The Sun Tzu was less than three hours from Shard when Perseid called Scott to the Command Deck. Scott was annoyed, in the middle of prepping his Battlenaut for landfall, but he also wondered what Perseid might want.
When the door to the Command Deck opened, Scott had to take a moment to get used to the place again. He hadn't been there since his first day aboard the ship, and the illusion of standing unprotected in open space made him feel a little dizzy.
On the other hand, the sight of the gray and silver planet up ahead was familiar to him by now. Shard had been on his mind a lot lately; he'd been studying it for days, memorizing landmarks, flora, and fauna that could help him survive its hostile environment. He'd been helping to plot strategies for battle on its surface, ways to d
