If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my life it’s this. The enemy never waits for a convenient time to show up. If you’re not ready for him, expect him to arrive early. If you are ready for him, expect him to arrive whenever he gets around to it. And if he’s a she you can just throw the schedule right out because you’ll never guess it. The point is they get to try to win too. It’s how life works. Never count on having time to prepare for them. They will show up when it is least convenient for you if they are even halfway competent. The Shang were always at least halfway competent.

 

 

Incursion

 

The beach stretched as far as the eye could see and waves washed up the sand in a steady rhythm. A bonfire crackled and girls danced. Jack sat in sand still warm from the day’s sun and enjoyed everything about the perfect day.

“Jack.”

The voice didn’t belong on the beach and he ignored it.

“Jack.”

He was at peace and the voice belonged to a world at war. He ignored it.

“You need to wake up.”

“No I don’t,” he answered and focused on the pretty girls dancing around the fire.

“The Shang are attacking.”

Jack shut his eyes, lowered his head, and let out a long breath. Then he opened them again onto the room with the bed.

Betty stood next to it and looked down at him. “How are you?”

Jack sucked in a long breath and felt his body protest the action. He still hurt everywhere “How long?”

“Two hours.”

Jack groaned. Two hours since the last meal. And he didn’t know how long since the Chinese takeout. A few hours maybe? And how long had he slept before that? He was pretty foggy on time at the moment, but he knew one thing for certain. He had not had enough sleep or food to heal yesterday’s gunfight up. Then what she’d said when he was dreaming hit his forebrain and Jack sat up straight despite the screaming of his body.

“The Shang?”

Betty nodded. “They’re here. All military personnel are being recalled immediately.”

“Frak,” Jack intoned and came to his feet. Then he felt lightheaded and had to slam a hand into the wall to keep from falling over as his stomach growled. The empty pit demanded more energy to continue the healing process. “I need sugar.”

“Check the table,” Betty said as she waved her hand towards the end table. A bowl of inviting candy and a happily bubbling coffee maker covered it.

“That works,” Jack said and stepped over to grab a handful of the candy. The sugar rush hit him like a train and he gasped as he chewed them down. Then he grabbed the coffee pot and drank it straight. The caffeine hit and he felt more instant energy flowing through his veins. It wasn’t going to last long considering how fast his metabolism ran but it was enough to jumpstart him and get him moving. He put the coffee pot back in its cradle, grabbed another handful of candy, and walked over to snatch his uniform from the floor. He slipped into it and began putting his mind on the problem. “Show me.”

“I thought you’d never ask,” Betty returned and the holoemitters on Jack’s uniform hummed. A representation of space around New Earth appeared and he examined the Shang battle line out just beyond The Red Line that denoted the closest point a ship could safely transit into or out of hyperspace. The defenders held inside the line and weapons fire crackled back and forth between the two forces. It only took a quick look to verify that the Shang had brought enough firepower to overwhelm the defenders in a matter of minutes. And that wasn’t right.

“Where’s Second Fleet?” Jack asked in confusion.

“That is Second Fleet,” Betty answered with a wince.

Jack turned to look at her in disbelief. “That’s a battleship and some heavy cruisers. That’s a vanguard …where’s the rest of it?”

Betty winced. “In the new Third Fleet.”

“Frak,” Jack whispered and started seeing where this was going. “And where’s the new Third Fleet?”

“Classified,” Betty said in a tone of voice that showed even she didn’t know.

Jack let out a long breath and shook his head. “Which means, ‘not at Alpha Centauri’ if I’m hearing you right?”

“You’re reading between the lines very well,” Betty answered.

“Well, this just got a lot more fun,” Jack said and took another look at the defenses. They would not hold much longer. And then an idea began to tickle the back of his mind. “Get me Captain Thompson, Admiral Lashley, and Holly.”

Betty crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side. “Thompson’s a little busy at the moment.”

“Tell him Captain Wyatt needs him,” Jack explained and walked out of his room to make his way back towards where he remembered the eating room and the kitchen beyond it resided.

“I don’t know what you have planned,” Betty whispered as her holoform walked alongside him, “but Admiral Lashley’s more busy.”

“I don’t either,” Jack said with a conspiratorial shrug. “Tell him it’s an emergency.”

Betty gave him one of her looks that said she was questioning his sanity. “He already has an emergency to deal with.”

“Tell him I need a warship.” Jack gave her the smile reserved for those of just cause and pure hearts. “And I know he’s got a spare one hanging around.”

“Right.” Betty sighed as they stormed through the room he and Katy had devoured the eggs and meat in and Jack’s nose told him more meat was cooking ahead of him. “And Holly?”

“Ask her if I can borrow her squadron,” Jack said as he pushed through into the kitchen to the welcome sound of sizzling meat. His stomach did a flip at the thought of real food and he had to grab a counter to steady himself. Three sets of eyes stared at him but he only had eyes for the sausage links on the frying pan.

“They’re about to leave orbit to deal with the bad guys,” Betty said in exasperation as he crossed the distance between the door and the frying pan in less than a second.

“Just get her for me,” Jack demanded and grabbed a link out of the pan. It sizzled and sparked and he yelped as the hot grease tried to burn his skin. He blew on the link and his hand as he juggled it into the other hand. And then that one complained. He spent the next several seconds juggling the link back and forth and blowing on it until it stopped trying to get revenge on the man who was about to devour it. Once it had finally given up the fight he tossed it into his mouth and chomped down. Hot grease squirted out and burned the inside of his mouth, but he managed to keep from yelping again. Then he swallowed it without chewing in direct contravention of his mother’s teaching, and felt his stomach explode at the fresh infusion of energy to be burned. Oh, that hurt so good.

“Fine,” Betty whispered in a tone of voice that said it was everything but fine and shook her head. “I’ll see what she says.”

Jack reached for another sausage link but a fast metal spatula intercepted his hand with a stinging whack. He yelped and cradled the wounded hand as the spatula whipped around and stopped so close to his nose he had to cross his eyes to look at it. Then he focused on the bright blue eyes glaring at him over it.

“You mind your manners and sit down,” Julie ordered.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Jack answered without hesitation and moved to sit down at the small kitchen table. He met Malcolm’s eyes with a rueful look before his stomach growled again. One sausage link had just made it aware there was food out there, waiting to be eaten.

Malcolm turned and opened his mouth to say something, but Katy walked in next and made a beeline for the frying pan. She yelped as she snapped up a sausage link, juggled it, and finally gulped it down with another suppressed yelp. Then froze as the quivering spatula froze in front of her face.

“Sit,” Julie growled.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Katy squeaked and did as she was told, taking the seat next Jack.

Finally Ken strode in with lustful eyes aimed at the frying pan but the quivering spatula bopped him on the nose before he could snag a link.

“Did you grow up in a barn?” Julie snapped   “God! Are all of the Cowboys this bad?”

“Naw,” Jack said with a smile and waved Ken over to the table. “Some of us are from Dixie. You should see them tear into a bucket of fried chicken.”

“Hush, you,” Julie ordered as she aimed the spatula at him like a battleship clearing her main guns.

“Yes, Ma’am.” Then Jack turned to Malcolm to change the subject from the spitting and oh-so-eatable sausage links on the stove. “So, you said you had a warship?”

Malcolm smiled and shook his head. “I have a carrier.”

“Okay. What kind?”

“An old Republic,” Malcolm said. “With some fighters. All refitted with Peloran tech.”

Jack nodded slowly. The Republics had been good old ships, but the long march of gravtech had ground them down into retirement decades ago. “How many fighters and what kind?”

“Forty-eight Blackhawks.”

“Blackhawks?” Jack asked with a doubtful look. They had been retired decades ago too.

“Fully upgraded with Peloran tech,” Malcolm emphasized. “They can take down warships in squadron strength.”

