LEE ISWANDER
After his offensive meeting with Speaker Ricks—there was no other word for it but “offensive”—Iswander went over to Academ, half convinced he should withdraw his son from the Roamer school.
Londa had already visited the boy and satisfied herself he was thriving in such a vibrant environment with children his own age. Iswander understood that, but if Sam Ricks was an example of what the Roamers epitomized now, he wasn’t sure he wanted his son to have anything to do with them. He wanted to make Arden into a different kind of Roamer—the right kind of Roamer.
Inside the hollowed comet, he found Jess Tamblyn and Cesca Peroni in front of an attentive group of students as they summoned sparkling droplets of water from the internal walls. In the zero-gravity core, the class hung in open air, maneuvering with small hand jets or anchoring themselves with tethers. They observed as diamond chains of crackling water drops flickered around them.
As Jess and Cesca worked together, extending their hands, the droplets coalesced, tiny remnants of wental energy that seeped out of the comet. The droplets danced through the air like a luminous river, reeling out from Jess’s open hand, slowly arcing across the gap to Cesca’s outstretched palms. She caught the sparkling chain before it rose and dispersed into vapor in the air, leaving them surrounded by a humid luminosity, like a halo.
Jess said to the group in a loud voice, “The wentals dissipated after the Elemental War, and their energy is no longer deadly. In fact, it is mostly gone, even from inside Cesca and me.”
Cesca opened her hands as the faint droplets faded. She seemed sad. “Some remnants still reside here in this comet, and others live on water worlds. But that’s all. Like the hydrogues, they’ve gone dormant and faded from the Spiral Arm.”
Iswander maneuvered himself forward awkwardly with the hand jet. He had removed his business suit and now just wore a dress shirt and slacks. “Dad!” Arden called, and Iswander found him among the group, surprised to see him next to another familiar boy. Seth Reeves? It wasn’t surprising that Garrison would have taken his son back to Academ, but he hadn’t expected Arden and Seth to be friends. He wondered if Elisa knew where her boy was.
Iswander maintained his calm as he looked up at Jess and Cesca. “I came because I’m concerned about what Roamers are being taught these days, and whether or not it can benefit my son. I’m not entirely sure the Roamers and clan Iswander have the same Guiding Star.”
“Why do you say that?” Jess asked.
“For one thing, I’ve met directly with Speaker Ricks.”
An unexpected flicker of distaste crossed Cesca’s face. “Speaker Ricks…” She caught herself. “I consider it poor form to voice an opinion about another Speaker.”
“Cesca’s being polite,” Jess said. “Soft times do not require hard leaders, and Speaker Ricks was chosen when the Roamers still believed that these were soft times. His election was an anomaly. Do not judge us based on the Speaker. Your son will benefit from what we can teach him. He shows great promise.”
Arden lifted his chin. “I think I should stay here, Father. There’s a lot I can learn, just as I’ve learned from you. And you’re the one who told me that we need challenges to make us strong. We’re not like the other clans. We are Iswanders!”
“And he’s a little full of himself,” Seth Reeves teased.
“I did say that.” Iswander smiled. “You were listening.”
“I always listen to you.”
“We’d hate to lose him here,” Cesca said, “but it is your choice.”
Arden tried to maintain his proud composure, but then playfully shoved Seth, who tumbled out of control in the low gravity until he bumped into the other drifting students.
“We’re Iswanders,” Arden said again. “We’re more than just Roamers. You taught me to think big.”
“I think you’re right, son.” The comment was like a revelation in Iswander’s mind. He realized he didn’t need to impress just the Roamer clans, when there was the whole Confederation. That was where he should be planting his seeds. He would build ties with the King and Queen and sidestep the Roamer clans.
And he had something the Roamers had expressed little interest in. Since Peter and Estarra were focused on their very public battle with Prince Reyn’s illness, however, as well as their questions about the mysterious Onthos refugees, Iswander knew exactly how to gain their attention.
Iswander turned to Jess and Cesca, speaking seriously now. “Sam Ricks is just one man, and he was a mistake. Maybe I shouldn’t discard all Roamers because of one mistake.” After all, he had asked for the same consideration himself. He turned to his son. “You’ve reminded me of one of my own lessons, Arden. Stay here at Academ and keep learning. And I’ll keep thinking big.”
* * *
Aim higher.
Londa was delighted when he asked her to stay at Newstation for an additional week while he flew to Theroc, and Iswander used the time alone during the flight to consider possibilities. He was by blood a Roamer; his ancestors had come from the generation ship Kanaka, along with the scions of all the clans, but Iswander had taken his clan to another level.
Now, he would make himself important to the Confederation’s rulers and step into his rightful position among the Roamers from the top down—after all, the clans were just another part of the Confederation.
After he landed on the canopy, he filed a request to meet with Peter and Estarra, sure he would have to twist arms and bypass numerous moat dragons. But he explained what he had brought, and his request was approved immediately. He wore a nice new suit and a smile as he was led through the white-walled catacombs of the fungus-reef city to the private quarters of the King and Queen.
“Welcome, Mr. Iswander,” Peter said. “How may we help you?”
He read caution there, but no outright suspicion. Iswander stepped forward. “I would like to help the Confederation, Majesties. I want to do my part. The Shana Rei are a terrible, incomprehensible threat—I had a brush with one of their shadow clouds myself, and it’s a miracle my facility survived.” He did not, in fact, understand why the horrific hex ships and their black robot allies had withdrawn … but one did not question a miracle.
Estarra was surprised. “When, and where did you encounter the Shana Rei? And how did you survive?”
Iswander could not show the images of the shadow cloud attack on his bloater extraction fields, because that would reveal the nature of his ekti harvesting. “That was a temporary operation, an industrial site now played out and abandoned. But the experience made it all too clear how much of a threat those creatures pose, and I want to help. Therefore, Iswander Industries will provide ekti-X to the Confederation Defense Forces at an extreme discount, a third of the standard cost for stardrive fuel. It will be my contribution to the fight against the Shana Rei.”
Peter was obviously pleased. “We thank you for your generous offer. General Keah is about to depart on an expedition to the Onthos home system, which was destroyed by the Shana Rei. Any information you can provide from your previous encounter would help.”
He gave a small nod. “I will be happy to tell her what I can. And speaking of the Onthos, I have relevant information there, as well.” He removed the datapack he had brought. “This is a large database of Onthos records, their derelict city, their history. A woman named Orli Covitz arrived at my complex, infected with the plague that killed clan Reeves, and she brought me all of these records from the space city before it was destroyed—with the request that I disseminate them.” He extended the datapack. “Earlier, I tried to interest the Roamer clans in this treasure trove of information, but they didn’t know what to do with it. Considering the Onthos are now settling on Theroc, perhaps you can put the data to some use?”
Estarra was indeed very interested. “And all that medical data? I don’t know if it can help Reyn, but it might answer some questions about the Onthos.”
Peter was more skeptical. “And you’re just giving it to us? As a goodwill gesture?”
Iswander smiled. “I’m not in everything for profit, sire. All humans should have this.”