“An irritation. We can work around that. Councillor Pi is currently winning over Councillor Vren. If the other two idiots can’t convince their Councils to agree to terms, then I’m sure our alliance with one domain is better than nothing. In Human eyes.”
“Perhaps, Excellency.” It was a stupid thing to say, a liberty; to show disagreement without being asked for an honest opinion … He ran a trembling hand across his head crest. He was still embarrassed and worried by his outburst in the Council Chamber.
Am I losing my sanity? Am I becoming more man than Tlu?
This time Naat did stir in irritation, mild reds flashing across his fur. “Buoun, hear me. Our work here is a matter of survival for our domain. Our families. Our children’s children’s children. Taking the Humans to Kh’het provides opportunities. We could convince them that we are worthy to trade with for a stardrive. We might uncover clues as to how their technology works. The more time we spend with them, the more chance we have of that.”
“The other domains may uncover the same things. If they send along representatives.”
Naat scoffed. “We are the ones already traveling between stars. Moon, Ocean and Surface are nowhere close to developing faster-than-light technology. And if they were, we would catch them at it and punish them for it.”
Buoun kept the thought to himself that Naat’s reasoning here was more like wishful thinking.
Naat added, “Besides, the greater opportunity—and urgency—is to retrieve the work of the Qesh on their artifact. If, as our scientists believe, the Qesh were working on their own stardrive, then we can abandon our need for the Humans’ help. But in this regard, the attack that the artifact suffered are worrying. If it is destroyed before we get there…” Naat’s throat fur dulled at the prospect.
“Excellent One, if the other domains come with us, can we hide the Qesh technology from them? And from the Humans?”
“From the transmission we received, it won’t matter what they see on the artifact. The pieces of Qesh machinery are well hidden in one of our multipurpose ships. The Humans will be too polite to open locked doors. And the other domains won’t be allowed to.”
“I see, Excellency.”
Buoun knew such information should lift his spirits. But he remembered Gregory’s words from the meeting earlier: If the current combative nature of Tluaanto factions is an indication of the sort of conflict you would spread out there …
“When would you like me to speak to Ambassador Gregory again?” he asked, hoping he would have time for that bath, that nap.
“Rest for three fifteenths. If Suran and Mingatat have not capitulated by then, call the Ambassador and discuss the urgency of the matter. I will not be disappointed if we leave Moon and Surface behind.”
Buoun’s focus began turning inward to his own thoughts, but Naat gestured for his attention.
“We must have a stardrive, Buoun’nyimiun’t. If we are to defend ourselves against enemies like the Humanto and—”
“They came to our assistance.” He had cut the Grand Councillor off. It was becoming a habit, this inability to curb foolish impulses. But he’d done it; there was no point retreating now. “They prevented a catastrophic war that might have thrown our species back centuries. The Humans are not our enemy, Great One.”
Naat flicked his fingers dismissively. “We don’t know what they are. Do we? Do we, Buoun?”
“No, Excellent One. But we have evidence …”
“Sss. Evidence! You remember the old saying? Evidence is a knife whose blade twists many ways. Besides, as you have pointed out, friendship with ‘us’ means friendship with the other domains, and on the same terms. That, we cannot have.”
What if Us could mean our species and not our domain?
He sorely wanted to say that aloud. Minqaa, the old Grand Councillor, might have entertained the idea. Naat never would.
Naat continued, “The Human Confederation may be kind, as you believe. Perhaps they seek to treat us all with the kindness of a child toward a pet. But no amount of kindness will change the natures of Moon or Surface. Bloodlust is in their very cells. As are envy and malice.”
These things are in Tluaan cells, Buoun thought miserably. In all of us.
Naat stood and headed for the door. “A clerk will alert you in three fifteenths. Rest until then.”
When the door closed, Buoun carried Naat’s glass to the kitchen basin and emptied it, rinsed it. The high-cushion was still warm from Naat’s body heat when he sank onto it.