“Really?” Jack asked in surprise. Even when they’d been in their prime Blackhawks had never had the firepower to take down warships. “You’ve tested it?”

Malcolm shrugged. “In simulations.”

“Right,” Jack said with a dubious tone. Simulations were never as good are real life. But the Peloran had done a number on his Avengers. Why not the Blackhawks too?

Movement to the side caught Jack’s attention and he turned to see Julie walking over with a serving plate overflowing with hot sausage links. Jack’s mouth instantly began to water and then he saw Alex with another serving plate piled high with scrambled eggs. They barely had time to back away before the three Cowboys began shoveling the eggs and meat into their faces as fast as they could chew. Faster actually as Jack realized when he had to stop to beat himself on the chest a couple times to get a too-big piece of sausage to start following the laws of physics again. Malcolm just slid his chair back and watched as the Cowboys devoured the energy rich food.

Jack slowed down after a minute when his stomach stopped screaming at him. He had enough food down there to start thinking again.

“Betty. Show us the battle,” he ordered and shoveled some eggs onto his plate.

“Okay,” Betty said in his ear and a holofield appeared over the table. New Earth hovered near the top of the table while friendly green blips fought angry red blips at eye level near a solid red sphere that marked the end of any safety in hyperspace. Jack did not like what he was seeing. He recognized those maneuvers and that meant they were running out of time. But he needed fuel to run on and he needed time to get everybody else on board with the idea pulsing in the back of his mind.

“We don’t have time to get to the base,” Jack said and munched down on a link. “Can you bring the Avengers over here? Hover them over the street so we can walk and go?”

“We’re on it,” Betty said and then nodded towards an empty space next to the table.

Holly flickered into existence right there with a “You wanted me?”

“Every waking minute,” Jack answered without missing a step and gave her very best smile.

Holly sighed. She looked like the perfect stereotypical New Japanese schoolgirl, long blonde California hair and bright blue eyes set in an Asian face. And she looked as cute as a button while wearing a perfectly standard white United States Navy uniform. Jack was certain that the Navy had specifically designed its uniforms to be as non-cute as possible, but somehow Holly turned that idea on its head. Through all of that she still managed to give him a look that was all business. “We’re a little too busy right now for your Captain Jack act.”

“I’ve got a plan,” Jack said and stabbed another sausage link. “I’ve got one warship already.”

“Carrier,” Malcolm corrected.

“Whatever. I need more. Your squadron to be specific,” Jack finished with a quick bite of the sausage and the taste nearly sent him to heaven.

Holly shook her head. “Jack, we’re about to go kill every last one of those Shang warships.”

“Actually,” Jack began, speared another link with his fork, and aimed it at Holly, “they’re going to kill you.”

Holly raised her eyebrows at him. “Excuse me?”

“They’re going to kill you,” Jack said and waved a hand towards the ships even now lifting from the surface to join the defense. “And every other ship that goes up there to fight them.”

Holly looked at the display with a doubtful expression. “How do you know?”

Jack pointed at the red dots. “Because those are the same Shang that we faced at Epsilon Reticuli and they have a very smart commander.”

“How do you know?” Holly asked with narrowed eyes.

Jack swallowed a mouthful of eggs and sighed. “Because the feel of their maneuvers matches what I saw at Epsilon Reticuli.”

Holly shook her head again. “They feel the same?”

“That’s what I said,” Jack said as Olivia walked into the kitchen with a careful pace.

Holly actually blinked at him in disbelief. “You want me to tell my captain to disregard the carefully laid plans of the second most important system defense network in the entire Western Alliance because you have a feeling about the guys we’re fighting?”

Jack stabbed another sausage and pointed it at her as Malcolm sprang to his feet. “A bad feeling.”

“God, Jack!” Holly shouted and shook her head. “You are so full of yourself.”

“They’re pulling you into a trap, Holly!” Jack shouted back and slammed one hand on the table hard enough it cracked in protest. “Trust me! I saw this at Epsilon Reticuli!”

Holly sighed and raised her hands in surrender as Olivia sat down with a grateful look towards Malcolm. “Okay. I’ll talk to him. But no promises.”

“That’s all I can ask,” Jack said in a more calm tone. “Just please compare what you see to the records we brought back. You’ll see it too.”

“I’ll look,” Holly said with a nod of her head and her holoform went out of focus to show that her attention was elsewhere.

Then Admiral Lashley flickered into existence next to her. “Captain? You know I’m busy defending a star system right now?”

“Yes, Sir,” Jack said with a sigh as he mentally switched gears to work with someone who was more bureaucrat than warrior. “I’m sorry, but I need a ship.”

Lashley shook his head. “I can’t help you, Captain. It’s impounded. They’d have my career.”

“That’s fine. I don’t need your help.” Then Jack smiled and hoped that Betty had managed to get the last person on the line. “Thompson. Want to take a ship?”

“I’d love to,” Captain Thompson said as his holoform appeared next to Lashley.

Lashley ground his teeth and glared at the new arrival in their conversation. “I can’t approve this, Captain.”

Jack sighed, rubbed his temple, and put the fork down. This was not going to be easy. “The Shang are sucking us into a trap, Sir.”

“What?” Lashley asked in disbelief.

“They aren’t pushing us right now,” Jack said and pointed at the red dots again. “They’re just sitting there, drawing in as many ships as possible. Don’t you see that?”

Lashley frowned for a moment, looking at displays only he could see. Then he looked back to Jack with narrowed eyes. “What do you think it means?”

“That once they think they have enough of us, they’ll spring the trap,” Jack said and sprung his own little trap. “I saw it at Epsilon Reticuli. But we can suck them into our trap instead.”

Lashley leaned back and just stared at Jack for a second. “What trap?”

Jack waited for all the holoforms to focus on him and swallowed. This was going to be the point of no return. If they didn’t agree, things were going to go real bad. “One light carrier, two heavy cruisers, and a squadron of destroyers and frigates supporting them.”

There was dead silence for almost five seconds.

“What part of ‘I can’t help you’ don’t you understand?” Admiral Lashley finally exploded.

Jack pointed at the planet hovering just above the table. Then he pointed at all the red and green dots in the upper part of the display. “They’re sitting on the Red Line, Admiral. They’re trying to trap us. They’re trying to suck us in and kill us. Focus all sensors on that region, compare them to the records we brought back, and see for yourself.”

Lashley just glared at him. “All the sensors?”

Jack shrugged and just happened to wave one hand towards the orbital yard where Los Angeles was docked. “Well we know they aren’t there. We might as well focus our sensors on the threat, right?”

Lashley lowered his head and rubbed his temple. “I see nothing, I know nothing.”

“Exactly. And get the defense ships to fall back,” Jack suggested with his best cajoling tone. “Act like they’re retreating. Like they can’t hold the line. Suck the Shang into the gravity well.”

“I thought they were trying to pull us out of the gravity well,” Lashley said in confusion. “Why would they come in?”

Jack licked his lips and cleared his throat. “They’re Shang, Sir. They know they’re superior to us. They always have. Show them proof they have us on the ropes and they won’t be able to help themselves. They’ll follow us in and complete the kill before we can reinforce.” Then he pointed to a spot in space halfway between the Red Line and the planet. “Get them there, Sir, and we’ll kill every last one of them.”

Lashley studied the display for several seconds before asking the question that Jack knew he had to ask. “What’s there?”

Jack smiled. “In fifteen minutes, Sir, me. And they’ll never see me coming.”

Silence reigned again. And then Holly sighed. “My captain approves of the plan. We’re with you.”

Jack barely refrained from shouting out in triumph as he finally got one of the things he needed to make this whole crazy plan work.

“Fine. I’ll divert the sensors,” Lashley said with a shake of his head. Then he aimed a threatening finger at Jack. “Be there in fifteen minutes, Jack. Fifteen minutes.”

“Yes, Sir,” Jack said as Lashley’ holoform disappeared. Then he turned to Malcolm. “I’m counting on you to get that carrier online.”

