By Lt. Col. M. Vale (Ret.), DAARQ Ops
The pacing here mirrors a field op done right — not fast, but compressed. Tension builds in layers, not spikes. That’s good. That’s accurate. When you’re inside a black zone or waiting on a sync pulse from orbit, the mind accelerates while the body waits. This story gets that.
The dialogue moves like a briefing between cleared personnel: elliptical, efficient, no wasted syllables. Holden speaks like a man who’s filtered every thought through four encryption keys. Limantour? A wildcard, yes — but she’s deliberate. She drops metaphysics like munitions.
Even the scene beats follow operational rhythm:
• Assess the anomaly (Chrysaora)
• Deploy the rationale (DAARQ, LIGO, Apex)
• Test the agent (Farallon)
• Issue the mission (“From Paris. Tomorrow.”)
Each shift lands clean, like a squad repositioning under cover. You can feel the gravity increasing, not because anyone yells, but because the air gets tighter. That’s how real-world escalation feels.
My only note? This story doesn’t rush — but it pressurizes. And that’s exactly what you want when the stakes are species-level.
Pace is a weapon. And this writer knows how to use it.
— M.V.
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