Prodigy's Loss

Brandeis Clark has grown bored with spaceflight academy, so when the government offers her an assignment hunting interstellar pirates, she jumps at the chance.But Brandy's home planet, Thurman, has never had a military and doesn't know how to run one. Her training officer does little beyond yell and belittle. Her best friend has a mouse's timidity, not good in a combat pilot. To top it off, one combat engineer keeps distracting Brandy with his penetrating questions and wry humor. A distraction she does not need.The newly minted defense force sends Brandy and the rest of the crew out in a refitted sub-light ship to go on a years-long science mission in hopes these mysterious pirates will attack.Brandy is interstellar bait.