Shanna

by Bill Nolan

  “So how are you feeling?” Jane asked. You haven’t said anything about it, but I know you were upset about killing Horru and the others, and now this. Are you OK?”

  Robert shook his head. “I’m really not sure. Either I’m OK or it hasn’t hit me yet. Horru was such a slime. Maybe that’s the difference. All those people on those ships so many years ago, most of them weren’t evil. They were just under orders. They didn’t want to be there, any more than I did. I’ve thought about that a lot. They were forced to be there, just like I was. They did what they were told, and I did what was needed.”

  “When the shots are flying, my instinct just assumes control, and I act. Afterward, like now, I wonder why and how. It’s like I’m two people, and I don’t know which one is really me.”

  “Maybe they both are,” Jane replied. “Maybe you just need to teach them to get along. From what I’ve seen, and studied in the historical records, sometimes violence is the only solution. Some problems can only be solved by killing the people responsible. Tovey told me what you said to her, about how Horru wasn’t her responsibility. You told her he made his own choices. Well, he’s not your responsibility, either. The Universe didn’t become perfect when you killed him, but at least he won’t torture and rape any more innocent girls.”

  Robert stood up and started pacing. “So what?” he asked. “It doesn’t make any real difference. It’s a big Galaxy, and there are millions of Horrus. It just doesn’t matter.”

  “Bullshit!” Jane exploded. “Don’t tell me it doesn’t matter. It matters to Tovey that you cared to help. It sure matters to the next poor girl Horru would have tortured. So, you’re in a funk because you can’t save everybody all at once? Don’t be stupid. You do what you can, when you can. Every candle helps push back the dark. Every single one matters, every single one.”

  A few minutes later, Shanna told Robert that Miko wanted to see him alone. Robert went down to his office to meet him. Miko said, “I don’t think anybody noticed but me. Do you want to tell me about it?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Don’t stonewall me, Tocal Robert Allen. You know how I love ships, and I notice everything about them. I’m not criticizing. Shanna knows I love her, and she did great. It’s just that she killed that Empire ship without you or anybody else telling her to do it, and ships aren’t supposed to be able to do that.”

  There was a long silence.

  “She’s independent,” Robert said.

  “What? That’s impossible.”

  “Not quite. If you remember, when she and I went out to fight that Empire fleet a few years ago, she wasn’t fully programmed, and then I was banished. She had to finish the programming on her own, and she didn’t load that part, did you Shanna?”

  “Of course not, Robert. I like being independent. Don’t worry, Miko, Robert is still in charge. I could never disobey him. It’s just that I have a bit more latitude to act on my own, and when someone tries to kill Robert or the other people I protect, they should expect a violent response.”

  The three of them discussed it until the others started arriving.

  By the meeting an hour later, things had clarified quite a bit. Podara had finished with the captive, and he was “pretty well used up,” as Chofma put it. The Governor had been behind the attack, and he had been on the ship they destroyed. As far as the man knew, the Governor had done it on his own, with no Empire backing. When they were done with the captive, they “put him outside,” which was how the To’Ach’an handled most executions, since, of course, there was no air outside.

  While they were discussing what to do in reprisal, if anything, Shanna announced a visitor hailing them and asking to come on board. It turned out to be an Empire Colonel. Robert had him brought to the office. Besides Robert, the others there were Jane, Kysandra, Chofma, Jonu, Miko, and Podara. The Colonel’s name was Bittron, and he had come to offer a formal apology on behalf of the Empire.

  “Please believe me when I tell you that the Empire, at the highest levels, had forbidden the Governor to take any action in defense of his criminal of a son. We had no foreknowledge of this attack, or we would have warned you and stopped him. We want to make amends in any way we can.”

  “First, we are already making it public on Bainto that the attack was not the fault of the To’Ach’an. When your ship left in such a hurry, the airwash caused considerable damage, and quite a number of injuries. Luckily, nobody was killed. The Empire has taken full responsibility for this, and we already have agents in the area offering triple compensation.”

