Orson Scott Card - Ender 08 - Shadow of the Giant

by Orson Scott Card

  Finally he stood in the street and shouted. "All I want is a place to sleep! And a bite to eat! What you would give a dog!"

  But no one even told him to shut up.

  Chapekar went to the train station and tried to buy a ticket out, using some of the money the Chinese had given him to help him make his way home. But no one would sell him a ticket. Whatever window he went to was closed in his face, and the line moved over to the next one, making no room for him.

  At noon the next day, exhausted, hungry, thirsty, he made his way back to the Muslim military compound and, after being fed and clothed and given a place to bathe and sleep by his enemies, he was flown out of India, then out of Muslim territory. He ended up in the Netherlands, where public charity would support him until he found employment.

  The second visitor followed no known road to come to the hut. Virlomi merely opened her eyes in the middle of the night, and despite the complete darkness, she could see Sayagi sitting on the mat near the door.

  "You're dead," she said to him.

  "I'm still awaiting rebirth," he said.

  "You should have lived," Virlomi told him. "I admired you greatly. You would have been such a husband for me and such a father for India."

  "India is already alive. She does not need you to give birth to her," said Sayagi.

  "India does not know she's alive, Sayagi. To wake someone from a coma is to bring them to life as surely as a mother brings forth life when she bears a baby."

  "Always have an answer, don't you? And the way you talk now— like a god. How did it happen, Virlomi? Was it when Petra chose you to confide in?"

  "It was when I decided to take action."

  "Your action succeeded," said Sayagi. "Mine failed."

  "You should not have spoken to Achilles. You should simply have killed him."

  "He said he had the building wired with explosives."

  "And you believed him?"

  "There were other lives besides mine. You escaped in order to save the lives of the Battle Schoolers. Should I then have thrown their lives away?"

  "You misunderstand me, Sayagi. All I say now is, either you act or you don't act. Either you do the thing that makes a difference, or you do nothing at all. You chose a middle way, and when it comes to war, the middle way is death."

  "Now you tell me."

  "Sayagi, why have you come to me?"

  "I haven't. I'm only a dream. You're awake enough to realise that. You're making up both sides of this conversation."

  "Then why am I making you up? What do I need to learn from you?"

  "My fate," said Sayagi. "So far all your gambits have worked, but that's because you have always played against fools. Now Alai is in control of one enemy, Han Tzu another, and Peter Wiggin is the most dangerous and subtle of all. Against these adversaries, you will not win so easily. Death lies down this road, Virlomi."

  "I'm not afraid to die. I've faced death many times, and when the gods decide it's time for me to—"

  "See, Virlomi? You've already forgotten that you don't believe in the gods."

  "But I do, Sayagi. How else can I explain my string of impossible victories?"

  "Superb training in Battle School. Your innate brilliance. Brave and wise Indians who awaited only a decisive leader to show them how to act like people worthy of their own civilisation. And very, very stupid enemies."

  "And couldn't it be the gods who arranged for me to have these things?"

  "It was an unbroken network of causality leading back to the first human who wasn't a chimp. And farther back, to the coalescing of the planets around the sun. If you wish to call that God, go ahead."

  "The cause of everything," said Virlomi. "The purpose of everything. And if there are no gods, then my own purposes will have to do."

  "Making you the only god that actually exists."

  "If I can call you back from the dead by the power of my mind alone, I'd say I'm pretty powerful."

  Sayagi laughed. "Oh, Virlomi, if only we had lived! Such lovers we could have been! Such children we could have had!"

  "You may have died, but I didn't."

  "Didn't you? The real Virlomi died the day you escaped from Hyderabad, and this impostor has been playing the part ever since."

  "No," said Virlomi. "The real Virlomi died the day she heard you had been killed."

  "Now you say it. When I was alive, not one little kiss, nothing. I think you didn't even fall in love with me until I was safely dead."

