I found why do I think I see water what you mean those sparkly areas those are the highest concentrations of Vani in and out of the staging grounds they’re chitin provides a perfect reflective surface for starlight they flicker because they keep waving their whips around over their heads impressive you should see them gathered in numbers during the day more than once I’ve been out in the high desert and gotten blinded when the head of some Vlade a kilometre or more away caught the Sun just so multiply that by thousands and it can be blinding glare abatement tech was among the equipment in our satchels but it helped to know that we’d be smart to get it out and prepared before dawn Hammersmith brought us in low we made out the whips flailing above each big black head they moved not with the deliberate amiable pace of the one who had been so determined to make my acquaintance but with frantic hyperkinetic excitement something milk-white emerged from within that sea of black and disappeared before I could register that it had been a naked woman striding among the Villani on legs three times their natural length she had to be one of the dance pilgrims the Villani had chosen for this year’s performance there was no telling who she was where she had come from or how she had come to the decision that death on an alien world was the best possible purpose for her life but the sight of her appearing and disappearing within that crush of Vani bodies and the awareness that the morning promised a performance that would tear her to pieces was enough to make my heart thump and sympathetic pain Hammersmith said we’re going to have to cut this flyover short Villani aren’t usually bothered by intrusions into their airspace but the ones down there are agitated and ready to give up their lives we wouldn’t want them to try jumping for us the Porrinyard s asked him has that been known to happen one of the skimmers taking off during the massacre at D Jews Embassy reported barely evading of Lonnie who leaped I think 000 meters straight up then by all means I said with exaggerated politeness do feel free to get us the living fuck out of their way the reflected starlight abated as soon as our flight path carried us past the airspace over the amphitheater floor we followed a steep slope that became a jagged cliff that dominated the air before us for hundreds of metres as we rose toward the summit I thought the expanse of rock would never end until it receded and gave way to an array of lights Halla quarters motion detectors and narek amplifiers lined up on the overlook behind those were several hundred people human and otherwise milling around in clumps at the base of the bleachers erected by the races capable of sitting down and a line of stolid unmoving sand Houghton gathered at the top of the separate platform reserved for them as the only race here which could not I also spotted a number of hovering AI source avatars a sight that made me grimace in irritation dozens of skimmers and other vehicles of assorted human and alien manufacturer were lined up in rows on the flat lands about 000 metres behind the viewing stand Hammersmith found a spot large enough to accommodate us and descended as we touched ground he said your belongings will be safe enough but it’s pretty dark out here behind the lights you might want to take a glow stick or something I’ll be fine the Porrinyard said their combined perceptions contributed uncommon judgment to what was already significantly above average night vision but Andrea I demurred at the thought of rummaging through my satchel for a light I’ll be okay Hammersmith led the way which was unnecessary even since an idiot could have seen that the only possible destination was that big well-lit hard not to trip over place where all the lights and people were Ocean walked alongside me Skye half a dozen steps behind a formation they picked up in their secondary roles as my security the air was dusty warmer than it has any right to be at night and flavored with a tangy pungent scent I didn’t recognize it may have been the melange of so many lani gathered together in close proximity maybe some other perfume that just happened to be native to the place I didn’t like it any more than I like most planetary smells but could deal with it as we drew closer to the bleachers we started passing indentures from several species running errands that required returning to their vehicles a tall and slender rear goal his immobilized in to a distant approximation of the human grin hurried by on his triple segmented legs pausing for a light bow as he recognized Hammersmith a slower bursty knee no taller than my collarbone waddled by behind him not acknowledging us at all a symptom of great haste among their kind who tend to the excessively friendly we did not get past and emaciated she wearing a diaphanous gown in the usual fringe of white curls who noticed our presence and moved to intercept me excuse me I have trouble navigating the limited range of human facial features are you the war criminal counselor Andrea Court this was par for the species who possess about as much charm as a handful of tacks yes and you are I am cray or egg prime speaker of my delegation and I must confess that I am not happy to see you among the spectators I offered a false smile why not it is only reasonable for a representative of a more civilized species to express foreboding over the unannounced arrival of one of your kinds most infamous blunt instruments and it is only