CHAPTER 2
My quarters, as did those of each of my cousins, consisted of a suite of several small rooms around the circular third deck of the Jaunter. Whereas in the Imperium Compound in Taino, those personal suites might comprise anything from a single room to a small estate covering acres, here they were uniform in size. The cozy reception room of my cabin, as I was pleased to call it, featured a large, comfortable chair, a floor-to-ceiling looking glass, and a long, low shelf to my right hand, suitable for flinging whatever I might be carrying. The shelf was unoccupied upon my arrival, but the chair was not. As I entered, the inhabitant of the seat rose. The familiar form, some centimeters taller than my own lofty height, his frame muscular yet whipcord fit, epicene chin shaved to perfection, with shining black hair and eyes as dark as the mysteries behind them, clad in self-effacing black from collar to heels, stood at attention to welcome me. This person was my aide-de-camp, overseer, intermediary and functionary of other useful undertakings too numerous to mention. He occupied the naval rank of commander, with several other titles, I was certain, to supplement that of an agent, no doubt high-ranking, in our Covert Services. He had been my mentor nearly all of my life.
“Parsons!” I exclaimed. I threw myself into an attitude of welcome that I had devised, including a gesture of offering with both hands energy that poured from my heart, and concluded with a bow that brought my chin to the floor. There was just room in the chamber to accommodate this gesture without upending my visitor. “I am overjoyed to see you. I was prepared to seek you out in the lower levels of this vessel.”
“I thought it better,” that worthy replied, “to save you the effort, my lord.”
“The soul of consideration,” I said, beaming at him. I rose to my feet. “Would it discomfit you if I tidied myself and changed clothes while we conversed?” I sniffed, and winced at the resulting olfactory input. “I’m afraid that I may not be perfectly fit for polite society at the moment.”
“Not at all, my lord,” he replied. “The sonic shower will deter any potential eavesdroppers who might be listening.”
I wrinkled my nose, an expression not unlike that of Redius, but with a more human interpretation: disappointment. “I had hoped to enjoy a bath. This suite’s tub has a remarkable heating unit that maintains the temperature at my preference for hours, and a shape that is designed to contain my entire person from the neck down. I don’t have to put the dome on it while the gravity generators are functioning. And don’t you have a small gadget that fulfills that task of providing private discourse?”
His face never changed expression, yet I could tell I had hit upon a sore point.
“I await the delivery of an upgrade to the programming of that device, my lord. Although I will deploy my ‘gadget,’ as you call it, I have received notification within the last hour that its encoding mechanism has been compromised. Hence, it would be more efficacious to use two devices in tandem.”
“Oh, very well,” I said. “Come on through.” I retired to the bedroom and retreated behind the opaque screen that stood between the boudoir and the bathing area. The latter had been constructed from one single piece of high-impact ceramic, but had been decorated in stellarscapes by a galaxy-famous artist who enjoyed a patronage from the Imperium. I had employed her skills myself in a gift I had had made for my mother’s next birthday: a small glass sculpture that emitted dancing light in the deep-blue wavelength of her formal naval uniform. I would present it at the conclusion of a new performance I had been choreographing just for that occasion, three days after our scheduled return from the coming spectacle.
I flipped on the switch that activated the cylindrical cleansing booth. An audible hum arose from its interior, indicating that the sonic scrubbers were ready. I stripped off my leotard and deposited it into the collection bin that would be policed by the LAI valet assigned to my suite. In fact, NA-836n was alerted to the presence of dirty clothes and trundled over to retrieve them. “Pray help yourself to refreshments. I have chilled some sparkling raspberry wine from the north provinces that you will find cleansing to the palate as well as pleasing to the nose, and some sesame-basil biscuits that only add delight to the experience. Anna, do help him to a glass.”
“Yes, Lieutenant Lord Thomas.”
I heard NA-836n roll across the carpeted floor plates toward the buffet bar at the side of the sitting room. I raised my voice to be heard over the rumble.
“I am a trifle surprised that you came along on what is an extended pleasure cruise, Parsons. My cousins took it as a natural compliment to our rank and collective presence upon one ship that we should receive a protective escort. We are honored and a trifle surprised to have such an enormous military guard as two rather large ships that could be out patrolling the exoplanets, but the presence of the crew of my dear Rodrigo tells me that there is more afoot than protecting the Emperor’s relations.”
