Bravo Force

by Robin Pentecost

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20  Buenos Aires

Maria was dressed in a traditional tango dress: close fitting, slit up one side. Her partner, Manuel, was dressed up too, wearing tight trousers and a brief jacket. Somehow, Pru was persuaded to abandon her pareo and put on similar traditional garb. Perhaps it had been the sense of happy anticipation that permeated their preparations, but Pru went along with it gladly.

“First, dinner,” Maria said, as they walked through Buenos Aires Sector. It was early evening, and they walked along the streets through throngs of people, most were more conventionally dressed in kilts. When they came to the restaurant, it was an old, restored building from years before that had been modified for the controlled climate. They were able to sit at a table open to the “sky” of the BA-Montevideo CA. Somehow, the management had managed to simulate stars above them. Pru suspected there was a stellar projector hidden in one of the useless chimneys.

The three were seated, and the maitre’d did not remove the fourth setting. “There’ll be another along soon,” she told him. Pru scanned the room, observing the other diners – not dressed for dancing, but adorned with scarves or jewelry to catch the eyes of their companions. From Maria, the sense of anticipation vibrated strongly.

Pru raised her eyebrows, but Maria just smiled, giving no information.

“We’ve had a couple of good days, Pru,” she said. “I think we’re entitled to relax. Have you ever gone dancing?”

“Oh certainly, I love to dance. I love my work, but I love my fun, too.”

Manuel told her, “You’ve got a treat tonight. We’re going to a place – it’s OC – where they do the traditional dances of Argentina, mostly the tango. You’ll enjoy it, and you’ll get a workout, too.”

“Some of those dances are pretty athletic, I know,” Pru acknowledged. “I don’t mind, but these skirts will get in the way, I’d think.”

The server brought their wine, then stood aside before pouring, noticing another guest coming to the table.

It was Terry Sideman. Pru noticed him first, sensing his sneaky pleasure at the surprise. She stood and embraced him, kissing him roundly.

“Sneaky! And smug! How wonderful of you to come. Sit down and join us.” She turned to Maria, “I suppose he is the fourth place? I’ve been feeling something from you all afternoon.”

“Yes, he com’d me this morning, and I told him about our plans.” She turned to Terry. “We’ve got a costume for you in the ’mobile, so you can relax and enjoy dinner.”

Argentina’s vast OC grasslands were still a major home to meat animals, and the worldwide demand for heirloom foods had made the area an important source for the old, pure genetic strains. Most high-quality protein nowadays was vat-raised, and very tasty, but many people still enjoyed the occasional, old-fashioned varieties. It was this restaurant’s specialty, and they ate well and talked avidly.

 Maria and Manuel got up and danced to the small band, and Terry turned to Pru. “How has it gone? I don’t want to talk shop any more than you do, but I’d really love a confidence update.”

“Confidence update, huh? One of these days, you’re going to learn to trust me.” She laid her hand on his forearm in apology. “No, that’s not fair. You’re just obsessed with your business. Businesses. All of them. And, I don’t blame you. I’ve begun to catch that disease, too.

“Maria’s wild for the idea. She wants it for her kids, she’s already com’d every Neo-Tantra student she knows who’s a mom and most of them just want to know when school starts. She’s convinced that every female Neo-Tantra student who has a child will want to sign up if there’s a school near enough. In short, Terry, she thinks we have a winner, and we picked the right person to push it.”

“That’s just what I wanted to hear. How about a little dance before we go OC?”

They got up and danced a few numbers with the others, Pru regretting that her costume prevented the pleasure of feeling his warm torso against her breasts. Yet, she sensed that Terry found the situation enticing.

Maria scanned her CID on the check and they went off toward the nearby portal. A ’mobile was parked there, and they all ‘helped’ Terry into a tango costume similar to Manuel’s and moved off into the countryside.

The dance palace was on the shore of the bay, and now the stars were real. A band was playing and the entertainment well underway when they arrived. They found a table, ordered wine.

The band was a tango ensemble with the latest versions of traditional acoustical instruments. They played a variety of music, all basically related to the tangos of 200 years before, adapted for newer tastes, but retaining the flavor and sensuality of the original.

The dances were wild, athletic and sexy. Terry proved to be an adept, and it wasn’t long before he had Pru in a high state of arousal. Then, Manuel took her hand, and Terry whirled off with Maria. As the evening wore on, the dances got more modern and more sensual. Eventually, almost all the dancers had stripped down to their briefs, following the vibrant music and the hectic beat. When they finally left – only because the place was closing – Pru was sweaty, exhausted and glowing.

