On Assignment to the Planet of the Exalted

by Helena Puumala

  “Poor Ingrid!” she said. “She’s going to hate that! She won’t want to be considered an incarnation of one goddess, never mind two, if I know her at all!”

  “The Grenies of Paradiso won’t give her a hard time,” Mikal said. “They’ll accept the notion that she looks like their goddess, but is just another human being, right Malin?”

  “Oh yes. Grenies aren’t pushy at all. If she says that she’s just a woman, no-one on Paradiso will argue with that—but some will gawk; there’ll be no help for that.”

  “I guess we’re assuming that she’ll accompany the quatrad to Paradiso, since she has taken on the task of protecting them.” Mikal again. “So we’ll have to make sure to protect her. Not from the Grenies, or other Paradisans either—“

  “But you don’t want the Volkor IV Alphas to get their hands on her!” Malin interrupted.

  “You’ve got it. They’d likely lock her up in a glass cage in a temple, to be admired by all, free to do exactly nothing.”

  “That’s the best scenario, Mikal,” Malin’s voice was sharp. “And none of us really wants to think of how the worst case scenario goes.”

  *****

  The Klensers worked so quickly that all the ex-slaves were pristine by the time Arya r’pa Dorral arrived with her Torrones escort, the furious Sartose trailing her.

  Arya turned to stare at the Senate Chair after surveying the scene on The Prison Complex Grounds.

  “You, Chairwoman Sartose,” she stated in an ice-cold voice, “assured me that there were no off-world slaves on Vultaire at all. And what are these people then, if they are not slaves? Why did you hide them from the Investigators?”

  “You can’t prove that they were slaves,” Sartose retorted angrily. “They could easily be workers we hired on from the Fringe Worlds. Have you got any friends or relatives looking for any of them?”

  Arya’s eyes fell on Kati. Ingrid, near her, was climbing into a sitting position, hampered though she was by the presence of the green girls who were still clinging to her.

  “I can think of at least one person who has been looking for people who she knew to have been enslaved, on this world. And it looks like she has found at least one of them.” Arya’s voice was still icy, but she had a delighted grin on her face.

  Mikal left Kati’s side to face the Vultairian Chairwoman with the Lamanian.

  “There is no question about what has been going on here,” he said in an even tone. “We have plenty of proof that Federation laws have been broken. Off-world slaves are only a part of it. There has also been a kidnapping of a VIP from The Federation Space Station—surely you were aware of that, Chair Sartose? I’m sure that Madame Xoraya Hsiss can pick out her kidnappers from a line-up of the Vultairian Exalted. Kelt Carmaks has some pretty damning evidence that the Vultairians known as Klensers have been ill-treated for generations, and we now know that the bulk of Vultairian citizens, including the Klensers, have been denied the opportunity to be implanted with translation nodes, a right which practically defines Star Federation Citizenship.”

  “You can’t prove any of that!” Sartose protested, but there was an edge of uncertainty in her tone.

  “The time of the Exalted Oligarchy has come to an end, Sartose,” Kelt Carmaks said, coming over to join Mikal and Arya. “The time to forge a new, inclusive system of government has come. I expect that it will be the people whom you have considered the enemy within who will oversee its creation, people like my friend from the Resistance Underground, Jorun.”

  “And aren’t you feeling smug about it, Carmaks!” snarled Sartose. “You, traitor to your class and to your world!”

  Kelt Carmaks shrugged.

  “Not a traitor to my world, Sartose,” he stated. “To the Exalted class, maybe. However, it never should have existed in the first place, and if it should have at some time, it has certainly outlived its usefulness.”

  “And you and your kind will support the Federation as it bestows the benefits of the translation nodes to the rabble of the city and even to the animals that the Klensers are,” Sartose snorted bitterly. “After all the effort that we, of the Exalted Oligarchy, have put into keeping things the way that our ancestors deemed to be the Proper Order!”

  Senator Carmaks shrugged again, even as a young male voice piped up from among the ex-slaves and the Klensers who had been helping them onto their feet.

  “We are not beasts,” Zass stated calmly, standing up straight to look the angry Chairwoman in the eyes.

