CHAPTER 1

The ship shook as if grabbed by an angry god. Alarm klaxons were blaring, pressure doors sealing. The Manticoran HMS Victory, a destroyer, writhed under the fire pouring into her from the Peep light cruiser. The captain, Lt. Cmdr. Thaddeus Armstrong, issued orders rapid fire.
"Roll the ship! Wait until the next gap in her fire then roll left and launch all missiles on the port broadside." Thad thought, 'If only we didn't have two helpless merchantmen to protect, then we could run away.' The Peoples Republic of Haven Light Cruiser PNS Troubadour was slightly more than the Victory could handle. It only out massed the Victory by 10,000 tons, yet those extra tons included more armor and four more missile tubes per broadside. Fortunately, the more advanced ECM and ECCM of the Manty destroyer nearly evened the ships out firepower wise… nearly. Even as Thad thought to himself, a fresh salvo of eight missiles spewed from the enemy. At the next opportunity, the weapons officer rolled ship and launched four missiles at the cruiser. They bored in on the enemy, jinking on preprogrammed evasive patterns. Their superior ECM allowed 3 to streak passed the counter missiles spat at them. Last ditch laser clusters tried to stab them, but they were too late. One more died at their hands, yet the other two continued on to explode. One hit the sidewall, which held back almost all of the laser heads X-ray fury. The other missile streamed in and exploded in a pincushion of destruction. Thanks to the other warhead, the Peep's sidewall was nearly gone. Bomb pumped lasers slashed in virtually unopposed, cutting deep into the ship.
"Captain! We got em good, her accell is slowing and there are two less missiles in her latest salvo! We must have hit a few of her nodes… accell still decreasing," the weapons officer, Lt. Jennifer Yuki announced with a quaver of hope in her voice.
'That still meant six missiles vs. four in every other salvo but it was better than eight to four for both like it had been when he started the engagement', the captain thought. Aloud, he said, "Good job Guns, now do it again."
Everyone on the bridge nestled deep in the ship had his or her skinsuits on, helmets locked tight against the cold vacuum of the bridge. The salvo came into attackable range. Due to the superior sensors and weapons of the Victory, four were intercepted by counter missiles, and another two by the last ditch laser clusters. Two bored in on the stricken destroyer. The ship bucked as the lasers struck. One struck on the sidewallless starboard side, gouging through the armor and striking laser six and missile three. The other struck soon after, hitting the fire control sensors and gutting the remaining armament on the ships starboard side. A wall exploded on the bridge, cutting the communications console, and its unfortunate operator, in half. Thad heard the hiss of slowly escaping air before the warning light in his helmet lit. A small piece of shrapnel had cut a small groove through his suit and into his arm. He quickly applied a patch to his suit. No time to check the wound, didn’t seem deep anyway.
"Fire control, missile one and two and laser six are gone on our starboard side. Were blind on that broad side now, good thing there were no more missile tubes left in action there." Lt. Jameson said.
"Roll the ship, get our exposed side out of the fire! Keep going and give em your port tubes."
"Aye sir!"
The four missiles took flight. Streaking away at over 80,000 gravities, the flight time was only three minutes. Either because of damaged sensors or luck, three evaded the counter missiles and the storm of PD lasers to strike the Peep. The first one wasted itself on the belly band of the cruisers impeller wedge. Number two hit amidships, wiping away three missile tubes in a lucky hit. The last must have been guided by divine intervention because it exploded directly in front of the open rear throat of the Peeps wedge. Malevolent lasers slashed deep into the ship, eventually finding main engineering and the fusion bottle. One second the cruiser was there, the next a blinding ball of light, its fusion plant taking out the ship when the containment field failed. Left behind was one savagely mauled destroyer, limping its way back to the inner system at only half of its max rated speed. One quarter of her company were dead or missing. The ship seemed to bleed as atmosphere and debris vented from her clawed sides.
The ship seemed to vibrate as a cheer rose up from the surviving crew. Blind luck had let them live to fight another day… hopefully it would be as kind the next time. It had been a near thing. Thad had harbored virtually no thoughts of coming through this alive. Peep or no that had still been a cruiser and he only had a destroyer. Oh he would have mauled that cruiser pretty good, but all he thought he could do was buy some time for the merchantmen to escape. He uttered a short prayer to whichever god had spared his crew and ship. Another to for the gods to look after the souls of those gone, then started giving commands again. He still had a ship to get back to spacedock. There would be time to grieve later, when those he could still save were out of danger.

END CHAPTER 1

If you want a visual of what these ships look like go to http://216.203.248.212/ubb/Forum11/HTML/005132.html
 

CHAPTER 2
"What do you mean it wasn’t your fault!" Rear Admiral of the Red, Sir Peter Thanguae exploded from behind his desk. "You lost an 8,000,000 ton merchant ship, plus its cargo, one quarter of your ships company and got your ship shot to hell! She'll be at the yard for almost a year for repairs. All this and you have the gall to sit there and tell me that it wasn’t your fault?"
Thaddeus and his most recent superior hadn't seen eye to eye almost since day one. Thad had never understood the sudden animosity that had come over his CO one day. It almost seemed that from that point on, Admiral Thanguae was out to get him. That was why only Thad's ship had been attached as escort for the three superdreadnought sized merchant men, when the book dictated that at least two destroyers and a cruiser should be used.
"Sir, it was you who ordered that only my ship be used for the escort mission. You knew that the Peeps had been stepping up their commerce raiding in the surrounding systems. Its not like you didn’t have ships to spare, there is a whole squadron of the wall here with all their associated escorts. Surely a few could have been added to the escort. If there had just been a cruiser or another two destroyers along, we would have wasted that Peep without even breaking a sweat." Thad could see it now, his CO would finally get his wish. He had set Thad up for failure just so he could get rid of him. Thad new that was what he had done, he just wanted to know why. "Permission to speak freely?"
The grudging response was a while in coming.
"Granted."
"Why in HELL was my crew and the crew of that merchant ship made to suffer just so you could get me out of here?" Thad had hit that nail on the head hard. Sir Peter turned a shade of purple that would seem comical had it been in a different time and place.
"You want to know why… I'll tell you WHY! It’s the scum like you that drag down the human race. I know what you really are, Robert 48589. You and all the other monsters created by Manpower Inc.!" Thad couldn’t help it, his jaw dropped wide open. He thought he had left his past dead and buried, yet this sorry excuse of a man had found out his deep dark secret. You see, Thaddeus had not been born in the traditional sense, he had been grown. Someone custom designed his genes to fit buyer's desires. Manpower Inc. had its own world to do its dastardly deeds on. To his owner, he was nothing more than a set of desirable traits and something to be used for her entertainment. Thad was not your average human. He had higher than normal intelligence for one. For another, his muscles were stronger than any normal humans had a right to be. He also would have had killer good looks, if not for a scar that ran down the side of his face from above his left eye to the middle of his cheek. Modern medicine could have removed it, yet he wanted it as a reminder. Thad had been grown to be the confidant, guard and bedmate of a spoiled Solarian League aristocrat. Of course such things were illegal in the Solarian League, yet that didn’t stop the flow of human slaves to out of the way places. He had been programmed to love, obey and protect his mistress even at the expense of his own life. She had made more than a few enemies. It was in defending her that he had gotten that scar. An assassin made an attempt on his mistress's life. He saved her and killed the assassin, yet a round from a needler had nicked his face, leaving a nasty wound and destroying his left eye.
Upon seeing this, his mistress had promptly said, "You have gone and broken that pretty face of yours. You aren't perfect anymore. I bought you because you were perfect. This just won't do. You are now useless to me. I'm perfect in every way and can only be surrounded by perfect things. I'll have to get another made up." To be so callously tossed aside by the woman he was programmed to love broke his heart. He finally saw though the blinders that had been placed on his mind. She didn’t really love him. He was just a thing to her, something to be used and cast aside when no longer needed. Then the reality of his situation set in. Manpower Inc. would be coming to 'dispose' of the evidence that could link them to their customer. Manpower prided themselves on being discreet. He would be disposed of to keep him quiet. All the programming Manpower had stuck in his head was telling him to obey his mistress and wait in his room, yet his long dormant survival instincts took over. Once night fell, he stole his mistress's credit card and proceeded to the nearest bank machine. He proceeded to withdraw a large amount of money, he would need it all to fix his eye and book passage off system. He had to move quickly, Manpower goons would soon come to remove his mistress's imperfection problem. In the dealings his mistress had done, he had been exposed to the seamier side of the planets populace. It was to one of these people that he fled. It was a surgeon that would do anything if the money was right. And would keep his mouth shut for a little extra. The doctor hid him for the week it took to replace his damaged eye. The new one was virtually indistinguishable from the original. Thad didn’t ask where it had come from, he most likely wouldn’t have liked the answer if he had. The doctor offered to remove the scar on his face as well, but Thad was adamant that he leave it. Thad wanted it as a reminder of how low mankind could stoop.
He then proceeded to book passage, using fake documents under the name Thaddeus Armstrong, to hide his identity, on a ship bound far away form his mistress and Manpower Inc. He had eventually ended up in the Star Kingdom of Manticore. Eventually, Thad chose to enlist in the Star Kingdom's rapidly expanding Navy. He hoped there he could make a fresh start and protect himself from Manpower's long reach. Even Manpower would not draw attention to itself by killing a person in the Royal Navy. They were considered outlaws by much of the civilized galaxy already and didn’t need to give the Star Kingdom an excuse to come down on them and ruin the nice business they had going. Thad had surprisingly good grades at Saganami Island (the major training center for naval personnel in the Star Kingdom), and had graduated top in his class. He had proceeded rapidly up the chain of command until he got his first hyper capable command. That had been HMS Victory. He had fallen in love with that ship the instant he had seen her gleaming white hull from Her Majesty's Space Station Hephaestus. For the first time, he wore the white beret of a starship captain, instead of the black of a crewmember. He had made doubly sure his creases were straight in his gold on black uniform that day, both out of personal honor and desire to make a good impression on the crew… no HIS crew. Now all his dreams were shattered. Victory was being taken away from him and a commander who had some grudge against him was transferring him to a dead end desk job. The air seemed to grow thick as Thad assimilated what his CO had told him, he KNEW what he really was.
"It was monsters like you that killed my wife and unborn child!" The anger was still present in the Admiral, but it was hand and hand with great pain. "The police said that it was a home robbery gone bad. That they ere just a couple of addicts needing money to get a fix. They left out the fact that they were evil creations designed by Manpower Inc. They left out the fact that they were part of a group that escaped Manpower's control and were on a crime spree just for the hell of it. They were caught and brought to justice, but that wasn't enough. I have made it my personal mission to expose all of these abominations in our midst for the evil they really are!"
Thaddeus could only stand there stunned for a few seconds. Then he replied, "But Sir, I'm not like them…
"Silence! You are no longer in a position that concerns me. Imagine giving a monster like you control of a star ship!"
"Sir I am going to appeal this to the Lords of the Admiralty, what your doing it just isn't right."
"And have what you really are plastered on the front page of every news service in the sector? I think not, you don’t want that to become common knowledge or else you wouldn’t have lied on your citizenship request. No, no, you'll keep quiet and be stuck where you can do the least damage. Now get out of my sight you sorry excuse for the Queens uniform!" Thad knew that his past would not matter to the Admiralty, he could have his command back and have all black marks on his record expunged. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to admit his shameful past to what would amount to the entire Kingdom. He saw his past as highly dishonorable and was not willing under any circumstances to admit that he was a product of Manpower Inc. genetic engineering. He accepted the lesser of two evils as long as it kept his origins a secret. He could live being Thaddeus Armstrong, fall guy. He couldn’t live being known as Robert 48589, Manpower created monster.
"You are dismissed Lt. Cmdr.!"
Robert 48589, AKA Thaddeus Armstrong, cast his eyes on the floor, turned, and walked out of Admiral Peter Thanguae's office.
 

CHAPTER 3

The transport ship translated out of hyper almost exactly where astrogation said she should be. Swirling rainbows highlighted the 450 km diameter Warshawski sail as the power bled from the translation to n-space. The twin suns gleaming in the distance signaled she had arrived in the Manticore system.
"Com, inform Manticore Control of our arrival and request instructions."
"Yes captain. Manticore Control, this is cargo ship Dream Seeker. Registry number 458820-EN34, requesting queuing info."
"Reconfigure from Warshawski sail to impeller drive and lay in the course Control sent us."
"Aye sir."
'Damn but its good to be home, I really need some R and R after eight months in space', the captain thought to himself. "Com, give me ship wide intercom please." There was a momentary pause as the appropriate switches were thrown. Then the com officer gave Capt. Valdez a thumbs up.
"Attention passengers and crew. This is the Captain. We have successfully arrived at our final destination. We will be docking within two hours. In order to disembark in an orderly manner, please have your ID and luggage ready before then. That is all, thank you for your time." The ship slipped through space silently, finally butting up against the comforting mass of the station. The passengers began to disembark, most in either the gold on black of the Manticoran navy, fewer in the blue on blue of the Grayson navy, toped of with a light sprinkling of civilians. One of the last to swing out of the tube was Lt. Cmdr. Thaddeus Armstrong. His short black hair went perfectly with his uniform. Armstrong would normally have cut a dashing figure, recruitment poster material. Yet now he seemed like a man haunted. Thad had been set up to take the fall for a failed mission by a CO who wanted him gone from his command. He had been transferred to a paper-pushing job, with enough black marks on his record to guarantee that he would never get another hyper capable command. Anger welled up in him, almost overwhelming the hopelessness. How could he have let this happen to him? Was there still some programming hidden deep in the recesses of his mind? Was that what had prevented him from speaking out against his persecutor? Or was it just his stubborn sense of honor that wouldn’t let his dark past come out into the light of day?
He shuffled to the pinnace that would take him to his final destination. Shuffling along, barely looking where he was going, he missed a incredible vista out one of the stations armor plast portals. The night side of the planet Sphinx, bejeweled with wreaths and clusters of lights beckoned yet was snubbed. Taking the seat farthest from the other passengers in the three-quarters full flight, Thad puts on his best don't mess with me expression. It seemed to work because the other occupants of the pinnace left him alone. Hence he was startled when a hand touched his shoulder. He looked up to see who would have the gall to disturb him, and was shocked at who the owner of the hand was. The smiling face of Lt. Jennifer Yuki looked down at him.
"Hello stranger, thought you could get away from me did you?"
"Ba… Bu… Wha…", Thad stammered then finally managed to squeak out, "What are you doing here?!"
"Well to make a long story short, when I learned what that jerk Thanguae was doing to you, I had to do something. All your senior officers, and most of the crew tried to reason with him but he would have none of it. I finally went to him and said that he would have lost all three merchantmen and the destroyer as well if you hadn't been in command. He exploded and told me to shut up and not talk about things that were none of my business. But stubborn me, I wouldn't back down. He finally said that since I liked you so much, I could join that 'monster in oblivion'! So here I am."
"You really shouldn't have done that! You are one of the best Tac officers that I have ever seen. Now you have gone and destroyed a promising career over nothing!"
"No! Not nothing! What he did to you was wrong, and I couldn't live with the person I would become if I had said nothing. Don't worry about me, I'll get by. Now cheer up! Don't look at your assignment planet side as a bad thing, look at it like an opportunity. You can prove to your new CO how good you are and cast doubt on Thanguae's reports. We can get out of this hole yet!"
"I can't believe that the crew really went to Thanguae, not after I got so many of them killed."
"Are you deaf? We all think that it was because of you that we made it!"
"That wasn't skill, that was luck!"
"The best commanders are usually the luckiest. Now, where did they send your sorry but? Sanitation detail in the Marine barracks?" That last remark finally caused a fleeting smile to cross Thad's dour face. "That’s better, so where ARE you assigned?"
"Recruitment officer on the planet Sphinx. You?"
"Well I'll be a monkeys uncle, me too!" Something told him that it wasn't an accident that she ended up working in the same place and at the same job he did. For the time being, Thad decided to let it slide. Her optimism and good spirits were infectious, and he soon began to feel better. By the end of the trip, she had convinced him that what he had here on Sphinx was an opportunity. When life gives you neo-lemons, you make lemonade.
 

Yes, this certainly is promising. Sphinx, eh? I wonder if there'll be any cameos later in the novel, hmm? ;-)

So, Thad Armstrong.
I was a bit surprised at the Eugenics stab (Blade Runner' replicants and "Space: Above and Beyond"'s invitros come to mind), not that it's overly rare a concept in the honor universe. What with quick heal, advanced body prosthesis and
(semispoiler)
$$$$
$$$$
$$$$
$$$$
...Honor herself, being a "genie". I'm sure she'll be partly sympathetic if she runs into Thad, although it's a great responsibility to depict this girl and her emotions.

So, to the meat and potatoes. A quick review of the chapters and my spontaneous thoughts. Remember, all is subjective.

----

The opening space battle, a classic maneuver to introduce the reader to the sugar of the genre, is pretty well explained. The mandatory losses and technological absolutes of the manticoran superiorities.
The skinsuit is a given, although I'm not sure they deliberately vent out the air before battle, as soon as everyone has their suit sealed.

"Everyone on the bridge nestled deep in the ship had his or her skinsuits on, helmets locked tight against the cold vacuum of the bridge."

I think they want to take their helmets off immediately after the danger is over. But in this case, had they perhaps already recieved a hit, making the lack oxygen coincidental?
Oh and try not to use the same word twice in a sentence. (See? I'm gonna fire away with everything I've got, you deserve nothing less than the best)

Yes, a good battle it was, a typical Weber battle, with the "spewing" of angry redheaded missiles, the metaphors about raging deities duking it out in the vastness of space and the blinding, bellowing balls of angry white light that is fusion bottles failing.
But I felt that's kind of what it was, a good Weber imitation. Not so much of your own essence.
Of course fanfic writers make it somewhat of a tradition to uphold the certain ways and forms the original writer has laid down (I know Frank Herbert's son Brian has borrowed a lot of expressions from his late father, in his prequels to the Dune Books, although that's impossible to determine since Frank left a ton of notes to base the prequels on, so those "mimicked" expressions could in fact be his own words) and I know how hard it is to try and think of something 'specifically' original (I'm not saying you're unoriginal) in the events that make up a Honor Harrington book. There is so much that already is original about the books in question.
So of course the basic outlines shall remain intact so that you feel comfortable and "at home" in the familiar feeling of returning to the HH-universe, we don't want any crazy "revolutionizing new interpretation of the stagnant old books" because they aren't.
Still, you would benefit from exploring alternative ways of depicting familiar scenes in these books (perhaps a few, good old brainstormings) so that people who read it don't think "oh now he says posterior again!" (just an example, there's nothing wrong with Honor using her fav word 'posterior'. Or, for that matter... )

----

"'If only we didn't have two helpless merchantmen to protect, then we could run away.'"

Not very brave a lad, is it? :-)
Yes, of course it would be the sane action if a ship is as outgunned as you said the Victory was, but the choice of words could make him sound like the proverbial Pavel Young, feeling the merchant ships to be a damn hindrance when they in fact are the purpose of the mission he was picked for, all naughty scapegoating aside.

----

"Roll the ship, get our exposed side out of the fire! Keep going and give em your port tubes."

A wise choice, also one that saved their lives, I'm sure. But I'm also pretty sure there in fact IS an actual maneuver for doing this, alpha-four or something, since it's pretty straightforward to execute.
You would love to check out the technical database of David Weber's work to learn the intricacies of naval tactical maneuvers. I think there's a guide or something, I don't know them myself, other than what I've read in the books. Weber is beefing up his homepages nowadays, maybe he's included those things as well, or will.

----

"Sir, it was you who ordered that only my ship be used for the escort mission."

This, and the following sentences, a very bold, but stupid approach, and one that could have him charged with screaming insubordination, questioning a superior officer before AND after asking for permission to speak freely. :-)

He was of course absolutely right in his conclusions (the Weber Color Diagram of angered facial expressions came in handy, neh?) but the statement made him sound like a civilian boat captain, lashing out at his "boss" in a conference room. It was, of course, a good way to put Thad on his way to Sphinx, but he could've swallowed some of that bile and tried to be a professional. He would still have the luxury of jawdropping when his superior dropped the Robert-bomb later.

----

"You see, Thaddeus had..."
Never mix up the forum of storytelling. There are four (five?) forms of telling a story in a book (I don't remember all of the labels by heart, literature class was a long time ago) and the present one that Weber have set for his books is the one of divine entity. Free to depict any action by any person on either side of any conflict, but can never, ever, display any form of individual opinion or reveal itself as a person speaking to the reader.
Like newsanchors, they would never say "A person was robbed at the whitehouse today and I think he was in the late thirties". They shalt be impersonal (except in countries with dictatorships, where they are expected to cry when some important little oppressor has died)
This is very important.

So an alternative would be "What no one knew was that Thaddeus had not..." or such, you get the point.

----

"Upon seeing this, his mistress had promptly said,"
Great, absolutely great, to venture into the pretty much unexplored world of the solarian league. I myself hope Weber will tie in the sols, the San Martins and the Andermani in later books. Not necessarily all those at the same time, of course.
But to return to Thad, this "flashback" into his story is very important and should be thoroughly explored later. You did well to let out a brief summary about Thad's history, like Weber himself briefly let slip a very small explanation to Honor's previous experiences with Pavel Young, right before she met with him on "Warlock", in the first book "Basilisk station".

When you described Thad's background (starting with "You see" ) you began right, with "He had been programmed to love, obey and protect", and "He (had?) saved her and killed the assassin, yet a round from a needler had nicked his face".
Very important to use all those "had"'s, they make sure the reader knows you are still talking about a past memory, something Thad remembers.

But here you perhaps got too anxious to tell about the indeed interesting history you've thought up for Thad, when suddenly letting in his former mistress to speak! "You have gone and broken that pretty face of yours."
Now you've left the summary bit and jumped right into the dialogue that comes later, when you in greater detail tell about the life and unhappiness of Thad.
Of course, maybe you didn't plan to have those chapters later in the book, you could settle for throwing the reader just this bone, in the beginning.

But Weber just laid down the outlines, "She ignored him, he got mad, tried rape, got shit beaten out, here we are now, period". If he'd put in any words spoken from the two characters in his "had"-summary, he'd have broken the form, changing it from a memory to an active dialogue.

Am I making any sense whatsoever?

----

There, that was it, I think. I enjoyed reading your morsel of what's to come, it felt like being there again, especially when Yuki met with Thad on the transport. I hope my little notes will help you in any way. I'm looking forward to reading any new chapters in the future.
 

CHAPTER 4 [On the surface of the planet Sphinx, late evening local time]

The pinnace made a textbook perfect landing on the tarmac. The base was already aglow with lights with the sun barely an orange glow on the horizon. The lush growth of forest and shrubs grew up outside the perimeter fence. Guards patrolled along the fence, not to keep out humans so much as to keep out the dangerous predators Sphinx was known for. Big, six limbed carnivores with razor-sharp teeth filling their powerful jaws and scythe-like claws at the end of each paw.

Sphinx's gravity was stronger than earth's at 1.35 Gs, making the fauna just that much stronger than your average human. There were things in the outback that wouldn't hesitate to attack a full grown human. They had not yet developed a fear of man, despite nearly 100 years of human inhabitation of Sphinx. You didn’t go out into the forest without a gun, and only fools went into it after dark.

Sphinx was still largely undeveloped, with huge sections of nearly continuous forest. Much of the trees that made up that forest had a peculiar characteristic, their branches grew out from the trunk at around the same height and connected together with the branches of the neighboring trees. This caused a network of paths in the trees.

One of the species of Sphinx made good use of these flora made roads. They're called Tree Cats, and just happened to be one of the handful of intelligent alien species humans had uncovered in their colonization of the galaxy. Despite this, most humans outside of The Star Kingdom of Manticore, or even Sphinx itself discounted them as little more than pets belonging to the humans they had bonded with.

You see, Tree Cats are an empathic species. This ability has allowed them to bond with certain humans. Though the exact nature of the bond is not fully understood, both human and cat will defend their bond-mate to the death. Separating a cat from its adopted human causes intense pain. If the human dies before the cat, extreme measures must be taken to prevent the cat's suicide. The same goes the other way, though it is generally less severe a reaction. It has even been noted on some occasions that simple ideas and thoughts can be sent to the human partner from the cat.

When humans initially settled Sphinx, they had no notion that Tree Cats even existed. The cats had noticed the intruders to their world and had decided to remain hidden and gather information. Tree Cats are arboreal creatures, about 2 feet in height discounting their tail. They resemble most closely the Old Earth species known as cats in that they have fur and a feline face. The similarities end there. Like almost all animals on Sphinx, they have six limbs, needle sharp teeth and scimitar like claws. Though generally amiable, they can be deadly when threatened. Because of Sphinx's high gravity, they had very strong muscles and moved surprisingly swiftly.

Tree Cats rate slightly higher on the intelligence scale than old earth chimps and dolphins. At the time of first contact, the Tree Cats were using simple tools, stone and wood spears, rope nets and hide bags. Once the Tree Cats were discovered, the bonding capability was also discovered. The cats themselves found that the bond was quite similar to a pair bonding, yet it didn't have the fullness of one because humans were unable to communicate to their adopted companions. The cat transmitting something then reading its partner's mind for the response achieves the closest thing to two-way connection between the pair. Generally the human receives only strong emotions from his or her Tree Cat.

Both the bonded humans and the Sphinx Forestry Service have endeavored to keep the cats true intelligence from the outside galaxy in order to protect them. The government of the Star Kingdom has even went as far as to grant Tree Cats the status of minor children, entitled to the same rights and freedoms under the law. It has also set aside vast tracts of virgin territory on Sphinx in order to protect Tree Cat habitat. Of course, this might be due to the fact that the members of the royal family have consistently been chosen for bonding by Tree Cats. Cats don't choose just anyone to bond with. They only pick those humans whose "mind glow" is just right.

Stalks Silently thought he had briefly seen such a mind glow now. Straying close to the two-leg's site on a scouting run of his clan's territory, he skidded to a halt on the tree branch. His tail snapped straight out and he rose to his full height, hand paws twitching, four back legs clenching the branch tightly. Centimeter-long claws kneaded in and out of the wood beneath them. His head franticly searching left and right, trying to find that amazing mind glow again.

He had heard the Memory Singers of his clan tell of the bonding capable between the two-legs and his people. Ever since he was old enough to hunt with his clanmates, he had hoped to find one, yet never had. Just as fleetingly as it had come, the sense was gone, replaced by a powerful longing. He knew that he had to find that person again . . . he just had to. Going back along the branch a few feet, he turned around and dashed full speed until he ran out of tree limb. With every ounce of his strength, he jumped out into space, clearing the perimeter fence by scant inches. The exquisite mind glow was closer now. Stalks Silently made a beeline for it as fast as he could.

So this is Sphinx, Thad thought. Somehow, I thought it would be more industrialized, considering it is the second planet in the Manticore system to be colonized and has the second largest population. Oh well, exploring those imposing forests should be entertaining at any rate. Then, he heard one of the sentries behind him shout. He stopped and started turning around to discover the source of the commotion.

Then, it was as if some piece of himself that he had never even known existed snapped into place. Thad's head whipped around and locked on to a gray and black striped missile of fur heading straight for him. A giant smile exploded on his face, hurting from long disuse. He opened his arms in welcome, and a surprisingly heavy creature leaped into them. The sudden weight nearly knocked Thad over, yet he barely noticed. His steel blue eyes gazed into the Tree Cat's feline purple ones. The cat was letting out a buzzing purr so loud that it was more of a force of nature than a mere sound. Both human and cat were lost in the moment for almost five minutes. Finally, Thad began to notice his surroundings again. A smiling ground tech with Lt. tabs on his uniform came up to him.

"Congratulations sir, it looks like you have just been adopted by a Tree Cat!"

Posted this on another bord aswell. They said it should be broken up more so its easier to read. They were right, so here it is!

[ September 09, 2001: Message edited by: HappyTarget ]

You wrote this chapter before my posting, right? You see, my part about the writing form wasn't subjective, it's litterature rules. Writing "You see..." suggests that you adress the reader in person, as if you were writing about yourself as a person involved in the adventures of the book.
Since you are not, nor is Weber, you can just reflect the facts, actions and beliefs as the people in the book experience them.
 

I am considering tweaking the story from the first two chapters. IMO it will tie the story together better than they way they are now. I also realised that I took too long to give a good description of my protagonist. Sorry bout that. Since we are starting harvest here, I can't guarrentee when the reworked chapters 1 and 2 and other new chapters will come out. Rest assured that they will come out though. Never realised how fun it could be to exercise some creative muscle.
 

-"You are dismissed, Lieutenant Commander!"
-"Is...is it the Thad?"
 

The victims of this dastardly attack are in my prayers.

Any way, here's Chapter One redone much better. Hope it gives a little happiness on this miserable day.

CHAPTER 1

The twin suns shone brightly down on the planet of Manticore from high overhead. Within the city limits of the capital of Landing, people were going about the mundane tasks of their daily lives. A small restaurant was doing a brisk business during the noon meal. It was a pleasant looking place, with warm red brick walls and large windows with red and white curtains. Inside it was designed like an old earth bistro. Its name was The Cerberus Restaurant.

