The Phoenix Project (23 page)

    
“It’s called Ruby Brandy. It’s the favored
drink of our race.”

    
She took a small sip of the brandy and
found its warmth spreading outward from her mouth. A bittersweet flavor filled
her taste buds.

    
“How is it?” Ranik asked.

    
“It’s delicious!” she exclaimed with a
surprised expression.

    
“I’m glad you like it. Now come and sit
with me, Nadine. Tell me of your Coalition,” Ranik said. He led her to a soft couch
of burgundy against one chocolate wall of the Ferine’s living room.

    
“Ah,” Nadine responded with slight
hesitation, “alright.”

    
Ranik slyly indicated one side of a
loveseat and took the other end once she had seated herself.

    
“To be honest with you Ranik, I’m curious
about the structure of your organization. I noticed Lathiel refer to his crew
more as friends than subordinates.”

    
“That’s because they’re not subordinates,”
Ranik said. She noticed for the first time a slight cloudiness indicative of
age over his slit eyes.

    
“How can the crew function without a
leader?”

    
“We are more of a cooperative,” the word
sent a momentary shiver down her spine. “There is no single leader so much as
something like a department head.”

    
“And that’s you?”

    
“No,” Ranik said, shaking his high—eared
head, “that’s Lathiel. He’s the captain of the ship.”

    
“That’s fascinating. Tell me,” Nadine began
before Ranik raised a thickly nailed hand.

    
“Enough of us, I would like to hear more
about you.”

    
Nadine suppressed a brief hint of
embarrassment at the attention with an uncomfortable laugh.

    
“Is that a problem?” Lathiel asked as he
sat down on a corner of the couch nearest to hers.

    
“No, of course not. What would you like to
know?”

    
“Start with your entrance into this
intrepid organization of yours,” Ranik advised in interest.

    
“Well, yes I suppose that is a good story,”
she said. As surprised as she was, Nadine felt comfortable in the cozy room,
aided by the warm brandy and soothing company. Before she realized it, she had
already spent twenty minutes speaking of her entrance into the Coalition military
after a record three years in the academy followed by her quick rise through
the lower ranks. She didn’t realize that after fifteen minutes, she had slipped
off her uncomfortable shoes and brought her legs up in a more comfortable
position underneath her.

    
Nadine was part way into a rousing story of
how she attained the rank of Captain when Lathiel excused himself from the
conversation. Nadine nodded to him briefly and continued to speak to Ranik’s
engrossed expression.

    
Lathiel rose from the couch and crossed to
answer the beep at the door, which Nadine hadn’t heard. He smiled to the three
senior Alliance
officers aboard the
Endeavour
.

    
“Hello Lathiel,” Elliot said to Lathiel’s
broad grin. A small black bag hung from his hand.

    
“Come in. The rest of our guests are
already here,” Lathiel said.

    
“Are we late?” Madison asked from her place in the hallway.

    
“She was early.”

    
“Early bird gets the worm, I guess,” Joshua
said.

    
“We don’t mind. It gave us a chance to get
to know her better,” Lathiel said.

    
“I brought something for the party,” Elliot
said once the trio crossed the threshold. He produced a bottle from the small
bag he carried and handed it to Lathiel.

    
“That’s very generous of you. We only have
one case of Ruby Brandy on the ship and we were worried we might run out,”
Lathiel said.

    
“I think I’m starting to like these guys,”
Joshua said. A broad grin crossed his face. “We just need a poker table.”

    
Elliot ignored the comment and continued.
“I hope you like it.”

    
“Rye Whiskey,” Lathiel said, reading the
label on the bottle. To their surprise, he twisted off the cap and took a good
swig of the spirit. He eyed the bottle in appreciation. “Brilliant taste! Can
we trade?”

    
“Trade?” Madison asked in confusion.

    
“Yes, I will give Elliot something in
exchange for his Rye Whiskey,” Lathiel said.

    
“Well, I meant it as a gift,” Elliot said.

    
“Oh no, I insist. I do have Ruby Brandy,”
Lathiel said.

    
“It’s really not necessary.”

    
“He’ll take it,” Madison said and shrugged to his disapproving
look. “It’s Ferine tradition.”

    
“You just want some,” Elliot said.

    
Lathiel roared his cat laugh. “There’s
plenty for everyone. As I have said, Nadine is already here. Would you like to
join the conversation?”

    
“That’s why we’re here,” Madison said.

    
They looked over to the open—ended square
of couches and saw their Coalition representative.

    
“My God!” Madison exclaimed when she saw the elegant
lady, comfortably sitting on the farthest couch enthralled in conversation with
Ranik.

    
“She does look quite lovely tonight,
doesn’t she?” Lathiel said.

    
“Oh!” Nadine exclaimed as she reentered Human
reality. She put her feet back onto the floor and began fiddling with her shoes
in an effort to put them back on.

    
“I am sorry, I,” she began.

    
“No, no, no,” Elliot said, wide eyed at the
entirely different woman before him. He raised his hands in a placating
gesture. “It’s alright, it is a party. We were just surprised. You look really
good, General. Please, relax and enjoy yourself.”

