A Dubious Peace

by Olan Thorensen

  “Right. I suppose you can’t call it a real fractional distillation, but it serves to pull out the fraction that consists of hydrocarbons with maybe six to twenty carbons. It’s a mixture of what, from a cracking column, would be considered mainly kerosene with ten to sixteen carbons, plus the naphtha with a smaller number of carbons and lighter diesel with more carbons.

  “The crude from local petroleum seeps is yielding up to forty percent of this kerosene mixture. The remainder is dumped into brick-lined open pits. I know . . . an environmental disaster. I just didn’t have anything else to do with it at the time. I figured it could eventually be used if I ever got a real petroleum industry going. And then like with the coal tar pitch, the final product would be asphalt—both have potential for roofing and pavement. However, the years are going by, and the residue keeps accumulating. I’ve had thoughts about exporting kerosene, but that may not happen. The seeps are limiting production. Oh . . . so far we can satisfy the island’s demands, but for exporting, we’d need to take it to another level.

  “But worrying about a petroleum industry is for another time. Right now, I need your help with the iron and coke industry. The Swavebroke and Pewitt provinces have the advantage that the prevailing winds are north-northwest to take smoke out over the ocean. The other advantage is being farther from the Fuomi base in Adris Province. I’d like you to take a look at where we are in the development.”

  “I suppose I can think about this and get back to you,” said Mark. “But I expect you’re right about the Bessemer process being the best initial option, though it would eventually need to go to open hearth furnaces. I don’t have a clear picture of where all these places are. The Buldorian captain had a Caedellium map he said was taken during one of their raids. About the only detail it had was where the clans were, but I don’t remember all the names and their locations.”

  “Let me get a map,” said Yozef. He rose and walked to a cabinet with multiple drawers. “I think I remember Wyfor keeping maps in one of these.”

  “Ah-hah!” Yozef said when he opened the third drawer. “Here’s one of Caedellium with the clan names and borders. It also shows major cities, towns, and a few other landmarks.”

  Yozef stood by the table and spread the map out. Mark rose to join him, and the two men leaned over the paper while Yozef pointed.

  “Here’s Adris City, where the current steam engine work is located.” He moved his finger to the left. “And here are Stent, Pewitt, and Swavebroke provinces.”

  Mark sighed. “That’s a lot of travel if you expect me to be involved with both the Adris City and Swavebroke sites.”

  “Well . . . not as bad as it could have been. We do have a wooden rail line operational between Orosz City and Adris City. The trip is about seventy miles, and there are no major hills or mountains. The horse-drawn trains can keep up a ten-mile-an-hour pace on level ground. I’m assuming you don’t want to go on horseback too many times. I wouldn’t want to, if I’d ridden horses as much as you did getting here.

  “In Orosz City, you’ll have to have a base of operations, plus Maghen and Alys need a permanent home. Even if the wired telegraph work gets done fairly quickly, there will be other projects I’d at least like your input on, even if you aren’t directly involved. Then, when you need to be in Adris City, you can leave early in the morning. If the purpose will be a quick visit, you can be back with your family that night.

  “Of course, Swavebroke is something else. Even with the rail line, the trip takes most of a sixday. However, if we can get the steel mills up and operating, then neither of us would have to make the trip very often.”

  “And having both Heather and me in Orosz City lets you keep an eye on us,” Mark said sardonically.

  “There’s that, too,” Yozef admitted. “But I also think it’ll be the most efficient home base for you. Heather has already made it known she wants to be near the two of us.”

  “What about the Narthani? I’ve been hearing stories, and you gave us a briefing, but I have to say that if I’d known about the Narthani moving in on this part of Anyar, I’m not sure I would’ve tried to get here. I don’t know what I would’ve done, but being chased by a few Narthani and Frangelese still might have looked better than coming to where the Narthani were interested enough to send an entire army. Are you worried about them trying again?”

