s to deliver one of the Terran Empire's elite, one of the
green-uniformed Rangers, safely to the Supreme and First Speaker on
Homeworld. Although that sounded simple enough, it would take both
firepower and trickery. Arjen's fleet, now with sixty ships instead
of forty, had firepower enough to overwhelm even a Sovereign-class
Terran battle cruiser, the type of ship a Ranger normally used.
Fifty-nine of the Traiti warcraft were in positions that englobed a
point in space a quarter-million n'liu from a blue-and-white oxygen
planet--over forty diameters out, nearly in the orbit of the planet's
moon.

The Hermnaen was still at the center of the twenty-n'liu-diameter
sphere of ships, its Ship-Captain and crew waiting for Arjen's orders.
Still reluctant to begin the trickery that was part of this operation,
Arjen spoke anyway. "Release signal transmitter."

"Aye, Fleet-Captain." Battle discipline was strict, if fair; not even
an action as apparently senseless as releasing a beacon in the center
of a combat-ready fleet was questioned.

Then the Hermnaen took its own position in the sphere and Arjen ordered
the beacon activated. The moment the distinctive paired triple-pings,
used only for body-return containers, sounded on the ship's receivers,
Arjen found himself the focus of fourteen pairs of eyes, from the
ship's operators in their U of consoles facing him and the Master-Pilot
and Ship-Captain Exvani, whose consoles flanked Arjen's at the opening
of the U--but not even those senior officers spoke their questions
aloud.

It wasn't necessary; Arjen knew they shared the shock and dismay he'd
felt when he was given this mission, and he was sure similar feelings
were spread throughout the Fleet. He sighed and displayed resignation
by extending the claws on one hand. "Give me Fleet Communications."

"Aye, Fleet-Captain." The Communications operator's attention returned
to his console, and within minutes Arjen was in communication with all
his Ship-Captains.

Without preamble and without expression, Arjen briefed them on the
mission and detailed his plans for its execution. "The Intelligence
Service reports intercepting communications involving a Ranger named
Esteban Tarlac, which indicate that he is in this sector. Given what
we know of Rangers, he will have his own ship respond, and given the
skill of those who pilot Rangers' vessels, it will out-transition from
hyperspace within ten n'liu of the beacon."

"T