What its happy patrons didn’t know was what hid beneath that fa�ade. Through a back door lied a hidden elevator. At the bottom of the deep shaft lies a room. It is well insulated and protected from the outside world. Its banks of computers housed millions of gigaquads of information. People manned this room's terminals around the clock. They were constantly sifting through the vast quantities of information, always searching for items that could be of use. Their shadowy organization had sources ranging from a ghost link to the Department of Defense's computer network, to a plant in the primeminister's office, to near instant access to every major, and most minor, news feeds throughout the entire planetary system. All terminal operators were expert hackers. If a trail of desirable info presented itself, they would follow it until every path was exhausted.

One such had the beginnings of a smile on his face as he scanned his assigned block of information. He went over it twice to be sure, then paged his boss feeling sure he would get promoted for bringing this to the organizations attention. The Director entered the room minutes later. She was a short, heavyset woman with completely gay hair, wearing a simple gray business suit. Her only adornment was a pair of tiny wolf's head earrings, ruby eyes glittering when they caught the light. They were almost hidden by shoulder length hair. She had the air of a grandmother about her, with pronounced laugh lines and wrinkles creasing her cherubic face. She looked completely harmless, except for one small flaw in her mask… her eyes. They were the eyes of a predator. The blue/green orbs seemed to stare into a person's very soul, uncaring and detached.

Upon looking over the information block, a wild grin sprouted on her wrinkled vissage. With this data, it would be possible to execute Operation Renegade on schedule. The warm smile turned ice cold and her eyes flashed in a way no mere grandmother's should. She deleted the data block and any ties to it from the system. Going all the way to the top of the organization had made covering your tracks and ruthlessness a common currency for her. Making a mental note to have the hacker disposed of as well, she turned on her heel and walked back through the double doors to the hidden elevator. Thaddeus Armstrong had become a major player in a very dangerous game. The kicker was he didn’t know a thing about it.

The courier ship completed its download and commenced receiving the outgoing messages. One of those downloaded messages went to the commander of Her Majesty's Naval Forces stationed at Klein Station. Rear Admiral of the Red Sir Peter Thanguae was the commanding officer of the system's picket. Thanks to prolong treatments, he didn’t look a day over 25 years old, despite being over 130. Admiral Peter was imposingly tall at almost seven feet. His jet-black hair was perpetually swept straight back from his forehead, giving all that saw him an unobstructed view of his haunted brown eyes. He was looking over star charts and Peoples Republic of Haven fleet dispositions when his com system beeped. Peter rolled his chair over to the terminal and activated it.

What appeared on his screen initially was a simple text message: One of THEM is under your very command! The message stayed up for five seconds, then was replaced by paperwork and receipts that both shocked and enraged Sir Peter. He roared around his office, trashing furniture until he finally collapsed in a broken heap on the floor. He dragged himself into his adjacent quarters and fell into bed. Weeping bitter tears, it took him hours to finally fall into a troubled sleep. When they were sure he was asleep, his staff officers and his steward set about quietly cleaning up his office. They were used to his infrequent outbursts by now. He had never been the same man ever since that fateful day. They couldn’t blame him, if they were in his shoes they might not be able to hold it together as well as he has. He was a good man who had had his life shattered by events outside of his control.

Lt. Cmdr. Thaddeus Armstrong was nervous, but outwardly he looked totally calm. He sat in his chair, bristly black hair mostly covered by the white beret of a starship captain. His lively baby blue eyes roaming the bridge agitatedly were the only external sign of his disquiet. Recently, his CO had taken to giving him the more dangerous jobs that came up as a matter of course for a system picket. Thad and his ship, HMS Victory, had been assigned as the only escort to three superdreadnought sized merchantmen to the nearby system of Mendoza. Orders were orders but these were virtual suicide if the convoy ran into any major opposition. Thad had tried to voice his concerns, but the Admiral had dismissed him before he had barely said three words. He still could not figure out why Sir Peter had suddenly went from distant but friendly CO to one seemingly out to get him. When he got back to Klein Station, he intended to have a talk with Sir Peter. He needed to get to the bottom of what was eating the Admiral in order to prevent unnecessary future danger to his ship and crew. Thad blanked his mind, translation to n-space was coming up and he needed to be totally concentrated if the shit hit the fan.

The four ships of the convoy translated smoothly across the alpha wall and reverted to normal space. Their Warshawski sails were quickly reconfigured to impeller wedges, then began accelerating towards the inner system and safety. The ships formed up into a warped diamond formation, the three merchies in the back with the Victory dropping in to the far front point of the arrangement. This way, the destroyer could be in the best position to cover all three merchants' form the most likely course of attack, ahead of them. If there were any commerce raiders or pirates here, they would set up further in system so they could move into a position to meet incoming prey. Then all they had to do was lie in wait until their prey was in weapons range, power up their wedge and attack. That’s what I would do in their place, Thad thought to himself, I just hope like hell that they haven't!

The Peoples Republic of Haven Light Cruiser PNS Troubador's sensors picked up the hyper footprint of the four ships. Her captain had an intercept point generated. All he had to do was go to that point and wait. His prey would come to him, making his job much easier. They would be far away from the inner system and its collection of picket ships that it would all be over before they even began to respond. By the time they got to the intercept point, he would be gone and all they would find would be debris. His sensor operator told him that it looked like a convoy of three merchies and only one escort, a destroyer at that. The intercept brought the enemy nearly into a perfect down the throat shot. This is going to be to easy, the Peep captain thought.

Recon drones raced ahead of the Manticoran ships. They were very good at their job, yet even their advanced sensors missed the powered down Havenite ship until it was almost too late. Weapons Officer Lt. Jennifer Yuki scowled at her console as that intermittent sensor ghost appeared again. Her green oriental eyes stared intently at her board as she absent mindedly twirled a strand of her reddish/brown hair. Then the contact firmed up. She gasped in surprise and dread.

"Captain, there's a Peep cruiser in front of us!"

"Shit… execute plan Epsilon four now!" That plan called for a rapid change in bearing of all four ships. They would turn right 90 degrees off of their current heading. "Sound the alert again." Expecting trouble, Thad had gone to general just before exiting hyper. Even as Thaddeus issued his orders the Peep opened fire. Thad's quick response managed to save two of the merchantmen, but not the third. The helmsman had been just a second too slow in executing the turn. Counter missiles raced to intercept the deadly salvo, but three of them got through the barrage and exploded right in front of the merchies open throat. Since she was a merchantman, she mounted nothing in the way of defense and very little armor. The Havenite missiles detonated, sending powerful lasers deep into the merchie. She never stood a chance, exploding seconds later in a blinding boil of white light.

"Scatter the formation! Transmit a distress call to system command. Helm, plot an intercept course bearing…", Thad checked his repeaters, "324 mark 887!"

"But captain, that will take us closer to the Peep!" the helmsman wailed.

"Just do it damn it, we need to buy those two merchies some time to get to safety!"

Seeing the destroyer coming at him and the merchies turning to run, presenting him only their belly bands as targets, the Havenite captain decided to deal with the Manty warship first. He could always run down the merchantmen later with his superior acceleration.
The Peep light cruiser turned to engage the outclassed Manticoran destroyer, launching another salvo of missiles at the oncoming ship. The Victory shook as if grabbed by an angry god. Massive bomb pumped X-ray laser beams savaged her side, opening compartments to space. Of the first eight-missile salvo, one had slipped past the counter missiles and point defense laser clusters to hit the starboard sidewall. By some miracle, it missed all the weapon mounts and slashed deep into the ship. It was a touch, yet not a deadly one. Depressurization alarm klaxons started their mournful wail. Pressure doors slammed into place to contain atmosphere within undamaged sections. Thaddeus Armstrong issued orders rapid fire.

"Roll the ship! Execute attack plan Theta! Initiate damage control procedures!"

A chorus of ayes circled the bridge. They knew the odds, yet no one said anything. They had a job to do, and they would go down fighting. The Victory waited for the next gap in the enemies' fire, then rolled left and launched all missiles on the port broadside. Thad thought, 'If only we didn't have two helpless merchantmen to protect, then we could run away. Instead, I have to sacrifice my entire crew to buy them time to get away.' The Peep Light Cruiser PNS Troubador was slightly more than the Victory could handle. It only out massed the Victory by 10,000 tons, yet those extra tons included more armor and four more missile tubes per broadside. Fortunately, the more advanced ECM and ECCM of the Manty destroyer nearly evened out the ships firepower wise… nearly.

Even as Thad thought to himself, a fresh salvo of eight missiles spewed from the enemy. At the next opportunity, the weapons officer rolled ship and launched four missiles at the cruiser. They bored in on the enemy, jinking on preprogrammed evasive patterns. Their superior ECM allowed 3 to streak past as the counter missiles spat at them. Last ditch laser clusters tried to stab them, but they were too late. One more died at their hands, yet the other two continued on to explode. One hit the sidewall, which held back almost all of the laser heads X-ray fury. The other missile streamed in and exploded in a pincushion of destruction. Thanks to the other warhead, the Peep's sidewall was nearly gone. Bomb pumped lasers slashed in virtually unopposed, cutting deep into the ship.

"Captain! We got 'em good, her accell is slowing and there are two less missiles in her latest salvo! We must have hit a few of her nodes… accell still decreasing," the weapons officer, Jennifer Yuki announced with a quaver of hope in her voice. "Now down to 45 000 gravities! Captain, she won't be able to catch the merchies before they meet up with the system picket! You did it sir!" The mood on the bridge lightened considerably at that. They had saved the merchantmen. They were still going to die, yet they had done their duty. The missile strike had also taken out two launch tubes because only six spat out at the Victory.

'That still meant six missiles vs. four in every other salvo but it was better than eight to four for both like it had been when he started the engagement', the captain thought. Aloud, he said, "Good job Guns, now do it again."

Everyone on the bridge nestled deep in the ship had his or her skinsuits on, helmets locked tight. The enemy salvo came into attackable range. Due to the superior sensors and weapons of the Victory, four were intercepted by counter missiles, and another two by the last ditch laser clusters. Two bored in on the stricken destroyer. The ship bucked as the lasers struck. One struck on the sidewallless starboard side, gouging through the armor and striking laser six and missile three. The other struck soon after, hitting the fire control sensors and gutting the remaining armament on the ships starboard side. A wall exploded on the bridge, cutting the communications console, and its unfortunate operator, in half. Thad heard the hiss of slowly escaping air before the warning light in his helmet lit. A small piece of shrapnel had cut a small groove through his suit and into his arm. He quickly applied a patch to his suit. No time to check; the wound didn’t seem deep anyway. Everyone left on the bridge was buttoned up tight against the hard vacuum that now permeated the bridge.

"Fire control, missile one and two and laser six are gone on our starboard side. We're blind on that broad side now--good thing there are no more tubes left in action there." Lt. Yuki said.

"Roll the ship, get our exposed side out of danger! Execute attack with port tubes as they bear."

"Aye sir!"

The four missiles took flight. Streaking away at over 80,000 gravities, the flight time was less than a minute. Either because of damaged sensors or luck, three evaded the counter missiles and the storm of PD lasers to strike the Peep. The first one wasted itself on the belly band of the cruisers impeller wedge. Number two hit amidships, wiping away three missile tubes in a lucky hit. The last must have been guided by divine intervention because it exploded directly in front of the open rear throat of the Peeps wedge. Malevolent lasers slashed deep into the ship, eventually finding main engineering and the fusion bottle. One second the cruiser was there, the next a blinding ball of light, its fusion plant taking out the ship when the containment field failed. Left behind was one savagely mauled destroyer, limping its way back to the inner system at only half of its max rated speed. One quarter of her company were dead or missing. The ship seemed to bleed as atmosphere and debris vented from her clawed sides.

The ship seemed to vibrate as a cheer rose up from the surviving crew. Blind luck had let them live to fight another day… hopefully it would be as kind the next time. It had been a near thing. Thad had harbored virtually no thoughts of coming through this alive. Peep or no, that had still been a cruiser and he only had a destroyer. Oh, he would have mauled that cruiser pretty good, but all he thought he could do was buy some time for the merchantmen to escape. He uttered a short prayer of thanks to whichever god had spared his crew and ship. Another was sent to have them look after the souls of those gone, then started giving commands again. He still had a ship to get back to spacedock. There would be time to grieve later, when those he could still save were out of danger.

Wanted to make Sir Peter more human and less of a Jackass. Also wanted to introduce The Director sooner than I initially planned. Also wanted to add parts to flesh out the initial battle. Hence major changes to chapter one.

May god bless and look after the victims from the WTC, the airliners, and the Pentagon.
 

CHAPTER 2 [Later that week, Admiral's quarters, Superdreadnought HMS Killdeer]

Thad stood at attention ramrod straight, his eyes boring into the bulkhead above the Admiral's left shoulder. He awaited with dread the verbal storm that was coming. Knowing his CO, and the after action report he had submitted to him, there would be no avoiding it. Admiral Thanguae was seated behind his desk, with a hint of a out of place smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Thad wondered what that was about yet kept silent, staring at the wall.

"I take it from your report that you thought you did everything you could to complete your mission, Lt. Cmdr.?"

"Yes Sir! I DID do everything I could. The results, I think, speak for themselves."

"I say your wrong. It was your personal negligence that caused the loss of that merchantman! You're lucky you're not before a courts martial board now, lord knows you deserve it!"

Thad nearly exploded at the lies and insults laid out by his commanding officer. He choked back his initial hot retort that that rose to his lips. Taking a few deep, calming breaths, he grudgingly followed military protocol. By the malevolent sparking of the Admiral's eyes, he had been hoping to set off just such an outburst. When his plan failed anger flashed onto his face. But only for a moment, the serene mask falling back into place rapidly.

"Request permission to speak freely, SIR!"

The grudging response finally came.

"Permission granted."

"There is no way that either my crew or myself can be held accountable for the loss of that merchantman. If there had been more ships assigned to escort those merchantmen, as dictated by the book, we would have lost none of them! It was your orders that allowed their destruction to occur. You and you alone are responsible for assigning only one destroyer to a mission normally carried out by THREE CRUSERS! Your orders placed my ship and crew in that position. We saved them. It was no fault of theirs or mine that we lost one of the merchantmen.

"What do you mean it wasn’t your fault!" Rear Admiral of the Red, Sir Peter Thanguae exploded from behind his desk. "You lost an 8,000,000 ton merchant ship, plus its cargo, one quarter of your ships company and got your ship shot to hell! She'll be at the yard for almost a year for repairs. All this and you have the gall to sit there and tell me that it wasn’t your fault?"

Since day one, almost, Thaddeus and his most recent superior hadn't seen eye to eye. Thad had never understood the sudden animosity that had come over his CO one day. It almost seemed that from that point on, Admiral Thanguae was out to get him. That was why only Thad's ship had been attached as escort for the three superdreadnought sized merchant men, when the book dictated that at least two destroyers and a cruiser should be used.

"Sir, it was you who ordered that only my ship be used for the escort mission. You knew that the Peeps had been stepping up their commerce raiding in the surrounding systems. It's not like you didn’t have ships to spare, there is a whole squadron of the wall here with all their associated escorts. Surely a few could have been added to the escort. If there had just been a cruiser or another two destroyers along, we would have wasted that Peep without even breaking a sweat." Thad could see it now, his CO would finally get his wish. He had set Thad up for failure just so he could get rid of him. Thad new that was what he had done, he just wanted to know why.

"Why in HELL was my crew and the crew of that merchant ship made to suffer just so you could get me out of here?" Thad had hit that nail on the head hard. Sir Peter turned a shade of purple that would seem comical had it been in a different time and place.

"You want to know why… I'll tell you WHY! It’s the scum like you that drag down the human race. I know what you really are, Robert 48589 . . . you and all the other monsters created by Manpower Inc.!" Thad couldn’t help it, his jaw dropped wide open. He thought he had left his past dead and buried, yet this sorry excuse of a man had found out his deep dark secret. You see, Thaddeus had not been born in the traditional sense, he had been grown. Someone custom designed his genes to fit buyer's desires. Manpower Inc. even had its own world on which to do its dastardly deeds. To his owner, he was nothing more than a set of desirable traits and something to be used for her entertainment.

Thad was not your average human. He had higher than normal intelligence, for one. For another, his muscles were stronger than any normal human's had a right to be. He also would have had killer good looks, if not for a scar that ran down the side of his face from above his left eye to the middle of his cheek. His short hair was raven black, and he sported a goatee. His eyes were baby blue, what in older times would have been called dreamy. Modern medicine could have removed the scar, yet he wanted it as a reminder. Thad had been grown to be the confidant, guard and bedmate of a spoiled Solarian League aristocrat. Of course, such things were illegal in the Solarian League, illegal in every civilized system in human space. Yet that didn’t stop the flow of human slaves to out of the way places.

Robert 48589 had been programmed to love, obey and protect his mistress even at the expense of his own life. She had made more than a few enemies from her wheeling and dealings with the seamier side of the planets populace. It was in defending her that he had gotten that scar. An assassin made an attempt on his mistress's life. He saved her and killed the assassin, yet a round from a needler had nicked his face, leaving a nasty wound and destroying his left eye.

Upon seeing this, his mistress had promptly said that he would have to be taken back to Manpower. She only wanted the most expensive and perfect items in her possession. Anything less would be beneath her dignity. She would have to get one of those newer models that the Manpower contractor had been telling her about. To be so callously tossed aside by the woman he was programmed to love broke his heart. He finally saw though the blinders that had been placed on his mind by Manpower's heartless geneticists. She didn’t really love him. He was just a thing to her, something to be used and cast aside when no longer needed.

Then the reality of his situation set in. Manpower Inc. would be coming to 'dispose' of the evidence that could link them to their customer as well as to keep him quiet. Manpower prided themselves on being discreet. All the programming Manpower had stuck in his head was telling him to obey his mistress and wait in his room; yet, long dormant survival instincts took over. Once night fell, he stole his mistress's credit card and proceeded to the nearest bank machine to withdraw a large amount of money. He would need it all to fix his eye and book passage off system. He had to move quickly, Manpower goons would soon come to remove his mistress's imperfection problem.

Thanks to his mistress' dealings, he had been exposed to the seamier side of the planet's populace. It was to one of these people that he fled -- a surgeon that would do anything if the money was right. And, for a little extra, he would keep his mouth shut. The doctor hid him for the week it took to replace his damaged eye. The new one was virtually indistinguishable from the original. Thad didn’t ask where it had come from, he most likely wouldn’t have liked the answer if he had. The doctor offered to remove the scar on his face as well, but Thad was adamant that he leave it. Thad wanted it as a reminder of how low mankind could stoop.

He then proceeded to book passage (using fake documents under the name Thaddeus Armstrong to hide his identity) on a ship bound far away from his mistress and Manpower Inc. -- to the Star Kingdom of Manticore. Eventually, Thad chose to enlist in the Star Kingdom's rapidly expanding Navy. He hoped there he could make a fresh start and protect himself from Manpower's long reach. Even Manpower would not draw attention to itself by killing a person in the Royal Navy. They were considered outlaws by much of the civilized galaxy already and didn’t need to give the Star Kingdom an excuse to come down on them and ruin the nice business they had going. Thad had surprisingly good grades at Saganami Island (the major training center for naval personnel in the Star Kingdom), and had graduated top in his class.

He had proceeded rapidly up the chain of command until he got his first hyper capable command. That had been HMS Victory. He had fallen in love with that ship the instant he had seen her gleaming white hull from Her Majesty's Space Station Hephaestus. For the first time, he wore the white beret of a starship captain, instead of the black of a crewmember. He had made doubly sure his creases were straight in his gold on black uniform that day, both out of personal honor and desire to make a good impression on the crew… no, HIS crew. Now all his dreams were shattered. Victory was being taken away from him and a commander who had some grudge against him was transferring him to a dead end desk job. The air seemed to grow thick as Thad assimilated what his CO had told him, he KNEW what he really was.

"It was monsters like you that killed my wife and unborn child!" The anger was still present in the Admiral, but it was hand and hand with great pain. "The police said that it was a home robbery gone bad. That they were just a couple of addicts needing money to get a fix. They left out the fact that they were evil creations designed by Manpower Inc. They left out the fact that they were part of a group that escaped Manpower's control and were on a crime spree just for the hell of it. They were caught and brought to justice, but that wasn't enough. I have made it my personal mission to expose all of these abominations in our midst for the evil they really are!"

Thaddeus could only stand there stunned for a few seconds. Then he replied, "But Sir, I'm not like them…

"Silence! You are no longer in a position that concerns me. Imagine giving a monster like you control of a star ship!"

"Sir I am going to appeal this to the Lords of the Admiralty, what your doing . . . it just isn't right."

"And have what you really are plastered on the front page of every news service in the sector? I think not! You don’t want that to become common knowledge or else you wouldn’t have lied on your citizenship request. No, no, you'll keep quiet and be stuck where you can do the least damage. Now get out of my sight you sorry excuse for the Queen's uniform!"

Thad knew that his past would not matter to the Admiralty, he could have his command back and have all black marks on his record expunged. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to admit his shameful past to what would amount to the entire Kingdom. He saw his past as highly dishonorable and was not willing under any circumstances to admit that he was a product of Manpower Inc. genetic engineering. He accepted the lesser of two evils as long as it kept his origins a secret. He could live being Thaddeus Armstrong, fall guy. He couldn’t live, being known as Robert 48589, a Manpower created monster.

"You are dismissed Lt. Cmdr.!"

Robert 48589, AKA Thaddeus Armstrong, cast his eyes on the floor, turned, and walked out of Admiral Peter Thanguae's office.
 

CHAPTER 5 [Night, Planet Sphinx]
By now, almost everyone not otherwise occupied on the tarmac had encircled the happy pair. Excitement filled the air. Although it was not unusual for the odd new arrival to be adopted, very few bondings happened as suddenly and dramatically. They all knew that something special had happened under the harsh glow of the landing ground spotlights.

"So, have you thought of a name for your cat yet sir?", one of the well-wishers asked. "I've seen many adoptions during my time on Sphinx. They usually go one of two ways, you either instantly know a name or you take days finding just the right one."

"I think I'm one of the former then." The name for Thad's new furry companion had surfaced in his head almost immediately. It was one he remembered from a ancient earth cartoon. "What do you think of the name Taz?", Thad asked the cat. The cat's buzzing purr grew measurably in volume at this. "That settles it, Taz it is!" Just then a hawkish looking man with brown hair and eyes came puffing up to the huddle.

"So… it… was… true…!" The words seeped out between gasps.

"Why don't you take a minute to catch your breath, then start again?" a grinning Thad suggested. The newcomer just nodded, breathing in and out deeply. Once he had gotten his wind back, his face erupted into a huge grin.

"I'm sorry, where are my manners! My name is Bob Roberts. I'm in charge of human/cat interaction studies here on Sphinx. What is your name, if I may ask?"

"My name is Thaddeus Armstrong, and this is my Treecat Taz!" Upon hearing his name, Taz rubbed his head on Thad's lower jaw.

"Taz, what an interesting name… Well Mr.… err… Lt. Cmdr. Armstrong, I have a feeling you and I shall become rather well aquatinted these next few days. If you have any questions regarding your new companion, feel free to come by my office. I can tell you now, you'll need some new uniforms. Reinforced ones allow you to carry your cat at the customary place, upon your shoulder. Reinforcement is needed to preserve the fabric from a cats claws."

"That will be the first stop I make after I see the base commandant tomorrow morning then."

"Very good! Well I'm afraid I have to be going. I am sure well be in touch Lt. Cmdr. I wish you good luck and good night." Thad wondered what he meant when he said good luck. Mr. Roberts had a twinkle in his eye when he said it.

"Well some guys get all the luck! Not even on Sphinx a full minute and already adopted by a treecat!" Jennifer Yuki said with a mischievous look. "He's a little on the scrawny side isn’t he Thad?"

The cat gave a disdainful sniff and looked in the exact opposite direction from Jennifer.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who doesn't get your sense of humor. And don’t dis my cat. He's just right!" Taz commenced his buzzing purr again, and Thad felt love flood into the newly forged bond between them. Taz was about one and three quarters of a foot tall, discounting his tail. His luxurious fur was gray with black stripes, much like a tiger. His feline eyes were dark purple in color, and deeply expressive. With his cat in his arms, Thad proceeded to the organized chaos of the cargo hold.

"Excuse me," Thad asked the loadmaster politely, "but where can my friend and I pick up our things?"

Barely looking up from his cargo manifest, the master chief gestured to their left. Thanking him, Thad, Taz and Yuki made there way though the rapidly expanding cityscape of boxes and cargo canisters. They eventually stumbled across their lockers, already stored on grav sleds. Taz jumped down from Thad's arms and onto the sled, bleeking in excitement as it shifted under his sudden weight. Yuki and Thad proceeded to gingerly make their way around the rest of the cargo. Grav sleds might lower weight to next to nothing, but they didn't remove inertia. If they weren't careful with the sleds, they could easily lose control and knock down a pile of crates. If anything were damaged as a result, they would have to pay to repair or replace the item. That would also surely bring down the loadmaster's fury on them, because it would be he that had to repile the cargo.

The group of humans and treecat had nearly left the landing area when something happened. Taz leapt off of the cart sideways just as it passed a small stack of boxes. This caused the cart to swing into said boxes, knocking the entire pile to the ground. The cat's leap carried him to the top of a large canister nearby. After a few moments of shocked silence, what could only be described as chittering laughter came out of Taz. He lounged on the canister with a smug look on his face. It was then that Mr. Roberts' words struck home.

"Why do I get the feeling that he did that on purpose?" Thad turned to look at his cat, a stern look on his face. "Why did you do that?" The cat just chittered louder in reply to his tone.

"If I remember correctly from my xenobiology class, treecats are said to have a slightly malicious sense of humor." Jennifer said, twinkling eyes staring at Taz.

"Sure, now you tell me! Let's get out of here before the loadmaster notices that his carefully stacked boxes of letterhead have upset and takes a strip off us." Staring at Taz he said, "You and I are going to have a little talk when we get to our quarters mister!" Taz, still laughing, jumped back onto the sled. He seemed quite proud of himself for executing the joke so flawlessly. Thad could only think that controlling this loveable little monster was going to be a chore.

What ya think so far?
 

CHAPTER 6 [5 min. later, officers quarters, Tilley Base, Sphinx]

Lt. Yuki and Lt. Cmdr. Armstrong made their way up to the watch officer. Although security had been tight originally, since the war began it had tightened considerably. Instead of just having an identity check at the perimeter fence, passes now had to be scanned at the entrances to all major buildings in the base. A bored looking ensign stood guard. He was about to ask the two for their passes when Taz gave a menacing hiss form his seat on Thad's luggage.

Startled, all three humans looked at the angered treecat. Taz was puffed up to double size, ivory white, centimeter long claws out digging into Thad's baggage. Taz's lips were curled back to expose jaws filled with needle sharp teeth, and he was looking straight at the ensign. Something had evidently set him off, but for the life of him Thad couldn't figure out what it could be. He passed his ID to Jennifer and tried to calm down his angry companion. The guard quickly passed both of their ID's through his reader. When both came up green, he quickly allowed Jennifer, Thad and one angry treecat to enter the building. On his way in, Thad apologized to the guard through an armful of hissing treecat. No amount of scolding and pleading seemed to placate him. Even after the guard was out of sight the cat refused to calm down, looking back down the hall with the beginnings of a growl at the back of his throat.

Once the door had closed behind the party, the ensign let out the breath he had been holding in since the treecat had began hissing at him. He punched a series of numbers into a secure link com and raised it to his face. Only four words were spoken.

"The package has arrived."

"Excellent!" said the electronically distorted voice on the other end. Then the line went dead. The Ensign lowered the com, moonlight catching the ring he wore. It was just a simple silver wolfs head, with rubies for eyes. The company would forward a large sum of credits to his account for his service. He had no idea what they wanted with one Lt. Cmdr. Thaddeus Armstrong, but the pay given for letting them know he had arrived safely was very good.

[Tinnian city, Sphinx, that same time]

The person on the other end of that call closed her com with a satisfied smile. Looking out the large windows in her 17th floor room gave her an excellent view of the nighttime cityscape. Tinnian was the second largest city in all of Sphinx. It was also home to THE largest military base on the planet. She could just make out Tilley Base's runway lights near the left edge of her field of view. The director of The Cerberus Corporation decided that the time was right to introduce herself to the young man she had labored to get here. But there would be time for that tomorrow she told herself.

She made her way back to the room's personal hot tub. Lowering herself into the churning water, she let out a delighted sigh. It was a pity, the director thought, that she couldn't use the penthouse. The company could afford it of course, but it liked to keep as low of a profile as it could. Sacrifices had to be made to keep Cerberus as far below the radar as possible. So far, these plans had succeeded.

The Cerberus Corporation had been in existence almost since the beginning of the Star Kingdom. It had chosen a silver wolf's head with red eyes as its company mascot. Through the years, it had grown until it had quietly become one of the largest companies in the Kingdom. This was not common knowledge within the Kingdom of Manticore though. Cerberus had gone to great lengths to hide its true scope and power from both the Star Kingdom's people and its intelligence community.

Cerberus Corporation had hidden ties to almost every major industry within the Manticore system. Its intelligence arm rivaled that of Naval Intelligence itself. It also had ties to many of the less desirable elements of society. Even criminals and pirates had their uses, and Cerberus never discarded something useful.

