Post by Lorpius Prime on Mar 29, 2009 0:58:56 GMT -5
"You've been holding out on me, Hyong," Eugene LaRue said as he sat down in the bench seat across the table. "We only go to the dull bars."
"It was Gracia's suggestion," Hyong said. He picked up his glass of iced tea to sip some of the liquid through a straw. Hyong was finding the drink nearly irresistible. "I thought we should find someplace less conspicuous."
"Well…" Eugene looked around the establishment, which Gracia had called a "club".
"It's darker," Eugene concluded. He turned his head slightly, "You must be Gracia, then."
Gracia uncurled herself from around Hyong's left side. "Pleased to meet you, Professor LaRue, Hyong's told me a little about you," she held out a hand across the table.
Eugene grasped her hand and shook it slightly before letting go, completing the Human greeting ritual. "Well he should have told you to just call me Eugene, 'Professor' makes me feel old. The pleasure is all mine."
When Hyong had asked her to suggest a meeting place that neither his Embassy nor the Human Authorities were likely to look for him, Gracia had become rather excited. For the occasion she had worn some sort of tubular outfit made out of animal hide that Hyong had never seen before. But it seemed to be normal attire for the Humans in this place. Actually, Eugene seemed more conspicuous wearing his usual outfit of woven fibers.
Eugene looked at Gracia silently for a moment before turning back to Hyong. "Anyway," he said, "what did you want to talk about?"
Hyong had another sip of iced tea before responding. "In part, I have just had an exciting day, and I was hoping to relax a little. I thought the new venue might help, as well as friends."
"Relax, yes," Eugene glanced over his shoulder for a moment again, and Gracia giggled.
"But I also wanted to speak with you specifically about the offer you made a few days ago. I am afraid that I will be leaving in a few days on an assignment, so this may be one of our last opportunities to meet for a while."
Gracia wrapped her arms around him again and rested her chin on his shoulder when he mentioned this news.
"Where are you going?" Eugene asked.
"I can't say just yet, although I am sure you will learn very soon. In any event, I will not be returning for some time, possibly not for more than a year depending on circumstances."
Gracia squeezed his left arm, and Hyong let his wing unfold a little on that side.
Across the table, Eugene frowned. "Making a trip back to the Colony, eh?"
"I can't say," Hyong repeated. "But earlier you asked me if I would like to speak with students at your university. I do think I would like the opportunity, if it can be scheduled quickly enough."
Eugene chuckled, "For a Bat? I think they might bump Chief Molinas for that opportunity. When do you leave?"
Hyong pulled his computer from his vest to check the Human calendar. "The twenty-fifth day of this month," he said.
"Um," Eugene looked up towards the ceiling, which was changing colors to a pattern that seemed to have some logic too it, although Hyong hadn't yet figured it out. "Thursday," he said. "Okay, that is short notice, but like I said, I think they'll find a way to squeeze you in. I'll talk to Professor Valderrama and get back to you tomorrow."
"Thank you," Hyong said. He tried to drink more of the iced tea, but the glass was nearly empty and the straw only made a slurping noise. Gracia stared at him until he set the glass back down.
She waved at one of the Human servers walking around, who came by and took Hyong's drink away. "What does Professor Valderrama teach, Eugene?" she asked.
"Political science. Herb's stuck with all undergraduates this year, so he's just about bored out of his mind. He's going to owe me a drink after this one. You too, Hyong."
"I'd settle for having my old one back," Hyong was following the server with his eyes as she walked away.
Gracia poked him, "She's going to bring you a refill." She turned back to Eugene, "And you teach history, right?"
Eugene put a hand to his chest, "French history, Madame. Which is to say, all the history that's worth remembering."
"Well I was a business major, so I'm afraid I don't really remember any of it. Sorry."
Eugene shook his head, but before he could say anything, Hyong's computer beeped. Hyong took it from his vest and opened the message.
I'm here. It said. What do I do now?
Hyong replaced the computer, and turned around slightly on the bench to look towards the outer wall of the club. Eugene sat up and extended his neck to look in the same direction.
"Uh oh," the Human said. "I think you may have been found out, Hyong."
A few meters away, another Bat had come in through the club's entrance and was now standing in a small cluster of astonished Humans while looking exceedingly uncomfortable. Hyong started to extract himself from the table, but Gracia bounced up to her feet before he could move very far.
"I'll get her!" Gracia said, then darted into the crowd before Hyong could say anything.
Gracia made it all the way through the writhing mass of other Humans in impressive time, and started gesturing to the other Bat. The Bat looked confused for a moment, then turned in the direction that Gracia was pointing. Hyong bobbed his head from the table. Gracia grabbed the newcomer by the hand and proceeded to worm her way back through the crowd. She made it back with her charge almost as quickly as she'd gotten through the other way.
