XX

Six months passed before the communication arrived that caused her to take ship.

The ever disputatious government of Daccar was headed not by a single individual but by a duopoly consisting of a president and a premier. Such cross-checks extended throughout the body of the Daccaran government. While serving to prevent abuse, the system also unfortunately tended to foment constant disagreement and legislative stagnation.

For nine years the president, a tough but popular woman named Hachida, had dominated the Daccaran Executive. For seven of those years the premier, Daniel Cosgrave, had sought and failed to gain ascendance. Always he was a few votes shy of overriding her legislation, a trend or two behind her proclamations. At first it merely galled him. Then it began to fester. All of this was very much in keeping with Daccaran political tradition.

Levaughn and his clandestine intentions were not.

First there were calls offering support. These were followed by offers of credit, then several casual meetings, none of which attracted particular scrutiny from the popular media. Hachida and many other leading politicians had their own personal advisors. It was expected that Cosgrave would also.

The meetings were held in private, and only the two men knew what was discussed. The two men, and one that was something else.

Having been initially recommended by the lieutenant and subsequently made a member of Levaughn’s inner circle, Straat-ien quietly kept the senior representatives of the Core advised of developments. Events did not bode well. With the help of General Levaughn and “unnamed” secondary parties, it appeared that Cosgrave was now finally poised to take control of the Daccaran government. If successful in his maneuvers, he would naturally be deeply indebted to his strongest supporters. Worse, he appeared to have fallen completely under Levaughn’s sway. This was not a matter for concern as much as was the advice of Levaughn’s own “advisors.”

Contentious Daccar was particularly susceptible to reactionary philosophies. An influential world, it had made the standard attempts in the past to extend its influence beyond its orbit. If Cosgrave assumed control, it was probable that, like his voluble, volatile predecessors, he would try to promulgate his own philosophy elsewhere. The members of the Core had become greatly concerned with the direction events were taking.

At Straat-ien’s suggestion Levaughn agreed that Lalelelang should be allowed to attend one of the political caucuses as an observer. The colonel’s rationale was that her presence could do no harm and might generate some good publicity for the movement. Her reputation as one of the foremost Wais students of Human behavior duly impressed the general, and over the previous months he had come to value the bemedaled Colonel Straat-ien’s advice. Furthermore, Straat-ien assured his superior that he would take personal responsibility for seeing to it that their visitor saw nothing she wasn’t supposed to see.

Once Levaughn agreed to the proposal, he promptly put it out of his thoughts, which were presently inundated with events of far greater import.

The actual caucus was scheduled for the wealthy Cos-grave’s private forest retreat, a sprawling complex of single-and two-story structures built on the side of a mountain high up in the great northern range. While Straat-ien found the setting attractive and invigorating, it made Lalelelang uneasy. Despite their avian ancestry the Wais did not care for high, steep places.

A fast-flowing river cascaded symphonically through the steep-sided gorge below the grounds, which had been creatively sited among the existing Daccaran evergreens. Higher peaks towered in the distance. Individual apartments were located in a pair of long, narrow buildings set apart from the main complex. One was assigned to Lalelelang. The appointments were recently modified and versatile, having been redesigned with the comfort of non-Humans in mind.

After greeting the newly arrived Lalelelang, Straat-ien remarked somberly that there appeared to be as many civilians present as active military. It was a bad sign, suggesting that Cosgrave and Levaughn continued to extend their personal influence among the Daccaran elite.

“Levaughn’s very persuasive.” Straat-ien spoke as they strolled along a winding cliffside path. Far below, the river ran its frothing, complaining way toward the distant sea. “And Cosgrave’s vain and ambitious. Bad combination.”

“Then it has begun.” Lalelelang was wrapped in thin but warm multiple layers of clothing. Straat-ien found the alpine climate bracingly cool, but to Lalelelang it bordered on the frigid. “I had hoped circumstances would disprove my theories.”

“They may yet.” His expression was pensive and uninformative.

She stopped, keeping well back from the thin plastic guardrail. A waterfall thundered at the head of the gorge. “Do you recall the last time the two of us stood together at the edge of a precipice?”

