[center][h2]Story Note[/h2][/center]
 
 
China Doll descends through broken cloud toward the surface.  Cal guides her in, with Sam’s navigation directing them toward the coordinates offered by Root.  In the distance, Capital City is a gleaming pinnacle of central planet advancement, the magnificent spires of her towers glowing as they reached for the stars overhead.  Even to those flying in at night, the opulence of both the city and the sprawling suburbs was unmistakable.
 
Not so for the designated “blackout zone.”  As the Firefly dipped in low, the occasional streetlamp or dim glow from shuttered windows could be seen, scant patches of light from a world enveloped in darkness.  Finding their objective, Cal brought the ship to hover above a rough looking patchwork of bare foundations, stark reminders of the buildings that once stood on this ground.
 
Headlamps flashed in the distance; the waiting truck signaled the ‘all clear.’  Though still lacking the finesse of their former pilot’s touch, Cal was able to set the boat down in a fashion that didn’t spark alarm from her human or AI crew.
 
Once China Doll settled, the unloading went quickly.  Rex, Hook, and Cal put their backs into hustling the twelve crates down the ramp and onto the truck’s lift gate.  In just minutes, the job was completed.  The truck sped off, leaving Cal with his payment and a strong sense of unease for what was to happen next.   
 
His orders came quickly.  Rex hurried inside to summon the doc and Edina.  Hook disappeared into the darkness, a rifle slung over his shoulder.
 
As the crew gathered on China Doll’s cargo ramp, the air soon filled with the growing rumble of engines.  The bikers were coming.