course and speed must be exact.”

“Nathan, please; do not insult me,” Vladimir insisted.

“Sorry,” Nathan apologized, picking up his bag and climbing aboard to join the others.

“Jump point in one minute,” Loki’s voice announced over the loudspeaker in the Voss’s aft utility bay.

By the time Nathan had taken his seat, Jessica had already spun up the jump sub’s systems and was using the shared console to run a quick systems check.

“Shaslivovo puti,” Vladimir said as he activated the controls to close the cockpit.

“What did he say?” Kit wondered.

“He was wishing us a safe journey,” Naralena assured him.

The cockpit darkened as the canopy slid over them, with soft interior lighting snapping on once the two halves met. There was a series of clicks as the halves latched, followed by a hiss of air as the jump sub adjusted its internal pressure in preparation for launch.

Nathan felt his ears pop as his own internal pressure equalized.

“Everything’s good to go,” Jessica reported.

“Jump point in twenty seconds,” Loki reported over the jump sub’s comm-speaker.

“We’re ready to go here,” Jessica reported over comms.

“Fair winds and following seas,” Loki added.

“What?” Kit asked from the back seat.

“It’s an old sailor’s phrase to wish people an easy and safe journey,” Nathan explained.

“Why don’t you people just speak plainly?” Kit wondered. “It would be more efficient.”

“But not as colorful,” Jessica commented.

“Entering the groove,” Josh reported over comms.

“Rear hatch is open, deploying jump sub,” Loki added.

Nathan felt the sub vibrate slightly as its mounting system telescoped out the back end of the Voss in preparation for release.

“Full deployment in thirty seconds,” Loki stated. “On course and speed for insertion jump.”

“Although I’d hardly call our current rate ‘speed,’” Josh added. “Marcus can run faster than this.”

“Don’t push your luck, kid,” Marcus grumbled.

“You’re clear to release,” Loki announced.

Jessica pushed a button on the center console, and the status indicator light for the docking clamps turned red. “Jump sub is free-floating,” she announced.

“Translating up and forward, relative,” Josh reported over comms.

Nathan peered out through the forward canopy as the Voss fired small puffs of thrust from her translation thrusters, beginning her maneuver. The ship drifted up and away from them, its following thruster blasts increasing in duration to hasten their separation.

“We’re right in the middle of the pipe, slow glide,” Jessica reported. “Should be an easy insertion.”

“Another improvement?” Nathan wondered.

“Yeah, they increased the amount of jump juice storage so that we could jump at much slower speeds,” Jessica reported.

“Thank God,” Naralena said, remembering their previous insertion from years ago.

“Good sep,” Loki reported. “You’re clear to jump.”

“See you soon,” Jessica replied, looking to Nathan for a signal.

“Let’s do it.”

“Brace yourselves,” Jessica warned, just before she pressed the jump button.

The jump sub’s canopy turned opaque, and a split second later, there was a severe thud, as if they had hit a brick wall. All four of them were thrown forward against their shoulder restraints for a moment as the tiny sub found itself deep in Earth’s Pacific Ocean.

“I thought you said it would be a smooth insertion,” Kit complained.

“I said it would be easy, not smooth,” Jessica replied. “Scope is clear,” she reported. “We’re about twenty clicks off the coast, about two hundred meters deep, on course for Seal Beach. We should get there in about an hour.”

“How far will we have to swim?” Naralena asked nervously.

“About one hundred meters,” Jessica promised.

“Won’t the water be too shallow that close to shore to hide the sub?” Nathan wondered.

“Once we’re out, the sub will head out to deeper waters and wait for our signal to return,” Jessica explained. “Like I said, this water is cold, and these skin-suits won’t keep us from freezing our asses off for more than ten minutes.”

“I don’t suppose you’ve checked the tides?” Nathan wondered.

Jessica just looked at him.

“Sorry, just asking.”

* * *

Gentle waves washed across the narrow strip of beach at regular intervals. On the path, a few meters further up the slope from the beach, an old man walked his dog as the occasional lighted vehicle made its way past along the meandering, coastal roadway.

The man’s dog, normally eager to move forward, suddenly stopped and began barking as a shadowy figure emerged from the water about ten meters out from the beach.

“What the…” the old man began, squinting to see the figure more clearly. Another silhouette appeared, followed by two more. “Quiet down, girl!” he commanded his animal. “Shush!”

The dog heeded his master’s commands, restricting herself to the occasional growl as the four people walked up out of the water onto the narrow beach.

“A little late for diving,” the old man called out to the strangers.

“I guess we lost track of time,” Nathan lied.

“You’re lucky you found your way out.”

“It’s our first time,” Nathan added.

“I’ve never seen dive suits like that,” the old man said. “They keep you warm?”

“Not warm enough,” Jessica replied.

The old man shook his head and muttered to himself as he continued his walk. “Stupid tourists.”

Jessica removed her pack, dropping it onto the beach before her, and quickly began peeling off her dive suit.

“Probably could’ve picked a more remote spot,” Kit commented as he removed his suit. “Maybe one without a walking path right next to it.”

“There are trails along this entire bay,” Jessica explained. “This beach was the only one that doesn’t have its own parking lot.”

“Maybe we should’ve landed later,” Kit suggested.

“Then we’d have to find a place to stay for the night and kill an entire day,” Nathan commented as he pulled on a pair of dry pants he had pulled from his pack.

“Might have been fun, you know, being a tourist and all,” Kit joked.

“Easy for you to say,” Jessica replied as she donned a dry shirt. “You’re not on Galiardi’s most-wanted list.”

“What do we do with our packs?” Naralena asked as she put on her jacket. “Won’t it look suspicious, all of us carrying the same pack?”

Kit picked up his bag to demonstrate for Naralena. “Grab here, squeeze, toss,” he explained, after which he squeezed a small square patch on his bag, then tossed the bag out into the surf. There was a small, nearly imperceptible flash of light, followed by a puff of smoke, and the bag disappeared beneath the gentle waves.

“In five minutes, there won’t be enough left to be reassembled,” Kit added.

“What’s left will be carried out to sea by the outgoing tides,” Jessica added.

“Who comes up with this stuff?” Naralena wondered as she squeezed her pack and then tossed it into the water.

“Ironically enough, they’re EDF spec-ops issue,” Jessica replied as she too flung her pack into the waves. “We need to get moving before anyone else sees us.”

“What’s the plan?” Nathan asked, donning his cap and pulling the brim down low.

“The trail will take us to the waterfront,” Jessica said, pointing down the trail to her left. “There will be hundreds of tourists milling about, so we’ll blend right in.” She grabbed Nathan by the hand and started leading him off the beach toward the trail. “We’re just two couples, here on vacation, out for an evening stroll along the coast.”

“Ma’am,” Kit said, offering his hand to Naralena.

“I’m supposed to be your wife, not your mother,” Naralena reminded him, hooking her arm under his as they followed Nathan and Jessica up to the trail.

* * *

“Is this really what your people consider fun?” Kit wondered as they walked along the shop-lined streets of the waterfront. “There’s nothing here but merchants selling the same, useless crap.”

“There’s more variety layered in here than you think,” Jessica told him.

“Maybe, but it’s still just shopping. That’s not my idea of a vacation.”

“What’s your idea of a vacation?” Nathan wondered as they made their way through the crowds.

“I don’t know,” Kit admitted. “I’ve never really had one.”

“I’m betting it would involve booze and women,” Jessica joked.

“That would be a good start,” Kit agreed.

“Wait here,” Jessica told them before disappearing into one of the shops.

“What is she doing?” Naralena wondered.

“Blending in,” Nathan surmised.

“Is this what you usually did on vacation?” Kit asked Nathan.

“It’s been a while,” Nathan admitted. “But as I remember, it was more in line with your idea of a vacation.”

“On Volon, a vacation means relaxing at a resort where everything is done for you, and you get a chance to heal your body and mind from the rigors of daily life.”

“So you basically do nothing?” Kit wondered. “Sounds boring.”

“Sometimes doing nothing is the best medicine,” Naralena insisted.

“I could go for doing nothing for a while,” Nathan agreed.

“I think I’d rather have the booze and women,” Kit joked.

Jessica came back out of the shop, several bags in hand.

“A shopping spree? Now?” Nathan asked.

Jessica pulled the cap off of Nathan’s head and tossed it into a nearby trash can, then pulled a new cap out of one of her bags. “Gotta look the part.”

Nathan pulled the tag off and donned the cap, pulling it down low as before.

“A jacket for you,” Jessica continued, handing Kit a blue, lightweight jacket with ‘Monterey’ emblazoned across the back. “A sweater for you,” she said next, handing the garment to Naralena. “And a T-shirt for me,” she finished, pulling her new top on over her current one. “Now we look like tourists.”

“I thought you were getting comms,” Kit commented as he donned his new jacket.

“I did,” Jessica said, tossing one to Kit. “Get busy.”

“What else do you have in there?” Nathan asked, noticing that her bags were not yet empty.

“Comms for everyone, some big, ugly shoulder bags for Naralena and me, and ID lanyards for everyone.

“ID lanyards?” Nathan wondered.

“Look around; all the tourists are wearing them,” Jessica replied. “The clerk said that they make it a lot easier when security asks for your ID and travel card.”

“They’re checking people’s IDs now?” Nathan commented.

“Apparently they’ve been doing it ever since Galiardi imposed global martial law, in response to your family’s assassination.”

“So he kills your family, then uses it as an excuse to declare martial law and seize power,” Kit surmised as he pulled out his data pad and got to work. “He’s ambitious, I’ll give him that.”

“Galiardi has always been willing to do anything to protect Earth,” Jessica told him. “I’m sure that, in his warped mind, murdering them was justified.”

“I’ve got a connection,” Kit announced.

“Put your ID in it and hang it around your neck,” Jessica instructed, passing the lanyards out.

“Why do we want to make it easier for them to check our IDs?” Naralena wondered.

“They can’t possibly check everyone’s ID,” Nathan commented.

“They’re probably doing it randomly, based on some sort of profiling criteria,” Jessica decided. “Same way spec-ops do when trying to spot the bad guy in a crowd. Look for something out of place.”

“Isn’t that kind of obvious?” Kit suggested.

“Yeah, but you’d be surprised how stupid the average bad guy can be.”

“That’s why you bought us these garments,” Naralena surmised.

“Rule number one for covert ops is: ‘Don’t stand out in a crowd.’ How many people do you see not wearing anything touristy?”

“Not many,” Kit chuckled as he worked. “I’m in.”

“How did you do that so quickly?” Naralena asked in amazement.

“Ghatazhak drill on all methods of combat,” Kit stated. “Land, sea, air, space, cyber…they’re all battlefields.”

“Brains and body,” Jessica stated, repeating the old mantra from her Ghatazhak training.

“Brains and body,” Kit repeated, smiling. “Got it. Twelve twenty-one Searidge Drive,” he said, quickly disconnecting his data pad and putting it away. He then tossed his comm-unit to Jessica, who turned and accidentally bumped into a passing stranger. “Pardon me,” she said, smiling at the man as she slipped Kit’s comm-unit into the man’s jacket pocket.

“No problem at all, miss,” the man smiled, continuing on his way.

Jessica turned back to Kit as she pulled another comm-unit from her bag and tossed it to him.

“Nicely done,” Kit congratulated.

“So how do we get there?” Naralena wondered.

“I spotted a cab plaza a few blocks back,” Nathan suggested.

“Better we take public transit,” Jessica countered. “Less chance of leaving a trail.”

* * *

After a long, meandering bus ride followed by a half-hour walk, the four of them found themselves in a dimly lit, heavily wooded section of the city, approaching their destination.

“It should be the next one on the left,” Jessica stated as they walked.

“How do you want to do this?” Kit asked.

“Nathan and Kit go around back,” Jessica instructed. “I’ll take the front.”

“What am I doing?” Naralena wondered.

“You’re the distraction,” Jessica explained. “You’re knocking on the front door.”

“What if he’s not alone?” Naralena asked.

“Then we go to plan B,” Jessica replied.

“Which is?” Naralena inquired.

“Wing it.”

“See you inside,” Nathan said to Jessica as he and Kit headed off to the left, between the houses.

Jessica and Naralena headed up the walkway and onto the front porch, pausing at the door. “Are you ready for this?” Jessica asked.

“Even less than I was to get in another jump sub,” Naralena replied.

“Whenever you’re ready,” Jessica said, stepping aside to be out of immediate view.

Naralena took a deep breath, then pressed the doorbell. After a moment, the porch light came on, and the door opened, revealing an older, surprised Gerard Bowden.

“Surprise,” Naralena greeted, feigning a smile to try and hide her apprehension.

Gerard just stood there, his mouth agape, unable to find words.

Jessica stood silently to the side, out of the line of sight, scanning the area for any sign of danger as she listened to the silence. Finally, she’d had enough of the silence and stepped into view. “Maybe you should invite us in,” she suggested.

“Nash?” Gerard said, equally surprised.

“The one and only,” Jessica replied, pushing Naralena toward the door. “May we?”

“Of course,” Gerard insisted, stepping aside as they passed.

Kit made short work of the lock on Gerard’s back door, opening it in less than minute.

“Is there anything you guys can’t do?” Nathan whispered.

“I’m a lousy cook, if it makes you feel any better,” Kit admitted, heading inside as quietly as possible.

“What are you doing here?” Gerard asked as he closed the front door.

When Naralena did not respond, Jessica gave her a nudge with her elbow.

“I thought you’d be happy to see me,” was the only thing Naralena could think to say.

“I am, but, well,” he stumbled. “I mean, it’s not like Earth is on the way to anywhere from Volon…is it?”

“Most decidedly not,” Naralena assured him, smiling.

“How did you even…” he began to ask, but then the spec-ops side of him kicked in. “You’re with them, aren’t you?”

“Them?” Jessica asked, feeling like she should take offense.

“The Karuzari Alliance,” Gerard replied.

“What do you know about the Karuzari Alliance?” Jessica wondered.

“Are you kidding?” Gerard chuckled. “I’m an intelligence analyst. Other than the Jung, the Karuzari are the hottest topic in the intel community right now.”

“Nice to know we’re so popular,” Jessica commented.

“So is it true?” Gerard asked Jessica.

“Is what true?”

“Is he alive?”

“I am,” Nathan answered, stepping out of the kitchen with Kit behind him.

“Oh…my…God,” Gerard exclaimed. “I’m not even going to ask how you pulled that off.”

“It’s a long story,” Jessica assured him.

“I’ll bet.” Gerard turned to look back at Naralena. “I knew your return was too good to be true.”

Naralena felt her heart fall.

“Don’t blame her,” Nathan insisted. “I asked her to come. I figured it was the only way to be sure you spoke with us.”

“I wanted to come,” Naralena insisted. “I wanted to come long ago, after my father passed, but thousand-light-year passages are not exactly easy to book.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” Gerard said, shaking his head.

“I’m sorry,” Naralena apologized, “it was presumptuous of me…”

“You don’t understand,” Gerard explained. “Galiardi has never trusted me. He’s never trusted anyone who served with Nathan. He’s been monitoring all of us, especially since the Aurora disappeared.” When Nathan didn’t react to his last statement, the light went on in Gerard’s head. “You have her, don’t you?”

“The Aurora is safe and sound, and under my command,” Nathan assured him.

Kit, with a suspicious look on his face, was moving slowly around the room, looking about.

“That’s another story you’ll have to share with me someday.”

“What’s the official story on the Aurora?” Jessica wondered.

“That she’s gone dark,” Gerard replied. “Rumor has it that she’s on some kind of covert mission behind Jung lines, but none of us believe that.”

“That’s the best they could come up with?” Jessica laughed.

“Is Doctor Sorenson working with you?” Gerard asked.

“As are Kayla Yosef and Chris Hunt,” Nathan replied.

“Did you come here to recruit me as well?”

“Not exactly,” Nathan admitted. “However, you are welcome to join us if you’d like, just not on this trip. No empty seats, I’m afraid.”

“Then why are you here?” Gerard wondered.

“I need information about Jung customs,” Nathan explained. “Particularly about how one challenges a caste leader for control of a caste.”

Gerard looked at Jessica, then Nathan. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Lord Dusahn has rigged the entire planet of Takara with antimatter warheads,” Nathan explained. “If we try to retake Takara, he’ll destroy the planet. He already destroyed Ancot, just to show us that he could.”

“Dusahn?” Gerard questioned. “That can’t be. The Dusahn caste was exiled centuries ago for trying to overthrow the other castes and seize complete control of the empire. They call it the Toriq Shal. The day of blood. There’s no way the Jung Empire would collude with the Dusahn.”

“They didn’t,” Jessica said.

“The Dusahn used old Jung ships to run a false-flag op on the Sol Alliance, in order to spark a new shooting war with the Jung, thus keeping the Alliance out of the Pentaurus sector,” Nathan explained.

Shock crossed Gerard’s face. “You’re telling me that the Jung did not attack us?”

“They did not,” Nathan assured him.

“How can you be so sure?” Gerard wondered. “We’ve seen images, sensor scans…”

“Those same ships, the ones that attacked Sol Alliance ships and intruded into your space, eventually returned to the Pentaurus sector where we defeated them.”

“Galiardi has been lying to you,” Naralena told Gerard.

“But the Jung killed your family,” he said to Nathan.

“That was Galiardi as well,” Jessica replied. “We have one of his assassins in custody.”

Gerard just shook his head. “Why?”

“Galiardi has one goal,” Nathan said, “to destroy the Jung Empire.”

“Do you think he’s working with the Dusahn?”

“I don’t rightly know,” Nathan admitted. “I wouldn’t put it past him.”

“It would also explain how the Dusahn obtained jump drive technology,” Jessica added.

“My God,” Gerard exclaimed. After a moment, lost in disbelief, he looked at Nathan. “What do you need me to do?”

“I just need to know about the right to challenge Lord Dusahn for leadership of the caste,” Nathan repeated. “Can I challenge him?”

“No, you can’t,” Gerard insisted. “You have to be a member of the caste to challenge its leader. The only exception is if you’re the leader of a rival caste.”

“Are you certain?” Nathan asked.

“Quite.”

Nathan sighed. “I was afraid of that.”

Gerard realized what Nathan was planning. “Captain… you can’t… The Jung will kill you on sight. Your very existence threatens their entire society. Your execution was the thread that pulled Nor-Patri back from the brink of revolution.”

“What are you talking about?” Jessica wondered.

“The attack on Nor-Patri caused massive amounts of unrest among the citizens of the empire. Half were calling for an all-out attack on Earth, regardless of the consequences. The other half were demanding that they sue for peace and that the military castes be dismantled, for the good of all. Nor-Patri was on the verge of civil war. All of that changed when you surrendered. Once they had you to blame, both sides got what they needed in order to stand down. The war hawks got their blood, and the pacifists got their cease-fire.”

“And you think the knowledge that I still live will reopen that rift,” Nathan said.

“Without a doubt. If you show up on Nor-Patri, Galiardi will get his victory, and it will be an easy one; the empire will be too busy battling its own citizens to defend itself against the Alliance.”

“Perhaps that’s the leverage we need,” Nathan decided.

“Leverage for what?” Gerard wondered.

“To get the Jung to make me a caste leader.”

Jessica looked at Kit, noticing he seemed anxious. “What?” she asked under her breath.

“I don’t know,” Kit replied quietly. “Something doesn’t feel right.”

“Before or after they kill you?” Gerard asked Nathan.

“If you suspected that I was still alive, then others suspect as well,” Nathan postulated. “Earth is likely rife with Jung spies. If they haven’t already heard these same rumors, they soon will.”

“Suspecting that you’re alive and seeing you standing before them are two completely different things,” Gerard insisted.

