Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 We all do battle every day, even though most of us never realize it.\u00a0 Some of us use rifles, pistols or great warships.\u00a0 Some use the natural wits we are born with.\u00a0 We are most dangerous of course when we use every weapon at our disposal.\u00a0 I am alive now because many people in my life taught me how to use all of those weapons to survive.\u00a0 In many ways, the battle of wits is the one I enjoy the most, as the vanquished always have a chance to return and do battle again.<\/p>\n
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Jack hurt.\u00a0 He felt pain in his body from the rough handling he\u2019d taken lately, both from Samantha and the other Cowboys.\u00a0 More than that though, his soul ached.\u00a0 He\u2019d wondered more than once, in his darker times, if he even had one.\u00a0 He\u2019d never felt this ache when he left before, but now, standing in front of his massive Avenger, the realization that he was leaving a piece of himself behind hit him like the proverbial ton of bricks everyone always talked about.<\/p>\n
\u201cJack?\u201d Betty asked from the tarmac next to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah,\u201d Jack answered her unvoiced question.\u00a0 \u201cJust give me a moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s home.\u201d\u00a0 Betty\u2019s voice was kind, reassuring.\u00a0 \u201cShe\u2019s not watching you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She rested a feathery hand on his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack smiled at her.\u00a0 \u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n
She cocked her head to the side and turned towards Charles\u2019 fighter.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s wondering what\u2019s taking you so long,\u201d Betty relayed to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothin\u2019 any more, Chief,\u201d Jack said, trusting Betty to transmit his words.\u00a0 He sucked in a deep breath and smiled.\u00a0 \u201cBetty?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReady,\u201d she said with an answering smile.<\/p>\n
He felt New Earth\u2019s heavy gravity melt away under the power of the Avenger\u2019s grav plating and pulled in a deep breath.\u00a0 The air still felt too much like soup in his lungs, but it was good to feel the kilos melting off him.\u00a0 A quick push of his toes sent him flying up into the air in a shallow arc that allowed him to step onto the long nose of his star fighter.\u00a0 He step down into the cockpit, lowered himself into the pilot\u2019s seat, and chuckled as the canopy lowered down to seal him in.<\/p>\n
He carefully snapped his restraints in place, not wanting to hurt any of his bruises, before nodding to the twenty-centimeter small version of Betty sitting on the console.\u00a0 As usual, the moment the cockpit closed, she reverted to her favorite yellow sundress.\u00a0 Well, to be fair, it was his<\/em> favorite too.\u00a0 It fit her in a way the uniform never<\/em> would.\u00a0 \u201cCowboy Five, ready,\u201d he said after a quick scan of the instrument panels showed that they really were<\/em> ready.<\/p>\n Betty was on the ball as usual.\u00a0 She smiled and crossed her legs, leaning back on the console.\u00a0 She was home, literally, and she relaxed into it fully.<\/p>\n \u201cAll Cowboys,\u201d Charles\u2019 voice came over the comm. system, \u201claunch and maintain overwatch positions over the shuttles.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRoger that,\u201d Jack answered before nodding to Betty.<\/p>\n Betty sat back up straight, crossed her arms with a nod, and Jack felt the last of the kilos melt away as the Avenger\u2019s grav plating removed virtually all gravity from the equation.\u00a0 The barest hint of maneuvering thrusters pushed them away from the ground with ease, and he kept his eyes pealed as they rose up into the air in silence.<\/p>\n Jack looked down on the glistening buildings of Leif Erikson Spacebase with a critical eye.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t entirely clean of course.\u00a0 Litter floated in pools of water, clogging up drains.\u00a0 Tree limbs and leaves lay everywhere, and more than one vehicle huddled against the ground, smashed by a falling limb.\u00a0 Fallen limbs and leaves covered the outskirts of the base, where a veritable forest had grown over the years.\u00a0 They would be cleaning the mess up for a while.<\/p>\n But that was not his concern.