mephron@metropolis.idt.net (Geoffrey Depew)


          "Sir!  We have a ship dropping out of warp.  Directional shows
it came from inside UFP space."  The creature turned around, its wings
twitching with agitation.
     The command chair turned around.  The man in it gripped the cane at
its side and levered himself up.  His face - scarred on one side, and one
eye obviously gone, although a pair of antique aviator-framed mirrored
sunglasses covered both - frowned.  "Any hostile moves?  And do we have an
ID?"
          "Yes, Admiral.  ID as FCS Bobby Fischer, registered to Max
Bishop of the Chessmen.  No hostile moves - in fact, they seem to be
moving into a standard parlay position."
          The Admiral's face smiled.  "Hail them, Mr. Brooklyn."
          "Done, sir.   Oh, and Rear Admiral Goliath wishes to speak with
you, as well."
          "Send my regards to Mr. Bishop, and invite him and his command
staff to dine with me this evening.  I'll speak with the Admiral myself."
          "Yes, sir."
          The Admiral turned to a screen.  "What's up, Goliath?"
          The grey-faced Gargoyle frowned at him.  "Are you certain that's
wise, Admiral?  We don't know their alignment."
          "Max Bishop is a mercenary, I'll admit that.  But I've met him
before, and he's always been honorable.  I think he'll at least wait for
dinner to tell me why he's here."  *Besides, after that message I got, I
think they want to talk to me as much as I want to talk to them.*
          "If he's against us?"
          "There's going to be a fight.  I think we'll win.  Three
Elcyon-class battleships, and three of the Hawk-class destroyers - just
like the Fischer, plus the carrier and it's fighters."
          "And if he's not?"
          "Then this is the chance we've been looking for to get
information from inside the UFP.  All the rumors we've been getting, all
unconfirmed.  If we can get ANY confirmation at all, this might be JUST
what we need to convince the UG Council that we're going to have a war
soon!  You know as well as I do, Goliath, that we're in no shape to fight
the UFP if they attack in force."
          "No need to preach to the converted, Koichi.  I know exactly
what will happen."
          "So no matter what.... I need to talk to Max Bishop."
          "Indeed.  He's definitely useful to us, no matter which side
he's on."