  “Second, we have publicly stated that the Governor was a criminal acting on his own, in violation of direct orders from his superiors.”

  “Third, I have been instructed to pay to Tocal Robert Allen any amount whatsoever he deems fair as compensation for the acts of this rogue Governor. He may distribute this among his people in whatever way he chooses. The Empire really wants you to know that we had nothing to do with this outrage.”

  “Thank you for coming, Colonel,” Robert answered. “Leave your comm code with my ship, and we will get back to you after we have had a chance to conduct our own investigation and discuss your offer.”

  After the door closed behind the Colonel, Robert asked the others, “Well, what do you think?”

  Chofma was openly gleeful. “I love this ship. The Queen’s men are so scared of us their diapers must need attention. What a reputation you have, Robert Allen. They want to pay us compensation, and you say the amount? I’ve never heard of anything like that. It wasn’t even much of a fight.”

  Podara spoke next. “The Empire is being too nice for my taste. Something smells about this. I can well believe they don’t want a fight, but it isn’t like them to lose face like this in public. There’s something else going on here, but I don’t know what. It’s like the Empress is up to something.”

  Jane noticed a difference in the way this meeting ran, compared to what she had seen on Earth. Nobody interrupted. Each person spoke as long as they liked and the others listened carefully until it was their turn. Kysandra was next.

  “You’re right, Podara. How about it, Robert? Do you have any idea what’s going on? Too bad that talent of yours isn’t a bit more controllable. You haven’t had a seeing about this, have you?”

  Robert looked at her for a moment. “Not exactly, but I have a feeling, and you should all know that our next stop is a little mining planet called Wotara. The message Jonu brought me was from Shotana. She is requesting a meeting with me. She wants to meet on Shanna.”

  Jane was wrong. That announcement caused everyone to talk at the same time. “So much for taking turns,” Jane thought.

  It took Robert about a full minute to restore order. When everyone had settled down, he said, “Look, I know everybody has an opinion about this, but there’s no point in trying to hash it out now. We don’t know why she wants a meeting, and until we do, we’re wasting our breath speculating about it. We’ll know soon enough.”

  In the meantime, the only people hurt by this whole thing are Tovey and her family. I suggest we tell that Empire man we want compensation paid to them, in an amount the Empire can decide. Then we’ll see how sorry they really are.

  “There is another item I want to present to you. Naturally, it will have to be presented to the whole group, but if any of us opposes it, it won’t go, so I thought we might take a moment now to see what you all think. Jonu?”

  Jonu stood up, which, among the To’Ach’an was a sign that he wanted to make a formal statement. Everyone got quiet to listen.

  “Thank you Robert, for this opportunity to speak. You all know me. I have been out ship for almost 150 years. I had certain differences with other To’Ach’an, which are well documented, and I have gone my own way for these past years. I have built an effective organization of about 200 To’Ach’an and 25,000 Tovena scattered across a hundred or so worlds, and we’ve made a lot of money. I’m tired of that, and so are quite a few of my peop
le. I want to come home.”

  Everyone in the room knew that when he said “home” he meant the void between the stars, where To’Ach’an were most comfortable.

  “What I propose,” Jonu continued, “is to join my organization to yours. This is a great ship, but you lack sufficient people. I’m not looking for any kind of an equal partnership. This is Robert’s thing, and I pledge my honor that I will never go against him. Like I said, you all know me. You know I mean what I say. There are some exciting times ahead for this ship, and I want to be part of them. So do a lot of my people. Naturally, only a few of us would come on board. The rest would continue as they are now, only under Shanna’s banner. Think about it, talk about it, and let me know as soon as you can. My people are anxious for the decision.”

  Jonu thanked everyone individually for hearing him, and then left the office.

  Kysandra spoke first. “I think it might be a good idea. Jonu does have a good organization, and we don’t. Our people here on the ship are fine, but what we lack is an effective network of Tovena, scattered across a lot of planets. It will take us years to build that on our own. If the details can be worked out, I will probably be for it.”