Parsons was silent for a moment. I knew it was not to collect his thoughts; his mental processes were eternally vigilant. Stray musings would receive a demerit and punishment duty. I stepped into the booth, leaving the door open so we could continue to converse. The excited sonic waves assaulted my skin.
“There is a very good reason, my lord. Several, in fact. What do you know about the Kail?”
In spite of the warmth of the shower, I felt a chill go down my spine.
“The stuff of nightmares,” I said, applying the bay-scented surfactant spray to my skin. It tingled through to my inner soul. I shivered, wondering if it would be worthwhile to construct a dance around bathing. There were so many interpretations one could put upon cleanliness. “Ugly creatures. They look as if they were badly carved out of rough, gray stone by a disinterested sculptor. The one I met in a trading station had four stumpy legs and one arm with about nine thick, clumsy fingers. It acted as if it hated me just because I wasn’t of its species, or perhaps because I was of a more appealing shape. I tried not to take it personally.”
“It wasn’t personal, my lord. They do despise all carbon-based life-forms. They would have treated a rosebush with the same disdain.”
I reached for the depilation wand and ran it over my cheeks, chin and neck. The hairs that had grown a fraction of a millimeter over the last few hours shivered into insubstantiality and dissolved away with the rest of my discarded skin cells.
“I had heard a whisper that some Kail are coming to the spectacle. Naturally, I hoped that the rumor was wrong. It isn’t, is it?”
“No, sir. It is not.”
“I have choreographed a short routine that shows my misgivings about the Kail. Would you like to see it when I have finished my shower?” I offered hopefully.
“Definitely not, my lord.” The statement brooked no disagreement.
I mused as I turned amid the hundreds of sonic jets, feeling them vibrate my skin clean. The sensation refreshed me, though a bath would have been more relaxing to my muscles. My left shoulder was sore. I moved it closer to one of the emitters and was rewarded as the throbbing eased. I made a note to myself never in future to do a side flip landing on one hand on a rug that was not affixed to the floor.
“How many of them are coming?” I inquired.
“The intelligence I have received does not specify. The Kail, as you are no doubt aware, are secretive and untrusting of all outsiders. They do not commit their plans to any form of documentation as do those of the Imperium and the Autocracy, or even the Trade Federation. What inquiries they do make of the Infogrid are carefully camouflaged among thousands of other searches so our agents and programs find it difficult to discern which search is legitimate.”
“It all seems unnecessarily obtuse to me,” I opined. We of the Imperium were necessarily open and forthcoming to the electronic frontier. It was a matter of law to keep one’s Infogrid file updated. I had posted digitavids of myself performing a routine displaying delight and curiosity about our present journey, to mixed reviews, alas. “But why are they coming, if they know they are going to interact with such terrible creatures as humans? Why not stay mewed up in their bizarre culture and eschew contact?”
“They were invited by the Emperor,” Parsons said. I had to stop what I was doing to allow this fact to permeate my consciousness.
“They were? Why would he do that? He isn’t coming to the spectacle.”
“No, he is not. But he has sent envoys to the Kail. The Zang exhibition takes place, nominally, in what is considered Imperium space, though it has been the province of the Zang for countless millennia before humankind left Old Earth. Therefore, for the Kail to attend required permission from he who controls the Imperium’s borders.”
“I certainly hope he doesn’t expect us to make friends with them. I don’t speak Kail, nor have I studied their culture. I’m afraid I would only make relations between us worse.”
“Never fear, my lord. It is not a mission for you, or even for me. A team of trained and seasoned diplomats are on this vessel, preparing to approach the Kail.”
“They are?” I asked. “I hadn’t noticed any diplomats.”
“If I may say so, my lord, that is what you may expect to see. They know that they have no place among those of your rank, and are keeping their own company. You might find them a trifle dry of conversation. They acknowledge that. They will fulfill their own mission without troubling you or any of the rest of the Emperor’s relations. In fact, it would be best if you helped to prevent any of your cousins from interacting with them.”
“Gladly. Why is the Emperor reaching out to the Kail?” I asked. “Certainly they’d be appalling trading partners. I am not au courant with the efforts of the Ministry of Trade, but a race that wears no clothes, doesn’t eat our sort of food, hates music, art, any kind of interaction with humankind or, I presume, Uctukind or Wichukind, is unlikely to allow imports of our goods into their space.”
“I have been made to understand that the shoe, so to speak, is on the other foot. His Majesty seeks to open up the borders to allow trade in minerals. Kail space seems to be a bountiful source of rare minerals.”
