Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 I have seen destruction in my time.\u00a0 I have seen orbital bombardments destroy entire cities.\u00a0 I have seen weapons of such power that only pulverized ruins remained.\u00a0 I have seen the dust that is left blasted into the air to block the sun itself.\u00a0 I have seen winters come to entire worlds.\u00a0 War is terrible.\u00a0 I hope to never see it again.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jack let out a long breath, watching the warm air from his lungs crystallize in the cold front washing over the ruins of New Washington\u2019s capital.\u00a0 He sucked air in through the clear filter masking his face against the dust in the air.\u00a0 He looked up, barely making out the dim glow of Alpha Centauri A in the dust-shrouded sky.\u00a0 Most people would need glasses to see anything it was so dark, but Jack shook his head and returned to examining the capital.\u00a0 The Shang\u2019s sustained orbital bombardment had left nothing standing.<\/p>\n
A cold wind howled and Jack shivered despite himself.\u00a0 He zipped the leather flight jacket up to his neck and stuck his hands in its pockets.\u00a0 Betty echoed his motions at his side, even though she didn\u2019t really need to.\u00a0 It was just her way of fitting in, and he had to admit it felt a lot better standing out here with her than alone.\u00a0 Dirty snow swirled in the wind, wrapping around him or driving through her holoform to dust the ground at their feet.\u00a0 Jack sighed as the temperature continued to drop.\u00a0 It was dark as night even those it was midday and a long winter was coming to New Washington.<\/p>\n
Jack shivered again, wondering how many innocent people had died today, under the Shang bombardment.\u00a0 Another bombardment had brought another winter to another world.\u00a0 The sound of footsteps on the rubble came to his ears and Jack turned to see Tom and Juliet leaning into the wind as they trekked up to the hilltop.<\/p>\n
\u201cAren\u2019t you going to come in?\u201d Tom shouted over the wind.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s getting colder!\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cThis isn\u2019t cold yet,\u201d he returned, making a show of not noticing what actually was<\/em> beginning to be a bit chilly.<\/p>\n \u201cOh.\u00a0 Right,\u201d Tom said with a dark chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cYou know you Minnesotans are crazy, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack forced a smile against the gloom ahead of them.\u00a0 \u201cEverybody knows it ain\u2019t cold until it\u2019s thirty below.\u201d\u00a0 Tom shivered and Jack shook his head slowly.\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t tell you how many times I snow shoveled in shorts and a tank top at fifteen below.\u201d<\/p>\n Tom answered with an exaggerated shudder as he and Juliet reached the top of the hill.\u00a0 \u201cYou shoveled snow<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shrugged at Tom\u2019s attempt to make him laugh.\u00a0 \u201cMy parents wanted me to develop a good work ethic.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat must have been some con,\u201d Tom said with a wink.<\/p>\n Jack finally snorted despite the destruction around them.\u00a0 \u201cOne of my best,\u201d He answered with a shake of his head.\u00a0 Then he sighed and nodded at the destruction.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you think?\u201d<\/p>\n Tom\u2019s playful acted disappeared immediately and he followed Jack\u2019s gaze towards the ruins.\u00a0 \u201cThe Shang should read more Sun Tzu,\u201d Tom said in a low tone.<\/p>\n Jack blinked at the odd answer, trying to fit it into this.\u00a0 He\u2019d never read Sun Tzu though. \u00a0Ancient Chinese generals were simply outside his interests.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d he asked in complete confusion.<\/p>\n Tom sighed.\u00a0 \u201cYou should read his works.\u00a0 One thing he said was to \u2018Never do your enemy a small injury,\u2019\u201d he said with a nod towards the ruins of the capital.<\/p>\n Jack turned with a shocked look and waved a hand at the destruction.\u00a0 \u201cThis is small<\/em>?\u201d he spat out.<\/p>\n Tom met his gaze and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cOn an absolute level, yes.\u00a0 Anything<\/em> that does not kill you is a small injury.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack\u2019s eyes narrowed as the slow anger that had been building in him finally flashed to the top.\u00a0 \u201cWell, there\u2019s a lot of dead people there,\u201d Jack growled, finger pointing at where the capital once ruled the river valley.<\/p>\n \u201cTom\u2019s right,\u201d another voice said and Jack turned to see Charles and Dorothy walking up to their observation point, waving his hands towards the north and the rest of the colony.\u00a0 \u201cThe Shang destroyed the capital, but not the rest of the colony.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause we stopped them,\u201d Jack returned in a bullish tone.<\/p>\n Charles just shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cAneerin miscalculated.\u00a0 The Shang fleet was larger than he expected and the New Washington\u2019s defenses fell too soon.\u00a0 They had plenty of time to bombard anything they wanted before we arrived.\u00a0 Instead they just hit the capital and orbital infrastructure.\u00a0 Like they did at Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack\u2019s anger turned into a cold rage he hadn\u2019t felt in months.\u00a0 \u201cThey dropped Yosemite all over the American West,\u201d he said in a cold, calm tone.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe you don\u2019t-\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJack!\u201d Betty interrupted, stepping in between them.