Confluence

by S. K. Dunstall

Yu smiled. “The mine was only the start of negotiations, Daughter, and the Factor has evinced a certain . . . interest in my bait.”

  “Which is?”

  The New Alliance would certainly be interested in the Worlds of the Lesser Gods, for while they were small, politically, they shared space close to Redmond. Having access to ten worlds in the same sector would make it easier to strike at the enemy.

  “Tell me, Daughter, would not a bloc of ten votes—twenty votes—be to our advantage?”

  “Of course it would. If we could be sure the Worlds of the Lesser Gods would vote for us. They are known to be unfriendly to Lancia. What bait did you use to get them to agree?”

  “A close binding of our worlds. You, Daughter, will marry the Factor of the Lesser Gods.”

  Michelle laughed. She was the only person who would have dared. “Maybe.” She stood up. “I will investigate the Worlds of the Lesser Gods and take your news back to the New Alliance so they can prepare for their request for membership.”

  He walked with her to the door. “And Daughter, beware of who you take advice from. When I say something is to happen, I expect it to happen.”

  Michelle glanced back. “I hear you, Father. Loud and clear.”

  * * *

  VEGA had a replacement guard ready when Michelle left the throne room.

  The team followed Michelle while Radko waited with Vega.

  “Turns out Martinsson’s allergic to his own world,” Vega said. “Or the pollution in it, anyway. He hasn’t been back here since Sattur Dow extended his factory at Settlement City. Airborne particulates.”

  Like any world, Lancia had minimum clean-air requirements, but those requirements were specific, and easy to get around if you had the money or power to buy exemptions.

  Vega scowled in the direction of Settlement City. “So let’s hear how bad it is.”

  Radko was strongly aware of Commodore Bach at his desk. These rooms, used exclusively by the guards working for the Emperor’s household, were as secure as the Lancastrian Princess, but after what she’d heard, Radko thought that anything she told Vega would go right back to the Emperor.

  “I left my kit at the barracks, ma’am. I’ll need to collect it if I’m to leave now.”

  Vega nodded and walked with Radko. One thing about Vega. She picked up messages very quickly.

  They were both silent until they were in the aircar taking them over to the barracks.

  “What happened at Confluence Station?” Radko asked, for that was safe talk. Anyone would want to know about it. “I hear it was attacked.”

  Vega’s eyebrows rose. Radko didn’t have to guess what she was thinking. If she hadn’t known about Confluence Station, how could she have done anything stupid?

  “It’s all over the vids. Galactic News and Blue Sky Media filmed it for us.”

  “I haven’t seen the vids.”

  “I’m surprised.” Vega folded her hands in her lap. “Confluence Station was attacked by an armed ship disguised as a freighter. It did a lot of damage.”

  “And Ean?”

  Vega’s tone turned dry. “The linesmen are safe. Before the freighter could destroy it, the station switched places with the Eleven, leaving the two ships to battle it out.”

  No one listening would have understood what Vega had told her in those short sentences. They hadn’t known before today that two ships—or a ship and a station—could switch places. Ean was the only person who could have done it.

  “There is some conjecture in the media as to whether the Eleven destroyed the freighter or whether it jumped,” Vega said. “And the captain of the freighter hasn’t come forward to say, one way or the other. I’m sure you will make up your own mind when you see the vids.”

  Judging from the grim way Vega smiled, the freighter had been destroyed.

  The aircar landed.

  “Thank you for taking the time to inform me, ma’am,” Radko said, as they stepped out onto the tarmac.

  The aircar lifted on auto and whisked itself away.

  It was safe to talk now, but Radko kept her voice low. “Did you see Michelle’s audience with her father?”

  “I did.”

  “Did you see my audience, earlier?”

  “No.”

  She wouldn’t have had a reason to.

  “Sattur Dow was there. I think he wants access to the alien ships.” Radko reported the whole conversation as precisely as she could, including her own pending marriage. “Not only that, I traveled to Baoshan in an aircar with Tiana Chen and Ethan Saylor. They’re connected with Sattur Dow. Saylor let slip that they believe they’ll have access to Lambert soon.”

  “That’s worrying. Especially in light of the later meeting.”

  They walked together in silence around the parade ground at the barracks. “Your kit is at the palace,” Vega said, eventually. “Let’s hope Bach doesn’t realize.”

  There was no excuse for clumsiness like that. “Sorry, ma’am.”

  Vega waved that away. “Emperor Yu does not like people who defy him. He’s just as likely to change his mind and call you in for an accounting, no matter what Dow says.”

  An accounting like that only ended one way. With the accountee being wheeled out dead.

  “If you stay on the Lancastrian Princess, he can call you in at any time. Even if he doesn’t, you become Dow’s access to the alien ships because they have plans, and you’re important to them.”

  She’d expected it, but a slow hatred started to burn against the two men who would destroy her life.

  “You could always transfer me.” Her voice wasn’t as steady as she wanted it to be.

  “We could. But why break up a good team? We’ll send you away temporarily, for your own safety, until we work out what the plan is and find a way to circumvent it.” Vega smiled, albeit grimly. “Let’s hope Dow has overreached himself this time, and we can take him down for it.”

