King Karel looked shocked. "Once a day?"
Cale jumped in. "Yes, Majesty, But they have unlimited hot water. On Jumbo, it will be enough to make a beginning: to convince the people that bathing is healthful, not risky. Once they get used to it, they will find that they like feeling clean, and being odor-free."
King Karel nodded. "So, you heat the water. In winter, that could require a lot of wood."
Cale nodded. "And that brings us to the main topic of the day. What do we want from you?"
Chapter 6
"Ah, yes," King Karel said. "I assume this is what got you in trouble in Valhalla?"
Cale nodded. "Yes, sire. But the problem there was that what we proposed would have endangered their scientific domination of Jumbo."
The king looked interested. "Really? Tell Us about it."
"Dee and I are neither trader not healer," he began. "We are scouts. The Empire died long ago. There is only one large multi-system government, and it is far out on the rim of space. Everywhere else, planets are on their own, like Jumbo. Every year, more planets lose their spacegoing capability. Interstellar war was once considered impossible; now it is a regular occurrence. One recent war was between a planet called Santiago, and one called Ilocan. Ilocan won. That means that conditions are becoming bad on Santiago.
"Our clients are a group of farmers on Santiago, people who love the earth. As their planet has become more and more industrialized, so they have become more dissatisfied. Now their planet has lost a war, and is falling into economic depression. They have hired us to find them a planet to which they can move. They want a place to settle, to raise their children and grandchildren, but mostly, a place where they can farm the land.
"And these people are star men?" the king asked.
Cale nodded. "Yes. Even as farmers, they will know much, and have much to teach." He looked at Dee before he continued. "King Rajo's wizard, Hiraf, realized something that should have occurred to me earlier. If we bring in over a thousand 'wizards' with advanced knowledge, what about the people already here? What about the people of Jumbo?"
He shrugged. "I will be honest. Our colonists will know so much more that, should they so desire, they could probably take over all the inhabited area of Jumbo. But these people are not soldiers, they're farmers. I can see them hiring 'locals' for manual labor jobs, but I do not expect them to enslave your people.
"Over time, your people will learn from ours. They will learn about machines, and about new ways of producing crops, new ways of doing things, and new things to do. But I will not lie to you. In the short term, for the first ten or twenty years, your peoples' lives will change in ways we cannot predict, and some of them may be bad."
King Karel was looking thoughtful. "So you wish to bring in a thousand star men to start their own community, their own domain."
Cale nodded. "We call it a 'colony,' but it means the same thing."
King Karel shook his head. "We could not let them settle in Our domain. Any oath of fealty they swore would be meaningless, given their capabilities. And all of the settled area already has a king, whose circumstances would be the same. And if your people try to settle outside the settled strip, the nomads will fight. They are fanatical, and will fight until one side or the other is completely destroyed."
Cale frowned. "Well, there is plenty of unoccupied land on Jumbo. But I think our clients anticipate having other humans around. I hate to go back and tell them they'll have to settle on South continent, and never see anyone outside their own colony."
King Karel shrugged. "Still, Our people would learn much from yours. While the first years might be difficult, still they would be pushed up a ladder they should climb. We see one possibility. The Cursed Lands."
"The Cursed Lands?"
"Yes," King Karel replied. "Something happened in the old city of Nirvana during the Madness. No one knows what, exactly. But there is an area along the eastern border of our domain that was poisoned. Everyone and everything that lived in that area sickened and died. The few plants that grew there grew stunted and poisonous. Even after centuries, the Cursed Lands killed everyone who entered it."
"That sounds like radioactivity," Tess whispered in Cale's ear.
"But 500 years have passed," King Karel continued. "We have been receiving reports recently from people brave or foolish enough to enter the area. They say that green plants now grow there; real green, not the sickly green of the Cursed Lands.
"Technically, the Cursed Lands have been considered part of Our domain for centuries, though we suspect that if the nomads learn that healthy plants grow there again, they might argue the point.
"That is why We will make this offer. We will deed your people the Cursed Lands. They will agree to protect it and Our eastern border against the nomads.