reasonable of me to not give a shit I’m afraid I must ask your intentions here submit your request to the hamsa embassy and I’ll make sure that you receive the full explanation when that information is cleared reg began to raise his voice that is not satisfactory the same could be said for fucking yourself I felt the impact point of invisible daggers all across my shoulder blades as we walked away and did not much care you know those stories you sometimes hear about likeable Chi me neither the crowd slowed us down some more as we walked around the bleachers we passed another couple of chattering bursts Eenie and some wiry human beings whose boneless movements suggested that they might have been dance pilgrims intent on watching the show among friends in the diplomatic community a pair of Kreutz people women’s sporting shaved heads knotted of Hammersmith who said ladies a couple of hundred sentient some varying species gathered in small groups around the reporting equipment or caught up with one another around the bleachers I was just beginning to wonder how we’d go about finding Derek Schiff in this madness when one of the local AI source avatars a black rectangle 1 metre square that had been hovering beside a heated discussion between one of the rear goal and one of the chi solved the problem by zipping over to meet me face to well whatever you call that thing that isn’t a face greetings Andrea Court I am the AI
source embassy - blonde I was of course told to expect your arrival the avatars identification of itself as the embassy not the ambassador was no surprise to me the AI source don’t need houses they don’t even need avatars except for convenience in communicating with us organic types this ones pretense of needing to approach me in order to communicate was just a convenient fiction for hammer Smith’s benefit since my AI source handlers could interface with me at any time I suppose you’re eager to offer me any assistance I might require during my mission on world that was my intention yes then please stop wasting my time and assist me you already know why I’m here point me at this Derrick Schiff one of the advantages of being abrupt with a faceless avatar is that you don’t have to feel bad afterward about hurting its feelings the AI source embassy flitted off sailing over the heads of a number of nearby Chi before disappearing around the curve of the bleachers Hammersmith boggled I never saw anybody be rude to the AI source before Ocean said that’s the counselor I’ve seen her be rude to the weather the Embassy’s avatar returned in a blur about three minutes later I found Derek Schiff and his associate Tara foe trying to elicit the aid of a census specialist among the cousin Hilton they are now aware of your arrival and will at my suggestion rendezvous with you at the top row of seats near this end of the viewing stand if you leave now you should be able to get there two minutes and 17 seconds before their own arrival can I help you with anything else no thank you I turn to Ocean and said no reason we all have to waste our time with this distraction let Skye stay with me while you take Hammersmith and wander get introduced to the local players and ask any questions you have to in order to get educated got it Ocean said by which point Hammersmith was so slack-jawed that Ocean had to tug on his shoulder jus
t to get him to follow Skye I came rolling over her gate almost a strut her eyes twinkling with Mary knowledge what I said you shameless hussy you’re actually showing off for that poor kid Skye and I found an empty place near the end of the upper level of bleachers and sat in comfortable silence for about two minutes until two figures approached us right on schedule one was a tall man with a slight paunch the other a much shorter and younger woman who might have been pretty had she allowed herself a smile the man approached within five paces then hesitated counsellor court I rose that’s right
Derek Schiff that’s me juve treatments make it hard to judge a each among the rich but shift seemed to be in his late 40s he was clad in a multi pocketed green vest and tailored grey trousers sullied by dusty patches on his knees his chin was a rounded knob at the end of a jaw that jutted past the thin broad line of his mouth his nose made a heroic effort to stick out as far but failed just short of mission accomplished I’m glad to meet you this is my right-hand counselor Tara Fox Fox nodded without saying anything or changing a facial expression blank enough to make a rear goal look manic I made her a youthful 40
she had dark olive skin black eyes full red lips a pert nose and features so clear and untouched by life that they might have been tinted porcelain her black hair was wet down and tied back with a severity that might have made furrowing her brow painful her actual hairline a strange parody of male pattern baldness must have been shaped by depilation or regular shaving a pair of white ovals above the scalp bracketing a widow’s peak as thin and as sharp as a dagger whatever her duties for mr. Schiff included formidable ‘ti must have been one of job requirements I could feel the cold heat of her appraisal I introduced Skye for parity hands were shakin all around and we said I said let’s get down to it sir ambassador Kreutz Eze that you’ve lost your daughter well it’s true that meirin’s been missing for some time I hope not to lose her I acknowledged the distinction with a nod and you think she’s among the dance pilgrims that’s where