Fighting off his apprehensions, the reporter seated himself at the console.
“I am addressing Tambu?” he asked with an ease he did not truly feel.
“That is correct, Mr. Erickson. I notice you’ve brought a Tri-D recorder with you. As I will not be meeting you face to face, it is unnecessary. The console at which you are seated is recording our conversation. You will be supplied with a copy. Visually, there will be nothing to record.”
“I was promised a personal interview,” Erickson half-explained, half-protested, then cursed himself mentally. If he didn’t watch himself, he’d end up alienating Tambu before the interview even began.
“Personal in that you will be dealing with me directly rather than with one of my subordinates,” Tambu clarified, apparently unoffended by the reporter’s remark. “For security reasons, a face-to-face meeting is out of the question. I maintain several flagships identical to the one you are on now, and part of the problem confronting any Defense Alliance ship seeking to capture me is discovering which ship I’m on and when. My exact location is kept secret, even from my own fleet.”
“Aren’t these precautions a little extreme for meeting a lone reporter in a rented shuttlecraft?”
“Frankly, Mr. Erickson, reporters have been known to stray from their oaths of neutrality… particularly where my fleet and I are concerned. My defensive preparations for this meeting, therefore, go quite beyond what meets the eye. As an example, you might be wondering why you were granted this interview aboard one of my flagships when the smallest ship at my command has a viewscreen you could have listened at just as easily.”