"Here you are," Gracia said, and resumed her seat next to Hyong.
Hyong almost laughed at his colleague's flustered expression. He managed to subdue himself, though. "Sit down, Operative Goying," he said, and gestured towards the bench across the table. Eugene scooted down to one side to make room.
"Yes…" Yenga Goying said in her own language. She gave Eugene a suspicious look for a moment, but took a seat beside him.
"Is this where you spend your free time, Hyong?" she asked after she had settled in.
"You should speak English for our guests, Yenga," Hyong said, "I'm sure you can use the practice. To answer your question: no, this is the first time I have been to this place. It is called a club, what do you think of it?"
"I find it rather disturbing," Yenga said. Her English was actually very good, which was why she was on Hyong's staff, though her pronunciation wasn't quite up to his standard. Yenga turned towards the crowd of Humans in the center of the establishment. "What are they doing?"
Gracia snorted, then covered her mouth to show embarrassment. "They're dancing," she said after a moment. "Do Bats not dance?"
"Dancing? This is a movement ritual?" Yenga sounded incredulous.
"Yes," Eugene said. He was looking at the dancers now, rather than anyone at the table.
"Ours look—" Yenga stopped, looking at Gracia. Hyong thought she had probably been about to say something rude. "—different," Yenga recovered.
"Oh?" Gracia leaned over the table. "Different how?"
"Most of our dances involve flight," Hyong answered for his deputy. "I think the availability of another dimension means we don't have to be so close together."
"Yes, that's why they're so close," Eugene said, still looking away.
"Hyong," Gracia said. She waited until he turned his head toward her before continuing, "You should introduce us."
"Why?" he asked.
"She doesn't know who we are!" Gracia pointed at Yenga.
Hyong's deputy glanced between him and the Human female. "I don't understand," she said.
"It is a Human ritual," Hyong said, and made a dismissive gesture. "Yenga, these are my friends Eugene LaRue and Gracia Ochoa," he pointed to both of the Humans in turn. "Eugene and Gracia, this is Yenga Goying, my assistant."
"Pleased to meet you," Gracia smiled.
"Charmed," said Eugene.
"Hello," Yenga replied.
"So," Hyong said, now that that was out of the way, "how have things gone at the embassy since this afternoon?"
Yenga hesitated for a moment, then answered cautiously, "Hyarahek did not respond well, as I'm sure you expected. Horexker was shocked, but he's recovered well. He seems to have the situation well under control. He may be better at Hyarahek's job than Hyarahek was."
"That wouldn't be hard."
"You need to come back, Hyong," Yenga said. "Horexker is furious, but he's justified. And he won't do anything to you now, he can't."
"I'll return tomorrow," Hyong leaned back and put his arm around Gracia's back. "The Commander can brief me then."
"May I suggest that you show a little humility? Enough people are questioning your loyalty as it is."
Hyong bared his teeth, "Let them do it in front of me and we'll see what happens."
"I think Hyarahek might have had something similar to say about you."
She had a good point, although Hyong didn't care to admit it. While he fumed quietly, the Human server who had taken Hyong's drink returned with another glass of iced tea and set it on the table in front of him. She looked around nervously.
"Uh, can I get anything for anyone else?"
Gracia shook her head, but Eugene leaned forward so that he could look at the server from behind Yenga. "I think I need a beer," he said. "Whatever the house has is fine."
Hyong pointed at his glass, "Another one of these for my friend, here, please." He looked at Yenga, "You'll love this."
"The Human drinks I've had have been far too sweet," she said skeptically.
"This one is much better," Hyong told her. He smiled at the Human server, who blinked, then turned and walked away.
"Anyway," Hyong turned back to his deputy, "the real reason I asked you to join us, Yenga, was to ask you about the Governor's message."
"I assumed as much."
Hyong tried to keep his amusement out of his expression when he asked, "What did you do?"
Yenga set one hand down on the table and tapped the surface a couple times with one claw. "I don't think we should discuss this in front of the Humans," she said, dropping back into her own language.
Hyong allowed himself a slight growl, "They aren't spies. I doubt that they could get much useful from anything we talked about."
"How can you be so trusting?"
"I will vouch for my friends, Yenga," he strummed his claws against the table in irritation.
Gracia interrupted with a small cough, "It sounds like you two need a moment of privacy. That's perfectly fine, Hyong." She stood up and held out an arm across the table, "Here, dance with me for a little while, Eugene."
"Uhhhh…" Eugene's mouth hung open.
"It's all right! Hyong's not going to mind," she stuck her tongue out between her lips for a moment. "He's already turned me down, anyway."
