The Ship Who Won (45 page)

your DNA, I couldn't guarantee your safety during pro-longed space travel. And Keff couldn't settle here. His job

is his whole life."

Plenna raised a tear-streaked face to the others.

"Oh, Keff, look!" The young woman pointed to the wall

screen. "My DNA has changed over a thousand years,

Carialle says. And my blood is too thin-I cannot go with

you."

Keff surveyed the DNA charts, trying to make sense of

parallel spirals and the data which scrolled up beside them.

"Can, is it true?" he subvocalized.

"I wouldn't lie to her. No one can guarantee anyone's

complete safety in space."

'Thank you, lady dear, you're the soul of tact-How

terrible," he said out loud, kneeling at Plenna's feet. "I'm so

sorry, Plenna, but you wouldn't have been happy in space.

It's very boring most of die time-when it isn't dangerous.

I couldn't ask you to endure a lifetime of it, and truthfully,

I wouldn't be happy anywhere else."

"I am glad this is the case," Chaumel said, examining the

charts and microscopic analysis on Carialle's main screen.

From the look in the mage's eye, Keff guessed that perhaps he had been eavesdropping on their private channel.

"You cannot take such a treasure as Magess Plennafrey off

Ozran."

Standing before the magiwoman, he took her hand and

bowed over it. Plennafrey looked startled, then starry-eyed. She rose, looking up into his eyes tentatively, like an

animal that might bolt at any moment. Chaumel spoke

softly and put out a gentle hand to smooth the tears from

her cheeks.

"I admire your pluck, my dear. You are brave and

resourceful as well as beautiful." He favored her with a

most ardent look, and she blushed. "I would be greatly

honored if you would agree to be my wife."

"Your . . . your wife?" Plenna asked, her big, dark eyes

going wide. "I'm honored, Chaumel. I... of course I will.

Oh!" Chaumel raised the hand he was holding to his lips

and kissed it. Keff got up off the floor.

"Usten up, sir knight. This fellow could give you some

pointers," Carialle said wickedly. Chaumel aimed a small

smile toward Carialle's pillar and returned his entire attention to Plennafrey.

oz/

"We will share our power, and together we will teach

our fellow Ozrans to adapt to our future. Our society will

be reduced in influence, but it will be greater in number

and scope. The Ancient Ones can teach us much of what

we have forgotten."

"And one day, perhaps, our children can go into space,"

Plenna said, turning to Keff and smiling, "to meet yours."

Leaning over, she gave Keff a sisterly peck on the cheek

and moved into the circle of Chaumel s arm.

Over the top other head, Chaumel winked.

"And now, fair magess," he said, "I will fly you home,

since your own conveyance has come to grief." Beaming,

Plennafrey accompanied her intended down the ramp. He

handed her delicately onto his own chariot, and mounted

the edge of the back behind her.

'That man never misses a trick," Carialle said through

Keffs implant.

'Thank you, Cari," Keff said. "Privately, in a comparison

between Plenna and you as a lifelong companion, I'd

choose you, every time."

"Why, sir knight, I'm flattered."

"You should be flattered," Keff said with a smirk.

"Plenna is intelligent, adaptable, beautiful, desirable, but

she knows nothing about my interests, and in the long

transits between missions we would drive one another

crazy. This is the best possible solution."

Chaumel's well-known gifts for diplomacy and the unexpected treat of the thunderstorm began to bear fruit within

the next few days. Mages and magesses began to approach

Keff and the globe-frogs in the cavern to ask if there was

anything they could do to help speed the miracle to their

parts of Ozran. Spy-eyes were everywhere, as everyone

wanted to see how the repairs progressed.

The greatest difficulty the repair crew faced was the

sheer age of the machinery. Keff and Tall rigged what they

could to keep it running, but in the end the Frog Prince

ordered a halt.

