"So that's why I think we should just go. We need a break, and we aren't needed here anymore." Jason finished.

Evan scratched the side of his head in thought. "Well, you're not wrong. The only real question is who to delegate the diplomatic stuff to now that the Confederation is here and talking to us."

Rebekkah shrugged, and the motion drew their attention to her. "I actually have an unorthodox suggestion for that one. I've found out that the Senator they sent to handle First Contact, that is also highly unusual by the way, according to their own records they almost never send an actual Senator for that job. It's usually a much lower rank diplomat type. Anyway, the one they sent, Ssslargh, is more Soldier than Senator, and since he has already expressed approval of Franklin I suggest we just have him handle it.

"He's not a diplomat, but he's been a part of everything since we first started recruiting and we all trust him, and with those new secure com rooms Jason came up with he can just call us up if he needs our help with anything. That's assuming Adam can't take care of whatever it is. So, yeah, I think we could do it."

"I would prefer we were done with the core and android projects before running off into the galaxy." Kinzie said with a note of irritation in her voice. "But I suppose with the quantum links we could do that remotely. I'm alright with leaving, a change of scenery would be nice. I'll want a day or two to make sure we have everything we need for an extended trip."

"Oh, well, I wasn't planning on us turning around and leaving right this minute." Jason shrugged. "I just wanted to bring up the idea and see if you guys were up for it. There's no rush, I have a few projects I'd like to finish up before we leave, myself."

"Oh? What are you cooking up now?" Evan asked curiously. He had been rather busy with Kinzie lately and hadn't kept track of what Jason and Rebekkah were up to.

"I wasn't happy with the performance of the armor we made for the troops so I'm doing a redesign now that I have more intel on what they're up against. Of course, redesigning the armor means redesigning the drop ship interiors and all of their weaponry."

"I already have a number of scientists working on new weaponry tailored towards fighting the Gnarlath." Lisa chimed in, her voice was still a bit subdued and tinged with melancholy.

"Really? That's great, they're going to have to start all over, but it's great that you took that initiative! Here, I'll send you the new dimensions and rough performance statistics for the upgraded armor to use as a starting point. They should be able to scale things up considerably, which will make it much easier to face Gnarlath in combat.

"After seeing what their weapons could do to what our guys were wearing I decided I needed to beef up the amount of actual armor, which needed more power to move, and now the whole suit is much heavier but will survive a few hits from those blasters they use. More than a few once we run some tests and find materials that are better at resisting them. The downsides are the reduction in how much strength they add due to the additional mass, and the additional bulk will cut the number of troops per Spike by half.

"Still, the reduced numbers shouldn't be that big of a downside with the drastic improvement in effectiveness we should see. They will be able to carry much larger weapons, preferably with smart rounds that can self-destruct if they miss so they can avoid firing through walls and blowing up the ship while they're standing in it. Think you could help me with the technical bits, Kinz? I'm much better at designing ships and programming than I am at doing this stuff."

He tilted his head. "Actually now that I think about it we should probably switch the projects around, shouldn't we? I could work on the cores and you could do androids and armor?"

Kinzie shook her head. "Honestly, there isn't much left for us to do on the cores. Evan and I did all the mechanical and programming work we could, and Adam fine-tuned it as much as he could, all that's left is waiting for the biologists he recruited to do their part. Once they finish we will have to assemble and test, then fix whatever problems pop up. You know, standard R and D stuff. So I can help with the armor-"

"We." Evan cut in emphatically. "We can help with the armor. I'm not missing out on designing space marine armor again. I also want to help with the weapons. Chainsaw bayonets and splatter cannons! Obliterator rifles and punisher magnums! Shredder swords and boom shields!"

Jason sighed, whenever Evan got excited about something it tended to get blown out of proportion. Now, instead of a relatively simple upgrade, it was going to turn into an actual project. "Some of those might be feasible, but what good would a chainsaw do against something with the kind of armor a Gnarlath has? And why would we send someone out with a sword and shield to fight aliens armed with high-tech blasters?"

"Because it's cool? Also, a shield for the guy in front makes sense! They can block shots for the others and soak extra damage without compromising their armor, and you can't have a shield without a sword!"

"You're getting a bit ahead of yourself, I'll concede that a shield for the lead man isn't a bad idea, but they can just as easily use one of your 'splatter cannons' or 'punisher magnums' with it and still have the ability to hit from a distance."

"Alright boys, I feel my presence here has suddenly become superfluous." Rebekkah cut into their argument, a touch of amusement in her tone. "If we're done with the overall planning session I'm going to go ahead and get the ball rolling on the diplomatic stuff so we can get outta dodge as the saying goes."

Jason added his semi-distracted acknowledgement and farewell to the others' replies as they dove into the armor redesign.

*****

"Wait, you want me to be humanity's representative to this Senator Slarg? What on Earth made you think I would want to do that? I'm a soldier not a diplomat!" Franklin practically screeched at her, and Rebekkah couldn't help but find the mix of surprise, panic, and despair in his voice amusing.

"His name is Ssslargh, and I recommend you get it right if you want to have any success as a diplomat. Don't worry though, we looked up his records. The reason we want you to do it is because he already approves of you, and everything we know about him points to him being more soldier than anything else. The only thing you can't tell him about is the AIs, other than that feel free to be an open book. We expect him to be far more interested in our ability to repel the Gnarlath than any real diplomacy or bureaucracy.

