The Veritian Derelict (Junkyard Dogs) (15 page)

Chapter
21.

Santana Nexus Station, Central Spindle, December 3, 2598.

Tamara
Carlisle watched from the observation deck of the passenger waiting area near the North end of the Santana Nexus station's spindle while the cutter from the
Istanbul
maneuvered carefully into the station's huge receiving bay. A bright white line traced the outline of the shuttle's cross section as the little ship nosed through the airlock "force curtain" which separated the pressurized portion of the receiving bay from the harsh vacuum of space. The cutter had arrived to pick up Carlisle and Admiral Kingston's choice for the "real" liaison to the Meridian Ambassador, Lieutenant Lawrence Harvick, and transfer them both over to the Ambassador's ship. Carlisle still hadn't met this Lieutenant Harvick nor had he yet reported to the receiving area. The marines manning the security kiosk had just finished exchanging formalities with the personnel from the cutter when Harvick finally made his grand entrance.

A couple of enlisted men were carrying his gear and he directed them to place all of it next to Carlisle's before
thanking them profusely and dismissing them. He was of taller than average height but very slender, almost fragile-looking. He appeared to be of Old Earth African descent, with ebony skin; a broad, flat nose and short, kinky hair. His personal grooming was fastidious and the appearance of his uniform flawless -- beyond even the most meticulous military standards. Following military protocol, he and Carlisle exchanged salutes. Harvick's was textbook perfect. After her interview with the admiral, Carlisle had no idea what kind of person he would turn out to be and she was, to be truthful, expecting the worst. Somewhat to her surprise, his demeanor, though a tad stuffy, was not at all haughty.

"I take it you are Ensign
Tamara Carlisle?" he said as his gaze swept her short frame up and down before lingering a moment on her left cheek for a short inspection of her clan tattoo. His voice was unexpectedly rich and deep and the patterns of his speech were precise and polished. He could easily have been an audio announcer. His slight emphasis on "Ensign" left no doubt about the fact that she was a subordinate.

"
Kingston liaison...trained diplomat...ah...Yes, I'm Ensign Tamara Carlisle," she replied.

From
Carlisle's perspective, his appraisal of her communicated a multitude of things, none of them overly complimentary. He did, however, extend his hand.

"It is a distinct pleasure to meet you, Ensign," he said.

"Likewise, Lieutenant," she responded as she shook his hand.

The personnel from the
Istanbul's
cutter efficiently loaded up a couple of travel modules containing spacesuits and a few larger equipment items belonging to the two Federation officers, before assisting them with their personal gear and motioning them onboard the small craft. Harvick and Carlisle took seats next to one another for the fifteen-minute hop out to the
Istanbul
.

"
I have been informed, Ensign Carlisle," said Harvick. "That you have not had the benefit of any formal diplomatic training?"

"
...Miltary historian...new degree...ah...No, Lieutenant, I haven't," she replied. The tall Lieutenant proved his diplomatic credentials and instincts immediately by his -- what else -- diplomatic approach to the Ambassador's choice for liaison.

"
That is, of course, most unfortunate for you in your current assignment. While I can certainly believe that the Ambassador and his wife have their own very good reasons for requesting your services, I think it best that you follow my lead on matters concerning diplomats. There are many fine nuances to the art and science of diplomacy and, believe me, it is ridiculously easy to commit a
faux pas
. Indeed, Kingdoms have been lost due to the utterance of a single careless phrase." He nodded sagely. "Yes, I think it best that you spend the bulk of your time, especially in the early stages of this mission, observing rather than doing. Our mission is of utmost importance and we simply must take every precaution to ensure its success. I think you will find me to be a very reasonable sort and if you merely follow these simple guidelines, Ensign, you and I will get along fine."

Carlisle, somewhat stunned by the honey-coated torrent of words, simply nodded.

***

After the
outright rude or, at best, indifferent fashion in which she had been greeted by most of the Naval personnel onboard the Santana Nexus Station, Carlisle's reunion with Ambassador Saladin and his wife couldn't have provided a starker contrast. The Ambassador was just as she remembered him, tall, athletic and immaculately dressed. He was also immaculately groomed with short, neatly-combed black hair and a pencil-thin mustache. His wife, standing next to him, was a woman of exotic and exceptional beauty. Her sleek shoulder-length black hair was classically styled, with the ends curved slightly inward and bangs straight-cut across her forehead. Her hair framed the perfect, light-olive skin of her oval face. The Ambassador, his wife and all six of the guards present appeared to be of Old Earth Middle East origin.

The two dignitaries and Lieutenant Harvick greeted one another stiffly and formally
, following the stuffy, time-worn diplomatic protocols required by the occasion to the letter. "Ambassador Saladin, Lady Sondia," said Harvick, "It is a distinct pleasure to meet you and your most gracious wife, Excellency. It is my hope and my trust that our interactions here will be most fruitful." He then executed the short bow dictated by Meridian tradition before extending his hand to the Ambassador in the Federation manner. The Ambassador and his wife smoothly performed the mandatory responses.

T
hen it was Carlisle's turn. The Ambassador, his demeanor completely changed, spoke warmly to the ensign, his chiseled features breaking into a smile as he did so. "Ensign Carlisle," he said, as he shook hands with her, "how wonderful to see you again!"

Lady
Sondia went a giant step further, she embraced the Ensign and called her by her first name.

