Downbelow Station

by C. J. Cherryh

  deep space

  Ayres sat down at the table in the main room, ignored the guards, to lean his head against his hands and try to recover his balance. He remained as he was for several breaths, then rose, walked to the water dispenser on the wall, unsteady on his feet. He moistened his fingers and bathed his face with the cold water, took a paper cup and drank to settle his stomach.

  Someone joined him in the room. He looked, scowled instantly, for it was Dayin Jacoby, who sat down at the only table. He would not have gone back to it, but his legs were too weak to bear long standing. He did not bear up well through jump. Jacoby fared better, and that too he held against him.

  "It's close," Jacoby said. "I have a good idea where we are."

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  Ayres sat down, forced his eyes into focus. The drugs made everything distant. "You should be proud of yourself."

  "Mazian ... will be there."

  "They don't confide in me. But it makes sense that he would ... Is this being recorded?"

  "I have no idea. What if it is? The fact is, Mr. Ayres, that you can't retain Pell for the Company, you can't protect it. You had your chance, and it's gone. And Pell doesn't want Mazian. Better Union order than Mazian."

  "Tell that to my companions."

  "Pell," Jacoby said, leaning forward, "deserves better than the Company can give it. Better than Mazian will give it, that's sure. I'm for our interest, Mr. Ayres, and we deal as we must."

  "You could have dealt with us."

  "We did ... for centuries."

  Ayres bit his lip, refusing to be drawn further into this argument. The drugs he had to have for jump ... fogged his thinking. He had already talked, and he had resolved not to. They wanted something of him, or they would not have brought him out of confinement and let him up onto this level of the ship. He leaned his head against his hand and tried to reason himself out of his muzziness while there was still time.

  "We're ready to go in." Jacoby pursued him. "You know that."

  Jacoby was trying to frighten him. He had been prostrate with terror during the last maneuvering. He had endured jump twice now, with the feeling that his guts were twisted inside out. He refused to think of another one.

  "I think they're going to have a talk with you," Jacoby said, "about a message for Pell, something to the effect that Earth has signed a treaty; 307

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  that Earth supports the right of the citizens of Pell to choose their own government. That kind of thing."

  He stared at Jacoby, doubting, for the first time, where right and wrong lay. Jacoby was from Pell. Whatever Earth's interests, those interests could not be served by antagonizing a man who might, despite all wishes to the contrary, end up high in the government on Pell.

  "You'll be interested, perhaps," Jacoby said, "in agreements involving Pell itself. If Earth doesn't want to be cutoff ... and you protest it seeks trades ...

  it has to go through Pell, Mr. Ayres. We're important to you."

  "I'm well aware of that fact. Talk to me when you are in authority over Pell. Right now the authority on Pell is Angelo Konstantin, and I have yet to see anything that says differently."

  "Deal now," Jacoby said, "and expect agreement. The party I represent can assure you of safeguards for your interests. We're a jumping-off point, Mr.

  Ayres, for Earth and home. A quiet takeover on Pell, a quiet stay for you while you're waiting on your companions to overtake you, for a journey home in a ship easily engaged here at Pell; or difficulties ... prolonged difficulties, resulting from a long and difficult siege. Damage ... possibly the destruction of the station. I don't want that; I don't think you do. You're a humane man, Mr. Ayres. And I'm begging you— make it easy on Pell.

  Just tell the truth. Make it clear to them that there's a treaty, that their choice has to be Union. That Earth has let them go."

  "You work for Union. Thoroughly."

  "I want my station to survive, Mr. Ayres. Thousands upon thousands of people ... could die. You know what it is with Mazian using it for cover?

  He can't hold it forever, but he can ruin it." Ayres sat staring at his hand, knowing that he could not reason accurately in his present condition, knowing that most of what he had been told in all his stay among them was a lie. "Perhaps we should work together, Mr. Jacoby, if it can assure an end to this without further bloodshed."

  Jacoby blinked, perhaps surprised.

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  "Probably," Ayres said, "We are both realists, Mr. Jacoby ... I suspect you of it. Self-determination is a nice term for last available choice, is it not? I comprehend your argument. Pell has no defenses. Station neutrality ...

  meaning that you go with the winning side."

  "You have it, Mr. Ayres."

  "So do I," he said. "Order— in the Beyond— benefits trade, and that's to the Company's interest. It was inevitable that independence would come out here. It's just come sooner than Earth was ready to understand. It would have been acknowledged long ago if not for the blindness of ideologies. Brighter days, Mr. Jacoby, are possible. May we live to see them."

  It was a lie as sober-faced as he had ever delivered. He leaned back in his chair with nausea urging at him from the effects of jump and from outright terror.

  "Mr. Ayres."

  He looked back at the doorway. It was Azov. The Union officer walked in, resplendent in black and silver.

  "We are monitored," Ayres observed sourly.

  "I don't delude myself with your affection, Mr. Ayres. Only with your good sense."

  "I'll make your recording."

