"How long?" Amos ben Sierra Nueva said desperately
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them down. "No, to one knee will do," Belazir said easily. His Standard was better, even in these few days. "Do you wish refreshment?"
bottles of wine rested, patently supplied by the Perimeter Restaurant The young waitress was from the Perimeter, too, although there she had worn clothes. "No, Master and God," Amos and Charma said in meek unison. Belazir smiled and held out his hand. The waitress put a water-glass tumbler of Mart'an's famous apricot- brandy liqueur into it. He drank it off in ten long swallows and Channa knew a moment's wild hope. Simeon's voice was sour. "No joy," he sent. "I checked with Chaundra. They metabolize ethanol so fast he'll only be mildly buzzed.
that purred. "There is business. The matter of the attack on the Divine Seed of Kolnar."
"Heartbeat absolutely Kolnar-normal, no pupil dila- tion. Got an idea the victims may have been from one of the other ships. Play it polite-firnj." "Lord and God," Channa saii "The criminals will be found and punished." Subvocal from Simeon: "You hit hisfurmybone with that, Happy. He's killing himself laughing mside." Channa went on. "I've made several general broad- casts calling for obedience, Master and God." "So you have. I notice,joo, that it is always you and not your companion... colleague?" "Simeon-Amos is N" Channa fell silent as the Kolnari's hand indicated that Simeon-Amos should answer.
fixed on the ground. "Look at me, Simeon-Amos." The stares met for long seconds. Then Belazir gestured again, turning his attention back to Channa. "Well and good. As we expect to hold the station in our fist for some time, these acts of stupidity must cease."
Belazir went on. He rose, like a black fountain tipped with white gold, the loose sleeves floating back from his arms like wings. He looked down from his near two meters of height. "Continue."
but the formal semantic content as she could make it, "your troops fornicate like N" she paused to search for a word "N rotweilers." "Big chuckle at that one, Charmie." Simeon was furious. Belazir crossed his arms. "Why does this not seem complimentary?" Channa looked up at him. "They bite," she said emotionlessly, covering her disgust, "all the time." THE CTTY WHO FOUGHT 337 "Then the sc N the chosen ones should not resist their fete," Belazir said. "It is our custom when we meet resistance."
managed a taut smile. "Should we bite back?" A rustle went throijgh the line of armored troops behind Belazir and the duster of officers with feathers and jewels in their hair. The noble silenced them with a toss of his head. "I would not recommend it," he said sardonically. "The custom to which I refer is that of enjoying the fruits of victory. A most ancient custom, surely, even you must know of it? Make another of your speeches. Outline their duties. A hard, sincere effort to please. Then they shall be caressed as they labor, not savaged." "Master and God, when you bruise the fruit too much, it goes bad! The problem is that I have a hundred people in sickbay being sewn back together and under medica- tion due to human bites and various other wounds. Initially, there were three hundred sick to begin with, not counting the ones who've been flogged." "Are they injured?" No, apart from shaking and crying and waking up with nightmares, she thought The Kolnari had a whip that did something to the nervous system. "Master and God N" however she tried, she couldn't quite keep the sarcasm out of that"N the problem involves vital work positions which are left empty. This isn't a planet It doesn't run itself. Everything has to be done without error. Fatigue leads to error, error leads to failure, and failure can lead to death. I cannot do the impossible, order me however you want" "Now that," he said, "is the wrong tone." Suddenly he was much closer, and took her chin between thumb and forefinger. "Entirely. Do you understand, Channahap?"
seemed to slow. 338 Anne McCaffiny fcf 5. M. Stirling He smiled. "Excellent. However, your remarks, if not the manner in which they were delivered, are reasonable. I shall give orders that my troops be... gentler with their slaves. After you have emphasized the proper attitude toward their duties."