<\/p>\n The shuttles floated up into the air, huddling under the protection of the fighters, and Jack felt the faint acceleration as they began pulling up as well.\u00a0 The shuttles and fighters moved up through the atmosphere at a smooth clip, main engines engaging as they left the ground behind.\u00a0 Jack\u2019s Avenger stood up on end, yearning to get out of the soup.<\/p>\n The air brightened as both suns came into view, and then darkened as they approached vacuum and the air became sparse.\u00a0 The Avenger\u2019s engines split away from the hull, giving her better maneuverability.\u00a0 Jack looked around to see the other fighters, whether Avengers or Hellcats, and the shuttles doing the same.\u00a0 Finally out of the last vestiges of atmosphere, the main engines came to full life, and the formation of fighters and shuttles rocketed away from New Earth, making for the Peloran task force in high orbit.<\/p>\n As the formation approached, the engines went silent for a moment before firing forward, slowing them down to match the orbital speed of the massive warships.\u00a0 They passed through a wall of Peloran interceptors, parasite fighters deployed to watch the flanks of the task force.\u00a0 Once through the wall, most of the shuttles broke away from the Cowboys and made way towards the warships they were supposed to supply.\u00a0 Only a single shuttle continued with the Cowboys.<\/p>\n They passed by a bone white destroyer covered in golden runes, and Jack focused on it, trying to read the name buried in there.\u00a0 He frowned as he realized he still couldn\u2019t find it.\u00a0 He grunted in annoyance.\u00a0 He\u2019d even been practicing.\u00a0 But he still just couldn\u2019t read Peloran in the wild.\u00a0 They left the destroyer behind and the massive kilometer-long battleship it escorted grew in front of them.<\/p>\n A final burst of engines brought them around to match course with the Guardian Light<\/em> and the fighters came to a halt relative to the task force command ship.\u00a0 The shuttle pulled ahead and slipped into the large, bone-white landing bay in the rear of the battleship, slowing to a halt before lowering itself to the deck.\u00a0 The new recruits, several Hellcats and a couple Avengers, followed the shuttle in first, leaving the original Cowboys to cover their, in some cases very shapely, rears.\u00a0 Then the veterans flew in on puffs of rocket power, piercing the energy wall covering the landing bay with their long noses.<\/p>\n Jack and Betty\u2019s Avenger slowed down to a soft landing, landing gear taking what little shock there was with ease.\u00a0 Jack breathed a sigh of relief as the canopy opened to let in the Guardian Light\u2019s air.\u00a0 He breathed deeply of the air that just felt right.\u00a0 He unbuckled his restraints and pushed himself gingerly to his feet.\u00a0 It was easy, the gravity just right.<\/p>\n \u201cWell give me pigtails and call me Goldilocks,\u201d he whispered, stepping up out of the cockpit.\u00a0 He looked and saw a full-sized uniform-wearing Betty laughing at him with a wicked glint in her eyes.\u00a0 \u201cNo!\u201d he added, stabbing her with a finger that went through her chest without any resistance.\u00a0 \u201cBad Betty!\u201d\u00a0 She just laughed harder.\u00a0 He raised an eyebrow at her.<\/p>\n She continued to laugh, not mollified in any way by his scolding, and nodded towards the floor.<\/p>\n Jack stifled a snort, a snort would hurt after all, and jumped off the fighter.\u00a0 Betty\u2019s grav plating generated an invisible wave of gravity he surfed down to the deck.\u00a0 He stepped off with an easy gait and turned to see the rest of the pilots climbing out of their fighters.<\/p>\n He moved away from the fighter, looking for Hal.\u00a0 He heard the hum of the holoemitters in his uniform come to life as Betty transferred to it and continued to scan for the ship\u2019s cyber.\u00a0 Finally he saw the Guardian Light\u2019s<\/em> cyber in the distance, walking out from under the giant tree at the end of the landing bay.\u00a0 Jack focused on the cyber, saw the soft edges of his form and the way the air moved around him.\u00a0 It was Hal\u2019s real physical avatar, not a holoprojection.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should meet him well,\u201d Jack whispered to Betty.<\/p>\n \u201cAgreed,\u201d she answered back and cocked her head to the side to signify that she was passing the message on to the other cybers.\u00a0 Every other cyber leaned in to their pilot and whispered to them in unison, and Jack smiled as the pilots turned to look at Hal.