Ship's Log: ASV Aurora; 5 April 2643. Captain Julia Andreys recording. The deadlock over Tira continues. And there is a new urgency to this situation now that we know that James Hawk and his renegades are helping the effort against the Dilgar. Hawk and his accomplice remain in the brig under heavy guard, but I fully expect their ship, the Avenger, to show up. If it does, and the Drazi reinforcements come with it… then we may not be able to protect the planet.
The good news is that Warmaster Shai'jhur survived the attack. As a reformer with legitimacy from the prior government, she may be the only hope for the Dilgar to make a final peace with their old enemies, and with the charge against her being wrong, we actually have a shot at making it happen.
The emergency ward in the medbay was quiet save for the silent recognition beeps from the biobed display Leo was examining. The occupant, Shai'jhur, was awake and quiet. Kaveri Varma was holding her hand quietly. Leo could tell that Kaveri was not in the best of moods after she returned from her conversation with Julia two days before. But he was more concerned with treating Shai'jhur than finding out what had happened.
Finally he let out a contented sigh. "It looks like your disruptor absorbing mesh worked like a charm," he said. "The radiation dose will take some time to deal with, but at your age I wouldn't anticipate untreatable complications within your natural lifespan."
"You mean at sixty-three I can't have children anyway," Shai'jhur answered dryly. "Still, it was quite sufficient, you're right. I've six daughters besides," and two of them were in the room, Tra'dur and Nah'dur. "So it's hardly a loss. Fei'nur's quite pleased she procured it and made me wear it. Thank you, Doctor."
"You're welcome." Leo tapped a final key to confirm his latest update to her medical status. "How are you feeling? This tells me how your body is doing, but it can't tell me for sure if you feel any discomfort."
"I'm ready to assume my duties," she replied. "If anything the removal of the spores was a welcome side-effect. So, I will make do, as usual."
"You can resume duties tomorrow," Leo answered. "Today you're remaining for observation."
"Doctor Gillam, I am a Head of State. At any moment, hostilities may commence which will decide the survival of my people. Your advice is well-intentioned, and doubtless best. But the noose is around our necks, and I need to be returning to the Magaratha."
"Which means your people need to make sure you're fully healthy. You might not be in critical condition, but you don't just get up and walk away from a disruptor shot like that in a single day," Leo insisted. "For today, if anything critical happens, you can deal with it from here. Tomorrow, you should be good to go."
Shai'jhur shook her head. "Doctor, I have dealt with worse. Ultimately treating my health tenderly is a luxury I simply do not have."
Leo thought it over. He looked to Nah'dur after a moment. "Doctor, she's normally your patient I'm guessing. What do you think?"
"...I wish," Nah'dur answered. "Unfortunately, I only passed my Surgeon-Commander's boards three months ago. Nineteen years old, the youngest recorded, I might add! At any rate, I do have my mother's medical files and she is a terrifically resilient woman. Nothing she's dealt with here is going to be the same as the brutal old discipline of the Imperium's Navy. Realistically, radiation symptoms have no good cure except anti-nausea drugs and repairs to cellular reproduction mechanisms. The first controls the short term impact, the second the long-term. I agree that she should avoid strenuous activity and I have nothing against Battlemaster Or'kun, but if she encounters anything in the Magaratha which stresses her she is, bluntly, no safer in your medbay."
The door to the emergency ward slid open. Julia walked in, looking fairly refreshed given the events of the prior day. Her blond hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the back of her head. "Good morning Doctor. Warmaster." She nodded to them.
"Captain." Leo smiled thinly. "We were just debating whether or not the Warmaster could be released from the medbay."
"I'm assuming you'd rather keep her for longer observation?"
"She got shot by a disruptor. So, yes."
Julia nodded in understanding. She smiled thinly at Shai'jhur and those with her. "Leo is being protective of his patients as always. Under normal circumstances I would encourage you to listen to him. But I think we need to get negotiations going again, and soon. There's no telling when Hawk's ship is going to show up."
