Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 It was a long War.\u00a0 A lot of us didn\u2019t make it out.\u00a0 Many of us that did\u2026well\u2026for a lot of us we really didn\u2019t.\u00a0 Make it out entirely.\u00a0 War\u2019s not pretty, and it\u2019s not safe, and it\u2019s real hard to come home after that.\u00a0 Most of us don\u2019t like talking about it much.\u00a0 We just try to forget the bad times, remember the good times, and try to make more.\u00a0 We are prodigal sons come home, praying it is better than we have seen, fearing what we bring with us.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The multicolored spectrum of flowing gravity twisted hyperspace like hundreds of glowing rivers fighting each other for dominance.\u00a0 Jack watched his ship\u2019s prow cut through the gravity waves like butter on their way to Earth.\u00a0 The sensors showed no other ships in the area. \u00a0Unfortunately, sensor ranges in hyperspace were notoriously short, and he couldn\u2019t deploy his drone scouts while approaching the system.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t like being blind, but understood Earth\u2019s orders.\u00a0 They simply didn\u2019t want too many fighters and drones flying around the Terran system so soon after The War ended.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re approaching the Red Line,\u201d Betty announced from his right.<\/p>\n
Jack nodded and turned to smile at the blonde holoform of the ship.\u00a0 \u201cI suppose we don\u2019t want to run agravity do we?\u201d\u00a0 Rogue gravity waves were always a danger in hyperspace, but the standing gravity waves erected around Earth during The War were a truly vicious type.\u00a0 Those would rip their ship apart faster than he could blink if they passed the big bad Red Line.<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably not,\u201d she returned with a wry smile and crossed her arms under the vaguely Scandinavian face she\u2019d chosen the day she was born.<\/p>\n
Around him, the subtle hum of the scout ship shifted as the gravity generators powered up.\u00a0 The deflection grid expanded away from the ship, creating a bubble of calm in the chaos of hyperspace.\u00a0 Then the holoemitters around the bridge turned off, plunging the bridge into darkness lit only by a few runner lights in the deck.\u00a0 Jack heartily approved.\u00a0 He\u2019d watched the transition with his own eyes once in his life, and still didn\u2019t understand what he\u2019d seen.\u00a0 But he knew he never wanted to see it again.\u00a0 He heard the generators pulse, felt the ship shudder, and the holoemitters came back to life, bathing the bridge in a new vista.<\/p>\n
Jack scanned the dark starry night spreading in all directions, broken only by the Sun, the Moon, and Earth waiting to welcome her prodigal sons home with open arms.\u00a0 He smiled at the home of humanity.\u00a0 It had been years since he\u2019d seen that beautiful blue and green orb, and it seemed like ages since he\u2019d felt her under his feet.\u00a0 He licked his lips as the longing to come home filled him.<\/p>\n
He came to his feet and turned, breaking his eyes from the beautiful sight.\u00a0 They were not alone in space.\u00a0 This was the center of humanity\u2019s power after all.\u00a0 Well, the center of the Terran<\/em> branch of humanity at least.\u00a0 His eyes stopped on pinpoints of light in the distance, and tags appeared as they zoomed into focus in front of him, showing warships coming home.\u00a0 Some carried American flags, while others hailed from the myriad of nations in the Western Alliance that had come to America\u2019s aid when the Shang attacked.\u00a0 There were even some Chinese and Russian ships in the distance, but they were keeping to the treaty, staying away from the Alliance orbitals.\u00a0 The War was over after all, and nobody wanted any more incidents.\u00a0 He hoped.<\/p>\n He turned back to Earth and saw Columbia<\/em> in the distance.\u00a0 The largest warship ever built by the American Navy, she blinked her lights at a passing American warship that looked tiny in comparison.\u00a0 Of course, any<\/em> ship looked tiny compared to her.\u00a0 Jack licked his lips and sat down hard.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I guess she really is<\/em> waiting,\u201d Jack whispered, trying to keep his voice under control.<\/p>\n \u201cShe said she would be,\u201d Betty whispered and their engines flared with blue light at her command, accelerating them towards Earth and the Columbia<\/em>.<\/p>\n Jack reached forward, grabbed the ship in the holofield, and pulled her to him.\u00a0 He smiled as he held the small model in his hand, examining her long lines.\u00a0 She was a beautiful ship, even after years of fighting in the Hyades Cluster.\u00a0 He swallowed, remembering all the wounds she\u2019d taken in battle.\u00a0 There\u2019d been too many to really count.\u00a0 Some still remained.