"Nelson, look around you. Where are we? Null & Fucking Void. Everything we do is an international incident. Being here is an international incident. I'm gonna bet that, somehow, someway, our recent boarding will make its way onto the Polysentience. I can almost guarantee that the Spacers will know about the ship that jumped within ten hours. So, instead of worrying about my behavior, focus on what we're going to do in the next fifteen minutes."
Laura was somewhat surprised it had taken so long for the IPG Operative to try to compare penis size with her. Of course, now that things weren't completely within the realm of a Marine's training, Nelson probably felt like she was the better trained.
"Corporal Romero knows the score, Operator. She was cloned to be a genius but due to poor influences, is now simply a mad genius. All present and correct, Corporal," Bernhard spoke the last to Laura. He towered over the smaller Raider and even Laura felt she had to look up to see Bernie's head.
"No guns?" Laura asked him.
At that, the good doctor drew him LSP and cocked it. "If I need something stronger, I'll punch them," he replied casually.
"Clear the deck, shuttle coming in!" a Navy hand yelled. "Form a line to my right!" Laura ordered. Another Marine squad was lined up across from them and J2C gunbots were pacing about in pairs.
A Freespacer
shuttle entered the hangar two minutes later, cycling through the large airlock. It was guided into place by a Junkers drone though it did not seem to actually the instructions and simply glided over to the spot next to Harmonious Solarsailor. For its part, the AI frigate didn't even seem to react. All of its weapon batteries stayed motionless and the frigate remained silent.
"Squad, TEN-shun!" Laura barked over her mic. Simultaneously, the other Marine squad did likewise, snapping to attention.
The shuttle was a boxy thing which looked like two different hulls welded together down the middle. A ramp lowered, clouded by some sort of mist.
Typical mystical mumbo-jumbo, Laura thought. Three Spacers, one led the second pair. Behind them were a pair of
Militant droids, each armed with a wrist mounted plasma gun. Using her neural probe, Laura tagged the two droids as a possible threats for her squad and had that information transmitted to them. The
leading Spacer was clothed, typically, in strange robes and metal sheets. The
other two seemed to be covered with a metal skin, yet their faces were flesh. Even with digital magnification from her VOID's monoeyes, Laura could not distinguish weapons on them.
A Navy officer bounded out of the elevator behind Laura, burst between the Marines and stopped before the Spacer delegation and saluted. The moment Laura and the other Marines laid eyes on her, the ACE AI in every suit showed the officer's identity.
"Commander Lydia Raskova, Executive Officer, NSS Ulfberht," she introduced herself to the Spacers. Raskova was a small woman, Laura's size with long blonde hair drawn into a ponytail. All around this strange proceeding, swabbies and pilots watched. A group of pilots were even passing a popcorn bag around as they sat atop a Hornet waiting for its refueling to commence. All activity in the hangar had been stopped for the Spacer shuttle.
Ten more minutes and we'll have a short battlewagon squadron here... Laura sighed to herself.
"Deleterious Comptroller Higa Delta Niner Six, Ministry of Regularity," the leading Spacer, male, returned the introduction. "A laying of apologies is required for the sudden and incongruous arrivals. May we discuss this..."
"Of course, Captain Helrikke is waiting in the conference room. You weren't the only shuttle to arrive. But I need to insist that your security detail remains here in the hangar. It is a requirement the Captain has implemented for all visiting parties," Commander Raskova told him.
"It is regrettable but a Captain is the final law on his own ship. I bow to your requirement," Comptroller replied with a small bow. When he straightened, the two Militants turned and walked back to the ramp, standing guard below it.
After that, the Commander led Comtroller and his party to the elevator, between the lines of Marines.
"Squad, Pre--sent ARMS!" both squad leaders barked. As one, the Marines held their weapons at 45 degrees in salute as the Spacers passed. The two subordinates, identical in many respects, silently watched each line on his respective side.
When they were past, the new commands, "Squad, at ease!" It was the first time Laura had actually used the commands or heard them outside of boot camp.
"So, everyone put on a scary face behind your helmets?" Laura asked once the delegation was gone.
