Выбрать главу

›Oh, Cassandra, it’s so much more than it appears on the surface. He’s not just recruiting a few soldiers, he’s recruiting a whole world. Can one man bring such a world, a world that will surely resist, into the Empire? As much as he wants to do so, I will not let him if they choose otherwise.‹

›Then maybe we’ll just have to give him some help?‹

Ellie smiled. ›We will, indeed. Any chance there’s a new Heir starting in there?‹

›No. You’re not fully recovered yet, and you are much too stressed. There’s still time for me to intervene if you would like.‹

Ellie lifted her eyes to the sky again, to the place Mike had gone.›You tempt me, dear, but I think our man would prefer nature taking its course. He’ll be back.‹

Val

Chapter Five

Forg approached the gangplank of the Empire cruise ship and stopped to let his eyes rove its beautiful lines. A trader at heart, he had spent the better part of his life in space and could only wonder at the beauty of this liner. All white, shaped like a perfect ellipse, it was truly a marvel, and truly unlike the ships of his people, the Chessori. Among the Chessori, all ships were working ships. There were no such things as luxury liners.

He set his single bag on the tarmac, hesitant to take the next step onto the entrance ramp. He hadn’t shielded his thought, and it went to the five other crewmen with him. They gathered around him in a huddle, their bodies touching each other, sharing their mutual unhappiness. Yes, this was the final step. As soon as they stepped up that ramp, it would be a clear admission that their ship was gone forever.

He could not imagine a worse predicament. The loss of his ship instantly reduced him to the lowest rung of Chessori society, the unemployed. The rest of his crew, all relatives, shared in that fate. It wouldn’t be forever, but to be in this predicament for even a short time was anathema to the Chessori. No slightest outward expression of his chagrin showed, at least not to the other guests passing to both sides of the small island the Chessori had become. Rarely did outward expressions show themselves among the Chessori. There was no need.

“We should be going,” Grost, his brother, thought. “Each step takes us closer to a replacement ship.”

Forg sighed inwardly: Grost was right. He picked up his bag and forced himself to take that difficult step. Following that one step, the rest of the steps became easier. He and his crew had only one focus now: to reach Orion III, where they hoped to hitch a ride with another trader back to the Chessori domain. There they would begin the laborious process of purchasing another ship. The price he had received from the K’tiri who had stolen his ship was sufficient to purchase a brand new ship, but the loss of his ship still stung deeply. The transaction had broken a fundamental law of the Chessori, a law that only a K’tiri had the power to break.

Inside the cruise ship, he and his crew wandered aimlessly as they sought their cabins. A friendly crewman finally led them to their rooms and helped them get settled. Before leaving, the crewman held his hand out. Forg looked at the hand and thought a question to his crewmates, but he received no helpful replies. He resorted to words.

“We are new to your society,” he said to the crewman. “What exactly does the hand you hold out to me mean?” When the man hesitated, Forg added, “I mean no disrespect. I only wish to learn.”

“Uh, it’s tradition to tip for good service, sir.”

“Tip?”

“A gratuity, sir. A small amount of money is usually exchanged when the service you receive is good.”

“It is?”

“It is, sir. Only within the service industry. Did you tip the waiter after your last meal?”

“I paid him the requested fee.”

“A little extra would have been appropriate, sir.”

“Are you not paid by your employer?”

“I am, sir, but not overmuch. Wages in the service industry are usually adjusted downward to compensate for tips.”

“I see,” Forg said, reaching into his belt pouch and bringing out a coin.

“Uh, about three of those, sir.”

Forg did not let his surprise show. He had been a trader for many years and was accustomed to surprises, though this small oddity was a new one. The crewman accepted the coins with a bow and left.

“Now what?” he thought to his men as he placed his bag on a bunk. “We have many idle days before us.”

“We can explore the ship,” Grost said with excitement. “ I’d like to see how these people entertain themselves.”

They wandered the ship for days as it headed out of the system, constantly surprised at what they found. Gambling, parties, competitions, drinking and eating to excess, such idleness was never seen within the Chessori domain, though in truth there was little else to do aboard the great liner. They found a small establishment that was not crowded in which they could enjoy refreshments without undue staring. Chessori were still quite rare within this Empire.

Meals were a different matter. Everyone was expected to eat together in a large dining room, and more tips were expected. At least the food was good – plenty of meat. The Chessori disdained the other offerings, but the waiter learned their ways and soon just brought large portions of meat, all properly cooked and seasoned. Along with the meat, he brought small amounts of alcohol, something the Chessori metabolism needed on a regular basis.

Forg requested a visit to the bridge, but he was turned down. Passengers were not permitted on the bridge under any circumstances, and he was not surprised. He ran his own ship the same way, unless the request came from a K’tiri. Then he could not refuse.

The K’tiri. How he hated them, especially now. Until recently he had never heard of a ship from a lesser guild annexed as his had been. And why had it been taken? Why did the K’tiri need the ship so badly? It was so foreign to Chessori ways. If you wanted a new ship, you negotiated with the S’klida, the ship selling guild. It took time, but it was the proper way. And to annex a trader’s ship when cargo was aboard, cargo that had been promised for delivery, that was inexplicable even to K’tiri ways. But once the K’tiri claimed scree’Tal, or death-right, Forg’s options evaporated. He had to complete the deal.

Not only did it not make sense, it would give future Chessori traders a black mark with the client, something that contradicted all tradition. He simply could not understand it, nor could his crew.

He was not the first to lose his ship; he had recently encountered others of the lesser guilds who had suffered the same fate here in Aldebaran Sector. His Guild Master would likely be inundated with grievances. Nothing would come of them, the K’tiri were too strong, but the grievances would be made, noted, and negotiated. Still, it just did not make any sense. His anger would be a long time simmering against the K’tiri.

Chapter Six

Val boarded the cruise liner after days of private meetings with Admiral Seeton’s senior staff. As the only proof here on Aldebaran I of the Queen’s existence, Admiral Seeton had insisted that the Knight meet as many of his officers as he could, and Val jumped at the opportunity. He knew exactly what it meant to these warriors to have a Queen. No longer were these officers adrift, as they had been for more than a year.

Too, he now had a clearer understanding of the methods used by the Rebels for taking control of sectors. Sector governors either swore allegiance to the new regime, or they were replaced with individuals loyal to Struthers. The new governors then set about replacing their staffs with members loyal to themselves, reaching into the military ranks after solidifying their own personal staffs. The process took time but was inexorable in its completeness. The sector commander, Seeton’s boss, had caved in to the new governor’s demands quickly and was working hard to establish his own command structure of loyal officers. He hadn’t gotten far. Seeton had blocked him at every step of the way, walking a tightrope for months as he delayed and in some cases refused to carry out orders that would undermine his own strengths.