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Reinhardt was nodding. “Saturn Group will await your command, Admiral.”
Rick heard something wrong—not in the words Reinhardt had used, nor in the way he voiced them, but on some undefined level of meaning. He contemplated this for a moment, trying but failing to isolate his discomfort. “If anything goes awry …” he started to say.
“Sir?” Reinhardt asked in concern.
Rick noticed that Vince had adopted the same questioning look. “These are contingencies, gentlemen, nothing more than that. But I want us to be clear on one thing: in the event we can’t penetrate that shield, the neutron ‘S’ missiles are to be used to saturate the area.”
Vince and Reinhardt looked grim now, and Rick could hardly fault them for it. The resultant explosions would irradiate the northern hemisphere for a full century to come.
“The alternative is to surrender our homeworld,” Rick thought to add. The option had been oft-stated and discussed these past months, but both the council and the REF had ultimately rejected it.
“Maybe she’ll decide to leave,” Vince said. “Just pack up her Children and fly away, give the planet back to us.”
Rick snorted. “You’re talking miracles, Vince. And we haven’t seen one of those around here in a long time.”
It’s like old times, Jack Baker was telling himself elsewhere on the fortress.
Karen had wandered off on Baldan’s arm, leaving him alone for the first time all afternoon, and Gnea was suddenly winking at him from across the hold. He still couldn’t believe she was here—couldn’t believe any of them would want a stake in this mission—but here they were: Gnea and a few of her Sisterhood warriors, Baldan, Lron and Crysta, even Kami and Learna. The two Garudans, it turned out, had been undergoing special treatments for the past two years that enabled them to function outside their atmosphere for extended periods without the use of transpirators, but they were wearing them just now, looking exactly as they had when Jack had first seen them.
Building ships, harvesting and transporting Flowers, cooking up that Protoculture, and assembling weapons systems just hadn’t been enough for them. Not when word got around that the Terrans’ homeworld had fallen to the Invid. Jack liked it—the loyalty and esprit de corps, the Sentinels’ way with payback.
He was showing Gnea a broad smile when he realized that Karen had turned around to watch him. He winced and averted her gaze; old times, indeed.
From the adjacent hold in this retrofitted portion of the fortress came the sound of booming laughter—Zentraedi vocal thunder from Kazianna and the rest. Probably that Drannin pulling some stunt again, Jack decided. Nothing cuter than a five-year-old giant-size kid when it came to pranks. And parents used to think they had problems with the terrible twos. The Zentraedi were like some lost tribe the REF had adopted; rescued from the brink of extinction.
The only Sentinels missing were Bela, whose duties of state kept her on New Praxis; Cabell, who was going to hang behind in Base Tirol with Tiresia’s clones and REF settlers; Veidt, who had become something of Exedore’s teammate on Haydon IV; and Max and Miriya, who had taken their family back there as well.
But Rem was aboard—more likely to be found in the company of Lynn-Minmei than Professor Lang—and Vince and Jean Grant were here in spirit.
So, for that matter, were Dana Sterling’s companions from the 15th—although Jack had yet to make up his mind about that bunch. Sean and Marie were all right, and Dante was regular army; but Bowie and those two Tiresian twins, Musica and Allegra, were something else again. Scuttlebutt had it that Dana had actually pulled out because of Rem—something about him worked a strange number on her—but who could tell? Dante apparently didn’t like him much either.
Jack turned for a moment to watch Karen with Baldan. Triangles again, he thought. Me and Karen and Baldan—or maybe Gnea! Dante, Dana, and Rem … Maybe Minmei would just throw herself in with those two Tiresian sisters …
He let out an exasperated sigh; no time now for this kind of weirdness in his life.
And when General Quarters sounded a minute later he was glad to hear it. Earth was the next stop, and all this would soon be behind them.
One moment the ships that comprised the Saturn Group were there and the next moment they were gone, no trace of their passing save for short-lived fluctuations in the continuum, eddies assessable solely by the SDF-3’s sophisticated instrumentalities, or intelligences beyond the ken of the fortress’s Human and XT personnel.