Eugene inhaled visibly, then stood up. "Very well, Madame, it would be an honor. And I'll try to remember to teach Hyong something about chivalry later."
Gracia laughed as the two Humans walked out and around the benches. "I haven't been in one of these for about ten years," Eugene said as they linked arms. "So forgive me if I'm a little slow."
Hyong waited until they had melted into the big crowd of dancing Humans before speaking again. "Satisfied?"
"Not especially, but it will suffice."
"So, Governor Shyankyang's message. I thought you were just going to get the task force recalled."
"Yes, but you said I was to make absolutely certain that succeeded, so I had to overcompensate."
This was going to be good. "And how did you do that?"
"I sent official statements from every senior staff member condemning Hyarahek's judgment and asking that the ships be recalled immediately."
Hyong stared at her. The Human server returned with a pair of drinks on a tray and placed them on the table silently before leaving again. Yenga glanced at her iced tea, but did not pick it up.
A change in the lights—from purple to green—returned Hyong to the present moment.
"You have the private ciphers of the entire senior staff at the embassy?"
"Well… I do now."
Hyong went back to staring quietly. After a minute, Yenga picked up the iced tea in front of her and took a drink through the straw.
"This is better than their other ones," she said, and set the glass down. "I don't think I love it quite as much as you, though."
"Remind me to revise our information security protocols tomorrow," Hyong said.
"I'll see that it's done personally."
Hyong laughed. "Well done, Operative. I'm both impressed and more than a little frightened. I suppose I didn't need to give you my cipher after all."
"You gave me the idea, actually. You know whose was the hardest to get?" she asked, then went on before Hyong could make a prediction. "Gaxahyeng's. I think the little shit was paranoid about anyone horning in on his relationship with Hyarahek. He had a biometric lock like yours; I had to hold his hand and pretend to reassure him that Hyarahek wasn't losing his mind."
"The Governor thinks Gaxahyeng denounced Hyarahek?
"Yeah," Yenga laughed maliciously and had another sip of iced tea. "Imagine how Hyarahek's going to take it when he finds out."
"I almost feel bad for Gaxahyeng. Hyarahek's going to flush his career down a toilet and he won't even know why."
"He should be grateful he's had even this much success. Gaxahyeng's an over-promoted twit, he's only gotten this far by picking parasites out of Hyarahek's fur."
"Indeed. All right, Yenga, unlike Gaxahyeng you've more than earned the promotion you're going to get. The Intelligence division should do just fine under you while I'm away. And I expect you'll have no problem keeping Horexker and whoever the next Ambassador is out of trouble."
"Thank you, Senior Operative. Your confidence is appreciated."
They both sipped their ice tea. After a few minutes, Gracia and Eugene returned from the center of the club. Gracia slipped smoothly back into her seat next to Hyong, but Eugene practically collapsed onto the bench. He was breathing heavily and looking a little damp. After a moment, he noticed the beverage waiting for him, seized it, and drank half of the large glass at once.
He looked across the table at Hyong, peering over his own chin since his head was leaned all the way back against his seat. "I'll tell you, Hyong," he said after a few more shallow breaths, "I'm really glad I'm not a spy. I don't care what sort of state secrets you've got; they aren't worth the last ten minutes. Not to an old geezer like me."
Gracia folded her knees up under herself so that she could lean in close to Hyong's ear and whisper, "Your friend's far too polite. But I think I can change that after a few more rounds."
Hyong knew that he didn't fully understand what either of them was talking about, but he laughed a little for their sake anyway.
"Well when you describe it that way, maybe I'll have to ask Gracia to teach me Human dancing after all."
He turned towards Gracia, but she was already bolting back out of her seat, and dragging Hyong along by one hand. Despite the apparent difference in their size, the Human female could still exert surprising strength, and she seemed to have little trouble pulling Hyong after her. Both Yenga and Eugene were giving him quite helpless stares.
"Yenga's fascinated by Human culture, Eugene," Hyong said, walking backwards. "I'm sure you can find plenty to talk about."
Before either of them could respond, he had passed out of the range where conversation was practical.
Gracia grabbed him by the other side and turned him around. They were at the outer edge of the big, slithering mass of Human dancers.
"Okay, Hyong," Gracia said, not quite shouting to be heard over the music coming from enormous overhead speakers. "The first and most important rule of dancing is that under no circumstances do you step on someone else's feet, stab them with your toe claws, and get Gracia banned from her favorite nightclub."
"This sounds risky," Hyong told her.
"Given the way you walk? No shit. But life's no fun without risk. Okay, the second rule of dancing…"
"And you're leaving on Thursday?"
"That's what they told me."
"Pascual!"
