《Gift and Power series 6: The Aurorae of Planet 5 (Aliens/Romance/Thought-hearing/Sci-Fi)》 Planet 5 / Ch. 1: Introductions Planet 5

Planet 5 / Ch. 1: Introductions

Extract from pre-contact report for inhabited planet orbiting star 3648 The planet (fifth from its sun, and fifth discovered so far with intelligent life) is a water-rich planet (90% surface is wet) with a single continental mass, evident plate tectonics, and several island chains. The creator seems to have a sense of humour in that these aliens are humanoid, little (avg height 1.4m or so), and you guessed it, green. Their human-likeness extends to there apparently being several races, (distinguished by differences in skin-tone between darker and lighter shades, hair-type and colour. They also are in the middle of a war, have books, slavery and based on audio samples, at least two, possibly four, apparently different languages. There seems to be one well-situated island that has a far higher-than normal ratio of libraries to the population size.
Up a tree Although the astronomers pulled faces when asked if everything was fine, muttering darkly about not being astrologers, and not knowing enough to make that sort of pronouncement definitively, according to them the flickering lights in the sky of their fifth planet were pretty but totally harmless. According to historians, they came and went from time to time, but there seemed a lot at the moment, more than normal. According to the astrologers, the combination of these daytime aurorae with the lunar eclipse just over a week ago would bring doom and disaster unknown in their entire history, but people ignored them since they predicted that roughly twice every year, along with plagues of squirrels and thirty-seven of the last two economic blockades. Humorists asked if the fact that no one had seen the lunar eclipse because of the rain meant that end of the world was cancelled this year due to bad weather, The theologians said astrology is rubbish, but anyone worried about their salvation was welcome to talk to them. Prince Hal of the Three Isles didn''t have anything to worry about in terms of his salvation, though the flickering lights were certainly a distraction. When not distracted, he was busily spying on what seemed to be an unusually well-guarded outbuilding behind the inn. Then he heard the unmistakeable sound of a chair being smashed on someone''s head. He adjusted his position a little to see further inside, and saw a rather bedraggled young woman searching the body of her jailer for keys, and praying. He concluded that, rather shockingly, the chair had had the desired effect. Maybe the jailer had a thin skull, or had fainted in surprise. Then, Hal reconsidered his assessment that she was praying. She wasn''t praying in the sense that many used it. She was talking to God, thanking Him for being with her, and telling her when to make her move, and that that she''d been able to knock out the jailer, and asking where the keys were. Surely he hadn''t just got her past the jailer to leave her trapped. Surely God? What happens next? Sadly for the young woman, Hal knew the jailer didn''t have keys to the outside door; Hal had noticed that little performance earlier. At least she (or rather, God) had picked a time when the outside guards weren''t around. He guessed that since God was the author of the timing, he was her answer to prayer. ¡°Stop wasting time, he doesn''t have the keys.¡± he called, quietly. ¡°Up here!¡± ¡°What?¡± the girl asked. She was reasonably pretty, he thought. Maybe not a great beauty, but quite pleasing to the eyes. ¡°I''ve been wondering what''s in there, but every time he comes in or goes out, the outside guard locks or unlocks the door. Can you climb up on something and reach the roof beams?¡± ¡°Now that I''ve smashed the only piece of furniture, you mean?¡± she whispered back archly. ¡°Do you have a rope?¡± ¡°No,¡± ¡°What sort of a rescuer are you, then?¡± ¡°I didn''t know I was going to be rescuing any fair maids in distress today, sorry. I''ll improvise something, hold on.¡± Hal wriggled across the branch and climbed onto the roof to above the opening that served as the window he''d been looking through, and swung himself in. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but not too hard. In an abstracted manner he noticed that his clothes weren''t as clean as they had been, and that the young woman he was rescuing was actually very pretty, and therefore cleanliness suddenly mattered. ¡°Want to share the joke?¡± she asked. ¡°If you like, I was just thinking that I''m not exactly fit for formal introductions, and it''s going to get even worse if I have to use my trousers as a rope.¡± ¡°I see. I''m not exactly in my best clothes either. You want me to climb up your legs?¡± ¡°I was thinking the closest thing I has to rope was my trousers, if you can''t reach my hand if I dangle it down like this. By the way, we''ve got about ten minutes to get you out before the guards finish their lunch, based on yesterday.¡± ¡°I suppose I should be grateful, but you''re really spoiling my single-handed escape, you realise?¡± ¡°So sorry, I''ll go away, shall I?¡± ¡°Don''t you dare!¡± she shot back. ¡°Get closer to the wall can you? I''ll try bouncing off it to get higher.¡± ¡°Really? OK.¡± Once he was in position, laying flat on one of the beams close to the wall, she ran at the wall and used her momentum to get higher; their hands met. She had a good strong grasp. ¡°Wow!¡± Hal said, ¡°You''re impressive.¡± ¡°I''m supposed to be,¡± she said, ¡°But probably Mum doesn''t mean like this.¡± ¡°My parents say I''m supposed to be impressive too. If I lift you like this, can you grab the beam with your other hand?¡± ¡°Got it, just.¡± the girl replied. ¡°I''m called Hal, by the way.¡± Hal said. ¡°Got a better grip now?¡± ¡°Yes. If you get me out of here, you can call me Esme.¡± ¡°And if I don''t?¡± he asked, adjusting himself so he could lift her onto the beam. ¡°You''d better call the city guard and tell them where you found me, what happened next and so on.¡± ¡°Will they be interested?¡± He asked, lifting her up. ¡°You really don''t know who I am, do you?¡± Esme said, looking into his face. ¡°Sorry, I''ve only been in the city two days, I didn''t see any missing persons sketches or anything. But I was mighty curious about why those guards were putting on accents when they got near this barn.¡± ¡°You mean they be not marshlanders? I''d guessed.¡± ¡°I got in through this window. No, they be not from the three isles, fair maiden.¡± he said in his own people''s manner. ¡°Ah, by your speech, I''d guess you are. I''ll let you go first and lift me up; you seem good at that.¡± ¡°I am of the isles, yes.¡± ¡°But you''re here rescuing me, while we''re still at war.¡± ¡°Stranger things have happened. Your ambassador Hagberry never let the war stop his chess games with the king of Tew, he says. And that was a real war, not just a trade blockade.¡± ¡°You know ambassador Hagberry?¡± ¡°Yes. But I don''t play him at chess, I made that mistake once.¡± ¡°Hal of the Three Isles,¡± she said, looking at him. ¡°Prince Hal of the Three Isles? Why are you rescuing princesses you''re officially at war with?¡± ¡°Urm, a gesture of peace?¡± He suggested, as the penny dropped. ¡°You''re Esmetherelda?¡± ¡°A mouthful, isn''t it?¡± ¡°I always thought it was a beautiful name. Blame Hagberry that I''m here, if you like. He said the war seemed more like a plot to discredit us than anything sane. I''ve got a letter from him and from Dad for your father in my room.¡± ¡°Where''s your room?¡± ¡°Conveniently close. Very conveniently close, so I hope I wasn''t supposed to get curious about the barn, in which case if I climb back along this tree into my window then I''m walking into a trap. I don''t want you to get caught again.¡± ¡°What about you getting caught?¡± ¡°Oh, I''m caught already,¡± he said, ruefully. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I''ve never met anyone like you, Esmetherelda, I hope you don''t mind me being moth to your flame a while. Point me at any insurmountable challenge you like and I''ll conquer it for you or die trying.¡± ¡°Very romantic,¡± she dismissed his words, not believing anyone would say such a thing seriously ever, let alone while perched on the corner of a barn. ¡°Now be serious.¡± ¡°May I escort you home?¡± ¡°Maybe. I don''t know how I was taken hostage ¡ª I went to bed perfectly normally and woke up in this barn, a week ago.¡± ¡°Drugged and kidnapped out of the palace? That''s a pretty bad situation.¡± ¡°I thought so.¡± ¡°Someone might have left a note from you saying you were running away, or anything.¡± ¡°Did anyone know you were coming? It''d end badly if they think I''ve run away with a lover and they find me in your room.¡± ¡°At this end? No. End badly, in the sense of war, or what?¡± ¡°Being the strange fifth daughter who doesn''t fit in, I imagine the best I''d get is mother suggesting I get exiled in shame, if I''m supposedly caught mid-elopement.¡± ¡°Well, come to the Three Isles if that happens. Dad''d think it nice to have a just cause for a war, anyway, rather than groundless accusations.¡± ¡°Groundless?¡± ¡°Unless you''re blaming us for navigational idiocy. One of your ships tried to take a short cut across a shoal, and discovered that rocks don''t do good things for the keels of over-laden carriers.¡± ¡°The captain claimed he was running from pirates.¡± ¡°Official customs agents. Men were rescued, at no small risk to the customs vessel and the locals, goods were impounded, awaiting documentation. The documentation we got was the declaration of war. Was the captain someone important''s son? He seemed barely older than me.¡± ¡°My brother. You met him?¡± ¡°Saw him, anyway. I was on the customs clipper. He left port late and laid up for a moonless night at a place known as a smuggler''s cove. Nothing illegal about that, but suspicious, especially when the ship seemed a bit light leaving port and a very heavy afterwards. And then his cargo turned out to be lots and lots of barrels of our finest wine with no export tariff stamps on them. No crime there, again, but if you don''t have the casks stamped you need documentation from the suppliers. Or at least to name the suppliers so agents can check up on why he didn''t give the right documents. I heard that your brother claimed to have forgotten who that was, ''from the trauma'' he said.¡± ¡°My big brother is a smuggler. Oh, joy!¡± Esme whispered. ¡°I didn''t say that, and that''s a serious accusation, Esmetherelda.¡± ¡°Suspected smuggler then. But that doesn''t give him a motive to besmirch my character just to escalate the war.¡± ¡°So you think he''s going to ''accidentally'' discover you were being kept captive just the other side of the fence to the garden of an inn known to serve the best marshland food, and you reporting that you were held by people speaking with marshland accents?¡± ¡°That''s not really his style. He doesn''t normally do that sort of planning.¡± ¡°Hmm. It sounds more like something a seriously grumpy grand-vizier might come up with. Do you still have one of those?¡± ¡°He retired last month. His daughter is my maid, and has a crush on big brother.¡± ¡°Ah, that''s complicated. Was he happy about retirement?¡± ¡°Yes. His wife wasn''t, she liked the status and the scheming.¡± ¡°So, your maid, and her mum, maybe with big brother''s financial help?¡± ¡°Unless it was my mum, of course.¡± ¡°Your mother?¡± ¡°Not keen on anything from the Isles except your wine. She''s from Tesk.¡± ¡°Poor break-away Tesk, still blaming us for everything. Yes, that sort of makes sense. You really don''t get on with her?¡± ¡°I don''t fit her idea of what a proper daughter ought to enjoy.¡± ¡°Hmm. Proper daughters ought to simper and sew, not bash jailers over the head with a chair, you mean?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Have you had training in that, by the way? I''ve seen plenty of chairs smashed over heads from my time in the navy, but never one that actually worked.¡± ¡°It was a good solid chair, and I got him with the edge of the seat. Yes, I got some secret training from an old sergeant.¡± ¡°See, you are a very special person. So, do you want to stay up here, or accept the hospitality of my room?¡± ¡°What sort of facilities does it boast?¡± ¡°Separate bathing chamber, plumbing, no room service, half a sandwich from last night, and an unopened bottle of fairly poor quality wine compared to home but reasonable compared what you produce here.¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°No room service?¡± ¡°I hate having anonymous staff looking at my stuff when I''m not around and invading my privacy like that. I can make my own bed.¡± ¡°But you don''t mind me snooping?¡± ¡°Unless you''re a very deceitful person, you''re not anonymous, and you''re invited. I wonder what''s happened to that guard, he ought to be checking on your jailer soon.¡± ¡°Me too, but not enough to stay and ask him. Show me to clean water please.¡± ¡°This way, highness,¡± Hal said. ¡°When did I stop being a fair maiden?¡± she asked curiously, ¡°when you realised I desperately need a bath?¡± ¡°You do be always a fair maiden until we do wed, Esmetherelda, unless I fail in pursuit of your heart and some other wins your smile.¡± ¡°You''re serious aren''t you? I''ll have you know that love at first sight is a complete fabrication of poetic convention.¡± ¡°Oh, I know, but my parents have been saying I need a wife so many times it''s accepted fact now, and you''ve just raised the standard so high that I doubt there''s anyone other than you who''ll match it. And it''s not like Hagberry''s never spoken about you.¡± ¡°Hagberry''s told you about me? What''s he said, and do I need to strangle him?¡± ¡°He said that you had your father''s determination, your mother''s beauty, your grandmother''s faith, and your grandfather''s sense of fair play, that he didn''t think you''d ever failed to do something you set your mind to but that you were in desperate need of a soul-mate. Oh, and that if I ever decided I''d volunteer for that position I''d better really impress you, because no one had skin thick enough to survive the sort of tongue-lashing you reserved for unworthy suitors.¡± ¡°Maybe I''ve mellowed with age. When did he tell you that? Five years ago?¡± ¡°Yes, and then he repeated it after his last visit here.¡± ¡°Hmmm. Have you considered the risks of having a balcony that''s quite so accessible via a tree?¡± ¡°Yes. But it makes a nice emergency exit doesn''t it?¡± He went and checked the door. The hair he''d glued in place was still there. ¡°No one''s been in through here, anyway. Are you hungry or thirsty?¡± ¡°Not for old sandwich.¡± ¡°I can go down and get something.¡± ¡°They actually fed me quite well. I found that quite suspicious.¡± ¡°Yes. Urm, I''m out of touch with fashions. Is what you''re wearing classed as a light dress or a nightgown?¡± ¡°It''s a light dress I wear as a nightgown, because I''ve never liked the idea of running out into the palace gardens in the middle of the night to greet Dad or to see some other sight, in something I wouldn''t dream of wearing in public.¡± ¡°OK. That''s good. Well, mostly, anyway. Somehow we need to get you to your father safely. Any ideas, other than walking up to the palace gates?¡± ¡°The soldiers probably wouldn''t believe I''m me.¡± ¡°And the old sergeant?¡± ¡°Retired to the country.¡± ¡°Anyone else you''d trust?¡± ¡°What about your ambassador? Raleph''s moderately competent and can get to see Dad, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Really? We''re not on greatest terms, but OK.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Have you met his daughter? Much too vague for me, but that didn''t stop her making plans. I said I''d rather stay for another tour in the navy when she told me about them, and did.¡± ¡°Oh. Well, that can''t be helped, I suppose. I''ll go and wash.¡± ¡°And would you prefer me to be on guard out here, or out and about arranging transport, finding you another dress, or something like that?¡± ¡°For some reason, I trust you, Prince Hal. Please stay.¡±
Embassy of the Three Isles ¡°Afternoon! Do Ambassador Raleph be home?¡± Hal asked the younger sentry. ¡°Who be you that wants to know?¡± ¡°What be you that you need to know? Never be you a sailor! Why there do be dry mud on your boots and rust on that blade! For shame! Dress uniform with rust! In''t navy tha''d never be swabbing the decks, tha''d be swabbing the bilges!¡± ¡°Rust! Where?¡± the man asked, mortified, and looking at the blade. ¡°Here, here and here.¡± Hal said, taking the blade, pointing out the rust and then with a final ¡°Not to mention here¡± he pointed the blade at the sailor''s forehead. ¡°Put yerself on report for falling for that old trick, man.¡± Tossing the stunned man his weapon, he added ¡°And tell Raleph that prince Hal needs to talk to him in approximately one minute, in other words, once I''ve reprimanded this grinning ape who do be beside you. Go on, sprint man. Now you, how dare you be letting yon sprinter lose his weapon?¡± ¡°On account of me recognising your highness, from the Albatross, I was knowing that all he was going to lose was some pride.¡± ¡°Fair ''nuff, thought you might.¡± Hal said, grinning at his old shipmate. ¡°You do be Bings, don''t you?¡± ¡°I am indeed, highness! ''Tis nice indeed to recognised! And a most honest welcome to you too, highness,¡± Bings said, bowing to Esme. ¡°I heard some rumours from the city guard about you being kidnapped.¡± ¡°You didn''t hear who by, I suppose?¡± Esme asked. ¡°No. You don''t know?¡± ¡°They were speaking mock-marshland, ''do you go here'', ''do you pick that up'' when near me.¡± ¡°And she was held in locked inner cell someone''d built in that barn out behind the Fisherman.¡± Hal added. ¡°And you rescued her, Highness?¡± ¡°Credit where it do be due,¡± Hal said. ¡°Her royal highness here put her jailer out cold with a chair to the head, I recognised the sound, of course, but didn''t never expect the guy to be flat on his back and snoring. I just helped a bit after that.¡± ¡°Just little things like lifting me up to the rafters when I was in a trap with no way out, and helping me find a safe place.¡± ¡°With respect, I''m not too sure anywhere in this city is a safe place, highness.¡± Bings said, ''There''s factions and stuff forming in the city guard. Bad sign that, very bad sign. Conflicting orders, that sort of thing. ''Tis not our country, but it''s where we live and it''s got us lads worried. Hence the rust, highness.¡± ¡°You''re suggesting things are heading for civil war?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Unrest anyway. And unrest isn''t that many steps from civil war.¡± ¡°Thank you, Bings.¡± Hal said, ¡°I think we''d better go chat to Raleph.¡± ¡°My pleasure, Highness.¡± Ambassador Raleph had been a naval captain, but that was a long time ago. Both showed; his uniform was immaculate, but his waistline was getting a little too wide. ¡°Highness, I wasn''t aware you were in the city.¡± ¡°I wasn''t a few days ago. Then I got distracted by an overly guarded barn, which turned out to contain my companion here.¡± ¡°A barn?¡± ¡°Behind the Fisherman, guarded by people who don''t know when to say ''do'', so stick it everywhere. I imagine that it''s something to do with escalating the war.¡± ¡°Sorry, why would holding a pretty girl hostage escalate the war?¡± ¡°Bings has better eyes than you, Ambassador Raleph,¡± ¡°Bings has better eyes than anyone,¡± the ambassador grumbled, looking at Esme again. ¡°You do sort of look familiar.¡± ¡°That''s a comfort. Maybe my father will recognise me too, then. Try mentally adding a coronet and a book, and put me in the throne-room, ambassador Raleph.¡± ¡°Highness! A thousand apologies! You were kidnapped?¡± ¡°A week ago, I went to bed and woke up in a cell. No one ever told me what they wanted, just that the voices I heard outside were all friends of theirs so they wouldn''t gag me, but ''the boss'' had said if I tried calling for help they could knock me about a bit the first time, break some bones the second and do whatever they liked the third as long as they burred the evidence. Except there were a lot more ''do''s in there.¡± ¡°Kidnapped from your own bed!¡± Raleph said. ¡°An inside job, then.¡± ¡°I know. And I''m not really looking forward to telling father I''m going to make alternative arrangements, but I plan to. And since I don''t trust the palace guards, my maid, or even my brother and mother, they''re going to be secret.¡± ¡°You trust your sisters, though?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Sort of. But some of them only because I can''t imagine they''d dare let someone into my bedroom.¡± ¡°I think there are a number of questions, highness,¡± Hal said. ¡°One is how they got you out of your room, the next is how they got you out of the palace, and the third is how you ended up in that barn, all in the space of a moonlit night. The same answer doesn''t necessarily apply to all three. Someone might have slipped you something that evening that made you forgetful, and then invited you out into the garden ¡ª from what you said earlier you make a habit of that.¡± ¡°And if I wasn''t carried from my bed, it might explain why I had my shoes on.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°But it was just a family meal. I didn''t even have a glass of water afterwards.¡± ¡°But you have a known place, a known cup, and so on.¡± Raleph said, ¡°As well as a known habit of getting up in the middle of the night to watch eclipses or whatever.¡± ¡°The eclipse! Yes, it was that night, I missed it!¡± A flood of partial memories came too. ''Come on Esme!'' a voice had said, ''You''re missing the eclipse!'' ¡°That was nine nights ago, princess. I thought you said a week,¡± Hal chided. ¡°So, I''ve got another suggestion: you went to bed, planning to wake up for the eclipse, but the entire family was fed some kind of sleeping draft. You get woken up, all bleary and suggestible, and told you''re missing the eclipse, and you can''t see it from the garden any more. Whereupon you''re escorted to somewhere where you''re drugged and bundled into a waiting carriage.¡± Esme looked at Hal for a while, saying nothing. He''d described it exactly right, she knew, and he knew that too. ¡°Are you going to ''suggest'' who it was, too?¡± ¡°No, my princess, I''ll leave that to you.¡± ¡°Good. But it sounds like an entirely plausible explanation. We''ll have to ask if the whole family slept well that night. Raleph, I want to talk to my father, I don''t want to be taken for a pauper and get stopped at the gate. Please can you help? I''m going to take price Hal along too, because for some reason he wants to ask Daddy if he can be my suitor, and for even less explicable reasons I''m not going to raise much more than a token objection. Oh, and he''s got some letters that might stop the war, which would be nice.¡± ¡°May I see them?¡± ¡°Father asked me to give them to him directly, Raleph, sorry. The other one''s from ambassador Hagberry, so I''m certainly not going to tell you what''s in that.¡± ¡°But you know?¡± ¡°Roughly, yes. ''Please stop the war or tell me what it''s about. Surely not that probably-smuggler''s cargo of wine. It''s very embarrassing''. Father''s has a bit more about trade in it, exchanges of mutual benefit, release of the wine if it''s really so important, and so on.¡± Esme looked at Hal once more, very aware that his thoughts and glances had been in her direction when he''d said ''exchanges of mutual benefit''. Why hadn''t she prised the context out of him for Hagberry''s rather flattering description of her? Now, in front of Raleph wasn''t the time. ¡°Can I get a couple of things clear in my thinking?¡± ¡°I breathe but to serve you, highness,¡± Hal said, with a florid bow. ¡°Why don''t you say ''is'' and ''are'' among yourselves?¡± Hal laughed. ¡°Because all day long the wind is saying izzz in the rigging, and it gets very confusing, when you shout something and only half gets heard. And on the marshes, an ar is a dangerous water-snake, so if someone needs to shout Ar! in the middle of their sentence, you don''t want grammar getting in the way of understanding.¡± ¡°Wouldn''t it be easier to call the snake something different?¡± ¡°It''s been tried. The snake''s now known also known as a flicken, a pennythwack, and there are some rarer ones too. But there''s always someone who can''t remember or recognise the new word or refuses to use it because it''s too long.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Esme said. ¡°Next question?¡± ¡°Where would you suggest as a safe place for me to sleep tonight?¡± ¡°The ship that brought me here is at your service, princess. There is a cabin with a stout lockable door. It doesn''t have plumbing, which is why I stay at the Fisherman, but otherwise it''s comfortable. If your father agrees to everything in my father''s letter and to my request of you, then perhaps you could also trust your maid not to hand you over to anyone in the middle of the sea, and with her as travelling companion accompany me to see the Isles and my parents. Not to mention give Hagberry a few pieces of your mind about putting ideas in my head.¡± ¡°You came here hoping we''d meet?¡± Esme asked, thinking suspicious thoughts about their meeting. ¡°I swear to you in the sight of the saviour that I knew nothing of your kidnapping, Esme.¡± She didn''t need to listen to his words to know the feelings her suspicions had aroused in him. She didn''t need her eyes to see the wounded expression on his face, either. ¡°Sorry, Hal.¡± ¡°Not your fault,¡± he said, ¡°pretty reasonable, really.¡± ¡°I feel like I''m missing half the conversation.¡± Raleph observed. ¡°I suspect you are, ambassador,¡± Hal said. ¡°It looks like Esmetherelda and I are getting quite good are interpreting what lies behind one another''s words and intonation and stuff. Blame adrenaline if you like.¡± Stuff was the key thing, of course. ¡°I prefer to credit the fact you''ve both got Tesk ancestry,¡± Raleph said. ¡°My parents tuned together. We can credit adrenaline for helping forge the link, but you are tuning in to each other, aren''t you?¡± ¡°It seems like we''re starting to,¡± Esme said, thinking that this would be the final straw for her mother. She felt Hal''s confusion. ¡°Mother will be displeased to think of any Tesk ancestry in your line, Hal.¡± ¡°Then she should study more history,¡± Hal replied. ¡°The first king of of the Isles was from Tesk. That''s why his descendants developed the tradition of Tesk brides; to keep the line pure, not to dilute the lines on Tesk.¡± ¡°I''ll let you try to explain that to her.¡± ¡°I intend to, for I wish her blessing as well as your father''s.¡± ¡°Hadn''t you better change out of that dirty doublet, then?¡± Raleph suggested. ¡°I suppose so. Raleph, Can you send Bings to the Albatross for me, with the promise that he can go and get drunk with his old ship-mates this evening as long as he brings my formal-wear back quickly and undamaged.¡± ¡°Certainly, certainly. And I''ll send a message ahead to the palace if I may?¡± ¡°No mention of me, please.¡± Esmetherelda said. ¡°They must have discovered I''m gone by now, but I don''t have any idea what that leads to, and there''s always the hope that the guards might have just decided not to report in.¡± ¡°I understand, highness.¡± ¡°And if I am to look my best, I do not want Esme''s parents to think I''d subject her to the indignity of approaching the palace in her present nine-days old clothes.¡± ¡°If you think you''re going to win anyone''s favour by buying me a bar-maid''s dress.... What cloth on the ship?¡± she asked, reacting to his thought, ¡°There''s no time for a dressmaker!¡± Then she understood his thoughts, and was pleased that his blush matched hers. ¡°A bit presumptive, Hal,¡± she said. ¡°in the sense that the sea is a bit wet.¡± ¡°Not entirely without precedent. Especially on Tesk or the isles.¡± She threw her head back and laughed. ¡°Mother is going to hit the roof if I walk in in an engagement sari.¡± ¡°Even if we say it''s not an engagement sari?¡± ¡°But the fabric is meant for one. And you did bring it just in case we got on well enough that you''d get me to wear it some time. And you know that once I''ve worn it then no other will.¡± ¡°I''m not planning to offer it to anyone else, Esmetherelda, I think I''ve made that clear. A gift, without strings, without promises, and without time to make it into anything else but a sari.¡± ¡°But full of hope, nonetheless. I am rebellious enough that I will accept your gift, Hal of the three Isles, of a sari with no strings attached.¡± ¡°If I may recommend caution, highnesses.¡± Raleph said, ¡°Given the state of semi-war already, upsetting your parents is not the best policy. Especially since if you walk in looking like you''ve spent the last nine days being wooed by the prince then things could go down hill very quickly.¡± ¡°A good point made a little too late, I''m not going back on my acceptance now. But yes, I''ll wear it differently to a Sari,¡±
The palace gates ¡°I hope we''re expected,¡± Raleph said to the guard from the official coach. ¡°You are, ambassador, and one special courier, not two.¡± ¡°Well, I hardly felt it appropriate to seek a pass for a royal princess to return to her home.¡± Putting aside the veil she''d added to the cloth, Esme said, ¡°Stand aside, captain. If there is subterfuge it''s mine. I need to talk to my father before my kidnappers discover where I am.¡± ¡°Sorry, highness, I didn''t recognise you, dressed like that.¡± ¡°That was rather the point. Having been kidnapped and managing to escape once, I hardly want to repeat the experience.¡± ¡°It was a kidnapping then?¡± ¡°Did I have any books with me? Of course it was a kidnapping. I was drugged, held in a locked cell in a locked barn with food and drink but nothing to read and told I''d be beaten to death if I made a sound.¡± ¡°Sorry for doubting, princess. Shall I provide an escort?¡± ¡°Certainly not,¡± Esme replied. ¡°I know where my father''s throne room is.¡± ¡°His majesty has been taken ill, highness.¡± ¡°Who is making decisions?¡± ¡°Day to day decisions are taken by her majesty, more important issues are discussed with your brother as heir, and his majesty is privately consulted on the most major issues, they say.¡± She didn''t miss the implication of that final clause. ¡°Then I shall require of you a squad of ten soldiers loyal to his majesty who are aghast at this breach of protocol, and I shall also require you to send for the grand-vizier.¡± ¡°He has retired, highness.¡± ¡°I know. But he has not abdicated. Oh, and on the subject of the war with the Three Isles. Prince Hal here tells me the boat that chased my brother''s ship was a customs clipper which wished to inspect his cargo for duty stamps having observed some suspicious behaviour. I hope you can draw the relevant conclusions.¡± ¡°Do you know who abducted you, highness?¡± ¡°I do not know how I was so drugged that I did not question the person who told me I was missing the eclipse of the moon and would see it better from standing in a carriage, but I know who it was. I don''t know who drove the carriage to where I was imprisoned.¡± ¡°But no one saw the eclipse, highness, it was raining!¡± ¡°I remember that also. As I said, I was clearly drugged. My father fell ill that same night?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°I must speak to his doctor then. His old doctor, if there has been any change there.¡± ¡°He has been imprisoned, highness.¡± ¡°Under the seal of the regent, or just by command?¡± ¡°By command, highness. I''m not aware of any decisions under the seal of the regent.¡± ¡°I''m not surprised, father entrusted it to me and I hid it somewhere. I hope it''s still safe. Hopefully, the good doctor has survived his imprisonment as well as I have mine. Send me with an extra couple of men as runners, and form a few more squads of loyal men, if you can, captain. I''ll go via my apartment and assuming the seal is where it ought to be, I''ll send you some orders concerning the doctor and the grand-vizier.¡± ¡°At your command, highness,¡± And he barked commands to form an escort. ¡°Good man that,¡± Raleph observed. ¡°Why is he on gate duty?¡± ¡°It keeps him out of the politics,¡± Esme said. ¡°It seems that the Lord God has a use for my heritage.¡± ¡°You mean...¡± Hal didn''t finish his question. He didn''t need to. For Raleph''s benefit. She said, ¡°I mean that it will be unwise for anyone to try to deceive me.¡± ¡°Squad ready and reporting for duty, highness.¡± ¡°Very well. Now, quietly, because there are traitors around. My father formally placed the seal of the regent in my care some years ago, making me regent in need, for example in the event of his illness, do any of you have doubts concerning that?¡± ¡°No, highness,¡± they all murmured. ¡°Well, someone just hesitated and should have said yes. And you ought to, because that''d be treason if it wasn''t true. Therefore, we''re going to go to my apartment and I''m hoping to find the seal where I hid it. If I don''t find it, then you are not to treat me as anything more than a princess, understood?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± they murmured, with greater confidence. ¡°Excellent. Oh, I know that there are standing orders about no regular soldiers in the royal apartments. Right now, you and Prince Hal are now my royal bodyguard, Ambassador Raleph is invited to accompany us, and I expect you to protect him also.¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°I''m so glad that I ate at your embassy, Raleph, I''d hate to do this on an empty stomach. If anyone''s hungry, grab a hunk of bread and let''s go, the back-way and not in strict formation, so we don''t alert anyone.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 2: Regent

Planet 5 / Ch. 2: Regent

Extract from initial-contact report for inhabited planet orbiting star 3648 (AKA Planet 5) The scholar''s Island is called Tesk. It is part of a semi-autonomous political grouping known as the ''Confederation of the four Isles''. which represents one third of an old empire known as ''the Windward empire,'' The other portions being the kingdom of Caneth and the Kingdom of Tew. The old empire collapsed in a rather messy revolt by the people against the ''doom-guard'' and the emperor. The doom-guard were the priest-emperor''s elite forces, and regularly took the best and brightest of citizens from their town for one of several purposes. According to the thoughts of one informant, those were: joining the emperor''s civil service, joining the elite academy on Tesk, or if they failed the entrance examinations then ''the doom'', which was the emperor used them according to his will: either to be part his harem, or human sacrifice to his numerous idols. Our other informant thought that the harem was the conclave of his most trusted civil servants, his imperial wives. Our informants have given us accounts of this revolution, which differ as to whether one of the ''imperial wives'' from the harem killed the emperor before the outbreak of the rebellion against the doom-guard, or whether the emperor was killed during the fighting. Caneth clearly got most of the arable land as well as a large stretch of desert and some rain forest. Tew got some very rich ore deposits, and the Isles have famous vineyards, and some marshlands which are lived in by a group of fishermen and sailors with the reputation of being only a couple of steps away from being a bunch of pirates. There is another empire on the planet, called Dahel, which our Gifted friend says seems to includes a number of subordinate kingdoms and principalities. The Dahel empire is edged by a number of mountain ranges that look like they ought to make further expansion impractical.
Esmetherelda''s apartments ¡°What a mess!¡± Esme exclaimed, looking at the books and clothes that had been thrown into a pile in the middle of the room. Someone had obviously been looking for the seal. ¡°A worrying mess?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Not especially,¡± Esme replied, crossing to her maid''s room, she knocked. There was no reply. She opened the door, to see a similar heap there, except here things had clearly been placed, not thrown. ¡°Anyone know what''s happened to Grizetha?¡± ¡°Put under arrest yesterday for complicity in your kidnapping, highness.¡± ¡°More likely for not finding the seal,¡± Esme corrected. ¡°Silly Grizetha.¡± Hal herd Esme decide that Grizetha was in the right place, on the right charge, and asked if she''d been the one who''d told Esme to get in the carriage. Esme told him to work it out himself, and he realised that Grizetha''s room had the door to the garden, not Esme''s. ¡°OK,¡± Esme announced, ¡°Nothing more to see in here. You two, get this door off its hinges, please.¡± ¡°You hid it in the door?¡± Hal asked, amazed. ¡°Not quite. This used to be a window, when I was little. Grizetha''s room was added on. There''s a hole you can''t get do with the door on its hinges where the sash-ropes went.¡± ¡°And you managed this yourself?¡± ¡°No. My father helped. The king ought to know where the regent''s seal is, don''t you think?¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± ¡°There it is, one signet ring,¡± Esme said, easily plucking it from its hiding place. ¡°Now... did anyone hear of anyone else in the palace having headaches or over-sleeping or anything like that on the morning after the eclipse?¡± ¡°My girlfriend overslept that day. She works in the kitchen, she said everyone was out of sorts that morning, and people forgetting things too, on account of the bad air from the eclipse. I said it never affected any of us soldiers, so it couldn''t be bad air.¡± ¡°Right, thank you. Five out of ten for dismissing the analysis, but not realising she''d been drugged.¡± She sat down at her desk, and wrote: Let it hereby be understood that his majesty the king''s illness began at the same time that diverse members of the of the royal family and palace staff who ate from the royal kitchens suffered from tiredness, memory loss, bad headaches and diverse other complaints, such as those associated with various preparations of herbs, mushrooms, etc. that make a kidnapping easier. Let it also be understood that princess Esmetherelda was kidnapped that night by unconfirmed assailants. Let it further be known that combinations of these drugs and the medicines used to treat heart problems such as the king has, can be poisonous. These things are all known and understood by the undersigned princess Esmetherelda, regent of the king by his express desire and command. Therefore, let it be known that Doctor Tobias is not presently considered responsible for the King''s present state of ill-health, let him be immediately restored to his position and set the onerous task of providing such medicines as will restore his majesty to his customary good health. Long live the king! On another piece of paper she wrote: By order of princess Esmetherelda, regent of the king by his express desire and command, the retired grand-vizier shall return to his post immediately in accordance to his oath in this time of his nation''s need. Let him restore the proper orderly functioning of government, seek out and punish those responsible for the poisoning of the king and (probably through the same substance) the drugging and subsequent kidnapping of princess Esmetherelda. Let all who think to oppose or delay his return to office be warned they shall be charged with promoting chaos in government and thus treason against the state. Long live the king! ¡°What''s going on here? What are all you soldiers doing in Esme''s room? Who did this? Esme? Esme! You''re back!¡± ¡°Hello Winessa, hold this wax please. Thank you. There, two documents sealed and... signed. Would you like to be my witness?¡± ¡°Urm, OK Esme. What happened?¡± ¡°I got drugged, I guess everyone got drugged. I got kidnapped, I escaped half way and got rescued all the way by prince Hal here. Do you like the cloth? Hal gave it to me.¡± ¡°It''s beautiful, it looks fit for one of those engagement saris mum talks about.¡± ¡°It''s exactly fit for one of those. Sorry, let me do the introductions, Prince Hal, this is my younger sister, Winessa. Winessa, prince Hal of the Three Isles, you know ambassador Raleph, I assume, and these nice men are the regent''s bodyguard.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°I have the regent''s seal, Winessa, you remember. Daddy gave it to me.¡± ¡°I know, but mother...¡± ¡°Mother has been doing as she felt best. Now I''m here, I''ve got the seal, I''m regent, and I''m doing what I see as best. You''ve just witnessed documents that will get Daddy''s doctor back so he can actually get better, and the other one tells anyone who tries to stop Tumbril from coming back to work that they''re a traitor.¡± Turning to the squad, she said ¡°Now, who''s going to run with these? Pick up a squad and go get the doctor, give the other to another squad to get grand-vizier Tumbril.¡± ¡°Yes, princess regent!¡± the runner saluted. ¡°Oh, wait a moment. What''s your name?¡± she wrote it on another sheet, with her seal and signature. ¡°Here, show this to anyone who doubts you''re obeying my direct orders.¡± ¡°Thank you, highness!¡± ¡°Winessa, have you seen your father recently?¡± Hal asked. ¡°He was sort of feverish, but sleeping. The day before yesterday.¡± ¡°Who''s the new doctor?¡± ¡°I don''t know his name. Henk brought him.¡± ¡°And what''s he doing about daddy''s medicine?¡± Esme asked. ¡°I don''t know.¡± ¡°Well, let''s go and find out. That''s important.¡± ¡°I know. Mummy''ll be so glad you''re back.¡± Winessa said. ¡°I hope so. Someone won''t be.¡± ¡°Why didn''t Henk become regent?¡± Winessa asked. Hal heard Esme think how not to upset her sister too much. ¡°I guess Daddy wanted someone who''d be on this side of the ocean, Win. You know, all his trips.¡± ¡°Oh! Yes. He''s so brave!¡± ¡°Prince Hal here saw Henk last trip, Win. It wasn''t a pirate ship he was running from, it was a customs clipper.¡± ¡°Customs?¡± Winessa asked. ¡°We wanted to know why he''d left port late and over-nighted in a cove known for smugglers. And warn him that his ship was looking a lot lower in the water than it had when he left port, so maybe he had a leak. Somehow, it seems he got so confused about why we wanted him to stop that he tried to sail across some rocks.¡± ¡°You think some of his men might have been smuggling something?¡± ¡°The cargo that we got out of his wreck had an awful lot of wine casks without duty-paid stamps on them. That''s why we asked for paperwork saying where they''d come from. Sometimes the producer pays, and sometimes the ship''s captain pays, but sometimes wine-traders like to ''forget'' they need to pay their taxes on exports, and need a reminder, you know? And then there''s real smuggling. Since the wine trade is so much of our state income, smuggling is a very serious problem.¡± ¡°How much wine did you confiscate?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Impounded, not confiscated. It''s his as soon as he can tell us where he bought it from, or produce a bill of sale. He had about five hundred barrels of top quality wine on board. His ship''s insurers might want to ask why he was over-laden, too.¡± ¡°Five hundred barrels?¡± Winessa asked. ¡°Yes. Some were probably lost in the wreck, of cause.¡± ¡°Daddy''s room''s there.¡± Winessa said, pointing down the corridor. Esme raised her hand to stop the squad. ¡°And the guards with halberds are there to make sure no one tries to assassinate Daddy?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And they know you, and know you''re not capable of hurting anyone.¡± ¡°I''m not allowed in either, not without Henk.¡± ¡°That''s not right! Squad, square formation around us, archers at the rear, bows ready. Thank you. What if Daddy wakes up and wants some water, Win? One of us ought to be there all the time. It''s our daughterly duty.¡± Fifteen steps away from the door, she called out, ¡°Let me pass, soldiers. I have to speak to my father.¡± ¡°No one sees the king.¡± One of the guards said. He wasn''t in any livery at all. ¡°I am princess-regent Esmetherelda, this is my body-guard, this is the regent''s seal, given into my care by my father until such time as he gave it to another or I needed to use it. It is my duty under law to talk to my father. Stand aside willingly or be arrested on the charge of insubordination. If you fail to drop your weapons you will die as traitors here and now.¡± ¡°Our orders come from prince Henk directly,¡± said the other, who was in livery, but it wasn''t recognisable to Esme. ¡°My big brother is not and has never been regent, he is only heir apparent if I and my eldest sister are dead. You have seen the regent''s ring on my finger. You are under arrest for insubordination.¡± ¡°You have no authority over us even if you are regent, since we''re mercenaries, and I''m not a citizen so it can''t be treason, can it, missy? Now run away and cry to your mummy. She can''t go in either.¡± ¡°Win, don''t watch.¡± Esme said, crouching down and pulling Winessa down too. The swordsmen followed suit, as did Hal and a startled Raleph. ¡°By his words, both are condemned.¡± Esme finished quietly. ¡°Lose.¡± The mercenaries, little more than hired thugs pushed into ill-fitting armour, had faced down other challenges. They certainly hadn''t expected a princess to order her archers to shoot. Their armour was no match for the arrows at this range. ¡°It may be that he lied, and that my brother has not brought mercenaries into the palace.¡± Esme said and Hal herd the lack of conviction in her thoughts, and the dead feeling she felt having had to order the deaths, and what needed to follow. He wanted to hug her, and comfort her, but tuned to one another''s thoughts as they were, he knew she needed him not to. She carried on. ¡°I hope that is the case, but sadly we cannot assume it. It is the law that only the king can employ foreign mercenaries, and only then during a time of desperate need in an active war, or as specialists training the regular army. They were no specialists. Any other person employing mercenaries commits treason. Thus, if my brother prince Henk approaches, he must be arrested if that is possible without too much risk. Other family members may approach my father''s bedside unarmed. Winessa, you are a royal witness to what I''ve said as regent.¡± ¡°I am,¡± Winessa said, quivering in her sister''s embrace. ¡°Would you be willing to leave this place of bloodshed with one of the soldiers, and confirm what I''ve said to Captain Dalken who is a trustworthy and loyal man, and request he bring reinforcements here?¡± ¡°I thought Henk was a good man too. How do I know I''m not deceived about Captain Dalken?¡± ¡°Because I''ve spoken to him recently, and God has chosen to awaken in me the gift of mother''s people. Thus I am not surprised to meet mercenaries, for he thought of them but did not wish to worry me with his fears, and I also know what to suggest to father should he wish to reward him with more that just a promotion for his loyalty. But come, before you go, give father a kiss, for he was wakened by the sounds of death, and worries. But keep your eyes shut until we''re inside.¡± ¡°Is there a lot of blood?¡± Winessa asked, not moving. ¡°Some, but not nearly as much as from a sword battle.¡± Hal said, going to the door. It opened without difficulty. ¡°Oh Father!¡± Esme cried, ¡°Put down your sword and get back in bed, you look like you''re going to pass out.¡± ¡°Esme?¡± ¡°Yes, father, it''s me. I''ve just ordered the two dead mercenaries at your door shot, and assuming it can be done easily, Henk''s arrest on suspicion of employing mercenaries.¡± ¡°I always said you''d make a good general.¡± ¡°That was just battle command, father. I''m not good at strategy. Winessa''s here to kiss you and then she''s going to go to the good Captain Dalken to confirm what I''ve said about Henk. And maybe give him a kiss too, if you approve.¡± ¡°Dalken, eh? You''re sure about him?¡± he asked Esme. ¡°I''m sure he assigned himself to gate duty because there was nothing else he could do except pray I escaped my captors or start a civil war. He wasn''t quite ready for the war. Mother was wrong about the gift of Tesk, among other things. Now rest, father.¡± ¡°Henk has all the generals on his side?¡± ¡°I presume so, if the leader of the troops loyal to you is a captain.¡± ¡°General Hagard has been arrested, your majesty, and General Wirt hasn''t returned from the coastal patrol,¡± the lieutenant in charge of the squad reported.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Of course he hasn''t. So, you''ve got Hagard and probably Wirt when he gets home.¡± ¡°I''ve ordered Tumbril back to duty, father. I hope that was the right decision. And your doctor ought to be here soon.¡± ¡°See, you can think of strategy. Get the key players back in place. Well done, Esme. Well done. Interesting sort of dress you''ve got on.¡± ¡°Very.¡± Esme said with a wry smile. ¡°I wasn''t expecting to be ordering mercenaries killed before I could speak to you.¡± ¡°Come on, out with it. Why are you not quite wearing an engagement sari, why is Raleph here, and who''s the young man who looks a like a younger version of king Val of the Isles?¡± ¡°The young man is Prince Hal of the Isles, who got me out of the barn I''d been locked up in. It seems that as well as bringing you some letters from Hagberry and king Val, he came here hoping to win my good opinion. Since no one knew you weren''t on your throne, he didn''t think my nightdress was appropriate to come to court in, and gave me the sari. Since until lunchtime I was still in the cell, I firmly expect to be a quivering wreck later on, at which point he''s going to be useful again. Sorry father, rest.¡± ¡°I need to know what''s in those letters, but as well as my medicine they''ve taken my glasses.¡± ¡°Then lie down, and I''ll read them to you if you like.¡± ¡°Let''s hear what Hagberry says.¡± ¡°Hal wonders if Winessa should go, and if the ambassador''s letter might be as embarrassing as his father''s.¡± ¡°See, he''s useful now. Go give Dalken his kiss, Winessa.¡± ¡°Yes, father,¡± Winessa said, blushing furiously. Esme heard her think that it was going to shock Dalken, since they''d only talked until now, and had one hand-in-hand moment when they''d agreed to wait until he had his promotion or at least she reached twenty-one, next spring. ¡°And shut the door.¡± ¡°Yes father.¡± When she''d left, the king stopped pretending to be stronger than he was and collapsed back onto the bed. ¡°Father, the letters can wait.¡± Esme said, ¡°Don''t overtire yourself. You''ve got to get your strength back,¡± ¡°Nine days without my medicine, Esme. I''m never going to get my strength back. But it''s so good to have you back, you can be strong for me. Be merciful to your mother, as much as you can.¡± ¡°Rest a while, father,¡± Esme pleaded. ¡°No, I''m still king. You''ll be queen soon enough, Esmetherelda. Read to me.¡± ¡°The letter from Hagberry is as follows. And Hal was right, it''s embarrassing to learn what you''ve been up to father. ''Sire, this war is making things very complicated. What''s it about? I''m frequently asked and at a loss to explain it to the people here. Prince Hal seems quite comfortable with the idea of seeking to woo Esmetherelda, and I don''t think he has an inkling about your idea of maybe saddling her with the throne. He seems genuinely interested in her, in as much as he actually asked me if she was still single when he returned from his last naval tour. As well as being hopeful that if Esme is willing to consider the marriage then it might bring about better relations between the two countries, he''s looking for his own kindred spirit, and hopes she''s as I''ve described her. But he wonders what chance he has during this state of war, and is like everyone, entirely confused about the cause. Several times he''s suggested that he delay seeking an introduction to Esme until peace has been restored, assuming he''d get a better reception if there''s peace. You will learn the truth of how the smuggler''s ship ''Adventure'' ran aground from Hal himself, as he was captain of the pursuing customs vessel and out-manoeuvred her beautifully. If you have any questions, do get in touch as I was also on-board on one of those tours of inspection they like to give when the signal came. The identity of the captain of the ship is not known to me, as he made his get-away in the ship''s long-boat, leaving his men to drown or be rescued by us. Again, Prince Hal earned my respect, firstly by carefully navigating the currents of the shoals to pick up all the men from the wreck, and then diving into the water numerous times to help those who were injured. I also add that he ran up warning flags indicating the risk of shoals ahead, had the smuggler chosen to pay attention to them. In case some report is made about cannon fire, I add that once the ship had run aground, and the men were abandoning ship, one cannon was fired on the prince''s orders, without shot, to summon aid from the shore. I hope this short account helps sort out truth from fiction. Your humble servant, Hagberry. Long live your majesty.'' And you''d better live long, Daddy, because I don''t know if I''m cross with you about plotting my wedding without even hinting about it, or happy about you finding me such a good man to marry.¡± ¡°You approve, then?¡± he asked weakly. ¡°He helped me escape without knowing who I was, Daddy. Yes, I approve. Now you''re going to rest.¡± ¡°I''m probably going to die, Esme,¡± the king countered. ¡°Not yet, you''ve got some very important things to do.¡± ¡°You can do them, Esme.¡± ¡°I cannot walk myself up the aisle, Father. It doesn''t make sense, and Henk won''t be doing it, will he? So, rest until the doctor says you''re fit for more state duties.¡± ¡°What about the letter from king Val?¡± ¡°I''ll read it to myself now, and to you tomorrow. Open the door please, Hal, it sounds like the doctor''s coming.¡± Shaking his head in wonder, Hal opened the door. ¡°Doctor Tobias, come in please, quickly.¡± Esme said, ¡°Father''s not been allowed his medicine for nine days ¡ª since the night of the eclipse.¡± ¡°Outlasted them, doctor!¡± the king said, ¡°Now tell Crown Princess Esme there''s no hope for me and I''ll go quietly.¡± ¡°First, rest, your majesty, while I talk to Esmetherelda.¡± Picking up his thoughts, Esme started talking, describing her symptoms when she was kidnapped, what she''d heard from others, and then relayed her father''s symptoms too. ¡°You''ve answered every question I had, highness!¡± The doctor said. ¡°I know, doctor. God has decided I should gain the ability my mother did not bring with her from Tesk. Since it only came upon me this afternoon, I don''t know yet if it is gift or curse. I''ve read it described as both.¡± ¡°To suddenly restart your father''s medication is dangerous, highness. To not restart it is more dangerous. To start it too slowly is dangerous, as it may not be sufficient.¡± ¡°I understand, Doctor. You must make a life or death choice in accordance with your best judgement. A little will help only a little, but how resistant is his body to the medicine still?¡± ¡°It will still be resistant, but not as resistant. I must calculate, highness, I''m sorry.¡± ¡°I leave you with your patient, doctor. I must talk to my mother.¡± ¡°I, err, saw the bodies outside.¡± ¡°They claimed to be mercenaries in my brother''s employ. If you need any supplies, Doctor, do not trust anything in the palace or your own surgery unless it is exactly where you left it and covered in the same amount of dust it used to have. Who knows what might have been poisoned.¡± ¡°Highness, I have an idea of what to do, I could try to stabilise your father with another medicine. It is not as effective, long term, and the taste is reportedly foul, but he will not have any resistance to it. Further, it has no interactions I know of. It is rare, and, um, expensive though.¡± ¡°Never mind the costs, doctor. I understand what you say and what you don''t say. If father will live by it, they are worth paying. Will the supplier give the first doses on credit, do you think?¡± ¡°I am sure he will, yes.¡± Hal looked at Esme questioningly. He didn''t catch everything she heard, only what she then thought about, but he caught the sense of danger. Then as she thought about it, he understood. The doctor was talking about an addictive plant extract, and stopping it suddenly would surely kill. It would need constant management. But without it her father could die. Once more he longed to give her some kind of mental and emotional support, but he didn''t know what he could do that would lighten the load of these life-and-death decisions she was having to make. He thanked God that he''d allowed them to meet, thanked God for the wisdom and insight he''d given her, and silently prayed for her. Esme felt Hal''s love and concern for her upwelling through his prayers, and basked in it for a while. Then gently she thought her thanks to him, ¡°Doctor, I expect there will be enough troubles in this next week that it will be a source of joy if all of us survive them. Let us worry of later troubles later, nothing you have thought of is insurmountable. Half the soldiers will guard this room, I must take the other half with me, I''m afraid.¡± ¡°If you do not stay safe, daughter, I''ll be very cross with you,¡± the king said. ¡°Rest, father.¡± ¡°You won''t read me that letter?¡± he asked plaintively. ¡°If you''re good, I''ll read it tomorrow. But it''s mostly old news anyway isn''t it? What''s the point of a trade war if soon there will be a united kingdom?¡± ¡°Every point. To convince independently minded people how bad the alternative is and let them welcome the solution.¡± ¡°OK, you wily old fox, you''ve outsmarted me again. Now get some sleep. I''m going to be merciful to mummy, if I can.¡± They left the room, Esme gave orders to the guards, and they set off. As they walked, despite being surrounded by soldiers, Hal felt it very natural to take Esme''s arm in his, and she was surprised to find she didn''t find herself objecting one bit. It felt right, in fact, and comforting. She almost pulled it back when he said, seemingly out of nowhere, ¡°I imagine Esme, that there might be some haggling over the terms of unification.¡± ¡°Can''t we keep next year''s trouble for then?¡± ¡°I was just thinking we could always elope.¡± ¡°Hmm. Are you always this practical?¡± ¡°Is it practical?¡± ¡°It stops me worrying about what to say to mother.¡± ¡°Say? Not much. You open your arms formally as a royal daughter of Tesk, and ask her to open to you.¡± Esme looked at him in shock that he should take that old ritual so much for granted. And then realisation struck. ¡°Your mother is of Tesk?¡± ¡°No, father found love closer to home. She was born and bred right in Captita. But grandma was, and made short work of punishing the guilty, and correcting those of us whose guilt lay mostly in injured pride. I am familiar with the ritual.¡± ¡°I''ve realised I don''t know anything about your family, except that you''re the heir-apparent.¡± ¡°That can change, of course, but yes, so far. I have two younger sisters, one with blond hair after father, one with dark hair after mother. One younger brother, who is determined to become a better sailor than me.¡± ¡°Does he have much hope?¡± ¡°Certainly, if he sticks at it. I realise from that letter that Hagberry was impressed, but personally I felt that I was making all manner of mistakes, and was very glad the tide was almost at full height. The adage goes that a real captain can start through the shoals with barnacles all over his keel and sail out with none. The rejoinder goes ''yes, and without his captaincy too.''¡± ¡°Thank you, Hal. We''re here.¡± ¡°Will you allow me?¡± ¡°To announce me?¡± ¡°Yes, and myself.¡± ¡°You don''t know my mother.¡± ¡°But I listened to my grandmother, before she went on to glory.¡± ¡°Oh, go ahead! Hopefully I can smooth it over eventually.¡± Hal knocked on the door in a complicated rhythm that stirred up an old memory in Esme. He was using the most formal of the talking rhythms of Tesk. She''d never learned it, to her mother''s disgust, and here was Hal, surprising her again. Fortunately Esme could hear what he was saying from his thoughts: Ta-ta-tap, ta-ta-tap, the shortest of the codes, repeated twice, making it a question: is there danger? Then more complex codes, King-daughter, ring-holder, gifted-thought-hearer, and rescuer, king-son suitor. Then tap, tap, tap, tap, tap-tap: we wait patiently, respectfully, but time passes. The door opened quietly by a scared looking woman a little older than Esme. Three of Esme''s four elder sisters were married, this was Isthana, who was not. ¡°Princess Isthana,¡± Hal bowed, ¡°I am Hal, and bring you your missing sister.¡± ¡°Danger-danger?¡± Isthana, timid at the best of times, stuttered. ¡°Repeat for a question,¡± Esme whispered, embracing her. ¡°Mother didn''t say?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°When did you learn the speaking rhythms so well, Esmetherelda?¡± her mother asked. ¡°Not I mother,¡± Esme said, ¡°Prince Hal has surprised me quite frequently since I met him this morning.¡± ¡°He made some big claims about you.¡± ¡°Will you open to me mother? They are truth. Father asks I be merciful to you, but I would like to know the truth.¡± ¡°How did you talk to your father?¡± ¡°Two fools claimed I had no authority over them as regent because they were foreign mercenaries, and thus condemned themselves to death, and brought the accusation of treason against the one they named as their employer. Will you not open to me?¡± ¡°They named me?¡± ¡°No, before they died they taunted that you could not enter either. Even now, the whirlings of your thoughts are not hidden from me, mother. Will you not open to the regent? Your daughter, who has made too many life-and-death decisions today? Did you have anything to do with drugging half the palace so I could be kidnapped and incidentally poisoning father? What about the ransacking of my apartment in a failed attempt to steal the regent''s ring? Why are there mercenaries in the palace? What has happened?¡± ¡°Your majesty,¡± Hal said, ¡°Esmetherelda may not agree with everything you say, but she loves you. That is why she asks. Please do not think she looks for an excuse to lock you up. She has plenty of those already, from the failure to recall the grand-vizier to the way she was told you are taking most of the decisions in the palace. Help her to know your side of the story. She asks only for truth.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°From the first king of the Isles on, most of my ancestors are of Tesk. By the grace of God, and to my great surprise, we are attuned. I feel Esme''s pain at the unworthy thoughts you direct at her.¡± ¡°I know of only one way you could have attuned so rapidly, hideous prince and descendent of those who''ve robbed Tesk of its future. Do not flaunt what you have done.¡± ¡°Then you are as ignorant of your people''s traditions as you have left your daughters ignorant of the speaking rhythms and the rituals of the people you claim to descend from. There are seven attunements, so my grandmother taught me. The attunement of shared risk, the attunement of compassion, the attunement of faith, the attunement of danger, the attunement of surprise, the attunement of passion and the attunement of joy. I came to Caneth hoping to meet stern and unflinching Esmetherelda in the hope I could persuade her to soften towards me. I noticed from my room that a barn had guards posted all day and all night, and there was another guard inside. I became curious, I was surprised to hear a chair being smashed over the head of a man, I was doubly surprised when I heard the man collapse, because normally it results only in rage, from my observations. I was terribly surprised to hear a pleasant voice chatting to my God about how grateful she was that it had worked and where were the keys please? Since I knew the jailer did not have the keys, for I''d seen him being locked in, I had compassion on the unfortunate woman, who impressed me even more when she ran up the wall to where I could help her. She was surprised about a number of things about me in reply, but said I could call her Esme if we escaped the danger, and I told her I was called Hal. We discussed who had held her and she realised I was genuinely from the Isles while her captors were not. And I realised that she had captivated me, and then she recognised who I was, and told me I should not be rescuing princesses when we''re supposed to be at war, and joyfully I vowed to her that I''d never met a woman like her, so I was entirely planning to bug her until she decided to burn me to cinders or agree to marry me. Is that not a type of passion? To find one''s ideal person? Do you assert that the other attunements are so insignificant your mother never taught them to you? Have you never read for yourself the Teskania? I believe we have this afternoon experienced together all six of the attunements you forget, at least to some degree, but by my faith in the saviour I intend my first intimate experience with a woman to be with my lawfully wedded wife.¡± ¡°In case you''re wondering, Mummy, Hal is now expecting you to apologise for insulting my virtue, among other things, or to come out and admit you hate me so much that you don''t care who gets hurt or what happens to the country.¡± ¡°You are more of old Tesk than I am, prince Hal. The attunements are a lost mystery to most of new Tesk. I learned to hate your people but otherwise I was a poor student and the daughter of a poor student. And I''m a poor mother to doubt Esme so. I have cherished a traitor and pushed away one you probably consider a saint. Well, she can be as stubborn a woman as I am, as you''ll no doubt find out. I find I do not believe in the gift you claim to have, Esme. How is it possible?¡± ¡°I trust that God has his purposes, mother. All I know is that I found that as I was beginning to hear Hal''s thoughts and emotions, I found I could hear other''s also. I don''t even know if it only works because Hal is near me. It only started as we approached the palace. Will you open to me, please?¡± ¡°I know the words, but not how to,¡± her mother replied. ¡°I will demonstrate, majesty.¡± Hal said, thinking [to you too, Esme]. ¡°Tilt your head back and place your head in Esme''s hands,¡± [No, not a headlock, Esme, you can always shift fingers if you need to, like this, fingertips to my face, my forehead and my jaw.] ¡°And do not struggle or fight or speak or try to form your own thoughts, just think to her once: ''I open to you''¡± [I can''t do this!] Esme thought. [You can. Direct my memory, it will be almost like yours. Decide you want to know about my grandmother, Esme, I think she left a message for you.] [I want to know about your grandmother.] Esme thought. And she did, the old lady on the bed, Hal''s last memory of her. [Will you open to me Hal? It''s going to be a bit different, There aren''t many left with my gift. People don''t like knowing one another this well, they call it a curse, even. Some bits come naturally, but there are some bits that need teaching, like how to send a message like the one I want to give you, so if you meet someone who''s new to this, or doesn''t know everything, you can pass it on. Don''t worry, I''m giving it to your sisters too, little Sal is too young.] And Esme listened to the thoughts that had been left, how to explore memories, how to protect herself as she did; a lifetime of hints and tips, and also how utterly stupid the people of Tesk had been to cut themselves off from the royal line. Hal, like his fathers before him was a catalyst. He didn''t know it, shouldn''t know it, probably, until he realised it himself. But it wasn''t that the kings had taken the gift of Tesk, they brought it. The presence of the royal son somehow helped the ability to develop in the daughters of Tesk. Not, like some had thought, in a sexual way, as if it were a mating habit. Was this thought being listened to by one Hal was in love with? She needn''t worry. It was something about the mental attitude of the kings, their trustworthiness, faith, maybe even scent had a part to play. But they exuded something that allowed a girl to feel safe enough to hear thoughts. Had she sisters? They should also spend time with Hal, invite him to family meals, get them to play chess with him, sing silly songs, hold prayer meetings. Any son or daughter of Tesk had the ability to attune to their spouse, and sharing the other attunements brought communication too, but the greater gift of Tesk came only from spending time with one of the kingly line... how long? A day? A week? She didn''t know, it depended on so many other factors, like danger and trust and shared faith. Old histories said the king''s visit was looked forwards to by the girls of Tesk and people drew evil conclusions. History said the king married someone with the gift, and people thought that he''d stolen a precious gem. They didn''t talk about how there were no gifted girls until the royal visit. Nor that once word got around, the poor man couldn''t spend any quality time with his beloved or get any work done if he didn''t run away from the crowd of hopeful girls. But Hal ought to try to visit Tesk. She''d never managed to persuade her husband or her son to, but for Tesk to be restored, they needed the visit of the royal catalyst. Marital status didn''t matter, but age did, Beyond about thirty five it was too late normally. But God sometimes made exceptions, if the woman was coming to faith. Time to rest now, dear. You might not want to, but you need to. You didn''t know how to protect yourself, when you wake up you''ll understand why you need to; even a message like this can have trap like I showed you. Esme woke up from deep sleep to hear Hal''s worried thoughts, and feel the warmth of his embrace. He was saying ¡°I don''t know what just happened, majesty. She just thought ''I need a rest to assimilate that, catch me.¡± He didn''t add that it had sounded like his grandma''s voice, that had been too weird, ¡°She''s waking up.¡± ¡°Hal''s grandmother left a message for me, mother: education, a warning, and a rebuttal.¡± ¡°A rebuttal?¡± ¡°Basically everything you''ve told me about Tesk except its geography is upside down and inside out, but it seems there may be hope even for you, assuming you repent of refusing God. But we can talk of that later. Now I have had some training in what I wish to do, rather than just groping in the dark. Will you open to me mother? May I search out what you knew and what was an unpleasant surprise for you?¡± ¡°You''re tired. I could just tell you.¡± ¡°But we have a history of distrust, and sadly I trust this ability more than your words.¡± ¡°I agreed earlier, daughter, under duress. You may invade your mother''s privacy if you really wish.¡± ¡°I wish I did not have to. I wish I had not heard your joyful thoughts that maybe I would not dare to look at you since looking at Hal''s mind had tired me out so. But ignorance prevents mercy, and father asked that I have mercy on you.¡± ¡°I will open to you.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 3: Tour guide

Planet 5 / Ch. 3: Tour guide.

Extract from pre-contact report for inhabited planet orbiting star 3648 (AKA Planet 5) Searches have detected no-one on this planet able to hear thoughts generally, although there are some who seem able to communicate telepathically with their husband or wife. We have determined that these people seem to have some kind of link to the scholar''s island. Regarding seasons: there is an axial tilt of about thirty-five degrees (more than Earth''s), with the Northern hemisphere winter also corresponding to maximum distance from the local star. Thus, while liveable landmass is approximately within the northern tropics, even the scholar''s island (barely North of the equator) experiences distinct seasons. The significant temperature drop during the northern hemisphere''s winter seems to drive intense storm activity which batter the eastern coasts of the land with considerable force. So far we have observed no storms reaching the scholar''s island, which is presumably linked to them basing themselves there. As on Earth, the prevailing winds in the tropics is from the East. Circumpolar westerly winds, unhindered by any land mass, dominate higher latitude weather.
Isthana''s room ¡°Esme, what is it?¡± Isthana asked, ¡°You''re so quiet.¡± ¡°I now know what mother''s part was in what happened. She thought I hated her and that let Henk play her for a total fool. Poor Daddy.¡± ¡°Are you saying it''s mummy''s fault that Daddy''s sick? I thought it was the old doctor?¡± ¡°Mummy didn''t want me as regent, Isthana. She was petrified of me becoming the ruler. Now she realises Henk would be worse. Her plan was that I''d be kidnapped, the ring would be found, and eventually I''d turn up dead or escape and talk about Marshlanders imprisoning me, either way adding to Henk''s status. Dad was supposed to get sick for a bit then recover.¡± ¡°It was Marshlanders?¡± ¡°No. Probably more of Henk''s mercenaries. Have you noticed how Marshlanders speak?¡± ¡°Lots of ''do''s.¡± ¡°''Do be'' instead of is and are. And for some reason Hal calls me ''fair maid'' when he''s speaking Marshlander, and not otherwise, that''s it. Hal can probably explain the reasons for all of it, certainly the ''do be''. It''s not that they''re stupid or don''t know how to speak properly. It''s a work-around to avoid problems.¡± ¡°Calling you ''fair maid'' is a work-around?¡± ¡°No, ''do be'' is a work-around. I think ''fair maid'' is probably him being more relaxed. I like it.¡± ¡°It''s archaic.¡± ¡°You mean unfashionable. I really hope you''ll like Hal, Isthana.¡± ¡°You''re the one he''s going to be wooing, or are you saying you like him but not like that and you''re planning to point him at me?¡± ¡°No. But according to his grandma''s message, you ought not hide away whenever he''s around. Assuming Father gets better Hal''s offered to take me on a tour of the Isles ¡ª I get the impression they''re beautiful ¡ª and to meet his parents. Would you come too? I don''t think Winessa will be willing, unless we bring her captain with us which would give you an extra chaperoning challenge,¡± ¡°Winessa''s captain?¡± ¡°Captain Dalken has been preparing to put a stop to Henk''s treasonous plans, but it seems they''ve been sneakily going for walks too. Daddy told her she could give him a kiss.¡± ¡°Don''t say treason, Esme!¡± ¡°No? He took Daddy''s medicine away for eight days, Isthana. It almost killed him and it still might. You remember how difficult it was to sort out the dose, surely? I expect Henk''s plan was to let someone take the medicine to Daddy in the next day or two if Daddy hadn''t died by then. After eight days his old dose would certainly be fatal. Getting the dose right now, soon enough that Daddy won''t die because he needs his medicine is almost impossible. The doctor''s going to have to give Daddy something else to help him get better, which is dangerous in other ways. But it ought to get his heart working properly without killing him. Then there''ll be time to get him slowly back on the other medicine.¡± ¡°Why not keep him on the new one?¡± Isthana asked, confused. Isthana knew some medicine, so Esme was blunt. ¡°You want father taking asgar the rest of his life? A missed dose of that would be fatal.¡± ¡°Asgar? That''s a drug!¡± ¡°It''s got medicinal properties, the dose to regulate a weak heart is well known.¡± ¡°But... but it''s addictive!¡± ¡°Like I say, it''s buying Daddy some time, with a cost that he''ll have to reduce the dose slowly over the next months.¡± ¡°Does Daddy know?¡± ¡°He was awake when the doctor and I were discussing it, but the doctor didn''t name the drug. Sorry, I think I need to go and restore some more order in the kingdom.¡± ¡°Isn''t that what the soldiers are for?¡± ¡°Do you want deaths because they think that Henk is supposed to be in charge? Mummy told the soldiers it was only right that Henk be consulted since he was due to inherit.¡± ¡°Ouch. Isn''t that almost treason?¡± ¡°I''m not sure there''s an ''almost there'', not unless she''d been told I was dead. But even then, it ought to be Canethela, as first-born.¡± ¡°What are you going to do to mummy?¡± ¡°I''m letting her nurse Daddy, and then I''m going to ask Tumbril. I don''t think I''m going to make him decide about Grizetha, that''d be much too mean.¡± ¡°Your maid? What''s she done?¡± ¡°I ¡°m pretty sure she was involved. To be more precise, it looks like she ransacked my rooms looking for the ring, and looked in her own too. But maybe she checked her room, carefully folding her clothes onto the floor, and it was Henk and his men who threw everything in a heap on the floor like a tornado.¡± ¡°Will your gift work on her?¡± ¡°Yes, but first I need to deprive Henk of our soldiers.¡± ¡°You can''t make some kind of proclamation?¡± ¡°I asked Hal to work on writing one of those while we had this chat.¡± ¡°I''m more important than soldiers not killing each other?¡± ¡°So far, I''m only aware of two mercenary bullies who have been killed. I think there''s confusion rather than fighting so far. That''ll probably change if I meet Henk in a corridor with a squad of his faithful soldiers though. Not moving aimlessly is also a move.¡± ¡°And if you do?¡± ¡°After a suitable few words, asking Henk to submit to trial, which he will almost certainly scoff at and reject, I''ll drop to the ground and my soldiers will shoot at Henk without any need for further orders.¡± ¡°And if he has hostages?¡± ¡°I''ll probably stay on my feet, but he won''t get the ring from me.¡± ¡°How can you be sure?¡± ¡°Because from a distance, your ring looks very like the regent''s ring, and once you and mother have gone to stay with father, we''re going to swap rings, just in case. And I''m going to name you as heir to the regency in the event of my death at the hands of the vile traitor Henk.¡± ¡°Me? Why me?¡± ¡°Because you are a princess of Caneth and carry the blood of Tesk, and worship God in truth. Plus there is more steel in you than you suppose, far more than any of our other sisters. You would not hesitate to lance a pus-filled wound, Isthana. The others would, even Canethela.¡± ¡°I don''t think I''ve seen you like this before, Esme. You''re not planning to do something stupid are you?¡± ¡°No. But I spent eight days in a locked cell in a locked barn asking God why I was alive. He said it was so I could make changes, but it would cost me, change me and bring me joy. I''ve met Hal, and he brings me joy. I''ve changed, I have this gift. What will the cost be? I don''t know. Dying, or having to execute my brother, who this morning I thought was a heroic fighter of pirates, soon after lunch I discovered he was a cowardly smuggler who ran his ship aground and left his men to die, rather than pay for his crimes, and more recently I''ve learnt that he poisoned father and intends to usurp the throne. Maybe the change I have to make is putting you on the throne, maybe I''ll live a happy life married to Hal and between us we''ll unite the kingdoms and save the planet from disaster, I don''t know.¡± ¡°Save the planet from disaster? What disaster? How?¡± ¡°I have no idea, and it wasn''t what I was planning to say anyway. Feel free to write it down in your book of odd things Esme has said.¡± ¡°I didn''t think you knew about that. You don''t mind?¡± ¡°I don''t mind. Someone''s got to write my biography just in case I end up famous, after all.¡± It was an old family joke, and Isthana laughed. ¡°Esme, what did you mean about it being good for me to spend time near Hal?¡± ¡°Mother was wrong about cause and effect. The kings didn''t stop visiting because the last of the thought-hearers died. Something about the males of the royal line make them catalysts, and when word gets around that spending time playing chess or singing in the choir or whatever with them can trigger thought-hearing, the poor guy is so surrounded by hopeful girls he gets driven away, and the girls in the queue moan about him taking away the catalyst. I guess the royal balls were supposed to be a way of managing that.¡± ¡°You mean if I spend a few hours with Hal, I''ll turn into a thought-hearer?¡± ¡°You always were one to listen to conversations and not gossip them on, Isthana. Take it to the next level, and then we can think to each other across a crowded room. I don''t know how long it takes, or if the results are guaranteed, but it helps with nerves, it really does. No more second guessing.¡± ¡°Yet another thing to scare men away from me.¡± ¡°Kev? I don''t think any of us thought you more than tolerated him. I don''t think you scared him away, Isthana, I think he gave up.¡± ¡°I told him that I really enjoyed those music lessons, but I hated making mistakes and the solo practice. It was meant to explain why I got grumpy and be a hint he ought to come more. Instead he never came back.¡± ¡°You hate solo practice?¡± ¡°That was an exaggeration. I just wanted more practice with Kev.¡± ¡°He''s still around, I think.¡± ¡°And single?¡± ¡°I''ll add asking him that to my list of things to do, shall I? ''Kev, Isthana wants to know if you''re still single and wants to apologise for lying that she doesn''t like practising, it was meant to result in her seeing more of you, not less.''¡± ¡°You wouldn''t!¡± Isthana exclaimed, bright red. ¡°Well, maybe not the last bit. But boys aren''t that good at subtle. If he had romantic thoughts, they probably got flattened each time you got angry and thought you were saying ''let''s stop pretending this has any hope of working''.¡± ¡°Maybe I do need to hear thoughts. I thought I was being really blatant.¡± ¡°Take up a new instrument.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Send him a message that you''re thinking of taking up another instrument, would he be prepared to brave your frustration some more and teach you? And maybe give you some tips with the viola too. See how quickly he comes.¡± ¡°That might just be that he''s time-rich and cash-poor.¡± ¡°So? Assuming it''s tonight then I''ll want to quiz him a bit on city rumours, and we could play a few rounds of Theng as a foursome while I do.¡± ¡°Theng against an attuned couple? Oh, open-handed? Yes, that''s about the only game that makes sense, isn''t it?¡± ¡°In terms of card games, yes. And it does need two couples, and allow discussion, etcetera.¡± ¡°As long as we don''t have to use our feet,¡± Isthana said. Esme laughed, it was an old family version, and often ended up with bruised shins or heels, as the players misjudged strikes. ¡°So, you''ll ask him to come?¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°Not on your scented paper, he might be married for all you know. It''s been what, two years?¡± ¡°And thirty two days. Don''t look at me like that, I just remember the date.¡± ¡°Don''t fib, Isthana, I hear your thoughts. You''d better get some practice in once you''ve written to him.¡± ¡°I practice an instrument and think of love, while you tackle treason? It''s not fair.¡± ¡°You''ve been missing him while I''ve had two would-be suitors begging me to at least give them another chance and now God''s sent me one I like who declared me his perfect woman within about five minutes of meeting me. So, it''s time to set the world to rights if that''s possible.¡±
Drawing room, between Isthana''s room and her mother''s ¡°Happy with these drafts?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Yes, very much so. You''ve done ten already?¡± Esme asked, surprised. ¡°A ship''s captain has to write quickly.¡± ¡°And neatly too. You''ve got a clear hand.¡± ¡°No excuses for the sailors that way.¡± ¡°These are excellent, Hal. Just the right mix of compassion and steel.¡± ¡°I heard what you wanted, Esme.¡± ¡°And understood me. Mother, what do you think?¡± Esme''s mother put down her sewing and looked at the paper. ¡°Let it be known to all citizens and soldiers of the crown that Princess Esmetherelda rules as regent with the blessing of His Majesty during this time of his illness, and in accordance with the laws of Caneth is the only source of authority. Any other informal arrangements are voided and any decision under them will be confirmed or repealed according to its merits. Long live the King and may God grant him a speedy recovery. ¡°Let it also be known that the presence of any mercenary fighter within the palace walls is a violation of the laws of Caneth, punishable by immediate execution on discovery, unless they have been individually introduced to the entire court by the monarch, with full justification to their presence. Two mercenaries, apparently ignorant of this law, have already died. Let further bloodshed be avoided by any mercenary present wrapping their weapons in their bedding and immediately leaving the palace. Honest mercenaries who have been lured to come by false promises and who have committed no other crime may submit a claim against their employer for their back-pay either at the city court of adjudication or at an embassy in their home country, on the production of relevant contracts. The court will judge each case on its merits, with a presumption against the employer. In submitting the claim, they must nominate the embassy or consulate where they wish to accept payment, such payments will not be made within the borders of Caneth, except by individual royal decree. Processing of claims received directly at the court of adjudication is expected to be complete within three weeks. Requests via an embassy should be expected to take longer. Mercenaries should be aware that any person in Caneth other than the monarch who employs a mercenary fighter commits treason (those finding employment as guards ¡ª who may only use force to defend their employer, place of work or goods in transit ¡ª must ensure that they only act within the relevant laws, and report any request that would break those stringent laws). They should also understand that their present contracts are technically illegal, null and void, and the above-described arrangement for back-pay is to enable them to leave peaceably without feeling they must extract their back-pay in person and so incur further risk. Mercenaries wishing to plead guilty to crimes, misdemeanours, or breakages should submit details of such as part of their submission, along with any extenuating circumstances. Unconfessed crimes will invalidate the claim. ¡°Let any person who has suffered hardship or mistreatment at the hands of soldiers or mercenaries make suitable representation to the courts within the next 2 weeks. Such representation may be made by a friend or relative familiar with the case or a witness.¡± Her mother sighed. ¡°And the result of that sort of complaint will fall upon me?¡± ¡°Did you personally approve them, mother? The point is to establish who''s an honest law-abiding mercenary, and who isn''t.¡± ¡°There''s no such animal, Esme.¡± ¡°You''re wrong, mother, yet again. Grandfather told me of some he''d met. There''s always the possibility that Henk got some by mistake.¡±
Outside the palace guard-room ¡°Hey!¡± a guard shouted, flinging the door wide. ¡°What are you hammering the door for?¡± ¡°Putting up an official notice,¡± the soldier with the hammer replied. ¡°I know you, you''re on gate duty.¡± It was clear that in the guard''s economy, that was somewhere near cleaning a cesspit. ¡°I''ve been redeployed.¡± ¡°By whose authority?¡± he asked, his accent marking him as coming from Tesk. He hadn''t seen Esme and the rest of the soldiers. ¡°By the authority of the princess regent, which is to say, mine, and through me the King''s.¡± Esme said. ¡°As you don''t sound like a local, I strongly suggest you read that document as though your life depended on it. Feel free to discuss it quietly with anyone else in there it might apply to, but please don''t rip it off the door, that''d be another capital offence with immediate effect, and I''ve seen enough people die today for my taste.¡± There was something about her voice, her utter confidence, that made the mercenary read the document slowly and carefully. Not that he was a slow reader, but because it was a legal document that affected his future. Esme heard his initial anger turn to satisfaction. He turned towards Esme, and gave a brisk salute. ¡°Thank you, princess, you have been clear and more generous than might be expected. The court of adjudication is expecting visitors?¡± ¡°A copy has left for the court. In the circumstances, I can''t guarantee it''s arrived, of course, but the court functionaries will allow any complaint to be registered. Another copy is with the royal printers for engraving and distribution in the city. Enjoy what''s left of your time here as a tourist.¡± He laughed, ¡°Aye, that''s what I am, isn''t it?¡± He turned to go back into the room. ¡°Hear that, lads? If anyone asks, we''re tourists. Pack up, weapons in bedding. it''s time to leave the hotel, the rent''s just gone up.¡± ¡°That went well,¡± Hal muttered to Esme. ¡°Yes. He liked the bit about claims and breakages. Next stop is the kitchens.¡± ¡°The kitchens, highness?¡± the solder with the hammer asked. ¡°Get word to all the servants, and soon almost every official will know. After that we''ll go to the soldiers'' mess-hall, but we go past the kitchens on the way.¡± ¡°And then officer''s mess?¡± the lieutenant asked. ¡°Eventually, but first I want to clear up any confusion among the ranks.¡±
Soldier''s mess-hall It wasn''t quite meal-time, but a hundred or so off duty soldiers were killing time with coarse jokes, arm-wrestling contests and the inevitable games of chance and cards. The sight of a squad in full battle gear, complete with notched arrows and half-drawn bows, forming a defensive square at the door caused a wave of silence across the hall. The last sound was someone swearing about inconstant dice as his roll had meant he''d lost his bet and thus a day and a half''s pay. Then he realised he was the only person making a noise and looked round to see what was going on. ¡°Long live the king!¡± Esme said. That was hard to dispute, whatever side you were on, and it was pretty obvious that she wanted a reply. So they all echoed back ¡°Long live the king.¡± ¡°I have just spoken to my father and his doctor, and expect him to recover enough to walk in the next few days. Long live the king!¡± Another round of cheers, though Esme heard a few nervous thoughts. ¡°I''ve been held captive by kidnappers since the night of the lunar eclipse, and it seems my mother and some others got a bit confused about what the law says. I''ve corrected mother''s misunderstanding and have come to tell you that by our cherished law, until father is back to health, the regent has authority. As you might remember, three years ago father held a ceremony giving me the ring of the regent. You''ll see its impression on various documents around the palace, pay attention to them please. That''s all, I just thought you''d like to know, enjoy your meal. Oh, I talked to the men of my squad and they said the beer ration had been a bit miserly recently and that their pay had been delayed, so I''ve told off the kitchen and they''ll be supplying a double ration of beer tonight, and I''m going to go and sort out whatever''s wrong in the pay office and make sure they pay interest too.¡± ¡°Long live the princess regent!¡± called the lieutenant. Extra beer and the promise of delayed pay with interest was well worth cheering about. It was at about that moment that prince Henk came out of the officers'' mess, which he''d taken over as his base of operations, to see what the noise was about. It had been a busy afternoon, discussing with his supporting generals such issues about what atrocities to ascribe to the marshlanders, both to escalate the war and also to distract the people from what was happening in the palace. Next, there was the issue of the treasury, which had obstinately refused to issue any pay to the soldiers just as soon as they''d heard that the king had become ill, and neither the grand-vizier nor the princess-regent would be approving the payment. In fact, the treasury guard had bolted and barred the doors, lowered the portcullis, and adopted a siege status, only communicating via a speaking tube system designed under a previous monarch. What to do about the treasury had taken a while to decide, with one general suggesting a physical attack with gunpowder, another a hostage-based solution involving the loved-ones of the guards, and the third an attempt at forging the regent''s ring. Henk personally preferred the idea of torturing Esmetherelda until she disclosed the location of the ring, but since two of the generals didn''t know that Henk was behind her abduction, he couldn''t suggest that option. Eventually the idea of forgery had won, until they realised that the royal archive was also behind the treasury gates. Prince Henk had a headache, and the shouting wasn''t helping, so he''d come to try to put a stop to it. He pushed past the soldiers blocking the doors, only to realise they held half-cocked bows, and that he was facing his least favourite sister. Instinctively he reached for his dagger. ¡°I don''t think so.¡± a man said, grabbing his wrist in a sailor''s powerful grasp. The knife fell to the ground. ¡°Henk.¡± Esme said, calmly, as if seeing him arrive was no surprise at all. ¡°Mercenaries? That wasn''t very clever at all. You''re going to stand trial for treason on several counts, not least trying to pull a dagger on the regent. Lieutenant, please have this traitor stripped of everything but his underwear, and have four men take him to the prison. No, actually wait with that last bit. Let''s arrest his criminal associates too. This is too good an opportunity to miss. I''ll accompany you so that you don''t need to split your men.¡± ¡°Is that wise, highness?¡± ¡°I think so, yes. There might be some mercenaries down there too.¡±
The dungeon. The palace prison was normally used to hold guards who''d had a bit too much to drink, while they sobered up and awaited punishment, but nevertheless it was securely built. It was in the basement of one of the inner towers and had five cells in the upper levels, and below them the dungeon, with seven cells cut into the rock and only accessible via a trap door and a rope. One of the upper cells contained a wretched heap that Esme recognised as Grizetha, two held soldiers, one of whom was trying in vain to persuade Grizetha to give him a smile if she wouldn''t give him a kiss, the other was snoring deeply. The notices on the doors read ''suspicion of involvement in kidnapping'', and ''drunk and disorderly'', ''striking a superior officer while drunk''.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°How many prisoners do you have downstairs?¡± Esme asked the gaoler. ¡°Four, highness.¡± ¡°On what charges?¡± ¡°General Hagard, on the charge of sedition against your prisoner there, his wife, on charge of being his wife, as far as I could see, and his ten year old son, for objecting to the arrest of his mother. I''ll get them all out pronto.¡± ¡°And the fourth prisoner?¡± ¡°A foreigner, highness. I don''t know what his crime is, but I was told to put him down there.¡± ¡°I see. And is there any particular reason you shouldn''t be in the cells by the time I leave?¡± ¡°I''ve been jailer forty years, highness. Forty years faithful service. The general has the keys for his door and his wife and boy''s, so they can pretend they''re not seeing each other or using the desk in the other cell, I smuggle them good food, and I don''t report them getting visitors, or letters.¡± ¡°Any visitors for the foreigner?¡± ¡°No highness.¡± ¡°How long has he been here?¡± ¡°Seven nights, highness.¡± ¡°And you don''t know who he is or what he''s done or where he''s from?¡± ¡°He''s from Tesk, and he said something about his sister.¡± ¡°Well, just to be formal, Henk is being placed in your care on charges of attempting to kill the princess regent, inviting mercenaries into the palace contrary to the law, unjustly imprisoning his majesty, withholding life-saving medicine from his majesty, arranging my kidnapping, smuggling, failing to submit to a legitimate customs search, and plotting to cause a war. I think there''ll be some more charges later, too. Oh, and subverting my maid to commit acts of sedition and then raping her.¡± ¡°I''ll get out the manacles then. Will you want him fed?¡± ¡°Five day old bread, we don''t want him dead before he''s tried, do we?¡± ¡°No, highness.¡± ¡°Highness, we didn''t know, I, I.... ¡± One of the three arrested generals said. ¡°I have the gift of Tesk, ex-general. I know what you didn''t know, and what you planned. You planned to support my brother in his attempt to usurp the throne. The grand-vizier will try your case on charges of treason and sedition.¡± At her unspoken request, Hal lifted the trap door. ¡°General Hagard? It''s Esmetherelda, I hope you don''t mind the inconvenience of moving, but we need your cells for my treasonous brother and your former colleagues in the high command. Tomorrow I''d be very happy if you could provide Tumbril with an account of what''s happened from your point of view.¡± The jailer had lowered the ladder and the general climbed out, warily until he saw prince Henk being fitted with manacles. ¡°And in the mean-time, Highness?¡± ¡°See if your home is habitable or too distressing, and if you need to stay at an inn then make sure it''s a good one. This is Henk''s money-purse, as you see he''s got no pockets now. It''s currently holding thirty gold two-hundred crowns, and fifty silver fifties, plus some change. I trust you can keep an account of reasonable expenses: carpenters, replacement clothes, meals, accommodation, and so on. What you don''t spend, Henk might want to use on pointless lawyers, so don''t economise unduly, but on the other hand, I''m sure there will be other claims against his account, so don''t feel you need to waste it.¡± ¡°You''re generous with other people''s money, sister.¡± Henk said. ¡°You''ll need several miracles to not be executed as a traitor, Henk. I''m merely allowing you to make up a few of your worst mistakes.¡± ¡°I should have had you killed, shouldn''t I?¡± ¡°We all have regrets, mother especially. Put him in his last home, jailer, but first open Grizetha''s cell for me.¡± ¡°Certainly, highness.¡± Esme crouched down beside the heap that was Grizetha, she said quietly, ¡°I hear your thoughts. He''s done an evil to you, but you still feel for him? You may marry him if you wish, which would make you his cell-mate until he''s executed and his widow thereafter, and if you end up with a child then you would have more doubt about his or her conception. Alternatively, you may apply to the law for your rights as a rape victim, I have no doubts that they will be granted.¡± ¡°And my place as your maid?¡± ¡°Tell me what happened and what you think.¡± ¡°He told me he''d take me as his wife the next day if I helped him trick you, and maybe I''d even be his queen. I didn''t want to be queen, but I so wanted to believe that he''d marry me, and he said you wouldn''t be hurt. Then, after, he ignored me, and I asked him, what about our wedding? Then he said ''where''s her ring?'' and he threw all your things on the floor of your room, I tried to look after them, but he laughed and said there was no point, and then he accused me of hiding it and made me put my clothes on the floor of my room. All of them, starting with what I was wearing.¡± ¡°And he raped you.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And insulted you and threw you in here with nothing but some sheets?¡± ¡°Yes, and Tova saw me being thrown in here, and got drunk and shouted that he wanted to be arrested too, just so he could be near me. He''s still drunk. He never drinks.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Esme glanced at Tova, and understood the reason Tova had been feeling so outraged at hearing Grizetha''s story. He cared for her deeply, he had for years, and was just now remembering the happy innocent face she''d had when he first met her, and how he''d love to see that smile on her face once more, as she dangled their child on her knee. Their child, no matter who the father actually was. ¡°I think Tova would prefer you picked him as marriage prospect rather than that soon-to-be-dead traitor, but the choice is yours.¡± ¡°I still want you to marry me, Grizetha. Now, if you like, and if you have a child it will be mine, whatever.¡± Grizetha burst into tears once more, knowing she''d been an utter fool. She could have had Tova as husband long ago, she knew, he''d asked her often enough. ¡°Grizetha, you''ve still not told me if you think you should have your job back.¡± ¡°I betrayed you.¡± ¡°Oh, I expect you betrayed everyone, Grizetha. I expect that if you''d told Henk that you wouldn''t leave your door open for him that night, father wouldn''t have been poisoned, your father wouldn''t have been called back from retirement for a national emergency, and so on. Tova wouldn''t have this black mark on his record. All triggered the night after our little conversation about God giving us what we need, not what we deserve. I hope you understand what I meant now. What do you deserve?¡± ¡°Stop this, princess!¡± Tova said, unsteadily standing up. ¡°Why are you doing this to her? Hasn''t she suffered enough?¡± ¡°I don''t know, Grizetha, have you suffered enough? Have you realised the depths of your guilt? Or have you just swapped one sort of self pity for another? Do you deserve Tova''s care after throwing yourself at my egotistical brother? Your false god has got you to betray everyone and then betrayed you in turn.¡± ¡°Stop it, princess!¡± ¡°You think it''s kindness, Tova, to let her wallow in self-pity, thinking about how unfair life has been to her, when it''s all her own stupidity? To say ''there, there, you were hard done by''? No, it was that sort of insipid kindness from her mother that got us all into this mess. I''m going to drive her past that if I possibly can.¡± ¡°You''re going to drive her to suicide.¡± ¡°Well suicide might not appeal to those who love her, but in a certain scheme of things, at least that would save some strain for the executioner''s muscles, won''t it?¡± ¡°No! Please don''t have me executed, Highness! Please! I''m sorry, I''m so sorry!¡± ¡°Tell me what you think, Grizetha, you still haven''t answered my question. Is there any reason I shouldn''t have you executed? A treacherous maid who could have reported high treason before it happened, but decided that doing that would ruin her happy little fantasy of marrying an egotistical traitor who never had any love for anyone but himself?¡± Finally Grizetha burst into tears that weren''t self-pity. ¡°There''s no reason! None at all. None at all. I betrayed your trust and I''ve almost brought about a civil war and there was nothing I could do to stop it once I''d started it. I deserve to be executed, and I deserve God to punish me for my sins too, but you told me about forgiveness when I was proud and stupid and didn''t listen, please have enough mercy on me that you''ll tell me about it again before you have me executed.¡± ¡°I''ll teach you about grace too, Grizie.¡± Esmetherelda said, warmly embracing her friend. ¡°That''s a gift beyond mercy, something good we don''t deserve. That''s what God offers us if we admit what we''ve broken everything. Would being my friend, my lady in waiting be like that for you?¡± ¡°You mean it?¡± Grizetha asked, shocked, ¡°why?¡± ¡°Because I want you as a friend. Same reason God wants you to stop being a rebel against him.¡± ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°God''s extravagant mercy,¡± Tova said, approvingly. ¡°Indeed. God''s extravagant mercy is just like that, daughter.¡± Tumbril said, from the entrance to the cell. ¡°Thank-you for giving me back my daughter, highness.¡± ¡°Thank you for coming back to us Grand-Vizier. Did you arrive early enough to hear Tova here making a bid to become your son-in-law and earning himself a severe talking to?¡± ¡°I have?¡± Tova asked. ¡°Indeed.¡± Esmetherelda said ¡°You ought to have heard the quote ''Make vows only with one to whom you are united in faith.''¡± ¡°I am a disobedient servant of God,¡± Tova said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Reliant on God''s grace,¡± he added, in a winsome tone. ¡°Presuming on God''s grace while you flagrantly disobey? No, soldier, that will not happen.¡± ¡°I thought you were recommending his suit, highness.¡± Grizetha said. ¡°Humanly, in ignorance, I did, Grizetha. But it is wrong for a believer to marry a non-believer.¡± ¡°So while you thought he was a non-believer you encouraged me to consider him, but you also wish me to become a believer, and if you approved of a marriage now you would disapprove of it when I commit my life to God? You are inconsistent.¡± ¡°But will you do that?¡± ¡°I''ve asked you to to tell me how, and you haven''t. I can''t do life on my own. Don''t keep me from God and from Tova, please.¡± ¡°Jailer, please release this soldier. He has some stern duties: to escort my lady in waiting to her room and allow her to get properly dressed, to explain to her how she turns from her sins and comes to new faith, to seek her father''s approval of a marriage, and to convince a pastor that it is good to allow a rapid marriage.¡± ¡°In that order, highness?¡± Grizetha asked, ¡°I''m just thinking sometimes it''s hard to find father...¡± ¡°If I may listen to my daughter''s account of what I''ve missed, Highness? And sit in on the discussion of matters of faith? I don''t quite have your faith in Tova that he won''t become distracted in his explanations.¡± ¡°You are wise as ever, Grand-Vizier. But at some point we must talk, urgently, about father''s health, and about my mother''s sorry participation in this chaos. I will be in Isthana''s rooms until I leave the palace.¡± ¡°Leave the palace, highness?¡± ¡°I do not believe that all my kidnappers will have left the city, or even the palace. Other plans have been made.¡± ¡°As you wish, princess regent. Will you require the company of your lady in waiting?¡± ¡°On the assumption that she is not going to be getting married this evening, yes, that would be wise.¡± ¡°Do you trust us so little, highness?¡± Grizetha asked. ¡°I was thinking for my reputation, Grizetha. Prince Hal has offered me accommodation which has some added security, but it would not be very appropriate for me to go off with him without company.¡± ¡°Prince Hal?¡± Grizetha asked. ¡°My rescuer and my suitor. Not to mention my memory-jogger. Sorry you had to wait so long for my attention so long, uncle.¡± She said to the prisoner from Tesk. ¡°Don''t be so surprised, your thoughts were quite clear. I am Esmetherelda, your sister''s fifth daughter, and while father is ill, princess-regent. And I do remember you from when you last visited ten-twelve years ago. You''ve not changed that much. You can go, Grizetha, don''t wait on ceremony.¡± ¡°Forgive me... I find I''m not very certain about the meaning...¡± the man stuttered. A fifth daughter being regent made no sense to him. ¡°Uncle Teng,¡± Esme chided him for his prevarication, ¡°I have the gift of Tesk. If you wish to be diplomatic you could say something like ''isn''t it unusual for a fifth daughter to be regent, or have I misunderstood?'', without lying.¡± ¡°You... you truly have the gift?¡± ¡°You''re the scientist; you tell me. Earlier today, Hal rescued me, and he told mother that in that we shared six of the seven attunements. We certainly got on well and having grown up with a grandmother with the gift it didn''t come as much surprise to him that having done that we started sharing our thoughts. I then started hearing other people''s thoughts too. Fortunately I can ignore them.¡± ¡°The gift has been missing from Tesk for generations!¡± ¡°That doesn''t surprise me, actually. I''ll be happy to change that for a week or so, who knows, maybe it''s contagious. As long as Prince Hal of the Isles is allowed to join me there. I like him too much to plan on a long separation just to visit Tesk.¡± ¡°Royalty of the Three Isles are not permitted to visit.¡± ¡°As I understand it, if I visit, as one with the gift, I have certain powers to alter legislation, do I not?¡± He looked rather like a scared rabbit at that point. ¡°I''m not sure.¡± ¡°That''s OK uncle, I won''t tell anyone there what you just thought about me.¡± ¡°Can I Esme?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Hal, be nice. I''m sure my uncle doesn''t want anyone thinking that he told me I''d be the absolute ruler of Tesk until someone else turned up with the gift, just to secure some research funds. Some people might think that was treason. And anyway, he didn''t tell me, I read it in the constitution and he just confirmed it. Tell me about your research, uncle, and what you need. It''s possible the crown will be interested.¡± ¡°I''m not allowed to directly approach the crown.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°It''s a law of the Tesk Academy. I''m allowed to ask my relatives or people in a serving capacity if they''d intercede for me, but I''m not allowed to directly approach monarchs. It''s supposed to make sure we don''t get locked up, and that people with royal connections don''t get preferential treatment. If I break it then the academy will throw me out.¡± ¡°I hope you''re not saying you''re not allowed to ever talk to the crown.¡± ¡°No, there''s just this form... I king or queen whatever, having first heard about this project from whoever who first heard about it from whoever, lend my support to the sum of so many thousand crowns to the research of Academician Teng.¡± ¡°Fine, how about I write ''I, princess regent Esmetherelda, having first heard about this stupid rigid procedure form from my uncle, and thrown him back in jail for wasting my time and refusing to answer a simple direct question in a time of national crisis, might think about supporting his research project once he''s managed to explain it to his jailer in sufficient detail to satisfy his conscience. This of course all being despite the fact I''ve heard some things from his thoughts.¡± ¡°I did try to explain it to him once.¡± ¡°Yes, he said you wanted to see mother, and saying a lot of nonsense. Unfortunately she''s not entirely in my good books at the moment for her involvement in getting me kidnapped, father poisoned, and my brother committing several other diverse acts of treason. Gaoler, try to listen more closely this time, give him good food, and let him out at first light. He''s just in gaol for being the representative of an organisation with aggravating rules, really. Uncle, it might actually be safer for you in gaol too. See you tomorrow, probably. Unless someone assassinates me overnight. After me, Isthana is going to be regent. I''ll tell her you want to study what''s up with the sun and need some money to help you, so your conscience will be clear.¡± Hal tried not to laugh, but wasn''t very successful. ¡°That''s right!¡± the jailer said, ¡°He said it looked like the sun was going to fall over.¡± ¡°Going unstable.¡± winced the scientist. ¡°Does that mean you can talk to me now, Uncle?¡± Esme asked. He nodded. ¡°Oh good. We''ll leave you to your work, jailer. If anyone asks for me, I''m going to talk to the treasury about paying ordinary soldiers, your good self, and a few other individuals.¡± ¡°Eslind is really under investigation for treason?¡± Teng asked as he followed in Esme''s wake. ¡°She will be, formally. I don''t believe she''s actually a threat any more, so she''s still at liberty. The question is one of policy as much as guilt, She has opened to me, so I know roughly what she did and why. She wasn''t the main instigator. The Grand-Vizier will be carrying out his investigations about consequences and I will be listening to his advice and hoping I can be merciful, as father wishes.¡± ¡°You mentioned poison, highness?¡± ¡°He has been on medication for his heart. The chosen method to get me out of the way was some kind of mushroom or drug in the soup. There was an interaction between the two, then my charming brother denied father his medication. What were you in prison for?¡± ¡°Being in the wrong place at the wrong time and asking the wrong questions, I think. I asked if I could speak to your mother about the sun''s instability. I have a feeling they thought I said her son''s instability.¡± ¡°When was this?¡± ¡°A week ago.¡± ¡°Hmm. Yes, that was before too much had gone bad.¡± ¡°Why do we need to visit the treasury?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Because if the soldiers aren''t being paid, that means that the treasury guards have done their job and have locked the doors.¡±
Outside the treasury, 6 hours after rescue. Esme rang the bell and said ¡°Good afternoon to all in the treasury! This is princess-regent Esmetherelda, and I don''t expect you to open the gates just yet.¡± ¡°That''s a change to the normal threats.¡± ¡°Oh, there''s been lots of changes this afternoon. I''ve just delivered my traitor of a brother to prison, along with some generals who were plotting to put him on the throne, released General Hagard, and Grand-Vizier Tumbril is back from retirement. Oh, and I''ve distributed some proclamations telling mercenaries they''d better go home or they''ll grow arrows. It felt a bit premature to walk around too much with the regent''s seal, so I''ve not got that with me at the moment, but I was wondering... Is there any procedure for getting rank and file soldiers their pay without any money getting near most of the senior officers? I don''t want to pay people only to find out they were in league with traitors.¡± ¡°Err, I''ll have to ask.¡± ¡°It''s normally a treasury officer that disburses pay, isn''t it?¡± ¡°Err, yes.¡± ¡°Just a suggestion, but could you drop it down from a window, or something like that?¡± ¡°That''s a long way.¡± ¡°Good point. OK, well, you ask and I''ll write up what I wish to happen. How do I get the order to you?¡± ¡°We lower a fishing line,¡± ¡°Let''s hope this wind dies down then. Just so you know, things are mostly pretty calm out here as far as I can see. I only escaped from being held hostage at lunchtime, so I might be wrong, but as far as I''m found out so far, the only deaths have been two mercenaries, and I was speaking to the ambassador of the Three Isles earlier and he thought father was in his throne-room. One of his guards said things were a bit tense, heading towards unrest, but not even he mentioned any ugly scenes. Oh! I''ve got an idea, if no one can think of a better one. What if you let someone harmless ¡ª say a maid, or a kitchen helper ¡ª past the portcullis, and then dropped them the pay-packets through the murder-holes?¡± ¡°I''ll pass it on. I must say you''re more convincing than the previous voices we''ve had claiming to be princess Esmetherelda.¡± ¡°Well I''m very glad I''m more convincing than them, since I''m the real me. But I suppose they all said that didn''t they? I wonder who they were... they need reminding that''s treason. Your voice is a bit distorted by the pipe, is that Vazeth?¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°Remind me to give you back that irritating treatise on economic theory. It''s so repetitive. What ever happened to economy of letters? Was he paid by the word or something? Waste of good ink, not to mention my time, he could have got where he got in about a quarter of the time if he''d wanted to. And what does he mean by saying an index is a sop to the unlettered? It''s nothing of the sort! If he''d been polite enough to not repeat himself umpteen times per chapter and stick to the point, then maybe, but really! No index, chapters that ramble all over the place, the same graph, the exact same graph in four different places but with different axes, and that insult to the reader who wants to find out if the conflicting definitions he''s given of basic monetary policy are really showing a development of thought or if he''s just totally senile. And if that''s Tamrin laughing in the background, tell him his favourite author isn''t much better either.¡± ¡°Tamrin the Unwary says he''s convinced.¡± ¡°As I said right at the start, it''s not time to open the gates yet. There may be some kind of reaction from mercenaries to me declaring their contracts null and void, for instance. Oh, I hope the purse my guards confiscated from Henk isn''t the sum total of his wealth, I told the mercenaries they''d be getting any back-pay on production of contracts, etcetera, but I was thinking it''d come from Henk and anyone else who''s found guilty of treason. Feel free to comment when you''re convinced I''m me.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t comment otherwise.¡± ¡°Of course you shouldn''t. Another thing to help you not get bored, is that my scientist uncle is here. He wants to study what the sun''s up to and probably needs an expensive telescope or a few hundred experts in complicated maths. I hope I''m exaggerating, but uncle is just desperately trying not to think about what he needs before he''s given his pitch. I seem to remember Daddy set up a fund for such academic endeavours, and I''d like to see the details sometime tomorrow or the next day.¡± ¡°If you prove to our satisfaction that you are who you say you are'' certainly.¡± ¡°On production of the ring, certainly,¡± another voice said. ¡°One day you''re going to explain to me how your procedures would cope if the regent''s ring was stolen from me.¡± ¡°Please don''t let that happen.¡± ¡°I''m not planning to.¡±
Isthana''s rooms ¡°Hello Kev, meet Hal, Crown prince of the Three Isles. Hal, this is Kev, who is an accomplished musician and has been known to earn some income as a tutor when it''s not concert season, and so on. He admitted defeat with me, of course, since I refused to practice. Kev, has Isthana told you I wanted to ask you about what rumours you''ve heard floating around the city recently?¡± ¡°I only arrived just before you, highness.¡± ¡°Oh, OK, well, how much time do you have, have you eaten, and would we be stealing you away from someone or something if between us all we took most of the evening?¡± ¡°I have no appointments, and my landlady has expectations about musicians keeping unsocial hours which I usually frustrate.¡± ¡°Does that mean work''s slow these days?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Teaching work pays the bills, orchestral work is scarce, mainly because I don''t like the thought of letting my pupils find another tutor while I''m on tour for a month or two. In other words I''m much more of a teacher than a performer now.¡± ¡°Independent or at the academy?¡± Esme asked. ¡°The academy requires that you''re either permanently attached to an orchestra or have a noble client.¡± ¡°If they don''t accept me as noble, I''m going to write a nasty letter threatening them with Esme.¡± Isthana said. ¡°I''m also happy to tell them I''ll take a dim view if they think they''d get a cut of any income you get from your existing clients or force you to charge them more. I also want you to know, Kev, that no matter how frustrated I was, I wasn''t expecting that to be the last of my lessons, two years ago.¡± ¡°I thought you said you were giving up.¡± ¡°I probably did. But I was thinking about that piece there and then, not on music.¡± ¡°Oh. I misunderstood.¡± ¡°Yes. I did too, I thought I''d asked you to come and help me practice more often.¡± ¡°I thought you''d asked me to come and visit without there being any music involved.¡± ¡°And that didn''t appeal?¡± Esme asked in the silence that ensued. ¡°At the time, I had just started keeping company with Mari.¡± ¡°Your pastor''s daughter?¡± Isthana asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I didn''t know, sorry. She''s well?¡± ¡°She eventually told me that she didn''t trust in God, she couldn''t bring herself to, and we ought to end it before it hurt more.¡± ¡°And now Kev,¡± Esme asked, ¡°if Isthana finds she still enjoys your company, would that be unwelcome or inappropriate?¡± ¡°I don''t know how appropriate it is for a tutor to be emotionally involved with one of his students.¡± ¡°So, if we find ourselves in love then you stop teaching me?¡± ¡°For money.¡± Kev specified. ¡°And if you are teaching me because of friendship, does that prevent you naming me as your pupil to the academy?¡± ¡°No, highness.¡± ¡°Because I''m still interested in the idea of spending time with you Kev, and I want music to be part of that. But unless you''ve changed or I''ve changed then I don''t want music to be all we talk about. So now that Mari has broken your heart, is there anyone else who might object to that?¡± ¡°No one, highness.¡± ¡°And would you prefer a purely fiscal relationship?¡± ¡°I''d rather teach you as friend, highness.¡± ¡°So, tonight, I have asked for your expert advice, and I offered you a sum of money for an hour or two of your time. Thank you for coming, here is your fee, don''t refuse it please, The grilling you''re going to get from Esme will make you think it''s small reward, I expect.¡± ¡°It''s too much, highness!¡± ¡°No, Kev, it''s not, and I won''t object if you start getting used to calling me by name. Can you grill him over dinner, Esme? I do want to ask him about instruments and such.¡± ¡°Can I have a few minutes now? Some of it might not be good for meal-time conversation.¡± ¡°Oh all right,¡± Isthana agreed grudgingly. ¡°So, Kev. What have your musician''s instincts and gossip-networks told you about the last week and a bit?¡± ¡°Urm, that you''d been kidnapped, highness.¡± ¡°True.¡± ¡°And that the palace was under siege by marshlanders.¡± ¡°Guess,¡± Hal said. ¡°I didn''t notice any, except your highness. And that his majesty is dying.¡± ¡°We hope not,¡± Esme replied. ¡°And that prince Henk had been named heir.¡± ¡°Not by me or father. For the record, if I get killed, then Isthana''s regent, and heir-apparent. Which reminds me, can we swap rings back please, Isthana?¡± ¡°Oops. Of course, here.¡± ¡°I also heard a rumour of mercenaries, but read your proclamation so I don''t think that''s a rumour.¡± ¡°Did you hear how many?¡± ¡°Two dozen, I think it was, some near the palace, some in the town, near the port. The guy who plays at the Fisherman said a lot of strangers had rented the barn at the back and were keeping something valuable guarded there while they were waiting for a ship to come to take it away.¡± ¡°Interesting. Expect them to be missing their treasure, I got out with Hal''s help. Any murders, riots, or other scary things for the general populous?¡± ¡°No. I''m sorry to say that rumours about goings on in the palace don''t matter to people much, highness. The biggest worry is there''s a rumour that the war with the Isles is going to escalate, and they''ve formed an alliance with Tew, who are massing an army on the borders.¡± ¡°Not as far as I know,¡± Esme said. ¡°If I were to publicly say that unlike a number before him, I''ve actually accepted prince Hal of the Isles as my suitor, and that the war was pretty much all a misunderstanding, would that set people''s minds at rest?¡± ¡°Until they realise that if Hal''s dreams come true that means Caneth and the Isles probably end up as one nation, sooner or later.¡± Isthana said. ¡°I''d recommend later,¡± Hal said. ¡°Since neither side ruling the other is likely to be popular. And I hate to think what union does to the Isle''s income from the wine trade.¡± ¡°Not to mention the loss of the cloth-tariffs does to Caneth''s. I suppose we could just tax any goods to and from the Isles. ¡°That would be good for the smuggling trade.¡± Hal pointed out. ¡°And of course there''s harmonization of laws.¡± ¡°And if Tesk is anything to go by, the flowering of independence movements,¡± Isthana pointed out. ¡°Yes. Maybe Tesk ¡ª old Tesk ¡ª is actually a good model. Independent legal systems, but a shared royal family,¡± Hal suggested. ¡°Where? Here? The Isles?¡± ¡°Tesk itself would be the natural place, geographically. Pleasant weather too, I hear,¡± Hal said. ¡°Sea breeze in summer, and none of your mosquitoes?¡± ¡°I wasn''t thinking of the mosquitoes, so much as the winter storms that Tesk is sheltered from. That''s what gives us the beautiful scenery, you realise? Anything that''s not rugged on that side of the Isles gets knocked off and blown away, and that includes buildings and unwary people.¡± ¡°What gives you the marshes?¡± Isthana asked. ¡°Rain, low land, and yes, the winter storms too. But you wouldn''t get eel or the rest of the fish without the marshes.¡± ¡°Do we want the eel?¡± Isthana asked. ¡°I assume so, in terms of total income, tariffs on eel brings the treasury as much as the wine, even though it''s at a much lower rate.¡± ¡°Eel is the cheapest sort of meat in the shops, highness,¡± Kev said, ¡°or it was before the war, and it''s good meat, too. There''s a lot of families who can only eat meat once a week now.¡± ¡°I need to read that letter from your father, Hal.¡± ¡°Certainly. Now, or when you''ve got fewer interested bystanders? I''m just thinking that the one from Hagberry was a bit revealing. Father tends towards blunt.¡± ¡°So do I.¡± Hal smiled at that and added to her in thought, [I don''t know what Hagberry''s said to him, but if he''s told him about this little scheme to match-make, then I imagine father will have given his honest thoughts, like, ''so if they do fall lovingly into each others arms, thus ending this pointless war and him finally finding a wife, does that mean you''re looking for a permanent reduction in the price of wine? Not sure the people would be able to supply much more of it, so your merchant''s won''t be dropping the end prices. They already double the export price, so I hear. Don''t quote supply and demand either. The producers know how to make more wine; they''ll go adding eel juice to it like they do in the marshes. The end result is still better than what you manage to grow, of course, so maybe you won''t notice.''] Esme laughed aloud. ¡°Really? They do that?¡± ¡°It''s an old piece of, urm, disinformation, I guess you could say. Keep the foreigner guessing. Consider yourself sworn to secrecy if you happen to hear what I''m trying not to think of.¡± ¡°Urm. What did I just miss?¡± Kev asked. ¡°Oh! I forgot to tell you, didn''t I?¡± Esme said. ¡°You know mother is from Tesk, and the royal line of the Isles are mostly from there too. Since Hal helped me escape, we''re tuned into each other''s thoughts. I''ve actually developed the gift of Tesk too. Yes, exactly. That one. Hey, don''t ask me to do music theory!¡± ¡°What did attuning to Hal''s thoughts feel like?¡± Isthana asked. ¡°It started with me understanding exactly what he meant by saying something.¡± ¡°Then I realised the same thing about what she was saying,¡± Hal said, ¡°and, well, I recognised what was happening of course, but it''s a bit deeper than with my sisters, I''m not as attuned with them as I am with Esme.¡± Esme''s eyes opened wide, ¡°And they have the gift too?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Poor Tesk.¡± ¡°Exactly. Poor Tesk still have the academy, but they''ve made sure they don''t have any more gifted locals.¡± ¡°The catalyst. You know about it.¡± ¡°Grandma thought it might go to my head. My sisters thought it might too, in another way, and warned me not to fall for the first girl who ended up developing the gift near me, because it wasn''t likely to be a one-off. Fortunately I fell for you before that happened, or I might have been more nervous that I was being silly.¡± ¡°You mean, the way you''ve only known me for what, ten hours, and you''re already thinking about how many kids you''d like us to have and where they ought to be educated?¡± ¡°A man can dream, can''t he?¡± ¡°You certainly can. Just for the record... you being my accepted suitor...¡± ¡°Doesn''t mean that you''ve accepted my suit, just that you''re not refusing to consider it, I understand. I don''t think anyone at home except maybe Hagberry, who wasn''t talking, knew you''d been named next in line, or whatever you''re status was before you became princess-regent.¡± ¡°I was named regent-in-need. Henk obviously decided he could rely on being the first male heir, but that claim is invalid once any regent-in-need has been named. Regent-in-need can be changed at any time by the king, until the person actually becomes regent, then they''re stuck with the post until someone dies ¡ª them or the monarch.¡± ¡°So you''re now princess-regent even if your father makes a total recovery?¡± ¡°He can name a successor other than me if he wants to, but unless I get convicted of treason, then I''m regent if father gets sick again.¡± ¡°And... would it be a problem for the regent to travel?¡± ¡°Not if Father''s well. And I have it on good authority that you learn a lot about a man when you see them in command or in a time of stress. I like what I''ve seen so far, but I think a voyage ought to give me some insights I need. And I think I know how I''m going to get you onto Tesk.¡± ¡°Dare I ask how?¡± ¡°I don''t know, do you?¡± ¡°I''ll think I''ll ask later. Right now you''re hungry and tired.¡± ¡°Why-ever might that be?¡± ¡°All that rest and relaxation, you know, putting the country to rights, doing your bit towards happily-ever-afters for your sisters and Grizetha, not to mention towards saving Grizetha''s soul.¡± ¡°You know,¡± Esme said, ¡°I expect I''m going to be terrified of falling asleep, and Grizetha might not actually have been the most comforting person to have nearby if I''m worried about a repeat attempt.¡± ¡°The thought that rather worries me is the rumour that you were going to be put on a ship. To me that sounds like a ship full of mercenaries on its way to the harbour, which wouldn''t make that neighbourhood the safest to protect you. Maybe you ought to ask the treasury if there''s space for you in there?¡± Hal heard her thought in response, that she wouldn''t be safe unless he was near. [That do be not entirely your most rational thought, beloved fair maid, but if you''re feeling that way about me being near you then of course I will stay close to you.] [You do be my brave suitor, and I might regret thinking this, but right now I want to cling to you like a barnacle afraid of being lost in the currents.] Aware of the silence from the other two, Hal said ¡°My mother used to tell us she had an almost endless supply of hugs available for times of need, but although they weren''t rationed they might not always be appropriate.¡± ¡°Sit down, Hal, We have Isthana as chaperone, we''re not in public, and today must count as an emergency. I therefore decree it''s appropriate for me to test and see if your supply of hugs are up to the standards I would hope for.¡± ¡°Esme, you''re practically slurring your words,¡± Isthana challenged her sister. Settling herself into Hal''s lap and putting her head on his shoulder, Esme replied ¡°Well, if I get so comfortable that I fall asleep, wake me up when dinner''s served.¡± ¡°You''re making a bit of a spectacle of yourself, Esmetherelda,¡± said Hal. ¡°Stop talking and think protective hugging thoughts, and enjoy it, it might be the last chance you get to hold me like this until we get married. Oops, I am tired, I didn''t mean to even think that. Much nicer than the cell floor. Please God, can I have Hal as my husband?¡± And with that, feeling safe and protected she let herself relax into his arms and those of sleep. Hal held her and marvelled at how the active bundle of resourcefulness and energy he''d fallen for earlier in the day could become so trusting and peaceful so quickly, so totally. But as his heart felt like it would burst with the joy that brought him, he was determined he''d try his utmost to deserve the trust she put in him. Planet 5 / Ch. 4: Imperialist

Planet 5 / Ch. 4: Imperialist

Extract from post-contact report for Planet 5 The green skin of the people here is also shared by certain apes found in the jungles. The apes rest on tree-tops during the day and hunt beetles, etcetera at night. Hunting alone would not supply sufficient food. In people, it is known that photosynthesis is possible and provides some extra calories, but it is not normally sufficient to do more than delay death without food, unless it is twinned with ideal weather, total rest and summer sun. When the season allows, however, people can go on month-long boat or cart journeys ''log-style'', needing only the equivalent of a day or two''s food. Under the Windward Empire, clothes were a status symbol during the summer months. Slaves were ''more efficient'' ¡ª needing fewer rest-breaks and less food ¡ª if naked, and this was part of the punishment for mis-behaviour. The Dahel empire still uses clothes as a symbol of rank. The rebellion against the doom-guard would have been much harder without photosynthesis, as agitators could travel ''logstyle'' on wagons or boats, between meetings with only the food in their stomachs. Isthana''s rooms ¡°Hey, sleepyhead?¡± Isthana called, ¡°food?¡± ¡°Go ''way,¡± Esme replied snuggling down into her rather strange pillow. Her pillow kissed her ear and said, ¡°We know you said to wake you up when dinner was served, but you didn''t want to wake up. They''re going to take it away soon.¡± Esme woke up, and realised that her dream of being hugged by a handsome prince with strong arms wasn''t a dream. Could she really think to him? [Yes, you can, Esme] Hal thought back to her. [I fell asleep in your arms?] [Very adorably so, yes, fair maid.] [But we''re not married, or out at sea on a ship?] [Not yet.] [And I don''t need to play a piccolo in an orchestra on Tesk?] [Not that I know of.] [That''s a relief.] ¡°Did you have a good sleep, Esmetherelda?¡± He asked aloud. ¡°I think so. I really need to wake up?¡± ¡°Yes, or you''ll be hungry. And so will I.¡± ¡°You''ve not eaten either?¡± ¡°Well, I did think of nibbling your ear off, but not seriously.¡± ¡°You''re sick.¡± ¡°No, but you do be entirely adorable, my fair maid.¡± ¡°Not yours yet.¡± ¡°Any doubts now you''ve slept on the idea?¡± ¡°I don''t think ten minutes sleep counts as sleeping on it.¡± ¡°An hour and a half,¡± Isthana corrected, ¡°Now get up, sister, I''m sure you''ll have more opportunities to hug him.¡± ¡°I might not. I might think this was much too close for this stage of our relationship.¡± ¡°Oh, speaking of our relationship, what do you think of arranged marriages?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Esme asked, getting up suddenly to look at him. ¡°About half an hour ago you dozily asked me what was in Dad''s letter, so I read it and thought it to you.¡± ¡°I don''t remember.¡± ¡°I wasn''t sure you would. Try not to turn the page with a full mouth, but come and eat.¡±
The royal bedchamber. ¡°Is father awake?¡± Esme whispered to the doctor. ¡°Yes I am.¡± her father replied petulantly, ¡°And you haven''t read Val''s letter to me.¡± ¡°No. But I will now, father.¡± ¡°She sounds cross, doesn''t she, Doctor?¡± he said in roughly the same tone. ¡°His heartbeat is better, but.. one of the side effects can be irritability.¡± the doctor said. ¡°I don''t have that excuse, I''ve got another one. I''ve just read Val''s letter, Daddy.¡± ¡°That''s a bit rude.¡± ¡°I assumed it would be mostly about the war I''d like to cancel tomorrow.¡± ¡°It wasn''t?¡± ¡°One paragraph was. The next two were explaining what Hal had already told me about Henk''s ship running aground as he ran from customs officers. The rest was about an arranged marriage you seem to have been planning.¡± ¡°Oh, and you''ve come to thank me? What a considerate daughter!¡± ¡°On one hand, yes, I am actually quite happy about the idea of marrying Hal. But didn''t you think of at least mentioning the idea to me?¡± ¡°Thought about it, considered it long and hard and decided that you''d do much better to meet him yourself before you rejected him out of hand. I was right too, wasn''t I?¡± ¡°I don''t know. I''m pretty sure that meeting him as I did really helped kick-start the emotions. I hope you''re not going to say you planned that.¡± ¡°Not at all. I worried about you a lot, Esme.¡± ¡°I hope you prayed too.¡± ¡°I did. What''s happening out there? No one tells me anything.¡± ¡°Henk is in prison, mercenaries have left or are leaving as far as I know, with the realisation that their employer is in deep trouble but they''re not if they go calmly. Grizetha I had mercy on, because basically she''s repented of what she did, which was open the door to Henk and make a mess of my stuff. Tumbril is back, Winessa is talking to her Captain, and I hope you''ve not got plans to marry Isthana to anyone because she''s talking to Kev the viola teacher.¡± ¡°I thought she hated him.¡± ¡°Only after he didn''t sweep her into his arms. Since he''d just started keeping someone else company, he wasn''t interested. That ended in heart-break when the girl admitted she''d been faking her faith to keep family harmony, and didn''t want to trust God. Kev says the people are worried about the war and missing the eel meat on their plates.¡± ¡°And your mother?¡± ¡°Has been here with you, hasn''t she?¡± ¡°Yes. But she had soldiers with her.¡± ¡°So have I, they''re called bodyguards, father. I''ve talked to Mummy, and listened to her thoughts too. Tumbril is going to investigate and recommend. She thought I hated her, Daddy. I''ve never hated her, I just disagreed with most of her ideas for my future.¡± ¡°But not marrying Hal.¡± ¡°That was Mummy''s idea?¡± ¡°You can thank her for planting the seed, anyway.¡± ¡°Really? It puts Tesk in a difficult place.¡± ¡°That was part of the seed. She said something like ''Tesk is going to stay poverty-ridden and independent until they''re surrounded by one country, and that''s not going to happen unless you forcibly marry Esme to prince what''s his name, and I know you won''t do that.¡± ¡°And how do we bring Tew into the happy family?¡± ¡°I leave that to you. They might well get nervous of an empire on their doorstep, you realise.¡± ¡°So will Tesk. Hal suggested Tesk as the administrative capital if we do manage to bring them in.¡± ¡°Any ideas how?¡± ¡°They don''t have anyone with the gift. I have it, and Hal''s sisters have it. Their laws say no visitors from the royal family of the Isles, because they make off with their most treasured gifted women. But they don''t say I can''t visit.¡± ¡°And their constitution still gives the gifted pre-eminence?¡± ¡°It does. So if I visit then I can possibly change the law to let his sisters come to visit too.¡± ¡°But not Hal?¡± ¡°Oh, hopefully I can convince the Tesk ambassador that the phrasing of their law doesn''t exclude me going there to talk to the academy and taking my new husband. Oh, about that, Uncle Teng is here. He wants funding to investigate the instability of the sun, Sort of.¡± ¡°Sort of?¡± ¡°He wants to meet the Tesk condition, and so get the aliens to come back, and ask them if they have any ideas. He thinks it can be done, and he doesn''t think we''ve got much time.¡± ¡°The Tesk condition has been the occupation of the scientists for more than a century, Esme.¡± ¡°That''s what they claim, yes. But really they''re doing their own thing, and only getting near it by accident. Unsurprisingly, Uncle''s plan is going to be very expensive, unless we do get Tew on-board with their minerals.¡± ¡°Don''t forget the Tesk condition involves society, too, Esme.¡± ¡°I know. And Tesk in its present state has gone backwards, in terms of stable government and social equality. Possibly literacy too. But I need to understand your plans, Daddy. Have you shared them with ministers or generals?¡± ¡°Hagard and Vazeth.¡± ¡°Who I need to talk to anyway. That''s good, Shall I read to you now? You''re getting tired.¡± ¡°Just the bit about you.¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± Esme agreed. ¡°So, does this war mean get a move on with sending Hal, or it''s all over? Hal has been actively interested in meeting Esmetherelda, as an individual, for a while, but always put duty first, so he''s very happy about me sending him with this letter and to try to broker a peace deal. He doesn''t know we agreed in principle to them marrying. What I want to say is that the sooner the better as far as I''m concerned. He''ll probably protest about making very sure they get on well if it''s just a personal relationship, and drag things out for a year or more, and want to bring her to see us, that sort of thing. But he''s a dutiful son. If you show him this letter and make him understand that it''s both fathers'' will that our countries end up united by blood as per our discussions, then I''m sure he''ll agree to not be so cautious, assuming they don''t hate each other. Even if they do, probably, as long as Esmetherelda is willing to give it a go. I still don''t understand what the war''s about. If it''s really about trade, then Hal can negotiate for me. If you''re hoping to get a wonderful trade deal by distracting him with Esmetherelda... well he knows the parameters I''ll agree to it without it turning into a shooting war, and he knows that Tew have a princess too, for that matter, I''m just saying, don''t push him beyond where he says he can''t go, because he can''t go there. If you just want to push the two kids together to calm down things with your wife, then feel free to send them back here as husband and wife. For decorum''s sake he''s probably going to want to insist on having at least a month''s formal engagement, but tell him his mother says to remind him that his grandfather only had two weeks. One recommendation: if you''re thinking of having them casting adoring gazes at each other for three months to brighten up the place before the wedding, understand that that means he won''t set sail until spring. He''s too familiar with the seas to risk taking his new wife anywhere past Tesk once the storm season gets close. I hope we''re still friends, but this declaration of war is really confusing, Val of the Isles.¡± ¡°Do you like him, Esme?¡± ¡°I demanded a hug that turned into a nap curled up in his lap, Daddy. He makes me feel safe and loved and cherished and protected. King Val has no idea I was named Regent-in-need, or heir, does he?¡± ¡°No, that''s a surprise you can tell them. Hagard and Vazeth know what the war''s about, and that it is my desire that you end it by your engagement. Write to Hagberry, Esme, he doesn''t know it actually happened either. And ask Hal if he wants to invite anyone to your wedding. Since I''ve made it this far, I want to see you happily married before I die. And if I don''t make it, then don''t you dare put off your wedding.¡± ¡°There has to be a time of mourning, father.¡± ¡°There has to be a wedding, Esme. Talk to Hagard about Tew. Soon, tonight.¡±
Home of General Hagard. ¡°I''m sorry for disturbing you, General. Father said I should talk to you tonight about Tew. Sorry for not making introductions earlier, this is prince Hal of the Three Isles who helped me escape from the barn I was locked in,¡± ¡°Esme keeps forgetting to say that she managed to get out of the cell by herself, or that she ran up the wall so I could help her.¡± ¡°Well done, highness. May I ask if your father has spoken...¡± he glanced at Hal. ¡°Father has said that we must marry, and I gathered that there was a connection between the speed of my marrying Hal, this confusing war with the Isles, and what Tew are doing.¡± ¡°Yes, highness, There is,¡± the general said, looking tired. ¡°I had hoped... but if it is his majesty''s command, I obey. A year ago it came to my notice that Tew had a lot of spies in the palace, and in the general staff. I informed his majesty, and we made enquiries of our own. Your installation as Regent-in-need and heir is almost certainly what prompted that, and then your brother''s actions, supported by Tew. The king of Tew had formed a plan to marry his daughter to prince Henk and then convince him to launch a surprise joint war on the Isles. Prince Henk probably thought this was a way to obtain mastery over the Isles. But our information is that Tew''s ships would join in, but be unaccountably delayed by bad-seamanship or mistaken orders or some such, leaving our navy to bear the brunt of the damage, and then his navy would come in and mop up. Possibly sinking some of our ships ''by accident''.¡±Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Leaving Tew as undisputed ruler of the seas, and able to achieve by marriage what they failed to do ten years ago by force, the conquest of Caneth.¡± Hal concluded. ¡°I presume that the shipyards of the Isles are busy, highness?¡± the general asked. ¡°And the harbour forts fully manned, supplied by the food we''re not exporting and the merchants are franticly sending orders to tell their captains to buy ¡ª from Tew of course, ¡ª all the cannon that the law says they must hold in reserve in case of war. Presumably Tew will supply those cannons, but faulty ones if they can, so as not to show their hand. But none of that would have happened on the basis of second-hand intelligence.¡± ¡°That was the hope, yes, to mobilise the Isles. But there is a cost. Our navy is now out on blockade duty.¡± ¡°Father has put us at the mercy of Tew to prepare the Isles?¡± Esme asked. ¡°It was a high-risk strategy. But we knew the high command was compromised. That left his Majesty vulnerable. You have seen that three of the high command''s generals aligned themselves with your brother, just as their Tew paymasters would have liked. Wirt is beyond suspicion, I believe. But our counter-intelligence was not as good as we might have hoped, we could not be sure about all of them, and we didn''t expect this move by your brother. Please convey my sincerest apologies to His Majesty, and my resignation if he desires.¡± ¡°I know I do not, General. Father said that the wedding must happen. That is because we desperately need support from the Isles?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°General, I have told a number of people, but not you. As part of my escape I have attuned to Hal, which is almost inevitable if one thinks of what happened, our ancestry and the fact that Hal was hoping to marry me even before we met. But as I attuned to Hal, I also developed the gift of Tesk. It may be useful both in terms of determining loyalty as well as in terms of political dealings with Tesk.¡± ¡°I''m not very familiar with what ''attuning is'', highness, or what the gift is.¡± ¡°It''s quite simple, General. Attuning to Hal means that I am aware of Hal''s feelings and his thoughts, and he''s aware of mine. Having the gift of Tesk means that I also hear your own thoughts trying to dwell on the present conversation and not wandering back to your bed. Please apologise to your wife from me. As far as I understand the constitutional laws of Tesk, anyone with the gift, even a visitor, has a vote on their high council, which can overrule the normal legislature. Their council has been empty for a long time. Hal''s sisters also have the gift of Tesk, and I will be suggesting to the present government that unless they want to be run by myself as sole dictator they should remove the restriction on visiting members of the royal family of the Isles.¡± ¡°Then maybe if one of them has faith and no wife he could try courting one of my sisters.¡± Hal added. ¡°But in any case, we are thinking of asking Tesk to consider joining the Isles and Caneth in a confederation with a common external policy that ensures defence, more local autonomy than they used to have rather than trying to make all laws come from a central place, and so on.¡± ¡°Asking?¡± the general said. ¡°Yes, asking. I''ve read some of their parliamentary proceedings. You know mother, I''m pretty sure she''s a typical case. Proud, arrogant even, certain they''re right even when they''re wrong, and just like any bunch who consider themselves experts, happy to spend weeks arguing about miniscule points while the major points elude them. Therefore, I''m going to tell them about the challenge: Hal will inherit rule of the Three Isles, I will inherit rule of Caneth. I''m planning to insist that our marriage contract will include a treaty that says that once we inherit, rule will be joint, and united, and will stay united whatever. In other words from the moment of our marriage, Caneth and the Three Isles become.. well, inseparable and trusting while remaining distinct. Separate legal systems, merging as much as possible. Probably some limits on trade and internal tariffs, but less than for outsiders. And I''m going to ask them to come up with a name for that.... system, and I''m going to ask them for advice about avoiding disputes, and I''m going to ask them what their advice is on the constitutional relationships to stop the sort of break-down that happened with the Three Isles, and since, well, geography being what it is, whether they''d like to be part of it, or if they''d like to be a little separate enclave, but unable to play off their two closest neighbours against each other in the way they have been doing.¡± ¡°They''re not going to like that,¡± the general said, ¡°That''s their entire foreign policy in tatters there.¡± ¡°Tough,¡± Hal said. ¡°Foreign policies need to change to match reality. They can try buying food and cloth from Tew if they like. As long as we''re not at war with Tew then we''ll let unarmed merchant ships through. I''m not sure I''d want to allow the importing of much weaponry though. Who would they use it against, and what are they selling in exchange? Students don''t pay that much. I''d assume I don''t need to tell them any of that, though. It sounds obvious to me and they''re supposed to be the clever ones.¡± ¡°You will need a royal capital. An imperial capital,¡± the general mused. ¡°Assuming they call it an empire, yes.¡± Hal agreed, ¡°Tesk is the obvious location of course, But we''ll let them consider things before asking if they''ve come up with that possibility. I don''t really know why we''re keeping you up late to tell you all this, sorry General.¡± ¡°I do. Because we''re basically telling the general that we understand the need for joint military support, we''re assuming that we''ll marry, even though we only met, what, ten hours ago? And we understand there are going to be negotiations involved, not just holding hands and gazing lovingly into each other''s eyes. And by saying it now we''re reassuring the General that we appreciate the need for speed above decorum, and we''re allowing him to reciprocate. Tonight, General, Prince Hal will be sleeping in the captain''s study on board the Albatross, and I will be sleeping in the room that protects, the captain''s cabin. In common with what Hal assures me is standard naval practice, both of those rooms and their doors are iron-clad wood, and capable of withstanding several short-range cannonballs, in case of mutiny or attack. I will have Grizetha as chaperone tonight, who has this evening come to faith in God. I''m not sure who I''ll have tomorrow, since she will be marrying sergeant Tova.¡± ¡°There are rumours that the mercenaries who were holding Esme prisoner were expecting a shipload of associates, if that turns out to be true, the Albatross will not wait around and wait to be boarded as soon as some drunk sailor says he saw Esme boarding, but we''ll head out to sea where we can sink them more conveniently.¡± ¡°You sound quite sure about that.¡± ¡°The Albatross is a customs clipper, general. She''s fast, manoeuvrable and well armed. No one made any compromises for cargo.¡± ¡°And what does the captain think about giving up his cabin?¡± ¡°I think it''s entirely appropriate, general.¡± Hal said. ¡°And you will be at the palace tomorrow, highness?¡± ¡°I will, general. I don''t make any promises about when I''ll wake up, though. I think I missed a lot of sleep during my captivity. Do you have any questions, General?¡± ¡°I won''t detain you more, highness.¡±
The throne-room, noon. ¡°Thank you for coming, Mr Ambassador. I don''t know how much you''ve heard the last week, but until Hal of the Three Isles here helped me escape I was a kidnapping victim, father was being denied his medicine, and my brother was planning to ignore various provisions of the constitution and inherit the throne regardless. Father''s still ill, so in accordance with my investiture as Regent-in-need three years ago, I''ve now assumed my position as princess-Regent, and I have a question I''d like you to relay to the international affairs and political studies department of the Academy. It won''t be a secret for long, so feel free to put it in official dispatches too.¡± ¡°Certainly, Princess-Regent. I am most glad to see you restored to freedom. How may Tesk be of assistance?¡± ¡°As you know, Caneth declared war on the Three Isles some months ago, as a result of various claims made by prince Henk about official collusion with piracy. It actually appears that my brother was guilty of the crime of smuggling, and the so-called pirate vessel was none other than the customs-clipper Albatross, captained by Hal here, and co-incidentally carrying our trusted ambassador Hagberry. Father and I have read the letters from Hagberry and Val, King of the Isles, and have no doubt of the veracity of their account especially since Henk has of course also proved himself capable of pretty much anything as long as it is vile and illegal. So, it will soon be announced that the war with the Three Isles has been ended.¡± ¡°I''m relieved to hear that, highness. Neighbours at war is never good for a small island dependant on trade and visitors as we are.¡± ¡°Indeed, so it''s going to be announced that in order to assure a lasting peace, and that such... misunderstandings to not crop up again, there''s going to be a comprehensive peace treaty between our two countries. Some details remain to be sorted, but in order to ensure the peace is truly lasting, and in recognition of his vital role in my escape from my kidnappers yesterday, I will be getting married to prince Hal here. He came hoping to woo me anyway, once peace had been negotiated, we seem to get on well, and last but not least, it seems our royal fathers have been discussing the idea of arranging our future together for some years, and hoping we wouldn''t claw each other''s eyes out when we met.¡± ¡°Congratulations, highness. I''m sure that a royal marriage in the peace deal will ensure the Isles feel no need to exact further concessions. Erm, crown Prince Hal?¡± the ambassador asked. ¡°None other.¡± Hal agreed, with a smile. ¡°Oh, your own position as regent excludes you from being heir, I presume, Highness.¡± ¡°It neither excludes it nor confirms it. However, Father is certain that it is his will that I inherit his crown. It seems that piece of news is going to be as much of a surprise to King Val, as it was to Hal and you, but never mind. I''m sure we can sort out the details. But that''s the question for the Academy. When we have both inherited our respective fathers'' kingdoms, what do we call that political entity? Is it an empire or a confederation or a union? We plan to rule jointly, and we don''t want either populous to feel that they are being taken over, that one partner is junior. We''ll have a common external policy, of course, but we''re not sure about internal trade and will need some form of taxation, but we also want our people to be happy about the reduced prices in the shops as a result of the union. Could the academy give some thought to what the best political and economic model might be? Is something like the old model of Tesk''s semi-autonomy within the Isles a good model, and if so, how can it be adjusted to avoid the issues of there being the sense of a ''greater power'' like Tesk struggled against? Would it be better to have a distinct capital for the combined central authority, leaving the current capitals to administer what we might call their devolved powers? If so, where should we put that? Clearly there''s a prestige element there, and things like fashion industries tend to thrive where there''s high authority, don''t they? But which of the two nations should get that prestige? Of course, we don''t want to be exclusive, so if the academy manage to come up with a model that the government of Tesk would find preferable to being a small enclave in between two halves of a united kingdom, then Tesk could also join. Oh, I forgot to tell you! Sorry, this isn''t some attempt at bullying a small island, and forcing you to do our will, we''ve no desire to do that. It''s just a result of what''s happened, but as I understand the constitution of Tesk, I do have a say in what happens there, since as Hal and I attuned to each other with all the danger and fear involved in yesterday''s escape, I also developed the gift of Tesk.¡± ¡°You have the gift of Tesk.¡± the ambassador repeated, nervously. ¡°Yes, I believe that gives me a voice on the high council whenever I visit, doesn''t it? Of course I can prove that claim any way you like.¡± ¡°If the legislature don''t like the idea of Esmetherelda being able to be sole dictator whenever she chooses to visit, they''re welcome to rescind the law banning my sisters from visiting, they also have the gift, and unless things have changed, no one has managed to convince either of them that they are genuinely interested in them.¡± ¡°You still possess the catalyst, you mean.¡± ¡°Posess, ambassador? Do you posess your left arm?¡± Hal exclaimed, ¡°You should re-read the Teskania, along with a history of the Four Isles. I can lend both to you if you promise to look after them, they''re the property of the royal library. The man who became the first king of the Isles and his wife braved the constant demands of the young women of Tesk that he spend time with them until it became unsupportable. It became madness, some girls even climbing into their bedroom during their most intimate moments. His wife was unable to complete her theoretical work on the role of attunement on public policy because she had to spend all her time escorting stupid girls out of her home. Eventually they fled from their home to escape the girls. She put her theory into practice and her husband was voted king of all four isles separately, incidentally with Tesk holding the vote second. I don''t know where the idea of conquest comes from, but you might as well say that Tesk conquered the other Isles.¡± ¡°Time seems to be the most important factor in developing the gift, ambassador.¡± Esme said, ¡°Nothing else, and I shall be most insulted if you continue that line of thinking. We spent about two hours yesterday evening chatting with Isthana and a young man she''s quite attached to, and she has begun to become about as aware of other''s thoughts as I had after spending the same amount of time avoiding re-capture with Hal. The gift of Tesk cannot be forced, but developing it can be blocked, for instance the way you refuse to let Hal and his family visit. I believe I could easily force that law to be repealed, since it has never been agreed to by the high council. I believe I could even decide on behalf of Tesk that it will join our Confederation or whatever it will be. But I have no desire to do the first of those. Nor to allow hundreds of girls to throw themselves at Hal all screaming ''spend time with me!'' both because he''s mine and secondly because it would reduce the power the constitution of Tesk has given me to stop you doing something stupid like allying yourself with Tew. The latter I have no desire to do because I know roughly what the results of me forcing you to do anything would be.¡± ¡°We will leave Tesk free choice.¡± Hal said, ¡°This is our vow, through you, to the people of Tesk. There would be benefits of course, both to us and to you, if you joined this new thing we are creating, far more independent than an empire, far closer than a trading partnership. There will be laws that apply everywhere: consistency of laws on child labour, rape, murder, fraud, theft and so on. There will have to be taxes, but whether that''s on all trade in luxuries, or non-local produce or something like that is one of the things we''re hoping the academy can recommend to us. But there''ll be local laws too.¡± ¡°Giving ridiculous examples is easy. In the Three Isles, if you can''t swim you can''t graduate. I can''t imagine that working in the deserts of inner Caneth. Inner Caneth has often complained about some of the laws that have been passed. Fine; I don''t really mind the idea of Inner Caneth and Outer Caneth having separate parliaments, as long as the laws they pass are sensible, appropriate, and don''t interfere with the running of the country as a whole, and as long as I, as we get to approve them.¡± ¡°Or if they are within a set of pre-determined limits we''ve already determined, like, I don''t know, the exact loading limits on an individual bridge isn''t a role that central government should be involved in at all. But we won''t allow government officials to act corruptly.¡± ¡°Not even in Central Caneth?¡± the ambassador asked. ¡°No. Not even there.¡± Esme said, ¡°But if they want to publish a scale of official fees, with discounts for age, standing in the community, politeness, ability at haggling, and so on, then as long as it is open and honest and clear to all, then that might become acceptable to me, as long as those official fees are the only things changing hands, and all get properly accounted for.¡± ¡°Highness, you propose a revolution.¡± ¡°Ambassador, I propose to prevent a multitude of potential revolutions. I propose to rule a people who will rejoice at the kindness and generosity of their joint-monarchs, who understand their place in society, who understand how they have the power to change their place in society through effort and education or through idleness or ignorance, and who strive to better the world they live in. I propose to promote the loyal and hard-working, demote those who find they cannot cope with their positions of authority, and punish those who abuse their authority or seek to rise above their proper place by crime.¡± ¡°You are quoting, I believe, highness?¡± ¡°You know that I am, Mr Ambassador. Your father has written a great many wise words, and I''ve read quite a lot of them. I won''t claim to have read all; I know my limits and his technical works are beyond me. Oh, that reminds me, I don''t know if I''ve got the latest editions, but here is a list of what I assume are printer''s errors in some of books I''ve read recently. You''ll see a few of your father''s works on the list.¡± ¡°On behalf of the academy, highness, I thank you. I''m sure the print-shop, however, await your lists with trepidation.¡± ¡°Do you have any questions or issues of your own, Mr Ambassador?¡± Hal asked. ¡°I know it is early days, your highnesses, but do you have any idea when your marriage will take place?¡± ¡°There will need to be at least one message sent to my father in Captita, letting him approve the text of the final peace treaty.¡± Hal said. ¡°Some elements of it are certainly beyond my authority to negotiate. Our marriage will, we expect, take place at the same time as the signing of the final treaty. A provisional or initial peace treaty will be signed in the next day or two.¡± ¡°You''re speaking then, of your marriage within a matter of weeks?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Esme agreed. ¡°If the legislature of Tesk was prepared to allow Hal and I to visit for a day or two on our journey to see his family, and we could discuss the ideas we''ve outlined to you with the academy in more detail, that would be very pleasant. I''ve always wanted to visit my mother''s old home.¡± ¡°I imagine holding that sort of conversation by flashing or drumming it back and forward from outside the harbour would not be so pleasant or efficient,¡± Hal said. ¡°But Esme has told me the only reason she''d land on Tesk without me would be to repeal the law that says I can''t land, and she''ll only do that surrounded by quite a big body-guard, for what I assume are obvious reasons.¡± ¡°Would you like to ask any of your other questions, Mr Ambassador, or are you just playing with them?¡± Esme asked. ¡°I''ll tell you without you asking that Hal''s sisters are younger than him and his mother is from Captita.¡± ¡°Thank you highness. You''ve given me a lot to think about.¡± ¡°A little bit more for you to think about: Other embassies are not aware of what we''ve told you. We would prefer it stayed that way until the announcement. If I find out that you have talked to anyone from another embassy, yes, that includes her, about what we''ve told you for the ears of the academy and your government, I will be displeased. Probably so displeased that you find yourself being escorted to a ship.¡± ¡°I understand, highness.¡± ¡°But if you do happen to meet the representative of Dahel, tell her I''d be happy to meet her.¡± ¡°I''ll pass your invitation on if I meet her, highness. I have no questions.¡± [Dahel?] Hal asked, [Really? That''s a long way away.] [Yes. She''s not technically an ambassador, yet. It takes a long time for messages to get there and back.] [And she''s here on her own?] Hal asked. [Her husband died soon after they got here from Tew. Something bit him on the way and it got infected.] [Sad. And the Tesk ambassador is being helpful?] [The Tesk ambassador is single and overly enjoying being the only person she was introduced to, I think.] [Do you need to wait for him to remember your invitation?] [Hmmm. No, I don''t. Shall we go visiting?] Planet 5 / Ch. 5: Surrender (1/2)

