“Then perhaps he’s just too scared to face me himself.”
Talo said nothing. His wrinkled lips pursed, his scowl matching the dozens of others aimed down at me from the Assembly. I could only imagine how many of them wished to hurl me out; those who had a hand dipped in Pervenio’s pocket before his corporation went belly up and blamed me.
“I think you’ve made your point, Kale,” Aria whispered in my ear, pleading with her vibrant green eyes for me to stop. She was right. There were many reasons why I was on Mars. They all required me to make it out of the Assembly Hall alive.
“Enough of this, Mr. Gavaren,” I said. “My body and mind are worn after our long journey. Let’s discuss why we’re really all here.”
“Let’s,” he replied.
I moved aside and allowed Aria to stand before the dais. She waited for Talo’s invitation, then stepped up and bowed at the waist with the grace of a practiced dignitary.
“Sir, I speak as ambassador for the people of Titan,” she said. “We’ve come here requesting that the USF Assembly recognize Titan and all its former properties throughout the Ring as their own sovereign state under the governance of Kale Trass, descendant of Darien Trass. It is our opinion that his family’s claim on Titan dates to before the Meteorite struck, making it more legitimate than any others.”
“Darien Trass didn’t murder anybody,” the elder Assembly member beside Talo remarked. “You compare your leader to a man who saved people? All that makes him famous is that he dropped a ship on thousands and then publicly executed a Pervenio director. One of our people!”
“Enough, Lathra!” Talo demanded. “Everyone in this room is aware of history.” He regarded Aria with a frown. “Ambassador, we deliberated endlessly while you traveled, but the truth of the matter is that much of what Lathra said is correct. We hesitate to meet your demands because we feel that they not only aren’t in the interest of humanity as a whole but that they aren’t in your interest either.”
I was about stomp up onto the dais and scream at him. Aria reached back to stay me.
“The Ring is a valuable asset to our kind,” Talo continued. “Darien Trass saw its worth centuries ago, and so do we now. While we respect your stance, there is no available DNA evidence proving this man is related to Darien. We also feel that leaving it solely in the hands of a young adult who has no experience running anything, presiding over a people who have a history of being highly susceptible to illness, would be irresponsible.”
I couldn’t hold my tongue any longer. “Illnesses your people brought over!” I barked.
“Let me finish,” he replied sharply.
“Why waste my time?”
“Let him finish, Kale,” Aria whispered.
I lowered my hands. They squeezed into fists.
Talo cleared his throat. “In an effort to cease hostilities, however, the United Sol Federation Assembly is prepared to grant you proprietary governorship over Titan on a demonstrative basis. You will have the privilege of directing the moon’s affairs with limited interference, under the oversight of this elected body, which exists to harbor humanity’s greater interests until we deem the results of this experiment suitable.”
“And what of the other moon colonies and stations that were established by the Titanborn around Saturn before the Great Reunion?” Aria asked. “There are various ports and factories. Even a version of Pervenio Station was originally installed by Titanborn builders.”
“As far as we are concerned, these properties have been seized illegally from a number of corporations and private companies that have established legal ownership since the calamity succeeding the Great Reunion. You may negotiate their future proprietorship with those bodies if you so desire, but we cannot condone such a policy of aggressive expansion.”
“Aggressive expansion?” I said. “As far as I’ve seen, that’s the only thing your kind does condone.”
“Considering the damages caused by the fighting you incited throughout the Ring, we feel this is a fair compromise,” Talo replied. “We are willing to sign a contract dictating these terms before you leave tonight. All you must do in return is agree to release all of the innocent civilians detained on Pervenio Station. We will negotiate the provision of ships for their transport in a way that does not hamper your colony as it adjusts to these new circumstances. In addition, you must surrender all private data and technology seized during the takeover of Pervenio Station. Consider it a demonstration of goodwill, to put all hostilities behind us and look forward to a brighter, more prosperous future.”
“Is that all?”
“Those are our terms.”