  "Go away," she said. "It's time for me to sleep."

  "No," he said. "Wake up, light your lamp, and write down this vision. Even if it is only a manifestation of your unconscious, it's a fascinating one, and it's worth pondering over. Especially the part about love and marriage. You have some cock-eyed plan to marry dynastically. But I tell you the only way you'll be happy is to marry a man who loves you, not one who covets India."

  "I knew that," said Virlomi. "I just didn't think it mattered whether I was happy."

  That's when Sayagi left her tent. She wrote and wrote and wrote. But when she woke in the morning, she found that she had written nothing. The writing was also part of the dream.

  It didn't matter. She remembered. Even if he denied that he was really the spirit of her dead friend and mocked her for believing in the gods, she did believe, and knew that he was a spirit in transit, and that the gods had sent him to her to teach her.

  The third visitor did not have to have help from the aides. He came walking in from empty fields, and he already wore the garb of a peasant. However, he was not dressed as an Indian peasant. He wore the clothing of a Chinese rice-paddy worker.

  He placed himself at the very end of the line and bowed himself to the dust. He did not move forward when the line moved forward. Every Indian he allowed to pass in front of him. And when dusk came and Virlomi wept and said good-bye to all, he did not go.

  The aides did not come to him. Instead, Virlomi emerged from the hut and walked to him in the darkness, carrying a lamp.

  "Get up," she said to him. "You're a fool to come here unescorted."

  He stood up. "So I was recognised?"

  "Could you have possibly looked more Chinese?"

  "Rumours are flying?"

  "But we're keeping them off the nets. For now. By morning, there's no controlling it."

  "I came to ask you to marry me," said Han.

  "I'm older than you," said Virlomi. "And you're the emperor of China."

  "I thought that was one of my best features," said Han.

  "Your country conquered mine."

  "But I didn't. I gave the captives back and as soon as you say the word, I'll come here in state and get down on my knees in front of you—again—and apologise to you on behalf of the Chinese people. Marry me."

  "What in the world do relations between our nations have to do with sharing a bed with a boy that I didn't have all that high an opinion of in Battle School?"

  "Virlomi," said Han, "we can destroy each other as rivals. Or we can unite and together we'll have more than half the population of the world."

  "How could it work? The Indian people will never follow you. The Chinese people will never follow me."

  "It worked for Ferdinand and Isabella."

  "Only because they were fighting the Moors. And Isabella and her people had to fight to keep Ferdinand from trampling on her rights as Queen of Castile."

  "So we'll do even better," said Han. "Everything you've done has been flawless."

  "As a good friend recently reminded me, it's easy to win when you're opposed by idiots."

  "Virlomi," said Han.

  "Now are you going to tell me that you love me?"

  "But I do," said Han. "And you know why. Because all of us who were chosen for Battle School, there's only one thing we love and one thing we respect: We love brilliance and we respect power. You've created power out of nothing."

  "I've created power out of the love and trust of my people."

  "I love you, Virlomi
."

  "Love me ... and yet you think that you're my superior."

  "Superior? I've never led armies in battle. You have."

  "You were in Ender's Jeesh," said Virlomi. "I wasn't. You'll always think I'm less than you because of that."

  "Are you really telling me no? Or merely to try harder or come up with better reasons or prove my worth in some other way."

  "I'm not going to set you to a series of lovers' tests," said Virlomi. "This isn't a fairy tale. My answer is no. Now and always. The dragon and the tiger don't have to be enemies, but how can a mammal and an egg-laying reptile ever possibly mate?"

  "So you got my letter."

  "Pathetically easy cipher. Anybody with half a brain could get it. Your code was just to type an obvious version of your nickname with your fingers moved one row higher on the keyboard."

  "And yet only you, of all the thousands who access the nets, figured out it was from me."

  Virlomi sighed.

  "Just promise me this," said Han.

  "No."

  "Hear the promise first," said Han.

