Far Country

by Fanpro

  Takuda was too tired to go through the ritual. He gestured the man to a chair. When Omori didn't move, Takuda fixed him with his eyes. "You may sit or stand as you wish, Toge Omori. No one in this headquarters will stand for you. In here I am in charge, and I do not have the time or the energy to cater to you."

  Omori sneered at the remark, but when no one moved to present a chair, he sat down. "Yubari Takuda, I represent a rentai of the Osio. It is not a regular, official regiment. It is secret, and some of the best in the city are among its ranks. They are not especially pleased with the current situation or the change your compatriots will bring. I have been authorized to approach you for your thoughts. And perhaps you would be so kind as to listen to ours."

  "I know very little about your aims, Toge Omori. Perhaps you should speak first."

  "Very well. We in Osio believe that the best of all worlds is the model designed by our ancestors and reflected in the structure of the army. There is a natural order in life, with the strong at the top. We are that group. We will win.

  "That has always been the way of things. The strong are not only strong in force, they are also strong in their ability to see what the future holds and to seize it. You are the future. We wish to have you with us.

  "That is why we invite you to join the forces with the Osio against the others. We know that you have twice defeated the new weapons of the Usugumo. You are the more powerful. With your guidance, the Osio can benefit from the equally terrible weapons that you possess. We can become supreme and bend the others to our will."

  Toge Omori held up his hand to still the comment that was forming on the lips of the DEST commander. "I understand that you wish to know how this would be of benefit to you and your people. That is quite simple. You and yours will become the leaders of the rentai. You have the strength and the ability to use it. You should be our leader."

  "All this is quite interesting," said Takuda. "But what happens if, as the leader, I decide that all weapons should be eliminated? What happens if I wish to see an older, more formal, more harmonious society evolve? What if I wanted to do away with the great weapons?"

  "You can't! It is the only way we could dominate the others. We can rule the sekai! With your weapons we could strike out against all the enemies of the true Draconis Combine. We must remember how the legendary Shiro Kurita expanded the boundaries of our empire. We must be prepared for contact with the Inner Sphere. It will come. We must be acceptable to them. We must use force."

  Takuda stared through the man as though the chair were empty. This Toge Omori, like Miburi before him, did not understand what the future might bring. They were all too interested in making themselves the supreme rulers. And to what purpose? None. Domination. Force. Was there no other way? Perhaps the people of this planet had become so divisive because of the rebellion that had been tearing at the seams of the Draconis Combine when their ancestors had crashed on this unknown planet some five hundred years ago.

  "Toge Omori, you have said many interesting things. I have heard other proposals from representatives of all three enclaves. I must withdraw to make my decision. You will please excuse me. Make sure you leave word of where or how we can contact you. Leave the information with Parker Davud, my aide. I will contact you with my decision."

  "I leave you to your deliberations, Yubari Takuda. I leave you for a while, but remember this: there are others who will also want to hear your decision. There are others who will not wait long. There are others who will demand action. Decide quickly."

  36

  The room was small and overheated. Even with the gas jets turned down to a minimum, they still produced enough heat to make ventilation important. The secrecy of the meeting, however, was such that the participants would not allow even the smallest access to the room. The main door was locked and barred. Beyond the portal was a guard who would allow no one to pass without permission from those already within. The only unbarred door was the one to the serving area, but the servants' station was as secure as the main room.

  Five men were present at the meeting: Hushiko Miburi, Toge Omori, Achira Kochira, Deau Kanso, and Pinto Geppu. They sat cross-legged around the inlaid table, which was set with the cups and a pot of a simple tea service. Around the perimeter of the room, josh sticks wafted the smoke of incense into the motionless air. Kochira, host of the ceremony, tapped softly on the table, and as if by magic a small Tetatae appeared from the serving quarters to replace the empty teapot with a full one. Then the alien vanished as quietly as he had come, returning to the serving area. Three other Tetatae remained, but the only humans within the secure rooms were the five at the table.

  Kochira wiped his mouth with a small cloth, carefully tapping his lips with a single, cloth-protected finger. "We are all of one mind," he said, his voice so soft that it carried only to the other four. The others sat motionless, wooden statues carved and silent. They heard, but there was no reason to answer. "And since we are of the same mind, and since we have discussed this before, we need only review what we have planned and what we have discovered within the past five days.

  "When first we met, we discussed the situation presented by the arrival of the other humans. We did not know then, and I am not sure we know even now, from where these people come. They have said, and they continue to say, that they come from beyond the stars to arrive here by accident. I accept the story, yet there is still the nagging doubt. They carry the symbol of our own legendary ancestors. That could be mere coincidence, but I think it not likely.

  "But let us pass over that for now. They are here. They bring a level of technical ability far beyond what we possess, a level even beyond what the legends of our forefathers tell. They can do things that we have not dreamed of. They walk in great machines that are invulnerable to our weapons. I know this to be true. We have tested it."