"Do negotiations even have a point at this juncture? I would prefer to make myself available for discussions with your Ministries. The sooner we are an applicant to Alliance membership the sooner this business can be referred to the offices of the Foreign Ministry and at that point the ISA will have no choice but to negotiate in good faith. Brokered talks will just lead, I fear, to delays as our enemies prepare a powerful attack to finish us once and for all."
"Your application is still being processed in the Council," Julia said. "And with President Morgan out of communication and Admiral Maran at the front, I haven't been able to get anyone involved yet. I'm going to try again today to reach Secretary Onaram. But until we have confirmation of any kind of response from Portland, attending meetings with Director Holloran is our best bet."
"Of course I will defer to you on the matter. However, the full extent of my remaining warp-drive forces, another seven Markab cruisers, will arrive soon as well, and I must be prepared for hostilities. Our fighters are of Centauri make and will be a cruel surprise for the enemy. Realistically, these Avenger foes of yours will force us to fight: From what I understand, their technology rivals the Tal-kona'sha, so it will be no easy task as well."
"Their ship is the same model as the Aurora," Julia replied. "But with the best weapons the Darglan adapted before they were forced to withdraw from interuniversal society. In all likelihood, it's going to take the Aurora and the Shenzhou together just to meet them evenly. And that's not counting if Foster brings in the Huáscar."
"We can likely deal with the Huáscar if we must. The Magaratha and the battlecruisers also have anti-beaming shields that we'd not revealed yet. They'll hold up to a few shots. The power cores and equipment came off of Klingon L-24 'Ever Victorious' battleships. The Magaratha has two such cores."
"Since we don't know how many Drazi will be here, or if the Brakiri will join the fight, I hope it doesn't come to that."
"Such as it is." Shai'jhur hesitated for a moment, then looked sharply to Julia. "Captain Andreys, I confess that I am concerned with the content of the conversation you had with Captain Varma."
Julia sighed. Her expression betrayed her own discomfort with the situation. "Given the allegations, I had to be able to report to my superiors that the Earthforce report was wrong. Otherwise it would have undermined your position with the Alliance. I can't apologize enough for putting Captain Varma through that."
"Miscegenation was bald-faced illegal in the Imperium, Captain," Shai'jhur replied, her expression hooded. "It was considered, I suppose, a kind of bestiality with more or less explicit treasonous overtones."
"Earthforce didn't understand that, apparently." Julia thought about that. "You said Jha'dur required honesty. I can't imagine it was easy to deal with things on your end either."
"I didn't continue that story mostly to keep Kaveri's privacy… I… It's ironically true. I told Jha'dur everything." She took a breath, and with her eyes fixed on the walls, began.
The conversation had already gone on for the better part of the day. Whether or not the food and water had been drugged was impossible to tell (certainly Jha'dur would use something too subtle), and whether or not there were Mha'dorn agents sensing her depended on politics beyond her power or right to understand. Regardless of it, Shai'jhur knew she was reaching a point that would decide her future, but her governing assessment, and lesson from the experience of her peers in First Strike, told her that there was no going back. She was noble born, but Rohric born too. She would pay truth's wage, and not regret having done it. "So, Warmaster, both Kaveri and myself began to adapt to the notion that we would, respectively, never seen another Human or another Dilgar again. Again, the probable outcome of socializing with her promised to be greater than any other."
The auburn-haired figure before her leaned back in her chair, a frown visible on her face. "And so…you made the decision that a human would be a good choice for your… companion, from a lack of choice, I presume, for your sake. Do go on." Her pitiless gaze had transfixed Shai'jhur, placing her on conversational death ground.