Malcolm cleared his throat and looked nervous for the first time since Jack had met the man. “Actually she’s never flown anywhere on her own. I haven’t had time to secure an AI capable of running a ship that large.”

Olivia crossed her arms and just looked at the man. “Why would you want an AI for that?”

“Because it’s a lot easier to create an AI than recruit a cyber,” Malcolm said honestly. “And it’s not like I planned to take her into battle anytime soon.”

Olivia cocked her head to the side and smiled. “Well, I might be able to help you there. I happen to know a cyber looking for a new ship right now.”

Jack turned to Olivia and Thompson’s holofield. “Do you think you can get Los Angeles and that carrier flying?”

“Absolutely,” Olivia answered.

“Yes, Sir,” Thompson added and a chill went down Jack’s spine. He didn’t get “Sirred” very often, especially from someone like Thompson. Thompson nodded to say he meant it and then his holoform faded out.

“See you there,” Olivia said and pointed at the spot in space on his display before turning to leave the room. When Malcolm didn’t immediately follow she stopped and pointed at him. Then she pointed at herself and Malcolm sprang into action.

They left and Jack turned to look at Ken and Katy, wordlessly asking for their approval. He hadn’t asked them if they agreed before just putting his mouth into gear and railroading everybody. He wondered if they would correct him now. They didn’t.

“You’re injured,” Jack said with a nod and came to his feet in a smooth motion that almost didn’t hurt. “You should stay here and heal up.”

“Like Hell,” Ken growled and came to his feet as well. He nearly managed to suppress a grimace of pain while doing it.

“Sorry, Boss, but you aren’t getting rid of us that easy,” Katy added and pushed herself onto her feet. Then she gave him a wan but determined smile.

Jack shook his head at them. He had to give them a chance to get out of this, even if it meant violating one of the cardinal rules he’d been taught. “Stay here and take time to heal. That’s an order.”

Ken shook his head in a bemused way and glanced at Katy. “And here I thought he was smart enough not to make orders he knew would be ignored.”

“He’s pretty dumb sometimes,” Katy added with a chuckle.

Jack rubbed his temple and groaned. “You don’t need to do this.”

“Yes we do,” Ken said with iron determination.

“You’re stuck with us,” Katy said with a shrug. “Learn to deal with it.”

Jack snorted. “I’ve been trying to for years.”

“Just makes you a slow learner,” Katy joked back.

Jack was trying to think of a comeback for that when Betty’s holoform flickered into the middle of the room with a smile. “The Avengers are here. We’re ready to fly.”

“And that’s our cue to leave,” Jack said with a glance towards Julie and Alex. Words came into his mind, things he’d wanted to say for years, but he pushed them away. He couldn’t just say that and leave after all. And promising to return was no promise at all when it came to fighting the Shang. And besides, they deserved better. He forced that line of thought out of his mind and gave them his best smile. “Don’t worry. The Shang’ll never know what hit them.”

“And here I thought you always told them before you opened fire,” Alex returned with a raised eyebrow and crossed arms.

“Well…not always,” Jack answered with a wince. “Just on days when I’m feeling particularly lippy.”

“And today?” Julie asked with a look of uncertainty.

Jack froze for a second and then shook himself back into action. He had to go. Now. And he didn’t have time to think of the right words to say. He didn’t know if there were any right words for this. “I…I don’t know…but I have to go.”

“Then go,” Alex said with her still crossed arms and a too-calm voice.

That froze Jack again. He didn’t want to go. He wanted to stay forever. He never wanted to leave. But he had to. After years of being angry with them for leaving, now it was his turn to walk away. And if the Shang had anything to say about the matter never come back. And nothing could make that better. No words he could think of. Well, no words he could say right now without sounding trite. So he just nodded and turned to walk away.

He motioned for Ken and Katy to follow and they stepped into line behind. It was a silent march through the halls of the building and Jack barely saw any of it. He just knew which way to go thanks to the contacts that relayed Betty’s directions. Finally they stepped out into a massive entrance area and Jack stopped in his tracks. The wide boulevard outside the doors was filled with people looking up at the three massive fighters floating in the air.

“Make us pretty,” Jack ordered under his breath.

“On it,” Betty said and he felt his suit’s holoemitters power up.

He turned to see Ken and Katy’s sunken eyes and slack skin disappearing under holographic faces of their own that belonged on recruiting posters.

“Shiny,” Katy whispered and spread her beautiful hands out with admiration.

“Yup,” Jack said with a smile. “It’s official. We are way too pretty to die now.”

“Speak for yourself, Sparkles,” Ken grumbled. “I’m handsome.”

“That’s fine too,” Jack said and strode towards the doors. “Now let’s do this.”

The people outside moved away from the doors, giving the three Cowboys room to walk into the street, and the telltale sound of cameras clicking came to his ears. Their photos would be hitting the networks in instants, and soon everybody would know they’d come out of this theater. Well, so much for hiding where they’d spent the night now.

Jack looked up at the Avengers floating above them, making the boulevard appear small with their massive bulks.

“Ready?” he asked with more trepidation than he wanted to admit feeling.

“Always,” Katy answered confidently.

“Ditto,” Ken added.

“Wait,” Betty whispered in his ear and an arrow on his contacts suggested that he turn towards the theater. He did in time to see Julie and Alex step out. No. Not Julie and Alex.

The girls who stepped out of the theater wore clothing he’d seen on a thousand screens. They looked nothing like the girls he’d just left in that kitchen. They were stars who belonged on stage and this was their attire. Taylor and Jennifer crossed the sidewalk as the crowd took pictures, stepped in to hug him, and kissed his cheeks in perfect unison. The crowd went wild and Jack’s heart pounded so hard he nearly collapsed right there. Then they stepped back and did the same thing to Ken. Katy came last to another lusty cheer from the crowd, and then T&J stepped back one last time with smiles that said they knew exactly how shiny they were.

“You come back to us, Cowboys,” they said in perfect harmony.

Jack smiled. They were amazing. They were everything he’d ever hoped they would become. And here they were, owning the worlds on a stage made of asphalt with less than minutes to prepare. They were better than amazing. And Jack had no idea what to say. He wanted to take them up in his arms and kiss them thoroughly enough to make the cameras blush. He wanted to profess neverending love. He wanted to stay. But he couldn’t do any of that.

Then Captain Jack smiled his very best smile and tipped the brim of his cowboy hat towards them. His answer was all stage and propaganda, made for the benefit of those who would hear on the networks. T&J had given him an audience larger than he’d ever had, and Captain Jack could not turn his back on something like that. Not when it could be used to help the War effort. “There’s no power in the universe that would keep us away.”

He saw Julie and Alex smiling at him from behind the masks they wore for the public, and Jack gave them one he hoped they would remember. Their slight nods told him they did, and then they glanced upward. They were right. It was time.

Jack turned to Ken and Katy with firm nods. They nodded back and then all three looked up at the Avengers in the air overhead. They flexed their knees, they jumped, and gravitic generators aboard the fighters grasped them in the air. Jack felt the air on his face as they flew up like the Big Blue Boy Scout and Friends. The generators placed them atop their fighters and they stepped down into the cockpits. One part of Jack’s mind knew that’d just made one hell of a propaganda video that would be all over the networks within minutes.

The rest of him sat down and buckled his five-point harness as the canopy came down and the Avenger began to move away on gravplating. The cockpit latched, wonderful canned air pushed the smell of New Earth out of his nose, and the Avenger pulled straight up to face away from the city. Other fighters and ships lifting up from spaceports all around the city filled the sky, and he nodded in approval as the three Avengers joined them.

