by Petra Landon
“Good.” He sounded pleased. “Cintra Malontan will get in touch with you on your Alliance COM, Sseela. Commander Kerovac recommended her and she will work with you to get the items on the list to Terra Agri.”
Sila straightened on the bed, puzzled by his haste. “Are you planning to give the Council every single item on the list? Will you not bargain at all?”
“Bargain?” He seemed unconcerned. “Their demands look perfectly reasonable to me, Sseela. I’ve asked Representative Malontan to have everything ready for delivery in the ten weeks to the harvest cycle.”
Sila frowned, confused as well as dismayed by his response.
“You must always bargain when you barter, Star Captain” she said earnestly. “At least, in my experience” she amended haltingly.
“Sseela” he sighed softly. “What the Terrans are asking for is minimal. The Alliance can easily afford it, so why bargain?”
Sila gathered her thoughts to make the one argument she knew would sway him. He had a point about the Alliance. They could easily afford the items on the list the Terran Council had asked for in trade. Sila’s perspective on the matter was influenced by a different issue. She didn’t particularly care if the Alliance was taken for a ride but Sila was fast discovering that she had a visceral reaction to the Star Captain being taken advantage of. His world faced an acute food shortage. But the Ur’quay should not have to blindly pay more for Terran crop, especially since the deal was also very lucrative for her world.
“The Council expects you to bargain, Star Captain” she pointed out cannily. “They have made some outrageous demands because they expect the Alliance to bargain. If you do not, it might arouse their suspicions.”
The month spent on an Alliance station observing negotiations with the Council of Elders had allowed Sila to come into her own. While she had much to learn, the Star Captain had it right, Sila knew. There was no right set of qualifications for this job and she was getting better at it every day.
“I see” he said after a short pause. “Your Council expects us to bargain. And you believe that they will suspect we’re not Alliance unless we make a counter offer on their demands?”
“Yes” she said baldly.
For a long minute, he said nothing.
“Alright.” He gave in. “Why don’t you compile a list that you consider fair. We will use that to counter the Terran offer.”
“I can’t do that, Star Captain” Sila protested. “I’m the Terran trade representative to the Alliance. I have to represent the Council’s interests on this.”
“No, little Terran” he countered. “You are the Terran trade representative to the Ur’quay. There is a subtle difference.”
This time, it was Sila who was silent.
“You believe the Terrans will be suspicious if we do not bargain” he said. “That would be bad all around. Commander Kerovac is not yet ready to announce the Ur’quay and we do not want to lose the Terran crop. I don’t believe the Terran demands require a counter offer but you know the Council better.”
In the ensuing silence, Sila wondered how her attempt to protect Ur’quay interests had instead put her on the back foot. She had not anticipated this.
“I am asking you to represent me, Sseela” the Star Captain said softly, the growly voice persuasive. “Make a counter offer and bargain with the Council on my behalf. Not too strenuously but enough to allay any suspicions. Would you do that for me, please?”
“Yes” Sila responded in a subdued voice.
There was another short pause. This time, it was the Star Captain who pondered the matter thoughtfully.
“What is it, Sseela?” he asked astutely. “What bothers you about this?”
Sila sighed. He had seen through her ruse.
“If the Ur’quay ask for special favors, Star Captain, the Alliance will demand compensation in return” she explained haltingly. “It will put your people in danger.”
It will place you in danger.
Zh’hir thought he understood why Sila was skeptical of the Alliance’s motives. “I know the Alliance has not been fair to the Terrans but Commander Kerovac will uphold their agreement with the Ur’quay” he said quietly.
Sila heard the undertone in his words. He would make sure the Alliance lived up to the agreement. The Ur’quay had the power to do so, where the Terrans had none. But Sila was not done yet.
“Like when they sent you to rescue me from the slavers, Star Captain” she countered. “Instead of sending an Alliance ship.”
There was an instant of silence. Sila surmised that she had surprised the Star Captain.
“I was not sent to rescue you by the Alliance” he informed her evenly.
“But they sent their ships to Terra Agri to protect it from the slavers” Sila stammered in confusion.
“Once I told Commander Kerovac about the slavers, he had no choice but to act.”
The Star Captain’s cryptic words had Sila frowning. “What do you mean, Star Captain?” she asked.
“The Alliance’s agreement with the Ur’quay obligates them to protect Terra Agri 5” he admitted. “If he hadn’t sent in Alliance personnel, Ur’quay starships would have rushed to protect your world and our presence in Sector Araloka would no longer be a secret.”
Sila’s eyes grew huge. “Terra Agri is part of the agreement you have with the Alliance?” she exclaimed.
He was brief. “Yes.”
Her suspicions had been correct, she mused, though she had been off about the Alliance’s constraints. Their ships had been dispatched to her world out of compulsion, not because the Alliance was obligated to protect its Terrans citizens.
Though astounded by the news, Sila focused on a more urgent matter that puzzled her.
“But …” she paused, her mind working. “They were willing to protect Terra Agri but not to rescue me from the slavers. Why?”
“Because their forces are stretched thin as they fight on multiple fronts, Sseela. Because war is never fair and because people not powerful enough to make demands always get caught in the middle. People like the Terrans. And people like you.”
