by Sarah Zettel
After a long pause, Uary said, “I cannot.”
“Then the issue is not organic to the contract we propose for Ambassador Basq. The issue is procedural. If the Ambassador’s contract is approved by this committee, I propose an additional contract will be drawn up with a Formal Witness agreed upon by the committee. Bio-technician Uary will have veto powers of the choice of Witness. The Witness will have final say over any and all security decisions regarding Ambassador Basq’s work and will have the authority to subcontract other Witnesses and services as may be required to enforce prudent and reasonable security for that work.
“Will that satisfy your issue, Bio-technician Uary?”
Uary considered the matter.
He’s going to do it. He’s going to remind them about Jahidh. He will lay the faults of my child, my child I was not allowed to supervise, at my feet. He’ll cast doubts upon my memory any way he can to keep me off the committee because I lost him those globes and his chance for promotion.
“Contractor Avir, it will satisfy my current issue,” said Uary.
A flood of relief washed through Basq and he had to work to keep it from showing. Even if I must endure a Witness, it’s all right, Basq told himself. If the Witness watches me, the Witness also watches Uary, and I believe it is Uary who will provide the more…entertaining show.
“Are there any other issues to be raised regarding the contracting of Ambassador Basq?” inquired Kelat.
The silence stretched out and with each heartbeat Basq felt hope grow stronger.
“Then,” said Avir, “I invoke the name I hold. Ambassador Basq Hanr Sone of the Grand Errand.” Basq turned to face her as she recited the conditions of his contract. At last she said, “Do you understand the responsibilities to be laid beside your name?”
“Contractor Avir, I do.” Basq hoped his voice was full of calm assurance. He couldn’t tell. His heart was pounding too loud for him to hear anything properly.
“And do you believe you possess the skill necessary to complete this contract?”
“I do.”
“And do you agree to the appended contract that will place you under the authority and eye of a Formal Witness for the duration of this contract?”
“I do.”
“Then we bind your name to this contract,” said Kelat. “Ready your resources for the work you are assigned.”
Basq made the half obeisance his invocation required. He let all the pride he felt show in his face. It was appropriate now. He was officially part of the committee, and Uary could dine on his objections in silence.
“This committee shall join the Reclamation Assembly in fifteen days as measured in the Hundredth Core,” said Avir. “In six core days, this committee will reconvene to compare information and initiate such procedures as are in its sphere of authority so that we may report to the Assembly that we are moving ahead expeditiously.” Avir smiled warmly at her committee. “Now, my friends, the real work begins.”
“The real work begins,” chorused the committee. When the sound of their voices died away, the Witnesses closed their eyes and bowed. The meeting was ended.
Still dazzled from the turn of events, Basq forgot to move. Avir reached out and shook his shoulder.
“The time for dreaming is when we walk on the Home Ground, Ambassador,” Avir laughed.
Basq felt his cheeks heat up. “I was not dreaming, Contractor, I was…readjusting.”
Avir nodded. “I can understand the need, but there is not much time for that. Let me give you Ivale’s name formally.”
Basq followed Avir around the table to where Ivale stood talking with Uary. As they approached, Uary looked up from the conversation. A spasm of distaste crossed his features.
“Ambassador Ivale,” said Avir. “With your permission, I shall present your full name to Ambassador Basq of the Grand Errand.” Ivale nodded his acknowledgment. “Ambassador Basq, I present to you the name of Ambassador Ivale Muirfinn Bren of the Hundredth Core.” Basq timed his obeisance to match Ivale’s. “I leave you to arrange your work,” said Avir, and she left them there to join Kelat, who was speaking with the Historians.
“I’ve never seen a Contractor show such faith in the work of a Beholden,” remarked Uary. Basq could hear the forced casualness in his words. “I must access your files, Ambassador, and look into your previous work.”
“Should you choose to do so, you will find that I accept both credit and blame as they are due me,” Basq replied smoothly. “I do not shirk one while seeking the other.”