“Gemstones?”
“No, my lord. Minerals of objective value, not subjective. Transuranics, rare earths, and other ores that are in increasingly scant supply in Imperium systems. Before the embargo, explorers from the Imperium and Wichu systems detected a number of planetary and asteroid bodies that contained a wealth of those minerals. They were prevented from mining those ores by the inhabitants. I am afraid that was the beginning of strained relations between our two nations.”
“But what could they possibly want in exchange?” I asked. “I know why the Emperor invited them, but why are they coming? They have certainly done all they can to avoid interacting with us. Why now?”
“That is what the government hopes to find out. However, it is not your concern. This mission is entirely separate from the pleasurable spectacle that you are going to observe. It has, in fact, provided an excuse for the conference. Cover, if you will. Not every party that will be affected by a potential détente is in favor of such a treaty, however. One of the reasons that there is so much security accompanying this ship is to ensure that the diplomatic team arrives safely. It has nothing to do with you or any other relative of the Emperor, per se.”
“Good,” I said. “As long as I don’t have to attend a daylong banquet dressed in an uncomfortable suit of clothes and make small talk with a living rock about the small pebbles he left back home, I shall feel as free as air.”
“You shall not, my lord,” Parsons said. He examined the glass of wine as though discerning whether it was listening to us on behalf of enemy combatants. “In fact, I believe that the delegates will be pleased not to have to cope with, er, unnecessary variables while working to bridge the gap between our government and theirs. The Kail have been known to take offense at even the least suggestion of impatience or dislike. You all must avoid them as much as possible.”
I sighed with relief. “Gladly. Never mind the Kail, Parsons. If they don’t bother me, I shall not bother them. I have far more interesting things to think of. I have devised an exciting dance that I created regarding our trip into Zang space. I shall perform it for our party later in our journey, as we approach the borders of their domain. This is quite an event for me. The elder race of the galaxy! They who preceded even the microbes that were humanity’s most ancient evolutionary form! It is only the thought of seeing them that makes it even bearable to be in the Kail’s presence. My teacher is on board. She and I will be working on the presentation, honing every moment of symbolism to the finest point of which my body is capable. It is a masterwork!”
“I am sure it will be well received, my lord,” Parsons said. I could tell that he had a thought he wished to impart.
“Speak,” I called out to him. “I know when you are holding information on the tip of your tongue.”
His voice assumed an aridity that had me swallowing against the desert dryness it invoked. “That is a rather unsavory, not to say inaccurate, description.”
I gestured my abashment, although he could not see me. The thought that I had made the effort had to count for something.
“Forgive me, Parsons. My new enthusiasm has plumbed both the spiritual and the visceral sides of my psyche. As well as the emotional. It may have caused me to be more eager for intellectual input than usual.” I reached for a rough towel and rubbed myself all over to loosen any remaining particles that the sonic beams had left behind, donned a robe, then stepped out of the booth. Although that manner of cleansing was not as relaxing as immersion in hot water, it did mean I wasn’t required to dry myself off. Anna had already laid out fresh underthings. I tossed the towel to her. She caught it in mid-air and trundled away. I donned the smallclothes and returned to the sitting room. “My physical efforts have honed my observational faculties to a new peak.”
As I suspected, Parsons had not seated himself. His spine was ramrod straight. I had begun to believe that he derived the same comfort and rest from the soles of his feet that ordinary mortals received from sitting down. He retained the glass in his hand, though I doubted that he had yet partaken of any of its rubicund contents.
“Really, sir?” he inquired. “I had not noticed very much difference between this and your usual self.”
I ignored the gibe. “I believe that I am more receptive than ever to my surroundings, Parsons. In fact, there is little that dance does not touch. It is most fascinating how communication can be such a purely physical thing.” I moved from foot to foot, attempting to recall exactly how Nesbitt had communicated his discomfort. “It is difficult to put across specific intellectual concepts, but there seems to be no limit to the complexities of emotional interaction one can express.”
Parsons was expressing a modicum of impatience, which I discerned from the minute tightening of the skin at his temples.
“Yes, sir. To return to our conversation, my lord … ?”
