by G W Langdon
“Together, we can make our strengths greater and our weaknesses lesser for the best chance to win the war. There are a few differences to negotiate through, but I’m confident we will be far-sighted enough today to see that we share the same goals of a free and prosperous Heyre.” He straightened and opened the embossed red folder. “Before I present the Grand Alliance for signing, are there any matters for final consideration?”
Kaiyo waited for a moment and signed the Grand Alliance Agreement with his trademark flourish then passed the folder to the envoy.
Queen Lillia received the folder then set it down. “While our meeting has assumed that war with Decay is inevitable, I feel I must exhaust every possibility to secure a lasting peace. The chances of avoiding war are slim, but my unique position compels me to attend the peace talks on the Space Palace of Emperor Tilaxian.”
Chairman Kaiyo froze, his crowning moment of accomplishment diminished.
Reuzk half-smiled. “You only tell us about this now.”
“Another reason,” she continued, “is that even though I despise every gene in my father’s body and have not spoken directly to him since his exile, I feel it is my duty to see him before he dies. He is very old now and the most recent transmission from the Space Palace indicates he’s in declining health. These peace negotiations will be my—our last chance.”
“It must be difficult to fulfil your obligations as a daughter to someone who has caused you so much pain,” Kaiyo comforted.
She smiled graciously. “As a gesture of trust and solidarity, and to ensure safe travel should unforeseen circumstances arise, I will place Abellia under direct Federation security and protection.” She turned to President Lauzen. “Am I right to say the warship OutRider, will be the last ship to leave Heyre, via the peace talks, for the Armada?”
Lauzen looked to Reuzk. “With the space-liner, Cracelia.”
Reuzk nodded his head in confirmation. “There’s a double-moon slingshot window in twenty-one days.” The peace talks were a political denial of history and the true nature of what they faced. Being Tilaxian’s daughter did not guarantee her safety. “Decay cannot be trusted.”
“Thank you for your concern, general, but it is something I must do.”
Why was she really taking the huge risk of leaving the sanctuary of Heyre for the perils of deep space? It wasn’t to have a final catch-up and certainly not to negotiate any peace. Was it to escape before Jbir exposed her true crimes? Then again, having her off-planet for so long would make his command that much easier. He could just let her go and hopefully she’d never come back.
“There’s one more issue,” she said. “We agree Gi LaMon requires our fullest attention. Although Gi LaMon is a virtual realm, its influence is profound on the real city it reflects and as such will be a key battlefront in the Defense of Heyre if war should come to Heyre. Therefore, if I am to be an equal partner in the Alliance, it is essential I have an embedded intelligence agent inside Gi LaMon.”
“Why do you need an agent embedded in Gi LaMon,” Reuzk asked, studying Lauzen for collusion.
“I have invested enormous time and resources in this asset and want safeguards against possible corruption. Being embedded means it cannot be tampered with—no permissible modifications. Of course, the agent’s operating Blueprint will be subjected to the full range of Federation security checks.”
“We have enough agents in Gi LaMon,” Reuzk said flatly. “Why do you need such a powerful VR representative? Only a Stealth has the autonomy you ask for.”
“My asset is an expert in detecting system anomalies and needs the freedom to use those skills to the fullest. Secondly, as you have rightly said, Decay cannot be trusted and in the very slim chance the peace negotiations prove hazardous I do not want to lose these unique skills altogether if there is a double-cross.”
Kaiyo took a long drink of ice water and carefully set the glass on the table. “The Grand Alliance is one of equal partners, so I see it only reasonable to grant Queen Lillia her final request. Do you agree, President Lauzen?”
“I will need to discuss the details with General Reuzk and Amie, but at this stage, I can’t see anything insurmountable. Do you, general?”
“I’m yet to be convinced.”
“Might I suggest the neural Blueprint Inception date is only after any attack by Decay The agent is strictly to assist in the war effort, should Decay ever come to Heyre. Until then the agent remains dormant. Of course, as Federation’s military commander, General Reuzk is free to activate the agent any time after Amie embeds the neurals. Agreed?”
She held the royal seal above the Grand Alliance contract and waited for any dissent. She stamped the seal and wrote her full title and initials underneath and passed the document around the table.
Lauzen signed the document and the envoy returned the folder to the top of the table for Hyasin and Myxil to witness. Kaiyo slipped the agreement inside the folder and made three copies. He gave kept one for himself and distributed the others to President Lauzen and Queen Lillia.
She scooped up her copy of the agreement and excused herself from the chambers.
“May I join you?” Reuzk asked, approaching the hyperLift and pushing in front of Darlak. “Alone. I have some questions.”
“Of course, general. Darlak, take the stairs and meet me back at the castle to discuss the ordering of my kingdom affairs.”
They disembarked the lift and strolled along the tree-lined esplanade on the shore front.
“You don’t mind?” he said, removing an orb from his jacket. “It won’t take Hyasin long to send his Ambients to check on us.”
“It would be wise. Hyasin has an amateur, overly suspicious nature.”
He activated the quantum privacy shield and the world outside turned black and white.
“So much has changed since Tilas,” she said.
