CHAPTER 20



   The three riders came to a stop. When Dee's horse settled down she looked over her shoulder, "I just hope to god that we don't have a whole freaking cavalry regiment on our ass."

Jack looked over his shoulder as well, "No dust, we're safe. Besides, with what I'm packing now, I wouldn't care."

Vitosk took his hat off and used it to shield the sun as he looked ahead, "Is that it Jack?"

The ruins of the factory were just ahead of them. It was further out here than Jack remembered. Then again, a lot had changed in the couple of years since the last time he and Pete came out this way. Putting up international borders has a way of doing that. "Yeah this is it. We know they got this far. If Pete made it back to the border, this is where he would have come to avoid customs."

Dee wiped some of the dust off from around her face, "well I hope you're hound dog tracking senses are a little more fine tuned now, Jack.  How many places is this sense yesterday?"

"Yesterday we didn't have an eye witness who saw them," replied Jack.

Vitosk protested, "yes, and you didn't have to play cowboy and hold up an entire to train to get that information either. I will never understand you Americans and this urge to wear five-gallon hats and sing 'Home on the Range'. It is an abysmal song."

Dee looked over the place, "You don't think there'll be anybody else around do you? I mean this looks like the only structure for miles."

"No," said Jack, "all these people think it's haunted or something like that anyway."

Vitosk nodded, "well if Julia is there now I would say it just qualified as that."

Both Dee and Jack looked over at the Russian in amazement. Dee smirked, "we're going to make an American out of you yet Yurgani."

"Perish the thought. I just want to remind both of you one last time. We are dealing with something that may look human, act human, and even be motivated by human emotions. Just remember though, Julia is not human."

Dee shook her head, "Oh come on Yurgani, it's one little gene. Somehow I have a hard time seeing Julia as this big bad monster. You know like what was that Japanese Ape monster thing, Godzilla?"

"King King, ding dong," replied Jack. She slapped him on the arm for that.

Jack pointed, "There's a shallow lake on the other side where we can water our horses. They're pretty beat. After we clear this place we need to give 'em a rest."

"Agreed," said Vitosk. "Let us just hope we find them this time, and everything is all right. There is still hope that nothing has happened."

Jack looked down to what was straddled across his saddle. If everything was not all right, he was ready. "Let's ride."


As soon as Jack dismounted he took down his weapon and then slapped his horse on the rump. The horse wandered around the building heading towards water all by himself. Dee got down and did the same thing, only to feel her own butt getting slapped when her hand made contact with the horse. She jumped as the horse trotted off. She looked at Jack with an evil grin, "Would you stop that!"

Vitosk groaned at his two companions, "well what are we going to do now?"

Jack thought about it. Considering what they knew there was a better than even chance that Pete was here. Walking right in on them might be dangerous. Even if everything was all right, Pete could be trigger-happy and he had the M-60 with him. That, of course, was a best-case scenario. If something had happened, things like Vitosk was worrying himself over, then that machinegun could be the least of their problems. "Dee, can you climb worth a damn?"

"Jack this is no time..." She watched him point to a hole in the high wall next to them, "Oh,” her face turned red. “You want me to go up there. Sorry."

"Yeah, I made that hole, up there, a few years ago just in case I ever had to defend this place. There's a catwalk just inside. It's stable enough but, watch it. I want you to be our high cover. Get up there and keep your eyes open."

Dee gritted her teeth, "You mean like climb up that wall?"

Jack smiled and slapped her on the butt again, "go! Come on Yurgani you‘re with me."

As the two men ran off for the nice safe hole in the wall, on the ground level, Dee stomped her foot. She tossed her arm up in a salute and moaned, "Well yes sir General sir."

Jack spun around until he was running backwards, "you're a real trooper Executive Vice President Brewer."

As they disappeared into the building, Dee held her salute with a smile, "Well screw you to sir, and the horse you rode in on."  

Dee suddenly realized something. Her eyes drifted over to the single mount that had yet to run for water. Was it was staring at her? She waived her finger, "Not in your wildest dreams buddy."

The horse snorted and walked off.