Sila reeled from the revelation. The Alliance had been willing to abandon her to the slavers, she realized.
“Then …” she hesitated.
“I came for you” he stated firmly.
“With the Hadari’Kor” she muttered.
“Zoran came because I asked him to. In return for something I’d done for him and because he is my friend.”
Yes, he had kept his promise, Sila mused. As she had known he would. In the process, the Star Captain had risked much — this she had been unaware of.
It all made sense to her now and Sila wondered why she hadn’t put it together before. The time spent on an Alliance station had changed her perspective of the war. On her provincial planet and in the neighboring Trade Exchange, there had been rumors of military setbacks to the Alliance. But since the arrival of the enhanced super-being in command of the Armada, there had been a general belief that the Alliance’s fortunes were on the rise. His tenure at the helm had lessened Alliance defeats on the battlefield in recent years, giving beleaguered Aralokans a sense of relief. But Sila now understood the toll the war had taken on the Alliance member worlds. For some worlds, the fight to stave off Ketaari occupation was already a generation old. Although the Alliance as an entity had come into existence only in the last two decades, some of its members had been fighting the Imperial Forces for a lot longer. It made Sila appreciate Terra Agri’s lack of strategic importance and natural resources, factors that had kept the Empire from turning its greedy eyes on her rustic planet. But as the war dragged on with no end in sight, others took advantage. And worlds like hers with minimal defenses were suddenly vulnerable to pirates and slavers.
“So, we have no protection from the Alliance” she mused out loud, worried about the Terrans. She was safe on an Alliance station, but her people remained at risk.
“Your people have Ur’quay protection
, Sseela” the Star Captain declared firmly. “The Ur’quay have major issues we are grappling with, but one thing we do not lack is warriors. Your world will have the kind of protection it has never seen or dreamt of.”
“And you, little Terran, have me. It has nothing to do with politics or the Alliance or the Ur’quay’s agreement with them. You will always have me for as long as you need it” he stated with firm assurance and quiet conviction.
“If you agree to be mine, I will move heaven, hell and everything in between to make it happen.”
Warmth seeped through her, washing away the terrible sense of the Alliance’s betrayal. Sila finally understood what the Star Captain had done for her. He had risked the Ur’quay’s agreement with the Alliance to defy them in order to free her.
“I hope you’ll take care the next time you venture into Empire territory, Star Captain” she said softly, not knowing how else to articulate to him her appreciation of him and her concern for him.
There was a short silence and the Star Captain expelled a soft sigh.
“The rebels” he murmured, taken aback by her perspicuity.
TF124 was an Alliance facility specifically set up to clandestinely train the Budheya rebels. It was kept secret from the rest of the Alliance, on Commander Kerovac’s orders. He had known that Sila, now a resident, would put two and two together, sooner than later. But Zh’hir had not expected her to accurately pinpoint his role in the operation.
“Yes” Sila acknowledged his unspoken query. “When the rebel leaders arrived on the station, I knew that Captain Hadari-Begur-Kor and you had been involved in bringing them clandestinely off Budheyasta.”
The Star Captain remained silent.
“The whispers on the station say they’ve struck a deal with the Alliance for weapons and training. I know that the rebels brought onto the station are being trained by Hadari’Kor” Sila expanded. She had been keeping herself abreast of the rumors, mainly because she had guessed his role in the risky venture of transporting Budheya rebels through hostile territory and also because the outcome of this engagement, in an indirect way, pertained to her new friend.
The potential collaboration between the rebels and the Alliance had helped improve morale on the station, for a well-armed Budheya resistance would assist in the fight against the Empire. In the past few weeks, Sila had also grasped exactly why the Alliance Commander was so insistent on keeping the presence of their new Ur’quay allies a secret. The announcement, when it eventually came, of the legendary Ur’quay fighting for their cause would give the war-weary and disheartened citizens of the Alliance a renewed sense of hope. The war had taken a heavy toll on everyone.
“Please be careful, Star Captain” she adjured him, unable to articulate her fears for his safety.
This time, he reassured her.
“Do not worry, little Terran. This mission is not very dangerous. The Ketaari have no starships to match the Henia and Zoran knows his way around their security net. There is no cause for concern.”
As Sila remained silent, he reiterated. “I promise you that if the time comes for you to worry, I will tell you myself so you may include me in your prayers to the Goddess.”
Sila smiled, her concerns alleviated. The Goddess had been hearing a lot of prayers for the Star Captain since her suspicions that he was operating behind enemy lines.
“So” he drawled out the word softly. “You hear me in your dreams, do you, Sseela?”
“No.” A discomfited Sila tried to rise to the challenge. “No, of course not. I was … was sleeping and confused …”
“I like that you dream of me, little Terran” he interrupted her to growl throatily before signing off.
Sila glanced at her unblinking Ur’quay communicator in bemusement.
What just happened - how did he turn the tables on me?
d
One week later
The Ur’quay communicator flashed and Sila jumped to respond. She had just entered her chamber and the tiny earbud receivers were still in place.
