First Principles: Samair in Argos: Book 3 (37 page)

              “They’re reliable?” Vincent asked, sounding slightly concerned.  The communication suffered from an annoying lag, due to the distances involved.  With a nearly a light minute separating the repair and refueling area where
Grania Estelle
was located and the Kutok mine, there was a fifty-three second delay between messages.  It was irritating but manageable.

              Corajen nodded once the message came through.  “I trained them myself.  They’re all three lupusan, one female and two males.  They’ve got firearms experience, tactical training and, well… they’re lupusan.”

              A minute later, “And you’re sure they’re loyal?”

              She smiled.  “We went on a hunt in the jungle, Captain.”  She said this as though that was all she needed to say.  “We brought down a saberboar together.  I’m sure of their loyalty.”

              He nodded.  “All right.  You haven’t steered us wrong before.  When can you have them over?”

              “On the next shuttle.  I’ll be accompanying them.”

              The shuttle docked with the
Samarkand
and four lupusan exited.  Corajen led them, all four of them padding softly on the metal deck plates.  The three new arrivals carried large rucksacks on their backs and full duffels over one shoulder.  Like most lupusan, they wore little in the way of clothing, leather knee-length kilts, gray company t-shirts with the galactic spiral logos and heavy leather vests.  One of them, the male had a blade sheathed at his hip, all three of them armed with handguns and stunner pistols.  One of the females, the smallest of the group, had fur of a brindled red and brown, with slashes of white through the fur along her arms and legs, indicating that scar tissue crisscrossed her flesh under the fur.  An angry white scar ran down from her forehead, between her eyes and down past her muzzle, giving what was already a menacing and predatory creature a vicious look.  Of the three, she exuded the most power and presence.

              The other female was taller, leaner and devoid of visible scars.  Her fur was blue-black, with a patch of white on her throat, which extended down to her breastbone.  Her ears and eyes were constantly shifting, scanning for threats.  She was sniffing the air multiple times with each breath, memorizing the scents of everything around her, though in the boat bay of the
Samarkand
most of what she would be detecting would mechanical smells, coolant, fuel.  But there were personnel in here as well and she was keeping track of all of them.             

              The male was taller and broader than the other two, more heavily muscled, his fur a charcoal gray.  He had a faraway look in his silver eyes, as though he wasn’t really paying attention to his surroundings.  Unlike the other two, who radiated pure predator, his aura was almost nonexistent.  Strangely, despite his physical size and bulk, it seemed very easy to overlook his presence.  No one seemed to be able to explain the phenomenon, but it didn’t affect his ability to do his job.

              Tamara was waiting for them in her office as the four lupusan exited the lift and trouped along the side of the construction bay.  Workers glanced at the quartet of wolves but quickly returned to their tasks.  The bay was noisy and bustling as components were being fabricated and assembled for the three ships that were still under construction over in the building slips.  Machine shops were being put together at the yard and soon the
Samarkand
would be able to move on to other projects.

              As they entered her office, Tamara stayed seated behind her desk.  “Corajen, it’s good to see you again.”

              The dark-furred lupusan smiled, flicking her ears in amusement.  “As always.  As I’m sure you’ve guessed, this is your security detachment.”  Her amusement faded.  “Now you’re not going to try and do anything stupid, like evading them because you don’t like having company?  The captain ordered that you get round the clock protection, so don’t be tiresome and make me have to track you down and explain things more thoroughly.”

              Tamara sighed and nodded.  “I’ll be good,” she said meekly.  The security chief nodded in satisfaction.  The other two females grinned at their subject’s response, though given who she was talking to, her acquiescence was hardly a surprise.  It was easy to agree now, but later, after weeks of having the three of them following her every move, her attitudes might change.  Tamara was determined not to have the security chief explain anything more thoroughly and with the possible threat to her person and that to the company by the Republic ship, she resolved to let these three do their jobs.

              “Good.  Let me introduce you to your team.”  Tamara stood as Corajen turned to the others.  The lupusan mentally checked another box, the COO having risen higher in the security chief’s eyes.  She gestured to the smallest, a female.  “This is your team leader.”

