‘What’s that?’ a Marine said as he picked something up from the floor. ‘Admiral, you wanna see this.’ He hurried over and handed Kyrus a letter written on some strong, smooth material.
“Most high and learned Lord Perceptor. It is with a heavy heart that we of Classes Four, Eleven and Sixteen have decided that abandoning the University and all we stand for will be wrong. We urge and beseech your Lordship to reconsider the evacuation command. Let us stay and finish our schooling and then go and see to the Realm. Even if the mana quake destroyed much, we are Realmfleet—we are the Realm. We are needed to rebuild.”
Below six signatures, someone had hastily scrawled.
“DENIED. LOCK THEM UP IN STASIS FOR FUTURE TRIAL.”
Kyrus grunted. It was like Kambisha had said about NavBase. Part of Realmfleet had risen above the tribal squabbles and was seeing the whole. Apparently this so learned Lord Perceptor hadn’t been one of them.
As he folded the sheet and put it in his pocket, the lights brightened and the buzz of the base machinery filled the silence with its familiar noise.
‘Confounded!’ an older male voice said loudly. ‘Dashed and confounded. The date? My data must be wrong.’
‘Realm University,’ Kyrus said. ‘Change of Overall Command.’ He gave his own code, and the University voice acknowledged them.
‘Are you Realmfleet, sir?’ the voice said. ‘Well, of course you are, to have the codes, but...’
‘I am Realmfleet,’ Kyrus said gravely. ‘Yet not a Moi. You will find you are out of contact with the Moi authorities. NavBase will fill you in on the details. What is your name?’
‘My name? Taraha, Lector Emeritus Taraha was the person I used to be. Now...’
‘You are still that person, Lector Taraha. We are delighted to have you join us. How is the situation here?’
‘All quiet, sir,’ the lector said. ‘The rebels are locked up for later trial, all systems are green and we are ready for the next batch of students. Ah, that is, it seems the only staff members left are among the prisoners, sir.’
‘So some faculty members joined the rebelling students?’ Kyrus said. ‘If I understand it right they’re the ones who wanted to go on being Realmfleet instead of giving everything up? They are actually on our side, then.’
‘Oh well, that is... Ah, switching standpoints aren’t we? That is not often done in Academe. Hmm, yes; I hadn’t seen it in that light, but they did want to keep going on.’
‘Wake them up; I want to speak with them.’
‘Yes, sir.’
‘How many are there and where are they kept?’
‘Three-hundred and eighty-five, sir. The detainees’ barracks are outside, near the dome wall. The complex has a high fence and a gate; you can’t miss it.’
The barracks shouted “Prison!” in a million languages. A long building of some dull greenish material, without windows, and with a large barred door.
‘How to treat your people well,’ Kyrus muttered. ‘Part One, Housing.’
‘Those Moi must be a stern people,’ Healer Holyn said. ‘Prisons on a university campus seem extreme.’
The gate was locked, but Jathra’s tools were as good as keys, and five minutes later they walked to the barracks door. It opened easily, and they came into a large hall with bunkrooms on three sides.
There was a lot of groaning, muttering, and suppressed sobbing. Kyrus put his hands to his back, trying to look sternly official. ‘Class!’
At the familiar command, a mass of kids poured from the rooms and blindly, groggily, lined up. Finally a loose-limbed fellow in a purple uniform came forward.
‘All prisoners are present, sir.’
Kyrus looked at him. ‘You’re the one in charge?’
‘Among the students, yes, sir,’ the boy said. ‘Assistant Ney, final-year senior.’
‘I’m Admiral Kyrus, Realmfleet.’ He pulled the rebellious letter from his pocket. ‘Your name is on this thing?’
‘Yes sir,’ Ney said woodenly, staring at a point over Kyrus’ shoulder.
‘Who else was in on its writing?’
Five fingers went up.
Then an older man came to stand beside Ney. ‘I’m Verrythers, Senior Motivator. My colleagues and I stand with these students. We in no way went against the honor and the rules of the University; we simply doubted the legality of the recall order.’
Kyrus looked them over. ‘So do I.’ He relaxed his stance. ‘We must talk; Realmfleet needs you all. But.’
‘But what, sir?’ Ney said warily.