Jack slowly rose from the pile of bricks he was using for cover. Out on the floor, in front of him, were three empty sleeping bags circling a burnt out fire. Jack snapped his finger and Yurgani low crawled up to him. Jack whispered, "They're here somewhere. That's Pete's duffle bag."

Yurgani sadly noted that the bag was empty. He let out a sigh and whispered back, "I'm getting to old for this. That fire's out Jack. I smell something else burning though. Do you…” Yurgani concentrated for a moment, “For that matter I hear something too. Is their a forge in this place still working?"

  Now Jack was picking up the scent as well. This place had a forge at one time. Jack remembered it. It was pretty much like what all the factories on this planet used. They pumped a flammable liquid into a pit and kept it burning by pumping in new fuel. Jack had seen one here but he doubted that it had worked since the Raed's trashed the place.  

A voice called out from deeper in the factory. It echoed off all the junk and was coming from somewhere in the shadows of this huge place. Now Jack noticed a flickering light against one of the walls. There really was a fire going somewhere.

That voice called out again and this time Jack recognized it. It was Pete's voice! It kept calling Jack’s name. Jack jumped up and was ready to run towards the sound. Yurgani tried to grab his foot but, Jack was too quick. Vitosk groaned in frustration as he got up to pursue the American Marine.

Jack turned the corner of several large junked machines. It was the forge pit that he remembered. Only now it was working and all to well. Giant flames, occasional spurts of molten fuel, and red hot bursting bubbles were shooting up out of the cauldron. Right above it was what they had came for.  Pam and Pete were hanging by a rickety old pulley that was screeching and moaning like it could not take the weight. Pam gave a muffled cry when she saw Jack. Pete yelled out, "Jack! Get us down! Hurry! It was Julia!"

Yurgani turned the corner, "Jack don't move!"

Jack looked behind him to Yurgani, “why?”

The chain holding his friends above the molten metal screeched and almost dropped them in. Jack almost rushed for them until another shout from Vitosk stopped him. Jack growled, “do you see what is…”

"Jack!" yelled Yurgani just as Jack was about to move again, "think about it! How did he know you were here?”

Jack felt cold. Pete yelled out again in terror. Pam was crying in panic.  They dropped again. Jack went to take another step. Yurgani yelled, "in front of you Jack! Look at the base of the flames. Look at the base of the flames."

Sitting next to the forge was a couple of claymore directional mines. Its plastic casing was filled with a high explosive charge that would throw a hundred ball bearings at supersonic speeds. Written on the side of the mine, the one that faced Jack, was "FRONT TOWARD ENEMY."  

Jack looked to his side and saw the laser beam he was standing in. If he moved in either direction the beam would reconnect and the mine would go off.

The pulley almost dropped them into the flames this time. Pete yelled, "JACK! Get us out of here!"

"Booby trap Pete?" responded Jack.

Vitosk pleaded, "That's not Pete!"

Jack looked over his shoulder and the sweat flew, "I don't have time for this right now Yurgani!"

"How did he know we were here Jack? He couldn't see us where we were. Think about it Jack. How could someone pretend to be a child that they were not?"

Jack looked back up, "Pete, remember when you and Vitosk went to Daltop looking for Julia. Who went with you?”

"Joey for god sakes Jack, we're going to die here!"

Jack raised his gun and pointed it at Pete, "you didn't go to Daltop Pete. You never been there."

Pete jumped down from the pulley. Julia landed on the floor in front of Jack.  "Clever Jack. Very clever of you. Don‘t you just feel all proud now?”

Jack kept his weapon trained on Julia, "Julia nobody wants to have to hurt you. Disarm the mine and then slowly put your hands on your head."

Julia smirked, "typical. Only problem is, Jack, I'm holding all the cards. That really is Pam up there crying."  

Julia crossed her arms and then snapped her head. The pulley dropped right at the roaring fire again. Pam was kicking her feet and trying to lift them away from the heat.  "Know what's holding her up there, Jack! I am. You don't really think that pulley thing still works do you? Might not even be attached to anything but air. For all you know anyway. Oh yes and there is the little matter of Pete. Where is he?"

"Julia...  "Jack got cut off.