  That was almost treasonous talk. Radko glanced around, instinctively taking in who might have been listening to them. No one.

  “Lambert won’t take it well. Especially if he knows you don’t want to go.” Vega looked at her. “Unless you do want to go, that is.”

  “No, ma’am.” It came out more fervently than she’d planned.

  Another grim smile. “Lambert will do fine without you.” Then Vega amended that to, “Well enough, anyway. Personally, I’d prefer you there to handle him, but under the circumstances—”

  “He doesn’t need handling, he needs understanding.”

  “He’s like an out-of-control weapon. You never know whether the recoil will kill you.”

  “But it’s more likely to turn around and hit the enemy,” Radko said.

  “So far. But don’t worry, I’ll keep him safe until you get back. Inasmuch as I can because we all know Lambert.”

  The brusque words relieved Radko, for she had wondered if she would be allowed to return. “How long?”

  “As long as it takes. We’d best get you off now. Make it look as if you were already assigned, rather than us bundling you off in a hurry.”

  Vega stopped and tapped something into her comms. “A temporary promotion, I think. I’m trying you out as a team leader. The lines know, you’re long past ready for it.”

  Ean had once told Radko that he could sometimes hear when people like Abram or Helmo or Michelle made decisions. “It’s like a snap,” he’d said. “A sharp color, and they’re done. Instant decision, with a whole plan behind it. As if they’d spent hours thinking it out.”

  Radko would bet Vega had just made a decision like that.

  “Hah,” Vega said. “And I’ve the perfect job here, especially in light of your recent information. You’ll like this one. You’ve done covert ops before.”

  It wasn’t a question. Before she’d come aboard the Lanc
astrian Princess, Vega had studied everyone’s dossier. Radko answered anyway. “Yes, ma’am.”

  Not many, but enough.

  “And your Redmond-language skills are good?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” In fact, all of Radko’s covert operations to date had been on Redmond, for her parents had planned a career for her as a diplomat long before she’d chosen to join the Lancian fleet. She was skilled in three languages outside Lancian and Standard. Redmond, Carina, and Aquacaelum—and had spent time on each world as a child.

  Interestingly, they were all in what was now enemy territory.

  “Get yourself some clothes,” Vega said. “Formal business attire. I’ll have someone collect your kit and send it home.”

  When Radko came out of the tailoring machine, Vega had gone, but her orders were on Radko’s comms, coded and backdated.

  A Redmond trader, Callista OneLane, has acquired what she hints are details of groundbreaking experiments on linesmen. Further, she hints that the records include the data from the last six months, when the parameters changed, and they started getting real success with the experiments.

  Six months ago the then-Alliance had discovered the alien spaceships. And realized that current line theory was flawed. And made massive leaps in communicating with the lines, themselves. Radko’s breath quickened. They had to be using what the New Alliance had learned from Ean and his work with the alien lines.

  As you can imagine, we’re keen to see those plans.

  So was Radko.

  They were offered to Sattur Dow, who has bought contraband from OneLane before. Until your report, we had no idea why. Now we do.

  Sattur Dow was never getting close enough to Ean to use what he might have learned from those experiments.

  Dow is sending Tiana Chen to purchase the report.

  Vega was right. Radko did like it.

  We’ll delay Chen for twenty-four hours.

  You are ideally situated to know what the report shows and how important it is. Check it out, pay what you think we should offer for them.

  Above all, don’t get caught, and don’t get yourself killed.

  That was Vega, blunt and to the point. Abram Galenos would never have said that. He would assume she was smart enough to stay alive. Radko rubbed her eyes. Change was inevitable, and she liked Vega, but everyone on ship had been comfortable with the old regime.

  They’d been happy, Ean had said.

  You have been assigned a small team. Your “other” job—

  Based on the quotes Radko assumed this was unofficially as important to Vega as the first.

  —is to assess them for line ability. Every one of them went through line training and failed certification. I want a full report on each of them, including their level and your assessment of their capabilities.

  Radko wasn’t a linesman, but she was better equipped than most to recognize the individual songs of each line. Vega must have been planning this part of the operation for a while.

  There’s a ship leaving for Mykara at 1800 hours. Be on it. Leave the ship at Shaolin. Lancia has a cache there. You can arm yourself, and from there you can catch a ship to Redmond.

  She had exactly fifteen minutes to make the shuttle Vega had booked for her. Radko shouldered her bag and ran.

  FIVE

  EAN LAMBERT

  EAN AND ROSSI fixed as many of the damaged lines on Confluence Station as they could, and the twenty linesmen Ean had been training came out the next day to finish off. Abram came along as well.

  Ean listened to the trainees’ work.

  “There isn’t much more I can teach them,” he told Abram. “They know how to listen now, and how to sing the lines straight.”

  “That’s good,” Abram said. “There’s a push to train more. We’ve every world in the New Alliance scouring for suitable linesmen for you to train.”

  Singing to the lines wouldn’t be a secret much longer.

  They suited up so that Abram could inspect the damaged areas.

