Authors: Gun Brooke
“I know. Guess it comes with the territory of being a judge?” Dwyn smiled slightly.
“It comes with the territory of doing what's right.”
*
“You must be joking, sir?” Emeron D'Artansis dropped her back-strap security carrier on the floor next to her computer console and turned to her superior officer. “Isn't my unit overqualified to babysit some SC hotshot?”
“You misunderstand, Commander,” Captain Zeger said gravely. “I wouldn't assign this delicate matter to anyone
but
my best unit. These orders have travelled down the chain of command for a week now, and the commissioner has issued a direct order. Report for briefing tomorrow morning at 0600. You and your team need to be geared up and ready to move out an hour later.”
“Sir, yes, sir.” Emeron would have huffed, but she respected Captain Zeger too much. And she never let her personal feelings show when she received an order. Still she muttered to herself, “This is crazy,” as she sat down and began to read the messages on her computer.
Most of them were work related, but several from her mother were blinking in bright red. Not willing to deal with Vestine D'Artansis while she was trying to come to terms with the babysitting assignment, she marked the messages as “can wait.” Emeron had little patience with her snobby family even during normal circumstances. She wished Zeger had informed her of her assignment before she had gone to the gym. Then she could have worked off her frustration there instead of sitting here with it simmering below the surface.
She leaned back in her chair and rubbed her forehead. Her patience wore thinner every day. Even her next in command, Mogghy, had said so to her face after a few drinks at their favorite bar a month ago. Emeron had tried to laugh his words off, but he hadn't smiled. “I've known you too long, ma'am,” he'd said, shaking his head. “Something's eating at you and it's driving you crazy, not to mention the rest of the unit. The troops aren't sure what to think.”
“What do you mean?” She'd been annoyed, but also embarrassed. She'd never expected to have this talk with anyone, least of all one of her subordinates.
“I wouldn't say anything if we weren't such good friends outside the force.” Mogghy finally smiled. “I have your back, Commander, and I hope you know that.”
“I do.” His disturbing observation was hard to swallow, and Emeron focused on it for a few seconds before he continued.
“I don't know, Commander. You seem angry, or perhaps frustrated. I could be way off base here, but that's how I see it.”
Mogghy wasn't far from the truth. So many things gnawed at Emeron these days. As long as she kept working, she could ignore them, or so she'd thought until now. Her temper, which she'd struggled with since she was a child, was now even more volatile. She had to resort to the many different relaxation techniques she'd learned during her years as a member of the law-enforcement service to keep from resorting to violence.
I'm always angry.
She sighed. “I'm sorry if I've given the unit any reason to doubt my professionalism. And thanks for letting me know before the speculations go any further. I'll deal with my problem and you won't have to mention it again.” Emeron knew she sounded stiff, but she felt uncomfortable. She also realized that Mogghy had saved her a lot of professional grief by not going through the proper channels. “Appreciate it, Mogghy.”
“Anything for you and the team, Commander. Always.”
They hadn't mentioned this conversation again, and Emeron had consistently performed her duties and assignments flawlessly. Still a cold knot at her core persisted, and she feared she wouldn't be able to suppress her anger much longer. On those occasions when she'd had to quickly back off in order not to let the beast within her show, yet act as if nothing were amiss, she had caught Mogghy's worried glances. Working out was the best way to remain focused and she was in the best shape ever.
“Here you are, Commander. For your eyes only.” Captain Zeger placed a handheld computer on Emeron's work console. “A preview of tomorrow's briefing.”
“Thank you, sir.” Emeron punched in her security clearance code and pressed her thumb on the small pad below the screen.
Reading, she soon realized that her assignment had gone from boring to hellish.
Babysitting an environmental activist
. She could think of few things worse than catering to some saintly woman, who was probably more interested in her own goodness than actually achieving something worthwhile. A picture of a blond woman with finely chiseled features and pale gray eyes appeared, and Emeron read the name underneath. Dwyn Izontro. An Iminestrian name, but Izontro's face belonged to a human. Izontro was thirty-four, but looked younger. She worked for one of those shady businesses that labeled themselves pro bono, but rarely was. They were lobbyists of the worst kind. In Emeron's opinion they'd cause havoc and lobby for any “just cause” in the universe, for a fee.
She scrolled down to other pictures that showed Izontro in action. The woman had targeted several different installations and was clearly fearless in her efforts to draw attention to her agenda. Emeron sighed. Izontro had to be a hardened troublemaker. She browsed through more pictures but frowned as she viewed one of Izontro lying face down on the floor of a police hovercraft. A bulky officer had his large boot placed firmly in the small of her back, and the man's smirk made Emeron cringe. She wondered what the tiny woman could have done to warrant the officer's brutal behavior.
When she finished reading, she flicked the computer off with her thumb and walked over to the latrine. She needed cold water on her face to calm her down. Scanning her own reflection in the metal-mirror above the hand-sanitizer unit, she wasn't surprised to see a dark fire burning in her eyes. Her skin was stretched taut over her high cheekbones, which she recognized as a sign of irritation. She tapped the sensor for the aqua faucet and scooped a cupped handful of water to her cheeks. Drying with a recyc-towel, she didn't have to look into the mirror again to know what subdued annoyance looked like. She had seen it on the face of each of her mothers too many times.
*
Judge Beqq's dramatic red hair and curvaceous figure attracted the attention of both men and women in the restaurant. Seemingly unaware of this fact, she drove her fork through a double-tailed shrimp and chewed it slowly before she spoke. “I'm glad you could join me for dinner, Ms. Izontroâ”
“Dwyn. Please.” Dwyn wasn't accustomed to such formalities. Her parents called everyone by their first name, and so did everyone Dwyn worked with in the Aequitas group. “It took you quite a few days to sort things out, but I'm grateful that you climbed out on a limb for me.”
