Target Of Opportunity by Pardoe Blaine Lee

Author:Pardoe, Blaine Lee [Pardoe, Blaine Lee]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2011-10-12T09:29:27+00:00

13

Spirit Cat Landing Zone

East of the Bowie Factory Ruins

The Republic, Prefecture VIII

14 May 3135

The shadow of the DropShip crept across Miss Direction, and still Alexi Holt stood facing the ship. She had powered down her BattleMech, dismounted and waited for the Spirit Cats to acknowledge that she casually had walked up to their LZ. The warriors and technicians performing their various tasks around the DropShip ramps eyed her, but they showed no other reaction to her arrival.

As the shadow fell over her, the chill in the air caused goose bumps to rise on her arms and legs. MechWarriors always dressed sparingly because ’Mechs generated such intense heat in the cockpit. She had left her neurohelmet in the cockpit along with her cooling vest. That left her in shorts, short boots, and a T-shirt. She usually carried a pistol in a holster on her hip, but that would have been contrary to the message she wanted to send here. She had come to speak with the Spirit Cats, not fight them. Given the raw firepower of the DropShip looming over her, it seemed a good choice.

By now Alexi was tempted to accost one of the warriors and demand to meet with their commanding officer. She had been waiting for more than two hours already, but she managed to keep her patience. She had dealt with the Clans before, so she knew that the Clans had their own way of dealing with negotiations, and ceremony was integral to their culture. She wondered if the test of patience was something they had picked up from their association with the Draconis Combine.

Finally, a solitary man approached her from the camp. He wore a dull, green-gray jumpsuit that did not hide his muscular build, and his reddish-brown hair was cut short all over. On his belt he wore what appeared to be a hunting knife on one hip, and a small leather bag on the other. His face appeared to be chiseled out of stone, offering her no emotion whatsoever. She maintained parade rest as he approached to within a meter of her and stopped. He surveyed her BattleMech for a long moment, then locked his light blue eyes with hers.

“A Black Knight is a BattleMech worthy of much honor. It is said that many served during the first Star League. Yours is particularly interesting.”

“Why is that?”

The man offered her nothing but his words. “It bears the markings of a Knight Errant of The Republic of the Sphere. That makes you either a thief or a potentially worthy adversary.”

“I am no thief,” she replied flatly.

“And you have walked into our camp alone,” he nodded once. “That must make you a Knight. How did you know that I would not order my forces to attack you as you approached within range?”

Faith . . . and hope. She didn’t dare say those words out loud. When she replied, she was careful to avoid contractions, knowing that the Clans considered that they weakened the language. “I have dealt with the Clans before, and am somewhat familiar with their traditions.

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