The world around them exploded with life. Greenery erupted out of the very ground, tearing down buildings and replacing them with trees. Soft grass under foot suddenly made his toes feel at home, as bushes and shrubs filled out the gaps between the trees. Yep. His binoculars didn't work anymore. All the electronics associated with image stabilization were fried. So were everyone’s pulse rifles or electronically fused grenades. It was chemical energy kinetic weapons or hand weapons or good old claws and fists. Now it was their turn. The forest was up and now they were now going to be fighting on Edward's terms. Live Steel and trees, what a perfect combination!
“Fantastic!” observed Kadu. “But I do believe that is our cue, yes?”
“Yes, ma'am!” beamed Edward. “Okay, we move forward. Rules of engagement were clear. Cover the 768th on their way out, everyone else is a target. Double tap if you would please.” Edward was too excited by the thought of fighting in a forest to feel grumpy about being ‘just’ a Silver. He had a job, he had a mission, and he was going to make his family and his country proud. He leaped onto Kadu's back and the pair tore off running through the woods. They were a well-teamed pair, nanny or otherwise. Kadu ran through the woods at full speed while the others in the team followed as best as they could. Edward peered around, much like a periscope from on top of Kadu's back. He drank in the forest. No birds! He laughed to himself. That was all that was missing. Kadu's instinctive navigation was fantastic. She ran through the woods with a mental map of where the streets should have been and moved them parallel to the estimated egress of the 768th.
They were close, very close. Edward lightly touched Kadu on her head. She reflexively knew what he meant, they were a practiced team. She slammed up next to a large tree using it for cover while Edward let loose the harness and quickly scampered up the tree. His eyes scanned the forest with ease of long practice; he'd been running free in the woods since he was old enough to walk. While the particulars of this forest were new to him, the flora and feel was perfectly in his comfort zone. Not so true for the two soldiers he spied up ahead. They looked more than a little confused, but not for long. Edward's fur rolled and churned in color until it closely matched the bark of the trees. He quickly and silently dropped to the forest floor next to Kadu and the rest of the waiting team. He made two short tongue clicks and then sprang silently across the forest floor. As he rounded the last set of trees there was a brilliant blue flash as a Live Steel long sword faded into existence in his hand. The two unsuspecting and bewildered guards quickly and silently fell to the floor. Edward made a quick chirp, much like a common finch, and Kadu caught up with him.
Kadu said nothing as she stopped near Edward. Nothing needed to be said, it was just part of the work. In a flash Edward was up and in place on her back again and the pair continued at breakneck speed across the forest floor. Edward was impressed with Kadu; he knew she hadn't grown up in a forest, far from it, but she was both dexterous and quiet, an exceptional mix. He had no clue how they had become partners, but she was a perfect fit for him. As much as he hated to admit it, her caution was a perfect foil for his eagerness. Somewhere between the two lay the proper path. Give and take, that's what partners were for. Footfalls. Odd rhythm. With another quick tap, she was back to the base of a tree and he was half the way up it.
Edward smiled. It was Toch and several members of the 768th. He let out a short trill and dropped to the floor. A quick nod and Kadu barked out something in her native tongue. A quick challenge and reply and both parties quickly converged. There were about nine Shukurae from the 768th, including Toch. How long had it been since Toch had done field work? Edward sniffed, probably five years. Ever since Llewellyn had left. However long he had been out of action, it didn't show in the least. His poise and presence was intimidating at ten meters and only got worse as they got closer. Edward had no reason to fear Toch, far from it, but if Toch was causing this reaction in him, what was it doing to those on the grumpy end of his path.
Kadu and Toch had a short exchange while Edward went over to check out his niece. Dawn was her name. He hadn't seen her in four or five years and she had grown quite a bit. She had to be fourteen or so now, it was hard to tell. First and foremost, she looked scared! Solid jet black fur and a torn and burn damaged dress, she held onto the back of one of the Shukurae with a death grip.