"I'M NOT JULIA!" She recovered her composure. "What about you Jack? Who says I can't make this little mine go off all by my lonesome. How you going to get out of it anyway?"

Jack took a step forward holding the weapon right on her. The Laser beam reconnected but the mine remained silent. He clicked the safety off. Before now, Jack wasn't prepared to kill her but, that had just changed. "I know something Julia.  We did an inventory after you vanished. We lost all our mines and we didn’t bring any laser trip beams with us."

Julia ducked into the shadows and disappeared under some machinery. Jack let his breath out and felt weak at the knees. Yurgani ran up and grabbed Jack, "are you bloody well all right? How did you know?"

Pulling himself back together, rubbing the sweat off his forehead, Jack suddenly noticed that the flames, the pool of liquid, everything but Pam was gone. Jack blurted out, "I didn't for sure. It's just I knew nothing in this place worked. We didn't have any trip beams and I didn't believe Julia would have put herself in that much danger just to kill us. I bet you that claymore isn't even real.”

Vitosk walked over and examined the landmine. He reached down and picked it up, “No Jack, it’s very real. Luckily for you... Jack!"

Jack was passed out on the floor.  


Pam reached out and tossed her arms around Jack as they cut her free.  "She killed him! She killed Pete! What am I going to tell my babies!"

Jack held her tight. He wanted to cry now as well. He hadn't been fast enough! It cost him his executive officer, a fellow Marine, and more than that, a good friend.  Why now of all times! There was a certain injustice in that. "It's all right Pam! It's Ok! You're safe."

"Why Jack! Why did she want to do this to us?"

That was a good question. Vitosk thought on it for a second. Julia could have easily killed all of them. She did not need elaborate traps. "Jack, we may still be in considerable danger here."

That was unfortunately true. The sudden realization made Jack start trying to squirm away from Pam but she refused to let go. He had to get Yurgani’s help to get out of her grasp. He was also a bit frustrated by Vitosk’s appraisal of the situation, "Do you mind being a little less vague in tactical situations, Yurgani?"

"Very well,“ responded the Russian, “I suggest we leave right now."
Jack snapped back at him, "I'm not going anywhere without Pete."

"He's dead Jack," snapped Vitosk.

"We don't know that for sure," Jack really did not figure Pete to still be a live but even if it was just his body, Jack was bringing his comrade home one way or the other.  "Take Pam and clear the A.O. I'm going to find him."

"Jack I applaud you for thinking out that last situation so thoroughly. American Marines are not well known for that. Now don't spoil it by doing something stupid."

Jack held up his fingers in a V,  "Semper Fi comrade."  Jack ran into the shadows.

Vitosk took Pam under his arm, "Come along dear girl. I think it advisable that we find the nearest hole in the ground."


Dee was hearing something but, she had no idea what it was. It was dark in this place! The catwalk squeaked and considering that she could not even see what it was attached to there was no guarantee it would not give way. It did not take a rocket scientist, which she was, to figure that much out. Dee found the nearest ladder that looked safe and got back down to ground level.

Once Dee was no longer hanging up there at the mercy of the breeze and bad metallurgy she felt better. She looked around and took stock of where she was. All she could see was endless corners, shadows, and jagged bits of metal and debris that were not all to healthy to be around. This place was one giant death trap!  

This gun she had was fantastic though! Jack had called it a sabot rifle. It slung a little spear tip like dart through a process that Jack had yet to adequately describe to her. It had another large magazine that had twenty-two millimeter anti tank rounds in it!  Six of them to be exact. Jack told her not to use that. He didn't even bother to tell her how. Men! It looked like the best part of the gun! Dee suspected that it had something to do with that little red button on the side that Jack kept telling her not to touch but, she had yet to work up the nerve and see.  

Dee stopped in the dark for a second. She rolled the weapon up and looked at that button on the side of the gun again. It had a safety catch that had to be flipped. She flipped it open. Dee stared at the red button. She put her thumb on it. Those big rounds really looked like they would pack a punch! Maybe she should push this and see? Maybe if she pushed that button it would set the trigger to unleash all six of them bad boys. Why can't she shoot the big stuff?

