by Mark Rounds
"Damn good question," said Taol. "Bring me Sergeant Major Jefferson, Major Milne, and Lieutenant Estaban."
“They will be here shortly," said the Ref.
The hologram vanished, and the drone turned on its camouflage field, effectively disappearing from view. Taol heard it hum in the background for a few seconds and then even the sound was lost.
Sokolov was the first on the scene which surprised the small group of soldiers. He was on foot, in the company of a couple of the Refs.
The troopers binding Taol’s wounds had finished for the time being. They helped him out of the hole and carried me to a nearby stump, so he could sit down. That turned out to be a bad idea too, so Taol stood.
"Well well," said Sokolov with a smile after he had reached the place where Taol was standing. "I see some of our efforts have gotten through to you."
"It was a fair trade," said Taol, indicating the destroyed Sherman.
There was a flash of rage in Sokolov’s eyes and then he slipped back into a neutral poker face. Taol could clearly see the loss angered him. Whether it was because he truly cared for the troops or was just angry at losing wasn’t clear.
"Shall we begin?" said Sokolov.
"I prefer to wait for the rest of my staff," replied Taol.
Obviously, his goal was to take advantage of Taol’s weakened condition. Fortunately, Taol was just cranky enough not to have any of it. He wouldn’t have had long to wait for the echo of his words had hardly died out when a grav sled landed with Harm and Jeffy. It surprised Taol to see Jeffy in his chair. Listening to him over the radio, he had forgotten about Jeffy’s handicap.
"Has Jarl been injured?" asked Taol with some concern. His roommate was always on the edge. He was afraid that this time, he might have gone too far.
"He was a long way out," said the Ref. "He will arrive shortly."
As if on cue, another grav sled landed. Jarl jumped off and headed our way. It was a different Jarl than the one who had ridden his motorcycle to glory just four hours before. The perpetual grin that had creased his face was gone and so was the cocky bounce in his step. His arm was in a sling hastily cobbled up from his web belt.
Jarl noticed Taol’s gaze and nodded. He meant to show he was alright, but his eyes said something different. Normally, he would have been bragging to high heaven about his exploits. This silent nod hid a meaning that would take a long time to fathom.
"You have ten minutes," said the Ref, interrupting the silence. "At the end of that time, if no settlement has been reached, you will be taken back to your original locations and combat will continue for the fourteen minutes and twenty-eight seconds that remain in the game."
The Refs took a couple of steps back to give us a little privacy. No doubt one of their invisible drones was recording the negotiation, but the gesture was appreciated.
The silence stretched out for an interminable number of seconds as both parties to the negotiation waited for the other to speak first. Taol stared unblinkingly into Sokolov's eyes.
"I'll offer to concede a marginal victory," said Sokolov as he finally turned his eyes away. A marginal victory paid his side forty percent of the purse for this game. The Legion kept all the salvage. This would allow him to save face and remain viable as a commercial entity.
"Unconditional surrender is also an option," said Harm unexpectedly.
"Who are you to be speaking in this negotiation," said Sokolov as he stabbed him with a murderous glare.
"Major Harm Milne, the Condor Legion's business agent," said Harm. "This negotiation is more my responsibility than the Colonel's. Of course, if you don't want to talk to me, leave. We will continue the battle and let the Refs decide the victory level. But I'll bet the cost of that Sherman tank over there that it won't be a Marginal."
Sokolov looked at Taol, hoping that he would silence harm and continue the negotiation, but Harm had started out so well that Taol was content to let him go on for a while.
"And just how do you think it will be resolved," asked Sokolov when Taol showed no inclination to interrupt.
"A Decisive would not be out of the question," said Harm blandly.
A Decisive victory was just one notch this side of an Unconditional Surrender. It meant that the Krasni got the loser's prize, which they got just for showing up, plus five percent of the purse. It was commercial suicide. The mere thought of a Decisive made the Krasni Colonel's face purple.
"Just who do you think you are, boy?!" bellowed an enraged Sokolov.
