She wore a pair of plainbrown shoes with modest 1 inch heels. "Hello," the girl squeaked, "areyou here for the maid's position?" Yes, I'm Michelle. I ...emailed you last week," she said in her sonoroustones."I'm Rachel, the Duchess' assistant," the girl replied, while jugglingher pen and notepad in one hand and offering her the other hand. Michelltook the hand and shook it politely. She had to resist smirking down atthe plain looking midget. What a contrast they must've looked, thebookish. But just in the nick of time, Roger found salvation, for the universe was filled with sentient life, more fortunate than doomed humanity. The derelict vessel was retrieved by Kofa Hato'ir, interstellar archaeologist, renowned for her skill in uncovering the ruins of long-lost civilizations and bringing them to light. Normally, Hato (as she was known to her friends) preferred to leave her finds undisturbed, but she could not allow the brave soul trapped within to perish, and so finally woke. ”He did his best to hold her gaze. He managed, barely.“I need your help.”“Oh?”“Yes. I need to break our no business rule.”“I will not help the Invictus win this war, Jack, you know that.” At least she was calling him Jack, and not Mister Terry.“I know. This isn’t about winning it, this is about ending it. I’m trying to do you a favor.” And himself. Last thing he wanted was a bunch of dead people. Last thing he wanted was to be the one killing them. Last thing he wanted was the Ripper getting. But what is the threat?’ ‘I don’t know. All I know is that it could be serious and it is urgent.’ ‘Right. We will have a nice night exercise around the palace. You will get a flashy escort of lancers, but they will be backed up by vicious looking troops with blackened faces playing around. I’ll take a leaf out of Sir John Moore’s book about the uses of light infantry, but I’ll add a few cannon for effect. Napoleon showed the effectiveness of cannon in street fighting. A few meaty 9 pounders.