The V'Dan (43 page)

“As the Grand High Ambassador has rightfully pointed out,
we
are not going to be in that bed with them,” he finished lightly, if bluntly.

(
I like your father,
) Jackie quipped lightly.

Li’eth squeezed her fingers, pleased she was happy with the thought of his father’s being on their side, but waited for his mother to make up her mind. She eyed the Terran at his side a long moment, then asked, “Do
you
think Superior Priest De’arth is acting unethically around the Imperial Family?”

“Te-los . . . has he attempted to read your mind
after
receiving instruction in Terran techniques, including our strict ethics versus expediency guidelines?” Jackie asked the older male.

“He has. Two days ago, in fact,” the Imperial Consort added.

“Then by Terran law, he is doing so deliberately and needs to be contained and corrected,” Jackie told her.

“However, he is a
V’Dan
citizen, and our laws have no authority outside the bounds of our embassy zone,” Rosa added. The spotless blonde shrugged. “We are, by our own ethical code, unable to do anything to him outside of that zone. Aside from blocking him from reaching toward other’s minds without clearly expressed permission.”

“That, we can do,” Jackie agreed. “
If
we can catch it when it actually happens around us.”

“What about the other priests?” Hana’ka asked, frowning softly.

“As far as we have been able to tell, they are sticking to Terran guidelines . . . but we don’t mingle with them very much outside those classes,” Jackie cautioned her.

“I’ve not caught any of them reaching toward our minds other than De’arth,” Li’eth stated. “The rest seem to be enthralled enough by what they are learning to follow the spirit as well as the letter of their teachings. We have no laws, no rules or guidelines, on how the holy ones should behave, other than an expectation that they will behave in a Saintly manner.”

“And that—” Te-los started to say.

“That’s hardly—sorry,” Rosa apologized.

“You first,” he offered politely.

She nodded and restated what she had been about to say. “Saintly behavior is hardly a concrete set of rules, since from what little I’ve studied of your many different saints, they themselves behaved in a wide variety of ways. Some of them seemed less than perfectly ethical beings.”

“Which is more or less what I would say,” Te-los agreed.

“Then I shall find a way to exile him without offending the Winter Temple. In the season of their power,” she added wryly, almost sardonically. “In a way where he will not try to pervert his holy gifts by reaching into my head to alter my thoughts, either to make me change my mind or merely to make me forget why I summoned him.”

“That’s odd,” Rosa observed. “Why would you have to have him in front of you, within mind-reading reach? Why not just send him an order?”

“Because the law is that high-ranking priests, particularly from the current ruling Temple, cannot be dismissed from the Imperial Court without a chance to petition the . . . yes. I see how long and deep this goes,” Te-los stated grimly. “This will not be an easy task.”

“If you like, I could loan you the use of a telepath. All of us are strong enough to sense and block any attempt he might make,” Jackie offered. “Clees and I may be busy, and Aixa is helping him with the lessons since she has the most experience
in teaching next to him. But aside from language transfers, Darian and Min are at a loose end until we can get her some Salik computer equipment to investigate in a link with him so that he can decode and write out whatever she finds.”

“We already know what their technology can do,” Hana’ka said, eyeing Jackie askance. “It is the exact same as ours.”

“She means the two of them have a way to extract
coded
information,” Li’eth clarified. “I think this is a conversation that would taste better when spoken over a cup of hot
mo’klah
at this point.”

Hana’ka considered his point, and gestured at the table. “Then be seated. We will have the first course served, then continue this conversation. At least it will not be one revolving around military needs or economic equivalents.”

Jackie moved toward the indicated table, set with delicate dishes and four lesser chairs arranged around the table, along with a fifth fanciful enough that it was clear who would be seated there. Li’eth let her go, facing his mother. “And the subject of her and I pursuing our comfort and health over your convenience?”

For a moment, he received the mask of the Empress in reply, a bland, slightly stern look that had made many hesitate through the years on whether or not to press further for an answer. Li’eth merely raised an eyebrow, the one bisected by his
jungen
mark. His mother stared back, then sighed.