The Grand Councillor had been out of the room for a hundred heartbeats before something he’d said returned to Buoun’s mind: Against enemies like the Humans and—
What had he been going to say? The other domains? Or the mysterious attackers of the expedition ship and the Qesh artifact? There was some other threat out there that his domain had detected. Why hadn’t they told Buoun about it?
Secrets. There were always more secrets.
And if I hadn’t foolishly interrupted him, I might have the answer to this one.
Five hours after leaving Liberty Habitat’s assembly hall, Gregory and his entourage were back inside it. Only this time when they entered, all of the domains’ representatives were waiting for them.
Without preamble, and speaking slowly so her interpreter could keep up, Councillor Suran said, “Domains Moon and Surface accept that we will travel with you as observers. Our claims to Kh’het system’s resources can be decided at a later date. We will allow the Confederation to mediate those terms and trust you to do it fairly.”
“We are glad to hear that,” said Gregory with genuine relief.
Suran wasn’t finished. “Our conditions for accepting this include that Mingatat and I can bring along one warrior each.”
Gregory looked to Pan and Fowler. Both expressed grudging acceptance.
“One warrior,” Gregory said. “They bring aboard no weapons. They agree to a security scan upon entering.”
“Agreed. We also bring along one technician between us, plus this interpreter who speaks for us currently.”
Bringing the interpreter, Yimiun, made sense, but …
“Why a technician?”
“Ssss. Perhaps the word has not translated well.” She glanced at Yimiun who only had eyes for his wristwrap as he indeed seemed to struggle with some of the language required from him. “We require a person who fulfils multiple roles. Their responsibilities include piloting, electrical and computer maintenance and medical duties.”
“A medical assistant seems reasonable, but …” Gregory began.
“We have medical and technical staff at Kh’het,” Naat said.
“We want our own. And this is not only to assist us.”
Mingatat chimed in, concentrating on Gregory. “We are told that your computers and communication systems do not link with those of Domain Space.”
“Not well, no,” Gregory admitted. He flashed Naat an irritated look; this was not information that should have been passed along.
“We are smarter than them in this regard.”
From the corner of his eye, Gregory saw Pi prickle and fidget at the affront.
Mingatat continued, “Domain Surface’s technician will find a way to link our systems. Then you and we can both make sense of the data we find.” His gaze shifted to Naat. “Especially the data we all receive from Space.”
“Unnecessary,” said Naat. “And insulting.”
Like Councillor Pi, Captain Pan had been fidgeting during much of this. Obviously losing patience, he said, “With all due respect, Councillor Mingatat, we are not having one of your techs pissing around with our ship.”
For the first time, the interpreter Yimiun spoke for himself, asking a one-word question. “Pissing … ?”
Pan ignored him, apparently content for Buoun to translate this. And Buoun did seem au fait with the word and its idiomatic usage. Pan added, “That virus you hit us with nearly ate our systems alive.”
“And you attacked one of
our facilities,” Mingatat retorted. “Killed our warriors. Took away a senior leader. And gave us a virus of your construction.”
“Anything we did was in self-defense. And the virus we ‘gave’ you was a variant of yours. Which shows that we can find a way to interface with your tech without your help.”
“If I may say something,” Suran interjected. “Domain Space tells us your ship’s computers are still experiencing problems.”
This time Gregory was not alone in flicking Naat a hard look. “God help us,” Pan muttered.
Mingatat made a gesture Gregory interpreted as placatory. “We would like to fix what we damaged. And, as I say, help us both to understand easily each other’s data. All that we need to do is plug in a module. Before the module is awake—”
“Active,” Buoun said, correcting Yimiun’s translation.
“—have your technicians examine it along with those from Domain Space. It won’t be awoken without your approval. But it could save us all time and effort. I am told the module is a simple converter, creating video and text in formats both species can read. This will also help you learn all of our languages more quickly.” He gestured to the interpreter and to Buoun. “Eliminating the need for these.”
