CHAPTER 6

The guy was short but, he was also pretty fast. More than once he had managed to get right around Hooper and go for a lay up. He didn’t manage to get the ball in the net every time but, as Hoop reflected, he should have never gotten that close in the first place. Hooper had played ball for Indiana State. He might have said that he could have turned pro, had he not joined the Army but, Hoop had to admit that he was not THAT good. Still, John Snow was not even a damn American. Where the hell did he learn to play ball like he did?

When the two men squared off on the tarmac once more, Snow began dribbling until he saw something past Hooper. Snow stopped, and tossed the ball to Hoop before saying, “check.”

Hoop took the ball gracefully enough and then told the Brit, “what’s that mean in English on account of you know I don’t speak it.”

Snow reached for a towel and then his shirt as he said, “yes I’ve noticed.” He was sliding his shirt on as he walked up to the approaching elf. She stopped, smiled, and then pulled at the beard on Snow’s face before saying, “what in the hell have you been doing since I left?”

Hooper was bouncing his ball as he strolled up and nodded to the new arrival, “heya Tay-Tay. I saw them new arrivals coming in, but, I didn’t figure you’d be with them. Who are they?”

“American Rangers,” Taylya Ceascu replied. “it would seem that your government finally relented.”

That news seemed to strike Snow rather curiously. Still, he said nothing about it and shook the serious look off his face before asking, “does Avery know you’re back?”

Taylya looked around as if she might see him and then asked, “not yet. I’ve been in a meeting with Chesterfield. He and this new colonel do not get along all that well.”

Snow almost laughed, “and that surprises you?”

Hoop went on with, “I can bet what they’re locking horns over. It’s not exactly like we got an abundance of housing on this base. I sure as hell ain’t giving up my bunk for some rookie that just got in from reality.”

Snow went back into deep thought mode and then he said, “at any rate, might not be such a bad idea to go get cleaned up.”

Taylya snickered, “looks like it’s going to take a while for you. What the devil got in to you?”

Snow scratched at the sloppy looking beard on his face and he just waived the matter off, “didn’t feel like keeping up with it. Not with how things are right now. Just didn’t make any sense really.”

Hoop filled in the rest, “what he’s trying not to say is, he’s getting short.”

Taylya looked genuinely surprised, “you’re really going to go home this time?”

“I got a kid that’s six years old Tay,” Snow replied. “I have an ex wife that’s spending my salary every month. I figured I might should go home and find out what I’ve been paying for all these years.”

“Oh sure,” the Elf replied, “throw all of that in. I can’t see you doing something like being a plumber.”

“Well I didn’t really think I’d sink that low,” Snow replied.

“Why not,” Hoop replied, “there was that time that you and…”

Taylya snapped at the American, “do you mind?”

“Enough,” Snow told them, “we’re still on down time here and I’m getting tired of whipping Hoop’s ass at basketball. I got this sinking feeling that the DFAC is going to be overly full so how about…?”

Hoop rubbed at his stomach, “you know that place gives me gas.”

“Everything gives you gas,” Snow injected.

“I don’t know,” Taylya added. “I just got back and I’m not particularly interested in eating human food any more. Not to mention…”

The elf’s eyes drifted off towards the clump of administration buildings and she said no more. She did not have too. Hoop did it for her, “might have figured he’d be poking his ass around right about now.”

Snow chuckled, “some long forgotten general said that there was always a price to be paid for war. I suppose he never realized that Lord Balfour would be the man there to collect it.” Snow then picked up the basketball from where it had been laying at his feet. He chucked it into a nearby can that sat a good fifty feet away. He managed to draw a look of disgust from Hooper and, like always, Snow simply ignored it. He then told his party, “I don’t really plan on being around any longer than I have too so, we go, we drink, we celebrate being comrades in arms one last time and…”

Hoop added, “and we be overly dramatic while we’re at it?”

There was no reason to answer that question so all human eyes turned on Taylya who just sighed in resignation, “oh very well.”

She was really not all that enthused about going home anyway. Still, there was no reason to tell the human’s that. That would only lead to questions and the answers were the kind they would never truly understand. Unlike most Fey, she had been dealing with humans for a very long time. With the exception of only a hand full, at best, she had long since learned to avoid many topics and her home life was at the top of that list.