Bullets came flying by and started sending debris flying in every direction. Dee found herself lying flat on the factory floor. She almost wet herself! She also felt a hot scalding pain run down her arm. She had been hit! Dee looked at her left arm and it was bleeding! She tried telling herself, "It's only a scratch Dee! It's only a scratch! Oh who am I trying to kid! It hurts like hell!"

Dee jumped up on one knee and sprayed the area down in front of her. "You bitch!  You ruined my shirt!"  

When Dee dropped back down to the ground she noticed something strange. Her fire hadn't caused any ricochets. All she saw in the area she had hosed down were beams of daylight shinning out of the wall at a multitude of angles. Even the sturdy steel I beams looked like Swiss Cheese! Dee gaped, "Cool!"

"Dee!" came a voice from behind a pile of nearby bricks. It was Julia and that had to be the first time that Dee had heard that voice in years. It seemed so unreal! "You shot me. Help me please! It hurts!"

Dee yelled out, "how do you think I feel!"

Julia sounded like she was in tears, "please! She takes over me. I can't stop her. I'm dying, please help me."

Cautiously, Dee started crawling forward from cover to cover. She reached the pile of bricks where she thought Julia was. Dee slowly peeked over them letting her weapon lead the way. The M-60 machinegun was lying on the floor unmanned. There were spent shelling casings all around it. Julia was not far from it. She was holding onto her leg with both hands and rolling from side to side in obvious pain.


Jack heard the shooting. He worked his way from support beam to beam. He heard something up ahead so he stopped and got ready to fire.  As he saw something moving he decided to find better cover so Jack ducked behind a wrecked machine. His M-22 Advanced Combat Rifle pointed at the crunching sound. He prepared to squeeze the trigger.  

Dee walked out into the open. She had a gash on her right arm. Jack left his weapon pointed at her. Then from the right behind Dee, came Dee! The second Dee was holding the M-22 at the first and had a gash in her left arm. "Can't anything be easy anymore? Halt right there!  Both of you!"

The armed Dee kept her weapon pointed at the first one. She said, "I got her Jack. She opened up on me but, I hosed her down and winged her."

"Don't move, lay the weapon on the deck Dee," said Jack.

The first Dee broke out, "She jumped me! She acted like she was hit in the leg and then jumped me. Jack you got to shoot her!"

The Dee with the gun looked confused, "Jack! What the hell is going on here? Why do you want me to drop my gun?”

The unarmed Dee cried out, "She's playing mind games again Jack!"

Jack put his sight on target and squeezed the trigger. The Armed Dee fell over. The unarmed Dee jumped straight up and out of sight into the catwalks. Jack ran over to the Dee on the ground. He kept looking up to where he had seen the unarmed Dee jump. There was nothing up there that he could tell. With his weapon still pointed up he reached down and pulled Dee back to her feet. She was fuming, "What in the hell was that all about?! I thought you were going to shoot me! You almost shot her until she pulled that bouncing act! What's going on here Jack?"

Jack stepped back under cover and pulled Dee with him. "She can plant the image of anybody she wants to in your mind. I saw two of you standing there."

Dee rolled her eyes, "Oh sure, like you weren't just dreaming big boy."

A metal pipe hit concrete near the back wall. Jack nudged Dee on and they both worked their way through an endless maze of busted up and twisted metal. They finally came to an opening at the back wall. The lighting was far better here, mainly due to the lack of a roof in this area. There was an opening in all of the machinery near what used to be the back door. Julia was there. She was kneeling over Pete and… crying? Jack raised his weapon and aimed right at Julia's head.  

Dee reached out and slapped the weapon aside, "No!"

Julia's hands reached back from Pete. She saw Jack and Dee standing just inside the shadows. She got up and ran for the back door. Jack scowled, "What did you do that for?"

"You might have hit Pete!"

Jack darted out to his fellow Marine who was still just lying there. Jack knelt beside Pete keeping his weapon pointed at the door and ready. Jack reached down with his free hand and felt the neck for a pulse. There was nothing!  