\u00a0 He liked to think of them as character builders.\u00a0 No one would ever look at her and say she was some fresh-faced warship that had never seen battle.\u00a0 She was a true Veteran of War.<\/p>\n The blue fusion light of engine fire bathed the bridge.\u00a0 He looked up to see they were slowing as they approached the Columbia<\/em> and released the small model in his hand to watch the main holofield.\u00a0 The massive two-kilometer long warship grew to fill Jack\u2019s entire field of view, and he looked up and down the beautiful behemoth, scanning across her guns.\u00a0 His eyes stopped on the fourth gun on the port side and he wondered if it still had that little hitch in it.\u00a0 They finally came to a rest off her port side and the engines cut out, leaving the entire ship in silence.<\/p>\n The Columbia\u2019s<\/em> running lights blinked off and on again, as a brunette mere inches shorter than he flickered into existence in the middle of the bridge, wearing full Navy Dress Whites and a smile.\u00a0 \u201cHello, Jack,\u201d Columbia greeted him and walked over to examine the Marine Dress Whites he wore with a critical eye.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re looking good,\u201d the hologram said and brought a hand up to brush his tie.<\/p>\n Jack smiled back and gave her a small head bow.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you, Columbia, as always look amazing<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFlatterer,\u201d she chided with a shake of her head.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing but truth,\u201d Jack answered with a beautific smile.<\/p>\n She sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder and the ship\u2019s gravity generators pressed against him, giving it a feathery feel.\u00a0 \u201cHow are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDoing good,\u201d Jack said and made his smile look jaunty.<\/p>\n Columbia sighed again and raised a disbelieving eyebrow at him.<\/p>\n Jack raised his hands in surrender.\u00a0 \u201cBut I been better,\u201d he added in a hasty tone.\u00a0 \u201cOf course, I been worse too.\u00a0 Way worse.\u201d<\/p>\n She gave him a feathery pat on his shoulder, concern written on her face. \u00a0\u201cIf you ever need anything, call me.\u00a0 OK?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGot it.\u201d\u00a0 Jack brought a hand up and rested it on hers, careful not to press hard enough against the gravity field to fall through her holoform.\u00a0 \u201cThanks, girl.\u201d<\/p>\n She gave him a fond smile.\u00a0 \u201cMy pleasure, Jack.\u00a0 Now shoo,\u201d she ordered with a feathery slap.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s a crowd of people down there that want to welcome the conquering heroes and you<\/em> are going to give them something good to look<\/em> at.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Jack responded, coming to a semblance of attention.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the spirit,\u201d Columbia said with a laugh and turned to Betty.\u00a0 \u201cYou take care of him.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Betty answered with a nod.<\/p>\n Columbia smiled at her and faded back out.<\/p>\n Jack pulled in a long breath as Betty accelerated them past the Columbia<\/em> and moved them down towards Low Earth Parking over America\u2019s east coast.\u00a0 Ahead of them, already parked, hundreds of warships filled the zone, everything but their running lights powered down.\u00a0 From corvettes to battleships, they parked close enough for the normal human eye to read hull numbers without magnification.\u00a0 Shuttles zipped through the lines of ships, ferrying American crews down to Old New York and the celebration.<\/p>\n They flew into the lot and came to a stop next to a battleship with the name Puerto Rico<\/em> on her flank.\u00a0 She was a good ship if the stories were true, but he\u2019d never seen her before.\u00a0 His eyes flicked over to the destroyer on their portside and grimaced.\u00a0 The Fox<\/em> he had<\/em> seen before, holding off three Chinese frigates in the Hyades Cluster.\u00a0 Considering they\u2019d been gunning for him personally, that left an impression.\u00a0 It was one of the many days he\u2019d been far too close to death for his comfort.<\/p>\n Jack pulled in a long breath to stabilize his nerves.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you going to be OK?\u201d Betty asked, a look of concern in her eyes.<\/p>\n Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI hope so.\u00a0 Just\u2026ah\u2026tell her\u2026\u201d he ran out of words as his eyes ran down the Fox\u2019s<\/em> flank.\u00a0 The wounds disfiguring her had been meant for him.<\/p>\n \u201cI already did,\u201d Betty whispered.\u00a0 \u201cShe knows.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack nodded his thanks.\u00a0 \u201cKeep close will you?\u201d he asked with a bit more nerves than he\u2019d wanted to reveal.