Planet 5 / Ch. 5: Surrender

Residence of the Dahel representative. ¡°Representative Hayeel, Do not fear,¡± Esme said, ¡°The soldiers are for my protection, not to arrest anyone.¡± ¡°I know so little,¡± Hayeel replied, I do not know if I somehow break laws I do not know, or accidentally shame someone. And I am sorry, I don''t know you, do I?¡± ¡°I am Esmetherelda, the princess-regent. That is to say, my father the king is not well, so I rule in his place. May we come in and talk?¡± ¡°Humbly, and not meaning disrespect, but what about your brother?¡± ¡°My brother, prince Henk, broke many laws. My mother broke a few, but mainly because of fear and ignorance, not malice. One law my brother broke was that he had me kidnapped, and held prisoner. Another is that he invited mercenaries into the palace, another is he prevented my father from taking his medicine.¡± ¡°Such a bad son! Please, come in.¡± ¡°Yes. He brings shame to my whole family, but shame is not as important here as you are used to. To bring ones father shame is not death, not even when father is the king. But he has broken laws that mean he will die, I am sure.¡± ¡°You understand my culture well, your highness.¡± ¡°I am afraid I know only a little of your culture. I hope from my ignorance I do not cause you offence or shame. If my answers seem very appropriate it is because by God''s grace I have what is known as the gift of Tesk, that is to say I hear what you are thinking. I heard the ambassador of Tesk thinking of you earlier, and thought it would be good to talk. Firstly, you do not need someone to introduce you to court on each occasion. Your late husband introduced you, we know who you are; that is sufficient. Your papers have not come, I know, but we know that it is a long way, and sometimes governments are slow to decide things. So, please understand this. While my father is ill, I rule with his power. I do not need more papers, he told all that I should rule if he were sick, and he gave me a ring that says I rule in his place if he cannot rule. So when I speak to you now, I speak with the authority of my father. The respect we had for your late husband, and the honour in which we held him, we honour you with. You have our deep sympathy for your loss, and it would be nice for you to have the certainty that comes from papers, but you need no papers to talk to me. You need no intermediary to talk to me, or to my father when he recovers. You do not have the paperwork of ambassador, but in my eyes you have all the rights and privileges of ambassador, and I will call you ambassador. Maybe it is normal for an ambassador to be a man, but my father has said that it is his will that I will be queen when he dies, and I will prefer to talk to women ambassadors. If you have worries or fears, please tell me. If you wish for protection, for body-guards, please tell me, it would cause me great shame if you were hurt, or robbed or tricked.¡± ¡°Perhaps I have been tricked already.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Tesk is not a powerful country. I heard the ambassador for Tesk thinking how pleasant it is that you look to him for help. I do not know if he has not told you these things to deliberately keep that situation for a sense of power, or because he is forgetful or thinks you know them, or because he is a man and you are an attractive woman. If I thought that he set out to trick you, I would have him sent home. If you wish me to ask him, I will. And I will hear what he thinks, and he knows that.¡± ¡°Thank you. He has seemed friendly, but has not told me what I should know.¡± ¡°Why should you know them? You are from a long way away.¡± ¡°My father was from Tesk, I thought I would understand more than I do.¡± ¡°Ah! That is how you speak our language?¡± ¡°Yes. But my father was often away from home, so I do not speak very well.¡± ¡°But he told you of the gift of Tesk?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°Did he talk of the catalyst?¡± ¡°The King of the Three Isles does not visit Tesk now. The catalyst was something they brought.¡± ¡°The catalyst was something they are, and that they do not visit was the decision of Tesk. I introduce to you Hal, prince of the Three Isles, soon to be my husband. There are no guarantees, but you are as much a daughter of Tesk as me. If you would like to join me, Hal and my sisters and maybe the men they think hopeful thoughts about this evening, we will be sitting and talking and eating. Yesterday evening we spent two hours with one of my sisters who now finds she is better able to understand her friend than she was before. Perhaps it would be useful for you to have such understanding as you are in a strange land with strange customs. Or perhaps you will simply be reassured to meet my family.¡± ¡°The ambassador of Tesk is not invited?¡± ¡°No, certainly not. Female ambassadors with relatives from Tesk get special treatment.¡± ¡°Even if they don''t have that title?¡± ¡°Even if the paperwork is very very slow coming, and you need to wait a long time for your home country to call you by that title, you are welcome. Even if it is not paper that comes, but some grumpy man claiming the title for himself, if you have visited us enough, you will be a friend and will still be welcome.¡± ¡°My fear is that a grumpy man as you say will come, and I will have to choose between him or no home, no income.¡± ¡°Is your government so cruel and heartless?¡± ¡°That they would promise me, who has honourable post of ambassador''s wife, to a new ambassador? They would see it as maintaining my honour. They would see it as heartless to send a new ambassador who has a wife already.¡± ¡°In Caneth and in the Three Isles, it is not unheard of for parents to talk and prepare a surprise for their children: ''we think you will find one another agreeable.'' My father and Hal''s father have had such discussions, but Hal and I met before we could be told of this surprise. But if the son or daughter do not like the surprise, if they find a flaw in the other, then there can be no punishment. If the parents say ''you must marry, or you will not live here,'' then they do a terrible thing and the son or daughter should tell the courts this has happened, and the courts will say, parents, you may not do this, you may not try to force a marriage in this way.¡± ¡°And if it is a done thing?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°In the Three Isles, then the parents will have a new home, behind bars, until two years after the son or daughter says ''I am happy with my wife or husband after all, and if he or she never does, then the parents stay in jail until the spouse dies,''¡± ¡°Really?¡± Esme asked, ¡°Here it''s a simple ten years.¡± ¡°The penalty for aggravated rape? We count it as selling someone into slavery.¡± ¡°Oh! I like that analogy.¡± Esme said. ¡°You do not allow slavery at all?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°No, not for hundreds of years.¡± ¡°I had not seen slaves, but thought they were only inside. We have contact with Tew, but you are more different to Tew than I thought.¡± ¡°And are there slaves in Dahel?¡± ¡°Yes, many slaves-for-life. And also there are those who sell five or ten years of their lives so that their family will survive. They have some rights, but not many.¡± ¡°Tew also has those, and land-slaves, who have rights except to move home. We of Caneth do not,¡± Esme said. ¡°On the Three Isles, you can enter a contract for a loan where you must give a proportion of your wages to the person who made the loan, or work part of your time at a certain rate of pay. But no more than half, and the minimum rate of pay is set by the crown each year. It is not what they have in Tew. If the lender receives work he or she receives no money. On Tesk, it is similar, but the limit is three-quarters. If a person comes to the Three Isles, and says, ''I am from Tew, and had to sell so many years of my life, or from Tesk and had to give three quarters of my wages,'' then the court will say, ''What was demanded of you is illegal here, you may stay.'' And they are allowed to live and work there as a free person. But as a foreigner, if they commit a serious crime, we will send them home.¡± ¡°So they should learn your laws.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°As must I learn the laws of Caneth.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Honorary ambassador Hayeel, you must not steal either things or ideas, you must not lie to a court, you must not force anyone into slavery or an unwelcome marriage, you must not kill or wound except in self-defence, you should not commit adultery, or make a loan that is not on the basis of friendship, or try to change who rules. You should not sell things that are illegal or controlled by law. If you do one of these things, which are not compatible with the role of ambassador, you will be told you must leave. If you are found to be breaking a minor law, then as an honorary ambassador, you can expect to be told that what you are doing is illegal, and you will be expected to say ''sorry, I did not know'', and then you will be expected not to do it again. If you have questions, or need advice advice, please ask.¡± ¡°Thank you, highness. You are kind.¡± ¡°It is my duty to to God to be kind. But may I ask? What resources do you have? How to you meet your needs for food?¡± ¡°Perhaps by breaking your laws. I do not know what is allowed, what is not. But my husband brought with him some things that are rare and have value. Stones and metals and medicines. Your brother introduced me to a certain man who asked what I had, and I showed him a small sample of the different substances. Some he was not interested in, others seemed to excite him greatly. What he paid for them... I do not know if it was a good price. I bargained with him, and I do not think I could have got more than I did, but it was far more than I expected. More, I think, than medicines should cost.¡± ¡°I am no expert in medicines, Hayeel. I know that my father now needs a medicine for his heart that is rare here and very expensive and... has other uses. It is not illegal, but it is not wise to start using it except in the greatest need, but it was safer than the alternative options.¡± ¡°You speak of a heart medicine that you must not stop suddenly?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Maybe it is the same as the one I have. The man was not interested in that.¡± ¡°I ask that you speak at great length to my father''s doctor, Hayeel. Did you sell the substance to this person here, or somewhere in the city?¡± ¡°Here,¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°Then, since this place is your embassy, you have at worst done something we would ask you not to do again. Do not fear the city guard, but perhaps you should fear criminals. It may be that the man you sold them to has committed a grave crime, and one who commits one grave crime may be willing to commit others.¡±Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°And if I fear criminals, as a single woman in this house, what should I do?¡± ¡°If you wish, I will order that guards be placed outside for the protection of the embassy. Also, it would not be unusual for you to hire someone to clean and shop and answer the door for you, maybe also do cooking. She would live here with you, and need to be paid, of course. That position is known as ''housekeeper''. There is another post, that of ''lady''s companion'', which is not that of a servant. She would be well-connected, for instance the daughter of a general, or the unmarried sister or daughter of a civil servant. Again, she would need pay and a room, and she would be someone you would expect to provide you with company, local advice, shopping tips, introductions to people, and so on. But she would be insulted if you asked her to clean for you.¡± ¡°Can you recommend people for such posts?¡± ¡°No. But my sisters or their friends might be able to. My younger sister is officially being courted by a captain, soon to be general, in our army. The other likes a man who is an accomplished musician and a music-teacher, and they are deciding if it is just that they will be friends or if they will start to court.¡± ¡°And neither of these people are too low for a princess?¡± ¡°Not at all. We do not have a large nobility, those who are not married, I either ridiculed when I was young or had their ears set on fire when they suddenly decided that I was the most beautiful of my father''s daughters soon after I was named heir. My sisters and I do not always agree on everything, but for some reason neither of my unmarried sisters have shown any interest in someone I laughed out of the palace.¡± ¡°And you approve of their choices?¡± ¡°Will you tell me if you approve of them, Hayeel? You have been a married woman, after all, and know more of choosing a man and living with the consequences of that.¡± ¡°I? Not at all. As I speak this language, I was given honour to be language teacher and so I became a servant of the nation. Then I was asked which of my students was the best speaker, and who was second best, who was third best. And I named the best and second best, and I was told, they will be teachers after you are gone, your third-best student will be your husband, teach him more on the way. You will serve there together as honourable ambassador and honourable wife of ambassador,¡± ¡°You had no choice at all?¡± Esme asked. ¡°My father was a trader. He often did not have the correct paperwork, did not use the correct harbour or pay the correct taxes.¡± ¡°A smuggler?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Not deliberately. It is a little different, and it is difficult to ever have everything correct, because the rules change. He was slow making a large shipment, and the rules had changed. Deliveries at the start of the year had to start from one port, those at the end from another. He argued against the fine, saying he had left on time, but the official was insecure in his role and in a bad mood, and had him flogged and threw dirt into the wounds. There was an infection, and he died. Mother and I tried to nurse him, to clean the wounds, but without success. "Mother had been his slave, officially, though he called her wife. He had debts, and as slave she was to be sold to whoever wanted her. She did not tell anyone that she took the heart medicine, so when they put her in the slave market, she died.¡± ¡°So to be teacher was a good role,¡± Esme said. ¡°Yes. I do not know if I mourn my dead husband. He told me, as he was dying, that it had been him who killed my father, and that is why he never touched me. "On our wedding night he asked me about my life before I became his teacher. And he thanked me, and said ''maybe tomorrow I will tell you of my past'', and went to sleep on the floor. The next day we left. For quarter of a year, as we travelled, during the day I taught him, but he did not speak of his past and at night I lay in a tent or in an inn beside him, waiting for him to take my body. I thought he must hate me, but it was himself he hated, and that is why he had refused to let me call for a doctor. He said it was justice.¡± ¡°But when you first came, you had guards.¡± Esme said. ¡°Yes. Their orders were to ensure we arrived safely, and to buy a suitable house - they chose this one ¡ª and report back on the journey and how we were received. I asked they delay until my husband was dead or better, and they agreed. The morning after he died, they left. I do not know if sending an ambassador was no more than an experiment, but I know very very little.¡± ¡°You have, I think, four choices,¡± Hal said. ¡°You can go to Tesk and claim your rights as a free citizen there and be a teacher of Dahelese at the academy. They would probably be delighted to have you. Or you can wait for the government of Dahel to send you someone else to take your place as ambassador, or maybe some other official who thinks he comes as your husband, and who will no doubt be shocked to hear that he is not recognised as your husband until he has won your heart and your entirely free-will decision to marry him. You can accept the attentions of the ambassador of Tesk, but Esme thinks he is not looking for a wife, but a play-thing, in which case he would not stay ambassador for long, and nor would you. Or, you can ask Esme to write a message to the government of Dahel saying that she is sad that with the loss of your husband they''ve left you so unsupported, and would it not be more fitting for the ambassador of such a great empire to have a full staff of adequate assistants, oh, and that she''d take a very dim view to hear that you might be replaced.¡± ¡°And how would I send such a message?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Well, assuming we can get the peace treaty agreed soon, our joint ambassador could take it of course, Esme. Properly supported by some of your finest soldiers and conveyed by one or two of those nice fast warships that your father''s convinced us to build, of course. Travel time ought to be about a four or five weeks if they''re as good as Albatross. Your uncle''s plan almost demands Dahel''s involvement, doesn''t it?¡± ¡°Ambassador Hayeel,¡± Esme said, formally, ¡°I''m still getting to know Hal, since he only rescued me from where my brother held me captive yesterday. Every so often he surprises me. Excuse me while I respond.¡± And saying that she grabbed Hal by the head and pulled him into a fierce kiss. [You genius.] ¡°Is such a clear sign of affection normal, highness?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°No, it''s absolutely shocking behaviour. Especially for a princess, and especially since our countries are still officially at war. But Hal has just solved a several problems with one stroke and I want to encourage him to keep on being such a genius. Tell me, lady Ambassador, do you expect your soldiers progress home will be faster or slower than their way here?¡± ¡°The mountain passes are dangerous in winter. The officers did not wish to delay because of the chances of an early snow in the mountains. I heard some of the rank and file recommending a particular village as a good resting place having stayed there previously. So it is possible that the soldiers made faster time to beat the snow, or it is possible that they were stopped in the mountains.¡± ¡°These are the mountains within Dahel?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Between outlying provinces and the central region, yes.¡± ¡°Why don''t you use ships?¡± Esme asked. ¡°They tend to sink without notice at sea,¡± Hayeel replied, ¡°and there are pirates.¡± Hal nodded. ¡°I''ve heard that Dahel ships are designed for rivers, not the sea, Esme, they probably would sink in any interesting weather.¡± ¡°And the pirates?¡± ¡°From what I''ve heard, their pirates tend to rely on stealth and night attacks. They''re mostly ''innocent fishermen'' by daytime. I doubt they''d attack a warship.¡± ¡°What do you mean by a ''warship''?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Did you ever see your father''s ship?¡± ¡°It looked very different to the ones of Dahel. People said it was top-heavy, and he was brave to go to sea in it.¡± ¡°Did it have small windows along the side?¡± ¡°Three or four. For the cannons, he said.¡± ¡°Yes. A warship swaps cargo for cannonballs and powder, and ten to twenty cannons each side, plus smaller guns to shoot at small boats.¡± ¡°So many guns! You could destroy a town with such!¡± ¡°It has been threatened, but never happened,¡± Esme said. ¡°Ten years ago, Tew was attacking Caneth, and King Val kindly sent ten warships to help them realise that sending their entire army here was foolish. It was only a recently emptied fort that was turned to rubble, not an entire town. I have the feeling that''s when our fathers started plotting our future together, Hal.¡± ¡°Probably,¡± Hal agreed. ¡°I do not understand why there is this talk of war when your countries are allies.¡± ¡°We have long been allies,¡± Esme said, ¡°but sometimes politics becomes problematic. Serious and frankly credible accusations were made that demanded action. The accusations have been proven false and unfounded, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief, or at least, they will once the announcement is made.¡± ¡°What''s the delay?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°For some reason that I''m not entirely sure of, probably tradition, I can''t call a special meeting of ministers to declare peace when there''s another meeting scheduled that day, and for another unknown reason, meetings of ministers except at times of crisis need to happen at three o''clock. Declaring peace is not a time of crisis, and nor are the conditions that the negotiator for the Three Isles has decided to impose on me.¡± ¡°You suggested half of those, Esme!¡± Hal protested. ¡°And?¡± ¡°And they were very good suggestions, I just hope your father agrees.¡± ¡°He''s sick, and it''s not his wedding.¡± ¡°Not to mention your ministers.¡± ¡°I''ll tell them that it''s going to happen that way or I''m eloping,¡± Esme threatened. ¡°You''re shocking our hostess,¡± Hal pointed out. ¡°I know. Honourable lady ambassador, I hope you will eventually forgive me for shocking you twice or perhaps more. I understand how honour is important for you, and that you feel that without conscious effort and formality, honour is lost. Here, attitudes are different. What you have witnessed, we call banter, and idle threats. I am a little nervous of this meeting of ministers, as it will be the first that I have attended. They are a group of honourable men and one woman who have known me since I was a stubborn child. Perhaps they still think of me as a stubborn child. So, here, with the man I will marry and a woman who has trusted me with what I am sure is not something she shares publicly, I allow myself to be a bit silly, and think of threats that I could make that would make this meeting I am both nervous about and impatient for into a crisis meeting. I do this in part to reassure you of my sincerity when I say that I expect you at the palace this evening. The ambassador of Tesk, as I say, will not be present. In part, that is because there are things he will want to discuss, some things that he knows, and you do not, and he might be upset about. I expect him to be concerned about them. You are full of curiosity, and that is good. If you come this evening, when you come, I will tell you, and you can put it in your report to your government.¡± ¡°A family evening with the regent of Caneth... I am deeply honoured, highness.¡± ¡°I imagine that things are more complex in Dahel?¡± Hal asked. ¡°If you truly send ambassadors, then they should not expect to meet the emperor in the first five years. Perhaps after three years they will meet the grand-vizier, but I would be surprised.¡± ¡°Will your report be believed?¡± Hal asked. ¡°If it is, then it will be understood as a sign that you are truly a barbarian people.¡± ¡°Peoples, please,¡± Hal said. ¡°If you were at Father''s court he''d probably have asked you to sing a song or tell a story by now.¡± ¡°The Three Isles are not as formal as we are in Caneth,¡± Esme said, ¡°But ambassador Hagberry has never reported being asked to sing.¡± ¡°No, I don''t think he ever has. Do you play chess, honourable Lady Ambassador?¡± ¡°Not very well.¡± ¡°That''s probably a good thing. After Princess Regent Esmetherelda has let you into the little secret, I will be extending an invitation to the royal court of the Three Isles at Captita, and you will be pleased to accept it, I think. It will give you many insights into things your government should be aware of for the future, and such insights are best gathered and recorded before you become too used to our strange ways.¡± ¡°But.. I am not full ambassador!¡± ¡°You are the only ambassador we have until the snow melts in your mountain passes, I expect,¡± Esme said. ¡°You have said as much.¡± ¡°Even if your assistant or replacement-husband or replacement is sent so that they can get past the inner mountains before winter, they will not pass the outer mountains, will they? So unless they enjoy risks, they will be unable to get here until two months after the avalanche risk has ended, or at the earliest a month sooner than you arrived, am I not right?¡± ¡°You are, highness,¡± Hayeel replied, amazed that he knew so much about the geography of her country. ¡°If, however,¡± Hal continued, ¡°we can send a fast ship around the coast before the winter storms start in earnest, which shouldn''t be hard at all, then there is time for your reports to be delivered, and perhaps even policies to be changed and new orders to come for both you and whoever is on their way. Which might be a bit upsetting for them, but they won''t let on, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Prince Hal will now explain to us both how he knows about the geography of Dahel,¡± Esme predicted. ¡°Oh, that''s easy, I sailed that way the year before last and picked up some maps from a trader at Wahleet.¡± ¡°Wahleet. You have truly visited Wahleet?¡± ¡°The painted harbour is quite impressive. I''m not sure I could describe the colour though. Sort of somewhere between green and pink.¡± ¡°Those are opposites, Hal,¡± Esme said. ¡°Not in Wahleet, highness. There is a rock which is ground up and used for paint. In some lights it is pink in others green. The trader was on the foreign pier?¡± ¡°Yes, a small office, just next to the customs house.¡± ¡°I do not know if I can believe this! It is not possible, surely?¡± ¡°He was an older man with a young wife. She seemed very happy and was singing to her unborn child an old song from Tesk. A relative?¡± ¡°My sister. You invited them onto your ship.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And told her about the song.¡± ¡°Of course. She didn''t understand it all.¡± He stood up, ¡°Will you come with us, lady Ambassador?¡± ¡°Where to?¡± ¡°To meet someone who knows someone you know. I think you don''t need us to recommend someone for you to hire. And Esme will forgive you for not visiting tonight, won''t you Esme?¡± Hal said. ¡°Of course I will,¡± Esme smiled. ¡°There''s a friend of my sister here? Here?¡± ¡°Well, down near the port. You get all sorts of people finding a way to earn a living near to ports. Exotic cooking is a very traditional way, especially if you combine exotic with local in strange and interesting ways. Let us eat some Eels cooked Dahel-style.¡± ¡°Eels?¡± ¡°Yes. Long fish with big teeth, still available if you know who to ask, despite certain governments not wanting them to be imported because some kind of war thing.¡± ¡°Hal are you taking us to some kind of smuggler''s hangout?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Absolutely not! What a thing to say. But I do want to warn you that after you''ve tasted eels cooked this way, you''ll probably wish everyone knew the recipe.¡± ¡°I''ve never tasted eels in my life, as far as I know.¡± ¡°They''re good, these are better. As long as you like spicy food. You do, don''t you Esme?¡± ¡°Just take us there, Hal.¡± Esme said.
Planet 5 / Ch. 5: Surrender (2/2)

Planet 5 / Ch. 5: Surrender (2/2)

Near the harbour ¡°Three portions of Dahel-style eels, please,¡± Hal said to the local woman at the little window from which the smells of exotic cooking were emanating. ¡°And when she has time, your cook will want to speak to her compatriot, I expect.¡± ¡°Hmph, well I''m not hiring any extra help.¡± ¡°I doubt the Honourable Lady is looking for a second job.¡± ¡°Well, here''s your eel. Enjoy.¡± ¡°I plan to,¡± Hal said, and handing her a note worth about four times what the eels cost, he added ¡°You can keep the change, I''m in a generous mood.¡± ¡°Thank you sir. Thank you indeed!¡± the owner replied, greedily stuffing the note into a pocket. Hal noticed that she made no record of the transaction. ¡°Ah! Someone can cook,¡± Hayeel said, with a beautific smile on her face. ¡°This is a good sauce. And the sea air is familiar too, even if the ships look like they should topple over. I should come here more often.¡± A young woman timidly stuck her head out of the door, saw Hal and smiled in recognition and then saw Hayeel''s formal robes, and the watchful soldiers and clutched the doorway for support. Esme heard her fear that some official was come to arrest her, and repeated that thought to Hal, who spoke, ¡°Honourable lady, I apologise for the deceit, you yourself know the cook.¡± Hayeel turned from looking out at the harbour to see who Hal meant and dropped her fork on the table. ¡°Taheela? Taheela! You are here?¡± Taheela did a double-take, daring for the first time to look at the face of the important personage. Food and decorum forgotten, the two sisters hugged and kissed each other, and in a flurry of joyful tears and questions in their mother tongue, recounted the last two years. [You know?] Hal thought to Esme. [I think that worked rather well apart from Taheela almost getting a panic-attack.] [How did you know she was here?] [I''d heard they''d come earlier this year. It wasn''t very comfortable there for new believers, and all the sailors loved her food and said she''d be able to easily earn her keep cooking, so they came. I sniffed around for her cooking the first evening I got here, but it wasn''t hard to find. You should see the queues in the evening! The snack-bar owner isn''t paying her a fair wage though. I''d suggest a surprise tax-audit if I thought she kept any records of her income.] [Do you think Taheela knows how many portions she''s cooked?] [Probably. Certainly how much spice per portion, but they do sell other things the owner makes. Some, anyway.] [You haven''t asked me what I think of the eels.] [You''re thinking of being polite.] [I''m not keen on this much spice. Maybe I ought to try normal-style.] [Normal style round here means something I wouldn''t recommend.] [You recommended this.] [Yes, OK, but would served cold in salt and old beer be better?] [Maybe not.] ¡°No, I mean, what are the chances of all this?¡± one of the soldiers was asking. ¡°It just so happens that his highness knows the Lady Ambassador''s sister, while they have no idea that the other one is here? It''s too much of a co-incidence.¡± ¡°Not to mention that he just happened to rescue the princess before he knew who she was,¡± chipped in his colleague. ¡°Attention!¡± growled the sergeant. ¡°You can argue about divine providence when you''re off duty.¡± ¡°Lady Hayeel,¡± Esme said, ¡°I leave you with half these good soldiers for your protection. This is not the safest part of the city. I understand if you wish to spend the rest of the day with your relatives and wish to decline tonight''s invitation. However, I would prefer more guests than less, so I ask you try to persuade your sister and her family to come with you.¡± ¡°You are too generous, highness!¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I serve a generous God, and am often not generous enough.¡± Esme replied ¡°Sergeant, as well as providing protection for the Lady Ambassador and her relatives, I would like you to post men to ensure the owner of this snack-bar does not depart. One who cooks such tasty food should surely have better footwear than I see, and I suspect that rather than generosity, some exploitative work practices have been going on. I will be sending auditors along shortly, and I''ll also return to the palace and I will order that you be properly reinforced as soon as possible.¡± ¡°At your command, highness,¡± the sergeant replied.
Meeting of Ministers of Caneth, 3pm ¡°Ministers, thank you for coming,¡± Esme said. ¡°Outside you may have seen General Hagard and Crown Prince Hal, the peace negotiator for the Three Isles, who I have asked to be available for this meeting. Are there any matters that you wish to discuss that do not involve these good gentlemen?¡± ¡°May be be updated on your his majesty''s state of health?¡± ¡°Father''s strength is improving a little. He can hold a simple conversation from his bed for perhaps twenty minutes before becoming over-tired.¡± ¡°Thank you. Is there some cause you can share with us?¡± ¡°Sorry, I assumed you knew. I''ve recalled Grand-Vizier Tumbril, who is conducting a detailed investigation, but the assumption is that the drug that enabled my kidnapping and produced a number of headaches, lack of ability to concentrate and similar problems in the palace staff as well as my family, interacted badly with his heart medicine. My brother Henk then withheld my father''s medicine entirely. For perhaps twenty-four hours, I''m told that was medically advisable. Beyond that period there is no such justification, and certainly not for eight days, his Majesty''s physician informs me that the only motivation can have been to cause his Majesty''s death. This is consistent with my kidnapping and detention, the irregular and unconstitutional arrangements that prince Henk instituted convincing some people that he was the heir in my absence, the employment of mercenaries in the palace, and the manner in which those mercenaries prevented even family members from visiting father. We might also be justified in adding the charge of fraudulently causing this war to my brother''s account, as the so-called pirate vessel he was trying to escape was a customs vessel that actually carried ambassador Hagberry. Prince Hal brought that message, and before anyone suggests that it might have been written at knife-point or under duress, I can tell you that it included various key turns of phrase that Hagberry uses to state quite the opposite, none he uses to indicate duress, and also included information that prince Hal found most surprising.¡± ¡°Thank-you highness for your explanation. I have noticed that you are quite often in the prince''s company at the moment.¡± Esme smiled, ¡°Indeed I am. Prince Hal came to Caneth with two goals in mind, one was to secure peace, and the other was to determine if Hagberry''s descriptions of me were accurate and if he could persuade me to accept him as suitor. He was entirely willing to abandon that second plan when he was impressed by the resourcefulness of a young woman he was helping escape from an overly guarded barn, but then I told him who I was and he declared his intention to pursue me pretty much whatever I said. What neither of us knew about was that our fathers have been planning for some years to strongly suggest we consider a marriage. I''ll add that Father has managed to keep it from pretty much everyone in the Three Isles that I''m heir-apparent, including Hagberry. They are expecting that at most Hal will bring home a peace treaty and a minor princess with a liking for books and a stubborn streak half a mile wide.¡± ¡°Only half, highness?¡± Minister Vazeth teased. ¡°Hagberry was always generous concerning me, Vazeth.¡± Esme turned to the minister for foreign affairs, ¡°Yes, minister? You want to ask something.¡± ¡°The ambassador of Tesk has written in the last few hours asking if he could have an urgent discussion with me concerning what you''d said to him this morning.¡± ¡°Oh? Well I''d better tell you what I said, hadn''t I?¡± ¡°He claimed it was clearly interference in Tesk''s internal affairs, and possibly amounted to an act of war.¡± ¡°I''m sorry he''s decided to interpret it that way. Certainly we parted company amicably enough. Tesk, as I assume you know, gives right of vote on their high council to any who can prove they have the Gift of Tesk, and want to give an opinion. I informed him that since meeting Hal, I have developed that gift. "Unfortunately there is no one on Tesk with the gift who could balance my opinions, and there is no minimum number for a quorum, in effect making me dictator, should I decide to visit. I pointed out to the ambassador that it would be good if the lower house of the government of Tesk allowed Hal''s sisters, who also have the gift, to visit too, to provide some balancing voices. But I also told him I had no intension of visiting. Now some of you are wondering how one just happens to develop such a gift. The exact mechanism is not known, but the male descendents of the king of the Isles ¡ª or maybe just the first-born son, I''m not sure ¡ª have something about them that enables the gift to develop in some women from Tesk. Yesterday, Hal lifted me out of the barn, through several windows, helped me avoid mercenaries and plan my return, then generally helped me get this ring and restore order in the palace. In the course of that time we shared dangers, surprises and some joy too, and attuned to each other, as those of Tesk are known to. Quite soon after I realised I was attuning to Hal, I found I could also get some thoughts from others. Yes, Vazeth, it would be very useful if I wanted to be a thief, but I don''t, I''ve got plenty of excitement being a princess. Vazeth thinks I might not be able to hear thoughts about numbers, five four one five nine, and five point two five seventeenths. Can I point out Vazeth, that you told me I''d get strung up by my fingernails by the combined mathematicians of the world if I used decimals in a fraction? I''m glad you remember. Anyone else want to put me to the test? Yes, I agree, you really ought to stop listening at the keyhole, general. Does anyone object to the general and prince Hal coming in? Hal''s at just about to get to the climax of the book he''s borrowed from me, and I think this is the best time to drop some spoilers into his thoughts. Sorry, allow me to become serious. There are the deepest matters of state to discuss, matters that quite frankly scare me stupid in their potential to misfire. Clearly, I was too open with the ambassador from Tesk, I would rather avoid that mistake again. Minister, I am probably breaching protocol in another matter: I have invited the lady ambassador from Dahel to tea with my sisters, and of course prince Hal. It is an act of friendship to someone who thought she had no friends here. As she has as much Tesk blood as I do ¡ª from her late father ¡ª there is the possibility that she will develop similar insights to those I had after a couple of hours in Hal''s company, and the full gift if she were invited for longer. I will tell you that she was not prepared for this role she is now in. She has copies of her dead-husband''s orders, but putting it harshly, her assigned role was not negotiator but language-teacher and ornament. She shared more fully with Hal and me, but I do not wish to break personal confidences. She is assuming that either she will be replaced or sent a new student-come-husband. I believe it would be more useful to both them and us if neither of those happen, but instead she is entirely confirmed in her role. They do not have their own ocean-going ships, do not trust ours not to topple over, and Hal worked out that the earliest someone will arrive overland is early summer next year. She also said that if we send an ambassador, he will likely only meet the grand-vizier after three or four years, and their emperor after more than five.¡± ¡°You have learned a lot from her in such a short while, highness.¡± the foreign minister said. ¡°Blame the ambassador of Tesk. He was thinking predatory thoughts concerning keeping her ignorant of how things work here. Oh, and it is possible that the mystery drug that poisoned half the palace came from her. Her husband brought medicinal herbs and spices as trade-goods ¡ª hardly surprising since travel is so hard, and charming prince Henk learned this and introduced her to some kind of drug-dealer who was interested in the ones with more limited medicinal uses.¡± ¡°She''s a drug-trader?¡± the minister for policing and internal affairs asked, shocked. ¡°No!¡± Esme said, very firmly, ¡°She''s a foreigner feeling lost and scared in a strange country, terrified of making a mistake that lands her in prison, whose only means of support is the things packed by a man she only knew as one student among many before the journey began. No doubt he got instructions on what to bring based on what traders from here buy. She was seriously worried about the things Henk''s drug-trader friend bought from her, along with the price he was prepared to pay, even though the prince introduced them. But the fact she was left with potentially dangerous medicines to trade does not mean that she''s at all comfortable with that fact.¡± ¡°But she knows what she has?¡± the same minister asked. ¡°The sacks are labelled. The royal physician will visit her tomorrow, and I expect she will be happy to identify the trader who bought the drugs from the embassy. She almost certainly gave him a formal receipt. On the subject of potentially dangerous medicines... father is now on a medicine that she knows only too well, as her mother used it. It is riskier than the medicine he used to use, but it has no interactions with other medicines, and it allows him to recover his strength.¡± ¡°In what way is it riskier?¡± the internal affairs minister asked. ¡°It is addictive, if he misses a day''s dose, he is likely to die from the withdrawal symptoms. His normal medicine was not addictive, but as time goes on the body becomes used to getting rid of it, and it becomes ineffective. That reduction in efficacy meant that the doctor did not know how much he should give father. His previously normal dose might have been fatal, a normal starting dose was likely to have been insufficient. The present course of action provides father with a chance to recover, and then, once he has done so, his dose of the addictive medicine will be slowly reduced and he will be returned to his normal medicine. It may be that father overrules that decision. He may prefer the risk from missing a dose to the year or more of the withdrawal symptoms, and the doctor thought, but did not tell me, that it is possible that his long period without his medicine has so weakened him that he will not recover sufficiently to risk withdrawing the new. In Dahel it is much cheaper than it is through normal suppliers here, and it is one of the medicines the lady ambassador has. I intend to instruct the doctor to purchase half a year''s supply from her, if that is possible. Hal has convinced me that three months is sufficient for a round-trip, so I am confident that such a stockpile, preserved in the treasury, would mean that no one holds Father''s life at ransom. Does anyone not approve?¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°May his majesty live a long life and recover fully,¡± the minister for foreign affairs said. ¡°I do not approve the whole stockpile being in the treasury, highness.¡± Vazeth said. ¡°It would have been a strong inducement to open the gates during this past crisis.¡± ¡°One week''s supply to be kept in reserve at all times by mother,¡± Esme said, ¡°and any member of the royal family or the royal physician can request release of a week''s supply during a crisis, more in such a case that his majesty must evacuate.¡± ¡°Under those conditions, certainly, highness-regent.¡± Vazeth said. ¡°Is there more business before we get to the main agenda item?¡± There wasn''t, and so the general and Hal were invited in. At Esme''s request, the general outlined the other motives that the King had had for the declaration of war, and Hal described what had happened to the Adventure, and what effect the trade-war was having on the Isles. ¡°So, Lady and gentlemen. Caneth, with somewhat dubious pretext, declared a war on a longstanding ally. Thankfully, it resulted in utter confusion and not outrage. Father was playing a very dangerous game, and while the motives were the best, I propose that we admit that the pretext was insufficient to justify our actions, and that we do not just agree to peace, but put into effect a conditional surrender. I propose that part of what we offer as our surrender deal is myself, duly confirmed as regent and heir. This will be a surprise to King Val, and to you, but I believe it makes sense. Father and King Val agreed in principle and fact to us being pushed together in a suitably underhanded way that neither of us knew. Father also carefully withheld knowledge that I got named regent-in-need, presumably to ensure that Hal did not have a political motivation to seek my hand, only a personal one. So Hal came seeking me as wife, and I have lots of counter-arguments lined up in case anyone is foolish enough to raise any arguments against my accepting him as husband. Father is insistent that our marriage must happen, and must happen soon, and I understand why. It is also imperative that our marriage include the certainty that Caneth and the Three Isles become a single political entity. Currently, the fleets of Caneth are wrapped up in this phoney war, and lots of the soldiers of Caneth are busily searching the coves for smugglers. Tew is not sitting idly by, they have been rubbing their hands together at the thought of a battle that will destroy our navy and cripple that of the Isles. They are probably massing an army on our borders as we speak, for when my brother calls for help to escalate this dangerous war with our best friends. We cannot present them with an opportunity to hope that they can launch a quick invasion of Caneth while the Isles stand by and watch. If we surrender, then Isles warships in our docks would be a natural consequence. If we surrender then of course we do not defend our borders against the Isles and can redirect our men to the border of Tew. If we offer an conditional surrender, then Hal has greater freedom. His father ¡ª we hope jokingly ¡ª said he could not offer half the kingdom for my hand. I hope jokingly, because I actually want all of it, that''s to say, that Hal and I will eventually jointly rule over all Caneth and all the Isles. One of the conditions I suggest is that while the armies and navies of the Isles eventually share a combined chain of command, the legal and civil frameworks do not, and that a constitutional form be found that will ensure that neither partner ¡ª no partner, if Tesk decides to join us ¡ª feels that it is a junior partner with its concerns being ignored. Putting this all into a suitable treaty will take years or decades, and we don''t have months, even. Putting these general principles into a surrender agreement is a matter of minutes or maybe hours. Everyone knows that surrender agreements need fleshing out later, but unless someone wants to restart the war, they''re adhered to. Unlike, say, marriage treaties, which also take months to negotiate and then frequently get ignored. This ends my presentation to the flabbergasted ministers and general. Oops, no it doesn''t. The other benefit to us surrendering is it almost certainly gets king Val and family to our wedding, since there''s the whole implementation phase to talk about and I''m sure Val will want to shout at us a bit for giving him a whole new geopolitical situation to think about.¡± ¡°You also give Tesk, Tew and the empire of Dahel something to think about.¡± ¡°Which is why we want to be very nice to the lady ambassador of Dahel, invite her to give a speech at the wedding in the name of the Emperor, thank her government for providing father''s medicine, and so on. Regarding Tesk, I hoped to set the academy the task of deciding what to call our new geopolitical unit, and how the constitution should work, thus making that marriage of countries so favourable that somewhere near half of their population are calling on the government to join up, and if they can''t imagine that ever happening, think some more. Tew... I want us to be so instantly big and so united that Tew decides that if they''re really after some victories, then a border-dispute with Dahel might be less expensive. Or if the king and his generals don''t, then the thought of attacking us stirs up such disquiet within the coastal towns that they think again, since that''s more than half his population.¡± ¡°You plan to entirely shift the balance of world power!¡± ¡°I plan for a peaceful low-tariff trading area with a united foreign policy, mutual defence and a happy populace, yes. It''s not much for a girl to hope for as a wedding present, is it?¡± ¡°Could we hear prince Hal''s input on this?¡± ¡°My father has charged me with ending the trade blockade, and restoring peace with our ally. To that end, he''s given me various... negotiating areas on tariffs and so on, but they don''t come close to the union that Esmetherelda has outlined to you. I''m surprised to hear Esme say that the document needs to be written as a surrender document, but I''ve not made much of a study on that area. But with us both due to inherit our respective crowns, some kind of political union is on the cards, and that was clearly his majesty''s intent when he named Esme as heir. That thought of a union between us ought to scare our neighbours silly. Tesk will understandably feel entirely vulnerable, and Esme''s strategy was meant in part as reassurance. As for Tew, it has long been the case that there was a three-way balance, with the Isles providing the bulk of the traded food, Caneth providing the bulk of the traded cloth, and Tew providing the bulk of the metals. That was supposed to prevent wars; an army cannot march without food and clothes, and cannot do much fighting without metals, but it hasn''t happened in our generation. Tew imports almost three quarters of its protein from the marshes, and realistically is is only Caneth and the oceans have served as a buffer zone between us and their military, which is why father was only too happy to persuade them to stop trying to take you over. But if we''re vulnerable to their fire-power, they''re vulnerable to a combination of Caneth and the Isles cutting off their food. Caneth only imports about a third of what they do for a larger population, and yet this trade-war has seen the price of all meat here increasing significantly. In summary, like Esme, I do not believe that Tew would sit idly by during a long negotiation. But I also know the present king of Tew is old, and heard from some sailors just in this morning that his son was badly wounded while riding recently, and may not survive. Unless there are some illegitimate children I''ve not heard of, that leaves the throne to his daughter. I don''t know what that does to the dynamics.¡± ¡°And our information was that Henk had arranged with him to marry his daughter,¡± rumbled General Hagard. ¡°So the situation is more complicated still.¡± ¡°I have exchanged letters with Yalisa from time to time.¡± Esme said. ¡°I do not think she fully approves of her father''s war-mongering, but I''ve no idea how she will respond to the thought becoming heir. I will write to her again about this rumour. Maybe, without her father''s and brother''s influence, a treaty of friendship becomes possible. But brothers falling from grace or falling from horses are neither of them pleasant. I will tell her of my brother''s crimes, but not what we suspect, of course.¡± ¡°Thank you for the reassurance, highness,¡± the minister for internal affairs said. ¡°I am not so proud that I mind people seeking reassurances, minister. Feel free to voice any concerns, you never know, I might not have thought of them.¡± ¡°You have invited comment, highness on this surrender document you propose. Could you expound on why you feel that surrender is better than a provisional peace treaty?¡± ¡°Because to my mind -feel free to correct me- a provisional peace treaty gives the Isles no rights until it has been ratified by both heads of state or authorised negotiators. A statement of surrender, however, is immediately effective. It is quite simple, to my mind -though I''m not an expert so again, feel free to correct me- we have been rather lax in our response to the attacks from Tew. We have not increased our army significantly, we have not done more than reinforce our defences and replacing lost shipping. We''ve put our trust in our allies and trade and treaties. We are almost overstretched already, without any shooting happening. If we move into a shooting war, or Tew attacks, we are in deep trouble. I presume this was part of father''s plan, to respond from a position of weakness. Am I correct, General?¡± ¡°In part, highness. The other issue is that certain voices have been arguing against any additional military expenditure, saying that it is not permitted in the treaty that ended their attack ¡ª options differ ¡ª and it would persuade Tew that we were responding to their peaceful attitude with aggression.¡± ¡°I see. Well, this is basically my attitude: firstly, we have wronged the Isles, secondly we cannot prosecute this war we''ve declared with much hope to survive without total non-involvement from an aggressive neighbour who we have reason to believe might easily be on the war-path already. I have no intention of prosecuting this war, and I desperately hope no loss of life has occurred as a result, either as a result of missed meals or someone crossing lines or losing tempers. I would so much rather surrender with some conditions to the Isles than have to surrender to Tew at sword-point that I think it''s worth a little pre-emption.¡± ¡°Can I suggest, highness,¡± said the minister for internal affairs, ¡°that rather than state it in terms of surrender, we write two documents, one a unilateral apology and declaration of peace, and secondly a request to the Isles that they form a permanent alliance with us, sealed by your marriage.¡± The general shook his head. ¡°I believe I understand her highness''s concern. By stating it in that way, the marriage and the becomes conditional on the agreement of the Isles, and if we hear in five days that what Tew call their fleet are off the coast with all gun-ports open, then in whatever negotiating occurs we will not be able to talk of any existing alliance. If it is a part of a declaration of surrender formally accepted by prince Hal, albeit awaiting ratification, we can say ''it has been agreed after our mistaken war with the Isles that Caneth and the Isles shall be one, if you attack us, you attack both us and the Isles.''¡± ¡°Exactly!¡± Esme said, ¡°I also don''t think we can avoid the word itself. Hal doesn''t have the authority to sign an agreement that commits anyone to constitutional changes. But... he''s allowed to agree to our marriage, he''s allowed to sign a peace treaty within limits, and strong international convention allows anyone who has the authority to sign any peace treaty to accept a declaration of surrender. Hopefully King Val will forgive us if I smile sweetly, and promise him a granddaughter as soon as God allows.¡± ¡°Why not a grandson?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Because important though grandsons are, granddaughters are much better at wrapping grandfathers round their little fingers,¡± Vazeth said. ¡°Have you discussed this with his Majesty?¡± ¡°Father is not well, however he''s named me regent and heir, knows that Hal is heir and said the marriage must happen quickly. He is clearly intending the union of our two nations. I favour this plan over eloping.¡± ¡°Price Hal, you have said that you don''t think it needs to be a surrender document. Could you expound?¡± ¡°I would recommend that the first thing that happens is a redeployment of troops and warships. Esme has I think been thinking of the legalities and not the chain of command realities and I now realise has assumed that there needs to be something in place politically before she calls people home. Since that''s not the case, my recommendation is to send out maximum haste redeployment and resupply orders to all units. Thinking of that... I would not assume Henk and his generals have not sent orders to your units on the frontier with Tew. So I would send general orders informing them that Henk and his generals are in prison for treason, cancelling any orders they might have had from them, stating where they ought to be, that no treaty has been signed with Tew that would allow their soldiers into Caneth, and ordering them to report any orders that have said anything different.¡± ¡°Wise words, highness,¡± the general said. ¡°Those are wise words indeed. I had not considered their treason might go so deep, but it is possible. It is even possible they might have demobilised key units entirely.¡± ¡°I must question Henk and the imprisoned generals,¡± Esme said. Then turning to the minister for defence, said ¡°And we must question you too, minister, must we not?¡± The defence minister jerked out of his reverie as all eyes turned on him. ¡°I, I do not understand, highness.¡± He stuttered. ¡°I should have realised it earlier. An ambitious prince willing to push his sister overboard and allow his father to die without medicine along with and a few generals in the pay of Tew to take his orders would not really provide the intellectual resources needed for this conspiracy, would it? General, I think the ex-minister for defence can tell us about the demobilisations and redeployments he suggested to my brother. If he refuses, then he has a number of fears in his mind right now. Minister, your thoughts condemn you of orchestrating a treasonous plot, and all you think of is that your only way out is to accuse me of insanity? You have papers that will prove me right, do you not? Try not to think of their hiding place if you like. Thank you. Soldiers will be dismantling your desk draws to see if you have any other secrets.¡± ¡°Have mercy, highness!¡± ¡°Mercy follows willing repentance, ex-minister, and repentance must be before the hour of judgement. For you that hour has come. The evidence you sought to bury in your garden will be dug up. If you confess fully to all your crimes, you may not suffer torture, I don''t know. Guards, take this man to the jail. His feet are to be manacled, but he is to be given pen and paper, so he can list the troop deployments he suggested, and his other crimes. His office desk is to be broken up with hammers and the wreckage searched with thick gloves, for there are poison booby traps as well as secret compartments. Bring the documents here, along with his writings from jail. Then, there is a stolen ring and other evidence of another crime, in a fountain turned into a flower bed in his garden, let the soil be carefully checked and the evidence found.¡± ¡°At your command, highness.¡± the soldier saluted. ¡°Take him away,¡± Esme said, refusing to looking at the man she''d known almost all her life. [What did you hear, Esme?] Hal thought to her. [His predecessor was removed from office when some things went missing. He pleaded innocence, but could provide no leads to who else had access to the room. I''d better tell everyone.] ¡°Ministers, you will remember Takrum''s removal from office... what, five years ago? The man just removed from the room was thinking how well he''d done in life since he''d gained office. When I mentioned questioning the general he suddenly thought how fortunate he''d been that I didn''t have the gift then. When I challenged him, he pushed away the thought that he''d stolen mother''s ring and burred it in his garden. He then thought about some other things he didn''t want me to learn. Not very clever things to think about really. Yes, minister, I heard that too, but putting a childhood pet out of its misery really isn''t in the same category, is it?¡± ¡°Should Takrum be restored to his position, highness?¡± The minister for foreign affairs asked. ¡°I will certainly speak to father about asking him if he would like to return.¡± Esme said. ¡°Some younger blood in this cabinet would not come amiss, highness.¡± ¡°Are you volunteering to resign?¡± Esme asked, ¡°No. Perhaps I will think of allowing some retirements when we are not in a crisis, or when I rule in my own right, but I hope father will be recovered enough to return to rule in a month or so. I am only caretaker at the moment. It would not be right for the caretaker to make major changes that are not necessary.¡± ¡°Just to surrender the entire country to the Isles?¡± Hal asked, ¡°Should I finish what I was going to suggest?¡± ¡°I think you''d better,¡± Esme said. ¡°So, make sure your troops are where you need them, your navy is patrolling where it ought to be, and getting resupplied in a rolling manner, your at-risk borders patrolled, and so on. Then you should not be at risk of an invasion from Tew any more, at least, as long as they''re not crossing the borders already. I presume you don''t want any reduced tariffs in the peace deal, which is nice for father''s accounts. What you do want is political union, yes, you could do that with a surrender document, but really that''s going to upset your military and in any case it''ll need my Dad talking to you or your Dad quickly. The fastest way I can think of to get you talking to Dad is if we set sail this evening. If you really like I''ll sign a surrender document for your ministers to hold on to in case Tew end up knocking on the door, but you certainly don''t need to publicise it. A simple declaration that ''the war with the Isles was based on false reports and is over, details of reparations are being negotiated.'' ought to be sufficient. That still leaves the way open for your ministers to use the stand-by surrender document if needed or burn it if not. Don''t you think that''s sufficient, Esme?¡± ¡°It''s so vague,¡± Esme objected. ¡°So is this situation. If we knew where Tew''s army was, then it''d be a lot clearer. If we knew where your army was, that''d help. But we don''t. Onto knowables, God willing we''ll marry, I assume you''d like to have our wedding here, and I know you''d like to know everything is sorted out first. A trip to Captita, a few days shocking everyone to their core followed by a voyage here with a reasonable chunk of my family ought to give you time to negotiate stuff, and when we get back you can sign the paperwork ¡ª or hopefully your father can, as well as ensure that the wedding dress you''ve just thought of getting measured for fits. Personally, I''d like to add that I think an engagement is normal before you get measured for a wedding dress, so will you marry me, Esmetherelda?¡± ¡°I''ve only known you for one and a bit days, Hal,¡± Esme said. ¡°That''s often the way with arranged marriages isn''t it?¡± he asked. ¡°True.¡± Esme said, looking into his eyes, ¡°And father is insistent. And I can hardly offer myself as part of a surrender agreement if I''m not planning to marry you, can I? Yes, I will marry you,¡± ¡°Urm, Highness, shouldn''t there be an engagement treaty?¡± ¡°Can someone take a dictation?¡± Esme said, still gazing into Hal''s face, the face of her fiance, and very aware from his thoughts that he was savouring this moment too. ¡°We''re busy.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 6: Negotiations

Planet 5 / Ch. 6: Negotiations

The palace ¡°Sorry to interrupt, Highness,¡± the soldier said, that evening, ¡°there''s a ship from Tew approaching the harbour, flying what looks like some kind of royal standard. ¡°The king of Tew?¡± Esme asked, shocked. ¡°Not his, the message said, but it looked official.¡± ¡°Did you get a description?¡± ¡°A crown, a tricorn, a sword and a something that looked like a kid''s spinning top, highness.¡± the messenger read. ¡°Not a child''s top, a woman''s distaff, a hand-spinning wheel,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°That and the crown are the queen''s standard. The bicorn and sword are from the king''s.¡± ¡°So it''s the prince?¡± the messenger asked. ¡°Princess is more likely.¡± Esme said, ¡°Oh! We wondered what Tew were planning, Hal. I think we know, now; they''ve decided on the marriage first.¡± ¡°I think you need to go and meet your friend, Esme. She''s about to have an unpleasant surprise.¡± ¡°Or maybe not,¡± Esme said, ¡°Not every arranged marriage is entered joyfully. But yes, she''ll have some sort of surprise, anyway. Messenger, please pass on my orders that apart from those on guard duty, the entire royal guard be available for escort duty, full dress uniform, including shields and bows, in about fifteen minutes.¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°And then take a message to the minister for foreign affairs that I need to meet her at the same time, no, actually, we go past her home. Have her be ready to join me, again, formal dress.¡± ¡°Certainly, highness.¡± ¡°Ambassador Hayeel, have you met the princess of Tew?¡± ¡°No, highness.¡± ¡°I think, perhaps, you will soon be introduced to her, if you wish.¡± ¡°I do not understand, highness. Do you go to her?¡± ¡°She has come with flags declaring who she is for all to see. I will not insult her by making her bob about in the harbour and send messages back and forth. If, as I believe, she has come to marry my brother, she will be expecting a royal welcome. You may come if you wish, and I will say we were talking when we heard of her approach.¡± ¡°The emperor would not leave the palace for a supplicant royal.¡± ¡°She is not a supplicant. She is an honoured guest and possibly the greatest hope for long term peace between us and our warlike neighbour. If it is a surprise attack, then there may be some undignified scrambling to behind the soldiers shields, but the harbour cannons will destroy the ship quite quickly.¡± Hal said, ¡°Esme, I think it''d be good if I and some of my men were in full dress uniform too. That way if your ministers do want to use that surrender document, there''s no inconsistency.¡± ¡°Certainly Hal. You''ll join us at the port?¡± ¡°I expect you''ll join us. Perhaps you''ll want to talk to Henk too.¡± ¡°Not particularly. It was bad enough talking to his generals.¡± ¡°I was thinking of you asking him if they''d met.¡± ¡°They have. Just before he went into the smuggling business.¡± ¡°Oh. OK. But you don''t know what they thought of each other?¡± ¡°Not really. Only by his report, which was ''a bit too bookish for my taste, but pretty enough.''¡± ¡°Not much help there then. The accounts I''ve heard say she''s beautiful and reasonably intelligent.¡± ¡°Should I be glad that we''re engaged?¡± ¡°I know I am. I know which of you I came hoping to marry, Esme. And who impresses me on a regular basis.¡± ¡°She might impress you too.¡± ¡°Are you so uncertain of me? Yes, you are, aren''t you? Esmetherelda, if you don''t mind being overcome with my emotions, I open to you.¡± Esme feeling uncertain, risked touching his face. He was hurt that she thought him so fickle, glad she was able to reassure herself, and almost struggling to not yell his love for her at the top of his voice, and sing about his thankfulness to God that he''d brought them together. Her touch, this moment of intimacy, was also filling him with new joy, and even greater anticipation of when they would marry. She snatched her hands away. ¡°How do you think with all that going round your skull?¡± Esme asked, reassured that in his mind there was no doubt: she would be his and he would be hers. ¡°You''re even more besotted with me than I am with you.¡± ¡°As the poet said, who needs wine when you''re drunk on happiness? You''d better get changed and I''d better get changed. I''ll meet you at the harbour, my princess.¡± ¡°I''ll meet you at the harbour, my handsome prince.¡±
The harbour The ship from Tew was just drawing up to the quayside when Hal, wearing his formal clothes finished inspecting his marines. They''d changed hastily and were not in their parade best. ¡°Well,¡± he said, ¡°Truth be that you do be in a bit of a sorry state, lads! But you''ll do, just straighten yer caps and be glad the sun''s not up and like as not these ''ere landfolk woudn''t notice at midday. Now, that there boat be of Tew, and Tew''ve been stirring, like I''ve said. So I want all eyes open here. Ye''ll see her ports are open and her cannon are out tail first. That''s good, but that''s a Tew ship. They can have two cannon per gun-port. There might be another just sitting there, waiting for orders. Which is why our guns are loaded and primed. Watchmen, you look at what''s happening onboard as well as what do be up with us on shore. It do be a royal ship, and those flags say the princess of Tew do be on board, but who knows, maybe they''re telling a fib or three. So, if they pull in their gun-tails and leave the ports open, or if there do be a ruckus down there and you see ladies running for cover, top gunners are to leave the cabins alone, but standard warning: take down her masts, and take out her rudder. And if they roll out their guns, then I want an immediate whole broadside aimed for the midships, waterline and then just keep along pounding the waterline until you skink her. Try to miss the powder-store, I''m going to be pretty close to it, and so''s the crown princess. Hopefully nothing happens, but if they start something, at this range, we need them thinking of getting off, not aiming their guns. Got it?¡± ¡°Won''t they just bottom out, captain?¡± ¡°That''s the cargo quay, sailor, and it''s high tide. They''ll bottom out, but the top decks are going to be awash when they do.¡± ¡°Why all guns to midships, captain? Wouldn''t it be better to hole her all the way along?¡± ¡°Tew ships, sailor, store all their glorious guns and shot and all that complicated stuff that keeps them shooting so fast midships; If you hit ''em hard midships, they''ve got a handy habit of breaking their backs and disabling their quick-fire guns all in one go. Any more questions? No? Right, honour guard form up on the quay, we''ll go and welcome the Tew princess, assuming she''s aboard.¡± Hal didn''t think there was much to be gained by letting Esme spring the trap if there was one. ¡°Don''t we wait for the princess-regent, sir?¡± ¡°She''ll be along soon, marine, have no fear.¡± The royal vessel of Tew, named the ''Royal Dragon'' outgunned the Albatross, without question, but Hal wasn''t very impressed by the seamen on board. Not one of them alerted the captain to his approach. ¡°Ahoy, Royal Dragon!¡± He bellowed. ¡°Do be your captain available?¡± ¡°Who wants to know?¡± a sailor asked. ¡°Well I know it do be a bit gloomy, sailor, but surely you''ve got eyes to spot a body of uniformed marines?¡± Someone else glanced at them, and Hal heard him call, ¡°Captain, sir! Honour-guard of marshland marines in full dress on the quay, not sure who''s in the middle, sir.¡± The captain strolled over. ¡°To what do we owe this... visitation?¡± ¡°Well now, captain, it being the case that peace has only just broken out, my men and I were just a bit nervous when we see the pride of the Tew navy glide into port all unannounced and unexpected by anyone we''ve talked to. I do be right thankful that you came in with your guns tail-out, and I was just hoping that that''s the way they''ll stay.¡± ¡°And if they don''t?¡± The captain asked. ¡°Then the lads on the top guns might mistake your intention, and fire a warning shot or two, captain. They''ll not be shooting at cabins, of course, but it''d be a right shame to scare the royal passenger you claim to have.¡± ¡°Who are you to issue such threats?¡± ¡°I do be prince Hal of the Three Isles, captain. And in my history book, a Tew warship with thirty-six quick-fire guns sailing into port unannounced and without a by-your-leave do be itself quite a threat. I''d not think a couple of top guns aimed at mast and rudder counted as more than a precaution, myself. And I just thought that it might save some embarrassment if I asked you to keep your guns just where they are.¡± ¡°You are uncouth, prince Hal,¡± a young female voice said from a porthole just above him. ¡°Why do you issue such threats and insults?¡± ¡°That do be because eleven years ago one of your father''s ships, flying the royal standard, sailed into a port and then started shooting, princess Yalisa. Sorry for the suspicion, but like I told the captain, no one I''ve talked to expected you.¡± ¡°Then maybe you''ve been talking to the wrong people.¡± ¡°It may be, highness, it may be. Anyway, welcome to Caneth. How was the voyage?¡± ¡°Tolerable, but lacking in civil company.¡± ¡°Well, the princess-regent will be here to welcome you soon, highness.¡± Yalisa didn''t miss that reference, and decided to play ignorant. ¡°His majesty is unwell?¡± ¡°It appears the kitchens served something that disagreed with his medicine, highness, but he seems to be improving now. Quite how that substance got into the meat remains one of life''s little mysteries. Ah, I think I hear marching.¡± ¡°Into the meat?¡± ¡°We assume so. Into or on to, anyway. Deep enough that it poisoned the spit-hounds, anyway, and the the cook is very particular about them only getting scraps left on the bones, not off anyone''s plates.¡± ¡°You''ve obviously been investigating carefully, highness.¡± ¡°Me? Oh no, I just listened carefully when the grand-vizier explained what he''d found out so far.¡± ¡°Not much progress.¡± ¡°No?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Some poisoned hounds are all he''s found out in ten days?¡± ¡°Oh, princess Yalisa what a thing to admit knowing! You''d been doing so well until then.¡± ¡°Well, I never was much good at pretence. Tell me, prince Hal of the Isles, which princess has his majesty named regent?¡± ¡°Patience, highness! She do be coming in sight now, so why don''t you come out on deck and say hello?¡± ¡°Because I want to know who I''m greeting!¡±This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°Well, I guess I''d better go and tell her you''re hiding, then.¡± ¡°You''re just going to walk up to the princess regent, are you?¡± ¡°If you happened to be up on deck you might even witness me being lucky enough to get a kiss.¡± ¡°You''re at war.¡± ¡°Not any more. Unless she''s cross with me for talking to you and your captain before she got here, but that''s a different kind of war. Excuse me, highness, I must go and greet my fiancee.¡± ¡°What?¡± Yalisa exclaimed. Hal didn''t answer; he''d been walking away from the ship when he''d apologised for leaving, and was quite certain that she''d heard him anyway. Fifty steps later, he was passing through Esme''s stopped honour guard to meet her. ¡°Well?¡± Esme asked. ¡°There''s a young woman on board who didn''t correct me when I called her princess Yalisa, and who knows when your father became ill, and called me uncouth for pointing out to the captain that the top-gunners on the Albatross are watching her ship''s gun-ports very carefully. I told her the princess regent was coming, and she got relatively annoyed with me when I wouldn''t say which sister that meant. I also said that we''re engaged and that if she came up on deck she might see me getting a kiss.¡± ¡°You think?¡± ¡°You are looking very beautiful in that sari. You can put it down as a diplomatic necessity, if you like,¡± He then thought to her, [If you want to convince her that you''ve surrendered, Esme, then you can''t assert independent rights.] ¡°I see, and what does diplomatic necessity say about which body of soldiers serves as the front line?¡± ¡°How about left and right, indicating trust? Oh, by the way, Esme, ladies, if you have to run for cover, go back way you''ve been coming. The Albatross crew will see you and shoot down the ship''s mast and smash the rudder if that happens. That''s classed as a warning shot and instruction to behave very nicely. If they are so stupid as to roll their guns out muzzle first, then the Albatross will be aiming to disable their rapid-fire system and sink them quickly.¡± ¡°Rapid fire system?¡± Esme asked. ¡°They''ve got two guns per port, the recoil from one swings the second into firing position and delivers a cannon ball and powder charge. It''s heavy, it''s complicated, but it means they can shoot five or six shots for every two of ours as long as no one breaks it. Which is exactly what the Albatross will be aiming to do.¡± ¡°Firing on that ship would be an unprovoked act of war, Hal,¡± Esme said. ¡°With respect, highness,¡± the captain of her honour guard said, ¡°a Tew battleship running out their gun muzzle first is roughly equivalent a group of their soldiers grabbing you and holding a knife to your throat. The harbour defence guns will also fire on such provocation.¡± ¡°I stand corrected,¡± Esme said, kissed Hal and took his arm and put it over her shoulder. ¡°It''s chilly and I should have worn a scarf. Let''s go and meet Yalisa of Tew.¡± ¡°She''s probably wondering how many of her father''s plans are in tatters,¡± Hal said. ¡°Probably,¡± Esme agreed. ¡°But unless those plans are her own, she is welcome to visit. Even if she herself suggested she marry Henk, she is welcome to visit, as long as she was not involved in his plans against father.¡± ¡°And what of his plans against you?¡± Hal asked. ¡°I will see how involved she was before deciding. Will you announce me, Hal?¡± ¡°Certainly, by name, or title?¡± ¡°Title is sufficient. If she does not know who was named Regent-at-Need, it is her fault.¡± ¡°Shall I mention that, then?¡± ¡°Yes, give her that clue.¡± ¡°Princess Yalisa of Tew, Captain, companions of the princess and crew of the Royal Dragon,¡± Hal bellowed, ¡°It gives me inordinate pleasure to introduce my fiancee, named as Regent-at-Need by his Majesty the King of Caneth and now in this time of need the Princess-Regent of Caneth. Let all understand that she has all the rights and privileges of the monarch of Caneth, and she has no need to defer any decision to her father''s will, and it is her signature and seal that has brought peace where there was once war.¡± ¡°Was that last bit necessary?¡± Esme asked. ¡°You''re my fiancee, I''m allowed to be proud of you.¡± ¡°I expect you were heard on the other side of the harbour, prince Hal,¡± Yalisa called down. ¡°Princess Regent, may I set foot upon your sovereign soil?¡± ¡°You are almost certainly welcome, Princess Yalisa.¡± Esme replied. ¡°And it would certainly make talking easier.¡± ¡°Your words do not convey certainty, Highness.¡± ¡°There are some rumours that Tew was not all-together innocent in my brother''s poisoning of my father and kidnapping me, Yalisa. I do not believe you personally would have concocted such a plan, but given the miniscule possibility that I am wrong, I would not like to say that you are certainly welcome.¡± At that, Yalisa practically skipped down the gang-plank and curtsied before Esme. ¡°I said to my father when he ordered me here that I would much prefer to have you as sister-in-law than your brother as husband, Esmetherelda. I take it Henk overstated the security of his situation in his letter. He has fled?¡± ¡°He is under arrest, on several distinct counts of treason, as well as charges of raping a palace servant, bringing a false report to his Majesty to start a war and numerous other charges. So, if you wish to personally spit in his face you are welcome to. I have also ordered guest rooms to be prepared for you should you wish for more cupboard space than a ship can offer.¡± ¡°Captain, we ladies will accept the Princess Regent''s generous offer. We will not require an escort.¡± ¡°Highness, you must have an honour-guard!¡± The captain replied. ¡°No captain, father must be appraised of the changes in circumstances. Do I presume that our ambassador is awaiting transport home, princess-Regent?¡± ¡°No. I''m informed that ambassador Ralek is still suffering from the virus he caught two weeks ago. I''ve had a short chat with him and am sure he was not involved. Perhaps you will be able to assure him that it is safe for him to recover. But, speaking of recoveries, Hal has heard a rumour that your own brother was injured recently? Is there any truth in it?¡± ¡°Yes, he was showing off his command of a new mount and it trampled him. I do not know what the rumour said, but the injury was most severe. I was half-expecting father to tell me he had died, but instead I was sent here to marry Henk. Captain, you will bring me news of my brother when you return.¡± ¡°Highness, your father''s orders...¡± ¡°My father''s orders to me were that I come home as Esmetherelda''s sister-in-law or not at all. You may remind father that he agreed that I should have a two month period to consider my choice, and tell him that prince Henk will be dead before the end of that time, so I''ve no real opportunities to become Esme''s sister-in-law. Perhaps he will consider changing his mind.¡± ¡°How old is your younger brother, Hal?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Twenty-two, loves being at sea especially now he''s captain, and loves God.¡± ¡°And single?¡± Yalisa asked. ¡°Last I heard,¡± Hal replied. ¡°Please introduce us, your highness. Father isn''t famous for changing his mind, but even if he doesn''t, he might accept marriage to your brother as fulfilling his command to me. "You may tell him that the worst part of the voyage was the thought of having to choose between permanent exile from home with a price on my head or a loveless marriage to a man of little or no faith. The sailing part was entirely pleasant. Except for the storm; in the circumstances where death seemed like an interesting third option, I found that amazing.¡± Turning back to the captain, she said, ¡°The tide is still high, captain. If you stopped blocking the gang-plank and allowed my companions to disembark and then gave orders for off-loading our luggage, you could depart this port. I have the impression that that shore-leave for the crew will not be pleasing to my hostess.¡± ¡°Oh, I don''t know.¡± Esme said, ¡°As long as they''re unarmed, answer a few simple questions truthfully, and are just coming ashore to spend some of their hard-earned money on some food and drink, I have no real objection to some extra revenue. It''s not like we''re at war or your soldiers are invading Caneth, is it?¡± ¡°They''d better not be. Otherwise you''d be impounding the Royal Dragon, wouldn''t you?¡± Yalisa said. ¡°Of course.¡± Esme said, matter of factly. ¡°And now the possibility''s been raised, perhaps the captain ought not leave port until morning,¡± Hal said. ¡°He wouldn''t want his crew to believe that he would willingly hand a royal princess who might even be the heir to the throne into the hands of a regime on the brink of war, would he? That and cancelling a promised shore-leave might lead to mutinous thoughts among the most loyal crew.¡± ¡°No shore leave has been promised,¡± The captain growled. ¡°Captain, are you aware of any plan to trigger a war with Caneth?¡± Esme asked, then added ¡°In the next few weeks, that is. I know that there are always strange ideas floating around at court.¡± ¡°No, princess Regent.¡± ¡°Well, that''s a relief! Perhaps you''d like to consider shore leave for your men, then. Princess Yalisa apparently enjoyed the storm, but perhaps your men would like to feel dry land under their feet, taste different food and see different faces. I will not be asking them to divulge troop movements within your borders or anything like that. I will be asking instead if they plan to commit any crimes during their visit, if they would report crimes they witnessed, and if they had heard anything about my brothers crimes, such as the hiring of mercenaries. I may also ask some personal questions or opinions not related to their service at all. Those who plan to commit a crime will be advised to stay on-board and watched if they ignore that advice, those that refuse to be interviewed or who I decide are lying about important issues will not be permitted to leave your vessel. I assume you will issue written shore passes. I will counter-sign the passes of the people who pass interview.¡± [What are you doing Esme?] Hal asked. [Public relations.] ¡°I have over a hundred men on board, highness.¡± ¡°I guessed that, captain. Most of them I''ll question in batches of perhaps five or ten. If you wish to witness the questioning yourself or delegate that task to an officer, you are of course welcome to.¡± ¡°Your suggestion is unheard of,¡± the captain said. ¡°Not so, all sailors wishing to have shore-leave on Tesk routinely underwent such questionings when Tesk was still part of the Kingdom of the Isles.¡± ¡°And you wish to reinstate that archaic practice? Fine! it''s your time, highness.¡± ¡°Thank you, captain.¡± Esme said, smiling, ¡°Your crew will no doubt welcome your generosity. Please permit the unloading of princess Yalisa''s companions and their luggage and provide shore passes to those you deem fit for such a privilege. I''ll be discussing a few things down here.¡± Yalisa looked at Esme in amazement, ¡°What do you think you''ve just done, highness?¡± ¡°I''ve just convinced the captain to let his men bolster the local economy, demonstrated that I can get him to change his mind, and entirely turned the conversation away from war. I''ve also puzzled you, and my honour-guard, confused my foreign minister, Valentina here, and absolutely shocked the honourable Hayeel, lady ambassador from the empire of Dahel, who of course has my permission to write all about my strange behaviour in her report to her government. First things first, Captain, please send a runner to the city watch saying that I''m going to be allowing some sailors from Tew to be on shore-leave, and rejecting others, and I fully expect my decisions to be enforced, So the watch officer must send down sufficient numbers to surround the ship''s berth, watch for rowing boats, and ensure only those with my counter-signature on their shore passes leave it or return to it. We wouldn''t want any of them recycling passes or sneaking extra passengers on board, would we? And he''ll also need enough extra people to follow any I mark as ''watch'' that''s to say those who might be planning a crime.¡± Hal suddenly grinned as he realised what Esme had done. By getting the captain to agree to her granting a selection of the crew passes, she was also preventing any Tew spies from making contact or running home. [Or the Tesk ambassador,] Esme agreed silently. [If I''ve really upset him.] ¡°Right away highness,¡± the captain said, also smiling. Both at her bottling up the Tew crew, as well as the way that it wasn''t going to be him or his men on night watch. Turning to Hayeel, she asked, ¡°Does my action make a little more sense to you now?¡± ¡°But you do this yourself, highness.¡± ¡°You think perhaps I should ask my sister to listen to these sailors'' thoughts? I am considerably tougher than she, and I''ve had more practice.¡± It was Yalisa''s turn to be visibly confused. ¡°Listen to their thoughts?¡± ¡°Mother is from Tesk, apparently I have enough Tesk blood in me that I''ve developed the gift of Tesk. Yes, that gift of Tesk, Yalisa.¡± ¡°And that''s how you''ll know if they''re lying?¡± ¡°Exactly. Lady Hayeel, I assume you will also be reporting your own growth in this area to your government?¡± ¡°I wish there was a way I could be watching when they hear of this.¡± ¡°That''s probably not practical, you''d have to deliver your own message. Do you know if your government have any experience of thought-hearers?¡± ¡°A hundred and seventy years ago, one visited from Tesk. The emperor declared her gift to be so dangerous that she must become part of the royal family, and married her himself. She was his first and only wife.¡± ¡°And is your present emperor married?¡± Hal asked. ¡°The next emperor is my age but I do not aspire so high.¡± ¡°Well, maybe he will be tempted anyway. So, you''d better also write that I realised you trust in the Saviour, and that I say that is an important factor in why you have been invited to the palace; and invited to spend time with me, and why I suggested you see if the catalyst effect worked on you. If you will not write these things, then I shall. Your late husband''s title that you have inherited was ambassador to the royal court of Caneth, wasn''t it, not the palace?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± ¡°The court is wherever the monarch and his or her advisors are, as long as the monarch is willing. Interesting travel opportunities your title opens up there, Ambassador Hayeel. Yalisa, I''m very sorry for ignoring you. What you don''t know is that my mother''s brother has made some disturbing discoveries about the sun, desperately hopes he is wrong but cannot convince himself of it, and therefore hopes to complete the Tesk Challenge if you''ve heard of what that is, to ask the aliens to come back. One part of that will basically need all the kingdoms agreeing on a few things.¡± Esme said, ¡°for instance about slavery.¡± ¡°You do not allow it at all, is that right?¡± Yalisa asked. ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°And Dahel?¡± ¡°My mother was officially father''s slave, and although he treated her as free, as a foreigner, he could not free her. And as he died in debt, she chose not to tell the slave dealer who bought her that she needed a certain medicine to live.¡± ¡°I am sorry for your loss.¡± Yalisa said, ¡°But question the legality of her onward sale. I understood that once a foreigner bought a slave, he or she became free automatically?¡± ¡°You are right, but she was not purchased, she was willed to him by a business partner. A loop-hole in the law that father spent a lot of money trying to solve, he failed. And because she was a slave, and a foreigner cannot obtain travel papers for a slave, she could not leave port with him.¡± ¡°And there is no embassy of Tesk, Caneth or the Isles in Dahel who could have granted temporary travel papers, even in exceptional circumstances,¡± Foreign Minister Valentina said, ¡°And Tew will not issue such papers for a foreign-born spouse.¡± ¡°If you had an embassy in Dahel you would issue travel papers for a slave owned by a citizen of a foreign country?¡± Hayeel asked, confused. ¡°For the husband or wife of a citizen of a country where slavery is not permitted, we slave-free countries would offer him or her what we call protective citizenship. It has happened a number of times in Tew.¡± ¡°And because this is known, ignorant land-slaves have offered their daughters or sometimes sons to passing traders, hoping to thus get freedom for their child, only for the trader to turn out to be a slave-collector.¡± ¡°One solution, of course, being to end land-slavery, another being to execute more slave-collectors,¡± Hal said. ¡°Yes. I do want to set up an embassy in Dahel though.¡± ¡°Many minor principalities also want to do this. So far Dahel has embassies in other countries, but no countries have embassies in Dahel.¡± ¡°I predict that changing,¡± Hal said, very aware of Esme''s thoughts. ¡°I think the first step would be to have an ambassador on a ship in the trade-harbour. The harbour-fees are cheaper than rent anyway. Once the ambassador is there, and issuing papers, registering births and deaths, and so on, then the authorities are likely to pay more attention.¡± ¡°They are likely to demand that the activities stop,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°They can demand, but there are laws regarding what they can enforce, and if the markings of the vessel proclaim it the sovereign property of a significant monarch, say Caneth or the Isles, and an appropriate guard of marines, things would get quite interesting. I must suggest it to Dad. Are there any others in a similar situation to your mother, Hayeel?¡± ¡°Some, probably.¡± she admitted. ¡°I think your first group of interviewees are about to arrive, Esmetherelda,¡± Hal said. Planet 5 / Ch. 7: Dockside Interviews

Planet 5 / Ch. 7: Dockside Interviews

The port, Caneth ¡°Sailors,¡± Hal said, there were ten of them, ¡°Now, I forgot to tell your captain that if there looks like there''s any fighting on the quayside then that''s another cause for the Royal Dragon to lose it''s mast and rudder, and I''m sure that you don''t want that on your consciences, do you? So, everyone be polite, answer truthfully, and you''ll get shore-leave. Did you hear what her highness said concerning the conditions for shore-leave?¡± They agreed they had. ¡°Any of you planning to commit a crime while you''re here?¡± ¡°Is getting drunk a crime?¡± ¡°It depends what you do when you''re drunk,¡± Esme said. ¡°Chair smashing, for instance is only allowed if you pay for breakages or if it''s to put an end to a far more serious crime. A bit of good-natured brawling between friends is acceptable as long as the worst the other guy gets is a few bruises and you stop as soon as the city watch tell you to. But again, you pay for damages, new for old.¡± ¡°And visiting the ladies?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°You''ve not been here before, have you?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Payment for personal services such as enjoyable conversation or a massage is legal, but that is all you are paying for. Anything that goes beyond that is considered an act akin to buying a slave, or rape, depending. The penalty for both is severe.¡± She turned to one midshipman, and said ¡°Promising to marry and failing to turn up for the wedding is also a crime. Marriage to a legal resident grants you residency rights, you may apply for citizenship a year after your marriage or when your first child is born in wedlock. We do not extradite law-abiding residents, and failure to serve in a foreign military is not illegal here, but it might well get you in trouble elsewhere. As we were just discussing, there are no forms of slavery in Caneth or the Isles, that includes compulsory military service except, theoretically, in the most desperate times of war. Princess Yalisa might be able to tell you about laws regarding foreign wives on Tew naval vessels, or whether a foreign wife would be allowed to live there. Next question for you all, did anyone hear anything about prince Henk hiring mercenaries or kidnapping anyone before you pulled into the harbour?¡± A chorus of ''no''s followed, and Esme said ¡°lying to me gets you confined to ship, does anyone want to change what they just said?¡± ¡°I heard we''d maybe be taking prince Henk''s prisoner back with us, highness,¡± ¡°As rumour, order or overheard conversation?¡± ¡°Rumour, highness.¡± ¡°And did you hear who the prisoner was?¡± ¡°A princess, highness.¡± ¡°But no name?¡± ¡°Princess E, highness, that''s all I heard.¡± ¡°And without naming names, what sort of source did you hear this rumour from?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°A navy officer? a soldier? someone who works in the palace? Someone on board?¡± ¡°Someone on board, highness. He got it from someone at the palace.¡± ¡°Thank you. Last question, imagine that Tesk, the Isles and Caneth were all united in some kind of pact that meant their laws were roughly the same as now, and their system of government likewise, except there was some kind of emperor and empress, or grand high council over them all, one foreign policy, one military and so on. Would you want Tew to join it even if that meant a change of law that meant things like there were no more land-slaves or bond-slaves, would you want Tew to fight because it''s too big and scary, or would you think ''nice for them, but I like things as they are, thanks''¡± ¡°You mean like, rebuild the Windward Empire?¡± one sailor asked. ¡°A modern version of it, acceptable to Tesk, even. Lots of differences. No sacrifices or slaves, more freedoms, much less centralised control.¡± ¡°Not asking much are you?¡± another asked. ¡°Just your immediate gut reaction.¡± The sailor who''d mentioned the Windward Empire said ¡°I want Tew in it, because if we''re not in then we''re going to be squashed underfoot by the invading hordes of Dahel, and you''d be able to starve us out if we opposed you.¡± ¡°Interesting thought,¡± Esme said, ¡°Got your chit? Enjoy your time in Caneth.¡± ¡°I''d want us to attack. If we stop the alliance, we don''t get squashed.¡± another sailor said, handing over his chit. ¡°Idiot, the only way to stop it is to kill the prince or the princess before they get married, which is certain to get us starved and sunk,¡± said a third. ¡°Maybe I''ll ask a nice girl I know in port here what she thinks about getting married. I like the idea of no land-servants,¡± a fourth said. ¡°That''s mutiny,¡± the third one retorted. ¡°No it isn''t, that''s just jumping ship before Tew gets starved or squashed. I''m pretty sure she''s got some friends if anyone''s interested,¡± the fourth said. The midshipman Esme had addressed earlier said ¡°I''d want Tew to join; my parents are land-slaves, joining the navy was my ticket out of that, but I''ve got a sister and a brother.¡± ¡°If you become an officer, your family become freeholders,¡± Yalisa said. ¡°With respect, highness, many lords do not agree, according to what I''ve heard, They interpret it to mean any wife and children, but not siblings, parents, or aunts, uncles and so on.¡± ¡°If you can find someone who was affected by that restricted misinterpretation, please ask them to contact me or a lawyer. The law has been clarified. It applies to all who were born to your parents, or born into your family household between your fifth and fifteenth birthdays or who lived there for more than five years at least one year of which was in that period. It further applies to your wife and children, any spouse of those who are freed because of being in your family and any children born to them. If any of them have wives or children, to them too. So if your grandmothers were living with you, your aunts and uncles will indeed be freed as well as your cousins.¡± ¡°The law is more generous than I thought, but my parents live in a small house, my grandparents lived on another farm. My parents wrote, my siblings have been told they will not be permitted to marry by our lord.¡± ¡°Because you serve in the navy?¡± ¡°Because I did not know I should have his permission to join,¡± ¡°Ah, and so he has classed you as a run-away?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°A run-away will be barred from becoming an officer, will he not, princess?¡± Hal asked. ¡°He will, yes.¡± Yalisa said. ¡°Even if the recruiters came straight to his house, and said nothing about needing the Lord''s permission, and lots about becoming an officer, and were operating with the Lord''s permission,¡± Esme said. ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°Foreign minister,¡± Esme said, ¡°the protective citizenship we offer to spouses: is there a reason that it cannot be applied to other classes of people, or indeed any land-slave?¡± ¡°Other than international relations, you mean? At the moment it is just one or two per month, and Tew grumble and moan. There''s also practicality. If there were queues of land-slaves at the embassy door, then they''d all be arrested as deserting their land.¡± ¡°I expect the princess-regent believes that a citizen of Caneth in good standing could apply for protective citizenship for his or her friends and family, minister,¡± Yalisa said, ¡°and then be granted those documents based upon their testimony. They''d have to get the beneficiaries the paperwork and garments that don''t shout ''wandering land-slave'', of course, just like with spouses, which would be difficult if they were on a watch-list for jumping ship. I expect that a well informed sailor in such a position might make a claim of being unethically recruited because his lord or the lord''s son likes the look of his sister, which would mean they can leave ship without further penalty. But as a princess of the crown, I couldn''t possibly comment or give that sort of advice to a sailor in my father''s navy.¡± ¡°Minister, I think princess Yalisa''s hypothetical speculations are quite on target, but I''m personally convinced that a resident rather than a citizen should be able to make such a request, don''t you think?¡± ¡°And so, in fact, it would not be the embassies issuing such documents, but our internal affairs ministry? I don''t think I''d have any objection to that.¡±Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°Excellent,¡± Esme said. ¡°Thank you for your hypothetical speculations, princess, if I may ask you to speculate a bit further, would you consider it appropriate for someone in the aforementioned situation who was hoping to marry a girl in a foreign port to invite his captain and other dignitaries who might be around to the wedding? And should the unethical recruiting complaint be issued before or after that invitation?¡± ¡°I think the unethical recruiting paperwork would need to be submitted first, perhaps before even asking the girl about marriage. Otherwise rumours might spread and the captain might not understand and retract permission for the shore leave. But certainly, once those papers have been submitted and the girl asked, that sort of invitation could be made.¡± ¡°Forgive my interrupting,¡± the Captain said, ¡°Prince Hal has just apprised me to the nature of the delay. I wasn''t aware of your family situation, Jenks. I''ll file the unethical recruitment complaint myself. Go ask your girl.¡± ¡°Thank-you sir!¡± the midshipman said, and ran off. ¡°There will be no problem for him if he leaves ship, highness?¡± ¡°The law is quite clear: his marriage will grant him residency rights.¡± ¡°It seems that Caneth is happy to give a home to waifs and strays from all levels of society, captain,¡± Yalisa said. ¡°Not just semi-exiled princesses sent to marry against their will and faith. You two sailors have not given your answers.¡± ¡°I think it''s going to end badly, highness. I hope it won''t but like Longface said, Dahel will probably come knocking.¡± ¡°How the emperor responds to events this side of the mountains depends on many things, Sailor.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°But it is not honourable to fail to answer the princess''s question.¡± ¡°I''d like Tew to move somewhere else, but we can''t do that, so I say please let us stay out of it.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Esme said, signing his pass. ¡°I''d like us to join you, highness,¡± the sailor who had asked about girls said, getting a signature on his slip. ¡°Seems like you''re not such a scary bunch as some people would have us think. Princess, it''s probably not my place to ask, but why were we at war with Caneth a decade ago?¡± ¡°Because Caneth didn''t think Father''s dream of the future was that great, and Father decided to try to force them into it. I''m not sure he actually asked them about it either.¡± ¡°He sort of asked,¡± Esme said. ¡°It roughly went, ''I''m going to be your emperor one way or another. Do you want to fight about it?''¡± The captain looked at the two princesses in surprise. ¡°What of the great insult, highness?¡± ¡°The ''great insult'', so called, was Caneth''s reply to that, Captain. If Esmetherelda summarises Father''s carefully worded insult as she has done, I hope she doesn''t mind me saying that her Father''s reply was ''You might like to check your maths and listen to your advisors when they tell you that you can''t win,'' and of course stopping the food exports, even those already on their way, and emptying all the barns along the border. That didn''t make Father happy. Oh, and of course ambassador Hagberry delivered that reply while catching father in a four move checkmate.¡± ¡°Not the best timing,¡± Esme murmured. ¡°I think that he is quite proud of it, actually,¡± Hal said. ¡°He told me that he''d only ever caught your father out that way once, and the timing was quite appropriate.¡± ¡°Hmm. No comment,¡± Esme said. ¡°Captain, you wish to ask something. You are free to do so.¡± ¡°What did you ask the sailors?¡± ¡°I''ll ask the next batch, feel free to listen in.¡± And he did listen, and struggled to contain himself when she asked about the potential alliance. ¡°Captain, now you know what is being asked. Would you like to give your reply?¡± ¡°Tesk are in agreement?¡± the captain asked. ¡°Not yet. Nor are the Three Isles yet, either, of course. It''s an idea. The Tesk ambassador sadly seems to have misunderstood some of the things I told him, and thinks I threatened to invade when I only said I''d make sure I had a body guard if I ever decided that I had to visit and Tesk had ignored my advice. But perhaps you should talk to him, Ambassador Hayeel, and update him on today''s changes?¡± ¡°Yes, perhaps I should. I do not feel so scared and friendless as I did.¡± ¡°Will you need a referee?¡± Hal asked, noting her tone of voice had a touch of steel in it. ¡°A referee?¡± ¡°To help you to not get carried away and kick him too hard.¡± ¡°Don''t be silly, Hal.¡± Esme said. ¡°I''m sure that the honourable ambassador who represents her people so ably does not need help of that nature.¡± ¡°I will think on these matters of statecraft, highnesses. I certainly will not be approaching him this evening. I am more interested in the captain''s response to the question, however, than I am in a formal duel with another ambassador.¡± ¡°I expect that the prince was suggesting an informal duel, rather than a formal one,¡± the captain said, ¡°since they do not have formal duels on the Isles, as far as I understand. As to my answer to the princess''s question... She and prince Hal present themselves as a friendly and reasonable people, unhappy with the empire building of my king, and I am sure they will be stern to punish and swift to forgive as their faith dictates. The king I grew up under was of a similar persuasion, but his son takes a more militant line. What guarantees would Tew have, or Tesk, even, that whoever comes after them would not introduce a new Windward empire and bind all in slavery once more?¡± ¡°Only those guarantees that the academy of Tesk can think of and write into the constitution, captain,¡± Hal said. ¡°My father, may he live a long time, in particular long enough to explain his thinking to everyone, including me, arranged with king Val that Hal be... encouraged to seriously seek my hand. He did this in a way that carefully hid from king Val, ambassador Hagberry or ambassador Raleph that I was Regent-in-Waiting. When I spoke to him earlier, captain, he was adamant that we marry quickly. This we intend to do. I also know that father intends to leave the crown to me, and that that has nothing to do with how Hal feels about me. I don''t know what father had planned for the future, but as we understand things now, we will have the burden of two crowns upon our heads, which sounds like a complete pain for us and our children unless we can somehow unite them. I trust you''ll forgive us for not having it all worked out, but my brother''s only been under arrest for two days.¡± ¡°The storm delayed us three days, highness,¡± the captain said. ¡°I thank God for that storm, then.¡± Esme said. ¡°I presume my future would have been as your unwilling passenger?¡± ¡°I had sealed orders that I have not read, highness. As they related to events that will not occur, they are now ashes.¡± ¡°Most careful of his majesty,¡± Hal said, but noticed the captain pulled a slight face. Yalisa also noticed it. ¡°Captain, I give you my personal commendation for your actions. I do not know if that will count for nothing or will eventually count for quite a lot, but independent action to prevent national embarrassment should be honoured, and if it ever comes to be within my authority, I intend to honour you for them publicly. If the Tesk academy does their work well, would you consider joining Esmetherelda''s trade and security alliance to be a good thing?¡± ¡°I am not a young man, highness, that I yearn to prove myself, nor so old that I remember only past glories and forget the miseries of conflict. I have no desire for war. If, when I see your constitution and listen to you more, I think your aim is to impose your will on all nations, I would be concerned; I would not want to join and might fight. If your desire is to bring peace and happiness, I would recommend Tew stay out of it, because your project is doomed. If your plan is to obey your God and spread your religion, or to bring about the Last Kingdom, I would recommend we join soon, else we will surely have to join later or be crushed.¡± ¡°The Last Kingdom is a children''s story, Captain.¡± ¡°No, highness. The prophecy concerning the Last Kingdom is a central plank of the thinking that brings the ambassador from Dahel here, is it not, Lady ambassador?¡± ¡°I must study my late husband''s papers more, captain. He did not confide much to me directly, and I would not presume to guess the mind of the minister for foreign affairs.¡± ¡°Then, Lady ambassador, I suggest you read quickly, and pay attention to who has given the orders, and do not misunderstand your position, for how else can you fulfil your duties? With your permission, highnesses, I must return to my duties aboard.¡± He didn''t wait for that permission, however, but gave a smart bow and left.
Letter to his Imperial Highness the crown prince of Dahel Most noble highness, if you read this letter then justice has prevailed and I am dead. That justice is not untinged with mercy, in that I have had time to recognise the gravity of my sins and repent, I have also seen the selfless devotion of the beautiful woman you assigned me as wife. I apologise for the bluntness of this letter, and my rushed hand, but Hayeel is even now preparing another poultice for my wound. It helps, but the animal that attacked had poor dental hygiene, and I feel the signs of an infection that no poultice can heal. Hayeel, highness, was never mine. You were wrong there. How could I have her as wife, when it was her father who I unlawfully wounded and infected? I spoke to you, highness, of the sadness in her. I asked her, on our wedding night, what was her story. That is when I learned of her past, of her mother, treated by her foreign ¡ª Teskan ¡ª husband as free, but willed to him as a legacy and so trapped by the law as a slave forever until she died in the slave-pens. I learned this before our departure, most noble highness, and I hate myself that I did not tell you. I hate myself that I killed her father and caused such misery to her. I hate myself that I look on her with such longing. I hate myself that she thinks I detest her. I hate myself that I have not taken her as my own even once, and that our marriage remains unconsummated. I hate myself for keeping all these secrets from her, for I have been most secretive about this mission, and I hate myself that she thinks me noble. She is the noble one, highness. It is no act for her, as it was for my mother and sisters, who became ever so vindictive at home. I do not know if she is the one we came searching for. Is this gift something that can be acquired in later life? I do not know, but if that is possible, then perhaps I have crossed the continent with the one I searched for. I pray that you will forgive me my selfishness that I wanted her for myself. With that one missing aspect, she seems to fit the other criteria. What I believe, is that I die. What I know is that I now share her faith in the saviour, and that even though I killed her father, she has forgiven me. I pray that you and God will too, I did not tell you that either, did I, highness? It came as a surprise to me, she hid her forbidden faith well until we left the central zone. She has strength, my wife. May I still call her this? It is a comfort to me, as the fever returns, but she is timid of officialdom. I do now know if she will dare to open my letter chest without authorisation. But I have learned one thing about these people in Caneth: their foreign minister is a woman. Perhaps, then they will accept a woman as ambassador. So I have left my Hayeel, this kind and wonderful woman, instructions in the top of my letter chest, saying that if the authorities are willing to accept her as ambassador, she must accept, the rough parameters of our mission, and how she must report to you. There is a trade-war here, highness. Caneth blocks the trade they need from their usual allies, the Three Isles. I do not understand it. The Three Isles are accused of piracy, and Caneth''s armies and navy watch that way. Meanwhile Tew seemed to my ignorant eyes to be preparing for a war. Is the Last Kingdom to come from some surprise move from Tew? My studies said that neither of these three kingdoms could successfully wage a war against one of the others, let alone two, yet still they bicker like brothers over the last slice of meat. Truly their politics are strange, these barbarians. But... the city is clean, there are no slaves, no prostitutes, no beggars. The people seem to have little visible respect for their monarch, I saw people leaning against the palace wall, even, but they seem to view his pronouncements as unerring. I asked about the trade war, while I still could move, and the reply was always ''it hurts, but the king knows best.'' Even traders said this. Beautiful, graceful Hayeel calls she will be finished soon. The pain is great, but the officers have their instructions, and will entrust this letter to a sea-going merchant who has made the journey before. I beg you to look after my Hayeel, most noble highness, she is a treasure beyond price. Planet 5 / Ch. 8: Ambassador

Planet 5 / Ch. 8: Ambassador

Prophesy of the Last Kingdom -unedited version- top secret imperial archives. Royal family only Grandson of my grandson, do not reject the noble virgin born of the slave. Is the law''s mistake her fault? Why must those freed by Jesus'' blood still lie in bondage? The sky shall be fire and there shall be two rulers over kings, one last kingdom over all. The learned will call and the faithful will pray, and the King of kings and Lord of Lords will send help from the skies to the earthly rulers over kings, and so the sun shall not destroy. What does it matter who has the crown over all, when all earthly rulers bow as one to the King of Kings? But my child, you will not sit on your father''s throne long without the teacher whose gift is like mine beside you, because the sun will destroy. You must be one in faith, one in hope, one in flesh, replacing unthinking laws and traditions of desolation, united in thought and tongue.
Imperial palace of Dahel, six weeks in the past. It was the season of royal balls, and crown prince Salay had spent much of the afternoon trying to keep his thoughts pure around the beautiful girls who were desperately trying, against his better judgement and that of his parents, to win his favour and his hand in marriage. Some of them had decided that he needed to see more of their pampered flesh than decorum dictated to help him make up his mind. It was alluring, and repellent at the same time. He decided that dances were actually the best part, since he needed to concentrate on the steps, and make sure that his hand met theirs at the appropriate time, hence his eyes were not be drawn to their indecently gaping tops. But it was hard, and he had a headache. Joyfully he noticed a messenger indicating a letter for his attention. He made his excuses and left. Ten minute''s later, his mother decided that he needed following. ¡°Selfish, grovelling fool! The idiot! How dare he?¡± the crown prince muttered. ¡°Someone upset you, Salay?¡± his mother asked calmly. ¡°Upset me?¡± Salay exploded. ¡°How might it possibly upset me that the ambassador I sent to find the woman in the prophesy now writes me a letter from his death-bed saying sorry, but he''s pretty sure the woman he was sent to look for is his soon-to-be widow.¡± ¡°His widow? How can the virgin daughter of a slave be the man''s widow?¡± ¡°The now-corpse asked her about her story before consummating the marriage. He killed her Teskan father and her legacy-slave mother died in the pens. He writes that he hates himself for taking her away, but hopes I''ll forgive him.¡± ¡°Her faith?¡± his mother asked. ¡°Kept secret until she was safely out of the central zone. She''s a teacher, she''s got faith, she''s got Tesk blood, her mother was a slave. The only box she doesn''t tick is that she''s not developed the gift.¡± ¡°And she will need the catalyst before she has a hope of doing so,¡± his mother said, knowingly. ¡°And travel now is impossible.¡± ¡°Unless I decided to risk drowning at sea. Oh, he also says there''s a trade blockade in progress between Caneth and the Isles and that Tew looks like they are preparing for war, unless that''s how they always look like.¡± ¡°Of course you mustn''t risk sailing!¡± the empress said. ¡°Our boats sink too easily. So you''ll have to write, won''t you?¡± ¡°Except the other thing the useless corpse did was keep her so totally ignorant she has no clue, and it sounds like even if she opens his letter case she''s not going to get much wiser. It''s entirely possible that she''ll have decided that she''s out of a job and married someone local by now.¡± ¡°Well, if she''s the one she''ll be available, and she might not be the one, Salay, so don''t make promises. You can''t unless she''s got the gift. Even then, that doesn''t mean anything. Surely there are more that have the gift there, after all. There''s the question of age difference, she might be ugly...¡± ¡°Mother, I saw her, she looked my age and beautiful, I called him a lucky old man and wished him many children. If that''s not rejecting the noble virgin born to a slave then I don''t know what is.¡± ¡°You didn''t know, presumably.¡± ¡°I didn''t think to look. It''s here in her records, all of it, except her faith. The prophesy says I''ll not sit on father''s throne without her and I''ve sent her away.¡± ¡°But the prophesy says she''ll have the gift. If she didn''t have it, how could you know?¡± ¡°Maybe I was supposed to go with her to Caneth, or the Isles, mother.¡± ¡°You ought to be back at the ball.¡± ¡°The messenger said that the captain was a bit worried about delivering messages that said he''d be paid out of the royal purse,so his ship was ready to sail. He''s already left port, if I''m to get a message to her with the same ship then I''ll have to send it overland before he gets to the coast. No time to waste. And please talk firmly to the mothers. There was so much flesh on show it might have been a slave auction; a girl who thinks she''s got a hope of being future empress should not be showing off her nipples. Can''t you just tell them I''ve got my heart on marrying a half-barbarian maid from Tesk?¡± ¡°Have you any idea about what half-barbarian maids from Tesk wear?¡± ¡°Only when they are wearing the robes of a high official''s modest wife. And I expect the library is out of date, too. I''ll be sure to ask Lady Ambassador Hayeel.¡± ¡°That''s her name?¡± ¡°Yes, mother. Her parents had good taste in names, did they not?¡± ¡°A little presumptuous for a slave woman.¡± ¡°Treated by her foreign trader husband as a free woman. Hayeel''s records say she was trapped in slavery by the inheritance laws.¡± ¡°Ah. The process of changing them is almost complete.¡± ¡°Good. I propose another change: any slave with free children is freed on the death of his or her spouse. Unless we just do away with slavery entirely. Caneth has, according to the corpse. Why must those freed by Jesus'' blood still lie in bondage?¡± ¡°I wish you''d stop calling him that, Salay. You would probably break the economy.¡± ¡°I think the economy will survive, and I do not worship the economy, I worship the saviour, and I will obey him. Please try to persuade father to bring forwards the end to the ban on faith in the central zone too: there have been no riots, no unrest. And tell him I believe I know my future wife''s name, and that she is a high official in the civil service.¡± ¡°And you''re going to tell her that?¡± ¡°I''m going to write to her saying that her late husband has spoken well of her, and that whether or not they accept her as ambassador, as he thought they might, she remains a high official in my service gaining valuable insights, and I must talk to her sometime. Also, even bereft of company as she is, as my high official she may not form romantic attachments without my authorisation.¡± ¡°Fitting, my son. Most fitting. I will talk to your father on the matters you have raised.¡±
Embassy of Dahel ¡°How did your evening at the palace go?¡± Hayeel''s sister Taheela asked. ¡°Mostly it was at the docks, sister. Princess Yalisa of Tew arrived, crown princess Esmetherelda welcomed her, let her know that prince Henk who she''d expected to marry was in jail and the princess practically leapt for joy. Then the crown princess interviewed all the sailors about what the Tew captain called her version of the last kingdom. And everyone is calling me Ambassador, and I''ve been given explicit permission to write about it all to home.¡± This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°So you will open your husband''s chest?¡± ¡°I think I must. I mentioned the minister for foreign affairs and the ship''s captain did a double-take and said that I needed to see whose orders I''m here under. He knows something. He said that the prophecy of the Last Kingdom is a central plank of the thinking that brought me here, and assumed I''d know all about it.¡± ¡°What''s the prophecy of the last kingdom? I''ve heard about the story. But prophecy?¡± ¡°The prophecy was first. The story came second, is much longer, and just that, a story. But from what my late husband said, the story is mostly compatible with the prophecy, but there are even two versions of the prophecy.¡± ¡°Two versions?¡± ¡°The original and the public version.¡± ¡°Layers on layers.¡± Taheela said. ¡°Sounds positively like the empire, doesn''t it? The crown-princess knows about the story, not about the prophecy. I thought it was just passing the time. I''m so dumb!¡± ¡°What was passing the time?¡± ¡°My husband, talking about the prophecy. It mentions the sky being fire, and he looked up at the sky and said ''It does looks like fire, like the prophecy said, doesn''t it?'' I said pardon, and he told me about the prophesy.¡± ¡°Maybe there''s something in his papers.¡± ¡°Maybe. But you know the empire. Layers. If it is the central plank, then it''ll be covered in layers, and might only be spoken about, not written down.¡± ¡°And I''m not allowed to know, am I?¡± ¡°Probably not, no. It''s unfair.¡± ¡°Unfair?¡± Taheela asked. ¡°You have wealth, power, important friends and big responsibilities and don''t know if you mourn your dead, fake husband. I have a very real loving husband, an adorable son, and a rich powerful sister who''s paying me to live in a lovely home and cook, and God willing, soon another son or a daughter. Who said anything about fair? May God bless you, Hayeel.¡± Hayeel cracked the seal on the box and gave a low moan. ¡°What is it?¡± Taheela asked. ¡°A letter. ''To my beloved and honourable virgin widow, Hayeel, may she be acknowledged by all as Lady Ambassador, just as they allow a woman minister here.''¡± ¡°I''ll bring you tea. You''ll be reading even later than normal, I think, sister.¡± Taheela didn''t expect a response. She knew Hayeel well enough to know that presented with such a letter, the outside world would mean very little.
The palace chapel, after the rest-day service. ¡°Hayeel,¡± Esme said, ¡°Come, you are distraught.¡± ¡°I do not particularly wish to work today, but I opened the official papers of the Ambassador, highness.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°The uppermost was a letter to me. My husband-in-name wrote of our mission, and why he did not tell me much about it before.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And in the three months since he died, much time has passed, but I finally know that he longed for me deeply, but also was sure that I was not his to take as wife. He has not told me all, but I think I understand enough. And it scares me.¡± ¡°What scares you?¡± ¡°I am not sent by the ministry for foreign affairs, but by crown prince Salay. If I am ambassador, then I am his ambassador, my role is not to seek out trade deals or establish treaties, but to learn about what you know, what you plan to do, and also to find a woman who matches the prophesy. My late husband realised on the first night of our marriage that not only had he murdered my father, but that I fitted some of the description, and as time went on he realised I fitted more and more. He tried to pretend to himself he did not know who he was searching for, but that pretence was another reason for him hating himself, another reason he would not touch me: he hints that he''d became convinced that it almost must be me, except that I didn''t have the gift of Tesk.¡± ¡°You think the prophesy points to you?¡± ¡°A teacher, ''the noble virgin born to a slave'', having the gift of Tesk, ''one in speech'' which probably fits someone who speaks Dahelese far better than agreeing, which is how some people suggested. I doubt there are many other candidates.¡± ¡°But you don''t want the role the prophesy speaks of?¡± ¡°I was not asked to take wedding vows. I was only told, ''Your assigned role is wife of ambassador, his assigned role is ambassador. Only death may separate you, may your union be blessed with respectful children and may you bring honour to the emperor.'' But if the prince wants me as future empress ¡ª that''s not clear to me in the public, censored version of the prophesy, but that seems pretty likely ¡ª then there will be vows. Just this morning I read ''Make vows only with one to whom you are united in faith''. I won''t willingly marry an unbeliever, highness. But the prophesy says that without the woman in question, either the help won''t be effective or just plain won''t come.¡± ¡°Help? What help?¡± ¡°Sorry, you don''t know the prophesy do you? The censored version goes ''Grandson of my grandson, do not reject the noble virgin. The sky shall be fire and there shall be two rulers over kings, one last kingdom over kingdoms. The learned will call and the faithful will pray, and help from the skies will come to the earthly rulers over kings, and so the sun shall not destroy. What does it matter who has the crown over all, but my child, you will not sit on your father''s throne long without the teacher beside you, because the sun will destroy. You must be one in hope, united in thought and tongue.'' The uncensored version apparently says ''noble virgin born of the slave.'' and ''teacher whose gift is like mine.''¡± ¡°And it was actually given by your dangerous Tesk Empress?¡± ¡°It was, yes. Her daughter-in-law wrote the children''s story.¡± ¡°But the children''s story does end with the prince marrying the girl from Tesk with the gift, after together they''ve saved the planet.¡± ¡°Yes, but that''s from an evil dragon, not the sun. And in the story she wasn''t a slave.¡± ¡°It always struck me as odd that a story from the royal house of Dahel, had followers of Christ as the hero and heroine, though. It''s not that Tesk is known for the strong faith of its people.¡± ¡°In Dahel, it is known exactly for that, highness. The Empress from Tesk had a strong faith, and refused to marry the Emperor until he had removed the ban on her faith from all but the central zone, and ¡ª according to my late husband, which I was not aware of ¡ª himself converted.¡± ¡°Interesting, I hadn''t heard that. Why no believers in the central zone?¡± ¡°Because the central zone is ultra-conservative. Dahel is a country of layers, highness, and near the emperor, stability. Orders come from the middle and go out, changes start at the outside, and percolate in. Depending how radical the change is perceived to be, it can take many many decades for a major social change to percolate into the laws of the central zone. It also depends how gradually the change has been made. By forcing the issue upon so much of the country, the Empress from Tesk accepted that it would not affect the central zone for a very long time. Such a large change, from Emperor worship to allowing another religion was felt to risk rioting and civil war, the very highest social change. To change the whole Empire thus, except the central zone, was the largest change that the emperor could make. If she had been satisfied with steady progress, the law could have percolated in, demonstrating at each layer of the empire that it caused no riots, and after twenty or thirty years, it would have reached the central zone. As it is, it will take two hundred years before anything changes in the central zone. So believers in the central zone move out if they can, or must keep their faith a secret.¡± ¡°May I politely express my dismay at the idea of a country where a thing is illegal on one side of a street but legal on the other, but yesterday was legal on both sides.¡± ¡°This is what caused trouble for my father, highness.¡± ¡°And so if the emperor decided to end slavery, it would take twenty or thirty years?¡± ¡°As a single decree? Yes. There are other ways, however that the change could be made. Changes in taxation, for instance apply in the whole empire at once.¡± ¡°They''re not seen as liable to cause riots? I''d have thought the biggest riots would be caused by such changes.¡± ¡°There must be fair warning, but people moving to gain taxation advantages has been a large cause of social unrest. Thus taxation occurs all over. But ending slavery was given to us as an exam question: if the emperor wished there to be no more slaves in Dahel, how quickly could it be ended?¡± ¡°And the answer?¡± ¡°Some of my class-mates suggested that everyone classed a slave could be re-classed as a debt-slave with high debt, and this could be done very quickly with no change in society. They got high marks. I suggested that, as with other changes on death, a slave with parental responsibility for free children could be classed as free on the death of their master, and as that reduced the social upheaval of death it could be applied almost instantly. I also suggested that as slaves are transport for some of the time and workers for some of the time and livestock for other times, and also transferable property they should be taxed as all categories that might apply, depending on what they do each day, and as they are workers who provide services worth a certain amount and they should be taxed as such also, and that the birth of a slave should be treated as a major capital gain, the death of a slave be classed as a work-place death. All of these are administrative changes, and while they force a certain administrative burden on people, that has never been classed as a social change. I calculated that for the owner of a single slave, the cost of paying the annual taxes and submitting the paperwork would be more than the cost of freeing the slave and employing them at a basic wage. For larger owners the costs would multiply. The changes could be done as a whole in one tax cycle, and the conversion of slaves to free workers would begin almost as soon as the taxation changes were announced. The examiners said yes, well, very clever, but that as a whole my raft of measures constituted a social change as the wide-scale freeing of slaves would result, so I got only half marks, which should have failed me. I don''t know why I was allowed to continue, but I was.¡± ¡°I think your class-mates should have failed. The emperor''s wish was no more slaves, not can we reclassify them without the social change.¡± Esme said. ¡°You are kind, highness. But what can I do about the prophecy?¡± ¡°Pray that the prince might come to faith?¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 9: Correspondence

Planet 5 / Ch. 9: Correspondence

Letter to his Imperial Highness, Crown Prince Salay Imperial Highness, I have been wondering how to write to you since I opened the case of the ambassador the evening of the day before yesterday. Yesterday was rest-day, when it is the tradition here in Caneth to do no work. My late husband-in-name commanded that I address this letter as I have done so. I must admit it seems unheard of to think that I can promise the bearer of a letter funds against the royal purse, but how else can one ensure the message arrives, I suppose? I hope I do no wrong. My late husband also wrote I must write widely, fully and extensively. But I don''t know what that means, really. So, I shall write of the political changes that have happened in these last two weeks. Two weeks ago, the day after the night of the lunar eclipse, dramatic events started to unfurl, but I and the other residents of the city knew precisely nothing about them. There seemed to be more soldiers in the streets, looking grimmer than normal. But I, so uncertain of my position and role, did nothing, but I heard they were asking questions about suspicious events overnight. Had anyone noticed anything? I now know that the king had become ill and Regent-at-need princess Esmetherelda, had been kidnapped. Let me go back a bit. Prince Henk, her (only) brother, was known to me, as some weeks ago, soon after my late husband''s death, he had come and introduced himself to me via the ambassador for Tesk, and had enquired about how I was provided for, financially. A week later he introduced me to a man who seemed to be of questionable status who was quite interested in the medicines my late husband brought with us. Mostly what he listed as having value to his customers were ones that come with warnings of side-effects that alter the mind, or form addictions. But I did have some financial needs and thus when he named one substance of which I had a stock, I sold him some. The price I obtained formed further questions in my mind. Perhaps I am more expert at haggling than I believed, but it went thus. He offered ten, ''You insult my ability at maths and sanity in one breath, get out'', ''a hundred'', ''Do I look like a charity?'', ''fine, fine, a thousand,'' ''I thought you were a reputable businessman, not an impoverisher of widows.'' ''ten thousand,'' ''And that''s your final offer, is it? Get out!'' ''Fifteen'' ''Fifteen what? Fake washers?'' ''Lady, he said you had no idea what it was worth. You can''t blame me for trying. I can''t sell a dose above three hundred, no way. That''s a hundred doses, so I''m losing money if I top thirty thousand.'' I was sure from his eyes that he was lying, and the amount I have on the table is for a thousand medicinal doses. ''This is pure. No grass clippings in this product.'' ''Forty thousand.'' ''Sixty thousand in unclipped gold.'' ¡ª three hundred coins, each worth a month''s wages for a menial worker, he had a standard money pouch, and I estimated it could only hold two hundred such coins. ''You think I carry that much on me?'' ''Then buy half now, and maybe I''ll sell you some more later. Assuming you''re not cheating me, of course. Probably I should not sell you so much even, this must support me for years, so I have to maximise value, after all. You don''t think I have a donkey-load full of this in a back room somewhere?'' I don''t, just half a donkey-load. I cannot believe the prices. Three month''s wages for ten doses? ''Forty thousand for half, I''ll be back next week for the other half, same price.'' ''Deal.'' And he was true to his word, he brought another two hundred coins. Why do I write this? Accounting, and perhaps confession. Received from the shady character of unknown address in the much improved clothes compared to last week, four hundred gold coins a bit smaller than a crown at home. I have since also received a regular order for another medicine from a much more reputable customer. A medicinal dose for one patient, who, under medical supervision will be hoping to reduce his dependency on it. I spoke to the doctor, and a relative. Even knowing the patient can afford it, I will not be charging what their previous supplier asked. That unknown person charged half a gold coin per dose ¡ª outrageous ¡ª and I have plenty. have said that I will charge only one gold coin per month. When my mother used this medicine it cost her one copper coin per month. My father spoke often of supply and demand, well the supply is available, and there is competition in the market, and I hope the demand is static, so let the cost reduce but not too much. One gold coin ¡ª two hundred-crowns ¡ª per month will keep me from going hungry even with my exotic taste in fruit. But I have leapt ahead in my account. Forgive me, highness. There are occasionally announcements from the palace. Such and such law has been made, the ''war'' ¡ª a trade embargo with loaded cannons ¡ª with the Isles continues, but without shots fired, and so on. I notice that the pronouncements are made in the name of the queen, not the king. Most people don''t seem to. The soldiers on the streets continue to look grim, muttering in the markets become more muted. The price of basic food continues to grow, not just meat, which is affected by the loss of fish imports, but fruit that is locally produced. Father''s advice comes to mind again. When local produce starts costing more, then there''s been a tax change, a harvest has failed or someone is worried: either the farmer, the merchant or the waggoner, so that goods are not getting to market, or someone is buying more. Or maybe someone is paying too much, making the traders hopeful. I have noticed no reduction in the wagons passing on the road, so I watch the market. Yes, there are strangers in the market, looking military, but not in the normal uniforms for here. People are shopping more quickly, not wanting to stay and haggle. The strangers speak with strange accents and have too much money, they are not haggling at all. I see one who looks to come from the empire, looking at the strange fruit. He notices me, and I indicate he may come to pay his respects. I say to him ''The produce is strange here is it not?'' ''Very, honourable lady. You officiate here?'' ''No. I am wife to honourable ambassador. You are a mercenary?'' ''Yes, honourable lady. In the employ of prince Henk.'' ''Ah,'' I nod sagely, not giving away emotion. ''The traders expect to haggle here. The yellow berries there taste as if they were red and fresh from the slopes above Wahleet. Ignore the price label and offer a third, that is still more than they asked for last week. I do not believe the season is even nearly over.'' ''I thank you greatly, honourable lady.'' He goes and haggles, buying a small portion. His face lights up on tasting them, and buys a much bigger portion at the same price. His friends come over, and he enthusiastically offers it to them. Some pull faces of dislike, others ask the trader how much. The trader points to his label, and the mercenary from the empire laughs ''that''s his opening bid, mate'' when his friend gets out his wallet. ''What did you pay?'' And the trader does not make so much profit. The soldiers start to walk away. At that point, I go to make my purchase, and say, ''has anything really changed since last week, when you will remember I paid you ten for a measure?'' ''Supply and demand'' he replied. ''Yes. At ten there is demand for a measure today, but at eight there is a demand for two measures today, two tomorrow and all next week, above ten there will be supply and no demand from me, ever again.'' I have been preserving the fruit. It is a simple domestic chore, but I enjoy it, and I will have a taste of home until next year. The elderly fruit seller also has a smile when he sees me, because I am true to my word, and each day except rest-day I go straight to his stall and buy two measures of the berries and what they think are exotic produce and I know are good. and I will happily tell the other buyers how it tastes and how to prepare it. I increase his trade, do not haggle too hard on imported fruit, and he tells me about the mood among the traders: there is concern. I speak to the only other ambassador I know, he of Tesk. He explains that things are a little tense in the palace at the moment, that I would be wise not to ask questions there, and he talks to me a lot, but about nothing. A friendly voice and intonation like my dead father''s is reassuring to me, but I suspect his motives. He explains overly often that things are different here, but not how. I had the impression when we first arrived that things were very different, and that there was hardly any formality at all preventing an ambassador from speaking to officials or the crown, but he assures me that he has passed on my wish for an introduction to ministers, officials and other ambassadors, but it would be wiser to wait for a formal invitation from the palace. Almost a week after my discussion with the mercenary, I heard the sound of marching boots stopping outside my door and orders given, I grow concerned. Soldiers or police? A firm knock at my door. Am I to be arrested for selling contraband drugs? No, it is the Princess-Regent with a body guard. She has come to introduce herself, and to tell me that the Tesk ambassador has not been passing on any questions from me. She introduces me to prince Hal of the Three Isles, her rescuer and now her future husband, who has awakened in her the Gift of Tesk. She explains that her father has been poisoned, prince Henk is a traitor, and as regent, her voice is as the king''s, and that it has long been her father''s will that she rule after him. She then surprises me further. I need no papers to talk to her, no further introduction, and that papers and seal or not, she considers me full ambassador, and insists others do so too. If I have any worries, she insists I talk to her, and ask for guards if I feel at risk. I should feel at risk, because of the wealth of medicines I have, and so I accept a small guard from her. When she hears that my father was from Tesk, she invites me to the palace, to spend time with her and Prince Hal, to see if I am affected by his catalytic presence. I do not know, highness, what you know of the Gift of Tesk. I can tell you that Crown Prince Hal knows of the following who have it: his two sisters, crown-princess Esmetherelda who developed the gift after spending about four hours with the prince from her rescue until the time she could clearly hear the thoughts of those around her. Princess Isthana of Caneth who hosted prince Hal and princess Esmetherelda for two evening discussions. And finally, me: near to prince Hal about one and a half hours at that first meeting, which ended with prince Hal introducing me to an immigrant couple he had first met in Wahleet ¡ª my sister and husband! ¡ª and then after another three hours at various other times, I found that the thoughts of others were not vague and uncertain, but clear. I have taken the opportunity of employing my sister to be my ''housekeeper'' which means I no longer need to cook and clean unless I want to. WHer husband is a man of thirty-five, an honourable trader in quality coastal maps and other manuscripts who got some advice from my father when starting up in his trade. They live in the servant''s quarters of this embassy, and I am no longer so alone. My sister does not have the gift, but after spending an hour and a half in the ship of prince Hal while he explained to her and her husband the faith of Jesus, she has grown insightful, that is to say she understands the reason behind words spoken, the first step in gaining the gift. She says that is sufficient for her, and having spoken to me and to princess Esmetherelda, she asks Hal to stay away from her. She meets too many people and would not like to know what they are all thinking. We are bottling four measures of berries while the season continues. The ambassador of Tesk knows no-one on Tesk or indeed outside this city who has the gift of Tesk. As you may have noticed, Princess-Regent Esmetherelda does not hold herself aloof from speaking to ordinary people. She spent an hour interviewing sailors from Tew, a few nights ago, determining that the captain of their vessel had no knowledge of plans to have her abducted to Tew. That there were such plans was suggested by some rumours from the mercenaries and confirmed by other rumours onboard, but the captain burned the sealed orders he was to have read after being met by prince Henk. Princess Esmetherelda commended him for his wisdom in that, preventing any need for an official response. That ship brought princess Yalisa of Tew, who was due to have married prince Henk or be exiled from Tew. She is planning to discuss possibilities with prince Sal of the Isles, precluding her father from imposing on her any other marriage that would be repugnant to her faith. Thus, as well as an almost certain marriage between the crown princess of Caneth and crown prince of the Isles, a marriage between the possibly crown princess of Tew (the prince, her brother is gravely ill after an accident) and the younger prince of the Isles seems likely. All share the same living faith. Is this the beginning of the Last Kingdom as the skies burn? Highness, my late husband-in-name commanded me to write fully, so I will be scandalously open and frank: I was given no opportunity to raise objections to my late husband, I took no vows to him, and I did not seek his embrace. He did not seek mine, which I did not understand but for which I nightly thanked God. So, I am the virgin daughter of a slave, I have the gift of Tesk. I understand from what I know of the prophecy ¡ª mostly guarded hints from my husband-in-name ¡ª that this might make me a suitable empress in your sight. However, I also have faith in God most High, born as a human to save our elder-sibling creatures and all creation from sin. Unless or until you share the same faith as I, then I will not be able to take an oath of marriage to you. If you force me unwilling into a marriage, it will be counted under the laws of Tesk, Caneth and of the Isles as aggravated rape or enslavement; grave crimes. It may be that you consider this presumptuous and pre-emptive objection itself to disqualify me from any role in your service. I am not so used to the title of ambassador nor so certain it is really mine that I expect to regret it as much as I would regret not writing. I hope you will also note that if we can find for you another daughter of a slave with enough Tesk blood, then prince Hal is ¡ª so far ¡ª quite willing to sit and chat about world politics, seamanship or the good news of his faith for an afternoon. As long as he can hold Esmetherelda''s hand for most of it. They are not afraid of showing their attachment, and now I have the gift I am certain that their love for one another is a genuine meeting of heart, soul and personalities. The title you have granted my husband, highness, presents what Esmetherelda ¡ª to her face she insists I use a shortened form of her name ¡ª calls ''interesting travel opportunities''. As ambassador to the ''royal court of Caneth'', I am ambassador to where the ruling monarch or regent is holding discussions. Most other ambassadors are ambassadors to ''the government of Caneth'', which is taken as meaning that they stay in the capital. She therefore tells me that I am derelict in my duties as Ambassador to the court if I do not travel with her to the Isles when she goes there to negotiate the treaty of marriage between her and prince Hal. She expresses herself quite clearly when asked if she really needs to go in person, and says ''It''s a well known route through well-charted waters and we''re not going to take risks with the weather. And I wish to meet my future sisters-in-law, mother-in-law and father-in-law. Particularly King Val, since I need to explain about this war.'' Various documents have been signed by Esmetherelda and Hal regarding the war between Caneth and the Isles. Most of them are subject to ratification, as they touch on things outside prince Hal''s authority to negotiate. Their intention is to rule Caneth and the Isles jointly, as a single entity with different laws applying, but a common foreign policy and a very gradual harmonisation of laws, where appropriate. They resist the title empire, and prefer the term confederacy. They are open to suggestions, and have asked the academy of Tesk to come up with a model that would make admission for Tesk an attractive thing for that fiercely independent island. Tesk has changed since its glory days, highness. It is seen in the Isles much as a rebellious teenager who has rejected his parent''s faith, run from home and lives in poverty rather than return home. It broke away from the Isles eighty years ago, and has discovered that fame does not mean riches, lack of monarchs means lack of balls and the fashion industry simply collapsed. (A result of an artificial change to demand, my father explained, meant that the supply was abundant and the demand so low that that sector of the economy collapsed, as did secondary industries. Even domestic helpers found themselves out of work, as people had more time and less money.) No fashion parades meant no tourism, too, but Tesk still blames the Isles for everything. It remains stubbornly opposed to empires. It is still a centre of scientific learning, and a genetic treasure trove if you want a thought-hearing wife, but as they banned the catalyst from visiting in the decades before independence, and the catalyst normally has no effect on older women who might travel, very few have gained the gift from Tesk, and none who live there. High fashion is not of much interest on the Isles, and the princes of the Isles spend much of their time out at sea, so there is not even the chance for the old industry of modelling to be a route to obtaining the gift. What is the catalyst? An experiment could be done, it would be possible to bring some young woman from Tesk into prince Hal''s presence and allow him to shake hands with some of them in formal greeting and not others ¡ª that formal greeting is the only time he and I were in contact. Then we could learn if contact is involved. We could put groups of them in pens at different distances. Esme suggests we could steal some of his clothes from the laundry and see if it is some kind of scent he gives off, we could tie a mask on his face to see if it something he breathes out. What is certain to me is that prince Hal is an unusual man. Very open in his attitude. He expects to have his thoughts understood by girls with Tesk blood. I wonder if it would be ethical to trick him, and introduce a girl with no Tesk blood as if she did, or vice-versa and see if it is nothing to do with Tesk at all, and some change that Hal performs on girls all unknowing. But I doubt it. There are the Tesk attunements that help people to understand one another, available to all from Tesk in the right circumstances and not to others as far as I know. There seems to be some kind of link to Tesk. Esmetherelda became attuned to Hal through the dangers and risks of her escape and their joys and excitement getting to know one another and Hal discovering that the pretty woman that had knocked her jailer unconscious and he''d helped escape was none other than the princess and alleged kindred spirit he had come to woo, despite the war. That war is now over. Ships and soldiers have been ordered away from their patrols and once more look nervously at war-like Tew instead of the piratical but friendly Isles. Piratical? Not really but there is a history. They do plan for naval encounters, they do know the firepower of their ships, and those of their neighbours. A Tew warship, I learned, can easily shoot more canon than a warship from the Isles. But the Isles know how to sink a Tew warship in the first salvo, or at least disable the complex mechanism that gives the Tew ships this power, and their gunners practice for accuracy rather than just speed. Do not think to start a war with this fledgling last kingdom, highness, I implore you. I have seen the size of the harbour defence guns in Wahleet; they are smaller than some on-board the customs clipper Albatross, the vessel prince Hal captains. I have seen the harbour defence guns of Caneth port. They have calibrated sights, range finders, wind adjustment meters. The shot it fires must be loaded by four strong men. They practice once a month and the town reverberates to the shot. If the small target boat towed (a long way) behind the mother vessel at top speed is not destroyed with the first shot it means shame, dishonour, and (more importantly for the attitude here) their wives or mothers will feed them no better food than bread and water and their wives will refuse them for a month. This they talk of, it last happened twenty years ago. Such is the defence of this port, and I am told it is normal here. Yet, prince Hal looked at it, and described it as adequate as a single weapon, though improvements had been made on those in the Isles. But there would need to be three times as many to defend the city in a shooting war should the whole navy of Tew come at once, and ten times as many to defend against the ships of the Isles. He also pointed out that the practice target was always going in the same direction, and never actually towards the city. Why were they practising shooting at passing ships? There will be changes, then, and the gun-commanders look worriedly at their men, thinking of bread, water, and frustrating nights. This I saw, and heard, this I report. Tew currently have aggressive tendencies, king Val of the Isles loves to demonstrate his prowess in naval strategy in bloodless exercises, and the king of Caneth is a player of political chess games that leave me shocked and confused. He seized a flimsy opportunity to declare war on his friend king Val in order to ensure king Val''s navy was prepared for a real war with aggressive Tew, and to get prince Hal talking to Esmetherelda ¡ª his plan had been that they negotiate the peace, and seal it with their wedding. He was surprised by his son''s treason, but it is clear to me, having spoken to him for ten minutes yesterday ¡ª about all he can manage ¡ª that the kingdom Esmetherelda and Hal will rule has been his goal for a long time. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Thus I come to the end of my first letter, my prince. I hope it answers more questions and uncertainties than it generates. I pray that you already serve my God or can be persuaded to, and that you will listen to my presumptuous objections and unasked for advice. There are scary things I have not felt capable of writing. This letter should be delivered by the hand of academician Teng of Tesk; please listen to him. I listened to his thoughts and he has no knowledge of the prophecy of the final kingdom, but his studies predict that the sun will destroy us unless we have help from the aliens. He is the brother of queen Eslind of Caneth, and if his project to call for that help is to work, he needs Imperial support from Dahel as well as what he has from Caneth and what Hal hopes his father will agree to. Perhaps the full version of the prophesy tells you you can reject me personally and not this request, highness. I do not know, but please, I beg you, listen to him whatever opinion you have of me, and when he has convinced you as he has convinced me, seek an audience for him with your most honourable father also. It is not just money that is needed. Your servant, Hayeel, accepted here as Ambassador to the court of Caneth.
Letter to the Honourable Lady Hayeel, widow of the Ambassador of Dahel Lady Hayeel, I read your late husband''s death-bed letter to me with considerable frustration, and as the sea-captain that delivered it felt nervous of somehow triggering his own arrest by delivering it, he has left port and this letter to you must chase him downstream before he reaches the open ocean and returns to Caneth. I hope this letter finds you well, and hope that you understand despite my lack of time for even rudimentary polishing or rewriting, I bear you no ill will at all. He writes that for his own reasons he has not shared with you all that I expected him to, even as he dies, and that therefore you are ill-equipped to continue in your service. If he were not dead, I would throttle him. Forgive my outburst. Literally, I read of his confessed failings and request for forgiveness less than thirty minutes ago. Many of the things he has not told you of, I cannot commit to paper, and yet you are so far away! How can we meet in person that I may explain what he has not? He writes that the land of Caneth is free of slaves and beggars, clean and stable. I hope that you have a pleasant home, and that your mourning of his passing to glory has not debilitated you too greatly. He also writes that he thinks you might be accepted as full Ambassador in your own right, as there is a lady minister. May that be so! Your late husband speaks most excellently of you, and whether they accept you as full ambassador or not, you remain a high official in my service, and I am sure you are gaining valuable insights. Any sign of how you might encounter the catalyst? It would be good if you could. I expect, that given your title, and the ignorance your late husband kept you in, you may wonder if I will send you another husband. Certainly that I will not do. I also warn you and command you that as a high official in my service you may not form any romantic attachments without my prior authorisation. That would be most unbecoming conduct. If there are any who seem they wish to form such, I beg you to warn them off. Your late husband, may God forgive him his sins against both us and your family, wrote concerning his non-expression of his feelings for you, and his growing certainty that he ought to order the soldiers to turn around. For that difficult restraint and the honour that he did us, I find I must most wholeheartedly forgive him for my part. I apologise if what I write confuses you, your late husband was vague on what he did or did not say. If travel were ten times faster, and you had a suitable escort I would order you back to discuss things, or come and discuss things with you myself, but sadly I must assume you are in the right place at the moment. Do not hesitate to write to me if you have any needs, most honourable Lady Hayeel, and also do tell me of your life there. I hope it is bearable, for I must ask you to bear it longer. Just in case Caneth do accept you as ambassador, I enclose your seal of office. Of course it is not complete without your personal seal. As my ambassador rather than father''s you don''t -yet- have authority to warn of a military response to insults to your person, but know I hold you in the most high regard. Salay. ps. Mother asks about lady''s fashions there. What does the average high-born maid wear around the city or at a ball? Context: I''m writing to you having escaped from a ball, and a large proportion of the girls (or their mothers?) seem to think that the more of their flesh I am forced to see, the better the chance they have of gaining the title empress. I am tempted to say their lack of decorum excludes them from my presence for a decade, but their mothers and fathers might declare that is a social change. May the saviour have mercy on all their twisted souls, and give me strength to avert my eyes. Personally, I am convinced that as the fires burn in the sky I must marry according to the whole prophesy, that I have read hundreds of times, and you have not seen even once and I may not write to you all the terms in it.
Additional note, hastily added to Hayeel''s letter My prince, I was just looking for a passage for academician Teng when a ship from Dahel arrived with your letter. What you write fills me with hope that some of the fears that prompted me to write as I did were not well grounded. Do you truly serve the Risen Saviour with all your heart? I pray it may be so, for international relations as well as my own feelings. Have no fears regarding me forming romantic alliances, highness. The (ex) ambassador of Tesk has been interviewed by the princess and sent home with a ceremonial kick from me and a written reprimand from her. I will seek to serve you as best I can. Do not, I beg you, feel you must risk yourself at sea in one of our river boats to come and visit me here. Certainly do not come over land! Prince Hal has visited Wahleet before and princess Esmetherelda has expressed a desire to see its harbour wall for herself. I am expected to travel with them as ambassador, just as I am expected to travel with them to the Isles. I am told their ships never topple over unless they are sinking already because of war or rocks or the most furious storm, and that this is because of the shape of the hull. I heard prince Hal''s thoughts, and they confirmed his words, full of technical terms I did not understand. Perhaps you should warn your imperial father that as well as a royal visit, they intend to set up an embassy on board a warship (fully manned with soldiers used to fighting on ships!) if one cannot be established on land, and that in Tew their embassies are in the habit of regularly granting protective citizenship to land-slaves with a marital connection to Tesk, Caneth or the Isles. They might extend such protection to other categories too, and of course, there are many younger men on the crew who are unmarried. They would not be too proud, I expect, to fly banners proclaiming the ship the royal property of the Isles, and embassy of the Isles and Caneth, and even listing the services they provide. These civilised barbarian rulers move quickly, highness. It is thrilling and exciting and exhausting to be swept along with them. And with my new seal in my possession and your kind words of reassurance in my heart, I find myself emotional too. I will try to answer your questions in my next letter, which I am tempted to write at once. I think I shall be more restrained, however. Your ambassador, Hayeel.
Letter to his Imperial Highness, Crown Prince Salay I was intent on being restrained. But then I mentioned your mother''s question on fashion to princess Esmetherelda who gave a shout of joy and dragged me to see her married sister, princess Bethania. I find I must now send the attached book of artwork. It seems that the princess has taken to heart the command of her mother to make up for Esmetherelda''s lack of artistic dedication and has been painting and sketching court ladies and gentlemen for the last decade, as well as other subjects. A chance remark by Esmetherelda led Bethania into printing and thus her house is now part printer''s studio where she has volumes such as this one in various stages of production. To make it clear, this volume was bound by an expert book-binder, but the original artwork, the carving, the printing and the over-painting were all done by princess Bethania of Caneth without anyone else''s help. It is her hobby, her joy, and it is also her sister''s sorrow that when Bethania looks at the growing pile of these these wonderful works she sighs that they have not yet found a real outlet for them. My brother-in-law is sure that, were he back in Wahleet, he could sell them as curiosities to the nobility at a considerable profit to what I paid, but he knows of no traders there now. She has produced the following volumes: Court fashions of Caneth and its neighbours, (190-200 A.V.), enclosed; Caneth wildlife; and Caneth plant-life. She and her husband will be joining us on the trip to the Isles, so I expect further titles to be added in the future. I have of course paid what I deemed to be an appropriate sum for a princess''s handcrafted work. She, thinking only of the materials, balked at how much I offered, but I refused to accept it on any other terms. If the court ladies (and gentlemen?) would be interested, I have set a price of twenty gold pieces for this sample book, but of course that is direct to the artist herself and does not include transport costs, agent''s fees, etc. Please do not pass on how I obtained those twenty gold pieces, I am now sure that the drug trader should be hanged. I hope I have done well, highness; I took the liberty of asking the princess to dedicate it to your honourable mother. I hope it is a suitable gift from son to mother, since all I have, of course, belongs to you. Your ambassador, Hayeel. Ps I have realised that I have not written to you of timings. The journey to Wahleet is, somehow, faster than to nearer ports. I don''t quite understand how or why, and takes five weeks normally. The return apparently takes six and a half. The journey to Captita, the capital of the Three Isles, takes about a week to a week and a half, depending on winds. We will probably stay there a week perhaps a week and a half, and the expectation of Esmetherelda is that her wedding will be about a week or two after her return, or about when you will be reading this. Prince Hal states that unless the storms are very early this year it would be safe to journey to Wahleet immediately after the wedding, but that would mean there is not really time for a return journey. Thus it seems that Hal and Esme will not be travelling to Wahleet before spring. Caneth and the Isles have a system of message passing using flags on towers, drums or pulsed lights. They use it to send messages to troops or ships. The scholars on Tesk who call the aliens will do so using a strange method the aliens gave them some hints of, involving metals and acids and glass tubes, and the message arrives as fast as light. I am envious. Three months before you can reply to anything I write or I can reply to anything from you is too long, my prince. Three months is too long to know if I have interpreted what hints my late husband-in-name gave me correctly or if by my boldness in my first letter I have marred your impression of me irredeemably. I must wait and pray.
Planet 5 / Ch. 10: Delay

