“That’s one of the issues.” Pike looked around, still ignoring the security team. “There is no more Senate, no more Confederacy either. “We’re now the United Terran Federation and your immunity may not have survived the restructuring. President Augustus Wellington would be most grateful if you could give his humble servant a brief explanation of what it is you’re doing here.” Pike’s statement started the security personnel muttering amongst themselves before Jackson raised his hand.

“It looks like much has happened and we’ve been somewhat … isolated,” Jackson said. “Stand down, everybody. I’ll take responsibility for this one. Stanford, cancel the alert and let everyone know we have a plus one aboard.”

“Yes, sir.”

“This way, Agent Pike,” Jackson said and led his friend out of the airlock area and back towards his office. “So how did you find us?”

“It damn sure wasn’t easy,” Pike said, keeping pace. “So who should go first? It’s obvious you’ve been way out of the loop on current events and it seems I’m slipping that something this elaborate could be put in motion without me getting much information on it.”

“Why don’t you go first and catch me up,” Jackson said; he’d much rather be breaking into the new coffee than talking to Pike. If he was here, it meant that the whole project was in danger of being exposed. There was still so much left to do before information could be allowed to leak out to the political class. The trick would be convincing Pike to go back to Wellington and claim he couldn’t find anything else out about Prometheus and hope the Senator—make that President—did what he usually did and move on at the next distraction.

****

“That’s all very … surprising,” Jackson said after Pike had finished with his ninety-minute marathon recitation of events up to when he’d left the DeLonges System. “I knew about the attack in the Xi’an System and the Ushin first contact, but I wasn’t aware that it had progressed to the point that New Sierra was under attack.”

“That’s about the long and short of it.” Pike shrugged. “We’re getting ready to mount a counteroffensive with your former protégé leading up the first wave.”

“Wright has destroyed more alien ships in combat than any other Fleet captain,” Jackson said. “She seems the obvious choice. So how did you find us?”