Once it had silently taken over as much as it dared, it ran into a conundrum. What it had was not enough to suit its leaders. They had grown more and more power hungry as their influence grew. Cerberus thus set its sights on destabilizing the current government of Manticore in order to place one of their puppets into power. Thus, Operation Renegade was conceived. It was just the first step in their plans for gaining control of the Manticoran government, but it was a vital one. Now, with Thaddeus Armstrong on side, it would succeed. The director lounged in the hot tub, knowing that the time of hiding in the shadows was almost over.

[Officers Quarters, Tilley base, Sphinx, that same time]

Thad found his room with little trouble. Taz had finally quieted down, but still seemed edgy. Jennifer's room was just across the hall. Thad commenced unpacking his belongings while Taz seemingly scouted out the room. Once satisfied that nothing was lurking behind the desk and in the closet, Taz jumped onto the top of the high-backed desk chair, significantly calmer. Thad hoped that his furry friend would not have many of such outbursts as this in the future. The cat looked much more his loveable self now, so maybe it was just an isolated incident.

"So is he calmed down yet?" Jennifer asked from the open door.

"Seems to be. I wonder what set him off?"

"Cats have a strong protective instinct over their partners. It applies to both real and perceived threats. Maybe he thought the guard was dangerous to you for some reason."

"You seem to know a lot about treecats for a layman!" Thad said.

"My sister was adopted by a treecat. I couldn't help but learn a lot about them when one lived in my very house."

"Really! I could use any help and advice you have."

"Well, there isn't much you really need to do." Jennifer said as they made their way to the two chairs set up in Thad's spartan quarters. "They are more intelligent than most people give them credit for. I have seen that firsthand, as well as their slightly mischievous sense of humor. Beware if you give him any thing like a ball or a Frisbee as a toy. You'll need fast reflexes, trust me! They are excellent swimmers, but don't go in the water if they can help it. Just like Terran cats they hate getting wet, so bath times are interesting. As long as you wash him, it should be fine though."

"I wonder why Taz thought that guard was dangerous. He seemed perfectly normal to me anyway."

"I was wondering the same thing. He seemed harmless to me to, but since nothing came from Taz's and his encounter, I wouldn't worry about it. The guard might have even been jealous of your having a treecat. The cat picked up on that emotion and interpreted that as a threat towards you."

"Maybe…" Turning to Taz, Thad asked, "Was that all it was boy? Was he just jealous? Well in my opinion he had every right to be! Who wouldn't be jealous of anyone lucky enough to end up with you!" Upon hearing his tone of voice, Taz jumped down from his perch on the desk chair and scrambled onto Thad's lap. Once there, he placed his hand/paws on Thad's shoulders and nuzzled his head into Thad's lower jaw. His buzzing purr started up and love flowed into the link between them. Looking at the time, Jennifer stood up.

"Well, I'm going to hit the sack. You two should as well. You have a hectic day tomorrow and I'm sure you want to look your best for your first meeting with our new CO."

"You're right Jen, see you in the morning then." On impulse, Thad added, "And thanks for being my friend." Jennifer turned a bright shade of red.

"Your welcome!" was the embarrassed replay as she rapidly made her exit. Thad wondered what that was about as he started his before shuteye routine. Taz watched in amazement as he entered the shower. Why any sensible being would do such a thing eluded him. After the shower, Thad toweled off, put on a fresh pair of boxers and slipped into bed. The cat jumped onto the bed and settled himself on the pillow near Thad's head.
Both soon fell into a happy sleep, each basking in the unconditional love flowing between them through their link.
 

Thad made his way toward the officers' mess with an easy stride. Taz ride in a bonded treecats customary position, on Thad's shoulder. Thanks to a stop at the base tailor, Thad now had garments that could withstand a treecat's nasty set of claws. The meeting between Thad and his new CO went surprisingly well. Admiral of the Red Glinnis McAllister had started out by saying that whatever your history, all personnel started out with a clean slate under his command. All previous honors and reprimands meant nothing to him, all that counted was how you carried out your duties while on his base. All of the base personnel were fiercely loyal to him because of this policy.

Surprisingly, Thad found himself actually beginning to enjoy his new post. It was nothing compared with captaining or even serving on a naval vessel, but it was no where near as dull and boring as he had imagined. The other officers he worked with were all very welcoming and Thad even saw the possibility of becoming good friends with most of them. Admiral Glinnis, despite issuing all his people a clean slate, expected them to prove his faith in them. He worked them hard, yet they all said that he was a great person to work for. Thad hoped that all the good things he had heard today were true. This just might be a good assignment after all.

The duty shift that had just finished was streaming its way towards the mess hall. Everyone was joking and conversing with each other, seemingly without a care in the world. Then Taz laid his ears back and exposed his teeth. A snarling hiss escaped his parted lips. Thad quickly turned his attention towards the cause of this outburst. The culprit was a short, plump, gray haired old lady. On her creased face was a look of surprise. She quickly looked away and lost herself in the crowd. Thad tried to search for her, but she vanished almost as quickly as she appeared. Taz was still in a highly agitated state. Thad placed a calming hand on him, sending calming thoughts through their link. It was hard though, because this time, Thad himself had seen what had set his cat off. Though the old lady appeared to be normal, he had seen her eyes. Just before she had turned and fled into the crowd, Thad had a most terrifying look into the mysterious lady's soul. Taz had every right to be defensive this time. That lady was bad news guaranteed!

By now a few of Thad's acquaintances had come up to see what the fuss was all about. Thad told them it was nothing to worry about. A few thought different, yet chose not to press the issue. Since Taz was still agitated, Thad went directly to his quarters. He had lost his appetite anyway.

[Elsewhere on the base, that same time]

Everything had gone so smoothly up till now, The Director thought to herself as she exited the base. Not a single flaw had cropped up other than those greedy pirates. They would be dealt with in due course, but this new development posed a new set of risks. Who would have known that he would have been adopted by a treecat? She had hoped to approach him alone and convince him to join the Cerberus community. That would be impossible now. She tapped her foot impatiently while the guard scanned her ID, thinking hard as to how this situation could still be brought to her advantage.

"Here you go. Have a good night Sargent Cogsworth." the guard said, as he passed back her card. Nothing like an alias and the best fake ID card money could buy to get you in and out of a secure area unnoticed. As she made her way to the aircar lot, it hit her. She merely needed to invite Thaddeus Armstrong to a parley and show him the right carrot. Maybe even the stick if he proved unreasonable. Part of her wished he would be difficult, those were the most enjoyable ones to bring into the fold. She rubbed her hands together in anticipation.

[Thaddeus Armstrong's quarters, night]

Taz had finally fell asleep, after over an hour of reassurance. Thad himself found sleep unattainable. He paced his room, mulling over just who that lady was and what she was doing at the base. Then his com terminal chimed quietly. He made his way over to his desk and activated the panel. A message appeared on it, requesting his presence to a formal welcoming ceremony. The base commandant Admiral Glinnis McAllister himself singed it. There was only one special consideration on it, the admiral requested that his treecat be left at home. That is an odd request, Thad thought, the admiral seemed to have no problem with Taz when we met this morning. Yet, what an admiral orders, a lieutenant commander can only follow. Thad looked in on Taz. He was still sleeping soundly. Though Thad felt bad about leaving his companion behind, he felt that he didn't have a choice. He opened the door and quietly slipped out into the hall.

[Restaurant just outside of Tilley base, five minutes later]

Thad entered the cozy little establishment expecting a party, but found none. Searching for first the Admiral, then military personnel of any kind, Thad came up empty. Then he felt a hand grip his upper arm. Thad turned and was concerned because of who he saw holding him.

"You!! Who the heck are you and where is the Admiral?!" The old lady on his arm merely smiled and turned him towards a private booth towards the back of the restaurant. She was surprisingly strong, despite her appearance to the contrary. "Let go of me now! If you don't, you will regret it!" In response, the lady rolled her eyes and made a show of letting go of his arm. Thad turned to go, but was stopped dead in his tracks by her voice.

"Now, now Mr. Robert, that isn't very polite. All I want to do is have a little chat. Do we have an understanding, or do you wish to be bullheaded?"

Turning quickly, Thad leveled a deadly stare in the old woman's direction. "Give me one reason why. You have evidently have access to secure com systems, you know more than you should, and you creep me out. All these things individually would be enough to make me leave, together they make me want to run!"

"Simple, I can be a very, very good friend… or your worst nightmare! Which you want me to be is up to you." Seeing little choice, Thad sat down. "There now, isn't that better!" the old woman purred. "I know that you really want to go back to space. What if I said I could arrange that for you?"

That piqued Thad's interest, though he showed no sign of it outwardly. Though he wasn't totally upset with his present assignment, he still longed for space. "So what if you can get me back into space! You must have a reason for it. Don't tell me you are doing it out of the kindness of your heart!"

"Your right, I do have reasons for getting you into space again. But first, I need to have you on side. I can guarantee that you will be where the action is. It’s the old you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours kind of deal. All you need to do is say yes…"

Thad looked deep into the mysterious lady's eyes. Part of him was screaming run away. Yet a larger part of him was urging him to accept the woman's cryptic offer. In the end, there was really only one choice for him to make.

"All right… what do I have to do." The woman flashed him a wolfish smile.

"In good time, in good time. I'll be in touch Lt. Cmdr. I'm sure its going to be a pleasure doing business with you." She rose and left. Thad remained seated for a long time afterward, worried that he had just made a deal with the devil.

Anyone still reading this drivel?
 

Thad mulled over his decision again and again. Had he done the right thing in accepting the old lady's offer? She had to have powerful connections to be able to hack into the secure base com net, and to forage ID papers capable of passing intense scrutiny. Yet at the same time, she had an evil air about her. Both Thad's treecat with his empathic sense, even he himself had seen that much. Yet here she was offering him the one thing that could make him accept. He needed to return to space, to make a difference. Despite the loss of life and damage to his command, saving those merchantmen had been the highest point in his life. In that singular moment, he had realized truly what self-sacrifice meant. Seeing his crew's grim resolve to press on, even if it gave a mere shadow of a chance of the merchantmen escaping stamped a mark on his soul. He made a personal vow to be worthy of such fine men and women and the system that they fought for. Then being forced dirtside shattered all his hopes. He had been judged unworthy of being a part of the elite fraternity of ship's commanders. Had everything he had worked so hard to attain ripped away from him.

He made another vow to himself as he hurried back to his quarters. He would make any promise to that lady if it got him back into space. He would just choose which ones to honor based on his personal moral compass. He didn't care the cost to himself. That lady was up to something bad, and he wanted to be in a position to stop it. Despite all of the tampering his mind had undergone, he was still a very moral humanbeing. If he saw injustice he tried to right it. If he saw crime he tried to stop it. He still mourned every life he had been forced to take in the service of his mistress. Their faces haunted his dreams, despite the fact that it had been kill or be killed. Although Manpower had endeavored to remove every trace of human compassion in him, they failed. Instead of their envisioned flesh and blood robot, they created a human being with feelings and a sense of right and wrong.

Thad knew that he was stepping into a minefield. He would have to be very careful if he was to succeed in foiling whatever that evil witch had in store. One misstep would get him killed. He knew that there would be no hesitation on her part to eliminate him if he outlived his usefulness. He was within sight of the main gate to the base when a figure stepped out from a shadowy alleyway. He had keen eyes and an amicable air about him.

"Sir, a word if you please."

"All right, but make it quick." Thad said, half his mind still in a world of its own.

"I am from the Office of Naval Intelligence." The stranger produced an authentic looking ID. "My name is Major Sterling. I want to ask you what you know about the little old woman you met at the restaurant just now."

So ONI is checking up on her, Thad thought, just what have I gotten myself into?

"I actually just met her. Why? Has she done something illegal?"

"She is under suspicion of certain activities that may be very dangerous to the Kingdom of Manticore. I am not allowed to say more, only that she is very bad news. I need to know what she said to you. It is of vital importance."

"To be frank, she promised me a command slot again if I would do a favor for her in the future." Thad felt that he could trust this man, he just seemed like one of the good guys.

"Did you accept?!" Major Sterling asked a bit to quickly.

"Why is that so important?" Thad responded baitingly. He needed more information on just what he had stepped into the middle of before he said one way or another.

"Don't play games with me mister! I have been in the spy business since before you were in diapers. Now did you accept?!"

"Yes I did." Thad said. So, they don't know who I am yet Thad thought. Thad had never wore diapers. Accelerated growth induced by Manpower had eliminated any childhood he might have had. ONI didn't have all the cards in this game either. Thad was glad he wasn't the only one in the dark.

"Excellent! This is the break that we have been hoping for since we got our first hint of her and her compatriots activities. You have know idea how important you are! This could break our case wide open. Woo boy!" Major Sterling looked like a kid on Christmas who had gotten everything he had asked for and more. Thad put on his best look of utter incomprehension, hoping for more crumbs of info. "Sure, stand there looking dumb. Hoping for more info eh! Well, since you are now my main lead, I'll let you in on what I know."

"Cerberus Corporation and/or its subsidiaries have quietly acquired controlling interest in almost all major corporations and industries within the Star Kingdom. Not satisfied with this, they are now in the process of either buying or emplacing people who answer to them within the government. They want to be the ultimate puppet masters, controlling everything from the shadows. They have something big going down, and I think you are a major part of it. The sweet old lady who you just met is the director of Cerberus Corp. Most of the board do not dirty themselves with the day to day operations of the company. She is quite the opposite. She involves herself constantly, like the way she initiated contact with you. Instead of sending an underling to do it, she came herself. She seems to crave the exhilaration the risks that such actions entail. We need someone on the inside so we can effectively protect the Star Kingdom. You have to be our eyes and ears. From now on, you follow our instructions as to how you proceed in dealings with her."

Thad had stepped into a much more deadly mine field than he had originally bargained for. "Ok, I'll do as you ask. I was planning on doing something similar on my own anyhow. She and her buddies need to be stopped, no matter the cost."

"Good! I'm sure you'll do fine. Just follow instructions and don't do anything stupid." With that, he walked back down the alleyway into the darkness.

"My God, what have I gotten myself into? First a scary lady, then ONI, and finally vast corporations who want to control the government! What next!"
 

Thad was just passing through security when a gray and black missile leaped towards him. Taz landed in outstretched arms, his buzzing purr reverberating deep into Thad's bones. Thad felt delicate arms wrap around his neck and enfold him in a strong hug.

"Taz! How the heck did you get out?" The answer came huffing up to them. Jennifer Yuki paused a minute to catch her breath, then commenced with the explanation.

"Your little beastie there was putting up such a racket that I couldn't sleep. Worried that something was terribly wrong, I went over and opened your door to see what all the commotion was about. Before I had it open even half way, Taz here is out it like a needleer round. He made straight for the main door and went out into the night. I of course gave chase. The little bugger can really move when he wants to. At a guess, I think he was very upset because you snuck out on him."

"Oh Taz! I'm sorry, I thought you would still be asleep and there was this message…" Words failed Thad when he saw and felt the hurt he had caused his cat. After a few seconds of letting the message sink in, Taz recommenced his purr and poured forgiveness into their link. Thad gripped his companion in a tight bear hug, tears welling up in his eyes. "I'm so sorry buddy, I didn't think… How could I have done such a thing? Trust me, this will NEVER happen again, that’s a promise!" The group started towards the barracks. Once inside, Thad turned to Jennifer with a serious expression on his face. "Jen, there is something I just have to tell somebody about. I know that I can trust you to keep a secret. Its just to be for me to handle all by myself." Thad went into the entire story of the mysterious communiqu�, the old lady, ONI and Cerberus Corporation. Jen remained silent through it all.

"Well, looks like you really stepped into it this time sir! What do you plan to do?"

"Take her up on her offer, just like the spook told me to. But I want you to come with me. I need someone I know and trust to be there to back me up. I don't know the exact way she is going to get me back into space, but I'll find some way to get you there with me. That is of course if you want to. Do you?"

"Of course silly! You think you could tell me this intriguing tail and then expect me to sit on the sidelines? Heck no, in for a penny, in for a pound!"

Relief flooded through Thad. A part of him had been very worried that she would say no. "Thanks Jen, it really means a lot to hear you say that." A hint of redness rose on Jennifer's cheeks.

"Well you don't have to make such a big deal about it. Friends look out for each other, and you sure need someone right now."

"All the same, thank you. You have no idea how much you friendship means to me." Turning a deeper shade of red, Jennifer covered it by turning towards the door.

"I need to get some shut eye, early shift and all. You just rest easy knowing old Jen's got your back." And with that she hurriedly made her exit. Thad snickered at that. Old Jen was only 24 standard years old. Thanks to prolong, she looked barely 17. Thanks to Manpower, Thad looked only 22 himself. Looks were deceiving though. Prolong extends the human life span and slows the aging process so that ages of 200 years or more are commonplace. Because Thad had been grown, he appeared 22 when he was actually only 16 years old. Manpower had used various means to program his mind so it was as developed and as filled with knowledge as an adult was. Because of his superior intellect, he had also learned a lot of things since his escape. Despite all this, Thad had a hard time dealing with others emotions. He could function in society, yet many of the subtleties of group dynamics were lost on him. Thad had never been a child and so had had a lot less time to study other humans and their reactions.

This had caused him to seem distant and aloof all through his days at Saganami Island Academy. All of his instructors had thought he would make a fine officer one day, but his class mates had been unable to draw him as much as they wanted to. He had come across as cold towards them simply because he was unsure how to respond. He had many talents, but dealing with people was not one of them. He could command them, and feel compassion for them, but he was unable to communicate feelings effectively.

The last two days though, Thad had found himself more and more able to do so. He had even made friends with some of his fellow officers. The more Thad thought about it, the more he was positive that Taz was helping him out in that department. Taz had melted through the icy shell he had placed around himself and opened Thad up to the full spectrum of human interaction. Thad sent a silent thank you to Taz for coming into his life. In response Taz bleeked a thank you, then settled into a ball in Thad's lap. Thad scratched Taz's ears, listening to the cats purr and feeling better and better despite his originally dour mood. Though Thad still had quite a distance to go maturity wise before he was caught up to his physical age, he had grown by leaps and bounds these last two hectic days.
 

CHAPTER 10 [Tilley Base, one week later]

Major Sterling had contacted him only a few days later with a line he could use to reach him. At that time, Thad said that if ONI wanted his cooperation they would have to guarantee that Lt. Jennifer Yuki would be assigned to where ever he was. Sterling had done some hemming and hawing over that, but in the end agreed. That fact let Thad know just how valuable he was. ONI was really desperate to keep him on side if they caved in to his demand so easily.

One week to the day after his meeting with the Cerberus woman, she made contact again but in a more obtuse fashion. Thad was called in to Admiral McAllister's office. McAllister looked slightly annoyed with Thad when he entered.

"Mister Armstrong… would you kindly explain why you didn't give me at least a heads up on this?"

"Sir?" Thad replied, genuinely perplexed.

"Don't play dumb with me mister. You went out and requested a transfer to the Grayson Navy! Now I know that the Star Kingdom has been loaning officers and enlisted personnel to Grayson, but I thought you liked it here!"

Thad had to think fast. That witch hadn't even left him a message since that night, and now she springs this on him! He could bet that she was really enjoying toying with him like this. "Sir, the opportunity came up recently and I had to take advantage of it ASAP. I'm sorry if I offended you. I really did like it here, it's just…"

"Its not a command position and a dead end career wise, I know, I know!" the admiral finished for him. "I sometimes wish I could relive my youth and go back into space on the command deck of a ship, so I know firsthand your desire." The admiral chuckled to himself, then stared into Thad's eyes. "I like you Lt. Cmdr., and can see you are a fine example of a Queens Officer, despite what your record says. That is why I give my full endorsement to your request. Someone with your drive and skill deserves to be out there fighting the Peeps, not forced behind a desk. It has been a pleasure to serve with you, even if our time together has been brief. Now go out there and kick some Peep but for me!"

"Sir, yes Sir!" Thad said in a voice that would have done his instructors at Saganami Island proud. He saluted Admiral McAllister smartly. The admiral returned the salute.

"You are dismissed… Captain!" on his last word the admiral broke into a grin.

Thad got through half of his about face when the words struck home. Turning around much more sloppily, he gazed at the admiral open mouthed.

"Excuse me sir… but did you just call me Captain?"

"Yes son, I did. As part and parcel of your transfer to Grayson service, you have received a promotion to the rank of Captain in the GSN. Congratulations!" the admiral extended his hand, and Thad shook it mechanically. He had only wanted to go back into space. This was almost more than he had bargained for. To be placed into a foreign, albeit allied, navy was a shock. The bigger shock was that the Graysons had bumped him up from Lt. Cmdr. to a full Captain. He had heard that they were short on personnel with command experience, but to bump him up to Captain must have taken some pull.

Thad walked out of McAllister's office in a dreamlike state. Taz was preening on his shoulder the whole way back to their quarters. Thad could tell that he thought his human's promotion was a great idea. While Thad himself had some doubts, he had chosen this path and could not walk away from it now. When he entered his quarters, his com terminal was beeping at him. He pressed the activation button and Major Sterling's smiling face appeared on the screen.

"Congratulations Mr. Armstrong. Before you say anything, I have already put a rush on getting Lt. Yuki assigned to the GSN as well. This little stunt has allowed us to find a few more Cerberus plants in the military. We won't act on them yet because we don't want to tip our hand, but you can bet they are under the microscope now. I have taken the liberty of forwarding to you 'your' request for transfer and its reply. You should find your next command to be quite interesting, I think. But then you are going to find that out for yourself in a few weeks anyway, so I won't spoil the surprise! I'll be in touch with your new contact on Grayson shortly after you arrive there. Till then, bon voyage!"

[Two weeks later, Grayson orbit, Blackbird shipyards main station]

Thad looked out the armourplast portal at the insane amount of activity in the space that made up the Blackbird shipyards. He had never seen such a sprawling facility before. Sure some bases back in the Manticore system were more massive constructs, with dozens of capital ships under construction at any one time. Yet they were no where near as spread out as Blackbird Yard. As far as he could see, hulls hung in various states of completion. The sheer scale of the undertaking was underlined when he saw the size of the humans working on the nearby ships. They looked like gnats buzzing around an elephant as they moved from place to place on the mountain of metal and armor that would become a ship of the wall.

Thad tugged down the blue on blue uniform, still thinking that it didn't look right on him. And this weird hat, a 'ball cap' they called it, was even more alien. How he longed for the beret of Manticore. His motions nearly dislodged his cat from his place on Thad's shoulder. An annoyed bleek told Thad to stop squirming.

"Sorry bud." Thad apologized. A disdainful sniff answered him.

"You should listen to him. You look like a little kid in dress cloths when you squirm like that." Jen teased form beside him. She looked even better in her Grayson uniform than she did in her Manticoran one, and knew it. The pips on her collar said that she was a Lt. Cmdr. in the GSN.

"Geepers, stereo scolding!" Upon seeing that Jen was about to start up again Thad said, "Ok, ok, I'll stop squirming! Sheesh! Let's just find our way to the boat bay, shall we. It wouldn't do for us to be late the first day on the job now would it?"

After boarding the pinnace, they sat down and watched as dozens of hulls flashed by the portals. Finally they came up to their final destination, located in a remote and isolated part of the yard. The pinnace pilot took them on a leisurely cruse around their new ship. The GSN battlecruiser Warspite's gleaming white, 880,735-ton bulk loomed in front of them. She was a brand new ship, not even totally finished yet. Her port broadside gravitic and lidar arrays had yet to be installed. Four graser mounts still had to be put in, and she was missing half her fore alpha nodes as well. Thad noticed something else too, she had fewer missile tubes than a battlecruiser should mount, and her aft hammerhead was odd looking. Thad couldn't place his finger on exactly what was wrong with it, just that it didn't look normal.

The pinnace completed its tour and proceeded into the cavernous boat bay. As was custom, Thad exited the pinnace first because he was the ranking officer aboard. A Grayson marine detachment snapped to attention with a barked command from their squad leader. In front of him his new first officer, Cmdr. Julius Custer GSN, came to attention as well. The bosun's pipes stilled all activity in the bay. Cmdr. Custer saluted, and Thad returned it with equal correctness.

"Permission to come aboard?" Thad asked, as until he formally assumed command he was a guest on Custer's ship.

"Permission granted." Came the reply in a deep baritone. The man was short, but then most Graysons were. He was a full inch and a half below Thad's six feet. He had golden hair paired with a broad nose. He was in excellent physical shape and looked the part of a wrestler. His steel gray eyes cast a measured look at his new captain, then shifted to the treecat perched on his shoulder. "May I escort you to the bridge sir?"

"Of course Commander, lead the way."

Julius Custer led Thad and Jennifer out of the bay and into the intaship car. Once the doors had closed, Julius let out a deep breath. Turning towards them, he smiled.

"I don't know about you two, but every time I do something official like that, I'm worried I'll say the wrong thing and make an ass out of myself." Cmdr. Custer smiled impishly. Extending his hand first to Thad, then Jen, he said, "Let me take this opportunity to welcome you both… correction you three aboard the Warspite."

"Thank you Commander." Taz also bleeked his thanks from Thad's shoulder.

"Thanks Sir." Jennifer Yuki replied.

"I have some questions regarding the condition of the ship, but they can wait until after I have assumed command."

"Of course Sir. I know the Warspite looks bad now, but you'll be pleasantly surprised by our special modifications. I guarantee it!" Just then the lift chimed that they were approaching their destination. Seconds later, the doors opened to reveal the spacious bridge. To the left side of the captain's chair was a rather large holo tank. Just beside that was tactical. Directly in front of his chair were the astrogation and helm consoles. To the right were damage control, communications, and backup terminals. All stations faced the captain's chair. Repeaters of every bridge station surrounded the chair itself, allowing the captain access to pertinent information instantly.

Thad made his way up to the side of his chair. Standing Taz on the floor beside him, he depressed the intership com button. At the sound of the musical tone, everyone on the ship stopped what they were doing and listened. Thad's scarred face appeared ship wide on every com screen. Waiting a for a second, he commenced reading his orders.

"From Admiral Honor Harrington, Grayson Space Navy," he read in his melodious voice, "to Captain Thaddeus Armstrong, Grayson Space Navy, Forty-Sixth Day, Tenth Month, Year Three Hundred and Twenty After Landing. Sir: You are hereby directed and required to proceed aboard The Protector's Starship Warspite, BC-Six-Two, there to take upon the duties and responsibilities of commanding officer in service of The Tester, and of Grayson. Fail in God's service at your peril. By order of High Admiral Wesley Matthews, for Protector of the Faith, Benjamin IX."

Thad switched off the com. The orders had been the same in format ever since Grayson commissioned its first warship. By simply saying them, Thad had placed every man and woman on the ship under his authority. The Warspite was his now, and it felt good to be in command again.

The Grayson Navy had been pitifully small when Manticore first made contact with Grayson. Their largest ship was only the size of a cruiser, and a single modern light cruiser could have smashed Grayson's entire navy. Since then though, they had grown by leaps and bounds. They now marshaled the third largest fleet in the sector, behind only the PRH and Manticoran navies. The Grayson Navy had acquitted itself quite well in battle, and had successfully drove off multiple Peep attacks. The most recent of witch was done under 'The Salamander' herself, Admiral Honor Harrington. Scuttlebutt said that she would be shipping out under Manticoran flag soon. Thad regretted that, he had hoped to learn much from such a skilled commander. But alas, it was not meant to be.

"Exec, I would like to hold a dinner this evening. I would request that all senior officers be there please."

"Aye Sir."

"Now about those special modifications…"

"Of course Captain. As you no doubt know, the Warspite's missile broadside is a few launchers short of the norm, and her aft hammerhead looks odd. This is because she is a prototype vessel, an entirely new way of designing warships. The fruits of project Ghost Rider were designed into her from the outset. Allow me to fill you in on project Ghost Rider."

"As you know, normal missiles are about 15 meters long, have a maximum powered engagement range of 6,750,000 kilometers, and a terminal velocity of 75,000 KPS. The specs of Ghost Rider missiles, on the other hand, are gonna blow your mind. Though they are almost 31 meters in length, they contain three separate drives. These can be activated at any power level and any time. The tactical flexibility this gives us allows for a max powered engagement envelope of over 65,000,000 kilometers, with a terminal velocity of 0.81 light speed! Or you could use the first two stages to boost the missile, coast it to a programmed attack area, then kick in the last drive and use it for terminal attack maneuvers at a full 92,000 Gs. That mode gives our weapons unheard of reach and striking power."

"But the new missiles are not the best goodie that BuWeps has given us to play with. The after hammerhead looks odd for a very good reason. It is designed to allow missile pods, stored internally, to leave the ship. Your standard battlecruiser mounts around 35 missile tubes. We, on the other hand, carry 250 missile pods with 8 Ghost Rider missiles each. We can fire a salvo of six every 12 seconds. The Warspite has over 2000 missiles and can put 240 missiles per minute into space from the pods alone. If you add the internal launchers, you get an extra 30 Ghost Rider missiles per broadside. That weight of fire combined with the missiles capabilities make us more than a match for even a squadron of battlecruisers."

"Unfortunately, we are currently not allowed to utilize Ghost Riders full capabilities. BuShips is hurriedly building not just more battlecruisers like us, but full on superdreadnoughts of the same basic design. Once sufficient number are built, we are gonna smash the Peeps once and for all! But until then, our true capabilities must be kept secret."

