St. Vincent is not so boring anymore, Gavin thought to himself as he stepped through the quiet streets. Of course, the prospect of action is enough to make any planet more exciting.
Along with the news of Lincoln Osis' elevation to ilKhan, some of the clan worlds had reported attempted raids by trinary-sized units from the inner sphere. Such a doubled prospect of action quickened Gavin's heart. He felt like a Jaguar hunting at the verge of dawn, greeted with the scent of prey. All he had to do was endure, and the prey might come to him. The Jaguar might even stalk through the inky blackness of the universe, taking down planets with ruthless efficiency. Such a hunt was well worth waiting for.
Oddly enough, Gavin found himself considering the civilian side of the invasion. On some worlds, the fierce fighting had gutted industrial and residential centers, killing hundreds, if not thousands of civilians. With disgust the 'mechwarrior thought of Turtle Bay, and the commander who had annihilated the city of Edo with a warship. Such wasteful killing of civilians who knew no better angered Gavin. He had heard reports of action on Hyner, and the destruction of civilian townships.
On one hand, he sympathized with the commanding officers, who had been fed up with the annoying resistance some of the little surats put up. Such belligerence towards warriors was totally and completely uncalled for. On the other hand, these civilians were being stirred up by filthy bandits, survivors of the initial invasion that had fled instead of fighting to the death. It was the nature of the lower castes to support whatever position benefited them the most. The civilians of the inner sphere were like Gill-manders. The soft-bodied amphibians lived completely underwater. Although they could survive on land, the 'manders would rush back to a body of water at the earliest opportunity. Over time, however, the Gill-manders became used to the land, and rarely went back into the water. The new lower castemen, given sufficient time, would realize that the Clans were superior to the Inner Sphere in the same way the Gill-Manders discovered that it was easier to live on land than underwater.
When they cease to think of us as predators who will crush them, they will cease attempting to flee back to the Inner Sphere.
Gavin was a predator. But he was a different kind of predator. He preyed upon other predators. Other 'mech pilots, flyers, elementals, even the warriors of the inner sphere. Here it is.
The crowd in the restaurant was low, but that crowd included a couple of the Sixth's warriors. With a start, Gavin recognized Star Colonel Logan Moon sitting at a table in the back of the main dining area. Joanna Perez was there as well, along with Star Captain Edick Showers, commander of Bravo Battle Trinary.
The Star Colonel may not want me hanging around him, especially when he is meeting with Star Captains. On the other hand, he might believe I am snubbing him.
Gavin shrugged, and ordered a table near the piano. Hopefully, Rika would be here tonight. If the Star Colonel wanted Gavin's presence, he could invite the junior officer over.
The main dining hall was impressive with its high ceiling and Grecian columns. From the waiting room, one descended a short staircase to the actual level of the floor, making the ceiling more impressive. Around the circular stage that occupied the center of the room stood circular tables, scattered in clusters of two or three and suitable four up to four people. On level with the actual entrance, separated from the main room by a low balcony that strung its way between each column, was a second tier of tables. This secondary area was darkly lit, focusing the attention on the center of the room and the stage that occupied it. The entire room was lavishly decorated in gold-embroidered red fabric that complemented the grandiose columns and made the area feel positively imperial.
The waiter spoke properly without stammering, which improved Gavin's opinion of the place immeasurably. After ordering a roast pikemanfish, potatoes au gratin, and a light wine, he settled down to enjoy the dinner, and wait for Rika's appearance.
He had just cleared the last bit of food from his plate and ordered dessert when she appeared, clad in a long, low-cut dress that shimmered, but it was impossible to tell what color the material was. When the lights dimmed, and the pianist set up her large E-reader, the dress began to glow. Refracted light of all colors flashed over the dress every time Rika moved. The display reminded Gavin of the aurora that cloaked his Night Gyr during night operations. The dress turned into a sheathe of flame, then a cloak of green-blue watery depths, a deep royal violet, and a hundred other variations and patterns as the shades of visible light waged war, clashing and blending and swirling against and among each other. Gavin was so distracted by Rika's dress that he never noticed exactly when Rika began playing.