"Just help me keep him distracted and happy while Lisa and Adam quietly help our lawyers hammer out a considerably more favorable agreement than they intended to give us. Once they're done and we get him to sign it, you'll be his liaison while he's still here. After they leave you can go back to commanding your flotilla. Brace yourself now, we're here." She gave him a moment to steady his nerves before she pushed the conference room door open and entered.

"Senator! Welcome to the Raziel! So wonderful to finally meet someone from the illustrious Confederation!" Rebekkah was never more convinced that getting implants had been a good decision than at that moment. Senator Ssslargh was a veteran in both war and diplomacy, and had excellent control over his expressions but her enhanced senses picked up on the minute signs of irritation in him when she mentioned the Confederation.

She could only do so because she had taken time to look up the various species in the Confederation and study their mannerisms, and Ssslargh's people had easy to identify tells. "I am Rebekkah, a member of Archangel's Command Council, and if I'm not mistaken about Confederate law, one of the de facto leaders of mankind. I would introduce you to the others but they are indisposed at the moment, and I have been granted full authority to negotiate on their behalf in the meantime. Now ordinarily I expect most politicians would promptly engage in talks and negotiations, long hours of hashing out details and minutiae in an effort to achieve their goals.

"Fortunately I am not a politician or diplomat, and while I am no stranger to long meetings discussing seemingly pointless details in my role as a businesswoman I don't believe it is necessary in this case. I prefer to know who I am dealing with, as it tends to make the process considerably less painful for everyone involved when we can make the right concessions."

Ssslargh looked a bit dubious. "Concessions? Do you mean to say that you will accept the treaty we offer as is?"

Rebekkah laughed. "Oh, hardly! That will be a long fought battle I'm afraid, and one I intend to win. No, the concession I offer is for the two of us to stay out of it. You are a man of war by nature and preference, and a Senator and diplomat by duty. Like I said, I like to know who I'm dealing with. My offer is simple; we let your lesser diplomats, who would normally have been assigned to this first contact task in the first place, meet with some of my people that actually like hashing out these kinds of things, while we give you a tour."

Ssslargh's scaled brows rose, and Rebekkah knew she had him. "Yesss, I think I can agree to that. What would you give me a tour of? It's clear you have read my public records, a commendable and cunning move, and no doubt know that I would care little to see things that most species would be willing to share with a potential foe."

Rebekkah smiled and gestured for Franklin to come forward. "First, I decided to assign Franklin to be your liaison while you are in our system, and after we finish here he has permission and clearance to show you virtually anything you might wish to see. You see, we have no intention of viewing the Confederacy as a foe, and as such have little to hide from you. Much of our technology at the moment is derived from your own to begin with, and the only other option we have for alien societies to interact with is decidedly unfriendly."

Ssslargh studied Franklin while Rebekkah was speaking, only half listening to her. "Yes, unfriendly. You are damaged?" His question was directed to Franklin, his eyes on his leg.

"Yes, an old war injury. I was in a convoy that encountered an… a hidden explosive device, and had the good fortune to be in the truck that hit it. I was the only survivor, and I lost my leg in the blast. Fortunately one of the first things Archangel did was to create prosthetic limbs capable of not only restoring myself and others to the point of being able to live a normal life, but also enabling us to serve once more."

Ssslargh turned his gaze back to Rebekkah, an intense expression on his face. "You repair your warriors and return them to the fight?" He gestured at Franklin's legs with a clawed hand. "Is receiving such an injury not a large enough price to pay? You would ask more of them?"

Franklin interjected before she had a chance to speak and his reply was sharp, poorly concealed rage evident in his voice. "I would prefer you not insult her, Archangel, or anyone else for my personal decisions. I chose to return to service. Plenty of others did as well. Archangel offered us a chance to fight in the defense of all humanity, not an obligation."

Ssslargh dipped his head in apology, Rebekkah leaning close to Franklin to whisper a quick explanation of the gesture. "I meant no offense, it is easy to forget our peoples have different ways and mindsets. Few in the Confederacy would refuse the opportunity to cut their service short after receiving such an injury. To willingly return to battle after such a sacrifice is noble and honorable, and I salute you as a true warrior." He made an odd gesture that the others assumed was a salute. "What of those that do not wish to fight anymore? Do they receive the same treatment?"

His voice and posture no longer seemed hostile and it was clearly a question asked in curiosity now that the subject had come up. "Of course." Rebekkah nodded with a smile, "In fact, far more of our veterans chose non-combat roles than not, and a small number opted to not take a position with us at all. They all received functional prosthetic limbs and any other care they requested of us free of charge.

"That's not to say that their treatment was entirely equal of course. Combat presents you with unique challenges, as you are no doubt aware, and often requires more robust or higher powered equipment. Regular life, even an active one, simply doesn't necessitate the same quality of prosthetics as someone expected to engage in combat. They were instead provided with limbs that effectively replace the ones they lost, but without the extras some of our combat folks have requested."

"Extras?" Ssslargh asked.

Franklin grinned at the Senator. "Well each of us have our preferences of course, and the location of the prosthetic influences our choices, but modifications range from armor to enhanced strength and speed. The latter two generally being paired with an exosuit to provide an even boost. Mine, for example, allows me to run faster than my natural leg can handle if I need to, and because of that I wear an exoskeletal brace on my other leg that balances me back out while I'm in uniform."

"Anyway, time is pressing on and I believe we have a tour to begin?" Rebekkah said with a grin.