Feriston walked in on the discussion. “I think we can use this, Vesario.”
The men sat down, and Berslan helped them organize their plan. “I know this will work. I wonder why the Magistrate of the Unexplained did not tell them I had failed?”
Feriston walked outside and lifted his communication band. He returned a few minutes later, smiling. “Ah, the intrigue. It seems our formerly uncommitted Magistrates have been organizing their own tryst to help, and they have been supporting us all along. They decided not to announce their allegiance so they could keep an undetected eye on our enemies while we have been busy planning,” he chuckled.
“They did not know about Berslan's actions until we told them, and they decided they needed someone closer to our enemies to keep us informed. The Magistrate of Acquisitions is pretending to grumble to them about not being included in the habitation of the north planets, and he is making it seem he is being swayed to their side. He intends to become involved with them and warn us if there is going to be another attempt on the Celestial.”
“I’ve confirmed this with the Magistrate of the Divider of Realms. He says all three have signed the edict to separate the hierarchy, but made him promise to keep the knowledge secret. I would not believe the Magistrate of Knowledge could be so devious. We had drinks two nights ago, and he let me go on for hours trying to convince him to join us.” Feriston shook his head, smiling at the duplicity.
An incoming transmission from the main communication terminal caught their attention. A nasal whine was heard. “I would like to speak with Commander Zulien.”
“By the stars, how did the Debayluths get our bandwidth?” Zulien stalked over to the terminal. “Who is this?” he demanded.
“This is Commander Geershane. I wish to speak with Commander Zulien,” came the nasal reply.
“This is Admiral Zulien.” He grinned back at the men at the table. “What do you want?”
There was a pause. “Congratulations on your promotion, Admiral. I ask your indulgence for a moment.”
“I owe you nothing, Commander. Three of your ships tried to destroy my ship and murder my mate,” Zulien replied angrily.
“I work with a greedy lot, Admiral. The three ships did not communicate their intentions when the hierarchy contacted them. I believe their hope was to complete their mission and raise their standing,” the Debayluth replied.
“You admit the hierarchy ordered the attack?” Zulien looked at his friends, confused by the confession.
“Admiral, I can send you the communication. It was transmitted as a general request to all our ships in the quadrant at the time. Luckily, the other four ships that received it thought it might be a trap and contacted our leader before they agreed.”
Zulien paled. If the other four ships had joined in the battle, it could have been a disaster. “Vesario, why do you think he ordered the other four ships not to proceed?”
Berslan interrupted, “I do not think they want the Ancient destroyed. Zulien, I think you should hear him out. If he is really willing to send the communication from the hierarchy, the way they duped me is almost minor.”
Zulien turned back to transmit. “Why did you not order the other four ships to engage?”
“We have no allegiance to the hierarchy. We are the last to hold out against them since the Battles of Chaos.” The Debayluth paused. “Admiral, is it true? Has an Ancient finally come back to us? Please, Admiral, we have struggled for centuries and been labeled the lowest vermin in the inner worlds because we refuse to submit to the new ways. You owe us nothing, we are aware of that, but it would be an act of compassion to let us know our commitment has not been in vain.”
All the warriors in the room were stunned into silence.
“Admiral, please, let us know if the Old Religion is to come back to us.” The Commander was almost begging for the news.
Vesario nodded and whispered, “Zulien, if he is willing to give us those tapes, and truly stopped four ships from engaging… we never have understood why the Debayluths chose to become marauders. If they considered themselves the last to remain faithful to the Old Religion, they are perhaps more honorable than the rest of us have been.”
Zulien cleared his throat. “Commander, my mate is an Atlantian Priestess.”
Before he could continue, the warriors could hear loud cheers erupting through the speakers. The Debayluths were clearly overjoyed with the news, and it was several minutes before they quieted enough for their Commander to continue. “Admiral, we would like to meet with an allied Magistrate. Those of us who have committed crimes will stand audition, but we would like our citizens who have been in hiding for so long to be able to integrate back into the worlds and practice our beliefs in the open once again.”
“Zulien, we have seven battleships in the area. Perhaps we should have the Commander shuttle to Vallaserio, if he allows his ship to be surrounded and boarded before they are in orbit,” Vesario suggested. “If he is willing to take that kind of chance, I would like to hear him out.”
Zulien suggested Vesario’s idea, and they were surprised at how quickly the Debayluth Commander agreed. “Admiral, may I bring my mate to the surface? She will have me space decayed if I deny her a chance to see the Ancient.”
Zulien chuckled. “Yes Commander, no harm will come to her.”
While they waited for news from the Quillant that the Debayluth vessel had arrived and was secured, the warriors discussed the unexpected turn of events. “How come we did not know that was what all their bickering had been about?” Zulien asked.
“It is strange. They cannot wait to divulge battle strategy, yet manage to keep their true designs hidden for centuries. I guess over the years we were responsible for turning them into pirates.”
