A Stitch in Time stdsn-27

by Andrew J. Robinson

  When he caught up with me in the corridor he tried to continue with the message, but I motioned him to be silent. His almost total lack of awareness astounded me; he must indeed come from an important family to have lasted this long at Bamarren. The subtleties of security training were evidently eluding him. We were well into the common ground triangulated by the three First Level buildings when I stopped and faced him.

  “Was this necessary?” Nine asked. Judging from his offended air, any kind of security was beneath him.

  “What’s your message, Nine?” I smiled at him. I wanted to slap his pinched, inbred face, but I doubt that would have furthered my cause. He liked me even less, especially in the present situation.

  “Charaban One. . . .” It stuck in his throat. Why was I, a low‑born Ten with no connections, on the receiving end of this message? I waited and continued to smile.

  “Yes, Nine?” He grimaced as if he swallowed something bitter.

  “The first meeting is tonight, after your tutorial. You’re to report to the Palaestra for cleanup duty. The assignment has been filed with One Tarnal, who will meet you there.” Nine was now back to his officious self. “This is extremely confidential, Ten!” he ended with a final attempt to maintain his superiority.

  “I assume Eight is excepted,” I replied.

  “What?” He had no idea what I meant. Eight had walked into our quarters and seen the two of us, and was at this very moment putting together a scenario that would be very close to the truth.

  “Of course not! No one must know. The fate of Bamarren depends on these plans,” he intoned. A young man whose received wisdom consists of the scraps others have thrown away.

  “Thank you, Nine,” I replied graciously. I know he wanted desperately to ask me why I was being involved in his cousin’s mission. He certainly didn’t dare ask Charaban. And it was beneath his dignity to ask me. He swallowed again, an even more bitter taste, and marched off to a life of diminishing returns. It was just as well Eight was alerted. One of my goals was to get him involved before he was recruited by Ramaklan.

  When I arrived at the Palaestra after a computer‑systems tutorial at which I was severely criticized for my wandering attention, Second and Third Level agonistics–the advanced training phase after the Pit–were just finishing. One Tarnal met me in the main atrium and led me to the custodial office, where I was given implements and instructed to work until I had cleaned the twelve studios and two hygiene chambers in the building.

  “Another murk was supposed to assist you, but he’s been reassigned, and nobody’s taken his place. Don’t dawdle or sleep, and be out of here by the morning classes. Now get going!” As I walked away I heard the custodian ask Tarnal what it was I had done to deserve this punishment.

  “Nobody told me. But I know he’s got a mouth on him,” Tarnal replied.

  I was well into my fifth room, and convinced that Charaban had set me up and that I wasbeing punished, when a person I didn’t know suddenly appeared in the doorway. He looked around to make sure I was alone.

  “Follow me,” he said, satisfied that I was. His body had a low and powerful center of gravity, and his eyes sliced into me when they made contact. There was no denying him. I dropped what I was doing and obeyed. Without a word, he led me down three subterranean levels and into a conference room that featured a large monitor at one end. Charaban and an immensely overweight student were waiting. The latter’s formlessness was a contrast to the compactness of my guide.

  “Is this the murk?” the heavy one asked.

  “You don’t recognize him, do you?” Charaban replied with his smile.

  “He’s filthy,” the heavy one observed with a contemptuous look.

  “I’ve been cleaning half the night!” I was indignant. The work was bad enough without the insult.

  “I didn’t ask for your opinion, murk!” the fat student snapped. The sharp‑eyed one just studied me, which added to my disorientation.

  “A murk who got by you twice,” Charaban needled. He was enjoying himself at the fat one’s expense and I was the instrument. “I don’t think that ever happened to you before.” Charaban turned to me. “He still doesn’t believe it happened.”

  The other snorted in disgust, and his jowls shuddered in agreement. I wondered how someone that heavy could endure the physical regimen at Bamarren. He truly was the exception to the reigning student ideal of lean and muscular.