  “I’ll be honest, Mark. I can’t rule out that we haven’t seen the last of the Narthani. If it happens, I expect it to be years from now. They’re already committed to Landolin. I don’t see any reason they would bother about us. We assume they were planning on using Caedellium as a jumping off spot to attack northern Landolin. Once that failed, they obviously switched and went for the southern kingdoms first. That seems like a logical course because that puts them closer to their center of power once we ruined their northern strategy.

  “Initially, they underestimated the Caedelli and only sent about 12,000 men to conquer the island. When that didn’t work, they sent 60,000 but still underestimated. That attempt also failed, though I’ll admit we had more luck on our side than we could possibly have hoped for. If they try again, I can’t imagine they wouldn’t use a bigger force—maybe 100,000 to 120,000 men. And for what? One island on the western end of Anyar’s landmasses? I don’t see that kind of commitment as long as Landolin and Iraquinik are active enemies of the empire.”

  “What if they did come, contrary to your expectations?”

  “Then we would be an even tougher opponent than the last time. We’d do the same as we did before—leading them into the interior and only fighting when we had the advantages. We could put fifty thousand dragoons into the field. They would be led by men with experience and be backed up by another hundred thousand fighting men and women, plus every other Caedelli. We have plans to ensure the Narthani would have to bring all their horses with them if they wanted cavalry. They would face a mobile enemy, heavy in artillery. We would defend only a few cities, and our fortifications and heavy cannon would require extended sieges by the Narthani, while they were being harassed by our dragoons.

  “But now, they evidently have other objectives to focus on, and time is on our side. It’s like I told the Narthani commander before he left Caedellium. His name is Okan Akuyun, and he seemed like a rational person when you talked with him. Almost enough for me to forget where he was from. I told him Narthon was destined to fall, from internal rot, external forces, or the combination. I took it as significant that he didn’t directly reject what I said. Instead, he simply replied that most Narthani wouldn’t agree with me. I admit I may be reading too much into his words, but if ‘most’ Narthani wouldn’t agree, that may mean a fraction see their fall as possible for the reasons I outlined to Akuyun. There’s also the number of Narthani who opted to stay on Caedellium, instead of returning to Narthon.

  “Think about it. They had to be ready to abandon the only society they knew, not only for a different way of life, but among people who might well never be able to totally accept them because of their past history. Yet several thousand of them did. That’s got to mean the underpinning loyalty of their people is not that strong. Eventually, such turmoil has to manifest.”

  “Maybe,” said Mark, “but I wouldn’t feel comfortable planning too strongly on an enemy reforming itself, self-destructing, or being destroyed by forces I can’t control.”

  Yozef shrugged. “While I admit we may have to face them again one day, the Caedelli suffered such heavy losses during the war that the people need years to recover—peaceful years where other preparations can be made. I intend to turn Caedellium rich through trade and industrial development. You’ve heard some of what I’ve talked about with the Landolin and Iraquinik ambassadors. I’m making it clear Caedellium will not be sending men to fight away from Caedellium. However, I’m working on deals for trade. Food, gunpowder, and cannon are three major items we can provide.

  “I’ve hoped my enduring legacy to Anyar will be to leave as much knowledge as I can. No
w, of course, I would include the three of us—you, me, and Heather. We can jump over a couple of centuries of how development progressed on Earth. Maybe we can also impart early warnings about things like environmental degradation. I’m less sanguine about political issues, but who knows? In any case, I envision the University of Caedellium becoming a legendary center of learning for the entire planet and the island having an outsize influence.

  “I was searching for more ideas before you came, and after hearing about your attempt to introduce textile innovations, I want to give serious consideration to adding cloth and maybe even clothing to our exports. In Frangel, you ran into a guild structure. We don’t have that here simply because Caedellium has never had a formal textile industry. The people either make their own clothing or buy from small-scale cloth and clothing makers in all the clans.

