Foreigner - Explorer. Part 28

"Captain says don't worry about bugs," Bren said after they'd had a few bites. "The ship is family. It doesn't use such things. I suppose it's different on the station."

No answer. The finger-tasting had paused, dead still in the cell for a moment, then resumed, with baleful looks.

"Medical said one of you has an imbedded bug," Bren volunteered. "They wondered if you knew."

No answer.

"Somebody named Becker," Bren said, in his best effort at ship-accent. "What I heard."

The senior stopped eating and looked as if the food suddenly didn't agree as well. The others stopped in growing uncertainty.

"Just what I heard," Bren reiterated with a shrug. "Don't know for a fact, but they said it's up here." He touched behind his ear. "I can a.s.sure you with transmission jammed, it's not going to do anything. Medics were thinking about taking it out, but that's sort of like brain surgery, so I guess they thought not."

Becker looked green.

"None of the rest of you, though." Bren said "Which I wouldn't like, if they were doing it to me, especially if I didn't know, as I gather you didn't. Privacy. I can't figure how you'd do without that. But I suppose it's your job. I guess they think they need to keep an eye on you that way."

"Why don't you shut up?" Esan said. They'd stopped eating. Polano and Kaplan had suspended breakfast, too, wary and on guard, and the crewmen sat still, awaiting trouble.

"No," Becker said easily, "if he wants to talk, he can talk." Becker dug in with a spoon, bravely savored a bite. "Not bad stuff."

"Smart man," Bren said, with a level look at Becker.

Esan stood up, hand on the bars. "Who are you? Who are are you?" you?"

"Not galley staff," Bren said mildly. Level approach deserved level approach. "You want the plain truth? You sent Phoenix Phoenix out to see how things were at Alpha. Well, I'm from there." out to see how things were at Alpha. Well, I'm from there."

That got attention.

"So you come back to see things here?" Becker asked.

"I've seen. And things there are a whole lot better than here. This crew knew. This crew, after it got the ship refueled, after it made its agreements with Alpha-" That covered an immense tract of secrets. "-decided you people back at Reunion deserve rescue. So here we are. Some welcome we get."

"You come in messing with a dangerous situation, mister."

"That ship out there? We've had more cooperation out of it than we have from Guild admin."

"The h.e.l.l you say."

"Your station, whatever Guild management says, is in somewhat serious trouble with it, don't you think?"

"Not our business."

"What-to think?"

"What has Alpha to do with it? Who gave a bunch of jumped-up colonials the say?"

"Jumped-up colonials. You're not a colony?"

"We're not a colony. We're admin."

"Sure looks like a colony to me. This is the ship ship, Mr. Becker. This is the only ship there is, the only ship there ever was, and without it, you look pretty much like a colony, to another colonist."

Clearly Becker wasn't interested in circular argument. He had his mouth full. "Not our business to say."

"It ought to be your business, don't you think? The ship's crew thinks you deserve a say. They think the innocent deserve to get out of this place alive."

That got interest. "What are you talking about?" Becker asked.

"That ship out there," Bren said. "Don't you think you need rescue? Certainly looks like it to me."

A shrug. The ship was, apparently, an old threat. A pattern on the wallpaper of the world, not even in consciousness. "We don't make decisions. We take orders."

"Do your families? Take orders, that is? You're content they should die to support Mr. Braddock's notions?"

These men didn't come out of a vacuum. They surely had relatives. At least mothers. And all four paid slight and hostile attention.

"Your parents," Bren said, "your cousins, your wives and children don't deserve the result of Braddock's decisions. But trust us. We'll get them aboard."

"Not likely," Becker said.

"I a.s.sure you, you'll like Alpha. Better food. Nice apartments. Much better neighbors." He hit somewhere close to the right b.u.t.tons. He saw troubled looks, and for the last several moments, a decided lack of interest in the food containers.

"Not our business to make policy," Becker said, and took a cracker. "We just report. And the last our people heard from us is its officers being attacked. Is that that smart policy, mister spy?" smart policy, mister spy?"

"The ship is being stood off. Told she can't refuel. If that's the way the local Guild wants to do business..."

"This interview is over."

"Are you somehow under control of that ship out there?"

When the quarry retreats, throw out a lure.

"It's a robot."

"Afraid not. We talked to it. It It says it put a probe out and got attacked. It's not happy about that. It's got you under observation. This may be the only ship humanity owns, but I'd say that's not likely the only ship the aliens have. Point blank, gentlemen, you're under someone's gun, and since we showed up, the reply clock is running, so far as that ship is concerned. Sorry about that. Refueling's become critical. And we don't think Braddock is likely to tell the station population that they're in danger." says it put a probe out and got attacked. It's not happy about that. It's got you under observation. This may be the only ship humanity owns, but I'd say that's not likely the only ship the aliens have. Point blank, gentlemen, you're under someone's gun, and since we showed up, the reply clock is running, so far as that ship is concerned. Sorry about that. Refueling's become critical. And we don't think Braddock is likely to tell the station population that they're in danger."

