To and around a corner. "Now," Haget said. He hugged Jo so hard he crushed the wind out of her. When she wriggled free, she hugged Vadja too. Degas and AnyKaat looked ready to couple on the spot.
Haget said, "One more day and I'd have started chewing the bulkheads. I'm going to scream the craziness out."
Jo whispered, "I know a better way."
He looked at her. "Yeah. Let's get Seeker to Medical before we have to carry him."
They reached hospital bay. Haget tried to get Seeker to tell him what he needed. Seeker did his best. Maybe Jo would have been a better receiver. They had developed a feeble rapport aboard IV Trajana. Jo ordered a feast while the others sought physicals.
Haget handed Jo a note. "See if you can come up with a broth with all that in it."
"All right."
AnyKaat stepped out of the physical scanner. "Am I alive?"
"Close enough," Degas said. "You'll do for what I've got in mind."
Vadja said, "There are indications of malnutrition, AnyKaat."
"Surprise, surprise. Degas, get in there and see if you're man enough to live up to your brags."
The scanner pronounced Degas fit. An automated cart arrived with a consignment of Jo's feast. AnyKaat said, "What do I want to do most? Eat or get clean?"
"Eat," Degas said. "Getting clean is going to take a while."
"You talk a good game, anyway."
Haget said, "Give Seeker something with plenty of sugar."
"You notice something spooky?" Jo asked, handing Seeker a sweet roll. "There isn't anybody around. Last time I was here the place was crawling."
Haget grunted. "Long time ago?"
"Yeah. Come to think."
Haget began pounding a general info keyface. Seeker came to the cart and studied the food. Vadja came out of the scanner judged healthy, arm included. He joined the assault on the foodstuffs.
Jo poured herself a cup of amber liquid, told Seeker, "Try this juice." She headed for the scanner.
Seeker drained the pitcher.
A second cart arrived. Seeker went to work on his broth.
The scanner declared Jo healthy. "Scanner's all yours, Commander."
"I got your answers, Jo. Most Starbase personnel were drafted into the crews of Guardships. A few are in storage."
Seeker made a hissing sound. Jo looked.
Several people had come to the doorway. Their uniforms were unfamiliar. "Commander. Company."
Haget rose.
A hard-faced, graying woman stepped forward. "Commander Haget? Commander Stella Cordet, Third WatchMaster, Hall of the Watchers, XXVIII Fretensis." She spoke with an accent. Haget accepted her hand in a numb parody of his usual crisp manners. "WarAvocat sent me to offer the hospitality of XXVIII Fretensis and ask if there's anything we can do. You must have had a harrowing experience."
"Harrowing?" Haget chuckled. "You might say that. WarAvocat is most gracious. I hope he'll understand when I plead a need to regain my wits and self-confidence before I visit an unfamiliar Guardship again."
The woman gave him a hard look. "He'll understand." Then the iron mask collapsed into a smile. "Frankly, I don't see how you didn't come out of there a raving lunatic."
Haget seemed faintly embarrassed. "You know what happened?"
"IV Trajana sent the data. I skimmed it and reviewed your original mission as described in the data VII Gemina left behind."
Gah! Jo thought. Two of a kind. Efficient to the point of constipation.
"If there's nothing you need immediately," Cordet said, "we'll just get out of your way."
"Uniforms, Commander," Jo suggested.
Haget looked at her. "Sergeant?"
"We need fresh, clean uniforms, sir."
"Yes. We do, Commander Cordet."
"Consider them on the way. I'll check back later, Commander Haget."
"Right. Thank you, Commander."
Cordet gave Seeker one brief look, marched off.
"Why didn't you ask about VII Gemina?" Jo demanded.
"I had other things on my mind." Shy smile. "I was thinking something might not work out."
Shit. She had to go through with it now, want to or not. Well, hell. It might be interesting.
— 65 —
Blessed looked over his workscreen, with its ranks of strutting bugs, at Cable Shike. "I'm going to put a bell on you. How long have you been there?"
"Ten seconds. You got to stay alert."
"You sit here staring at production figures for six hours and see how sharp you stay. You're wearing your smug look. How come?"
Shike seated himself. "Had a lucky strike in the data mines. Station Master is a history freak. Worked up a fair history of the region. It was pretty active during the Ku Wars."
"And?"
"They got desperate toward the end. They engineered some special leaders. Only a few saw action. The most famous was a Kez Maefele who didn't stop fighting when the rest of the race surrendered."
"You going to tell me we have the original, one and only, live Kez Maefele in our hat?"
"Looks like."
"He don't act it."
"Would you?"
"No. You figure he might be more useful than we thought?"
"More useful than ten of me or a dozen Lupo Proviks. Look him up."
"I'm glad you have that strong self-image. How do we reach him? Where's our leverage?"
"He brought it with him. Here. Specs on the artifact. A production model with options. And some stuff on the alien. Mostly guesswork."
"What about covering their arrival?"
"I've got it scoped. I haven't scrubbed it. There's something weird about the in and out of that Traveler. I want to hold the data till I figure out what it is."
Blessed had confidence in Shike. "Keep my ass covered."
Shike rose, walked out.
Blessed thumbed through Cable's printout. "Nyo," he said to his comm, "bring me our guest artifact. Alone." He had been thinking about trying it. This made it business.
"You all right?" Turtle said into Midnight's tears.
"I did it again. I couldn't stop myself."
"I know. Why do you punish yourself?"
"He didn't have me up there for three days because he wanted a toy, Turtle. His bodyguard figured out who you are. He bragged about how he would have the famous Ku warrior Kez Maefele on his staff. In private he turns into a nasty, mean-spirited little boy."
Midnight was not as slow as she pretended. She assumed there were eavesdroppers.
"I've been around a long time, Midnight. This has happened before. It will happen again. Those who want power try to seize talismans of power. But such talismans are dangerous, like the magic sword that makes a warrior invincible but devours his soul."
Turtle was worried. What Midnight knew could set tides of adventurers rolling across the Web. Worse, she knew he knew more and knew how to capitalize on what he knew.
He was a Ku warrior. He had bragged in his interview with those children, but there were ways to force his cooperation. The plotters and schemers always found ways.
If he were one of them, he would be less vulnerable. He would have no conscience. He could show them a shrug when they threatened Midnight.
They ate their young and tortured their mothers.
He could take that attitude about Amber Soul. She could look out for herself.
Midnight forgot the listeners. "Can we get away from here? I don't like these people."
"I'm thinking about it."
"You sound unhappy."
"I'm suffering a bad case of cynicism."