“Listen to me, both of you,” said Ivale coolly. “Do not permit these differences to grow into a quarrel. We cannot afford to be divided in this committee. The Imperialists are making themselves heard in the Reclamation Assembly. The successes the Unifiers have been enjoying over the past years are making many of the Assembly members uneasy. If the Imperialists appear more united and reasoned than we do, they may just get their way and then the Vitae will become nothing more nor less than a race of warmongers.”
Basq instantly bowed his head and pressed his palm against his mouth to seal in any more foolish words. Uary remained unmoved.
“Ambassador Basq,” said Ivale. “In addition to the tasks specifically outlined when your name was invoked, I would ask you to place the cases of the artifacts Eric Born and Stone in the Wall into perspective with the larger group of artifacts. Specifically, you are to determine as far as possible how dangerous they are to us and the Reclamation, under what circumstances they would become most dangerous, and what precautions should be taken to prevent those circumstances. My files from the direct observation of the artifacts on the Home Ground are open for your review. You will add the information gained by Bio-technician Uary to your assessments.” Ivale glowered at Uary. “And you will cooperate fully, Uary.”
Uary’s mouth twitched. “Ambassador Ivale, I wish to walk with my children on the Home Ground. The work is what is important to me, not who does it or who orders it.”
“As it should be,” said Ivale. “I will expect you to take the relevant conclusions that Ambassador Basq discovers into account with your work. We will convene our subcommittee in seventy-two hours with all available current information correlated and ready for presentation. Do you have any issues or additions to raise against this plan?” Formality flattened out the emotion in Ivale’s voice.
“I have none,” said Basq immediately.
“I have none at this time,” said Uary. “I reserve the right to raise any that occur in the future for your attention, Ambassador Ivale.”
“You have that right in perpetuity.” Ivale straightened a fold in his sleeve minutely. It was a dismissive gesture and Basq took a small measure of satisfaction from the sour look it brought to Uary’s face. “Ambassador Basq, your real work begins now. Technician, you must be present as the Contractors assign a Witness to accompany the Ambassador back to the Grand Errand."
Dismissed, Basq bowed and left the room as quickly as dignity would allow. He didn’t spare a glance at any of the artworks or core inhabitants as he hurried down the spiraling corridor toward the core’s center.
The Hundredth Core followed the layout of all the fourth generation cores. At the end of the spiral spread a public annex. Pillarlike communication booths broke up a domed space that rivaled the Home Hall for size and grandeur. The murals of Vitae ships in flight that covered the walls here had all been painted with hand tools and unaugmented skill.
Basq shut himself into one of the booths and activated the control pad as he sat down. Before the list of his options had a chance to solidify in the display space above the pad, his fingers flashed across the controls, opening the lines to the Grand Errand and his quarters, and Caril.
Less than five seconds passed before the full-body image of Caril seated in front of her own terminal appeared above the keypad.
“The formal copies of the contracts just arrived,” he, said, breathless with pride and triumph. “I knew all would go well, but…”
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br /> “I know, I know.” Basq felt himself smile. “But we must leave our celebration for when the work is done. I will be under the eye of a Witness before I arrive back home. Listen, I have been grouped on a subcommittee with Bio-technician Uary. He is determined to minimize my effectiveness, and maybe to disengage me from the direct Reclamation work. Eventually, I may need a way to combat him publicly.”
Caril nodded. “Then you may need information about his activities. I can make that my work and I will. I’ll have the quarters ready when the Witness arrives. We will be remembered well, Basq. I swear it.”
“I swear it as well, Caril. I will see you with unaided eyes within the hour.” She smiled at him and Basq shut the lines down.