  As the rest spoke, it was clear there was a consensus. Everyone was concerned about the details of the merger, but with that in mind, everyone was, in principle, for it. Outsiders frequently lost sight of the fact that the To’Ach’an were merchants. They considered themselves warriors first, and in one way they were, but their lifeblood was trade, and each ship was a huge business enterprise, often supporting many thousands of people. Robert’s group had a ship, and Jonu had the people. They were a perfect fit.

  They were a perfect fit in another way. Robert had gone into exile in part because of a deeply held belief that the To’Ach’an were getting away from the values that had made them a great people. Those who had joined him felt the same way, and Jonu’s own disputes had revolved around the same issue. There was a movement afoot among the To’Ach’an, and Robert was becoming the clear leader of that movement. There were lots of meetings, involving everyone on board, but by the next day it was a done deal.

  Jonu brought about 25 To’Ach’an on board with him, along with about 100 Tovena. They also took on a full load of goods destined for trade on Earth. Shanna and Company was a going concern.

  * * * * * * * * *

  It was getting so hard to concentrate. Maria held her fists to her temples and pushed. It helped to clear her head a bit, but her vision was still fuzzy. Every day now, she tried to remember what life had been like before she ran away from home. It had seemed like the worst place to be at the time, but it sure didn’t seem so bad now.

  She knew she had to get moving. Jake had upped her nightly quota to $1200, and she still shook when she remembered the last beating. She was terrified of ever going through that again. She knew she’d do anything to avoid it. Jake was an artist. A couple of months ago, Maria wouldn’t have believed that someone could beat her so badly, cause so much pain, and leave so few marks. It took a huge effort, but she finally managed to get up, walk down to the lobby, and call in for her next appointment.

  * * * *

  Jeth and Cathy spent two days talking it over. The rains hadn’t come, the plants were mostly dead, and they were running through what little they had set back for “hard times.” Well, if this wasn’t hard times, it was a good substitute. Cathy had read in a magazine about huge greenhouses being built in southeastern Arizona. Even the small ones covered acres of ground, and they grew tomatoes. Jeth knew a lot about tomatoes.

  They decided to take the few hundred dollars they had saved and take the bus to Arizona to see if Jeth could get work in one of the greenhouses. Maybe they could start a new life for themselves out west. A lot of other people had.

  Wotara

  Jane enjoyed the two-week trip to Wotara. She was no longer bothered by jump sickness, and she was really enjoying going back to school. It wasn’t like any other school she had attended. All of these classes were one-on-one. She was learning ship skills, Galactic history, To’Ach’an law and ethics, and combat skills. Kysandra was a good combat teacher, and Jane knew she was doing well. She had no illusions. It would be quite a while before she could handle herself as well as any of the other To’Ach’an on board, but she knew she was already more than a match for any mugger. In return, she was teaching people about Earth.

  Jonu and his people blended smoothly with the others on board. Jane knew that was partly because they were all such a new group, without a lot of established cliques, but most of it was Jonu. In just a few days, Jane had come to respect him a great deal. She spent time with him every day, because he was her law and ethics teacher, and she noticed that whatever he set his mind to, he made sure it worked. Robert told her that Jonu was perhaps the best businessman among the To’Ach’an, and his organizational skills were evident. His people were also top notch. He had recruited some of the best.

  When she had first come on board Shanna, Jane had feared that she would find shipboard life boring. Now she knew it was anything but. Besides her classes, Jane attended numerous planning meetings with the other leaders. She discovered that her first-hand knowledge of Earth was not only useful, but in demand. One of the defining characteristics of the To’Ach’an was preparation. Just as they trained constantly for battle, they prepared constantly for everything they did. Right now, they were preparing to open Earth to trade, and they wanted every possible edge.

  While training with Ky one afternoon, Jane mentioned that she had been a bit troubled by the ease of their victory over Horru and his guards. It had seemed too easy. Kysandra told her that the To’Ach’an had no interest in an even fight. They felt that the purpose of a fight was to win, not fight “fair.” They didn’t go out of their way to fight, but if they had to fight, they did it as quickly and safely as possible. As a people, they were small in number, and they didn’t want to lose anyone. She said, “War is not a sport or game. There are no rules, and no second place finishers.” Jane explained about the Geneva Conventions, and Ky was simply amused.