I had to fight to keep my entire body from quaking in anger. I turned to Aria, and I could tell she knew what I was thinking. Her expression preached caution, but that was the last thing on my mind. Millions of kilometers of travel and their only solution was to strip everything of value from us—from gas-harvesting ports and ships to refineries and factory stations. Even ice hauling wasn’t practical without controlling a facility closer to Saturn’s rings than Titan. We’d be subsidiary, bound to their credits and desires. Eventually, we’d wind up having to rent out the residential blocks on Titan just to stay afloat, and everything would go right back to how it was.
Aria swallowed a lump in her throat then said, “I can discuss these terms with Mr. Trass privately, though I fear we’re too far apart.”
“Surely the Assembly is open to negotiation in a more private setting,” the Red Wing Director named Galora insisted from her seat in the crowd. They were the only corporation we’d done any real business with since the revolution, so I wasn’t surprised. It was a feeble effort at feigning support for us. She didn’t even stand.
“We’re willing to discuss further liberties as time progresses,” Talo said. “And you have our assurance that proper care will be taken to ensure the health of Titan’s populace. In that, you will have the full support of the USF and all its affiliated corporations. Our medical research and capabilities are yours.”
“A kind gestu—” Aria began, but I cut her off by stomping up onto the dais myself, as far forward as I could go while maintaining eye contact with Talo.
“I don’t understand why you think this is a discussion,” I said harshly. He recoiled as if my words had physically struck him. I lowered my sanitary mask so he could see me in my entirety, unafraid. A dangerous move, but it had the desired effect. I could see the distress flood his features as he watched me.
“I came here to offer you our terms,” I said, my voice now unimpeded. “Perhaps you weren’t listening to my ambassador when she laid them out initially, so I’ll tell you all in person.”
I whipped around to face the crowd. If they appeared angry before, now they all looked like they wanted to shoot me. Red cheeks and raised brows characterized every face—everyone except Madame Venta. She remained staid, almost emotionless.
“Titan will not become another puppet of Earth!” I declared. “We are not a colony. We are the vision of Darien Trass. A better future on a new world. Our own world.” I stuck my finger out at the Assembly, sweeping from one side to the other. “Until that happens, we will not stop harassing your colonies or your ships on the Ring, no matter whose supervision they fall under. We will not release our captives, and we will not open trade.”
“Be reasonable, Mr. Trass,” Talo said through clenched teeth.
“I believe I am. Soon, if your kind occupy the Ring, it will be under our supervision, not the other way around. If they want to land a ship or open a port, they will ask us for permission. If they want a speck of ice, they’ll ask first. And until you agree to that, we’ll harvest every ounce of gas on Saturn for ourselves. Until the planet has nothing left but its rings.”
A few of the Assembly members blurted out in protest. I quickly silenced them by shouting, “I’m not finished! Last, you will deliver Luxarn Pervenio to my feet, wherever he is hiding. He will admit, to all of Sol, that the Ringer Plague brought ab
out by the Great Reunion was no accident. That he and his father purposely dispersed germs to assume control over the Ring, knowing full well that after three centuries on Titan, my people hadn’t the knowledge or experience in dealing with earthborn contagions.”
“That is a blasphemous accusation!” someone behind me yelled. The rest of what he said was drowned out by a torrent of opposition. The hammering of Talo’s gavel went unheard as well. Not a soul remained sitting, whether they were in the crowd or the Assembly. All pleasantries were tossed aside. The USF officers even had to sprint down to the floor to keep objects from being flung at me, though I’m sure most of them wanted to join in.
“I think this discussion is over,” I addressed Talo directly. He appeared as if he were about to have a stroke. “I look forward to the next one. Let’s go, Aria.”
She remained as still as a petrified tree, so I turned her gently. I walked her back down the aisle, now a narrow path through an incensed mob with my four guards surrounding us. It was different from when we landed in the spaceport. A sea of Earther dignitaries raged on either side of us, and there were no hired Red Wing officers or any weapons of our own to keep them at bay. The only thing that did was fear. Fear of what might happen to their people if they harmed me. Earther clan-families could be massive, and I guaranteed a few of their relatives were among those who weren’t able to flee the Ring before we took over.
