Space opera cannot but help take many of its cues from whatever military matters rule the day. Whether it is the approaching threat of World War Two or a world in which war is manufactured and sold as a commodity, space opera has managed to respond to and mirror current events.

Vapor spills / from her eyes, / from the pores that nest in her skin, / from her open mouth.

I make sure there's enough space around me, and then I change. No pain like in the movies, just four vulnerable minutes like being very, very drunk. And then, peltless, cold.