  “Hah!” Sartose was starting to sound rabid. “The beast speaks! Who has taught the animal to speak human words? That’s a crime, you know, been on the books for hundreds of years! The punishment for that is to be confined to the cellars for life!”

  “Dear gods, she’s right,” Kelt Carmaks said, staring at Sartose, then turning to look at the Klensers among the ex-slaves. “I remember—or my node remembers—coming across that sour little tidbit of information in a law book when I was just a pup of a Senator! So we, the Exalted, created the creatures that we then exploited! We denied them not just the rights of human beings, but we forced them to live in silence for their whole lives!”

  He was shaking his head.

  “But how was that possible?” Kati found herself asking. “I mean, people don’t become Klensers until adolescence. Children learn to speak long before that!”

  “Which is why no Klenser has a problem understanding language, or following instructions given to him or her,” said Jorun, looking around him. “But they are taught, directly and indirectly, and long before they become Klensers, that Klensers can’t speak. Power of suggestion, I would say, reinforced every day of their lives by every other Vultairian.”

  “I think that Jorun’s right,” Mikal said quietly. “The power of suggestion can be strong. And obviously, the Exalted ancestors who came up with the idea to turn the Klensers into dumb beasts knew that, and used it, forcing the rest of the population to help. They made it illegal, not just for Klensers to speak, but for anyone to speak with them, except when giving orders, as to a runnerbeast.”

  “I think you’ve got that right, Mikal,” Kelt agreed. “What my node has retrieved from of the memory, the wording of the law is very convoluted, but it does seem to prohibit any sort of exchange of speech with the Klensers; only the giving of orders is allowed.”

  “Well, we’re in a New Era now,” said Jorun firmly, “and in this Era every Vultairian is free to express himself or herself, anytime, anywhere. So, Zass, continue your good work among your talented kind.”

  Zass grinned at him.

  “When we get to choose a leader to take us into this New Era, I will choose you, Jorun,” he said.

  Sartose looked like she was about to be sick. She turned away and began to rapidly walk back in the direction of the Government Buildings, her two bodyguards trailing behind her, looking confused.

  “Let her go,” Arya said softly to the Torrones Warrior beside her. “But do have an eye kept on her, and don’t allow her to start anything, even if the impact would be minor.”

  The Torrones nodded and spoke into his communicator very quietly. Kati did not doubt but that an “eye” would be on Sartose at all times, as long as the Warriors were on planet.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  It was late by the time those who were staying at Nelli’s Inn returned.

  The question of where to house the newly freed slaves had to be settled; the problem was efficiently solved by Kelt Carmaks and his cohort of like-minded Senators. Near the Legislative Buildings, across the street from them, was a luxury hotel which normally had been reserved for the relatives of the Government Officials in the Capital for short stays. The accommodation was expensive, and the Laggos Family had never been willing to give special deals to the Family members of impoverished Oligarchs, so the place rarely was even close to full. They had fought off all overtures pushing for the deals, insisting that they were not prepared to eat up the costs of vandalism by provincial riff-raff. So whe
n the rebel Senators approached the Family Head Laggos with the notion of filling the empty rooms with the ex-slaves—they assured Laggos that they would cover the cost of the occupation if the Federation Government did not come through with the funds—Jaroc Laggos agreed readily enough. If the freed slaves didn’t mind sharing rooms, that was; there were enough of them that that would be necessary. The ex-slaves did not mind, and marched to the Hotel, guarded by the helpful Klensers, and the formidable Torrones.

  Mikal and Jock stopped at Uncle Kelt’s apartment before flitting back to Nelli’s with Kati who spent a little time making sure that Ingrid and the Grenie girls would be made comfortable in the Hotel.

  “It’s quite a luxurious place,” she told the two men, when they met again. “I can’t blame the Laggos for not wanting it trashed. The ex-slaves won’t do that, I’m sure; right now they’re just grateful to have beds or pallets to sleep on. When I left, the Hotel staff were running around, trying to make sure that everyone would have a place to lay their heads.”

  She looked curiously at the bottles of wine the men were carrying. Mikal had one, while Jock had two.

