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The Outbreak of Peace · 20 Short Science Fiction Stories

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  Speaker 1: Section twelve of twenty short science fiction stories by various authors.
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  Speaker 1: This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The Outbreak
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  Speaker 1: of Peace by h B five. When properly conducted, a
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  Speaker 1: diplomatic mission can turn the most smashing of battle successes
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  Speaker 1: into a fabulous Herrick victory. It was a great pity,
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  Speaker 1: Space Marshal Wilbur Hennings reflected as he gazed through the
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  Speaker 1: one way glass of the balcony door that the local
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  Speaker 1: citizens had insisted upon decorating the square before their capital
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  Speaker 1: with the hulk of the first spaceship ever to have
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  Speaker 1: landed on Pollock's five one hundred and fifty years. Probably
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  Speaker 1: seemed impressive to them, amid the explosive spread of Terran
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  Speaker 1: colonies and federations. Actually, in the Marshal's opinion, it was
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  Speaker 1: merely long enough to reveal such symbols as more than antiquated,
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  Speaker 1: but less than his historically precious. I presume you have
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  Speaker 1: a plan to have me march past that heap, he complained,
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  Speaker 1: tugging at the extremely historical sword that completed the effect
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  Speaker 1: of his dazzling white and gold uniform. Commodore Miller his
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  Speaker 1: aid stiffened nervously around to the right of it, sir,
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  Speaker 1: he gestured, As you see, the local military are already
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  Speaker 1: keeping the route clear of onlookers. We thought it would
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  Speaker 1: be most impressive if your party were to descend the
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  Speaker 1: outer stairway from the palace balcony here to heighten the
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  Speaker 1: importance of to draw out the pomp and circumstance of
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  Speaker 1: opening the conference well, sir, and then across the square
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  Speaker 1: to the conference hall of the Capitol, outside which you'll
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  Speaker 1: pause for a few gracious words to the crowd. And
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  Speaker 1: that will probably be my last opportunity to enjoy the
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  Speaker 1: morning sunlight. Oh well, it seems much too bright here
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  Speaker 1: in any case, The Commodore absently reached out to adjust
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  Speaker 1: a fold in his chief skyblue sash, and the Marshal
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  Speaker 1: has absently parried the gesture. I shall be hardly less
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  Speaker 1: than half an hour crossing the square, he predicted, sourly.
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  Speaker 1: With the cheering throngs they have undoubtedly arranged, and the
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  Speaker 1: sunlight reflecting from all that imitation marble, it will be
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  Speaker 1: no place to collect one's thoughts. He turned back to
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  Speaker 1: the huge chamber constituting the office of the Suite supplied
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  Speaker 1: him by his Poluxian hosts. The skeleton staff of men
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  Speaker 1: and women remaining occupied chairs and benches along only one wall.
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  Speaker 1: Since the bulk of the delegation had been sent out
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  Speaker 1: to make themselves popular with the local populace, Hennings presumed
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  Speaker 1: the bulk of the local populace to be consisted of Polluxians,
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  Speaker 1: as signed to making themselves popular with his Urson Federation delegation.
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  Speaker 1: His people would be listening politely to myriad reasons why
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  Speaker 1: the Polluxians had a nature write to occupy all the
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  Speaker 1: star systems from here to Castor a dozen light years
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  Speaker 1: farther from Terra. No one would mention the true motive
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  Speaker 1: their illogical choice in naming themselves the Twin Empire. Well, now,
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  Speaker 1: he said, crisply, once more over the main points of
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  Speaker 1: the situation. No commodore not the schedule of experts that
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  Speaker 1: will accompany me to the table. I rely upon you
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  Speaker 1: to have perfected that. But have there been any unforeseen
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  Speaker 1: developments in the actual fighting. A cluster of aides, mostly
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  Speaker 1: in uniform but including a few indiscreetly elegant civilian attire,
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  Speaker 1: moved forward. Each one was somehow followed within arm's reach
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  Speaker 1: by an aid of his own, so that the advance
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  Speaker 1: presented overtones of a small sortie. Hennings first nodded to
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  Speaker 1: the first, a Youngish man whose heir suggested technical competence
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  Speaker 1: more than the assurance of great authority. The officer placed
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  Speaker 1: his briefcase upon the glistening surface of a large table
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  Speaker 1: and touched to switch on the flap. It's as well
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  Speaker 1: to be sure, Sir, the commodore approved. Our men have
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  Speaker 1: been unable to detect any devices, but the walls may
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  Speaker 1: have ears. They won't scan through this scrambler, Sir, asserted
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  Speaker 1: the young officer. Hennings accepted a seat at the table
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  Speaker 1: and looked up to one of the others Myrelli Star,
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  Speaker 1: an older officer reported briskly the same situation prevails, with
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  Speaker 1: both sides having landed surface troops in force upon Myrelli two,
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  Speaker 1: Myrelli three, and Myrelli five, the fourth planet being inhabited
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  Speaker 1: by a partly civilized non human race protected under the
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  Speaker 1: Terran Convention. Recent engagements no sir. Maneuvering continues, but actual
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  Speaker 1: encounters have declined in frequency. Casualties are modest and evenly matched.
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  Speaker 1: General Nilsen on my Rally three continues to receive Piluxian
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  Speaker 1: agents seeking his defection. I never thought to ask, murmured Hennings.
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  Speaker 1: Is he really a distant connection of the Polluxian Nielsen family.
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  Speaker 1: It is improbable, sir, but they are polite enough to
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  Speaker 1: accept the pretense. Of course, he rejects every offer in
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  Speaker 1: a very high minded manner, and seems to be making
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  Speaker 1: an adequate impression of chivalry. He stepped back at hennings
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  Speaker 1: nod to be replaced by another officer one minor space
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  Speaker 1: skirmish in the Agoki system to report, Sir, the Admiral
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  Speaker 1: in command appears to have recouped after the error of
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  Speaker 1: two days ago, when that Poluxian detachment was so badly
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  Speaker 1: mauled he arranged the capture of three of our cruisers.