‘Sit down, everyone.’ Kyrus waited and when they sat on the floor, he put the letter away. ‘Remember the mana quake?’
A fleeting spasm of horror passed over Ney’s face. ‘Most terribly, sir.’
‘I wasn’t there, but I’m sure it was,’ Kyrus said. ‘It caused lots of grief all over the Realm. Then the recall order came. You didn’t agree.’
‘No, sir. We signed up to serve the Realm with our knowledge. Deserting everything just like that was intolerable. Even if the quake had been a disaster, to just give up what our people had built over the centuries was impossible.’
‘You thought the recall was meant forever?’ Kyrus said. ‘Did they actually say that?’
Ney looked at him. ‘It certainly sounded that way. All settlements are to be discontinued. What else would that mean?’
‘The Lord Perceptor was convinced it meant the end of the Realm,’ Verrythers said, not trying to hide his bitterness. ‘He was in a great hurry to return to Moigar and get himself a suitable position while there still were any.’
Kyrus grunted. ‘There is a catch your Lord Perceptor must have missed. The quake alone wouldn’t have caused the Moi heritor to abandon the Realm. That recall meant he had either died or disappeared. We believe the Cra sent the order as part of their takeover..’
‘So it was bunk. What a darned thing to be right about,’ Ney said over the cries of dismay. ‘Still, we must have taken the reins back, for you are here.’ He hesitated. ‘Though you are no Moi.’
‘None of us are, Mr. Ney. Moigar has been silent for a thousand years.’
‘What?’ Ney said in a loud voice. ‘Impossible! It can’t be that long! They would...’
‘Attention all Faculty and Students!’
They must have heard the university brain’s voice a thousand times, and it brought instant silence.
‘General Announcement. Due to circumstances outside our control, this university and all in it have been in stasis for ten centuries. As to the present situation—General Cruishand at NavBase confirmed that after the Realmwide Recall Order, no messages have been received from either the Moigar government or from the heritor’s office. We must conclude the Recall Order has been effectuated, and the Realm was discontinued.’
A student started to sob. ‘Discontinued! They darn well deserted us! What must we do? If all is gone, our homes, our families, and even Realmfleet, what must we do?’
‘But Realmfleet is not gone,’ Kyrus said. ‘I am here, ain’t I?’ He told them who they were and how they ended up in space. ‘Now we want you guys to stand with us. We want you to do what you joined for; to study, learn, and help the Realm. To explore, unite and defend what we hold and to trade.’
‘But you are no older than us,’ Ney said. ‘How can you hope to rule and defend the Realm?’
‘Defend is my part,’ Kyrus said. ‘Watch!’ He let flames and lightning dance around him and on impulse, added snow and a howling tempest. Mountains’ Breath! he thought, as he stood balancing all that offensive power. This ain’t bad!
A girl in the first row sighed. ‘Can you teach us?’
‘You have magic?’ Kyrus said, dissolving the spells and resuming his earlier stance.
‘All of us have,’ Ney said. ‘We’re a special selection. That is why they put us in stasis instead of outright killing us.’
‘Does that mean they expected to return?’ Kyrus said. ‘In spite of that recall?’
‘No; they reckoned the authorities at home would send a ship to fetch us back. Nobody thought we’d be left behind forever.’
‘We don’t know if that was deliberate,’ Kyrus said. ‘I can imagine the situation at your home planet was massively hectic and they may have overlooked you.’ He looked at Ney, at the five other rebels, the motivators and the massed students. ‘I can understand your emotions are still as raw as when you went into stasis. But those who angered you are long dead. You are off to a fresh start and I hope you will join us.’
‘What if we don’t?’ Ney said.
Kyrus shrugged. ‘Then you will be dismissed from the university. We will provide transport to a planet of your choice and leave you there. I must say, if that’s your answer, you would have been better off returning home with the others instead of writing that flippin’ letter.’
Ney turned around to the others. ‘Well?’
‘I want to finish my study,’ a girl said. ‘I’m joining.’
‘So am I,’ a tall, nearly bald boy said. ‘One more course and I’m a brain tech.’ He looked at Kyrus. ‘You do need AI brain techs, don’t you?’
