"All right." Jack favoured them both with a nod. He didn't entirely agree with Julian- he knew Ghost was more devoted to taking down Vulcanus than even Jack was, for instance, even if most of the hacker's work was less high-profile than international hostage-taking. Still, the thought counted.

"When I was Ported out of jail, I hadn't been put on trial yet. Because so many of the charges were international, they were taking their time pulling everything together- evidence, witnesses. Technically I haven't been sentenced to anything, unless I've been convicted in absentia." One of the hidden blessings of the Atatla operation being revealed: prosecuting Jack had become a very tangled international affair.

"If that's still the situation, then you should be able to get your hearing," he told Callie. It sounded like a good opportunity. Memories tended to be a bit shorter in the City, with a new crisis or atrocity coming every other week. Enough time had passed that a hearing might be able to make something happen. "Do you know what kind of case I'd have if we got a shot?"