Basq realized how lucky he’d been to find Caril. Most contracted support staff would not go beyond official duty and would move on as soon as a better contract came their way, but Caril had abiding ambitions and love as well as duty in her soul. Basq had offered to make her a permanent part of his life gladly. She had accepted at once, even though permanent subservience to one person meant a relative demotion. She had known Basq would rise, even when he had doubted it. She would rise with him and she truly deserved to do so.
Basq did not let himself think about what she would have done if the contracts had not come and the white robe had become a reflection of his permanent status. Instead, he opened the lines to the transport coordination section and requested a shuttle back to the Grand Errand. The display informed him that the shuttle was available and the Witness was awaiting his arrival at the Home Hall.
Good to know, Basq thought as he closed the lines and shut the terminal’s power off. I will be ready to receive them into my life. He savored the thought. The Reclamation of the Home Ground was first and foremost, of course, but it would not be a bad thing to assure a good place for Caril and himself when the Rhudolant Vitae walked there. Being favorably remembered by a Witness was the surest course to such a place, especially if his Contractors and Ambassador Ivale could say they shared that memory.
The Home Hall was filled with activity when Basq got there. Members of the committee were being escorted down the docking corridors by entourages numbering between six and ten Beholden. Residents of the core greeted arrivals from the encampment’s ships.
The only still figure in the room was the Witness. A dark-skinned woman several centimeters taller than Basq and at least ten kilos heavier, she stood like a single-phase statue. The movements of the other people in the hall did not so much as ruffle the hem of her jade robe or the ends of her black hair. She had a soft-sided case slung over one shoulder. The lens of her camera’s eyepiece glinted with reflected light.
Basq concentrated on keeping his face smooth and devoid of emotion while he racked his brains trying to remember the etiquette for greeting the Witness one had been assigned. Before he had to resign himself to making his first remembered action a public display of ignorance, the Witness moved. With more grace than even a Contractor, she glided toward him. As she neared, Basq realized she was an Amputant, but a much more devout one than even Contractor Kelat. She raised a flexible, silicate hand toward him in greeting.
Why should I be surprised? Most Witnesses are fanatics. That would be especially true for any Witness Uary agreed to. Basq tried not to frown. / will have to find a way to remind Caril how careful we must be.
“Ambassador Basq, with your permission I will present you my name.” Her voice was deep and had an oddly musical quality about it. “I am Formal Witness Winema Avin-Dae Uratae. Do you accept that I am the Witness contracted to you by the Reclamation Advisory Committee or do you require verification?”
The words triggered the memory of a lesson from his graded schooling. To ask for proof was to impugn the Witness. Impugning the Witness might skew the observation. So, Basq said, “I accept that you are my contracted Witness.”
“Then accept that my memory carries you. On the memory of my own self I swear I will remember accurately.” Winema said the words with such fervor it might have been her first time uttering them. Basq doubted that was the case. Uary would not let a novice be assigned to him.
Now came the difficult part. He had acknowledged and accepted the Witness. With the formalities observed, he had to ignore her completely. Supposedly, that would become easier with time, but for now maintaining that attitude was going to be a fight. Basq pivoted and started for the docking corridor that connected the shuttle to the core. Winema fell into step behind him, as silent as his shadow. He climbed aboard the shuttle and took a seat near the front. He heard the slight creak as the Witness sat behind him. He imagined he could feel the point on the back of his head where her camera was directed. His scalp began to itch.
It won’t always be like this. I’ll be free during my off-shift time. She’s just contracted to watch me while I work.
Which means she’s contracted to watch the dataflow on my terminal. I will have to keep that always in mind. The itch intensified.
Witnesses are necessary, Basq reminded himself. Especially now that we are dealing with artifacts again. The artifacts defeated the ancestors because they were able to rob them of the information needed to quell the rebellion. They will not be able to do that to us. They will not be able to win that way even if they retain any knowledge of their rebellion and the Flight. In each of the three thousand cores there were sequestered twenty-four Witnesses with eidetic memory. They held all the vital knowledge of the Rhudolant Vitae. When her contract was completed, Winema would not only transfer her camera’s record into one of the datastores, she would recite her memory of Basq to one of the Witnesses in the Hundredth Core. If the artifacts wanted to wipe out all the history and learning of the Vitae again, they would have to murder all the Eidetic Witnesses.