Sonia raised her hands to the camera like she was going to reach through the video screen and strangle him. Pascual shrugged helplessly.
"I didn't get to make the schedule. But I was instrumental in solving an interplanetary crisis of monumental proportions. Isn't that worth something?"
It only earned him a dismissive snort. Sonia's eyes shifted to one side of the camera as she focused on something else.
"Fine," she said, "just fine. I'm booking the first flight down there in the morning."
"You don't have to do that."
"No?" her eyes flicked back to the camera for a moment. "And just when is it that you're returning from this little excursion?"
"Er, well… the flight out is a couple months either way. But we're not really sure how long we'll have to stay up there before making the return trip." He smiled weakly.
"I see," Sonia nodded. "So, I don't know when we'll see each other again after you're gone. Hence: direct flight to Caracas in the morning." She grimaced, "Actually, make that a stopover in Atlanta, eurgh."
"The price you pay for love," Pascual said in mock-sympathy.
She stuck her tongue out at him, "Can you pick me up from the airport at eleven?"
"Well, actually…" Pascual started to say, and cringed when Sonia's eyes narrowed. "I'm going to be in the hospital most of the day tomorrow. I need muscle implants for low-gravity, and I'm going to have to get them all at once."
"When do you get out?" she asked patiently.
"They said I should be finished around three or four, but I probably shouldn't do any strenuous activity for another day or two afterwards."
"Pascual!"
He threw up his hands, "It's not my fault! Really, I'm sorry."
"Tell me again what would have happened if you hadn't solved this interplanetary crisis," Sonia growled.
"Um, the Bats might have wiped out all life on Earth?"
"Okay," she sighed heavily. "I'll get a cab and meet you at the hospital. How's that?"
"That sounds good."
"Well I'm glad you're happy," she shook her head. "All right, I'll see you tomorrow, Pascual."
"I love you," he told her.
"You'd better," she said, and closed the connection.
Pascual flopped backwards onto his bed and sighed.
"Here we are," the Earth Fleet Captain said, "take a look at this, Councilor."
Bernardo Durante, Foreign Councilor of the OES, stepped forward to stand beside the Captain and looked down at the glass box he was indicating. Bernardo bent down to peer inside the container for a moment before straightening up again.
"Looks like dust to me."
The box held a handful of what looked like tiny black grains of rice.
"Yeah," the Captain said. He flicked the box with one finger, causing the particles inside to shudder, "You're almost right too." He gestured towards a glass office door at one end of the Earth Fleet laboratory. Bernardo followed him through the doors to take a seat inside the office.
"So what's going on?" he asked as the Captain took one of the chairs opposite him.
"Yesterday evening the Foreign Ministry building security had an alarm go off in the ventilation system. It was caused by some foreign particles caught in an air filter." He nodded back towards the lab tables outside, "the 'dust' you saw out there. EPS brought us the filter to pick apart."
"That stuff set off a building alarm?"
"Oh yes," the Captain nodded, "for alpha-radiation."
"What?"
"The grains out there are mostly made of carbon graphite, pencil lead. There's also a little iron and a little actual lead. But the latter is a decay product from the really interesting stuff we found when we ran it through the spectrometer."
"Just tell me," Bernardo said.
"Polonium."
"I've heard of that, isn't it dangerous?"
"Exceedingly," the Earth Fleet Captain leaned back in his chair. "We think you and everyone else who's been in that building for the past week should take a course of chelation pills."
"Jesus," Bernardo ran a hand across the top of his head.
"There weren't very many of those particles in the vents, so we don't think the risk is too great. But of course, we can't be certain. And we don't know how long the stuff has been there before it triggered the sensors."
"So you think it's some sort of attempt to poison us?"
The Captain shrugged, "I don't know, Councilor. If that is the case, it's an awful weird delivery system. But even if that wasn't the intention, it's still possible that you could have been poisoned. Polonium isn't something to screw around with."
"What else could it be?"
"There's no way to be certain."
Bernardo raised an eyebrow, "That sounds like you have a theory."
The Earth Fleet Captain sighed, and nodded. "I have a suspicion. I can't honestly say it's anything more than that, there's just no evidence."
"If anyone's qualified to guess, Captain, it's you."
"All right. I think they're some sort of alien micromachines. Spying devices seem most likely to me."
The Foreign Councilor frowned, and nodded slowly. "All right. But from who?"
The Captain shrugged, "That I don't care to speculate on, even if I'm right about the basic purpose."
"Okay, then." Bernardo stood up. "Thank you, Captain. I'll inform my department about your theories and see about boosting security measures."