“Saturn’s away,” Forsythe said from one of the forward duty stations on the bridge.
Lisa swiveled her chair toward Rick’s.
“Don’t let it bother you,” he said before she could speak. “We’ll catch up.”
He had left the TIC only moments before to join her for the launch and spacefold. He was aware that one part of him was concerned for Roy, and in this he and Lisa were united. She stretched her hand out to touch his shoulder.
“Dr. Lang on-screen,” Toler announced from behind them.
“Lisa, Rick,” Lang said, “we are clear for prefold.”
As Lisa ran through a litany of commands with her crew, Rick could feel a low-level vibration spread itself outward from the guts of the ship. The fortress was already surging forward, passing beyond Fantoma’s innermost moon and skirting the very edge of the giant’s ring-plane.
“Commence fold,” he heard Lisa order at the bottom of the countdown.
The fortress gave a Richterlike shudder; the stars became elongated lines of light …
“Admiral!” someone shouted, a panicked voice from the edge of nowhere. “The engines—they’re not responding!”
Rick’s eyes found Lisa’s across a horizonless space. They reached across infinity for each other’s touch …
In a spacious dataroom on Haydon IV, Exedore and Veidt were bent over a monitor board attempting to decipher a complex passage of historical text. It was of minor importance in the scheme of things, but the Zentraedi and the Haydonite were as attentive to it as they would have been toward some issue of grand and pressing concern.
Behind them was a veritable wall of computer mainframes and neural networks that stretched for miles in either direction, the material interface with Haydon IV’s planetary Awareness.
Both Exedore and Veidt were vaguely attuned to the fact that light-years away in Fantomaspace the REF fleet was readying itself for departure. But lost in the intricacies of the ancient text’s glyphic code now, they had all but forgotten the importance of the moment.
Until something occurred that literally shook them from their shared trance. Without a prompt, the circuitry of the Awareness had come alive.
The two beings swung around to regard the wall’s flashing displays, its near-violent paroxysm as power surged from relay to relay.
Haydon! Veidt sent to Exedore with telepathic urgency. He has returned to our world!
FOR RICHARD BAEHR AND
THE STRAIGHT AND TRUE CREW AT
BENDER’S YARD
By Jack McKinney
Published by Ballantine Books
THE ROBOTECH™ SERIES
GENESIS #1
BATTLE CRY #2
HOMECOMING #3
BATTLEHYMN #4
FORCE OF ARMS #5
DOOMSDAY #6
SOUTHERN CROSS #7
METAL FIRE #8
THE FINAL NIGHTMARE #9
INVID INVASION #10
METAMORPHOSIS #11
SYMPHONY OF LIGHT #12
THE SENTINELS™ SERIES
THE DEVIL’S HAND #1
DARK POWERS #2
DEATH DANCE #3
WORLD KILLERS #4
RUBICON #5
ROBOTECH: THE END OF THE CIRCLE #18
KADUNA MEMORIES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jack McKinney has been a psychiatric aide, fusion-rock guitarist and session man, worldwide wilderness guide, and “consultant” to the U.S. Military in Southeast Asia (although they had to draft him for that).
His numerous other works of mainstream and science fiction—novels, radio and television scripts—have been written under various pseudonyms.
He resides in Ubud, on the Indonesian island of Bali.
APPENDIX
Thanks to the magic of electronic publishing, it has become practical to update the classic Robotech novelizations. Many of these changes are simple spelling and grammar corrections while others are minor continuity corrections which were made to more closely match the events of the television episodes. Such continuity updates were made where we felt it could be done without too much disruption to the original prose, and left alone in other instances where we felt the disruption would outweigh the benefit. For those of you curious about the specific changes made, we offer the following list of updates and errata:
UPDATES TO ALL CHAPTERS:
Different spellings of Jonathan Wolff’s last name have been updated to “Wolfe,” which was the spelling Carl Macek settled on in later books.