“Be. Discreet. Do not stay all night,” Hana’ka ordered. “And I do not want to hear a hint of gossip about it. Not because I don’t want to hear such things—which I do not—but because I will have to juggle the Temples into a more favorable alignment for revealing such things. Exiling the Superior Priest will not simplify that task.”

“We will be very discreet,” he pledged, following her to the table.

MAY 31, 2287 C.E.

JANVA 23, 9508 V.D.S.

Halfway to the last elevator that led to her quarters, Jackie and Li’eth were startled by an insistent, rapid, patterned beeping. Rattled, it took her a few seconds to identify the source, the thick, ornamental-looking bracelet circling her left wrist. Stopping, she stared at it while her mind caught up with the meaning behind the patterns of rhythm and tone.

Li’eth, holding hands with her, felt her shock resonate through their fingers. Without a contrary thought, he turned and bolted along with her, matching her stride for running stride. He hit the stairwell door—the lift would be too slow—and let her hop over the railing, twisting to land with a touch of telekinetic cushioning. His own skill was weaker, less well trained; he jumped only a few steps, falling behind a bit.

The running didn’t sit too well on a full stomach, not when both were full of tasty Terran food from their late-evening meal. After their
mo’klah
get-to-know-you meal with his parents and Rosa, Jackie and Li’eth had sat through hours of comm conferences with the Choya about how the placement of the new hyperrelay units were going. There wasn’t supposed to be anything scheduled.

That particular alert had not only the two of them charging down the stairwells, but others as well, most of them Marines. At least two of the Humans on the stairs were members of the crew for the
Embassy 2
. Emerging on the main floor in a stream of bodies, they were joined by Rosa McCrary, who was being hustled toward the lifts to the hangar bays.

An aide came hurrying up. “McCrary! Here’s the data dump!”

“Thank you, Jules.” Rosa accepted the block from the man with a nod. She eyed Jackie, who was approaching from the other side, headed in the direction the aide had turned and fled. “I’m on my way outsystem, Jackie. We’re going to take the first jump of the new shortcut route—I’ll see you when I see you.”

“Take care,” Jackie agreed, having to speak over her shoulder as the two women swept past each other. “I’ll send you the all clear as soon as we know they’re out of the system!”

(
Data dump?
) Li’eth asked. They couldn’t run now; there were too many bodies scrambling either toward the communications room or toward their guard posts. The beeping from her wrist unit was a warning that the Salik were invading the V’Dan home system.
Where
was still unknown, but as their backup Ambassador, McCrary had to flee to safety. That much he knew.

(
Everything that this embassy has recorded, up to the second the alarm goes out to evacuate Rosa, gets dumped into portable storage. It serves as a black box of information up to that point. Including our comm call with the Choya Grand High Ambassador,
) she added. There were now fewer people in the halls though the communications hub was now a bit crowded. (
Everything from this point on gets sent live to Earth. They’re still too far away to help directly, but they’ll know what’s going on . . . and if nothing else, they’ll have a record of all negotiations for the next Ambassador to study.
)

(
That’s a rather grim thought. I’d rather you did not die,
) he warned her. Brown- and blue-clad bodies made room for them at the central workstation table. Two were clad in the gold and scarlet of the Imperial Fleet.

“Report,” Jackie ordered, rather than responding to his sending.

“Fourteen Salik warships came out of the black at V’Durun, Colonel,” Robert reported. He was the seniormost officer on hand until her arrival and pointed at the star-system map covering most of the surface.

“That’s the eighth planet in our system, an ice world about four light-hours away,” Grand Captain Tes’rin told her.

“I know,” Jackie reassured him. “Robert convinced me to establish a hyperrelay there in exchange for free hydrofuel
since water is a ‘waste’ product once the methane and such has been siphoned off for processing into your version of fuel. What’s the tactical situation? How many V’Dan ships are there? Do we have any of ours in the vicinity?”

“
Embassy 3
is inbound, low on fuel but fully insystem,” someone said from a workstation beyond the main table. “They have enough for maneuvers and some lasers, but only enough juice for two short jumps at best. They’re fourteen light-minutes away, but they’re the closest ship we’ve got.”