"There is one other matter," he resumed. "Our great-nephew Ulrik. We wish him to be Our heir, but my enemies argue that he is too young and unskilled in statecraft.
"Now, it appears that We may live awhile longer, thanks to you. As part of the bargain, We will appoint Ulrik as Our ambassador to your people. Your people will take him and teach him what a star man's child might learn. By the time We die, We will be able to appoint him Our heir, and your people will be able to deal with someone they know, and who knows them. Together, they can help my people move into the future."
"If the sickness is truly gone," Cale replied.
King Karel nodded. "Of course. Will you help Us to the door? We fear your cure is not immediate."
They helped him to the door of the royal apartment, and King Karel summoned one of the guardsmen. "Please fetch my great-nephew Ulrik," he asked. Then he asked the spacers to take him back to the sleeping chamber.
In a few minutes, a knock at the door announced Ulrik, King Karel's great-nephew and heir-apparent. He was in his late teens, at that gawky stage at which his clothes seemed too small and his shoes too large. A raging case of acne marred his otherwise handsome face. He wore padded clothing, and was puffing slightly. King Karel smiled fondly. "Working out with the guardsmen again, Ulrik?"
The boy's return smile was genuine. Plainly these two were close. "Yes, great-uncle. Someday, such practice may keep me alive." He looked at the two spacers curiously.
King Karel waved with a flourish. "Ulrik, We present Lord Cale and Lady Dee. They are from the stars."
The boy's eyes widened, and his expression became excited. "Truly? The star men have returned?"
The king shrugged. "Perhaps, but not as in the old stories," he said. He explained the situation. "These people have a vehicle that flies in the air, and flies silently," he began. "It is concealed in the Giant Forest. We want you to return to this vehicle with them, and fly over the Cursed Lands with them. They may wish to land, and take readings on strange instruments. This must be done at night; we do not want to panic the people or start more tales of 'magic.'"
The king turned to the spacers. "Do you intend to return to King's Town?"
Cale shook his head. "If we find the Cursed Lands acceptable, no. We'll drop Ulrik as close as we dare, and then meet our ship somewhere in the nomad lands. Then we will take our news to our clients."
The king nodded and turned back to Ulrik. "When your mission is complete, they will return you as close as possible to King's Town. You will take weapons, several days' supplies, and plenty of ounces to get back here."
The boy frowned, apparently thinking hard. He turned to Cale. "When do you wish to leave? How long will it take to reach your vehicle?"
Cale shrugged. "Actually, I think we must trade at the market tomorrow. If we don't, it will make people curious. After that, perhaps two days. We still have to worry about that cursed cart."
"Leave it," King Karel said. "We will lock it up in the palace."
"With respect, Majesty," Cale replied, "we cannot. The people along that course know us as traders. Also, there are items in that cart we wish to take back to the stars with us."
The king nodded. "Then We
must complete all arrangements now," he said. "Very well. But how will you notify Us when you return? The deeding of the Cursed Lands must be very public, or both of us will be fighting silly claims for years."
"I guess we could hide our cart and do the trader thing again," Cale said doubtfully.
"No," King Karel replied. "You cannot sneak back again. Your approach must be very public, and very impressive. You will be ambassadors of a lord from the stars, fleeing enemies and seeking to establish a new domain." He thought for a moment. "No, you will land your starship a day's travel to the west, and form an impressive procession to King's Town. There, after a few days negotiating the details, your colony leader will sign the treaty, ceding them the lands, and pledging them to protect the eastern border of Our domain; an alliance between Us and men from the stars." He grinned. "I can just imagine the look on Rajo's face!"
Cale frowned. "It's your planet; you know what will work best. But how can we coordinate it?
"'Co-ordinate?'"
"Arrange it," Cale said. "It will need arranging on both sides."
"Don't worry about it," Dee put in. "There's a portable ultracom transceiver on the flitter. We'll just give it to Ulrik. Then, when we get back, we can just call him and tell him anything necessary."
Cale smiled. "That'll work. As soon as we assume orbit, we'll call Ulrik, and start making arrangements for the big show."
"You can actually talk to Ulrik from space?" Despite his assumed sophistication, King Karel was still a man of his world and his time.
