Pliocene Exile - The Adversary Part 48

"Shh, baby ... who else?" .

Veikko buried his head in her breast as his mind toiled the list of casualties: Frieda Singer-Dow, mother of Chee-wu Chan; Claire Shaunavon, mother of Matiwilda; Audrey Truax, mother of Margaret and Rebecca Kramer; Isobel Layton and Alonzo Jarrow, parents of Vaughn Jarrow; John .Horvath, father of Imre; Abdulkadir Al-Mahmoud and Olivia Wylie, parents of Jasmin Wylie; Eva s.m.u.ts, co-mother of Kane Fox-Laroche; Ronald Inman; Everett Garrison; Gary Evans; and ...

He was weeping now. "I'm sorry, Rena. Arky, too. He was one of the injured ones. Streinbrenner did his best, but he's not as skilled in surgery as the Keoghs were, and there's no regen tank set up on Kyllikki. Arky died three days ago."

His mind opened at last and she melded, pouring psychic balm on his supersensitive emotional structure, rocking him to and fro while the equinoctial sun warmed the southern flank of the mountain.

She said, "It's strange. I dreamed about Daddy-then. It was a long dream, full of details. Probably a recapitulation of stories he used to tell me when I was small, and the books and the TriD ca.s.settes we shared. In the dream, we travelled all over the Milieu. We visited the human colonies of Volhynia and Hibernia first to see how our ethnic kin were taming the wilderness, and then we rested on the cosmop world of Riviera, the vacation place. From there we toured exotic planets. We met funny little Poltroyans and repulsive ent.i.ties that dripped green, and tall hermaphrodites with enormous yellow eyes-all coadunate metapsychics, in spite of their odd appearance. We saw the Krondaku, who aren't quite as scary in person as they look in a holo; and had a kind of seance with the Lylmiks, and learned that their race is so ancient that it might date from the previous universe. Finally we came home to Old Earth, to New Hampshire in America, where the O'Malleys and the Petroviches worked in the paper mills and had little farms early in the twentieth century. We saw Mount Washington, where the Intervention started, and the old Remillard house in Hanover.

Arky and I saw it all together: our grandparent's place, and the schools and churches and stores and restaurants and other landmarks of the real world ... He was a nice old villain, Veikko. He liked you, too, even though he tried hard not to show it. He kept asking when we were going to have a child."

"Not here."

"I tried to explain. Why we couldn't believe in Marc or his star-search any longer. But he refused to understand. Now he's dead, and all those others."

Veikko wiped his face on his sleeve, found a comb and ran it through stringy fair hair. His face was thoughtful. "Not too many left now for Marc to manipulate, are there? Let's see. Six magnates, not counting Manion. Those are the minds we really have to worry about. Only Kramer and Warshaw have any children left alive, and the old lady's hard-a.s.sed as they come where loyalty to Marc's concerned. I'm not so certain about Kramer. He might balk if it really came down to zorching Marge and Becky along with the rest of us. Secondary grandmaster minds ... eighteen. Quinn Fitzpatrick and Allison Sherwoods are weak sisters, but the others are concert-fit. And that big stud Boom-Boom Laroche is worth a mind and a half in anybody's roster."

"Surely Walter wouldn't-"

All persons please a.s.semble immediately under the large canopy.

"The conference." Veikko climbed to his feet. As they made their way back to the small village of huts and parked vehicles, he said. "Don't delude yourself about my father, Rena. Walter's like a lot of other ex-Rebels. When he's outside of Marc's aura and thinks for himself he can understand our position and sympathize with us. But put him back within coercive range of the Angel of the Abyss and he's caught in the old spell-just as all of us were until Alexis Manion showed us how to escape."

"And paid for it," Irena added. After a minute she asked, "Are you going to tell the others about the murders?"

"Not until I get Hagen's okay. Maybe not even then. Let him break the news once we're all safe in Goriah. If ever."