Jack felt anger swelling up inside him. He sprang forward and ran for the door screaming. He saw Julia no sooner than he got outside. She had just jumped down a shallow bank and was running out across the shallow lake.  Jack followed.  Julia had already crossed to the other side when Jack had jumped out into the water. He plunged deep into the lake.

When Jack's head broke the surface of the water he found Pam and Vitosk standing at the edge. Yurgani was shaking his head, "It's only shallow in the dry seasons Jack."

The gun rose to the surface by several self-inflating pouches. Jack grabbed it and then paddled to the shore. He was soaking wet from a trip to the bottom that was maybe ten to fifteen feet down!

Jack laid out on the shore and began to catch his breath.  "Just where did you come from?"

Vitosk pointed, "Over there, we were hiding behind the bank the entire time."

Jack looked up at the other side of the lake. There was no sign of Julia. "How in the hell did she do that?"

Shaking his head Vitosk replied, "I don't believe it. An American that did not go to Sunday School. You know Jesus walked on the water?"

Jack rose to his feet, "I don't believe it, a Commie that actually did?"

Dee came running out of the building screaming. She stopped at the sight of Jack dripping wet. She saw the air bags puffed out all along the side of his gun, "neat! I didn't know it did that."

Jack and the others walked back up the bank. "Yeah Dee, it's made for Marines remember. Since you asked, that's what that little red button does."

Dee gasped,  "Uh... uh.... Wow!” She suddenly remembered why she had come running out in the first place. “OH God! Guys its Pete. He moved! He's warm! I mean one second..." Before Dee could figure out what to say next she was standing there talking to herself, "oh shit never mind."  She ran after everybody else.

Pete stepped out of the back door rubbing his head. Pam almost knocked him down as she flung her arms around him. Pete was barely able to stand, "What happened?"

Vitosk nodded to Jack, "My apologizes Jack. He was still alive."

"No, that's where you're wrong Yurgani," replied Jack. "I felt his pulse and he was deader than a door nail. Pete, do you remember anything that happened to you?"

Pete just looked at everyone, "Where did you guys come from? How did you get here so fast?"              

There was a rumble in the distance. Dee looked out on the horizon. All she saw was a very large cloud of dust. She gritted her teeth, "Houston, we have a problem. We got Imperial Cavalry coming in."

Jack put his arm around Dee, "I'm proud of you girl. You actually saw that movie."

Dee became confused, "What movie?"

Everyone gathered at the end of the building and watched as the mass of horsemen drew near. Pete just shook his hand, "Even with those M-22's…” Pete did a double take. Where did they come from? He rambled on, “We got a big problem here. There's got to be a hundred or better out there."

"I believe Jack," said Vitosk, "it's what you Americans call a posse. I hope you had fun with your train hold up."

Jack pulled a small device out of his pocket. He hit the button on it, "I'm not scared of those boys. You know what they forgot to bring with them?"


As the cavalry grew near their thunder began to be drowned out by another. A giant aircraft swept in across the plains. It's massive wings settled in over the nice neat rows of cavalry. The aircrafts huge turbo fans tilted downward as it slowed. The exhaust sent the horses and riders scattering in every direction.  The Imperial formation dissolved in complete confusion. In less than a minute those that had managed to stay on their mounts were fleeing back toward the railroad. Those on foot were too but, not quite as quickly.  


Jack smiled at everyone, "They forgot their air support guys. You come after the United States Marine Corps, you better remember the part about AIR, land and sea."

The aircraft came to a halt near the factory. It hovered for a minute and then gently settled to the ground. The back ramp opened and Harry and Saiid stepped off waiving for everyone to come aboard. Pete was shocked, "What happened? I didn't think our rescue would be so friendly. Not after the bomb and everything."

"Neither did we," replied Vitosk.  "As it turned out, fortune smiled on us for once. It would appear that quite a bit has happened back home since we left. There has been quite of bit of political turmoil over the destruction of our ship but, needless to say, the cover story did not hold.”

"Rub it in," said Jack.

"Thank you I will," nodded Vitosk.  "It was first believed that the Japanese ship was waiting for us and destroyed our ship. Apparently your government had been sold on a bill of goods and tried to blame an international conglomeration of Japanese corporations. Russia accused the US of trying to grab these three worlds without international cooperation. The EU accused the US of trying to justify a new war with Japan and anyone else that wanted access to this system."

