Geosynchron (31 page)

In return, the Data Sea will flow unimpeded through the Pacific
Islands once more.The citizens of Manila will have the option to step
on the red multi tile, to avail themselves of the full range of bio/logic
software, to sign up for the L-PRACGs and creeds of their choice.The
Islanders will rejoin the community of the connectibles as an
autonomous entity and abide by the laws of the Prime Committee
and the Congress of L-PRACGs.

I say this to the connectibles:

Do you want progress? Do you want the continuing advancement and betterment of the human race towards perfection, as my
ancestor Sheldon Surina desired? Then know this: the evolution of
humanity cannot proceed on the backs of the Islanders, the Pharisees, the offworlders, and the diss.

For better or worse, we are all one species. We are all one people. We are all connectibles, and we are all Islanders.The human
race must rise or fall as one.

We invite those of the Defense and Wellness Council who wish
to participate in this GRAND REUNIFICATION to join us in Manila
and cooperate with our military in the defense of the Islands.Those
who come to the Islands seeking unity will get unity; those who come
in the spirit of division will get only division.

The choice belongs to you.

2I

"I accept your proposal," said Magan Kai Lee. "Reintegration of the
Islanders into society and the power of the Dogmatic Opposition for
everyone, in exchange for allowing me a base in the Islands."

It was literally the first thing out of the lieutenant executive's
mouth after the requisite greetings and formalities had been dispensed
with. Jara had expected some quibbling over definitions or some complaining about the overly broad proclamations of Josiah's manifesto. At
the very least, she figured that Magan would couch his acceptance in
some ambiguous wording. But no, the lieutenant executive's visage
had hardly appeared on the viewscreen before he was expressing his
eagerness to come to terms with the Islanders.

Jara shrank back in her seat and hoped the lieutenant executive
could not see her in the visitors' gallery of the parliament. She had no
idea what kind of viewscreen Magan was using or what kind of panning and zooming capabilities he had. But from the glimpses Jara
could catch of the hoverbird interior, he was in a much more comfortable environment than the unconnectible parliamentarians. It was possibly the most informal government chamber Jara had ever seen.
Tables and chairs stood scattered around a large room in no semblance
of logical order; Jara was hard pressed to find two matching pieces of
furniture in the whole place. Paint was flaking off the walls. Josiah had
assured her that this was only a temporary locale until the new parliament building was completed. ("Six years is temporary?" Chandler had
muttered under his breath.)

Josiah, for his part, was in no hurry to accept the lieutenant executive's word-and with it, presumably, the entrance of several legions
of Council officers into Manila. He stood in the center of the room pondering Magan's unexpected words for a moment. The other forty-seven representatives were satisfied to observe and let Josiah do all the
talking.

Little wonder, given Josiah's air of poise and command. Kings and
queens have disappeared from the Earth, thought Jara, but luckily we still
have Sarinas. This was quite a position Josiah had gotten himself into,
full of both promise and peril. Jara wondered if he fully appreciated
that. Very few junior representatives found themselves parleying with
a foreign army as an equal before their twenty-fifth birthday. If this
worked, he was likely to reap the prestige-but if things turned sour,
Jara had no doubt that Josiah would take the brunt of the blame.

"What assurances do we have that you'll keep your word?" asked
Josiah of the figure on the viewscreen looming over them all. "How do
we know if your position on Grand Reunification isn't just a posture of
convenience?"

"Certainly you must understand that this decision isn't up to me,"
said Magan calmly. "Even if we win the fight against Len Borda
tomorrow and the government installs me as high executive the day
after ... there would be a long process before it became law. Your proposal would ultimately be decided by the Prime Committee and the
Congress of L-PRACGs. The Defense and Wellness Council does not
get a vote."

"But you would be in a unique position to influence their decision."

"Absolutely. Still, as you can appreciate"-Magan swept his hand in
an arc to indicate the assembled representatives-"politics is politics."

Bali Chandler stood up in his seat, looking even more bohemian
than usual in a sky blue robe with frayed ends. "You realize that goes
both ways," he said.

The lieutenant executive fixed Chandler with a curious stare.
"Meaning?"

"Josiah's little manifesto might have fired up the chattering classes
... but it's not official policy. And it's pretty vague on the specifics
too."

"And purposefully so, I imagine," Magan interjected.

The old parliamentarian nodded. "All I'm saying is, the Islanders
might all wear the same copper collars in connectible territories, but
we've got a pretty diverse government here. Nothing's been put to a
vote even inside this room, much less in the population at large. The
spot polls from last night give the idea of Reunification a high
approval rating-around sixty-two percent, isn't that right?" Various
murmurs of assent floated through the room. "But that still leaves a
healthy opposition of thirty-eight percent, and we haven't even laid
out the details yet. If I know Triggendala over there, she'll have that
opposition number at forty-five percent by the end of the week. What
do you say, Trigg?" The woman in question, a distinguished matriarch
with a flinty look in her eye, gave an amused nod.