"that, too, is our custom. Those of you that please us or are useful will leave this place on our ships." He watched her absorb this privilege. "Walk with me," he sa;& putting a hand under her arm. She jerked slightly at the contact, like the touch of a live conductor.
closed down on his skull, so gently that it would not have cracked an egg. A duplicate of the one that had crushed his sister's skull. Wind blew through the trees above them, making the leaves move in a dance that contrasted to the stillness of the humans below. "A strange way to spend so much effort," Belazir said, as he nodded to the landscape around them. A chuckle passed his lips. "Preferable to expend effort and strength on this than on weapons." "Who does he think buiU his ships and the weapons they're carrying " Simeon whispered in her ear. Channa shrugged in answer to both. "Still, it is beautiful," he said. His hand traced the back of her neck, lightly enough that the pads of his fingers just touched the hairs. She shivered involun- tarily.
down her spine and away. "This is like Earth, is it not?"
head to one side away from Belazir as Simeon gave her the relevant information. "A few of the plants and organisms are from Rigel 4, but they're compatible." "Like looking back into the past," he said. They THE CTTY WHO FOUGHT 339 stopped, out of sight of the tables. He looked up into the sky. "Computer," he said. "Night." The constellations of Earth's northern hemisphere blazed out, as they had not in reality since men learned to bend electricity to light.
"Very beautiful, but it seems too much openness. As if a body might fell upward and be sucked out into limitless
slightly agoraphobic. That could be useful, if Belazir had been spaceborn.
called vertigo. I've occasionally experienced it myself when planet-side. I was born and raised on a space sta- tion, so I feel more comfortable under a ceiling." "Something of that," he admitted. "But also... Com- puter. Night on Kolnar. From Maridapore." Channa gasped in shock at the change. The dark sky overhead vanished. In its place was a glowing moon- colored cloud full of colored lights from horizon to horizon. She blinked, then realized the light was not that much more brilliant than the Terran sky. Yet this phenomenon was not a sky: it was a ceilmg across heaven.
vaster than worlds, electric blue and white and pearl. Beneath them, on the horizon, a volcano was a glowing firestorm spout, powered by its own natural fission reactor. Something gigantic and winged slid across the alien constellations. Smaller things pursued it, diving and tearing as it fluted an intricate song of grief.
"Not really. Not even a simulation as good as this." He issued a second command and the Earth night returned. "This is more restful." 340 Arme McCaffny &? 5M. Stating "Ah ... The birds won't like it if you change day to night like this," Channa said. "You'd better set it back when you leave. Master and God," she added absently.
birds won't like it?" he said. "Ghannahap, you are a wonder. The birds won't like iffthe insects will be dis- turbed ... does this matter?" "We brought them here, to a totally unnatural environment If we expect them to thrive, then it's our responsibility to provide them with whatever they need. They're a part offill this," she said gesturing widely. "Without the birds and the insects, this would be sterile, a lifeless tableau. So we have to be mindful of their needs."
dawn shall be in twelve hours. Things have changed here. Even the birds must realize it"
"for Earth, for Kolnar, for the universe." She made an interrogative sound. "Adapt! Master changing circumstance, or die unbred. The Seed N the genes, you would say N are the reality that underlies all this. Taking energy from the Dead World, growing in complexity and adapta- tion. All this," and, with a swift movement of his hand, he caught a dragonfly by its legs for a second, then released it, "is waves on the surface. Beneath is the Seed, seeking to replicate itself. All beings, all mind, all war and trade and art and science, mere waves on the changeless sea." He smiled kindly. "And fittest of all, of course, is the Divine Seed of Kolnar. Of that Seed, fit- test is the High Clan. Which is why you long for union with it, for such immortality."
the vehicle of the ... gene. Watch, when we return. THE CITY WHO FOUGHT 341 Your Simeon-Amos will be enraged. Naturally enough, for he suspects the immortality you offer is to be taken from his seed." He sighed and turned back towards the tables, hidden behind a line of trees. She trotted to keep pace, although he did not seem to hurry. "Enough of pleasant idleness and ]#hilosophizing. To work!" "Simeon, why do all my Prince Charmings turn out to be toads?" Channa subvocalized. Amos stood stiff and withdrawn beside her on the people mover as it slid down the corridor. "Is he really jealous? Under these cir- cumstances, that's ridiculous!" ,;
woods with Lucifer, chattmguup..." "Absurd!" "Beats me, Channa. But FU never, ribbit, turn onya. Rib- bit!"
