The Queen nodded with a smile, "I keep close tabs on her as much as I can and I hope you understand I had all of you checked out. It is nothing personal of course, and I must say I am deeply impressed by the personalities and accomplishments of your group." She leaned forward to pick a candied fruit off a plate. "We have planned a very special entrance for you two. I am certain you will like it."
"Yes, Your Majesty. I am honored by this invitation."
I had a strange feeling about that.
Chapter 8: Diamond Ball
Har-Hi wondered why Eric had been called to the Captain, as he returned to the dorm on the 54th deck. That human Neo Viking was his best friend and the man he would follow to whatever end.
Har-Hi had trained to fly from his earliest youth to become a Juth-Ni, an elite warrior among a race of warriors. He had no doubt Eric had what it took to become a Juth-Ni and rise among the ranks and earn the crimson Northor-Kar. Only maybe 10 or 12 non-Dai were ever so honored in all known Dai history.
The first Dai Mother that had jumped into the Pluribus system for the parade was not just any Dai Mother. It was the Morhh-Hi, the mothership of his clan and under the rule of his father. It was his home! He wished he could find a few days off, and get the permission to take Eric there and introduce him to his father. He wanted Tar Kar-Hi to put his hand on Eric’s shoulder and with this gesture make him one of the Hi. Of course there could be one or another Juth-Ni objecting and Har-Hi already felt sorry, and not for Eric, but the warrior challenging him. Eric was a beast once he held an ax or a sword in his fists.
As he reached the dorm corridor he found all Midshipmen standing before their dorms and there was the same hushed and confused atmosphere as a few days ago. He got a bad feeling and his stomach cramped. He realized how much he cared for all of them and he prayed to the spirits that none of his friends were hurt or worse. He ran the last meters. They made way for him and he almost ran into Hans, who stood behind the door completely filling it out.
"What is going on?" he almost yelled.
Hans made way and said, "The Captain is about to come down and pick the ones that go with him to the Ball. They expect him to come here first."
He saw everyone but Elfi and Eric. "No one got hurt?"
Mao said with a serious face, "No one of our dorm, but Lt. Merkus has been arrested just moments ago, along with Bognar the Attikan from the Blue Team. Nothing official has been said, but I heard rumours that it was him who planted the bonglee and it is said that they found the Attikan DNA in a compromising spot in connection with the death of Ulther."
"I don’t believe that for a minute," Har-Hi said.
"Smells like a frame so obvious it stinks!"
Wetmouth held up her PDD. "I am working on correlating all rumors, facts and events and I agree with you, the accusations, the arrests and the timing of it all. There is only a 21% chance that Lt. Merkus had anything to do with the bonglee. Although I still have a high error percentage, as I am still missing data."
"I wish Eric were here," said Shaka. "He’d figure something out to help the Lieutenant and the Attikan too."
Mao nodded. "Where is he anyway?"
Har-Hi said, "He was called to the Captain’s Office but I don’t know why!"
Hans, still standing by the open door said, "The Captain is coming!"
Lt. Clusen called all Midshipmen into the corridor and to attention. The Captain was accompanied by two high-ranking officers and one of them handed the Captain a PDD. Harris looked at it and then said, "Whenever the Devastator participates at the big parade and is in the Pluribus System for Union Week, we established a little tradition that the best Midshipmen team is allowed to accompany the Captain’s Party to the Diamond Ball at the Crystal Hall."
He paused and looked down the assembled Midshipmen. "You are all exceptional and if I could I actually would take you all, but that is sadly not possible. Since the Black, the Yellow and the Blue Team are incomplete at the moment, I am forced to elect the Devastator Knights." He looked at Suppor. "Midshipman you are to pick one other to accompany you and be ready and in appropriate dress at 19:00 hrs. Be at Hangar Deck One to board the Captain’s yacht."
Suppor could have drilled a hole in the ceiling with his nose as he triumphantly grinned. "Yes, Sir Captain Sir."
The Captain was not done, he picked two of the Brown and two of the Red Team who were fourth and fifth place teams before but had moved up due to the three best teams being incomplete.