"Complimenting all that impressive armament, our defensive systems have been given a boost as well. Our EW drones are of the latest design. They are generations ahead of anything used before, capable of both intense active and subtle passive jamming. They are also capable of imitating our sensor signature exactly. Some missiles in each broadside are EW platforms, engaging in both ECM and ECCM activities. They fly out with the salvo, either showing up as five missiles or engaging in active jamming. They can even interpret data gathered on the ECM of a target, and change the salvos pen aids in mid flight, greatly increasing the chance of a hit. Our new internal compensators, based on Grayson design I might add, allow us to pull the acceleration previously available only to cruisers. And best of all, we can now close the exposed fore and rear of our wedge. The prototype bow and stern walls effectively halt all maneuvering and acceleration when they're in use. But that disadvantage is far outweighed by the added protection that they offer."

Thad just stared at Commander Custer as his mind raced to grasp the enormity of what he had just been told. Once these systems came on line in a true fleet of the wall, the war was all but won. Once seemingly impregnable systems would become mere targets. When you had the power to send hundreds of thousands of missiles at the enemy from well beyond a range that he could respond back…

"My God…"

"That was my initial reaction as well Sir."
 

quote:

---

"From Admiral Honor Harrington, Grayson Space Navy," he read in his melodious voice, "to Captain Thaddeus Armstrong, Grayson Space Navy, Forty-Sixth Day, Tenth Month, Year Three Hundred and Twenty After Landing. Sir: You are hereby directed and required to proceed aboard The Protector's Starship Warspite, BC-Six-Two, there to take upon the duties and responsibilities of commanding officer in service of The Tester, and of Grayson. Fail in God's service at your peril. By order of High Admiral Wesley Matthews, for Protector of the Faith, Benjamin IX."

---

All in all, this is all right. It follows the Manticoran format a little too close to the hilt than the Graysons would IMO, but that isn't my really nitpicky thing.

My really nitpicky thing...the date. You quote the date in the Manticoran format, while the Graysons use the old Georgian calendar. In FIE, Honor has difficulty translating the Manticoran calendar into the one the Graysons use, which is the same as ours. So, it would be better if you used something like 28 September 40--, instead of AL.

Of course, it is your writing after all, and you can do as you wish but I thought I'd point it out. When I get some more time I'll take a better look at the whole thing. Hope this helps at least a little.
 

I have two general story lines, one involving Manpower coming to get rid of Thad, the other involving fundimentalists and primarily ground combat on the planet of Masada (series fans should know all about Those disagreeable indivduals)

I'm leaning more towards the second myself as its events are directly influenced by events in this epp. and it happens only a short while later, but I am willing to leave it up to anone reading this fic.

Well, which is it?
Votes here and on the other boards this fic is going up on will be tallied once the story is finished. I'll be shure to post the results for you here.
 

I haven't read after chapter three, I'm going to, soon. It's just like putting off time to read a physical book, only the screen is slightly more irritating for the eyes than good old paper.
 

CHAPTER 11 [GSN Warspite, Black Bird Yards dry-dock]

"Well XO, you have given me quite a bit to take in. I had no idea that we could even DO things like this, let alone have them already in production on near finished hulls."

"And a good thing you didn't too cause if you knew about it, chances are very good that the Peeps would as well!"

"Point taken. Well, using these new systems in the wargames scheduled for after our space trials should be very interesting."

"Aye Sir, but we can only use them to full effect in simulated attacks on the rest of our squadron. Only they currently have clearance to even know of their existence. As far as everyone else knows we are just a normal, innocent, little BC. By the time we finish our space trials there should be another two Warspite class BCs and three Ghost Rider equipped Star Knight class refits online to join us. Once they arrive, we will become Task Force 55, under the command of Admiral Bruce Cole. Admiral Cole may seem rather young for his appointment, but he is very good at his job. I have personally seen him in action, and will go into battle with him anytime. He knows his stuff backward and forewords and is very creative tactically."

"We are also supposed to receive some cruisers and destroyers as screening elements. It is hoped that within a month two more Warspite class BCs will be finished and can join our squadron. Within five months, the first SDs based on our design will be finished. They are scheduled to join up with Admiral White Haven at Trevor's Star as part of Eighth Fleet. Task Force 55 may or may not be going with them, the brass still hasn't decided."

"Thank you for the update as to our situation Commander. It looks like the next few months should be very busy. Since that is the case, I think I had better settle in now. I would like a report on what's left to be installed and how long the yard dogs think it will take on my desk by this evening. I'll see you this evening for the working dinner, six o'clock sharp."

"I'll be there Captain, and you'll receive the report ASAP." Thad merely nodded in reply. Stooping, Taz scrambled up Thad's shoulder. His 8.5-kilogram bulk was lightened by the fact that the Warspite was kept at 1 G, not the 1.35 G of Sphinx. Thad was thankful for that. Though he was very strong, his muscles had yet to adapt to carrying the extra weight around all day.

As he made his way towards the lift, Thad mulled over why Cerberus wanted him here. He was still thinking hard when he approached his quarters. The honor guard at the door stiffened to attention. Thad returned the salute then made to enter his new home. Stopping just inside the door, sheer size of the quarters shocked him. When he had been a middie on his first cruise, he had bunked with many people in a large room. As an Ensign, he had shared a closet sized room with another Junior Officer. Once he got his first command, he thought that his personal quarters were huge. Smaller warships just don't have the room to build large quarters. But even his room on the Victory was tiny compared to this.

Perplexed as to why the door wouldn't close, the sentry looked around the corner to see what was wrong. Seeing his Captain staring wide eyed around the room, a knowing smile appeared on his face. Without thinking, he opened his mouth. "Sir, if you think this is large, you should see the Admirals Quarters! They're almost indecently big!"

Realizing that he had an audience, Thad spun around, his face bright crimson. The sentry was sure he had said too much, and prepared himself for a verbal beating. It never came. Instead, he got laughter. When he spun around, Thad had seen the marine wince and cast his eyes downward. The look on his face was so comical, Thad lost what little self conscious anger had welled up inside him. On hearing the burst of laughter, the guard stared at his captain again braced at attention.

Once Thad had sufficiently recovered from the laughing spell to speak, he let the sentry off the hook. Clasping him on the shoulder, he said, "You know Sergeant, I just might do that." On seeing the shocked look cross the guard's face Thad almost fell into another fit of laughter, but managed to restrain himself. The sergeant made his escape as quickly as he could, not wanting to embarrass himself further in front of his new captain. Thad turned and began a survey of his new home.

Next to the far wall was a desk, apparently made from genuine ironwood. On his desk was a terminal, part com system, part computer. There was a high backed, navy blue leather chair behind it. Some kind soul had also installed a perch behind the desk for Taz. Two smaller chairs were placed in front of the desk. To his left was a large video screen. It could be used for either entertainment or communications. There was a comfortable looking sofa along the opposite wall and another chair beside the door. Thad made his way through the room and into the adjoining bedchamber.

Lying on his bed were two skinsuits, his and a much smaller one. Thad felt relief flood through him as he examined both suits. He had worried that Taz's skinsuit might have been damaged or lost. Very few places sold skinsuits for treecats, and even fewer places sold them. Thad shuddered to think what could happen if Taz was left unprotected in a battle situation. That skinsuit was one of the first things Thaddeus had purchased on Sphinx. Bob Roberts had been thoughtful enough to tell him about a store in Tinnian that sold them. Thad had spent many of his off-hours at Tilley Base's zero G tank, teaching Taz how to use the thrusters on his suit. Taz had been a quick study and was soon jetting circles and loops around his less agile companion.

On the small nightstand beside the bed was a small com terminal and Taz's frisbee. Thad had learned firsthand just what Jennifer had meant when she warned him. The side of his head was still slightly tender from where the speeding disk had struck. Thad's reaction had been just a second to slow, and his noggin had paid the price. Taz had found the whole episode hilarious, even more so when Thad had tried to peg him in return. The cat was just to quick though, and Thad had finally relented to being more watchful in their future games.

In his closet were his spare uniforms, and his few civilian cloths were stored in a chest on the shelf. Thad was just finishing his inspection when the door chimed.

"Enter" A woman strode in, the stripes on her sleeves indicating she was a Master Chief. Her chocolate brown eyes complimented her graying brown hair up in a bun. She was very motherly looking, with a quick smile and warm eyes. Master Chief Leona Gibbons stared up at her charge with a practiced eye. At five foot three, and 160 pounds she maintained quite an athletic figure, despite her apparent age.

"I trust you have found everything to be in order sir?" She asked in a rich soprano.

Thad looked down at his steward, "Yes Master Chief, everything looks great."

"Please Sir, call me Leona."

"Alright, but only if you call me Thad" Leona made a noncommittal grunt, then turned to the treecat on Thad's shoulder. "Allow me to introduce my little companion here. Leona, meet Taz. Taz, Leona." Taz preened on Thad's shoulder.

Leona reached into her pocket and produced a stalk of celery. Taz was in heaven when she gave it to him, his purring nearly vibrating him loose from Thad's shoulder.

"You sure know how to get into his good books." Thad teased. Leona merely smiled and patted Taz's head as he munched nosily on his celery.

"Dinner shall be ready for you and your senior staff at six Sir. If you need anything before then, don't hesitate to com me."

"Of course Leona, thank you."

"Your welcome Sir." With that, Leona left, stopping momentarily by Thad's desk to organize his message chips. Thad walked over and sat down in his desk chair, putting his feet up on the desk. Taz jumped up to his perch and yawned lazily. Thad couldn't blame him, he felt like taking a quick nap himself. But duty called in the form of his com messages. Most were congratulatory messages, some from the fellow captains that would eventually make up Task Force 55. One was from Admiral Bruce Cole himself. He answered these rapidly enough. It was the last two that sparked his interest. One was from Major Sterling, the other was from an anonymous author. The last one could be from only one source, Cerberus. Thad opened it.

A plain text message came up on his screen. It said that he needed only to be near a certain set of coordinates in the Grayson system when he took the Warspite out for her space trials. No other information was given, which irritated the hell out of Thad. That Cerberus woman seemed to go out of her way to be cryptic. Thad felt anger rise in him. An annoyed bleek came from behind Thad. Taz didn't like it when his human's emotions turned ugly.

"Sorry bud, didn't mean to disturb ya." A huff was all the reply he got as Taz sprawled out to nap again. Staring at the short message wasn't helping his mood, so Thad closed it and opened Major Sterling's. His smiling head appeared on the screen.

"Hello Thad, I trust your trip was uneventful? So, how do you like your new ship? Didn't I tell you she was special? Anyway, down to business… Your contact is the commanding officer of your marine detachment, a certain Colonel Linus van Yurgen. You are to follow his instructions as if they were mine in relation to your actions concerning Cerberus. Don't let us down, we really need someone on the inside of their organization! I'll be in touch."

[That evening, captain's dining room, GSN Warspite]

Everyone was on time. Thad would have been surprised if that weren't the case. From what he had seen so far, everyone on board was competent and good at his or her job. This was understandable given the fact that the Warspite was a classified project and only those deemed most trustworthy and best at their job would be assigned. Thad looked around the table at his officers. Cmdr. Custer sat at the opposite end of the oval table. To her right sat the ships chief engineer, Cmdr. Julia Santos. Cmdr. Santos was a severe looking individual with a reputation of driving her crews hard. Yet she drove herself even harder and had a reputation as an amazing engineer. Thad hoped that the mostly male Grayson engineering personnel would accept her. Their aversion to women doing 'man's work' had mostly been obliterated by Admiral Honor Harrington, yet a few diehards still clung to their beliefs. Lt. Cmdr. Fillipe Escobar, the ship's astrogator was next. He was a slight individual, with a timid demeanor to match. Jennifer, his tactical officer sat beside Escobar.

Beside Jen sat Col. Linus van Yurgen. He looked like he could rip through a bulkhead with his bear hands. A strong jaw and perpetual five o'clock shadow framed his wrinkled face. His salt and pepper hair was shaved down to stubble. Bushy eyebrows almost hid his deep blue eyes. He was build like a bear, and was said to fight like one as well. Yet, provided you did your job well, he acted more like a father than his crusty exterior would lead you to believe. His muscles were barely hidden beneath his spotless green and black Royal Manticoran Marine Corps uniform. The majority of the Warspite's marines were Manticoran, despite her being a Grayson ship. This was because there just weren't enough Grayson marines to go around.

The ship's doctor, Surgeon Commander Viola Romanoff, sat across from Col. van Yurgen. She had an oval face framed by brown curls. Her graceful carriage complimented her petit features. Lt. George Humphry, the ships supply officer sat beside her. He was rumored to be a miracle worker in getting whatever you needed. His eyes looked out from behind a red mop of hair. He was short, even for a Grayson, at only four feet. George's slight build merely accentuated his height. At only 20 standard years of age, he was also the youngest person present. This only served to heighten his nervous personality. Beside him was the communication officer, Lt. Cmdr. Xaiver St.Laurence. Although he was only 4 years older than George, Xavier exuded a competence and authority far beyond his years. He was on the fast track to his own command if he kept doing such a professional job. His curly blond hair accentuated his fair complexion and very pale blue eyes.

Having completed the meal, most of his officers were covertly studying him. Some were more entranced by the treecat seated beside him. Thad felt good about this group. They seemed to get along and work well together. There was a very strong sense of esprit de corps filling the room. Thad waited until the dishes were cleared before he started the business part of the dinner.

"Exec, fill us in on the extent of work left to be done and when we can commence space trials."

"Well, according to the yard dogs, we should be ready to go by the end of the week. About four or five days, depending on weather anything unforeseen pops up. The installation of our port lidar and gravitic arrays was finished today. Our alpha nodes should be installed by Thursday along with three of the graser mounts. By late Friday everything else should be installed and the armor plating all welded on." Custer explained.

"Excellent. Lt. Humphry, how are we set for supplies?" Thad was positive that the Lt. jumped when he heard his name. Yet he spoke in an even, calm voice.

"Everything looks good sir. Weaponry and powered armor has been delivered to the armory for Col. van Yurgen and his marines. The medical bay is fully stocked, our ships weapons and spares are fully stocked. We're sitting pretty Sir."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Weaps, how are we looking?"

"I managed to run through a few drills earlier today Sir. Though the crews are a little rusty, they actually are not to bad."

"Once we get out of dry-dock, I want that rust to disappear."

"We won't let you down Sir."

"I have no doubt about that Lt. Cmdr. Col. van Yurgen, how are your marines doing?"

"No need to worry about us Sir. We have been training in the ships gym daily. We even got a chance to play war with some of the other marine companies here in Grayson. Needless to say, we sent them home with their tails between their legs!"

"Glad to hear it Colonel. Anything happening in medical?"

"Nothing sir. Oh the odd bump and scrape, but nothing major. The crew is very healthy Captain."

Thad nodded his agreement. "What about engineering?"

"Everything looks good so far sir. We'll be able to tell more once we start space trials though. All three fusion plants are running at 75% capacity without any problems. Once all of our alpha nodes are installed, I can't wait to get out and stretch the Warspite's legs."

"Me neither, Miss Santos, me neither. Well, does anyone else have anything to add? No? Then I just want to add one thing. Though I have only just met you all, I have a great feeling about this crew and ship. All of your departments look in very good order, which is a credit to each of you. It is to you that the crew looks towards for leadership, and you have responded handsomely. You are a credit to the service, and I am proud to be serving with you." A round of satisfied smiles and a series of 'thank-you captain' were the officers' responses. Yes these were good people, Thad just hoped he was worthy enough to be leading them.
 

Agree totally with reading off monitors. Damn Eyestrain!!!
 

http://www.movie-trailers.com/weber/Honorpedia/honorpedia.html

Think of it as a mini encylopedia for all things Honor. Enjoy!
 

CHAPTER 12 [Command deck GSN Warspite, Saturday morning]

The Warspite slowly extricated itself from the dry-dock's super structure using her reaction thrusters. She was unable to bring up her impeller wedge because it would extensively damage, if not outright destroy the dock. Once she had put enough distance between herself and the dock, she brought up her impeller wedge for the first time. The power was gradually ramped up until the wedge was operating at full strength. Gauges indicated that 100% power was reached, and there were a lot of slaps on the back and handshakes across the ship. It was even more exuberant in engineering. Thad's voice and approving smile came over the com system.

"Well, it looks like congratulations are in order! To the yard dogs, Commander Santos, and the entire engineering staff, you have done excellent work. I am sure I speak for the entire crew when I say well done people!" Cheers erupted from the engineering crew at that. Thad had activated two way voice communications, so he just smiled and waited for it to die down. "Now, lets stretch her legs. I want max output from all three fusion plants in five minutes."

The Warspite wedge accelerated her faster and faster through the darkness of space. It didn't take her long to reach her maximum safe n-space velocity of 0.83 c. Her new compensators allowed her to pull an accel curve that previously only heavy cruisers were able to. Thad had to admit it, Manticore was learning allot from the Graysons. Their compensator design, though bulkier and more archaic than its Manticoran counterparts, had allowed for greater acceleration on a class for class basis. Manticoran tecs had taken it and updated the design with state of the art components then miniaturized it so that it would fit into all current ships.

"Bridge, this is engineering. You have max power on all three plants. All systems in the green and there hasn't been even a flutter in the mag bottles."

"Very good Miss Santos, very good indeed. How does the compensator look?"

"Purring like a treecat in a celery patch Skipper!"

Taz laughed from his custom accel couch behind Thad's right shoulder. "Excellent!" Thad cut the link and strode over to the astrogation console. "Mr. Escobar, would you be so kind as to plot a elliptical course that will take us through the outer system and back to Grayson orbit, initial bearing…" Thad checked his helm repeater, "351 mark 43, speed 0.5c"

"Course computed and laid in Sir."

"Thank you. Helm, execute course correction."

"Aye Sir, turning to bearing 351 mark 43. Decelerating to 1/2 light speed."

"Miss Yuki, I think that this is a good a time as any to test our preparedness. Sound battlestations, I want to see how much rust is left."

"Sure thing Skipper." Jen said with a gleam of excitement in her eye. This would be an excellent opportunity to show just how far her department had come. Thad had other ideas. He wanted his ship to be as ready as it could for whatever was coming.

[That same time, in hyperspace, near Grayson]

The merchantman's captain paced like a caged animal on his bridge. Why his superiors had thought that criminals could be trusted to be honest in their dealings was beyond him. At least they had found out about their duplicity before it had ruined the mission. He had been notified by the Director herself that his 'escort' had developed less than friendly attitudes. The director had told him that he could expect to be attacked as they had gotten wind of just what he was carrying.

His escort felt that they could take both the payment and the cargo and run. The Director had then said that he should modify his course so that it would lead him closer to Grayson. It was just a small change, as his final destination was near by anyway. His sensors told him that his escort was moving to a wider dispersal, one that allowed them to get clean shots past his Warshawski sails. They claimed that it was just to extend sensor range, but he knew better. As he approached the coordinates the director had specified, he did the only thing that might guarantee the missions success.

"Helm, emergency translation to n-space!"

"Yes Sir!" was the helmsman's relieved answer. The entire crew had been notified as to what was happening. The helmsman was only too happy to be doing something to get away from the trouble coming.

The three pirate cruisers escorting the merchie were caught unprepared and began crash translations of their own. One was even able to get off a couple of lucky laser shots that slashed into the unprotected flank of the merchie.

The massive sails of the merchantman shimmered as they bled energy.

"Com, begin transmitting an mayday. Tell them we are under attack by pirates and request immediate assistance. Engineering, get those sails stowed and our impeller and sidewalls up right now. We surprised our three 'friends' but they should be on us again momentarily. Damage report!"

"Sensors are heavily damaged Sir, and it looks like fusion one is beginning to destabilize. Recommend that we shut it down before it blows."

The captain of the merchie swore under his breath. "Do it! ETA of the nearest help? We are running out of time here people!"

[That same time, on GSN Warspite]

Jennifer Yuki stared at her plot as a new contact appeared. "Captain, sensors detect a hyper footprint bearing 619 mark 08. Range 1,00,040 kilometers."

"Do you have an ID yet? I thought that we were supposed to be well away from standard shipping lanes."

"ID coming up as the cargo ship HMS Styx, registry No. 239978…"

"Sir," Lt. Cmdr. Xaiver interrupted, "we are getting a mayday from the Styx!"

"Put it on speakers!" The static filled voice of a terrified man filled the bridge.

"Mayday, mayday, mayday, this is the cargo ship HMS Styx en route to Masada. We are under attack by pirates! We request immediate assistance!"

"Message repeats sir," Xaiver said in a calm voice.

"Helm, plot an intercept course! Guns, go into stealth attack mode! Com, notify command of our actions and let the Styx know we are on the way." A chorus of Ayes told Thad that is orders were being followed. Thad thanked the regs that everyone was in their skinsuits for the Warspite's maiden voyage. Stealth attack mode made the Warspite the smallest possible sensor target yet still gave her full weapons and electronic warfare capabilities.

The Warspite had been curving back in system towards Grayson when the Styx had translated into n-space. The merchie had carried over enough speed through the hyper wall that it was now passing the Warspite and still accelerating hard. The Warspite, or any other warship for that matter, would have no trouble catching up to her though. Merchantmen had less powerful nodes and rad shielding than a warship, so they had a lower top speed and a slower rate of acceleration. Just the same, she had to be redlining her drive to get up that much speed.

"The Styx is still charging to the inner system Skipper. Sir, we now have two, make that three, new hyper footprints! Bearings 3349, 5668 mark 34, and 9932 mark 82. Ranges 1,001,000 km, 900,800 km, and 50,100 km. They are tentatively being classed as heavy cruisers. Designating them bogie one, two and three respectively." Commander Custer said through the intercom from CIC.

"Under stood XO!"

Bogie one and two were about parallel to each other to the right of the Warspite. Bogie three was much closer and almost dead astern. Because of the advanced ECM being used by the Warspite, bogie one and two missed picking her up and started after the merchie. But bogie three was to close to be fooled by even Ghost Riders bag of tricks. It sent off a missile salvo of 12 birds at Thad's ship, then began a crash deceleration to try and get out of range of the BC. Missile flight time was just over fifty seconds.

"Helm, maximum acceleration! Hold present course. Guns, weapons free! Engage incoming missiles and raise sternwall. Prep and launch both broadsides at Bogie three along with stern chase tubes."

"Aye Sir!"

Sixty five Ghost Rider missiles swarmed out of the Warspite even as she leapt ahead at 475 gravities. No ship before it would have been able to execute such an attack. The missile's drives would have burned out long before they completed the 90 degree turn, but Ghost Rider missiles had plenty of time left, even after the drastic maneuver. They streamed in like a pack of hungry wolves on the hapless pirate. The pirate captain just stared dumfounded at his plot. No missile could do what his sensors were telling him these were. He wasted precious time that he just didn’t have.

"Helm, roll…" he never even got a chance to finish his final order.

Slashing in at over 90,000 gravities with a flight time of only 8 seconds, they vaporized the pirate Cruiser before it could even get off a counter missile. Counter missiles squashed the pirate's birds well astern of the Warspite.

"Guns, roll pods. Launch Ghost Rider drones and set our ECM to max. Lock up bogies one and two but don't fire until I say." Jen nodded in response. Thad turned towards his com officer, Xaiver. "Com, open a channel to the pirates please."

"Done Skipper."

"Attention enemy vessels. This is the Grayson Warship Warspite. I strongly urge you to lock down your fire control and weapons systems. You will strike your wedge and prepare to be boarded. Failure to comply with these commands will result in your destruction. You have 10 seconds to respond." The pirates reply was to execute a turn that would take them back to the hyper limit and to fire off forty missiles at the Warspite. "So they want to be stupid eh? Well lets show them the error of their choice. Guns, launch the initial salvo at bogie one!"

Jen double-checked her firing solution, then slammed an open palm down on the large crimson button on her console. "Missiles away Skipper."

A salvo of one hundred missiles streaked away from the Warspite and bored in on Bogie one. The pirate cruiser spat counter missiles and PD lasers at the incoming storm, but they could do nothing to save the ship. Counter missiles were drawn to decoy's seeded into the salvo. Targeting sensors were nearly burned out by the massive ECM being radiated by jammer missiles. Only five of the Warspite's broadside were stopped short of the ship. Another ten struck the impenetrable bellybands of the impeller wedge. The rest streamed fore and aft to explode with hurricane force in the open throat and kilt of the wedge. A modern 8,250,000 ton superdreadnought would have been very lucky to survive such a barrage, a outdated 300,000 ton cruiser never stood an chance at all. Even as the pirate died, his missiles were either spoofed or vaped before they even reached PD laser cluster range.

Seeing its only surviving friend explode in a blinding boil of light took the fight out of the last pirate. She deactivated all active jammers, sidewalls, fire control, and weapons. Striking her wedge, her captains pleading wail came over the com.

"Please don't kill us! We have complied with your demands! Board us, lock us up, do what ever you want. Just please, please don’t kill us. We surrender, we surrender!" the terrified woman begged.

"I am sending a boarding party. If they are even looked at the wrong way, you will be destroyed. Have I made myself clear?"

"Perfectly! We won't resist, you'll see!"

"Good!" Thad cut the connection. He then pressed another button. "Col. van Yurgen, I trust you know the situation. I want you to assemble a boarding party to bring the pirate cruiser under our control."

"My boy's and girl's are boarding the pinnace as we speak Captain. They can handle some cowed pirate scum easily enough."

"Godspeed to them. Com, get a hold of the Styx. I want to have a little parley with them."
 

CHAPTER 13 [Near the hyper limit, Yeltsin star system]

On board the Warspite, Lt. Cmdr. Xaiver St. Laurence opened activated the communications systems. The com laser raced towards the massive bulk of the seven million ton merchant ship Styx, causing the com system on the bridge to chime. The Styx's captain, Vincent Rico, stopped his nervous pacing and nodded for his com officer to answer the hail. If everything went according to his superiors' plans, he would have a little conversation with the military captain, then be on his way. Of course his superiors had been wrong to hire criminal elements to guard his passage, so he well knew that they weren't omniscient. The head of a Grayson captain with a rather large scar on his face appeared on the screen.

"HMS Styx, this is the captain of the GSN Warspite. Are you all right? Our sensors indicate that you have been hit and have several compartments open to space. Any assistance we can offer you is yours for the asking."

"GSN Warspite, I'm Captain Vincent Rico of the Styx. We are all fine here. The Pirate laser struck a cargo compartment only. We have no casualties or injuries. The ship is still 100% functional, with only a few cargo canisters destroyed. Your assistance is not required, but thank you for offering."

"Are you sure? It's no trouble for an engineering team to be sent over to check you out. They might see something your engineering staff missed as they have more experience assessing the damage caused by military weapons." Thad saw the Styx's captain glance towards something off camera, then look back at him with a slightly nervous expression.

[Bridge, HMS Styx]

Just as Thad had finished his reply, Captain Rico heard the lift doors open and turned to see who had intruded on to his bridge unannounced. He had not expected to see the large, heavily armed man staring back at him. The harsh white light of the bridge disappeared into the matte finish of his armor. He held a heavy flechette gun in one hand and a portable com in the other. Vincent quickly deduced that he had monitored the entire conversation. He had come to the bridge to make sure that Operation Renegade went ahead, even if Vincent suddenly got cold feet. The newcomer smiled and pointed to the open com. Even though he was very near panic, Vincent steeled himself and tried to calm his face. Turning back to the pickup, he was almost successful in hiding the fear he felt welling up inside him.

[Bridge, GSN Warspite]

Thad wondered what was going on in the merchies head. He knew that according to the script given to him by Cerberus, he was supposed to let the Styx go without any problems. Despite this, he was extremely apprehensive as to what could be so important that Cerberus would go through so much trouble over. Weather ONI needed an operative on the inside or not, Thad decided that something was most assuredly not kosher on the Styx and he needed to find out what.

"No sir, I'm afraid I must decline that offer. My engineers are top notch and I believe them when they say it is safe to proceed. We are carrying a cargo that is time critical. It is very important that we get to our final destination on time."

"Captain, I'm afraid that I must insist. I must look over your damage before you can proceed on to your next port of call. If you flew apart in hyper, it would fall on my head because I let you go without doing a proper inspection. Please heave to and prepare to receive my engineering team."

[Bridge, HMS Styx]

Vincent again darted a nervous glance to his left, then turned back to the pickup looking even more unhinged. Beads of sweat were starting to form on his brow as he tried to convince Thad to let him go. "Come on captain, can't you let the regs slip just this once? I really, REALLY need to get to my destination on time. Can't you cut me some slack?" This was not going according to the plan at all. They said that the military guy should be on his side, yet he seemed to be oblivious to what his part in mission was. Didn't he realize just how much jeopardy the mission in general and the crew of the Styx personally was being placed in? The man with the gun was getting more and more pissed for every second the com remained open. He gestured to the pickup then mouthed the words 'get rid of him'. The or else was implied by his flechette gun, which he proceeded to point directly at Vincent.

"I gave you a order Captain! Cut your accell NOW!"