to be with."
still unbruised. "That is the scariest son of a bitch I've ever had the misfortune to meet," she said. Amos nodded silently. "Simeon-Amos?" "Yes, Channa?" "Hold me, would you?" His arm went around her, and she melted into die firm supportive warmth of his side. "Thank you," she said.
flies."
them. "I just figured something out"
lines that showed what he might look like on his 342 AnneMcCaffrey fc? SM. Stxrlxng deathbed, in the currently unlikely event that he would live to die of old age. "What?" Amos repeated, this time as a command. "These scumbags N I'm not going to use scumver- mm, even in reverse N they're planning to loot me bare and then blow me up."
ring to the SSS-900-C as "me." "That is bad news for you," Amos said, steeling him- self for how that would also be bad news for Bethel. "But if they do that, th^Central Worlds Navy will firid out N would find out, even if the Kolnari had pulled this hijack off the way we fooled them into thinking they had. Central Worlds'd send flotillas all through this sector and look behind every space rock. For sure, they'd inspect any inhabited system. While the Saffron system may be ferdlin' remote, it's still on the maps. And the Kolnari know that, hey So they're sacrificing their chance of stripping Bethel in exchange for the station. Means they gotta leave both, fast. So what odds they plan on doing Bethel the same way they do me, when they go? Blow it, too, and cover any traces they hadn't time to sweep under the carpet. These guys are pigs, but they're not stupid.1 "Yes, I see," Amos said, barely moving his lips. "Sound strategic analysis. Thank you, Simeon." Thanks for nothing, the brain thought dismally. Amos had had the comfort of knowing die Navy would at least rescue the survivors on his homeworld, win or lose here on SSS-900-C. "Anything we can do about that? Channa asked as they entered the lounge. "Not much more than what we're doing now," Simeon said. "But it's going to be a very dose run at the end. We've got to be ready, at all costs. Minutes may make the difference." THE CITY WHO FOUGHT 343 Keri Holen tried to read, but she'd been on the same page for some time now and still had no idea of its con- tent. Trivia, she thought. Before her life was put in danger, all her friends and family's lives, she hadn't known what triviality was. It was anything that didn't have to do with keepinj you alive; anything that didn't have to do with winning.
good, either," she said. Why did I volunteer she asked herself. Well, the risk mas there anyway, and we need to get the second vims working, she thought. Not everyone was a gymnast and martial artist, either.
beside her and rose to pace the room. There was a soft chime and Simeon's public face bloomed on the wall screen.
those in the threatened sector. "Get your virus capsules in position. Don't panic. Don't argue or they will harm you. Remember, place the capsule in your mouth, bite down, try not to swallow. Good luck," he added fervently. Keri rushed to the cabinet where she had stored her supply among other pharmaceuticals. Her hands were shaking so much the capsules flew out of the bottle like confetti when she at last got it open. Moaning, she rushed to gather them up and put them away before the Kolnari arrived. She put one in her mouth, hold- ing it between cheek and gum.
the door, fingers twining with the tabs of her robe. She could feel her pulse beat in her lips and fingertips, she felt as though she'd been running. The door opened. God, she thought as she bit down on the capsule. There are four of them! The capsule dissolved with a rush of coolness. Keri smiled broadly and let the robe drop.
tination. The mining components fabricator was a treasure of immense value to the Clan. With it, they could scavenge several crucial materials from unin- habited asteroids at need. Besides that, the scumvermin operator was a pleasure to torment, in several different ways. She grinned. Then the expres- sion faded. She could smell him, the scent was heavy in the cage N far more than it should have been when he merely passed through several times daily. She looked up... into the barrel of a rock-cutter and above it the grinning face of Kevin Duane. "Eat this, bitch!" he snarled and powered up the cut- ter. He cut the Kolnari woman in half lengthwise and smiled as he watched the two sizzling halves crumple to the floor. The elevator arrived at his level and he replaced the hatch cover. There was the access tunnel, just where Joat had told him it would be.