Planet 5 / Ch. 10: Delay

Letter to his Imperial Highness, Crown Prince Salay My prince, This is my fourth letter to you (if I include my quick note sent with academician Teng). My third letter and the book have so far found no passage, as the captain of the vessel I planned to send it with became involved in a dispute. That sounds bad, does it not? Let me rephrase it. The honourable captain intervened in a dispute between some menial sailors of his homeland but not his ship, earning himself great honour in the eyes of the law. The matter of the dispute was (inevitably?) a young woman with a reputation now in tatters, who had promised to marry both next time they were in port, with the hope of receiving gifts. The honourable captain, for his troubles preventing murder received a significant but not life-threatening wound, so long as it does not become infected. But he may not sail for a week. I will send this letter with the honourable captain, but try to find someone else for the book, so you get it sooner. Why have I not left? That is for more simple reasons. The prince looked this morning at the direction of the wind, the clouds, the barometer, and said ''there is a chance of a storm I have no need to risk''. I visited the fruit seller one more time, introduced my sister to him, which I forgot to do yesterday, and now she is happily preserving fruit in the kitchen. Now the wind howls at the windows and I find myself with the prefect excuse to write to you. I have been remiss, my prince, I realise, in not answering your every question. Please forgive me. So, my prince, I shall read your treasured letter once more and answer every question therein, including those you imply. You hope I am well. Yes, I am indeed well. My father often suffered from headaches or colds, but my mother (apart from her heart troubles) gifted my sister and I with an iron constitution, long may I keep it. Neither of us show signs of her heart problem either, I am happy to say. I add that my little sister is twenty-two, and if the reports of your date of birth are correct then I, at twenty five, am a year and a week younger than you. Probably you know this, but mistakes on paperwork happen. How, you ask, can we meet in person? Are you still as desperate to meet me as your letter sounds? I try to answer it as though you are. The honourable captain I have mentioned already intends to offload his cargo (casks of the best wine from the Isles and textiles from Caneth), remain in port about a week, and return to the port here, with whatever he can fill his ship with. I questioned him and Prince Hal about timings, Hal has corrected his estimate, he says that he was unthinkingly quoting the numbers from Captita, not from here, and also thinking of the winter storms off Captita, not here. If he and Esmetherelda planned to remain in port long enough to pick up some trifles from the foreigners quay market, they could be safely back here before the winter storms are bad here. But they wish to conduct diplomatic talks, which take longer than a quick shopping spree. The honourable captain I spoke of, however, to whom I will entrust this letter, has an additional two weeks of safety margin, even allowing his wound time to heal. He is a seasoned captain and knows that taking risks at sea is a young man''s foolishness, thus I predict he will not allow a passenger to delay him so much as to cut into his safety margin; not even an imperial one. Also know that the week in port I spoke of is based on an average journey time. If weather delays his trip to Wahleet, I doubt he will change his departure date much, indeed it is more likely to bring it earlier. But if you are indeed desperate to talk to me face to face, and unseemly haste to pack and a captain from Tesk who knew my father (and indeed, probably remembers me as a girl with an unseemly interest in commerce) do not put you off, I cannot vouch for any better sailor of that route. May I humbly beg that if on his return he does not bring me you, you will at least entrust him with a letter to be treasured? Who, I ask myself, is the desperate one here? Let me make one thing clear, my prince. I am frustrated by uncertainty, I feel the frustrations of a woman watching her younger sister grow large with a second child, I wish to know if my interpretations of things my husband-in-name whispered to me as he was dying are right; at the time they seemed nonsensical, but I see a pattern now. But how much do I trust the ravings of a man losing his mind to unstoppable fever? Reading the lines of your letter to me, I think I saw your hope. Which makes sense in the context. I do not yearn for the title of empress, though if it is to be mine one day I will try to bear its burdens. I yearn more for the title of wife-in-truth, and the oneness that I see in my sister and her husband, and hoped for by Esmetherelda and Hal. I feared I would have to reject an unwanted suitor of no faith and then your faith-filled and desperately frustrated and hopeful kind words thrilled me, and so I focus my hopes on you. I know certainly ¡ª from this gift I now have ¡ª that most men find me pleasant to look at. Those in love with their wife reserve the word beautiful for her and consider me only pretty. A number of men think that as a widow I must be desperate for the embrace they''d willingly give me. They are wrong. But I hope that, if you hope for my eventual embrace as I hope for yours, you will not be disappointed in me. I pray you will forgive my girlish foolishness if I have read far too much between the lines. You hope that I have a pleasant home. You will allow me, I trust, to describe it. It is a grand house built in the local style, the old home of an important man, a general, the only heir of a rich family, who, I understand, died in the same battle with Tew as his heir. His wife had died in childbirth. It was unoccupied for those years as the state looked for a new owner. The captain you sent with us assessed this house, along with others, for security, for strength, for access to markets, for a quality of build befitting your representative, for an imposing entrance and secure vaults, for fitting quarters for the ambassador and wife, for servants, and for state visitors. In all of these qualities, i.e. as a representation in bricks and mortar of the stability and prestige of the empire, it is an excellent building. In winter, I expect to spend too much on firewood or live in the kitchen. I have already dipped deeply into the gold to supply the house with some new mattresses, some missing furniture and curtains and cushions that did not smell of moth, decay, and old smoke. What more would I like? Dahel is known for its carpets, but here the price is ridiculous and the quality is what father would call ''only good to those who don''t know better.'' My mother taught my sister and I the slave''s trick to getting a good shine on a stone floor with minimal effort, and indeed, the stone floor is of very good quality. Far more impressive than any carpet I could buy without re-entering the drugs trade. For the medicines, by the way, I have a second customer, again with a doctor''s recommendation. Slowly the bales of medicines in the (secure and dry) cellars are providing an income. I have explained my policy to my sister, and she understands and agrees. We supply for a week or a month, no more, without good clear reasoning. We supply based on medical need, under the recommendation of a doctor. For the first dose or for any change in dose we require the doctor present and a relative of the patient or the patient themselves to witness the transaction, and the amount we charge. We issue receipts, and for dangerous medicines everyone knows that we record receipts and register the sales at the medical institute. Also, we never do what I was foolish enough to do: get the medicines while the customer was in the house. But I have digressed. No longer is this house a mausoleum. With the little messes of spilt food my sister''s son makes, the smell of cooking, and her domestic touch and her loving husband, her room in the servant quarters has immediately turned into a home from a hospital. I have a bedroom which I have been slowly decorating with things I like, but while it is the smallest of the main bedrooms, it is too large. I am tempted to have a book-case made that would wall off part of it and make it a more homely size. I leave my sister and her husband the privacy of the servants quarters, where in any case I left the bad memories of nursing my husband-in-name before he died. Did I love him? I don''t know. I was grown used to him, and to our strange relationship. As the soldiers left immediately after his death, I was uncertain and alone, and for months was truly a widow in mourning, feeling suddenly useless and confused and that my life had been better while he lived, and wanting him back. I did not want the memories of his pain so I moved into this room that I write from now, looking over the gardens. I have found some local artists whose work I like and is in a style similar to those of home, and they are on display in the imposing entrance hall, for sale at a percentage commission. Thus we have a growing gallery of Dahel-inspired work, and visitors interested in such are becoming more common. Another income stream, for when the medicines become too old and the current money runs out. My sister also cooks Dahel-spiced variants of local dishes. This was an income stream for her when I found her and she continues with it, at set times of the day, much to the delight of her old customers. They use the traders entrance, and word is also spreading. Unlike at home, the laws on where you can sell food and are not regimented here. I asked Esmetherelda, and she smiled and said of course. So, the Dahel embassy smells a little of Dahel cookery, which makes it more of a home to me as well, and I have a percentage of her profit ¡ª she does the work but it is, after all, the embassy''s cooking fuel and kitchen that she uses. As we are an embassy, local business taxes are not charged, but to be fair ¡ª that is to say so that neither of us is accused of favouritism, the little enterprise pays a ''local tax equivalence'' to the embassy (before profit). She still makes three times as much as she did when she was employed near the docks, so Taheela is a happy woman. I hope you do not object to the embassy aiming to make a net profit on its operations, but to me that also speaks of home. So far, we don''t, not quite when I spread the cost of furniture over ten years, but a few more artists or perhaps my brother-in-law deciding to move to paying rent for another of the servant''s quarters (at the going local rate, of course), should mean that we do. It is a difficult decision for them, and I am staying out of it. It would mean he gets a nicer work environment, an impressive location and a friendly landlady, but he could not escape from work, and also his current clientele would not know where his shop is if he moves, which would cause him loss of repeat business. Plus he''d get no walk-past custom, unless they came for Tahela''s cooking. Possibly some of his customers or suppliers might not like the idea of the guards out the front either. I am no expert, but some of his maps seem rather too precise to be on sale to the general public. They are all purchased legitimately, with receipts, and so on, but who knows how they originally came into the map-trading circles. Did you know that a map could be subversive? He has a very pretty map claiming to show who was sleeping where on the night before a certain important vote ninety years ago on Tesk ¡ª that to exclude the royal family of the (then four) Isles from Tesk, after yet another beautiful thought-hearer had gone to marry the king and rumours were circulating of girls leaping into bed with the king to get the catalyst. I hear from Hal that that indeed happened ¡ª in the sense that some stupid girls were sometimes so desperate to spend time with the man who became the first king of the isles ¡ª that his wife had to chase them out of their bedroom before he dared enter. Hence he and she fled from Tesk. The map seems to show not dissimilar illegitimate incursions into bedrooms. It is only when you compare it with a political history of the time that you realise it is not showing marital infidelities, but a public perception of political corruption. Interestingly, and possibly because of this political corruption, the vote was never approved by the high council of Tesk ¡ª the thought-hearers. Any thought-hearers. Thus it is that Esmetherelda or myself (or both of us in unison) could visit that Isle and formally reject the measure. Or indeed just simply set ourselves up as dictators over every decision of the lower council. Esmetherelda has promised (via the disgraced ex-ambassador) that she will not visit except to reject that measure. I however have made no such commitment. Would you like me to exercise some power in Tesk, my prince? I stand ready at your service. Probably. I think I might get lynched if I stand too prominently and threaten to make Tesk an outpost of imperial rule. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. I''ve digressed again, haven''t I? I am a little sorry, bit not very. After all, part of my reason for writing these things is so that you have a chance to know me, and how better to expose to you the workings of my mind than to digress on flights of fancy or things that I consider interesting if irrelevant. So, back to my home. It is not particularly warm, or snug. It is not particularly decorated in my favourite style. It is big, impressive, grand. The rooms are tall (cool in summer, but hard to heat in winter, I expect), the grounds... let me get to the grounds later, my prince, please. I love the grounds. I don''t know if I have actually counted the rooms. On the ground floor, there is the entrance hall (now gallery) which quite easily holds fifty people standing around, sipping expensive drinks they don''t actually like but they wish to appear sophisticated and so keep on sipping, while pretending to admire the pictures while actually sizing each other up as potential business partners, adversaries or suitors. That was the grand opening of the gallery ¡ª tickets an absolute bargain at only two gold pieces per head (two month''s salary for a menial worker, remember) for a chance to meet the princess regent and her fiance, and the enticing opportunity to see the new lady ambassador from distant exotic Dahel, examine her entrance lobby and make guesses about her underwear or re-marriage prospects based on your gender. Sorry if that sounds so very cynical. It is, Esmetherelda thought to me, the problem with this gift. I was amazed at how few actually enjoyed the expensive drink. Next time I hold one of these things I''ll ask people if they''d prefer some authentic Dahel-style milk instead. At least that way I''ll enjoy what I''m drinking not to mention the look on their faces when I tell them that for Dahel-style milk you start off with a cow and massage it''s... sorry, you know how to get milk from a cow, I presume. So do the people around here, but stick ''Dahel-style'' on it and it''s got to be exotic, and if you listen to the thoughts of the men around here, probably involve scantily dressed virgins eager to not be. So, that was the entrance hall. Parallel to, and the same size as, the entrance hall is the dining room. A gorgeous inlaid table which would fit twenty, and is, praise God, protected by what must be a very expensive single sheet of glass. I understand from Esme that the normal practice would be to cover the table with a white cloth at meal times, and with a thicker, dark cloth when the room is not in use to protect the wood from the sun. At one end of the house, is the kitchen and in a wing from there, the servant''s quarters. The other end is what was probably a games room or family lounge, but now it is my office. Beyond my office there''s another wing, which on the ground floor has another room, one of which was used by the guards as their ready room, the other as their barracks, and then a carriage house. Oops, I forgot: the stables are past the servant''s quarters. Upstairs (I forgot the grand stairs in the entrance) there are suites of rooms and above each wing, and more bedrooms above the dining room, one of these, with the best view over the grounds, is mine. Each suite has three bedrooms, and two hygiene rooms, the central bedrooms also have a hygiene room. Each such room has piped water, hot water is stored in a large tank below the sloped roof, heated by pipes that warm it in the sun. I am told that even in winter the water will be warm. In summer it would be dangerously so, if there was not a complicated mechanism to make it feed heat into an outdoor pool. Yes, I have a heated outdoor pool to bask in during the hot summer (except I felt too exposed and alone to do so) or swim in during the cooler autumn evenings. The recent addition of family members and soldiers at the gate mean that I no longer fear to do that. My sister and husband have also enjoyed it, especially as I was being auntie at the time. The pool does have a fence to stop the young from entering it, or I''d fear for my nephew; it''s not meant for paddling. For paddling or playing with stones there''s a small stream further from the house, and there are also some small ornamental gardens. They needed a lot of care, and while the soldiers were waiting for my husband-in-name to die or recover they tidied them beautifully. During the summer, I spent many productive hours at the menial task of weeding them as I wondered about my role, and the possible futures you might have in store for me. I did not know if I was to be merely caretaker or married once more to some stranger with no faith, and the ambassador of Tesk wanted me to remain dependent on him. I think I healed in the gardens. Beyond the gardens there is a gentle hillside which rises to above even the house, and gives me a view of the city and the port. Perhaps I should say while firmly within the city, the embassy is one of several that back onto one of the larger hills here, actually a ridge, with a cliff-edge behind it. The palace is on another such hill. Due to its position, the embassy gets the summit of the ridge within its grounds. There is, again, an anti-child fence protecting the cliff edge. Below the cliff there''s a small beach used by some optimistic fishermen and the river. The neighbours have extended their garden walls ¡ª taller than me ¡ª along the edge of the cliff, but the soldiers declared the cliff more difficult to climb than a brick wall, so what''s the point in spoiling the view? I guess it might stop someone going around the end of the wall, but if I was that desperate to be nosey, I''d use a ladder, personally. Or approach their gardens from the front of the house. Unlike the embassy, they have no front gates or guard-house. Now that I have the guards from Esmetherelda, I ask that they keep the main gates mostly shut, and the side gate open during the day. Previously, there seemed no point in either, since the hinges make little noise. Now the side gate, which leads to the servant''s quarters, has gained a sign saying ''Enter here for Daheel cookery, use main entrance for gallery.'' This keeps people from walking on the grass. Oh, the grass! I must tell you of the grass. In the eyes of my neighbours, I am remiss, I am clearly foreign, and alien. How can I? I allow the grass to... dare they say it, grow! The back garden grass was, before we arrived, harvested by the army for fodder for their horses. The front grass, between the carriageway and the path to the servant''s wing, was not worth anyone trying to harvest. There are fruit trees growing there, making it a pain. When we arrived, I saw pretty flowers there and what I learned were rare butterflies, and I liked it. The army still harvest the back garden. But my neighbour suggested I might like to hire someone ¡ª perhaps one of their sons, he''d only want a gold coin per month ¡ª to manicure the grass at the front, as a sign that the house is occupied by a morally upright person. I replied that as a morally upright person of limited means, representing a government (sorry, I got that bit wrong) which valued nature, I would not be squandering the limited money my husband had left me and destroying important habitat just to provide their sons with money they could in turn squander on getting drunk and singing at the top of their voices ¡ª as I had noticed the previous weekend. And to make my point I asked the army to leave a nice wild border near the garden walls. I''ve seen more of the butterflies out there. The stables remain empty, the carriage, which is in the carriage-house is unused. Perhaps if you visit it would be appropriate to change that. Will you come, my prince? Will your honourable father and mother permit you to visit this small palace? I do not know or dare to hope what changes that will bring to my life, or even if it would be more fitting for you to stay in guest-rooms at the palace, as princess Yalisa of Tew does. But knowing that you cannot reply faster than you can arrive, I intend to ensure that one of the wings ¡ª I think the wing over the kitchen, as that will be warmer ¡ª will be ready for important visitors. If you do not come before the winter, and you do not send me other instructions, my plan is to accept the invitation of princess Esmetherelda and prince Hal. If I may presume upon my understanding of your hinting once more my prince ¡ª forgive me once more if it is wrong and if my misunderstanding puts you in a difficult position ¡ª I have just had a messenger arrive to bring me this. It seems that while I was delighting in her sister''s artwork, Esmetherelda who of course knows the thoughts that bubble up in my brain, asked Bethania to sketch me. Esmetherelda writes ''knowing as we do the visual focus of many young men, I asked Bethania to provide this sketch, a gift for the crown prince of Dahel from the crown princess of Caneth. As you see, she has in fact engraved it and painted the print. It is entitled, according to Bethania, ¡°A meeting of fashions, beauty delights in beauty.¡± '' Urm, what can I add? I am embarrassed to be the model of a picture I didn''t know was being made. I''m even more embarrassed by what my sister said: ''Well, it''ll certainly give him a face to recognise you by and some vague hints that you might possibly be a girl, won''t it? Couldn''t she have missed that mole?'' ''No, it''s there'' ''Why didn''t she show more of your figure? She could have painted you in your swim-wear, couldn''t she?'' ''I wasn''t wearing my swimwear, I don''t walk about in my swimwear, and if the prince is interested in marrying me it won''t be for my swimwear, so why should she paint me in my swimwear?'' ''Because what''s under your swimwear is probably more important to him than you being dressed like a boring modest high official.'' ''That''s what I am, a high official in his service.'' ''Not in your swimwear you''re not; you''re utterly gorgeous. I wish I had your figure.'' ''You can''t have my figure, you''re due to give birth in about six weeks.'' ''You''ll look after my children if I die, won''t you, Hayeel?'' ''Why should you die? Eat properly, rest enough, pray and do not worry.'' ''But if I do die?'' ''I will do all I can, Taheela, but I am the servant, the slave if you like, of my prince and our God. It is not my will that counts.'' ''You''re saying that if it''s a choice between marrying him and looking after my children, you''ll choose him.'' ''I''m saying that if it''s a choice of marrying him and so saving the planet in obedience to prophesy, or making soup for your children that your husband could make if you only taught him, then I will save the planet, because without the planet, soup is a waste of time.'' And I realised that I meant it my prince, and also it''s converse. I admit that I am excited at the thought that I might be a married woman sometime after we meet, and that I will be entirely mortified when I hear your have shared these scandalously uncensored and open letters with your honourable parents after you have been so wisely restrained in what you have written, but that does not affect my determination. I mean it, do not be tempted to marry me if I am not the one in the prophesy, my prince. Do not. I might be pretty, I might even be, as my sister insists, utterly gorgeous. But I also grew up near a port and you know must sailor''s language by reputation. If you think you can marry me for love or for desire against the dictates of the prophecy, then I''ll insult you and your sanity and your manhood in every language and dialect I know and then make up a few too. I''ll probably cry as well, but not as much as I would if I knew I''d helped end the world. Your Ambassador and God''s servant, Hayeel.
Planet 5 / Ch. 11: Implications

Planet 5 / Ch. 11: Implications

On board the Albatross, 3 days from port. ¡°Hayeel, you have been silent long enough.¡± Hal said, gently. ¡°What is there to say, highness?¡± ¡°You could share your thoughts with Esme.¡± ¡°She cannot help sharing them.¡± ¡°That do be part of the problem, do it be not?¡± Hayeel sighed, ¡°Yes, it do be.¡± she said, with a small smile at her use of the marshland dialect. ¡°So, pretend that Esme isn''t giving me hints. and talk, because while I hear her thoughts I don''t get yours.¡± ¡°This is where I always stood.¡± ¡°It''s a good place for a son or a daughter to stand. Very few people ever need to run here on a ship.¡± ¡°Too many memories, highness. I have too many happy memories of being a child, and too many sad memories of being an adult, and I wrote too unreservedly to Crown Prince Salay. He wrote that there were things that could be said but could not be written, and I, in my stupid excitedness, I wrote them. I should not look forward to his coming, I should fear my arrest or execution.¡± ¡°You think he will reject you.¡± ¡°Why shouldn''t he?¡± ¡°Urm, doesn''t the prophecy instructs him not to?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Perhaps it doesn''t mean me. I only know a few of the tests. I don''t really qualify for some of them. I''m not noble, after all.¡± ¡°I have met several ambassadors in my life, Lady Ambassador Hayeel. Wallowing in regret and self-pity is not a trait they are normally prone to. ¡°I stand rebuked,¡± she said sadly. ¡°But you know your duty. You are to think and speak well of your crown prince, to gather information and pray for him.¡± ¡°Pray for him?¡± ¡°You have sailed before, Lady Ambassador. You said that in your letter you suggested that if he was really desperate to meet you, he could come before winter. A six week journey, heading towards winter weather which we hope will not meet him with its full force, but he might be more seasick than princess Isthana. Try to focus on other people, and I''d have thought praying for the poor man would be a good start. If he thinks you match the prophecy then I expect his parents will urge caution, caution, you''ll see her in spring so what''s the rush, and he''ll have your picture in front of him and your letter where you''re openly thinking of being his willing wife even before you''ve seen if he has an irritating limp or a stutter or some other flaw that might make him incredibly shy, and is heart will urge him to come windward in a rowing boat if need be. I mean, look at Yalisa, coming to check up on my little brother. She''s been digging away at me to list his flaws, before she''ll even say more than ''we''ll see'' and she''s studiously ignored any chances she had to let him know she was going to want to see his seamanship in action. "Compare and contrast, you heard ''there''s a prophecy, you might match'' and you were terrified he might not be a believer, and then you hear he is and you''re almost planning your wedding invitations.¡± ¡°You mean I''m desperate to marry?¡± ¡°No, you''re not,¡± Hal said, ¡°You''ve had any number of men quite interested in you, and I''m not just thinking of the ambassador of Tesk. You''re not the least bit interested in marriage for marriage sake, Hayeel. Nor are you desperate to marry power, or wealth or position. So, tell me what you''re desperate to do.¡± Hayeel sighed thoughtfully. ¡°If I''m the one in the prophecy, then, then it all makes some kind of sense out of my life,¡± she said. ¡°To know that there''s a reason for all the things that have happened to me and those I love.¡± ¡°So accept that, face that, wrestle with God about that if you want to, and pray for prince Salay, because if he''s coming to meet you, then he''s not going to get any more letters from you for six weeks, and he''s seen you at your turbulent best and probably doesn''t know what mood you''ll be in. If he doesn''t he''s going to have to wait almost as long for your confession of how much emotion you''re pre-loading the relationship with.¡± ¡°That''s a very polite way of saying I''ve been stupid.¡± ¡°That''s not what I wanted to say, Hayeel.¡± ¡°No. You want to say sort out my troubles off your bridge.¡± ¡°For a mind reader you''re being pretty dense.¡± ¡°No, I''m just avoiding having to say that there are people I didn''t know a week ago who love me.¡± ¡°You''re not alone, sister-in-faith.¡± Esme said. ¡°And I don''t think that will change whatever happens.¡±
Captita ¡°It rather looks like you''ve kidnapped half the royal family of Caneth, Hal. Interesting way to end a war!¡± King Val joked from the shore. The Albatross''s arrival had been easy to spot, especially since Hal had approached the wrong way around to show off the windward shore. ¡°Closer than you think, father. Let me joyfully present Princess Regent and Crown Princess Esmetherelda.¡± ¡°Wearing what looks suspiciously like an engagement sari,¡± Hal''s mother said. ¡°It was too windy for the normal fold, your majesty, and yes, father has been planning to unite our two nations since before he suggested marrying me to Hal. And yes, I did hear that in your thoughts. Before it gets much more complicated, let''s finish the simple introductions, Hal.¡± ¡°OK, simple introductions first, on the left we have the Honorable Lady Ambassador Hayeel, representative of Crown Prince Salay ¡ª don''t call him Sally ¡ª of Dahel. Lady Hayeel has also has developed the gift of Tesk. Next to her, princess Bethnia of Caneth who''ll want to sketch everyone and everything she sees, but it''s OK if you''re scruffy, she''s only going to print and sell the pictures all over the planet if she can. Beside her looking very military do be her husband, General Wirt. We almost brought some other sisters of Esme, but Isthana got sea-sick before we''d even left harbour and begged to return home and Winessa didn''t really want to come and miss spending time with her beloved just for a peace conference. Next it gets interesting. Is Sal around, somewhere father?¡± Hal asked. ¡°He''s gone blind again,¡± said a voice from the ship Hal had pulled in behind. ¡°Hi Sal! Pay attention, let me introduce to you in particular, princess Yalisa of Tew, and her ladies in waiting. The princess seemed to want to take over from our figure-head whenever things got choppy, and she managed to get exiled from home unless she becomes Esmetherelda''s sister-in-law.¡± ¡°Father got a bit cross when I said I didn''t mind becoming her sister-in-law, but I wasn''t planning to marry Henk, even if he did become king,¡± Yalisa explained. ¡°Since I accidentally left some books there I''m quite partial to, and I heard you liked sailing, I was wondering what you thought about exploring possibilities.¡± ¡°What sort of possibilities?¡± Sal asked, confused. ¡°Careful son,¡± Val said, looking at the princess, ¡°First impressions count.¡± Esme stepped in, and said ¡°While Sal is working out his poetic lines in praise of Yalisa''s beauty and love of getting sea-spray in her hair, I''ll add that Henk is probably going to be missing his head by the time we''re back. I certainly signed the death warrant on two counts of treason ¡ª interference with the succession by having me kidnapped and posting mercenaries in the palace ¡ª and told the grand-vizier that I didn''t see any point to delay the execution once he''d decided he didn''t need him for his investigations into his other acts of treason. Therefore, Sal, Yalisa needs to work out if she''s going to try to appease her father by becoming some kind of indirect sister-in-law to me. Though she might like to try a night-raid on the castle too, just for fun. My mother''s from Tesk, didn''t you know?¡± ¡°I must have missed that.¡± Sal said. Then he focussed his gaze fully on Yalisa. ¡°Seriously?¡± he asked. ¡°Which bit, the night raid, the love of the sea, the screaming argument with Dad including flying crockery, or me seeing if I can escape his idea of matchmaking? Thinking about the night raid might be fun, but I doubt doing it would be. Unlike sea-spray, arrows and shot don''t normally wash out. Permission to come aboard?¡± She''d moved to her favourite spot, just behind the bowsprit, and was now within a few feet of Sal. ¡°Do you have any Tesk blood?¡± Sal asked. ¡°About an eighth. No sign of me coming down with the gift, if that''s what you''re worried about.¡± She offered her hand. He accepted it, and found himself helping her aboard his ship. ¡°But I ought to warn you... my brother had an accident, I don''t know if he''ll recover.¡± ¡°I''m sorry to hear that.¡± ¡°Don''t be. He is very much in father''s mould, and would have been in charge of the invasion fleet father was planning to send this way. My marrying Henk was supposed to seal an alliance between Tew and Canneth. In Dad''s version, Caneth''s fleet and yours would smash each other to driftwood and our navy would pummel anything still afloat. Even with Hal and Esme engaged, Dad might still try. He''s got some new designs, longer range, with exploding shot.¡± ¡°Dad, did you hear that?¡± Sal called. ¡°No! What?¡± ¡°Upgrades to Tew''s fleet.¡± ¡°That sounds like he wants a war.¡± ¡°That was father''s reason for declaring the fake war, your majesty,¡± Esmetherelda said, ¡°to ensure your fleet was ready for a full scale war of survival. Canneth''s military have been compromised, three generals, our defence minister and Henk committing treason; I cannot guarantee that the unit commanders will not join Tew if they attack. Father wants me to negotiate a permanent military alliance, starting at our marriage or before. Tew might suspect it, they certainly ought to know Hal and I do be engaged, that Henk will be tried for treason and we''ve declared the war with you was a mistake and we''ve called back the army and navy.¡± ¡°The captain of the Royal Dragon is a peaceloving man, Esme, he told me it might take him a bit longer to get home than normal with the quickly patched sails.¡± ¡°What?¡± Val asked, sail patching was hardly an impossible task. ¡°Father''s a land commander, your majesty, and because he trusts his own, he places land generals over the navy. The sails were torn by a storm on the way to Canneth. The captain will, I''m sure, say that he had the choice of delay or doing a proper job of patching, and decided not to delay. Or I would not be surprised to learn that some unknown sailor left the lid off some vital repair gear during the storm and rats got into it or some similar accident.¡± ¡°Allowing that to happen should get the captain cashiered out of the navy, highness.¡± King Val said. ¡°And if my brother dies from his injuries and I become queen, your majesty, he will receive at least an admiral''s pension for his services to peace. I don''t suppose there has been any news from Tew in the last few days?¡± ¡°Or ships about to head for Dahel?¡± Hayeel asked, on the spur of the moment. ¡°You wish to leave us so soon, Lady ambassador?¡± ¡°Certainly not, your majesty, but ideally I''d like a letter delivered...¡± ¡°The Walrus, father?¡± Sal suggested. ¡°Certainly, certainly!¡± The king looked around the harbour, and spied the long thin ship with four masts instead of the normal three. ¡°Ahoy, Walrus! Any objection to visiting Wahleet?¡± ¡°Now that do be a better proving trip than Tesk! Aye, majesty! Shall we bring back a dozen carpets?¡± ¡°Don''t be daft, you''ve not got the hold space. Get some spices. There''s a letter to be delivered from the lady ambassador here.¡± ¡°Actual purpose for the trip!¡± the captain yelled back, joyfully, ¡°Excellent, excellent! Hear that lads and lasses? Diplomatic package for Wahleet!¡± turning back to the king he shouted back, ¡°Casting off now, sire? Or can we tell our loved ones?¡± King Val looked at Hayeel, ¡°Your choice, Lady Ambassador.¡± ¡°Oh! Let them say goodbyes properly! I''ve got to finish the letter! Tomorrow would be fine, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Lady needs to finish her letter, and I''m sure your crew''ll want to say ''bye properly,¡± the king shouted to the captain, ¡°Give them shore leave ''till dawn.¡± There was a cheer from the sailors. ¡°Interesting vessel,¡± Esme observed. ¡°Some kind of fast attack ship?¡± ¡°No, not enough cannon. She''s a runner, isn''t she dad?¡± Hal asked. ¡°She do be indeed, Hal, and she''s fast, very fast. Turns quick too.¡± ¡°A runner?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°The Albatross do be fast enough to out-manouver and sink a typical warship, ambassador, the walrus do be designed to be fast enough to out-manouvre a small fleet intent on sinking her, to get emergency supplies through, or passengers or to be a fast courier ship.¡± ¡°And you''ve just given us the excuse to try her out on a proper mission. So don''t feel you need to thank us, lady Hayeel.¡± Hal''s mother said. ¡°These men love playing with their boats. Some of us women, too.¡± she added, glancing at Yalisa absent-mindedly running her hands over the polished sides of Sal''s ship. Sal was noticing, though, and noticing the animated joy with which she was answering his question about the storm that had fired her love of the sea. Hayeel heard his mother joyfully decide that she needed to plan for two weddings, not just one.
The palace, Captita ¡°Hal, you seriously came all this way, just to turn back?¡± Thena asked her son. ¡°No mummy. I came all this way to mobilise the fleet to guard Canneth better, kidnap everyone, and drag them back kicking and screaming to witness me getting married, and of course to get dad to agree to that document he keeps ''hmph''ing at, without which the wedding is going to be a bit unconstitutional.¡± ¡°Unconstitutional?¡± Hal''s mother asked, shocked. ¡°How can we agree to be united as husband and wife if we''re officially at war?¡± ¡°I thought you said it was over?¡± Thena asked. ¡°Of course it is. Esme called all the ships home, goods can travel, etcetera. But dad didn''t give me the authority to sign that.¡± ¡°Hagberry!¡± Esme shouted in delight, as the ambassador came in. ¡°Have you heard Daddy''s little secret yet?¡± ¡°Little? I''ve been gently nudging Hal into marrying my crown princess? What ever happened to keeping ambassadors informed? Why are you giggling, young lady I don''t recognise?¡± ¡°Hagberry, allow me to introduce the Lady Hayeel, ambassador from Crown Prince Salay of the empire of Dahel to my royal court. She came as wife to the ambassador, who died and is now ambassador in her own right, as ratified by the seal and scrawled letter that crown prince Salay sent her at great haste. Most of the letter is moaning that her husband kept her ignorant and he can''t entrust his instructions to her to paper and how he wishes her dead husband had actually talked to her.¡± ¡°Have you met Yalisa, Ambassador Hagberry?¡± Hayeel asked, to his spluttered reply. ¡°She was just pulling Sal into the harbour when I decided to leave them to it.¡± ¡°Pulling?¡± Velania, Hal''s younger sister asked. ¡°Apparently she slipped,¡± Hagberry said, ¡°I thought it looked like she jumped, but who am I to say.¡± ¡°She''s been under a lot of stress lately,¡± Esme said. ¡°She''s been under a lot of water lately, too.¡± Hagberry said. ¡°Sal helped there, I''ll add. They seem to be having a whale of a time.¡± ¡°How old is Yalisa?¡± Velania asked. ¡°About Sal''s age. Or eight. I''m not sure. Behaviour-wise it looked like eight.¡± ¡°What have you done Hal?¡± king Val asked. ¡°Do you mean that in terms of finding a kindred spirit for Sal, or for myself?¡± ¡°I mean what happened that I end up with this in front of me?¡± ¡°You don''t want me to start at the beginning do you, Dad?¡± Hal asked. ¡°I think someone ought to.¡± Henela, the older of the two sisters said, entering. ¡°And does anyone know why Sal do be swimming around in the harbor with a strange girl? Both fully clothed, I add.¡± ¡°That''d be ¡ª possibly crown by now ¡ª princess Yalisa of Tew, Henela.¡± Esme said. ¡°I presume them swimming is some kind of getting to know you thing.¡± ¡°Who was winning?¡± Hal asked. ¡°I don''t think it was actually a race.¡± Henela said. ¡°Were they holding hands?¡± Thena asked. ¡°Not that I saw,¡± The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You know,¡± Hal said, ¡°if they''re both dripping wet it''s going to be very hard to get their attention with a bucket of water.¡± ¡°Shall I go and call them in the general direction of honourable behaviour?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Let''s all go,¡± Thena said. ¡°That way you can all witness me scolding my son for not introducing me to his future wife before he takes her for a swim.¡± ¡°You''ve never taken me for a swim, Hal,¡± Esme said. ¡°I did let you use my bath,¡± Hal pointed out. ¡°True. Do you think she knows?¡± Esme asked. ¡°That mother''s going to hand Sal a sari for her?¡± Henela asked. ¡°I don''t know. It do be an old tradition though.¡± ¡°What do be an old tradition?¡± Hagberry asked. ¡°To pull someone into the harbour do be just play,¡± Hal said, ¡°But to swim on, do be public joy in one another.¡± ¡°And so I shall hand him a towel to dry her and a sari to wrap her in. And if she doesn''t understand, then maybe my haranguing my son for his lack of consideration and unseemly haste will help her understand. And she need not accept the sari, and if she accepts it she need not put it on.¡± ¡°And if she accepts it,¡± Bethnia interpreted for her husband, ¡°she says she plans to put it on sometime, but it is too soon, and if she puts it on, then she accepts he will be her provider.¡± ¡°You know our traditions, princess?¡± king Val asked. ¡°No, your majesty, but as Esme said, mother was from Tesk. Isthana also has the gift, so now there are six of us to overturn the more stupid laws of Tesk.¡± ¡°I cannot without my prince''s permission,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°But I have written that I hope to do so. I think I must rewrite the letter, though. My writing at sea was not suitable.¡± ¡°It''s beautiful calligraphy, Hayeel,¡± Bethnia protested. ¡°No, it''s adequate. I''ll show you the difference if you like.¡± ¡°Please ¡°.
Letter to his Imperial Highness, Crown Prince Salay My prince, this is my fifth letter to you, which I am now re-writing, the evening of our arrival in Captita; my calligraphy at sea is not good. We got to Captita about four hours ago, in that time I was introduced to his majesty king Val, who with his queen, Thena, came down to the port to meet us. On hearing that I''d like to send this letter, king Val shouted ¡ª if that''s the correct word for the volume that came from his mouth ¡ª almost half-way across the harbor to a newly launched vessel, described by prince Val as ''a runner'', a ship intended to get around blockades to deliver messages or vital supplies. The ship had been due to go to Tesk, a journey of about three days. Now they travel to Wahleet, and do so joyfully, because it will prove that their ship is the fastest afloat. It thus may be that you get this fifth letter before my fourth, which was given to a captain I know, due to leave Canneth today. I hope that you do get it first, or at least, only a few days after. My friends prince Hal and princess Esmetherelda have helped me understand what has been happening in my emotions, and where I have made mistakes in what I wrote, in what I attributed my feelings to. At one point in letter four I wrote that I was feeling the urges of a woman surrounded my those with children to be married, and to have children of my own. No, actually I''m not. It''s not a generic desire to find a suitable husband and father for my children; I''m so used to weighing and rejecting hopeful potential suitors (too immature in his faith, too old, too irritating, too boring, too unstable, too inflexible, yuck, is that food stuck in his beard? What''s wrong with his face, is it inheritable? ....) that I barely remember the reasons. The men here are.. optimists, I suppose the word is, and even while looking out to sea beside the two princesses of the Isles I had to turn down two men interested in whether I was a believer and single. I guess that means I am prettier than most, but I don''t feel pretty. I don''t feel like a delicate flower who wants to be put on on display. And when I rejected them, I wasn''t rejecting them thinking if my hope for us is in vain they might be reasonable alternatives. There was nothing in particular that repelled me. I just felt, ''oh, not another one'' and said ''Don''t waste your time, I''m not interested,'' to both of them instantly. What pulls me, then, towards a man I''ve never seen or met? It''s certainly not a desire for security. If it were that, then I''d say, my prince, I like this role I have now, being close to my sister, in a pleasant city, can I keep it? For position? I find that if I try to place myself in the role that I believe ''empress'' consists of (please God, may I be totally wrong!), the description that most easily springs to mind is ''mind numbing boredom and frustration''. I like commerce, I like bargaining, I like improvising, I like the sea air, I quite enjoy the simple accomplishment of cleaning, and (you''d never have guessed) I like being totally open with my thoughts and feelings to people I trust. But I do not trust easily. So why do I trust myself to you, honourable prince? Why does marriage to a complete stranger seem like it ought to be the natural direction in my life? Because it''s happened before? No, my late husband-in-name was not a stranger. I knew his irritating points and intellectual abilities already. But there is a reason, a reason that you telling me I''m not the one will bring tears to my eyes and me to scream my frustration at God, and you telling me I am the one will bring me tears of joy even if you (metaphorically) have food stuck in your beard ¡ª I assume you don''t have one. The reason is this: if I am the one of prophecy, then all the painful moments in my life start to make sense. I would not have met prince Hal and developed the gift if I had not been ambassador''s wife. I could not still be a virgin without the constant mix of joy that I was not being nightly forced to endure the unwelcome lust of a man twice my age who I knew had a violent temper and used prostitutes; combined by the bitterness of thinking that I was married to the only male I''d ever met who seemed to be actively repelled by me. I would not have become a teacher of language and discovered that I enjoy that teaching and explaining role, and nor would he have hated himself had he not killed my father. If I am to be the one of prophesy, then a lot of my past makes sense. It makes the future totally scary, but I think the future being scary is something that I''ve lived with since father came home bloodied and already feverish. I have not written to you of that awful night, nor my time before it. I will tell you in person, if you wish me to remember that night, but I think it is on my civil service records, in answer to the question ''what is the worst thing that has happened to you.'' Let me instead, my prince, tell you of my parents and my childhood. Father, as you know, was a trader, mother a slave. Father met her when he was a young man on his first voyage, and said he fell for her long hair and intelligent eyes. Mother always responded ''nothing to do with these hips and curves, then?'' He would always laugh and pull her into a passionate embrace. He told her owner: I am sure this girl will be my wife, please, I beg you, do not let any man touch her, do not sell her to any but me; I will save up and find whatever price you ask for her. And her owner laughed at his foolish bargaining line and said, ''you bargain like a gullible fool, so I will sell her to you at the price you deserve: twice what she should cost. But for such a profit, I will do as you ask. None will touch her, and she shall have no duties but to speak to you when you visit. And father started to save, and visited often. He taught her his language and she taught him hers, And he became so much better at bargaining that her owner accepted him as a partner. And then her owner died of a heart attack. At the reading of the will, Father feared that he might have to try to outbid another for her, but no, she was his, and they joyfully married. Then they discovered that she was not free, and the money that would have been her purchase price went to lawyers trying to find a way that he could free her. Now I know three ways: he could have smuggled her out of Dahel, he could have applied to the court of Canneth, or the Isles for papers that would make her a citizen, or he could have applied to your honourable parents for a special ruling of freedom. None of the lawyers suggested the latter, and he did not know about or dare the first two. Mother was listed as a house slave, and house slaves do not travel. He could not have her re-listed as his personal slave, because a foreigners cannot do that. He could not register his boat as his house. And so on. Mother was stuck at home, without papers, but I was born and when I grew, I could travel with father. And I did. From the time I was six until I was about ten or maybe twelve, I would travel with father on shorter trips on his ship. But then he and mother became worried that I was longer a little girl, and was drawing attention from the sailors, and could not skip school and expect to do well, so they decided I should stay home. When we weren''t at school Mother and I ran a small shop, and Taheela would do most of the cooking and cleaning. Taheela was sixteen when father died, and mother was suddenly taken to the slave-pens. It was a bit early for Taheela, but we were penniless. She''d caught the eye of her now-husband, and he''d caught hers, and so she took the initiative. ''Father is dead, mother left her heart-medicine at home, so she will be dead tomorrow or the next day. You like me, I like you, and I need a bedroom for the rest of my life. So does Hayeel, but she''ll happily sleep on your floor. I want something softer and warmer. Will you let me sleep beside you in your bed, cry about my loss on your shoulder and rock me to sleep until I''m ready to love you?'' Shocked, he asked ''Just move in? What about marriage?'' ''A judge will say I am not old enough to marry, but I will happily take an oath to you and from you.'' ''When is your birthday?'' ''Three months. In three months I can marry you.'' ''If you will cook and clean for me, I will sleep on the floor for four months.'' And the honourable man did just that, Taheela and I had the bedroom, he slept on the kitchen floor. After two months I was accepted into the civil service, a month after that I said ''my sister with whom I share a bedroom will marry next month.'' ''what of her husband''s home?'' ''We were homeless and he took us in. He is an honourable man and sleeps on the kitchen floor, but there is no other bedroom.'' And so I had a bed in the language school, and they had privacy. Then, I shared a tent with my husband-in-name, then the palace called an embassy. Are you surprised that I consider my room there too big? We were not poor before, but father put a lot of money into the cargo, and still had some to pay on the loan for his ship. When my husband-in-name fined him, he fined him the maximum amount: the sale value of his cargo, and the value of his ship. I am sure that you can check on this, perhaps it is in my records. This is why he hated himself: not just because he killed father, but because of the fine, he sent my mother to the slave-pens and so killed her, and he also made me homeless, except for the boldness of my sister and the nobility of her now-husband. All this, because he was angry, fined my father for an illegal shipment which was not illegal when it left port but only because there was a storm which delayed his arrival. My prince, I beg you, ask your honourable parents, is it the intent of the laws to destroy lives so? Was it just that someone did not think things through? Was it thought through and my husband-in-name overstepped his authority? These questions burn in my heart. I did not know my husband-in-name''s crimes when I told him of the redeemer, and of grace. I was joyful when he repented after he had been bitten. I imagined that I would nurse him better, and we would take vows in the sight of God together, and be husband and wife together. But then, the day after, no, two days, he told me of his sins, what he had confessed to God. His use of prostitutes ¡ª which I knew, how could I not? ¡ª his anger, his rage at my father''s simple request for reasonable and honourable mercy, and all that followed. I knew that I must forgive, but it was hard. I imagined as I was washing the pus from his wounds that I was washing the pus of sin away too. That helped, and it also helped that I saw God was not going to make me lie with him, as I had dreamed of and prayed for those two days. God does not always answer my prayers, my prince, and I am glad, so glad. In his grace I found the strength to forgive. Now, from the prophecy I find the glimmer of hope and happiness. But hope has let me down before. I will cling to God, even while I weep, if hope is to turn to ashes in my mouth once again. I will trust that God knows best, and that he intends it for good. I must write of the journey, and of Captita. Oh Captita! You have seen, I expect, Wahleet port. Compared to Captita port it is tiny. But I will get to that later. First we sailed past Tesk, the closest of the Windward Isles to Canneth. It would have been the natural one to stop at, being half way, but Tesk will not accept prince Hal as a visitor, and Esmetherelda declines to set foot there until that changes, but nevertheless prince Hal chose to pass close enough for us to see it. It has the appearance of somewhere once grand and now faded. Even the academy buildings look unmaintained, there were old pleasure craft in the harbor that looked like they could never put to sea again. No one seems to care. I understand now why Hal calls it ''Poor, rebellious Tesk''. My father''s friend (who has delivered or will, God willing, deliver the epic that is letter four) rarely visits. Now I understand that also. It must hurt. My prince, as someone with links there, however, I would like to change that... desolation, with your permission, and undo some of the self-harm that Tesk has done to itself through unthinking and rebellious laws. And perhaps seeing if I can scream at the dying church enough to get it to show some signs of life rather than just tradition. After passing Tesk on the third day, we once more crossed featureless ocean, yet ended up sighting the isle of Gorma straight ahead on the fourth. There, in the little port on its leeward shore, we let down our anchor and the sailors swapped tales and news long into the night. Gorma is a huge ridge of bare rocks with a small port, and masses of marshland beside it, almost up to the foot of the cliffs. Having seen Gorma, and looked at Hal''s map, I see what he means about the Isles protecting Tesk from the weather. The windward side of Gorma is more of a slope, but it is still bare rock except for the occasional stunted bush. If Gorma had been the other way round, those slopes would have been full of life, I''m sure, but with Hal''s pointing, I could see the driftwood tossed as high as the slopes above Wahleet by wind and storm. As it is, it defends Tesk''s once-rich fields. After Gorma the sea became rougher, and princess Yalisa became a permanent feature at the bow of the boat, thrilling at the wind in her hair and spray on her face. At the end of day five, we came to Yesk with it''s marshland and vinyards. Yesk is a bit like Tesk, except it is sheltered by Captita, which can be seen from the top of Yesk, apparently. Certainly it was only half a day''s sailing. Again we stopped there, in the port of Yesk and the sailors greeted friends and family, Esme again confirmed the war was over, and we tasted the best Yesk wine, which is said to be the finest anywhere on the planet. I certainly found it a very pleasant drink. Then onto Captita, which produces the close-second finest wine. On the way, Hal showed us the shoals where prince Henk shipwrecked his ship, and decided to say he''d been set upon by pirates, triggering the war, and the cove often used by smugglers where prince Henk had overloaded his ship with smuggled wine. The Isle of Captita is the largest of the isles and was once dominated by a volcano, which exploded sideways, towards Dahel. This I can see. The port is where the middle of the volcano was, the port entrance, where the volcano walls vanished, probably throwing stones that landed in Dahel. What is left is a bit like seven eighths of a hoop, with a mountain on one side. The old inside face of the volcano was pushed back, shattered, and that side became the windward edge of the island. Now there is a beach and a vines flourish on the south-facing lower slopes, the city is on the north and leeward slopes of this huge circular bay. Below the city and the vineyards are the wood-stores, the shipyards and the quays. There is more of the island ¡ª there are the marshes which provide fish and strange vegetables on the leeward edge, and between the marshes and the city there are trees, sheltered from the wind and the sea by the volcano and the marshes. To the windward face of the island is the volcano, piled up, hard, resolute slabs of granite as big as a house. They get shoved about by the winter storms. Hal says that there have been five attempts to build a light-house on the top of the island. They never survived the first winter. But, he says, that''s OK, because any ship out there would not survive a winter storm anyway. What there is instead, is a chamber cut down into the rock, where dry wood is stored, and where a particularly hardy individual or couple lives a month at a time, tending a night-time beacon fire as long as there isn''t a storm strong enough to blow it away. Being on beacon duty for a winter month earns the keeper(s) two rights: to be free of all taxes for two years, and (for couples) to name any child born as a result of their time up there after the duty. Two years of no taxes in exchange for having a month-long honeymoon appeals to some newly-weds, and there are apparently quite a few people on the island with names based on the word beacon (e.g. Bean, Becona, Connie), or keeper (Keep, Perkin, Kaprun, Ker). Outside the winter season, the reward is just a single year tax-free, unless there''s a serious storm. I was introduced to one young man called Bean, whose mother is called Connie, and whose father is called Ker. Bean is talking to a girl called Becona, and they''ve agreed that if they do marry, then they''ll aim at calling their child Kaprun or Beana. The queen heard that and said if they decide to stay there until they manage to conceive, then she thinks the king will have to give them three years tax-free per extra month and give them some kind of title. The king winced, but grinned his agreement. Being beacon keeper is not an easy or safe job, however. Every few years someone is blown off the cliff by a strong gust. For most that means at most a broken bone, as there are nets, grab-lines and such-like, but some people do die. One thing that worries me, highness, worries me seriously, is something that Yalisa said: her father has improved canons that shoot further and more accurately. She thought of diagrams she''d seen with Dahelese writing. It worries me in two senses: does it make war more likely, if the king of Tew thinks that he can sink Caneth and Isles ships without as much risk to his own, and secondly, how did he learn this thing which I assume is secret? It also makes me concerned on another front, which I am too emotional to judge wisely. Perhaps you are also, and should take counsel from your honourable parents? It seems there is a chance of war breaking out as well as an epidemic of romance (Princess Yalisa of Tew and prince Sal of the Isles seem to be getting on very well, and although she has publicly declined a token of his love, declaring she did not know that her swimming in the harbour with him was more than being happy and silly, and accepting it would be premature, she hoped that she would be able to accept it later; both Esmetherelda''s unmarried sisters and their probable-future husbands also seem firmly on the road to marriage, all this since Hal met Esme!). So, with war considered likely, should I not be warning you to stay away and stay safe? What a foolish and selfish woman I am that I still want you to come, explain the whole prophecy to me, and tell me what if any part I have in it. Why, my prince, do I assume that if we marry according to the prophecy, we will have a long and deliriously happy future together? Should my life until now not have taught me something? It has taught me to treasure the nice times. Now, is one such, and I treasure it. I have just realised that I did not tell you of my own coming to faith. My parents had... almost none. I pray that what they had is sufficient for God to have saved them. I understand that you may find this surprising, if you think that Tesk is a place of strong believers. I myself only recently understood that that has not been the case for a long time now. The Isles are a place of strong faith, still. Canneth is more of a mixture, with many in government having faith, but not all. The present king was not a believer when he married, and while the daughters have now all followed him to faith, his wife and (soon to be executed) son have not. Maybe half of the population only attend church for special events. Tew has fewer believers, and Tesk fewer still. I am told that many buildings built as churches are little more than singing clubs that are a community centre for special occasions. Tesk is a centre of ''independent thought'' apparently, by which they seem to mean sinful rebellion wrapped up in fine-sounding words. Having rejected the authority of the king of the Isles, they have also rejected the authority of the king of kings. And if the church in Tesk does not dare to claim the authority of its message that came first to Tesk, how can people believe? Sorry, that is my sermon over. Father grew up attending one of these singing clubs. He learned songs, but I do not know if he ever really understood them, or perhaps he thought their meaning was obvious. Perhaps I misjudge him, but he never explained them to Taheela and me, though he and mother did teach them to us. Maybe it was fear of the law and what happy little girls might prattle about in the wrong place? I don''t know. But they made no special reference to them or to scripture in their lives as far as I can tell. Except, except, as he was dying, father was reciting the words of some of them. I, in my ignorance, thought that he was simply remembering his home. Maybe he was remembering his God. May it be so, Lord! So, Taheela and I knew many songs of faith. Tesk songs, we called them. And we thought of them as songs to sing to children, and when we were happy. Taheela sang them more than I. I don''t know what would have happened to me if I had taught my students in the central zone to sing songs about the Saviour as part of their early language lessons. They weren''t children, and the idea never occurred to me. Then, I visited Taheela. She was excited and... changed, not just because she was pregnant, but there was a joy in her that I hadn''t seen before. She explained, she''d been singing Tesk songs to her unborn child, and a sailor had come into the shop, a sea captain. To her surprise, he''d immediately joined in the song, though his accent when he spoke was not from Tesk, but the other Isles, those we had been taught had taken away girls with the gift of Tesk to be their wives and also taken away the catalyst, so there were no more with the gift of Tesk on the island now. What stupid half-truths! But he gave to her a different gift ¡ª he explained to her and to her husband the meaning of the theological words in her songs, invited them to the ship and gave her also a book of the gospels in Dahelese. She asked if he had another, for me, alone in the faithless civil service. He didn''t but he asked around, and so it was they found that half of his crew had been carrying copies in Dahelese, just in case, and Taheela said, ''oh! But my my sister and I learned to read and write in your language too!'' And so after that, Taheela and her husband left with new faith and ten Dahelese gospels (for their neighbors), and two in the original. And so it was that I received my copy of the gospels, the meaning of the songs I''d been taught as a child, and a new faith. Once we were out of the central zone, I told my husband that I was a believer, would he object to me reading God''s message to his creation each evening? He did not, so I obtained a copy in Dahelese script. I didn''t tell him that hidden in my language materials there was a copy of the original, which I read each morning, except when the soldiers said we had to travel a long way that day and so woke us at dawn. He always slept later than I did, so I don''t know if he ever knew, even. But that is how I came to faith ¡ª Prince Hal of the Isles on a proving trip for his new ship. Now this letter comes to you on the proving trip on the new ship, Walrus. May God watch over the brave men and women that crew her. Yes, men and women. As it is not meant to get into fights but run away from them, the Walrus has a mixed crew. Highness, I don''t know if I need to say this... but just in case you are as insanely optimistic as me about our meeting. Please, don''t be tempted to ask for passage on the Walrus. If there is a war, then it is unlikely that either side will attack a merchant ship carrying the flag of Tesk (if this makes no sense, see letter four when it arrives regarding that crazy idea!), since neutrality is recognised. A new design of courier-ship however, might attract unwanted attention. Your ambassador and God''s servant, Hayeel. ps. My honourable prince, I realise that in my last letters I have, in my excitement quoted exact quotes from my husband-in-name that perhaps may be the very lines you wrote of, saying that they must not be written on paper. I sincerely and humbly beg your forgiveness and mercy if that is the case. pps. How can I have forgotten! Shame upon me! My prince, in the hope and expectation that this will reach you and that nothing untoward will happen to the Walrus, I have as your ambassador accepted a gift from princess Bethania of Caneth (you can add her the list of those with the gift of Tesk). She entitles it ''The windward harbours''. As you see, she has brought a miniature engraving and printing set with her. I am amazed, both at her dedication to her craft and her husband''s tolerant help. The cabins aboard are not large, after all! It shows the harbour of Canneth city, complete with the cliff behind which the embassy lurks on the left, and the other harbours we passed or stopped at on the way. She has also, sneakily, just sketched me on the back, as I was writing this letter with my hair unbound. I humbly apologise for the immodesty of sending you such, I thought it was some other piece of paper, and I was going to ask her not to publish it. Now she is contrite for breaking taboos she was not aware of, but I assure her what is done by a princess is done and should not be destroyed. Have I not written that I am comfortable with what it implies, after all? Planet 5 / Ch. 12: Decisions

Planet 5 / Ch. 12: Decisions

The Palace of Captita, evening meal ¡°So, let me get this right,¡± Sal said, ¡°Esmetherelda rescued herself from her cage, you got her out of the barn, and within half an hour you''d handed her her sari?¡± ¡°A bit longer.¡± Hal corrected, ¡°And that was so she wouldn''t be embarrassed.¡± ¡°But you''d already declared you wanted to marry her?¡± ¡°Of course. I was going there to try to woo her anyway, remember?¡± ¡°And bring back a peace treaty,¡± grumbled king Val. ¡°I did bring back a peace treaty, father.¡± ¡°That''s not a peace treaty, it''s an invitation to war with Tew.¡± ¡°We''ve got one of those already,¡± Esmetherelda said, mildly. ¡°We thought it was only fair to give you a chance to come too.¡± ¡°On the arrival of rumours that my brother has indeed died, your majesty,¡± Yalisa said, ¡°I would like to say that the idea of not being in control of the Tew warmongers, sorry, generals, very much appeals. It means I''ll have more time for solving important issues that Tew faces, like water and food supply.¡± ¡°Water?¡± Esmetherelda asked. ¡°Yes, water. The miners want it to separate their ores, and the people want to drink it. That''s one reason father was after the Twen.¡± The Twen valley was a mining region and traditional battle-front between Tew and Caneth. Most of the time it had been part of Caneth, with the border along the mountain ridge that the Twen was at the foot of. ¡°I didn''t know it was about water. I thought it was just expansion to claim our mines there.¡± ¡°Well, that too,¡± Yalisa said. ¡°But if the Twen was ours, we''d be able to shift processing there, and drinking from the Tewel wouldn''t be as dangerous.¡± ¡°There are other ways of processing metals than poisoning people.¡± Esme said. ¡°I know. But most of them mean reduced extraction ratios. That''s the other option. Of course Tesk allegedly know some other processes, but they see it as a national secret they want to use as an income source to spend on their defence budget.¡± ¡°Which is already needlessly crippling them,¡± Esme said. ¡°Hayeel, you want to say something?¡± ¡°Your majesties,¡± Hayeel bowed formally to Val and Thena, ¡°You do not realise this is foretold.¡± And then she quoted the public version of the prophecy. ¡°Esme''s father did not know about the prophecy, but when I told him of it he smiled, and said, ''God keeps his promises.'' I am here to seek out the noble woman that the prince should marry, yes thank you Bethania, we don''t know it''s me until prince Salay tells me the whole of the uncensored version, but the snatches my husband-in-name told me do match me, depending on things like whether being an ambassador or having a grandmother who claimed to have been born with a noble title counts as me being a noble.¡± ¡°Why do you call him that?¡± Thena asked. ¡°Because after we were given new titles and told we were husband and wife, he asked about my past, and he realised that he had been the direct cause of my parents'' deaths, and hated himself for it. He would not tell me what made him turn from me, and not touch me. But I didn''t like him much either.¡± ¡°But you married him.¡± ¡°No. Neither of us was already married, so a soulless civil service process looked at roles I had said I would accept three years earlier, saw it said ''any'', because I had been desperate and didn''t think that effectively made me a slave until later. They felt I had done very well as teacher, and wished to send me, with a high position. They did not believe that a woman might be considered ambassador in her own right, so they gave me what was highest post they could give me. And so someone probably looked at a list, and I was assigned to the most honourable position of wife of ambassador. He was assigned to be ambassador. So, naturally, I was his wife. I could have requested ''any honourable position that leaves my personal life my own'', but I was ignorant, and didn''t.¡± ¡°And that''s still on your file?¡± ¡°I really don''t know. I wonder if the prince has thought to change it.¡±
Administrative offices, Dahel, five weeks before Yalisa''s swim. ¡°Most honourable prince, I humbly thank you for coming,¡± the grand vizier said. ¡°Your spoke of a problem?¡± ¡°There are no problems, honourable highness, only issues to be resolved.¡± ¡°I''m glad, grand vizier. What issues?¡± ¡°The status of the wife of the late ambassador to Caneth, highness.¡± ¡°If they accept her as such, she is lady ambassador, grand vizier. I have sent her the seal and commission by my own hand.¡± ¡°Ah, highness, there is no such post.¡± ¡°Then please advise me, grand vizier, what post it is that a lady occupies who carries out the functions and authority of an ambassador.¡± ¡°Widow of ambassador?¡± ¡°A status that is temporary, is it not?¡± ¡°Until a replacement ambassador can be sent, yes, highness.¡± ¡°I have been informed by her late husband-in-name that the marriage was never consummated, and that she is a believer in the saviour. I have written to her promising that there will be no replacement sent.¡± ¡°Then... what is to be her role?¡± ¡°For the moment, Lady Ambassador, grand vizier. I am sure you can create such a role. I also wish it on record that her role shall never drop lower than royally appointed teacher unless she is severely reprimanded, and even then only with royal decree. Also that her role shall always be in complete alignment with the dictates of her faith. Some confirmation will be necessary, but it may be that she shall rise to the role of wife of crown prince and later, of course, empress.¡± ¡°The daughter of a slave and a foreigner?¡± the grandvizier exclaimed. ¡°How else can she be the one spoken of in the prophecy, grand vizier? She needs a lot of Tesk blood to have the gift of knowing thoughts. Learn to think kindly towards her. Have you looked into her background? I have, it is fascinating.¡± ¡°Fascinating, highness. Her father was a trader, her mother a slave.¡± ¡°Her mother was a slave, it is true. But her grandmother? Reduced to slavery from the nobility, for a crime as a child that she probably didn''t commit. Your predecessor apparently decided that, it having been so long ago, there was no point trying to locate her to restore her freedom, rank and title.¡± ¡°But there should at least have been a note on her file?¡± ¡°None. Perhaps the file itself was not found. So, assuming her husband did not lie, the Lady Ambassador is indeed a noble virgin born of a slave. Hence my decree that she be treated with all honour.¡± ¡°I obey, highness.¡± ¡°Good. What can you tell me about the process of annulling an unconsummated marriage, of restoring a title removed as a result of a miscarriage of justice, and of what ought to happen when an official oversteps his authority so badly as happened in the case of her father?¡± ¡°The overstepping of authority resulted in the official''s demotion, highness.¡± ¡°His demotion from a minor port official to where a only a few years later he was raised to be my ambassador? I am not amused, not one bit. A man who allowed his rage to gain such control should never have been considered for an appointment to ambassador.¡± ¡°His retraining was to have been to an internal position, highness. I do not understand what happened.¡± ¡°I do. His records were separated, probably bribes were paid, or strings were pulled, so that those appointed to check his records found only his application to join the service, which was not marked as a reapplication. If records are not being correctly filed and entered, the system is worse than useless. I have personally investigated thus far, and have confirmed with the investigators from my staff that they did not see the records. There will be records within your department that states who removed and who refiled his records. I would like to hear from you within one week about direct suspects, and within two what legal action is being taken against those responsible for the failings within the civil service. Here is the precise instruction, with my father''s approval. But my question remains. The family suffered the wrongful death of the father, the confiscation of property, followed by the confiscation of their mother! Who was responsible for this? What procedures were followed or not. What form of restitution was considered appropriate, how was it made, or more likely, why was it not made, and who made that decision. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "When I next write to the Lady Ambassador Hayeel I wish to know, and when I speak to her personally I wish to be able to fully answer her each and every question in total and absolute detail.¡± ¡°I understand, highness.¡± ¡°Good. Restoration of title removed by a miscarriage of justice?¡± ¡°Is a matter for your honourable father, highness.¡± ¡°Father has not received the paperwork detailing the case, or your recommendations for just recompense. The case notes are in your archive of ''miscarriages of justice, do not bother his majesty.'' I was amazed that such an archive exists, as was my honourable father. Its very existence is of course a slur on his honour. He has agreed to make the case of Duchess Taheena the first case he considers. He will then allocate one half hour per work day until there are no more miscariages of justice you or your predecessors did not deem sufficiently important to bother him or grandfather with.¡± ¡°With respect, highness, that will take years.¡± ¡°You mean decades. I do not consider that to be an excuse to deny justice. I find it incredibly strange that you and your predecessors have investigated these miscarriages, but not actually acted on them.¡± ¡°It is a function of the law to investigate, so that the guilty parties may be punished, highness. Restitution of past mistakes for the indirectly affected...¡± he shrugged, ¡°it has not been as important.¡± ¡°Slavery or nobility is not important?¡± ¡°What does a slave know of nobility, highness? Would someone raised from so low flourish? Would they not, rather, constantly suffer deprecating insults and subtle slurs, from those of crude mind and thought?¡± The implication that the grand vizier did not approve of Hayeel was entirely plain to Salay, but he did not need to issue direct threats. ¡°I have no doubt you will defend my honour by rigourously prosecuting any who dare such a thing, grand vizier. As, of course, insulting a member or prospective member of the royal family is a good way to see if the noble or high civil servant in question can flourish as a slave.¡± ¡°Highness...¡± ¡°The man who was sent to find a woman who matches the criteria of the prophesy, became convinced that she was almost a perfect match.¡± ¡°Almost is not perfect, highness.¡± ¡°Since the gift is not developed without the catalyst, and the catalyst is in the possession of the King of the far Isles, it is impossible for her to have been a perfect match.¡± ¡°But there must be hundreds of others with this gift, highness.¡± ¡°Enquires have been made. There are very very few. Tesk has not had any with the gift since they broke away, presumably as a punishment for their rebellion. The catalyst is clearly closely guarded, but Caneth is known to be allied with the Isles, and so hopefully as my ambassador she can discover what would be needed to arrange to encounter it. Until she has been proven not the woman of the prophesy, or found another candidate, to my mind she is a prospective member of the royal family.¡± ¡°And to your honourable father?¡± ¡°My honourable father honours my optimism, grand vizier, but wisely denies me permission to catch a ship to talk to her until at least she has written of her present situation and state. Based on the letter from her late husband-in-name then the soldiers are unlikely to return to the central zone until spring.¡±
Letter to his Imperial Highness, Crown Prince Salay My prince, I don''t know if I will find another ship going to Dahel before the winter. Six weeks in each direction is so long! I so long to hear from you, but even if I do, you will be writing before getting a single one of my letters. This is number six, my prince, in case one of the others is lost or delayed. Three weeks of travel is also tiring, unless you are as in love with the sea as princess Yalisa. We are almost in Caneth. The Albatross and the Skua (prince Sal''s ship) lead the way. Half a day behind us, so Esmetherelda can reassure everyone that it''s not an invasion, half of the fleet of the Isles will come. King Val has agreed, and the entire royal family come (on different ships) to be at this wedding which will wed the two states. King Val has made one change though: the common defence pact will be signed as soon as he gets to Caneth, the vague intention of long-term unity will be mentioned in that pact, the purpose: to ensure peace and the permanent end of hostilities will be made clear. It will be agreed that Hal and Esmetherelda will on their wedding become arbiters of all disputes between Caneth and the Isles, and that they will be able to call on the armed forces of either side, and also that the arrangement will be open to other nations to join. Further details are acknowledged as too complicated to be resolved quickly, and the results of the request to the Tesk academy are awaited eagerly. To facilitate official communication across the crowded harbour, Tesk academics long ago developed what are called the talking rhythms. Messages can be sent by flag or an expert with a drum, or just a big stick and a barrel. Slower, but much longer range than shouting unless both parties have king Val''s lungs and everyone knows to shut up when a someone shouts ''ahoy''. And so it was that two and a half days ago we sailed close to the island, and with a well-practiced hand, prince Hal formally invited 30 members of the Tesk parliament to his wedding next week and meetings beforehand, to meet all six of us with the gift. He also told them it seems like the catalyst takes four or five hours to have full effect when it had any, and if they wanted to they could bring up to thirty young woman with good faith and good sense, below thirty years old to the wedding and a conference. OK, yes, a ball if they insisted. Of course women could bring their husband, kids too, but the seven ships from the isles coming to port soon only had seven cabins apiece, so they''d assumed the girls would be sharing. But there could be space in the hold if enough barrels of eels were sold. I don''t think I said ¡ª one of the main export-fish of the Isles is eels, caught in the marshes, but Tesk has no marshland. So, there will be a ball at the wedding, and I must attend. I intend to be what they call a wallflower, a woman who looks on, smiles prettily, and does not accept any invitation to dance. Esmetherelda tells me that if I do not dance, she will invite Taheela and her husband. ''Do! They will be delighted, I''m sure. I''ll look after their son and play catch the baby if Taheela goes into labour.'' But I will not need to play catch, I see them, all four, at the quayside. So maybe I''ll hold the baby instead.
Caneth harbour ¡°Taheela, should you be up?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Raheel, meet auntie Hayeel, Hayeel, say happy birthday, Raheel is ten days old today.¡± ¡°Ten days already! Wow! You were early, weren''t you, Raheel! No, you''re a big girl aren''t you! Maybe mummy just can''t count.¡± ¡°Your grace, you have a letter,¡± Taheela''s husband said, bowing formally. ¡°My grace? I''m an ambassador, not a duchess!¡± ¡°You''d better read your envelope, sister,¡± Taheela said. ¡°''To her grace, Duchess Hayeel of Repink, Lady Ambassador to the royal court of Caneth.'' Repink is where grandma was from, isn''t it?¡± ¡°And mummy said she used to say she''d been a born a duchess, but that it was really normal for slaves to have some kind of story like that. Go, on, open it!¡± Hayeel did. There was a letter, which she instantly recognised as Salay''s writing, and a very formal document. ¡°By order of his Imperial Majesty, the title of Duchess of Repink, with all rights and privileges, having lain vacant these past decades, is restored to Hayeel, oldest living descendent of Duchess Taheena, condemned to slavery as a result of a false witnesses and subsequent miscarriage of justice, this only so discovered after her death. In the event of Duchess Hayeel''s death without legitimate children or a higher title being bestowed on Duchess Hayeel, the fourth rank title shall pass to her sister, who shall be, until that time, known as Lady Taheela, of the fifth rank of nobility, with all associated rights and privileges.¡± ¡°Me? Lady fifth-rank?¡± Taheela shrieked in disbelief. ¡°Something interesting happen?¡± Esme asked. ¡°You could say that. If you ever wondered what a Dahel-style act of ennoblement looked like, here''s one. And meet my niece, Raheel. Lady sixth-rank Raheel I should say.¡± ¡°You''ve been ennobled? Congratulations! Any particular duties that go with it?¡± Esme asked. ¡°No idea. I really hope I don''t have to collect the tax for Repink personally, that''d be awkward. Especially since I''m not exactly sure where it is. I might need to borrow some maps. Grandma got made a slave in a miscarriage of justice, apparently.¡± ¡°And your prince has had the title restored?¡± ¡°I really don''t know. I''ll need to read his letter. Better done in private, than here on the dock, I think.¡± ¡°Probably. Congratulations on your ennoblement too, lady Taheela, lady Raheel.¡± ¡°Am I a lady?¡± Taheela''s son asked. ¡°No, ladies are girls, you''re a little lord sixth-rank now, so no playing in the mud,¡± Taheela said. ¡°Oh. Can I not be?¡± ¡°No,¡± Hayeel said, not needing the gift to work out what he was asking, ¡°And you still wouldn''t be allowed to play in the mud,¡± The disappointment on his face was very obvious, and so Esmetherelda said, ¡°But it might be that little lords have some special play clothes, which their lady mother doesn''t mind them getting muddy. I know that when I was a little princess I had some. Lady Taheela, I trust you and your husband will be joining us at our wedding and the ball afterwards? Duchess Hayeel claims she will not dance, and will look after your children, but I think there will be some dances we can persuade her to take part in, circle dances where there is no partner who might dwell on unwelcome thoughts.¡± ¡°I''ll be delighted to come, highness, and I''m sure that duchess Hayeel will be delighted to represent the honour and grace of Dahel in such a manner.¡± Prince Hal came from talking to ambassador Raleph. ¡°Esme, there''s apparently a new ambassador from Tesk, and there''s been one official courier from Tew, impatiently asking when Yalisa will be back for the last five days.¡± ¡°Not able to do basic maths?¡± Esme asked. ¡°I guess he thought that maybe we''d rush her back where he expected her to be from part way if we heard anything. Feel free to ask him and see if there''s any coherent logic in his brain. That looks like him coming.¡± There was indeed a man running towards the quay where the Albatross was tied up, dressed in the livery of an official messenger of Tew. ¡°Yalisa, put prince Sal down for a bit.¡± Esme called. ¡°There''s someone who wants to talk to you.¡± ¡°I want to talk to Sal,¡± Yalisa replied. But she did let go of his hands and look around. She then stood erect, unmoving, as she took in the two black sashes around the messenger''s arm. The messenger knelt before her, and drew a breath. ¡°Long live your majesty! The king your father was walking on the cliffs, shouting his anger at God for the death of your brother. Your lady mother was near him, mourning more peacefully, and not so close to the edge. There was a large landslide, your majesty. Your mother survived, but was hurt, a broken leg, your father was killed.¡± ¡°You came by ship?¡± ¡°Horseback, majesty. A carriage and changes of horses are prepared.¡± She closed her eyes in silent prayer, and looked at Sal. ¡°Go, beloved queen.¡± Sal said, ¡°Your people need you, and overland is faster with changes of horses.¡± ¡°Before I go, Esme, please send me what you get from the academy. Sal, I do not want to face this on my own. Will you bring the cloth you offered me on the beach?¡± ¡°Now?¡± ¡°I will be gone soon if you don''t.¡± As Sal sprinted to his boat, Yalisa asked ¡°Lady Hayeel, as a neutral observer of my thoughts, may I have your advice?¡± ¡°Your mother will need you, your people will need you. You will need hope, strength, and honour. Sal will need clothes and an honour guard, and has both on the Skua. He can also take you the things you leave here. By accepting the cloth you honour him and your heart, by not wearing it you honour your grieving mother. I think there would be dishonour and lack of respect in travelling together with prince Sal and leaving all your ladies in waiting here, abandoned. The messenger now worries on hearing you have more than one; so I tell him there are three. There is only space for himself or the other driver to sleep, a guard, yourself and one other. It would be most dishonourable to travel with no female companion, your majesty. Choosing speed and leaving two to pack your possessions and travelling on the Skua would be better. That is my advice. And a good choice of companion, majesty.¡± ¡°Rosa,¡± Yalisa said to the most down-to-earth of her companions, ¡°you and I must rush home at top speed. There will be little time or privacy for changing on the way, but we must be presentable and in mourning colours. Please, make appropriate choices for us both.¡± ¡°Your riding gear?¡± Rosa suggested. ¡°Very good,¡± Yalisa said, ¡°We may indeed need to ride.¡± and then proceeded to give instructions to the other ladies-in-waiting. Planet 5 / Ch. 13: Duchess

Planet 5 / Ch. 13: Duchess

Letter from Crown Prince Salay Honourable Duchess Hayeel, My ambassador. I was surprised that not only do you have a noble name, but so does your mother and sister, and I searched out your mother''s records, and her mother also had a noble name. And the records proved that it was not, as mother first thought, a great presumption of a slave to name her daughter thus, but honouring of her forebears. Duchess Taheena was falsely accused of writing a rhyme that flew from the flagpole of her family home during a visit of the collector of taxes. The writing seemed childish, though the subject matter was not. This was at a time of discontent, which had seen the honourable parents of the duchess killed, it was thought, by bandits. Duchess Taheena protested her innocence, but was found guilty. Her lands were handed to the neighbour with the longest adjoining border, as was the unwise process at the time, and the case closed. Thirty years later, when your mother was ten, and your grandmother had just died, a similar rhyme was found hanging not far away. The writing was compared, and deemed to be the same. Your grandmother''s neighbour was investigated, and found to have the same handwriting. Here, I am at a loss to explain what happened next. For some unknown reason, the policy of the ministry of the interior, on discovery of a miscarriage of justice, is to investigate it, punish the guilty party, and make restitution if the directly affected person still lives. If an indirectly affected person is alive, then action is only taken if they apply to the ministry. Quite how they are supposed to discover in the meantime that the case of their husband, wife, father or mother has been declared unjust I do not know, especially if they are a slave unable to travel. But that is the process; the restitution of any miscarriage of justice requires imperial decree, and imperial decree is only automatic in the case of a living victim. The emperor my father was as surprised to learn this as I was. The grand vizier says this has been the way for centuries, except that some fifty years ago one of his predecessors decided that the policy of posting a list once a week of cases determined to be miscarriages of justice that week was a waste of time, since in the five years that there''d been ''a put a pebble in here if you looked at this list'' box, the only thing ever found in the box was litter. Personally, I''d have made the list of cases stay there five or ten years. But there is dishonour here, and father will be reviewing the cases. Your grandmother''s was the first, and finishing the backlog will take a long time. A member of the royal family involving themselves in what ought to be a civil service matter is often portrayed as a type of protectionism, and protectionism and corruption are terrible things, Hayeel, but for my personal peace of mind and sense of justice I have been investigating the cases relating to you. The system has failed you badly, and it only seems right that having been so abused by the system, you benefit from a little protection. Actually you would benefit from a lot of protection if only you were here, my ambassador, but in any case, I have looked into things. I was shocked to understand that you had been made to marry your parents'' killer. I was also shocked to discover that any killer could have been named my ambassador. There are people whose task it is to ensure that documents relating to a civil servant being raised to a royal-connected post have been checked. All your documents were checked and you received high marks. Your husband-in-name, however, received only a passing grade, and it was only his language ability that allowed him to be considered. But... none of the papers regarding his demerits for outbursts of anger nor the fact that he had been expelled from the service for the murder of your father and had to reapply from scratch was passed on to the checkers. He should have been on a black-list, restricting him to menial posts out of contact with civilians or high officials, not taking a language course at all. He was not on such a list. Could it have been incompetence? I had hoped to be able to write to you with all details, but the grand-vizier is still investigating. He tells me that there were multiple failings, probably some were corruption, others might have been incompetence. Maybe we''ll never know. What I ask myself is, given that it is his sin (and of course his realisation of it and refusal to add further sin to it, the Grace of God be praised) that has (at least by his account ¡ª may it be true!) kept you untouched by him or another, should I be pleased that you are in that state, or should I be horrified that you were almost (I pray it was no more than almost) ravaged by that murderer, and that if I had but spoken to you or read your documents myself then things might have been so different. So I ask your forgiveness instead, my ambassador. Your late husband-in-name has declared you a virgin, and on the evidence of his letter the emperor my father has annulled your marriage. If that would cause you any inconvenience (e.g. you are respected only as the widow of the late murderer, heaven forbid) you have no responsibility to report that, it is an internal matter unless you choose to publicise it. However, as a virgin duchess of the empire, assigned in an official role, you may not marry without the emperor''s consent. Further, a failure to adequately protect your personal honour by a foreign power will be considered an act of that merits a war of devastation, or immediate execution within the empire. I include the gold, white and red-black bands of purity, honour and war-threat for your robes of office. In the terrible case that the late murderer lied, then the annulment will be void, and the gold band should be replaced by a black ribbon denoting you as a widow, I hope that you do not need to find such. As a widowed duchess of the empire, you may marry only with the permission of a member of the royal family, the war-threat for insult to your honour remains. I have spoken to my imperial father about what I can write, what I cannot, my ambassador, and I wish letters did not take so long to arrive. So, in case your husband-in-name was totally incompetent, here is your core task, if you can do it. You are to seek to find out under what conditions you or another may be exposed to what I presume is a great royal treasure of the Isles, the Tesk catalyst. There have been some unsavoury rumours which I find impossible to believe of my ancestress, but in any case, take no repugnant action, and merely discover. (If access is somehow granted to you at request or in exchange for some kind of simple gift, feel free to accept and see if it affects you). Your other task is to identify any women who match this set of criteria: having sufficient Tesk blood that they might be affected by the Tesk catalyst, be of noble blood, be teachers. You and your sister of course match the first and second criteria, but she does not match the third. Nor does she, being a mother, match the sensitive fourth criteria: she should be a virgin. My ambassador, I would be delighted if this criteria was also true of you. But... I sent you away, as the prophesy told me I should not. I sent you away as the wife of the murderer of your father. Please forgive me. There are other criteria, but either you have heard them or you have not, I may not write of them. One more remains I can speak of. If you are immune to the catalyst, you are certainly not the one spoken of, so since uncertainty is not good, I pray that God almighty will enable you to find out soon. If you are not immune, I cannot make promises. We must meet, I must be satisfied there is no other who matches better, and that you match all criteria. And it may be that you hate me for what I have done to you and what the system has done to you, and you would never be willing to sit beside me. It may be that your hopes are set on another. You have not yet received my first letter as I write this, perhaps someone has already won your heart and you will yet become engaged or even married before you will see my instruction to warn them off. I am selfish for us both and for this world. I pray this is not the case unless you know of a better match than yourself. How I long to know! And I long for it to be spring so I can travel to talk to you face to face. Guard yourself well, my ambassador, whatever happens you are a high noble of Dahel, a national treasure. Your sister and her husband have left Dahel, and (so far) there is no record of their return or present location. They left aboard the ship ''Wanderer'' while you were on your journey. More, I do not know. I pray that somehow you will receive word of them. I pray a lot concerning you, my ambassador. May God protect you and not get bored of my prayers. Crown Prince Salay
Hayeel looked up at her sister. ¡°Taheela, just so you know, you do not match the criteria of the woman I am to look for. On two counts and a half.¡± ¡°But you do?¡± ¡°All of those the prince reveals to me, but I must continue to look, and... it becomes more complex. There will almost certainly be others with the gift soon. I must beg them all to answer some questions. I must phrase questions that do not give away what answers I seek.¡± ¡°You have to find out if you have any rivals?¡± ¡°Who else can he ask?¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Who else should he trust?¡± ¡°Hayeel, I don''t know how you can be so calm. You ought to be screaming in outrage!¡± ¡°Why? It is a good challenge, I like challenges. It provides certainty, which I also like. And he will come.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°The prince writes that he wishes it to be spring so he will come. I do not need to beg him to drop everything to come, it is his firm desire. Do you see this sash?¡± ¡°White is purity, isn''t it?¡± Taheela asked. ¡°Gold is purity; white is nobility; red and black are blood and death: war. You don''t understand.¡± ¡°No.¡± Taheela agreed, ¡°I don''t understand why he''d send you a sash that says war.¡± ¡°It is a warning to be worn by an unmarried duchess. My honour and purity protect you from death, bloodshed and war. You dare diminish my honour? You fail to protect my purity? Within the empire, capital punishment, outside, war will be the result.¡± ¡°But... you are a widow.¡± Taheela said, confused. ¡°If I were widow, the gold band of purity would be the black of mourning. His imperial majesty has ruled that I am not a widow. My false marriage to our father''s murderer is annulled. And look, my sister, at the white band of nobility, hold it to the light.¡± ¡°There are.. sparkles in it,¡± Taheela said. ¡°I noticed that too. My prince has been most sneaky. Most sneaky indeed. This is not the band for any unmarried duchess. These sparkles are not diamonds, but a hint, a hint that diamond might be there in the future. The prince has sent me the bands of a duchess who is being considered as a prospective member of royalty. He prays concerning me and he hopes.¡± ¡°You mean he''s as crazy about marrying someone he''s never met as you are,¡± Taheela said. ¡°Taheela, our ancestress was accused of flying a rude poem on her flagpole. Condemned to slavery because they guessed it was her. They didn''t even check her hand-writing. Be very very careful about what words you use. A word like ''crazy'' might easily be taken as negative, even as rude criticism. Enthusiastic is far more neutral.¡± ¡°So I can say the prince is as enthusiastic as my unusually enthusiastic sister, and that''s OK?¡± ¡°Almost certainly. But it would be safer to say that from what you''ve heard, to you he seems that way.¡± ¡°And to you?¡± ¡°Why do you think I''m sitting here with a grin on my face like a five year old with an empty cream pot?¡± ¡°You don''t have a grin on your face, Hayeel. You are calm.¡± ¡°I''m afraid my heart might explode with joy if I let my official mask slip.¡± ¡°You''re going to be heart-broken if he doesn''t choose you, aren''t you?¡± ¡°I think he will be too. So I will do my job well.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± ¡°It is imperative that I build up a list of women who have noble blood, and Tesk blood, who match a number of other criteria.¡± ¡°Like a slave for a mother?¡± ¡°A parent, anyway, if I can trust my husband-in-name''s mutterings.¡± ¡°You said there are criteria I don''t match?¡± ¡°See those two sleepy little dumplings in their cots?¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Oh yes! That''s an easy one!¡±
The palace, Caneth ¡°Hello Val,¡± the King of Caneth greeted his old friend. ¡°Kilith, I heard you were almost dead.¡± ¡°Not quite though. Esme did well.¡± ¡°Very well. Have you heard about Yalisa inheriting?¡± ¡°Yes. Nothing quite like the enemy dying to make you wonder if it was all worth it.¡± ¡°Twists and turns, Kilith, our God leads us down twists and turns. You''ve met young Hayeel from Dahel?¡± ¡°Turn up for the books there. Dahel getting involved, I mean.¡± Kilith said. ¡°Are they involved or are they just checking up on us?¡± Val asked. ¡°Oh, a bit of both. You know she''s looking for a woman to match a prophecy?¡± ¡°She said, yes.¡± Val said, ¡°Your Esme said there''s a reasonable chance it''s her.¡± ¡°Esme?¡± ¡°No, Hayeel.¡± ¡°Hayeel''s come looking for herself?¡± Kilith asked, ¡°Sounds complicated. But at least she sent Teng off with an invitation.¡± ¡°Teng?¡± ¡°Eslind''s brother.¡± ¡°Oh! Sorry, missed his name in all the fun.¡± ¡°Crazy scheme they''ve got on Tesk, academics not allowed to approach directly.¡± ¡°Everything''s crazy on Tesk. Did your hear Hal''s invited them to the wedding?¡± ¡°No one tells me things. The academics?¡± ¡°Them too, but thirty of their politicians, and thirty hopeful lasses who might end up with the gift.¡± ¡°Throwing away an advantage there,¡± Kilith said. ¡°I think it''s quite cunning. He points out that we don''t eat babies, or whatever else their mothers have been telling them, and makes it''s clear that it''s only their suborn proud stupidity that''s been depriving them of half their government.¡± ¡°Don''t expect many to turn up, that''s my advice. And if they do, check for weapons. They don''t like nobility.¡± ¡°How did you ever get Eslind off Tesk?¡± ¡°The hardest part was getting her to let me try to woo her. That took an ultimatum. I told her that if she wouldn''t even consider me a suitor, then I''d invade and tell everyone she dared me to. After that it was quite easy. I''d ask her for a dance or a walk and she''s say ''I''d say yes if only you weren''t a king.... I suppose you''ll invade if I say no because of that?'' I''d laugh and say ''of course''. Then I asked her to marry me. Same reply as normal, and I said, no, I''d go away with a broken heart. And she was very sorry for teasing me.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°What does she say about Esme and Hal?¡± ¡°They''re more in love than we were, and she''ll tell me to invade any country that stands in their way.¡± ¡°She''s a good mother,¡± ¡°She''s a good wife too. Pray for her to come to faith, Val.¡± Kilith asked, obviously exhausted, and closed his eyes. Val quietly let him self out of the room. ¡°How is he?¡± Queen Eslind asked. ¡°Still in love with you, still hoping you''ll come to faith, and exhausted.¡± ¡°I told you not to stay too long.¡± Eslind said. ¡°It was sudden.¡± ¡°No, he just hides it. He''s almost as stubborn as me and Tesk.¡± ¡°Do you think any young women will come to the conference?¡± ¡°Check them for weapons if they do.¡± ¡°He said the same. Why?¡± ¡°Old propaganda, repeated enough... The average girl on Tesk is taught by her mother that the royal family of the Isles are rapists and abduct foolish girls for their harem, that the only good noble is a dead noble, and so on.¡± ¡°You don''t think it was just your mother being an extremist?¡± ¡°There might have been some not as extreme as her. But it was playground chatter as well.¡±
Tesk quayside ¡°So... tell me. Do you think that if some of us get on your ship we''ll ever come home again?¡± one girl challenged a sailor when he got to the end of the song he''d been singing while working. She''d almost joined in. ¡°Why shouldn''t you?¡± the sailor asked confused, ¡°It''s not the storm season yet.¡± ¡°Girls disappear,¡± she replied. ¡°Theeba!¡± the sailor called to his wife, ¡°want to reassure some of your compatriots?¡± ¡°I''ll try,¡± Theeba replied. ¡°You''re from here?¡± the young woman asked. ¡°Yes. Then I met this nice man and he taught me faith one visit and checked up on how I was his second visit, and as well as checking up on me he brought me some really pretty shells he''d bound on the beach at Captita the next visit, and the fourth he brought me a necklace, and some matching ear-rings the next visit, and I asked him what he thought he was doing, and he said he was building up courage to ask me to marry him. And I said that was nice, and I hoped it wouldn''t take him too long, and the gifts were nice, but actually, food was a bit scarce, and a simple meal or two wouldn''t be refused either. Later that day he got my brother to follow us down to his ship and spoke to the captain, and my brother and me went home with a whole barrel of eels. The next day, he came up with his sister who was on the crew too, and talked to dad, respectfully asking what he thought the winter would be like if food was short now, and would it be a weight off dad''s mind if I stayed with his sister, while I worked out if I wanted to marry him. I told him he was an idiot, I knew I wanted to already, but he said, no, it was a big decision, and we didn''t have to rush. And he did get round to asking eventually, about a month after I''d started asking him daily when he was going to ask me. And we came here for the wedding, in the spring, and the no-one had starved, which had looked pretty likely to me before I left. This was six years ago, when a lot of mums got really thin, you know?¡± There were nods. ¡°So did I disappear? Or did I just find my brother a job on a ship and my parents a home on the Isles and myself a nice man to keep me warm, and leave my aunts and uncles more land to farm?¡± ¡°So you don''t think the problem''s that they''re gouging us?¡± ¡°Do you know what a barrel of eels costs in Captita? More than here. In Captita the merchants make a profit and king charges a tax on eels. On eels exported to Caneth or Tew, the captain charges double and the export tax is fifty percent on top of that. When we bring eels here, the captain charges a bit more than we pay the fishermen but less than the cost of keeping the ship running, and the export tariff is one percent, which is to say less than the wages of the guy who checks that the eels are up to export standard. Anyone here with relatives in the cloth trade?¡± The first speaker nodded. ¡°Did it ever occur to you that you''ve got a product for nobles but nobles think they''re risking their lives to come and visit? I was taught the only good noble is a dead one.¡± ¡°They keep the catalyst to themselves,¡± someone said. ¡°The catalyst is the male line, girl. It''s not some magic box. If you want to grow the gift then you''re going to need to spend half a day chatting to one of the princes or maybe the king about politics or sailing or the weather or something. Not sticking a knife in him when shaking hands is just plain polite. Personally I''d be happier if they wore a bell round their neck so I could avoid them like the plague; I don''t see the attraction of knowing what these sailors are really thinking, I was getting enough of it straight from their mouths, when some old guy came to chat to the captain about something. They used my kitchen. I think it was snowing outside, but that''s no excuse. Natter natter natter about this and that for an hour and a half and I suddenly realise I''m getting insightful, you know, hearing unspoken words. I was not amused one bit. Gave them a right piece of my mind, I did. Captain knew what I thought of coming down with a case of the gift. I reckon I ought to get injury pay, but the captain says it''s my fault for not recognising his majesty or his name. It''s Val, by the way, Val, Hal, Sal: the royal line always have one syllable names ending in al. Helps you run away if you know that. I didn''t. So much for our famous education system.¡± ¡°So... you don''t...¡± one of the girls didn''t finish her question, not sure quite how to finish it. Theeba didn''t need her to. ¡°Don''t be daft. Strong believers the entire family. They''d rather swim home than commit that sin. And don''t forget princess Esme''s got the gift. Any of that from you lot and expect her to chuck you in the harbour and tell you to swim home. By the way, all the ''laws should allow people to do what they like as long as it hurts no-one'' stuff that shocks your grandmothers is seen as complete rubbish there. Exploitation of the poor is exploitation of the poor no matter how you wrap it up. The last resort is not that you beg or sell yourself, it''s that you go ask the palace what you can do so you don''t freeze or starve. You might end up cleaning out stables, polishing street-lights or pickling fruit for export, but it''ll be what your grandmother called an honest job, and you''ll normally have an interview first so they have some idea what you''re capable of. I''m just saying this so you know, and if you ever decide to leave this little paradise where starvation seems too close sometimes, you''ve got better options than here.¡± ¡°My brother says there are massage parlours in Caneth too,¡± one of the girls said. ¡°Yes. And you know what? You can go there and get a massage, and maybe a hot bath or a manicure. And every year people get arrested for demanding more.¡± ¡°You make it sound like a wonderfully safe place to be a woman.¡± ¡°People still get robbed there. I prefer Captita. If you accidentally leave your front door open then the next passer-by will shut it for you. You need to leave a notice on it saying ''I burnt lunch, please leave open'' if you don''t want that to happen.¡± ¡°Gran says her gran said it used to be like that here,¡± one girl said. ¡°Hold that thought, dwell on it, and listen to an alternative view of history from prince Hal. I expect he''ll be doing most of the talking about that, anyway.¡± ¡°Alternative view of history?¡± another girl asked. ¡°Believe it or not, the Isles have a different view to what happened when we left the kingdom, why we banned the monarch from visiting, why the high council refused to even consider debating that decision and so on.¡± ¡°Yes, there used to be a high council, didn''t there?¡± one of the girls mused, puzzled. ¡°What do you think the invitation is about girl? A party? An all-expenses paid tourist trip? If you end up with the gift, you''re on the high council.¡± The girl who had first spoken nodded. ¡°If we come home with the gift, we will be listening to the thoughts of politicians when they give their votes, listening to the rest of Tesk. Trying to purge the lies from politics. Being brave and bold, unafraid to use our constitutional powers to remove the corrupt, the bribe-taker and the bribe offerer. That''s what we ought to be. That''s not what the high council became. It became timid, rumours abounded and the high council knew the rumours were false, but at first considered them absurd, and then the lies grew so powerful that they felt powerless to stand against them, even when they found the source. And there is more. Any law passed without the approval of the high council can be struck down, any.¡± ¡°Including the ban on the catalyst, the annulment of titles, the personal liberty laws,¡± Theeba said. ¡°You forgot the biggest one: the Separation Law.¡± Theeba gave a low whistle, ¡°What''s your name?¡± ¡°Most people call me Rena,¡± she said. Theeba heard her thinking her real name was secret. ¡°Well, young woman who wants to be called Rena, and given what you wanted me to understand, I''m not surprised either. You, at least, do not seem to be daft, and know what you''re getting into. For what it''s worth, Val was about three steps away from me when I ended up insightful. There has to be some distance limit, but I don''t know what it is.¡±
Caneth, the palace. ¡°Hello, Hayeel, I see you have a new stripy sash.¡± Esme said. ¡°I do. It goes with being a duchess. And Hal recognises it, I see. Well done, my sister didn''t.¡± ¡°I always make it a point to learn about danger signs, honourable lady ambassador.¡± ¡°What do you mean, danger signs?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Red and black stripes.¡± Hal said, ¡°You''d know what they meant on a fly. It''s a warning sign.¡± ¡°It means ''don''t step on me?''¡± Esme asked, even more confused. ¡°Quite close.¡± Hayeel said, for Hal''s benefit. ¡°Red is the colour of blood, black the colour of death. They are surrounded by white, the colour of nobility and gold, the colour of purity. Step on my honour or trample my purity, and the emperor promises blood and death. Inside the empire it just means that, outside it means the emperor is declaring that he will go to war if, for example, I''m not adequately protected. I think that probably means I need a body-guard when I''m out in the streets, sorry.¡± ¡°Worth knowing, and worth acting on, lady ambassador. Thank you for explaining it. When you say stepping on your honour, what do you mean?¡± ¡°My grandmother was condemned to slavery because they thought she''d written a rude poem about a tax collector ¡ª a count ¡ª and hung it on the flagpole of her house. It turned out to be a neighbour after her land, but not until she''d died. In Caneth context, that probably means that your newspapers ought to be very careful that what they print about me is true, fair, and not insulting. But I was wondering if you could do me a favour.¡± ¡°I''m hearing thoughts about your prince and the gift, speak on, I''m intrigued.¡± ¡°The prince thinks I''m probably going to turn into the woman of the prophesy as soon as I get to smell the magic box the catalyst is hidden away in, or whatever. But he also wants to be careful... can I try to do an experiment on the candidates, just in case one of them matches the criteria too?¡±
Caneth, conference room in the palace. ¡°Hello ladies, sorry, young women. As some of you know, since you''re staying in spare rooms in my embassy, my name is Hayeel, and I am the ambassador of Crown prince Salay of the Dahel empire. That''s not quite the same as a normal ambassador, but some of the same rules apply. Just so you know, this sash I''m wearing is a warning that means that the emperor has decreed that if anyone insults my honour ¡ª say by publishing rude comments about me ¡ª or fails to protect my personal purity, which is more a warning to men and governments, the result will be war. Scary isn''t it? I only got it a week ago, but on the other hand, it''s much nicer to be appreciated than thinking you''re just disposable, which is roughly what I thought a month or so ago. Along with the sash, and a letter from the prince explaining why my grandmother was reduced from a duchess to a slave, and why it''s taken this long to redress the miscarriage of justice, he set me a challenge: to find out as much as I can about the gift, who gets it, what factors might be involved and such like. Because it takes six weeks for letters to get there, he doesn''t even know I''ve actually got it, but still, orders are orders. ¡°Hal and Esme don''t know much about the gift either. So, I hope you don''t mind, they''ve said I can do a bit of an experiment with you. I''m planning that we''ll have assigned seats for the first day''s discussions, and then just in case there''s a distance-thing involved, I''ll move you around so that those who end up in the back for the first day get the front row for the second. I''ve also got a list of questions I''d like to ask everyone. For the record, every young woman with half-Tesk blood that Hal has spent five hours with has ended up with the gift. His grandmother told him it took longer, so maybe it depends on prince Hal too. We do know that some people don''t, no matter how long they spend around the catalyst, and that''s what my questions are hoping to find out, among other things. If the other things are relevant to you then you''ll be fully informed. Are there any questions coming to mind? How do I have Tesk blood? My father was a trader from Tesk. Anonymity? That''d be really tricky, since I expect most of you are going to end up with the gift. In a certain unlikely set of circumstances, my prince might want to talk to you about a personal matter. "Someone wants to know in what sense he''s mine. Well, he''s my prince in the sense of nationality, also in the sense that you''d maybe address a king as your majesty, it''s respectful for his direct employees to refer to him as ''my prince''. "Other senses may or may not apply. I''m ignoring a personal question. No, hearing your thoughts is hardly any different to hearing with my ears. I am learning to tune out individuals, which is handy sometimes. No, I don''t mean now. I have seen Tesk, in the sense that I was on prince Hal''s ship when he invited you here. Someone asked what I thought; as an ambassador, I have to share my private impressions with my prince, but since private impressions can sometimes be a sensitive issue, and since I represent my prince, I try not to share them, just like I don''t share what some of you are thinking about your home. Now, I hope I''ve demonstrated that I hear your thoughts. This has practical purpose. No one except me will hear your response to the questions I ask. Now, would anyone prefer that I ask the questions aloud? Otherwise I''ll show you them one by one. Oh! I forgot, do you all know each other? No, OK, does anyone object to everyone sharing names and answers to some get-to-know one another questions I''ve thought of? No, I''m not asking those sorts of questions.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± the woman asked. ¡°Because in my culture, the topic you thought of might be a thing of shame. You do not make someone share their shame, or anything else that might affect their honour or reputation, just as a getting-to-know each other session.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°So, I would like each of us to say our personal names as you are normally known, (but without family name, rank, title or qualification) and where we were born unless that is divisive or might cause embarrassment? No? Good. Then whether your parents are alive, and if one or more is dead, then the cause of death, and other information about your family if you choose. Lastly, an opinion. If all the nations of the world were committed to peace unless provoked, would there be a need for soldiers? I will start, I am Hayeel, I was born just outside Wahleet. Both my parents are dead, father was lashed by a corrupt official and fined more than we could pay because the official had had a bad day. Father died from an infection in his wounds. Mother was administratively a slave, and she was taken to the slave pens to be sold to help pay the fine. Soon afterwards she died from lack of medicine. I have one sister, who is married and if you stay at the embassy you''ll taste her cooking, and meet my niece and nephew. I think that I would be nervous with this sash around me if there were no soldiers to protect me, but maybe my guards could be some kind of police instead.¡± ¡°I am Rena, I was born in a village called Resk, just outside the city limits. My father is alive, my mother died in childbirth. My brother died because he found a gold coin and another boy coming down the road behind him saw him pick it up and punched him until he would let it go. He let it go because the boy had broken a rib and it went through his heart. The lawyers for the other boy claimed the coin was his and my brother had attacked him to steal it. There would be a need for soldiers, because sometimes governments need to stop peaceful protests against defence spending with deadly weapons. Sorry, I was just being provocative, if governments always behaved properly, there''d be no need for soldiers.¡± Hayeel made a mental note of the thought she''d heard, that the other boy had been rich, had connections, and then listened to the other introductions. None of the young women had escaped death somewhere: they''d lost parents or siblings, or both, either to famine or brutality or crime. It painted a terrible picture of life on Tesk if this was normal. But maybe it was just that those who''d suffered were more likely to take this risky step of ignoring the prejudices of their people. Rena was the first to come to be questioned too. ¡°Are you always first?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°No, sometimes I''m last. Never mediocre.¡± ¡°You like to stand out?¡± ¡°In silly things, yes.¡± ¡°Ah, I understand,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Do you?¡± Rena asked. ¡°You hide the important behind the trivial. Yes, I understand that very well. A defence mechanism. My secret was my mother''s status. Father treated her as free, and wanted her to be free, but he could not make her so. If he''d paid for her, she''d have been free automatically, but he inherited her. A legal oddity, foreigners can''t own slaves so can''t free them, he inherited her, but she was his wife, he didn''t want to own her.¡± ¡°And her mother was the duchess?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And now you are?¡± Rena guessed. ¡°I am. I did not want to make a point of it, in front of everyone. Tesk has a reputation of not liking noble titles.¡± ¡°Wise. I...¡± ¡°Shhh..¡± Hayeel said gently. ¡°There will be time later. Let us start on the questions.¡± The question on the first card was ''Was coming your idea or someone else''s?'' Mine. ''How strongly do you want the gift, how strongly do you fear the changes it might bring in your life?¡± Very strongly, to both. ''So far, after about one and a half or two hours near the catalyst, someone on the way to the gift becomes ¡°insightful ¡°; getting the idea behind a spoken word. Might you be satisfied with that?'' No ''As far as we know, women from all (old) ranks of society can have the gift, but we don''t know much. Do you have any noble blood?'' Yes (I''d be a baroness, but don''t tell anyone, secret!) ''Any relatives who are or were slaves?'' No. ''What job(s) do you have or have you done?'' I studied political sciences, and have a part time job lecturing. Before the last elections, I helped my father who was trying to become a local representative. We had lots of people who said they liked dad and his manifesto, but didn''t think he''d be able to make any changes because he was an independent candidate and everyone would ignore him. ''Acquiring the gift of Tesk is known to be age-related; women over thirty-five don''t get it, and it may be related to marriage or childbirth. How old are you?'' Twenty five. ''Do you have any children?'' no. ''Do you or have you had a husband or regular lover?'' no, these are getting a bit personal! ''Are you a virgin?'' Yes. Very personal! Hayeel selected a secondary set of cards and let Rena read them, ''You match a high number of the criteria which I was asked to look for. There are other criteria which I believe I know, and others I probably do not know at all. Do you have a living faith in Jesus?'' You know that''s counted as more personal than asking if I''m a virgin? I think my faith is alive, yes. ''If you do not acquire the gift there is no chance that you match the prince''s criteria. The prince still doesn''t know I have it ¡ª letters take too long ¡ª but he writes that he thinks I match all the other criteria. Have you heard of the prophecy of the final kingdom?'' Prophecy? No, wait, yes, I read about it once. Shock. ¡°No way!¡± she burst out aloud. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Not if I can rely on word of mouth like I said, but we''d still better talk in case the dying man who told me got it wrong.¡± ¡°Hayeel?¡± Rena asked, [Do you want the prince? I don''t; there''s someone I''d like to marry. I could throw myself at him and see what happens. Does that disqualify me?] ¡°Don''t suggest I condone insulting the God I serve, please.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 14: Tax changes

Planet 5 / Ch. 14: Tax changes

Letter from Crown Prince Salay My intelligent and beautiful Ambassador, (yes, I saw you once, when you were teaching), I am sending you the new tax regulations, and would be most grateful if you could translate them and explain the social changes they will encourage but not force. You will, I expect, recognise the concept they embody, since at root it is your idea. I was frustrated with the board of examiners for the way that they phrased my question, and angry that they then gave high marks to those who answered according to the letter but not the spirit. Answers such as yours were exactly what I''d been hoping for, and were sadly very few. I expect that the examiners did not tell you that your grades on the paper had been revised. You received maximum marks for interpreting the question according to the spirit in which it was intended. Since discerning the will of the king is a very important characteristic indeed for a civil servant, few people did nearly as well as you in that exam. I also include some changes to the law that have been determined to incur no social disruption, or indeed to prevent it, which I hope will bring you joy. You will see as part of them that others will not suffer as you have. The day after the above laws were changed, I attended the service where the records show your sister and husband were fined ¡ª did you know they were part of an ''overlooked'' church? The pastor was rather surprised, but not as surprised as I was when he asked if I would like to say a few words part way through. I don''t know what he actually expected, but I thought about my guards, who''d been rather disrespectful to the King of Kings during the worship time, so I spoke briefly on the verses I''d just read that morning, on the reality of God''s judgement on the wicked, and his desire that they repent from their sins, and trust in Jesus. The pastor then gave his sermon, on serving God not man, and which I think he''d been planning to use the cover of my speech to urgently censor, but he put his pen down quite quickly. He ended with an invitation to talk to him during the final songs if there was anything in my talk or his that had made someone curious. There were a lot of smiling faces at the end of the service, including one of my guards who asked me if he could speak to the pastor. God is good. I expect that the changes in law and the tax regulations also affect some international traders, so I wonder if there is somewhere they could be put on display at the embassy or perhaps the harbour. Is there any kind of regular information sheet that you could use to alert people? I pray that you are well and that I will receive something from you soon that indicates you are at least still live! Salay. ps, mother thinks I should send you this likeness of me, and hopes to see what you look like too.
Information sheet for Caneth newspapers, from Ambassador Hayeel, Changes in Dahel empire: slavery to end soon, end to ban on faith New laws are in force regarding automatic freedom for all classes of slaves that come to be owned by citizens of non-slave-owning nations ¡ª this was previously the case for slaves purchased for money, but there were some unexpected anomalies arising from other routes to ownership. Automatic freedom is also granted to any slave with parental responsibility for free children on the death of the slave owner. The process for freeing slaves has also been vastly simplified to a simple verbal declaration by the registered owner at the relevant office. It has long been the law that in the matter of debt-slaves, a slave is deemed to be earning an hourly rate, and as the slave has no legal entitlement to sleep where they like, nor for their sleep to be undisturbed, they are assumed to be earning sleeping-on-duty pay for 8 hours and working pay for 16 hours per day. Among recently published changes to the tax rules (full details are on display at the embassy) are changes mean that both full slaves and debt-slaves are now categorised as workers receiving an income which is then received back by their owner, and that this benefit is taxable. The owner of a land-slave is also categorised as receiving an income on the same basis, depending on how many days (and nights) service the land-slave has to work for their lord. Owners must accurately describe in their tax declaration the value to them of the duties of any slave who is not merely a general labourer. Other rules that significantly reduce the untaxed income of a slave owner make it unlikely that any current slave owner will find it cheaper to own a slave than to employ them as a worker, and to further ease any pain of transition, the authorities will subsidise the employment of a former-slave, no matter who their previous owner was, as long as they are satisfied that the income is actually saved or spent by the slave without interference or extortionate rates being charged for food or accommodation, and that the former slave is not being employed to replace a former employee. While not outlawing slavery across the entire country, these changes are excepted to mean that ¡ª across the whole country ¡ª slave owners will soon find it more expensive to continue to own slaves than employ them. The preamble to the tax rules makes it clear that there are plans to outlaw all classes of slavery ¡ª without recompense ¡ª and the above transitional subsidies represent all any owner can expect. Another law clarifying that starving a slave to death or otherwise failing to provide their basic needs for survival will be considered murder. A law has been passed permitting the public worship of the saviour Jesus and preaching of faith in him in the central zone of the Dahel empire. The huge Dahel empire has an onion-like structure with the famous port of Wahleet counted within the most conservative central zone. Laws that introduce changes to the fabric of society are introduced at the edges first, only reaching the central zone after they have been determined not to cause rioting or social unrest. Tax laws however, change in all parts of the empire on the same date, to prevent the unrest of people trying to move to find a more favourable tax location. Five generations ago the emperor of Dahel married a lady from Tesk. She insisted that, before she would consider his pleas, the emperor should accept her faith and that her religion become legal to practice in as much of the country as possible. As emperor worship had been the default position until then (although it was not encouraged by the emperor himself) this was a major social change. The anti-riot rules meant that applying these changes to almost the whole country required a huge delay before this change could be applied in the central zone. An additional law has recently been passed decreeing that since there have been no faith-related riots in the outer zones, the law should be harmonised. This means that the ''overlooked'' churches of the central zone (known and semi-tolerated, but meeting under threat of occasional raids, with all present being fined a month''s income) will now be able to operate openly, conduct baptisms in public, and so on, as will ''underground'' churches (that moved location regularly to try to avoid such raids, and were oppressed harder). On the day after this law was introduced, His Imperial Highness Crown Prince Salay took part in worship at one of the ''overlooked'' churches and gave a presentation of the core gospel message.
Embassy of Dahel ¡°Lady Ambassador, thank you for your letter to our paper and for agreeing to see me,¡± the journalist said. ¡°Thank you for responding.¡± ¡°I think our readers would appreciate a few more details on how it can be cheaper to employ someone than to pay tax on their income.¡± ¡°It comes down to the way that the tax is calculated, and the rebates for employing the former slave. Also I skipped some details. Would you like to see some worked examples?¡± ¡°Certainly! If you don''t mind.¡± ¡°OK, I took what I feel are few relatively common situations. First, a relatively low income household with two really cheap slaves: an ugly slave-girl who just cooks in the kitchen, and an old slave who does the garden. For them, that''s two manual labourers. Previously the couple paid hardly any tax on the husband''s income, because the man earns less than the married couple''s untaxed income level and they just pay property tax on the two slaves and the house. If they don''t free the slaves, then they''ll loose most of the their untaxed amount. That''ll immediately cost them a third of his income, plus a third of the minimum income of two workers working two and a half times normal; that''s a disaster. If they free the slaves, they keep their tax-free status, and they get help from the tax authorities to pay the workers. No question which one makes sense. Secondly this one, at the other end of the spectrum: a business-man who has a hundred slaves, say, manicuring his lawn and building furniture in his factory. Let''s assume, since this is pretty normal, that he''s also got a couple of pretty house-slaves who his wife assumes he forces to do other things when she''s out, which is frustrating for her but at least he''s not stooped to using prostitutes. His income is going to be so high that he doesn''t really care about his tax-free allowance, but he does care about not getting charged at a higher rate of tax, which that many slaves will do to him. So he''s going to free the workers, because it''ll cost him a lot of money if he''s charged a few extra percent his income. Also, no one really works a slave for sixteen hours a day, and then interrupts their sleep, not unless they''re a total idiot, because the slave will become sick and weak, so the actual income is far less than the amount that he''d be taxed on. Plus if he frees them then he expects they''ll work a bit better, and he can charge something for their food at the work canteen, and lodging as well. Also, I skipped over a lot I guess, but if the state pays for his factory workers, then the state gets a big percentage of the profit, so he only asks the state to pay for his gardeners. The pretty girls are more of a difficulty. If he keeps them as slaves then everyone will know he''s getting more than just work out of them, and the tax authority take one look at them and leap to assumptions and put it down on his public tax records that he keeps two slaves for domestic work and sex which would be really bad for his public standing. If he frees them, honour is restored and maybe his wife is so pleased that she smiles at him a lot more, or even goes as far as jumping into his lap when there''s no one else around. He might even negotiate that with her if he''s really disgusting. Net result, joy and happiness all round. OK?¡± ¡°You''re pretty convincing,¡± The journalist said. ¡°Don''t get my appearance into anything you print please. Next, a old single man who found himself a pretty slave, for the normal reasons. No one has any doubt why he''s got her, so the change in his social standing doesn''t apply. The state won''t employ a sex-worker for him. So probably he keeps her and pays his tax bill, helping the government pay for all the slaves they''re paying for. But maybe he can''t pay, so he frees her and begs her to marry him, or maybe she suggests it, because she knows that a permanent warm bed, food, the offer of extra status and inheritance rights are better than striking out on her own. It''s not ideal, but its what she''s used to, and marriage is nice and reliable even when she gets old.¡± ¡°You''ve touched on something I want to ask...¡± ¡°The slave unable to work.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The law says that a slave unable to work is to be housed and fed. It used to be a bit vague on the food. It also says that a menial worker unable to work is to be fed and housed. Neither menial workers nor slaves expect to retire.¡± ¡°And a sick, elderly worker is paid the same as a worker in their prime?¡± ¡°No. The law states minima, workers can hire themselves for better jobs if they like. That''s really why there''s the thing about any freed slave. The expectation is that the factory owner will be finding a new employer for old workers if he can, and employing young ones instead ¡ª that''s a requirement as well, by the way, you can''t just sack someone like here, not without a court-appointed evaluator deciding that they''re deliberately working less hard than they could. It doesn''t need to be a good job you find people, but you have to find them a job.¡± ¡°I thought you said the slave girl of the old man would have to start out alone.¡± ¡°Well, yes, but if he finds her a job moving bricks on a building site she probably says nasty things about him and quits.¡± ¡°Ah, I understand. Another question, what can you tell me about the Crown Prince?¡± ¡°Other than that he''s tall, dark and handsome, just like princes ought to be, you mean? I don''t even know if he''s tall, actually. I''ve not met him.¡± ¡°But you represent him.¡± ¡°Yes. But if I''m his hands eyes and ears here, he''s the brain. I''ve never seen my brain, but that doesn''t mean my hands don''t do what it says.¡± This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Urm, OK. Yes. Can you tell me about why he sent you here?¡± ¡°That''s something that I can''t openly speak about, sorry. I''ve shared the details with princess Esmetherelda, prince Hal and various others, but I think he wouldn''t want me to publish it.¡± ¡°No clues.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Is the prince married?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°But he intends to marry.¡± ¡°I''m sure he does, yes.¡± ¡°Does he intend to come to Caneth?¡± ¡°I believe that is his intention. He might change his mind.¡± ¡°There have been rumours that you''re here looking for a wife for him.¡± ¡°I wonder who said that, or if you made it up.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Actually, I don''t wonder, since you''re looking embarrassed and anyway I have the gift of Tesk.¡± ¡°Many apologies for the deception, lady ambassador. I do wonder how you acquired it though.¡± ¡°I think it would be instructive to you to consider this sash I now wear. As you know, red and black are warning stripes on bugs. This is the sash of an unmarried ¡ª that is to say virgin ¡ª duchess of Dahel. You''re surprised, but the man I was officially married to never touched me and that fiction of a marriage has been annulled. The bands on the outside denote purity and honour. They protect you and this nation from what danger they enclose within: the danger that a diminishing of my honour or purity by rumour, insult, attack or seduction would unleash blood and death in reply, that is to say invasion and war. If you wish to write anything about me personally, or about the prince, I beg you to not speculate as you were doing just now. Write nothing that might be taken as an insult to my honour or purity or invite others to doubt them. The empire is a long way away, but if the emperor asked for safe passage for a million soldiers to come and eradicate your newspaper in particular and this city in general, very few would stand in his way. It is more likely, of course, that war would only be the result if the crown failed to protect me from rape or insult. So if you print an insult to me, princess Esmetherelda will probably decide to send you in chains to Dahel to see if the emperor lets you beg for mercy.¡± ¡°We have freedom of the press here, lady ambassador.¡± ¡°Let me tell you something of my family history. My grandmother, an orphan aged ten, was unjustly accused of writing a rude poem concerning a tax collector, and hanging it on flagpole. Because the writing was childish, they looked no further, and she was reduced to slavery. She had been a duchess, she had all sorts of rights, and it was her flagpole. But they thought she had crossed the line and insulted someone she didn''t like in a way that should have been unthinkable to an adult. She was not given the benefit of the doubt, even as an orphan, even as a duchess. No one even looked at the writing and compared it with hers to see if it matched. If the law of Dahel will do such to a duchess of the empire, do you think that the emperor will shrug his soldiers and say, oh they have freedom of press there, it''s OK if they ignore a clearly explained warning? No, he will not. It is not the emperor''s personal will, even; it is the law of Dahel. "This sash was issued by the emperor himself, it expressly promises war, and the laws of Dahel says that war must follow if the country does not eradicate the insult. Your paper has or will soon have a letter from the princess regent saying that given the choice between sparking a war that will crush Caneth out of existence and protecting freedom of the press, they must avoid implying any insult to any noble of Dahel. I like this house, and this city, I owe princess Esmetherelda and prince Hal many many thanks for offering me friendship and honour even when I had no official paperwork, but my personal gratitude counts for nothing if you trample the gracious warning of the emperor underfoot, just like it counts for nothing how much the pastor likes you if you insult Christ and blaspheme the Holy Spirit. All the pastor can do is warn you and beg you not to. All I can do is the same. Do you understand now? I don''t want a war, of course I don''t. I''m trying to convince you not to start one. "Back to your war-causing and insulting speculation, I ended up with the gift of Tesk because my father is from Tesk and I had some long talks with princess Esmetherelda and prince Hal about such diverse topics as their marriage plans, differences in fashion and what to do if Tew invade. The accusation that more personal contact than a hand-shake is needed is an old piece of anti-Isles propaganda, and it''s totally insulting to me, prince Hal, and princess Esmetherelda, as I was never in Hal''s presence without her. Your speculation might even count as treason, I don''t know. Do you really think freedom of the press would allow you to print such insults and lies? Good. Lesson on international diplomacy has ended. Any more questions?¡± ¡°Urm. You mentioned your urm, purity, being protected, what happens in the case of marriage?¡± ¡°The sash of a married duchess is different. I can''t actually remember how, but in any case, I cannot marry without the emperor''s permission.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because I''m counted as a national treasure, and maybe the emperor will need to cement some kind of treaty thorough me, which doesn''t seem likely. Or maybe he will just want to make sure that no one is after my title, power or access to the imperial throne.¡± ¡°Access to the throne?¡± ¡°As I told princess Esmetherelda and prince Hal, the chances are that if they send an envoy to Dahel, it will be two or three years before they meet the grand vizier. But as ambassador I have sent a letter to the crown prince asking him to talk to someone, and as duchess I can probably do the same to his majesty himself. I don''t actually know what protocol requires. You might guess I was not duchess when I left home. His imperial majesty would never have allowed my marriage to that man if I had been. The miscarriage of justice was recorded but not acted on by civil servants who thought they were doing the right thing. Now it has been corrected and I am duchess of Repink, which is about the same size as Tew.¡± ¡°The size of Tew?¡± ¡°Yes. I believe the population is higher though.¡± ¡°And you derive an income from it?¡± ¡°I''ve not actually asked, and letters take a long time. If I wrote to ask now, I probably wouldn''t hear until spring or even later.¡± ¡°Can you tell me where Repink is?¡± ¡°It is on the coast, past Wahleet, just past the barrier of the central zone. That is significant because it means that the people in my duchy have had a long history of the freedom to worship God. I don''t know if they do, but I hope so.¡± ¡°Some do,¡± Taheela said, bringing some water. ¡°That''s where our pastor came from.¡± ¡°Oh good! Is it time for something, Taheela?¡± ¡°You''re supposed to be meeting Rena soon. I thought you''d like a drink first.¡± ¡°You are wonderful, sister. Yes, time flies when you''re warning reporters not to start a war. I''m afraid we''ve over-run.¡± ¡°I have ample material, thank you, Duchess.¡±
Hayeel''s office ¡°Do you understand why I cut you off yesterday?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°You didn''t want me to insult God,¡± Rena said. ¡°How would it insult God?¡± ¡°Too many ways. Committing sin to avoid a prophesy.¡± ¡°Does he even have faith?¡± ¡°I''m not sure. It''s so rude to ask.¡± ¡°That, Rena, is one of the most stupid conventions I''ve ever heard of. How would you feel if he said ''Rena, I''d really like to start wooing you, but I don''t want to dishonour God, do you know Him, do you love Him?¡± ¡°I''d feel humiliated and say ''not as well as you,'' and run away in tears knowing I''d lost God and him.¡± ¡°You might have lost sight of God, but He''s still there.¡± ¡°I try but...¡± ¡°But childish belief and platitudes don''t satisfy? I don''t know if my father had any faith, but I think if he did it was a bit like yours. He knew some things about God, he told us a few simple stories about Jesus feeding the five thousand, he knew hymns but he never explained them to me or my sister. And when he was dying he was mumbling a hymn but my sister and I thought he was just remembering home. I wrote to my prince that some churches on Tesk are little more than singing clubs, and he probably grew up in one of those. Would you go to a singing club if it might cost you a month''s wages?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°So, father never went to church. He knew the songs and it was OK to sing them to his children, what was the point of going?¡± ¡°I don''t know.¡± ¡°The point of going to church is to be encouraged in your faith, to encourage others, to worship God as part of a body of believers, to remember that this world is temporary and eternal life is eternal, to be strengthened by group prayer and the sacraments of baptism and the Lord''s supper, to be part of a forgiven and forgiving community, to hear God''s word explained and applied to the everyday life situations that we face, and I''ll stop there, and make some suggestions. The invitation was to girls of good faith. What more natural thing than to attend church as they do it here in Caneth? We need some conversation topics, why don''t you get Hal and Esme talking about how they came to have the faith they do, and what God''s been doing in their lives recently? It''s not rude to ask here, in fact, it''s a bit rude not to if you''re a believer and you know they are too. Hint, hint.¡± ¡°You really wouldn''t mind telling me about your faith?¡± ¡°Certainly not! Life is hard and really confusing sometimes, but God is good. Can we get Taheela involved too? Our stories are really linked.¡± ¡°Would there be anything more natural than inviting the others too?¡± ¡°You don''t mind?¡± ¡°Unplanned get to know our hostess time. But it''s so hammered in to us not to ask, not to say.. I don''t know....¡± a question formed in her mind, but she didn''t dare ask. ¡°Of course we can pray before-hand, and I''ll pray for you, if I may, Rena.¡± ¡°Please.¡±
Conference room in the palace, Caneth. ¡°Princesses, duchess, ladies and young women on depending what you want to think of yourselves. In case you''ve not guessed, I''m Hal. Originally we''d planned that my little brother Sal would be here but he''s gone to Tew and I''m feeling a bit like I''m ever so slightly outnumbered. But Esme''s here and she''s good with a chair, so I think I''m safe. I understand that some of you went exploring Caneth this morning and got shocked at the prices, and that the contingent at Hayeel''s embassy did some exploring of another kind. I understand that Rena is either always first or last, would you like to tell us about it, Rena?¡± ¡°As most of you know, I thought a suggestion yesterday which offended the lady ambassador, and I had a meeting with her today to talk about it. I was sort of nervous that she''d be asking me to find another place to sleep, but it ended up with her praying for me instead, which was much nicer. Apparently it''s rude here when you know someone''s a believer and you are too, not to ask them about their faith, and somehow my meeting with Hayeel ended up with all of us sitting in the kitchen talking about Jesus and life and absent-mindedly peeling vegetables. I understand that everyone is invited to the embassy tonight, because we peeled too many. I''m a bit amazed at Duchess Hayeel''s story, that she''s not a total wreck, but instead she can say, ''life is hard but God is good.'' We all heard some of it yesterday, if you''ve not heard, ask her to tell you more. But remember it''s not for publishing or passing on. I''ve learned a lot this morning, and my faith feels much stronger. May God allow that to be the same for all of us, and may it continue into our lives when we go home.¡± ¡°Thank you Rena. Since there were about half-and-half, does someone from the other group want to say anything about what you learned?¡± ¡°Before we left, I was on the quayside with Rena and some others, and we heard from someone that the prices here were high compared to home, and why. I didn''t really believe it. But I''ve seen my dad buying eels, and I watched someone here buying eels too. Same pretty metal, same barrels, same quality. Different taxes, different haggling style. Very different closing prince. On behalf of poor Tesk, I want to thank the Isles for not gouging us, for making a loss to get us food we need. Even if none of us end up with the gift we''re here learning how wrong the propaganda is. Thank you for that.¡± ¡°What I wish,¡± another girl said, ¡°was that the politicians were here, as silent observers. I want to emphasize the silent bit, because I''m a bit fed up with listening to them.¡± ¡°Well that''s an interesting proposal,¡± Rena said, ¡°on this inaugural session of the high council of Tesk, do I hear any voice seconding that motion?¡± ¡°Point of order! Are we the high council of Tesk yet?¡± another girl asked. ¡°Anyone know of anyone with the gift outside this room?¡± Rena asked. ¡°We don''t have it, yet.¡± ¡°We''d better be careful to achieve unanimity then. Any of the known thought hearers want to comment?¡± ¡°I think I''d better abstain,¡± Esme said with a smile, ¡°or I might get accused of calling this meeting to usurp the power of the council.¡± ¡°How about we call my dad in now?¡± a tall blond girl asked. ¡°He''s not an elected politician, so he''s more of an impartial observer. I can see him out in the gardens.¡± ¡°Mine too, then.¡± Rena countered, ¡°since he campaigned against yours.¡± ¡°The high council should be apolitical,¡± Esme warned. ¡°Of course it should.¡± Rena agreed, ¡°Anyone got an unelected parent or guardian here who campaigned for the Mils? Then we''d have a Peace party and the Mils, and Dad representing the confederation of independent candidates.¡± ¡°My mum was the campaign manager for our constituency,¡± a seventeen year old called Yanesa said, ¡°She was going to be looking at the gardens too.¡± ¡°Excellent. Now we ought to have an official note-taker,¡± Rena said. ¡°Shall I?¡± Hal asked. ¡°No, it''s a non-speaking role, and you''re going to be doing some speaking, I hope.¡± Rena said, ¡°Just in case we need to breathe your spit. I didn''t say that did I? Sorry, that''s gross of me. Anyone got a parent here who''s neither politician nor at all political?¡± A timid sixteen year old girl, Ada, raised a hand hesitantly, ¡°Dad''s a pastor, does that count as political?¡± ¡°It shouldn''t,¡± Rena replied, ¡°Any objections to our first action being calling some nominated observers and a secretary, and then the first motion to be discussed being whether we''re the high council or not?¡± ¡°You''re enjoying this, aren''t you, Rena?¡± someone called. ¡°Tremendously.¡± ¡°Motion to amend the suggested order,¡± they replied, ¡°First action once the observers are here should be the nomination of a chairwoman. I nominate Rena.¡± ¡°No way! Chairwoman is an abstaining role and just keeps order, I want to air my opinions!¡± ¡°I''ll volunteer as chairwoman, then.¡± Esme said, ¡°because I like order and I''m planning to abstain as the only person here with command of an army. All in favour of a balanced mix of observers, as just nominated, or substitutes until they can be rounded up? Any against? Motion carried, feel free to yell to your parents if you can see them. Anyone else know where to find parents?¡± ¡°Library,¡± Rena said. ¡°My dad too,¡± Ada volunteered.
The palace library ¡°Excuse me, are the fathers of Rena and Ada from Tesk here?¡± the soldier asked. ¡°Is there a problem?¡± Rena''s dad asked, discovering as they both raised their hands, that he''d been in conversation with Ada''s father. ¡°Not yet. The young ladies are deciding if they''re the high council of Tesk yet and want a secretary and some non-elected observers. If they decide they are the high council then they''re going to vote on whether to invite the politicians in to, urm, let me quote this exactly.¡± he consulted his written note ''listen to their proceedings, keep their mouths shut for once and pay attention.''¡± ¡°They can''t just decide they''re the high council!¡± one of the politicians said. ¡°Who else decides?¡± Rena''s father asked. ¡°That room has all the gifted women on the planet in it, and the high council has met in places other than the council chamber before. I remember reading that one time they met on a boat in the middle of the harbour. Anyway, our daughters have spoken, there''ll be tears if we don''t get a move on.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Ada''s father agreed. ¡°I wonder whose, though.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 15: Exerting authority