But ruining the Ancestor’s datastores was not all they did to defeat the Ancestors, was it? Under the gaze of the Witness, Basq felt the shackles of responsibility take hold. They have obviously retained their abilities. If they have retained any portion of their memory, any portion of the Flight, how are we going to find a way to stop them from moving the Home Ground out of reach again?
With an effort of will, Basq shoved the doubts aside. We will find the knowledge. I will find the knowledge.
Basq knew it was an arrogant idea, but he did not hesitate to admit to himself that it was also a pleasant one.
Planning his strategies made the trip back to the Grand Errand bearable. The itch on the back of his scalp never quite went away, but he was able to cover his awareness of it with lists of things he needed to accomplish in the next seventy-two hours.
Caril was waiting for him when he and Winema emerged from the shuttle into the Grand Errand’s gold-and-mauve receiving area.
“Welcome home, Husband,” she said as she made her obeisance, bending over the small stack of holosheets she carried.
“Wherever you stand to welcome me is home, Wife.” The cliche was a little informal, considering the circumstances, but well within the bounds of propriety.
“These are the contracts which arrived in your absence.”
She handed him the sheets. “I have verified their origins and reviewed them for completeness.”
Excellent, thought Basq, as he shuffled through the stack of sheets. This will demonstrate her efficiency and my trust in her. The heat from his hands and the patterns of his fingerprints activated the displays on each sheet as he touched it. The stack held the contract from Avir and Kelat, as well as the subcontract labeling him Beholden to Ivale. Basq felt warm breath upon his cheek and almost jumped out of his skin. Winema was reading over his shoulder.
I will get used to this, I will get used to this. He waited until his hands stopped shaking to give the sheets back to Caril. “Thank you. You should record my acknowledgment of receipt as soon as we return to our quarters.”
“I will make this my work,” she said. Caril took her place beside him and they left the receiving hall for the corridor to the lifts. Winema followed withou
t a sound.
The Grand Errand was of much newer construction than the Hundredth Core. The support girders and network fibers were hidden by sheaths of crystalline optical matter rather than panels of plastics or ceramics. Although the optical matter was much more flexible than the traditional solids and it had a certain dignity, being one of the private technologies, Basq thought that the solids had a special grandeur. Nothing could be changed aboard the older ships without planning and cooperation. Here, a single technician tapped a pattern to clear a spot in the wall. Under her hand, a square of grey-white wall turned orange and cleared to reveal a web of yellowish fibers. A few meters away from her, a man wearing the grey-and-tan armbands of the support services section pressed a holosheet and flat keypad in the wall and began tapping whatever information flowed through the fibers in that particular section. Doubtless they all had orders and contracts to fulfill, but it was all so…solitary and so easy. Almost improperly so. Even the Imperialists could make changes. The public parks had their treaties written across the walls. A swift gesture with his hand had wiped them clear, but the fact that they had been there at all left a bitter sensation in his mind. Basq wondered if he might apply to move himself and Caril to the Hundredth
Core to be closer to the Advisory Committee. It was worth considering.
The lift to their residence section was nearly full. Like all the ships, the Grand Errand kept its living quarters in its heart, where they could best be sheltered from accidents and everyday occurrences, like the hard radiation that never stopped bombarding the ship. The crowd parted respectfully to make room for Basq and his entourage. Caril tapped the code for their home level on the wall. Her fingerprints were her authorization and the lift added their destination to the list displayed about the translucent doors as they closed.
“Ambassador Basq?”
Basq turned and looked up slightly. A thin man with a greying, braided beard and a red-and-gold badge that marked him as administrative support for communications stood beside him.