"I already answered that question," said Harm sarcastically. "But think for a minute, if you will, on what you have on this hill. There might be a dozen unsupported Krasni troopers if you are lucky.
“I was in the front line. I saw the rest of your force retreat. Your only hope is to hold a little piece of the hill for the next fifteen minutes to forestall that result. We have armored cars, a 75mm anti-tank gun, lots of infantry, and a bad attitude. You won't last five minutes, let alone the rest of the game."
"I think you underestimate us," said Sokolov lamely.
"I have the utmost respect for the quality of the Krasni infantry I have seen fight and die today," said Harm suddenly respectful. "But that does not obviate the fact that you have been out maneuvered. You can save a lot of good men, if you just accept the inevitable."
Sokolov opened his mouth to speak several times. It was obvious that he couldn't deal with a Decisive, but he had nothing to offer that might convince us to change the result. For a moment, Taol thought he just might go back to his fox hole and fight to the death.
"There may be an alternative," said Taol blandly.
"What might that be?" asked Sokolov hopefully.
"Your commercial reputation would be severely damaged by taking a Decisive, correct?"
"There is truth to what you say," replied Sokolov somewhat evasively.
"Well, for the right price," said Taol, with a glint in his eye "we might be willing to accept a lower Victory Level."
As the light of hope dawned in Sokolov's eye, Taol watched the faces of his staff cloud over.
"May I have a word with my staff?" Taol said.
"By all means," said Sokolov expansively.
"Gentlemen, this is not as grim as it sounds," said Taol quickly to the leadership of the Condor Legion.
"It sounds like you are selling out the troopers that have died and been wounded," said a deadly serious Jarl. "Money isn't the only thing we are fighting for, Colonel."
"Damn it, I am aware of that," said Taol in an angry whisper. "But I want you all to remember exactly why we are here. It is true, that all this started out as a bar brawl. But I think we have all matured a bit. We were locked out of being anything real because of the closure of the Academy. I promised that we, all of us, would not only win this little scrimmage, but also use the proceeds to get out to the colony worlds. This is one way to get out there with more of our people alive. We won. Our professional reputation is made. The victory level doesn't matter all that much to us. With the extra credits we can extort, yes extort, from the Krasni, we can fight with better equipment, move up through the rating system faster, and be ready to colonize a bounty planet while we are still young enough to actually do it.
“I am the battlefield commander, but this is not a matter of battlefield tactics. We will vote, and I will accept and attempt to negotiate any level of victory we can agree on."
"I agree with the Colonel," said Jeffy.
"Makes good sense to me," said Harm.
"Before I agree, I want a promise," said this strange vision of Jarl. "I want to be sure that this goal is real and not just hype to get us to fight. I originally thought that's all there was to it. If it is real, I am in. If it is not, I want to fight it out!"
"Jarl," said Taol choosing his words carefully. "I really meant what I said in the recruiting hall. After having fought this battle, my conviction on this issue is even stronger. I have realized that ours is a sick and dying society. I not only believe it wo
uld be nice to get out and away from the Lords of the Commonality, I believe the future of all our descendants depends on it. It is as real as I can make it, Jarl. You have my word."
"I just had to hear it said out loud," he said in a subdued tone. "I'm in."
"Two small problems," said Jeffy after a suitable silence. "First, how much do we ask for? Secondly, how can we guarantee that they will really pay?"
"I can answer the first one," said Harm. "According to their financial statements, they have a little over a mega credit available in the way of cash, marketable equipment and securities."
"How did you know that Harm?" asked Jeffy.
"I just did a little research," said Harm bashfully. "They are a chartered mercenary company. Their financial statements and all their past battles are recorded in the archives. I studied their record. They have at least a meg."
"Take it all," exclaimed Jarl rather vehemently.
“We should leave him just enough to keep going," Taol countered quickly, "or he won't go for the deal. They have a meg, right? I say we take half of that. We can structure the deal this way. We let him concede a Marginal and split the pot sixty forty. Once he is in control of his funds, he will transfer to us an additional half a mega credit. That is enough money to make it worthwhile for us and just small enough that he won't choke too much."