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  Speaker 1: Was that not a trifle rash? Demanded Hennings intelligence is
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  Speaker 1: clined to think not, sir. The ships were armed only
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  Speaker 1: with weapons listed as general knowledge items. The crews were
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  Speaker 1: not only trained in prisoner of war tactics, but also
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  Speaker 1: well supplied with small luxuries. The Poluxian fleet in that
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  Speaker 1: system is known to have been in space for several months,
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  Speaker 1: so a friendly effect is anticipated. Hennings considered the condensed
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  Speaker 1: report proffered for his perusal. He noted that the Polluxians
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  Speaker 1: had been quite gentlemanly about notifying Ersone headquarters of the
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  Speaker 1: capture and of the complete lack of casualties. He also
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  Speaker 1: saw that while the message was obstensibly directed to the
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  Speaker 1: Federation flagship, it had been beamed in such a fashion
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  Speaker 1: as to be conveniently intercepted by the secret Urson Federation
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  Speaker 1: headquarters on AGKI seven. That was a bit root of them,
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  Speaker 1: he commented, we have never dragged their secrets into the open.
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  Speaker 1: On the other hand, Sir the Commodore suggested, it may
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  Speaker 1: be an almost sophisticated method of permit us to enjoy
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  Speaker 1: our superior finesse. I am just as pleased to have
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  Speaker 1: the reminder, said Hennings. It will serve to alert us
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  Speaker 1: all the more when we sit down with them over there.
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  Speaker 1: An elegant civilian, a large man with patient drooping features,
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  Speaker 1: stated that nothing had occurred to change the economic situation.
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  Speaker 1: Another reported that unofficial channels of information were holding up
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  Speaker 1: as well as could be expected. A uniformed officer summarized
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  Speaker 1: the battle situation in two more star systems. Those are
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  Speaker 1: positions we actually desire to hold, are they not? Hennings? Asked,
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  Speaker 1: is action to be taken there? Plans call for local
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  Speaker 1: civilian riots at the height of the conference, Sir, But
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  Speaker 1: can we lay no groundwork sooner than that? Sometime in
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  Speaker 1: the foreseeable future, at least take it up with propaganda, Blauvelt.
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  Speaker 1: It seems to me that the briefing mentioned and indigitines
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  Speaker 1: race on one of these planets. Blauvelt dropped his eyes momentarily,
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  Speaker 1: equivalent in that gathering to a blush of intense embarrassment.
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  Speaker 1: Hennings coughed apologetically, Well, now I should not pry into arrangements.
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  Speaker 1: I must later be able to deny convincingly with a
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  Speaker 1: clear conscience. I can only plead my dear Blauvelt, the
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  Speaker 1: tenseness of the past several days. The officer murmured inaudibly,
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  Speaker 1: fumbled with his papers and edge to the rear rank.
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  Speaker 1: Someone at commodore Miller's fluttering obtained a vacuum jug of
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  Speaker 1: ice water and a glass for the Marshal, but Hennings
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  Speaker 1: chose instead to produce a long cigar from a pocket
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  Speaker 1: concealed beneath his resplendent collection of metals. My apologies to
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  Speaker 1: all of you, he said, thoughtfully, I fear that any
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  Speaker 1: of you who may expect contact with the local population
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  Speaker 1: had better see doctor Ivan Tallal about the hypnosis necessary
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  Speaker 1: to counteract my little indiscretion. And now what remains nothing
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  Speaker 1: but the prisoner exchanged, Sir Commodore Miller announced. After collecting
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  Speaker 1: the eyes of the principal officers, Hennings got his cigar going.
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  Speaker 1: He listened to confirmation of a previous report that had
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  Speaker 1: massive exchange of sick and wounded prisoners had been accomplished,
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  Speaker 1: and learned that the Ursans now suspected that they had accepted,
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  Speaker 1: unknowingly about as many secret agents as they had sent
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  Speaker 1: the Poluxians. Oh well, he sighed, as long as the
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  Speaker 1: amenities were preserved, we must be as friendly as possible
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  Speaker 1: about that sort of thing, or run the risk of
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  Speaker 1: antagonizing them. Seeing that the Commodore was tense with impatience,
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  Speaker 1: the Marshal rose to his feet. An aide deftly received
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  Speaker 1: the cigar for disposal, and the party drifted expectantly toward
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  Speaker 1: the balcony doors. From among that part of the staff
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  Speaker 1: which would remain to man headquarters, an officer was dispatched
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  Speaker 1: to alert the Poluxian Honor Guard one more touch before
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  Speaker 1: the daye is cast, thought the Marshal, as two young
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  Speaker 1: officers opened the balcony doors to admit the blare of trumpets.
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  Speaker 1: Chairs rolled successively across the square, rising like distant waves
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  Speaker 1: from somewhere beneath the gigantic banner that draped the capitol
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  Speaker 1: opposite with fiery letters spelling out peace conference. With a
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  Speaker 1: dramatic gesture, Hennings held up the sheaf of reports they
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  Speaker 1: had just reviewed. Smiles disappeared in response to his own
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  Speaker 1: serious mien. So much for the hostiles, he snapped. He
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  Speaker 1: tossed the reports to the officer who would remain in
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  Speaker 1: charge now for the actual war. Pivoting on his heel,
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  Speaker 1: he led them smartly out to the ornate balcony stairway
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  Speaker 1: that curved down into the sea of cheering Poluxians. End
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  Speaker 1: of Election twelve