All Enemies Foreign and Domestic (Kelly Blake series) by Rodney Smith Page B
Authors: Rodney Smith
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State Department security office, so I made some calls and greased the skids for you. Go, call, get me the Orion to tail them. As busy and as excited as they’ve been on this, you know it’s important. I want to know why they’re so far out and what they’re up to. Now go. Get me the Orion.”
* * * * *
An official-looking small box arrived from the message center and was placed on Candy’s desk. It was a cube, white, and gaudily embossed with the K’Rang Foreign Affairs Office seal in relief. She took a moment from arranging her law books – that had finally arrived – and opened the package. It was an invitation to Candy, plus one, to a reception at the residence of Senior Elder J’Gon. Candy had heard a rumor that Elder J’Gon had been the nearest K’Rang equivalent to a lawyer before his clan elected him to be an Elder. As the acting Chief Counsel to the Ambassador, she was the senior lawyer in the embassy, at least until her boss got a personal matter sorted out and reported in. Also in the box was a smaller box, containing a simple gold chain holding a flame stone pendant the size of a marble. A note asked her to wear the pendant to the reception. She put the date and time on her calendar, thought about what she would wear, and sent a message to Kelly informing him he was her “plus one.” She contemplated the stone’s beautiful flickering luminescence and bemoaned the fact that she would have to turn it over to the embassy’s ethics officer – but not until after the reception.
* * * * *
True to the customs of protocol, the K’Rang emissary didn’t show until the last possible minute. Kelly received him in the first floor conference room (the one with known K’Rang listening devices) and asked him to sit down.
He pulled up on his cape, one with a crimson lining identifying him as a shadow warrior, and took the proffered seat. “Captain Blake, allow me to introduce myself,” he began in an oh-so-officious manner and with a slight lisp affected by some K’Rang nobility. Kelly noticed the three-moon ring on his finger, signifying he was nobility and authorized to live on G’Durin.
“I am Shadow Leader G’Fin, military aide to the Director of Treaty Compliance. I am here to brief you on the movement of six of our ships away from their base and outside their normal operating zone, in accordance with Article X, paragraph three of the Treaty of G’Durin. A task force consisting of six ships will depart its base at J’Kom and transit to outside K’Rang space in the direction of the galactic core. The mission of the task force is to conduct a search and rescue of one of our deep space research ships that has had engine trouble. If you can bring up the display I will present you with a plot of the general course.”
Kelly turned on the holographic projector and while the data from his device plotted, asked in his most sincere voice, “How may we help? Space is a dangerous place and all spacefarers are duty bound to assist ships in danger. We could send one of our fastest ships and they could get there and scout before your task force arrives, locate your ship, and either rescue the crew or pass their location on to you. It is the least we can do.”
Kelly thought G’Fin was going to swallow his tongue at Kelly’s offer. His voice almost broke and he had to cough before he answered, “No, Captain, that won’t be necessary. The ship developed engine trouble, that is all. Life support is unaffected and the task force has spare parts and technicians to repair it.”
Kelly knew that all diplomats had several levels of guidance on what they could say in an official context and zeroed in on him while he was a bit out of balance, trying to get him to tell all he could. “But surely you don’t need six ships
* * * * *
An official-looking small box arrived from the message center and was placed on Candy’s desk. It was a cube, white, and gaudily embossed with the K’Rang Foreign Affairs Office seal in relief. She took a moment from arranging her law books – that had finally arrived – and opened the package. It was an invitation to Candy, plus one, to a reception at the residence of Senior Elder J’Gon. Candy had heard a rumor that Elder J’Gon had been the nearest K’Rang equivalent to a lawyer before his clan elected him to be an Elder. As the acting Chief Counsel to the Ambassador, she was the senior lawyer in the embassy, at least until her boss got a personal matter sorted out and reported in. Also in the box was a smaller box, containing a simple gold chain holding a flame stone pendant the size of a marble. A note asked her to wear the pendant to the reception. She put the date and time on her calendar, thought about what she would wear, and sent a message to Kelly informing him he was her “plus one.” She contemplated the stone’s beautiful flickering luminescence and bemoaned the fact that she would have to turn it over to the embassy’s ethics officer – but not until after the reception.
* * * * *
True to the customs of protocol, the K’Rang emissary didn’t show until the last possible minute. Kelly received him in the first floor conference room (the one with known K’Rang listening devices) and asked him to sit down.
He pulled up on his cape, one with a crimson lining identifying him as a shadow warrior, and took the proffered seat. “Captain Blake, allow me to introduce myself,” he began in an oh-so-officious manner and with a slight lisp affected by some K’Rang nobility. Kelly noticed the three-moon ring on his finger, signifying he was nobility and authorized to live on G’Durin.
“I am Shadow Leader G’Fin, military aide to the Director of Treaty Compliance. I am here to brief you on the movement of six of our ships away from their base and outside their normal operating zone, in accordance with Article X, paragraph three of the Treaty of G’Durin. A task force consisting of six ships will depart its base at J’Kom and transit to outside K’Rang space in the direction of the galactic core. The mission of the task force is to conduct a search and rescue of one of our deep space research ships that has had engine trouble. If you can bring up the display I will present you with a plot of the general course.”
Kelly turned on the holographic projector and while the data from his device plotted, asked in his most sincere voice, “How may we help? Space is a dangerous place and all spacefarers are duty bound to assist ships in danger. We could send one of our fastest ships and they could get there and scout before your task force arrives, locate your ship, and either rescue the crew or pass their location on to you. It is the least we can do.”
Kelly thought G’Fin was going to swallow his tongue at Kelly’s offer. His voice almost broke and he had to cough before he answered, “No, Captain, that won’t be necessary. The ship developed engine trouble, that is all. Life support is unaffected and the task force has spare parts and technicians to repair it.”
Kelly knew that all diplomats had several levels of guidance on what they could say in an official context and zeroed in on him while he was a bit out of balance, trying to get him to tell all he could. “But surely you don’t need six ships
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