When they cleared the dogleg they were confronted by a camp not much different from that outside. The buildings were permanent structures instead of tents, but it was laid out much like any standard legion camp. The exception to this was at the center where a small lake was visible. There were buildings on the shore, a dock and a large building apparently built out over the lake stretching to near its center.
“Hey, Graff,” Herzer said as soon as they were in the facility proper.
“Hey, Herzer,” the sergeant replied, grinning. “Coming up in the world.”
“Edmund had to decide whether to charge me or promote me,” Herzer said with a shrug.
“Well, there’s always killing you,” Graff noted.
“He keeps trying and trying,” Herzer snorted. “Like now. I’m soliciting volunteers, by the way.”
“Not on your life,” Graff replied. “I wanna live to spend my pay. Vaston will show you to your quarters,” he added, gesturing at one of the guards on the inside of the gate. “After that, you’ll need to go by camp security and get your badges.”
“Badges?” Megan said.
“We don’t wear them on the gate,” the sergeant said, reaching into his armor and pulling out a badge on a lanyard. It was blue paper encased in plastic and had a rather bad picture of the sergeant on it along with his name and ID number, but not rank. “But you have to have them to move around the camp and to get back in if you go out. Both entrance and exit are restricted. You, ma’am, obviously have free run, although you’ll be required to show your badge in various areas. But your aides will require specific, written, permission, to leave the camp or return.”
“I see,” Megan replied musingly.
“What’s with the lake, Private?” Herzer asked as they proceeded through the camp.
“Sir, we’re pretty careful about what questions we ask,” the private replied tightly. “The short answer is: I don’t know. And I don’t want to know, sir, if you get my drift.”
“Got it,” Herzer said. “Good answer.”
They seemed to be the only people stirring in the base and Herzer realized that with the exception of themselves, the guards and whatever support personnel had been scraped together, the camp was empty. He’d never looked at the total of the slain but the scorpions must have killed over a hundred highly trained personnel in their attack.
The quarters, when they reached them, were in a two-story wooden building that showed all the signs of hasty construction. The room Megan was shown to was probably one of the best on the base and it was furnished with a small couch, a single bed, a footlocker and a small kitchen area, all in one room. It had its own bathroom, consisting of a porcelain sink, a commode and a shower.
“Sorry, honey,” Herzer said, looking around the room and shrugging.
“Well, they haven’t been wasting funds on accommodations,” Megan said, shaking her head. “It’ll do. I have to wonder what the guard barracks are like.”
“Bays, ma’am,” Vaston replied. “Thirty to a bay. And there were only half the guards that we’ve got here, before, so we’re hot-bunking about sixty to a bay. Most of us sleep outside anyway; it’s bloody hot in the barracks.”
“Sorry I asked,” Megan said, shaking her head. “And sorry you’re cooped up like that, Private.”
“Not a problem, ma’am,” the Blood Lord replied, grinning. “We’re rotating out of here to Blackbeard.”
“Fun in the sun,” Herzer said. “Guard stands are hell down there, but the rest of the accommodations are first rate.”
“And the mer-girls like the guards,” the private added, grinning, then looking stricken at joking about that subject with the councilwoman present. “Sorry, ma’am!”
“Not a problem,” Megan replied.
“The rest of the rooms are singles,” the guard continued, gesturing the others out of the room. “You share bathrooms.”
Herzer’s room was adjacent to Megan’s, but not adjoining. He figured he could find someone to put in a door.
“We need to go by base security,” Vaston said when they’d been shown their quarters. “Are you going to have more luggage following?” he asked, noting that they’d brought nothing with them.
“Lieutenant Tao is going to be bringing it,” Herzer said. “We came on ahead. Let’s get the rest of the details over with; we’re on short time.”
“Yes, sir,” the private said, leading them out of the building.
“What’s on the top floor of the building?” Herzer asked as they were walking across the base.
“More rooms, sir,” Vaston replied. “For others on the team.”
“That was one of the buildings that got hit, wasn’t it?” Megan asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” the private said.
“No stains on the floor,” Herzer noted.
“We had a bit of cleaning when we arrived, sir,” Vaston said. “Replaced some of the wood on the floor. Sanded the rest. And the walls.”
“I could have done without that image,” Megan said.
“Sorry, ma’am,” the private replied. “I’ll try to watch it in the future.”
“It’s okay,” Megan said, quietly. “I’ve seen bad enough things in my life. Do you know who was in my room before?”
“Colonel Carson, ma’am,” Vaston said as they reached another two-story building.
The room in the interior was filled with desks but the only person in it was a Blood Lord officer manning a counter that barred passage to the rest of the room.
“Countess Travante,” the lieutenant said, standing to attention as Megan entered. “Good to see you, ma’am.”
“We need to get our badges, apparently,” Megan said, smiling charmingly.
“Yes, ma’am, I have them right here.” The officer pulled out a clipboard, printed pages and a handful of badges. “Please sign beside your name,” he added, handing out the badges along with sheets of paper. “This is a map of the facilities. The badges are color coded. Yellow is restricted to only yellow areas. Purple can move in purple or yellow. Blue in those two and blue. Red has full access.”
Shanea and Mirta’s badges were in yellow, Van Krief’s in blue. Only Megan and Herzer were issued red badges.
“What if we’re in a red area and we need one of our aides?” Megan asked, frowning.
“They can be given special access, ma’am, of course,” the lieutenant said, swallowing nervously. “They’ll require an escort. If they’re with you, of course…”
“Okay,” Megan said. “We’re supposed to report to an initial in-brief…”
“It’s in Building Seventeen, ma’am,” the lieutenant said, sliding over a map and pointing to the building in question. “That’s a blue zone.”
“Mirta and Shanea are not on the mission,” Herzer noted.
“I know,” Megan said. “Mirta, I’m not even sure why I asked you to come along.”
“To be a helper bee and not get in the way,” Mirta said, taking the clipboard out of Shanea’s hand, turning it over and signing Shanea’s name. “Just put an X here, dear.”
“Thanks,” Shanea said, brightly.
Herzer looked at the clock on the wall and shrugged.
“I guess you guys can go explore the yellow areas,” he said. “Megan, Van Krief and I need to get over to the briefing.”
“Private Vaston,” the lieutenant said. “Why don’t you show the councilwoman’s aides around?”
“Sir,” Vaston said woodenly. “I’m detailed to gate guard.”
“I’ll send a runner over,” the lieutenant noted.
“And we’re out of here,” Herzer said, grabbing Megan’s arm.
Building Seventeen was only two doors down and, unlike the majority of the buildings, was a low, one-story building, made entirely out of concrete. The main door was heavy steel and, as it turned out, locked. Herzer knocked on it furiously, bruising his knuckles, but there was no response.