“Dawn, it’s okay. We almost have you out of here.”
She stared back at him blankly. He couldn't tell if she didn't recognize him or if she was just in a state of shock.
“I'm your uncle Edward. We probably last met at Uncle Llewellyn's wedding.”
She looked at him and nodded feebly. Well, that was going to have to do it.
“Point or flank?” asked Toch.
“Either, sir.”
“Then take point. Speed, not reprisal is our goal with the little one.”
Edward was all about both, but he understood. The primary goal was to get girl safely out. He leaped onto the back of Kadu, “Then try and keep up, sir.”
Toch flashed what passed for a smile, “Good answer.”
With that Kadu and Edward tore off through the woods. The purpose was to make sure the path was clear and safe, and that took little effort. Only three other 'encounters' interrupted their exit of the woods. The staccato burst of gunfire in the distance signaled others and their operations, but it was sword or claw for Edward, and he was good with both. As they burst from the edge of the forest, far larger than Edward had expected, there was a waiting human drop ship. He had half expected a Shukurae drop ship, but he recognized the utility almost immediately. Human ships were far faster on their ascent. The scattered elements of the two units ran up the loading ramp and the ships engines burst to life, lifting them off the ground even before the door was fully closed.
They quickly moved Dawn to a reclined seat. It was sized for an adult human, but it was close enough for her. A human medic was quickly by her side as the engines continued to whine louder and louder. Edward took the seat next to her. “She's okay, right?”
The human nodded, “Mild signs of shock. To be expected, honestly, after all she's been through. But her vitals are all good and she appears uninjured. We've limited the ride to two of normal gravity so we don't stress her system.”
“If we wanted to go that slow, we could have taken a Shukurae ship,” Edward teased.
“Ah yes, but we are also going like a bat out of hell forward as well as up.”
Edward nodded. They were clear of the hot zone. If someone did have some shoulder-fired anti-air missiles, they were almost assuredly well out of range by now. As if the EMP hadn't fried said missile, but they had come so far so hard, they weren't going to take any chances. “All kidding aside, thank you.”
The human medic smiled and nodded, “You are most certainly welcome. You know her?”
Edward nodded, “She's my niece. We've a large family; I've not seen her in years. Heck, I'm not even five years older than she.”
“Who is she going to stay with? Has that been determined?”
“Probably my eldest brother Llewellyn. He already has a family, so she'd fit right in, but none of that is set yet, and I'm not sure this is what she wants to be hearing right now,” Edward nodded toward the sleeping Dawn.
“Point taken,” nodded the medic. “We'll have about five minutes of no gravity before we dock. Do you think she'll have any problem with that? Makes a lot of people sick.”
“I don't know. If you could stay here with her, I would appreciate it.”
The medic nodded as he settled back into his chair. Edward did likewise. All in all, the day had been fairly mellow, for him. He had no idea how long the ghosts of the last few days would haunt little Dawn. Edward just sat there staring at nothing in particular. Maybe Llewellyn and Penn were right: leave all this insanity behind, settle down and raise a family. Llewellyn seemed happier than he had in fourteen years. Of course he could! He was a High Silver, he had nothing left to prove. He could afford to s
ettle down and raise a family. Edward had a lot of work left to do. But he knew he could do it, he too could rise to the level of his two brothers. It was just a matter of time and hard work. There was no doubt in his mind. His sleepy mind. Very sleepy. Soon Edward joined Dawn and drifted off to sleep.
3
Edward sat at the table with Penn and Llewellyn. He was the youngest by far and he felt it. It wasn't anything that the two older brothers did, per se. He was sitting with two legends and he knew it. It just so happened that he was related to them. Little Dawn had been given a mild sedative to help her with the nightmares, but those were only a stop gap. Edward was furious. It was bad enough that his sister and her family were killed, but now the little girl was going to have to live it down. The doctors had already warned them about 'survivor's guilt' and Dawn was a perfect candidate. He did not envy her in the slightest, but anger was the only thing he could bring to the table, and that wasn't going to serve anyone. He knew that.
