Only Superhuman by Christopher L. Bennett Page B

Arjun and Bhima, had been saddled under protest. She greeted the wiry Vijay and his massive younger brother with quick kisses on the lips. “Hey, Bums.”
    “Hey, Boobs,” Vijay countered. “Nice top.”
    “Thanks. I’m commemorating a recent victory,” she replied as she reached for a plate. “Ooh, is that Maryam’s homemade hummus?”
    “We heard,” Marut said. “Insane amusement-park cyber plus evil twin, all in one mission.”
    Vijay put an arm around her. “For her encore, she’ll stop her long-lost sister from changing history with the help of ancient astronauts.”
    “Wait a minute, which one will the ancient astronauts be helping?”
    “Vack it, you guys!” Emry cried. “Am I ever gonna live this down? Ooh, grapes!”
    “Not if we can help it.”
    “Oh, go vack yourselves out the nearest lock. See if I ever take you Bums to bed again.”
    The brothers exchanged a look. “Sounds like a challenge,” Marut said.
    By now there was a full room, and finally Lydia Muchangi entered. A lissome Martian with regal African features and a shaved head, she was one of the original, pre-Corps Troubleshooters, code-named Lodestar for her legendary ability to find anyone or anything. These days she applied her superhuman intellect more toward administration and education, and was currently in charge of the Russell City HQ. She was accompanied by a tall, Terran-built man who made Emry perk up with interest. He was a square-jawed Asian type, maybe mid-forties and quite fit, with piercing eyes and a sensuous mouth. This might not suck after all, Emry thought.
    “Thank you all for coming,” Lodestar began. “I know you’re all eager to get back into action, and I promise you won’t be kept long. But Sensei and I believe that what our guest, Mr. Gregor Tai of the Cerean States, has to offer us will be helpful to our efforts in the field and deserves a hearing. Mr. Tai?”
    “Thank you, Lydia,” Tai said in a rich tenor. “I’m quite pleased to meet you all. My name is Greg Tai, and as you’ve heard by now, I represent a consortium of state and private interests within the Cerean States, with ties to similar groups on Earth. I’m not a member of either government, though they’ve both endorsed our efforts. I understand how important the neutrality of the Troubleshooter Corps is to your work, and I want to assure you I have no desire to undermine that.”
    Before going into his spiel, Tai made his way around the line, greeting each of the Troubleshooters in turn. When he got to Emry he smiled, seeming totally unfazed by her wardrobe or by the carrot sticks stuffed in her mouth. “Emerald Blair, of course.” He shook her hand firmly, clasping it in both of his. “I wanted to thank you particularly for your role in thwarting the Neogaian attack. I grew up on Earth, and I still have family there.”
    She fidgeted. “Well … my mentor deserved the real credit,” she said through the carrots.
    “Certainly, that was a great loss. I’ve been to see his family already. My group is already working to set up an educational foundation in his name. Part of our efforts to build closer ties between UNECS and the Belt.”
    She swallowed. “Well! I, I appreciate that.”
    “And I saw your press conference after the Pellucidar affair. I thought you’d like to know I’ve contacted some of Ceres’s top cyber-rights attorneys about Sorceress’s case.”
    “Oh! Wow. That’s great!”
    “It’s the least we could do to thank you, Emerald.”
    “Emry.”
    He smiled. “Emry. Thank you.”
    Once he’d moved down the line a bit, Vijay whispered in her ear. “Ooh, wow, call me Emry! Somebody’s in love.” She shoved a pita wedge in his mouth to shut him up.
    When Tai completed his circuit, he looked around in puzzlement. “Isn’t there still one person I haven’t met? Hijab? Does anyone know where she is?” Emry joined in the general chuckling. “Am I missing some joke?”
    “You are missing something, at