"Yes. And when I confronted him, he admitted his identity to me."
Kael Pershaw slowly shook his head. "No, MechWarrior Horse, that is not enough. It verifies only that one apparent freebirth by name of Jorge transferred into your unit after an unfortunate accident on a training field. That he was the Cadet Aidan you battled earlier is not proven. Further, your evidence does not verify any other points of Star Commander Jorge's story. Step back, MechWarrior Horse."
Horse looked as though he wished to say more, but then he shrugged, performed a ritual salute to Pershaw, and walked away. Many of the warriors growled and sneered as he passed, making no secret of their disapproval that he had come forward at all. In response, Horse twisted his mouth into an obvious expression of defiance.
"Does any other member of this assembly verify the rightful claim of this warrior?" Kael Pershaw asked.
The silence hung heavy, as though not a single warrior moved or breathed. When Pershaw let his gaze sweep the throng, the rustle of his cape, the clank of his adornments echoed all the way to the rear of the crowd.
The next sound was the shuffle of feet as Aidan turned to face the Glorry Stateion warriors.
"Yes," a voice said finally, "I can verify this man's true identity." Roughly pushing several subordinate warriors aside, Joanna reluctantly made her way forward.
22
Joanna had weighed her responsibility against her shrewdness, and responsibility had come heavier on the scale of her judgment. Or perhaps she was merely out of her mind. She had no special desire to verify Aidan's claim, but it was the truth. Worse, she was one of the few people in the universe who knew it, and unfortunately for her, she happened to be at Glory Station exactly at the moment when she could verify it. If it were only up to her, she could happily have remained quiet and watched the despicable pseudo-freebirth gag on his own words. Oh, she knew that eventually he could have proved his identity through genetic tests, but it would have taken so long that the Bloodname battles for the Aeneas Pryde name would long have been over. Then would have come a period of shame. No matter what proof existed of his lineage, Aidan's freeborn years would mark him as an inferior warrior, despite his birth. She would have enjoyed witnessing even a fraction of that. But it was not fair to remain quiet at the moment of his claim or to ignore whatever fate had brought her to Glory Station, where she now forced her feet to take her ever nearer the platform where Kael Pershaw stood waiting.
"You have evidence, Star Captain Joanna?"
"Yes. I was this warrior's training officer on Iron-hold."
A murmur passed through the crowd. Aidan had omitted all names from his tale, concealing Joanna's participation in it.
"Then he speaks the truth, quiaff?"
"Aff."
"And you have knowledge of the deception he describes, the masking of his identity to participate in the second Trial?"
From the moment Aidan had begun his claim, this was the moment, the question she had been dreading.
"I not only know about it, Star Colonel Kael Pershaw," Joanna said, "I participated in it."
That revelation produced a shock as great as any of Aidan's. Few of the warriors present knew Joanna, who had arrived on Glory only in time for the battle, but they respected her for downing the BattleMech that might have defeated Aidan, crashed the mission, and ended the conflict over the Pershaw gene legacy.
At Pershaw's behest, Joanna told tersely and with some bitterness about how a superior officer had sent her to pursue Aidan after he had been relegated to the tech caste and escaped Ironhold. She had found him, brought him back, and drilled him to enter the freeborn training unit. She explained her assumption that he was merely replacing a freeborn who had died accidentally. Only later did she learn that the cadet's death and the deaths of the entire freeborn training unit had been arranged. In the meantime, events transpired to force her to take command of the freeborn unit containing Jorge. (Joanna carefully neglected to mention the mysterious death of one of the freeborn unit's previous training officers, about which she was quite suspicious.)
She concluded by saying, "After Cadet Aidan qualified as a warrior through unorthodox strategy and teamwork with the freebirth who has just given witness, he was assigned elsewhere. I did not see him again until I came here, nor have I heard anything of his exploits as a warrior. As a loyal Clan warrior, I am forced to observe that his actions in the recent battle were distinguished enough to merit mention. That is all. These are the direct, blunt, and true words of a trueborn Clan warrior."
