The Black Guard: Book II: Evolution (Black Guard Series 2)

by C. R. Daems

  "Captain Sapir. To what do I owe the pleasure?

  "I have suggested to King Zeruf that the only way to stop the Angels of Death is to reach a mutually agreeable arrangement with your client, wherein he agrees to terminate the contract. He has asked me to talk with you."

  "That is very clever, Rivka. The client could cancel the contract, whereas we cannot. Does King Zeruf have an offer for our client?" She smiled an angelic smile, which made me wonder if her life had been similar to mine: a child taken against her will and placed in an environment she would never have chosen willingly. Did she now think of her fellow Angels as family and mourn the death of the five the Black Guard had recently killed? Although looks could be deceiving, I didn't see any sign of evil or darkness.

  "No. It's for the client to decide, because King Keruf has no leverage except to reject the offer."

  "That is true. While we talk with the client, I will call a truce. You have my word."

  * * *

  "Do you trust her?" Elijah asked while trying not to frown, as we sat around discussing the current Guard deployment.

  "I do, but of course, we aren't going to wager our clients' lives on it. Drop the guards on the meeting building, keep the Guards on the entrances, reduce the Guards on the clients to one—unless they leave the building, then two—and reduce the walk-arounds to senior sergeants and us. While the truce lasts, I want everyone to rest. This won't last long."

  I smiled at Elijah. "It's a small risk, Elijah, and no greater than letting our troops go dull from the strain of too little sleep. Besides, an attack now could be taken as a war on the Black Guard. The Marquis doesn't want that. She would prefer that either the client cancel the contract or the Guard leave so the Angels can fulfill the contract."

  "You're never traditional, Captain. Is that because you are a dragon, or is it your personality?"

  "I suspect my personality permitted me to make dragon, and my personality is a product of my early years and my association with Captain Attali." My family had considered me a throwaway child, and Hada had given me a loving sister and family. "My advice, Elijah, is meditation. It frees the mind of preconceptions and lets you see what is. I see each assignment as a duty to protect the client and those under my command."

  "How can I protect both the client and those under me?"

  "By ensuring your orders provide adequate protection to the client while providing the least risk to the Guard. It's a delicate balance but necessary. Getting a Guard killed does little to help protect the client."

  "Like relaxing your guard during the truce. It creates a slightly higher risk to the client in the short term, but it maintains the Guard's alertness in the long term," Elijah said as if committing a training lesson to memory.

  * * *

  Zeruf wasn't happy with the reduced Guard, but there was little he could do except to remind me he wasn't happy. As a week passed I thought I noticed a marked improvement in the troops. They appeared more … alive. On the eighth day, Naxal notified me that the Marquis wanted to see me, and I ordered Elijah to go back to our previous schedule in anticipation of the truce ending.

  When I arrived, Somiko met me at the door. "How was your rest, Rivka?"

  "Very nice. Thank you, Somiko."

  "I thought it interesting that you trusted me."

  "I thought you an honorable person, who like me does not consider us at war with each other. We are professionals doing our best to honor our organization's contracts."

  Her smile was warm. "Thank you, Rivka. I wish you gone from Nizara, but I'm glad I met you. It has been a pleasure." She stood staring at me for a long time. "Our client would terminate the current contract if King Zeruf would join him in his war against the other kingdom—or alternatively renounce the Asina throne and place my client's man on the throne."

  "That is about what I expected, but I had to ask." I stood there trying to think and couldn't. My mind was in chaos.

  Somiko smiled, walked to the door, and pulled down the shade, which had "Closed" written on the outside.

  I could have kissed her. Instead, I folded into a meditating posture almost face to face with her animal, whose head now looked gigantic, and his eyes a gateway to darkness. I closed my eyes and slowly sank into a peaceful state. I don't know how long I sat but when I opened my eyes the sun was setting and the shop was bathed in shadows.

  To my surprise, Somiko sat facing me.

  "I see our training is much alike," she said. Her animal now lay by her side, appearing relaxed but looking no less menacing.

  "I believe you and I want the same result, if for different reasons. I will relay your client's options to King Zeruf, but you can tell your client the Black Guard is going to recommend the king take his army and join forces with your client's adversary. Although your client's defeat would not cancel the contract, it would provide revenge and an orderly transition to the next king. Of course, if the contract was canceled, he would remain neutral." I paused, looking at Somiko.

  She nodded soberly, although amusement danced in her eyes.

  "As an individual representing a potential client, can I consider my conversation with you now confidential?"

  When she nodded, I continued. "Should your current client decide to cancel the contract, my client would like a contract to kill your old client—"

  "That would be very expensive—"

  "Before he reaches the age of two hundred."

  "He'll die … That contract would be much less expensive." She laughed. "That's why I wish you gone, Rivka. You see far too much. I will make sure my client understands."

  * * *

  "I wasn't sure what to do when you didn't come out," Naxal said when I finally walked out. "Breaking into the Marquis's shop didn't appear a good idea, so I just stayed, hoping you knew what you were doing."

  "The king will decide, so let's go find out his decision." I settled back, content to wait. I didn't want to discuss it with Naxal until the king had been briefed.

