My fireteam had the same WTF reaction I did, they also knew as much as I did, which was nothing. There wasn't any chatter of trouble on the net, we checked the UNEF sites and the news postings were totally ordinary, considering that we were on a alien planet. Packing up didn't take long, we took all the weapons but left anything a future fireteam would need to occupy the place, including the ping pong table we'd built. After one last drive splashing through the mud puddles down the main street, we turned around and left Teskor before most hamsters were out of bed. I regretted that we didn't get a chance to say goodbye to the Cornhut family.

I smelled a rat as we drove up to the platoon base, as soon as I saw Major Perkins. "Major Perkins? We just got pulled out of Teskor, ma'am." I said, although I figure she already knew that. Probably arranged it. I never trusted Intel types.

"Bishop, let's talk." She waved me over toward the airfield. Once we were out of earshot, she explained. "I ordered you pulled out of Teskor. The Kristang know someone has been passing intel to us, and they're pissed about it and nosing around, and they're getting closer to you. You need to lay low for awhile, so you're being transferred. Just you, not your team."

"Where, ma'am?"

"The cargo Launcher. I'll tell you the truth, we don't have an assignment for you right now, other than to disappear and keep your name off comm channels. If it makes you feel any better, I've been told the same, they're reassigning me to a logistics base in the Indian sector, as a liaison." She snorted. "I don't speak a single word of Hindi."

"Damn, sir. All this because we've been listening to the hamsters? Did the Kristang think we wouldn't talk to them the entire time we're down here? They've got to know the hamsters would take any opportunity to make the liz-, the Kristang look bad, drive a wedge between us."

"It's not just us talking to them, the Kristang expect rumors to fly around any army. The problem is the Kristang know UNEF Command has been taking the hamsters seriously. You're not our only source of direct intel, but I can tell you that your burgermeister is considered the gold source, and UNEF Command is shitting their pants because they believe most of what she told us is true." She shot me a direct look. "You're still not to talk about any of this, it's top secret."

"Yes ma'am."

She let out a long breath, patted her shirt pocket, then flicked her hand away in disgust. "Being out in the galaxy finally got me to quit smoking, once my supply of smokes ran out, I went cold turkey. The Kristang consider tobacco to be a luxury item they're not willing to ship across lightyears. Sometimes, I want to shoot something."