Deluge

by Anne McCaffrey

They’ve spotted us! Ronan said when the flitter continued hovering and a uniformed body reappeared at the hatch.

  “There you are, you scamps,” said Rick O’Shay, grinning down at them. “I don’t know how we’re to lift you great lunks of sea life up from there now, but I suppose you’ll do grand on your own. Follow us to the mainland. We’ve a few things to sort out there.”

  CHAPTER 22

  THE TWINS DESPERATELY wanted to sleep throughout the tedious legal proceedings but didn’t dare.

  “I feel as though I’ve been awake for weeks,” Murel said. They sat on concrete benches inside the thoroughly dank common room in the main prison. The alien waterspout had thrown the bureaucracy of the prison into such disarray that they were ill prepared for the inspections of the illustrious Federation Council members and Marmion’s influential friends in the company. Since Colonel Cally and his superiors and allies had arrived just before the deluge to bring final charges and sentencing down upon Marmie and the others arrested in her name, everyone involved except those back on Petaybee was represented. The twins had the considerable responsibility of representing their planet and people in the proceedings.

  They were, of course, in human form, wearing prison tunics over their dry suits. They listened to the Kanaka witnesses testify to the state of their planet before Marmie and the twins had come to rescue them. Sky came out the hero as the Kanakas said that Marmie’s “aumakua, the ship’s otter” had located them in the underground passages and revealed their hiding places to the rescuers. They told of their callous abandonment by the Custer and its crew and begged to be allowed to resettle to Petaybee, where they had gone of their own free will. Some Federation officials had tried to tell other officials that the Kanakas were actually under contract to the Federation and had no free will, but Marmie’s very unhappy and very powerful allies, rounded up by Johnny Green and the other hijackers, were having none of that.

  Cally’s crew recounted its side of the story, and then Cally and his own Federation allies told of their “arrest” of Marmion and her employees and passengers and the seizure of her assets. The Piaf ’s crew and the crew of the space station gave evidence that cast a completely different light on what Marmion’s top legal representative, who had first heard of her arrest when the hijacked ship contacted him at his home, termed “piracy.” He declared he would file countercharges of kidnapping and false arrest, as well as assault and battery charges for the beatings, starving, and even the head shaving of the prisoners.

  It hurt to see them lower their eyes and wince when their children ran questing hands over their ears and bare scalps. Newly reunited with them, the children hardly believed that their parents were still alive, after the lies they’d been told. Except for Rory and his parents, who laughed when they saw each other and embraced gratefully.

  When the court recessed, Murel and Ronan sought a word with Johnny. After that, on the second day of the trial, Marmie, Adrienne, Johnny, Pet, Rick, and everyone but the highest Federation and company officials on their side arrived in the common room with hairless heads.

  Marmion still looked like a queen, but a queen of ancient Egypt perhaps, her finely shaped head balanced like a delicate egg on her slender neck, her chin raised, her eyes forward. “Alors, this is so much cooler!” she remarked. “And makes bathing much more facile, n’est-ce pas?”

  Only Zuzu and Sky kept their fur on, and they were sensibly curled up together on the bench between the twins and Johnny. None of Marmie’s people had been returned to cells, but by the end of the second day, it looked as if that was about to change.

  The prosecution called Marmie’s allies to the stand, one by one, and asked them how they had learned of her “detainment.” They all said they had been contacted by her captain, Johnny Green. The prosecution asked how, if Marmion was being persecuted, they supposed Johnny got a ship and crew, and they said their understanding was that the governors of Petaybee and some local villagers had found one they loaned to their guests for the purpose. They said it with a straight face.

  Then they called Johnny to the stand and acted like they were tricking him into “admitting” that he and the others, with the “criminal complicity of the rogue world’s denizens,” had hijacked a Federation ship and no doubt murdered the crew.

  “They wouldn’t do that!” Ronan yelled, jumping up from his seat. Murel agreed, but pulled Ronan down beside her again.

  Not the murdering part, at least, she said to him.