Finally Captain Harris said, "The Yellow, the Blue and the Black Team are to wait in their dorms for further instructions. All others have four days of R&R and have permission to go dirtside to celebrate."
The six remaining teams cheered and left after the Captain dismissed them. Har-Hi and the others went back to the dorm. Seeing the Captain and his officers following the Blue Team into their dorm, he wondered what this was all about.
"Why are we incomplete again?" asked Cirruit, "Did something happen to Eric and Elfi and we have not been told?"
"Would not surprise me one bit!" grunted Hans. "Clusen and his pets made it. I was so sure the Captain was a fair and honest man. If it is obvious to us what is going on, he should know, especially since the intruder exercise."
Wetmouth somehow looked sad even with her mask. "I think they didn’t want a Sojonit whore at the big Ball."
Har-Hi sat down at the table. "No one ever promised us that things would be fair. We only expected it. I hoped what happened to Eric on Camp Idyllic was an exception."
Krabbel balled himself up as he always did when he didn’t like something. "It’s not you, Wetty. I bet the high and mighty folks at that Ball did not want to see a big spider."
"You all should give us a little more credit. You are one of the most amazing teams I have ever seen and things are not always as they appear."
They all turned to the door. It must have opened completely without making the usual sound, because there stood Admiral Stahl. Not even Har-Hi’s fine ears had noticed, only now he detected the faint breathing and the difference in air current. He cursed himself for being so careless, no one should be able to sneak up on a Dai warrior unnoticed, but then he realized who had just appeared.
"Admiral on Deck!"
"As you were, kids, sit down again."
The Immortal filled the dorm with an almost touchable aura of authority. None of those present except Hans had ever met the man in person. Stahl sat down in the chair usually occupied by Eric. He looked at each of them for a moment and while his face was stern, Har-Hi was almost sure there was amusement in his eyes. As the Immortal looked at Har-Hi, he felt the hair on his back standing up and getting goosebumps, something that did not happen to a Dai very often. The Admiral’s eyes were deep blue and completely normal human eyes, and for the briefest moment Har-Hi could swear he saw the reflection of the galaxy as it appeared from far away and his gaze stripped away all his defenses and peered down deep into his very being. He would have told this man any secret he would have asked for, knowing he would never be able to lie or pretend. The gaze of the Immortal had lasted no more than five or six heartbeats but to Har-Hi it felt like an hour. Stahl went on to look at Krabbel and the others and then said, "I am sorry for eavesdropping and appearing so unexpected, but I wanted to meet you all anyway and tonight is a good reason."
No one spoke, they simply stared at the Admiral. He steepled his fingers and now openly smiled. "Don’t judge us or the Fleet so harshly. I had a similar conversation with your friend Eric not so long ago, when I made him Acting Captain. You are a very diverse group to put it mildly, but you all seem to think alike. Eric has a very special task tonight and so does your friend the Princess. Neither of them is in trouble and the Olafson Gang is not incomplete."
Cirruit was the first to speak. "I almost figured something like that was the case, Sir."
"You are Cirruit, an X794 series from the looks of it, right?"
Har-Hi knew his expressionless friend enough to know Cirruit wa
s surprised. "Yes Sir. I am amazed that a normal human can tell the difference." Cirruit then slammed his hand before his mouth. "Please don’t let me have said that out loud … Mothermachine … Sir I am terribly sorry, Sir. I didn’t mean to say …"
Stahl laughed. "Mr. Cirruit, don’t be sorry! I am very glad there is at least one who thinks I am still a normal human being. I can’t tell the difference from looking at you, but I know your approximate age and I talk to Mothermachine quite frequently, she likes to keep me abreast about the improvements she makes in new X101 series, simple deduction not mystical powers. However, I did read your paper on living tissue restoration using nanites and I found it quite fascinating."
"You did read that? I mean you did, Sir?"
"We can discuss that later, Mr. Cirruit, so I can come back to what I wanted to tell you."