He looked puzzled. Then recognition hit home and he turned away from her, letting his gaze drift out across the canyon. “It was a different time. I wasn’t sure of you. There were a lot of things I wasn’t sure about.” He was silent for a moment before looking back to her. “You remember that?”

“Natural enough to recall the moment when someone you consider a friend was wrestling with the issue of whether or not to murder you. I am glad you made the choice you did.”

Certain he was missing something, he found himself wishing he were more conversant with the elaborate Wais language of gestures and movements. “You’re prejudiced in the matter.”

“As the Hivistahm would say, truly.” She turned serious again. “How dangerous is this man Cosgrave?”

“By himself not at all. Levaughn’s still the one we have to watch out for. He needs a wider political base before he can make any overt military moves. If Cosgrave can wrest legislative control of the planetary government from the president, he’ll have that. Daccar will become the springboard for Amplitur-inspired subversion of all the Human worlds.”

She stepped farther away from the railing. “They’re here, of course.”

“Yes. At least, one of them is. Reported to have just arrived. I haven’t seen it yet, but I think it’s the same one Levaughn introduced to his original inner circle: Cast-creative-Seeking.”

“That would follow. The Amplitur, too, understand the meaning of specialization.” Her voice fell to an introspective murmur. “An Amplitur specialist in Human behavior. It would be interesting to exchange views with my mind-swaying counterpart. Our theses would be similar but not our objectives.”

“How are you holding up surrounded by so many Humans?” he inquired solicitously.

“It is not so bad. There are additionally present a few Hivistahm on the engineering staff of this large facility. We have conversed. There are also several Lepar. We of course do not converse, but it is nonetheless refreshing to see still another non-Human face. I believe I have noticed a single Bir’rimor as well. So I do not feel completely isolated.”

Straat-ien nodded. “Daccar’s a pretty cosmopolitan world. Weave species mix freely here even though the population is predominantly Human.”

“You breed so prolifically.” Her comment was utterly nonjudgmental. “Do you know where the Amplitur is staying?”

“I have an idea. Premier Cosgrave apparently felt it necessary to install facilities suitable for other species.”

“I know. My rooms are comfortable.”

He encompassed the grounds with a wave of his hand. “You probably find all this chaotic compared to home. The Wais prefer to organize nature.”

“We do not organize,” she insisted. “Our aesthetics require that we aid nature in occupying the most amenable channels.”

“Isn’t that what the Amplitur Purpose wants to do with all intelligence?”

“It is all a question of perspective. Certainly the Human Levaughn has in mind rigid organizing as opposed to fluid channeling.”

He looked meditative. “Now it’s up to me to try and ‘organize’ one Amplitur.”

As they walked along in silence something barked high up in a tree. A seedpod bounced at their feet. It was fist-sized, tapered to a point, and reminded Straat-ien of a beige turnip. He did not bother to try and locate the native animal that was responsible for its descent.

“When are you going to make the attempt?” she finally asked him.

“I’m not sure yet. If I try it while part of a group, I’ll have some cover. The Amplitur may not be able to readily pick me out of a crowd. On the other hand, if I can arrange a private confrontation and the procedure fails and I’m discovered, I can still preserve the secret of my talent and of the Core’s existence by killing it.”

Unprepared, she quavered at the vision he’d conjured up. Having witnessed as much combat as she had, she was angry with her reaction. “You may yourself in turn be slain, and the Amplitur will only send another to take the place of the first. Your loss would deprive your colleagues of your valuable position here, and the information it provides. Having thus discovered one traitor to his cause, Levaughn will be thrice cautious about admitting newcomers to his circle.”

“Then I’d better not get myself discovered.” They turned up a side path, away from the canyon and back toward what passed locally for civilization.

It seemed entirely too nice a morning for so momentous an enterprise. Without telling him, Lalelelang had quietly determined to help extricate Straat-ien in the event his attempt failed. How she might accomplish this once the alarm had been raised she had no idea. As a senior Wais academic, violent intrigues were entirely foreign to her. By the same token and for the same reason she knew that she would never be suspected of involvement.

Knowing he would ardently disapprove, she said nothing of her intention to Straat-ien. Instead she set vigorously to work making plans without his knowledge. Stealth-steered intelligence would have to suffice since despite her experience she was still, as unremittingly as the most sheltered Wais, quite incapable of wielding a weapon of destruction in her own defense, much less in that of another. Despite what some of her students and colleagues thought, she was not completely deranged. Only slightly.