  Azov shook his head. "We go heralded," he said, "but by a different warning. There's no hope that Mazian's ships will all be docked. We brought you along first for the Mazianni; and secondly because in the taking of Pell station it will be useful to have a voice of former authority."

  He nodded weary assent. "If it saves lives, sir."

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  Azov simply stared at him. Frowned, finally. "Take time to recover your equilibrium, sirs. And to contemplate what you might do to benefit Pell."

  Ayres looked to Jacoby as Azov left and saw that Jacoby was also capable of anxiety. "Doubts?" he asked Jacoby sourly.

  "I have kin on that station," Jacoby said.

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  BOOK FOUR

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  1

  i

  Pell 10/10/52; 1100 hrs.

  The station was calmer. Queries to Legal Affairs had begun, and that was a good indication that the tension on the station was easing. The input file was full of queries about military actions, threatened lawsuits, indignant protests from merchants on-station who felt damages were due them for the continued curfew on the docks. There were protests from the merchanter ship Finity's End regarding a missing youth, the object of much anxiety, in the theory that one of the military crews could have swept him up in impressment. In fact the youth was probably in some station sleepover with a current infatuation from some other ship. Comp was quietly carrying out a card-use search, not an easy matter, for merchanter passes were not in such frequent use as stationer cards.

  Damon entertained hopes of finding him safe, refused to take alarm until the records search had come in; he had seen too many of these come across his desk only to discover a young merchanter who had had a falling out with his family or drunk too much to listen to vid. The whole thing was more security's problem at this level, but security had its hands full, its men and women standing guard duty with haggard eyes and short tempers. LA could at least punch comp buttons and take up some of the clerical work. Another killing in Q. It was depressing, and there was absolutely nothing they could do but note the fact. There was a report of a guard under suspension, accused of smuggling a case of Downer wine into Q. Some officer had decided the problem should not wait, when it was likely there w
as petty smuggling going on everywhere among the merchanters out there. The man was being made an example.

  He had three postponed hearings in the afternoon. They were likely to be postponed again, because the council was meeting and the board of justices was involved in that. He decided to agree with the defender to that effect, and put the message through, reserving the afternoon instead for the disposal of more queries that the lower levels of the office could not handle.

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  And having disposed of that, he swung his chair about and looked back at Josh, who sat dutifully reading a book on the auxiliary unit and trying not to look as bored as he ought to be. "Hey," Damon said. Josh looked at him. "Lunch? We can take a long one and work out at the gym."

  "We can go there?"

  "It's open."

  Josh turned the machine off.

  Damon rose, leaving everything on hold, walked over and gathered up his jacket, felt after cards and papers to be absolutely sure. Mazian's troops still stood guard here and there, as unreasonable as they ever had been.

  Josh likewise put on a jacket ... they were about the same size, and it was borrowed. Lending, Josh would accept, if not giving, augmenting his small wardrobe so that he could come and go in the offices without undue attention. Damon held the door button, instructed the office outside to delay calls for two hours.

  "Back at one," the secretary acknowledged, and turned to take an incoming call. Damon motioned Josh on through into the outer corridor.

  "A half an hour at the gym," Damon said, "then a sandwich at the concourse. I'm hungry."

  "Fine," Josh said. He looked nervously about him. Damon looked too, and felt uneasy. The corridors had very little traffic even yet. People were just not trusting of the situation. Some troops stood, distantly visible.

  "The troops should all be pulled back," he said to Josh, "by the end of this week. Our own security is taking over entirely in white; green maybe in two days. Have patience. We're working on it."

  "They'll still do what they want," Josh said somberly.

  "Huh. Did Mallory, after all?"

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  A shadow came on Josh's face. "I don't know. When I think about it, I still don't know."

  "Believe me." They had reached the lift, alone. A trooper stood at the corner of another corridor, a fact in the tail of the eye, nothing remarkable.

  He pushed the code for the core. "Had a bit of good news come in this morning. My brother called up, said things are smoothing out down there."

  "I'm glad," Josh murmured.

  The trooper moved suddenly. Came toward them. Damon looked. Others further down the hall started moving, all of them, at a near run. "Abort that," the first trooper snapped, reaching them. She reached for the panel herself. "We're on a call."

  "I can get you a priority," Damon said— to be rid of them. The move indicated trouble; he thought of them shoving stationers around on other levels.

  "Do it."

  He took his card from his pocket, thrust it into the slot and coded his priority; the lights went red. The rest of the troopers arrived as the car did, and armored shoulders pushed them aside as the troops all crowded in, leaving them there. The car whisked away, nonstop for whatever destination they had coded from inside. There was not a trooper left in the corridor. Damon looked at Josh, whose face was pale and set.

  "We take the next car," Damon said with a shrug. He was himself disturbed, and quietly coded in blue nine.

  "Elene?" Josh asked.

  "Want to get down there," he said. "You come with me. If there's trouble, it's likely to end up on the dockside. I want to get down there."