Planet 5 / Ch. 15: Exerting authority

Conference room in the palace, Caneth. ¡°Before we start,¡± Esme said, ¡°I''ve read a number of old sets of minutes of council meetings. One thing I noticed, as well as a list of who was present, which varied enormously, was the line ''So-and so opened with prayer.'' Traditions change and we''ve not voted on whether we''re the High Council of Tesk yet, but as you''ve agreed I''m chair I propose that we keep that tradition. I also suggest that we record our names, and that for this meeting and tomorrow''s of the maybe-high-council we who have the gift formally give full rights of voice and vote to those who might develop it later on during the meeting if we keep on long enough, etcetera. While we''re not formally in session, does anyone want to object to those points of order? No? Excellent. In keeping with her stated preference to be first or last, and because if this council is going to work she''s been heard saying that it will need bravery, Rena, I''d like to nominate you the task you''re totally petrified of. Please pray for us.¡± The blood drained from Rena''s face. ¡°Me?¡± Esme nodded, ¡°We all fear different things, Rena. And six of us are hearing what you''re thinking now, remember, and more than six are praying that you''ll be able to conquer this fear too.¡± ¡°That''s silly, to pray that I can pray.¡± ¡°No,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°It''s love. Your father wants us not to put you on the spot like this, but he doesn''t know what you''re thinking. And Esme doesn''t know what you said earlier. I expect God wants you to be able to pray in all times and in all places and all circumstances.¡± Esme said, ¡°Yes Hal, good idea.¡± Hal stood and said, ¡°Father God, you know how hard Rena finds it to pray to you. Give her courage once more to face her fears, to overcome them. Help her know victory, and bless her and all the brave young women here with hearts that desire the things you desire for them, and are repelled by things that offend you. You know their strengths and weaknesses, enable them to work as one, united body, united in dedication to you and in united in thought, no matter what that does to the mental privacy of those around them. Amen. You''ll notice I didn''t pray for the meeting, Rena.¡± In a small voice, Rena said. ¡°God? God, I didn''t think I''d have to do this. I''m scared, God. I want change and yet it terrifies me. Help us all be brave. Thank you for bringing us here, thank you for all we''ve learned coming here already. Make us wise, God. Let us sort truth from lies, right from wrong, corruption from incompetence or ignorance, boldness from stupidity.¡± Then in a gabble she added ¡°and thank you that I haven''t fainted or panicked. Amen.¡± ¡°Now would be a good time to get a hug from your dad, Rena.¡± Isthana said ¡°He thinks you''re too old.¡± ¡°Let the record say that Rena opened the meeting in prayer,¡± Esme said to Ada''s father, ¡°The rest isn''t official. We''ll be breaking for refreshments in about an hour, let''s check the names are down properly then, and everyone just shout their names out, OK?¡± ¡°No need!¡± Hayeel said, ¡°I''ve got my seating plan.¡± ¡°Excellent. Now... debate on the ... Oh, do I hear a point of order?¡± ¡°Urm, you mean me?¡± the girl who''d suggested the vote of thanks earlier. ¡°Yes, you were thinking you''d like your vote of thanks on the record?¡± ¡°Yes, I would,¡± she replied. ¡°Go ahead. Title for the minutes is personal vote of thanks.¡± ¡°Before we left, I was on the port with Rena and some others, and we heard from someone that the prices here were high compared to home, and that the reason was that the king of the Isles hardly demanded any export tariff, less than the cost of the inspections, and the captains took barely any profit. I didn''t really believe it. But I''ve seen my dad buying eels, and I watched someone here buying eels too. They were the same barrels, the same quality. There were different taxes, different haggling style. The pretty coins were the same, except there were far more here, far far more. So on behalf of poor, often near-starving Tesk, I want to thank the Isles for not gouging us, for making a loss, even to get us food we need. So, even if none of us end up with the gift we''re here learning how wrong the propaganda is. Thank you for that.¡± ¡°On behalf of my father, and his father, and his father before him,¡± Hal said, ¡°I thank you for that recognition. I''d like to say that I''m very glad that Tesk once more has some bold young women contemplating turning their lives upside down. I know that sometimes ignorance is bliss when it comes to the thoughts of those around us, that the filters between mind and mouth are sometimes very important. You have chosen to expose yourselves to what is hidden by those filters, which can sometimes be unpleasant. But sometimes there is less blocked by the filters than you might imagine. Sometimes people are happy for their thoughts to be fully understood even though they can''t quite formulate them into words. Sometimes, having someone understand you fully is just incredibly freeing. Ever since the Isles had a king, we''ve grown up with mothers or grandmothers or sisters who understood us perfectly. My brother Sal has chosen to steer a dangerous course with a girl who understands him almost as imperfectly as he understands her. I''m choosing the safer course, of having a wife who knows I''m not lying when I say she''s the most beautiful in this room to my eyes. What I''m saying is that some people will think of hearing thoughts as an invasion of privacy. Others rejoice in being open books. I pray that your families are in this latter category. I want to close this very meandering acceptance speech by saying that generations of thought hearers on the High Council have found that, combined with a populace who listen to their High Council, a little invasion of privacy and the bravery to speak up can stop a lot of stupidity and pain. So I pray that the people of Tesk are as happy to notice the truth and reject lies as you are, and that you are bold enough to speak up, even when old lies and new ones circulate as though they''re common knowledge.¡± ¡°Some of those rumours will be easy to disprove on some future wedding nights,¡± one of the few mothers present, Yana, said. ¡°And as long as we all slap anyone that thinks of them for being disgusting perverts and then point out there were thirty or fifteen or however many in the room all coming down with it at about the same time then that ought to be the end of it. Some things are just impossible, aren''t they, married men in the room?¡± ¡°Urm, indeed, ma''am.¡± the pastor said, blushing. ¡°I think I''d better move the agenda on a bit,¡± Esme said. ¡°Firstly, the motion I suggested earlier. Do I hear any voices opposed to giving every candidate here full voice and vote?¡± Ada raised a hand, ¡°I''m only sixteen, the voting age is eighteen. Would me getting a vote invalidate anything?¡± ¡°Once you have the gift you have a vote,¡± Esme said. ¡°But I don''t have it. Won''t it encourage the politicians to ignore us?¡± ¡°Perception and precedent and acceptability are the issues, aren''t they?¡± Isthana said, then added, ¡°Bethania, can you please stop drawing me? It''s really off-putting you thinking about my nostrils. Thank you. I think that the six who have the gift but only second-hand links to Tesk all assumed we''d need to go there to be considered on the council. Esme says the council could decide to meet somewhere else, but it''s already been recognised as the council. Is there any precedent for the council to accept the votes of people without the gift?¡± ¡°Not that I know of,¡± Rena said. ¡°So we''d be doing two new things, and I think that might make it too much for the politicians to swallow. If they don''t accept us as the council, then they won''t accept our decisions.¡± ¡°And they''ll assume that''s true next meeting too,¡± Ada said. ¡°Can we keep to the one topic?¡± Esme asked. ¡°They''re linked.¡± Isthana said. ¡°If we give everyone the vote, we undermine the authority of this meeting.¡± ¡°If we don''t we undermine the authority too.¡± Rena said ¡°Like you said, Isthana, foreigners don''t get to vote from outside Tesk.¡± ¡°Fun though it might be to boss the politicians around,¡± the mother said, ¡°I think that''s not what we''re here for. We''re here to prepare for what we''re going to do in the next year or ten. I''m all in favour of giving Ada the vote, but I''m going to try to convince you all not to claim power until the politicians agree we''ve got it, or we get back home and meet in the council chamber, and everyone knows that Tesk has a high council once more.¡± ¡°Do I get to speak against the motion I sort of instigated?¡± Rena asked. ¡°About this being the high council? No. First we talk about votes.¡± Esme said. ¡°Does anyone want to say anything?¡± ¡°I don''t think we need votes unless we are the high council.¡± ¡°Esme isn''t allowed to speak but she agrees with me that we''re not the high council without you, so you get the vote.¡± ¡°The Isles have tried imposing well-meaning reforms on Tesk before now, and look where that ended.¡± Henela said, ¡°Of course you get voice and vote. Including Ada because she spoke up and most of you want to hide in the crowd and not say anything.¡± Velania added ¡°Which is to say, not that there''s something inherently immoral about staying quiet in the crowd, but it doesn''t help with debates. You get the vote.¡± ¡°Actually I''m tempted to suggest there is something wrong in not voicing an opinion on something important.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°It was not speaking up against lies that robbed the council of its moral authority.¡± ¡°Even if it''s to agree with everything that''s been said? Duh, I want the vote.¡± ¡°Point of order, isn''t this just a debate for people with the gift?¡± ¡°My apologies, I wasn''t clear, was I?¡± Esme said. ¡°Making it up on the spot, I suggest that we give voice to everyone who''s a candidate, and then vote to those of us with the gift. But actually... does anyone want to disagree with the young ladies from Tesk getting the vote? Sorry, no, I won''t call you young women, in my dialect a lady is either someone with refined manners or a generic term for a noble or equivalent. You all have adequate manners and any of you who end up the on the high council will certainly be noble-equivalent in terms of authority. If you want me to call you a woman you can leave.¡± ¡°And if any of you think you might ever need to smash a chair over someone''s head.¡± Isthana said, ¡°ask Esme for tips. She''s an expert.¡± ¡°That''s only expert in the sense of tried it once and it worked,¡± Esme said. ¡°Since the average drunken sailor fails to knock anyone out and they practice far more,¡± Hal said, ¡°I think that makes you an expert.¡± ¡°Let''s get back to the topic. The motion is that the young ladies from Tesk get to vote. Any voices against? No? Votes for? Chair votes with the majority, motion carried unanimously. The next matter to discuss is, is this a meeting of the high council of Tesk, or is it just a gathering of recruits and maybe setting the tone for future council meetings?¡± ¡°My suggestion,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°is that we first hear from someone who knows, what the High Council of Tesk is, how it operates, what decisions it makes, and so on. Then we can decide if that fits with our plans for the rest of the day. Personally I was idly wondering if one day I ought to go to Tesk and find out what I''d need to do to revoke some stupid laws and also try to kick some boldness into a church or two to preach the sort of life-changing faith that my father never heard, but I certainly wasn''t expecting to sit on a formal council today.¡± ¡°I want to withdraw my suggestion that we declare ourselves the council,¡± Rena said, ¡°and I wanted to do it before anyone else got a word in first. Woe is me, I''m second to the duchess of somewhere as big as Tew. But that''s what comes of being a lady, I suppose. One must give precedence where it''s due.¡± ¡°Would you speak about why you wish to withdraw your suggestion?¡± Esme asked. ¡°We want to be taken seriously, I expect Hayeel isn''t alone in not knowing the duties or authority of the high council, and I while I was semi-serious, I hadn''t thought it through and expected it to be laughed off like a joke.¡± ¡°Thank you. Would anyone like to speak in favour of this meeting making the claim to now be the high council of Tesk?¡± There was silence. ¡°Would anyone like to speak in favour of today or tomorrow''s meeting becoming the High Council of Tesk? Rena?¡± This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°I''ve been first enough. I''ll go last if I may.¡± Velania spoke, ¡°At the moment, we are not meeting on Tesk, and none of us with the Gift are fully of Tesk. I propose that unless there''s some other president, the High Council is only considered to be in session when on Tesk, in the council chamber or... or..I don''t know,. something that makes it clear that the high council isn''t under external duress and that it''s not some break-away sub-group of the council meeting in secret.¡± Esme said, ¡°According to what I remember of the constitution of Tesk, the high council is quorate when: it is meeting in the high council chamber at a time agreed at a previous council meeting. Or, it is meeting in another place at a previously agreed time and decides it is quorate, or there is more than a majority of council members present and they decide to call an extraordinary meeting and decide they are quorate. A council member is a woman with Teskan blood from at least one parent and the gift.¡± ¡°Do they define what ''Teskan blood'' means? ¡°, Henela asked, ¡°I mean, there''s no declaration that Velania and me don''t qualify because we''re from the Isles, is there?¡± ¡°I''ve never read anything that says so,¡± Esme said. ¡°But surely only people with Teskan blood get the gift?¡± Ada asked. ¡°Not necessarily.¡± Hal supplied, after a long pause ¡°From what I remember, the Teskania says Tesk is such a strange place because the Windward Empire based the doom-guard there, and the doom-guard was basically a breeding programme for scholars and those with a tendency to pick up thoughts, but there''s no reason that Dahel shouldn''t have the raw... unrefined, if you like, talent that was being culled out of the general population by the doom-guard. ¡°You''ve read the Teskania?¡± one of the girls asked. ¡°Is that so unusual?¡± Hal asked. ¡°Almost all copies were in the hands of nobles, almost all nobles were killed in the revolution.¡± Rena said. ¡°The academy think they''ve got the only copy.¡± ¡°I know we''re going off topic, and I hope our noble chairwoman will forgive me,¡± Hayeel asked ¡°But can I ask, how many nobles survived and what''s their status now?¡± ¡°The nobles who survived hid,¡± Yana said ¡°Their status is still hiding or died.¡± ¡°I mean is it illegal to be noble?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Illegal? No. Stupid to admit it, yes. People still say ''the only good noble is a dead noble.''¡± ¡°Can someone explain why? Why do they say that?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°The history book version says it''s because the nobility had their power from the king of the Isles.¡± Yana said, ¡°The high council was not a power any more, its members were old, scared or both. Disgusting rumours we''ll still have to face weakened it, politicians banned the king''s visits, and then twenty years later broke Tesk away from the Isles. Some of the nobility had said ''this is going to end in economic disaster and starvation,'' which people took as support for a counter-revolution. The economic disaster and starvation happened, public order broke down and there were mobs of hungry people roaming the streets looking for people to blame. They blamed the nobles, probably because they didn''t have the army protecting them like the politicians did. Quite why the army weren''t protecting the nobles is yet to be properly investigated, but for some reason that''s never got much political support. It''s easier to keep hungry people repeating murderous slogans.¡± ¡°Historically, of course,¡± another of the mothers, Kara, said, ¡°what you said about the nobles having power from the king is rubbish; the nobility were in place long before the king. But that doesn''t stop the school books from saying it.¡± ¡°Thank you Kara and Yana,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°I''d like to understand a bit better, could we talk later? Maybe Rena too, with your political studies?¡± ¡°OK.¡± Rena agreed. Esme stood and asked, ¡°Right, do I bring it back on track to discuss us declaring ourselves the council or not, or does this mark the ideal point to let Hal tell us about the history of the Four Isles from his perspective? You''ll notice a few differences to what you learned in school, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Urm, before you decide on either, have any of you read the Teskania?¡± ¡°I have,¡± Rena acknowledged. ¡°And just so I know what to skip or not skip... on the subject of attunements, Esme''s mother could only think of one. Hands up if you can name more than two.¡± Most hands went up, ¡°Three? Four? Five? Six? Seven? Eight? Really, Rena?¡± ¡°I''ve seen two copies of the Teskania. One has a hand-written footnote saying something like ''these are the holy attunements. Just as the doom-guard, the worst mob-leaders make use of the unholy attunements of causing terror, dread, pain and suffering to help them seek out the fear of their prey. Do not fear them, pity instead their soul''s fate on the day of judgement, that this counter-revolution returns Tesk from the light of the first revolution to the ancient ways of the doom-guard.'' You can probably guess that was not in the academy''s copy. And that''s why I want to receive the gift, because if you look at it in the light of that, there is a lot of doom-guard thinking in modern politics, and the academy of course.¡± ¡°I guess I''m not familiar with doom-guard thinking, but I believe you.¡± ¡°We are taught the doom-guard was a terror organisation, and that''s certainly their public face. However, they saw themselves as an elite with a high entrance requirements. To join you had to demonstrate superior intellect or the ability to attune. A high level of pride and disdain for others helped too. Once you were in, then it was about realising your maximum potential, and if that meant you wanted to have a dozen ten year-olds to study, then you just filled in the application and one of the searchers went out and as well as looking for potential members of the doom-guard, they''d also pick up a dozen and a half ten year-olds, just in case some died on the way back. I''m not exaggerating, I looked at some of the old requisition forms in the academy archive for my history of politics course. During the first revolution, the academics pretended that they were nothing to do with the doom-guard, they''d just been sought out by the doom-guard and told to solve the emperor''s problems. More propaganda. But then the doom-guard were used to politics and propaganda. You''re right to say the nobility were around before the Isles had a king, just like the royal houses of Tew and Caneth. Their roots all go back to when the emperor would travel from place to place, to visit his different houses. He had more than the average density of houses of Tesk, of course, as it was the centre of his power-base.¡± ¡°Not many people acknowledge that these days, Rena,¡± Kara said with a warning note in her voice. ¡°No. But that''s about the past not the future and it''s about all I wanted to say. This isn''t a new thing we''re getting into. And this time, the mobs have mostly done something the doom-guard never managed to do before. Things are going to be different.¡± She looked around at the sombre, thoughtful faces around her and said brightly ¡°So, hand''s up if you''ve noticed we''ve been here almost two hours, all-told?¡± [Esme,] Hal thought, [did she really just accuse the politicians of being the remnant of the doom-guard, and say the nobility are descended from the emperor''s harem?] [Oh, you got that did you?] Esme replied. [And not from you, as far as I know.] [Rena is Tesk nobility, Hal.] Esme pointed out [You probably got it from her directly; most people whisper. She really wanted to be understood by people she trusted and was shouting to us.] [Renela of Resk. Brave of her parents to let her know about the ''ela'' in there, and teach her what it means.] [You worked that out? Well done.] [He does understand our names, Esme.] Velania pointed out, [ Great-Grandma Sesela taught him pretty well before she died. Just so you know, Vansk is the marshes of Gorp, And Hal''s and Henela''s Hensk is part of Captita these days. And quite a few hands going up, brother. You''re obviously an effective catalyst. Well done.] ¡°Thank you for that thought-provoking history lesson, Rena.¡± Henela said, ¡°Great-Grandma Sesela would have been really happy to meet you, I''m sure, but although she lived to a good old age, she died when I was about ten. Now, everyone, as Rena''s pointed out, it''s time for refreshments. If anyone''s starting to get a head-ache, and doesn''t like the idea of listening to Hal''s talk ¡ª as his sister I''m allowed to say he might go on a bit ¡ª I''ll be happy give you the shorter version sometime.¡± Esme confirmed to Hal that she was telling people they could avoid joining the high council if they liked, if the thought of confronting the doom-guard was too scary. ¡°Highness,¡± Yanesa''s mother, the observer for the ''military independence league'' ¡ª known as the mils, ¡°I didn''t really understand a lot of that last bit, but earlier on, one of your ''ladies'', here in quite an rude way, I feel, seemed to lay the blame for the actions of past murderous mobs on today''s peace-loving political parties. I''m quite confused why you''re allowing these impressionable young people to speak their ignorant and irresponsible words quite so freely.¡± ¡°One of the reasons that you were called to be here, madam observer, was to notice the lack of non-Tesk influence on the fledging high council. I felt censorship would be entirely unreasonable in that context. You''ll also notice, of course that we''ve basically dropped the idea that the meetings right now constitute the high council. But I''m interested in your characterisation of your future high council as ''impressionable, ignorant and irresponsible''. It struck me that they were amazingly well informed compared to, say, my own mother, who ¡ª as Hal said ¡ª was only aware of the single attunement shared by couples. And it seemed that none of them took their lead from baseless rumour, which surely means they are not impressionable. As to irresponsible, in what way do you feel they are irresponsible? Can you justify that assertion at all?¡± ¡°Surely it is entirely irresponsible for young Rena to quote that counter-revolutionary footnote, linking the revolution to philosophies of the doom-guard!¡± ¡°By counter-revolutionary, I take it you mean the suggestion given to the readers on how to escape the murderous mobs?¡± Esme said, ¡°You feel perhaps that the author should have just submitted to murder? As an amateur historian I found it a remarkable historical insight into those troubled times, and I certainly mean to ask her if she can get me an exact rendering of it sometime. It''s tragic that such an important work as the Teskania has all but been erased from Tesk. We have a number of old copies in the library here, and it''s obvious that a reprinting is necessary ¡ª you must know that the original was printed here, so it''s only reasonable that we reprint it. But I''ll ensure that the footnote is added with a suitable preface. The methods of the doom-guard in locating those with mind-reading potential were horrendous, but I''d much prefer that it be known how they operated than it be ascribed to magic. It also makes it much clearer to me why the teaching I received in the use of the gift included defensive measures. Obviously there were some unscrupulous users of attunements or even the gift during the riots, and the princes and kings of the Isles would be wise to understand those abuses and not be too generous with sharing their catalytic presence with just anyone. But, back to your assertions. You''re surely not accusing your own daughter of being ignorant, irresponsible and impressionable?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± ¡°I''m glad, since if she were to develop the gift, that would cause considerable tensions at home.¡± ¡°She will not be developing the gift, I will be taking her out of these meetings.¡± ¡°On what grounds?¡± ¡°Haven''t I said? This meeting is spreading seditious lies.¡± ¡°Madam, as has been made clear to you on several occasions, I believe, I have the full gift of Tesk, and also I am the regent here, and I had to sign the death-warrant for my brother for multiple counts of treason and sedition not three weeks ago. I am very aware of what sedition is. Sedition is when one tries to undermine the authority of a constitutionally appointed person or in the case of Tesk, the high council of Tesk. The only seditious lies I have heard this afternoon have come from your mouth. You knowingly lie when you say that the ladies here are impressionable, what you really mean is that they do not believe the propaganda that you have helped write. You lie when you say they are ignorant. You would like to keep them and the electorate ignorant, and you know only too well the truth of what Rena said, do you not? You yourself have been in meetings where someone called for an investigation about how the army were not present to stop the mobs killing so many of the nobles, and you yourself have repeated that murderous slogan, and encouraged the matter to be dropped. You know why the army were not present, don''t you, madam observer? I firmly believe that the high council of Tesk will be holding an extraordinary meeting tomorrow. If it does so, one of the agenda items will be listening to your sworn statement on what you know of the mobs and the killings. I''m sure you know what the penalty is for perjury before the high council. Yanesa, your mother has just decided to flee Caneth on the first boat she can find to avoid testifying. Would you like to say anything to her?¡± ¡°Mum, Why? Why run away when you can just tell the truth?¡± Yanesa asked. ¡°You wouldn''t understand.¡± ¡°I tell you what I understand, mother.¡± Yanesa replied, ¡°I understand that you thought me being here would further your political career. I expect you thought that you could exert some kind of pressure on the high council through me. You almost certainly thought the council would be a lot of simpering little lambs who would flinch away from difficult decisions, like I have done most of my life. So, what I think I''m going to decide is that the high council can interrogate you tomorrow without me, and that the princess regent can lock you up so that you don''t run away. I''d love to say that I would be able to guarantee you won''t do it, but I can''t. I can''t let the Tesk down like that. You taught me to love Tesk, mother, and I do. And I love you too. I hate what your party is doing to Tesk, all the changes you''re bringing in. They''re horrible, and I''d love you to get out of the party.¡± ¡°You little fool,¡± ¡°You can''t get out of the party? What is it, some ancient religion with a death-curse, like in the stories you used to tell me? That''s it, isn''t it?¡± She turned away and fell to her knees, sobbing, ¡°Dear Lord God have mercy on my mother!¡± ¡°I was wrong, she is impressionable, isn''t she?¡± Yanesa''s mother said, ¡°How can she ever believe such a thing?¡± ¡°She sees it in your thoughts as clearly as I do,¡± Hayeel said, as Esme comforted Yanesa. ¡°You cannot leave the party because the party is your tool, the tool of your religion, priestess of dum-semb. You will eventually show the initiation symbols of your religion, but I will describe it to everyone. On your lower back, there is a pattern of small dots, a map of the major cities of the windward empire. Between your shoulder blades there is another pattern which if joined would show the shape of a stylised double-headed axe. Upon the crown of your head, where in days of old you would have been shaven, there is another pattern, depending on which branch you are initiated into, and if you are priestess or high priestess. In the old days, of course these dots would have been lavish tattoos, worn with immense pride and inspiring fear. When Rena spoke of there being doom-guard thinking in the political parties, among the shock at that thought I thought I heard someone sounding shocked that she had been allowed to read those texts. Someone let her read too much, did they? It was meant to be a slow and steady change, was it not? This plan of your predecessors? Reduce the high council to uselessness, remove it, remove the outside influences that might bring people to their senses, destroy the nobility who would have raised the people against you. Mute the church by making faith such a private a thing that even in church people are too scared call sin sin, ashamed to speak of God''s wrath against sin and his love for sinners. Emphasize pride in the homeland, so the homeland is above all, and eventually expel God''s church from the country where first it was planted. No, it will not happen, priestess of dum-semb. You cannot fight God with politics. But God can use politics to put your religion back in the history books under extinct religions. No wonder you yourself have destroyed or mutilated copies of the Teskania, and were horrified at the thought of a reprinting. Does it not show your marks, priestess of dum-semb?¡± ¡°Of course it does!¡± she replied, ¡°That''s where I copied them from. There''s no law against getting some tattoos.¡± ¡°Some tattoos. are indeed illegal, priestess. At least in some places.¡± Hayeel said, and her thoughts asked Henela to get Hal to stand ready to stop the woman from escaping or injuring anyone. ¡°Princess Esmetherelda, on behalf of my prince and his father, I must ask that you gag and manacle this priestess of dum-semb, and bring her to trial, if not for violation of your own laws, then for violation of the treaty between all countries that was mediated by lady Rilena of the village of Resk, who became the empress from Tesk, great-grandmother of his Imperial majesty, the emperor of Dahel.¡± ¡°Hayeel, you''re thinking in your mother''s language. I agree she thinks of herself as a priestess of dum-semb, but I do not know what dum-semb is.¡± ¡°Yes you do, if not the name. It is the religion of the doom-guard.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 16: Good nobles

Planet 5 / Ch. 16: Good nobles

Palace Gardens ¡°You wanted to talk to the three of us, Hayeel?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Yes. I think you can probably guess, though. Call it encouraging one another.¡± ¡°Sorry, I''m being slow, after witnessing Yanesa''s mother''s arrest,¡± Rena said. ¡°None of you are using your full names, but are dropping hints. I predict mutual encouragement if you change your habits. After tea, I, or maybe Esme, will challenge everyone at the meeting over that terrible saying. Perhaps after that you might consider saying something like ''there are many good nobles who have died, but some still live, and hope to be good while living.¡± ¡°Such as baroness Renela of Resk, you mean?¡± Rena asked. ¡°For instance,¡± Hayeel agreed. ¡°And Yanelana of Yansk, heiress to a barony.¡± ¡°Kelara of Karet, sadly, is likely to be countess quite soon.¡± ¡°And of course duchesses and princesses and a certain princess regent.¡± Hal said. ¡°You made yourself abundantly clear even to me to me, Rena. Esme says you were shouting to us.¡± ¡°You mean you understood though Esme?¡± ¡°No, directly.¡± Rena''s father had noticed that Hal was approaching the group, and decided it wasn''t a private meeting after all. ¡°Very well done, Rena! Directing a message to almost everyone in a meeting but not the ones you didn''t trust? Well done, indeed.¡± ¡°Daddy! Hush!¡± ¡°Yana and Kara, good to see you as adults. I presume you don''t remember your mothers visiting our little home in Resk to say hello to baby Rena?¡± ¡°I have vague memories, but only vague ones.¡± Kara said. Yana nodded. ¡°It was a very long time ago.¡± ¡°Twenty-two years,¡± he replied, with a deep sadness. ¡°Daddy, you''re not supposed to give away my age.¡± ¡°Renela, you''re going to be sharing pretty much every thought with these young ladies pretty soon. Get used to secrets coming out.¡± ¡°You did that deliberately,¡± Rena accused her father. ¡°Your father means well,¡± Hayeel said ¡°but doesn''t know what I was just planning with you.¡± ¡°Is it still necessary?¡± Yana asked, somewhat nervous. ¡°That depends if you want to give and receive some encouragement,¡± Hayeel said, enigmatically. ¡°Who wants a drink?¡±
Conference room ¡°We have, you''ll notice, one secretary and two observers,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°You might be glad to know that none of them have any link to sinister forces of the past or present, and they''re all rather worried for what you''re getting into. "As a confidence building measure, I''d like each of you, in turn to stand up and say what they think about the slogan of the mobs against nobles. And I know you''re normally always first or last, Rena, how about you''re exactly in the middle this time?¡± ¡°Oh, stop teasing, Hayeel. Let''s just speak up in seating order, starting on the back row for once?¡± ¡°Does that mean I start?¡± Yana asked. ¡°What do I say?¡± ¡°Have you said it the slogan willingly?¡± Hayeel asked, ¡°Have you ever felt pressured to say it? How did you react if you were?¡± ¡°I''ve never said it, it''s a hateful saying.¡± Yana said. The girl beside her, Sashan, said, ¡°I never wanted to say it. There was a school play, we were re-enacting the history of the revolution. The teacher wanted me in the mob, and said, ''you''re not a main part and everyone has to be in the play. I said I wanted to be a voice of reason. And the teacher said ''there weren''t any, dear. If you wanted to live through the mobs you needed to join the mobs, or they got trampled on you.'' So I said that I''d be one of the people that got trampled on, because it was a horrible thing to say. And the teacher warned my class-mates not to actually trample me, but I got bruises.¡± ¡°I said it once, before I knew what it meant. My mum smacked me so hard, and told me what had happened.¡± the next girl said, ¡°I cried so much, she thought she''d injured me.¡± ¡°I was in Sashan''s class,¡± the next girl, Mari, said ¡°and I didn''t want to say it, but I wasn''t as brave as her. I didn''t say all of it, and I told on the boy who stamped on her, and he got kicked off the school sport team because of it. He was a bully, and I got bruises from him too because he guessed it was me. I resolved next time I''d be there next to Sashan.¡± The tales, the attitudes, carried on, until Rena''s turn. ¡°I''ve said it. I''ve said it in a debate, not as a slogan to be agreed with but ascribing it to the other side as a summary of what they''re saying, and then trying to rip their arguments to pieces. I won the debate, but it was much closer than I''d hoped. It was scary. I wanted to shock, but it seemed that so many agreed with it, without thinking.¡± ¡°People still believe the revolution was a good thing.¡± Ada said, ¡°They don''t see. They celebrate the death of the emperor and of all the nobility in the same breath. I''ve never said it, but we were supposed to at pre-school, on revolution day. I cried instead.¡± More tales of bowing to or standing against the social pressure followed. Then Hayeel stood, ¡°There is clearly a deep wound in Tesk. But there is some hope too. The high council will be formed again, and changes can be made. One thing that is clear is that attitudes will need challenging. The trial of the priestess is probably going to shock people. Some will not believe it at all, she will probably have supporters churning out rumours that it''s all a plot of Caneth to justify it or the Isles intervening in Tesk internal affairs. You will need to build consensus, and you are scared, thinking you need allies, natural allies you can count on. You can count on Caneth and the Isles, but you need internal allies. Ada, and some of you others said all the nobles had been killed. Would any like to comment?¡± ¡°The nobles are not all dead.¡± Kara said. ¡°Lots of good ones died, but there are still some living who hope to be good nobles too. Elakart of Karet who should be countess still lives, as does her daughter and heir Kelara. Elakart is unwell, but told me she that if the high council is once more active, she will happily reclaim her title.¡± Karet, was one half of the city, including the docks. ¡°Yalek of Yansk longs to claim the title baron and will pass it to his daughter Yanelana, who will pass it, God willing, to her daughter.¡± Yana said. ¡°Yalek normally uses another name, and you might even recognise him, since he''s reasonably highly posted in the peace party.¡± ¡°Renela of Resk prays please can I use what power I might have over the barony of Resk for good, Lord, and may I use the ability to send thoughts I inherited from my mother and her mother and her mother before her since the time of the emperor for good and never ill, and may I be patient teaching it to my fellow nobles if they do not know it.¡± ¡°Urm, was that all quote, Rena?¡± Ada asked. ¡°It was all extemporaneous prayer.¡± Rena said. ¡°That means that Renela made it up on the spot,¡± Esme said, to Ada''s puzzled expression. ¡°And you quoted it?¡± Ada asked. ¡°May I speak, princess regent?¡± Ada''s father asked. ¡°Ardela, my daughter, is being a bit dense, soon-to-be-confirmed baroness, and I''m pretty sure she needs your training. My parents told me on my seventeenth birthday that if the council was ever resurrected my name was really Ralek of Ranet, which I think means that the whole of the city is not without nobility. May God help us use our constitutional powers wisely.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± exclaimed Yana, ¡°Mother will be so pleased to meet you! She''s often worried about the imbalance of half the city being without a noble.¡± ¡°Can someone explain what the constitutional role of the nobility is?¡± Ada asked. ¡°It sounds like daddy left some enormous gaps in my education.¡± ¡°The high council cannot remove a politician except that the lowest penalty for perjury before the high council is exile from Tesk.¡± Esme said, ¡°The council''s task is to ensure that laws were just; The judges'' task is to ensure the laws are applied fairly with due process; the nobles have the constitutional role of being the guardians of society from individual corruption, and have the authority to bring anyone paid by the state ¡ª including politicians ¡ª to be questioned before a court or the high council, and suspend or dismiss them from office even without that judicial process. They didn''t need the high council, but without the high council or popular support they felt insecure in their role. They also have the role of judging those accused of following the doom-guard. I''m not very certain why.¡± Rena replied, ¡°That first role was that of their ancestresses, the imperial wives or concubines or whatever you want to call them, under the emperor. They added the second when they worked together with the people, coordinating the overthrow of the doom-guard, and brave young Capela, just made duchess of Captita, who pushed the old emperor off the ship during a storm, and triggered the start of the revolution, and it was Arelan of Resk who plunged the knife into his son, ending the dynasty.¡± ¡°Tell us more, Renela,¡± Henela said, ¡°You have knowledge, share it.¡± ¡°There were two ways into that group, whatever we call it: to be an imperial daughter who their half-brother wanted as wife or to be picked from the population by the doom-guard. An unwanted half-sister was free to marry any she chose, anywhere. Many stayed on Tesk, of course, but they saw the doom-guard in their corruption and the academics in their inhumanity, so few married there. But it was cyclical: many of their daughters were collected by the doom-guard. When a child was picked by the doom-guard they were met by the harem ¡ª the collected wives of the emperor ¡ª to decide if they had the right qualities for doom-guard, academia or administration, with the wives being foremost administrators. One of those qualities came to be making their thoughts known while saying something else, a useful ability to pick those who shared the attunement of hope the system would change. I may have confused some of you earlier, for which I''m sorry. I was trying to make myself heard. If you heard only my thoughts, that is not insightfulness, that is just the attunement of hope. I think that Kara was not trying as hard as me to be understood when she said not many acknowledged the emperor ruled from Tesk. Am I right?¡± ¡°You''re right,¡± Yana said. ¡°So, who, heard me thinking that Rena was really going out of her way to be unpopular with politicians?¡± Hal and the other three men didn''t put up their hands. ¡°Hope looks like it won''t disappoint,¡± Esme said. ¡°But wow this is going to be complex. So, speaking plainly, if any of you are having second, third or fourth thoughts about being on the high council while it''s trying to conduct a reeducation programme and what amounts to a restoration of old Tesk as written in its constitution before it joined the Kingdom of the Isles, then feel free to get out while you still can and ask Henela for her Hal-free discussion on what happened during the revolution. "I think we''ll all understand if you feel this is getting more complex every hour.¡± ¡°More hopeful every hour,¡± Yana said. ¡°No one going?¡± Esme said, when no one moved. ¡°Then I suggest that we warn the politicians that tomorrow we''ll be demonstrating that we have the gift of Tesk, and formally be declaring an extraordinary meeting of the high council.¡± ¡°And because I love my country,¡± Yenessa said, with tears in her eyes, ¡°I hope that the high council will be accepting the oaths of some nobles of Tesk who will then request the princess regent allows them to exercise their constitutional role in the interrogation and trial of the priestess of the doom-guard, so that Tesk does not suffer the double humiliation of not only allowing this evil to return, but also not being able to judge it.¡± ¡°You didn''t need to be the one to say that, Yanesa,¡± Yana said. ¡°Who else should? Who else would say that? My mother has finally shown her true face. I have mainly fought her over one main subject, that of going to church and giving my life to God. I felt God telling me to come here and I remembered that passage about Jesus bringing division in families, and still I told her I thought I would come. I expected that to be the battle, but she looked calculating, and then she agreed. I pray she will still repent. She still lives. But who would have asked that when her memories are searched and her crimes are listed and her head is removed it all be done in the name of Tesk, if not me? Who would have risked hurting me?¡± ¡°You are right, Yanesa,¡± Rena said, ¡°We would at least have hesitated.¡± ¡°But we must not, you see? Grandma took me to church and mother before her. Someone recruited mother, probably after father died, ten years ago. That''s when she stopped going to church and started being involved in politics. That''s when she started telling me stories about old religions until I told her to stop, because Jesus is the only truth. She''s not the only one, and the high council and the nobles must be firm. There might be other relatives, we don''t know how far the evil has spread.¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°We will find out, Yanesa,¡± Yana said, ¡°but first let us all pray for you, and for your mother to turn from her evil. And maybe God will lead us to change our plans.¡±
Throne room, Caneth ¡°Honourable politicians of Tesk, we''re here not because my father''s throne is here, but because it''s the biggest room in the palace,¡± Esme said. ¡°Earlier today we, that is to say everyone in the conference room, had a shock. Some of you, probably, think that you''re here to hear something about the high council of Tesk. Some of you have probably been preparing your arguments to protest against it being legitimate. We''re not here for that, sorry to disappoint you. No, we''ve called you together to tell you that young Yanesa''s mother, who was observing on behalf of the mils party, is now in prison for a crime that, as far as I know, has not been tried anywhere in Caneth, Tesk, Tew, or the Three Isles since the aliens visited. The lady ambassador Hayeel tells me it is a crime known still in the Dahel empire, in very remote villages on the border of Tew, and that perhaps one or two cases come to light every five years there. A rare crime, a shocking crime, at least to me, and one that if handled badly could lead to rioting and mobs that would make what happened during the revolution be seen as insignificant. ¡°We were, as some of you know, going to have a discussion of how history is viewed differently in different places. We''ve postponed that, but we want to still look at some history. I''ve just been dusting off some ancient books in the royal Caneth library, and I''m going to be summarising them for you. Some of you will want to know why I''ve called you together to tell you old stories. But these are not just old stories, these are the things that have given Tesk, Caneth, Tew and the Isles a common language, a common culture in so many ways. Yes, that''s right, I''m going back to the first revolution. I know I never studied it much. We all learned about the brave slaves going log from one place to another, we all know about the doom-guard stealing people away from their homes, some for death, others for the academy, but other details... we forget them, don''t we? Was the emperor killed before the public revolt, or during? Was it really all organised by slaves? How was it that the organisation known as the doom-guard was annihilated in just a few days, if we believe the children''s stories we learn at school? Some of you are even now wondering why I''m giving a history lesson as a response to a crime. Others are wondering if you can sneak away. No. You may not. The long and complex introduction is because the children''s stories are wrong. The doom-guard was not destroyed in a day, and the crime that Yanesa''s mother is under arrest for is for being a priestess of dum-semb, a priestess of the doom-guard. And if any try to sneak out of this meeting the guards are under orders to arrest you on suspicion of also being a follower of that evil faith. And when I am giving this little history lesson, I want you to ponder if there is a common saying that you learned at school which would be a real favourite with the remnant of the doom-guard. I''ll have another question for you later on. ¡°So, ancient history. Twenty-five years before the end of the windward empire, the then-emperor died. A young woman called Capta, daughter of the old emperor, and her sister were taken to the high cliffs above Captita by their half-brother the new emperor. Capta was chosen as his bride, given the name Captela, and made ruler over the city of Captita. Her sister was not, and the new emperor sacrificed Capta''s sister to the the storm-god in a grizzly ritual that I''ll not describe in detail. Capta had to witness her beloved sister''s death, and then became his wife a few minutes later. It was an unusual step, normally a new emperor allowed his half-sisters to go and marry someone else a long way from home and live a happy life, unless of course the doom-guard came along and decided to take their daughters as prospective new royal brides. That wasn''t unusual, because the royal brides were unusual. Generation after generation had been chosen for intelligence, ability to manage a crowd, and quite a few had an ability to project their thoughts to people with a similar experience or thought, while saying something else. They shone like stars and the doom-guard specifically looked for stars, that was one of their roles in life. Of course they also looked for sacrifice victims, slaves for themselves and research subjects if an academic wanted a few dozen expendable victims. ¡°But, covered in her sister''s blood, Capta made a private vow of revenge. The new emperor took quite a lot of his half-sisters as wives, far more than was normal; it was strange. Sacrificing the rejected sisters as part of the marriage ceremony was unheard of. At the annual meeting of the wives of the king, called the harem, Capta and the others who could started projecting their thoughts to those who''d been horrified by the changes, and they started the beginning of the plot. Over the next decades, Capta and her co-conspirators ruled their baronies and counties had children and developed their plots. They developed a secret language and they started rumours among the peasants. The countesses and baronesses would visit each village and when they left people talked about the ideas that had come to their heads: change was coming, not immediately, but soon. We could get ready, scythes and knives get lost, that''s known. Well someone could hide a scythe in the village this year, and another the next. Bend them, break them, they make lovely sharp knives. There''s a lot of hard wood that could make daggers here, it''d be so right to plunge one in a doom-guard, if everyone else did it at the same time. Aim for the eyes, the unprotected throat, the shoulders of that priestess where she boasts about how many she''s killed with her axe. Then all the pieces were in place. The harem agreed that the trigger would be the death of the old emperor. The news of his death would be carried by the doom-guard, who would, as always on such dramatic changes, head out to the edges of the empire telling the news, and on the way back to their base take with them an army of peasants and slaves for the sacrifices. Be prepared, the messages said, when the message comes that the emperor is dead, everyone must be ready to act at the same time. Not that day, let the messenger pass. A death-message travels in a week, the sacrifices will be two weeks to the day. Give no hints. The doom-guard may be frightening, but if we hit them together, ten days after his death, then we can get them all. ¡°And the countesses and baronesses did their tours, and people heard, the baroness is with you, ten days, remember. And then, pregnant yet again by her half-brother, Captela, died. Her daughter, Capela went to her father and said, ''Captela my mother, your first wife, is dead. Will you come to her funeral, my emperor?'' And the horrible old man looked at Capela his daughter and smiled with a smile that spoke of full incest. ''Yes, my daughter, I will come to your mother''s funeral. You will take her place.'' And then, on the route to Captita, there was a storm, and she said, ''My father, my emperor, my husband, will you not talk to the storm god, and ask why this storm is so violent?'' But she knew why it was so violent, because she had prayed to God most high, to give her an opportunity. And as he was standing at the side of the ship, while the soldiers and sailors were busy, she picked up a heavy barrel and ran with it towards him. He turned and saw her coming, but she was too close, and surprise only made him unstable. The barrel hit him in the chest, and he was knocked overboard. At the same time a huge wave came, and Capela was drenched, and screamed. The soldiers looked around, and the emperor was gone and Capela his new wife, duchess of Captita was drenched and screaming that the emperor had been washed overboard, that she had seen the God of storms and oceans come and had taken him. They were confused, because they didn''t remember one god having both titles, but one does not interfere with the actions of gods. And they returned to the centre of the empire, to Tesk, and the message went out that the emperor was dead. The new emperor was the first born-son of the old emperor, so it was, so it had always been. And an emperor would have no rivals, so when the first born son reached sixteen, and had raped his first girls, and some of them had became pregnant, then all his half-brothers were killed. So, there was only one prince, and he lived in the city, but actually, he mostly escaped his guards and slept in the villages, because that annoyed his mother. On the tenth night after his father''s death he was in the village of Resk, where he had planned to rape and then sacrifice a particular girl who he had seen his mother smile at. But he had heard the fighting, and he saw the villagers rising up as one and killing the doom-guard. So he went to the baronial mansion, and said, ''You must let me in, I am your emperor.'' And baroness Arelan of Resk said, ''Yes, of course, emperor, but I heard the fighting and locked the door and put the keys down. I will get them.'' And she picked up the keys, and she picked the knife from the body of a dead doom-guard who had earlier sought refuge with her, and she opened the door to him, and just like the doom-guard, she stabbed him through the heart. ¡°The doom guard did not all die that day, of course, many tried to hide their tattoos and hid, or fled to Dahel. And of course, only the full priests and priestesses wore tattoos, acolytes did not, nor did slave collectors. So the countesses and the baronesses gave orders that the altars be smashed, and that anyone suspected of being a member of the doom-guard be brought to them for trial. ''Do not let innocents be killed, that would be terrible!'' And there was great rejoicing in the land, except among the academics. Because some of them, maybe even all of them, had been part of the doom-guard, and had enjoyed the freedom to torture and dissect when they wanted, and they were put on trial too. Those who had requisitioned slaves for death-experiments were executed, those who had not and who swore to preserve life and knowledge were allowed to live, but there was a law made, that anyone teaching what the doom-guard taught was to be executed. And the library of the academy was searched, and the teachings of the doom-guard were burnt. Almost none of it survived, but we have snippets from the records of their trials. They were the elite. They were an exclusive group, you had to work hard to be in, or you were useless, unless it was to be a sacrifice or a slave. But in any case, either you were elite or your were an animal. Once you were in, you obeyed, without question. Other laws were for the animals. In any dispute, the member of the elite was right, the animals wrong. How could it be otherwise? You married ¡ª if you wanted to ¡ª within the elite, why would you want to bring up a child with an animal? And so on. And they added a new teaching as time went on, regarding the nobility: the descendents of the baronesses and countesses. I can show you the documents, written before any of our grandparents were alive, before the aliens came, that have probably not been read in hundreds of years. We forgot. We forgot that the doom-guard had not all died. The nobility stayed in their posts and it became hereditary, but of course they were not an elite, and they married the ordinary people, though of course they preferred bright people and knowing they were already related they tried to make sure they didn''t inbreed any more. But they had the power that the doom-guard remnant wanted, they had authority they doom-guard remnant wanted. But they were still an elite. And now... where do you find an elite? An elite where outsiders are considered little more than animals? An elite where obedience is the rule, where morality is for other people, where faithfulness to other members of the elite is more important than the rule of law or decency? Where not questioning what is behind someone''s actions is more important than sticking up for the people they injure or steal from? Where do you find that sort of thing, ladies and gentlemen? I expect you can guess what that new teaching was. You or your class-mates have chanted it at school.¡± ¡°You insult not just us, but all of Tesk, princess,¡± a senior politician said, making it clear what he thought of Esme''s title. ¡°Do I? All of it? Even the remaining nobles? I thought I was just insulting the immoral descendents of the bloodthirsty philosophy of the doom-guard. And those who listen to its priests and priestesses, of course. Or do you say that all of Tesk supports the doom-guard and it''s religion?¡± The politician gave a ''hrumph'' and didn''t bother replying. ¡°On behalf of my own Tesk blood, and on behalf of his imperial highness crown-prince Salay, I remind this gathering of the treaty of all nations. The one who refuses to answer an accusation regarding dum-semb shall be tried as if admitting guilt.¡± ¡°Dum-semb isn''t a religion, it''s an uplifting, freeing ...¡± ¡°It is your death!¡± roared king Val from the back of the room, interrupting. ¡°It is the vile philosophy of the terror-cult of the old empire. Ignorance of its name is no excuse, you''re supposed to recognise it as vile, not defend it.¡± ¡°Guards,¡± Esme said as two guards moved to arrest the man, ¡°He must be questioned before he is executed in the prescribed manner according to his crime, depending if he is determined to be worshipper, acolyte, or priest. Warn the jailer that he is not to receive food or water.¡± ¡°You can''t do this to me!¡± The politician raged as he was dragged away. ¡°Members of the Tesk parliament, let me make it clear that even if you have changed the law on Tesk, the law of Caneth, Tew, the Isles and Dahel is clear. Membership of or support for the religion of the doom-guard is a capital crime.¡± ¡°Highness, might it not be possible that a new philosophy has taken the name of an old religion, in total ignorance?¡± an elderly politician asked, visibly shaking. ¡°Not when the priestess we arrested earlier wears the tattoos of a doom-guard priestess, no.¡± ¡°Then I must throw myself on your mercy, highness. For I have sinned against the God I grew up believing in far more greatly than I believed.¡± ¡°Let others who acknowledge their guilt in this matter and wish to confess their sins to God move to that side of the room,¡± Esme said. ¡°Those who think they might have been on the edges of it, but never heard its name or learned much about it may stand in the middle. "Those who heard the name but rejected it may also go to the middle, Those who wish to claim they never willingly repeated the slogan of the counter-revolution may go the the other side of the room, again if you''ve said it willingly, then the middle. No, I don''t mean anyone who''s been in our meetings. Other parents, if you''ve followed the mob in shouting disgusting slogans, then the middle of the room. If you''ve never willingly said it, then to that side. Thank-you.¡± Of the twenty-nine politicians, twelve were admitting guilt, five were claiming they''d never willingly said the slogan, and twelve were in the middle. Three parents were in the middle, three claiming innocence, and one man looking ashamed and fearful went to join those knowing they needed mercy without instruction.
Letter to His Imperial Highness Prince Salay My prince, my prince, today and yesterday... joys and terrors. I have met one girl who meets the criteria you wrote of, but she has no relatives who are slaves. We both hope that what I was told about that being a criteria is true, for there is a young man she has her eye on, and I cannot imagine her leaving the duties she sees for herself in Tesk. She is a student of politics and history, as well as a baroness. The nobles of Tesk have been all but destroyed, and the people of Tesk repeat still the terrible cries of their revolution ''the only good noble is a dead noble''. I do not know if Dahel ever heard of this cry before, but it is more terrible than mere treason, it is part of the ancient teaching of dum-semb. The dungeon of Caneth is now full, and an extra set of manacles had to be made. A priestess was found this morning - the mother of one of the candidates for the high council. The daughter has brought great honour on herself by calling for her to be tried by the high council, both for the honour of the council and so of Tesk, but also because the council must be strong, and must not allow their compassion for one member to override what is right. Five politicians have also joined the priestess. One father and a number of politicians got much too close to be safe, but did not realise what the name meant, and were attracted by the economic benefits that joining was supposed to bring. As is fitting, they have repented of their greed, confessed all and turned wholeheartedly to the saviour. One politician claimed to have never been involved at all, but was quickly discovered. He is one of the five I mentioned earlier. Of the thirty candidates, all have developed the gift of Tesk. So now there are thirty six and not six. They still have much to learn, though. I was involved in checking the politicians and parents. Thirty five between the six of us. I am tired, my prince, exhausted emotionally and mentally, but I wanted to write before I fall asleep. I don''t know when I''ll be able to send this to you, there are no ships planing to go to Dahel now. I hope another ship comes from Dahel, with a letter from you, or even yourself. I''m greedy, I know. Tomorrow we have a day in which we must teach the new council members how to use their new gift. We must also sit and witness the priestess being cross-examined. I expect Esme will be tempted to use her gift on the priestess. I think it is a dangerous thing, for I''m sure the priestess knows how to lay a trap. Therefore, as I have faced more horror in my life than any of the six, I will say that I should do it. Esme will say she has more experience, and has ordered deaths, forgetting that today I did just that also, for I invoked the treaty of all nations when the others did not recognise the name of the priestess''s religion. And then Hal''s sisters will point out that they have had the gift for years, and their grandmother had them practice setting traps on each other. I do not know who will win that argument as we try to protect one another from risk. I have spent a long time talking this through with God, and trust that God will convince us. Will you tell me that my place in the prophecy means I must not face risk, my prince? What of Esme''s? What of her marriage, due to begin in three days'' time? These are a few of the thoughts I put aside into God''s hands and think on happier ones. It is almost five weeks now since I first wrote to you. I do not know how fast the ship will get to you with my first letter. I will fall asleep praying that it brings you joy, my prince, even as Academician Teng brings scary messages of imminent destruction. Planet 5 / Ch. 17: Messenger

Planet 5 / Ch. 17: Messenger

Post-contact report, Planet 5 The conclusion of the contact team is that most of society on this planet is not ready for contact. Some of them saw us, decided we were gods and started to drag their slaves to a rock to sacrifice them to us, or thrust their virgin daughters our way. Some of said virgin daughters weren''t happy to be rejected either, holding on to us and weeping, because the stubborn attitude of some parents was that if the gods didn''t want them, it must mean their daughters hadn''t been good and so they didn''t want them either. They just wouldn''t believe we weren''t gods, and were monogamous. The girls who genuinely needed to fear for their lives we did take away, and then after teaching them a bit we played match-maker for them. In central Dahel, the emperor (who accepts worship, and enjoys the virgin-daughter bit) gave a long speech saying that he''d personally invited his fellow gods to visit, and that to show they were friends he''d give us his knife and we''d give him a rock-cutter. Our interpreter chain said sorry, no, mistake, we were creatures who worship the one God who made all thing visible and invisible and will judge the living and the dead at the end of time, but added that if he really wanted to swap his sword we''d give him a mer-knife instead. He looked at it and asked where the burning light came from, and then we realised that the ceremonial canons were now pointing at us. Sathzakara got a bit cross about that and stuck the Mer knife into one of the canons, and we left rather quickly. Tesk and the nearest land area is mostly OK, but there are still pockets of people who want a return to the old ways (human sacrifice included), and a lot of the ships from the Confederation of the Isles indulge in piracy when they don''t think anyone''s looking except their victim. We are keeping in contact with a few people from Tesk, now that they have a copy of the whole Bible. They only have a few chapters of their own scriptures, which talk of creation, their fall, an ethics code, texts condemning the abominations of human sacrifice and slavery, and God making some promises calling us their older siblings who''d be coming with the rest, and not to worship us. We also left them a challenge: we''d only come back if they got rid of slavery, and human sacrifices, have good literacy levels, let all adults have some kind of say on who ought to be in some kind of group of advisory council to whoever was in charge, and stop trying to solve everything with wars. We also set a technology challenge, that they''d have to send a message saying they''d done that to a probe that we''ll leave in orbit. We did gave them some clues that ought to take them up to radio. They have to send that message in a coordinated way from all over the planet, so hopefully they get the idea of using radio to talk around the planet too.
Imperial court of Dahel, Crown prince Salay''s office. ¡°My prince,¡± Salay''s secretary said, ¡°I humbly apologise this intrusion, there is a barbarian who came with two messages in a hand and with a seal I do not recognise but bearing an appeal to your royal purse. The guards called me, and I paid him, but then he sat down, he cannot speak our tongue, but still he tried. He seemed to be saying that he will be arrested, or maybe that he will wait. Shall I have him arrested or shall I send urgently for an official interpreter?¡± ¡°You have the letters?¡± ¡°Here, highness, as you see, one is very long.¡± ¡°It is. Perhaps the short one gives a clue. I have seen this hand before though.¡± The prince broke the seal and looked for the signature. ¡°Call for an interpreter. When he or she arrives, tell the visitor that I must read these letters first, but I will probably talk to him. The hand that wrote these is is that of Duchess Hayeel.¡± ¡°Shall I also inform your imperial mother that you will be delayed?¡± ¡°Delayed, no, distracted certainly. It seems from the second letter that the man is called Teng, an academician, and the duchess arranged passage for him. She writes that she has received my letter.¡± He checked the seal, and smiled, ¡°Oh, my secretary, did you not see that the seal on the second letter is not the same as the first? The first letter was written before she received her seal, the second after.¡± ¡°A hundred apologies, my prince, a thousand apologies.¡± ¡°You are forgiven. She writes the second letter assuming I am familiar with all in the first, so it makes little sense, but still, it warms my heart. Kindly tell mother that I shall come, at the appointed time, but I might still be reading this epic. And then please make sure I am on time.¡±
Imperial court of Dahel, the Empress''s office. ¡°Well, my son, other than lots what does your duchess write?¡± ¡°She writes of how she lives and received so much money for some medicines that she is sure they are illegal, and of treason in Caneth by the only son of the king who had introduced her to the drug dealer, of how she became aware of the treason and how that treason was resolved when the princess-regent was rescued from where she was kidnapped to by crown-prince Hal of the Isles, and of their growing love for one another. She writes about how the princess-regent has befriended her and named Hayeel ambassador even before she got my seal, and how crown-princess Esmetherelda, her sister whose name I can''t remember, and my duchess are three of only five who have the gift of Tesk. "She writes about how the princess regent personally questioned soldiers of their neighbour Tew, and determined that she had not got such real proof that war with Tew was needed, which she is happy about because her friend the princess of Tew may inherit the throne there. ¡°She also writes that the corpse said more than he wrote, that she is the virgin daughter of a slave, but if that means I want her as an empress then she will reject me if I have no faith in her God. Then she writes in a second letter that she''s sorry she was so blunt in the first one and how she''s hopeful, but I must not go to visit her overland or on one of our river boats, because she expects the princess and the prince will visit Wahleet, and because of the title I gave the corpse she is expected and invited to travel with her. She writes about policies and half-formed plans shared openly with her, of the international political changes she is amongst, of haggling for fruit and vegetables. She begs me to warn father against ever going to war against them, and describes the harbour defences as far superior to what is in Wahleet, but that even then prince Hal does not view them as sufficient. And she writes about how the men who train for it are punished by their mothers or wives if they fail to hit the target. She spoke to the ill king, and says she is sure that he has planned the uniting of his kingdom with that of the Isles for years. "She also, eventually, in the final paragraph of the first letter, explains the presence of a scholar from Tesk who she writes knows nothing of the prophecy, but thinks the sun will destroy us unless we have help from the aliens, and he hopes to call them, and needs imperial support, and asks that even if I reject her for being so forward and uncompromisingly open with what she''s written, I do not reject him.¡± ¡°And what do you think of her now?¡± ¡°I am amazed and astounded, mother. She writes from her heart, and is so unguarded.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°I wish to meet her, mother. I wish to meet her and hear her actual voice rather than imagining how she says things as I read her letters. I wish in fact to risk my life on one of these foreign ships that she says never tip over unless they are sinking already, although they look like they should. And if I go to meet her I wish to have father''s permission to marry her, so that I may make promises. Except of course, that she says she might be coming here but not when.¡± ¡°She might be coming? Why?¡± ¡°Because her title means that she''s ambassador to the monarch or regent is and his or her advisors wherever that is. She''s been accepted as such and that apparently has changed into an invitation to follow the princess-regent wherever she goes on state visits. Crown-princess and regent Esmetherelda has expressed a desire to see Wahleet''s harbour wall, but first the crown princess and Hayeel travel to Captita, capital of the Isles to meet the family of the crown prince. Apparently Hayeel has been told she''d be derelict in her duties if she didn''t go.¡± ¡°And so dutifully she sails windward?¡± ¡°Yes, mother. Dutifully she goes where she believes I have sent her and her friends invite her with open arms. She writes that princess Esmetherelda insists not only first name terms, but a shortened form from Hayeel. But I think I should listen to this brother of a queen who is downstairs.¡± ¡°Brother of a queen?¡± ¡°Academician Teng of Tesk''s sister is queen Eslind of Caneth.¡± ¡°And you keep him waiting?¡± ¡°He told the interpreter that he spent almost a week in the jail in Caneth before he spoke to his niece, and she almost threw him back there because of a rule of the academy. Oh! I forgot, he is not allowed to directly approach a ruler, but must first go through a servant. He was worried that since Hayeel had been made a duchess she might not count, and so he asked my secretary to say that he has come because his research shows the sun will become unstable soon, and these aurora that light up the night and day will eventually destroy the air we breathe. He seeks help to call the aliens.¡± ¡°And he thinks he can do that?¡± she asked. ¡°I presume he needs some kind of help.¡± ¡°Probably. Shall we listen to him?¡± ¡°I was planning to.¡± ¡°Your Hayeel begged you to.¡± ¡°Would you like to read what she wrote about him, mother?¡± ¡°Certainly. I''d like to read the whole book, so I can get to know what to expect if you do marry her.¡± ¡°Here is the letter, mother. A third of the way into the final paragraph.¡± Salay waited while his mother read the paragraph, and then, he noticed, read the previous one as well. He didn''t comment; that she could choose to do so was implicit in him giving her the precious letter. ¡°You have a good ambassador, my son. They do not seek war but they practice for it, and they are good at their practice, and the king of Caneth will take enormous risks to protect his friends. That is important knowledge indeed, especially since what is true of the father is probably true of the daughter too. We will put your Hayeel''s judgement to the test, Salay. She says it is important that this academic has your father''s support, does she not?¡± ¡°You consider that wise, mother?¡± ¡°How much do you trust your Hayeel? Would she ask for an audience for this man if he could not present clearly, or if he was insulting in his manner?¡± ¡°I believe she would give advice, unasked for,¡± Salay said, with a smile.
Guard room of the imperial palace The weather and the drink he had been given were pleasant, the smells and the sights outside the window were fascinating, and Academician Teng was enjoying his stay in this waiting room. So much so that he didn''t notice a sudden flurry of activity behind him. The interpreter coughed politely, and whispered ¡°You should bow to his most noble highness, crown prince Salay, academician.¡± Teng turned and saw a young man dressed in white, remembered his lessons from ambassador Hayeel and bowed deeply. He knew not to speak first. The prince spoke, and the interpreter did his job, ¡°You have been trained in the correct bow, I notice.¡± ¡°The lady ambassador tried hard to teach me, most noble highness. If I do right it is to her honour, but when I make mistakes they are to my shame.¡± ¡°Do you have all you require to present your request? If not, it must be fetched immediately.¡± ¡°I left nothing on the ship that I require, most noble prince.¡± The prince said something and the interpreter became pale, ¡°His most noble highness has listened to what was said to the secretary, and has read what the lady ambassador wrote. He hopes that you do not betray the trust he shows in the lady ambassador''s judgement. We go to straight to the imperial throne.¡± ¡°Does this cause you concern?¡± ¡°Does it not cause you concern? There is no time for me to understand what I must translate!¡± ¡°Can you respectfully ask his most noble highness if the ancient document, ''The Challenge of Tesk'' is known? What the aliens asked us to do?¡± ¡°Most noble highness,¡± The translator said, ¡°he asks about an ancient document describing what the aliens asked us to do, he called it something like ''The Contest of Tesk,'' or the ''The Difficulty of Tesk''.¡± ¡°Might he mean ''The Examination given at Tesk''?¡± ¡°Ah, yes, that could be a translation, yes. I do not know of it.¡± ¡°You would not. Tell him that in Dahel stability of society is valued highly, so I hope that he does not suggest we fulfil all the changes the work he refers to ah... suggests. Also tell him the political sides of work he refers to should not be discussed in detail, as the view of society it suggests is not the one we have.¡± That was relayed, nervously, by the interpreter. ¡°I understand, highness. I have discussed what is possible and impossible with the Honourable Duchess. My hope is that we can fulfil the technological challenges, then we can send a much more basic message, like ''The sun is in trouble, we don''t want to die, can you please help us.'' It is not what they asked for, but, perhaps...¡± he shrugged, and said ¡°They made no promises. only said that they would not come back until and unless we could make the changes. If his imperial majesty and the laws of social change declare it impossible to end slavery, it is impossible, and maybe they will understand our need, maybe they will not come anyway.¡± A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°You may tell him that slavery is ending, although it will take time,¡± Salay said, ¡°But we must go to the throne room. You have been before, imperial interpreter?¡± ¡°To the heart of the empire? Never, most noble prince.¡± ¡°The heart of the empire, and the origin of all change not brought on us by disaster or providence. You must remember, imperial interpreter, you are about to leave the central zone.¡± With that cryptic remark hanging in the air, and Teng left wondering what had been said, prince Salay and his bodyguard led the way towards the most heavily protected part of the Empire. First they entered the courtyard of the children, where the interpreter said that school parties could come if specially honoured. It was also known as the courtyard of the knife, because here the alien had plunged an alien knife into a cannon. Then they passed through the administration buildings to the courtyard of administrators, then a further series of buildings and courtyards as the authority of the workers increased. Teng noticed that each successive door became more ornate, and the guards'' uniforms had more armour, and their eyes were more alert. It was clear that there was a hierarchy, and they were going up it. It also looked to Teng, from the way that the guards looked so surprised, that they did not expect to see the crown prince escorting foreign visitors. He didn''t feel precisely honoured, but he realised that somehow the letter that he had delivered from Ambassador Hayeel had performed a wonder seldom seen. But the subject matter was most serious, and he was pleased that, for whatever reason, he was getting the chance to explain his results to the most powerful man on the planet after only being in the empire for a few hours. He also realised that this was going to be his only chance. They entered another courtyard, and Teng expected to hear the interpreter name it, but he did not. ¡°This courtyard has no name?¡± Teng asked. ¡°I do not know it, I am three courtyards closer to the throne-room than ever before.¡± ¡°The courtyard of viziers,¡± one the guards provided. ¡°Beyond which is the heart of the empire.¡± They passed yet another set of guards, and entered another outside space. The heart of the empire was protected by a wall of white marble, polished to almost mirror finish. The space between the wall they''d just passed this one was not a rectangle, as all previous ones had been, but there while the outer wall was rectangular, the inner wall was a series of straight sides. The angles were not right for a hexagon, Teng, thought. It seemed that the heart of the empire was an octagon. and there was no gateway straight ahead as there had been so far. They turned left, but on the right Teng noticed that a group of soldiers was washing the wall. ¡°The soldiers are on punishment duty?¡± He asked, and the interpreter asked the guard. ¡°No, they are volunteers. They perform a noble task and take pride in their work. Also there is a reward each month for the cleanest section,¡± the guard replied. ¡°There are no slaves within the palace.¡± The prince added. ¡°So all cleaning work is done by civil servants or soldiers. All are volunteers; attitude towards menial tasks counts towards promotion when candidates are otherwise almost identically qualified. Some candidates for the civil service ask for respectable or honourable jobs, and think they do better thereby, but the candidate who places limits on their role places limits on their promotion. I think you placed few limits on your application, imperial interpreter, am I right?¡± After interpreting, the interpreter replied, ¡°I asked that I not be assigned far from my ageing mother, as I was her only living child.¡± ¡°See? An honourable request that does not preclude promotion. But you spoke in past tense?¡± ¡°She died a month ago, highness.¡± ¡°My condolences. Did you ever meet the Lady Ambassador Duchess Hayeel, who before then was language teacher?¡± ¡°I had the honour to study with her one term, highness. I did not know she was a duchess!¡± ¡°Nor was she at that time. Her grandmother had been stripped of nobility and no one had thought it important enough to bother the emperor with when the miscarriage of justice was discovered after her death. Policy on such things has changed, it is not necessary any more that a request for rectification be made for family members of the deceased to receive it. But such a request can still be made, if the family know it has been determined as a miscarriage.¡± ¡°May I ask, highness, is there a way to know if a case has been determined to be a miscarriage of justice?¡± ¡°It is possible to ask at the ministry for internal affairs to see the list toof unrectified miscarriages of justice. A lawyer could review the case and the evidence presented and evidence not presented, and then charge even more for asking the ministry if they have performed their jobs adequately. Sometimes that is successful, but I hear that mostly it is a good way to make the lawyer richer and the client poor, and that in most cases when it is successful, there was already an investigation in progress at the ministry. You could ask at the ministry about lawyers who have made that kind of request, and how many cases they have been successful in. Anyone can also approach the ministry as a humble petitioner, and ask if there is any doubt about a particular case, you may also say why you believe it may not be reliable.¡± ¡°Thank you, highness.¡± ¡°As you can see, we are no longer in the central zone, we go in here.¡± Salay said. It was a small, ordinary-looking doorway. Teng had guessed it might be some kind of tool store, or servant''s entrance. Beyond the door, they passed through a short passage, much like a back alley in a provincial town. At the other end of the passage Teng saw that they had come between some houses; ordinary looking houses. In the middle there was a park, with a central fountain, and an area of grass and an orchard in the distance. There was a herd of sheep grazing on the grass, kept away from some flower beds by low fences. To one side of the fountain, there was a summerhouse, equipped with some lightweight chairs and and ordinary looking desk, with a pile of papers on it. Beyond the fountain, Teng could see a long low building of undefined purpose. It looked like the roof was partly collapsed. The prince noted his gaze and puzzled expression and said, ¡°That building is where the old emperors, who thought themselves gods, played with the lives of men and women. A place of evil that nature reclaims and purifies. The fountain is where the old throne-room was, at the exact centre of the palace. A stupid idea when a cannon could shoot over the walls at such an easily determined target. Today the throne-room is in the summer house. Tomorrow it will probably not be. My imperial father will join us when he is ready.¡± ¡°I had expected... more grandeur, highness.¡± Teng said. ¡°You think of the central zone, where authority needs to be shown externally. We are not in the central zone now.¡± ¡°Salay! Grandma''s room!¡± a young woman''s voice rang across the park. ¡°Ah. You are honoured, academician.¡± Salay said, ¡°It looks like the entire imperial family will listen to your presentation.¡± ¡°I think the honour does not go to me, but to whatever has been written in the letter I delivered, and the noble duchess who wrote it.¡± ¡°Not to mention a prophecy you fulfil,¡± Salay said. ¡°Ambassador Hayeel asked me about some prophecy, but I know nothing about it.¡± the interpreter said ¡°And then, I am sorry highness, he then continues ''I concentrate my studies upon the observable and mathematical certainties, not on vague and imprecise mutterings that might fit anyone or any situation.''¡± ¡°You are not responsible for his lack of faith. He has already claimed fault for himself. Tell him: ''Then present the results of your mathematical certainties, academician. For we are here.''¡± The crown-prince led Teng into a well-lit drawing room with paintings and texts on the wall. In place of honour sat an elderly woman, beside her a mature couple who Teng assumed were the emperor and the empress, and a woman possibly a couple of years younger than prince Salay. Salay sat beside the woman, on the last chair. All were wearing plain white, like the crown prince, except that the elderly woman wore a black hat and a black shawl around her shoulders. She also had a walking stick which she poked towards him ¡°You look like a boring scientist,¡± she accused, her voice was cracked and accented, but entirely understandable. Teng bowed very low, and replied ¡°I am a scientist, most noble and respected lady.¡± The interpreter replaced ''lady'' with ''Empress-mother,'' and the Empress-mother gave a crackling laugh, ¡°Good lad. Smooth the ignorant foreigner''s mistakes.¡± ¡°What did you say to him, mother?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°I accused him of being a boring scientist. He said he was a scientist, so I guess he doesn''t think he''s boring.¡± ¡°Do you wish to put him at his ease more, grandma?¡± princess Naneela asked with a straight face. ¡°Let us see how boring you really are. Start!¡± the Empress-mother said. ¡°The most noble Empress-mother commands you to start, academician Teng.¡± the interpreter said. ¡°And show us how boring you are or aren''t,¡± she added, clearly enjoying herself. Not very sure how to start, Teng bowed again. ¡°I am academician Teng of the academy of Tesk. For the last twenty years I have been studying a cloud of dust that has been approaching our solar system.¡± The interpreter, hoping that the Empress-mother would not interrupt, interpreted with the proper honorifics. Teng continued, leaving gaps for the interpreter. ¡°I now lead a team of twenty astronomers, and we have studied it in detail. The dust cloud has been dimming the light of more and more stars as it comes closer, which is why the stars towards the crown are not as bright as they used to be. Their brightness varies as we circle the sun and we have carefully measured how much cloud darkens each star, each night of the year. Like any cloud of dust, it does not have a hard outer edge but it does have a centre, and in our studies we have been trying to identify how large the centre of the cloud is and how far away the centre would pass us. We have done many measurements of how quickly the stars in that direction are dimming, and a lot of calculations. I do not want to bore you with all the details, most honourable Empress-mother, most honourable Emperor and Empress. The cloud will not miss the sun, indeed the gravity of the sun is pulling it in, concentrating it. The aurora that we see during the night and now during the day are the start of the cloud reaching the sun, just the very edges of it. "Within thirty years my studies show the centre of the cloud will reach the sun. When that happens, the sun will become unstable, our air will be blown away like a flame from a candle, and the planet burned. "We are certain that that much dust hitting the sun would destroy all life on this planet very quickly. But that is not the only problem. There is some uncertainty, but our current understanding says that within just fifteen years this planet of ours will hardly have any air left. There are different mechanisms possible, but it is a little like the tail from a comet; the air we breathe will have been be blown away into space. "As I say, there is some uncertainty. It might be twelve or eighteen, but that is the time for hardly any air left. There will be a time, perhaps in five or six years time, when the barometers start to show changes: nothing noticable to people, but maybe measurable. Then it will speed up. "I do not know what it will do to the weather, but it will not be good. I do not know when the people will start to panic. I do not know if or when lights in the sky will be so bright that they feel as hot as the sun. I have not investigated these things, it does not really matter. "Some of my colleagues have lost hope, and have killed themselves. Others spend all night every night repeating our observations, hoping against hope that there is some mistake. That we did last year and the year before, before we realised that we did not have the thirty years before the centre arrived, but less, far less, even. As soon as we realised that, I left Tesk to find help. "The academy has strict rules, and would not change them, even for a thing like this, they do not listen to our analysis, only to their rules. They make no exceptions, for fear that people will lie to break the rules. As I am head of department, only I can leave to present the results of our research to governments, that is why it is only me here. Only me visiting every government that I can. I believe we must call for the aliens to help us. "I am convinced they are our only hope. I humbly believe that we have to do the Challenge of Tesk, at least enough of it to beg for help. I do not believe that the aliens are gods, able perform miracles. It will be a big project for them too, surely. I do not know how powerful they are, but, to stop a cloud that weighs more than our planet.... "It may that it is too big a challenge, and late for them to help us already. But every year it takes is a year less for them to help, and we do not have many. I beg you to support this project, imperial majesty.¡± ¡°This man gives no respect to prophesies,¡± Salay said, ¡°but fulfils them admirably.¡± ¡°Just like the prophetess said,¡± the empress-mother said ¡°The learned will call and the faithful will pray, and the King of kings and Lord of Lords will send help from the skies to the earthly rulers over kings, and so the sun shall not destroy. No, don''t try to interpret that, I''ll tell him.¡± Switching language she said ¡±Learned man, the grandmother of my husband, empress-mother when I first set foot here, who taught me to speak this barbarian language, gave a prophecy, one bit of it goes ''the learned will call and the faithful will pray, and the King of kings and Lord of Lords will send help from the skies to the earthly rulers over kings, and so the sun will not destroy.''¡± She switched back to her mother tongue. ¡°Most of it is about the bold young woman my grandson is looking forwards to marrying, who sent you here. So tell me about catching things in empty glass tubes.¡± ¡°Mother,¡± the Salay''s father said, ¡°you can quiz him later. Assume we know the.examination of Tesk. Tell us about your plans for the timing.¡± ¡°There is a lunar eclipse in four years. That might work, as long as it can be seen, and it is not raining like it was two months ago, and if only it was sooner. It is not reliable enough. Caneth has towers that send signals, it might be possible, if enough of these were set up, to send the timing signals from one side of the land to another, to work out how long it takes for a message to get from one end of the network to the other, and so make estimates. It might work, economists say it would change trade: traders could send messengers to their friends so they could know that there was enough cloth here but not enough beans, or whatever, rather than guessing. It would help militarily, it would help ambassadors send messages quickly. That is one option. Another option is to join these sending towers with wires. It means even more building, because the wires must be held off the ground, high enough that carts do not damage them. Lines of posts, crossing the continent. It is more fragile, but if it could be built, then rather than the problems of a person seeing a moving flag and moving his own flags in reply, there could be mechanisms to send the message on automatically. The delay would be perhaps a tenth of a second at each tower, or less, and much more repeatable. And if the wires all work, then instead of a tower, it could just be a small building. These things, work could start on them today. They are known technologies. But there is a third option. I do not know if it is more ambitious or less ambitious. We know that we must send a message to the alien device by the thing they called radio. Some scientists on Tesk are experimenting with that. They have a device they call a sender, and thinking that maybe I would be coming here, they gave me a listener to try at different distances from Tesk. I expected that once the signal had faded there would be nothing, but they said keep listening, we have an idea it might bounce from the aurorae. So I kept listening. I do not understand how it works, but.... certainly sometimes the listener can hear the sender, and other times it cannot, both in terms of time and distance. It seems that time of day matters as well. Certainly it is better than the towers ¡ª the listener could hear the sender a hundred miles away. So one tenth of the towers could be built. But such towers do not work to the Isles, this reflection thing seems to work better, but the distances are not the same as the numbers they gave me from the aurorae. The sender is big and complicated and fragile. They would like to have another decade to perfect it, and it is not the same as the sender they need for the probe. They have become side-tracked, in other words. There are not many who work on it.¡± ¡°You have your listener here?¡± Salay asked. ¡°It is in the ship, highness.¡± ¡°The imperial scientists have been looking at the examination as well,¡± the emperor said. ¡°They are not so distractable. But, perhaps, with some experiments, they could make a sender that your listener can hear, and of course our own listener, and then...¡± ¡°Communication!¡± Salay said, ¡°Communication could be established with Tesk! It seems impossible!¡± ¡°And perhaps also with Caneth, my son?¡± His mother suggested. ¡°And the Isles,¡± Salay mused, ignoring that reference. ¡°And when the rulers of the world can discuss everything, then the final kingdom does not sound so much like fantasy.¡± ¡°It will bring social change,¡± the king mused. ¡°So will the sun destroying the air, father,¡± princess Naneela pointed out. ¡°Might the social change laws be unthinking laws and traditions of desolation?¡± ¡°That can apply to many things, Naneela,¡± Salay said. ¡°Isn''t the way that internal affairs have been ignoring restitution of miscarriages of justice a tradition of desolation? Repink looked pretty desolate.¡± ¡°You''re sure that''s not just because you were trying to imagine what it would be like with its lawful duchess there?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°No, because I don''t want it''s current lawful duchess there.¡± ¡°You want her to stay where she is?¡± she asked confused. ¡°I think your brother wants her here, Naneela,¡± her mother corrected, looking up from the document she''d been writing. ¡°Preferably wearing her wedding gown.¡± ¡°Enough.¡± the emperor said. ¡°Naneela, I assume you would like to go to the research centre?¡± ¡°Certainly, father,¡± Naneela said. The empress handed the emperor the paper she''d written. He read it and as he affixed his seal he smiled his thanks to her. As ever, she''d interpreted his thoughts admirably. ¡°Academician Teng, you will take your listener to the research centre. The interpreter will accompany you, and show this document to the guards at the gate to the central district. They will assign you guards to ease your passage. You may leave now, the bodyguard will escort you to the central district. Salay, you have a request to make?¡± ¡°I do, honourable father. I request your permission to marry the noble virgin daughter of a slave, who has the gift of Tesk, duchess Hayeel.¡± ¡°She''s got the gift already?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Will you allow your sister to read to us what she has written?¡± the empress asked. ¡°Yes, mother.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 18: Bravery

Planet 5 / Ch. 18: Bravery

Letter to Duchess Hayeel, Ambassador to Caneth My Hayeel, I today received your first letter, and we ¡ª father, mother, grandma (Empress-mother), and my sister Naneela, listened to the passionate warning from Teng. Grandma demonstrated to Teng that she still speaks the language of Tesk, that she learned from her grand-mother-in-law. I did not try what little I know, but I understood enough from Teng to know that the interpreter was doing his job well. I long for you to be close enough to be able to teach me more. Will you be happy, my Hayeel, about what I have done? I hope so. I showed part of your letter to mother, where you described your hopes that we would listen to Teng. She read a little more ¡ª about the harbour defences of Caneth ¡ª and described you as an excellent ambassador, and said that most ambassadors need to be told time and time again that they must say clearly what conclusions they draw and why. You should know that for some time my mother and sister have been saying things like ''Should you write about that to your duchess?'', and I would say no, because I knew what I hoped, but still feared that I was wrong. I thought that there was a real risk that the letter I had received from ... what do I call him? I do not wish to honour him with even the phrase ''husband-in-name'' you use, so to my family I call him the corpse. Does that offend? I hope you will accept my apologies if it does. I did not know whether the corpse had lied, if his report of your faith was false, or if you would prove eventually to be immune to the catalyst. Your first letter reassured me that your faith was genuine, and horrified me that I had simply accepted the process that assigned you to the corpse. I probably assumed they had at least confirmed you not minding any service. Your letter also made me rejoice that you are by no means immune to the gift. So, my duchess, my ambassador, my Hayeel, I hope you do not object that I have asked my father if we can speak of marriage when we meet, or that he agreed. I do not assume that we will get on well at our first meeting, and nor do I assume that we will marry before we have spent a reasonable amount of time getting to know each other. My sister comments, rudely peering over my shoulder, that means you have at least half a day before I hope to find a pastor. But that is not knowing each other. Perhaps if these letters only took a few days we could get to know each other writing. Now that I know there is no barrier to a marriage, perhaps I should write a letter to you with every ship? But is there really any point? Father has agreed to one other thing, you see, my ambassador. He has decided that Teng will continue his discussions with the imperial research centre, and they will attempt to make a device that could send a signal to Tesk, and attempt communication. And then, perhaps in a week or two, I''m not sure, Teng will return to Caneth. I know that we will eventually need Tew to listen to him, as well, but if we can communicate between the Empire and Caneth, and Caneth and the Isles, then Tew ought to be much easier to talk to. We don''t want him to go into a war zone. There is a chance that I may travel with him, but I don''t know. I cannot be in love with you, when we''ve never met, can I? So what do I feel? Boundless optimism? Hope? Salay
Letter to His Imperial Highness Prince Salay ¡ª continued My kind prince, I write more in this letter that I hope to give you in person. Last night at the palace, about when I was writing to you I am told a joyous thing happened. Faced with the challenges that today would bring, Esmetherelda was praying about the troubles that faced Tesk, and of course the drive to complete the challenge before the sun and the cloud destroy us. And she felt the urge to sing praises to God with others. She found some of the ladies from the Tesk Council were also thinking similar thoughts, as were some of the politicians who had repented of their involvement in outbreak of dum-semb. So, they started singing. And then the believing soldiers on watch duty around the wall joined in as well. And then her majesty, listening to the multipart harmony that the Tesk singers were singing, and still reeling from the shock that the doom-guard had been behind the revolution, went and stood beside her daughter and joined in the songs of her childhood, and then she too put her trust in God, and having done that, she went to the prison. It turns out that the priestess of dum-semb had been a neighbour of hers who she had been a regular baby-sitter for, and she pleaded with her old charge to repent of her blasphemous religion. And joy unspeakable, she did, as did two of the politicians. I will write more later. Your ambassador, Hayeel.
Imperial palace, prince Salay''s office. ¡°My prince,¡± Salay''s secretary said, ¡°As you know, this is the time of year when many ships from Caneth are coming to collect spices and this year''s low-quality carpets before the wintertime. Your ambassador sends this letter, and a large package.¡± ¡°How large a package?¡± Salay asked, eagerly accepting the letter. ¡°It could be a picture, highness. Perhaps a table-book? But it is wrapped well. I came ahead with the letter, my prince. Do you want the package here?¡± ¡°Ah! It is a book,¡± Salay said, reading the first few lines of the letter. ¡°Have it brought to mother''s room.¡±
Imperial palace, Empress''s office. ¡°Hello Salay, you are grinning and holding a letter. More news?¡± ¡°You asked about fashions, mother? See what my ambassador sends you. Hand-crafted work of a princess, except for the binding.¡± ¡°A book?¡± ¡°Princess Bethania of Caneth apparently enjoys art, engraving and printing. The title is ''Court fashions of Caneth and its neighbours, (150-160 A.V.)'' My enterprising ambassador has set a price she deemed reasonable, forced it into the unwilling hands of the artist who apparently has little business sense, and Hayeel''s brother-in-law expected he could make a nice profit if he sold them to nobles in Wahleet, so if you happen to show it to anyone and they ask, yes, more copies are available, as are some other volumes.¡± ¡°Prices on application to Salay and Hayeel enterprises?¡± ¡°Quite possibly. Go on, mother, open it, princess Bethania dedicated it to you.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°My favourite ambassador decided to make it a gift for you from me.¡± ¡°Why not from her?¡± ¡°I think she thinks everything she has, every penny she earns or spends is mine.¡± ¡°After her husband-in-name bought the drugs she''s been selling with her salary?¡± ¡°I don''t think she knew that.¡± ¡°And you''ve not told her about her income from her domain either?¡± ¡°It''s a bit hard to send, mother.¡± ¡°Nonsense, send her some proper carpets or some spices. By the sound of it she''s got a good business head.¡± ¡°I don''t know I''d trust the merchants not to swap them, mother. Not unless I''m going with them myself or send a guard, in which case I might as well send a box of gold or jewellery.¡± ¡°Have you noticed that jewellery is never traded by the merchants?¡± the empress asked, ¡°Either that means styles are radically different or there''s no profit in it.¡± ¡°Not like low quality carpets?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°You still haven''t opened your book, mother. Even if you don''t want to see fashions in Caneth, I want to see what got Hayeel so excited about the import-export business in rare books.¡± ¡°She is the daughter of a trader... oh wow. These are amazing! I thought you said they were printed.¡± ¡°Sketched, engraved, printed and hand over-painted all by the princess.¡± ¡°Who has real talent, too. So, two hundred of their gold coins fit in a money pouch, she had four hundred, and each worth a month''s wages for a labourer. Page after page when each one is a work of art. Would Hayeel spend a year''s wages on such as this? I expect so. I''m sure she would if she believes the money belongs to her prince and it is a gift for his mother. I expect a noblewoman in Wahleet would spend one of their husband''s gold coins per page, just so she can boast about who made it.¡± ¡°Four year''s income for a labourer?¡± ¡°Remember, a menial labourer does not earn much, Salay.¡± his mother reminded him, ¡°Don''t think of your secretary''s pay.¡± ¡°Ah. Yes.¡± ¡°So, your Hayeel didn''t spend forty-eight on it.¡± ¡°Can I come in?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Yes,¡± her mother replied. ¡°I''m playing guess how much Hayeel spent on this when she thought it was your brother''s money and a gift for me. All apart from the cover, it''s the single-handed work of princess Bethania of Caneth.¡± ¡°They wear this sort of thing?¡± ¡°Court fashions in the last ten years.¡± ¡°Nice. Very nice court fashions they have there. Practical and modest apart from their hair, but I guess that''s a cultural thing. Are you going to show it to the noblewomen, mother?¡± ¡°Of course I am. More copies available if we order them via duchess Hayeel, but they''re all hand-painted by the princess herself, so there''s a limited supply.¡± ¡°And two more volumes by the same artist: Caneth wildlife and Caneth plantlife. Any idea how big a coin is that you can get two hundred of in a standard moneybag?¡± ¡°What sort of measure is that?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Apparently you can get about two hundred of their two hundred crown coins in a moneybag.¡± ¡°Oh! I''ve got one in my foreign coin collection. It weighs almost exactly the same as much as the old tin twenty. I remember being fascinated by the way they could weigh the same but be different sizes.¡± ¡°Not to mention be worth vastly different amounts,¡± her mother added. ¡°It was a lot prettier, I remember.¡± ¡°So, mummy thinks she can sell them at forty-eight of those coins. What do you think?¡± ¡°Every one of these pages could be sold, for at least a hundred each. Gold hundreds weigh a bit less, of course. So, yes, I agree with mummy. I think the price for the whole book ought to be about six thousand imperials.¡± ¡°I''d better write to Hayeel to send some more then. How many would you like?¡± ¡°What''s Hayeel selling them for?¡± ¡°She hasn''t said, all I know is how much she forced into Princess Bethania''s unwilling hands. But if you go asking for six thousand she''ll probably insist that Bethania gets a bigger share.¡± ¡°Bear in mind, daughter, that Hayeel only had four hundred of those coins and she''s planning to live on them for several years.¡± ¡°Fine. One princess''s work for another. I''ll offer you a pair of radios for a complete set, and you can then pay Hayeel whatever she needs. You may grovel at my feet in thanks, brother.¡± ¡°When you say a pair of radios, what do you mean?¡± her mother asked. ¡°I mean that I''ve solved it. What''s the point of sending on-off signals when you can talk?¡± ¡°Talk?¡± Salay asked. ¡°I told you about that new electron valve they eventually made for me, the one that has the extra grid?¡± ¡°Yes. You wanted to experiment, and bullied them.¡± ¡°I had an idea that would simplify communication enormously, and it works. You can mix two signals. Sound and radio. The listener at the other end doesn''t just watch a needle go up and down, or hear clicks, you can hear speech. And it just so happens that my team were wondering what the funny clicking sound they were getting was when Teng and I got there.¡± ¡°So you can talk to Tesk?¡± ¡°Not now. Tesk wouldn''t hear us. Teng''s listener is really crude. I guess that means easy to make, but still, his listener can barely hear their signal, and it''s deafening to ours. I don''t know what they''re using to send, but it''s got to have an enormous power use. I guess they''ve put all their work into senders, and we''ve put a lot more work in the listeners. We can talk person to person. With my electron valve they could only talk government to people. Or to space, of course, except they''re a long way from the right frequency.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°So, the timing issue is solved?¡± ¡°Not quite, but if there were some way to get a chunk of my team to Tesk along with lots of fragile stuff...¡± ¡°You mean like on the ship Teng got here on?¡± ¡°I asked about that. He wants to use another ship, he said the ship was becalmed for a couple of days and then to catch up the captain seemed to take all sorts of risks that had his sailors looking worried.¡± ¡°What''s the hurry? He''s plenty of time to get back before winter.¡± ¡°The captain winters here. He wants to do one more round-trip to Caneth.¡± ¡°So, I might trust him with a letter, but nothing more valuable.¡± ¡°I think you ought to send her some gold so she can buy some more of those books.¡± ¡°I''ll ask her to reserve them. But I plan to take her the gold, mother. As soon as I can get ready and find a reliable captain.¡±
Conference room, Caneth ¡°Good morning and welcome, politicians, parents and thought-hearers,¡± Esme said, ¡°Apart from prince Hal and King Val, I think that''s everyone here, and Hal and Val know they''re welcome.¡± ¡°I do, yes,¡± Hal agreed, stealing a kiss. ¡°Let me make it clear, parents and politicians, there are now thirty-six women¡ª I much prefer the term ladies ¡ª with the gift of Tesk. Duchess Hayeel tells me that twenty nine of them were born there, and one was a scary early surprise on a Teskan ship to Teskan parents. All of us are willing to prove that we have the gift of Tesk. All of us are agreed that the high council of Tesk should meet today, for three specific purposes that I''ll get to later. But there''s no point us demonstrating that we have the gift to each other. Nor is there any point in us declaring a meeting without a demonstration that everyone speaking as a council member actually has the gift. If there is doubt, there will be disbelief, and we are not at a time when disbelief is a good thing. I don''t want to delay my wedding to the day after tomorrow, but there are other discussions that need to happen today and tomorrow as well. So, let me stop talking, and throw it open to you. Do you have any questions that need to be addressed before we talk about verification? There must be verification, and it must be acceptable to all, because we don''t want anyone to say ''so and so never proved she should be there''. But please, time is limited so let''s not have a long complex process that takes all morning, I beg you. We could just form two circles, and as the testers pass we thought hearers could say the word or phrase you''re thinking of until we''re back where we started. Would that convince you? If not, how would you like us to do it?¡± ¡°Can we hear why you feel there''s such a rush?¡± one of the politicians asked. ¡°I would prefer to deal with issues one by one so that we don''t get distracted, so I''m going to be deliberately vague. "The first thing we wish to be doing is a formal, preliminary hearing of the prisoners. Yesterday, there was a clear call that that be before the formally acknowledged high council. Secondly, there might be another duty for the high council, which might be surprising for some here. Thirdly, Hal and I will be sharing with you some changes in international politics which may or may not affect Tesk, and the noble ambassador, Duchess Hayeel of Repink, will be sharing a perspective from the Dahel Empire on those changes. Fourthly, she will be reflecting on a serious proposal we heard from an academician from Tesk. Then, I expect we''d ideally have about a week to process those things, but in the circumstances, after tomorrow afternoon you''ll have to do without Hal and me, and you might want to rush back to Tesk and discuss everything that''s happened with your fellow politicians anyway.¡± There was a murmur of agreement. ¡°Do you insist on all of us having our thoughts heard?¡± someone asked. ¡°Not at all. But I do insist that if anyone doubts we all have the gift, you either volunteer or allow yourself to be convinced by your colleagues.¡± Rena said ¡°Once we''re all accepted as thought-hearers and have brought an extraordinary meeting of the high council of Tesk into into session, I''ll be asking you all to swear that that you are convinced and sign a document that you''ve so sworn. I''m sure you don''t need reminding of the penalty for perjury before the high council. We don''t want you having any lurking doubts.¡± One of the politicians, a minor minister in the ruling party stood and said, ¡°And what if we prefer some doubts to having our thoughts heard? And if we suspect that there are here people who have inherited the ability that was mainly among the nobles, and can make known the thoughts of those being tested known to someone who is sensitive but does not have the gift?¡± ¡°Your thoughts are already heard, minister,¡± Esme said. ¡°Quite frankly I''m glad you''re ashamed of what you are loudly thinking you don''t want us to hear you thinking of, but also it''s simply irrelevant to the question of ensuring the unquestionable legal legitimacy of the high council. If that is the only reason you don''t want to confirm the legitimacy of the council, however, I expect the we''ll all be willing to swear an oath of secrecy about past acts as long as you are truly repentant about them and firmly desire that they never be repeated. "As to there being one or more here the ability you speak of, you presumably know that such communication demands speech. If you prefer, the confirmation can be written. Does that satisfy your qualms?¡± ¡°It does, highness.¡± the minister replied. ¡°Good. Anyone got an objection to not repeating what he''s still regretting?¡± ¡°Not as long as our silence doesn''t interfere with any court proceedings,¡± Rena said. ¡°Can high council members be asked to testify in court?¡± someone asked. ¡°Asked yes, compelled no,¡± Esme replied. ¡°I hear no objections to the oath. I suggest the words ''I swear I will not repeat stray thoughts I hear in this meeting except in the context of a direct question in a court of law.'' Happy, minister?¡± ¡°Yes, highness.¡± Once everyone had sworn, they got on with the confirmation of everyone''s abilities, and then the council meeting was called, members swore to be just and uphold the constitution of Tesk, and the meeting declared itself quorate, with all qualified members present. More oaths were taken as Rena had asked, her document was written and signed, and then the prisoners were brought in to give testimony before the council. Yalisa''s mother, former priestess of dum-semb, now trying to unburden her soul for the evil she''d been part of, spoke freely and openly, and with tears. There had been human sacrifices ¡ª it was part of the ritual when an acolyte progressed to novice or to priest or priestess, although one sacrifice could be shared between several participants as long as they all played a part. She said the religion did not demand the sacrifice be offered to any particular deity, only that the participants must freely spend human life because the human concerned was not any kind of follower, and just livestock. The mobs that had roamed the streets in search of nobles during the revolution and after had been seen as a triumphal return to power, and had provided the blood for many advancement ceremonies. The breadth and depth of the dum-semb hold on political, judicial and military power that the ex-priestess outlined left everyone shocked, and there was a general feeling of numbness by the time the last politician had confirmed what she''d said, and was led back to his cell. But there were more questions that had not been asked, let alone answered. ¡°It is not the role of the high council to judge,¡± Esme said. ¡°But the treaty of all nations, also known as the treaty for the eradication of human sacrifice, requires that all who are involved in the religion on dum-semb should face trial. There are three roads open to us: as this has been discovered here in Caneth, the trial can occur here, under the laws of Caneth. Caneth could also send the prisoners to Tesk, if it were convinced that justice would be done, and that there would be no interference from other supporters.¡± ¡°A very optimistic move, likely to trigger the war clause in the treaty,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Exactly. A person accused of or admitting to involvement must face uncorrupted justice, else the receiving state is deemed in defiance of the treaty and will face war from all other parties. We don''t want that to happen, so I don''t suggest that route. The third option is that the prisoners be tried here under Teskan law. Under the Teskan constitution, a normal judge cannot adjudicate a trial of a dum-semb member, only a duly recognised noble of Tesk can and by preference it should be the noble from the county or barony concerned.¡± The minister stood up, ¡°You are saying that the constitution must be changed or Tesk will face war.¡± ¡°I am saying that the combination of the constitution, the apparent lack of nobles, and this shocking resurgence of what was thought, a hundred years ago, to be an extinct religion presents Tesk with serious problems. Another problem is that if there is any member of the Teskan nobility alive, the threat of a mob beating them to death is only too real, so I do not think it is sensible to suggest they make themselves known until there is some mechanism in place capable of defending them. Given what we''ve heard, the army of Tesk shouldn''t be involved.¡± ¡°This is your surprising duty for the high council?¡± The minister asked, ¡°To dismiss the upper echelons of the army, and enrol us all in some kind of civil defence corps to defend the nobles?¡± ¡°It''s one solution which is possibly within the remit of the high council, though there are bound to be protests as there is no precedent,¡± Rena said. ¡°Another power, and one that has been used in the past, is to assign people of good character as acting nobles, until the true heir can be determined. That might not protect people of course. But Yanesa wants to speak to that.¡± Yanesa stood and said, ¡°My mother has admitted her guilt, and in doing so has accused a far bigger section of Tesk''s leaders than I expected. But yesterday, before I knew this, when I thought it was just a few, I asked crown-Princess Esmetherelda that she be tried under Tesk law. It is bad enough that our nation has been humiliated on a global stage with people like my mother following a banned cult. Let Tesk not suffer the humiliation of being unable to prosecute them. I loved my father, but my father is dead. I love my mother, but my mother has committed crimes which carry the death penalty. I love independent Tesk, but a lot of independent Tesk is a lie. "No matter what the propaganda and lies say, the king of the Isles has been robbing his own coffers and taxing his own people to feed us. The army that is supposed to defend our freedom has been providing victims to the doom-guard. Either let independent Tesk die also, accepting that this evil is too much, and hand our future over to those who have cared for us and fed us all these years, or let us rid ourselves of the propaganda and lies, and confront the demons that we have allowed to rule us, and execute them ourselves.¡± She paused, and said ¡°Yesterday, some of us here shared that they are the heirs and heiresses to noble titles. I''m not, but as long as you don''t make me try my own mother, then I''m willing to swear an oath to act as a noble, ending injustices and ending the doom-guard. ¡°I say, yes, arrest the entire officer corps of the army. Maybe the people I''m trying to save from war, starvation and human sacrifice will turn on me and beat me to death, but I don''t want to sit by and watch Tesk starve to feed the doom-guard any more. And if we don''t arrest the officers in the army, and the upper ranks of the civil service and political parties, then we face a war we can''t win anyway.¡± ¡°I didn''t stand up with Sashan at school,¡± Mari said, ¡°and I regretted it. I''ll stand with Yanesa, and say I''m willing to act as a noble if you want me, and I''m also prepared to see the fabric of lies and hopes and dreams that make up independent Tesk evaporate if that''s the only realistic way to free us from the doom-guard. BUT. There''s an enormous but. We cannot decide these things here, in isolation. We need to make these decisions from the high council chamber on Tesk. We need to return, be acknowledged, be accepted, and then accept the prisoners for trial, a day or two later, maybe longer. And then hear again what they say, with people who are not here. "We need the people on our side if we are not to be cut down as traitors. Unless we want to go with a full scale invasion force, and watch hundreds, thousands of innocent lives be lost in the front lines as the doom-guard urge the sheep to the slaughter, we need to be there, and we need to have the ordinary soldiers on our side. Esmetherelda, I thank you for your gracious invitation, prince Hal, I thank you too for this terrible responsibility you''ve laid on me and on us. I''d love to be at your wedding, but my broken country needs me at home.¡± ¡°I am Kelara, daughter of Elakart of Karet. She told me that she will happily claim her title when the high council is formed. She is not well, but her mind is still sound. I would be happy for us to meet her sooner rather than later.¡± ¡°Hey, look at that, I''m not first!¡± Rena said, with a relaxed smile. ¡°I will be Renela of Resk if the high council allows me to take my oath. I agree with Mari. Sorry, Esme, it''s time for us to go home.¡± ¡°You were first, Rena.¡± Ada''s father said, ¡°First with their own title to claim, but as the ladies on the high council know I want to beg this council to allow me to claim my own name and title, which my parents told me was Ralek of Renet. Yanesa, I believe you and your mother live within my domain. Please pray for wisdom for me as I consider her case. My apologies to the chefs of your wedding feast, princess Regent, I agree, we should go back to Tesk.¡± ¡°So does the entire high council, Ralek. But before you go, the Caneth printers have been busy. There will be a copy of the Teskania for each here, along with the account of the first revolution by baroness Arelan of Resk that I read from. I did not read from it the summary that she included of the religion of the doom-guard, but you will find it useful, I''m sure. She was a woman of foresight, and insisted that the printing plates for her booklet be preserved and kept in the library here. The printers only needed to clean them, ink them, and get their old press working again. The paper might be new, but the spelling and artwork and everything is original. Also, It''s printed as a single, double-sided sheet, so printing is fast, but they need cutting. "Think of it as a campaign booklet if you like.¡± ¡°How many copies can you let us have?¡± Ralek asked. ¡°They were aiming to have two hundred copies each by about now, and then they were going to start cutting. Is that enough?¡± ¡°Two hundred for council members too?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°That ought to do quite well, don''t you think?¡± ¡°To start with,¡± one of the politicians said, ¡°I normally get five hundred campaign leaflets printed. Could we beg for loads of copies of the confirmation of the high council to be printed too?¡± ¡°I was thinking of that,¡± Esme agreed, ¡°It depends how long you''re willing to wait.¡± ¡°I''d much rather have a couple of hundred copies of that than have countess Arelan''s book cut,¡± Renet said. ¡°The tide is good to leave mid-afternoon.¡± King Val said. ¡°Will the oaths of nobles and acting-nobles be taken here, or all on Tesk?¡± princess Velania asked. ¡°I suggest here for some at least,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°So that there can be an official request from someone entitled to judge.¡± ¡°If the high council will allow, I will come to Tesk after the wedding,¡± Velania said. ¡°I am willing to escort the prisoners, and also have the duty of judge, both as countess of Vansk and because my great-Grandmother Sesela passed the title of baroness of Sesith to me.¡± ¡°Are there any here who will speak in favour of the doom-guard''s ban on visits from the monarch of the Isles or his family?¡± Renela asked. ¡°As minister for tourism and fashion, not a very important ministry, I know,¡± the minister said, ¡°I was warned that I''d be out of my job if I let some foreigner interfere and say it was stupid of Tesk to keep the catalyst away, because the whole legitimacy of the status quo is based on the historic enmity to the Isles. There, you''re all witnesses that I didn''t let any foreigner say it. Maybe they didn''t want me to say the last bit, but that''s what my notes say.¡± ¡°Thank you minister,¡± Renela said ¡°You don''t perhaps think that they meant it some other way than you saying it first, do you?¡± ¡°Sorry, lady baroness, I''m not a mind-reader.¡± ¡°But you can send,¡± Ralek said. ¡°Do you know where you got that ability?¡± ¡°I know that my parents and grandparents moved home every few years, and were weavers. I understand that the style of loom they had says they were from Balask, but none of their names contained a ''b''.¡± ¡°A ''w'', or ''v'' perhaps?¡± Velania asked, ¡°Vansk is sometimes written as Wansk or Bansk in the old records.¡± ¡°My grandfather whispered to me once that his name was Valak, and he wanted me to keep it safe.¡± The minister said. ¡°I didn''t understand.¡± ¡°My neighbour, Count Valak of Balask,¡± Ralek said, ¡°what is your personal opinion of the status quo?¡± ¡°I''d like to take an oath before I get so terrified about what I''m doing that I can''t. But speaking as minister for tourism and fashions, I welcome any visitors who will boost our economy and our place on tourist itineraries.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 19: Demonstration

Planet 5 / Ch. 19: Demonstration

Letter to Duchess Hayeel, Ambassador to Caneth My Hayeel, Your third letter and the book came today. Mother and Naneela loved it, and hope that the princess has not sold out yet. Naneela would like the entire set, and I''ve just had a note from mother saying that two of her friends are very interested in their own copies of the book, and they expect that anything the princess wishes to send this way will sell very well at about six thousand imperials (assuming the page count is the same). Does that count as sufficient profit margin? Don''t (temporarily) impoverish yourself, my Hayeel. While the captain I send this letter with might plan to return to Wahleet before winter, I sent some servants to ask around and his fellow-captains are openly calling him a fool that he plans to make another run in both directions this late in the year, so don''t be tempted to send anything with him. My Hayeel, I hope this letter reaches you, but if not, I''ll tell you myself. You write that all you have belongs to me. Do not think that your title comes with no income, nor your role as ambassador, nor that the medicines you sell are from me. The corpse claimed that he had your permission to withdraw your salary for your travel and I believe it is this money that he spent on the medicines. Certainly he did not draw on his own salary. But my Hayeel, I also see from your account that you have only ever sought living expenses in all your time in the civil service. I expect you were told when you started training that the service would cover expenses but there was no salary for trainees, but were you never told you have had a salary from the moment you finished training? I rejoice that the corpse did not know your account was so untouched, or he might have robbed you of more than he did. I hope to travel to see you, my Hayeel, and I will be bringing with me some things that I hope you will be able to make a good profit from. But I will also be bringing a small portion of your wealth. I do this mainly, I think, so that you do not feel you must depend on me. You may choose to depend on me, (though first on God!) but that is different, your choice must not be based upon finances. Especially since you have no staff except your sister, and the state-appointed collector of taxes who draws his income and expenses from your duchy. I have quite a few, and I do not have seventy years of unspent income sitting in my account either. Perhaps one day father or I might even need a loan from you. A thing you may also decide freely, noble Duchess, is to write to the academy on Tesk, and assure them that academician Teng has the support of His Imperial majesty, and you may if you choose also assure them of your own support, as probably the wealthiest duchesses of the empire. Perhaps more significant is the support of princess Naneela, who has long enjoyed tinkering with, as you write, metals, acids, and glass tubes. You forgot the wires, there are lots. She is, I think, rightly proud of her latest experiment, and I will be bringing one of her magic boxes of wires and tubes with me. She was fascinated with Teng''s results which she thinks shows some kind of reflection happening from the atmosphere, and so I am under strict instructions to try to talk to her on a regular basis. She said ideally every hour, night and day, but I think she was joking. I hope she was, anyway. The team she works with at the Imperial Research Centre do not have the power of the Tesk sender, but they have much better ''listeners'' than Teng brought with him, and my clever sister made a thing that lets her mix her voice with the radio signal, so that the listener can hear speech. She promises to show it working from the palace to the research centre tonight, as long as it does not break or get wet. Why does she send one with me on a ship, then? Apparently it is so she can tell you all about my bad habits, when I arrive, and so that she knows I get there without drowning. I think that my parents would not let me risk a sea-voyage to come to meet you if it were not for her and for the prophesy, but amazingly, they have agreed. Assuming, that is, we find a captain with an excellent reputation who doesn''t have much of a pre-planned cargo, and doesn''t mind playing ferry to a possibly sea-sick prince, body-guard, and team of technicians going to Tesk. My staff are at the port every day, annoying the harbour master and fervently praying that they don''t get chosen to come. One of them has asked my permission to have time off to get married in three weeks time (i.e. hopefully after I''ve left). I asked him who to, and he replied ''I''ll find someone, highness, just don''t ask me to go on the ship!'' I reminded him I make it a policy to talk to prospective spouses, before granting leave and he promised he''d look harder. What else can I tell you that I might guess you don''t know? Let me think. As a duchess from outside the central zone, it is not socially necessary for you to have a lady in waiting, but you certainly may have any number of them if you find that useful. Some duchesses ask a friend to act as their lady in waiting when they visit the central zone, and rejoice at ending the pretence when they come to visit mother. Oh ¡ª you may not know it, but the royal family live in the region known as the heart of the empire, which is not at all in the central zone. It is perhaps a safer version of the outer zones. Your domain has ten counts or countesses in it, who derive much of their income from the main trade of your duchy other than agriculture: carpets. You know that Repink carpets are among the best quality, don''t you? As duchess you may enact laws in your domain, as long as they do not contradict any national laws. The rule is that a social change agreed to by those residents it directly affects is not a social change. Thus, for instance, if the slave owners and slaves in your domain requested a ban on slavery, then you could enact a law that forbade the sale of slaves and said any slave in your domain could claim their freedom after being there ten days (the time limit meaning that you''re not interrupting transit). There are not many slave owners in your domain, so that might actually be possible. The barons employ free workers who, as expert craftsmen, receive a good wage, and most of the land of your domain is owned by small land-owners. The reason for that is one of your forefathers listened to the one or two large land-owners in the domain who feared that some of their poor neighbours would be tempted to sell up to their barons, and enacted a law that forbade large land-owners from merging tax records, and made them liable for their employee''s taxes as well as their own. On hearing that their duchess had been reduced to slavery, (and not believing her guilt) the few people of your domain who owned slaves were horrified at the thought that they or a descendant might accidentally own her or one of her children, and freed their slaves, and thus it became the action of a social outcast to own slaves in Repink duchy. There are some, of course. I visited your ancestral home last week. One small portion of it is occupied by the tax collector and his family, the rest didn''t look especially habitable from the outside (broken windows, and a partly collapsed roof), so I don''t really have any suggestions what you might want to do with it. You could obviously have it repaired if you wished, or leave the decision to whoever is duchess after you. In the event that we do marry, my Hayeel, as I believe the prophesy says we must eventually, there is a very very long-standing tradition that someone with a title who marries a higher noble leaves half their financial wealth with the title. Exactly half, plus, to the children of the new title-holder, one coin that is best suited to your new financial status per child living at the time of the marriage (you may of course give corresponding gifts to any born later). Considering half your current wealth, well, where are no coins I know that have the weight of a brick, so if we marry, tradition says your sister''s children will have to be satisfied with a golden five-hundred. I am glad, my Hayeel, that I am not short of money nor interested in gaining more of it through a marriage, and so I do not feel that my feelings for you will in any way be influenced by the size of your bank account. I will, though, be very disappointed if it changes you. My head says it might, my heart refuses to believe it of you. The prophesy is clear, though I don''t know or understand why it is so clear, why does us marrying matter to the fate of the world? Surely God''s plans are not so fragile? Nor do I like the threat that is implied in the prophecy, that something will happen to father and I will inherit his throne before the cloud poses a threat. The prophecy gives rise to many strange fears in me, Hayeel. Why should I think to reject you? Did the corpse in an outburst of anger somehow cripple you or mar the beauty I saw? Do you have an incredibly irritating voice? No one has said you do. Or should I let a conversation with someone some months ago reassure me, as he expressed his thoughts that it would be unkind to raise someone born into slavery to the nobility, where there was the risk of back-talk, subtle or unsubtle insults and disdain from other nobles or indeed from servants. Is it that unholy thought that the prophecy is supposed to protect me from? I hope it would not affect me one bit. Just a few weeks, (perhaps of sea sickness), and we can talk of hopes, fears (what fears we rightly have!) and dreams. Is it right to have dreams as we face possible extinction? Should we decide to try to avoid bringing children into the world until the danger is past? How will the danger pass? And when? If Teng is correct it will last our most of our lifetimes, will it not? I think it would be presuming on God''s grace to wait forty-five years and then expect any heirs! How I long to have the comfort of actually talking to you about these thoughts and fears, hearing you laughing at them, and then praying about them together. My sister is a good one for laughing at my fears, but she has her own. It is not easy for her, I think. She does not really fit in to the research community, because she is employer and princess. She does not fit into the nobility''s social expectations because ¡ª I guess somewhat like Esmetherelda ¡ª she does not fit their expectations of a princess. I have often wondered if it would be different if she was on Tesk, but having seen her work compared to that on Tesk, it seems to me as an ignorant outsider that her work is so far ahead of that on Tesk that it would be an insult to ask her to go there. Teng spoke about the researchers on Tesk getting side-tracked. Probably that is so. My sister''s modification to the sender was considered by some a side-track, so much so that she had to bully them financially before they would try it. I remember hearing her talking about it at the time, and thinking that if I were her I would have said that God had laid it on my heart that this was important, she felt so certain that it must be tried. They listened only when she threatened to withdraw her funding if they did not at least try, a step that caused her much pain and broke relationships. She would have done it, but it would have made her weep. Hopefully, now that they see it working, and understand the need to collaborate with Tesk, those relationships will heal. One of the worst things for her was that the man she had felt closest to was one of the most hard-line in opposing her. She had admired his dedication, but she found in this incident that his dedication was stubbornness, so that relationship will probably never return to how it was looking previously. Perhaps this is also God''s grace at work, as he''s never shown any faith, as far as I know. Salay
Letter to His Imperial Highness Prince Salay ¡ª continued My prince, plans change. Most of the contingent from Tesk leave today, they are just packing their bags, and will miss the wedding. A few are staying a few more days. Yanesa, daughter of the priestess will travel at the same time as her mother and the other prisoners, and with her will go pastor Alek, who is also count Ralek of Renet, his daughter Ada, and princess Velania who is also countess of Vansk and baroness of Sesith. Apparently having multiple titles is not unusual around here. They all came for a wedding, but instead witnessed the first nobles of Tesk taking vows to defend their country from the doom-guard in a long long time. They return knowing there will be bloodshed, and hoping it will be all on the side of the followers of that evil cult. I realise that I''ve no idea if you know how I''m familiar with dum-semb. Did my late husband-in-name write about what we faced on the way here? Have the soldiers returned and made their report? My training was the same as that of most ¡ª The treaty of all nations was mentioned as unique ¡ª hence its name ¡ª and it was said that in the outer provinces there were still outbreaks of the religion it proscribed. But I did not know the marks or the features of the religion. There, my husband-in-name did very will, my prince. He warned me, prepared me, educated me about the cult, as we crossed the mountains. It was not just, something to talk about, but it was one of the few areas that he knew more of than I. Early in his career he had been posted in an outer province, and had to learn for that posting, and he knew we would be passing an area known for the evil. His preparation was not in vain. As we rounded a hill towards one village, I forget its name, we caught the sound of a scream cut off, coming from a secluded valley, off the road. My husband-in-name did his duty and ordered the soldiers to investigate, warning them that it might just be someone disciplining a slave, but it might be a human sacrifice. It was the latter. The victim had been a slave, and a priest of evil had just completed the initiation of two acolytes. The priest was a local judge, the acolytes a senior administrator and a lawyer. My husband-in-name showed me and the soldiers the tattoos that marked the priest, that he had spoken of, those of the acolytes were still bleeding. As the only woman present, I had the task of checking all the women of the village. Another ten male acolytes and a female novice were found, and executed. So it was that I recognised the two spots on the shoulder of the priestess of Tesk, and so it was that I listened to her thoughts as she was telling her daughter what a fool she was for telling her to get out of politics. Politics had not corrupted her, she was busily corrupting it. Her daughter guessed, that the stories her mother had told her might have something to do with what she''d done, but her guess was far enough off that had I not seen the tattoo marks and been there, she might have been able to laugh it off as she''d planned. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. But I was there, and I had seen enough in her thoughts to accuse her of being part of dum-semb. Her thoughts confirmed it. So do not think entirely unkindly about the man called my late husband-in-name, my prince. He prepared me well to unmask this evil. Even now, the war-flags and signals of Caneth are sending their warning to the borders of Tew: Tesk army and politics overrun with doom-guard religion, and overland messengers will follow, carrying letters to the young queen. The new high council have asked for a week. Three days to prepare people, one day of rest, when the intention is that churches will for once preach a clear message about rejecting evil and lies, and accepting grace. On the next day, nobles will issue warrants requiring army officers to present themselves to the high council, the prisoners ought to arrive and their trials begin. Three days after, the. navies of Caneth, the Isles and hopefully Tew will demand a report from the high council, and begin a bombardment, destroying the military headquarters and parliament and if they do not receive it. Tesk''s harbour has no defences, nor naval vessels. A strange state for an island, but Tesk did not dare to pick a fight with the Isles, and in any case, it does not have the wood to build a navy, metals for guns or money to buy either. Why, you might ask, did it not face invasion or military take-over? The propaganda on Tesk said that it was because of their strong army. The reality is that (a) no one in their right mind would want to try, since it has nothing much of value except the academy, and (b) he Isles saw it as a rebellious child who would come to its senses eventually as long as they didn''t provoke it, and the other nations knew that picking a fight with Tesk meant picking a fight with their piratical protectors. I don''t think I explained that ''piratical'' term last time I said that, did I? Hal explained it to me like this: the Isles rely on trade. In the event of an armed conflict, the law of the Isles says that enemy shipping ¡ª particularly merchant shipping ¡ª can be, no should be intercepted at sea to ensure that the populace of the Isles do not suffer. So if, say, Tew warships start shooting at Isles ships then it becomes the civic duty of every merchant ship of the Isles to look around for Tew merchantmen and if the Tew merchants are feeling friendly then they can swap their cargo for barrels of eels or wine, or whatever else the Isles ship wants to trade, but if the Tew merchant wants to keep their cargo, or for some reason the Isles ship accidentally left home with no trade goods, or has already traded them, then it becomes the duty of the Isles ship to assess whether they can force the Tew ship to stop, with their cannons if necessary, and then relieve them of whatever cargo they might happen to have. Maybe even relieving them of their ship too. The enemy sailors are said to have been be treated well the last time this happened, but I wonder if that was all of them or only the ones who accepted the invitation to a new home on one of the Isles. Esme explained it like this: The captains of the Isles are a group of civilised pirates who know that it upsets the neighbours if you go robbing their ships at cannon-point, so most of the time they pretend that they''re honest traders. Going along with this pretence is good policy, because if you don''t then things might turn nasty for your ships. But, she pointed out, while most navies include practice in stop and search procedures, only the Isles gunners regularly practice shooting down masts and blowing rudders off, while singing songs about buried treasure and making the enemy walk the plank. Hal replies that they''re just folk songs. ''About being pirates,'' she replies, and Hal gives her courtly bow, kisses her hand and pretends to pull a coin from behind her ear, matching the actions of a courtly pirate in a children''s story. The sea-going peoples of the Isles are not pirates, my prince, because pirates are thieves and murderers who count life as of no value. As I''ve written, the people of the Isles are strong believers, who value life, know the risks of going to sea without checking on the weather, and try to avoid risks. But they have a reputation of fighting skill that does them very little harm and some good, and they play to it when it suits them. Not all people on the isles go to sea. The marshlander fishermen actually make up the majority of the population, and when the winter storms pass the population huddle in their homes, tell tales of storms and pirates and the evils of the doom-guard, sing songs, praise God, and pray for any sailors desperate or foolish enough to be at sea during the bad weather. Bad weather approaches our planet, my prince, can the aliens somehow give us shelter? your Hayeel
Imperial Research Centre ¡°Testing, testing,¡± the radio crackled into life. ¡°Don''t touch that,¡± the centre''s director said, as the technician reached for the transmit key. ¡°Sir?¡± the technician asked, surprised. ¡°This is a distraction, the worst sort of distraction, one that will suck more and more of our research efforts away from the goal.¡± ¡°But I must respond, sir! A demonstration to the emperor!¡± ¡°A failed demonstration will kill off the distraction and we can return to the plans.¡± ¡°Testing testing,¡± the princess''s voice repeated, ¡°You''re supposed to reply to me, Kahlel or whoever''s taken over from him.¡± The technician, Kahlel, turned to face the director. ¡°Honourable Sir, if I do not reply, then the princess will be shamed.¡± His hand reached behind him for the transmit switch. ¡°And if you do, then you will never work here again.¡± Kahlel pressed the switch, ¡°I will not bring shame upon the princess, sir, I will reply.¡± ¡°You will be dismissed, the disciplinary report will show that as a result of gross insubordination you brought your meal to the desk and through incompetence you destroyed the test equipment a second time.¡± ¡°I have brought no food to this laboratory, sir. You have the pan of soup, as you did last time.¡± Kahlel said calmly. ¡°I don''t want to lose you, Kahlel, you''re a good worker, you just lose sight of the big picture. Don''t let her title or her eyelashes blind you to the fact that now we have an accurate receiver we should be working on increasing the transmit efficiency.¡± ¡°Sir, with respect, the plan calls for us to continue to enhance receiver efficacy until we can hear the atmospheric interference from distant thunderstorms, or demonstrate that we can communicate long range. Since the cracks we hear are from Tesk, it is not yet time to make that switch, and the long-range communication is exactly served by the test equipment at the palace.¡± ¡°That snivelling interfering princess couldn''t have said it better herself,¡± the director snarled and threw the steaming soup. ¡°No!¡± Kahlel said, and tried to protect the equipment. ¡°I hope for your sake the equipment survives, ex-director,¡± The emperor''s voice said from the radio, just before there was a loud bang as the soup hit the high voltage capacitor. Kahlel, ignoring his scalds, disconnected the power. The guards who''d been posted outside the door, and had been looking through the crack between the doors at the sound of voices, finally entered, weapons drawn. ¡°Arrest this man!¡± the ex-director said, in pompous bravado. ¡°He broke it!¡± Kahlel said, trying to stop the soup getting further into the radio, ¡°He threw the soup and broke it! In the middle of a demonstration to the emperor! He threw soup at it! Arrest him, guards. Me too if you must. The emperor demanded the equipment survive and removed him from his post, and he broke it. You saw me come in with empty hands, didn''t you? He brought the soup and broke the radio.¡± ¡°Get cleaned up, Kahlel, and put cold water on your burns. We saw it.¡±
Addendum to Letter to Hayeel My Hayeel, the demonstration was... not what we''d planned. The now-former director of the research lab has taken his protest against Naneela as far as he could and further, throwing soup at one of the test radios. I''d love to have you listening in to Naneela''s thoughts. A technician who she''d thought had ruined an earlier experiment of hers with some soup (actually the director again) has turned into the saviour of the day, getting some rather nasty burns as he tried to save the equipment, and he obviously gets the point of what she wanted. I can''t ask her what she thinks, because she''s gone to tell his parents that he''s going to be spending the night in a spare room here in the heart of the empire so that she can change the dressings on his wounds. She feels responsible, apparently, since she told the guards to stay outside the door for fear that they might break something if they went into the laboratory. He was looking a bit shocked the last time I saw him. Maybe the fact that she prayed for him helped there, as well as the royal nursing. I don''t think he knew she had any faith. She knew he does, because she got asked if he ought to be removed from his post after he''d been found at an underground church meeting. But I saw that the equipment works, I saw her using it, and tweaking the knobs to make the conversation we were listening to clearer. So, maybe I''ll be able to ask her some appropriate questions about her patient if I''m not too sea sick. I''m running away with my thoughts, I know, but is it really possible that God engineered that in answer to my prayers about her future? Does the future of our planet depend on them gazing lovingly into each others eyes and finding inspiration there for their work? Am I allowed to hope that gazing into your eyes becomes a favourite hobby of mine, or is it far far too soon for much silly thoughts? Am I just falling in love with the idea of being in love? Salay
The Imperial Palace Gardens ¡°Before we start more serious topics...¡± the empress said the Kahlel''s mother, ¡°were either you or your husband originally from the central zone?¡± ¡°Urm, no.¡± the confused woman answered. She wasn''t sure why she was here, let alone why the empress was talking to her like a human being. ¡°Excellent!¡± the empress seemed to relax. ¡°There''d have been a problem?¡± ¡°You live there, do you really need me to tell you what''s wrong with the central zone? Spot any servants or ladies in waiting or any of that... prestige thinking around here? Feel free to sit on a log. Central zone people worry too much about social hierarchies and such things.¡± ¡°True.¡± Kahlel''s mother felt safe saying. ¡°So, so far it looks like Naneela thinks of Kahlel as a friend who got hurt protecting her experiment and her reputation, and she wants to make it up to him. But if this does turn more romantic then... would you have any objections? Because we don''t. I don''t know if the central zone families have worked it out yet, but the royal family try to avoid marrying into the central zone; that was the only thing that might have worried me.¡± ¡°His conviction for being at the underground church...¡± ¡°Should have cost him his job according to the central-zone administrator. Naneela had the pleasure of pointing out that the research centre is not administratively part of the central zone. I trust the fellowship is still meeting, and is easier to find for enquirers?¡± ¡°The pastor had an anonymous letter pointing out that the membership was now known to the authorities, could easily be followed, and if they moved they''d be raided again, whereas if they didn''t move, they''d only get raided once a year or so, the fines were a lot less, and as it was an administrative penalty, not a criminal one, it wouldn''t cost anyone their job. It... seemed good advice.¡± ¡°If he''s still got it you can tell him Naneela wrote it. I normally write them, but Naneela wanted to do that one.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± ¡°The problem with underground churches was that they were so secretive some of them ended up hiding their faith. The overlooked churches were breaking the law, but the grand vizier and his predecessors knew the law was not popular here.¡± ¡°We were told this wasn''t the central zone, but...¡± ¡°Since the empress from Tesk, the emperor has had faith in Jesus. I was a little terrified when I got summoned here after I got caught in a raid, but the late-emperor thought that a baroness willing to risk getting caught at an overlooked church was just the person to introduce to his son. Salay won''t be looking at your daughter that way though, he''s very much thinking of someone else.¡± ¡°Who''s not from the central zone either?¡± ¡°She grew up in Wahleet, near the port, which isn''t the sort if central zone we''re avoiding. Her father was from Tesk, and she''s currently Salay''s ambassador in Caneth.¡± ¡°I don''t even know where that is, your majesty.¡± ¡°Closest country on the mainland to Tesk.¡± ¡°With all due respect, that seems a strange place to send someone you''re in love with.¡± Empress Hayeela laughed, ¡°It''s very complicated. Do you know much about your son''s work?¡± ¡°Urm, something about sending messages. What''s wrong with letters?¡± ¡°Sit down. I have something to tell you about the importance of the work your son and my daughter.¡±
Caneth ¡°Nervous?¡± Hayeel asked Esme. ¡°You know the answer to that.¡± ¡°True, but your honourable father has found a good husband for you. Enjoy today.¡± ¡°Because tomorrow we die?¡± ¡°No, because tomorrow has its own problems. Especially on Tesk. Now, you do not need this as medicine, Esmetherelda, but it is a tradition to give it to a bride on her wedding day. Really it is from Taheela, but she''s avoiding Hal still, so I have to give it. Don''t tell anyone please, it''s highly inappropriate.¡± ¡°An aphrodisiac flower? Why? Just in case?¡± ¡°No. Making the medicine from it takes ages anyway. It is a reminder that sometimes things don''t go as well as hoped, but that if you have patience and talk to your friends then maybe they can offer help and advice or at least prayer. Even about intimate things.¡± ¡°Thank Taheela for me. I might be too busy when we get back.¡± ¡°Probably. I think I hear your father coming.¡± ¡°Your turn will come, Hayeel, I''m sure of it. And I''ll be praying for your handsome prince to be as good a match for you as mine seems to be for me.¡± ¡°In six weeks or so I might start finding out.¡± ¡°Hey, you''re supposed to be stopping me from getting nervous, not the other way round. He sounds lovely from his letters, Hayeel. Leave the problems to tomorrow.¡± ¡°Come on Esme!¡± her father called, ¡°you''ve got a peace treaty to confirm.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 20: Revolution

Planet 5 / Ch. 20: Revolution

Letter to the pastors of Tesk Pastors of Tesk who serve the church of Christ and love the Lord our God. Has the lampstand been removed, or is it merely that you sleep? Wake up, we beg you. Our fight is not, mostly, against flesh and blood, but it may be that some will be counted worthy to share in Christ''s sufferings. We can make no promises, but we would like to share with you the signs of the times. Will you stand firm with us, armoured with the full armour of God, warning and exhorting all even if only to save but a few? We hope at least some of you can come to the chamber tomorrow at one pm, probably finishing around five. We hope there''ll be snacks at three-ish. The high council.
The high council chamber, Tesk ¡°Men and women of the press,¡± Rena said, ¡°For some reason the other members of the high council have appointed me as spokeswoman. We have, you might notice, returned early. There is a very sad, a shocking reason for that. But first let me give some background. We spoke a lot about history and lies and truth while we were in Caneth, and also about the different roles in which the government of Tesk is divided into. And some things happened that made us look at some very dusty volumes in the royal library of Caneth. One of those volumes turned out to be a little booklet that you''ll see in large piles at the door, for which the plates were also preserved. The author clears up the mystery of why there are two very different stories about the end of the windward emperor. Surprise surprise, when the old emperor was shoved off the boat marking the trigger for the revolution, his son became emperor after him. And then he got stabbed in the middle of the revolution. So both stories are in fact true. While we were learning such gems from history, all of us candidates developed the gift of Tesk. Tesk once more has a high council, and we have proven our possession of the gift of Tesk to the satisfaction of the politicians and parents who came with us. Now there are thirty-six members of the high council. Some of them are not here, some because they stayed for the wedding, others because the law as it stands forbids the presence of the royal family of the Three Isles. One stays with her mother who''s unable to travel at the moment. There has been a lot of rubbish spoken about the catalyst and how we obtain the gift, so I''ll tell you what we did. We sat in the same smallish conference room with prince Hal of the Three Isles, his fiancee crown-princes Esmetherelda, his two sisters and her two sisters, and the honourable Hayeel, ambassador from Dahel. We talked. Some people say I did a lot of the talking, but I''m sure I let others get a word in edgeways occasionally. That''s it. We sat, we talked, we chatted, we learned history, and we got scared. Scared? Why would we get scared? The honourable lady Hayeel, on her journey to Caneth, was faced with a terrible reality: the religion of the doom-guard is not gone. She, the group of soldiers who were her body guard, and the other travellers with them heard a scream, and went to investigate. In that out of the way place near the border of Tew, a priest of the doom-guard''s religion had just finished tattooing the marks of an acolyte in that illegal religion on the skin of two men, and celebrated it with the death of a farm-worker who''d upset one of them. The doom-guard''s priests are not gone, and that''s why we looked in the Caneth library. What we learned there made us scared, because one of the sayings of the doom-guard was very familiar to us. The doom-guard were sought out and tried by the women of the harem, the emperor had made his wives top administrators, and when they rebelled against him, they helped plot and organise the revolution, and sought to destroy the power of the doom-guard and its teachings. Their children continued that work, becoming the nobles ¡ª those whose judgements were unsullied by the corrupt practices of the doom-guard. And so it was that the doom-guard started saying that the only good noble was a dead noble. That saying does not originate with the second revolution, that saying originates with the doom-guard, whom nobles inherited the duty to prosecute under the constitution. The nobles of Tesk weren''t story-book nobility living from the taxes of the poor, they were civil servants earning about the same as a teacher. Fine, we kicked out the king, but why did the mobs attack the nobles? Who fed them such a pack of lies? So we came home concerned: why are our schools teaching children doom-guard propaganda? Why do so many of us have personal stories that seem to involve corrupt judges or untouchable civic leaders? We came home, because we feared that maybe without the nobles left to prosecute them, the doom-guard have been secretly regaining power. Tesk may not have many nobles with the constitutional power to judge members of the doom-guard, but it has a high council once more, and we mean to find out if there is a problem, and if so, how big the problem is. We came home early, because we didn''t know what kind of lies and propaganda might be being prepared against us. If any of you have faith, please pray for us.¡± ¡°Do you deny, then, that you''ve agreed to hand Tesk over to this confederation of the Isles and Caneth?¡± a reporter asked. ¡°Anyone know what that''s actually going be? Before we left, we heard that Crown princess Esmetherelda has asked the academy to think about how that confederation (or whatever it will be) might be structured. As far as she knows, they''re either still thinking or have forgotten they need to send the answer. She had planned to talk about some vague ideas the day after we left, but a ship under sail goes fairly fast and her voice isn''t that loud. She was perfectly happy for us to leave without discussing her ideas.¡± ¡°So you deny it?¡± ¡°What is it? How could we agree to anything we didn''t even discuss in vague outline? And anyway, the high council has no power to negotiate treaties, that''s the role of the government. Please feel free to read the constitution yourselves, and then call your sources ignorant dupes or outright liars, you know which.¡± ¡°And you claim that there was no kind of orgy.¡± ¡°I already said that, didn''t I? We talked, and we sat in our seats, oh, and we also drank tea on the palace lawns. Perhaps I should also say that Ambassador Hayeel is an unmarried duchess of the Dahel empire, who wears a sash that says she is a noble and a virgin and if anyone allows an insult to her purity or her honour ¡ª for instance printing anything insulting about her ¡ª then they are issuing a direct challenge to the emperor of Dahel, and full scale war will be the result. You reporters have press freedom, but if you have any love for your countrymen or sense in your skull you''d rather jump up and down on a hilltop during a thunderstorm insulting God than insult Ambassador Hayeel. God is more likely to be forgiving than the emperor.¡± ¡°All right, all right, calm down,¡± the reporter replied. ¡°Why should she?¡± Yana asked, striding forward with her daughter on her hip. ¡°You''ve just proved yourself unthinking enough to repeat an insulting and physiologically impossible lie about a crown prince, five princesses and one duchess of somewhere in Dahel the size of Tew, and thirty other girls and women who form the upper chamber of the government of Tesk, some of us who went there with our babies and husbands, fathers and mothers. If you''re gullible and stupid enough to do that, a little remedial lesson in international relations doesn''t seem amiss, does it? OK, I suppose that so far you''ve not insulted anyone from Tew yet, those countries I can never remember on the far side of the Dahel empire, or that guy who''s claimed that rock off the Caneth coast and lives off seaweed and raw fish, but maybe you were just winding up to that. How many independent countries and empires do you want to trigger a war with?¡± ¡°None, madam. None at all.¡± the reporter said. ¡°Good.¡± Yana said, ¡°Now if you can please all ignore the pre-prepared insulting questions you came with, and actually look back at the notes you were taking while your minds were on other things, you might find something worth asking about.¡± ¡°The shocking reason is the perceived return of the doom-guard?¡± The minister for fashion and tourism stood and said ¡°The shocking reason is that whatever we might have been taught in schools, the reality of the second revolution was that it was not a revolution against the laws of Tesk or the rule of the King of the Isles. Read the records of parliament, the break with the Isles happened a month before the first mob attacks. No, the second revolution was aimed against the hereditary wing of the civil service intended to prevent corruption and the spread of doom-guard teachings. The second revolution shouted doom-guard slogans and it ended up with the public sacrifice of men and women, boys and girls by hooded figures, some with strange tattoos. Sound familiar? The day we left I found an ancient document talking about the way the doom-guard seekers found their victims using the evil attunements of causing terror, dread, pain and suffering in others. A hand-written footnote in another document states these methods are how the mobs found their victims so easily. So I ask you, members of the free press, are you truly free? Will you check up in libraries and historic records? Do you dare label the second revolution as a counter-revolution against the one that brought the fall of the doom-guard?¡± Rena said, ¡°I hear some people wondering if others have heard of unexplained stories of disappearances or mutilated bodies they were told not to investigate. I hear others saying ''me too''. So I also ask, reporters of the free press of Tesk, how free are you? Are you free to swap stories? Can you discuss such things among yourselves? Will your editors allow you to publish such things? And if they will not, will you be free to report it to the high council?¡± ¡°And what will the high council do?¡± a reporter asked. Stolen novel; please report. ¡°The high council will do its duty under the constitution,¡± Rena said. ¡°We will listen, we will express concern, and we will accept oaths of office from others willing to do their duty under the constitution. We will accept sworn testimony, and if perjury is committed in front of this council we will apply the punishment that the law demands: exile or death. We have already sworn some to office. The other thing we will do is maintain a presence here day and night until this national crisis is resolved.¡± ¡°What national crisis? All I can see is some girls getting hysterical and a junior minister playing along!¡± ¡°The high council of Tesk is still in in quorate session.¡± Rena said, ¡°Let the record state that concern has been raised regarding the validity of the state of national crisis, contrary to the earlier assessment of the high council. Let the witness state his name, and place of residence, and swear to tell the whole truth on pain of death or exile.¡± ¡°What? What do you mean?¡± the reporter said. ¡°You raise an issue of utmost importance. The high council will listen to your statement under oath, and question you regarding how you reached it. Name?¡± ¡°Kem,¡± ¡°Kem son of Temb, where were you born?¡± ¡°Karet,¡± Kem said, not believing what was happening, but deciding to play along with their little game. ¡°Kem son of Temb, born in Gamb road, Karet. Are you sure you were born in the Karet portion of the road?¡± ¡°Urm, I think so.¡± ¡°The record is to state that Kem son of Temb now lives on the border of Karet, on Gamb road, and believes himself to have been born in Karet, but his parents lived a few houses away and might have lived the other side of the border. For the purpose of this hearing, Kem son of Temb are you fully content to be considered a resident of Karet?¡± ¡°Urm, yes, sure.¡± ¡°Do you recognise the ability of council members to hear your thoughts, as we''ve just been doing regarding your name and parental home?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you vow to tell the truth to this council?¡± ¡°I vow to tell the truth,¡± ¡°Do you understand that the least punishment that can be handed down for perjury before this council is life-long exile, and that if you knowingly lie we must sentence you?¡± ¡°Urm, yes.¡± ¡°You are thinking of legal processes to quash such a conviction. Do you understand that there is no law, no judge that can overrule the decision of this council, only the council itself can overturn its decisions, and that only when someone believed they were lying but actually were not?¡± ¡°What? No appeal?¡± ¡°On what basis? We know what you''re thinking, but only what you say is minuted. If you choose to lie, you choose to die. Or go into exile, but that doesn''t rhyme nearly so well. Just don''t lie.¡± ¡°Can I withdraw my vow?¡± Kem asked. ¡°No.¡± Rena replied. ¡°Is there any way I can get out of this?¡± Kem asked desperately. ¡°Tell the truth, and remember that we are not trying to get you in trouble. You are scared.¡± Rena said. ¡°I am,¡± for his sister, the one who wasn''t in Caneth. ¡°Do you think it is right for a reporter to be threatened?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Do the laws of Tesk promise protection for journalists?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Kem said. ¡°Do you feel sufficiently protected?¡± ¡°No,¡± certainly not his sister, but not personally either, he thought. ¡°Did your fears cause you to try to undermine the authority of this council?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Were you following instructions?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did you willingly put yourself in a position where you agreed you would follow such instructions?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Kem asked, ¡°I don''t understand.¡± ¡°Did you get the instructions from your normal employer or someone else?¡± ¡°Urm, someone at my place of work.¡± ¡°But not the person who normally sets your work?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Did you join some special group or religion not really connected to your work which demanded total obedience in exchange for advantages and promotion?¡± ¡°No, not really. I didn''t mean to, anyway. It wasn''t phrased like that.¡± ¡°You were invited to join a group of friends from different walks of life who helped each other out informally.¡± ¡°How did you..? Oh, mind-reading. Yes.¡± ¡°When was that?¡± ¡°A month ago,¡± Kem said, it had started so small, just a little piece about the ex-ambassador to Caneth being forced out by the princess-regent throwing her weight around, and not saying that he''d been sent home for inappropriate conduct. ¡°Do you now believe that the free press of Tesk is being subverted by a group who feel themselves above the law and immune from prosecution?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Your concerns are noted, Kem son of Temb, resident of Karet,¡± Rena said. ¡°It may be that the duchess of Karet will eventually be contacting you about your concerns. As spokesperson for this council, I thank you for your honesty. The opinion of this council is that you would do well to limit your contact with those who put you under such pressure.¡± Somehow, Kem understood that she was telling him to take his sister to the port and go and visit his other sister in Caneth. ¡°Thank you, may I leave?¡± ¡°You may leave, ¡± she said, and Kem somehow understood that she suggested he seek out a particular ship. He looked at her in amazement, how was that possible? That wasn''t part of the gift of Tesk, was it? Somehow, this young woman, the same age as his sister, he guessed, had convinced him that there was a better hope for himself, his family and the island than he''d ever hoped. Maybe it was her confidence. He knew what he wanted to title his piece about this meeting, which he planned to scrawl down before he left: ''If you choose to lie, you choose to die. Or go into exile but that doesn''t rhyme.''. The editor was used to getting pieces of news via messengers, so that shouldn''t be a risk at all. He expected the editor would shorten it. But still, it was a good title, and it was more his than anyone else''s.
The Imperial Palace, Emperor''s rooms ¡°Father, you expressed curiosity about what Hayeel looked like. Princess Bethania has provided us with some unposed pictures, the first without her realising at all, and the second with her knowledge but not expecting it to be on the back of these pictures of ports windward of Caneth.¡± ¡°Ah, now we see the face that draws my son across the continent. Is her letter characteristicly long?¡± ¡°Yes father, and scandalously uncensored and open, alternately hoping that we will marry, and threatening to insult me in every language and dialect she knows if I marry her in disobedience to the prophecy.¡± ¡°Doesn''t she know the penalty for insulting you?¡± the emperor asked, with an amused smile. ¡°I don''t think she''ll care, father. She''s as certain as I am that I must marry in accordance with the prophecy.¡± ¡°But she''s not as sure she''s the one as you are?¡± ¡°She hopes she might be, but he didn''t tell her, not until he was feverish and dying. In letter four, she says desperately hopes we''ll marry because she sees her sister growing large with her second child, in the next one she corrects that, realises that she''s not actually desperate to marry and is entirely used to turning away admirers, it''s much more to do with her wanting to make sense out of her life''s pain, and about seeing how God meant it for good.¡± ¡°Ah, the face of your duchess?¡± the empress said, coming in, ¡°An unusual beauty. But a little forward to send you pictures with you her hair loose.¡± ¡°The other side was a gift for me she''d already accepted, mother. Then Bethania wanted to sketch her again, and didn''t know what it implied.¡± ¡°You sent me a picture with your hair down, Hayeela,¡± the emperor said. ¡°I''d already accepted your proposal.¡± the empress shot back. ¡°Hayeel accepts mine if the prophecy says we should marry, and if I should let her appearance sway me to bend the prophecy and I marry her under false pretences, she threatens to unleash on me a torrent of abuse in as many languages and dialects has she has learned from growing up near a port. Speaking of which, in her fourth letter she says that just in case I''m entirely desperate to see her, she can recommend the captain who delivered the letter as an honourable man, a friend of her late father, averse to taking risks, and very familiar with the route. He was becalmed on the way here, and wishes to leave in three days, four at maximum.¡± ¡°So you''re leaving?¡± the empress asked. ¡°In her fifth letter she worries that princess Yalisa has seen in her father''s hands a document showing rifling on canons, worries that he has obtained a military secret, and worries whether with extended range and accuracy Tew will be thinking of starting a war with Caneth or the Isles. Part of that worry is that it might mean she ought to recommend that I not come, and she writes that she''s too quote ''insanely optimistic'' about our meeting to want to do that. So she recommends that I seek my parents'' advice.¡± ¡°And are you going to take her advice?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°Insanely optimistic as I am... I suppose so.¡± ¡°It will take a long time to rifle all the guns in the Tew navy, longer when they realise that while you can shoot round shot from a rifled gun, it doesn''t benefit from the rifling, and damages the rifling and does no good. So, I predict a frustrating time for the king of Tew in the next two or twenty years while he tries to replicate our success. And in what your Hayeel''s royal friend has seen, we have the evidence, finally, that the king of Tew has been trying to steal our secrets, which will be useful; most useful.¡± ¡°In other words, go soon,¡± his mother said.
Letter to Hayeel My Hayeel, guess what? I got two letters today. What a pair we make! Desperately longing to know how well we get on and how long we should wait before marriage! Your father''s friend has decided that he won''t look for much cargo, and you have almost told me what to buy you with your money. If only you had given exact dimensions! So, I must guess, and make choices. But, of course, there is the slight problem that if you decorate the embassy with your own money, what then happens to the embassy when we marry? So I have changed my mind. I will not be buying you carpets for the embassy with your money, but I will buy some carpets you might decide to display at the embassy, but for sale. I will also make some guesses with my own money. My Hayeel, today my parents advised me to not delay for fear of war with Tew, there are more changes needed to obtain the range than just to the barrel, and it seems most unlikely that there has been time to remake or replace enough guns for the whole navy. Also, the captain has agreed to fly the flag of the empire as well as of Tesk, which ought to give pause for confusion if not for thought. Speaking of confusion, Naneela and Kahlel are spending a lot of time together, but I think it is too early to call it romance. His burnt hands still need care, and she still gives it, and in the mean-time they talk of technology, and the design of circuits. Kahlel still wears a look of confusion on his face, and Naneela dismisses any suggestion that his mother or sister could treat his wounds at home with ''And how would you get there without getting them mucky? And if you were gone who would help me with this radio design?'' His mother and sister visited yesterday, and my mother spoke to his mother about some ''what if''s. It is rest-day today, by the way. I went to your sister''s church once more, and told them that I would be coming to see you and her. Everyone sends their love.. Fortunately I wasn''t asked to say anything, as all I would have thought of was how important it is to obey God when it looks like the end of the world is coming and it not being good for man to live alone. I do hope I don''t get sea-sick. Salay Planet 5 / Ch. 21: Heresy