  “Carmaks’ best,” Jock told her when he saw her gaze. “Uncle Kelt allowed us to deplete his supply further. My two are for a little celebration with Joaley, Canna and Xoraya, as soon as Rakil, Malin and Lank get in, while Mikal warms your innards with the contents of the bottle he has.”

  He leered at her, and she blushed.

  Mikal wrapped an arm around her shoulders while Jock settled into the pilot’s seat.

  “My girl’s a bit shy about sex,” Mikal said, making sure that all three bottles were safely stowed in a storage compartment.

  “Is she, now?” laughed Jock. “Seemed to me that, during our investigations, she rather enjoyed pretending to be a brazen hussy!”

  “Doing her actress thing was, she?” Mikal responded, before Kati could find her tongue to scold both men, to their merriment.

  “All right, Kati,” Mikal finally relented, “I agree that we’re being silly. We’re releasing tension; we’ve all been stressed for some time. Not that there isn’t a lot yet to do, especially for the inhabitants of this planet, but a few things have been resolved.”

  “Isn’t that the truth,” said Jock. “We do have achievements to celebrate, and a good number of them are yours, Kati.”

  *****

  At Nelli’s Inn, the three of them let themselves into the building without disturbing Nelli’s son who was acting as the night clerk.

  “You’ll be kind enough to enlighten Xoraya, Joaley and Canna, Jock,” Mikal said at the door to his and Kati’s room. He wrapped one arm around her waist while she unlocked the door, clutching the precious wine bottle in his other hand. “It’s been a long half-a-year.”

  “Oh, I will,” Jock promised, leering comically at them. “Rakil, Lank and Malin will be here soon enough, too, to share in the telling. Good night; enjoy yourselves.”

  Inside the room, Mikal pulled Kati tightly into his arms. They kissed passionately; then he loosed her a bit and gazed upon her face.

  “You, beautiful woman, you,” he whispered, and she began to giggle.

  “Me beautiful?” she snickered. “I think you’ve got the wrong woman, love. Ingrid is beautiful. Roxanna is beautiful. Quite a few of the Vultairian women are beautiful, but, me, I’m just averagely good-looking, at best.”

  Mikal kissed her on the nose.

  “Not true.” He gave her a little pat on her butt. “But, how about you get into that flimsy gown you were handling, oh, ages ago, earlier today? I’ll find something to uncork this wine, and a couple of glasses, and we’ll do this properly. A little more like the seduction scene I originally planned, and never got to use.”

  Kati giggled again, grabbed the negligee from the dresser and retreated into the bathroom. Mikal laughed as she closed the door, even as he scoured the drawers and cupboards for a corkscrew and glasses, coming up with two beautiful pieces of blown glassware and a contraption clearly meant for drawing wine corks.

  “Such a prudish sweetheart of mine,” he murmured softly as he settled to opening the wine and tasting it. She would not be prudish once he had her in bed with him, he knew. It was one of the characteristics he adored, her ability to transform from a seemingly shy, unsure young woman into one who thoroughly enjoyed the physical aspects of sex—he only needed to take her into his arms.

  “She makes me feel like I’m a great lover,” he mocked himself. Well, maybe there was truth to that. After all, he was Borhquan-trained in the amorous arts.

  The Carmaks’ best was a good wine, he conceded. Definitely suitable for the occasion.

  Then the bathroom door opened and Kati stepped out, a slim, shimmering visage in the translucent gown, her wavy chestnut hair, which she usually wore pulled back, hanging loose about her shoulders. Mikal’s hands shook as he filled the two glasses and proffered one of them to her.

  “You’re wrong, and I’m right, love,” he said as her pulled her close, and clinked glasses with her. “You are an absolutely, devastatingly beautiful woman.”

  This time she didn’t argue.

  *****

  They had fallen asleep, bodies entwined, when commotion from the hallway woke them up. Male Vultairian voices, and one female one, young and whiny. Someone banged on their locked door, and Kati recognized the voice of Nelli’s son, the night clerk, protesting:

  “No, no, don’t wake them up; that’s the Agent’s room!”