Then the main engines came to life, acceleration pushed Jack back into his seat, and the air brightened as they burned up through the lower atmosphere’s interference. The sunslight of the Alpha Centauri trinary star system assaulted his eyes as they gained altitude, and then it darkened as the air began to thin until it went pitch black all around them. That revealed the stars and Jack’s eyes scanned for the familiar constellations. Alpha Centauri was near enough to Earth that most of the constellations still looked right, but some were a bit odd. And of course he’d grown up only seeing the constellations of the northern sky where constellations like the Southern Pleiades were unknown. He smiled as he looked at those stars for a moment, and then his eyes turned to see the light reflecting off New Earth.

It was a beautiful planet from this far up. Too bad it smelled so bad. And that gravity was just too much. And it was too hot. Jack wondered how the people lived there. Well, he wasn’t going to have to worry about that anymore. He was off to War again.

Jack pulled his eyes down to the console where a twenty-centimeter tall Betty sat with a smile and his favorite yellow sundress. She looked good like that. She watched him with an attentive gaze and he let out a long breath. It was time. “Set a beam for Hollywood.”

Betty nodded and the Avenger swung around to aim for the higher orbitals where Hollywood’s squadron awaited them. “Course set and locked in.”

And then it was time to sit back and relax as they boosted away from New Earth and towards the battle to come. They had some Shang to kill.

No one can fight forever. Everyone has to take a break, a time to rest and heal. Sometimes it is merely physical. But many wounds are mental and emotional, and those can hurt longer and harder than any physical pain. We need to give ourselves time to heal. Sometimes old friends can help with that. Sometimes they open wounds we thought were long closed. Real friends are worth it.

 

 

Reprieve

 

Jack opened his eyes and didn’t recognize the room around him. It was early morning. The oh dark thirty kind of early morning where the only people awake were those with ill intent or those guarding against that ill intent. He was in a bedroom. Or maybe a dressing room. Nobody would ever buy a bed this hard and uncomfortable for their home on purpose. A screen on one wall showed news coverage of a suspected gang war in the streets. The talking heads had no idea what was going on. Jack wished them luck figuring it out.

Then the smell of Chinese food hit his nose and Jack’s stomach growled like a volcano ready to blow. He rolled off the bed in a swift, smooth motion and stepped over to the table where ten steaming paper boxes full of aromatic food waited. He tore them open and his stomach nearly did a flip as it recognized the food in front of it. The chicken wings went first as Jack grabbed them in shaky hands and tore the meat off the bones with his teeth. Stars exploded behind his eyes as the food hit his stomach like a bomb.

He sat down hard on the chair he belatedly realized was there and closed his eyes against the pain that was oh so good. He needed food so much it hurt. The wave of pain faded away and he opened his eyes to examine the other boxes for a few seconds. Then he grabbed a fork and tore into the general’s chicken, the sweet and sour chicken, and the spicy chicken one after the other. They went down quick and he felt his starving body converting the food to fuel it could use. He paused as the last of the spicy chicken went down and looked around again. Egg rolls. He smiled and wolfed them down next. There was no meat in them, but they were good filler and tasted good. Then he demolished three boxes of beef, ignoring the cooked and limp vegetables in them.

“Whoa,” a voice said from behind him and Jack turned to see Julie sitting on the bed. Jack’s mouth fell open as the lingering hunger in his belly just melted away at that sight.

Julie leaned forward on her knees, feet splayed out behind her. Long blonde hair lat flat and tangled on one side, and drool ran down her chin. She blinked sleep out of her eyes and a knee-length nightshirt hung off one shoulder while the other shoulder bunched up against her neck. He hadn’t seen her looking so unglamorously messy in over ten years. She was beautiful. All he could do was stare.

“What?” she asked and looked around.

He just kept on staring.

She looked down at the long shirt riding halfway up her legs and blushed. One hand flashed down to pull the shirt down while the other pulled the shoulder up, and the shirt stretched under her twin assault to reveal pretty much every one of her very nice curves. “Don’t look at me like that!” she shouted.

He just kept on staring.

She squirmed under his gaze, and then threw herself into a roll that revealed almost every last centimeter of her long legs before she disappeared behind the bed. She remained still for several seconds. He didn’t move. Her head finally rose over the bedside, hair sticking out in every direction. “Would you stop looking at me like that?” she asked plaintively.

“Why?” Jack asked and just kept staring.

The shoulder of the rebellious shirt fell down again as she finally met his gaze. “Because…I just woke up,” she whispered. “I’m…I’m…”

“You’re beautiful,” Jack whispered and every square centimeter of skin the shirt revealed turned bright red. She ducked back behind the bed and the sound of fingers running through hair filled the room.

Then she looked back up over the bed, her hair was only slightly less messy than before. But her eyes froze on his chest. “Whoa.” Her voice was soft and full of everything that had ever made him love her. Tenderness, amazement, and just a hint of the strength he remembered in there.

He looked down and realized he wasn’t wearing a shirt. He wasn’t wearing pants either. All he wore in fact were some exercise shorts and a mass of bandages covering far more of his body than he was entirely happy with. He’d taken a serious beating the day before. Had it really been that long ago? He followed her gaze to the angry red welts peeking out from under one of the bandages that had fallen off. He touched it and felt the heat. It was still the night after the battle. His body was still busy regenerating the damaged tissues.

“Is it…is that normal?” Julie asked and came to her feet. The nightshirt fell off her shoulder again as she walked around the bed.

Jack tore his eyes away from her and let out a long breath. “Every time I get shot it is.”

Julie stepped up to him, looked him in the eyes, and placed one hand on his chest. It burned hotter against his skin than the angry welts and he closed his eyes. She traced the edges of the bandages with an electric finger and blood pounded through Jack’s mind. “They had guns. Why?”

Jack licked his lips. “They didn’t have guns,” he said in an attempt to take his mind off everything she made him want to do right then. “Just really bad Chinese knockoffs.”

Julie’s eyes narrowed, her mouth pursed, and she pulled her hand away from his chest. Then she set her jaw and punched him, hard, in the shoulder that was miraculously free of bandages.

Jack gasped at the strength in her farm girl muscles and tears filled his eyes.

“They shot you!” Julie shouted and punched him again. Then she glared into his eyes. “I treated every wound! So don’t give me that bull about puny weapons! You almost died!”

She hit him again and Jack realized that she wasn’t going to stop. Seeing him half dead had obviously been more traumatizing to her than being half dead had been for him. She was apoplectic that he could be minimizing the threat. She was going to keep hitting him, and that hurt, so he tried to think of some way to calm her down. But he knew from long experience that it was easier said than done.

Jack reached out to enfold her in his arms and pulled her in close. She resisted him, fists balling hard into his chest. Her hot breath tickled his chest and she pushed against him. It was like a mouse trying to push a cat away. She squirmed and pushed, but he held on tight. She demanded that he let her go. She questioned his parentage. She strained with all her might, but he held her tight against his body.

Julie finally stopped struggling and rested her face against his chest. He felt her eyelashes brush him and knew she had closed her eyes. She remained still for several seconds, sucking deep breaths in and letting them back out again. He felt the cool air pulling on his skin, followed by the hot air from her lungs pushing him back. Her hands relaxed and then balled up again, fingers moving back and forth across his chest.

The smell of strawberries drifted up to his nose. Something warm and wet ran down his chest. Julie sniffed and pulled her hands in tight. Her breathing grew ragged, and she pulled in a long desperate breath. Then she let it out in something that was almost a sob. “Don’t you ever…do that…to me…again,” she half-sobbed into his chest.

That got him. She was a real firecracker. She could make sailors blush in more languages than Jack could count. But hearing her cry was more than he could take. It had been when he didn’t know why she cried. It had been worse once she trusted him enough to tell him. He’d felt as helpless as her at first. He hated that feeling. He hated anyone that made her feel that way. And now he was the one doing it.

Jack closed his eyes, brought one hand up to her neck, dropped the other to her waist, and cradled her. “I’m here, Jewls,” he whispered into her ear, tears running down his face to mix with hers. “I’m here.”