Studio Surrealism presents

CHESSMEN:
PAWNS

by Geoff Depew

     We stepped off the shuttle onto the flight deck of the _Gunbuster_.
It wasn't chance we were where we were.  I specifically was looking for
Admiral Ota.  He was the one person I KNEW I could trust around here.
          We were all in our formal duty uniforms.  The party was Farmel,
Sav, Youshou, Washu and Gally.  And me, of course.  I was impressed -
there was a full UG Naval Honor Guard.  Heading it was the largest damned
Gargoyle I'd ever seen.  Violet skin, black hair, and big wings.  That had
to be Rear Admiral Goliath.  He bowed as best he could with his
digitigrade legs.
          "Commodore Bishop,"  he rumbled, giving me the traditional
promotion given to another captain since navies began - there could only
be ONE Captain on a ship.  "The Admiral sends his regards, and asks you
follow me to dinner."
          "Admiral Goliath, I would be honored to do so."  He led us to a
lift.  That lift went down two levels, then opened on a corridor.  Three
doors down, he led us into a large room.  It probably was more than just
formal dining, but....
          The Admiral rose slowly as we entered.   Some time ago, about
twenty years it was, he'd been badly wounded in his right leg, and his
right eye was gone.  He'd refused replacement from Washu, stating that he
was 100% himself and didn't want to be anyone or anything else.  The fact
that his injuries hadn't stood in the way of him getting to be an Admiral
was a tribute to his work.
          He smiled.  "Max!  Long time no se!"
          I smiled back.  I wasn't sure of the exact reception I'd get,
but this was far better than I expected.  "It's been busy for me lately.
Fighting's my business, and business is booming, as it were."
          He groaned appreciatively at my pun, and then turned.  "Well,
let's see.  I remember Savashtar, Youshou, Washu and Gally... but who is
THIS lovely woman?"  The last time we'd met, Farmel had been undercover on
another world.
          "This is Ginrei. My adjutant, third-in-command.... and fiancee."
          He whistled.  "Max, my compliments.  She's beautiful."  Then he
turned.  "But I shouldn't speak to you as if you weren't here.  A
pleasure, Commander Ginrei.  Shall we eat?"
          Farmel smiled.  "Let's."
          As we sat down, I was on one side of Koichi, Farmel next to me,
and Goliath was right across from me.
          "So, Max, what brings you here to the UG?  A contract?"
          I'd expected this.
          "Sort of.  A contract... on us.  FedComPol landed on our base
and tried to arrest all of us.  They're cracking down on freelancers of
all types, absorbing who they can, killing the ones that won't join."
          "That's bad, Max.  But it's the sort of thing I was hoping to
hear from you."
          "Why?"
          "There's rumors of war.  The UFP is going to try another push
into UG territory.  We all remember the Meltran Conflict far too well -
we're not going to let them in."
          "Mixed blessings, eh?"
          I looked at my team.  Farmel was picking at her brualliki (she
hated the stuff, but would eat enough to be pleasant).  Gally wasn't
eating, Youshou was doing so with impeccable manners, Washu was reading,
and Savashtar was using his hands.  My team.  My friends.  Warts and all,
I'd take them against anything the UFP would send against us.
          "I heard about your base, Max.  What happened?"
          I raised an eyebrow.  "How did you hear?  I'd have thought we
weren't THAT interesting...."
          He smiled.  "I have my ways."
          I sighed.  That was one of the annoying things about him.  He
had ways of finding out almost anything.  "We'd just come back from a
mission where we took down some gun-runners.  We got home, were settling
in, when the UFP Combat Police dropped in.  It turns out the gunrunners
were a front for a UFPI operation sending weapons to people in the UG
who weren't happy.  I think it was Eve White, the planet they were going
to."  His eye narrowed wide at that, but he said nothing.  "Anyway, to
make a long story short, we busted most of the platoon they sent, and then
got out just in time.  We came this way hoping to
find you, and we did."
          "Eve White, you said.  Interesting.  VERY interesting.  We just
got back from there.  The ENTIRE planet was a base for the Luds."
          Savashtar stopped eating.  "Did you let any of them live?"
          "Some surrendered, so we accepted it.  Most.... well....
          Savashtar nodded.  He had good reason to hate the Luds.  So did
Karin and Junta, but we could tell them later.
          "Anyway, Koichi, the question remains.  What sort of prospects
do we have here in the United Galactica?"
          "Not very much, Max.  UG isn't big on mercenaries, you know.
However... I might have an idea."
          Goliath rumbled, "Sir, We've spoken about this...."
          "Yes, we did.  However, REAR Admiral, this is an option that
gives us the best of all possible worlds."  For Koichi to emphasize
rank like that meant that he was pulling it.  I glanced down the row
again.  Sav and Farmel were both tense in the way that showed their
special talents - Farmel's teleportation, Sav's shapeshift - were just
barely leashed.  Youshou was, as always, impeccably mannered.... even if
he might have to kill his host in a few moments.  Washu sat up, watching
the rest of us and frowning.
          "Mr. Bishop, would your organization like to become the first of
the United Galactica Navy's Ranger Teams?
          I slipped into negotiation mode.  "That depends, Admiral Ota.
What precisely does that mean?"
          "It means that we give you missions, and we pay you.   You
accomplish the missions, and you don't get any questions asked about how.
It's similar to what you're used to."
          "What are the strings?"
          "If we give you a specific order as to things NOT to do, you
follow them.  Again, something you're used to."
          "I'll have to confer with my entire team on it, you understand.
I'm nominally in charge, but everyone has a say in something this big."
Granted, if it gave us a job and a haven, we'd be up for it.  But still,
if I made this big a decision myself, they'd string me up.  And I'd
deserve it.
          "Understood."
          An ensign ran in, holding a datapad.  "Admiral, we have a ship
docking."
          Koichi took it and read it.  "Interesting.  Inform the gentleman
he missed dinner, but he can drop by for dessert if he wishes."  The
ensign nodded, and ran out again.  Koichi polished off his dinner, as did
the rest of us.  I noticed Savashtar in deep conversation with some of the
people around him.
          The door slid open and a man stepped in.  He looked young, with
large liquid eyes that would have girls falling for him, and black hair,
short on top and in a tail in the back.  "Tenchi Masaki, UGI, Admiral.  I
need some repairs....  Grandpa?"  His eyes were suddenly focused on
Youshou.
          "Tenchi."  Youshou's voice was somewhat flat.  This was rather
unusual.  Farmel noticed it too, because her hidden sidearm was suddenly
in her hand under the table.
          "I wouldn't have thought you'd have shown up around here with
that mercenary rabble you hang around with, Grandpa.  That you work with
trash like -urk!"  This Tenchi had a sudden interruption in discussion
capabilities.  (My hand around your throat does that to a person.)
          "My name is Max Bishop.  Your grandfather works for me.  If you
have comments about his profession, you'd best make them to me first.
THEN I can adjust your opinions.  If needed, with a spanner to the
braincase."  Then I let him go.
          Koichi looked at the man, as well.  "I'd advise you not insult
someone who may be working on the same side as you very soon, Mr. Masaki.
Especially when you've got this set of talents here."  He smiled at
Tenchi.  "Even the lovely ladies could probably leave you in pieces."
          Tenchi frowned, rubbing his throat.  "Does this mean, Admiral
Ota, that you're implementing your Ranger Team concept, using these
people?"
          "They're skilled, used to the sorts of missions, and they're
good at what they do.  And >I< trust them."  I wondered for a moment about
the relative rankings of a Fleet Admiral and a UGI agent.  On the other
hand, right now, Koichi held three aces and two kings, and Tenchi had a
pair of threes.
          "I see.  Admiral, I'm going to need to interview each of them
for possible security risks and UFP sympathies."
          "Now that's -"
          I interrupted.   "Admiral, if it makes him feel better about the
situation, I have no complaints.  However, this will have to wait until I
present the ideas to my team and see how they feel about it."  Granted, I
thought they'd all go for it.  But I still had to check.
          Both men nodded.