They took their places on decamole benches facing an improvised rostrum, where Basil Wimborne waited patiently until the last stragglers were seated. Inevitably, the group was tripart.i.te: the ten North Americans, the twenty b.a.s.t.a.r.ds, and the King's Men-twelve Tanu and twenty human golds-gathering together in distinct cliques. Only Basil himself and the cheerful little b.a.s.t.a.r.d factotum, Nirupam, had circulated freely during the journey from the Rhone Valley.

Now the former Oxford don tapped the lectern three times and fixed his audience with a gaze of magisterial self-a.s.surance.

The babble of thoughts and voices faded to silence.

"We have successfully completed the first leg of the expedition," Basil began. "Thanks to the skill of our drivers and the good offices of the Grand Master Elizabeth, who surveyed our route, we have managed to traverse the four hundred and ninety-six kilometres between Darask and Camp Bettaforca without misadventure. Our journey has taken fourteen days, a most commendable pace under the circ.u.mstances. I have been asked by the Deputy Lord Psychokinetic, Bleyn the Champion, to convey to you all the warmest felicitations from King AikenLugonn, who has kept us all in his heart and fa.r.s.eeing eyes. His Majesty is fully confident that the second phase of our operation will proceed as successfully as the first."

This sentiment was delivered with a decidedly ironic tone.

Most of the b.a.s.t.a.r.ds responded with arch grins, while Bleyn and the Tanu preserved a stately solemnity.

"The actual a.s.sault upon Monte Rosa involves, as most of you know, my own team of-uh-b.a.s.t.a.r.ds. Those expedition members remaining at the base camp will have other matters to occupy their attention, however. Lord Bleyn was advised by Elizabeth early this morning that a force of approximately two hundred ogres and dwarfs has set out from Famorel City and is marching north up the Ysaar Valley. We can only presume that they will follow the river eastward, cross over the Little St.

Bernard pa.s.s into the Proto-Augusta Valley, and thence seek to clobber us."

Exclamations of astonishment and dismay broke out. Lusk Collins, the young North American ATV wrangler, said, "I warned you to kill those Firvulag we got the slugs from."

"Sparing them was a calculated risk," Basil averred primly.

"Aside from humane considerations, may I remind you that we were instructed to avoid bloodshed. Technically, a state of armistice exists between the Tanu and Firvulag kingdoms."

"Remind the Famorel spooks, not us!" exclaimed Phronsie Gillis. "So we fight. What the h.e.l.l! How long before the little hummers get here?"

"Elizabeth estimates six days," said Basil. "We are well armed, and there should be sufficient time to-uh-dig in and secure the position. Lord Ochal the Harper will coordinate the defensive measures and I will not discuss them further at this time. My province is the mountain, and I believe that it-not the Famorel Firvulag-will prove to be our most formidable opponent."

"Hear, hear," said Mr. Betsy.

Basil rummaged about in the pocket of his shirt and took out a small piece of paper, scrutinizing it before resuming. "The primary objective of this expedition is to secure the twentyseven rhocraft situated on the other side of Monte Rosa and deliver them to the King at Goriah. I have been instructed to be extremely judicious in the risk of our personnel-especially the pilots. But risk is-er-inherent in the conquest of a peak such as this one, especially since we have so few experienced climbers and only improvised equipment. Needless to say, I plan to take a primary role in the operation. Before coming to the Pliocene, I arranged to have my body modified specifically for-uh-high-alt.i.tude mountaineering ventures. And since it was a whim of mine that led to the aircraft being parked on Monte Rosa in the first place, it's only just that I partic.i.p.ate in the most hazardous phases of the retrieval. Unfortunately, I am neither a pilot nor do I possess the technical expertise to-er-fire up the engine of a craft that has been in cold storage for two months. You must also understand that scaling a great mountain such as Rosa is of necessity a team effort. Support groups must set up a string of camps with equipment dumps so that the ultimate a.s.sault can leapfrog to the top. I will lead both the support and the a.s.sault teams."

"And love every miserable minute of it," drawled Mr. Betsy.

He looked more anachronistic than ever with a swansdown vest and pompom balaclava topping off his Elizabethan finery.

