Black Guard, The (25 page)

* * *

That afternoon I decided to go into the city. Dressed in my
Guard uniform, since I had no other clothes, I toured the city, wandering
through shopping areas, eating in restaurants, and visiting museums. The people
I met were friendly but appeared apprehensive around me; whereas, people
interacting with the men and women in army and navy uniforms didn’t seem to
have the same reaction. They were more… relaxed around them. I wondered if it
were the black uniform, the Black Guard reputation, or me. I decided I would
have to make an effort to integrate into Jax society. In reality, the military
had been my only contact since I was six years old. The Guard was family, but I
needed some social life and outside interests. To that end, I would need
civilian clothes and Hada’s help.

* * *

On the third day, Wexler and I were notified the committee
wanted us at one p.m. When we arrived, we were shown to the same room.

"We’ve spent the last two days going over your reports
and considering your actions in light of what you told us, Captain Sapir,"
Geller said after we sat. "Our session with you was very instructive and
disturbing. Commander Wexler has always been nervous about dragons, and I now
appreciate why. You appear to see the contract from multiple
perspectives—the Jax, Guard, client, subordinates, adversaries, those
caught in the middle, and even third party observers—and act in a manner
which attempts to balance those perspectives. As you said, if the client gets
killed, we will be viewed as having failed even if you all die fighting to save
his life. And although we may be blameless in a court of law if a client is
killed doing something not covered by the contract, the world would blame us.
Consequently, kidnapping a client or threatening to quit a contract may be
reasonable responses in certain circumstances, but do we want to suggest that
option to the average team leader?"

"There is also the disturbing evolution of the Black
Guard. Traditionally, the Guard provides building security to one or more of
its residents. You appear to have changed that to providing individual security
independent of the location. That is far more complex and dangerous,"
Lerman interjected.

"Commander Wexler, we remain concerned with the
evolution of the Black Guard. Although it has enhanced the overall Jax image,
it has given the Guard a phoenix-like status that is going to involve more
risk. That means correspondingly more deaths in a branch of the military that
produces the fewest recruits. And you cannot compensate by lowering your
standards since your present reputation is a result of your selection
process," Geller said, then turned her gaze on me. "We invited
Captain Sapir here to determine whether her results were because of her Guard
training, her personality, or because she has achieved dragon status. And in
the end, to decide whether we want her brand of thinking. We have concluded she
acted appropriately for the circumstances and Guard training played a
significant part in her actions. But we remain undecided as to whether it’s her
personality or whether other dragons would have made the same or similar
decisions."

"These are critical questions for you, Commander
Wexler, in making assignments and for us in accepting contracts," Noam
said when Geller paused. "In fact, we have a proposal in front of us right
now for the Guard which is again nonstandard but consistent with Captain Sapir’s
previous assignments. What do you think, Dragon Sapir?"

"Tradition and duty have always been the cornerstone
of the Jax military. More so in the Guard, where tradition and duty have been
considered equivalent—one and the same. To me they are separate and duty
has the priority. Duty is not only our commitment to the client as stated and
implied in the contract but to the members of the Guard responsible for the
contract. Unfortunately, tradition tends to minimize duty. If you are going to
accept additional risk, then the commitment to the client and the Guard must be
equal."

"What do you mean?"

"We must consider our various options and choose the
solution that meets our commitment to the client and appears to present the
least risk to the Guard. Splitting my team at Lanzhou is an example. Although I
lost half my team, I saved half by leaving the governor’s estate while honoring
the intent of our contract."

"You didn’t do that at New Keif," Noam said.
"It seems like you put our contract first."

"Not true, sir. I considered several alternatives:
teaming with the army to clear the buildings, choosing to clear a room at a
time, staying in the administration building and clearing the second floor, and
using the leap-frogging technique. In the end, I decided the leap-frogging
technique represented the least risk to the Guard."

"A Guard died," Lerman said after checking his
tabletop tablet. "I’m surprised more didn’t."

"The Guard’s death was bad luck—a lucky shot by
one of the rebels. If we had the ability to run that scenario ten times, I
believe more than half the time, no one would have died. The technique is
effective because it is so fast the enemy doesn’t have time to organize, and
they panic."