  Instead of trying to shut her brother up, the prosecutor, a handsome blond man with a lineless face and eyes as hard and cold as an ice floe in winter, dismissed Johnny and called Ronan to the stand.

  “State your name.”

  “Ronan Born-for-Water Maddock-Shongili.”

  The prosecutor’s eyes narrowed a bit at Ronan’s middle name but he said nothing. Murel grinned to herself. He was going to go slitty-eyed if she told him her middle name was Monster Slayer.

  “How did you come to be here, Ronan?” the prosecutor asked, using his first name in a condescending tone so everybody was sure he knew he was talking to a child.

  “My sister and I went to Versailles Station looking for people to help Marmie—Madame de Revers Algemeine—after she and the Piaf were captured by Cally and his buddies.”

  “How did you get there?”

  “We hitched a ride.”

  “On the hijacked ship?”

  “No.”

  “How then?”

  “With friendly aliens,” Ronan said.

  You shouldn’t have told them that, Murel said.

  They won’t believe me anyway. Besides, it’s going to come out sooner or later. The Federation is about space exploration. They have to realize there are nonhuman cultures out there.

  They probably do. They just don’t think they’re in here, as well as out there.

  “The witness will please answer the question seriously, out of respect for the court,” the prosecutor said sternly.

  “I did,” Ronan said, widening his eyes and trying to look innocent.

  “Council is sidetracking this proceeding. How the witness believes he arrived at the station is immaterial to this case,” Marmie’s lawyer told the tribunal. “What does matter is how he and his twin sister were forcibly removed from Versailles Station along with the other personnel in Madame Algemeine’s employ or under her protection.”

  “We were discussing the hijacking of an Intergal Company Corps vessel,” the prosecutor argued.

  “I don’t know anything about that,” Ronan said. “I think we were already gone. But my folks and the people in Kilcoole wouldn’t murder anyone, and neither would Johnny. They just borrowed the ship, like they told you.”

  “Your unbiased faith is touching, Ronan,” the prosecutor said sarcastically. “You’re excused.”

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” Marmie’s lawyer said to the tribunal, “council spoke somewhat dismissively of Ronan’s faith in the innocence of his friends and relatives, but so far, most of what we have seen and heard of this situation hinges on what people believe happened during these incidents. How the Corps vessel came into the possession of its present crew, or how the Maddock-Shongili twins arrived at Versailles Station, has little to do with our inquiries concerning the kidnapping of Madame Algemeine and her staff and guests, and the piracy of her ship. We have seen that the crimes she is alleged to have committed were acts of mercy, and her arrest was an act of petty vengeance on the part of some, avarice on the part of others. I move for immediate dismissal, after which some of these other matters may be pursued.”

  The prosecution was listening to the Federation official who had been whispering to Cally off and on during the trial. Now he said, “Ladies and gentlemen, please do not dismiss the accused yet. We can bring witnesses to show that this woman and her accomplices have committed other unspeakable illegal acts and—”

  “I’m sure the prosecution can bring witnesses, but that does not mean they would be truthful ones. Many
vested interests are represented in this room, before this tribunal.”

  “Prison officials have observed certain acts—” the prosecution began.

  “And Madame Algemeine and her first mate have gathered certain evidence that casts doubt on any allegations made by those same officials. Evidence of corruption, sadistic cruelty, unlawful detention, and even murder of prisoners in custody.”

  He pulled a tiny object from the pocket of his ship suit and handed it to the head of the tribunal. “Perhaps the tribunal would care to view this, which has little bearing on the present case but offers many answers to past disappearances, deaths, and power plays among company and Federation officials. Madame Algemeine and her officer copied these records while hiding in the archival vault in the lower level of this structure.”

  “She was never down there!” the prison warden objected, although he wasn’t supposed to speak without permission. Murel enjoyed shushing him with a finger to her lips.

  “Oh, but she was. But again, that is another matter.”

