to whom he dictated his answer to Hayes.

*

The press conference was postponed without a future date being set, on
the pretext that new information had just come to light, which must be
relayed to the Secretary of State before further action could be taken.
But even the impassable Bill Miller, Stone's Press Secretary, could
not pull off this announcement without incurring a barrage of stupefied
questions and dissatisfied remarks.

And when news of the postponement spread, along with the undercurrent
of confusion and subdued alarm which accompanied it, even the dullest
Americans began to sense that something was amiss---that real life had
somehow crept onto the peaceful shores of their island. And nearly all
were aware of a strange thrill of fear as their President finally
stepped before the cameras on July 15, looking not at all like himself.

* * *

On June 24, the day that Hayes received the President's reply, the
Third Fleet was once again preparing to go into action. The
coordinates (and victim) of their next attack had already been decided
upon, known only to the General Staff, and to the scientists in charge
of constructing the star gate. All the myriad ships---destroyer
groups, flotillas and task forces, still intact---were once more
huddled within the massive body of the Supercarrier 'Dreadnought',
itself nearly forty kilometers from stem to stern.

The mother vessel, with all its destructive children tucked up inside,
and therefore vulnerable (relatively speaking) to sudden attack, had
been positioned by her masters in the place that this was least likely
to occur---a distant orbit around the sea planet Goethe, where Alliance
ships moved constantly, ready to repel any attempt at a counter-stroke
by the Coalition. The entrance to the star gate was being constructed
outside the extremities of the system, far beyond the considerable pull
of the massive star, Athena.

Though the two capitalist fleets remained in constant contact, it was
understood that there would be no mutual effort or coordinated defense
once the Dreadnought left the system. The two sides had gotten what
they wanted: the Belgians and Swiss the riches of the colonies, as
well as the threat of a powerful ally, and the Commonwealth, an easy
victory with a minimum of casualties. Thus the thief and the bully
would part.

Both sides, meanwhile, were concerned (at least Hayes pre