Cale smiled and nodded. "Easily. Now, we should be back in four to six months. It will take time to arrange everything on the other end."
"Six months will be early Spring," Ulrik said. "That should give your people a chance to get a crop in the ground, if they work fast."
Cale grinned. "Oh, they'll work fast. You won't believe how fast!"
The next day dragged, slowed by their anticipation of returning to the flitter. But they finally worked through it. Cale even found himself enjoying some of the haggling and trading.
Ulrik arrived at the barn at dawn the following day, accompanied by an armed guardsman. "Don't worry," Ulrik told the spacers. "Great-uncle insisted on a guardsman as far as the edge of town."
"How is your great-uncle?" Dee asked.
The boy grinned. "Much improved. Will he really be all right?"
Dee nodded. "I think so. It will take one or two tendays. But when you return, you'll be able to see the difference."
"And will I truly fly in the air?"
Cale grinned and nodded. "Really and truly. Unfortunately, we cannot let anyone see you do it."
Ulrik's excitement didn't fade. Even a night sleeping on the ground under the stars after a long day's walk didn't dampen his enthusiasm.
They reached Ham's Town the next day, but it was not a market day, so they could continue on their way. When they entered the Giant Forest, Ulrik finally began to look intimidated, but whether it was the effect of the forest or the impending flitter flight wasn't clear.
They met no one on the narrow forest track, and Cale had no difficulty recognizing his landmarks. They closely examined the ground around the flitter's hiding place, but it seemed it had not been found. Tess's 'bot backed the flitter out of the tangled underbrush.
When the 'bot emerged, it clearly terrified Ulrik. Cale had to talk quietly to him for nearly half an hour before the boy began to relax. But his eyes still followed the 'bot's every move.
The flitter just as clearly fascinated him. Ulrik had never seen so much metal! And he just flatly refused to believe that their ship was many times that size, that the flitter was simply carried on the larger ship.
Cale and Dee gathered the purchases they planned to take back to Santiago. Then they pushed the cart into the space just vacated by the flitter.
"What'll we do with the donkey?" Dee asked.
Cale shrugged. "Just turn it loose, I guess."
Ulrik looked troubled at the thought of just releasing a valuable animal, especially in the forest, where predators abounded. "Stake it out," he finally said. "When we finish, you can drop me off here, and I'll take it somewhere I can trade it, and make sure it's all right."
They waited until almost dark to move the flitter. By the time they emerged from the forest, full dark had fallen, and Cale was using the flitter's night vision to see. Ulrik was excited. He kept bouncing in his seat, and staring out the flitter's windows.
"Cale," Tess said through the 'bot, "There is a large fan-shaped area covering almost three thousand square kiloms that appears to lack sizable tree life or large numbers of wild animals."
"Good," Cale replied. "That's probably our target."
Dee glanced over at Ulrik. The boy was frozen, and was regarding the spider-shaped 'bot as though it were a deadly predator.
"Ulrik," Dee said in a calm, quiet voice. "It's all right. Cale explained about the 'bot. The ship's artificial intelligence uses it as a hand. Without Tess's control, it's just a hunk of metal."
"Perhaps the problem is that he hasn't met Tess," Cale suggested. "Ulrik, Tess is the brain that runs our ship. She's very smart. Tess, please introduce yourself."
"Hello, Ulrik. My name is Tess. I'm talking to you from space. The 'bot is a tool I control. See, I'll shut it down, so it won't bother you so much." After a moment the 'bot's eight appendages folded neatly into its body, leaving only a featureless flattened sphere some ten inches in diameter.
"Perhaps you'd better leave it shut down, Tess," Dee said. "We need Ulrik to guide us, and we don't need him terrified. We'll use the implants." She lifted the 'bot with an effort, and put it behind the seats.
After a few minutes, Ulrik began to relax. He was excited by the night vision, and even more so by the realization that he was flying in the air. He had begun to pick out landmarks, which took his mind off the metal monster. Once he assured Cale that they were in the Cursed Lands, Cale landed the flitter. Deprived of the aid of the 'bot, he and Dee collected soil and air samples, as well as plant material from some of the new growth.
