Juggernauts (futuristic, giant war robots)

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 1


It was late evening on the dark wooded plains of some faraway planet, 500 years in the future. 50-foot tall massive robots referred to as Juggernauts strode among the trees along with armored hovercraft and tanks, all seeking the best strategic positions for the battle in progress and occasionally firing missiles, cannon or energy weapons at the enemy.

And yet, this scene took place on a table top. The Juggernauts were three inch tall painted figurines of lead, the trees were twigs with bits of green sponge glued on for leaves, and the plains were a felt-covered map marked out in squares.

Shaun shook the dice in his right hand, enjoying the click-clack sound as they bounced against each other. "Targeting right arm, enemy number three," he announced, and tossed the three dice on the table. Two fives and a six: he pumped his fist in the air once in satisfaction. "Yes! Got it!

Drake smiled and marked off the damage on the game sheet. "Penetration! Roll for internal damage!"

Shaun rolled the dice again and threw. Drake watched a four, five and six pop up. "Internal damage: arm cannon ammo hit, arm blown off! Hot shot!"

"Alright! Let's take her down! Missile barrage, same juggernaut!" Shaun grinned as he picked up the dice once more.

The weekly game was going well. It was looking like the players would have a decisive victory on their hands: a nice windup to the weekend, before three of them returned for college classes. Shaun savored these evenings, not just for the game but for the camaraderie of his three best friends from high school.

There was Drake, age 21, the shortest of them all at 5'4", with a kid's face, sandy blonde hair and a wry grin, who generally hosted the game and ran it as Game Master. He had a dry wit, a keen mind and creativity out the wazoo. Shaun had introduced the Juggernauts game to the group, but Drake brought it to life when he initiated them as members of the Hokliss 34th Armored Company. Drake played the role of all the non-player characters including enemies, command staff and on down to the lowliest tech. He always came up with the most interesting scenarios, from straight-up battles to murder mysteries that would take multiple sessions to resolve.

Then there was Kenny, 22, who had introduced Shaun to the other two. Kenny stood about 5' 8", with dark, curly hair, a perpetual five o'clock shadow, and a bit of a paunch. He was a country boy, and dressed the part in perennial faded blue jeans and T-shirts with graphics on them, Star Wars or superheroes usually. Kenny was an enthusiastic gamer, and had occasionally run games in a magical-medieval setting, but these usually were nothing more than a dungeon crawl with little dramatic development. Fortunately, Kenny was happy to follow with the more interesting game that Drake ran.

Then there was Alissa, age 21, Kenny's girlfriend. The very definition of a tall, willowy blonde, she stood 5'10" with gorgeous hair falling down past her shoulders. She was generally shy, but somehow in the gaming group she came to life. It was as if she found something there better than real life, a game that let her be her true self. In game she was animated, excited, with a fun sense of humor and a kind word for everyone. Kenny had told Shaun that they met when some friends had brought her to the Renaissance fair, where he had been in full costume doing his best to entertain his fellow fair-goers. Somehow his wackiness had brought her out of her shell, and she had joined the gaming group.

Alissa always dressed comfortably, but with style. Shaun had to say she was a sharp looker, and seemed a bit beyond Kenny's league. But for some reason she stuck with him, probably because he had been responsible for this awakening in her.

And of course, there was Shaun himself. Age 22, 6'1", dark hair, clean shaven, more of a city kid, he tended to dress in nice, collared, button-down shirts in plaids or solids, and was good at matching the colors to his slacks. Shaun had been gaming a long time, often as Game Master, but was always happy to let Drake run his game. Shaun was more of a punster than a joker, though every now and then he would come out with something really funny. For now, he turned his attention back to the game.

Alissa grabbed Kenny's arm and jumped up and down. "Yes! We're nailing them!"

Kenny chuckled almost paternally. "Yes, you'll get your shots in, too. No doubt you'll blast'em to kingdom come like you always do."

"You bet I will! That is if Shaun leaves any there for me to attack!"

Shaun laughed. "That's a promise! I do good, but I can't knock them all down by myself! Your Eagle's Claw will get plenty to chew on, don't worry!"

Shaun grinned as he watched Alissa's excitement over the game. When he had introduced the group to the Juggernauts game he had expected Kenny and Drake to dig the format, but getting something Alissa liked was a bonus. A little tweak of the house rules and the assignment of a fast, medium weight, well-equipped Juggernaut for her character had made a huge difference in how she perceived the game and how involved she had become. Shaun suspected that it had also improved her relationship with Kenny; they had been on a rocky road before the new game came up.

The game proceeded as usual. Drake was good at selecting a fair lineup of opponents for the evening, enough to create a challenge but generally allow the players to win. Alissa's Eagle's Claw scored three kills tonight to Shaun's two and Kenny's one. Two of the eight enemy Juggernauts escaped to safety. They wrapped it up a bit after 11:00.

"Well played, Drake! The Hokliss 34th stand proud, the despots shall fall!" Kenny vigorously pumped Drake's arm in a handshake.

"Thanks, Kenny. You all drive safe going home tonight, okay?"

Shaun felt a twinge of regret as they left Drake's house. The other three were now juniors at Clark County Community College, 20 miles away, while Drake had opted to stay at home and go to a tech school learning electronics. Drake's schooling was done, and now he was casting about in vain seeking a job before his electronics training became obsolete.

It was Kenny's car, so Kenny drove with Alissa at shotgun and Shaun in the back. On the way back they chatted about their characters, the pilots of the Juggernauts they had run in the tabletop combat.

"So," speculated Alissa, "do you think Jasmine should get some sort of tattoo commemorating all her battles? Maybe something like a vine, with little buds for each kill?"

"Well," suggested Shaun from the backseat, "she pilots an Eagle's Claw. Maybe it should be feathers instead of buds."

Alissa turned and beamed at him. "Now, that's a cool thought!"

Shaun was smiling back at her when a sudden flash of white light appeared over her shoulder: a bright beacon just on the road ahead of them.

"Kenny, look out!" It was all Shaun could say as his friend swerved, trying to avoid a collision with whatever vehicle was hurtling their way behind the light. Kenny nearly went into the ditch before he was able to brake and pull them to a stop.

"Okay: is everybody alright?" Kenny asked. Shaun and Alissa each grunted their assents as Shaun pulled open the back door.

"What was that thing?" Shaun asked. "It wasn't a semi: was it some smaller truck?"

Whatever it was had also stopped just down the road on the other side, and its lights were shining just as brightly at them now as before. Shaun could hear mechanical noises coming from it as well as a sound like a pneumatic door opening, then closing. Kenny and Alyssa joined him in the light.

"What if someone's hurt?" asked Alyssa. "Maybe that's why they came over the line!"

Shaun nodded. "We should sure check it out. But--"

As they started towards the light, another figure came into view. It appeared to be a man staggering towards them. He was wearing a white jumpsuit with stripes of red and navy blue at various places, looking very much like a uniform. In his left hand he carried something which resembled a curling iron, but in his right hand, pointing at the ground, was a gun. That stopped the trio dead in their tracks.

Then he spoke. "Shaun, Alyssa, Kenny? If that's you, thank God I found you…"

Shaun stepped forward, doing his best to shield Alissa. "Who are you, and what do you want? How do you know us?"

The man sighed in apparent exhaustion. "All will be explained in due time. For now--"

As he was speaking a small, white-hot flash of light struck the roadway right next to him, blasting a pothole in the asphalt. He dropped to his knees and fired the gun in the direction from which the bolt had come. Shaun was barely surprised that the gun released not a bullet, but a similar flash of light.

The man fired twice before another bolt struck him in the shoulder, literally ripping off his right arm and knocking him down. Shaun ran to him, almost in shock at what he had just seen, and rolled him over on his back.

"Oh, my god! What can I do to save you?" he pleaded. The man's eyes fluttered for a moment, unfocused, then settled on Shaun's face. With his left hand he handed the curling iron to Shaun.

"Warn me next time. It might work." Then he slumped over, either unconscious or dead, Shaun couldn't tell.

Two more bolts of light struck asphalt around him, showering him with pieces of the roadway. Shaun found himself on his feet, pistol in hand, blasting back in the direction of the shots as he ran for the car.

"Let's go! Go, go, go!"

Kenny and Alyssa ran for the car, with Shaun hot on their heels. All three jumped in, Kenny gunned it and they swept down the lonely country backroad.

"What the hell, Shaun! What happened back there?" Kenny hollered as he accelerated into the night.

"I don't know! I don't know! But we don't dare stop now; that shooter is probably right on our tail! Just get us home!"

The car sped on in the darkness. Alyssa turned to look over the back seat at Shaun.

"Do you have any idea what's going on? Did we really see a man just get killed?"

Shaun nodded. "Yes, we did. He handed me this; apparently he thought it was important."

He handed the object over the seat to Alyssa. "What is it?" she asked. "A baton, a curling iron, what?"

"I don't know," he admitted, "but somebody died to get it to us. It has to mean something."

There were buttons on the handle of the device. Alyssa pressed the largest button, and tiny lights came on on the upper length of the wand. She pressed the next button, and the lights began flashing.

"Maybe we should be careful with that thing," cautioned Shaun: "For all we know, it's another blaster weapon and you're about to shoot out the windshield."

Alyssa shook her head. "If that was all this was, it wouldn't be so important. Let me try one more thing…"

She pressed the third button on the rod, holding it up and pointed forward just in case. A line of white light like a laser shot out, passing through the windshield with no damage. Directly in front of them there appeared a white explosion which expanded to engulf them before Kenny could react. The white light seemed to penetrate Shaun, tingling all over, blinded for the moment, with a sense of vertigo. It felt like he was floating in air, no longer sitting on the car seat.

And suddenly it was over, but nothing was the same. Shaun was sitting high up, at least fifteen feet above the ground, under a clear dome on top of a very large vehicle, a headset on his head, joysticks hanging in front of his hands and a Heads Up Display popping up on the dome. Outside it was daylight now, but obscured by the fog of smoke from several fires. The landscape appeared to be the ruins of a large city, and he could feel the vehicle lurch as they drove over a mound of debris in front of them. There was a heavy odor like machine oil pervading the air, a constant loud droning sound coming from behind him and his seat was vibrating, all of which suggested that he was in some kind of hovercraft.

Shaun gripped the armrests in a panic. What on Earth was this? It looked, smelled, sounded and felt like he had just been thrown into the world of the Juggernauts game. But how would that be possible?

"Oh, my God! Alissa, what did you do?" Shaun heard Kenny's voice over the headset. Glancing down between his knees he could see his two friends in the front of the vehicle, much closer to the ground, with consoles covered in buttons, switches and dials in front of them.

"I don't know! It was that thing! It did this! Kenny, where are we?"

Suddenly there was another squawk over the headset, and an unknown voice came through. "Is that Alissa, Kenny and Shaun? Are you the Hokliss 34th?"

Shaun and Kenny gasped, tongue-tied. It was Alissa who answered. "Yes! Yes, this is the Hokliss 34th! How do you know us?"

In the background they could hear what sounded like frantic cheering. Then the voice came back on. "We just do know you! It's too complicated to explain this minute, but you have been here before. You are our heroes, and you have returned! Now, get out of there and we will meet you. All else can wait!"

Alissa pressed on. "Hang on! Where are we? How do we get to you?"

"You're in a Viper class hovercraft that was sent out on a recovery mission. We're scrapping the mission to rescue you. You are more valuable than some stolen databoxes. So point your bird north by northwest and come home!"

Shaun felt a strange emotion pass through him. He was beginning to feel a little euphoric. Was this all just a dream? "Hang on a second! Guys, what do you say? If we're really the heroes they think we are, we can do this, can't we? Kill two birds with one stone; get their 'databoxes' and get out, right?"

"No, no, no, no!" came the voice over the radio: "You told us this time you would be green, never really piloted a Juggernaut before! This is a real combat mission! You're not ready!"

"'This time?' You said we've been here before?" Shaun found himself looking over the controls in front of him. They made perfect sense as a weapons control grid. He found himself picturing Luke Skywalker jumping for the first time into the gunnery dome on the Millenium Falcon. He took hold of the mounted joysticks and the HUD display sprang to life. "'Never piloted a Juggernaut before?' Nope, not yet. Lucky us, this isn't a Juggernaut."

Down in front and below, Kenny was clearly getting the hang of driving this thing, and Alissa had taken over the weapons console that looked like Shaun's, only simpler. Alissa looked up at Shaun and nodded. Kenny swerved around another pile of debris and was out on an open flat. "I'm in if you're both in! Control: where do we go?"

Control came back on, more whooping and yelling encouragement in the background. "If you're gonna do this, know that we have four other assets on the ground: two more Vipers, a Helix heavy hover transport and a Mastodon class Particle Projection Cannon carrier tank. They show on your HUD as green for friendly, so don't shoot them! Enemy units show as red boxes; take them out at will. The red star southeast of your position is your goal: escort the Helix there and a platoon will go in, collect the boxes and load them on the transport. Then you all bug out and return home to the green star."

A quick check of the screen showed them approaching a red box. Shaun tilted the joysticks, thumbs on the firing buttons, and the HUD zeroed in on a target just around the bend. Kenny threw the Viper into a curve, zipping towards the target but not in a straight line. Suddenly they were past the ruins of a building on the corner, and there was another hovertank. Shaun didn't hesitate; the HUD flashed, he pressed the buttons and watched a dozen missiles roar overhead from the Viper towards the target. At the same time a brilliant green line of light came out from the side of the Viper, also trained on the enemy tank. The green line ripped along the side of the tank, then the missiles struck. The tank exploded, a huge spinning cylinder breaking free and careening across the open road ahead of them.

"Did you see the laser?" hollered Alissa: "That was me!"

"Bogey down! Way to score first blood!" Control exclaimed. "Now, clear out any other tanks before the Helix comes through!"

Shaun laughed. "Roger, dodger, old codger! Off for another kill! Good piloting, Kenny! They never had a chance to target us!"

Kenny pumped a fist in the air. "That's the idea! Let's keep it up!"

"Just so you know," Control came on, "Your engines get a boost when you need it from a little nitrous oxide. Some of it might leak into the cockpit area. It's also known as laughing gas, so you may feel a little euphoric. We find some solid rock music helps pilots focus through this, so here's some classic hits from your era."

In a moment the cockpit was thrumming to the heavy opening guitar strains of Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger." Shaun whooped his approval, hearing a "Yeah!" and "Alright!" from Kenny and Alissa. "Let's do it to it!" he hollered.

Knowing he was high on the gas gave him a bit of warning, but the music was jamming his anxiety and he felt alert, ready for anything. Ahead he could see two more red boxes converging on their position.

"No, no!" hollered Control: "do not allow them to tag team you! With two tanks they have a clear shot from one while you're attacking the other!"

Kenny paused for just a moment. "Then we'll have to flank one on the outside," he declared, and spun the Viper in a wide circle until he had their tank in a line with the other two, one in the middle and one at the far end. Then he charged. "What do you say, you two? A little left, right, left to dodge their fire?"

"Go for it!" cried out Alissa, her focus on her weapon. Kenny hit the boost and swerved left. They came out from behind a pile of debris and saw yet more ruins between them and the first target tank. Now Kenny swerved to the right, getting them closer. They could see the tank trying to move around a pile on the corner, but they were now on parallel paths going different directions.

"Shaun! Blast that wall, there!" Shaun realized what Kenny was planning, turned and fired at the wall. The blast threw a wave of debris ahead of them as Kenny plowed through the sudden new opening, surprising the other tank and giving Shaun and Alyssa time to fire again. Once more a target disintegrated under their combined firepower and almost as if timed to the music playing through the speakers:

"--and he's watching us all through the eye -- of the Tiger…"

But there was no time to celebrate their victory. The next tank was coming over a rise, and fired before they had a chance to redirect their own turret and laser. "Hang on!" hollered Shaun, as he watched the enemy missiles careening through the sky directly at them. Below, Kenny gunned the engine and aimed them right at the opposing tank. The missiles seemed to hover for a moment, then came down on the rear end of the Viper, blasting chunks of armor loose right and left. The Viper spun out of control, and Kenny tried desperately to get them back on track. Meantime the enemy tank appeared to be lining up another shot.

"This is it!" Shaun thought as the Viper slammed into a pile of debris and stopped. Then the enemy tank blossomed into a ball of flame, struck by missiles from another tank. Now it was their turn to cheer as the other Viper popped over a pile of fallen brick and lumber.

"Figgered you heroes could use a little backup. Welcome home!"

Kenny had the chance now to extricate their tank from the pile they had plowed into. "How bad are we hit?" he asked, giving the Viper a slow spin to show their tailside to their new friend.

"Nothing fatal: just a little torn armor is all. Still, that was a close call. You sure you want to go on?"

Kenny glanced up at Shaun and over at Alissa, who both nodded. "It'll take more than that to knock us out of the game!"

"Then let's go. Can't let that Mastodon get all the glory."

The two tanks turned towards the next target on the screen: a single tank that appeared to be heading back towards the red star base.

"Smart guy: he knows he's outgunned, so he's gonna get some reinforcements and try again. But if we get him first, it's one less tank defending their base." The other pilot seemed calm and composed as he discussed the situation.

"Absolutely!" replied Kenny, a bit more clear-headed since the near miss. "Last one there's a rotten egg!" He gunned the engine and they sped off after the retreating tank. But the Viper didn't jump to speed as quickly as before, and the second Viper caught up and passed them.

"You must have some skirt damage under that armor. Don't worry: I'll grab this one, and wait for you before we take on the base."

"Ten-four! We'll follow as quick as we can!" Kenny called back. The other Viper sped on ahead, and they followed doggedly. Not engaged in combat, Shaun found his pulse returning to a more normal rate, and his mind focusing on the reality of what they were doing. He wanted to say something to his friends, but he didn't want it going out over the air. He fumbled at the headset and found what he was fairly sure was the mute button.

"Guys? Are we really doing this? Or is this some kind of crazy dream?"

Alissa looked up at him and shook her head. She covered her mike with her hand before she replied.

"Yeah, it's wild. But I'm pretty sure it's real. I know: I guess that means there were real people in those tanks that we blew up. I didn't think of that until just now."

"Me, neither. I know in war this is necessary, but what are we doing, fighting in somebody else's battle? How did we choose this?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. But it feels right: it feels like we're on the right side. But maybe that's just because they're all cheering for us?"

"We must have made a choice at some point to join with them. I've gotta trust we knew what we were doing."

"That makes sense. I'm with you."

Kenny pulled off his headset. "I hear what you two are saying, and I agree. They say we were here before. However that works, we chose them. I say we stick with that." He readjusted the headset with some difficulty, putting it on with one hand while he steered with the other.

Ahead they could hear the firing of missiles. The HUD showed the missiles' trajectory coming from the green box that represented their partner towards the fleeing red box. The line of missiles collided with the red box, and it disappeared from their screen.

"Hey, hey!" exclaimed Shaun, laughing and then singing along to the latest song coming through the radio:

"Another one bites the dust:
Another one bites the dust!"

On the HUD they saw their friend holding position, another green box approaching from their rear, and four red boxes converging on their lead man's position.

"Oh, Kenny! Are we gonna make it on time to support them?" Alissa asked.

"Going as fast as we can. But I'm hoping that other friendly gets there faster. Hopefully that's the Mastodon; I'm thinking we would appreciate the extra firepower."

"Didn't they say there were two more Vipers? Where's the other one?"

A pop of static announced Control chiming in. "Sorry, guys: the other Viper hit a bad patch and damaged their fan. They won't be making it. But yeah, the Mastodon is almost there, and the Helix isn't far behind. We understand you've got a damaged skirt slowing you down: are you sure you want to continue?"

"Yes, absolutely." Shaun replied after checking with his friends. "We'll see it through."

Ahead, the Mastodon had apparently joined the lead Viper just in time. They could hear a crackling roar like thunder: the firing of the particle projection cannons mounted on the big tank. They came around another collapsed building to see the Viper and Mastodon and a pair of smoking piles that had just been hovertanks moments before. On the HUD, the two remaining red boxes were no longer advancing.

"Think we just need to say 'Boo!' and watch them run," chuckled Shaun. "How far to our goal?"

"Almost there. Half a klick southeast. Follow me now."

The new voice was apparently the pilot of the Mastodon, an aptly named heavy tank with two large cannon mounted on separate sides of the central turret. The tank lurched its way across a pile of rubble and turned southeast. The two red boxes bugged out.

They had almost reached the red star when they heard a rumble coming up behind them, at first low, then a solid roar. Their last green box, the Helix, was now joining them for the final push. Ahead they could see one low building that seemed to have survived the utter devastation they had seen until now. And suddenly there were sparks of light flashing from several positions in front of the bunker: automatic fire from a platoon of soldiers making a last, desperate defense of their target. Bullets pinged off the windshield and canopy of the Viper, completely ineffectual. But Shaun spotted a couple of flashes that launched objects high in the air: mortar fire.

"Incoming!" he called out a warning, not knowing what anyone could do about it, but certain they should know. A few seconds later there came a couple of explosions that landed very close to the Helix.

Shaun winced as shrapnel struck the dome on the Viper. "The Helix looks damaged down low. I think the mortars got the lift skirt. How are they supposed to get out now?"

As he was speaking he realized that his missiles were probably the best weapon they had against the ground troops. He aimed a wide spread towards the bunker, opting to hit the hardened walls and expect the backwash to take care of the troops. In the flash of light from the blast he saw a couple of bodies flying through the air, and the gunfire ceased. He felt a lump in his throat as he again considered that these were real men and possibly women he was shooting at. But what was done was done; he was committed now.

Another voice came over the radio. "Good shot! Troops, out! Move, move, move!"

The back of the Helix opened up and troops poured out. They made their way under cover to the bunker door, and someone tossed in a grenade. The resultant explosion seemed a lot bigger than one grenade should have been. "Booby trapped, but we blew the trap. Going in."

Shaun watched on pins and needles as the platoon entered the bunker. Over the headset he could hear small arms fire and automatic fire in bursts, imagining the progress the troops were making inside. "Hey: if they booby-trapped the entrance, wouldn't it make sense they booby-trapped the databoxes, too? Or just blew them up to avoid you recovering them?"

"Affirmative. We got this."

Control suddenly broke in. "Attention, attention: you've got two bogies bearing down on you from the northeast quadrant. They're moving fast, so HC's or Jugs. Be ready!"

Shaun checked his directions and focused his eyes to the northeast. Almost at once he could see a figure like a winged warrior woman leaping in their direction. His heart shot into his throat as he recognized the configuration.

"Copy that, control, and confirmed: we got a Harpy class Juggernaut closing on our nine."

Two shots fired from the Mastodon, both missing the Harpy. Shaun kept his crosshairs lined up on the Juggernaut, but a flashing light notified him that the Harpy was out of range for his missiles. On the map he could see the red box rapidly approaching the circle representing his maximum range, and he kept his thumb on the trigger. The Harpy suddenly fired off a round of missiles of its own, but aimed at the Mastodon. The heavily armored tank shrugged off the attack with ease, and fired its cannons again. One missed but the other caught the Harpy on the left side of the chest, spinning the Jug around. The giant robot tripped and fell, just as its companion finally hove into view.

The new Jug resembled nothing so much as an egg on legs. The top swiveled about, revealing missile tubes that spat out their load at the Helix, blasting away a good portion of the hover skirt. The Helix settled in place, obviously going nowhere now.

But in coming forward, the egg-shaped juggernaut had come into range for Shaun's missiles. He targeted, got a green light, and fired. The missiles slammed into the egg, blasting loose several chunks of armor. At the same time, Alissa's laser carved a gash in one of the legs, and both PPCs from the Mastodon struck the egg dead on. Under the combined firepower, the egg was knocked off its feet and crashed on its back.

The Harpy regained its feet, but only in time to be greeted by another salvo of missiles, laser and PPCs. This time the Harpy's chest exploded, blowing arms and legs away like chaff. "Engine hit!" declared someone over the radio.

Shaun swung back to focus on the egg, fully expecting it to rise and attack again. But the egg lay motionless and did not rise. "Think we knocked the pilot out?" Shaun guessed.

"Looks likely," Kenny ventured. "Should we spend another round of missiles on him to be sure?"

Shaun searched his HUD until he saw a value that appeared to represent remaining ammo. "We've only got three salvos left. I say we hold'em until needed."

"Check." Kenny gave Shaun a thumbs up as the platoon returned from the bunker.

"Sorry, guys," Alissa called out on the radio. "We weren't able to protect your Helix. Can you get the databoxes on here?"

"You've got a load of handrails on the Viper. Yeah, we can strap the boxes on and still have room to grab a ride, if you move slow. Power down, and we'll mount up."

Kenny had to check for a minute before he found the controls to power down the hoverfan to allow the platoon to approach without getting blasted in the draft. "There we go, boys. Hop on board!"

Soon the cargo was lashed onto the Viper and the platoon members were hanging onto the rails. The leader thumped twice on the side of the Viper. "All on board! Let's go!"