<\/p>\n Betty stepped closer and placed a feathery hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cAlways.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThanks,\u201d Jack whispered, and tried to steel himself for the spectacle that was to come.\u00a0 \u201cHow do I look?\u201d he asked, nervously adjusting his tie.<\/p>\n Betty made a show of scanning him from head to toe, as any human would, despite the fact that her ship\u2019s sensors could see all of him just fine.\u00a0 \u201cYou look great,\u201d she reassured him.\u00a0 Then she stepped back and spun around so he could get an eyeful of her matching Dress Whites.\u00a0 \u201cAnd me?\u201d she asked with a sly smile.<\/p>\n Jack chuckled and said the first thing that came to mind.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ll knock \u2019em all dead.\u201d<\/p>\n Betty\u2019s smile turned approving.\u00a0 \u201cGood,\u201d she said and turned to walk out of the bridge.\u00a0 \u201cYou coming?\u201d she asked over her shoulder.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I suppose so,\u201d he answered and followed her out of the bridge into the corridor that ran down the center of the ship.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t sound too eager,\u201d Betty said with a knowing shake of her head.\u00a0 \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t want anybody getting the wrong idea.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack sighed and turned into an alcove.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he said in an apologetic tone, and stepped into the hole in the deck of the alcove.\u00a0 Air rushed around him as he fell towards the bottom of the ship, fields of gravity keeping him in the middle of the tube.\u00a0 Then he felt gravity push against his feet, slowing his fall until he lightly touched the ship\u2019s lowest deck.<\/p>\n He stepped out of the alcove as Betty fell down on his right.\u00a0 Her holoform didn\u2019t need to do that of course, but he smiled at her careful work to move like him whenever possible.\u00a0 There were times, after all these years, that he actually forgot that Betty and her sisters were cybernetic intelligences.\u00a0 They were people.\u00a0 The only family he had left.<\/p>\n He walked over to the open cockpit jutting out of the deck and stepped down into it.\u00a0 He sat down and began locking his five-point harness in place as Betty shrunk down to her twenty-centimeter tall form so she could sit on the console.\u00a0 The canopy hissed down around them and Jack blinked as the contacts he wore synced up with the systems on the fighter.\u00a0 He scanned the displays to make certain everything was operational, and Betty overlaid some of the information on his contacts.\u00a0 It had been a confusing system when he first learned to use it, but it was second nature now.\u00a0 All of the systems showed green.\u00a0 Good.<\/p>\n He aimed his best jaunty smile at Betty.\u00a0 \u201cYou ready?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am always<\/em> ready,\u201d Betty returned with a sly look.<\/p>\n \u201cIf only,\u201d he retorted as the ship shook around him, and they fell away from the bottom of their Privateer-class scout ship.\u00a0 He examined the Avenger-shaped form in the bottom of the ship as armored plates closed around it.<\/p>\n \u201cAlways,\u201d Betty corrected, pulled them away from the Privateer, and began to dive them down towards Earth.\u00a0 They passed through the assembled fleet, zooming past the best and brightest warships of the Navy of the United States of America, ducking in and out of the swarm of shuttles like they were standing still.\u00a0 As he looked at each ship, his contacts came alive with information.\u00a0 Betty knew what interested him, from the battles they\u2019d fought in, to the day they were born.<\/p>\n They finally exited the fleet, and Jack looked down to see nothing but Earth, beautiful Earth below them.\u00a0 He swallowed his nerves down as Betty accelerated past the slower shuttles, the four engines of their F-12 Avenger starfighter maneuvering them in ways no mere shuttle could ever match.<\/p>\n \u201cYeehaw,\u201d Jack whispered as the long needle-like nose glowed red hot from piercing into the outer edges of Earth\u2019s atmosphere.\u00a0 Lines of condensation appeared as the air thickened around them, flaring off the wing tips and over the cockpit.\u00a0 They dropped down through the atmosphere at over ten thousand klicks an hour, engines spewing fusion plasma into the thickening air around them.\u00a0 The engines died for a moment, then blue fusion flames boiled the air ahead of them and they slowed to supersonic speeds in mere seconds.<\/p>\n Jack pulled in a long breath as maneuvering thrusters flared to pull them out of the dive barely above sea level.\u00a0 The engines disengaged again and Jack smiled as he looked out on the next best thing to paradise.