“Hm. Perhaps so.” Vorgens fingered the control dials of the scanner. “No sign of anything so far, though.”
After a few minutes of silence, Mclntyre said, “Sir?”
“Yes?” Vorgens answered without taking his eyes from the screen.
“How come a Star Watch officer is leadin’ this mission? If you don’t mind my asking, sir.”
Vorgens looked up at him. “Brigadier Aikens is in charge of all Imperial personnel on this planet.”
“But ain’t the Imperial Marines under the Star Watch’s command? I mean, the Marines—this Mobile Force— we’re just a branch of the Star Watch.”
Vorgens nodded. “Yes. Brigadier Aikens takes orders from the Star Watch High Command. That doesn’t mean that a Star Watch junior officer can order around a full brigadier. You know that, sergeant. What are you driving at?”
“Maybe I shouldn’t be repeating a rumor, sir,” Mclntyre said, avoiding Vorgens’ eyes, “but—well, is it true that you were supposed to arrange a truce with the Komani?”
So he knows! Vorgens thought. Probably the word is out to every trooper in the Mobile Force.
Aloud, he answered, “I was ordered to arrange a truce, when the military situation permits negotiations to be made. Brigadier Aikens must decide when the situation is right for truce talks. I’m responsible to him while I’m here.”
“And he ordered you on this breakout mission,” Mclntyre said.
“Yes.”
“That means he don’t want a truce … and he don’t expect us back. He’s gonna fight the Komani, and he wants us—you, that is—out of his way.”
Vorgens stiffened. “Sergeant, our mission is to break through the Komani lines and summon reinforcements to the Mobile Force, not to make half-cocked psychoanalyses of our commanding officer.” No matter how rigfvt they may he, he added silently.