  “Also, there would be my support to develop the industry. You mentioned the selection of dyes you worked with was limited, and even in the cities with major textile production the colors were on the muted side. Here, guilds wouldn’t be a problem. With what I know about chemistry, we could use dyes that are almost certainly unknown on Anyar. With a little experimentation, I’m confident I could develop even more dyes and more intense colors, at least gauged by the clothing I see on the Landolin ambassadors. I take them to be a pretty good example of what’s considered the highest-quality clothing.

  “Gold and silver would flow to Caedellium, and I would work to see that a lot of it goes into making the island even more defensible. We could eventually develop better weapons. That’s another place you can help. Given enough time, we should be able to develop things like breech-loading rifles, exploding shells, and rocket artillery. If I dream hard enough, there could also be versions of Gatling guns and breech-loading artillery. I doubt we have enough of a population base for a navy strong enough to fight off a serious Narthani fleet, but if given enough time, we could have steam-powered, armored paddle-wheelers, torpedoes, and whatever else we come up with. Of course, as I said, all that will take time, maybe many decades. That’s time I want to buy Caedellium, in case the Narthani are not stopped and someday return here again.

  “Pardon me, but it seems the obvious thing to do is transfer much of what you’re talking about to Narthon’s enemies,” said Mark.

  “I’m sorry if I sounded like I was totally focusing on Caedellium. I’ve already helped Fuomon. Ether, kerosene, whatever medical knowledge helps them advance on their own, the telegraph once we get it working, observation balloons, better signaling rockets, and another source of gunpowder. I didn’t mean to give the impression we won’t share anything with the Fuomon and maybe Narthon’s other enemies, but I want to be sure Caedellium’s help is well compensated, both in gold and in help defending the island. Plus, as I said, I’d like to keep something in reserve.

  “But we’ll have time to talk about all this in more detail,” said Yozef. “If you’re good with the plan for us to work together, I need to get back to Orosz City. I also have to stop for a couple of days each in Hanslow and Moreland City, the two capitals of the Brell and Moreland clans. That means it will be nearly a sixday before I reach Orosz City. But what about you, your family, and Heather?”

  “I’ve told Maghen I intend to honor my promise of giving her a month of quiet, but she says another two sixdays is sufficient for her. We’ve already been here for more than a sixday. I haven’t spoken to Heather, but I don’t doubt she’ll want to be around the two of us.”

  “Okay,” said Yozef, “so how about you apprise her of the travel plans and figure on leaving for Orosz City in two sixdays? By then, I’ll have been back home. I’ll write to Maera to start arranging where you’ll live at first. We’ll work out something permanent later.”

  Secrets Unkept

  While the Amerikans on Caedellium discussed keeping secrets, another presence knew of their origin and maintained surveillance of their movements via a cloaked drone. However, the AI orbiting Anyar had another immediate concern, if “concern” was an appropriate term for a machine intelligence. One of its twenty geosynchronous observation satellites had gone silent. Such events were inevitable: random degradation of satellite elements, impacts by meteorite fragments, or failure for reasons unknown. What raised the state of this satellite’s silence to a higher level of the AI’s attention was that it was the second satellite failure in one-tenth of the planet’s rotation around its sun. One failure in six thousand years was acceptable. Two failures in the same time span through normal events was regrettable but within the realm of possibility. However, two failures in such a short time span after six thousand years of functionality pointed to two options—either the random occurrence of a statistically low probability pairing of events or the sign of a new factor. Having no model for what such an outside factor might be, the AI ran diagnostics on the remaining eighteen satellites, resulting in no detectable problems with hardware or software. A consequence of the lost satellites was to change the orbits of the remaining satellites to maintain even coverage of the entire planet’s surface.

  CHAPTER 14

  RETURN TO OROSZ CITY

  Orosz City

  When Maera returned home, Anarynd was sitting on the veranda, Odysius asleep in her lap.

  “A new letter from Yozef,” announced Maera. “He should already have left Preddi City on the way to Hanslow. If all goes well, he’ll be home in about five days.”