‘You’re hired,’ Kyrus said. ‘We’ll be sure to find damaged brains, so we darned well need you.’
‘Let’s stop this fool discussion,’ a small girl in glasses said angrily. ‘We’re all joining, Admiral. We - ain’t - got - an - effin - alternative.’
After that there was silence.
‘Miss Alaone is right,’ Motivator Verrythers said, finally. ‘We haven’t.’
‘Welcome back to the Realm.’ Kyrus spread his arms as if to embrace them all. ‘I will take you to Realmport for a few days. There will be medicals and briefings to get you all updated on the situation. You’ll not be alone; we’ve got a large bunch of midshipmen from NavBase as well as our own guys from Firstworld. Ready?’
‘Half an hour ago,’ the girl in glasses said. ‘Show us the ship, Admiral.’
Kyrus grinned. ‘My pleasure.’
They walked out into the sun and into the ship, heads high.
‘They look eager,’ Kyrus said.
‘They’re feeling vindicated,’ Healer Holyn said. ‘The obedient went home to oblivion, and they, the rebels, are staying to pick up the pieces. I gather rebellion is a deadly sin for a Moi, so they’re feeling pretty good now. The realization will come later, but then Gunild will be there to watch them.’
An hour later, with the students safely in Gunild’s invisible hands, Odysson and Kyrus met at their usual table in the mess.
‘M’sister not back yet?’ Kyrus asked.
‘She came in half an hour ago,’ Odysson said. ‘She went straight to her quarters. Been hobnobbing with Dreghs, so she wanted to clean up first.’ He held his nose and grinned. ‘You could smell her pass. What about you? Those guys you brought didn’t look like midshipfellows. That university wasn’t a military institute?’
Kyrus grinned. ‘No. And not an arcane one either. They’re scientists, though they have magic.’ He buried his face in a large piece of apple pie with whipped cream.
‘Mage scientists,’ Odysson said. ‘We need those guys too; urgently. And you got teachers, too? Brilliant, my boy. For a kid who never went to school himself, you’re absolutely astonishing.’
‘Homeschooled by the best,’ Kyrus said. ‘No school has the Wyrmcaller as headmaster, bud.’
‘There’s that,’ Odysson said. ‘Gunild, could I bother you to find the spokesperson of those teachers?’
‘Motivator Verrythers,’ Kyrus said round a mass of half-chewed pie.
‘I have him, sir. He will be here right away.’
‘Thank you,’ Odysson said.
Verrythers came quickly. He was a comfortable man, at a guess in his late twenties, with the sort of face that inspired confidence.
‘Admiral?’ he said. ‘You wanted me?’
‘Not he,’ Odysson said. ‘I asked to see you, sir. Sit down, please. I’m Odysson, in charge of trade and infrastructure. You and your colleagues are on the University staff? I was puzzling over the title of Motivator. What is your role?’
Verrythers looked surprised. ‘We take care of the three pillars of Academe—Coaching, Stimulating, Disciplining.’
‘You don’t teach?’
‘Oh no, we are councilors. Old Brain Taraha—I mean the Lector provides instruction into a mass of subjects. He does the teaching side while we maintain morale. We were the coaches of the three classes involved in that protest.’
‘If Lector Taraha did all the teaching, what was the Lord Perceptor’s task?’
Verrythers looked up quickly. ‘He was a political appointee; a bureaucrat. Taraha ran the University, and the Perceptor was at least wise enough to leave it to him.’
‘I see,’ Odysson said. ‘So between the lector and the six of you, the University can go on?’
‘Certainly,’ Verrythers said. ‘Should we get more students, we would need extra coaches, but we can hire those from among the students. That is, there are funds for us?’
‘Lector Taraha will arrange finances with our Ms. Gunild,’ Odysson said. ‘Now, could you describe the courses you offer?’
Verrythers smiled. ‘They are not courses in the regular sense. Everything we teach is strictly individual, you see. Studies are assigned based on aptitude and demand, with preference as third. If you really want to know all of them, Taraha can give you a list of available choices.’
‘I’ll ask him later,’ Odysson said. ‘Just give me an idea of the most promising students.’