The spelling of “Regis” has been updated to “Regess” (feminine of Regent).
Miriya Parino’s last name corrected to “Parina” to match the TV show.
“Quadrono” updated to “Quadrano”
UPDATES:
Print page 108:
Changed “five years” to “two and a half years”
Print page 108:
Significant changes made to the years on this entire page to fit more consistently with revised continuity, which is compounded by the fact that this part of the story deals with time dilation.
Print page 110:
Changed “fifty-foot-high” to “forty-foot-high”
Print page 160:
Changed “We are arived” to “We have arrived”
Print page 185:
Changed “2025 but 2030” to “2027 but 2030”
Print page 185:
Updated “five years older” to “several years older”
Print page 185:
Changed “some four years after” to “years after”
Print page 191:
Changed [2034] to [2042]
ERRATA:
Print page 184 has the first mention of Rick and Lisa having a child, but in Prelude To The Shadow Chronicles they lose their child due to Edwards’ attack on the SDF-3.
Carl Macek’s notes for a continuation of Robotech after The New Generation and The Sentinels were loosely adapted into the 1989 novel The End of the Circle, which looped the Robotech saga into a circular storyline, though in a different manner than Macek had intended. Fans of the Jack McKinney novels may recognize some of the story elements in Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles, but the forthcoming story arc will take a new and different direction from that of the novel.
A marker point has been placed into the Fourth Novel of The Sentinels series at a time in which stories start to change drastically. This occurs at the point of Lynn Kyle’s death and from there extends forward through out the series, changing something but keeping other elements. You will find many differences such as Kyle being found by Rick Hunter and Jean Grant in the comics; it was not so in the books. With all the changes that occur you are given a whole new story line with familiarity and fantastic artwork to help you transition into the new world of Robotech found after The Sentinels.
ROBOTECH CHRONOLOGY
1999 A.D.
An Alien spaceship crash-lands on Earth. Effectively ending almost a decade of Global Civil War. Originally called “The Visitor,” the ship is dubbed Super Dimensional Fortress I—the SDF-1
Dr. Emil Lang, after an initial recon of the ship (in the company of Roy Fokker, Henry Gloval, T.R. Edwards, and others), begins to unravel the secrets of the extraterrestrial science known as Robotech.
Macross Island becomes the focal point of Robotechnology, and restoration commences on the SDF-1
In another part of the galaxy, Zor is killed by Invid Soldiers during a Flower of Life seeding attempt. The Zentraedi Breetai is wounded during the same raid. Commander in chief Dolza orders Commander Reno to return Zor’s body to the Robotech Masters on Tirol.
Interstellar war with the Invid, whose homeworld, Optera, has been defoliated by the Zentraedi, continues to chip away at the fringes of the Master’ galactic empire.
2002 A.D.
Disaster at the Mars Base Sara, Lisa Hayes’s boyfriend, Karl Riber, is killed. Lisa Turns 17.
Development of the reconfigurable Veritech Fighter begins.
On Tirol, Cabell creates Rem by cloning tissue from Zor. The Masters, too, have their way with Zor’s body, cloning tissue for their own purposes and extracting from the scientist’s residual cellular memories a vision of Earth—destination of the fortress and Protoculture matrix he has stolen and spirited from their grasp.
2003-08 A.D.
Rose of the United Earth Defense Council under the leadership of Senator Russo, Admiral Hayes, T.R. Edwards, and others.
Roy Fokker and Claudia Grant become fast friends.
Lisa Hayes is assigned to the SDF-1 project on Macross, under the command of Captain Henry Gloval.
Tommy Luan is elected mayor of Macross City
2009 A.D.
On the SDF-1’s launch day the Zentraedi (after a ten-year search for Zor’s fortress and the missing Protoculture matrix) appear and lay siege to Macross Island. The fortress makes an accidental hyperspace jump to Pluto, carrying the island and its population of 75,000 along with it. 15-year old Lynn Minmei and 19-year-old Rick Hunter are caught up in the spacefold.