\u00a0 A bright sun shown over a clear Atlantic Ocean, glinting off the waves as the shadow of their Avenger flitted from wave to wave as if performing evasive maneuvers.\u00a0 Ahead of them the Statue of Liberty held court over the harbor of Old New York, her torch on fire for all to see, a beacon of freedom to the world.<\/p>\n They finally fell below the speed of sound with a shudder and a groan and Jack patted the console.\u00a0 \u201cHold together, girl,\u201d he whispered with a wry smile.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m only twenty years old,\u201d Betty returned in a prim voice.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re<\/em> the old man around here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, please,\u201d Jack said with an airy wave of his hand.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t look a day over twenty-five.\u201d\u00a0 Betty rolled her eyes, but it was true.\u00a0 He did<\/em> have the face of a twenty-five year old, even if he was twice that age and counting.\u00a0 It was good to be Ageless.\u00a0 The girls loved<\/em> a pretty face after all.<\/p>\n \u201cYou keep telling yourself that, old man<\/em>,\u201d Betty teased.<\/p>\n Jack shrugged and aimed a raised eyebrow at her.\u00a0 \u201cWell, if you insist on ageism, I am<\/em> old enough to be your daddy<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Betty pursed her lips, kicked her heals against the front of the console, and glared at him as they flew past the Statue of Liberty.\u00a0 \u201cOh, I\u2019m never<\/em> calling you that<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack adjusted his tie with one hand to prolong his answer for a few seconds.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I can\u2019t see why not.\u00a0 It\u2019s just a family relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRight,\u201d she said in a doubtful tone.<\/p>\n He gave her a mischievous grin as they flew up the bay.<\/p>\n She raised an eyebrow at him.<\/p>\n Jack cleared his throat and placed a more serious look on his face.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n She held his gaze and nodded very slowly.\u00a0 \u201cBetter,\u201d she whispered and turned the fighter into a marina, coming down to a soft landing on the water.\u00a0 They nosed up to the dock and the canopy opened to let in the smell of salty sea air and burnt water.<\/p>\n Jack sniffed at the steam rising from the edge of the fighter and noted the popping coming from the hull as it radiated heat from the reentry.\u00a0 Helpful information appeared on his contacts, telling him the temperature, wind speed and direction, humidity, dew point, and a hundred other little atmospheric factoids that Betty thought would be of interest to him.\u00a0 He smiled, unlocked his harness, pulled himself to his feet, and heard the sound of music drifting over the marina.\u00a0 It was a good song.\u00a0 He stepped out of the cockpit, unconsciously moving in time to the beat.\u00a0 The song\u2019s name and the band that sang it appeared on the edge of his vision.<\/p>\n His feet hit the dock and he smiled at the soldier waiting for them as he reached an arm out for Betty to use.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t need it of course, but took the offered hand and stepped onto the dock with him as the specialist\u2019s name, rank, and serial number appeared on his contacts.\u00a0 The soldier looked back and forth between the two parts of the fighter team, the datapad in his hand, and the fighter, an expression of surprise on his face, before saluting.<\/p>\n Jack returned the salute as sharply as the Army specialist did.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t remember the last time he\u2019d done it the proper way, but then the Peloran never thought much of proper American military discipline.<\/p>\n \u201cWould Captain Hart appreciate directions?\u201d the specialist asked in a formal voice as he released the salute.<\/p>\n Jack made a performance of turning to scan the many uniformed men and women walking off the numerous docks and filing onto Liberty Street.\u00a0 Dogs of every size, and even a few big cats moved through the crowd as well, their uniforms much more abbreviated than their follow servicemen.\u00a0 Betty of course helped him by placing information in his contacts about any single person or landmark he held his eyes on.\u00a0 He turned away from them and smiled at the soldier.\u00a0 \u201cDoes Specialist Anders think it would be helpful?\u201d<\/p>\n The specialist chuckled and gave him a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Sir.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack looked at Betty, who nodded, and turned back to Anders with a nod.\u00a0 \u201cThen proceed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Sir.\u00a0 If you would proceed down the docks to the walkway there,\u201d he said with a wave of his hand towards the uniform-filled sidewalk.