Cho gazed into Ren’s eyes and nodded.
“What about you, Trevor?”
“I’ll deal with it alone. It’s the only practical way forward.”
Ren glanced to Trevor’s left.
“Is he with you now?”
“Yes, but it’s not really him. The Enzathi is projecting.”
“I understand. I ... we ... never got a chance to thank Mau in person. He gave us something beautiful.”
Trevor saw no expression on Mau’s face. It only shifted between half-smile and quarter-smile. Their thanks would mean nothing.
“Keep his gift in your memories. As far as the world is concerned, he was a terrorist and a psychopath. Now you know the truth.”
Cho smiled.
“Yes. The truth. How should we do this?”
Trevor knew only one way.
“We hold hands. Try again.”
Fifteen minutes later, Trevor arrived to speak before the Maintenance Division. His heart still pounded.
He waited for the Enzathi to reveal its next step.
8
24 years ago
Philadelphia Redux, Earth
MID-STAR LT. SHAD ABDELMANI needed bunk time. He’d been on duty forty-nine standard hours. The first light of dawn broke, and recovery operations neared an end. New tally: Eleven hundred thirty-four dead. It was bound to grow as more gene stamps confirmed the remains of the missing.
He looked in on the medcamp shortly before dawn but was told the young Stallion brothers had been taken to a refugee facility on the outskirts of the city. At least they were in good hands.
Weary Sgt. Alexi Babb handed Shad a café.
“Well timed, Alexi.”
“Feeling the cotton legs, sir?”
“What’s that?”
“My father. He charged hard through life. Expected everyone around him to do the same. He always said, ‘If you don’t have cotton legs, there’s more in you.’”
Shad made a mental note. Nice turn of phrase.
“I’ll keep charging as long as Command insists. How’s everyone holding up?”
“At this point, sir? Numb. Don’t believe anyone’s spilled their guts in the last ten or twelve hours.”
Shad sipped on his café. It hit the spot.
“They never saw it up close before. A dead F-grounder is one thing, even a mate who fought at your side. We signed up for it. But the civilians? The children?”
“It’s the Force Drums, Lieutenant. How they tear apart bodies. It’s beyond savage.”
Shad studied a pair of victims up close after the battle ended. He absorbed the horror and moved on.
“I can’t imagine what’s happening in other systems. They say the Swarm conquered something like twenty worlds in their universe. Wiped out most of the population and forced the rest to wear the scorpion. Alexi, I fear our situation will get worse barring a ...”
He remembered the boys’ rescue.
“Miracle.”
“Yes, sir. What’s the latest from Command?”
Shad looked around. No other soldiers were nearby.
“Keep it under your helmet, Alexi. We’re receiving strange reports about the Swarm. Half their ships have gone silent. The others are fighting like hell. At this point, Command isn’t sure what to make of it. Likely a ruse.”
“Was this the only crack in the blockade?”
“That’s the good news. Our ships are holding their own. I just wonder for how much longer.”
