by John Ringo
"This one was harder than normal," he admitted. "I'd been away too long."
"And you do this regularly?" she asked.
"Usually every day," Paul admitted. "It's how I keep track."
"What are dragon-carriers?" she asked.
He looked at her sharply, then shrugged.
"The UFS has rigged out one of the warships to land and launch wyverns and greater dragons," Paul said. "I'd heard about it, but didn't really expect it to work. Well, it did. They destroyed the force that we sent down to the Isles to disrupt their negotiations with the mer. Now Chansa wants to build some of his own, so he can protect the invasion fleet."
"What do you think?" Megan asked.
"I think we're playing to their game and that's what I told Chansa," Paul replied. "We're just about evenly matched for power at this point, so we can't use that against them. But just making our own carriers isn't going to win us control of the sea. We need something to deal with the dragons. I told him to consult with Celine about modifying our dragons and get a group together to consider how to counter theirs."
"Do you think it will work?" Megan asked, handing him the water.
"We have to take Norau," Paul shrugged. "There are five power plants in Norau. We've tried everything from sedition to infiltrating attack teams, but most of them are well away from the coast and we can't use teleport. If we take the plants, or capture that bitch Sheida Ghorbani, the war will be over. But taking it will be . . . difficult. They've armed every peasant in the field and they make them train with the arms. There are areas that haven't done that, though, because Sheida's too stupid to make them. We're going to concentrate our attack on those areas. But we have to get there first, which means controlling the ocean. And we can't do that if one carrier can destroy six of our ships, five of them without ever coming in sight of the ships. And the carrier had less than a full complement of dragons."
"What are dragons afraid of?" Megan said. She'd wished for a month now that she had some way to get word to the other side. This was operational intelligence, stuff that could be acted on. Especially if she found out the counter plans. She had to figure some way to smuggle out information. There had to be a way.
"Nothing that I'm aware of," he said, getting a far away look as he accessed the Net. "Their wings are monomolecule fibers, so no hurting them there. Their underbellies aren't, though. I'd say that a well-placed ballista bolt would take one down."
"Lots of dragons?" Megan prompted.
"Lots of bolts," Paul smiled in response. "Chansa's problem, I'll let him come up with the solution."
"Who is Talbot?" Megan asked. "You've mentioned him before."
"Duke the Honorable Charles or Edmund, take your pick, fucking Talbot," Paul said with a frown. "He was one of Sheida's little fuck boys before she became a council member. He apparently threw her over for her sister. He's now the commander of the eastern defenses in Norau and he was on the mission to the mer-folk. Apparently he put some spine in those Changed abominations, because they killed everything that Chansa sent at them. Chansa is simply furious. He not only lost the orcas and a kraken but a reasonably competent field agent and a very good source. All thanks to Duke Fucking Talbot."
Megan decided that she much wanted to meet "Duke Fucking Talbot" someday and give him a very friendly kiss.
"And the rest?"
"We've settled the negotiations with the replacement for Minjie's replacement," Paul said with a grin. "You had a perfect plan there, my dear. I let Celine handle all the arrangements. I understand they almost have the blood off the walls. She sent a very small and somewhat intelligent spider into his quarters. When he was in flagrante delicto, it bit him and paralyzed him. Then its momma came in and finished off the job."
"What happened to the girl?" Megan said, horrified.
"Boy as it turns out," Paul replied. "Nothing, the spiders had very specific instructions. I made that clear to Celine. Much more horrible that way."
"Paul," Megan said, glancing around. "I can't guarantee I'd notice a spider."
"I would, my dear," Paul smiled. "I don't keep up a PPF when I'm with you ladies, but nothing can come in or out."
"I got food and drink from the kitchen," Megan pointed out.
"Only because I relaxed the protocols to let you," Paul replied. "And the kitchen itself is sealed. I also sweep for anything that might be one of Celine's little monsters, not to mention poisons. You have a few lovely items in your lab, by the way. What do you use sulfuric acid for?"
"Reagent," Megan said. "It's used to transform some of the products that I get to add a sulfur molecule. That makes them more volatile."
"Ah," Paul said, getting a far-away look. "Actually, most of the stuff that you use for perfumes is poisonous in sufficient concentration." He looked at her and smiled. "But not to me, of course. It takes something much more subtle than concentrate of rose hips."
"People used to die from cosmetic poisoning," Megan shrugged. "Heavy metals. And painting. Painters didn't always start mad, but lick enough paint brushes that have been covered in vermilion, which was basically mercury, and you get a little brain addled. Not to mention that lovely yellow from lead."
Paul got a far away look again and then smiled. "You are a font of knowledge my dear."
"I like chemistry," Megan said with a shrug. Of course, mostly from a forensic side, but let's not go there. "Half of chemistry is knowing what you don't want to swallow."
Paul yawned and smiled at her.
"Could I convince you to snuggle down here with me?" he asked, patting at the cushions. "Just like two people who enjoy each other? Not one of my girls who feel they have to . . . service me. Just . . . friends?"
"Yes, Paul," she said, lying down in his arms. "I think we could do that."
"Always sing for me," he murmured as he coasted on the edge of sleep.
"Always, my dear," she whispered. Till death do us part.
Appendix
New Destiny Key-holders
1. Paul Bowman, Leader of New Destiny, Minister for Ropasa
2. Chansa Mulengela, Minister for Frika, Marshall of the Great Army
3. Celine Reinshafen, Minister for Ephresia, Chief of Research and Development
4. Lupe Ugatu (Vice Minjie Jiaqi), Governor of Hindi (in dispute)
5. Reyes Cho, Minister for Soam
6. Jassinte Arizzi, Minister for Chin (in dispute)
7. Demon, lone actor
Freedom Coalition Key-holders
1. Sheida Ghorbani, Her Majesty of the United Free States, Chairman of the Freedom Coalition
2. Ungphakorn, Lord of Soam
3. Ishtar, Counselor of Taurania and the Stanis States
4. Aikawa Gouvois, Emperor of Chin
5. Lenora Sill
Neutral:
The Finn
THE END
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