"So the child is on the ship back?"
"I'd hardly refer to him as a child."
"That's what he is."
"This 'child' is the reason you're butt isn't frying in a Formic laser right now."
"FINE! Is Ender Wiggins on the ship back?"
"He is being loaded as we speak."
"What about his sister, Valentine isn't it?"
"She's being kept on the planet."
"Why isn't she being brought back also?"
"Do you want to increase Peter Wiggins' mental state or decrease it?"
"You mean her return might push him over the edge?"
"The man's living with his parents writing political theories after a childhood of torturing animals and
his brother... What do you think?"
"Point taken."
"Good."
***
The shuttle-car pulled into the cargo area of a large carrier-plane.
"We've arrived."
Bean rolled his eyes.
As if the trip hadn't been bad enough without stating such obvious facts.
Bean got out and stood by the door.
"This way." Said the guard leading Bean toward the front of the plane.
Bean jerked away and crossed to the front, pressing his palm onto the palm-pad to open the door.
He walked to a seat and sat down, followed by the guard.
The pilot walked in a few moments later and palmed open the door to the pilot's room.
A moment later Bean heard the grinding of gears as the back closed.
He studied his surroundings.
It wasn't furnished with anything other than the seats and lights.
Not even windows.
That meant the trip wouldn't take long.
No less than an hour.
And any ship that could make a trip that long, that fast would be top-of-the-line.
That meant this was serious.
Taking the fact that the I.F was in bad legal and economical state, the fact that they would go to such
pains to get Bean to his destination as quickly as possible at any cost meant this was serious.
This was more than the world-wide hegemony he had been expecting.
This was to soon to fight that war.
Bean was fairly sure the war would come, just not yet.
So this war was going to be on earth, but who with if not a hegemony.
Or would it?
Maybe this war would prevent a worldwide hegemony.
Maybe it would institute it.
But no, the I.F didn't want worldwide leadership.
They would lose some lives if they could prevent that.
So it would be to prevent one?
Or was there another invasion coming?
No.
That made no since.
Why not stop an invasion while in space?
Why take the risk of letting them get closer?
It must be preventing a worldwide hegemony.
But did Bean really want to do so?
Yes.
He did, come to think of it.
He may prefer worldwide power, but he wanted some say in it.
Any hegemony wouldn't do.
The earth needed the right hegemony and that required someone who knew about current politics with
unbiased opinions.
Bean could only think of two people like that.
Himself and Peter Wiggins, but getting to Wiggins would be difficult once Ender returned and Ender was on
his way back at that very moment.
Frozen cryogenically and being shot a speeds too fast to measure back to earth.
After all a fifty year journey back wouldn't do anyone any good.
But what nation already had the power to take control.
Or thought it did Bean realized.
None of them actually had the power, but if their rulers were conceited enough they might take action ahead
of schedule.
The only people who might be in that position though were... Bean was, for the second time of the day, shocked.
The only nation in that position was the US.
They were flying into enemy zone.
"I'd hardly refer to him as a child."
"That's what he is."
"This 'child' is the reason you're butt isn't frying in a Formic laser right now."
"FINE! Is Ender Wiggins on the ship back?"
"He is being loaded as we speak."
"What about his sister, Valentine isn't it?"
"She's being kept on the planet."
"Why isn't she being brought back also?"
"Do you want to increase Peter Wiggins' mental state or decrease it?"
"You mean her return might push him over the edge?"
"The man's living with his parents writing political theories after a childhood of torturing animals and
his brother... What do you think?"
"Point taken."
"Good."
***
The shuttle-car pulled into the cargo area of a large carrier-plane.
"We've arrived."
Bean rolled his eyes.
As if the trip hadn't been bad enough without stating such obvious facts.
Bean got out and stood by the door.
"This way." Said the guard leading Bean toward the front of the plane.
Bean jerked away and crossed to the front, pressing his palm onto the palm-pad to open the door.
He walked to a seat and sat down, followed by the guard.
The pilot walked in a few moments later and palmed open the door to the pilot's room.
A moment later Bean heard the grinding of gears as the back closed.
He studied his surroundings.
It wasn't furnished with anything other than the seats and lights.
Not even windows.
That meant the trip wouldn't take long.
No less than an hour.
And any ship that could make a trip that long, that fast would be top-of-the-line.
That meant this was serious.
Taking the fact that the I.F was in bad legal and economical state, the fact that they would go to such
pains to get Bean to his destination as quickly as possible at any cost meant this was serious.
This was more than the world-wide hegemony he had been expecting.
This was to soon to fight that war.
Bean was fairly sure the war would come, just not yet.
So this war was going to be on earth, but who with if not a hegemony.
Or would it?
Maybe this war would prevent a worldwide hegemony.
Maybe it would institute it.
But no, the I.F didn't want worldwide leadership.
They would lose some lives if they could prevent that.
So it would be to prevent one?
Or was there another invasion coming?
No.
That made no since.
Why not stop an invasion while in space?
Why take the risk of letting them get closer?
It must be preventing a worldwide hegemony.
But did Bean really want to do so?
Yes.
He did, come to think of it.
He may prefer worldwide power, but he wanted some say in it.
Any hegemony wouldn't do.
The earth needed the right hegemony and that required someone who knew about current politics with
unbiased opinions.
Bean could only think of two people like that.
Himself and Peter Wiggins, but getting to Wiggins would be difficult once Ender returned and Ender was on
his way back at that very moment.
Frozen cryogenically and being shot a speeds too fast to measure back to earth.
After all a fifty year journey back wouldn't do anyone any good.
But what nation already had the power to take control.
Or thought it did Bean realized.
None of them actually had the power, but if their rulers were conceited enough they might take action ahead
of schedule.
The only people who might be in that position though were... Bean was, for the second time of the day, shocked.
The only nation in that position was the US.
They were flying into enemy zone.