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“She’s a sight, isn’t she? Call me Anton, please No need for forether in the co months I want you to feel like you have complete freedom to speak your ht is of no use to me”

It was an echo of the high consul allowing him to use his military title, the permission of a little familiarity in private to build a sense of approachability and rapport Now that he’d seen it twice, he understood it would be expected of him as well

“Thank you, sir Anton I appreciate that”

“Coe to take in all at once, but we can hit the highlights” Admiral Trejo led the way down a short corridor to a lift that stood wider than the one on the Gathering Stor of themyself with your career to date”

“I’m afraid that, like most of the officers trained after the transition to Laconia, I have very little in the way of operational experience”

The admiral waved this away The lift door opened, and they stepped in The anti-spalling padding on the walls was gently scalloped, like the presentiment of scales

“Top of your class in logistics That’s exactly what this posting will need Me? I’ive me hives”

The lift descended with a hushing sound like aat once, or the hiss of a sunbird The sh’s neck rose a little There was so uncanny about the Te to see its teeth

“Yes, sir,” he said “My orders were quite specific on—”

The adet your orders for a et to that later For noant to get to know you a little better You have a family?”

Another point Duarte had touched on his hos of Laconian command He’d read that a command structure took its tone from those at the top He’d never seen it so clearly in practice before He wondered whether he’d been meant to If this was a conscious lesson passed from Duarte to Trejo to him He had the sense that it was

“Yes, sir My spouse is a nanotech scientist with the lab in Laconia City She specializes in genetics We have one child Elsa”

“Elsa Unusual name Very pretty”

“My grandmother’s Nat— Natalia, my spouse, insisted”

The lift stopped The doors opened on a wide and flowing deck There were no stairs, but a gentle undulation in the deck raised some workstations above others It seemed almost random until he saw the captain’s station that could coht-deck crew at once The design was elegant and utterly unfamiliar at the same time