Gregory pursed his lips, considering that. Both Buoun and Yimiun had obviously prepped enough for the big meetings to handle most vocabulary and syntax well enough. They had extensive dictionaries. But do we really know everything that everyone’s saying? Even Buoun seems to leave out a lot. “We’ll consider it.”
“We hope you will,” Suran said. “Domain Surface are offering you a gift, not a wound. And it is a gift that Councillor Naat’s people should have offered already. I’m sure they have translation software. As you can see from even the little they have shared with us—” She indicated Yimiun again. “—Domain Space have known several human languages for tens of orbits.”
“That’s … a very good point,” admitted Pan.
And none of us thought of it. Gregory clenched his jaw and tried not to blush.
Human eyes turned to the Space representatives.
Naat sniffed. “We had abandoned developing such a thing before I even came power. We had lost hope that humans would ever come. Also, we wanted to honor our human friends by speaking their languages, not having them learn ours.”
“Nice save,” Pan muttered, then raised his voice. “If my officers decide the device is clean—and useful—we’ll allow it. Send it over now and give us six hours to play with it.”
“You will not regret trusting us,” said Mingatat.
“And now,” said Naat, observably keen to take control of the meeting, “shall we discuss timing? If possible, we would like to depart for Kh’het in a few hours …”
“A few hours,” Pan grumbled as they boarded their skiff for the return journey to Assured. “I’m glad you put that fantasy to bed, Ambassador.”
“Wasn’t hard to do. All the domains need to ferry supplies over. As you told them, there’s also the quarantining of that convertor module they’re suggesting.”
Fowler took the last forward chair beside them, right behind the skiff pilot. Escort personnel coming in behind him dropped into the rear chairs. The colonel said, “If Naat had been willing to provide clearer reasons for the urgency, maybe we’d be a little more on-side. ‘Our first ship ran into difficulties’ was not exactly full of compelling details.”
Pan grunted as he buckled in. “Not big on interpersonal skills, the ol’ Tluaanto. Or transparency.”
The skiff hatch sealed, the mating tube outside it uncoupled with a series of clunks and hisses. Gregory glanced out of the forward window as they began to drop away from the station and swing toward Assured. A scattering of vehicles hung or shifted lazily in the space between them and the great ship. None of their designs were entirely alien; any could have been built by human minds and hands.
“Buoun’s interpersonal skills are pretty good,” he mused.
Fowler said, “The envoy was pretty useful during the recent troubles. Cooperative. Forthcoming. Helped us break free of that damned virus.”
Another grunt from Pan. “He may be the exception to the rule. In fact, I seriously think if it wasn’t for Buoun, I’d have overridden you, Ambassador, and pulled Assured out of here a week ago.”
April 13, 3014, Old Earth Calendar
4
The Domain Moon supply shuttle was boxy, white, narrow, and tall. So tall, it had to tilt sideways to make it into the hangar bay. As it poked through the double atmosphere-shielding, Chipper felt like he was watching a giant candy box sliding through a mailbox slot.
A little earlier, a small passenger shuttle had come and gone, dropping off a Tluaan data-converter unit for the techs to test out. That craft had been tiny by comparison. Space had been cleared between the ambassador’s no-name yacht and Assured’s pursuit runner, Lioness, making plenty of room for the cargo vessel. Even so, nerves among the deckhands and their bosun were visibly raw. The shift crew now lined the bulkheads close to emergency exits—faces pale, shoulders leaning toward the nearest way out. The white box-ship righted itself after clearing the shields and came to rest on one narrow edge without any issues, towering over the ships on either side of it. Three ramps unfurled from varying heights along the portside.
Ana’s boarding party—her, Westermann, and Hecate—approached the shuttle, ready to inspect it. Chipper’s team—him, Stines, and Umbrano—watched from the side. The Domain Moon vessel carried supplies and personnel from all domains, but even if this had been a Domain Space ship, no one on Assured was entirely trusting of any Tluaanto now.