“What did you mean, Star Captain?” she asked impetuously before he could greet her.
There was an instant of silence.
“I thought I was clear, little Terran” he said cautiously. “I want you.”
“No, I … I got that” Sila stammered. “I meant about Terra Agri.”
She took a deep breath. His throwaway remark had played in her head a fair bit since their last communication. “You said it is part of the Ur’quay’s agreement with the Alliance” she reminded him.
“Your world is one of the planets under their jurisdiction they have promised us.”
“Promised the Ur’quay?” Sila’s dismay was clear. “What does that mean? How could the Alliance promise my world in any agreement when they have never even bothered to set foot on it or provide for its protection.”
He tried to reassure her. “It means the Ur’quay are responsible for the protection of your planet while the Alliance mines some shtoal.”
“Shtoal?” Sila sounded perplexed. This was about emtek. He had asked her lots of questions on the Henia about it, she remembered.
“Terra Agri has shtoal deposits and that guarantees our protection” he reiterated. “The Alliance assured us that they had the right to speak for the worlds they promised us in the agreement. And I give you my word that we do not intend in any way to interfere on your world.”
“Shtoal” Sila muttered again, somewhat mollified. She trusted him implicitly but the idea that the fate of the unsuspecting Terrans had been bargained away in an agreement between the Alliance and the Ur’quay did not sit well with her.
Zh’hir thought he understood what alarmed her. “This strengthens the case for the Terrans, Sseela” he reminded her. “Commander Kerovac knows that he must protect the planets with shtoal deposits promised to us. They will do so until Ur’quay starships can stand guard.”
His words reassured her, even as it made her uneasy. Clearly, the Ur’quay meant to drive off slavers and their ilk in return for emtek. Ur’quay protection would benefit the Terrans for the Alliance hadn’t done a stellar job so far.
Sila reminded herself that it would be the Alliance’s job to convince the Council of Elders to allow them to mine emtek on Terra Agri. It would be tough going for the Alliance, unless the Council softened its stance after the recent negotiations for the crops. How ironic if their experience of trading with the Star Captain was what softened the Council’s perception of the Alliance to the benefit of the Ur’quay, she mused.
“Sseela, trust me. I will make sure the Terrans are not forced into anything against their will. We came to this corner of the galaxy, far away from our own world, in search of shtoal. But the Ur’quay, irrespective of how desperate our situation is, will never condone invasion or colonization of other worlds for their resources. It would make us no better than the Ketaari.”
His attempt to reassure her had Sila frowning. For the first time, she had an inkling that perhaps the Ur’quay’s return to Sector Araloka was out of compulsion. She wondered what dire reason would prompt the legendary starfarers to take the drastic action to fight in a faraway war.
“Our starships could easily autoport shtoal off your planet without the Terrans being any wiser” he reminded her as she pondered a different matter altogether. “We did not do that. We would never do that” he emphasized, determined to defuse Sila’s anxiety about Terra Agri.
“I trust you, Star Captain” Sila said softly, stopping him in his tracks. The future was uncertain but trusting him came easy.
Relieved, he switched tracks. “Any more dreams, little Terran?”
The guttural tones had Sila straightening. “No” she responded spiritedly. “And I have been practicing with the Examiner, Star Captain. My mental shields are getting stronger. Soon, you will not be able to hear my thoughts” she declared triumphantly.
“I will always hear you, Sseela” he reiterated softly.
d
A week
later
Sila was preparing for bed, when the Ur’quay communicator trilled gently for attention. This time, she was ready. She had been anticipating a call from him.
“Sseela” said the familiar voice.
“Star Captain” she greeted him. “The final list for barter has been agreed to by the Council of Elders.”
“I have received the list you transmitted” he acknowledged.
“Both Terrans and Ur’quay are happy with the revised list” Sila said cheekily. She had been the principal negotiator, balancing and representing the interests of both sides engaged in the bargain. In the end, Sila was happy to have reached an agreement that she considered fair to both her people and his.
Zh’hir chuckled softly. “I am glad that both parties are happy with the barter.”
“There’s an additional piece of good news, Star Captain” Sila informed him excitedly. “Elder Arturo says that their crop estimates are looking better than the production numbers he’d originally given us. I think they would be willing to trade you the surplus for some more farming equipment.”
“We will take as much as they can produce” he agreed with alacrity, clearly pleased by the news.
“I will let both the Council and Representative Malontan know, Star Captain.”
There was a short silence.
“This food shortage on your world, Star Captain …?” Sila inquired hesitantly. She had spent a lot of time thinking about Ur’quay concerns since their last conversation.
“Yes?” he prompted with a touch of encouragement.
“You must have Food Synthesizers on your world. Cannot you synthesize enough food?”
“Synthesizers need energy to run — a fair bit of it. Most of our technology is powered by shtoal. Since there’s a shortage of shtoal, it too is rationed.”
“But once you have more shtoal from the Alliance, things should get better on your world” she remarked artlessly.
The Star Captain sighed softly. “The shtoal from Sector Araloka and the food from your world will definitely help. But my world has larger issues to deal with. One day, I will tell you about it, Sseela.”