MF Max Intel Ch. 06-10

Agatha smiled further, "Not much gets past you, does it, Excellency?"

Zalix smiled back over his tea, taking a tentative sip, "I do have good people working for me, yes. We surmised there might have been a bit of a, what do Terrans call it.... Florence Nightingale situation?"

"If I had not guided one of our staff away from just that scenario, yes, it would likely have happened. However, that is not the case. What we do have is a situation that could benefit you, your government, and the Embassy if Durx is willing to pledge his allegiance."

Zalix asked, "Allegiance to whom?"

"To you, Excellency. There will be no need for him to pledge to the Consulate. We will know his every thought. But if he is run by our Consulate, he would have diplomatic immunity should the need arise. And your hands would be clean as we would take the heat as his operator. Stating those credentials could very well give us the time to intercede, should he be caught."

"And if he should turn against us again?"

"He would not live out the night."

Zalix looked directly at Agatha, "I have complete trust in that statement, given the reports coming out of the Ornalith Dictorum. I take it you are the one who has augmented the core members of your diplomatic family?"

Agatha had a slight twinkle in her eye as she smiled back at Zalix, "Mmmm, this is such wonderful tea."

"Isn't it just."

"May I ask how you intend to approach him?"

"In his sleep, he cannot hide from me there. Any duplicity will be obvious. If I am not completely satisfied he will work for you and the Consulate, I will not ask for a stay of his execution."

"Can you do that from here? I have it on good authority he is sleeping."

Agatha nodded and sipped her tea as her mind spirit walked among those sleeping in the nearby prison. It did not take long to find Durx. When Agatha entered his dream, it was obvious the Slarmian was resigned to his fate, was very stoic about the whole thing, and his only regret was believing in someone who would have betrayed him.

Durx came up short when a black and silver Terran cat appeared sitting beside him as his back was against a tree. This small glade had always been his sanctuary from the memories. But he had never seen this cat before.

Agatha peered at Durx as he lay against his tree, his coils in a tight serpentine in front of him. She gave a purr-meow and hopped into his lap. She looked up at Durx and said to him in perfect Slarmit, "Actually, Durx, we met at the Embassy when your group tried to kill us."

Durx froze and a cold chill worked down his spine. Eventually he asked, "You can invade my mind?"

Agatha reformed into her humanoid self, with her head still in his lap looking up at him, "Well, I would think that would be kind of obvious. Either that or you are having a psychotic break. And, frankly, we both know you are not the type."

Durx nodded. "So why are you here and, more importantly, why did you make yourself known?"

"Well, big guy, I felt your angst at being betrayed by those whom you trusted. I suspect those grenades, that we both know would have killed you, at the trial was the final straw. They would rather kill you than try to rescue you."

"Durx nodded again. "And?"

"Well, I am sitting in front of the Majestic Potentate, in his private quarters, sipping tea, and you came up in the conversation. He mentioned something about a pardon, if you might be interested. But there would be strings attached."

"Of course. Go ahead, I am listening."

"Well, as you know from our treatment of you, we are not evil, and given the fact Zalix is willing to pardon you, should suggest the same. We were wondering if you could commit to spying for both the Dynasty and the Consulate. You would pledge your allegiance to Zalix but we would be your handlers. As such, you would have diplomatic immunity, should you ever need to use it."

"And the Majestic Potentate would have plausible deniability."

"We would not. And I can assure you, we would come to your rescue rather than attempt to eliminate you. We don't turn on our own."

Durx thought for a moment, "Well, assuming I am not losing my mind, you have certainly displayed your ability to not only help me in times of need but also to be able to deal with me should I decide to change my allegiances. Am I right?"

"That was discussed, yes. But I am hoping that once you decide, your honor would make that possibility moot."

"If you know me that well, then you already know my answer. And, you know I would not do it from fear of death but as a way to pay back my debts to my people, my Potentate, and those who left me to die."

"No vendettas, you would be on a tight leash."

"Understood. But, as the Terran saying goes, vengeance is a dish best served cold. I am your Slarmian."

"Excellent! I will let Zalix know, and he will proclaim your transmuted sentence just before you are to be executed."

"Yeah, that would be nice. My luck he will be late."

Agatha giggled as she withdrew from Durx's mind and smiled at Zalix, "He has agreed to our terms."

Zalix smiled, "I cannot tell you how happy I am that you see the Slarmian people in such a favorable light. I shudder to think what being on your bad side would be like."

Agatha smiled, "You didn't try to poison my family."