The first person off the ship was Envoy Buoun, outfitted in silky, light blue trousers and a carmine tunic. At the base of the ramp, he conferred with Ana and the bosun who’d come to join her. Above Buoun, a group of Tluaanto crew ventured into the hatchway to gawk at the strange humans. The envoy called up the ramp and four more Tluaanto—thick-bodied and wearing tight-fitting bodysuits—pushed past the gawkers and descended surefootedly.
“Furhead warriors,” Stines complained beside him. “Gimme the heebies.”
Chipper said nothing, unwilling to encourage Stines by either agreeing or arguing. It was best not to talk to him at all.
By the ramp, Ana waved for his team’s attention before pointing to three of the warriors. His earpiece buzzed. On open-chan, she said, “These are the same three that escorted their bosses on Liberty Habitat. Yours to watch, amigos.” She and Buoun led Hecate and Westermann up the ramp to inspect the ship.
“Who’s the other one?” Umbrano asked Chipper. “The fourth one.”
“Vazak.” He gave the big Xerxian a look. “You didn’t meet her last time she was onboard? Domain Space warrior? Helped us out on Suuchaat?”
“Oh, yeah. Hecate told me she loved killing the Surface ones. Think that’ll happen here?”
“No. I don’t.”
Vazak had dragged an Assured cargo-trolley over by the ramp to sit on. Catching Chipper’s eye, she gave him the human thumbs-up signal she’d learned during their mission. He returned the gesture.
Stines squinted. “Oh, yeah. That is her.” He didn’t sound convinced.
“They all look alike to you or something?”
“No. Just didn’t recognize her without that huge knife she had last time.”
“She’s missing half of one ear and has shorter fur than the others,” he told him. “In case you forget which one she is.”
“Rumor is, they can regrow bits if they lose ’em,” Stines replied. “Wonder why she hasn’t done that with the ear.”
“Badge of honor,” said Umbrano and thankfully both men fell silent, allowing Chipper to focus on the other warriors. He had no idea of their gender. Although he knew Vazak was female, he didn’t know if gender was even a thing amongst all of the domains, or all warriors. All three were as tall as he and Vazak and Umbrano. One—long-limbed and angular—lay down on the ramp and put its hands behind its stumpy Tluaan
head crest. The other two simply squatted beside the ramp, scrutinizing their surroundings and chatting quietly with faces close. A few deckhands approached with trolleys and handcarts, ready to work but leery of the newcomers. For most of them, this would be the first time they’d seen Tluaanto live—and these were big Tluaanto. Though unarmed, each looked strong enough to tear the head off any human that irritated them.
“Who needs their giant asses on board, anyway?” Stines said, incapable of keeping his thoughts to himself. “We shouldn’t take them with us. We should just take the short ones like that Boonie guy and his bosses.”
“Buoun,” Chipper corrected him.
“Whatever.”
“How about Vazak? She did all right in the facility raid.”
“I s’pose.” He indicated the others with a jerk of his chin. “But those are the ones we were fightin’ on the planet. Shouldn’t be allowed on board.”
Although he was itching to correct Stines—since only one of these warriors came from the faction they had fought on Suuchaat—Chipper bit his tongue.
A breath spent correcting fools is a breath wasted, his mother had always said.
Ana’s team was inside the shuttle now. Inspection would take an hour, at least. Chipper had already adopted a comfortable waiting posture with his feet spread, his hands in his pockets, and his rifle on his back. Umbrano’s weapon was similarly slung. Stines’s gun was in his hands where it shouldn’t have been. Chipper decided it was worth wasting a little more breath on him.
“Sling that.”
“Gotta be ready.”
“They’re fifty meters away. I think we’ll have time to react if they charge us. Now sling it.”
Grudgingly, Stines complied. “Furhead warrior mutts.”
“Whassa matter, Stines?” Umbrano rumbled. “Don’t like a little danger?”
“Didn’t see you down on Suuchaat, trading fire with those things.”
Assured (Envoys Book 2) Page 4
