The shuttle was nearly out of fuel when they finally matched courses with the Kuài Bō, and came alongside to deliver Porter, now frothing mad at being handed over to a ship captained by a woman of Chinese ancestry, into the waiting hands of a pair of exo wearing Marines. They were met by the ship's second in command after turning over their prisoner.
"Gentlemen, my captain sends her compliments, and asks if you'd be willing to speak to her in person." Said Commander Piers Chang. "I'm also allowed to offer you additional fuel for your shuttle ride back to your ship." He added.
"Commander, under those circumstances, I would hardly wish to be an ingrate. By all means, lead the way." Cameron replied, grinning like a schoolboy.
The captain's conference room was located close to the bridge, and getting there took some time. Cameron got the distinct impression that Dirk was humoring Commander Chang as he gave directions at each new intersection. Cameron would have gotten lost in a minute, he never truly realized how significant the differences between civilian and military ships were. Dirk eventually turned to the commander.
"Commander, this ship is a Cormorant-class frigate, isn't it?" He asked.
"It is. I have to admit, I wouldn't have expected you to know that." Piers replied, impressed.
"I served on the Shùnfēng in '74; tub was slow as lard, but tough as nails. One of the best crews I ever served with, too." Dirk said, a bit wistfully.
Commander Chang looked at Dirk long and hard, as if he were trying to recall something. The moment passed, and he simply said: "You were lucky."
Cameron was a fairly astute judge of people, and he knew there was a lot of information he didn't have, but an entire encyclopedia of conversation passed between Dirk and the Commander in those three words. They arrived at their destination before he could ask about it.
A small teapot and cups dominated the center of the table in the middle of the room, and Captain Zhao rose up to meet them. She was dressed in the standard dark blue navy uniform jacket and trousers, with a white, banded collar shirt. She reminded Cameron of Jinx, inasmuch as she was pure Chinese, but her face carried the lines of an experienced ship handler. She exuded a quiet confidence that truly successful captains were known for. He realized he was being narcissistic when he started to think that he was looking at a female version of himself.
"Thank you for coming Captain Marshall, I must say that you're not what I normally think of when I hear the word 'privateer'." She said, as she shook his hand, then turned to Dirk, after Cameron waved him forward.
"You're welcome, Captain. This is DJ Sinclair, my ship's gunner and weapons technician. I'm afraid I had to leave my pilot behind, he was going to oversee the refueling you very generously offered." Zhao and Dirk shook hands in a very orderly, efficient way, then took a single step back from one another. Zhao looked at him quizzically.
"Navy or Marines, Mr Sinclair?" She asked.
"Marines. My last posting was in the 3rd of the 12th." He replied with a grin.
Zhao raised an eyebrow at him, then gestured to the chairs around the table, inviting them to sit.
"I took the liberty of having tea prepared, it's the product of my grandfather's own plantation in the Xiāngshān area on Minotaur. He brought seedlings from China and found a way to encourage them to grow. I'm sort of the black sheep of the family, my siblings are all tea growers." She told them, once they had seated themselves, then poured for each of them.
"I wanted to ask you how you came up with the unorthodox idea of using a survey drone as a makeshift guided missile. In my experience as a naval officer, it has the virtue of being unique." She said, admiringly.
"Actually, the idea was DJ's, here; he has a gift for unconventional thinking." Cameron told her, taking a sip of his tea.
Captain Zhao regarded Dirk with a critical eye, raising her tea to inhale the subtle aromas before taking a sip of her own.
"Well then, Mr Sinclair, how about it?" Zhao asked, her hand out, palm up, as a gesture of encouragement.
Cameron sat back and listened, as Dirk explained to Captain Zhao how the separatists on Draconis had used similar methods. They preprogrammed survey drones after rigging them up as improvised antipersonnel artillery. The tactic had proven brutally effective at first, but since they were only any good against static targets, countering them had been relatively easy. They had adapted by using converging fields of fire to pin down troops, then launching their drones. It had resulted in a murderous back and forth to see who could build a better mousetrap.
"Figured we had nothing to lose, so..." He trailed off with a shrug. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
Captain Zhao laughed out loud, nearly spilling her tea, and looked at them both before trying to speak.
"First off, I want you to know that I've spoken with our resident legal expert, he has assured me that your inventive use of a survey remote as a weapon system, under the circumstances, probably won't lead to formal charges. That said, I am suggesting that you not make it a habit. I trust that's clear?" She told them, her tone now very serious.