  * * *

  When we arrived back at the palace, it was dark and the family was having dinner.

  "What did she say?" Zeruf asked as I entered the room and all eyes turned on me, including Naxal's.

  "The Angels' client will end the contract if you will abdicate the throne and appoint the client's man." I paused for comments but heard only silence and stony-faced acceptance. "Or, join him in defeating his opponent and then declaring him your king."

  "Never!" Kalom shouted, although it wasn't his decision.

  Zeruf just stared at me for a long time before speaking, "You … admire the murderous bitch."

  "Ironically, the murderous bitch is on your side." I held up my hand before anyone could interrupt. "She would like the contract to be canceled—"

  "Then why doesn't she!" Kalom shouted, his face red with anger.

  "Only the client can cancel the contract with the Angels of Death, just as only your father can cancel the contract with the Black Guard. I have asked the Marquis to tell the client that I am suggesting that you join forces with your adversary's opponent to defeat him."

  "Will defeating him end the contract?" Dulice asked.

  "No. But the client may decide to cancel the contract to keep you from acting."

  "And if he doesn't?" Zeruf asked.

  "Worse case, you will be able to control who succeeds you and your country's future."

  "And if he cancels the contract, what then?"

  "The murderous bitch has agreed to give you a contract on her previous client's life—"

  "I couldn't afford that … the bitch would want a king's ransom!"

  "No. The contract would be very reasonable, since you would give the Angels a hundred and fifty years to kill him." The looks on the faces around the table were priceless as each fought to grasp what I had said. "Since you would be an Angels' client, they could never take a contract against you."

  "You're very devious, Captain," Dulice said as a slight smile touched her lips.

  "O
f course, Your Highness, this cannot be a bluff. If you accept my suggestion, you must order General Garrant to prepare for war immediately."

  Zeruf looked to his wife, who nodded. "You're right, Captain Sapir. And what will you do?"

  "I'll continue to honor our contract as long as you wish. Unfortunately, if their client doesn't cancel the contract, the Angels have no choice but to continue to try to kill you, although I believe they will await the outcome of the war. After all, people die in war."

  "Colonel Naxal, tell General Garrant I want to see him, and decide which members of your security force will accompany me and which will remain here with the queen and princess."

  * * *

  The next several days were a whirlwind of activity as the General prepared the Asina army to move while messages were exchanged between King Chaldz of Jhina and King Zeruf.

  On the fourth day, I had a message from Somiko. I arrived several hours later and was greeted at the door.

  "Welcome, Captain Sapir. Your strategy paid off. Our client has agreed to end the contract on the condition King Zeruf refrains from entering the war. If he does, the Angels will give King Zeruf his contract to kill our previous client for the amount he paid for one month of his current contract with the Black Guard."

  "Very generous, Somiko."

  "It is, isn't it?" She laughed. "Come into the back, and I will make you something to drink. I'd like to hear a little about the Black Guard and you. It's going to be very boring after you leave, so I'd like something to remember."

  * * *

  I boarded the Black Panther a week later.

  A young marine lieutenant was waiting as I exited the shuttle.

  "Ma'am, Captain Hawkins asked if you and your lieutenant would like to join him and a few of his officers for dinner tonight at nineteen hundred hours."

  "Thank the captain for the offer, Lieutenant, and tell him we would be honored," I said, looking forward to being onboard a Jax cruiser with family, heading for home. I checked on Corporal Kreps, who claimed he was fit for duty. He wasn't, but it didn't matter, because the assignment was over. I was glad to hear from the doctor that he would recover fully.

  * * *

  "I'm glad you and your lieutenant could join us, Captain Sapir. I know the Black Guard isn't much on medals, but I think you deserve one for this assignment. Worst contract I've seen in my years in service. Actually, you don't seem to get any good ones." He snorted. "You know Colonel Ramos. Commander Matney is my XO. Help yourselves to something to drink." Hawkins waved toward the sideboard.

  "I was fortunate. The Angels of Death also had a bad contract, so they were eager to help get it all canceled."

  "Probably thought they would run out of Angels before you ran out of Guards," Ramos said.

  "Ironically, the Marquis, that is what they call all the Angels' intermediaries, is a retired senior Angel and a true professional who felt the same way about her people as we feel about ours. The thought of losing additional Angels was tearing her apart, so she was receptive to the idea of working with me—not as friends, but as professionals with a mutual problem."

  "Why? You were winning. You had killed five Angels without losing a Guard," Matney said, surprise written on his face.

  "I had doubled the normal guards on each person and added extra patrols, making for eight hours on and four off. The strain was beginning to show, and it would have eventually resulted in slower reflexes and mistakes in judgment. The Angels had time on their side, and a lot of Angels and Guards were going to die if the contract dragged on—and it was an 'until death' contract."

  "I'm afraid you've just made yourself the JCC's troubleshooter. I don't envy you," Hawkins said to nodding heads.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Safort: a planet up for grabs

  I had seldom been so relieved to get back to Sasser Mountain and home. Our standoff with the Angels of Death could have been a disaster—and would have been without Somiko's help. I seriously doubted I could have managed to keep one or more of our clients and my detail from getting killed before the king's money ran out. Eventually the Angels would have found or created a weakness to exploit.