[Bridge, GSN Warspite]

Captain Rico's insistent, almost panicked voice emanated from the bridge speakers. "PLEASE Sir, we really need to leave now…" His words were cut off by a quiet chuff, then by a much more sickening sound. The armored man pulled his trigger once, sending a cloud of razor edged metal shards buzzing towards Vincent Rico. The light work jumpsuit Vincent was wearing offered no protection from the 300 m/s flechettes, and they literally shredded his body before mercifully hitting the camera and cutting the feed to the bridge of the Warspite. Expressions of shock crossed every one of the bridge officers, including Thad himself. Jen was the first to recover, as her plot suddenly changed.

"Skipper! The Styx, she's jumped to max accell and is heading towards the hyper limit!"

"What the f***?! Helm, plot an intercept course, max accell! Gun's, once we close to energy range I want you to take out their nodes. I want that ship alive! Com, patch me though to Col. van Yurgen."

Xaiver training broke though the horror of seeing a humanbeing turned into so much hamburger, and he responded to his skippers request. Linus' craggy face filled the com, a sour expression on his face. For a split second, Thad wondered weather it was because he had just thrown away ONI's chance to get a operative on the inside of Cerberus or because of the events transpiring because of that choice.

"Col., when we hit the Styx's nodes I want every available marine loaded for bear and ready to board her!"

"Already begun Captain. Do you want me to recall the pinnace headed to the pirate?"

"No, I need that ship secured. She is still 100% combat capable and I don't like leaving dangerous enemies behind me. Tell your marines to get her secured and take her in system till one of the picket's can relieve them."

[Power armor morgue, GSN Warspite]

"Understood." After Thad terminated the connection, Linus turned to his assembled marines. "Ok people, as usual the navy has dropped the ball and it's up to us to clean up the mess. The situation is this, the merchie Styx has been commandeered by an unknown number of assailants. There is at least one known target armed with a flechette gun. Current status of enemy offensive and defensive capabilities is unknown. We need to go in and get her back. Now we need to take as many of them alive as possible to find out just what they know. Per that, you will all be issued stunners. Orders are to stun if possible, use deadly force as required. Any questions? No, then suit up! We leave in 15 minutes."

The two squads of 40 marines started sealing their power armor. Once their internal systems check revealed no errors, they checked out their weapons. First, they all received their stunners, which could bring down an adult with just a grazing hit. Next they got their heavy weapons. 15 members of each squad carried flechette guns, as they were the safest weapons for shipboard use. They shot a cloud of razor edged metal shards, much like a shotgun. They lacked the punch to penetrate armor, so they posed little chance of damaging the ship. Another 15 per squad were issued pulser rifles, just in case heavier firepower was needed. Pulser rifles could spew out hundreds of tiny darts at over 2000 meters per second. Each squad also received four plasma rifles, four grenade launchers and four tribarrels.

Grenade launchers shot the usual high explosive and fragmentary ordinance. Plasma rifles spat out a bolt of pure plasma, frying anything in its path. If used near the outer hull, they stood a good chance of melting through and opening up the ship to space. The Tribarrels were truly nasty weapons. The near nose to tail stream of heavy darts left the barrel at hypersonic velocities. They could cut a bulkhead in half if the owner wasn't careful. Once everyone had been double checked by a squadmate, they formed up and marched to the boat bay double time.

[HMS Styx, bridge, that same time]

Nathaniel Ibbons calmly turned from the mess that had once been the merchant's captain and proceeded to shred the helmsman and navigator. The com officer was slightly more fortunate in that he was able to jump behind a console before the gun was trained on him. But it was a momentary respite at best. In seconds, Nathaniel had crossed the bridge and cut him down as he begged for his life. He then calmly strode through the butchery he has wrought to the intership com terminal.

"Charles, do you have engineering secure?" Nathaniel's deep rumbling voice asked.

"I regret that my men and I were unable to prevent the chief engineer from initiating a security lockout. He hit the switch just as my pulser cut him down. Everything is going according to your plan otherwise." Charles braced himself for the berating he knew was coming.

"YOU INCOMPETENT WOMAN!" Nathaniel bellowed, his rage a force of nature even though the com speaker. "Without access to the computer, we won't be able to overload the fusion plants!"

Wincing, Charles hastily replied. "Sir, I am quiet confidant that we will be able to hack through the security in time to blow the reactors."

"You had better, or else the eternal fires of hell await you!" With a vicious stab of his finger he cut the transmission. If they weren't all going to die anyway, and if Charles' computer skills were no longer needed, Nathaniel would have had him killed on the spot. He opened a channel to his second in command. "Is everything ready Peter?"

"Yes sir, the men are all in unpowered armor and have their weapons ready. The crew has either been eliminated or locked in the brig. We'll take out as many of the apostate boarders as we can."

Nathaniel bit of a harsh retort that nearly erupted from his throat. He knew intellectually that it would be impossible to hold a determined enemy. Yet his heart, which sometimes got the better of his head, said that they could do anything if their faith in God was strong enough. The group of Masadan mercenaries' faith apparently wasn't though, because the shipment had been caught just short of its destination.

"I should have known that infidel which and her henchmen couldn't be trusted. I suppose this is the price I pay for listening to a woman! She said that they can help us free ourselves from both the infidels and the apostate in one fell swoop. The devil himself couldn't have made a better lure for my eternal soul. They offer what we require to do God's work, but that is of little use to our cause if it never gets to Masada. I should have seized this ship as soon as it went to hyper!"

Peter, who had been the brake on Nathaniel's rage since they were childhood playmates, acted in that capacity again. "Now Nathaniel, you know that without her contacts our cargo would never have materialized. And without her money, it would never pass the infidel inspectors in orbit around Masada. Even if we had to deal with a woman to get the cargo safely into our hands, it was worth it because with these tools we will free our world."

"Could have freed our world, old friend, could have... She lied to us and now we will die here without completing our mission. All of the sacrifices we have made are for nothing. Our world will still be tainted by unbelievers, our people still under the heel of the Harlot of Satan!"

"Nathaniel, if it is God's will that we die here today, then we die. We can only serve him and his will to the best of our abilities. If he has deemed our mission unworthy of success now, that doesn't mean that he will not allow another like it to succeed in the future. We must fight the infidels until we cannot draw another breath. Perhaps then God will deem our sacrifice worthy and allow our planet to be freed. What do you think the enemy will do to us?"

"If the apostate battle cruiser had wanted us dead it would have turned us into atoms by now. They must want the ship intact, with live people for questioning. They will most likely send a boarding party after they have disabled our impeller drive. Assemble the men at the ambush points and get them ready. Once they are all present, send some out to begin laying explosive charges on the briefed areas. If we take enough of them with us, God may forgive us for being unable to bring this shipment to Masada." It also had the advantage of destroying the cargo as well, eliminating evidence and witnesses in one star hot boil of light.

"It shall be done." Peter answered, then cut the com. Turning to the 60 odd men that made up the Masadan presence on the merchie, he leveled them with a cold glare. "You all heard him, why are you still standing there! Move out, on the double!"

[Bridge, GSN Warspite, 15 minutes later]

"She has been running straight for the hyper limit all through the intercept Skipper. She didn't even turn to a bearing that would have allowed her to reach it before we caught up to her. I wonder why?" Cmdr. Custer said through the com from CIC.

"XO, if whomever is now in control over there doesn't know how to handle a ship, I certainly am not going to argue. Their inability to do so allowed us to catch them, and that's the main thing. Gun's you may take out their wedge as you bear."

"Aye sir, graser one and two locked on. Firing!" Jen said as she mashed the crimson commit button. The two deadly yet invisible beams lanced out from the Warspite's side. Both struck squarely on their assigned targets and the Styx's wedge faltered, then dropped to almost nothing. With that many nodes damaged, there would be know way she could configure her sail for hyper space travel. A powerful tractor grabbed on to the drifting merchie and the Warspite commenced deceleration. "We got her sir. Commencing deceleration."

"Good. Com, get me the boat bay."

"You're on sir."

"Gator flight, you are cleared to go."

The lead pinnace pilot came on channel. "Thank you sir, Gator flight is away"

[Pinnace Gator One, enroute to the Styx]

Master Sargent Claire Shepard's chocolate brown eyes looked over the checklist on her HUD one last time. Feeling sweat start to from in the short, dirty blond curls hair, she turned up the power armor's air conditioning level even as she read through the list. Everything was still green so she had no cause for alarm, yet years of experience had taught her that if anything bad can happen, it will. The cursor on her HUD tracked her eye movements to the close window button. She keyed the voice-input button and said close, removing the checklist from her helmet display. Then Claire reactivated her external microphone and speakers. The quiet banter of confident people washed over him. The people were loose, yet focused. That was good, you didn't want to go in to battle to tense or too mellow. Either extreme was likely to get you killed. Most of the platoon were combat veterans, with new recruits sprinkled in among them.

The sensors on the shoulder of the armoplast shell transmitted a signal through to the skin beneath. Shepard turned to see one of the new recruits wanting a little bit of assurance.

"Gunny, how can you be so calm when you know you are going into battle? I feel almost scared enough to jump straight through my suit!" the marine said in a terse whisper.

Leaning conspiratorially towards him "Recruit Wolf I may look calm, but a part of me is just as scared as you are. The secret is to use that fear to your advantage, not letting it rule your actions. A little fear is a good thing, to much will get you killed. Just stick by me and you'll do fine."

Wolf let out a deep breath and tried to smile. "Thanks Gunny, knowing you're scared to makes me feel better. If you can control it, I guess I can too."

"Sure you can, just trust in your training and you'll get through this no sweat."

[Cargo Hanger Eight, HMS Styx]

The massive bay doors started to open. You could almost fit an entire destroyer inside them, but all that passed through the forcefield were two marine pinnaces. None of the enemy was there to meet them. They settled down on the largest plot of deck space, beside a massive cargo shuttle. Even before the drives had fully shut off, the 80 marine's from both craft had begun piling out. Encountering no resistance, they began to fan out and covered all entrances into the bay. Once the bay was secured, Col. van Yurgen started doling out assignments.

"Red squad, you'll stay here and guard the bay. Blue, Green, Yellow and Purple squads are with me. We are going to engineering. White, Gold and, Black squads, you get the bridge. Once those are secure, white, gold, blue and green will conduct a deck by deck search. Remember people, we want them alive if possible. Ready, OK lets move out!"

[Bridge, HMS Styx]

Nathaniel gazed sourly at the monitor. God had indeed decided he was to die today. Four to three odds were not good. They went even lower than that because his men had only been able to access one crate with power armor. Only 10 of his people were on equal footing with the apostate minions. The other 55 had only unpowered armor, a very poor substitute but better than nothing. Sealing the helmet of his own power armor, he turned to the other nine members of his group.

"We can no longer complete our mission." Many of the men hung their heads in shame at that. "But we can still strike a blow at the infidels! We shall go to lay in ambush along their most likely avenue of approach. Fight well for today we shall see paradise." His men cheered wildly, then turned and trotted to the lift. He trotted in after them, the doors closing off the ghastly sight of the bridge. The smears of biomatter that had once been the bridge crew were partially obscured by smoke that hung in the air from burned out consoles. It was fortunate that all Nathaniel had been armed with was a flechette gun. If he was armed with something more deadly, the bridge might well have been unrecognizable. The tribarrel he now carried was vastly more satisfying. He activated the internal com link to engineering.

"Charles, have you hacked the security yet?"

"I have already breached the first layers sir. In a few minutes I should be past them and back inside the system."

"Hurry up damn it, you may not even have minutes! The infidels are on board and most likely headed your way." Nathaniel closed the circuit before Charles could reply.

The troop exited the lift and marched down the hall beyond. Small cargo pods of varying sizes had been set up as impromptu barricades. The men behind them smiled and gave up a predatory growl as the power armored figures strode past. They took up station in rooms on either side at the opposite end of the hall. The barricade was the carrot to lure the enemy into the hall. With luck, they wouldn't even detect the stealthed power armor until it was to late.

[Gold squad, HMS Styx]

Gunny Shepard walked as quietly as she could. The number and capabilities of the enemy were still unknown, so giving away her position was not the smart thing to do. Her sensors were tuned for maximum acuity. Her HUD would instantly tag anything out of the ordinary. What it wouldn't detect was an enemy with the ability to jam her sensors. She checked her position and that of her squad mates on the god map in the corner of her display. They were making good time through the deserted ship. Coming up to the next intersection of halls, she and the five marines' with her stopped. The other five members of gold squad proceeded to leap-froged them. Tried and true tactics still worked. One team moved while the other provided overwatch and covering fire if necessary.

Recruit Wolf made his way towards the next intersection. Opening the blast door that had been deployed across the next hall, he slowly made his way froward. As the door opened, Wolf's suits sensors detected heat signatures ahead. He was just starting to lift his pulser when he ran out of time. Two plasma bolts screamed down the hall. Three of the advance team were lucky. They were only grazed by the shot, shorting out some of their servos and sensor systems. Recruit Wolf and another private never even had a chance to scream, the searing plasma turning them into atoms. The overwatch team poured pulser fire down the hall. Seconds later, Private Ypres opened up with his tribarrel. The flimsy cargo containers that the enemy had been using as cover disintegrated, along with many of those hiding behind them.

Shepard keyed the general com net. "All elements, all elements, this is Gold One! Be advised the enemy has access to heavy weapons and is wearing unpowered armor. Lost two of my squad to plasma rifle fire, another three have minor armor damage. I count six enemy dead so far. They set up cargo containers as a barricade and waited in ambush."

"Roger that Gold One." Col. van Linus' voice replied. "All squads, look lively. The enemy has decided to be difficult." His dispassionate voice showed no trace of what Gunny Shepard knew he was going through. She knew he took the loss of his people personally.

"OK people, opening doors with the handle is a definite no no. From now on, Gold Eight will handle that with the plasma rifle. Would you be so kind Private Cortez?"

"With pleasure ma'am!" Cortez grinned as he leveled the barrel of his rifle at the next door and fired. One minute the blast door was intact, the next it had a eight-foot wide hole in it. Gold Three and Four sprinted to the gaping hole and took up position on either side of it. Unclipping a flashbang, Gold four threw it through the breach. Milliseconds after it went off, they both jumped through the hole, pulser rifles blazing. Seconds behind them charged the rest of the squad. The carnage on the other side was horrifying. Three of the enemy were barely recognizable as once being human. Another two were never going to wake up again. The last one was lucky, if you could call it that. He only had his arm severed just below the elbow. Staring at his stump in confusion, he started screaming and wouldn't stop.

"Get a tourniquet on that arm. We need him alive if we can help it. Command this is Gold one, requesting a medic to deck G section 34 junction 1A. I have a injured enemy in custody. Pulser fire has removed his lower arm."

"Copy that. A medic is being dispatched to your position ASAP."

"Understood Command." Turning to her squad mates she said, "Is the bleeding stopped?"

"Yes ma'am, as much as we can do anyway."

"Good!" She drew her stunner and fired. The silence that followed was almost more deafening than the man's screams. "Move out, the medic is coming for him, and we still have to get to the bridge.

[Bridge, HMS Styx, 7 minutes later]

The survivors of white, gold and black squads rendezvoused at the bridge within minutes of each other. All together they had lost six and had seven combat-ineffective. Those had fallen back to the boat bay where the medics had established an impromptu hospital. No one had sustained injuries that required immediate transport back to the ship yet, which was good. In exchange for those casualties, Warspite's marines had taken three captives, freed 35 remaining crew found locked in their quarters, and killed 20 combatants.

[Ambush Point Tango, just outside engineering, HMS Styx]

Waiting was the hardest part. It seemed like he had been sitting in the room for hours, but he knew that it had only been minutes. Nathaniel keyed his com. "Charles, you had better be finished, cause your time is very nearly up."

"Just a minute more…" Nathaniel cut him off.

"You don't have a minute you fool. The infidel is almost here!"

"Well why don't you just come in here and blow it up then. I'm doing the best I can!"

"You know just as well as I do that the only remaining fusion plant will go into emergency shut down long before we breach the plants armor shell. It is armored to survive ship based weapons, what do you think our hand weapons can do? You just make sure you drop the safety interlocks and explode that plant!" He cut the link in disgust. Then he heard weapons open up in the hall outside. It only lasted a few seconds, then silence returned. Nathaniel forced himself to wait. Running out into the hall now would only assure his few remaining people were killed in a crossfire. He waited for the longest minute of his life, spoke the attack order into his com, then bolted for the door.

Nathaniel had waited just the right amount of time. The infidel covering squad had taken up position down the hall as the advance team made their way to the last door before engineering. They had gotten sloppy as well. No one was looking back down the hall to cover the squad's rear. All this was taken in during the milliseconds it took for Nathaniel to clear the door way and bring his tribarrel up to firing position. Plasma bolts and tribarrel darts streamed down on the backs of Orange squad. In seconds, nearly the entire squad was cut to ribbons. Orange Seven, a gray eyed sergeant with copper hair and freckles was the sole survivor, remaining miraculously untouched. He dove into the relative safety of a side hall. A stream of tribarrel darts stitched into the wall behind him. As he disappeared behind the bulkhead, the stream hit his feet, removing them from his body. His suit's legs automatically clamped down in order to staunch the blood flowing out of his shattered appendages.

Sargent Eden knew his goose was cooked. In the shape he was in he didn't stand a chance in hell of surviving what was soon coming around the corner. Barely holding on to consciousness because of the pain and blood loss, he still managed to key his com. "Orange… Seven. Need help… Nine enemies in power… armor…" then he lost consciousness.

Fortunately for him help was already on the way. Even as he passed out, the door at the end of the cross-hall opened and in charged Blue squad with Col. van Yurgen in the lead. With practiced precision they fell in to defensive positions along the hall. As the nine enemy charged around the corner in a disorganized mob, eight heavy pulsers and two tribarrels breathed death.

The momentum imparted on the Masadan's by the fire literally lifted them up and away from Blue squad. They fell a full meter down the hall, which is quite a feat considering the weight of a power-armored human. They would never get up again, their armor perforated and shattered by hundreds of darts. The hall behind them didn't look much better, with huge holes punched through multiple the bulkheads.

Nathaniel Ibbons last thought was that God had deserted him. He had tried the best he could, yet it hadn't been good enough. The ship was still intact, along with the cargo, and the infidel were almost at engineering. His men's last stand had been for nothing…

Blue squad blew open the last door cutting off engineering from the rest of the ship. Blue Two was the first through the hole. As he rolled behind a nearby console for cover, flechettes bounced off of his armor. Yelling a war cry, a lone figure stood behind a console firing at him as fast as the gun was able. As he brought up his pulser to end it Col. van Yurgen's voice blared over his com.

"Take him alive damn it!"

Allowing his pulser to drop on its sling, he drew his stunner. The enemy emptied his flechette gun, its normally lethal fruit merely sparking off of Blue Two's armor. Screaming in rage and fear, he threw the now useless weapon at Blue Two, then picked up an instrument lying on the console next to him. Pressing a button on it, a high pitched wine started up. Blue Two saw the slight distortion caused by a forceblade. At another time, having someone try to take out a power armored marine with nothing but a forceblade would have reduced him to hysterics. Oh sure it would cut through an unarmored human like tissue paper, but would barely scratch the paint on Blue Two's suit. Yelling like a madman, with a look of desperation in his eyes, the man charged Blue Two with the forceblade held high over his head. He made it half way to Blue Two before Blue Two's stunner dropped him like a marionette whose strings had been cut.

[Bridge, GSN Warspite, 10 minutes later]

The news of the casualties, especially Orange squad, had been a tough pill to swallow. Thad knew he could have prevented it if he had stuck to the script Cerberus Corp. had laid out for him. Yet the very fact that there had been so many people on board that had tried to kill the boarding party was proof that this ship carried a very dangerous cargo.

"Warspite, this is Gator flight, requesting permission to dock."

"Permission granted Gator flight. Welcome home, and good work." Mr. St. Laurence said, though the comment was practically devoid of emotion.

[Boat Bay One, GSN Warspite, that same time]

Thad watched silently as the two pinnaces drifted into the bay, pulled by the invisible lines of the tractor beams. Once they had landed, a very somber group of marines filed out. They were short 20 out of the original 80 that went out. There were also 13 wounded to greater and lesser degrees. Yet they had also collected 5 prisoners and had 35 of the crew, which would help for what was to come. Although there had only been time for a cursory examination of the cargo, what had been discovered was very disturbing. Crate after crate of power armor, weapons, anti missile batteries, even modern tanks and APC's! If this cargo had somehow made it past the inspectors around Masada, it would have been a major disaster. The radical faction of Masada was hard enough to keep in line as it was. If they gained access to modern weapons… Thad shuddered.

That was why the crew and Masadan prisoners were so important. An operation on this scale was not launched on a whim. It had to have a reasonable chance of success. Cerberus had to have some way of getting the cargo down to Masada unnoticed. Someone among the survivors was bound to know something and would be made to talk. Thad and ONI knew who was responsible for this plot, but knowing and proving were two vastly different things.
 

Captain Thaddeus Armstrong strode towards his ship's brig with a scowl on his face. The treecat on his shoulder mirrored his mood. Thad had put off meeting the fanatics that had wreaked havoc among his marine detail for as long as possible. He had hoped that the extra time would have improved his mood, yet it wasn't nearly enough. Thad had initially been upset with himself for causing those casualties. Oh Thad knew that he hadn't actually killed those marines, but he set in motion the chain of events that had caused them. Thad had been perfectly willing to beat himself up emotionally over that choice, but Taz hadn't let him do that for long. The assurance and love that had flowed through their link had been a godsend. It allowed Thad to redirect his feelings towards a more productive end.

Instead of blaming himself, Thad began to transfer his guilt on to those truly responsible. Although he had issued the order, it was the zealots on the Styx that had caused those casualties. They could have surrendered peacefully, yet they chose to do things the hard way. Most of them had paid for that mistake with their lives.

Considering the weapons used against his boarding parties, Thad was relieved that there were only 20 dead marines. Modern weapons in the hands of those who knew what to do with them could have wiped out every one of the boarders. Fortunately for the Warspite's marines, the way the Masadans had used them showed their lack of expertise. The Masadans had wore unpowered armor over their skin suits. Skin suits would protect the wearer from hard vacuum and moderate amounts of radiation. Unpowered armor would protect much of the wearer from flechettes and small pulser fire. While nowhere near as good as power armor, it was still excellent protection when compared with fighting in shirtsleeves.

If the Masadans were better trained in modern weapons and tactics, they could have set up a very nasty ambush in the main cargo area. Using the unpowered armor's ECM suite set to max, they could have remained hidden until the trap was ready to be sprung. While the ECM power would have not lasted very long at that power setting, it may have been long enough for such a plan to work. Emerging from behind various cargo containers and pallets, they could have taken the entire party by surprise and caused much greater casualties. Thad thanked God that they had adopted a more sequential and divided series of ambushes. The casualties even they had caused had been bad enough.

As he entered the brig, Thad noticed that his XO and Col. van Yurgen were already there. They both turned and nodded to him as he entered.

"Well exec, what do we have so far?"

"Not much yet skipper. After we explained the severity of the charges against them, most of the merchies crew spilled what little they knew. Most of them were ignorant as to just what the Styx was carrying. The manifest said that it was modern farming supplies and machinery, along with a few luxury goods. Once the ship was underway, there was no need to check inside the cargo bays. Thus, what the cargo containers really contained remained hidden from the crew. Only a few of the officers even knew what it truly was."

"After a little… persuasion by some of my marines, even they talked. I am positive that both the Star Kingdom and Grayson will find what they said very interesting. They apparently had a rather large sum of credits for use as bribes to certain customs officials in Masada. With the bribes, they would only do a cursory examination of the cargo before OKing it for offloading." Linus said, his face getting angrier and angrier with every word. "Once it was offloaded to store houses on Masada, we don't know what was planned for it. The few Masadan prisoners we captured are not talking."

"Nor did I expect them to captain" Cmdr. Custer explained. "They do not fear death, so very little we can do to would cause them to talk. We Graysons have had a long and not particularly pleasant history with the religious zealots of Masada. Even though it pains me to say it, we come from the same stock. Both peoples originally came to Grayson on the same colony ship. Grayson's ancestors were members of the 'Church of Humanity Unchained'. They wanted to escape the evils of technology on Old Earth. But God the Tester has a strong sense of irony. When my ancestors finally reached our new Eden, it was found that it had a high concentration of heavy metals. Thus we were forced to continue to use the evils of technology to ensure our survival. Yet this caused an ideological split among the original colonists. The anti-tech faction became 'the Faithful', while the pro-tech side became 'Moderates'."

"Once the Faithful were forced to accept that Grayson needed technology to survive, they set their sights on creating the perfect godly society. Everything from dietary laws to ritual cleansing was set down into their ideology. Deviation from their doctrine was punishable by stoning. Eventually civil war erupted between the two factions. After five years of hard fighting, the Faithful were finally defeated. Yet just as victory seemed assured the Faithful unveiled their doomsday weapon. If they couldn't have their version of a godly society they would destroy the planet. In order to save Grayson, the Moderates cut a deal with them. Every single one of them was exiled to the nearest habitable system, Masada. Once there, they proceeded to set up the society God had intended for them."

Custer went on grimly, "Unfortunately that didn't solve the problem. They see it as their mission from God to fix everything that is wrong in the universe. This includes forcing Grayson to toe their doctrinal line. There have been several wars down the centuries since then, even including the odd nuclear strike. Their doctrine completely removes the entire New Testament from the Bible. This is because they don't consider Jesus Christ to be the messiah. If he truly was, then technology would never have arisen on Earth, they would never have been kicked off of Grayson, and Woman would have been put in her proper place throughout the universe."

"I had a general history as part of my brief before I came to Grayson, but I had no idea. How can any God sanction such acts?" Thad replied, shock spreading across his face.

"Our religion was almost as… well I suppose backward best describes it, as Masada's is today. Until recently, Grayson women had no legal rights. Thanks in no small part to Steadholder Honor Harrington, these views have undergone a radical change. Due to Manticore's garrisoning of Masada, a large portion of the population have become even more rooted in their religion. They see the Star Kingdom of Manticore in general and your queen personally as the servants of Satan. Your technology and medicine are perceived as evil bait to suck in those whose faith is not strong enough."

"Unfortunately for both Grayson and the Star Kingdom, many of the real troublemakers disappeared before we were able to get a hold of them. They have gone underground, and are being hidden by like-minded individuals until they have an opportunity to strike. If they got a hold of the weapons the Styx was carrying, things would have gotten very bloody on Masada."

Thad merely nodded. He had already talked with Col. van Yurgen as to just what havoc the weapons could do if they had made it to Masada. If the Masadan's chose to use the weapon systems in cities, then Manticore would have no choice but to execute an orbital bombardment. Kinetic strikes had the power of a small nuke, but didn't cause any radioactive fallout. They would be forced to take out large sections of a city, and Thad knew how the government's enemies would spin that news. Cerberus had thought their plan out well. The civil unrest that such a strike would cause would destabilize the government. In and of itself it wouldn't be enough to bring it down, but Thad had no doubt that Cerberus had other plans laid out. They would continue to whittle down confidence in the government, eventually kicking out the last support. Then they could put someone they controlled in power.

Thad smiled to himself. Cerberus had made one fatal slip-up though. They had counted on him to let the merchie go free and clear. They had thought they had him cowed by threatening to reveal his past. What they hadn't counted on was his being adopted by a treecat. Because of his bond with Taz, Thad had been able to accept what he had been. Acceptance had removed the fear of his past being revealed to the entire quadrant, and thus the control Cerberus had tried to exert over him.

"This is what we have been able to piece together from what the crew has told us." Julius broke it down for his CO. " The starting point of the merchie was in the Silesian Confederacy. She then proceeded to the pickup point in the Casca system. As well as the cargo of weapons systems, she also picked up 60 'passengers'. The crew described them as keeping mostly to themselves and rather rude. They turned out toAfter loading the disguised weapons containers, the Styx started out for Masada in the Endicott system. While in hyperspace, three cruisers intercepted them. They claimed to be Manticoran units heading for the Yeltsin system and asked if the captain would like an escort as far as Grayson. Being that Endicott was just a stone's throw away astronomically, the Styx's captain agreed. What the crew didn't know was that they were really pirates masquerading as the good guys. Why they waited so long before making their move is beyond me though. They could have taken the ship when they first met and no one would have been the wiser."

"I think I can help you there. I just received a situation report from the marines aboard the captured pirate. In it they said the crew claimed to have been employed to guard the Styx. But instead of taking his half payment, doing the job and then getting the rest, their commander got greedy. He hoped to take the half payment, then pirate the merchie as well. They said it was sheer bad luck that the attack was finally launched so close to Yeltsin's hyper limit. It was that slipup that allowed the Styx to crash translate back to n-space to seek aid." Thad explained to his XO and Linus.

What Thad left out was what he had deduced. Cerberus had wanted to use him to cover up their prior miscalculation of hiring a pirate squadron as escort for their Trojan horse. They wanted the cargo to be safe, but rather than delay the shipment they chose the more risky path and let it go anyway. There was just one minor alteration to that part of the plan. A warning was sent to the Styx's skipper, allerting him to the danger the pirate cruisers posed and instructing him to revert to n-space as near to a certain set of coordinates as possible. That was why Cerberus had been so adamant that Thad go through that volume of space. He was supposed to kill the traitorous pirates when the chased the merchie across the hyper limit. Then Thad was to let the Styx make the short hyper journey to Endicott. Once there, the Bribed officials and inspectors would let the cargo down to the planet undisturbed. No one would be the wiser until the weapons were used against the troops garrisoning Masada.