“The Jung have too much at stake to act rashly,” Nathan pointed out. “Galiardi can destroy the empire any time he chooses. He just needs justification in the eyes of his people. Our intel shows that the people of Earth are equally divided on this issue. In fact, there have already been several attacks on EDF assets by Terrans, have there not?”

“There have,” Gerard confirmed. “Most of them have been a joke. Only those carried out by Rusayev’s people have done any damage. Even then, they’re nowhere near enough to bring down Galiardi.”

“Who’s Rusayev?” Naralena wondered.

“Aleksi Rusayev,” Gerard replied. “Ex-Russian spec-ops. He runs a cell out of Moscow. Some think he is developing a global network, but there isn’t any proof of that yet.”

“Could this guy do some real damage if he had proper backing?” Nathan asked.

“Possibly. So far, the EDF hasn’t taken any action. It’s been mostly left in the hands of local law enforcement. But if things escalate, Galiardi will release the hounds.”

“Vehicle out front,” Kit warned, peeking out the curtain. “Two men.”

Jessica moved over to the window. “Could be anyone.”

“Second vehicle to the north,” Kit added. “No headlights, rolling to a stop.”

“That’s a bit more concerning,” Jessica agreed.

“Ya think?” Kit said as he moved across the living room back toward the kitchen.

“Are you sure you wiped your tracks?” Jessica asked Kit.

“No way they knew I was in their system, let alone what data I accessed,” Kit insisted.

“How did you get here?” Gerard asked.

“Jump sub, then bus,” Nathan replied.

Gerard sighed. “All buses are monitored with hidden cameras equipped with facial recognition software.”

“That bus dropped us a couple of clicks from here,” Jessica pointed out.

“If they ID’d you on the bus, it would be pretty easy to figure out your destination.”

“If there are two teams out front, you can bet your ass there are two more on the street behind us.”

“Two armed men just came over the back fence,” Kit warned, stepping back into the living room. “I can take them out.”

“Don’t kill anyone you don’t have to,” Jessica insisted.

“You must go,” Gerard urged. “There will be more coming.”

Nathan sighed, pulling his comm-unit from his pocket and tapping a few buttons. “Get ready to move out,” he told Jessica as he glanced at his comm-unit display.

“I won’t tell them anything,” Gerard promised. “Now go! Please!”

Nathan turned toward Gerard, his head down as he cast a sinister gaze at the man. “You will tell them everything,” he instructed.

“I will?”

“We gotta go!” Kit warned. “They’re about to hit the back door!”

“Everything,” Nathan repeated, handing his comm-unit to Gerard. “How you refused to help us, but we beat you, so you told us just what you knew we could have already figured out for ourselves. Understood?”

“Make it look good,” Gerard replied.

Nathan struck Gerard in the mouth, grabbing his shoulder to keep him from falling from his blow.

“What are you doing!” Naralena screamed.

“What he must!” Gerard assured her.

Nathan struck him again, and again, and again, drawing blood from his mouth and nose. He then struck him in the stomach and chest several times, breaking the man’s ribs in the process. He struck him over and over, until Gerard finally fell to his knees, nearly unconscious. Then Nathan squatted down next to Gerard and whispered in his ear. “I’ll make it up to you, my friend. I swear it.”

“Contact! Rear!” Kit yelled from the kitchen. The sounds of a brief scuffle followed, and a moment later, he added. “Back door is clear!”

“Two more vehicles!” Jessica warned from the front window. She grabbed Naralena and shoved her toward the kitchen. “Time to go, Nathan!”

“I will see you soon,” Nathan told Gerard.

“I truly hope so,” the battered, old man replied, watching the departure of the only captain whom he had ever felt was worth following.

“What have you got?” Jessica asked Kit as she and Naralena joined him at the back door.

“Two rifles, two sidearms,” Kit replied as he inspected the captured weapons. “Full auto, variable. From stun to kill.”

“What say we use stun for now,” Nathan suggested as he joined them.

“Anything?” Jessica asked Kit, who was peeking out the back window.

“No movement, but it’s dark as fuck. I’d sure love a battle helmet right now.”

“What’s the plan?” Nathan asked.

“Since these two are down, they’ll expect us to go through the yard behind us,” Jessica said as she sized up the rifle handed to her by Kit. “You and I go left, Kit and Naralena go right, then we hit the front units from both sides.”

“Got it,” Kit replied as he set his rifle to stun.

“Let’s do it,” Nathan agreed, handing one of the sidearms to Naralena and taking one for himself.

“I don’t know how to use one of these,” Naralena insisted.

“Point, shoot; nothing to it,” Jessica told her.

“But…”

“It’s on stun, so you’re not going to kill anyone.”

“Unless the guy you stun falls off a cliff or something,” Kit added.

“Thanks,” Naralena replied.

“Just don’t stun one of us,” Jessica added as she prepared to move out. “We gotta make this quick. If we don’t escape and disappear within the next few minutes, we’re screwed. Once the shooting starts, there will be ground and air units here in minutes.” She pulled her comm-unit, quickly putting it into encrypted mode, then pulled the tiny, wireless earpiece out of the top of the unit and stuck it in her ear as she placed a call.

Kit’s comm-unit vibrated, and he pulled it out, placing his earpiece in his ear as well.

“You got me?” Jessica asked.

“I’m Two, you’re One?” Kit asked.

“Roger that,” she replied, tapping him on the shoulder.

Kit was the first out the door, immediately tracking his weapon to the left and sweeping across the backyard fence line for targets, coming back across up high to scan the trees and nearby rooftops. “Clear,” he whispered, moving to the right.

“Go,” Jessica told Naralena. “Follow Kit.”

Naralena hesitated at first, but then stepped through the door, immediately going to the right to follow Kit, who was already heading for the side fence.

Kit dropped to one knee, turned, and prepared to boost Naralena over the fence.

Naralena took the cue and put her left foot into Kit’s cupped hands, then jumped up and grabbed the top of the fence, hoisting herself over smoothly.

Kit was next, pulling himself up with his arms and swinging his legs over like a gymnast, landing perfectly in the next yard, his rifle back in ready position.

Jessica sailed over the opposite fence with practiced precision. Although not as gracefully, Nathan followed her over with ease. The two of them headed quickly across the dark yard, making their way to the far side of the neighbor’s house.

Jessica led, hugging the wall of the house until they reached a gate that led to the front yard. “One, ready,” she whispered over her comm-unit.

“Two, ready,” Kit replied.

Jessica slung the rifle over her shoulder, then unlatched the gate, using both hands to support its weight so that its hinges would not creak. She held the gate open as Nathan stepped through, then carefully closed it before she unslung her weapon and moved into firing position.

“I’ve got four, moving toward the target house,” she whispered over comms.

“Two easy, nearest me,” Kit replied.

“I’ve got the other two,” Jessica whispered back. “Take them when they pass the front bushes, so their bodies won’t be visible from the street.”

“Copy that.”

Jessica took aim, being careful not to expose herself any more than necessary. “These guys are idiots,” she whispered.

Four men wearing the uniforms of local law enforcement moved cautiously but surely toward the front of Gerard’s home, confident in their superiority. They fanned out, a pair left and a pair right of the walkway, choosing to stay out of the direct line of fire should someone suddenly open the front door and start shooting.

The four men stepped carefully over the bushes along the front sidewalk, taking great pains not to make any noise. Four tiny blasts of green-colored energy surprised them, and all four men fell to the ground, unconscious.

Kit bolted out from his firing position, running over to the fallen officers and quickly frisking them, removing their rifles and sidearms.

“We don’t need all of their weapons,” Jessica told Kit, searching one of the downed officers for keys.

“No such thing as too many weapons,” Kit insisted, slinging another rifle over his shoulder and then handing one to Naralena.

“All their weapons are trackable,” Jessica explained.

“Even when they’re powered down?”

“Yup.”

“Well that sucks,” Kit replied, tossing the weapons aside.

Jessica put the officer’s comm-set in her other ear, then pulled the control unit from his belt. She then found a set of keys, pointed it toward the nearest parked vehicle, and pressed a button on the key. The lights inside the vehicle turned on, illuminating its interior. “That’s our ride,” she told Nathan.

“They’ll be able to track the vehicles as well,” Kit warned, taking a set of keys from the unconscious officer nearest him.

“I’m counting on it,” Jessica replied. “You remember how to hot-wire an Earth vehicle?”

“Please,” Kit replied, feigning insult. “Come on,” he urged Naralena, heading for the far vehicle.

“See you at the beach,” Jessica said, heading out as well.

“Shouldn’t we stay together?” Nathan questioned as he followed Jessica to their vehicle.

“If we split up, our pursuers have to split up,” Jessica explained as they climbed into the vehicle. She reached down under the center console, then pulled hard, ripping out the wiring harness that connected the data and comms systems to the vehicle’s power and antennas.

“What are you doing?” Nathan wondered.

Jessica popped open the comm-box, pulling out a chip and a battery, completely disabling the unit. “Now they can’t track this vehicle.”

“Does Kit know how to do this?”

“Yes, but he won’t,” Jessica replied, starting the vehicle.

“But that means they’ll follow them,” Nathan said, concerned.

“That’s why he won’t disable it,” she explained as they pulled away. “He and Naralena are expendable; you’re not.”

Nathan was shocked. “No one’s expendable, Jess,” he disagreed.

“Yes they are, and you of all people should know this.”

“You should have asked,” Nathan insisted.

“Security is my job…specifically your security.”

“Bullshit,” Nathan objected angrily.

“If you think I’m going to ask your permission during a high-risk, fluid, covert op, you need to review the responsibilities of my position.”

Nathan didn’t respond. He wasn’t happy, but he knew she was right. More importantly, he trusted her.

Jessica pulled the comm-unit she had stolen from the downed officer and tossed it, along with the paired comm-set in her right ear, out of the window. “Three units just arrived at Gerard’s. No airship has been dispatched yet. We got lucky.”

“How is that possible?” Nathan wondered. “If they’ve got facial recognition on the buses…”

“You kept your head down on the bus, right?”

“I did.”

“Then they probably ID’d me or Naralena. If they’d ID’d you, this place would be crawling.”

“You’re right, that was a lucky break.”

“Yeah, well it won’t last long. Once Gerard tells them it was you, all hell’s going to break loose in this city. You copy all that, Kit?” she added.

“Disabling the vehicle data comms systems now,” he replied over her comm-unit earpiece.

“You had this planned all along,” Nathan realized.

“Ghatazhak never work an op without every possible scenario worked out in advance.”

“You might want to let me in on those scenarios next time,” Nathan suggested.

“And miss the opportunity to tell you to shut up?” Jessica smiled. “Never.”

* * *

Michael Galiardi had always been a man of routine. His day always began and ended with a series of briefings. As the de facto leader of Earth and the entire Sol Alliance, his responsibilities covered every level of human civilization: domestic, foreign, and interstellar. It was a lot of responsibility for one man, but he reveled in it.

After decades of fighting with bureaucrats and politicians to get the funding his forces needed to properly protect the birthplace of humanity and its core worlds, he finally had the keys to the entire kingdom. The question was: Could he keep them?

The Earth’s constitution only granted him emergency powers until the next scheduled election, which was less than a year away. Fortunately, the conflict with the Jung Empire meant that he need not campaign for the position. All he had to do was keep the conflict alive until after the election, and he had a better than average chance of obtaining full control as the elected leader of Earth. Once he became president, he would appoint a successor to his military position, allowing him to take things to the next level: to finally build a human empire that would last an eternity.

His end-of-the-day briefings complete, he headed down the long breezeway connecting the capitol building to his residence. Traversing this long, open-air, covered walkway was often the only time that no one was reporting to him or asking something of him. Today, like most days, he was alone during this final stroll, other than his security team, which maintained a discreet distance.

As was often the case, one of his aides was waiting for him at the residence end of the breezeway. How the man managed to get to the admiral’s residence before him, despite the fact that he usually departed after the admiral himself, was a curious thing.

“Admiral,” his aide greeted.

“How do you do it?” Galiardi asked.

“Do what, sir?”

“Leave after me but arrive before me,” the admiral wondered. “Yet I never see you pass me by.”

“There is an underground tunnel with a moving walkway directly below the breezeway.”

Admiral Galiardi looked at the man. “How is it I didn’t know about this?”

“You always prefer the fresh air.”

“Indeed I do,” the admiral agreed, entering the foyer of his residence.

“I’m afraid we have a development,” his aide began. “We got a match on a bus on the west coast, near the sig-int facility in Monterey.” He handed him a data pad. “Jessica Nash and Naralena Avakian.”

“Those names sound familiar.”

“Nash was an EDF spec-ops who served on the Aurora and was close with Nathan Scott and Cameron Taylor. Miss Avakian was one of the refugees picked up from Haven during the Aurora’s original series of events in the Pentaurus cluster. She served as Captain Scott’s comms officer for nearly two years, before returning to her home world of Volon.”

“Why are they here?” Admiral Galiardi wondered.

“Avakian was reported to be close, perhaps intimate, with Gerard Bowden, after meeting him during an op on Kohara.”

“Didn’t Nash resign to join the Ghatazhak?” the admiral suddenly remembered.

“She did,” his aide confirmed. “Took her entire family with her, although we don’t know where they went.”

“You think this Avakian woman went to see Bowden?”

“We don’t think so; we know. And there were two men with them,” the aide explained, reaching over and advancing the frame to the next pair of images on the data pad. “Facial recognition was unable to identify either one of them, but all four shot their way out of an ambush at Bowden’s residence after beating the crap out of him.”

“Curious,” the admiral commented, looking at the image of the man in the cap, hiding his face from the camera. “Did Bowden ID these other two men?”

“One of them, yes. Nathan Scott.”

Galiardi’s eyes widened. “I want a squadron of Reapers searching for them, with another squadron of Eagles backing them up, and I want them there an hour ago.”

“I’ve already activated an air wing out of San Diego. They should be in position shortly.”

“They had to have come in a jump sub,” Galiardi added.

“I have several of the Reapers searching the waters off Monterey now.”

“Find out what they wanted from Bowden,” Admiral Galiardi instructed. “Kill the rest.”

“Yes, sir,” his aide acknowledged. “Is it possible?”

Galiardi looked crossly at his aide. “That Nathan Scott somehow escaped a maximum-security Jung detention facility and put a doppelganger in his place to avoid execution?”

“I’m only asking what the people will be asking, once word of this gets out.”

Admiral Galiardi looked sternly at the aide. “Then see that it doesn’t.”

* * *

Jessica looked around the parking lot as she stepped out of the stolen vehicle, ensuring that no one was paying them any undue attention.

“Why here?” Nathan wondered, also climbing out of the vehicle. “We’re at least two clicks from the beach.”

“They have to know we used a jump sub to get here, so they’ll be watching every beach, especially the ones closest to Gerard’s place.”

“Then we have to go to a different rendezvous point.”

“That’s the plan,” Jessica agreed, pulling out the remote for the jump sub.

“Two on your left,” Kit announced over Jessica’s comm-unit.

Jessica glanced to her left, spotting Kit and Naralena walking down the row of parked cars toward her and Nathan.

“Did you see them?” Kit asked as they neared.

“The jump flashes? Yeah.”

“I counted eight,” Kit added.

“Air support?” Nathan surmised.

“A lot of them,” Jessica replied. “I’m not getting a link-up from the jump sub.” She tossed the remote to Kit. “See what you can do with it.”

Jessica looked around the parking lot again, thinking. “Eight flashes is a lot of air cover,” she decided. “Galiardi knows we’re here.”

“It’s being jammed,” Kit reported.

“That’s what I was afraid of,” Jessica replied. “Any chance we can defeat the jamming?”

“Not without some additional equipment,” Kit told her.

“Such as?”

“More power, to start. Some sort of comm-array would help as well. Basic shit, really.”

“How long?”

“Once I have everything I need, thirty minutes…maybe.”

Jessica sighed. “We need someplace to lie low for a while.” As she spoke, a car pulled up a few spots down the row. “Follow my lead,” she told the others as she headed toward the newly arrived vehicle.

“Where are…” Nathan began. Realizing she wasn’t listening, he fell in behind her, as did Kit and Naralena.

“Excuse me, Miss,” Jessica called toward the woman getting out of the vehicle. “Are you from around here? We’re a bit lost.”

“Actually, no,” the woman apologized. “I’m just visiting.”

“Are you staying nearby?”

“No, I’m staying out in the valley, so I’m afraid I can’t help you. Sorry.”

“That’s perfect,” Jessica replied, moving closer to the woman.

“Excuse me?” the woman said, wondering why Jessica was still moving toward her.

“Pretend like you know us,” Jessica instructed with authority as she stepped up and hugged the surprised woman.

“What are you doing?” the woman asked, instinctively attempting to break free of the unwanted embrace.

“Do what I say, and you won’t be harmed,” Jessica whispered in the woman’s ear. “Don’t, and I’ll kill you where you stand.”

The woman stopped struggling.

“Now hug me like you’ve missed me,” Jessica whispered.

The woman complied, putting her arms around Jessica but with far less enthusiasm in her embrace than in the stranger’s.

“It’s been so long!” Jessica squealed, suddenly switching into a new role. She released the woman from her embrace, holding her at arm’s length. “You look amazing! Did you lose weight or something?”

The woman looked scared but tried not to show it. “Wha…wha…”

“You remember my husband, Connor,” Jessica continued.

“Uh…uh…”

“This is Anna and Jerry, our friends,” Jessica said, continuing her role.

“Wha…what do you want from me?” The woman managed to mumble, scared for her life. “I have a few credits. You’re welcome to them.”

“We just need a ride,” Jessica whispered.

“Take my car,” the woman urged. “It’s all yours; just don’t hurt me, please…I have children.

“Where are they?” Jessica asked.

“Maybe this is a bad idea,” Nathan commented just loud enough for Jessica to hear.

“They’re with my husband. They’re joining me in a few days,” the woman admitted, barely able to hold herself together.

“Perfect again,” Jessica said, smiling. “All aboard,” she told the others. “Get back in the car,” Jessica instructed the woman, switching back into a more threatening tone.

“Jess,” Nathan began to object.

“Get in the car, dear,” Jessica instructed Nathan, switching character again.

The woman nervously sat back down in the driver’s seat as Kit and Naralena slid into the back seat.

Nathan looked around as Jessica circled around the front of the car to enter from the front passenger side. As she opened the door, she looked across the hood at Nathan. “Get in the car,” she told him again.

“I don’t like this,” Nathan muttered as he took his seat behind the woman and closed the door.

“Please,” the woman begged.

“What’s your name?” Jessica asked.

“Lynne,” the woman replied.

“Just stay calm and drive normally, and everything will be fine,” Jessica instructed. “Now start the car.”

“The woman inserted the key and pressed a button, activating the vehicle’s system, but looked confused.

“Something wrong?” Jessica wondered.

“It’s a rental,” Lynne replied. “This is only the second time I’ve driven it.”

“That’s alright,” Jessica assured her, switching to a more calming tone than before. “You said you’re staying in the valley?”

“Yes.”

“How far away is that?”

“About half an hour.”

“Excellent,” Jessica said. “Hotel?”

“A house,” Lynne replied. “We rented it for a week.”

“Even better,” Jessica replied. “Just drive us there.”

“You want to go to my house?” Lynne wondered, becoming more frightened.

Jessica realized the woman’s fear was about to cause her to emotionally shut down. “Listen, Lynne, I’m sorry I threatened you out there. I promise no one here is going to hurt you. We just need a safe place to lie low for a day or two.”

“Why?” Lynne asked. “Who are you?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Jessica replied. “Just drive.”