"I am a realistic woman, Warmaster. Both Dilgar and humans are species which require groups to maintain their sanity-social species-and the humans are, like us, nonetheless warriors. Yes, it was not a path I would have walked without the prospect of an eternity of isolation, but the prospect existed, so I walked it. She was agreeable, and I was agreeable. Faced with the prospect of loneliness, our conversations covered personal topics… Until such time as they ceased to be only conversations. Though it shames me to confess it, I gave in to impulse and became intimate with Kaveri."
She could see her Warmaster's face lose expression, lips curling up a hint in disgust. "I see. What impulse drove you to do such a thing, Battle Captain? You are Dilgar." There was a pause, discipline seeming to reassert itself over disgust. "This is nonetheless useful information for me. You will explain everything that occurred between you two, in exacting detail. You will spare nothing. Is this understood?"
"Of course, Warmaster," Shai'jhur replied. "I will spare nothing. In my loneliness, I felt a warrior's soul in Kaveri. Whatever the nature of her people, the honour of a 'kshatriya' had transcended it. I, of course, was the dominant partner, but she was willing from the first…" With calm precision, she continued into the details, even the explicit details, phrased in the biological terms that Jha'dur expected.
When the tale was done, she finished softly. "And, of course,we agreed that, as warriors born and bred, we would face each other without hesitation or pity on the field of battle if our nations required it, no matter the feelings that had passed between us before. So with that, and my wishes for her health as long as she did not face us on the field, I departed for the shuttle, and left her behind, by the terms of the agreement we had struck." Shai'jhur looked levelly across the table with her hands folded.
The woman known as Deathwalker had listened for hours, taking notes in a neat hand, when she chose to, and gave a solitary nod of her head. "You are perhaps mentally unbalanced, certainly perverted by Dilgar standards, and assuredly wildly socially unpalatable. You are also a quick, independent thinking fleet officer who shows a great deal of promise for the future of the Imperium, Battle Captain. Now, why are you not afraid of the outcome of this debriefing? It is a reasonable fear to have, with my reputation."
"Warmaster, I have told the truth to you, and you will judge me according to the truth that I told. Whatever that judgement is, I have faith it will be just, and I don't fear my own just ending, whatever it may be."
"Very well, Battlemaster." There was not a flicker of emotion in her Warmaster's voice as she pronounced her apparent judgement of Shai'jhur. "Report to the shuttle bay. You are to report to the northern polar shipyards. Further orders will follow. Speaking any word of this conversation, or what has caused it, will be cause for severe punishment. And, I will be watching your personal conduct. Your settling down and bearing kits for the future of our species would be a wise decision." The emphasis she placed on 'severe' brought a spine-tingling promise, at whatever Warmaster Jha'dur considered severe.
"I will do my duty," Shai'jhur answered with stiff formality. "Until Death, Warmaster." She rose, and saluted.
"Dismissed. We fight to save the Dilgar, Battlemaster. Remember that above all."
As Shai'jhur left, she swore she could see Jha'dur reach for a magazine out of the corner of her eye, of all things.
Shai'jhur finished and with the help of her daughters, rose from her medbay bed. She still smelled of smokey, singed fur. "So, that's the tale of the Warmaster and myself. In reviewing the records, I later discovered she had issued a directive that if a human named Lieutenant Kaveri Varma were ever taken prisoner, she was to be immediately summarily executed. That was, I think, by Jha'dur's standards intended as a kindness both to her and to me."
"Given her reputation, summary execution does sound kind," Julia noted.
"It is for the best that all of her age and kind are gone, except perhaps her brother. I regret the absence of Warmaster Dar'sen, who even the Drazi admitted fought a clean war, though. Of course, his opponent, wise and honourable in his own right, vanished in his effort to help the humans in the Minbari War, and what his fate is, none can say. If Stro'kath were here, I would think peace to have a chance … But all those old names have fallen down into death, and only those who remember legends remain."
A tone came from Julia's omnitool, joined by a blue light over the back of her hand. She tapped it. "Andreys here."