Berslan's band buzzed again. “Admiral, I am going to have to transmit something to her. Perhaps I should tell her the Celestial is declining, and I will have to communicate later? She will probably welcome the news.”
It was agreed, and the warriors remained silent as Sharpina cooed, “Oh Berslan, I hope she will be all right. You know father expects you to return her to Laquista safely.”
Berslan rolled his eyes at her mock concern. “Yes, my betrothed. It will be nice to have this business concluded so we can finally be joined.”
There was a long pause before Sharpina’s voice was heard. “Of course, we will have to wait until all the ceremonies honoring the ancient have concluded.” She quickly signed off.
“You know, I do not think my betrothed is as dedicated to our joining as I thought she was,” Berslan frowned, and the warriors laughed.
Miranda walked into the room with Ethram. He had been discussing his ability to cloak. The warriors informed them of what was happening. “Those poor people. Centuries of letting themselves be considered the worst of civilizations just so they could protect their beliefs,” Miranda commiserated.
“It still does not lessen the fact that three of their ships tried to destroy you,” Ethram reminded them.
“Have they sent the hierarchy plea?” Vesario asked.
Berslan checked their data. “Yes, sir. Would you like me to play it?”
Vesario rubbed his hands together and nodded.
The tape began, “This is a Magistrate of the hierarchy. I have a commission for the Debayluth warriors.”
“It sounds like he has dealt with them before. How else would he know their communication channel?” Berslan queried.
Next came the whiney reply of a Debayluth. “Magistrate, this is Commander Helixer on the battleship Dishton. Go ahead.”
“Commander, this is the Magistrate of Commerce. It has come to our attention that the battleship Quillant is due to rendezvous and procure an Ancient who holds the gene for those responsible for the destruction of the Old Religion.”
“Has this been verified?”
“Yes, Commander, we have the communication from the Procurement Ship Isotant. They managed to locate her in the outer worlds. No wonder these
enemies have remained unnoticed. The hierarchy has learned the Garnellan’s have been secretly searching for them during procurements.”
“The cloakers! You have told us for years they were not to be trusted.”
Ethram was red with anger. “Those despicable dremonts. This explains why the Debayluths have singled out our procurement vessels.”
The Debayluth continued, “I have two other ships that will engage to destroy the threat, and one is already within tracking distance of the Quillant. You will of course offer boon?”
“The Magistrate of Law has agreed to look the other way as to the destruction of the Quillant, and the Magistrates of Building and Old Ways have agreed to the boon. This threat to our worlds must be stopped.”
“Why do you not engage your own ships?” the whiney voice questioned.
“The Magistrate of Battle holds a lesser commissioned position, as you know, and we are not entirely sure he can be trusted. It is one of his Commanders the ancient enemy is to mate with. It is possible that whole commissioning is corrupt.”
Now, Vesario exploded. “How dare he question my loyalties!”
The rest of the communication outlined the plan and the payment arrangements. After the Debayluth failure, two more communications were posted from the Magistrate to the pirates that went unanswered.
“I apologize, Admiral Zulien,” Ethram said. “The hierarchy must have heard our original hailing to you on the open line.”
“There is no way you could have known this would be their reaction, Ethram,” Zulien replied. “Vesario, by the Debayluths’ own transmission, they thought the Celestial was an enemy Ancient. The Magistrates are responsible for the destruction of the three ships under a misinformed allegiance.”
“And the Magistrate of Commerce directly implicated the other three Magistrates,” Vesario noted.
“If they have caught any of our recent transmissions, they are liable to try to run to where they think their riches have been stashed,” Zulien suggested.
Vesario swept his arm around the room. “Where do you think the financing for all this has been coming from? Our enemies were also kind enough to pay those large procurement boons for Miranda and Tempest.”
Everyone laughed over the thought that their enemies’ ‘secured’ wealth had supported the entire move, and Miranda shook her head in amazement. “No wonder the hierarchy is so messed up.”
Word was sent that the Debayluth shuttle was on its way to the surface. Zulien had to get Letang to repeat it twice because of all the noise. “Where in Dremonia are you, Letang?”
“I transported with the warriors to secure the Debayluth battleship. Admiral, you have never seen such a celebration. They had all their sidearms locked in the hold before we had docked. Even for Debayluths they are going nuts up here, and they are pestering us for information about the Celestial. Are we allowed to talk about her?”
“It sounds like you had better say something, or you will all be going back to the Quillant with aching heads,” Zulien laughed.
The shuttle arrived and everyone walked out to greet them. Zulien suggested Miranda remain hidden until they were positive it was not an elaborate trap.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Zulien. You said yourself they are not any good at subterfuge. If these poor people have been hiding for centuries, I am not going to put them through that.” She whisked by him to greet the Commander.
