“She’s some lady,” Hatt said. “Nice voice, too.”
“I sure as hell can’t make some of those sounds,” Jaen said. “Squeak, eak! Rats. Why’d it have to be rats?”
“Chinchillas,” Berg corrected. “Miss Moon said they’re more like chinchillas. Think of them that way. Or giant hamsters.”
“Whatever.”
“Commander Weaver,” the CO said over the radio link. “You are not permitted out of armor.”
“Understood, sir,” Weaver said as the elevator opened. “Wasn’t planning on it.”
“Hey, Miller,” he added as he approached the pow-wow. “How’s it going?”
“Pretty good, I think,” Miller said, standing stolidly. If he was noticing the chill he didn’t show it, but they’d brought coats for both him and Miriam. Miriam was definitely noticing it in the thin body suit. She was shivering and it was beginning to affect her speech.
Weaver handed over the coats, then stood by Miriam.
“Okay, I’ll see if this will work,” Miriam said, her teeth chattering. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Weaver said over the external speaker.
Miriam shrugged on the long, down coat, then turned up the heater.
“Sreee,” Miriam said in Cheerick. “Commander William Weaver. Commander Beeel, shiny. Third officer of ship. Only officer has armor.” Miriam tapped that.
“And must have armor to exit ship,” Sreee said. “You don’t have armor. Why?”
“Dangers,” Miriam said. “Law. Must have special cleaning if no armor. Commander Beeel no leave armor. Speak for commander. Friend to our queen. High lord.”
“This one no armor,” Sreee said, pointing at Miller.
“Crazy-brave warrior,” Miriam said. “Does cleaning, too. Cleaning very long. Many days.”
“I will speak to my mistress.”
“They have a law that they cannot leave the ship without armor, mistress,” Sreee said. “Only the interpreter and her guard as I understand it may be without armor. And they must undergo special cleaning. One of the new people is their third officer, the highest officer who has armor. He sounds as if he is an officer from their court, a friend of their queen.”
“Their lord has no armor?” Cha-chai interjected. “Can he not afford it?”
“He has paid for his commission to this ship,” Lady Che-chee said. “I guess he sold it.”
“They somehow speak to their commander,” Sreee said. “I do not understand how. When I ask she points at her ear or her head, as if she hears voices. It may be they speak mind to mind.”
“No,” Lady Che-chee said, standing up. “The new one, he spoke aloud through the armor. It is their magic. Very well, I will speak to him and through him to their commander. Ask them, first, if their magic permits their commander’s voice to at least be heard.”
“Yeah, we can do that,” Weaver said, looking at his controls. “No, I can’t. This suit isn’t equipped for retrans! Jaen.”
“Sir?”
“I need one of your team over here, stat,” Weaver said. “Smart one.”
“Two-Gun,” Jaen said. “You’re up.”
Berg walked over quickly and took up a position by Miss Moon.
“Set your system to retrans to the ship,” Commander Weaver said. “Channel Four. The CO’s going to use it to speak.”
“Yes, sir,” Berg said, dropping his glove and hitting the controls rapidly. “Set, sir.”
“Good man…”
“Hello, Chic-chic-tic Che-chee,” the CO enunciated carefully. “I am Captain Steven Blankemeier of the Alliance Space Ship Vorpal Blade and I greet you in peace in the name of the Human-Adar Alliance.”
“Whooo,” he added, leaning back from the command table. “One small step and all that…”
“Yes, sir,” the XO said. “But I think you got your lines right.”
“Those are the words of my commander,” Miriam said, pointing at the suit. “He speaks through this.”
“Not the one in the suit?” Lady Che-chee asked suspiciously.
“No, lady,” Miriam replied. “Would one of your servitors pretend to be you?”
“No,” Lady Che-chee said. “Very well. Captain Beeela… Captain. What are your intentions, here?”
“To make peaceful contact with your people,” Miriam said, translating the captain’s words. “We are explorers. We are not conquerors and wish nothing but peaceful relations. We have enemies, in other places, and we seek their location. But we will not bring our war to you. Nor do we ask for soldiers or support.”
“That’s good,” Lady Che-chee said, flicking her ears. “We have wars enough aplenty. I am not a high leader of my people. I must bring word to my queen that emissaries have arrived. I must warn you, this will cause turmoil. There is much of which we must speak but I will do so through your interpreter and your officer. Thank you for your courtesy in speaking to me directly.”
“I wish I could meet with you in person,” Miriam translated. “But I am not allowed by our laws.”
“So I understand,” Lady Che-chee said. “Sreee, conduct Miriam and Commander Beeel to…” She looked at the armor and blanched at the damage it would do to the floors. Not to mention that it couldn’t get through any door but the main one. On the other hand, their visit gifts would more than pay for the damage.
“Conduct them to the Great Hall. Bring food and drink. And get Trik-trik ready to get me out of this damned armor.”
“They have eaten and drunk nothing, mistress,” Sreee said as Lady Che-chee entered the Great Hall.
The hall had once been the center of manor life and still had the antique sleeping niches that had been comfort in elder times. Now it was mainly used for large balls. She had managed to avoid hosting many of those but she was fairly sure that had just changed. However, depending on how this fell out, her status was either going to be raised enormously at Court or she was about to lose her head. She’d dealt with the promise of both problems before, however. And a chest of jewels and gold was certainly going to help.
“You do not care for our food?” she asked, approaching the table.
“I wish I could,” Miriam said. “But we are not Cheerick. It is poison to us. I can drink plain water. That, too, is possibly poison, but one that our chirurgeon can mend.”
“Sreee,” Che-chee said. “Bring some of the boiled campaign water.”
“That would be perfect,” Miriam said. “That I can drink. I mean no offense. You said something about the water. Aseek. You know of poisons in unboiled water?”
“Yes,” Lady Che-chee said. “Unboiled water can cause terrible disease on campaign. Also it can make plagues worse. I only drink boiled water, wine, or water with brandy. All three prevent illness much of the time. This is ancient knowledge and much of that is wrong. But this I have tested in my time and find to be true.”
“Ancient knowledge?” Miriam asked. “Knowledge handed down from old times? Is this things old Mothers speak of or written records?”
“Some of both,” Lady Che-chee said. “And it is that of which we must speak. Your armor is invulnerable to our weapons, that is plain. But be aware that there may be great anger about you and your ship. We have legends and some fragments regarding great ships of metal and even metal things that walk and talk as Cheerick. But the Demons follow them.”
“I hope that we do not bring them,” Miriam said.
“Actually, you’re late,” Lady Che-chee said ambiguously.
“We first spoke to the island people,” Miriam said.
“I thought as much,” Lady Che-chee said. “Your arm motion, that is an island people gesture. Go on.”