"Captain, Director Holloran is hailing. She has the other species ready to start another meeting," Meridina said from the Bridge.
Julia gave Shai'jhur a careful look. "I'll be there shortly to confirm a meeting time. Andreys out." Once the call was over she said, "It won't go anywhere, I'm sure. But until I get anything from Portland, there's no reason not to see where this leads."
"I will negotiate in good faith. But our terms remain simple. We want to join the Alliance. As a sovereign nation we are interested only in securing the peace which would allow us to do so."
"Fair enough. I'll go talk to Holloran." At that Julia left, more optimistic about the talks than Shai'jhur was, but knowing they had to make the effort regardless.
It was about midday when there was a sharp rapping on the door of Zhengli's cell. Unlike previous visits there was something imposing in it. "Captain Varma?" Of course: It was Foster.
"I see I am still the Captain, Major Foster." Zhengli stood, folding her hands behind her back and giving a steady, level look to her cell door. "If you surrender immediately, I will recommend leniency during your court-martial."
"You have been lawfully relieved of command," Foster replied, cuttingly. "That was confirmed by Geneva. I am using your rank as a courtesy, not to imply you have any authority over the Huáscar. I have come to deliver you the option, communicated to me by Geneva, that we can transport you to Minister Holloran's custody, presumably to then be released, in response to the political problems your mother has caused. Needless to say, charges might follow if you ever returned to Earth space."
"My mother? What are you talking about, Major?" She had a hint of honest confusion in her voice, as she wracked her memories to think of what this could be about. "You expect me to believe that Earthforce Command has endorsed mutiny against a ship's captain after the civil war? You would have code-locked communications for me as proof, if this were the case. Are you not finding as sympathetic an audience as you wished, Major?" Her eyes flared with anger at her one-time subordinate.
"Your mother made a live broadcast containing classified information from the comms room of a Dilgar warship," he sneered. "It has caused no small difficulties for the government, so of course my actions have been proved correct, as I knew they always would be."
"I see the Senate's dislike of inconvenient facts remains as true as it always has been, Major. Very well, if that is how you wish to phrase the matter. As the Captain of the Huáscar, I demand a formal Court of Inquiry over my relief."
"You idiot, you are being given a chance to flee to your mother and the Alliance. Don't you have any kind of sense at all? You're finished, and if you embarrass the Senate more than your mother already has, you might be more than finished."
"You do not understand the soul of a Kshatriya at all, do you, Major Foster? I stood on the Line, a year before I should have passed out of West Point, I saw the sky filled with death, saw my vision fade and the chill seep into my bones in the vacuum of our shattered cruiser, and you seek to threaten me? I pity you, I truly do, for you do not understand the virtue of dharmayuddha." She shook her head, with a soft sigh. "I know my duties, but it seems you have lost your way. I repeat my demand for a Court."
"And you will doubtless get it, when this situation has been dealt with. Of course, we are likely to be at war with the Alliance soon enough, and who knows what will happen to you after that. These lunatics are willing to turn the entire galaxy against them just for the sake of the Dilgar, and think nothing of it. I imagine," he smiled thinly, "You'd rather fancy being with them, considering that they like aliens more than their fellow humans. You do have one last chance. If you insist on a Court, you will remain confined and the consequences are not up to me."
"Then I shall see you in the next cycle, Major. You've doomed yourself by your hasty action, or are you saying you consulted with the Joint Chiefs before my relief, and they concurred? I never barred you from using the Gold Channel to consult with any superior. You are facing the airlock under Ten Eighty-Eight. I again urge you to return command of the ship to me, that I may recommend leniency for you and especially those who have followed you in this course of action."
"No wonder your family has fallen to what it is, Captain. You keep quoting regulations and have no understanding of politics." He coughed, and folded his hands behind his back. "That will be all. You've made your decision."
"I have no fear of gaining veeraswarga, Major."