2009-2011 A.D.
The SDF-1 begins its way back to Earth with Macross City rebuilt inside its massive holds.
Rick Hunter joins the RDF and earns the rank of Lieutenant, with Ben Dixon and Max Sterling assigned to his VT squadron.
The Battle at Saturn’s Rings.
Lynn Minmei is voted “Miss Macross.”
Breetai calls up the Botoru Battalion, led by the notorious “Khyron the Backstabber.”
The Battle at Mars Base Sara.
Rick, Lisa, Max, and Ben are captured by Breetai and interrogated by the Zentraedi commander in chief, Dolza.
The Earth forces learn of the term “Protoculture” for the first time.
Three “micronized” Zentraedi spies- Rock, Konda, and Bron – are successfully inserted into the SDF-1, which returns back to Earth.
Lynn Minmei is reunited with her cousin, Lynn-Kyle.
Rick Hunter is seriously wounded during a Zentraedi attack on the fortress.
Roy Fokker is killed during a raid led by Miriya Parino.
After almost six months on Earth, the SDF-1 is ordered to leave by the leaders of the UEDC.
Ben Dixon is killed.
Little White Dragon is aired.
The Minmei Cult has its beginning aboard the flagship of the Zentraedi fleet.
Lynn-Kyle founds a peace movement aboard the SDF-1.
Asylum is granted to the three Zentraedi spies, and their fellow defectors.
Max Sterling weds former Zentraedi Quadrano ace Miriya Parino.
Exedore arrives aboard the SDF-1 for peace talks.
The Zentraedi armada appears in Earth-space and lays waste to much of the Planet.
At Alaska Base, the Grand Cannon is destroyed after it returns fire “in a damaged state” and Admiral Hayes is killed. T.R. Edwards survives and vows to avenge himself on Rick and Lisa “who did not stop to help rescue T.R. Edwards.”
The SDF-1, with assistance from Lynn Minmei’s singing, defeats Dolza’s armada of four million ships and returns to a ravaged Earth.
2012-2014 A.D.
A period of reconstruction begins, with humans and Zentraedi working side by side.
Dana Sterling and Bowie Grant (son of Claudia Grant’s brother, Vince) are born.
The factory satellite is captured from Commander Reno and folded to Earth-space.
Dr. Lang and Professor Lazlo Zand begin work on a secret project involving artificial intelligence. Zand takes particular interes
t in the infant Dana and under goes a Protoculture mind boost.
Khyron makes a surprise appearance and takes Minmei and Lynn-Kyle hostage.
The destruction of New Macross, the SDF-1 and SDF-2, along with Khyron’s forces. Henry Gloval, Claudia Grant, Sammie Porter, Vanessa Leeds, and Kim Young are among the many casualties. The remains of the three ships are in tomb and buried under tons of earthen debris dredged up from Lake Gloval.
2015-2017 A.D.
The Robotech Masters lose confidence in their race of warrior clones and begin a mass pilgrimage through interstellar space to Earth to recapture Zor’s Protoculture matrix.
Zentraedi Malcontent Uprisings in the Southlands Control Zone (South America). Jonathan Wolfe comes to the attention of Commander Max Sterling.
The Robotech Expeditionary Force is formed for the express purpose of journeying to Tirol to sue for peace with the Robotech Masters. Aboard the factory satellite, work commences on the SDF-3.
Rise of Monument city and Anatole Leonard’s Army of the Southern Cross.
Lynn Minmei takes on a singing partner, the android JANICE, at Emil Lang’s urging.
The Invid complete their conquest of Garuda, Praxis, Karbarra, and Spheris.
2022 A.D.
Rick Hunter and Lisa Hayes wed aboard the Factory Satellite. Dana and Bowie are given over to the care of Rolf and Laura Emerson.
The SDF-3 is launched.