Jack grumbled to himself. If what he had been told by the crew of the USS Armstrong was true, then nobody back home was really sure who was to blame for that bomb. The entire scandal had quickly degenerated into a lot of finger pointing about who knew what. "Yurgani, America might screw up but at least we own up to it and fix it." added Jack.

"How," asked Pam? She still would not let go of Pete. Every now and then she would reach up to feel his neck to be sure. She even pinched him to be sure. Then she even started pinching herself. Pam went on, “I mean how did they find out it was a conspiracy?”

"The Japanese never made it out of our own solar system," explained Vitosk. "They had problems with their fuel. Nuclear bombs as you remember. They had an accident with their fuel and their ship just managed to get it into orbit around Neptune. Unfortunately for them, it was two years before they could directly radio earth for help. Half the crew died before they were brought home. By that time your President had already told everyone that they attacked us. He had quite a bit of explaining to do, needless to say."

Pete looked at the landing ship with awe. Even more overpowering was the realization that the day, a day that at times, they had prayed for, thought impossible, eventually shunned, and then finally even feared, had arrived. Pete had thought he would have to make a serious decision on this day. As he walked up the back the ramp he suddenly realized that there was no choice at all here. He felt great!  

Even the cut on his head seemed to be gone now. He had Pam under his arm and his kids were standing on the back ramp yelling for him. It was time. Now Pete felt a burst of joy like none he had ever known. It was all because he suddenly realized that he was going to get to show his children the places that, up till now, they had only just heard about, "let's go home."

They walked up the back ramp. The crew chief saluted Jack, "General sir, you all right. You're.... you're wet?"

Pete stopped and his head snapped around. "General?"

Jack blew him off, "Yeah they gave me a star while I was gone. Harry! What's the status on the rest of our crew?"

Harry shrugged, "No real surprise with Gary. We couldn’t find him."

Why was it Jack could care less, “the survey teams ‘ll find him sooner or later.”

Dee stopped next to Jack and put her arm around his, "What about Joey?"

Again Harry shrugged, "He didn't want to come."

"It's a girl, Finny," said Dee. "Can make boys do anything, I tell you."

Saiid, was sitting in the cargo net on the wall with Gina and Hiruko. He just realized they did not know, "Finny... she died."

Jack felt a shock, "What! How the… Never mind. I really don‘t think I want to know right now."

Joey concerned Jack more. That sounded cold but Jack could not help it. He gave some serious thought to tell the pilot to head right back to Zeat and then force that stupid kid on board. The boy had nothing to hold him here now! Then again, Jack considered it and he really had nothing left for him back on Earth either.  

Jack finally decided he was not going to make the boy leave. After all he was no longer a boy. It was not like Joey couldn’t change his mind and leave later. The situation had changed now. They were no longer isolated here.  

The US had eight star ships now. They were getting ready to set up a base on the surface of Curly. From what Jack gathered, neither of the other two habitable planets had even the first sign of intelligent life on them. That should have surprised him but, for some reason, it did not. It seemed rather strange but, then again, what else about this trip had not?

All of that worry was going to be someone else's now. Jack looked to Dee sitting next to him. The aircraft was already speeding towards orbit. He put his arm around her. Something good had came out of this after all. "I love you Doctor Brewer."

Dee shook her head. She stuck her finger in her ear to make sure she had heard that right. All these years and he had never said that. Why did he have to wait till now!

"What did you say?"

Jack yelled in her ear, "I said I love you."

"Why Jack," Dee was stunned, "That wasn't easy for you was it?"

Jack laid his head back into the netting, "I don't remember when the last time anything was. I was just thinking though. We may not have accomplished one single thing on this rock. We're not really bringing back any of the info they sent us to get. We didn't liberate anybody and give them a better way of life.”

Dee was busy thinking about other things but she did respond, “does any of that really matter now?”

Jack grinned, “I don’t know. I still think though…  

As his voice trailed off Dee looked at him, “think what?”