"You're a religious lunatic, I'm sure that will reflect well." With that he spun on heel and stalked out, the cell door slamming shut behind him.
We are both convinced of the righteousness of our cause, but only one of us upholds Dharma… With a quiet sigh, Zhengli folded her legs under her once again, and let her eyes flutter closed, resuming her attempt to centre herself. You told the galaxy about New Eden, mother… Earthgov will be furious of that alone. I pity the governor, he's going to be facing a firestorm of opinion with the next transport.
Shai'jhur had returned, officially without Fei'nur present… As a practical matter, the truth of that would be irrelevant if the peace was held. If there was another attack, then the details of her observance or lack thereof hardly mattered. With a single staff officer at her side, she was once again on the Aurora, once again in the conference room, once again facing a mass of alien representatives who wanted her dead.
"How do you expect us to feel secure when the Dilgar are allowed to bring invisible assassins with them?!" Tarinak was protesting. "The venue of this meeting must be moved, and moved to where all delegates can enjoy security."
"Which rules out virtually every ship in this system," Julia pointed out. "And Tira itself certainly wouldn't work."
"The Brakiri submit that the Orsala be chosen," Tabir said, referring to the Minbari ship. "The Minbari were not involved in the war with the Dilgar, and they should have the technology to keep anyone from using invisibility devices of any sort."
Julia wasn't so sure of that. The Minbari were certainly advanced, one of the more advanced species in the Multiverse, but if the Avenger crew had any more operatives here, or had shared their technology with the Drazi, then she would be betting their safety against the Minbari having the means to defeat Darglan technology. It was a bet she wasn't sure about taking.
A thought came to her. She almost nodded to the Earthforce table but stopped herself. She gave a quick, furtive look to Shai'jhur. Meridina, is Fei'nur here? She thought, hoping that the power behind the thought would keep Foster's telepath from hearing. Did Shai'jhur slip her in again?
Meridina gave her an uncertain look. I feel her in the vicinity. But I am not sure where at the moment. Her mind is very disciplined and mindwalking is not exact with such.
Julia frowned at that. If Meridina had problems, Saumarez would too. Her idea to have Saumarez provide a guarantee wouldn't work.
Holloran looked toward Julia and Shai'jhur. "Do you have any objections? I won't bother the Minbari if both sides won't accept it."
Julia glanced Shai'jhur's way.
"The Minbari attacked the Dilgar Imperium without provocation," Shai'jhur replied. "I have irrefutable evidence of it salvaged from the wreck of the Vendetta at Third Balos. Nonetheless, in the interest of galactic peace, I will accept a Minbari ship as the grounds of the talks."
"Then I have none," Julia said.
To that Tabir smirked. "You have become her follower, I see."
Julia gave him an intent, quiet look. "If the leader of the Drazi Freehold was present, Captain, would you presume to make a decision he might not approve?"
"He probably would," Foster muttered from his table.
"Well. I guess I'll call an end to this meeting then," said Holloran. "I'll return to the Orsala and ask the Minbari to arrange a meeting. Until then, there's no point in remaining here. I'm dismissing the meeting."
Duly dismissed, the others stood and made to leave as if they were eager to do so. Holloran let them go and quietly stepped up to Julia. "You know they're just trying to buy time, right?" she asked pointedly. "Once the Drazi reinforcements arrive they won't be up to talking."
"We need time too," Julia said. "As things stand, they see no reason to listen to Shai'jhur's offers because they don't know if I'm going to be ordered out or if the Alliance is going to support Shai'jhur. If I can get an announcement from Portland…"
"I'm told President Morgan is unavailable. Even Ambassador Mayan hasn't been able to reach him. Even your Foreign Secretary is unavailable."
"I know. They're dealing with other matters beyond the purview of a starship captain," Julia answered. "I'm hoping that Admiral Maran will get away from the battlefield long enough to give me some indication of how the Alliance government is dealing with this. But until I hear something from Portland, we're stuck in this situation."
