"How long?" Amos ben Sierra Nueva said desperately
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| The thought must have been obvious, but Amos
only spread his hands and tossed his head, setting aswirl the coal-black curls of his shoulder-length mane. The blue eyes twinkled beneath the broad dear brow. Oooooo, Channa thought, and fought to bring her attention back to his words. "In any large organization xhere will be certain constants," he said. "The central authority; officers in charge of various departments; a structure for meetings to coordinate activities; procedures for routine decision- making, and so forth. Tips is not too dissimilar to my family's holdings on Bethel. We, too, were essentially coordinators of the activities of many independent entrepreneurs. There are no ranchers or farmers here, of course, but both communities have mining, manufac- turing, education, cultural facilities..." "Culture?" Joat ducked back into the lobby, toweling her wet hair. For a wonder, she had on something more formal than the shapeless, patchwork-colorful overalls that were current fashion among SSS-900-C's youth. "Like holos and virtie games and stuff?"
more of choral song and traditional dancing. "The general principle is the same."
Simeon had programmed them to meet the basic dietary superstitions of the Bethelite religion, although Amos had turned out to be flexible. Channa shud- dered mentally at some of the things she'd screened in that Bethel text. How in God's name, for example, were they supposed to check that none of the materials had ever been touched by a menstruating woman? They sat down, Amos murmured a prayer, and for another wonder Joat waited a second before grabbing the nearest bowl. She had turned out to be a monumentally unfussy eater, but in sheer capacity she belied the scrawny underdeveloped frame. BetweenN
about Bethel. "Sounds dull," she said at last "I thought so, too," Amos said, pushing a bowl of steamed millet closer^aher. She shoveled several help- ings onto her platband heaped them with sour cream and chives. "Joat," Channa said gently. "That really doesn't go with pineapple slices, you know." "Why not?" Joat asked, turning to her with a milk mustache on her upper lip. The girl licked it away with satisfaction as Channa searched for a reply, gave up, and turned her attention back to Amos. "Hiding away all that stuff was smart of Channa," she said thoughtfully. "Always gotta have supplies in your bolt-hole unless you're fardlin stupid."
thought, stirring her food around with her fork. Girls don't bother him. Not pre-pubescent ones, at least.
song: 'Across a croooowded room..." "Shut up," she subvocalized. "This place has got more back-alleys than you'd believe," Joat was saying. "Not like a ship at all, really. You can get anywhere from anywhere and ain't nobody can stop you, if you know where you're goin'. Some of the places pinch grudly, but they're in-able if you're sveltsome." "I would have thought it much like a ship of space," Amos replied courteously. Channa could see his lips move silently for an instant as he puzzled out Joat's slang. That was no wonder. Half of it was her own invention.
"No mass limits on a station N the SSS-900-C wasn't expected to go anywhere. The outer shell was fixed, as
intended to allow organic growth up to a couple of hundred thousand people, max. We've found natural expansion is the best way to stabilize a real community, as opposed to a transient community, like a passenger vessel."
my family's estate, planning towns was similar. If you set down every detail, the place has no life. When Uncle Habib decides to put his tobacco store next to Aunti Scala's pastry shoppr Brother Falken's saddlery, and that brings an ice-cream parlor, it then follows that the town becomes a living and efficient entity." "Why do you talk so funny?" Joat asked. "Why doyou talk so funny?" Amos parried, and they both laughed. "Because Bethel was cut off for so long. We did not even screen or broadcast data from other worlds, so our people's way of speech changed litde, and those changes differed from those in the Central Worlds, which had dealings with many other worlds and cultures." "Central Worlds?" Joat asked. "Oh, you're fardlin' N 'cuse me N way off there. This is the hikstik, frontier, you know."
someone besides yourself should know of these hidden ways of yours."
wouldn't believe what's back there!" "I would very much like to see it,1 he told her grave- ly. "But, I have not much time left for my studies." Her face fell. "Still," he said," I think that it is important that trusted people, other than just you and Simeon, should know these back ways of yours. Would you be willing to show my friend, Joseph?" "He's your head honcho, hey?" "My brother and my right hand," Amos said seriously. "Okay, if he's nanna grudly." THE Cnr WHO FOUGHT 251 Amos gave up trying to interpret that remark and glanced over at Simeon's image in the screen. "Grudly," the brain said in his most professorial. "An all purpose negative. In this context N 'not too grudly1 N stniight-laced, conventional, boring, unimaginative.