The Captain saluted, and then held the door open for the Foreign Councilor. Bernardo rubbed his temples as he left the laboratory. Not even a day between crises, he thought. Why did I ever think this job was going to be easier?
"It was Gracia's suggestion," Hyong said. He picked up his glass of iced tea to sip some of the liquid through a straw. Hyong was finding the drink nearly irresistible. "I thought we should find someplace less conspicuous."
"Well…" Eugene looked around the establishment, which Gracia had called a "club".
"It's darker," Eugene concluded. He turned his head slightly, "You must be Gracia, then."
Gracia uncurled herself from around Hyong's left side. "Pleased to meet you, Professor LaRue, Hyong's told me a little about you," she held out a hand across the table.
Eugene grasped her hand and shook it slightly before letting go, completing the Human greeting ritual. "Well he should have told you to just call me Eugene, 'Professor' makes me feel old. The pleasure is all mine."
When Hyong had asked her to suggest a meeting place that neither his Embassy nor the Human Authorities were likely to look for him, Gracia had become rather excited. For the occasion she had worn some sort of tubular outfit made out of animal hide that Hyong had never seen before. But it seemed to be normal attire for the Humans in this place. Actually, Eugene seemed more conspicuous wearing his usual outfit of woven fibers.
Eugene looked at Gracia silently for a moment before turning back to Hyong. "Anyway," he said, "what did you want to talk about?"
Hyong had another sip of iced tea before responding. "In part, I have just had an exciting day, and I was hoping to relax a little. I thought the new venue might help, as well as friends."
"Relax, yes," Eugene glanced over his shoulder for a moment again, and Gracia giggled.
"But I also wanted to speak with you specifically about the offer you made a few days ago. I am afraid that I will be leaving in a few days on an assignment, so this may be one of our last opportunities to meet for a while."
Gracia wrapped her arms around him again and rested her chin on his shoulder when he mentioned this news.
"Where are you going?" Eugene asked.
"I can't say just yet, although I am sure you will learn very soon. In any event, I will not be returning for some time, possibly not for more than a year depending on circumstances."
Gracia squeezed his left arm, and Hyong let his wing unfold a little on that side.
Across the table, Eugene frowned. "Making a trip back to the Colony, eh?"
"I can't say," Hyong repeated. "But earlier you asked me if I would like to speak with students at your university. I do think I would like the opportunity, if it can be scheduled quickly enough."
Eugene chuckled, "For a Bat? I think they might bump Chief Molinas for that opportunity. When do you leave?"
Hyong pulled his computer from his vest to check the Human calendar. "The twenty-fifth day of this month," he said.
"Um," Eugene looked up towards the ceiling, which was changing colors to a pattern that seemed to have some logic too it, although Hyong hadn't yet figured it out. "Thursday," he said. "Okay, that is short notice, but like I said, I think they'll find a way to squeeze you in. I'll talk to Professor Valderrama and get back to you tomorrow."
"Thank you," Hyong said. He tried to drink more of the iced tea, but the glass was nearly empty and the straw only made a slurping noise. Gracia stared at him until he set the glass back down.
She waved at one of the Human servers walking around, who came by and took Hyong's drink away. "What does Professor Valderrama teach, Eugene?" she asked.
"Political science. Herb's stuck with all undergraduates this year, so he's just about bored out of his mind. He's going to owe me a drink after this one. You too, Hyong."
"I'd settle for having my old one back," Hyong was following the server with his eyes as she walked away.
Gracia poked him, "She's going to bring you a refill." She turned back to Eugene, "And you teach history, right?"
Eugene put a hand to his chest, "French history, Madame. Which is to say, all the history that's worth remembering."
"Well I was a business major, so I'm afraid I don't really remember any of it. Sorry."
Eugene shook his head, but before he could say anything, Hyong's computer beeped. Hyong took it from his vest and opened the message.
I'm here. It said. What do I do now?
Hyong replaced the computer, and turned around slightly on the bench to look towards the outer wall of the club. Eugene sat up and extended his neck to look in the same direction.
"Uh oh," the Human said. "I think you may have been found out, Hyong."
A few meters away, another Bat had come in through the club's entrance and was now standing in a small cluster of astonished Humans while looking exceedingly uncomfortable. Hyong started to extract himself from the table, but Gracia bounced up to her feet before he could move very far.
"I'll get her!" Gracia said, then darted into the crowd before Hyong could say anything.
Gracia made it all the way through the writhing mass of other Humans in impressive time, and started gesturing to the other Bat. The Bat looked confused for a moment, then turned in the direction that Gracia was pointing. Hyong bobbed his head from the table. Gracia grabbed the newcomer by the hand and proceeded to worm her way back through the crowd. She made it back with her charge almost as quickly as she'd gotten through the other way.