* * *

“Anything?” Vladimir asked as he entered the Voss’s command deck.

“No sign of them,” Loki replied.

“Are you using long-range scans?”

“Protocol calls for local passive only during the first rendezvous,” Loki reminded him.

“I hate protocols,” Vladimir grumbled.

“It was a pretty tight first window,” Deeks pointed out. “They probably haven’t even found the guy yet.”

“Yeah, Kit’s not as good at hacking systems as he thinks he is,” Mori joked.

“The guy could have moved, right?” Dylan suggested.

“Hell, he could even be dead for all we know,” Josh chuckled.

Vladimir sighed. “This should have been a quick in-and-out.”

“All we can do is check back in four hours,” Loki stated.

“We could send a recon drone,” Dylan suggested.

“Earth has a really tight anti-surveillance network,” Vladimir explained. “You can’t get within a light day without being intercepted.”

“Then we send it in further out,” Dylan added.

“We’d be looking at what happened yesterday,” Vladimir replied, “not what’s happening now.”

“What about a low-altitude pass?” Josh suggested. “In the atmosphere, just over the area. In and out, quick. They might think we’re a sensor blip.”

“The Voss is too big to be mistaken for a sensor anomaly,” Loki argued.

“I wasn’t talking about the Voss,” Josh told him, a mischievous grin on his face.

* * *

“I thought you said you were staying in a house,” Jessica said as Lynne turned off the main road into the parking lot of a large resort.

“We are,” Lynne insisted nervously.

“All I see is a resort,” Jessica replied.

“There are rental houses on the far side of the course,” Lynne explained. “My husband is sort of a golf nut.”

Jessica shook her head. “A thousand light years, and we end up at another golf course.”

Lynne looked at Jessica, confused.

“An expression,” Jessica insisted, looking out the front window of the vehicle. “Guard house ahead,” she warned. “They probably have cameras.”

Nathan pulled his hat down further, slouching down in his seat to appear as if he was sleeping.

“You never said you were staying at a resort,” Jessica scolded.

“You never asked,” Lynne replied, feeling the need to defend herself.

She pulled the car up next to the guard house, and a moment later, the gate slowly opened.

“Evening, ma’am,” the guard greeted.

“Don’t say anything,” Jessica whispered in a threatening tone. “Just drive.”

Lynne did as instructed, gently accelerating the vehicle as soon as the gate allowed.

“How far to your rental?” Jessica asked.

“A few minutes,” Lynne replied.

“Did you see any cameras?” Nathan wondered, readjusting his cap as he sat up again.

“No, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t any,” Jessica warned. “Resorts like this generally have them all over the place.”

“You’re thinking of SilTek,” Nathan told her. “When’s the last time you went to a golf resort on Earth?”

Again Lynne looked confused. “Who are you people?”

“I’m leaving you behind next time,” Jessica told Nathan.

* * *

“A single pass,” Vladimir reminded Josh as they descended the steep stairwell that led from the landing outside the Voss’s common room down to the deck alongside the P-Seventy-Two. “There’s a low-lying cloud layer at about six hundred meters, so if you stay in it, you shouldn’t be visible.”

“I know, I know,” Josh insisted as he climbed into the Lightning’s cockpit.

“Have all your sensors recording,” Vladimir continued, “and don’t hang around for more than ten seconds, or they’ll get a hard reading on you.”

“If they do, they won’t know what the hell I am,” Josh pointed out.

“Josh.”

“Ten seconds. Got it,” Josh promised as he powered up the Lightning’s systems.

“Remember: jump in under the moon’s south pole, skim low, and then jump across to Earth’s atmosphere as soon as you get a clear jump line.”

“I know, I know!” Josh assured Vladimir. “Now get the hell out of the bay so I can launch!”

Vladimir immediately turned around and scurried up the ladder, disappearing through the hatch at the upper landing.

Josh slid the canopy closed over his head, starting the depress cycle at the same time. The lighting in the bay turned red, indicating that the entire compartment was losing pressure.

“How do you copy, Josh?” Loki asked over comms.

“Loud and clear, bud,” Josh answered as he prepared his fighter for launch. “You got this bucket on a heading for Earth?”

“All lined up and ready to go,” Loki replied. “I’ve already calculated both jumps for you, and I’ve uploaded them to your jump-nav computer. You’ll have to do your escape jumps yourself.”

“Thanks, Lok,” Josh replied. “Pop them doors, will ya?”

“Opening bay doors now,” Loki replied.

The wall before him split horizontally across the middle, opening up like a clamshell, revealing the starry blackness of deep space.

“Clear to launch,” Loki announced as the doors stopped at their fully opened position.

“See ya in a few minutes,” Josh replied, pressing the launch button and then jamming his foot into the right pedal.

“Holy shit!” Dylan exclaimed, looking out the port window of the command deck as Josh’s P-Seventy-Two shot out of the port bay like a rocket and disappeared in a flash of blue-white light. “He’s insane!” he added, turning to look at the others.

“The kid’s got two speeds,” Marcus grumbled. “Fast and faster.”

“Shit,” Josh chuckled, the Earth’s moon suddenly appearing before him only a few hundred kilometers away and closing fast. “That ain’t even close.” He quickly adjusted his flight path, bringing his fast-moving fighter to less than fifty meters above the lunar surface. “Hope your second jump is closer.”

Josh watched as the Earth began to peek out over the lunar horizon. Within seconds, the planet was fully visible. Josh pressed the auto-sequencer on his jump-nav computer, allowing it to take control of his flight systems. The ship’s AI adjusted his flight path and quickly recalculated the amount of energy necessary for the jump.

The jump light flashed on his console, indicating that he was approaching his jump point. When the light stopped flashing and became a steady green, Josh pressed the jump button on his flight control stick, his cockpit instantly awash with blue-white light.

His ship rocked violently as it suddenly found itself in the thick, lower atmosphere of Earth. Josh glanced out the canopy but, as expected, he was in a cloud and couldn’t see anything. As he set his comms to scan all known EDF comm-channels, his threat board began blasting alert tones, and the display lit up with at least three dozen targets. “Holy fuck!”

“Command Reaper One Four,” a pilot called over comms. “Positive contact on the jump sub. It’s headed for deep water. Request instructions.”

“Uh-oh,” Josh said, realizing things were worse than they’d feared.

“Reaper One Four, Command. Engage and destroy. Repeat; engage and destroy.”

“Reaper One Four, going hot.”

“No, no, no…”

“Two fish, away!”

Josh pressed a button on his comm-panel, activating the burst transmission that Vladimir had prepared minutes ago.

“Eagle Five One, Command. Turn to one five two for intercept. New contact; angels one, in the clouds…”

“That would be me,” Josh said to himself.

“Command, Reaper One Four. Good kill!”

“Command, Eagle Five One, turning to intercept.”

“Time to go,” Josh announced, pulling back on his control stick slightly and pushing his main drive throttle to the stops.

As his Lightning climbed and accelerated, he quickly transferred the last ten seconds of comms traffic into the burst transmission buffer and sent another broadcast before pressing the jump button to depart.

* * *

“What kind of house doesn’t have a garage?” Jessica wondered as they made their way up the walk to the front door.

“It’s more like a bungalow,” Nathan decided.

As they approached the front door, the porch light snapped on.

“You sure there’s no one inside?” Jessica challenged their captive.

“I swear,” Lynne assured her, sounding a little calmer than before. She opened the door and stepped inside, her presence tripping the automatic, interior lighting as well.

Jessica looked around, checking the kitchen and living room while Kit quickly checked the other rooms. “Take a seat where I can see you,” she instructed Lynne.

“All clear,” Kit reported.

“Get busy making contact with our ride,” Jessica instructed.

“What is going on?” Lynne asked, almost pleading. “Why are you doing this?”

Nathan sighed, kneeling down in front of her. “I’m sorry about all this, Lynne, I really am.”

“Then just let me go,” she begged. “You can stay here, and I’ll go somewhere else for the night.”

Nathan looked at Jessica, wondering what she thought.

“Sorry,” Jessica said.

“We can’t do that, Lynne,” Nathan continued. “But I promise that no one is going to hurt you or your family. In fact, we’ll probably be long gone by the time they get here.”

“Who are you people?” she pleaded.

Nathan looked at Jessica again.

“What the hell,” Jessica said, shrugging her shoulders.

“This may be hard to believe, but I’m Nathan Scott.”

“Okay,” Lynne replied, unimpressed.

Jessica couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, it has been a while.”

Lynne looked at Jessica, confused, then back to Nathan. “Should I know you?”

“You probably knew of my father, Dayton Scott,” Nathan explained.

“The president?”

“That would be him.”

Lynne’s eyes widened. “Wait a minute, aren’t you supposed to be dead?”

Nathan shrugged.

“Yes, you are,” Lynne realized. “You’re dead! I mean, you died! I mean…”

“I know what you mean,” Nathan assured her.

“I was a teenager at the time, but I remember my parents watching… You were executed by the Jung! How are you still alive?”

“Trust me, it’s a long story,” Nathan assured her.

“This is odd,” Kit said.

“What is it?” Jessica wondered.

“There was data in the log buffer,” Kit told her. “According to the logs, the remote had a momentary connection to the jump sub just a few minutes ago, but then it died.”

“Maybe the jamming was interrupted for a moment,” Jessica suggested.

“Jump sub?” Lynne wondered.

“No, I mean it died, like it was destroyed. It was headed for deep water, just like it’s supposed to do if we didn’t recall it on time. Then there was a scramble of data, like everything went nuts. Then nothing.”

“Could it be a malfunction?” Nathan wondered.

“It’s possible but not very likely,” Kit assured them. “There’s something else. At the same time, a bunch of data showed up in the logs.”

“From the sub?” Jessica surmised.

“No, it didn’t come from the sub,” Kit explained. “The first dump was straight text, the second was compressed audio.”

“There were two dumps?” Nathan realized.

Kit pressed a button on the remote, starting the audio file.

[[[ “Positive contact on the jump sub. It’s headed for deep water. Request instructions.”

“Reaper One Four, Command. Engage and destroy. Repeat; engage and destroy.”

“Reaper One Four, going hot… Two fish, away!”

“Eagle Five One, Command. Turn to one five two for intercept. New contact; angels one, in the clouds…”

“Command, Reaper One Four. Good kill!”

“Command, Eagle Five One, turning to intercept.” ]]]

Everyone’s expression, except for Lynne’s, suddenly changed for the worse.

Lynne just looked more confused. “Does that mean something?”

“It means our situation just went from bad to worse,” Jessica commented.

“The text message has comms timing instructions from the Voss,” Kit added.

“I suppose that means something as well,” Lynne surmised.

“It means there’s still hope,” Nathan replied.

Lynne glanced about, noticing that their expressions were still sour. “That’s a good thing, right?”

CHAPTER TEN

“Oh, this is not good,” Vladimir groaned, after listening to Josh’s report in the Voss’s common room.

“Nash knows what she’s doing,” Mori insisted. “Covert ops are her thing, and she’s on her home world. Not to mention that she knows her adversary’s abilities quite well. And Vasya…well, he’s Vasya.”

“What’s that mean?” Dylan wondered.

“He’s basically fearless.”

“Reminds me of someone,” Loki said, looking at Josh.

Vladimir sighed. “Being fearless is not always a good thing. Without the jump sub, we have no choice but to go and get them.”

“We have to establish comms with them first,” Deeks insisted.

“Yes, but our comm window will be very short,” Vladimir pointed out. “So we need to have an extraction plan ready, just in case.”

“Maybe they can lie low for a while,” Mori suggested. “Wait for a better opportunity.”

“A few years ago, they discovered a Jung spy was operating on Earth,” Vladimir told them. “EDF spec-ops plugged into every camera on the planet and tracked the guy down to one city, at which point their forces swept through the city in less than a day, knocking down doors and searching every building with heavily armed troops. And this was all done without martial law being in place.”

“So what’s the plan?” Marcus wondered.

“We must establish communications with them,” Vladimir decided. “We don’t even know where they are, let alone where the extraction point will be. Unfortunately, they didn’t take any comms gear.”

“Why the hell not?” Marcus wondered.

“Too easy to track,” Mori explained. “Besides, they planned to pick up Earth comm-units on the surface.”

“What good does that do us?” Marcus wondered.

Vladimir pulled a comm-unit out of his pocket and placed it on the table. “I brought mine along, just in case.”

“You have an Earth comm-unit?” Marcus said, surprised.

“I bought it during my last visit to Earth before the Aurora went rogue. I used it to call my sisters.”

“And you brought it along to call them again?” Marcus chuckled. “What part of covert includes calling family?”

“So all I have to do is jump in and call them?” Josh surmised.

“Da,” Vladimir confirmed. “Unfortunately, these units are not as advanced as the ones in the Pentaurus sector. It could take thirty or forty seconds for it to connect to the network, if it connects at all.”

“Why would it not connect?” Dylan wondered.

“If the EDF knows about this unit, they may have already locked it out of the network.”

“What are the chances of that?” Loki asked.

“No way to know,” Vladimir admitted.

“Forty seconds is a long time to be in Earth’s atmosphere, in an unidentified fighter, during an incursion event,” Mori warned.

“If he jumps into a remote location, it should buy Josh enough time to make a connection, especially if he jumps into a remote canyon. It could be up to a minute before he is detected by their surface surveillance satellites.”

“Plenty of time to make the call,” Josh insisted with his usual bravado.

“Once you establish a connection, you could jump to another location to make the call,” Vladimir added. “It would only take a few seconds for the comm-unit to reconnect.”

“Can I jump while talking with them?” Josh wondered.

“Yes, but there would be a lag in the conversation every time you jumped. You might miss some critical information.”

“Sounds easy enough,” Josh boasted.

“There is one other problem,” Vladimir stated. “This ship’s weapons are not designed for this type of operation. The point-defense lasers cannot be readjusted to minimal output, and they are designed to lay down fields of fire, not to lock onto targets with extreme precision. They would blow up everything around the target, which would result in a lot of collateral damage.”

“What about the plasma cannons?” Loki wondered.

“They cannot be adjusted either,” Vladimir replied. “And they are very powerful. I doubt we could shoot down an EDF fighter without killing the pilot, and I don’t think Nathan wants us to kill our own people.”

“Even if they’re trying to kill us?” Dylan asked.

“They aren’t our people,” Mori commented before Vladimir could respond. “And technically, we don’t answer to Scott, just Telles.”

“We also have a shield problem,” Vladimir added.

“The shields are working fine,” Dylan argued.

“Except they don’t have the ability to drop one section,” Vladimir pointed out. “We’d have to drop all our shields to get them aboard.”

“Whose dumbass idea was that?” Marcus complained.

“It was on my list,” Vladimir defended.

* * *

Jessica sat at the darkened living room window, peering out at the street and the fairway on the opposite side.

“Is there some reason we turned off all the lights?” Lynne wondered.

“It’s nearly twenty-three hundred,” Nathan replied. “Most people are in bed by now.”

“What planet are you from?” she chuckled.

“Besides, we can keep watch covertly this way,” Nathan added.

“Who exactly is after you?” Lynne wondered.

“Admiral Galiardi,” Nathan replied.

“Why?”

“For a number of reasons, actually.”

It suddenly dawned on her. “If you’re Dayton Scott’s next of kin, then you’re technically president.”

“What?” Nathan stated, shocked.

“Yeah, what?” Jessica echoed.

“Earth’s constitution states that, in the event of an assassination of a duly elected public official, that official’s next of kin will assume office until the next regular election.”

“Are you certain?” Nathan wondered.

Lynne’s eye’s widened. “How could you be the son of the president and not know this?”

“I spent my life avoiding the family business,” Nathan admitted, somewhat embarrassed.

“Jesus, Nathan,” Jessica scolded. “Seems like a pretty important fact to have overlooked.”

“You didn’t know, either,” Nathan defended.

“Poli-sci was never my thing,” Jessica replied.

“Well it was mine,” Lynne insisted. “It was my major, in fact. You being alive means that everything Galiardi is doing is illegal, assuming he knows that you’re alive.”

“Oh, he knows,” Jessica assured her.

“My God,” Lynne exclaimed. “This could change everything! Half the world hates Galiardi. The nets are full of blackboards where people are talking about an armed revolution. The only thing stopping them is that it would likely plunge the entire planet into chaos and destroy the economy. As you well know, it took us years to rebuild after the Jung invasion, none of which would’ve been possible without your father. If the people knew you were alive, Galiardi could be defeated without firing a shot.”

Nathan didn’t look as enthusiastic. “There may be one little hitch in that plan.”

“Like what?” Lynne asked.

“He’s a clone,” Jessica stated.

Lynne looked at Nathan, unable to resist the urge to study him more carefully, as if she might find something in his face to confirm Jessica’s claim. “Is that true?”

“Yup.”

“Is that why you didn’t know about the next-of-kin provision?”

“No,” Nathan replied. “I still have all the memories of my original body, all the way up to the night before my execution on Nor-Patri. At least, most of them.”

“Most of them?”

“A few memories are still out of focus, so to speak.

“I’m not sure that you being a clone matters,” Lynne stated. “I mean, there’s nothing in the constitution about clones specifically.”

“But it could be an issue,” Nathan pointed out. “In fact, if played properly in the media, which I’m sure Galiardi controls, it could be enough to plunge Earth into a civil war. That’s a chance I cannot take.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Lynne admitted.

“Actually, it’s not an issue at all,” Jessica said. “Granted, political science was one of my favorite classes to skip out on, but I seem to remember that the next-of-kin provision went to the spouse first, then to the children of the deceased, in order of age. Am I right?”

“You are.”

“Well,” Jessica said, looking at Nathan.

“No,” Nathan objected. “The risk is too great.”

“Shouldn’t that be her decision?” Jessica challenged.

“She can barely make it around the house without getting winded, Jess,” Nathan argued.

“Maybe not now, but…”

“No,” Nathan repeated, insistent.

“If you make a claim to the presidency without disclosing that you’re a clone, then you’re asking for another mess once the truth is discovered, and it will be discovered. Nothing stays secret forever.”

“You’d be surprised,” Nathan replied.

“Your sister is alive, isn’t she?” Lynne surmised. “Other than your father, hers was the only body they couldn’t find any evidence of. Vids of the event showed her standing next to your father when the bomb went off, so everyone assumed that she was vaporized along with your father. But the conspiracy boards claim that the vids were doctored; that people in attendance say your sister left the stage just before the explosion. The fact that no one can find her children adds to those conspiracies. They even postulate that the Jung kidnapped her and are brainwashing her, to return her later and put her in charge of Earth as their puppet leader.”

Jessica laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, I miss Earth.”

“This is precisely why she can’t come back,” Nathan told Jessica.

“Then she is alive,” Lynne concluded.

“Yes, and so are her children,” Nathan confirmed. “And they are about as far away from Earth as they can get, which is where they are going to stay,” he added, looking back at Jessica.

“If Miranda is alive, she is the solution,” Lynne insisted.

“To what problem, precisely?” Nathan asked.

“Galiardi has the Earth in a death grip,” Lynne explained. “And he is systematically exterminating the Jung.”

“No tears here,” Jessica commented, returning her attention to the street outside.

“Half the planet feels the same,” Lynne said. “The other half, myself included, thinks this war can only end one way…with the destruction of both our worlds. That’s the side that’s calling for the overthrow of Galiardi.”

“How likely is this revolution?” Nathan asked Lynne.

“If they can recruit enough people, it will happen,” Lynne assured him.

“Galiardi will squash them,” Jessica stated.

“He’d be firing on his own people,” Lynne pointed out.

“Trust me, that won’t bother him at all,” Jessica insisted.

