The Octagonal Raven

by L. E. Modesitt Jr.

“You think that the good friend of Darwyn TanUy and Imayl Deng and all the others is going to mention that they’re involved in a quiet restructuring of world government? Surely, you jest.”

  We both laughed, if hollowly.

  Majora, sitting on the couch, stretched and then stood. “I’m going down to the cafeteria and see if there’s something half-decent programmed into the replicators. Do you want anything?”

  “Anything that’s half-decent.”

  “I can do that.”

  I got a smile before she left.

  I began to check the systems, just in case I needed to do something special. Then, I sat back down behind the desk. Worried wasn’t the word for how I felt. I’d researched, designed, implemented, and had broadcast a set of programming developed to make people think and stop subtle but critical changes in the way the world governed itself. First, nothing had happened, and then everything had happened. And while it was clear that I had more than a few enemies, there still wasn’t much, if anything, in the way of hard evidence to link the scheme to change government into more of a pre-select tyranny to those people who were trying to accomplish it. Nor was there much more evidence to link them to all the attacks on me — or to Eldyn Nyhal’s death. There was certainly no way to show that the latest pre-select plague had been caused by Eldyn’s efforts — not that I knew.

  That could get even stickier if I opened that VR, because I’d effectively become the holder of Octagonal Solutions, without even my own consent. But who would believe that? In essence, I’d been blackmailed into silence. I could just imagine telling anyone that story.

  I shook my head, then held it in both hands and closed my eyes.

  The gatekeeper clinged.

  “Security, ser. We have a package from the Civil Authorities. A CA would like to deliver it personally.”

  “Ask the officer to come up, or do they want me to come down?”

  “She’ll come up, ser.”

  I stood and walked out to the open door to wait.

  The CA was the short redhead who’d been on the team from the night before. She gave me a crooked smile as she stepped forward and extended a package. “They’re all authenticated and sealed, ser.”

  “Thank you very much.”

  “Thank you, ser.” She inclined her head in a minute bow. “I need to get back. Things are still a mess.”

  “Good luck.” I felt hypocritical in saying it. I was the one who’d sparked the mess. I hadn’t created the conditions, but I had certainly put the flame to them, even if I hadn’t realized how explosive the situation had been.

  “Thank you, ser.” She turned and was gone back down the corridor ramp.

  I had barely set the package on the desk when the gatekeeper clinged again. I checked the ID — Federal Union secretariat.

  “Daryn Alwyn,” I said warily, making sure the return image showed just me and the desk.

  The holo image that appeared facing me before the bookcase was that of Secretary Director Alfonso himself.

  “Good morning, Secretary Director,” I said politely, immediately recording the incoming holo image, and shunting it down toward master control and Devit Tal, hoping he was there.

  “It’s not the best of mornings, Alwyn, thanks to your irresponsibility.” Alfonso’s words were like ice.

  “Oh? We’ve been very careful, ser, only to broadcast facts and inquiries based on those facts. I think we’ve behaved very responsibly under the circumstances. I doubt many directors would be as restrained as I have been after something like five attempts on my life, the last by some sort of Federal Service commandos.…”

  “You’re just trying to cause trouble and raise a rebellion, Alwyn. That’s hardly responsible.”

  “I fail to see how creating VR programming based on the truth is causing trouble … unless someone wants the truth suppressed.”

  “You don’t seem to understand, Alwyn, or you don’t want to. I’ll make it very simple and very clear. You don’t stop that programming, Alwyn, and I’ll have Federal Service troops in your building in three hours.”

  I smiled, checking to make sure the incoming was still being fed to master control. “I’m not sure I understand, ser. Everything we’re broadcasting is absolutely factually accurate, and it has been reviewed by inside and outside advocates.…” I was stretching a point there because Gallo and his consulting advocates hadn’t been able to review the material of the last few hours.

  “You’re inciting rebellion … and don’t think we don’t know it.” Alfonso’s face was simultaneously flushed and hard.

  “By broadcasting the facts, Secretary Director, we’re inciting rebellion? Is there something wrong with the Union? Is that why someone in the Federal Service sent FS commandos against me and my house in the dead of night? Were you aware that the Civil Authorities have hard evidence that the attacks were carried out by your commandos, and that one is already in custody?”

  Alfonso was silent for a moment before almost hissing. “You haven’t heard the last of this, Alwyn.”

  “Have you anything else you’d like to tell the people of the world, Secretary Director Alfonso? Everything you said has been recorded for immediate rebroadcast across our entire system.”

  The connection broke.

  I could hear Devit Tal’s voiceover through the net.…

  Now you can hear the secretary director of the Federal Union threatening Director Alwyn with Federal Service troops.…

  When he realized his words were reaching the world, Secretary Director Alfonso broke off his threats.…

  I linked to all the security stations. “Close the structure, and close off the tube train station. Seal the structure immediately. All blocks in place.”

  I could feel the office shiver as the heavily armored shutters covered the courtyard, and the light from the courtyard dimmed. One by one, the stations reported in, and I went through the internal links and cross-checked them all, taking a deep breath when it appeared the structure was sealed.

