by CR Daems
"Why three teams of six?" Wexler asked.
"Because there are three main players. This allows me flexibility depending on the loyalty of the sons."
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Sabretooth: Travel
In the shuttle to the Sabretooth, I mulled over Hada's comment: Wexler is saving you for one of those non-traditional contracts the Jax Contract Committee has been prone to approve. She was right, now that I thought about it. It was also the reason he had begun including me in not only helping to write the contracts but in determining the number of Guards required, and in selecting the individuals. I had been so absorbed in my thoughts, I was shocked when the shuttle light over the door turned green and the door opened. When I exited, a young lieutenant saluted. I gave him a shallow bow in return.
"Captain Sapir, I'm Lieutenant Johnson," The young red headed lieutenant said, standing straight as if at attention. "Captain Elishva asked me to welcome you aboard the Sabretooth and invite you to dine with her and her senior officers if your duties permit."
"You can tell the captain I would be honored."
He nodded. "If you will follow me, I will show you and your Guards to the marine area where quarters have been arranged." He was quiet on the way to the marine area. There we were met by a marine Colonel and a gunny. Neither man saluted but bowed instead.
"Good morning, Captain Sapir. I'm Colonel Jamison and this is Gunny Lyall," the colonel said, his bushy beard showing a toothy smile. "You and the Black Guard are the talk of the marines, and with surprisingly few derogatory remarks." His smile grew bigger. "So, if you don't object, I'd appreciate it if you would let your detail mingle with the troops."
"I think we would all enjoy that, Colonel," I said. Gunny then led us to our assigned rooms. As usual, I found I had been given senior-level quarters with its own bathroom. I was only a captain and never commanded more than a lieutenant-sized unit, but I was always treated like a colonel in the army or commander in the navy. I wasn't about to complain, but it was strange. If I had to guess, I would think it was because of our unorthodox rank structure, lack of medals, and isolation from the other branches of the military. So, they erred on the side of caution. Funny, because like medals, I didn't care.
When I left my room and entered the workout bay, Gunny Lyall met me. "Captain, do you think you could show us the Black Guard style of fighting?"
I grinned. "Gunny, you and your marines are far superior at unarmed self-defense than we are, but I'd be glad to show you the style of fighting we are taught." As I talked, marines and Guards began to collect around us. "We use a style called Wuji, which was patterned after an Internal style of Kung Fu." I spent the next hour explaining and using Black Guards for demonstrations.
"That appears a rather passive style of self-defense," Gunny Lyall said when I had finished. "Our style is more like Krav Maga, aggressive and lethal." He grinned, drawing a finger across his throat.
"How often do you use unarmed self-defense in boarding actions?" I asked, trying to look interested.
"Not often." He snorted.
"That's the same for us. Our preferred method of self-defense is to shoot the aggressor," I said. That got a lot of grins and snorts. "But practiced regularly, it does tend to promote excellent balance, focus, and more relaxed movement. All good things when you can't count on a second shot."
Over the next several days, we had several hours of supervised matches. It was good training and helped pass the time.
* * *
"Captain Sapir, I'm Captain Elishva," a small lean woman said, as I was ushered into the captain's private dining room. She looked young with her smooth olive skin and short curly black hair, although I knew she had to be at least forty. "This is Colonel Jamison, who is in charge of the marines, and my XO, Commander Eberhart."
"A pleasure, gentlemen," I said after Elishva's introductions.
"I had a chance to talk to Captain Hammond last month. He said you had nerves of battle metal and cost him several years of his life. He had been a heartbeat from giving the order to destroy Queen Isobel's castle, you, and the surrounding area. He concluded shooting at an enemy cruiser was much less nerve racking." She smiled.
"Fortunately, Queen Isobel thought punishing me wasn’t worth the possibility of losing her shopping privileges," I said, which elicited smiles.
"What would you have done if your team was still in the castle?" Jamison asked.
