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for me
on the IWS Nighthawk, Captain?”
    “ No sir, not yet,” said
Nimoux, his voice apologetic. “I do have new findings that you
should take an interest in. I will forward all of my data you,
Intel Wing Command, and the Fleet, but the short version is this:
the isotome in the Xenobe Nebular Region is gone. Either mined or
destroyed. Some rumors persist that it is a component in weapons of
mass annihilation.”
    Edwards gave Nimoux a very neutral look
through the display. He seemed neither surprised nor upset by this
news. “I’ll look into it,” he said gruffly. “As for you, continue
your mission. I expect updates about the Nighthawk within
twenty-four hours. Mister Cross has been a fugitive long enough.
Take him down. Edwards out.”
    The screen went blank.
    Nimoux frowned and wondered what the right
thing to do was. He’d passed along the information and spread the
word. Intel Wing and the Fleet had been given fair warning about
the Rotham war fleet, and now the isotome, but was it enough? He
had half a mind to take his squadron and head directly to Capital
World and inform the Assembly of all of this personally.
    Clearly there was a war going on in the
shadows and for some reason no one wanted to shine a light on
it.
     
    ***
     
    “ Calvin… may I ask you
something?” Rain looked into his eyes. They were seated on chairs
in her quarters on either side of a small coffee table she’d
brought aboard with the rest of her things.
    “ Please do,” he said,
lifting his glass to take another sip. Because he didn’t drink
alcohol—he could pick up on the taste of ethanol from a mile away
and had always hated it—his glass was full of a rich dark grape
juice. Rain on the other hand was taking tiny sips from her glass
of red wine. She limited her alcohol intake since she had to return
to duty immediately afterward.
    “ How are you holding up?”
Her wide eyes looked into his and there was the hint of the tiniest
smile on her pretty face. Her unkempt hair was as red and as wild
as ever, barely kept in line behind her head by a single elastic
band, and her whole demeanor showed that, despite how fatigued she
was, she had a fighter’s spirit and wouldn’t admit to any
weakness.
    “ What do you mean?” asked
Calvin.
    “ With everything. You’re
dealing with a lot. You ran into your estranged father, you’ve had
more than your share of Remorii to deal with, and you’ve lost
people under your command recently—including your friends. On top
of it all you’ve been fighting one of the hardest habits in the
galaxy to break.”
    “ Wow, when you put it like
that, I feel like I should be passed out on the floor somewhere,
more dead than alive,” Calvin shook his head once and then finished
his drink.
    “ I didn’t mean it like that.
I just—I don’t want you to take on too much by yourself. I’m here
for you, if you need anything.”
    “ Thanks,” said Calvin, not
quite sure how to respond. It was true that he’d been feeling
pretty haggard lately and that he typically kept his complaints to
himself. And he was sure that Rain was right, that it was healthier
to vent and share one’s concerns with other people, but Calvin also
knew his habits weren’t about to change. So he decided to change
the subject. “So tell me… has there been any change in Shen’s
condition?” He asked the question without flinching, but inside he
felt a great deal of turmoil at the thought of his friend fighting
in vain against the toxins ravaging his body. First Christine and now Shen, those god damned
Remorii …
    “ Shen’s condition is stable…
but only just.” The hint of a smile that had been on her face faded
and Rain showed some of the frustration that was undoubtedly
boiling inside her. “I admit the virus is persistent, and unlike
anything I’ve ever seen, but… don’t give up on Shen.” Her eyes
pleaded with his. “We can beat it, I know we can!” 
    “ I hope you’re
right.”
    There was silence