"I hope that they get back to you soon," Holloran said. "Otherwise the shooting is going to begin."
"I hope so too," Julia sighed. She looked over to where Shai'jhur was walking up.
"Miss Holloran," Shai'jhur looked up. "Technically the InterStellar Alliance can put an end to this matter with the White Star Fleet. What do you desire from our people?"
"Sure, Sheridan could send the White Stars in," Holloran agreed. "But that takes time. Ever since the Centauri left the Alliance we've had to spread them out to protect Alliance space. And I don't have to point out that if he does it wrong, he turns every species that fought your people against him."
"He could send them to keep the peace between your Alliance and ours," Julia pointed out. "That's him doing his job."
"And I'm sure he's got the White Stars moving to do just that, but it's still going to take time." Holloran glanced toward Shai'jhur. "As for what I want? I want people to stop shooting each other so Mars can assert its rights without having Earth play the security card. That means no renewal of the Dilgar War."
"For what it is worth, I feel myself in a very similar position. The Imperium threw the refuse of Omelos at us as forced colonists and told us to deal with it. We Rohricans decided freedom was worth the spores and we liked to keep it that way. I remain convinced that our peace is best achieved in the format of our government joining the Alliance, Miss Holloran. We will be giving up an independent foreign policy which could lead to decisions threatening ISA members, and placing ourselves under the jurisdiction of the Alliance courts, I think you will have far more security that way then you would even if you militarily occupied Tira and Rohric."
"I agree with you on that for certain," said Holloran, the experienced guerrilla fighter. "Funny. Your people will be better off giving away some of your independence. Mine will be if we get more."
"I would support it, if I could do anything productive," Shai'jhur grinned. "But I can't help but feel an endorsement from the Dilgar is presently the opposite of productive, and will be for some time. Thank you, Miss Holloran. We will meet again on the Orsala."
"I'll let you now when we're ready for you. Warmaster, Captain." She left with the Minbari and Abbai aides assigned to her accompanying her.
Julia watched her go. "Fruitless, as expected," she said. "Right now all we can do is buy time, and hope our response gets here first."
Meridina was in meditation when the call came through the IU transceiver. She stood, still in her plain brown meditation robe over a cream-white sleeveless vest and knee-length leggings, and directed her attention to the wall. A holo-screen came to life. The image projected was from Gersal. The distant spires of Jantarihal were visible behind the thin face and quiet demeanor of her old mentor, Mastrash Ledosh. He nodded. "Meridina. I received your message. Is all well?"
"It would be a lie to say so, Mastrash," Meridina admitted. "The species here are willing to commit genocide over their fears and hatred of a past foe."
"I have heard something of it from the Foreign Office."
"If so, why have we not received instructions? Or orders?"
"It is not my place to know," Ledosh pointed out. "From my knowledge, little can be truly decided until the President finishes his work and Secretary Onaram returns to Portland." Ledosh considered her. "Something else troubles you, Meridina. I can see that."
"To verify testimony, I had to mentally scan the mind of a Human woman."
"You have done this often. Why does it trouble you?"
"Because she did not truly want me in her mind. She only agreed out of perceived necessity," Meridina replied. "To confirm for us that she was not a victim of assault by the Dilgar leader."
"I see. Did you direct her to the Genut?"
"I did, yes. I have the feeling she is uncertain about them. She is used to the Psi Corps of this universe's Earth."
"Ah. And they are most unkind beings. Or so the swevyra'se aiding the Byron Free Colony's efforts have informed me." Ledosh placed his hands together at the table. "Although I have the feeling that you are troubled by more than this, Meridina."
There was no hiding things from Ledosh. Meridina sighed and nodded. "The feelings I felt in Kaveri Varma. I have never imagined such feelings. Her bond to Shai'jhur is unbreakable. And feeling it… it has left me… unbalanced? I do not know."