Kenny throttled back up and turned the Viper around, aiming now for the green star on the map. The Mastodon and other Viper followed suit, and they began the trek back. Shaun kept his eyes peeled for more enemies, but none appeared.

"I don't want to jinx this, but it looks like we're home free! Can you believe it, guys?"

Control popped back on. "Was this really your first time in a hovercraft, manning guns and the works? You were outstanding! Now get on back here, and meet your company!"

Kenny drove carefully, both because of the damage to the skirt and to avoid knocking any platoon members off the sides. Also, he kept the speed down to what the Mastodon could manage so their forces would not be separated. But suddenly they were clear of the demolished city and had clear, level ground ahead. Not far ahead they could see a pair of Goliath heavy air transports surrounded by Hedgehog mobile barricades. They traveled around the armored circle until they came to the narrow, twisting entrance.

Kenny shook his head. "I dunno: I was real comfortable running this thing around on open ground, but I'm not sure I could maneuver through this."

Control broke in. "Good enough! We've got cadets out here who will be happy to take it in for you."

A moment later they saw two young men in white uniforms with red and blue striping step up over the barricade, waving at the hovercraft and making a cutting motion across their throats.

"Time to power down, I'd guess, let them onboard and the platoon off." Kenny commented as he powered down. And indeed, the platoon dismounted and removed the databoxes from the Viper, as the two young men approached and climbed on board. Kenny fumbled for a bit at the hatch next to him. "How do you open this crazy thing? Ah: there we go…"

He found the controls and pushed the hatch open. An acrid smell of smoke filled the cockpit, causing them all to gasp and cough. One of the cadets grinned. "It sure gets ya, don't it? Battlefield air, gotta love it!"

He reached down and offered Kenny a hand up to get out of the cockpit. Once Kenny was out, he helped Alissa to climb out as well.

Since it appeared that there was only one hatch, Shaun waited his turn, then unbuckled the seat belt and removed his headset, slid out of the seat down to the cockpit and accepted a hand to help climb out onto the side of the Viper.

"Go on ahead!" waved the second cadet: "We'll follow once you're clear!"

The platoon had already gone, so the trio followed the zigzag path ahead. Coming around the third turn, they suddenly saw a crowd of about 20 people waiting for them, some in uniform, some in camo gear, all clapping and cheering. As they approached the crowd surged forward and they found themselves being lifted up on the shoulders of the soldiers. The crowd began chanting: "Hokliss! 34th! Hokliss! 34th!"

"Hey, hey! Careful with the merchandise, there!" Kenny laughed as he was hoisted up.

"Whoa!" cried out Alissa: "Easy, guys!"

"Alright: okay, if you must…" Shaun felt rather awkward and shy about all this, but clearly they were being celebrated and appreciated. It was a heady feeling.

The crowd carried them into a large tent set full of tables like a mess hall, and sat them all down at the table front and center to the room. Champagne corks popped, and they were liberally doused before an ice-cold bottle was set down in front of each of them. Others were drinking straight from their bottles, so Shaun followed suit. Cheering ensued, and Kenny raised his bottle in salute before downing a mouthful. Alissa was the last to drink but she, too, was cheered and they were all pounded on the back several times.

"Speech! Speech! Speech!" the crowd sang out. Shaun glanced back and forth between Kenny and Alissa, neither of whom seemed prepared to get up, so he rose to his feet. They cheered again, then settled down.

"Hey, everybody: thank you so much for your awesome greeting for us today. I gotta say, we are so bowled over by all of this. I know you all see us as some sort of heroes, but I gotta tell ya, until now we haven't been anything but table-top gamers. Our juggernauts are lead figurines, our missiles are dice we roll to determine hit or miss. So we were absolutely astonished when you called out to us and recognized us for our characters from our game.

"Somebody said that we've been here before. I'm not sure how that's possible; certainly none of us remember actually visiting this place. If anybody can explain this in a little more detail, we would greatly appreciate it."

One of the uniformed men stood up and raised a glass to Shaun. When he spoke, Shaun recognized the voice of Control. "Thank you for your humble comments, Shaun. We have always appreciated your generous spirit that way.

"I know this has to be very confusing for you right now. Tomorrow morning we will hold a special briefing for the three of you at 0700 hours. You will have plenty of opportunity to ask questions before the debriefing on your mission just completed, at 0900 hours."

Alissa made a small noise in the back of her throat. "That's seven in the morning, right?"

Control grinned. "0600 wakeup call, yes. You'll get used to it quicker than you think."

Alissa nodded ruefully, while some of the soldiers chuckled at the group's discomfiture. "I guess we don't really have much of a choice, do we?"

"Not as genuine members of the Hokliss 34th. I understand that until now you were civilians, but that all changed once you accepted your roles in the Company. Had you opted just to bug out and come in from the cold, you might still have been regarded as civilians, but you didn't. Since you chose to fight, we are obligated to train you and equip you to do so as effectively and safely as possible."

Shaun nodded. "You're right. We did make a choice to fight, and it would be foolish to keep on doing so without the right tools and skills. So count me in."

Kenny waved a hand in the air. "Like he said before: you do know we have no actual experience in combat, right? We're just gamers! What do you think we can possibly contribute to a real battle?"

Control smiled. "Look what you did already with no training, no experience, and just the vehicle you landed in together. Add in your strategy approaches we already know to be outside the box, and once you're trained you'll have a wealth of contributions to make. We trust you: you're just going to have to trust us."

Kenny mulled it over, then nodded. "I can buy into that. I'll do it."

Somehow, all eyes had shifted to Alissa. She shifted uncomfortably. "Me? I'm no Amazon warrior woman! I just love playing one, and kicking game ass! But as to having what it really takes? I really don't know…"

Control gave her a serious look. "Alissa: trust me when I say we're not relying on you to be an Amazon. We don't need a woman who can outwrestle, outdrink and outfight every man in the room. We need courage and intelligence, creativity and spirit. And every one of us who has already fought by your side knows you have all that in spades.

"We know we're asking for a lot, but we also know you are more than capable of handling it all. We have seen the woman you will become: right now, we're just giving you the stepping stones to get there. Will you join us?"

Alissa sighed. "'Be all that you can be?' The motto hasn't changed in 500 years?

"Okay. I can hardly let these dopes go flying off without me. I'm in."

Cheers went up from the crowd. Many stepped forward to shake hands. The man they thought of as Control shook all their hands and spoke to them again. "You'll want to wrap it up, get to bed soon. As they say, tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life."

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 2

It certainly was. Shaun was roused from his wild dreams by the sound of reveille playing. He didn't care to find out what happened if he didn't rise and shine quickly, so he rolled out of bed and grabbed the towel and toiletries kit that had been supplied to him late last night, after they were flown from the forward base back to Command Central. Tents were waiting for them, ready to go. But even that had been interesting: for all this group knew about him and his friends, they had at first bollixed the sleeping arrangements and had him and Alissa rooming together instead of Alissa with Kenny. The error was quickly rectified, but it amused him that they would have made such a blunder.

The showers had actual hot water, for which he was grateful. The towel was nice and soft: not the kind of thing he expected in the military, but maybe they had changed over the years? The toiletry kit contained soap and shampoo each in a paste form, a toothbrush and miniature dual head rotary shaver that fit on his fingers to guide it. It made the smoothest shave he could remember for a while.

Back in his small but private tent he pulled out the clothes that had been supplied to him: all tan khakis, not camo and not the white uniform. He had the thought that this was probably trainee clothes, which of course was what he now was. There was also a packet containing labels with his name on them, some laundry labels and some that went over his shirt pockets and on his cap. He put them on and got dressed.

Once he stepped out of the tent, he was lost. The time on his watch said 6:50: he had ten minutes to find his way to the briefing.

"Matthews! Lookin' lost, son! Need to find your debriefing?"

Shaun snapped to attention and saluted, as he could see serious metal on this man's camo shirt, right above the name tag of "Holland."

"Sir, yes, sir!"

Holland saluted back. "At ease, soldier! The tent you want is down that aisle, marked 'HQ.' Good day!"

Shaun turned and trotted off in the direction indicated, looking for labels on the tents. They seemed to be haphazard, and then it occurred to him that this was probably deliberate. If a flyover could not pinpoint the command center, that was a distinct advantage.

He found the HQ tent and entered, finding Kenny and Alissa already there.

"Good morning! Ready for briefing?" asked Kenny, beaming in his new clothes. Alissa looked very sharp, the outfit doing much for her figure.

"You bet! Let's see what we know and don't know!"

The other man in the room, little older than them, wore a white uniform with the name tag "Randolph" on it. "Good morning. Thank you all for being prompt. Let's get started."

He passed them each a tablet computer, showing them how to activate it with a double tap, then pulling up a file on the screen.

"This is a very unusual case, so this will be a very thorough briefing. We assume you know nothing, so here goes everything."

Shaun grinned at that, but kept quiet as he perused the first page of the file: a set of calendars.

"By your Anno Domini Earth calendar, today is April 3, year 2586, 20:37 GMT as of 0700 local time. Local time is 0700 out of 2833 for the day, month Aphrodeus, Midday the 12th.

"So: on Hokliss, each full calendar day is twenty-eight and a half standard hours long. Weeks are eight days long, there are precisely four weeks in each of 16 months, thus 32 days each month, then each year has an additional six or seven days between the last month of one year and the first month of the next. Those days are always a holiday.

"If you look at page two of your information, you'll see that Hokliss is the seventh planet of sixteen in the system of the star Donald Lundsford, a much larger but cooler star than your home star of Sol. Don appears a bit larger in the Hokliss sky than Sol on Earth. It is occasionally partially eclipsed by any one of the three moons around Hokliss, named Huey, Dewey, and Louie."

Shaun and Alissa snickered at the last bit, but Kenny almost took a nosedive out of his seat, laughing hysterically. Randolph looked peeved. "So: what's the joke here?"

Kenny shook his head, trying to recover his composure. "Not on you, sir. Just, some colonist or whoever was responsible for naming the moons was a fan of 20th century cartoons. Donald Duck is a famous cartoon character, and has three nephews named Huey, Dewey and Louie."

Randolph considered it, and grinned slightly. "I see how that could be funny."

Kenny nodded. "And not just that: you call your sun 'Don?' So, like, is the first light of day called 'Donrise?' Or is it 'the break of Don?'"

Shaun couldn't help but laugh as well at that. But he stifled it quickly, while Kenny took a moment to compose himself before he sat back down. Randolph evidently got what he was saying, though, and his grin grew a bit broader for a moment before he turned serious again.

"Alright: thank you for the history lesson. Let's continue: Hokliss geography.

"Hokliss is largely covered by a sludge of oily liquid locals refer to as 'slick.' Slick is lighter than water, so all surface water is submerged under a coat of slick approximately 10 meters deep. This prevents evaporation, which means that precipitation on Hokliss is rare indeed.

"A lack of surface water also means no fertile topsoil. The land masses of Hokliss are mostly covered in sand, with some scrub brush, some trees and cacti. This undergrowth is sparse, but it is enough to support some insect populations and several varieties of imported birds."

As Randolph spoke, their tablets displayed various images corroborating his descriptions.

"The capitol city of New Philadelphia is a Ziggurat: one giant building constructed up the side of a hill overlooking one of the slick oceans. They pump water up from under the slick into the city, and run it down a stepped waterfall from the top of the city all the way down. This aerates the water, humidifies the air and supplies water throughout the city while creating a beautiful park running through the middle. Swimming pools, picnic sites and other attractions are staged throughout."

Shaun found himself holding his breath as images of the incredible city passed across his screen. "Like Drake described, only more," he breathed. Kenny nodded to Randolph. "Yeah: we had been told a little about New Philly, but seeing it spread out for real under the camera? That's awesome!"

Randolph looked pleased. "There are four other ziggurats on Hokliss, but this is by far the largest.

"Hokliss is ruled by a hereditary Duke: Sir William Calvert. Naturally, he is required to defend his realm as a Juggernaut pilot. His family owns a 125-ton massive weight Warlord, equipped with a Command suite, a boosted PPC, midrange and long-range missiles and a crapload of midrange lasers.

Kenny fist-pumped in midair. "Yes! Calvert! We know this guy! I mean, no, we haven't met in person, but--"

"Kenny?" Alissa's voice was cautious. "I think we had best hold judgement on whether this is actually going to be the same person that we 'met.' We only have Drake's interpretation of him, and besides, if he is still piloting the Warlord, then--"

Shaun stepped in quickly: "Yes, Alissa's right. We may know a whole different history that doesn't match this guy. Or doesn't match him _yet_: and shouldn't be shared…"

Kenny's eyes opened wide at that. "Yeah: I got you."

Randolph's face grew serious. "You know something Duke Calvert should know? No time like the present to spill the beans, okay?"

Shaun shook his head. "No, sir. We were just playing a stupid game. The history of events we played out on the board may have nothing to do with the actual history of the real Hokliss and the people on it. The fact that Duke Calvert pilots a Warlord -- just proves we don't know everything, and really need the rest of your briefing. Thank you."

Randolph looked doubtful, but continued. "Duke Calvert's younger brother Jason pilots a 100-ton heavy weight Black Manta. The Manta is a long-range hitter, packing two PPCs and a heavy cannon, plus a couple of midrange lasers for rear protection."

It was Alissa's turn to stifle a laugh. "Not that they ever did him much good!" she chuckled.

This time Randolph grinned. "So, you do remember some of your early history with us! Everyone knows the story of how you two had a challenge out in the hills, you jumped behind him and kicked him off the summit!"

Alissa looked surprised. "So that already happened, in real life? Not just in game?"

Randolph shook his head. "Not just a game. You and your Eagle's Claw are legendary for that exploit."

Kenny waved a hand. "Mr. Randolph? How does all this work exactly? Everybody here seems to practically worship us for things we haven't done yet, but it sounds like we did!"

Randolph nodded. "It's Lieutenant, actually. But here's what you need to know.

"Two years ago, the Calverts were caught in a heated battle with Pon Fao Jin, a bandit who had crossed over from the border with the Cheung Dynasty, and his company. William, Theresa and Jason had been backed into a corner by the bandits and were in serious jeopardy. Then the three of you appeared on the battlefield with your own Juggernauts, and very quickly turned the tide of battle. You may have saved their lives, or at least prevented their capture which could have been nearly as bad.

"When the battle was over, you were greeted as heroes at once. You explained that you came both from our past and our future: that you were born more than 500 years ago, but had traveled to a point later in our history, been trained by us as Juggernaut pilots, and then come back in time to help us and as you said, 'establish your street cred.' You also stated that you had reason to believe you would be coming back one more time: that there was some final battle you needed to be here to help us through. How you had such knowledge, we're not sure, but you assured us it was so.

"For obvious reasons, we cannot share much detail about what you did while you were here: that part of your history hasn't happened yet, and it would get very confusing if you knew everything ahead of time. Suffice it to say that each of you proved your mettle in combat, and we are very pleased to have you back even in a trainee mode. You gave to us: our turn to give to you."

Shaun sighed, putting his head in one hand and shaking it softly. "Man! I always thought time travel would have to be complicated, but this is beyond ridiculous. Our future is your past, then your future again? Insane!"

Kenny nodded. "Yep. I'm getting the same headache you got, Shaun."

"Hold on," Alissa spoke up. "We're all forgetting the most important question of all. Who in the world made it possible for us to time travel, and why? What do they want from us?"

"That's three questions, actually," remarked Kenny, at which Alissa rolled her eyes: "and I don't think we had actually forgotten: we just hadn't got that far yet. Answer is: 'I don't know, but I'm betting it was someone from the farthest point in the future that we're going to. Not like anyone here or back home would have access to that kind of tech, and especially not miniaturized enough to fit in a hair dryer."

"More like a curling iron, not that it matters," replied Alissa: "but yes, that seems sensible. Someone has put us on a journey, and they probably expect to meet us at the end. And we are presuming 'the end' will be the furthest point in the future."

"Hold on," said Randolph, shaking his head: "You guys didn't plan this? You don't even know who created the time travel device?"

"Nope," answered Shaun: "we're more surprised by all this than you are. We're just college students from the 21st century. Don't you think if we had time travel, that by the 2500's it would be everywhere?"

Randolph paused. "Well, that makes sense. And explains a lot. I mean, who would choose to have arrived all in one hovercraft instead of your individual Juggernauts?"

Alissa shook her head. "We don't know anything about piloting an actual Juggernaut. We would have been useless spread out that way. The hovercraft was almost intuitive, and we were together. I think we boosted each others' morale by just being there, and of course being regaled as heroes spurred us on. I can't imagine that the outcome would have been at all similar had we each arrived alone inside a complex cockpit for a Juggernaut."

Randolph pondered. "Obviously someone did this who wanted the best outcome for you. I'll take your questions to the Strategy Board, see if we can come up with any answers.

"Meanwhile, shall we continue the briefing?" Randolph paused to get their focus back, and tapped his tablet for the slide show / video to continue.

"Hokliss lies between two provinces of the Union of Free Colonies, close to the border with the Cheung Dynasty. The provinces basically ignore Hokliss and several other small systems in this area, which leaves these worlds unguarded and attractive to bandits. Duke Calvert has been in touch with many of them, seeking to create an alliance which might eventually become a new province. In the meantime, this group has little support from either Governor Denise Strand, leader of the UFC, or the Assembly which rules under her. The provinces get most funding: unaligned worlds in the Union, a bare pittance shared."

"So: the UFC has little interest in eliminating the border bandits, and neither does the Cheung Dynasty, administered by the Emperor Cheung Wi Shang and his Cabinet of Ministers. What Cheung does insist on is no incursions over his borders, and Governor Strand wishes to keep the peace, so she has levied harsh penalties for anyone who crosses over into Cheung territory. She does give some extra funds and support for border patrol, and Calvert is eligible for that funding thanks to his work with the other local planets."

"That's good," ventured Shaun: "but how supportive is Strand? Are we talking replacement Juggernauts if ours get blown up? Or at least replacement weapons and ammo, or just funding and we have to fend for ourselves?"

"A replacement Juggernaut would be most unusual, most likely only happening if the first one was lost in some heroic manner deserving a medal as well. Most weapons could be requisitioned, and yes, extra funding comes for the border patrol."

"Fair enough," reasoned Kenny. "Strand can't afford to be too generous or pilots might get reckless and sacrifice their rides too freely. But there's no avoiding the fact that weapons and armor get damaged in battle, and need replacement. 'Requisitioning' means we have a good, stable supply, and don't have to go running to the black market for possibly defective units."

"Well said," Randolph concurred. "So: this concludes the prepared portion of the briefing. The floor is open to any questions you may have."

Alissa popped up at once. "What can you tell us about our Juggernauts? Details, please!"

Randolph smiled. "Understand that you will go through basic training outside your units before you are allowed to pilot them, but here goes.

"Alissa, we have your Eagle's Claw. It is a 75-ton medium weight Jug, all energy weapons and thus no ammo to either run out or blow up on you. You have maximum jump capability and speed, two generators and capacitors out the wazoo to support all this. Your generators have a nitro boost function: when you are fully charged you can dash 720 meters in 10 seconds, as fast as the fastest standard Jug we know. You also have anti missile systems for the rare occasion when your speed is not enough to get you out from under fire. As a medium Jug, your armor is lighter than the heavy Jugs but has been enhanced as much as possible for your weight class."

Alissa practically jumped out of her chair in excitement. "It can really do everything I do on the table? Two large boosted electrolasers, four boosted midrange lasers, and everything else you said? Pinch me, quick!"

Randolph laughed and continued. "Kenny: you are piloting an Undertaker, a 130-ton massive weight centauroid Jug with not one but two massive rail guns capable of throwing 200-lb copper-iron slugs a mile in under a second. These work as do hollow point bullets, in that they mushroom on impact to do maximum damage. You also have four boosted midrange lasers and leg-mounted machine guns for infantry suppression. What you do not have is hands, speed or jump capability."

Kenny groaned ruefully, but nodded. "Hard to have a tank and be able to fly as well. But I'll be happy with the tank, and those rail guns."

Randolph nodded. "Shaun: you have a 95-ton heavy weight Jug stolen from Pon Fao Jin's company, called a Duo-shi. The Duo-shi has medium speed and jump capability, long range missiles, midrange boosted electro lasers, and something very unusual: a sword. The sword normally folds back along the arm, but can be extended and used almost instantly when closing on an opponent.

"We are somewhat familiar with Jugs carrying axes, and it seems like a sword would not do as much damage, but based on your experience we have found the sword does a remarkable job at cutting off arms, sometimes legs, and even heads. So, don't take its presence lightly."

Shaun nodded. "Not what I was expecting, but I'll give it a try. Sounds interesting."

"Good. Any other questions?" Randolph looked at them expectantly.

Alissa waved her hand again. "When do we start training?"

"Right after the debriefing, coming up at 0900. We'll be asking the questions there, about you, your experiences in the 21st century, what happened on the mission, all that. Then we'll get you in the simulators, and get you started."

* * * * * * *

CHAPTER 3

The debriefing was detailed, thorough and precise. They were interviewed separately, apparently to make sure their stories didn't influence each other's perceptions. After the exhaustive session, they were dismissed. A lieutenant Terrence found them and directed them to the training bunker. Checking their watches, they saw they had plenty of time to get there. Shaun slowed down to walk next to the other two instead of out in front.

"So, what do you two think so far? Everything is pretty much the way Drake described it, just maybe a little early on the timeline?"

Alissa nodded. "Yeah, I was thinking the same thing, too, about Calvert. But maybe this is an alternate timeline where his 'accident' never happened at all?"

Kenny mused on that, then shook his head. "I don't know. Everything else is the same: I don't see how there could be that many parallels and then diverge so sharply as to leave one major element out."

Shaun nodded. "That makes a lot of sense. Makes me wonder, if we get into a situation where we think we know what's going to happen, do we try to prevent it or just let it go?"

Alissa spoke up. "I say we try to make it better. Otherwise, what's the point of being here at all?"

Shaun agreed. "Of course! We are here to make a difference; maybe that's it, or part of it."

They had arrived at the training bunker, and went inside. Each was directed to a separate room. Shaun's was small, with a comfortable seat but crowded by panels and instruments. The first thing they did was pass him a helmet with a headset and various leads running off it, then strapped his arms to the armrests in the seat. Fortunately the armrests were free floating, not fastened down. As soon as he moved his arms, the screens wrapped around the front three quarters of the room came to life. They showed a hilly wooded region, and he could see robotic versions of his arms hanging in front of him. Sure enough, when he raised his arms he could see the ones on the screen aping his movements.

"Oh, man, if Drake could see us now!" he breathed quietly. As he leaned forward, the seat tilted and let his feet click into place on a foothold down below. He was now standing up, and as he raised his foot he could feel the shift in the whole room. He put his foot back down, and felt the renewed stability in the platform he seemed to be standing on.

"Wow! Now, _this_ is a simulator!"

He laughed, then carefully raised a foot and stepped forward. The platform shifted under him, giving the feeling of forward movement, and the screens shifted their view to reflect the Jug having taken a step. He took another step, then another and another.

The motion of the platform beneath him was fluid and smooth. Hillsides and now trees loomed in front, then passed away on either side of him. He raised his arms and quickly checked for the sword that was supposed to be there. He found it, and flexed his hand back to where the grip appeared. On the screen, the robotic hand grasped the grip of the sword and drew it forward.

Shaun slashed the air with the sword a few times, then approached the nearest tree. He slashed at one of the largest branches, feeling the shock of contact in his hand as the blade struck wood. The sword scored deeply into the branch, which then collapsed under its own weight, falling off the tree.

"Yes, yes! Awesome!" he chortled. "Now: what else?"

A voice broke in over his headphones. "I see you have adapted quickly to the piloting portion of your training. The combat portion is a little less intuitive, but it's not bad.

"First, return your sword to its place. Then flex your hands back hard, and grip the joysticks that pop out. As long as you are gripping the joysticks, your Jug's hands will be locked into fists. Each finger of each hand has a trigger under it. Press on the front of the joystick with each finger to reveal the targeting HUD for that fingers' weapons. Curl your fingers and press with your fingertips to actually fire the weapon.

"Weapons with the longest range or/and highest damage will be at the top of the stick: shorter range ones and less damage are towards the bottom. It takes a little coordination, but you'll catch on quick.

"One approach that also works: press the front with your fingertips, and the firing pins one at a time with your thumb. More control."

Shaun positioned his fingers on the joysticks, test pressing the fronts of each and seeing HUDs of different colors pop up on the screens. Each color identified which weapon it was, a small graph demonstrated relative ranges, and targeting reticles appeared in each color, aimed at objects in the weapons' furthest range.

"How do I change what's being targeted?" Shaun asked.

"It's a subtle manipulation of the fingers on the targeting buttons. Shift to left or right, up or down to redirect the reticle. Try it: using fingertips is easiest. See if you can set up for a total strike on one object in your view."

Shaun twiddled his fingers on the front of the joystick. Each reticle popped up or down or sideways as he moved, and he was pretty quick to match the colors to the fingers. All reticles focused on one target, an ancient spreading tree. He realized that this was not the time to thumb each tigger individually, and instead wrapped his fingers all the way around and squeezed. He heard the howl of the missiles and the higher-pitched whine and crackle of the medium electro lasers as they fried the very air between himself and the target. The tree on the screen blew apart into smithereens, chunks flying everywhere.