Jack shrugged, “It sounds kind of silly to start with. Then you think about it… and well…”

Dee sighed, “Jack would you stop beating around the bush?”

Jack laughed, “I think I know more about myself that I ever wanted too. I know more about any of you than I ever thought possible. You know we came out here to explore three new worlds and in the end I think… Well, what really discovered was ourselves.

He had a funny little smirk on his face as he finished, “I found out I could fall in love. So I guess it wasn't a wasted trip."

"A multi billion dollar love affair huh?" replied Dee. "Jack... I… can't say that I don't feel for you. I just don't know if..."

He kissed her.


_____________________



"Room holders of the Legislature of the United Peninsular!" bellowed Joe over his somewhat loud colleagues. His command was gone for the moment. His broken leg had forced the government to replace him with a Calden man who was more physically fit. Joe took the time he had been granted and used it wisely. He had spent a good deal of it mourning the loss of the only person in this crazy world that meant anything to him. Finny had been his heart and soul. Now her memory would be his war cry. What he did was still for her.  

He was back in Carbough, and he was leading an offensive more ferocious than any he had as a soldier. "Most of you know why I am here today."

Slowly the room grew silent. Joey helped the General up onto a table. Joe handed the boy his cane and proceeded. "My daughter! That's right you heard me, my little girl! While pretending that she was a man, won two medals for heroic acts included that of saving her commanding officer under fire. She did so as a soldier! She gave her life for you gentlemen. She did it in a heroic way that a few men could only ever live up too."

There were shouts from the floor, "Yeah but that was your daughter Joe. Hell any child of yours is born fighting."

"Not so!" replied Joe. He pointed to ZeLunz who was recovering from his own wounds. The Captain took his cue and opened up the room. The former Imperial Rail Inspector stood aside and saluted several brown-jacketed soldiers, thirty-seven in all, who walked in the door. Joe began reading off a list decorations that these soldiers had earned. Then he said, "Take off your hats."

Hair fell out from under several of the large brimmed hats with the buck tails pinned to them. The feminine shapes of the faces took hold on the government officials. One of the women, who looked very much like a man, held up her shirt to get the point across.

There was a rumble across the room.  Joe banged his cast on the table until he could be heard, "Gentlemen! We have denied our children their birth right for to long. It is the way of Zeat, to have families, and one woman. To share in the wealth as partners would in a business. A way that we abandoned at the cost of our very society. Even you southerners must agree that these women here have proven themselves every bit as good as a man. How can we call them property any longer!"

The floor broke out into screams of an open debate. It was lively and on fire. This vote might not get Joe what he wanted but, at least, he had them talking about it now. The battle was far from over but, at least, they had just completed the first crucial step.  

For the men in this room to admit that there was a battle going on, besides the war, a battle that went beyond this room, city, even nation, was nothing short of a miracle. This was something that might even decide the fate of an entire civilization. Joe felt a tear in his eye. He mumbled to himself, "Finny, you did good honey. I never could have had a son that would have made an impact like you."




EPILOUGE


The slice landed the ball to just one side of the fairway. Jack walked over and slid his seven iron back into the bag. He opened up the cooler that was strapped down to his cart and removed a beer. He was going to have to work on those golf balls some more. He was an aeronautical engineer and he still couldn't make the perfect golf ball! What was wrong with him? Before he had left he thought he had hit the perfect solution on all of the problems his new line of balls would have. Now he couldn't even remember what any of them were.

There was another cart driving out onto the green. Jack looked at his watch. It was not quite seven in the morning. No one was usually out here at this time. It was why he came so early, so as not to be bothered.  

This all kind of reminded him of that morning that Pete had come out to goat rope him into coming back to NASA. He didn't care if the President himself was in that cart now. Jack was not planning on going anywhere. He had his lifetime membership here at the club, free and clear. He had his favorite clubs, his beer, and his balls. He was through with the public life, and that was that.

The cart stopped next to Jack’s. Dee took her hat and sun glasses off. She gave a cute little smile, "Need a lift stranger?"

Jack sipped on his beer, "Well, well. If it isn't the CEO and Chairman of the board of the OK corporation. Damn they'll let anybody in this place now."