Lynne looked at Nathan. “Then you must tell the world you’re alive. It’s the only way to avoid the bloodshed of your own people.”

Nathan sighed. “You’re right,” he told Jessica. “You should have left me on the Voss.”

“I’ve got movement in back!” Kit called from the back room. “Four, armed, coming over the fence!” he added as he came down the hall. “Safe bet they’re preparing to hit the back door.”

“They could be coming for the windows,” Jessica said.

“Too many bushes in the way,” Kit insisted as he moved to the kitchen.

“How did they find us so fast?” Naralena wondered.

“Not hard if they have access to all the security cameras in the city,” Jessica said. “I’ve got movement on the far side of the fairway as well. Four more; armed. Two to the right, two to the left.”

“I didn’t see any cameras,” Naralena stated.

“Not much use if you can see them,” Jessica replied.

“But here?”

“Her car was a rental,” Nathan standing. “They’re all tracked.”

“Which means there were cameras in the parking lot,” Jessica stated. “I guess I fucked that one up.”

“Let’s just concentrate on our next move,” Nathan insisted.

“Let the first ones in and take their weapons?” Kit suggested from the kitchen door.

“That was my thinking,” Jessica agreed.

“Please try not to kill anyone,” Nathan reminded them.

“No promises,” Jessica replied, moving into position between the front door and the window.

“You might want to get down on the floor,” Nathan told Lynne and Naralena.

“Nathan, be ready,” Jessica warned.

The door burst open, and a small object was tossed inside.

“COVER!” Nathan yelled, closing his eyes and covering his ears.

There was a flash and a blast of ear-splitting sound meant to incapacitate anyone caught unprepared. Even with his eyes closed tightly, the flash was near blinding. Even with his ears covered by his hands, the sound was still deafening.

For a moment, Nathan felt unsure of himself. He had lost touch with everything and everyone around him. He could hear men yelling at the top of their lungs.

Two seconds later, his senses returned.

For Jessica, it was an entirely different experience. She didn’t have the luxury of being able to cover up. She had to fight. But she also had the advantage of having been trained to resist the sensory-numbing effects of stun grenades.

She waited for the first two men to charge through the door, then kicked her leg out to trip the third, sending him tumbling into the first two. She then grabbed the gun of the fourth man, who probably thought his cohort before him had simply tripped.

She twisted the weapon toward the man’s thumb, breaking his grip. She twisted the weapon around, wrapping the sling around the man’s right arm and yanking it downward. At the same time, she drove her knee into his groin, causing him to drop to his knees in pain.

The fourth man’s rifle still slung around his shoulder, Jessica raised it slightly and squeezed the trigger, sending two bright red blasts into the backs of the first two men.

Nathan’s vision returned just in time to see two EDF marines in full urban assault gear drop in front of him with smoking holes in their backs. The sounds of energy weapons fire and the thuds of falling bodies sounded from the kitchen, causing him to instinctively look behind him, half expecting marines to come charging in, having overrun Kit.

“NATHAN!” Jessica barked.

Nathan looked her way as she took the sidearm from the third soldier’s now lifeless, smoking body.

Jessica dropped to one knee, grabbing the dead man’s knife from his thigh sheath, slicing through the sling on his rifle, freeing it from his corpse.

“DUCK!” Nathan warned, raising the sidearm he had just caught in midair to take aim out the front door.

Jessica fell forward, rolling and firing her energy rifle into the other man, who had been rising to his feet.

Nathan fired four times, his own bolts of bright, red energy barely missing Jessica’s head. The first shot found the leader of the second group of four men just outside, the second landing in the face of the man next to him. He had no idea where the other two shots landed, as he was already diving for cover behind the couch.

Jessica rolled again, taking the sidearm off the nearest man’s body as two more marines hit the front porch, scrambling over the bodies of their fallen comrades.

The next man at the door stuck his rifle around the door frame and fired blindly in Jessica’s direction.

Jessica dropped to the floor and rolled the body of the dead soldier onto his side, using his corpse as a shield against the incoming fire. As the bolts of red energy slammed into the body shielding her, she returned fire, sending multiple bolts of energy slamming into the doorframe and blowing it apart.

Nathan rose, continuing to fire at the doorway, but the two men outside were not making themselves easy targets.

Jessica took advantage of Nathan’s cover fire, quickly rising. She took two steps toward the center of the living room, then turned and charged toward the window, assault rifle in hand.

Nathan’s eyes widened as he watched Jessica jump through the front window, shattering it. “JESS!” he yelled, charging toward the door, still firing away. Shots sounded from outside, and flashes of red lit up the front yard through the shattered window.

Nathan reached the door frame, pausing momentarily before peeking around it. He ducked back immediately, expecting a barrage of incoming fire, but it didn’t come. In fact, everything was surprisingly quiet. He peeked around the door frame again and then stepped out.

Jessica was outside, already gathering guns and knives from the collection of bodies lying dead or injured in the front yard.

“Jesus Christ!” Nathan barked. “I thought we weren’t going to kill anyone!”

“All their weapons were set to kill,” Jessica told him. “The gloves are off. KIT!”

Nathan turned around as Kit came out of the kitchen, his own collection of weapons in hand. “I got six.”

“Same here,” Jess reported. “I think Nathan got two.”

“Oh shit,” Kit exclaimed, dropping his weapons and running over to Lynne and Naralena.

Nathan followed, scrambling over bodies to join Kit. He came around the couch, unprepared for what he saw.

Lynne held Naralena in her arms, blood and bodily fluids oozing from the still-smoldering wound in Naralena’s chest.

Naralena’s eyes were wide and pleading, in a combination of pain and disbelief. She grasped at Nathan as he fell before her.

“Captain…” she gasped, barely able to find the breath to speak. “I don’t… I’m sorry… I thought…”

“Don’t speak,” Nathan urged, taking her hand. Jessica came around the couch, spotting Naralena and the others. She looked at Kit, who shook his head. “Fuck.”

“I’m okay…” Naralena insisted. “I’m okay…” She gurgled, something unexpected in her throat. “Oh God…”

Distant, pale blue flashes lit up the yard outside, the light spilling into the room.

“We gotta go,” Jessica said.

“We have to take her with us,” Nathan declared.

“Nathan.” Jessica’s tone spoke volumes.

“She’s right…” Naralena barely managed to say. “Oh God…” she cried, overwhelmed with pain.

“They’ll take care of her, right?” Lynne said. “You all leave, and they’ll take care of her. I’ll make sure of it.”

Naralena looked at Nathan, squeezing his hand. “Do it,” she gasped, looking at Jessica. “You must.”

Nathan looked confused. “Do what?”

“Kit,” Jessica said.

Kit pulled Lynne away from Naralena, taking her place and kneeling behind Naralena. He propped her up, put his arms around her neck, then leaned down so that his head was next to hers.

“What are you doing?” Nathan asked in disbelief.

“I’m sorry,” Kit whispered into Naralena’s ear.

Naralena squeezed Nathan’s hand with everything she had.

Kit made a quick twist, snapping her neck and ending her life instantly.

“NO!” Nathan screamed as Naralena’s hand went limp in his own.

Lynne gasped in horror at the brutal act.

Nathan grabbed Kit’s collar with both hands and yanked the Ghatazhak toward him, yelling in his face. “What the fuck did you do!”

“What I had to,” Kit replied calmly.

“You son of a bitch!” Nathan yelled, raising his right hand to punch Kit in the face.

Kit didn’t flinch, nor did he move to defend himself. Instead, he just stared into his leader’s eyes. “Go ahead if it will make you feel better.”

“What’s wrong with you people!” Lynne cried.

“They would have learned everything from her,” Jessica explained.

“We could have brought her with us,” Nathan replied, releasing his hold on Kit.

“She would’ve died, and we’d all be dead or captured,” Jessica stated calmly and without compassion as she removed knives from the dead marines nearest her. “Which we’ll be anyway if we don’t get the fuck out of here.”

Nathan rose to his feet, his eyes still locked on Naralena’s lifeless body as Kit gently laid her down.

Kit took several of the confiscated knives for himself, then offered one of the captured assault rifles to Nathan. “We good, sir?”

Nathan took the rifle from Kit. “No,” he replied quietly, also taking one of the knives from the Ghatazhak. “But we will be.”

Kit patted Nathan on the shoulder, nodding respectfully before returning to his preparations.

“Let’s go, Lynne,” Jessica said, sticking several of the dead marines’ combat knives into her belt.

“What?”

“You’re coming with us,” Jessica told her.

“Why?”

“Trust me, you’re safer with us,” Jessica insisted, grabbing her arm to help her up.

“Are you kidding?” Lynne contested.

Nathan stopped, turning around to face Lynne, anger in his eyes. “Time is short, so listen up. Life as you knew it is over. If you stay here, you’ll suffer endless interrogations, and eventually you’ll be executed.”

“But I didn’t do anything,” Lynne insisted.

“You know I’m alive,” Nathan replied. “And that knowledge could lead to Galiardi’s demise,” Nathan explained. “You said so yourself.”

“But my family…”

“We’ll find a way to get them later,” Nathan assured her, knowing full well that he was promising something he might not be able to deliver.

* * *

Josh’s Lightning buffeted violently as it again jumped into Earth’s lower atmosphere. This time, he was not in clouds, but a canyon a thousand kilometers from Monterey.

He slowed his Lightning’s speed sharply and activated the Terran comm-unit Vladimir had given him. So far, his threat display was clear, but even skimming along this canyon floor, surrounded by cliffs on all sides, it wouldn’t be for long.

The canyon was only a few kilometers long, which required him to slow down even further. Speed and maneuverability were his tiny fighter’s biggest advantages, and this narrow, short canyon provided him neither.

“Come on,” Josh muttered to himself as he continued to decelerate. He had already been in the canyon for twenty seconds, which meant that he was already an unidentified blip on some EDF officer’s display. Considering that there was at least a squadron of Super Eagles in the skies above Monterey, it would take only seconds for a pair of them to jump over to investigate what had suddenly appeared in the canyon currently enveloping him.

Thirty seconds and still nothing.

“Backwards ass planet,” Josh grumbled as he prepared to depart.

His threat display suddenly lit up, its alarm sounding in his helmet speakers. A glance confirmed what he already knew. Two EDF Super Eagle fighters had just jumped in behind him and were dropping into the canyon, following standard EDF intercept protocols.

“Unidentified aircraft, this is the Earth Defense Force,” the pilot of one of the Super Eagles called over comms. “We are directly behind you and have a weapons lock. Reduce your airspeed and prepare to be escorted to a safe landing site. This is your only warning.”

“You want me to reduce my speed?” Josh said to himself. “You got it.”

Josh quickly pitched his nose up vertically, ruining his tiny fighter’s aerodynamic profile, creating a sudden increase in overall drag. At the same time, he jammed the power slider for his grav-lift system to full, causing him to decelerate even more quickly.

The result was an enormous drop in horizontal airspeed, which was as close to a complete stop as possible…a maneuver that most would believe impossible. But most pilots were not Joshua Hayes.

The two EDF fighters, suddenly finding themselves about to collide with the unidentified contact, were forced to break in opposite directions, sending them both speeding toward canyon walls.

Josh didn’t wait around to see if they avoided slamming into the vertical rock faces. He pulled his grav-lift power sliders back to normal, and immediately jammed the throttle for his space drive to full power. His main drive lit up like a bomb exploding, driving him into the back of his flight seat as he rocketed skyward on a near vertical trajectory. A quick spin of his jump-range dial on the side of his flight control stick and a press of the jump button, and he was out of the Earth’s thick atmosphere, again within the peaceful vacuum of space.

Here too, he only had seconds to determine his next move. He was only a few thousand kilometers from Earth, where he was already on another sensor officer’s display. Again, Super Eagles would be on his ass in seconds.

But a few seconds was all he needed. He knew what he had to do.

Kit was the first one out, immediately opening fire on one of four EDF QRT shuttles about to set down on the fairway across the street.

“Ballsy or stupid?” Kit asked rhetorically as he pounded one of the shuttles with continuous fire from his captured energy rifle.

“What?” Jessica asked as she stepped out of the house, joining her fellow Ghatazhak and opening fire.

“Dropping in directly in front instead of to either side!”

“Both,” Jessica replied. “EDF marines think they’re invincible.”

“That explains why they need to send so many,” Kit retorted. “Left and right?”

“Yup,” Jessica agreed, heading left as she continued firing.

Nathan and Lynne were next to come out, just as the nearest shuttle’s door gunner opened fire on their position. Lynne screamed in terror as bright-red energy bolts slammed into the front of the house, shattering its brick veneers and sending pieces flying in all directions.

“Stay close!” Nathan warned her as he raised his weapon and fired at the attacking shuttle. He fired repeatedly, but every bolt of energy was absorbed by the shuttle’s shield bubble.

“They’re going to put more troops on the ground than we can handle!” Kit hollered from the other side of the yard as he fired.

“They have to come out of that shield bubble to get to us!” Jessica replied.

“Not if they just cut us down from there!”

Josh adjusted himself in his cockpit seat. “Sorry, Vlad,” he said to himself, bringing his P-Seventy-Two into a tight one-eighty. With the tap of a few buttons and some minor adjustments to his jump computer, he was ready to go.

The Earth came around from his starboard side, sliding into position directly in front of him. As he rolled out of his turn, he released control of his fighter to its AI, allowing it to make the final adjustments to his course and speed. Normally, he’d do the jumps manually, allowing the jump computer to adjust the amount of energy used for the jump based on range and distance. But his time in the Lightning was short, and most of it had been in the atmosphere. He just hoped that Loki didn’t find out, as his friend would never let him hear the end of it.

A touch of his jump button, and he was again being buffeted about, even more so since he had jumped back into the same marine layer that had obscured his vision less than an hour ago. It took only seconds for him to realize that things had gone from bad to worse for his friends on the surface.

Again violating his orders, Josh rolled into a shallow right turn, adjusted his jump range, and pressed his jump button. A brief flash of blue-white light, and he found himself closing rapidly on four EDF QRT shuttles, engaged in a firefight with someone on the ground, about to touch down.

Josh quickly powered up the plasma cannons on his wings and deftly guided his fighter to intercept the shuttle engaging his friends. A second later, his targeting screen flashed, and he pressed and held the fire button on his flight control stick.

Orange bolts of energy streaked from his wing-mounted cannons, sending staccato streams of energy to the target. The shuttle’s shields flashed brilliantly as they attempted to protect the troop carrier from a weapon more powerful than it was rated to withstand. It took less than five seconds to disable the first shuttle’s shields, which were obviously designed to protect the shuttle from handheld weapons.

The shuttle’s shields fell, and the following three bolts struck the shuttle’s rear, causing it to belch sparks and smoke. The target yawed sharply to starboard as it fell, soldiers falling from its open doors as it unceremoniously hit the ground.

Josh didn’t wait to check for survivors and immediately opened fire on the next shuttle that would pose a direct threat to the away team. As his threat board lit up with new contacts, he held his firing button down, plowing through the second shuttle’s shields and dropping it from the sky in the same fashion.

Red-orange bolts of energy slammed into Josh’s aft dorsal shields, causing his ship to bounce and yaw. Super Eagles were on him, and his shields would not last long. The other two shuttles were already on the ground as well. Josh had no choice but to jump away.

“That had to be Josh!” Nathan decided as they opened fire on the marines who had survived the first shuttle crash.

“That means the Voss will be here in a few minutes!” Jessica replied as she fired. “We need to buy more time!”

“We can’t hold off all of them from a static position,” Kit insisted, also firing. “We need to split up; keep on the move.”

“Agreed!”

“No!” Nathan objected. “We stay together!”

“We’ll use the woods and the creek bed to our advantage!” Jessica decided. “Kit!”

“On my way!” Kit responded, ceasing fire and running off to the right.

“Jess!” Nathan objected.

“Head left to the end of the street!” Jessica instructed as she fired. “Head into the woods and keep the creek between you and those marines! We’ll meet two fairways down!”

“Jess!” Nathan repeated as she ran off, her weapon firing away to keep the marines down and at bay. “Let’s go!” he told Lynne, heading to the left as instructed.

After his escape jump, Josh had immediately adjusted course and jumped again. This time, there were no planets or moons in the area, just the Voss, growing larger in his front windows as he closed. “Voss, Lightning One!” he called over comms. “Hot evac! Transmitting sensor logs!”

“What are you talking about?” Vlad asked over comms. “Did you make contact?”

“Uh, sort of,” Josh replied. “They’re in a firefight with EDF marines. We gotta get them out of there, but there are Super Eagles all over the place.”

“Put Loki in a Lightning, and he and I will keep the Eagles busy long enough for you to get them out!” Josh added over comms.

“What?” Vladimir questioned. “Are you certain?”

“I shot two of the shuttles down myself!” Josh replied. “Trust me, they’re in deep shit!”

“Oh my God,” Loki exclaimed as the sensor logs transmitted from Josh appeared on his tactical display.

Vladimir leaned forward, studying the display a moment. “Go,” he instructed Loki. “Loki will be launching shortly,” Vladimir told Josh over comms.

Loki jumped from his seat without hesitation, heading aft.

“Wait a minute!” Dylan objected from the copilot’s seat.

“Great!” Josh replied. “See ya down there, Lok!”

“Wait for Loki,” Vladimir ordered Josh, but he was too late. A small, blue-white flash appeared in the distance, noting the insubordinate pilot’s hasty departure. “Chort!”

“Who’s going to fly this thing?” Dylan continued.

“Who else?” Vladimir replied. “You guys man the gun turrets,” he told Deeks and Brill. “Marcus, get to the utility bay and get ready.”

“Take the modified boomers from our lockers,” Mori instructed as he and Jokay headed aft. “I expect you’re going to need them.”

“What are you going to do?” Marcus asked Vladimir.

“I guess I’m the new copilot,” Vladimir replied.

“Are you a pilot?” Dylan asked, climbing out of his seat and moving over to the pilot’s seat.

“How hard can it be?” Vladimir replied as he slipped into the copilot’s seat. “Everything’s automated, right?”

“Not for jumping in at low altitude,” Dylan objected. “And not for jumping into the middle of a firefight.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Vladimir insisted, scanning his console, doubt in his eyes.

Dylan watched Vladimir, noting his uncertainty. “I’ve never been in a real firefight.”

“You’ve flown in sims before, haven’t you?”

“Yes but…”

“Did they shoot at you in the sims?”

“Yes but…”

“No problem then.”

“Yes, there’s a problem!” Dylan objected. “There’s a big problem! I hacked the pain algorithms in the sims so that I wouldn’t feel any pain. I’m afraid of pain! I mean, really afraid!”

“Then don’t get hurt!” Vladimir snapped back.

The urgency of the situation did not allow Josh the luxury of plotting insertion jumps that kept him low to the ground or in shielded canyons. Instead, he had manually jumped in, appearing in the Earth’s atmosphere a few hundred meters above the EDF Super Eagles flying cover above the remaining two QRT shuttles.

Josh wasted no time, immediately diving on the Super Eagles and launching a barrage of snub-rockets from the pods on either side of his P-Seventy-Two’s fuselage.

Two of the Super Eagles jumped to safety, the other two dropping flares and chaff and peeling off in either direction as they went to full power and accelerated away.

As he had planned, the rockets missed the scrambling fighters and peppered the QRTs’ landing zone, resulting in two dozen small explosions that blanketed the immediate area. One shuttle was caught unprepared, its shield strength channeled to protect itself from incoming fire from the ground. Its topside blew apart as marines in the surrounding area scattered in all directions.

A quick glance at his tactical display, and Josh spotted at least three combatants engaging the EDF marines from different locations. They had split up, and from the point of view of the enemy, they were headed in completely opposite directions. But from his vantage point, it looked like they were all headed for the same place: a large open area half a kilometer away.