"What about Faithful? You honored a very bad contract
and took a huge risk." Noam asked.

"I threatened to leave unless Imum Kelebek renegotiated
the contract and agreed to help me prepare for the attempted breakout by the
United Freelands. That made the contract doable and greatly minimized the risk
to the Guard. We are in a killing profession and cannot eliminate our people
getting killed. But we owe them the best chance of succeeding with minimum loss
of life, if for no other reason than they are difficult to replace."
That
they should understand,
I mused.

"We all agree in principal, Sapir. It’s the
implementation that concerns us. We concede you have been able to succeed in
doing that, but will the other dragons? And what about other team
leaders?" Geller asked. I didn’t know the answer so I stayed quiet.
"Never mind. You’ve persuaded us to accept the contract. It will provide
us with another data-point."

Wexler and I worked well into the night helping the
committee write the proposal.

Well Sapir, do you think all of you dragons would act the
same or at least similarly, in a given situation?" Wexler asked. He had
been quiet during most of the shuttle ride back to Sasser Mountain.

"No, I don’t. We’re unique individuals and are
unlikely to react the same way to any given situation."

"But, dragons have clarity of thought. The ability to
grasp the ramifications of the situation."

"Yes, but understanding the situation does not mean
seeing the same solution. That would depend upon our perception of tradition,
duty, risk, client, and team. Those assessments will vary by individual. So
while we may all see the same problem, we are unlikely to see the same
solution."

"That’s what has the Committee and me concerned,"
Wexler mumbled, and was silent for the rest of the trip.

* * *

The next day, I assembled my new team. Senior Sergeant
Solow was back with me but now as a newly appointed Lieutenant, and Sergeants
Judt and Cerff as newly promoted Senior Sergeants heading two of the three
reconfigured teams of four members each. The new teams were composed of the
same people I had in Halo, except for the addition of Corporal Rong, a woman,
giving me two on each team.

"Good morning. You have all been on teams with me and,
therefore, know me and what to expect," I said after they settled down on
the ground. I had decided to hold the meeting outside as the weather was chilly
but sunny and the mountain air refreshing. "This contract is to protect
the wife and two young children of a warlord on the planet North Song. The
Warlord Shin is having a dispute with his neighbor, a warlord named Daiki, and
is concerned about their safety."

"Sir, what about him and his son’s safety?"
Sergeant Catz asked, looking at the briefing notes I had distributed via their
Mfis.

"We will know more when we get there, but I assume he
is active in the fight with his father against Daiki. That would be the domain
of the army rather than the Guard."

"And our duty?" Catz asked, smiling. She had been
with me from the beginning and knew me well.

"The safety of the wife and her two children. If we
try to do more, we run the risk of jeopardizing our lives and those we are
contracted to guard." Nodding heads of agreement greeted me. "The
shuttles will be here tomorrow at eight for those interested in seeing North
Song."

* * *

The shuttles delivered my team and me to the Black Leopard.
When I exited, a Lieutenant braced to attention and saluted.

"Welcome aboard, Captain Sapir. I’m Lieutenant Froman.
I’ll show you to your assigned quarters and when you are ready, to Colonel
Helon. He would like to see you when you’ve gotten settled."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." I nodded and followed
him to the commando area and a private room. "Give me an hour to get
settled. After that you can reach me on my Mfi when the Colonel is
available." I unpacked my few articles of clothing and toiletries,
showered, and spent the remaining time reviewing the background information on
North Song. The planet was mountainous and divided up between low tech regions
run by self-claimed warlords. The main city, Rasun, had a population of several
million and acted as a distribution center between off-planet merchants and the
warlords. The merchants had long ago stopped flying upcountry as it wasn’t
safe. The warlords were unpredictable and without scruples.

After an exchange of messages, Lieutenant Froman came and
escorted me to Colonel Helon’s office. The private on duty opened his door and
bowed as I approached. I entered and gave a shallow bow, which Helon returned.

"What would you like to drink, Captain?" He waved
me to sit.