  In the end, after unsnarling the tangle of accusations, counter-accusations, crimes, alleged crimes, lies, and misdirections, the tribunal found Marmion and her people blameless of wrongdoing, though they didn’t say as much for her accusers.

  The twins cheered and hugged each other and every bald person they could lay their hands on.

  Maybe we can get some sleep now! Murel said, yawning.

  Or go catch a meal without worrying about Mabo, Ronan said. Where is Mabo, anyway?

  I think she saw which way the wind was blowing and decided it was time to disappear. Come to think of it, I haven’t seen her since we tried to get the aliens to help us evacuate people.

  We should let them know I, er, mentioned them. I wonder if they’ll want to stay here or come back to Petaybee?

  Murel snorted. That’s a no-brainer. There’s nothing here for anybody. I even feel sorry for the squid getting stuck here. It’s hot all the time, Ronan. Who would want to live like that?

  Apparently people do, he said.

  They snuck away from the proceedings, thinking they were leaving Sky still nestled next to Zuzu, and slipped into the water, swimming out to the squid trough, where they very carefully remained close to the surface. Mraka? Puk? Don’t suppose we could get a lift in the fishing beam, could we?

  Halfway across the trough they heard a ripple behind them, as of something coming at them very fast through the water, and Sky said, Hah! Where river seals go, otters go too.

  We thought you were napping with the cat, Murel said.

  The cat does not need help napping, Sky replied. So I followed you instead.

  Before they could say anything else, the telltale bump of surface water that hid the projecting whirling ray beneath it shot out like a frog’s tongue and snapped them into it.

  They were so used to it now, they had come to regard it as Sky did, a wild ride and rather fun.

  Mraka and Puk were in the control room, but Kushtaka, Tikka, Kisha, and some of the others they had met were there too.

  Why do I get the feeling this is good-bye? Murel asked. You want to stay here, on your original home planet, don’t you?

  Kushtaka said, Stay for now. There are no sharks here to eat my children.

  The humans who’ve been in charge here are just as nasty as the sharks on Petaybee, Ronan said. Fortunately they haven’t found your city yet.

  One did, Kushtaka said. We’re sorry.

  Sorry why?

  We didn’t mean for it to happen, Mraka said. She came after you left. We let her in. We thought she might be like you. But—well, you can see. Bring the human, she said, and four of her people left, to return a short time later bearing the stiff uniformed body of the small dark scientist. She did not survive our atmosphere. We tried to push her back out into the sea when she began dying, but she was gone. Do you want her back?

  Murel and Ronan exchanged looks. What do you usually do with your dead?

  We give them as fuel to the vent.

  The twins consulted each other briefly. Would Rory want her back? Would his mother? They thought not.

  Seems like as good a place as any for her to me, Ronan said.

  They watched while the package that had contained their enemy was shoved into the glow below. Just a brightness enveloping darkness, a feeling of heat, a dip of the power, and nothing was left of Mabo.

  That was the end of it then. They said their good-byes.

  Mraka and Puk waited for them to jump into the ray again, but after a quick glance they declined. We’ve a lot to think about. We want to catch fish and have a leisurely swim and hope everything will be sorted by the time we return to the mainland.

  Good, Tikka said. I will swim with you. Sky and I will fish and play along the way.

  Sky and Tikka popped out through the dome’s membrane. Aw, Murel said. I think the little guy likes her.

  It’s about time he got interested in other otters, Ronan said. But trust Sky to go in for long-distance romance when it comes to choosing a mate.

  Maybe Kushtaka will change her mind. Or maybe Tikka will bring some of them back with her and start her own colony. Oh, Ronan, I do want Sky to be happy.

  He could stay, Ronan said. Surely he knows that.

  I don’t want him to do that! I’d miss him terribly.

  Me too, but you know, when we get home, I think we should make some other friends as well. Boy friends, girl friends, not all of them completely other species from us, you know?

  What are you saying?

  Well, take Pele, for instance. She’s really young, but kind of cute, don’t you think?