          "...so we'd be on a long-term open-ended contract with the UG.
It won't pay as hugely, but things like supplies and repairs are part of
the deal, leaving us free of worry on those sorts of things.  Something
this big, I wanted to check with all of you about."
          All the eyes of my team were on me.  Sav and Farmel sat next to
me.  Daisaku, Taison,and Morobo were sitting to my left, in front of me
were Gally, Washu, Mihoshi, Kiyone, and Youshou. Karin and Junta were to
my right.  Where was.... oh, there was Ryuquir, curled up on Daisaku's
feet.  Odd, that.
          "Objections."
          Daisaku spoke up first.  "They don't have rights to examine any
of our technology, do they?"
          "There's a UGI man who's going to interview each of us if we
take this.  We report to Fleet Admiral Koichi Ota.  NO one else.  Not even
that UGI man.  We don't have to tell him anything about our technology or
any other special abilities.  That's not in our contract."
          Daisaku nodded, relieved.  Taison called out next.
          "Well, I suppose it's a good idea, but what if we decide we want
out.  Can we just walk away without getting hammered?"
          "If we're not doing anything official at the time, yes.  We
can't quit mid-mission.  And I did negotiate for refusal rights.  We're
not going to be performing genocide or something like that."
          Junta's question floored me.  "Do we get to kill Luds?"
          I recovered quickly.  "If we run into them, and they're trying
to kill us, yes.  Standard rules of conduct apply.  That means we let them
live if they surrender."
          Junta nodded, frowning a little.  I noticed that he and Karin
were sitting next to each other, but their body language was a little odd.
          Gally raised a hand.  "Max, what if we get hung out to dry?   I
mean, chances are they'll have the standard disavowal clause for covert
actions."
          I smiled.  "No, they don't."  Everyone looked shocked.
"The UGI guy wanted it in there, but I wouldn't budge.  They CAN'T disavow
us."
          "They did all that, knowing that we might vote against
it?"
          I nodded.  "They WANT us.  They want us BADLY.  This way, they
can keep an eye on us so we don't go and blow up a lot of things, and we
get a great deal of fun out of it, as well as a long-term employment
opportunity.  Anything else?"
          Farmel spoke up.  "Max, I'd like to make a motion while we have
everyone here."
          I nodded, knowing what she was going to say.  "Motion on Ranger
Team contract temporarily tabled."
          She turned to everyone else.  "Ryuquir and Morobo handled things
REALLY well on the way out, considering what they had to deal with.  I
don't think anyone else here could have done much better.  I move to
advance them to full operative status."
          "Second?"
          Youshou and Taison tied for the hand-raise.  Tied for SECOND.
Gally got it first.
          "All in favor?"
          Everyone raised their hands.  Even Ryuquir.
          "All opposed.... wait, it was unanimous in favor.  Oh, well.
Ryuquir and Morobo, you are hereby officially raised to full operative
status.  Team assignments will be forthcoming."  I figured we'd put Morobo
with Taison and Farmel, and Ryuquir would go with Karin, Gally and Junta.
          "Max... I've got another proposal."
          I blinked.  This one I WASN'T expecting.  "Go ahead."
          Farmel stood.  "I move that we set up a formal point
infiltration team.  Members will be with regular teams, but also members
of the infiltration team.  We did things in an ad hoc manner before, but
the UG won't like that.  It'll basically be a note on the TOE."
          "Good idea.  I'm glad I let you handle the bureaucratics.
Discussion?"
          Taison stood.  "Exactly who did you intend to be the official
infil team?"
          Farmel responded instantly.  "Me, in command, for my
teleportation.  Ryuquir, because of her sensor invisibility.  Junta,
since he's one of our top hand-to-hand combatants, and still small enough
physically to handle the infil.  Gally on reserve, for her weapon
capability and HTH."
          Taison nodded, looking thoughtful.  "I'd add in Kiyone, for
sharpshooting and technical skills."
          Kiyone blinked at that, but said nothing.
          Farmel nodded.   "Good point.  Kiyone, how do you feel about
that?"
          "Okay... I suppose..."  She looked at Mihoshi, who smiled and
nudged.  "I'll do it."
          I noted that.  One of the rules we DIDN'T have was against
internal relationships.  It was useless to have it, the nature of people
being what it was.  I did, however, wonder what would happen to Mihoshi if
something happened to Kiyone.
          I would think about that later.  Right now, we had things to
consider.
          "In favor?"  Most of the hands went up, except for Daisaku and
Washu.  Suddenly I realized that Washu wasn't in the room.  "Daisaku,
objection?"
          His attention popped back to here.  "Erg.  No  just was
distracted, sorry."
          "No problem."
          "All right, Infil team motion passes.  Back to the Ranger Team.
Comments, questions, breath mint?"
          I took another hit from a flying donut (three this meeting - not
close to a record).  "All right.  All in favor?"  All the hands went up.
"Good.  Now, Mr. Masaki of UGI will be here in two hours after I call.
Please treat him with all the respect he deserves, and not an ounce more."
          Youshou got up.  "I should mention to all of you that he is my
grandson, and doesn't think very much of what I m doing here, with you
all.  Just thought I should warn you."
          Suddenly Farmel looked around.  "Where's Washu?"

          Koichi Ota pressed the door open button on his quarters and
entered.  His office was the first room that he entered.  He laid his
trademark sunglasses on the desk, and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
          *Damn that man.  I am the Fleet Admiral, and he thinks he can
dictate to me.  He may find a way to bollix things up yet, but I can get
around him.  Damn it, we NEED the Chessmen on our side.  Not even UGI
suspects about the Game, and if we re lucky, the Chessmen can be just what
we need to disrupt it.*
          *Heh.  I wonder if they know how well they re named in this
instance.  I wish Washu was here.  But I m sure she's on the Fischer.*
          He pressed the button to open the door to his private room.
Usually, it was dark until he turned on the lights.
          A candle was NOT the light he was expecting.  Nor was he
expecting the bed to be occupied.
          The occupier sat up, hold the sheet to her.  The hair was the
same, and even the features to some extent, but it was a quite different
Washu that was in the bed.  She looked older, mature.
          "Hello, Koichi.  Hope you don't mind."
          "Actually, I was just thinking about you, Washu." He
smiled.  "Did you know I've missed you?"
          "Well, I had hoped.  But .. let s just say that I m old enough
to think that perhaps some people don t really care about others.  And
it's been a few years - I didn't know what had happened since then."
          "Not very much.  Not much at all.  Just a few promotions, some
gray hairs."
          "I could fix that, you know.  Make you what you always were.  No
bionics, no transplants.  A little cloning and a little DNA work.  You
could be..."
          He laid a finger on her lips.  "No.  I am what I am.  My scars
are part of the legend I have around me.  If they disappeared, people
would wonder.  Besides, unlike you, I don't think there s a reason for me
to stay around forever."
          "Forever.  There's a reason I left.  Being the Eldest
of the Uu - the supposed leader - wasn't a picnic.  Running a bureaucracy
for two thousand years was BORING. Besides, I got so tired of the Game.
But it looks like it's reached out to ensnare me again.  And the rest of
the Galaxy.  And I don t know what I can do - if there IS anything - to
save things.  I should have drowned my younger daughter at birth . She s
become so vicious."
          She looked up at Koichi.  "Hold me."
          And for the rest of the night, he did.

          In the room, deep beneath the surface of the Earth, two women
sat in a dark room looking at a board.
          "You can resign now," said one, looking at the board.  Her
violet hair flowed down around her shoulders in a somewhat shaggy mane.
Her eyes seemed to be deep black pits in her face, and her forehead had
two bronze stripes and one violet one across it.  "I'll make your
termination easy."
          The other woman had pale blue hair pulled back into two tails
that fell down her back.  Her forehead had a pair of small wedge-shaped
marks on her forehead.  "No, I play to endgame, Tokimi.  I refuse to let
my sister back me into a corner."
          "Always the stubborn one, Tsunami.  Almost as stubborn as
Mother.  But I haven't lost a Game yet.  I don t plan to begin now.  It
was foolish of you to challenge me."
          Tsunami smiled quietly.  "It is your move."