Basil continued. "At my request. Lord Bleyn's caravan brought from Goriah certain items such as power winches, rope and cable, vitredur hammers and ice-axes, medical supplies, and warm clothing. We have numbers of the excellent aubergefurnished backpacks with their decamole shelters and ladders, cooking gear and heaters, plus an adequate supply of concentrated food. Nirupam has been busy fashioning vitredur crampons, as well as pitons, ice screws, and other-er-hardware.

We have no oxygen equipment; but I believe we can do the job without it, since only the strongest of us will be climbing."

He turned to indicate the gleaming rampart of the mountain behind him. "Monte Rosa rises 9082 metres above sea level.

Fortunately, it will not be necessary for us to scale the summit-although I, personally, would sell my soul in order to be permitted the attempt."

The b.a.s.t.a.r.ds smiled knowingly at one another while the rest of the expedition regarded Basil with fascinated horror.

"What we will do is cross over the West Col, that saddleshaped region to the left of the peak. This lies at an approximate alt.i.tude of only 7800 metres. Elizabeth has studied the potential routes with her keen fa.r.s.ense and transmitted to me mental pictures, from which I have roughly plotted our climb. Moving out from Camp Bettaforca, we first cross that frozen expanse you see immediately above us, which I have named the Gresson Glacier. The ice is old, dirty and rotten; we shall have to be very cautious. Upon reaching the escarpment with its hanging glaciers, we must choose which icefall to ascend. Unfortunately, we face Hobson's choice. The three falls on our left and the easternmost fall are nearly vertical, as are the rocky walls. We are left with the so-called Gresson Icefall, which ascends at a relatively comfortable fifty degrees. I say relatively. The route up this huge tumbled ma.s.s is very likely the most perilous section of our climb. Once at the top, we begin to move westward.

Note the three ma.s.sive ridges, like the tines of a monstrous fork, upon the mountain's southwestern flank. We must cross both the Middle Tine and the West Tine-and the pristine, snow-clad glaciers between them-in order to gain the West Col. A minimum of three advance camps will be set up along the route. I have selected a support team of nine persons to serve as-uh-Sherpas. The group includes Nirupam, who is a genuine member of that ethnos, Stan, Phillipe, Derek, Cisco, Chazz. Phronsie, Taffy, and Clifford. After they establish the camps, their work will be done and they can retire to welldeserved rest here at base."

"Just in time for the fight with the Firvulag," Stan Dziekonski sighed.

Basil continued imperturbably. "The eight-person a.s.sault group will be divided into two independent teams, travelling an hour apart. Since they will be burdened with heat-beam equipment and aircraft tools, they will make use of power winches and preset anchors, hauling their gear and themselves up the mountain wherever the terrain is compatible with such-er-unsporting manoeuvres. Upon attaining the West Col, the a.s.sault teams will proceed downhill to the aircraft site, which lies at 5924 metres on the North Face."

Irena O'Malley asked, "Why two a.s.sault teams?"

"Attrition," said the don.

There was dead silence in the audience.

"We may hope," he continued, "that at least one complete team will attain the objective. This would include an experienced mountaineer as leader, a pilot, a technician, and-"

"A Tanu," put in Bleyn the Champion. "By order of the King." His mental tone was entirely good-humoured. "Since Lord Aronn and I are both psychokinetics, we might even prove worth our keep."

Basil said, "The Number One a.s.sault team consists of myself, Dr. Hudspeth, Ookpik, and Lord Bleyn. Number Two includes Dr. Thongsa, who is pilot, mountaineer, and physician-"

"All rolled into one insufferable little scuzzbag," Phronsie muttered, glowering at the Tibetan, who pretended not to notice.

Basil swept on. "n.a.z.ir will serve as technician and Bengt as princ.i.p.al pilot-"

"And enforcer!" Phronsie appended. "Any little slanty-eyed folks start thinking again about running off with aircraft, ol'

Bengt's gonna whup their a.s.s six ways from Shangri La."