Kagoshima Prefecture , Draconis Combine

30 October 3051

Shin Yodama concentrated so hard on the holographic display of the battle data that he did not hear her enter the room. The first clue that he was no longer alone was a flash of white he saw out the corner of his eye. Thinking it another messenger, he turned, his expression became a scowl of irritation, then quickly bowed his head.

"Sumimasen,Kurita Omi-san.Forgive me. I had not expected to see you here."

Omi smiled forgiveness. "It is I who must apologize for disturbing you, Yodama-san."

Shin glanced over to the desk where Hohiro normally worked. "Your brother is not here right now. The doctors wanted to check his leg to make certain the osteomylitis had been contained after the injury on Turtle Bay. They say it's routine."

"I know." She pulled the chair from her brother's desk and slid it over beside Shin. "But it is you I have come to see. No one else can answer my questions. My father is far too busy and Hohiro refused to acknowledge my interest in military matters. It is presumptuous of me, but I am sure neither my father nor my brother would object to my discussing my question with you."

Shin began to feel uneasy. "Though I cannot imagine refusing any request you would make of me, Lady Omi, I am reluctant to place myself in any path opposed to your father's or brother's wrath."

"I assure you, Yodama-san, that they have not forbidden my interest. Rather, they have neither the time nor inclination to indulge it." The holographic display covered the right side of her face with glowing green and red neon lines and symbols. "I merely require some general information so I may do my part to help control rumors."

Shin straightened himself up at his desk. "What is it you wish to know?"

Omi went straight to the point. "Have the Clans resumed their attacks?"

Shin's fingers flicked across the keyboard and summoned up a projection map of the Draconis Combine. Roughly triangular in shape, a sizable chunk had been sliced out of its left side. The conquered worlds occupied a green zone on the map, while the rest of the Combine appeared in red. Where the two colors met, one world burned with a golden light.

"That is Marshdale. So far, this is the only world the Clans have attacked in renewing the invasion. That is odd because Marshdale is the most heavily defended world in that section of the Combine. Hyner, Byersville, and LaBrea are virtually naked in terms of military forces."

Omi frowned. "Could it be that they have decided to be more cautious because of the defeat on Wolcott?"

Shin conceded her point with a nod. "Possibly, but something about it strikes me the wrong way. On Turtle Bay, the Clans did nothing I would class as cautious. What's more, we now face the Clan known as the Smoke Jaguars as well as another one calling itself the Nova Cats. With reinforcements, I would have expected an increase in hostilities, not a reduction."

"Are the Smoke Jaguars and Nova Cats working together, or do they work independently, as did the Smoke Jaguars and the Ghost Bears in the initial invasion?"

"I am not certain." Shin typed a request into the computer and it exchanged the stellar map for a projection map of Marshdale. The planet first appeared as a sphere, then the ball split and flattened out. A number of red dots glowed on the six continents to mark battles, most of them occurring next to the gold dots pinpointing cities.

"The Smoke Jaguars have landed on three of the continents, and the Nova Cats have landed on the other three. Though our sources report radio intercepts of information exchanges between the two commands, they've seen nothing even close to combined operations. In fact, the Nova Cats have allowed two regiments to escape to Smoke Jaguar continents, and as nearly as we can make out, have made no attempts to follow. All our information is almost three days old."

"ComStar is not permitting our forces to send out messages?"

"No."

Omi pulled her kimono tightly closed at her throat. "So the only information we have comes through these mysterious Black Boxes that Hanse Davion does not realize we have?"

Shin was not quick enough to veil the look of surprise on his face. "I am afraid you have me at a disadvantage, Lady Omi."

"Forgive me, Yodama-^an." Her eyes closed halfway in a look of innocence that Shin knew to be utterly synthetic. "I assumed you knew we had captured one toward the end of the Fourth Succession War. We used the information it gave us to great advantage in the '39 war and were able to monitor much of the Federated Commonwealth's action against the Clans because of the copies we had made. I was unaware, however, that my father had actually authorized distribution of the machines."

Shin swallowed hard. "I can only tell you that I know our information is traveling much slower than ComStar would send it. You seem far more knowledgeable about this matter than I." Shin surrendered with a shrug of his shoulders. "It may be as you suggest, but I do not know."

Omi smiled briefly, then folded her hands in her lap. "At least our Black Boxes have been directionally shielded so that our information is not broadcast for all to see." She pointed to the display. "Can you call up data intercepted from the Federated Commonwealth's transmissions?"

Shin nodded. "It is possible." He typed a simple command into the computer. "I have summoned up the information we have on one particular unit, just to see how the others from Outreach were being positioned. Here it is, the data on the Tenth Lyran Guards."

Shin saw Omi's intense interest flash for the briefest instant across her face, but he hid his notice of it. "That is the unit to which Hanse Davion's heir has been assigned, is it not?"

"Yes, Oad-san.Victor is a Kommandant, Galen Cox is a Hauptmann, and Kai Allard a Leftenant. From what we can determine, their Regimental Combat Team is being placed on Alyina. That may have changed by now, as the reporting time for such data is quite long. It is possible the Guards will be shifted to counterattack a world the Clans target."

Omi watched Shin like a hawk. "Tell me what you thought of Victor Davion, Yodama-san."

Her directness startled Shin. Not only was it highly irregular that she be concerned with his opinion, but her tone suggested she placed a certain amount of weight on his judgement. "I can only do that from a warrior's point of view, Lady Omi."

"That, and from a yakuza point of view, yes?"

"Hat"Shin tugged his left sleeve down at the wrist to hide a piece of the black and gold tattoo. "I think Victor is most capable as a warrior. He is good in single combat and can also work with other warriors in a coordinated fashion. He and Galen Cox almost seem to share one brain at times. Victor is also gifted in tactical and strategic skills. If not for his physical size, he might be considered a model warrior."

She smiled at that. "And his faults?"

"I would not call them faults so much as passions. He is fiercely loyal to his friends, and at times, he acts impulsively to aid them. Still, in the training on Outreach, he learned from his mistakes and became less likely to place himself in jeopardy as time went on."

Shin smiled, remembering something else about Victor. "He does not suffer courtiers gladly. I think Prince Davion would rather slog through mud with friends who value him sincerely than be among those who do him homage because of his bloodline. That could make his life more difficult, but it also adds a disarming directness to his interactions and will keep truly valuable men by his side."