War Master's Gate

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

  Turnout was impressive, certainly more so than the last two emergency Assemblies presided over by the late Jodry Drillen.

  They met in the same ruins as before, in the harsh light of the early morning, and Helmess marvelled at the discipline of it – all those men and women, brought here by their learning, their wealth, their power, and where were the divisions, where the mutterings, the heckling, the unseemly jokes? Where were those who merely came to snore through the speeches, or to conduct private business while matters of state were discussed? Every eye was upon him, rapt with attention.

  Although, he had to admit, most eyes did tend to twitch to the three score Wasp soldiers that had dropped down to form a loose perimeter about the proceedings.

  ‘My friends,’ he addressed their silence. ‘Thank you for answering the call of your city in its time of need.’ He had a scroll in one hand, which was unfurled almost down to his knees, and, as he spoke, his eyes flicked over the Assemblers and he marked off name after name. ‘I had thought of taking roll call, as they do in the College,’ he explained with a self-deprecating smile, ‘but that would not be becoming of the dignity of our body. Still, no hiding at the back, there. It would be tragic if I was to overlook any of you, after all.’ He permitted himself a little frown, knowing that his audience was hanging on the very minutiae of his expression. ‘Still a few absentees, I see. Ah well.’

  There was a slow building of murmured discontent, as he had expected. ‘Masters, the world around us has changed, but this our city – and our Assembly – do not need to change so much as you might think. The Empire, whose borders now encompass Collegium, need not be such a harsh master as you might imagine. After all, we have resisted them, fought them with all our misguided strength, and still they have agreed that our Assembly shall remain – properly supervised of course – and I think you will find that, with a little adjustment, our citizens will hardly notice that there is a black and gold flag where once there was none. I . . . yes?’

  For someone had stood up, a burly, heavy-set man that it took Helmess a moment to identify as one of the airship magnates. Helmess ticked his name off meticulously as the man clenched his fists and took a deep breath.

  ‘I don’t know where you yourself spent the evening, Master Broiler, but I think our citizens are well bloody aware that your Wasp friends are here, because they were surely helping themselves to every cursed thing in the city last night. Two of my clerks are gone this morning: one because the fool went out after this “curfew” and the other because she . . . because one of your friends decided that she was . . . that she was worth a moment of his time, and no more. And you say that everything’s just rolling along like normal, do you? You think our folk will just play along? If this Assembly still exists, then what is it going to do about it, eh?’

  ‘Why, Master Parrymill,’ Helmess snapped back, with a sideways glance towards the soldiers that nobody missed – and abruptly the airship magnate’s voice stuttered to a halt. Helmess smiled. ‘What a pertinent question,’ he added cordially. The soldiers did not descend on Parrymill and bundle him away there and then, but suddenly their loosely spaced cordon seemed like the walls of a prison, and the outspoken Assembler sat down heavily, his face turning grey.

  ‘I should take steps right now to correct what may be a fundamental misapprehension,’ Helmess went on. ‘This Assembly is convened not to complain or object. We are not here to plot against the Empire, or to work against its laws. We have a simple function, Masters. We are here to make the Empress’s will a reality as simply as possible. Because what the Empire wishes will happen, make no mistake, and how much better for Collegium that it happens through our own mediation? The Empire will have its commands carried out in the most efficient way, Masters, and if you wish to spare our citizens the rod, then you must ensure that any leniency also serves that same efficiency. I know that all of us will have to make adjustments. Some of you may find it difficult to grasp your new role. You may find it harsh, restricting, even oppressive.’ He gave them a moment to decide that this was indeed so. ‘But I put to you one inarguable point: last night was nothing. Last night was the soldiers of the Second and their allies being given their just rewards for all we put them through on the way to our city. Did you think we could kill their friends, bomb them, starve them, and they would act like genial College tutors once they closed our gates behind them? No, Masters, they are soldiers, and they were owed their due reward. But believe me, General Tynan has kept them on a tight rein. The sergeants of the Second have been on watch to ensure that indulgence has not become excess. Consider how few buildings burned, how few deaths there actually were, and even rape in moderation. Believe me, Masters, it could all have been so much worse. We truly are blessed in the enlightened attitudes of our conquerors.’

