Ammonite Planets (Omnibus): Ammonite Galaxy #1-3

by Gillian Andrews

  “—we are here today in order to debate the sovereignty of Valhai with the being who claims to have rights over it.”

  Arcan darkened alarmingly and began to tower over the two girls.

  “Not a good start,” said Diva.

  “He didn’t even acknowledge Arcan!” protested Grace.

  “What a breach of protocol!” exclaimed the machine, giving a creak of disapproval. “These species need a lesson!”

  Atheron went on. “Since the Sellites hold a rental agreement with all the other species in the system, we can prove our rights to Valhai. This the orthogel entity is unable to do. Furthermore, the orthogel entity is not indigenous to the system, which means that any rights it may have as a native must be forfeited. Your duty is clear: you must uphold the agreement with the Sellites over Valhai, and the orthogel entity must be asked to leave.”

  A ripple ran through Arcan, and he scintillated ominously. “I reject all these bogus arguments,” he said. His voice sounded like a boom in the heads of all those present. “The Sellites themselves admit that they have no prior rights to this planet. The very fact that they are paying rent to occupy it acknowledges that it is not their own. I, on the other hand, am paying nothing – since it is my own planet that would be absurd. The Sellite speaker has said that I am not indigenous, and this is true.”

  A rustle of surprise ran through those present. They had clearly not expected the orthogel entity to concede this point.

  Arcan continued. “However, it is also true that Valhai itself is not from this system, which completely annuls the Sellite arguments. It is irrelevant whether or not Valhai and the orthogel lake are from the Almagest System; what is important is if we came here together, if I am an originary of this planet. I should warn you that I do not agree to abide by any decision made here, as I do not recognize the competence of this meeting to judge the question.”

  Atheron leapt to his feet. “You see? This … thing is in contempt of the meeting! This is most disrespectful! The Sellites lodge a complaint!”

  Arcan suddenly expanded until he towered above the hapless Atheron. “For you to speak of disrespect is totally—”

  Several of those present clutched their heads at the volume sounding inside them.

  “Arcan!” Grace moved closer to the bubble and pummeled her hands against the thin walls, trying to get his attention. “ARCAN!”

  The voice roaring in their heads lessened a smidgen. “What?”

  “Err … don’t you think you are getting a little angry?”

  “Well of COURSE I am … Oh …” The bubble began to subside again. “You are right, Grace. Thank you.”

  Diva stepped forward. “What you decide today is crucial for the well-being of all the system. Arcan is here – he exists, and all of you have seen what a powerful friend he can be.” She paused for a moment and looked around. There were some nods – especially from the Coriolan delegation.

  “So it would be extremely short-sighted,” she went on, directing a meaningful look at the acting president of Sell, “to do anything but accept the orthogel entity with open arms and thanks. Circumstances have changed. The rental agreement with the Sellites can no longer be valid. Indeed, if the Sellites are allowed to stay on Valhai, they should pay their rent to the orthogel entity.”

  Atheron’s face was a picture. He looked utterly horrified. This had clearly not even occurred to him.

  “We object!” His voice had risen several octaves.

  “Why?” asked Diva. “You should be thanking this being for allowing you free energy for all these years. It would have cost you billions to install proper electrical plants on Valhai, to run a system similar to the orthotubes. And how much would the space elevator have cost you if it had been built in carbon compounds?”

  “We would use shuttles and build a spaceport,” said Atheron defiantly.

  “The truth is,” Diva said sternly, “that you have been abusing this creature for fifty generations, and that the time has come to correct this. You must no longer expect something for nothing. You must accept Arcan’s presence on Valhai. You should ask him if he will allow you to live here in the future, and beg his pardon for all the abuse he has suffered.”

  “Abuse!” Atheron gave a dismissing laugh. “What abuse? You are being ridiculous. In any case, those present do not wish to listen to a Coriolan repudiated by her fellow-worlders! You are crazy. There has been no abuse. You are delirious!”