  "Why should I promise you anything?"

  "So I don't pre-emptively invade India again?"

  "With what army?"

  "I didn't mean now."

  "What's the promise you want me to make?"

  "That you won't marry Alai, either."

  "A Hindu, marrying the Caliph of all Islam? I never knew you had such a sense of humour."

  "He'll offer," said Han.

  "Go home, Han. And, by the way, we saw the choppers arrive and let them pass. We also asked the Muslim oppressors not to shoot you down, either."

  "I appreciated that. I thought it meant you liked me, at least a little."

  "I do like you," said Virlomi. "I just don't intend to let you diddle me."

  "I didn't know a mere diddle was on the table."

  "Nothing's on the table. Back to your chopper, Boy Emperor."

  "Virlomi, I beg you now. Let's be friends, at least."

  "That would be nice. Someday, maybe."

  "Write to me. Get to know me."

  She shook her head, laughing, and walked back to her hut. Han Tzu walked back out into the fields as the night wind rose.

  CHAPTER 15 — RATIFICATION

  From: RadaghasteBellini%privado@presidência.br.gov

  To: PeterWiggin%private@hegemon.gov

  Re: Please consider carefully

  If your goal is to establish world peace, my friend, why would you begin our Constitution with a deliberate act of provocation against two widely separated nations, one of which might call upon the whole weight of Islam against you?

  Is peace to be founded on war after all? And if you did not have Julian Delphiki commanding 100,000 friendly African troops, would you attempt it?

  From: PeterWiggin%private@hegemon.gov

  To: RadaghasteBellini%privado@presidência.br.gov

  Re: We must make it real

  History is strewn with the corpses of attempted world governments. We must demonstrate immediately that we are serious, that we are capable, and that we are transformative.

  And without Delphiki, I would follow your more prudent counsel, because I would not count on our African troops.

  The ceremony was simple enough. Peter Wiggin, Felix Starman, Klaus Boom, and Radaghaste Bellini stood on a platform in Kiyagi, Rwanda. There was no attempt to bring in crowds of citizens to cheer; neither was there any kind of military presence. The audience consisted entirely of reporters.

  Copies of the Constitution were provided on the spot. Felix Starman explained the new government very briefly; Radaghaste Bellini informed them of the unified military command; Klaus Boom explained the principles under which new nations could be admitted to the Free People of the Earth.

  "No nation will be admitted that does not already provide human rights, including a free and universal adult franchise." Then he dropped the bombshell. "Nor do we require that a nation already be recognised by any existing nation or body of nations, provided it meets our other requirements."

  The reporters murmured to each other as Peter Wiggin walked to the dais and the map appeared on the screen behind him. As he named each country that had already secretly ratified the Constitution, it was lighted in pale blue on the map.

  South America provided the largest swathes of blue, with Brazil lighting up half the continent, along with Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Suriname, and Guyana. In Africa, the blue was not so dominant, but it represented most of the African nations that had maintained stability and democracy for at least a hundred years: Rwanda, Botswana, Cameroon, Mozambique, Angola, Ghana, Liberia. No two ratifying nations bordered on each other. No one missed the fact that South Africa and Nigeria were not participating, despite their long record of stability and freedom; nor did anyone fail to notice that no Muslim nation was included.

  In Europe, the map was even sparser: The Netherlands, Slovenia, Czechland, Estonia, and Finland.

  Elsewhere, blue was rare. Peter had hoped the Philippines would be ready for the announcement, but at the last minute the government chose to wait and see. Tonga had ratified; so had Haiti, the first nation where Peter's abilities had been tested. Several other small Caribbean nations were also blue.

  "At the earliest opportunity," said Peter, "plebiscites will be held in all the ratifying nations. In the future, however, plebiscites will precede a nation's entry into the Free People of Earth. We will maintain capitals in three places: Ribeirdo Preto, Brazil; Kiyagi, Rwanda; and Rotterdam in the Netherlands. However, because the official language of the FPE is Common, and few people find the pronunciation of Ribeirdo Preto ... comfortable..."