“We were on the same side back then.” He turned to her. “I’m a little confused. Are we on the same side now?”
“It’s complicated. I would’ve liked clearer separation, but as with the view, there’s much that’s grey.”
“I assume you’re taking Thomas Ryder with you.”
“He’s too valuable to leave here—with you. His education is progressing faster than I thought given his starting point, but he’s far from the finished asset I need him to be.”
“We need him to be.”
“Of course—a great king.”
“Hence the pill.”
“Pill? Oh, your meeting with Ba’illi. Longevity to keep him relevant, nothing dangerous.”
“Nor too difficult for whoever was behind the Diffraction mask on your balcony twenty-nine days ago. I’m sure we’ve met before. Did he work for your father?”
“I doubt you’d know him.”
He stopped in front of her. “I do know him. He’s very advanced for a doctor—more a surgeon. What was your father up to?”
“He had his secrets, as we all do. I can’t help but think Sarra reminds me of someone else. Don’t you think?”
He closed in. “I don’t have the full picture yet of how the surgeon got to Heyre, but my guess is he came with Jbir, helped by Rulg.”
“You have a lot to figure out before I leave.”
“It was a nice touch having a warship escort for you to the Space Palace.”
“Thank you. I was going to go on my own, but when the opportunity came to ‘tailcoat’ with the space-liner, Cracelia, the timing was too good to ignore.”
“Your father must be putting on a grand banquet to draw two hundred and nine Tilasian elites from their dens in the Gated Zone.”
“I would expect a similar number from the Courts. Royalty see themselves above the political differences of my father and King Jialin. You know what they’re like; any excuse for a good family get-together.”
“Of course, the Reals will be sending ambassadors to record their Space Palace experiences for inception upon their return. The excitement of being there without
the risk.”
“They never had a Grand Banquet in my time in the Courts. There were magnificent occasions and vain displays of wealth and power, but there was a muted grandeur to the affairs, as if a dark shadow had sucked out the very soul of the Courts.”
“I assumed that was the natural gloom of the place. Dungeons can play on your mind like that.”
“I can only guess my father’s true intentions, but he knows how to put on a spectacle to impress. It will be some affair, four or five days I would imagine.”
“Pomp and politics with oversized egos on full display. What could possibly go wrong?” He chuckled then turned serious. “Kaiyo might believe your story, but I don’t accept it.
“The story wasn’t meant for you. The elites of Heyre draw comfort in their shiny technology and puff themselves on the glories of the past, but we both know from first-hand experience the brutality of war and understand what it will actually take to defeat Decay.”
“Why are you really going to the Space Palace?”
“My father has outlived his usefulness.” She halted him by the arm. “I’m going to kill him.”
“That’s the first time you’ve told the truth.” He smiled, noticing for the first time her violet fingernails. “Say hello for me when you’re holding a knife to his throat. However, it will be very dangerous confronting the emperor without home advantage. He won’t think twice about using the cover of the banquet to inflict his prejudices, especially towards your pretender king, and his protectors.”
“Which is why I must have a backup.”
The Ambients arrived and the privacy shield turned yellow against the primary hack.
“While we’re on that subject, have you found Jbir’s failSafe?”
“No,” he said, considering how much time they had left under the brightening shield, “but you’ll be the first one to know when I do. It’s only a matter of time before your ruses are seen for what they truly are.”
“Don’t overplay your hand, Reuzk. You don’t appreciate what’s truly at stake.”
“You and President Lauzen looked rather cozy in in the foyer.”
“We have an understanding of the best path for winning the war.”
“Make no mistake, Queen Lillia. You do not leave Heyre without my blessing.”
The shield collapsed and the bright, outside day rushed in.
Chapter 30
“Ipso Facto.”
“What?”
“It’s Latin—for…”
“I know what it means,” Tom said, as he threw the dice—a six and a one. “‘By the fact of’, but what are you talking about?”
Ba’illi leant back from the lesser table. “Then you also know of Pythagoras?”
“He was Greek; Latin is Roman.”
“I know. Then you’ve heard of him?”
“Mathematics, as far as I know.”
“And much more. Reincarnation of souls. Strange that an intelligent, logical man would entertain those thoughts, don’t you think?”
“You’ve got me too busy with science to worry about the ancients— although the Romans were an interesting bunch. I’ll get onto them one day.”
“How could someone believe in the power of mathematics and also believe in a soul? It doesn’t make sense to me, although it does make me curious. What do you think?”
“I think you’re trying to put me off the game.” Ba’illi’s interest in ancient Greece would barely scratch the surface of the data the pirates brought back from Earth, which meant the queen had much more hidden away. As unlikely as the alien nature of Earthworld had been, Vera’s virtual world had to be Earth. She would’ve compiled and run a simpler, prehistoric realm to calibrate a global framework before layering in a complex modern world.
“Why do you play backgammon when you hate uncertainty?” Ba’illi asked.