  “Did he say anything about the new Amerikans? What are they like? Does he like them? Are they coming here?”

  “Very little, nothing, nothing, and yes,” said Maera, answering the questions in order. “The only thing definite is he says they will come here in about two sixdays. He asks that we arrange places for them to stay. It’s a family of three . . . a couple, Mark and Maghen Kaldwel, and their young daughter, Alys. The fourth person is a young woman named Heather Chen. Mark and Heather are the Amerikans.”

  “But they are really Amerikans? He’s sure about that?”

  “Evidently, he’s convinced. I’m sure we’ll find out more once he returns. I have to confess I eagerly anticipate meeting them.”

  Anarynd smiled. “So you can check on what Yozef has told you about Amerika?”

  “Of course,” said Maera with an exaggerated haughty flick of her tresses.

  Anarynd shook her head. “Sometime your curiosity will get you in trouble. What if what they say is different from what Yozef says?”

  Maera looked thoughtful, wondering what she should tell Anarynd.

  “I don’t think Yozef ever lies to us, but I’m also sure he doesn’t always tell the exact truth. I know . . . the theophists would argue with what I just said, but I’ve come to believe if he hides something, he honestly believes it’s for everyone’s best.”

  “But he could be wrong.”

  Maera sighed. “Yes, but everyone hides something, even if it’s small. And it’s often for the same reason—believing it’s for the best. We have to trust God understands our fallibility.”

  “Well . . . ,” said Anarynd, her voice going from uncertainty to certainty. “He is Yozef Kolsko, to whom God whispers and looks over.”

  “Yes . . . he is Yozef Kolsko,” said Maera, not confirming Anarynd’s testimonial. She retained a level of skepticism about her husband’s connection to God but was satisfied with what she did know. She did not believe every mystery in life needed to be solved.

  Maera also understood Anarynd’s conflicting thoughts about possible consequences of Yozef suddenly having living connections to his life before Caedellium. They had already talked about the topic enough that Maera couldn’t think of anything more to say to mollify Anarynd’s concern. It would have to wait until Yozef returned, and then they would see.

  A mile away, in the island’s main administration building, a staff member had waited an hour until the other people were gone. The person casually made notes on a small piece of paper, blew the ink dry, folded the paper several times, and slipped it into a pocket. Lat
er, when the individual was again alone, the note’s contents would be transferred to a ledger hidden under the floorboards. The information’s importance was unknown, but one never knew.

  Hanslow, Brell Province

  The capital of the disbanded Eywell Clan had suffered little damage during the war. Yozef could see across the river to the city’s imposing wall at the crest of the bluff. His eyes searched for the gap in the wall that Anarynd and other women had escaped through during the occupation. He was gratified he couldn’t make out what Anarynd had said was significant crumbling. The previous hetman had neglected repairs, thinking the river and the slope were enough deterrence.

  During the Narthani occupation, the city had prospered with the stationing of Narthani troops bringing in coin. When clan forces invaded Eywell after the Narthani defeat at Orosz City, most of the top leadership fled with the retreating Narthani, leaving the city unprotected.

  The Brell hetman met Yozef at the train station. Owill Brell wasn’t the most congenial Caedelli, but Yozef appreciated the man’s practicality and efficiency. When the other clans evicted the Narthani from Caedellium, the Eywell clan was outcast for having been a willing ally of the invaders. Still, something had to be done with the tens of thousands of clan members, many of whom had been unwilling allies of the Narthani. The solution determined by an All Clan Conclave was to formally expunge the clan’s leadership from similar roles in the future and to create a new clan with an appointed hetman.

  Brell was an Adrisian who had led the clan’s intelligence operations during the war. He accepted the charge of the conclave and assumed the role of Hetman Brell of the new Brell Clan. It hadn’t been a smooth transition, but many of the original clanspeople had never been supporters of the decisions made by the Eywell family. However, overt opposition at that time had been dangerous.