          Back on the Fischer, Tenchi Masaki was interviewing people.  He
was also on his third set of paintabs for his headache.
          "Miss Aoi, please answer the question.   If confronted by a
member of the Galactic Organization for the Restriction of Genetic
Engineering, what would you do?"
          "Mr. Masaki, if you'd looked at my background at all, you'd see
that question is almost self-answering.  But, if you like.  I'd blow his
damned head off, THEN ask questions.  I don't CARE to have one surrender
to me.  I DO care to have them exceedingly dead.  The Luds killed my
entire homeworld, and I m hoping to return the favor."
          "I see.  Thank you, Miss Aoi."
          Karin left the room, and Tenchi sat back, rubbing his forehead.
          *I don t see how these people got this reputation.  Every one of
them has some kind of problem that would have them drummed out of UGI.
The drunk, the damned Vargr, whatever that cat-creature was, I don t get
it.  Max Bishop must be either incredibly lucky or some kind of genius to
get this bunch working together.*
          The door opened.  "I'll be ready in a moment."
          "I hope my people are cooperating."
          Tenchi looked up.  Yes, it was Max Bishop.
          *I still don t get it.  He doesn't LOOK that strong.  Hell, he's
almost skinny.  And that grey hair, and those eyes that don't match.  I
don't understand how he can do the things we know he can do.*
          "Mostly.  A number of them have questions that they refuse to
answer."
          "One of our rules, Mr. Masaki.  We don t need to know.  And I
defy a FedPol Inquiry Squad to get a straight answer from Ryuquir."
          "I know.  I couldn't do it.  Where did she come from?"
          "No idea.  She turned up a few years back in our storage area,
when we were on Paige.  She doesn't show up on electronic sensors.  It
took Junta and Taison to finally trap her.  She seemed pretty harmless to
us, and actually pretty friendly once she was fed.  So we recruited her.
The Chessmen have a tendency to pick up strays."
          "Ah.  Can I ask you a question, off the record, Mr. Bishop?"
          "All right."
          "How the HELL do you get a group of misfits and basket cases
like this working at the efficiency you do?  Look at these interviews.
Taison Shinkotaihoun, chronic alcoholic.  Gally, amnesiac.  Karin Aoi,
borderline psychopathic hatred of GORGE.  Junta Momonari, same.  Ginrei -
no other name - with a dozen "no need to know" comments.  Ryuquir, no
answers at all.  Morobo Carnathas, a Vargr and ex-Federation Marine.
Daisaku Kusama, and no he won't tell us how Giant Robo works.  UGI would
have bounced all of them except for Kusama, and kept HIM in custody until
we figured out how Robo works.  But you've managed to make them into one
of the finest small combat teams in the galaxy.  How?"
          Bishop smiled.  "Quite simple.  You see them as misfits and
basket cases.  I see them as people with problems.  Treat them that way,
help them out, and things work better.  As far as combat . It s like a
fusion cannon.  They re the hydrogen, and I m the magnetic field.  I
target, and keep them ready, and when the time comes . BOOM."
          "I still don t get it.  Everything you do is totally
contraindicated by everything that UGI regulations specify."
          "Then I would submit that UGI doesn't know everything about
people.  You've seen our mission logs, our public- and restricted-access
records.  And we work together.  Do you have any other objections?"
          "Well, I would like to see your private personnel records.  You
already decided I didn't need to see those.  So no, but I do need to do
two more interviews.  And as long as you're here..."
          "All right."
          "Firstly, Mr. Bishop, where are you from?"
          "Outland.  It s in the Sirius system.  Small, rocky, desert
world.  One of the First Wave colonies.  Was born there."
          "Do you have a birth certificate?  I can't find the records of
it."
          "Records?  On Outland?  The entire planet was scorched clean in
2118 when Sirius was passed by the Comet Empire.  I'd left years before,
so..."
          "The Comet Empire.  There s something you don t hear about often
anymore.  What's the reason for your longevity?"
          "Unknown.  And I decided a while back that to probe into it
would make my life less interesting, so I never have."
          "I see.  Your team has done work for the UFP, primarily.  Any
particular reason for that?"
          "There's not much market in the UG for Peacekeeper teams.
So...we go where there's work.  UFP just happens to have it."
          "If you do work in the UFP, what do you think of the Nesh'hazar
and the Malaugrym?"
          "Nesh'hazar personally annoy me.  I don t like their
attitudes towards life - always viewing it as a major conflict, and the
only way to finish the conflict is to have someone dead at the end.  And I
don t trust Malaugrym - but I do know that they do die from a large enough
energy weapon blast.  I've seen it happen."
          "Ah.  All right, then, Mr. Bishop.  Um...let's see.  Do you know
where your doctor is?"
          "Actually, no.  She didn't show up for lunch.  In fact, she
disappeared from the meeting just before you arrived, and I haven't
seen her since."
          Both of them jumped as a voice said,  "Seen who?"  Washu was
sitting on a chair at the end of the table.

          I officially would like to state for the record that Washu was
NOT sitting in that chair when I walked in.  I have NO idea how she got
there.  I think it's one of her more annoying abilities.  She just pops up
sometime.
          "Washu, where the HELL have you been?"
          In answer, she handed a dataplaque to Tenchi.  (I wouldn't mind
working with him, if he could get over his attitude that UGI Knew All
There Was To Know.)  He slotted it and read what was on the screen.
          "This is unprecedented.  HOW did you manage to arrange
a top-level clearance in that short a time?"
          "I've always had it.  I just had to go FIND the plaque.  That's
what took so long.  So, do we make it?"
          Tenchi nodded.  "You do.  While I have some questions about your
backgrounds, still, there s nothing here to block you.  Congratulations."
          "Excellent.  What now?"
          "Admiral Ota wants to brief you at 0800 hours.  He will be
taking a shuttle over here at that time.   I will be joining him."
          I nodded.   "All right."  Tenchi bowed out, and I turned to
Washu.   "So, where have you been?"
          Washu chuckled, putting her hands behind her head.  "Visiting a
friend.  Having a long talk."
          I raised an eyebrow, but decided not to push.  "I suppose we
both hate morning meetings?"
          "You don't sleep unless you want to.  And I don't have
to worry about it."
          I raised my eyebrow again.  Then I decided against
asking.  Washu tended to evade answers unless she really wanted us to
know.  And that was seldom.
          "See you in the morning, Doc.  Sleep well."
          She smiled - not her usual "I'm Five Steps Ahead Of You" smile,
but a quiet gentle one.  That somehow disturbed me a lot more than I ever
thought she could.  After that, I left the room fairly quickly.