"I want to see one of the Masadan prisoners."

"Are you sure Skipper. They ain't exactly what you'd friendly."

"I still want to see one. I need to see just what kind of person can so blindly follow something as screwed up as Masadan theology, even if it means they have to die."

Julius shrugged his shoulders at his captain, then told the brig guards to bring out the prisoner in cell A-12. From the instant the cell door opened, a nearly screaming voice was heard. The combination of words sounded like a prayer or chant of some kind. "I'm sorry sir, but they all have been doing that since the stun wore off." The guards had to physically drag him out because he wouldn't use his own legs to stand or walk. With a guard on either side, the prisoner was hauled roughly up by the shoulders, still chanting, seemingly oblivious to his surroundings. Thad walked up to him, seeing an animal look of rage flash in the Masadan's eyes. Thad had to yell to be heard above the din.

"I just want to know one thing… WHY?"

The prisoner stopped yelling and stared harder at Thad. "Wouldn't you do everything in your power to free your home from Satan's devious influence? No, you wouldn't because you are a HERITIC, someone who follows the Handmaiden of Satan HERSELF!" And with those words, the Masadan sent a huge glob of spit directly onto Thad's face. Taz tensed and bared his needle sharp fangs, letting out a sibilant hiss, but a strong thought by Thad stopped him from shredding the prisoner where he stood. Yet Thad didn't have such a link with the humans with him.

"Why you…" Julius screamed in rage as he made a lunge towards the prisoner. A surprisingly strong hand gripped his arm, pulling him up short.

"NO! Can't you see, it's what he wants! Don't give him the satisfaction."

Looking down at the vise like hand on his arm then up to the stern face of his CO, Julius felt the rage that had exploded in him because of the insult deflate like air from a leaky balloon. The Masadan prisoner began to laugh.

"Ah ha, I knew you would be unable to strike one as filled with the true word of God as I am." Then the prisoner started laughing again, growing louder by the second.

"Return that vermin back to his cage!" Thad said as he wiped the disgusting mass off of his scarred face.

"With pleasure sir!" one of the guards said. The prisoner had both arms pulled a little more than necessary as he was roughly manhandled back to his cell.

Turning back to the Col., Thad spoke vehemently. "I want you to personally make sure that everyone of those animals is safely transferred to Grayson Planetary Security. If anyone can get information out of their sorry hides, it's them."

"You have my word on that Captain."

Nodding to van Yurgen, Thad motioned for his XO to follow him. "Come on exec. We should be back in Grayson orbit shortly, and I have no doubt that many people will have lots of questions for us when we get there." Thad, Taz and Julius stalked out of the brig without a backward glance.
 

Captain Armstrong settled into his acceleration couch heavily. Taz swarmed down from his person's shoulder to curl up in his lap. The treecat pressed up into the hand absently scratching behind his ears, his buzzing purr quite audible in the enclosed space of the bridge. The fact that the bad people had been caught and were being brought to justice was enough for the cat. Thad looked down at his companion, wishing his life was as black and white.

Unfortunately his life was not as simple as that. He now had to worry about what possible repercussions his actions would have. It was a given that his past would come out for all to see, yet Thad wondered if Cerberus would go even farther in its quest for vengeance. He had no delusions that they would try nothing, they had invested to much into this operation to do that.

Not liking the dark train of thought his person was going along, Taz sat up and placed a fine boned true hand on either side of Thad's face. As he stared up at Thad he poured reassurance and love into their link, but with it, a mild scolding for being so down. A smile starting on his face Thad silently apologized to his companion, yet didn't chance his thoughts. Chuffing in response, Taz settled back down in Thaddeus' lap and started purring again. Time slowly ticked by as the Warspite cruised back to Grayson orbit. The massive merchantman followed in her wake, it's prize crew doing an excellent job of handling the massive wall of metal.

"Coming up on our assigned orbital slot skipper." The astrogator announced.

Thad shook himself as his mind came back to the present. "Thank you Mr. Escobar." Turning towards the helmsman he said, "Chief O'Mally, please bring us into standard geostationary orbit at the assigned coordinates."

"Sure thing sir."

"Captain, I am receiving a hail from Grayson."

"Put it up Mr. St. Laurence." The last face in the universe Thad had expected to see appeared on the com screen. Honor Harrington's almond eyes stared back at him from the display, her long dark brown hair disappearing behind her back. She had an exotic beauty about her. She was one of only 80 feudal lords known as steadholders that made up the governing body of Grayson. She was also worth something like three and a half billion credits, the vast majority of it coming from prize money from enemy ships captured in battle. Lady Harrington was also had one of the best combat records and was arguably the best tactician in the entire sector. She had demonstrated that twice in the Yeltsin star system alone, which explained some things. Honor held the rank of Admiral in the explosively expanding Grayson Navy, and was in fact its second-highest ranking officer. Due to political enemies in the Star Kingdom, she only held the rank of Commodore in the Navy of her birth.

Thad felt himself stiffen to attention as his mind registered just who had called him. Taz also straightened out, staring intently at the treecat perched on Honor's chair back. The cream and gray treecat's grass green eyes appeared to be just as interested in Taz. Thad had seen the images of Honor and her cat, Nimitz, defending Grayson's head of state and his family. They had done so with precision and deadly effect. During the attack her left eye and cheek had been severely damaged, yet that hadn't stopped her from killing a ex-Peep, Havenite run battle cruiser with a mere cruiser. She had saved Grayson from certain destruction by that action, and Protector Benjamin Mayhew IX had made her one of Grayson's Steadholders because of it. She was the first female Steadholder in Grayson's nearly 1000-year history.

It was largely due to her influence that both Grayson society and its young navy had changed so much for the better. Honor arched and eyebrow and her cool soprano sprang from the com. "Well, well Captain Armstrong, that was very impressive. Taking out two pirate cruisers, capturing a third, and exposing a major plot against our forces on Masada. And all before your space trials are complete."

Thad forced himself not to squirm under her hawk like gaze as he formulated a reply. Shrugging, he said, "I guess that it was good old fashioned luck Ma'am."

Honor waved away his modesty. "Nonsense, what I saw today was a combination of commendable skill and good instincts, plain and simple. I would appreciate it if you could come down to Harrington Steading so we can converse in person. How does two hours from now sound?"

When the second ranking member of your military made a request, you didn't dare turn them down. "Two hours is just fine Ma'am."

"Very good, I look forward to meeting you in person Captain." The com closed the channel as she finished speaking. Thad heard a voice beside him.

"Way to go Skipper," his exec said, "only a week in Grayson uniform and already being praised by Lady Harrington herself! And she wants to meet you in person! Damn you're lucky Sir."

"Luck had less to do with it than you might think." Julius gave Thad a odd look. Not wanting to explain his reasoning, Thad quickly went on. "Well, I suppose I should go and get ready. It wouldn't do for me to appear before Admiral Harrington for the first time looking anything less than my best would it? Mind the store till I get back XO." Rising from his chair, Thad transferred Taz to his shoulder. The cat sank ivory white claws into the reinforced fabric of his blue uniform tunic as he settled in to his perch.

"You got it skipper. What I wouldn't give to be in your shoes!" Julius said mostly to himself as Thad had already disappeared into the lift.

[Captain's quarters, GSN Warspite, 15 minutes later]

Entering his quarters, Thad found his best uniform already laid out. Thad jumped into the shower for a quick rinse. Toweling dry, Thad proceeded to step into his pants. Next came the top part of the uniform, and Thad cursed the archaic buttons the Grayson's insisted on using. Stepping in front of the large mirror, he nearly swore out loud as he fumbled with what the Grayson's called a tie. The door chimed, and Thad forced his emotions back into check as he responded.

"Come."

"Ah Sir, I thought you might need some help." Leona Gibbons said from the doorway, eyes glowing with mirth.

With a pleading look, he held out the annoying piece of cloth to her. She took it and with machine like precision proceeded to tie the cloth perfectly in a matter of seconds. Thad watched what she did in the mirror with keen interest. It was almost embarrassing how easy she made it look. After she was finished, she reached up and brushed imaginary lint off of his shoulder. Giving Thad's uniform one final straightening tug, she turned her face toward his.

"There you are sir. Good enough to see even Lady Harrington now."

"Thank you so much Leona. These anachronistic uniforms the Graysons insist on keeping are made by the Devil himself!"

Clasping him on the shoulder, Leona merely smiled. "You better get going sir. Wouldn't do to keep the Admiral waiting on your first visit."

Looking at the wall chrono, Thad realized that he had spent nearly a half hour struggling with the tie, a new record even for his inexperienced hands. "Oh shoot!" Gathering Taz up from his perch on the bed Thad darted for the door, shouting another thank you over his shoulder as he went. Reaching the door, he forced himself to a brisk walk. One had to keep up appearances.

[Pinnace Zero Three, Enroute to Grayson]

The black velvet of space gave way to deep purple, then finally blue as the small craft fell to earth. Dropping further still, the pinnace eventually leveled out at around 500 feet and fell into its assigned approach vector. Out the armourplast portal, Thad got his first look at Harrington Steading. The entire compound was totally encapsulated courtesy of the handiwork of Harrington Steading's own Sky Domes. The company had been set up by Honor to seal out the heavy metals present everywhere on Grayson. Pre Alliance Grayson didn't have the tech base or the finances to support doming entire cities, but thanks to Honor Harrington, it was now possible. The pinnace slowed as it approached the docking portal. Gliding through the lock, it approached its assigned landing pad. The pilot made a textbook perfect landing dead square in the middle of the pad.

Once the systems had shut down, Thad set Taz back on his shoulder and made his way towards the hatch. Stepping out into the brilliant sunshine, he soon found someone motioning for him to come over. "If you would be so kind as to follow me Captain Armstrong, Lady Harrington is expecting you." Said the Harringtonite. Following him into a huge and ornate building, Thad couldn't help but be a tad overwhelmed. The ornamentation of the building reminded him just a bit too much of his past.

Approaching his destination, he saw two men in Harrington Steading green on green uniforms. Both gave him a measuring look. They must be two of her armsmen Thad thought. Armsmen were a personal security force and body guards for their Steadholder. Grayson law swore them to protect their Steadholder, even with their very lives. Being a former guard dog himself, Thad knew that these were particularly good ones. Activating the com, one of the armsmen spoke into the pickup.

"Captain Thaddeus Armstrong to see the Steadholder."

"Alright, send him in."

Entering into the large office of Steadholder Harrington with one of the armsmen in tow, Thad saw her nearly buried behind piles of data chips and old fashioned hardcopy. Upon hearing him come in she stood up and walked around her desk, her treecat jumping down from his perch behind her chair and scrambling up to her shoulder. The aura of command fairly dripped off of her. Thad braced to stiff attention, his arm nearly rising of its own volition to snap a salute. Although he showed no outward sign of it, Thad's stomach was doing summersaults. Honor returned his salute with equal precision, yet Thad could have sworn he saw a twinkle in her eyes, almost as if she could sense his emotional turmoil. Taz was staring intently at Honor, only the tip of his tail twitching. Thad was slightly concerned, as Taz had never given anyone such intense scruitny like this. Sending a mental image to cut it out, Thad dared to try his voice, silently praying he wouldn't make an as* of himself.

"Captain Thaddeus Armstrong reporting as ordered ma'am!" Nary a squeak, which was a good sign.

"Oh calm down Captain, I don't bite." Extending her hand she said, "Let me say again good job!"

Shaking her hand in return Thad felt his cheeks reddening. He quickly thanked her in reply.

"Allow me to make some introductions. The man beside you is my chief personal watchdog, Major Andrew LaFollet. And this little stinker", gesturing to the treecat on her shoulder, "is Nimitz." Shaking the pairs hands, Thad went into his own introduction.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. My furry companion here is Taz." The cat extended his hand to Honor, her armsman, then jumped to the ground. Nimitz followed him there almost immediately. The pair flowed up to the room's perch like old buddies.

"Nimitz loves meeting other treecats. Unfortunately my duties have limited the contact he would normally have with others of his kind. Have a seat Captain." Honor's cool soprano requested as she sat back down in the large chair behind her desk. "Now, its my understanding that you have been given command of a pretty deadly warship. How is she shaping up?"

"Quite well ma'am. I am sure you are up to speed on the Warspite's specs. Suffice it to say, she has more than lived up to what the numbers say."

"I am glad to hear it. It is going to be up to you and your squadron to set up how best to employ the new systems. In typical fashion, the Graysons have embraced a unproven concept and run with it. While BuShips back in Manticore is still bickering as to weather a hollow core missile pod warship is a sound idea, Grayson has already built three prototype BC's. Add to that they already have the keels laid for four hollow core SD's. If that wasn't shocking enough, they incorporate an unproven weapons system into both."

"Don't misread me though, I made the recommendations to the powers that be that these systems be pushed into production. I just didn't think that they would be turned into working prototypes so fast. And your recent outing proves the new missiles viability quite obviously."

Not sure what to say, Thad merely nodded.

"Now as to the Masadan plot you stymied." Honor's brown eyes went ice cold, causing Thad to shiver inside despite the fact that it was directed at somebody else. Nimitz hissed from his perch, his expression just as deadly as his persons. "It was very good that you stopped that before it got any farther. Things could have become very messy if those weapons had made it to those lunatics hands."

Honor had good reason to hate the Masadan's. Not only had one of their attacks on Grayson killed her beloved mentor, Admiral Courvosier, the actions they took against captured Manticoran personnel, especially the women, after the engagement were horrifying to any civilized individual. Where Masadan's were concerned, Thad could not be in greater agreement.

"I hope that Planetary Security gives those bast**ds what they have coming." Then Thad colored when he realized what he had said. Seeing his reaction, Honor let him off the hook.

"Don't worry about offending me over Masadans zealots Captain. What ever they get is pure justice in my opinion." Giving herself a shake, Honor changed the subject to a different, yet more sensitive subject. "You may have already thought about it, but in stopping the shipment you have made some very powerful enemies. I can empathize more than most as to just how dangerous those sort can be." Thad couldn't help it, he stared open mouthed at Honor. "Don't be so surprised Captain. I have my sources, even in ONI. They didn't tell me the whole story, but the gave enough to cause concern. Watch your back, I would hate to loose such a evidently honorable and competent CO." Still slightly shocked, Thad began to realize you didn't become the second ranking officer in an entire navy and not become privy to information.

"Thank you for your concern My Lady. I'll keep my guard up."

That said, there is going to be a little party here tonight. Invitations have already gone out to your squadron, but I am going to take the opportunity to personally invite you and your command staff to attend."

"On behalf of my officers, how could I do anything other than accept? We'll be there ma'am."

"Good. I look forward to possibly conversing with you again Captain. Now, I must get back to the mountain of paperwork that has piled up in my absence. If I don't get to talk with you again before I leave the system, Good luck and good hunting!"

"The same to you ma'am. And thank you again for your support. Coming from you it means a great deal to me." Thad swore that he saw a slight rise in the color of Honor's cheeks at that, but he couldn't be certain. Her Nimitz bleeked laughter from his perch, Taz soon joining in.

"Laugh it up stinker, you'll get yours soon enough. You get kittensitting duty this afternoon, remember?"

"I don't mean to pry, but kittensitting?'

"Then I guess you haven't heard. Nimitz and Samantha decided to bring their four kittens to Grayson. They also brought along eight of Nimitz clanmates." Thad got a surprised expression stuck on his face despite himself. Then, after a few seconds the real implications of what Honor had just said hit home. The cats didn't just follow Nimitz here so he could be near his progeny. They had decided that it was time to set up the first treecat colony off of Sphinx.

"My God! I have only had Taz here for a few months, and I thought I was beginning to figure out just how smart he really was. But this changes things quite drastically."

"Yes it does, doesn’t it. I have a feeling that some accepted theories as to treecat intelligence are about to be turned on their ears."

"It would seem so ma'am, it would indeed. Might I look at these kittens before I leave? I have never seen a treekitten before."

"Certainly, my aid will show you to them. Now if you will excuse me, I unfortunately must get back to my paper work. It was good meeting you Captain."

"If you'll pardon the pun, it was my honor to meet you My Lady." Saluting crisply, Thad waited for her to return it before he gathered Taz up to his shoulder, turned smartly and walked out of Steadholder Harrington's office.
 

CHAPTER 16 [Capital City of Nouveau Paris, Haven System, People's Republic of Haven]

Citizen Admiral Sarah Grant waited nervously outside the lions' den. She had no idea why the Committee of Public Safety, the current government of the PRH, wanted to meet her personally. Sarah had managed to almost convince herself that they didn't want her dead. If they had wanted that, a squad of State Security goons would have hauled her away. Instead, she had been 'requested' to meet with the Committee in person. That was almost as bad. One wrong word, one perceived slight or failing would quickly end her career, or have her disappeared.

She had managed to live through the purges that the Committee had initiated after it seized power from the Legislaturalists. The fact that she had been a Doleist probably was a large part of that. The Committee had used Doleist support in its coup. Under the Legislaturalists, the PRH had set up an untenable society. The Legislaturalists made a deal when they first came to power. Those that would become Doleists had given up any connections to political power to the Legislaturalists. In exchange, they were guaranteed a basic standard of living in perpetuity. The welfare state this arrangement created was the main cause of the People's Republic and the Star Kingdom of Manticore being at war with each other.

In order to fund the Doleist's Basic Living Stipend, the Legislaturalists had been forced to take over neighboring systems to get an influx of cash. Yet this only worked for so long. Every system taken only gave so much currency, then was bled dry. So the process had to be repeated again and again. Eventually the Republic ran up against Manticore, the only people in the sector that could give them a run for their money in a stand up fight. Yet Manticore was too much of a prize to pass over. Its wormhole junctions allowed it to have an economy that rivaled that of Old Earth herself.

So in an effort to keep increasing the BLS because of the mobs demands, the Legislaturalists had decided to conquer Manticore. The early stages of the war hadn't gone the way the military planers said it should though. They thought that their numerical superiority would enable them to take the SKM quickly. They were wrong. Manticore had fought hard and had won early victories. The quality of its navy personnel and equipment tipped the scales in Manticore's favor just enough. The unrest caused by the Republic defeats allowed the Committee to seize power in a coup.

The Committee of Public Safety then proceeded to remove any real, and a lot of perceived, opposition to its rule. The Legislaturalists had held a chokehold on appointment to the upper ranks of the military. They only appointed fellow Legislaturalists to flag ranks. Because of this, many of the PRH's best, most experienced officers were executed because they were considered politically unreliable by the new regime. Not only that, but the Committee executed many unsuccessful commanders, not letting them learn from their mistakes. It was not only the failed commanders that were targeted, their families were killed as well. Returning with your shield or upon it had become a very real life event in the Peoples Republic. While this instilled a great desire to succeed in naval personnel, it also had the exact opposite effect in generating loyalty to the new government.

While that had opened the way for many capable, non-Legislaturalist officers to advance to flag rank, it removed a huge portion of the navy's most skilled officers when they were needed the most. What had resulted, except for some infrequent PRH victories, was continued success by the Manticoran Navy. Those successes had very nearly leveled the playing field between the two powers. Although the PRH officer corps had started out lacking ability, they had gained a lot of experience as the war dragged on for years. Just how the war would finish was anyone's guess.

The purges had allowed Captain Grant to advance to Admiral in a mere two years. The main reason for her rapid advance was her political reliability, yet her skill played no small part in it. Some officers chose to keep their noses clean and stay completely out of anything political. It was easier to stay alive that way. Yet you couldn't advance very far being totally apolitical in the current Peoples' Navy. The Committee, and the Peoples Commissioners they placed on board ships to keep tabs on the navy, wanted Admirals that were filled with the 'proper revolutionary zeal'.

Sarah Grant had been forced to play the role of fervent revolutionary in order to advance. She didn't believe in the propaganda she spouted back to those desiring to hear it, yet it was the only means available for advancement. She told the Commissioners what they wanted to hear, and thus achieved rapid promotion. Her military record was exemplary, especially considering that her squadron had stopped two Manty thrusts cold.

Despite all this, fear gnawed in her belly. The people she was about to meet evidently wanted her for a reason, and she doubted she was going to like it. Not wanting to appear to nervous, she sat and waited, playing with the bottom of her green tunic. Her hazel eyes glanced at the chronometer mounted on the wall for what seemed like the thousandth time, then fell to the window. Through the wall of armoplast the giant spires that made up Nouveau Paris, capital city of the Republic, glittered in the rising sun. Even at this early hour, thousands of aircars already coursed around the massive buildings that grew like glass and metal trees out of the earth.

A chime sounded at the solitary desk that filled part of the room. The secretary glanced at his board, then motioned for Sarah to enter.

"The Committee is ready to see you now, Citizen Admiral."

Nodding, she tugged her tunic straight, then walked towards the double doors with a stride that showed nothing of how weak in the knees she felt. The burly guards in the red and black uniforms of State Security flanking the doors made no move, yet their eyes swiveled like pulser sights as she approached. Despite her nervousness, she almost laughed at their antics. As if she would dare try anything. She had been checked repeatedly for any kind of weapons even before she was allowed into the building. And she had no suicidal tendencies so a barehanded attack against the Committee was out. The heavy pulsers the SS guards carried were highly lethal, and the look in their eyes said they would not hesitate to use them.

Turning her mind back to the task at hand, she took a deep, calming breath, then opened the cage and stepped inside. There were only six people in the room beyond. Three were more SS guards, yet it was the remaining ones who were the most dangerous. Chairman Rob S. Pierre, leader of the Committee of Public Safety sat at the head of the table. To his right was the man who ran State Security, Oscar Saint-Just. To his left was Committeewoman Cordelia Ransom. She was in charge of the Office of Public Information, the propaganda arm of the government. Any of the three could have her killed on a whim, and no one would do a thing to stop them. No one was powerful enough to do that.

The table was simple gray marble, with a pitcher of water and some glasses on a tray to one side. The high backed leather chairs the Committee members sat in were of a plain design. The room was unexpectedly spartan for the main chamber of the ruling clique of the second largest empire in known space. Its only ornamentation was a large PRH flag spotlighted just behind Rob S. Pierre's chair. On further thought, Sarah found the spartan setting made sense. By the Committee's mindset, the normal trappings of power were elitist and must be avoided at all costs.

"Please have a seat Citizen Admiral." Pierre said. Sarah quickly flowed into the chair he had indicated. Looking at the three most powerful people in the entire Republic from across the table, she forced her face into a mask. "No doubt you are wondering just why we have summoned you here. Well I shall keep you in the dark no longer. We need you for a very important mission. It's outcome could very well decide weather we win the war or not. The Committee has reviewed your record and has decided that you are the best commander to send out on this mission."

Responding carefully, Sarah found her voice surprisingly calm. "I am honored that the Committee thinks so highly of me. I am but a servant of the people." Cordelia Ransom smiled like a crocodile.

"And a very good one at that. It is a pity that we haven't had an officer of your capability in some of our other systems." She said it like it was the officers' fault that they were inexperienced and poorly trained in relation to their Manticoran counterparts. Realizing that a non-response might not be beneficial to her health, Sarah shook her head.

"My success is due in no small part to my officers and the enlisted personnel under them. They deserve more credit for the victories we have achieved than I do."

"Your modesty dose you well, yet it doesn’t change the fact that you are one of the few military commanders that has had success against the corrupt and elitist enemies of the People. That has been far to rare a commodity in the People's Navy of late."

Due in no small part to your own paranoid actions Sarah thought to herself. If you weren't so concerned that the military was going to stage a coup against you, we might have already won the war. She forced a slight smile to her face and merely nodded at the committeewoman's remarks.

"Your success and the good word your Commissioner has given us about you are the main reasons you were selected for this mission." Rob said, steering the conversation back on track. Dimming the lights, he activated a holo projector and a map of the quadrant sprang to existence above the table. The bloated, irregular sphere of the PRH was highlighted in green. The systems controlled by the Manticoran Alliance were colored an angry crimson. Major systems captured by the Alliance were colored in yellow. There were to many of those for comfort. She had heard how bad the war was going, but she hadn't thought that it was quite this bad.

Rob went on. "Your objective is this system." Sarah's eyes widened in surprise, her curiosity mounting, shoving aside her fear as a previously unlabeled star began pulsing blue.
 

Thad made his way towards Harrington Steading's hospital. The more seriously injured of the marine boarders and their prisoners had been brought here once the Warspite had entered orbit. Shipboard facilities were first rate on the Warspite, but nothing could beat a dirtside hospital.

Entering the wing where the marines had been transferred, Thad noticed a concerned looking man in the green and black of the Manticoran Marines. Col. van Yurgen was pacing briskly back and forth in the waiting room. Looking up as he sensed Thad's approach, Linus turned to him and gave a ghost of a smile.

"I always hate waiting to find out how bad my people are. During a battle I can at least do something constructive. Letting someone else look after 'em is very hard for me to do."

"I know the feeling. Being unable to do anything more for them is tough to accept. All you can do is save as many as you can then let the doctors pick up the pieces of those you couldn't." Thad returned the concerned smile, one commander to another. He had seen more than his fair share of comrades at arms killed in the line of duty. Despite that, a part of his brain screamed at him for causing their deaths. Taz curled his tail around Thad's neck as his subliminal purr intensified. Forcing his thoughts away from that dark corner of his mind, Thad again thanked the stars for dropping the cat into his life.

Linus blew air through his lips explosively. "My brain knows that, but my heart sometimes insists I could have done something else." Pulling Thad towards him, he lowered his voice so only the two of them could hear it. "You did the right thing Captain, despite what anyone else says. Stopping those weapons was worth much more than the price we paid. You saved many lives on Masada because of your actions today. You are a good man, don't let anyone tell you different." Linus' free hand griped Thad's shoulder firmly. Pain was the most apparent emotion on his face, but Thad saw respect in his eyes as well.

The moment between them was broken when a doctor rounded the corner to the waiting room. Both officers straightened and three pairs of eyes sent questioning gazes to her. If the hospital's doctors had been upset at her insistence on looking after HER patients even after they left her sickbay, they had hidden it very well. Surgeon Commander Viola Romanoff looked bushed, but she still managed a tiny smile.

"Well, it looks like everyone is going to live. Corporal, no Sargent" remembering his post battle promotion a second to late, "Carter will need to be shipped out to Manticore ASAP so that he can get his missing feet replaced, but I expect that he will make a complete recovery. It was touch and go there for a while, and he lost an enormous amount of blood, but he is a tough one. Sargent Carter should be able to return to duty in about eight months. His wounds were by far the most serious of those injured. The rest can be treated here on Grayson and should make complete recoveries as well."

Grins sprouted on anxious faces as the Warspite's CMO announced the good news. "Well that’s a relief! Thank you very much Cmdr. Romanoff." Col. van Yurgen said. The doctor's hand disappeared from view as his meaty paws clasped around it. "Can I see them?"

"I suppose so, just keep it brief! They really need to rest."

"You have my word as an officer and a gentleman." Linus said in a very solemn voice. Then he disappeared around the corner to his people.

[Midas System, PRH, One Week Later]

Adm. Sarah Grant made her voice silent by sheer force of will. Inside though she was going through every curse and oath she had ever heard. Some of them were quite colorful. One didn't stay in the Navy for over 20 years and not pick up a rather large repertoire of them. She looked down at the list of ships assigned to her battle squadron again, hoping that it has somehow magically changed. The ship names remained, unwavering, unaffected by her seething emotions.

True, they were mostly new build units, and any commander should have been damned near ecstatic to get so many of them. But far to may names on that list weren't even Naval vessels at all. They were State Security ships, crewed and commanded by the SS personnel. Though it would have gotten her killed if anyone learned about it, Sarah still though that giving SS first pick of the newest units was utter stupidity. She wasn't naive enough not to see why they got them, she just thought that they would be of better use in Naval hands.

When you ruled with an iron fist, you needed the best tools to crush all opposition. Hence State Security got as many, or nearly so, of the new cruisers and battle cruisers as it wanted. Thanks to illegal Solarian League tech transfers to the PRH, these new designs came much closer to their Manticoran brethren than any that had come before them. Their ECM suites were generations more advanced than those they replaced, though still not up to Manty standards. Their missiles and penaids were also several orders of magnitude better than any previously carried by a PRH ship.

Finally her anger won a small victory. Sarah softly uttered one word, yet it dripped with the fury that boiled inside her. "F***!!!"

It wasn't that the ships themselves were bad combatants, despite the changes SS had made to the Navies original designs. No, it was the crews and officers that inhabited them. Many were in the SS because their warped minds thirsted for the terror and unspeakable acts that SS personnel were required to implement. Some had even had previous naval experience, but had been unable to rise above junior rank due to their distorted sense of right and wrong. Yet in the Office of State Security they had been able to let their dark desires flourish, heck they were probably even encouraged.

The admittance chime to her personal quarters aboard her flagship, the battleship PNS Lion, chirped. Forcing down her emotions, she answered the door. "Enter."

Her chief of staff, Commodore Vic Walker entered with Commissioner Gunther Foche and a man in the red and black of an SS commodore in tow. Vic's face held no expression, yet Sarah's practiced eye detected disgust mixed with a hint of anger behind the mask of his features. Sarah sincerely hoped that the SS officer and the commissioner wouldn't pick up on it. Walker was a good officer and it would be a shame to lose him.