Cameron breathed a massive sigh of relief; he'd run a huge risk letting Dirk cobble together a remote controlled IED, but it looked like the gamble was going to pay off. He hadn't been certain that would be the case. The HIA didn't like having armed merchantmen in its space, and people who failed to realize that the HIA's Navy was a professional organization, fully capable of policing its own territory, soon learned otherwise. Privateers were tolerated only so long as they didn't cause trouble, and a privateer with any sense never tried to take a prize without the Alliance Navy's approval. All of which lead him to raise an important point.
"Crystal clear, although I was hoping to have my own ship track down and retrieve our attackers' vessel, either as a prize or as salvage. The standard interpretation of interstellar law allows us the right to a claim, but if the Navy wanted to take the ship for forensic examination or intelligence purposes, then I would be happy to take a fee for bringing it in." He said, finishing with a sly grin.
Captain Zhao answered him with a grin of her own.
"Most privateers in your position usually just quote the law, and conveniently forget that the claim, to which they have a right, has to be signed off by a duly authorized government agent. I thank you for not insulting my intelligence by pretending otherwise. I assume your offer of retrieval for a fee is genuine?" Zhao inquired.
"Oh yes, I'm prepared to haul it all the way to Minotaur, if the money is right. Ideally, I'd be allowed to file a salvage claim in admiralty court, but I have a job lined up, and I'd rather not have to spend a whole lot of time waiting for that decision to come down. As a result, I'm willing to deal." Cameron replied, fervently hoping that he wasn't going to get screwed on this.
Technically, the Navy had the right to declare the outlaw vessel a military intelligence asset and order it towed into the naval station in orbit around Minotaur. There it would be disassembled, painstakingly inspected, and then - in all likelihood - destroyed. Their technicians would probably be able to find something that would identify either a manufacturer or a point of origin, and once they did, the Navy would drop on them like an anvil on a teacup. Fast and hard, smashing everything to bits.
"Well then Captain, I think that I can persuade the bean counters to expedite payment for your services. The Minotaur naval station informed me that it wanted the craft that fired on your shuttle taken into custody. Since your ship's already latched onto the wreckage thereof, I might just as well give you the contract. What do you say?" She asked with an urchin-like grin.
Cameron answered with a grin of his own, stuck his hand out to shake hers, and said: "I'd say you've got a deal, Captain Zhao."
The Navy would make good on their contract, of that he was certain, but that still left the interviews with the USPF, although, with the Navy in his corner, that was less of a concern than it had been an hour ago. He couldn't help but think that things were finally starting to look up.
"Gentlemen, my captain sends her compliments, and asks if you'd be willing to speak to her in person." Said Commander Piers Chang. "I'm also allowed to offer you additional fuel for your shuttle ride back to your ship." He added.
"Commander, under those circumstances, I would hardly wish to be an ingrate. By all means, lead the way." Cameron replied, grinning like a schoolboy.
The captain's conference room was located close to the bridge, and getting there took some time. Cameron got the distinct impression that Dirk was humoring Commander Chang as he gave directions at each new intersection. Cameron would have gotten lost in a minute, he never truly realized how significant the differences between civilian and military ships were. Dirk eventually turned to the commander.
"Commander, this ship is a Cormorant-class frigate, isn't it?" He asked.
"It is. I have to admit, I wouldn't have expected you to know that." Piers replied, impressed.
"I served on the Shùnfēng in '74; tub was slow as lard, but tough as nails. One of the best crews I ever served with, too." Dirk said, a bit wistfully.
Commander Chang looked at Dirk long and hard, as if he were trying to recall something. The moment passed, and he simply said: "You were lucky."
Cameron was a fairly astute judge of people, and he knew there was a lot of information he didn't have, but an entire encyclopedia of conversation passed between Dirk and the Commander in those three words. They arrived at their destination before he could ask about it.
A small teapot and cups dominated the center of the table in the middle of the room, and Captain Zhao rose up to meet them. She was dressed in the standard dark blue navy uniform jacket and trousers, with a white, banded collar shirt. She reminded Cameron of Jinx, inasmuch as she was pure Chinese, but her face carried the lines of an experienced ship handler. She exuded a quiet confidence that truly successful captains were known for. He realized he was being narcissistic when he started to think that he was looking at a female version of himself.
"Thank you for coming Captain Marshall, I must say that you're not what I normally think of when I hear the word 'privateer'." She said, as she shook his hand, then turned to Dirk, after Cameron waved him forward.
"You're welcome, Captain. This is DJ Sinclair, my ship's gunner and weapons technician. I'm afraid I had to leave my pilot behind, he was going to oversee the refueling you very generously offered." Zhao and Dirk shook hands in a very orderly, efficient way, then took a single step back from one another. Zhao looked at him quizzically.