Cirruit simply nodded, his mouth open. "Mothermachine is attending the event for the first time with her new avatar. It will be a highlight of the evening, and you are invited to be among the X101 delegation accompanying her. So while you are not with the Captain’s party, you are going to be there and I personally think that beats being a Midshipman in the Captain’s party."
Cirruit still had his mouth open. "Are you serious, Sir?"
"Quite so, Mr. Cirruit, please find Lieutenant Plugh, also an X101, and he will fill you in on the details. He is waiting for you, right now." Cirruit saluted and left.
The Admiral looked to Wetmouth. "You were right; Ms. Wetmouth, a Sojonit would not have been welcome at the Ball. Not because of your sect’s status, but because they are not Union members. You would be welcome as a Union citizen yourself, of course. But I know of your sect and you would have to shed your mask and wig to attend and I would not allow anyone to ask that of you, but there is a special person who wants to see you and he waits for you on hangar deck 45. He is very tall and I have known this man for a long time. I thought you might enjoy meeting him more than going to the Ball anyway."
Har-Hi was not sure what that meant but he sensed Wetty was suddenly happy and excited. The Admiral said, "You are dismissed, Ms. Wetmouth."
She thanked him, waved at her friends and went out the door.
"I know you question the decision to have the Green Team honored, but we have our reasons and eventually they will become apparent to you. You, Mr. Neugruber, and you, Mr. Mao, have been picked by the Security Chief of the Devastator to accompany our Security Detail. Yes you are going to be on duty, but gaining hands-on experience working with the best counter intelligence and security teams the Union has, it might be just as prestigious and a whole lot more interesting." Hans grinned wide. "Yes Sir."
"You two are to report to Commander Fleming on the double. That means now!"
Both Hans and Mao caused room-shaking tremors as they ran out.
"I have similar news for you, Mr. Chitauli."
The Admiral looked at Shaka. "Your father, the King, is of course one of the guests of honor and he has asked me personally if it would be possible you join him at the event."
Shaka made big eyes. "I did not know father knows you."
"I had the great honor to meet Chacka Chitauli, your father, the day you joined the Academy and because of that I kept an eye on you. In all my years, I don’t recall meeting a more impressive personality than your father."
Shaka grinned, showing his perfect white teeth. "He does have that effect on people, Sir. This was one the reasons I left and joined the Fleet. There were other reasons of course, but I needed to get out from under his shadow and be recognized on my own, Sir."
"I can understand that and I am sure you see the pattern and since you are a good helmsman, I didn’t see the need to tie up a pilot or a shuttle to take you down. Report to Flight Deck 55, a Sturgeon courier ship is on standby to receive you."
"Thank you, Sir!"
"You, Mr. Hi, I noticed that your clan and your family is here and of course your father and I hope you can guess where you are going."
Har-Hi smiled. "Yes Sir, I think I do."
"So you see, Mr. Hi, most of the Olafson Team is taking part at the event and just so you know, Captain Harris just made similar arrangements for the Blue and the Yellow Team. It might also be interesting for you and your sense of fairness to know that the Midshipmen that the Captain takes along are on duty and have to fetch drinks, coats and run errands and might not enjoy their part of the event as much as you expect."
Har-Hi bowed his head. "I am sorry, Sir, for doubting."
"Never be sorry for that, son. Doubt me and everyone as much as you can, it is a healthy process. It might come as a surprise to you, Mr. Hi, but I would rather earn your respect than you giving it to me for my position and rank."
Har-Hi could not believe what the old Admiral just said and everything he ever heard about the man was true, Stahl was integrity personified. The Immortal pointed to the door. "You know where your Wolfcraft is, I believe Commander Cotton has it ready on the Standby deck. Would not be right to have you fly to your Dai Mother in a D12 now, would it?"
Har-Hi grabbed his flight jacket. "I owe you one Sir, a big one!"
"You better go, or your father will be late to the Ball!"
Krabbel was last and felt quite forlorn as the Admiral got up and walked to the door. He was certain his parents would not be on Pluribus and the Archa Delegate at the Assembly didn’t know him.