  The car delayed in coming. He waited several moments and finally used his card a second time, a second priority; the lights went red, signifying a 314

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  car on priority call, then blinked, signifying nothing available. He slammed his fist against the wall, cast a second look at Josh. It was far to walk; easier to wait for a car to free itself ... quicker in the long run.

  He walked over to the nearest com unit, keyed in on priority, while John stood waiting by the lift doors. "Hold the car if it comes," he said to Josh, punched the call in. "Com Central, this is Damon Konstantin on emergency. We're seeing troops pulling out on the run. What's going on?"

  There was a long delay. "Mr. Konstantin," a voice came back, "this is a public com unit."

  "Not at the moment, central. What's going on?"

  "General alert. Emergency posts, please."

  "What's going on?"

  Com had cut itself off. A measured siren began to sound. Red lights began to pulse in the overheads. People came out of the offices, looked at one another as if hoping it was drill, or mistaken. His own secretary was outside, far down the hall.

  "Get back inside," he shouted. "Get those doors shut." People moved backward, retreated into offices. The red light by Josh's shoulder was still blinking, indicating no car available: every car in the system must have jammed up down at the docks.

  "Come on," he said to Josh, motioned toward the end of the hall. Josh looked confused and he strode over, caught Josh by the arm. "Come on."

  There were others in the hall, farther on. He snapped an order at them, cleared them out, not blaming them ... there were others besides Konstantins who had loved ones scattered about the station, children in school and nurseries, people in hospital. Some ran ahead of them, refusing orders. A station security agent shouted out another order to halt; ignored, laid a hand on his pistol.

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  "Let them go," Damon snapped. "Let be."

  "Sir." The policeman's face relaxed from a grimace of panic. "Sir, I'm not getting anything over com."

  "Keep that gun holstered. You learn those reflexes from the troops? Stand your post. Calm people down. Help them where you can. There's a scramble going on. Could even be drill. Ease up."

  "Sir."

  They walked on, toward the emergency ramp, in the quiet hall ... not running; a Konstantin could not run, spread panic. He walked, trying to hold off panic in himself. "No time," Josh said under his breath. "By the time the alert gets here, the ships are on us. If Mazian's been caught at dock...."

  "Got militia and two carriers out from station," Damon said, and remembered all at once who Josh was. He caught his breath, gave him a desperate look, met a face as worried as his own. "Come on," he said.

  They reached the emergency ramp, heard shouting, loud as they opened the doors. Runners were headed in down it from other levels. "Slow down!" Damon yelled at those who passed him, and they did, several turns, but a few became many, and suddenly there were more coming up, the noise increasing, more running ... the transport system jammed everywhere and all the levels pouring into the spiral well. "Take it easy,"

  Damon shouted, grabbed shoulders physically and tried to slow it, but the rush accelerated, bodies jamming in, men, women, and children, impossible now even to get out of it. The doors were full of people trying to go down.

  "The docks!" he heard shouted. It spread like fire, with the red light of alarm burning in the overhead, the assumption that had been seething in Pell since the troops came— that someday it would come, that the station was under attack, that evacuation was underway. The mass pressed down, and there was no stopping it.

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  ii

  Norway: 1105

  CFX/KNIGHT/189-8989-687/

  EASYEASYEASY/

  SCORPION- TWELVEZEROZEROZERO/

  ENDIT.

  Signy keyed back acknowledgment and turned to Graff with a wide sweep of her hand. "Hit it!" Graff relayed, and GO sounded throughout the ship.

  Warnings flared, spreading to dockside. Troops outside finished stripping the umbilicals. "We can't take them," Signy said when Di Janz fretted in com. It sat ill with her to abandon men. "They're all right."

  "Um
bilicals clear," Graff shouted across, off com. It was a go-when-ready from Europe, which had left its troops, already moving out. Pacific was moving. Tibet's rider was still heading in behind the wave of the original message, signaling with its presence what Tibet had already sent; and what was happening on the fringes of Pell System was as old as the light-bound signal that came reporting it, ships inbound, more than an hour ago. The lights on Norway's main board flicked green, a steady ripple of them, and Signy released clamp and set Norway free, with the troops who had made it aboard still hastening for security. Norway moved null for a moment under the gentle puffs of directionals and undocking vents, continued the roll of her frame and cut in main thrust with a margin that skimmed

  Australia's clearance and probably set off alarms all over Pell. They acquired hard G, the inner cylinder under combat synch, rolling to compensate stresses: weight bore down, eased, slammed down again.

  They came to heading, with a clutter of merchanters in lower plane;

  Europe and Pacific ahead of them, Australia breaking clear behind.

  Atlantic would be moving any second; India's Keu was on-station and headed for his ship; Africa's Porey was downworld. Africa would move out under its lieutenant's command and rendezvous with Porey shuttling up from Downbelow, running tailguard at best.

  The inevitable was on them. That rider was some minutes behind Tibet's message, insurance. Its message was reaching them now; and a chatter of 317

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  further transmission from Tibet itself, and North Pole's voice added itself, along with the alarm of militia ships helplessly in the path of the strike.