  “Well, where the hell is Jock Carmaks?” an older man queried in commanding tones. “I told you, we want to speak with Jock Carmaks! Don’t we, Lowry? You and I, and your daughter need to have a little talk with the musical Carmaks!”

  “If you say so, Father,” another male voice replied, in less stentorian tones.

  “I told you that I don’t want to talk to Jock,” objected the female voice, and suddenly Kati realized that she recognized it, too.

  “Oh my goodness,” she whispered to Mikal, fully awake now. “That’s Lili Laggos! What’s going on?”

  Mikal’s mind was already working.

  “Lili Laggos, Lowry Laggos—the pushy one must be Jaroc Laggos himself! Kelt and his fellow Senators just made a deal with him tonight. Kelt said that he’s not so bad by Oligarchic standards; called him an opportunist. Opportunists can be useful; they’ll do good work if there’s something in it for them, and they usually can’t be bothered to crap on people. But what does he want with Jock at this late hour? I think I’m going to have to go out there and find out what’s going on.

  “Sorry, love—naturally I’d rather stay in bed with you.”

  He turned on the bedside lamp while disengaging a reluctant hand from between Kati’s thighs. Kati watched as he stood up, shook himself and collected his clothes off the floor, dressing quickly, ogling her naked form the whole time.

  “If this takes too long,” he said when he was fully dressed, “you can always send a rescue party after me.”

  She laughed.

  “A rescue party of one,” she said.

  “That’s all it takes,” he grinned, unlocking the door.

  She heard him lock it again behind him, and settled back under the covers, trying to remember where she had left her clothes. Oh yes, the bathroom, that was where they were.

  *****

  When the party had settled into Nelli’s Inn earlier that day, they had been given four rooms at the end of a hallway, on the third floor. One with two single beds had been turned into the sick room, with a cot added for Joaley, so that she could attend to Xoraya’s and Canna’s needs, if that was necessary. Kati and Mikal had been given the room with the double bed, while the last two rooms with the single beds were left for the four single men, to divide amongst themselves as they chose. Rakil and Lank had chosen to bunk together, so Jock and Malin had ended with the last room.

  Jaroc Laggos had a loud enough voice that he had succeeded in disturbing the rest of more than just the guests in the last
four rooms. Mikal saw several heads poke out from doors along the hallway as he locked his, and glanced to see the night clerk ushering people—one of them a massive Torrones—into Jock and Malin’s room.

  “Hey what’s going on?” one of the heads shouted at him.

  “I’m going to go and find out,” he replied, turning towards the commotion.

  “That’s the Federation Agent,” he heard, with his node-enhanced hearing, someone else say, and the first voice respond: “Well, I guess it’ll be okay, then,” before he caught up to the night clerk.

  “Oh, Agent r’ma Trodden, thank goodness you’re here!” Nelli’s son said when Mikal reached him. “I couldn’t persuade the Family Head Laggos to wait till the morning; he insisted on talking with Jock tonight. At least he and the other fellow weren’t sleeping yet, though we woke up a lot of other people!”

  “Relax, son,” Mikal reassured him. “I’ll see if I can find out what this is all about.”

  He pushed his way into the room which seemed unexpectedly small with so many people, one of them a massive Torrones Warrior, stuffed into it. The Laggoses had taken over the table with its four chairs—there were four of them, actually: three men of varying ages and the young woman, Lili Laggos Kati had named her. The Torrones Warrior accompanying them was Vonn, and he smiled brightly at Mikal as the latter entered the room, bidding the night clerk to return to his post downstairs.

  “I thought I’d make sure that there would be no trouble when Family Head Laggos came looking for Jock Carmaks. We brought him and his relatives here from the Government Centre where they were disturbing Senator Carmaks’ rest.”

  “Excellent,” Mikal replied, grinning back at him. Then he turned to the Laggos Family members.

  “Now what is this all about?”

  “This is really a family matter between the Carmaks and the Laggos clans,” said Jaroc, “but since it looks like you off-worlders have managed to stick your noses into all Vultairian affairs, and my business is in no way secret, I guess I’ll come right out with it, in front of you all.”