When Miranda thought of warriors, she always thought of the big men like the Shallistarians. What exited the ship was a little man who only came up to her waist. His skin was light pink; he had golden eyes surrounded by light blue hair, and his mate was an even smaller version of him. “They are quite colorful,” Miranda noted. To think, these tiny people had been waging war for centuries against the hierarchy.
The Commander expected to be shackled by Zulien as soon as he left the shuttle. Instead, he faced two warriors and two Magistrates who stood back as a golden vision moved towards him with her hand extended. “Commander, I am Miranda. It is so very nice to meet you.”
His hand slowly raised to take hers, and his eyes never left her face. He was speechless, and Miranda turned to his mate. The woman, equally stunned into silence, had trails of tears wetting her pink cheeks, and Miranda knelt down and hugged her. “I can not imagine the sacrifice you have had to endure.”
There was absolutely no question as to the Debayluths’ dedication. The warriors and Commander retired to the operations station for long discussions, and Miranda showed Letana the settlement. They spent a long time sitting by the altar drinking tea.
Tempest was fascinated by the small woman and led her through the gardens. They invited her to the cleansing ritual in two days, and Letana was ecstatic and asked if her best friend could watch.
“I think the more people who see the rituals, the quicker they can be remembered and spread. It’s a real kick, and I think you’re going to enjoy it.”
A plan was in place to collect the wayward Magistrates, and Berslan called Sharpina. “The celestial continues to decline, so I am surfacing on Rentang.”
“What the dremont for? Bring her back here,” Sharpina ordered, irritation clearly edging her shrewish voice.
The Magistrate of Commerce came on line. “Berslan, Rentang is uninhabited and there is no way to help her there. Bring her to Laquista so we can have the Magistrate of Well Being tend to her. He has already been advised of her condition.”
Feriston raised his eyebrow and muttered, “Dremont.”
“I am sorry, Magistrate, but I cannot concentrate on operating the ship with the Celestial in such a state. I am already shuttling to surface. Perhaps you can meet me here? Oh, I do not know what to do,” Berslan replied in a bemoaning tone.
“Bring her to Laquista,” the Magistrate thundered.
“Oh, I think her breathing is even shallower. I will see you here.” Berslan signed off. There was immediate buzzing of his communicator, which they ignored.
Zulien looked at the Debayluth Commander. “Everything is set?”
“Yes, Admiral. I really am surprised you never suspected us on Rentang. It is so close to Laquista, and has been our major planet for centuries,” he smiled. “We have coordinated Major Berslan’s communication wave to the Commander on the surface, so we will not even have to look for them when they land. They will come to us. We are in agreement that some of the royal guard may be sacrificed?”
“Yes Commander, it cannot be helped. Just make sure your warriors do not injure the Magistrates before they are shuttled to Vallastera,” Zulien reminded him.
The group had a leisurely dinner, and several shuttles traveled back and forth to the Debayluth battleship so that more of their citizens could meet Miranda. She was exhausted, and finally had to excuse herself to lie down.
Zulien joined her in their quarters and he held her in his arms as she quickly fell asleep. “My poor little Ancient. I hope things settle down for us soon. This business has been tiring for both of us,” he whispered.
Miranda woke in the morning extremely nervous about finally seeing the people who wanted her dead. “Remember, Zulien, you promised me they would not be killed.”
Letana walked over and took her hand. “They will live in exile on Rentang. We have given our word they will not be harmed. Their lives of ill-gained luxury will end, however. They will live out their days in the primitive life we have endured. For us, it is quite comfortable, but after golden domed buildings and matching trappings, they might not see the beauty and enjoy our caves on the dark side of the planet.”
The shuttle landed, and to everyone’s surprise all the Magistrates exited with their mates and a shrieking Sharpina in tow. She pulled herself from the grasp of the warrior holding her and stormed up to Berslan. “How dare you allow your betrothed to be handled this way!”
Berslan looked down, shuffled his feet for a moment, and then he looked at the shrew. “Sharpina, about the joining. I do not think it is going to work out. I am afraid I am going
to have to release you from our commitment.”
Her mouth fell open, and her head slowly swiveled as she finally began to observe her surroundings. Only three Magistrates and their mates stood with her father. The rest were smiling and shaking hands with a golden haired woman. Sharpina narrowed her eyes, realizing this was the Celestial who had caused so much trouble. She also realized her precarious position if she did not change alliances pretty quick.
“Berslan, surely you do not mean that,” she purred, and she waltzed over to Miranda. “I am Sharpina. It is so good to finally meet you. I was so upset to hear the problems my father has caused you. It truly aches my head. Thank goodness you are well.”
Miranda smiled. “Thank you, Sharpina, and as for your aching head, you’re in luck. Berslan was kind enough to hand me your medicine, so now you can relieve that ache.” Miranda held up the vial containing the remaining dillint. “Here you are, dear. Drink up, and I am sure you will feel better in no time.”
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