In their bed, Pru whispered to Terry, “I never knew I could have orgasms just from a dance.”

Terry reached for her. “Are you ready for more?”

.oOo.

In the morning – not too early – Pru and Terry met for breakfast with Maria. Manuel was off with the children on an outing to an OC park near the bay. The discussion merely confirmed for Terry the enthusiastic support Maria felt for the NT Basic Ed project and enabled Maria to try out some of her ideas on the head man of the company. The costs were surprisingly modest, because Maria had already been assured that government Basic Ed funds would cover much of the cost. The remaining costs could easily be met by modest student fees. She had even found a few Neo-Tantra followers who were qualified to teach Basic Ed, as well as being thoroughly grounded in Neo-Tantra theory and practice.

Isabella’s call didn’t interrupt the discussion. They had returned to their room, still talking about Maria’s ideas. Pru took the call. “What’s up?” This morning, she had gotten out of bed feeling as though she had spent too much time in the Salle, and now she was stretching and limbering up. She set the com so Isabella could easily see her.

“I was out at the mine all week, Pru,” she said, speaking Arabic. “And I decided to stay and spend the weekend in the hills. You know, just sort of wandering about.” Isabella was known to her friends as an avid mountain hiker. On the com, she appeared to be at home, and her upper body and face were well tanned.

“How’s your ankle?” Pru asked with a wry smile.

“Never better. I was out hiking in a week.”

“So, what did you find that you’re calling me about in BA Sector?”

“Hard to say, Pru, but I thought it’s something you’d like to know about.”

“Something funny, huh? How come you didn’t call Said bin Said?”

“Well, I’ve signed up for Neo-Tantra, and it’s okay – great, in fact – but I don’t work with him here in Algiers Sector. And, I thought I ought to go straight to you. You’re the one who’ll know what this is.”

“Okay, out with it,” Pru said, finishing her routine and reaching for a towel to dry off the slight sweat she’d worked up.  As they talked, she brushed her hair and tied a pareo around her hips.

“I came across this little village in the hills, Pru. Maybe 75 or 100 people. Very primitive – a couple of wells, goats wandering about – but no one acted as if it was primitive. One or two mud-brick buildings, but mostly they were living in big, square tents. They weren’t Expellees, as far as I could tell, but they were weird.”

Pru settled onto the sofa of the room, listening. Terry came out of the shower room and quietly began to listen, tying on a pareo himself before sitting next to Pru, who kissed him before continuing.

Isabella nodded to him; they had spoken before, and she switched to English for his benefit. “For one thing, everyone wore traditional clothes – djellebas, caftans – and the women wore the hijab, the head scarf, khafijas for the men. It looked as though they were trying to make things look like real tribal stuff. But, what was particularly interesting was that there were all kinds of children about. Seemed like dozens of them.”

Since the development and compulsory implementation of fertility implants, the birth rate had stabilized at just about that required to replace the population throughout the world. The law that everyone must have the implants had been the cause of much resistance. There were riots and demonstrations, but eventually implants were accepted and remained so for almost 100 years. The decisive issue had been women’s realization that they could have control of their own bodies. The sight of large numbers of children in an OC area was most unusual.

“Were they all the same age?” Pru asked.

“No, they ranged from infants to, oh, maybe six years. Boys and girls. And, I saw one or two women who seemed to have two or three that belonged to them. They were breast-feeding the infants.”

“And you’re calling me…”

“Because I’ll bet these people are living outside the Code.”

Isabella referred to the Code of Standards set down by the United Nations 150 years before and modified as needs and technology advanced. It was the basic set of laws and regulations everyone lived by, which decreed the CID-PID implant, and the medical implant that also regulated fertility.

“You don’t think they were Expellees?” Pru asked again.

“Well, it’s hard to tell, but they didn’t act like that. That is, they weren’t secretive, the way most Expellees seem to be. I’d say they were Voluntaries.”

“What happened when you showed up?”

“I never did. When I realized there was a settlement there, I sort of skulked around, watching from cover. I wasn’t sure what it was, and I didn’t want to walk into an Expellee camp. That can get nasty. Besides, I was wearing a kilt and a tank shirt with only a sun hat. I’d have been a pretty rude shock if they were serious about that damn modesty code.”

“Were there guards?” Terry asked.