"Tamara," she exclaimed. "
You look wonderful! We heard that you had finished your Doctorate. Congratulations!" She looked meaningfully at her husband. "Come, let us leave these two men to their talk. We have just enough time to get you changed into something decent." Carlisle couldn't help but see the look of shocked horror that swept across Harvick's face, the first time she had seen any ripple in his polished façade. The look was there but only for the briefest flicker. Sondia wisked the Ensign away towards their personal chambers. As soon as they were out of earshot, Sondia's manner became conspiratorial.

"Who is th
is Lieutenant Harvick," she asked.

"
...Admiral's choice...trained diplomat...He was Admiral Kingston's choice for this position. She was...ah...less than pleased with me."

"The Admiral can be a meddling old fool sometimes," said Sondia. Her look grew sincere. "
It truly is good to see you! We had several reasons for wanting you for this job, your brains and your recent experience out here, your knowledge of the history of the Succession War, and last but not least, the fact that we totally trust you. This Lieutenant Harvick might have all the proper credentials, but what are his beliefs? His passions? Who does he answer to? There is so much we have to accomplish and dancing around this newcomer will do nothing but slow us down!" She stopped and shook her head, "I suppose we can accommodate him but we certainly did not ask for him!"

"I'm sorry,
Lady Sondia," said Carlisle. "To be honest, he doesn't seem to be as bad as I expected he'd be."

"It is
certainly not your fault, my dear. Besides, Saad and I have handled much worse than the likes of him in our time." They arrived at Sondia's quarters. "Come in, I was serious when I said we needed to find you something nice to wear for dinner."

"
I...I brought my dress uniform."

"Of course
you did and I knew you would but your orders do not specify that you must work in uniform. Perhaps we can take advantage of the unexpected addition of Lieutenant Harvick to make even better use of your talents."

"What do you mean?" asked Carlisle.

"We will be entertaining several guests this afternoon for some opening discussions and then will have a larger group this evening at dinner. We will introduce Lieutenant Harvick as the official Federation liaison. We know that some of these people are among our detractors in this part of the quadrant. We do not have to tell them that you are Federation Navy, you will be introduced as a tutor for our daughter regarding Federation affairs, an advisor whose parents are trusted friends of ours."

"
...tutor...daughter...Do you...think I can pull that off?"

"I doubt you'll have any trouble at all my dear. But you will need to study up on some of the newcomers to our summit meeting. Let's see, y
ou should be able to find information on the Kiwi group using your...Oh, that's right, you don't have your wrist computer any more do you?"

"
Um...they took it away back at the Academy," said Carlisle.

"
I forgot about the computer until this very moment. You must be lost without it."

"It has been difficult."

"A moment please," said Sondia. "I believe we can help you." She went to the intercom and pushed the call button.

"Faiza? You
should come now."

A few
moments later, Sondia's door chime sounded. The Ambassador's wife went to the door and opened it to let in a young, slender, strikingly beautiful girl. In spite of her age, which looked to be somewhere around fifteen or sixteen years old, the young lady exuded a poised and confident manner. Carlisle was stunned by the almost uncanny resemblance between the young girl and the Ambassador's wife. She could have been looking at a younger version of the Lady Sondia herself.

"Ensign Carlisle? Our daughter Faiza."

"...younger Sondia...daughter?...Ah... pleased to meet you, Faiza."

The
young woman smiled at Carlisle with just a hint of mischief in her eyes. "And I you, Dr. Carlisle. I have heard much about you." The Ambassador's daughter spoke perfect standard without a trace of accent. "I have something for you." She held out a small box.

"Your new wrist computer," said Sondia. "
Faiza has been getting it ready for you. You'll also note that she has one of her own. The two of you should compare notes while I find you something to wear."

Carlisle opened the box
and eagerly took out the new computer. Faiza had already activated it and, presumably, had also stuffed it with information that the Ambassador and his wife considered important for Carlisle to have. The automatic tensioning system on the wrist band clamped the device securely, but comfortably to her left wrist. The computer activated immediately, audibly announcing itself to its new owner.

"
Hartwell wrist computer activated. Loaded parameters indicate that the current user is Tamara Carlisle. Is this correct
?"

"Yes," said Carlisle.

"
Please respond to queries necessary for final configuration
..."

"Proceed,
" said Carlisle. The computer then asked her a series of short questions that were necessary to configure the computer to the user's preferences for voice, virtual keyboard and other input parameters. Having used a similar computer for the last year or more, Carlisle was intimately familiar with the workings of the sophisticated device. The entire process took no more than a few minutes.

"
There is also a cranial sensor net for each of these," said Faiza, showing Carlisle a small box that contained the sensor module in question.

"
Have you tried it?" asked Carlisle.

"
Not yet. They're supposed to be absolutely amazing but it takes a couple of hours to get them calibrated."

"
I wonder how it would work in a spacesuit?"

"
Now that would be interesting. You must try it, if you can get it calibrated."

The Ambassador's wife
returned carrying two different outfits, one on each arm.

"Stand up, my dear," said Sondia. She held one outfit on either side of the
Ensign. Which of these do you like?" she asked, indicating a soft, pastel green, floor-length gown and a much more somber mauve business suit. Still uncomfortable with any sort of elegant clothing, Carlisle selected the business suit. Sondia smiled at her. "I might have known! No matter, you will wear this gown for an occasion sometime in the near future."

"
The Ambassador's private conference begins at one this afternoon, my dear. Your quarters will be the same ones you had last time you were on board. Go! Take Faiza with you and spend some time getting more familiar with your new wrist computer. When you are ready to get dressed, Shawndra will assist you. I suggest that you arrive at the conference room at twelve forty-five, fifteen minutes or so before meeting is scheduled to start."