  Last night armed gliders attacked the dwelling where Alwyn was staying … and you can hear the secretary director of the Federal Union threatening an independent netsys for broadcasting the facts … threatening to use armed force to suppress the news and the truth.…

  I sent a message to both Tal and his acting assistant, telling them to cut the delay and feed the secretary director’s threat to any smaller net that would take the feed — and anything else. I also left a note for someone to come up and VR the evidence package the CAs had delivered.

  I’d just finished that when Majora burst into the office. “I go out for twenty minutes, and everything happens.” She looked at me. “Did he really say all that? How could he have been that stupid?”

  I shrugged. “Simple. Everything has been handled indirectly and quietly for years. Everyone has been part of the game — everyone with power. Gerrat was even part of it, not that I’ll ever tell Mother, although she’ll probably find out if she doesn’t know already. It was all scripted. That way Gerrat could claim he had no choice, and given his lack of talent, it was probably the only way he could hold UniComm.

  “Somehow, Elora found out, and wanted to use the stakeholder meeting to stop it, or at least slow it. I’m guessing, but she didn’t have the finances to buy the shares she needed. So she somehow misled the PST group into supporting her. That’s also where Eldyn came in. But he saw the even bigger danger, and used his alien bugs to create the last pre-select plague, and he sent special cards to Father and Gerrat, probably impregnated with the octagonal pathogens, or whatever, and he had to use those, I’m guessing, because time was short.”

  “And the pathogens weren’t nearly as virulent as he made them to be?”

  “No, they were more virulent — that’s why he had to use the cards.”

  Majora nodded. “Now what do we do?”

  “We wait. We keep broadcasting, and we wait, and hope that someone comes to their senses.” And I hoped that it wouldn’t be too long, becau
se UniComm was the only weapon I — or the norms — had at the moment, and I couldn’t afford not to keep pounding away. The headquarters was self-contained, and the multi-satellite feeds from other sites meant it would take the secretary director days to shut us down — unless he used weapons of mass destruction, and I doubted he was indebted enough or insane enough to go that far.

  But … the way he’d threatened … I was far from sure.

  * * *

  Chapter 89

  Kewood

  * * *

  It was past midday when the next interesting call came in — again from the Federal Union secretariat. I didn’t recognize the haggard-looking man’s face, but I shifted the signal into record and fed it to master control once more.

  Majora eased from the chair next to me to the couch, where she wouldn’t be caught by the scanner feeding my image back.

  “Director Alwyn? I’m Federico Pynia, the acting secretary general.”

  Acting? That was most intriguing. “Yes?”

  “The secretariat has just finished a meeting in emergency session, and Secretary Director Alfonso tendered his resignation. The strain of the position, after the past few years, and especially the past few days, you understand?”

  “That certainly might be possible.” Definitely wary, I waited.

  “The secretariat has suspended and incarcerated Subcommander TanUy and his immediate superior, Commander D’sio, pending an investigation of the attacks against UniComm personnel and dwellings. The commander of the Federal Service has been suspended, pending that investigation. The secretariat also passed unanimously an emergency resolution suspending any and all use of perceptual integrative ability testing, except for personal use by individuals or by parents of underage children. Such test results may not be divulged, under any circumstances, to anyone except the individual and/or his immediate family. Further, the Union’s chief advocate general has been charged with investigating the misuse and misrecording of controlled genetic products. The secretariat is also drafting proposed legislation which will require the publication of the statistical construction of all students in all universities and colleges.…”

  I frowned. “You mean the distribution of norms and pre-selects?”

  “Effectively, yes.”

  I nodded slowly, wondering how best to handle the apparent capitulation of the pre-select power structure, not that it was really giving up anything so much as retreating back to the system that should have been. “I will be happy to disseminate the results of the secretariat meeting, but you understand that UniComm will also continue to monitor the actual implementation of these measures?”

  “From you, Director Alwyn, I would expect no less.” He nodded gravely.

  “And UniComm will remain sealed under current emergency conditions until it is clear that the secretariat has the situation in hand.”

  “That is certainly reasonable under the circumstances.”

  Majora came through the link. “Ask him for a detailed study of the underlying political and economic conditions that created the unrest, and ask to be on the commission reviewing the study findings.” I could see her beyond Pynia’s image, leaning forward intently.

  “I do have an additional suggestion,” I said.

  “Yes, Director?” This time Pynia had the wary tone.

  “The current unrest could not have occurred without a great deal of dissatisfaction with current political, economic, and social structures. I would strongly suggest that the secretariat implement immediately a study of those structures, and I would suggest that the study experts include a wide range of norms and pre-selects. The study should be mandated to be completed in three months or less, and once completed, it should be reviewed by a board empowered to make public recommendations to the secretariat and council.”

  Some of the wariness left Pynia’s face. “That is something that has actually been discussed. It should not be difficult to obtain secretariat approval. Although the time …”

  “Time is of the essence, Secretary Director. If results are not obvious quickly, you cannot defuse decades of resentment.”