  "It was that information which spurred me to call the first meeting, and it was that knowledge that has made me so interested in what the rest of you have to say. We first met five days ago, because of our guest from the Amatukaze, Pinto Geppu. I note with interest that he has brought another of his brothers to visit us now. We welcome Hushiko Miburi of the Amatukaze. We understand that he has had direct negotiations with the leader of the forest force, as has Toge Omori. We will be interested to hear their reports." Kochira passed the teapot to his righ Omori poured a serving of tea into his tiny cup and passed the pot to the right again. The pot made its way around the table to come to rest again in front of Kochira. No one spoke during the passage, and none of the participants lifted his eyes above his cup until the ceremony was complete. Then Miburi raised his eyes and spoke, "It is true, I have met the leader of the forest forces. He is Yubari Takuda, and he is a most dangerous man. He does not understand the position of the enclaves. He does not see that we have attained a measure of balance. He does not understand that the best thing he can do is to go away with all his brothers. I approached him with these thoughts, but I think he wishes to remain. He plans to impose some structure, a concept of his own, on all of us. I challenged him, but it was no use. I suggested that he destroy the forces currently within the walls of Usugumo and that he then leave. This he did not accept."

  "I, too, have spoken to the named Yubari Takuda," said Omori. "I believe I visited him some time shortly after Hushiko Miburi's visit. I proposed a different solution to the current problem, but I was also rejected.

  "I suggested that Yubari Takuda join a rentai that is already in existence in Osio. I suggested that our forces combined with his could destroy the new Usugumo forces, and then destroy those of the other cities.

  "Yubari Takuda refused my offer. He said that for the Osio to become dominant would not be a harmonious solution to the situation. He proposed that we unite. That we destroy our weapons. That we form a new society.

  "This information is of great embarrassment to me now. That I would have suggested eliminating all of you, with whom I now have agreed to act in concert, is a terrible stain upon my honor.
My only hope is that my actions will benefit all in the future. My actions were taken with the best intentions, and though they were directed against some of you, I trust you will see that I was attempting to perform with honor."

  "Toge Omori," said Kochira, "We act in honorable ways. For you to have suggested a course of action that would be detrimental to those of us at this table is not without honor. You did what you saw as the correct course. Times change, and then the opposite way becomes the true one. That is the teaching of the tao, but it is not without honor." Kochira nodded to Miburi.

  "It is what I had foreseen would happen," Kochira went on. "That is why at our last meeting I put forward a plan to deal with these problems to our mutual advantage. We are not"—he let his eyes make contact with each individual at the table—"the most powerful members of our societies. We are not the leaders of our respective cities. But each of us wields certain power, and working together we are stronger than any one of the enclaves.

  "It would seem strange that with only five people, we could be stronger than an entire city, but it is true. Each one of us brings to this convocation significant strengths. We must remember that if we unite, not only do we bring that strength to our dantai, but we also make our former cities weaker by that amount.

  "Toge Omori brings to us an organization of young officers and lords. With those we can organize a force that is loyal to our leadership. Of them we will be able to ask any sacrifice. Hushiko Miburi of the Amatukaze has the skill of a negotiator and contacts within the elements currently positioned in the forest. He has already spoken with Yubari Takuda and understands the kind of a man he is. Pinto Geppu is a sanyu in the Amatukaze. He is already a member of the fifth pillar of knowledge. He can become the spiritual guide of us and all those who will join us. He has a following within his enclave, and he understands the vulnerability of the Sanyu Subash Chi himself.

  "From the Usugumo we welcome Deau Kanso, the city's wealthiest man, and perhaps the wealthiest man in all our cities. Not only does he understand the power of wealth, but he also understands how others react to it. It will be through him that we will be able to reach, and have reached, the various members of the new humans. He has already made great progress."

  Kanso smiled. It was a shy smile, the smile of one who has great power but prefers not to demonstrate it through ostentatious display. "I have already approached one of the new humans, with a proposal. It was not a direct approach; I had my agents accomplish it. The one called Seagroves wishes to acquire gold. I am not sure what he plans to do with it, but he does love it. I have already ensured that he has a continuing supply of the metal. He is very busy accumulating it. I will be able to control him by the volume of its flow. He was very easy. Two of the people who work for his group, they are named Guardine and Sabine, are also busy acquiring metal and jewels. Both of them, I am sorry to report, are females. They, too, will be very easy to control. Women like interesting baubles. They are ours.

  "I have even had agents make contact with those in the woods. I did not approach your Yubari Takuda, but my people did contact some of the others.

  "There is one who will join our camp. He has been without wealth all his life, and the thought of being rich is an unbearable stimulus. He will join us if we can continue to make it worth his while."

  Kochira tapped the table again and the Tetatae replaced the empty teapot once more. The Usugumo host paid no attention to the ancient alien who performed the service. The wizened figure might have been no more than another piece of furniture, for that was how the Usugumo viewed the Tetatae. Kochira knew that this Tetatae, an old one named Põpae, had been in some form of service to the councilors of the Usugumo for as long as anyone could remember. He had no friends in the city except for his own family. A piece of furniture.

