by Timothy Zahn
“Not yet,” Jeff said under his breath, his hand touching hers warningly. Nicole turned to him, frowning—
“We need you to meet with us,” Fievj said.
Cambria was still coming. It was thirty yards away now—
“More specifically, to meet with Nevvis,” Fievj continued.
—twenty yards—
“He’s our leader, and the only one who can command our full loyalty.”
—ten yards—
“Now,” Jeff murmured.
“Wisp!” Nicole called. “Come here.”
Fievj half turned to his left to look behind him—
And like a striking rattlesnake Jeff leaped forward, grabbing Fievj’s right arm with his left hand. “Hold it!” he snapped, taking another step and catching the Shipmaster’s left arm in his right hand. “No weapons! You hear me?”
“I wasn’t reaching for a weapon,” Fievj snapped back. He jerked his arms upward, breaking Jeff’s double grip.
And with his torso half turned to the side and his full attention on Jeff, Cambria glided past him on his other side and handed the wrench to Nicole. She nodded thanks and quickly slid the wrench up her jumpsuit sleeve.
“Yeah, you’d better not be,” Jeff said, some of the starch gone out of his voice as he stepped back beside Nicole.
“I didn’t come here to fight,” Fievj said. He turned back, too, twitching again as he belatedly spotted the Wisp that had come up on his blind side and was now standing motionless beside Nicole. “I came for help.”
“We’ll see what we can do,” Nicole said. “Tell Nevvis to come by whenever he wants and we’ll talk.”
“He won’t come here,” Fievj said. “He fears for his safety in the center of your stronghold.”
“I hope he’s not suggesting Nicole come to Q1,” Jeff warned. “Because that’s a nonstarter from our end.”
“Understood,” Fievj said. “He suggests the more neutral territory of Q3. The Protector can choose any place within that quadrant for the meeting.”
“I’m not sure it’s all that neutral,” Nicole countered. “You control a lot of the Wisps there.”
“At times, yes, we do,” Fievj said. “But at other times, the control falls to you. The Fyrantha is as it is. If you can suggest a better location, I’m willing to listen.”
Nicole scowled. But he was right. “Fine,” she said. “When, and where?”
“Whenever and wherever you choose,” Fievj said. “If you’d like, Nevvis and I can wait across the crosswise duct in Q1 until you send a Wisp to give us your precise location. Would that make you feel safer?”
Nicole smiled tightly. Would that make you feel safer? Trake had used lines like that on her and the others all the time to try to put them on the defensive. The idea was to make the other person feel bad about making unreasonable demands and get them to back off.
Unfortunately for Fievj, Nicole had had plenty of experience with this particular game. “Yes, that should work,” she said. “You can wait on level 37, directly forward of the level 32 entrance to the Q3 arena.”
“And five levels down from it, of course,” Fievj said.
“Of course,” Nicole said. “Will that work for you?”
“Yes,” Fievj said. “When?”
“How long will it take you to get back to Q1 and get Nevvis to the meeting point?”
“No more than an hour,” Fievj said. “Perhaps sooner.”
“An hour, then,” Nicole said. “I’ll pick a spot and send a Wisp to bring you to me.”
Fievj turned his head slightly toward Cambria. Maybe he figured that was the Wisp she would be sending. Maybe he was just wondering why it was still standing there. “Very well,” he said. “We shall see you then.” He started to turn away—
“I assume she doesn’t have to come alone?” Jeff spoke up.
Fievj was silent a moment, and Nicole had the feeling he was studying Jeff through his helmet. “If you speak of guards, they’re unnecessary. Neither Nevvis nor I intend any harm to you.”
“That still leaves the Koffren,” Jeff said.
“The Koffren will not be there,” Fievj said. “But if you fear for the Protector’s safety, you may of course accompany her.”
“Great,” Jeff said. “One more thing. I want a bottle of the stuff that dissolves the tangler rounds.”
Fievj looked at Nicole, then back at Jeff. “You’ve spoken to the Ghorf.”