"Here you are," Gracia said, and resumed her seat next to Hyong.
Hyong almost laughed at his colleague's flustered expression. He managed to subdue himself, though. "Sit down, Operative Goying," he said, and gestured towards the bench across the table. Eugene scooted down to one side to make room.
"Yes…" Yenga Goying said in her own language. She gave Eugene a suspicious look for a moment, but took a seat beside him.
"Is this where you spend your free time, Hyong?" she asked after she had settled in.
"You should speak English for our guests, Yenga," Hyong said, "I'm sure you can use the practice. To answer your question: no, this is the first time I have been to this place. It is called a club, what do you think of it?"
"I find it rather disturbing," Yenga said. Her English was actually very good, which was why she was on Hyong's staff, though her pronunciation wasn't quite up to his standard. Yenga turned towards the crowd of Humans in the center of the establishment. "What are they doing?"
Gracia snorted, then covered her mouth to show embarrassment. "They're dancing," she said after a moment. "Do Bats not dance?"
"Dancing? This is a movement ritual?" Yenga sounded incredulous.
"Yes," Eugene said. He was looking at the dancers now, rather than anyone at the table.
"Ours look—" Yenga stopped, looking at Gracia. Hyong thought she had probably been about to say something rude. "—different," Yenga recovered.
"Oh?" Gracia leaned over the table. "Different how?"
"Most of our dances involve flight," Hyong answered for his deputy. "I think the availability of another dimension means we don't have to be so close together."
"Yes, that's why they're so close," Eugene said, still looking away.
"Hyong," Gracia said. She waited until he turned his head toward her before continuing, "You should introduce us."
"Why?" he asked.
"She doesn't know who we are!" Gracia pointed at Yenga.
Hyong's deputy glanced between him and the Human female. "I don't understand," she said.
"It is a Human ritual," Hyong said, and made a dismissive gesture. "Yenga, these are my friends Eugene LaRue and Gracia Ochoa," he pointed to both of the Humans in turn. "Eugene and Gracia, this is Yenga Goying, my assistant."
"Pleased to meet you," Gracia smiled.
"Charmed," said Eugene.
"Hello," Yenga replied.
"So," Hyong said, now that that was out of the way, "how have things gone at the embassy since this afternoon?"
Yenga hesitated for a moment, then answered cautiously, "Hyarahek did not respond well, as I'm sure you expected. Horexker was shocked, but he's recovered well. He seems to have the situation well under control. He may be better at Hyarahek's job than Hyarahek was."
"That wouldn't be hard."
"You need to come back, Hyong," Yenga said. "Horexker is furious, but he's justified. And he won't do anything to you now, he can't."
"I'll return tomorrow," Hyong leaned back and put his arm around Gracia's back. "The Commander can brief me then."
"May I suggest that you show a little humility? Enough people are questioning your loyalty as it is."
Hyong bared his teeth, "Let them do it in front of me and we'll see what happens."
"I think Hyarahek might have had something similar to say about you."
She had a good point, although Hyong didn't care to admit it. While he fumed quietly, the Human server who had taken Hyong's drink returned with another glass of iced tea and set it on the table in front of him. She looked around nervously.
"Uh, can I get anything for anyone else?"
Gracia shook her head, but Eugene leaned forward so that he could look at the server from behind Yenga. "I think I need a beer," he said. "Whatever the house has is fine."
Hyong pointed at his glass, "Another one of these for my friend, here, please." He looked at Yenga, "You'll love this."
"The Human drinks I've had have been far too sweet," she said skeptically.
"This one is much better," Hyong told her. He smiled at the Human server, who blinked, then turned and walked away.
"Anyway," Hyong turned back to his deputy, "the real reason I asked you to join us, Yenga, was to ask you about the Governor's message."
"I assumed as much."
Hyong tried to keep his amusement out of his expression when he asked, "What did you do?"
Yenga set one hand down on the table and tapped the surface a couple times with one claw. "I don't think we should discuss this in front of the Humans," she said, dropping back into her own language.
Hyong allowed himself a slight growl, "They aren't spies. I doubt that they could get much useful from anything we talked about."
"How can you be so trusting?"
"I will vouch for my friends, Yenga," he strummed his claws against the table in irritation.
Gracia interrupted with a small cough, "It sounds like you two need a moment of privacy. That's perfectly fine, Hyong." She stood up and held out an arm across the table, "Here, dance with me for a little while, Eugene."
"Uhhhh…" Eugene's mouth hung open.
"It's all right! Hyong's not going to mind," she stuck her tongue out between her lips for a moment. "He's already turned me down, anyway."
Eugene inhaled visibly, then stood up. "Very well, Madame, it would be an honor. And I'll try to remember to teach Hyong something about chivalry later."