  The only thing missing was Hada's presence, but she was currently on assignment and not due back anytime soon. I considered taking my post-assignment leave but knew I wasn't ready. And truth be told, I was afraid to be on my own. I consoled myself with the thought that I had years to get ready.

  I missed having Hada to help with my after-action report; the all-night party last time had been fun. Instead, I took my time and finished it three days later and turned it in to Commander Wexler.

  "An interesting report, Sapir. We need to have our usual Black Guard debriefing, but I'm not sure I want to share your solution publicly. Negotiating with the enemy isn't the kind of message I'd like to give to our assignment leaders." He frowned. "I know the dragons will understand you didn't consider her the enemy—but she was."

  "I think it was more the enemy of my enemy type situation. The Angels and the Guard had a mutual problem caused by the Angels' client, so it made sense to work together to solve it without abandoning our contractual agreements."

  "Gives me a headache just thinking about it," Wexler said, shaking his head.

  In the end, Wexler held the usual meeting and made the interaction between Somiko and me sound like I was dealing with a hired intermediary. He briefed Tzadok and Dobrin, who had been on station at the time, separately. The dragons thought the interaction hilarious.

  The weeks flew by. There was always plenty to do: helping to teach the current Guard candidates, helping those practicing the whip, Wuji with whoever was available, weapon practice, and reading the philosophers. Most of their insights applied equally today as they had back in the ancient past.

  * * *

  "Excuse me, Commander, but why is Safort so important to the Jax ... beyond the obvious money from the contract?" I asked wanting to understand, although it didn't impact my duties or me.

  Wexler gave a snort of amusement.

  "Although we have a civilian component to our system of government, Jax is a military state. Members of the JCC feel strongly that a Helix Alliance is an attempt by Outpost, Valhall, and Lariw to weaken Jax through isolation and alliance laws created to govern the Helix sector. It would take years, but it is one possible scenario—one of two with a high probability."

  "The other?"

  "A war that we could actually lose." Wexler sat back and took a sip of his kaffa.

  I sat stunned. I could imagine the Jax losing a battle but not a war.

  He sat quiet for a long while, probably giving me time to come to grips with the idea. "It's obvious Outpost also envisions a similar scenario, since it appears they are targeting Safort like they did Blackwood."

  "How? I thought Safort was a democracy."

  "It's a government elected by the people. But in reality few governments are elected by the total population or even by the total that vote. In most cases they vote for representatives who then vote for them. Further complicating matters, representatives are seldom elected by the same number of voters. Safort is an excellent example. The body that has the most power and would decide whether to be part of an alliance is the Safort Upper Chamber, SUC. Each of the seven states has two representatives in the SUC who are elected by the state's population—a democracy. The states do not have equal population, yet they have equal representation. You can see what I mean."

  "I see that the law may not represent the majority of the people on Safort, but I don't see how Outpost can influence the vote."

  "On Safort, if a representative dies or is for some reason disqualified, the person with the third highest number of votes in the last election fills in until the next five-year election, unless there is more than two and one-half years remaining." He paused, although it wasn't necessary.

  I smirked to let him know I saw the potential weakness in the system.

  He nodded. "Yes, the present members have served for
three years, and yes, there were two members whose deaths would create a majority who favored the alliance. One died in an accident last week."

  "And the other one doesn't think it was an accident and wants protection," I said, now that the situation was clear. "And General Lerman wants me because of Outpost and Blackwood."

  "The JCC is unanimous in wanting you. They know you because they have been following your assignments; they don't know Tzadok, who was the only other dragon on the list of currently available personnel. You have a blank check: you can have whomever you want, any size team, and a Jax cruiser will stand by to support you. That's how important they believe the situation on Safort."

  * * *

  I asked Wexler for time to think and made my way to our favorite meditation spot, mine and Hada's. Today the wind was gusting in swirls and the spray from the falls had both the area and me soaked in minutes. But I hardly noticed as I pondered the problem—not who to pick, but how Outpost could affect the vote. That was what my duty would encompass. In the end, I concluded the potential dangers to the client were from murder, coercion, and bribery. That settled, I returned to my room, changed my uniform, had dinner at the officer's club, and contacted Wexler.

  "You're joking?" He glared at me. "We are guards ..."

  "Who are evolving with the JCC's permission and encouragement."

  "How do you expect to stop coercion and bribery?"

  "By protecting the source of coercion and by being willing to exceed the bribery." I had given it considerable thought.

  "How do you do that? No, don't bother explaining. I know you don't have any idea. You will just respond as it arises, the exact thing that makes the JCC and me so nervous. We like predicable, and you aren't." The frustration in his voice and slouched posture was clear.

  Then suddenly he straightened, smiled, and turned on his Mfi. After a short delay, he spoke. "Admiral Geller, I've talked with Captain Sapir ..." He went on to explain our conversation, sounding amused to have passed it on to the JCC. The exchange went on for nearly an hour as Geller got Lerman and Noam, the two other members, in on the call.