Zalix smiled, "I would never be that stupid."

Max Intel: Melinoe Chapter 9 - Games

Max was in the command chair on the bridge of the Deirdra with Astrid in her lap. "Hon, where does your Obasan live?"

"Oh, I guess I never told you, did I. She lives in a city called Jericho in the Epsilon Eridani system in the core worlds."

Max nodded and smiled, "Agatha, plot us a course for Jericho, Epsilon Eridani system please. And give us an ETA?"

"Yes, Captain-wife." After a few seconds Agatha reported, "Course laid in and we are 2 hours away at maximum FTL."

"Thank you, Agatha. Astrid, perhaps you should let your aunt know we will be at her residence in approximately.... wait, does your aunt have a place where we can land near her home?"

Astrid smiled, "My Obasan has a rather large estate north of Jericho, and she has plenty of space for us to land in her back yard."

Agatha turned towards Astrid from her navigation station, "My dear Asa-chan, I sense there is something you are not telling us. Is it something we need to know at this time?"

Astrid, feeling a bit impish due to visiting her aunt for the first time in ages, gave a cute smirk and stuck out her tongue at Agatha, "You will know it when you see it."

Agatha giggled, "Okay. So, we are playing games today." She nodded with her own cute smile. "Perhaps, just thinking out loud here, Captain-Wife, I might inquire around as to a secured parking area around Jericho and we can take the motor home for a spin so as not to inconvenience Aunt Yumi with a Corvette sized ship in her driveway?"

Astrid laughed out loud, "Agatha, that will not be necessary. But yes, Max, I do need to call her." Astrid stood up from Max's lap and went over to the communication's station and put in the memorized holo address for her Aunt Yumi.

The connection was much faster than before and almost instantly Yumi answered, "Thank you for calling the Tiger Tiger Tea Hou....Asa-Chan! So good to see you again. When might I expect your company?"

Astrid smiled, "Obasan Yumi, I wanted to let you know we are about two hours out. Is the secure landing pad available?"

Yumi's face lit up and the white streak in her hair seemed to glow along with her eyes, "Yes, Asa-Chan, I prepared it for your arrival when you mentioned before you would be visiting. And two hours gives me just enough time to close up shop and meet you there! I will have Aiko make us a nice lunch. Do your wives appreciate fine sushi?"

*Sushi for lunch good for everyone?* Astrid pushed to the family. Everyone quickly responded with either a yes or a willingness to try it. The twins and Vika being the virgins. "Oh, Obasan, that would be lovely! Please let Aiko know we will be bringing the tea for her to steep. It is quite a special tea and if you approve, we can make sure some is shipped to you for your tea house. Oh, there will be twenty of us visiting."

To Yumi's credit she barely reacted, "Asa-Chan, you have 19 wives?"

"Obasan, I have 6 wives, two of our visitors will be my Mother and Father In-Law and two are my sisters. Ingrid had Otousan and Okaasan's home blown up in an attempt to capture me."

"Asa-Chan! Is everyone okay? Is Ingrisan still at large?"

"I sent Ingrid away with a stern warning that next time she tried to abduct me her life would be forfeit. Everyone is okay but the family home of two of my wives and my mother and father in-law was burned to the ground Obasan. I feel so shamed by her actions."

Yumi's expression went from open concern to calculating and shrewd in a nanosecond. "We will discuss this at length when you arrive Asa-Chan." With a switch back to kindness, Yumi continued, "All of your family are welcome, and I must insist you spend a few nights here with me. It has been too long, and I wish to honor your new family. There is also a Fanta-Con at the Northern Jericho Civic Center. I took the liberty of getting you tickets. I will immediately amend that order so all your family can attend. I know how much you love those."

Astrid was so beside herself she was bouncing in her seat, "Oh Obasan! You have no idea how wonderful a gift that is! I cannot wait to see you and introduce everyone!"

0o0

Yumi was excited. She had noticed her niece's ears and knew they were High Elven Fanta-con adaptations, but there seemed to be something else going on and she definitely had her interest piqued. She rushed to her estate and got the servants hopping to prepare enough rooms for everyone. She had Aiko order fresh-off-the-boat items for lunch and together they had decided on a buffet and a Teppanyaki grill for everyone.

Yumi had also decided family issues had come to a head and it was time to finally deal with the situation in a more permanent manner. It is one thing for Ingrid to manipulate and quite another to start burning down family homes. Astrid was too close to the situation to see her warning would not change anything and this current failure would only motivate her stepmother to more drastic measures.