  “We’d better get started,” Sharp Eyes quietly suggested.

  “This is Ten Lubak,” Charaban abruptly announced to the others. “Ten, this is One Drabar,” indicating Sharp Eyes, “and this is Two Charaban, who was eager to finally meet you.” Two snorted and shuddered again. One Drabar moved to a control panel and entered a code. An image appeared on the monitor that was part topographical map and part diagram.

  “There are spies operating everywhere, and we know who most of them are. The best ones we don’t know, of course.” Charaban was not smiling when he looked at me. “You’ll be approached by Ramaklan if you haven’t been already.” He paused and the three of them looked at me. I now understood One Drabar’s function.

  “No. No one but One Charaban has talked to me about the Competition,” I directly addressed Drabar. He held my look with his probing eyes and then turned back to Charaban, who computed his look before he continued.

  “Ramaklan will. Expect it, Ten,” Charaban ordered. It was impressive how he could move with warp speed between smiling charm and steely command. I nodded in response. He referred to the monitor.

  “The rock formation at the center is the one Gramarg successfully defended two Competitions ago. Tarnal couldn’t touch them. It doesn’t look like much of a challenge . . . until you actually get out there. The exposure, the slope of the terrain . . . it all works for the defender. Considering the stakes of this Competition, Ramaklan is well advised to defend here.” He pointed to the redoubt an obvious stronghold for the defenders. “It’s a real challenge.” Charaban fell silent, and the four of us studied the graphic.

  This was a part of the Wilderness I was not familiar with. Charaban was right; at first sight it didn’t look formidable. But as the coordinates revolved dimensionally and we perceived the gradual and insidious angle of the rising slope that led to the formation, we understood that the shape of the high ground allowed for no blind spots. There were 360 degrees of unobstructed exposure for the defenders.

  “Any ideas? Observations?” Charaban asked.

  “Ramaklan bastards!” Two Charaban muttered. “Look at that!” His stubby finger traced a circle in the air. “They can see everything around them. They won’t need that many men scanning terrain from inside. So of course they’ll commit the better part of their troops to the flanks coming out of either side of the rock formation to intercept any attempts to get behind them.”

  “Which can work to our advantage,” Drabar said.

  “How?” Charaban asked.

  “If a small force canget behind their position, they’ll encounter less resistance in a surprise attack,” Drabar replied, never taking his eyes off the diagram.

  “But how do we get behind their position?” Charaban asked.

  “Outflank them. It’s the only way,” Two Charaban maintained.

  “Both sides?” Charaban pressed. His fat second paused, not sure.

  “Yes,” he finally replied.

  “Then what’s left for the main frontal attack if we commit enough troops for both sides?” Charaban didn’t wait for an answer. “No, Drabar’s right. It has to be a small flanking force that surprises from behind and executes a holding action while the main force engages frontally.” Charaban was sure of that much. “How do we get behind, Drabar?” He wanted an answer.

  “I don’t know yet,” Drabar replied.

  “Ten?” Charaban’s eyes were almost angry, as if to ask what I was doing in the same room with them. All charm and politesse were gone. I was startled; it was the same look he’d given me at the Central Gate wh
en I airily announced my success.

  “There’s something I don’t understand,” I began carefully. “Why can’t a small force position itself behind the enemy beforethey array their flanking positions?”

  “Because, murk, they are allowed to establish their position before we can begin our attack!” Two Charaban threw an exasperated look to his superior.

  “They can dig in, Ten,” Drabar explained, “and then we have from dusk to dusk of the following day to dislodge their position . . .”

  “. . . and take their place!” Charaban punctuated.

  “Why are we dancing around, One?” his second wanted to know. “You invited the murk for a reason, and it wasn’t to ask stupid questions.” They all looked at me: Two Charaban with an impatient sneer, Drabar like I was another graphic on the monitor, and One with a questioning smile that wondered if I knew that this was the right moment to grab my opportunity. The image of Palandine stroking her ridges appeared.