They stayed there for an eternity, crying softly into each other’s arms until they regained their composure. Julie finally pushed against his chest and leaned back to give him a long and hard look. Then her hand reached up, snaked around his neck, and pulled him towards her. He tasted strawberries on her lips for a split second. A second. Two seconds. The kiss ran into eternity and a small part of his brain screamed that he needed to breathe. It was a very small part and he ignored it completely.

The door opened “Well, that’s finally…” a voice began, and those three words were more than enough for Jack to recognize the owner. “Julie!” Alex shouted in an outraged tone.

Julie’s eyes went wide and she pulled away from Jack in a flash. “Nothing happened!” she said to her cousin in a rushed tone. “We didn’t do anything!”

Jack turned to see Alex standing in the doorway. She was everything Julie wasn’t in that moment. Tall and elegant, long brown hair perfectly styled. The blue jeans could have been painted on, while the western shirt hung loose. She was amazing, and she gave Julie a very pointed look.

“I don’t know,” Alex said in a doubtful tone. “That looked an awful lot like something right there.”

Julie’s skin blushed bright red again. “We…just woke up,” She whispered.

Alex played her gaze across the debris that was left of his meal.

“I…just woke up,” Julie corrected.

“I see,” Alex said and aimed her raised eyebrow at Jack.

Jack shrugged. “I was…hungry. When I smelled the Chinese…well…” He waved at the destroyed containers and shook his head with a rueful look. “I never thought I’d be so hungry I’d miss a beautiful girl in my bed,” he said with a self-deprecating chuckle. Julie blushed again and moved back to the other side of the bed, looking for something to hide behind.

Alex just shook her head.

Jack’s stomach growled.

Alex nodded and strode over to pull another chair up to his. She sat down next to him and began to study his chest. Then she raised one hand and electric fingers began to remove bandages to uncover more angry welts that had been open wounds mere hours ago.

“So this is what it’s like for you?” Alex asked.

“Yes.”

Alex shook her head. “You were half dead when you stumbled in…now…”

“Now I’m just half starved,” Jack completed with a chuckle.

Alex nodded and ran the hand up to his shoulder. It left a path of electric fire in its wake. “Do they leave scars?”

“No, I’ll never get another scar.” Jack ran his finger over a long white scar on his lower abdomen. He’d gotten it as a teenager when they’d snuck into an after hours pool party and he’d snagged the fence. “But that will never go away. I’ll never age another day until the day I die.”

“Are you really still that boy?” Julie asked as she scrambled back onto the bed to look at them.

“No,” Jack answered with a smile aimed at her. “I’m better now.”

Julie snorted and rolled her eyes.

“Still full of yourself, I see,” Alex said with a shake of her head.

“I prefer to think of it as confidence.”

“Of course you do,” Julie whispered.

“Is that why you keep bringing other women to see us?” Alex asked.

Jack blinked at the shift in conversation. And then he remembered the reason he was there. He came to his feet in a smooth move and looked around for his uniform. “Where’s Olivia?”

Alex smiled. “She’s resting. It’ll take her a while to heal though, so I tucked her in for a long nap.”

“We need to go.”

“We thought you might say that,” Julie said with a smile of her own. “So we hid your uniform.”

“This isn’t a game.”

“Of course it isn’t,” Alex said.

“You don’t know who we’re dealing with.”

“You mean the Hurst family and their friends?” Julie asked.

Jack frowned in confusion. “How…do you know?”

“Please,” Alex said with a shake of her head. “You think some random stranger directed you to our back door by…what…chance?”

Jack’s mouth hung open as she suggested the impossible.

“Jack, Jack, Jack,” Julie said with a good-natured sigh. “You really are slow today, aren’t you?”

“He just got shot. A lot of times,” Alex said with a shrug. “And then you seduced him.”

“I did not!” Julie protested.

“Please.” Alex rolled her eyes. “Next you’ll tell me you weren’t about to jump him.”

“I wasn’t! We were just…talking…and…um…” Julie trailed off as she looked for something to say.

Alex raised her eyebrow at Julie again.

Julie blushed again, but then sucked in a deep breath and struck a determined pose that made her look even more amazing. “I didn’t start anything! He did!”

“Wait,” Jack finally said as his brain caught up to their argument, and the two girls turned from arguing with each other to look at him. “You…You’re involved?”

“Of course,” Alex said with another roll of her eyes.

“Charles contacted us a year ago,” Julie added with a smile.

“There was a friend he said needed some help,” Alex clarified.

Jack blinked. “The man…in the suit?”

Julie smiled and held her hand out, palm up. Alex frowned but pulled a bill out of a pocket and laid it on Julie’s hand. “She bet that you’d need one more question,” Julie explained with a pleased smile and slipped the bill inside her nightshirt.

Jack scowled at her. “I’m so happy to fund your gambling habits, but we need to go.”

Julie shook her head. “Nope. Not gonna happen.”

Jack smiled at her. “You healed me. I’m better now. So you can’t stop me from leaving.”

Alex smiled and proved him wrong. Her lips tasted like peppermint, and that was just not fair. But two people could play that game if they wanted to. Jack wrapped an arm around her waist, pulled her in close, and gave her a serious kissing right back. Her body melted into him for a second that went on for eternity before she began to push him. He didn’t let go. Then she dug a nail into one of the welts and he released her with a gasp of pain.

“Stop that,” she ordered in a voice of iron.

“What?” Jack returned in protest. “You started it!”

Alex crossed her arms and stepped back to give him a solid look at her stubborn expression. “Are you here to stay?”

“What?” Jack asked as he brain tried to catch up with whatever she was talking about.

“You still don’t understand,” Alex said and turned away with a disappointed shake of her head.

“What are you talking about?” Jack asked again.

“We’re not a one-night stand.”

“What?” Jack shook his head to clear it. Alex wasn’t making any sense. “You…never…”

Alex shook her head again and let out a long breath. “Look. We’ll always be here for you. But not that way…you left us.”

“What?” Jack almost shouted. He just looked at Alex in disbelief as the adrenalin of yesterday began to pump through his limbs and brain again. He’d been shot he didn’t know how many times, and now this. Now she was accusing him of leaving. A distant part of his mind told him to shut up but it was oh so distant, Alex was right there in front of him and he could finally say what he’d wanted to for so long. “You boarded that bus! I stayed! I never stopped waiting for you! ”

“And yet here we are. On Alpha Centauri.” Alex shrugged. “I guess you finally left.”

“After the Shang burned it all! What was I supposed to do? Wait in the ruins?”

“You were supposed to come with!” Julie shouted and Jack turned to see tears in her eyes. “But you didn’t. Why?”

Jack had to lower his eyes. He just couldn’t meet them. But he couldn’t admit he’d been wrong either. “Because Nashville was your dream.”

Alex snorted and crossed her arms at him. “We haven’t been in Nashville for years. Try again.”

Jack sighed. “Minnesota was home. My dream. I wanted to grow old with you. There.”

“You can’t grow old,” Alex said with a shake of her head.

“I didn’t know that back then!” Jack shouted back. “This!” He shook his hand like he was trying to tear it off. “This stinking immortality was never my plan! Fighting this fraking war was never my plan! Getting ambushed on Alpha Centauri was never part of any of my plans!” He stepped up to Alex and placed a finger in the hollow of her chest. “You were the only worthwhile plan I ever made in my life. And look how well that turned out.”

“Why didn’t you call us?” Julie asked in a quiet voice. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Because you never called me.” Jack let out a long breath.

Julie looked at him in disbelief. “Haven’t you ever listened to our songs?”

“Of course I have!” Jack returned in shock. “I own all your albums. Everything you’ve released!” Then he laughed. “And a lot of stuff you haven’t.” He ran his fingers through his hair and laughed again. “I’m your biggest fan.” His voice broke on the last word and he looked down. He didn’t want to be their biggest fan. He never had.

“And you’ve never really listened to them?” Alex asked with a shake of her head.