“I don’t hate uncertainty, not in the way you do, but I prefer being in control even though the odds are stacked against that in here. Backgammon is a game of chance—a reminder that the truth lies between fate and freewill.” He half-moved the backgammon marker and put it back. “Seeking control in a chaotic world is a worthwhile pursuit.” On second thoughts, if he got the right numbers. He moved the marker to the point. “Besides, backgammon’s the only way I can win, against a hyper-intellectual.”
“Win, lose. It’s the same to me.” Ba’illi threw a five and a one and nodded. “I can work with those numbers.”
Tom sipped his Spirel and assessed the endgame possibilities. He was favorably ahead of Ba’illi, but that could change in an instant with one throw. “It’s not all luck. Intuition is an important part of risk taking and strategy.” He blew on the dice in his fist and rolled the dice across the board. A lousy four and three. “Just when you think you’ve caught a break. You hope for good fortune, but in the end, you get what you get.” He moved the markers into the backcourt: two more throws—one if he got good numbers and he could start taking markers off the board. “You don’t like backgammon because it lacks the mathematical certainty of chess where you always win?”
Ba’illi threw a double six. “You’re behind now.”
Tom twisted violently in the chair and stared at the door. “Did you hear that?”
“What? Stop trying to put me off.”
He got up and grabbed the staff. “Something’s wrong, really wrong.”
“You’re imagining things. I have a superior hearing response range,” Ba’illi said, craning his ear towards the door. “Nothing. Where’re you going? We haven’t finished yet.”
“It’s the knight.”
“That’s impossible. He’s eight floors above us.”
He rushed to the knight’s quarters, knocked on the doors and waited as long as he could stand, then barged in. A mannequin’s decapitated head hit the floor. The knight uncloaked and turned to him. His brows narrowed in a furious rage and a seething menace burned in his eyes.
Tom stepped over the mannequin’s head. “What’s wrong? I heard…” He sniffed the air. She’d been here. “What’s she done?”
The knight stabbed his sword into the floor. “We’re going to war.”
He ran back to the lift. “Lower Chambers.”
Tom strode past the royal portraits in the Lower Chamber corridor. The portraits, that he’d thought were just kings and queens sitting in noble repose, had weapons in the background and carefully placed spoils of war to the side. King Jialin looked out with eyes that seemed to follow him as he walked past. Judging his worth.
He raised his fist to knock and the doors parted.
“What’s the knight talking about?” he asked, heading straight for her sofa. “What war?” He stamped his staff into the rug and the Shimmer Tree dazzled from top to bottom.
“The knight said that,” the queen said, laying her embroidery aside. “It’s nothing as serious as war, but it will have its challenges.”
“I don’t think he shares your view.”
“It’s his way of preparing himself.”
“For what?”
“We’re leaving Heyre.”
“You and the knight are going… to Gukre?”
She stood up and glanced to the dragon painting. “No. We’re all leaving, but don’t worry, we’re coming back. I’ve some very old matters to attend to that are time-sensitive.”
“You’re not making sense, as usual. We are leaving Heyre for where? There’s nowhere to go.”
“Search your mind. Where do you think?”
“No, not there,” he said, drawn to Golgoth.
“My father’s in poor health and I must visit the Space Palace to see him for the final time.”
“I’m not going. General Reuzk can oversee my training.”
“General Reuzk has given his blessing. You have no choice in the matter.”
Tom wiped his hands through his hair. “But the palace is…”
“One hundred and eighteen light-years from Heyre.”
“You… you’ve been pl
anning this all along.” What could he smash? “That’s why you gave me the Methuselah pill.”
“You chose to have the pill. But it was necessary for the larger goal, no matter whether we stayed or not. Nothing’s changed; long term.”
He clenched his fists. “Lies. It’s all lies. You said the upgrade was so I could see Sarra again and now you’re taking me away from her for… two hundred and sixty years.”
“A little more, but what’s a decade or two? Sarra will be just fine. You and I both know she’s not real. What’s time to subsets of code? Besides, she’ll be there when you get back.”
He gripped the staff tighter and a trembling wave of anger rose inside. “I’m not going, and that’s that,” he said, briefly distracted by the quaking Shimmer Tree.
“You’re over-reacting, as the knight did. Look at it this way. You’re playing backgammon and throw an unexpected roll of the dice. Even if you lose the round, to continue the analogy, you can return to the board another time and win the next round, the set, and ultimately the full game. The journey to the Space Palace only delays where we must end up.”
“How can I trust you, anymore?” he said, keeping his distance from her bewitching ways.
“Because I want you to succeed, truly, although I am disappointed you failed the Upgrade test.”
“Failed? Test?”
“It was the doctor’s idea to prove that when you came under real pressure to choose, you wouldn’t stand by your proud proclamations about the sanctity of true nature. And he was right. I wagered you were better than that and would stay true to your convictions and refuse the upgrade. But you gave in to personal desire. A king must be much greater than what you’ve shown if he is to lead.”
“I did it for Sarra.”
“Exactly, you never thought of the greater good. It saddens me you failed the test, but I remain hopeful. Life is tinged with sadness for what once was, but don’t fall into the trap of looking back to a better, imaginary world. You alone have the chance to write a future that’s free from the tyrannies of the past.”