  They stared at him, some still defiant, others simply appalled, or else bewildered as though they could not have heard him correctly. A fair proportion, though, would not meet his eyes, and he counted them as the ones who had already accepted the logic of his words.

  ‘And there will be benefits. We all recall the endless infighting, the factions, the timewasting speeches of our august body here. Yes, you all complained about it, just as much as you contributed to it. It’s amazing we accomplished anything at all. But now, Masters, if we want a crime punished, a law made iron, we need only submit our request to the Imperial governor, and it shall happen. Our government will be given the firm hand it has always lacked. We shall go forward in partnership with the Wasp-kinden, and they shall profit from our wisdom, we from their strength.’

  And he gave them his best smile, and knew that some, at least, would already be thinking about how this situation could be used to personal advantage. And it would be they who prospered, whilst anyone trying to hold on to what the Assembly had once represented would fall, and probably sooner rather than later.

  ‘But to business,’ he urged them brightly. ‘The clerks have given you each a list of names, and I’m sure you all recognize them. These are those individuals who have proved such intractable enemies to the Empire that they cannot be allowed to retain their liberty within our new city. Masters, the Empire is currently considering our methods of selecting Assemblers. It goes without saying that anyone assisting the Empire at this crucial time will help to demonstrate to the Wasps the usefulness of our traditional institutions, as well as preserving their own position within our body.’ Unless they’re a halfbreed, of course, or a woman.‘Conversely, if any citizens are found to be sheltering someone on this list, then not only shall they find themselves a guest of the Empire’s interrogators, but that invitation will be extended to their family, friends and associates, because the Empire is very concerned that such dissent not be allowed to spread.’

  He scanned the mass of them and made some more notes on his scroll, this time underlining the names – Parrymill’s amongst them – of those he believed would simply not fit in with the new times. If the gears are to mesh smoothly, we must remove any defective components. Also a few individuals that he simply did not like, but then that was a privilege of rank.

  ‘The curfew meanwhile remains in place, no movement out of doors after dark, until further notice. After all, who, save for dissidents and criminals, would be skulking about at such times anyway? Over the next few tendays, the Empire will be introducing its own overseers into various concerns – factories, the College and the like. I would suggest you avoid unofficial gatherings, as well, since it will take the Wasps a while to learn our ways, and they are likely to misinterpret such events. For now, as we are the leaders of our people, I suggest you use what influence you have to promote order and cooperation. And those who do not will be noted.’

  The following day, the names had already started to trickle in.

  It was inevitable, Helmess knew, and those few of the Assembly sufficiently idealistic to abstain were already mostly on his list. The rest would bow before the tide of circumstance, as pragmatic Beetle-kinden were renowne
d for doing. The majority would do so not out of treachery, nor through a wish for advancement, nor even through fear for their own lives. Instead, they would betray their fellows to protect their families, to soften the blow of the Empire’s domination. From such small stones would Helmess build an Imperial city here in the heart of the Lowlands.

  He was discharging his duties well, he reckoned. General Tynan would have no complaints. Helmess was determined to prove himself irreplaceable, for there was always the danger that the future governor of Collegium, whenever appointed, might be tempted to dispense with his services. What Helmess wanted was a man with sufficient ambitions for advancement back in Capitas that governing a well-run, profitable Beetle city would prove enough, without needing to meddle in the workings himself. Thus, Helmess should become the sole channel by which the Empire communicated with its vassal state, ruler in all but name.

  Unless the Spiders decide to take an interest.

  That was always a cause for concern, both because they played the political game better than the Wasps, and because Helmess was honestly not sure what records they might have kept from their previous run-in with Collegium, when he himself had nominally been one of their agents. He had a suspicion that the Aldanrael might be keenly interested in his involvement in that debacle, so he was keeping well out of the way of their Lady-Martial whenever possible.