  There was a flash of colour right through the bubble representing Arcan, and he swelled ominously to encompass all those present. They stumbled helplessly against each other as they were transported instantly to a white world a long way away from the Valhai Voting Chamber.

  “Where are we?” screamed Maximus, red in the face with fear.

  “You are on the ice-side ortholake, on the far side of Valhai,” Diva informed them after a quick look around her. “This is the burial site of all the previous donor apprentices sent by the Sacran worlds to Valhai. They were all deliberately left to asphyxiate in the orthogel by the Sellites. We brought them here to the ice to give them a decent burial. The Sellites made Arcan an unwilling accomplice to their murder.”

  The Xianthans and the Cesans looked confused. The Kwaidians did not appear to be particularly interested. The Coriolans seemed shocked.

  A burly Xianthan stepped forward. “You mean that all the Valhai are buried here? None of them survived? This cannot be true!”

  Diva extended her long neck. “I am the only Valhai who has ever survived,” she informed him. “And that was because Arcan rescued me when the Sellites disconnected the air in my bubble of orthogel. The apprentices were held in bubbles under the orthogel lake. Then, when their reproductive material had been harvested, they were simply disposed of.”

  The Xianthan looked around him at the ice. “You have proof?” he asked.

  Diva bent down, and the bubble under her feet dissolved, she scraped away some loose snow from the top of the ice, and pointed to the pure ice below. Within the ice the remains of the donor apprentices could be seen, still tumbled together in a grotesque dance, frozen for posterity into a tangle of half-decayed limbs.

  The Xianthan gave a start of horror, and held up his forearm, as if to ward off the picture.

  “We left a sign to mark their burial,” said Diva calmly, and the bubble reappeared under their feet and floated them over a little to the right, until the post with the sign Diva had scripted came inside the bubble. “It was the least we could do.”

  Grace made the sign of the Sell Cross, and Diva copied her.

  Atheron gave a shriek. “That Coriolan made the sign of the Sell Cross. Blasphemy! I impose the death penalty! You are all witnesses!”

  He was largely ignored, as the different delegations came forward to examine the sign marking the burial spot. Indomita Magmus gave a long sigh as she read it. She raised her eyes to meet those of her daughter. The first cool, tinged with a slight regret, the second hot and defiant. Indomita gave a faint shrug, and then inclined her head. She took a step forward.

  “It would seem,” she said to the others, “that the Sellites have not been altogether … honest with us. The Sacran planets have been duped into a trade agreement which involved the murder of some of our subjects.” She looked at Diva’s father and paused, but there was no response. He stood as if struck dumb, staring at the sign Diva had painstakingly scripted nearly two years earlier.

  Indomita regarded Arcan thoughtfully. “Coriolis has found the recent trade agreements with the orthogel entity to be most beneficial. We will not jeopardize that relation simply for the money the Sellites give us on the Valhai rental. Coriolis therefore finds against the Sellites. Our permission to use Valhai is hereby declared null and void. Future discussions about Valhai should be directed to the orthogel entity, Arcan, whom we deem to possess rights over the planet.” She reviewed the other delegations in front of her, and apparently found them lacking. “Coriolis has nothing further to say. Arcan
, if you would be so kind as to transport us back home?”

  There was a slight shimmer, and all the Coriolan delegation disappeared. Then the bubble darkened again, and the rest of the participants found themselves back in the Valhai Voting Chamber.

  They all looked around at each other. The Elders were muttering amongst themselves rather agitatedly. The Xianthans still looked stunned, and the Cesans wary. Only the Sellites were showing clear emotion, and it definitely wasn’t pleasure. Atheron’s face was grey, and he looked ill. Lights were flashing furiously on the tridiscreens and even the young Mandalon, sitting again obediently in his chair, was pale.

  “We hereby terminate all treaties with Coriolis,” snapped Atheron. “Which means there will be lucrative contracts available for the remaining planets …”

  “We might be prepared to sign in favour of the Sellites,” warbled one of the Elders, coming forward, “if Sell were in turn prepared to provide more ships and armament to defeat the rebels on Kwaide …”

  Atheron looked like a snake which had swallowed its own tail, and tried to avoid a direct answer. “In the future—” he began.