\u00a0 \u201cTake that to Liberty Street, and you may then walk all of the way to Patriot Arch.\u201d\u00a0 Jack\u2019s contacts blinked, showing him where the relative landmarks were compared to where he was.<\/p>\n \u201cI could have gathered that with my Mark One Eyeball, Specialist,\u201d Jack said with an upraised eyebrow.<\/p>\n Anders smiled.\u00a0 \u201cSurely, Sir, for you<\/em> it must be a Mark Two<\/em> Eyeball?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack chuckled and tipped the brim of his white Cowboy hat towards the soldier\u2019s quick wit.\u00a0 The man recognized him.\u00a0 Of course, to be fair, there weren\u2019t very many Captain Harts who wore the Texas Guard Marine Corps Uniform, and the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 112, the Cowboys, in particular were only a little<\/em> bit famous.\u00a0 \u201cGood point, Specialist,\u201d Jack said with a good-natured chuckle.\u00a0 \u201cCould you proceed with the helpful<\/em> information please?\u201d he added with only a slight dig.<\/p>\n Anders laughed this time and nodded his acknowledgement of the point.\u00a0 \u201cAt the Arch, a local guide will meet you and I will no longer be responsible for getting you lost.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack snorted.\u00a0 \u201cHad a lot of that lately?\u201d<\/p>\n The specialist rolled his eyes.\u00a0 \u201cYou have no<\/em> idea, Sir.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPerhaps more than you think,\u201d Jack returned with another chuckle.<\/p>\n \u201cYou served with the Peloran, Sir,\u201d Anders said with a doubtful look.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd with the dregs and troublemakers of navies that sent their ships to Aneerin to teach them how to fight against the Shang,\u201d Jack noted with an upraised eyebrow.<\/p>\n The specialist paused in thought, made a show of scanning the uniforms walking down the walkway.\u00a0 \u201cYou win, Sir,\u201d he finally answered in a commiserating tone.<\/p>\n \u201cIf only,\u201d Jack said with a snort.<\/p>\n Anders echoed his snort and looked at their fighter.\u00a0 \u201cCould you please roll your\u2026fighter\u2026into the bay, Sir?\u00a0 Other ships are waiting to dock.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack smiled and turned to Betty with a questioning look.<\/p>\n \u201cOn it,\u201d she answered and the fighter began to move away from the dock.\u00a0 He heard the holoemitters in his uniform take up the load of projecting Betty\u2019s holoform when the fighter left transmission range, and sighed.<\/p>\n \u201cIs that all, Specialist?\u201d he asked, cocking his head to the side.<\/p>\n The soldier smiled back.\u00a0 \u201cThat is all, Sir.\u00a0 Have a good day, Sir.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHave a good day, Specialist,\u201d Jack answered and turned to stride down the dock, his white cowboy boots clumping on the boards.\u00a0 Betty kept pace on his right side the matching boots of her holoform making sounds that perfectly matched his, even though her insubstantial form couldn\u2019t possibly be making them.\u00a0 He had to admit that cybers had learned to get everything right.\u00a0 The only problem was with the holoform itself.\u00a0 Someone with very good vision, like Jack, could just see the hard edge of the holoform where it never quite merged with the air the way a real body did.\u00a0 Instead, he could just see the moisture in the air passing through her form, clothing and all, a vague mist that could never quite interact with her right.\u00a0 His uniform\u2019s holoemitters just didn\u2019t have the power to generate a holoform strong enough to mask its nature from his eyes.<\/p>\n She met his gaze with questioning eyes.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n He smiled and let out a long breath.\u00a0 \u201cJust wondering what I ever did without you.\u201d<\/p>\n She returned his smile with a look that said he could keep talking like that forever, even if she didn\u2019t really believe him.\u00a0 He shrugged, admitting she\u2019d caught him.\u00a0 She sighed, and nodded ahead.<\/p>\n He followed her gaze to the grassy shore where all of the docks and walkways in the marina converged into a park dominated by an old pump house.\u00a0 He idly wondered if it really was old or something rebuilt to look like the pump house that had been there.\u00a0 Then he put that out of his mind as the crowds of men, women, dogs, and cats flowing off the docks from dozens of ships truly registered.<\/p>\n \u201cWell,\u201d he whispered, letting out a long breath.\u00a0 \u201cOnce more into the breach.\u201d<\/p>\n Betty chuckled, jumped into the air, and shrunk back into her twenty-centimeter form as she sat down on his shoulder.\u00a0 He aimed an eye at her and she shrugged.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t like people walking through her, and a crowd this size pretty much guaranteed that would happen.