Gracia laughed as the two Humans walked out and around the benches. "I haven't been in one of these for about ten years," Eugene said as they linked arms. "So forgive me if I'm a little slow."
Hyong waited until they had melted into the big crowd of dancing Humans before speaking again. "Satisfied?"
"Not especially, but it will suffice."
"So, Governor Shyankyang's message. I thought you were just going to get the task force recalled."
"Yes, but you said I was to make absolutely certain that succeeded, so I had to overcompensate."
This was going to be good. "And how did you do that?"
"I sent official statements from every senior staff member condemning Hyarahek's judgment and asking that the ships be recalled immediately."
Hyong stared at her. The Human server returned with a pair of drinks on a tray and placed them on the table silently before leaving again. Yenga glanced at her iced tea, but did not pick it up.
A change in the lights—from purple to green—returned Hyong to the present moment.
"You have the private ciphers of the entire senior staff at the embassy?"
"Well… I do now."
Hyong went back to staring quietly. After a minute, Yenga picked up the iced tea in front of her and took a drink through the straw.
"This is better than their other ones," she said, and set the glass down. "I don't think I love it quite as much as you, though."
"Remind me to revise our information security protocols tomorrow," Hyong said.
"I'll see that it's done personally."
Hyong laughed. "Well done, Operative. I'm both impressed and more than a little frightened. I suppose I didn't need to give you my cipher after all."
"You gave me the idea, actually. You know whose was the hardest to get?" she asked, then went on before Hyong could make a prediction. "Gaxahyeng's. I think the little shit was paranoid about anyone horning in on his relationship with Hyarahek. He had a biometric lock like yours; I had to hold his hand and pretend to reassure him that Hyarahek wasn't losing his mind."
"The Governor thinks Gaxahyeng denounced Hyarahek?
"Yeah," Yenga laughed maliciously and had another sip of iced tea. "Imagine how Hyarahek's going to take it when he finds out."
"I almost feel bad for Gaxahyeng. Hyarahek's going to flush his career down a toilet and he won't even know why."
"He should be grateful he's had even this much success. Gaxahyeng's an over-promoted twit, he's only gotten this far by picking parasites out of Hyarahek's fur."
"Indeed. All right, Yenga, unlike Gaxahyeng you've more than earned the promotion you're going to get. The Intelligence division should do just fine under you while I'm away. And I expect you'll have no problem keeping Horexker and whoever the next Ambassador is out of trouble."
"Thank you, Senior Operative. Your confidence is appreciated."
They both sipped their ice tea. After a few minutes, Gracia and Eugene returned from the center of the club. Gracia slipped smoothly back into her seat next to Hyong, but Eugene practically collapsed onto the bench. He was breathing heavily and looking a little damp. After a moment, he noticed the beverage waiting for him, seized it, and drank half of the large glass at once.
He looked across the table at Hyong, peering over his own chin since his head was leaned all the way back against his seat. "I'll tell you, Hyong," he said after a few more shallow breaths, "I'm really glad I'm not a spy. I don't care what sort of state secrets you've got; they aren't worth the last ten minutes. Not to an old geezer like me."
Gracia folded her knees up under herself so that she could lean in close to Hyong's ear and whisper, "Your friend's far too polite. But I think I can change that after a few more rounds."
Hyong knew that he didn't fully understand what either of them was talking about, but he laughed a little for their sake anyway.
"Well when you describe it that way, maybe I'll have to ask Gracia to teach me Human dancing after all."
He turned towards Gracia, but she was already bolting back out of her seat, and dragging Hyong along by one hand. Despite the apparent difference in their size, the Human female could still exert surprising strength, and she seemed to have little trouble pulling Hyong after her. Both Yenga and Eugene were giving him quite helpless stares.
"Yenga's fascinated by Human culture, Eugene," Hyong said, walking backwards. "I'm sure you can find plenty to talk about."
Before either of them could respond, he had passed out of the range where conversation was practical.
Gracia grabbed him by the other side and turned him around. They were at the outer edge of the big, slithering mass of Human dancers.
"Okay, Hyong," Gracia said, not quite shouting to be heard over the music coming from enormous overhead speakers. "The first and most important rule of dancing is that under no circumstances do you step on someone else's feet, stab them with your toe claws, and get Gracia banned from her favorite nightclub."
"This sounds risky," Hyong told her.
"Given the way you walk? No shit. But life's no fun without risk. Okay, the second rule of dancing…"
* * *
"And you're leaving on Thursday?"
"That's what they told me."
"Pascual!"
Sonia raised her hands to the camera like she was going to reach through the video screen and strangle him. Pascual shrugged helplessly.