Dee just shook her head, "all right, I deserved that."

Jack reached back in his cooler and got another beer. He offered, "You want a beer or you got the time anymore."

Dee snatched it out of his hand, "You know I didn't mean for things to turn out like this Jack. Not between us you know. I just couldn't... I tried to tell you before we ever got home. I knew things were going to be like this."

Jack just shrugged impassively, "so what's up with your Uncle? He going to get off like our esteemed ex President did?"

She pointed at him, "that's not fair Jack. He didn't know about the bomb."

"Oh of course he didn't. I forgot, rewriting reality depends if you can afford the right lawyer."

They sat in silence drinking beer. It was Dee who finally broke it, "You ever find out what happened to Yurgani?"

"No," the Russian had shunned any publicity upon return. The last Jack had heard, he had remained in the States but, that was a year and a half ago. No one that Jack had talked to knew anything of his location now. "What about Pete, Pam?"

Dee shook her head. "Pam quit her job at NASA and they moved back to Detroit. Apparently Pete couldn't stand being around that place anymore. You know he had already dropped out of the Marines. I don‘t think it was that though. I mean all the crap that‘s been flying around. I think they just kind of wanted to concentrate on Eric and Julie. Then again, with Pete…"

Jack chuckled, "Yeah, somebody told me he grew his hair back out and bought a Harley Davidson."

Dee laughed, "I wouldn't doubt it. When I talked to Pam on the phone last month, she told me that Saiid and Gina split up again."

That was a bad situation with those two. Worst of all, it was little Hiruko that Jack really felt sorry for the most. It was not that things were bad between her parents. They might have gotten along better had the media laid off them.  

Gina had let Hiruko do several TV shows and interviews. She had been hot, like all of them, when they first got back. Hiruko more so than anybody else because she was the very first Earthling to be born on another world. Now that the media had all but forgotten about the Hermes, and it's crew, what Saiid and Gina were left with was a shattered private life. That was not counting the things that happened back on Moe. Jack was just glad he never had a kid to loose.

Jack grumbled, "I don't even get phone calls from Pam any more. She was the one who vowed to keep us all in touch, you know? I guess that all kind of fell along the wayside when Harry decided to go back out there."

Harry had jumped at the chance. There was native wild life, if not intelligent ones, on the two other planets in the system. They also needed someone out there that could advise them about the satellite data they were getting from Moe. A treaty signed by all six star fairing nations had quarantined the world for now. They were just watching from high eyes in the sky.

Jack figured that was good in a way and probably bad in others. He thought about Joey. Other than his Mom, someone Jack did not think about at all these days, Joey was the only one left. Gary had eventually been located and jumped on the Lander so quick that it made the crews head spin. Joey, on the other hand, had made it perfectly clear that he wasn’t going anywhere. Not even being told that the planet was quarantined, hence he’d never get another chance to come home, made him change his mind.  

"So," said Jack, "how did you make time out of your busy schedule to just drop by and drink a beer?”

"I don't have a busy schedule anymore Jack. I quit OK, two days ago. Handed it all over to my cousin. I'm out of the space industry, the toilet industry, the tourist industry, all of it."

Jack finished his beer off, "now what in the hell would you go and do a thing like that for. I thought it was what you always wanted?"

"I wasn't an engineer anymore Jack. I ran the company. Even when I did get a chance to get down on the floor with the guys, well, it wasn't the same."

Jack raised an eyebrow, "Well, what are you planning on doing now?"

Dee smirked, "You know I rented a ton of videos. Got them sitting in my bedroom right now. Thought I might try and catch up on some lost culture of the American kind. I thought maybe..." She began twirling her finger around in her hair, "You might want to help a little? You know, show me what's good and what isn't."

Jack looked at her through the corner of his eyes, "science fiction?"

Dee's reply was immediate, "not the first one."

Jack laughed, “good.”

They leaned over a little. Then they leaned over a little more. Finally Dee just put her hands around Jack’s neck and pulled them together. They kissed for a few moments.  

When Jack came up for air, "Why don't we just skip the movies."

Dee looked around and bounced her head,  "OK."

 


THE END