Straat-ien had told her to wait in her own apartment in the residence wing that had been modified to provide for non-Human guests. The rooms that had been assigned to the visiting Amplitur lay at the far end of the same structure. As soon as it was over, he assured her, he would return to apprise her of how it had gone. If after a certain reasonable time he failed to call on her, she would be free to draw her own conclusions.

While she waited, she strove mightily not to fixate on the chronometer, throwing herself into the prioritization of the inevitable observations she’d been making since her arrival on Daccar. An obscure anthropological point managed to occupy her for nearly an hour.

After that she tried portable amusements, then made attempts to access the compound’s library. She tried everything except leaving the apartment to press an ear opening to the door of the Amplitur’s quarters.

Time passed sluggishly until the commotion in the hall roused her from her self-imposed isolation. Stepping outside, she encountered a single, harried male Hivistahm. He wore a slightly paralyzed expression as well as the accoutrements and insignia of an energy engineer. Though she addressed him in calming tones in his own language, he failed to respond immediately.

“What happened has? What going on is?” she pressed him. A Human, she knew, would have grabbed the engineer and tried to shake him bodily out of his stupor. For a civilized Wais to engage in such an action was unthinkable. Had a Human done it, it would only have deepened the shiny-scaled Hivistahm’s paralysis.

The double lids finally blinked in succession, and the dark slitted eyes turned in her direction. “There has,” he paused, considering his position as well as his words, “an accident been.” He shifted his attention back to the far end of the corridor. At the same time Lalelelang became aware of a distant, consistent whine. It might be some kind of Human alarm.

The passageway was empty now, but she was sure that only a few moments earlier she’d heard the distinctive clump of many Human feet moving fast past her apartment doorway.

“What kind of an accident?”

Unable to decide whether to stand or run, the Hivistahm opted to answer her questions. “There an important visitor staying here is.”

“An Amplitur?” He clicked his teeth in a distinctive way, and she recognized the simple acknowledgment. “What about the Amplitur?”

The Hivistahm carefully mouthed a disbelieving reply. “It dead is. By assassination or combat.”

“Details.” She stepped in front of him so that he couldn’t leave without forcing his way past her. The un-Wais boldness of her move surprised her, but it positively astonished her reluctant informant. “Details give me!”

Either as a consequence of her action or growing awareness of the violence inherent in the incident itself, the Hivistahm’s paralysis continued to deepen. Whether he’d actually witnessed the purported violence or had simply heard about it didn’t matter: the effects on his emotional stability were striking. Something was short-circuiting his ability to cope.

Leaving the engineer weaving slightly on his broad sandaled feet, she hurried down the corridor, feathers fluttering as she ran. She knew where the Amplitur’s quarters were located; Straat-ien had shown her. But she couldn’t get near the entrance. A milling cordon of Humans blocked the approach. Several carried weapons. All looked nervous and edgy.

One briefly noted her arrival and immediately peered past her. He was searching for potential threats, something that a dozen of her kind would not constitute.

Moving as close as she dared, she tried to peer between the milling bipedal masses. Other unarmed Humans were packed around a gaping double doorway. Fetid humid air issued from the exposed environment beyond.

Those blocking the entrance parted to admit a pair of Humans wearing anxious expressions. A single Hivistahm accompanied them, or rather, was swept along in their wake. Lalelelang thought the slit-eyed scaled one wore the uniform of a universal physician, but she couldn’t be certain.

She astonished herself a second time by physically prodding the nearest Human to gain its attention. “What happened?” she asked in fluent, accentless Huma while keeping an instinctive eye on the biped’s activated weapon. “What’s going on?”

The youthful female regarded her indifferently. “I ain’t sure. Some kind of fight or something.” She glanced over her shoulder.

Lalelelang persisted. “You must know something.”

The female soldier seemed to see her for the first time. “You speak awfully good Huma. Even for a Wais.”

“It is my profession.” Lalelelang took her time. “I am a scholar.”

“Yeah, well; nothing here that I can see to interest a scholar. We’ve got some corpses in there. You know? Dead bodies? Slain violently. The sort of thing, if I ain’t mistaken, to make a Wais faint. Better move along and let us deal with it.”