Josh passed overhead of the LZ, strafing the marines and forcing them to take cover as he passed. He rolled to the left, intending to come around and attack again, hoping to buy his friends on the ground a few extra seconds’ head start.

Unfortunately, the Super Eagles didn’t scare off as easily as he had hoped, nor for as long. His threat warning system lit up with missile warnings: four weapons were inbound from two directions. His only choice was to jump to safety to avoid destruction.

Taking advantage of Josh’s attack, Jessica moved quickly across the far end of the fairway, reaching the woods on the opposite side before the marines could come out from their cover and take aim. They did, however, see her disappear into the woods, and four immediately took up the task of pursuing her as the others went after Kit, who was making a run across the other end of the fairway.

Jessica ducked into the woods, taking cover behind a felled tree, waiting for the soldiers she knew would come after her. Once they were in range, she rose up, bringing her weapon over the top of the tree trunk and opening fire.

As expected, the marines ducked for cover before returning fire. Jessica took a moment to adjust the power settings on her energy rifle, adjusting its power buffer. Earth’s forces were still using the older technology provided to them by the Corinairans: guns that were prone to overheating if not properly monitored.

Satisfied that her adjustments would achieve the desired effect, she dropped her rifle on the ground, pulled her second rifle from her shoulder and opened fire again, keeping her pursuers on their bellies. Then she began crawling away from her firing position as quickly as possible, moving along the downed tree trunk. Reaching its exposed root bundle, she rolled down the embankment toward the creek, just enough to enable her to move along in a duck walk, covering ground more quickly than a crawl.

As she’d hoped, the marines assumed that one of the target’s captured weapons was giving her problems and rose confidently to advance.

Jessica rose slowly from her position to their right, opening fire and taking all four of them down with an equal number of shots, after which she wasted no time in leaving the area as the sky lit up with jump flashes.

Loki dropped into the cockpit of his P-Seventy-Two, reaching up and sliding his canopy back over his head with considerable force, causing the closure system to automatically engage and seal up the tiny bubble that would separate him from the vacuum of space.

“Override the depress cycle and open the doors,” he called over comms as he donned his helmet.

“I’m on it,” Dylan replied.

Loki quickly powered up his systems, bypassing the startup checklist he had memorized only a few days ago. A whoosh of air sounded from outside his canopy as the bay doors split horizontally and began to open.

Green lights appeared one by one across his system status display.

“Doors are fully opened,” Dylan reported.

The last system status light turned green, indicating his ship was powered up and ready for spaceflight. He pressed the auto-launch button, and his ship slid forward, exiting the bay. “Don’t be far behind me,” he urged as he jammed his main drive throttle to the stops and rolled to starboard, mimicking Josh’s wild departure style.

Jessica dropped her second weapon and headed down the bank, staying low and out of sight as more QRT shuttles jumped in overhead. Knowing their sensors would be trained at the ground looking for threats, she dropped facedown into the creek, rolling around in its muddy bottom in an effort to decrease her thermal signature. The sun had only been down for a few hours, and the ground had probably not cooled much. With any luck, her trick would work, and she’d be able to move about freely, surprising and confusing her pursuers.

Only seconds after she emerged from the creek, four marines came charging over the top of the opposite bank, spotting her in the moonlight that spilled through the sparse, winter canopies.

Jessica reached behind her with both hands, pulling two of the captured knives and flinging them toward the marines in one smooth motion.

Two men dropped when knives struck them in the face. The startling effect of a knife attack in the midst of what the marines expected to be a straight-up gunfight bought her the extra seconds she needed to charge up the bank.

The nearest marine regained his wits, raising his weapon and firing, but his target somehow sidestepped the bolt of energy spat forth by his assault rifle.

Jessica dove under the marine’s legs, pushing upward and knocking him off his feet to her left. She then reached out with her right hand and pulled the other soldier’s left foot out from under him, bringing him down to join her. She rolled to her right, tumbling over the top of the downed soldier and snatching his sidearm as she did so. She butted him in the face with the base of the sidearm’s grip, dazing him just long enough to roll his body up to use as a shield as the other marine managed to fire again.

Two red-orange blasts struck the soldier in the back, where he was least protected, killing him instantly.

The heat of the charges passed through the dead man’s body, heating Jessica’s chest as she brought her sidearm up over the dead man and fired blindly.

As usual, her instincts were correct, and two of her three shots struck the standing marine in the chest and shoulder, knocking him backward.

Jessica pushed the dead man aside and jumped to her feet, moving quickly to the second marine, who was still alive. He put up his hands, obviously in pain from his non-lethal wounds, his eyes wide. She stepped up to him, looking down, her sidearm pointed at his head. But instead of ending his life, she reached down and picked up his rifle. “We’re on the same side,” she told him. “You just don’t know it yet.”

“What?”

The sound of men approaching from behind cut the conversation short, and Jessica charged off into the woods, staying alongside the embankment.

Josh rolled his fighter left and right as red-orange bolts of plasma streaked past him on either side. Some glanced off his shields while others missed completely, but the worst were those that struck him dead on, causing his shields to flash brightly and his tiny fighter to shake.

His threat board flashed warnings again as four more Super Eagles jumped in, raising the total number of Earth fighters chasing him to eight.

“Any time, guys.”

Kit moved quickly, dodging in and out of the woods’ edge, drawing the pursuing soldiers further from their original point of arrival, and away from Nathan and Jessica. His pace was staggered and erratic, his stride lengths constantly changing, as did his direction of travel. Red-orange bolts of plasma streaked past, slamming into trees and the ground ahead.

As skilled as he was at evasion, he knew it was only a matter of time before the six EDF marines chasing him managed to land a volley that would, at the very least, knock him off his stride. It was time to employ a different strategy; one they would not be expecting.

Kit suddenly changed direction, heading to his right, deeper into the woods. Within seconds, he was barreling down the embankment and leaping across the creek at the bottom. Bolts of plasma slammed into the opposite slope as he scampered up and crested the top, disappearing from view.

The marines pursued their target into the woods, down the side of the ravine, and up the opposite side. They crested the top, their rate slowing slightly as they anticipated seeing their target running through the woods ahead of them. But they did not.

The sergeant signaled his men to spread out before advancing, fearing a trap. He knew their target was somewhere ahead, and he wasn’t about to fall prey to the enemy’s deceptions.

Two men had gone left, and two had gone right, with the sergeant and the sixth man advancing up the middle. All of them moved carefully, their heads on a swivel as they searched for their target among the countless trees and bushes.

Something moved behind the sergeant, and he and his comrade spun around, expecting an ambush, but found nothing.

“Psst.”

Both men spun back around and were struck in the face with blinding speed by the butt end of a rifle, all without ever seeing their assailant.

“I guess Earth marines aren’t as tough as they used to be,” Kit concluded when both men didn’t get back up. A sound to his right caught his attention, and Kit again disappeared into the woods.

Loki’s eyes widened as he came out of his initial insertion jump. On his threat display, there were six Super Eagles chasing Josh, and they were closing in. “Jesus, Josh!” he called over comms. “Jump!”

“I’ve got them just where I…” There was a sudden burst of static. “Uh-oh.”

Loki maneuvered, changing course to intercept the lead Super Eagle, and then pressed his jump button. A split second later, his target was half a kilometer away and closing fast. He pressed the rocket trigger on his flight control stick, sending a flurry of mini-rockets leaping from his rocket pods.

The lead four Eagles jumped away just before the rockets reached them, and the other two pitched up and climbed to avoid flying into the path of the incoming weapons.

Multiple systems’ alarms flashed red across his forward console, and Josh could tell that something wasn’t right about the way his P-Seventy-Two was handling.

“Your six is clear!” Loki announced over comms.

“Thanks, but I told you I had this under control,” Josh replied, pressing buttons in a vain effort to correct the multitude of problems he was being alerted to.

“Didn’t look like it from here.”

“If you had attacked the shuttles, most of them would’ve broken off my ass anyway,” Josh insisted. “Which you should do right now. We need to clear that LZ.”

“Which LZ?” Loki asked.

“All of them!”

“Got it. What was that ‘uh-oh’ about?”

“Nothing big,” Josh lied. “Just a small glitch. I’ll get it straightened out. Just go and attack those ground troops!”

“I’m on it,” Loki promised.

Two EDF marines moved carefully through the forest, studying every shadow as they searched for their target. Every step was slow and careful, making as little noise as possible so as not to reveal their position.

But they weren’t as stealthy as their prey, who lay in wait, buried in the very brush through which his stalkers progressed.

Kit lunged his right hand upward, inserting his captured combat knife into one marine’s groin, eliciting a cry of pain.

The other marine instinctively turned toward his cohort, but failed to see the partially buried Ghatazhak, who had already withdrawn his blade from the first marine. The marine bent to help his comrade, only to find someone on him from behind, grabbing both sides of his head.

There was a sudden twisting sensation, and the second marine fell, his neck broken; his life ended.

The first marine watched in horror, his hands still on his own bleeding groin. “You stabbed me in the nuts!” he yelled in anger and pain.

“Consider yourself lucky,” Kit replied, before disappearing into the forest as the last two marines could be heard charging through the forest toward them.

“Come on!” Nathan urged Lynne, practically dragging her along as they moved through the dense woods.

“I can’t!” Lynne pleaded. “I can’t!”

“You have to!” Nathan insisted.

“Leave me here,” Lynne begged. “Maybe capturing me will help you get away.”

“They aren’t interested in capturing us,” Nathan told her. “They’re shooting to kill!”

As if to accentuate his point, energy weapons fire erupted, and bolts of red-orange slammed into the trees next to them, sending shards of bark showering over them.

The sound of energy weapons fire to her right caught Jessica’s attention.

Nathan.

Jessica quickly turned and dispatched the three men closing on her, whom she had been leading astray for the last minute and a half. Then she turned, heading in the direction of the distant sound of weapons fire, jumping over low brush and weaving through trees.

The Voss came out of her jump, buffeting violently as it suddenly found itself in Earth’s atmosphere.

“You’re too high!” Vladimir scolded.

“We’re as low as the AI will let us jump in!” Dylan defended.

“Switch to manual and get us down low!” Vladimir ordered.

“Manual? Are you kidding?”

“If you don’t, they’ll pick us off in seconds!” Vladimir insisted.

A flurry of enemy targets appeared on the Voss’s threat display, alert tones sounding.

“Oh shit,” Dylan said under his breath.

“Yes! Oh shit!” Vladimir exclaimed. “Now get us low!”

“I’m getting! I’m getting!”

“Fighters inbound,” Vladimir called over the ship’s intercom to his gunners. “Be ready!”

Loki came out of his jump just over a kilometer from the engagement area. At his current speed, he had only seconds to drop to treetop level and decelerate enough to actually get his guns on target. Fortunately, maneuverability was the P-Seventy-Two’s greatest asset.

He pushed his flight control stick all the way forward, causing his Lightning to fall from the sky like a rock. Just before the treetops were about to smack his underside, he cleared the woods and found himself over one of the fairways.

Loki pulled his flight control stick back hard, causing his grav-lift systems to hum loudly as they strained to arrest his rapid descent.

A quick twist of his stick and his nose swung around to the right, coming onto a group of marines who were jumping out of one of the four newly arrived QRT shuttles. A squeeze of his trigger, and bolts of energy leapt from his wing cannons, plowing through the soldiers and the shuttle that had delivered them. The shuttle blew apart, sending flaming debris in all directions. Several of the larger pieces found the next shuttle over as it tried to climb away to escape the assault. Its lift thrusters sputtered, and it tipped to starboard, striking the ground and rolling over, crushing half of the men who had just disembarked.

As his fighter slid sideways, less than a meter above the grassy fairway, he continued to swing his nose around, firing at the third shuttle, forcing it to abort its landing and jump to safety.

Red-orange bolts flashed to his left, the ground erupting from the impacts of plasma. Loki glanced upward and to his left, spotting two Super Eagles diving toward him, adjusting their angles to avoid over-leading him on their next volley. A glance further left revealed that he was rapidly running out of fairway. The approaching tree line would soon pose as deadly a threat.

Loki pulled his flight control stick back hard, causing his grav-lift systems to again hum loudly as it pushed his tiny fighter upward at an alarming rate. Three more bolts of plasma passed under him, striking the grass at the precise location where he would have been had he not initiated an aggressive climb.

Loki knew that the Eagle pilots were well trained, and that they would already be adjusting their dive angle to compensate for their target’s attempt to evade. As much as he wanted to stay and engage the ground forces to keep them from joining the pursuit of the away team, he had no choice but to jump clear to avoid his own destruction. He and Josh were only two fighters against a full squadron of Super Eagles. Getting shot down in the first two minutes of the engagement would do little to help his friends.

A touch of his jump button, and Loki’s P-Seventy-Two transitioned from a meter above the surface to a few thousand. His ship buffeted wildly, the winds at altitude being far greater than those at ground level on a tree-lined fairway. And flying sideways wasn’t helping.

Loki disengaged his flight stability safeties, allowing the wind to have its way with his tiny ship, flipping it over and pushing its nose around.

Now inverted and pointing downwind, Loki spotted two Eagles jumping in a few hundred meters below him, opening fire as their jump flashes faded. Fortunately, they had not accounted for the effect the stronger winds would have on their target, and their initial volleys missed.

Still inverted and barely in control of his ship, Loki spun the jump range selector wheel on his flight control stick, selecting five light minutes for his next jump.

The Super Eagles adjusted their flight path and opened fire again, but their target disappeared in a flash of blue-white light.

Now back in space, Loki had no problem regaining control of his fighter. The Super Eagles would not pursue him out of their assigned engagement area, but that would only buy him a few extra seconds. Earth Defense Command would have no idea that their enemy’s force size was only two fighters and one armed cargo ship. They would have more Super Eagles in orbit, ready to pounce. If he was lucky, he’d have just enough time to come about and jump back down into Earth’s atmosphere.

“We have to get to that bridge!” Nathan yelled as they ran along the top edge of the ravine. “Once past it, we can cross the creek without them seeing us!”

Lynne was barely able to keep up, her legs burning and her breath short. She had prided herself on maintaining her weight and general health, even after bearing two children, but the only running she ever did was on a treadmill or a properly maintained path in the park. Now she felt as if she were going to stumble with every other step, and she was constantly being whipped by the branches of bushes and trees. The only thing keeping her going were the bolts of red-orange plasma streaking past her and slamming into nearby trees.

As they approached the bridge, Nathan changed his course and deftly scurried down the side of the ravine, ducking under the near edge of the bridge.

Lynne was not as graceful, stepping wrong as she attempted to descend the embankment, losing her balance, and tumbling down into the creek.

Nathan ducked under the bridge and jumped the creek, but his ascent of the opposite embankment was stopped short by Lynne’s screams as she fell. He turned around, spotting her on her hands and knees in the babbling creek, appearing as if she had all but given up. “LYNNE!” he yelled, urging her to rise to her feet and continue on.

But she didn’t.

Nathan’s first instinct was to go back to help her, but their pursuers were only seconds behind them. Her fate tugged at his conscience, but Jessica’s words echoed in his mind.

He had no choice, so he turned and continued up the embankment, using the bridge to hide him from the view of his pursuers and disappearing over the top of the ravine.

Eyes wide, Dylan held his flight controls tightly as he guided the Voss lower through the Earth’s atmosphere. He tried to avoid looking at the tactical display, as the number of red icons moving around like a bunch of angry insects only made him more nervous than he already was. The only thing keeping him together was the fact that none of those red icons had attacked them.

After nearly a full minute of being unable to see anything outside, the Voss finally broke through the marine layer, revealing the twinkling lights of the city and the moonlit water. Unfortunately, the water was coming at them much faster than he felt comfortable, forcing him to radically adjust his angle of descent.

Marcus stumbled as he donned his harness, the sudden change in the ship’s attitude nearly knocking him off his feet. “Jesus, kid!” he yelled, knowing that the live intercoms would broadcast his complaints into all compartments.

“Sorry!” Dylan replied over the intercom loudspeaker.

“You need to get the ramp open!” Vladimir instructed.

“If you can hold it steady for a minute, I will!” Marcus replied as he attached one of the safety tethers to his harness.

“Incoming!” Mori warned over the intercom. “Four bandits! Bearing one two zero, twenty up relative!”

“That’s your heading,” Vladimir told Dylan.

“What’s my heading?”

“One two zero,” Vladimir explained.

Dylan’s eyes got even wider. “That’s where all the red icons are!”

“No kidding.”

“This is not good,” Dylan mumbled to himself as he adjusted course.

“You’ll have to get lower.”

“I’m already low!” Dylan objected.

“You’re not low enough!”

“Well how low do you want me to go?”

“If you can’t see the squirrels in the trees, then you’re not low enough,” Vladimir told him.

“What the hell is a squirrel?”

“Only deploy the ramp to level,” Vladimir called over the intercom, ignoring Dylan. “I doubt it’s going to be a normal landing.”

“No shit!” Marcus snapped back.

Marcus reached the control box to the left of the aft main cargo ramp and slapped the button to start the deployment process. Cold, moist ocean air whooshed in, swirling about and making a terrifying howl. The smell was overpowering, causing Marcus’s usual scowl to become even more prominent. “God I fucking hate oceans.”

He turned and headed forward again, using the side rail to steady himself against the constant buffeting. Within seconds, he reached the weapons lockers their Ghatazhak contingent had installed prior to departure. He opened the first door and pulled out the largest weapon in the locker, holding it in front of him to inspect it.

“Jesus!” he exclaimed, examining the makeshift weapon. It appeared to be four of the old, large-bore boomers used by the Takaran Empire, all joined together and tied into a single power and control box. The weapon had two handles, one at the back with a trigger, and one at the front, a few centimeters behind the funnel-shaped guard surrounding the muzzles. “Is this what you boys do in your spare time?”

“Just keep your forward hand behind the flash-back guard, or you’ll burn the hair off your knuckles!” Jokay warned over the intercom.

“Got it!” Marcus replied, slinging the weapon over his shoulder.

“And don’t try to fire it one-handed!” Jokay added. “It’s got a hell of a kick!”

“Yeah, I’ll bet!” Marcus said as a series of blue-white flashes lit up the inside of the bay.

Mori pulled on his shoulder harness straps, tightening them as much as possible as his turret completed its power-up cycle.

“Four jump flashes aft!” Marcus reported over comms. “Skimmin’ the water!”

“They’re all yours, Jokay!” Mori instructed as he grabbed his gun controls and opened fire on the Super Eagles approaching from straight ahead.

“I’m on it!” Jokay announced over the intercom.

“This is not good,” Dylan declared as the first energy bolts, fired by the Super Eagles in front of them, struck their forward shields, rocking the ship. “Maybe we should activate point defenses.”

“We’ll be feet dry in less than a minute.” Vladimir explained. “We can’t risk errant fire causing collateral damage. I’ll try channeling power to forward and aft shields,” he added, “but if they attack with more than two groups, I’m not going to be able to keep up.”

“This is not good,” Dylan repeated.

“You really have to stop saying that,” Vladimir insisted.

More flashes of blue-white light flooded the dense forest. Jessica paused momentarily, turning to see four Reapers descending toward the very fairway on which they were planning to meet and hopefully use as an evac point. Reapers meant spec-ops. EDF marines were one thing: brutal, aggressive, and fearless. But their training was incomplete from a Ghatazhak’s perspective, and most lacked the ability to see how the battle might unfold with each possible decision. Spec-op assault teams were a different story. Marines used numbers: the more fire teams, the better. Spec-op assault teams preferred to keep it simple, and each member was trained to operate on their own, as well as within a group. Marines constantly talked to one another, while spec-ops kept comm-chatter to an absolute minimum. Despite the fact that there was no real comparison, spec-ops were as close to Ghatazhak as the Earth Defense Force had. They would complicate matters.