"Love is inherently unbalanced," Ledosh pointed out. "It is about taking another soul, another being, and placing them above others in your feelings and considerations."
"I have read Swenya's writings on the subject," Meridina said. "And I have felt physical affections in others. But this was beyond such a thing. Swenya's writings did nothing to prepare me for that sense."
"And this troubles you?"
"I… I do not know," she admitted. "I recognize that for a swevyra'se, such affections can be dangerous. Their loss can cause resentment that fuels darkness. Even so… there is a spiritual side to these things. WIth the right person."
"There are those who say such, yes. But if I may, Meridina?"
"Yes, Mastrash?"
A small smile came to Ledosh's face. "Your destiny is outside of the Order. The concerns you may have had when you counted yourself as one of our knights are no longer those you must consider. Live your life as you please, Meridina, trusting in your swevyra and your own judgement. You do not need to get my approval to consider these things."
Meridina listened to him speak and could only nod. "I understand, Mastrash. I am sorry for interrupting you in your duties."
"It is no trouble. You have merely pulled me away from an onerous work of translating pieces from a book into modern vernacular."
Meridina blinked at that. "I never imagined you would take such a task on yourself, Mastrash. Surely there are translation experts in the Order who can assist?"
"This is a private project. I would prefer to not bother our experts. Their time is valuable." Ledosh nodded once. "I want you to know that your accomplishments and advancement are being noticed. Your father is quite proud of your promotion, I think, though he does not say so."
Meridina noted the sudden conversation shift. She said nothing about it, however, choosing to let Ledosh have his way. "He once told me I should be commanding the Aurora," Meridina said. "I hope I live up to all of your expectations."
"I imagine you will."
"Before you go, Mastrash, how goes Gina's training? She did quite well on New Caprica. I can't imagine her taking much longer to earn a chance to undergo the trials..."
Science Lab 1 was different from 2. The displays weren't meant for showing data of large physics-related experiments or starmaps. There was no large holotank. Rather the lab was built around workstations tied to the powerful simulation computers of the Lab, which were themselves tied into the Aurora's powerful computer cores.
Cat was sitting at one of the work stations. The image showed a model of the colony on Tira, or rather the barrages that kept the seas from consuming the Dilgar settlement and adjoining jungle. The sensor data was real-time, courtesy of the Aurora's powerful sensor suites and the defensive sensors set up by the Marines on the planet. The videos were showing armed humanoids marching along the access catwalks that lined the barrage gates. The one image zoomed in on an object planted at the center of a closed gate. The gray object was shaped with four arms and a wide circle. A digital display and small access controls showed on it.
Cat turned upon hearing the door open. "Tra'dur? Can I do something for you?"
"You've already done a lot for me, Cat. Thanks for calling the medbay when I collapsed. My sister says I'm going to enjoy the next few months as probably the healthiest I've ever felt…" She was smiling.
"Oh, thank you." Cat smiled back and nodded. "I'm glad you're going to feel better."
"I'm glad to be feeling better, as well… What are you up to, Cat'Delgado?" She asked, in that particular Dilgar way of compounding names, though she got the multiple syllables of the surname right enough.
"Oh. Jarod asked me to look into the situation with the colony's barrage," Cat said. She raised her hand toward the screen. "With the water levels where they are, if the mercs blow the gates the entire colony goes under. We're trying to figure out ways to prevent that."
"Can we detect the chemical traces of the explosions on the mitre gates from orbit, Cat'Delgado?" She asked, taking a console by Cat's side. It was impressive how quickly she went to familiarize herself and work from an Alliance standard console.
"That's going to take work," Cat said. Her expression turned thoughtful. "I'm not sure. It depends on the construction of the bombs." She looked up. Now excitement showed. "But we don't have to."
"No?"
"No. We can send the sensors down to our Marines that are protecting those clone tanks," Cat said. An excited look appeared on her face, joined by a grin at having figured it out. "It'll have to be a high resolution materials scanner. Even if it doesn't tell us what the explosives are made of exactly, it might let us rule some materials out."
