For now, as much as it grated on him, the Odysseus was little more than a highly visible decoy.

“Thank you, Admiral,” Eric said after a moment’s contemplation. “That means a lot.”

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 4

IBC Piar Cohn, Outer System Approach

► “No signs of life or nonnatural motion in the system, Captain.”

Aymes nodded tersely, unsurprised.

“Drasin signs?”

“Yes Captain. Two worlds.”

Aymes suppressed a snort of derision, disgusted by the waste. Two worlds that could have supported Imperial populations, sacrificed on some altar for purposes he couldn’t fathom. What was the point of all those wasted resources?

“Skirt the edge of the system, spiral course. I want scans for any sign of distorted space and time. Look for any sign of ships coming and going.”

“Yes Captain.”

The Cohn would spend days circling the system, looking for traces he knew wouldn’t be there, but at this point there was little else he could do. The Drasin were too dangerous to risk any possibility of missed data.

Aymes supposed he should be happy that there was no sign that the drones had backtracked toward the Empire.

They, at least, didn’t screw up that badly.

It was a cold comfort, at best.

►►►

Priminae Capital, Ranquil

► Ambassador LaFontaine greeted Eric as he entered the embassy suite located in the immense pyramidal habitat of the Priminae.

“Captain, so pleased to see that rumors of your death were exaggerated,” she told him, smiling.

“Not so pleased as I am, Ambassador,” Eric said with a chuckle. “And I just had to explain that same turn of phrase to Admiral Tanner.”

“Well, I’m sure he was equally pleased by the news and probably politely confused by the explanation.” LaFontaine laughed. “Come in. I have, of course, received the latest from Earth, but any news you might provide beyond the orders and policy changes would be useful.”

Eric nodded, taking an offered seat and relaxing a little. He rather liked the ambassador, having been her ferryman on her original trip to Ranquil as well as her primary contact with Earth, at least until the Heroics had been constructed.

“Well, rebuilding is underway, naturally,” he said. “China and India took the heaviest casualties during the invasion, simply by virtue of their population size if nothing else. The Confederation was hurt badly too, of course, but I suspect we’ll recover first and strongest.”

“Oh? That’s nice to hear, as a daughter of Canada, but why?” she asked.