"Shot her." I shrugged. "I think that would have sent the same message: the Jax are not your subjects or subject to your laws."
Elishva, nodded, Eberhart choked on the wine he was drinking, and Jamison gave a hearty laugh.
"What do you think about your current assignment?" Elishva asked.
"That mix of players could make for a very interesting assignment."
CHAPTER TWENTY
Uster: Queen Liserli
When I exited the shuttle, a tall man in his late thirties stood waiting with a group of soldiers dressed in combat fatigues, green, brown, and black colored camouflage, with weapons that looked like assault weapons held to their chests. He was also in fatigues with unfamiliar insignia which looked to belong to a senior ranking officer, and a black, yellow, and red ribbon around his neck with the Uster coat of arms: a black circle with a yellow and a red scorpion facing outward and forward. He was obviously one of the royal sons. He nodded as I approached. I stopped and gave a shallow bow.
"Welcome, Captain Sapir. I am prince Bartli, chief of the Uster Army. I have vehicles ready to take you and your troops to our official residence. It's unusual for troops to be quartered at our residence. The palace guards have a separate barracks attached to the palace." He waved toward a limo which had a flag with the family crest on each of the front bumpers. "Lieutenant Donato will take care of getting your troops to the residence.
"The Black Guard is both intrusive and paranoid. We anticipate attacks on our clients will happen at any minute whether day or night, by sneaky assassins, and want our off-duty Guards immediately available for when the enemy attacks with overwhelming numbers."
Bartli laughed. "You are paranoid. My sister has been attacked twice. The first time it was a lone individual who shot at her several times. He didn't hit her, but he did wound a guard and somehow got away. The second time, she was attacked by four masked men. They killed one of her guards and wounded the other." He laughed. "My sister, the queen, is a bit of a tom-boy having been raised with two brothers and can shoot as well as a soldier. She and her guards killed two but the other two got away. We haven't been able to identify the two they killed. Could be from another kingdom, or criminals with no record, or professional assassins."
"How did they get into your residence?" I asked, wondering if he knew whether it was negligence, internal help, or incompetence.
"It's not as difficult as it may appear. During the day one part of the residence is used by the Ministers and we have many people coming and going. It is also the section of the wing where my sister conducts audiences."
"Have they attacked you or your brother?" I asked, wanting to understand the motivation. From what he had said, it didn't appear to be random individuals but a more organized attempt. They had slipped by building security, and it was several individuals the second time.
"No, but of course we are generally at military installations; me at the army base, and my brother at the air force installation."
"Has the queen received any threats or demands lately?"
"The usual hate mail but no death threats." He paused as the limo door opened. "Aah, we have arrived. Come, my sister is waiting for us in her reception room. My brother, Ruedi, is also there."
The building was a massive two-story structure with parking for ground vehicles a hundred meters off to one side. The driver stopped in a circle driveway large enough for several cars to circle together. A large pillar sat in the center of the circle with a bronze mounted rider. The rider sat on a war horse holding a shield on one arm and a spiked ball on a chain i
n this other hand.
"That's our great, great grandfather, Valenti, the founder of the kingdom of Uster," Bartli smiled as he pointed to the three-story high column on which the statue stood. Two guards stood on either side of the two massive four-meter wooden doors. One saluted while the other opened the door for us. Inside was a large circular lobby with the family crest inlayed in the center and adorned with bronze plaques detailing the kingdoms history. The lobby had three exits into the building, each with two guards dressed in dark red pants with a yellow stripe and a black jacket.
"To the right are rooms for private meetings, to the left the minister's offices, and straight ahead, the queen's audience hall and several private rooms for informal meetings." He waved me to follow him as he entered the queen's area past two armed guards who came to attention as Bartli approached. About halfway down the hallway, two palace guards stood watching as we approached but relaxed when they recognize Bartli. One knocked on the door, peeked in, and then opened the door for us to enter.