"Tea, if you have it, otherwise, water," I said,
settling into the all-to-familiar plain steel armchair with its commando-blue
padding prevalent in senior officer’s offices. I had no sooner sat than the
private set down a tray with tea, sugar, and milk.

"I hear your name a lot since New Kief. You have had
some rather unusual assignments for the Black Guard. Is the Black Guard
expanding its role?" he asked, watching me as he sipped his tea.

"An evolution, I think."

"A dangerous one. I don’t envy you, Sapir. The good
news is that Captain Litwin informs me he has been ordered to stop back
regularly to check on you. Of course, the bad is that there will be gaps when
you have no support, and the tribes are unpredictable. Although low tech, they
have rifles, lasers, RPGs, and are very good shots."

"Sounds like it fits with Guard rule number
one—trust no one, ever," I said, and he laughed.

"Good rule for the Jax. They hire us, but they don’t
like us. We are a necessary evil. It frees them from doing the dirty work and
keeps their hands clean."

* * *

Captain Litwin dispatched two combat shuttles to ferry us
to the Sabana region and dropped us less than a klick outside the city of
Haeju, where Warlord Shin lived. A city with a population of twenty thousand.
Fifteen minutes later, several small trucks equipped with large caliber machine
guns appeared, and we were driven into the city. In the center, we entered a
compound enclosed by an eight foot high stone wall and stopped next to a
two-story white-washed brick building.

As I exited the truck, a tall, muscular man exited the
doorway with two equally tall but much heavier-set men. His clothes were
similar in style to the others, except better quality: long sleeved, hip-length
shirt; baggy pants tight at the ankles; and a short leather jacket. An
automatic weapon hung from his back and a belt with ammo clips circled his
waist. His narrow face contained a frown as his eyes scanned us and finally
came to rest on me. His brown eyes held mine.

"You’re a woman," he said after a long silence.
His angular face was covered with a nicely trimmed beard and mustache and curly
black hair protruded from his white, round skull-cap.

"You’re a man," I said, keeping my amusement from
reaching my face. He stood glaring at me in silence for a long time.

"I’m paying a lot of money. I expected—"

"Men," I interrupted. "But what you got
instead is much better. You got the Black Guard." I couldn’t help a smile
at the shifting emotions on his face: shock, anger, and finally a sneer. Other
men were approaching as we stood talking. "Before you decide you want a
demonstration or contest, the Black Guard has nothing to prove. You hired the
Jax Black Guard because of our reputation, which has been built over hundreds
of years. If you don’t want us, we will leave."

"Show Lord Shin respect, woman," the big man on
Shin’s left said loudly, and took two steps towards me, his snarling face
thrust towards mine. I snapped my Mfw loose and jammed it into his solar
plexus. Garlic breath exploded in my direction as he doubled over and stumbled
backward. My weapon swiveled towards the man on Shin’s right whose hands sought
his weapon. Instinctively, I knew every Guard’s weapon was now showing by the
look on Shin’s face.

"We don’t do demonstrations, but we do give examples. The
first one to draw a weapon dies with a bullet through his right eye." I
smiled at Shin. "Game’s over, Warlord Shin. Everyone here has earned the
uniform they are wearing. I’d rather not have to kill your men to prove
it." My gun swiveled back to the man I had struck, who had his hand on his
weapon.

"Enough," Shin said, shaking his hand while
scanning his men. "We need to talk… Captain Sapir."

I followed him into the building, down a hallway and into a
small room with a table and an assortment of chairs, some wood, some steel, and
some benches.

"Marie, some coffee," he said to a young woman
who stuck her head in the doorway. "How do you work?"

"I have three teams with me. One team will be assigned
to your wife and to each of your children. Two members on each team will be
with each member of your family from now until you no longer need us. I’d like
a tour of the compound for my team and me. We need to understand all the
possible entrances and exits. In the event of trouble, we will need to know our
options," I said. "And it would help if you would give me an overview
of the situation and what you believe are the potential dangers."