He'd hit a nerve.

"Maybe," Becker said. "Maybe not."

"They say you killed one of their people. They want the body back. What's the story from your side?"

"I said this interview was over."

"Well," Bren said with a dismissive shrug. "Well, it's a curious point, isn't it? A hole gets put into your station and what, n.o.body mentions it? You do all this mining since the attack, and n.o.body cares there's a ship out there, even a robot, which it isn't? We came out here to rescue you. But maybe there's no fuel for us, and we can't do a thing about your situation: we'll just go off to the alternate base and refuel out there, and leave you to your problem."

"There's fuel."

"You think."

"We have our mining operations."

"Current?"

"Intermittent."

"Intermittent," Bren echoed him.

"They're not operating at the moment."

"Like since the last six years?"

A shrug from Becker. A little shift among the others.

"Not talking," Becker said.

"Well," Bren said, "dishes, gentlemen." He held out his hand for the few containers that had gone behind the grid, and the detainees reluctantly got up and surrendered them one at a time-there not being a real opportunity, through the grid, for them to make a grab at his hand, and no real chance of their success with Kaplan and Polano and the other guards there, either.

"One thing I think has puzzled everyone," Bren said, then, pausing in his packing. "Why did the aliens blow up the station ten years ago?"

"Ask Ramirez," Becker said harshly.

"Ramirez, unfortunately, can't answer that, being dead. And the answer doesn't appear in the ship's log, not that I hear. So maybe it's not the ship's fault shooting started. Or do your leaders tell you it was?"

"Not our business."

"So you think. But I wonder what truth is deep in station records, and whether the whole history of humanity out here is going to end, all because your leadership took a shot at an inquiring ship."

"No."

"It approached too close and you got nervous."

"Go to h.e.l.l," Becker said.

"You know, you've had a stable situation, that watcher out there, and you, all alone. Now that we've come in, the situation's changed, and they're demanding demanding to have the body from their second attempt to contact you. You haven't done that well, you stationers. You know that?" to have the body from their second attempt to contact you. You haven't done that well, you stationers. You know that?"

"Not ours to say."

"Mr. Becker, with that great hole in your station, I'd think you'd suspect they could blow a second one if they were ready to. They've sat out there trying to come up with another solution, by what I see. Maybe just waiting for us to come back, so they could figure where we come from. We're not happy about that, let me say. And you're going to go on telling me your station's just getting along splendidly. It's a d.a.m.ned wreck, Mr. Becker, and the neighbors are annoyed with you. We're We're annoyed with you. We're telling you the only thing you can reasonably do is get out of here, which is why we've come back to save your necks, and all you can do is say there isn't any concern about the ship, it's just a robot, and the station just had a little accident. Wake up, Mr. Becker. The lot of you wake up. You're in trouble." annoyed with you. We're telling you the only thing you can reasonably do is get out of here, which is why we've come back to save your necks, and all you can do is say there isn't any concern about the ship, it's just a robot, and the station just had a little accident. Wake up, Mr. Becker. The lot of you wake up. You're in trouble."

Becker stood fast. The rest weren't so sure, and darted little glances toward Becker. He could order Becker separated out to solitary confinement, which would only harden the resolve of the rest, if they were worth their salt-which they probably were: he'd had no indication to the contrary. And being worth their salt, they might, given a chance, apply moral suasion to their own leader.

"Mr. Becker," he said, "your loyalty I'm sure isn't to a metal and plastics station. Your duty is to flesh and blood occupants of that station, and your highest duty is to a.s.sure their survival. You want the truth, gentlemen. I'm not exactly from Alpha. I'm Mospheiran. Former colonist-resident of a thriving human settlement on the world below Alpha, where we maintain good relations with our neighbors. We number in the hundreds of thousands. We're building our own ship in partnership with our neighbors. We live peaceably together on the planet and on the s.p.a.ce station, and we're extremely upset about your interfering in the stellar neighborhood and sending your problems on to us. The Guild's authority may work here. Fine. It doesn't reach us. We have governments. Thanks to Reunion, we're having to build defenses. You're sitting out here in an exposed position, having fought a patently unsuccessful action with an enemy you can't even identify, let alone communicate with. We're pulling you back to a safe perimeter. Join the far more numerous side of the human species and live in relative peace and comfort. That's the only reasonable solution." of a thriving human settlement on the world below Alpha, where we maintain good relations with our neighbors. We number in the hundreds of thousands. We're building our own ship in partnership with our neighbors. We live peaceably together on the planet and on the s.p.a.ce station, and we're extremely upset about your interfering in the stellar neighborhood and sending your problems on to us. The Guild's authority may work here. Fine. It doesn't reach us. We have governments. Thanks to Reunion, we're having to build defenses. You're sitting out here in an exposed position, having fought a patently unsuccessful action with an enemy you can't even identify, let alone communicate with. We're pulling you back to a safe perimeter. Join the far more numerous side of the human species and live in relative peace and comfort. That's the only reasonable solution."