Lalelelang ignored the well-meaning if slightly condescending advice. “What kind of corpses?”

The soldier hesitated. “Listen, I don’t really know who you are. This is a security situation. I ain’t sure how much I can tell you.”

“I have been a guest here for some days.” Lalelelang fought to restrain her impatience. Fortunately the Human was quite incapable of correctly interpreting the subtle flickering of lashes and fluffing of underbody feathers. “I believe the rooms you are guarding were occupied by one of the Amplitur.”

The woman held her weapon tightly. “I can’t comment on that.”

“But you will not deny it?” The soldier’s expression was sufficient confirmation. “Nor that one of the corpses is Amplitur?” A slight but detectable twitching of facial muscles indicated that Lalelelang had again guessed correctly.

She retreated several steps, struggling to moderate her breathing. Good Nevan’s strategy had failed. For whatever reason his attempt to mind-suggest the Amplitur representative had not worked. He had evidently been discovered, his ability revealed, and had been forced to fall back on violence to protect the secret of the Core talent. The scenario was entirely believable. Indeed, Straat-ien had more or less described it to her.

What she did not understand and could not imagine was how the Amplitur had in turn managed to kill its Human assailant.

It was possible that the guard was more worldly than she appeared. Perhaps she understood the meaning of Lalelelang’s trembling. Regardless, she beckoned the Wais over, bent toward Lalelelang and lowered her voice.

“One of ’em’s the squid, all right. The others are Human.”

Lalelelang cocked her head slightly to the left, expressing surprise. “Others?”

“Senior Human officers. One of them’s General Levaughn himself. The other’s a colonel I don’t know.”

She was remarkably composed. The ultimate component of self-control, she thought. Or the beginnings of paralysis. “You are certain both Humans are dead?”

The female gave a curious little shake of her head. Her close-cropped hair was so blonde as to be nearly white. “That’s the report. Shot through. All three of ’em were apparently armed.”

Lalelelang involuntarily dropped her lower beak. “The Amplitur was armed?”

“That’s what the preliminary report says.” The soldier’s brow contracted with the stress of thinking. “Didn’t know any of ’em carried arms. I always heard they hated violence. Course, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the squids. Guess there can be exceptions to any rule.”

“Is there any indication as to what provoked the tragedy?”

“Not that I’ve heard. Somebody must’ve really holed it.” She shook her head ruefully. “Bad business, this. Very bad. I got a quick look inside before they sealed it off. What a mess. Bodies are so badly shot up they can’t tell who fired first, or even who shot who, much less why. Could be we’ll never know.”

“Although the war has been over for years, serious arguments between individuals of different species are not unknown,” Lalelelang ventured lamely.

“You don’t have to tell me. Daccarans like to settle things the old way. I been involved in a couple of scrapes myself. But nothing like this.”

“You say all three were badly … shot up. Has the attending pathologist rendered any kind of preliminary report?”

“No idea. No reason to keep me and my buddies up on stuff like that. Having had a look, though, I’ll give you my own opinion on one thing.”

“What is that?”

The soldier’s voice was cold. “None of ’em had a chance. Not even a Hiviphys could do anything with that mess. Got to be able to tell the pieces apart before you can try putting ’em back together again.”

“I am certain you are correct.” Lalelelang took a querulous step forward. “It may be that I can learn something if I am allowed in. Do you mind if I try? Those in charge can do no more than refuse me entrance.”

Bone and muscle shifted to block her path. “Sorry, uh, ma’am. I’m afraid I can’t do that. I’m sure you’re a visiting scholar and all that, just like you claim, but it doesn’t matter. Our orders are that nobody gets inside. ‘Diplomatic incident,’ violation of the integrity of the premier’s compound: you understand.”

Lalelelang did not try to press it farther. “Of course. Can I at least stand here and observe?”

The female shrugged. “Don’t know how much you’ll see, but as long as you don’t get in anyone’s way I guess it’s okay. We’ve been ordered to keep everyone out, not to clear the building.”

“Your kindness commends you,” Lalelelang replied opulently. The finesse was lost on the soldier.

