Dawnwind 1: Last Man Standing (40 page)

The man who had called himself Juv settled himself on the couch opposite Polum.
 
The pretty blue-haired girl smiled at him, pursed her lips.

“I’m here on business, Polum.”

“You always are, Juv.”
 
Sighing, Polum patted the blue-haired girl’s backside.
 
“Off you go, Nisi.”

She pouted, glanced at Juv, then leaned forward and gave Polum a slow, sensual kiss.
 
Juv sighed.
 
His associate chuckled.
 
The yellow-haired woman behind the couch rolled her eyes and shook her head.

Irritated at the reaction to her kiss, Nisi stood.
 
Pouting, she flounced out of the room.
 
Polum watched her go, amused.
 

“Epimi, would you. . . ?”

“I’ll talk to her,” said the yellow-haired woman.
 

Gathering up two castoff dayrobes, she walked out of the office.
 
She nodded, cordially, to Juv and his companion as she left.

“Interesting woman,” murmured the blue-haired man.
 
“Bodyguard?”

“You’re very perceptive,” said Polum.

Juv sighed.
 
“We’re not here to discuss your choice of companions, Polum.”

“Of course not.”
 
Polum sipped his drink, eyed the old man.
 
“What can I do for the Defense Authority today, Juv?”

“You’ve been making inquiries into the service record of a Guard officer named Epcott.
 
Why?”

“A friend with one of the commercial news agencies is doing a story on him,” said Polum.
 
“Is that a problem?”

“It could be,” said the blue-haired man.

Polum glanced at him.
 
“I don’t believe we’ve been introduced.
 
Mister?”

“Jovut.”

“Are you Epcott’s handler?” asked Polum.

Jovut smiled.
 
“What makes you think that?”

“You’re obviously Guard,” said Polum.
 
“A high-ranking defender.”

“And you can tell this how?”

“Guard defenders are the only ones who stand like they’ve got a metal rod shoved up their spines.”

“You’re a perceptive man yourself, Mr. Jobela,” said Jovut.

Juv scowled.
 
“If the two of you are done admiring each other, shall we return to the matter at hand?”

Polum shrugged.
 
“Why do you think a news story on Epcott could be a problem?
 
Worried he could cast the Guard in a bad light?”

“No,” said Jovut.
 
“Epcott’s service record is exemplary.
 
He’s received multiple commendations for bravery and leadership.”

“It’s the situations that led to him acquiring those awards that we have concerns about,” said Juv.
 
“Some are of a sensitive nature.”

“How sensitive?” asked Polum.

“Sensitive enough that I’m here warning you away from him.”

Polum frowned, put down his drink.
 
“You sound worried, Juv.
 
I’ve never heard you sound worried before.
 
That makes me worried.
 
And curious.”

Juv began to speak, but Jovut touched his shoulder.
 
“There’s information regarding Epcott’s service, Mr. Jobela, which the Guard and the Defense Authority don’t want on the public infonet.
 
Not yet.
 
Not until we’re ready.”

“Ready for what?” asked Polum.

“War,” said Juv.

Polum blinked, stared at the old man.
 
“Are you serious?”

“Again,” said the whitehair, “I’m here, in this godsforsaken bar, warning you away from this matter.
 
Normally, you aren’t this dense.”
 
He glanced at Jovut.
 
“Honestly, he’s usually much quicker than this.”

“How do you want me to fix this?” asked Polum.

The old man shrugged.
 
“Tell your friend you couldn’t get anything.”

“That won’t work.
 
If I say I couldn’t get anything, that will trigger alarms with her.
 
She’ll know something’s happening.”

“Really?” said Juv.
 
“Tell me about this woman, Polum.”

* * * * *

 
Elo Lis stepped into the restaurant and spotted Polum immediately.
 
He was seated at a circular booth in the back, resplendent in a purple shirt festooned with blue and green sequins.
 
Seated with him was a white-haired old man in a two-toned red dayrobe.
 
Polum noticed her and waved.

“Elo.
 
Glad you could make it.”
 
He waved her toward the booth and Elo slid into it, opposite the old man.

“I can’t remember the last time you wanted to meet over dinner, Polum.
 
How could I say no?”
 
She glanced at the old man.
 
“Who’s your friend?”

“This is Juv,” said Polum.
 
“An associate from the Defense Authority.”

Elo raised her eyebrows, extended her hands toward Juv.
 
“A pleasure.
 
Elo Lis of the Junian Information Network.”

Juv stroked her palms.
 
“I know who you are, Miss Lis.
 
Polum has told me quite a bit about you.”

“Has he?” said Elo, frowning at Polum.
 
“He hasn’t mentioned you at all, Mr. Juv.”

“I’m a very boring individual, miss.”

“You can’t be that boring, or you wouldn’t be having dinner with Polum.”

“Then let’s say that I strive to be boring, Miss Lis,” said Juv.

