Black Guard, The (9 page)

The next couple of months with Tzadok and Dobrin were demanding—fight
for a couple of hours, rest, exercises, rest, meditation… Each night I’d drop
into bed exhausted and aching from Tzadok and Dobrn’s many reminders of my
mistakes, yet pleased with the small improvements I’d made. It ended one
morning, when Commander Wexler found us during a rest period. Jax
administration, officer quarters and dining facilities, and training areas were
on the first level or plateau at Sasser Mountain. Sergeants’ quarters and
facilities on level two; corporals and privates on level three; and recruits on
level four.

"Captain Sapir, I have a new
assignment for you on the planet Molova. It’s somewhat nontraditional and for
that reason well suited for you. The country is divided into six independent
states, run by princes acquired through heritage. They meet periodically to
work on the laws of the country, which tend to be based on religious principles.
Baba Badal, the Prince of Surat, will be traveling to the capital in a few
weeks for the semi-annual meeting of the princes to vote on a number of new
laws and revisions to existing ones. This year, his vote will be the tie
breaker on most of the important changes. Because they involve religious
beliefs, emotions are high, and he feels the need for additional guards to
protect him and his family until he is back on his lands. He has contracted
with us for bodyguards for him and his family. He heard about Lanzhou and specifically
asked for the captain who was in charge. You will have three teams of five with
a senior sergeant for each. You have your original team plus two new senior
sergeants and five privates." He paused, awaiting questions. When I had none,
he continued. "Your team should be assembled within the next two days, and
you will depart three days later. Try to keep tradition and duty together,
Captain Sapir. That will keep me happy," he said, and left.

"That is good timing, Rivka,"
Tzadok said. "You need time to assimilate what you’ve learned over the
past months. More training at this point would have little benefit, if any.
Until we can meet again, your main focus should be on meditation. And it would
be beneficial if you would relive every fight with Dobrin and me. I think you
will find the exercise enlightening."

Dobrin nodded agreement. "You’ve
made progress but are a long way from your goal. You have the raw ability. Your
biggest impediment, as is everyone’s, is the ability to empty your mind of
distractions so that you can see clearly. May tradition and duty guide you on
your assignment." He smiled.

* * *

"I’ll be sorry to see you go,
Rivka. These last few months have been glorious, having my sister with me and
training with dragons. I know Commander Wexler is nervous about anyone
considering tradition and duty as separate, but you’ve helped me see the
difference. Losing two members of my team had my dreams in chaos. You’re right.
I forgot we’re in the business of killing and dying and our duty goes beyond
protecting our contract. As team leaders, we have a duty to protect those under
us." She grabbed me in a tight hug. "I may have dragged you into my
dream, but you’re helping me keep it alive. I love you, Rivka Sapir."

* * *

By the time we were ready to leave, the
eight new members of my nineteen person team had been assembled. Two new Senior
Sergeants: Wahle and Zinn, a woman, joined Solow as team leaders. The six new
members, one a woman, completed the three five-person teams and permitted me to
have two women assigned to each team. Looking at the new members brought back
the missing faces of those who had died on Lanzhou, and I swallowed a lump in
my throat.

"This will be an unusual
assignment, as the party we are contracted to protect will be traveling and
will reside in a government building in the capital, Hezuo. We have been hired
because Prince Badal holds a deciding voice in an upcoming meeting of the
princes and therefore the probability of trouble is high."

"I’ve heard you value ’duty’
before ’tradition,’" Private Eisen, a new member, said. I took that as a
question rather than a statement. One that the new members would have on their
minds and that would need clarification.

"I feel duty is the bedrock of the
Guard. Those that hire us know that we will die defending them if necessary—that
is our tradition. But our purpose, duty, is to defend our client. Dying serves
no one if our client dies. So, I do not ask that we abandon our tradition, only
that we remember why we were hired." My old team nodded in understanding.
The new members seemed to be divided, some nodding and others with their eyes
downward deep in thought. "When we get there, I will assign each team to
guard one of the Badals. And I will want one member of that team to be physically
with that person at all times when they are not alone."

"We are going to follow
them?" Senior Sergeant Zinn asked. "I doubt they are going to like
that."

"I don’t care. In their home, we
can control who comes and who goes, and for the most part, know who belongs in
the building and who doesn’t. When we’re in someone else’s domain, we can’t
control who’s there or determine who’s friendly or who’s not."

"Sounds like fun, Captain,"
Senior Sergeant Solow said, receiving nods of agreement.

* * *

The trip took three days, aboard the
cruiser Crouching Tiger. This time there were no army aboard, just the
commandos who are a normal contingent of every Jax cruiser. There was no
trouble, although there is always some tension between the Guard and the
commandos. They tend to dislike the Guard on general principle—commandos
are commandos because they failed to qualify for the Guard.

"Captain Sapir, congratulations on
your double dragon award. I’ve heard about your assignment on Lanzhou. Very
impressive." Colonel Berger, the commander of the commandos, said as I was
getting ready to leave for the showers after my workout.

"Thank you, Colonel. I believe the
Jax military action on Lanzhou sent a strong message to the civilized worlds—the
Jax military has no equal, whether army, commando, or Guard."

"It was basically an army
operation." He frowned, staring at me.

"A contingent of commandos were
sent to support the army for the final battle. The army was greatly outnumbered,
yet couldn’t be defeated. Do you think anyone doubts the commandos weren’t a
significant factor in the outcome? I don’t."

He laughed. You’re right, Sapir. I wish
commandos could have been more involved initially. It might have saved lives,
but they save us for ship-to-ship engagements, except for rare occasions like
Lanzhou, and even there they were hesitant to commit the entire force. As a
consequence, we tend to see very little action. A commando’s life can be very
boring on a ship with nothing to do."