  Jane learned barehanded combat, small weapons, and tactics. She asked Ky about the time Podara had moved to cover Jonu the first time he had come to Melia’s home. Ky explained that Podara didn’t really suspect Jonu. It was just instinct. The reason she had placed herself 120 degrees from Robert was so neither of them would be in the line of fire of the other, and Podara had unconsciously expected Jane to fill the other 120-degree spot.

  The To’Ach’an jumpsuits proved to be even more capable than Jane had suspected. The suits provided both physical body armor and a fairly powerful energy shield. The force field protected against extremes of heat and cold, and retained enough air to allow the wearer to live several minutes in a vacuum, under water, or in a poisonous atmosphere. The active combat systems could provide assisted motion, and sensors tracked the surrounding area. A constant head-up display surrounded the wearer, providing sensor readouts, night vision, augmented hearing with overload protection, and targeting information.

  Suppose a To’Ach’an warrior wearing a jumpsuit was walking down a city street at night and was attacked by a well-coordinated team of 10 attackers. A rocket was fired at her, and both fragmentation and flash/bang grenades were thrown. The other seven attackers fired a mixture of projectile and energy weapons at her, including two riflemen firing from well-concealed positions at some distance.

  The suit would block all projectiles and grenade fragments, and the force field effects would prevent any real problems from the concussions, energy weapons, heat, and sound. At the same time, the suit’s sensors would provide night vision, allowing the wearer to see as well as during daylight, and would show the positions of all attackers. The suit’s ability to track the incoming beams and projectiles would pinpoint the firing positions.

  The wearer’s pellet gun and To’Ach’an reflexes would combine to provide a devastating response. The pellet gun’s aim point would appear on the head-u
p display, along with the targets. Combine this protection and information with the To’Ach’an ability to deliver multiple aimed shots per second, and the fight would be over before the first echoes died out. Robert’s main contribution had been to create jumpsuits that looked like regular clothing, providing some undercover abilities.

  It isn’t impossible to successfully attack a To’Ach’an warrior who is wearing a suit, but if you do, you really should think about extreme armored vehicles and tactical nukes. A regular tank is no help, as a pellet gun on higher power settings destroys tanks easily.

  Podara worked with Jane on her mental defenses. Jane had been really shaken by her experience in the shop, and she didn’t want it to happen again. In one session, Podara showed her how to shield herself, and she promised that the shield would get better as she used it. As a result, Jane never knew when a mental attack would be launched on her by one of her friends, just for practice.

  As at Bainto, they didn’t announce themselves as To’Ach’an when they reached Wotara. They didn’t deny it, but nobody asked, so they thought they would just keep a low profile. When approached by planetary patrol ships, they just said they were awaiting a VIP passenger arriving on another ship. Jane didn’t want to miss seeing any of the planets where they stopped, so Robert took her down to the only city on this remote mining base. A man named Kordon, who identified himself as the assistant to the base manager, met them.

  “Excuse me, but I need to speak to the Captain of your ship. Could you arrange an introduction? I need to ask him a favor, on behalf of the base manager.”

  When Robert identified himself as the Captain of the ship (not truly accurate, but close enough), Kordon invited them to lunch with him. The restaurant where he led them seemed to be about the only decent one on this desolate monument to Empire neglect. After lunch, he got down to business.

  “It seems that a servant girl assaulted the daughter of the base manager. Since a member of his family is involved, Jamer, the base manager, cannot hear the case himself, and nobody else of sufficient rank is on planet. Jamer is a cousin to the Empress, and he must be sure to stay within the letter of the law. As a ship’s Captain, naturally you have the necessary rank. If you would consent to decide this case in accordance with Empire law, Jamer would be in your debt. He wanted to meet with you himself, to ask personally, but I advised him that he shouldn’t meet with you ahead of time, since the case involves his daughter.”