          The door slid open, and Farmel looked up from the paperwork.
          "We passed."
          "Okay.  What now?"
          "Koichi will be here to brief us at 0800.  So, we have to be
awake for it.  What you working on?"
          "Pay.  We've got some bills to work with, remember?  We still
own the land on Paige, and they're still charging us taxes.  So we have to
deal with that.  Plus salary, upkeep on the Fischer, and all the bills
that I take care of because you're too busy...."
          I took a deep breath.  "I'm sorry."
          "For what?"
          "Making you do the work, and taking all the credit.  I shouldn't
do that."
          She turned around.  "Sorry, Max.  I'm just trying to get things
in shape.  They're going to want a full accounting, and I need to have the
books in order.  I'm a little snappy."
          I bend down and kissed her.  "I've been busy, you've been busy.
Let's take some time off and relax.  I have a bubble bath drawn... and
it's got that bath oil you like..."  I smiled a little.
          She smiled back.  "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is beat.
I just want to sleep until we HAVE to get up."
          "Well, a bath can only help..."
          "Max, the last time we were in a bathtub, we managed to cause a
massive overflow..."
          "Farmel, if you don't want to, we won't.  But you need to relax,
and I think the bath would help."  She did look tired.
          She leaned back in the chair.  "You're probably right.  Let's
go."
          And we did.

          At 0800 the next morning, most of us were there.  Ryuquir was
nowhere to be found, and Daisaku had called me to tell me he was going to
be late.  The rest of us were around our dinner table - that being the
largest room we had.  Koichi walked in with Admiral Goliath.  None of us
rose.  He sat down, and Goliath stood next to him.
          "All right, people, welcome to the UG Navy.  As a Ranger team,
you don't have to do things like stand when a superior office enters the
room or things like that, but for people outside this group, you might
want to do it, just so you don't ruffle feathers.  Just a note.  Now, your
first mission for us has already been accomplished - retroactively.  I
tweaked some files so that your information about the UFP that you gave us
was listed as "first mission report".
          I'd forgotten how Koichi tended to manipulate things so that
they fell his way.  The second battle of Tanaab, for example.  He kept
half his fleet a microjump away, and dropped them in perfect formation,
surprising the fleet that was there.  Part of me wondered if he was going
to drop us into things, too.
          "Now, you're going to be briefed on the high command of the UFP
Navy."
          I hate being right.
          "Each of these individuals is extremely dangerous, so be warned.
First, we have High Admiral Char Aznable.  Expert fighter pilot, one of
the top ten hand-to-hand combatants - armed and unarmed - in the UFP Navy.
Master strategist."  The picture was passed around.  He wore a bright red
UFP uniform, and his eyes and forehead were covered by a yellow mask.  "In
the UFP academy, he took a serious head wound, and it left him with a
rather nasty scar.  The mask probably has other functions built into it as
well."
          Another picture started to make its way around the table.  It
got to Youshou and STOPPED.
          Koichi spoke.  "Kagato."  Washu visibly stiffened, her face
starting to go into that "time to make something unpleasant" look.
"Archeologist, scientist.  Apparently acting as Admiral Aznable's
aide-de-camp.  Reasons unknown."   The picture got to me, finally.  He
was a tall man, with grey hair.  Yellow eyes looked at me from the photo,
and a pair of useless glasses sat low on his nose.  Everything in his face
spoke of his egotism.   If Kagato was working with Aznable, there had to
be something big at stake.
          The third picture made the rounds.  "Professor Soichiro Tomoe.
Researcher in plasma physics.  Currently working on weapons systems under
duress.  He is utterly devoted to his daughter, Hotaru, who has Telant's
syndrome.  For those of you not familiar, it is a genetic disorder that
disintegrates the lungs.  There's a medication for it, but the side
effects turn the person taking the drug into a psychopath.  That makes the
drug illegal.  According to our records, the girl is also implant-
resistant, so the lungs can't be replaced.  Aznable is supplying Tomoe
with the drug, in order to save the girl's life.  If we could get her away
and somehow fix her, we could gut Aznable's research crew."
          I noticed Washu nodding, her eyes crafty.  If she could
fix the kid's DNA, that would be great.  But we had to get her, and
chances are that wouldn't be easy.
          The next folder was thick.  "Ha'Zath Talan, aka Broken Fang.
Nesh'hazar hunter.  A descendent of the first Broken Fang.  Aznable's
personal hunter."  No need to look at it - we'd either see it coming, or
we wouldn't.
          The final folder was extremely thin.  "Tanarath.  Malaugrym.
Head of Intel.  No information.  We have NONE.  We don't even know it's
eye color."
          (Malaugrym can change their shape, but for some reason their eye
color remains constant no matter what happens.  No one knows why.)
          "That's the UFP High Command.  Also...."  He slid another folder
onto the table.  "Tenzil Kem.  Head of the FedComPol.  Rumor has it that
he arranged his superior's death to get it.  Calling him a psychopath and
a sadist is being charitable."
          I nodded.  "This is the bad guys."
          "The worst."