\u00a0 Then they allowed their cybers to shoo them into formation.\u00a0 Jack suppressed a chuckle at how easily they allowed themselves to be handled by their better halves, even Charles who took up his position ahead of the Cowboys without hesitation.\u00a0 Any thought of laughing ended when he caught Betty\u2019s look and stepped into formation before it got any more deadly.<\/p>\n Jack cleared his throat, looked at Hal again, and caught a smile.\u00a0 Jack\u2019s eyes narrowed for a moment, then he smiled back with a shrug. \u00a0He looked around to see the shuttle\u2019s ramps lowering, and nodded slowly.\u00a0 He still had a little time.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d like to talk to you about something,\u201d he whispered low enough that even the pilots around him could pretend they hadn\u2019t heard, glancing back to Hal.<\/p>\n Hal\u2019s avatar nodded back, acknowledging that the ship had heard him with ease.<\/p>\n \u201cGuardian Light<\/em>,\u201d Charles said, stepping forward as Hal approached with a waved hand aimed at the Cowboys.\u00a0 \u201cI present to you the United States of America\u2019s Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 112, the Cowboys.\u201d<\/p>\n Hal smiled at the assembled pilots.\u00a0 \u201cYou are well presented.\u00a0 Your base of operation welcomes your return.\u00a0 I look forward to knowing those of you I have never met before.\u201d\u00a0 A holoform flickered into existence next to the avatar.\u00a0 \u201cIf you will please follow me to Cowboy Country,\u201d the holoform asked and waved for the Cowboys to follow.<\/p>\n Jack began to move with them, but stopped when the avatar caught his eyes, giving him a slight shake of the head.\u00a0 Jack nudged Jessie, glancing towards the Cowboys, and Jessie accepted the command with a tilt of his head and a smile.\u00a0 He helped escort the Cowboys after Hal, leaving behind only two other pilots.\u00a0 Jack raised an eyebrow at Charles and Jay, wondering what exactly was going on.\u00a0 They all turned to Hal, waiting for the cyber to tell them.<\/p>\n \u201cAneerin would like you to join him on the observation deck if you are willing for a\u2026planning session,\u201d Hal said in explanation.<\/p>\n Jack looked at Betty in surprise and she smiled back, letting him know she wasn\u2019t concerned.\u00a0 Or surprised.\u00a0 He frowned at her, wishing she\u2019d told him this was going to happen.\u00a0 Her expression took on an innocent look.<\/p>\n \u201cWe would love to,\u201d Charles said to Hal.\u00a0 \u201cCome on boys and girls,\u201d he added and stepped off to follow Hal\u2019s avatar.<\/p>\n Hal and the cowboys stepped onto a lift, the door shut, and Jack felt it accelerate for the kilometer-long run from one end of the battleship to the other.\u00a0 He felt it vibrate slightly as it hit terminal speed of just over 100 kilometers an hour before beginning to decelerate.\u00a0 Jack swallowed and felt his ears pop.\u00a0 Even with complete command of gravity, the Peloran still hadn\u2019t licked that little side effect.\u00a0 The lift slowed to a halt, the doors opened, and they stepped out into one of the largest rooms on the battleship.\u00a0 The clear forward bulkhead showed them star-filled space ahead of the flagship.<\/p>\n Despite the thickness of the clear armor, Jack felt exposed.\u00a0 In his fighter, at least he could dodge.\u00a0 Here, he would be a sitting target if something shot at them.\u00a0 Intellectually, he knew he was safer now than he had been on Leif Erikson Spacebase, but that didn\u2019t stop the inner paranoid from gibbering in terror.\u00a0 Jack stuffed the inner paranoid into a deep, dark hole and smiled as if there was no other place he\u2019d rather be at the moment.<\/p>\n Aneerin, wearing his normal white uniform that blended into the white walls, cleared his throat to get their attention and waved them into the large empty room.\u00a0 \u201cIt is good to see you again,\u201d he said in his calm tone.\u00a0 He turned to face the stars with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cWe shall see battle soon I think, and viewing hyperspace with friends is always preferable to alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack blinked in confusion, looking around to see the other Cowboys doing the same.\u00a0 Aneerin considered them all friends?\u00a0 For the first time Jack wondered how many people Aneerin counted in that column.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d Charles said and cleared his throat.