Joseph was, in feet, a him, "Amos said
the extra time life had dealt her, so that she looked twelve. "Sure! I'll be glad to show Joseph around.
Whenever you like." He sighed theatrically and rose. resignation. "Wonder how he did it?" "We broke the ground for him. Being glamorous doesn 't hurt. And he listens to her. He's naturally interested in people, I
think, under the iveird socvHvUgious stuffthey rammeddown his throat."
at the now dosed door of Amos' quarters. both my girls. A petty observation, but couldn't he indulge in pettiness in the privacy of his own mind?
the pineapple slices, fresh from the vats, lavishly doUoped with ice cream. "You flipping the sheets with him yet?"
her on the ear with thumb and forefinger. report you to Gorgan the Organ." She grinned unrepentandy. "I know all about it, y'know."
what you've seen. You also have no manners." "Yeah, that's true," Joat said complacently,
"\bu needn'tact so smug about the lack," Simeon cutin. "Why not?" Joat asked. "Lots d^ way-neat stuff you
can't do if you've got manners." notescreen. Chaundra looked old. Antt haunted as well. Channa was a little surprised. She would have thought him one
of the ones who could handle the fear. thetic container. capsule dispenser, standard model, but looked more closely at him.
There were other medicos on the station, but only one Chaundra. Personal factors aside, he was also the only
specialist with experience in original viral research. his voice was stronger than usual, a trace of liquid sing- song. He stood for a moment by her desk looking at the
box he carried, then he placed it in front of her. "They're ready," he said, pointing to it.
gelatin capsule filled with clear liquid into her palm. created for you a weapon." gende correction. genetically nonstandard target population? I cannot even be certain nobody on the station will die of it!"
said. Then he sighed. "There is no sense in complain- ing after the fact We have made enough so every man
and woman on theCta(&>n gets five. I can't imagine anyone being unlucty enough to need more than that.
What you do, is bite down on it. Don't swallow and breathe it all over the Kolnari nearest you. It is con-
tagious even if swallowed, you understand, but more so with direct contact. If the pirate wishes to kiss you, by
all means let them." to collect dispensers for distribution to their people," Simeon said.
anyone who uses a capsule should report as soon as possible to the clinic for the protective shot. They'll get
a light dose then, but their ... um... victim will get very sick indeed."
delirium." He shivered. "I must get back to my lab. So much more needs to be done, and there is so little time
to do it all in." for a minimum of six hours." of now, you're off duty until tomorrow morning." "And the volunteers," he continued, "have them in the hospital as soon as the pirates appear. We can accelerate
the onsetN" him a little shake, finally getting his startled attention. at the door and blinked. "Oh, yes. Joat N I have met she was." He frowned, looking concerned. "Do you think it will be all right, their being together so much?
Her and Seld, I mean." amused. "They'll be kept weil-occupied, you know, and they are neither of them physically adult."
daughter," Chaundra saicl owlishly. are completed. Truly, Chaundra, I think we can depend on Joat to be responsible. I trust her. She may
operate on her own code of ethics, but she is more con- sistent about it than many adults I have encountered.
I'm not worried." time someone has told me that they are not worried. They're at a volatile age and they can't even trust them-
selves. Hell," he said throwing his arms wide, "under all this pressure, the adults on this station can't trust
themselves. How can we expect diese kids to?" the problem and talk to them and hope for the best If they're so inclined," to her surprise, she couldn't force
herself to be more specific, "they'll find a time and place where we can't interfere. So let's not wear ourselves
down worrying about it." the damage done to Joat's psychosexual development was probably going to take many years. Right now the
girl needed Seld to be her friend, not her bed partner. He was definitely her friend but... Channa remem-
bered what boys were like at that age, too. There's more of a danger that she'd break his arm. But she needs a friend.
Something else to lie sleepless and worry over. Or had privacy, she thought Seld had the right to deal with that in his own time.
You're both tired. Eveiything looks manageable when you've had some slfep. So go sleep. We'll take care of
the capsules and we'll organize the volunteers. Don't worry about a thing."
expression. "Amateurs," he mumbled. "What you're experiencing, Simeon, is denial. You can't avoid such
problems by pretending they don't exist." His shoulders fell "I'll have Seld bring her home with him
after they're through working today." He waved good- bye and left.
what he did of her past, he knew that sex was the last thing Joat would think of as a recreational activity. That
was the commonest symptom of the particular form of abuse she had suffered N and still the idea made him
uneasy, fatherhood. marched briskly back to her desk. She sat down and spun the box of capsules around with one finger. "I was
thinking," she said, "wouldn't it be great if we could up the ante on these?" She looked at Simeon's column.
people at risk. I'm not willing to do the enemy's work for them. Y'know?"
it's worse than it really is?" sue samples ... Oh. You're talking about a con game, aren't you, Happy?"