Kael Pershaw stared at Joanna for a long while before he began to speak in the quietest of tones. "You have both related a strange story of defiance and deceit," he said finally, "yet you both neglect to mention the name of the officer responsible for the wretched deeds you describe. What is his name, Star Captain Joanna?"
This moment, too, Joanna had been dreading.
"Falconer Commander Ter Roshak," she said, making each word precise and crisp. "He was commander of the Bravo Division of Cadet Training Iron-hold."
"Does he still hold that post?"
"I believe so, Star Colonel. The last I heard he had won a citation for turning out more successful warriors than any other training commander."
"The last detail is unnecessary, Star Captain. All this individual's achievements, all the high points of his codex, are rendered meaningless by the evidence you and Star Commander Jor—Aidan have given. Ter Roshak has injured us all. He has insulted the Clans and perverted our ways. I have no choice but to put Star Commander Jorge, Star Captain Joanna, and MechWarrior Horse into custody for transport back to Ironhold, where I am sure a Grand Council of the Jade Falcons will convene to examine and render judgment on the case."
At a snap from Pershaw's fingers, two Elementals immediately took hold of Joanna on either side. Two others had taken Aidan into custody. Far in the back of the crowd, ripples from a struggle showed that apprehending MechWarrior Horse was not going so smoothly.
"Further," Kael Pershaw announced, "as commander of the base where this treason has been exposed, I will travel to Ironhold to give evidence. And your conviction, Star Commander Aidan, will give me the greatest joy."
"Permission to speak, sir," Aidan shouted.
"Granted."
"I accept your judgment and transport back to Ironhold, but I request again that you render judgment on my claim."
For once Kael Pershaw appeared rattled, but he recovered quickly. "I have no choice in the matter, Star Commander," he said. "If what you say is true, and your matrilineal line is Pryde, then of course you may compete in the Trial of Bloodright. I doubt that any current Bloodnamed warrior will sponsor you, though."
"I will present myself at the Grand Melee."
"Oh? That is your choice, of course, but do not make your plans too soon, Star Commander. You must first go before the Grand Council, which will determine the disposition of your case. In all likelihood, you will not have to worry about the melee. Executed warriors do not usually compete in any phase of the Trial of Bloodright."
Aidan was enraged by Pershaw's sarcasm, but he forced his face to remain expressionless. "I accept your judgment and any other judgment to come," he said steadily, "as well as the Clan rituals that support them."
"Take these people away," Pershaw ordered. "A JumpShip will be charged and ready within a week. All those involved with the Aidan claim will travel from Glory to Ironhold on that ship."
* * *
Though Joanna protested mightily, the Elemental guards placed her and Aidan in the same jail cell. Because so few violations were deemed worthy of incarceration, Glory Station's prison was small and only two cells were currently available. Custom dictated that trueborns and freeborns be separated during imprisonment, which put Horse-alone in the other cell.
"You are a fool, Aidan," Joanna muttered under her breath, "but you have gall, going for a Bloodname, with your history. How egotistical of you to even think it possible. And do you not see any violation of the
code?"
"Code? What code?"
"If you do not feel it, then of course you do not mind violating it. The code I speak of is among warriors. We depend on one another and we support one another, in battle and in all other action."
"Strange words coming from you, Joanna. You have no comrades."
"That is true, but it does not mean I will not close ranks with fellow warriors under attack or in a crisis. The code states that you should protect Ter Roshak, not reveal his treachery to the universe."
"Treachery such as Ter Roshak's should not be permitted. To do so would make us as decadent and weak as the people of the Inner Sphere."
Joanna was taken aback. "What do you know of Inner Sphere history?"
"I have made a study of it, from some . . . some sources I have discovered."
"I do not know about such decadence, but I do know we must maintain the code of loyalty."
"Why?"
"I do not understand you, Aidan."
"I am asking why loyalty is preeminent. What loyalty did Ter Roshak show by involving us in his schemes?"
"He gave you a second chance."
"Which I was not supposed to receive."
"But you got it, and you should have been satisfied."
"As a freeborn?"
"You are a warrior, are you not?"