“You mean Kahkitah?” Nicole shrugged. “Of course. He was pretty upset about what happened and blamed me for lying to him.”
“As well he should,” Fievj said severely.
“Yeah, maybe,” Jeff said. “It’s not like you can always tell them the truth or expect them to keep secrets. They get confused about what they can tell other people and what they can’t.”
“Yes, we’ve noticed,” Fievj said. “Still, an easygoing populace makes for a quiet civilization. In some ways, they’re lucky.”
“Yeah, giving up brains for extra muscle is always a good idea,” Jeff said. “So what about that magic paint thinner of yours?”
Fievj half turned around to the horse section of his armor. Nicole tensed; but the hinged cover opened to reveal only a frame holding twelve short black boxes and an equal number of small eyedropper bottles like the ones Kahkitah had described. “Here,” Fievj said, selecting one of the bottles and turning back to hand it to Jeff.
“Let’s make it two,” Jeff said. “And throw in a few tangler rounds so we can make sure the stuff works. I’m guessing those other things are magazines?”
“It’s the correct solvent,” Fievj said. “You can take my word for it.”
“Well, actually, no, we can’t,” Jeff said. “Come on—you’ve got a dozen bottles and mags back there. You can spare me one of them.”
Fievj hesitated. Then, with clear reluctance, he turned back and picked out one of the boxes and another fluid bottle. “Will there be more demands?” he asked stiffly as he handed Jeff the box with one hand and closed the storage cover with the other.
“No, this should do,” Jeff said, peering at the box a moment before lowering his hands to his sides. “Still means you’re the only ones with guns, but this stuff will at least lower the odds a little.”
“If I’d wished to shoot you or the Protector, I could have brought a weapon with me,” Fievj reminded him.
“Except that you need me alive and well,” Nicole reminded him.
“I will return to Q1 and await your message,” Fievj said, letting her comment pass without response. With a final pointed look at Cambria, he turned and walked away, his rear legs matching his front legs in their slightly off-rhythm way.
“What do you think?” Jeff asked quietly.
“Look like he’s falling right into line,” Nicole murmured back.
“You mean playing it the way you thought?”
“Yeah.” Nicole turned to Cambria and took its arm. Thank you for the wrench, she said, sliding it back out of her sleeve. It was a number four, just like she’d asked for. You may return to the others in the dining room.
I obey the Protector.
Nicole let go of its arm, and the Wisp turned and glided away. Midway to the next cross-corridor it passed Levi, who’d emerged from the same cross-corridor where he’d been lurking and was now walking toward Nicole and Jeff. He gave the Wisp a quick speculative look as they passed each other, then continued forward. “So what did he want?” he asked as he came up to them. “I couldn’t hear the conversation from back there.”
“His boss wants to talk to Nicole,” Jeff said. “They’re meeting in an hour over in Q3.”
“Are they, now,” Levi said darkly. “I hope you’re not trusting him.”
“Oh, no, not at all,” Nicole assured him. “We’re pretty sure he’s planning something.”
“That’s a start, I guess,” Levi said. “I don’t suppose you happen to know what that something might be?”
Nicole hesitated. She trusted Levi as
much as she trusted any of them. But there was still the question of how much the Caretaker could see and hear of what went on inside the ship. And, more to the point, how much of what he heard the Shipmasters were also hearing. “Well, it’s a trap,” she said. “That much is for sure.”
“We’re getting an escort together for her,” Jeff added. “You interested?”
Levi snorted. “After last time? I don’t think you’ll find anyone willing to go through that again.”
“We’ve been told the Koffren won’t be involved,” Jeff said.
“Yeah,” Levi said dryly. “I’ve been told unicorns will be serving dinner tonight.”
“That’s okay,” Nicole said. “Actually, I was thinking Moile, Teika, and I would handle it by ourselves.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so,” Jeff said. “We need to make sure you’re safe.”
“I’ll be safe,” Nicole said. “The thing is to make sure you’re safe.”