"I think we all wish for
excitement and a chance to prove ourselves until it happens. Then, we wish for
boring."

"How true. If the rumors are
correct, we are dropping you off and going on to another planet. Hopefully,
your reputation will keep things boring.

* * *

At the Molova space station, we were
directed into two civilian shuttles and flown to Prince Badal’s estate, a four
hour trip. From the air, the building looked very much like a picture of an old
English mansion: a two-story, granite building in the shape of an
"H." The main building stretched a hundred meters between the two
wings, which looked to each be fifty meters in length. The only thing that
destroyed the image was the military barracks and equipment sitting less than a
klick away. We landed at the military facility and were met by a man in dark
green combat dress with three gold clusters on his collar.

"Welcome to the Prince Badal
estate. I’m Colonel Jarde." He stood a head taller than me, a narrow,
clean-shaven face with a light tan complexion. "Everyone is interested in
seeing the Black Guard and you, Captain, particularly Prince Badal’s private
guards. More so now that their captain and a considerable number of your team
are women." He laughed. Then pointed to Sergeant Glick’s sleeve. "Are
the double dragons a new kind of rank?"

"No, they are the veterans of
Lanzhou."

"Interesting. The Jax Guard has
always had a good reputation, even before Lanzhou. We had heard the Guard had
women, but I think most thought there were only a few and not fighting members
of the team. I seriously doubt Prince Badal is expecting a woman captain."
He smiled at some thought he didn’t share. "If you find time before we
leave, I’d like to give you and anyone else a tour of our detachment and have
you meet the troops who will be accompanying the Prince to the capital. The
states have had a long history of border disputes and wars, so our current law
restricts a state’s total force to five hundred. In theory, they are a reserve
force for the Molova military, which is the country’s official armed forces.
And we are allowed only fifty military troops across any state’s border, even
with their permission."

"I’d like that, Colonel. It’s
going to be difficult to control access outside the Prince’s estate, so being
able to identify your troops will help. And I think getting to know the Guard
won’t hurt in the event of trouble."

"Agreed. If you’re ready, I’ve two
ground vehicles ready to take you to the palace." He pointed toward two
off-road armored vehicles with undercarriages fifty centimeters off the ground
and seating capacity for twelve. The road from the compound led to a gray
bricked driveway four vehicles wide and flanked by large trees, manicured
lawns, and gardens. Two armed guards stood at the entrance to the building,
which sat between two semi-circular staircases leading to a second-level
terrace. Like in an "H" configuration, the main building sat back
from the two two-story wings on each end. The building appeared to be made from
old-fashioned stone containing a yellowish tint.

The guards snapped to attention and
saluted the Colonel as we exited the vehicle. Inside we were met by a tall,
thin elderly man in a light tan suit with a gold sash.

"Doshi, this is Captain Sapir, and
the Black Guard team," Jarde said. Doshi gave a small bow, after a
double-take look from Jarde to me and back. It looked to be an interesting tour—women
guards in a man’s dominated world.

"Captain Sapir, if you would wait
in the Blue drawing room, the Prince will join you shortly. Your… team should
have stayed at the military compound. Colonel Jarde’s men can take them
back."

"They stay. I’ll want to tour the
palace with them and to meet the Prince’s family we will be guarding."

"But that’s impossible—"

"No, it’s not. I will decide what
my team needs to keep the people we guard safe. For now they can wait in a
separate room while I meet with the Prince," I said. From the looks of the
fifty-meter circular foyer and twenty meter wide hallway that led to the two
wings, this place had enough rooms for several hundred troops without inconveniencing
the residents.

"Yes, Captain," he said,
somewhat reluctantly. ’If you will follow me." He led us to the right down
the hallway and stopped at the second door. "If you and Colonel Jarde will
wait here, the Prince will see you shortly. Your team will be in the West wing
drawing room."

The colonel opened the door and waved
me in. Governor Li Ho Lew’s estate had been large and lavish, but this made his
look like a rundown little shack in comparison. The hallway alone was filled
with paintings, statues, and expensive looking articles on pedestals. The room
was definitely blue where pictures, tapestry, or windows weren’t shielding the
wall. A variety of chairs and couches were placed around the perimeter of the
room, leaving the center open. The ceiling appeared to be a giant mural of
angels, or someone’s idea of them. The colonel remained standing, so I did. I
was still surveying the enormous room when a middle-aged man about my size
walked in accompanied by two tall, muscular men in black military clothing.
Colonel Jarde braced to attention and saluted.

"Captain Sapir, may I introduce
you to Prince Badal." Jarde said. I gave a small bow.

"Welcome, Captain Sapir. I have to
admit I was expecting you and your team to be men," he said as he stood
appraising me. "I contracted for the captain who was the Black Guard
commander at Lanzhou, so I assume that’s you." He continued to inspect me
while his two bodyguards stood behind him with smirks on their faces. On their
belts were what looked like multifunctional weapons.

"Yes, I commanded the Black Guard
at Lanzhou. In fact, half of my current team were at Lanzhou during the
incident."

"You reportedly killed over two
hundred rebels. What were the women’s… parts?"

"Men and women are equal in the
Black Guard. Each individual has earned the right to wear the red dragon and is
second to none," I said, amused as Badal and his guards wrestled with the
idea that a woman could be an elite Guard.

"How about a demonstration,
Captain? You and my private bodyguard, Dara," Badal said, nodding to the
man on his right, who was sneering or had stomach cramps.

"I don’t do demonstrations. They
prove nothing."

"They prove who the better man is.
Are you afraid you’ll lose?" Dara said, trying to sound belittling.