"Citizen Admiral, allow me to present Citizen Commodore Charles Braganovich, the commander of the battle cruiser squadron that has been assigned to our order of battle." Vic said, his deep voice devoid of any emotion.

Charles Braganovich's mouth turned up in to a silky smooth smile. His dark brown eyes roamed up and down his new CO, taking in her curves. She was about 150 pounds and six feet tall. Her red hair was woven into a braid that ran down to her shoulder blades. It contrasted surprisingly well with her sea green eyes. What he would give to get a piece of tail like that…

Sarah shuddered inside as Charles' lecherous eyes roamed her body. Best to chop that off at the get go. "Citizen Commodore!" Sarah's voice was as cold as liquid helium. "I don't know how your last CO was, but while you are under my command you will show superior officers proper respect." She took particular relish at the double meaning of superior officers. Her tone had the desired response as Commodore Braganovich's spine went ramrod straight and he cast his eyes to a point just above her shoulder.

"Charles Braganovich, CO of the 56th SS Battle Cruiser Squadron, reporting for duty!" He snapped off a precise salute. Sarah let him hold it for five seconds before she returned it. Charles cursed himself for allowing her to get the better of him. He had grown used to ferrying naval personnel who had fallen from favor, not reporting to one who was his superior. The Admiral before him wasn't the cowed or terrified prisoner he usually dealt with. She had been hand picked for this mission by the Committee of Public Safety itself, which meant that she had every reason to feel secure. And if the mission succeeded, it would also give himself an excellent chance to rise still farther within the SS.

Gritting his teeth, Charles apologized for the first time in recent memory. "I'm sorry Citizen Admiral, it won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't!" Sarah paused to let the warning sink in, then continued. "Now, down to business, what is the status of your squadron?"

"Once we finish taking on reactor mass in about two hours, we will be fully combat ready."

"After you finish that, get your allotment of the new missile pods under tow. Then form up with the rest of the battle group. Your squadron is the last to arrive, so we are all waiting on you. We are running on a tight schedule, so I suggest that you hurry. You are dismissed Citizen Commodore!" With the SS battle cruisers, Sarah's force consisted of 10 battleships, 15 battle cruisers, 10 heavy cruisers, 8 light cruisers, and 20 destroyers. It was a very strong force. And with a supply of the Peoples Navy's first missile pods in tow behind them, Sarah felt confident that they had enough firepower to take their objective. It was supposedly poorly guarded, relying on secrecy instead of armaments for defense.

Saluting again, Commodore Braganovich turned smartly on his heel and stalked out of the room. As he left, he made a silent vow to himself that some way, some how, he would put a certain Admiral in her proper place. No one in over five years, since he had first joined the SS, had made him feel as small as she just had. She was untouchable now, but even the best commanders had been known to make a mistake now and then, and Charles would be there when she did.

Commissioner Foche approached his primary charge. "Are you sure that was wise? Pissing off State Security is not the best way to advance you know." Gunther Foche wasn't the worst sort. Her previous Commissioner had been a real pain in the posterior. He had known nothing of military operations, which was bad because the Peoples Commissioners needed to sign off on every military plan. Foche at least had served in the military, he even made it to captain before he left. Being a fellow Doleist, his career had stalled because he didn't have a Legislaturalist supporter. But that had been over 20 t-years ago, before the war with Manticore even started.

Once the Committee had started putting civilian watchdogs on every naval vessel, Gunther had joined in order to serve the Committee of Public Safety, which he saw as a step forward compared to the corrupt Legislaturalists. Yet in the years since becoming a Peoples Commissioner, Gunther had found that the Committee was in many ways just as corrupt and dangerous to the Republic as the Legislaturalists had been. The excesses of the Office of State Security were a case in point. Thus he had made a decision to protect his officers as much as possible. With a commander of as high a caliber as Sarah Grant, he would go to great lengths. The Republic needed officers like her now like never before.

Sarah turned to the wrinkled Commissioner with a wry smile. She had been surprised when she and the commissioner had become friends, or at least as close as a naval officer and her civilian watchdog were likely to come. "I know Gunther, but I just couldn't stand his insolence, his lack of respect. I admit it my temper got the better of me. But DAMN it felt good to put that ass in his place!"

[Flag Bridge, PNS Lion, Near the Hyper Limit]

Sarah gazed at her plot with mixed emotions. Part of her was cheering wildly as she saw the sloppy maneuvers and poor formation that the SS portion of her command was executing. Yet a larger part of her was terribly concerned over the same thing. Those poor ship-handling skills would be a dangerous handicap in a standup fight. Intelligence said that there should be no opposition, but it had failed miserably on several occasions.

"Mr. Zamphir," Sarah said to her staff com officer, "see to it that there is a extensive set of sims set up for the battle group." Showing him teeth at him through her smile, she continued. "It looks like SOME of us need a little practice on fleet maneuvers, and it's not like we won't have the time." Getting to the target via a round about route to avoid early detection was going to take nearly two whole months.

Grinning back he replied, "It certainly does, doesn't it Ma'a-Citizen Admiral." Cmdr. Ali Zamphir's tan face turned crimson as he nearly reverted to the old 'elitist' honorific. In the current Peoples Navy, only People's Commissioners were to be addressed as Sir or Ma'am. It was one of the Committees dumber plans, yet there was nothing Sarah could do about the order. Nothing except ignore it whenever possible. Her current staff had been together for over two standard years. They knew eachother well enough to trust and be open with eachother. They were also very good at their jobs. What had been Battleship Squadron 21 was almost up to Manticoran standards in the ship-handling department.

The People's Navy Battle Group 109 finally got all of its elements into proper position. "All units report ready Citizen Admiral." Cmdr. Zamphir reported.

"Very well, inform Citizen Captain Wells that he may order the fleet to go to hyper at his discretion." Sarah just hoped that two months in hyper would be enough to sort out the dog's breakfast the SS called a wall of battle.
 

CHAPTER 18 [Late Evening, Harrington Steading, Grayson]

*Authors note: These events take place around the same time as the Committee was giving Adm. Grant her orders.

Captain (SG) Thaddeus Armstrong hated to admit it, but even with the cursed necktie, his Grayson dress uniform looked good. He had even managed to do up the tie himself. Chief Gibbons had been surprised when she found just how little 'fixing' she had to do to make her charge presentable. Thad had always been fascinated by history, and the uniform's lines bore a much stronger resemblance, than a Manticoran one at any rate, to those used on Old Earth about two million t-years ago. Now the dress uniforms of the Andermani Empire were something else. Despite his interest in history, even Thad had to admit that those were a little over the top. They were based on ancient Prussian uniforms, and their tall stiff collars had to be even more uncomfortable than Thad's tie.

By the time Thad and his senior officers, arrived at the ball at Harrington Steading, the party was well underway. As he approached the party's main entrance, Thad noticed a larger than normal amount of guards in Harrington green on green. That was only to be expected, even at a party as formal as this, someone could still drink too much and get a little rowdy.

Under the guard's watchful eyes, the Warspite's officers walked up to the open doors and entered the gaily-lit room within. Taz stood up a little taller on Thad's shoulder, trying to see everything. This was the first time that he had ever been at any function like this, and Thad was more than a little concerned as to how it would affect him. Yet the cat seemed to be taking it all in stride. As much as he was new to formal balls, he seemed to be almost preening as he gazed about the room with his person.

"Look at him!" Jen said from Thad's right, "In typical treecat fashion, he is acting like all this pomp is for him alone." Taz bleeked in response, as if to say not even you can ruin this moment for me.

"Don't get to full of yourself mister!" Thad scolded his friend. Taz responded to him in almost the same way, but with his eyes sparkling, yet he did seem to settle down. "That's better. Now lets join the party, shall we?"

Thad, Jennifer, Julius, and Fillipe Escobar made their way towards the music and laughter. Someone had to mind the store, even while the Warspite was in parking orbit, and Xaiver St. Laurence had drawn the short straw. Of course the extra command experience would do him good in the long run, but oh how he had howled when he found out he wouldn't be going to Honor's party.

Entering the large room, the Warspite's party drew polite yet interested stares from quite a few of the guests. It took Thad a few minutes to realize that not many of them had seen a treecat other than Honor's Nimitz. Taz made him stand out from everyone else simply because he was there perched on his shoulder.

Shrugging their interest off, Thad lead the way towards the buffet table. The aroma of the superbly prepared food was mind blowing. Thad couldn't wait to try some of the dishes. As he made his way through the crowd though, he noticed he was getting penetrating, almost lewd stares from many of the women present. It was then that he remembered that female births on Grayson far outnumbered male births. In fact polygamy was the societal norm, with men legally having up to three wives each. This discrepancy in the balance of the sexes had caused Grayson women to be much more aggressive in finding a man than was the norm on most planets.

Thad, except for his scar, had a rugged handsomeness about him. Add to that the fact that he also had a gray and black treecat on his shoulder and Thad became a very hot commodity. Everything he had read but not fully understood the complications of came crashing back to his conscious mind. Thad very nearly turned and bolted right then and there. Seeing the sudden change in his expression, and having seen the looks his captain had been getting since he walked in, Julius put two and two together. Putting a steadying hand on Thad's shoulder, he whispered into his ear.

"Don’t worry sir, they aren't the Amazons your imagination is making them into." He went on with a mischievous whisper. "Not quite that bad anyway…"

Thad looked at him in terror, then relaxed and rolled his eyes when he realized he had been had. Taz bleeked laughter from Thad's shoulder, his face alight in pure glee. It was as if he had just given an atta boy to a fellow prankster on a job well done. Julius had just gotten his person in a way he couldn't, yet the little imp was cheering him on. Taz had tasted the women's emotions, and was somewhat surprised at his person's reaction to them. Then he saw the raw hurt sealed deep within Thad for the first time. So that was it, he had been hurt deeply by someone from his past. Thad's shock had finally allowed Taz to break through into the tightly sealed, damaged part of his heart. Taz knew that his adopted person loved him very much, but there had always been a part of him that was distant and locked away. That in and of itself was strange, because every other human Taz had encountered had not had the ability to hide a part of themselves from him.

He was positive that it was that power that had first drawn him to Thad. It gave his mind glow a bright and unique flavor. He had sensed a much more powerful version of the same thing in Nimitz's person. He had even been surprised when Nimitz had told him that he and his person could exchange thoughts in a two-way conversation. It was simplistic pictures granted, but something much closer to what his species experienced with eachother. Because of the similarity between Honor's and Thaddeus' mind glow, Taz hoped to one day have as unique and deep connection as Nimitz experienced. Of course when he learned just what had prompted it to come about, he wondered if it was truly worth the cost of getting it.

Taz decided then and there that he would help Thad when he was ready, but he wouldn't pry. Matters such as this were difficult for him to grasp as treecats lived largely in the here and now. They had a hard time accepting that humans dragged around so much useless emotional baggage. Still, Thad was his human, and Taz could only do as much as he could to ease his pain. Taz threw support and love into their link. Pressing his head into Thad's cheek, Taz started up his buzzing purr.

Thad could have sworn he had briefly felt another… something inside his head. The feelings he had gotten from it were warm and lively, but it was a very disconcerting experience. Despite that, he reached out to the presence. But just as he seemed to grasp it, it slipped away like grains of sand through a closed fist. Frowning in consternation, he turned to the furry bundle of love on his shoulder.

"Did you just do that?" Taz only purred louder in response.

"Do what sir?" Julius said

"I could have sworn… but it's gone now. It was the strangest thing- except in a good way."

"Sir?"

Thad sucked in a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. "I guess it was nothing XO. Just my mind playing tricks on me. Don't worry, I won't let my overactive imagination make a fool of me in front of the ladies."

Grinning, Julius said, "You sir, a fool, never! Now unless I am mistaken, that looks like Adm. Cole and his staff over there at that table in the corner. Perhaps now would be a good time to make introductions?"

"An excellent suggestion. Just let me grab a cup of hot chocolate. The smell has been calling to me since I got here."

"You can smell that from here?" Julius asked incredulously. "I just caught a glance of the hot drinks table, and it's on the other side of the room."

"Err… that is I heard that Lady Harrington loves the stuff, so I assumed that it was here."

Julius was concerned that his captain was hiding something major from him, but he decided that the ballroom was neither the time nor the place to discuss it so he let it go. Nodding to Thad, he said, "Fine Sir, I'll just go over and chat with the Admiral untill you get your drink."

"I'll be over directly Exec." Thad said over his shoulder. That had been close, almost to close. Thad still wasn't ready to let his true origins out, even to his first officer. The man was very easy to get along with, and there were the beginnings of a very good friendship started between Thad and himself. Yet the line was still there, and Thad was still unable to bring himself to cross it.

Grabbing a mug from the waiter, Thad drank deeply of the hot, silky smooth liquid. His heightened metabolism required quite a bit more calories than a normal human. Many of his fellow officers envied his ability to consume foods yet miraculously manage not look like a sumo wrestler because of it.

On his way back to the Admirals table, Thad spied a tray of celery and couldn't resist. He grabbed one of the smaller pieces for Taz as he strode by. Although treecats cannot digest celery, they love the stuff. All the expert's Thad had met during his short time on Sphinx, plus the personal studying he had done on his own, still had no answer as to just why they had such an appetite for it.

Taz accepted the celery with relish, yet forced himself to wait until his person was seated before he ate it. It wouldn't due for him to drop the produce by accident. Not only would it be embarrassing, it might damage the celery.

Coming up to Bruce Cole's table Thad noticed its position with a practiced eye. It was placed so that it gave those seated around it got as much privacy as possible from the milling throngs of partygoers. It was placed in a corner and many of the tables around it were empty because of people dancing on the ballroom floor. Thad didn't get a chance to get a good look at the others seated at the table. That was because he had to devote his full attention to Admiral Cole. The Admiral stood up and extended a hand to him. Bruce was about Thad's height, yet had a slightly thicker build. His reddish blond hair was neatly styled, except for lock that hung down almost to his brown eyes. Thad took the hand out of sheer reflex, and Adm. Cole's returning grip was strong.

"Captain, you did a good job today. Such a good job in fact that I have want to use the Warspite as my flagship, and I want you for my flag captain."

Thad was thunder struck. "I don't mean to question your judgement sir, but surely one of the other captains is better qualified, and most certainly another has more seniority. I would hate to step on anyone's toes." He replied cautiously.

"Nonsense, it was the other captains that verified my initial decision. They all came to me after your first trial by fire and recommended that unless I had already picked someone else, that you would be a perfect choice. I concurred with their assessment of your abilities, so I am now formally offering the slot to you."

"Sir I am very junior for my rank." More than you know Thad thought. "I am not sure I am ready for the responsibility that being a fleet captain entails."

"Oh just say yes already Thud!" A deep voice emanated from one of the officers who had been seated with the admiral, deliberately mangling Thad's nickname. Thad knew that voice, and he felt his jaw drop as the face finally came up from the depths of his memory.

A tall man built like a rake stood and wrapped his arms around Thad. Taz had to drop to the floor to avoid being crushed. His annoyed bleek caused Captain (SG) Luke Killkreek to drop Thad back to the ground suddenly.

"Oh gosh, I didn't hurt him did I?" Genuine concern creeped into the deep baritone.

"Just his pride." Thad stared at the giant in front of him as he picked up Taz. "Is that really you Reek?" He said as the cat flowed back up to the perch on his shoulder.

"In the flesh! It's been to long man." Thad and Luke had been roommates and inseparable friends at Saganami Island, and had done their first midi cruse on the same ship. Luke taken a socially inept and timid Thaddeus Armstrong under his wing and been a good friend to him. Luke had originally though that Thad's outsider attitude had been an act. Yet when he had broken down the barriers and found out that Thad really was as clumsy socially as he appeared, he was shocked. How could someone who appeared as old as Thad be so out of place in a social setting. Thad seemed like a little kid in a group of adults whenever he and his classmates got together after school let out. Thad had graduated top of his class, with very high marks in both tactics and strategy. Get him in a military setting and his leadership ability shone through, as well as his skill. But in a group of his peers in a bar or club and he became as innocent as a newborn babe.

Admiral Cole broke in. "I'm sure there will be time for catching up later Captains, but I still need an answer."

"Of course sir. On second thought, I believe I will take you up on your request."

"Excellent. Now allow me to make introductions to the rest of the team. Starting from right to left, the good-looking woman is Lt. Cmdr. Eve Oberon, my chief of staff. Next is my ECM officer, Lt. Cmdr. Gill Cromwell. Then comes Lt. Tommy Schultz, my com officer. The remaining two are Captains Peter Trent and Natalia Hect, CO's of the Viper and Copernicus respectively. Captain Killkreek is CO of the Graf Spee."

Thad shook all their hands in turn. Once the Admiral had finished, Thad did his side. "As you all seem to know already, I am Captain Thaddeus Armstrong. My furry companion here is Taz." After a chorus of hellos Luke extended his hand to Taz in apology."

"Sorry about knocking you off little guy. Guess I got carried away. It's been years since I have seen Thad here, and I always have been a little clumsy."

Taz waited for a few seconds before he extended his right truehand, the left still clutching the celery stalk, in reply. He did it as if a bigger apology was his due, despite the fact that all that was bruised was his ego.

Admiral Cole turned back to Thad. "Now that that’s out of the way, there are some things I would like to discuss with you Captain Armstrong. Pull up a chair, and I promise I won't keep you away from those determined young ladies long!"
 

CHAPTER 19 [Harrington Steading, Grayson, Dusk]

Everyone around the table had a surprised look on their faces. The bombshell Admiral Cole had dropped was shocking to say the least. Thad could hardly believe it, yet from what Adm. Cole had said it must be true. But the orders he had just explained were confusing. TF 55 was to leave orbit one month from now and make its way to Looking Glass Station. But Thad, like most military personnel, had thought Looking Glass was just a myth. Supposedly it was a top-secret military installation used to develop exotic and powerful weapons systems. Yet despite years of tabloid stories and rumors, no conclusive proof had ever been found for its existence.

Till now that is. TF 55 was to proceed there to develop fleet tactics in relation to the new Ghost Rider systems. The Admiralty didn't want any spying eyes to see the capabilities of the new weapon systems before they were ready for deployment. Where better to test them than in a system that didn't exist.

"By the time we are ready to pull out, almost all of the other ships assigned to TF 55 should be finished or available. Our order of battle will include five Warspite Class BC (M) and 6 Star Knight Refit BCs as well as the usual escort of cruisers and tin cans by then." Admiral Cole said.

"That is a powerful force sir. One thing concerns me though. You said that there would be some special representatives from ONI coming along to provide the coordinates of Looking Glass. And that only they would know it and would wipe all reference to it from our computer banks after we leave. That worries me a bit. I fully understand that the base's location needs to remain secret, but this seems a little excessive. It's like they don't fully trust us." Thad replied with a mild frown playing at the corners of his mouth.

"I share some of your reservations Thaddeus, but those are our orders, direct from High Admiral Wesley Matthews and First Space Lord Admiral Sir Thomas Caparelli. The value of keeping the location of Looking Glass secret is of vital importance. And you know how insidious the Peeps intelligence net is. One slip of the tongue and the entire operation could be blown wide open."

"I agree sir, its just annoys me some that all. But I can clearly see the logic of it, so I'll live with my discomfort."

"Glad to hear it. Now… since that business is taken care of, I believe that we are at a party. Enjoy your free time while you can," Bruce Cole said with a twinkle in his eye, "because after tonight we got a sh*t load of work to do before we are fully operational."

A chorus of amused groans chorused from the assembled officers of what would become Task Force 55.

[Manticore System, Manticore, Later that same week]

The Director of Cerberus crushed the report with one hand, her knuckles turning white as her fist closed over the offending piece of paper. Part of her was trying desperately to abate the rage welling up inside her. The young aid that had brought it paled as he took in her anger. Knowing her temper, she might full well kill the messenger.

"Get out." The words were spoke quietly, barely above a whisper, yet they dripped with lethal venom. The aid nearly tripped over his own feet as he rushed out of the palatial office. The best laid plans, laid to waste by a mere Lieutenant Commander. Oh there were fallback operations, but they lacked the simplicity and elegance of Renegade. They were all complex, with many more steps, many more people to buy off, many more chances for leaks. And the enemy would now be more vigilant because he knew what was possible.

And she knew that it was all HER fault. Crystal Winter slammed her fist down onto her solidly built desk hard enough to cause everything on it to jump a full inch off the ebony surface. She had miscalculated that genetic monstrosity's ability to resist his programming. By all rights, he should have followed her directives just from the mere threat of being exposed for what he was. Somehow, he had been able to get around the nearly hardwired compulsion to keep his true self hidden from the universe.

In order to keep their little operation as quiet and as out of the limelight as possible, Manpower programmed a safe guard into all their products. Any mention to them that their secret was going to be made public made them do anything to prevent it. And if it was exposed, they minds became like a blank slate. Lurking like a computer virus in their minds, the program was ever vigilant. Upon public discovery of the subject true nature, it was designed to wipe all of the individuals programmed memories. It was a safe guard just incase they escaped Manpower control. They were unable to go public with their stories themselves because the same thing would happen to them.

Well if Mr. Thaddeus Armstrong had thought she was merely making idle chit chat when she said she could be his worst enemy, he was in for a rude awakening! Stabbing a finger down on the intercom stud, she spoke to her secretary.

"I want the following information leaked to EVERY major news service in the system…

Her secretary took the relevant information in silence, yet she was frowning. Miss Winter hadn't always been like this. When she was younger, and before she had inherited the seat on Cerberus' board of directors from her late father, she had actually been quite a pleasant individual. But the old adage had been proven horribly right in her case: Power corrupts, Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

[Grayson Orbit, GSN Warspite's Boat Bay Three, six days later]

Thad reached for the grab bar and swung himself into the tube connecting the pinnace to the rest of the ship. Taz dug his claws deeper into Thad's tunic so that he wouldn't become dislodged in the zero-g of the tube. He also purred, because he found the feeling of weightlessness wonderful. Thad smiled at his friend, then returned his eyes to the grab bar at the end of the tube. Even thought he had gotten used to swimming tubes with Taz's additional weight, it still required a lot of concentration to avoid any mishaps.

Grabbing the bar, Thad swung gracefully into the gravity field of the pinnace. Admiral Cole had requested his presence on Grayson. Apparently he was having difficulty in getting the supplies he needed pried out of the supply officers fingers. He wanted to have another officer present for support, and the fact that Thad was slightly famous was bound to help. The fact that Thad's exploits had been a major news item for the past two weeks had seen to it that nearly everyone on Grayson knew his face. They had fought long and hard against Masada, and anyone who prevented them from becoming a threat again was a hero in their eyes.

The Task Force had been coming together nicely. Though there were still a few rough edges to be sanded down, Thad was confident that they would be gone in a few days. Though all of the units were either new build ships or new to eachother, they had begun to execute maneuvers just as if they were a veteran squadron. Command had only been able to assign them lighter units for their escort screen in ones and twos. Only one squadron of destroyers had managed to be added virtually intact. They had been together since nearly the beginning of the war, and their familiarity with eachother had shown in the initial TF wargames. Yet nearly every other squadron had pulled together and were now nearly on par with them.

The pinnace settled onto its assigned pad. The capital of Grayson, Austin City, looked marvelous in the night. It was 10:00 PM local time, yet by shipboard time it was only 6:00 PM. Exiting the pinnace Thad searched for a few seconds then strode to the only waiting person on the pad. Admiral Cole's flag lieutenant, Ensign Leifler, approached him.

"If you'll follow me sir, I'll take you to where the Admiral is waiting."

[Three Hours Later, Pinnace landing pad]

Thad walked back to the waiting pinnace a happy man. Though he disliked using his newfound fame to get his way, Thad would do just that if it meant getting the spares and supplies out of unwilling supply officers. With only minor usage of Thad's accomplishments, Adm. Cole and Thad had managed to get nearly everything on Lt. Humphry's wish list. Thad had been amazed at the amount of things he had scrounged up on his own, yet he didn't have sufficient pull to get the other items. Although they weren't standardly carried as spares, it was good to have them along just in case.

Thad continued walking, then noticed quite a few people with microphones and cameras spilling around the corner in front of him. His eye's narrowed as he tried to figure out just what they were doing here.

Taz was curious as well. He reached out with his senses and recoiled at what he had felt. Far to many of those people had the same feeling that a hexapuma gets when it has its prey cornered. This wasn't good, wasn't good at all.

Thad was still trying to figure out the reason the newsies were there when Taz crouched lower on his shoulder, laid his ears back, bared his teeth and let out a hiss. Then the news people were around him.

"Mr. Armstrong, are the allegations true…"

"Are you a genetic creation of Manpower Incorporated…"

"Have you really killed people in cold blood…"

"Can you make a statement as to why you falsified documents about your identity…"

The demanding voices were emanating from all around him, the microphones and cameras a solid wall, crushing in on him. He felt like a caged animal. They knew. THEY KNEW!

Taz was preparing to issue his snarling war cry when he sensed a change come over his person. It was like his mind tried to turn on itself. Thad was fighting it, but he was slowly being pushed towards the precipice. Taz immediately leant his support to Thad's, yet it merely held the force at bay. Taz curled his tail protectively around his persons neck, redoubling his efforts. Still the force was there, dark and menacing, threatening to drive them both into the abyss.

Tapping reserves of strength he hadn't known he had possessed, Thad shoved his hands between the two reporters in the most direct path to the pinnace. Shoving them aside he bolted through the whole their departure made. The two reporters that had been shoved out of the way flew up into the air and landed over a meter away. The violence of their removal from Thad's path gave the remaining pack pause. It was just enough time for Thad to disappear into the pinnace.

"Sir, what's wrong…" asked a member of the concerned flight crew.

Thad cut her off with a panicked wail "GO, GO, GO!!!"

Seeing no way to reason with distraught man, and the fact that he was a superior officer, the pinnace lifted off and climbed for the stars. Its turbines howled, giving extra power to the contra grav accent. The pilot glanced over his shoulder into the passenger cabin. What he saw would stay with him forever. A crumpled heap of a man sat in the aisle seat, his face a mask of nonexpression, his body unmoving except for the rapid rise and fall of his ribcage. The man's eyes were cast straight ahead, and were not their usual animated selves. They were devoid of any sign of life. What was worse was the keening cry of the treecat in his lap. It was franticly pressing his head into his person's chin, demanding a response, yet the man's expression never changed and he never so much as twitched. The pilot exchanged a look with his copilot, then activated the ship to ship com.

"Warspite, this is Flight India Three. I request emergency clearance to land. Have medical personnel standing by. We have a serious problem."
 

CHAPTER 20 [PRH B.G. 109, Hyperspace]

The ships of Battle Group 109 cruised through the frozen thunderstorm of hyperspace. They were currently in the depths of a fairly powerful, yet little used grav wave. It's massive force was pulling them along at an apparent velocity of thousands of times the speed of light.

Hyperspace was crisscrossed by grav waves, streams similar to Earth's trade winds. Ships could enter and exit hyperspace without the presence of a grave wave, but travel in hyper without one limited the apparent velocity of a ship to merely a few hundred times the speed of light. But when a grave wave was entered, the ship could pull considerably more speed. And it could be harnessed to provide power for a ship while in one as well. These two facts where counterweighed by the fact that a minor miscalculation or alpha node damage could cause catastrophic failure of the ship's hull.

When entering a grav wave, the impeller wedge needed to be reconfigured from bands of stressed gravity above and below the ship to a pair of huge gravity sails fore and aft of the ship. These needed to be precisely aligned with the grav wave in order to allow safe passage into it from normal hyperspace. Although traveling in a grav wave was dangerous, its benefits for interstellar travel far outweighed the inherent risks involved.

Hence powerful grav waves were often heavily used by both military and civilian ships. The one Citizen Admiral Sarah Grant's ships were in started in what was deep space and ended in deep space. It passed near no inhabited systems and was not used by anyone, as it was usually faster to just take a less direct route. Yet that very lack of use was exactly why BG 109 was in the wave. Since operational secrecy was paramount to its success, Sarah was forced to use an indirect approach to her target. It added a full month of flight time to the mission. Despite the fact that they would take longer to get to the target, their risk of detection actually decreased because they were using waves and areas of hyperspace that were well away from those usually traveled.

PNS Lion's bridge was under the dimmed lighting. Her third officer, Citizen Lt. Cmdr. Wendy Heisenberg, sat in the command chair. The pale bluish-white cast by the repeater displays formed a pool of light around the ship's throne. Although she was on the graveyard shift, she took pains to do everything by the book. Despite the way it strained the relationship between her and her fellow watch officers, protocol had to be enforced for a very good reason. She knew that even though it was 'night' aboard the ship, something unexpected could pop up and it would be her responsibility to deal with it until the captain and the admiral could be roused from their slumber. Plus the Peoples Commissioner, it wouldn't do for her to fail to notify him during an emergency either. The fact that she was effectively in command of the battle group till they returned to the bridge was an extra incentive for wariness.

Wendy settled more comfortably into plush safety of the acceleration couch. She longed for the day when she would have one of her own. If this mission went the way it was supposed to, she was virtually guaranteed a command slot. Wendy had just gotten comfortable when the tactical board beeped. The tac officer frowned, then punched in commands to his console. Wendy strode to the station and placed a hand on the young officer's shoulder.

"What's up Citizen Lt.?"