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re leaving now<\/em>?\u00a0 I thought we were planning an exercise with all of the squadrons in the task force.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cWe are entering hyperspace<\/em> now,\u201d he said with a smile.\u00a0 \u201cWe are not leaving<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 He aimed a look at Jack.\u00a0 \u201cWe will I think be here for at least another day or two.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack\u2019s instincts started to tingle, and not just because Aneerin wanted to talk to him.\u00a0 Something was going on here, something he\u2019d not considered, and now his subconscious was trying to alert him to it.<\/p>\n \u201cHal?\u201d Aneerin asked with a smile.<\/p>\n Hal nodded, and then his eyes began to flicker back and forth as he communicated with the other ships in the task force.\u00a0 \u201cWe are ready to jump,\u201d the cyber finally announced.<\/p>\n \u201cJump,\u201d Aneerin ordered.<\/p>\n Jack closed his eyes, a bright flash turned his vision red through his eyelids, and darkness returned.\u00a0 He blinked stars away and peered into the chaotic, twisted rainbow of colors that was hyperspace.\u00a0 Gravity itself flowed and rippled here, viewable by the naked human eye.\u00a0 It was truly beautiful.\u00a0 Jack pulled in a deep breath and nodded.\u00a0 It was almost as beautiful as a morning sun bouncing off a mist-covered lake.\u00a0 Almost.<\/p>\n \u201cPlot a course for the Hyades Cluster,\u201d Aneerin ordered, pulling him out of his momentary lapse.\u00a0 \u201cMaximum depth, maximum speed, and engage,\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEngaging,\u201d Hal answered.<\/p>\n Jack felt the ships go deeper into hyperspace, away from the wall that separated them from normalspace.\u00a0 The multihued colors of hyperspace grew more muted as they moved farther away from normalspace, deeper into the regions were hyperspace acted less like anything humanity naturally lived in.\u00a0 He felt the ship shudder around them as a band of stressed gravity smashed into them.\u00a0 And then they were moving forward into a mass of gravity bands so tight Jack couldn\u2019t imagine how they were moving between them.\u00a0 And more than once the ship shuddered as Hal failed<\/em> to completely avoid them.<\/p>\n Jack licked his lips, forgetting the beauty of a few seconds ago.\u00a0 \u201cI thought we weren\u2019t leaving yet?\u201d he asked, really hoping for some encouragement.<\/p>\n \u201cOh we aren\u2019t,\u201d Aneerin answered in a brisk tone.\u00a0 \u201cWe are simply going deep to avoid Shang scouts.\u00a0 They cannot follow us this deep.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, we did<\/em> lose the couriers from Independence,\u201d Hal supplied.\u00a0 \u201cSo it would seem they can<\/em> now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d Aneerin whispered, bringing a hand up to rub his jaw.\u00a0 \u201cMost unfortunate that revelation is.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded as if deep in thought.\u00a0 \u201cWe will have to go deeper then.\u201d<\/p>\n Hal\u2019s face seemed to tighten.\u00a0 \u201cOf course,\u201d he said without protest though.<\/p>\n Aneerin pulled in a deep breath and set his jaw.\u00a0 \u201cGo ten percent deeper and look out for storms.\u201d<\/p>\n Hal swallowed, placed his hands behind his back, and nodded.\u00a0 The ship dove down further, the intermittent bangs becoming a steady thrum of gravity slamming against the ship.<\/p>\n \u201cIs this safe?\u201d Charles asked, a shade of worry in his voice.<\/p>\n \u201cAbsolutely not,\u201d Aneerin answered, though his tone didn\u2019t reveal even a hint of nerves.<\/p>\n \u201cIf this isn\u2019t safe for a Peloran<\/em> ship, what about the rest of them<\/em>?\u201d Charles asked, waving a hand at the Terran warships in the Guardian Light\u2019s<\/em> wake.<\/p>\n Peloran pulled in a deep breath before answering.\u00a0 \u201cWith all the upgrades we performed on them, they should be able to follow us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShould?\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin smiled.\u00a0 \u201cIt is best to find out if they will break now, before<\/em> we have traveled far, rather than later when we are attempting to break into the Hyades Cluster.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shivered at the idea of testing the new systems like this.<\/p>\n Aneerin nodded towards Hal and eight chairs appeared in the middle of the room.