“I’m assuming this meeting is about the story I asked you to help with, Polum,” said Elo.

“You assume correctly.
 
But why don’t we order some drinks, before we get down to business?”

Polum summoned a waiter and the three of them agreed on a pot of blue tea.
 
The waiter vanished as quickly as he had appeared, leaving the three of them alone.

“All right,” said Elo.
 
“What’s this all about, Polum?”

“The DA is going to crush Mosu’s story.”

Elo frowned, glanced at Juv.
 
“Why?”

“There are security issues,” said the old man.
 
“That’s all I’m prepared to say at the moment.”

“Why are you telling me this?
 
Polum could have done it for you.”

“Two reasons,” said Juv.
 
“The first is that if Polum had told you we were crushing this story it would have only made you more curious.”

“And the second reason?” asked Elo.

“Because I’m going to offer you another story, Ms. Lis,” said Juv.
 
“Compensation for the one you’re giving up on.”

“If I give up on it,” said Elo.

The waiter returned with their tea.
 
Polum filled their cups.
 
For a moment, the three of them sat around the table, savoring the bitter blue brew.

“All right,” said Elo, putting down her cup.
 
“What’s this new story you’re offering, Mr. Juv?”

“Officer Epcott’s past is off-limits.
 
However, his future is another matter.”

“Meaning what?” asked Elo.

“Epcott is about to be made a First Officer.
 
How would your agency like to do a story on his first command, a three year tour of the Colonies?”

Elo hesitated.
 
It was an interesting offer, but she had her concerns.
 
“What sort of access would we have?”

“Full access,” said Juv.
 
“Of course, your material would need to be vetted before it could be released to the public, but. . . .”

“Think about it, Elo,” said Polum.
 
“This story has all the elements of the one you set Mosu on, with the added benefit of full cooperation from the Guard and the Defense Authority. What other news agency, commercial or public, has ever had this kind of access?”

“One of my grandfathers used to say that if something sounded too good to be true, it’s probably because it isn’t,” said Elo.
 
“I find it hard to believe Guard Command would go along with something like this, Mr. Juv.”

Juv inclined his head.
 
“I’ll admit that certain elements within Guard Command are not enthusiastic about this project, but they will come around.”

“Will they?” said Elo.

“First Guard Officer Netevu supports this endeavor,” said Juv.

“I’ll have to go to the network with this offer before I can agree to anything,” said Elo, cautiously.
 
“It’s too big for me to authorize, and if the network agrees they’ll have their own conditions, Mr. Juv.
 
You can bet on that.”

“Of course,” said the old man.

“There would definitely have to be a formal agreement between all the relevant parties,” said Elo.
 
“The Guard, the Defense Authority, Officer Epcott. . . .”

“Epcott’s agreement isn’t necessary,” said Juv.
 
“You’ll be getting redacted copies of his formal reports to Guard Command.
 
What Command does with those reports is none of his business.”

Elo’s laughter caught Juv off-guard.
 
“We’ll need more than just Epcott’s reports, Mr. Juv.
 
If we do this story, we can’t just regurgitate information from an Office of Media Affairs press release.”

Juv frowned. “What would you need?”

“Access to all the official logs, and copies of the intraship public comm files...”

Polum chuckled.
 
“You want the whispernet files?”

“What for?” asked Juv.

“Because gossip, Mr. Juv, is the spice in the soup,” said Elo.
 
“We’re going to need to paint a picture of Epcott, something the man on the street can understand and empathize with.
 
Not just the xenos, but also the average citizen.
 
Don’t forget the man is an alien.
 
That’s going to be our hook with the masses, but it’s not going to be enough to keep their interest.
 
The public will need to see the man inside the uniform, not just the uniform.”

“I see,” said Juv.
 
“You want the crew’s candid observations of him.”

“Exactly.”

Juv nodded.
 
“Make your pitch to the network, Miss Lis.
 
I’ll send you my comm-code.
 
Let me know when you hear back from them.”

Elo nodded.
 
“I’ll contact them tomorrow.”

“What about Mosu?” asked Polum.
 
“How is he going to handle all of this, Elo?”

“Fi?
 
He wants his name to blaze, and he doesn’t care what sets it on fire.
 
As long as his name is somewhere on this project, he’ll be happy.”

* * * * *

 
Dodimo Lujo, Sixth Officer of the Junian Guard’s Second Fleet, was not pleased.
 
He set his PIN on his desk and said, “Netevu has lost his mind.”

Guardsman Imi Zejaf, his personal assistant, turned away from her workstation. “May I ask what Guard Officer Netevu has done now, sir?”

Lujo scowled.
 
“He’s going to turn Epcott’s command into a propaganda tool.”

“Isn’t the idea a good one, sir?”

“It has possibilities,” admitted Lujo. “Of course, depending on how the mission progresses, it could also blow up in all our faces.”