"I don't expect this process to happen in a single night," said
Magan cautiously. "I understand perfectly well that this is only the first
step in what could prove to be a very long journey."

"Speaking of journeys," said Josiah. "I should warn you that once
you make landfall, you are likely to encounter some citizen militias
that don't report to General Cheronna. They might not take too kindly
to Council officers marching down their streets."

Lieutenant Executive Lee was obviously prepared for this. "Don't
worry. We will enter Manila with our dartguns in their holsters, and
head straight for the outskirts. The warehouse district, if you're
amenable. We have no intention of pressing our luck by mingling with
our new brothers and sisters too soon." The humor in his voice was palpable, yet not mean-spirited. "As long as my forces are safely inside the
unconnectible curtain and Len Borda's forces are stuck outside of it, I
think a little civil disobedience is acceptable. If things get out of control, I may ask you to intervene."

"Done."

Josiah Surina turned towards his fellow representatives to see if
there were any other points of contention. As far as Jara could tell, there were none. Even the overtly skeptical Triggendala and the
handful of parliamentarians in her faction looked prepared to accept
Magan Kai Lee's word for now if it would protect them from Len
Borda. Jara wondered how many government negotiations were actually this simple: a few words of explanation, a few politely phrased
objections, and then a deal.

"The parliament will put this agreement to a formal vote as soon
as we're through here," said Josiah. "But before we do, two more
items."

The lieutenant executive nodded serenely, his reservoirs of patience
still quite full.

"Bali Chandler here has introduced a resolution calling for
Islanders throughout the globe to cast off their connectible collars,"
continued Surina. "We have already begun distributing connectible
coins designed to replicate the functionality of the collars without-"

Magan interrupted him with a nod and a hand gesture of assent.
"I'm well aware of the connectible coins," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, you have my endorsement. My officers will be instructed not
to interfere."

An uncomfortable muttering worked its way around the parliamentary chamber, particularly in the neighborhood of Triggendala and
her cohorts. Jara heard the word spying. "How do you know about the
coins?" snapped Chandler, clearly irked.

"Your countryman Quell has been wearing one for some time,"
replied Magan. "He has been kind enough to explain your issues with
the collars to me in depth. I understand these coins were engineered by
your mother, Josiah. As far as I can tell, they operate just as efficiently
as the collars. So yes, by all means, distribute them. If Grand Reunification moves forward, I suspect we'll soon be seeing them all around
the globe."

"That brings me to the second item I was going to mention," said
Josiah. "My father."

"Quell will be coming to Manila with us. He is on my ship as an
honored guest."

Jara could see a brief flicker of relief on Josiah's face. "Is he
uninjured?"

"Except for his pride," said Magan, his lips sliding into a smile.
"My chief engineer Papizon is absolutely murdering him in holo poker
over here."

Jara and her fiefcorp accompanied Josiah and Chandler to the hoverbird docks to welcome the first arrivals of Magan Kai Lee's fleet. As per
previous arrangement, Magan's four legions would bivouac in the
warehouse district a few kilometers south of Manila proper to avoid
confrontation with the vocal minority of Islanders who were already
gearing up a protest movement. A small contingent would land here,
within sight of the City Center, where they would be greeted by the
heir to the Surinas and General Cheronna, not to mention a crowd of
hand-picked supporters and friendly drudges. Jara caught her first
glimpse of the general; a short, fat man with bright red hair and closely
trimmed beard, he had the stiff and formal demeanor that the situation
required.

Ben seemed uncharacteristically pleasant, almost sunny. It was
almost enough to make Jara nervous. She tagged him on ConfidentialWhisper. "So where's the sour word today?" she said. "If I don't get
complaints from you in any twenty-four-hour period, I start experiencing withdrawal symptoms."

The young apprentice's face slid into a wry grin. "We did what we
came here to do. We provided an independent assessment of the situation, and our client is happy. I'm not allowed to savor victory for once?"

"Oh, savor it all you want. I'm just starting to depend on you for
the contrary opinion. It keeps me on my toes."

"All right then," said Benyamin, cracking his knuckles in mock
preparation for a street fight. "Here's the contrary opinion. This whole
production is a big farce. Josiah's manifesto stirred a lot of passions,
but nobody's actually voted for Reunification. Even if the Islander parliament votes unanimously to accept it, we have no indication how the
Prime Committee's going to take this."

"We've got public opinion polls. Zeitgeist gives us seventy-four
percent either in favor or leaning towards."