Read Online Knight's Move by Christopher Nuttall - Free Book Online
Authors: Christopher Nuttall
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Knight introduced his senior crew – the Governor’s eyes paused briefly on Sandy before passing over her to Jess – and then motioned for the Governor’s staff to come out of the shuttle. Sandy sighed inwardly – protocol rarely seemed more absurd – but kept her face blank as a pale-faced man emerged and was introduced as Harrison Montgomery, the Governor’s personal assistant. Behind him, there was a mousy woman with short brown hair who seemed to vibrate with nervous energy, wearing a complete set of monitoring and recording equipment. She was introduced as the Governor’s media representative, Windy Holbrooke. Judging from her expression, none too well hidden, the military scared her a little. That , Sandy knew, was far from an uncommon reaction among some civilians.
But not on the colonies , she thought, wryly. There, everyone knows how to fight .
She wanted to shake her head. As XO, it would be her duty to inform Windy that she had to be careful what she recorded onboard Dauntless . There was no way to know what piece of information would provide insights into starship operations or technology for unfriendly eyes. During the war, there had been more than a few security breaches that might have cost lives, if the Dragons had bothered to pay attention to human news media. Thankfully, they never quite realised just how free the human media actually was . But then, their people were only told what their superiors thought they needed to know.
Governor Wu nodded towards the shuttle, once the remainder of her staff had exited. Sandy could understand a personal assistant and a media representative, but why would she bring along two maids, a cook and a handful of people with no clear job? It was inefficient, to say the least; Sandy couldn't help wondering if the Governor believed that a large party would command respect from the colonials. Maybe she did have the money to pay people to stand around doing nothing. It still wouldn't impress people who could hardly afford such a display of conspicuous consumption.
A middle-aged man stepped out of the shuttle and bowed politely to Captain Knight. Sandy couldn't help feeling a rush of affection, even though she didn't know the man; the colonial was clearly real , in a sense that Governor Wu could never match. His face bore the scars of a lifetime of working the soil, then fighting to protect his homeworld from the Dragons. The Bottleneck Republic had chosen its representative well.
But maybe not well enough , Sandy thought, sardonically. Representative Virgil Feingold looked ... rustic . To Earth, the core of the Federation and the most cosmopolitan planet in the galaxy, he would look like something out of the depths of history. Unsophisticated, reactionary, a stick-in-the-mud ... hardly impressive . It was hard to avoid the conclusion that Feingold’s mere appearance had convinced the sophisticates of Earth that the colonies were truly as barbaric as the media claimed they were.
“Welcome onboard,” Captain Knight said. The representative from the colonies had been added at the last minute, but the Captain showed no sign of irritation, even if they had had to rearrange cabin assignments at the last moment. “My XO will show you to your cabin.”
He looked over at the other senior crew, who saluted the Governor and then dispersed. Sandy couldn't help feeling that they were probably relieved that the ceremony was over. The Captain nodded to the Governor, then escorted her and her staff to their quarters, where they would hopefully remain until they reached Bottleneck. Sandy turned to face Feingold as soon as the Governor was gone and gave him a relieved smile. The sophisticates might sneer at him behind his back – or even to his face – but she found him reassuringly real.
“Welcome onboard,” she said, and meant it. “It’s a pleasure to have you on the
But not on the colonies , she thought, wryly. There, everyone knows how to fight .
She wanted to shake her head. As XO, it would be her duty to inform Windy that she had to be careful what she recorded onboard Dauntless . There was no way to know what piece of information would provide insights into starship operations or technology for unfriendly eyes. During the war, there had been more than a few security breaches that might have cost lives, if the Dragons had bothered to pay attention to human news media. Thankfully, they never quite realised just how free the human media actually was . But then, their people were only told what their superiors thought they needed to know.
Governor Wu nodded towards the shuttle, once the remainder of her staff had exited. Sandy could understand a personal assistant and a media representative, but why would she bring along two maids, a cook and a handful of people with no clear job? It was inefficient, to say the least; Sandy couldn't help wondering if the Governor believed that a large party would command respect from the colonials. Maybe she did have the money to pay people to stand around doing nothing. It still wouldn't impress people who could hardly afford such a display of conspicuous consumption.
A middle-aged man stepped out of the shuttle and bowed politely to Captain Knight. Sandy couldn't help feeling a rush of affection, even though she didn't know the man; the colonial was clearly real , in a sense that Governor Wu could never match. His face bore the scars of a lifetime of working the soil, then fighting to protect his homeworld from the Dragons. The Bottleneck Republic had chosen its representative well.
But maybe not well enough , Sandy thought, sardonically. Representative Virgil Feingold looked ... rustic . To Earth, the core of the Federation and the most cosmopolitan planet in the galaxy, he would look like something out of the depths of history. Unsophisticated, reactionary, a stick-in-the-mud ... hardly impressive . It was hard to avoid the conclusion that Feingold’s mere appearance had convinced the sophisticates of Earth that the colonies were truly as barbaric as the media claimed they were.
“Welcome onboard,” Captain Knight said. The representative from the colonies had been added at the last minute, but the Captain showed no sign of irritation, even if they had had to rearrange cabin assignments at the last moment. “My XO will show you to your cabin.”
He looked over at the other senior crew, who saluted the Governor and then dispersed. Sandy couldn't help feeling that they were probably relieved that the ceremony was over. The Captain nodded to the Governor, then escorted her and her staff to their quarters, where they would hopefully remain until they reached Bottleneck. Sandy turned to face Feingold as soon as the Governor was gone and gave him a relieved smile. The sophisticates might sneer at him behind his back – or even to his face – but she found him reassuringly real.
“Welcome onboard,” she said, and meant it. “It’s a pleasure to have you on the
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