She stood and watched, and waited. After a while two shrouded shapes were wheeled out. The forms beneath the enveloping sheets were roughly Human in outline. Certainly neither of them was Amplitur.

The remains of that individual were brought out later, in many pieces. From what little Lalelelang could see the helpful Human soldier had been, if anything, conservative in her appraisal.

She remained a long while, wanting badly to talk with the attending Hivistahm physician. Besides, she had no desire to go anywhere else. But the Hivi vanished in tandem with the remains of the Amplitur, not to return, and still the guards refused to let her pass.

Subsequently she spent a horrible evening in her apartment, acutely conscious of the fact that she was isolated on a Human world, her sole friend having most unbelievably succumbed to the fatal consequences of a botched undertaking. She half-expected that at any moment her part in the enterprise would be discovered, whereupon strapping, stern-faced Human soldiers would arrive to carry her off to be questioned by methods she fought desperately against envisioning.

Her door stayed silent. As time passed undisturbed she began to feel a little more confident. After all, how much of a connection could anyone divine? She and Straat-ien had spent time in each other’s company, but had been careful not to be blatant about it. They had arrived separately at the compound. There was no reason for anyone to suspect some sort of subtle connection between Human and Wais.

She knew she would be questioned eventually, though, if only because she had known him.

The following morning came and went placidly. An ominous calm pervaded the atmosphere of the retreat. She went for a walk simply to show herself, to prove that she was not being secretive or in hiding. By late afternoon the only one who had activated her door was a service Lepar performing its regular cleaning rounds. It silently freshened her room and changed her nesting material.

News of the general’s death did not appear in the daily media. That was understandable. It would not do a politician like Cosgrave any good to have it known that an important guest had died in a firefight while at one of his residences.

No one came to confront her. As far as she knew she was free to leave at any time. That was what she desperately wanted to do: head for the nearest shuttleport and book passage homeward, there to retire to the tranquillity of the academic life once more and forever. Unbelievably, unaccountably, her old friend Straat-ien was dead. The Amplitur envoy was dead, and the invidious General Levaughn likewise defunct. It appeared that the manner of their passing was destined to remain forever a mystery to her. Fine and good. She had done all she could. It was time to have a care for herself.

Straat-ien’s death had not been in vain. The Amplitur would have to replace Cast-creative-Seeking with one of their own not so well versed in Human psychology. Cautious as ever, they would probably call a halt to their attempts to secure Human allies until they felt they better understood what had gone wrong on Daccar. As for the death of General Levaughn, it should put a serious crimp in the growth of reactionary political forces on Daccar. Presumably the Core would follow up on its complete, if blighted, success.

She realized that the supersecretive organization of which Straat-ien had once been an important member would also eventually want to question her. Inwardly she sighed. Try as she might to distance herself from what had happened, she could not eliminate what others thought she might know.

Sudden terror sent a ripple through her back feathers. What if the Amplitur also sought her out? A simple suggestion from any of them and she would find herself helplessly divested of all her secrets.

She forced herself to be calm. There was no reason for them to question her. She was a well-known Wais academic. Yes, she was a student of Human behavior, but so were a number of other non-Humans. Yes, she had known one of the two deceased Humans, but she had known many Humans. As far as the Amplitur were concerned there was nothing to connect her intimately with the incident that had occurred the previous night. The Amplitur were perceptive, but they were not prescient.

Still, she would take care to avoid them. On Mahmahar that should be a simple matter.

She regretted the loss of a friend. Over the years Straat-ien had certainly become that. He could not help his Humanness. Having forgiven him that while he was alive, she could do no less now that he was gone. His passing affected her almost, but not quite, as much as would that of a fellow Wais.

Her remorse did not prevent her from making arrangements to leave Daccar the next day. If any of Straat-ien’s associates wanted to question her, they would have to follow the path he had previously taken to her homeworld. There she could arrange to meet with them in secrecy and some confidence.

She was able to prepare her nest without listening for the door, and her confidence continued to be justified. No one troubled or questioned her preparations for departure. She stayed up late, watching the local media and burying herself in the casual notes she had recorded prior to the disaster.

So relaxed had she become by the time she extinguished the apartment illumination that she fell immediately into a deep and restful sleep, from which she was abruptly and unexpectedly awakened in the middle of the night by the insistent buzzing of her door.