A'NIR (Jim Able: Offworld Book 4)

by Ed Charlton

  “Greetings, James Able, this is Margrev Aplar. The scanning devices are behaving in a different manner.”

  “Ah, yes. I am using them.”

  “Please explain.”

  “I’m taking readings of Main-umm-Beauty. I guessed you would need to know what damage Sopha Luca had done.”

  The Regdenir was silent long enough for Jim’s heart to sink.

  “Please cease all such activities. We must consult with the First Order before any such thing is done again.”

  “Margrev, I’m only recording data. What possible objection could they have?”

  There was another silence on the other end.

  “James Able, please remember you are our guest. We are not yet ready to allow any...anyone to use such equipment or to observe Beauty in such a manner. We must consult with the First Order.”

  Jim sighed and terminated the scanning.

  “Very well. I’m powering down.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Any news for me?”

  “The audnir are calm once more. We are controlling the restoration of power. The meeting will take place soon. Be patient, James Able, be patient.”

  As he ended the call, Jim brought his fist down on the console and shouted, “Stupid bastards!”

  He decided to return to TMV-I via TMV. He did as comprehensive a planetary sweep as he could using the flier’s sensors. It would not have the accuracy of the wide array that Sopha had assembled, but there might be something to see. Jim thought if no one else wanted to know what damage had been done, he did.

  When he was once more in orbit around TMV-I, he connected to Sopha’s base controller and uploaded its entire database. He set up the parameters for a search-and-compare analysis. The computer gave a runtime estimate of twenty hours. He started it and sat back with an angry sigh.

  ***

  “James Able?”

  “This is he.”

  “Greetings, James Able. This is Margrev Aplar. The message system is restored. You will find a message for you.”

  “Okay, what does it say?”

  “It was not I who sent it.”

  “I’ll check it.”

  “We will meet again soon.”

  #

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, James Able of Earth.

  It is with great pleasure and excitement that I greet you in the name of our people.

  I look forward to meeting with you in person.

  I have decided, in the light of recent events, that our people should unite to show one face to our neighbors from other worlds.

  I request that you join us for an introductory meeting at the Great Hall of the Government tomorrow morning.

  You will find this in the city of Arnarchara.

  I will arrange for City Lawn to the west of the Great Hall to be cleared for your landing.

  Two cultural ambassadors will be assigned to you upon your arrival to guide you and answer any questions you may have before the meeting.

  jisporaVflacVmeblishVnrc

  #

  jisporaVflacVmeblishVnrc

  Greetings, Jispora Flac.

  It is with great pleasure that I accept your most gracious invitation.

  I, too, look forward to our first meeting.

  James Able

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  #

  madharVnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, Madhar Nect.

  I am relieved to see order has returned.

  Are you okay?

  I have received my summons to the Great Hall of Government. Will you be there?

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  #

  margrevVaplarVregde2Vopp

  Greetings, Margrev Aplar.

  I am glad to see your efforts have been successful.

  What can you tell me about the meeting to which I have been invited?

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  #

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, James Able.

  Yes, our efforts have been rewarded with success.

  I will be answering your questions when you land in Arnarchara tomorrow.

  margrevVaplarVregde2Vopp

  #

  “Okay, cultural ambassador,” Jim said to the screen. “So, the Regdenir are taking a high profile, are they?”

  #

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, Jim Able.

  Perhaps I should be grateful that I am alive, and even grateful to the tree-climbers that they still hold some influence.

  But then, I just lost out on a huge TV deal to my rivals in the news organization. It is they who will cover the first official visit of an alien to our people, not Science World.

  Life is cruel sometimes, Jim Able.

  How is your partner? Are its injuries severe? Will it be with us tomorrow?

  madharVnectVlatsinVux

  #

  madharVnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, Madhar Nect.

  Tella was badly injured and transferred to another craft with better facilities than this one. I have hopes that Tella will survive.

  How are relations with the Regdenir? I hear they will have a role in tomorrow’s meeting.

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  #

  g101VnectVlatsinVux

  Greetings, Jim Able.

  I would rather talk to you in person about the Regdenir.

  Their role in all this is still not entirely clear. I, too, hear they will be represented, but news is hard to come by. They seemed to have backed the Meblish party. I doubt this will be sustainable. But “politics is the art of uncertainty,” as one of our former chairs used to say.

  We will meet again tomorrow, spaceman.

  madharVnectVlatsinVux

  #

  Jim felt uncomfortable about being the center of an official, televised, worldwide event. That wasn’t his job. He had only come to see about a minor trade matter.

  I should be asking Liz to send a full diplomatic first contact mission.

  “It’s too late to back out now,” he muttered under his breath. He went to shave and dress in something like a uniform.

  Around midmorning, he landed on City Lawn. The crowd was enormous. The TV crews were covering every angle. As he walked down the ramp, he could hear the buzzing of the crowd mixing with occasional cheering. He felt to check that the remote unit for the flier was still tied to his belt.