"I didn't get to make the schedule. But I was instrumental in solving an interplanetary crisis of monumental proportions. Isn't that worth something?"
It only earned him a dismissive snort. Sonia's eyes shifted to one side of the camera as she focused on something else.
"Fine," she said, "just fine. I'm booking the first flight down there in the morning."
"You don't have to do that."
"No?" her eyes flicked back to the camera for a moment. "And just when is it that you're returning from this little excursion?"
"Er, well… the flight out is a couple months either way. But we're not really sure how long we'll have to stay up there before making the return trip." He smiled weakly.
"I see," Sonia nodded. "So, I don't know when we'll see each other again after you're gone. Hence: direct flight to Caracas in the morning." She grimaced, "Actually, make that a stopover in Atlanta, eurgh."
"The price you pay for love," Pascual said in mock-sympathy.
She stuck her tongue out at him, "Can you pick me up from the airport at eleven?"
"Well, actually…" Pascual started to say, and cringed when Sonia's eyes narrowed. "I'm going to be in the hospital most of the day tomorrow. I need muscle implants for low-gravity, and I'm going to have to get them all at once."
"When do you get out?" she asked patiently.
"They said I should be finished around three or four, but I probably shouldn't do any strenuous activity for another day or two afterwards."
"Pascual!"
He threw up his hands, "It's not my fault! Really, I'm sorry."
"Tell me again what would have happened if you hadn't solved this interplanetary crisis," Sonia growled.
"Um, the Bats might have wiped out all life on Earth?"
"Okay," she sighed heavily. "I'll get a cab and meet you at the hospital. How's that?"
"That sounds good."
"Well I'm glad you're happy," she shook her head. "All right, I'll see you tomorrow, Pascual."
"I love you," he told her.
"You'd better," she said, and closed the connection.
Pascual flopped backwards onto his bed and sighed.
* * *
"Here we are," the Earth Fleet Captain said, "take a look at this, Councilor."
Bernardo Durante, Foreign Councilor of the OES, stepped forward to stand beside the Captain and looked down at the glass box he was indicating. Bernardo bent down to peer inside the container for a moment before straightening up again.
"Looks like dust to me."
The box held a handful of what looked like tiny black grains of rice.
"Yeah," the Captain said. He flicked the box with one finger, causing the particles inside to shudder, "You're almost right too." He gestured towards a glass office door at one end of the Earth Fleet laboratory. Bernardo followed him through the doors to take a seat inside the office.
"So what's going on?" he asked as the Captain took one of the chairs opposite him.
"Yesterday evening the Foreign Ministry building security had an alarm go off in the ventilation system. It was caused by some foreign particles caught in an air filter." He nodded back towards the lab tables outside, "the 'dust' you saw out there. EPS brought us the filter to pick apart."
"That stuff set off a building alarm?"
"Oh yes," the Captain nodded, "for alpha-radiation."
"What?"
"The grains out there are mostly made of carbon graphite, pencil lead. There's also a little iron and a little actual lead. But the latter is a decay product from the really interesting stuff we found when we ran it through the spectrometer."
"Just tell me," Bernardo said.
"Polonium."
"I've heard of that, isn't it dangerous?"
"Exceedingly," the Earth Fleet Captain leaned back in his chair. "We think you and everyone else who's been in that building for the past week should take a course of chelation pills."
"Jesus," Bernardo ran a hand across the top of his head.
"There weren't very many of those particles in the vents, so we don't think the risk is too great. But of course, we can't be certain. And we don't know how long the stuff has been there before it triggered the sensors."
"So you think it's some sort of attempt to poison us?"
The Captain shrugged, "I don't know, Councilor. If that is the case, it's an awful weird delivery system. But even if that wasn't the intention, it's still possible that you could have been poisoned. Polonium isn't something to screw around with."
"What else could it be?"
"There's no way to be certain."
Bernardo raised an eyebrow, "That sounds like you have a theory."
The Earth Fleet Captain sighed, and nodded. "I have a suspicion. I can't honestly say it's anything more than that, there's just no evidence."
"If anyone's qualified to guess, Captain, it's you."
"All right. I think they're some sort of alien micromachines. Spying devices seem most likely to me."
The Foreign Councilor frowned, and nodded slowly. "All right. But from who?"
The Captain shrugged, "That I don't care to speculate on, even if I'm right about the basic purpose."
"Okay, then." Bernardo stood up. "Thank you, Captain. I'll inform my department about your theories and see about boosting security measures."
The Captain saluted, and then held the door open for the Foreign Councilor. Bernardo rubbed his temples as he left the laboratory. Not even a day between crises, he thought. Why did I ever think this job was going to be easier?