The onset of the music took him so suddenly it felt like a trap door had opened up under his consciousness and sent it plummeting into an atmosphere of sound. It was the same kind of music he had heard before, but it was also different. The speed, the key, everything about the music was different except the flow of it. Under the tutelage of Rika's slender fingers the audible stream rushed into a river and came hurtling down the heights of passion into an abyss of dark and darkly moving sadness. The sounds created any of a hundred emotions- love, sorrow, joy, sickness, disillusionment, enchantment, beauty. Sharper than any blade, the edge of the music twisted and cut straight to Gavin's heart, then refused the merciful killing and soared and swooped and struck again, then changed its tack and sent his mind reeling back and soaring in every possible direction.
The slice of chocolate ore pie went neglected for a span of hours as its buyer lost himself in Rika's music.
*
Gavin sat at his table, lost in thought. Rika's performance had already ended, it left him to deal with the emotions it had stirred up.
"Star Commander Gavin." Gavin looked around and was greeted with an excellent view of Star Captain Joanna Perez's muscular thighs and pelvis. The massive Elemental bent forward slightly, the height difference between 'mechwarrior and elemental exacerbated when the former sat and the latter stood. "The Star Colonel wishes that you would join us at his table." Surprised by the elemental and surprised by the offer, Gavin hesitated for a second.
"Affirmative." The elemental nodded and stalked, cat-like, back to Moon's table. Gavin sighed, rose from his chair, and followed her.
Logan Moon, whose dark, bronzed skin appeared even darker in the dimmed light greeted Gavin with as he neared the table.
"Star Commander Gavin, it would seem another clan officer has fallen under the spell of that instrument and its mistress, quiaff?"
"Aff. Given the ability of the performance, and the beauty of the music, I can only assume this is a condition I share with you, Star Colonel."
"Aff. It is the reason I enjoy this place."
"It makes one think differently about the lower castes."
"How so? Speak on, Star Commander."
"Here is a person who has dedicated herself to something capable of moving the greatest warriors to their knees. The training must have taken years. This artist is someone who has undergone a completely different kind of training, in a field that in no way resembles our own, and yet the practice and time must have taken years and required a level of dedication comparable to becoming a warrior."
"Interesting. I see your point. The music does add a new dimension to life."
"It should be considered wasteful," interjected Star Captain Edick Showers, "but I hesitate to characterize it as such."
"Waste implies uselessness. Yet there are certainly merits to music. I consider the past few hours well-spent." Said the Star Colonel, looking deeply into his glass of Illytia wine. The dark liquid drank as much light as Moon's gaze, and Gavin got the feeling that here was another Smoke Jaguar who deviated from the mold of the clan warrior. The elemental Star Captain spoke her thoughts.
"Aff, the music was beautiful, but I do not see that it has a use."
"It certainly sounds better than the alarms in my 'mech cockpit."
"Aff, Edick Showers, but those alarms are what keep you alive. What use is this music before a battle?" Questioned the elemental. "It is certainly pretty, and difficult to perform, but what lies in it besides those qualities?"
"I think, Joanna Perez, that I may possess the answer to your question." Logan Moon spoke carefully, phrasing his thoughts with precision. "In ancient times, armies played certain kinds of music before battles, in an attempt to give themselves a psychological edge. In the days before such simple communication devices as the radio were developed, bugles were used to signal orders to an army. Here are two ways in which music has shown itself useful."
"I doubt the effect on morale."
Gavin broke in, saying "Was not some small part of you affected by the music we have heard, quiaff?"
"Star Commander, that is a purely emotional response."
"So you claim, Star Captain, that emotions do not affect your actions. I do not think you would be a warrior if you did not enjoy battle. Enjoyment is an emotion."
"I shall grant you that point, Star Commander." Gavin fought to keep a smile from his face at Joanna's acquiescence.
"You may have to grant him other points besides that one, Joanna Perez. Gavin can be tenacious both in and outside of the cockpit."
"I would be more relaxed outside of combat if you fired your gauss rifle less often." Moon got the gibe, but the other commanders did not, they had not been present during Alpha Trinary's unit exercises two days ago.
"I merely reminded you of the shortcomings of a short-range weapons configuration." Logan Moon glanced at the two Star Captains to see if they understood the joke. "In our last set of unit exercises, I had to fend off both of my Star Commanders several times." Joanna Perez looked surprised, but Edick Showers' grimace showed he sympathized with the Star Colonel.
"Aff, everyone wants to prove himself against the commanding officer." Showers looked straight at Gavin. "It can be very tiring." Gavin raised his hands in a gesture of innocence.