\u00a0 She glared at him, telling him not to say another word with her expression.<\/p>\n Jack met her gaze for several seconds before looking away.\u00a0 He took in a deep breath, released it, and nodded.\u00a0 Accusing Charles of not caring wouldn\u2019t be fair.\u00a0 But he couldn\u2019t stand around and listen to either of them talking about the \u201csmall wounds\u201d the Shang inflicted.\u00a0 Jack turned to walk away from the hilltop.<\/p>\n \u201cJack,\u201d Charles called after him.\u00a0 \u201cI need you to keep an open mind and listen to me.\u201d<\/p>\n The vision of Yosemite falling ran through his mind, its wreckage destroying International Falls and killing the vast majority of the people he loved.\u00a0 Jack turned back to Charles.\u00a0 He held his voice under control and spoke in a quiet tone that he knew they would both pick out of the wind.\u00a0 \u201cIf it means thinking the Shang aren\u2019t responsible for the people they\u2019ve killed, for my family and friends, I don\u2019t think I can do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles brought both hands up in a placating gesture.\u00a0 \u201cFair enough.\u00a0 All I ask is that you listen.\u00a0 And then think<\/em> about it.\u201d<\/p>\n For a second, he was back at the bonfire on the beach, dancing and having fun with so many people long dead.\u00a0 So many people that he loved.\u00a0 He blinked the dream away and held Charles\u2019 gaze.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s not a day that goes by that I don\u2019t think about them,\u201d he noted, keeping his tone calm.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s not a morning that passes that I don\u2019t miss every last one of \u2019em.\u00a0 Yosemite killed almost everyone that made life worth living.\u201d\u00a0 He pulled in a deep breath.<\/p>\n Charles spoke before Jack could continue, answering the quiet tone with one of his own.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t need to go on.\u00a0 We understand.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNo you don\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0 Jack raised a hand to forestall their protests.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of reasons I volunteered to serve after Yosemite.\u00a0 I\u2019ve always answered the questions by saying I wanted to kill the Shang for everyone they killed.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head again and chewed his lower lip for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cThe thing I never told \u2019em was that I knew I wouldn\u2019t live through it, and I was fine with that.\u201d\u00a0 He watched their eyes open wide in surprise and nodded at them.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t want to live without them, so I found a way of joining them I wouldn\u2019t be ashamed of.\u00a0 All the cybers that didn\u2019t pick me were right not to.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have made a good partner.\u201d<\/p>\n The feathery weight of a hand touched his shoulder and he raised a hand to touch Betty\u2019s.\u00a0 He met her gaze and she smiled, letting him know she was happy with her decision.\u00a0 He sighed, then jerked his head towards Tom and Charles, asking what she thought.\u00a0 Her smile grew and she nodded towards them.<\/p>\n Jack pulled in a deep breath and turned back towards Charles and Tom.\u00a0 \u201cMy better half tells me to listen, so I\u2019ll listen, but you better have a real strong argument.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded, accepting the challenge.\u00a0 \u201cHonestly, most of my argument centers around orbital dynamics and questions.\u00a0 I do not have any facts.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack considered that for a moment and glanced at Betty.\u00a0 She raised one eyebrow and he pursed his lips.\u00a0 \u201cSo something doesn\u2019t make sense to you,\u201d Jack said towards Charles.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles smiled before he continued.\u00a0 \u201cYosemite actually.\u00a0 You know Yosemite wasn\u2019t actually in orbit, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack nodded.\u00a0 While Yosemite Yards had been in space, it had actually been held in place over California by gravity generators.\u00a0 For the better part of a century, it had been a constant beacon in the sky, day and night, a sign of American prosperity and power.<\/p>\n \u201cGood,\u201d Charles said with another smile.\u00a0 \u201cIf we had anything orbiting as low as Yosemite Yards, it would be flying across the sky, not staying in one point.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUnless it was in geosync orbit,\u201d Jack supplied.<\/p>\n \u201cBut geosync is much farther out than Yosemite Yards was,\u201d Charles said with a raised eyebrow.<\/p>\n Jack nodded with a sigh.\u00a0 \u201cTrue.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNow, something in a west to east orbit, down where Yosemite was, when it got shot down, it would scatter in the atmosphere and impact in continental America.\u00a0 We would be picking pieces of it up at least as far as the Mississippi, perhaps all the way to the East Coast.\u201d\u00a0 Charles paused to make certain that Jack understood.<\/p>\n Jack glanced at Betty and she nodded.\u00a0 He turned back to Charles with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cGravitics wasn\u2019t my specialty, but I\u2019ve seen a water skier totally frak up a landing at seventy kays.\u00a0 I think I get your meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles chuckled and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cSometimes I forget how hard you work to act like a dumb country hick.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack snorted.\u00a0 \u201cMore like differently motivated.\u00a0 The skier in question was a real nice girl.