"That is true, and living as a freeborn, I respect them and—"
"Respect? You can respect a freebirth?"
"Freeborn, you must say freeborn. And, yes, I can. I have served with nothing but freeborns these last few years. Their inferiority is only in the minds of others. Given a chance, they perform as well as any other."
"I cannot believe you would utter such filth, Aidan. Stop now. A freebirth is a freebirth, and that is that. Whatever else you have come to believe, you are a trueborn. You will always be that. You can assume an identity with the ease of a tribesman disguising himself in an animal skin, but your real identity comes from your birth. However you may have adjusted to being a freebirth, do not try to convert me to your ideas about freeborns."
"All right."
"So, I ask you again why you have decided to ruin Ter Roshak's career—and your own?"
"Anything is worth the risk if the ultimate prize is a Bloodname."
"Whatever happens on Ironhold, you will not earn a Bloodname. You will never get that far."
"There is always a poss—"
"There is no possibility! You and Ter Roshak have broken Clan law, violated Clan custom. And I, by being a cog in Ter Roshak's plot, will be dragged through the muck along with you. And I have been dragged through enough muck lately, thank you."
Aidan smiled, a rare event for a Clansman. "Yes, I heard you nearly drowned in the swamp. Joanna, I truly regret what is happening now. If I had thought that you would be—"
"If you had thought. That is your problem. You do not think, you act. Back in your first trial, you went for too much, and in your second, you were lucky with some improvised tactics. So this time, you overreached in another way. First, you announced your candidacy at the wrong time. You should first have determined whether you could legitimately compete for the Bloodname."
"I did not, as you say, overreach. Every move I made today, everything I said, was planned. Calculated. I have every right to compete for the Bloodname. And I will."
They fell silent. Aidan turned away from Joanna to gaze out the small window of the cell at the compound. Nothing was moving out there. Pershaw's council must still be in session.
"At any rate," Joanna said, "now Ter Roshak must answer for his deeds. I wonder if he will reveal his motives. There is much I would like to know. Although I could pass on learning the information if it meant I would not be executed."
"You will not be executed. You were merely an accessory. "
"Practicing the words to be used before the council, are you?"
Again the two fell silent for a while, then Joanna said, "You have not learned, Aidan, that deceit is the real sin among the Clans. Your second chance, your life as a freebirth, your assumption of someone else's identity—it is all deceit. They have a good case against you."
She laughed harshly, a true sign of her mirth. "Perhaps the name should be yours," Joanna said. "Who else would find the name Pryde so eminently suitable?"
* * *
Horse and Aidan sat together while they and Joanna were being transported to the shuttle area. "I wish you victory in all things, Aidan," Horse whispered.
"Your support means much, Horse."
"Support? Please do not call it that. I do not support you. I am ashamed of you."
"Ashamed?"
"You renounced your freeborn identity for the sake of competing for a Bloodname. Deep down you were trueborn after all. Deep down you hold us in contempt just as the others do."
"That is not true, Horse. It is—"
"No. If you really respected us, as you claimed, you would not have renounced your freeborn identity. You are like the real jade falcon, which flies everywhere but always comes back to the mountainside where it was born. You may have flown as a freeborn, but now you return to your trueborn nest."
"Horse-"
"Or should I say trashborn?"
"Do you not wish me to win a Bloodname, to contribute to the gene pool?"
"Truthfully, I do not. I do not care what happens to you now. I will be your comrade in all things, but I do not care what happens. Freeborns do not demean themselves for Bloodnames, nor would they wish to contribute to the gene pool. You may win this contest, or you may die. Whichever, I will be by your side if you wish it. But I am ashamed."
"It is the Bloodname, Horse."
"I know that. And it is no excuse. You have more respect from me as Jorge than you will have as Aidan Pryde."
The conversation ended there, but for the rest of the trip, Aidan savored the sound of the name: Aidan Pryde. An almost lustful surge of will went through his body. The name had such a natural ring to it. How could he not succeed in winning it? In spite of the turmoil he had stirred up with his desire for it. In spite of the agony he would have to endure to fulfill the desire. In spite of the dangers on the long road to the Bloodname.