"Hmm, yes. We can in fact aid this process. I'll pull the Tiran files on where the intakes to the filtration systems are from the buildings nearest the waterfront. If the Marines can point the sensors at the filters, they should get a much higher concentration density than is floating around the regular air, and that would make the detection much easier."
"Then all we need to do is figure out if there's a way to counteract the explosives quickly." Cat grinned at her. "So let's get those files and see what we can do."
Twilight was approaching for the Tira colony. With the sun starting to set, Urdnot Wrex finished his daily check of his firearms.
"Another day and we're still here." An amused laugh came from the old Krogan sharing the foxhole with him. "Our paymasters are going to be disappointed."
"They get what they paid for," Wrex answered, smirking. "If they wanted mercs who got killed easily, they shouldn't have hired us."
There was a crackle over the comms that brought their attention. "Urdnot here," Wrex said, anticipating someone calling.
"Standby, Urdnot. Communication from Colonel Greden impending." The voice was clearly not Brakiri. It sounded Salarian, in fact.
"They might be having those Eclipse mercs handling their comms too," Drack pointed out.
"Then I hope they're not surprised when they see the invoice. I remember a pirate warlord in the Terminus Systems who had a heart attack at seeing one of their invoices."
"They probably took him for everything he had."
"I don't know what the Brakiri thought they'd earn on this job, but I'm betting their accountants won't be happy when it's over." Wrex got that dangerous glint in his red eyes again. "This whole situation gives me a sense… like I've seen all of this before."
"Dangerous thoughts again, whelp?"
"I'm a thinker, fossil," Wrex retorted pleasantly. "One of us has to be."
At that, Drack laughed. "And beggars can't be choosers."
"All of this talk about the Dilgar. I've heard those words before."
"We all have, whelp," Drack said darkly. "But let's face it. We've already picked our side here. You sign the contract, you take your chances. If you don't like it, well, I hope you kept enough to meet the severance penalty."
The gentle teasing was the same, but nonetheless Wrex gave Drack a more hostile look this time. Drack spelling the situation out wasn't necessary. At this rate, though, Wrex was mostly hoping that the Brakiri or their allies would say something, do something, that would let them walk away from the contract. He simply did not like what was going on here.
A moment later a Brakiri officer in a fine suit appeared over Wrex's forearm, the incoming call activating automatically on his omnitool. Colonel Greden immediately commenced speaking. "Ah, Mister Urdnot, Mister Nakmor. We thank you for keeping your position so well. We have something a little more befitting your experience, however."
"Oh yeah?"
Wrex's disinterest didn't seem to faze Greden. "The Allied Systems' Marines are posing a direct challenge to our control of this colony. They are preventing us from fulfilling the directive laid out by the Syndicracy on Brakir, the elimination of the Dilgar super-soldier program, through their foolish insistence that it is genocide to destroy the fruits of that program. We want our best in a position to strike their forces should it prove necessary, or to block any effort by the Alliance to seize the barrage gates. We are re-assigning you to a position at Point Tachan. Commander Weyrloc is awaiting your arrival. Proceed there as soon as your relief arrives. Greden out."
Wrex was already frowning. "They want us with those Blood Pack idiots."
Drack chuckled at that. "We're getting assigned to Weyrloc Tral? That's rich. I once fought off his entire platoon on Beyak in the Spinward Traverse."
"I can't imagine he'll be delighted to see us," Wrex noted. He started collecting gear for stowing. "And he can damn well wait, too. I'm not leaving anything of mine to whatever chumps the Brakiri pick to take our place."
Drack humphed. "This is why I keep my gear stowed, whelp. I like to be able to move fast."
Wrex ignored that. Better to let Drack have his occasional remarks than to get angry over them. He liked the old Krogan too much to want to kill him.