"Navy or Marines, Mr Sinclair?" She asked.
"Marines. My last posting was in the 3rd of the 12th." He replied with a grin.
Zhao raised an eyebrow at him, then gestured to the chairs around the table, inviting them to sit.
"I took the liberty of having tea prepared, it's the product of my grandfather's own plantation in the Xiāngshān area on Minotaur. He brought seedlings from China and found a way to encourage them to grow. I'm sort of the black sheep of the family, my siblings are all tea growers." She told them, once they had seated themselves, then poured for each of them.
"I wanted to ask you how you came up with the unorthodox idea of using a survey drone as a makeshift guided missile. In my experience as a naval officer, it has the virtue of being unique." She said, admiringly.
"Actually, the idea was DJ's, here; he has a gift for unconventional thinking." Cameron told her, taking a sip of his tea.
Captain Zhao regarded Dirk with a critical eye, raising her tea to inhale the subtle aromas before taking a sip of her own.
"Well then, Mr Sinclair, how about it?" Zhao asked, her hand out, palm up, as a gesture of encouragement.
Cameron sat back and listened, as Dirk explained to Captain Zhao how the separatists on Draconis had used similar methods. They preprogrammed survey drones after rigging them up as improvised antipersonnel artillery. The tactic had proven brutally effective at first, but since they were only any good against static targets, countering them had been relatively easy. They had adapted by using converging fields of fire to pin down troops, then launching their drones. It had resulted in a murderous back and forth to see who could build a better mousetrap.
"Figured we had nothing to lose, so..." He trailed off with a shrug. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
Captain Zhao laughed out loud, nearly spilling her tea, and looked at them both before trying to speak.
"First off, I want you to know that I've spoken with our resident legal expert, he has assured me that your inventive use of a survey remote as a weapon system, under the circumstances, probably won't lead to formal charges. That said, I am suggesting that you not make it a habit. I trust that's clear?" She told them, her tone now very serious.
Cameron breathed a massive sigh of relief; he'd run a huge risk letting Dirk cobble together a remote controlled IED, but it looked like the gamble was going to pay off. He hadn't been certain that would be the case. The HIA didn't like having armed merchantmen in its space, and people who failed to realize that the HIA's Navy was a professional organization, fully capable of policing its own territory, soon learned otherwise. Privateers were tolerated only so long as they didn't cause trouble, and a privateer with any sense never tried to take a prize without the Alliance Navy's approval. All of which lead him to raise an important point.
"Crystal clear, although I was hoping to have my own ship track down and retrieve our attackers' vessel, either as a prize or as salvage. The standard interpretation of interstellar law allows us the right to a claim, but if the Navy wanted to take the ship for forensic examination or intelligence purposes, then I would be happy to take a fee for bringing it in." He said, finishing with a sly grin.
Captain Zhao answered him with a grin of her own.
"Most privateers in your position usually just quote the law, and conveniently forget that the claim, to which they have a right, has to be signed off by a duly authorized government agent. I thank you for not insulting my intelligence by pretending otherwise. I assume your offer of retrieval for a fee is genuine?" Zhao inquired.
"Oh yes, I'm prepared to haul it all the way to Minotaur, if the money is right. Ideally, I'd be allowed to file a salvage claim in admiralty court, but I have a job lined up, and I'd rather not have to spend a whole lot of time waiting for that decision to come down. As a result, I'm willing to deal." Cameron replied, fervently hoping that he wasn't going to get screwed on this.
Technically, the Navy had the right to declare the outlaw vessel a military intelligence asset and order it towed into the naval station in orbit around Minotaur. There it would be disassembled, painstakingly inspected, and then - in all likelihood - destroyed. Their technicians would probably be able to find something that would identify either a manufacturer or a point of origin, and once they did, the Navy would drop on them like an anvil on a teacup. Fast and hard, smashing everything to bits.
"Well then Captain, I think that I can persuade the bean counters to expedite payment for your services. The Minotaur naval station informed me that it wanted the craft that fired on your shuttle taken into custody. Since your ship's already latched onto the wreckage thereof, I might just as well give you the contract. What do you say?" She asked with an urchin-like grin.
Cameron answered with a grin of his own, stuck his hand out to shake hers, and said: "I'd say you've got a deal, Captain Zhao."
The Navy would make good on their contract, of that he was certain, but that still left the interviews with the USPF, although, with the Navy in his corner, that was less of a concern than it had been an hour ago. He couldn't help but think that things were finally starting to look up.
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