  "It is time for us to begin the plan with real objectives," Kochira announced. "It is time. We know that these people are mercenaries, driven only by individual greed and hope of personal gain. We need to discover what each one wants and then fulfill that need. Some of them we know. We need to find the others.

  "There are those whom we will be able to convince. There are those whom we will not. Those we control, we must bring together into a single force. Those we cannot convince must be eliminated. That is as it must be. Join us or die.

  "There will be some opportunity for the mercenaries to carry out eliminations of their own. That would be better for us because treachery to their own would make them ours completely. But we must not insist on this. Remember that these people are driven by certain desires. We must not tread too heavily on their possible dislikes and lingering loyalties. If they will not terminate their own people, those who will become their enemies, then we must do it. I am sure that Toge Omori or Sanyu Pinto Geppu will be able to find those who will do it.

  "Deau Geppu smiles at the thought. I have no doubt that he also has people who can perform the function. He has, I would also venture, already inquired into the possibility.

  "Once we have the forces of the mercenaries either under our control or eliminated, we will be the masters of our own destiny. We will approach the enclaves with a force at our backs. We will dictate the future. Gentlemen, we can be the new order. We can be the future."

  There was general assent and excitement. Now the plan was before them. Each had an assignment. They would meet again, and when that time came, each would have assets under his control. They filed out of the room and past the silent guard just as the first blue-amber light of dawn crept over the eastern horizon. Põpae cleared the table, washed the dishes, and went home to his family.

  37

  I hate being treated like a slab of meat." Elizabeth Hoond shrugged off her jacket and hung it over the back of a chair. She flopped down in the chair, threw her feet onto the table, and accepted a goblet from Seagroves.

  "Vost been after you again?"

  "Not Vost. It's these damn people in the city. Every time I go somewhere, and even when I don't, there's always someone lurking around trying to make a deal. I don't know what they want. I just wish they'd leave me alone. All I want is to do my job, get paid, and be left alone."

  "You don't understand the situation, do you, Beth? You're a mercenary now. You do things for pay. And it's the pay that's important." Seagroves gestured around the room, whose every surface glowed with gold. "Just look at how well I'm doing. I've got an agent out there getting me all the gold I can handle. I'll be so rich when this is over that no one will be able to touch me. They want to know what you want? Decide what it is and get on with it."

  "Gold doesn't have any value here, you fool. No wonder they give you all you want. It's iron they want, not gold."

  "But they will. Trust me. Everyone wants gold. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but sooner or later they'll want gold, and I'll have it Then I'll be rich."

  Suddenly the door to Seagroves' sitting room opened violently to reveal Vost and Pesht, who entered unbidden. Seagroves made a mental note to lock the door after anyone came. He hated being surprised by visitors. He rose now and threw the bolt with pointed significance. "To what do I owe this surprise visit?"

  "We've got to talk," said Vost as he dragged a chair next to Hoond and sat down. "You got anything to drink here, Seagroves?" The mercenary looked around the room. "My, my, this place looks like a temple to avarice."

  "I'm no more avaricious than you are, Vost. It's just that we're interested in different things. We all have our way of keeping score. Money is mine, especially gold. I don't carp at you for your way. At least I won't get some disease from the gold."

  "Neither will I. And as far as a disease goes, you've already got it. It's a disease called stupid greed. If it doesn't kill you, it could kill one of us. Why don't you just dump this stuff and collect something else? Sometimes I think you're numb as a pounded thumb. I can't even remember why I hired you."

  "You hired me, oh exalted leader, because I'm the one with the LAM."

  "Fine. 'Nuff said. Let's deal with the
real problem." Vost drained the goblet Seagroves had poured him, and grimaced. This city didn't have one decent alcoholic beverage in its entire inventory. He sat back and gazed at the other three.

  "I suppose you've all been approached by someone or other about our status. I know I've been so popular with different people that I can't even crawl into or out of bed without finding someone waiting to talk to me."

  "I thought that was what you wanted," said Hoond with an evil look. "I didn't know you ever went to bed alone—if you could help it."

  "I don't, Beth. But I want to choose who that person is. How about you?"

  "Get stuffed, Vost. Maybe it'd be you if you were the last man on earth, but even then I'd probably choose celibacy as a more viable alternative."

  "Stow it," interrupted Seagroves. "You said there was something important. Let's get on with it. I need to fumigate my rooms."

  Vost waved away the sarcasm. "There's something going on, and we need to talk about it. Like I said before, people have been following me around for the past few days. They all want to talk deal. Do we want to talk deal?"

  "Same here," said Pesht. He didn't want to elaborate on the subject; he'd been talking deal almost since they'd arrived in Usugumo. But these offers were different. "From what I understand, it's a consortium of businessmen from all three cities. They're outside the normal channels of power."

  The others confirmed Pesht's words. There was another group, a gaggle of financiers, religious leaders, and officers, who were willing to pay for the services of the mercenaries. The contact with this group was tenuous; none of the mercs was quite sure who was in charge. Pesht raised an even bigger issue. He wondered if it wasn't all a trap on the part of Sirayuki. Perhaps the Usugumo shidosha was trying to trick the mercenaries.