  “Ah … there may be something to that.”

  “And I would like to be on the review and recommendation board. I would also suggest that a representative of the Society of Dynae be on the board.”

  “You are not suggesting …”

  “No … I think it would be better to have someone viewed as thoroughly dispassionate as the director general of the board. I would certainly not be considered dispassionate. But with all the public outcry, your board would be viewed as more likely to address the problems were I on it.”

  From over the link came Majora’s whispered, “Good.”

  After a moment, Pynia nodded. “I will bring these matters up with the board. And I would hope that you would feel comfortable in informing those following your news of what has transpired.”

  “We will report on what has happened, and what the secretariat has promised.”

  “Thank you, Director. We will be in touch.” After a long look at me, the holo imaged winked out.

  Devit Tal was on the link immediately. “You were cautious.”

  “We’ll broadcast the part about the resignation of the secretary director, and the emergency steps, and the actions and promises. Nothing about the recommendation board, except that it has been suggested and is under consideration. Then add something to the effect of ‘the world is waiting.’”

  “I like that,” Tal said. “Don’t let them slip away.”

  That was the last thing I wanted.

  I put my head in my hands. The days had been long, and they’d be longer.

  Majora walked behind me. Her long strong fingers massaged my back and neck. “You’re tight.”

  “Aren’t you?” I asked with a laugh.

  “Not so tight as you.”

  We watched the AllNews updates for a good hour, and the repetition of secretariat’s decisions seemed to be having some effect.

  … with the resignation of Secretary Director Alfonso, and the announcement of emergency action by the Federal Union secretariat, the mob violence appears to be subsiding in most areas, although the Ankorplex is still rocked with demonstrations and devastation … violence continues to rage over some areas of Kievplex.…

  “There’s always some place,” Majora said.

  “The people there started it, and it will take longer —”

  The gatekeeper clinged, but the ID was blank. I took it, waiting. I didn’t recognize the narrow face, with the dark eyes and smooth olive complexion.

  “Imayl Deng. I just wanted to see the man who destroyed four hundred years of progress.”

  “Then look in a mirror,” I suggested. “And don’t worry about progress. It’s doing fine. If it hadn’t have been for a norm by the name of Eldyn Nyhal, you would have died almost twenty years ago. So would your cohorts in conspiracy.”

  Deng was silent.

  Being me, I had to get in the last word.

  “If we’re all that good, Deng, then we don’t need to rig the system. And if we’re not, then we won’t stay where we are. If I hadn’t done this now, then instead of riots and an FU secretariat scared into doing the right thing, in another decade or two, there’d be millions of bodies everywhere, instead of hundreds, and most of them would be ours.”

  Again … I was looking at a blank holo projection, and then the bookcase.

  “He didn’t like what you said … obviously.”

  “Obviously.” I really didn’t care what Deng felt. What bothered me was the thought that I’d have to look over my shoulder every day for the rest of my life.

  Yet what else could I have done?

  I shook my head, and turned to the second projection when the gatekeeper signaled, indicating a commentary from one of the small netsystems — NetStrait.

  Justice should not be imposed by a mob, nor restricted to those with the credits to purchase the best advocates or the best expertise and witnesse
s. In a sense, the outrages encouraged and perhaps even instigated by the director general of UniComm, Daryn Alwyn, are an example of what can happen when justice is denied.

  Alwyn was attacked several times; his death was clearly intended; his sister was killed by a planned explosion; his father and brother died during the second pre-select plague, and more than one commentator has speculated on whether the pathogens involved were deliberately introduced into the Alwyn family. Outsiders attempted to use the deaths and confusion to gain control of UniComm, and evidence Alwyn has made public to the world indicates that this was all part of a pre-select plot to give a small group of pre-select families either undue influence over public policy or out-and-out control of the Federal Union. This plot was in effect confirmed by the confinement of and charges against a number of high-ranking Federal Service officers, some of whom were closely related to the alleged plotters.…

  Alwyn brought all these matters before the Civil Authorities. He brought the issues to several advocate generals of the Federal Union. No one acted. Were Daryn Alwyn a norm, the matter would have stopped there. Were he less powerful and less talented a pre-select, the matter would have stopped there also. This is what has been occurring more and more to the less affluent people of our world. Most know this all too well.

  What happened to Alwyn and his family is scarcely strange or new. Everyone has a story about how multilaterals or wealth have blocked justice. Alwyn merely had the ability to light the match to a tinderbox of frustration.

  Alwyn inherited power, but he was a pre-select outside the club, because as events have made clear, Alwyn never wanted to play the old games. The insiders and the rest of the world are paying the price for those games.

  It would be easy to condemn this man of power. Many have done so, and more will doubtless so. We will not. Perhaps for personal or selfish reasons, perhaps for nobler motives, the man acted. He acted in a way that showed the entire world the subtle and pervasive corruption that had begun to eat away at the trust that supports and must support every prosperous society.