    
“Thank—you Admiral,” she said, raising an
eyebrow. “I suppose I should relax if our guests wish better relations among
all of us.”

    
“Yes,” Ranik said to the intrusion. “Nadine
was telling me of a great experience she had. I’d like to hear the end of the
story.”

    
“Another time,” Nadine said.

    
“I understand,” Ranik replied in sympathy.
“Does anyone else have a good story?” he asked, as the rest of the group seated
themselves. Madison and Joshua occupied one couch in silence. Elliot and
Lathiel also said nothing from the other couch.

    
“How about cards?” Ranik asked.

    
“They don’t know our games Ranik, and I
doubt they’d like them. I’ll get the three of you some drinks,” he directed to
the new arrivals and left for the kitchen.

    
“Joshua can play only the games involving a
poker table anyway,” Madison
said.

    
“Poker?” Ranik asked.

    
“It’s a game some Humans play. It involves
a set of fifty—two cards that you bet money on,” Elliot explained.

    
“You bet money in this game?” Ranik asked.

    
“Most people don’t understand the reason
why. I can see why you wouldn’t get it either,” Elliot replied.

    
“Your people gamble?”

    
“I’m sure it seems primitive to you,”
Elliot said.

    
“Do you play?” Ranik asked.

    
“Well, ah,” Elliot sputtered, “sometimes.”

    
“Can you teach me this game?”

    
Elliot was muted by the surprising question.

    
“I can!” Josh exclaimed.

    
“Oh God, what are we doing to these
people?” Madison
mumbled to herself.

    
“Great!” Ranik exclaimed. He stood up and
consumed his drink in one gulp. “Show me.”

    
“You asked for it.”

    
Ranik and Joshua walked towards the table
in the eating area next to the kitchenette. Lathiel emerged with a small tray
with three glasses of Ruby Brandy sitting on it, emitting a soft glow.

    
“You’re just in time Lathiel,” Ranik said,
and removed two of the glasses. He handed one to Joshua.

    
“To your health,” Joshua said, with a brief
gesture of the brandy. Both of them inhaled the glass of liquor in one drink.
“We need cards.”

    
“I saw something like that in a drawer of
the kitchen,” Ranik said and put an arm across Joshua’s shoulder. The two
entered the kitchen with one final audible comment from the Ferine. “You remind
me of a friend of mine.”

    
Lathiel regarded the remaining drink on his
tray and looked to Elliot and Madison’s empty hands. “I’ll be right back,” he
said and returned to the occupied kitchen.

    
“I’d better go in there to make sure Josh
doesn’t swindle Ranik and cause a diplomatic incident,” Elliot said, and left
the couch.

    
“Well, I guess I should make myself
comfortable,” Madison
said. She got up from the couch and sat next to Nadine. Lathiel reappeared and
gave a drink to Madison.
“Thanks,” she said to the offered brandy.

    
“I’d better make sure Ranik doesn’t take
all of his money,” Lathiel whispered to the two, and turned to the eating area
housing an obsidian table and four chairs. Ranik and Joshua went back into the
eating area with a deck of cards and a tray of poker chips. They both sat down
and were joined by Elliot and Lathiel.

    
“Come on, Madi,” Joshua said, waving her to
the table.

    
“Not for me, thanks,” Madison replied.

    
“Nadine, join us for a game. You’ll bring
me luck,” Ranik said.

    
“No, me neither. Maybe later,” Nadine said
and readied herself for a quiet evening by herself.

    
“So how is the Coalition doing?” Madison asked as a buzz
of conversation came from the poker game.

    
“Excuse me?”

    
“I’m just kidding, General,” she said with
a warm grin. “Breaking the ice?”

    
“This is really good,” they heard Elliot
say of the Ruby Brandy.

    
“Ah,” Nadine said and took a sip from her
glass. Madison
took a sip from hers and issued a sound of approval.

    
“I think Eli’s right about that. Whatever’s
in this stuff, it is good. Have you noticed how it seems to shine?”

    
“Yes,” Nadine said quietly and looked into
the glass, “it’s pretty.”

    
“Pretty?”

    
“You don’t think so?” Nadine asked with a
harder edge to her voice.

    
“No, it is. You just don’t seem the type of
person to use the word pretty.”

    
“Now the gloves are off,” Joshua said,
having just lost twenty dollars to Ranik.

    
“Will that make you play any better?” Ranik
returned.

    
“I guess your husband isn’t doing so well,”
Nadine said.

    
“Oh Honey, he never does well in poker. Why
do you think we’re both senior officers and don’t have any money?” The comment
brought a small smile to Nadine’s lips. “I was hoping I could wrestle a smile
out of you. I wanted an actual laugh more though.”

    
“Well, it’s not easy being here.”

    
“A nice hearty, belly laugh would have been
nice,” Madison
said with a light hearted chuckle.

    
“I don’t know if that’s going to happen.”

    
“I know and I know it’s not easy for you
here. There are a lot of Alliance officers,
commissioned or not, who have hatred for anyone in the Coalition,” Madison said.

    
“The feeling is mutual.”

    
“Not for me. I hope those two over there
will bring us peace,” Madison
said, “finally.”

    
Nadine raised an eyebrow.