>[!quote] Introduction > How quickly the world changes. We now have ancient alien devices sealing away over half of our society, psychics who can hurtle us across the universe in an instant, and miraculous devices - from the cradle of humanity no less - that let us communicate across the void and manipulate gravity in ways that seem like magic. > > It's like all the rules had been thrown out the window. > And it was the only chance we had. > > >\-_The Memoirs of "Gentleman" [[Jack Cartwright]]_ _13 November, WY603 - 15 February WY605 – Jericho, Grove_ The crew take a day to prepare then board [[WDF San Anastasia|San Anastasia]] for the jump to the rendezvous. At the last minute before the dive commences, Dirk senses that the ship may not dive deep enough to give him a head start on extending the dive, and he calls it off. The [[Republic of Jericho|Jericho]] navy yards concentrate their efforts to bring [[IBI Legitimate Salvage|Legitimate Salvage]] to spaceworthiness again, taking another two days. Once aboard [[IBI Legitimate Salvage|Legitimate Salvage]], along with [[Jack Cartwright|Jack]] and [[Felicity Randall|Felicity]], the crew executes their jump from [[Jericho]], and Dirk accelerates the ship to emerge moments later at the Whistler Union fleet stationed half a parsec from [[Grove]]. [[Jack Cartwright|Jack]] and [[Felicity Randall|Felicity]] depart for their own commands in the fleet and the group jumps together to [[Grove]]. During the transit, Cara finds a letter from [[Felicity Randall|Felicity]]. It explains briefly how she had been recruited by the [[Republic of Jericho]] years before. as well as some other reconciliatory details from her life. The fleet emerges at [[Grove]]. Damocles is flanked by cruisers [[WDF Intrepid]] and WDF Hammurabi along with dozens of smaller system patrol craft and a handful of destroyers. The Whistler Union fleet of 43 Murphy-class destroyers splits up to engage both cruisers. [[IBI Legitimate Salvage|Legitimate Salvage]] and her squadron concentrate their fire on Hammurabi, crippling her, but Damocles' relentless torpedo and mass-driver barrage have reduced the attacking force by at least a third. The crew decides to make a bee-line for Damocles, deftly disabling an intervening cruiser. They approach to within two thousand kilometers of the dreadnought and Aiden activates the gravity device. For a moment, nothing happens, then space begins to warp.... ##### Epilogue We are all Indomitable Bastards at heart. But this place was not made for us. And it rejects our dreams of empire. We all watched in horror as Damocles collapsed in on itself as if crushed by the hand of god, thousands dying in an instant. Eventually the physics of it all broke down and the massive slug of super-dense alloy flew apart into a city-sized cloud of debris. Teddy Banks took command from Intrepid and called an immediate cease-fire - beginning the negotiations for the 1st Fleet's surrender. In the end, all they really wanted was enough sleeper ships to return home - which the Whistler Union gladly provided. With the blockade of Grove broken, relief began flowing to [[Foxglove]]. The starvation and lack of basics was a humanitarian nightmare and thousands died - but help arrived from [[Grove]] and [[Jericho]] before the system reached the tipping point of complete collapse. Within months, [[Divyash Shaw]]'s people had gotten the mines and refineries operating again - and the flow of raw materials was a shot in the arm of the Whistler Union economy. Cut off from [[Anderson Exploration]], many of Helena's outposts faltered, but [[Anderson Northwinds|Northwinds]] thrived. Jeff Carter made trade deals with the [[Republic of Jericho]] that gave him access to advanced Tritium mining and refinery systems, which propelled the town into a major supplier for Jericho and Union alike and the only real economic powerhouse on the planet. The dividends from the Bastards' stake in [[Anderson Northwinds|Northwinds]] eventually grew to the point most of them could live comfortably on that income alone. With its adversary neutralized and no one left but the weak and appreciative, the dragon that is the Republic of [[Republic of Jericho|Jericho]] curled up on its pile of gold and consolidated power. Alien-inspired AGI changed the nature of intelligence and computation, instant communication made the Reach smaller, and the gravity drive reinvented every aspect of transportation. Each of which, Jericho-sponsored corporations maintained a monopoly on for decades after knowledge of the technologies became public. One such company, majority owned by one Princeton Harcourt Feldman III, even levered the technology into a fleet of cruise liners that would hang majestically in the sky over their ports of call and provide...shall we say...novel experiences to discerning passengers. Whistler went through a period of violent socio-economic upheaval as the economy went back in time fifty years, but things eventually settled down. Stephano Wren, the Council Seat for the Miners, was charged with treason for collusion with Jericho and the insurgency and was executed. Some factions faltered, some thrived. Of course, the same old assholes kept control. There were mass sleeper-ship migrations both in and out of the bubble for the first few decades, but people generally ended up where they wanted to be. Things didn't go so well for [[Roberts]], which wasn't terribly self-sufficient to begin with. Most of the population ended up having to resettle on [[Roberts|Myrr]] just to be near a sustainable food source. Danny Feldman and his [[Whistler Defense Force|Guardian]] unit became a sort of colonial marshal service. Keeping the peace amidst the upheaval. For the Bastards, things settled into a new normal. There was plenty to do, and their fame attracted an endless list of elite clientele. Six months after the destruction of Damocles, we were reunited with Tomoe, Julian, Harvey, and Charity. [[Malachai Wheeler|Wheeler]]'s people had gotten the [[Einstein-Rosen Gate|gate]] to Demeter working. Benny let slip that [[Izzy Cordova|Izzy]] Cordova might have been involved. They used it incredibly sparingly, as to not attract the attention of the rest of the Whistler system, but Benny made sure our people made the list. Also on that list was [[Florence Abinde]], and she and Aiden started publishing papers like a pair of over-educated bunnies. I stayed on with the Whistler Union for another year to help them get their new navy up and running, then returned to the private sector. Grove's gravity was too much for my old bones, so I ended up splitting my time between Jericho and [[Foxglove|Nevada City]] in Foxglove. Bought interests in a few shipping concerns. As I said, there was plenty to do. But some things I couldn't let go of. On the third anniversary of [[IBI Your Mother Was A Hamster|Hamster]] escaping Grove, I bought out a restaurant in Jericho City and invited the crew to dinner.... --- The crew has dinner together. After, Jack announces that he intends to "go on an adventure". He goes on to say he can't shake his curiosity at the human civilization back at Earth, and he intends to travel there with Tomoe's help. He asks the rest of the crew if they'd care to join him. Reactions range from enthusiastic to indifferent to outright hostile, with Cara stating that gaining the attention of that "Empire" could be catastrophic for The Reach. In the end, Aiden, Din, Roland, Tomoe, and Julian join the expedition to investigate Earth.