Expert Among the Enemy

The weather was fine in Utah in November. The sun was shining on the reddish-brown Rocky Mountains. The empty and distant layers of mountains overlapped the vast wilderness of a great yellow sand desert. From time to time, fighter jets took off from Ovi Air Force Base leaving long wisps of white smoke trails that lingered in the blue, transparent sky. There was a heavy fragrance of lily in the air. Utah wasn't a very busy place, and Little Rock Canyon was not a place with lots of people, but because Laris, the commander of the Pacific Fleet, was visiting today, the somewhat desolate little town suddenly grew with excitement. The entrance of the highway, which used to be empty and quiet, was now filled with police cars with flashing lights blocking all the highway exits, waiting for Laris' fleet to pass.