"Well, not a great environmental statement, but it makes the point," he wise-cracked. "So, what's next?"

Part of the screen blanked out for a moment, quickly coming back up as a map of the local terrain. As in the Viper, green boxes represented friendlies, red boxes were the enemy, and stars were bases. There were eight red boxes, not counting the star, and counting himself, green boxes numbered three.

"So, let me guess. That's Alissa and Kenny out there, and together we have to pound their base before they pound ours. Outnumbered almost three to one, there's no way to protect the base and launch an assault on the enemy at the same time. They'll overwhelm us one way or another."

The voice from the headphones had a cheery sound to it. "Aren't you glad this one's just a game? Besides, life doesn't always play fair, and you know the rep you have to live up to. We don't expect you to win, but we'd like to see how many of them you can take down before you fall. Believe it or not, we are rooting for you."

Shaun made up his mind. They would indeed make as good a show of it as they could, but if they fell, they fell. Maybe that would bring things down to Earth, revise their expectations, whatever.

"Kenny, Alissa! You two set on what we're supposed to do?"

Kenny's voice came back first. He didn't sound happy. "Basic 'capture the flag' just got not so basic. What the hell!"

Alissa piped up. "This is our first round of training, for cryin' out loud! Should we boycott?"

"No. It's all a learning experience, no loss even if/when we fail: it's our Kobayashi Maru. We do our best. Kenny, that makes you the goalkeeper, me and Alissa on defense until we whittle them down, then if it gets that far I'll make a run for their goal with Alissa watching my six. Agreed?"

"Sounds like a plan, Stan," quipped Kenny. "Works by me," added Alissa: "Let's see if this Jug really is fast enough to get the drop on the slow turds."

One look at the map showed red units all moving in the direction of the green star. Green units identified themselves as Kenny and Alissa and their unit designations, also headed towards the base.

"Better book it, Kenny," warned Shaun: "We need you there asap."

"Givin her all we got, Captain," Kenny replied in a Scottish brogue. Shaun grinned, pushing his own Jug as fast as it would go through the undergrowth. But this was slowing him down, especially going uphill.

"Hey, Control? How do I activate jump jets?"

"Understand that jets are risky. They can knock you over as bad as a missile volley. But if you want to try your jets, raise up on your tiptoes. When you go back on your heels, jets will power down slowly to give you a safe landing."

"Thanks." Shaun took a deep breath and rocked forward onto his toes. As the jets came on the platform shuddered, and he instinctively put out his arms to steady himself. It seemed to work. He rose up above the trees, and aimed forward towards a clear patch approximately 300 yards ahead. He found his feet moving back, and instinctively guiding the jets to push him forward. Heart pounding, he relaxed his feet back onto his heels once the clear patch was beneath him. He could hear the roar of the jets diminish as he came in for a landing. He came down planted solidly on both feet.

"Yee haw! It worked!" Shaun exclaimed. Alissa popped up on the radio. "Great! I guess it's my turn!"

Ahead and to his right, Shaun suddenly saw the Eagle's Claw rising above the trees, vectoring towards the base. Alissa sounded a bit panicked as she flew. "Yiiiiiiiii! This is - yeow!"

Shaun broke into a run, determined to get to the base as quickly as possible. But there were a couple of red boxes just ahead, in the treeline. While running he couldn't aim his weapons effectively, but at least he was closing distance. He gripped the joystick with his index finger, and the extended range missiles display popped up. Almost there…

Suddenly he heard laser fire, and realized it was not the enemy, but Alissa who had slipped up behind them. "Wooo-eee!" she cried out as she blasted one Jug in the back, then jumped away as the other turned to fire. The targeted Jug flared up with a bang, pieces flying everywhere.

In the process of turning to fire on Alissa, the second Jug exposed his back to Shaun, who had reached range for his missiles. He slowed for a moment, allowing the reticles to line up, and thumbed the firing buttons for both sets of missiles. The missiles howled through the air towards the target, which tried to turn back, but too late. Missiles smashed into the Jug from behind, first toppling it, then exploding it with a sound like a thunderclap. It was Shaun's turn to whoop in victory.

"Two down, six to go!"

"See you at base, Shaun!" Shaun heard Alissa call out, and he set out once more on a run. On the map ahead he could see that Kenny was approaching both the base and two red boxes. "Give 'em hell, Kenny!" he called out.

A double thunderclap sound from Kenny's position, and one of the red boxes disappeared. "Yeah!" hollered Kenny: "Double hit! Score another one down!"

The howl of missiles came from the same direction. This time Shaun noticed a yellow streak coming from the remaining red box in front of Kenny towards Kenny's Jug. The streak collided with the green box and disappeared. Over the mike, he could hear a series of explosions.

"Kenny?" He called out, worried now. But Kenny's voice came back on at once.

"Don't these guys pay attention to the 'No Smoking' signs? Got slightly singed, but I'm fine."

Once again the double crackle sounded, and the red box that had just fired disappeared. Shaun sighed lightly in relief.

Elsewhere on the map he saw Alissa dashing for cover behind a hill as two red boxes approached. He could hear lasers firing, then Alissa giggling. "Missed me, missed me!"

Kenny broke in. "Hey, there! No kissing unless I'm in on it!"

Shaun laughed, but kept on running towards the red box he saw approaching on the screen. How many were left? Just four?

Suddenly he heard a deep-throated "boom!" and saw a puff of smoke from directly ahead. Apparently when his opponent had reached the tree line, they had fired a cannon.

The shell caught him in the shoulder, and a new damage display screen popped up as he stumbled but did not fall. He focused quickly on the reticles, drawing them into position and firing. "Try that, ya bastiges!"

The missiles flew towards the spot from which the cannon fire had come. Tree branches flew, but he could see the red box had vacated the space just ahead of the blast.

"See if you can try that with lasers at the speed of light," he muttered, charging across the open field towards the tree line. He could see where the red box showed on his map, and clicked the controls for his four lasers to show on the screen. They still flashed "OOR:" out of range, but he kept closing distance.

Then he was surprised as the two boxes that had been beyond the treeline suddenly resolved themselves in front of him. His system identified them as a Warlock and a Rasputin, both loaded with lasers and short-range missiles. They opened fire before he could adjust and fire from his end.

Lasers struck and carved off armor, then were followed by the swarms of missiles. While the lasers had no impact force, the missiles were enough to knock him on his back.

The seat he was in suddenly flipped backwards and down, actually knocking him over and landing him hard. For a moment he saw stars, but he recovered quickly.

He shifted his shoulders up, and the seat slid under him. He could tell that trying to get up was going to be akin to rising from an overfilled featherbed, so he tried just sitting up. That worked.

He could see the two Jugs approaching him and opened fire at once on the smaller Rasputin, figuring he would have a better chance of taking out a smaller Jug first. Luck was with him: three of his lasers carved up the left leg of the Rasputin and it collapsed to the ground.

Just as the Warlock was about to fire, it was struck squarely in the back by two boosted electrolasers from the Eagle's Claw. Shaun sighed in relief as the Warlock blew into pieces and he heard Alissa's war whoop over the air.

But as he watched for just a second, the Rasputin rolled on its side and fired off another volley of short-range missiles at the Eagle's Claw. Alissa yelped on the air as the missiles struck, too close for her to duck or dodge out of the way. Shaun felt his heart jump in his throat, and practically jumped to his feet. His missiles would be no good at this range, but his lasers fired almost immediately at the Rasputin. He must have hit an ammo pod, because the explosion that followed took off an arm, a shoulder, and most of the left side of the Jug.

After that shot, the Rasputin didn't move. Shaun suspected the blast had knocked out the pilot, but given this was all a simulation, he couldn't be sure. He turned to Alissa. "You okay? Those missiles didn't fry you?"

She giggled. "You're forgetting this is a sim, Shaun. Yes, I'm fine. Now, where do we stand?"

He glanced at the map and grinned. "Two to go. We made mishmash of the rest."

"Then let's take'em!" Alissa jumped her Jug, not for any apparent strategy reason, but just the pleasure of knowing she could.

Two red boxes were approaching the green base from opposite sides. Kenny was in the middle, probably not moving because he didn't know which way to turn.

"South, Kenny! We'll take the one to the north!" Shaun made up his mind quickly and ran to the treeline. Scanning the map he could see some open space about 300 yards ahead, and he activated the jets to soar past the woodland below. The Eagle's Claw was already there, Alissa running through the field. Yes, the Hawk was definitely faster and had longer jump capabilities than he did. It was such an advantage for her, which made having her such an advantage for them.

"On my way," replied Kenny, and Shaun could see the green box for Kenny moving to interpose between the base and the enemy. But even as Kenny moved Shaun saw a flash of yellow moving from the enemy towards Kenny.

"Missiles headed your way, Kenny!" He called out.

"I see them!" Kenny replied, just before the line reached him and the sound of the explosions came through the speaker. Then there was silence. Kenny's box still showed on the screen, still moving, but there was no more sound coming from him.

"Radio must be out," Shaun thought as he continued north. Up ahead he could see Alissa jumping once more, then heard a thunderclap and saw her literally knocked from the skies. Someone else had rail guns, he realized. He ran towards her location, training his missile reticles in the direction of the red box that must have fired at her. On the display, he suddenly saw a blue circle centered on the enemy, with the notation: "est. Rail Gun range." He slowed his approach to avoid coming into the circle, then realized his missiles had greater range. Besides, they could go over the trees, not through them like the rail gun shell would have to go.

"Alissa? You okay this time?" His heart pounded, remembering the beating he had taken when he fell. His reticles for the missiles flashed green, and he fired. 48 missiles howled through the air as he anxiously awaited her answer.

"Woah. That was a ride and a half," Alissa groaned. Shaun drew a breath in relief.

"Can you stand, or at least sit up? The enemy is headed our way, slow but sure. I'm gonna try to evade and bombard him: you stay put if you can't move."

"Let me try. My leg was hit: I don't think I can run right now."
The enemy was moving closer, and as it did, the circle came closer as well. Shaun backed up just ahead of the circle, locking on and firing missiles again.

He could see that Alissa was down in a wooded zone, but then her box began moving on the map again, approaching the cleared space between her and the enemy mech. She was well inside the circle, just concealed from the enemy's view.

Shaun keyed his missiles again for lockon, and heard the thunderclap of the rail gun again. Alissa exclaimed, "Wow! That was close!"

Shaun fired again. "You know what they say: 'close only counts…'"

"'...in horseshoes and hand grenades,'" finished Alissa. "And they're right!"

Shaun heard the whine of lasers next, and Alissa cheering. "Wow! You've really chewed up their armor! Let's see if my bad boys can punch through!"

Shaun's missiles were reloading, and he impatiently waited for a chance to fire again. Alissa came back on the air. "I think I got'em!" she exclaimed. "The Jug is stopped, and its arms are down at its sides. I think it had a total power loss."

Shaun considered. "Do you want to do a quick headshot just to be safe?"

"Well, I guess since it's just a sim," she replied, and he could hear her firing. "Popped like popcorn! They're dead!"

"Then it's one to go, and we don't know where Kenny stands. I think his radio got broken, I haven't heard from him since he was hit."

Alissa was lumbering past him before he finished. "He could be in trouble. Let's get there quick!"

Shaun turned and lumbered towards the base and the two fighting Jugs beyond it. Alissa was not running, but she was limping along fast enough to make him run to keep up.

In the distance ahead of them, he could hear both the sounds of rail guns and missiles at intervals. It sounded like a hell of a fight was on. On the map he could see the two squares circling about each other, Kenny occasionally moving in closer to fire. But Kenny had rail guns and the enemy had missiles, so Kenny was blocked more often and was taking greater damage. They couldn't tell from where they were how much armor the enemy might have started out with, or what they had left, but in all likelihood this fight would not end well.

Then Kenny took refuge beneath a cliff, blocking any chance of missiles hitting him for the moment. But rather than close with him, the enemy made a beeline for the base.

"You see that, Alissa? We've got to stop him!"

Alissa jumped once more over a couple of hundred yards of trees, coming down between the base and the enemy. She quickly moved into the treeline.

"Watch out!" called Shaun, "Those missiles can still pound you!"

Just then a flight of missiles rose into the air, coming her way. She fired her jets and rose above the trees just as the missiles struck the woods all around her. The rise must have given her a great view of the attacker, because she fired all lasers at the zenith of her arc. The total strike apparently hit home as Shaun heard an explosion, what could be ammo blowing up.

But Alissa had not kept track of the charge available from her capacitors. Firing all weapons and the jump jets had completely drained the charged banks, and now her jets sputtered, no longer supporting her. The Eagle's Claw came down fast, and Shaun pressed forward as quickly as possible to make it to the landing site. He came out of the trees just in time to see the Hawk make a three-point landing, shock absorbers in the legs taking up most of the strain.

Shaun's breath exploded out of him in relief. "Girl, you are going to give me a heart attack pulling that crap," he said.

"Better keep your nitroglycerin on hand, then," she smirked. "Come on: let's see if Kenny is okay."

The screen now showed no red boxes remaining, and Kenny's Undertaker moving out from behind the cliff in their direction. But then the screens went dark, and regular lighting came down from the ceiling of the simulator.

"Huge congratulations to all of you!" The voice that had assisted them earlier came on again.

"You just made a few people fairly rich," the voice said: "We had a betting pool going. Not too many folks thought you'd all survive, three against eight, first run. But you came through bigtime!"

The back door to the simulation room opened up, and friendly hands reached through to help Shaun get unstrapped from the arms, and to climb out of the simulator. Once again he, Kenny and Alissa were greeted with clapping and cheering and many congratulatory slaps on the back.

"You made fools of a lot of us, but that's all for the good. You three are indomitable!"

Shaun's mind was a whirlwind. How had they managed this, really? Just the luck of only meeting their enemy two by two, actual skill on their part, effective strategy or what?

Alissa was high-fiving all around the room, and Kenny was nodding and waving. Shaun found himself shaking hands right and left. It was an amazing feeling, being so accepted and appreciated, and actually feeling he had earned it.

"Thanks, everyone! All I can say is, we went for it. I don't think any of us thought we'd be climbing out winners; we just did what we have learned to do on the tabletop game. Knowing it was all a game made a big difference. I guess we knew that win or lose, we would step out of the trainers no worse for wear. I don't know if we can translate that into victory on the real battlefield, but we'll give it a try."

Again there was a round of applause, and the group headed off for lunch. Shaun did his best to step up to Kenny and Alissa's spot in line, to speak with them.

"Hey guys: I just want to apologize if I got a bit bossy in there. I didn't mean to; it just kind of came out."

Kenny slapped him on the back. "Bud, you've been our GM plenty of times, you play our CO on the tabletop, you're a natural leader, and it's all good. Besides, your strategy worked, didn't it?"

Shaun had to admit it had. Alissa gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "You done good. A take-charge man is kinda sexy, okay?"

Shaun blushed, and Kenny jokingly elbowed her. "Hey: right here, ya know?"

She took his arm and gave his hand a squeeze. "A girl can give a compliment, can't she?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. As long as there's no french kissing involved." Both sounded light-hearted, but there was just something about the way Alissa held Shaun's gaze that put a lump in his throat.

"Well, thanks for understanding, both of you. I am so glad we work so well together."

They continued on towards the mess hall, Shaun wondering what awaited them in the days ahead.

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 4


The days and weeks ahead were full of fascinating discoveries as the trio continued their training and introduction to the world of Hokliss.

After the simulator battle, real training began in a classroom where they were taught the basic principles behind the operation of Juggernauts, weapon ranges and damage potentials, calculating energy usage vs. the storage capability of capacitors and energy outputs from engines and many other factors. Testing for this phase was conducted on the tablets, generally speed quizzes and charts to memorize or create on the fly.

During this time they were stationed in New Philadelphia, with the opportunity to explore this incredible city. They were introduced not only to its many attractions but also many members of the Council and even the Calverts.

Most of the introductions were at a military ball at which they were expected to wear their dress uniforms, navy blue with red and white stripes. Shaun was pleased at how sharp the uniform looked on him, and Alissa wore it well also. Even though it was the same uniform, Kenny somehow managed to make it seem slovenly. Alissa fussed over him and tried to get it presentable, but Kenny kept hitching up his pants as if he were still wearing blue jeans.

"Kenny, hun, you just can't do that in dress slacks! You've got to let them hang right, or you mess up the line of the jacket. Shaun, can you show him what I mean?"

It felt awkward posing as Alissa requested, as if he were somehow contributing to her criticism of Kenny, but Shaun had to admit that she was correct. This was a truly high-brow function, and they very much wanted to make a good impression.

"So sorry I'm embarrassing you," Kenny huffed. "I guess some of us just got it, and some don't."

Shaun avoided Kenny's gaze and remained silent as Alissa tried to placate him. "Hey: you're my prince, aren't you? Don't you want to look snazzy for your princess?"

"I'm dressed up in this straightjacket, ain't I? Isn't that enough for you?" There was obvious hurt in Kenny's voice.

"I didn't mean it like that. You know I didn't." she protested.

"Then how _did_ you mean it?" Kenny growled. "Forget it, I'm done. I'll go, because we're the Hokliss 34th and we're supposed to show. But if you want a pretty boy on your arm, take Shaun."

Kenny stormed off. Alissa sighed, eyes downcast. Then she turned slowly to Shaun.

"It seems I have lost my prince. Will you be my knight in shining armor? At least, for this evening?"

There were so many ways this was wrong. She was Kenny's girl. Kenny had introduced them, was obviously head over heels for her, and he had no business stepping into Kenny's shoes. And yet, Kenny was the one who had stormed off, and even if it had been a taunt, there was no question that he had suggested this. If Alissa went to the gala flying solo, she would be accosted by every guy there looking for a beautiful lady, and that would come to no good. If he just accompanied her to keep the wolves at bay, that was alright, wasn't it? It had nothing to do with his private feelings about her, or the fact he would do just about anything for her. It was all quite innocent, wasn't it?

He bowed and extended an arm to her. "As you wish, milady."

There was something in the smile she gave him that seemed like more than gratitude. Or maybe that was his imagination running away with him. She curtsied in turn, and accepted the arm he gave her.

"Thank you, kind sir. Shall we now depart?"

The gala was a beautiful affair, like nothing else Shaun had attended except vaguely resembling his senior prom. But for the life of him he could not even remember the name of the girl he had gone with; he had the feeling he wouldn't be forgetting this anytime soon.

They entered together through a hallway which opened up onto a balcony overlooking the sizable ballroom. A Lieutenant introduced them at the top of the staircase before they joined the party.

"Cadets Shaun Matthews and Alissa Reynolds of the Hokliss 34th Armored Company."

Alissa gripped his arm tightly as they descended the staircase. "Wow. I had heard of events like this, but never saw anything like it except on TV. Don't let me drink too much champagne; I get silly when I'm tipsy."

"I'll try to stop you, if I can. By my experience, three is my limit."

It was clear from looking around the room that VIPs had stationed themselves at the edges of the room in a large circle, and that new arrivals were touring around the room making introductions. So Shaun followed suit, leading Alissa to their left to follow the circle counterclockwise. He hesitated for a minute as the previous couple disengaged themselves from their hosts and continued on around the circle. Then he approached the tall elderly distinguished gentleman wearing a gray suit and wide red sash, standing with a lady who appeared to be of the same age wearing an emerald dress that seemed to complement the sash beautifully.

The gentleman turned to see them and his face light up in pleased recognition. "Officers Matthews and Reynolds of the 34th. What a pleasure to see the two of you again.

"But where are my manners? I am told I would have you at a disadvantage; I know you, but you do not remember me. Councilman Lionel Travers, at your service. When last we met, two years' past, there was a bit more brass on your shoulders. If I understand correctly, for you this is your first visit with us?"

Shaun cleared his throat. "A pleasure to meet you, Councilman, whether for the first time or one of many. You are correct: we were told that we were here before, but that that visit is in our futures, not our pasts. It seems time travel is even more complicated in reality than in theory."

Travers nodded. "So it would seem. One way or another, thank you for coming. Your aid last time was invaluable, and already we hear great things about you from this visit. Our expectations have been whetted, and are quite high. The best of luck to you!"

He gave each of them a double handshake. Alissa stammered. "Thank you for your good wishes, Councilman. And we wish the same to you." Travers nodded and gave her a pleased smile before turning to the next guests.

Around the rest of the circle it was much the same. Several Councilmen recognized them but had been briefed on their newness, some did not know them at all, and with the Captains and Commanders the same held true.

As they visited servants came around the circle with canapes and champagne flutes, and Shaun allowed himself the occasional indulgence. He also watched over Alissa, who nursed one flute all around the circle. That should not be enough to get her tipsy, he figured.

At the end of the line on a dias was a man looking about fifty in dress uniform and wearing a gold sash, along with another male officer who somewhat resembled him but younger, and a lady officer, also around 50 but very attractive. There was a young Chinese lady as well who stood to one side, and two men behind this group who looked like bodyguards. Shaun had a feeling he knew who this must be. As their turn arrived, Shaun saluted as he had seen other officers do, and once the salute was returned, he bowed low. Alissa followed his lead with a salute and a curtsey.

"Your Excellency: Cadets Matthews and Reynolds, at your service."

Duke Calvert laughed. "Shaun and Alissa, welcome! We have been looking forward so much to seeing you!

"I know: you need introductions. On the field of battle you refer to me as 'Major,' but off the field, please call me 'Will.' My wife is a Captain; her name is Theresa. And Jason, my brother, is a Commander. Also, we have with us tonight Lt Commander Chun Li Min from your Company, the Hokliss 34th."

Shaun shook hands with each, but secretly wondered: if they knew the story about Alissa kicking Jason's butt down the hill, surely there was still some animosity there? And was Jason still the sullen, jealous younger brother they had first met, or was he the more mature and stable young man they remembered him growing into?

Alissa shook hands with each in turn, but hesitated a moment at Jason. "I understand, Commander, that at some point in your past we had a falling out? I was hoping we might leave that in the past?"

Jason blushed. "Yes, you kicked me down a hillside. But I was being a bit of an ass at the time: I deserved it. So let us let bygones be bygones, and you join us here for the evening."

And so they stepped up onto the dias, Alissa accepted a second flute of champagne and a few more canapes, Shaun his third, and they waited and greeted singles and couples who had arrived after them.

The young Chinese lady introduced as Chun Li Min approached them. "Excuse me, please," she said: "I have heard rumors, Miss Reynolds, that you are with Commander Winston? Will he be joining us tonight?"

Alissa paused. "Yes, that's correct. I heard him announced a while ago, but I haven't seen him yet. Do you know him?"

Li Min nodded. "He saved me from slavery two years ago. I owe him life debt. But if you are with him, I will say nothing of this to him."

Shaun thought Alissa looked a little rattled by that. She stammered as she replied. "If you feel that is best, then thank you. I think I understand what you are saying."

Li Min nodded and stepped back to her place on the dias.

Other pilots and a very few late dignitaries were now proceeding through the line. It was not too long before they saw Kenny approaching. He had apparently worked something out with his pants, because he was no longer hitching them up every thirty seconds, but the jacket was doing little to hide his somewhat rotund stomach. Kenny was doing his best to present himself well, shaking hands and saluting at the appropriate times, but he had the jolly air of someone who has had a little too much to drink.

At the dias, Kenny noticed the royal family first and came to attention, saluting. "Cadet Kenny Winston at your service, sir!"

Calvert was as gracious with Kenny as he had been with Shaun and Alissa. "Thank you so much for coming, Kenny. Allow me to make introductions…"

Kenny shook hands as he was introduced around and gave a curt nod to Shaun and Alissa before joining them on the dias. "So, how has your evening been?" he inquired coolly.

"Very good so far," Alissa replied. "I see you worked something out with your pants?"

"Suspenders," he said. "Found some at the supply office. That took care of that."

"Whatever works. I'm glad it worked out, and that you could join us."

Kenny did not reply to that, other than with another nod. Shaun maintained a little distance from the couple, and glanced over at Li Min. Perhaps the Chinese were not so inscrutable after all. There was certainly pain written in Li Min's face. But Shaun had heard her state that she didn't wish to interfere between the two, and he could respect that.

Yet once again he wondered: if they had been here before, why was everyone oblivious to the fact that Kenny and Alissa were together, and seemed to regard Alissa and himself as a pair? The obvious answer would have to be that in this past, their future, they were. And while the thought of being with Alissa made his heart pound, he also knew there would be no way for this to happen without breaking Kenny. And Kenny was a good friend, whom he had no desire to hurt.

He felt a hand touch his sleeve. It was Li Min, smiling at him in apparent commiseration. "I know the hurt. You have it, too. Don't worry: for you, will get better. For me, don't know."

He nodded, unsure what to say. They had talked about changing the future for Calvert: if that were possible, perhaps he could change it for Kenny and Alissa? Or was it the case that because their future was embedded in this world's past, that it couldn't be altered? Once again, the logistics of time travel were giving him a headache.