“
Embassy 14
is inbound, but they’re still in the . . . NHK-4148 System, one jump away,” another aide added. “They got the alarm while still at one-third Cee. They’re ramping up to half Cee so they can jump, but are holding course and awaiting orders, sir.”

“
Embassy 8
isn’t due back for another three hours; they’re still processing lunar ice around that new Gatsugi colony, Brown-Valley-Green,” a third told her. “Their captain says they can jump short on fuel with just a little more, but it’ll still take half an hour to get into space and up to speed.”

“
Embassies 10
through
13
are being readied for takeoff.
Embassy 2
 . . . has McCrary in sight and will be launched in two,” a fourth reported. “All others are too far away to help, sir.”

“From the looks of things, V’Durun has twenty-eight combat-capable ships at the moment, but they’re outgunned by the warships,” Tes’rin stated. “Launch your ships and get them to here, and here,” he added, touching the map so that it zoomed in on the nearspace around the eighth planet, cold and white with blue striations.

V’Durun had a large moon—almost large enough to be a binary planet partner, though it still circled its partner far more than the other way around—and the Salik ships were a bright red scattering of triangles near the space station orbiting the far side of that moon from the planet. He tapped the map as he continued.

“You bring them in there, harass them, and the other ships can attack from here, above
here
, and from down here, forcing them away from the planet and its satellite,” he told them, touching the display. The Terrans blinked at him. He looked up, lifted his brows, and said, “Well? Launch your ships! You are the only ones who can lend your help to the people out there!”

“Stand down, Grand Captain,” Jackie told him. Her heart ached—she knew Li’eth could feel how awkward she felt, having to do so—but she said it anyway.

He bristled, straightening. “These are V’Dan lives at stake! You have to go help them!” He looked at the others, then at Robert. “Launch those ships.
Now.
”

Commander Robert Graves eyed the Imperial Elite Guardsman and shook his head. “Sorry, meioa, you are not in our chain of command. None of us are gonna take orders from you.”

“Grand Captain Tes’rin, your expertise on the ground is appreciated. Please confine your directives to that and only that,” Jackie reminded him. “Now, be quiet, and remind yourself that your job is to help ensure the safety of
this
embassy zone. You are not trained to command a fleet of foreign warships . . . and you have
no
clue what our ships can and
cannot
do. Be silent, and be respectful.”

“I thought you were supposed to be adults, full of responsibility and compassion for others, not children only playing at being ones,” he countered.

Every Terran stiffened, but it was Li’eth who found his voice first. In an icy tone, he demanded, “One of the jobs of the Elite, when assigned to an embassy, is to be
courteous and respectful at all times
. You owe these Terrans an
apology
, Grand Captain. You are
not
aware of the strategic needs of the Terran fleet in this war, and you have no say in their tactical choices. Apologize.”

“. . . I apologize, Grand High Ambassador. I apologize to your people as well. I . . . spoke out of turn, when I spoke out of concern for my fellow V’Dan. I hope you will find a way to save them, and find it fast,” Tes’rin added.

As apologies went, it wasn’t the best. Barely adequate, in fact, and a bit accusatory. Jackie didn’t have time to chastise him about it, though. “If those fourteen warships are the size of the one that captured the
Aloha 9
, then our handful of ships aren’t going to make more than a dent in the Salik attack. Adding in our forces will not stop their attack, and it will only put Terran technology and Terran personnel in grave danger.”

One of the workers beyond the ring of soldiers at the table spoke up. “Ambassador, the
Embassy 2
has taken off.”

“Sir!” another aide called out. “
Embassy 15
just got to the Choya home system. It looks like they’re under attack as well.”

“Have the
15
pull a broad parabolic,” Jackie decided. This was similar to a scenario she, Graves, al-Fulan, and Admiral Nayak back home had discussed over the hyperrelays. “They are to scan, but not engage; at the first sign of pursuit, they are to leave the system and not go back for six hours. Tell the
14
to continue on course but not jump just yet. Order the
3
to release one-quarter of their missiles and have them random-walk into striking range so that the Salik won’t be able to trace them back to their point of origin all that quickly.”