Screams. Female screams. Jessica turned again, trying to localize the sound. Another scream and she zeroed in, barely able to make out four marines dragging Lynne from the creek. She immediately deduced that Nathan could not be far and moved toward the screams. She doubted that Nathan would be able to leave her behind, and she intended to have his back when he attacked.

Vladimir studied the tactical display as incoming bolts of plasma peppered their shields and rocked their ship. Additional red icons were appearing every few seconds, each of them changing course as they arrived. “They’re attempting to create a secure perimeter around them,” he realized. “They’ve got at least twenty Super Eagles and six Reapers deployed.”

Mori shifted his controls, causing his gun turret to rotate to the right, tracking one of the attacking fighters as it passed to starboard. “Reapers mean spec-ops!” he told Vladimir.

“No one can hold off that many troops for long,” Deeks commented from the ventral gun turret. “Not even Nash and Vasya.”

The Super Eagle that Mori was targeting banked hard left, inadvertently turning into Mori’s stream of plasma, its shields flashing brightly with each impact. A split second later, the target pitched up and jumped away. “We gotta get to them before it’s too late,” he urged.

“Feet dry in ten seconds,” Vladimir announced. “Check your fire. The entire area is heavily populated.”

“This is not good,” Dylan repeated.

Vladimir looked at Dylan crossly.

“Sorry.”

Nathan crested the opposite slope and thought he had a clear path of escape. Unfortunately, two marines had split off from their fire team and had cut across a neighboring green to intercept their targets.

Fortunately for Nathan, their eagerness overwhelmed their common sense, and they fired too soon, their initial shots missing him by mere centimeters.

Nathan side-stepped, knowing their second shots would be more accurate. He felt a sudden pain in his right shoulder as another bolt of energy grazed his lateral deltoid. The force caused Nathan’s first shot to miss its target, but not his second, which landed squarely in the marine’s chest. Follow-up shots found the man’s unprotected neck, and then his face shield, and the soldier fell in agony, unable to breathe.

Nathan charged toward the second marine, who was still firing. He fired two shots, the first one missing and the second striking the marine’s weapon. The weapon instantly became too hot to hold, and the marine dropped it, reaching for his combat knife without hesitation.

Nathan dove at the man, driving his left shoulder into the marine’s chest armor. Their kinetic energy nearly equal, the forward advance of both men was stopped, and they fell to the ground, still entangled. Somehow, Nathan managed to end up on top, but the marine already had his knife hand in the air, preparing for a life-ending blow to Nathan’s back.

As if he could feel what the young soldier was about to do, Nathan rolled to his right onto his injured shoulder, causing a blast of mind-numbing pain to surge through him. He rolled further, dismounting the marine and continuing his roll to gain enough separation to scramble to his feet and face the young warrior.

The marine was well trained, already back on his feet and in combat position, knife hand at the ready. Nathan remembered his own knife, which Jessica had given him after liberating it from a fallen marine, and pulled it from the back of his belt.

The marine charged, jabbing at Nathan with practiced precision, but Nathan successfully blocked the parry. The force with which the young marine attacked was frightening and quite different than his practice sessions with Kit. Just the act of blocking caused pain. But his adrenaline, which was already at a high, was rapidly increasing, numbing and electrifying his body.

The marine attacked again, driving his knee into Nathan’s side, causing him to bend in response to the kinetic energy of the blow. Nathan jabbed at the marine with his knife, but it deflected off of his opponent’s torso armor.

The marine spun around, raising his foot in the air so that it struck Nathan in the same side, weakening him further.

Jessica’s words flashed through his mind. Most people use overwhelming aggression and force to defeat an opponent.

The marine spun again in the same direction, this time his free hand coming around in a fist, striking Nathan in the side of his jaw.

A Ghatazhak does not allow aggression to cloud his judgment, but rather to fuel his desire to succeed.

Nathan did not feel like he was succeeding, as another blow hit him in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. Again the marine slashed out at Nathan with his knife. Nathan tried to bend backward, hunching slightly to get his chest out of the path of the man’s blade, but the tip sliced through his clothing, finding the skin beneath.

A searing pain sliced across Nathan’s chest as he fell backward. Stunned, he nearly missed the marine diving knife-first toward his face. Nathan rolled to his left, the knife slicing through his right earlobe before plunging deep into the ground.

Opportunity, and the ability to predict its arrival, is a Ghatazhak’s greatest weapon.

Still on his back, Nathan tossed his own knife upward with his right hand, catching it with his left, thus freeing his right arm to attack. And attack he did, rolling back to his right and driving his elbow into the side of the marine’s head just below his helmet line.

The man was caught off guard, his head whipped to the side by the blow. Nathan continued his roll, bringing his left hand around and jabbing his knife into the soldier’s right flank, just below his torso armor. Blood spurted from the young man’s wound, and he cried out in pain. But he was not down, and he certainly wasn’t out.

The marine pulled his knife from the ground, slashing to his back right in a weak attempt to catch Nathan’s head with his blade.

Nathan somehow managed to roll back over in the opposite direction, then raised his right leg and drove his foot into the man’s head, knocking him away. Nathan then righted himself, scrambling on his hands and knees, knife still in his left hand, to get on top of the marine again. He raised both hands to deliver a final blow, but the man had managed to twist himself over to face his attacker, bringing both hands up to block the arms driving the knife down toward him.

Now they were locked in combat, the marine’s hands on Nathan’s wrists, trying with all his might to prevent his own demise.

Nathan could feel the warmth across his chest as he bled profusely from his gaping wound. He could feel his strength slowly leaving his body.

A Ghatazhak refuses to accept that his own death is a possibility, and therefore continues to fight as if his victory is assured, until his own life ends.

Summoning all of his strength, Nathan forced his knife closer to the marine, guiding its tip toward the young man’s unprotected neck. The marine’s eyes widened, his face locked in a horrible expression as he realized he was about to lose the battle.

Nathan didn’t even notice the resistance the young man’s skin and tissues offered as he advanced the knife into his throat. There was a gurgling sound; blood spurting from the wound with each beat of the marine’s heart as the knife drove deeper with each passing second. The young man fought for every centimeter, until the hilt of Nathan’s knife was finally against the front of his throat.

Nathan felt the young man’s grip weaken, after which the marine’s hands fell to the sides. Nathan sat up, still straddling the dying man, staring at the marine’s face as the young man took his final breath.

Nathan expected to feel guilt, but there was none. As misguided as he might have been, this soldier had made a choice to blindly follow the orders of a madman.

At that moment, he knew what he had to do.

Finally having a clear line of sight on the marines who were dragging Lynne up the embankment, Jessica opened fire as she ran, dropping two of them with her first two shots. But the other two returned fire in the blink of an eye, forcing Jessica to dive for cover.

The sound of energy weapons fire from an unexpected direction caught Kit’s attention, causing him to change course toward the battle. For several seconds, he ducked branches and leapt over small shrubs, weaving through the woods with skill.

As he crested a small rise in the terrain, he spotted two marines vying for their own cover, one of them dragging Lynne behind him. Kit immediately fired, dropping the nearest combatant.

Jessica took aim at the remaining marine, but the man spotted her and moved Lynne in front of him.

“Drop it!” Jessica shouted.

“I’ll kill her!”

“Let her go, and I won’t kill you!” Jessica told the marine.

“No way in hell!” the marine replied.

Nathan reached the trail and ran out onto the bridge, spotting the marine holding Lynne. He was facing Jessica, who had her weapon trained on him. But the marine didn’t realize Nathan was there.

He drew his weapon, took aim, and pressed the trigger, but nothing happened. He looked at the weapon, noticing that it was blinking red. Something was wrong with it.

Kit knew that Jessica had a difficult if not impossible shot. Had she been carrying a Ghatazhak weapon, she could probably have taken out the marine without so much as singeing Lynne’s hair. But the marine weapons were designed for all-out assault, with much wider and much hotter beams.

He needed to do something, and he needed to do it quickly.

“This is your last warning!” Jessica shouted, hearing the sound of more marines approaching. She raised her weapon by a few centimeters, taking final aim at the soldier’s face. The marine did the same.

Suddenly, a blood-curdling scream sounded in the distance, echoing through the moonlit woods.

“MARINE!”

The marine instinctively turned toward the cry, just as a knife struck him in the face, driving through his jaw and shattering his teeth.

The marine released his grip on Lynne, allowing her to fall free as he instinctively reached for his face with both hands.

At that moment, Jessica fired, burning a hole in the opposite side of the marine’s face, sending him to the ground in a smoldering heap.

Kit came charging up, his weapon trained on the unmoving body, just in case.

“Nice throw,” Jessica congratulated, helping Lynne up.

“It wasn’t me,” Kit assured her, pointing upstream.

Jessica turned and spotted Nathan, standing on the bridge and pointing to the right.

“Our ride’s here!” he yelled from the bridge. “Move out!”

Jessica looked at Kit. “Damn.”

“I know,” Kit replied, grabbing Lynne’s other arm to help her along.

Dylan stared out the front windows as the treetops passed under the Voss’s nose, only a meter or two from scraping the underside of their hull.

“That’s gotta be them,” Vladimir announced, studying the tactical display.

“How can you tell?” Dylan wondered.

“Four dots, and everyone else is trying to surround them,” Vladimir explained. “Set us down on the next fairway, but spin around so the ramp is facing them,” he added as the incoming fire intensified.

“Easy for you to say.”

More blue-white flashes appeared above the fairway, after which additional red icons appeared on the tactical display.

“Things are about to get ugly,” Vladimir warned everyone.

Josh turned toward the newly arriving Super Eagles, opening fire and releasing a flurry of rockets at the same time.

“Josh, Loki!” Vladimir called over comms. “Attack the Reapers! If they land, we’re never going to get them out of there!”

“Those Eagles aren’t going to let us!” Josh argued as he wrestled with his controls, trying to get his damaged ship to maneuver.

“Let us worry about the Eagles!” Vladimir insisted. “Just get those Reapers out of here!”

“This is fucking insane!” Josh exclaimed, forcing his lethargic fighter into a left turn in an attempt to bring his nose around toward the four Reapers trying to block the Voss’s landing.

As he yawed around, a flurry of rockets streaked overhead, slamming into two of the Reapers. One of them lost all shields and was forced to abort and jump away. The shuttle, although not yet aborting their landing, was turning to fire at Josh when a second volley of rockets slammed into it, but from a slightly different angle than before.

“What the…”

“Sidestepping, baby!” Loki cried out over comms as his Lightning streaked over Josh’s canopy, yawed right, and opened fire on the other two Reapers.

“Nicely done, Lok!”

“Are you going to do some of that crazy pilot shit or what?” Loki wondered.

“I’m afraid I’ve got some damage, bud,” Josh replied. “She’s flying like an old lady.”

“Then jump the hell out of there, and we’ll pick you up on the way out!”

“No can do,” Josh replied. “Jump drive is nothing but red lights. It’s all I can do to keep the damned thing flying!”

The away team reached the edge of the woods just as the Voss descended in over the fairway, taking heavy fire from both ground and air forces as she hovered ten meters above the grass.

“We’re never going to reach her!” Jessica yelled as she poured energy weapons fire toward the marines to her left.

“We need air support!” Kit replied, firing to the right.

All of a sudden, a P-Seventy-Two appeared in a blue-white flash of light to the left of the XK and less than a meter off the ground. It yawed from left to right, firing on the marines preventing the away team from reaching the Voss.

“Take cover!” Jessica warned, dropping to the ground as the rain of energy weapons fire from the Lightning approached their position. Luckily, the P-Seventy-Two’s pilot had the presence of mind to take his finger off the trigger for a split second as his nose swept past the away team. After that, he continued firing, lighting up the marines attacking them from the left.

“Now that’s air support!” Kit declared victoriously.

“We’re going to have to drop shields to let them in!” Vladimir warned as the Voss yawed around. “You need to get out of there, Mori. They’ll target you first when the shields go down!”

“Wait!” Marcus urged over the intercom. “I have an idea!”

Marcus slung the modified boomer over his shoulder as he ran back to the Ghatazhak equipment locker and grabbed one of their standard issue sidearms. He then returned to the massive open end of the deck, pausing to ensure that the ship-side end of his safety tether was still attached.

As the ship continued yawing around, Marcus stumbled clumsily out onto the horizontal ramp, doing his best to avoid losing his balance on the pitching ramp and tumbling off the side. The last thing he needed was to be dangling off the side of the ramp at the end of a tether, especially with EDF marines shooting at them from below.

Once he was far enough out, he turned around to face the Voss, raised his weapon, took aim, and fired. His first shot missed, reflecting off the hull. The second took out a chunk of hull just below an external power conduit. It was the third shot that found its mark, slamming into one of the shield emitters and sending sparks flying.

“What the hell is he doing?” Jessica wondered, staring up at Marcus shooting at his own ship.

“He’s bringing down the aft shields,” Nathan realized, laughing.

“That is one crazy old man,” Kit commented, shaking his head.

Dylan had been watching the aft camera view on the center display, in order to know when their back end was facing the away team. But what he saw wasn’t what he’d expected. “What the hell is he doing?” he exclaimed as he watched Marcus firing at his own ship.

A warning alarm sounded, and a light flashed red on the systems status display along the top edge of the forward console.

“We just lost one of the aft shield emitters,” Dylan realized.

The ship rocked as two more Super Eagles jumped in behind the ones that had just passed, attacking the Voss’s forward shields in the same fashion as their predecessors.

“How can that be?” Dylan continued. “All the fighters have been attacking our forward shields, and there’s no way ground-fire is getting through them.” The warning light flashed again. “We just lost another one!”

Vladimir laughed out loud. “It’s Marcus! He’s taking out our aft shield emitters!”

“And you’re happy about that?”

“Son of a bitch!” Josh exclaimed as he struggled with his P-Seventy-Two’s controls. “I’m losing power here!”

“Can you set down next to the Voss?” Loki suggested.

“I can try!” Josh replied, struggling to put his ship into a hover to the port side of the Voss.

Threat alerts sounded, which wasn’t surprising considering the number of EDF ships in the area. A glance at his tactical display showed that two of the Reapers had returned and were moving into position where they would have a clear line of fire on the away team.

“Fuck!” Josh exclaimed, adjusting his flight control stick to slide his hovering fighter to move in directly behind and above the Voss. “Get your ass inside, old man!” he yelled at Marcus, looking out the side of his canopy down at him as he fired away at the last two shield emitters. “Are you guys seeing this?” he asked over comms. “This is where I get my crazy from!”

The fourth emitter exploded in a shower of sparks. Incoming fire from one of the hovering Reaper’s guns, no longer blocked by shields, slammed into the ramp, barely missing Marcus as he scrambled to get back inside. “Aft shields are down!” he yelled as he entered the bay again. “Set her down!”

Jessica fired away on the Reaper hovering over them, but the ship’s ventral shields had no problem deflecting the weaker energy of her assault rifle. “We’re never going to make it to the Voss!” she yelled as the XK set down a mere twenty meters away. “They’ll mow us down as soon as we hit the open!”

“They can mow us down now!” Kit argued, rising to advance toward the Voss.

“Wait!” Nathan told him, pointing at the P-Seventy-Two sliding in between them and the Reaper that was attacking their position from above. “Now!” he ordered as the Lightning slid into position, shielding them from the Reaper fire raining down from above.

“Josh!” Loki yelled over comms as he maneuvered wildly to shake the four Super Eagles pursuing him. “Get the hell out of there! You can’t take that much fire for long!”

Loki dialed up a short jump to get him just far enough ahead of his pursuers to come about unaccosted. He tapped the jump button, transitioning ahead a few kilometers, skimming the waves. Remembering Josh’s maneuver the first time they flew the Lightnings, he forced his system to switch to spaceflight mode, even though his grav-lift systems were the only thing keeping him in the air. He fired his pitch thrusters, forcing his nose upward, then jammed the throttle of his space drive all the way forward, jumping yet again a split second after he began to climb. Coming out of the jump, he throttled back his main drive, allowing his vertical airspeed to decrease rapidly until he stalled, falling back toward the ocean below.

One last time, he fired his attitude thrusters, forcing his ship level despite what the poor aerodynamics of his P-Seventy-Two were trying to do to it.

Another blast of power to give him some horizontal speed, and Loki jumped a third time, coming out high above the Voss, falling toward it with very little horizontal movement. He stopped forcing his ship to remain level relative to the surface rushing up toward him, allowing his nose to drop and firing as soon as it was pointed at the Reaper firing on his friend’s dorsal shields.

“Holy shit!” Josh exclaimed. “Where’d you learn that trick?!”

“Some crazy pilot I know,” Loki replied.

“I’ve got six Eagles coming in from the south!” Mori warned, noting the arrival of the enemy fighters.

“Forget about them and target the Reapers!” Vladimir insisted. “Eagles suck at ground attack!”

“Yeah, attack the fucking Reapers!” Josh seconded. “Start with the one that’s pummeling me!”

“Hang tight, Josh!” Loki urged. “I’ve got that sucker in my sights!”

Mori swung his turret on the next Reaper, opening fire with both barrels. The target’s shields flashed brilliantly, and the Reaper broke off its approach, fearing the imminent collapse of its shields.

“Deeks! Can you get a bead on those ground troops?” Vladimir asked over comms.

“I’ve only got a twenty degree sweep between the aft main gear and the ramp!” the Ghatazhak belly gunner replied.

“And the system won’t let me move the barrels from level while we’re on the deck, so the shots will go over their heads!” Deeks continued over the intercom loudspeaker in the aft utility bay.

“I’m on it!” Marcus announced, walking out onto the descending ramp as he unslung the modified boomer from his shoulder. He glanced up at Josh’s Lightning as it was being pounded from above, its shields flashing brightly. “You crazy little shit,” he muttered as he raised his frightening-looking, quad-barreled monstrosity. He took aim at the group of soldiers firing at the away team as they ran toward the Voss’s still descending ramp, braced himself, and pressed the trigger. The sound the weapon made as four balls of bright red plasma leapt from its barrels was deafening, and the kick nearly knocked him off his feet. “Holy shit!” he exclaimed, surveying the enemy line. Six of the twelve marines were down, dead or injured, and the rest were ducking for cover. “This thing’s a beast!” he added as the end of the Voss’s ramp struck the ground, kicking up dirt and grass.

“Uh-oh,” Loki said to himself as six more Super Eagles jumped in to port and immediately began firing on him. “Six bandits on me; gotta go!”

“I’ve got him!” Mori assured him over comms.

“Get out of there, Josh!” Loki commanded as he stopped firing and pulled out of his dive in order to jump clear.

Additional EDF marines suddenly came out of the woods to their left, opening fire with everything they had, pinning down the away team halfway between the woods and the Voss’s cargo ramp with continuous fire. Had there not been a small rise in the fairway between the away team and the marines raining hell upon them, they would already be dead.

“You got a shot?!” Jessica yelled as she lay flat on her back, bolts of energy whizzing only a few centimeters over her.

“I barely have room to breathe!” Kit replied. “I’m going to try and scoot back a bit. The berm is a little higher a few meters back! I might be able to get into firing position and lay down enough cover fire for you to get on board!”

“Negative!” Jessica countermanded. “You’re too bulky! I’ve got a better chance!”

“Thanks for noticing!” Kit joked. “I’ve been working out!”

“Just be ready to move when I open fire!” she replied. She started wiggling her body, pulling herself by her heels and elbows over the grassy fairway and back toward the tree line.