  I hadn’t noticed. But she’s noticed you. She looks at you like you’re Petaybee’s gift to little girls.

  He dived, splashing her hard with a flip of his tail.

  CHAPTER 23

  THE TRIBUNAL WAS not entirely over by the time the twins returned, but many of the issues had been settled. Marmion’s property had been reinstated and she was to be compensated for the expenses and business losses she had suffered during her incarceration. Additional ships, including the pilfered Piaf, arrived to transport the former prisoners back to their homes and duty stations. The twins were glad to see that Rory was no longer in uniform. Of all of the kids who had enlisted, only Kai chose to remain in the Corps. No one had said anything about the others, and all were allowed to leave with their parents.

  The cases of many of the prisoners who had been at Gwinnet when Marmie arrived were being reviewed, in light of the evidence of false arrests Marmie had uncovered in the vaults. The prison’s management was summarily fired, and some of them were sentenced to join the inmates.

  The tribunal itself had been adjourned until it could reconvene on Petaybee, to investigate the forcible relocation of the Corps troop ship commandeered by Marmie’s allies and the disappearance of the crew and landing party.

  It seemed strange to be back aboard the Piaf with the giant tanks removed and no turtles or sharks to consider, as they had on their previous trip. Everybody slept and ate a great deal, even though there was nothing stocked onboard except Corps rations until they reached Versailles Station, where Marmie’s chefs from other holdings had gathered to prepare a feast for her homecoming. Once the station personnel aboard the Piaf had disembarked to return to their duties, Marmie threw a pool party for her guests at her station-top mansion.

  Pet interrupted the party with a few quick words in Marmie’s ear. Marmie signaled to the twins to follow her into the house. “We have a com link to Petaybee. Would you like to say hello to your parents? We have spoken officially already of the tribunal that has been held and the one that is to come.”

  It was a splendid link. They even had good visuals, with Mum and Da looking at the twins oddly. Then Murel realized their parents hadn’t seen them with their heads shaven before. “It’s very hot there and there are bugs,” she told them simply.

  “Ah,” their mother said. “Bugs.”

  They exch
anged a few more words, and the twins could tell that their parents would have liked to talk them all the way home to Petaybee, but finally Mother said, “While the link is clear, we have a few more coms to send so—see you soon. Slainté, my darlings.”

  “Slainté, Mum, Da.”

  Father smiled, gulped, and nodded, then waved. The twins realized with both shock and amusement that their handsome, important da was trying not to cry.

  “We love you,” they said.

  “We love you too,” their parents said in unison before the com went blank, “be safe.”

  “A bit late for that,” Murel said aloud, but she smiled tenderly. It would be good to be home again.

  AFTER THE PARTY, everyone who needed to return to Petaybee, either because they wanted to or because the tribunal needed them there when it reconvened, piled back aboard the Piaf. Without the personnel from Versailles Station, including Rory and his folks, the ship seemed empty.

  The twins slept much of the rest of the journey, but the closer the ship came to Petaybee, the more alert they became, and soon it was impossible to sleep. Shortly before they arrived, crew members passed through, distributing long johns, parkas, and snow pants. The twins had retrieved their dry suits and substituted those for the long johns everyone else wore. The Piaf’s thermostat was lowered to keep people comfortable in the extra clothing.

  They docked just before three other ships, including the purloined troop ship, an official Federation Council liner, and a very sleek ship that bore Corps insignia and registration but looked more like a pleasure vessel.

  At the time, though, the twins had eyes only for the ground, where Mother, Father, Clodagh, the villagers, and a lot of extra people made a big welcoming crowd below. Coaxtl and Nanook prowled back and forth between people and ships. It was still very cold, so instead of the horses, there were dog teams and a few snocles. People also carried skis and snowshoes. Beyond the crowd, downriver, they could see the buildings of Kilcoole, smoke feathering up from the chimneys, white on white against the winter sky.

  It’s an improvement on when we left, with everyone hiding in the communion caves, Ronan noted.