"All day and night?" he asked, eyes narrowed. I
nodded. "Good. The province of Semuc is next to mine. We have for
generations argued… and fought over strips of grassland and rivers bordering
the two. But the old warlord of Semuc died last month and the new one, Daiki,
is insane. He’s claiming the entire valley separating our lands belongs to him.
His fighters are well armed, and I fear he may be crazy enough to start a war.
If he does, I doubt he will give notice, and may begin with an attack on Haeju
when I’m not here." He looked up as Marie placed a glass container on the
table along with glasses. Shin filled each glass and slid one towards me.
"Tea with honey."

I took a sip. "Very good. You understand our contract
covers your family only. While we may protect others by killing those we feel a
threat to your family, our only concern is your family." I wanted to be
clear we weren’t an extension of his army. He stroked his beard as he watched
me.

"That seems heartless. You would let innocent people
die waiting for the attackers to threaten you… my family."

"Lord Shin, we are mercenaries, very reliable and
honorable but mercenaries. We don’t know whether you or Daiki are in the right,
and we don’t care. Our total concern will be your family’s safety per our
agreement. If we got involved in other people’s safety that would distract us
from doing our job and could result in them being saved and your family being
killed." I paused for Shin’s reaction. When he said nothing, I continued.
"Lastly, the Guard has command of your family’s security. Everyone around
them needs to understand that."

"If they don’t?"

"Remember? Our only concern is your family. Anyone
hindering us will be considered supporting the people trying to hurt them. That
could give us cause to kill them, and we would."

"Including me?" he asked. I nodded. He laughed.
"The rumors appear true. The Black Guard has a reputation of being without
feelings. When I saw women, I thought the rumors wrong, but I see they were
right. I will inform my men that in an emergency you are in charge."

"Thank you, Lord Shin. Although we will not go out of
our way to help anyone unless it helps your family, we will not intentionally
put anyone in harm’s way." The idea that people thought us heartless
killers without feelings sickened me. I could understand how it could look to
an observer, adversaries, and how rumors tend to take on a life of their own,
but I hoped we never liked seeing people killed or failed to consider innocent
bystanders when we contemplated our options.

"Come." He rose, and I followed him out into the
courtyard where Shin’s men stood on edge like sixteen rattlesnakes were loose.
"Men, I have agreed with Captain Sapir that the Black Guard is in charge
of my family’s security whether I’m here or not. If they tell you to do
something, do it."

He led us on our tour of the compound. He crossed an open
field with two men practicing and a third watching as we headed towards three
one-story buildings.

"We use this field for general training, hand-to-hand
fighting, knives, familiarization with weapons, etcetera. These three buildings
are used to house men here for training and single men who for one reason or
another don’t have a place to stay. Usually, it is temporary," he said,
opening the door only part way. I pushed it open and walked past him with my
team following. It looked like a typical barrack with bunks, showers, and
toilet facilities. Only two men were there as we passed through to the back
door. They glared at us but said nothing. I entered the second one without
asking and again walked through to the back door. Only one man was in the
building, in bed. He pulled the covers up to his neck as we passed. The third
building was empty. "You don’t have much respect for people’s
privacy."

"Privacy is a luxury in war. But now that we’ve seen
the buildings and their layout, I doubt we will ever enter the first two again,
without knocking." I smiled. "We will take over the third." In a
way, being arrogant established us as no nonsense mercenaries and hopefully
minimized the men from getting familiar or testing one of us. The next building
was small with no windows and a heavily barred door, which Shin unlocked.

"This is where we store our weapons." He waved me
in. The room was filled with crates of ammunition and what looked like weapons
carried by twentieth century marines, including flak jackets, and a few heavy
machine guns like those mounted on the trucks that delivered us to the
compound. I waited as each member looked inside. The larger building, which
stood in front of this one and faced the gate, was a dining hall for the troops
in the compound. Another two-story building stood next to the weapons building.

"Several of my senior officers live here with their
families." He hesitated. "Do you need to see this one?"

"Yes, but you may give them notice that we need to see
the layout. I imagine your wife and children visit this building," I said,
softening my approach now that I hoped I had made my point. After a few minutes
he waved for me to enter. Three women and six children ranging in age from
toddlers to early teens stood against the far wall. Two men stood with Shin. A
stocky man with a full beard and a scowl looked me up and down.