Tess had assembled a grid, but couldn't display it without the 'bot. She was forced to content herself with giving directions and coordinates through Cale's implant.
They finished well before dawn, and took Ulrik back to the forest road. The boy's look was an odd combination of desperate longing and desperate relief as he climbed out of the flitter, ultracom in hand, and watched it lift silently away.
Cale also breathed a large sigh of relief. "All right, Tess, where can we meet?"
"I assumed your statement about a pickup in nomad territory was a directive," Tess said. "At any rate, I have located an area that seems free of migrating tribes at the moment." The 'bot unfolded itself and moved to the front, displaying a map with coordinates.
Dawn was just breaking as the actinic fireball that was Cheetah settled to earth. The flitter, which Cale had kept circling in a search for approaching nomads, drove for Cheetah's opening cargo hatch. Magnetic clamps snapped closed, and Cheetah lifted off.
Once back in space, they exited the flitter. Dee started to head straight for the 'fresher, but Cale stopped her.
"Strip off your clothes first, Dee," he said, "Tess, I recommend you decompress the hold. There's an amazing amount of insect life on Jumbo, and most of it seems to live on people or their clothing." While speaking, he had shed his own clothing, leaving it in the cargo hold and walking naked into the passenger areas of the ship. Dee frowned, but reluctantly followed suit.
Neither Dee nor Tess wasted any time. Tess had no intention of becoming a home for wayward insects, and she would not be able to decompress the passenger areas unless her passengers suited up. As the hatch clanged shut behind Dee, Tess was already pumping out the air of the cargo hold.
As for Dee, she didn't even pause on her way to the 'fresher, where she spent nearly an hour scrubbing before she was satisfied.
Cale took less time, but not by much. He'd been almost as concerned
and irritated about Jumbo's lack of hygiene as Dee.
Donning clean, fresh underwear and fresh, soft shipsuits was suddenly a luxurious delight. Before long, though, they retired to the fresh, clean sheets of Cheetah's comfortable beds and slept for almost twelve hours.
It was two days before they began to assemble their report. Tess had analyzed the samples they had collected in the Cursed Lands, and the news was good. "Apparently, during what they called the 'Madness', some idiot set off a bomb in the fuel rod storage of a power plant several miles northeast of the city of Valhalla. The idiot might even have survived; apparently, the wind was blowing away from the city that day. As I mentioned, it spread radioactives over a roughly triangular area covering nearly three thousand square kiloms. Most of the really bad stuff has a half-life of a few years, at most. But by that time, everything living had been contaminated and killed, or mutated beyond survivability.
"There are a few elements that are still slightly above background level, but exposure can be compensated with available drugs; and within a few years, even those elements will decline to background levels.
Cale grinned. "In other words, we've found our people a home."
"It appears that way, if that is the option they select."
Eventually, they completed a detailed report containing three options:
Option 1 was to simply avoid the present occupants of Jumbo, and set up their colony in the millions of square kiloms well away from the "locals," perhaps on South continent. In this option, their situation would be that of colonizing a terraformed, but uninhabited world. They must be prepared for anything, including deadly plants and animals, and the knowledge that the nearest humans were half a planet away and possibly hostile. However, they would have the old terraforming records to make them familiar with the plant and animal life, and they would be able to establish their colony with no human opposition. And if they chose a location on a seacoast, they could always build ships to reach the north continent.
Option 2 was to avoid the 'settled' strip, and establish their colony in nomad country, the thousands of square miles the nomads roamed. This would inevitably involve war with the nomad tribes; and anecdotal evidence suggested that though limited trade with the nomads took place, attempting to occupy what they considered 'their' territory would result in a war whose only possible outcome would be genocidal. They would have to deal with frequent and savage attacks on their colony, their fields, and their livestock for years to come. Still, some trade was carried on, which implied that a peace treaty of some sort might be possible, and peace treaties might lead to trading in basic items that might help civilize their neighbors, or at least let them farm in peace. Of course, such an effort might take many years.
The Privateer 2: AN HONEST LIVING Page 11