"You should talk to Star Commander Aurin, then. He set the precedent by taking on the Star Colonel's Dire Wolf in his Gargoyle. If I did not do the same in my Night Gyr, I would have been ridiculed for my excessive timidity. Now, I am simply chastened for being overbold."
"You should let some of your starmates have the opportunity as well."
"They declined, despite the fact that they all pilot designs heavier than my own." Gavin smiled ruefully at Logan Moon. "I think some of them might have been more eager if you had not dropped my 'mech flat that second time, Star Colonel. If I had taken you down twice in a row, they would have begun clamoring for the honor."
"Gavin, what you fail to recognize is that by taking you out, I gave the rest of your star the same opportunity." Logan Moon smiled with an expression that would have stopped a pouncing jaguar in midair.
"As much as I wish it were unnecessary, it is a good lesson for them. There is no guarantee that my 'mech will not be taken out by such a lucky shot early in the battle."
"Luck had little to do with it."
"'Little' is still the difference between a head shot and a torso hit."
"I will drink to that." Said Joanna Perez. "What you experienced, 'mechwarrior, is the chief fear of every elemental ever spawned. The gauss slug that comes out of nowhere before you have a chance to react. The laser hit that picks you out from the rest of your point. The missile that blows off your leg or arm, and leaves you useless and bleeding on the battlefield."
"Aye," said Showers, " the shot that gets through your armor and wrecks the gyroscope."
"The mine that takes off your leg." Logan Moon chimed in.
"The freebirth artillery you cannot fire back at." Said Gavin.
"The flyer's strafing run."
Logan Moon raised his glass.
"To the chaos and suddenness of war: may it always be in our favor and never turn against us."
The four wineglasses clinked together, and the four warriors drained them.
"Seyla." Gavin breathed.
*
Underneath the clouded sky of Huntress moved a brown-blonde youth of thirteen. He slipped through the trees stealthily, a shadow among great black shadows that dripped water into pools at their roots. The trees of Huntress had massive trunks and thick limbs and boughs, their broad leaves wet with the rain that looked like it would fall yet again. The wilds of the Shikari Jungle fascinated him. At night in the barracks he could hear the far-off calls of hunting smoke jaguars, the cries of other animals, the wind, the rain, everything from the jungles. He nearly tripped over another member of the sibko.
"Ara? That is you, quiaff?" She whirled to her feet.
"Aff. Gavin?"
"Aff. What are you doing here?"
"It is not your concern."
"Neg, it is it not, but I am interested anyway."
"I am doing nothing. I simply enjoy it here, and I want you to leave." She stepped forward, half a meter from him. Water ran in rivulets down her face, droplets were scattered all over his. In the shifting of the light, something in her light green eyes sparked, and reflected a mirror image in his colder blue.
"Coupling, quiaff?" She nodded.
"I heard some of the others have already tried it. Have you?"
"Not yet."
"Well then." They both looked around. The ground was a mess of roots, mud, and small leafy green plants. "This is not quite the best place to encounter you in, Gavin."
"The tree limbs are close together."
"In a tree?" She raised a quizzical eyebrow. He grinned.
"Like Jaguars." Gavin made a low growling sound in the back of his throat. The smile she flashed at him was brilliant, even if her teeth were not all straight. Warrior training was harsh. He placed his hand on a massive knob of bark and began pulling himself up the trunk, reaching the lowest and thickest branch. He began unzipping his jumpsuit as she climbed up. After peeling off his boots and hanging them from the limb, he stripped off the jumpsuit and laid it over the rough bark. Gavin and Ara had stood there looking at each other, unsure what to do next. Then Gavin had pressed her back to the tree trunk, reached for the zipper on her jumpsuit, and slowly pulled it down. Their lips met in a kiss, and although they had seen each other naked hundreds of times in the changing rooms, this time they felt the press of flesh on their own.
The first time… Gavin had no idea if other warriors ever remembered their first time. Of course, not many warriors' first times were in a tree in the Shikari Jungle, so Gavin supposed he had a little extra to remind him. Now, as he looked at the softly breathing female form laying beside him, with her hair and her now-closed eyes so like Ara's, he could not help but recall the event.
Now it seemed to him that Rika's music, the haunting, enchanting music had been played to him that first night with Ara as well, only he had never thought to listen for it. The music stayed with him even as Gavin dropped off into sleep.