“Viktoriya Arsenyev Eristov,” the female said, nodding slightly.  “Very good to meet you, ma’am.”

Tamara nodded back, smiling slightly.  “Good to meet you, Ms. Eristov.”

“My rank is serzhant,” Viktoriya corrected, her voice heavily accented but perfectly understandable.  “The Chief here promoted me, since I’m going to be heading your security detachment.”

“Apologies, Serzhant,” Tamara replied smoothly, bringing up her HUD and making a note on her implants.  “Your specialties?”

“All of us are experts in close combat, but that’s to be expected,” she said, not showing any modesty.  She was not bragging, simply stating fact.  “I am a trained shuttle pilot, air car and ground vehicle operator.  I’m also good with this,” she patted the blade on her hip, “and an expert marksman.”

“And your fellows?”

              Viktoriya gestured to the other female.  “Ekaterina Sonin Trusov, the hunter and tracker of our little trio.”

              “Ms. Trusov,” Tamara replied.  “And I assume you’re a marksman as well.”

              Ekaterina nodded.  “Of course, ma’am.  Wouldn’t be much point in having me if I wasn’t.”

              “No, I guess there wouldn’t be.  Good to have you aboard.”

              “Glad to be here, ma’am.”

              “And this is Marat Rusnak Siyasinov, our medic and long range shooter.” 

              Tamara took in the big lupusan, who was so cool and uncaring that it seemed he was listening to a conversation in another compartment.  She scanned him with her optics, information spilling onto her HUD.  He wasn’t looking at her, but based on his body movements, pupil dilation, breathing, it was clear that he was here, he was listening, he was attentive. 

              “Captain Samair,” Marat said in acknowledgement, his voice a very low growl.  He didn’t seem bored, exactly, more that his mind was a thousand light years away.

              Viktoriya chuckled at Tamara’s expression.  “Don’t mind him, ma’am.  He’s always like that.  But I can assure you, he is very cognizant of what’s going on around him and he’s
very
good at his job.”  The wolf in question didn’t seem to have noticed that they were talking about him, but then he looked over to Tamara and for just an instant, their eyes locked.  Tamara’s HUD was still active and she recorded the event.  His gaze pierced through the fog that shrouded him and in that moment she saw him.  He was a killer, sure, but there was darkness there, a coldness.  Some of the lupusan she knew, like Saiphirelle, were hunters in pursuit of prey, rejoicing in the kill.  But Marat was cold, someone who would and could kill and do it well, but it didn’t seem as though he had any emotions about it one way or another.

              Tamara nodded.  “Very well.  Most of the time, I will be here, aboard the
Samarkand
, either out there on the floor working, or in here, working.”

              “I’ll leave you all to it,” Corajen said.  She looked to Viktoriya.  “I want regular reports.”  She nodded to Tamara and then exited the office.

              “Very well, ma’am.  For the most part, we’ll have one of us with you at all times.  I’ll need to work with the ship’s AI so that we can keep track of your movements,” Viktoriya said.  Tamara sighed but then nodded.  “Whenever you’re off the ship, either you, ma’am, or I will be flying whatever shuttle you’re on.  Or that ship of yours.”

              “That makes sense.”

              “Ma’am, do you have any idea of what kind of threats you might be expecting?” she went on.  Ekaterina perked up, suddenly more attentive.  Marat remained the same, though his ears did flick once.

              Tamara sighed.  “To be perfectly honest, no, I don’t.  But we’re going to be working with the officers and crew of the Republic warship and my friends and associates are concerned they might be interested in doing me harm.”  She grimaced.  “I can’t say I disagree.”

              “Understood.  Well, ma’am, I don’t want to get in your way, but there will just be a few things we need to go over.”  Tamara gestured for her to continue.  “Whenever we’re off the ship, we go with you.  Also, as far as your meals, you need to make sure that anything you eat gets scanned by Marat before you consume it.”

              Marat blinked slowly, pulling a heavy scanner from one of his vest pockets and showed it to Tamara.  She scanned it with her optics and nodded.  Then she whistled.  “I like that, Marat.  Very sophisticated.  I think that must be able to scan down to the atomic level.”