A woman in her mid-thirties sat in an elaborately carved black-wooded chair, dressed in light-yellow pants, red silk blouse, and a gold filigree head band with two scorpions, one on either side of a large amber stone with a scorpion inside. She sat relaxed except for her eyes, which evaluated me from head to foot.
"Queen Liserli, may I introduce Captain Sapir of the Black Guard," Bartli said, and Liserli nodded. "Captain Sapir, Her Majesty, Queen Liserli."
I gave a reasonably low bow as we continued to evaluate each other.
"I see royalty doesn't impress you, Captain Sapir," Liserli said, without any facial expression.
"People impress me or don't, not titles. Titles tell us what people do for a living, not anything about the person's competence or worth."
"True. I know you are a Black Guard but not whether you are worth what you cost," she said with a slight grin. "Too often, what we get isn't worth what we pay."
"True, Your Majesty. But you seldom get more than you pay for," I said. She frowned for several seconds, then smiled.
"An astute observation," she said, frowning. "Why will I be safer with the Black Guard than with my palace security? Colonel Benita," she nodded over her left shoulder where a tall, wiry woman stood in the corner of the room, "has fifteen years of military and combat experience."
"I don't know Colonel Benita so I can't answer your question; however, she is not the individual guarding you day and night, her people are. I assume they came from the military and were given several months on-the-job trainings." I looked to Benita who nodded. "The lowest ranking Guard on my team began their training at age six or seven, and competed for eight years against over one hundred others to gain entrance to the Black Guard school. There they competed for two more years to qualify as a Black Guard. Their training in the Guard has been specifically oriented around protecting clients from assassins, and each has been on multiple assignments. Every Guard can hit the kill zone one hundred percent of the time and must qualify prior to going on an assignment. Those are the individuals who will be guarding you night and day, not me."
Liserli laughed, then sobered. "Why do you need to be in charge of all of my security?" she asked and I noticed Benita straighten and take a step into the room.
"The contract is worded that way to prevent confusion. I don't care to manage palace security. Too often rulers think palace security is personal protection. It isn't–"
"We protect the queen," Benita protested then flushed. "Pardon, Your Majesty."
"Colonel Benita has a valid point," Liserli said, a small smile on her lips.
"Palace security serves an important function, to restrict access to the palace and to protect important people. But they have too many restrictions and distractions to be effective."
"What do you mean, restrictions and distractions?" Liserli asked.
"Four gunmen break into the lobby," I said. "Who are they protecting?"
"Everyone," Benita blurted.
"Say Prince Bartli, Prince Ruedi, and Queen Liserli are in the lobby with several ministers. The gunmen have automatic weapons and are spraying the area. Who is security protecting, the queen or the princes or are they just trying to kill the four gunmen–trying to protect everyone?" I asked to open mouthed expressions.
"What would the Black Guard do?" Liserli asked.
"We are paid to protect you, Queen Liserli. So, while we would be shooting at the gunmen, we would be moving you out of harm's way. We are not contracted to protect the princes or other people in the area if you are attacked. If we managed to kill the four gunmen and save lives, we would consider that a bonus, but it would have been done only to protect you not the others."
"That's heartless," Benita blurted, her face hot with rage.
"Now you understand, Colonel. Palace security is there to protect everyone, which you can only do by trying to kill the gunmen. Plus, in my scenario, you would have to be careful shooting at the gunmen because other important people will be running wild. Distractions."
"You wouldn't be distracted?" Liserli asked.
"No, we know who we are protecting. Anyone preventing us from protecting you is part of the attacking gunmen. It is also the reason the contract states the Black Guard is in charge of all security. If I or any Guard shouts an order, security must understand it is a valid order and to be obeyed as if Colonel Benita gave it. If not, they will be considered to be hindering us protecting the queen and could become a casualty. In an emergency, only one person can be in charge or chaos results."
The room became deathly silent for several minutes.
