In time.” said Melissa consolingly. Then she examined the array of rods available to her. She selected a slim one, with about the circumference of a...knitting needle. It would bite and sting adequately but had the advantage that she could go on using it for a long time without causing any permanent damage. She gazed into Simone’s petrified features, contorted almost beyond recognition, seeing the sweat of fear on the quivering flesh. “You deserve this,” she said in a taut voice, “and I am going. All platoons need to go into evasive maneuvering!"Callahan passed the order along to his squad leaders but wondered just what good it would do. If they were being hit with lasers, which moved at the speed of light after all, what good would zigzagging around do? "What about the SALs?" he asked Ayers. "Why aren't they taking the aircraft down?" That was what they'd been told would happen if any of those greenie aircraft dared trying to engage the armor on the march. SALs were ringing the entire. And judging from the pressure and constriction hefelt on his chest, he had been smoking a lot of pot.'Nice one, idiot,' he thought. 'You're hungover, and you vomited on thecarpet. Terry IS going to rat on you! Hey, wait - Terry is MYroommate!'The figure at the door came closer and bent over him. The bleariness inhis eyes didn't subside until the figure put a pair of black-rimmedglasses on him. He looked directly up at himself, gasped, and leantover to puke again. The guy who looked like him. "McCock grinned back evilly,"I am not in your Service, remember? I command the Naval element of the 'Queen's Own Regiment and Palace Guard Service' and you stand, well, sit, in my domain. Still I'd have to explain your status to your Admiral so I'll deprive myself of the pleasure"."Its nice having friends in high places" and continued in more serious tones, "You are a control freak, Aggy, you know that?"McCock admitted his fault,"Agreed; and that could have wrecked the operation. What I had I.