“I hope you found a way to occupy your time. Corma has a lot to offer.”
“I spent my days at the National Archives and Library, going through the original documents of the Thousand Year Pact.” Dwyn smiled. “That probably doesn't sound like much fun.”
“Actually, I'd like to peruse the documents myself, one day.” Beqq seemed unaffected. “I need to talk to you more, Dwyn, before you set out.” She placed a small item on the table.
“A scrambler?” Dwyn frowned.
“Yes. We cannot afford to be overheard.”
“All I need is my permit. I'm used to being on my own in the strangest of environments.”
“Well, this time, you won't be.” Beqq spoke with conviction.
A small flicker of dissatisfaction moved beneath Dwyn's ribs. “I can take care of myself.”
Beqq laid an elegant, well-manicured hand over Dwyn's and squeezed. “I know all that. I've studied your files. But this is different. You're going against a potentially very greedy adversary, and if your group's intel is correct, you'll need protection.”
“As in bodyguards?”
“As in a team of Cormanian law enforcers. They will accompany you every step of the way. Don't argue.” Beqq squeezed Dwyn's hand again. “It took me several days, and I had to use all my accumulated goodwill with the Cormanian Minister of Domestic Affairs to pull this off. The Cormanians wanted to delay any investigation, which in itself is bothersome. But they had to relent when I told them that the SC Council leader was paying this matter special attention.”
“You did? I mean, he is?” Dwyn had actually met Marco Thorosac once. He had visited her university, which was apparently his alma mater, when he had been re-elected councilman for a new decade.
“He is now. I also did my own bit of research, and you're correct about the long-term consequences of the loss of this ancient forest. I've deployed the court ship
Dalathea
, and it will arrive in orbit shortly. I don't have to tell you that, with the war effort, everything else is secondary.”
“I know. It used to be much easier to motivate the SC public. Now it's nearly impossible to raise funds for any cause not directly related to the conflict with the Onotharians.”
“A lot is at stake for certain Cormanians if you prove the intel true.” Beqq frowned. “If you fall into the hands of the ones who will gain from silencing youâ”
“All right, Judge.” Dwyn nodded slowly. “I see your point.”
“Good. Here's the address where you will meet your team at noon tomorrow. A Commander D'Artansis will head up your escort.”
“Very well. I hope they're all used to hiking. The undergrowth makes it nearly impossible to cross this kind of terrain. And when it comes to the Disi-Disi forest, with all its prohibitions and laws to abide by, you can't cut your way forward with a plasma-pulse weapon. And you can't travel with anything but small hovercraft. It's all part of the Thousand Year Pact.”
“I studied some of that last night,” Beqq said. “The rights bestowed upon the Disians were extensive. No loopholes that I could find.”
“And yet the Cormanians are going back on their ancestors' word and their honor. I'm eager to get out there.”
“Use your head and your gut feeling, Dwyn. I don't want this to be our last meeting.”
“Fair enough. I'll be careful, Judge.”
“Excellent.”
They ate in silence and Dwyn began to relax, if only marginally. In her mind and heart she was already on her way to the Disi-Disi forest.
Dwyn pressed the sensor that released the tension in the shoulder straps of her back-strap security carrier and slid it off. The black wire-mesh canvas held everything she needed to document the Cormanian government's potential crimes in the protected forest. Placing the security carrier on the floor next to her chair, she gazed around the mission room. Three women and four men sat in the chairs right next to the podium and had obviously chosen to ignore her.
A tall woman stood by the podium, next to an older man, browsing a handheld computer. Jet black hair framed her strong features, and intense black eyes, very typical of some Cormanians, seemed to analyze and dismiss her in less than a second. Dwyn was used to others perceiving her as an annoyance, at best, or even regarding her with disgust, but something in the woman's eyes made Dwyn clench her jaws. The man looked up and nodded solemnly.
“Captain Zeger, I believe,” Dwyn said pointedly with her sweetest voice. The faint coloring of the Cormanian officer's neck proved that her gentle needling found its mark.
“Ms. Izontro, this is the officer in charge of your safety while in the Disi-Disi forest, Commander Emeron D'Artansis.” Captain Zeger indicated the woman next to him.
Dwyn had to admit D'Artansis was impressive. At a closer range, D'Artansis's black eyes made an even greater impact. Deeply set, they seemed to reflect no light at all, like wells where sunlight could never reach. Stark, strong features added to D'Artansis's austere expression.
“Commander.” Dwyn greeted her politely. “Shall we start?”
A faint look of surprise flickered across D'Artansis's features. “By all means. The sooner the better.”
Dwyn didn't think D'Artansis was eager to go on this mission. In fact, she was almost certain the commander regarded it as a waste of her precious time.
“Heads up, people,” D'Artansis began, and immediately had her team's total attention. “As you've gathered by now, we're going into the Disi-Disi forest. We don't have to worry about the Disians. They'll avoid us if we don't bother them, but plenty of other things can go awry if we don't stay sharp. Captain Zeger has briefed me this morning on our objectives, and I'm certain this team will act with its usual distinction.”
Commander D'Artansis glanced at Dwyn. “Ms. Izontro, who is under the protection of prominent politicians and law enforcers, plans to observe a certain situation. The Disi-Disi forest is beautiful, but also treacherous, unless you know what you're doing. Once we're in the forest, it is up to us to keep her, and each other, safe. Yes, Oches?” D'Artansis indicated a bald young man in the first row.
“What's Ms. Izontro's mission in the forest, ma'am?”
“That's up to her to share, or not.” D'Artansis raised an eyebrow in Dwyn's direction.