quoth the raven (XXVIII):

there is a period in any war between the first blow and the second. it's a quiet moment, almost a tranquil time, when the realization of what has happened is just sinking in and everyone feels they know what happens next. some prepare to flee. some prepare to hit back. but no one moves. not yet.
it's a perfect moment, the time when the ball is at the highest point of the throw. the action has been taken, and for one frozen moment everything is moving, but everything is at rest.
then there are those jackasses who can't leave such things alone. and the ball starts downward again, the second blow is thrown, and we plunge into the maelstrom.

the liberty manifesto, by michael daniel liberty // by jeff grubb, starcraft: liberty's crusade, published by pocket books science fiction, 2001