“Launch the
10
through
13
and have them short-jump out to V’Durun,” Robert stated, catching on to which scenario she was using. “They are permitted to launch one-quarter of their own missiles, and let the
13
take up a position on the insystem side of V’Durun, so it can coordinate the launched missiles carefully with the
Embassy 3
. Use them when it looks like the Salik are going to be at their most vulnerable—remain at least ten light-seconds away, and do your best guessing on when to throw a missile their way. Instruct the
10
,
11
, and
12
to spread out in a triangle around the planet and its moon, and fly a parabolic at about twenty light-seconds out.”

Jackie nodded and laid down the law, her eyes flicking briefly to Tes’rin’s face. “All personnel.
None
of our ships are to get within engagement distance. I repeat,
none
of them are to engage the enemy directly. The
3
and the
10
through
13
are to
watch
the Salik carefully, and only target their missiles if they have a good shot at damaging the enemy without harming the locals,” she added, glancing at Robert. “Their foremost job is to watch and plot every possible escape vector used by the Salik warships.

“Coordinate their findings with V’Dan astronavigation in the Imperial Fleet. We want to know
where
they are headed next. It might be a system with a hyperrelay, or it might not be. We’ve been prioritizing stringing the lines of communication to the various Alliance capital worlds, not necessarily to our nearest occupied neighbors. But I repeat, we will
not
engage the enemy directly. That would be suicide.”

“The tests we performed,” Robert told the others, “showed that our
ceristeel
hull plating is vastly superior at reflecting
and dissipating heat from energy weapons, and they can take a hit from a projectile, but our infrastructure materials are inferior to what your ships are made out of; the bulkheads will buckle and break twice as fast as anything the Salik have. The
Embassy
fleet cannot take on a single Salik warship and survive without heavy backup at this time, but it
can
watch to see which way they go,” he explained, looking over at Tes’rin, “and in doing so, figure out if they have a specific target they are going to hit up next, whether that’s insystem or not.”

“
That
is something we can do, and do well with our ships, Grand Captain,” Jackie told him. “
Without
slaughtering our people or destroying our ships needlessly. To do otherwise would be like trying to throw pebbles at a horse in the hopes of slaying it—and I know you V’Dan have horses among your
d’aspra
animals. We carefully considered this sort of scenario both before leaving Earth and reconsidered it just days ago after the data from the firing tests were done being analyzed. This is the compromise which the best Navy personnel here and the Command Staff back home could come up with, given our limited resources, limited combat capacity, and even more limited refueling abilities. We are bringing in heavier armaments, but they are not here right now.”

“It is a sound choice,” Li’eth reassured her and her fellow Terrans. “It isn’t all that far off from what I heard at the Fleet’s discussion a few days back, while you were doing your morning exercises. We might not be able to get spare ships to V’Durun in time, but we
can
instruct the Imperial Fleet to get ready to take off and head outsystem on a moment’s notice. If it looks like they’re going to scatter, we can have rescue vessels there in just a few hours. If it looks like the Salik are headed in the same direction to a second target, we will be ready to go after them.”

“Colonel, I recommend advising the
Embassy 14
to come straight in to home base here on V’Dan,” Robert told Jackie. “I know they were supposed to swing out toward the Tlassian sector once they refueled at V’Durun, but we might need them here in case this is a feint, and the Salik switch course to hit the capital.”

“Do it,” she ordered. (
Li’eth . . . I won’t be able to leave until I can give the all clear and bring Rosa back. I’m sorry. Duty has to come first when lives are on the line. Even if we
can’t save every life out there. Not even if all fifteen ships went to fight.
)

(
I know,
) he reassured her. His hand found hers and clasped it with a little squeeze. (
This is war. People are going to die, no matter what we do. We’ll have a better chance at getting the Salik this way later—and if nothing else, Master Sonam said that what we really need is just sleeping together, skin to skin. I’d be very happy with that alone.
)

(
Your mother said nothing overnight,
) she reminded him.

(
My mother didn’t say anything about the Salik interrupting us, either. Besides, I’m your military liaison, as well as cultural facilitator,
) he reminded her. (
I cannot leave until this particular fight is all over, either . . . and it could take all night.
)