Marcus continued firing his modified boomer, leaning into each shot to avoid being knocked over. But the weapon required five seconds to recycle before it could fire again, and the enemy had already figured out his timing and were ducking back the moment he stepped into the open to fire. “We’ve got a lot of people crashing this party!” Marcus yelled back toward the intercom inside the Voss’s utility bay. “I could use a little help back here!”

“I can go!” Deeks suggested over the intercom speaker above the Voss’s cockpit. “I don’t have a clear shot anyway!”

“Nyet!” Vladimir replied, unbuckling his restraints. “We’re going to need your guns the moment we lift off!”

“Where are you going?” Dylan wondered, shocked that Vladimir was getting out of his seat.

“You have the conn, Mister Bindi,” Vladimir informed him as he headed aft.

“What?” Dylan looked about, uncertain of what to think. “Oh this is really not good.”

After being hit repeatedly by the Voss’s topside plasma cannon, the Reaper pounding Josh had no choice but to move off, its shields rapidly weakening.

“YES!” Josh exclaimed, noticing that the Reaper was turning away. But it was not soon enough, as their last few shots collapsed his shields and tore into the side of his ship. “NO!” he yelled as his ship bucked and slid to the left, falling rapidly.

Josh glanced outside, seeing that he was about to slam into the Voss’s aft ramp, possibly killing Marcus in the process. He yanked his flight control stick back as hard as he could, jamming the grav-lift power slider to the maximum with his other hand, hoping to get one last bit of lift to get him past the ramp below.

There was a loud thud, his nose bouncing upward slightly, followed by the sound of metal being torn apart.

Hearing the sounds of grav-lift systems straining, Jessica paused her reverse crawl just long enough to glance back toward the Voss as Josh’s P-Seventy-Two bounced off the ramp and then slammed into the ground on the other side.

“GO!” she yelled, rolling over and rising to her feet. As unfortunate as Josh’s crash was, it gave them the cover they needed to reach the Voss.

Vlad stumbled into the utility bay, nearly knocked off his feet by the collision. He saw the bent ramp and Marcus struggling to get back on his feet. “What the hell happened?” Vladimir asked as he grabbed an assault rifle from one of the Ghatazhak weapons lockers.

“My kid tried to kill me!” Marcus grumbled, climbing back to his feet.

Vladimir ran past Marcus, weapon in hand, spotting Nathan, Kit, and a woman he did not recognize, climbing to their feet. To his right was the crashed P-Seventy-Two with Jessica running toward it, firing over the downed fighter’s nose at the marines on the far side.

Bolts of energy zinged past him, a few of them slamming into the hull above his head, causing Vladimir to flinch. “Cover fire left!” He ordered Marcus as he himself went to the right, raising his weapon and opening fire.

Josh pulled at the canopy release lever, but nothing happened. To his left, EDF marines were rising from their cover, moving toward him with weapons firing. Although the Lightning’s shields were gone, her hull was at least lightly armored and had a reflective coating, causing lower-powered energy weapons to ricochet off its surface when struck at oblique angles. Unfortunately, his attackers would soon realize this and fire at the surfaces of his ship that represented right angles, at which point it would only take a few hits to penetrate his hull and find his unprotected body.

Josh furiously slapped at the underside of his canopy with both hands as bolts of energy slammed into his port side.

A knock came on his right side, surprising him. Outside was Jessica, saying something he couldn’t hear as she motioned for him to get down.

“MARCUS!” Jessica yelled toward the Voss’s battered ramp. When Marcus turned to her, she pointed at the canopy. “IT WON’T OPEN!”

Marcus squinted as bolts of energy whizzed about in all directions. “The hell it won’t!” he said, raising his quad-barreled boomer to take aim. “DUCK, GIRL!”

Jessica jumped down from the side of the crashed P-Seventy-Two, dropping facedown on the ground as Marcus fired. Marcus’s aim was dead on, and all four balls of bright-red energy slammed into the side of the Lightning’s hull and its canopy.

The hull tore open, and the starboard side of the transparent aluminum canopy was blown open.

Jessica waited just long enough for the rain of debris to end, then jumped back up to her feet, moving forward just enough to be able to resume firing over the top of the P-Seventy-Two’s nose. “Get your ass to the Voss!” she instructed Josh.

“Jesus fucking Christ!” Josh exclaimed, sitting up and seeing the damage to the side of his canopy. He quickly climbed through the jagged hole, falling face-first down the starboard side of his fighter. “You crazy old fart!” he yelled at Marcus. “You just about blew my fucking head off!” he added as he climbed to his feet and headed for the ramp.

Marcus ignored him, turning back to the left to reengage the enemy on the Voss’s starboard side.

“Buistra!” Vladimir urged as he laid down a continuous rain of cover fire toward the marines on their port side.

Nathan knew enough Russian to get his meaning and ran with all his might to get to the ramp, dragging Lynne along as bolts of energy slammed into the ground around them.

Dylan’s eyes darted nervously between the aft camera views, his shield strength display, and the tactical display, all the while chanting, “This is not good, this is not good.”

Another threat alarm sounded, grabbing his singular focus. “Oh shit. INCOMING MISSILES!” he yelled over the intercom as he grabbed the controls to lift off.

“Which direction?!” Mori demanded over the intercom.

“Twenty degrees off our starboard bow!” Dylan replied, his eyes back to the tactical display. “Four of them, skimming the ocean, ten clicks and closing fast!”

“I’m on it!” Mori announced, swinging his turret away from the incoming Reapers toward the missiles instead.

“Jesus! Get this bucket off the ground so I can shoot something!” Brill complained in frustration from the belly turret.

“We’ve got to lift off!” Dylan exclaimed.

“Relax, kid,” Mori said as he opened fire, dropping the first missile in seconds. “It’s just a few missiles.”

“Relax? Are you kidding me?”

Vladimir moved down the ramp, sidestepping as he continued firing, handing his weapon to Nathan and grabbing the woman he was dragging along to help her up the ramp.

“One down!” Brill reported over the intercom.

“Vlad, Lynne!” Nathan yelled as he turned to open fire. “Lynne, meet Vlad!”

Lynne said nothing, only staring up at the big man’s eyes as he helped her up the ramp.

“You’re safe now,” Vladimir assured her, guiding her all the way to the forward bulkhead. “Stay here,” he added, reaching into the weapons locker to grab another assault rifle.

“Two down!”

“TIME TO GO!” Nathan yelled from the ramp as he fired over Jessica’s head at the marines charging toward them. Two blue-white flashes lit up the ramp, the shock wave from the displaced air nearly knocking Nathan off his feet. He stopped firing for a moment, looking up at a pair of combat shuttles, their guns rotating around to open fire on his position.

“LOOK OUT!” Nathan yelled, diving for cover.

The weapons on the underside of the two shuttles opened fire, blowing additional chunks out of the Voss’s ramp and tearing up her hull around the entrance to her utility bay.

Josh rolled to his left, taking cover under the Voss as bolts of energy ripped into the ground where he had been only a moment ago.

Jessica scrambled back to her feet, having been caught off guard by the displacement wave. She raised her weapon and opened fire at the shuttles, but it bounced off their ventral shields, barely making them flash.

Another blue-white flash appeared, this time on the far side and slightly above the newly arrived shuttles. She almost didn’t see it, her view obscured by the airships raining hell upon them. But somehow she knew it was there, and she knew who it was.

Loki’s targeting screen turned green, and he pressed the button on his flight control stick, sending the last of his mini-rockets streaking forward toward the unsuspecting combat shuttles. As soon as the rockets struck the shuttles’ shields, he opened fire with his wing cannons, continuing his dive as Super Eagles in all directions turned to intercept him.

One of the combat shuttles lost its shields, emitters across its topside erupting in a shower of sparks. Without protection, the shower of energy bolts cut through its hull with ease, igniting the explosive and flammable parts within.

The shuttle broke apart, falling to the surface and exploding on impact.

Kit stepped onto the ramp, shifting his fire from starboard to port now that the crashed combat shuttle was providing cover to the right of the Voss.

“Gospadee!” Vladimir exclaimed, shielding his face from the heat of the secondary explosions within the combat shuttle’s wreckage.

The second shuttle, also about to lose its shields, had no choice but to veer off, jumping clear seconds later.

More threat alerts sounded as additional missiles appeared ten kilometers out, but from the port forward quarter this time. “More missiles!” Dylan warned as he started to ease the lift throttles forward, readying the ship for liftoff.

“Not yet!” Vladimir insisted.

“We’ve got to go!”

“NOT YET!” Vladimir repeated sternly.

“Jesus this is so much worse than not good!”

“WE’VE GOT TO GO NOW!” Nathan yelled from the ramp.

Josh crawled back out from under the Voss, running around the end of the ramp and climbing up as Jessica walked backwards behind him, firing away at the approaching marines.

Loki’s Lightning bounced violently, warning alarms sounding as his shields failed. He pressed his jump button, but nothing happened. He immediately put his fighter into a steep dive, heading for the deck in an effort to shake the Super Eagles pursuing him.

Altering his course radically, he dropped down to just below treetop level, guiding his ship down a snaking path between two bands of woods. As he had hoped, the EDF fighters were not interested in the additional risk the trees presented. Their target would have to emerge in seconds, at which point they could drop in on his six again and finish him off.

Ahead of him was the Voss, energy weapons fire flying in all directions. Beyond it, more trees, another fairway, and then mountains. He would have to either climb to clear the mountains and be in the pursuing Super Eagles’ sights, or decelerate sharply and stay within the LZ, circling the Voss and attacking ground targets.

Unfortunately, he would not last long without shields, even against the less powerful weapons carried by EDF marines. He had to get his jump drive working, or he would have to land and get to the Voss on foot.

Seconds later, he was out of the narrow corridor between the woods, decelerating sharply in preparation to circle. As expected, the assault from the ground troops pinned down by his comrades was now redirected at him, slamming into the unprotected underside of his hull.

Loki quickly reset his jump buffer monitors and refreshed his jump computer’s status. Much to his surprise, the jump readiness light turned green again. Not surprising, however, were the four Super Eagles that had just jumped in ahead and above, diving toward him with plasma cannons firing. Their attack angle was perfect, allowing them to fire on the Voss as well as Loki, with only minor adjustments in their attack dives.

Several more bolts of energy slammed into his starboard side, lighting up a dozen more warning lights. Loki’s spirits sank, but his jump drive readiness light remained green.

He had only seconds to react. Climbing toward the newly arrived Super Eagles would reduce his target profile to a minimum but would make him easy prey for the fighters following slightly above and behind him. If he circled the Voss down low, he would be picked off in seconds, which at this point seemed like the best option. Assuming he survived the crash, he might be able to make it to the Voss, despite all the troops moving to surround it.

What would Josh do?

Loki smiled. Something stupid.

He jammed his foot onto his forward accelerator pedal as he shoved his grav-drive power slider to maximum. He needed to gain altitude or risk slamming into the mountains ahead. As his P-Seventy-Two lunged forward, he spun the jump range selector wheel in his flight control stick to its maximum setting. He had no idea if he would get more than one jump out of the damaged ship, and he intended to get as far away from Earth as possible. Better to die in space than to be executed on Earth.

“Voss!” he yelled over comms. “Lightning Two, passing overhead! A little help, please?”

“I’ve got you covered, Loki!” Mori replied over comms from the Voss’s topside gun turret as it rotated around to point forward.

A barrage of plasma bolts slammed into his waning dorsal shields, collapsing them completely. Warning lights began flashing all over his consoles, and his ship began pitching and yawing wildly as malfunctioning thrusters began firing at random, making his tiny fighter nearly impossible to control. A follow-up barrage slammed into his port engine, illuminating what few warning lights that remained. As his grav-lift began to fail, and his ability to control his fighter faded, he thought of his daughter. She would be safe with the Doran’s family.

Loki glanced at his jump track display. He still didn’t have a clear jump line over the trees, let alone one that would clear the mountains ahead. To make matters worse, his jump drive readiness indicator was randomly alternating between red and green. For all he knew, his jump drive was already inoperative.

All options were gone, his death assured. The only question that remained was how he would die. In the sights of enemy guns or slamming into the side of the mountains.

For the first time in weeks, Loki allowed himself to think of Lael. He found himself not praying for a miracle but hoping that the beliefs his wife had held were true, and that pressing the jump button would bring them together again.

His fear of death suddenly gone, the knowledge that he could chose the moment of his passing brought him a peace he had not known since his wife’s untimely demise.

As more bolts of energy slammed into his ship, Loki closed his eyes, imagined his wife’s face, and pressed the jump button.

Red-orange bolts of plasma, fired from the Voss’s topside gun turret, streaked over the cockpit windows, making Dylan flinch with each flash of red. “This is not good!” he repeated.

He glanced at the rear camera view on the center display screen just as Jessica turned to head up the platform.

An explosion lit up the sky less than a kilometer ahead of him, right where the Super Eagles were diving toward them.

Something streaked over his left upper cockpit windows, headed for the tree line. Dylan ducked instinctively. “Shit!” he exclaimed, realizing it was Loki’s P-Seventy-Two Lightning.

A blue-white flash enveloped the tiny fighter just as it collided with the treetops, shearing them off and sending branches flying in all directions. A split second later, there was an explosion on the far side of the trees, in the next fairway just before the base of the mountains.

“Oh my God.”

“Take off! Take off!” Vladimir yelled over the intercom.

Still staring at the rising smoke beyond the trees, Dylan pushed the lift throttles upward slightly, causing the Voss to rise slowly off the ground. At the same time, he eased his forward velocity throttle forward, just enough to get them moving, but not so much that they wouldn’t be able to clear the trees ahead.

But without an enemy fighter to target, all EDF Super Eagles now turned their guns on the Voss, opening up with everything they had.

Red-orange energy bolts slammed into the Voss’s topside shields from all directions as Eagles dived on the slowly rising vessel. On the ground, marines moved out from their cover, pounding the underside of the enemy vessel with assault rifles, aiming at the unshielded aft end.

The Voss rocked with the impacts, knocking Jessica off her stride. She managed to avoid falling, but an energy bolt fired from below passed through a gaping hole in the ramp and struck her in the left shoulder, sending her spinning around and falling backward.

“JESS!” Nathan yelled, dropping his weapon and running out on the ramp after her. As she slid toward the end of the ramp, Nathan dove for her, managing to grab her hand.

Kit was next, diving for Nathan’s leg as he slid past, falling to the deck behind him in the hopes that his own mass would provide enough drag to prevent his comrades from falling off the end.

It worked, but just barely.

Dylan nervously adjusted the controls, increasing their rate of climb to clear the trees at the end of the LZ.

“Hold ’er steady!” Marcus bellowed over the intercom. “Nash fell!”

“What?” Dylan looked at the view screen in the center of the console. He couldn’t see Jessica, but he could see Nathan lying belly down, half off the end of the ramp, Kit holding onto his leg in a similar position.

“This is not good!” he exclaimed as incoming fire rocked the ship, setting off multiple warning lights and alarms in the cockpit.

“COVER FIRE!” Kit yelled as he lay prone on the ramp, holding on to Nathan’s legs with both hands.

Vlad ran out to the right side of the ramp, standing precariously near the edge without a safety tether, firing downward at the EDF marines. Marcus did the same, but to the left, unleashing his quad-barreled boomer at the unprotected troops. “Get a gun, kid!” he called to Josh over his shoulder.

Nathan peered over the edge, both arms hanging straight down, grasping Jessica’s left hand with both of his. Jessica was firing away with her other hand, trying to keep the onslaught at bay. “Christ! Can you stop fighting for once in your life?!” Nathan exclaimed. “Give me your other hand!”

Jessica looked up at him, then looked forward, spotting the treetops coming toward her. She let go of her weapon, allowing it to fall away as she reached for Nathan with her free hand. Nathan pulled, but it was not enough. She bent her arms, raising her torso up and tucking her legs, just in time to avoid being whacked by the first tree that rose up under them.

No longer having a line of fire on the ground troops below, both Vladimir and Marcus rushed out, plopping facedown on the end of the ramp on either side of Nathan and reaching for Jessica. More energy weapons fire slammed into the ship’s topside shields, causing it to buck violently, nearly tossing Vladimir off the ramp.

Josh came running back onto the ramp, assault rifle in hand, but stumbled when the ship bucked from incoming fire and fell on top of Kit.

“Get off me!” Kit yelled as he held on to Nathan’s legs to keep Jessica’s weight from pulling him off the end of the ramp along with her.

“What do I do?” Josh asked as he climbed back to his feet.

“Go fly this fucking thing!” Marcus yelled. “Before that little shit gets us all killed!”

“That I can do!” Josh assured him, turning around and sprinting back up the ramp, tossing his weapon aside on the way.

“And hit the ramp retract button on your way!” Marcus followed.

Josh stopped in his tracks as he reached the top of the ramp, stumbling to his right as the ship lurched sideways, sending him flying into the starboard bulkhead. “Jesus, Dylan!” he exclaimed as he slapped the ramp retract button.

“Are you trying to fly like shit?!” Josh yelled over the intercom.

“You’re more than welcome to take over!” Dylan responded as he struggled to keep the ship level while the Super Eagles continued to pound them relentlessly with plasma cannons.

Dylan glanced out his port window, looking down at the fairway below. Treetops and branches were strewn forward along Loki’s flight path at the time he had jumped, and on the far end of the fairway, just before the green in front of the rising mountainside, the ground was torn apart in a straight line, ending at the P-Seventy-Two’s burning wreckage. “Oh, no.”

Dylan looked back inside, not really looking at anything, the shock of what he had just seen hitting him. But the shock didn’t last long, as another thought interrupted his grief.

The mountains.

The mangled cargo ramp shook slightly as its retraction motors started. It shook, bounced, but did not retract more than a few centimeters.

Her arms still bent and running out of strength, Jessica let go of Nathan with her right hand, quickly reaching up and grabbing Vladimir’s hand just as her left arm gave out.

Nathan felt Jessica’s left hand slide out of his and reached for her belt before she swung out of his reach, grabbing it with both hands.

Jessica swung her left hand up and over Nathan’s head, flailing wildly.

Marcus grabbed Jessica’s left forearm with both hands, pulling with all his might, and he and Vladimir pulled her up over Nathan’s shoulder and onto his back. Vladimir then grabbed the back of her belt, sliding her even further aboard.

Josh climbed up the ladder leading from the cargo deck to the main deck. As he climbed, he could see Mori in the topside turret, rotating around as he fired at the Super Eagles attacking them.

The ship bounced wildly, causing Josh’s feet to slip off the rungs. As he swung from side to side, he could see Jokay in the ventral turret, upside down in relation to the rest of the Voss’s deck. For a split second, he wondered what would happen if he fell down the tube, then crossed the line where the gravity reversed itself before entering Jokay’s turret.

“We have to pitch up and jump, or we’re going to hit the mountains!” Dylan warned over the intercom loudspeakers.

“You can’t jump yet!” Josh warned as he struggled to get his feet back on the ladder. “Not until they’re completely out of the utility bay! The ramp is damaged and won’t seal up!”

“We’re going to hit those mountains in less than a minute!” Dylan warned.

“Pitch down ten degrees for ten seconds, then scoop it!” Josh instructed as he let go of the ladder and dropped back down to the cargo deck.

“We’ll hit the ground!” Dylan argued.

“Don’t hit the ground!” Josh insisted, running back toward the utility bay. “You gotta get outta this bay now, or we’re all dead!” he yelled at the others as he pulled Lynne through the hatch.

“Oh God,” Dylan said as he prepared to pitch down.

“Jam your grav-lift to the max and use your thrusters to pitch down!” Josh shouted over the intercom.