‘Promising... Mr. Marff is almost done with his study Automagica. That is brain technology; the writing and repairing of artificial and human machine brains. His is a highly valuable specialism because there is a far greater demand than there are students with the right affinity. Most of those who graduate work with BrainLabs... If it still exists.’ He rubbed his face with a hand. ‘Darn; so many irreplaceable people gone.’
‘We haven’t visited them yet,’ Kyrus said quickly. ‘We don’t know what happened there.’
Verrythers took a deep breath and nodded. ‘There is Miss Alaone, top marks as a shield tech. That is another important study, for somehow we find few top-level designers, and plenty low-level technicians. Of course maintenance is important, but we sorely need innovators.’
‘We certainly do. Perhaps we could ask her to have a look at our combat shields while she is here,’ Odysson said.
‘I’m sure she will be happy to,’ Verrythers said. ‘Mr. Ney is in Magriculture; the cultivation of plants through magic. For example shrubs and trees growing into pre-indicated shapes, colors and textures.’
‘I wondered at those bushes at that University,’ Kyrus said. ‘They looked very healthy after a thousand years.’
Verrythers nodded. ‘Those are one example.’
‘Would that mean he could grow plants for desert or arctic lands?’ Odysson said.
‘Yes. His specialty does precisely that. He will be able to help change barren worlds into something better. These three students are final-years, part of a select group who have only one or two more lectures to go before graduation. I hope you will enable them to finish their study.’
‘We certainly will,’ Odysson said. ‘As soon as we’re sure the students have adjusted to the new situation, we’ll reopen the University and you can all return.’
‘We are being observed?’ Verrythers said, and his eyes narrowed.
‘Yes,’ Odysson said frankly. ‘We don’t want any traumas rearing their heads. We have several mindmages keeping an unobtrusive eye upon everyone. Don’t worry; they’re not looking into minds, and they are terribly discrete.’
‘Sir,’ Verrythers said. ‘I’m glad you are honest about it. We always suspected the university was spying on us. They wanted to be sure of our loyalty to the Realm.’ He laughed without humor. ‘In the end we were arrested because we were the ones loyal to the Realm. Isn’t it ironical?’
‘Quite a
bsurd,’ Odysson said. ‘Paranoid, actually. We are not spying, merely keeping an eye on your health. Now please tell me—we will be advertising for new students soon. What are the minimum qualifications?’
‘They must pass our basic test. Any brain person will be able to examine them. An entry age of sixteen years is usual, but no absolute rule.’
Odysson nodded. ‘Thank you; for the moment I’m done. I suggest you go and relax; talk with our guys, get an idea of our history and values. We’ll speak again later.’
‘I admit I am curious to learn more about you and your society,’ Verrythers said. ‘It is most remarkable how Moi-like you are.’ He gave a slight bow and left them, weaving his way past the tables, stopping here and there for a touch, a brief word or quick handshake.
‘Those guys like him,’ Kyrus said as he watched the motivator at work. ‘They all seem cheered when he chatted with them.’
Then a familiar figure came in, scowling as he looked round the busy mess.
‘There’s that Ram fellow again,’ Odysson said. ‘Does that mean Kam is ready? I get the feeling he’s always following her.’
Kyrus grinned. ‘He is. He ain’t the first one, too. My twin has that funny something that calls to Kell males.’
‘What funny something? She’s very handsome, but I don’t feel anything special,’ Odysson said.
Kyrus looked at him. ‘You’re not a Kell male. She’s a challenge.’
Odysson coughed. ‘Of them laying her?’
‘No, of her laying them. My twin is a true Kell, far more like Grandma Maud than our Mother. If she ever picks up a guy, it’s her decision, and the boys know that. She’s boss, and she has the guts and the muscle to make it stick.’ Then he grinned. ‘I do hope she won’t choose another Vanhaari, though. Every time, their children become smaller and I don’t fancy being uncle to a kobold.’
‘Ram is big enough,’ Odysson said. ‘Lot of muscle, too.’
‘I know; he’s a real Kell male. And I’m darned sure twin noticed it. Don’t expect them to make a show of it; they won’t—not even when they’re alone. I suppose she’ll bed him one of these days, to see if they match. That’s another good old Kell custom. So he keeps himself available; all very proper and traditional.’
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