Jack rubbed his temple and sighed. He just couldn’t fool them. He only had two choices now. Remain silent or say the truth. As a boy he’d been taught that the truth would set him free, but that didn’t mean it was easy. Or painless. He finally cleared his throat and looked back and forth between them. “If I’d asked you to come back home?” he tried to finish the question but it locked up in his throat.

“Yes,” Julie answered the half finished question without pausing to think.

Alex remained silent, considering the question far more carefully. “We would have found a way,” she said after a few seconds.

He was right. It was the one thing he’d feared. They would have given up everything to be with him. And he would have given up almost anything to be with them. Jack let out a long breath and smiled. He stepped away from them with the best casual motion he could manage at the moment. “And that’s why I never called.”

“What?” Julie asked in confusion.

“I never could have lived with myself if you’d done that.”

Julie frowned. “You’re not making any sense.”

Jack smiled. Of course he wasn’t making any sense. Not to her. She thought with her heart first. It was one of the things he loved about her.

Alex pursed her lips and Jack saw the gears turning in her mind. She was getting it. She could see the logic. It was one of the things he loved about her.

“You were born to sing. You’re the best thing I’ve ever seen.” Jack paused, ran his fingers through his hair again, and tried to aim a wry smile at them. “I saw that from day one. And then so did everybody else. I couldn’t ask you to come back after that. This is what you were born to do!”

He met their gazes and saw understanding in them. Understanding and disagreement. And then they stepped forward, wrapped their arms around him, and buried their heads into his shoulders. “You really are an idiot,” Alex whispered.

Jack usually would have protested that. But he was hungry again. And he was tired. He lowered his head and the smell of their hair filled his nostrils as memories filled his mind. The smells of forests at night. The sounds of water lapping against a beach. The sight of full moons reflecting off still lakes. The warmth of bonfires on cool autumn nights. The feel of ample hips under wandering hands.

He stood in the middle of a room with his arms wrapped around the two girls that had meant more to him than anyone else in all the worlds and found himself lost in memories he wished could have gone on forever.

Some confrontations are good. Some a bad. Some make life better when we get through. Some make life worse. I’ve had good luck with most of mine. And I’ve made some seriously stupid mistakes in others. One or two I’d even take back if I had the chance. But we don’t get that chance. So I remember the cost of doing it wrong, in hopes that I can find the right way to do things in the future. Because we make our lives out of the ways in which we handle all the little challenges in life.

 

 

Confrontation

 

Captain Wyatt leaned forward in her chair and placed both hands on the admiral’s desk. There was not an ounce of compromise or reticence in her demeanor and Jack admired that. He admired it a lot in fact. She was good. She was strong. She was exactly what they needed if they were going to win The War. He just wished more people understood that.

“I did what I had to do,” Wyatt said without an ounce of contrition. Or weakness.

Lashley nodded in approval. “You realize there will be repercussions?”

“The record will prove me right,” Wyatt said.

Lashley laughed and shook his head. “Which one? The record we already have, or the self-serving one you’ve obviously brought with you?”

Wyatt’s cheek twitched but she maintained her composure. “I bring nothing but the truth with me.

Lashley sighed and leaned back into his plush chair. “I don’t doubt that, but the truth is not always welcome. Or accepted.”

“I see.” Wyatt echoed Lashley’s action, and the external relaxation of the meeting sent Jack’s subconscious worrying into overdrive. “So what is welcome?”

Lashley sucked in a long breath and reached onto his desk to play with a model spaceship on it. Nearly every major fighter and bomber of the last fifty years hovered over that desk, but the one in his hands was possibly the most powerful of them all. It certainly carried more brute firepower than his Avenger, but Jack knew he could take one in a fight. They were pretty dumb and slow compared to his girls.

“What do you know about the Marauder program?” Lashley asked and held the bomber up for Wyatt to see clearly.

“They’re the best small warship killer we have,” Wyatt said without hesitation.

Jack opened his mouth to protest, but Betty placed a hand on his shoulder that told him to remain silent. He sighed and accepted her request.

“How valuable do you think they are right now?” Lashley asked.

Wyatt frowned and looked towards Jack. Jack shrugged, having no clue what Lashley was getting at. She turned back to Lashley. “Given what circumstances?”

The admiral frowned. “Given the losses we took at Fort Wichita, New Washington, and Epsilon Reticuli. Given the news filtering in from the outer colonies.”

“What news?” Jack asked under his breath.

Betty’s twenty-centimeter form flickered on his shoulder and he glanced at her. “Colonial Fleet has taken heavy losses,” she whispered in his ear. “Production can’t keep up.”

“Is Third Fleet confirmed destroyed?” Wyatt said, grabbing Jack’s attention again.

Lashley shook his head. “It’s confirmed missing. Aneerin stopped by three days ago to update us. He couldn’t find enough wreckage to account for the entire fleet. We don’t know what happened, but we are assuming that Los Angeles is the last surviving ship of Third Fleet.”

“What about the British medical frigate and her destroyers?” Jack asked.

Lashley’s cheek twitched and Jack would have paid good money to find out why. But the man just shook his head. “They’ve already returned to Earth for a heroes’ welcome.”

Wyatt pursed her lips. “While we are here at Alpha Centauri?”

“While you are here at Alpha Centauri,” Lashley said with a nod.

“So Third Fleet is gone.” She licked her lips in thought. “What about the Ghost Fleets?”

Lashley gave her a half smile. “The last ready reserve ship was returned to active duty a month ago.”

Jack winced at that. Even he’d heard about the scandals with the Ghost Fleet ready reserve. People had literally lost jobs over the forged documents claiming they were ready to set sail at any time. And it was hard to lose a government job.

“I see,” Wyatt said and shook her head. “What about the unready reserves?”

“There’s actually some bright news there,” Lashley said. “Admiral Aneerin delivered a dozen more Shang fabricators to Ghost Fleet HQ a week ago. They should start tearing through the boneyards a lot faster now.”

Boneyards. Jack winced again. They were very carefully not talking about the factories that should be producing new ships. Yosemite Station had been the single largest factory in Terran space the day The War started. Losing it had been a deathblow to America’s industrial output, and it hadn’t done anything good for the rest of the Western Alliance either. And the first Battles of Alpha Centauri had smashed far more of the industrial might in that system than anybody wanted to admit. The two most powerful Pre-War industrial centers in Terran space were effectively gone. And now they were reduced to pulling retired ships out of boneyards. It was a losing proposition no matter how you couched the words.

Wyatt just shook her head. “Those are not enough to replace our losses,” she said and Lashley nodded. Wyatt sighed. “The Joint Chiefs have probably already started discussing cutting our squadron size so we can keep more squadrons in action and using Marauders to fill out our combat power.”

The admiral laughed. “We just received official notice of their intention to consider those actions this morning. They are ‘welcoming any input as to the advisability of such an option.’”

Wyatt snorted. “So they are covering their posteriors by volunteering you to approve the idea so they can say they were just following your advice?”

“Exactly,” Lashley said and shook his head. “The problem of course is the number of Marauders we have in service right now. We don’t have enough right now so we must ramp up production well beyond current levels.”

“Agreed.”

“You will be happy I’m sure to learn that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania graciously offered to devote several factories to produce more Marauders. All they ask in return is a new flagship to modernize the command and control of their Star Fleet.” Lashley’s mouth twitched with distaste. “And since they have heard that we are about to cashier a certain naval captain for cowardice in the face of the enemy…”

Wyatt’s jaw clenched at the last sentence and Jack almost jumped to her defense. Only Betty’s hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“I see,” Wyatt said very slowly, refusing to allow Lashley to see her lose her composure. “So what does the Navy intend to do?”

Lashley shrugged. “You said it yourself. We need the Marauders.”

Wyatt let out a long breath. “And Charles’ family is willing to hold them back if you don’t play ball.”