  “Some worlds have agreed to leave their trained linesmen here to help you,” Abram said. “Provided they can train others from their own world.”

  “Hernandez?” Hernandez was a ten. She had spent so much time around the eleven ships, she’d have problems if her home world of Balian took her away.

  “Of course,” as if that was a given. It probably was. Admiral Katida of Balian would like her own personal ten knowing everything that went on. “You lose Tai.” Tai was the chief engineer on the Lancastrian Princess. Ean had never expected him to stay. “Chantsmith will stay on the Gruen.”

  Chantsmith had always defended the Gruen. “I’m glad.” The Gruen would be happy.

  “At least this attack has galvanized those councilors and admirals who were uncertain before. They’re seriously looking for line crews.”

  Finally.

  “We’re also training paramedics from the various worlds to work with line-related problems. You’ll work with a mix of experienced and inexperienced paramedics for a while.”

  “So when does the Confluence get its crew?”

  He could tell from the way Abram paused that he wouldn’t like the answer.

  “It doesn’t. Not initially. They’re still arguing over who should crew it.”

  “It’s not fair the other ships get crews—and captains—while the flagship doesn’t. Besides—” He broke off.

  “Besides?” Abram looked wary.

  “I promised it was next.”

  “I can’t get you a captain, Ean. Not the way we got Kari Wang. This one will take all the politicking—and more—that the first one didn’t.”

  How was Ean going to tell the Confluence that? “The lines won’t wait forever. Lines need people.” The more permanent crew a ship had on board, the more aware a ship became. The Eleven was markedly different from the lonely ship they had found in the outer depths of space all those months ago. “How are they crewing the other ships if they’re not crewing the Confluence?”

  “We’ve promised every world a ship of its own, provided they agree to remain on permanent loan to the New Alliance fleet.”

  That would take some politicking of its own, for there was a range of ships. Fleet carriers, which were the largest outside the eleven ships and had smaller one- and two-man ships on board. There were twenty of them. Patrol ships, smaller than the carriers and not as heavily armed, but some of the weapons were massive. Then there were sixty smaller, faster combat ships with lighter weapons and bigger engines. Lastly were the scouts, which carried six people.

  Every world would want the larger ships though many of them were damaged. One of the fleet carriers and two of the patrol ships would have to be rebuilt before they could take crew.

  What did the aliens do when their ships were damaged so badly? What could cause that sort of damage, anyway?

  It was good to know that the ships were getting crew, but the flagship needed crew as well. “Why don’t you make each supply a crew member for the Confluence as a condition for getting its own ship?” The Eleven had a full linesman and a single-level linesman from each world; the Confluence should have the same. “Two crew. A single and a full.”

  Abram smiled. “I’ll see what I can do. I may be able to get you a crew even if I can’t get you a captain.”

  They arrived at the internal air lock that blocked off the more damaged areas of the station. Once through the air lock, the still-intact passages gave way to a structure of struts and clear plastic, separating the inside from the outside.

  Ean’s stomach flipped queasily. Sure, he knew that there was nothing except space outside a ship or station, but he’d rather not see it. Not an empty black expanse like this.

  Abram looked around. “That freighter did some damage.”

  Yet Confluence Station wasn’t majorly distressed about it. Even though t
he lines were damaged, and their station manager was still in the hospital, the station song was more of fixing things and of everything under control. The Lancastrian Princess would have been distressed if its “Ship”—Captain Helmo—was missing.

  “Do you think only ships, and not stations, bond with their captains?” Ean asked.

  “Do you?”

  “No.” Although both Piers Wendell and Jita Orsaya believed that going through the void increased the bond between ship and captain, and Ean knew his own link with the lines expanded every time he went through the void. “Maybe. I don’t know.” Ean would still have expected some recognition from Confluence Station that its “Ship” was damaged.

  * * *

  CAPTAIN Helmo called at midnight to say he was returning to Haladean space. Fergus and Commodore Vega were on the bridge with him.

  Ean already knew one person was missing. “Is everyone—”

  “There is a line-security issue I need to discuss with you, Linesman,” Vega said over the top of him. “Make yourself available on the Lancastrian Princess at the earliest opportunity.”

  “A security issue?”

  “At the earliest.”

  He could get subtle—and not so subtle—hints.

  Ean let Fergus sing them in, while he checked the surrounding lines to ensure there were no ships nearby. This was a sanctioned jump, ordered in the name of a freighter half the galaxy away, but Gate Union knew by now that the New Alliance was buying jumps on the black market. How could they not?

  Ean trusted the Eleven fleet ships to stop any intruders, but Captain Helmo wasn’t as trusting as he was. It was Ean’s way of reassuring Helmo that everything was all right. Maybe one day, Helmo would believe it enough to jump cold.

  The galaxy would turn into a black hole first.

  He went out to the shared common room, where Ru Li and Gossamer were on duty. “I need to go to the Lancastrian Princess.”

  “Now?” Gossamer asked.

  “There’s a problem.” Vega might have wanted him to wait until morning, but she had said at the earliest.

  Ru Li sighed and went to wake Bhaksir.