“You dare turn your back on us?” Talo hollered so loud his voice cracked. “Come back here, Mr. Trass!”
“I don’t know if that was a good idea,” Aria said to me softly, clinging tightly to my side.
“Now you finally see how they see us,” I replied.
“They’re never going to give in to all of that.”
“Maybe not, but it’ll make them see that we aren’t a threat that can be solved by a pat on the head and a shipload of credits.”
“We can’t keep fighting forever.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. You did well getting us here, Aria. Earthers needed to put a voice to a conflict so far away. Now they know we won’t bend. Whatever happens from here, they will start taking us seriously.”
We reached the doors of the Assembly Hall. USF officers had to shove a wall of Earthers aside so we could pass, then slammed it shut behind us. The Red Wing men hired to oversee the event filled the antechamber, rifles up and ready for anything, while some held back a wave of reporters at the entrance. The room at our back sounded like the galley on the Piccolo during a brawl.
“Mr. Trass, your belongings,” one of the Red Wing officers said to me. He handed me my hand-terminal and com-link, which I immediately shoved into my ear and switched on.
“That you, Kale?” Rin whispered through it.
“Kale… what are you really planning?” Aria asked, her voice trembling. Rin must have heard that because she was immediately comfortable enough to fill me in.
“We have him,” she said, smart enough not to use Basaam Venta’s name in case anybody was listening. “We had to dispense with some light security, but we weren’t seen. Gareth has us on a concealed route back to the Cora. Smooth sailing from here. I’m switching off coms until we’re on board.”
“You can tell me, Kale,” Aria implored. I was busy doing my best not to react to Rin’s news. “I may not approve of your aunt’s methods, but I do understand why you all might think violence is the answer.”
I ran my hand across Aria’s freckled cheek and looked her straight in the eyes. “I’m going to show them what they fear most. I promise you, the next time you discuss a treaty with Earth, it will be on our terms.”
I could tell by her expression that the next logical question was on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to ask it, but I wasn’t sure she wanted to hear the full answer. Aria believed that things could be handled fairly and with diplomacy—that was why I valued her so immensely as our ambassador. But she wasn’t Titanborn. She couldn’t understand, no matter how hard she tried. She didn’t know what it was like to have an entire race look down upon yours like the dirt stuck to their boots. Even though she was an illegitimate offworlder who grew up ostracized and without a clan-family to call her own, she could still easily blend in with the rest of them.
Before either of us uttered another word, footsteps clacked across the antechamber. Madame Venta was approaching, wearing excessively high heels like she had made it a point that I would never be able to gaze so far down upon her again.
“You have quite a flair for dramatics, Mr. Trass,” she said, her flamboyant entourage trailing closely behind her. “If I were you, I would have taken the deal.”
“Anything to benefit you, right?” I replied.
“Their blessing is just a formality. Every corporation exists under that same pretense, and you don’t seem naïve enough to think the USF makes any decision on their own.”
“My ambassador has made me very aware of how your world works.”
“Few have had such an intimate look.” She ambled closer, until there was barely half a meter between us. The sweet tang of her perfume accosted my nostrils. Her very presence silenced Aria and left her staring.
“If you don’t mind, Madame Venta, we have to go.” I took Aria’s hand and drew her around them, but both of Madame Venta’s sons moved to impede us. My guards rushed in front of me. The Red Wing men watching over the room stirred.
“My Chief Engineer at Europa went missing earlier,” Madame Venta said calmly. “He was supposed to be here. You wouldn’t happen to have seen him anywhere, would you?”
“Losing track of your own people now?”
“He’s not one to be late.”
“Always prompt,” Karl sneered.
“If I hear anything, I’ll be sure to pass it along,” I said. “Though I am an outsider here after all.”