ON  BOARD THE UFB BATTLESHIP _DESTRUCTION_

          The masked man turned to the grey-haired man next to
him.  "Our movements have been noted.  My spies tell me that those
Chessmen rabble are now working for the UG directly.  We may have lost the
element of surprise."
          The other man shrugged.  "So what?  We outgun them three to one.
In a stand-up fight, we can't lose."
          "I still prefer the element of surprise."
          "I know, Char.  But we don't have it.  Accept it and plan.  Now,
we have that man you wanted me to find waiting."
          "Excellent, Kagato.  And the good professor?"
          "As usual, he's not happy, but he is working.  We told him that
each time he slows down, we'll cut the doses of the medicine for his dear
daughter... and that keeps him working at peak efficiency."
          "What about the side effects?"
          "She's developed a second personality - this one being
cannibalistic.  As in now stands, we have two holds on him - one for her
drugs, the other for covering up her little ...dietary amusement."
          "Amusement?  You have a strange sense of fun, Kagato."
          Kagato shrugged.  "I've been forced to support myself in that
manner at times.  It's not particularly unpleasant for me.  At any rate.
Tenzil wants to know if he can take a team in to take out the Chessmen.
He sees that little fiasco on Paige as a personal blight on his record."
          "No.  They're under Ota's protection.  I'm not ready to do that
yet.  Not until we have the new ship ready...."
          "And Tanarath is arranging an assassination squad to go after
Ota, at your command."
          "Oh, good.  Good.  Ota's too sharp.  If the gargoyle was in
charge, we'd have a much better rate of success.  We'll win, of course,
but with Ota out of the way... it'll be so much easier.  Tell Tanarath to
do it when he's ready."
          "Of course.  Now, do you want to talk to that young man?
          "What's his name again? I gave you the orders to find someone on
that planet, but I don't remember exactly who you found."
          "His codename is Genya.  He was the head of a criminal syndicate
on Bashtarlle, as well as being an expert on power and counterpower
systems.  And, we've found out, he's the brother of that Chessmen's agent
Ginrei.  We have a great deal of information from him...."

ABOARD THE _FISCHER_

          It was my turn to cook, so there I was, mucking around
with the entire situation.  Cooking isn't easy for a group like us.
Morobo prefers a lot of meat, whereas Karin is a vegetarian.  And gravy
isn't an option with Ryuquir around, with her propensity for food-fights.
I considered gluing food to plates.  Nah.  Sav would eat the plate, too.
          It was about the time I had the dough ready  (I decided on
pocket-pies, which I could make some all-vegetable and some all-meat to
make everyone happy) when I heard something odd.  It sounded like an
animal yowling.
          Ryuquir?  About the right tone...
          I took off at a run, figuring whatever happened, I could deal
with it myself.
          Imagine my surprise to find Daisaku and Ryuquir, naked and...
um, well, er, anyway.
          "Um, sorry, excuse me, be going now, bye!"   I slammed the door
shut and ran back to the galley.  Gally was poking around, and looked up
when I walked in.
          "Max?  What's up?  You look like you're weirded out."
          I grabbed a coffee cup and dispensed a cup, black, then
drank it down in one long gulp.  then another.  After the third I stopped.
"I have a bad taste in my brain."
          She smiled impishly.  "Ah, just found out about Dai and
Ryuquir?"
          I gave her a look that was intended to show utter exasperation.
Chances are, all it showed was utter chaos.
          She walked out, calling back, "Chill.  It'll be fine."
          I sat down on a stool, and sighed.  "Some days I wonder why I
even get out of bed."

          Dinner was informal, since everyone was working on preparation
for our first mission.  We had background, but no assignment yet.  We were
all putting ourself to the test to make our first mission top-class.
Daisaku and Ryuquir spent a lot of time in bay three, ostensibly
working on Robo.  Mihoshi's powersuit was at peak efficiency, Gally was
fine-tuned, everyone was healed up, and we were all running on a serious
paranoia, wondering WHEN.
          Then the entire fleet went on red alert at once.
          "Max, this is bad.  We had a supply ship come in.  Now we're
missing six cases of gear, and a quartermaster's corpse was found in the
bay, stuffed behind a box.  He was half-eaten."
          "I know, Koichi.  It practically screams Malaugrym.  UFP
Assassination team.  The questions are, of course, who's the target, and
do they plan to escape."
          "Why wouldn't they?"
          "Think.  If they don't, they can take out almost the entire
fleet by grabbing a few key positions on the Gunbuster, especially
engineering.  If they do, then we have to watch the shuttles in case they
do get their target or targets.  Can the Gunbuster generate a no-fly
zone?"
          "Of course.  I started it as soon as the red alert started.  No
ship goes into warp inside of a two hundred kilometer radius from  my
ship, and if they try, they'll either burn out their engines or implode."
          "Then they're trapped."
          "And there's only one place where I can find people who I know
that haven't been replaced."
          "Us."
          "Yes."
          "I'll do a full mobilization."
          "Even...?"
          "Yes."
          "You take this seriously."
          "Assassination is serious."
          Koichi nodded.  He knew is was the most probably target. The
only person that would be higher on the list would be Grand Admiral
Daitokuji, and she wasn't here.
          I cut the connection and looked at Farmel.  "I want you,
Youshou, Mihoshi, Gally and Junta ready for departure in five."  I took my
business demeanor, and she accepted.  This was one of those situations
where she saw I was serious.
      I was.  Dead serious.