"That still leaves the question as to how to guarantee the payment," said Jeffy.
"I believe I can answer that one," said an unfamiliar voice.
Taol looked around and saw one of the Refs.
"I didn't mean to eavesdrop," he said quickly, "but we can help in that area. If you come to a valid agreement, we have a retinal scanner and computer link in our grav sled to facilitate the process. The deed will be done before anyone leaves the field of play. You would be surprised by the number of games that are resolved in this way."
"Ah, thanks," said Taol uncertainly.
"There will, of course, be a ten percent commission charged for the transaction," continued the Ref.
"Not our problem," said Jeffy easily. "If he wants the deal, Sokolov won't quibble over another fifty kilo credits."
"Very well," said the now smiling Ref. "Let's get to it then. You only have six minutes left in your cease fire."
"No problem," said Taol. "Harm, will you conclude the negotiations?"
"Most certainly Colonel," said Harm with a smile.
Harm led the way back to where Sokolov was waiting. There was a hopeful, almost pleading look in the Krasni mercenary's eyes.
"Have you reached a consensus?" he asked hopefully.
"I think so," said Harm. "We will accept a Marginal on the condition that you pay us six hundred and fifty kilo credits."
Taol felt surprise at that offer since he thought they had just agreed to half a meg. Still, Taol would only weaken Harm's position if he said anything so he kept quiet.
"That would bankrupt me," said a surprised Sokolov.
"Not really," said Harm. "You have at least a meg in cash and equipment according to your balance sheet in the archives. Your firm would be able to survive, after a fashion."
"I can't do it," said Sokolov sounding more like a carpet merchant in a bazaar. "I have expenses, payroll, overhead, and so on. I need to retain some of our capital. How about two fifty?"
"Let's be realistic Colonel," said Harm smoothly. "Two hundred and fifty kilo credits means that you are only adding one hundred and eighty kilo credits to the deal after the difference in prize money is figured in. That is not much of an inducement. Still, I can see that cash is at a premium. We will accept six hundred kilo credits."
"Look, I can't lay my hands on that much cash quickly," said Sokolov a touch too quickly. "A lot of our assets are tied up in stored equipment. Quickly selling some of that reserve would deflate its value. Perhaps three hundred and eighty would satisfy you."
"Three minutes gentlemen," said the Ref.
"Five fifty," said Harm flatly.
"I can't do it," said Sokolov obviously feeling the time pressure. "Have a little compassion."
"The minimum deal we will accept is half a meg," said Harm. There was a hard edge in his voice Taol had never heard before. "Furthermore, you will pay the Refs commission for the transaction. I know to the penny just how much cash you have available to your firm. This price is not negotiable."
The air of finality was unmistakable. Sokolov looked each of us in the eye. Jarl's fierce scowl brooked no argument. Jeffy wore his HUGE ear to ear grin, indicating that he was enjoying this transaction immensely.
Sokolov’s gaze came at last to Taol. A momentary flash of pity washed over the young colonel and for an instant, he considered letting him off the hook. The notion died stillborn, as Taol remembered that this battle was the end game of a con that began with Taol and his father as the pigeons.
"One minute," said the Ref.
Sokolov had played all his cards and he knew it. The fact that it wasn't a good hand to start with had little to do with it. With an air of desolation, he consented to the deal. The Refs hurried over with the retinal scan and computer link. The deal was complete in seconds.
"THIS GAME HAS ENDED,” Blared the public address system. "ALL COMBAT WILL CEASE. BY MUTUAL CONSENT, BOTH PARTIES HAVE AGREED TO A MARGINAL VICTORY FOR THE CONDOR LEGION. ALL PARTICIPANTS WHO ARE ABLE TO MOVE SHOULD HEAD TO THEIR RESPECTIVE TRAINING AREAS. I REPEAT...."
The rest was lost in the rush of congratulations and good wishes from the troopers in his unit.