  “Now!” insisted the Elder. “We need weapons now.”

  “Unfortunately, just at this moment, Sell does not dispose of sufficient armament …” Atheron admitted.

  The Elders looked at each other. They went back into a huddle and began to talk frantically amongst themselves.

  The Xianthan leader swept forward and sketched a deep bow in the direction of the orthogel.

  “Xiantha had no idea that the Valhai were being eliminated by the Sellites. This is a terrible sin. The Valhai have always been revered on our planet as the source of our future generations, and their obliteration, in our opinion, makes any contracts between Xiantha and Sell null and void. Xiantha therefore terminates its agreements with Sell, and hopes to enter into future trade agreements with Arcan.”

  This speech pleased nobody. The Sellites looked furious, and Arcan darkened to hear that he was expected to make trade arrangements with the Xianthans. “I am not a transport service,” he muttered to the girls.

  “They are simply trying to keep all their options open, Arcan,” said Grace, “you can do whatever you want later.”

  “I want them all to go away and leave me in peace,” grumbled Arcan.

  “It will be up to you,” Grace told him. “You are winning, Arcan, please say nothing to upset the delegations now.”

  “Very well. But this whole meeting is stupid. I could have sent them all to the centre of Almagest had I wanted to,” Arcan said to the two girls.

  The Xianthan speaker looked towards Arcan, and swept a small obeisance with his rainbow garment. “We would appreciate transport back to Xiantha, if that is convenient to the orthogel entity,” he finished, bowing again. As soon as he had finished speaking, the whole Xianthan delegation vanished.

  The Cesan delegation was looking very unhappy. One of them, however, stepped forward bravely.

  “The withdrawal of two planets leaves us no choice. Since the rental agreement with the Sellites has already been declared null and void we have no choice but to accept this change in circumstances, and therefore our opinion is, in effect, irrelevant. The agreement no longer exists. All current agreements have clearly been annulled by the circumstances, and we hope to enter into mutually beneficial trade agreements of a bilateral or trilateral nature shortly. We regard this day as a step forward in our trilateral relations. We grant Arcan rights over Valhai.” The man blinked rather uncertainly in the light, and then made an impromptu bow in Arcan’s direction. “Please take us home, honourable Arcan.”

  The Cesan delegation disappeared at once, and it was the turn of the Elders of Kwaide. Their leader stepped forward to address Arcan.

  “If Kwaide admits your sovereignty over Valhai,” he said, “will you undertake not to aid the Kwaidian rebels by transporting supplies of any kind?”

  Arcan’s voice sounded in the two girls’ heads. “What do you think?” They looked at each other. Grace thought for a moment, before answering.

  “You don’t want to be bothered with all this fighting anyway Arcan, so provided the Elders don’t sign with the Sellites, you can probably leave things to the refugees. Without the backing of the Sellites, the Elders are finished. They just haven’t realized it yet.”

  “I agree not to supply the Kwaidian rebels,” Arcan said, “providing you revoke all current agreements with the Sellites.”

  The Elders went into another huddle and conferred. Since their erstwhile protectors had already withdrawn, and the rental agreement had been annulled by the other delegations, they had little choice. They had been put into a very difficult position.

  “Very well,” their spokesman said finally. “but you must undertake to execute no transports whatsoever to or from the surface of Kwaide.”

  “I so undertake.”

  “Then Kwaide renounces all current agreements with the Sellites, and declare that our permission to use Valhai is hereby declared null and void. Future discussions about Valhai should be directed to the orthogel entity, Arcan, whom we deem to possess rights over the planet.” The Kwaidian delegation shuffled rather uncomfortably, and then the same Elder spoke again. “We would appreciate the orthogel entity’s help in returning to Kwaide now, if you please. Naturally the ban on transport will begin after this delegation has been returned to Kwaide.”