“That he’s safe?” Levi echoed, frowning. “What’s he got to be worried about?”
“Never mind,” Nicole said, glaring warningly at Jeff. “The point is that he needs to be ready to move if and when I make a deal with Nevvis.” She raised her eyebrows at Jeff. “Right?”
Jeff’s face and body language were a mess of silent protest. But he gave a reluctant nod. “Right.”
“And now I need to get ready,” Nicole said. “We’ll go to the dining room first and make sure Cambria and the other Wisps will obey you. Then I’ll go find the Ponngs.”
“What do you want me to do?” Levi asked.
“Just be ready, I guess,” Nicole said.
“Be ready for what?”
Nicole grimaced. “For anything.”
* * *
Nicole had told Fievj to wait for her message on level 37. She’d also spent a fair amount of time on level 36 after Bungie had gotten her away from the Shipmaster and Koffren ambush, which suggested she might not want to hang around that level.
But there was another level she’d spent even more time on, and which she knew better than any of the others. Leading Moile and Teika to the Fyrantha’s centerline, she summoned the Wisps she needed, and a few minutes later they all crossed the heat duct to Q3. Leaving the Wisps waiting behind them in the long corridor, she and the Ponngs headed farther into the quadrant.
“This is level 32, is it not?” Moile asked, looking around as they walked.
“It is,” Nicole confirmed. “That way”—she pointed to the left—“is the arena where you and the Thii fought.”
“And now we and the Thii battle side by side under your leadership,” Teika murmured.
“Indeed,” Moile said. “We will strive always to be worthy of your trust.”
“I know you will,” Nicole assured him. Whether or not she would remain worthy of their trust, unfortunately, was another question entirely.
“How far are we going?” Moile asked.
“Not much farther,” Nicole said, looking back over her shoulder. They were five corridors in, far enough from the centerline to make it all look like good faith but close enough that a solid sprint would get them back to where they’d left the Wisps before any of them ran out of wind. “In fact, this looks good right here.”
She stopped and filled her lungs. “Wisps! I need one of you.”
She counted out twenty seconds. Then, from one of the main corridors ahead a Wisp appeared and started toward them. “That’s far enough,” Nicole called as Moile and Teika stepped in front of her and took up guard positions, their swords held ready. “I just have a message for you to deliver.”
The Wisp stopped. “I want you to go across to Q1 and down to level 37,” Nicole told it. “Fievj and another Shipmaster should be waiting there across from the Q3 arena. Tell them I’m waiting for them here on level 32. Please.”
For a moment the Wisp stood there, as if thinking about it. Then, it turned and headed forward down the corridor it had first appeared from.
“Heading to the crosswise heat duct, probably,” she commented. “I wonder if they always use the ducts to go up and down or if they ever use the stairs.”
“I have no knowledge of that,” Moile said. “Do you think it communicates with the Shipmasters the way it does with you?”
“You mean by telepathic touch?” Nicole shrugged. “I assume so. Though if there’s a problem, it can probably just lead them up here.”
“Yes.” Moile hesitated. “I must confess to you, Protector, that I agree with Jeff. I think this plan is highly dangerous. And not just to you personally.”
“I know Jeff thinks that,” Nicole said.
“And you don’t?”
“Well … yes, I suppose so,” she conceded. “But if I’ve read the Shipmasters right, this should work. Anyway, I don’t see us having any better choices right now.”
Moile was silent a moment. “You understand so many things,” he said thoughtfully. “Is that because of who you are? Or is it who you are plus the Fyrantha speaking and acting through you?”
“I honestly don’t know, Moile,” Nicole said, wincing. The thought that the ship might be influencing her without her knowledge still gave her the creeps. “As to how much I understand, let’s wait on that one until we see what happens in the next hour or so.”
“Yes.” Another pause. “Perhaps we should at least back up one corridor,” he suggested. “If the Wisp tells them exactly where you are, they’ll be able to flank us.”
“Good point,” Nicole said, looking behind her. “Right. Matter of fact, let’s back up two corridors.”