Stahl turned. "What are you waiting for, Mr. Krabbel?"
"Sir?"
"I really don’t like these events, but I have no choice and neither do you. I must attend and so I decided that you are going to join me. If the Captain can have a gaggle of Midshipmen, then it is only fair that I can take an Archa. You might even like it; they do serve ice-cream, so I have been told."
"I am going with you Sir? What do I have to do, what are my orders? I can fetch things and hold up to six coats at the same time!"
"If that floats your boat, then be my guest. I was thinking more in the line of keeping me company; tell me about Archa so I don’t get too bored down there. So go get into dress uniform, I am not the only one who’s going to suffer in that monkey suit."
***
Sif would not have been a woman if she didn’t know about her good looks. She was tall, blonde and had a shapely figure, yet she had laughed at Egill’s suggestion to put on a dress and get her hair made up by a professional stylist. She was done with girlish things and embraced her female warrior status. She no longer hated or despised some of Nilfeheim’s traditions.
A Viking warrior would never succumb to drugs and the frivolous trappings of Pluribus and off-world garbage. If she wanted to become the first female representative of her world she would also need to be a guardian, much like Gustav Ragnarsson. During the weeks on Nilfeheim and after their return, she had discovered Eric’s grandfather had written a book and a collection of his speeches were available from the Assembly archive. She had begun to read that book and the more she read it, the more she respected him.
He had the right ideas and what he tried to accomplish was the right path for her world. She lived with Egill now and no longer with her aunt.
The former hermit of Nilfeheim resided in a big two-level apartment atop a medium-sized skyscraper. She had learned that the building belonged to a company called Silver Hawk Inc. and was part of the impressive financial empire Erik Gustav Ragnarsson had built. The more she learned about Eric’s grandfather, the more she became impressed by him. Here in Egill’s apartment she had a big room for herself with a nice view over parts of Ring Park and the Sphere of Assembly. After the parade and the feeding frenzy of the masses, they had come here to take a short break and then Egill would go to the Diamond Ball along with his two friends. Most of the Nilfeheim delegation was still at the Sphere, but Elena and Exa were here as well.
Egill had said to her, "Well dress or no dress, you are a girl and you better get started to make yourself ready, we are leaving in an hour."
She checked herself one last time in th
e mirror and was pleased. Nilfeheim traditional leathers and fur were preferable over any dress. As she came out, with less than a minute to spare, she noticed Elena had changed too. She wore a red velvet dress with a deep neckline, fine white fur and lace and her midnight-black hair shimmered, more precious than obsidian.
Deep within Sif grew a little doubt. Maybe she should have worn a dress after all, but then why would she need to? She had no desire to advertise her body to catch the eye of a man. To her surprise Exa was also there, and Sif had never noticed how much the foreign girl had grown and how pretty she was. Exa too wore a dress.
Egill looked quite regal in his dark blue silver embroidered Nilfeheim leathers. His white hair was washed and combed.
"You know, I used to be a hermit and valued quietness and now I am herding three young women to a ball on the most crowded planet in the universe."
As they entered the waiting Volvo Flyer, Exa said, "I can’t wait to see Eric."
The flyer took off and Sif said, "He is in some big spaceship. Why would he be at the Diamond Ball, only very important people are invited, he is just a cadet."
Elena glared at her for a second and then smiled. "Should make no difference to you anyway, if he is there or not, you are not interested."
Exa tugged at the long cream-colored gloves that matched her dress.
“He is not a cadet, he is a Midshipman now."
"Big difference," Sif snorted. Deep inside she felt ashamed that she had betrayed him and she had to remind herself that she never really liked him anyway.
***
Steven Dunham was certain he would not see another sunrise. They had planned for this for over two years and yet the chances of success were astronomically slim. It was him, who was to activate the spore bomb. The result would be worth his own sacrifice and would open the eyes of the galaxy to the cause. That he would be responsible for billions of deaths, and perhaps cause the collapse of the Union and war, was a price they had to pay for torturing a God.
Eric Olafson Series Boxed Set: Books 1 - 7 Page 31