“Relax, Edward,” admonished Penn in a very brotherly fashion. “Everything that can be done, has been done. There isn't anything left that you need to do or can do.”
“Sorry, Penn. Does it show that bad?”
“Yes, but it's okay. We all understand. The best thing you can do is go about your business and try not to dwell on it.”
“How can you be so glib? It was our sister. Her and most of her family.”
“I can be so calm, because I know nothing I can do will change the past. We can only work for the present and future. Besides, if Llewellyn can be calm, I can be calm. He lost Beatrice too.”
Edward's mind raced, Beatrice? Oh yeah, Llewellyn's childhood sweetheart. “Wait a minute, was that the same Beatrice as Dawn's Fourth Mother?”
“You didn't know that?” asked Llewellyn a bit bemused.
Edward cleared his throat, suddenly apologetic, “Sorry, Llewellyn. I never really made the connection.”
Llewellyn just smiled, “No apologies needed. You were what, five, when that all went down?”
“Now you rub in how young I am,” grinned Edward back.
They all had a good laugh at that.
“Seriously though,” began Penn, “have you considered taking a break from all of this? Isn't it time you settled down? You've spent almost a year with the Shukurae. You've done the Highlands proud. There isn't a one among them that doesn't appreciate all that you've done.”
So that was it; they were going to try to talk him home again. Edward sniffed, “And how long did you serve, Llewellyn?”
“Way too long. Ask Toch the Red. He agrees with me on that. I came out here running from my own demons. I never found a solution to those demons on the battlefield and I wasted a chunk of my youth in the process.”
Edward just sniffed and tried to maintain his composure. He wasn't sure what to say. He wasn't sure if there was anything to say.
“Please tell me this isn't about Llewellyn and me being High Silvers again is it?” moaned Penn. “We've been through all of that before! Pushing yourself to the edge of breaking isn't going to push you over the edge. You either are or you aren't a High Silver. There are far more sane ways of determining that.”
“You make that sound so simple,” said Edward tiredly, “but you two are High Silvers; you have nothing left to prove.”
“Do you want to go out like David? He figured out he was a High Silver and was dead in ten days! Remember, Llewellyn was known to be a High Silver for years before I found out I was. I fought for the Shukurae because I was trying to help them, not because of my own ego. Are you here to help them, seriously? Or is this all about 'you?' You have an awesome partner there in Kadu. If you get her killed just because you are pushing yourself, how are you going to feel?”
“She's such a nanny you have nothing to worry about,” muttered Edward. “Okay, I have a deal for you two. If you two will get off my back and stop combing my fur backwards about all of this, I'll agree not to argue with Kadu. I'll let her set the pace and select or withdraw from the missions. Is that fair?”
“That,” began Penn, “is an excellent start.”
“Fine, with one additional condition,” interjected Llewellyn. “You come back and visit the Highlands twice a year. Starting with Midwinters.”
“I can live with that. But I know what you are going to do. You are going to sic all your little kittens at me and try to make me go all mushy.”
Llewellyn shrugged and grinned, “Am I that obvious?”
4
Edward kept his word, but that didn't mean he didn't still push himself as hard as he could. Kadu was relieved at his change of mood and style, and soon, much to his surprise, she was raising the bar for him. They were doing orbital insertions rated at six times normal gravity, up from five and a half, and she was letting him practice swifting without giving him grief. Swifting, what an odd choice of words, but it was the common description. All Taik, Highlanders or Lowlanders could 'swift'. The human doctors described it as an adrenaline dump on steroids. It was mostly a last ditch maneuver, one when everything was on the line. When it was over, the party in question was unconscious, for a day or two. A typical Taik soldier could swift for about two minutes, run full throttle with no breaks and not even getting a breath of air. All action was from anaerobic reserves. Edward had worked up to over five minutes, a number he was quite proud of. Kadu was practical about when he could or couldn't practice, since it meant he was out of action for at least a day; he would only try it on redeploys where there was plenty of time to kill, not when they were on station, waiting to go at a moments notice.
