“We’re taking the trainees to the Confluence today,” he told Hana.
The trainees hadn’t yet all passed the Rossi test. Peters, for one, was still denying he heard the lines though it was obvious he did. The three trainees from Lancia all said they did, but they hadn’t passed the Rossi test, either.
If Michelle had told Yu they would be on the Confluence, then that’s where they’d be.
The Confluence would be happy. More prospective crew. Ean would have to remind it that they weren’t all for the Confluence.
Hana woke Bhaksir, who woke Sale. Orsaya’s guard woke Orsaya’s aide, Captain Auburn.
Ean looked at the time. It was 04:02. “There wasn’t any need to wake people. We could have sorted this ourselves.”
But you couldn’t simply tell everyone to meet at a different ship. There were security clearances to organize, shuttles to schedule, and a whole lot of other bureaucracy to cover. How had Yu managed to arrange a visit without anyone’s knowing?
If they didn’t start now, they wouldn’t be ready in time, not unless it was deemed an emergency. Not to mention, if they started organizing it after Yu set out for Confluence Station, it would be obvious what they were doing.
“If you keep this up, Ean,” Sale said, “I’m doing the night shifts from now on. What’s your problem this time?”
“It’s not a problem. We’re taking the trainees to the Confluence today.”
“Since when?”
“Since about ten minutes ago, when Michelle said we were. Yu’s coming out to Confluence Station, and the Gruen. She said we wouldn’t be there because we’re training on the Confluence today.”
“I’ll call Admiral Orsaya,” Auburn said.
“And the ones Rossi hasn’t passed?” Sale asked.
Rossi wouldn’t pass up a chance to visit an eleven ship. Not when there was a choice. He’d talk his way into coming along. Somehow. Ean smiled. “Keep them on the Gruen. Rossi can train them.”
“I thought all the linesmen—”
“Yu didn’t mention Rossi.” Let Rossi work to find a reason to come along.
Orsaya came out then, as grumpy as Ean felt without much sleep. “Emperor Yu is coming here, you say. We haven’t given him permission. I wish the man would take himself and his unwelcome guests and go home. Although I fear—” Orsaya looked away from the Lancastrians and closed her lips on anything else she might have said.
What did she fear that she wouldn’t say? The same thing Michelle feared? That Yu was here to kill Abram to get his own seat on the council?
Sale spent the next hour reassigning paramedics and guards from the Gruen to the Confluence and getting security passes allocated for them.
“At least we’ve Lancastrian paramedics today. I can’t imagine how awkward explaining this would be if they were from some other world.”
Bach would have known and told Emperor Yu that the change had been a late one, but he was off supervising Jakob’s interrogation.
Jordan Rossi, allowed to sleep through till breakfast, came out looking refreshed and impeccable.
“I haven’t seen this much activity since the last time Lambert did something crazy. What’s he done this time?”
Ean got himself tea and nut paste with winter fruits. The one meal Ru Li and Hana couldn’t spoil because the nut paste was ordered in from Haladea, and the winter fruits came from the freezer. “I’m taking the trainees who have passed your test onto the Confluence for training today.”
“Rather sudden, isn’t it? Not to mention a total about-face from what you said—was it only yesterday—about not taking anyone onto the alien ships.”
“Circumstances change.”
“We’re taking Ean onto the Confluence to avoid Emperor Yu,” Sale said. “You’re on the Gruen, Rossi. With the ones you haven’t passed yet.”
“Surely you’d be smarter getting all the linesmen off ship.”
“We won’t undermine Ean like that.”
“I see.” And Rossi probably did see.
“We’d prefer everyone went,” Orsaya said.
Rossi sat back. “I know what you’re doing, bastard.”
“Then do something about it.”
Rossi sipped scalding hot tea while he pondered. Ean forced himself to sit and wait. Eventually, Rossi smiled. “Take them over. I want to address them when they arrive on the Confluence.”
“I don’t think I’m going to like this,” Sale said.
“You don’t have to, sweetheart. Lambert’s got a problem. I can fix it.”
They had an hour before they left for Confluence Station.
Michelle couldn’t keep Abram away from Yu forever. One day they’d meet. And Yu would kill Abram.
But if Abram was on ship, line eight could protect him. If Ean could work out how to make line eight come in when he needed it.
Ean found an empty room. “Let’s try the protection again,” he sang to the line.
He stopped when he saw Rossi standing in the doorway.
“What are you doing?”
“Working with line eight.”
“You’re pushing at the line,” Rossi said. “Like those linesmen you despise so much. The ones who were taught by the cartels.”
“I don’t despise them.”
“Whatever you say. The fact remains; you’re forcing the line. On my home.” Rossi crossed his arms and waited.
“I wasn’t forcing the line.”
“You are pushing it to do something you want it to do. Isn’t that your definition of force?”
Rossi had a point. Trying to make the line do something in a way it didn’t understand could be seen as force. Ean sang a quick apology to line eight.
“Thank you. Now what were you trying to do?”
Ean would have to apologize to the Confluence lines tomorrow as well. Right now, he was marveling at the fact that Rossi had come to him to tell him he was doing something wrong. Rossi would never admit to helping someone even if he was. “I was trying to get line eight’s protective field to work.”
“And all that garbage you tell us about listening to the lines, and asking them to do things, rather than forcing them, is just that? Garbage?”
“Of course not.” But he had been, hadn’t he.
How did you say thank you to a man who wouldn’t appreciate your noticing what he was doing? You just said it. “Thank you, Rossi.”
“I’m not doing it for you. I’m doing it because you’re mucking up lines that I fix. I don’t need a megalomaniac running around all power and no consideration for what he’s doing. You’re a level twelve. That doesn’t always make you right.” Rossi turned and walked away.
Ean watched where he went. Through the corridors, all the way down to the viewport. Ean didn’t go to the viewport often. He’d forgotten it was there. He remembered the linesmen, people he’d heard about but never before seen, being dragged out of that same area by Orsaya’s soldiers, back when she’d first tried to get the Confluence out of the void.
He watched Rossi pick up a half-finished glass of wine. He must have come from the viewport when he’d heard Ean forcing line eight.
Rossi took a mouthful of wine, closed his eyes, and leaned against the Plexiglass as he savored it. Ean tasted the wine along with him. Mellow, like a good Lancian wine should be.