  “I’m here because I know how to get past their flanks and behind the rock formation,” I said with a confidence that was part bravado.

  “Really? Well, mates, I’m glad to have been present for the second coming of Gul Minok,” the fat Charaban bellowed with utter contempt. Gul Minok was a legendary hero of the early Union. I bit down and held my ground.

  “Do we know the status of the moons that night?” I asked.

  “What do you think, Ten?” Charaban returned the question, not unkindly.

  “If it was their choice of time as well as place, all three will be at full strength,” I answered. He nodded in agreement. I was now on surer footing.

  “But it’s not that important,” Drabar interjected. “In a Competition all the night probes are coming from one source–the defended area–and they’re trained on the expected direction of the attack. Night is not the advantage one would expect.”

  “But still enough of an advantage for the major part of an attack to take place,” Two stated.

  “And the advantage grows proportionally to the skill level of the flanking force in operating with stealth,” Charaban added, looking at me.

  I knew what he wanted. It didn’t take genius for someone to figure out that my success in the Wilderness depended on my ability to diminish my presence. But to give him what he wanted meant that I would have to teach others the skill. What would I be left with? Would I not surrender the source of my power? And what would I receive in return? The image of Palandine helped me to remember what I had learned that night: that I was being offered the opportunity of a greater power. Charaban watched me. I was at the edge of my experience, and the only way I was going to expand the frontier was to act.

  “The difficulty is finding students who can execute the necessary maneuver,” I said, answering Charaban’s look.

  “What?” This was too much of a leap in logic for fat Charaban. “What maneuver?” Drabar didn’t understand either, but that only increased his attention.

  “Stealth,Two Charaban. Did you leave the room or is it getting too late for you?” Charaban was sharp with his second. He turned back to me. “It’s even more difficult than that. Whoever you use can only come from your group. And as you decide how many you will need, remember that once inside the rock formation you will have to throw up an effective resistance to create the diversion we need.” Charaban was pushing me now.

  “With phasers we should be . . .”

  “No phasers inside the rocks,” Charaban interrupted. “Only outside. Once you get in it’s hand‑to‑hand combat.” Charaban pushed me even harder. “What’s your plan, Ten?”

  “Six men. Two groups of three.” I was sweating with the effort to visualize the operation as I studied the diagram.

  “Yes?” Charaban urged.

  “I lead one group along the southern flank, which is the more difficult one. One Lubak will lead the . . .”

  “No,” corrected Charaban. “You can’t use One.”

  “Why not?” I asked.

  “Because he will resent your leadership. He already regards you as a threat. One must never know what you’re doing.”

  “That means I can’t use any of his allies.” I was worried as to how I was going to assemble a team with what was left of the group.

  “Unless they find greater opportunity with you.” Two Charaban’s tone was almost civil.

  Opportunity. Of course. Ambition. The power is with the leader others are willing to follow because he promises them an advantage they lack. I began to see what the exchange was.

  “Who leads the other team?” Charaban wasn’t finished.

  “Eight.” Logically the best choice, once I got beyond my obligation to One Lubak.

  “And if he’s the Pit warrior you claim he is then he should work with the others.” Charaban remembered my assessment and challenged its truth.

  “It’s crucial that the members of your group perform well in the combat phase,” added Drabar.

  Besides Eight and myself there was Five . . . and Three. I detested Three. Plus he was an ally of One. But his massive strength was matched by his ferocity. Charaban knew that I was struggling with choice.

  “Whoever they are, Ten, just make sure that Ramaklan hasn’t already recruited them. Our task is difficult enough; betrayal would make it nearly impossible,” he warned.

  “And betrayal means that the leader has failed to earn the trust of his men,” fat Charaban added to the warning.