Planet 5 / Ch. 21: Heresy

Tesk, high council chamber ¡°Welcome, pastors.¡± Rena said. ¡°As you''ve probably read in the papers, yesterday we talked to reporters. That''s not because of importance, more because we expected you might like a little more notice. Thank you for coming. At the moment, please consider this an informal chat.¡± ¡°The tone of the letter...¡± one pastor said. ¡°Was provocative, yes,¡± Rena said. ¡°Challenging, anyway,¡± another said. ¡°And I didn''t get all the references, myself. Some of our members who aren''t here today suggested a lot of it. I''m pleased you came. We are pleased you came. If you read one of the right papers, you''re aware we consider this to be a crisis. If you read the wrong ones, well, what can we say? Thanks for coming anyway. If we''re ''a bunch of scared girls'', we''re also a bunch of women happy to be known by the word Christian. I hope none of you find short extemporaneous prayer challenging, but yesterday, there were some reporters who were sent by others to cast doubt upon this council and to spy on us for their earthly masters, in fear of what might happen if they didn''t. Today, we plan to be more open, so we also want to be more cautious. Is there anyone here who might be similarly sent?¡± ¡°Are you thinking of my church elders asking me to come?¡± ¡°That depends on your elders,¡± Yana said. ¡°Would you say they are godly men happy to set see sin and heresy denounced, souls won, and new believers growing strong by unflinching exposition of scripture, or are they more interested in making sure that your two sentence introductions to songs don''t turn into sermons that might upset someone?¡± ¡°Urm, somewhere in the middle, but they are not at all keen on the new laws.¡± ¡°Because of tradition, or because the new laws condone sin?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Because as of last week, we are no longer allowed to name sin sin.¡± ¡°Thank you for bringing that concern to this council,¡± Rena said. ¡°We were away, but we have the constitutional power to suspend or strike down laws. That sounds like a prime candidate. Interference in legal religious services is a clear violation of the constitution.¡± ¡°Parliament has said that the constitution requires them to prevent religious hatred and calling anything sin is stirring up religious hatred.¡± one of the others said. ¡°Despite the fact that the constitution clearly states what it means by religious hatred, they warp it and twist it,¡± another pastor said. ¡°It''s very simple to explain,¡± Rena said, ¡°but before we do, are there any others who feel they have been sent here to disrupt or spy, or have any concerns about who is or isn''t here?¡± ¡°I''d expected Alexo to be here, Ada''s father. He''d have some things to say about people interfering with his sermons.¡± ¡°Alexo and Ada stayed for the wedding, we''re expecting them to get here a day or two after rest day.¡± Yana moved towards a particular member of the crowd, and addressed him directly. ¡°Would you like to say what''s on your mind?¡± ¡°I don''t know why I''m here,¡± he replied. ¡°In the sense that you''re not a pastor or you don''t know why some people sent you?¡± ¡°I got the invitation. I''m the pastor of my church. No one sent me. But... I don''t preach sermons. I thought everyone said that was... urm, outdated?¡± ¡°This meeting is open to all who love God and trust in him, and don''t mind the thought of keeping on trusting him when the world turns upside down, whether that means foreign armies marching across Tesk or rioting in the streets. I hope you don''t mind confusing your congregation because there are some things you might want to tell them. But there are some songs which I expect they''ve not sung in a fifty or a hundred years, which might strengthen them for what is to come. You might want to take time to explain some of the words though, and point them at the biblical passages they are drawn from.¡± ¡°We often sing old songs.¡± ¡°Do you know ''Let us not fear the ancient foe'', and ''I live, I die for Jesus''?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Yes, but...¡± ¡°But?¡± Mari asked. ¡°They''re funeral songs.¡± ¡°Not originally.¡± Yana corrected, ¡°Sing them with hope and trust and determination. ''Let us not fear'' was originally written before the fall of the windward Empire. Sometimes it''s ascribed to baroness Arelan of Resk who plunged a knife into the newly-crowned emperor during the revolution, but in her book she ascribes it to another and says it was a great comfort to all the members of the rebellion, which is how she learned it.¡± ¡°Can we sing it now, and then move on to prayer?¡± one of the council members asked. ¡°Let''s pass out the booklets, so we''re all singing the same version,¡± Rena said. ¡°Oh, I''m stupid! There''s a note on a lot of the older council minutes that I didn''t understand. It sometimes said ''l.u.n.f'' or but normally just ''lunf'' I thought it was some kind of notice about lunch or another meal, but it must have meant they sang ''Let us not fear''.¡± ¡°Rena,¡± Sashan said, ¡°Have you seen what''s on the wall above you, just above the tapestry?¡± Engraved in the stone were the words, ''Let us not fear.'' Rena groaned, ¡°Zero out of ten for observation to me. Thanks, Sashan! Let us sing, and then let us pray. Pastors, some of you are wondering why this is more like a youth-group meeting than government. Some of us were a lot further from God than others when we left for Caneth, but in case you''re wondering, every current member of the high council has realised they can''t do this alone and individually we''ve thrown ourselves on God''s mercy, both for what''s going to face us in the next week or so and for our lives and all eternity. May God pour out his mercy on the nation of Tesk once more, and may we become a beacon of faith as we fight this battle!¡± There were a number of surprised looks from the pastors as rather than the muted murmurs they might get in their churches, the response was a clear shout of ''Amen'' from the twenty-eight members of the high council present. And then they sang: ¡°Let us not fear the ancient foe, God, make us strong, where''re we go, Your Spirit in us as we pray, To guide and strengthen on our way.¡± And again the pastors were humbled and rebuked and filled with joy as the often sombre words were sung with confidence and faith. Not just the first verse, either, they sang all the verses, the ones that spoke of pain and setbacks and the death of loved-ones and faith in God almighty to deliver through them all. All agreed, afterwards, that that resounding Amen, and the song, and the prayer time afterwards had together fanned into flame their confidence in God that had begun to sputter and die. They left the meeting serious, but with a resolve that they''d not felt for a long time. ¡°You should have been there,¡± they told their wives and their friends. ¡°Will you come with me tomorrow morning? We''re invited back.¡± ¡°What''s the subject?¡± ¡°Today we sang, prayed, gave testimonies, and looked at some evidence that the second revolution was a counter-revolution.¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°Ever get the sense that Tesk is unwinding the influence of the gospel, and soon we''ll be back with human sacrifices?¡± ¡°That''s not funny?¡± ¡°No. But have you?¡± ¡°In my darker moments, yes.¡± ¡°Just after a really good day when you felt close to God?¡± ¡°What are you saying?¡± ¡°Have you heard of dum-semb?¡± ¡°That damned ''I am ruler of my own life'' heresy that''s getting more and more popular among the elite?¡± ¡°Read this, and I''ll see you at the high council tomorrow. Printed from the original plates.¡± ¡°''A brief history of the end of the empire''? Which empire?¡± ¡°Windward.¡± ¡°A counter-revolution against the revolution?¡± ¡°Read, be convinced, and pray, dum-semb is not a heresy, it''s much older than that.¡±
Resk church, restday meeting. ¡°Hi, Rena!¡± Gath, greeted her. ¡°You''re looking... more confident, more alive.¡± ¡°Hi Gath, God is good.¡± ¡°He is, isn''t he? Why don''t we ever talk about Hm?¡± ¡°Personally I was scared stupid that I''d find out that you had even less faith than me.¡± ¡°Urm, yes. I guess I was scared I''d find out you''d lost yours. Do... do you have the gift, Rena?¡± ¡°I do Gath. And my faith is far healthier than it was. Thank you for praying for me.¡± ¡°Praise God!¡± ¡°I do, Gath. I do. Sorry, I need to speak to the pastor.¡± Towards the end of the service, Rena was called up to the front. ¡°Thank you so much for letting me speak, pastor,¡± Rena said. ¡°When I was on my way to Caneth, I learned a few things. First, I learned that when the sailors from the Isles say they''re giving us good value for eels, they''re lying; they''re subsidising us so we don''t go hungrier. Second I learned that faith in Caneth or the Isles is not a matter to be shut away in social clubs, but something to be sung about with loud voices and talked about in throne-rooms and dinner tables with heads of state. I witnessed a lovely debate one meal-time between King Val, crown-princess Esmetherelda, and duchess Hayeel of Repink in the Dahel empire, which apparently is ''just a little duchy, only about the size of Tew'', about whether royalty ought to tithe their tax income. For the record, Esmetherelda said yes, Hayeel was arguing both sides, and King Val was arguing that that just meant that the king had to collect more taxes and why not trust people to give more than a tenth of their income once they''d met their needs? Can you imagine that debate here? I was also challenged by duchess Hayeel to get serious with God, and stop ignoring him, which I mostly have been since my brother died. All of us on the high council have dedicated or rededicated our lives to God in the last week. You''ve hopefully heard of our realisation that followers of the doom-guard religion orchestrated the second revolution, the counter-revolution against the nobility who in exchange for an income roughly the same as a teacher''s had the task of rooting out corruption and judging those accused of the doom-guard''s religion. Tomorrow or perhaps the next day, a group of prisoners will be coming from Caneth. Caneth have agreed to hand them over to Tesk, as this is where they are from. There is no doubt about their guilt, they admitted it in Caneth, before the whole high council and the politicians who were with us. The doubt is only about their sentence. Please pray for those who try them. Please pray for me, as I will be judge of one case. You know me as Rena. I''ll happily answer to that name, but I''ve got another, more dangerous one: Renela, baroness of Resk. It is my role, my duty under God, having inherited the title from my late mother, to judge those who practice the religion of the doom-guard. And I have sworn before God and the high council that I will carry out my duties. I don''t know if I''ll ever get paid, maybe the doom-guard will bring mobs to kill me and the other remaining nobles. But if I live then I will judge, and I will exercise my other duties. So if anyone wishes to complain about corruption, feel free to approach me. But please pray that Tesk will not fully fall back into the hands of the doom-guard religion. I have heard how much power they have already, it is a lot, and of course it is not just political power behind them. So, I beg you for your prayers. It is scary to learn that human sacrifices have been happening on Tesk ever since the mobs almost destroyed the nobles and forced us into hiding. A woman who until her arrest was a priestess of the doom-guard''s religion and is now a child of God, fully repentant of her sins, told us there were more and more sacrifices every year. Please pray for the noble who tries her case. Can he be merciful in the light of her repentance, or must he condemn her to the death her past actions call for? Your prayers are so important, please pray. It would be easy to fear, but our God is strong. Can we please sing the hymn of the first revolution: Let us not fear the ancient foe. With faith, with determination, with hope.¡± Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. After the meeting was over, Gath came to see Rena once more. His face was serious. ¡°You were magnificent, Rena, Renela.¡± ¡°You''re sad.¡± ¡°I''m scared.¡± ¡°That too,¡± she agreed. ¡°I don''t know how you can do it, Rena.¡± he said. His thoughts were guilt-stricken. She was his friend, how could he let her take this risk alone? ¡°I hope I''m not going to be alone, Gath. ¡± [Gathlek] his mind corrected. ¡°Gath, what earned me my reprimand from Hayeel was you. Just so you know.¡± ¡°What? She doesn''t approve of us being friends?¡± ¡°Friends she was happy with, along with other God-honouring possibilities. It was the ones that left God out she didn''t like. What I''m saying is there are different ways you can be beside me. As long as you''re not planning to run from my scary title, I''m happy.¡± ¡°Urm, are you saying you urm...¡± his mind filled with possible things she might be saying. But he was pretty sure she''d just been dropping strong hints about romance. He''d hoped but never been brave enough to actually ask her what she thought about him. He found his fears being washed away in hope as he looked down at her beautifully sparkling eyes and the very adorable smile growing on her lips. ¡°Not scared now?¡± she asked, her eyes sparkling even more. ¡°Not scared,¡± he said, answering her smile with one of his. ¡°That''s nice, now, there''s more people I need to talk to.¡± ¡°Would you like to come to lunch? I''m cooking.¡± ¡°Can you come to us? Visitors expected.¡± ¡°Dad too?¡± Gath''s mother, like Rena''s, had died when he was young. ¡°Certainly,¡± Rena said turning to the church organist, ¡°Miri?¡± ¡°I just wanted to say your mother would be so proud of you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Miri.¡± ¡°And I don''t think he''s deep into it, but my lodger...¡± ¡°He''s in the army, isn''t he?¡± ¡°A lieutenant,¡± Miri replied. ¡°He seemed such a nice boy, but in the last couple of weeks ... he''s got... I don''t know, colder.¡± ¡°There may be hope for him, Miri. If he''s not looking too busy, please tell him that you heard at church that all the lieutenants in the army were being informally asked to speak to the high council sometime before tomorrow lunchtime. There''ll be people there all day and all night.¡± ¡°Just you girls there on your own?¡± ¡°Oh, don''t worry, we''ve requisitioned some official guards, not to mention some cousins, brothers, boyfriends, and husbands are around too.¡± ¡°That''s good.¡± ¡°We think so. Sorry, Teni seems to want to say something.¡± ¡°You and Gath?¡± Teni asked. ¡°Problem?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Not in the least. I''ve been wondering when he''d realise.¡± ¡°Want me to give Dallew a nudge? No secrets from me, now. But it was pretty obvious, for what a year, two?¡± ¡°Not to him, it seems.¡± ¡°He''s a guy ¡ª impervious. But speak faith to him first, Teni. No wait a moment. Dallew?¡± ¡°Urm, yes, Rena?¡± ¡°Two questions, you are still in the army aren''t you?¡± ¡°Yes, sergeant now.¡± ¡°Great! Just hypothetically, would it bother the average sergeant greatly to be asked by the high council to arrest a general or a captain on a charge of conspiracy to commit human sacrifice?¡± ¡°Dear God forbid! You''re not saying the evil''s in the high command, are you? I''d do it, no question, not now I''ve heard you speaking about it. First thing this morning... I''m not sure.¡± Rena handed him a booklet, ¡°Background reading for you, pay particular attention to the appendix. Third question, would you like extra copies for trusted friends of sergeant rank or lower?¡± ¡°Not the whole officer corps?¡± he asked going pale. ¡°So far.... let''s call them rumours. I don''t know how low its got in the ranks.¡± ¡°I''ll take ten copies if I may?¡± ¡°Certainly,¡± Rena said, counting out a quarter of her stock. ¡°Teni,¡± Dallew said, ¡°will you pray for me?¡± ¡°Of course I will Dallew.¡± ¡°Here''s ten, more copies are at the high council chamber.¡± ¡°I need an good motive to go and chat to everyone,¡± Dallew said musing. ¡°Urm, Teni, I''ve been meaning to ask...¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°What do you think of the idea of us getting engaged? I''m pretty sure you like me and I know I like you. Lots.¡± ¡°Engaged? Just like that?¡± Teni asked. ¡°Too quick? Sorry. I just thought ...¡± Rena interpreted for him ¡°He knows how he feels, Teni, and he knows you have faith better than you know he has, and he''s thinking about what you said at youth-group about not liking the idea of spending ages not sure if a boyfriend was going to ask you to marry them.¡± ¡°You remember that?¡± Teni asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°That must have been three or four years ago.¡± ¡°You were looking at me when you said it.¡± ¡°Excuse me, Rena, I need to have a long talk to my fiance.¡± Dallew gave a joyous whoop and picked Teni up and span her around. Then he sheepishly put her down as he remembered he was still in church. ¡°I take it Teni said ''yes'', Dallew?¡± the pastor asked. ¡°Yes, pastor!¡±
Rena''s home. ¡°Countess Elakart, Welcome, have a seat.¡± Matew, Rena''s father greeted the frail woman. ¡°It''s a long time since I''ve been here, isn''t it, Matew?¡± ¡°Just my daughter''s lifetime.¡± ¡°And you, Yalek, when did I last meet you?¡± ¡°About the same time, Elakart. Yanelana was about two I think.¡± ¡°So, who is this young man?¡± ¡°Mother called me Gathlek, countess. I don''t claim a title yet. I''m too terrified.¡± ¡°But he''s not afraid to spend time with Renela.¡± Matew said, ¡°or to tell us his name, so there''s hope.¡± ¡°Count Ralek of Ranet is escorting the prisoners, mother, along with his daughter, Ardela¡± Kara said. ¡°And will someone tell me why it''s a good idea to meet up now?¡± Yalek asked. ¡°Because next weekend might be too late,¡± Rena said, ¡°Given that we asked for a week before the combined navies of Tew, Caneth and the Isles start dismantling the government and the military, one canon-ball at a time.¡± ¡°You what?¡± Yalek asked. ¡°Daddy, I did tell you the treaty had been invoked. It allows the highest authority of the land the minimum necessary time to set in place a realistic course of action to eradicate the outbreak. We asked for day one: alert the press, day two, alert pastors, day three, swear in nobles, make contact with low ranking officers. Today rest, tomorrow low-ranking politicians and more officers. Day after tomorrow, prisoners testifying before politicians, making accusations, wide scale arrests. Day after that, the navies arrive and we say we''re doing OK. Or we''re not able to do that, in which case we need help.¡± ¡°And you told the press this?¡± Yalek said. ¡°Of course not. We haven''t even told them what the religion of the doom-guard calls itself.¡± ¡°Let me guess,¡± Yalek said ¡°dum-semb.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± Matew replied. ¡°But they know you''re after them, surely?¡± ¡°Not all of them, no. That''s a key part of the plan. The politicians we had with us in Caneth, at least, knew that they were involved with dum-semb, but were shocked to hear it was the religion of the doom-guard, and terrified to hear that every time an acolyte, novice, priest or priestess gets a new tattoo, then someone has been sacrificed.¡± ¡°You''re going to have a problem arresting the entire officer corps of the army, if it weren''t for them you''d be OK.¡± ¡°That''s where we come in, isn''t it?¡± Elakart said. ¡°You want us signing suspension from post orders.¡± ¡°Exactly. The high council can sort of do it, with a presentation of evidence, and so on, but for a noble, it only takes their name on a sheet of paper, and they are suspended from office until they are tried. And for the rest of the army, once that''s done there is no longer any charge that can be brought against a rank and file soldier for disobeying orders.¡± ¡°Do the soldiers know this?¡± ¡°It''s in the training manual, we''re reminding them, and the rumour mill is working on it, we hope. Since lots of junior-rank soldiers go home on rest-day, and a fair chunk go to church, and we got about half the pastors yesterday and the day before, so... maybe, just maybe it''ll work. We also know now what papers are going to publish something like the truth, so the council can concentrate drip-feeding them constitutional titbits and we nobles can look at the other papers and see who it might be appropriate to demand come to the high council to testify about their actions.¡± ¡°All this before lunch, eh?¡± Elakart teased. ¡°Certainly not, countess. But we''ve got about half an hour before its ready. Esmetherelda sent us back with a little care package, by the way.¡± ¡°I was wondering why your kitchen was smelling like very funny roast eels.¡± ¡°Very funny looking eels indeed,¡± Rena agreed. ¡°Unable to swim. Would you like to guess?¡± ¡°It reminds me of my childhood. You''ve got some lamb haven''t you?¡± ¡°Yes, mother.¡± Kara said, ¡°We have roast leg of lamb for lunch, and you will be having some lamb broth to take home.¡± ¡°What about the others?¡± ¡°We''re doing better than you, Elakart,¡± Matew said. ¡°Speaking of which, how are you doing with avoiding bread?¡± ¡°I''m succeeding reasonably well.¡± ¡°And your health, is it working?¡± ¡°Can''t a woman have any privacy?¡± ¡°Not from those who love her, no.¡± Kara said. ¡°So tell us, mother.¡± ¡°I''m feeling a bit better, thank you.¡± ¡°That''s excellent news!¡± Matew said. ¡°Yes, it is indeed.¡± Yalek agreed. ¡°Is a complete recovery predicted?¡± ¡°As long as I starve, yes. Tubers and marsh-root. What a basic diet!¡± ¡°And lamb broth, to build your strength.¡± ¡°Made with tubers and marsh-root, no doubt. ¡°And Dahel grain, which is different to wheat, and ought to be safe.¡± ¡°And costs a fortune. I know the prices, even if I don''t run things now ¡± ¡°I think this is the time to present you with this, countess.¡± Matew said. ¡°What''s that? Other than in Dahelese?¡± ¡°That is apparently the certificate of an accredited favoured exporter from the duchess of Repink, famous for its exports of carpets and Dahel-grain.¡± ¡°How favoured?¡± ¡°Zero export tariff on Dahel grain coming to Tesk,¡± Matew said. ¡°Zero?¡± Elakart was shocked. ¡°Normal rate is ninety percent. All you need to do is find a grain-ship or three with captains you trust ¡ª your certificate is for up to three standard boatloads per year. You''ll see there are four copies, you keep the master copy. Hopefully someone knows what a standard boatload is.¡± ¡°Three Dahelese standard boatloads?¡± Elakart exclaimed. ¡°That''s an almost-sinking river barge! What''s the woman doing?¡± ¡°Hoping to help the poor of Tesk not starve, mother. She trusts you will not crash the entire grain market nor get rich from her generosity, but when she heard about the family business she decided we probably still had contacts.¡± ¡°And with that I can find a captain and have him leap up and down in joy.¡± ¡°Yes, mother.¡± Kara said, ¡°Oh, it also allows a ten percent export tariff on two top-quality Repink carpets to Tesk or Caneth via Tesk per grain shipment. She says that ought to be good for her duchy''s net exports, because she''s fairly sure they don''t make the quote ''low quality rubbish on sale in Caneth''.¡± ¡°Two carpets don''t make for a ship load to Caneth.¡± ¡°No, but they make the captain think he wants to go there.¡± Kara said, ¡°And I wonder what they might take to fill up the cargo-space.¡± ¡°God bless the woman!¡± Elakart said ¡°She''s baiting the journey for exports, isn''t she?¡± ¡°Exactly. It''s too late in the season for anything this year, but she hopes you have an entertaining winter negotiating, and she says she''s going to beg a friend of her father, a captain called Davdo, to show his face on Tesk again once he gets back to Caneth port. His ship''s called the Gem of Karet.¡± ¡°Why won''t you all just let me die in misery? I had it all planned out!¡± Elakart exclaimed. ¡°You go and make me the key figure in your plans to reinvigorate the cloth trade, feed Tesk, and not to mention try half the army, and then you go and tell me that? You''re cruel and heartless giving me hope like that. How am I supposed to wallow in self-pity and pine away before mid-winter with all that to think about?¡± ¡°I don''t want you pining away in self-pity, mother.¡± ¡°What''s so special about the ship, Elakart?¡± Matew asked. ¡°I am the Gem of Karet, It''s a traditional title for the duchess. He was lovely and kind and I turned him down twice for good business reasons when I was eighteen. And he went and named his ship after me? The romantic fool! It''s not fair! You''re ganging up on me. All right I give in, I''ll stop planning my funeral and give life a chance. Give me some paper, Renela, if you want me to draw up some suspension from post orders.¡± ¡°Would these pre-printed forms be of use, duchess?¡± Rena asked. ¡°Ooh, look who''s efficient. And have you got a complete list of people I''m writing in the gaps too?¡± ¡°Here is a list of the army officers and which regiment they''re assigned to, Here is a list of where the regiments are posted, and we don''t yet have a list of where the generals live but we''re assuming they''re not on their bases. ¡°That''s fine dear,¡± Elakart said. ¡°it can be work-place, birth-place or residence. I''d say regiment identifies them quite well.¡± An hour later, Elakart sat back in her chair, and said, ¡°Thank you Matew, a very pleasant meal. Nice spices on the marsh-root, too. Do I blame duchess Hayeel for that too?¡± ¡°The recipe is from her sister, lady Taheela.¡± Kara said. ¡°I''d better write to them and thank them, hadn''t I?¡± ¡°Don''t forget to ask Hayeel to pass on that letter,¡± Kara said. ¡°What letter?¡± ¡°The one you were thinking of writing, mother. No one is going to replace dad, but you don''t need to be lonely.¡±
The royal port, 30 miles upstream from Wahleet ¡°My prince asks me to report that we are all on board, captain,¡± the interpreter said, ¡°and all the cargo is tied down, we hope.¡± ¡°Has everyone eaten some ginger?¡± Captain Davdo asked. ¡°It''s supposed to help.¡± ¡°Our eyes burn with it captain, we will try not to poison the fish.¡± ¡°Rather the fish than the cabins, that''s my motto,¡± the captain said. ¡°No more last minute fond goodbyes?¡± ¡°All said, I hope, captain. The last one was actually a proposal.¡± ¡°Really? He''s going to be staring blankly out at the water all the way there then.¡± ¡°Urm, actually, he''s going to be staying. It developed into sort of a competition, between two brothers, which of them would have the best excuse not to come. Except the one who is coming had planned this with the girl who is now his future sister-in-law. He pretended yesterday to buy a new race-horse from her father, so that his brother would make up his mind and propose. The prince knew.¡± ¡°And the horse?¡± ¡°Will be looked after faithfully by the brother who stayed, and if the brother who comes with us becomes an ambassador after such an honourable deed, then the horse will stay in his care, else the horse will be bought properly or ''sold back''. The father-in-law will be happy in any of the cases.¡± ¡°It is an honourable deed to trick one''s brother into a marriage?¡± ¡°There is no question that they hoped to marry, it''s just he did not feel worthy to ask. But they have been in one another''s company a long time, it is becoming a trial to the parents and a scandal to the girl, and thus to the prince. She would have married someone else if he had come with us.¡± ¡°Ah, I think I see. He almost waited too long to prove himself worthy, while others ask too early and are rejected that way.¡± ¡°Relationships are complicated.¡± ¡°That they are lad, that they are. Ships are much simpler. Cast off lads, weigh anchor, back to the calm coast of Caneth for the winter!¡± ¡°And maybe Tesk?¡± one young man asked hopefully. ¡°Depends, lad, that depends. Politics being what it is, the duchess might not be very welcome.¡± ¡°May I ask, why do you call your ship the duchess, Captain?¡± the interpreter asked. ¡°Because that''s the rank of the lady who the Gem is named after, and you''d have to get me very drunk to tell you more, lad. Which''d be hard and stupid. Hard because I don''t drink at sea, and stupid because if you managed it I''d then chuck you overboard for putting the ship in danger. Can''t have drunkenness on board a ship at sea.¡± ¡°I would not try such a dishonourable thing, captain.¡± ¡°Good man.¡± In the prince''s curtained off corner of the hold, he turned the dials and flipped the switches in the right sequence, waited the time Naneela had instructed him to for everything to stabilise and pressed the transmit button. ¡°Calling in, one percent power.¡± ¡°Hearing you loud and clear,¡± Naneela''s voice came back. Salay flipped a switch, ¡°Trying a tenth.¡± ¡°That''s good, too.¡± Another switch. ¡°A hundredth.¡± ¡°Still fine, no hiss.¡± ¡°We''re just leaving the wharf, I''ll aim to call as we enter Wahleet.¡± ¡°OK. Start at a hundredth of a percent power, it ought to work, and there''s no point wasting your batteries.¡± ¡°Turning off,¡± he turned off the high voltage battery. It would still work for a bit, he knew. ¡°Take care, big brother. I''ll be praying for you.¡± ¡°You too, genius. Half voltage coming up... now.¡± ¡°Bye.¡± he heard as a final whisper. He reduced the power to the heaters; the less shocks they had the better, Naneela had said; slow turning on and slow turning off could increase their lifespan significantly. Salay closed his eyes in silent prayer. Let me not break this, fragile thing, Lord. And let me treasure Hayeel even more. Planet 5 / Ch. 22: Disbelief

Planet 5 / Ch. 22: Disbelief

A kitchen, breakfast time ¡°I don''t believe a word of it. It''s a plot to restore the rule of Captita,¡± the man, old before his time, looked up from his morning paper to declare to the world in general and his son in particular. ¡°Why would Captita want us back?¡± Jahon asked, ¡°The fashion trade? Rags are universally out of fashion, dad.¡± ¡°The academy....¡± his father started. ¡°The academy is in some kind of internal civil war, with the astronomers teaming up with three quarters of the physics department, (which is odd in itself, given how they squabble over budgets) and various other lecturers from the weirdest mix of disciplines and mounting some kind of campaign to overthrow the administrative staff, who have cut their budgets and are threatening to lock people out of their labs. Every day I go I half expect to see some learned professor advocating eating the administrators to solve two problems at once.¡± ¡°Your lectures are still happening?¡± ¡°Yes, Dad,¡± Jahon said, ¡°But admin staff sit in on them with security guards, to make sure the lecturers don''t start advocating in lesson time. And the tests are getting weird, really end-of-the-world stuff.¡± ¡°Weird tests. What''s the world coming to?¡± his father asked, clearly unimpressed. ¡°No, I mean it Dad, listen to this list from the last month. Biology: calculate the volume of a green-house necessary to sustain oxygen production for the population of the planet. Politics: what form of government is best suited to meeting the Tesk Challenge while facing a planet-wide disaster? Philosophy: If the population of the world faces a universal cataclysm, describe an appropriate response within the ethics system of your choice. Sociology: How would you inform the population that our only hope of surviving the next twenty years is to get the aliens to come back and help us without fragmenting society so much that they won''t come? Astronomy: as ''the crown'' interstellar dust cloud formation continues to encroach further on our solar system which primary, secondary and tertiary effects would you expect on our planet? Comment on any that would affect its habitability.¡± ¡°So they all want to show how their studies might be globally important some time, What''s new about that?¡± The student gave up, ¡°Nothing dad, nothing. OK if I go out for a walk?¡± ¡°What are you going to do about the high council?¡± ¡°Do?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°You students. You''re supposed to be the guardians of radical thinking, aren''t you? Rise up, smash them down, make fun of them at least!¡± ¡°That''s an idea,¡± Jahon said, ¡°They claim they''ll listen to concerns, don''t they?¡± ¡°You''re going to talk to the so called high council?¡± ¡°Why not? They''re girls, dad. You keep going on at me about never talking to girls.¡± He didn''t admit that he thought he recognised one of the names on the list as someone from the Christian Union. His dad, a firm atheist, wouldn''t have approved at all of that link. ¡°Tell them I don''t hold with re-writing history!¡± ¡°OK dad. I promise.¡±
High council chamber ¡°Sashan! It was your name? You''re on the high council?¡± Jahon said. ¡°Hi, Jahon. Yes.¡± ¡°You look exhausted.¡± ¡°Something to do with lack of sleep. Want to tell me what brought you here?¡± ¡°Well, dad says he doesn''t hold with re-writing history.¡± ¡°That''s good. Want a booklet? Printed with the original historical plates.¡± ¡°I''ll take one, thanks. Can I get you something? Like a chair?¡± ¡°I''m fine, Jahon,¡± Sashan said, despite appearances otherwise. ¡°I''m off duty in half an hour.¡± ¡°You''re barely able to stand up straight, Sashan.¡± ¡°Thank you for the vote of concern, Jahon.¡± ¡°I''m not just saying it.¡± ¡°I know. I know your concern for me is blotting out the thought that brought you here, I know you think I''m looking fragile and beautiful and that you''re feeling protective and you''re planning to stay and walk me home so I don''t collapse half way. It makes a very nice change to feel cared for. But if I sit down then I''ll fall asleep. I know, four of us fell into that trap at five in the morning, and it almost ended badly, when a half-drunk army captain came by. He''s now being tried next door for a capital crime, and I''m not sitting down again.¡± ¡°Will you allow me to hang around then?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°And walk you home?¡± ¡°I''ll let you escort me home, yes, once I''m off duty. But I''ll need to get a cab; I''m too tired to walk.¡± ¡°You''re alone because of the army captain?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And you''ve stayed up all night because...?¡± ¡°Because we decided that we ought to be here all night, in case anyone wanted to raise a concern.¡± ¡°I don''t know if I ought to bother you with it, it''s just academy stuff.¡± ¡°Please don''t make me drag it out of you, Jahon, I''m too tired.¡± ¡°Admin staff versus astronomers and physics staff, research budgets slashed, experiments cancelled, scary questions in tests.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Sashan said, sadly, ¡°more problems.¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°Good that you came. None of us has been to the academy yet, we''re concentrating on trying to stop a war. But it looks like we need to sooner rather than later.¡± ¡°A war?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°Heard of the treaty for the eradication of human sacrifice?¡± Jahon nodded, he loved learning about obscure things, he''d sat in on a lecture series on historic international treaties, even though he studied physics. ¡°Tew should have heard by now, the Isles and Caneth are certainly on their way. They know our plans that trials should begin and be properly conducted. If anything stops that then the combined forces of our three neighbours will not be on a friendly visit. The captain might be the first to be tried on Tesk for a century for following dum-semb, but he won''t be the last.¡± ¡°Dum-semb is the religion of the doom-guard?¡± Jahon asked, shocked. ¡°Yes. It''s named in the booklet, but don''t break that news too quickly, please, Jahon. It''s supposed to come out gradually.¡± ¡°Sashan, if you''re going against dum-semb, then don''t go onto campus. Not without a big body-guard.¡± ¡°That''s why we''ve been leaving them for later. But if you could take some of those booklets to the Christian Union...?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°It''s risky.¡± ¡°Not compared to what you''re doing.¡± She was risking attacks and worse and making herself a target, what sort of friend would he be to not play postman? ¡°Helping me get home and taking risks just because I''ve asked you to doesn''t make you my boyfriend, Jahon.¡± ¡°I know, I''d need to ask you out first, write you poetry and serenade your window until you agree, things like that.¡± he said. ¡°You can forget the serenading bit right now.¡± He couldn''t help himself grinning, ¡°That''s a relief, the risk of a jug of water or worse always put me off.¡± ¡°Getting yourself a girlfriend wasn''t worth the risk?¡± ¡°I don''t want to collect a string of ruined relationships, Sashan. I heard someone say she didn''t want someone else''s reject, and that stuck. Why should half the C.U. be constantly juggling who''s going out with who? That doesn''t honour God at all.¡± ¡°Because to half the C.U. or more, being in the C.U. is about finding someone, not honouring God.¡± ¡°I guessed that too,¡± Jahon said, wondering how he could ask the question that formed on his mind. ¡°There''s something very wrong with our values that we don''t dare ask that question, and it''s nice I don''t need to, but I will anyway. Will you tell me about your coming to faith, Jahon?¡± ¡°Dad is a convinced atheist, and I guess I was a rebellious son. I listened at the C.U. debates. It was so obviously right to trust God. And so I joined and kept on listening.¡± ¡°But you don''t go to church.¡± ¡°No, I''m not very brave.¡± ¡°You don''t want to hurt your dad.¡± ¡°I know he''d react badly.¡± ¡°No, you assume he''d react badly.¡± Sashan corrected. ¡°I''m not saying he won''t, but you don''t know it.¡± ¡°OK, I don''t know it, you''re right.¡± ¡°And you rely on the C.U. for spiritual input.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And that''s one of the reasons you''ve not going to ask me out.¡± ¡°Not being brave enough to risk rejection, not being brave enough to stand up for what I believe, not being brave enough to ask you about your faith, things like that. And not being such a predator that I''m going to ask you out when you''re practically asleep.¡± ¡°I noticed that. And you''re not sure you know me enough or like me more than you like some other girls. Basically you don''t want to make a mistake.¡± ¡°It''s almost like you''re reading my mind.¡± ¡°It''s exactly what I''m doing.¡± ¡°And you don''t mind being bombarded by my conflicting emotions?¡± ¡°I don''t get many emotions, just the thoughts they stir. You want to protect me from yourself too, and that''s nice. But remember, you could be having this conversation with any of us, pretty much. Except that there are a few married women and Rena''s now going out with Gath.¡± ¡°Do you have faith, Sashan?¡± ¡°I do, we all do, on the council. But having not taken the opportunity to ask me about my coming to faith when I gave you that wonderful chance earlier, you''re going to have to wait before I tell you. They''re coming.¡± ¡°Who''s they?¡± ¡°The other three,¡± Sashan said, ¡°Gath, Dallew, Rena, how are you?¡± ¡°Slightly sick feeling.¡± Rena said. ¡°He was an acolyte, and he wallowed in what he had done to his victim.¡± ¡°Nasty. Execution, then?¡± ¡°He didn''t realise what the law of Tesk says,¡± Rena said. Jahon quoted ¡°A prisoner once condemned to death for the religion of the doom-guard shall have one opportunity to repent and turn from his sins, and no more than sixty breaths thereafter.¡± ¡°This is Jahon,¡± Sashan said, ¡°Officially a student of physics, but an avid collector of little-known historical facts. He''s heard of the treaty.¡± ¡°Do you need help with the body?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°No, thanks, it''s done.¡± Dallew said. ¡°The trap-door over the cliff?¡± Jahon asked, he''d been on a tour once. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And we now know what those triangles set into the cliff are for,¡± Rena said. ¡°Dallew broke his neck, just to make sure, but we don''t need to. There''s no way you could pretend to suffocate and then survive the triangles.¡± She gave a shudder, ¡°Can we talk about something else?¡± ¡°The academy administrators don''t like Esme''s letter, by the look of it. They''re threatening to close down the project, and are sitting in on lectures to ensure that staff don''t tell students what the project is.¡± ¡°The idiots!¡± Rena said. ¡°If it helps, they''re dum-semb,¡± Jahon said, ¡°Practically the entire admin staff. I did a survey in my first term for a sociology paper.¡± ¡°I thought Sashan said you were studying physics,¡± Dallew said. Jahon shrugged, ¡°I like optional courses for no extra course fees. I''d seen a lot of stuff about dum-semb on campus, and I did a comparison between academic and admin staff. I got a bit embarrassed when my naive statistics were showing a hundred percent plus or minus ten, and didn''t want to hand in a paper that embarrassing, so I asked all but five people, I think it was. As an ignorant first year I got away with it too. Ninety nine percent plus or minus a half.¡± ¡°They admitted it?¡± ¡°My question was, now let me think... something like ''I''ve seen a lot of notices in the dormitories about the philosophical movement known as dum-semb on campus. Would you say that dum-semb is something that helps you?'' Or it might have been ''has helped you''.¡± ¡°What were the statistics for the lecturers?¡± ¡°Overwhelmingly dismissive, except for one history professor who looked surprised, and said something like ''Really? Openly advertising now? That''s an interesting sign.'' and said it had helped him, and tried to recruit me.¡± ¡°What did you say to him?¡± ¡°I said I was studying physics as my main course, ''and I''m sure you know what most physicists think of any kind of philosophy.'' And then said something about needing to gather more data.¡± ¡°OK,¡± Rena said, ¡°So, we need to add the admin staff to the list, and warn the others not to attend lectures without some bodyguards.¡± ¡°Rena,¡± Sashan said, ¡°Do we tell Jahon about the thing he''s worried about? The lecturers are obviously trying to but are being prevented.¡± ¡°We don''t really need to add mass panic to the mix, quite yet, Sashan.¡± ¡°We do need the labs operational and equipment not smashed,¡± Sashan replied. ¡°Good point,¡± Rena agreed, ¡°Let''s think about it for a bit.¡± They went over to the corner. ¡°Are Dallew and I allowed to know what you''re worried about?¡± Gath asked. ¡°Lots of lecturers asking questions to do with the end of the world. I guess the admin staff aren''t bothering to read all the questions that get set.¡± ¡°The end of the world?¡± Dallew asked. ¡°How do we announce it, can we survive, what happens when the aurorae get stronger, that sort of thing.¡± ¡°The what?¡± Gath asked. ¡°Fires in the sky,¡± Jahon said. ¡°Oh. But they''re harmless,¡± Dallew asserted, ¡°I read it ... oh. In the same paper that says the high council are a bunch of scared teenagers.¡± ¡°Yeah. ''Scared teenager calmly signs death warrant and condemns army captain to death'', doesn''t quite ring true, does it?¡± Gath said. ¡°I don''t think I needed to know that, Gath.¡± Jahon said. ¡°Leave some uncertainty about which of you three is the noble.¡± ¡°Oh. Yes.¡± then he groaned. ¡°We should have had Sashan there too.¡± Dallew nodded. ¡°But we don''t need to say who was or wasn''t present. Please don''t, Jahon.¡± ¡°I''ve no desire to get anyone mobbed to death, fear not. Didn''t the captain try to pull rank?¡± ¡°It''s illegal to obey an officer who''s been suspended from service,¡± Dallew said. ¡°I do like our constitution,¡± Jahon said. ¡°All we need is more nobles and brave soldiers.¡± ¡°Jahon?¡± Sashan asked, ¡°Will you open to me?¡± ¡°You mean, like share my most intimate thoughts with you?¡± he asked, turning to find she was standing very close to him. ¡°That sort of thing, yes,¡± she said, locking his gaze with hers. ¡°Is that, urm, wise?¡± he asked. ¡°You mean in connection to you feeling brave enough to ask me out?¡± ¡°Urm, yes,¡± he replied. ¡°The worst that happens is I don''t like something I see and say no if you ever decide to ask, and you''ll never know what I''d say otherwise, will you?¡± ¡°But maybe you see something so ugly that it ruins our friendship and you decide that you don''t want me to help you get home.¡± ¡°And maybe I''ll see something so nice that you get a goodbye kiss on my doorstep, sealing your fate forever, who knows?¡± ¡°That''s not very likely, is it?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°Will you open to me?¡± She repeated. ¡°What do you want to know?¡± he asked. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°It doesn''t work like that, Jahon, either say ''sorry, I''d rather not'', or ''I open to you.''¡± ¡°I open to you,¡± Jahon said, and her hands were on his face, cradling it, cool and calming, but while she held him like this, his mind wasn''t entirely his own. His memories were flicking past, clearly she was directing them. She was making him remember things, the lectures he''d had recently, with the admin staff. The test questions, how he''d asked others if they''d had similar ones, carefully not sharing that he''d had two odd questions, in politics and physics. Then his memories of his studies of law and politics and treaties, what he''d thought of the chanting of the anti-noble slogan in school (he''d hated it), and his relationship with his father. His mother''s long illness, his fears, and where they''d come from? Who''d hurt him that he was so concerned about breaking relationships? And it went on, and on. Sashan was interested in what made him him, it seemed. Then she turned to what he thought of the council, in general, and her, and the people in the C.U. and in particular the girls in the C.U. Was Sashan looking to see if she had competition, Jahon wondered? But she wasn''t lingering on appearance but character, as if she was comparing his analysis with hers. [Exactly] her thought came to him. He was surprised to hear her thought. [Interesting. Very useful, though.] and he sensed she was waiting for him to think something to her. [Why?] What was she waiting for? Why had she sought so much? [We don''t have enough nobles. There should be fifty. I thought I''d be brave enough, but I''m not, I''ve realised; not confident enough in my decisions to condemn someone to death. You do not need to answer now.] She broke contact, with one hand, the other stayed resting on his neck. ¡°There is a risk to the world, not immediately, but in some years. So the labs must be protected. The high council ¡ª which means all here in this room and we are still in session ¡ª ask you to deliver your parcel to someone in the C.U, but also try to find someone in the labs, a professor whose lab is under threat, and is not involved in dum-semb. Tell them this: ''The project has almost as much support as the treaty of all nations, and we expect the support is growing still. Caneth supports the project, informed by academician Teng, after an introduction by a guard. The Isles support the project, with prince Hal hearing the same introduction and information and passing it on to his majesty king Val. Duchess Hayeel of Repink, ambassador of the crown prince of Dahel supports, and has written a letter of introduction to her prince, begging him to listen and seek an audience for academician Teng with the emperor of Dahel. "The High Council of Tesk support, having heard prince Hal explain it a second or third time to King Val, and having heard of it from our members, princess-regent Esmetherelda, and duchess Hayeel. The paperwork for Caneth is with academician Teng.'' Can you remember all that?¡± ¡°Urm. I think so,¡± ¡°Will you open to me again? I can help you remember it if you want me to.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± His memory of her words replayed, again, again, and again. And not just her words: but the touch of her fingers on his neck; the scent of her breath and her hair; the feel of her hands now; all burned into his memory. ¡°I expect you''ll remember now,¡± she whispered. He was fairly sure he would. He looked into her beautiful eyes again, barely remembering to breathe. ¡°Sashan!¡± Rena said, ¡°Did you just do what I think you did?¡± ¡°I''ve helped him to remember, Rena.¡± ¡°Yes. But what will he remember?¡± ¡°He''ll remember what he wanted to remember, Rena. Nothing more, and nothing less.¡± ¡°I hope he wants to remember the message.¡± ¡°Would you like me to tell it to you? Right now I feel like I could impersonate Sashan''s voice too.¡± ¡°That''d be interesting. See if you can.¡± He knew he got the words perfect, he wasn''t sure about Sashan''s voice. It certainly sounded wrong to his own ears, too deep. ¡°I''m now going to curl up and hide somewhere in shame. I don''t sound like that do I?¡± ¡°Don''t be ashamed of your own voice, Sashan,¡± Rena said, ¡°There''s nothing wrong with it at all.¡± ¡°Our voices always sound different, that''s something I learned in the lab.¡± Jahon said. ¡°We''ve got a thing there to make your voice come from the other end of the room. It''d work further away if we had the wires.¡± ¡°Yes, Teng told Esme about it. And for really long distances you could use the Talking Rhythms.¡± ¡°You spoke about ''the project.'' What do you actually mean?¡± ¡°I guess I should have said ''the grand project'': call the aliens, within a year or two if possible. As I said, not all nations yet, but getting there.¡± ¡°But not Tew.¡± ¡°Queen Yalisa heard about it before she became queen.¡± Rena said, ¡°She heard about her father''s death and left for Tew almost immediately afterwards. She will support, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Assuming the academy survives,¡± Jahon said. ¡°No reason it shouldn''t as long as the admin staff behave sensibly,¡± Rena said, ¡°and there is not an automatic death sentence for those who repent before sentencing. But it''s time for you to take Sashan home, the others come.¡±
High council chamber ¡°There is a... a body,¡± the first reporter said, ¡°at the foot of the cliff.¡± ¡°A body? Intact?¡± Yana asked. ¡°Urm, no, not intact.¡± ¡°Oh, that''s all right then,¡± Yana replied, ¡°You had me worried. I''m sure the scavengers will tidy it up soon enough. A death warrant for involvement in the death-cult religion of the doom-guard was issued around breakfast time. A tattooed acolyte, who the high council heard had enjoyed his participation in a human sacrifice. In accordance with the laws of Tesk, once the warrant was signed, and he had an opportunity to repent and as someone capable of doing that was present, he was strangled to death within sixty breaths.¡± ¡°Sixty breaths,¡± the reporter repeated. ¡°You may check the law in any library,¡± Mari, Sashan''s old class-mate, said. ¡°Once a death sentence is passed for that crime, the culprit is asked if he or she wishes to repent of their sins, but they must be dead within sixty breaths.¡± ¡°And you took it on yourselves to issue that death warrant?¡± the reporter asked. ¡°Don''t be stupid!¡± Yana said, ¡°That''s not the high council''s task! A baroness heard the case and passed the judgement, a descendent of baroness Arelan who killed the emperor.¡± ¡°And that baroness is present now?¡± the other reporter asked. ¡°No.¡± Yana said, ¡°She found the crimes of the death-cult member very troubling.¡± ¡°He admitted his crimes?¡± the first reporter asked. ¡°He wallowed in them, and described them in very gory detail, I think hoping to scare the countess. We will not be releasing the name of the victim until we''ve heard that the family have been informed.¡± ¡°The countess will do that herself?¡± the second asked. ¡°Ideally she would. But there are not many nobles left, after the counter-revolution, and there are far more doom-guard believers than nobles. We asked her not to take such risks.¡± ¡°Your numbers seem diminished compared to two days ago.¡± the first reporter asked, changing tack. ¡°The high council is sitting in permanent session during this crisis. In other words, we''re working shifts.¡± ¡°And all the soldiers around, what are they doing?¡± the second asked. Yana guessed they were taking it in turns. So she asked Mari to respond. ¡°Quite a few are watching you and others are playing cards by the looks of it,¡± Mari said. ¡°A number of army officers have been temporarily suspended from their posts until they give testimony that they are not involved. The soldiers are here to help them not decide to do something illegal and stupid.¡± ¡°How many officers have been suspended?¡± The first reporter asked. ¡°All of captain rank and above, except one.¡± Yana said ¡°He boasted that the whole officer corps was involved in his religion before he was executed. Clearly, for the sake of Tesk, we hope he is wrong.¡± ¡°For the sake of Tesk, you can''t suspend the entire officer corps!¡± the first reporter exclaimed. ¡°Please read the treaty of all nations, also known as the treaty for the eradication of human sacrifice.¡± Mari replied, calmly ¡°Once an accusation is made, the case must be tried. If the case is not tried or a proven culprit not equally proven to have repented of their sins walks free, then the result is war. We ask that the general public lend the nobles who will try these cases their full support and not take matters into their own hands, but these cases must be tried. As you can probably imagine, the accusations go beyond the army, but if the army are really forming a new doom-guard then they must be dealt with first. Thus all officers of captain rank and above have been suspended from their post and it is illegal for anyone to obey their orders.¡±
Sashan''s home ¡°Mummy, this is Jahon from the Christian Union, who''s been helping me keep awake on the way home from the high council.¡± ¡°And have you been up all night too?¡± her mother asked. ¡°No, maam, I went to talk to the council after an early breakfast, and persuaded Sashan she needed help.¡± ¡°He has been very sweet,¡± Sashan said, looking longingly at the bench beside the kitchen table. ¡°Can I sleep there? I''m so tired.¡± ¡°Maam, if Sashan wakes up screaming... there was some unpleasantness at the council chamber at about five in the morning; a drunk came in and made some graphic threats.¡± ¡°Oh! How terrible. He''s under arrest now?¡± ¡°Tried, found guilty. It''s stated. Started,¡± Sashan said, sitting down on the bench and resting her head on the table. ¡°He was an acolyte in the doom guard religion,¡± Jahon supplied. ¡°I guess she means the executions have started.¡± ¡°Sashan said there''s going to be a lot,¡± her mother reported ¡°I don''t know if that''s tens or hundreds.¡± ¡°Certainly hundreds of trials, possibly a thousand.¡± Jahon said. Sashan''s mother looked to her for confirmation, and exclaimed, ¡°Sashan, you can''t sleep there!¡± ¡°With respect, I think you''ll find she can,¡± Jahon replied. ¡°Can you help her get upstairs? I need the table.¡± ¡°Urm, to her bedroom?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°It''s on the left. My knees are bad and I can barely climb the stairs on my own. Sorry to ask you to do that, but I can''t roll out the pastry with her there, and if I can''t do that then I''ll lose my job. Sorry, I know you probably need to leave.¡± ¡°It''s not the time, more whether it''ll embarrass Sashan.¡± ¡°She should have thought of that before she fell asleep there. Sashan! I''ve got to work, you can''t sleep there.¡± Sashan raised her head, saw Jahon was still there and smiled. ¡°Jahon''s might decide he''s going to be around a lot, mummy.¡± She said, clambering to her feet and supporting herself on him. ¡°If he decides in my favour and feels brave enough to ask permission. And of course if he thinks I''m not too sleepy to give a proper answer.¡± ¡°Well, that would be a change. What''s happening to your lectures today?¡± ¡°It''s probably not safe for any of the high council to go to campus at the moment.¡± Jahon said, as he helped Sashan to the stairs. ¡°They''re going to have a lot of powerful enemies up there soon.¡± ¡°But some good friends too,¡± Sashan declared sleepily. ¡°Repeat the message, Jahon?¡±
The academy, physics building. ¡°Academician Visik?¡± Jahon said to the head of the electronics department, ¡°Sorry to interrupt, but two years ago I was doing a survey and asked you about a certain group with a lot of influence in the administration department, and you reacted quite strongly. Is your opinion roughly the same as it was then?¡± ¡°You mean that parasitic thing they call dum-semb? Absolutely! Cronyism is not a philosophical movement. It shouldn''t be allowed!¡± ¡°That''s a relief. I''ve been talking to the high council, and they sent me with some copies of this little historic booklet, printed from the original plates. The appendix is informative, and they also sent a message of support.¡± ¡°A message of support?¡± ¡°For the project, as explained to various heads of state by academician Teng.¡± ¡°Teng? We''ve heard nothing from him here.¡± ¡°A letter was sent to the administration by princess-regent Esmetherelda. The high council and the nobility are dealing with cleansing the military first, sir, but I''ve told them about the situation here. The message of support is quite long, sir, is there somewhere better than a corridor for me to recite it?¡± ¡°Come to the staff-room. What do you mean ''cleansing?''¡± ¡°I mean there''s been one execution already, sir. As you said, the religion of the doom-guard shouldn''t be allowed.¡± The academic was quite for a moment and asked, ¡°Dum-semb is the religion of the doom-guard?¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Dear God! My wife''s involved in it.¡± ¡°The high council tell me that there is not an automatic death sentence for those who repent before sentencing.¡± ¡°Repent. There''s a good word you don''t hear too often these days.¡± ¡°Yes, sir. Hopefully that''ll change.¡± ¡°Why haven''t they said? Why are they using ''the religion of the doom-guard'' in all the papers?¡± ¡°The high council are trying to do two things, sir. They''re trying to avoid a general collapse of law and order with mobs ruling the streets and lynching people who are on the edges of it, and they''re trying to have enough public dismay that the executions are accepted as a reasonable and proportionate response. They are not after everyone who''s shown some interest, or said the thing about nobles. But there are a lot of suspects, and there''s an old treaty that says if Tesk can''t deal with it, the nations of the world will come and help, and if Tesk won''t deal with it then it means war. The three fleets are on their way, but the monarchs and the council want the project protected. Dum-semb mustn''t be allowed to damage or barricade themselves in the labs, sir. ¡°. ¡°Fighting in the academy?¡± ¡°I''ve read the Tesk Challenge, sir. Dum-semb must be eradicated, or the project is pointless, and then we all die, don''t we, sir?¡± ¡°Nothing like capital punishment and the end of the world to give people some backbone, eh?¡± the academician said. ¡°I should have argued with my wife years ago.¡± ¡°I heard that the priestess who was discovered in Caneth repented while in gaol there. There is hope, sir.¡± ¡°And she''s not been sentenced to death?¡± ¡°She has been questioned, but at the request of the High Council her formal trial will be here, under the laws of Tesk. I don''t know what the sentence will be.¡± ¡°So she still might be,¡± ¡°I expect the judge will be looking carefully at previous cases for guidance. I know I would be. I would expect that that if you convince your wife to repent before being arrested, it would be a big point in her favour.¡± ¡°And if I don''t then it''d be a point against her.¡± Jahon thought about pointing out that she was dead if she didn''t, unless she was never arrested, which wasn''t likely now that Jahon could denounce her. And he would, he realised. ¡°Are we here, sir?¡± ¡°Yes. Yes we are.¡± He opened the door, ¡°Academicians and researchers... this student brings us news about our missing friend Teng.¡± ¡°The message is from the high council, concerning the grand project that Academician Teng proposed,¡± Jahon said. And he remembered Sashan''s message clearly, and all the other things that she had helped impress on his mind, and he realised it was going to come out in her voice again. ¡°I''m not sure how, but the high council member somehow imprinted it on my memory so well that I''m probably going to speak in her voice. I did the last two times I repeated it, anyway. I hope that doesn''t prove too distracting for you. I guess I''ll get over the embarrassment eventually.¡± ¡°Interesting party piece,¡± commented one of the lecturers, ¡°go on.¡± It did come out in Sashan''s voice, with her phrasing, and with the memory of her so close. It was quite a pleasant memory, but he hoped it wasn''t going to stay with him his whole life. Certainly not if he didn''t take the plunge and decide to fix his attention on her. ¡°It was council-member Sashan that told you that, wasn''t it?¡± another of the lecturers asked as he reached the end of the recitation. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Very impressive mimicry skills there, lad.¡± ¡°I couldn''t do it normally, sir. It just sounds wrong if I don''t say it like that, like... I don''t know, trying to singing a very familiar song with a wrong note in the middle, you can''t persuade your vocal chords to do it.¡± ¡°Did they say anything else?¡± ¡°I told them that something like ninety-nine percent of the administrative staff are involved in dum-semb, so they will be called to testify sometime. First the army officers, though.¡± ¡°First the army officers what?¡± ¡°Officers of the rank of captain and above have been temporarily suspended from their posts, and will be invited to testify before the high council concerning their links to the religion of the doom-guard, and if they choose to commit perjury then they will be executed in accordance to the laws of Tesk. And if they are involved, then they will be tried by a noble, for a few have made themselves known to the high council, and the trial will have at least one high council member present, and witnesses. And again, the laws of Tesk will be adhered to strictly, as will the principles laid down in the treaty of all nations. They also told me that the admin staff must not be allowed to interrupt the project.¡± ¡°All very well to say. How do we stop them?¡± ¡°A letter detailing most of what I have said about the project was sent to the academy administration, several weeks ago, also detailing the financial support that would be coming,¡± Jahon said. ¡°I presume there is some method for the academy to require correct behaviour from its administrative staff. Or are they state employees?¡± ¡°State employees, and we have got no say in who the state employs.¡± ¡°But a state employee may be suspended by a noble.¡± ¡°Do you know any?¡± ¡°If none of you feel able to visit the high council yourselves, I could go back and deliver a letter to them this evening. They are happy to listen to concerns, and I''m sure they know who they''ve sworn in to office, even if they''re carefully not telling, for obvious reasons.¡± ¡°The people they try will be telling tales, though.¡± one of the astronomers in the room said. ¡°Not the guilty ones,¡± Jahon said. ¡°And since according to a little booklet I''ve read the doom-guard religion says turning your back on it is a death-sentence, then I doubt anyone who escapes death at the hands of the judge will want to talk to their old friends. And if it''s a false accusation, well, what motive would the person freed have for putting the judge who freed them in danger?¡± ¡°A general dislike of nobles, of course.¡± ¡°Drummed into them by the doom-guard indoctrination campaign, yes. Excuse me sirs, I have a lab session I need to do some reading before.¡±
Jahon''s home. ¡°You look thoughtful,¡± Jahon''s dad greeted him. ¡°Hmm. yes. Lots to think about.¡± Jahon looked at his dad, and decided that maybe, just maybe, he''d get a sensible answer out of him. ¡°Dad, when there are three girls I''ve been thinking I like, and one of them turns out to be on the high council and I had a really long chat to her this morning, and I''m pretty sure that if I asked her out she''d say yes, so.... do I?¡± ¡°Good points, bad points?¡± ¡°She''s probably the bravest ¡ª well, she went to Caneth, didn''t she? I''m not sure which of the three is the prettiest, but they''re all nice to look at. I like her voice, I admire her attitude. I''m terrified about the dangers she''s facing. The other two don''t stand out so much, except that the one who''s cleverer likes doing things I''d find uncomfortable, like going to wedding receptions uninvited. So I guess that makes number three the safe comfortable and not so clever option.'' ¡°These three all at the academy?¡± ¡°Yes dad, none of them are dumb. Oh, I guess number three''s unusual because she''s not local, she''s from Tew.¡± ¡°Any of them got boyfriends already?¡± ¡°I assume not.¡± ¡°Well, grab one, try her out, throw her back in the pond if you don''t like her.¡± his dad said callously. ¡°Is that what you thought when you started dating mum? Chuck her back once you''ve left her hurt and wounded?¡± ¡°Your mum shone so much there was no comparison. I wasn''t going to chuck her back.¡± ¡°Really? I thought you said you had lots of girlfriends.¡± ¡°Not after I really started talking to your mum, about faith and stuff.¡± ¡°You talked to mum about God?¡± ¡°I thought I believed in him before she died, son.¡± ¡°I never knew that. There''re all in the Christian Union, Dad, like me. and I''m pretty sure they''ve all got faith.¡± ¡°You never go to church.¡± ¡°I didn''t want a row with you. I always go to C.U though. They have good speakers, mostly.¡± ¡°Go to church, a good one. Don''t ruin your faith like I did.¡± ¡°Are you sure you''re an atheist, dad? I''d much rather you made me a liar than have Sashan call you out when I invite her over.¡± ¡°She''s got a name then?¡± ¡°Yes, Dad. A name, a mum, a home, death in the family, hunger at the door, all the normal things. And she''s got a job which might pay her and might get her killed, and she''s got a faith and she''s no longer afraid to talk about it. So I guess she does shine. What about your faith?¡± ¡°I once told God that if he''s real then he''s got to make you stand up to me. I had two girlfriends, Jahon. They were pretty, and they both left me hurt and wounded. Your mum wasn''t the prettiest, but I realised really quickly that she was the best, and that she needed me as much as I needed her. That''s what makes a marriage. I make a lousy atheist, son. I keep telling God he ought to stop you making mistakes.¡± ¡°Can I pray for you Dad?¡± ¡°What for?¡± ¡°As Sashan said when I opened to her, It doesn''t work like that.¡± ¡°You ''opened to her''? What does that mean?¡± ¡°Let her explore my mind. I didn''t want to let the fact that I trust her that much decide me. But it has to really, doesn''t it? I certainly don''t trust number two.¡± ¡°And number three?¡± ¡°Doesn''t shine, doesn''t push herself past what''s sane. Hasn''t asked me to consider being a stand-in noble.¡± ¡°A what?¡± ¡°There aren''t enough nobles to try everyone.¡± ¡°Not enough nobles. I didn''t think there were any willing to admit it.¡± ¡°There''s a growing pile of broken corpses at the foot of cliff waiting for high tide that says otherwise. Some of them are there for perjury before the high council, and there are some bodies swinging from the gallows for the treasonous act of taking up arms against the high council. They got tried by a military court. But most of the body-parts in the pile are from doom-guard officers. Oh, I know it''s not likely, but please don''t try catching crab, dad. If the price hasn''t plummeted yet, it certainly will.¡± ¡°Lobster too?¡± ¡°I didn''t look too closely. There''re some really big crabs though, helping themselves to a free meal of perjurer or doom-guard.¡± ¡°Your great-granddad always said, his grandad told him ''Don''t catch the bigguns, you don''t know who they et.'' I never did tell you about how your great-grandma and your great grandpa met, did I? My Dad''s dad?¡± ¡°I don''t think so.¡± ¡°Your great-grandad was a fisherman, just like everyone in the line except you. We''re going back seventy years now, you realise, to when he was about twenty And he much preferred the sea to the land, because the land that time was full of mobs. And one day, he was out in his boat, along the coast, and he saw a mob at the top of the cliff, and they were throwing a whole family off the top. First the grandad, and the grandma and the dad, and the mum, then the kids. Three kids it was. And the mob was cruel and heartless and playing games, how far could they throw them into the water. And your great grandad was sick to think that he''d been trying to get away from it and now they were chucking corpses right into his nets. But he decided to at least give the poor victims a proper burial. And he pulled the net and put the bodies as respectfully as he could in the boat, only the girl wasn''t caught, because she''d been thrown furthest, see? And he went out to get her. And she looked at him with her ripped clothes and her dead family in his boat and she said, ''Leave me to drown.'' And he said, ''you''re too pretty to drown,'' and she wept as he pulled her into the boat, and tried to throw herself back in the water. ''Won''t you at least help me bury your family? There''s a cove you can only get to by sea.'' And she did help him, and he said, ''Do you have friends you could hide with?'' and she said she didn''t want to be the cause of any more deaths, she''d stay and die beside her family. ''You''re not going to kill yourself, are you?'' ''No, I''ll stay here and starve.'' And so for the next week, maybe even a month, he brought her blankets and food every day and made sure she ate it, and after a while she''d help him fish and she''d always looked more like a fisher-girl than a landsman''s daughter. Then there was a storm, and he couldn''t go, and the next day he said, ''Winter''s not long away. If I keep coming here then people will suspect. It''d be safer for me and my parents if you came to live with us.'' And they pretended that she''d been fishing with her dad and been shipwrecked in the storm, and he''d found her adrift at sea. And the next spring they married.¡± Jahon, knowing that his grandfather''s siblings had died without children and his father was the oldest of his siblings, said ¡°You are a noble, dad.¡± ¡°What do I know about noble-ing?¡± ¡°You know about right and wrong, dad. There''s supposed to be a teacher''s salary with it, and it doesn''t put your back out. I don''t know when you''ll get paid, mind you, or what a teacher''s salary will buy you.¡± ¡°Better than the fishing on a stormy day, that''s sure,¡± his father mused. ¡°So there''s a few doom-guard in the army. Then what?¡± ¡°Then there''s the administrators at the academy and the politicians and then there''s the general public. The doom-guard is pretty much everywhere except the fishing fleet, I expect. I can''t imagine them fishing anyway, that''s much too common.¡± ¡°I''m too common to be noble.¡± ¡°They''re noble in the sense they never mixed with the doom-guard, dad, never tried to get ahead by trampling on others, or get others to do their dirty work for them. You said great-grandma looked like a fisher-girl. Did she need teaching how to fish? And how many landsmen learn to swim? Back then there wasn''t much work for nobles, I expect, and the family would have needed a trade. Dad, if someone offered you the chance to get ahead in life by joining an exclusive little club and treating outsiders like dirt, you''d throw them in the harbour, wouldn''t you? That''s what dum-semb, the doom-guard religion is all about. Trample the little people because they''re just sheep for the slaughter anyway.¡± ¡°You''re fighting dum-semb?¡± ¡°Not as personally as I''d like to, but yes, dad. I''m going to lend what support I can to Sashan and try to persuade my dad to do his duty to Tesk and honour the God who made him all at the same time.¡± ¡°Your mother was dying and the doctor wouldn''t come because he was just on the way to dum-semb meeting and couldn''t be late.¡± His father looked at him and sad, ¡°You''re not going to be doing much studying if you do all of those things.¡± ¡°Lectures are cancelled until further notice due to the chaos at the academy. The lecturers have decided to stand up for their constitutional rights to not have government-appointees in their lecture rooms or research buildings, not until the nobility and the high council can guarantee that there are no followers of the doom-guard religion in the midst of the admin staff, and I also heard that they''ve formally voted that any academician or lecturer who won''t heap scorn on dum-semb is suspended until they face trial. I was thinking that I''d catch some sleep now, go fishing with you ''till midnight or so, and then go see if I can help Sashan.¡± ¡°Can we go out now? I''ve set some lobster pots. If the price is going to plummet, it''d be worth pulling them up early.¡± ¡°Certainly, dad. And if the price has already dropped, we can always eat them ourselves as long as we know they''re not contaminated.¡± ¡°True lad, true.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 23: Sea-food

Planet 5 / Ch. 23: Sea-food.

High council chamber, midnight ¡°Hello, Jahon,¡± Rena greeted him a lull in the proceedings. ¡°Why are you wheeling in a barrel of lobsters?¡± ¡°Because the price has crashed, what with what''s happening at the foot of the cliffs. And it seems there''s an army of them heading in that general direction. These are basically unsellable on the market, but I helped dad pull up his pots and saw who else was doing the same where we were. So, we know these guys have not eaten anyone. The lobster-fishers have enough to feed their families, and we thought it was just possible that the high council, nobles and their families might want some.¡± ¡°That''s a lot of people you''ve just mentioned.¡± ¡°Yes. I hope they all like lobster. Normally we get two lobsters in five pots, so a string of a hundred pots gets forty lobsters. This barrel is just two pots. Some of them were were hanging on the outside of the pots.¡± He looked outside, and shouted, ¡°I think we''d better stack them them out there, guys, thanks!¡± ¡°Jahon,¡± Sashan said, ¡°How many barrels of lobster have you just brought up the hill?¡± ¡°Not really sure. It wasn''t quite a cartload. Compliments of the loyal fishing community.¡± Sashan heard his thoughts behind his words: the community had rescued, cherished and married some nobles. Was now a good time to swear in their heirs? Sashan looked at Rena. ¡°Let them come, and give testimony,¡± Rena declared. ¡°Father,¡± Jahon said, ¡°Will you lead the way? I''ll look after the horse.¡± ¡°All right, lad,¡± his father replied. ¡°Now, which of you girls is Sashan?¡± ¡°Me,¡± Sashan replied. ¡°My lad''s got something he wants to ask you. He thinks it can wait, though.¡± ¡°Dad!¡± Jahon objected. ¡°The high council is in session!¡± ¡°It''ll be in session all week, Jahon.¡± Sashan said, walking towards him. He noticed that her hair wasn''t up, like it had been the previous night, but tonight it was hanging loose except for a single band that kept it from her beautiful eyes. It reached below her waist, and seemed to glow in the lamp light, accentuating her figure. ¡°Take him outside, Sashan!¡± Mari said. ¡°Before he starts fixing any more about you in his mind.¡± Jahon blushed. ¡°I hoped you''d come back,¡± Sashan said, obeying her friend. ¡°I wasn''t expecting the seafood though.¡± ¡°It is our pleasure, high councillor, to share this unexpected bounty,¡± Jahon''s father said. ¡°But please be aware that after this glut comes nothing for years. We will not be catching lobsters or crab again until we can be sure that the ones we are catching have not feasted on human flesh.¡± ¡°There will be more hunger?¡± ¡°There will be less lobster and crab; there will be less money, since lobster and crab are not a staple for most. The price of other fish may rise, since you cannot make bread with fish, or perhaps more deep-water fish will be caught, which means more risks.¡± ¡°Or perhaps the taxes on boats and nets should be adjusted,¡± Rena said, ¡°The council will pass on your concerns to the politicians who set such rates. But as for issues regarding corruption and the proper use of money, it is the role of the nobles to ask such questions, our role in merely to ensure that such questions get truthful answers. Tell us please, of your claim to the rank of noble.¡±
Outside the council chamber. ¡°What did you want to ask?¡± Sashan prompted Jahon. ¡°All sorts of things. Did you know that I''d be speaking in your voice to the lecturers?¡± ¡°No. Sorry.¡± ¡°And did you know I''d be remembering your touch and your closeness as I did?¡± ¡°You wanted to remember them.¡± ¡°Will I remember those words and those things until I die?¡± ¡°I... I don''t think so. I''m sorry, I was thoughtless, wasn''t I?¡± ¡°Were you thoughtless, Sashan? Or was it that you wanted to direct my thoughts in a certain direction?¡± ¡°Do you want to lay a formal complaint against me, Jahon? In my tiredness, in my joy at what I found in your thoughts about me, I interfered in them. I acted wrongly.¡± ¡°I don''t want to make a formal complaint, no. But... I want to know, what did you find about my thoughts about other girls? Did you look?¡± ¡°You know what I was looking for, don''t you? I wanted to see if you agreed with me about who was struggling to follow God and who was just after a boyfriend.¡± ¡°So you didn''t think about the possible rivals you might have?¡± ¡°I heard you comparing some things about me favourably to a couple of girls. I didn''t investigate. You want to know if I deliberately manipulated your feelings? Not about them, but... I don''t know. Is wearing my hair out since I saw you wondering how long it really was manipulating your feelings? I asked your mind what you wanted to remember. I wasn''t thinking of winning points over other girls, I was flattered that you wanted to remember my voice, my scent, and I didn''t think about the implications.¡± ¡°So, wanting to win my heart, you did things that you thought would please me?¡± ¡°It makes me sound very flirtatious and manipulative.¡± ¡°I tried to resist, and then I realised something,¡± he smiled at her. ¡°Tell me? I''ve been trying not to listen to your thoughts now.¡± ¡°I open to you, Sashan.¡± Hesitantly she put her hands to his face, and simply listened. She thought he''d be cross, but that wasn''t it. He was enjoying her proximity, the touch of her hands, the intimacy of this linking of minds. [Do you see?] he asked. [No. I''m not digging, I sense your pleasure at this, but I don''t know what you want.] She sensed his joy at hearing that thought from her, but she was still puzzled. So he explained, [I''ve not shared this with anyone else, Sashan. Only you. I don''t want to share it with anyone else. I don''t even know what the others feel about me, or how genuine their faith is, but I know you better, and you know me, and you don''t reject me, that''s something about you that I treasure. I can stand here in your hands with my mind totally at your mercy and I treasure that too. And at least last night or this morning or whenever it was, you were so happy to be treasured by me that you probably made some mistakes. And by the way you''ve dressed, by the way you''ve done your hair to please me, I think you still feel happy about the idea of me treasuring you.] ¡°Yes. I do.¡± ¡°So as long as that doesn''t change, it''s not a problem if I remember what your touch felt like the rest of my life is it? Can we plan on spending lots of time together and getting to know each other better?¡± ¡°Not all day every day. For one thing I''m on night duty still and you''ve got lectures.¡± ¡°Your message of support didn''t exactly encourage peace. The lecturers have decided to stand up for their constitutional rights to not have government-appointees in their lecture rooms or research buildings. Admin staff say in that case, core research funds are frozen, and supply orders will be rejected, and lectures cancelled. Academy points out the admin staff don''t have the authority to do all of that, and ask the nobility and the high council to investigate what seems like corrupt activity and overstepping of authority and to guarantee that there are no followers of the doom-guard religion in the midst of the admin staff. I also heard that they''ve formally voted that any academician or lecturer who won''t heap scorn on dum-semb is suspended until they face trial. And if anyone tries to force an entry to the labs then the academics are preparing everything from boiling oil to high voltages and concentrated acids and other chemical nasties to repel attacks. But on the plus side, all this gives the head of physics more time to try to get his wife to repent, let me have a good chat with Dad, and then I got about six hours sleep while he was at the market and talking to friends. So both of us will be on night duty too.¡± ¡°It''s horrible work, Jahon.¡± ¡°I expect so. I''m still ready to be a stand-in.¡± ¡°And your dad...¡± ¡°His grandma was thrown off a cliff, but survived, rescued by his grandpa. She wasn''t the only one, apparently. And Dad decided he didn''t trust God when mum died, but he''s been challenging Him about dum-semb and my future for the last couple of years.¡± ¡°Praise God!¡± ¡°And thank you, God, for this happy feeling called falling in love.¡± ¡°Yes, God. Thank you for this affirmation of life amongst so much death.¡± Twenty minutes later, having sworn to uphold the constitution and stand firm against the doom-guard and corruption, Jahon faced his first case. He read from the card in front of him. ¡°Suspended-from-duty captain Crung, you are still under oath. This member of the high council is here to listen to your thoughts and ensure you do not lie. By your testimony before the high council you were involved in dum-semb, but did not know that it was connected to the doom-guard.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± the captain said. ¡°You now know that dum-semb is the religion of the doom-guard.¡± ¡°You say it is.¡± ¡°You have heard the historic description of the religion of the doom-guard. Are there discrepancies between that and your experience of dum-semb?¡± ¡°Yes. I was never part of any human sacrifice! I never knew they were happening, that''s nothing to do with me.¡± ¡°How many people depend on your income?¡± ¡°My sister is at the academy. Without my paying her fees she''d need to leave.¡± ¡°What does she think of your involvement in dum-semb?¡± ¡°She doesn''t know.¡± ¡°Did you swear an oath to hold true to the teachings of dum-semb?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Were you forced to swear it?¡± ¡°What do you mean by forced?¡± ¡°Did someone explicitly threaten you or someone you loved with death, disfigurement, brutality, homelessness or imprisonment if you wouldn''t swear?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Did you learn any teachings of dum-semb after you swore it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°As an officer in the army of the Independent Island of Tesk, did you swear an oath that precluded any other loyalties beyond God and family?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And part of that oath was to uphold the constitution of Tesk?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But you swore an oath to dum-semb, not even knowing what its teachings were?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I was told I''d never get a promotion unless I did.¡± ¡°So it was a choice of never getting a promotion or swearing an oath that you''d sworn another oath not to swear.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How long did you take to decide?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°How quickly did you break your oath to your nation?¡± ¡°I was already in. You don''t refuse when you''re in!¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because bad things happen.¡± ¡°So, having got as far in as you had, you felt you had no real choice, but they presented it as a free choice?¡± ¡°Yes. I thought there weren''t supposed to be leading questions.¡± ¡°This is a not a criminal court. This is an inquiry to see if you willingly took part in dum-semb, the religion of the doom-guard. I am your judge, I am your jury, I will sign the death warrant, set you free, or decide to postpone judgement. Do you regret your oath to dum-semb?¡± ¡°I took it to be promoted, I was promoted, I feel I can better serve my country as a captain than at a lower rank.¡± ¡°So you associate your loyalty to Tesk with swearing an oath incompatible with your oath to Tesk.¡± ¡°It wasn''t presented that way.¡± ¡°Would Tesk be served by soldiers who don''t keep their oaths of loyalty to the constitution and laws of Tesk, and instead swore to the Isles or Caneth?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°What is the difference?¡± ¡°They are foreign powers.¡± ¡°Whereas, at least at the Academy, the dum-semb group has openly advocated for the wholesale obliteration of the checks and balances sections of the constitution of Tesk that you have sworn you''ll give your life to uphold. So that''s OK?¡± The officer was silent for almost a minute, before saying ¡°I have broken my oath to Tesk.¡± ¡°Do you regret your oath to dum-semb?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What would the penalties be for breaking your oath to dum-semb?¡± ¡°I swore on my life.¡± ¡°What should the penalties be for breaking your oath to Tesk?¡± ¡°I swore on my life.¡± ¡°What should an officer do who has broken his oath of service?¡± ¡°He should present himself to his commanding officer for court martial.¡± ¡°Who encouraged you to break your oath of service?¡± ¡°My commanding officer.¡± ¡°In the event that a soldier is enticed to break his oath of service by a commanding officer, what should he do?¡± ¡°Report him to his commanding officer, up the chain of command.¡± ¡°You did not do that.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Because I had what I felt were reasonable grounds to believe that the entire chain of command were part of it too.¡± ¡°Those grounds being what?¡± ¡°I was told this¡± he ripped a pin from his collar, ¡°this thing is a mark of dum-semb. Every senior officer wore one.¡± He looked at it with loathing. ¡°Do you know what it is?¡± ¡°A pattern of dots. I don''t know.¡± ¡°It is a pattern showing the map of the main cities of the windward empire, that is to say the main centres of the doom-guard at the height of their power.¡± ¡°I didn''t know.¡± ¡°Which nation is the worst enemy of Tesk?¡± ¡°The Isles.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°They want us back, they''re overcharging for food to try to starve us into submission.¡± ¡°Are you numerate?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Can you do simple maths?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What does a whole eel weigh?¡± ¡°A whole one? Maybe a hundred kilos.¡± ¡°If there were an infinite quantity available, how many live, struggling eels could one men load into a boat in a day?¡± ¡°One? I''d say you''d need two at least. But if they''re well practised at it? I guess one a minute. Sixty an hour, about five hundred a day between the two of them.¡± ¡°It takes ten minutes to reel in an eel trap without the eel breaking it, and set it again. How many eels per day?¡± ¡°Oh. Six an hour then? About fifty per day.¡± ¡°You''re forgetting getting the eel into the boat and getting the boat to the next trap.¡± ¡°Four an hour?¡± ¡°Eels are caught in marshes. The boat is the same size as a rowing skiff. How many eels before the boat sinks?¡± ¡°Oh. Maybe ten or twelve? ¡°Assume it takes half an hour to the fishing grounds. How many eels per day?¡± ¡°I''d guess two trips per day. Twenty eels?¡± ¡°There is a deadly-poisonous water-snake called an ''ar'' that hangs around trapped eels. And you can''t just hit an eel on the head, to kill it, the head is in the trap. It takes at least three men to pin down a struggling eel. How many men on the boat now?¡± ¡°I''d have someone watching, maybe two. So maybe four men or three and a couple of sons, learning the trade? But that means less eels in the boat, too.¡± ¡°The eel season is only for about three months of the year, that''s why they pickle them. How much do you need to spend on bread to feed four grown men and their wives and kids, not to mention clothes and the like?¡± ¡°It... it doesn''t make sense!¡± The captain exploded, ¡°Five eels a day for quarter of the year to feed and clothe a family for a year? How can eels cost as little as they do? There''s the shipping, the barrels, the pickling salts, tax inspection...¡± ¡°Exactly. The traders from the Isles are subsidising us. What''s the real biggest threat to Tesk?¡± ¡°The doom-guard and their lies,¡± the captain said. ¡°What other lies have you taken as truth?¡± ¡°I... I don''t know. About nobles, about how big the army needs to be. God have mercy on me, lots.¡± ¡°Do you reject dum-semb?¡± ¡°I do.¡± ¡°Do you have any faith in God?¡± ¡°It''s been a long time since I was at church. But I used to, I''m so far from Him.¡± ¡°Do you repent of the pride at the heart of dum-semb?¡± ¡°I do.¡± ¡°What will you do if someone tells you to obey them because of your oath to dum-semb?¡± ¡°Arrest them, or if I can''t arrest them, treat them as any other enemy of the state, sir.¡± ¡°I find you guilty of involvement in dum-semb without knowledge, and not guilty of involvement in human sacrifices. Given your new attitude, I do not condemn you to death, but instead require you to report yourself to the high council as the ultimate authority over the army of Tesk for breaking of your oath of service. I will recommend they allow you to renew your oath and possibly demote you rather than giving you a dishonourable discharge.¡± ¡°Thank you, sir. Thank you!¡± he said, as he was led away. Sashan reached her hand to Jahon, [Well done, Jahon. I didn''t realise about the eels being so hard to catch.] [I think they actually catch six per boat per day on average, and bread is a luxury they normally skip and harvest marsh-root instead. But still, it''s fishing: not an easy living or a way to get rich, and what I said about the subsidies is true.] [I know. I''m going to tell the others to pass the eel-catching numbers around. We do just assume they''re easy to catch.] [Fishermen don''t, but...] ¡°Next case,¡± the soldiers said, bringing in a general bound hand and foot. Jahon read the card and said. ¡°Suspended-from-duty general Rasan, you are still under oath. This member of the high council is here to listen to your thoughts and ensure you do not lie. By your testimony before the high council you were involved in dum-semb, knew it to be the religion of the doom-guard, and attained the rank within the religion of novice. Correct?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°In what way is it incorrect?¡± ¡°I reject the validity of the suspension from duty. I claim authority over these soldiers. Men, arrest this trumped up teenager and throw him in jail!¡± The soldiers didn''t move, but one of them grinned and asked ¡°Can I tell him, sir?¡± ¡°Go ahead,¡± ¡°Ex-general, you have sworn an oath in opposition to your oath of duty and have given your allegiance to an organisation that undermines the constitution. That makes you a traitor in my book. My mate and me, we''re loyal. We don''t take orders from doom-guard scum, nor traitors.¡± ¡°This trial is a travesty of justice.¡± ¡°Who did you help murder?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°No idea.¡± ¡°He''s lying.¡± Sashan said. ¡°What where their names?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°I will not tell you.¡± ¡°Which one was first?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°I will not tell you.¡± ¡°It was a young boy.¡± Sashan said. ¡°From Tesk?¡± Jahon asked. ¡°No¡± Rasan said. ¡°Lying.¡± Sashan affirmed. ¡°How old?¡± ¡°Ninety.¡± ¡°About fourteen,¡± Sashan corrected. ¡°And your initiation was such an unimportant thing for you that you''ve no idea about the name of either victim or the gender and age of the second.¡± ¡°I hate you.¡± ¡°But he thought of their names,¡± Sashan said. ¡°The boy Wibor, and an old woman called Marleth. He found them both himself, homeless in alleys.¡± ¡°Other people you''ve snatched?¡± ¡°Too many to count,¡± the prisoner said. ¡°None.¡± Sashan corrected ¡°He considered himself above such menial tasks.¡± ¡°Prisoner Rasan, have you rejected dum-semb?¡± ¡°Yes, totally.¡± ¡°He''s lying,¡± ¡°Do you know what dum-semb means boy? It means the rule of self. How can I reject the rule of self?¡± ¡°You can repent of your pride and put the creator God on the throne of your life. I have now signed the death-warrant, you have no more than thirty breaths to do so.¡± ¡°I''m supposed to get sixty, young idiot.¡± ¡°No more than sixty, prisoner. I have the power of any judge to choose an appropriate sentence. Put the noose on him, guards. Sashan, you don''t need to watch.¡± ¡°Nor do you, sir. It''s not a particularly pretty sight.¡± ¡°I grew up as a fisherman. I know what death looks like. Prisoner you have very little time left, and the fires of hell await you.¡± ¡°Oh, no. Not me! I''m going to be dead before you roast alive. You and your snivelling alien rubbish! The old gods of our people have been forgotten too long and are fed up with being ignored, and their anger grows hot. They demand sacrifices if life here is to be saved! Let the daily sacrifices begin once more! In my death-throws I curse...¡± ¡°I thought that was enough of that rubbish, sir,¡± said the soldier who''d clubbed the prisoner on the back of the head. ¡°I apologise if you feel I should have left him conscious.¡± ¡°I don''t think he was going to repent by the end of his blasphemy,¡± Jahon said. ¡°Rena warned me,¡± Sashan said, shaken and shaking. ¡°I should have listened to her.¡± ¡°Sashan?¡± Jahon said, taking her hands and putting them to his head. ¡°Let me comfort you.¡± [The prophesy of the final kingdom is in the academy archives. Is it surprising that they come up with their warped interpretations? And remember the reading last week? God will not let us be cursed, and instead will curse those who curse us. So was he cursed with unconsciousness, denying him what chance he had to repent because he so adamantly refused God in his final moments.] [Death is supposed to look peaceful.] Sashan thought to him. [Not the death of one who dies cursing God, surely?] [I don''t know how you can do this.] [Yes you do,] he corrected her. [You''re doing it for me, because I said I couldn''t.] [So you don''t feel you have to.] He confirmed, [It is better to work as a pair, I think, but if you can''t...] [Better to see than imagine. I imagined it would be all like this last man, but the first... You corrected him and gave him hope.] [This one wanted no correction nor mercy.] [This one was a caged animal, preferring death, thinking it was merely his entrance to some pagan warrior paradise. He wanted to die from a weapon strike, at the hands of an enemy soldier.] Sashan opened her eyes, ¡°He regains consciousness and rejoices to die as he does, at the hands of a soldier. So let me hold the rope,¡± Sashan said to the soldier. ¡°This murderer of boys and old women who seek help is denied his final wish. Disgraced general, a civilian girl holds the noose tight, and sends you to the hell you have chosen. You do not die a soldier''s death, you die in disgrace. Those who hear of your death will learn that you died at the hands of a girl, unable to scream much though you wanted to. You should have chosen to repent of your sins. Perhaps God will hear you if you plead with all your heart now, in the name of Jesus, the judge of the living and the dead. There is no other hope for you.¡± She looked at the soldiers who were looking at her in stark surprise. ¡°He thought that dying at the hands of soldiers was a soldier''s death, and guaranteed his future happiness. That''s why he was so adamant in rejecting God''s mercy. I denied him that so he had a real chance, stripped of all preconceptions.¡± ¡°You are merciful, Sashan,¡± Jahon said. ¡°The law says he should have a chance to repent. He was looking forward to death before I took hold of the rope. We should tell the next one we need to execute what happened just now, to remove any false hopes his false religion has filled his head with.¡± Looking at Jahon she added ¡°I still don''t think I could pronounce the death sentence, but I can hold a piece of rope to help save a soul.¡±
The Gem of Karet ¡°Testing, testing, one tenth of a percent power,¡± Salay said into the microphone. ¡°I heard you, but missed the power level,¡± Salay heard Naneela''s voice reply. ¡°This is one tenth power.¡± ¡°Yay. Not bad! Try a hundredth?¡± ¡°OK. Switching down now. Do you still hear me?¡± ¡°I hear you. You''re a bit scratchy, but perfectly understandable.¡± ¡°So what happened to my first call?¡± ¡°I was distracted.¡± ¡°Oh? Do tell.¡± ¡°Talking to Kahlel if you must know.¡± ¡°Oh, I must, I must. Tell me all the details except the ones about electronics.¡± ¡°Why do you assume there''s anything apart from electronics?¡± ¡°Because if nothing else he''s your patient and I hope your hours of nursing are paying off.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°And you said exactly the same thing last time we talked. And the time before that.¡± ¡°We''ve got a lot to talk about.¡± ¡°I''m sure you have, my sister. I''m just wondering what you don''t want to admit to.¡± ¡°You sound like you think I''m planning a crime.¡± ¡°No, you sound like you''ve got a slightly guilty conscience that a quick chat to our honourable mother would quickly clear up and replace with happiness.¡± ¡°I don''t know what you''re talking about, Salay.¡± ¡°No? OK, well, big brotherly advice: If your patient ever decides he''s not a corpse and realises what a pretty young woman he''s being looked after by, not to mention the fact he''s not in the central zone, run and talk to our honourable mother or father. You do remember how they met, don''t you?¡± ¡°You are just so embarrassing, Salay. Just because you''re heading off for romance and it seems like half your staff have married because they don''t want to go with you, that doesn''t mean that everyone else is desperate to pair up. If you must know we were talking about Kahlel''s sister spending time with someone who''s almost certainly the wrong guy.¡± ¡°Sorry for sticking my oar in.¡± ¡°But I don''t remember how mummy and daddy met, so remind me.¡± ¡°She was caught in a raid at an overlooked church, and grandad decided to make her talk to dad about it.¡± ¡°By ''it'', you mean the gospel?¡± ¡°No, why she was willing to risk getting caught in a raid in the central zone and thus pay the entire raid-budget for the year herself, and if she''d prefer to have a permanent invitation to visit the heart of the empire instead for rest-day worship.¡± ¡°Oh, right. I remember.¡± ¡°So what''s this wrong guy''s name?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Tarok,¡± Kahlel said, ¡°According to my sister, he''s generous, kind, very good company and... urm quite a bit older than she is.¡± ¡°Tarok is about fifty. He''s also the most central of all the central zoners. What''s she been giving in exchange?¡± ¡°Urm, not sure.¡± ¡°Because if Tarok Count of Tuma is giving her gifts, then be assured he expects gifts in reply, or great honour or hold on, when did he appear on the scene?¡± ¡°Just after I became a patient.¡± ¡°Naneela, do you remember that speech I always give my new employees?¡± ¡°Yes, Salay.¡± Naneela replied, ¡°And I said it was silly. You may boast later. I know about Tuma, I''d forgotten his given-name. I take it I need to ask mummy what to do now?¡± ¡°No. Because if you go getting parents involved then there''s an official loss of face involved. Write him a letter of congratulations at finding love at his late stage of life, that you''re surprised he''s picked someone from... where are your parents from? Kahlel?¡± ¡°Tunga.¡± ¡°Oooh, play with that Naneela! You know, you obviously are spending a lot of time with Kahlel since he was injured defending your honour, and he''s not pressing charges for your misplacement of the soldiers who ought to have been there, so how can you not, etcetera, and you''ve explained that to his parents so they don''t get the wrong idea, you wouldn''t want to give the wrong idea to someone from Tunga, that can lead to all sorts of trouble, but maybe she wasn''t in hearing range. But really he''s only a junior staff member, and you can''t go to every junior staff member''s sister''s wedding or you''d never get anything done, and so on. Sorry if that''s unfair on you Kahlel, but Tarok of Tuma almost certainly isn''t after your sister, he''s hoping to end up in an position where his friends think he has influence, where he can name-drop about who''s going to be at his wedding.¡± ¡°I know the type,¡± Kahlel said. ¡°Thanks, Salay, I''ll swap him a personal letter from the imperial princess and insult to my acquaintance for whatever inconsequential gifts he''s given her. Now turn off and call me in an hour.¡± ¡°Yes, imperial highness.¡± Naneela turned off the radio. And turned to Kahlel. ¡°And that is why we talk about anything but our feelings, Kahlel. So that I can write that sort of letter in good faith.¡± ¡°I still don''t understand, highness.¡± ¡°What don''t you understand, Kahlel?¡± ¡°Why I warrant such special treatment if we do not admit to the existence of feelings.¡± ¡°Because you risked your future, yes you did, don''t deny it, a technician with non-functional hands is called unemployable. You risked your future to protect my personal honour. You were raised with Tunganese values, that''s what you do for an employer. I know that and I understand that. It was my mistake that the guards let him in, and were on the wrong side of the door. I was raised with heart-of-empire values. If you suffer for my mistake then it is up to me to make amends as best I can, isn''t it? I write the letter for the same reason. I should have warned you and your family about central zone stupidity, not to mention the absolute necessity to reciprocate if any gift is given. By not reciprocating with any gift your sister has effectively promised that she''ll guarantee him royal access. That''s the only gift in central-zone thinking that you don''t promise. She probably thought she was reciprocating with the implicit promise of herself, if she thought in terms of reciprocating at all. But that would be said, something like ''all I can offer in exchange is myself on our wedding day.'' And if she doesn''t mention a wedding then she''s saying clear your diary tonight.¡± ¡°That''s disgusting.¡± ¡°Yes. But that''s central-zone thinking. She should always have some sort of gift she can give in exchange. A piece of her own art or something like that is fine. But she must give something or promise something, or refuse the gift.¡± ¡°You can refuse a gift? Even as an adult?¡± ¡°Certainly. You can say ''I''m sorry, I can''t offer even a promise in exchange.'' That basically means ''get lost, I''m not interested.'' Or you can say, ''I''m sorry, I can''t accept it today, perhaps some other day I''ll have some way or reciprocating.'' Which basically means, ''Bother, I''ve just given away my last trinket.'' or maybe ''I''m expecting a closer friend to offer me something.''¡± ¡°What does ''I can''t accept that, I don''t have anything suitable to reciprocate with'' mean?¡± ¡°I''m not sure. It probably means ''what sort of a gift do you call that?'' I am so glad I don''t live in the central-zone. What were you offering her?¡± ¡°Just a flower to a girl at school. I suggested that an occasional smile would be ample repayment, and she called me weird.¡± ¡°Let me write that letter, Kahlel.¡± ¡°Certainly,¡± ¡°And Kahlel, you have royal access. That is not, however for trade, it is your personal possession, like your liver. You should not boast of it, or mention it, you should just make use of it when you need to for discussing work things, and anything else, except feelings. If you have any, pretend they''re not there, please.¡± ¡°Do you expect the ban on discussing feelings will last a long time?¡± Kahlel asked. ¡°My current assumption is longer than you would prefer.¡± ¡°That... seems like a good assumption to me.¡± ¡°But hopefully not an unsupportable amount of time, and long enough to get you better.¡± ¡°Some factual statements I find myself compelled to utter: I have a very reasonable, capable and considerate employer, who is a princess of considerable complexity and beauty.¡± ¡°Stop it,¡± Naneela said, laughing. ¡°I''ve got to write a serious letter.¡±
Letter to Tarok, count of Tuma Count Tarok, I''m surprised and amazed to hear that after all these long years love has led a noble so wise and experienced in the games of the central zone to settle his affections on the innocent young Tunganese girl, entirely ignorant of such entertainments. Could it be that you have mistaken her innocence for something else? Surely you would not expect the entertainments of the high nobility of the central zone to be understood by one so low-born? But since a Tunganese feud is a terrible thing, I write in case that is exactly what has happened. If my fears are entirely misguided, I wish you a happy life together and strong sons and beautiful daughters. I do not deny that I heard of your incipient wedding from her brother, a low-ranking employee, but I hope you are not under any mistaken assumptions that any members of my family would expect to be at her wedding. I have thirty employees of greater rank than he, and who knows how many sisters or brothers they have. If a precedent was set to attend the wedding of every noble or every employee''s siblings, I imagine there would be little time for other work! I assume Tithia has told you of her visit to the heart of the empire. Did she explain the circumstances? I''m not even sure she knows all of them. I have been working on a method of long-distance vocal communication, and had arranged a demonstration of it for my imperial parents. The long-established duty roster put her brother, (a technician who had recently been demoted to fourth rank for spilling his soup on some valuable equipment), in the laboratory at the other end. Given the importance of the demonstration to myself, I had instructed the guards to wait outside the laboratory, for fear that one of them might disturb the delicate equipment, some components of which are thought to be so fragile that a badly-aimed sneeze might disturb them. Of course I also instructed the guards to not allow the technician to consume any food in the laboratory. I failed to anticipate that a certain high-ranking colleague of his had become mentally unstable, and was determined to ruin the experiment and bring disgrace upon myself in the eyes of the emperor. The technician first refused to obey the official''s order to pretend the equipment failed to communicate, stating that he would not bring dishonour on me, and then sought to protect the equipment from boiling liquid that the official flung at it. Clearly if I''d not been so worried about sneezes from the guards, none of this would have happened. Thus it is that the technician suffered serious injuries as a result of my fears, protecting my personal honour. I''m sure you''re aware that this is a high value among those from Tunga, and that it is my duty in Tunganese culture to do all I can to ensure that his injuries are properly treated. I do not wish to suffer the indignity of hearing that an employee has somehow ruined his hands (and thus livelihood) by inattention or incompetence. and so I have decided that the simple task of changing his bandages is a duty I must do myself. Tunganese culture appreciates such a personal response, whatever the result, I understand. It is far more convenient for me to have him here so I can do this with little time wasted, and he retains his mind, of course, and is quite capable of remembering simple observations I''d otherwise have to write down immediately, so I make use of him in this capacity also. And as an extra pair of eyes to watch out for stupid mistakes as well. Of course he needs to be able to talk to me if he is to point out mistakes without me constantly having to ask him, and thus he has the right to speak to me if he feels the need, and (perhaps somewhat astoundingly) he chose to tell me about Tithia''s news at an appropriate time ¡ª perhaps I should mention that his mother provides him with clean clothes and I presume news from home on a daily basis. If Tithia has filled your head with nonsense about me and her brother having some kind of deep romantic conversations, I can assure you that no such conversations have taken place. Indeed, such conversations that we do have are almost entirely centred around work or scientific and theological topics, though we also touch on culture. The Tungan culture is so fascinatingly full of ways to start a feud! This reminds me; I''m sure you''re aware that Tithia has made a commitment to follow Christ, and must warn you seriously that in the eyes of any Tungan, if you have made no such commitment then any marriage would certainly be a cause for feud, as would divorce or infidelity. I''m aware that gifts of limited value have probably been given to Tithia, and she''s probably only blushed in her ignorant innocence at what you might expect in return, thinking only of her wedding day (don''t be tempted to pre-empt that, unless you wish her knife in your guts!). However, I''m also aware that a personal letter bearing an imperial seal has significant status value, though of course you would never be so unmannerly to try to sell it, I''m sure. Thus, if this letter causes you to realise that an almost tragic mistake in communication has been made, I trust you will account for her honest broken heart as adequate payment for your annoyance at plans ruined, will be gentle in ending the relationship and that you will not demean her (and maybe risk a feud, I don''t know!) by demanding back any baubles and trinkets you''ve given her. And if you are so petty, I shall in return be equally petty and demand back this letter, of equally little value once the contents is read. Princess Naneela
Letter to Princess Naneela Imperial Highness, You are of course correct that a letter bearing an imperial seal is worth more than a few diamonds. But might I humbly beg for a note that I could show without displaying Tithia''s naivety to all? She is a sweet girl, utterly charming, but entirely unsuited to central zone society. Not to mention too young for me. Tarok of Tuma Planet 5 / Ch. 24: Return

Planet 5 / Ch. 24: Return

Newspaper article, Dependable News Yesterday saw the last of the doom-guard officers purged from the army, and all those named as priests and priestesses by those arrested have now been captured, thanks to concerted help by the farming and fishing communities. It seems the priests and priestesses of the dumb-guard didn''t expect our readers would notice a few strangers suddenly turning up on their doorsteps, lurking on their boats or scaring their chickens. Well done, people of Tesk, our daughters on the high council and neighbours in the nobility salute you! Do continue to keep guard, of course, because there are almost certainly plenty more who consider other''s lives of no value. The question that we must now ask is not how long the trials will continue (the answer is clear ¡ª until every last one has been tried and if they refuse to repent, executed) but where the eyes of the guardians of Tesk will next turn their gaze. Government officials? Politicians? Lawyers? Or perhaps the Academy? Anywhere there is an elite and the possibility for corruption is high is a possible gathering place for these cold-blooded killers. But curious as we must assuredly be, we do not want to give any hints to the dumb-guard who are happily assuming that they are invulnerable because of their other friends. Sorry, just joking. We''re pretty sure that they''re not reading our little paper, and it doesn''t matter. Doom-guard worshippers: don''t bother running or hiding, you''re going to be found. Think about your eternal future instead, repent and turn yourselves in. So, which nest of infection actually has the power to do the most damage? Judges and lawyers can ruin individuals'' lives, but oddly enough they seem to have had an attack of scrupulous fairness recently. Politicians? With the missing arms of stable government back in place their opportunities for mischief making are severely curtailed now, as long as they don''t take up making the sort of speeches that triggered the counter-revolution. With the army now cleansed we don''t expect many people will be listening anyway. Newspaper editors? Well, there is a possibility, but quite a few of our competitors'' senior staff have been suffering from a nasty case of terror of arrest recently, and are lying low. Your dependable news staff had a debate on it over lunch and our expectation is that it''s the academy administrative staff that ought to be setting their souls on the right course most urgently. The lecturers seem to be on a war-footing and there are accusations about administrators pocketing funds and damaging scientific equipment that has taken decades to create and is needed for a new major international project which ought to have started already. If the Academy cannot be involved because of the administrative staff then that could seriously damage what is almost our last source of foreign income now that tourism has followed the fashion industry into deep decay. If the Academy is involved, then as well as a welcome boost in visitors and finance, our sources say it is likely to mean a large-scale ramping up of specialist trades such as ultra-precision metal-work, and glass blowing. Therefore our feeling is that Tesk needs the Academy cleansed almost as urgently as the Army, and that the dumb-guard politicians will just have to wait their turn to feed the crabs, or show unusual common sense and turn to their maker. Our sources tell us that some of the more seriously dumb doom-guard members seem to believe that if they die at the hands of soldiers then they''re guaranteed a lovely afterlife, but that if they die at the hands of, say, a seventeen year old girl, they''re going to be in a situation far closer to what we all know really faces the unrepentant sinner. Thus it is that certain of our brave young heroines on the high council are holding or helping to hold the noose of execution for the last few seconds. It''s not a pleasant experience, but knowing that awaits them has actually helped some of the condemned murderers to realise they need to seek mercy from God before they face eternal judgement. Please pray for our guys'' and girls'' stamina and that God will bless them for this holy work.
Outside Tesk Harbour It wasn''t thick enough to call it fog, and it wasn''t quite a decent drizzle, but it was certainly wet and it certainly reduced visibility so that most of the island was a silhouette. The fleet was strung out in a wide V-shape, hoping not to miss the island. King Val had declared that everyone would enjoy blaming him if there was a navigation error, so he''d be in the lead ship. They were right on target. Those on the first ships could see the harbour and the cliffs beside it, with the parliament and high council chamber at the top of the granite wall that was the Caneth-side of Tesk. There was a red tinge to the water. ¡°I hope you weren''t planning on swimming,¡± King Val called to his son. ¡°That''s quite a pile of crabs and lobsters under the cliffs there,¡± Sal replied, ¡°Big ones too. Really big ones.¡± ¡°And the cliffs look a bit red,¡± Val added. ¡°Below those those metal triangles set into the rocks, anyway. Eugh!¡± A body fell the thirty or forty metres from the cliff and hit the the horizontal knife-edges of two of the triangles. Set about a metre apart, they looked like they''d originally been some kind of scaffold support, but now they served a different purpose. The body completed its journey in pieces. ¡°And now we know why and how.¡± ¡°Not to mention why the sea''s the colour it is,¡± Sal agreed. ¡°I guess the question is who is doing the executing,¡± Val said. ¡°No scream, so I guess this is body disposal.¡± ¡°What''s wrong with a normal grave?¡± Sal asked. ¡°''No land will be given for the doom-guard'' the old laws say. I guess they take it seriously.¡± ¡°So you think they''re condemned doom-guard?¡± ¡°I suppose we need a big drum to find out for sure,¡± Val said. ¡°Let''s hope Eslind is no exception, and some people at least know the rhythms.¡± ¡°Shall I do it dad?¡± Sal asked. ¡°Believe it or not, Sal, I''ve been waiting to do this since before you were born.¡± ¡°Sorry, Dad. Do we really need a drum? I thought we were supposed to use the side of the boat.¡± ¡°Dent your own hull if you like,¡± Val said, giving orders to bring up an empty barrel and a couple of stout sticks.
High Council chamber, Tesk ¡°I can''t see how many,¡± the soldier who''d just sent the body to the crabs said. ¡°but there''s a line of ships approaching out of the mizzle. They''re signalling to each other.¡± ¡°I guess that''s the fleets here, then. They''ll be drumming their questions.¡± Ada said. ¡°Some of us heard from Hal that the isles almost exclusively use the old strict-formal rhythms. Which of you lads wants to be drummer?¡± ¡°Why be sexist?¡± the soldier asked. ¡°Because this isn''t going to just be ''hello how are you''¡± Ada replied, ¡°and those beaters are heavy; by the time you''ve finished you''re probably going to want to be stripped to the waist, and you might have noticed we''ve all put on dresses for the day.¡± ¡°Think of it as an opportunity to show off your muscles and skill at the rhythms,¡± Kara said. ¡°No muscles worth showing off,¡± one of the soldiers present said, blushing. ¡°No skill at strict-formal rhythms,¡± another said. ¡°Fine, I guess we should have had auditions. Who does know strict-formal well enough to not embarrass Tesk?¡± The young soldier who''d claimed no muscles hesitantly raised his hand. No one else did. ¡°Well, consider yourself nominated for the moment, Tark,¡± Ada said, ¡°and reply to that greeting.¡± ¡°What are they saying? I don''t understand strict-formal,¡± one of the council members asked. ¡°King-captain Val greets Tesk,¡± Tark replied. ¡°Reply,¡± Ada said: ¡°''Thought-hearer-rulers greet King-captain Val and all of the fleets. Welcome! Avoid crabs, lobsters, fish.''¡± ¡°He replies, ''Saw crab food. Danger? Trouble?''¡± Tark translated. ¡°Send, ''Progress slow, sleep little, army made clean. Tourists of all ranks welcome!''¡± Tark was sweating by the end of that message, but his beat was steady. ¡°He asks ''king-captain?''¡± ¡°Do you just want to just send ''all'' or add ''the known doom-guard attacks on Tesk constitution have all been repealed.''?¡± Ada asked, considerately. ¡°I wish to declare the victory of truth, high councillor.¡± Tark replied. Blushing at the other, unspoken reason that he didn''t want to pick the short version, who was named Ada, he began the message, spelling out the words that had no unique rhythm. Each stroke of the heavy hammers sending a directed pulse of sound down to the harbour, loud enough that everyone there was able to hear. ¡°Come, hard-working ladies of the high council.¡± Kara said, ¡°Let''s show our faces.¡± ¡°On the balcony?¡± one of them asked. ¡°No one needs to cross into the prisoner''s section.¡± Ada said. ¡°But we mustn''t let the balcony become just a place for bodies.¡± ¡°Ada does it again,¡± Kara said, brimming approval ¡°Well done. And well done Tark, too. You have a useful skill, and don''t back away from challenges. Perhaps we should ask that you be assigned here regularly?¡± And then it was Ada''s turn to blush, since she''d been thinking that no matter how much he thought she was attractive, she didn''t know him that well, and she wasn''t likely to see much of him now he''d left school and joined the army.
Letter to Tarok, count of Tuma Dear Count Tarok, Thank you so much for your generous attitude towards our mutual acquaintance, with whom I spoke yesterday. You obviously possess a heart capable of great kindness and gentleness, and I hope you find yourself a noble wife suited to the society in which you swim so well, and with whom you can build a lasting love. The most lasting marriage, of course, is built upon a shared love of God, a topic I know you have discussed recently. I cannot, of course, make promises without knowing times or dates. But, if this letter plays any part in your coming to faith and finding a believing bride, feel free to send me an invitation. I''ll try to attend. Princess Naneela.
The heart of the empire, Naneela''s study ¡°What''s that letter worth to him?¡± Kahlel asked, seeing what Naneela had just written. ¡°It''s worth the most if he comes to faith, which is why I phrased it that way. Even as it stands, there aren''t many personal letters commending people for their kindness. It''s probably going to become a family heirloom if he ever has kids.¡± ¡°You know that Tithia probably plans to be that believing wife if he does come to faith?¡± ¡°Yes, well. Then she needs to learn all about that complex society, even if they don''t play that at home. But at least she won''t be chattering about visiting here now.¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°She''s learned that lesson, at least. She realises it could have been much much worse. Now, to work. We''d get better efficiency if we got the filtering better. So, how can we get the filtering better?¡± ¡°Yet another filtering stage? The maths says ten would be best.¡± She stuck her tongue out at him. ¡°Three filters is too many filters to tune already. There''s got to be a better way!¡± ¡°So make the radio fixed frequency. It''s easy then.¡± ¡°And not very useful.¡± ¡°You can''t have everything, princess.¡± ¡°I''m a princess. I want everything.¡± ¡°Really?¡± He said, looking around the bare walls of her study. ¡°Not much artwork on the walls, just maths formulae.¡± ¡°OK, not everything everything, just a tunable radio with ten filters that don''t need tuning. That''s all, well almost. Food and air and friends and family are nice too. You be the genius for once, Kahlel. I can''t offer you half Dad''s empire so it''ll have to be Dad''s daughter''s hand in marriage if you give it to me.¡± ¡°If I thought you were serious about that, highness, I would be honour bound to risk your ire by reprimanding you for making unthinking offers to low-ranking servants of low station.¡± Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°If you did that, then I would have to point out that we''re not in the central zone, or indeed zone two, three or four. I''m going to walk around the garden a bit. This is all just so frustrating. And then I''m going to do your hands, so be warned.¡± ¡°I shall attempt to arm myself. But since we''re not talking about feelings, perhaps we ought not spend so much time together.¡± ¡°We''ll see how your hands are. I''m not letting you go back home just to ruin them by being helpful there.¡± ¡°I must stay your guest-cum-prisoner then, highness. But since I can use them now, at least to turn pages and write short notes, perhaps I could have some time to revise for my promotion exam?¡± ¡°Which promotion exam? You''ve been reinstated to technician, top-rank.¡± ¡°I had hoped to become researcher, highness, before I was demoted.¡± ¡°I''ve been treating you poorly, haven''t I? Of course you may study to take the exams to become a researcher.¡± ¡°You have been treating me very well, highness.¡± ¡°No, I''ve been treating you as someone planning to be a life-long technician, and while I''ve come to know you have the brains to become a researcher. It never occurred to me that you might be aiming for that post. Your age, I guess. I assumed you preferred to not have the distractions of budgeting and having me direct your work.¡± ¡°I can live without budgets, and if becoming a researcher means I would cease to work with you, highness, then I might regret that.¡± ¡°No feelings, remember! But it need not be part of it. It certainly need not be. Projects and budgets can be shared, after all. Study for your exam and pass it, Kahlel. Those formulae on the wall date from when I was studying for mine, by the way. It''s most of the ones you need to know.¡± ¡°I didn''t realise princesses had to pass tests.¡± ¡°I believe it''s called building credibility with colleagues.¡± ¡°You''re credible as far as I can see.¡± ¡°As my employee, and my friend you''re not qualified to comment, sorry.¡± ¡°I guess I wasn''t certain if you considered me a friend, highness. Thank you for that great honour.¡± ¡°Oh, stop it! If you go all central-zone on me I''m going to get cross. And stop calling me ''highness''. As my employee you may publicly call me your princess, as friend you may also use that address, or in private my name. I do have one, it''s Naneela, in case you need reminding.¡± ¡°Thank you, Naneela, my princess. I didn''t actually need the reminder.¡±
The Heart of the Empire, Empress Hayeela''s study ¡°Naneela, what a surprise! Is everything OK?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I mean that since you brought Kahlel here, you''ve rarely come to see me.¡± ¡°Sorry, mummy.¡± ¡°Is anything wrong?¡± ¡°Urm... probably not.¡± ¡°Probably?¡± ¡°I think I''ve been kidding myself.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°I thought there was no way I''d end up feeling anything for him, I was just looking after him because it was right to do so, since he''s from Tunga, and had got his injuries for my honour, and so on. And I even banned all talk about feelings because I didn''t want him declaring that he was in love with me when I wanted to get him better and that was all, and it would have been really awkward to go on treating him if he did that. Plus I thought he had no ambition.¡± ¡°And you''ve discovered he does?¡± ¡°He''s studying for his research exam. He had been even before he got demoted. I''ve been finding things for him to do so he wouldn''t be bored, when he could have been studying.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Did your friends tell you about Tithia and Tarok?¡± ¡°His young friend was Tithia?¡± ¡°Somehow he found out she''d visited and then that I was looking after Kahlel, and decided she was worth cultivating, and she had no idea what not reciprocating to a gift meant. So, I wrote to him, last week saying ''oops, you don''t really think I''d be attending her wedding do you, he''s just a low-ranking employee?'' Tarok let her down very gently and this morning I wrote a letter telling him he was obviously a kind man, needed a wife, and if my letter helped him come to faith and find one then I''d try to be at the wedding.¡± ¡°Meaning he pretty much gets the pick of any central-zone ladies. I wish you''d discussed that with me, Naneela.¡± ¡°Salay didn''t recommend you getting involved for the first one, since it''d be an official loss of face. But what do I do now mummy? Write another letter this afternoon to Tarok saying oops, it''s quite possible that Kahlel will become a close colleague or more if he passes his exams?¡± ¡°I wouldn''t think so. Tithia is still too young for him.¡± ¡°She doesn''t mind. She''s hoping that he comes to faith so that she can marry him in good conscience.¡± ¡°Hopefully she''ll get over that.¡± ¡°And hopefully he will find someone more his own age too. But it''s worse, mum.¡± ¡°What''s worse?¡± ¡°What if I do end up falling for Kahlel?¡± ¡°You get married, and have some ultra-intelligent kids of your own to drive you to despair, of course, dear. Do you think it''s likely? I mean, we thought it looked likely weeks ago. But I don''t think we knew about the Tungan connection.¡± ¡°Just now, I really got frustrated with a problem and said I couldn''t offer him half Dad''s empire if he solved it, so I''d have to offer him Dad''s daughter''s hand in marriage instead. He laughed it off, but it didn''t seem unreasonable at the time.¡± ¡°Naneela, what I am beginning to think is you''ve been rationalising your emotions again. But what does he think?¡± ¡°No talking about feelings. But he did say that if becoming a researcher meant we wouldn''t work together he might regret taking the exam. I reassured him that projects can be shared. And they can, and I don''t want to be the reason he doesn''t take his exam. But do you know when projects are shared? About the only reason is two people would be doing the exact same thing anyway, or when they''re married and don''t have kids yet. So what have I just said?¡± ¡°What you feel, but in very rational terms, perhaps?¡± ¡°Like the rabbits?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Exactly.¡± Hayeela told her daughter. ¡°How are his hands?¡± ¡°Getting better. I''m still changing the dressings but that''s more to avoid any risk of an infection than because of any broken or weeping skin.¡± ¡°So he could leave?¡± ¡°I''m rationalising that too. Lots of nice rational arguments why he needs to stay close. You''re sure I don''t need to write to Tarok?¡± ¡°Who did you give the letter to? Maybe they''ve not delivered it yet.¡± ¡°Oh, I just dropped it in the basket.¡± ¡°Then be a dear and see if it''s still there, will you? They normally take them about now. I''ll think about how you can give it to him in person.¡± Naneela ran to the basket and found the letter, just before the imperial messenger arrived. ¡°You''ve got it?¡± her mother asked, ¡°Excellent! You can give it to him yourself in exchange for him watching a demonstration of your equipment and answering the following question: What would it be worth to a merchant like him to be able to have a few minutes'' conversation with someone in a distant city. That''d help the civil service set some kind of fee. And you can also ask about what social changes it would bring. You can also tell him that you''re not really sure what your heart is doing with Kahlel, since it seems he won''t be a lowly technician much longer.¡± ¡°And that we hope he does find someone more his own age. I presume the invitation shouldn''t be written?¡± ¡°Certainly not! But give me a shout on your new thing with all the wires when he arrives. We might as well demonstrate that social change too.¡± ¡°Kahlel had an idea about that, too, mother.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°We have our little boards to plug into, but there are already too many wires about, really. We can''t extend it to every minister. But what if there were a fifty or even a hundred wires coming to just one board, and then there was a person whose job it was to plug the wires together?¡± ¡°Who could listen to every conversation?¡± ¡°They''d have to be trustworthy, yes, just like the imperial messenger service.¡± ¡°Hmm. A hundred of these little bulbs and connectors?¡± The empress looked at the plug-board and judged the size. ¡°It seems a waste. Surely, if it''s all one person is doing they could have more than that within reach. Twenty by twenty or thirty by thirty would fit in the size of a small loom, maybe?¡± ¡°Nine hundred wires?¡± Naneela asked, in shock. ¡°I wouldn''t want to connect those. But yes, it''s possible.¡± ¡°And some of those wires could go to another one of these plug-people in other towns, couldn''t they? Social change.¡± ¡°The messengers would lose trade.¡± ¡°The messengers lose trade and you have new trades making and mending the equipment. Not to mention the plug-people. Invite the heads of the messenger guild and of the social change committee to your demonstrations, Naneela. How are the calls to Salay doing?¡± ¡°They''re still working, mother. Like Teng, we had that gap when no amount of power would get through, but it seems be working again, and his batteries are OK.¡± ¡°So, radio for long distances and wires for shorter distances?¡± empress Hayeela asked. ¡°And long dedicated wires for messages to army bases, perhaps?¡± ¡°Yes, except we''d need some way for the messages to be validated; we can''t just have it being trusted just because of how it arrives.¡± ¡°And when the central zone merchants realise that the distance-speaking and the radio are not going to be available in the central zone for decades, but the outer-zones could have them in a year or two?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Will they finally begin to petition for faster social changes?¡± ¡°The affected messengers will disagree.¡± ¡°Maybe. They might decide that the technology will allow them to stay at home more, stay drier, not need to take such risks, and so on. But it''s the central zone merchants who normally resist change isn''t it?¡± ¡°Some changes certainly.¡±
Letter to Crown-prince Salay My prince, I wonder where you are. Have you decided to come, or are you sensibly at home? My mind tells me the second is more likely. My heart wishes my mind would shut up about such things. But just in case, I leave this letter with Taheela. By my calculations, there is some chance that if you are on the Gem of Karet you will get to Caneth before I return from Tesk. But please do not chase after me there, for Hal and Esme only make a brief visit. They returned from their honeymoon full of plans, even deeper in love than before, and so very much attuned that it is sometimes hard to work out which of them originated which thought. One of their plans was that, there being a distinct lack of the sound of cannon-fire or smell of powder on the wind, it would be good to visit Tesk and have the discussion that they failed to have before their wedding. The plan was that king Val would stay a week to ten days to ensure that all is really going well, and then return home, with Hal''s mother and sisters returning on another ship. The new plan is that we ¡ª Hal, Esme, his mother and sisters -- hope to get to Tesk before Val leaves. If it does appear that there''s a battle in progress, we''ll turn round and go back to the original plan. A part of their reasoning, I''m sure, is that Queen Thena (while she puts a brave face on it) misses her husband enormously, so I wouldn''t actually be surprised if Hal tells his father to take his mother home. It''s not like the sort of ''battle'' that''s likely ¡ª the systematic bombardment of the army HQ and other nests of dum-semb ¡ª needs king Val''s tactical genius. We''ve all been praying that there won''t be a need for that. Praying for you, Hayeela
The heart of the empire, Naneela''s study ¡°Thank you for leaving the safety of the central zone, count. There are some others coming for this demonstration, which will be a bit more challenging than the one that ended with technician Kahlel''s injuries, so success is not guaranteed. But as you are here first, here is a letter you may share,¡± Naneela handed him the sealed letter, ¡°I trust it is acceptable. And with it, an admission: it seems I was wrong concerning Kahlel''s plans for the future, and he may not remain a lowly employee for long. He is making a bid for full status as researcher, which might make him a colleague, I don''t know. And perhaps our conversations will stray onto other topics too, I do not know that, either.¡± ¡°The emotions of the young are changeable, you mean, highness?¡± the count asked. ¡°I may open the letter?¡± ¡°If you open it now and it displeases you, you keep your displeasure to yourself, or mother will call you ungrateful. On the other hand, if there is anything in it you might wish to discuss, and you wait until you have left, you miss your opportunity.¡± ¡°Might there be matters I wish to discuss, highness?¡± ¡°That depends upon your knowledge about matters not always considered important in the central zone, but considered important in the heart of the empire for about a century.¡± ¡°You seek to intrigue me, and you have succeeded, highness.¡± Tarok said, carefully breaking the seal. He read and his eyes opened wide. ¡°Highness, I do not know what I expected, but... you have exceeded my wildest dreams. I thank you.¡± ¡°You now know the subject of possible discussion. Would you desire such a discussion?¡± ¡°Tithia failed to persuade me, highness. I do not expect you will have more success, but if you wish to try...¡± ¡°The question is not whether I or another wishes to ''try'' or ''persuade you'', as though it were an intellectual challenge, but whether you are so proud that you refuse to consider the possibility that you are wrong about eternity, and whether you prefer eternal regret or taking a humbling opportunity of becoming the adopted son of the emperor of the universe.¡± ¡°Perhaps I need to listen more attentively then, highness, with fewer preconceptions. I will accept the opportunity you present me with.¡± ¡°Father will be so pleased!¡± Naneela said, then seeing the look on his face she asked, ¡°What? You thought it would be me?¡± ¡°I think he did, Naneela,¡± the Emperor of Dahel said, taking off his gardening gloves and the grubby garment he wore for gardening over his plain white tunic. "Because he doesn''t really understand that he''s not in the central zone any more. He still expects gardeners and servants. Naneela will have some questions for you that need your central-zone thinking, count, both as count and as merchant. Then you and I will have some discussions as ageing men who no longer have half their lives before them. "You are still not too old to consider marriage, and perhaps with that letter from Naneela you will find that doors are open to you that were firmly barred before. But I tell you now, the most important decision you have to make today does not concern your business nor your domain, nor whether you will actually seek a wife able to give you heirs. No, the most important decision is whether you actually listen, or merely go through the motions of pretending to.¡± ¡°I hope to listen, imperial majesty.¡± ¡°Good. Your mother is bringing the others, Naneela, feel free to fiddle with your technology.¡±
The Gem of Karet ¡°Calling in,¡± Salay said, ¡°One percent power.¡± ¡°I hear you brother,¡± Naneela''s voice came to him, ¡°You''ve got the whole family listening in along with three official guests who''ll be discussing such things as social impact and how much they want one.¡± ¡°I''m glad it''s working then.¡± ¡°What''s the weather like?¡± ¡°The wind is very good for making progress, and the water is what the captain calls a bit choppy. We had some rough earlier, so we''re a lot happier. If I disappear it might be because the radio doesn''t like being turned on and shaken about.¡± ¡°And can you tell us where you are, Salay?¡± his father asked. ¡°Yesterday we lost sight of the inner rim mountains, but we can''t see the outer rim yet. Oh, OK. I''m told that we would be able to see the outer rim if it wasn''t raining. Does that help?¡± ¡°How far are you from the coast?¡± ¡°The captain is trying to steer so the guy on look-out is just able to keep it in sight. That''s something to do with the best wind at this time of year being in a narrow band. I don''t claim to understand it, though. I don''t understand how we can be going towards the windward continent with the wind mostly behind us, either, but we seem to be doing so at the moment. We''re concentrating on language learning, and discussing the weather patterns is a bit beyond us.¡± ¡°Thank you, Salay.¡± his mother''s voice said, ¡°Stay safe, learn lots, and save your batteries.¡± ¡°Turning off,¡± Salay said. ¡°Greetings to all your staff, tell Bilay he has a new sis-¡± the radio cut out. ¡°Bilay, did you hear that?¡± Salay called. ¡°No!¡± came the reply. ¡°You''ve got ''a new sis-'' we don''t know what. Sister? Cistern? Sister-in-law?¡± ¡°A new system of taxes to learn?¡± someone suggested. ¡°A new cyst?¡± someone else joined in. ¡°I expect a new sister-in-law,¡± Bilay said. ¡°But thank you for the other suggestions. Most entertaining.¡± ¡°Our pleasure, Bilay. How is your stomach?¡± Salay asked. ¡°My stomach is entirely well, my prince, so long as it''s empty. I fear I will not be very healthy by the time we reach Caneth.¡± ¡°You were able to eat something last night, weren''t you?¡± Salay asked. ¡°A very little, just before falling asleep, yes.¡± ¡°I highly recommend watching the horizon.¡± Saval, the interpreter said. ¡°I have always been short-sighted, I guess that reference never developed for me, at least it does not seem to help.¡± ¡°Nevertheless, you can look at it and tell yourself, that isn''t moving, just the ship,¡± Saval said. ¡°It''s not the food itself, is it?¡± Salay asked. ¡°I know it''s different. Try just fruit for a day.¡± ¡°I''ll try, my prince,¡± Bilay said. Planet 5 / Ch. 25: Greetings

Planet 5 / Ch. 25: Greetings

Tesk harbour, evening. ¡°Ahoy, Walrus! What do you be doing here?¡± Val shouted, as a long sleek vessel pulled into the harbour. ¡°Bringing an academician home, sire. Three and a half weeks from Dahel! Might we ask what''s made Tesk so popular?¡± ¡°An old treaty, captain. Tie up alongside, you''ve got some news to catch up with. The good news do be we''re not at war.¡± ¡°That do be always good news, sire!¡± When the walrus had tied up, Val asked. ¡°Academician Teng?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I do be Val, king of the Isles.¡± ¡°Your majesty!¡± Teng bowed. ¡°Urm. The law against your presence?¡± ¡°Has been revoked. The Isles supports your project, having heard all about it from Hal and Esme. But tell me about dum-semb.¡± ¡°Dum-semb? It''s a complete pack of lies, sire.¡± ¡°Oh I know that. You''ve never had anything to do with it, then?¡± ¡°I was asked to go to some meetings before I became an academician. This was years ago. The admin staff pretty much insisted. I went, I didn''t pay much attention, I was asleep half the time, since I''d been up all night observing. Then they wanted me to give some kind of oath to it. I told the administrator that I''d given my oath to the academy, and the academy laws say no other oaths. He seemed quite put out by that.¡± ¡°You''ll need to testify before the high council about that, academician.¡± ¡°The high council?¡± ¡°Tesk has a high council again. Esmetherelda invited thirty politicians and thirty young women to a conference just before her wedding, some parents went too. "One of the mothers turned out to be a priestess of the doom-guard religion, which rather changed the agenda.¡± ¡°The doom guard religion?¡± The captain of the Walrus asked, ¡°Human sacrifices?¡± ¡°That too. So, academician, you need to come up to the high council with me and some of the lads. There have been some people not very happy with me being here, so they''re mostly for protection, you understand.¡± ¡°I ought to consider myself under arrest again, you mean?¡± ¡°Not quite. You just need to repeat what you said to me about dum-semb under oath to the high council. Bring your papers, too.¡± ¡°Perjury before the council carries the death sentence,¡± Teng said. ¡°Dum-semb is the doom-guard religion, isn''t it? And you''re a noble under the old order of the isles.¡± ¡°True.¡± ¡°How many deaths have there been?¡± ¡°You''ll have to ask the high council. Or the crabs and lobsters. That reminds me, captain, no catching fish, crabs or lobsters; they''ve all been eating doom-guard corpses. You won''t want anyone to swim in the harbour either.¡± ¡°The academician was going to be introducing these gentlemen from Dahel to the academy, majesty. Dahel has been making very good progress on the radio front.¡± ¡°Well, we''ll introduce them to the high council first. I''m sure the council will want to hear all about that.¡± ¡°Is anyone sailing to Caneth, your majesty?¡± Teng asked, looking up from his paperwork, ¡°I''ve got a message here for ambassador Hayeel.¡± ¡°Don''t send it to Caneth, then. She''s up at the high council along with Hal and Esme. Tesk has been enjoying a real tourist boom this last week.¡± ¡°What''s that done to the price of food?¡± ¡°Not much,¡± Val said, ¡°The navies knew about the food-related problems, we''ve got plenty with us, and the men are under orders to only buy non-food local produce, unless they''re staying in someone''s spare room and food is always included in the room-rental. They can hire a local cook if they want to.¡± ¡°What non-food local produce are you rich foreigners buying up then?¡± ¡°Personally, I''ve not bought much except a blanket. I thought it was supposed to be warmer here than on Captita? Anyway, is everyone ready?¡± ¡°I suppose so. Do I get manacles?¡± ¡°No.¡± Val said, ¡°Not even if you beg.¡±
High Council Chamber, Tesk ¡°Most honourable Lady Ambassador,¡± the chief technician said, bowing low, ¡°We greet you in the name of imperial princess Naneela, whose communication prototype we bring with us. Sadly the device was broken before the Walrus departed, and there was not space on board anyway to use it or repair it, but we hope we can repair it quickly now the world is mostly still. I understand that any movement is just in our heads.¡± ¡°I thank you for your greeting, but am sadly unaware of what you''re talking about.¡± ¡°A radio, most noble duchess, much like the one imperial prince Salay was intending to bring. We are under most strict instructions from her imperial highness, that should we happen to meet you we must see if the signal from here reaches to the princess at the heart of the empire. She wishes to talk to you.¡± ¡°Talk? Not merely clicks as the transmitter here sends?¡± ¡°The transmitter here is very powerful, duchess. Perhaps too powerful, we may need to ask them to turn it off. The imperial research centre have concentrated on receiver design. And princess Naneela, has designed... sorry, it is too complicated to explain.¡± ¡°She has made it possible to talk?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Yes, duchess.¡± ¡°May the Lord God bless her in every way possible! But you say that crown prince Salay travels?¡± ¡°He expected to leave for Caneth a few days after us. But the sailors on the Walrus were very proud of their ship''s speed.¡± ¡°Rightly so, but it is three days to Caneth, and you will have had those extra days coming. So I must leave for Caneth quickly.¡± ¡°Hayeel, you''re excited and worried at the same time. What is it?¡± Esme asked her friend. ¡°These good men bring the parts of a radio for speech, which they hope can talk to Dahel, though they are not certain. Which is exciting. And my prince follows them, which is also exciting. But he was leaving only a few days after them.¡± ¡°So you wish to go back to Caneth tonight,¡± Esme summarized. ¡°I wish... I wish these good men could start putting together the radio now, so I do not need to leave before they have tried it... I wish to hear all their news of home. I wish to be in Caneth, ensuring that there is a suitable welcome for my prince. And so on. I cannot have everything.¡± ¡°How long to put together the radio?¡± Esme asked. ¡°We are not sure,¡± the technician said. ¡°But where? It should be somewhere high, it should be somewhere not too close to the other transmitter, it should be protected, protected from rain, protected from curious people, protected from being knocked or rattled. There may be discussions, perhaps they will be private. There needs to be a long wire also. A flagpole or a tall tree?¡± ¡°But not near the other transmitter?¡± ¡°Unless they will turn it off, as far from the other transmitter as possible, and imagine shouting to Dahel or Caneth or the Isles. There should not be extra mountains or trees or buildings in the way.¡± When Hayeel had translated, Sashan said, ¡°Come, perhaps we have a good room for you in this building. Certainly it is protected against strangers, and this is the highest point on the Island. It was built to watch the sea, the harbour and the city. But the only electricity is from the waterwheel below the physics laboratory, that''s the other side of the city.¡± ¡°Our radio uses different metals with acid,¡± the technician said, shrugging. Hayeel translated that too. ¡°We call them batteries. But you must drain them quickly making sparks that way!¡± Sashan exclaimed. When Hayeel translated that there were exclamations of surprise and denial. ¡°They still use sparks!¡± the technician exclaimed, ¡°We have not used sparks for a long time.¡± ¡°No wonder you make such a mess on our receivers!¡± one of the other technicans said. ¡°Sorry, Sashan, they are not impressed.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Very impressed!¡± the technician said ¡°You must have a huge generator, very impressive. With such a huge generator, a proper radio will be heard on the furthest planets!¡± Sashan laughed. ¡°Then I long to see a proper radio, I will show you the room. King Val, I''m sorry we have monopolised the time talking of radios when you need to hear the academician''s testimony. Academician, you should not hurry to the administration building in any case, or even the laboratory. There are barricades and pots of concentrated acid for the unwary.¡±
The watch-tower room, Tesk ¡°Really, we can use this room?¡± the interpreter asked. ¡°No one else does, except sometimes to pray.¡± Sashan said, ¡°There is a door there to a flagpole on the roof, but none of us have been brave enough to see if the ladder is still strong.¡± ¡°They say it is perfect!¡± The interpreter said, ¡°Perfect! But what happens at the Academy?¡± ¡°It has been known for a long time that almost all of the administrators of the academy follow dum-semb. Recently we learned that is the religion of the doom-guard. That important fact was lost to us. So they must be put on trial, but will not come out, and we do not want to destroy the records that are held there. There are soldiers on watch around the building, those inside know that if they start destroying or burning, the soldiers go in, they know that if they don''t surrender before the soldiers go in, then they cannot expect mercy. They don''t come out, so we assume they don''t expect mercy anyway.¡± ¡°You need to make them want to leave,¡± ¡°Yes. At the moment, we have a siege.¡± ¡°With that generator, you could try noise,¡± the interpreter suggested. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Noise?¡± Sashan asked. ¡°This man, he says ''Noise so they cannot talk, noise so the cannot sleep, noise that drives them crazy'', his friend says ''Noise and smoke, smoke that burns their eyes, and perhaps also stench, the stench of rotting flesh, even? Forced into the building with large bellows.''¡± ¡°The chemists have tried smells. They open the windows.¡± ¡°Archers?¡± ¡°The building is that one there, that looks over the harbour. Perhaps a cannon shot could reach it, I don''t know.¡± The translator said ¡°Then you must decide if the law is more important or less important than the records. You have said you think they expect to die anyway. "You must expect that they might urinate on your records, or perhaps eat them if hungry enough. They must face certain death before they will choose a trial ending in uncertain death.¡± ¡°That has been said before.¡± ¡°But you do not choose to believe it.¡± ¡°We ¡ª the high council ¡ª do not have the authority to decide it.¡± ¡°Who does?¡± ¡°The politicians, who are also being called on to testify concerning their involvement in dum-semb. Perhaps when they are cleansed, they will reach that decision, but the process is not very fast. When there is space in the cells, the next batch is called on to testify, and a record is made. Almost all have had some involvement, so they are sent to cells to wait for trial. The trials may be only fifteen minutes even less, sometimes, when there is hardly any involvement, or when it is an unrepentant novice who has neither a lot of knowledge of others nor many victims. Those are dealt with quickly. "But the average is two hours. There are twelve nobles who regularly try cases, but now that the army are not being tried, few judge all day every day. So the average now is that thirty people are tried per day. There are three hundred and fifty politicians, a hundred administrative staff, plus there are others: doctors, lawyers, judges, accused by the public. Some also come forward voluntarily, sorry for what they have been involved in. So about twenty five politicians are tried each day.¡± ¡°And academician Teng will also be tried?¡± the interpreter asked. ¡°Yes, he will have to be tried.¡± Sashan said, ¡°That is the law, and that is the treaty of all nations.¡± ¡°So. We will set up the radio for ambassador Hayeel, and to demonstrate to the scientists of the academy. And then we will help meet the Tesk Challenge. Hopefully, academician Teng will be free by then.¡± ¡°King Val planned to hear the case,¡± Sashan said. ¡°I expect that if what he said to King Val was no lie, he will be free for your demonstration.¡±
The watch-tower room, Tesk ¡°Good technicians, it is midnight!¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Will you not rest?¡± ¡°We are very close now, lady ambassador. Very very close.¡± the technician said. Looking around he asked the room in general ¡°Where are the pliers?¡± ¡°In your pocket.¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°You said you were close an hour ago.¡± ¡°We were close an hour ago, but we had forgotten to test a piece, and it needed replacing. It is not so late in Dahel. Heaters on.¡± ¡°Receive tube is warming, yes, and transmit too.¡± The junior technician said, ¡°How do we tune without a signal?¡± ¡°Adjust the main coil and then adjust the filter to maximise the signal, and just keep trying that. And pray.¡± ¡°Did I just hear some faint speech over the crackles?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Unlikely, but possible, we must tune the antenna as well as the receiving coil, that makes it work better. Testing testing one two three... ratio seems good now. ¡°Did I hear someone?¡± Naneela''s voice asked. ¡°Imperial highness. We call from Tesk, now at five percent power.¡± ¡°You have arrived? Excellent! Try reducing power to one percent.¡± ¡°We met lady ambassador Duchess Hayeel here.¡± ¡°Salay, did you hear that?¡± ¡°I heard you saying the technicians have arrived on Tesk. I did not hear if they said anything at one percent,¡± Salay said. ¡°The technicians here have put their controls back to five and put this thing in front of me and gesture me to speak, my prince, I am Hayeel, I am on Tesk, but we leave for Caneth tomorrow.¡± ¡°Did you hear that, Salay?¡± ¡°There was some sound, but I didn''t understand anything.¡± ¡°Ah. Your Hayeel is currently on Tesk, but leaves for Caneth tomorrow.¡± ¡°What''s she doing there?¡± ¡°The technicians have increased power to ten percent, I hope you can hear me, my prince. Please say if you do, and I will answer your question.¡± ¡°I hear!¡± Salay said. ¡°I am here confirming that the Treaty of All Nations for the eradication of human sacrifice is being applied, my prince. It is. Most of the people support the newly re-formed high council and the nobles, who by law are the only judges of corruption and dum-semb, the religion of the doom-guard. In the revolution, the counter-revolution, many of them were killed, and they hid from the rioters who shouted doom-guard slogans. But they no longer need to hide. Those who were involved with the illegal religion are being judged and the guilty are executed in the manner described in the law. "The crabs and other scavengers have all they can eat, and the water near the harbour is red, but riots have been avoided. And while I speak of nobles, the honourable captain of Gem of Karet may like to know that the widowed countess Elakart of Karet has need of some reliable captains and would like to talk to him.¡± ¡°I will tell him that Hayeel, but why do you put yourself in danger?¡± ¡°I have written, but that letter awaits you in Caneth, my prince. I unmasked a priestess of dum-semb among those from Tesk. The knowledge that the hateful religion of the doom-guard and the windward empire is called dum-semb has passed out of common knowledge here.¡± ¡°I am not pleased to think of you taking needless risks, Hayeel. But I am pleased to hear your voice.¡± ¡°I rejoice to hear your voice also, my prince. Do not be too angry, I beg you. I did not come on my own, I came with princess Esmetherelda, prince Hal and his mother and sisters, and we do not go onto the streets without bodyguards.¡± ¡°Ah. I don''t think I should be angry then. And is the academy happy to have Teng back?¡± ¡°The academy are thinking of other things. The administrative staff are mostly followers of dum-semb, and have barricaded themselves into their offices. The army may be sent in to kill them all tomorrow or the next day if they keep on refusing to accept trial. Teng was also involved with dum-semb at one point in his career, but rejected much of it. He also wasn''t entirely honest to to King Val about his involvement when questioned on arrival. But he is being truthful now, because he is being tried in front of the high council, where a lie under oath means death.¡± ¡°How did things got so bad?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Too much pride. Dum-semb is a religion that feeds off pride and all the attitudes that say it is OK to lie and cheat and steal because if you are caught then your friends who also lie and cheat and steal will help you as long as you lie and cheat and steel for them when they are in trouble. And then it builds that into a religion.¡± ¡°A religion of corruption?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Exactly, imperial princess. A religion of corruption where taking the life of one who does not believe is a stepping-stone to advancement. May God purge it from the face of the planet, wherever it is.¡± ¡°Amen.¡± Salay said. ¡°Travel very safely, my Hayeel. The Walrus was fast but we left earlier than planned, and have also made good time. We reached the borders of the empire and Tew at mid-day, so if God sends us kind winds and the Tew navy do not stop us, we will be in Caneth in five days.¡± ¡°Travel safely my prince. Did you hear that the war-like king of Tew died soon after his son? Queen Yalisa now reigns.¡± ¡°I had not heard.¡± ¡°As your ambassador, I took the initiative of sending condolences on your behalf, my prince. I hope I did well.¡± ¡°You did very well, my ambassador. You also do well as ambassador to be in Tesk, my Hayeel.¡± ¡°You mean that as your Ambassador I should be here, but as your Hayeel I should be avoiding all risk? My prince, I enjoy my role as ambassador and I rejoice in your concern for me, but perhaps we should have that conversation in private. Most noble princess, I thank you for your gift to Tesk and to the world.¡± Naneela laughed, ¡°I am pleased it works, noble duchess, and well diverted. Salay, your Hayeel is wise to defer that discussion, is she not?¡± ¡°I don''t know, Naneela. I think that if she had you involved as well I would have no chance of winning the argument.¡± ¡°Hayeel, I invite your comment if you wish to play in such dangerous water some more,¡± Naneela said. ¡°I will simply say my mother always said it is better to never have an argument without leaving a man some chance to win. And of course, gentle reason and smiles are better than an argument.¡± ¡°Which strategy to you plan to use on me on this topic, my Hayeel?¡± Salay asked foolishly. ¡°I think, my prince, that the topic will re-occur every time you seek to protect me but take risks yourself over the next few decades, and I expect I will be using a mixture of strategies to help you choose the wisest choice if you are tempted to choose based on emotions. And I hope that you will use a mixture of strategies in reply when I wish to let my emotions overcome my sense.¡± ¡°And Hayeel, can it be possible to fall in love with someone after a few letters and one short conversation over radio?¡± ¡°My prince, I am sure that logic says it cannot be. But the radio part is something new. Perhaps we will need to discover if what I feel now is merely optimism, or being in love with the idea of being in love, and so just a false feeling, not worthy of the name I am tempted to give it. But I know I long to make that discovery.¡± ¡°You say ''no'' as beautifully as you write, my Hayeel, and I hope you do not mind me saying that I already love the way that you express things, and look forward to falling in love with you properly.¡± ¡°I''m going to suggest that you save your batteries now, brother,¡± Naneela said. ¡°Sorry, but you know father hopes to talk to you when you are safely in Caneth, and you are on your last battery plates.¡± ¡°Highness, the Tesk transmitter uses sparks,¡± the technician said, ¡°They have a powerful generator. We can surely recover our batteries and give duchess Hayeel some of the plates we have with us.¡± ¡°An excellent idea, but still my brother should stop talking, as should you if you are still at ten percent. You know what high power does to it, save the equipment, otherwise Duchess Hayeel will soon learn how rich she is and offer to buy it and Tesk both.¡± ¡°I have had some hints from my prince about the wealth associated with my title, highness. They bring with them some worries that would probably concern me far more if I had details and if I were actually in the Empire, as it is I merely rejoice that if something I did that might upset your most honourable father and his civil service, I need not merely say sorry but can also offer to make amends.¡± ¡°Are you willing to tell me what you have done, Duchess Hayeel?¡± ¡°I gave a countess here on Tesk who needs to avoid what they call grain here (which is very different to the grain at home) a certificate of accreditation as a favoured exporter of up to three standard boatloads of grain per year and two top quality Repink carpets per grain shipment.¡± ¡°How favoured?¡± ¡°Zero tariff on grain delivered to Tesk, and ten percent on the carpets as long as they are shipped to Tesk and then maybe onward to Caneth.¡± ¡°I assume you had a reason?¡± Naneela said. ¡°Food on Tesk consumes most of people''s income, even when the harvest doesn''t fail. When it does, people starve because they cannot afford imported grain from Caneth. No tax would make grain from home affordable, and hopefully stop prices rocketing as high if the harvests do fail. And, I don''t think three standard ship-loads will entirely crash the market. As to the carpets, ships stop at Tesk on their way between Caneth and the Isles, or make a special trip from the Isles. The ones that are going to or from Caneth sell a bit, but don''t expect to buy anything, except maybe some food, really they just use Tesk as a passenger destination or a harbour. The ones from the Isles might buy a certain type of fabric, but it''s for a betrothal ritual shared by the Isles and Tesk, but not by the mainland. So yes, there''s a demand, but it''s fixed, once per lifetime. The opportunity is for Tesk to export fashion-wear, like it used to, but Tesk doesn''t lead fashion now. If there were more ships going from Tesk to Caneth, then that might change. It''s not that there are no designers on Tesk, just practically no one ever sees their work. Some regular traffic from Tesk to Caneth would change that, and the captains with the carpets will want to take something else or they''ll be laughed at for making the journey with just a couple of carpets. Oh, also, the countess is a widow with a high sense of duty and connections in the shipping trade, but who has been feeling useless now that her daughter is happily married.¡± ¡°Why, Duchess, do you think that such a well-motivated and selfless action might displease my father?¡± Naneela replied. ¡°Because inspectors'' salaries still need paying, highness, and a zero tariff involves not even a token payment.¡± A male voice replied, ¡°The empire''s finances will not suffer unduly for three boatloads, duchess. You will upset the inspectors because they cannot expect a bribe to reduce the tonnage on their reports, and even better, the capacity of the ships involved will be recorded truthfully for once, which should help future corruption investigations. So, I am in no way displeased. Hayeela and myself are almost as pleased to hear your voice as I expect our son is. Assure the people of Tesk that we will pray for them as they battle this old evil. And of course we will also pray for your safe return to Caneth, and look forward to welcoming you here.¡± ¡°I, I humbly thank you for your kind words, imperial majesty,¡± Hayeel said, shocked to think that the emperor and empress had been listening in.
Gem of Karet When the captain had finished his observations the next dawn, Salay said, via his interpreter, ¡°Captain, I have some news for you from Tesk,¡± ¡°Through your wires and glass tubes?¡± ¡°Yes. The Walrus arrived there sometime yesterday, I presume. I spoke to duchess Hayeel, who is visiting Tesk along with the royal family of the Isles and princess Esmetherelda. Tew''s king and crown prince have died, and now queen Isthana rules. The High Council of Tesk are re-formed, and the nobles of Tesk are no longer hiding from the counter-revolution.¡± ¡°Counter-revolution? Another one?¡± the captain interrupted. ¡°Apparently that is the new term for what you might think of as the revolution. when nobles hid from rioters and their doom-guard slogans.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, I see. The nobility aren''t hiding and the King of the Isles visiting? Amazing, amazing! Praise God!¡± ¡°The nobles are now being the judges they should be over cases of involvement in dum-semb, the religion of the doom-guard. Riots have been averted, but the sea near the harbour is apparently red. Hayeel also said that Countess Elakart of Karet is a widow and is in need of some reliable captains and would like to talk to you.¡± ¡°Well! Ela wants to talk trade, eh? That''s news at least. And a widow?¡± ¡°His imperial highness''s exact words were ''The now-widow countess Elakart of Karet''¡± the interpreter said, ¡°And regarding the talk, I am not certain that the topic is trade. Allow me to check please,¡± that done, he said, ¡°His imperial highness said Hayeel presented two pieces of information in an ambiguous way, it might be taken to mean that countess Elakart wants to talk to you as a reliable captain, or it might be that she wants to talk to you as someone trusted, about reliable captains, or it might be separate: she needs reliable captains, and she wants to talk to you.¡± ¡°And the only way to find out which is to persuade young Hayeel to talk some more, I suppose?¡± ¡°I will ask my sister if she knows any more. But Hayeel was due to leave for Caneth this morning.¡± ¡°Ahoy in the crow''s nest!¡± the captain shouted. ¡°Ay, Captain?¡± the lookout answered. ¡°Why do you want to go back to Tesk, lad?¡± ¡°Want to give my mum some of my pay and let a girl there know I''ve not forgotten her, Captain!¡± ¡°Sounds a good couple of reasons. Seems like the Gem is going to be welcomed, after all.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 26: Arrival