I'm not happy." usually aberrant Generally speaking, the reports say the Kolnari are extremely aggressive towards those they
perceive as weak, treacherous but willing to bargain with their equals in power, and have a tight/submission reflex
towards superiors N until the superiors let down their guard, which is a sign of weakness/
na said. "Hmmm. They'd be vulnerable to status and power anxieties, then. And lots of internal rivalries."
superstitious as horses. They know some science, but they're not scientific, if you know what I mean."
the security cameras and flash 'hallucinations' for the benefit of those who've had the virus. Auditory hal-
lucinations are no problem. I could project them and no one would be the wiser."
ear, "and without using your implant." How did you do that?" multiple sources. It takes practice, but as you saw, the effect is worth it"
with something visual to go with that, they'll be run- ning for their ships the first day."
they see these things, otherwise it could be considered suspicious. I'll sound Joat out. That girl's a fountain of
ideas."
Chaundra's comments almost visibly flooded back into
her conscious mind. said emphatically. "I don't want to think about it"
aren't you?" ( settee. Simeon had tactfully withdrawn his image from the pillar screen, leaving a strikingly realistic crackling
fire in its place. Somehow he had even manage to repli- cate the scent of burning cedarwood. Amos had had to
tactilely reassure himself that the fire was an image. shoulders sagging hopelessly. "Among all the other problems, I must worry about this! It is so... sopetty."
na said philosophically. Partiddarly that hysterical bitch Rachel. "When you get down to cases, lots of'big issues'
have been decided on personal matters. From Har- modias and Aristogetion on down." Amos looked
blank. "Two ancient Greeks. Never mind. Briefly, a government was overthrown because of a love-
triangle." brandy. "I care nothing about her and my best friend would give his life for her," he said, shaking his head.
"ChannaN
delusion of hers, has nothing to do with me. But here N" he touched his heart "N I cannot help but feel that I must
somehow be to blame. I was a... caller-of-spirit: you would say a preacher. Oh, yes, I knew that half the
women in those crowds were in love with me. What of it? I would never touch any of them, for that would be
dishonorable and destroy my cause more surely than any other oflense. The folk of Bethel are... inflexible
flattered my vanity, am I not in some manner respon- sible? How desperate she must be, and how lonely. It is
"From your description, it was never this bad before. If you're to blame, then so is everyjcharismatic politician
and holo star since time began. Her ... delusion .., may have been aggravated by those drugs, although
she's not responding to medication. Simeon, has anyone talked to Chaund^a about this?"
hadn't been listening. said, adding reluctandy, "Mental care, the cure of souls. It is part of our religion that only those consecrated can
perform cures of the human soul." No sense in offending Amos, of course. Humans shouldn't be forced to take religion. That should be free
choice. "Maybe we'd better let Chaundra know that Rachel isn't responding to treatment. She may need
stronger calmers. Let's face it, when the pirates arrive, you're going to have a surfeit of problems to keep
under your eyes." Channa," Simeon cut in abruptly. "Simeon-Amos?" the doctor of this. This is my burden, my obligation. I will do it." He rose and disappeared into his room,
shoulders bowed. ing her off to be executed." Confession seems to be a major element in their religion. To him, treating this as a medical problem
could be equivalent to blasphemy." the way, don't try to tell me that you didn't enjoy that lit- tle interruption, Simeon. I know you too well by now."
ing any more little disruptions of my love life, / guarantee that you'll regret it."
have to do with Rachel going bonkers? I didn't even let her into the lounge. I could have, y'know."
beat the door down, I really did. But then I figured she'd go grab a laser and cut her way in. And, of course,
if she had caught you two in flagrante delicto, she wouldn't have stopped at cutting up doors."
me from a fete worse than death and death itself. Con- sider yourself hugged and slobbered over in an ecstasy
of gratitude." my attitude's back." horny, all right? I'm horny and I'm frustrated!" The door snapped shut behind her.
ing the charged atmosphere in the only way he could. Sheesh, he thought. Softshells -were strange.
the same warning message." nal communications?" ment This was no backwater, no half-barbarian slum that used electro-magnetic signals for internal com-
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