      I'd picked my team carefully.  Mihoshi's powersuit was sealed, and a
Malaugrym couldn't penetrate it.  Youshou was a top combatant and his
powers could destroy one of them.  Gally's metal shell was unreplicable by
them.  Farmel could teleport.  Junta was extremely powerful in
hand-to-hand combat.  And they couldn't stop me no matter what they tried
- I'd encountered Malaugrym before, and I was still here.
      We made sweeps of the ships as a single team:  Gally and I taking
point, Farmel, Junta and Youshou in the center, and Mihoshi bringing up
the rear.  Halfway through one of the ships, Mihoshi's IR detectors went
off.  She immediately started firing at the source.
     Sure enough, it was one of the Malaugrym.  She'd gotten in a lucky
shot and flash-fried most of the neural gel that they used as brains.
She'd also put three holes in the wall and taken a lavatory completely out
of commission.  I hoped that wasn't going to be taken out of our fee.
     Moving through a ship, I suddenly felt a tendril around my throat,
pulling tight.  I grabbed back and hauled.  The mass of a Malaugrym landed
against my back, and I jumped.  Gally cut loose with the plasma jets and
roasted it.  Farmel prodded it,but it didn't do anything.
     "Max, this isn't a mature one.  I think it's been left as a sacrifice
for us to feel good about getting some of them."
     "Good call.  I think we should have them... Farmel, call Koichi, have
the main barracks searched on the Gunbuster, and a scratch test on all the
guards!  Damn it!  I never even THOUGHT of them trying to get an agent
onto the Gunbuster first, then leaving..."  I looked to the side.  A green
glow started to surround Farmel.  The glow changed into a
sphere, then suddenly imploded.
     And Farmel was gone.  I hoped she'd come back from wherever the
teleporting takes her.
     We were suddenly distracted as one of the walls and the
floor peeled off and attacked us.
     The Malaugrym had managed to grab a hold on our feet while we weren't
looking, and that was a problem.  It grabbed Junta around the neck with a
tentacle and then tossed him into a wall.  He hit with a thud and slid
down.  Gally activated her leg-jets and lifted off in a plasma-assisted
jump, then off the ceiling, hands outstretched.  I pulled one of my
spikes from a pocket and tossed it downwards into the flowing mass.  That
gave me enough time to get loose, and pull Mihoshi's suit free.  Youshou
was already using that energy sword of his to cut his way free, and from
the way the Malaugrym was keening, it wasn't enjoying this at all.  Then
Gally's hands hit, and it burst into flame.
     The cheerful blaze continued for a few moments, then went out.  The
thing was still moving.... until Mihoshi dropped a concussion grenade in
the center of it.  The force of the explosion blew it to pieces.  (When
blown beyond a certain size of piece, a Malaugrym finally can't reform.)
It oozed for a bit, then hardened.
     My comm beeped twice, then three times.  Call from the Fischer.
     "Bishop."
     "Queen."
     "Is the corn high?"
     "Blinded elephants."  It was Savashtar - he had the right codes.
     "Give me good news, Sav."
     "Shuttle launched from a ship, blew up when trying to enter warp."
     I breathed a sigh of relief.
     "Bad news:  The Gunbuster's gone silent."
     "Sav, is Ginrei there?"
     "No... she's with you... isn't she?"
     "She ported.  I thought to there.   Must have gone to... oh, shit."
I cut the link, and looked.  Youshou was helping Junta to his feet, but
shook his head.  Junta wouldn't be good for this one.
     "Mihoshi, you stay here with Junta - get him to this ship's
medbay.  Youshou, Gally, with me, to the shuttle."
     We made it to the bay in record time, and blasted out of the
ship's bay ten seconds later.  We'd left the shuttle hot just in case of
problems.  As we approached the Gunbuster, I noticed something.
     "The bridge is dark..."
     Gally tapped me on the shoulder.  "Max, are you sure you should be in
this?  I mean, if..."  She trailed of, not wanting to say the if.
     I glanced at her.  "Gally, I'm going in.  Ready me a suit."
     Youshou tapped a few keys.  "Max, we have docking clearance."
     "I want to go in from on top."
     Gally and Youshou looked at each other, then Youshou spoke.  "I think
that's a bad idea."
     I stiffened.  I KNEW they thought the best of me and for me, but I
HAD to do this.  I owed it to Koichi, and to Farmel.
     "Do it, Gally."
     She nodded, and went back to ready it.  I turned to Youshou.
     "I offered you the chance to be in charge, Youshou, but you said I
should be.  I'm not doing this for me, or for Farmel, but for the reason
that I want to smash that Malaugrym flatter than it already is.  I'm doing
it because I am mad as hell at all the shit the UFP has tossed at us and I
want to give some back."
     He nodded calmly.  "As long as we're being blunt.  Max, you're one of
the best commanders I've met - easily the match of the Commander of the
Guard of the Royal House of Jyurai.  But this time, I think you're wrong.
You are letting your emotions get in the way.  Despite the stories,
you're not indestructible.  You know that just as well as I do.  I gave up
the chance to be in control two centuries before you were built, and I
don't want it back.   I'm not comfortable in any form of command other
than a small squad. That's why I took myself out of the list of
precedence, why I'm not now the Ruling Prince of Jyurai.  But I know how
badly emotions can affect you in battle, and that's why the Forms of
Battle of the Ruling House include training in suppressing your emotions."
His deep violet eyes bored into me.  "If you go in there fighting mad, you
will die.  That is what will happen.  I will keep you here before I let
that happen, Max.  And you know I can."
     I sensed something in the air.  The door, the windows, all glowed
faintly with a strange geometric petal-like shape over them.  And three of
them appeared in front of Youshou, radiating from a central point.  The
Radiant Hawk Wings, traditional power of the Ruling House of Jyurai.
     He meant it.  He wouldn't have said what he did if he hadn't.  In all
the time I'd known him, he hadn't admitted to being of the Ruling House.
We'd suspected, but never pried.  And he'd just confirmed that not only
was he a member of the House, but he should have been the Ruling Prince.
     For that, I did something I hadn't done in two centuries.  I
flipped a switch inside me.  All emotion died.  I felt nothing.
     Youshou nodded.  "Precisely.  No anger."
     The fields over the door faded.