  “Talked themselves into a tight spot there!” whispered Diva.

  “Arcan should tell them to hike home to Kwaide!” agreed Grace.

  However, Arcan appeared prepared to accept the condition, and the Kwaidian delegation disappeared from the Valhai Voting Chamber, leaving only Atheron to face Arcan. The Sellite was shaken, a shadow of his former self.

  “If he hadn’t tried to kill me, I might even have felt sorry for him,” whispered Diva to Grace.

  Grace shook her head. She was remembering every one of the little humiliations Atheron had caused her, and feeling particularly bloodthirsty. “He deserves it,” she hissed back. “All the Sellites do!” Then she thought. “Except me, of course!” Then she thought again. “Or am I guilty just because I was born here?”

  “Well?” Arcan’s voice boomed in their heads. “What now?”

  Atheron seemed to shrivel into himself. “I … I …” He licked his lips. “I … I no longer consider myself a suitable advisor for Mandalon, so any further discussions must wait until a substitute has been found. I … I declare this meeting terminated, and ask that a private meeting with the orthogel entity be scheduled for … some later date.” He turned on his heel, and marched out of the Dome, followed by the guards, and leaving the young figure of Mandalon 50 completely alone.

  Then the boy surprised all those present. He took a deep breath, and stood up. There was a collective sigh from the tridiscreen, showing that the rest of Sell was still following the events in the Dome.

  The boy walked slowly right up to Arcan, and then addressed him in an unwavering voice.

  “I am Mandalon 50, the future leader of Sell. I would like to convoke the Second Valhai Votation, and I would like to ask the orthogel entity to tell us his terms for our continued presence on Valhai. We will be happy to fulfill any conditions he has. I am only young, but it is obvious to me that Sell has stagnated since the First Valhai Votation, and it is time for change. We must adapt to the change, or die as a race. It is time for the younger generation to take a hand in the running of Sell, and so I hereby assume the presidency.” He lifted his chin, and then gazed in Arcan’s direction. “What do you want?”

  “You must not store any weapons on Valhai.”

  “Agreed.”

  “You must develop your own power system within ten years. I will continue to operate the ortholifts and tubes for that length of time only. During our agreement I retain rights to floors 1 to 48 of the 256th skyrise.”

  “Agreed.”

  “I must be left alone while you are here. And you may only live o
n the planet for another thousand years. Then you must leave.”

  “Agreed.”

  “Diva? Grace?” Arcan asked them privately. “What else?”

  “Tell him that Valhai must be completely free of violence.” Arcan passed the condition on.

  “Agreed. What payment do you require?”

  “I do not—”

  But Grace moved forward quickly. “The same payment in ore that you were paying the other worlds,” she said quickly, signaling to Arcan to be quiet. “Arcan will demand no increase.”

  There was a flutter of relief which was palpable, even through the tridiscreen. Mandalon 50 had obtained a further thousand years for the Sellites, at the same price, and with only minor concessions. A buzz ran through the whole of Sell.

  “Agreed.” The young Sellite held up his hand. “One moment please, we will take a votation on all of those points.”

  “—One more thing,” interrupted Arcan.

  “Yes?”

  “I would like one of your newer space traders with interstellar capability, and an agreement that it can be moored at your orbital platform indefinitely. I am prepared to pay for the services, and for any fuel or supplies I may buy from you.”

  “But why do you—? No, it is none of my business,” said the young Mandalon. “Very well.” He fiddled with the predis button on his interscreen for a few moments. “I am informed you may take possession of the trader moored in bay two of the Valhai Orbital Station. It is one of the new models. I will transfer ownership formally as soon as voting validates these agreements.” He pushed the predis button again, and then turned his youthful attention to the tridi screen.

  “Voting will now commence,” a metallic voice said. “Sellites, please cast your votes on my mark. First and only point: ratification of Mandalon 50’s acceptance of the six conditions voice-saved and available for present or posterior consultation with this message. Passed. That concludes the votation. Thank you.”