she was headed she have said last time I heard from her what can you tell me about her I’m afraid that’s not the way this is going to work counselor I would prefer to start by confirming that you’re as good as your reputation and not just another useless functionary here to waste my time what can you tell me about her behind me Skyee muttered oh dear here we go I contemplated the question for a moment using the index finger of my right hand to twirl the single lock of hair I allow to grow long I was only informed of your problem an hour ago and haven’t received a dossier or ha-lo or even informal summary of any intelligence you might have gathered so far so anything I offer you here is educated guesswork I won’t hold you to it very well if he wanted parlor tricks I could oblige I presume that she’s between 12 and 20 years old mercantile reckoning she’s been raised to power and privilege in a family with considerable though not all powerful political influence any notoriety you possess is strictly local she’s beautiful intelligent and either well educated or at least possessed of considerable intellectual curiosity if she has political opinions they’re more progressive than your own she is not self-destructive or emotionally disturbed far from it you consider her misguided and idealistic and naive an attitude that has caused some friction between you over the years but hasn’t completely destroyed your relationship the two of you are especially close because her mother is either dead or otherwise not in the picture her disappearance at a point when you were separated by a significant distance for routine reasons was the last thing you ever expected there were no leads for months perhaps even a couple of years before you received word from her informing you where she was going and why am i correct Schiff offered a grim nod that’s remarkable that’s Elementary I can approximate her age because of the average age of the dance pilgrims being smuggled to Vlad I can estimate your family’s approximate economic and political status because of your ability to afford the passage here a trip that would have had to include at least one special Charter I can presume that you have some political influence because ambassador Kroy Duan tada and presume that it’s not tremendous political influence by his disregard for results I can assume your daughter intelligent and intellectually curious and not self-destructive or emotionally disturbed because that’s the typical psychological profile among the dance pilgrims I can guess that she’d be politically progressive in comparison with yourself because leaving you was at least in part an act of rebellion against a father with some say in the halls of power I deduced that you’d consider her misguided and naive in those opinions because that’s what a man in your position would think then I figured that it hasn’t destroyed your relationship because you’re here looking for her he nodded why would you be so sure that her mother’s not in the picture if her father cares enough to travel this distance to find her then it’s likely that her mother would too unless she was absent for some reason of course it was always possible that she could be at home taking care of other responsibilities like other children but I made an educated guess and assumed her not an issue accurate enough Schiff said without any apparent emotion and the circumstances of my daughter’s disappearance
given the lengths you’ve gone to in order to find her I don’t believe you could be the kind of man who could lounge around the house and only realize long after the fact that his daughter was missing that suggests either a routine business trip for you or routine overnight journey for her some unremarkable circumstance where the two of you were separated and out of contact as for how you know that she was headed for Vlad it’s obvious that she wouldn’t have let you know where she was heading as long as it still remained possible to intercept her after making good her escape she still would have needed enough time to make contact with the unknown parties responsible for providing the pilgrims with their surgical alterations or more properly since nobody knows who they are and she would have not had any real clue how to find them allowed them to find and recruit her add to that the time needed for that surgery in recovery and a delay of many months or more seems reasonable it’s been more than three years Schiff said almost four it must have been a difficult journey in any event her recent insistence on then finding a way to let you know she was alive and on her weight of lon provides further argument that your relationship had once been a close one I believe that’s it sir shift rubbed his temples with the thumb and forefinger of one hand a gesture less about tiredness than shrouding his eyes not quite you never said how you knew she was beautiful oh that frankly sir I don’t but you said beauty’s subjective sir and if you forgive me saying so the chances that your daughter inherited any are slim given the genetic predispositions of the particular face I’m looking at in truth I don’t have the slightest scintilla of an idea what she looks like she might be a hideous crone for all I know then why did you call her beautiful I was speaking to her father and it’s a deduction that her father was likely to agree with regardless of objective truth shift glanced at his right hand Tara Fox she remained impassive her face
Andrea Cort 03: War of the Marionettes Page 3
