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together to show off to any natives we meet?"
    "I doubt it Mr. Cho," Captain Henry said, amused. "If I read our commander right, I expect after we have the trick of five ship jumps down, he'll cut the Roadrunner loose and make us jump with it overtaking us a few hundred kilometers per second off our group speed so that it sprints ahead on transition."
    "I suppose that's why God and the Admiralty gave us three clocks," Cho said weakly.
    "Indeed, look sharply here! Our turn coming up and we don't want to muff the easy one, do we?"
    "No Sir! I'll do us proud or dead," the navigator promised.
    * * *
    Survey System 2723 hadn't seen a ship emerge in twelve years. There was nothing of interest there, no rocky planets worth mining, no need to get fuel from its minor gas giant, no sensors left to watch the system, since it was a gateway to nothing interesting. Six bursts of mixed radiation marred its tranquility at regular intervals as the Little Fleet emerged. The ships formed up in a line, turned slightly and accelerated for an unremarkable portion of the sky and disappeared again in turn.
    * * *
    The fleet appeared in Survey System 2754 in successive microbursts of particles along a line. If anyone had been here since the original survey it wasn't noted on the latest chart file. A clock on one ship disagreed with the count on emergence. Not a full microsecond by any means, but enough to wonder why. They took the opportunity to replace it rather than worry about why. They each had a complete replacement set of clocks if need for them should arise, clocks were life and death. Especially when ships jumped in close proximity. The tidal forces when a ship left local space could damage a nearby vessel if it didn't also leave before the expanding disturbance reached it at light speed.
    "It shall be our habit," Gordon told them. "upon emerging in a new uncharted system, to coast dead quiet and inertial, simply listening for at least a quarter hour. Making every effort to catalog planets and radio sources.  This is another reason to make a close entry. We can communicate by com laser instead broadcast with little chance of being overheard. If we should encounter immediate hostile action, each captain is of course free to maneuver and engage in any manner necessary to their vessel's survival."
    "If we should emerge in a system with an obvious civilization, especially radiating from different points in the system, not just one planetary body, then we'll listen, record and formulate a response. Again, likely I'd send Sharp Claws forward in system and try to establish communications. We might disperse somewhat physically, High Hopes and Retribution pairing off and taking some distance from The Champion William  and Murphy's Law . Or I might have you shadow each other from view. We'll adjust our routine as we get experience and discuss what we encounter."
    "I'm glad we don't have a rigid Admiralty play book," Cho said, mic muted, to his captain.
    "Would you entertain a suggestion?" Bodacious Williams, XO of Murphy's Law asked.
    "Any time and welcome," Gordon offered. "I do not intent to keep military style silence on the bridge. If you have suggestions or insight and we aren't busy falling into a star or fighting off a fleet of bug eyed monsters feel free to speak on the command net. If you become a pain in the butt chatterbox I'll tell you, privately."
    "When we transition into a new system I think you should have two pilots strapped in the Roadrunner, ready to ungrapple and head back the way we entered," Bodacious suggested. "If we find a major outpost or inhabited planet it will remove any temptation to try to capture or silence us to keep us from reporting home. They will see the cat is out of the bag already and have to deal with us on that basis."
    "An excellent safety measure. Captain Henry, make that your standard procedure for entry on the Murphy's Law ."
    Thor spoke up."As we get deeper, make sure the Roadrunner navigation suite is