Starfist - 14 - Double Jeopardy by David Sherman

Author:David Sherman
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Science Fiction
ISBN: 9780345501011
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2009-09-15T10:34:08+00:00

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Commodore Borland came planetside to meet with Brigadier Sturgeon and his staff. The two recon teams had been thoroughly debriefed—neither had brought back a captive Fuzzy since neither had come across an isolated one. The FIST’s staff had studied the recon reports, and the F2 section had written a preliminary analysis. Sturgeon sent Borland a copy of that preliminary analysis to study before his arrival at Thirty-fourth FIST’s new base. Borland, being navy rather than Marine, opted to come planetside by the more leisurely three-orbit descent used by everybody except for the Marines, and read the report on his way down. He brought his anthropology officers with him to interview the recon Marines and examine the images they’d collected in the burrows they’d entered.

“Gentlemen,” Sturgeon said when his staff, subordinate unit commanders, and their most important people, including the company commanders of the infantry battalion, were assembled in the briefing room, “our mission has just taken a radical change in direction and objective. We’ve known since we first landed that we aren’t going to be fighting Skinks. What we are going to do instead is shut down Sharp Edge’s operations, free the Fuzzies, and find out who is behind the operations here so that the Attorney General can commence legal proceedings. I think you will all agree that the situation here is a clear case of involuntary servitude—possibly legally defined slavery. Unless I’m seriously mistaken”—he looked at Borland—“the Confederation laws covering slavery don’t make any exception for aliens.”

Borland nodded confirmation; he’d had his legal officer check that out as soon as he’d heard what was happening planetside.

“Commodore Borland and I are leaving for the Sharp Edge headquarters to inform Mr. Cukayla of what we are doing, and that he is to stand his people down. During our absence, you will draw up operational plans for securing all of the Sharp Edge mines and freeing the indigenous personnel.

“Colonel Ramadan.”

As Sturgeon stepped toward the exit, with Borland following, Colonel Ramadan, the FIST executive officer, shouted, “Attention!” and the assembled officers jumped to their feet and stood at attention until the Brigadier and Commodore were gone.

“Seats,” Ramadan said. “Here’s what we’re going to do …”

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