There had been background music playing all along, but Calvert looked at his watch and then waved a hand in the air, and the music swelled and changed to a more lively classical dance vein. "Time for the festivities to actually begin!" Calvert declared.

Shaun himself was a fairly good dancer, but he suspected that Kenny had never danced before: certainly not to classical music. Alissa might want to dance, but Shaun stepping up right now was probably a very bad idea.

Alissa turned to Kenny, taking his arm gently. But Kenny pulled away. "I'm wearing the monkey suit, I'm not doing the hokey pokey!"

Alissa looked back at Shaun, but Shaun shook his head silently.

Apparently Jason Calvert had indeed matured from their first descriptions of him. It seemed he recognized the dilemma posed, and stepped in.

"In the interests of detente, Cadet Reynolds, may I have this dance?"

She took his hand in evident relief. "Thank you, kind sir, and indeed you may."

Shaun watched Kenny fume as Jason led Alissa onto the dance floor. "What's that all about?" muttered Kenny. "Didn't she kick his ass down a hill once already?"

Shaun nodded. "Thus the reference to detente, most likely."

On the dance floor Alissa seemed to be having a little trouble keeping up, but Jason slowed down and patiently stepped her through. In a very short time they went from looking awkward to graceful as they circled around the dance floor. William Calvert appeared to be looking on, and grinned. "You'd never know the way they're dancing that she kicked him down a hill a while back," he commented, obviously thinking along the same lines they had been thinking.

Kenny picked up another flute of champagne and drank half of it at a swig. He no longer appeared as a happy drunk, but more likely to be a mean and nasty one. Shaun was positive any attempt to speak with him would result in an explosion, so he held his tongue. But Li Min apparently was not phased.

"May I have the honor of shaking the hand of a courageous warrior?"

This was obviously not what Kenny had expected, and for a moment he gazed at her in confusion. Then he extended his hand. "Thank you for the compliment, officer. But I think it's a bit premature. I haven't fought any real battles yet."

She shook her head. "Not premature. We know you and what you will do. And we thank you now for your spirit and courage.

"You do not know your legacy yet, but you will make a huge difference in many lives. Please believe this, and take heart. You are worthy."

Kenny seemed tongue-tied. "I really don't know what to say to that. I'm not feeling real worthy at the moment."

Li Min pressed on. "Honor and courage are not about military balls. They are about what you do when lives are on the line. If this is not your place, you can leave without shame. You have made your appearance; perhaps it is time to go home."

Kenny nodded. "I think you're right. I've had enough of this. Now, just gotta find my way home without falling into a ditch somewhere."

"Allow me to escort you. I will see you safely back to your quarters."

Kenny sighed. "You are too kind. But yes, I accept. Let me just say goodbye to the Calverts, and we'll go."

Shaun marveled at how well Li Min had handled the situation. As Kenny approached Will, Shaun spoke to her. "Thank you so much for this. I had no idea how to defuse the situation, but you worked it out wonderfully."

Li Min seemed to stiffen up as he spoke. "You are stealing his lady. I do not care for your opinion."

Shaun felt stung by this slap in the face. "I'm not trying to take Alissa from him! I'm sorry, I don't know where you get that from."

"So you say, but I know better. You will hurt him badly. So please do not speak to me."

He wanted to protest further, but the look on her face made him hold his tongue. He looked away, watching as Will clapped Kenny on the shoulder and said something that looked like a farewell. Li Min approached and apparently gave her own farewell to Will, and took Kenny by the arm. Kenny almost stumbled as they stepped off the dias, but Li Min supported him subtly and prevented it from being an actual fall.

Shaun pondered what he had learned from Li Min. Was it inevitable? Were he and Alissa destined to be together? Or was this something he could change by his actions?

Alissa seemed to be having a good time, dancing not just with Jason but a few other gentlemen and officers as well. Shaun watched to make sure she was doing alright, and he caught her gaze a couple of times. Finally a dance number ended and she excused herself from her current partner and returned to the dias. She looked around a moment, quizzical.

"Where's Kenny?"

Shaun explained. "He was getting tipsy, and the lady officer helped him go home."

He felt it wise to leave out the details of what had been said. Alissa frowned.

"I was hoping he would at least take me home. Then maybe we could have worked things out on the way."

"Perhaps you still can when you get home," Shaun tried to encourage her.

"More likely he will be asleep when I get there, and not want to talk about it tomorrow." she sighed. "So: will you escort a lady again, back home?"

Shaun nodded. "Of course. Shall we say goodbye first to our hosts?"

"Certainly."

Shaun's mind was elsewhere as they made their farewells. Together they stode slowly up the stairs and to a waiting cab, an open self-driven go-cart. They settled in and Shaun thumbed the biometric pad both to cover the credit for the cab and to give their address. The cab moved swiftly away.

Alissa had gone from holding Shaun's arm to holding his hand. She shivered in the slight breeze as the cart moved along, and pressed up against him. Mutely, he disengaged his hand from hers and placed it around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry," she said: "I get the feeling I've rather messed things up. I don't know what I did wrong, but still I feel like it's my fault."

Shaun considered what he could or might say very carefully. "I think Kenny feels criticized by things you say when you are just trying to help. He feels like he is falling short of your standards, and I think he is insulted. If you can find a way to focus on what you loved about him at the beginning and ignore some of the little things, the ones that really don't matter anyway, maybe you can find your way back to the relationship you had."

She sighed. "I suppose you're right. But there's just so many things that he doesn't get. And it hurts him not to understand what people expect. I'm just trying to help! He just doesn't see things like I do, or you do. It can be so frustrating sometimes, because I just wish he could be more like you."

Shaun didn't know what to say to that, so he said nothing. The cart arrived at Shaun's quarters, and they both dismounted. Just down the street they could see someone standing at attention just outside Kenny's and Alissa's quarters. Apparently Li Min had assigned herself guard duty.

Alissa stood facing him for a long moment, then hugged him tightly. "I do care about Kenny," she said, "but when I'm with you -- well, you're a tough act to follow."

He held her in his arms, breathing in the scent of her hair, feeling the warmth of her body pressed up against his. He didn't want to let go, but knew he had to. He gently released her and pulled back. "I don't want to come between the two of you. You and Kenny both deserve to be happy."

"But what if we can't both be happy together?" she asked.

Shaun shook his head. "I'm not your solution. If anything, I'm the problem. If I wasn't here--"

"If you weren't here, he would still be a big goofball that I would be trying to save. That's not a good match."

"Maybe not. But if you came running to me, it would kill Kenny. I don't know whether he would be broken-hearted or insane with jealousy, but it wouldn't be pretty.

"I'm sorry. You can't do that to him, and you can't put me in that position."

She sighed, "No, you're right. I couldn't do that to either of you."

She gazed down the street towards Li Min. "What do you figure her intentions are? She said she owes him a life debt, but she doesn't want to come between him and me."

Shaun considered. "I think if you weren't around, she'd snatch him up in a heartbeat. But she thinks you might be his true love, and she won't mess with that."

Alissa shook her head. "Maybe I should just tell her to go for it. Certainly it would make things easier."

"That's up to you. If you can find a way, let him down easy. If not, just know that I can't be a part of breaking his heart."

"Fair enough. I guess I have a lot to think about. You have a good night."

She turned and walked towards her quarters and the woman standing at attention before them. Before she was in speaking range, Li Min saluted stiffly and marched off.

Shaun watched Alissa go inside, then turned to his own room for the night.

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 5

Once the classroom training was done, they went back to the simulators. This time they knew about the many controls on the dashboards of their Jugs, and were able to enter preset operations to their tastes. Trainers were very patient with letting them experiment with different settings for their jump jets, displays and other aspects of performance.

But once they had down pat how they wanted the Jugs to perform, it was back to combat training. Sometimes they were evenly matched with their opponents, sometimes not. Sometimes they were operating as part of a larger squad of eight Jugs, other times it was just the three of them. Occasionally some aspect of a mission tripped them up and they came home licking their wounds, but always they were allowed to replay those scenarios to find alternate strategies that worked better.

Most of the time their original strategies worked very well. Shaun was a quick study on how to deploy their group for maximum effect in varied circumstances, and Kenny and Alissa deferred to him as a matter of course.

Finally, they were introduced to their real-life Juggernauts. Shaun felt his heart pounding almost out of his chest as they approached the hangar. Would they really be doing this now? How close would it be to the simulators?

He watched Kenny and Alissa walking towards the main door, and noticed there was no hand holding, and more distance between them than usual. Had they had an argument last night, he wondered? Or was this left over from the evening of the gala?

As he considered, he hadn't seen many signs of affection between them since then. Alissa seemed to be becoming more independent of Kenny as her training helped her grow in confidence. So sad for Kenny: he seemed to be taking this hard. But there was literally nothing Shaun could do to help the situation.

Shaun decided to approach Kenny on other matters. "So: you excited and ready for your Undertaker for real?"

Kenny looked up and smiled at that, but still seemed distracted. "You bet! The sims are great, but there are times you just wanna smash something real. I know: we will be a lot more sparing of ammo when it's the real thing, but still it will be fun."

Shaun grinned. "At least with my sword, I can do some damage without wasting ammo. That will be real fun."

Alissa seemed lost in her own thoughts, and Shaun hesitated to chat with her right now in case that might look to Kenny like flirting. So he just walked on, trying to focus on the Duo-shi and what he would do with it.

When he entered the hangar, there they were. The gigantic robots were even more impressive in real life than he had imagined. He especially looked over the Eagle's Claw: that had been his design in the game, not one of the standard Jugs from the book. It was truly a terrifying machine. He felt a sense of paternal pride.

Then he took note of the gantries behind each Jug. Fifty feet up, they were far too open for his tastes. Yes, they had railings, but the floor was a see-through grate and the whole thing looked very flimsy from the ground. At least there were elevators, and he wouldn't be expected to climb five flights of steps.

The elevators themselves were open on all sides, looking like something that would be used on a construction project instead of a finished building. He could feel his stomach rising into his throat as the elevator rose. He had never been so thankful as he was when the elevator stopped and he was able to step off onto the relative safety of the walkway.

From there it was still a hair-raising experience to get to the back of the head of the Duo-shi. It was a very comforting feeling to slide into the sturdy carapace that was the head of the Juggernaut.

He slid into his seat, fastened the belts and positioned his arms in the armrests. The system locked him into place, then powered up. There were a lot more noises in the background than he had heard in the simulator, and the strong scent of machine oil had not been present there. But otherwise there was a remarkable resemblance between the two cockpits.

This time, though, there was a heavy-duty windshield in front of him instead of a screen. Through the windshield he could see the inside of the hangar and the rest of the Jugs parked around inside it. There were many models he recognized from the game: Jason's Black Manta stood out, as did Will's Warlord. But at the moment there were only two he was interested in: Kenny's Undertaker and Alissa's Eagle's Claw. Both were coming to life and stepping out into the main bay. He followed.

"Welcome, officers. This is your first trial run with your actual Jugs. You will have three opportunities to test through in the actual unit. Should you fail all three trials, you will be returned to simulator and classroom training. Should you pass, you will graduate to the rank of Lieutenant and enter full service in the Hokliss 34th Armored Company.

"Please proceed outside and join your trainers, who will lead you through your trial."

As they stepped out into the training field, Shaun was pleased to recognize two more Juggernauts from the game: a 50-ton bantam-weight Cheetah and a 90-ton medium weight Leopard. Often paired together, the Cheetah had a speed even faster than the Eagle's Claw, with midrange lasers and missiles, while the Leopard had long range missiles and decent speed itself. In the distance he could also see a massive 140-ton Zhan-shi: another Cheung Jug stolen in battle, capable of firing 72 long range missiles at once, or attacking with a PPC. It was very slow and didn't have much for close up protection, and therefore stayed in the background in most battles. If he recalled correctly, Theresa Calvert piloted a Zhan-shi. It was nice to think one of the Calverts cared enough to watch their first run.

The first assignment was a basic obstacle course, somewhat different for Juggernauts than for people. The pilots had to maneuver their Jugs down narrow streets between six-story tall buildings, stepping over obstacles such as cars and trucks and construction debris. It was trickier than it looked, especially because the spring loaded shock absorbers in the legs behaved somewhat differently from flesh and bone legs. But Kenny had an even worse time, having four legs mounted on a horse-shaped lower body. The controls for walking were rather different, switching back and forth between the front and back legs mimicking his movements. But Shaun and Alissa each took point, Shaun in front and Alissa in back, advising him which leg to move when. In the end they all made it through, fearing that Kenny might not pass because of their assistance. But in fact they were told the opposite.

"This test wasn't just about maneuvering your personal Jugs: it was about teamwork. You all passed with flying colors."

At this point they heard the voice of Theresa Calvert break in. "Thank you, Sargeant, for your assistance. We appreciate you working with the trainees, but would like to suggest a second exercise in teamwork as part of their training.

"Please send the Cadets to me, and bring out the opposition squad."

The trio crossed the open concrete field towards the Zhan-shi, Shaun smiling in anticipation of another wargame.

"Good morning. I thought you might welcome a slightly less tedious training session. You seem to do well on first days: here is your chance to do so again.

"Today you will join me to create half a squad, and we will face half a squad of opponents. Cadet Winston and I will function as long-range support for Cadets Matthews and Reynolds who will engage the enemy directly. Be forewarned: the enemy has a close-range combatant armed with
Claws, and another whose speed exceeds yours, Miss Reynolds. You will not necessarily get the drop as frequently as you are used to.

"For this exercise, you are set in training mode. Your lasers are at 3% power, and your missiles are training type, with just a little smoke and some paint. Your Jug's sensors will record hits as if you had taken actual damage, and cripple affected functions if and when appropriate. Do you have any questions?"

Shaun replied. "None here, Captain. We will be happy to follow your lead."

"No, Cadet. This is a test of teamwork under your leadership. Your simulator trials have been excellent, but this is more real and we want to see how you confront these particular opponents."

Shaun nodded, then remembered no one could see him. "Understood. Captain and Kenny, please deploy to the rear of the field, while Alissa and I take point."

He considered what they had been told. As far as he was concerned Alissa was their most valuable weapon, always taking out as many kills as he and Kenny combined. If there was a threat to her superiority on the field, that was target #1. All else could wait until Alissa was free to kick ass.

"All units: prepare to identify fastest enemy unit and eliminate asap. Other considerations are secondary."

As he saw the enemy lineup, he couldn't help but grin. All four units were named for cats: the Cheetah, Leopard, Lion and Tiger. The Lion was a quadruped Jug with so many long range missiles that they bristled out in the front like a Lion's mane: the Tiger was the Jug with claws, but not as fast as Alissa, so he was their second concern.

He gripped his joystick controls and strode forward, observing Alissa having slowed to his own pace to keep from getting ahead of him. That could result in her getting pounced upon before the others came in range, and was much to be avoided.

He saw the enemy also advancing: but like his crew, they kept the Lion to the rear while the others came forward. The Lion was completely out of his range, which meant he was out of its range as well, but the other three Jugs were fast approaching his reach. Just as they did, the Cheetah sprang into a dash forward so fast that Shaun wasn't able to fire his missiles in time to intercept. He tried, but the swarm struck the ground well behind the oncoming Jug.

From behind he heard the double thunderclap of Kenny firing his rail guns. Both shots missed. Then suddenly a rain of death in the form of 72 missiles fell from the zhan-shi. Theresa had calculated the Jugs trajectory and led ahead with her fire, and when the smoke cleared the Cheetah was as spotted with black paint as its namesake. The Jug stumbled but did not go down.

Alissa had been holding her fire for a good shot, and now she had one. She fired a full strike on the Cheetah, and both electro lasers and two midrange lasers found their marks. Even at three percent, the electro lasers covered the Jug in an electric webbing like a lightning storm, and the onboard sensors reported a full shutdown. The Cheetah was dead.

But Alissa paid the price for lining up her shot. Suddenly she was rocked by a missile barrage from the Leopard, and out of the smoke came the charging Tiger which managed to get off a couple of clear shots from electro lasers before physically plowing into her. For training purposes the great carbon steel claws had been replaced with electrodes, but with sensors recording those charges as physical damage it was bad enough. Alissa yelped as she was literally knocked over, her damage panel screaming. And then the Tiger stepped back as 96 missiles from the Lion descended upon her.

"Alissa!" Kenny hollered out, now stepping towards the downed Jug.

"Kenny, stay back! This is still just practice, and we need you there!" Shaun replied, even as he lined up his midrange missiles and lasers and fired them at the Tiger. The lasers scored, but the Tiger jumped before the missiles could hit. He jumped straight towards Shaun.

"I'm okay, but I'm down. Have fun without me!" Alissa's exasperated voice came over the radio. Shaun breathed a quick sigh of relief and took several quick steps backward to avoid the descending Tiger.

As soon as the Tiger started descending, Theresa fired at the spot he would be landing. Kenny also lined up his shots for that spot, and fired as the Tiger touched down. The combined barrage was most effective; now the Tiger stood lifeless.

But in the meantime Shaun was busy trying to avoid missile showers from both the Leopard and the Lion, and not succeeding too well. By the time he thought to jump, the missiles were already there. His damage screen began screaming, hits from every section coming in. And yet he survived.

The Leopard was closing slowly: slowly enough to keep using its long range missiles but approaching the distance at which it could use its lasers as well. Shaun made a calculated choice and charged. In moments he was under the range where the Leopard's missiles could come down in time to hit, and the Leopard was reduced to only its lasers. At the moment that made them even, but Shaun wasn't aiming for even. As he approached the other Jug directly, he drew his sword. A swift chop to the arm disabled two of the three lasers that the Leopard had, and then Shaun plowed right into it.

The physical impact jarred him, but it also knocked the Leopard flat on the ground. Then, hearing the howl of missiles overhead, Shaun knelt next to the fallen Jug. The swarm struck and finished him off according to his damage chart, but also struck the downed Jug as well. It was a sacrifice move, but left their team ahead two to one, both sides now undamaged.

But not for long. While the Lion had been lining up its shot on Shaun, Kenny had advanced to within rail gun range and fired. Both shots smashed into the target, leaving huge black paint marks. And Theresa also fired, her 72 rounds coming down right on top of the Jug.

Their enemy froze for a moment, and for that moment they wondered if they had scored a critical hit. But then the Lion moved again, adjusting its turret and firing back.

Neither Kenny nor Theresa had the speed to outrun missiles, but both had scads of armor to protect them from enemy fire. Kenny said a silent prayer as he saw the 96 missiles all heading for him.

It made sense, really. His guns had a tendency to do serious, penetrating damage while missiles more often than not just peppered their targets with small amounts of damage here and there, not enough to penetrate armor. Fortunately that was what was coming down on him now. He gritted his teeth at the sound of the missiles striking, like a string of giant firecrackers going off one right after another.

In moments it was over. He was still active and functional, though damage to armor was being reported from all over the Jug. He adjusted his aim and fired back. So did Theresa.

For a second time the Lion was subject to a blinding barrage of both missiles and projectiles. This time it did not survive. The quad Jug's legs crumpled under it as it collapsed.

"Excellent work, everyone," Theresa's voice came over the radio. "Disengage training mode, now!"

As soon as systems switched to normal, all combatants were able to stand and maneuver once more.

"Now, let us all attend the debriefing. See everyone inside," Theresa continued.

Shaun released his sword back to its place on his arm and turned to Alissa.

"That was a bit of a fall. You didn't get too shaken up?"

Her voice came back. "Naw: it was just like the simulator, no worse. I guess I toughened myself up for it."

He helped her to her feet. "Doesn't look like your Jug is any the worse for wear. That's good. Let's truck for that debriefing."

Soon they were entering the briefing room, and found Theresa, Chun Li Min and four strangers in uniform sitting there before them at a table with covered dishes at all places and bottles of wine or champagne scattered about. Theresa stood and nodded to them.

"Hokliss 34th: meet the Hokliss 34th. These are previous members of the Company, and your opponents in our last battle. As of today I am assigning you all to Gold Squad. I expect you all to exercise the same good judgement I saw in this run and every other run you have done in the sims.

"Allow me to make introductions: Shaun Mathews, the Duo-shi pilot and your new squad leader. Congratulations, Shaun, you just made lieutenant and now we're bumping you up to Lieutenant Commander. Say hello to your new squad."

Shaun stammered for a moment, not having expected this. "Uhm, thank you, everyone. I look forward to getting to know you, and promise to do my best leading your squad. Obviously some of you have been around a lot longer than I have; I hope there are no hard feelings about my promotion. If any of you have any concerns you'd like to discuss, my door will always be open. And, uh: good fight today, guys."

Theresa smiled at that. "Very good. Lieutenant Alissa Reynolds, pilot of the Eagle's Claw. Have a word, if you will."

Alissa stammered for a moment as well. "Gee, guys, I don't know what to say. Nice meeting you: I'm sure we'll get to talk soon and get to know each other. I just want to say, too, congratulations to Shaun, and encourage you all to have confidence in him. He's always been a great leader, and I believe he's a man you can trust."

Shaun blushed at the compliment. He hadn't expected Alissa to stand up so strongly for him.

Theresa continued. "Lieutenant Kenny Winston, Undertaker pilot. Your turn."

Kenny gave everyone a wave. "Thanks, guys: it's nice to be here. You gave us a real challenge out there. I know we're all looking forward to learning from you and fighting beside you. Thank you."

Theresa smiled. "I believe you are all acquainted with Lieutenant Chun Li Min. She was not in the battle just now, but pilots a Jaguar. I believe you will find her to be a terrifying close-range warrior."

Chun Li Min bowed to one and all. "The Captain is too kind. Look forward to working with all of you."

Theresa nodded. "And to continue: Lieutenant Lorenzo Esteban, pilot of the Cheetah."

Lorenzo appeared somewhat older than the trio, perhaps in his late 20's. He seemed very smooth and polished, an almost dashing figure. He stood, bowed, and raised a glass to the trio. His latin accent was thick but smooth.

"My congratulations to all of you on your promotions and welcome to the Hokliss 34th. We look forward to working with you all."

Theresa continued. "Lieutenant Tanya Colfax, pilot of the Leopard."

Tanya looked to be in her mid twenties with sandy-blonde hair, but like she had gotten too much sun over time. Her figure was very muscular, and her movements reflected that power. "Welcome to the 34th. Talk more later."

"Lieutenant Leonard Marlowe, pilot of the Lion."

Leonard appeared to be in his mid thirties, and wore a short, distinguished beard and moustache. Like Lorenzo, he raised a glass to the trio. His accent was clearly English. "Congratulations on all your promotions, and welcome to the finest Company in the Union of Free Colonies. We look forward to serving with you."

"And finally, Lieutenant Michael Arnold, pilot of the Tiger."

Michael appeared much older, even to showing a little gray hair. A big man, he had the build of a weightlifter or a boxer. He nodded to the group. "Good to meet ya. Let's kick some Jug ass together."

The last comment provoked a small round of general laughter, then Theresa spoke once more. "Come, join us at the table and let's eat. Feel free to chat and get to know each other."

It had been a long morning, and Shaun for one was starved. He gladly took a seat and raised the cover on his plate. He found a roasted chicken breast, mashed potatoes and gravy and peas. It all smelled delicious, and as he soon found out tasted delicious as well.

"Thanks for the meal," he said to Theresa: "this is really good. Any secrets the cooks are holding out on?"

"Not really," replied Theresa: "Most of our meals are frozen, prepacked sets. We're good at it, but nothing beats fresh meats like this, real potatoes and fresh vegetables. If I understand right, that's mostly what you ate in the 21st century?"

"I'd say half and half," Shaun mused, "We had access to fresh food, but often it was simpler to go for frozen dinners. It sounds like things haven't changed that much in 500 years."

Leonard replied. "We are more like 80-20 on the percents. Fresh food is rare, especially in the military, but fortunately our frozen foods are decent. You might be surprised to know, of the frozen foods just how much is completely artificial. By the mid 21st century some of your most common grains and vegetables were extinct, and only artificial versions from soy or seaweed were available. Now we have not only those perfected, but several completely original fruits, vegetables and meats with their own unique flavors, all artificial."

Kenny shook his head. "Wow. That's just wild. How did anyone come up with the ideas for something so completely original?"

"The same experts who designed the sequences to make foods as much like our real foods as possible naturally stumbled across a few happy accidents: foods that didn't taste like the target foods but which were delicious anyway," Leonard continued. "And so, a whole new set of foods was introduced: foods unlike anything else, so they didn't have to try so hard to make them 'like' anything."

Lorenzo chuckled. "As you can see, the professor here is quite the wizard of arcane knowledge. All of this happened centuries ago, though they occasionally come out with yet another new flavor. Mostly we just take our food for granted."

Shaun nodded. "I would have to say most of the time we take our food for granted, too. I don't know what we would have done without corn, wheat or some of the other staples we relied on. I guess we found out."