\u00a0 Aneerin and Hal sat down in the ones with their backs to hyperspace and waved for the Cowboys to sit.\u00a0 His face took on a speculative look.\u00a0 \u201cDo you know why we\u2019re here right now?\u201d he asked with a matching smile.<\/p>\n Jack and the others exchanged confused looks as they sat down.\u00a0 He finished with a long look at Betty, who just smiled back at him as if he knew exactly what was going on.\u00a0 He blinked and frowned at her for a second, before shaking his head and returning his gaze to Aneerin.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you mean the metaphysical question of why we exist?\u201d Jack asked with a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cOr why we are at this spot at this moment in time?\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin smiled at him.\u00a0 \u201cI think I understand the first question.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack\u2019s eyebrows rose.\u00a0 \u201cCare to share the secrets?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPerhaps later,\u201d Aneerin answered with an amused wink.<\/p>\n \u201cYou said something about battle,\u201d Charles interjected.<\/p>\n Aneerin nodded towards him.\u00a0 \u201cCorrect.\u00a0 The important question of course is who<\/em> will we fight?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles, Jack, and Jay exchanged confused looks.\u00a0 Their cybers of course just smiled.\u00a0 Jack sighed and rubbed his forehead.\u00a0 They were being tested.\u00a0 He hated tests.\u00a0 He leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs.<\/p>\n Aneerin aimed a raised eyebrow at him.\u00a0 \u201cJack?\u00a0 Can you tell me your interpretation of The War in the Outer Colonies?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack frowned, glanced at a smiling Betty, and rolled his eyes.\u00a0 Reluctantly, he gathered his thoughts, ran his mind over the reports he\u2019d read over the last month, and quickly checked his conclusions again.\u00a0 \u201cYou know we don\u2019t hear much from the O.C.,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI know,\u201d Aneerin answered, with an understanding smile.<\/p>\n Jack grimaced, shook his head, and sighed.\u00a0 \u201cWell, from what I\u2019ve read, there\u2019s a lot of wailing and very little gnashing of teeth going on out there.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin gave him a questioning look, and Jack had the pleasure of actually, for once, catching the older man off guard with something.\u00a0 And that pleasure made him a bit more verbose.<\/p>\n Jack sighed.\u00a0 \u201cNobody has enough ships out there to really push any fight, so they\u2019re doing more sparring over position than anything else,\u201d he explained.\u00a0 \u201cAvoiding big fights if they can.\u00a0 Really, no commander wants to be responsible for losing the war out there, so they\u2019re not trying to win it.\u00a0 They\u2019re waiting for the big fleets near Earth to decide the matter.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin smiled.\u00a0 \u201cGood summation.\u00a0 So they\u2019re irrelevant to The War?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack almost answered in agreement, but something stopped him.\u00a0 He blinked, and looked at Betty with a frown.\u00a0 She gave him a pleased smile.\u00a0 He turned back to Aneerin, a mystified look on his face.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t know why, but they would be important.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cCan you explain that?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shook his head and smiled.\u00a0 \u201cAbsolutely not.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin nodded in approval.\u00a0 \u201cHonesty.\u00a0 And instincts.\u201d\u00a0 He turned to Charles and Jay.\u00a0 \u201cEither of you?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles smiled.\u00a0 \u201cThe Outer Colonies can not influence who wins The War, unless our casualties are so catastrophic that there are<\/em> no winners of course.\u00a0 But they will almost certainly have the numbers to influence the Peace<\/em> that follows.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin gave him a quizzical stare.\u00a0 \u201cSo you assume there will be a peace?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded.\u00a0 \u201cNo war can last forever.\u00a0 Sooner or later, one of us will win and one of us will lose and there will be \u2018peace in our time\u2019 for a time.