  The reporters laughed, since they were the ones who had to bear the brunt of learning to pronounce the Portuguese nasals.

  "...therefore," Peter continued, "the Brazilian government has kindly allowed us to translate the name of the city for world government purposes. From now on, you may refer to the South American capital of the FPE as 'Blackstream,' one word."

  "Will you do the same with Kiyagi!" shouted a reporter.

  "Since you are able to pronounce it," said Peter, "we will not."

  More laughter.

  Peter's acceptance of the question, however, opened the floodgates, and they began calling out to him. He raised his hands. "In a minute, be patient."

  They quieted down.

  "There is a reason why we have chosen the name 'Free People of Earth' for our Constitution, instead of, say, 'United Nations.' "

  Another laugh. They all knew why that name wouldn't be used.

  "This Constitution is a contract among free citizens, not between nations. The old borders will be respected insofar as they make sense, but where they don't, adjustments will be made. And people who have long been deprived of legally recognised national boundaries and self-government will receive those things within the FPE."

  Two new lights appeared, blinking a deeper blue. One cut a large swathe across the Andes. The other took a chunk out of south western Sudan.

  "The FPE immediately recognises the existence of the nations of Nubia, in Africa, and Runa, in South America. Plebiscites will be held immediately, and if the people of these regions vote to ratify the Constitution, then the FPE will act vigorously to protect their borders. You will notice that part of the territory of Runa has been voluntarily contributed by the nations of Bolivia and Ecuador as one of the terms of their entry into the FPE. The Free People of Earth salute the far-sighted and generous leaders of these nations."

  Peter leaned forward. "The FPE will act vigorously to protect the electoral process. Any attempt to interfere with these plebiscites will be regarded as an act of war against the Free People of Earth."

  There was the gauntlet.

  The questioning afterward, as Peter had hoped, focused on the two new nations whose boundaries included territory belonging to nations that had not ratified—Peru and Sudan. Instead of being peppered with sceptical questions about the FPE itself,
Peter had already settled the question of how serious they were. Taking on Peru was bad enough—no one doubted the ability of the FPE to crush the Peruvian military. It was Sudan. A Muslim country, which had given its allegiance to Caliph Alai.

  "Are you declaring war against Caliph Alai?" demanded a reporter for an Arab news service.

  "We declare war against no one. But the people of Nubia have a long history of oppression, atrocities, famine, and religious intolerance committed against them by the government of Sudan. How many times in the past two hundred years has international action caused Sudan to promise to do better? Yet in the aftermath of Caliph Alai's astonishing unification of the Muslim world, the outlaws and criminals in Sudan immediately took this as permission to renew their genocidal treatment of the Nubians. If Caliph Alai wishes to defend the criminals of Sudan even as he repudiates those of India, that is his choice. One thing is certain: Any right the Sudanese might once have claimed to rule over Nubia has long since expired. The Nubian people have been united by war and suffering into a nation that deserves statehood—and protection."

  Peter ended the press conference soon afterward, announcing that Starman, Bellini, and Boom would each hold press conferences two days later in their home countries. "But the armed forces, border guards, and customs services of these nations are now all under the control of the FPE. There is no such thing as a Rwandan or Brazilian military. Only the military of the FPE."

  "Wait!" cried one reporter. "There's no 'Hegemon' in this whole Constitution!"

  Peter returned to the microphone. "Fast reading," he said.

  Laughter, then expectant silence.

  "The office of Hegemon was created to meet an emergency that threatened the entire Earth. I will continue as Hegemon under both the original authority under which I was selected for the office, and under temporary authorisation from the FPE, until such time as no serious military threat against the Free People of Earth exists. At that time, I will resign my office and there will be no successor. I am the last Hegemon, and I hope to give up the office as quickly as possible."