Dylan suddenly understood. “Right!” He jammed his grav-lift throttles up to full power, causing the ship to rise rapidly. At the same time, he bypassed the automatic flight mode system and selected spaceflight mode. He took a deep breath, then pushed his flight control stick forward, causing the attitude thrusters on top of the Voss’s nose to fire, pushing the nose down.

Having just barely managed to get back to their feet, those on the cargo ramp suddenly found themselves tumbling forward into the utility bay, slamming into the forward bulkhead.

Josh fell backwards through the open hatch, bouncing off the ladder at the center of the octagonal center tube and landing on the bulkhead on the opposite side.

“Inside! Everyone!” Nathan ordered, half crawling and half falling toward the open hatch on the utility bay’s forward bulkhead.

One by one, they fell clumsily through the hatch, grabbing the center ladder to steady themselves, fighting the increased gravity that the Voss’s rapid, nose-down climb was creating.

“I’ve got to climb!” Dylan warned over the intercom.

“Wait!” Josh yelled, but it was too late.

The ship shifted, suddenly going nose up at least sixty degrees, far more than its currently damaged inertial dampening systems could compensate for.

Kit fell backward, twisting as he passed through the open hatch and grabbing the hatch frame, dangling inside the utility bay.

The Voss climbed as it approached the side of the mountains, its aft end brushing the summit as it passed, sending chunks of the rocky mountainside flying.

The ship lurched violently, suddenly going from nose high to level with a deafening thud, the sounds of structural members being strained beyond their design tolerances.

Kit was thrown back onto the floor, but quickly scrambled through the hatch, the last one to clear the utility bay.

Marcus swung the hatch closed, spinning the lock.

“We’re in!” Josh yelled over the intercom. “Scoop it!”

“FINALLY!” Dylan exclaimed.

The main engines fired, and everyone was suddenly thrown against the aft wall of the central corridor, pressed against the wall by the extreme acceleration as the ship climbed like a rocket. A few seconds later, the force of acceleration stopped as quickly as it had started.

“We’re clear!” Dylan yelled in disbelief. After a moment, he added, “Now will someone get up here and take over flying this thing?”

“Use the evasion algorithm to get us to the exit rally point,” Nathan instructed over the intercom. “Loki will be waiting for us.”

A somber look came across Dylan’s face. He knew he should tell them, but he didn’t know how. The only response he could muster was, “Yes, sir.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Nathan lay quietly on the med-bed in the back corner of the Voss’s common room, remaining still as Deeks finished treating his wounds.

“How is he doing?” Jessica asked her Ghatazhak comrade as she approached.

“I gave him a megadose of nanites,” Deeks informed her. “He should be good as new by the time we get home. I can see to you next.”

“Kit already put a field dressing on it and gave me a nanite booster,” Jessica told him. “I’ll be fine.”

“Got to love those nanites,” Deeks chuckled.

“Damn right.”

Nathan opened his eyes. “Any sign of him?”

“Nothing,” she replied somberly. “Dylan swears he saw the crash site, but I reviewed the sensor logs, and I couldn’t tell for certain if the wreckage was his, but the size and trajectory seemed right.”

“It could have been one of the Eagles,” Nathan suggested. “Mori shot down four of them just before we took off.”

“Even if it wasn’t Loki’s wreckage, he didn’t have enough altitude to clear the mountains. He would’ve slammed right into them.”

“Then there would have been an impact site on the side of the mountains, right?” Nathan surmised.

“The forward sensor array was damaged just before Loki jumped,” Jessica told him. “We didn’t get any scans of the mountains.”

“Then there’s still a chance…”

“Nathan,” Jessica pleaded. “I want Loki to be alive as much as anyone, but his flight path when he jumped was straight at the mountains. Hell, he wasn’t even above the treetops.”

“But he could have changed course as he jumped.”

“According to the telemetry logs from Loki’s Lightning, his flight systems were badly damaged. He couldn’t maneuver. Hell, he could barely keep the thing in the air. His thrusters were firing randomly; his grav-lift system was failing…Dylan says it’s a miracle he even managed to jump.”

Nathan sighed. “How’s Josh taking it?”

“He refuses to accept it,” Jessica told him. “He insists that Loki is still alive.”

“Even with so much evidence against him?” Deeks wondered.

“They’ve been best friends since way back,” Jessica explained. “They’ve been through a lot together.”

“He’s tough,” Deeks insisted. “Give him time.”

“I’m not so sure,” Jessica replied.

“He’s right,” Nathan said. “It’ll take a while, but he’ll get over it eventually. We all do.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Nathan looked at Deeks. “Are we done?”

“You should spend the rest of the trip in your rack,” Deeks suggested.

“After I talk to Josh,” Nathan replied, rising gingerly from the med-bed.

* * *

Nathan stepped carefully into the aft end of the Voss’s command deck. It would take several hours for the nanites to reduce his pain, and until then, he planned to move very slowly.

“How you doing, Cap’n?” Marcus asked, heading toward him.

“Not as bad as that beating I took on Tyrelyx.”

Marcus smiled. “Yeah, that was a hell of a fight. You almost won that one.”

“What do you mean almost.” He looked forward, spotting Josh and Dylan sitting silently in the cockpit. “How’s he doing?” he asked Marcus under his breath.

Marcus glanced back, then sighed. “He won’t admit it, but he knows Loki’s gone.”

“Think I should talk to him?” Nathan asked.

“Couldn’t hurt,” Marcus replied. “Hey, Dylan, I need your help for a few minutes,” he called back toward the cockpit.

Dylan rose without speaking, heading back to Marcus and Nathan. “What’s up?”

“Just shut up and follow me,” Marcus told him, turning to head aft.

Nathan nodded at Dylan as he passed, then began moving slowly forward, working his way along the starboard side of the center stair ladder that led from the middle of the command deck down to the main deck, finally leaning against the rail along the forward side of the stairwell. He remained silent for nearly a minute, unsure of how to start. Finally, he sighed.

“Don’t say it,” Josh warned without looking back at Nathan.

“Josh…”

“We’re not going anywhere until Loki gets here.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Nathan asked.

“He will,” Josh insisted, sniffling. “Any time now.”

“How bad off are we?” Nathan asked, trying to lead him toward the inevitable.

“We can wait.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

At first, Josh wasn’t going to answer. “Half our sensors are down. We’re losing power from our starboard jump banks, and Vlad doesn’t know why. We’ve got about a dozen holes in the outer hull, and of course the entire utility bay is basically a back porch right now, which really pisses off the Ghatazhak since they can’t get to their weapons.”

“Let’s not forget we have no aft shields,” Nathan added.

“Yeah, that too.”

“Most of that can’t be fixed sitting in space,” Nathan pointed out.

Josh sighed. “I know,” he said softly, a hint of resignation in his voice. He looked down, silent, trying to control his emotions. “Just promise me one thing,” he finally asked, his voice breaking. He turned slowly to face Nathan, his eyes welling up with tears. “Promise me we’re going to finish what we started. Promise me we’re going to take the Dusahn out. I don’t think I can live with the thought of Lok dying for nothing.”

“He didn’t die for nothing, Josh,” Nathan insisted. “He died protecting us.”

“Promise me,” Josh repeated. “I want to be there when you kill him. I want to see him die.”

“Josh…”

“Promise,” Josh repeated, more insistent than before.

Nathan stared at his friend. The devastation in Josh’s eyes tore at his own heart. Finally, he sighed. “We’ll finish what we started,” Nathan promised.

“And I’ll be there when you kill him,” Josh reiterated.

“You’ll be there.”

Josh wiped his eyes, then looked up at Nathan.

Nathan put his hand on Josh’s shoulder. “Take us home, Josh.”

* * *

Cameron stood at the forward end of the Aurora’s open port aft flight deck as the Voss slid backwards through the pale blue pressure shields. They had received no updates from the crew prior to their return, only a call for landing clearance moments after the Voss jumped into the Darvano system.

As the ship set down, Cameron could see why. The aft ramp was bent, with several holes blown through it, and there was extensive hull damage around the utility bay entrance and all along the underside of the ship. She had no idea what had happened, but based on what she was seeing, the mission had not gone as expected.

It took several minutes for the Voss to cycle down, during which more than a dozen engineering techs gathered to examine the damage.

“It appears they were unable to maintain their covert plans,” General Telles said as he stepped up next to Cameron. “Any word from the crew?”

“Nothing,” Cameron replied, concern in her voice.

“Perhaps their communications array was damaged,” the general suggested, hoping to put Cameron’s mind at ease.

“They called for landing clearance.”

General Telles sighed. “I see.”

Finally, Nathan and Jessica appeared at the top of the Voss’s battered cargo ramp, along with a young woman whom Cameron did not recognize.

She felt a wave of relief wash over her as Marcus, Vladimir, Mori, and Jokay also appeared, following Nathan and Jessica down the ramp.

“Welcome home,” General Telles greeted. “Difficult mission?”

“That’s an understatement,” Jessica replied.

“I look forward to the debriefing,” the general stated.

“This is Lynne,” Nathan introduced. “Lynne, this is Captain Taylor and General Telles.”

“Nice to meet you,” Lynne nodded.

Josh and Dylan were the last to appear, their expressions just as somber as those of the rest of their crew.

That’s when Cameron realized there were two people missing. She looked at Nathan, her head falling slightly to one side as sadness washed over her.

“We lost Loki and Naralena,” Nathan told her.

Cameron was immediately crestfallen. “I’m so sorry, Nathan.”

“I trust you got the answers you were looking for,” General Telles surmised.

“We did,” Jessica replied.

“This is probably a bad time,” Cameron said, “but Lord Dusahn is expecting to meet with you in less than twelve hours. I tried to stall him, but…”

“I’ll be there,” Nathan assured her as he continued past.

Cameron watched him pass, greeting the rest of the Voss’s crew, somberly nodding to each of them as they passed. When Josh came, she couldn’t help herself, and she threw her arms around him. “I’m so sorry, Josh,” she whispered.

For the first time in days, if only for a moment, Josh at least feigned a smile.

* * *

Infernum was a completely desolate world. No life; no water; no vegetation; not even any unique elements. Other than a thin, breathable atmosphere and enough gravity to hold it, the planet had nothing to offer humanity.

Its biggest value was as a safe place to meet with an adversary, face to face. Its parent star, Pella, gave off an unusual type of cosmic radiation that made navigation difficult. Even better, Infernum’s proximity to Pella made it impossible for a ship to jump in close, thus making an ambush impossible.

As agreed, the Aurora had positioned itself on the edge of the Pella system furthest from the galactic core. From there it had been a four-hour shuttle ride to Infernum. Now, Nathan found himself sitting in his shuttle, alone with his thoughts as he pondered what he might say to his enemy.

A full hour beyond their agreed meeting time, a proximity alert beeped on his sensor display. Another ship was descending from orbit and would be landing shortly. Although his sensors were garbled, he could tell the contact was small, too small to hold more than a few people; the same as Nathan’s shuttle. That too had been part of the meeting parameters that Cameron had wisely negotiated.

Nathan watched his sensor display, the image of the approaching spacecraft flickering in and out due to the cosmic rays bombarding the tiny planet and interacting with its magnetosphere. The deeper the approaching ship got into Inferno’s tenuous atmosphere, the more clearly his sensors could track it.

After a few minutes of watching his sensor display, Nathan leaned to his right, looking up at the sky. As expected, it was a Dusahn shuttle, painted black and trimmed with crimson and gold.

Nathan rose from his seat and headed aft, out of the cockpit. After donning a jacket to protect him from the abrasive sands blowing about outside, he stepped up to the side hatch and took a deep breath, bracing himself.

The hatch slid open, and a wave of heat struck him. Yet another reason they called the desolate world Infernum. Nathan watched from the safety of the open airlock as the Dusahn shuttle set down thirty meters away; another negotiated detail. Too far for an easy shot, yet close enough to clearly see one another.

A few minutes after touching down, the side hatch on the black and crimson shuttle opened, revealing Griogair Dusahn himself. As agreed, he was dressed in civilian attire, as was Nathan, and carried no obvious weapon.

Nathan stepped out of his shuttle, his hair and clothing tossed about by the hot, sandy winds of Infernum. Once down the ramp and on the surface, he paused, holding his hands out at his sides, showing that he was not carrying a sidearm.

Thirty meters away, Lord Dusahn did the same, slowly turning completely around before heading toward Nathan.

Nathan matched his counterpart’s move, turning around slowly and then walking toward the Dusahn leader, coming to a stop a few meters apart.

“An interesting location for a negotiation,” Lord Dusahn stated, a confident look on his face.

His opponent’s expression concerned Nathan. It was more than just confidence, the man genuinely appeared to be enjoying himself. For the leader of a would-be empire who had recently been backed into a corner, his demeanor seemed unnatural, as if he knew something Nathan did not.

“I trust you are well,” Lord Dusahn continued.

“Speak your mind, Griogair,” Nathan stated, his own expression one of complete contempt.

“Perhaps we should retire to one of our shuttles,” Lord Dusahn suggested. “I am told this environment is only survivable for a short time.”

“I’m fine right here,” Nathan assured him. “What is it you wish to discuss?”

Lord Dusahn sighed, shrugging off Nathan’s refusal to move to a more comfortable location in which to conduct their negotiations. “To offer you a cease-fire, of course.”

“And why would you want to do that?”

Lord Dusahn took a careful breath, looking to the side at the distant horizon as he let it out slowly. “The Dusahn have been a warrior caste since the beginning,” he began. “We were tasked with doing what was necessary to ensure the survival of the Jung Empire; the things the other castes found…distasteful.”

“I am well aware of the origins and the history of your caste,” Nathan assured him.

Lord Dusahn eyed him for a moment, then returned his gaze to the distant landscape as he continued. “Our caste was banished for trying to protect the Jung Empire from its own weaknesses.”

“Like wanting a more peaceful existence?”

Lord Dusahn smiled. “I know it sounds brutal, but at the time, a peaceful existence was not possible. The empire was too fragile, her military weakened from centuries of expansion. Even worse, the number of castes had grown, and the leadership had become paralyzed by so many varied interests. For the empire to survive, it needed to be reunited; made stronger.”

“By the all-knowing Dusahn, I suppose.”

Lord Dusahn’s eyebrow raised slightly. “It did work,” he insisted. “Perhaps not as my forefathers had hoped, but our banishment did galvanize the empire. The current empire would not exist were it not for the revolution that my predecessors started.”

“Then I have you to thank for all the death and suffering that the Jung Empire has since inflicted upon humanity,” Nathan surmised. “I don’t see how you’re helping your case, Griogair.”

Lord Dusahn’s smile faded slightly. This arrogant young captain’s use of his first name was disrespectful at the least. “My intelligence officers once told me that you were a student of history. Were they correct?”

“You have good intelligence officers,” Nathan confirmed, being careful not to reveal his concerns that such information had been obtained.

“As such, you must surely be aware that every government created by the many has eventually succumbed to the same problems that plagued the Jung Empire all those centuries ago.”

“Not all of them,” Nathan disagreed.

“Really? Which might you be referring to?”

“While it is true that no human civilization has survived more than a few hundred years, many of them failed due to circumstances beyond their control, such as natural disasters, famines, and of course, plagues.”

“A fair point,” Lord Dusahn conceded. “However, absent of those events, they still would have collapsed. You see, the human animal is flawed. We are so easily corrupted. Thousands of years of human civilization, thousands of years of cultural, spiritual, and technological advancement, and those flaws still remain. But do you know the one problem that prevents humanity from overcoming those flaws?”

“I’m sure you’re going to tell me,” Nathan replied.

“Failure to accept that we cannot, and should not, rid ourselves of them,” Lord Dusahn explained. “We are creatures of varying viewpoints, beliefs, and desires. One man’s trash is another man’s fortune, and all that. In order for humanity to survive, those varying points of view must exist, as they cause tension and struggle. And we humans need something to struggle against. Mere existence is not a worthy goal. It is simply existence. Perhaps some can convince themselves it is enough, but they are fooling themselves. We need something, or someone, to dislike or to wish to improve upon. That is what drives us forward as a civilization. But again, all those varying opinions make it difficult for civilizations to focus.”

“That’s where you come in,” Nathan surmised.

“You, I, some other person, it matters not. Someone must lead, or civilization unravels from the inside. Freedom is an illusion created to pacify the masses; to allow them to believe they have some measure of control over their destinies. But you and I both know it is the few, the ones strong enough to step forward and seize control, who will shape the future of humanity.”

“And you see yourself as the right man for the job,” Nathan remarked.

“At the risk of sounding narcissistic, I do.”

“And what are your qualifications?” Nathan wondered, unsure of why he was entertaining the man’s ramblings.

“I have spent my life preparing to lead humanity,” Lord Dusahn explained. “Studied all the great thinkers; studied all the political and socio-economic theories; studied the histories of all the great human civilizations, past and present. I have even trained to reach the pinnacle of mental and physical health.”

“No, you don’t sound narcissistic at all,” Nathan commented.

Lord Dusahn sighed. “You don’t see it, do you?”

“See what?” Nathan asked, growing tired of the elder man’s delusional ramblings.

“You’re so concerned with doing what humanity would consider the right thing that you cannot do what is needed. Do you not agree that someone must lead?”

“I do,” Nathan replied. “I just don’t believe that someone is you.”

Lord Dusahn shook his head. “Your limited thinking would condemn humanity to continue its endless wars, fighting over our differences, forcing our beliefs on one another, instead of just accepting our imperfections and allowing us to live happily amongst those of similar ilk.”

This time, it was Nathan who sighed, having finally had enough. “About the only thing I’ve agreed with since you began this self-indulgent rant is that this environment is only survivable for a short time. Therefore, I’m going to put an end to this complete and utter waste of time.” Nathan took a few steps closer to his adversary, his body tense and ready to defend himself should the need arise. “I’m going to end you. You and your pathetic little empire. And I no longer care about Takara, or any other world you may have rigged to explode. Because no matter how many people die at your hand, it will pale in comparison to how much better off humanity will be with the Dusahn Empire being nothing more than a footnote in human history.”

Lord Dusahn’s expression suddenly changed, becoming deadly serious. “Surely you realize I could easily kill you where you stand.”

“But you won’t,” Nathan replied. “Your narcissism won’t allow it. You need witnesses to feed your giant ego; to make you feel like the god you believe yourself to be.”

“I might be willing to make an exception for you,” Lord Dusahn sneered.

“Then kill me now,” Nathan replied, unwavering. “Another will rise in my place. You see, good is like weeds in a lawn. No matter how many you kill, more will pop up eventually. Killing me here, without witnesses, under a flag of peace, will only increase our numbers, exponentially. And those numbers will come from all worlds, even Takara. So go ahead and do it. Let’s really get this party started.”

Lord Dusahn studied his younger opponent for several moments. “Your righteousness may someday betray you, Captain.”

“Of that I am certain.”

After another long pause, Lord Dusahn continued. “I came here today seeking a way to coexist peacefully.”

“Don’t insult my intelligence, Griogair.”

“You realize you are drawing a line in the sand, one that I will have no choice but to cross.”

“I am counting on it,” Nathan replied.

Lord Dusahn turned, looking out across the desolate landscape, watching as the sands blew across the parched surface. “Then I shall waste no more of your time, Nathan.” Lord Dusahn turned and bowed his head respectfully. “I look forward to seeing you on the field of battle,” he said, before turning and heading back to his shuttle.

One thing was certain. There was no way Griogair Dusahn could be allowed to live.

Thank you for reading this story.

(A review would be greatly appreciated!)

COMING SOON

Episode 15

of

The Frontiers Saga:

Rogue Castes

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