“So you are,” Madame Venta said. “But she’s not.”
“She’s been with me this entire time. I wish we could be of more help, but we really must go.”
Again, I attempted to walk away. Madame Venta laid a hand on Aria’s shoulder. It wasn’t aggressive, but the way she did it made my blood boil. Like she owned her. “You should consider keeping better company, Aria,” she whispered. Her fingers slid up Aria’s collarbone toward her slender neck. Madame Venta stroked her once there tenderly; then she and her entire entourage marched in the other direction.
Aria released a breath as if she’d just been suffocating. We stopped outside of the elevator, currently being secured by Red Wing Company men.
“Ignore her, Aria. She’ll earn the same fate as Luxarn soon enough.” I took her wrist and stepped onto the lift, but she wriggled away.
“Kale, I… If you’ll allow it, I’d like to go see an old friend from Old Dome before we leave,” she said, standing just outside of the elevator doors with her thousand-meter stare still aimed toward where Madame Venta had been.
“It isn’t safe.”
“It is for me. It’s like Rin always says, I’m not one of you.”
“Aria, what’s wrong?”
“It’s…” She bit her lip, still unable to look at me. “I grew up here. There are people I haven’t seen in a long time. Places I’d like to say goodbye to. I have a feeling this is the last time I’ll ever be back.”
“You said yourself how dangerous it could be here.”
“I promise. I’ll be back in our hangar before you leave. Please, Kale, for me?”
Something was obviously troubling her, and it was more than what she’d seen between me and Trevor Cross. More than being a part of our failed meeting with the Assembly. I remembered leaving my home for the first time and boarding a gas harvester; the feeling that I might never come back. Now she was the same. An outsider.
If anybody understood how much someone needs time for themselves, away from judgment or responsibility, it was me. And even though I knew both Rin and Gareth would warn me not to let her out of my sights on a world owned by Earth, I trusted her. Aria could have fl
ed the moment she found us interrogating Trevor, but she didn’t. She’d stuck by my side before the Assembly, and so I’d stand by hers.
“I understand,” I said as I blocked the elevator doors and held her by her slight shoulders.
“Thank you.” She leaned up on the balls of her feet and started to plant a kiss on my lips before realizing where we were and awkwardly shifting toward my cheek. It was too late. One of the relentless reporters at the building’s entry had slipped a recording drone in and caught us from across the room.
“By Trass!” Aria murmured. “I’m so sorry.”
I surveyed the antechamber. The drone zipped into the mob before anyone could stop it. Gone with a picture that’d earn thousands of credits. I thought I’d feel angry, but I didn’t. After the summit, I couldn’t care less what any Earther thought of me. If anything, my relationship with a non-Titanborn only proved we weren’t as shallow as they were.
“Don’t be,” I said. “Just try to be as quick as you can and keep your terminal on just in case. I’ll message you when we’re preparing for takeoff.” I addressed two of my guards. “Retrieve your weapons and stay with her. Keep her safe, or you’ll feel Titan’s air on your flesh.”
“Yes, Lord Trass,” they said.
“They’ll just draw attention,” Aria protested.
“They’ll accompany you, or you won’t go. Your face might be recognizable now after they air footage from this. Come upstairs and change into something plain.” I turned to the guards. “And both of you change into unmarked clothing so you all blend in like poor offworlders.”
Aria sighed and nodded meekly as she stepped onto the elevator. “All right, fine.”
The elevator doors shut, and we shot up through the building. Our meeting with the USF was officially concluded, and it went exactly how I’d expected it to. Exactly how Aria hoped against reason it wouldn’t. It was time to leave the stifling air and glittering towers of New Beijing behind, and thanks to Rin and Gareth, we wouldn’t leave empty-handed.
The elevator reached our floor. I stopped outside of Aria’s room. “Don’t be long, okay?” I said. “We can’t leave without you.”
Titan's Rise: (Children of Titan Book 3) Page 19