  Madhar Nect and Margrev Aplar were waiting for him. The Regdenir was dressed, as always, in his hooded blue cloak. The scientist was in an odd, hooded cloak of her own. It was a rust-brown color with a red diagonal stripe. She looked uncomfortable in it.

  “Greetings, James Able of Earth,” began Margrev Aplar. “I believe you already know the Nooc of Gullara, Madhar Nect?”

  “Indeed, yes,” Jim said with a small bow. He added quietly to Madhar, “The what?”

  Madhar shifted her feet and looked down. “It’s an honorary title. It means I once advised an alliance chair about science. Don’t let it worry you.” She waved her hand to dismiss the matter.

  Margrev continued, “Please come with us, and we will take you into the Great Hall.”

  Madhar added under her breath, “Wave to the cameras, Jim. Your public is watching you.”

  “Don’t make it worse than it already is!”

  Jim waved to the crowd and then to the nearest camera.

  The Great Hall of the Government seemed out of place in what Jim knew of Turcanian society. It was ornate, old, and slightly musty-smelling. Madhar told him it was the crowning achievement of the unification movement, which had brought an end to the local wars that scarred most of their history.

  The Regdenir only made one comment. “‘U
nification’ was, and is, an exaggeration.”

  Madhar responded, “At least now, most of the time, we only fight with votes.”

  “And in doing so, you let the corporations become independent tribes. In replacing the old political entities, they begin again to make endless war.”

  The three stopped along a long wood-paneled corridor.

  “Look,” replied Madhar testily. “I’m not a politician, nor I hear, are you.”

  “Nor am I,” said Jim.

  Margrev Aplar looked as though he might punch the scientist in the face.

  “Your point?”

  “It’s not our place to sort out this kind of mess. But you know very well there’s a lot of history here that can’t be just swept away.”

  “That is correct,” he replied, “if you refer to Regdenir history!”

  “Cool it, you two,” interrupted Jim. “You’ve got the rest of your lives to make peace. I just want to say ‘Hello’ and be on my way.”

  The thought of Jim’s leaving affected them both. Aplar closed his eyes and nodded. Madhar smiled sadly. They continued their long walk to the Great Hall.

  Doors on either side of the corridor were open. Interested faces watched them pass. A line of soldiers stood at unmoving attention, all the way down to the gold-plated doors.

  Two ceremonial guards swung open the doors. Jim saw the expanse of the room open up before him.

  ***

  The Great Hall of the Government was a huge tiered auditorium. A staircase descended at Jim’s feet through row upon row of seated Turcanians. Long curved tables held a monitor for each person. Jim could see his own image showing on hundreds of screens stretching out to his left and right. At the end of the stairs was a stage with two rows of more seated Turcanians in ceremonial robes.

  To the right of a podium stood four officials. Madhar whispered their names to Jim as they walked slowly down the steps.

  “Jispora Flac to the left, current alliance chair. He’s the nearest we have to someone in charge. Next to him is Larspa Culle. She is the leader of the radical movement. They hold this alliance together. Next is Madlen Torespora. He is the oldest statesman we have. Every alliance for the last seventy years has included him—for credibility alone. He’s a doddering old fool who just won’t die.”

  Jim’s eyes were already locked with the eyes of the fourth figure on the stage.

  Margrev took up the commentary. “The final member of the welcoming committee is Almeth Luca of the First Order.”

  “Did you say Luca?”

  “Yes, he is father to Sopha Luca. He is one of the leaders of the First Order.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “It should not be of concern to you.” There was an edge to Margrev’s voice that unsettled Jim as much as the stare he was getting from the stage.

  “Sorry, Jim,” whispered Madhar. “They made me swear not to tell you until it was too late. They were scared you’d back out.”

  “Damn right.”

  They reached the stage. Madhar hung back, and Margrev led Jim across to meet the four dignitaries. Almeth Luca held Jim’s hand in a strong grip for a long while. The Regdenir’s eyes searched Jim’s. No words were spoken, but Jim had a profound sense of having met this Turcanian before. There was a force of personality so strong he could have been telepathic. Jim had expected hostility, but instead, he sensed someone who expected to meet the universe head-on—whatever it had in store—without judgment. Jim was certain he was meeting one of TMV-I’s movers and shakers. As he shook hands with the other three, none of them seemed any more than they appeared. Jim wondered what it was in the Regdenir bloodline that could give rise to a figure so impressive.

  Margrev motioned Jim to the podium.

  He stepped up, and the buzz of the assembly died down. He could see the microphones arranged in a neat row before him. At the corner of his vision, he was aware of the TV cameras. From this position, he could see everything Madhar had told him about Turcanian politics.

  The members of the government were assembled by political party. Each party wore robes or sashes of differing colors. It was a bewildering patchwork. There were no blue cloaks in the tiers of seats. Jim guessed that part of the deal that had restored peace was the presence of the Regdenir around the edge of the Great Hall. They were there in large numbers, encircling the chamber. They looked, to Jim, like an army of blue sheepdogs.

  The expectant silence surrounded him.

  “Here goes!” he said to himself.