That was why Taylya did not bother to protest and just went along with the insanely flawed plan. She had billets at the base and several changes of clothes. She ditched the uniform for some practical street clothing that would not mark her as Noveus-Faeyu. Tay did not figure there was any point in starting a fight because there was no telling who you might run into where they were going. She met back up with her comrades at the car they had permanently “borrowed” since coming in from the bush.

It was something of a relief that the humans had decided to bathe since they had left the hangars where they were playing their bouncing game. Her two compatriots had even decided to use real cleansers instead of that thing they called soap. Taylya could easily smell the difference. Humans stank bad enough under the most ideal of conditions and their choice of cleansers only seemed to add a strong scent of deadly chemicals to their stench. The fact that Hoop and Snow were attempting to be a more little civilized was of no small relief once they were all closed up in the same car.

The small town of Kalean-Erc was only twenty kilometers outside of the capital but, with the exception of the coastal highway, most of the roads, beyond the large cities, were not that great. It seemed as if many were almost permanently washed out and that made travel for most people difficult at best. That was why Kalean might as well have been in a different reality and, in a lot of ways, it was. For someone like Taylya, who had grown up in a civilized Elven metropolis like Cheau-Gan, Kalean was not exactly choice real estate no matter how close it was to the real world. In fact, it’s proximity to the Temple was exactly why it was the dingy little wreck of a community that it was. It was as close to the Dell as most species were allowed to get, making Kalean-Erc a literal last stop for many.

This was also why the town was so heavily patrolled by the Noveus-Faeyu. Mixing so many species in one place was never such a good idea and, with current events being what they were, that was particularly true at the moment. It was why the road block was of no great surprise too Taylya. A squad of Elf Infantry were manning the temporary post with an armored car. Most of the traffic that they were checking was of the foot and hoof variety. When they saw the car, they obviously recognized who it belonged too and singled it out for an immediate search. Three of the troopers surrounded the car and first asked for the drivers papers.

The Elven sergeant was a bit skeptical as he looked from the pass book to the driver and asked, “Commander John Snow, Royal Navy? This car says it belongs to the Royal Air Force.”

Snow rubbed at the beard that probably confused the trooper even more than the car situation. Then he told the elf, “yeah, well we’re stationed at Merlin and this is the only kind of car they have.”

The Sergeant’s eye drifted to the back seat and Taylya was not surprised that it made him even more suspicious. Till now she had kept her hands plainly in view because the last thing she wanted to do was make anyone nervous here. She told the Sergeant, from the back seat, “I am going to show you my identification papers. Am I permitted to reach for them, Sergeant?”

The guy looked nervous but he nodded for her to go ahead. Taylya then retrieved her pass book from the inside of her button over shirt and handed them to John so that he could pass it along. The Sergeant became very nervous when he peeked inside the leather bound papers. This was a different kind of nervous than before. It was obvious that he was no longer worried about being shot by anyone in the car. His spine stiffened and that was no small feat in the body armor he had on. He quickly handed the papers back and said, “my apologies Major.”

Taylya took back her pass book and simply said, “none required.” She still acted as if she were not so happy about the delay in her journey and it was enough to get them an immediate wave past the armored car that was guarding the road with it’s machineguns. Once the road block was behind them Taylya finally looked back and said, “they’re new in this area.”

Hoop, sitting in the front passenger seat, replied, “what you expect Tay? There’s a lot of that going around these days. Seems to be making a lot of folks nervous.” After a moment of thought he finished by pointing out, “including me.”

As John pulled up to the guarded gates of a certain driveway, he told the others, “and ask me if I care. I didn’t risk life and limb this evening to scout out enemy positions.”

“Na,” Hoop told the guy as he paid a parking fee to one of the gate guards, “you just did it to get dinner.”

John drove past the now open gates, “a far more worthy endeavor, too be sure.” He parked the car in the little dirt lot that was never very full. As John got out he looked around the lot and, for the very first time, he actually thought it looked strange. His companions noticed and, when asked, John told them, “I was just thinking that Phvengs is about as posh as it gets in these parts.”

Hoop shrugged, “so?”

John laughed as he gestured to the semi rusted collection of trashed out looking vehicles parked here, “you’d never see this parked in front of fine dining back home, not even in Manchester.” No one seemed to get why he was thinking such bizarre thoughts but, as they walked for the front door, John mentioned quietly to himself, “the things I will have to get used too, once more.”