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin nodded in approval.\u00a0 \u201cYour analysis is in accord with mine.\u00a0 Do you believe the same thing of the Inner Colonies?\u201d<\/p>\n Charles frowned.\u00a0 \u201cMostly, yes, though they are some exceptions that could turn The War.\u201d<\/p>\n Jay cleared his throat to get everyone\u2019s attention.\u00a0 \u201cI have noted a difference in how the Chinese fleets near Earth have fought compared to those in the Colonies,\u201d he rumbled.<\/p>\n Aneerin smiled and nodded for the larger man to continue.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Chinese commanders near Earth thought they could beat us so they tried to destroy our fleets.\u00a0 They failed.\u00a0 The commanders in the Inner Colonies have avoided any major Alliance fleets and focused on easy targets, where they know there is no one to defend.\u201d<\/p>\n Charles nodded in agreement.\u00a0 \u201cThe last report we received of any strike was two weeks ago though.\u00a0 They have been silent since word of our victory here reached them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIndeed,\u201d Aneerin noted in a solemn tone.\u00a0 \u201cSo what do you think they intend now?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack frowned and scratched his neck as an idea came to mind.\u00a0 He examined it against everything he knew, looked at it from all sides in his mind for any hole, and grunted as he could find nothing wrong with it.\u00a0 It felt right.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re coming here,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n Aneerin cocked his head to the side.\u00a0 \u201cWhat makes you say that?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d\u00a0 Then lightning struck and his eyes opened wide at the message from his subconscious finally got through.\u00a0 \u201cWait.\u00a0 Yosemite.\u00a0 They have to repeat it to take our fleets out of action,\u201d he said with more intensity than he meant to.<\/p>\n Aneerin nodded in approval.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 They do.\u00a0 So where?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack frowned and glanced around the observation deck.\u00a0 He caught a shift in Hal\u2019s demeanor and his eyebrows rose.\u00a0 He glanced at Betty, wondering if she\u2019d caught it too.\u00a0 She inclined her head marginally, showing she had.\u00a0 Jack smiled at Aneerin.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I think he\u2019s<\/em> about to tell us.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin smiled.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s cheating, Jack.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack spread his hands out wide.\u00a0 \u201cJust making use of every piece on the field of battle,\u201d he said with a wink.<\/p>\n Aneerin shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cSo now we are at battle with one another?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time we speak, it\u2019s a battle of wits,\u201d Jack said, once again with more intensity than he\u2019d planned.<\/p>\n Aneerin bowed his head.\u00a0 \u201cTouch\u00e9,\u201d he whispered before turning to look Hal.\u00a0 \u201cYou have news?\u201d<\/p>\n Hal nodded.\u00a0 \u201cScout Fleet is detecting movement.\u201d<\/p>\n Aneerin turned back to Jack.\u00a0 \u201cNew Washington?\u201d<\/p>\n Jack considered the Peloran for a moment before answering.\u00a0 It felt right.\u00a0 \u201cIt is<\/em> a good target.\u201d\u00a0 Then the realization hit and he looked out at hyperspace.\u00a0 \u201cAnd that\u2019s<\/em> why we went so deep.\u00a0 They saw us leave.\u00a0 The coast is clear, isn\u2019t it?\u00a0 So they think?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIndeed,\u201d Aneerin answered, approval in his tone.\u00a0 \u201cIndeed.\u201d\u00a0 He turned back to Hal and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cBring us around.\u201d<\/p>\n Hal nodded.\u00a0 \u201cChanging course now.\u201d<\/p>\n The ship groaned as it came around, and Jack could swear he felt it battering its way through the gravitic storm around them with renewed determination.\u00a0 This was going to be a much longer day than he\u2019d planned.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 We all do battle every day, even though most of us never realize it.\u00a0 Some of us use rifles, pistols or great warships.\u00a0 Some use the natural wits we are born with.\u00a0 We are most[…]↓ Read the rest of this 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