"That sounds heartless," Liserli said staring at me in disbelief. "My brothers…"
"If you want your brothers protected, we would have to renegotiate the contract to include them. I know it sounds heartless and maybe it is, but from experience our orders during an emergency tend to save lives by letting security focus on what they are there to do while we do what we are contracted to do."
Prince Ruedi laughed. "She's right. We are paying the Black Guard to protect the Queen of Uster, not everyone in the palace at the time of an attempted assassination." He gave me a thumbs up gesture. Liserli nodded somewhat reluctantly.
"Colonel Benita?" Liserli asked.
"Your safety is the only priority, my queen." Benita's voice was firm with no hint of reserve.
"What now, Captain Sapir?"
"Let me introduce my team to you and they can begin taking up their posts. Then I would like to discuss palace security with Colonel Benita and familiarize myself with the palace's entrances and exits, so I can determine what we may need to guard," I said and looked toward the colonel. "As I said before, I don't want to replace palace security or interfere with their routine unless it somehow interferes with guarding you."
"Ruedi, would you please inform the soldiers, I would like the Black Guards escorted here." Her voice soft and warm. A few minutes later Lieutenant Haber came in with the two nine-guard teams.
"Queen Liserli, I would like to present my second in command, Lieutenant Haber. Lieutenant Haber, Queen Liserli," I said and Haber gave a low bow and proceeded to introduce Senior Sergeant Catz. She was interrupted halfway through her introductions.
"Lieutenant Haber, I noticed none of you have medals but you and senior sergeant Catz and three others have double dragons on your sleeves but not the remaining five. What does it signify?"
"The Black Guard do not get medals for doing our jobs, but now and then, the Guard recognizes individual performance and bestows its only award, the double dragons. Not to award the individual or the unit but as an example to others what it means to be a Black Guard."
"Judging by the number in this room, it must be often."
"No, Your Majesty, they were given to Captain Sapir's teams on Lanzhou and New Keif."
"I haven't heard of New Keif, but I have heard of Lanzhou. I thought the story exaggerated, twenty-to-one odds."
"It was only ten-to-one, Your Majesty." Haber smiled.
"And the whip?" Liserli looked to me while examining my uniform.
"It is part of a Black Guard captain's uniform. It honors a long dead captain who intentionally got captured, and endured two days of torture to mislead the enemy. His actions, which resulted in his death, saved his team's lives and the life of his client."
"Rumor says it was used to behead a country's minister." Liserli leaned slightly towards Haber.
"The committee played games with the Jax and lied about the number of rebels, their equipment, and training, which resulted in the Jax being unprepared. That particular minister had a secret agenda and was responsible for the fraudulent contract and the Black Guards' excessive casualties."
"And Queen Isobel?"
"She played games with our captain, who is affectionally referred to as a Black Mamba in a mouse's skin."
Listerli gave a genuine laugh. "Yes, the rumors all agree. The Jax are reliable and make for bad enemies."
After the introductions were made, Liserli called Steward Vinicio, who showed the team to two rooms in the queen's wing. I left Senior Sergeant Catz and two Guards with Liserli while I went with Benita to tour the palace and learn palace security's responsibilities.
"The palace looks like a step-ladder or the letters "EI" from the air. The front of the building contains the administrative functions of the kingdom: ministers, their staff, and meeting rooms. The upper leg of the "E" is reserved for the palace staff: cooks, maids, craftsmen, etc. The middle leg on the first floor is reserved for the queen to conduct meetings, hold audiences, and host the weekly parliament sessions. The upper floor is a hallway that leads to her private quarters which is in the connecting "I". The bottom of the "I" is reserved for palace security. The lower leg of the "E" on the ground floor is reserved for ministers, while the upper floor is for special guests of the queen."
"So, the only entrance to the queen's quarters from the inside is through the first-floor stairway to the second floor, and through the first-floor stairway in the middle leg which leads to the middle of second floor's middle leg," I asked, thinking I understood the building's structure.