  Yesterday had been given over to the business of telling the Assembly how the world now worked, using words simple enough that even the dullest or most resistant of them could understand. That same evening, Helmess had taken a sumptuous dinner with Colonel Cherten, who seemed to appreciate what Broiler was doing for the Empire. Today he had no formal appointments lined up, therefore it was time for him to indulge himself.

  There had already been a few reports regarding those the Empire wanted to arrest, but of course there was one in particular that Helmess wanted to see crossed off his list. He had bitterly assumed that the man had already fled, but recent news had come in to suggest otherwise. Helmess was now going to hunt down Stenwold Maker himself, and the knowledge made him feel as giddy as a child.

  There was still a handful of Spiderlands agents within the city, seeded there long ago and now well established, who had avoided every investigation that Maker and his allies had set in motion. It was their reports that had first reached Helmess, mentioning a few possible hiding places for the War Master. Finally, a public-spirited Assembler had provided more definite confirmation, and Helmess knew that he must act quickly before the Empire became involved and took the credit.

  It was lucky that Collegium was such a large and complex city. Tynan’s troops might be inventorying everything, workshops and businesses and cartels surrendering their accounts and manifests for the Empire, but there were whole swathes of the city yet unexamined. Imperial priority would not be to check the College first. So far it had remained inviolate – and within its vaults hid a prize.

  Stenwold Maker never left the city. He retired, ailing, to the College infirmary. And he is there right now.

  Waving his newly awarded major’s badge had earned Helmess the services of a dozen Wasp infantry, although he could see that they were not exactly keen to be at his beck and call. They would share in his reflected glory, though, so he expected their attitude to improve markedly once Maker was firmly in their custody.

  The looks that he received, as he marched his troops through Collegium, were priceless. He had always known the envy of lesser folk – the scowls of those whose inadequate enterprise had guaranteed them a place as his inferiors – but now the masks were off. There were definite winners and losers in Collegium, and every stare, every fearful averted face, each half-hidden glare spoke only of validation.

  And then he was standing before the College itself.

  Not the whole College, of course, because the institution was spread in separate buildings across in the city, and this was not even the largest section of it. It was the oldest, though, and had been old before Collegium’s new masters decided to adopt the College as the basis of their city’s new name. Here were located the library and the infirmary, some of the social history departments, and a network of cellars housing laboratories, study rooms and a rather fine collection of wine. A collection wasted here now, of course. I shall have to remove it to somewhere more practical.

  The academic edifice was somewhat more self-contained than most, with a walled courtyard, high walls and remarkably small windows – all the columns, statues and adornment of Beetle hands had done little to disguise the original architecture of the Moth-kinden, who had little use for the sun. Ridiculous place to house a library, after all. Helmess recalled years of straining his eyes in that dimness within. Perhaps I should remove the library while I’m at it.

  There was a pair of Wasp soldiers outside, who saluted Helmess without hesitation, because a major’s rank badge was a good thing to have.

  ‘Arrest anyone that I indicate to you, and don’t hesitate to get rough with them,’ Helmess instructed his sergeant. ‘There may be a few idealists amongst the students who need to learn that scholarly debate is no longer the fashion.’

  There were about a dozen students loitering in the courtyard, and a couple slipped away almost immediately. The rest looked alarmed, but nowhere near as much as they should be. Their education had hardly prepared them for the sort of world that they would now be living in.

  ‘Good day to you,’ he declared grandly. ‘Perhaps you’d be so good as to summon any of the College Masters who are currently in the building. I’ve a few words for them.’

  A few others sidled out, whether to obey him or to hide themselves away, he couldn’t say. Perhaps the latter would be wiser. It seemed likely that he would have to have someone shot at some point, just to ram his point home.

