Sneak Peek—Stories from The Expanding Universe Anthology #4: ‘One Last Battle’ by Timothy Ellis

There are 20 short stories in the latest volume of Craig Martelle’s The Expanding Universe anthologies. Today, with Craig's permission, we are taking a sneak peek at the start of Timothy Ellis’sstory, ‘One Last Battle’. Here’s how it begins:----------------------------------------------------------------
This story occurs 100 years before the beginning of Hero at Large, in the Hunter Legacy Universe. Yorktown Recon fleet, scouting the Cuba system in Earth sector, 2515.
One
I was only on the launch deck for one reason.
The shuttle was taking me to an evac hospital, for invaliding home. I was in the seat, duffel stowed, pondering the end of my flying career. They said I’d never fly again. They said if I ever tried, I'd kill myself doing it. And most likely others as well.
I didn’t get it. I could do everything except run and fight. They didn’t want me. It was easier to train a new pilot. Fleet wanted command officers out of fleet officer school, not battered ex-fighter jocks.
"Now hear this! All pilots to your fighters. Launch by squadrons. This is not a drill."
I didn’t need to see, to know what was happening. I’d lived it so many times, I was out of my seat and halfway to the hatch, before I realized it didn’t include me. The non-com on the door looked at me as if I was crazy. But I didn’t stop. ----------------------------------------------------------------Would you like to read more? 
The Expanding Universe #4 is now available on Amazon. You can also find Volume 1, The Expanding Universe: An Exploration of Science Fiction Genre , Volume 2, The Expanding Universe: Exploring the Science Fiction Genre , and Volume 3, The Expanding Universe 3: Space Opera, Military SciFi, Space Adventure, & Alien Contact! on Amazon in paperback.