"We must study more," Tall said. "Given time, and the

printout you have made of the schematic drawings, we will

be able to determine what else needs to be done to make

all perfect. The repairs we have made will hold," he added

proudly. 'There is no need to beg the homeworld for aid. I

would sooner approach them as equals."

"Good job!" Keff said. "We'll take our report home to

the Central Worlds. As soon as we can, we'lPcome back to

help you to finish the job. I expect that by the time we do,

between you and the Noble Primitives, you'll teach the

mages all there is to know about weather management and

high-yield farming."

'The fur-faces will show them how to till the land and

take care of it. We do not retain that knowledge," Tall said

with creditable humility. "Brannel is our friend. We do

need each other. Together, we can fulfill the hopes of all

our ancestors. Others will take us up and back to the Core

after this," the Frog Prince assured them. "Many are protecting us at all times. You've done much in helping us to

achieve the respect of the human beings."

"No," Keff said, "you did it. I couldn't convince them.

You had to show them your expertise, and you did."

Tall signaled polite disbelief. "Come back soon."

Carialle and Keff delivered Tall and his companions

back to Brannels plain for the last time. The globe-frogs

signed them a quick good-bye before disappearing into the

brush. Five spy-eyes trailed behind them at a respectful

distance.

Chaumel and Plennafrey arrived at the plain in time to

see Keff and Carialle off.

"You've certainly stirred things up, strangers," Chaumel

said, shaking hands with Keff. "I agree there's nothing else

you could have done. My small friends tell me that shortly

Ozran would have suffered a catastrophic explosion, and

we would all have died without knowing the cause. For

that, we thank you."

"We're happy to help," Keff said. Tn return, we take

home data on a generation ship that was lost hundreds of

years ago, and plenty of information on what's going to be

one of the most fascinating blended civilizations in the galaxy. I'm looking forward to seeing how you prosper."

"It will be interesting," Chaumel acknowledged. T am

finding that the certain amount of power the Ancient Ones

have agreed to leave in our hands will be used as much to

protect us from disgruntled workers as it will be to help

lead them into self-determination. Not all will be peaceful

in this new world. Many of the farmers are afraid that their

new memories are hallucinations. But," he sighed, "we

brought this on ourselves. We must solve our own problems. Your Brannel is proving to be a great help."

Plennafrey came forward to give Keff a chaste kiss.

"Farewell, Keff," she said. "I'm sorry my dream to come

with you couldn't come true, but I am happier it turned

out this way." She bent her head slightly to whisper in his

ear. T will always treasure the memory of what we had."

"So will I," Keff said softly. Plenna stepped back to stand

beside Chaumel, and he smiled at her.

"Farewell, friends," Chaumel said, assisting the tall girl

down the ramp and onto his chariot. "We look forward to

your return."

"So do we," Keff said, waving. The chair flew to a safe

distance and settled down to observe the ships takeoff.

'They do make rather a handsome couple," Carialle

said. "I'd like to paint them a big double portrait as a wed-ding present. Confound their combination of primrose and

silver-that's going to be tricky to balance. Hmm, an

amber background, perhaps cognac amber would do it."

Keff turned and walked inside the main cabin. The airlock slid shut behind him, and he heard the groaning of the

motor bringing the outer ramp up flush against the bulkhead. The brawn clapped his hands together in glee.

"Wait until we tell Simeon and die Xeno boffins about

the Frog Prince and his tadpole courtiers on the Planet of

Wizards," Keff gloated, settling into his crash-couch and

putting his feet up on the console. He intertwined his

hands behind his head. "Ah! We will be the talk of SSS-900, and every other space station for a hundred trillion

klicks!"

"I can't wait to spread the word myself," Carialle said

with satisfaction as she engaged engines and they lifted off

into atmosphere. "We did it! We may be considered the

screwball crew, but we're die ones mat get the results in

the end.... Oh damn!"

"What's wrong?" Keff asked, sitting up, alarmed.

Carialle s Lady Fair image appeared on the screen, her

face drawn into woeful lines.

"I forgot about the Inspector General!"