“They have never said that,” Lashley said. Then he shrugged and looked away. “I’m certain they would be offended if anyone suggested that.”

“Sometimes the truth is offensive,” Wyatt said with a voice of steel.

Lashley nodded very slowly. “We awarded your ship and crew a Meritorious Unit Commendation. It was the best we could slide through under the radar. And we got you an honorable discharge.”

Wyatt’s jaw twitched, and Jack saw her hold back the urge to shoot to her feet. She remained sitting through a supreme force of will. “You expect me to surrender my rank and ship so easily?”

Lashley sighed. “You can always refuse to accept.” Then he shook his head. “But this is the best we can offer right now.”

“You mean it’s the best you can offer without committing career suicide?” Wyatt charged.

Admiral Lashley leaned back and sucked in a long breath. “There is a saying about the tallest nails getting the hammer. Our political masters do not value those who stand too tall and do not long abide them. Take the offer, captain, or they will break you.”

Wyatt pursed her lips again. “What word is there from Texas?”

Lashley snorted. “Texas said they like your moxy. Very privately. Their official stance is that this is an internal issue of the United States Navy and they want no part of the fight.”

“The Hursts got to them,” Wyatt said and shook her head. “Gave them a deal they couldn’t refuse.”

Lashley nodded. “That’s what the scuttlebutt says.”

“They’ll regret this,” Jack whispered very slowly and meant every word of it. They had made an enemy in him and sooner or later he would backfire all over them.

“Do not say that too loudly, Captain Jack,” Lashley said with a stern look. “They have friends in many places who would be happy to report you.”

“Are you one of those friends?” Jack asked.

Lashley averted his eyes and Jack knew the man wasn’t. He began to feel sorry for the man then. A little bit. The man knew the orders were wrong but couldn’t think of a way to survive refusing them. And survival was more important to him than principle.

Wyatt caught his attention with a look and Jack saw that she had made the same assessment. Then she turned back to Lashley and spoke. “What do you expect me to do?”

The base commander swallowed long and hard at her direct question. It was obviously a question he didn’t want to answer. “The Admiralty expects you to walk away…and live whatever life you can make out of this.”

Wyatt pursed her lips. “And what about Los Angeles?”

Lashley looked at his computer and pursed his lips. “You, your crew, and all personnel attached to Los Angeles are now relieved of duty.”

“Like Hell!” Wyatt growled.

“Los Angeles will be locked down until a Pennsylvania Star Fleet AI and crew are shipped in to take command,” Lashley continued as if she had not said a word.

“No,” Wyatt said and leaned back in her chair.

Lashley licked his lips and steepled his fingers on his desk. “Captain Wyatt. These orders come from the Joint Chiefs. You have to follow them.”

“Do I?” Wyatt just met his gaze until he looked away and sighed. “I could push for an open court martial. Put all of this out in the open so everyone can see it.”

Lashley nodded slowly. “Yes. You could. But the Hursts will not blink. If no one blinks, the United States Navy will be caught in the middle and nobody will get out of this without major loss of face. And right now we cannot afford that. We have a War to fight. We can’t fight another one at home. Not now. Please. Just….”

“Jack?” Wyatt returned to her feet and looked around Lashley’s office. The very slight twist of her lip betrayed her disappointment.

“Yes, Ma’am?” Jack returned.

“I think we should be leaving now.”

Jack nodded and scanned the office as well. He was disappointed too. He had hoped for much better here. Not expected, but surely he could be allowed to hope, couldn’t he? Well, sometimes hopes were dashed. “Yes, Ma’am.”

“I’m sorry,” Lashley said with a shake of his head. “Just please tell me what you intend to do before you do it.”

“So you can tell your masters?” Jack charged.

Lashley came to his feet with a snarl and slammed both hands on his desk. “I serve the Navy! I need to know what you intend so I can protect the Navy!”

Jack measured the man for a long moment, and then nodded very slowly. The man wouldn’t report them. He simply wouldn’t stand up to those with axes to grind. He supposed he couldn’t entirely blame the man for that. Entirely. Still, he owed the man something for the charge he’d made. “Sorry.”

Lashley let his breath out, shook his head, and sat back down. “I’ve done everything I can. Just…keep me apprised please.”

Jack looked to Wyatt and she gave him a minute shrug. The man hadn’t done everything he could actually. He could see she understood that. But he’d done what he thought he could without risking his career. Once again, Jack couldn’t entirely blame the man. Getting hammered by on high was rarely comfortable.

“We’ll keep in contact,” Jack said and nodded towards Lashley. “We just have some things to think about.”

Lashley nodded and Jack and Wyatt turned as one to leave the office.

It was a short walk back out to the tarmac where the Marines still held their ground. Captain Wyatt strode straight through the Marines with her head held high and took the stairs into her shuttle with practiced ease. Jack stopped outside and frowned, considering for a moment if he should go with her. No. If she needed to talk to someone, Gabbie was there. And Wyatt was a strong woman. She didn’t need a babysitter. And if she did, she didn’t need him seeing her out of sorts.

“Enter.” The voice sound like neither Captain Wyatt nor Olivia.

“Captain Wyatt,” Jack said in trepidation and stepped up into the shuttle. He saw her as he cleared the hatch and nearly stopped. She sat in a chair, head in her hands, and did not look at all like the Captain Wyatt he had seen so often. Neither did she look like the Olivia he had come to know. She looked smaller.

“I don’t understand you,” she said very slowly.

“What’s not to understand?” Jack asked with a wave of his hands. “I’m pretty simple.”

“You took so much joy in calling me Olivia back at Serenity,” she said with a shake of her head. “Now I’m Captain Wyatt, again. Why?”

Jack sighed and looked around the inside of the shuttle. Then he smiled as the answer came to mind. “Because Captain Jack flirts with just about everybody.”

She sighed and gave him The Look and said she didn’t believe him.

Jack sobered, shook his head, and tried again. “I just…you were the perfect captain of a heavy cruiser. In your element. Busting the balls of anybody who tried to shut you down. My…unique chain of command gave me enough freedom to flirt with you just a little bit without messing up your chain of command.”

“And why would you think I wanted to be flirted with?” she asked in exasperation.

Jack smiled and gave her a wink. “Because I’m an excellent judge of character.”

She let out her breath and turned away, but didn’t correct him. “Fine…so why not now?”

Jack sighed again. “Because the last thing I want to do right now is give you any disrespect of any kind.”

“And using my name is disrespectful?” she asked.

“It was,” Jack said and raised his hand to place his finger and thumb a centimeter apart. “Just a little. Just enough to make you laugh. Or smile. Or shake your head. That’s what I was going for. That’s not what I’m going for now.”

She peered at him for a long moment before asking the next question. “So what are you going for now?”

Jack licked his lips. This was getting a lot more serious than he liked his conversations. But she needed it. So he gave it to her. “I’m trying to say that I’m with you. You will have any aid I can give you. I don’t have to worry about a career. The politicos already hate me. Any aid at all. I’m here. Whatever you need.”

She met his gaze long enough to see the truth in his words and then looked away. “Then you should call me Olivia.”

“Are you sure?”

She looked at him again. “No disrespect. No flirting. Just friends.”

Jack managed to suppress the instant reaction of any man slammed into the friend zone and smiled back. Then he let Captain Jack out for another slight twist. “I don’t know if I can handle the no flirting thing, but Olivia does sound better on you.”

Olivia shook her head. “You’re impossible.”

“Some have suggested that is my middle name,” Jack returned with a smile.

Olivia smiled back and sighed. Then she changed the subject. “What do I do now?”

Jack blinked and licked his lips. “What makes you think I know?”

Olivia gave him a sad smile. “You always seem to have answers.”

“They’re my answers,” Jack protested. “You usually don’t agree with them.”

“Try me,” Olivia said. Then she looked around the inside of the shuttle and shrugged helplessly. “My answers don’t seem to be working out well right now.”