inquiring brow. He gave her a grin and a thumbs-up sign. Suddenly the elevator dropped out from under- neath him and he was holding on by his elbows, feet scrabbling against the slick shaft walls. He inched his way in, his broad shoulders making it difficult to maneuver. Far below he could hear the elevator coming up again.
the access tunnel and turning back to pull him in by his shirt.
head; his arms were almost immobilized by the tough febric.
him room. "Or thaj: elevator will smear your carcass all the way to the top of the station."
get his feet in. He began to panic, barking his knees on the side walls of the tunnel, the space too narrow to allow him to turn or pull up his legs. In a panic, he caught at Joat's legs and yanked. Her palms squealed on die slick metal as she struggled futilely to keep her place.
the side of the elevator lifted the soles of his feet gently as it passed.
with mild hysteria. Joat glared at him for a moment, then grinned and whispered, "Hooray! Another one for our side." "Yes?" Belazir said, looking up from his notescreen. It was the medico again. The Kolnari repressed an impulse to kick it. If you hit messengers, messages ceased coming. On the other hand, his rime was valu- able. Especially now, with the transports here and loading round the cycle.
fifth part of the Clan's fleet, under his command. Not only transports, but a fighting platform and a couple of the factory ships. It was as good as having Chalku proclaim him successor. Better, since his chances of living long enough to claim it were much higher. A for- mal announcement might drive some brick-skull like Aragiz t1 Varak to desperation. "Great Lord, there is... a problem." 346 AnmMcCaffrry & S.M. Sorting "Mine or yours, creature?" he said, slightly impatient The loading was going so slowly. "Great Lord, we have disabling sickness." "What?" Suddenly he was looming over the eunuch. "No, pleasel Don't hurt me. lUfc only old Veskis, the bonesetter. Please, my Great Lord?" Belazir's aquiline nostrils flarett "Speak." "Over sixty ill warriors have sought medical aid, Great Lord. We have never seen the like." It swal- lowed. "Great Lord, we do not know how to cure the illness!" Belazir had just finished a large meal. Now it lay Hke curdled hot lead in his gut. Impossible. He tapped at the notescreen, accessing recent files. Yes, over thirty war- riors put down or suicided for infection. Not completely unprecedented, but among the heaviest numerically of instances on record. If another threescore had reported sick, there must be many who had not
control, debility, nausea. Others more mildly. Still others recover quickly and are whole. From the blood of those I may produce a vaccine, in tune." "Do so," Belazir ordered, "Swiftly." In time to avoid spoiling my triumph here, he thought "Wait" He tapped his notescreen again. Most sickness occurred among those on no fixed duty. Of those, t'Varak's ship suffered the most casualties. Belazir racked his brain for what he knew of diseases. Not much, since Kolnari were rarely bothered by disease: accident, yes. He reflected on this problem, queried the info-banks, thought again.
whom they could, that is. A noble could be killed but not placed under restraint "This may.. ." He hesitated. "May be related to the disease troubling the scumvermin." Hideous, that a disease would strike the Divine Seed
scumvermin are to be avoided. Go, post the orders, That such a scourge should arise nowy he thought, looking back at the notescreen. Loading was moving far too slowly. Chalku #ad given him a deadline; past that, they were to abandon anything remaining, kill and leave. If there was much less than he had promised, he would go from hero to goat Even if the total he did manage was more than any other Kolnari had amassed, performance and prestige would be measured against expectation.
margin for error with it He stood. "Computer. Kolnar, noon at Maridapore."
even to him in the instant before his pupils shrank to pinhead size.
powered armor. There were not enough suits to go around and their maintenance requirements were fierce. The patrol was to enforce curfew and prevent sabotage, which was becoming a problem. He was in a flexible suit, with a comlink and a plasma rifle. The cor- ridors in this section were darkened, which gave his IR-sensitive eyes the advantage over any scumvermin. As if I needed it, he thought. His main enemy was tedium. The corridors were changeless and identical. Yüklə 2,81 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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