"There are many things we take for granted," Theresa interjected. "Like the levels of skills at this table. I intend to rotate assignments to place each of our more experienced pilots with our novices to give both helpful support and advice on running Jugs with their capabilities. Alissa, I think you could learn a lot from both Lorenzo and Li Min about the advantages of a fast Jug. Shaun, when the turns come around I hope you will listen to Tanya and Michael about combining midrange and melee attacks. Kenny: both Leonard and I have plenty of experience piloting long range fighters. Yes, we use missiles instead of rail guns and that does make a difference, but not as much as you might think."

Alissa nodded. "I think I am doing pretty well with the Eagle's Claw, but there's always room for improvement. I take it you want us to discuss strategy while we are out as a group: wouldn't it work better to do so one on one?"

Lorenzo raised a glass. "If the young lady wishes a more personal approach, I would be happy to assist in a more face to face manner."

There was some general snickering from Lorenzo's squad mates. Tanya spoke up. "Lorenzo has quite the reputation with the ladies. No doubt he'd be interested in getting face to face."

Alissa blushed at that. "Thanks, but I don't think so. Just the Jugs, please."

Shaun thought he saw Alissa sneak a sideways glance at him, when it seemed to Shaun more appropriate that that gaze should have gone to Kenny. He cleared his throat, trying to get past an awkward moment. "Thank you, Theresa. I will be happy to learn more about both strategy and combat skills from both of these officers."

Tanya nodded. "There's not that much difference between the Leopard and the Duo-shi. Both have long range and midrange missiles, both have midrange lasers for defense up close, and they run at the same speed. And they can both jump, so that's good, too."

Shaun had noticed that so far Michael and Li Min had not spoken up. He hoped he was not being intrusive, but he was curious.

"If I may, Lieutenant Arnold: I suppose you have some advice for close quarters combat, you with your claws, me with my sword?"

Michael looked up from his plate. "Advice: hit and don't get hit. Works for me."

Shaun didn't know for a moment if he should be offended by the older man's gruff and unhelpful demeanor, but then he noticed the wry grin on Michael's face and heard a couple of chuckles from across the table.

Tanya spoke up. "Don't worry, kiddo. He's just better with his fists than his tongue. He'll teach ya plenty when we get out there."

"Thanks," replied Shaun, "I guess we'll see when the time comes."

Kenny had been quietly devouring his meal and apparently listening in on the rest of the conversations, but now he spoke. "Theresa, Captain, I just want to thank you so much for the great treatment we have received ever since we got here. And also, I am looking forward to working with you and Leonard. I know I'm gonna have to work to compensate for the difference in range between my guns and their missiles, but you got ideas, right?"

Theresa and Leonard exchanged glances. "I am sure we can find some solutions for you," Leonard replied. "Obviously it's not a situation we face on a daily basis. I suspect our main solutions will be armor, armor, armor, and anti-missile systems. But it may also involve a bit of a dance on your part, stepping into range, then out of range quickly. We will see what's possible and practical. No doubt terrain will also be a factor, sometimes in your favor, sometimes against. Careful maneuvering should find you in the best position available."

Kenny shrugged. "I don't know that what you have said is any different from what we already knew from playing the tabletop game. Maybe that just proves how valuable our game experience is, but I figured that people who have actually been fighting in Jugs for a career might know a bit more on the subject than we do."

The comment apparently inflamed Michael's temper. "Now, listen here, young twerp! We'll be showin' ya on the field what we've learned that you haven't yet, and ye'll be eatin' them words!"

Li Min was on her feet in a moment. "You will speak with respect to your fellow officer, or I will teach you!"

Kenny raised his hands defensively. "I'm sorry. I honestly didn't mean that to come out that way. I do believe we have a lot to learn from you, and I didn't mean to say we didn't. Sorry…"

Shaun cleared his throat. "I hope you can forgive my friend. I think all the hero worship we've been getting may have gone to his head: to all our heads, at least somewhat. They should be so swelled by now we can't walk through single doors. Maybe he needs - maybe we all need - a little disinflation of our egos. No doubt a practical demonstration of skill on the field would do much to improve our perspectives."

Theresa nodded. "Well said. We should give you the perspective of meeting an enemy who can outmaneuver you strategically. Certainly there are plenty of those around here."

Michael glared at Li Min, then interjected. "I say let me have a go at the twerp one on one, and show him what a Tiger's made of."

Theresa and Leonard exchanged glances before she answered. "The whole point of a squad is to help our heavy hitters avoid attacks from the front line troops, and allow them to support the front liners with long range barrages. But there will of course be occasions when a front liner makes it through, just as in football when the quarterback gets sacked.

"Yes, that might be an appropriate training scenario."

Kenny was looking a little green, but he nodded. "Okay, if that's the way it's gotta be."

Shaun felt irked, but there was nothing he could do. Kenny had put his foot in his mouth, and was gonna pay a price for it, in spite of Li Min's vehemence. With remorse, Shaun realized that he was also relieved it hadn't been him. But maybe it should be: Kenny shouldn't have to stand alone. He cleared his throat.

"If I may: the scenario will be most inaccurate if Michael has a free field in front of him to attack Kenny directly. Shouldn't there be someone blocking him at first, slowing him a little so Kenny has a chance to get a good shot off at him?"

Li Min bowed. "I humbly volunteer to serve as blocker for training purposes."

Shaun shook his head. "I think it more appropriate that I take that position, both as Commanding officer and as needing a bit of training myself. I appreciate the offer, but perhaps another time."

Michael growled. "If yer volunteerin' to take a beatin' wit yer pal, so be it. I can take yas even two on one. Don't give me no backup: all the more humiliation' for yas when I win."

Theresa nodded. "If everyone is satisfied with this arrangement, then let it be so. Challenge is accepted for dawn tomorrow. In the meantime, let us finish eating."

As Shaun took a seat again he glanced over at Kenny, who was looking back at him with gratitude. Kenny silently raised a glass to him, and Shaun replied in kind and drank. He noticed that Alissa was also smiling brightly at him, probably in gratitude for defending her boyfriend, he hoped.

After the meal, and after Michael had strode out of the room, Theresa approached him. "I just wanted to say that I greatly appreciate what you did here today. It takes a good leader to step up and defend his people in an appropriate manner, and that's what you did. Whenever we run as half squads or full, I want you in charge of whichever group you're in."

Shaun nodded. "Thank you. I really appreciate the trust you're putting in me."

"You have earned it. Use it well." Theresa moved on, leaving Shaun to contemplate his new situation.

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 6

Fighting at dawn tomorrow of course meant getting up well before the break of dawn to get ready. As he showered, Shaun pondered the possible advantage or disadvantage of one of the opponents facing into the rising sun. They would probably compensate by having the field set up with opponents to the north and south, but if he circled to the east he might be able to gain an advantage. Then again, Jug canopies might be polarized enough to negate that, he considered ruefully. But it was worth a try.

Once at the hangar he looked out on the predawn horizon, feeling the sense of calm and beauty such a time always seemed to have, before everything awoke. His reverie was interrupted, though, when Kenny approached him on the gantry. Kenny reached out and patted him on the shoulder.

"I don't know how to thank you. I'm pretty sure that guy was gonna whale on me, and thanks to you, maybe he won't get that chance. That means a lot."

Shaun nodded. "I can't promise he won't break through. He's a veteran in that Tiger, and I would be amazed if he didn't know some tricks we don't. But if I can buy you a little time, I will. I had a thought earlier: if you can, circle to the east. Then the sun will be in his eyes. It might help."

Kenny gripped his shoulder. "That's a terrific thought! Thanks for sharing!"

"If I can I'll lead him to the West to make it easier for you, make your movement look more natural. Let's see if we can bracket him, do some damage. Time to saddle up: let's do it to it."

Together they marched out to the field, where they could see the Zhan-shi and the Tiger both waiting for them. Apparently Theresa was willing to get out of bed as early as anyone in her command. In the background Shaun could see the Eagle's Claw, meaning that Alissa had showed up, and another Jug he couldn't identify. He was a little surprised: the way things had been going between Alissa and Kenny, he wasn't expecting her to show this kind of support. Of course, it was also possible she was there to support _him_ instead. As to the other Jug, it looked to be bristling with lasers. He wondered if that was Li Min's Jaguar. The lady certainly seemed dedicated to Kenny.

"Welcome, gentlemen," Theresa's voice came through the radio. "Please deploy to your appointed locations."

The field today was basically sand dunes and rock cliffs topped with a little scrub greenery. From his briefing on the planet, he understood that this was what most of the land masses looked like for mile upon mile.

On the map, two flashing green boxes and one red box appeared. As Shaun had predicted, they were set to the south while Michael was set to the north. Fortunately Shaun was set on the western side: thus his progress could naturally take the Tiger west and leave Kenny to the east.

Shaun strode through the sand to his position, a bit forward of Kenny's as would be appropriate in combat. Kenny's voice came on. "Now, don't move too far and get out of range. If you do I won't be able to support you and it's all for nothing."

"Affirmative. I'll try to give you the best shots I can at him, stay out of your way. Of course he knows that, and will probably try to close quick. So do what you can as early and often as you can."

They reached their respective boxed locations and the flashing on the screen ceased. Theresa fired off a single missile high in the air. Once it blew, they began moving forward.

As Shaun had expected and more or less hoped, Michael moved his Tiger to the west, trying to set the Duo-shi squarely between himself and the Undertaker, to make Shaun block Kenny's line of sight. Shaun moved to the west as well, not advancing towards the Tiger. Kenny moved east and forward, trying to acquire the Tiger in his sights. The triangle of which they were each a point grew smaller as they closed distances. Soon the Tiger would be in range for Shaun's long range missiles. And then the Tiger turned and charged at the Undertaker.

Shaun cursed as he realized he had been led down the garden path. Trying to leave the Tiger open to Kenny, he had left Kenny open to the tiger. But good news: the charge kept the Tiger within his missile range. He led his target and fired his missiles. But the moment he fired, the Tiger shifted direction and turned towards Shaun. The turn was fast enough to fool the missiles and send them sailing harmlessly into the dunes.

Two thunderous cracks came from the Undertaker, but both missed the Tiger. Now the Tiger was in range for mid range missiles both from Shaun, and from the Tiger towards Shaun. Shaun twiddled the reticles onto the Tiger and opened fire. He was greeted in kind.

He belatedly tried to step aside, but the mid range missiles were too quick for that. As he took the blows from the missiles, his only consolation was that the Tiger must be taking blows too. But he was positive the Tiger would be moving in his direction as quickly as possible, so the instant he could he jumped towards Kenny to get back between the two.

Mid-jump, he could hear the thunder of the rail guns firing again. This time he heard a very satisfying bang as well from the other end of the field: the shot had connected with the Tiger. He whooped as he landed, immediately looking to line up for another missile shot.

But this time he was too late. Michael had judged his trajectory accurately and charged. Shaun barely had time to grab his sword and swing as the Tiger reached him. The Tiger ducked, and suddenly Shaun felt the repercussions of two savage blows to the Duo-shi's midsection. Damage control alerted him that he had just lost both lasers, and thus had no close-range weapons besides his sword. He spun around, sword out, trying desperately to score a strike on the Tiger.

Then he felt the slam of two huge fists directly on his cockpit, and damage control shut him down. Michael had scored fatal blows, and Shaun was out of the fight.

But the moment the Tiger disengaged, Shaun heard the railguns fire once more and two distinct bangs from the shots hitting the Tiger. Shaun had accomplished his goal: he had given Kenny time and opportunity to score a few hits on Michael before getting rushed.

With damage control locking him out, all Shaun could do now was observe the progress of the battle on the map. Kenny was backing up to the east as the Tiger charged, firing missiles as it went. Shaun didn't have a way to evaluate how much damage the missiles caused, but he figured it was mostly a smoke screen to make it harder to hit with the railguns.

Still, Kenny was in the east with the sun shining over his shoulders and giving him an excellent view of the Tiger. He fired again, and this time the Tiger stopped. Apparently Kenny had scored a leg shot, because the Tiger continued shortly but at a much reduced pace. It was still faster than Kenny's ability to back up.

The Tiger launched midrange missiles now as it closed in, but it wasn't enough to prevent Kenny from scoring another hit. Somehow Michael kept trudging through the sand, like some inexorable force out of nightmares. Finally the Tiger was in range for Kenny's lasers, which he fired along with the railguns in a total strike. At last the Tiger stopped, dead in its tracks.

"Congratulations, me boyo. Yer CO saved yas from a fine arse-whippin', this time. Consider it postponed." Michael growled.

Shaun felt his temper rising critically. "Now, that's enough! Lieutenant Arnold: you were given permission to engage in this one grudge match in spite of having received a sincere apology for your wounded feelings. But you two are squadmates, and you will _not_ pursue this grudge into a vendetta. Any further incidents of threats or harassments, and I will put you on report."

It took a moment for the Lieutenant to reply, but when he did it was with energy and conviction. "Sir, yes, sir! I assure you there will be no further incidents, sir!"

Shaun felt somewhat surprised at himself for having taken such a hardline approach with the veteran, but if Michael was sincere, which he did not doubt, he couldn't have asked for a better outcome. "Very well. At ease."

Theresa broke in. "Alright: chow time, everyone! Get your Jugs inside and get to the mess hall for breakfast!"

The damage control screens corrected themselves, and everyone returned to the hangars. Once Shaun was out of his cockpit, he saw Kenny approaching again. Kenny grabbed his hand and shook it firmly.

"Man, thanks are not enough! Without you there, I'm thinking he would have pulverized me! And way to go, putting him back on his heels by pulling rank!"

Shaun accepted the handshake. "Not something I hope to do on any kind of regular basis, but given the circumstances, I thought it appropriate."

"Absolutely!" Kenny beamed at him. "Even if it wasn't me, I'd say you can't have one guy in the group bullying another. It just doesn't work for -- well, anything!"

Shaun smiled and nodded as Kenny kept talking, but began walking to the elevator. He was hungry, and in spite of having helped Kenny out of a bad scrape he felt guilty about how his presence was affecting Kenny's relationship with Alissa.

At the elevator they met Alissa, who looked half asleep still. She gave Kenny a brief hug.

"Good work, both of you. Now maybe he'll leave you alone."

Kenny shrugged. "He said he would. We'll just have to see. He did give Shaun a beating: maybe he'll settle for that."

"Yeah, rub it in," Shaun smirked. "But if that's the worst it gets, I'll count our lucky stars."

Alissa turned and hugged Shaun. "Thank you for protecting him. Sometimes he needs it."

Shaun put his arms around her awkwardly, not wanting to make too much of the hug especially in front of Kenny. But after a brief, tight squeeze, Alissa let him go and stepped back.

"Well, we don't want to miss out on breakfast. Let's go!" She stepped onto the elevator and they followed.

In the months that followed, Shaun and his friends did learn a lot about maneuvering their Jugs, about strategy and taking cover and other approaches to the battlefield. Michael was true to his word; he never approached Kenny directly, and when occasions arose where Kenny needed to speak to him he was civil and polite. The rest of the squad were friendly, though Li Min remained distant, generally choosing to sit as far from Kenny as possible. Shaun had been impressed with her ferocity on the field in the Jaguar. Though her weapons were all mid-range lasers she was fast and deadly, blasting Jugs to bits as fast as she could pounce on them.

Rotating out with the different pilots in the other half of the squad proved to be very informative. There was such a difference in strategy between when they had an extra heavy hitter like Leonard and his Lion as opposed to a fast predator like Lorenzo, Li Min or Michael. Shaun had to say he really appreciated the speedier approach. Most gamers loved the heavy hitters, but he had always found smaller, fast Jugs to be more versatile and interesting to run.

Then came the day that he was summoned to the Captain's office. Theresa was sitting at her desk, obviously contemplating a file. Shaun entered and snapped to attention.

"Reporting for duty, Captain."

She smiled. "At ease. And yes, you are. A real duty this time. We need you and the squad for a patrol run."

She laid out a star chart with half a dozen star systems highlighted.

"This is one of our standard border patrols. All these systems are occupied by our allies, and all of them come under occasional attack by border bandits. I need you and the squad to make a run through these systems, set down and make your presence known, and to say hello to the local governors. You should be greeted and treated well: you give them confidence that they will be defended against attacks. Of course there is no chance of us getting from here to there in the minutes' notice we would have before an attack occurred, but the enemy will see us and know we would avenge any incursion and attempt to recover any stolen properties.

"We make these patrols as frequently as we can afford to. The governors rely on us to give their citizens confidence in their own security. This is as much a diplomatic mission as it is a scouting expedition, but you have shown yourself to be adept at diplomacy. Do you have any questions or concerns about this mission as I have explained it to you?"

Shaun shook his head. "Sounds simple enough. I'm a little surprised you don't have someone a bit more experienced at the wheel, but I am guessing they're occupied with more important tasks. From what you've said, odds are almost nil that we will come into any kind of combat."

Theresa nodded. "It's not like Will or I can hop out on a patrol whenever, and leave Hokliss to run itself. You and Alissa are great as the squeaky-clean faces of our newest squad. The rest of the squad may not have your ingratiating qualities, but they can smile and wave with the best of them. And that's all we really need."

"Consider it done. How do we get there?"

Theresa picked up a pad and spun the view to show him a vessel more or less resembling the space shuttle he knew from the 20th century.

"This is the Falcon class orbital cruiser named 'Close Quarters,' which will carry you. Each of the systems you are going to have their own HyperJump gate, so the fact that the Falcon is not equipped for independent HJ is not a factor. She will carry you to and from orbit, and through the gates. The 'Close Quarters' is equipped for combat drops, but there would be no reason to do that for just a friendly visit."

Shaun grinned. "Combat jump. Now, that would be an experience. Haven't trained for that yet, even in the simulators. But as you are saying, we'll save that for another time."

Theresa chuckled. "Yes, indeed. Most pilots don't care for an actual combat drop at all: you get pretty shook up on those."

Shaun considered. "It sounds like you are expecting me and Alissa to spearhead the social relations side of things. What about Kenny?"

Theresa gave him a sidelong glance. "Would you say that Kenny has ever shown any tendency towards being diplomatic?"

Shaun sighed. "No, I guess not. But this kinda shoves me and his girlfriend into an arrangement that he may not like. It seems kinda cozy."

"I am trusting that you and Alissa will do whatever you need to to put Kenny at ease, and also accomplish the mission."

Shaun nodded. "So, it's on us. Okay, I get it. Anything else?"

"Not at the moment. Have a good trip."

As he walked back to his quarters, Shaun considered how he should put this to Alissa and Kenny. He was being trusted with a diplomatic mission; he figured he should be able to find a diplomatic way of phrasing this, too. He sent a message to the squad, asking them to meet in half an hour at one of the meeting rooms.

When everyone had arrived, he addressed them from the front of the room.

"Well, looks like we get to go on a road trip, folks. They want us to do a tour to show some force at a few of our friends' planets, let 'em know we're still standing with them. Sounds like we will be honored guests, so probably some state dinners and speeches, that sort of thing. Theresa was hoping you could all back up Alissa and me with just your presences, while we make nice with the natives. I hope getting a few nice dinners and chances to wear your dress unis won't be a problem for anyone. Any questions?"

All the experienced squad members seemed to take this in stride. Alissa also looked calm and composed, but Kenny was shifting about in his seat, looking back and forth between Alissa and Shaun with a frown on his face. Nonetheless, he did not raise a hand or speak up, so Shaun merely nodded to the group.

"Alright. Full mission profiles will be forwarded to everyone. I'd start packing. Dismissed."

As he expected, everyone but Kenny rose and headed for the exit, but Kenny stayed behind and approached him.

"So, what is this about you and Alissa 'making nice with the natives?' What are the rest of us, chopped liver?"

Shaun shook his head. "As commanding officer, they want me to speak. And I guess they figure Alissa makes an agreeable presence as well. Too many cooks spoil the soup, so they stopped at us two. Besides, did you really want to do a bunch of speechifying?"

Kenny scowled. "Of course not! It just seems -- I dunno. I feel like there's always something driving a wedge between me and her, and often you're on the end of it. I don't like it, and here it is, again."

Shaun sighed. "I wish I knew what to tell you. I see your point, but I swear it's nothing deliberate that I'm doing. People around here tend to lump her and me together, I don't know why."

"I do. You two look good together: really good. Me, I just look like the hairy ape from the jungle who doesn't fit in. I don't know what I was ever doing introducing you two to each other. But there's nothing can be done about it now. You two have a fun speaking tour. Maybe I'll get some face time with her when we get back."

Kenny turned and slouched from the room. Shaun tried to think of something to say, but finally thought it best to just hold his tongue. Outside the door Shaun could see Li Min waiting for Kenny. Maybe she would have something comforting to say to him. Shaun hoped so.

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 7

As far as Shaun was concerned, the tour was a blast. He found himself getting very comfortable making short speeches to reassure banquet guests that the Hokliss 34th was ready, willing and able to defend them at need, and that they had the full backing of House Calvert.

Several times Alissa was approached by gentlemen who seemed interested in having a more intimate conversation, but Shaun would always step up and politely fend them off. On occasion it would be young ladies approaching Shaun, and while Alissa seemed mostly amused by this, she was willing to help Shaun discourage them.

Kenny, however, did not seem amused. He spoke to Shaun later. "If you and Alissa aren't hooking up, then what's the real reason you keep turning down all these gorgeous ladies?"

Shaun rolled his eyes. "What are you suggesting? That I go alley-catting around over half the galaxy with women I'll never meet again? I don't think so. We even know we're going to be leaving here to go back in their past: how irresponsible would I be to start something up right now?"

Kenny sighed. "I suppose you're right. That wouldn't work out too well in the long run. But hey: it would be fun while it lasted."

"Yeah, yeah: always looks greener on the other side of the fence. No, I am not taking that kind of advantage of anyone."

They had jumped through five star systems, each of them friendly and welcoming, when they arrived in orbit over Perseus 6. As was generally the case when making a hyperjump, they were all seated and strapped in as they arrived. Before they had a chance to undo their seat belts, a warning claxon sounded.

"Attention, all passengers! Please remain seated and secure at this time. We have encountered a Cheung cruiser parked by the hyperjump gate. We are preparing for combat."

With no further notice, the Close Quarters veered off of their trajectory and into maneuvers. At times Shaun thought he could hear through the hull the sounds of lasers firing, but it was hard to be sure. What he did know was that Alissa was gripping his hand tightly as the ship slammed about, jostling them like a roller coaster. Occasionally Shaun felt a jolt that he believed was from something impacting against the ship instead of from their own engine reactions, but he couldn't be sure. He held his breath, just hoping they weren't about to be vaporized or the ship hulled and suffocated.

"Got 'im!" The Captain's voice came over the speaker. "The Cheung ship is now so much debris riding down into the atmosphere. But they were a Juggernaut transport, so that means troops on the ground. We don't know what facilities they control on the ground, so we don't dare attempt to land in case they have taken over the AA batteries. Sorry, guys: looks like you'll be doing a combat drop."

Shaun sighed. Their first real mission after training, meant to be a milk run, and they would be dropping from orbit straight into battle? Thank goodness for their veteran fighters! From everything he had heard of orbital drops, they would tend to be quite disorienting. He, Alissa and Kenny would probably take a minute or two regaining their balance before they were combat-worthy.

At least the drop pods he had seen here had actual portholes they could see through. Many versions he had seen illustrated at home did not. He suited up quickly and mounted into his Jug, alert for instructions or at least information.

"That Cheung Firecat could only carry eight Jugs, so your worst estimate is one on one, just who knows what scale. From satellite images, looks like they all converged on the city of Palatine and its surrounding areas. We will try to bring you down within five klicks of the city, clustered landing to keep you close together. Good luck."

Shaun couldn't help but sigh in relief. In practice they generally cleaned up at two on one, and fared well even three on one: one on one should be easy pickings.

"A word to the wise," the Captain's voice came back on: "the natives generally don't appreciate it when your missiles tear up their power plants, water plants, anything vital. Whenever possible, lure the enemy out into clearer spaces where you can do less collateral damage.

"And finally: once you're down on the ground I can relay you some satellite intel, but during drop is comm blackout. Just can't hear through the friction and static. But it won't be long and we'll be back on the air. Good hunting!"

Shaun stepped the Jug into the drop pod, felt the support tethers anchor him in place and heard the massive blast doors close behind him.

"Dropping in three, two one: mark!"

It was a sickening feeling to have his stomach leap into his throat as the pod shot out from the bottom of the ship, starting a drop fifty miles straight down. For several seconds his vision went blurry before he was able to focus and look out the porthole.

More than any other sight he had seen so far, this one confirmed to him the fantastic scale of the universe into which he had arrived. He was literally in outer space, and yet in half an hour he would be back on the ground. And on the way down he would be encased in a fireball. What in his old world could possibly compare?

And for maybe the first time since his arrival, he found himself completely alone. The radio had shut down due to the blare of static caused by re-entry, and he was left to contemplate his thoughts. But all it seemed he could think of was Alissa's hand in his a half hour ago. He knew she had needed comfort and he had gladly given it to her, but he was just beginning to see how much comfort she had given him.

What did he want? She was wonderful company, and if it weren't for Kenny he would date her in a heartbeat. In fact, they kept finding themselves in situations that felt remarkably like dates, and that had been going on for some time. But there was Kenny, and there was no getting around that. And so he remained in a quandary.