Jack turned to see Betty standing nearby and she smiled, telling him he had answers. Then she nodded towards a chair, telling him he should give them. Well, that was just great advice. He had no idea what the answers were and really wished she would tell him. She nodded towards the chair again and Jack let out a long breath before sitting down next to Olivia.

“Five years ago I would have just left,” Jack admitted with a sad shrug. “If they didn’t want me I wouldn’t want to be around them.”

Olivia met his gaze and then turned to glance towards Betty. “And now?”

Jack followed her eyes and Betty just smiled at him. He sighed and nodded. “I made a promise to her two years ago. That once I was done with all this I would travel. See things. Live things. I promised that I would stop being just someone that wanted to kill Shang and find a better life.”

“This is the only life I’ve ever wanted,” Olivia whispered and Jack saw the depths of her loss. The Navy was her life in every way that mattered. He could relate to losing a life.

“The Shang took away my life,” Jack said with a sad smile and then looked at Betty. “She gave me a new one. You just need to find yours.”

Olivia snorted. Or was a sniff? A sniffle? “That easy, huh?”

“Nope,” Jack said and turned back to see her trying to maintain her control. “Nothing easy about it. It’s one of the hardest things in all the worlds actually.“

Olivia shook her head and bit her lip. “This isn’t fair.”

“No it isn’t,” Jack returned with another shake of his head.

“It’s not right,” Olivia added in a voice that suggested she was either on the verge of looking for someone to beat up or to cry on.

“No it isn’t.” Jack looked around the small shuttle and shook his head. He didn’t really want to wager on which way she went. “Would you like to take a walk through the city? Give your head a chance to clear?”

Olivia glared at him with slit eyes. “You think I’m not rational right now?”

Jack swallowed, holding both hands up in a defensive gesture. “I think you’d shoot every member of the Hurst family without an ounce of remorse right now.”

Wyatt laughed. “I’d like that.”

“So yeah. I think you should take some time to cool off. Walk around some. See the sights.” Jack shrugged and looked around the interior of the shuttle again. “The boardwalk’s a lot prettier than this.”

Olivia snorted and shook her head. “I’m not a beach bunny.”

“Give them a break,” Jack said and forced a wry smile onto his face. “Beach bunnies aren’t all bad.”

“Of course you’d say that,” Olivia said with a snort.

“Maybe the theater, then?” Jack held his hand out towards her. “There should be some good shows on right now. This is New Earth you know.”

“I know.” Olivia sighed and shook her head. “But I’ve never had time for Broadway.”

“Then maybe it’s time for you to take a vacation,” Jack cajoled.

Olivia glared at him again. “They aren’t giving me a vacation.”

“Don’t take what they’re giving!” Jack almost shouted in exasperation. “Don’t give them that satisfaction! Make it your own! Make it something better!”

Olivia just listened to his outburst and then nodded very slowly. “Point taken.”

Jack pulled in a deep breath to regain his composure, gave her his best debonair smile, and glanced at his outstretched hand. “Would you like to go for a walk, Ma’am?”

Olivia shook her head but pulled in a long breath. Then she grasped his hand, came to her feet, and leaned forward to whisper in his ear. “I know you have fun with that ridiculous Captain Jack routine of yours, but if you tried to show real passion like that more often, you might find a more lasting relationship.”

“I tried that,” Jack whispered and shook his head. “It didn’t work out so well.”

“Then what’s this?” Olivia asked and Jack frowned.

This was just him trying to keep her from going off the rails. Then he saw where she was looking and followed her eyes to Betty. Oh. That this. Betty had her head cocked to the side as she smiled at him.

And Jack sighed. “She’s an exception that proves the rule.”

“What rule?” Olivia asked with real curiosity in her expression.

Jack shrugged. “The rule that Captain Jack may be fun for a day or two, but he just doesn’t go for long term commitments.”

Olivia snorted. “You know what they say about people who talk about themselves in the third person, right?”

“That we are…fantastic,” Jack said with a self-deprecating smile and stepped towards the hatch. “Shall we allons-y?”

Olivia shook her head with an amused smile and followed him towards the exit. “That is a horribly grammatically incorrect combination of American and French.”

“But anything that makes a lady smile is automatically correct,” Jack riposted and walked out onto the steps.

“And there you go again,” Olivia said with a sigh.

“Yes, Ma’am.”

She might have whispered “Men,” but Jack could pretend he hadn’t heard anything as she took the steps behind with a confidence that looked real good to the Marines waiting outside. They reached the tarmac and Captain Thompson raised one hand and called his men to encircle her. Her reaction was instant and exactly what Jack expected of her.

“No!”

“Ma’am?” Thompson asked in confusion.

“I will not walk around downtown with a hundred armed men around me,” Olivia declared.

“Ah. Of course,” Thompson purposefully misunderstood and quickly pointed out one squad. The squad in question sprang forward to escort her with eager smiles.

Olivia lowered her head and rubbed it in a longsuffering way. “This is New Earth. I don’t need an armed escort to walk the streets.”

“Ma’am,” Thompson said in a disapproving voice.

“Relax,” Jack said with an airy smile. “I’ve got this.”

Thompson raised one very questioning eyebrow at Jack. To which Jack just smiled and looked for the Cowboys standing nearby. His eyes lit on Katy, Jasmine, and Natalie. “Who’s up for some shopping?”

They didn’t miss a beat before stepping forward with enthusiasm.

Jack’s eyes fell on Ken last. “Ken. Didn’t you tell me you had some shopping to do?”

Ken’s eyes flicked back and forth, and every Marine knew it was bald-faced lie. Men did not tell other men that they had shopping to do. Ever. But the Marines knew what Jack was doing, and so did Ken. “Maybe.”

“Then it’s settled,” Jack said in a bright tone. “We’ll all go shopping together.”

“Jack,” Olivia began in protest.

“Or we can handcuff you to the shuttle,” Jack added nonchalantly.

Olivia stared daggers at him and dug her hands into her hips. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“I would, actually,” Jack returned with a serious look. Olivia opened her mouth but Jack shook his head. “And don’t ask for any help. They’ve got my back on this one.”

Her mouth snapped shut and she looked around. The confirmation in the Marines’ eyes deflated her just a bit and Jack smiled again.

“So…we can go to town together…or you can stay right here on base and get stir crazy behind a wall of Marines looking for something to shoot.” Jack turned a questioning gaze towards Captain Thompson to make certain the Marine agreed.

Thompson nodded back.

Olivia sighed but then turned a hard gaze on Jack. “No weapons.”

Jack opened his mouth to protest but she shook her head.

“No. This is Landing City. You know the laws here. We will respect them.”

Jack scowled at her for a long moment before nodding his surrender on the point. “Fine. No weapons.”

Jack reached down and pulled the twin Taurian Arms revolvers from his hips. Their gleaming silver twenty-five centimeter barrels became visible as they left the concealing holofield and he regretfully placed them on the tarmac after making certain their hammers were locked on safe. Ken and Katy echoed his actions with frowns that showed they disliked this as much as he did.

Jasmine and Natalie had more to do. Their robotic avatars could carry a bit more weight than their merely biological counterparts and they had long taken advantage of that fact. They first pulled a pair of heavy machine guns out from under their personal holofields. Then they placed revolvers that matched his on the ground. Next came a belt of grenades. They continued placing weapons on the tarmac until Jack could see enough firepower to overturn a Third World government, to the profound approval of the Marines arrayed around them.

Olivia looked at the carefully arrayed weapons, looked at the two cybernetic intelligences, and then shook her head. Only a single word escaped her lips as she turned to walk away. “Marines.”

Jack waited for a few moments, watching the Marines as their eyes flicked back and forth between each other. He could tell what they were thinking.

“Oorah,” Jack whispered.

“Oorah,” they whispered back.

Jack chuckled at that and turned to follow Olivia into town.