Phvengs boasted something that most of the buildings in Kalean-Erc could not. It had electricity which meant that it also had the lighting that naturally went right along with it. They were crappy work styled lights that were hung by fishing line from the giant overhead beams that supported the thatch roof but, they were lights none the less. Even more important were the huge sail like fans that were being powered in between those beams. That kept the air moving in the right side dining area and it mixed with the breeze coming in from the large, split rail porch, in back.

Taylya knew the place used to be a plantation house but, a lot of the agriculture that used to get done in this area had long since ceased to be of any real profit. She also knew that the owner of this place was not very interested in that kind of business anyway. He was also not much of a restaurateur when you got right down too it. Who would expect a night life for the rich and famous in such a dumpy little town like this? Taylya knew, absolutely, that Ian Balfour was not making a living off the proceeds he generated from selling substandard dinners at highly inflated prices. No one else had managed and, ultimately, that was why Taylya was sitting down, at a table here, with her human friends. There was really no other choice that was within driving range of Merlin.

There was, of course, one other little problem that made this a satisfactory dinner reservation. This problem was not much of an issue at Phvengs even if Taylya easily saw that the Yangani waiter did take notice. He did not say anything about it and did not even act very offended but, Taylya caught that he was not exactly sure how to handle two humans and an Elf, all sitting down together.

When the waiter walked off, Hoop was looking more at Taylya than he was at the Yangani. She understood why that was the case. Humans, even those with some experience like Hoop and Snow, most often could not read the body language of other species. For Taylya it was even difficult at times but, at least, she could somewhat see it. Humans had an easier time with species like the Fey, who were very similar in biology and, so much so, that the current theory was that they all stemmed from the same evolutionary branch. Even Yangani were primates and hence, should have been easy to read but, were not.

That was why Hoop asked his Elf friend, “do I need to tell him to get his damn dirty stinking paws off you?”

Taylya was not amused when she replied, “Hoop, you do realize I have seen that movie? Right?”

That did surprise him, “really?”

“Yes,” Taylya huffed in disbelief, “not long after it was released, in fact.”

That caused John to look up from his menu, “you did? That movie has got to be… how old?”

Now Tay rolled her eyes at John, “you know better than to ask a woman her age.” John retreated from the conversation and Taylya looked back to Hoop as she explained, “he was simply not sure how to handle us, sitting here, talking like nothing is wrong.”

Hoop only shrugged, “there ain’t nothing wrong.”

John put down his menu and noted, “we’ve been here, how many times before? Why is it I get the feeling you’re not talking about race relations?”

“To be honest John,” Tay replied as she eyed the waiter returning with two big meals that consisted of some very large steaks. She finished as the Yangani sat them down in front of Hoop and Snow, “I’m not sure exactly what is.” The steaks were only sending up new red flags and, in particular, the fact that she did not get one. The waiter did have something for her though, it was a glass of alcohol.

Hoop pointed to the drinks and made sure, “now you didn’t mix them up, did you?” That got a response that even a human could understand. Taylya knew that the Yangani were not in the habit of peeling back their lips and exposing their large canines while grunting but, with humans, it seemed to be their only recourse to get certain messages across. In this case, like always, the aggressive expression worked.

John remained a bit more rational about the food and pointed down at his plate, “we didn’t order this?”

Taylya was not really certain how much English this particular Yangani could understand. Since he worked here she suspected that it was quite a bit. She had known Yangani who could speak other primate languages beautifully yet, this one simply chose a two word, guttural like, grunt, that was easily distinguishable as, “on house.”

Hoop was happy with the price but still not certain he wanted to eat it till he cautiously asked, “um, what was this fer it jumped on my plate?”

The Yangani grunted in a hostile like fashion once more, “cow!”

“Sounds good too me,” Hoop replied as he watched the ape thing walk off in the kind of waddle that looked more natural too him. Then Hoop muttered under his breath, in a half joking manner, “damn dirty ape.”