  But now others were emerging, so that was good. He recognized a few of them as Masters: that tall fellow was Berjek Gripshod, the historian, and Helmess recalled that the man had been somewhat pally with Maker recently, so perhaps it would be best to haul him in now. The woman beside him was some manner of artificer, he recalled, or maybe a naturalist. And there, too, was that Fly woman who had taken on teaching Inapt studies. He couldn’t remember her name, therefore she wasn’t really important.

  More students came filing out, and he was amused to see that a surprising number of them still wore their Company sashes – even a few buff coats and breastplates. Oh the poor fools, they have no idea.

  The courtyard was becoming full, and mostly of young, worried faces. He cast his eyes over them, these Beetle-kinden boys and girls who had abandoned their studies in engineering or political theory to come out and hear the most valuable lecture of their lives. The other faces, the outsiders, leapt out at him: a couple of Ants, a Spider or two, a band-skinned Woodlouse-kinden in a Coldstone Company sash, a Dragonfly, some half-breeds. They’ll have to go, for a start.

  ‘Now, then.’ Helmess raised his hands to quieten the incessant muttering that students were so prone to. ‘No doubt you’re all desperate to get back to your studies, and—’

  ‘You strung up the Speaker!’

  Broiler choked on his words. ‘Who said that?’ He found the culprit almost immediately: a man who looked too old to be a student, in a wine-stained and filthy tunic and standing at the sort of angle that made it plain that more wine had recently gone in than out. He was pointing a finger in Helmess’s general direction, and those nearest were trying to restrain him as he blurted out, ‘He did, he did!’

  The soldiers nearest to Helmess had their snapbows levelled, and he recalled that thrusting out a hand at someone was tantamount to an assassination attempt where they came from. ‘Enough!’ he boomed out, in his best public-speaking voice, and gestured the soldiers’ weapons down. ‘Who is this sot?’

  ‘He’s Raullo Mummers. He’s an artist, Master Broiler,’ said a student from the front of the crowd. ‘Forgive him. He’s drunk.’

  ‘Shut him up, then, or he’ll be the worse fo
r drink.’ Helmess realized that he recognized the speaker. ‘Hold on, aren’t you Leadswell?’

  The chief officer of the ridiculous Student Company nodded. Like many there, he still bore his sash, but he had stripped off his armour.

  ‘Why that’s marvellous,’ Helmess beamed. ‘Sergeant, grab this one for a start. Master Leadswell, you must know that the Empire wishes a word with you.’

  ‘I’d guessed as much.’ Leadswell replied calmly. There was a surprising upsurge of discontent amongst the surrounding students, but when the sergeant and a couple of other soldiers stepped forwards to lay hands on him, he did not resist. And as well for everyone else here that he didn’t. Sensible lad . . . But then the Leadswell boy always had a good mind and a gift for speeches, didn’t he? Helmess’s eyes narrowed as he studied him. Hadn’t Leadswell been the one to go on about coming to an accommodation with the Empire, and avoiding war? Maybe he and the Wasps really would have something to talk about, after all. An image was quick to find a place in Helmess’s mind: Eujen Leadswell leaving General Tynan’s presence with a rank badge and a mandate to bring Collegium and its conquerors closer together. A rival, in other words.

  He stared at Leadswell in a colder light. Make an example of him, maybe? But the crowd was still unruly, if not quite rebellious, and there was such a thing as pushing your luck.

  ‘Eujen!’ A halfbreed woman from the crowd came shouldering forwards, almost barging into the sergeant. She was still in uniform, Coldstone Company again, and for a moment Helmess thought that everything might ignite there and then, as the sergeant shoved her backwards.

  ‘Straessa, peace,’ Leadswell was saying, even though Helmess was willing for him to incite his own execution. ‘It’s going to be fine.’

  There was a garbled exclamation to the contrary from the reeling artist Mummers, and the halfbreed woman – the Antspider, is it? – looked as though she was going to attempt something unwise. Then Leadswell said something more, and she backed off reluctantly.