"I have one question," said Sokolov after the noise subsided. "Can I retain that young business agent of yours? He is VERY capable."
"He is that," Taol laughingly replied. "But I thought you had an agent in Monty?"
"He is no longer with my firm," said Sokolov quickly. "He was a casualty of this battle."
Taol was chilled as he knew all too well about the Krasni method of retirement. Still, this was business.
"I am sure we can work out some sort of consulting arrangement," said Taol. "But I have a question for you. As your first attack commenced, we received some accurate, high angle fire. How did you manage that in a spinning habitat?"
"I don't know what you are talking about," said a troubled Sokolov. "We brought no indirect fire weapons to this battle."
"We silenced the weapon,” said Taol, “but with your permission, I 'd like to go check it out."
"So would I," answered Sokolov honestly.
"With your permission?" asked Taol, looking at the Ref who nodded absently. The Ref had already checked Taol’s wounds and decided that he wasn't all that critically injured.
Since all the power to the vehicles had been disabled and Taol was wounded, they commandeered the Refs grav sled. It took just a few seconds to get down the hill into the general area the enemy fire had come from.
They spent a couple minutes poking around until Taol heard Jeffy's distinctive laugh.
"Will you look at this!" he exclaimed.
They all rushed over to where Jeffy was inspecting what looked to be a pile of cut brush wood.
"There is your indirect fire weapon Colonel," said Jeffy with his impossibly wide grin.
"A catapult?" asked Sokolov incredulously.
"A catapult," came the unexpected reply.
They all turned around to see a Krasni NCO walking over the rise.
"Igor Donyev, you still live," said Sokolov. "I saw your tank destroyer on the hill. You still managed to survive?"
"No thanks to our erstwhile opponents," he said, indicating us.
"What have you accomplished here?" asked Sokolov.
"I, Boris Nuntov, and some remnants of Svedlov's patrol were able to join up," said Igor. "Georgi was wounded, but he still managed to assemble a crude but effective catapult. While he was doing this, Boris and I, with the help of the other troopers, managed to aggressively patrol the northern flank of the hill. We hoped to draw some strength away from whatever you were planning, sir."
"They did that," T
aol said softly.
"What happened then?" prompted Sokolov.
"Georgi was wounded a second time and nearly died. In the process, the catapult was destroyed. I drew the short straw and had to remain with Georgi. He was badly hurt. The rest of my unit tried to join up with you. I hope they made it."
"They did make it back and served with distinction in the infantry."
"I am very glad," said Igor. "Anyway, I waited here until Georgi was picked up by the Regens. I was headed back for the training area when I heard your voices."
"Igor, you have done very well," said Sokolov, "but I can't hire you."
"I understand sir," said Igor as he hung his head.
"No, you don't, my friend," said Sokolov softly. "I would have hired you in a minute if we had managed any kind of victory. You have the potential to be an excellent NCO and maybe even an officer if you aspire that high."
"But certain fiscal strictures," said Sokolov as he glared malevolently at each of us in turn, "have forced me to make some difficult decisions. Our firm will be financially strapped just to keep together a solid cadre. I can't be hiring anyone new at this time. I will definitely hire you next time I have a battle. But I realize it is hard to pin all your hopes on a maybe, so if anyone offers you a job after watching your performance today, send them to me for a reference. I'll give the best I am able."
Without another word, Colonel Vicktor Sokolov walked up the hill and out of sight. The young Krasni NCO sat down in despair. Jeffy glanced toward Taol thought he knew what he was about, so he nodded. Jeffy rolled over to where the Krasni NCO was sitting and began to speak.
"I'll add my reference to that of Sokolov's," said Jeffy quietly.
"Thank you," Igor managed after a time.
"I'll do more than that, if you let me," said Jeffy.
"Like what?"
"Well, I think you would make a good NCO too. We are drastically short of good ones. I would like to hire you. The rate would be the same as Sokolov would offer. Think about it."
"There would be one condition," Igor said hopefully.
"Name it," said Jeffy.
"I made a promise to the troopers I was with. We would have to be hired together or not at all."