Prologue

Fleet Intelligence Personal Log

All roads eventually lead back to where they began, and those on it begin their journey again. 

The war for Hiigara has left the galaxy in turmoil. The past fifteen years have seen the birth of new
possibilities ... and the festering of old grudges. The once dominant Taiidan Empire has fractured
under the strain of civil war. The new Taiidani Republic tries to hold the old territories together.
Forces loyal to the old Emperor lurk in the new bandit kingdoms, waiting for their chance to strike
back. 

While the Taiidani struggle between past and future, the Kushan people have established themselves
on Hiigara. Building new cities. Repairing the damage done by the final battle for their homeworld.

Even a fragile peace has its politics. The Kiith council has been reestablished, and the future of
Hiigara is now debated amongst the gathered Kiith-Sa. Even amongst equals, there are power
struggles. 

The Mothership still orbits high above Hiigara. Pressed into the role of shipyard, she now builds new
carriers to the specifications of each individual Kiith. The need for new ships and the crews to man
them is a desperate one. Military and economic pressure on the new Hiigarans is intense. 

Resources and technology are at the command of the council. Kiith, with little or no political power,
have been forced to purchase technology from the Bentusi and other races. Hiigaran ships of exotic
design now seek their fortune amongst the stars. 

The war for Homeworld is over now. But the galaxy remains a dangerous place... 

In the fifteen years since the final battle, much has changed for me. For us. I've not been the head
of Fleet Intelligence, or even officially associated with it or the military for 15 long years. Because
I am a war hero, I have not had as much trouble getting land as many Sleepers have. Most of the
land Jaana and I received we gave to the Somtaaw. We have kept a small bit for a house and a
garden. And we've raised a family. 

For once, Jaana's visions didn't speak the full truth. We've had more than two children. We have two
sons and four daughters. Each is as spirited as their mother, and inquisitive as their father (that being
me, naturally.) And I have managed to work some small influence in shaping this new world. It is
difficult, as I have no direct influence. But Jaana and I are still close to Karan Sjet, and the crew of
the old Fleet Intelligence is still loyal to me above their ki'ithsa. Though that is a carefully kept
secret. 

Still, occasionally we feel the need to kick up our feet and return to the stars above. The children
remain home, watched by friends. Someday they will go to the Stars as well... but for now, I want
them to build their roots here. Let them know what they fight for. 

To be honest, it's not wanderlust that has brought Jaana and myself out here this time. Jaana's had
several disturbing dreams of late, focusing on one of the Somtaaw mining vessels, the Kuun-Lan.
It's been a year since we last sailed the sea of stars (as our oldest son, Jamal, likes to call them). 

I suppose that my old kiith realizes that I advised the Somtaaw to organize the strike that resulted
in them (and the other lesser Kiith) getting access to the shipyards on the Mothership. Fortunately,
if they do know, they have kept it from the other kiith, else I'd have been visited by the Naabal to
voice their... appreciation of my suggestions. 

As it is, two assassins already lie under the soil, fertilizing it; one a Taiidan Imperialist. The second,
sadly enough, a Kushan agent sent to silence my protests over the Daimaid's treatment of the lesser
kiith. Jaana doesn't know of him, though she knows of five others I've sent back after I finished
breaking their legs, feet and toes. Jaana disapproves, but they stopped targeting my children at least.
And it keeps them off their feet (and out of work) for several months as well. 

We approach the Kuun-Lan. She's nothing beautiful. She's a workhorse, pure and simple. While she
has the capability of gravity (as do all ships with a hyperdrive), often it appears that is turned off
through the ship to conserve energy; the primary crew sleeping quarters use centrifugal force to
create a sensation of gravity (and reducing calcium-depletion of bones from exposure to long-term
weightlessness). 

In my eyes, the crew quarters are unnecessarily open; during an assault, a concentrated Ion beam
burst could lead to tragic results. Parts of the hanger bay retain their gravity at all times; Jaana and
I will stay there for the length of our visit. 

There is a sizeable contingent of Somtaaw in cyrostasis; these tanks are located in the upper deck,
protected by the mass of the engines. Over 2,000 Somtaaw remain in the Sleep tanks; I'm of a mixed
mind over this. The Somtaaw will not grow without more families and children... but the mining
vessel is no place for a family. Also, the two mining ships spend months away from Hiigara while
gathering resources. 

