Trying to give an impression, without saying it outright.
The tram they were on had started as a stiffened fabric dust-trap, bolted to a single-tracked frame and sporting plastic sheets for doors at both ends. Good for keeping direct sunlight and dust out, and sturdy if you weren’t trying to smash it.
It was also unpressurized, which was helpful if you needed to have a private conversation. Tobias waved to the lieutenant to get her attention, then offered a communications cable. She accepted it, and jacked in. His HUD lit up with her information, although Tobias knew most of it already. Lieutenant Elise Reithner, FDE. Technician specializing in logistics. No combat experience listed, so why is she leading a half-dozen Euro grenadiers? Them, Tobias could have identified right off the bat, dossiers or no: they were all wearing crowd-control suits, their low-G carbines looked excellently cared for, and every one of them was barely under the maximum mass limits for Lunar service. He wondered how much weight they’d all lost, under the new ration regime. Hopefully, not enough to get them killed…
Reithner’s voice interrupted his thought. “Is there a reason for the operational security, sir?” Tobias noted that her English was excellent, with a tinge of… German, he supposed.
“Yes, Lieutenant,” he replied. “I decided to give you the opportunity to pass along whatever messages General Bruno might have wanted you to transmit privately. So if you’re supposed to save them for the right moment, you might as well do it now.”