“Yes, of course,” I said. My valetbot returned, brandishing a selection of clothes. I sighed with pleasure at the wealth of color and design to hand. What a relief it was not to have to wear a uniform for this journey! I could indulge myself in the matter of dress, and I intended to do exactly that. Since I had taken up dance with a passion, my body had become tighter and leaner, except my thighs, which had taken on more muscle. The changes meant I had had to order an entire new wardrobe for this journey. I signed to Anna to show me a tunic in a rich chocolate brown, piped along the hems and neck with orange silk. The trousers that accompanied it were of the same orange as was the wispy neckerchief draped over the hanger. Perhaps a trifle strident for dinner with my relatives. I waved the outfit away. Parsons remained silent. “Discourse! Reveal! Impart! I await your confidences with open ears. What do you need me to do?”
“I need you to restrain yourself, my lord,” Parsons said.
“Why?” I asked, beckoning Anna forward with her next suggestion, a banana-yellow jumpsuit with intricate cutouts along the full sleeves and around the waist. “The only people on board this vessel are my cousins and friends, and they are accustomed to my excesses, such as they are. I stand a better than average chance of making it all the way through this journey without being escorted into an airlock and spaced. I already promised you we will stay away from the Kail.”
“We will not be alone on this excursion.”
Occasionally, Parsons could show his mastery of the obvious in a fashion that tickled the edges of my impatience.
“I know! Many performers, teachers, lecturers and other educated people paid enough to be patient with us will present things to keep those of us with notoriously short attention spans amused. It will take weeks to get where we’re going. We have already steeled ourselves against boredom. Do you think one of these people will put us in peril?” A thought struck me, almost forcibly. “I could request Lieutenant Plet to do further checks. After all, she will have her eye on them. They are all dining with the crew from now until we arrive at the viewing platform.”
Parsons shook his head.
“Every one of the people on board has been subjected to lengthy investigation to determine whether they are not in the employ of alien governments, yet it’s still possible that one or more of them may have been a long-time covert operative. Nothing short of an actual confession or a betraying action will reveal such a secret. The navy knows that Kail factions have been known to use human and Uctu agents to further their aims. This ship is a tempting target. Even though it has a peaceful mission, foreknowledge might not be enough to forestall a preemptive strike from within.”
“They might attack us using our own employees, eh? We of the noble house do understand the risks,” I said. Annie held up a pair of garments in forest green: close-fitted trousers with a shirt that hung in artful shreds from the shoulders and upper arms. I felt my eyes gleaming as I signed for her to unlimber them from the storage clips. Spectacular, and at the very height of fashion. The latest trend had been to incorporate elements of the weather into one’s garments. This suit evoked the power of the element of Air. My cousin Nalney would be so envious of both the cut and the color. I also foresaw the artistic flair of spinning or leaping and seeing the cloth streamers billow on the wind. I retreated behind the dressing screen and reached for the trousers. “That is not to say we take them seriously, but we do understand them. Are we in imminent danger? My sister is on board. While I would protect any of my cousins to the death, it is before Nell’s feet that I would make my last stand. You understand that, of course.”
“I do,” Parsons said. “As do the captain, crew and entire covert security force on board this vessel. Lady Lionelle is in no more danger than the rest of you, though I respect your concern. It is mine as well. Measures have been prepared in the case of an attack. You must pay attention if there is an alarm, my lord. I am counting on you—the Imperium counts upon you—to see to it that your cousins and you decamp to a place of safety. I have provided a chart to your pocket secretary of the fastnesses on board this vessel. I suggest that you familiarize yourself with them in case of need. There are several scenarios, including in case the necessity arises of abandoning ship. It would be helpful if you could devise a means of herding, er, persuading the others toward the correct one, should trouble begin.”
“How about Hide-and-Seek?” I asked, stroking my smooth chin with a conspiratorial air. “That would be one way to ensure that my cousins know the locations but without making it sound tedious and official.”
If I did not know Parsons so well, I would have missed the low exhalation that indicated relief.
“That would be satisfactory, sir. They will know in time that the Kail will be present on the platform. The rumors of attack from within or without along our journey may not be borne out, but it is best to be prepared. It would be helpful if the nobles were not frightened into overreaction.”
“You may count upon me,” I said. I shrugged into the shirt. It fit me as if it had been made for me, which of course it had. I ventured forth to view my reflection in the full-length mirror beside the door. Not bad, I thought, turning from side to side. The outfit looked handsome but did not stray over the line into costumery. I did a pivot spin, and enjoyed seeing the streamers swirl against my shoulders as they settled. They lifted just as I hoped they would.
“What do you think, Parsons?”
That worthy surveyed me with a gimlet eye.
“It is a trifle … dramatic, my lord.”
