“I spend time with them because it is my duty.”
“You needn't spend your free time with that Jaime Wolf.”
“No, I need not.” It was the old argument again. “That, at least, is by choice. Jaime is more than an ordinary mercenary soldier. He is many things, but foremost, he is a man of honor. Besides, does not the Coordinator encourage us to enlighten promising souls to the superiority of the Dragon? I am but doing my part.”
She turned her back to him, signaling the end of the argument in a manner he knew too well.
He finished dressing without another word from her. When he was ready, Minobu looked again at his wife, who had not moved. He walked to the door, opened it, and stepped through to the corridor. “I will be in the office,” he said, closing the panel.
The walk through the private quarters of Hoshon Mansion was short, but the dark wood accents and the finely made shojipanels created a sense of peace that settled his nerves. This house, with its simple, traditional furnishings, often had that effect on him.
Minobu entered his office by the inner door. In the outer room, he could hear the strident tones of Natasha Kerensky berating his aide. Poor Michi Noketsuna! The young Tai-iwas too new at his job to have to deal with the fiery Captain Kerensky at this early an hour. Minobu sat at his desk and pressed the stud that would illuminate a telltale on Noketsuna's desk letting him know that Minobu was present.
Noketsuna must have been waiting for that signal. Almost immediately, he shifted his pleas for calmness on Captain Kerensky's part to specific requests that she sit down so that he could take care of some business in the inner office. She gave him no chance. “Oh no you don't, you little Japanese stonewall. I saw that light. I'm going in with you.”
She was as good as her word.
Michi Noketsuna reached the desk first. Minobu's practiced eye saw that he was upset, but the young Captain managed to maintain his decorum. Not a strand of black hair was out of place. Michi's skin was darker than typical for most Kuritans of Japanese ancestry, and Minobu suspected that his coloring probably concealed any flush of embarrassment at the garb of their visitor.
As usual, Natasha Kerensky was dressed provocatively. Whether it was the silver cord with dangling onyx wolf's-head that tied back her dark red curls or the highly glossed boots of speckled shantleather, each garment she wore accentuated her renowned beauty. A custom-built Marakov slug-thrower was slung low on her hip, and the flash of light on the gun's ivory grips drew attention to the sway of her hips. The weapon added a menacing accent to her carefully cultivated image. She was well aware of her effect on men and had been known to take advantage of it.
Kerensky started to harangue Minobu as soon as Noketsuna began his explanation of the situation. Minobu could not follow either of them. “Please, Captain Kerensky, you will have my full attention just as soon as I can get the story of what has happened,” he said, indicating the chair across from his own. She took it, but her foot tapped the floor in an angry rhythm. “Now, Captain Noketsuna, please start again.”
He did. The story was simple and one that Minobu had heard before. Kerensky's Independent Company, the notorious “Black Widows,” were once again in port on liberty, and once again, the Civilian Guidance Corps had detained members of the company on charges of drunk and disorderly, destruction of property, and sundry other incidents of mayhem. This time, at least, there were no charges of murder.
Minobu listened through his aide's reading of each circumstance, then he questioned him on specifics, asking Kerensky for clarification. Despite her terse and hostile responses, it soon became clear that the charges were all minor and Kerensky's protests merely perfunctory. She was displaying the fierce loyalty of a she-bear for her cubs. Indeed, Minobu had heard other Dragoons opine that those cubs, her troopers, would follow her through all the Buddhist hells. Such loyalty was enviable and the one who could inspire it was fortunate. Minobu found it pitiable that her social form was so unmannered and impolite.
As it was not the first time her troops had created a disturbance on An Ting, he decided that it was necessary to make a point. “Captain Kerensky, even though the revenues of An Ting are at the disposal of Wolf's Dragoons for the duration of the contract, the Dragoons are not the lords of the planet. The people of An Ting were here before the Dragoons came and will be here long after the Dragoons are gone. Neither you, your troops, nor any other Dragoons may make free with them. Upon release from Civilian Containment Quarters, your troopers are to be confined to the military reservation at Boupeig for the duration of their current stay on An Ting.”
Kerensky started to protest again, but he cut her off. “Of course, the damages will be charged to the Dragoons. Colonel Wolf will receive a full report on the situation and your response, Captain.”
Though obviously furious, Kerensky left without another word.
“She acts like a man,” Noketsuna commented after she slammed the door to the outer office. Minobu almost chuckled at his inexperience.
“That should be no surprise. She has lived a man's life and has been a ‘MechWarrior almost longer than you have been alive, my young friend.”
“Impossible! She is barely older than I.”
“Read her dossier. She was commanding a company before you entered the academy.” Michi's eyes widened. “She is a remarkable woman, Michigan. Just one of the remarkable things you will discover about Wolf's Dragoons. I have confidence that you will take it in stride. Otherwise, I would not have requested you for my aide. Now, before I swell your head further, what is the business of the day?”
Noketsuna directed his attention first to the military situation reports. Minobu felt pride when he saw that all the Dragoon units out on raids were reporting satisfactory progress. The elements of Epsilon Regiment engaged on Courasin signaled that operations were complete and that they were en route to their home base on Thestria. Davion activity in all sectors were minimal. In all, there were no surprises.
The next order of business was a review of the status of the Dragoon fighting units present onworld for furlough. Wolf had set up a regular schedule of relief rotations for the regiments. Each had a unit, sometimes as large as a battalion, on An Ting for rest and recreation at all times. It gave the troops a break from garrison duty or a vacation from the periodic raids along the border worlds.
It also meant that, in addition to the Dragoon dependents, An Ting had a considerable population of the fighting elements of the Dragoons at all times, almost as though it were a garrison station itself. Wolf had once told Minobu that this schedule was really Takashi Kurita's idea. The Colonel claimed that Lord Kurita had known Wolf would consider the planet assigned to the Dragoons for their dependents to be too close to the border and hence vulnerable to a deep-penetration raid. Wolf alleged that it was the Coordinator's way of getting a free garrison for a planet not listed in the service contract.
The rotation schedules were orderly. Branson's Company of Alpha Regiment was scheduled for return to Capra today to trade places with Specter's Battalion of Delta Regiment. Zeta Battalion was returning to An Ting for rest and refitting after the action on Bergman's Planet. Until the three companies from Gamma returned to the field, things would be a bit crowded at Boupeig. Minobu issued an order to open the southern barracks in preparation for Zeta's arrival.
The supply accounts were next. All was in order and by the book. Beta Regiment had filed a complaint, charging that the last shipment of cold-weather gear had been defective and inadequate to cope with the frigid temperatures of the Borealis continent's interior. Minobu initialed the note and issued a requisition for a replacement order to be sent through the Procurement Department. It was not like them to issue shoddy goods to a unit in the field. Gamma Regiment, Beta's companion on Misery, had no similar complaints. The only other item of note was a shipment of armaments from Ceres Metal that had arrived at An Ting's orbital station, pending transshipment to Delta Regiment on Capra. After reading the manifest and verifying its accuracy with Noketsuna, Minobu approved the transfer. There should be no problem in having the materiel reach the regiment before its next scheduled action.