Planet 5 / Ch. 26: Arrival

Caneth Prince Hal of the Isles looked over the peaks and troughs of the nearest horizon in the pre-dawn light and reflected on how fortunate he was, not forgetting to give thanks to God. From up here in the palace, the far horizon was about forty kilometres away. The nearest horizon, however was very much closer, and nicer to hold, and kiss. It turned and smiled at him. ¡°I love you too Hal,¡± Esme said. ¡°And I thank God for you too. Have you looked at anything besides my silhouette?¡± ¡°You mean, like the clock? It''s almost dawn.¡± ¡°And the clouds?¡± she pointed out. They were scudding across the sky quite quickly. ¡°A good sailing wind if you''re coming from Tew. Oh! You mean today''s the day Hayeel meets her prince?¡± ¡°Exactly, so why don''t you check to see if there are any sails on the horizon or closer, so I don''t need to, and work out if you can come back to bed for a bit?¡± ¡°Some sails just this side of the horizon, I''d guess we''ve got at least an hour before that gets here,¡± Hal reported still looking out of the window. Then he asked ¡°How long do you need to get dressed for visiting crown princes?¡± ¡°As long as my crown prince doesn''t keep peering out of windows then I ought to have plenty of time.¡± ¡°Just, there''s another ship, a quarter of an hour from the harbour. Island-rigged.¡± ¡°So, it''s not from Tesk, and so it can''t be the prince''s ship. Come back to bed.¡± ¡°Tesk might not be one of the Isles politically, but that doesn''t mean their sailors forgot how to set sails for where there''s no coves to harbour in. Get dressed my beloved, we have a state visitor.¡±
Embassy of Dahel, Caneth There were some clouds, but the air was clear and there was no sign of the rain that had threatened the previous day as Hayeel, dressed in her formal-wear with a cloak against the winter chill in the air, walked sedately to the top of her garden and looked out to sea. She wasn''t quite as high as the palace, but she could certainly see further here than she could have from the harbour. The half-moon had risen at midnight and shone into her room an hour before dawn, as she''d hoped it might, waking her early. Hal had warned her that the wind was entirely changeable and his guess that today would be when prince Salay arrived was very much a guess. Still, she planned to set up her desk up here as long as the wind didn''t get so strong that it blew her papers away. It would be a pleasant way to wait until his ship came over the horizon and she could see it gliding towards the harbour as that one there was doing, just at the place she''d worked out as being the ideal distance to head down to the port. She''d decided against waving a flag or anything else, she was too far from the coast for anyone to see her really. Her mind backtracked a little and she gave a little gasping cry, as she focussed her thoughts on what she was seeing, not on her plans. Then, turning, she ran back down the hill, calling ¡°Taheela! Taheela!, He''s here!¡±
Gem of Karet ¡°Calling from within sight of Caneth harbour,¡± Salay said into the microphone. ¡°What happened to getting there in the mid-morning?¡± ¡°The wind got stronger over-night.¡± ¡°What time is it there?¡± ¡°Sunrise, and if you don''t mind, sister, I''d like to be on deck.¡± Naneela laughed, ¡°Now, I do wonder why that might be.¡± ¡°How is Kahlel''s revision doing?¡± ¡°Didn''t I tell you? He took his test, and passed.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And last night we celebrated with a meal with both families, and then he and I took a walk around the heart, and then some time later rejoined our parents holding hands. It''s a nice feeling and I recommend you and Hayeel try it sometime.¡± ¡°I''ll tell her you said that, if I may.¡± ¡°Of course you may. As long as you tell her to call you by your name a few days before-hand. She''s still very formal with you, brother, you might have noticed. She might be open but I got the feeling that she''s not secure.¡± ¡°I''ll bear that in mind, sister, thanks.¡± ¡°Salay,¡± his father''s voice said, ¡°also tell her what I told your mother: that she''s not to let you kiss her on the lips until she''s so comfortable with you that she''s happy with the idea of putting ice down your back.¡± ¡°What was mother''s response?¡± Salay asked curiously. ¡°She said ''if you insist imperial highness, so it shall be, but for future reference, where does one get ice around here?''¡±
Caneth harbour Hayeel watched as the Gem of Karet entered the harbour, her body-guards discretely but protectively forming a circle around her. Standing on the quayside watching the Gem arrive seemed a very familiar experience, and she tried to place it. Then she remembered: her father had once made a delivery and returned with his friend on the Gem. Now, it was not her father, of course, but her prince. She saw him climb up on the prow, looking eagerly around, and then he saw her waiting modestly, and his face cracked into a wide smile. She looked down at his hands, not wanting to breach protocol, but his hands indicated he wanted eye contact. She was not waiting at the right place, she realised, as he passed. ¡°So near but still too far, my Hayeel.¡± ¡°We can be patient a little longer, my prince.¡± she said, walking beside the dock-edge.. ¡°Naneela says I must tell you to call me Salay before suggesting we hold hands, and father says you must not let me kiss your lips until you are happy to put ice down my back. So please, feel free to do both.¡± ¡°I think, my prince, it may be hard for an employee to put ice down the back of her employer.¡± ¡°Perhaps you would prefer to think of me as your suitor rather than your employer?¡± ¡°But what, then of the ambassadorship?¡± ¡°Some collect ornaments, you it seems collect titles: interpreter, teacher, ambassador, duchess, friend. I hope you do not consider the roles of interpreter and teacher beneath you, because I will need you as both, and I would like to be your friend, Hayeel, and then your suitor, and eventually your husband. ¡°Oh? You wish to be so traditional about things? I wondered if you would first ask to be my husband in accordance with the prophecy, and then we would slowly become friends.¡± ¡°I think some traditions have benefits,¡± Salay said, ¡°Ah, but just think, my prince: if we marry first, then no one will be scandalised if we then spend days and nights in each others company talking, talking and talking.¡± ¡°They might disbelieve that was all we were doing, though, and even be scandalised at us claiming so.¡± ¡°Ah, you are right, my prince. We must then court scandal in the more traditional way, or perhaps ask my sister to be chaperone.¡± ¡°This is the sister who suggested you send me scandalous pictures of yourself?¡± ¡°Err, yes, my prince.¡± Hayeel said, blushing, ¡°Maybe we should ask someone else.¡± ¡°I think so. And I think I asked you to call me Salay,¡± he said. ¡°You suggested I should feel free to, my prince, but does not freedom to do something come with the freedom to not do it also?¡± ¡°Of course it does,¡± Salay said. ¡°That''s nice,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°And may I also continue to feel free to make slightly scandalous suggestions?¡± ¡°I don''t think I actually have the power to stop you, Hayeel.¡± As the sailors made the ship fast, she said, ¡°Then why don''t you introduce me to your grinning retinue, and allow me the pleasure of giving your captain a letter.¡± ¡°On the left, we have Bilay, who we learned a week ago has a new sis- before the radio cut out, and I have not remembered since to ask Naneela what she said, but we continue to think of new possibilities. More seriously, there seems to be something in the ship''s food that does not agree with him, and he does much better eating fruit and vegetables. Beside Bilay is Gahel who pretended to buy a horse so his brother Mahel would get married, next is our hard-working-interpreter Saval who I think you know, there are two guards below who I need to introduce you to later, and Gathal who''s just coming up the stairs promised me faithfully that he''d find a bride so he couldn''t come, but he couldn''t find any girl who would take him seriously.¡± ¡°But since he couldn''t you forced him to come?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°No, he volunteered. His words were ''I asked all the girls I knew, and they all laughed at me, so maybe this is God''s way of telling me to look further afield.'' or something like that.¡± ¡°And have you persevered in language learning to that end, Gathal?¡± Hayeel asked, switching to the windward language. ¡°Six weeks is not enough long to learn everywhere, no every-.... all words.¡± ¡°Every thing¡± Hayeel supplied. But you could have said every word. There is a children''s song to help you remember it: The words of the chorus go ''God made everything, God is everywhere, God loves everyone. Everybody trust in Him, I''m going to trust in grace.''¡± ¡°You learned that song here?¡± Saval asked. ¡°No, I learned it from my father. Yes, Salay, it was that song he was singing as he died. I didn''t understand when I was growing up why it switched from talking about trusting in God to trusting in grace, and I didn''t know what being graceful had to do with trust either. The songs I learned made a lot more sense once I heard the gospel and had a Bible to read. Captain Davdo, Countess Elakart will rejoice to hear your faith is still alive, and her daughter high councillor Kelara thanks you for the name of your ship, which helped persuade Elakart that the future had enough possibilities that she should not continue to pine away in self-pity.¡± Davdo looked at Hayeel and raised an eyebrow, ¡°And you just decided my faith was alive because you heard me whistling the tune to that song?¡± ¡°No, captain, because I heard your surprise that father never explained the songs he taught us and your regret for never explaining the gospel to us either. Hal of the Isles heard Taheela singing to her babe, though, and explained the gospel to her and her husband, and they explained it to me. Taheela is avoiding Hal now, she''s happy just being insightful. I''ve got the whole gift, as has princess Esmetherelda.¡± ¡°Oh, not the whole gift, young one. You don''t get the whole gift just from hanging around that family. The whole gift comes from God''s grace alone.¡± ¡°You speak of the gift the aliens have.¡± ¡°The gift that a very very few aliens have and some of us have been granted too. My grandfather''s great-grandfather among them. Perhaps we should be praying that God in his mercy might give that gift once more, when the time is right.¡± ¡°A man of Tesk with the whole gift?¡± Salay asked, confused by the translation that Saval provided. ¡°I thought only women ever received the gift.¡± ¡°The funny thing is my ancestor wasn''t even from Tesk,¡± Captain Davdo said, shrugging, ¡°He was from one of the outer zones of the empire.¡± ¡°My prince,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°The honourable captain does not say what he thinks: that the daughter of his grandfather''s blessed great-grandfather travelled to Dahel with the normal gift of Tesk, where she met the emperor, and was declared dangerous.¡± ¡°Then I should embrace you as distant cousin, should I not, captain Davdo?¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Davdo shrugged. ¡°I''ve never really known if the family legend about her was true, highness.¡± ¡°The name of the Empress from Tesk is not well known in Dahel.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Do you know her name, captain?¡± ¡°She was called Abigail, and according to the family legend, she felt God prompting her to go and stop a war just as her wise name-sake did.¡± ¡°Then I shall certainly name you cousin, captain Davdo. Because her denouncing those war-plans are why she was named the most dangerous woman in Dahel.¡± ¡°Permission to come aboard, captain?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Of course, Hayeel.¡± ¡°Rituals must be observed,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°no, not that one, my prince, it''s too cold. This one. I extend to you the welcome of princess-Regent Esmetherelda to Caneth, my prince, she and her husband sent a message asking you to allow them a little time to dress, rather than run down here in unseemly haste, but they will be here soon. And while we await their formal welcome, in the presence of my father''s friend I extend to you my hands, accepting your kind offer of friendship and also accepting your desire to be my suitor.¡± ¡°And taking your hands, may I also kiss them, Hayeel?¡± ¡°As long as having kissed them you put your arm around my waist so I don''t faint with joy. I don''t know that I will, but one can''t be too careful.¡± ¡°Are you feeling faint?¡± Salay asked, as concerned, he wrapped an arm around her waist. ¡°I don''t know. I''ve never fainted before, nor felt like this before. Maybe it''s just happiness that you''re here at last, my suitor.¡± ¡°You might notice I''m happy to be here too.¡± ¡°Yes, I''ve noticed. And I notice you are happy to be holding me, my suitor, which is nice.¡± ¡°You really prefer to use titles, don''t you?¡± Salay said. ¡°I''m now your suitor, but I''m still not your Salay.¡± ¡°We will not truly be each others'' until we wed, Salay.¡± ¡°You reprimand me for being too intimate?¡± Salay asked. ¡°No. Naneela was correct, I think. I do not feel secure enough to think of you as truly mine, even though I hear your every thought about me.¡± ¡°You fear rejection though the prophecy tells me not to reject you?¡± ¡°I still have not heard or read the entire prophecy, my suitor.¡± ¡°We have so much to tell each other, don''t we?¡± Salay said, ¡°I have some pages written to you, even.¡± ¡°I too,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Only some pages, or is it past a hundred yet?¡± ¡°I tried to limit myself to only write a page or two per day.¡± ¡°Every day for for six weeks?¡± ¡°Not every day.¡± ¡°Will you read them to me please, Hayeel who will be mine?¡± ¡°Some parts are perhaps better read quietly than spoken aloud. But if it pleases you.¡± ¡°It pleases me to spend time with you.¡± ¡°People are noticing that, I notice. Including my friend Esmetherelda, shall we drag ourselves away from the future and into the present?¡± ¡°I thought I was concentrating on your presence quite hard,¡± Salay replied. ¡°Yes. I noticed that. To the exclusion of all else except the future. Please greet my friends, my prince, before they think they could have stayed in bed longer.¡± Tearing his eyes away from Hayeel''s Salay realised she had understated the crowd who had arrived. ¡°You''re not taking the prince swimming in the harbour then, Duchess Hayeel?¡± Hal teased. ¡°There is no need, highness, since it is not a custom either of us grew up with. Also, the wind is getting rather bitter.¡± ¡°And of course, you''ve got that pool at the embassy, haven''t you?¡± Esme said. ¡°My prince,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Esme and Hal suggest that we should enact the custom of the Isles, and put ourselves at risk swimming around this busy port for their entertainment, or failing that around the pool at the embassy. Shall I tell them of the ice your back dreads and your lips look forward to?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°I trust you, my ambassador, to know what it is right or wrong to say in the circumstances. Did they swim the harbour?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Not as far as I know, but I shall ask,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Royal highnesses, did you swim any harbour for the amusement of others?¡± ¡°No, Hayeel, we didn''t,¡± Hal said, ¡°but we did swim the harbour of Captita for our own. We will cease our teasing.¡± ¡°Please be welcome to Caneth, prince Salay,¡± Esme said, pausing for Hayeel to translate. ¡°Our teasing was not meant to cause upset, though I understand that is hard with translation. We have much to discuss with you about the situation on Tesk, and my father would like to greet you. And I also present you with a choice. It is the custom here to invite royal visitors to stay at the palace. "You may choose to accept, and so ensure that there is no vile rumour about you and Duchess Hayeel, or you may decide that Duchess Hayeel has her sister for chaperone and in any case there will be other men staying in the embassy who are not the duchess''s relatives.¡± ¡°We have discussed Taheela''s effectiveness as a chaperone,¡± Salay said to Hayeel. ¡°Yes.¡± Turning to Esme she said, ¡°You are correct, highness, that there is great opportunity for scandal that I should have considered. I see three alternatives: I ask, say, budding reporter Karna to stay with me, I try to hire someone or we convince Salay that marriage before midnight is a sensible idea.¡± ¡°You''d have to convince me of that first. Karna has possibilities I suppose, but you could ask Isthana too.¡± ¡°I will discuss things with Salay,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Did you understand, my prince?¡± ¡°Who is this Karna?¡± ¡°She goes to the church I attend here, and is now a reporter. It is of course a form of protectionism to pick her because I know her, and her stay would probably allow her daily interviews or opportunities to learn our language, or similar professional advantage in exchange for her being chaperone. Isthana is Esmetherelda''s sister, who is in love with a musician who is not sure if he is in love with her.¡± ¡°That sounds messy.¡± ¡°Oh it is. His previous girlfriend broke off the relationship, admitting that she''d been faking her faith. Between Esme''s wedding and us going to Tesk she visited my church, got talking to me, of all people about the reality of God and has now genuinely turned to Christ. She had no idea he''d started spending his every evening with Isthana, and turned up on his doorstep saying ''I''m really a Christian now, and I still miss you. What do you think about getting back together?''¡± ¡°I''m very happy to say that''s not going to happen to either of us. The reporter sounds less likely to run away in tears saying it''s all your fault.¡± ¡°I don''t think Isthana would blame me. But yes, it might be really hard on her. And she''s a thought-hearer too.¡± ¡°You could ask other single female reporters, couldn''t you?¡± ¡°I could, yes.¡± ¡°And then we could spend long winter evenings talking matters of state.¡± ¡°Matters of state?¡± ¡°You know, when and where to marry, how many children we might have, things like that that affect the whole world or ought to,¡± Salay said. ¡°Esme, Salay likes the idea of asking Karna, and maybe other single women reporters if there are any.¡± ¡°You''d better send out some invitations then,¡± Esme said. ¡°Can you come and see father? He wakes early these days, and then has a nap from mid-morning.¡± ¡°Urm, OK. What about unloading fragile and valuable equipment, and the prince''s cargo?¡± ¡°How much is there?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Salay? Esmetherelda invites us to the palace now. How much of the cargo is yours and your men''s?¡± ¡°Don''t forget yours, Hayeel. Almost all of it.¡± ¡°Those carpets too?¡± Hayeel asked, noticing the familiar rolls covered in waxed-cloth in the hold. ¡°The ones from Repink. They seemed quite tradeable to me, plus you said the embassy had none, so I brought a complete mixture of sizes.¡± ¡°Esme, my prince has decided to enter the carpet trade. Almost the entire cargo needs to get to the embassy.¡± ¡°The porters will be busy, then.¡± Hal said. ¡°I don''t understand,¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°Local rules to keep people honest and busy,¡± Hal expanded. ¡°Cargo that you don''t take off a ship yourself is designated into the care of officially recognised porters until it''s delivered, that way if there are breakages or losses then you know who to blame. They charge a certain amount for pick up and set down, plus an amount per step. Or perhaps you ought to hire a warehouse for a few days?¡± ¡°You''d better negotiate with the guild,¡± Esme said. ¡°They do have some carts and wagons for longer journeys.¡± ¡°Go pay your respects to his majesty,¡± captain Davdo said. ¡°The men won''t mind having orders to play dice and keep your guards company for a few hours.¡± ¡°Thank you, captain. I''ll leave Saval here as interpreter. Oh, I''m stupid. Hayeel, let me introduce you to your honour-guard, two capable soldiers who remained below on duty guarding the radio and your grandmother''s travel chest.¡± ¡°My grandmother''s travel chest?¡± Hayeel asked, confused, following him. ¡°Yes. It was confiscated as well as the title, and so on, and seemed an appropriate thing to bring some of your loose change in. Father expects it''s been in your family for generations. Captain Takeel and lieutenant Malene of the empress''s guard, I introduce you to Duchess Hayeel.¡± ¡°Your grace,¡± Captain Takeel said. ¡°Captain, lieutenant, I had no idea that her imperial majesty shared her guard with anyone. And now I understand why my prince accused himself for a lapse of memory, and why he was trying to be careful to think of you only as soldiers.¡± ¡°We heard the prince make his exclamation, Duchess.¡± Takeel said. ¡°And do you find it such a challenge to believe I hear your thoughts when I am near, lieutenant Malene? If you wish to think of a sentence, a number or a poem, I can prove my gift. I do not hear every thought, unless there is bodily contact, but I do hear your self-talk, and decisions.¡± ¡°I apologise for any offence, Duchess.¡± ¡°There was none. My thought-hearing range is not very far, perhaps fifteen steps. Certainly a shout can reach further, and I have not had the title duchess for very long. I am far more used to answering to my given name, and as Salay says you are to guard me, I would be a fool to insist on the delay that calling me by title might cause. If it does not give you problems, please call me Hayeel. You will also find that formality is not expressed in the same way here, military ranks are normally used except in social contexts, but noble ranks are not after an initial introduction. The princess-regent understands you cannot leave your post, so comes to introduce herself. She also has the gift of Tesk and I have thought your names to her.¡± ¡°Was naming us necessary, Duchess Hayeel?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°Yes, Captain Takeel, I believe so. She is a friend, an ally, and is trustworthy. And in any case, she would hear your names from Salay''s thoughts even if you and I were able to avoid thinking them. My prince, your thoughts are not correct. It has been a stressful journey for these noble officers, and they are a longer way from home than even you. Ladies, you do not need to fear reprimand that you have chosen your profession from the princess-regent, only amazement that such a profession is possible.¡± ¡°But we do need to preserve our anonymity for the sake of our families'' honour,¡± Takeel said. ¡°Perhaps,¡± Hayeel agreed, ¡°Or perhaps your families and your cousins'' families should be publicly honoured for having a relative who serves with distinction in the imperial guard in an undercover role?¡± ¡°A dinner invitation to the heart of the empire, perhaps?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Please, highness,¡± Takeel said, ¡°do not make light of my parent''s shame.¡± ¡°I do not make light of their feeling shame, but I have questioned it. And I think that Hayeel''s suggestion has some merit.¡± ¡°My cousins do not know, Highness.¡± ¡°Do they know your grandmother also served?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Grandma served?¡± ¡°You follow in your father''s mother''s steps, Takeel. Didn''t you know?¡± ¡°No. I knew only that grandma was a friend of the empress-mother.¡± ¡°I remember her telling the new candidates, ''You''ve probably all been told ''Girls shouldn''t have to fight.'' Well that''s right most of the time, but if you do have to then don''t you think it''s worth knowing how to properly?''¡± ¡°She remained in service? Even into my lifetime?¡± ¡°She was immensely proud that you were applying, but fully retired when you did. She felt that it was better that way, for fear of showing favouritism.¡± ¡°I know that grandma said ''If she wants to be a soldier, there''s no shame in her joining the empress''s guard,'' but mother disagreed and father said ''there''s no shame on her, no. But what will her future in-laws and children think?''¡± ¡°They ought to be proud.¡± Hayeel said. Then in Windwardese, said ¡°Come in, Esme, you don''t need to hover outside.¡± ¡°It seemed rather an emotional discussion, and I didn''t want to interrupt.¡± ¡°Captain Takeel of the empress''s guard has just found out that her grandmother not only was part of it, but only fully retired to avoid accusations of favouritism.¡± ¡°I''ve heard of the empress''s guard from Hayeel, but never thought to meet any. My immediate thought is if you''d be willing to train an equivalent group here.¡± ¡°Would we have any recruits?¡± Malene asked. ¡°Probably. Not to mention a lot of inappropriate comments when you first venture onto the streets in your armour. There may be more than comments, of course, but that ought to tail off when you have broken some bones. "Use your discretion and try not to kill or permanently injure anyone, please, but you have diplomatic status.¡± When Hayeel had translated that, Takeel said. ¡°Can you explain please diplomatic status?¡± ¡°You will be considered embassy staff. If you do something that would be breaking a law here, including if you kill or injure someone, then the ambassador will be asked to explain, and depending on the circumstances she may be asked to keep you off the streets until you are sent home for bringing dishonour on your nation. You will not be tried here, except by your own authorities.¡± ¡°Thank you, highness,¡± Takeel said. Esme added ¡°I expect that if you walk to the palace dressed as you are then some drunk sailor or three will not recognise your armour and will decide your polished breast-plates are to excite male attention, and if a simple ''go away fool, I''m on duty'' does not work, I ask you try a throw to the ground, a knee to the groin or a fist to the stomach or even all three before you draw edged weapons or use those lovely morning-stars. If any soldiers decide to pick a fight with you ... they will be disobeying orders. As they potentially represent a bigger threat, you may use whatever method you choose to maintain your honour and that of the empire, including lethal force if needed.¡± ¡°Our armour is likely to cause trouble, then,¡± Takeel said. ¡°Any armour on a woman is going to be very unusual.¡± ¡°Not so different from home then,¡± Malene said. ¡°Lust and mockery from the men, shock and disgust from the women.¡± ¡°I expect it will be different. Prince Hal, now my husband, was very impressed that I could fight. I would not be surprised if you find yourselves being followed by young men who are not sure if they should be offering you an elegant knife or a bunch of flowers for the privilege of asking you to a dance or a meal so they can try to win your hearts. From the women, expect confusion about why you''d want to carry weapons or envy that you do.¡± ¡°If you wish to wear your helmets, you may,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°But the summer here is much hotter than the central zone in summer, even spring. And in any case you do not need to hide from relatives here, I expect. So, if you wish to pretend to be my ladies in waiting, that will certainly cause less controversy. As you know, there are styles of dresses that seem designed to conceal weapons, and there is hardly any recognition of social rank by clothing here. I expect that Salay will not object if you choose something that is practical even if it is above your station. I know that I will not.¡± ¡°The empress''s guard are anyway required to blend in when that is needed,¡± Salay said, ¡°and that has included wearing the styles of even countesses in the past.¡± ¡°I believe we''ve given you enough to think of for now.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I do not mind if you wish to consider it in tactical-strategic terms or personal preference. In any case, I''m pleased you have come.¡± ¡°We present you with problems, I know,¡± Takeel said, ¡°But I thank you, lady ambassador for sounding sincere.¡± ¡°Oh, I am sincere. I''ve failed to convince anyone ¡ª including myself, by the way ¡ª that it would be a good idea for us to marry before sun-down, and you being available means I don''t need to move out of my room in the embassy to avoid the scandal of being a lone woman with four or five single men just down the corridor. Except of course I thought the guards watching the radio were men, so it would have been six or seven.¡± ¡°What of your sister?¡± Malene asked. ¡°She lives in another part of the embassy with her patient husband, her toddler and her nursing baby who still thinks that daytime is for sleeping, looking around at things making sweet coo-coo sounds, and nighttime is for crying loudly until you''re fed twice as often as during the day. Which is to say, Taheela is somewhat more capable of being a chaperone than someone on the other side of the city, but not much.¡± ¡°Should you not translate for the princess-regent?¡± Salay asked. ¡°I''ve been doing so, thinking to her in Windwardese and speaking in Dahelese. But we should be going. The king is still not recovered, but likes to keep abreast of things.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 27: Challenge

Planet 5 / Ch. 27: Challenge

On the way to the palace ¡°Hayeel?¡± Salay eventually asked, after puzzling it over for a long time. ¡°What did you mean about them coming further than I had?¡± ¡°They are both from the central zone, I think. The heart of the empire is closer to here than most places in Dahel, my prince, but certainly there. Both here and in the heart there are no slaves, few servants, at least, there aren''t any who hang around just to open doors. Few rituals to establish who is of higher rank. That is also what was happening in my discussions just before that. They were bored, almost in a strange country, and guarding a couple of boxes, one which few would understand as being valuable and the other too heavy to move without several people. They weren''t feeling particularly valued. Neither of them was very impressed to overhear that my grandmother had lost her position. So Takeel openly questioned my judgement, and Malene decided she didn''t want to believe I could hear your thoughts. Now I have suggested that not only do I not mind if they wear armour or clothes, but that part of their normal motivation for the armour is questionable even at home, that here it is irrelevant, that there are reasons against armour as well as the ones for that they''re used to and the decision could be important to their duty. As we left, they were both deciding they don''t really know enough and were hoping the other would have some good suggestions, or they''re going to have to ask me. Were they in their armour the whole journey?¡± ¡°Always armed, not always armoured. Captain Davdo asked them about salt and rust and swimming long enough to get picked up if they got washed overboard. They just wore their robes after that.¡± ¡°And how much of the journey did they see?¡± ¡°You mean were they below deck all the time? No. They shared guarding the travel-chest with Gahel, who''s in the imperial guard and Bilay, who left the imperial guard with a knee injury to become my accountant-cum-secretary. He can''t run a long way but knows how to handle a sword.¡± ¡°Ah. And what is Gathal''s role?¡± ¡°Sort of roving secretary-cum-advisor.¡± ¡°Dogsbody,¡± Gathal added, ¡°fetching and carrying, reminding my prince to tie his shoe laces. Oh, also hunting for a wife so I can honourably ask my prince not to wake me up in the middle of the night when he decides he needs to work out if he can, say, visit Repink the next day.¡± ¡°I didn''t think you minded, Gathal.¡± Salay said. ¡°I don''t mind, my prince, I just keep track of all the tasks you have set me, and why. That was one of them.¡± ¡°And would you like to share your thoughts with my prince regarding my handling of Takeel and Marlene''s little crisis of confidence?¡± Gathal looked at her and said ¡°I don''t know that I dare.¡± ¡°Do you dare not to, my advisor?¡± ¡°My prince... Duchess Hayeel has pointed out that her family history has not been made known to them, and they have reacted in a very human way. I guess that I should have briefed them, but I didn''t know they weren''t briefed by her imperial majesty.¡± ¡°Do you know what they were told, my prince?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°I know that mother asked for two volunteers to come with me to become the first members of the next empress''s guard.¡± Salay replied. ¡°And were they given a chance to discuss this with their families?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°I don''t think they would have done so.¡± Salay said. ¡°To join the empress''s guard is normally a thing done without family approval. Particularly from the central zone.¡± ¡°Bilay, and then Gathal, can you tell me what the perception is of the empress''s guard is among the high-born of the central zone?¡± ¡°They are perceived as very strange women: never showing their faces, learning to fight, not marrying as far as people know, there are also horrible rumours of indecent acts and strange rituals.¡± Bilay said. ¡°A role for ugly women who would not dare go out in society without the helmets.¡± Gathal said. ¡°The reply to someone saying they''re not pretty is to say ''you''re not so ugly you need to join the empress''s guard.'' Or kids being really nasty say the opposite.¡± ¡°And would you say, Gathal, that lady Takeel and Malene fit that accusation?¡± ¡°Not at all, Duchess.¡± ¡°And have you just met them on this journey?¡± Hayeel asked him. ¡°I''ve had the pleasure of knowing Takeel for several years, Duchess, Malene somewhat less. Oh. I see what you''re getting at. I didn''t ask them. Do I take it that they heard me claiming to have asked all the girls I knew?¡± ¡°I do not like to divulge everything that I hear, Gathal. But you should perhaps qualify your criteria about who you asked in their hearing.¡± ¡°That would be embarrassing, Duchess.¡± ¡°Would you prefer me to speak to them?¡± ¡°In... very general terms?¡± Gathal asked. ¡°Perhaps you should just admit to Salay that you decided to only ask those you knew would refuse you?¡± ¡°You are right of course, Duchess. Except for the first one.¡± ¡°Truly, Gathal? What changed your mind?¡± ¡°That is what Gathal does not want known, Salay,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Bilay, to your knowledge are all the Empress''s guard followers of Christ?¡± ¡°I think they probably are. It never occurred to me.¡± ¡°It''s not a strict requirement,¡± Salay said, ¡°but almost all are, and it was a requirement for volunteers on this trip.¡± ¡°That''s nice.¡± Hayeel said, glancing at Gathal, ¡°Perhaps we should all have studies together at the embassy?¡±
Embassy of Dahel ¡°Fifty carpets?¡± Taheela exclaimed, as the last one was unloaded from the carts. ¡°What are we supposed to do with so many?¡± ¡°Work out what fits, and sell the rest,¡± Salay replied. ¡°But I suppose I could give one to Esmetherelda and Hal as a wedding present. You can blame Hayeel if you like, she failed to tell me how big any of the rooms were.¡± ¡°For a very good reason,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Captain Davdo was planning on his own cargo. Taheela, I don''t know if you heard, but this is grandma''s travelling chest. Makes my little pile of coins look rather insignificant, doesn''t it?¡± ¡°Depends what''s in it.¡± ¡°I''ve no idea. No, that''s not true. My prince says his imperial majesty had it filled with a small fraction of what you''d have inherited if only you''d been born first.¡± ¡°In which case I''d be you, and would have been packed off here with Dad''s killer and able to hear thoughts? No thanks, sister. Who has the key?¡± ¡°Takeel, and Malene, I''ll insist that prince Salay gives you a full briefing on my family background and life sometime, that way I can check on his memory and correct him,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°My suitor, would you like to tell us all about the key?¡± ¡°Urm, yes. I put it somewhere safe.¡± Salay said. ¡°You lost it?¡± Taheela accused, forgetting decorum. ¡°No. I put it somewhere very safe. To be precise, I put it in my own money-bag. Bilay can tell us about what happened after that, because I''ve just checked and it''s not there now.¡± ¡°Ah, which money bag, highness?¡± Bilay asked. ¡°As far as I know, I only have one.¡± ¡°No, highness, you have several. For accounting purposes I rotate them, I thought you knew.¡± ¡°Come to think of it, I did know that once.¡± ¡°But I haven''t found a key.¡± ¡°Yes, you asked me about it. I said it was Duchess Hayeel''s and needed to stay with us.¡± ¡°Oh, that key.¡± Bilay said, turning red. ¡°Light dawns.¡± Hayeel whispered to Taheela in Windwardese. ¡°It''s good for drawing out the suspense, isn''t it. Taheela you might need to fetch your sewing kit.¡± ¡°You''re joking. In front of everyone?¡± Taheela whispered back. ¡°It went into the radio spares box, highness.¡± ¡°Not the one that was absolutely coming with us before Naneela sent it to Tesk by mistake?¡± Salay said. ¡°That one, highness.¡± ¡°Well, that''s a topic for discussion with the technicians on Tesk,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°How big was the key?¡± ¡°About the same size as this one,¡± Bilay said, lifting one from his pocket. ¡°What key''s that?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Your chest, highness,¡± Bilay replied. ¡°No, mine looks a bit like like a tree. That looks different.¡± ¡°May I try that key in the chest?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°If it works,¡± Salay asked, ¡°does that mean my chest-key went to Tesk?¡± ¡°It can''t have done, highness. I opened your chest after the ship left.¡± ¡°I wonder which key went to Tesk then,¡± Hayeel said, undoing the catch on the chest. ¡°This key certainly works here.¡± ¡°I''m confused,¡± Salay said. ¡°But I think it would be best if we allowed Duchess Hayeel to open her chest in private.¡± ¡°No,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I insist on my prince, Taheela, Takeel and Malene being here.¡± ¡°I do not understand, Duchess,¡± Malene said. ¡°I know. You think me foolish. One day you will understand, and Takeel does already.¡± ¡°You satisfy our curiosity,¡± Takeel said, ¡°and demonstrate that you trust us.¡± ¡°That''s not all, but it''s enough for now.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Exactly, my prince.¡± she added when Salay thought that Hayeel was showing that she valued them more than the money. And there was money. Neatly arranged in rolls straight from the imperial mint. But there was not just money. There were also jewels and jewellery. ¡°Your coronet, Duchess.¡± Salay said. ¡°And the simpler one is Taheela''s.¡± ¡°Simpler¡± Taheela asked, looking at the gems on her coronet. ¡°Do I dare ask how much it''s worth?¡± ¡°It would be repudiating your birth-right if you were to sell it,¡± Salay said, ¡°So, more than this chest contains every year. Repink is a productive duchy. The duke or duchess is expected to invest at least a third of her income in improvements, however. The crown has been carrying out that task on the duchy''s behalf.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Since the institutions of the crown unjustly deprived our grandmother of her childhood, her life and her liberty, and also our parents''.¡± Takeel winced audibly at such harsh words to the prince. ¡°I have a letter for you from my imperial father, Hayeel, that addresses the questions you asked in your fifth letter. And he honours you for asking them, as do I. Takeel, Malene, Duchess Hayeel''s words are just and honourable. Except of course had things been different, it is unlikely that your parents would have met, nor the prophecy be fulfilled in you, Hayeel.¡± ¡°I know, my prince. I know and I understand, and I want to hear the whole prophecy and be sure it can only be me. Rena of Tesk has no relatives who were slaves, but...¡± ¡°You are the only person on the planet who matches, Hayeel.¡± Salay said, catching her hands, and thinking the prophecy to her. ¡°Thank you, Salay,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°You''ve just removed a weight from my soul I''d forgotten was there. Taheela, I''m sure that mummy would not agree with me inheriting everything and you nothing, and you have your position of lady fifth rank to think of.¡± ¡°Don''t you dare,¡± Taheela said. ¡°It''s bad enough that you''re going to lumber be with all that nobility stuff when the our beloved emperor dies or abdicates. I''m not well suited for doing anything but causing a scandal and cooking.¡± ¡°Don''t sell yourself short, Taheela. You''re also excellent at explaining the gospel, bargaining and making people love you. And you''re good at managing money. So, this is for your son, this is for your daughter, and this is for you to get that dress made that you keep thinking about.¡± She handed over three of the smallest rolls of coins. ¡°You''re joking,¡± Taheela said. ¡°I don''t recommend you wear it anywhere but your bedroom, of course.¡± ¡°It''d be a total waste of money.¡± ¡°So, tone it down until you can wear it in public,¡± Hayeel suggested. ¡°No, I meant I''m not exactly back to my normal size or shape yet,¡± Taheela corrected, but having the grace to blush. ¡°OK, but you''re coming to my wedding, and you''re wearing your coronet. You need at least one fifth-rank dress, unless you want to wear something like the court fashions here.¡± ¡°You''re determined to get me to accept this, aren''t you?¡± ¡°You have, discussion over,¡± Hayeel said, taking out another roll before shutting the lid. Then she turned her attention to Takeel and Malene, she said ¡°Ladies, as we''ve discussed on the way here, the clothes you have will not let you blend in. I''m told the winter does get below freezing here, at least sometimes, but even now the wind can be bitter, as you''ve noticed. I do not expect you to buy your work clothes out of your pay, and until we''ve found some buyers for Salay''s carpets he''s not got as much money as I do. Clothes here are made to measure except for certain trades you''re not in. Taheela can interpret for you if I''m too busy. Don''t take Saval, unless he''s going to be totally blindfolded. And even then... No, thinking about it, just don''t take Saval. You''ll need several changes of clothes, of course.¡± Handing over two Canethese coins each, she added ¡°These are two-hundred crown coins, each worth a month''s wages for a menial worker, that''s to say if you eat as cheaply as you can, you can eat for about two crowns a day, and a cheap rent for a family house is another two crowns. I was asked if I wanted a neighbour''s son to cut the grass for me, being the spoilt son of a wealthy family, rather than a hard-working adult with a family to support, he wanted a two hundred crown piece per month for a few hours work each week. You''ll probably need a hundred crowns per dress. The price you see on the fabric at a dress shop will be more than at a market, but would include measuring you and making it into a what they consider a standard dress here. Let Taheela haggle for you, it''s expected, but I''d haggle on things like extra stitching on seams, pockets, things like that, rather than price.¡± ¡°And if we prefer to sew them ourselves?¡± Malene asked. ¡°Then certainly go to the cloth market. We have needles and thread and the like.¡± ¡°I mean, there would be no shame, no dishonour?¡± Malene asked. ¡°There would be acceptance if you said the style was so different that you didn''t think you could explain it to a dressmaker here. And there would be honour if your stitches were even, symmetry is preserved and the result appeals to the eye.¡± ¡°Unlike the shapeless sacks that Hayeel wears when she goes out.¡± Taheela said. ¡°Hayeel''s clothes are entirely correct for a public official,¡± Takeel said. ¡°Yes, but are they entirely correct for a duchess of the empire and future empress who doesn''t want her wedding night to end in disaster when her prince is so stunned about the curvy bits God gave her that in his rapt study of them he entirely forgets to breathe?¡± Taheela asked. ¡°The tendency to poetic expression is a family trait, you notice, Salay.¡± ¡°I also notice you''re calling me by name,¡± he smiled. ¡°You thinking the whole prophecy to me was reassuring,¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°And now that the chest has been opened, and the carpets delivered, shall we continue with the tour of the embassy? Or would you like to see your rooms and unpack a little first?¡± ¡°Are there important things on the agenda for the day?¡± ¡°Very, my prince. You must unpack, you must hand me the letters you''ve written to me, and I must hand you the ones I''ve written to you. And if sometime I am to obey your father in spirit if not in word, then perhaps we should both change into less formal clothes, since I don''t think I could possibly get any ice or water down your collar, and I don''t think I could undertake such an adventure dressed as an imperial servant either. It wouldn''t feel right.¡± This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°You could just just push him into the pool, Hayeel.¡± Taheela chipped in. ¡°I have no desire to be nasty to my prince, Taheela. I''m at least going to wait until the water''s warm enough for a couple of lengths.¡± ¡°My advisor, does it sound to you that I should just stay away from the pool?¡± Salay asked Gathal. ¡°I think, highness, that I ought to stay well away from giving advice on that topic.¡± ¡°Why did you ask girls to marry you if you wanted refusals?¡± ¡°I promised you that I would ask, highness. And it became a challenge, how unattractive could I make a proposal without it being taken as an insult.¡± ¡°I don''t understand,¡± Takeel said. ¡°You were asking for the sake of refusals?¡± ¡°I realised I wasn''t as opposed to going as I''d thought, lady Takeel, but I''d promised I''d ask everyone.¡± ¡°I noticed you didn''t ask me,¡± Takeel said. ¡°True, nor did I ask Malene, but I''d heard you were both coming. I don''t think my prince would have accepted marriage to either of you as an excuse to stay in Dahel. Quite the opposite in fact.¡± ¡°And there we were thinking it was just that you had no intention of asking anyone in the empress''s guard to marry you,¡± Malene said. ¡°Asking anyone in the empress''s guard would have been counter-productive Ladies Malene and Takeel. I''m not entirely indecisive.¡± ¡°Just slightly,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°If he had asked you, Takeel, what would you have said?¡± ¡°I''d have said no one joins the empress''s guard because they are hoping for a husband.¡± ¡°But your grandmother joined, and later married,¡± Hayeel probed. ¡°So his imperial highness says,¡± Takeel said. ¡°I didn''t know that.¡± ¡°You don''t talk about your families, do you?¡± Salay said. ¡°Everyone assumes it''s too painful.¡± ¡°It is too painful,¡± Takeel said. Malene added ¡°Recruits are told, ''Even if everyone is happy within your family that you are here, don''t speak about it. Because some of us are not here with our family''s approval. Some of us are here even without our family''s knowledge. You do an important task, but not everyone is happy we do it.'' And so we don''t talk.¡± ¡°I feel it is important as future empress that I understand your pain, Takeel. It does not need to be now, but sometime, please, explain it to me. If you wish to know the things that have caused me pain first, I will tell you. I just don''t want to bore everyone who knows, nor to claim that my past pain is greater than your present pain, or that that would in any way invalidate what you feel. What I want to tell you is that you are valued, that your pain is real, and pretending it does not matter is not a thing that helps you grow, any more than clinging on to it as though it will always be the most important thing in your life will.¡± ¡°I''ve heard that speech before, duchess.¡± ¡°Do not ignore me, lady Takeel. I said I feel it important, I will not go away and give up.¡± ¡°Then name the hardest thing you''ve ever chosen to do, duchess.¡± Takeel challenged. ¡°The hardest? I don''t know. There are two that spring to mind. The first was that I said nothing when my mother was taken to the slave pens and whispered ''this stays'' to me about her heart medicine which I knew she needed daily. If I had spoken, maybe she would still be alive, but surely she would have been raped and beaten after living all her life with first the kindly master into whose service she was born and then with my foreign father who adored her and spent two decades trying to get her her freedom before he was killed by a corrupt official for asking for reasonable mercy. The second was when the ambassador to the court of Caneth, my husband-in-name but not in fact, who I had just led to Christ as he was dying in much the same way my father did, told me that he was that corrupt official, responsible for the destruction of my father, my mother, my life. And he begged me to forgive him. And I felt that I had to or I would be denying Christ. But I did forgive him. There is a third thing, which I played a part. A woman of Tesk was here in Caneth, and she bore the marks of a priestess of dum-semb, the hideous religion of the doom-guard. Before her daughter I denounced her and revealed her crime, and her daughter, barely sixteen, demanded that her own mother face justice on Tesk, knowing that the death penalty applied unless her mother repented before the trial began. God was merciful and she did repent, eventually, but I cannot imagine that daughter''s pain in the thirty-six hours before then.¡± Takeel said ¡°My parents, without my knowledge, had arranged that I marry someone. It really doesn''t really matter who. They thought it a good match, and it probably was, we got on well together anyway. We weren''t neighbours, but met quite often. I thought he was just a friend. I had always enjoyed outside activities, so had he. He joined the imperial army, I started looking at the empress''s guard. I knew it wasn''t the same, I knew it wasn''t especially popular, but it seemed to fit me. This was four years ago, he was twenty, I was eighteen. My mother heard, and rather than face the shame of telling him I was interested in the guard, which she thinks makes me a man-hater, she told him that I''d rejected the arranged marriage, and that I never wanted to see him again. He took her at her word, and got himself reassigned to border patrol. There was a late storm in the mountains and he never got there. His family blamed me, my mother blamed me, and I ran away. I joined the guard out of feeling responsible for his death, so I wouldn''t have deprived them of him for nothing but curiosity. I ran away from home, that night when I had an enormous argument with mum. Now, she won''t talk to me, won''t have me in the house. That''s what it''s been like the last four years. Last time I was home, in the garden, talking to my sister, she called her away, and accused me of trying to recruit her. I miss my family so much, but every time I try to get close it hurts more. So, here I am, running away again. They don''t even know that I''m here. I was going to ask my sister what she thought of me coming, but all I did was listen to her dreams for the future and tell her I really miss her and mum and Dad.¡± ¡°I hope you will forgive me, lady Takeel.¡± Gathal said. ¡°What for?¡± ¡°For suggesting to Nulay that he might spend a season in the border patrol and see if you''d maybe changed your mind when he got back. I assume it was Nulay?¡± ¡°It was.¡± ¡°He asked me what to do; should he try to talk to you, to hear from you what he had done wrong, whether your mother had been mistaken. That''s when I made the suggestion. The responsibility for his trip does not lie with you at all, but with me, and your mother for her lies which upset him, of course.¡± ¡°You knew Nulay?¡± ¡°We were cousins. But I don''t suppose he ever mentioned me.¡± ¡°You''re not ''my cousin with the wrong name''?¡± ¡°Ah. He did, mention me.¡± ¡°You were the one with the jar of bees,¡± Takeel accused. ¡°Guilty, the poor things. Were you the girl who out-shot him so he spent the next month practising, and then broke his arm when he fell out of the tree trying to replace his target?¡± ¡°Yes. I''d forgotten that! That was even longer ago, wasn''t it?¡± ¡°A bit. We have a lot of stories we could swap if you like? If that''s not painful?¡± Takeel looked at him for a while and then said, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Yes it''s too painful, or to swapping stories?¡± ¡°Yes, we can swap stories.¡± ¡°And may I tell mother what you have shared of your mother''s lies ¡ª that you never rejected Nulay?¡± ¡°Your mother is Nulay''s mother''s sister? Countess of Tenik?¡± ¡°Of the duchy of Repink, yes.¡± ¡°Good friend of my parents'' countess. I don''t want to cause trouble for my parents.¡± ¡°I''m not thinking of trouble for your parents, but repairing your reputation.¡± ¡°Please do think of avoiding trouble for my parents, Gathal.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°You don''t think that when Gathal tells his mother about you over the radio and asks you speak to her also, and his mother draws some conclusions of her own, that sort of speculation and rumour reaching your family might not correct some of your mother''s mistaken assumptions?¡± Takeel looked confused, ¡°what conclusions?¡± ¡°I think countess Hayeel thinks mother might guess that I''m not as indecisive as I used to be, lady Takeel.¡± ¡°I suppose that''s what mothers hope for, isn''t it?¡± Takeel said, blushing prettily. ¡°What does she think about the guard?¡± ¡°Mother has heard quite a lot about the guard, and met a number of members on various occasions. And even attended some of their weddings, I believe.¡± ¡°Hayeel,¡± Salay said. ¡°Would now be a good time to give us that tour?¡±
Lunch time, Embassy of Dahel During a lull in the conversation in the middle of the meal, Gathal said ¡°Urm, Takeel and I would like to say that, urm, we''re talking.¡± ¡°Thinking we might even hold hands under the table too,¡± Takeel said, with a grin. ¡°Well that''s a relief,¡± Malene said. ¡°No offence meant, Gathal you''re a nice enough person, but I never liked the idea of pairing up with anyone else''s reject.¡± That rather excludes Gahel too,¡± Gathal said, ¡°So you''re really cutting down your options, Malene.¡± ¡°I don''t want options, I just want to confirm some things.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± Takeel teased, ¡°Now I understand why you decided to come!¡± ¡°I trust in your total discretion, countess,¡± Malene said, blushing and carefully watching her plate. ¡°Of course, Malene. But two men in this room now hopefully wonder if that blush means you''re interested in them, and are racking their memories to see if you''ve dropped any hints of interest they might have missed. So if you want to keep them guessing then you''re probably eating every meal sat at an equal distance between them, etcetera.¡± ¡°I shouldn''t have said anything should I?¡± Malene groaned. ¡°Calm down, pretend I didn''t say anything, let me have at least a few weeks of getting settled in here before you start bombarding me with flowers, or local dainties.¡± ¡°Or elegant knives, as Esmetherelda suggested?¡± Bilay asked. ¡°No gifts, OK? I won''t be swayed by them, and it''ll just make me feel bad for getting someone''s hopes up. For the record the main reason I wanted to come was very similar to the main reason I joined the guard, it sounded like a great big challenging adventure.¡± ¡°So you enjoy learning languages, then?¡± Saval asked. ¡°Careful, Saval.¡± Bilay said. ¡°If you go offering extra lessons I''ll have to sit in on them and riposte with fencing practice.¡± ¡°Everyone will have to sit in on them,¡± Salay said. ¡°No, it''s very simple,¡± Hayeel teased. ¡°The optimistic young men will simply have to start to work on their poetry. What kind of girl doesn''t like a nice romantic poem?¡± ¡°The sort that joins the empress''s guard, of course. What sort of mind-reader are you?¡± ¡°The sort who tries to gives people the opportunity to say things they like or don''t like, saving in this case a great deal wasted time and paper. But trying not to force you into saying anything.¡± ¡°What''s that got to do with not sitting in on extra language lessons.¡± Switching to Windwardese Hayeel said, ¡°The best language lesson is the one that does not have a beginning or an end.¡± ¡°You mean,¡± Saval said, ¡°that we should speak in Windwardese as much as possible?¡± ¡°Yes. You want to become fluent, don''t you? Then practice, practice, practice.¡± Switching back to Dahelese she added, ¡°And make sure you understand. If you do not understand, then ask what ''fluent'' means, Bilay. It means able to understand and speak easily, without mistakes.¡± ¡°That''ll take years,¡± Malene objected. ¡°I have not heard how long the future ambassador will be here, nor how big a staff he or she will have, nor what Salay''s plans are, nor how the radio will change things. But in any case, I have found being ambassador an amazing adventure. And it will become a bigger adventure yet when the aliens are called. I hope Salay is not planning that we will retire safely to the heart of the Empire and ignore what is happening, or even worse, send me back there to pine away without him while he stays. Well that''s reassuring anyway.¡± ¡°You would be an excellent spy, Hayeel.¡± Salay said. ¡°Yes. There are forty-six of us with the gift now, so I''m no longer tempted to play politics on Tesk, but any of us would make good spies. Which reminds me, my prince: news on Tesk: as far as I''ve heard there are still people keeping away from windows in the academy administration building, and there have been two acolytes of dum-semb in the staff of the pastor''s training school, influential people who quietly encouraged and supported the most vocal in advocating against traditional sermons. They fed the crabs.¡± ¡°That''s a euphemism?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°Not very. They are killed, strangled, and their bodies thrown from the cliffs. near the bottom, there are long sharp claws, knives that break the bodies, making it easier for the crabs to feed, and to make sure that no-one can survive by pretending death. The law of Tesk does not allow a proper burial for those who follow dum-semb.¡± Takeel looked pale. ¡°Can you tell us of dum-semb? How did you learn about it?¡± ¡°Perhaps now is the time to share more of my history. Salay knows all, others less.¡± ¡°I will tell it, if I may, Hayeel.¡± Salay said, ¡°As you said earlier, you can see if I paid attention.¡± And he did. And he told it well, too. As he got to her encounter with the dum-semb and the priestly marks, he asked Hayeel to take over, and then he continued, including the history with her meeting Esmetherelda and Hal, and other events that she''d only just read to him. She realised that he had a remarkable memory for details. ¡°I find myself most impressed by your memory, Salay.¡± ¡°I find that everything about you makes a massive impression on me. So don''t be too impressed. It doesn''t work that well on other subjects. But back to dum-semb, I have a question that has been nagging at me.¡± ¡°Imperial highness,¡± Takeel said, ¡°I would like to see that pattern of dots, my mother it seems... I can''t say it.¡± ¡°There are other patterns,¡± Salay said, ¡°Other related groups that sprung from the same root. Most do not involve human sacrifice. Dum-semb is the most organised, the most vicious.¡± ¡°But for a baroness of the central zone to wear any such marks...¡± Takeel said. ¡°Is not normal, no. And in part it answers my question¡± Salay said, ¡°The gospel-resistant, change-resistant elite known as the central zone would be a perfect breeding ground for dum-semb or dum-semb-like teaching, wouldn''t it?¡± ¡°Or the corruption-riddled bureaucracy that cries social change at your imperial father''s moves to resolve historic miscarriages of justice,¡± Bilay said, ¡°or, indeed, the military command that sends troops through mountains in early spring with only summer tents.¡± ¡°You speak of Nulay''s expedition?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°And others like it, beforehand.¡± Bilay said, ¡°Late storms are not so rare, normally it is not bright young officers that are killed, but men being sent there for punishment, so the military bureaucracy didn''t care enough to change the standing orders or training system.¡± ¡°The military bureaucracy killed Nulay?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°The combination of weather, incorrect equipment and insufficient training killed him,¡± Salay corrected, ¡°Had they known how to make themselves a shelter using the summer tent in a snow-drift, they would have been OK. They didn''t, instead it seems they tried putting up the tents, which were found abandoned, ripped by the wind, and then they pressed on. It seems they didn''t even know they could have used the ripped tent fabric as extra capes to keep them a bit warmer. The mountain-training they should have had would have told them these things, but the trainer was a known drunkard who signed anything presented to him, whose assistant normally covered for him. The assistant was ill that day. These things are known. What happened, is not known. It is guessed that they found the trainer half-drunk, he signed their training passes and went back to his bottle, or perhaps he fell asleep in the middle of the lesson. The people directly involved: the trainer, the head of the training centre who knew of the trainer''s habit but did not discipline him because he was a cousin, and so on have all been punished. But it shows the problem: procedures are not carried out properly, people know of problems, but don''t care. And the bureaucrats feather their own nests and cry social change if father tries to intervene.¡± ¡°My prince,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°I apologise, I did not know. I will not resist returning to the empire.¡± ¡°There are more than ten thousand bureaucrats in the empire Hayeel.¡± ¡°So at twenty a week it will take ten years. But I expect I can interview more than twenty a week, even with breaks and children. And we can ask for help from the High Council. There are a couple of girls who have studied Dahelese and Tunganese.¡± ¡°Tunganese? Who still speaks that?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°Spoken like a true resident of the central zone, lady Takeel!¡± Salay said, ¡°Sorry, but there are lots of people who do, both in the Tunga protectorate and in the outer kingdoms. I also had some lessons.¡± ¡°We could probably recruit at least quarter of the girls on that course if we negotiated some kind of one-year cultural immersion cum-work experience in a new anti-corruption unit, via a trip to the Isles if necessary.. Maybe a division of the empress''s guard, as it''s going to be all women?¡± ¡°You''re amazing,¡± Salay exclaimed. ¡°Captain Takeel, what do you think about that change?¡± ¡°Yet another thing for people to hate the guard for?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°Do you think so? Do people hate the empire so much?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Hate the empire?¡± Takeel was taken aback. ¡°I knew there was some corruption, but the level of systematic corruption I''m hearing of today for the first time must weaken the empire, and breed resentment. Revolution is not unheard of, nor at all impossible where corruption is common. Look at the history of Tesk. The twin guardians against corruption ¡ª the nobility and the high council ¡ª became slack, paralysed by the scale of the problem. People thought it was normal, and prosecutions were unpopular. And then the high council and the nobility were removed, the first by lies, the other by crowds screaming the slogans of the doom-guard. History was forgotten, and look what happened there.¡± ¡°Do not say it could never happen in the empire,¡± Salay said. ¡°It almost did, before the empress from Tesk came. Dum-semb priests were in key positions, the assistant to the grand-vizier, and the war minister, for instance. She came to stop a dum-semb-inspired war, and uncovered an even deeper plan. The war plan involved almost the whole army marching to Tew, and then on to Caneth. Meanwhile at home, the carefully picked remnant of the army ¡ª dum-semb members all ¡ª would mount an attack on the emperor. That is when the empress''s guard was formed, loyal to the empress beyond even their families, because for some their family members were followers of dum-semb. This piece of history, showing the weakness of the empire, is still an official secret, do not pass it on.¡± ¡°If dum-semb is again common in the empire, or other groups that practice human sacrifice, the aliens will not come, will they?¡± Saval said. ¡°And the sun will destroy,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°But it is too dangerous to rush back to the empire now, Salay. Can we pray for our friend, prince and future emperor, good servants of the empire? He needs wisdom, understanding and knowledge, not just this scary speculation.¡± ¡°And then show me the marks that say dum-semb, please, duchess Hayeel. I want to know if it is the guard my mother hates, or the empire with Godly emperors on the throne.¡± ¡°And we''d better finish setting up the radio,¡± Bilay said.
Early Evening, Garden of the Embassy of Dahel, Caneth ¡°You know who Malene is interested in,¡± Salay said. ¡°Of course,¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°And what you said about both Bilay and Saval finding that news optimistic was true?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I don''t want to abuse your ability, Hayeel, but assuming Hal is happy with the idea of being catalyst again, I don''t want to take everyone with us to Tesk. But Malene and Takeel ought to come. Bilay''s stomach is still an issue, but I''d normally take him and Gathal, and leave Saval and Gahel to sell carpets, but if that means interfering in nascent love...¡± ¡°Irrespective of nascent love, wouldn''t it be better to just start things using the radio, Salay? We don''t know if the last hold-outs in the siege of the administration building have finally been flushed out yet, and it''ll be a while before lectures re-start. Every one of you is travel-weary. And the route from here to Tesk is open far longer than the one to Captita or Dahel.¡± ¡°I expect you are right. So it is Bilay?¡± ¡°I will not comment on Malene''s thoughts, but my main reason for not wanting to run off to Tesk is I want you here, Salay.¡± ¡°You have plans?¡± ¡°I have a great many plans. Including introducing you at church, feeding you local delicacies and removing obstacles to kisses.¡± ¡°Oh yes?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Should I be concerned that you say such a thing quite near to the pool?¡± ¡°I don''t if you''ve noticed, Salay, but I''m still not secure enough to feel comfortable with the idea of pushing you into the pool or putting ice down your back. But I do like holding your hand.¡± ¡°Is there anything I can do to help you feel more comfortable with such ideas?¡± ¡°Yes. Relax a little, and don''t put me on a pedestal. I''m not perfect, as Taheela will tell you.¡± ¡°You seem pretty perfect to me.¡± ¡°That''s because you can''t hear my insecure thoughts. I still struggle with the thought that my late husband-in-name must have found me at least a bit repulsive to resist me so long.¡± ¡°You''re anything but repulsive, Hayeel.¡± ¡°But you''ve only seen my face and what this modest dress or ''shapeless sack'' as Taheela calls it lets you see. So I''m tempted to step out of this dress and go for a swim, flaunting myself in front of you to make sure you like the way I look. Is that holy? Other than being my sister''s advice, what''s good about it? Isn''t it as bad as the noble daughters at the ball you wrote to me about?¡± ¡°Your sister advised you to swim in your underwear?¡± ¡°I did have my swimming outfit on under this, I''m not that immodest. But it''s not God-honouring behaviour, is it?¡± ¡°It wouldn''t be God-honouring behaviour to swim for the purpose of showing off our flesh, no. But would it be God-honouring behaviour if we avoided staring at each other and simply had a swim? It has been warmer than I thought it would be, and there won''t be many days like this I expect, if they''re talking about freezing weather in a month.¡± ¡°I hear your thoughts, Salay. You know it''s wrong, but hope for glimpses.¡± ¡°I do. I never imagined having this conversation with you, and you''ve certainly fuelled my curiosity, even more than normal, I mean. So what should we do? It would be a good evening to swim, wouldn''t it?¡± ¡°If you enter the water first, and then turn away. I could then enter without you seeing too much of me, and then we reverse the procedure on getting out. Would that frustrate your God-given and sin-amplified desires enough to be honouring our creator? Or should we swim separately?¡± ¡°Don''t ask me, Hayeel. I''m biased, curious.¡± ¡°See? I''m not perfect. If I was perfect I wouldn''t have awakened this in you. I''m sorry.¡± ¡°Do you really think you''re repulsive?¡± ¡°Think it? Not really. Feel it? Fear it? Yes.¡± ¡°Are you talking about your shape or your skin tone?¡± ¡°I know I''m not as dark-green as some, nor as pale as others. I''m not variegated, if that''s what you mean.¡± ¡°I like your colour.¡± ¡°I''d noticed that.¡± ¡°And I like your face and I''ve seen that picture of your hair, which I like the thought of touching.¡± ¡°I''d noticed that too. I don''t think you get to play with my hair before we''ve kissed.¡± ¡°Probably not. Hugs too, I assume.¡± ¡°You''d like to hug me?¡± Hayeel asked, in a strange voice. ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Not of course. He didn''t touch me, Salay. Not my hair, not my face, just held my hand to steady me when the going was rough.¡± ¡°Duchess Hayeel of Repink, will you do me the honour of joining me in a dance?¡± ¡°I don''t hear any music, my prince. Nor do I know any pair-dances.¡± ¡°Finally something I must teach you!¡± Salay said happily, turning to face her. ¡°Left hand to shoulder, right to waist.¡± ¡°Now?¡± ¡°We have flat ground, the evening is only warm not hot, and if we trip into the pool then so be it.¡± ¡°If we trip into the pool, Salay, then we''ll need to fix the fence.¡± ¡°We could go beside the stream, I suppose.¡± ¡°Oh! That reminds me!¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I proved where the stream goes.¡± ¡°I don''t think I knew it went anywhere. Other than down I mean.¡± ¡°Then let me show you,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°If we dance to the stream, I''ll let you show me.¡± ¡°I want to take you to my favourite spot on the stream first.¡±
Planet 5 / Ch. 28: Splash

Planet 5 / Ch. 28: Splash

Beside the stream ¡°Pretty, isn''t it?¡± Hayeel said, showing him the pool that marked the start of the stream. ¡°Yes. A gem of sparkling liquid in the midst of deep green, quite like your eyes. Worth gazing at.¡± ¡°You''re becoming biased.¡± Hayeel said with a smile. ¡°Yours are nicer. This is the rock I like to sit on, it makes a sort of very low backed chair, see? So close to the water but I''ve never been splashed. Sometimes there are all sorts of insects and birds coming here too, if you don''t move much.¡± ¡°And there''s room for me too?¡± ¡°As long as you put your arm round me and sit close.¡± ¡°There''s more water than I expected,¡± Salay said, sitting on the edge of the stone, and trying not to sit too close to Hayeel. Stretching his legs out after he''d lowered himself onto the low rock was a bit of a problem, but he found it worked to put one foot beside Hayeel''s and the other higher on the bank. ¡°Why is there a stream here anyway?¡± ¡°The same reason that the vegetation grows so well. No rain at all today makes it a rare day. Plus there''s some funny rock layers. This seems to be the only stream draining the entire hillside, and as you see, it comes up here already big enough to feed the house. That''s what those pipes are for, and then, near the gate, it vanishes.¡± ¡°Goes under the gate you mean.¡± ¡°You''d think so, wouldn''t you? One of the neighbours told me differently. Apparently the only other stream on this hill is far smaller than this, and according to the neighbour, the previous owner had the idea that this one doubles back underground and comes out as a waterfall near the river. He built a little dam to see if he was right.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And curious, I closed the sluice to test it and he was right. It''s closed now, so if we peer over the cliff I''ll show you no waterfall now, and waterfall tomorrow.¡± ¡°That''s why we''re up here, not down in in the pool?¡± ¡°That and so I can show you this spot. I wrote you quite a few pages here.¡± ¡°And we''ve got to get up to the cliff-edge? Let''s learn another dance then.¡± ¡°You just like holding my waist.¡± ¡°Do you object?¡± Salay asked. He would have withdrawn his hand, but Hayeel caught it an put it back. ¡°It is a pleasant experience. As is having you near at all.¡± ¡°It''s very pleasant being near you, Hayeel. Are you sure what I feel isn''t love?¡± ¡°Love, I have heard, is not an emotion at all, but a series of decisions putting the other''s best interests first, no matter the cost.¡± ¡°Very philosophical.¡± ¡°I heard it in Tesk, need I say more? The claim was then made that what''s happening to you is no more that than just rearranging the priorities in your life to fit me into them and thoroughly enjoying the experience because you expect it to end up with marriage and intimacy and producing heirs. I''ll happily tell them that they''re wrong. Being the philosophy department they didn''t ask for any input from thought-hearers.¡± ¡°Do I dare ask for your analysis?¡± ¡°You''re falling in love, you enjoy falling in love, falling in love feels nice, and fills you with pleasurable hopes, holding my waist feels nice, me touching your waist and your shoulder feels nice and you wonder if touching me elsewhere is forbidden because it''s nicer, or if you''re just assuming it''s nicer because it''s forbidden us for the moment. But anyway the whole contact thing, especially me whispering it to you is giving you urges you''re ashamed of me hearing, but reassure me that so far you don''t think I''m ugly or deformed. And so I''m going to do this.¡± Taking her hand out of the cool water she put it on the back of his neck. He gasped at the shock, as she pulled his head towards hers. Their foreheads touched. ¡°It wasn''t quite a ice, but I want that kiss, Salay.¡± ¡°You''re sure?¡± He asked, afraid that she was just responding to his desire. ¡°I''ve been fighting with myself all day about that challenge. I was dreaming about you lifting me off my feet and giving me kisses as soon as you got off the ship. But you were more restrained than that and I was much too restrained to fly into your arms. Those dreams were silly, but please, Salay, I want at a kiss daily if I may have one. But I''m not going to feel comfortable putting ice down your neck or pushing you into the pool for a long time.¡± ¡°There''s still that great barrier of respect for my title, you mean?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You know that''s what lay behind my parents'' suggestion.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Despite the fact that you''re a duchess and Taheela is a lady fifth-rank, neither of you feel like you''d belong among nobility if it wasn''t for your job, do you?¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± Hayeel asked, looking at the river. ¡°You know what I think, surely.¡± Salay said. ¡°I''m trying not to listen.¡± ¡°I think you''ve got too much respect for titles for us to get married yet. Father said I was to tell you not to let me kiss you until you felt could do the ice. I think that''s about me taking advantage of the respect thing to force kisses on you. I''m pretty sure you''d agree to marry if I asked, but you''d be agreeing because of my title, and because of the prophecy; because of your longing to make sense out of things. Not because it was actually you wanting to spend the rest of your life with me because you like me. Am I right?¡± Hesitantly, she nodded, and Salay continued ¡°But having said all that, father didn''t say anything about you forcing kisses on me. As long as the desire is from you.¡± ¡°It''s from both of us.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I got that impression too. But you are the one to decide when the desire for a kiss is greater than your respect for my title, my countess, not me. And you''ve also got to decide if your desire for a kiss is because you desperately want to be wanted or just because you want to kiss me.¡± ¡°Stop analysing me, Salay.¡± Hayeel said, and then pulled him closer intending to make sure he couldn''t say anything in reply. Off balance already, with his leg half-way up the bank, he started to topple towards her. His hand behind her was not much help, so he tried to put his other hand beside her. That hand gave him all the support that a pool of water can give ¡ª none until you get to the bottom. His arm was past his elbow when he stopped. The water was cold, he discovered again. He also discovered the gap he''d left for decency was entirely gone, and pressing against her even in such an inelegant position was quite a pleasant experience, and that Hayeel had a beautiful laugh, ¡°Sorry, for laughing.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°you just look so funny. Not to mention that you''re thinking about body-contact when you''re half-way to a total soaking.¡± ¡°So, beloved and merry Hayeel, can I get out of this water without getting even wetter?¡± ¡°Don''t ask me to pull you out,¡± she giggled, ¡°I''m pinned to my rock by my handsome prince and am almost falling in too.¡± ¡°How almost?¡± Salay asked, trying to turn to look at her. ¡°I''m not wearing the best dress for it, but I expect the future includes running back to the pool to jump in so we can get warm. Unless I push on you, I''ve nothing to help me sit upright.¡± ¡°The water''s a bit muddy here,¡± Salay said. ¡°I noticed,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°So if you push on me and I just get wet, then maybe we can save your dress.¡± ¡°What about you?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Hayeel, do you know what the advantages of an unornamented plain royal tunic made of white cloth are?¡± ¡°Err... it stains really easily? Transparency when wet?¡± ¡°Firstly, white cloth is quite a lot cheaper than patterned, secondly even I can make one, and thirdly, you can chuck it in a bucket of bleach and it comes out looking better. Not the same with your dress at all. Therefore, since neither of us are from the upper echelons of the central zone where rank matters, the only right thing to do is keep your beautiful dress dry, and let me get a bit wetter. Before my arm goes numb and I fall in anyway.¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You''re serious aren''t you?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°The only thing that makes me hesitant is that I don''t get to hug you on the way down.¡± ¡°You do if I make Taheela happy. Salay, please lift this hand to the ribbon in my hair.¡± ¡°Hayeel!¡± Salay exclaimed, shocked. ¡°If you''re not ready, then just brace yourself for a swim.¡± ¡°The water''s not deep enough to swim.¡± ¡°Will you untie my hair, Salay? I want you to.¡± ¡°It''s hardly the right time.¡± ¡°No? Here you are, pressed across me, sacrificing yourself for my dress.¡± ¡°Hayeel, it''s far too soon.¡± ¡°Do you reject me, then, Salay?¡± ¡°No. But you just agreed there are all those other reasons getting in the way...¡± ¡°There are those reasons to be happy to marry you. But you''re not the only one with excited optimism.¡± ¡°I want to be looking into your eyes as I untie your ribbon, Hayeel.¡± ¡°Oh. That much delay I accept.¡± ¡°But it''s still too soon.¡± ¡°No, Salay, it''s not. I''m convinced we''ll marry, you''re convinced we''ll marry. We''re not ready to marry, but it''s all decided that we will. And there''s a name for a girl who still goes around with her hair up when she''s agreed to an arranged marriage, at least in the poor-quarters.¡± ¡°Is there?¡± ¡°Yes. Halfie, as in half-agreed. Don''t make me a halfie, please, Salay.¡± ¡°What does it mean?¡± ¡°Uncertainty, and looking for a way out. That they''ve agreed for their parent''s sake but either her heart''s not in it or the boy''s isn''t, and he or she hopes her parents will find some fault with the match, and think again and find a better offer. I find no fault in you, Salay, except that you sit too far from me, over-analyse and now you''re refusing to undo my hair.¡± ¡°Will I pull you in or get you wet if I just slide in?¡± ¡°Slide? The other side''s not that far away. And you might pull my dress in. Can''t you roll?¡± ¡°For you, I''ll try all manner of things, Hayeel. But you''ll need to push me.¡± ¡°At my prince''s request,¡±
Embassy of Dahel ¡°Welcome, Esme, Hal.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Your hair is down,¡± Esme said. ¡°Yes. Salay was reluctant to start with, but once I''d dunked him in the stream he came round to my way of thinking.¡± Saval interpreted that for Salay, who spluttered and said, ¡°My Hayeel speaks some truth but hides truth by where she says it.¡± ¡°How she says it,¡± Hayeel corrected. ¡°More seriously, I value your prayers. Salay is convinced my emotions about him cannot be similar to his about me.¡± ¡°They''re not,¡± Esme said. ¡°He feels a bit outraged about the way you spoke about him untying your hair, but like he needs to protect you, and you... well, I''ll censor that shall I? But you probably ought to make time for marriage preparation classes first, Hayeel. You do need to get to understand each other better.¡± ¡°My Salay thinks he understands my motivations, and assumes that because I''m naturally respectful he''s never going to hear my opinions if they differ to his.¡± ¡°That last sentence ought to disabuse him of that,¡± Hal said, smiling. Salay smiled too, and motioned Saval to interpret. ¡°My Hayeel has opinions. But she wrote saying that she wanted to get to know me and have a totally free choice. Earlier she asked that we not rush off to Tesk to allow everyone time to recover from our journey, but she asked me in a way that I understood she wanted time for us to be together too, to get to know each other before being too busy. I don''t know Hayeel very well, I don''t know how she''ll react to different things. But she is respectful and guards herself well, and she has done things that were incredibly unpleasant things, without murmur of complaint, because she felt she had no alternative. I don''t want her to think that an eventual marriage is in that category.¡± ¡°My prince you are allowing romance to blind you to reality,¡± Hayeel snapped at Salay, ¡°If I don''t marry you, then the prophecy says the sun will destroy. Of course I have no choice, but I could have some choice about when, I hope, but..¡± She paused in her tirade to give Saval a chance to translate, and then switching languages explained to Hal and Esme. ¡°But my prince thinks that to ''ensure I have what choice I can'', he must resist my exercising it! He resisted even untying my hair, as though there was some doubt that he wanted me or I him! What sort of freedom does he give me? Is the only option he''ll give me the unpleasant one of waiting until I''m almost too old for children before he''ll marry me, just to make sure of what I think isn''t from him? Dear God, let Salay know that what I''m saying isn''t from him, that what I''m thinking is from me, please! And let my children know one grandfather!¡± ¡°I humbly ask to be excused from translating this outburst, my prince, countess.¡± Saval said, as Salay looked to him for a translation. ¡°The good translator must sometimes be brave, Saval,¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°Is it too late to become a good bricklayer instead?¡± ¡°I think I understood about a third of it.¡± Salay said. ¡°You refuse to tell me what you said, Hayeel?¡± ¡°Not at all, my prince,¡± Hayeel said warmly, and without a sign of the emotion that she''d just expressed. ¡°just I thought it would be another prefect opportunity to educate.¡± ¡°Another?¡± ¡°Was my unguarded, unrestrained outburst and lack of decorum not educational, my prince? Which me do you prefer? You need not worry about Esme''s opinion, she knows all about shocking people she''s just met with a well-timed lack of decorum.¡± ¡°Saval, I don''t think duchess Hayeel lost her mind, please translate what she said.¡± ¡°May I summarise?¡± Saval asked. ¡°Her grace described your desire to give her space as resisting her freedom to choose on timings. She ah, expressed concern that you might be so concerned to hear her thoughts uninfluenced by yours that you''d delay your marriage until only the unpleasant option of waiting almost past child-bearing age was available. She took exception to your resisting untying her hair when she asked you to, and then prayed that God would allow you to know that what she says is from her not from you, and asked God that her children might know one grandfather.¡± ¡°Unlike me,¡± Hayeel added for clarity. ¡°But what you do not know, confused Saval, is that just before my outburst Salay wished he could hear the shockingly open and honest me that he heard in my letters to him, and I thought that to Esme before I let my unrestrained self loose, as I am thinking the translation to her now of what I''m saying.¡± ¡°I am educated,¡± Salay say. ¡°I need to be careful what I wish for, don''t I?¡± ¡°That depends what you want, my kind Salay.¡± ¡°Could someone explain to me the significance of untying a woman''s hair?¡± Hal asked. ¡°When my hair was tied up, that meant that I am a modest young woman who does not use her alluring hair to attract male attention. By asking Salay to untie it, I am saying to him I am happy to marry him, and to the world that we have talked of marriage and that my thoughts are turning to questions of attraction and keeping his attention focussed on me, and we are not keeping secrets from each other. "If he had refused, he would be saying he was not ready to make that commitment yet. In an arranged marriage if the girl''s hair stays up it means that one party doesn''t know or isn''t happy with the arrangement. Some time, Salay will offer me a necklace, and I will allow him to put it around my neck, and I will put one around his. That says that the marriage date has been agreed and we are starting to pool our possessions.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Hal said. ¡°You have demonstrated your ability to share secrets, I think.¡± ¡°Possibly more shockingly than Salay expected.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°I apologise for any offence ¡± ¡°I am not offended,¡± Salay said, ¡°But a little shocked, yes, and indeed educated. I need to be careful what I ask for, don''t I?¡± ¡°All I ask is that you understand that when you ask for my opinion I will give it, Salay. And when we are alone I will try to ignore your title and be as forthright as you would wish. Just because we agree, it does not mean that I am reflecting your thoughts.¡± ¡°I have been a source of much frustration to you today, haven''t I? Sorry.¡± Eyes laughing she asked, ¡°would you prefer honesty or diplomacy this time, Salay? Or may I ask Saval to turn away so he is not shocked even more?¡± ¡°What of our guests?¡± ¡°Almost on this very spot Esme shocked me, so it''s entirely appropriate. And Esme knows what I''m planning anyway, Salay.¡± ¡°I expect I do too, my shocking Hayeel, But it''s time to talk on the radio.¡± ¡°Then I beg you to ask Saval to lead the way, my prince.¡± ¡°It seems Hayeel wishes a private word, Saval, please escort our guests to the radio room.¡± ¡°Certainly, my prince,¡± Saval said. ¡°You have upset Saval,¡± Salay said. ¡°He thinks that I dishonour the princess-regent and crown-price by taking liberties I should not in their presence. He forgets that they are my closest friends here, and they would be far more offended by strict protocol than by any openness.¡± ¡°And what did you wish to say to me, Hayeel?¡± ¡°That I wish to know you better before we marry. And I want to give you this as a thank you for your understanding.¡± As she kissed him, he felt something being put down his neck; a piece of paper. ¡°The paper says ''ice'' on it, doesn''t it?¡± Salay asked, holding Hayeel''s waist. ¡°Among other shocking things.¡± ¡°First icy fingers and then that?¡± Smiling, he kissed her and said, ¡°I''d better read it on the way so I can tell my parents, hadn''t I?¡± ¡°Summarise, please, or you might shock Saval beyond reason. He has not had to escape from noble daughters competing to show their flesh at him, I''m sure, and I am not fulfilling his expectations for how a godly woman should behave.¡± ¡°I don''t know what I expected.¡± LL¡°I expect the longer we delay, the worse Saval''s opinion of me will grow, my Salay. Let''s go the back way.¡± ¡°The back way?¡± ¡°Whoever designed this place thought servant''s stairs and corridors were a good use of space. This way.¡± ¡°''Ice and other obstacles to overcome before we marry?''¡± he read. ¡°Honest opinions, Salay. Perhaps ''conversation topics'' would be a better title. Feel free to add some things to the list.¡± ¡°Now I see why the paper was larger than most people would write ''ice'' on.¡± Salay said. ¡°It''s quite a long list.¡± ¡°Not at several a day it''s not,¡± Hayeel corrected. ¡°Even at one a day it''s not even a month''s worth. But I think when we''ve discussed all those things, even allowing some of them to come back multiple times, I''m going to feel like I know you quite well.¡± ¡°Not to mention all sorts of hopes and wishes. What''s ''Snoring, nose picking and any other irritations''?¡± Salay read. ¡°A suggestion from Taheela a few weeks ago. How do we expect we''ll react; bottle it up, nag, that sort of thing. And is that acceptable or wise?¡± ¡°May I say, Hayeel, that you''ve astounded me again?¡± ¡°I''m sure you may. I just like writing things down so I don''t forget them.¡± ¡°You''re organised. Good trait for an empress.¡± ¡°Yes. We need to talk about that too. What''s my expected role here, there, and at different times of life. I thought about that the other day. Did it get on there?¡± ¡°I don''t see it.¡± ¡°Sorry for the incomplete list, Salay. See? I''m not perfect.¡± ¡°Just beautiful, clever and amazing.¡± ¡°I''m happy we''re going to get married too, Salay. Is the date my choice?¡± ¡°Since I''m allowed to add items to this list. Yes.¡± ¡°Sneaky man. Joint decision once you''ve added more discussion topics than me.¡± ¡°What about non-discussions? Like I think I need to visit Tesk.¡± ¡°Can you explain why that has to happen while we need separate cabins?¡± Salay looked at her in shock. ¡°Oh. Vastly different assumptions.¡± ¡°You said you had your father''s permission for us to marry, Salay,¡± Hayeel said, not hiding the betrayal she felt. ¡°I do. I''d assumed, wrongly, that if we need to go back to the empire, that meant... Sorry, Hayeel. You say where and when we marry as long as we can discuss implications.¡± ¡°That''s why you were thinking we''d need loads more topics that could be overheard.¡± ¡°Yes, for the journey home.¡± ¡°My sister is here, her family is here, my friends are here, my church is here. I know I''ve only been here half a year, but...¡± ¡°It feels more like home than your tiny student''s room?¡± ¡°Yes. How do you know about my room?¡± ¡°I''m not sure. It just came to mind. I''ve never thought to ask how big your room was but I know you wrote about when you got it.¡± ¡°Interesting! Maybe it''s just coincidence. But we''re here.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 29: Persuasion

Planet 5 / Ch. 29: Persuasion

Post-contact report: thought-hearing anomaly The thought-hearing powers on this planet of little green people are confusing. There is no one who can hear all thoughts around them, but ''attunements'' on Tesk are common, and not unknown in other places, indicating that some kind of thought-hearing is possible. Also, there are a high proportion of nobles of the former Windward Empire who are able to project their thoughts to other members of the population, and some manage this in a selective manner. The emperor of the Dahel empire seems able to inspire awe, fear, and so on in those around him in a way that would correspond to him transmitting emotions. This evidence would suggest that the populace in general can actually receive thoughts at some level, but that their ''receivers'' are very narrow-band or selective; so selective that they are in effect useless, without attunement or someone able to blast past their normal limitations. Infuriatingly for our gifted friend, Sebastian, the people who have heard nobles do not seem to be able to receive thoughts from him. Thus he is left merely spying on the thoughts of people as we rely upon old-fashioned language learning. There is another suggestion, which is throwing up all sorts of ethical questions: if the only way that someone gets to hear another''s thoughts is attunement, should a team member seek to develop such a close emotional bond?
The heart of the empire The radio burst into life, and Naneela heard ¡°Calling from Caneth, five percent power.¡± ¡°Try one percent please.¡± Naneela said. ¡°Trying again, one percent power. We have crown prince Hal and princess regent Esmetherelda here.¡± ¡°That''s excellent, Father and mother are also here. And is duchess Hayeel also present?¡± ¡°I am present, highness, and Salay wishes me to say that I argued away his objections to untying my hair this evening, because I consider us to be heading to a marriage arranged by God and have no desire to be a halfie.¡± ¡°It is a long time since I heard that word, future daughter-in-law,¡± the Empress said, ¡°but I understand it. Was your request to Salay driven by honour for God, or your own feelings for my son?¡± ¡°My own feelings, majesty. Almost everything I have seen and heard today fills me with anticipation and makes me regret having written so many topics on my list of things that I wish to discuss with Salay before we marry. But since it is not everything I have seen and heard, sanity manages to reassert itself from time to time.¡± ¡°And those exceptions? What did they fill you with?¡± ¡°Mostly they were to do with Salay not believing that I agreed with him, majesty. Those moments were quite frustrating.¡± ¡°Be careful there, young Hayeel. Salay has motives for being careful, ones that he cannot let be overheard.¡± ¡°There are two in the room who hear thoughts, mother.¡± Salay said. ¡°I hope you were thinking in this language then, my son.¡± ¡°It will be most hard, mother, for that secret to remain such when there are thought-hearers in the empress''s guard, and I wonder if if is better to trust our friends.¡± ¡°And will there be thought-hearers in the empress''s guard?¡± Hayeela asked, surprised. ¡°This is a matter of an international treaty, mother, father. On compassionate grounds, Hayeel and I recommended that the Lady Captain who I will not name not look at the pattern of subtle dots that mark an acolyte of dum-semb, to compare them with what she remembers from her mother''s back. Memories can be hazy after all. But such a possibility must be considered. There are those who study Dahelese and Tunganese at the academy of Tesk, and Hayeel would like to recruit some help in interviewing the civil and military bureaucracies and the most change-resistant members of the central-zone aristocracy.¡± ¡°The baroness will certainly be questioned,¡± Salay''s father said, ¡°And you are right, Salay, if there are thought hearers willing to be part of the empress'' guard, then they will need to know. You may of course share the secret.¡± ¡°I thank you, father, I will explain to the prince and princess.¡± Salay said. ¡°And now ¡°, the Emperor said, ¡°I would like to hear about why the empire of Dahel does not need to worry about the plans of the windward nations, this new empire, so that I can silence the voices who say I should be putting the army on alert.¡± ¡°Prince Hal replies thus,¡± Hayeel''s voice said. ¡°''Imperial Majesty, in some ways, what we are planning is an empire, but in many ways it is a long way from one. Certainly it will never be called the Windward Empire, because that was a place of slavery, death and terror. We also hope that if other countries join us, we will listen and discuss, far more than give orders.'' Princess Esmetherelda adds ''Central Caneth has always been different to the coast, and they long been unhappy about rules enforced by the coast without respect for their culture. We hope this new thing that we do will allow the two Caneths to have more of an equal footing. We may even find that we have three Caneths. Some things will not change, but other matters will. I hope to be harsh on corruption, and gentle on cultural differences. Much of what happens here will need a lot of haggling with Central Caneth. This is not something to impose on them, after all. But why would I want to have more citizens unhappy with my rule?¡± ¡°And Princess-Regent, you are not afraid that the tolerance of differences might become an invitation, to organise to those who seek to overthrow your reign, say in central Caneth?¡± The emperor asked. ¡°No, imperial majesty,¡± Hayeel translated Esme''s reply ¡°because the army will not be, has never been, regionally organised. I do not intend to make the mistake of requiring a devolved central Caneth to raise its own army, as though they needed to provide soldiers in exchange for protection. They need to pay taxes of course, to support infrastructure, administration and law and order. But Central Caneth has always required a net investment, just because of the low population and large area.¡± ¡°You have a law and order problem there, you mean?¡± Empress Hayeela asked. ¡°It has been seen as that in the past, certainly.¡± Hayeel''s voice came back, ¡°Princess Esme prefers to see it as a difference in cultures. Inexperienced merchants complain of cronyism and demanding of bribes, so it is investigated, and very often the result is that they were ignorant of the culture. But yes, there are also bandit groups. Very few people like them, though. Perhaps if they were more socially minded and took from the rich to give to the poor like in children''s stories, they would have more support, but normally it is just that they take money from the rich and food or water from the poor.¡± ¡°But some people do like them?¡± The emperor asked. ¡°Some, yes. The lookouts who are paid for information, for instance,¡± the radio replied, ¡°The princess-regent expects that some government workers are in that category too. But she hopes that greater local influence over local spending will help that a lot.¡± ¡°And other than law and order, what will your soldiers do?¡± ¡°They will defend our borders, practice their drills, train their replacements, and get better at catching criminals.¡± ¡°When you say ''our borders'', do you mean those within your almost empire or your external borders?¡± ¡°A little of both,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°They say: ''We expect that there will still be trade tariffs and the like that need enforcing, and of course it is unwise for border-towns to think they are unobserved. But more on the external borders than the internal ones. How does it work within the Dahel empire?''¡± ¡°The honest answer is poorly and with corruption. Many solders provide internal security for tax collectors and so on, others occupy themselves with giving one another medals for no discernable reason or patrolling the coasts and border regions for high risk and little reward. I like countess Hayeel''s idea of interviewing the military command, and will insist that those guarding her are well trained and armed. You realise, I am sure. the military importance of this radio, princess-regent?¡± ¡°As well as the diplomatic importance, imperial majesty. It gives those who enjoy stirring up trouble with false reports another tool, and we who ultimately decide on policy, or at least who decides on it, the ability to counteract them on the basis of friendship and fellowship.¡± ¡°Your unification and idea of a government of governments does not come as a surprise to us in Dahel.¡± ¡°I understand that, yes; you have the prophecy of the last kingdom.¡± ¡°What I ask you is whether your new empire could be part of Dahel, or if, if there is to only be one empire in obedience to the prophecy, you expect Dahel to become part of yours?¡± ¡°Prince Hal replies ''That is a very good question, imperial majesty, and I would like to be able to answer it. At the moment, though, we have not yet formed any sort of wording or structure which would even be remotely acceptable to Tesk, and I do feel that gaining Tesk''s agreement is important, for a number of reasons. Perhaps we should instead ask what Dahel would offer us and its other independent neighbours?''¡± ¡°That''s a bit of a rude thing to ask, isn''t it?¡± Naneela commented. ¡°No, dear, it''s a sensible reply,¡± her father said, and replied. ¡°Dahel offers nothing our rebellious neighbours trust us to give, and given the present problems with some in the army, I''m not convinced that I blame them. They would be on the outer periphery, and we would not offer them stability, for the outer periphery prefer flexibility. As they have had a long-standing good relationship with one another, the only neighbour they fear is Dahel. There are regular tit-for-tat incursions which keep the soldiers busy on both sides, but which serve no real purpose. I add that they are also are carefully orchestrated to do as little harm as possible. It has, somehow become almost a game. Almost, I say, but not entirely.¡± ¡°Prince Hal curiously asks what Dahel''s intention is in continuing with this almost-game?¡± Hayeel''s voice came back. ¡°There are disputed territories, the only good grazing land for a week''s journey, for instance, or an excellent position to launch an attack from. These were part of the principalities of Tunga before they joined Dahel. Their neighbours consider those portions that they moved into during that traumatic time as theirs, the spoils of bringing Tunga to it''s knees as an independent confederation. The citizens of the Tunga protectorate consider them theirs. Dahel controls those areas now, of course, but there are constant incursions.¡± ¡°Hal asks, ''Which bring screams of outrage from the Tungan citizens?''¡± ¡°Precisely. And demands for the tit-for-tat responses.¡± ¡°Esmetherelda says, ''There are legal incompatibilities between Dahel and the Windward nations.''¡± ¡°She is thinking of slavery?¡± ¡°And forced marriage, which the Isles treat as slavery and Caneth would treat like a series of rapes over a long time.¡± ¡°And what if the woman is in favour and the man against?¡± The emperor asked, curiously. There was a longer than normal pause before Hayeel''s voice came back on. ¡°There was some discussion, Esme did not think it would really happen. But Hal spoke about the girl wanting the connection and the boy thinking her ugly, and I spoke of cases with among slaves. She agreed that it would certainly be a crime, and in any case forcing a marriage was already a separate crime, just the same punishment as multiple rape.¡± The Emperor said, ¡°Yes, it is an evil, and Salay was horrified to hear that no one had asked your thoughts. Fortunately the assignment of people to such positions are rare. And parents do not normally ignore the signs of a girl approaching her wedding day with her hair still up.¡± There was another, longer, pause. ¡°My friend wished me to ask why such an evil is permitted under the law. I pointed out that not showing respect to one''s parents and rulers is also an evil, and the debate continues.¡± ¡°Who is winning so far?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Interpreter Saval thinks he will win, because he is resolutely saying nothing of his own opinions. The lady captain and Gathal believe they will lose.¡± ¡°I think I can guess for the captain, but why Gathal?¡± Empress Hayeela asked. ¡°I would have thought he was beyond embarrassment.¡± ¡°Gathal has admitted that he was asking only where he was sure of a no, mother,¡± Salay said, ¡°and has some matters to discuss with his mother if that can be arranged. But I now ask the Captain to speak.¡± ¡°Majesty, I am prompted to make a request. If it might be possible for my father to visit the research centre, perhaps, I would like to speak to him. I assume my mother will not speak to me whatever is discovered.¡± Takeel said. ¡°Captain, your parents will be investigated together, before their emperor,¡± empress Hayeela said. ¡°Such possibilities should not be left to those who might have other loyalties, or have tongues that might wag. Certainly you may speak to them while they are here. We will want to tell you of the verdict in any case. It is evening with you, is it not?¡± ¡°Yes, Majesty.¡± Takeel said. ¡°Call back in the morning. What you wish to tell your father counts as good news?¡± ¡°It is one of the things that Gathal wishes to discuss with his mother, majesty.¡± ¡°It is too early to be certain, of course, Majesty,¡± Gathal added, ¡°And we would like to hear of parental approval, but the Lady-Captain and I have discovered that we have things in common beyond missing Nulay, loving God, and struggling with Windwardese grammar.¡± This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°Too early, Gathal? Do we hear caution?¡± Naneela asked ¡°This from the man who was asking five girls a day to marry him not so long ago?¡± ¡°I was deliberately asking in such an inappropriate manner that I collected many refusals, highness, to keep my promise to my prince. And I tried to pick those I was certain of, and who I hoped would not be insulted. A yes from any of them would have been most shocking to me.¡± ¡°So those women you did not ask should not feel you considered them too ugly for marriage?¡± The empress asked. ¡°Not at all, your majesty. It means only that I was not so sure of how they would respond, or I thought they might take my question more seriously than I wanted them to. I have admitted that I changed my mind about coming when I heard the captain and lieutenant would be making the journey.¡± ¡°And my lieutenant has expressed her relief that Gathal is not seeking her company.¡± Takeel said, ¡°But so far she is not admitting which of his highness'' companions her eyes are drawn to linger on, though she''s given a hint which narrows the field to two.¡± ¡°Thank you for that update, captain. I trust neither you will allow your hopes to distract you from your duty.¡± ¡°Hayeel has called the debate to an end now that those important messages have been sent, mother, father. The matter is obviously not settled. Clearly there are matters of interpretation and relative values, which makes me believe that it is more likely that a structure that does not impose a particular culture on the other will be acceptable.¡± ¡°A structure that can cope with Tesk, Caneth, Dahel, Tunga and the outer kingdoms, without imposing a culture, able to exercise force but not ruling through fear.¡± The emperor said. ¡°It would be good to invite the outer kingdoms into this discussion, would it not? Especially those kingdoms where only a queen may rule.¡± ¡°My own comment is that it should indeed do all that, while also doing all it can to stamp out all traces of dum-semb within the power-structures of the world, imperial majesty,¡± Hayeel''s voice added, ¡°Princess Esmetherelda agrees that we should invite others, and asks if academician Teng even spoke to their ambassadors, so they have some idea of what is happening, forgetting that I had told her that they did not have ambassadors. "And prince Hal suggests that rather than one ruling another, would it be better at the moment for rulers to discuss things and reach common accord, and could we call that a global system of rule, as the Tesk challenge speaks of, or do we simply follow Academician Teng''s suggestion and say, ''we''re talking, that''s as far as we got?''¡± ¡°There are no ambassadors here,¡± Empress Hayeela said, ¡°but there are known merchants from the outer kingdoms who relay messages. The academician spoke to two of them, but yes, more formal messages should be sent. And talking is certainly an important stage. As is allowing people time to be persuaded. And this is much better than writing letters and waiting three months for a reply, is it not?¡± ¡°Very much better, your majesty,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°And I will certainly be talking to Salay about persuasion. Prince Hal asks if it is the right time to agree to talk again, and send invitations to other nations to join in these talks. Getting some input from Tesk is easy, of course, but getting decisions will be harder.¡± ¡°We will cause total shock, and invite the outer kingdoms to send ambassadors,¡± the emperor said. ¡°Perhaps even persuade one of these brave traders to deliver the invitation by sea. Certainly we will hold discussions with representatives from Tesk. But can someone please explain their government to me again? How did it come about?¡± ¡°Everyone is pointing at me, your majesty,¡± Hayeel said, ¡°So I will try. Imagine, please, something like a committee, where the honourable chairman has sent a message that he is very sick, possibly dying, and the alternate chairman is on a long-planned fact-finding trip. The committee members are in factions and neither faction will allow the other faction to be the chairman. They decide rather than spending all the time arguing about who will be chairman to discuss other things, and try to get work done. With no chairman, there are needless arguments about who will speak next, or set the agenda, but somehow they get work done. As time goes on, this becomes normal. The chairman lingers on, but unable to actually attend meetings, and jobs get done by people who are agreed to by most of the committee. This is how the parliament of Tesk began. It started off as a committee for public works from the academy, arranging things like roads on the island, and it had the authority to collect some payment from islanders. After the windward emperors were killed, the nobles had no desire to choose a new single authority, and the committee was the closest thing to an island-wide structure. The different members each represented a different part of the island, and with the emperor gone the nobles started off trying to choose someone who would represent the district well, but some asked all the minor land-holders to elect one of their number, because they valued an alternative viewpoint and didn''t want to choose one friend over another. The aliens came and said, ''yes, we recognise this pattern of government, it''s not particularly good at long term planning and there are risks of corruption, for instance, and it works best if there''s someone in charge of the parliament, but it''s a lot more stable than a dictatorship. "It''s also good if there''s another set of people that checks the laws of the first one to make sure that everything has been thought of. And so, when there started to be women with the gift of Tesk, the laws of the Island were changed to make them form the high council with that role, checking that the laws didn''t hurt people in unexpected ways.¡± ¡°And the chairman of this council really became sick?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°So I learned when I was on Tesk, yes, highness.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°The fact that the alternate chairman found was that if you go far enough past Dahel you really do get back to the Windward Isles, but it takes more than half a year. When he got back no one wanted him to take over as chairman. He then left to try to sail due north from northern coast of Caneth, and was never heard of again on Tesk, except there are rumours he fell in love with a woman up there while waiting for spring and never actually left port.¡± ¡°Maybe he saw one of the sea-monsters up there and decided that staying put and raising a family was much safer,¡± the empress suggested. ¡°But what you are saying is that it was circumstances that led to Tesk''s government, not a philosophy of government.¡± ¡°Esmetherelda says, there was a deep-seated fear that a new king would mean the return of the Windward Empire and the doom-guard. When Tesk voted to join the kingdom of the Isles, after the aliens left, a key part of the decision was that the king would live simply, with one wife, and be based at Captita, and only visit Tesk occasionally. She adds, ''When Hal and I suggested that our new joint rule might be based in Tesk it became clear that those fears are still present.''¡± ¡°Ah,¡± the Emperor said ¡°So, Tesk will be happier to accept distant rule than local?¡± ¡°Prince Hal says, Tesk will be happier to accept a ruler who visits and listens rather than one who stays and commands, but it would prefer a committee rather than an individual.¡± ¡°I would suggest that we talk again next week and we invite Tesk to join this committee of nations,¡± Naneela said, ¡°And if Esmetherelda can promote Hayeel from ambassador''s wife to ambassador, I will suggest that father and mother might do the same and convince one or two of our traders'' wives to represent their countries.¡± ¡°Are you thinking of someone in particular, Naneela?¡± Her father asked. ¡°I cannot remember their names, father, or even which countries, but I remember half a year ago, two traders from countries with queens came with their wives, and it was plain to me that the wives were far better informed of their queens'' views than their husbands.¡± ¡°Ah! Yes. Our neighbours Kunga and Azunga who love to shock us with bold policy changes. "Excellent idea, Naneela, let us shock their queens by accepting their respective daughter and sister as ambassadors. Hayeela, could you invite them?¡± ¡°Certainly my husband. And I suggest the lady-trader from Kanuga too? Another ruling queen, and although she is not a relative, she''s certainly the one her queen confides in, not her body-guard.¡± ¡°And the Kanugans are still here?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°I have heard so,¡± his wife replied. ¡°Excellent!¡± Pressing the transmit button once more, he said in passable Windwardese, ¡°My apologies crown-princess Esmetherelda, we will surprise our neighbours and you will not have the first ambassador to Dahel.¡± Switching to Dahelese he finished, ¡°Now we must spring our surprises on three unsuspecting traders and send for the baron and baroness. Powering off.¡± ¡°I hope there are no unfriendly ears listening in, father,¡± Salay said. ¡°They will hear that there will be a new social category in the central region soon enough, anyway.¡± The emperor said.
Caneth, the embassy Hayeel translated for Salay, ¡°In the palace complex there is a courtyard called the court of the knife, so-named because there an alien became rather upset about something the then-emperor said, and stuck her knife into the barrel of a cannon. It rather surprised my forefather. It was the first time he had ever failed to persuade anyone of anything when he wanted to. The nobles of Tesk can say one thing and sensitive people hear another. We have something similar, but with emotions. It is a dangerous ability for a king in terms of getting honest advice, but very useful at times, of course. Would any of you like a demonstration?¡± ¡°I would,¡± Hal said. ¡°Are you absolutely sure? It is dangerous. You will find yourself thinking differently.¡± ¡°Yes. I''m sure.¡± ¡°You should be a bit scared of people push feelings on you, prince Hal.¡± ¡°Urm yes, OK, I was silly, wasn''t I?¡± ¡°You were curious. Now you''re a bit scared of people pushing feelings on you. It''s a dangerous thing to demonstrate, as I say. If I push too much fear on you then you''d never come near me again. If I impose the thought that you can trust me, then what sort of an abuse of trust would that be? You can understand why it is a secret, and why few people see the emperor.¡± ¡°It doesn''t wear off?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Hal will remember this time, when he asked for a demonstration, and the sudden wave of concern he felt, overriding his curiosity. And he might not even believe me that that was my demonstration, and not his own thought processes.¡± ¡°You mean you could convince someone of anything?¡± Esme asked ¡°Probably not. Deeply held, re-enforced thoughts are more resistant. But attitudes to a new suggestion, feelings about a new experience? There is not much resistance.¡± ¡°First impressions count.¡± Esme said, nodding. ¡°And if someone is debating something already...¡± ¡°A little emotion can push them over the edge. My ancestor was used to convincing his people that they served a god, he was used making them think that his slightest whim must be obeyed. He didn''t even need to give orders, most of the time. "So when he told the aliens they wanted to give him their cutting tool, he was really surprised that he did not get that, but he did get the knife, and he and his descendents have preserved the knife. It is one of our greatest treasures ¡ª the reminder that imperial will, even backed up by military might, can be thwarted by strong principles.¡± ¡°I still think it''s a scary ability.¡± Hal said. ¡°And I imagine it is quite a challenge for child-rearing.¡± ¡°Fortunately it does not develop in the very young.¡± Salay said with a half-smile, ¡°Naneela and I used to have sort of competitions of who could convince the other of the most unlikely but useful things. Father was furious when he heard about it. But before then I convinced her that studying physics was incredibly useful and not that hard. I suppose I could claim that as my contribution to the development of this radio.¡± ¡°What did she convince you of?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°That I''d be disobeying God if I didn''t pay attention to the prophecy, and that I''d be very glad in the long run. She didn''t manage to convince me that I liked eating vegetables. But she did convince me that she''d start collecting any I left and one day I''d find them going mouldy in my pillow.¡± ¡°Did it work?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°I found not eating my vegetables quite a scary thought afterwards. It helped of course that she was there at meal times saying things like ''You don''t want to leave any vegetables on your plate, do you?''¡± ¡°Can you tell when someone is doing it to you?¡± Esme asked. ¡°Yes, but I still feel the emotion.¡± ¡°Try to convince me of something.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because it''s not a thing to be played with.¡± ¡°Something useful I mean.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± he shot back. ¡°That I don''t need to wear my modest servant outfits any more. That''d make Taheela happy.¡± ¡°How would I convince you that? I send feelings, not logic. Do you want me to make you think your modest outfits are ugly? They''re not. Are they not fitting for someone in your position? Only if you stop being ambassador. Do you want to feel you must tempt me with your clothes? We''ve had that discussion, I think. There''s nothing I want to convince you of, Hayeel. I want your emotions unaffected by me.¡± ¡°Did you notice him doing it Esme?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°He tried to make me think it was a silly thing to ask at the beginning, and that he never wanted to use it on me, even though he was using it on me.¡± ¡°Yes. Thank you, Hayeel. It''s not very different to feeling Hal''s emotions through attunement.¡± ¡°So now that we''ve finished playing, I''m going to stop pretending to be scared, now.¡± Hal said. ¡°Interesting ability, prince Salay. I imagine it''s more effective against people who''ve never met attunement.¡± ¡°Don''t be so disappointed, Salay.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°We''ve just proved that Hal and Esme don''t need to run away from you, and that you don''t need to be too afraid of influencing me. Now, about attunement. Pay attention and see if you hear this thought.¡± ¡°Let me guess, you want a kiss?¡± ¡°Stop guessing and listen. You heard me thinking about my room earlier, I''m pretty sure.¡± ¡°You don''t mind, Hayeel?¡± Esme asked, standing up. ¡°Of course not, you know the way.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Hal and Esme said together. ¡°Swimming again?¡± Salay guessed. ¡°I can hear your thoughts, Salay, you''re dismissing what you''re hearing from me and guessing instead.¡± ¡°You''re not really suggesting that I persuade Malene not to keep things a secret, and Saval to express his misgivings?¡± ¡°Excellent! I guess that means we''re attuning and you''ve got enough Tesk blood or native ability that that''s possible.¡± ¡°So why do you want Saval to express his misgivings?¡± ¡°Because they''re there, aren''t they Saval? And they''re interfering with your work.¡± ¡°I apologise, duchess. Many things here are so strange. I hope it is just that I am tired and there is so much surprising here.¡± ¡°You anticipate strangeness from our hosts, but I do not react as you expect me to.¡± ¡°Correct, duchess.¡± Saval said. ¡°And I am causing outrage again, by confronting you about them?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°You do not know?¡± ¡°One part of your outrage was that I listened to your thoughts, and those of he who untied my hair. I am not listening to yours now. Salay finds it reassuring that I listen to his, and I rejoice that he begins to hear my thoughts. I also find it encouraging that we will have no secrets between us. Name the thing that most jars you sense of right and wrong, Saval.¡± ¡°That you question me like this, duchess...¡± ¡°Is appropriate for a future empress to a member of staff,¡± Malene said. ¡°It would not be one staff member to another, except in a chain of command situation.¡± ¡°By which Malene points out that I am allowed to question her,¡± Takeel said, grinning. ¡°About matters that interfere with the performance of my duty or my fitness to serve, certainly captain.¡± ¡°And on other matters, only as friend.¡± Hayeel concluded. ¡°Saval, I feel I can question you for multiple reasons. One is that according to an ancient copy of empire law I found in the Caneth library, an ambassador in their country of assignment is responsible for instructing and correcting the behaviour of all employees of the state or royal they represent, even in the presence of that royal. The other is that I fully expect to marry Salay, and thus be the undoubted future empress, unless Salay decides to try and convince everyone that Naneela would be better on the throne. Lastly, I do normally hear thoughts, and I would much rather challenge mistaken thoughts sooner rather than later. If you remember, I lightly grilled Malene and Takeel when I first met them.¡± ¡°I remember it feeling a bit warm.¡± Takeel said, ¡°but now I think it might have been a bid for friendship rather than a roasting.¡± ¡°Thank you for saying so, Takeel. Saval, will you name the reason we''re having this discussion?¡± ¡°You have named it already, countess. Your behaviour. If I must spell it out..?¡± ¡°Please do. Do I sin in the eyes of God? If so, please rebuke me.¡± ¡°I would not name it sin, countess. But... some of the things you have done are not how an unmarried countess ought to behave. You are too blatant, too open.¡± ¡°For the central zone?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Yes, my prince.¡± ¡°Saval, this is not the central zone. Hayeel has lived in the palace complex, which officially is part of central zone, but you know it is different.¡± ¡°I never attended a ball or other social gathering in the central zone, I was never even informed I had any income from my teaching post. I never considered myself a noble, I considered myself a slave of the state fortunate enough to have been given an honourable position, and was very very careful not to offend, because unlike the descendents of nobility or wealthy merchants around me, I was an unmarried daughter of a slave whose mother had been sent back to the slave pens to die. "I taught, I ate with the students, I read, I slept, and when I had vacation time I visited my sister. That was my life in the central zone, excluding Wahleet, and I thought I had no choices, because I was too ignorant to know what to ask. "The real central zone was never really my home. I grew up in Wahleet, one band away from the port. Please try to judge me by those standards of normality, rather than those of the true central zone.¡± ¡°I will try not to judge you so harshly, duchess Hayeel. I''m sorry.¡± ¡°Adjustments to a new language and culture are hard, Saval. Emotionally hard. We cling to what we know and think it is the only way things should be. Now, I gave the princess-regent permission to swim in the pool with her new husband. "They do not have that luxury at the palace, and I imagine they would appreciate privacy. May I suggest that we have a time of studying scripture together?¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 30: Social change

Planet 5 / Ch. 30: Social change

Post contact report: thought-hearing anomaly, update Further to the early discussion on this, a potential evolutionary driver for not hearing, or at least, not paying attention to heard thoughts has been identified. On the main continent there are several predators with very acute hearing. Social calls would thus be dangerous. Several species of prey animals send out an almost deafening scream as the warning signal, but also make ''everything is fine'' mental shouts at regular intervals. There is also a predatory animal that mimics heard thoughts, in order to approach its prey without warning. This predator inhabits the same territory as the sun-bathing apes, and would be big enough to harm a young ape trying to follow its mother by her thoughts. In a surprising development, one person has been located who was able to hear our gifted friend Sebastian; a young woman called Evnela who has the darker-green appearance of those from the Isles or Caneth and who was delirious, adrift in the deep ocean aboard a storm-damaged boat was found by Sebastian and some others researching the sea creatures. She was badly dehydrated, and too injured to sail her boat, which looked like the coastal boats used in Tesk or the Isles, normally crewed by family groups. So far, we don''t know more details about her, except that Sebastian has found she does not have any close family alive.
Takeel''s parent''s home ¡°Baron Jalay,¡± the officer of the imperial guard said, ¡°You are not under arrest, but their imperial majesties require the presence of yourself and the baroness, without delay. Your daughter has also been informed she should attend.¡± ¡°My daughter? Do you mean Takeel?¡± ¡°Captain Takeel is on a foreign assignment. I was referring to Lady Baneel who waits outside.¡± ¡°The baroness is not feeling well, officer.¡± ¡°Is her condition life-threatening? Her presence is required.¡± ¡°I understand. I will ask her to come down as soon as she can.¡± ¡°My instructions state without delay, baron. If she is fully clothed, we leave immediately, if not, she has five minutes before you will both be arrested.¡± ¡°On what charge?¡± ¡°Disrespect for the emperor''s orders.¡± ¡°I obey, officer.¡±
Home of the Kanugan Trader. ¡°Lady trader Tangseng, their imperial majesties would appreciate it if you could make time in your schedule to pay them a visit tomorrow morning around ten.¡± ¡°Have I somehow given offence?¡± ¡°No, lady Tangseng. They hope that they do not give offence to you or your monarch. Until such time as your monarch confirms the posting or asks them to assign it to another, you are hereby recognised by their majesties as filling the post of ambassador of Kanuga to the Empire, with all the rights and honours that attend that noble position, at least from this end. Here is paperwork to confirm that to doubters. Their majesties consider that position to be equivalent to a fourth rank noble, though highly recommend you defer to ruling dukes and duchesses.¡± ¡°And do they expect me to dress as a fourth rank noble?¡± ¡°You may if you choose to, Lady ambassador, but you may also continue in your own style.¡± ¡°The empire has never accepted foreign ambassadors.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°The emperor has heard that Caneth and the Three Isles are considering sending one and felt it was time to change that policy. I am to deliver two more invitations today, Lady Tangseng.¡± ¡°May I ask who to?¡± ¡°To those their majesties were sure represented their respective queens.¡± ¡°Only the queens of the leeward monarchies?¡± ¡°The queens are consistent in sending messages via particular individuals, Lady Tangseng. The leeward kings seem to care little about such details and use whoever is coming. Messengers are preparing to deliver invitations via the empire''s ambassadors to send an ambassador once travel is possible.¡± ¡°Travel is always possible.¡± ¡°For a seasoned traveller, true.¡± ¡°And may I think of my home here as an embassy, and not subject to the laws of Dahel?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°I think that such matters will be discussed at the meeting tomorrow, lady Tangseng.¡± ¡°I shall be there.¡±
The heart of the empire. The Captain bowed to the Emperor and said ¡°The baron Jalay and his family were at their city residence, Imperial Majesty. I present them.¡± ¡°Excellent, Captain. Baroness, you have been told that you are not now in the central zone. You do not understand what that means.¡± ¡°No, majesty.¡± ¡°This is the source of patience and of change, the Heart of an Empire as big as ours must beat quickly. Things move quickly here once decisions are made. You do not approve of your daughter, captain Takeel''s decision to join my wife''s guard. You have reacted with destructive hatred towards her ever since. Your lies to Nulay and their consequences are known. It is not known if you will approve of her friendship with the cousin of Nulay, my son''s advisor. It is my ruling that you, baroness, will keep silent on the matter, or face consequences. If you lie about her again, you will face consequences. Do you accept your emperor''s ruling?¡± ¡°I must, imperial majesty.¡± ¡°There are alternatives; you could choose exile or death. The consequences of a failure to respect my ruling once accepted will be worse.¡± Trembling, the baroness said, ¡°I accept my emperor''s ruling, imperial majesty.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Empress Hayeela spoke next. ¡°Lady Baneel, your mother did not give Takeel an opportunity to talk about her present mission. You will not see her for many months, because she is now in the windward country of Caneth. It is not something to brag about but you may be proud. In the company of another from the empress''s guard, my son and four of his attendants, she took a chest of money and jewellery to the duchess of Repink, whose title has just been restored to her after a miscarriage of justice. She and the other will be the duchess''s guards, and when my son ascends the throne they will be the new empress''s guard or at the very least we expect them to be her friends. And if, now that her mourning for Nulay ends and her heart heals, her friendship with Nulay''s cousin turns into love and marriage, she will expect to eventually wear the title countess. Is there shame in any of this, baron?¡± ¡°No, imperial majesty, none at all.¡± ¡°So why do you allow your wife to shame daughter and your mother?¡± ¡°My wife grew up hearing many lies about the guard, majesty.¡± ¡°And you do not correct her.¡± ¡°I was not at home during Takeel''s last visit. I have tried to reason with her, majesty, but it seems an irrational hatred.¡± ¡°As if it were part of her religion, perhaps?¡± The baroness blanched as the baron said. ¡°It... it is possible majesty.¡± ¡°Baroness.¡± The emperor said, ¡°You will answer truthfully, and fully.¡± ¡°Who taught you this hatred, and when?¡± ¡°My parents, majesty.¡± ¡°Your daughter Takeel follows the Way of Life. You do not, correct?¡± ¡°Correct, majesty.¡± ¡°How did she come to follow her faith?¡± ¡°As a child, through my husband''s mother, and her friendship with Nulay.¡± ¡°But you follow another religion?¡± the empress asked. Hesitantly, the baroness said. ¡°There is no law forbidding parents from teaching their children their family''s traditional faith, majesty.¡± ¡°But some religious practices are a death sentence, dum-semb, for instance.¡± ¡°The death cult? May the gods of justice and the emperor''s law purge that perversion from the planet!¡± ¡°Name your religion, baroness.¡± Empress Hayeela said. ¡°You are not in the central zone where many religions are illegal, you are in the heart of the empire, where questions must be answered.¡± ¡°I was raised to follow dum-kahenia, majesty. Translated it means the rule of light.¡± ¡°You err, baroness kahenia means lights plural, as if there were more than one version of truth and reality. But if you claim to follow the rule of light, be aware that Jesus, the one anointed of God, said, ''I am the light,'' baroness, and in Him there is no darkness. Come! You will show me and your daughter that the markings on your back are those of dum-kahenia, and so convince me that you do not hate the guard because you are part of the death-cult that the empress''s guard was formed to destroy.¡± ¡°You are well informed, majesty. I do not know if the tattooist was well informed, however.¡± ¡°You mean you might have the tattoos of the wrong religion, baroness?¡± ¡°I was a foolish teenager, and the tattooist claimed to have a book of patterns. Dum-kahenia is a private thing; we do not have a hierarchy, we do not have meetings. once instructed, the initiate needs none of these. I do not even know if there are other followers in the central zone.¡± ¡°There are almost certainly followers in various jails of the central zone, Baroness, along with elsewhere. Lady Baneel, the law is simple to explain, Dum-kahenia has many apparent similarities to the death-cult, which makes it extremely suspicious. Also, followers, or at least certain followers of it, teach that a number of illegal acts are acceptable and normal for initiates, Instruction in the religion has also been a way for manipulative people to extort money from the unwary. Therefore, instructing people in it is seen as teaching rebellion against the laws of the empire. Your mother considers hatred of the empress''s guard a part of her religion, it seems. I have no doubt that she has her reasons, but I''m not interested. The empress''s guard does not just serve me as body-guard. It was formed to be a line of defence against corruption of the military: loyal soldiers who would never be sent off to war, with a separate chain of command. Its members also report corruption or those who teach it, even in their own families, if they witness it. Your sister has a high rank in a very noble organisation. There is no rule preventing marriage, but it is true that many men do not like the idea of a wife able to fight. You may ask a question or two as we go to a more private location for the examination.¡± Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°If mother''s marks are not of dum-kahenia, but of dum-semb, what happens?¡± ¡°Your mother will be arrested and placed on trial. You and your father will also be examined for marks.¡± ¡°And Takeel?¡± ¡°Takeel has already been examined, when she applied for the guard.¡± ¡°She has two marks on her back, as do I. Mother did it to us when we were babies.¡± ¡°This was noted, and the person who examined Takeel decided it was of no significance. It is not the normal practice of dum-semb to tattoo children.¡± ¡°It is part of dum-kahenia that the mother applies those tattoos,¡± the baroness said. ¡°Is it? Why did your mother not apply all your tattoos then? We will see your marks, baroness, and the marks you have placed on your daughter. And then we will return to the emperor and you will be questioned further. Guards, take the baroness on to the room. I will talk a little with lady Baneel.¡± After the guards had gone on, she asked Baneel, ¡°You suddenly looked worried, lady Baneel, when I asked about your grandmother not giving your mother all her tattoos.¡± ¡°Mother lies often, to those in and outside of the family, but I do not think she follows dum-kahenia. I remember her talking about something, a long time ago which sounded similar though. I''ve never heard of dum-kahenia or the way of light until today.¡± ¡°Lying to the emperor is a foolish thing to do.¡± ¡°I know. Mother should know too. But she plans her lies, and does not think, often. I was barely in school, but I remember her saying her mother had given her her tattoos, and she''d be happy to give us more as we learned each secret step of her religion. Takeel said ''Religions shouldn''t have secrets, Everyone should know the truth before they join, that''s what Nulay says.'' and mother said nothing more about her religion when Takeel was around, and to me she only said things like it being exciting to know things other people didn''t, and that you mustn''t tell, not even sisters. I would say I wasn''t good at keeping secrets from anyone, especially not Takeel. So I resisted my mother''s religion. Now... now I''ve chosen to follow the Way, the Truth and the Life, your majesty. Takeel is strong and brave, I am not, and I have not spoken about my timid faith until now, not even to grandma.¡± ¡°Sometimes it is easier to tell someone you do not know. May God be with you, and enable you to find all the strength you need in Christ, Baneel. What you''ve said has confirmed some of my fears. Please pray for me also, that I will have the strength I need too.¡±
Caneth, Embassy of Dahel ¡°Calling at one percent power. Good morning from Caneth.¡± Salay said. ¡°Good evening from Dahel,¡± researcher Kahlel''s voice replied. ¡°I will tell Naneela and the captain''s sister you are calling. Is the captain there?¡± ¡°I am, yes.¡± Takeel said, as Salay ushered her into the seat. ¡°Lady captain, I am told to tell you your mother is not of dum-semb, but she lied to the emperor, saying that she followed dum-kahenia, when in fact it is dum-sathenia that she follows. That is bad news. However, her markings show her to be an acolyte, not a novice or priestess; that is good news.¡± ¡°And my father and sister know?¡± ¡°I have called again, and they are coming. Yes, they know, captain.¡± ¡°How is it that you are at the radio?¡± Salay asked. ¡°I thought that we had heard Naneela had declared you fit, Kahlel?¡± ¡°She has also pronounced me free to visit, highness.¡± ¡°And is your visit work or social?¡± ¡°I hoped to talk about something work-related, highness, but other things were happening.¡± ¡°That can be frustrating. Perhaps you can talk work when Naneela gives the microphone to the captain''s sister.¡± ¡°That is my hope also, highness.¡±
The Heart of the Empire ¡°Naneela,¡± Kahlel said. ¡°You said something rather ill-considered a week ago, and I will certainly allow you to retract it. But while Baneel is talking to her sister, I came because I wanted to show you this.¡± He handed her a circuit diagram. ¡°Urm.¡± There were a lot of the parts repeated on the part that was showing. ¡°You asked for ten filters, Naneela.¡± ¡°These are fixed-frequency.¡± ¡°The filters are. Open it out, please, my princess.¡± ¡°What have you done, Kahlel? Tell me.¡± ¡°I have given you what you asked for, my princess. I used mixing. The antenna signal is mixed with an adjustable oscillator to give a fixed intermediate frequency, which we can then filter and amplify efficiently.¡± ¡°You''ve brought me a tunable radio with ten filters,¡± Naneela said in a quiet voice, ¡°for which I promised you father''s daughter''s hand in marriage.¡± ¡°Yes, my princess. I won''t hold you to your promise, it was said in frustration.¡± ¡°Do you reject what I promised, Kahlel?¡°` ¡°Princess?¡± Kahlel asked, confused. ¡°You didn''t mean it, I know.¡± ¡°Does the idea of winning yourself a wife in such a manner offend you? Or is it merely that you don''t like me?¡± ¡°I''m pretty sure I love you, Naneela.¡± ¡°That''s good. Mummy needs some happy news. You see, even if I didn''t really mean it when I said it, it didn''t sound that silly an idea, and having thought about it more I think I probably love you too.¡±
Caneth, Dahel Embassy, outside the radio room ¡°Hayeel? Why did you suggest last night that I ought to convince Malene to stop keeping her secret hopes secret?¡± ¡°Is her secret something else that was bugging Saval?¡± Gathal asked. ¡°Just to tease her, really.¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°Was that nice?¡± Salay asked. ¡°Yes. She was feeling a bit ignored. But I wasn''t just thinking about her secret hopes; it was more about this culture of secrecy in the guard, her feeling she mustn''t ever say anything. She and Takeel had a good long chat last night, though. Speaking of Takeel, she needs support, excuse me.¡± Hayeel went into the radio room. ¡°Father knew?¡± Takeel was asking. ¡°Mother did your tattoos when he was away, and planned to do mine in the same way, but he came back unexpectedly, and found me screaming, you telling her ''don''t hurt her, mummy'' and the tattoo tools in her hand. She explained all about the religion and he said he would divorce her and denounce her if she had any more part in it or instructed us in it.¡± ¡°But she tried to instruct us.¡± ¡°He was furious to hear that. I''ve never seen him so angry, he hit her, a real punch, and he probably would have beaten her to death if the guardswomen hadn''t restrained him. Those are his words. The emperor has declared he will not allow the divorce. He says that father shares in her guilt by giving her opportunities, never checking, and being such a distant father.¡± ¡°You should not think yourself responsible for this, Takeel,¡± Hayeel said. Takeel, however, pressed the transmit and said, ¡°I knew you would be called to the Heart of Empire today. I heard yesterday of the marks of dum-semb, and worried aloud.¡± Baneel replied, ¡°Mother did not know I have given my life to Christ, I was too scared. But she has been trying to lure me into her religion. Just yesterday I almost asked father to ask mother to stop trying to teach me her religion, but he was in a meeting. You have prevented more evil, my sister, thank you.¡± ¡°Is father in jail?¡± ¡°No. His hands are tied, but he is talking to grandma.¡± ¡°That is good. I... I had hoped to ask him something.¡± ¡°That''s a first! Sorry, Ta..sister. That wasn''t nice of me.¡± ¡°Accurate though. Can you ask that he be allowed to listen?¡± ¡°I will ask. What is it?¡± ¡°I have a would-be suitor. One of the prince''s advisors, poor Nulay''s cousin.¡± ¡°Nulay''s cousin? One he told you about?¡± ¡°The one with the non-noble name, despite what awaits him.¡± ¡°Who had the bees?¡± Baneel asked. ¡°Yes, can you see if father can come? Or grandma?¡± ¡°He''s there with you?¡± ¡°The honourable lady ambassador to Caneth, Duchess Hayeel of Repink is here with me, he is outside the room, chatting to his imperial highness.¡± ¡°And trying not to be nervous.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I''ll run.¡± ¡°Don''t trip, you''d be really embarrassed to be muddy in the heart of the empire.¡± ¡°I''m muddy already. I was on my knees pulling up weeds the gardeners had missed when the soldiers came saying we had to be there without delay. Captain Thadlay was apologetic about it, but said I had to be able to go as soon as he''d got mother and father.¡± ¡°OK. Run then, no wait! How are you, other than muddy?¡± ¡°I''m coping so far. Her majesty prayed for me.¡± ¡°And life in general?¡± ¡°I''ve told a certain boy to stop offering me gifts because while it was flattering I was certain it wasn''t going to go anywhere. And I don''t know if I''m ever going to find someone who follows Jesus and who will settle for the second daughter of an imprisoned baroness.¡± ¡°The title will be yours.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I''m not going to accept the title, sister. I have enough responsibilities in the guard, and my would-be suitor is already lord sixth-rank, heir to the title count.¡± ¡°Didn''t you tell me not to plan my wedding before the suitor had spoken to father?¡± ¡°I did, yes. But even if we decide it won''t work, I''m still going to be too busy for the title and will have to renounce it. So don''t count yourself too low. Now run and get dad or grandma, please. Oh, if you see Thadlay, tell him my good news and ask him about churches you could go to.¡± ¡°Are you matchmaking?¡± ¡°He takes a real interest in the faith of his men and knows about churches all over the place.¡± ¡°Oh. OK.¡± ¡°And if he comes across as formal, that''s because he''s a bit shy.¡± ¡°You are matchmaking.¡± ¡°I''m providing you with information that might be useful. Neither he nor I are stupid enough to consider ignoring advice not to fall in love with someone in the other military command structure. But I''m pretty sure he won''t judge you by our parents, and if you''re looking for a potential husband, he''s a good man.¡± ¡°Why hasn''t anyone else snapped him up?¡± ¡°Because he''s shy, he''d rather charge an enemy outnumbered ten to one than turn up at a ball without an invitation, and his parents don''t like the city enough to keep a house there, so he''s not on anyone''s reciprocal invitation list.¡± ¡°And he can''t reciprocate.¡± ¡°Not in terms of location. Unless he gets a friend who could co-host one, of course.¡± ¡°You''re being terribly transparent.¡± ¡°I''m priming you with some subject matters to talk about, that''s all. Are you going to fetch father?¡± ¡°He''s just coming.¡± ¡°With grandma?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I talk into this?¡± Takeel heard her father''s voice say. ¡°Yes, father.¡± Takeel replied. ¡°Has Baneel said why she is grinning?¡± ¡°She''s looking thoughtful,¡± he replied after fumbling with the talk switch for a bit. ¡°Father, outside the room I''m in with duchess Hayeel of Repink is his imperial highness and one of his advisors, who is waiting nervously to talk to you.¡± ¡°What about?¡± ¡°Me, father.¡± There was a pause. ¡°I take it this is not a complaint?¡± ¡°No, father. This is poor mis-informed Nulay''s noble cousin, who bears me no ill-will for mother''s lies.¡± ¡°I''d better speak to him, then,¡± her father said. ¡°Thank you, father.¡± ¡°Are you expecting me to send him packing, daughter?¡± ¡°I do not guess your plans, father, but would prefer you not to.¡± ¡°This is a different side to you, daughter!¡± the baron said, surprised. ¡°I have taken other life-changing decisions myself from anger and frustration and hurt, I know. I now try to do things rightly.¡± ¡°Baron, this is duchess Hayeel.¡± Hayeel said, not letting Takeel lift her finger from the transmit switch. ¡°Your daughter is technically under my authority here, but she asked me to place this decision into your hands out of respect for family ties. As I must by law lend my own authority to your decision, and given that there has been a history of unfortunate decisions made, I ask that you consider carefully and then explain your reasons to me, so that I may know you are thinking of what is best.¡± ¡°What law gives you such authority, duchess?¡± ¡°The laws that name me ambassador to Caneth, baron, and make me responsible for the actions of all here in service of the empire, and the laws, customs and orders that have assigned your daughter to be commanding officer of my guard, which all assume will grow and become the new empress''s guard, may God speed the day of my wedding and grant a long life to his Imperial Majesty.¡± ¡°You will become empress?¡± he asked. ¡°The future is in the hands of God, Baron. But with their imperial majesties'' approval, his Imperial Highness has untied my hair.¡± ¡°And you approve of this relationship?¡± ¡°Your daughter has my consent to ask for the approval of her family. I will give my own opinion if I feel that her family give or refuse approval without due consideration. I understand that your honourable mother knows the man in question.¡± ¡°But you will not name him?¡± ¡°Names are misleading sometimes, Baron. He is lord sixth rank, son of the duchess of Tenik, heir to that title, and shares your daughter''s faith in Jesus.¡± ¡°Granddaughter!¡± an elderly woman''s voice came on, ¡°What are you thinking of? He made twenty or more proposals before he left.¡± ¡°He promised his prince that he would try to marry, terrified of the trip, and intending to see if I or my companion might accept him at such short notice. He had been unable to decide which of us he liked most. Then he heard we would both be guarding the duchess, and he realised he was more terrified that both of us might find someone while away from the empire than he was of travel. Rather than renege on the promise, he made a game of it, finding ways to ask that were almost guaranteed to get a refusal, for example asking a girl who scorned faith in Christ and enjoyed travelling if she would do him a favour and abandon her lack of faith and help him escape this trip to a barbarian country full of pretty Christian girls; not that he''d mind the pretty Christians it was just the having to leave home seeing new places he wasn''t keen on.¡± ¡°I see¡± her grandmother said, understanding but not approving, ¡°And then he decided on the way?¡± ¡°No, grandma, it was only yesterday when the duchess demanded I speak of the pain that prompted me to join the guard that he realised I was Nulay''s archer-friend and I understood who he was.¡± ¡°And suddenly he has proposed on those grounds?¡± ¡°He has not proposed, grandma. But I do not feel comfortable accepting him as formal suitor without my family''s blessing.¡± ¡°Why would you be so nervous, daughter?¡± her father asked. ¡°Father, you know the accusations against me, surely? To accept me, he must openly speak of mother''s deception. It may be that you will be called upon to say why I did not speak to Nulay that last time he visited.¡± ¡°You''d had a normal-sized argument with your mother and gone for a walk. Not like the one the next week, when you left for good. But I don''t know what you argued about, for all I know it might have been about you marrying Nulay. All I heard was you saying you''d argued with your mother again and were going out for a walk.¡± ¡°Did I tell you where I was walking, father, do you remember?¡± Takeel asked. ¡°Where you always did. Ah, I understand! Your mother''s lie is plainly contradicted, is it not? If you had no desire to see Nulay, why would you walk to his tree? I will be a witness to your total innocence, daughter.¡± ¡°Thank you, father.¡± ¡°Now, let me talk to your would-be-suitor.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 31: Cooking