              “Has a large database of toxins, poisons, and other nasties,” he said, sounding lethargic.  He slipped it back into his pocket and resumed his relaxed posture against the bulkhead of the office.

              “When you’re in here,” Viktoriya went on, “One of us will be in here with you, or stationed outside the door.”

              “That would be fine.  Otherwise, however, I would like for the three of you to try and be as unobtrusive as possible,” Tamara said.  The two females smirked at her.  “Yes, yes, I know.  Three lupusan are hardly going to be unobtrusive.  But I would appreciate it if you could at least attempt to blend into the background.  Walking around leering at or snarling at my workers isn’t conducive to keeping a low profile.”  The females smiled slightly and exchanged glances, but when they looked back at Tamara, they were all business again.  She caught the look, but didn’t mention it.  As she’d said, there was only so much the wolves could do to remain out of the public eye.  Of course, if she was surrounded by wolves, it was very unlikely that anyone would risk coming at her.  And if Corajen had vouched for them, that was good enough for her.  But that didn’t mean she would be lowering her own guard.

              “Well, Chief Nymeria has said good things about you,” Tamara went on.  “She said you all went on a hunt together.”

              Viktoriya nodded.  “Yes, ma’am.  We did.”  And that was that.  “Oh, ma’am, we are going to need a way to communicate securely.”

              “Yes, of course.  I’ll make sure you all get secure comms.  Nasir?”

              The AI appeared on the holo projector and the two female wolves smiled at him.  He
did
cut an attractive figure.  “Yes, Tamara?”

              “Nasir, these are the members of my new protection detail.  I would like you to see that there are quarters made available aboard the ship.”

              The AI nodded.  “Of course.  I’ll have to move a couple of people around.  But there is a pair of rooms open on deck two.”

              “I’m sorry to ask, ma’am,” Viktoriya cut in.  “But we’re going to need rooms next to yours.  I understand that might put someone out, but we need to have access to you immediately if something happens.”

              Tamara sighed.  “Well that’s going to be a problem.  Because my stateroom is just off the construction bay, on this deck.  Everyone else, the crew, the tech gangs, all of them bunk on deck two.”  She crossed her arms over her chest.  “And the room is too small to have one or more of you bunk with me.”

              “And it’s extremely uncomfortable out in the bay,” Nasir put in.  “Oh, not bad to work in, but probably not a place where you’d get any sleep.”

              Viktoriya looked as though she wanted to growl.  Bodyguards often had to deal with unruly principals and it appeared that for all of Chief Nymeria’s assurances, it seemed as though Captain Samair
was
going to give them some trouble.

              “Oh, and I will borrow one of the replicators once we get you settled and make sure that the three of you are kitted out properly.  Weapons, ammo, body armor, specialties, whatever you like,” Tamara replied quickly.  “But I’m afraid the room situation will have to be worked around.”

              Ekaterina blinked, her ears flattening to her head.  “Wait, ma’am.  You said you can get us weapons?”

              Tamara smiled.  “I have a
large
assortment.  I think I might be able to find
something
that you’d like.”

              The lupusan grinned.  “Well, I think we might be able to work something out after all, ma’am.”

              In the end, they took the room on deck two.  It was a small cabin; all the rooms on the ship were.  It had a pair of bunks on one side of the room, with a fold out bed tucked into the corner.  The three lupusan assured Tamara that they had no problem bunking together, even Marat.  Tamara had actually been more concerned about the ladies having issue with him, but Viktoriya was confident there wouldn’t be a problem.   Ekaterina only shrugged.  Marat didn’t react at all.

              While they were settling in, unloading their luggage into the cabinets, Tamara stopped at one of the class three replicators that was not in use.  She had four sets of milspec communicators made (the best available) and considered doing more, but decided she would get their input before making more gear for them.  The lupusan were delighted by the radios but agreed they would like to be there to select the rest of their gear.

              “So, I’m confused, ma’am,” Ekaterina said a while later, as they sat in their cabin a short time later.  “You said you have a large assortment of weapons.”

              “That’s correct, Ms. Trusov,” Tamara agreed, a twinkle clearly showing in her eyes.  She was standing, leaning against the bulkhead inside the closed hatch.