The Jug began to shudder around him as they began to hit resistance from the thin air of the upper atmosphere. The vibrations were greatly reduced by the elastic tethers holding the Jug in place, but Shaun could still feel his teeth chattering as if he had hypothermia. And now he could see nothing outside but fire flashing across the porthole.

And gradually the shuddering grew until it invaded every corner of his being. Could he escape a concussion? He began to wonder. And then came the voice over the monitor.

"Prepare for deceleration: 10, 9, 8…"

He sighed in relief as the countdown moved on, and suddenly he felt himself slammed back down into his body as the thrusters came on. From floating up towards the ceiling he switched to three times his normal weight weighing him down towards the floor. He gritted his teeth and stood up in the cockpit, ready to activate jump jets.

"General release in 10, 9, 8…"

He braced himself as the tether snapped loose, and suddenly the pod fell apart around him until he was standing on nothing but the base. He flexed his feet and jumped away from even that, still a little high up for his tastes, but the ground rose quickly to meet him.

His landing was a bit shaky, and he realized he was having a hard time keeping his balance after all the battering he had taken in drop. He took a cautious step, then another, then eased into regular walking. And then the radio came back on.

"Attention, ground forces! Two more Cheung cruisers have dropped in! We must retreat: you may have about 30 minutes before three more squads land. I'd mop up the first group fast! Will call when we are back in orbit."

Shaun groaned. Wow: from a walk in the park to a four on one? Was it a Friday the 13th today? He started running in the direction of the city, and called out on the radio.

"Gold Squad: report!"

"Kenny here. Think I landed pretty close to the city. May be a good thing: this bucket of bolts can't move too quick, so I needed a head start. Just, I could sure use some backup before I get there."

"Li Min reporting in. I've got Kenny on my scope: will be there in three minutes."

The rest of the squad reported in in turns, acknowledging their arrival and positions. Soon they were coordinated into two half squads approaching the city. Then a new voice broke through on the radio.

"Yes, yes, this is the frequency they gave me -- hello? Is that Hokliss coming to our rescue?"

Shaun smiled. "Hokliss 34th, on our way. Can you give us any intel on the attackers?"

"We think there are eight Jugs out there, and they've already attacked our power grid. If we didn't have a generator I wouldn't be getting to talk to you. They are patrolling the city, but I think when they hear you coming they may come out to fight. We wish you the best: please don't wreck the city too much?"

"We'll be as careful as possible. If they come out it won't be a problem. But if they stay in the city, I'm not sure what we can do. There are more coming in just a few minutes, so we have to fight them quickly."

Shaun realized that if the enemy dug in, they would have an impossible situation on their hands. He gave it a moment's thought.

"Squad, we're going to have to break up, and half of you are going to have to virtually shut down to avoid detection. We need four smaller jugs to come out and pose as the only rescuers until we can draw them out of the city, so we don't do extensive civic damage.

"Alissa, Lorenzo and Michael, please join me. Tanya and Li Min: please guard Kenny and Leonard. Be prepared to pop up as soon as we have drawn the enemy out of the city."

There was a chorus of assents over the radio, and Shaun continued to move towards the town. He was used to the map being projected on his screen, but without the cruiser in high orbit there was no way to obtain the data that fed that map. He looked around the field he was passing through and spotted Alissa and Lorenzo on the same course that he was, towards the city. He couldn't tell where Michael's Tiger had gone, but hoped he was on the way hidden in the tree line or elsewhere.

As he approached the city he saw other Jugs moving among the buildings. At first they seemed to be taking shelter behind the buildings, but once he and the other two Jugs moved out and became visible, six Jugs from the city stepped out and approached.

The radio popped on again, this time with a heavily accented voice on the other line. "Hey, Bobbaloos! You sure you want to do this? We got hairy big Jugs here happy to meet you, squash you!"

"Oh, yeah? Come on out and put your metal where your mouth is!" Shaun challenged back. And indeed, the enemy Jugs started coming out of the city towards the three standing in the field. Shaun could see they did indeed have some big Jugs: he recognized two 95-ton Bullies, Jugs with Popeye arms loaded with missiles, a 140-ton Zhan-shi very much like Theresa Calvert's, a pair of medium-class 75-ton Wu-shi, each with a long-range electro laser and cannon and certainly their fastest opponents, and a 150-ton Dreadnought bristling with weapons barrels.Yes, indeed, these were some well-armed bandits.

The Chinese voice continued. "Thank you for bringing us these nice, shiny toys for our babies to play with. We will try to be careful not to scratch them up too bad when we hose you out of the cockpits."

Alissa chimed in. "You know what they say about 'a bird in the hand?' Gets you crapped on every time!" She boosted closer as Shaun began moving towards the enemy. Before the bullies and the Wu-shi had a chance to fire, Shaun locked on, fired and jumped. Four bright blooms of missiles had launched at his location, but he was no longer there. Alissa was still far enough off not to be caught in the blast, and Lorenzo suddenly jumped into a run at the same time.

Shaun's long-range missiles came down on one of the Wu-shi, causing them to stagger backwards. Lorenzo took his cue from Shaun and launched mid-range missiles, then bathed the Wu-shi in laser fire. The Wu-shi's side exploded and it went down.

"First blood, and not the last!" Shaun declared. "Try that on for size!"

As he was speaking he heard the thunderous crack of two railguns firing, and saw the sizzling rays of two PPCs just narrowly missing him in the air. The Dreadnought was now in range, but fortunately had missed him completely. He landed and sprang into a run.

From behind he heard the whine and crackle of Alissa's electrolasers. She had focused on the second Wu-shi, and was blasting it hard.

Now swarms of missiles from all directions began descending on the team. Shaun tried to jump again, but the missiles rained down so fast and heavy that he was not able to get off the ground. He kept moving forward, hoping to get out from under the barrage, but he was taking a pounding.

And then he stepped out from under the shower of missiles, just in time to see Michael's Tiger bearing down on the Wu-shi and smashing it to the ground with two blows from the Tiger's claws.

Then came the crack of the railguns again, followed immediately by the PPCs. Again the railguns missed, but this time he was slammed backwards by the force of the PPC hitting in his chest. He stumbled, but stayed on his feet.

The original plan had been to draw out the invaders and then squash them with the combined firepower of the full squad. Shaun was crossing his fingers now, hoping the other half of the squad would be moving in quickly to assist.

With both Wu-shi down, the Bullies were the next priority target. They were closing, firing missiles as they came. Shaun tried to focus and fire, but the missiles slamming into his Jug prevented him from getting a lockon. He stumbled back, nearly falling, but somehow regained his feet. Then he heard the welcome crackle of railguns from behind him, and satisfying crunches in front.

"Lafayette, we are here!" Kenny's joyful voice cut through the static. "Let's give'em what for!"

In a few seconds the smoke cleared and Shaun could see again. It was a beautiful sight: all the trails of missiles fired from here to there, the Wu-shi on the ground, the Bullies backing up under continuous fire. But Shaun had a secondary concern: what if they chased the big guns back into the city? That would be the bad they were trying to avoid. He started dashing forward, just taking time to add his firepower to the assault on the Bullies.

"Welcome to the party! Nobody leaves early! Especially not that Dreadnought or Zhan-shi!"

Overhead, missiles were putting off enough smoke to darken the sky, creating an eerie dusk-like effect. Missiles were flying from both directions, from the Lion and the Zhan-shi and to a lesser extent from others. Shaun kept a close eye on the Dreadnought, very wary of its railguns and PPCs. He kept on running that way, and when he saw the guns pointing in his direction, he jumped. The guns shifted, and apparently chose to fire at someone else. Fortunately it was too busy firing to realize it was about to be overrun.

Shaun was in the sweet spot now, not too close for long range missiles, not too far for mid range missiles. He fired his full arsenal, holding back only on his lasers. As his missiles pummeled the Dreadnought he jumped and watched as Alissa fired her boosted electro lasers and blasted off additional chunks of armor.

The Zhan-shi pilot was evidently getting the idea, and had started backing up, but they kept firing a withering barrage of missiles at the battlefield. Apparently they were trying for Lozenzo in his Cheetah, who was charging across the field in a serpentine line and handily evading the shower of missiles.

Shaun caught a quick glance of Michael's Tiger ripping one huge arm off a Bully, and grinned. There would be a moment to remember when they were next chatting around the table.

In front of him the Dreadnought blossomed into a fireball as almost 100 missiles slammed into it. Leonard had focused all four of his missile launchers on the one target, and Kenny followed up with railguns. Incredibly, the massive Jug remained standing and even fired back. Railguns and PPCs all hit Kenny, who stood firm on his quad legs.

"Yeoch!" Kenny exclaimed, "Those were some nasty hornet stings! Give'em hell for me, will ya?"

Meanwhile Michael was making short work of the Bullies. He knocked the one he had not disarmed to the ground, and a quick punch of his claws to the head ended the fight for good. Everyone else focused their fire on the Dreadnought. Shaun almost jumped in surprise as Li Min fired off ten boosted electro lasers, frying the big Jug from head to toe.

Taking a cue from Michael, Shaun grabbed his sword and sprang towards the Dreadnought. He swung straight down as he landed, smashing the head and cockpit on the great Jug and taking it out of commission.

In the background Shaun saw the Zhan-shi turn tail and run toward the city, the last Jug standing on the enemy's side. It was a desperate move, trading armor protection for speed. Generally speaking the armor on the rear of a Jug was about one third of the mass that was on the front, and thus far easier to get shots through. Shaun intended to take full advantage of that fact.

He fired all his midrange and long range missiles at the Zhan-shi's retreating form and began running to catch up. "Nice job, everyone! Now, one more!"

They had presented themselves far enough out in the field that the Zhan-shi had virtually no chance of making it back to the city, but they were sure trying. Shaun spotted Lorenzo's Cheetah moving in fast to blast them up close with lasers and missiles, and saw Alissa's long range lasers score definite hits. The Zhan-shi apparently had a couple of rear-mounted lasers, which it fired at the Cheetah to little effect.

But suddenly ahead Shaun saw shards of concrete and glass flying out from a newly-appearing hole in one of the buildings closest to them, and the same phenomenon repeated five more times from two different buildings. He heard a crackle like thunder repeated four times in half a second, and from one hole in each building the sizzling blast of a PPC struck out, one striking him and one striking Lorenzo. He also felt two large shells from railguns strike him, one in the leg and one in the chest. The combined impact was quite enough to knock him flat.

"Enemy inside buildings, guys! Watch your range!"

What had happened was clear enough. Two Jugs had smashed out the back sides of two buildings, stepping inside the remaining shells and aiming through windows to use the buildings as pillboxes. To hit the Jugs, they would first have to level the buildings.

Technically that wouldn't be on them. The buildings were already reduced to shells; it wasn't like they would be responsible for making the damage worse. But if they didn't blast the enemies quick, they would just shift to another building and start over. If the Zhan-shi joined them they would have missiles to hurl as well as shells and particles. That would be a tough combination to overcome.

With a great effort Shaun sat up and fired his midrange missiles at the back of the fleeing Zhan-shi. He heard the crack of Kenny's railguns, and suddenly the Zhan-shi stopped dead in its tracks. Slowly, it toppled over.

Good: first things first, and they had achieved their most important objective. Now, to prepare for the next. Shaun stood and hobbled back towards the others, hoping he was getting out of range from the enemy. Then he saw Lorenzo.

Lorenzo had also stood up, apparently trying to do the same thing as Shaun. But he was still in range and not running yet. The enemy opened up with full fire on just him. The Cheetah was struck at least by the rays of the two PPCs, and from the way it was smashed backwards, presumably by more than one of the railguns.

"Omigod, Lorenzo! Are you still there?" Alissa called out over the radio.

"Cut the chatter! He'll talk if he can." was Tanya's terse reply.

He didn't. Shaun spoke up. "He's probably out. Don't worry, we're going for him. But everybody line up: we have to charge their line all at once."

The full squad gathered with him, Kenny pulling up last. "Did everybody see where the shots came from?" asked Shaun: "We don't want to be firing on empty buildings willy nilly."

All the squad replied that they had, so Shaun continued. "Kenny and Leonard: you've got the longest and deadliest reaches, you'll probably be their primary targets. We'll try to close fast enough to make them think twice about that. So expect heavy fire at first, but for it to ease off soon.

"Tanya, you get to Lorenzo and see if he needs medical attention. Drag him out of range if you can."

"Check." Tanya continued to be a woman of few words.

Shaun grinned. "Feels like a football huddle here. Let's not do the hand thing: everybody, charge!"

It wasn't until he tried running again that he realized how messed up his leg was. He fell behind with Kenny and Leonard almost right away. Kenny chuckled over the radio. "What's the matter, old man? Need a cane, there?"

"Yeah, yeah," Shaun retorted, "Laugh it up, fuzzball!"

Kenny did laugh. "Wookie reference, huh? You _have_ seen my hairy backside!"

Then Kenny fired, and the time for conversation seemed over. In the distance one of the buildings partly crumbled. Lorenzo fired shortly after, sending a deluge of missiles on the same building just as the enemy fired again. The building crumpled, and under the debris they could see a very large centauroid Jug, a Qi-shi standing in the wreckage. The Qi-shi immediately backed towards another building.

Shaun had been right: they fired everything they had at Kenny. Their shots were very accurate this time thanks to Kenny being a slow target. PPCs and railgun shells all hit, some smashing into the chest, one in the leg, one on an arm. From the arm came a flash of light and smoke.

"Damn! That's half my firepower gone!" Kenny exclaimed in irritation.

"If you lose the other half, retreat," replied Shaun. "You won't do anyone any good sitting there as a disarmed target."

"Roger. Let's hope it doesn't get to that."

"Anyway, fire at him now before he gets to cover again."

"Of course." Kenny lined up and fired again as Leonard shot off another bloom of missiles. The rest of the Jugs had already rushed forward trying to reach the city as quickly as possible. Those who were in range opened up on the Qi-shi. Meanwhile, Tanya and the Leopard had reached the downed Cheetah.

"Talk to me, Valentino. Let us all know you're good."

Lorenzo did not reply, and Tanya began dragging the smaller Jug back towards the field.

Meanwhile the Qi-shi and the other Jug, which Shaun strongly suspected was another Qi-shi, opened fire again on Kenny. The PPCs smashed through the armor on his chest, one of the shells struck his damaged left leg and another struck the left hip. The leg buckled under him, and if Shaun had not been close enough to grab him Kenny would have hit the ground.

"That's it, Shaun! I can't move now. Just lay me down and I'll wait it out. Go get'em, killer!"

Meantime Leonard had moved past them and fired again, darkening the sky with his missile smoke. Tanya had almost gotten Lorenzo out far enough to be safe, and the rest of the squad were closing in on the city.

Shaun sighed. "You're right. We'll be back for you shortly."

He laid the centauroid Jug down gently on the ground and stood. As he tried to hustle towards the action he realized just how damaged his own leg was. There was no chance he would catch up with the others, but he might get close enough to do some damage with long-range missiles. As he stopped and considered, it seemed like the majority of his squad were equipped with nothing more substantial than that: missiles and midrange lasers were about it, except for the Eagle's Claw's two long range lasers. That would be a dangerous flaw, he considered: something to look into later. For now he observed the combat as he limped towards the scene.

Mid and long range missiles rained down on the Qi-shi, preventing it from firing and bringing it to a dead halt. Alissa fired her electro lasers into the melee, but the Jug was so obscured by smoke there was no telling whether she hit anything or not.

Suddenly there was another blast from the building where one of the Jugs was still in hiding. This time the Tiger took the brunt of the damage. Michael's Jug was struck three times and knocked off its feet, just as he was preparing to charge the Qi-shi in the open.

"Michael! You okay?" Shaun couldn't help but be concerned.

"Been knocked about worse. No worries!"

Shaun sighed in relief. It occurred to him in a flash that Michael had been targeted largely because he was making kills with headshots from his claws, which left the Jugs easily repairable. But never mind the reason: they needed to wipe out the Jug in the open and then tackle the hidden one as fast as possible. Shaun limped forward, now firing both long and mid range missiles at the Qi-shi. He was too far away to use his sword.

"Alissa! Any chance you could manage a head shot on our guest?"

Her voice came back over the radio. "I can sure try…"

He saw the Eagle's Claw land and line up her shots. Then he realized what a target she was painting on herself. Desperate to stop the enemy Jug from firing, he unloaded all his missiles at the building that still hid a Jug. Most of the building's front collapsed, revealing a second Qi-shi as he had expected, and apparently interrupting its attempt to fire.

Alissa fired her long range lasers. Both hit, one in the head. The first Qi-shi collapsed amid cheers from the 34th. But there was not a moment's delay: all missiles available were then fired at the last Jug, under the ruins of the building.

The building collapsed, but the Qi-shi backed out in time. It fired once more, this time at Alissa, who had just jumped. The PPC took a bite out of her right leg and caused her to spin in midair, suddenly losing altitude before she got both feet under her again.

"Time to end this!" Michael growled over the radio as he rolled over, regained his feet and charged the Qi-shi. Two green mid range lasers struck him as he closed the distance, but nothing daunted him. He practically climbed the larger Jug, swiping for the head. Seeing the threat coming, the pilot ejected before Michael could make good his strike. The virtually undamaged Jug slumped to the ground, and Michael hopped off.

"Grab the pilot, reconnect the pod, and ye'll have a new Jug for Kenny boy, there."

Shaun couldn't have been more pleased. "Outstanding! Way to ace the shot, Michael!"

Then his mind turned to unfinished business. "That was eight Jugs: think we got the full squad and that's all that were in the first wave. But we've got to get ready fast for a second wave of three squads coming down on top of us. We may have less than half an hour. I'm calling the locals: they may have supplies available, missiles at least."

He switched the radio to loudspeaker mode. "Attention, local citizens. This is the Hokliss 34th, and you have been liberated. But we need your assistance; more enemy squads are on the way, and we're low on missiles and armor. Any help you can offer will be much appreciated, and help us to defend you in the battle to come."

A voice they had heard before the battle came over the radio again. "Hokliss 34th, we read you. We have no idea how you got here so fast, but you are a godsend. Yes, we will assist: we have armor repair crews, spare missiles and loaders available at once, who were called out when the enemy first arrived. We'll meet you in the field in ten."

Shaun called out a thank you to their benefactor, then turned back to the private frequency for the 34th. "Alright: we need Jug triage asap. Check your own Jugs for damage, check downed Jugs for ease or difficulty of repair, then report in sequence by seniority. You have five minutes plus."

While waiting for them to report, Shaun examined his own diagnostics. The results were not good: he had suffered a lot of armor damage plus double damage to one leg, and was almost out of both mid and long range missiles. Then he remembered the headless Wu-shi in the field. With a long range laser and mid range cannon, and only missing a couple of shots of ammo, it would be a perfect replacement for him if it could be repaired fast. It was the same weight and speed as his Duo-shi, just didn't have any hands that would allow him to use his sword.

"Arnold here. Got some armor damage is all, need reloads. Qi-shi 1 is toast from all the missiles, Qi-shi 2 is as sweet as it gets."

"Colfax here. My Jug is fine, just need more missiles: Esteban's Cheetah, not so much, and Esteban may have a concussion. He's in no shape to pilot with us right now."

"Marlowe reporting in. No damage to the Lion, just need a bucketful of reloads. Your Wu-shis: one looks very good, just lost its head; the other took an ammunitions explosion in the chest. That won't be going anywhere anytime soon."

"Chun here. Jaguar good, no armor damage, no reloads. One Bully dismembered, one Bully head shot, good recovery."

There was a pause before the radio came on again. "What, is it my turn? Kenny Winston reporting in. I'm all shot up and going nowhere. Hope you can get that Qi-shi in shape quick."

"Reynolds here. Minor armor damage, no reloads required ever. The Zhan-shi and Dreadnought are both dead as doornails. Might get some ammo out of them, but that's it."

"Thank you all," Shaun replied. "FYI, the Duo-shi has severe armor and leg damage. If we can get either the Wu-shi or Bully up and running I'll claim it for now."

He raised his eyes from the console to look out the windshield and see almost two dozen trucks and flatbeds approaching from the city. One flatbed carried three cockpits, four carried missiles, three carried armor, and he couldn't recognize the contents of the other three flatbeds. The trucks were even greater mysteries, at least until they stopped and their sides were folded down. Then it was clear that five were repair beds for Jugs, and the others were support functions for the repairs.

The smallest vehicle, a panel van, pulled into the middle and five men piled out, all carrying clipboards, wearing hardhats and radios. One also carried a bullhorn, and raised it to speak.

"Your attention, please! This is Master Chief Sergeant Muldoon. If you have a Jug that needs repair or reload right now, get it to one of the beds we have provided. I am asking for your Commanding Officer or his representative to step up and tell us your priorities as quickly as possible."

Shaun was impressed. These guys were making it look organized and professional: not what he had expected from a backwater planet, but he would take good news any day. He approached the circle of trucks, knelt and dismounted using the drop ladder provided for such occasions.

"Matthews here: I'm the CO. Thanks, you guys, for showing up so soon and looking good.

"We have three Jugs with headshots that need cockpits and such replaced. Three need missile reloads, both mid and long range. And we need some armor repair, but not much right now: we're replacing the most damaged Jugs with the headshot cases, if you can manage those in time. Of course, each pilot can tell you exactly what they have going on.

"We also have a pilot who was knocked unconscious. If you can offer any medical aid, it would be much appreciated. And if you can repair all three of the Jugs with headshots, we'd be open for another pilot."

Muldoon nodded. "I believe we can accomodate all that, sir. Our teams can work side by side and accomplish miracles faster than a jackrabbit. I'll put in the call: you'll have our best pilot here in fifteen. Anything else?"

"Not at the moment. Thanks again."

Muldoon saluted, and all five men departed in different directions, each to a repair truck. Shaun realized that at the moment he had nothing to do, and probably his fellow pilots were in the same boat. He decided to go look for the rest.

Apparently Alissa had the same idea. He saw her first, walking and looking around. He waved and caught her eye. She came running up and hugged him, and he hugged her back.

"Can you believe it?" she said, "Our first big battle as Jug pilots, and we came through without a scratch. Well, all that is except Lorenzo. Is he going to be okay?"

Shaun nodded. "I am sure he will be fine. They've got a medical team here as well; they have everything covered. Now, just hope they can finish the repairs and reloads before the next squads land."

"Yes, the next squads." Alissa nodded. "Shaun, what are we going to do? They said we might have three more squads dropping in! Even in practice, we get pretty bunged up going three on three!"

Shaun took her hand and squeezed it. "I have some ideas on that. I need to talk to someone in the know, see what we can manage. Meantime, where's Kenny?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Around, I am sure. He probably had to walk in from the wreckage of his Jug. He'll be here when we need him."

Shaun frowned. Alissa was so cavalier about the whole thing with Kenny. It really seemed like she didn't care anymore. He cast his eyes around the circle, finally seeing Kenny walking in with Li Min. The two were having an animated conversation. He breathed a sigh of relief.

"There he is. Looks like he's okay. We should really go check on him."

She evaded his eyes. "If you want. But I'd say he's doing just fine."

Gritting his teeth a bit, Shaun led the way over to Kenny, who looked up and waved.

"Hey, Shaun! I tell ya, you'll never get a view from the cockpit like you do hanging off the side of a Jug! Li Min gave me a ride in: it was wild!"

Li Min bowed. "It was an honor. Someone needed to: he had no ride in from where his Jug went down."

There was a tone of reproach in Li Min's voice, though she seemed to be trying very hard to smooth it over. Shaun decided it would be best for him to be the one to reply.

"My apologies. They asked for me pretty much right away, and I didn't think of Kenny's situation. I should have; I'll try to keep that in mind next time. Thank you for getting him this time."

Alissa cleared her throat. "Sooo… you didn't get too shook up in the battle, did you? That's good. I guess if you're getting the Qi-shi, it's a step up, right? I mean, two railguns and a PPC, that's one more really big weapon you've got. And maybe more armor?"

Kenny nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. And you're right: a 50% boost in firepower is nothing to sneeze at, for sure. And fifteen more tons has to go somewhere, so more armor is pretty likely. And it's no slower than the Undertaker; I wasn't about to win any footraces either way."

Even though Alissa had brought it up, she seemed quite disinterested. But she perked up as she switched her attention. "Shaun, what about you? You've got a choice between the Wu-shi and the Bully. Which do you think you'll pick?"

"That's a good question," Shaun replied. "The Bully is the same weight as the Duo-shi, but she's slower, and like the Duo-shi, she's just a missile boat. We've got too many people peppering the enemy's armor, and not enough really jabbing home. The Wu-shi has a cannon and long range electro laser like your Eagle's Claw: I think those pack a bit more punch, even if the Wu-shi is about 35 tons lighter than the Bully. I know, it's less armor, but I think it's also a lower profile. A Bully gets a lot of notice and people trying to blast it: a Wu-shi, I think not so much."