Yumi had taken steps to prepare for this eventuality though and all she needed was to make contact. But that will wait, she thought, until she got the full story. There are many ways to die...some more pleasant than others.

0o0

Agatha informed everyone they were 5 minutes out from the Epsilon Eridani system. *Captain, should we approach with stealth?*

Dame Captain Max Anders considered her question and reasoned, *With everything going on, I think it best if we keep a low profile. Let Astrid guide us in and we will go in with full baffles and visual mitigation. Enter the atmosphere of Jericho from an untraveled angle and let's go in nice and quiet, Agatha.*

*Yes Dame Captain.*

Agatha immediately started the sensor baffle suite and set the outer skin to mimic what was seen from the opposite sides of the ship so no one could easily see it from above or below.

Max had pushed the conversation to Astrid as well and she came back to the bridge, having been finishing her work to re-skin the motorhome in the cargo bay with Oricalcum. The incognito, armored troop transport now shone with a light, lavender highlighted, golden skin, making her lighter, faster, and more heavily armored than any other personnel carrier in Terran Federation space. The front decal was now actually a pentacle talisman and there were seven winged panthers in various poses on each side of the motorhome.

"Obasan's estate is about 4 kilometers from Jericho on the northern side and is bordered by a large forest to the north, east, and west of the estate." Astrid informed Agatha as she laid on the command couch with her head in Max's lap.

Agatha came out of FTL well outside of the ATC envelope and pulled up a holo map of Jericho and the surrounding area. Astrid stood as Joon, her parents, and Samira entered the bridge, and she began manipulating the holographic map to locate Yumi's estate.

"There it is, Agatha. That flat area there is actually a recessed space where we can park the Deirdra. The top of the secured area actually opens up and you can drop us right in. I know the codes to transmit so let me know when you are ready so I can open the top doors for you."

The area where Astrid indicated was none other than a rendition of a Japanese style castle with dual moats. The outer rim of the estate had 3-meter-thick stone surfaced ferrocrete walls that stood 14 meters above the inner rim of the waters of the outer moat and outlined a kilometer wide buffer zone between the walls and consisted of well-tended gardens full of fruit and nut trees.

Vegetable and spice/herb gardens were visible as well as various tea gardens which also occupied the space between the outer moat wall and inner moat. Another 17-meter-tall stone faced ferrocrete wall lining the inside shore of the inner moat looked to double as the outer wall of living structures including culturally specific roofs and short, round towers; all with the traditional curved roofs associated with high level Japanese building construction. The North side of the inner wall also edged the landing area.

Samira gawked, "Your Aunt Yumi is a Japanese feudal lord!"

Astrid giggled, "Obasan Yumi had her own fortune before my father willed half of his to her. The family traces its cultural roots back eons. She has no children or family other than Ingrid and me. I have been informed Ingrid

is not inheriting any of Obasan's assets."

Joon looked at Astrid, "Obviously your aunt is a traditionalist. Can you give us some quick cultural tips, so we do not offend?"

"Sure! Quick and dirty tips are:

Don't walk on the grass,

don't misuse chopsticks...use a fork or your fingers if you don't know how to use them,

slurp your noodles,

bow when addressed,

use slow hand motions and

use two hands to accept anything handed to you,

say 'kanpai' when toasting,

wear discrete clothing,

keep track of your waste,

don't wear perfume when eating sushi,

only use light makeup if any at all.

Merci smiled, "Excellent advice, thank you Astrid."

With that, everyone got dressed. As a sign of respect, all the women wore silk kimonos. Max wore black with silver cherry blossoms while Joon went with burgundy, Mercedes went with a sky blue, Astrid with white, Vika yellow, Samira with mellon green, Nike wore flame red and Emma a whispy sky blue and white while all the Agathas went with dark blue. Each kimono had beautiful traditional scenes in contrasting colors with the exception of Max, Joon and Agatha(s) whose scenes were rampant winged panthers, Solomoriah. Howard wore a Montsuki kimono in shades of grey with Solomoriah crests.

0o0

After the Deirdra had landed in the enclosed bay, Howard and Mercedes called their winged panthers from their armor and set them to guard duty while the family was away.

Astrid's eyes grew wide, "Um, how did you two learn to do that? I didn't even know that was possible without you wearing your armor!"

Howard looked at Mercedes and then at Astrid, "I cannot say. It just seemed natural that we could, so we did it."