Weeks became months and soon he hit his nineteenth birthday. Fresh off of a meat grinder, the chance to unwind at a star cruiser's bar should have been perfect for Edward, but he was in a funk. All around him, Shukurae, humans, and the other Taiks were having a great time. They had at least a two week gap in operations and no one had any place to be in the morning. Yet Edward just sat at a table and poked at his drink as he reread the newest letter from his brother Llewellyn again.
Jake sat down beside him with a half emptied mug in his hand, “Hey Edward. Come on, let it go man. You are the only sour puss in the room. What's wrong?”
“Nineteen,” he responded with disgust.
Jake looked confused, “Yeah, you turned nineteen. Is this something like turning forty with human ladies? Some cultural thing I'm missing?”
Edward sniffed, “No, my age is beside the point. I got a letter from Llewellyn; there are now nineteen known High Silvers.”
“Well bully for whoever then! Why's that eating you?”
“Well for one, it isn't me. Two, it is some snot nosed little kid that he has been training. Some little fifteen year old brat named Gavin. He's never even been in a real fight and they have already determined he's a High Silver.”
“Well that does reinforce Lord Llewellyn's previous hypothesis that your continued actions here are superfluous,” interjected Kadu. Where did she come from? Edward hadn't heard her approach at all. Oh, was he losing it! “If being a High Silver is your primary concern, maybe you should consider discontinuing your present service and train directly with your older brother.”
Edward's fur stood on end and slowly churned in color.
“I do seem to have upset you further, Edward. My mistake.”
Edward tried to calm down, it wasn't her fault. She was being practical. As always. Horribly practical. “You meant no offense, Kadu. I know that. It is just… awkward.”
“Everyone else is having a good time here,” piped up Jake. “Why don't you just try and turn off your brain for a while and and relax. Goof off! This is the perfect time. Two weeks from now you can pick up your quest again. But you'll be much better for it if you let yourself enjoy a little down time.”
“Considering the relatively high number of co-worlders, even if they aren't Highlanders, maybe you should consider enjoying their company and socially explore the sexual dimorphism that separate your kind,” suggested Kadu.<
br />
Jake launched part of his drink out his nose. As he reeled from the pain and gasped for air he laughed back, “Yeah, what she said!”
Edward sat next to Kadu in the briefing room. Around him sat the other members of his strike unit, the 517th. The assignment under question: contract work as a guard detail on a Taik planet. The fact that their small unit had several Taik, both Lowlanders and Highlanders, bode well for them. The giant physical presence of the Shukurae was a quite effective deterrent, but the ability to work in and around the crowd was also highly important. And crowds were definitely the name of the game.
“I'm game,” replied Edward with a bit of a smile.
“Seriously?” inquired Kadu. “I had expected you to find this assignment to be too dull.”
“No, seriously, I'm fine with it. While superficially it is a guard detail, there is a history here and if things do go down, it will probably all be up close and personal.”
“Five days of boredom for five minutes of terror, eh?” joked Jake.
“Pretty much. And it means I'll be in the middle of it rather than you gun slingers.”
“Meanwhile I get to lay around on rooftops staring down a sniper scope and work on my tan. I'm cool with it either way.”
“Is part of your motivation,” began Kadu, “the fact that the assailants current modus operandi is to engage in bombing, much like what happened to your late sister?”
“Not really,” shrugged Edward. “In fact, if you notice from the reports, the bombings appear to be more about distraction and property damage, than about killing people.”
“The big question I have is, 'Are the assailants politically motivated, financially motivated or just whack jobs?'” asked Jake.
“Tatiana is the daughter of the governor, but her career as a 'pop star' has made her independently wealthy. Extortion is not unlikely. We must also consider her as a political medium against her father. Lastly, like Jake implied, we cannot rule out that it is a non-rational response of someone in the community,” observed Kadu.
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