Free Wine of the Gods 05: Spy Wars by Pam Uphoff

the Oners didn't dump them, and pull that raid simply to make sure we didn't start friendly relations with the natives. Anything else odd?"
    "Well, I've done med clinics for the natives on other worlds before, and I can tell you, I've never seen three mouthfuls of such beautiful teeth. Not one of them has ever had a cavity."
    "That's . . . interesting."
    "Well, with only three of them . . . " The doctor shrugged. "And the guards that were knocked out, minor concussions. As if someone shook them just hard enough to bump their brains against the inside of their skulls, without lea ving a mark. The two on duty guards were both under the impression they were about to get their throats slit when they passed out. The other soldiers were responding to the alarm, and folded when the attackers got to within about ten feet of them."
    D amien nodded. "We saw the recordings. The attackers were waving swords. But you didn't treat any cuts?"
    " Non. It was all for show."
    Colonel Kellerman had been propping up the wall and listening. Now he nodded. "In my opinion, this was a stage play, probably set up by the Oners. I'll be passing that on up the chain of command. The Oners know we're here."

Chapter Eleven
    23 Shaban 1363yp / Early Spring 1361 local
    Fascia, Auralia n Empire, Target Forty-two
     
    Ajha scrambled up the rope ladder, delighted to be getting away from the Action Team. Leader Kael and her aide Mead Servaone had been scowling at them. He hadn't noticed it before the action—then they'd been getting sneers. And he was quite certain he hadn't screwed up anything badly enough to warrant this attention. But he couldn't answer for the others and Idre and Egto did seem to be catching the majority of the dirty looks.
    But once on the deck of the Garavette he could relax. Mission accomplished. They'd sailed east from Asia, crossing the Pacific to this rendezvous well out to sea from the Cove Islands. The Action Team was staying on the catamarans, sailing around to Discordia, while the Garavette would drop the Infos off on the Panama coast so they could report into the Ambassador in Fascia.
    Idre climbed over the rail and the crew cast off. "Now perhaps we can buckle down and work on the problem of the local magic."
    Ajha nodded. "We haven't tracked down the reports of the God of War yet. High time, don't you think?"
    "Yeah." Egto cast one last regretful look toward the catamaran.
    Wink choked. "You didn't!"
    "She climbed all over me!"
    Ajha looked at Idre. He was looking straight faced out over the ocean, meeting no one's gaze.
    Ajha shook his head in disbelief. "I've heard that post battle some people get, umm. But it didn't hit me that way at all."
    Idre snorted. "It hit them. Trust me."
    Ajha made himself useful, or at least minimally interfering for the two week voyage, the week overland and then the sail down the coast to Fascia, and reported to the Ambassador in the newly finished embassy building.
    One of the Ambassador's aides met them.
    "This is getting very awkward. I think the Priest will be just in time to stop some problems with our relationship with the Amma." He led them into a small dining room. The only other people there were Edmo's Action Team.
    "What is the problem?" Idre looked concerned, and picked at the dinner a servaone placed in front of him.
    "The status of women is so low here that even a highly prized wife, such as the Princess Rior, is not considered a part of the governmental power structure. Her insistence on being in these meetings with the Embassy staff is considered borderline scandalous. When the Priest gets here, we'll stop them altogether, and keep the Princess apprised of developments via holo."
    Ajha choked. "But the Princess is in charge. You can't cut off a Princess of the One."
    "We have to, to save this alliance. And in any case, the Princess is only in charge of influencing the Amma. Other-wise the Ambassador is in charge of relations with the government of Auralia. The Priest is in charge