"Fascinating!" Astrid mumbled then mentioned, *We need to leave the hatch open so if Mom or Dad call their armor they won't blow holes in the ship.*

Now Max's eyes got big, *Glad you mentioned that. And it is a good thing they have the cats on patrol, then."

Astrid stopped mid stride and looked at the Motorhome. Soon an additional 14 cats were now on duty guarding the ship...6 on the immediate perimeter outside and another 8 inside at various strategic places. *I feel sorry for anyone who tries to enter with all of them on duty. It could get messy realllly quickly.*

Of the 6 outside, four took up stations at the four points of the compas while two flew up to perch on the top of the ship. All of them, however, were focused on the person who stood at the end of the entrance to the underground bay, though they all acted, as cats are wont, like they didn't see her.

The Shitsuji, or estate overseer, was a bit pale and didn't move a muscle with the appearance of the flying panthers.

Agatha sensed her strong emotions and broadcast a sense of calm and security to her as Astrid approached her saying, "Shitsujisan, you are quite safe, these are our very well trained pets who watch over our belongings when we are away. Have no fear, but do not approach them or the ship."

Shitsuji averted eyes with Astrid as she bowed deeply, "Asa-sama, if you and your gokazoku (family) would follow me, I will guide you to Oyumisama."

Astrid bowed slightly in response and motioned the family to follow.

0o0

The family walked up an inclining hallway of fitted marble stonework into a clearing of Cherry Trees in full bloom. The sweet smell and delicate beauty of the blossoms eliciting strong reactions from the family. At one end of the orchard stood Obasan Yumi in her golden silk kimono with green filigree stems topped with red spider lilies. Her hands were hidden under her sleeves and clasped in front of her as they approached. Shitsuji bowed deeply to Yumi and backed away to the side, allowing Astrid to approach and stop at a respectful distance.

Bowing deeply Astrid made introductions: "Obasan may I present to you my goryoushin, Otousan Howard and Okaasan Mercedes. Mom and Dad, this is my Obasan Yumi."

When Yumi saw them enter the cherry grove she was deeply honored by their dress, realizing they dressed in a traditional way out of respect for her. But, when she looked more closely at Howard and recognized his crests her eyes got big and she bowed deeply, "Osolomoriah-san, you bestow great honor upon this house with your presence and the presence of your family."

Howard bowed in return, "Yumisama, it is you who honor my family with your gracious invitation. May I present to you my wife, Mercedes-chan and our daughters, Max-chan, Joon-chan, Vika-chan Asa-chan, Samira-chan, Paula-chan, Agatha-chan, Nike-chan, and Emma-chan." Each daughter bowed deeply to Yumi as they were recognized and said, "Obasama Yumi, it is an honor."

"Please be welcome in my home. We have set a meal for everyone if you will accompany me. With the delightful weather I thought we might eat Al-fresco if no one would be offended?"

Howard smiled, "Yumisama, we live on a ship, Al-fresco would be welcomed! Very kind of you to realize this."

Yumi then blushed, "With the different types of food it was decided to do it open buffet style, is there any offense to everyone helping themselves?"

Howard smiled again, "No offense, Yumisama. In fact, some are trying to be adventurous today."

0o0

A Teppanyaki grill was busy cooking Kobe Wagyu beef steaks to order along with Tonjiru (Pork and Vegetable Miso Soup) in side pots and sauteed Negi, Daikon, Shiso, Renkon, and Takenoko stir fried vegetables.

There was also a chilled bar to the side with many types of Sushi, Sashimi, Nigiri, and Makizushi with several Sushi Chefs behind it busy preparing the dishes and keeping the bar stocked.

The Maki offerings included Torotaku maki (tuna and pickled radish roll), Anakyu maki (cucumber and conger eel roll), Negitoro maki (green onion and tuna roll), and Natto maki (Fermented Soybean roll).

The Nigiri offerings included Maguro / Toro (Fatty Tuna), Sake (Salmon), Hamachi (Young Yellowtail), and Uni (Sea Urchin) Gunkan. The Sashimi choices were Otoro (extra fatty Tuna), Hotate (Sea Scallop), Ikura (Salmon Roe), Kanpachi (Greater Amberjack), and baby whole Tako (Octopus).

For the more squeamish, Sushi Rolls were made available which included the California Roll, Philadelphia Roll, Teriyaki Roll, and Shrimp Tempura Roll. These selections were offered with lots of pickled White Gari Sushi Ginger, Tamaruya Shizuoka Wasabi paste, and Yamashin Shiro Shoyu (White Soy Sauce).