"So give us contact with our superiors," Becker said, grim-faced. "If you want me to relay that offer to the Guildmaster, give me communication with my superiors."

Bren shook his head. "Not a chance. The captain would have liked you to settle in as pa.s.sengers. Unfortunately you came here to fight, and we take it that's what you'll do if we let you loose in comfortable quarters. So you're here, and here you'll stay. Sorry about your personal baggage. We'll see if we can get someone to pack it aboard for you once we're fueled and boarding."

"The h.e.l.l!"

Becker was the roadblock. As long as Becker held out, the rest wouldn't talk. Bren heaved a long, slow sigh.

And got up, picked up the picnic basket and walked away, Kaplan in attendance, out of the section and on toward the lift.

Chapter Thirteen.

IT WAS A CHANGE OF CLOTHING, at very least. Not full court dress: the modest country coat and trousers would do, a little lace, a brocade vest, but a plain cloth coat, boots that would do for a walk in the fields-G.o.d, how he wished it were a walk in the fields. The meadow just above his seaside estate, a cliff-top view of incoming waves... that would do, for the health of his soul.

As it was, he had a cold steel corridor and Banichi and Jago in their own country kit, which was to say, moderately armed, the lot of them proceeding down the corridor toward a rendezvous with Ginny and a consultation on the Becker problem. He had the much-abused computer that was, on ordinary days, his third arm and leg-a little extra persuasion.

He thought thought that was the plan. But as they pa.s.sed the dowager's door, where two of her young men stood their habitual watch, the door opened and Cenedi intercepted them. that was the plan. But as they pa.s.sed the dowager's door, where two of her young men stood their habitual watch, the door opened and Cenedi intercepted them.

Then Ilisidi herself intercepted them, an Ilisidi resplendent in a black brocade with gold trim and black lace.

"And where are we going, nandi?" Ilisidi asked.

"Aiji-ma," he began, dismayed.

Whack! went the cane. "We have not heard from Sabin-aiji. The aiji of the heavens has in his custody representatives of an arrogant official who has delayed us in our essential mission. Are these the facts, nandi?"

Perfect expression of the atevi perspective.

"Yes," he said, "aiji-ma." With complete understanding, yes yes, aiji-ma. The atevi perspective was direct and essentially true, in this circ.u.mstance. "But, aiji-ma, Jase-aiji is still negotiating with this authority. He has not despaired of Sabin-aiji."

"Well, well," Ilisidi said, and by now Cajeiri had come out of the apartment and edged close to his great-grandmother. "And this authority," Ilisidi said, "intends to hold Sabin-aiji silent and threatened pending our cooperation. What of these persons that entered the ship? Have they been empowered to negotiate?"

"No, aiji-ma, they are merely to observe and report to their Guild. One fears they will never gain that much power."

"Ha. Then why have we admitted these useless persons in the first place?"

"Doubtless it seemed good to Sabin-aiji, aiji-ma, in the belief it would delay other, more aggressive moves from the Guild until she could reach the Guild-aiji. Then the Guild prevented her further communication with us, which is an extreme move. And we moved to seize these persons."

"Who are worthless, nandi. Jase-aiji definitively a.s.serts command?"

Critical question. If Jase didn't, then someone did. They certainly didn't want anyone on Reunion taking command of the situation. Tabini sent him to act. And act when?

When Phoenix Phoenix got into difficulty. Having the senior captain missing and an alien ship sitting at their shoulder was certainly a difficulty. Ilisidi, this backup agent of Tabini's, had survived no few attempts on her power and authority-but not by sitting still and reading the news reports. got into difficulty. Having the senior captain missing and an alien ship sitting at their shoulder was certainly a difficulty. Ilisidi, this backup agent of Tabini's, had survived no few attempts on her power and authority-but not by sitting still and reading the news reports.

d.a.m.ned right she called their resolution into question.

"Aiji-ma." Two heartbeats for a decision: take the initiative with atevi or lose it. "One is extravagantly honored by your presence." With all it meant-including the real possibility of a dozen atevi attempting to seize the center of a s.p.a.ce station full of humans, if he didn't come up with a better idea fast. "If I dare propose-the reaction of these four detainees to meeting atevi may well advise us how the station at large will view our partnership. This was my mission to two-deck. Dare I ask your a.s.sistance in that? We should gain something of interest."