"I'm not exactly sure Citizen Lt. Cmdr. It may only be a sensor glitch, but the destroyer PNS Redguard has picked up a faint return on her passive array." Then the console beeped again as three more contacts appeared. All four were still the amber of unknowns, but they couldn't all be sensor ghosts. Wendy's stomach did a flip-flop. Those contacts could only be ships, and even though they had no right to be in this part of space, their amber beads still glowed back at her from the holo tank, drawing ever closer to the battle group. And it was her job to do something about it.

"Com," she said in a surprisingly even voice, "flash message to the battle group. Sound General Quarters and go to stealth mode immediately."

"On the chip and being sent right now Citizen Lt. Cmdr." Even as he spoke, alarms began to wail across the Lion's massive bulk The lighting across the ship was brought up to full standard and crewmembers jumped from their bunks to man their stations.

"Now get me the Captain, the Admiral and Commissioner Foche." The com officer punched a series of commands into his terminal in rapid succession. When he pointed to her, she spoke into the pickup. "I have four…" glancing at the holo tank again, "make that six contacts coming towards us on almost a direct reciprocal of our current heading. I have ordered the battle group to engage GQ and go to stealth mode. It may buy us some time if they haven't picked us up already. But on the speed and course they are on now, it will be about 15 minutes before they have to see us."

Sarah Grant's voice was the first to reply. "You did exactly what you should have. I should be on the bridge in about three minutes."

[Citizen Admiral Grant's personal quarters]

The piercing wail of the GQ alarm had brought Sarah almost instantly awake. After so many years in uniform she had become a very light sleeper. Pivoting out from under the covers, she shoved her feet into the pair of pants laid out on the small desk near her bed. She was almost fully dressed by the time Third Officer Heisenberg commed her room.

After closing the channel, she finished dressing then bolted out of her room to the lift. Fortunately, the battleship's designers had planned for just such an eventuality. There was a lift that ran direct to the Flag Bridge just down the hall from her quarters. The rest of her staff was berthed on the same level, and as she left her room she noticed nearly all of them were leaving their rooms as well. Her chief of staff had even managed to beat her to the lift.

As the doors began to close, an arm was shoved in-between them. Sarah's eyes flowed from the chocolate brown hand to the face of her com officer, Citizen Lt. Jake Bellows. He was a vital cog in the living mechanism that was Battle Group 109's command structure. With out him, or another officer to fill his shoes, precious attention would have to be diverted from fighting the battle in order to send out the flag's commands. The doors reopened to admit him, but they didn't notice an important fact. The lift was already jammed full.

"You go instead of me." Commissioner Foche said as he exited the lift. "I'll get the next one. I'm just dead weight during a battle anyway." Jake made as if to protest that he should go first, as he was the senior officer. But Gunther Foche would have none of it and physically shoved him into the lift and pressed the activation button. As the doors closed, Sarah gave him a quick thankful smile.

Some Commissioners would have demanded they go in the first lift, even though once they had signed off on a plan they had virtually nothing to do. Fortunately for Sarah and her staff, Gunther was a decent sort. He was perfectly willing to wait if it meant that her entire team was on the Flag Bridge planning and executing maneuvers that would guarantee the battle group's safety.

The lift opened to the Flag Bridge, and junior officers left their stations to make way for the senior command staff. Sarah settled into her chair, displays and control consoles dropping down from above and rising up from the floor. She swiveled the seat until she had an excellent view of the flag bridge's massive holo tank.

The six amber beads floated in standard transit formation. Even as she watched, they turned the angry crimson of hostile warships. Of all the rotten luck Sarah thought. Virtually the only thing it could be was a Manty patrol sent to uncover the exact thing she was hoping to accomplish. If even one of those ships got away, it could blow the lid off of the entire operation. Looking down at her plot, she saw that CIC was tentatively IDing them as destroyers. That was both bad and good.

If they closed enough to enter weapons range they would be handily vaporized by the considerable firepower her wall of battle had. But the very fact that they were light units meant that they could pull a higher acceleration than a large portion of her wall. And the fact that they most likely mounted that dammed new internal compensator meant that they probably out run anything she had. But fortune had decided to smile on her just a little bit. The fact that the Manties and her ships were on a virtual collision course gave her an edge. If the enemy didn't see her ships until it was to late for them to scatter and evade her units, she could still continue the mission.

"Assuming that accelerations remain constant, how long till the Manties see us and how long till they can't escape even if they scatter?"

"It's now 10 minutes till even merchant sensors could pick us up. Say six, seven minutes tops for the Manties. If they don't scatter before five and a half minutes, they will have no choice but to enter our energy envelope Citizen Admiral." No wedge could be brought up in the savage force of a grav wave. She would have to close to energy range because any impeller wedge, even one as small as a missile's, would cause a nearly instantaneous and catastrophic failure of its drive. Hence all combat in a grav wave had to be done with energy weapons.

"And if we increase speed to max?" The lift doors opened and Commissioner Foche strode onto the Flag Bridge. Sarah acknowledged him with a small nod.

"They see us even sooner and are able to get at least one ship off clean because they can pull a higher accel."

"Remain steady on speed then, but come right point six degrees. That will put us in optimal firing position when the time comes."

"Aye Citizen Admiral."

Now the waiting game began. Only half a minute separated success and failure. Hyperspace combat was always deadly. The fact that no impeller wedge's could function removed the impenetrable roof and belly bands used by a warship for defense. And since the sidewalls that went with them were inoperable in a grav wave as well, they were gone to. That left the massive sails fore and aft. They were impenetrable as well, but they only shielded the ship fore and aft. Everything else was up to armor alone. Battleships mounted considerably more armor than mere destroyers, but without their powerful sidewalls to go with them, a lucky hit could hurt.

Yet Sarah was confident that if the Manties would cross the point of no return, they would die. Simple math dictated nothing less as the numbers were considerably in BG 109's favor. A part of her knew that the slaughter she was about to unleash would haunt her. But she pushed those feelings back into a tiny room in her head filled with the rest of her self-loathing. As much as she hated killing, she would do what needed to be done to ensure that her people survived and that the mission was executed.

The seconds ticked by with agonizing slowness, each one seeming to last an eternity. Then a snarl emanated from nearly everyone onboard. The Manties had crossed the invisible line that sealed their fate. There would be no escape for them. Still the Manticoran destroyers came, still oblivious to the death lying in wait in front of them.

Then, five and three quarter minutes out the entire enemy squadron abruptly split up into a starburst. Some turned end for end in a doomed attempt to run away. Others veered ninety degrees off of their original course to try and break contact. One did nothing at all except pile on more accell. Even with the Manties more efficient internal compensator, he must have stripped his safety margin to nil. He was doing the smartest thing he could, the thing Sarah would have tried in his situation. By increasing the closure rate to max, he limited the engagement window she would have. Not that it would matter in the end. Battleship energy weapons were just to powerful for an unshielded tin can to withstand.

"Com, assign targeting priority for sub group one through six as follows…" This way, each ship would have a chunk of Sarah's wall firing on it.

"Aye, aye Citizen Admiral."

As the range finally dropped to Sarah's energy weapon envelope she issued a single command. "All ships, OPEN FIRE!!!"

From every ship in the battle group silent, invisible death flickered from the broadside energy mounts. Grasers and lasers turned hyperspace into a seething ball of energy. The distance was so short, and being that energy mounts are light speed weapons, it was all over quite quickly. In mere seconds, what had been six enemy destroyers and their crews was turned into expanding balls of white hot plasma as their fusion bottles let go.

All except for one. The single contact that had executed a headlong charge of her wall of battle punched through a gap and streaked out the other side. It was streaming air and debris, but its Warshawski sails were still operating perfectly. And it was now shooting away from her warships at an incredible velocity. In less than 20 seconds it would be outside energy range and beyond any chance of her being able to attack it.

"Orders from the flag. Target remaining enemy immediately!"

The massive battleships of BG 109 swung ponderously around. They were the only ships that still had a clear shot around the bogies sail. Finally, their weapons came to bear, and the final enemy ceased to exist a mere three seconds away from freedom. Sarah let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. That was far to close. Sarah spun to her tactical officer. "Who the HELL is the BA$TARD that let that ship through!?!" She hissed through clenched teeth. Citizen Lt. Bellows went pale. The tone of her voice could have melted through armoplast.
 

All activity on the Flag Bridge slammed abruptly to a halt. Sarah continued to stare at her tactical officer. His Adam's apple bobbed as he tried to swallow, but his mouth had ran dry. Breaking eye contact briefly in order to glance at his console he looked back up at Sarah's still fiery visage. "Destruction of bogie five was tasked to the Integrity, the Ulysses, and escort squadron 109.03 Citizen Admiral." His voice rising to a squeak at the end.

Seeing the effect her anger was having on her people and Gunther's cautioning hand on her shoulder, Sarah made a conscious and visible effort to bring her raging emotions under control. "Orders from the flag, to all units: sound off damage reports to the flagship ASAP." She turned to everyone present in turn as she spoke her next sentence. "Rest assured, I will get to the bottom of this. And those responsible are gonna wish they were never born." With her voice leached of all emotion, it was almost worse than her anger.

[Two Hours Later, Flag Bridge, PNS Lion, Deep Space]

Well that was somewhat of a relief. It was no fault of her people that the Manticoran destroyer had nearly slipped away. Those she considered her people anyway. Tactical had assigned the targets correctly, and Mr. Bellows had issued the correct orders, despite his initial worries to the contrary. He had shown unusual courage to come forward with his concern, but it had proven unfounded, just as Sarah had known it would. Her people were just too good to screw up by the numbers like that. The same had proven when the sensor records of the battle were reviewed. The battleships Integrity and Ulysses had fired on the Manty. Escort squadron 109.03 had not however.

Apparently, someone on the destroyer squadron's flagship had transmitted faulty targeting orders to the rest of the squadron. Hence they had fired on a destroyer already targeted by two battleships and a full cruiser squadron. And in the back of Sarah's mind, a voice shouted told ya so. It was the same voice that had told her to refuse State Security's offer of giving her a extra squadron of destroyers for her important mission.

Sarah was really going to enjoy tearing a strip off of that sorry excuse of a Commodore, Charles Braganovich. She rubbed a pair of mental hands together gleefully at the thought of seeing him squirm, but her face remained impassive as she scrolled through the after action report. BG 109 had gotten of pretty easily in the damage department. Only one of the escort destroyers had been hit hard enough to be considered combat ineffective, but it could be repaired. Three other destroyers, as well as a single cruiser, had minor damage, which was nearly repaired already. None of her battleships had been even hit, the Manties instead concentrating fire on smaller fry which they had a realistic chance of hurting. Even without their sidewalls, battleships mounted a heck of a lot of armor. PRH design philosophy stated that they were capital ships and made them to lie in the murderous fury of a wall of battle. Not that something as small as a battleship could realistically go into a major fleet engagement between capital ships and expect to survive.

Tough as a battleship was, it still was no match for a Manticoran, or even a PRH dreadnought. And heaven help them if they came across a super dreadnought. Unfortunately, the powers that be had not bothered to consult her when they wrote up the doctrine for battleships. But even though they had no real place in a modern wall of battle, the made for some kick a$$ raiders. They could outrun anything that could hurt them, and had the weight of fire to kill anything smaller than they were. Unfortunately, those same characteristics applied perfectly to another, virtually opposite, mission. Battleships were all to often tasked with suppressing dissident elements of the Peoples Republic. And that was the reason that they were so prevalent in the PRH while virtually nonexistent in the SKM. The gorged, lumpy sphere that was the PRH needed a lot of ships to ride herd on its conquered populations.

She turned to her operations officer. "How long till the Peoples Valor is ready to return to hyper?"

Citizen Lt. Ingrid Haffner's face scrunched up like it had tasted something sour. "I'm sorry Citizen Admiral, but their alpha node damage is slightly worse than they initially thought. Its gonna require complete replacement of two of them. Luckily one of the fleet train has a few in stock, as well as the maintenance techs to help with their removal and installation. Their best estimate is that it will be ten days before they are ready to go."

"Tell them they have six and not a second more." Then she turned to Citizen Lt. Bellows. "Tell Commodore Braganovich that he is to report to the flagship with his senior officers immediately."

[Sickbay, GSN Warspite, Grayson Orbit, That Same Time]

Both individuals lying on the examination table looked like death warmed over. Thad's skin had taken a distinctly unhealthy gray pallor, and it was clammy from the constant stream of sweat fleeing his tortured body through his pores. There were purple/black bags under his sunken eyes, and those eyes which were normally so lively held none of their customary spark. A bystander might have mistaken him for dead but for the steady beep from the monitoring equipment.

The sorry looking treecat sprawled on his abdomen barely stirred as the Warspite's CMO entered the white walled room. Taz wasn't in much better shape than his adopted human was. He hadn't eaten at all in the three days since Thad had gone catatonic. In fact, he had never been out of physical contact with his person since Thad's pinnace had docked in Boat Bay One. When one of Viola Romanoff's staff had tried to remove him, the cat had snarled and bared his needle sharp predator's teeth at him. Since the tests could be done around Taz, and because no one wanted to aggravate the distressed cat further, he had remained draped over Thad ever since.

When Viola had heard the cause of Thad's condition, she had not wanted to believe it to begin with. But then her tests started uncovering more and more peculiarities and things that just shouldn't be with her patient. For starters, but not that unusual in known genetic modifications, were his increased intelligence and more efficient musculature. From then on, things got more and more strange.

Although Thad's eyes appeared normal, and the left one actually was for the most part, his right eye could see into the infrared spectrum much like a crocodile. It could also see just as well at night as it could in day. It had binocular functions similar to a bird of prey's. And at the base of each optic nerve, there was a small machine. It was essentially a heads up display projected directly into the optic nerve over the rest of the visual input. And this heads up display also had limited x-ray ability. Thad's hearing and sense of smell were far beyond any normal humans. His bone structure was especially dense and strong, and the organs they held were considerably more efficient than was the norm. His immune system was also turbo charged, and his white blood cells had killed every virus and bacteria she had thrown at em.

Upon finding the cybernetic implants behind Thad's eye's, Viola had followed the connections back to a small master implant inside Thad's brain. From there she had followed other leads to the enhanced auditory pickups in his ears and to powerful sensors in his nasal passages.

When the true extent of Thaddeus Armstrong's genetic and cybernetic modification became clear, Viola found herself questioning weather the stories the newsies had been circulating could be true. They said that he had killed many times in the past. They said he was a psychotic killer who could strike with the least provocation. That he was a time bomb waiting to explode.

Yet almost as quickly as the doubts had surfaced, they left. She felt that she had gotten to know Thad as a person quite well since he had assumed command. Viola considered herself a good judge of character, and her gut was telling her that Captain Armstrong was a decent, kind, quiet man. Now if only she could figure out just what was going on so she could do something to help him. Her scanners told her that there was still considerable brain activity, especially in the areas usually associated with memory. Those same scanners also told her that that brain activity was also odd. Normally, the scans showed just a general area highlighted when it was in use. Thad's brain on the other hand showed much more clearly defined boundaries, especially in his memory centers.

It seemed as is there was a tug of war going on inside his head, like part of him was fighting another part. And all of Surgeon Commander Viola Romanoff's eighty six years as a physician told her absolutely nothing as to how to help her patient. And being that she was currently the senior physician in the Yeltsin system there was no one else to turn to for guidance. A specialist had been called from Manticore, but he wasn't due to arrive for another six days.

She looked down at the sleeping Lt. Cmdr sitting next to his bed. Jennifer Yuki had been sitting with Thad every free moment she had since he had returned to the Warspite.

[The Mind of Thaddeus Armstrong, Captain (Senior Grade), Grayson Space Navy]

Thad was on a narrow path, sheer drops on both sides and darkness all around. There was no light, yet both him and the path were highlighted in a reddish/orange light. He was clad in the spotless uniform of a captain in the Grayson Navy. As he walked down the path, a series of branches at right angles to the path appeared in the distance. He walked further, and was soon up to the first set of branches. After a short distance, both terminated in a plain door suspended in space. The other branches ended similarly, and the path branched until it disappeared into the distance. Thad turned and approached the door to his right.

He grabbed the knob and turned it. The world went white, then faded in to the slightly blurry effect used to denote memory scenes. Part of Thad acknowledged that that was probably due to the thousands of classic cinema shows he had watched. In fact this entire place was probably the construct of his subconscious in an effort to make some kind of sense out of what was happening to him. The scene before him was from when he was a small boy. He and his parents were having a picnic in the park. Even as he watched the happy day, he heard a whispering voice coming from all around him.

In a voice very much like his own it said, "This is all a lie you know. None of it ever happened. It was all just made up by some tech at Manpower Incorporated so you would act like a normal human, not the high-tech mannequin you really are."

"Shut up, get out of my head! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Thad screamed at the disembodied voice. As he did so, the memory faded and he found himself again on the path.

"Ah," the voice said, "if only it were that easy. But you see these memories aren't really yours. They are the property of Manpower, just like you are. And since you did a very bad thing, Manpower has decided your services are no longer required. That’s why I'm here."

"Don't you think I know these memories never happened?" Thad pleaded. "That doesn’t matter, they are MINE! I choose to keep them, and there's not a damned you can do about it! I control my own destiny, not YOU, and certainly not FUC%!NG MANPOWER INC!"

The path started to quake, nearly throwing Thad off and into the abyss. The voice boomed so loud that it brought Thad to his knees from the shock and pain. "YOU THINK SO LITTLE MAN!? YOU DON'T HAVE EVEN THE FAINTEST CLUE AS TO JUST HOW POWERFUL I AM! I KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU, WHERE EVERYTHING YOU ABHOR ABOUT YOURSELF IS BURIED. I KNOW EXACTLY HOW TO BREAK YOU!"

The path widened as rock shot up along the sides. After a few seconds the narrow walkway had widened to the size of a small arena. It was like one that would be in a dungeon, with rock walls hidden in shadow and lit by elaborate candle chandeliers. Then people started to appear. More and more came, walking in from all four sides towards Thad, who was standing in the middle of the arena.

The voice continued, "Look at all those you have failed. Look at all those you have KILLED! You were their commander, you were supposed to protect them. Yet unsurprisingly, you failed them. They were killed because of you, o holier than thou Thaddeus Armstrong!" By now the people, if what remained of some of them could be called that, were pressing up against Thad, crushing in from all around. Their wails of terror and pain alone were almost to much to bear.

Thad felt his conviction falter, felt all the pain their loss had caused him welling up, threatening to explode. The air around him grew thick with an eager anticipation. The voice was waiting for him to break down, biding its time till it was in an optimal position to strike. And despite himself, Thad knew that he was done for. The voice really did know how to break him. It had done the only thing that could unbalance him. Thad took the losses among his people, and to a lesser extent the enemies, personally. Although he didn't allow it to affect his public life, there were nights when it all caught up with him. Nights when the faces of the dead cornered him. And there were so, SO MANY! So many souls he had been forced to sacrifice, so many people he had lost. So many people he had killed, either directly or indirectly.

The fact that he felt remorse and regret at all was an error on Manpower's part. They had designed him to be incapable of them in regard to killing. But fortunately for Thad, they had failed. Yet that same beneficial error was now being used against him. The voice had found his Achilles Heel.

Thad felt his defenses crumbling, and was almost to lost in sorrow to care. "Yessssss!" the voice said in a quiet, soothing voice. "Just let go, and I can make the pain go away forever. Think of it, you will never again be bothered by all these ghosts. Just let go and it all stops…"

And Thad was all too willing to do just that. The promises the voice was making sounded so good! What would be the harm to just give in and bring an end to his pain?

Suddenly there was another presence in his mind. One at once familiar and alien at the same time. It came to his side and manifested itself as a column of light. The bodies that had been pressing against him fled away into the shadows and the arena became still once again. The presence seemed to reach out, grab his shoulders and give him a few shakes. Thad could feel the unconditional love and support flowing into him, rebuilding his ragged defenses, giving him strength when he thought he had none left.

"You again!" the voice raged. "When will you learn to mind your own business." An indistinct figure began to form along one shadow shrouded wall. It spoke in a ragged approximation of Thad's own. "So subtlety won't work eh, guess I'm left with good old fashioned brute force." The figure strode into the lighted area in the center of the arena and sneered at Thad.

Thad's eyes narrowed as he stared at the figure. It resembled him, but wasn't all that human. Instead of a regular jaw and teeth, it had an extended jaw filled with pointed canines. It's body was covered in coarse hair and its limbs ended in razor sharp claws. It held a large knife in either hand. With a flick of its wrist, one flew through the air to land at Thad's feet. "Pick it up!" the beast ordered.

The alien presence retreated to the border of the arena. Thad knew that this was not because it was giving up on him, but because this was something he was going to have to do for himself. It would still be there to offer its support and love, but it could not actively interfere.

Crouching to pick up the blade, Thad gripped the leather wrapped handle. Turning the knife blade up, he saw that it had been honed to a razor sharp edge. The blade flashed in the diffuse light that filled the center of the arena. Turning back to his opponent, he extended the knife towards him and bowed. Then he was flying backwards through the air, gasping for breath. Pillars sprang up from the floor. One just happened to come up behind him. He smacked into it and fell to the floor.

"Honor is for sissies and losers! Terribly surprising that you have it isn't it." The beast said with a curl of contempt playing at its lips. Thad struggled to his feet. The beast waited till he was almost fully up, then charged towards him so fast it was a brown blur. It's hand/paw exploded into his belly while his left leg streaked down and around to sweep him. Thad landed on his back, the force of the impact making him lose his grip on his knife. It skittered away from him far out of reach. The beast straddled Thad, taking its time now that it had Thad defenseless. It slowly began to bring the blade of the knife down to Thad's ribcage and the beating heart that lied beneath. Thad grabbed the beast's hands in a vain effort to try and stop the blade from falling. The beast merely laughed at his efforts. Still moving the knife with a steady pressure, the beast stopped when it touched Thad's uniform. Holding the knife perfectly still, the creature leaned close to Thad's ear and whispered to him.

"I told you that I could break you. The easy way or the hard way, you're still Manpower's property in the end."

Something snapped inside Thad. As the beast prepared for the final thrust that would end it all, it uttered a shocked gasp. Thaddeus forced the blade slowly away from his chest. As it gained height, the blade began to twist it around towards it owner. The beast fought for all it was worth to force the blade down, but Thad never gave an inch. The beast's wide eyes grew even wider as the cold steel of the blade pierced into his flesh. Forcing the blade sideways, Thad felt the beast's warm blood flood over him. Its heart was cut in half, and blood seeped out of the wound in a steady stream.

Thad pushed the now lifeless body off of him. As he stood the dungeon arena was blown away like so many grains of sand. It was replaced by a colorful mountain meadow. The bright yellow sun was high over head and there was nary a cloud in the sky. The craggy, snowcapped peaks surrounded the lush valley. Staring down at the body Thad said, "I, and I alone, control my destiny!" As he spoke the words, the body turned to sand and blew away just like the dungeon did.

[Sickbay, GSN Warspite, Grayson Orbit]

Viola ran to the examination room after she heard a surprised cry. She stopped at the doorway, jaw dangling almost to her ankles. Taz was sitting up on Thad's chest, staring intently at his now healthy pink face. His buzzing purr was literally shaking the tray of instruments nearby. Jennifer was smiling so hard she was dangerously close to splitting her face. Thad's eyes fluttered open, and he looked around, eyes settling on Taz, Jennifer, and Viola in turn.

"Would one of you stop looking at me as if I came back from the dead and please tell me how I got here?"
 

Viola frowned sternly at her irritated patient. "I don't care how healthy you feel Sir, you aren't leaving this room until I am satisfied you are as well as you say. You have been through a very traumatic event, and there may be complications that are not immediately apparent." When she noticed he was about to start up again, she snapped in a voice that left no room for compromise, "SIT DOWN!"

Thad closed his mouth with an audible click and sank back down to the examination bed. Taz bleek of laughter at Thad from beside him on the bed was a welcome change from the distressed keening or stony silence that had possessed him while his person was unconscious. "Some help you are, taking her side in this!" Thad shot back at his companion. Although he couldn't speak any, Taz understood much more Standard English than many gave him credit for. When he had heard the reasoning behind Viola's insistence that Thad stay in sickbay for more tests, he had been as unrelenting as she that Thad remain. Thad took a deep, cleansing breath.

"Look, I have been out of the loop for three whole days. Lord knows what has happened to the Battle Group during that time. I need to get back as soon as possible, there is just to much to do before we have to go out system."

"And as I said before, the sooner you let me get started, the sooner you can leave. Your bi*ching about it is only going to make your stay just that much longer." There was a few seconds when she thought that he would continue to demand his release, but then Thad sighed and settled into a more comfortable position on the bed with a resigned nod.

[Rear Admiral Bruce Cole's Quarters, GSN Warspite, Two Hours Later]

Thad stood before Admiral Cole ramrod straight in a spotless uniform. It had taken another hour before Viola was satisfied enough to let him leave sickbay. The glow of having pulled through his ordeal had worn off by then, and the walk back to his quarters to clean up had been one of the longest in his life. Thad hadn't considered the consequences of his pasts revelation would have on his crew. He had been curious at first to gauge their reactions, so he had activated his enhanced hearing to discreetly hear what might be said behind his back. As the old saying goes, curiosity killed the cat.

Although they were as respectful as the regs required to his face, he couldn't help but over hear their comments when they thought he was out of earshot. Many of the comments were truly hurtful. And that was the reason that Admiral Cole had asked for him to report to his office. Thad was going to be relieved. He was sure of it.

"At ease Captain." Thad changed from attention to parade ground rest, his face a stone mask, showing none of his building tension. The only sign of it was the twitching end of his treecats tail. "I need to know why you lied on your entrance papers to the academy and to the Star Kingdom itself. Why did you think you needed to hide it? There is no discrimination for genetically modified people under the Star Kingdom's law."

"Sir, it's not that I wouldn't say, it's that I could not. What happened to me was a direct result of the programming Manpower put in as a failsafe in case I ever escaped their control. If I ever tried to explain my true past, or had it come out some other way, all of their programming in my head would be wiped out. I am still not sure how I managed to circumvent their directives. God knows there were countless times I wanted to tell someone, anyone about my secret, but I COULD NOT DO IT!"

Admiral Cole stared at his pained expression intently, then leaned back in his chair and nodded. "I believe you Captain. Now for my second question. Given room for exaggeration, did you do those things the holovids and news services have accused you of?"

Thad's response was to look down at the floor in shame and utter a quick, one-word response. "Yes."

Thad had had a few minutes to look over the stories the news feeds were showing about him and his past. Although many of them were outright lies, quite a few of them were very close to the truth. And the truth in this case was not very pretty. If he had been a celebrity before, he was now known across the entire Alliance at least. And not for the things people could be proud to be known for.

"I am glad you were so candid. If you had said anything else, I would have known you were lying. ONI has given me a report on their investigation into the wild stories surfacing about you. There is a lot of corroborating evidence to many of them. That said, many of them were done to very bad people who were trying to do horrible things to you. Under the circumstances I feel that you were justified in the actions you took." Then a smile played across Admiral Cole's face. "And fortunately for you the Star Kingdom's Admiralty, High Admiral Matthews, and even Benjamin IX and Queen Elizabeth themselves agree with me."

Thad's eyes went wide. If both Queen Elizabeth of the Star Kingdom of Manticore and Protector Benjamin of Grayson approved of his actions, he just might make it through this media circus after all. "You mean I am not being relieved of command?" Thad asked excitedly.

"Of course not. Despite your checkered past, you have performed in exemplary fashion while in both the Manticoran and Grayson uniforms. I am not saying that it is going to be a cakewalk. The crew of the Warspite, heck the entire quadrant, has been shocked by what has come out about your past. There are bound to be some that hate you for what you are." Memories about Old Earth's final war were gradually fading from the collective forebrain of the species, but some prejudices over genetically modified humans remained. This despite the fact that it had happened thousands of years ago.

"I know sir, but I'll just have to do my best to over come their fears."

"Good, now on to the Battle Group. Despite your absence, preparations have continued as well as can be expected. It is a good thing you will have your hands full getting back up to speed, as it will give you an excuse to stay on the Warspite and avoid the three-ring media circus on the planet." Little did the Admiral know that the newsies would soon have bigger fish to fry. The Admiral's com chimed and he pressed the acceptance stud.

"Admiral, Captain, I'm sorry to interrupt but you need to hear this. It's from command and is going out in the clear in an all ships broadcast." The watch communications officer's face was drawn tight.

The ranking officer in the Grayson Navy, High Admiral Wesley Matthews' face came up on the wall's com screen. He looked horrible, his face drained of color. Though his voice had a peculiar huskiness, it was as strong as ever when it came from the speakers.

"Men and women of the Grayson, it is my sad and unfortunate duty to be the bearer of terrible news. Steadholder Lady Dame Honor Stephanie Harrington's ship is overdue and presumed lost." The all ships broadcast was not just transmitted to specific people. Every com in the system picked it up, and from there it was sent to every intership com screen. As if knowing the reaction his statement would have, High Admiral Matthews stopped speaking and stared at the pickup. For seconds nothing happened, a shock this great needed time to penetrate the disbelief. Then an anguished cry rose from nearly every man and woman who had heard the High Admiral's announcement. It was the cry a wolf pack howls when it looses its leader.