     Within the suit, I examined the bridge.  Yes, it was dark.  I
focused, and saw the emergency lights.  Then I caught a flash of light
from within.  I used the suit's pack, and vectored in, eventually landing
on the glass of the bridge itself.
     I upped the gain on my vision.  I saw bodies floating, the gravity
off.  Most of them seemed to not be moving.   Moving around, I found the
emergency hatch - open.  The bridge had been opened to space, and
evacuated.  Opening, I found a set of bodies floating there.  Neither of
them were Koichi or Farmel.  A quick glance around revealed only a few
bodies.  Must have been evacuated.  The two bodies had UG Security
uniforms on them.  The others also wore the same thing.
     As I moved through the room, something caught my eye - a blinking
light, the flash I'd noticed before.  I tapped a few keys, and it was
revealed to be a message.  Coded, and I didn't have the code.  After a few
moments, I turned away.
     Just in time for a black form to engulf me.
     The Malaugrym folded itself around me, and the faceplate of
the suit cracked.   Then it blew outward, and I had to blink.  I felt a
deep chill enter me.  I couldn't operate for very long in vacuum - too
much of my systems weren't pressurized and would seize up.
     I gestured, and a wave of force blew it away.  I grabbed one of the
blasters from the dead guard nearest me, set it on overload, and tossed it
at the glob.  It stuck in the body, and I thrustered away.   The blast
holed the deck and scattered flesh across the bridge.
     I closed the hatch, and started to repressurize and re-gravitize the
bridge.  It happened quickly enough that I could easily keep going without
having to worry about shutdown.
     As the lights came back on in the bridge, the door to the lift slid
open.  Five UG Combat Troops entered in attack formation, weapons raised.
     I raised my hands.  "Max Bishop, Ranger Team commander.  All clear
here."
     Koichi, a pistol in his hand, entered behind them.  "Well, hell, Max.
Where is the thing?"
     I waved at the hole, and the apparently soot-covered area.  "It was
there.  Now it's not."
     Farmel rushed in and hugged me.  I knew I should feel something, but
I didn't.  Then I remembered, just as she realized something was wrong.  A
flip of that mental switch, and all the emotions flooded back into me.
Relief washed over me, and I hugged her tightly to me.
     I whispered to her, "I had to be emotionless, or they wouldn't let me
go.  I was mad, and worried about you.  It would have been bad - made me
sloppy.  Sorry for scaring you."
     She gave me a quick squeeze.
     I looked at Koichi.  "The rest of them are, as far as we can tell,
gone."
     Goliath stepped in through the second lift, looking around.
"Impressive," he rumbled.  "Koichi, I take back everything I said about
this idea."
     I smiled, then kissed Farmel.  The comm board beeped, as did my
communicator.
     Koichi himself went to the comm board.  A few taps, and then he
spoke.  "Attention all ships.  This is Fleet Admiral Ota.  Stand down red
alert.  Repeat, stand down red alert.  The word is given:  Kazumi.
Repeat, Kazumi."  He switched off the com, and I tapped my comm.
     "Bishop."
     "Rook."
     "Scott Bernard."
     "Big money, big prizes."
     "What's up, Taison?"
     "Red alert's been stood down.  Mihoshi reports Junta will be fine.
Youshou and Gally en route to the Gunbuster.  Washu wants Junta
transferred, in her words, "away from those military vet-school dropouts
and to a real doctor" as soon as possible.  What's Ginrei's status?"
     Farmel spoke into my unit.  "Green, Taison.  I just didn't have a
chance to phone home before wrecking the car."
     He chuckled.  "Washu also wants YOU in Medbay as soon as you get back
- she wants to do measurements about you, to find out the condition of
your body.  Max, no comments."
     I bit one back.  "Taison, we'll be coming back soon.  Stand down, and
start dinner."
     "This could be really bad, Max.  Ryuquir's got cooking."
     "Daisaku should help.  That should help calm things down."
     "Erk.  Fischer out."
     Koichi regarded me quietly, then walked over.  "Max," he said,
keeping his voice low, "are you aware that you have no faceplate on that
suit, and should have exploded from the vacuum?"
     "Yes, I am.  Don't ask, please.  It's better that way."
     Farmel tugged at me.  "Sorry, Admiral.  But you know our doctor..."
     He smiled quietly.  "Oh, yes.  Quiet well."

     On board the Fischer again, after the borrowed shuttle dropped us
off, Farmel headed for the medbay, and I headed for the bridge.
     Savashtar and Taison looked at me as I walked in.
     "Max, we have a problem."
     "What, Sav?"
     Taison punched a button.  A message started playing.
     "To Max Bishop of the Chessmen, from Grand Admiral Char
Aznable of the United Federation of Planets.  Please be informed that we
have with us a gentleman you may be acquainted with.  His name is Emmanuel
von Fogler.  I believe you have some acquaintance with his sister.  He is
working with me now.  I owe him a great deal for his assistance with my
new weapon.  Please inform Fleet Admiral Ota that I have
recreated the Eye.  Then explain to him what it means.  We have won, and
his fleet has lost.  It is over.  Aznable out."
     I cursed.
     "Taison, call Koichi.  I need to meet with him ASAP.  Savashtar, get
us ready to warp out.  I want us ready to move in twelve hours, full
combat readiness."
     I turned and looked out the front window of the bridge.  A star
glimmered in the center of it - at that moment, we were pointed in a way
that I could see Sirius from here, and past it, Earth.  UFP Main Base.
     "We have a job to do."
     Savashtar nodded.  "That we do, Max.  That we do."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Author's note:

     And there we go, "Pawns".  To the people that have emailed
me about this series so far, thanks.
     I haven't put this in yet, so:

Dedications:

     To my parents, for helping me out when things went to the
bottom.

     To Ami and Kahu, for making things fun again.

     To Bill Crawford, for turning Koichi from a cipher to a
character and for making the behind-the-scenes a lot more busy.

     To Rebecca, aka BlackAngel, for inspiring my original
interest in Ginrei.

     To Gryphon, MegaZone, ReRob, Doc Mui, PCHammer, Chris "Mako"
Meadows, the Redneck, PFloyd, Ryan Matthews, R-Type, Stefan Gagne, John
Walter Biles, Carmen Spray, James Stone and Phil Moyer, for paving the
road.

     And finally, to her.  She knows who she is, and mentioning her in
public would just send her into a rage.  So, I won't.  (and don't ask in
email.  I won't answer.)

     Stay tuned!


This piece of fiction copyright Geoff Depew / Studio Surrealism
1996.  Most of the characters within are owned by someone or another, so
please don't sue me.  I'm just using them for a bit for my own purposes
and don't mean anything bad by it.