Planet 5 / Ch. 31: Cooking

Post contact report: Evnela / thought-hearing anomaly, update 2 It is now a week since the return to consciousness of the young woman rescued from mid-ocean, Evnela. She is from the island of Captita, the furthest of the islands upwind from the continent. Her mother died years ago, and the rest of the family ¡ª her brother and father ¡ª were in the boat with her when the storm struck. She says that she was drifting for longer than she can remember, praying that God would send someone to come and rescue her. She''d heard that there were terrifying big pink aliens trying to talk to people and she''d told God that she''d far rather be rescued by a terrifying big pink alien than die alone or be eaten by the sea monsters she''d heard about, especially if the aliens were actually kind and knew God. Sebastian is thus her answer to prayer, and she''s delighted to be able to discuss God with him. She finds it perfectly normal that she should hear his thoughts because he rescued her from certain death, which is, she says, one of the most significant attunements. She has been filling us in on a lot of history about the recent war, and of course she''s willing to be our translator and informant in exchange for food, accommodation and clothes. When she says this, she looks at Sebastian significantly, and he blushes. When pressed he explains that she remembers that she fell into the water when getting off the boat and onto the probe ship, and that Sebastian jumped into the water, gently rescued her and then wrapped her in the blanket she currently insists on wearing sari-style. He then goes on to explain that the implication of ''going for a swim with her and offering her a sari'' is that he was asking her to be his wife, and her wearing it means that she''s accepted the betrothal, and that she argues that if he didn''t mean it that way, he ought to have let Sathie ¡ª who was co-pilot ¡ª wrap her up. Explanations about her urgent need of medical care carry no weight. Apparently he''d hoped he could convince Evnela privately to drop the crazy idea, which is why he''d not said anything. Evnela''s wounds ¡ª a broken arm and leg ¡ª happened when the top of the mast broke off and fell on her, and would have meant permanent disfigurement assuming she didn''t succumb to an infection. Her father had put the splints on her in a lull in the storm, but then the storm had returned and she''d passed out from the pain of being slammed into the side of the boat, and had woken up alone. She looks at the casts she''s in now in wonder and thankfulness and asks why she would want to go back to being part-time local judge and fisherwoman who was constantly afraid that one of the local pirates might get drunk and decide to rape her? ''Didn''t Sebastian like her enough to spare her that?'' Sebastian translates that with groans, quite certain of what will come next, having been through this before: if he says anything about friendship she will start emotional blackmail that he''s only saying friendship instead of love because he thinks she''s ugly. Why did young Seb think he could convince her to drop the idea of marriage on his own? He''s putty in her elegant green fingers. ¡°How old are you? How long do your people live? Sebastian is only seventeen, not old enough to marry.¡± It turns out that she''s his age, they live about the same length as humans, and that she actually has a suitor back home (of whom her father approved, but whom she despises). She''s been part-time judge for the last two years, which is a hereditary position. We explain that normally our people don''t marry until in their twenties, we''ve no objections to her staying, and can she please stop scaring Sebastian? She is also able to cast some light on the anomaly: a large proportion of young children do hear their mother''s thoughts, in her experience, but sensible mothers tell stories about the tangus and the mangus (mythical worse versions of the thought-duplicating predators), the tangus on land, the mangus at sea, luring children away to eat, so they should only pay attention if they can see her. The real reason was that the doom guard would steal those who showed thought-hearing abilities. By young adulthood there is ''no need'' to hear anyone''s thoughts, and indeed ''it''s really embarrassing''. This sparks a discussion about the gift as opposed to the normal thought-hearing power, which prompts her to leap across the room and sit in Sebastian''s lap. Eventually he recovers enough to say that now she''s certain she wants to marry him. We point out that groups of explorer-missionaries like ours do not normally stay more than five or ten years, that if we stayed too long we might damage their culture too much, and that there were a lot of other planets to explore. That cold hard truth stuns her, and she starts to make a low keening dirge, which Sebastian describes as her pouring out her bottled-up anguish to God. While declarations of future cross-species marriage cause him intense embarrassment, it is clear that this is more than he can stand, and holding her, he says, ''Sometimes it has happened that good friends have left their planets and explored with us. It is complicated and depends on too many things.'' That is how Evnela joined the research team and why she is happily submitting to intensive comparative medical investigations. Her genome is entirely non-earthlike, of course, with entirely different base pairs. Remaining advocates of the prehistoric panspermia theory will gain no support from her cell nuclei. Nor will supporters of the ''same patterns, different materials'' theory find support in her cellular structure. There is clearly no possibility of any genetic compatibility. However, the proteins their cells produce, their skeletal structure and the food they eat are all remarkably similar. None of their food is poisonous to us, none of ours is poisonous to her. Diseases are significantly different, and her cells are as immune to our viruses as we are to hers. Physical similarities, internal and external, abound, and the surgeons have stated that basic surgical techniques will carry over almost without modification. Clearly the creator intended to show us something, we''re just not sure what. Or maybe he wanted to show them something.
The kitchens, Embassy of Dahel ¡°Bilay, you''re cooking?¡± Malene asked. ¡°Is that so very unusual?¡± Bilay asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she said, matter of factly. ¡°Shocking in fact.¡± ¡°Sorry to shock you,¡± ¡°When did you learn?¡± she asked, curious. ¡°Oh, mother taught me some, and then when my knee was first injured I became camp-cook, pot-stirring being something I could do. Are you looking for Taheela?¡± ¡°Oh, I just came to get a drink, and escape from Saval''s offer of extra language practice. Can I help somehow?¡± ¡°Pealing tubers? That''s what I''ve been doing when not making sure this doesn''t burn. What''s happening in the rest of the embassy? Other than Takeel hearing about her parents, I mean.¡± ¡°Gathal is nervously waiting to talk to her father, your prince and my duchess are keeping up morale, Gahel... as far as I know Gahel has gone shopping or something like that.¡± ¡°Of course, yes. He and Taheela''s husband and boys went to look at some horses to pull the carriage.¡± ¡°That sounds a reasonable idea, as long as I don''t have to muck out the stables.¡± ¡°I think it sounds like an expensive idea, the city isn''t that large. But on the other hand we are representing our country and Dahel is not poor and even Tesk''s ambassador keeps a horse and buggy.¡± ¡°Ah, status.¡± Malene said. ¡°You don''t approve of status?¡± Bilay asked. ¡°I spent a lot of my childhood in Kunga, before all Dahelese traders were told that the policy had changed. A status exercise that I did not appreciate.¡± ¡°Should I practice my Tunganese?¡± ¡°You may, if you wish.¡± she replied in that language. ¡°Does Saval speak Tunganese, do you know?¡± ¡°As far as I know, he does not,¡± he replied in the same language. ¡°Ah, poor Saval. He will not know know if we talk about the weather or about other things.¡± ¡°Is that a hint, lieutenant?¡± ¡°While I peel tubers and you cook, will you tell me how you learned Tunganese, Bilay? And then about your accident? You speak about yourself less than a guards-woman.¡± ¡°I have a brother, a new ''sis''...¡± ¡°Bilay, do you know what that word means?¡± Mahel interrupted in Dahelese. ¡°I heard it meant a woman friend.¡± ¡°Do not use it, please. It does not refer to the sort of relationship any of God''s people should consider.¡± ¡°I humbly apologise, Malene. I heard it when I was young, and asked my father. It did not occur to me he spoke euphemistically.¡± ¡°You learned from your father?¡± she prompted. ¡°Father was a warrior from Tunga, mother was the youngest daughter of a baron''s grandson. Thus I am technically noble but only of eleventh rank. Such a lowly rank that my children will not be noble, unless my children marry a higher noble or I gain advancement. When I was young and foolish, I had dreams of doing that through extraordinary military service. Ultimately that was the cause of my injury: pride and status-seeking. I took a risk in a training exercise, disabling a siege engine for fame and glory. I didn''t think of what all that weight would do when it fell over, it should have killed me. Instead I escaped with a smashed knee. My commanding officer said I was exceptionally brave, honest to the point of stupidity, good at maths, and given the lack of forethought I''d shown in the heat of a mock-battle, totally unsuited to a command position. He recommended that I serve as a bodyguard or quartermaster. Now I serve my prince instead of pride, as accountant-cum-bodyguard-cum-secretary.¡± ¡°And you don''t mind travel?¡± ¡°I was worried for my post when my prince first thought of chasing here after your duchess, with the thought I could not walk so far.¡± Bilay replied, ¡°I don''t mind travel in principle, and the ship was more comfortable than a horse.¡± ¡°Are your parents still alive? You spoke of them in the past tense.¡± ¡°Father was killed in a raid on a bandit camp when I was fourteen. Mother lives, devotes herself to cleaning the house, tending father''s memorial stone, and lives in a fantasy that one day it will be found that it was a case of a mistaken report, that father wasn''t killed but only injured and he''ll return home as soon as he''s able. Perhaps when my brother has children she will snap out of it, I don''t know.¡± ¡°Sad.¡± ¡°Yes. Your parents?¡± ¡°Are fine. Father is still trading in exotic handcrafts from the outer kingdoms, mother''s parting words to me were that she''d be perfectly happy if I found myself a tattooed barbarian husband with a stone axe, as long as he didn''t slurp his soup, that being a barbarism too far.¡± ¡°Lieutenant Malene, you are a very attractive woman who I respect greatly, both in your military skills and your dedication to God. I''m going to take that as hint that Saval''s eating habits mean he''s not the focus of your attention, and I''d like to formally express my delight in your company and my desire that our friendship deepen past mere attraction into lasting love, once you feel more settled.¡± ¡°Very nicely phrased, Bilay. I acknowledge your expression of interest, and cherish your kind words. I don''t reject your hopes, but...¡± ¡°But you asked for some weeks to settle in, and have not yet had a day. And...¡± ¡°And you need to make sure the food doesn''t burn.¡± He grinned his thanks to her. While stirring he said, ¡°And I think you would not want to embark on the path of love without being sure you were convinced, any more than I would.¡± ¡°What convinced you?¡± ¡°Your first encounter with countess Hayeel, actually.¡± ¡°When I thought it unlikely that she could hear thoughts?¡± ¡°With due respect to the captain, I did not find it at all attractive that she openly questioned the judgement of her superior in regard to information shared with a close ally. You only mentally questioned a surprising claim and immediately apologised.¡± ¡°That sounds like a dismissal of Takeel, not a choosing of me.¡± ¡°Ah, but there was never any doubt in my mind that I would like to marry a woman from the guard, and on our way here I think all four of us were thinking hopeful thoughts about you two.¡± ¡°You and the rest of the crew, almost. That''s just availability, I think.¡± ¡°True. But I also claim some prior involvement in your coming, which is to say, I suggested to her majesty that believers would be better to send to a believing barbarian court, that a wider cultural experience and willingness to adapt to cultural norms would be preferable, a desire to travel rather than merely a desire to escape, and so on. Takeel had already been selected as the most senior officer to indicate willingness to come, but I phrased my suggestions so that you were the best qualified of the others.¡± ¡°But we''d not talked that much.¡± ¡°You don''t remember? I was on duty at the gate and you said, ''I''m thinking of applying to the empress''s guard, but I''ve heard rumours they practice a strange religion. Is that just stupid talk or is there any truth in it?''¡± ¡°And you said ''Most of them follow Christ, like the imperial family have for generations. Have you heard of that?'' And I was utterly shocked and said ''no'' meaning the imperial family following Christ. And then you started to explain the gospel. I didn''t recognise you at all, Bilay!¡± ¡°You weren''t looking at me much, you were looking around, like you were nervous of being spotted, whereas while you were correcting my presentation of the gospel I was noticing you and your earrings, and I thought of them when I saw the book of fashions here. Do you still have them?¡± ¡°Urm. Which ones?¡± ¡°Miniature Tungan daggers, blue and gold.¡± ¡°Oh wow. I wore those to the palace gate?¡± ¡°It seemed appropriate to me. And I thought, yes, a woman who wears Tungan honour-daggers in the central zone could probably cope with cultural changes and strange looks better than most, and I also thought this would be a good chance to get to know you.¡± ¡°I thought this trip would be a good chance to get to know you. I liked the way you analyse the text at studies.¡± ¡°So, we must talk more. When the time comes that you are more settled, would you like me to ask your parents'' approval?¡± ¡°It is not necessary, Bilay. I spoke to my parents about my motivations before I came. They are happy to delegate that responsibility to me. But... is rank truly of no importance to you now? As someone with access to his imperial highness, surely you could find at least a Lady-seventh rank to marry, and so preserve your noble line?¡± ¡°What would be the point? Are nobles truly any better? What point holding on to an empty title? Have you been swayed one way or another by my title?¡± ¡°Rather against, actually.¡± ¡°See? It is an empty thing, pride-feeding with no purpose.¡± ¡°But I''m unusual.¡± ¡°I prefer the adjective special.¡± ¡°Let me ask in a different way. If you learned that I had rank, would it affect how you felt about me?¡± ¡°Of course you have rank, lieutenant,¡± he said, smiling. ¡°And I expect you will rise higher, and if we marry the I will brim with pride for you when you gain each promotion.¡± ¡°Military rank is not the same as noble rank, Bilay.¡± ¡°No. It''s not.¡± ¡°Some people reject people because of noble rank. Others are so keen for it they will ignore feelings in search of it. You are convincing me that you''re not the latter, at least now. Are you of the former?¡± ¡°I don''t think so.¡± ¡°That''s all right then. I do have a noble rank, Bilay, and one day you might find it out, but I very much doubt you will hear me use it.¡± She laughed. ¡°For your information, all officers of the Empress''s guard are granted noble rank, a lieutenant is ninth rank, a general is sixth, so if we marry our children''s names could include -eel or -lay if we wanted to, without anyone learning my secret.¡± ¡°I didn''t know that about the guard.¡± ¡°Who would talk about it?¡± Malene asked. ¡°Does my prince know your rank?¡± ¡°Of course. Well... he was told anyway, and he was also told I prefer ''Malene'' without the ''Lady'' in front.¡± ¡°And should I be offering gifts according to the rules of the central zone?¡± ¡°I can play that game if you wish, but I think we see it for the foolishness it is, don''t we?¡± ¡°I think so. But foolishness can be fun. Someone must taste this sauce, and I would be happy if you would accept it.¡± ¡°And what can I give in return? I am not going to waste an hour trying to draw something remotely acceptable.¡± ¡°I would like to see you wearing your earrings, if that is not too much to ask.¡± ¡°Such a bold request! I will if I like the sauce.¡±
Heart of the empire ¡°Ah, captain Thadlay!¡± Baneel said, ¡°Takeel sends her greetings and suggests I ask you about churches. I know of precisely none, though I gave my life to Christ some time ago.¡± ¡°None?¡± Thadlay asked stunned. ¡°I understand they exist, and that one can attend, and hear teaching from the Bible in them. But I never felt brave enough to tell my parents I''d turned to Christ, and have never entered a church, I don''t even know what happens in one in detail. Are they all the same?¡± ¡°No, they are not. The one nearest to your parents house, for instance, I''m sure you''d be welcome, but almost everyone is a slave. There is no slave or free, but... the sermons are simple, dealing with the issues that face a slave or the lowest rank of soldier, things like ''Do not cheat or bully or steal. It is better to ask a brother or sister in Christ for food than rebel against your master, and when your brother asks to share your meal, give and God will reward you.''¡± ¡°I had not realised there was such poverty.¡± Baneel said. ¡°Do other churches offer support, like Paul took the offering to Jerusalem?¡± ¡°It is more individuals who do so, normally, and... it is complicated. There are some who do not work because of the generosity of others and their own laziness. And others who are willing to work but should not, because they are at home so infrequently anyway, and are tempted to idolise their work and money.¡± ¡°And churches that are not so full of those problems?¡± ¡°There are different churches with different problems, yes. Sorry, I am not sounding very optimistic, am I? I just do not want you to be so disappointed when you find that the world affects the churches.¡± ¡°Paul called the church in Corinth saints, I understand, Captain Thadlay. But I am so unfamiliar... would it be inappropriate of me to ask where you go to Church?¡± The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You save me the embarrassment of saying that mine is the next closest, Lady Baneel.¡± ¡°Then you could accompany me there, so I do not get lost?¡± ¡°It would be my honour, Lady Baneel.¡± ¡°I presume I wear neither a ball-gown nor these gardening clothes, is that correct?¡± ¡°I must wear my uniform, but yes.¡± He thought desperately; trying to gauge ladies'' clothes was not something he was used to. Hesitantly, he said, ¡°Clothes fitting for visiting a relative, perhaps? But towards the simple side.¡± ¡°I shall dress simply, and I can count on you to be a gentleman and excuse me to your friends if I err, yes?¡± ¡°Certainly, Lady Baneel.¡± ¡°When can I expect you to come for me, Captain, and how can I repay such a favour?¡± ¡°I ask for no repayment, Lady Baneel, you honour me by placing yourself in my care.¡± Then he became acutely embarrassed, ¡°Sorry, Lady Baneel, I didn''t mean to suggest...¡± ¡°So that there will be neither wagging tongues, nor false impressions, Captain, I will think of an appropriate thank you. But you must tell me when I should be ready!¡± ¡°Church starts at half past ten, Lady Baneel. It is perhaps a fifteen or twenty minute walk,¡± Thadlay said. ¡°I am sure I do not walk as fast as you, captain, so I shall be ready at quarter to ten and expect you between then and ten. If you arrive early enough, you can advise me if what I''m wearing is not appropriate. I do not wish to distract people.¡± ¡°They will be surprised in any case that I accompany a beautiful young woman to church. More so if you will do me that same honour next week as well.¡± ¡°Oh, certainly, captain, God willing! I do not expect to give up on your church after only a single meeting.¡± ¡°I was...¡± he trailed off, blushed and started again ¡°Would you accept my escorting you there when it is no longer strictly necessary?¡± It came out in a gabble. ¡°If no other would object, then who am I to, Captain Thadlay, when you know the shame my mother brings me? My sister tells me you are a good man, if a little shy. If I ever bore of your company or your handsome face, I shall tell you plainly. But if we are to keep company, let me talk of gifts, I appreciate them, of course, but please, let us limit ourselves to tokens that cost nothing or almost nothing. A pretty shell from the river bank or a flower found by the wayside, some lines from a poem or a simple sketch.¡± ¡°Your kind and modest words bring such joy to my heart, I cannot express it, lady Baneel.¡± ¡°Some would say it''s not particularly modest of me to agree so speedily, or to speak so plainly, but Takeel said you were shy, and I thought that if I was more hesitant you might take that as a refusal.¡± ¡°Your sister knows me well. But that you do not seek expensive gifts is surely modest?¡± ¡°How could I request expensive gifts, when you have just opened my eyes to the poverty around me? I expect to have deep questions for us to discuss at our next meeting, captain, if you do not mind?¡± ¡°Not at all, Lady Baneel. I cannot promise answers, but I will happily struggle at them with you.¡±
The Heart of the Empire, the next day ¡°Welcome to today''s throne-room,¡± the emperor said, in munificent manner. They were on the edge of the small wood in the heart. ¡°Imperial majesty, your room is rather lacking walls.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Or a ceiling.¡± ¡°We will be shaded from the mid-day sun by the trees, and the afternoon breeze is cooling. The temperature is quite pleasant, is it not?¡± ¡°It is, but I wonder if my fellow ambassadors think you might be teasing them.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Or a carefully calculated insult, perhaps? Thank you, lady ambassador, for raising the possibility so I can deny it. This is indeed the location of the imperial throne today, unless it starts raining. You may stay the entire day if you choose, and witness the business of the empire at work. At one point we will visit two rooms that do not move, for practical reasons. My beloved wife will be cooking for us, so if you have any particular dietary restrictions, please do let her know.¡± ¡°I am deeply moved to be accorded such honour, imperial majesty,¡± Tangseng said, ¡°but I am also deeply deeply confused at what has happened to the room or possibly rooms, where I normally meet you.¡± ¡°Ah! The outer throne-rooms? You don''t want to go to one of them do you? Horrible places. And in the central zone, too. I avoid the central zone like the plague. So many rigid traditions and formalities. You are now in the heart of the empire, where things change. The throne room changes, because my great-great grandfather was shown a carefully aimed cannon-ball hitting a hut as far away as we are here from the river-bank, and drew some rather obvious conclusions about it being much harder to hit a mobile target than one that was always in the same place. You may of course inform your monarchs of this, but I expect they know it. It''s not why you''re here. No, you''re here today because of a mistake, and a solution.¡± ¡°The empire of Dahel admits a mistake?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°I''m shocked, shocked!¡± The emperor laughed. ¡°Lady Tangseng, have you been nominated as spokesperson?¡± ¡°I do not actually know these good ladies.¡± Tangseng said, ¡°No, but I have spoken to your good wife on a number of occasions. She said that you hated the formality of the central zone, and I take her at her word.¡± ¡°Good. Yes, Dahel admits a mistake, and we have made another one. Please, ladies, introduce yourselves to each other.¡± ¡°I am Tangseng, trader of Kanuga, and message bearer from Her Majesty, now named in a most irregular manner, lady ambassador, and equivalent rank to a duchess of Dahel.¡± ¡°I am Ginthel of Kunga, my sister Kunthel bears the crown, long may God keep her there. His happy majesty has sprung the same surprise on me.¡± ¡°I am Ungana of Azunga, second daughter of the queen, shocked at this change from unchanging Dahel, and hoping the result is not that I must return to our independent swamps.¡± ¡°You could always beg his majesty to allow you to stay.¡± Tangseng said, ¡°or perhaps your mother would send you further away to negotiate with the that warmonger in Tew.¡± ¡°Tew is now ruled by Queen Yalisa, who follows Christ,¡± the Emperor said, ¡°Caneth''s de-facto ruler is princess-regent Esmetherelda, likewise. The Three Isles are still ruled by king Val, but his son is married to Esmetherelda, so Caneth and the Isles will become a new entity. They reject the name Windward Empire, but in effect they will be an empire of two countries and are inviting Tesk to join them, and Tew also.¡± ¡°And what happens in Tesk, other than arguments and starvation?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°Tesk has a high council of thought-hearers once again. All trust in Christ. They purge themselves of dum-semb, the death-cult of the doom-guard, which had almost regained total control of the army and the committee they call parliament. Oh, I forgot to say, Esmetherelda is also a thought-hearer, as is duchess Hayeel of Repink, made lady ambassador to Caneth by Esmetherelda. My son intends to marry Hayeel, and she is quite happy about the idea. Hayeel intends to employ other thought-hearers from Tesk to help confirm that there are no dum-semb believers in the civil service or military. It seems likely that there are.¡± ¡°This is the mistake of the empire? That you do not check the backs of civil servants?¡± ¡°There are many following dum-semb who have no markings. No, the mistake we admit is failing to stop an academician from Tesk from leaving before he had spoken to representatives of all the leeward monarchies.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°He told you about dum-semb?¡± ¡°No. Most of the political news has come to us since he left. The other part of the mistake is that we expected you to hear from the other messengers what he said. The academician said that the world will end unless the aliens come back. He was convincing. And even if they come back, they might not be able to help. We should all pray.¡± ¡°Mother will not turn to Christ,¡± Ungana said. ¡°She sees it as a plot of the empire.¡± ¡°Sometimes it seems your mother sees the tide as a plot of the empire,¡± Ginthel said. ¡°Not particularly polite, ambassador Ginthel.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°I do not need to be polite, we are relatives.¡± Expanding, when Ungana raised an eyebrow, she added ¡°She is my husband''s brother-in-law''s daughter-in-law''s godmother''s neighbour. We send each other insults on birthdays.¡± ¡°Mother does not agree with this as a valid use for the word ''relative'',¡± Ungana said ¡°But she does indeed send Ginthel insults. And jars of swamp mosquitoes and leaches.¡± ¡°Do I dare ask why?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°It is to prove if I have any royal blood in my veins.¡± the older woman said, in a bored tone. ¡°The crazy bat thinks that these blood-suckers will die if they drink royal blood.¡± ¡°It is true, they do.¡± Ungana replied. ¡°To suck royal blood is a terrible personal insult, for which the penalty is death. If you were of royal blood you would know this and destroy any that dared to try in horrible ways.¡± ¡°Why do I need to get eaten to prove I can kill a swamp mosquito?¡± ¡°The true royal will only kill the guilty,¡± Ungana replied. ¡°That you burn all says you are a merciless tool of the uncaring empire.¡± ¡°As you see, imperial majesty, we love each other dearly,¡± Ginthel summarised, ¡°who but relatives would invent such ways to tease one another.¡± ¡°Deadly enemies, perhaps?¡± Tangseng guessed. ¡°I am glad that peace-loving Kanuga is a long way from Azunga.¡± ¡°I am glad I am a long way from Azunga. Uncaring and powerful emperor, could you perhaps build some canals in Tunga to divert the rivers from the swamps and straight into the sea? Mother would hate you for it of course, but she hates you anyway, and the cattle farmers would rise up and call you blessed.¡± ¡°Until the peat dried up, and burned in the summer heat, and the land turned to desert, as happened in the Azu-Tunga.¡± ¡°Better a burned and lifeless desert than a mosquito-infested swamp, I feel, but oh well, I can tell mother I tried.¡± Ungana said. Tangseng looked at Ungana and asked, ¡°You tried, as in this was your mother''s request?¡± ¡°No! To ask the empire to turn Azunga into a desert is my plan to become exiled from there. Mother keeps refusing to exile me.¡± ¡°Ungana, do you feel unable to represent your mother?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°I can very easily pretend to hate you and scorn our neighbours, Imperial Majesty. Please forgive any forlorn attempt I make at ensuring I never have to return.¡± ¡°All right, Ungana,¡± Ginthel said, ¡°now pretend you are an adult, and answer reasonably.¡± ¡°I will attempt to represent my sister imperial majesty. Mother reserves the right to scream invective in this general direction, but Azuna handles detailed policy matters these days.¡± ¡°Ah! A development I was not aware of.¡± ¡°Azuna is also in favour of some hydrological engineering. Geographically the only place to put a bypass canal is within Tunga, between the top of the cataracts that lead into the Azunga plateau and the where it leaves. A total diversion would lead to the Azu-Tunga situation, a partial diversion, with carefully control of water flow could turn Azunga into a green and fertile land of excellent quality fields, like the semi-drained battle-marshes of Kanuga.¡± Ungana said, ¡°Obviously, that''s not going to happen while that part of Tunga is the empire''s and Azunga is not. This is why it has been Azunga''s desire to claim that small piece of land for centuries, and the potential productivity of a semi-drained Azunga is why the Tunganese have steadfastly classed that rocky near-desert as of vital economic interest and prime arable land, claiming such untruths as ''it was a harsh summer'' or ''we just harvested'' whenever official observers queried it. If the empire ceded that strip of land to Azunga as part of a treaty to become a vassal state, then even mother might sign it. Your majesty should expect Tunganese protestations that I have been able to speak so freely without them around to monitor my words and slip a poisoned knife into me for daring to say them, as has happened to a number of previous spokespeople from Azunga, if you remember, imperial majesty. If you present digging the canal to the Tunganese as a way to threaten Azunga with economic and environmental blackmail unless we enter the empire, then they might not try to kill all the canal workers, I don''t know. But whatever happens, I''d like to see the control sluices or whatever guarded by imperial troops from outside Tunga, because there''s too much bad blood between us and our Tungan neighbours, and they''d love to see us as a new Azu-Tunga.¡± ¡°You know the geography better than I, how long a channel are you talking about?¡± ¡°I would not risk going there, imperial majesty. But I have heard it was two days walk. But there are different options. The fast one would be what was done in Azu-Tunga: cause a blockage so the water cannot enter the cataracts, and flows over the banks. But that risks the water all going that way. The slower way is to build a canal, as I said, with control gates that allow some to pass. The problem with everything is the spring floods. They roll stones larger than a house around. If the canal is dug too deeply, one flood could turn it into the main river bed.¡± ¡°I told Esmetherelda that nothing I could offer would bring any of the leeward kingdoms into the empire. You are certain that Azunga would like to prove me a liar?¡± Bowing low, she said, ¡°Imperial majesty, if that question, in the context of what I have said, is the message you ask me to deliver to mother, I will take it now.¡± ¡°Do not leave yet, please. We have other things to discuss.¡± ¡°Truly the world must be ending,¡± Ginthel said, ¡°If Ungana is eager to return home.¡± ¡°I wish to reach home before any Tungans hear. I would not dare to travel through Tunga in a week.¡± ¡°I say two things to you, lady ambassador. Firstly, my son travelled to Caneth on a ship from Tesk. He has arrived safely, and you will be able to question him later today if you stay. The other is that a lord or lady forth-rank can demand military escort on any trip, commensurate to the danger he or she perceives.¡± ¡°Coastal trade routes to the leeward nations are strictly forbidden, imperial majesty,¡± Ginthel said. ¡°Your queens like to surprise the empire, I have noticed. I like to surprise my neighbours from time to time. In recognition of your high status and importance to the empire, the risks of winter travel across the mountains, and the importance of good communications, I present you with these.¡± Tangseng looked at what the emperor had presented to her, and sat down. Then she read it again. ¡°Imperial majesty...¡± ¡°I highly recommend you only consider a vessel from the Windward Isles or Tesk, with a captain of good repute. It will be unfamiliar waters, to them, of course. Unless it so happens that they''ve been blown too far by a storm, as happens to some young captains before they learn the risks of such imprudence.¡± ¡°You grant us rights of any cargo to and from any port?¡± ¡°As long as you are travelling with the vessel, and as long as you are undertaking the trip in your roles as ambassadors. Yes. That limit requires that you are carrying diplomatic messages from me to your monarch or replies, or authorisation to visit a certain destination for a tour of inspection.¡± ¡°The certification is made to me personally.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Yes. You will notice that if you are without trade goods, you personally may travel freely, along with your travelling companions and the crew of the ship you are on. That does not depend on your being ambassador, lady Tangseng, and is intended to protect you from being stranded if your monarch names another ambassador. But that is why I do not know if I will issue a similar one to your successors, it has to do with personal trust.¡± ¡°And so we may have paperwork to enable escaped prisoners or slaves to evade justice, but you do not promise to trust that our successors will not use it in that way. I thank you for the confidence you show, imperial majesty.¡± ¡°Oh, I will not mind as long as you restrict yourselves to a few escaped slaves you trust as travel companions per trip, ladies, as long as you think they have a reasonable chance of living freely and contributing to your native lands and you do not charge for the service. You will have to supply them with official looking documentation showing their new citizenship, of course.¡± ¡°Official-looking?¡± Ungana asked. ¡°I think it will be hard to issue official papers before you are confirmed in your roles. Lady ambassador Hayeel says that the embassies of Caneth and the Isles issue protective citizenship to slaves from Tew under certain circumstances, such as marriage to one of their citizens. By all means do the same. I despise slave ownership as an institution, but am yet to convince myself that outlawing it would not result in wide-scale riots, rape and murder. So it will change step by step. In a few days there will be new laws that increase the punishments for officials who do not apply the laws on the protection of slaves, and declaring that any person entering the empire without documentation is to be issued papers declaring them free, and making an attempt to register or re-register someone foreign-born or foreign-speaking as a slave evidence that they have been kidnapped and traded illegally. Hopefully, this will ruin the latest tricks of slave-traders.¡± ¡°''Foreign-speaking''?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°It is rather vague, isn''t it? I think that in a month or so I should clarify that it should be taken to say if they speak Tunganese with, say, an Azungan or Kanugan accent they cannot be registered or re-registered. We cannot have people born free traded as slaves, can we? This is not a social change, just an administrative change on the rules of evidence.¡± ¡°Imperial majesty,¡± Ungana said, ¡°There is some difficulty in distinguishing an Azungan accent from that of our neighbours. Especially that spoken among the slaves.¡± ¡°Yes. The clarification will have to be very clear, will it not? I am thinking it should say that a slave who makes a reasonable claim to be from Azunga and speaks appropriately must be freed and allowed to return home without penalty and with sufficient supplies for the journey. And of course that such interviews may happen in the presence of foreign delegates but the self-proclaimed owner may not be present. I trust your governments will be very discreet in offering any pronunciation lessons.¡± ¡°I will tell mother she is wrong about you, Imperial Majesty.¡± Ungana said. ¡°Then I will have to be the sceptic and ask why the sudden change of heart?¡± said Ginthel. ¡°Father called slavery an unavoidable evil that stained the soul of Dahel. I have long considered the balance of whether it was necessary or not to depend on a single thread, known as the prophecy of the final kingdom. I think it is better described as the prophecy of the next empress, but never mind. The unedited version is here. Its author was my father''s grandmother. ''Grandson of my grandson,'' ¡ª Salay ¡ª ''do not reject the noble virgin born of the slave.'' Duchess Hayeel''s grandmother was falsely accused of a crime and reduced to slavery. ''Is the law''s mistake her fault?'' The miscarriage of justice was discovered just after the old duchess''s death and the internal affairs department didn''t bother making restitution in such cases unless a request was made, by a slave ignorant of the procedure and unable to travel; an inhuman, stupid policy I was ignorant of until Salay investigated Hayeel''s past a few months ago and triggered restitution of the title. A further stupid administrative error meant that Hayeel''s mother could not be freed by her husband because she came to him as an inheritance. If you accuse this empire of having an idiotic and heartless bureaucracy I will agree. There needs to be reform. ''Why must those freed by Jesus'' blood still lie in bondage?'' Great-great grandma didn''t like slavery either, and the answer is, they don''t. ''The sky shall be fire'' Yes. I''m sure you''ve noticed that. ''and there shall be two rulers over kings, one last kingdom over all.'' That is why you''re here. What does that look like? The current suggestion is a committee of nations. I plan to nominate prince Hal and princess Esmetherelda, as chairs since it''s their idea and they didn''t know about the prophecy until... actually they might not know about this bit at all. ''The learned will call'' ¡ª this is to do with the so-called challenge of Tesk. The aliens asked that when we had managed to stop fighting and had something like a united government, had totally ended human sacrifice and weren''t going to worship them as gods or try to sacrifice our daughters to them, then could we please send a certain signal from both extremes of the continent at the same time and they''d come back and say hi again.'' We''ve almost got the technology now, but we''re not ready. Two months ago, Tesk had more dum-semb believers than when the aliens left, and they surely won''t have just stayed on Tesk, and a united government of the Windward nations looks vaguely possible in a decade, maybe, but a global empire seems impossible within the next generation. The closest we have is the committee of nations. ''And the faithful will pray,'' We need to pray that the aliens do decide to visit, and that they come quickly enough for it to not be too late. ''And the King of kings and Lord of Lords will send help from the skies to the earthly rulers over kings, and so the sun shall not destroy.'' May God be blessed for that promise!'' ''What does it matter who has the crown over all, when all earthly rulers bow as one to the King of Kings?'' Your mother is a problem there, lady Ungana, but maybe if she will agree to what you say, it ceases to be one. ''But my child, you will not sit on your father''s throne long without the teacher whose gift is like mine beside you, because the sun will destroy. You must be one in faith, one in hope, one in flesh, replacing unthinking laws and traditions of desolation, united in thought and tongue.'' More qualifications that point to Hayeel: thought-hearer, and teacher, a native speaker of Dahelese. There are not many thought-hearing speakers of Dahelese, and only duchess Hayeel was born to a slave. It looks like they need to be married before the aliens are called, but I don''t know why that might be important. Unthinking laws and traditions of desolation... Hayeel thought that might be the stupid law on Tesk that prevented the king of the Isles visiting and allowed dum-semb to flourish. I''m not so sure. I suspect that social change will need to become a feature of the central zone. I''m allowed to say that here, in the heart of the empire. But there are a lot of unthinking traditionalists out there in the central zone who disagree. Please convey my apologies to your respective monarchs for Dahel not being more open before now about scary things that could lead to riots in the streets, but we''re traditionally rather scared of those things. Probably that''s something to do with the relative size of our army to the populace. Any questions?¡± ¡°You have been so honest and open, imperial majesty.¡± Tangseng said, ¡°May I speak of these things to my husband as well as my government?¡± ¡°The man you introduced to us as your body-guard is your husband?¡± ¡°He is now, yes, finally!¡± ¡°That sounds like a story that needs telling.¡± ¡°I saw Tuga at a slave market, as a five year voluntary debt-slave. I liked the look of him and of the testimonials he had and asked him if he''d like to travel and work as my body guard for five years. He smiled and said that sounded like just the sort of honest work he''d hoped for to save his family farm, so I bought his contract. I gave him his liberty before we got to the border, and he said he''d agreed to be my body-guard for five years and he was going to keep the bargain. He then convinced me to trust Jesus, and this summer I finally convinced him that I really did want to meet his mum and sister. They were doing well, and while he was cutting some firewood I flat out told his sister that he''d been serving me voluntarily for two years, I thought he liked me and I had been dropping hints but he''d ignored them, and could she please find out what he really thought? I added that if he thought he needed to wait the full five years to propose then he was infuriatingly wrong. She took the blunt approach and at the next meal asked when he was planning to ask me to marry him, and that sparked our first significant argument, him saying it wasn''t his place to ask, since he was my slave, I said he''d had his liberty papers for two years, and him saying that was just because there weren''t slaves in Kanuga, I said no, ¡ª and I probably called him some names ¡ª it was because I didn''t agree with slavery and if he was only staying with me because he thought he had to then he should stay here and stop playing with my emotions. He said fine, he would, and I admit I actually burst into uncontrollable tears and fled to my room.¡± ¡°You can''t stop the story there, Tangseng!¡± Ungana protested. ¡°Tuga''s mum came, found me me packing and weeping and told me not to leave until morning, because it wasn''t safe. I probably said something like I didn''t mind being eaten, and so she stayed and got me to talk about myself and so on for a few hours, then she dragged Tuga in by the ear, quite literally, and told him to apologise for breaking my heart like that, and if he didn''t say what he really thought about me then she''d not have him in the house. He admitted that he did like me, and he thought it might even be love, but he was getting confusing messages from me. I''d said that I was setting him free, but apparently I''d forgotten to sign that I was releasing him from all obligations to me and I had thought I didn''t need to put a reason in for why, and so he thought I''d been teasing him about it, and giving him incomplete paperwork. And he had also thought I was just teasing when I''d been dropping hints, and that his sister asking had been yet another nasty tease, and so on. I signed the bit that I''d missed, and added ''slavery is evil, and I want his love, not his obedience.'' for the reason for release. The next day we got his papers properly registered and sorted out, and then he asked me to go for a walk, which just happened to go past his pastor''s house. We haggled with the pastor about the date and compromised on the following weekend. I also found out that half the village was in debt to a certain man who was charging illegal interest, and got him to agree before the village judge that in exchange for people not pressing charges, and me buying the debt at the initial sum minus any repayments, he''d leave, never come back and work honestly.¡± ¡°So now half the village are in debt to you?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°I told the pastor and the judge about community credit schemes like we have at home and signed the debt over to one of those. We set it up so if, after writing off debts due to deaths or disasters, there''s profit at the end of the year, then half stays in the fund, and the other half is split equally between Tuga''s sister who''ll be keeping the accounts and the church who''ll be approving or denying loans. We calculate the year from harvest-to-harvest which makes sense to everyone, and it means that Tuga''s sister ought to get paid at harvest time, which ought to help avoid bad feelings when people forget how much I paid to provide that little income for her.¡± ¡°What happens if his sister can''t do the accounts?¡± ¡°Then that ''seeder''s claim'' as it''s called, goes to her or her descendants and she pays someone else to do them, or the church does.¡± ¡°And what does the church do with its portion?¡± ¡°Ensures that the needy don''t starve and uses it to benefit the community, for instance paying an extra teacher.¡± ¡°You have done a great deal of good to that village, Lady Tangseng,¡± the emperor said, ¡°But I am saddened that the baron or baroness could not take such an interest as you have.¡± ¡°I understand that there is no baron, imperial majesty, only an official tax collector. It makes sense to me to hear that the duchess of Repink has only just received back her title, it is in that duchy.¡± ¡°Ah. Then I am sure she will not mind me asking you to consider accepting the role of baroness.¡± ¡°I am a trader, imperial majesty. I move around. And you have made me an ambassador also.¡± ¡°Many barons and baronesses only visit their domains occasionally.¡± ¡°And does that please you, imperial majesty?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°Of course not. But I expect you would visit regularly, despite your other duties.¡± ¡°Do you try to corrupt my allegiance to my queen, Imperial Majesty? I think I must refuse.¡± ¡°You may discuss it with your queen. Until then, please tell my secretary the name of the barony if you know it, or the village if not. Ah, here comes Hayeela, perfect timing! After we''ve discussed lunch, I will show you the technology that means we can learn about events in Caneth and Tesk faster than even a duchy as close as Repink. At least at the moment. There may be changes to the convention on social change.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 32: Succession

Planet 5 / Ch. 32: Succession

Post contact report: Evnela / thought-hearing anomaly, update 3 After being with us for six months, Evnela reported the strange sensation of hearing the thoughts of others, as well as Sebastian''s through their attunement. She was a little bit nervous, thinking that it will be very embarrassing to hear other people''s internal thoughts and feelings. Sebastian reminds her that having our thoughts heard is something we are used to, that almost half of us on the team are thought-hearers and from his point of view it''s wonderful news. The attunement process seems to not allow her to hear him from far off, but this ''fully fledged'' thought hearing means that he can think to her wherever she is. Examining her thoughts he postulates that the entire population of thought-hearers have conditioned themselves to avoid using their ability, that their status is much like someone who has hidden their thoughts for too long, and their process of ''attunement'' is one of making as small a connection as possible built on mutual trust and past experience. Indeed, examining her thoughts further, he discovers that it is his trust of her, not to take advantage of his confused feelings towards her, and not to embarrass him any more by leaping on his lap, and so on, that is providing the catalyst. He also reports that her feelings for him have matured beyond anything that could be called a crush, and analysing his own he acknowledges that he loves her too. Both are now sane enough to not talk of an inter-species marriage, but agreed to seek God''s wisdom. The next day they both agreed that they enjoy one another''s company and care for each other a lot, but it would be much much better to consider one another brother and sister. With that in mind, Sebastian has offered, sometime, to seek out a good, righteous, and suitable husband for Evnela by his gift. And she laughingly said she would listen out for someone nice for him by hers. He pointed out that all the women here from the solar system were quite a bit older than him, at which point she observed that she''d heard there were relief teams coming out every year or so, so all he needed to do was wait and pray, surely? We all breathed a sigh of relief.
The ship ''Daybreak'' Off the coast of Kanuga ¡°Hello, Dahel, is this thing working?¡± Tangseng said. It was the fifth time she''d called in the last quarter of an hour. ¡°Hello from Tesk, you''re reaching here. Who''s that?¡± ¡°Tesk? Wow, I am Tangseng, named by his Imperial Majesty ambassador, and hoping my queen does not object too much. This ship is from Tesk, too, actually. It''s now approaching the coast of Kanuga.¡± ¡°Ah! Yes, we had heard about you from her imperial highness. You may tell the crew that the High Council expect that the last trial of a member of parliament will be today, meaning that parliament will be free from the religion of the doom-guard.¡± ¡°I will tell them. Actually. Captain Solm? This clever box is talking to Tesk now. Would you like a word?¡± ¡°Tesk? That little box can talk so far?¡± the captain asked. Tangseng released the transmit key. ¡°Hello Captain!¡± A girl''s voice came on, ¡°I''m high-councillor Sashan, Do I hear you''re the other side of the world?¡± ¡°Not quite the world, but certainly the other side of the continent! Well! I hear there have been changes since I was last home.¡± ¡°I''m sure there have been, yes. When was that?¡± ¡°Mid-summer.¡± ¡°Oh, masses of changes. The high council re-formed, the nobles out of hiding, the schools teach children about the evils of the doom-guard, and how the nobles arranged the timing of the rebellion. And everyone knows what the doom-guard''s religion is called again. The army is now free of dum-semb believers, and politics will soon be too, by the end of today. The academy has also been purged. Hopefully there will soon be no more need for executions, and the harbour will stop being be red.¡± ¡°May I ask how many deaths?¡± ¡°More than a thousand, captain. A quarter of the army officers had participated in a human sacrifice, almost all were well on the way to being convinced that the lives of normal people were valueless. The numbers are lower amongst politicians. A whole third of the academy administrative staff had been involved in human sacrifices, but in less... individual ways. The military normally picked their own victims, but some of the administrative staff actually believed it was just acting. Also, unlike the military, who were stubborn, only a third of the administrative staff held onto their death-religion in the face of their own date with justice, and instead pleaded to God for mercy, some soon enough to save their lives. The churches are full once more, with clear messages being taught about turning from sin and God''s forgiveness. Mid-week groups meet to discuss scripture.¡± ¡°I take it you are a believer?¡± ¡°I am, captain, as is all the high council.¡± ¡°And what will all these changes do for poor hungry families, eh?¡± ¡°God in his mercy has given a bumper crop of hedge-berries, captain. It''s absolutely amazing. Each day, by noon the hedges are bowed low, you know how they always ripen in a day, well by mid-afternoon the bushes are practically black. You can fill a bucket without moving your feet, I tried it, it''s true. And each night, more grow. I always marvelled at the old stories speaking of people eating hedge-berries until spring, but this year, I can believe it easily. Tesk will not starve this winter, I am sure.¡± ¡°Like in that old sea song my gran used to sing quietly, ''The harbour turned red, and the lanes turned black, the bad old days are never coming back.'', eh?¡± ¡°Exactly captain. But the bad days almost came back, and the only ones who even noticed were hiding from the mobs.¡± ¡°You''d better talk to the fisher-folk then, high councillor.¡± ¡°Oh, we''re doing that all right, Captain. Quite a few noble lines have come out of hiding from there. There''s a whole lot of sea-food off anyone''s menu though, it''s deep-water fish or nothing now. But do you happen to know Captain Davdo?¡± ¡°The Gem of Karet? I do indeed. He''s back in Tesk waters?¡± ¡°He is, yes. It seems there''s a bit of a market for Tesk woollens in Caneth, and following the long-term policy of the Isles, Princess-Regent Esmetherelda has dropped the export tariffs on low-grade Caneth grain.¡± ¡°Only low-grade? Why?¡± ¡°Because it''s filling but tastes pretty dire. In her words, she doesn''t want to hurt the prices the good farmers of Tesk can get for their good grain, but you''ve got to be pretty hungry to eat the low end grain, and who''s she to take food from people that hungry.¡± ¡°Why''s there a tariff on it, then, normally?¡± ¡°Because it''s got other uses beyond cheep food. Beer, for instance.¡± ¡°Ah. And the beer makers complain if they can''t get their cheap grain?¡± ¡°I presume so. I expect the customers do too, if the price goes up. Will you be returning to Wahleet?¡± ¡°Of a certainty. I''ve got a contract to take the lady back there.¡± ¡°And in the spring to Tesk?¡± ¡°That''s... possible. Normally I''d take a cargo to Caneth.¡± ¡°There may be a message waiting for you at Wahleet, Captain or coming to you there at some point about a cargo for here. I don''t know what is possible long distance and what is not, and it''s not my decision anyway, I''ll just mention the thought that occurred to me to the relevant people.¡±
Elakart''s home, Tesk. ¡°Solm?¡± Davdo asked, ¡°Aye, he''s a good man. Where is he now?¡± ¡°Off the coast of Kanuga, delivering a maybe-ambassador.¡± ¡°Kanuga? Well! That''s a novel trip. Normally strictly forbidden, on account of the gold trade.¡± ¡°The gold trade?¡± Elakart asked. ¡°Kanuga is reportedly a beautiful place if you like mountains, waterfalls and cliff edges. Or gold mines. I once met a girl from there, not much to look at, but she was one of the few certified traders. She probably could have bought up my ship without blinking. It''s got a fairly small population who don''t think much of the empire, on account of them sending their soldiers to look for the gold on a fairly regular basis. If you have something they want and you want gold, you need to talk to the trader girl, or one of her few colleagues. She''ll arrange the shipment, for a fee, of course. But normally she does the rounds of jewellers and banks, collecting a list of who wants how much gold, and then finds fur-traders and what-not and matches orders, so it''s a three-way trade. And then your heavily guarded caravan of fur coats or whatever meets her heavily guarded caravan of gold ingots on a designated spot on their one bit of flat ground, charmingly called the battle-marshes and everyone does some careful counting and agrees its just like the contract said, then the banker hands over a credit note, the gold and furs change hands, and everyone goes home happy. The Kanugans are scrupulously honest, punctual and will permanently black-list anyone who tries to cheat them. Plus, to get to or from the battle marshes you go through prime ambush territory, so an army doesn''t get to the battle marshes very often. If it does they flood the marshes and see how well the army swims, but that pays havoc with their harvest so they get cross about having to do that. According to her, they don''t actually need the trade, It''s just a way of keeping the empire happy that they''re getting the gold. But coastal trade could change things, and change makes the empire really nervous. They don''t really want the gold trade to be easy, it would mean too many changes.¡± ¡°Interesting.¡± Sashan said ¡°So would you like me to ask if somehow Captain Solm could bring some of the Dahel-grain you''re allowed to transport without the right paperwork?¡± ¡°I expect the answer is nothing is possible without paperwork,¡± Davdo said. ¡°But you''d have said that they''d never let him go to Kanuga, right?¡± Sashan countered.
''The Daybreak'' ¡°I don''t know how deep the river is, captain, but I''m pretty sure that is the one we want to go up,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°You''re full of encouragement, you are. How certain is ''pretty sure''?¡± he asked. ¡°I''m certain the sun won''t stay in the sky for night-time, that would be silly this far south,¡± Tangseng said, ¡°But I''m pretty sure it''ll be up tomorrow. Do you see those flat-topped rocks either side of the river? They''re where the archers stand.¡± ¡°Which archers?¡± the captain asked. ¡°The ones with the fire-arrows to dissuade lost ships, of course.¡± she replied. ¡°Lady Trader...¡± ¡°We''re not lost. It''s OK. You probably ought to stay closer to one bank rather than in the middle, though, I''ll need to say hello. Let''s hope they''re awake, it always makes them nervous when they''re caught napping.¡± A few minutes later Tangseng said, ¡°I think we need to wake them up. Can the crew sing something? Preferably Christian.¡± ¡°All right lads, the lady says we need to sing a song like it''s Sunday on Tesk, so we don''t get hit by fire-arrows. We need loud.¡± A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. One of the sailors said, ¡°What about ''God is good''? You don''t get much louder than a kid''s song.¡± ¡°Lead on, then. All together to start with then we can get fancy.¡± Tangseng knew enough Windwardese to understand the words, but couldn''t make much sense out of them, until the second verse, when she discovered that ''Getting fancy'' involved three different intertwining melodies. She was so rapt in listening she didn''t notice the archers assembling on the bank at first, and then had trouble getting the crew to stop. ¡°What do you think of the music?¡± she called in her native language. ¡°Very pretty, now turn round and go away.¡± ¡°I don''t think that''s a very polite reply, captain. We''ve only just got here! I''m Trader Tangseng, The ship carries me, that which is mine, my cargo for trade, a gift for her majesty, some papers for her majesty, the crew and their personal goods.¡± ¡°You are not expected, Trader Tangseng, if that is who you are.¡± ¡°Who else would I be but myself? How can I be expected when the Dahel Emperor is dishing out invitations to send ambassadors and re-writing his laws?¡± ¡°Now I know you are lying,¡± the soldier stated firmly. ¡°Why? Because I say something so impossible no one would make it up? I am Tangseng, do you wish me to detail the inventory of my last trade? Were the furs of such poor quality that you doubt my word? Was the red ribbon for the royal choir too pink? Did your wife like the necklace? Or have I got the wrong brother?¡± The ship got closer to the rock and volumes, though still shouted, could become more normal. ¡°I know you are lying because you make no mention of the large man behind you.¡± ¡°Nor did I make mention of my hair or my teeth, my clothes or my hairbrush, and my husband is more mine than any of these. My teeth may be pulled out, but my husband will be mine for eternity.¡± As the ship drew abreast of the rock, the soldier said ¡°Congratulations, on your marriage, Tangseng, You always were good at telling me and my brother apart. The emperor really wants an ambassador?¡± ¡°All the leeward monarchs are going to be asked to appoint one. Even sillier, he named me one of the first three, subject to confirmation, and the gave me personal authorisation to take any cargo I like if I''m going somewhere on official business. Is her majesty well?¡± ¡°Feeling a little ignored, what with some people not sending any word they were visiting.¡± ¡°The empire has developed telephones,¡± Tangseng said, moving to the back of the ship. ¡°It was really hard to ooh and ah like the others, I''m telling you.¡± ¡°They had to catch up sometime.¡± ¡°And Princess Naneela and her almost-fiance have made enormous progress on radios, they send one with me for the queen to take part in a world-wide conference of rulers. It is fragile, but I spoke to Tesk a couple of hours ago.¡± ¡°Tesk is not somewhere I''ve ever found on a map. Does it really exist?¡± ¡°It''s the closest of the Windward Isles.¡± ¡°OK. Well stop in the first harbour, I doubt that ship will get over the sand-bar.¡± ¡°My thoughts exactly,¡± Tangseng shouted. Then she turned to the captain. ¡°The river looks like it turns to the left up ahead, that''s port isn''t it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°There''s a semi-concealed entrance to a port just on the bend, on the starboard bank. You basically need to go slowly and steer the wrong way.¡± ¡°You don''t get many visitors, I assume.¡± ¡°Not many.¡± ¡°And did I understand that you know about things the Dahel emperor is only just showing off proudly?¡± ¡°Yes, captain. We''ve been fighting for survival against first Tunga and now Dahel for a long time. It makes you inventive, and pay attention when aliens visit. The progress in radio is something new, though. Very useful, militarily, assuming the other side doesn''t know about them.¡± ¡°So the emperor giving your queen one is a good sign?¡± ¡°Very. By the way, your ship design''s not some kind of top military secret, is it?¡± ¡°No, we''ve been making them like this for centuries. The Isles have some that might be. Tew''s scary gun-ships would count, of course.¡± ¡°I''ve heard about them. Lots of cannons and complex machinery.¡± ¡°Yes. A bit too complex, if you listen to the Isles sailors. Tesk is neutral, of course.¡± ¡°But talking to its neighbours a lot more than it used to. I was told that crown prince Hal of the Isles and princess-regent Esmetherelda of Caneth have married, which probably makes Tesk nervous.¡± ¡°I''d heard that was coming. And Tew is now ruled by princess Yalisa, which makes everyone breathe a sigh of relief. Where is his semi-hidden entrance?¡± ¡°The promontory its behind sticks out as far as the starboard bank of the river. Sorry that doesn''t make much sense, does it? Let me sketch a map for you. Please destroy the sketch though, we''re a nervous people.¡± ¡°The deck''s dry, why not draw it with water?¡± ¡°Thank you.¡±
Royal palace of Kanuga. ¡°Tangseng, you surprise us all! Coming around the coast?¡± the older woman on the simple throne greeted her. ¡°The Dahel emperor surprises the leeward monarchies, he nominated me, Ungana of Azunga and Ginthel of Kunga as provisional ambassadors and invited us for a friendly chat in the heart of the empire.¡± ¡°Oh yes? That''s a new strategy. What are his demands?¡± ¡°Demands, none, except that he asked Kunga to try to think of the future of the planet rather than preparations for war. He apologised that he did not detain an academician from Tesk, Teng, I think his name was, but what the academician said about the future was scary.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°The so-called ''fire in the sky'' is from the approaching interstellar gas cloud. He knows it is solar-accelerated particles of gas and dust hitting the atmosphere, and that when such things happen, the air of the world is knocked into space. So far so boring. But, he''s an astronomer and what he and his colleagues found scared them silly: based on their years of careful observation, the cloud is not missing at all. So it''s not just going to get ''a bit worse.'' According to him, within around six years, I think the number was, the loss of atmosphere will become so great that it will be noticed with a barometer, and he thinks the weather patterns will be changed. So the challenge must be met, and really soon. At least enough of it so we get a chance to beg for help. Princess Naneela has developed a radio that allows talking, the Tesk academy have been playing at making bigger and bigger spark generators, so have the technology to draw large amounts of power from a waterfall, no one said, but I guess that means they''ve a proper hydroelectric power-station, rather than just a massive waterwheel, but either way, it works. The emperor also has wires all over the palace and a telephone on some of his desks. The throne-room does change from day to day, like I said I suspected, but even more so.¡± ¡°And it was full of glittery gold and gems?¡± ¡°No. The day I visited, it was outside, beside some woods. He says there are about twenty rooms he normally uses, but when the weather''s nice he picks somewhere in his park. That moving is mostly for security reasons, it being much harder to fire a cannonball at twenty throne-rooms than at one. But also, the emperor hates the central zone''s ostentation, and is seriously unimpressed with some things his bureaucracy have done. We saw him at home and relaxed, majesty. They have secretaries and such like in the heart of the empire, but no servants. The empress cooked for us, princess Naneela was peeling the vegetables, and not like it was a strange new experience for her. Prince Salay is in Caneth marrying the girl of his prophecy sometime soon, I expect, and now they''ve found the daughter of a slave, slavery in the empire is being phased out.¡± ¡°So all is happiness and light in a golden age at the end of the world?¡± ¡°Except for the thousand or so followers of dum-semb who have been executed in Tesk, yes. You are invited to join in the radio-conference of world monarchs, my queen, hence the radio.¡± ¡°And what of you, young friend Tangseng?¡± ¡°I am now a married woman, patient Tuga here still doesn''t say much, but I try to listen when he does. It''s normally worth hearing. And... I''m hesitant to say this, but in solving some problems in his village, like he asked me to, I have apparently made myself worthy to become the baroness there in the emperor''s eyes.¡± ¡°Are you tempted?¡± ¡°I don''t know, your majesty. I suppose I have to stop trading one day, and it was actually satisfying, in a weird sort of way.¡± ¡°And you hate it here.¡± ¡°No! I love it here, but it is too nice. I feel lazy and useless, or I invent challenges for myself which get dangerous. You know me, majesty.¡± ¡°You don''t think parenting will bring enough challenges?¡± ¡°Not in the same way, no. Oh, I don''t think I told anyone, the emperor deliberately phrased our travel authorisations to allow us to help escaped slaves, suggests we could issue something called ''protective citizenship'' to run-away slaves that make it to our embassy, if we wanted to, and plans to make it possible for practically all the slaves in south Tunga to claim they''re free citizens of Azunga. That seemed to please Ungana, but we can have some extra citizens if we want, too. Of course they will need a lot of education. Tuga will too, of course. "Oh, and except for the queen of Azunga, all the world''s leaders now follow Christ, but her daughter, Azna or something, Azuna, that''s it, is doing most of the reigning there as mum slowly goes potty. But, according to Ungana, if Dahel offered the partial diversion of the river so their swamp became something like the battle-marsh, Azunga would probably join the empire under the present queen, her mother, but almost certainly when her sister attains the throne.¡± ¡°An Azunga-sized fenland? Interesting! Should we offer to help with the engineering?¡± ¡°Maybe. Ungana said that it''s been their plan for ages and that''s why the Tungans have killed so many of their representatives, for fear that they''d tell the emperor. She was really happy to go home by ship. So, be aware: if we get involved, our neighbours aren''t going to be at all happy about it.¡± ¡°You don''t surprise me at all. But show we this radio, will you?¡± ¡°Certainly. It runs off batteries, I''m surprised how efficiently, and I told them that we knew our metals, but they insisted on giving me a few spare sets of plates.¡± ¡°You didn''t accidentally mention we have a generator then?¡± ¡°No, your majesty. That wasn''t hard. But I kept having to bite my lip to not give anything away by my questions. Naneela''s a lovely girl, majesty, very open, not hiding anything about her research, and for all that her future husband Kahlel is from Tungan parents he''s not that Tungan at all. I really do think it''s the right time for us to involved scientifically. Could we invite them?¡± ¡°Tell me about her research.¡± ¡°Thermionic valves, of course, but she herself re-invented the tetrode mixing valve, and is working around the issues that led Earth people to come up with the pentode. Her future husband ¡ª that''s what she calls him ¡ª won that title for coming up with idea of the heterodyne receiver a few weeks ago, so he''s definitely got brains too. The radio I''ve brought with me isn''t one of those, but like I said, I talked to Tesk on it from a boat, so it''s perfectly functional. They''ve given me a crash course in spotting dead valves and replacing them, just in case, and I''ve got a spare set.¡± ¡°Like my predecessors, I''ve often really wondered why the aliens left us with all this knowledge and said ''wait until they''ve mostly done the challenge before you help out'', but yes, I think it''s probably time, isn''t it? Is the radio at the palace kept on, by any chance?¡± ¡°I''m not sure. I was trying to get through to there when I ended up talking to Tesk. Maybe something broke, but maybe it''s mountains, skip-distance, things like that, you know? Yes, Tuga? I know you want to ask something.¡± ¡°Tangseng, should I have heard any of this? You''re speaking about significant secrets, I''m sure.¡± ¡°Pay attention, Tuga, there might be a test later.¡± The queen of Kanuga said, smiling, ¡°Welcome to the Cooperative Alien-Native Underground Gathering, also known as Kanuga. Actually, the name was here first, which is why the acronym is so forced. The Kanugans were a bit backwards when the aliens first came, in the sense of ''ooh, strange tall people, you must be gods. Here, take my daughter and be nice to us.'' That''s how quite a number of the research staff joined, actually. "A significant number of the aliens said that it wasn''t fair to just leave their closest colleagues here with nothing. They''d been working with the aliens for decades, formed close friendships, babysat their kids, and so on. Some of them went to Tesk, which was fine for them, but our ancestors didn''t speak much Windwardese, and so that didn''t seem very much like fun. ¡°So when they were thinking of where they might make a new home, one of the last Kanugan women who''d been thrust at them, Semtan, who was actually the daughter of the chief, said, ''Why not at home? If Dad''s still alive I want a word or ten with him, and if he''s not, I really wonder who''s ruling, it''s supposed to be my husband.'' Well, her dad was there, and so was her old boyfriend, Kau, who''d been desperately hoping the aliens might let her come home one day, because all the other girls thought he was weird for wanting to know how things worked. At that point negotiations got quite exciting, but in the end it was agreed that ghosts don''t pull beards, and yes, OK, her coming back did solve the succession issue that he''d given occasional thought to since he''d sent her off with the aliens, but what had she done to the gods to make them reject her? According to one of the versions I''ve heard she then threw her hands in the air and stomped off, with Kau in hot pursuit. Another account claims she said, ''Dad, we''ve come to check on how well the gold is growing in the mountains, you don''t mind us staying outside the village, do you, it stinks here. And Kau, are you married? If not go for a swim and a scrub yourself so you don''t stink and then catch us up, I want to talk.'' But in any case, the aliens helped make a library here, drained the battle-marsh and left us some of their toys as well as teaching us about how Earth technology grew up, Kau became tribal chief, and Semtan became the head of the library and research team.¡± ¡°And in case you''re wondering, the famous Kanugan goldmine is an actual goldmine with actual spoil heaps and things, not some piece of alien technology,¡± Tangseng said, ¡°But the aliens did make a map of where the gold is and urm... rearranged some things a bit underground to help hide the library which is worth far more than the gold.¡± ¡°And every Kanugan knows all this?¡± Tuga asked. ¡°No. Many are ignorant farmers, some are ignorant miners or soldiers. But everyone goes to school, and if you do well at school you go to the academy and join the army as an officer or the researchers or the civil service, and a few get chosen to be traders. Since Tangseng''s decided to marry you, you get the informal academy version.¡± ¡°I couldn''t stay an ignorant farmer?¡± ¡°Of course not, there are too many secrets around Tangseng. Plus she needs to settle down sometime, like she said. You''d be bored stiff in six weeks as a baroness, and you know it, young woman; you need more challenges. So, I''ll let you have a couple of years as ambassador, Tangseng, but it''s hard ruling alone and I''m past the age I hoped to retire at, so I want you to promise you''ll stop running from the challenge eventually and accept that God-willing this chair gets your name on it next.¡± ¡°My queen, I''ll try.¡± ¡°Good. Then if anyone brings up you becoming a baroness, I can let slip that you''re my heir-presumptive, can''t I? Or you can. Don''t look at me like that! You''ll find plenty of challenges from this seat, I assure you. How do you plan to get Naneela here?¡± ¡°The first challenge is going to be to talk to her, I think. There''s too much rock in the way with shiny stuff in it.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 33: Avoiding riots

Planet 5 / Ch. 33: Avoiding riots

Pre-departure report, planetary contact group, Planet 5 The time has come to decide how to proceed in regards to this planet. The task of checking the translated scripture is approaching its end, and it is obvious that while we''d be welcome to stay, there are too many risks of building a dependency culture if we do. The Tunganese speakers among our friends are a little disappointed that their language does not get a whole ''direct'' translation, but as none of them hear thoughts the process of drafting was taking far longer and has been far more error-prone. And as the last attempt at recruiting checkers ended with Semtan being added to our team ¡ª as a ''sacrifice to the gods'' ¡ª we felt it wise to just stop trying. We will leave them with the knowledge of how to continue, of course, and plan to create a secure library for Semtan and her team, near to her home in the leeward mountains. Our prime tasks done, we must not stay while people all over the planet think that ''sacrificing'' one another to us is a good idea, and indeed it would be good if the whole concept of human sacrifice ¡ª present in several of the nastier local religions ¡ª were totally obliterated. Thus, rather than simply the social and technological developments currently considered wise (global communication and peaceful intergovernmental discussions) we will also leave them with the challenge of eradicating this attitude that says spiritual forces need appeasing with human life.
A small shepherd''s hut near the top of a mountain, Kanuga. ¡°Testing testing from a mountain-top in Kanuga. Is anyone listening?¡± Tangseng said into the radio. ¡°Lady Tangseng? Why are you on a mountain top?¡± Naneela''s voice replied. ¡°Is there anyone else listening?¡± ¡°Not that I know of. Why?¡± ¡°Because according to a book I''ve read, radio frequency electromagnetic radiation gets reflected by conductive surfaces, and there''s quite a lot of gold in this here mountain. Silver too, which is an even better conductor of course.¡± ¡°You''ve read a book on electromagnetic radiation?¡± ¡°My queen cordially invites you to visit the until-now-secret library of Kanuga, princess Naneela; you and your husband-to-be. Please don''t tell too many people about the library, only about a quarter of our people know about it at all. Not all the friends of the aliens spoke Windwardese, you see, and one of them said ''No one in their right mind would ever invade Kanuga, you could defend it with a dead sheep, and the only resource other than dead sheep and people who stink worse is that useless yellow metal.'' She then got a brief reminder on economics and the practical uses of gold and they went to talk to her dad, the chief of the Kanugans. Please don''t forget to breathe. The aliens told us it''s much much better to find things out yourself, so keep the library secret until the challenge is almost met.¡± ¡°Kanuga can help against the sun?¡± ¡°No, sorry, we''re not that advanced. The aliens thought they''d get in trouble if they left us that much technology. But you''ve got the imagination and the designs, we can probably help scale them up and certainly provide the power.¡± ¡°Urm, am I interrupting a private conversation?¡± a new voice said. ¡°Hello, Hayeel. Please introduce yourself Tangseng, while I breathe deeply and try not to faint.¡± ¡°Hello, do I have the pleasure of talking to Duchess Hayeel of Repink?¡± ¡°That''s me. Prince Salay is beside me.¡± ¡°Hello imperial highness, your grace. I''m Trader Tangseng of Kanuga, and I was just inviting the princess to look at our secret library, it only seemed fair with her pooling her knowledge so openly.¡± ¡°I take it you''d rather we not talk about your secret library to anyone?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Please.¡± ¡°And you''re the semi-ambassador that his majesty offered the barony in Repink to?¡± ¡°I am, my queen has confirmed the ambassador bit, but I need to decline the baroness, I think. My queen has plans for me here which might upset people if I was a baroness of the empire too.¡± ¡°A shame, but I understand. I still think it''s strange to be considered part of the High Council of Tesk while I''m Salay''s ambassador and duchess too, but apparently that sort of holding multiple-titles is common this side of the continent. The king of the Isles is also a noble on Tesk, for instance. But that''s more of a judicial role than a reigning one.¡± ¡°I heard about the dum-semb there. I''m glad the infection is being dealt with. The challenge is more strict on human sacrifice than anything else, I think. I seem to remember reading that the message from the probe would say ''If this planet is free from people who practice human sacrifice, ask them about their progress on the other matters''.¡± ¡°How do we find everyone? It''s impossible!¡± Naneela said. ¡°Not for God, nor someone with the sort of knowledge He gives those with the alien''s divine gift.¡± Tangseng pointed out. ¡°The full gift of Tesk?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Tangseng agreed. ¡°Can someone explain what that is to me?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°It is an ability to think to any who hear thoughts, anywhere. And to hear the thoughts of anyone and understand them, and also to know things about them, and to find people by a description.¡± Tangseng answered. ¡°Ah. Truly a gift of the Spirit,¡± Naneela said. ¡°Sadly, no one on the planet has had that gift since the aliens left.¡± Tangseng added. ¡°I heard someone claim his ancestor, the father of the empress of Tesk had it.¡± Hayeel corrected. ¡°Still a long time ago. But yes, more recent than I said, I stand corrected.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°So we must pray: pray that all efforts to destroy this plague on our planet are successful, pray that if we are not, the aliens will be merciful enough to get in contact anyway, and pray for someone with such a gift to appear in our midst.¡± Tuga, she noticed was looking distinctly uncomfortable. ¡°And that when they do, they do not find their hearts quail at the thought of sending people to their deaths.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°That is a constant theme from some in Tesk. ''Has there not been enough killing? Can we not be more merciful?''¡± ¡°But so far the answer is ''no''?¡± Tangseng checked. ¡°So far the answer is ''we are as merciful as we can be, not condemning those who have confessed their sins and turned from them.''¡± Hayeel replied. ¡°So actually we know that there will be those alive who have taken part in human sacrifices.¡± Naneela pointed out. ¡°Before they turned to Christ, yes.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°I pray that the aliens think of that qualification when they check, then. I think no one imagined that there might be this sort of situation; believing we had eradicated it, we find it back and in huge numbers.¡± ¡°Total eradication is beyond what rulers or laws can solve without God sending us help,¡± Salay said, ¡°On Tesk they were able to ask people to report suspicious callousness or corruption. But there''s no way we can purge this evil from our midst in the time available, even if all the people were brave enough to complain. There are too many moderately corrupt officials to find the totally corrupt. It would be good to rid ourselves of that evil as well, of course, but executing or imprisoning all the corrupt would take lifetimes when we have a couple of years.¡± Hayeel added, ¡°But like on Tesk, we must involve the churches, surely? Asking them to pray and preach against the evils and that God will send help.¡± ¡°And if we cannot purge ourselves of this evil, then we know what judgement awaits us.¡± Naneela said. ¡°Father is busy at the moment, but I will tell him of this conversation.¡± ¡°And Naneela, I think you must be brave and travel, and do so soon. If father tells the people that judgement is coming because of an extreme form of corruption...¡± ¡°Please,¡± Naneela said, ¡°ask those around you to pray for wisdom for father and for internal peace in the empire.¡± ¡°I am Eva, from Tesk. Please, honourable peoples, I just hear and must warn, dum-semb recruits in riots and rejoices in turning the anger against those who stand against it.¡± The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Thank you Eva!¡± Hayeel said, then switching to Windwardese, continued, ¡°This is Hayeel, it is a good warning and your pronunciation was excellent. Some grammar mistakes, but don''t worry, you were perfectly understandable, except... did you want to say you''d only just turned on?¡± ¡°We turned on because we had arranged to talk to Esme soon, then I got called because no one was able to guess what the conversation was about. I just got here to hear his imperial highness speaking of what might happen if the people are told.¡± ¡°Thank you, Eva. A good interruption. Let me check, I don''t know if Trader Tangseng, who''s in Kanuga, speaks Windwardese.¡± Switching language, she asked ¡°Did everyone understand that?¡± ¡°I understand, but not speak good.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Is third language.¡± ¡°Most noble Trader Tangseng, I, Eva of the High Council, greet thee and thy Queen most warmly from Tesk!¡± Eva said in Tunganese, ¡°and hope I did not make any mistakes in my second language.¡± ¡°Your pronunciation is excellent, Eva, but it seems your teachers have taught you the formal, which is not often spoken now anywhere I know of. You will be understood, but those who have never struggled to learn a language they rarely hear will think you are strange.¡± ¡°But it is written?¡± Eva asked. ¡°It is a written form here in Kanuga, in official records. Maybe also in some of our neighbouring kingdoms, I''m not sure.¡± ¡°Fortunately, I can translate for my beloved Hayeel,¡± Salay said, ¡°Or she would be feeling left out at this point. I must say I''m enjoying the experience of being the translator for once.¡± ¡°So much for secret messages.¡± Tangseng said in Dahelese. ¡°Soon we will have to change to other frequencies. Perhaps that should be you and I, Princess Naneela?¡± ¡°Mark the dial positions first. Carefully!¡± Naneela said. ¡°Or perhaps we should try your new radio?¡± ¡°It does not work on the same frequency range.¡± ¡°I know. My class-mates said science was fun. Can you tell me a frequency? Roughly, I mean. Or would you like my science-loving friends to send out a tone?¡± ¡°I confused,¡± Eva said. ¡°Some of the aliens'' friends went to Tesk, Eva. Most of them came to mountainous Kanuga. The records on Tesk ought to say that much. Teaching basic science to the kids gave them something to do in the evenings. That much you can tell the High Council and Esmetherelda. You may also say that a lot of us have faith and my queen has decided it is time to start helping and be more open about the knowledge we have kept safe through the centuries, and which has kept us safe from our barbarian neighbours. I have invited Naneela to come and visit, it should help her in her research as long as she doesn''t get distracted.¡± ¡°And we will carefully not ask which neighbours they considered barbarians,¡± Salay said, ¡°in case they find lying morally questionable.¡± ¡°I was actually thinking about some of our own citizens, highness.¡± Tangseng said, ¡°I wouldn''t dream of describing your family as a barbarians after seeing the Heart of the Empire.¡± ¡°Oh dear,¡± Naneela said, ¡°We should have invited you inside earlier, shouldn''t we? Can your friends find out where I''m transmitting? It ought to be near ten megahertz, but my receiver puts it nearer ten and three quarters.¡± ¡°And the receiver has a five hundred kilohertz intermediate frequency?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°OK, well, transmit for a minute and then pause for two seconds, and then repeat, they''ll try talking to you in your gaps. Oh, OK, they say they can hear your signal already. Congratulations to whoever did the coil winding, you''re at ten point oh five megahertz, and.. oh dear, that''s sad.¡± ¡°What''s sad?¡± ¡°Ancient devices that work for five minutes don''t always stay working. Which is why they don''t get used much.¡± ¡°The receiver broke?¡± ¡°Yes. And repairing that particular one might be tricky. Let''s hope it''s just a bad connection or something. So, they won''t be talking to you today, sorry.¡± ¡°It''s vitally important that I come, isn''t it?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Is your honourable father listening?¡± Tangseng guessed. ¡°Yes, he''s just come in.¡± ¡°My guess is that if you come and stay for winter, it will do two things, highness. It will ensure that if there are troubles you and your work will be well protected from them, and it will also allow you to work on a transmitter suitable for meeting the challenge. If you do not come, I will try to bring some of the smaller test equipment when I return, but I am no expert in using it, and if it breaks it stays broken until it can come back here.¡± ¡°Thank you for your honest appraisal, Trader Tangseng. Naneela has supplied some context. I think I would appreciate some proofs, before I allow my daughter to head off to a nation that we have not always treated well.¡± ¡°Proof of historic data and ancient artifacts, of good intentions, or that my queen, having invited your daughter will allow her to return in safety? I think that the former are easier, the latter pair are harder.¡± ¡°The latter pair are much harder, yes.¡± the emperor agreed. ¡°And the time is short, I think, before the seas become too dangerous. So I will bring what test equipment I can to speed the princess'' work, and of course we will pray that any riots in the central zone do not reach the palace or the research centre.¡± ¡°Father, let me explain the possibility of riots. It was my thought,¡± Salay said. ¡°Trader Tangseng says her records of the challenge say that messenger probe will return and tell it''s makers'' descendents to check if we''ve really eradicated human sacrifice before making contact. We need God''s help; He could send us one with gift of sending thoughts across planets and finding those who must face trial. Without such divine knowledge, we may never hear from the aliens whose help we need. Surely we must ask all the faithful to pray? "But... how can we do that without sharing the need? And if we share the need, might there not be panic and riots? And we have an additional warning from Tesk that dum-semb recruits in riots and turns them against other targets.¡± ¡°Thank you, Salay. You make me glad once more that God promises wisdom to those who ask. This is obviously a matter to discuss with all rulers.¡± ¡°Imperial majesty, would you like our ambassadors to the other nations to pass on your desire that they send ambassadors? It might save some time.¡± ¡°You don''t think they''d like it to come from their ambassadors to you?¡± ¡°Most of them don''t have permanent ambassadors to us, Imperial Majesty. they find the idea of growing their own food demeaning and can''t afford to buy it.¡± ¡°Even your smallest coins are truly gold, as the rumours say, then?¡± ¡°Yes. But there are trading possibilities, as you know.¡± ¡°Your gold-mines will run out eventually.¡± ¡°That''s why we''re careful about it leaving the borders, and only traders like myself can export it.¡± ¡°But your ambassadors presumably buy food where they live.¡± ¡°All our ambassadors are traders, Imperial Majesty. My queen confirms me in thebposition of ambassador, by the way. And I''m going to blame you and that ideabof making me a baroness for the fact that she''s named me heir-presumptive.¡± ¡°You''re her daughter?¡± ¡°No, imperial majesty, she has one son, who has no interest in being a ruler, he enjoys science far too much.¡± ¡°What sort of science?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°I''m not sure. But it''s probably something the aliens didn''t leave us instructions for.¡±
Half way down the mountain ¡°Tuga? You''re being very quiet.¡± ¡°There''s a lot to think about.¡± ¡°But you''re not thinking about a lot of things, you''re thinking about not worrying me, and feeling guilty.¡± ¡°I keep forgetting you can do that. Sorry.¡± ¡°I don''t, most of the time. What''s wrong?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°So many things I don''t know. Like, those two men on the other side of the valley,nwhy are they there, and why are they trying to stay in the shadows?¡± Tuga asked. There were two figures, one larger, one smaller, both wearing very dusty or maybe just dust-coloured clothes and simple worker''s caps. They both carried backpacks. ¡°They''re staying in the shadows because they shouldn''t be there. Their clothes look Tungan.¡± ¡°Problem?¡± ¡°Problem for them. On a certain scheme of things they''re probably to be.congratulated for getting so far into the country, but...¡± ¡°But your sentries aren''t?¡± Tuga asked. ¡°You can''t guard every pass.¡± Tangseng looked down the path and then back thenway they''d come. ¡°Bother.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We either turn back and they notice and maybe realise they''re in trouble, or we get a lot closer to the bottom of the valley and thus to them before we call for help.¡± ¡°Call for help? What, shout?¡± ¡°No, there are telephones. Why are you feeling so guilty, Tuga? And why does me talking about hearing your thoughts always make you feel guilty? Ever since I first told you I could, it''s done the same.¡± ¡°Urm, because I''ve been running away from God most of my adult life, and you being able to get snippets of what I''m thinking remind me of it.¡± ¡°You told me that running from God was a bad idea, Tuga.¡± ¡°Speaking from experience. Yes. Can we change the subject? What do we do about those men?¡± Tangseng looked at him for a while and said, ¡°You never seemed surprised that I could sometimes hear your thoughts. Do you know someone else who can?¡± Tuga sighed, ¡°Who could. Yes.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°Tangseng, when we first met, we agreed that we wouldn''t talk about what had happened that I was prepared to let you make all my decisions for me for five years.¡± ¡°You''ve made a few decisions since. Like asking me to marry you.¡± ¡°I figured you would cry again if I didn''t. I hate to see you cry, Tangseng.bAnd that wasn''t the only reason, of course. Others include you being beautiful and wonderful and kind and clever and nice to hug and being a much better person than I am. I don''t know what you see in me really.¡± ¡°You make me feel safe, you don''t think I''m totally weird for leaving home and taking up the life of a wandering negotiator, and from the moment we''ve met the feeling that you wouldn''t ever try to take advantage of me.¡± ¡°Silly feeling. I''ve been using you for years to get away from uncomfortable questions at home.¡± ¡°What about?¡± ¡°Tangseng, my beautiful and beloved wife, you know, sometimes you treat too much in the world like a negotiation, and don''t believe people are actually trying to tell you something.¡± ¡°What didn''t I listen to?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°When you were cutting our engagement too short, you didn''t listen to people suggesting that employer-employee conversations aren''t the same as between an engaged couple, you didn''t listen when I suggested we spend a few months getting to know each other better and working out if it was really a good idea. You didn''t pay attention to all the looks at me when the pastor was saying about ''talking about everything''. "You didn''t listen to people saying you didn''t know me very well. You still don''t, or you''d know that this isn''t a conversation to start on the way towards a probable encounter with people who shouldn''t be here. I can''t do ''protect my beloved'' when I''m feeling torn between running away from my responsibilities again and collapsing into an emotional heap.¡± ¡°Should we turn back? We could spend the night in the hut, free from any interruptions.¡± ¡°Or we could drop the topic of conversation and pretend it didn''t happen.¡± ¡°I think I vote for turning round.¡± Tangseng said, stopping. ¡°I''m not good at pretending.¡± ¡°You''re very good at pretending,¡± Tuga corrected. ¡°That''s what makes you such a good negotiator. You can be desperate to seal a deal but you''ll still walk away.¡± ¡°I''m not good at hiding my curiosity from you.¡± ¡°You have done before.¡± Tuga pointed out reasonably. ¡°That was before we got married, Tuga. I want to remedy my lack of interest in my husband''s past.¡± ¡°Not until we''re in the hut, you''ve told people we''re there and we might not come down for three days.¡± ¡°Three days?¡± ¡°Jonah was in the fish that long, wasn''t he?¡± Tuga pointed out, and then grinned. ¡°And he wasn''t having a lovely romantic get-away with his wife.¡± ¡°That hut as a lovely romantic get-away?¡± ¡°I plan to enjoy whatever chances I get.¡± Tuga said, shifting the heavy radio on his back ¡°It''s not like we got our honeymoon.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 34: Sharing thoughts

Planet 5 / Ch. 34: Sharing thoughts

Approaching the shepherd''s hut, Kanuga. ¡°Tangseng, how common is thought hearing among your people?¡± Tuga asked. ¡°Not very.¡± ¡°And you don''t need the catalyst effect like on Tesk?¡± ¡°No,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°You weren''t there when when I spoke to the Tesk captain, were you?¡± ¡°No. You said a few things after, which chimed with what I already knew. So is it random? Or did a relative have the ability?¡± ¡°My grandparents were ''heart-close'' as we say in Kanuga. Tesk would call them attuned. But I''m a bit odd, that I get snippets from people. It''s not reliable, though.¡± ¡°It depends on how safe you''re feeling, or how worried,¡± he said knowingly. ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°Mum gets a few hints. Not thoughts, just strong emotions. She''s really disappointed in me, for not knowing you meant your hints, by the way. She knows what that means.¡± ¡°What does that mean, Tuga?¡± ¡°I mean, beloved wife, that if I hadn''t rejected God''s gift and run away from it, I''d have heard what was behind your thoughts all the way down to motivations you don''t know yourself, interrupted your conversation on the radio and said, don''t worry, I''m here. So now you can be upset at me as well. Of course if I hadn''t run away with a beautiful foreigner who wanted a dumb body-guard, I''d not have been here to hear about your need. You know, I was three quarters hoping that you''d get me killed as your body guard? That''s one of the other reasons I didn''t want to abandon you when you first gave me my freedom.¡± ¡°Hmm. A body-guard with a death-wish is probably an even better body-guard than one who''s falling in love with his employer. But I prefer my husband,¡± she said, kissing him. ¡°Oh no!¡± she added, looking over his shoulder. ¡°They followed us?¡± Tuga asked, following her gaze. ¡°It looks like it. I wonder if they thought we were coming from some settlement and went to pass the word.¡± ¡°This isn''t exactly an ideal spot for a conflict.¡± Tuga said, ¡°How good are you with a sling? There was one in the hut.¡± ¡°I could sometimes hit the barn from ten steps away when I was ten. I doubt I''ve improved much.¡± ¡°And the soldiers aren''t likely to come up this way.¡± ¡°They might call in for further information, mightn''t they?¡± ¡°Possible.¡± ¡°You run on to the hut then, I don''t think I can run with this radio on my back. And light the fire.¡± ¡°It''s not that cold.¡± ¡°Evidence that we''re staying there, though. If they catch up I''m telling them we were just going for a walk on our honeymoon.¡± ¡°What about the back-pack?¡± ¡°Hmm. OK. We left something... Necklace? Wedding ring? That''d make us turn back.¡± ¡°OK. My necklace. And it''s too far to go home this late in the day, so we''re extending the honeymoon.¡± ¡°I''m going to say we were experimenting with the radio, too. I''ll need to explain it, if they decide to search the pack. No point taking needless risks. Speaking of which, you stay in the hut, beloved, and out of danger. The door looked good and solid and you''ve got the phone. I''m sure your army can sprint when the heir-presumptive is in danger.¡± ¡°Tuga, if you''ve got the gift, then your life is more valuable than mine.¡± ¡°I don''t have the gift. But if you really want to die beside me you''d better run fast, beloved. Because that sling is our only weapon.¡± After she''d run a little way, he shouted ¡°And put the kettle on, love, I''ll be thirsty when I get there!¡± She waved acknowledgement, and then he saved his breath for walking. He''d often thought that one very good thing about working for a rich trader who carried most of her wealth as paperwork and didn''t like carriages was that she didn''t compromise on footwear. Once again, he blessed Tangseng''s attitude to travel. Although the radio''s bulk and fragility meant he couldn''t run, he was perfectly capable of walking faster with it, and he knew his boots would cope with the extra stress and his feet wouldn''t blister. He pressed on. The trail was well worn by the sheep, and Tangseng made good time. She didn''t look back, that risked a stumble, and would serve no purpose anyway. Tuga was a big, strong man, she doubted it would come to a fight. But she still wanted to get to that hut, and its telephone. She made it in about quarter of an hour, and was breathing heavily, when she spoke. ¡°Tangseng here, back at the hut. The intruders seem to be following us.¡± ¡°A patrolling squad saw them, just after you reported in, Trader. They''re probably more running away than running after you.¡± ¡°That''d be reassuring if there was anywhere sane to go from here. It''s getting too gusty to walk the ridge path and they surely don''t want to climb over the summit.¡± ¡°Maybe they don''t know that, but if the squad call in I''ll tell them to hurry.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Tangseng said, and set about lighting the fire. She also put her necklace on a hook, as though it had been waiting there all the time. Tuga arrived ten minutes later, still ten minutes ahead of the two Tunganese men. After kissing him profusely, Tangseng had an idea and used the spy-glass kept in the hut. ¡°We were wrong. Their hats are off. The smaller one of them''s sprouted long hair with earrings.¡± ¡°Interesting. Evens the odds anyway. Can I look?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°They look worried.¡± ¡°So they should. Sneaking into Kanuga isn''t something people normally survive.¡± ¡°Do they get an opportunity to not sneak? I mean, we never exactly handed our papers over at a sentry post.¡± ¡°There''s normally someone at the battle-marshes you can talk to,¡± ¡°Maybe they''d heard about them and thought they''d get stuck. They''re putting down their packs. I see no weapons. The woman''s even put down her honour-knife. I guess they prefer us to a bunch of soldiers.¡± ¡°That changes things.¡± Tangseng picked up the phone again. ¡°Hi, me again. One of the Tungans is a woman, they''ve just taken off their packs, are coming on with nothing that looks like weapons and she''s just put down her honour-knife.¡± ¡°What does that mean, Trader?¡± ¡°Unconditional surrender. If she knew we saw her, that she wants to show her utter trust in us. If not, then it means she wants to say ''I''m totally unarmed'' so much she''s prepared to feel naked and vulnerable.¡± ¡°But they''re still coming towards you?¡± the operator asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Please stay in the hut, Trader Tangseng.¡± ¡°I''m going to at least tell them to just sit down with their hands on their heads if they want to be arrested rather than shot. It might not have occurred to them.¡± ¡°And then you''ll get back in the hut?¡± ¡°I''ll stay safe,¡± Tangseng said, putting the phone down. ¡°I''ll shout, shall I?¡± Tuga asked. ¡°You don''t know what to say. But feel free to echo me.¡± Opening the door, she called out to the running and stumbling couple, who kept looking over their shoulders at the troops, trotting after them. ¡°Just sit down!¡± Tuga did have a very good shout, she agreed. ¡°We need to talk!¡± the man shouted back, still trying to hurry. ¡°Sit down, or the soldiers will shoot you ¡°, she dictated to Tuga. ¡°And put your hands on your heads.¡± Tangseng put her fingers in her ears this time. Adding ¡°We can talk after.¡± The woman, who had been just in the lead, glanced back at the soldiers, saw they''d started preparing their bows and stopped, stopping her companion by the simple expedient of flinging her arm out as she stopped. Her fist hit his stomach, or possibly lower, and he fell to his knees, bending over his pain. ¡°Landing like that''s going to hurt,¡± Tuga said, wincing. ¡°But probably not as much as an arrow.¡± ¡°It stopped him, anyway.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Now, we let them get arrested before wandering over, OK?¡± ¡°Certainly, my love. Do we sit down too?¡± ¡°Yes, bring out both benches, can you? Actually, I''d better put more water on.¡± ¡°You don''t think those two siblings might need you available? I will put more water on.¡± He went into the hut, leaving the door open so they could talk. ¡°Why do you think they''re siblings?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°Because I can''t think of many other relationships that would let a Tungan woman hit a man in the stomach.¡± ¡°You might be right, but since she''s got witnesses she was saving his life, it might just be that she was cross with him. Don''t think this is going to let you avoid our discussion, by the way.¡± ¡°I never dreamed it would, Tangseng.¡± Tuga said, from in the hut. ¡°I actually want to confess, you know? When we''re alone.¡± ¡°That''s a good sign,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Can you give me a really quick summary of why you ran away from obeying God? I mean, as far as I understand it, Jonah didn''t want to preach to the nasty enemy because first they were scary and secondly in case they repented and God was merciful, and they didn''t get the destruction Jonah felt they deserved. What about you?¡± ¡°I wasn''t directly refusing to obey God, but I didn''t want to do something the head pastor had told me I ought to do. He said he felt God was telling him I ought to do it, of course, but... Well, even acknowledging I had the gift at all was embarrassing, let alone what he said. So, I didn''t want to listen and there was the family debt, and I used that as my excuse to refuse and run away from the gift and the pressure to do what they were saying and everything. I told mum that I loved God but didn''t want the gift, and if He really didn''t want to take it back then he''d better make sure no one took me on. You turned up the next day.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Head pastor?¡± ¡°I was a trainee pastor. Mum was really proud of me, then.¡± ¡°She still loves you. But no wonder you knew all the right Bible verses to quote at me. Is using the gift something you need to try? How do you know you don''t have it?¡± ¡°The water''s on.¡± Tuga said, bringing out one bench and ignoring the question. ¡°Should I bring the other one?¡± The soldiers had surrounded the two Tungans. ¡°I think, actually, we ought to wander over, and offer evidence.¡± ¡°That''s good. Because I think we ought to too. It''s really not my place to say it, but from what I''ve seen so far, I don''t think they deserve to die. Just because we got nervous because of circumstances, they don''t look that scary.¡± ¡°And chasing after someone to ask a question isn''t illegal. I know.¡± Tangseng said. Together they approached, and soon heard the woman crying. ¡°Sergeant?¡± Tangseng called, ¡°I trust your men are behaving themselves?¡± ¡°Yes, Lady Trader. We''ve simply informed these two about the law of Kanuga.¡± ¡°Which bit?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°The bit about anyone running from a patrol being assumed guilty of a capital crime? The bit about presumption of guilt regarding foreigners equipped to rob, steal, or murder? Or the bit about hospitality to the harmless?¡± ¡°We were just saying that the knife they left on top of the pack looked rather like equipment suitable for murder.¡± ¡°That''s not very culturally sensitive of you, sergeant. You''re talking about the lady''s honour-knife. She was probably given it when she was about ten to make sure that no boys got stupid ideas that she was easy prey, and has had it in reach every day of her life since. Putting it down in your path means roughly the same as you not just shedding your armour but everything except your underwear.¡± ¡°You deny it''s a deadly weapon, then, Lady Trader?¡± ¡°I deny it counts as going equipped for murder, any more than you not being castrated means you''re going equipped for rape, or Tuga''s lovely muscles mean he''s equipped to smash heads. The polite thing to do is return the lady''s knife, as assurance that you''re not planning rape. In the circumstances of her being under arrest you might not feel you can do that, but don''t threaten her with death for being a respectable woman and not a prostitute.¡± ¡°That''s what it means?¡± The sergeant asked, finally understanding. ¡°Yes.¡± the woman said. ¡°And by putting it down, you wished us to understand you to be saying ''I am weak, harmless and trust in the law not my own resources''?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she said. ¡°Lady Trader,¡± the sergeant said. ¡°You are right, that I cannot give a knife this sharp to a prisoner. But would you look after it for her as an indication that we mean no harm to her?¡± Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°I accept the knife that guarantees your honour, stranger, and so place your honour beside my own. Know, stranger, that I am Tangseng, Trader of Kanuga and ambassador to Dahel by his Imperial Majesty''s surprising invitation and my queen''s agreement. I have known this sergeant since he was at my parent''s church and attended youth-group with me, and by my word and the honour of my queen and the love of God I know he has, he will allow no threat to your body except what a court of law may declare as punishment.¡± ¡°I thank you for your kind words, Tangseng. I am Syna, my brother is Nusun.¡± ¡°But why we are chased and threatened and arrested? Just for entering Kanuga and not finding a customs post?¡± Nusun asked. ¡°Mainly for entering and then running away from a patrol,¡± The Sergeant said, ¡°Since there aren''t more than two customs posts. Visitors are by invitation only. Independent trade is not permitted. Missionaries of Christ are not needed, those of other religions are not welcome.¡± ¡°What about messengers?¡± Nusun asked, as Syna looked up at the sky and asked God for patience. ¡°Messengers from an official in Dahel would not run from a patrol, but would approach and state their business.¡± ¡°And messengers from God?¡± Nusun asked. ¡°Ought not to be running from nor challenging the authority of appointed representatives of the law.¡± Tangseng said. ¡°I apologise if my brother gives offence. He thinks only his task, which he is sure comes from God, and not the tasks of others.¡± ¡°And what is this divinely appointed task?¡± the sergeant asked the man. ¡°To deliver a certain message to a certain person.¡± He said, as if that was all that needed to be said. ¡°My task,¡± Syna said, ¡°has long been to try to explain my brother to others. He genuinely struggles to think of other people''s perspective. I apologise for him if it comes across as pride, it''s not. It may be helpful to think of it as a form of idiocy, he is not actually unintelligent, but often he does not understand the obvious, and I don''t think he knows how to worry. God has told him to come here, so he almost left without telling anyone. He did not think of bringing food or water, any more than he would think to take a Bible to a Bible-study unless someone told him he should. He won''t tell me what it is and he does not know who his message is for, even. Only that he should come to this country, travel by back ways to the valley you saw us in, lady Tangseng, and tell his message to the first person who saw him.¡± ¡°That''d be me. I''m Tangseng''s husband, Tuga,¡± he said, ¡°Sorry Syna, I thought you were both men when I saw you.¡± ¡°I have a message from God for you, Tuga,¡± Nusun said. ¡°So I hear. Excuse me for not being shocked, it''s just been spoken of quite a bit recently.¡± ¡°Hear, Tuga what your God says to you: I know your thoughts and I planned your steps. Be at peace.¡± ¡°What?¡± Syna exploded, ¡°That''s it? We came all this way to say that? What sort of planet-shattering message is that? Why didn''t you tell me?¡± ¡°Thank you, Nusun.¡± Tuga said, ¡°Your sister does not value the message you delivered, it seems, but then it was not addressed to her.¡± Tuga closed his eyes momentarily, wobbled on his feet a bit and regained his balance. He then said, ¡°Talk to a librarian called Kanthena, right now she is in the library in the capital city, on the main square. I don''t know if that''s her library, though.¡± ¡°Thank you Tuga. Thank you!¡± Nusun said, grinning broadly. ¡°Tuga,¡± Tangseng asked, puzzled, ¡°why are you telling Nusun to talk to a librarian in the children''s library?¡± ¡°Because God knows Nusun''s thoughts too. Sergeant, can we invite you and your men to a cup of tea?¡± ¡°And our prisoners too, I hope?¡± the sergeant asked. ¡°Certainly.¡± Tuga agreed. ¡°I think Syna needs a drink to calm down.¡± ¡°My brother has truly excelled himself. Two week''s journey for two bland sentences? May I punch him a few times, sergeant?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°We left home just as the vines were getting ready for harvest. He never told me where we were going, or how far, just said he needed to go and take a message to someone. I could make no preparations, I didn''t even ask a neighbour to harvest for us. It will have all rotted, I expect. There''s going to be nothing at home because of this trip. No income, no stored fruit, nothing. For two sentences!¡± ¡°I can see why your brother was entrusted with the message, Syna,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°I expect if you had been told to deliver it then you would not have arrived until after we had left. But you have obviously suffered some loss. How much would your harvest have brought in?¡± ¡°Fifty bushels, at least.¡± Syna said, her eyes filled with greed. ¡°Twenty at maximum,¡± corrected Nusun. ¡°The vines are dying, the market is saturated, the money from selling what we can spare is never enough to repair the house. We would not have starved, but it would have been a hard winter and a hungry spring.¡± ¡°You''ve solved that, brother! Now we will starve before mid-winter.¡± ¡°Not if we are in jail for entering this country illegally,¡± Nusun said pragmatically. ¡°We do not jail people for entering the country illegally,¡± the sergeant said, ¡°The judicial penalty for illegally entering and attempting to avoid a patrol is expulsion with only the clothes you are wearing when caught. Or if you are found to be of otherwise good character, you may ask to stay and work on one of the farms.¡± ¡°What about for illegally entering and ignoring a patrol in order to deliver a message from God?¡± Nusun asked, curiously. ¡°Yes, that''s what the court has to decide, isn''t it?¡± the sergeant said, ¡°It might be the court decides that with that motivation you entered legally, in which case you''ve done nothing wrong. And you can leave or ask to stay.¡± ¡°Even if Syna is not of very good character, and tells silly lies about our harvest?¡± ¡°Perhaps the court will overlook that lapse.¡± the sergeant said, ¡°It is known that stress brings out the worst in people.¡± ¡°Sergeant?¡± Tuga asked, ¡°Do you have leeway to decide if a crime has been committed? It is clear to me at least that the message was from God.¡± ¡°And also clear that Nusun was thinking only of delivering the message,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°He only stopped because Syna stopped him with a fist in his guts.¡± ¡°Sorry, Nusun, I wasn''t aiming that low,¡± Syna said, before her brother could correct Tangseng. ¡°I have the authority to decide to immediately expel or detain someone for trial. As I said, the penalty for guilt established at trial is expulsion without your baggage, if I expel you immediately, then you will retain your baggage. In either case, you will receive a small brand on your arm which is why we checked your arms when you were arrested. More authority I do not have.¡± ¡°I don''t want to be branded,¡± Syna said, ¡°so I will trust the courts are merciful.¡± ¡°And I cannot return the honour-knife to Syna while she is your prisoner?¡± Tangseng asked. The sergeant agreed. ¡°So much for our trip being extended into a romantic get-away,¡± Tuga said to Tangseng. ¡°I can think of plenty of nicer places to stay, anyway,¡± Tangseng replied. ¡°Sergeant, we don''t have a tent, and the equipment of Tuga''s backpack is important and fragile, so we dare not begin a return to the city this late in the day, in case he misses his footing. However, as I hold Syna''s honour-knife for her we must return with you. Then we will see if they require a brand, discuss what is compensation for their lost harvest and their time, and if they wish to start a new life here.¡± ¡°I wish to start a new life here.¡± Nusun said. ¡°What?¡± Syna exclaimed. ¡°and what about the farm?¡± ¡°You keep on telling God that you hate our parent''s farm, Syna, when you don''t think I can hear you. Be consistent, sister. Now you can live somewhere else. And it''s beautiful here, isn''t it?¡± Syna, too stunned for words, groaned, and buried her head in her hands. ¡°Lady Trader,¡± the sergeant said, ¡°Perhaps it would be best if, once we''ve had that cup of tea, we leave our prisoners with a few guards here, allowing them the freedom to set up their own tents, of course. Then we''ll continue our patrol, and meet you back here in the morning?¡± ¡°I do love walking in these mountains,¡± Nusun said. ¡°I understand why Syna must stay, but could I come with you?¡± ¡°Please, good sergeant, take him!¡± Syna said, ¡°I willingly stay here as hostage to him not trying to escape.¡± ¡°Why would I try to escape?¡± Nusun asked ¡°I need to talk to a librarian called Kanthena.¡±
Shepherd''s hut, that evening. The guards and Syna had set up their tents, and then eaten with Tangseng and Tuga, and then there had been more talk, mainly about Syna''s life and what she might expect if she stayed in Kanuga. She was not fully convinced, but nor was she fully opposed to the idea. Then, finally Tuga and Tangseng were left alone. ¡°Tuga?¡± ¡°Yes, beloved?¡± ¡°You can guess what I''m wondering.¡± ¡°Yes, I have the gift once more.¡± ¡°That''s good news.¡± ¡°And now I must decide how to use it. That''s something God reassured me about. It would have been wrong to do what I was asked. He planned my steps, Tangseng! I thought I was running away, but he is sovereign, and arranged our meeting!¡± ¡°God said that?¡± ¡°He said I was not wrong to say no.¡± Tuga said. ¡°And that he arranged our meeting?¡± ¡°Why did you go to the slave market, Tangseng?¡± ¡°I wanted a body guard.¡± ¡°But you hadn''t had one until then.¡± ¡°No. I...¡± she looked at him in surprise, ¡°I had a scary dream a few nights before, of being alone with strangers following me. God sent that dream?¡± ¡°Or allowed it, my fearless one.¡± Tuga said. ¡°You must decide how to use it, you said?¡± ¡°It is a powerful gift, beloved. I could eavesdrop on the emperor''s thoughts, pass them on to anyone who hears thoughts plainly. Or make the patrols lazy by sending them straight to people who shouldn''t be in Kanuga.¡± ¡°Or give the names and addresses of dum-semb members?¡± ¡°Names and place on a map, yes. Like Kanthena the librarian.¡± ¡°Nusun''s future wife?¡± Tangseng asked. ¡°Not certainly. She is someone who will understand his way of thinking and might become his wife. I can know too many secrets, Tangseng, I don''t want to know the future as well.¡± ¡°But you cannot make me hear more of your thoughts.¡± ¡°Would you like me to pray that you would be able to? Or do you mean, can I think to you?¡± ¡°I would like to understand you better, Tuga, but yes to both. There might be times, I''m sure, that it would be nice to listen in to your thought-conversations with pretty girls from Tesk, so I do not become jealous, or for you to know that I''m hearing you properly. If we become separated and you need to contact me, for instance.¡± ¡°It is hard to hear to thoughts of everyone around you, my beloved. I spent much of my time trying not to, before. It was a relief when I didn''t. People think it is OK to think rubbish, to speculate about what someone looks like without their clothes on, or to fantasize about killing a relative. They assume that because they never act on it, never say it, they can cherish it as a guilty secret. Syna, for instance, has her fantasies.¡± ¡°About sticking her honour knife in her brother?¡± ¡°Actually, not. She tells herself they don''t matter, but I think Jesus says they do. It made me untrusting and cynical about even the best motives.¡± ¡°You don''t recommend developing the gift of Tesk, you''re saying.¡± ¡°Exactly. You probably could, if you didn''t mind hearing every embarrassing thought of those around you. I was told that''s what the so-called catalyst does: sends out reassurances that he doesn''t mind what they hear.¡± ¡°Who told you?¡± ¡°An old man, a visitor to the village. He came to talk to me one evening, while I was loafing about in a field, away from the crowd. Then he prayed that I''d get this gift, breathed a sigh of relief, and told me he''d probably be dead by mid-winter. He was ill, you see, but also tired. He''d walked a long way to meet me. You met him too, it seems.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°The strange man you''re thinking about.¡± ¡°I was three. He told me how to shut out the voices.¡± ¡°Yes. You see? You can hear thoughts, you just didn''t want to when you were little.¡± ¡°Do you want me to hear your thoughts, Tuga?¡± Tuga looked into her eyes, and she gazed back, she was worried that he wouldn''t want her to, that his old preference to not talk about these things would block this area of his life from her, when she wanted to share everything with him. He smiled, realising that he wanted to share everything with her too, that they would be one in flesh, one in thought, one in mind. ¡°I don''t mind you sharing my bowel movements with you, beloved. Sorry, but you get the yuck along with the intimacy.¡± ¡°Bowel movements are part of life,¡± Tangseng said ¡°and in forty or fifty years we might need to be helping each other deal with them not working when they should. You''re mine and I want all of you.¡± ¡°It sounds like I ought to be taking you to bed then.¡± ¡°You named it our romantic get away spot.¡±
The palace, Caneth ¡°Hello, Esme.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°Either I''m going mad, or we have an answer to prayer, and you have a problem.¡± ¡°I do?¡± ¡°Yes. I don''t suppose you have a map showing Inner Caneth, do you?¡± ¡°It''s mostly featureless desert.¡± ¡°I crossed the corner of it, yes. Half an hour ago a man thought a picture to me, a map. I asked him why not to you or at least Bethania, since she''s an artist, and he said ''because you''re worrying about these things, and far enough removed from power that I can''t accuse myself of manipulating any governments''. So I''d really like a map, before my memory fades. Three dum-semb infested villages.¡± ¡°Come to the library,¡± Esme said. ¡°Thank you. In case you''re wondering, he said that Tangseng would get a set of maps for my future father-in-law when she woke up, and he also said that if no one was going to Tew before-hand, he''d give Eva a map to drop off when she goes past on her way to Dahel.¡± ¡°Nice of him.¡± Esme said. ¡°He''s very well informed.¡± ¡°Yes. It sounds like he knows Tangseng. At least, he said she''d be a bit annoyed with him, but he was ''blaming'' God for listening to my prayers.¡± ¡°Here''s the map.¡±
The Hut ¡°Tangseng beloved?¡± Tuga said, long before the sun had started to rise over the mountains. ¡°Yes, love?¡± she answered sleepily. ¡°I think we should call Naneela before we go down the mountain.¡± ¡°Because.... did you just think that answer to me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why do you know she''s awake and worried?¡± ¡°God thinks her need for reassurance is more important than our need for sleep.¡± ¡°And you thought to Hayeel too?¡± ¡°Yes. That was around midnight.¡± ¡°I didn''t dream it then. Just the giant octopus. That was a dream, yes?¡± ¡°Urm, yes.¡± ¡°I wondered what it was doing so far from the coast. OK.¡± she yawned, ¡°I''ll set up the radio, but I''ll just tell the octopus he''s not real.¡± she muttered, rolled on her side and started to doze off again, Tuga smiled fondly at her and decided he could so the basic steps of stringing out the antenna.
The heart of the empire. Princess Naneela paced up and down her room, wishing the radio would break the pre-dawn silence and burst into life. It seemed impossible; the empire was just too big, how could dum-semb be eradicated even if they ever did get told where the dum-semb people were? They couldn''t make the valves fast enough to make enough radios, and the distances were too great for phones to work. ¡°Naneela? Tangseng. I''ve just been given a hand-sketched map of dum-semb infested villages.¡± ¡°As in it was physically handed to you?¡± ¡°Yes. I''ll tell you later about the details, but there''s going to be a challenge.¡± ¡°Getting the message about what village to go to next the army, I know.¡± ¡°I was actually thinking that it was going to be harder to get your army to listen to and work with foreigners. Most of the villages are on the Tew border, so close that the best solution is going to be some kind of joint operation with the Tew army.¡± ¡°The empire''s still too big. Phones don''t stretch that far, we can''t make that many radios.¡± ¡°And if you mix and match?¡± Tangseng suggested, ¡°Radio to generals or whatever rank in regional control centres, and then telephone after that?¡± ¡°And if dad can''t trust the generals?¡± ¡°Then that becomes your biggest problem,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°No, because you do not need this to be a military matter.¡± A man corrected Tangseng. ¡°It''s an issue of the law not being respected or applied. A warning to barons and counts that they will be lose their position if they allow it to continue ought to be sufficient, surely?¡± ¡°That was Tuga, my husband, highness,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Hello Tuga. And how can such a warning be delivered?¡± ¡°The empire has a method to distribute and duplicate information about taxation, and other laws, highness. It might be slower than radio, but there are systems and trusted agents in place. I expect it could be improved with phone and radio. Perhaps you should think of priorities rather than everything at once. I can also tell you that apart from in those villages marked on Tangseng''s map, there is no one who delivers such messages with a relative in an organisation involved in human sacrifice. I do not promise to answer every question, and I cannot name every member of dum-semb, trying would kill me. The gift of God is not given to make hard things easy, but to give hope to those who face an otherwise impossible task. Trust in God, not in your own understanding, remember to ask for wisdom, and think about what relevant skills might exist in your father''s vast empire. Oh, and get some more sleep. Turning off.¡± ¡°You have the gift?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Secretly.¡± Tuga replied, ¡°Now stop wor-¡± the signal cut off as the capacitors discharged. ¡°Stop worrying and get some sleep.¡± Naneela said, echoing to herself the advice of the man she''d met twice, maybe three times, but never spoken to. It was good advice, and appropriate, she''d woken up hours ago. ¡°Hope to those who otherwise face an impossible task,¡± that in itself was encouraging. Thinking of the other words things he''d said, wise she was sure, and the passages of scripture they reminded her of, she got back into her bed and drifted into sleep without conscious decision. ¡°That was quick,¡± Tangseng said. ¡°Did you catch earlier that she''d been working until midnight and woken up half way to dawn full of worries?¡± Tuga asked. ¡°Yes. I didn''t expect you to tell her you had the gift though.¡± ¡°She''s going to know eventually. And she was worried about whether ''the person with the gift'' was going to have ethical problems with helping.¡± ¡°You did set some limits.¡± ¡°And gave some hints too. I can''t name everyone, Tangseng. I might be able to name six or so in one go, maybe, but then I''d need a fairly long rest. You know how you get cramps in your muscles if you suddenly run too far too fast? That''s sort of what happens to my brain if I do too much, except my brain is getting too hot. And of course you can''t massage it out. I was warned; it can kill me, painfully, if I overuse it.¡± ¡°Please don''t over-use it. Is that what the pastor wanted?¡± ¡°He knew I could find people, and the count had circulated some ''have you seen this girl, family are worried'' notices. He wanted me to go to town and offer to help, to show that God was real, or at least he go to town and I help via him. He told the church his plan before talking to me about it.¡± ¡°And the person didn''t want to be found?¡± ¡°She not only didn''t want to be found, but her father knew she was travelling with some believers to the Central Zone and making plans to join the Empress''s guard, but he was keeping that a secret from his wife to give her a chance to get there. I didn''t think I could tell the pastor or mum that. And in any case, I wasn''t happy about the whole ''Let''s get our church famous'' thing that was behind it.¡± ¡°Complex,¡± Tangseng agreed. ¡°This is much simpler. Murderous cultists don''t arouse much sympathy from me.¡± ¡°Are you the only one with the gift, Tuga?¡± ¡°You know, I don''t actually know. The man who prayed for me said there was someone else he wanted to pray with too, but he wasn''t sure he''d get there, and then he was concentrating on training me when he called me. He wasn''t particularly the sort to chat.¡± ¡°But you could look?¡± ¡°I could. I will, maybe. Not right now though. Syna''s packed up her tent and is just noticing the guards are asleep. It''s time to offer her some breakfast, I think, before she gets into lots of trouble.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 35: Camels

Planet 5 / Ch. 35: Camels

The village of Nazik, Central Caneth Assistant camel herder Hwalf looked away from his game into the distance, hearing a stranger''s voice, and so lost. That was no surprise anyway. Hwalf usually lost, it made the others happy. [Hello speaker of a strange language,] he thought back. [Where are you?] [In the leeward kingdom of Kanuga. I am called Tuga.] [Ah. Not on another planet then.] Hwalf thought [I have wondered if I''d ever be called from another planet.] [It is possible it will happen. Your game seems complicated.] [It is simpler than life, but more complex than most games.] [And you let the others win?] [Of course. It would make people suspect the impossible if I did not. Thus I play a harder game than them.] [Ah. They do not know?] [Would you tell anyone?] Hwalf asked. [I kept the secret a long time, and then told my pastor at church, and he wanted to become famous because of me. So I ran from there and rejected the gift. But the world has a need for the gift, and yesterday God reassured me I had not sinned in running from using the gift, and returned it to me.] [How do you run from hearing? And what is the need when rumours say the gift of Tesk is back?] [Hwalf, my friend, you can do more than hear, did you not know?] [I can see the dots, I know.] [And you can talk to any who have the gift of Tesk as I call you now.] [And who would welcome this intrusion?] [My wife is pleased to hear my thoughts, and your own princess-regent Esmetherelda is praying that there will be someone with the gift of God who will contact her.] [Why don''t you call her then? You seem comfortable to do so. I do not like the idea of secret conversations with a married woman.] [You are not married?] [No.] [Then be brave, Hwalf, and call out to Isthana, and learn of the need your country has of your gift.] Tuga said. [Why must I be brave?] [Because some in your village are followers of dum-semb, the religion of the doom-guard.] [And that is news?] Hwalf said cynically. [I told ambassador Hayeel, a friend of Esmetherelda who will be empress of Dahel, about five hours ago, so it is probably not news to Esmetherelda, but I only thought to her a map of dots, no more.] [You know important people.] [They are just people, their lives are complicated too. Now, talk to Isthana, who has no husband or boyfriend. I have checked for you.] And Tuga stopped talking. ¡°Hwalf, why are you staring at the horizon?¡± his victorious opponent said, ¡°There''s nothing there.¡± ¡°Yes there is,¡± Hwalf said, ¡°See! A thunder-cloud.¡± ¡°Rain will be good.¡± Huthal, his companion said. ¡°A storm might scare the camels,¡± Hwalf pointed out. Pessimism came easily to him. ¡°We could hobble them. You should pray for rain, Hwalf. If it rains, I will listen to what you say about God.¡± ¡°Why don''t you tell God that yourself?¡± Hwalf suggested, ¡°If you want the rain so much. My bruises from the last time we hobbled the camels are just healing.¡± ¡°The cisterns are almost dry, you lazy lizard! Pray to your God!¡± Huthal demanded. ¡°Ha! So you do admit that God is in charge? Then I win this hand, and we will both win the next, you more than me, if you listen carefully to what I say.¡± ¡°What do you mean, we will both win?¡± Huthal asked. ¡°Because if you listen, I will win a brother in faith, and Huthal will become son of the king of kings, with the right to make petitions in the throne-room where even emperors bow.¡± Then he prayed, ¡°Almighty God, this unbeliever says he will listen if you send rain. Wash away his stupid excuses, God. Please make any bruises I will get from the camels and men be worth it, and let the storm come. And father, you know the other thing on my heart. Help me to be patient.¡± ¡°So now we wait and see if your God answers,¡± Huthal said. ¡°Now who is the lazy lizard? You ask God for rain but don''t prepare for it? I will start hobbling camels, then if any run off when the cisterns fill up, it will be your fault.¡± Five minutes and one bruise later, Hwalf focussed his thoughts lightly on a woman called Isthana. He was sure he''d heard that name before, but he couldn''t remember where, was she a government minister? Isthana was playing a musical instrument, and was sad. [Do I call at a bad time?] he asked her. The music stuttered as she looked around. [You won''t see me, I''m in Central Caneth. Don''t stop playing for my sake, please. It is a beautiful sad song.] [You have the full gift of Tesk.] Isthana thought back to him. [The gift of God, yes. I hear I''m needed ¡ª Ow! ¡ª to do more than be kicked by camels.] [You are. How much to you know?] [I know I hate camels who kick me. The person who told me to call you said he had given a map to a friend of the princess-regent, showing there are followers of dum-semb in my village. That I know well. He told me you had no husband or boyfriend. Is that right? It would not be right to have secret conversations with someone''s wife.] [I''m no one''s wife. Are you anyone''s husband?] [No. Nor potential husband. I''m just Hwalf, who no one looks at.] [Just so I''m clear... there''s no girl in your past who might suddenly come back?] Isthana asked. [No. No one looks at Hwalf, Hwalf is just assistant camel herder, Hwalf is boring, Hwalf loses almost every time he plays Inek, Hwalf shares no gossip, Hwalf has no prospects, Hwalf does not stand out, or live in a big house like the judge who is priest of dum-semb, and he does not start fights or win bribes. But sometimes he wins souls for God. Please pray that the cloud I see will bring rain; the cisterns are almost empty, and my friend who I let win at Inek might believe if God sends rain.] [I will pray, good Hwalf. Do you know why there is a map of dum-semb?] Isthana asked. [The army will be coming?] Hwalf asked. [The penalty for involvement in the religion of the doom-guard has been the same since the Windward Emperors were killed. Optimistic rulers thought it had been destroyed. Ignorant people forgot dum-semb was that religion. Either soldiers or judges and soldiers will be investigating. But there is urgency. Eradication of dum-semb cannot wait even five years.] [One more death is too many.] Hwalf thought to her. [Yes, and more. If dum-semb is not eradicated the aliens will not come, and we need them to come.] Isthana thought, [Otherwise we have no future.] [There is danger?] he asked. [The flames in the sky are not really flames, but they will grow stronger, and blow away the air we breathe.] [We need the aliens to come, and you think they will count dots?] [Count dots?] Isthana asked, confused. [Look for people who have sacrificed someone.] [We assume so, yes. They will find some, who have rejected that past and now trust Jesus. On Tesk, if someone has repented before their trial and started to trust Jesus, the courts do not condemn. But there were hundreds who have been condemned. They would like to know if they have more to offer repentance to before they die. We hope the aliens will think of that.] [That is another thing to pray for, then.] [Yes.] Isthana agreed. [Can I ask why you play sad songs, Isthana? Because of dum-semb?] The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. [Because for years I have hoped that a certain man would look on me with the hopes I looked at him with. I had not seen him for some years, and I did not know, but he was close to another young woman, and then she admitted she had no faith, and so they broke up a few months before I next met him. We talked, he did like me. But then, the other girl found faith, and joyfully ran to tell him, ''now there is no reason we cannot become engaged''. I heard his thoughts, Hwalf, he likes me and does not want to hurt me, but his feelings for her are stronger than for me, he has more memories of her, more joy in her smile, more pain at her tears. I had to tell him so.] [No wonder you are sad. May I ask your age?] [Twenty five, and you?] [Twenty six.] [But still unmarried? Is that not unusual in Inner Caneth?] [Yes. My mother despairs, but no one looks on me with favour.] [Are you so ugly?] Isthana asked. [My mother says I''m handsome, who am I to judge? Girls do not reject me because of my looks. I do not like to trade, there are too many lies, so I watch camels. It is not an impressive job, but there are always camels. I do not learn secrets I must hide when there is no one around, and It gives me time to think interesting thoughts about aliens and the lights in the sky, dream of beautiful songs I cannot play or write, only think.] [I could try to write them down and play them if you like.] [You would do that?] Taking a risk he added [I also dream of meeting a woman I could think with.] [I''m the first you''ve thought to?] [You are the third person I''ve thought to at all. The other two were men. There are only two of us who can do this.] [Ah. I''ve thought like this across a room or through a door to my sister and to Hayeel, never to a man. There are no men with the gift of Tesk. It is a new experience.] [Yes. I could come to enjoy it, I think.] Hwalf risked thinking. [So could I, I think.] [You said about the law in Tesk. What about in Caneth?] [In Outer Caneth, there has only been one person found in a hundred years who was part of dum-semb, and she was a citizen of Tesk. She was returned there for trial. We did not know it was present in Inner Caneth. I''ll have to ask Esme what the law says about those who have turned from their sin.] [Who is Esme?] [My sister, crown-princess Esmetherelda.] [You... you are a princess?] Hwalf asked in shock. [You didn''t know, friend Hwalf? Do not let that stop you from talking to me, please, nor from thinking to me your beautiful songs.] [I may let it stop me thinking hopeful thoughts.] [Then I will only be able to play your hopeless and sad songs, won''t I?] Hwalf was confused by her tone. It seemed annoyed and teasing at the same time. [My songs are hopeful.] [Then you cannot think them to me, if you refuse to think hopeful thoughts to me.] [I did not mean like that.] [Esme will have questions to ask you, Hwalf, but she is in a meeting right now. Will you think a song to me while you are kicked by camels and wait for the the first drops of the storm?] [You are sure, princess?] [If you call me by name, I am sure. Isthana can play songs for hopeful camel herders. I don''t know about princesses. I might need to find out if I can call you a little-known composer first.] [Entirely unknown.] [How could you be otherwise while you hide your dreams and gifts and talents from the girls in your village?] [Those my age are all mothers. Those not even engaged are half my age.] [So think me a song, Hwalf, and I will try to not be harsh if I do not agree they are beautiful.] [Now?] [You might never think to me again, and I will be left wondering about your camels and your beautiful songs and about the storm that I ask God to send to fill your cisterns and wash away dum-semb from your village. Show your power and judge that false judge who defies you, father. Do not let the murderer of Hwalf''s cousin claim to have brought rain.] [Amen.] Hwalf said. [How did you know?] [The thought came to me, I don''t think it was from you, I guess from God. So urm, if the first raindrop that falls washes your head, Hwalf, tell your friend that God has heard and the false judge will face justice, and if it doesn''t then you''ll know I''m just totally confused about where that thought came from and what''s happening.] [I will think to you a song, Isthana. Perhaps what is happening is stray thoughts from me. I thought of it a long time ago: God please send comfort, I feel so alone. God please send water, the cisterns are like bone. Will anyone love me, or must I play dead? Will I grow my beard? Who will wash my head? But I do not matter, my saviour my God, You are the master, you hold the rod. God please send justice, Honour the dead, God please send hope, The sands are so red. Please send me courage, your word to speak, God please send rainfall, the children are weak.] [Growing a beard is a sign of marriage? I don''t know the custom.] [It is a sign that a girl has asked you to grow it for her, to show she is interested in you and if you are sufficiently old to marry. Perhaps she will say it must be a certain length before it is time for the marriage. Or perhaps she changes her mind and after a week or a month she says, start shaving again. But if not, the father of the girl washes the groom''s head, welcoming him to the family, and the man and wife decide if he will keep his beard or she prefers him without it.] [So it would be a strange thing for a girl whose father lives to say that God will wash your head, then, before you have started to grow a beard for her.] Isthana pointed out. [Yes.] [But I can play your song.] [Oh that one is not for playing, Isthana. That is for explaining. Move you stupid camel, Sorry, that was not to you. This is for you. I hope you can play it, and you like it. I call it ''Desert Sunrise''.] And she listened, in rapt attention, to the music that he thought to her. Just as he reached the end Hwalf hurriedly said, ¡°Sorry, I cannot talk more, Isthana. I must give your message to Huthal, my friend. I have just been hit on the head by a huge raindrop.¡± Isthana''s mother came in when she had written the song down and was half-way through playing it for the second time. ¡°Where did you learn that piece, Isthana? It''s beautiful.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Isthana said, ¡°it''s by a composer called Hwalf from Central Caneth.¡± ¡°It''s a lot happier than what you''ve been playing recently. You''re just practising it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Is he still alive?¡± ¡°Yes, mother, he''s about my age.¡± ¡°What a shame,¡± her mother said. ¡°Why shame, mother? Why under heaven is it a shame that he still lives?¡± ¡°If only you''d known him when he was younger you could have snapped him up, but he''s sure to be married by now. Especially with a talent like that. They all marry young in the desert. Has he written any more?¡± ¡°I think so. But this is the only one I''ve heard. I''ve only heard it once, too, so I might not remember it perfectly.¡± ¡°Well keep practising, and keep your ears open for more. It''s much nicer than all that sad stuff.¡± ¡°Mummy, I''ve heard something about girls asking boys there to grow their beard. Do you know anything about that? If he isn''t married, should I ask him to, just as ''you''ve done something that makes me notice you'', or does it mean more than that?¡± ¡°Ooh, that''s a real village custom. I doubt a composer would bother with that.¡± ¡°But what does it mean, mummy?¡± ¡°It means you''re at least a bit interested. Are you?¡± ¡°He writes beautiful music while watching camels in a village. No, sorry, he thinks of beautiful music. I don''t think he writes them down. He called me from Central Caneth half an hour ago. He''s not married, he didn''t think it would be right to talk to a married woman, so he brought up that subject. Someone had told him to contact me, about dum-semb. He was embarrassed that he''d dared speak when he learned I was a princess. His cousin was sacrificed to the doom-guard religion. He plays Inek, but deliberately loses to keep his gift a secret. You said I should snap him up. Should I?¡± ¡°I was joking, Isthana.¡± ¡°I''m not. He thinks beautiful music, he has faith, he has the full gift of Tesk or the gift of God, as he calls it.¡± ¡°So why wouldn''t you want to notice him?¡± ¡°He''s an unadventurous camel-herder, who no one ever showed an interest in?¡± ¡°He said that?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± [Who are you talking to, Isthana?] Hwalf asked. [My mother.] She replied. [About me?] [Yes.] [You''re embarrassed.] Hwalf said. [I''d just called you unadventurous.] [I''m having an adventure now. What do you call it when you move through water without your feet touching the bottom.] [Swimming.] [There''s another word. When you can''t breathe.] [Drowning. You''re not drowning, I hope?] [I hope not. God has sent a lot of rain, Isthana. A camel panicked and fell in a cistern. We are trying to stop it drowning. It is the cistern of the priest, though, the judge. so it won''t poison anyone if it does. He is dead, his big house was hit by lightning, the wall flew apart and he was hit by pieces of stone, and then crushed by a wall that fell on him.] [And your friend?] [Wants to know how he can be saved. Ah! Got it. I''ve got the rope under the camel.] [Do you wish to shave tomorrow, Hwalf? I am not certain what I feel about you, not at all, but I think I''d like to talk more and work it out. If that''s what asking you to grow a beard means, then I''m asking.] [But I''m unadventurous. It''s true.] [And write beautiful music.] Isthana pointed out. [We will never meet, princess.] [God is in charge of never. And Esme has plans for a conference. What is your village''s name?] [Nazik.] [Where the camel market is?] [Yes. I am assistant camel herder at the market.] [When people ask you who you grow your beard for, say ''Who knows, the unmarried princess who will come to the grand conference with her sister might like beards, and might want to play Inek against someone she can beat.''] [They will laugh and ask ''What grand conference?''] [The one in three weeks, where every year the camel traders and perhaps some village heads discuss whether Central Caneth should be able to set its own taxes and send a letter to father, inviting him to attend next year.] [The moot? You will come to the moot?] [There are some people in Nazik I want to meet face to face. Are there other dum-semb believers in Nazik?] [Yes. I will count them. Oh! There are just two! In the ruins of the big house which falls apart. Perhaps they had a meeting when the storm struck. The judge said something about others as he died.] [You were there?] Isthana asked. [Yes, because Huthal did not hobble this camel, and we had to chase it. It jumped sideways when the lightning hit the house, right into the cistern.] [The trapped people are hurt?] [Probably, the house is a slowly falling to pieces. I think he didn''t expect the wadi would ever fill up. There''s only two walls upright. I should try to arrange a rescue for them, perhaps?] [Perhaps there are people who are not of dum-semb also?] Isthana suggested [Do not leave them to die if there is no one else who is in danger in the village; perhaps they will repent if they live.] [I''ll have a look for more people in danger. I think I should talk to you later.] [Will you grow your beard for me, Hwalf?] [I call you and ask in the morning if you''re sure, if I may?] [Certainly.]
The throne room, Caneth ¡°Esme, I''m coming with you to the Nazik moot,¡± Isthana said, thinking firmly that she didn''t want Esme to listen to her thoughts. ¡°Oh yes? That''s a little decisive.¡± Esme said. ¡°There''s a camel herder I need to speak to, he lives in Nazik.¡± ¡°Why do you want to talk to a camel herder?¡± Hal asked. ¡°He''s a composer and I''ve just asked him to start growing his beard for me.¡± ¡°Isthana,¡± Esme said, ¡°I can tell you''re happy, which is a nice change, but did someone spike your drink?¡± ¡°I''m excited, Esme, not drunk.¡± Isthana replied. ¡°You''re not making much sense.¡± Esme accused. ¡°Stop being dense sister, and put together the clues.¡± ¡°Clue one, Isthana''s happy.¡± Hal said, ¡°and wearing a prettier dress than normal. I think that means she''s not thinking about being sad and lonely.¡± ¡°Clue two,¡± Isthana added, ¡°I''ve been talking to Hwalf the assistant camel-herder in Nazik, where God has just acted in judgement and mercy, killing most of the dum-semb group including the high priest during a thunderstorm that filled dry cisterns. Hwalf has rescued a camel and now he''s going to try to work out how to rescue some people without letting on about his gift. Oops, you were supposed to guess that.¡± ¡°Hwalf has the full gift of Tesk?¡± Esme asked. ¡°He calls it the gift of God. It''d be wrong in his eyes to have secret conversations with another man''s wife, so he got told to call me by Hayeel''s map-source. He was a bit surprised when he realised I''m a princess, poor man. I think he thought I was some junior minister or something.¡± ¡°And you told him to grow his beard? As in you''re claiming an interest?¡± ¡°I asked him if he would, with me not being really sure if I like him or just his music.¡± ¡°Ah yes, clue three, you said he''s a composer. Nice music?¡± ¡°Very.¡± ¡°You can tell him Hal and I are attuned if you like,¡± Esme said, ¡°So it won''t be a secret conversation.¡± ¡°Why would I want to do that? I like thinking to him.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 36: Not shaving

Planet 5 / Ch. 36: Not shaving

The village of Nazik, Central Caneth ¡°How old are you, Hwalf?¡± his mother asked the next morning. ¡°Twenty-six, mother, why?¡± ¡°How is it that I still need to remind you to shave then?¡± ¡°Ah. Perhaps I should have told you, mother. I will not be shaving today.¡± ¡°Your razor is blunt?¡± ¡°No, mother. My razor is sharp, but I will not be shaving.¡± ¡°You do not mourn that judge, surely!¡± ¡°I do not mourn, mother, I celebrate.¡± ¡°Celebrating death is wrong, Hwalf. Have I taught you nothing?¡± ¡°I don''t celebrate death, mother. I honour God for bringing justice to the judge, but my not shaving is a thing to celebrate. There will be royalty at the moot, mother. Maybe the prince of Dahel, certainly the princess-regent and her husband, crown prince of the Isles, and her sister who likes my music.¡± ¡°What music?¡± ¡°The music I cannot play but can think of, mother. I''ve told you of my beautiful music, surely? She likes it, and has asked me not to shave.¡± ¡°Hwalf, you spend too much time alone, coming up with such crazy stories.¡± ¡°I''m not alone, mother. God is with me, Huthal is sometimes around when he wants to talk about God or beat me at Inek. Yesterday he did both, and decided that God''s judgement is worth avoiding.¡± ¡°When will you shave, Hwalf?¡± his mother asked, exasperated. ¡°When Princess Isthana decides, mother, or I decide I don''t like her. Her mother is from Tesk, prince Hal of the Isles is married to her sister. I assume that''s how she has the gift of Tesk.¡± His mother looked at him for a long time, and then said, ¡°You once said that you could hear people''s thoughts.¡± ¡°Nice of you to believe me at last mother. Isthana tells me she can decide to tune out people. I''ve never managed to. I could ask Tuga if he can, and how, I suppose.¡± ¡°Who''s Tuga?¡± ¡°The man who told me he''d given a map of believers in the doom-guard religion to the future empress of Dahel. She''ll probably be coming if the prince does, of course. Tuga also asked me to talk to Isthana. It was a bit embarrassing to find out that she''s a princess half way through talking to her, but she was quite sure she still wanted to talk to me.¡± ¡°The doom-guard religion?¡± his mother asked, confused. ¡°Dum-semb.¡± ¡°But....¡± she didn''t finish, but he''d heard her thought. ¡°Yes, mother. Father was part of it, before he died. But that was a mistake. The man who recruited him had been meant to recruit someone else. They only realised the mistake when Dad went to take his first vow. He never knew they sacrifice people.¡± ¡°He was so proud to be asked to join,¡± his mother said. ¡°That''s how they recruit. It''s all very clever. A club that''s actually a religion. Step by step they feed the pride and convince people that they''re more important than others. Pride and power and other sins. They don''t bother trying to recruit assistant camel herders.¡± ¡°You knew,¡± his mother accused. ¡°I told him. ''It''s sin, dad, they''re feeding your pride and teaching you to sin.''¡± ¡°Your father was a good man,¡± she asserted. ¡°Proud at the end, though. I''m just glad he didn''t get deeper into it. You should be too, mother.¡± Hit by a rare spark of insight, she asked ¡°That''s why you dropped out of school?¡± ¡°I didn''t want to be noticed, mummy. I still don''t, not that way. Don''t say anything, please. Pretend to be ignorant. What I can do is impossible, without God.¡± ¡°All things are possible with him.¡± ¡°Yes. But there are still dum-semb members around. I wondered what this gift was for but now I know. It''s for finding lost children and for being dum-semb''s worst nightmare.¡± ¡°Janela was very thankful. You did a good thing pulling her boys out of the cistern.¡± ¡°But she was not thankful enough to keep quiet like I asked her to. I''m glad Isthana has asked me to grow my beard, and is not just thinking about it. I told her all the women my age were mothers. I forgot that some were also widows already; Janela''s sister was looking for me yesterday evening.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°I cannot remember her name. The one who accidentally killed her husband.¡± ¡°Linela. That''s just a nasty rumour, Hwalf, he was killed by an old wall falling on him.¡± ¡°I know how he died, mother. She was thinking about it all through the funeral.¡± She''d lent on the other side. ¡°And that''s why you don''t like Linela?¡± His mother asked. ¡°I don''t want to grow my beard for any woman who does not love God, mother.¡± ¡°And this stranger does?¡± ¡°Isthana does, yes. And through her, God gave me a message for Huthal about the judge''s fate, which I told him before the lightning struck. So, for Isthana I do not shave.¡± ¡°And how do you expect to earn enough to provide for a princess?¡± ¡°God will provide, mother,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°You don''t know, you mean,¡± she accused. ¡°I know that there are far fewer dum-semb members than there were, mother. Perhaps I will look for another job after the moot. Now, I must go or I will not even be assistant camel herder.¡±
Village of Nazik, Central Caneth The sun was just approaching mid-day and the camels were resting when the soldiers arrived at the outskirts of the village. Captain Dalken, their commander, called them to a halt in the in the shade of the tree. There were twenty of them, on camel-back of course. ¡°God has provided us with plenty of water,¡± Huthal said, modifying the traditional greeting, ¡°Be welcome to drink all you desire, fill your water-skins and water your camels.¡± ¡°We''re looking for the judge of this village,¡± the captain declared. ¡°If you wish to discuss anything with him, you are too late. His body was buried in the ruins of his house yesterday.¡± ¡°There were other fatalities?¡± the captain prompted. ¡°He shouted something like ''Don''t mind the others, help me!'' We were chasing a loose camel, see, I was sure I''d hobbled it properly, but it ran off. We cornered it in in his outer courtyard, and the judge came out of the house to see what the noise was, and then the lightning struck his house, see? And the camel jumped right into his cistern, and the judge got hit by splinters of rock, one went right though his guts like a spear. That''s when he shouted it, see, and then the front of the house fell on him, and he screamed a bit that his legs were trapped, and then another wall fell on him, and he was buried. It was really clear he was going to be dead, so we, Hwalf and me, we got the camel out. Well, it was Hwalf mainly, then while we were getting the camel out, the flood hit the back wall, see, and even more of the house fell down. Hwalf, he saw a couple of kids being washed away, and so we went and chased them too. So there''s missing people, and they might be these others the judge was shouting about us ignoring, but we don''t know. It was pretty late by the time we got the kids back to their mother, see? Stupid place to build a house, right in the wadi, but it was the centre of the village and he never did listen. "Thought it was very clever of him to have shade from the banks, and no one remembers that much water in the wadi, ever, and of course his cisterns got full first and he charged people a lot to get at his water. All the cisterns are full now. All of them, that''s not happened even in my grandad''s life.¡± ¡°I see. So who''s missing?¡± the captain asked. ¡°About twenty people, maybe. I don''t know. No one''s seen the mayor or his wife, but maybe they''re just hiding, on account of their friend the judge being judged by God. The wife of the inn-keeper''s gone, but then she might have run off with the money-lender, who''s gone too. Except she was more want to flirt with the policeman who''s vanished with his wife too, and his deputy. Inn-keeper''s wife won''t have run off with him, because he''s her brother. The boss seems to be missing, but then, he''s a friend of the judge too. Then there''s Nangi and his henchmen, who some people say are bullies and others say are robbers, mentioning no names, but they certainly have money and loaf around the judge''s place a lot. Or they did before they vanished. Then there''s about seven traders who haven''t been seen, some with their wives. Looks like everyone in the dum-semb group has vanished, really, except for old Turb, who they found without his head in the rubble.¡± ¡°You said ''the dum-semb group''?¡± ¡°Yeah, it''s this kind of secret club for the rich and powerful.¡± Huthal said, ¡°Hwalf says it''s illegal, but if it were, what would the judge be doing in it?¡± ¡°Is this Hwalf a trustworthy man?¡± ¡°Yeah, trustworthy. Not very clever, but honest. I don''t think he''s ever won a game of Inek except when I make mistakes. I mean, yesterday, he''d almost beaten me and he just looked away at the critical moment so I could take his king.¡± ¡°I see,¡± the captain said. ¡°Does he have enemies?¡± ¡°Hwalf? Who''d bother picking Hwalf as an enemy?¡± ¡°Rivals in love?¡± ¡°Look, officer, you don''t know Hwalf. He''s honest, he''s trustworthy, he used to be pretty smart at school until just before his dad died, then it''s like he just decided that his ambition was to do nothing, impress no-one. Like at Inek. If you want to beat someone at Inek, play Hwalf. He''s not easy to beat, he''s tricky, and you''ll know you''ve had to work to beat him, most of the time. If you make so many stupid mistakes that you deserve to lose then you will. But I''ve watched him play others who can wipe the floor with me. They work to beat him too. He plays to play, not to win. He doesn''t chase girls, and they don''t even notice him. Except Linela, last night, it was her sisters kids he found, see, and then surprise surprise he wasn''t there. He''s got no ambition except to be left alone.¡± ¡°Thank you for your explanation,¡± Captain Dalken said, ¡°so you believe dum-semb is no longer in this village?¡± ¡°Maybe some of the trader''s wives. I don''t know.¡± ¡°Just so you know, dum-semb is the religion of the doom-guard.¡± ¡°That''s what Hwalf said he thought, yes. But he said that no one he''d spoken to could confirm that. And the judges in the neighbouring towns often turn up to their secret meetings.¡± ¡°If the meetings are secret, how do you know about them?¡± ¡°Because they don''t leave their camels to wander away, and even if the boss brings them, it''s not hard to recognise a camel even without it''s harness.¡± ¡°Not for someone that knows them, no.¡± the captain agreed. ¡°What about this one?¡± ¡°This is Vini. My greetings to Hwelef when you return one of his best behaved animals.¡± ¡°Well done, man. Very well done. So who would you say was the most influential person in the village now?¡± ¡°That''s a tough one. Inn-keeper, maybe? Or the pastor?¡± ¡°And you can watch these camels for us? Standard army rates, of course.¡± ¡°Certainly sir!¡± Huthal agreed. Twenty camels at army rates when the boss was missing was going to make his wife very happy. It was not until the evening that the captain tracked down Hwalf, returning from where he''d been grazing the camels. ¡°You''re a hard man to find, assistant camel herder Hwalf.¡± ¡°If I''d known you were looking for me, captain...¡± Hwalf said, but shrugged. ¡°You''d have hidden better?¡± Hwalf shrugged, ¡°Probably not. I don''t like to upset people. I was simply with the camels. I could not have come before my replacement arrived, but you could have come to find me. Of course, the horrible things kick, so maybe you chose the wiser course.¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°You play Inek, I understand.¡± the captain said. ¡°I do, captain.¡± Hwalf said. ¡°I''ve not met many who can beat me.¡± ¡°I''ve met plenty who beat me.¡± Hwalf countered, with a winning smile. ¡°So I understand. A certain assistant camel-herder implied that you let people win. I would like to see you try to beat me.¡± ¡°Some people say that, but they don''t really mean it, in my experience. They find it upsetting.¡± Hwalf countered. ¡°You knew that dum-semb was the religion of the doom-guard.¡± The captain said trying a different tack. ¡°People don''t like to know such things. It scares them. And who listens to assistant camel herders?¡± Hwalf asked. ¡°Who did you try to tell?¡± It was half an accusation. Failing to report a capital crime was itself a crime. ¡°Other than assistant camel herder Huthal who did not believe me? There was no official in the village who was not part of it, except the pastor who is a timid man with heart trouble. We had no regular visitors who did not seem to be part of it. My cousin was becoming a trader, he travelled to distant towns. I told him. He was careful to find someone he thought he could trust in a far-off village. When he returned here, within a week he had been killed, sacrificed. That was about five years ago. You are the first soldiers to visit our village since, except during the market season. During the market season, the soldiers are always watched, to ensure that no-one approaches them. It is a simple thing for an assistant camel herder who no one considers a threat to notice this extra watchfulness. It is altogether more difficult to find someone to tell. I suppose I could have left the village with my mother and followed the trade-route to the city. Except of course I have no camel of my own, and it is easy for mounted men to catch up with someone on foot.¡± ¡°A letter...¡± ¡°Is easy to spot in a village where the only post is for visitors or the pastor who I felt I could not tell because of his heart, and of course the fact that his brother was involved, on the edges. As was my father for a time, before he died, but that was a case of mistaken identity, I heard some of them discussing what to do with this peasant who''d just become a member by an accident of name. So I believe this hand goes to me.¡± ¡°You speak in terms of Inek?¡± The captain asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Hwalf agreed. ¡°So you will play against me?¡± there was an eagerness in the captain, Hwalf heard. He really did want to play Hwalf at his best. ¡°And I will allow you to discover if your only mistake was simply telling me you wanted to lose, or if you are able to lose some other way.¡± Hwalf said, calmly, setting up the board on a table of the inn. ¡°Is this a new policy of patrol? To play camel herders at Inek?¡± ¡°I have been asking questions. There has to be a judge in each village. There must also to be a policeman and deputy, but those roles can be filled by a couple of my men. You are seen as honest and impartial.¡± ¡°Oh, I''m very partial.¡± Hwalf said, ¡°Partial to be left alone, to not stand out, to not make powerful enemies.¡± ¡°Such as dum-semb?¡± ¡°The evil one has other accomplices, but they must surely be among his favourites. Feeders of pride, perverters of justice, destroyers of life.¡± ¡°You say you do not wish a public role, but I am told you do not turn aside from roles that people need you to fill.¡± Hwalf didn''t bother to deny it. Sometimes he considered it a failing. But if he was needed, then he was needed. ¡°You think that if I beat you at Inek it will prove I am the one for the job?¡± ¡°How you beat me will tell me a lot about you, I think.¡± The captain said, truthfully. Hwalf knew the theory: a crook would try to steal, and so on. ¡°Perhaps I will manage to confuse you so much that you agree that I am not the one for the job. Or at least, that it is only a temporary post until you can seek advice from the capital? I will hope for that. As you are my guest, you may choose sides, and choose order of play. You may even choose to use your own cards if you do not trust mine. They are not marked. Do you have your own dice? Mine are worn and have a tendency to prefer threes.¡± ¡°A useful number for defender.¡± ¡°The tendency is no match for strategy, and you are a strategic player, I think.¡± ¡°And you?¡± Hwalf laughed, ¡°I am your worst enemy or your best friend, captain. If you wish to lose, you will, if you wish to win and do not make stupid mistakes, you will. If you need teaching, I will try to give it. If you are proud, beware your fall. Inek is an easier game than life, and in life I wish you to face some uncertainties.¡± ¡°You speak as a mystic.¡± Dalken said. ¡°Me? I''m no mystic. I''m only someone wishing to sow confusion. Is it working?¡± ¡°I will play defence, and move first.¡± ¡°A bold strategy. Or foolish. Would you also like to deal?¡± ¡°I leave you that honour.¡± And so the game began. The captain seemed to be a good player, but choosing defence with first move and not being dealer had a fatal flaw, if the first move was one of the normal ones. So it was that Hwalf beat him in the minimum possible number of moves. Hwalf said, ¡°Hardly a fair game, captain. All I have proven is that the fatal flaw is fatal.¡± ¡°I''ve not seen a victory so swift, however, nor to a king-side opening.¡± ¡°Each generation forgets what their grandfathers learned the hard way, captain. And my great-grandfather taught me when I was young. Would you like me to play defence-first so you can try to reply?¡± ¡°This should be interesting,¡± the captain said. ¡°You really wish to lose?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Dalken replied. ¡°Then my move is this.¡± Hwalf said, moving the most insignificant of his pieces sideways. The captain''s eyes opened wide. Normally a defence-first strategy left the major pieces open for an attack because pieces were out of position. Hwalf''s move had made no difference at all to that attach scenario, effectively turning the defence-first game into an attacker-first one. ¡°You have disarmed my whole game-play,¡± the captain said. ¡°If you do not like the game, captain, then it is normally possible to play another one.¡± The captain smiled, and discarded one of his cards. ¡°See! The student thinks he learns,¡± Hwalf moved his insignificant piece back again, ¡°But he forgets something that is important.¡± By discarding, the captain had weakened his hand, and the advantage he''d hoped to gain evaporated. He groaned at being caught in such a childish mistake. Some of his men started to gather around. It was plain that Hwalf could play that waiting game forever, or at least as long as he possessed the insignificant piece. And so the game began in earnest, and the crowd saw the might of the most powerful attacking pieces failing to pin down what was supposedly the weakest piece on the board. Hwalf''s major pieces were almost entirely ignored by both players, until Hwalf played a card that gave him an extra move, and with a major piece he took three of the captain''s pieces in quick succession, and with them the game. ¡°You forget, captain, that no real battle plan survives contact with the enemy,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°And I was so intent on catching your annoyance that I left myself wide open,¡± the captain said ruefully. ¡°Two childish mistakes in one game.¡± ¡°It is not polite to agree with one''s guest in all circumstances,¡± Hwalf said, to the amusement of the soldiers. ¡°Another game?¡± the captain asked. ¡°I think perhaps the inn-keeper might like some custom,¡± Hwalf said, ¡°whether we occupy his tables more or not.¡± ¡°You heard him, men.¡± the captain said, ¡°If you''ve been watching, you need to be a customer, but if you get drunk you''re on report.¡± ¡°A small bowl of stew, please.¡± Hwalf said, to the now grinning inn-keeper. ¡°Stew''s off, Hwalf, seeing as my cook has vanished.¡± ¡°I''m sorry,¡± Hwalf said, ¡°she was at the judge''s meeting?¡± ¡°Probably. I''ve told her to stay clear, but...¡± the inn-keeper shrugged. ¡°She was a good cook and a poor wife, and I was a poor husband. I''ll miss her, but not as much as I should.¡± ¡°Pastor says Janela''s sister Linela is a good cook.¡± ¡°You''re not growing your beard for her then?¡± the inn-keeper asked. ¡°I heard she was asking after you last night.¡± ¡°She''s not found me to ask, and if she did I''d tell her to look at my chin, and it''s not for her.¡± ¡°But you won''t say who for?¡± ¡°Not while I''m trying to spread confusion in the captain''s brain, no. I''d have to ask her if she wants it secret a bit longer.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± the inn-keeper said, nodding. ¡°I can do you plate of fried vegetables.¡± ¡°That''d be good, thank you.¡± ¡°And for the good captain?¡± the inn-keeper asked. ¡°I''d not object to a plate of fried vegetables, especially if it had some meat in it too. I don''t mind sharing with my teacher here, and I''ll pay for both.¡± ¡°See, the captain tries to put me in his debt. I accept if he will play attacking, first move, and avoid childish mistakes.¡± ¡°Who deals?¡± the captain asked. ¡°Your choice.¡± ¡°Then as I wish to be beaten at my strongest, I will deal.¡± ¡°Perhaps you should sell tickets, master inn-keeper,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°The captain wishes to lose, so the game may take some time.¡± ¡°Hwalf,¡± the inn-keeper said, ¡°you always lose.¡± ¡°Most people want to win. The captain wishes to fight hard and yet be beaten, and yet is forgetting what I said about when his friend can also be his enemy, which is sad considering recent events.¡± ¡°The judge?¡± the captain asked, confused. ¡°Tew.¡± ¡°You''re saying you''re a spy?¡± ¡°Of course not, captain. But if your eyes betray your thoughts to me are they not both your friends and enemies?¡± ¡°You are more than a simple camel herder, that''s certain,¡± Dalken said. ¡°Oh, absolutely.¡± Hwalf said. ¡°I''m a complex assistant camel-herder, an unpublished and unknown composer of what might be beautiful songs, a natural born-cynic, a teacher of truth, and a spreader of the good-news, and to top it all off, according to Huthal, a lazy lizard. You have challenged me, captain, to put aside the lizard, and so unfortunately has someone you may have seen from a distance or even met, so the lizard must go. It''s very sad. Your deal, your attack, your move, your strategy won''t work against me, sorry. I haven''t learned how to be taken by surprise yet.¡± ¡°What are you talking about, Hwalf?¡± Huthal asked, coming to see what was attracting the crowd. ¡°The captain wishes to be beaten,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°So the lone lazy lizard must put aside his long-established policy and become a hunter rather than prey for a while, at least. Hopefully it only costs me funny looks.¡± ¡°You think you''re going to win?¡± Huthal asked, peering at the captain''s cards and then Hwalf''s. ¡°Sadly, I''m quite sure of it.¡± Hwalf said. ¡°It''s very unfair of the captain to do this to me. Perhaps I should lodge a complaint against him at the palace? I doubt the princess would agree with me though.¡± ¡°What have you been drinking, Hwalf?¡± Huthal asked. ¡°Water and that heady intoxicant known as rekindled hope, Huthal. You can blame the captain, the princess and the musician if you wish. Or the sovereign Lord I serve. See, I sow confusion in your mind as well as the captain''s.¡± ¡°He''s drunk.¡± Huthal said. The captain decided on his plan and made his move. Hwalf ignored that move and countered the trap the captain had planned for four moves ahead. It became an epic battle of thwarted attacks and ignored feints. Nothing the captain tried worked. ¡°Captain, do you wish to resign now?¡± ¡°You''ve not taken a single piece yet.¡± ¡°I play national crisis,¡± Hwalf said, putting down the two cards that reset the captain''s pieces and all but two of his. The audience groaned for the captain''s sake. Hwalf''s major defence pieces were in perfect position to annex half the captain''s manoeuvring territory. ¡°Doubled,¡± the captain said, discarding all his cards and picking up just one in exchange. It was a risky strategy, played by instinct, rather than planning. Hwalf smiled. ¡°Well done, captain Dalken. I didn''t expect that.¡± The board was back to the start, and the captain tried another attack pattern. The dice throws of conflict came quick then, and the captain seemed to be winning for a while, but as soon as he returned to strategy Hwalf started to out-manoeuvre him. The confusion on the captain''s face became more and more evident. ¡°Tew, you said,¡± the captain said at last. ¡°And so it seems. At strategy you beat me, so I must dismiss strategy as useless.¡± He used his last card to move two major attack pieces into conflict with one of Hwalf''s major defenders. ¡°A suicidal move, unless the dice are your friends,¡± Hwalf observed. One attacker was destroyed, but the other was victorious. The captain smiled, ¡°sometimes, when the odds are against you, the possibly suicidal charge is the best solution.¡± On instinct the captain did nothing, gained a new card, and thought about how nice it would be to see princess Winessa again. His next move was again played without a long-term goal, a simple reinforcing of his position, keeping his options open. Hwalf''s grin widened. ¡°You are certainly a versatile opponent, captain. See what you can learn about me from this.¡± His move blocked one of the four attacks the captain had been thinking of. Inek was a game that could be played mainly on the board, as had been the case so far, but it could also be played with the cards and dice. There were always different options for the attacking player. The captain was truly an excellent player, and his instincts were good. But the crowd could tell he wasn''t playing with a single goal in mind, his moves were coming too quickly, too erratically. Hwalf was able to defend, but had the luxury of planning. Gradually the attacker''s position weakened. Dalken then decided on a set-piece attack that he used against Winessa, and carefully thought about how he wanted the play to proceed. It was a trap for thought-hearers. Hwalf ignored the fake plans. ¡°Have you just arrived from Caneth city, captain?¡± Hwalf asked conversationally. There were some laughs from the audience, as the innocuous-sounding question implied total ignorance about desert life. ¡°Better to say I arrived back from the city a few weeks ago.¡± ¡°Ah, so you have no up-to date news,¡± Hwalf said, thinking to Isthana [Do you know a captain Dalken?] [Winessa''s boyfriend. He''s there?] Isthana asked mentally. ¡°Some.¡± Dalken replied to Hwalf''s earlier question, ¡°We passed a telegraph station a few days ago.¡± [He wants to lose to me at Inek. And to make me judge over this village.] ¡°Will Tesk be joining the confederacy?¡± Hwalf asked, making his move. ¡°Tesk and Dahel join the Committee of Nations.¡± [What do you think?] Isthana asked. [The lazy lizard will have to wake up and stop being scared. But I think you want me to do that too, don''t you?] [Yes.] ¡°Ah, small steps first, that''s sensible.¡± Hwalf said. ¡°And the leeward kingdoms will be invited too?¡± ¡°Some have been, yes. It is difficult to travel through the mountains.¡± ¡°Especially to those not used to it. I expect most of us living here would find it difficult to travel through marshland without becoming stuck or eaten. You have warned the judges of our neighbouring villages about the religion they''re part of?¡± ¡°I will be checking your back soon, unusual herdsman, as we checked theirs.¡± ¡°You may check now if you like. And may the lord God judge all who knowingly follow dum-semb the murderous religion of the doom-guard, as he judged the corrupt judge of this village, and may he show mercy on those who have been caught in its web and bring them to repentance.¡± ¡°Amen.¡± [Any message for him from Winessa?] Hwalf asked Isthana. ¡°It''s easy to be brave now there are none in the village, captain,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°Are you sure there are none?¡± [Bethania says she''ll be coming to the moot too if Esme lets her.] ¡°Yes. And I want you to ask yourself if you''d take such a risky strategy against any high-councillor of Tesk.¡± ¡°The high councillors of Tesk can hear thoughts, herder Hwalf.¡± ¡°They can, I know. I was told once that apart from one a long long time ago, they''ve always been women. You have two or three moves before I beat you, I think.¡± ¡°That few?¡± ¡°I may be wrong. The future is in the hands of God, after all. You might just resign, for instance. Oh, by the way, Isthana says she''s coming, and she agrees with you that I should accept the role you''re convinced you ought to force me into so that''s my fate sealed. She also says that her youngest sister is asking her big sister if she can come too. I guess that she will distract you from your work, but she probably doesn''t think of it like that.¡± ¡°And you expect me to believe that, do you?¡± ¡°Of course not. I expect you to work out how to ask for some kind of confirmatory message to be telegraphed and couriered here at great effort, or something like that. But Isthana asks if saying that you got kissed on the king''s orders counts as sufficient confirmation.¡± ¡°I suppose I may as well resign, but I want to see how you plan to win.¡± ¡°Like this.¡± Hwalf said, playing two cards. The first gave him a surprise attack, the second meant the attack was a guaranteed success. Dalken lost his major pieces and the game. ¡°I am beaten, and yet if you accept the post, I win my hand.¡± ¡°You win that one,¡± Hwalf agreed. ¡°My mother will want to know about salary, and I will need to know about the details of the law I must apply impartially, must I not?¡± ¡°Mostly, the local judge''s role is to decide who lies and who tells the truth, and to decide on what is a fair punishment in the circumstances. But yes, you must know about the scale of punishments the law provides, and also there are lawyers who remember part of the law that favours their client and fail to mention the part that favours the other side. These things do not need to be challenged on the spot, you may examine the law after you have listened to the representations of lawyers. If you find a lawyer has not just been partial in his selection but has actually misquoted the law, you should remind them, and you may charge them a fee for your time outside the court checking up on the law, and if appropriate, a fine for treating the law with contempt. Fines belong to the state, of course.¡± ¡°And who actually collects fines, in an ideal world?¡± Hwalf asked. ¡°In an ideal world, there is a village reeve, someone trustworthy and nominated by the villagers themselves, who collects fines and taxes, and pays salaries and passes on what''s left at the end of the year to the tax collector. Two sets of accounts are kept by the mayor and the teacher.¡± Hwalf tried not to laugh. ¡°The teacher is the pastor''s wife, who is good at teaching but not very good at keeping track of things. I cannot imagine her as an accountant.¡± ¡°And who collected market fees?¡± the captain asked. ¡°Chief camel herder, a dum-semb appointee presumed dead, with support from Nangi and friends, the dum-semb enforcers.¡± ¡°And taxes have been collected?¡± Captain Dalken asked. ¡°Taxes, and Nangi''s ''local taxes'' and all sorts of other extra contributions if you annoyed them,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°The crown has not received any contribution from this village for a long time.¡± ¡°Well, the the biggest house in the village is in ruins, but of course the rubble could be searched. The mayor''s is probably worth investigation too. And of course the relatives of the missing might know something.¡± Captain Dalken nodded, thinking that he was going to need a long time to get to the bottom of the investigation. Planet 5 / Ch. 37: Time flies