“Not that I could see, though I didn’t scout the whole perimeter. Some of the men  who were sitting about had slug-throwers close at hand.”

“Any sign of a food supply? ‘Mobiles? Gardens?” Pru asked.

“I was on the top of a ridge. I didn’t want to put my head up too much and be silhouetted. I did see some gardens and a couple of wells, but it didn’t look like there was enough to feed the lot of them. They may have more around the other side, where I didn’t go. No ’mobiles, though. I’m pretty sure about that. Sorry, it’s pretty sketchy recon.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Pru said, then thought for a moment. “Tell you what. Call Zahlman and tell him what you’ve told me, then have him call me.” She looked at Terry. “Meantime, I’ll arrange some high-level surveillance. We’ll get a good look at the area and some closer pictures of the village. And, we’ll get a warrant and do a CID scan. Squawk me the coordinates.”

Isabella fiddled with her remote, sending the codes to Pru’s storage. When she was done, she looked back at Pru.

“No telling what this is, Izzy,” Pru said with a smile. “But, it’s just the kind of thing we need to know about. Stay away from there, unless I tell you differently, but keep your eyes open for more places like that when you’re out in the hills.

“Also, call the rest of the Force and brief them. Jazz will know as soon as you tell Zahl, but tell the others. It may turn out to be nothing, but… Are you up for that?”

Isabella grinned. “You bet. I think I know a couple of other places back in the hills that might be just right for something like that. I’ll check them out.”

“No, don’t. But, give me the coordinates. We’ll do high-level scans while we’re checking out this site. You don’t need to expose yourself, no matter how much fun it is. I might need you in one piece.”

Isabella grinned again. “Right you are. I’ll send the other coordinates off in a few minutes. I’ll have to do a little searching in my files. I’ve got them marked for future visits.”

They signed off, and Pru looked at Terry. Terry simply gestured to her. Nodding, Pru called Solly and told him what she had heard. Solly said he would put things in motion. Since she and Terry would be back at the home office in another day, he would report then.

“Solly,” Pru said, “I’m going to team you up with Zahlman al-Rashid on this. Do you remember him?”

“He’s the guy you pulled out of the Wadi.”

“Right. Now, he’s a native informant. He’s also Neo-Tantra, been through the basic and is going for the next level. I expect to hear from him shortly, and I’ll have him call you. Please keep him in the loop. He knows the whole area. Also, please keep Isabella Buonfortuna informed. We’ll talk when we get back. And, Solly…”

“Yes? This is a real one, isn’t it?”

“That’s what I’m thinking; my hunch. I’ll tell you more when I see you.”

Terry spoke as soon as Solly’s face left the com. “Before you go any further, tell me what you’re up to.”

Pru nodded. “I have a feeling this is something where local knowledge and background are going to be important. I want Solly to have someone who knows the territory looking over his shoulder. Do you agree?”

“So far, yes. But here’s Zahlman’s call.”

Pru keyed the com. “Great to see you, Zahl. Is Jazz there, too?” Zahlman widened the view so Jazira was visible. They chatted briefly, and then Pru got to the point.

“I had Isabella call you. You got all that, right?”

“Yes, you were busy for a while, so Jazira and I talked it over. Our guess is that it’s a sort of tribal revival. Those are the Ouled Naïl Mountains where she saw those people. Izzy told us that. And, the shape of the tents is distinctive to that tribe; I recognized them from her description. What do you want us to do?”

“I want you to work with Solly, our case operator. He doesn’t have Arabic or local knowledge, but he knows the technology. I need you to advise him so that we don’t screw anything up in the early stages, just because Solly doesn’t know something.”

“Pru, I’m no expert on this.”

“No, Zahl, but you know a hell of a lot more about the Maghreb than he does. Try to keep him out of trouble, and learn as much as you can about what he’s doing. Now, can I talk to Jazz?”

Pru and Jazira chatted for a few moments, and it was clear to Pru that her friend was pleased and excited to see her husband involved in a new adventure.

After she had signed off, Terry asked her, a gleam in his eye, “You’ve got this pegged already, don’t you?”

“No, not really, Terry. But from what Izzy said, I’d guess this is a band of people who are trying to follow the old Ouled Naïl tribal patterns. They were a mountain tribe; the women were known for their dancing. We shouldn’t jump to any conclusions, and we’ll know more when we get back.”

“Do we need to hurry?”

“We won’t have results until tomorrow.” She untied her pareo. “We’re not going anywhere right away. And you smell good.”

 

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