Taylya was ignoring the banter as her eyes scanned the room. She sampled her drink, as a precaution, while she surveyed the other patrons and various staff in the large dinning area. The Yangani, after all, had gotten their drinks right. Taylya’s tongue could sense the sweet burning taste of wood grain alcohol. Her eyes were also burning but, it had nothing to do with her drink. She saw two repulsive and familiar shapes, one brown and the other dark green, standing near a service entrance and trying not too be very noticeable. If anyone was paying the two Orc’s any attention, they were doing their best not to show it, and for very good reason. While the weapons and outlandish attire would probably be enough to start a deadly fight anywhere else, here at Phvengs, just knowing who these two Orc’s worked for was enough to keep the peace.

Tay got up with her drink and told her companions, “I now know what is wrong gentlemen. I will be back shortly.”

John looked at Tay very seriously and asked, “you sure you don’t need our assistance?”

Coming from John, that was a very weighty statement. Taylya remained easy going about it, “not at all John. Thank you anyway.” Taylya approached the two Orc’s who showed no sign of alarm. They had most obviously been waiting for her. They said nothing, as they opened the door for her and that was of little surprise. The Orc mouth was simply not shaped to speak primate languages. The few who usually tried to do so normally slaughtered the words beyond all recognition. These two simply had no need. Their presence was all that it took to get the message across.

There was no surprise where Taylya found herself. It was a secluded, second story, deck with lots of personal touches that reflected it’s owner. He also happen to own Phvengs and, right now, Ian Balfour sat at the only table on his private porch that was under his, dome like, thatched roof. He was wearing a white breathable suit and a hat that was usually described as the “Panama style.” None of this was of any great surprise but, Taylya was a little confused by his guest. The man turned out to be none other than her current commander.

Despite his pedigree, Jacob Avery was actually an Australian. He seemed more pleasant than usual as he raised his glass to Taylya and offered a seat that was not really his too offer. Taylya took it anyway and Avery asked, “I suppose that Snow has already told you.”

That was most definitely not why Taylya was here. She answered anyway, “yes. I hope he is happy once he gets home. I am still a little surprised that you are letting him go.”

Avery did not seem too happy when he said, “times are changing.”

While Avery was not happy, Ian Balfour found it extremely amusing, “that would be an understatement but, I would like to think for the better.”

Taylya could understand Ian’s amusement even if she was not really sure that it was truly the case. Still, Taylya was also not certain that she cared. What did concern her was, “Ian, what do you want?”

This did not change his cheerful demeanor, “do I have to want anything? Maybe I just want the company of a fine looking young woman? Did that ever cross your mind?”

“Not really,” Taylya told him point blank.

Avery was the next to speak when he asked, “what does your father have to say about all of this?”

There could only be one thing that he was talking about and everyone at the table knew it. Taylya decided not to even pretend that she was ignorant since that would only delay her departure, “the Americans? I think he’s made his position quite clear.”

Still chuckling, Ian added, “oh I think Quintescau has made his position quite clear on a lot of things as of late. What I am not seeing is, why.”

Taylya’s spine stiffened, “you would have to ask him.”

“Who says I didn’t,” Ian replied.
Taylya leaned forward and asked her own question this time, “and who is really asking Ian? Is it you or is it Reilly and Cavendish?”

Ian blew the suggestion off without even thinking, “you know how well I get along with them.” Taylya was going to fire back but, Ian decided to continue first, “those two cock suckers can’t see past their own noses and, I might add, I am somewhat offended to be mentioned in the same breath.”

Avery remained subdued and most obviously did not have the same zeal as his dinning companion, “I don’t know how much the Noveus-Faeyu knows about the current situation, Major, but Somerset’s untimely demise has raised one or two issues on our end.”

Taylya crossed her arms, “I am not at liberty to discuss such matters, Colonel, and you very well know that or we would not be having this conversation here.”

Ian shook his head negatively as he told her, “no one is asking for military secrets here darling. You have to take this conversation in the spirit of how it is meant. Every change means opportunities and, in order for us to capitalize on these opportunities, we all have to come to some kind of mutual understanding. Is that really so much to ask for?”

Taylya remained polite, “Lord Balfour, Colonel Avery, you both know, very well, that I am a soldier and nothing more. I am not getting in the middle of this.”

As she turned to leave, Ian reached out and brushed her hand. He did not grab it, did nothing hostile but, it was enough to stop Tay from leaving. When he had her attention he did say, “you already are. Just remember Major Ceascu, you still owe me.”

Not making eye contact, Taylya sniffed and then asked into the air, “and are you telling me it is time to pay up?”

Ian sat back with a smile, “not just yet.”