Now she was concerned. "Couldn't you try something else with a cannon or laser: something with a bit more weight? Mostly big Jugs get cannons anyway, you know?"

"No, no!" replied Kenny: "Don't you remember in game how the smaller, faster Jugs always seemed to come out on top? He's right: maneuverability plus it packs a punch: the perfect combo!"

"This isn't the game, Kenny! And it's not David and Goliath! The smaller Jugs always won in our games because Drake set them up that way! Don't you get it?" She turned back to Shaun, almost pleading. "Please tell me that you get it?"

Shaun sighed and nodded. "I know. But this is what we have available right now. When we get home I'll ask about scaling up. I am just thinking about getting through this battle right now."

About then there was an interruption. A man in a pilot's uniform approached and saluted Shaun.

"Sir! Lieutenant Mark Cameron reporting for duty. What can I do for you today, sir?"

Shaun returned the salute. "Tell me, Lieutenant: we have an excess of Jugs at the moment. Which would you prefer: a Bully or a Wu-shi?"

"No question: a Bully, sir. More stamina in the field, more damage from her weapons. Sure, she's a little slower, but makes up for it in raw power. Is that the Jug I'm getting today, sir?"

Alissa caught Shaun's eye, her face twisted in exasperation. He chose to ignore it. "Yes, Lieutenant, it is. They're swapping in a new head right now. Go ahead and check it out."

"Thank you, sir!" And Cameron followed the wave of his hand to the Jug repair pad indicated.

"What?" Shaun replied to Alissa's silent glare: "He's just a Lieutenant, pretty much the same as us. He's not some grizzled veteran telling us his best tips. And like I said, I'll see about scaling up when I can."

"As long as you don't get yourself killed right now? Some comfort that'll be!" She stormed off towards her Jug, leaving the three of them behind.

"She should not care what he does. She should be happy for you and your new Jug. She is not good girlfriend." Li Min voiced her opinion to Kenny.

"Yeah, well, she's been a 'not good girlfriend' for a while, now. But she's what I got, and I have to love her even when she pulls crazy shit." Kenny threw a brief glare in Shaun's direction, but his expression softened quickly. "I know you aren't encouraging this. But damn: she is just so into you…"

Shaun blushed. "I'm sorry. I never meant to come between you two. I wish you could recover what you had. But for your own sakes I hope even more that, if you two are going to end it, you do so as friends and try not to rip each other apart. Not that I think you need telling that like she does, but there you go."

Kenny paused, then shook his head. "I can't bring myself to end it. I really do love her, and if we could just get on the same page again--"

Shaun could almost feel Li Min's frustration rolling off of her in waves, but she remained silent.

"Bud... " he tried again, "Just want to remind you there are a whole lot of fish in the sea. Maybe she was your first or maybe so far she was your best. But if you're going to lose her, just rip that bandaid off. I think in your heart, you know I'm right."

Now Kenny glared at him for real. "What: so she can go running to you? Is that what you're after?

"No. I'll find a way to turn this around. Now, I've got a Qi-shi to get ready for."

As Kenny turned and walked off, Li Min in tow, Shaun sighed in discouragement. But there really wasn't time to focus on this relationship right now. He looked around for someone with a radio, and commandeered it.

"Attention: this is Lt Commander Mathews of the Hokliss 34th gold squad. I need to talk to somebody about your defenses."

The reply came back quickly. "Lt Commander Mathews, we'll have a man out to you in twenty."

Shaun glared up at the foreboding skies. There was nothing in them yet, but any time now…

"Better make it fifteen, if you can. Somebody who can coordinate attacks with us if possible. No telling when enemy units are going to start raining down on us. Surprised they haven't arrived yet."

"Sir, yes, sir!" the reply came over the radio. Shaun smiled. It was good being a Lt Commander, he decided.

So, he had fifteen minutes free. He strode down to the station working on the Wu-shi. The tattered remains of the previous cockpit had been pulled out of the way, and a crew was hard at work attaching the cables from the Wu-shi to the new cockpit. Two other crews were replacing bolted-on panels of armor. It was amazing how quickly the teams were working. Somehow he was put in mind of a pit crew at a racetrack. Same basic principle: unbolt the panel, take it off, replace it with a fresh panel and bolt it on. Sometimes the blast damage took in some bolts: then they either had to jackhammer or drill out the existing bolts to make room for new ones, or abandon that particular panel until some other time.

He looked up to see a vehicle very much like a Humvee headed his way. It came to a stop, and three men jumped out. Two were carrying what looked like portable desks which they set up quickly. The other man was unencumbered, and as soon as he saw Shaun he approached and saluted.

"Sergeant Detwiler, reporting for duty, sir! You wanted to coordinate attacks on our new enemies?"

Shaun saluted back and nodded. "Correct. They will most likely be landing in pods. Do you have any antiaircraft capability that could hit a fast-dropping pod, send it out of control?"

Detwiler considered. "Lasers won't do the trick. Pods are too heavily shielded from heat, and heat is how lasers do damage. Our two choices are the MagnaPulse Particle Projectors and the XtraMass Railguns. Both are designed for bringing down transorbital ships, but if we could lead down on the pods, we might be able to blast a few out of the sky for you."

Shaun nodded again. "Can you coordinate that from here? Is that what your equipment setup is for?"

"Yes, it is," replied Detwiler: "That and we have some artillery pieces. Provided you are not directly on site when and where they land, we can probably take out a few more for you on the ground."

"Good thinking! Better than I had hoped." Shaun was curious now. "So, how does a little backwater planet like yours have such snap repair crews and great defensive systems? And given you have them, how did a single squad of bandits get into the city without a single loss?"

"Perseus 6 is right on the border with Cheung. At one point they invaded, then set up a depot here from which to attack other planets. They protected the new base pretty well; we only recovered the planet thanks to much sabotage on the part of the locals.

"Muldoon was a local who went career military. When he retired, he came back here and found our repair systems in a deplorable condition. He took over and whipped the crews into shape.

"What we don't have is any heavy or massive Jugs. Our biggest Jug is a 65-ton Damascus with a cannon and some missiles, and we have two 50-ton Tomahawks that can do a little damage. The rest are picayune.

"As to the enemy: they didn't drop in pods. Their transorbital landed, well out of our firing range, and they walked in. As soon as we saw the Qi-shi and the Dreadnought, we sent everything we had into the hills to hide. No point getting them all smashed like bugs if we could live to fight another day.

"So: if you need a scouting squad or a mop-up crew, we're your men. Just, no way we're going toe to toe with the big boys."

Shaun considered all that he had just been told. "We could use a few fast bantam weight Jugs to give us intel on the enemy numbers and positions. With our ship not being in orbit, we're getting no map feeds. And against the number of Jugs we're expecting, even that Damascus and those Tomahawks could help fill out our line. A little poke-and-run, that's all we'd need to get them distracted and unsure where to fire. Besides, if they're sending three whole squads they are almost certainly going to have a few bantam weights themselves. No bandits can afford four squads of just massives and heavys.

"As a matter of fact I have to wonder at how well these guys are equipped. For what should have been a simple smash and grab, they sure used a sledgehammer to swat flies. Only thing I can come up with would be if Cheung were supporting them in hopes of starting another invasion. I have no idea how likely or unlikely an idea that is, but I think it bears looking into."

Detwiler nodded. "The political climate doesn't look ripe for that, but politics are always fluid. There could be some reason we don't know about why Cheung would want a foothold back in the Union. But there is an alternative.

"What if this particular bandit group have worn out their welcome, so to speak, on the Cheung side? Maybe Cheung has sent somebody to take them down, and they figure if they set up on our side of the line, Cheung won't follow and the Union won't mass against them for a while: buying time for a bit? Bandits generally seem to live day to day: they wouldn't necessarily need a long-term plan to choose to do this."

Shaun considered. "It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. You're right: that could explain why they came in on you all hard and heavy. If so, they may be desperate: desperate, but ill-equipped for another big battle. We might wipe the floor with them this time."

"One can only hope." Detwiler grinned. "I guess we'll find out."

* * * * * * *

 

[The Bean]

pretty good

 

[Gwalihir]

pretty good

Click to shrink...

Thank you!

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 8

Shaun gasped in relief. The battle had been frantic and furious, but as far as he could tell it was winding down, and all to their credit. The field was littered with downed Jugs, some salvageable, some scrap metal. Kenny and Leonard had done an outstanding job of long range targeting based on the information provided by the Perseus Protectors, Li Min had defended both of them from headon assaults, and the rest of the two squads had chewed through the enemy with only minor losses.

As Commanding Officer, it would be up to Shaun to apportion the repaired Jugs to new owners. It was his feeling that all of his squad except for he himself had Jugs they were quite happy with, as long as the Cheetah was repaired and Lorenzo recovered from his concussion. Besides, the locals had risked everything they had assisting the Hokliss crew. They deserved the bulk of this windfall. He was already considering how to sort the whole thing out, as information came in on the results of the battle.

In the course of battle he had observed the progress of one enemy Jug in particular, a 110-ton Spitfire which had performed very well. The armor had been almost completely stripped off the Jug and one leg had been blown off, but given a little free time it would be easy to repair completely.

There was also a 100-ton Stingray that he thought would make a great upgrade from the Damascus, an 80-ton Ocelot and two 60-ton Aztecs. That should be plenty to help the Perseuns out from their light weight issues. The rest of the Jugs were basically so much scrap metal.

He issued a request that the Hokliss Jugs be given priority, as they needed to continue their tour. Of course there would be plenty of time for the miracle crews to repair the Jugs that were left behind.

And then, there was the matter of the captives. Several pilots had survived the destruction of their Jugs, and were now being held in jail cells. Two of the youngest ones had talked and confirmed Detwiler's suspicions. Pon Wen Lo had taken over his brother's gang, and been a bit too successful in raids on military targets in the Cheung Dynasty. He had secured a number of top of the line Jugs, and earned a bounty on his head. Given the situation at the border, he had thought that Perseus 6 would be an easy target to take and to hold to be protected from Cheung's wrath. Had the Hokliss 34th not arrived when they did, the plan would probably have succeeded.

That evening the squad were invited to a formal dinner at the Governor's mansion. Once more they wore their dress blues and spruced up to meet the occasion. Even Kenny managed to tone down his five o'clock shadow a bit. Lorenzo had awakened from his coma, but was in no condition to attend.

Shaun had gotten quite used to making speeches by now. He made sure to give credit to Mark Cameron and the Perseus Protectors for all their accomplishments that day, then announced officially which Jugs were being left behind. He received a loud and long round of applause from the guests, clearly appreciative of his generosity.

Next the Governor stood and gave a speech in return, profusely thanking the Hokliss 34th and the Calverts for their continued support and so-timely arrival. She then declared that she was granting each of them a ceremonial "key to the city," representing the debt the citizens owed to them. The keys were brought out by eight young ladies who approached each member of the 34th and placed the key on a red ribbon around their necks. One young lady paused, looking for whom she should give the key to, so Shaun waved her over.

"Lorenzo was not able to be here this evening. I will make sure the key gets to him."

She smiled and nodded and handed him the key, which he placed in his pocket.

The rest of the dinner proceeded smoothly, though the tension between Alissa and Kenny was thick enough to cut with a steak knife. She had elected to sit between Shaun and Kenny, making conversation with Shaun and basically ignoring Kenny. Shaun couldn't help but notice that Li Min elected to sit at Kenny's other side.

He kept his responses monosyllabic and non-committal, trying to discourage Alissa, but to no effect. He focused on his meal, once again real food, this time steak. Evidently Perseus 6 had enough usable space to raise cattle. He inquired of the waitstaff as to whether he might take one to Lorenzo at the end of the meal, and they consented.

As soon as he felt it would not be rude, he thanked the Governor and bid farewell to those around him. A waiter brought him the steak meant for Lorenzo, and he walked out the door and into a hallway. But it seemed he was followed.

"Why have you been ignoring me all evening?" Alissa was clearly very upset. "You know I can't stand that! You made me feel like a fool out there in front of a hundred people!"

"I am sorry," he told her sincerely. As he continued, he used the gentlest tone he could, knowing that anything else would sound terribly accusing. "But you have to understand that this is exactly what you have been doing to Kenny. He loves you, and you ignore him and make him feel like a fool.

"I'm going to say to you what I already said to him. I really care for the two of you, and I wish you could find some way back to what you once had. But if you can't, I hope that you can break it off in a civil manner and part as friends. Anything else is going to rip the two of you to pieces, and me along with you. Please don't do that to any of us."

She was still upset. "If I leave him, will you be there for me?"

He spread his hands helplessly. "How can you ask that? Don't you know what that would do to him?"

"I know - but I just don't care anymore! When I am with him I feel trapped: with you, I feel free. Please: I can't go on like this…"

Shaun's emotions were spinning like a whirlpool. Alissa was everything he could want in a girlfriend, and he did indeed want her. It was clear that she and Kenny had nothing left. He was almost tempted to ask, "If I say yes, will you break it off gently with him?" But if he did ask, he would be making a commitment he wasn't sure he could handle.

"Alissa: you can't just go running from his arms and jump into mine! It doesn't work that way. After a breakup you need a little time to yourself, to rediscover who you are by yourself. It's part of the process: if you leave it out, you'll never feel right. Please: just do this for me?"

And there it was. He had said it: "for me." Now some kind of debt was implied: a commitment to reciprocate in kind. It was what he didn't want, but it had slipped out.

She hesitated, then nodded. "Okay: for you. If this is what it takes to make you comfortable being with me, I'll do it. Just don't make me wait too long."

He nodded numbly. He was already committed. "Okay. Give it a little time, and I'll be there for you."

He held his breath as she left, wondering how long it would be before she dropped the hammer on Kenny. He hoped it wouldn't be long.

The rest of the tour passed without incident, aside from the fact that apparently everyone they met had heard at least part of the story of the battle on Perseus 6, and wanted to hear more. Shaun and Alissa obliged them, trying to do so in as humble a manner as possible. But the very nature of the tale led to a considerable amount of hero worship for all parties involved. Shaun caught sight of some young ladies even approaching Kenny to chat him up. Assuming that Alissa had spoken to Kenny, Shaun caught up with him in between conversations.

"Soooo… how's it feel, being the big hero? Seems like there's a lot of nice ladies out there wanting to get to know you better. Why not go for it?"

Kenny gave him a sideways glance. "What ever happened to: 'Oh, no! I could never take advantage like that! We're here today and gone tomorrow: what kind of relationship could we have?'

"Besides, as long as there's still a chance with Alissa, I could never do that to her."

So, she hadn't spoken to him yet. What was she waiting for? He asked her, later.

"I'm sorry. It just didn't feel like the right time."

"Alissa: it's never going to be 'the right time' for a breakup. But look around you: he's got women lined up for days, and you're still keeping him on the hook! He barely talks to them because he wants to work things out with you!"

She sighed and nodded. "I know. I'm sorry, I know I said I would. And I will… just not right now."

"What? What do you mean, 'not right now?' When?"

"I don't know!" she snapped back at him. "Sometime! Quit pushing me!"

There was so much more to say, but the way she was reacting he knew she'd never hear any of it. He sighed. "I got stuff to do. See you later."

"Shaun! Don't walk away angry, please?"

He turned back towards her. "How am I supposed to feel? How would you feel if it was me and some lady?"

"I don't know." she almost whispered. "I'm trying, okay?"

In truth, there was only one question that still mattered right now. "Do you still love him? Do you still want him back?"

She shook her head, apparently confused. "What? No, nothing like that! I just - I never broke up with anyone before, okay? I wouldn't know what to say."

He took a deep breath. "You tell him you're sorry, but this isn't working out. You don't want to hurt him, but you feel like you're on different paths. You need to follow your heart, and that's no longer set on him. Tell him -- just tell him that. That's good enough. If you try for more, you'll just insult him or hurt him more."

He spoke from painful experience: not of him breaking up with anyone, but the several times girls had broken up with him. Some had been kind, some had been cruel, some had been blunt, and some had danced around it all night. His advice was the amalgam of the least painful times it had happened.

She nodded. "Okay. I can do that." She sighed. "See what a mess I am? See why I need you, now rather than later?"

He sighed. "You can't have me and Kenny at the same time. It doesn't work that way. Tell him, then we'll take a little time, and then find out where you stand."

He turned to go. "I'm sorry that it's rough. But it's necessary. I do care about you, and I'll be waiting. I promise."

He walked on. He had done it again: made a commitment he didn't know he could keep.

Soon enough they arrived back at Hokliss. Word had arrived ahead of them about the battle, just as on the outlying planets. Shaun accepted the backslaps and congratulations as humbly as possible, unsure there was anything all that noteworthy in their accomplishment. They had taken on another squad in equal numbers, then when replenished, taken three squads of mostly bantam and medium weight Jugs with two solid squads on their side. It had been a fairly even battle, all things considered. The only amazing thing was their timing, and he could hardly claim responsibility for that.

It was evening a couple of days after they had arrived back home that he heard the argument coming from Kenny and Alissa's room. At first he tried to ignore it, but morbid curiousity got the better of him and he stepped out into the night to listen. When the door to their room opened their voices became clear,

"Just _get_ it, Kenny! I'm tired of dancing around it! No, there is nothing to work out! It's over! Just leave me alone!"

That seemed to be the final word of the argument as she slammed the door shut from the outside, leaving him on the inside. She was carrying her duffel bag and another bag slung over her shoulder, and apparently had earned the attention of a pair of MP's walking down the street. Whether someone had called them or they had just been passing by, Shaun couldn't tell.

Their voices were lower than her shouting, so once again he was uncertain of what was said, but he caught the jist and could figure out the rest.

"Excuse us, miss? What seems to be the problem?"

"Sorry, officers. I just had a breakup with my boyfriend. I need a new place to sleep tonight."

"I'm sorry, miss, but you'll have to go by the Quartermaster's office tomorrow to get assigned another billet. Until then, you're stuck with your old place."

She brushed back her hair. "What do you mean? I just had a knock-down, drag-out fight with him! I'm not sleeping in the same bed with him tonight!"

"I wish we could help you out, but unless you want to spend the night in the pokey, there's nothing we can do."

Alissa shirked back at that. "No, I don't think so. There's got to be some other way."

Shaun sighed. There was no getting around this. "Officers?" he spoke up, "She can stay with me. It's no problem."

The officers didn't look too pleased with that suggestion. "You got a second cot you squirreled away in your bunk, sir? That would be against regs, but it would be better than letting you take advantage of a personal situation."

Alicia looked discouraged as she faced him, but she shouldered her bags and started walking that way. "It's no problem, officers. I know him: he won't take advantage."

"Are you sure, Miss?"

She waved back at them in dismissal. "Quite sure. Not even if I wanted him to."

At the definite tone in her voice they relented, watching as she approached Shaun. Wordlessly he took the heavy duffel from her and stepped inside. She followed and closed the door.

"I didn't mean to impose, but I didn't have anywhere else to go."

He nodded. "I know. You can take the bunk, I'll hit the floor with some blankets."

She shook her head. "No. I know you're not ready for more, but I need you right now. Just hold me, is all I'm asking."

She seemed exhausted as she dropped her other bag, took two steps to him and hugged him. There was nothing else he could do but hug her back. "Okay. We can do that."

She relaxed and melted into his arms. She felt so good, so right there; what was he thinking, even trying to resist this? They stood for a couple of minutes before she pulled her face back from his shoulder and turned it towards his. In a moment they were kissing passionately, and Shaun's heart was swelling with desire. He drew her down onto the bed, first sitting then laying together on the narrow mattress, hugging each other tightly. Even with all their clothes still on, it was perhaps the most erotic moment of Shaun's life to date.

The moments that followed did not disappoint, either. Tenderness and desperation seemed to collide as they undressed and caressed each other, finally finding release to the tension that had been between them for so long, which Shaun had tried so hard to deny.

When their passion had been satisfied they lay together in mutual embrace, neither one ready to be apart. Shaun ran his hands tenderly down her back, feeling the sweat on her that matched his, and the satisfaction now of just this intimate touch. She stirred a little and stroked him in turn, then chuckled.

"I'm sorry: I couldn't wait. You aren't disappointed in me now, are you?"

He laughed. "Hardly. That was incredible. I've never felt anything like that before."

He kissed her passionately again. "I don't know if I ever could again."

She smirked at him. "I hope to change your mind on that. We'll find out soon."

He grinned. "Okay: challenge accepted. Just let me catch my breath first."

He hugged her close, finally feeling a peace he had not had in a long time.

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

CHAPTER 9

How could the morning feel so much brighter, so much clearer than any other day? He knew why, yet he couldn't stop wondering at the answer. Was this what life was really all about? Perhaps it was.

Rather than announce their new status with a trumpet by walking together to the showers, Shaun elected to stay a few extra minutes in his quarters while she went on ahead. He was still deep in his joyful reverie when he heard a knock at the door.

"Shaun! You there?"

It was Kenny. Shaun tried desperately to put his face in neutral, and opened the door. "Hey, Kenny. How you doing?"

"She left me last night. That's how I'm doing."

"I'm so sorry. But I know you saw this coming, for a long time. Isn't it kind of a relief now? The bandaid is off…"

Shaun tried to find words of encouragement, but his own sense of guilt was making that difficult. "What can I do for you, bud?"

Kenny shook his head. "I don't know. I just need to talk to somebody. Can I come in and sit down?"

Shaun paused. "I don't know about that, Kenny. I was just leaving for the showers -- "

"I won't take long: I promise."

"Maybe you should take a little time," Shaun countered, "when we both have time to talk. It's just -- not right now, okay?"

Kenny frowned. "What's with you? Why are you acting like this? I just need someone to talk to for a minute, get my head together -- "

Kenny sniffled for a moment, wiping his nose. A sign of recognition crossed his face. "That's her smell -- "

He shoved the door open and stepped in, glaring around until he spotted Alissa's mostly-packed bags sitting open in the corner.

"I should have known."

His eyes fell accusingly on the unmade bunk. "I don't see another cot or a sleeping roll. I guess you didn't feel the need for one."

Shaun groaned. "Look, Kenny: Alissa is a very headstrong girl. She has a tendency to get what she wants -- "

" -- and last night, what she wanted was you. So I can't blame you for going along with her because 'she's headstrong'? You are so full of it!"

"Kenny: I tried talking to her, I tried talking to you -- "

"-- So that's what you two were doing last night: 'talking'? I oughta -- "

Kenny stood there speechless, hands clenching and unclenching as if trying to make up his mind whether to punch Shaun or not. Finally his hands unclenched.

"All this time… yeah. I should have seen it coming a long time ago. Guess I'll have more smarts now, know when not to trust a backstabber."

He moved for the door. Shaun wanted to speak up, but there was nothing he could say to refute Kenny's accusation, and no apology seemed sufficient or appropriate. After Kenny left he sat down on the bunk and sighed. But there was really nothing he could do now for Kenny, so after a couple of minutes he stood and made the bunk. About then Alissa walked in, fresh from her shower, and she approached and kissed him. She smiled brightly. "Your turn, you lovely man."

He smiled back as much as he could. "Kenny was here. He knows."

Her smile dropped as well, and she sighed. "Wasn't like we could keep it from him for long. I guess it's better that he knows now rather than later."

Shaun nodded. "I suppose you're right. I just have to wonder how this is going to affect our working together."

She frowned. "It had better not affect anything. We need to stay professional; we're dealing with real human lives, now. This isn't just a game we can walk away from anymore, say: 'Screw it! Let's do Monopoly instead.' It's literally life and death."

"I know what you mean," Shaun replied, "but I don't see Kenny's animosity dying down anytime soon."

She gave him a quick hug. "He'll come around in time. Meantime, you need to go take a shower. I'll be here when you get back."

He did as he was told, and upon his return found her tapping on her writing pad. "I'm applying to the quartermaster for us to receive larger quarters. I didn't think you'd mind."

He wasn't quite sure if he minded or not. "Wow. That's pretty quick. You think they'll get that done, like, by tonight?"

"They'd better. If not, where am I supposed to sleep?"

He nodded. "You're right, of course. Hey: does that mean Kenny's going to get kicked down to some lesser quarters?"

She shrugged. "Don't know, don't care. He will get by."

This callousness on her part was really giving Shaun pause. He couldn't help but imagine what would happen if he were to fall from her grace, how she might treat him in turn. It wasn't a pleasant thought. But for the moment he was in her graces, and those were sweet indeed.

He nodded. "Okay. I guess we'll see what they come up with for us. I don't see us fitting all of yours and all of mine in here."

She smiled and linked her arm through his. "So, now: what to do today?" she asked.

"I know I have to report to get our next assignment. Beyond that, I'm not sure. It would be lovely if we had the rest of the day free after that, but somehow I doubt it."

She sighed and pouted for just a moment. "Oh, well. I'll have you tonight. If they give us some big assignment, I am sure you will let us all know."

"Of course." He kissed her, then gently pulled away. "I'll give you a call soon."

A few minutes later he had arrived at Theresa's office and been ushered in. Theresa was seated at her desk with a tablet in front of her. Shaun laid his own down on the desk, anticipating whatever she would share on it. She looked up with a brief smile.