<\/p>\n He smiled and walked into the crowd of the Navy, Army, Marine, and Space Force uniforms walking towards the park.\u00a0 A quick scan of the assembly picked out the details of over fifty State Guard uniforms.\u00a0 Some added or changed elements to the National uniform like his uniform, while others used a simple patch or medallion to proclaim their home State.\u00a0 A very few cybers sat on other shoulders as well, and Jack made a point to make eye contact with them.\u00a0 They all walked down Liberty Street, Americans despite their States of origin, and Jack looked up at the twin Freedom Towers in amazement.\u00a0 He\u2019d never seen them like this before, never felt their presence hit home like this.\u00a0 The lights on the sides of the buildings blinked in an easy pattern to read after all these years, telling everyone in sight that they were welcome home.<\/p>\n His throat constricted and he brought a hand up to pull his collar away.\u00a0 He cleared his throat to get the lump out of it, pulled in a long breath, and let it out to steady himself.\u00a0 He saw Betty looking at him and smiled, telling her he was all good.<\/p>\n She placed a hand on his shoulder, letting him know she wasn\u2019t fooled but that she would let him keep his fa\u00e7ade.<\/p>\n He nodded in thanks as the part of the crowd they walked with began to pass through the Patriot Arch.\u00a0 They stepped through one at a time, and as each one entered, someone met them, hugging or clapping them on the backs.\u00a0 Some shared kisses strong enough to blow socks off, others the wrenching hugs and fists of best friends or brothers accustomed to rough play.\u00a0 A dog that had to be from some German Shepard mix stepped through, only to be pulled off all four feet by a beautiful Great Dane.\u00a0 As they yipped and played, Jack had to admit that the soldier had good taste in women.<\/p>\n He sighed, wondering who his<\/em> guide would be.\u00a0 His family on Earth was long gone, his friends in town either dead or in the service.\u00a0 None of his friends, Cowboy or otherwise, had come hone yet, so no one he knew would be here to welcome him.\u00a0 It was just him and Betty and probably some hired flunky he didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 He looked at her in trepidation and she met his gaze with that special encouraging one she used when he really needed it.\u00a0 She nodded forward.<\/p>\n He shifted his head to the side, not certain he was ready to see a stranger.\u00a0 She patted his shoulder and nodded forward.\u00a0 He pulled in a deep breath full of trust in her, and walked into Freedom Park, hoping it wouldn\u2019t be as lonely as he knew it would be.<\/p>\n As soon as he passed under the arch, a blonde and a brunette blur rushed him.\u00a0 Normally, he would have been in motion, defending himself from attack, but for some reason his body didn\u2019t move.\u00a0 It just opened his arms as if by instinct and then his mind finally caught up as the two girls barreled into him.<\/p>\n \u201cTaylor!\u00a0 Jen!\u201d he shouted and wrapped his arms around the two girls he\u2019d grown up with in shocked exhilaration.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019re you<\/em> doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re your guides,\u201d Taylor said with a smile, her long blonde hair bouncing in time to the music.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2026\u201d Jack trailed off in shock, unable to complete a sentence with the two beautiful girls in his arms.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2026thought you were on tour<\/em>!\u201d he finally stammered out.<\/p>\n Jennifer aimed a pitying smile at him.\u00a0 \u201cWe are.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNow are you going to follow us?\u201d Taylor asked over Jennifer\u2019s last word, continuing the rapid-fire assault of words those two always used on unsuspecting victims.\u00a0 Or on old friends.<\/p>\n \u201cOr do we have to do this the hard way?\u201d Jennifer asked with a wink.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d Jack said in response to Taylor\u2019s question, then shook his head as Jennifer\u2019s registered.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Ma\u2019am.\u201d\u00a0 He finally paused to consider the questions more carefully, before a wicked smile too over.\u00a0 \u201cUm\u2026what\u2019s the hard<\/em> way again?\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor and Jennifer leaned back, raised their eyebrows and slapped his arms.\u00a0 \u201cDown boy,\u201d they chorused in a dangerous tone, their voices in the perfect harmony they\u2019d always had all their lives.\u00a0 His old pet theory that they were sisters, separated at birth and simply told<\/em> they were cousins, came back to mind with a force that surprised him in more ways than one.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019ams,\u201d he finally spluttered out.