cthia wrote:Doh! I meant the Yeltsin System, Blackbird base. Apology.
You mean the system where Grayson law applies? There's not a single person in that system that would tell a Steadholder Guard to disarm. They'd know that it would be a useless waste of breath.
Either they tell the Steadholder in question or they don't. The Steadholder will decide. And since this is the Yeltsin system, the Steadholder would supposedly already know the security requirements of the facility they're visiting. If there's a confrontation, it's because the Steadholder is deliberately trying to be obtuse.
The Guardsmen are also well-known for their discipline throughout that system. If the Steadholder told them not to do anything stupid, they wouldn't. So if the Steadholder is to be allowed aboard a secure installation, that means the Steadholder him or herself is a trusted person.
And specifically in the case of Honor, is there ANY facility manager that would argue with her? And on the subject of her Guard, who is routinely allowed in the presence of Protector Benjamin Mayhew and Empress Elizabeth? What possible reason would a facility manager have to argue with her?
I'm sorry, this is an even more unlikely example than Honor having to land unexpectedly on Masada.
I disagree, I think total memory recall is an excellent set of skills for a spy. Mingling with people all over the galaxy and hearing conversations and never forgetting a single detail? Think Carrie Wells on the hit TV series Unforgettable. She plays a police detective who has a rare ability to remember everything she sees and hears. And she solves crimes that are next to impossible. A Treecat would add to that his ability as a lie detector. Carry Wells would be totally unstoppable, even moreso than she is now.
I agree with the first part of your paragraph, but that can be solved technologically and make the spy inconspicuous.
A treecat is going to stand out anywhere, except in the forests of Sphinx. That's not a good trait for a spy.