"Lt Commander Matthews: congratulations on your most recent mission. How does the new Spitfire handle? I am sure in particular Lt Winston is most delighted and grateful for his new Qi-shi."

Shaun sighed. "The Spitfire's great. But Lt Winston: pleased with the new Jug, I imagine, but not really grateful right now. Some personal issues have come up, and I think I'm on his naughty list right about now."

Theresa focused on him intently. "I see. Anything that could be cause for concern?"

Shaun shrugged. "I really don't know. He might be pissed enough to do something insubordinate, but who knows? We haven't been in a command situation since everything went south, so there's really no telling."

Theresa nodded. "If there were time, I would suggest a 'Capture the Flag' training scenario with you two on opposite sides, see if letting off a little steam might ease the tension. But right now, we don't have time."

She tapped an icon on her tablet, and one popped up on his screen. He tapped it and the file opened up with a map of a large planetary system.

"The Bandersnatch system: thirty-seven planets, most completely inhospitable, but three that are in the green range. There is a hyperjump gate at 28.

"Interesting thing about hyperjump gates: if you analyze their data just right, you can detect other jumps within a system. We have an engineer who was working on the gate for some standard maintenance who discovered that there have been perhaps a dozen recent jumps from much deeper in the star's gravity well. We have been able to trace these to planet 14: a royal hellhole, average 180 degrees in the shade, not technically inhabitable except for under strict environmental controls.

"We want to know what's going on there. Our intent is to environmentally seal your Jugs and set you down on the planet to investigate. You will have to be careful: damage to the environmental seals can disable your jug and/or kill you quick. The good news: no one would be able to carry live ammo for cannon or missiles, and laser hits would do minimal damage because they are heat based. Your main concern would be PPCs or railguns."

Shaun laughed. "Great! Just what Kenny has on the Qi-shi! Perfect: trap me on a hell planet with a jealous ex-boyfriend, and give him the very weapons he would need to kill me!"

Theresa remained serious. "Do you really think it could go that far? You two have been friends for a long time; would he really consider killing you?"

Shaun shook his head. "No. He may shoot an enemy on the battlefield, but I don't think he could shoot at anyone whose face he'd seen. It's just not in his nature."

"Are you prepared to bet your life on that?"

"Maybe not," Shaun admitted, "but what are our other options? I don't think going back to playtime is gonna do it: if it's just a game he'd gladly cap me off at a moment's notice and it wouldn't mean anything or resolve anything. I think we have to take the risk, and hope he doesn't do anything stupid."

"You understand that if he does, there could be severe repercussions. Depending on how far he goes, we could be talking court-martial."

Shaun considered. "I suppose we have to take that chance. Please go ahead, fill me in on the particulars of the mission."

He left the meeting later with a sense of foreboding, but fully aware there was nothing he could do about it. Rather than call and inform each person privately he texted the basics in a group message to all squad members, requesting a meeting in one hour.

The meeting went as expected: some of the pilots asked questions, most did not, and Kenny sat in the back of the room with his arms folded and scowling. When the briefing was over he was the first one to leave. The others chatted for a bit, then left by ones and twos until it was just him and Alissa in the room. She approached and linked hands with him, smiling.

"So: how did we get to be so lucky? You would think they would want some kind of specialist on this: someone used to this kind of environment."

He shrugged. "I don't think they have anyone accustomed to going into this kind of place. Our number just came up in the rotation, is all. And I don't know that this is going to turn into anything at all. We have no idea who might be traveling to this planet or why. The likelihood they even have Jugs seems pretty slim. They just want us more because a Jug will be a lot more maneuverable and survivable than any other vehicle there."

She nodded. "That all makes sense. I guess we should suit up and head out, hey?"

Soon they were underway, a crew working on the Jugs to add the environmental sealing while they were in transit. As Bandersnatch 28 had a hyperjump gate they jumped there first. The jump to B14 would be using the much less powerful ship's hyperjump gate, but within the system would be well within its tolerances.

For the second jump they were all strapped in place in their Jug cockpits, ready to disembark as soon as the ship landed. Shaun tried to keep his focus set with a little meditation, but he didn't really have the patience for it. His thoughts kept running back to Kenny and the fiasco between them. It was a relief to hear the pilot announcing countdown for the jump.

And the jump appeared to have been accomplished without incident. The pilot came on again.

"We have arrived. Give us a few minutes to scan for landing zones in use, and ones close to them."

The suspense of radio silence was killing him. He probably wouldn't have noticed except for his concerns about Kenny's state of mind.

"We have a destination. It looks like you'll have to walk your Jugs about two klicks, but there isn't a safer way to go."

Shaun sighed and settled into the cockpit chair for a long drop. The Close Quarters would not be dropping precipitously like their pods; it would be coming in for a landing like the shuttle.

At last he felt the ship land. It was still a few minutes before the doors opened and the straps holding his Jug in place were released. He stepped out of the Jug bay and into Hell itself.

At least, that's how he interpreted all the jagged, broken rock formations and fires coming up from holes in the ground. He couldn't imagine what kind of planetary dynamics it would take to create a world like this, and he wasn't sure he wanted to find out. But they had a mission here, and he was going to accomplish it.

"Alright, squad: we've got no north pole, no visibility to follow stars, so all we can do is set the sensors to track the Close Quarters and keep the ship behind us while we're going, ahead of us coming back. They will track us and direct us right or left as needed to get to the destination."

The squad set off at a slow walking pace, assuring that all eight Jugs could keep up. As it was, the pace was still fast for Kenny's new Jug, and he had to push it up. Li Min took the rear point, assuring that Kenny was not the last Jug in the formation.

"Just my luck," he muttered over the radio, "I gotta get the slowest Jug on the squad."

"Buck up, Boyo," Michael replied in an even tone: "Ye've got a fine, powerful Jug there wit' lots o' weapons weighin' her down. I'd not be complainin' if I were ye."

Shaun took a breath. "Don't worry, Kenny. We'll keep it down for you, not run too far ahead."

No response came over the radio. He wasn't surprised by that, but he was discouraged. If they came into a combat situation, this did not bode well.

"Close Quarters to Gold Squad: veer slightly to your left to reach the target zone. Please let us know what you are seeing."

What he was seeing was firepits and smoke, now turning from light grey to pitch black. If they entered that, they wouldn't be able to see obstacles right at their feet, let alone anything in the distance. Turning on the search beams on the Jug didn't seem to do much good: the light was simply reflected by the smoke. He turned the lights back off and tread forward cautiously.

Suddenly a change in the direction of the howling wind drew all the black smoke away, and he could suddenly see its source. There was an incinerated ship just ahead on a flat space that looked large enough to have been used as an airfield. And standing next to it was a massive Gray Manta Jug, but painted in a wild, psychedelic pattern.

The Gray Manta opened fire. Two PPC rays shot by just on either side of Shaun's Jug, and a sizeable slug smashed into the rise of rocks just behind him. Shaun yelped in surprise, not having spotted the Manta until a second before it fired, and stepped sideways, trying to get out of the way of the shots. But the Manta followed suit with a sideways step, then a few forward steps that brought him closer to Shaun. Before he could move, the Manta had a gun right up to his head.

"Anybody moves, this guy's an inkblot on the hillside." The voice came over the open channel on the radio.

Nobody opened fire. That was a good start, Shaun decided. "What do you want?" he asked.

"Off this rock. You blew up everything, I got three hours of air here before I'm toast. Get me gone, I'll forget you plugged my friends. For now, anyways."

"Wait a minute!" Shaun was confused. "We just got here! We haven't fired a shot at anyone or anything! What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about my squad, and the miners we came here to defend. Do you deny you blew up their dome and their ship, stole their Jugs and vehicles and left them to fry?"

As useless a gesture as it was, Shaun shook his head. "If we had done all that, then why are we still around? And why walking in your direction instead of away?"

The Manta stood motionless for a moment. "Guess I look pretty silly standing here threatening you nice folks with egg all over my face, huh?

"So, what do you say?" The Manta withdrew the gun at Shaun's head. "What will it take for you guys to get me off this cinder?"

Shaun sighed in relief. "I think we can handle that. You say you have three hours of air left? If you don't mind, we'd like to take a look around before we leave."

"I was stationed here for three months. What do you need to know? I can tell you, most likely."

Shaun considered. "What were people doing here, on such a hell planet? What was worth coming here?"

"Mining operation. Nobody ever talked about it, but rumors were for a metal that could make a new kind of armor."

Now Shaun's interest was piqued. "And how did they store it? Raw ore, ingots, what?"

"Couldn't say. We were the muscle, just in case anybody came along to mess with the place. They didn't share any details with us. You want to snoop around their mines, check out the tailings, whatever: they're gone, so my contract with them has expired."

Shaun grinned. "So, you're a mercenary. No pay, no play, is that it?"

"Only way to fly. I've been a grunt, did my time, got out, made it with the right folks, done pretty good for myself until now. I know: stuck here it don't look like much, but until these assholes blew us to kingdom come, it was a sweet gig.

"So, what are you asking for to take me out of this?"

Shaun shook his head. "Don't worry about it. We wouldn't leave a man stranded in a place like this, ever. I'm sure we can work out how you repay us once we've talked to our Captain."

"Hoo boy, is that the way it's gonna be? 'Re-up or die?' Just might take my chances with the flame pits instead."

Shaun was a little stung by that. "Hey! We're going to save your life, you know? All I ask is that you have a little patience, maybe give us a debriefing on this place once we're out of here, and listen to whatever Theresa Calvert has to say."

"A lady Captain, huh? Well, maybe she won't be such a ball buster. Then again, Ramirez would hand you your head on a platter if you crossed her. Sure, I'll lend her an ear."

"Captain Calvert is a good, fair person," interjected Alissa, "and yes, you should listen to her. She might have an offer for you that you could appreciate."

The psychedelic Jug raised both arms in the air. "Roger. We'll work something out. Meantime, what do you want to see?"

"How about you give us the nickel tour?" asked Shaun. "You know better than we do what's here, what to look at."

"Right. This way, then: we'll start at the quarters and work our way around."

"By the way," asked Shaun, "This is Lt Commander Mathews of the Hokliss 34th. Who am I addressing, please?"

"Commander Tommy McGuire, last of the Chaos Kids. Good to meet you."

"Likewise," Shaun replied. He followed McGuire as the Manta led the way across the flats. Soon they came across another smoldering pile: one that had obviously been a containment dome before its destruction.

"Billets for the miners. The pilots' dome is further along, but the bastards did the same thing there. Me, I was out on long patrol or I would have been fried, too. Found another guard's Jug blasted to smithereens not too far from here. He would have been the other patrol pilot, Lt Jefferson; we go out two at a time."

The Manta continued along the edge of the flats until they came to another obliterated dome. The Manta paused. "These were my buddies. Someone's gonna pay for what they did here. Come on: next stop is the mines."

Shaun felt awful for the new man. He kept imagining what it would be like to have to push through if, god forbid, someone should happen to murder Kenny or Alissa. But wasn't that the nature of war? Why had he signed on so blithely, willing to kill others who were also someone else's friends? Was group approval that strong of a force? Maybe so.

He followed the Manta until the terrain became much rougher, and showed clear signs of recent disturbance. Piles of rock had until now been routinely no higher than 20 feet tall: here they were piled up to around 70 feet. Finally they reached a pit carved out of the ground, with a slanted floor they could walk down easily. But the other side of the hole was collapsed, and they couldn't continue.

"Damn! They blew the mine shut! Somebody didn't want anyone else finding this place, that's for sure!"

Shaun sighed, walking around the hole for a minute, checking the ground carefully. He saw nothing that screamed "secret metal" at him, so he came back around to the Manta and the rest of the group who had been following without comment.

"Anything else?" he asked McGuire.

"Just the processing plant and the staging docks. Haven't had a chance to see if they did anything to those yet."

They followed a broad path from the collapsed mine to what had been a much larger building, but found it as devastated as the rest. "Here's where they processed the ore. Looks like that's a shambles, too. This was a major slash and burn operation, I'm telling ya. No doubt they got the docks, too."

"I'm sure you're right," admitted Shaun, "but we should take a look just in case they missed anything."

"Roger. Coming up on the depot in about three minutes."

Shaun was getting slightly perplexed. "So, these guys obviously knew every aspect of your operation; how did they miss you? I mean, they must have known there would be two pilots patrolling. Why didn't they stop to finish you off?"

The Manta kept walking. "That makes sense. Maybe they just figured I was doomed here anyway, and no sense wasting a shell on me. I doubt it had anything to do with my sterling reputation."

Shaun wasn't sure what to say to that. But in a moment they came across the trashed remains of a loading dock, such as would have serviced spaceships like their own. Shaun pushed forward in silence, scanning the area for anything that might give him insight on what the facility had processed. McGuire's Manta stood by in silence.

Shaun sighed. "Hope we're not going to come across any bodies here. I don't know how we'd handle that."

"No bodies here. The attack came around 0200 this morning: everybody in bed in the domes except us two patrollers."

It seemed to Shaun that represented the ultimate in cowardice: not even allowing these men the courtesy of being awake and able to defend themselves was just heinous. He couldn't imagine what this McGuire fellow was feeling.

"Been a long haul here. Sure looking forward to a shower."

Not exactly what Shaun was anticipating, but understandable. The man might be in shock, for that matter.

Shaun finished scanning the area with nothing to show for it. "Is this everything?" he asked McGuire.

"This is it: the whole shish-kebob. Shall we go now?"

Shaun felt he must be missing something, but he didn't know what. "Yes, we can go. How much air are you down to?"

"About 80 minutes. Hope your ship isn't too far off."

"It's manageable," Shaun replied: "should be less than 30 minutes, even at slow speed."

"That's the trouble with the really big Jugs," McGuire commented. "You can never get them anywhere on time. They're always gonna be late to the party."

"That may be so," interjected Kenny, "but we've got all the party favors!"

"Touche', mon frere! All the best noisemakers, you are correct. But the little guys can whittle it down a bit before you show up, makes your big guns look so much better when the armor's already a bit ragged."

"That's what they call 'teamwork,'" replied Kenny: "everybody working together to make everybody look good, not stabbing each other in the back."

Shaun groaned to himself, as Alissa called out. "Kenny! Wrong time, wrong place!"

McGuire whistled at that. "Sounds like a lover's quarrel going on there. You two want to duke it out, you might pick a friendlier terrain than this."

Kenny didn't answer, and neither did Alissa or Shaun. The silence quickly became uncomfortable, but McGuire didn't seem to notice. "So: for the ride back, your ship got a decent cook? Damn, I could really go for a good renth steak!"

Rather than leave the silence as it was, Shaun went ahead and asked: "Pardon: what's a 'renth?'"

McGuire laughed. "You city slicker, you! A renth is a fine piece of meat on four huge hooves, with two huge curved horns coming off its nose, big as an eight-seater van. They raise them on planets that grow grass, and they make the best cuts of red meat you'll ever find."

Shaun considered. "Sounds interesting. I'd love to try it sometime."

"Yes, indeed! If you've got a good cook, he might have some stored away somewhere. Let's go ask him."

McGuire continued to walk forward, but for the first time Shaun noticed the Jug seemed to have a limp. That was okay: Shaun was already hobbling himself to a slower pace so as not to leave Kenny behind. Kenny was unmoved.

"I don't need you babysitting me."

Shaun sighed. "We're not leaving you behind. You're too valuable, that Jug is too valuable, and we don't leave men behind ever."

"How noble of you."

The sarcasm practically dripped from his words. McGuire whistled again. "Sounds like someone needs an introduction to the manly art of fisticuffs. Two ways to solve that kind of rage, bud: beat 'em up, or get beat down."

"It's none of your business!" hissed Kenny.

"That wasn't me started airing your dirty laundry over the airways. You chose to make it everyone's business on the channel. You want a little respect, a little privacy? Keep your yap shut."

"E's not wrong, me boyo," chuckled Michael. "T'is yer own mouth on that shoe, there. Time to grow a set and man up."

Shaun sighed. "Gentlemen: I appreciate you siding with me on this. But Kenny has cause to be pissed at me, and I don't hold it against him. Please, leave it be."

Michael did not speak again, but Tommy wasn't through. "Your wish is commendable, Lt Commander, but if this squirt's grudge were to spill over in the middle of combat, he could get us all killed. Even a little coddling could be a dangerous thing."

Shaun had to admit the man was right. He stopped walking and stood waiting for Kenny to catch up.

"McGuire has a point. This is way the wrong time and wrong place for you to be grinding an axe, but here we are. I'm not gonna have it out with you right here and now, but once we get home you and me are going to work this out, period. What exactly that means, I don't know. To some degree, I'll leave it up to you. You need us to brawl, we'll brawl. You need to talk, we'll talk. But what you won't be doing is moping along like a whipped puppy when we need you in combat mode. Am I clear?"

The Qi-shi came to a halt. It took a minute for Kenny to reply. When he did, there was still anger in his voice, but his reply was: "Sir! Yes, sir!"

It wasn't what Shaun wanted, but it would have to do. "Good enough. Now let's get off this rock and go home."

As they continued on, the Manta's limp seemed to grow worse. Now even Kenny was having to keep his speed down so that their new companion could keep up. Shaun was growing concerned.

"Any idea what's causing your Jug to do that?" he asked. "You didn't get shot at, so… any serious heat buildup going on, maybe a sealant failure on the foot?"

McGuire grunted. "Could be. No telling. But no, no heat spike. How far to your ship? I'm sure we can check it out there."

"Another half a klick or less. Don't worry: you'll get there even if we have to carry you."

"Good man. Let's hit it."

McGuire did his best to keep up, and Li Min continued to take rear point. Shaun considered how she had remained quiet throughout the exchange with Kenny. He had expected her to jump to Kenny's defense, but perhaps she, too, understood the importance of keeping him in line.

Soon enough they could see the ship ahead of them, and they limped the rest of the way in.

"Okay, squad," Shaun spoke up. "We have eight Jug bays and nine Jugs. Li Min: your Jug has a low profile and you don't need any reloads or maintenance. I'm going to ask you to park in the cargo bay so we can give the Commander an open bay to repair his foot. Everyone else, mount up in your bays. Remember to wait in your cockpits fifteen minutes before you get out: otherwise, the heat radiating from your Jug will fry you."

The fifteen minutes started with radio silence, everyone apparently consumed with their own thoughts as the Close Quarters took off and returned to orbit. But McGuire was apparently not a man used to radio silence.

"So, Lt Commander: you say you're with the Hokliss 34th? What's that like?"

Shaun explained. "Border patrol, mostly: trying to discourage border bandits from attacking small settlements. This assignment was a bit unusual: we don't often march into hell's gates like this.

"What about you? You said you were a merc with, who? Did you say 'Chaos Kids?'"

"Affirmative. A fine company of lads and ladies from all over, gathered together for the noble purpose of earning a few credits. A few had families. I'll be needing to make some arrangements sometime soon."

Shaun considered. "Certainly. Once we're done with the debriefing and got you a place to stay, you can have a chat with our comm guys and send out whatever messages you need to."

"Thank you. That'll be a big help."

In time the signal was given, crews approached and helped break the environmental seals, and everyone was able to step out of their Jugs. Shaun climbed out carefully, very much aware of the continued heat still radiating off the armor. Over across the bays he could see the psychedelic Manta sitting open, and a large, barrel-chested gentleman climbing down: obviously Tommy McGuire. While Shaun climbed down he saw Tommy introduce himself to the two techs who had approached. Tommy waved at the Jug's foot, which he had balanced on tiptoe, and they approached. Tommy immediately went around the backside to see the bottom of the foot, and was pointing out some detail as Shaun reached the ground.

Curious about what could have gone wrong, Shaun strode over to Tommy's bay. One of the techs had picked out a pair of crowbars, and the tech and Tommy were prying at something on the sole of the foot. As he approached, he could hear Tommy making a joke about Androcles and the lion. Even not catching the whole joke, Shaun laughed as did the techs.

When he came around the foot, he could see a large rectangle of very dark metal firmly wedged between the grinders of the foot, the ones that routinely broke up large rocks when the Jug would inadvertently step on one.

"That's really strange," Shaun remarked: "I thought those grinders were triple-carbide tungsten steel, or something like that: that they would cut through just about anything. But that hunk of metal looks pretty much unscathed. How does that happen?"

"You Mathews? Good to meet ya. Yep: think I can say, welcome to one ingot of our supermetal. Now, if we can just get it out of my grinders we'll be good."

Tommy turned back to the techs. "Okay, guys, I'm going to climb back up and flex that foot. That should loosen that chunk to where you can pry it loose."

Shaun examined the ingot with great interest. Other than minor scratches across the surface, the lump seemed unmarked by the powerful grinders. If this effect could be duplicated in Jug armor, there was no telling how much damage that Jug might be able to take.

The three big toes on the Manta splayed out, and the techs used the moment to dig their crowbars further down next to the ingot. Then the toes closed and splayed out again, and the techs repeated the process. On the third splaying they pulled at the same time and the ingot fell loose from the grinders.

"Got it!" Shaun called out towards the cockpit. He knelt on the ground next to the ingot, resisting the temptation to touch the still-fiery-hot metal.

Alissa and other members of the squad were approaching now, and Shaun fended off questions until everyone had gathered so he could explain once and make introductions once. Even Kenny seemed civil as he explained about the ingot and made the round of introductions for Tommy.

"So, what's a new pilot gotta do to get a beer around here?" Tommy asked.

Michael laughed. "I'll get ye yer first, right after the debriefing. Ye can return the favor oncst ye have a chip fer yer credits."

"Sounds like a plan, my man!"

Michael nodded towards the door. "Lemme show ye to the briefing room. Then we'll do my quarters: this ship's nae got a bar."

And now a tension settled over the group as Kenny stood to one side but facing Shaun. Shaun cleared his throat. "Okay, everyone. Debriefing in one hour. Catch you all soon."

Most of the group dispersed: all but Shaun, Kenny, Alissa and the two techs working on McGuire's foot. Apparently the grinders had suffered severe damage when trying to crush the ingot. Shaun gave Kenny a look, then turned and walked away from the techs. Kenny followed, and then Alissa. Kenny glared back at Alissa.

"This doesn't concern you!"

Alissa snapped right back at him. "You damned bet it does! You don't get to wrangle over me like some damn piece of meat and not hear from me about it!"

Kenny was a little taken aback by the vehemence of her tone. For that matter, so was Shaun. Kenny shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Together they walked to one corner of the bay where Shaun took a seat on a tool box, Alissa took a chair and Kenny stood irresolutely between them. Shaun felt embarrassed for him, but his attitude had provoked these issues, and this was not going to go well for him. But if he could, Shaun would make this easier for him.

"Kenny: I know we've been friends a long time. I know you feel betrayed. I am sorry that our actions have caused you pain. That's the last thing either of us wanted, I can assure you. But sometimes relationships change. Sometimes people change. I think Alissa has been changing, growing, and she grew into a different person than the one you originally met and fell in love with, and who fell in love with you. And the new person she is has different goals and desires. As for me, I don't know if I changed. I have always cared about Alissa. Just, now I realize that I love her, and probably have for a while now.

"I really wish this didn't hurt you, but I can't walk away from my feelings for her, and I am sure she would say the same. Please understand. I know someday you will find someone else, and I hope your experience with Alissa or me doesn't sabotage that relationship, too. But if it does, that will have been up to you. You have to choose to move on, because there is no going back."

Kenny continued to glare at Shaun as Shaun started to speak, but his gaze fell gradually to the floor as Shaun continued. When Shaun stopped, Kenny remained silent for a time. Finally he spoke.

"I guess if your feelings have changed that much, Alissa, that there is nothing I could do to get you back. But still, it really hurts that you would jump into bed with Shaun or anybody the very night you left me. That's just adding insult to injury, don't you know?

"Maybe you did change. But I didn't. I still loved you: still wanted this to work. I guess we can't get everything we want, can we?"

Alissa shook her head. "I'm sorry. You're right. I was carried away by my emotions, and I didn't stop to think what it would mean to you.

"I have been changing; Shaun is right. This has been a long time coming, because I kept trying not to hurt you. I should have made a clean break earlier; I don't know why I didn't. But while my feelings for you were fading, my feelings for Shaun grew. I'm sorry it was such an insult. I just couldn't hold it in any longer."

Kenny continued to study the floor. "I guess that's it. Nothing more to do or say. We have a job to do: being heroes. I guess we've got to call this where it is, and move on."

Shaun let out a breath in relief. "Thank you for understanding, Kenny. You take care; we'll see you soon."

Kenny nodded silently, then walked away. Shaun and Alissa each stood up, then Alissa walked over to Shaun and hugged him.

"Thank you. You defused that beautifully. I was afraid we were in for a real shouting match."

"That's what I was afraid of, too. But maybe not: maybe he really did get it, and everything will be alright."

"We can hope." Alissa stood up. "Okay: time for debriefing…"

* * * * * * *

 

[Gwalihir]

Sorry, folks, but I am taking a hiatus from posting for a while. My fiance' is in hospice care, and I have hit the writer's block from hell. It may be a few months before I am back.