The Somtaaw have done well with the limited resources they've got. We are in an arms race with
the Taiidan Imperialists, and it has been decided that all kiith who wish access to military blueprints
should pay equally for it. Unfortunately, this is beyond the means of many lesser kiith, including the
Somtaaw. 

The old Scout ships proved inadequate for Somtaaw purposes (seeing they are more interested in
finding useful deposits of resources instead of enemy ships), and they created their own fighter, the
Recon. Over 60% of the ship is sensors; the remainder is engines and life support. There is a very
small mass cannon mounted on the fighter, but the Recon is not meant to fight; the cannon is for
defensive purposes only. 

The Somtaaw were forced to turn to the Bentusi for their primary fighter, the Acolyte. It is actually
a marvel of engineering; while the Bentusi obviously removed all traces of weapon schematics from
the craft, what is left is still a very hardy little craft. 

Of primary importance is the improved fusion drive the fighter uses. This allows the fighter to
operate on a minimum of fuel, even at high speeds and under combat conditions. The Somtaaw
reverse-engineered the Acolyte from the Bentusi fighter, and traded the drive schematics to the
Kushan military. While this has helped give our fighters an extra edge, it is especially vital for the
Somtaaw, who thrive on self-sufficiency. 

There are no Acolytes currently with the Kuun-Lan. They are out on long-range support patrols
guarding several Processors and Workers. A patrol of three Recons just passed us... I hear that
they're called Heartbreak Patrols, as the women who tend to fly the Recons tend to go through men
faster than a Kadeshi Swarmer goes through fuel. 

Also, we have passed one of the Worker-class mining ships on the way in. It's a squat little vessel,
having much in common with our old shuttles used to reenter the atmosphere before we learned how
to manipulate the hyperfield in a way to achieve limited anti-gravity. Apparently it is well suited for
mining thick asteroid belts, and is designed that if the Somtaaw ever decide to purchase the
technologies for it, can be used to also repair and even salvage ships. The crews of the Workers
complain over the unimaginative name, but then again they complained when I referred to the
mining ships we used coming to the Homeworld "mining ships". That's what they are. I see no
reason to give them a fancy name. 

Jaana disagrees of course. We tease each other about it from time to time. I can set her off just by
looking at her, smiling, and saying "mining ship". Of course, those "fights" usually end up with me
losing as she starts tickling me (how she ever found out about that weakness of mine...) but they're
still fun. 

We've landed on the Kuun-Lan and have been given a tour. This ship's got a bit of potential. She's
limited in that she can only support so many ships before communications begin to break down;
while Karan Sjet's experiments in linking to a ship with a neural web was a success, few people wish
to go through what she went through. Rumor has it the Bentusi are linked to their ships in the same
way. (I still wish I had been on the corvette that had docked with the Bentusi trading ship, 15 years
ago.) 

Of course, one thing I dislike about it is that half the hanger is exposed to open space. Thus any
Processor being built (or any other Destroyer-class vessel or larger) would be exposed to enemy fire.
It also opens up the possibility of sabotage. 

We're being brought up to meet Captain Sjaar Somtaaw, who is Fleet Command of the Kuun-Lan
and all ships under its control. He works with Colonel Sareni Somtaaw, the Tactical Officer in
charge of the combat elements of the Kuun-Lan; in essence, she's got the same job as I did on the
Mothership, though her crew is significantly smaller than my own was. 

They handle themselves professionally and seem to know what they are doing, though Sareni seems
a little distant; I suppose that being responsible for the lives of the pilots fighting for you could be
stressful. But she seems to have pulled away from the rest of the fleet to compensate. The problem
is that you can end up making cold decisions that have unforeseen consequences if the rest of the
crew disagree with you. Hopefully she will never face such a situation. 

We've just picked up a transmission: 

This is Kiith Nabaal Carrier VEER-RAK, to any Hiigaran ships in range. Imperialist Taiidani forces
are attacking. They are attempting to break through and raid Hiigara. We cannot hold them! Require
immediate assistance! This is Kiith Nabaal Carrier VEER-RAK (transmission breaks up) 

Captain Sjaar took a few seconds to hastily confer with Colonel Sareni and then sent out a message
in return: 

This is Somtaaw Fleet Command to all ships. Prepare for emergency Hyperspace. Set course for the
Homeworld. 

There's one thing about the Kuun-Lan... it is definitely faster and more maneuverable than the
Mothership was. We are headed out toward a LaGrange point where we can safely hyperspace.
Estimated time to hyperspace is 25 minutes, estimated time to the Homeworld is 1 hour 45 minutes.