Space Angel

The engines rumbled, and I jerked forward as something ripped me from hyperspace. I was a private contractor for the military, responsible for scouting out ships for advanced troop deployment. I missed them so badly. My wife, Annette, and two young daughters, Marissa and Clementine, were always waiting for me at home after every excursion in space. That was before the event. I lost track of time long ago, but it feels like a decade or more has passed. I was trying to slingshot around a planet to gain some speed, but something malfunctioned on my