  When I had finished cleaning the last room and replaced the implements, the first colors of dawn were stretching across the desert and lighting my way back to the First Level compound. I was exhausted from the long night’s test. I had made my first alliance, and was now part of a cohort looking to seize political power by an act of force. I felt stripped and exposed. The boy who had played among the stately monuments in the Tarlak Sector and pretended to heroism and great deeds had been left behind. Now that I was faced with the hard work of actual leadership, the fear of failure–the very thing Charaban told me there was no room for–had assumed new dimensions. Find your allies, I heard Calyx say, and work from there.

  That morning Eight and I were assigned to a construction unit repairing an old barrier on the western perimeter. I told him I needed to talk without other ears, and we managed to work ourselves away from the rest of the team. He knew about the Competition, and he knew that the Ramaklan and the Charaban were recruiting. It happened that he had an appointment to meet with a Ramaklan recruiter that evening.

  “But I knew I’d be contacted by you,” he said as a simple matter of fact.

  “How?” I asked.

  “Charaban warned me.” Eight studied my confused reaction. “He didn’t tell you we spoke?”

  “No.” Anger replaced confusion, but we had to continue our work of identifying weak sections of wall and marking them for repair. And I had to continue assembling my team. “What did he say?”

  “He asked me to be involved. When he told me you were committed I agreed.” Again, simply stated. We scraped the wall to cover our conversation.

  “Thank you,” I said with relief. Eight was the difference between success and the abyss; especially with the others. Eight was respected by everyone, even Three. One despised him, but he harmed Eight at the expense of his own leadership stature.

  “He said you were leading our team, and that you would make the assignments. That’s quite an honor.” In his quiet way Eight was impressed.

  I described our mission and what I wanted from him. He would take Five and Three to penetrate the northern flank while I led Two and Four on the southern. I explained my choices, based on the restrictions Charaban had given me.

  “Don’t take Two,” Eight said.

  “Why?” I asked.

  “He can’t be trusted–especially if One is not involved. They’re family.” How did everybody except me have this personal information? “If Two agrees, chances are he’s a Ramaklan spy.”

  “Who’s left?” I was certain there was no one.
>
  “Seven,” he replied.

  “He’s too raw. His ridges have barely emerged. We need fighters,” I protested.

  “He has great heart, and he’s loyal. I’ll make sure he’s ready to fight,” Eight assured me. “I’ll take him on my team and you take Three. That’ll be the challenge. If you can get Three past their flank undetected. . . .”

  The signal to stop working interrupted Eight, but I knew what he meant. Stealth requires the kind of sustained patience that’s almost totally missing in Three. If there’s no room for failure, then there must be a solution to every problem. I wanted very much to believe that that indeed was so.

  16

  Entry:

  During the period leading to the Competition, my only respite from the preparations was when Palandine and I managed to spend some time together. Besides the training area, we would meet in the secluded study nooks of the Archival Center and in sections of the Grounds she knew would be safe. Tonight we were in an enclosure of the Grounds that was made impenetrable by the thick surrounding foliage. This was the place she had wanted to show me before we were interrupted by the intern at the Center.

  Our conversations covered all the areas that were forbidden–names, personalities, family backgrounds, and most important, the true power structure of Bamarren. The Institute was a microcosm of Cardassian society, and the adults–prefects, docents, and custodians–controlled from a distance. The idea was that students would become more effective citizens of the greater culture if they learned how to administer the microcosm themselves. There was a constant striving upwards at Bamarren, just as there was in the greater society, and at the highest levels that striving was transmuted into imperial expansion. The students of Bamarren were the future guardians of Cardassian security; we would become the eyes and ears of the military, the diplomats and the politicians. In these meetings Palandine was teaching me how to use my eyes and ears in a manner that complemented the teachings of Calyx and Mila.

  “And you have to use that wonderful smile of yours more often, Elim.”

  “What’s that got to do with listening?” That was the subject, and Palandine had typically made a jump in logic I couldn’t follow. She also forgot that I was a Cardassian male and smiling was not one of our strong features.