Hi everyone!

Just wanted to let you know that A Sky Full of Starlight is currently out, and is being released at a rate of one chapter per week. I intend on increasing the rate once the draft of the last chapter is done (it almost is) so that we can get to the exciting stuff faster.

Since FanFiction has a policy about not adding new chapters just for announcements, here's a meeting with an old acquaintance…

ONE YEAR AFTER A SKY FULL OF THUNDER

Air Force Academy, Colorado, United States

General Kengun had been hoping to spend more of his time relaxing on his week away from the Special Region, but no matter how he tried, he could not get away from people hounding him for details about the latest big discussion in military circles; the aerial engagement vs. Rondel during the latest civil war. At first he had hoped that it would stay limited to just reporters, but when the Americans offered him four million dollars to give a lecture tour at their military academies, it would have been silly to say no. With some broken English and the help of a few translators, he had already discussed the war against Zorzal at West Point, the engagements against Tinae on the Avion Sea at Annapolis, and finally the aerial battles near Italica at Colorado Springs.

The novelty of these discussions wasn't always about strategy. If anything the modern might of the JSDF negated about half of the planning that went into these battles. Rather, they were usually about how magic factored into the tactics of the enemy, and how his subordinates had responded to the tactics. The students at the Air Force academy had been particularly interested in Magical ECM, and he wished that he had brought Kamikoda with him to give the lecture instead.

After half an hour of pleasantries and small talk with the head officers, Kengun was in the process of packing up his lecture notes, when he was surprised to hear a voice in Japanese say, "Kengun Shunya, it has been so long!"

Kengun looked up from his documents to identify the USAF officer. His hair was thinner since they'd last talked, and his rank was different, but he did remember the face. "Ah, Richard Mullan!" Kengun said. "I'm sorry, the rank confused me. You were a Colonel when we last met."

"So were you!"

Mullan had been a Colonel back then… in the American strategic missile forces. He had been the one managing the mobile rocket launchers that had caused so much trouble nearly a decade ago.

"Very true. I heard that they moved you to Korea for a while, but nothing after that. What are you up to these days?"

Mullan offered a thin smile and said, "Research and Development. I wish I could tell you more, but you know how these things work… do you have time to get coffee?"

Kengun was somewhat tired and had hoped to go straight back to his apartment for an hour or two-he found talking with Americans to be mentally taxing-but Mullan was a special case. After all, they shared a history, including a major battle against Hardy and Giselle. There was also the bomb, but he suspected that Mullan wouldn't want to talk about that. He certainly didn't. "Of course," Kengun said. "Please, lead the way."

Several minutes later, drinks in hand, Mullan opened up with, "How have things changed over there, now that the travel treaty is in place?"

"You were over there… nine years ago? You would hardly recognize the place," Kengun said. "So much development, so many new buildings...it reminds me of some of the bigger towns in Hokkaido, but with less snow. I used to be able to travel much of the settlement by memory, but now sometimes even I get lost. Due to the time difference there is also always noise coming from the Gate. My biggest regret, I think, is that if you look up at night you can no longer see the stars due to the light pollution."

"And the foreign investment hasn't given you any trouble?"

"None yet, though we are keeping a close eye on certain Chinese projects… but they have come to understand that Alnus is still Japan, and they must follow our rules in public. I have heard that they are trying to buy land from Elbe and Alguna, but we shall see how that goes. The Falmart Republic already turned down offers at Sherry's claim that she does not want to compete with East Asian labor markets if she can help it."

Mullan nodded. "I've never met her myself, but the girl earned quite a reputation. Speaking of leadership, I hear that you're also under new management?"

Kengun looked like Mullan had just offered him something foul. "Just because Kouhara is now Prime Minister does not mean she has earned the respect of the armed forces. You will never hear Minister Nomura say it publicly, but all the officers know of her role in ruining Hazama's career."

"Are you worried that she's after your head too?"

The Japanese General shrugged. "All I know is that she sees us as a tool for her own power. It makes me uncomfortable."

"I understand how you feel. We've had an administration or two like that in recent memory. Hopefully the Diet understands too."

Kengun nodded thoughtfully, paused to take a sip of his drink and said, "May I ask you about something sensitive? If it bothers you, we can change the topic at any time."

"If you want."

"Did you hear about the Gate-fire over Ichijima?"

Mullan took perhaps a beat longer to respond than Kengun was hoping for. "I've heard rumors," he said.

"Do you know anything about it?"

"Nope."

"I see…" Kengun knew that Mullan was trained to lie; he had done so for weeks with the Midgetman rockets at Alnus.

So why did he approach me? The conversation so far had been steered in this direction. Kengun could feel that much. The Gate treaty should have signaled to the US military that the JSDF knew about the new American weapon, and as Mullan had a background in the Special Region, Gates, strategic weapons, and was apparently now working in R&D, he was the most likely person to have known if such a weapon existed.

There could only be one reason. His signal had gotten through, and this American, or perhaps America as a whole, wanted to talk.

A strange talk, he decided. Neither of us can say what we know to be true. "Supposing such a device existed, it would be quite groundbreaking."

"I agree."

"It would also be extraordinarily dangerous."

"I guess, depending on how you used it."

"Would you, if you had a device like that?"

Mullan sat back and appeared to think about it. "Once upon a time, I told an engineer from NASA that Magic was the new nuke. There's truth to that, I think, not just in how devastating it could be if used, but in how I imagine superpowers would treat it if they got their hands on it. I would like to believe that if the United States ever decided to use magic in weapons, it would do so responsibly and without intent to regularly use. I would hope Japan would say the same."

"And you, personally?"

Mullan grinned. "I never thought I'd fire a nuclear-tipped rocket before, but here we are. You know how things went at Alnus with Bellnahgo. I do what I'm told… if you take my meaning."

It wasn't what we was hoping for, but under the circumstances, Kengun supposed that it was the best he could ask for. "That's how the job works, after all," Kengun said with a smile and curt nod, and mockingly held up his coffee cup like a beer glass. "To deeper meanings."

The chuckle he got in reply from Mullan was the most calming thing he'd heard on the whole lecture tour. "To deeper meanings!"