23
Joanna decided the game was up as soon as the Jade Falcon council members filed in. BattleMechs charging and firing in the midst of combat looked friendlier than these Bloodnamed warriors. There were so many of them, most arriving on Ironhold from far-off outposts, answering the call to council. Some Clansmen, as was their right, claimed duty prevented their attendance at the trial. Many more, however, chose to come and sit in judgment on this unusual case. Joanna had heard that nearly 475 of the 960 qualified warriors (well, two less, with Ileana Pryde's demise and Ter Roshak on trial) were on Ironhold now, and more might arrive during the course of the trial. Video cameras would record every bit of testimony for examination across all the Jade Falcon worlds. The crime involved was so unusual, so grotesque that council members were flocking to Ironhold to be, perhaps, a part of Clan history.
She had also heard that one major reason for the ardent interest in this trial was the stature of the Bloodname in question. Its original holder, Aeneas Pryde, had been a member of Aleksandr Kerensky's command staff even before the Exodus. As a Star League officer, he had distinguished himself in battle as a member of the 131st Battle Division, the so-called "Hercules Division." So daring were the celebrated exploits of the 131st that they had been compared to the arduous tasks of a mythical hero named Hercules.
Joanna did not know of this Hercules, but on the trip to Ironhold Aidan had explained that he was a fabled hero whose feats of prodigious strength went beyond normal human prowess. Though she scoffed at Aidan for accumulating such useless knowledge, she was secretly impressed. Something had undoubtedly happened to him during his years pretending to be a freebirth, for intelligence had not been an outstanding trait of the Aidan she had once known. What might have changed him she could not guess, nor did she care. One trait, however, had
not changed a bit. The fact that he planned to compete for a Bloodname without anyone's approval showed him to be as determinedly stubborn as a warrior as he had been as a cadet. However, even Aeneas Pryde would probably have felt revulsion to see Aidan presuming to win his name.
Ileana Pryde, the previous holder of this version of the Bloodname, might have been more sympathetic to Aidan's cause, for she was known for a similar stubborn persistence and fortitude.
Joanna had known her, a warrior no better or worse than many others. Tall and beautiful, with a regal manner, Ileana was already famous as a warrior when her path crossed Joanna's. She had tried to engage Joanna in a discussion about specific strategies that led to a wasteful, bloody skirmish between the Ice Hellion and Mongoose Clans. Ileana's ideas were precise and insightful, but Joanna would not give her the satisfaction of agreeing. Soon the two were arguing in a way just as wasteful as the strategy in question. When they reached an impasse and agreed to abandon the argument, Joanna noticed that Ileana glowed from the intensity of their talk. Guessing that Ileana might be just as mean as she was, her respect for the noted warrior increased.
Joanna and Aidan sat together at a table near the center of the massive Council Hall. From her vantage point, the tiers occupied by Bloodnamed warriors seemed endless. Dressed in their ceremonial masks and garb, each with its particular resplendent flourishes, the effect was of an enormous patchwork quilt spread unevenly across one side of the room. At the main table sat the
Loremaster, the Advocate, the Inquisitor, and the current Khan of the Jade Falcon Clan, Elias Crichell. Elias Crichell had earned fame as a great warrior and shrewd politician. He was also said to be a harsh judge, who believed in severe punishment for even the smallest offense. Many credited him with the Jade Falcons' success among the seventeen clans.
Joanna ceased scanning the council, suddenly aware of a strong gaze upon her. She knew whose it was even before turning to look, for she had learned that Ter Roshak, primary offender in this case and the highest-ranking officer, would be seated alone at the center table. Looking back in his direction, she was astonished at the change. Once bulky and impressive, Roshak seemed to have shrunk. His face, once so sculptured in its hardness, looked softer, as if formed of lumps and bulges instead of cliffs and crevasses. But his eyes had not changed. They glared like beacons, penetrating as a beam from a pulse laser. With a start she realized that Ter Roshak was not looking at her. His hatred was directed purely at Aidan.
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