<\/p>\n \u201cGood,\u201d they chorused and pulled him away from the arch.<\/p>\n He let them take him with only token resistance, just enough to get them pulling harder.\u00a0 \u201cSo\u2026how did you become my guides?\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor rolled her eyes at him like he was the class idiot.\u00a0 Which come to think of it he\u2019d played well so she had practice there.\u00a0 \u201cThe Wounded Warriors asked for volunteers to welcome each warrior home, silly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor most people, that\u2019s family,\u201d Jennifer noted.<\/p>\n \u201cBut some people get\u2026us,\u201d Taylor said with an impish smile and arms spread out to emphasis her lithe body and short tan sundress.<\/p>\n \u201cLucky me,\u201d Jack whispered as Jennifer talked over him.<\/p>\n \u201cA favorite actor or singer.\u201d\u00a0 Then Jennifer froze as his words registered and she joined Taylor in stepping back and planting her hands on her hips, in her case on shapely ripped blue jeans under a low-cut grey t-shirt that left little to the imagination from his one hundred and eighty-centimeter vantage point.<\/p>\n \u201cOh,\u201d Taylor said in a doubtful tone.<\/p>\n \u201cSo you\u2019re going to be trouble<\/em> today?\u201d Jennifer asked in a dangerous one.<\/p>\n Jack considered his answer for a moment before aiming a Cheshire grin their way.\u00a0 \u201cWhat can I say?\u201d\u00a0 Then he paused as he truly did<\/em> lose the words that he wanted to say.\u00a0 He wanted to joke with them like the old days, but his mind came up blank.<\/p>\n They caught onto his distress and Taylor placed a gentle hand on his arm.\u00a0 \u201cSay you want us to show you around The City.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then take you to the concert,\u201d Jennifer piled on with a gentle pat.<\/p>\n \u201cThe\u2026concert?\u201d\u00a0 Jack blinked and shifted his head to the side, analyzing the music filling the park.\u00a0 The sounds ranged up and down the spectrum from high treble range to low bass, far beyond the hearing of most humans.\u00a0 Far beyond the range of recorded albums on the market.\u00a0 This was a live performance.\u00a0 \u201cAh\u2026I see.\u201d\u00a0 And he finally did.\u00a0 They really were<\/em> here on tour.<\/p>\n Taylor smiled in approval as he finally got it.\u00a0 \u201cThe concert never ends.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest USO performance in history,\u201d Jennifer whispered in a proud tone.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m\u2026impressed,\u201d Jack whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cYou should be,\u201d Taylor answered.<\/p>\n \u201cNow what was it you were going to ask us again?\u201d Jennifer asked with a demanding look.<\/p>\n Jack cleared his throat and gave them his best debonair smile.\u00a0 \u201cOf course.\u00a0 Would the two most beautiful girls in the all the worlds show me around The City?\u201d he asked, spreading his arms out wide.<\/p>\n They jumped into his arms without hesitation and leaned in close.<\/p>\n \u201cWe would love to,\u201d they said in that perfect unison that always left him speechless.<\/p>\n Fireworks exploded overhead and Jack nearly jumped out of his skin.\u00a0 His mind quailed, and a part of him returned to the Hyades Cluster, to the death and screaming and pain of battle.\u00a0 All he wanted to do was find something to hide behind.\u00a0 It must have shown, because Taylor and Jennifer reacted faster than he\u2019d have thought possible.<\/p>\n Jennifer wrapped her arms around him before he could run.\u00a0 \u201cThose fraking idiots!\u201d she snarled and held on as if her life depended on it.\u00a0 Or maybe his.<\/p>\n Taylor spun in his other arm just as fast and reached her hands up to hold his face.\u00a0 She pulled his head down and looked into his eyes with a gaze that demanded his full and undivided attention.\u00a0 He froze, transfixed by the same eyes that had held him so many times back in school.\u00a0 \u201cThe War\u2019s over, Jack.\u00a0 Don\u2019t worry,\u201d she said, barely loud enough for him to hear over the explosions in the air.\u00a0 He could have thrown them both away and he saw in her eyes that she knew it.\u00a0 But she trusted him not to hurt them, and that trust was his undoing.\u00a0 It humbled him.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re here for you,\u201d she continued, her voice calling him back to the present with calm urgency.\u00a0 \u201cWe won\u2019t let you go.\u201d<\/p>\n And they didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 It was a long War.\u00a0 A lot of us didn\u2019t make it out.\u00a0 Many of us that did\u2026well\u2026for a lot of us we really didn\u2019t.\u00a0 Make it out entirely.\u00a0 War\u2019s not pretty, and it\u2019s not[…]↓ Read the rest of 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