\u00a0 Lucky for both of us I was there to fish her out,\u201d he finished with a wink, then sobered as he remembered what happened later.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, she died with Yosemite too, so I guess they\u2019re a bit more linked then they were at first glance.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles let out a long breath.\u00a0 \u201cIs there anybody<\/em> you grew up with that did not die?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cTaylor and Jennifer.\u00a0 A few others.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cNot many though.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI am truly sorry.\u201d\u00a0 He glanced at Dorothy for a moment, and Jack saw her give Charles a look.\u00a0 \u201cI guess you are right about me understanding,\u201d Charles said to him with a sorrowful look.<\/p>\n Jack looked away and turned to the ruins of the capital.\u00a0 \u201cSo what doesn\u2019t make sense to you?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles stepped up beside him to follow his gaze.\u00a0 \u201cThat girl of yours.\u00a0 If she had been hovering above the water, not moving, on a gravboard when it failed, what would she have done?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cShe would have fallen.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStraight down?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack turned to raise an eyebrow at Charles.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 Straight down.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYosemite was on a giant gravboard.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack blinked as he considered the fall of Yosemite again.\u00a0 He\u2019d never thought of it like that, and the realization brought a shiver down his spine.\u00a0 Or maybe that was the cold finally seeping through his flight jacket.\u00a0 He shook his head though as another thought came to mind.\u00a0 \u201cBut Yosemite didn\u2019t just fall.\u00a0 It got hit by missiles.\u00a0 There were explosions.\u00a0 Lots of them.\u00a0 Those would push it around a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles tapped his temple.\u00a0 \u201cYou watched it happen with our<\/em> eyes.\u00a0 Yosemite accelerated to the east after the missiles hit.\u00a0 Where did the missile fire come from?\u00a0 Did they come from over the Pacific?\u00a0 Could they have pushed Yosemite east when they hit?\u00a0 Or did the missiles that killed Yosemite come from the same ships that leveled Washington D.C., from the east<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack brought a hand up to rub his temple.\u00a0 \u201cYou know the answer to that.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAnd that<\/em> is why I wonder why Yosemite fell like it did.\u00a0 My family has connections.\u00a0 I have seen<\/em> the data that was not released on the news.\u00a0 It was secondary<\/em> explosions that brought Yosemite down like that.\u00a0 Not the missiles<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack chewed his lip.\u00a0 \u201cThe missiles could have set them off.\u00a0 It was a yard.\u00a0 There were all kinds of things that could blow up on it.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles smiled.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 They could have.\u00a0 I would like to know if they did<\/em> or if something else<\/em> did.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re talking inside job, aren\u2019t you?\u00a0 Government cover up and everything?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles raised both hands in protest.\u00a0 \u201cI am just saying the facts we have do not make sense.\u00a0 And I intend to find some that do<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack blinked and gave Charles a long look.\u00a0 \u201cDo you really think you have the resources to do that?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles didn\u2019t hesitate.\u00a0 \u201cI know<\/em> I do.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack held Charles\u2019 gaze for several seconds before looking away.\u00a0 He stepped back, waving his hands in dismissal.\u00a0 \u201cThis is crazy!\u00a0 Those were Shang<\/em> missiles.\u00a0 The Shang<\/em> fired them.\u00a0 Hell, we\u2019ve both<\/em> been face to face with a Shang fleet that practically bragged<\/em> over having hit us!\u201d<\/p>\n Charles smiled.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Jack.\u00a0 The Shang bombarded Washington D.C. to kill our leaders, and the Shang destroyed Yosemite Yards to cripple our industry.\u00a0 I am not questioning that.\u00a0 What I will<\/em> find out is who killed Los Angeles<\/em>, who killed International Falls<\/em>, and who killed your family<\/em>.\u00a0 The Shang?\u00a0 Or someone else?\u201d<\/p>\n A shiver ran down Jack\u2019s spine and somehow he couldn\u2019t just blame that on the cold.\u00a0 Those were truly important questions.\u00a0 He looked Charles in the eyes and the older man nodded.\u00a0 Charles meant every word.\u00a0 Jack looked at Tom who inclined his head towards Charles.\u00a0 Jack looked back to Charles and sighed.\u00a0 \u201cFine.\u00a0 I\u2019ll keep an open mind.\u00a0 But I hope you don\u2019t mind if I keep killing Shang?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles laughed.\u00a0 \u201cActually, I think I have to insist<\/em> on that.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack gave Charles one of his best salutes.\u00a0 \u201cYes Sir<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 I have seen destruction in my time.\u00a0 I have seen orbital bombardments destroy entire cities.\u00a0 I have seen weapons of such power that only pulverized ruins remained.\u00a0 I have seen the dust that is left[…]↓ Read the rest of this 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