“We’ll still be in sight for a long degree of time,” Teika pointed out.
“Yes.” Nicole took a deep breath. “But then, we kind of have to be, don’t we?”
* * *
Nicole had guessed that it would be at least twenty minutes before anyone arrived.
Apparently, the Shipmasters were more anxious and eager than she’d thought.
Two armored centaurs appeared first, clumping into view around the same corner the messenger Wisp had disappeared down. They spotted Nicole and stopped. “Protector?” one of them called. “I am Fievj. This is Nevvis.”
“Hello, Nevvis,” Nicole called back. “Nice to finally meet you.”
“This hardly qualifies as meeting,” a darker voice rumbled at her. “Come closer, that we may speak as equals. Or do you fear me?”
“Of course I fear you,” Nicole called. “That’s the whole point of the armor, isn’t it? To scare people?”
“Come closer,” Nevvis insisted.
“You want to talk closer?” Nicole retorted. “Then you come closer.”
“Insolence,” Nevvis bit out. “I offered you mercy. Now I offer only defeat and destruction.”
Moile made a sound in the back of his throat and lifted his sword a little higher.
“Is that a threat?” Nicole asked calmly. “I thought you wanted to make a deal.”
“We will make a deal,” Nevvis said. “But you perhaps will not survive to see it.”
And from the corridor twenty yards in front of Nicole, Bungie stepped into view.
But for that first moment his back was to her, his face and the spider gun in his hand pointed toward the two Shipmasters.
“No, I’m back here,” Nicole called.
He spun around, a confused look momentarily on his face before it was replaced with his trademark smirk. “Thought you were going to wait back there,” he said, nodding his head over his shoulder to where Nicole and the Ponngs had originally been waiting.
“I thought you weren’t going to attack me,” Nicole said, ignoring him and addressing her comment to the Shipmasters.
“We shall not,” Fievj said. “But you are a danger to us and to all who dwell aboard this vessel. Only if we can contain and neutralize you will the Koffren rescind their challenge to our command of the Fyrantha.”
“So this is your big idea?” Nicole scoffed, waving at Bungie. “Him?”
“Yo
u’re so clever, aren’t you?” Bungie said, the smirk growing wider. “Oh, yeah—you understand me, and Fievj, and everyone else. But there’s one person you never figured out. Ever.”
“Hello, Nicole,” a familiar voice came from behind her.
Nicole turned, her stomach tightening into a knot. Standing in a line across the cross-corridor were five men. Big men; brutal-looking men. Dressed in the all-too-familiar gang colors of Philadelphia, spider guns held loosely at their sides.
And standing in the center of the group, looking as always like he owned everything and everyone he could see, including Nicole—
“Hey, Nicole,” Trake leered. “How you been?”
fourteen
There was no time to answer. There was certainly no time to gape. Snatching the sword out of Teika’s hand, Nicole spun around and hurled it as hard as she could toward Bungie.
He was still diving for the floor to get clear of the spinning weapon, his spider gun flying from his hand, when she charged. “Come on!” she shouted over her shoulder.
The order was unnecessary. The two Ponngs were already on the move, skittering behind her on their shorter legs.
Nicole eyed Bungie’s bouncing spider gun longingly as she ran, wondering briefly if she had time to grab it. But the weapon was too far out of reach, and she didn’t dare waste the pair of seconds it would take to go after it. The instant Trake and his gang recovered from their surprise at her abrupt move they would undoubtedly open fire, and the only thing that stood between her and their own spider guns were the two Ponngs. Focusing on pumping her legs as hard as she could—wincing as Fievj and Nevvis twisted at the waist, turning around to get to their horse-body weapon caches—she reached the corridor Bungie had appeared from—
But instead of turning right, the direction that led forward to Q1, she banked to her left and sprinted off in the opposite direction, toward the arena and the rear of the ship.
As she rounded the corner, she glanced to her left to see Trake and the other four break their stunned paralysis and charge after her.