  “I am James Able, representing the people of the planet Earth. Thank you for this opportunity to address you and to meet with you.” He smiled at his audience. “It is important that you know I am not a diplomat. I work merely as an investigator for a department of my government. A small matter brought me here, and that matter has now been resolved, giving us this meeting as a wonderful by-product.”

  He paused, wondering if that had come out right. “I stand here to confirm what your scientists have been telling you for many years. Life does exist on other worlds. It is possible to travel in space. When you decide to do so, you will find many races out there who will be good friends to you. You will enrich them and they will enrich you. As in any community, there are those who need the discipline of laws. There are institutions in the galactic community to provide that structure. When you decide you wish to know more about this, Earth will gladly send diplomats and advisors to ease your transition.”

  Jim smiled again and, then, paused to look serious. “The events of the last week need careful thought on your part. To the other races of the galaxy, you are all one. It is hard enough sometimes to keep track of what race lives where; it is impossible to keep track of subdivisions within any one planet’s inhabitants. You must, as Jispora Flac has said, ‘show one face to your neighbors.’ As I look out here on this great assembly, I see that you enjoy and celebrate your differences.” A quiet buzz filled the hall. “But in your dealings with other races, everything must be done by consensus and in unity. Different races will come to you. Some will come to trade technology. Some will come to trade biological specimens for agriculture. Some will come to hear your philosophy and to learn at your feet. It will not happen if you are at war with one another. It will not happen if you divide into competing factions.”

  Jim paused, wondering whether to add any more. As much as this kind of thing was not his job, he was aware of how much he was enjoying it. He felt a surge of confidence, sufficient to speak the thought that came to him with a memory of something Madhar had told him.

  “It is time for the a’nir to come out from the shadows.”

  A roar went up from the Regdenir around the room. Some audnir were nodding and clapping; some were shaking their heads. Not quite understanding the reaction, Jim turned toward Margrev and Madhar. Margrev’s eyes were moist, his face turning to Jim in wonder. Madhar approached Jim, laughing and nodding.

  The two rows of dignitaries behind him were up and milling around the stage, talking loudly.

  Margrev and Madhar took up positions on either side of Jim and escorted him across the stage to Jispora Flac. The alliance chair looked coldly into Jim’s eyes.

  “You have been briefed far better than I had anticipated.”

  “I don’t understand,” said Jim.

  Flac obviously did not believe him. He turned away from Jim and began a conversation with another of his party.

  “What’s eating him?” Jim asked Madhar.

  “Oh, Jim. You’ve really done it this time,” she said, shaking her head.

  “What? What did I say?”

  “Ask the Regdenir.”

  Jim was beginning to worry. The Great Hall was still full of the buzz of hundreds of loud voices.

  “Margrev?”

  “You chose well in quoting scripture, James Able.”

  “I did
? I mean...What scripture?”

  “Come. There is a reception awaiting you. You will have another chance to eat our more exotic foods. We can talk there. What a day, James Able, a great day!”

  The banquet buffet was laid out in an adjoining hall. The group on stage led the way, but soon many from the assembly filed into the room. They brought the noise of heated discussion with them.

  Madhar, Margrev, Larspa Culle (the radical), and Madlen Torespora (the dodderer) stood nibbling various foods with Jim. He got the impression that Torespora was posing for the cameras that had followed him around the room. Jim did not talk much with Culle but could see she had as keen a sense of humor as Madhar.

  He tried a couple of times to talk to Margrev, but they were constantly interrupted. Eventually, he became so frustrated that he grabbed the Regdenir by the arm and moved away from the others.

  “I really want to know what I said.”

  “Of course. But wait just a moment.”

  Jim looked around to where Margrev had pointed. Almeth Luca was sailing through the crowd toward them.

  “James Able,” Luca said in greeting, bowing slightly.

  “Almeth Luca. How is your son?” asked Jim, teeth gritted with tension.

  “My son is recovering from his injuries.”

  “He was hurt?”

  “He will recover.”

  Jim nodded.

  Margrev Aplar said, “James Able has asked to understand better why his remarks were of such significance.”

  Almeth Luca looked into Jim’s eyes again with an imperious glance. “It has never been heard that a stranger could quote our scripture.” His eyes moved off Jim and into the distance. “The symbol of the eclipse is often used to convey a variety of conditions: a spiritual darkness, an exile, the darkness of ignorance...”

  In Sopha’s father, Jim could hear the same practiced speech of a teacher that he had heard in the son.

  “In The Prophecies, there are many such images. Only one uses the word ‘a’nir.’ It is the Prophecy of Regnarmar. It is accepted that it predicts the dawn of a new age for understanding and peace. It is much disputed whether this is a spiritual or worldly change.”

  “I understand when you say ‘much disputed.’ I have seen how you guys discuss things in the Regdekol.”

  The Regdenir looked at Jim with a fierce expression, a fire lighting in his eyes. It passed in a moment as a broad smile spread across his face. “Hah! I will add allowing you to see the Regdekol to the list of Sopha’s sins! When did he show you this prophecy?”