Planet 5 / Ch. 37: Time flies

Exo-planet research group, Mars ¡°Ladies and gentlemen,¡± the group director said, addressing the emergency general meeting, ¡°As you know, since the state sponsors of the programme have been keeping their funding constant but costs have been increasing, we''ve been under considerable financial pressure for the last few decades. As you also know, our last year''s foray into providing an unusual location for an extreme survival show didn''t exactly go according to plan, and while the onion-resistant slime creature infections were all dealt with, that contract has been cancelled as being too perilous. The simple fact is that we need to either find another funding source, try to persuade state funders to donate more, which is unlikely to occur and risks them deciding to stop, cut staff, or increase charges for both research and medical interventions, which we''re all reluctant to do. This meeting is to decide what option to choose, and its an emergency meeting because with the cancellation of the show contract we only have three Earth-month''s reserve.¡± ¡°I''ve been looking at the old research group documents,¡± someone asked, ¡°can someone enlighten me on what happened to the income from the inter-system trade? Wasn''t that supposed to support operational costs?¡± An elderly researcher got to his feet, ¡°It does. That''s the so-called state-sponsor''s income. Someone decided a century ago that it was better to have a fixed income rather than the percentage. Therefore I cry foul on the director''s timidity about asking the state sponsors to reevaluate. It''s not a sponsorship, it''s a fixed income in lieu of a variable one. Someone ought to do the maths on what''s being earned, of course. The obvious corollary is that if essential operational costs are not being sufficiently supported by the trade that research can continue we should be saying we can''t afford the trade routes at the current rates. And if our esteemed director is calling this meeting saying that some of our operational costs are not essential, then let''s have that conversation too, before we start pricing people out of research or the medical facilities.¡± ¡°Thank you for the correction.¡± The director bowed, ¡°We obviously need to research the profitability of inter-system trade, somehow. In answer to the question of non-essential costs, some of our operational costs are very convenient, for example the cafe. Closing it would be one of the possible job cuts.¡± ¡°I suggest we consider tourism once more,¡± another researcher said, to a chorus of groans. ¡°No, I mean it. Ground isn''t safe, we know that. We know that colds are dangerous to our shape-changing friends there, and that we''re tasty to slime creatures. So we go more different. We''ve got plenty of planets that don''t measure higher than Earth on the danger scale and could be revisited.¡± ¡°Quite a few of them are on the no-visit list for other reasons though,¡± the elderly researcher replied. ¡°So we exclude them from the offering.¡± ¡°You''re suggesting the tourists choose?¡± ¡°I''m suggesting that we make a list of places we don''t mind visiting again, ranked by scientific value and the lower the scientific value for us, and the longer the travel time, the higher the cost, but making clear that the fee they''re paying is to help us continue the research, not just funding the trip itself. And we could also offer day-trips within the solar system, as long as the starting point isn''t Earth with their stupid bubble-ship exclusion rules.¡± ¡°All this takes important ship-time.¡± ¡°Rubbish,¡± one of the pilots said, ¡°There''s not an un-flyable ship in the hanger, they''re just not as modern as the newer ones but they''re sitting there, idle. Even the Jack Flash is still flyable, if you know what to do with all the extra controls. It takes pilot time. And there are plenty of qualified pilots who would be happy to take their kids on a solar system tour, even if they don''t want to be away from home for months at a time any more.¡± ¡°We have no idea about the demand,¡± the director said. ¡°Great. Let''s commission a market survey, it shouldn''t take much more than a few months. Alternatively, I''ll happily put up a message on the retired pilot''s channel and see if anyone wants in, and I expect we''ll get a reply within half an hour, like normal. If no pilot wants in, then we''ll give up, if there is some interest, we can ask them if they''ve had any enquiries. I know I have a list of people who''ve asked me to get in touch if we ever decide to let people see Jupiter''s spot from close up or whatever.¡± ¡°Any objections?¡± the director asked, sensing that the mood in the room had changed. ¡°If it''s retired pilots, then fine by me.¡± a researcher said. ¡°Or follow-up visits to places we want to go anyway,¡± another said, thinking of the long list of places he had thought of re-visiting one day.
50km above the Central Caneth-Tew border The monitoring satellite''s A.I. considered the parameters from its language database, and decided that yes, those signals it was receiving at several different frequencies in the thirty meter band were certainly speech, and furthermore, the characterisation of the signal ¡ª amplitude modulation of a signal that drifted with time ¡ª did not match the properties of any of the Kanuga equipment that it had logged over the years. The voice-print correlated with the person it had heard described as ''princess Naneela'' on other frequencies. These raw data points led it to conclude that the Dahel empire had reached another stage of radio development. The A.I. didn''t rejoice that it now had another method to learn about the people on this fifth planet that was more reliable than reflecting lasers from puddles or cups; it''s design hadn''t included emotions. But it did adjust it''s schedule, and feed the input into its language-decoder. Until it received the correct signal or its power supplies grew low, its role was data storage and analysis. And staying in position, of course. That was becoming increasingly problematic with the radiation levels connected with the aurorae. It considered these various inputs in the following seconds, and correlated them. The people on the planet were attempting to meet the technical challenge''s criteria. This step demonstrated capability to meet those criteria. A deadline of years had been mentioned earlier. Discussions involving other nations were planned. Conclusion: further information would be transmitted, and laser-reflection audio interception was no longer a priority. Altitude adjustments were no longer prohibited by laser-reflection audio interception. However, position adjustments were also unlikely to be needed beyond fifty years. Energy budgets were re-assessed, recently observed blood residue in oceans could be investigated. A survey probe was powered up and began its self-test sequence.
Tesk, chamber of judgement Elakart addressed the chained prisoner. ¡°You know that your participation in a human sacrifice is a crime worthy of death. You have also been found guilty of perjury before the high council. The penalty for this is also death. In accordance with the law of Tesk, you are condemned to death and have no more than sixty breaths in which to turn from your sins and beg God for mercy through the power of Jesus'' death on the cross. In these seconds you determine your eternal fate, choosing an eternity of punishment or of peace.¡± ¡°There is no eternity, you crazy old bat!¡± the baker and dum-semb acolyte said, defiantly. ¡°There''s just your pet crabs that you''re sacrificing those you''re envious of to. You can wrap it up however you like, it''s just about the politics of power.¡± Elakart nodded at the guard to pull the trigger, and turned away, looking out over the harbour. She could pronounce the sentence and even pull the trigger herself to release the weights that would strangle a condemned prisoner, but she refused to watch the death that must take place. Something caught her eye. There was a metal thing hovering a hundred meters away. It looked a little like an hour-glass made of metal, an alien machine. She turned to the guards, and checked with them. ¡°I''m not imagining things am I? An alien machine outside?¡± ¡°They''re back? Praise God!¡± one of the guards said. ¡°It doesn''t mean they''re back,¡± his colleague corrected him. ¡°Just that the machine up there got curious about something, like during the counter-revolution.¡± ¡°Ah, of course,¡± Elakart said, understanding. ¡°I''d forgotten that. I wonder if it will listen to an explanation.¡± ¡°You should probably give it a go, countess,¡± the first guard said. ¡°I will try. Please put the corpse on the disposal platform first. I''ll talk to the alien machine, and you please interrupt the high council to ask that they join me on the balcony with the summary of cases.¡± Mentally, she prepared what were the most important things to say. That this was a judicial process, of course. And that they were trying to eradicate human sacrifice. And trying to forgive those who''d turned from their sins. She stepped out onto the platform. Language had changed, she knew, even in her own lifetime. If she was to be understood, it would not be a bad idea to speak like she remembered her grandmother doing. Her voice was not strong, she knew, but she tried to shout clearly. ¡°Tool of alien visitors, I, countess Elakart of Karet, greet our elder siblings in the name of the saviour Jesus Christ. I am desirous to provide an explanation for what happens here.¡± The alien machine apparently ignored her. ¡°This man has been found guilty of taking part in a human sacrifice,¡± she shouted. ¡°He asked for no mercy, he gave no hint that he regretted his actions. I could not be merciful. He is now dead. And the law does not allow us to bury him. We dispose of his body like this.¡± So saying she pulled the lever that released the trap door. ¡°The knives ensure that none escape alive when they have been condemned to death. It is a terrible thing. We hate it, but we must do it. We must cleanse the evil from among us. We thought the evil had gone, and missed the signs. Duchess Hayeel of Repink in Dahel discovered the first priestess, heard her thoughts thinking of dum-semb. We knew dum-semb was becoming more popular, but she recognised the name as the religion of death, the religion of the doom-guard. Why do I keep shouting? I wear out my voice and you''re not listening!¡± The younger guard had been watching the probe. It was drawing nearer. ¡°I think you''re wrong, countess.¡± ¡°Are you listening, alien machine?¡± ¡°Alien machine recording,¡± came back the reply, without intonation. ¡°Recording, collating, analysing, waiting.¡± ¡°We try to be merciful, because God is merciful. But dum-semb almost won here on Tesk. All of the military officers were in it, many politicians, and government officials. We nobles were hiding, there was no high council. Now we restore law, and end the horrible sacrifices of dum-semb. We have mercy where we can, when someone repents of their sin and trusts Jesus, and the high council, the thought hearers, see the repentance is genuine, and not just regret at being caught. But almost a thousand bodies have fallen onto the knives since Hayeel found the priestess, Yanesa''s mother. Praise God, she has repented of her sins, as have many others. I have asked that the record of judgements be brought out to show you. Thank you Kelara. This book is the list of those charged with corruption or membership of dum-semb by the remaining nobles of Tesk. There are more complete records of each case. We seek to eliminate the evil.¡± ¡°And God-willing we will succeed,¡± Kelara added, ¡°And God willing we will manage to send the radio signal. But the sun will become unstable as the dust cloud gets closer. The atmosphere will be blown away. We need help. Please, do not wait for the radio signal. Everyone will be dead long before I am as old as my mother if you cannot help.¡± The probe recorded, and the A.I. analysed this input, but its programming was clear. ¡°Signal is required.¡± A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Kelara bowed her head. Elakart said, ¡°Daughter, we should tell more. Let it know more of our history.¡±
Dahel Institute of science. ¡°Imagine that there was a need for thousands of identical telephone systems and hundreds of radios, and there were semi-skilled people doing the boring bits much like spinning the yarn and cutting it to length in the carpet industry.¡± Naneela said to the craftsmen. ¡°What bits of valve manufacture, and radio manufacture actually need to be done here, and what would be possible to get others to do?¡± ¡°Heater winding could be done with a modified spinning wheel,¡± one said. ¡°That''s how we do it now anyway.¡± ¡°So could speaker coils,¡± another added. ¡°What about coating the wires?¡± asked another. ¡°We use dyer''s tricks for that anyway. A good dyer could be trained in half a day. It''s just a lacquer instead of a dye.¡± ¡°Any decent glass-blower can do the outer tubes. And probably the final construction if they had our jigs.¡± ¡°I think, highness, that if you designers would only stop changing things, the whole lot could eventually be done with semi-skilled labour,¡± the head of the manufacturing wing said. ¡°Excellent! So, the first step is to find the easy bits that don''t change much, like speakers, settle on a design that''s good enough for every base of the imperial messenger service to have one, while we concentrate on meeting the challenge. From the sound of it, about all Tesk will be helping with is high power switching.¡± ¡°Highness? With respect, why do we need to get distracted with a request from the messenger service?¡± one of them asked. ¡°That''s not a request from the messenger service, that''s a request from the internal affairs ministry with father''s total support. There are laws that are not being enforced correctly, it seems.¡±
Village of Nazik, Central Caneth [Friend Tuga? How did you find my name?] Hwalf asked a few weeks later. [I searched for people with the gift of God.] Tuga replied, [And then I looked for the names of people in that place.] [Ah! Yes, I understand.] [How are you doing concentrating on one person''s thoughts?] [It is slow, but you''re right, it is possible. Thank you. I am thinking that it would be good to contact our elder siblings, do you not?] [I have tried, Hwalf. I looked for those who have the gift on their home-world, and found about they have about fifty, and I saw their cities and their all their continents. They have such a huge planet, and so much land! Only two thirds of their world is ocean. But I did not find one who might be asked to call to us or who I should call on to help. I don''t know if they are not on their planet at the moment, or if God withholds that information from me, but at the moment, it seems we must rely on the scientists to send their signal.] [We must be patient in this too, then.] [So it seems.] Tuga said [And pray. How is your princess?] [Isthana is well, and getting closer. Perhaps she will come tonight, I''m not sure. It depends how late they travelled by dark last night and how early they rose this morning. She asks me not to check, but my chin itches and I hate not knowing.] [So your chin wishes for her presence too? That''s a good sign, I think.] [When I was a lazy lizard, it was easy to be patient. Now... it is not so easy. Ah, sorry, a stranger comes to ask me to settle a dispute.] [Judge wisely, friend Hwalf, in all things.] [I will pray hard.] Hwalf said. ¡°Hello,¡± the man said. ¡°You are the judge, Hwalf?¡± He spoke with a Dahelese accent. ¡°I am, yes.¡± Hwalf agreed, in that language. ¡°Ah, you speak my language? Excellent! I have a dispute with my future wife. She says that a visitor should wait until the person visited is finished with his official work, her friend says that she is just saying this to tease, and I say that a long-awaited visitor should be announced, so that any last minute preparations can be made. My future wife said that in this case I must come and ask you to settle this dispute.¡± ¡°You do not seem very upset about this dispute.¡± ¡°I like my future wife a lot, she is well protected, and I had a good camel, fit for racing. I do not mind humouring her. My guard is not so happy about coming, but his camel is not a very tolerant beast.¡± ¡°But if the dispute does not upset, why are you bothering me?¡± ¡°I would like to learn what is true here, because I would not like to give offence.¡± ¡°Some warning of any guest is good. According to the official rates, this simple judgement will cost you ten crowns, twenty-five if you need it in writing.¡± ¡°I happily pay the ten crowns, and hope I do not offend by failing to haggle. And I give notice that my future wife''s friend is named Isthana, most honourable judge.¡± ¡°Then you must talk to the Captain outside, perhaps?¡± Hwalf asked. ¡°Ah, perhaps you mean the cloud of dust that marks where Captain Dalken, used to be?¡± Salay asked, with a grin. ¡°Perhaps I should follow?¡± Hwalf asked. ¡°That''s up to you, I think.¡± ¡°Isthana may need help with her camel,¡± Hwalf murmured.
Exo-planet research group, Mars ¡°Sir,¡± the director''s assistant said, ¡°in the month since we''ve started in-solar system tourist trips, we''ve made a number of ex-pilots happy at being back behind the bubble controls again, gained enough firm bookings to keep them busy for half a year ¡ª it could have been more, but we felt we ought to set six months as an upper limit ¡ª and the tourist income looks like it''ll be a useful source of project funds. But in the last few days we''ve had two odd requests.¡± ¡°Go on,¡± the director replied. ¡°There is a rock-band called Sun-drive who wanted to do just that... the Jack-Flash is capable, indeed it''s done solar observation trips before, but the request is to film the trip, with the musicians playing their title song, and none of the returned ex-pilots wanted to recreate that flight profile, let alone with rock accompaniment. Plus of course, the Jack-Flash isn''t exactly the average bubble ship.¡± ¡°No. Are any of the rock-band at all science-y types? And are they at all popular amongst science students?¡± ¡°I''ll have to check. You''re thinking recruitment?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°OK, I''ll query the students. The next query is even odder.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°A query whether the quarantine on an early-years discovered planet has been lifted yet, and even if it hasn''t, could they go and have a peek on how they''re doing, grab data from a long-term monitoring satellite and if possible write a few PhDs on how the culture has developed. Apparently the descendants of the original survey team keep in touch with each other and still practice the languages.¡± ¡°Of a quarantined planet?¡± ¡°Yes, sir. They called it planet five.¡± ¡°That''s a bit vague.¡± ¡°Actually, that''s it''s official designation in the system, sir, I checked. The contact team spent something like twenty years there.¡± ¡°For a quarantine planet?¡± The director asked, realising he was sounding less and less intelligent every time he said it, but he couldn''t help it. It just didn''t fit his understanding of the term. ¡°Yes, sir, they were rather reluctant to give up on their friends. The quarantine was societal, sir. They had really good contact with some people, but society as a whole was really problematic. Basically they had to avoid people or they risked being seen as gods come to collect children as sacrifices. You know the picture on the canteen wall with the red-haired green girl saying ''Take me to your pizza!''? It''s in the photo archive with a number of other photos of the same girl, her wedding, her first child, and so on. But almost all of the pictures are in the space-lab.¡± ¡°And this group want to fund a private trip there?¡± ¡°Yes. High concentration of thought-hearers in it, by the way.¡± ¡°The planet?¡± ¡°No, the so-called ''Planet five re-contact group''¡± ¡°Distance?¡± ¡°I can''t remember the exact distance. It''s somewhere in that same star-formation region as most of the early-years life forms.¡± ¡°Most of which we''ve been out of contact with for a generation.¡± ¡°As far as I know, yes. Maybe someone''s been in mental contact, but just not told us.¡± ''Which brings us back to a point that keeps bugging me. Should we actually divide into a research group and a maintaining-contact group? At the moment, except with Ground where we''ve got the medical collaboration, we are much better at pouring investments into new contacts than at keeping in touch with others.¡± ¡°Normally that''s because of tech level differences,¡± the secretary said. ¡°Yes, but when I was first flying, teams used to at least go back every few years and check up on progress. I''ve never refused that sort of request, but I just don''t get them. There''s been an unhelpful shift in attitude, I think. But I can''t quite put my finger on it.¡± ¡°Your predecessor saw it as a distraction from research, and a sapping of resources, sir. She told everyone they shouldn''t expect to go back.¡± ¡°Hmmph. I see it otherwise. Have you replied to either of these requests?¡± ¡°No more than a courtesy ''I''ve received your enquiry and will raise it with the director.''¡± ¡°Other than me, how many people have actually flown the Jack Flash?¡± ¡°You''ve flown it, sir? I didn''t know that.¡± ¡°It was a long time ago, so I hope I''m not the only one. It used to be a requirement to get a Doctorate in Bubble Theory that you could. I guess removing that requirement was yet another short sighted decision in the history of this organisation. We seem to make a habit of them.¡±
Central Caneth, the Nazik Moot ¡°First, before I say why I''m here,¡± Esme addressed the assembled crowd, ¡°I hope you don''t mind me telling you an important truth: followers of dum-semb, the death-cult of the doom-guard, have been found in Tesk, in Dahel, in Tew, and in Caneth. The penalty for following dum-semb is unchanged, death. The laws of Caneth have in the past allowed for the formal burial of those executed including for the crime of involvement in dum-semb. I believe this is a mistake, those involved in dum-semb have committed a crime against every decent person on the planet. The penalty has been changed to death without formal burial plot. Let the wild animals of the desert or the sea take the corpses of those who commit this crime. As this crime has been prevalent in this part of Caneth, all here will individually speak a vow to report any they know or come to know who are involved in dum-semb, and to uphold the laws of Caneth. Failure to take this vow will be taken as sympathy to this illegal cult. Then I''ll listen to the voice of this moot about concerning how Central Caneth might have different laws to Outer Caneth in the future. If you''ve got sensible and acceptable suggestions then father has agreed that I should sign the necessary decrees.¡± In the tumult of voices that followed, Hwalf thought to Isthana [Does your sister know what she''s just done?] [Condemn some here to be vulture food and change the entire dynamic of the meeting?] [Normally a moot is a big opportunity to buy and sell camels and arrange other business deals, have a party, and when the participants are drunk they write some unreasonable demands to the king. I expect that her suggestion that the moot could make laws is going to be as unpopular as telling a class of students they must plan the lessons, but still pass the same exam. Expect them to ask the teacher to not leave.] [They might have some good ideas.] [Some might want to run away and never come back. Some might want to impose their will on everyone just because Esmetherelda lets them.] [You don''t think this is wise?] [Cynicism comes easy to me, sorry. I think it''s a good way to stop them writing more letters to your father.]
Heart of the Empire ¡°Father, you wanted to speak with me?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Tell me of your day, daughter,¡± the emperor said. ¡°The meeting went well and Tangseng reports that she and Tuga will be leaving soon, and will deliver the maps and test equipment.¡± ¡°That''s good news, I suppose.¡± the Emperor of Dahel replied, looking weary. ¡°I can tell you that this morning, the social change committee expressed unanimous concern at the idea of asking people to pray ¡ª about anything, I didn''t even get to say the topic ¡ª and extreme discomfort at the idea of enforcing the ban on dum-semb.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And that this afternoon the entire committee were determined to have links with that banned cult. Therefore, I want you to accept the invitation to go to Kanuga, leaving tonight. The social change committee will be executed tomorrow or the next day, after further questioning. The combination of their privileged position, and the pervasiveness of the treasonous conspiracy and the failure of the interior ministry to detect this right on their doorstep means that the grand vizier and his entire office will be investigated and dismissed or executed, and also the committee will no longer be a permanent group. Instead there will be a committee made up of representatives from all levels of society, changing on a regular basis. When word of these changes becomes known, there may well be angry voices in the streets. When it becomes known that the end of the world approaches, it may be more than angry voices. I would like to know you are safe.¡± ¡°When you say all levels, father, do you also include slaves?¡± ¡°I mean that I have already asked the slave-schools who their most suitable graduates are. Not every owner allows their slaves to attend, of course, and there are poor peasants who also attend. But yes, slaves and freed-slaves, peasants, commoners, eleventh-rank nobles up to barons. Like the research centre, the committee offices will be declared outside the central zone. Helpful service on the committee will be rewarded, of course. Try to inform Tangseng of the change of plans, imperial princess.¡± ¡°I will, imperial father,¡± Naneela said. ¡°And try to persuade her to extend the invitation to Kahlel and at least one of your mother''s guards. It''s not right for an imperial princess to travel unaccompanied.¡± ¡°Kahlel is already invited, father.¡± ¡°Hmm. I''d forgotten that, if I knew. He''s not around at the moment?¡± ¡°No, father. His paper on the transmitter design was accepted today, and he''s gone home to tell his family.¡± ¡°Ah. And tonight you celebrate together?¡± ¡°That was the plan, yes.¡± ¡°How do you feel about him, Naneela? You''ve been calling him your future husband for a while. How far in the future are you thinking the wedding might be?¡± ¡°I know I want to marry him, father. When is not my decision to make. But he plans to ask for your advice.¡± ¡°Ah. It is not right for an imperial princess to travel unaccompanied. Run and ask your mother to come and tell me what she thinks about you being accompanied by your husband.¡± ¡°You wish us to marry this evening?¡± Naneela asked, shocked. ¡°I wish to see you safe, my daughter. I also wish to be present at your wedding. A hurried wedding is not ideal, but nor is delaying your departure. And was not Kahlel''s motivation for working on that paper in part to remove distractions before your marriage?¡± ¡°It was, father,¡± Naneela blushed. ¡°I''ll go and talk to mother.¡± ¡°I''ll be in your grandma''s room. I''d better give her warning too, or I''ll really be in trouble.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 38: Jack Flash in flight

Planet 5 / Ch. 38: Jack Flash in flight

Lunar approach ¡°Hello, Lunar approach,¡± the director of the Bubble Research Group said. ¡°This is Bubble Research Ship 5, just reentered normal space at designated transition point three, requesting a direct vector to a clear landing pad.¡± ¡°Err, Bubble-ship 5, are you sure of your location? I don''t have anything on radar there,¡± came back the reply. ¡°Oops, sorry.¡± the director switched off the forcefield, which had been left on absorption mode. ¡°Do you see me now?¡± ¡°Yes, Bubble-ship 5, I have you now. Can you please state your purpose of visit and how long you''ll need the landing pad for?¡± ¡°This is Bubble Research Ship five, I''ve got meeting room forty-two booked for two hours, but if pad space is really limited I can land anywhere near an airlock and get clear in five minutes. I''d just need to suit up and put the Jack back in its box.¡± ¡°Err, Bubble ship five, I didn''t really understand you.¡± ¡°This is BRS-five, known as Jumping Jack Flash, Lunar approach, I can carry it around in a briefcase if needed.¡± ¡°No need, BRS-5, please land entirely normally at pad thirty, which is the nearest available to meeting room forty two. The pad is reserved for you for up to four hours, after which you''ll need to move or pay penalty charges.¡± ¡°Pad thirty, acknowledged. Please indicate approach vector and maximum acceleration profile.¡± ¡°Direct flight is acceptable, BRS-5. Stay in normal space and keep acceleration between five and five point five metres per second squared until within twenty metres of the ground.¡± ¡°Between five and five and a half, acknowledged,¡± the Director said, and then turned to the co-pilot. ¡°That''s what Lunar approach are like. No showing off.¡± ¡°I''m sure they have their reasons, sir.¡± ¡°Yes. Their computers still crash if you do anything too unexpected.¡±
Landing pad thirty ¡°This is it?¡± one of the band members, ''Jaz'' enthused, ¡°Wow, the Jumping Jack-Flash himself! Living space-folding history!¡± ¡°As you see,¡± the director said, ¡°there''s probably space for the whole band with instruments, but you''re not going to be moving around much, and there''s no walls you can lean on safely.¡± ¡°Just how dangerous are we talking?¡± the band''s manager asked. ¡°Pressing the wrong button, you mean?¡± the director asked. ¡°Pick the wrong one while in bubble, say near the sun, and everyone on board would be dead. Pick the wrong one near a populated area, and everyone within a few kilometres could be dead. Pick the wrong one while in bubble close to Earth and the Hawking-radiation would probably blind half the planet. This is an incredibly complex research vehicle, not a tour bus. Which is why I was emphasizing the scientific side of things. I understand the band''s desire, but really...u nless the band can do an a-cappella version of the song....¡± ¡°While sitting on our hands...¡± Jaz said, ¡°... yeah. I get it.¡± Shena, the vocalist who''d been looking at the controls, said, ¡°We can do that.B ut I thought warp twelve was supposed to be impossible.¡± ¡°Impossible to navigate at, yes.¡± ¡°But...¡± she indicated one of the newer controls labelled ''Programmed warp sanity limiter'', which went up to twenty five. ¡°Errors can be made in software. That particular control was added after I was testing a theory related to ultra-short jumps and time dilation. It takes a while to get back home safely after a short jump at warp thirty one which was supposed to be at warp thirteen. Hence the hardware sanity check.¡± ¡°We''ll sit on our hands,¡± Jaz repeated. ¡°No, we''ll get trained and help do some real science,¡± Shena replied. ¡°Otherwise Gran will kill me,¡± she faced the director and said ¡°No one''s been back, have they? To the sun, not since the first trip.¡± ¡°No,¡± the director acknowledged, ¡°There''s only been one deep-solar observation trip.¡± ¡°Follow-up experiments. Confirmation of unexpected results, right Shaun? For Gran''s birthday if we can.¡± ¡°OK, Sheena.¡± Shaun agreed, ¡°Yeah, being here, yeah, we''ve just got to really.¡± Sheena added, ¡°But Doctor, please don''t think about this meeting when you see us later in the friends meeting. We don''t want to spoil the surprise.¡± ¡°I wasn''t aware I would see you at another meeting. You are referring to Planet Five?¡± ¡°Shaun and me are descendents on both sides. Jaz and Humph just on one. Boys, do you get it? This is the Sun-Drive ship. /Dials all around me, screaming past space/.¡± ¡°Yeah, Sheena, we get it.¡± Jaz said, ¡°Lab in a box, I''m still seeing your face. But we''ll need to cover the original song too. You can''t ask to sing on the ''Jack Flash'' without singing it''s theme song.¡± Sheena relaxed at Jaz''s implicit agreement, ¡°Humph, is it all right now?¡± ¡°Hey, science is cool, Sheena. Like I''ve told you loads of times, I''m an marine biologist, not an astronomer. But you can fly me on a bus to Planet Five any day. The oceans there just need better study. For our video we do our song, and for the BRG''s video we''ll cover ''Jack Flash'', and yes, we take your proper measurements, Sheena, as long as someone can teach us to do them right.¡± ¡°I''ve got a suggestion.¡± The manager said, ¡°Why not three or four videos even? A feature-length travelogue or even a fly-on-the wall series thing, fans love those, then a science-promotion cum-recruiting video, theme song, and a new song, two about... I don''t know, dreams come true? Something inspired by the trip? More songs the better, of course.¡± ¡°Manager man, we love you,¡± Jaz said, ¡°You can always bring us back to reality. Gotta pay those bills, eh? Doctor, our lovely manager man says we need to come inside a budget of fifty thousand transfer credits per song, or we''re really losing money, and a lot of that goes on studio time, filming, editing, and so on. We''ll need to talk to unions about there not being space here for a film crew. We can put six weeks into it.¡± ¡°A month,¡± the manager corrected. ¡°And when everything else is accounted for including importing food to Mars, we''re talking location fees or transport costs or whatever else you want to call them of no more than a ten thousand credits¡± The director ignored the manager and addressed the band. ¡°If you could dedicate seven weeks to it, and be trusted with secrets of the deep, that would put you through the basic training course. "In which case you''d be qualified to join in any trip, including the one you''re interested in, and maybe even study Planet Five on a postgraduate research post if we decide to reopen it. If the filming we''ve discussed is acceptable to you and the scientific merit is there in the research with joint credit on any papers resulting, etc. I think we can do the trip for a nominal fee like fifty credits. If it was just a joy-ride for qualified crew, not involved in research but not actively getting in the way, the cost would be more like a thousand, given the fact that Jack is so unique, there are very few qualified pilots, and so on. To take members of the public... the risks are much greater, the science return non-existent. The sum the accounts department put on it was fifteen thousand.¡± ¡°You have the authority to overrule,¡± the manager said. ¡°Of course, but I see four candidates for basic training in front of me, interested in doing science, so I think that finances come second.¡± ¡°I will not read this old Mer writing in the presence of the manager to prove I can,¡± Sheena said in Mer, looking at the screen in front of her. ¡°But while our public profiles do not say it, Shaun and I are of the deeps and the shallows, and Humphry Hathella Ben''s name speaks for itself. None of us are shark or shark-food. We will discuss your offer, Doctor, and then I anticipate we will accept.¡± There was an agreement from the young men. ¡°May your knife ever be sharp,¡± the director said in the same language.
Conference room forty-two ¡°I do not speak any language of Planet Five,¡± the director said, ¡°But I wonder if Mer, English or Russian would be better for this meeting?¡± ¡°Stick to English, please,¡± said a woman in a dress that had a distinctively Russian look. ¡°Some of us here do not like to hear the way our friends mangle the pronunciation of their native tongue, and my Mer is rusty. You agreed to this meeting, director, that gives us hope. Can you tell us how much hope you can give us?¡± ¡°What I can say is the following: at the moment, we have no plans to change the no-visiting status of Planet five. But, our records show that something like ninety years ago there seemed to have been significant progress on the planet. Were any of you aware of that report?¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. There was a chorus of ''no''s. ¡°I don''t know exact parameters, but at that time the observation probe reported to a ship that passed, that there were some emission signatures consistent with spark-gap transmitters both from Dahel and from Tesk, and also signs of regular shipping routes all along the Southern coast. There are also buildings stretching from the Isles to Dahel that mainly get used on Sundays.¡± ¡°And what of Kanuga?¡± the Russian woman asked. ¡°Kanuga at that time continued to exhibit signs consistent with gold-mining, power generation, and radio and telephone systems well beyond anything else on the planet. I''ve brought the A.I''s report and some of the recordings with me.¡± ¡°The recordings will be fascinating for those of us who know Kanugan, and frustrating for those who don''t.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± the director said, ¡°As you may or may not know, my predecessor decided that keeping in contact with under-developed planets that were being left to develop on their own was unfruitful. I''m not at all convinced, but still, it takes a pilot in roughly the right area to drop in and collect information from a monitoring satellite. Before my predecessor, it would happen every decade or two. Planet five, however was not classified as under-developed, but as quarantined. I presume the ''under-developed'' label was developed some time after the Planet-Five team had left. In the current rule book, which was introduced about seventy-five years ago as far as I can discover, ''quarantined'', has meant that entering the atmosphere is a very very stupid thing to do, liable to get you killed. And that is why no one has visited Planet Five since. So the other news, possibly hope that I can bring is that I''ve set our staff the task of checking all early-era planets to ensure that they''re categorised properly. "Planet five is now classed as under-developed. It depends on a pilot being near, of course, and not having any deadline that they''re trying to beat, but an under-developed planet with no recent update on file will be flagged as being a place of interest. The existence of this group, which is unique as far as I''m aware, makes it even more interesting.¡± ¡°So when do you anticipate a pilot going that way?¡± the Russian woman asked. ¡°I would anticipate within the next three or four years. I''m sorry I cannot be more precise.¡± ¡°And our request to fly a special trip there?¡± an elderly woman asked. ¡°Would depend on a qualified pilot being available, maam, and it''s a long way.¡± ¡°Not as far as Ground,¡± she pointed out. ¡°True. But we just don''t have the full-time pilots, and pilots normally retire because they have families they don''t want to leave.¡± ¡°I know that, young man. And you don''t re-recruit older pilots.¡± ¡°Actually, maam, now we do. As long as the pilot is still qualified to fly a Boris-drive ship in atmosphere, we are happy to take them back on.¡± ¡°Your predecessor wasn''t. I asked and she said some rubbish about reaction times being important in bubble drive.¡± ¡°My predecessor, you might have gathered, was never a pilot, let alone a Doc B.T. I take it I have the honour of addressing Doctor Rhianna Sun-driver?¡± ¡°Oh, my name''s not totally forgotten then?¡± ¡°Jack Flash is parked at pad thirty, Doctor.¡± Rhianna sighed, ¡°How long have you been director, young man?¡± ¡°Two years, Doctor,¡± the director replied. ¡°I retired from piloting and spent two decades lecturing on forcefields after gaining my Doc B.T., so I keep discovering how things have changed. On behalf of the group I apologise for my predecessors insulting attitude.¡± ¡°If only..... Can I at least come and have a look?¡± ¡°Certainly Doctor. You may take the controls as long as you are neither shark nor shark-food, and try not to upset Lunar Control.¡± ¡°Are you saying that you''d trust me with Jack to go and visit Planet five?¡± ¡°Urm, probably not, Doctor. But if you can find a co-pilot, and check the maths carefully, then you may borrow any second generation ship you like. I''m sorry I have to limit it to second generation, but the third and fourth generation ships are all busy, and the first generation ships are getting regular use now earning some in-system tourist money.¡± ¡°Why are you doing that?¡± the Russian woman asked. ¡°Because the fixed amount negotiated by a predecessor for the Research Group''s share of interstellar trade does not cover our operational costs any more. We had to decide between charging more for research or medical flights, further reducing secretarial, cleaning and catering staff ¡ª which would hurt the research ¡ª or charging some tourists lots of money.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± she replied, gaining a look of determination. ¡°You obviously need influential friends, Mr Director.¡± ¡°I suppose I must, maam. I''m afraid I don''t know your name.¡± ¡°That is just as it should be, for security reasons, you understand. You may address me as ''your grace''.¡± ¡°Thank you, your grace.¡± ¡°So, Mr Director, you have old ships available, but your pilots are all busy?¡± the Russian duchess asked. ¡°Yes, your grace.¡± ¡°And you are recruiting, I presume?¡± She looked pointedly at the six youngest members of the group. ¡°We have a constant need of new pilots, your grace, and new research staff. Automatic survey probes can detect life on a planet, but they are still very unreliable at distinguishing the differences between bioluminescence and street-lighting or sheep-herding and predators. And of course, as you know, once it is determined that contact is warranted, that''s a massive investment of resources and people. We have first-contact groups on three planets at the moment, there is another planet where a more extensive pre-contact observation is probably warranted, and of course when we make good friends like those on Ground there is a moral imperative to stay in contact.¡± ¡°We feel that same imperative regarding Planet Five as well,¡± the countess said. ¡°It is nice to hear your words, and I hope that your course has space for more would-be pilots.¡± ¡°With prior approval from Atlantis,¡± a man added, in Mer. The director realised he didn''t recognised him from his briefing notes either. Switching language to English the man added. ¡°You may also assume that there will be local voices speaking in favour of the revocation of the stupid deal your predecessor begged for regarding trade income when you request that from the treaty parties. Especially if you send us a note as you make that request. Children, you have something you''re trying to keep secret.¡± ¡°It is meant to be a surprise for grandma,¡± Shena said. ¡°Surprise her now instead,¡± the man replied. ¡°We ¡ª the band ¡ª hope to join the basic training course and record some recruitment videos, and play our signature song in an appropriate place.¡± Shena said. ¡°We think it will be an excellent video, popular with fans, and get people interested. And if we''re going there, we ought to take some measurements too, shouldn''t we?¡± Rhianna shook her head in amazement, ¡°Shena, you are why the director brought Jack here?¡± ¡°Yes, Gran,¡± Shena said, unrepentantly. ¡°Not entirely, doctor,¡± the director corrected. ¡°I''m serious about you having a fly. Maggie Sarah John was older than you when she got Jack out of his box.¡± ¡°Nevertheless, Shena, thank you.¡± Rhianna said. ¡°But I want to remind the director here that Maggie Sarah John told my grandmother that visiting the sun was too risky.¡± ¡°You convinced enough people otherwise.¡± ¡°Hmph. Whoever flies it had better be able to tweak that manifold control in their sleep, that''s all I want to say. No frying my grandchildren or plunging them into a black-hole, they''re good kids. I spent fifty hours simulator time getting ready, and decided I should have had more practice in the first five seconds of the real thing.¡±
Bubble Research Ship 5 ¡°Oh lookee, new controls.¡± Rhianna said, looking around the ship. ¡°I said in my day that Jack needs a friend to share the features researchers want to add.¡± She read some of the newer controls, ¡°Really? Someone fitted Jack up with a bubble extractor?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Nice!¡± ¡°Using it''s complicated.¡± ¡°You really don''t surprise me. You know, you should probably offer a Masters in Bubble Tech to anyone who learns to fly this ship properly.¡± ¡°That''s an interesting idea, I''ll look into it,¡± the director said. ¡°You really want me to fly?¡± ¡°Any reason you shouldn''t doctor? I know I love getting back into the driving seat.¡± Rhianna sat in the pilot''s seat, ran her hands over the control columns, and grinned as the console woke up and greeted her by name. ¡°Buckle up, kids.G randma''s driving. Oooh, do I see a fourth-gen style load calculator?¡± ¡°You do,¡± the director agreed. ¡°That''s very handy.¡± Rhianna said, then flipped on the radio ¡°Lunar control, this is BRS-5. It''s been about thirty years since I last flew from here, does your computer still have a mode called ¡°Ignore JJF?¡± ¡°Urm, I was taught to ignore that option, maam.¡± ¡°Put your trainer on report, and select it for this ship''s transponder signal please. Think of it a systems test.¡± ¡°I''m not authorised to do that, maam.¡± ¡°Look, young man, I spent three years of my life campaigning for that option to get onto your system. It is critical for the proper use of your airspace when there are bubble ships around, especially when they''re being flown by determined grandmothers standing up for their rights. Engage that mode for this transponder, now I will test it is functioning properly in ten seconds. I will not move this ship or in any way endanger other traffic as I do so, but your system may reboot if it is not engaged. Five, four, three, two, one. Please report that your system is still functioning.¡± ¡°My system has now flagged your ship as missing.¡± ¡°That''s just the forcefield. Someone decided that an energy-absorber would be good to recharge the power banks, just in case. We''re still here. For future reference, enable that mode on all bubble ships and your system will behave much better. Now, we''ll call back in a bit, don''t worry. We''re not leaving the pad.¡± ¡°Gran, you''re grinning like a mad teenager.¡± Shena said. ¡°I''m just going to get Jack to do a little gentle exercise, dear, nothing to get stressed about, now, set bubble density, set direction, set warp to minus twenty, set distance, where''s that option.... ah, set manifold limits, there it is, enable spikes. Hold onto your stomachs, we''re going into bubble... now. The world outside went almost black. ¡°This is bubble space, kids. We''re still on the moon, the glowing spikes you can see are our range finder lasers, and forcefield bubble that''ll stop us killing anyone. We''re seeing the outside world through a pinhole the size of a hundred atoms, which is why it''s so dark. If you want to go into the sun, you''ll need to turn it down lower, but you also want to know which way is up, which is where it gets tricky, because if you''re really going through the sun''s atmosphere then you''re going through an optically thick gas. That''s why it''s so dangerous. Up, down, left right, you''re in six thousand degree glowing soup, and that''s why cheating is so important. ¡°Cheating?¡± Shena asked. ¡°Yes. You sing about it girl. Shining out a million miles and holding on tight.¡± ¡°You put a beacon on Mercury.¡± ¡°I put a humongous forcefield spike roughly at Mercury''s second Lagrange point, and I lost contact with it every time I closed the manifold too much. Like I said, it was a delicate balancing act. Then I married your grandfather, got pregnant a bit earlier than we''d be planing for, and decided I wouldn''t risk another life. Do not go as deep as I did, kids. It''s really not worth the risk.¡± ¡°But your anomalous readings!¡± Shena protested. ¡°Were anomalous. They might have been equipment issues from the heat, it was getting hot in there, or more likely to my mind, some kind of wake effect from the forcefield. Now, notice that we''ve been in bubble space for a while, and we''re at ground level. Even if it is the moon, it''s rude to pop into real space right in front of someone''s nose. Therefore, we use the range finder as a lidar. Ha! I thought so! Curious people can''t stand the idea of a ship vanishing. But they''re far enough away that we won''t turn them inside out.¡± The moon popped back into visible. ¡°BRS 5, where have you gone, over, Lunar control asked. ¡°Sorry, lunar control, we''ve not moved, we were just undetectable for a while.¡± ¡°You haven''t actually flown the Jack anywhere, gran.¡± ¡°I''ve done the fun bit, kids. Thank you, director.¡± ¡°It was a most informative trip, doctor. Thank you. Any time you felt willig to pass on old stories to new faces, yout''d be most welcome. Either infomally over cups of tea or a lecture or three. They''ve heard my stories, but...¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 39: Waterfalls

Planet 5 / Ch. 39: Waterfalls

Central Caneth ¡°Well, sister?¡± Esme asked Isthana, whose face looked drawn with worry. ¡°What''s happening? You''ve lost the happy bounce you had.¡± ¡°I''m still happy about meeting Hwalf. But there''s a problem.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Hwalf''s father was (mistakenly, according to Hwalf) on the edges of dum-semb, and his mother therefore refuses to speak badly of it, and is actually hardening her position. She''s so defensive of her late husband that she could be accused of turning into an advocate for it.¡± ¡°People are complex, and sometimes not very sensible. What does Hwalf think?¡± ¡°It''s really difficult for him, but he''s issued a formal warning to her, that if she makes another comment that might be taken as supporting dum-semb she''ll be sent for trial. She sees me as the instigator of this, ''driving a wedge between her and her son.''¡± ¡°Oh, Isthana!¡± Esme grasped her sister''s hand compassionately. ¡°We''re praying. It might be best if we don''t see each other much for a while. Distract me? "How''s the moot? Hwalf wasn''t exactly optimistic on the first day.¡± ¡°I''m making the men work hard for their food, and am generally viewed as a destroyer of parties. But the women''s moot is going well. I present their comments to the men as my own, at the wives'' request, but if they''re happy then so am I.¡± ¡°That was a good idea of Salay''s,¡± Isthana said. ¡°It was, yes,¡± Esme agreed. ¡°Are you going to tell the men at the end?¡± ¡°That it''s been certain wives and mothers acting as the revising chamber? Yes. But I''m going to leave it vague who''s been helping. Is Hwalf outside?¡± ¡°Yes, we were going to take a walk.¡± ¡°Ask him to come in, can you? He still doesn''t like thinking to me.¡± Hwalf entered the pavilion where Esme and Isthana sat. ¡°Judge Hwalf, I was considering asking you to be arbitrator of the moot, but Isthana tells me your mother is causing problems, and so that''s not a good role for you, not at all. But I''ve been considering another possible role for you as well. Seeing how effective you are at at questioning people ¡ª even without your gift ¡ª I''m going to ask you to consider the post of grand vizier of Caneth instead. I hope that''s not inconvenient for you, we ¡ª father and I ¡ª were hoping the post could be left vacant and the lower courts deal with everything, but I think that was too optimistic. We do need the post filled, and Tumbril is officially retired. He''s has been begging me to find someone to take on the role, and suggested a trustworthy judge from Central Caneth. You fit. If you decline the role, then I''m going to give you the task of finding someone who would be very trustworthy, is flexible, good at talking to people at all levels of society, follows God, hates corruption, who can teach and isn''t too proud to do unpleasant things like hobble camels or check their dung for signs of what they''ve been fed if that''s what''s necessary.¡± ¡°You''ve heard of that, then.¡± Hwalf said. ¡°The story was spread to injure, I expect.¡± ¡°It was,¡± Esme agreed. ¡°But some people don''t realise how loud a decision not to tell the whole truth is.¡±
Azunga port ¡°Hello, Naneela. Welcome to the independent swamps of Azunga,¡± Ungana said. ¡°It looks a bit rocky to me.¡± ¡°Well, OK, this is the coast. The swamps start the other side of those trees up there.¡± ¡°So the waterfalls are swamp-water?¡± ¡°Yes. I don''t recommend you wash in them, they stink. They represent our half-hearted and pig-headed attempt at draining the swamp from this side. It took five thousand men five years to dig them, and almost every piece of metal in the country turned into rust-flakes in the process. When the treaty with your great-grandfather put a stop to digging them there was a national holiday. That rock is hard highness, and it gets harder the deeper you get. All that work, and it diverts maybe a fiftieth of the river, from the portion of it that''s about to leave anyway.¡± ¡°I was taught it was supposed to give you control over the water supply to South Tunga.¡± ¡°Yes the idea was to have forced you to dig that canal we want. That idea lasted about two months, at which point they got into the really hard rock and every barrow-full of removed rock was costing at least a pick-axe. So rather than give up my stubborn ancestor told the workers to make lots of waterfalls instead. An almost totally pointless way to cripple the economy not to mention half the working population for a generation. All it did was make sure the city up there doesn''t flood much in springtime, which used to at least wash the streets clean.¡± ¡°Quite pretty though,¡± Naneela said. ¡°It would be a shame for you to lose them.¡± Ungana looked at Naneela in horror. ¡°Do not say that, highness. Please. I can''t vouch for your safety if you repeat that. All the time they''re flowing, the land is a mosquito-infested stick-hole. Changing the subject, can you explain to me why you need to change ships here?¡± ¡°Kanuga is apparently worried about too many people learning how to get to their city. They trust the captain that took Tangseng there but would rather not trust anyone else. Tangseng''s not arrived yet?¡± ¡°No.¡± Ungana said. ¡°Oh well. Father asked me to give this set of papers to you. Other than copies of various arrest warrants that he sends for your government''s information and general entertainment, it''s highly secret and conditional on all the normal things.¡± ¡°Such as you getting home safely?¡± ¡°Not in such a way as that might make me an assassination target for people opposed for what''s offered, no.¡± ¡°Who''s been arrested?¡± ¡°I''m not sure they have been yet, travel being what it is. But the warrants are with official messengers, anyway. Oh, father told me you should feel free to forward them to your border-posts. They concern various officials in the Tungan protectorates near to your border, on the charge of falsifying official reports regarding certain pieces of alleged arable-land, that get discussed in the other documents. There''s a lot to negotiate, of course.¡± Ungana looked at Naneela for a long while. ¡°I was going to suggest that you stay overnight at a certain reputable inn. But in the circumstances I think I ought to be inviting you and your future husband to the palace to talk to mother and my sister.¡± ¡°Husband,¡± Naneela corrected, holding Kahlel closely. ¡°Father thought it would be better if we travelled as a married couple. It also means that Kahlel cannot even technically be under the authority of the Tungan governors or feud-laws any more, which some people might have considered him to be previously.¡± ¡°Congratulations!¡± Ungana said. ¡°If this is your honeymoon, would you prefer the inn after all?¡± ¡°I think we can probably spare international diplomacy a few hours,¡± Kahlel said. ¡°As long as that doesn''t prevent the occasional kiss.¡±
Bubble Ship Training Centre, Mars Humph reached what had become his normal seat in the dining room and put down his tray. The girl he''d noticed in the centre''s chapel early in his first week was in the same place as she''d been every meal time since, as far away from others as she could be. At the moment, he saw, she was reading. Her hair kept slipping into her eyes, and she kept pushing it back absent-mindedly, as she slowly chewed on her vegetable stew as though she had all the time in the world. Previous days she hadn''t been reading, she''d just finished her meal as quickly as she could and left. But there weren''t nearly as many people here today, he noticed. Tentatively, he played with reasons those might be linked and the idea that he might just possibly put his old grief aside and go and talk to her today. He''d seen her earlier in the day talking to one of the engineers in the hanger. She was, plainly, connected somehow to the bubble research group, she didn''t seem to be spending her meals with anyone, and nor was he. Perhaps those two things could change at the same time. He decided it was time for action. He desperately wanted to talk to someone not connected to the band or a fan in any way. He picked up his tray. ¡°Hello, are you just really in love with the view from here or do you just dislike crowds too?¡± ¡°I enjoy my own company,¡± she replied, eyeing him suspiciously. ¡°I imagine that if my little sister were in this room, she''d be sitting here, and running off when the room got crowded.¡± ¡°So you decided you''d come and interrupt my book?¡± she asked. ¡°I''m told impulsive risk taker is in my genetics. May I sit here?¡± ¡°I''m sure there''s no law against either of those things. Unlike some things in my genetics, like a tendency to respond to annoyances with sharp metal.¡± ¡°Was that a warning not to eat with my mouth open?¡± Humph asked. ¡°I would like to finish my book uninterrupted,¡± she said. ¡°I appoint myself your protector against unwelcome interruptions. I''m Humph.¡± ¡°That''s not a name, its an expression of dissatisfaction with the status quo.¡± ¡°The status quo I''m dissatisfied with is I don''t know many people here. Humphrey Tune-crafter bn Hathella Peacetalker hi Ben Farspeaker.¡± ¡°Samantha bnt Lara Marsspeaker hi Timothy Shipbuilder. Our mothers know one another, I think.¡± ¡°Mother''s even mentioned you, I think. You''re a pilot?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Pushing aside the dozen questions that sprung to his mind he said ¡°Enjoy your book, Samantha Lara Timothy. I will try to not annoy you with more questions until you''ve finished it.¡± ¡°You plan to just sit there and watch me read?¡± ¡°I don''t want to annoy a descendent of Lara Knifetongue, or a pilot, so I certainly don''t want to annoy you.¡± ¡°You''re with that band, aren''t you? Sun-Drive?¡± ¡°Spoken like a true non-fan, wonderful. Yes, I''m in the band, I play keyboard and write music to Sheena''s words, don''t feel you need to stay with the topic unless you''re really interested in it. I never expected we''d end up semi-famous, and it''s a pain.¡± ¡°A pain?¡± she asked intrigued. ¡°I much preferred it when it was just a hobby and we had a life outside it. I think all of us do in different ways. Our manager doesn''t really like a lot of the songs we''ve been writing recently, with titles such as ''Worship God, don''t worship us,'' and ''Don''t expect we''ll do this forever.'' It impacts his earnings potential, or something. Making this video was our idea, as a message to the fans that we have things we like doing outside the band. He won''t like some of the things its going to have in it either, like us asking one another what we''re going to do when we grow up and get a real job. If he cuts too much from it then we''re going to have to start threatening to hire lawyers over him interfering with our creative expression or something.¡± ¡°You''re planning to break up the band?¡± ¡°No. But we all want it to be a thing we do, not who we are, what we think about all the time, what we talk about all the time. Etcetera. So can we talk about something else? Bubbleships for instance? Or encounters with alien people?¡± This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°I''m on research flights, so I''ve not met any aliens yet, just killer octopuses and the like.¡± ¡°Is ''killer octopuses'' a generic term, or did you really meet some?¡± ¡°Not quite octopuses, since they had seven motion tentacles and an eighth that was a heavily armoured scary sharp weapon.¡± ¡°Did you find out if it was for self-defence, or predatory?¡± Humph asked. ¡°It seemed to be mainly for mating.¡± ¡°You''re joking! Tell me more?¡± Humph asked, fascinated. ¡°Boy killer octopus meets girl killer octopus, boy and girl get into a battle. Boy and girl cut each other''s tentacles off and eat them. Assuming boy and girl aim properly and don''t actually kill one another, and the boy ends up with at least one tentacle when girl octopus is immobile, then they mate and he defends her - to the death if necessary ¡ª until she''s laid his eggs. She''s regrown a few tentacles while the eggs were growing, but they seem to secrete some kind of hormone that stops them from moving. Once she''s laid the eggs, then he chases her off until the eggs are hatched or she tries to eat them. If she wins - that''s to stay he ends up legless ¡ª the battle then she eats him, and she becomes an even harder target, and apparently a more attractive mate, and she goes flirting.¡± ¡°What happens if he dies defending her?¡± ¡°Then his killer ¡ª another male, normally ¡ª chops her legs off, eats them and her eggs too.¡± ¡°And then rapes her?¡± ¡°I argued that you can''t call it rape. The paralysis is only of her mobility tentacles, her killer claw is still there, and when other predators come close she can easily see them off, even without the male around. And if she accidentally kills a lover during the battle then she doesn''t go flirting, she seems to enter a mourning state as if all the fun''s gone out of life. It was pretty unusual for a male be unable to defend his female, too, because they get super-charged on her tentacles. We weren''t there long enough to decide if they all paired for life, but it rather looked like it. Once the eggs are hatched then maternal instinct seems to kick in.¡± ¡°Wow! So the mating-battle is all about testing whether he''s a fit protector, and offering tentacles to the other to increase strength for egg-laying and egg-defending?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How similar are they to Earth cephalopods?¡± ¡°Genetically not at all, physiologically, pretty close.¡± ¡°I''d love to hear your opinion on some of the Planet Five sea creatures from the archive. There might be similarities but no one really looked at them in detail.¡± ¡°Planet Five?¡± ¡°Evnela''s home.¡± He indicated the poster-sized picture on the canteen wall. ¡°Fifth planet found with intelligent life. I''m a descendent of the contact team.¡± ¡°You''re not claiming that''s a real picture, are you?¡± Samantha asked. ¡°I can''t confirm the pizza. It looks a bit fake to me. But Evnela was real enough. Baroness of Vansk on the Island of Captita, blown out to sea in a killer storm and rescued by the contact team as she was adrift in the open ocean where they were following a pod of sea monsters.¡± ¡°Green people?¡± ¡°Why should plants have all the chloroplasts? They have different genetics and microbiology, and ridiculously similar macroscopic biology. Compatible digestive systems, no cross-species pathogens. Food is not toxic either way. Pleasant surface conditions and scary sea monsters in the polar currents off the northern coast of the continent.¡± ¡°If this is a wind-up then its one of the most complex I''ve heard of,¡± Samantha said. ¡°Feel free to look it up in the institute archive. I grew up hearing about the place ¡ª there''s this sort of prayer-group keeping the memory alive that our parents are in ¡ª the band, I mean. We''d all love to visit it if it ever gets off the banned list.¡± ¡°It''s been left to develop? How are they doing?¡± ¡°They had spark-gaps ninety-five years ago. No other news since.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°According to the director,¡± Humph said, ¡°someone changed the classification system, and ''quarantined'' no longer meant ''leave them alone for a bit, but keep an eye on them.''¡± ¡°It certainly doesn''t. Not now, anyway.¡± ¡°So, we''re hoping to convince a pilot to go pick up any data from the A.I. observation probe so we can get various parents etcetera to apply pressure and convince the director that it''s OK to say ''Hi, how''s it going? Please don''t offer us your virgin daughters.''¡± ¡°There''s a problem with virgin daughters?¡± ¡°There used to be a humongous problem with them. Sons too, but more rarely. See contact reports for evidence.¡± ¡°You''re trying to intrigue me, aren''t you?¡± ¡°Am I succeeding? And are you a Christian?¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Samantha said. ¡°I was right about what''s on the mind of strange males coming to engage me in a conversation. Once I say yes, the next question will be to ask what I would think of walking with you, wouldn''t it?¡± ¡°And the answer would be no?¡± Humph asked. ¡°The answer would probably depend what you would think about a knife waving in your left nostril.¡± ¡°I''d think it was a good motive to move very very cautiously,¡± Humph said, ¡°so that no one gets hurt or in trouble.¡± ¡°Good answer. Mars is full of risk takers, you see.¡± ¡°I''d heard. I guess it must be easy to get hurt if you''re not careful,¡± ¡°Especially when there''s a knife in your nostril,¡± Samantha agreed, her hand still on her knife. ¡°Samantha Lara Timothy, I apologise for taking risks and making assumptions about you. Thank you for telling me about the killer octopuses. Will you please allow me the opportunity to have other interesting discussions with you for no other reason than I love learning about odd creatures in God''s creation and I think you must do too.¡± ¡°I''ll think about it,¡± Samantha said. ¡°But you were right. I have the pain, so you''ll never find me willingly in a crowd.¡± ¡°And you are reluctant to admit it because many men think that you therefore are desperate for a protector?¡± ¡°Hmm. You might be right about that.¡± ¡°And they don''t know that protection can come from any trusted thought-hearing friend or family member, not just lovers.¡± ¡°Maybe I don''t have any trusted friends, then.¡± ¡°It needs practice. Can I introduce you to my cousin Sheena? She learned how to protect Hathie from the pain.¡± ¡°Your sister''s still on Earth?¡± Samantha asked. ¡°Following in her proud big brother''s footsteps and studying Marine Biology.¡± ¡°And is she getting better marks than you?¡± ¡°Roughly the same, actually. She''s getting the highest marks in her year, anyway.¡± ¡°I need to be more careful, don''t I? Giving you opportunities like that to boast?¡± ¡°Oh, I was only joint-top, she''s doing better in that respect.¡± ¡°Who were you joint with?¡± ¡°A landfolk girl called Tabitha. We walked together for a long time, but it was a bit on-and-off, then she said it was off, permanently. I was sort of hoping she''d change her mind again, but then she was in an accident. She was hit by a propeller, scuba-diving. She died about a year ago, after a long time in coma.¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°She loved the sea, but only the Earth''s sea interested her. Whenever I talked about maybe joining the bubble programme she tried to argue me out of it.¡± ¡°I thought you were just here for the videos?¡± ¡°And the director thinks he talked us into joining up, too. So does our manager. The tourist trips seemed like a great opportunity to get involved without our manager trying to sue us. Please don''t let him know that we''d all been thinking of coming this way anyway. He thinks we''re going to be full-time releasing new songs and videos for at least a year after this, because that''s his plan for us. He''s not really a shark, just... a bit single minded in his pushing us towards being megastars. As Sheena says, we don''t want to be megastars, normal run of the mill main-sequence types survive a lot longer.¡± He grinned, ¡°all his music industry astronomy-based metaphors really fall flat with Sheena turning them into dire consequences of us imploding or breaking up. I expect she''d love to turn your killer-octopus account into a song. Is it all published?¡± ¡°In my PhD, at least.¡± Samantha said, warily. ¡°It''s on the Research Group''s site.¡± ¡°You''ll get full credit for inspiration.¡± ¡°Will I want full credit?¡± ¡°Just a guess, but I''m thinking she might turn it into a love song, ''You don''t need to cut me up to make me yours, I won''t eat you, don''t eat me, don''t be a killer octopus.'' The fans ¡ª some of them anyway ¡ª love tracking down what inspires the songs and reading up on them.¡± ¡°Urm, OK.¡± ¡°And of course with the credit or without if you prefer, you get some a share of the income if the song covers its costs. We don''t want to be parasites.¡± ¡°And the B.R.G?¡± ¡°Gets a share too. It''s all in the collaboration contract, in Mer, for precision.¡± ¡°It occurs to me we could be speaking Mer, couldn''t we?¡± Samantha said. ¡°Humphrey Hathella Ben is entirely fluent in Mer, English and speaks some Tungan and Windwardese, those last two being languages of Planet 5. Humph Kray, composer for the band Sun-drive, is from the Restored Kingdom, has a degree in Marine Biology and mainly speaks English. That both of them are me is a bit of a secret. As is the fact that I''m a truthsayer.¡± ¡°You''re being very open about things that are secrets.¡± ¡°I don''t think anyone is listening except you.¡± ¡°And you don''t mind me knowing, not knowing if I''m a part-time gossip or something.¡± ¡°Part time gossips don''t get to fly bubble ships.¡± ¡°Maybe I lied about that,¡± Samantha said. ¡°Maybe I''ll risk you lied about your knife as well, then.¡± ¡°Would you like to find out for sure that I didn''t?¡± she threatened. ¡°I prefer to simply trust you. If you''d prefer distance then let''s stick with English. When you feel you''re ready to trust me to get a bit closer, feel free to switch to Mer.¡± ¡°And that''s your version of being careful, is it?¡± Samantha asked in English. ¡°If I wasn''t prepared to take a few risks, I''d have stayed where I''ve been sitting for the past two weeks, and not found out anything about killer octopuses or the beautiful woman sitting alone here every meal. But before I leave you to finish your book, may I introduce you to Sheena?¡± ¡°No. Because you''re going to find me contact reports that prove that girl''s a real picture, and show me your sea monsters.¡±
The tower room, Mer embassy, Mars, lunchtime. ¡°Yes, Samantha?¡± her mother, Lara Mars-speaker, asked. ¡°I''ve got a new trip planned, mother,¡± Samantha reported. ¡°Really? I thought it wasn''t the end of the training course yet.¡± ¡°It''s not, there''s another four weeks for it to go. But I''m going to a quick visit to a few not-recently visited places, back in three weeks. The data I''ll gather might help the director make some funding requests and things like that. And also it''ll give me some time to write up some more thoughts I''ve had on the killer octopuses. And um, think about some other developments.¡± ¡°What does ''other developments'' mean?¡± ¡°Humphrey Hathella Ben. I''ve been talking to him about different things in the last couple of days and he seems quite a nice person. He''s hopeful that I''ll walk with him.¡± ¡°Which is why you''re running away from him?¡± her mother asked, confused. ¡°Which is why I''m finding out if his dream of re-establishing contact with a particular fallow planet is likely in his lifetime. No one''s checked up on it in almost a hundred years. If it looks probable then he''s really likely to join the Bubble Research Group long term, rather than just for this sun-trip. In which case decisions get a lot easier.¡± ¡°Who will you take as co-pilot?¡± ¡°Bonnie wants some time to work on a paper too,¡± Samantha said. Bonnie had been her co-pilot when she''d worked on the octopus research. ¡°And you''re not doing any research, just picking up some data?¡± ¡°Oh, I''m sure there are some astronomy readings someone wants taken, but we always get those.¡± ¡°And are you going to explain to Humphry why you''re going?¡± ¡°I''m going to tell him I expect to be able to tell him yes or no when we''re back, assuming he''s still interested.¡± ¡°You don''t think you ought to say a tentative yes now, just in case some Martian risk taker with long eyelashes comes along?¡± ¡°I was thinking of inviting him to dinner tonight, is that OK? I''ll cook.¡± ¡°Of course, dear. You''ll cook for everyone, or just the two of you?" ¡°Everyone. Departure stew, if that''s OK?¡± ¡°You leave tomorrow?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Of course you can cook departure stew.¡±
Bubble Research Group, student lounge. ¡°Sheena, have you seen Humph?¡± Samantha asked. ¡°''Back in five minutes'', he said. That was about half an hour ago, so I guess he''s got distracted somewhere.¡± ¡°Bother. And he''s not on the net, is he? Can you give him a message? I need to go home and start cooking.¡± ¡°Sure. What''s the message?¡± ¡°I''m going on a tour of the star formation region Planet Five is in. There''s a whole load of ''last-heard from five-plus decades ago'' planets there, and the director feels that''s a bad situation. Departure is tomorrow and I''d hoped to invite him to the embassy for dinner tonight.¡± Sheena took in the way that Samantha was not in her normal overalls, but was wearing a rather pretty dress. ¡°As in dinner for two?¡± ¡°Dinner for about twenty, hence I can''t hang around, but maybe a table for two. I wanted to pick his brains a bit and give him something to think about while I''m gone.¡± ¡°Have you tried the library?¡± ¡°That''s where I tried first.¡± ¡°His room?¡± ¡°If he''s there, he''s not answering the intercom.¡± ¡°The thing is... if he''s forgotten he was working on stuff here then the next place I''ll see him is the dining hall, and maybe even not ''till breakfast. Would you like to declare this an emergency? If it''s an emergency then I can call his dad.¡± ¡°I don''t think ''emergency'' is quite the right word. It''s going to be very frustrating if I don''t get to talk to him before I go.¡± ¡°Let alone dinner?¡± ¡°Yeah, dinner would be a bit annoying too. But don''t call his dad, I''ve got my own numbers I can call, after all, without the distance-related delay. Hmm, actually, maybe that''s where he is: he said something about not having checked in with the association yet. ''scuse me, I''ll make a call.¡± She tapped a number on her wrist unit. ¡°Hi, Samantha from the BRG here. Yes, that''s right, lift-off is about nine A.M., God-willing. I don''t suppose Humph has turned up there has he? Yes, him. Excellent, can you put him on? Humph, Sheena says you''re due back in the student lounge twenty-five minutes ago, but actually you''re due at the embassy in an hour and a half and if you don''t show up then you''re going to regret it for a couple of weeks, because I''ll ask Sheena to tell you nothing while I''m gone. She''s grinning her agreement. No, I''m going to tell you that in person at the embassy. Dinner is included in the invitation, yes, and if you bring something suitable you might get to prove you can swim too. No not just with me, don''t be ridiculous, there''s about twenty mouths to feed at the embassy at the moment, and I''m cooking for all of them today. If you''re suitably behaved you might get to sit at the same table as me and escape the washing up. Thanks for offering, but there''s no need. It''s going to be what I call departure stew, which is quick to prepare, because who has loads of time to cook when they''re packing? Eighty seven minutes, yes. Oh you will, will you? OK. Bye!¡± ¡°He''s going to set a reminder?¡± Sheena guessed. ¡°Yes, two, apparently.¡± ¡°Consider yourself privileged. Normally he only sets one. And there''s a pool at the embassy?¡± ¡°Underground, from the days when going outside without a breather meant you were a few breaths from suffocating. The whole class will get an invitation to the embassy when you graduate, but I''ll try to get mum and dad to invite you while I''m gone. But you might want to talk that through: my brother''s an active fan apparently; Humph was saying that he''s trying to stay two people in people''s minds. Is it the same for you?¡± ¡°Public Sheena isn''t the same as private me, no. Did Humph say your mums know each other?¡± ¡°Yes. She''s visited several times, I don''t think Humph ever did. Urm, did I cause problems giving his name to mum?¡± ¡°Given the family connection, there''s no option, really. I just hope your brother doesn''t recognise him and decide to play journalist.¡± ¡°I''ll remind him of a sister''s absolute right to privacy, don''t worry. I''m just thinking that if you go as the band, then that''ll mean the cameras go too, won''t it? At which point the local fans would love to join in.¡± ¡°Probably, yeah. Actually... could your brother get us the invitation? Then the band could go in awestruck-wonder, etc.¡± ¡°I''ll pass on the idea to him, if you don''t mind?¡± ¡°Does he know we''re here?¡± Sheena asked. ¡°Rumours he''s asked me to confirm, I quoted privacy to him, saying if I knew that I couldn''t confirm it.¡± ¡°OK, well tell him I''ve said he can know I''m here, I understand the embassy has a long history of being involved in the project, and wouldn''t mind an invitation for myself, three guys I know, and a camera crew who are following us around.¡± ¡°You''re good at this! Consider it done, and me gone.¡± ¡°Have a great evening, and a safe trip if I don''t see you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Thanks, Sheena.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 40: Overcoming obstacles

Planet 5 / Ch. 40: Overcoming obstacles

The kitchen, Mer Embassy, Mars. ¡°Hi, sis, Mum said you wanted to talk?¡± ¡°Two things. Number one, I''ve got a guest coming tonight, Humphrey Hathella Ben. Best behaviour, please. He''s almost asked me to walk with him and I''ve not given him a hint of yes or no yet, but I''ll swat you if you go sticking your nose in. No breaching anyone''s privacy, OK? Secondly, you asked me about some rumours. Sheena from Sun-Drive says you ¡ª and I assume that means you, parents you''re negotiating with and no one else ¡ª can know she''s at the bubble research school with a few friends. She knows there''s a lot of historic connections between the embassy and the Bubble Programme, and asks if you''d want to persuade mum and dad to invite her over some time to gape and gawk along with three guys she knows and the camera crew that are following them around.¡± ¡°You''re joking!¡± ¡°No, I''m not. You''re the fan, you get to persuade mum and dad that film crew in the embassy is a good idea, filming them ooh and ah and listen to history lessons and maybe splashing around in the pool, looking out of the tower, that sort of thing. Then you get to handle the security issues, their rights to privacy and not being mobbed by fans issues, and so on. You probably get interviewed on-camera by them about stuff you''ve written, too.¡± ¡°They know what I''ve written?¡± ¡°No idea. What have you written?¡± ¡°There''s stuff on the net about them joining the bubble programme long-term, I''ve written that a certain staff member at the Research Group has asked me about the band which is really unlikely unless there''s some foundation to the rumours, but surely it''s just for a publicity stunt, and I don''t believe they''d have time to keep writing and do their own science.¡± ¡°Hmm. Sheena looked at some of my videos of the killer octopuses yesterday, and might end up weaving them into a song, I don''t know, but they didn''t come to make a video about the mating habits of killer octopuses, that''s just something that came up in conversation and they decided was fun and interesting. I told Sheena you''re an active fan, she doesn''t know your contact details and I don''t know hers. I''ll try and remember to leave yours for her before I fly tomorrow if you''re interested.¡± ¡°Of course I''m interested!¡± ¡°Sure? You''ll know things, and people who know things can''t publicly speculate about them.¡± ¡°I can still speculate about other things though, can''t I?¡± ¡°Depends how much you learn. If you don''t want your fan-life to change, maybe you should just say no, hide in front of your terminal and make sure you don''t meet any visitors to the embassy for the next month or so.¡± ¡°What happens in the next month?¡± ¡°That''s deliberate imprecision so I don''t give away too many clues, brother mine.¡± ¡°The fan speculation stuff is fun, but I''d much rather get to know them. What are they like? I mean real, not their stage personae?¡± ¡°I''d say they''re normal people with normal people problems, trying to do what they enjoy without giving away so much of their private lives that their friends and families suffer.¡± ¡°Urm... there are these constant rumours about Sheena and Humph going out, can you shed any light on them?¡± ¡°I am able to, yes, but if I did then you''d not be able to write about it,¡± Samantha said, putting the meat she''d been browning into the pot. ¡°What do you know about the relationships within the band?¡± ¡°Sheena and Shaun are brother and sister, Shaun''s the older, about the same as you, Sheena''s the youngest in the group, about my age. She and Jaz had some kind of on-off thing for years and then they wrote a song saying ''let''s stop fooling ourselves, we should just stay friends'' .Humph is a complete mystery, but he seems older than Jaz and Shaun. Did you say your maybe-friend is called Humphrey? It''s a really rare name, I thought.¡± her brother, Vincent said. ¡°Vincent''s not exactly common but there are two in the group. And it''s certainly not as rare as Hathella.¡± ¡°One per generation at most. Yeah. That''s serious fame, sister you''re thinking about getting close to.¡± ¡°Not like mum being ambassador to Mars, you mean? We''re seventh cousins I think it is, on the Lara-knifetongue and Boris Gravity-master to Hathella link. But we haven''t checked every ancestor yet, and it''s going to be tough, because of the land-folk connections.¡± ¡°Serious discussions. I get it, I get it,¡± Vincent said. ¡°How''s your research going? On both fronts.¡± ¡°I''m finding a distinct lack of girls sufficiently interested in interstellar gas clouds that they''ll risk a second chat, even when I apologise and say it has to fill my thoughts at the moment. And they did ask about what I''m doing. But the thesis is almost done, praise God. Are you sure there are no opportunities in the Bubble Research Group?¡± ¡°Dating opportunities or job opportunities? There''s quite possibly both, actually. Especially if you want to turn pilot. Did I really tell you not to apply?¡± ¡°I think I might have just been annoying you.¡± ¡°Quite possibly.¡± ¡°So, what can you tell me about Sheena and Humph?¡± ¡°Sheena likes astrophysics, Humph studied Marine biology. No romance at all from what I''ve seen, and I''ve heard one refer to the other as ''my cousin''. I don''t know if this is a big give-away or not, but when I was telling them about the killer octopuses then there was a discussion of possible wording and one of them said something like ''we can''t be that blatant, we need to leave stuff for the fans to research, or they won''t catch the bug.'' So I think they see that as part of what they''re trying to do.¡± ¡°Which ''bug''?¡± ¡°Curiosity about this wonderful universe that God''s made.¡± ¡°Do you mean they''re Christians?¡± ¡°Faith or lack of it is in the private life not shared with fans, is it? I''m not going to breach their inalienable right to privacy. You''ll have to ask them yourself.¡±
Mer Embassy entrance Samantha was just welcoming Humph to the embassy, and Humph was realising that she was speaking Mer to him and getting hopeful when her brother came round the corner. ¡°Humph?! You''re going to be comparing trees with Samantha?¡± Samantha groaned, ¡°Hush, little brother! Humphrey doesn''t know why he got invited here yet. Yes, that was one of the thoughts I had. This is my little bother, known as Vincent, I''m afraid to say he''s a fan, but hopefully his self control will mean the only thing he does on his computer is write about interstellar space dust for his thesis. Oh, Sheena''s hoping to get him to arrange for the band to visit, cameras and all.¡± ¡°Space dust, eh? Yes, that sounds like Sheena''s department. Please don''t tell anyone we speak Mer, or my mum''s called Hathella or anything like that. It''s too much detail for my true-but-misleading public profile.¡± ¡°I don''t understand....¡± Vincent said. ¡°Why misdirect fans about who we are? Because our families don''t need the hassle of being associated with a rock band, I don''t want my sister mobbed because of me, Atlantis doesn''t need people looking for us, our musical style doesn''t fit with Mer in most people''s books, and we know some people think mermaids should only ever play a blow-pipe, and would reject us because of that prejudice and so on. Basically our manager convinced us, and it provides us with a little cushion where we can escape from the whole soulless entertainment business and get on with real life. You really want to compare trees, Samantha?¡± ¡°I want to compare family trees, and I want to tell you why I won''t be around for two or three weeks or so and that it''s to help both of us in different ways. Vincent, please tell everyone food is in the kitchen. If there''s really some disaster, we''ll be eating upstairs. Mum''s given permission before you look outraged.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± Vincent said. Food was never allowed in the tower except on very special occasions. Then he added, ¡°Urm, just in case Samantha forgets to give my network I.D. to Sheena...¡± ¡°Yes, you can tell me.¡± Humph said. ¡°Or leave a message at the Research Group.¡± ¡°And I ask her all the questions I''ve got burning in my brain and leave you in peace, right?¡± Vincent asked. ¡°As long as they''re asked honourably, yes, especially that one,¡± Humph said, reacting to the thought that had bubbled up in Vincent''s mind about whether Sheena was interested enough in astronomy to consider discussing family trees. Vincent grinned. He knew he didn''t feel called to singleness.
The tower, Mer Embassy, Mars. ¡°So, Vincent is feeling Single and Desperate too, eh?¡± Humph said, as they climbed to the top floor, plates in hand. ¡°A friend of his has returned the acrostic SADBLOTS to current use; Single and Desperate Bachelors Left On The Shelf. You felt like that?¡± ¡°Worrying that if I didn''t take every opportunity God gave me to talk to someone I''d miss out on the patient and kind Christian woman interested in alien seas I needed to not live out my life alone? And also worrying that as I was too weird even for Tabitha I''d never have the chance to share my soul with someone? Optimistic about any pretty face, willing to face knives for the sake of a smile and a conversation? Why did you think I decided to interrupt your meal?¡± ¡°Hmm, somehow my knife has been restrained around you. That''s very uncharacteristic. I guess that means you don''t really seem that weird in my book, nor so desperate that alarm bells go off in my skull. Let''s see if we''re relatives, please. Closer than Hathella marrying Boris Gravity-Master, anyway.¡± ¡°And then you''re going away?¡± ¡°Lift off tomorrow morning. It''ll give me time to think about things like whether I love being one of the first to document a new species so much that I really want to stay a probe ship pilot all my life and ignore other opportunities.¡± ¡°So if we aren''t relatives? What then?¡± ¡°Then since you''re thinking about exploring alien oceans, I''ll walk with you, Humphrey Hathella Ben if you want me to, and while I''m collecting observer-probe reports, which is what my trip''s for, I''ll consider letting you teach me a language of Planet Five.¡± ¡°You''re going to Planet Five?¡± Humph asked, excited. ¡°It''s on the planned route, yes. It''s about four days to get to the general area in a fourth generation probe ship, then we ¡ª Bonnie and me ¡ª have got twelve planets in the region to visit. The computers say we can do that easily in four days. But no one''s been there in a long time, and the charts might need updating. We''re allowing up to eight days, before we come home. Planet five is one of the last, so if the computer''s right we can happily spend some time looking at your sea monsters if we''ve time.¡± ¡°Oh wow, oh wow! That''s so exciting! New news from the planet! You wanted Sheena to keep this from me?¡± ¡°If you ruined my evening, yes. So what''s most exciting, comparing family trees, or the possibility of new data?¡± ¡°What''s most exciting is that you are doing it, Samantha. And are thinking of maybe going there with me, if they''re close enough to getting there. Sathzakara Cannon-stabber?¡± He asked, naming an ancestress. ¡°Not heard of her.¡± ¡°Stabbed her knife into a bronze cannon that had been pointed at her, on Planet Five.¡± ¡°Urm, possibly only famous in your circles?¡± ¡°Maybe. Maybe there too, who knows. It was in the Imperial palace of Dahel. What about Maggie Planet-finder?¡± ¡°As in Ground? Not an ancestor, nor her brother.¡± ¡°Rachel Planet-finder?¡± ¡°Nope, as far as I know, all my ancestors back then were safely living in Atlantis.¡± ¡°Your turn, then?¡± ¡°Jacob Tunaspeed,¡± she said. ¡°But not his great-grandson Jacob Star-chaser?¡± ¡°No,¡± she confirmed. ¡°So much for my mother''s side. Dad''s is going to be harder. Fortunately there are records, and I do have a copy.¡± ¡°That''s good, so do I of mine. More stew?¡± ¡°It''s really good, but no thanks. It''d be easy to gain weight here in Martian gravity, even with working in the fields. Any landfolk royalty in your family tree?¡± ¡°Urm, not that I''m aware of.¡± ¡°Well, that cuts out a few of mine then. Any of these names look familiar?¡± ¡°Well, they look Russian, but no. What about anyone on here?¡± She unfolded a sheet of paper she''d been fiddling with. It had her whole family tree on it. ¡°So... why have we been doing it the way we have?¡± Humph asked, a little put out. ¡°Because that way we avoid the potential problem of too many people just off the paperwork and it''s the traditional way, of course,¡± Samantha said, then grinned ¡°and I get more insights into your background too.¡± ¡°Samantha, we''re not fourth or fifth cousins.¡± Humph said. ¡°And?¡± ¡°And even if you could have saved me some anxiety by producing this earlier, I like you.¡± ¡°That''s nice. So are you actually going to risk my knife now?¡± She asked. ¡°Would I be risking your knife if I asked you to walk with me?¡± ¡°That''s cheating. You need to be brave and ask.¡± ¡°Will you walk with me, Samantha Lara Timothy?¡± ¡°I will, Humphrey Tune-crafter Hathella Ben.¡± ¡°And would you like a memory-ball of some key Planet Five vocabulary?¡± ¡°Oooh, the things he offers me! I''m not sure I ought to risk it. If I wasn''t flying tomorrow I''d say yes, but brand new vocabulary and stress situations aren''t a good mix, sometimes.¡± ¡°Good point. And you''ve got to pack too?¡± ¡°Actually, I''m already packed, so as long as I get to bed at a reasonable time, we can talk, or walk or swim. It''s up to you.¡± ¡°Then can we talk and swim?¡± ¡°Of course. Actually, give me that memory ball.¡± ¡°You''re sure?¡± ¡°I''m going to feel like a complete idiot if we pop down to the surface for a swim and accidentally meet someone.¡± ¡°Ooh. So you need advanced stuff like introducing yourself too? Let''s practice a bit first. This is how you say ''I am Samantha and I study fish.''¡± ¡°I don''t just study fish,¡± Samantha said, before he managed to finish. ¡°I''m walking with a pedant!¡± he said gleefully, ¡°Sorry, it''s the best way to express marine biologist I''ve found so far.¡± ¡°Well at least add in sea-monsters and people might be able to guess I study things in between too.¡± ¡°OK, say this then,¡± he repeated the introduction phrase. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Hayeel''s Church, Caneth ¡°I bind myself to you, Salay, as my husband in the sight of God and all spiritual and physical beings until death separates us. I vow that I will never leave you, and that I will work to make our marriage a reflection of Christ''s union with the Church.¡± ¡°I bind myself to you, Hayeel, as my only wife in the sight of God and all spiritual and physical beings until death separates us. I vow to you myself, my strength, my care, my love and my support, that I shall never leave you and that I too will work to make our marriage the reflection of that holy union.¡± ¡°I therefore pronounce you husband and wife, man and woman, and if it is God''s gracious and sovereign will, in His time: father and mother. May He bless you as you grow together and serve him wholeheartedly. And as we celebrate this hope-filled event, let us also pray about the challenges that the coming years may bring, both for the happy couple and indeed the whole planet. May God send us the help we need at the time we need it.¡± ¡°Amen,¡± the congregation said, not quite sure that last bit was about.
Kanuga ¡°Hello, Tesk, do you hear me?¡± Naneela asked, at the time of day Tesk was normally listening. ¡°We hear, highness,¡± the Dahelese technician on Tesk replied. ¡°I have a rather unexpected experiment for the academy to consider.¡± ¡°Yes, highness?¡± ¡°I''ve been working on modifying the transceiver I brought with me to work at higher frequencies, and I made a discovery: some of the harmonics of the pulses from the spark generator actually extend all the way to the required frequency range. If a tuned circuit could be applied to their generator, along with with an antenna of precisely the correct length, then it is entirely possible that no further modifications would be needed to meet the Tesk end of the challenge. "Obviously the tuned circuit would have to be able to cope with the power, but I think it''s well worth them trying. I think I''ll need another week or two to get the transmitter here up to the required power, but the test equipment here is really helpful. If they can''t get enough power into the harmonics, then I can give instructions, to reproduce what I''ve got here, but you know how well that has worked so far.¡± ¡°Not well at all, highness, we know. The glass-blowers here just aren''t used to encapsulating metal in glass at such exact distances. We will pass on your suggestion.¡± ¡°Excellent.¡±
En-route ¡°Again?¡± Bonnie exclaimed as the computer signalled that it had dropped them out of warp-speed a fifth time in the three hours they''d been on the flightpath. They''d barely managed to come a tenth of a light-year since their last visit to a planet; checking everything was safe to restart had taken most of that time. ¡°Another progressive drop in light levels from the navigation ''scope,¡± Samantha said, studying the display ¡°It looks like the nebula strikes again, but I''ll need to check.¡± ¡°Can we approach from another direction? We''re never going to get there at this rate.¡± ¡°Hmm, OK, let''s pick up the data from the planet we just skipped, that''s heading out of the nebula now, at least.¡± ¡°What''s your Humphrey going to say if we never get there?¡± ¡°I don''t know. I am going to be seriously grumpy though.¡± The new destination star was chosen, and the ship was soon moving at what pilot and co-pilot thought of as a reasonable speed. It took them about three hours to reach their destination system and home in on the planet. ¡°Samantha, is that what we were going through?¡± Bonnie asked, looking backwards as they emerged from bubble-space the last time. ¡°I''ll get some readings, but I think so. Interstellar dust jet. Pretty, isn''t it?¡± ¡°It''s just an optical illusion that it looks like it''s heading straight for that star there, isn''t it?¡± ¡°Urm,¡± Samantha said, as the head-up display identified what she was seeing. ¡°I hope it''s an illusion, that''s the home-star for Planet Five. But my little brother will quite likely murder me if I don''t bring back some pictures of that thing, since they''re his PhD topic, so can we do a bit of a circle around it? Or at least a quarter octagon?¡± ¡°Sure. I assume you mean after we''ve picked up the data from here?¡± ¡°Certainly! It''s coming in already. Hmm, not much progress by the looks of things: this is that war-torn planet, where they never even got good enough contact to be set the challenge of finding peaceful ways to settle differences. Apparently they have developed rocket technology and regularly launch suborbital missiles at each other now. So far no nuclear technology.¡± ¡°Praise God for that!¡± ¡°Indeed. Let''s go, the A.I says they''ve also developed piloted missiles to defend against alien invaders sitting in their upper atmosphere.¡± ¡°That''s nasty.¡± ¡°Yes. Pointless too, since we don''t do interplanetary invasions, not the military sort, anyway. So, let''s go half a light-year towards that star there, before we get spotted and someone gets launched to kill themselves,¡± After a few more short jumps, Samantha and Bonnie were convinced of three things: they''d done enough astrophotography, it was boring; the dust jet was indeed going straight towards Planet Five''s sun, and last but not least, they wanted to see something interesting, like sea-life. ¡°From orbit, I presume,¡± Bonnie said, as Samantha set the navigation computer. ¡°Other than the risks of getting mashed by something big, or accidentally eaten by sea monsters, the survey reports all clearly say there were no biological risks, so if you want to go swimming, I''m certainly ready to.¡± ¡°Let''s see what the monitor A.I. says. We don''t want to get into someone''s war.¡± ¡°Or be taken for goddesses and be lumbered with someone''s relative,¡± Samantha agreed.
Parked 50km above surface, Planet Five ¡°Data dump is still in progress, Sam,¡± Bonnie nudged the pilot awake ¡°but they''re using radio, for speech. At about five megahertz.¡± ¡°Put it on speaker as well as recording, can you? I might understand something.¡± Samantha blearily said. ¡°Sure, that''s why I woke you up.¡± Bonnie grinned. A light voice came from the speaker, ¡°Yes, Hayeel, I agree, but I can''t do anything from here, it''s so frustrating!¡± Another woman''s voice replied ¡°But not being willing to even try making it work at fifty megahertz? Is it more stupid pride?¡± ¡°They''re worried about interpretation, they claim. Spark versus oscillator. It''s supposed to be the same signal from both ends of the continent.¡± ¡°But we need to get the aliens to come, as soon as possible, don''t they understand?¡± ¡°My technician friends say they told them they lose a week if it doesn''t work, but not trying might mean delaying things at least half a year, and they still didn''t want to try. Can you try to persuade the High Council to get involved?¡± ¡°I don''t understand a word of it,¡± Samantha said. ¡°except megahertz and in that last over she said something that sounded like Windwardese for High Council. I think they must be speaking Dahelese, the third language.¡± ¡°Want to try to shock them?¡± Bonnie asked. ¡°Not in a language I don''t understand,¡± Samantha said. ¡°Isn''t anyone listening in Tesk?¡± the second voice, Hayeel, said. ¡°This is High Council member Hayeel and I want to talk to someone on the High Council or the army or academy for that matter, and I''d like to hear why the radio department are refusing to even try getting the spark transmitter to work at fifty megahertz.¡± ¡°Oooh, I understood that!¡± Samantha sat up, saying. ¡°High Council member Hayeel sounds a bit cross with the radio department at the academy, for not wanting to try their spark gap system at fifty megahertz, which is the challenge frequency.¡± ¡°Hello, Hayeel, this is Sashan. There''s quite a bit of disbelief that it''ll work, and there''s also surprise that Naneela got anything at all at that frequency. In other words, it seems like such a thin straw they don''t want to try clutching at it. And the other thing is that they were just starting to cannibalise the generator for wire when the message got there. Basically we don''t have enough high quality wire here to do everything, and Naneela managed to convince them their beloved spark generator was a dead end.¡± ¡°I understood that,¡± Naneela replied, then switched to Dahelese, ¡°Can you translate Hayeel? I begin to understand. The Library here in Kanuga says the first spark generator of the aliens worked at fifty megahertz, which is why I looked. The signal was not strong but I certainly heard it. We need to ask the aliens to help save the planet from the dust, and we can''t assume they can work miracles. Six months might mean the difference between them being able to help and it being too late.¡± Hayeel translated for Sashan, and added. ¡°I could barely see any stars last night, Sashan, the fire in the sky was so bright here, so I agree. I don''t want to lose an extra six months'' air to space when it''ll be blown away as quickly as Teng says it will be when the dust cloud gets closer. So while I''m praying, I also want that signal sent if at all possible.¡± ¡°Short summary of a really convenient conversation to overhear,¡± Samantha said, ¡°They seem to expect the dust cloud to strip the atmosphere in a few years, so want to send the signal as soon as possible. No wonder the A.I. is getting excited.¡± ¡°I didn''t think A.I.s could get excited,¡± Bonnie said. ¡°Well, recording so much, then.¡± Samantha said, ¡°It''s like us with astronomy, we don''t record much when it seems boring.¡± ¡°So aren''t you going to let them know you''ve heard them?¡± ¡°I don''t really know what to say. How in the solar system can you protect a planet from an interstellar dust-jet?¡± ¡°Forcefield around the planet?¡± ¡°Thank you. Next question, how do you power one of those? The energy needed would make the Mars comet shredder look like a school demonstrator.¡± ¡°Pass. What would happen if you launched a black hole into the middle of the dust cloud?¡± ¡°Assuming it managed to suck up the whole cloud, you mean? I''d guess you''ve now got a black hole and accretion disk glowing somewhere from ultraviolet into the hard X-rays aiming at these guy''s sun. Don''t expect much thanks even if it misses swallowing their sun.¡± ¡°Say something, Samantha.¡± Bonnie said. ¡°Fine.¡± Samantha, accepted the microphone and hesitantly said a modified version of what she''d practised , ¡°I am Samantha, I fly spaceship. I heard what you said and tell astronomers. I am not astronomer, I study fish and sea monsters and collect information from watching machine. Keep praying.¡± There was silence over the airwaves. ¡°What did you tell them?¡± Bonnie asked. ¡°My name, that I''d heard them, that I''m not an astronomer, but I''d tell them. And that I study fish and sea monsters.¡± ¡°Fish and sea monsters? Why not sea-life?¡± ¡°Because Humph knows the words for fish and sea-monsters.¡± ¡°You are an alien?¡± Hayeel asked eventually. ¡°You are probably small and green, I am taller and very pale brown.¡± ¡°Not pink?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°You can call me pink if you like. It is long time since my people came, but some remember some of this language and language of Tunga.¡± ¡°Not language of Dahel?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°From Dahel, was not good friends.¡± Samantha said. ¡°Alien knife in cannon is a great treasure of royal family.¡± Naneela said. ¡°The message that emperor is not a god is remembered.¡± ¡°I will tell my friend at home that Sathzakara is remembered. He is child of child of child of child of child of her, perhaps more.¡± ¡°I am descendent of stupid emperor who thought he was a god, and wise emperor his grandson who chose Christ. I not speak this language well, sorry.¡± ¡°You are doing very well, Naneela. And so are you, Samantha,¡± Sashan said. ¡°Must we still send the signal?¡± ¡°Yes, please.¡± Samantha replied. ¡°It is safer to have two messengers.¡± ¡°Signal must be the same? Exactly the same?¡± ¡°I don''t know. I will check.¡± Samantha said. Turning to Bonnie, she asked, ¡°Any idea how to find out the specifications of the signal they need to send the observer probe?¡± ¡°Yes, it''ll be in the probe''s configuration, urm... here it is, ''come'' in morse code, at 50 MHz plus or minus one, from both ends of the continent within sixty seconds.¡± ¡°Next question, why fifty, and can we change the frequency?¡± ¡°Like to the frequency you''re now talking on?¡± Bonnie asked. ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Fifty, because that gets through Earth-like atmospheres pretty well. But I''ll give it a go. And... oh! It seems to have accepted it.¡± ¡°Hurrah for people who know A.I. user-interface technology,¡± Samantha said. Then transmitted, ¡°The signal is a word spelled with short and long tone or noise. It does not matter how it is made. My friend here, Bonnie, has asked the machine to listen for the signal on this frequency. Perhaps the machine is obstinate and did not listen to her, but you may try.¡± ¡°Now?¡± Hayeel asked, shocked. ¡°If you do not remember the signal, I can look it up.¡± Samantha said. ¡°I know it.¡± Naneela said. ¡°I can just sing it?¡± ¡°I think, yes.¡± ¡°dah di dah di, dah dah dah, dah dah, di¡± Naneela sang, feeling very silly. ¡°Probe says ''Expected signal received from leeward edge of continent, approximate location: Kanuga''¡± Bonnie reported to Samantha as Sashan repeated the signal with a whistle. ¡°Probe reports ''Expected signal received from windward edge of continent, approximate location: Tesk or Caneth. Departure clearance granted for Mars orbit, initiating bubble-drive self-test sequence. Updating routing data.''¡± ¡°The machine heard, and prepares to go.¡± Samantha said into the microphone. ¡°But... but... we are not ready!¡± Hayeel said. ¡°There are still remnants, criminals who have avoided detection until now and commit sacrifices. We do not have a world government, we are not ready.¡± ¡°The cloud does not wait,¡± Sashan said. ¡°Thank you, Samantha, that you have helped us.¡± ¡°Will we be called gods?¡± Samantha asked, ¡°Will girls or boys be given to us in sacrifice?¡± ¡°No.¡± Hayeel said, ¡°I do not think that will happen.¡± ¡°Will any king try to take us prisoner, to sacrifice to their god?¡± Samantha asked. ¡°No!¡± Hayeel said, ¡°All rulers except one follow Christ, and her daughter does.¡± ¡°Are there any who hear thoughts?¡± ¡°I, Hayeel, hear thoughts, so does Sashan, and many other women on the Tesk High Council. Two men, Hwalf and Tuga, have the gift of God.¡± ¡°Ask Hwalf and Tuga to call to Karrie who sometimes talks to me, or Ben who knows many tales of your home and calls it ''Planet Five,'' and is father of my friend who waits for me at home.¡± ¡°Tuga looked for people on your home planet who would expect to respond to the probe''s return, and found none.¡± Hayeel said. ¡°It worried us.¡± ¡°Karrie is not on Earth, but other planet of us, Mars. Ben does not normally speak to pilots across the stars.¡± ¡°Ah. I thank you! Much is explained!¡±
Off the Northern coast of Caneth [Samantha?] Karrie''s mental call came to her. [Someone I''ve never heard of has just called me, saying you said he should, and not giving me much more detail.] [Tuga? Or Hwalf? Planet five have just triggered their monitor probe to go home and report job done.] [Tuga. You helped that happen, I hear.] [Sorry] Samantha said entirely unrepentantly. [But really, they had international two-way speech radio, when the challenge said they just needed to send a roughly synchronised Morse message at a frequency one place was struggling to get to because of a wire shortage, or something. Bonnie tweaked the frequency and five minutes later, bye-bye probe. They''ve got an interstellar dust jet heading their way that Vincent would be overjoyed to study, except of course he''s almost finished writing up, and they''re terrified of what its going to do to their atmosphere. The solar wind is already off-scale. I''m practically at the equator here, the sun isn''t setting yet and I''m seeing aurorae. For more details you can talk to Hwalf, Tuga, Hayeel, Sashan or quote ''anyone else on the High Council''. But I actually recommend Hayeel. She seems quite well informed, anyway. Sashan might be too, but she didn''t say that much except explain the wire shortage.] [Fine, I''ll quiz Hayeel. What are they like?] [The people? Short green and very human-like. One was seriously campaigning for a cross-species marriage for a while, according to the reports. She figures in that pizza picture in the dining room, but someone''s changed the toppings on the pizza she was holding compared to the original picture.] [Hello, are you thinking about Evnela?] a male voice sounded in her skull. [I am, you''re Ben?] [I am indeed. Someone called Hwalf told me he was in Caneth, on Planet Five, which is shocking, and that you''d given me his name, which is also a surprise to me, but he wasn''t sure what else to say.] [Hello Ben, Karrie''s also on the line, I''m currently watching the sunset from a beach on Northern Caneth, where co-pilot Bonnie and I have been watching sea monsters swim past, and deciding not to go swimming, given how long their necks are and how many teeth they have. I''m planning to bring back some sea-shells, I think, they''re pretty. You can blame Humphrey for getting named, by the way.] [I''ve not actually called Humphrey for about ten days.] [Ah, then you don''t know that we compared family trees just before I left, he asked me to walk with him, I accepted, and he drilled loads of Windwardese into my brain, hence the conversation.] Samantha replied. [And now you''ve opened up Planet Five?] [Opened it up? It needs help or evacuation or something. There''s an interstellar dust-jet within shouting distance and closing fast, a local astronomer thinks atmosphere is going to be knocked away in a few years. Solar wind is off-scale compared to anything I''ve seen and there are daylight aurorae.] [What''s the population these days?] Ben asked. [I''m not sure. Probably more Mars than Earth.] [I guess we ask Hayeel or someone else,] Carrie said. [And I need to ask Humphrey all about you, don''t I?] [Research pilot, main interest exo-planet marine biology, Dad built my ship, Mum is Lara Mars-speaker.] [Ah! Humphrey did say you''d met. I totally failed to understand it as more than ''Mum I''ve said Hi to your friend''s daughter,'' North coast of Caneth, you said?] [Yes.] [If you''re by a fresh water source, big fast land-predators and big faster prey creatures come out of the forests around sunset, or they did, if I remember correctly.] [Thanks for the heads-up. That''s sort of now.] [I won''t distract you, then. You don''t mind me telling Humphrey, do you?] [Not at all.] ¡°Bonnie, there might be big fast predators or prey coming for a drink at sunset, I''ve just been warned.¡± ¡°Karrie said?¡± ¡°No, Ben. So lets say thirty seconds to grab anything we might want and then get into the air.¡± ¡°That long, eh?¡± ¡°Less if you hear or see motion in the forest.¡± Samantha''s eyes and ears were straining, her feet edging her towards the safety of the ship. ¡°You''re worried,¡± Bonnie said, starting to move. ¡°Training video, wide path beside the sea, going from woods to a river, with no people about. It could even have been filmed from exactly here, and we''ve wandered too far from the ship. I''m stupid, stupid, stupid! I know this stuff.¡± She was walking quickly. ¡°Shall we run?¡± Bonnie asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Samantha said, ¡°we can use the probe for collecting stuff. Ship launch probe to home in on me.¡± It was only two hundred metres to the ship, but it seemed like ages. They were half way by the time the hour-glass probe had reached them. Eighty metres from the ship, there was a crashing sound in the forest behind them. ¡°Probe, disk forcefield. Bonnie, grab the probe on three. One two three! Probe and Ship hover altitude twenty-five metres, rendezvous.¡± ¡°That was exciting.¡± Bonnie said, holding on to the probe. Another crash sounded. ¡°I do like voice commands.¡± ¡°Yeah. Sometimes you just don''t have time to press buttons. Of course there''s still no sign of the noisy things.¡± ¡°Trees swaying in no breeze,¡± Bonnie pointed out as she stepped onto the bubble-ship''s wing. ¡°But maybe we didn''t need to run,¡± Samantha said, double-guessing herself in hindsight. ¡°Better safe than sorry.¡± Bonnie reassured her. ¡°Wow!¡± It wasn''t an elephant, nor was it a tyrannosaur, but there were similarities to both. It was on two powerful legs, had a long trunk, and sharp claws on its bear-like front limbs. It ran, probably at thirty miles an hour. And was at least five metres tall, behind it there was a slightly smaller one, and then two that seemed likely to be juveniles. ¡°Ship, hover at two hundred meters. They jump in the training video,¡± Samantha explained to Bonnie. ¡°Welcome to Planet Five.¡± Bonnie said, ¡°These are the predators?¡± ¡°I don''t think so. They look more like they''re just thirsty and wary.¡± The first one had passed under the ship and had sucked a trunkful of water as it reached the river and turned to face the woods. It seemed remarkably agile. It dipped its trunk in the water behind it a number of times, each time emptying it into it''s mouth. ¡°Big one watches the woods, other parent watching the river.¡± ¡°You don''t think... sea monsters?¡± ¡°Maybe. Those necks weren''t very hydrodynamic. Maybe they''re lunge-type ambush predators.¡± ¡°Except the river''s too shallow, surely.¡± ¡°Let''s just observe. Cameras on.¡± It didn''t take too long for something to happen: two predators came out of the forest, one was probably a juvenile and was smaller than the juvenile herbivores, the second was presumably an adult. Both had four legs, fangs and no trunk. The larger prey herbivore gave a trumpet of warning, and charged the threat. The other three followed, the smaller adult between the juveniles and the sea. The larger predator stepped well away from the path of the charging adult, the younger, inexperienced one stayed a little too close, and was bowled over by a hit from the trunk as the adult rushed past. The second adult wrapped its trunk around the fallen juvenile predator that was in its path, tossed its head and threw it past the larger predator, into the sea. The predator made a lunge for one of the juvenile herbivores, which had stopped its run to watch the flying predator. Now it screamed in pain but managed to kick free. The predator, with its mouth-full of flesh, looked at its offspring, just in time to see a sea-monster whip its neck around the young predator''s body in a snake-like grip, preventing escape and then sink its teeth into its back. The junior predator thrashed and kicked, and died. The older predator swallowed and disappeared into the forest, following the trail of blood. ¡°Cameras off,¡± Samantha said. ¡°Scary.¡± ¡°Pretty good strategy from parent herbivore. If youngster hadn''t stopped to admire the view there''d be no question about which side won.¡± ¡°As it is.. One dead predator one possibly fatally wounded herbivore.¡± There was another crash from the forest, another family group of herbivores came out, and then another three. ¡°Cameras on,¡± Samantha said. No predator followed, soon there was a constant traffic of herbivores running to the water, drinking, and running back to the woods. As the last entered, it was ambushed by a predator that might have been the same one as earlier. Although the herbivore was larger, it couldn''t shake the predator from its back. In pain, it grasped the predator with its trunk and threw itself into the air, landing on its back. The predator had tried and failed to get free, and was crushed. Limping badly, the herbivore hobbled back into the forest. ¡°Cameras off. I think the predators lost tonight. And I''m very glad we ran.¡± ¡°Me too. Can we go home?¡± ¡°I think I still want those shells. One day I might want to show them to people and admit what I almost got caught up in because of them.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 41: Homecoming

Planet 5 / Ch. 41: Homecoming

Heart of the Empire ¡°Say that again, Naneela.¡± the emperor said, ¡°I think I must have misheard you.¡± ¡°I said the alien device has gone home, father.¡± ¡°What do you mean, gone home?¡± ¡°I mean it no longer listens, it no longer watches, it has gone to remind the descendants of its makers about our planet. An alien came, to check up on how we were doing, and she had been taught some Windwardese. Hayeel was just expressing her fears to Sashan, that any delay was dangerous, and the alien understood.¡± ¡°And so she sent the device home?¡± ¡°There were two of them on the ship; her colleague told the probe to listen at the frequency we were talking on, and I sang the sequence, Sashan whistled it, and the probe left. The frequency was not chosen to be hard, father, it was chosen to reach space reliably from a simple transmitter like Tesk has.¡± ¡°So now you have nothing to do?¡± The emperor asked. ¡°No father, now I can work on solving the problems that the size of the empire brings. But have there been riots, father?¡± ¡°A crowd started to gather at the palace gates demanding to know if the rumours of the end of the world were true. The sentries read out the prophecy, and said, ''your emperor asks you to consider joining the faithful who pray, please also pray for blessings on crown-prince Salay, who has met and married the woman detailed in the full version, Hayeel duchess of Repink.'', and then they handed out a list of churches. Apparently there were quite a lot of extra people attending every church in the city. There was also an angry young man shouting about the changes to the social changes law not going far enough. Then his sister started remonstrating with him and then his mother came along, grabbed him by the ear and publicly berated him for shaming her in public, and asked the palace guards to put him in prison for a week.¡± ¡°And they complied?¡± ¡°Certainly. She was a lady eleventh rank, so it was her right to ask and their duty to do so. For their public-spirited action, the mother and sister have been advanced to ladies eighth rank and granted a small income. The son has been barred from gaining from his mother''s rank, of course. If he wishes rank, he will have to find a way to gain advancement, such as convincing a noble girl he''s not really a threat to the social order.¡± ¡°Father, I meant to ask before we left. Have you considered those nominations to advancement for the workers in the research centre?¡± ¡°Considered, and rejected, Naneela. Instead, I have signed an order that recognises that working to improve the empire is a noble pursuit, covering the research centre and also teaching.¡± ¡°You''ve raised all teachers and researchers to be nobles?¡± ¡°Technicians also, but not all, just those commended for working for years in a publicly-minded manner or who are clearly in publicly-minded projects, such as the slave-schools, or in other uncomfortable situations. Two years gains an advancement to nobility, five years gives them tenth rank, ten years ninth rank, twenty-five years eighth rank, the same scale as you were suggesting for your colleagues, I believe.¡± ¡°You are changing the dedication of the recruits for the slave schools, if they have automatic advancement,¡± Naneela warned. ¡°In every case, there will be some input from others. In the case of the slave schools, that will probably include asking parents and students. My intention is to address the recruiting problem they''ve been having.¡± ¡°I understand. And you also make the lower rank of nobility more common.¡± ¡°And provide a mechanism for those like Bilay who cherish their titles an easier way to preserve them than suicidal military adventure. I wean the nobility away from the army, Naneela, and ennoble some demanding but humble professions, extending the values of the Heart of the Empire into the rest of the empire. That is my intent. Oh, I didn''t say: as slave ownership is a social evil, it bars any advancement.¡± ¡°That''s an excellent clause, father!¡± Naneela said. ¡°Other news is that your letter and his new faith have brought Count Tarok of Tuma to the attention of my second cousin Valene.¡± ¡°Really? That isn''t a match I''d ever have considered!¡± ¡°Apparently, she''s publicly challenged him to stop playing worldly games, and use his wealth to help educate the people in his domain. In reciprocation she''s unambiguously told him all he could expect to earn from her in return would be her smile, but that grace was better than earnings and without her smile he had no hope of winning her heart.¡± ¡°She''s a widow, isn''t she?¡± Naneela asked. ¡°Yes. One daughter, who you played with when you were younger, but I can''t remember her name, though I expect it ends with ''lene''. Feel free to ask Malene her cousin''s name.¡± ¡°Father, I don''t think you''re supposed to transmit that in that context,¡± Salay said. ¡°Probably not,¡± the emperor agreed. ¡°Who heard that end?¡± ¡°Me, Hayeel and Bilay who is looking rather stunned. Possibly something to do with Malene announcing at lunch yesterday that she''s fed up with trying to keep her talks with Bilay secret, and that therefore she was publicly declaring that she''d privately accepted him as suitor some weeks ago.¡± ¡°Ah. And she''s been keeping her rank secret even from him has she? Oh yes, I did know she planned something like that. Apologise to her for me, Salay.¡± ¡°I shall, father.¡±
Embassy of Dahel, Caneth ¡°Malene, thank you for coming,¡± Hayeel said. ¡°Salay has something to tell you.¡± ¡°Third cousin, father apologises, but he spoke about your first cousin to Naneela and, failing to remember her name, suggested that Naneela ask you her name. Bilay overheard, as did Hayeel and I.¡± ¡°Ah. My embarrassing rank has become known. Is Salene in trouble?¡± ¡°No. Naneela wrote a letter commending Count Tarok of Tuma for the very kind and generous way in which he ended a relationship with someone younger than you, who was so naive about Central Zone games that she didn''t reciprocate to any gifts from him, and he''d been making very wrong assumptions. He came to faith after talking to father, and it seems your aunt has noticed him, and challenged him to stop spending money on worldly games, but added that he could earn her smile by educating the poor of his domain, and quote ''without her smile, he''d never win her heart.'' So there''s a possibility that Salene might eventually gain a step-father and become heiress to a county.¡± ¡°Well! That''ll be a change!¡± Malene said. ¡°I''m not sure she''d like to be a countess, but she would be good at it, I think, if it does happen. She''s been telling her mother for years that she ought to remarry. One of the last things her father had said to her, before he died, was that he expected her mother to mourn for a year or two, but he''d be in heaven and her mother would feel lonely and useless if she didn''t have a living husband to look after and organise.¡± ¡°It looks like Tarok is going to get organised,¡± Salay said. ¡°Now, you on the other hand, have a broken secret and an emperor in your debt.¡± ¡°I''d have probably told Bilay one day, assuming we get married,¡± Malene said. ¡°Father was aware of your intentions, cousin. I expect he simply forgot that the radio meant he was talking in public and was not having a private chat with Naneela. I know that he feels badly about it. You can request redress.¡± ¡°What redress might I want, cousin? Is it not just a game I play that I pretend to have no rank of my own?¡± ¡°It allows Takeel to give you orders, and allows you to avoid other social situations you find distasteful, so I think it is more than just a game,¡± Hayeel corrected. ¡°What I would like to ask is how you feel about the system that means a steady decline in rank as generation succeeds to generation.¡± ¡°How could it be any other way, duchess?¡± ¡°There are titles administered by the state, are there not?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Should the principles of limiting social change not require that an emperor grant at least a barony to relatives who will never inherit the crown?¡± Malene looked to Salay to respond, but he indicated his desire to hear her response. ¡°There are reasons why that is not done, duchess.¡± Malene said, ¡°For a start, the gift of a barony is normally a reward for great service, it would... I suppose the word is demean the grant if it was automatically handed out to relatives. Secondly, never inherit is too uncertain a thing. Naneela will inherit the crown after Salay if, God forbid, you have no children. And if she also has none then the rule would pass to cousins.¡± ¡°And since father has no brother, sister or first cousins in the ruling line,¡± Salay said, ¡°When Malene speaks of cousins she means second and third cousins such as Salene and herself.¡± ¡°That is what you didn''t want known, Malene?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°That your mother is next in line after Naneela?¡± ¡°Mother married a trader and once aunt Yalene was married and Naneela was born we moved to Kunga. Being known as anything to do with the imperial succession there might have been very dangerous. The Kungans have a strange concept of who you can claim as a relative, it might have been that the Kungan queen would have been overjoyed to think that she could claim the emperor as one in their system as her uncle lived next door to us. But mother was never sure if her links to the imperial throne would have got us welcomed to the palace or kidnapped to extract some kind of concession from the emperor. Or both.¡± ¡°Would it make Queen Kunthel happy to be greeted as a relative?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Urm... maybe.¡± ¡°Because it occurs to me that some other people might have been listening in too.¡± ¡°Ah, that''s true,¡± Salay agreed. ¡°And I didn''t think to ask if anyone else was listening.¡± ¡°It is not known that you are in the guard, Lady fifth rank Malene,¡± Hayeel pointed out. ¡°So if you wish to stay completely out of it you may. I think your presence here would be hard to explain otherwise.¡± The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Oh, that''s easy to explain. Having been kicked out of Kunga as a child I decided that I would put as much distance between me and her majesty''s arbitrary policies as possible, and I''ve not managed to get to the Isles yet. Teasing answers such as that are not taken very seriously, but she would never challenge me about it, or she would be inviting a more... complex response. But just in case I''d better come up with one.¡±
The radio room, Dahel Embassy to Caneth ¡°Queen Kunthel, I''ve just today learned we are now relatives.¡± Hayeel said, as the meeting drew to an end. ¡°You are my relative? How?¡± ¡°My husband''s third cousin grew up in your kingdom, living next door to your uncle.¡± ¡°Truly? Which uncle?¡± Hayeel looked to Malene, who grinned, and accepted the microphone. ¡°I used to walk to school with Walek son of your uncle Gindar, your majesty. Until you decided that my father should close his business and leave.¡± ¡°Ah. You would be the famous Malene who caused Walek give me a toad for my every birthday for five years?¡± ¡°I did not know of the toads, your majesty, but I am indeed Malene.¡± ¡°And you can claim his imperial highness as third cousin?¡± ¡°I tend not to claim it, your majesty. But it is a fact I cannot deny. Mother was concerned that we might experience some unexpected change in status should it become known that she was born lady fourth-rank.¡± ¡°You might have indeed, since I had no faith at that time.¡± Queen Kunthel sighed ¡°For what it is worth, expelling the merchants and similar policy shifts were not appreciated by many of my subjects or relatives, and the toads from Walek were a quite mild response. I was a foolish queen when I was young, and I did not just drive your family away, but my inconsistency also drove away a man I had hopes concerning. I had drive, but no direction. I have since learned faith in the Unchanging One, and have a goal, a destination if you like. And the toads and Walek''s faith which he learned from you helped enormously. If you choose to visit, my relative, you will be welcome to come and go freely. But I should perhaps tell you that Walek is a married man now.¡± ¡°I''m glad he is not hoping I would return, or thinking to chase after me your majesty, my suitor might become jealous.¡± ¡°Perhaps you can answer a question for me Malene. I revoked the ban on traders from the Empire four years ago, but very few have returned, and the economy still suffers from the lack of trade. Why do they not return?¡± ¡°Ah, your majesty. I''m afraid that the populace in the Central Zone have long memories, and bear grudges. They felt the empire was insulted by the ejection of the traders, and the intricate Kungan handicrafts they used to pay high prices for and put on display with pride became things that were treated with contempt, and I know that some were even burned as firewood.¡± ¡°I thought I was helping my citizens to trade, but in fact I destroyed the market?¡± ¡°I do not know elsewhere in the empire, but certainly in the Central Zone, Tungan artisans and traders in their work played upon the fact that Tunga is within in the empire, and so made their cruder designs more preferable to many people. I have been called unpatriotic for wearing a necklace from Kunga, just within the last year.¡± ¡°Duchess and Empress-apparent Hayeel, I have repented of my arrogant stupidity, but the economy is in ruins and my crafts-people must damage their hands farming because they cannot sell enough to buy food. We have wood and glass for making artifacts, and fine crafts-people, but it seems we are unlikely to regain our old customers. I appeal to you as my relative, do you have any suggestions?¡± ¡°Apart from the unpalatable and obvious, you mean?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°Kunga should give up its independence, you mean,¡± Queen Kunthel asked ¡°so it is no longer outside the empire?¡± ¡°I was actually thinking that maybe you could seek new customers or new products. Princess Naneela is busy creating a new market for precision-made glassware, for instance.¡± ¡°Did I hear my name?¡± Naneela asked, joining the conversation having been listening in with half an ear. ¡°Yes, Naneela,¡± Salay said, ¡°Please tell Queen Kunthel, who is our third cousin''s old neighbour''s cousin, about how her glass-workers might be able to help make your valves.¡± ¡°My relative, it seems that my glass-blowing colleagues at the Imperial Research Centre grossly underestimated how easy it would be for a typical maker of windows and drinking vessels to adapt to their methods. If your glass-blowers can embed metal into glass as precisely as is needed for the radio components, then I''m sure that we would be interested.¡± ¡°How precisely?¡± ¡°It is delicate work. The metal screens and other components are put into a special holder, six wires are connected ¡ª I''m sure your jewellery makers can do that ¡ª and put through separate holes in a glass bead, which of course needs to be pre-made. Then the bead is squashed onto the wires and joined perfectly to the outer tube. The metal pieces must not move relative to one another more than the thickness of a fingernail. Then the air is removed, which needs special equipment of course, mostly of glass and the liquid metal. It takes a long time, and then the tube must be sealed. Again, perfectly, and without touching the metal pieces at all.¡± ¡°I will ask if they think it is possible. How much could the Empire pay?¡± ¡°I do not know, your majesty, but at the moment we have five workers who also do other things as well, and are very flexible in what they do. They live in the Central Zone, where food is not cheap. We estimated that that we could reach the desired production numbers with two hundred workers, working full time, also in the central zone. We have found some local people, but only another five.¡± ¡°For how long?¡± Kunthel asked. ¡°And how long until your five becomes two hundred and fifty?¡± ¡°The demand we expect for years, cousin of my third cousin''s old neighbour.¡± Naneela said, ¡°Perhaps it will be decades, though of course I expect there will be some modifications. But you are correct in one thing, if this were being done in a part of the empire, it would be much easier for Father to decree that for quality control reasons the work should only be done by a certain workshop. An alternative option, of course, is that your workers produce consistent quality at a substantially lower cost than would be possible in the empire.¡± ¡°Are you arguing for a larger empire, Naneela?¡± Hayeel asked. ¡°I thought you were saying it is too big all ready?¡± ¡°Oh, it is too big for direct rule. For that reason Father and Grandfather have only wanted to offer vassal-kingdom status to anyone thinking of joining, like Walunga accepted.¡± ¡°And so my people would have to pay the empire its tax and host empire soldiers like my neighbour Walunga does?¡± Queen Kunthel asked. ¡°No, thank you.¡± ¡°This is Salay, my royal relative. The so-called tax paid by Walunga is the soldier''s pay, because when the king of Walunga negotiated his treaty to join the empire he begged to not have to raise his own army. If you are comfortable with continuing to have your people patrolling your own borders, you may be surprised at what the accession requirements are.¡± ¡°You do not wish to surprise me yourself?¡± Kunthel asked. ¡°It is getting late here, your majesty.¡± Salay said. ¡°And the details are a little complex. If I remember correctly, three quarters of the reduced military expenses from the empire accrue in your favour, as does the amount you''re spending on education and other things that directly benefit your people, and then a fraction, I can''t remember, perhaps two or three percent of your tax income, counts in the empire''s favour, as does the cost of any extra military expenditure that you ask the empire to provide. And then there are various limiting figures that get applied on both sides depending on population size and things like that. I''m sure that father''s ambassador can fill you in. But at the end of the maths then we find out if you pay the empire or if the empire is so happy that peace has broken out and you''re joining that it pays you.¡± ¡°The empire might pay Kunga to join?¡± ¡°Peace has its dividends, your majesty. Of course as a vassal state you would need to commit the country to never attack any part of the empire, and to seek imperial approval before any other war of aggression, and so on. The payment is recalculated every five years, and the military savings component reduces by ten percent each recalculation.¡± ¡°So after fifty years that component is gone.¡± Kunthel said. ¡°After fifty years, that component is smaller, but it''s ten percent of the previous amount, not of the original.¡± ¡°I shall talk to your father''s ambassador, my relative. It is a very different thing to agree to honourable peace with a relative you can talk to than to capitulate to a greedy empire that makes unreasonable demands. Malene, you are still listening?¡± ¡°I am, your majesty.¡± ¡°In discussing this with my ministers I expect to be saying that I have today learned that had I not expelled traders from the empire, there is a reasonable chance that you and Walek would have formed a closer tie than just being neighbours who walked to school together. I hope you will not object to that statement.¡± ¡°Walek and I discussed many things on our way to school, your majesty. When we were eight it seemed inevitable to both of us that we would marry. When I was eleven or twelve I told him it was not inevitable, that I would never marry a non-believer, and he should put all ideas of romance away until he was baptised. When I was fifteen he was baptised and a week later you ordered us to leave. It was just before the school''s week of sports, with different practices before and after school, starting at different times, so we never had the chance to start to talk about if we should change our relationship from friendship to love. I wasn''t sure, and there were some things I felt would need to change in him, but I remember looking forward to him starting that conversation and wondering how it would go and what our parents would say. So yes, if history had been different, a chance of love and a chance of broken hearts. Now I have the attention of a man with very few things that need changing, and I''m glad that my heart has never been broken by a man, only by a change in policy.¡± ¡°Thank you, my relative. I will not ask why you''re in Caneth, but I will ask if you are at risk of policy hurting you again.¡± ¡°Those with such authority have also voiced their approval, your majesty, so I do not fear such a drastic policy change. But let us pray that the aliens can find a solution now they know of the problem. That is a more concerning issue, I''m convinced.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Kunthel agreed.
Bubble ship hanger, Mars ¡°I know its a bit silly, but I''ve missed you,¡± Humph greeted Samantha, as she stepped out of the airlock and he took her suitcase from her. Bonnie had left earlier. ¡°Hmm. I think that is a case of emotions getting ahead of themselves, don''t you?¡± ¡°Absolutely,¡± he agreed. ¡°On the other hand, Dad said you''ve actually talked to people on Planet Five?¡± ¡°By radio. It seemed rather rude to God not to. I mean, you just happening to give me that vocab, Bonnie just happening to tune into their conversation, them just happening to switch into Windwardese as I was saying that I didn''t understand a word of it, and one of them just happening to reiterate why any delay in meeting the challenge was a bad thing? How many hints do I need to get? So I said hello and Bonnie re-tuned the probe. Has the monitor probe disgorged all its gorgeous data yet?¡± ¡°It''s working on it,¡± ¡°There''s a sequence you should probably show your Friends of Planet Five group. An execution, or rather, disposal of an executed criminal''s body, followed by an explanation of why he died, and a history lesson. Recorded a few weeks ago. The woman asked the probe if it really needed to wait for the signal. It replied the signal was necessary, which I thought was pretty decent language skill for an observation probe A.I. But then it was transcribing in two scripts I don''t recognise, so I guess it must have been programmed to actually use the local scripts too.¡± ¡°Makes sense, I suppose,¡± Humph agreed. ¡°Assuming you can read them,¡± Samantha said. ¡°Yeah. Back to school for both of us,¡± then he blushed, ¡°Assuming, of course....¡± ¡°Assuming I want to go back and watch some more sea-monsters eating half-grown predators the size of a smallish hippo? I''ve got some scary footage. Yes, I want to go back. How is the course going?¡± ¡°Well, thanks. Filming is going OK too, and we''ve written five new songs which is keeping the manager happy, even though he realises that we''re going to stay on. Other news is that as of about half an hour ago, Vincent hasn''t asked Sheena to walk with him yet, but she says he''s thinking of it every time they meet, and they seem to find excuses to do that quite often. They seem to find a lot of things to chat about.¡± ¡°Has she said what''s she thinking back at him?¡± ¡°She''s really not interested in dating a fan. But privately she tells me that she is interested in exploring possibilities with a certain God-fearing astronomer working in the Bubble group ¡ª he applied the day you left, by the way ¡ª and she also says that interstellar dust jets are cool.¡± ¡°Not if you''re on Planet Five, they''re not. There''s already a serious excess of Oxygen and Nitrogen in the solar wind after the planet, so I agree with the guy who got them worried: they need help. I hope someone can rustle up some influential contacts and some ultra-bright people. Combining what we measured and what I remember from Vincent''s hand-waving summary, there''s a cloud about two light years long, weighing in at maybe a solar-mass or maybe ten, coming at about a twentieth of the speed of light to mangle their atmosphere and do nasty things to their sun.¡± ¡°I thought the Bubble Ship programme had the monopoly on planet-sized brains.¡± ¡°Just for bubble stuff,¡± Samantha replied. ¡°Well, that''d work, wouldn''t it? Make a big bubble, move them out of the way...¡± Humph said. ¡°You want to put their whole solar system into a bubble? Eeek! Can''t be done.¡± ¡°Not their whole solar system, though I suppose that''d be really neat. But can''t you just move their planet to another star?¡± ¡°Michelle, did you hear that?¡± Samantha said to a passing technician who was clearly trying not to laugh at the preposterous idea, ¡°This man is daft! I like him though, he clearly has really big ideas.¡± Planet 5 / Ch. 42: Epilogue

Planet 5 / Ch. 42: Epilogue

Mars university, forcefield lab The solution started as a doodle on a napkin at a departmental birthday party, which had partly been suggested as a break from the week of head-scratching and brain storming that had preoccupied the lab. Or maybe it started with an apple pie with a lattice crust, (arable crops still being a very rare use of anyone''s claim on Mars, the flour had been imported and there was far more potato in the recipe than in most earthling pastry recipes). The napkin, however, while it had started around the pie, had been repurposed quite quickly. ¡°I think we can do it!¡± the excited physicist said, leaping up and trying to show his colleagues his napkin. ¡°We don''t need to make it full size from the get-go if we start small and grow!¡± ¡°What do you mean, start small and grow?¡± another, across the room, asked. Partly for the guests, he explained ¡°We know we can''t just make some kind of umbrella that''s big enough to protect Planet Five''s sun, the numbers don''t work out. And we also know if we let the particles hit the star then really bad things happen.¡± ¡°Tell us something we don''t know already. What''s the sketch?¡± Tina, whose birthday had sparked the party, asked. ¡°Your Buzzard ram-jet idea, Tina,¡± he started. ¡°Doesn''t work,¡± she interrupted, ¡°the magnetic field just can''t compete at scale with the solar wind.¡± ¡°But if we start small and grow it, then I think it does work. Not just one, but net of Buzzard ram-jets, at low power, basically just fusing enough hydrogen to keep position and letting most of the dust and stuff bypass the reactor, with a bit of deflection. Those should work and be manageable. We can make a lattice, a mesh, knitting the reactors together by spikes. Then we can build a funnel or whatever other shape we want, direct the stream past the sun, and let it go past. Redirecting the streams is easy once you''ve shrunk it down to a manageable size, like Tom calculated. Every extra node will reduce the problem, and by he time the scary levels of dust start arriving we should have time to build enough nodes to fully protect their sun.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°They''re losing atmosphere already.¡± ¡°What if we put the first batch at the planet, diverting the solar wind as a proof of the concept?¡± Tina suggested. One of the mer added, ¡°and maybe do some atmospheric replenishment from the fusion products if we decide it''s worth the effort.¡± ¡°It does sound plausible,¡± the head of department agreed. ¡°Let''s code it up and look at numbers.¡±
¡°Hwalf, why the big sigh. You miss the camels?¡± ¡°My chin still itches.¡± ¡°I like your music, I like your mind and your kindness. Your beard I can live without, as long as it doesn''t mean I loose you.¡± ¡°You say the nicest things.¡± ¡°So, do you want me to shave it off?¡± He looked at her in shock. ¡°Do you know what you ask, Princess?¡± ¡°Probably not, no. But I am being bold and decisive, grand vizier.¡± ¡°Only a man''s wife or mother shaves him.¡± ¡°Well, I absolutely refuse to be your step-mother,¡± She looked at the flash as another node came on line in the web being spun in space. ¡°It''s pretty, isn''t it? Do you think it will work?¡± ¡°They say it has far more chance of working than trying to move sea-monsters to another planet.¡± ¡°That doesn''t sound hard. And, what about my cutting off your beard? Or to I need to put some itching powder in it until the itch really isn''t bearable?¡± ¡°I am working on a new piece of music. It is called ''the impatient princess.''¡± ¡°Do... do you think we should not marry?¡± She asked, worried. ¡°I hope that we will. But...¡± ¡°I should not be impatient?¡± ¡°Patience is a good thing.¡± ¡°I will try. What are we waiting for?¡± ¡°The right time,¡± he said enigmatically. ¡°Fine! Then, will you play me at Inek?¡± ¡°Do you want me to let you win?¡± ¡°I will count it as a proposal if you do. I am not saying that is the only way you can propose, of course. But like this, I know that I have a lot of your attention either way.¡± ¡°You always have a lot of my attention. But it is not the time for Inek now.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°There are visitors coming.¡± ¡°Oh? Who?¡± ¡°Princesses are supposed to be patient, aren''t they?¡± ¡°Whatever gave you that idea?¡± she exclaimed. ¡°Does Esme somehow strike you as patient?¡± ¡°See? I have wrong ideas about what you should be like. How can we marry?¡± ¡°You could decide to know me as I am, perhaps, and not try to fit me into ideas I don''t fit into?¡± ¡°Back in the village, life was much more complicated than Inek. Here it is even worse,¡± Hwalf said. ¡°As you teach me Inek, I will be happy to teach you about life here, Hwalf.¡±