“Wonderful, isn’t it?” I said, with delight.
“That would not have been the first adjective I would have reached for, sir. But to return to the point … may I count upon you to inculcate the other members of your family with discretion and the need for safety?”
“I will begin by incorporating the need for secrecy and concealment in my next performance. Which will be …” I consulted the aluminum-framed chronometer set into the wall above the door “… In approximately three hours, just before dinner. Will you excuse me? I have an exercise session with my dance instructor, then I owe my cousin Erita a rematch in our Snapdragon card tournament. We are poised at three games to two. I am winning, of course.”
“Of course,” Parsons said. He wouldn’t have been impressed by a mere game, not even if I were actually riding a dragon against my cousin. “But there is one more thing of which you need to be aware. A visitor is to be taken on board the Jaunter at our second port of call. While it is unlikely that any problems can befall that visitor, it behooves us to protect and prevent any disturbance, intrusion or injury.”
“And who is that visitor?” I asked. I knew my eyes were shining like the beacon of truth.
“One of the Zang. It designates itself as Zang Proton.”
“A Zang!” I echoed, my soul overflowing with excitement. “I didn’t think they needed transportation anywhere.”
“They do not. Proton has expressed a wish to observe us. It is a great privilege to convey a Zang anywhere for any distance. More than any of the others in late centuries, this one appears curious about humankind. Needless to say, we want to provide it with a quotidian experience for its consideration.”
“I shall begin to choreograph a dance of welcome for it at once!” Plans began to form in my mind as an aeration of excitement arose behind my solar plexus. Ideas warred with one another in a battle for supremacy. I strode about my quarters, feeling the moment begin to take shape within me. I lifted my arms, and the green streamers fell back behind my shoulders. “No, that was too presumptive an opening move. Perhaps a more humble approach.” I struck a pose, with my head bowed slightly and my hands held out, palm up. “How about this?”
Parsons held up an admonitory hand. “My lord, I do not think confronting it with a frenzy of seemingly random movement will be an appropriate activity. Let the Zang observe you in your natural state.”
I straightened and peered at him as though a stranger had taken his place.
“Parsons,” I said, allowing my tone to loom toward peevishness, “that is my natural state. I wish to evoke the emotions of gratitude, curiosity and welcome that are the deepest sensations in my heart at this moment. Surely the Zang will find that of interest?”
A minuscule motion of his head from side to side indicated dissent. “Anything that smacks of invasion of its privacy will be dealt with as any other infractions on a spacegoing vessel, my lord. In other words, the captain has orders to incarcerate violators.”
I felt my heart pierced by his insensitivity.
“Invasion? A celebration of the Zang and their accomplishments considered an invasion that could land me in the brig? You wound me, Parsons!”
He held up his hand. “I seek only to warn you, my lord. Please restrain yourself. The Zang are so rarely curious about ephemerals that we must approach the matter with as much dignity and consideration possible. It is the wish of not only the Emperor, but Mr. Frank and your mother as well.”
Ah, that was it. The mysterious head of Covert Services, for whom I had done the occasional service, had been invoked, as well as my august maternal unit. Before them all, I could not stand.
“A triple threat,” I said. I lowered my head and peered at Parsons at an oblique and playful angle. “You don’t mind if I create such a dance in private, do you? Perhaps to perform it for the benefit of my friends and cousins?”
“That would be … satisfactory, my lord,” Parsons said, though I could tell he wasn’t perfectly satisfied. Neither was I. We might as well both be disappointed. “Presuming you will keep your word not to display your performance to the Zang. Do I have your promise?”
I struggled mightily, attempting to find a means of keeping my options open, but Parsons had a knack of seeing my thoughts as though they were displayed upon a massive digitavid tank screen. His gaze held me fast, as if I was fixed in imperishable crystal. I struggled to break free of it, but I knew nothing but compliance would be accepted.
“Oh, very well,” I burst out at last. “I will restrict the audience for my celebration dance to non-Zang only. But I reserve the right, if the Zang expresses an interest, to perform for it.”
Parsons nodded, which meant that his head inclined less than a millimeter. “I appreciate the reasonableness of your request, my lord. I cannot see any difficulty with allowing such an exception, should that very unlikely case arise.”
He glided toward the door, leaving me speechless and delighted. Where others might have found “very unlikely” offputting, I only saw a challenge.
I performed a celebratory pike leap and touched my toes in mid-air. How best could I express humanity to a Zang?