New Contract (Perimeter Defense Book #3) (31 page)

"Crown Prince Georg, the rules of ritual duel are simple. Combat can only be done with the appendages and blades. No long-distance weaponry or poisons allowed. The two sides agree beforehand if the duel is to the death, to the first wound, or to the obvious advantage of one fighter. A candidate can fight on their own behalf, or appoint someone else to fight in their place. If you cannot find a strong enough representative, you are free to choose any of the Iseyek in this room."

"Your conditions are perfectly acceptable to me. I agree to ritual duel!" I declared.

Five-star Admiral Mass Azhzh gave a human-like bow and a chirrup.

"He is appointing someone to fight in his place," Bionica translated the insect's trill. "The five-star admiral chooses the Alpha-Iseyek head of the Swarm Queen's bodyguard, Rosss."

I looked all around, trying to find my rival's soldier. But until Rosss came three steps from me, I had no idea that there was even anyone there. His body looked like nothing but empty space. He was... made of glass or, rather, transparent! When the insect faded away again, I immediately lost sight of him. Was that even an Alpha Iseyek?

I must have asked that question out loud, as Triasss Zess hurried to answer:

"Yes, he is an Alpha Iseyek from an artificially propagated genetic line. Hard to see, shorter than average, but almost three times wider and stronger than a normal praying mantis. He is distinguished by his superfast reaction time, and movement speed. His intelligence gene is turned on, he is capable of making decisions independently, and he learns quickly. These individuals were created as saboteurs and bodyguards, but they never became very numerous, as the transparency gene is recessive, and we weren't able to reproduce it reliably. His shell is a bit thinner than that of a landing soldier or heavy infantry soldier's but, his body is able to heal open wounds instantly. Another special feature of this line is its eyes. It uses many different types of vision, which allows it to detect invisible beings such as your bodyguard."

I noticed, after these words, that Popori de Cacha went into thinking mode, trying to invent a combat strategy to use against an aggressive, armed creature that could see camouflaged Chameleons. Phobos also grew visibly gloomy and drew his arms into his shell, practically even pulling his eyes in. I, though, on the other hand, grew inspired and took a walk around the nearly invisible creature standing at attention.

"What a fascinating specimen! I mean, honestly, this is the first time I've ever seen such an unusual Iseyek. Queen, could I ask you for one of these if my soldier wins the duel?"

"Crown Prince, you can have Rosss himself if he loses and remains alive," Nai Igir promised. "I have no need for weak bodyguards, so I'll get rid of him anyway if he loses. Now then, who will be your soldier in the ritual duel?"

I turned to Marian Sabati, but the Truth Seeker just lowered her eyes.

"Georg, I haven't yet restored my powers sufficiently. Also, this individual has a very strong mental block, as well as nerve bundles that can control each appendage independently. Even if I burn his brain cells, he can keep fighting, and will kill me. Even Miya couldn't win here."

I didn't get upset, as I had already realized I wouldn't be able to win the ritual duel by taking the mission "head-on." Something Miya once told me came to mind at the best possible moment: " The biggest mistake one can make when dealing with Iseyek is to begin measuring one’s self against the Swarm in brute force. That is sure to end in failure."

"My dear Nai Igir, I have decided that this fight shall be to the death, and I am prepared to name my soldier for the upcoming duel. The rules you established allow me to name any Iseyek in this room my soldier. So I choose you, the Swarm Queen!"

In the dead silence that came over the room after my words, a bit of measured clapping rang out. It was Marian Sabati. She approved of my choice. The barely visible Rosss, two steps from me, fell to the floor, pressing his deadly upper appendages under himself, signifying that he was refusing to duel. Laws that had been pounded into his subconscious forbid any Iseyek from even thinking of doing harm to the Swarm Queen.

The five-star admiral turned toward me and, with a slight bow, chirped out something that was immediately translated by my android:

"I admit defeat, Crown Prince Georg royl Inoky ton Mesfelle, though I am not sure the rules of ritual combat technically allow the Swarm Queen to be chosen."

I smiled and, while the shock of those gathered at my choice had yet to fade, I tried to build on my success:

"I could have named Ambassador Triasss Zess or any of the Swarm Princesses, the result would have been the same. No Iseyek has the right to harm them. My other idea was to appoint you, five-star admiral, as my soldier for this fight. You also would have been a good candidate, given that you qualify as 'any Iseyek in this room.' If you had been able to take down Rosss, I would have won in the ritual duel. But if you had lost in a battle to the death, then... I still would have won, as I would now have been the only remaining contender. But, in the end, I decided that the Swarm would be better off not losing a commander as talented as yourself, so I chose the Queen instead."

Standing change. Iseyek race opinion of you has improved.

Alpha Iseyek race opinion of you: +39 (respect)

Iseyek Prime race opinion of you: +22 (favorable)

Achievement unlocked: Dekeye no-rules fighting champion

Global fame increase. Current value +59

Just then, Nai Igir finally came back to her senses, and confirmed that my choice was in fact within the rules, though it would make sense to add some more rules to ritual duels for the future. After that, the Swarm Queen officially declared me commander of the united fleet of the Swarm and Unatari for the whole length of the operation against the Aliens.

Global fame increase. Current value +60

Title unlocked: Five-Star Swarm Admiral

Standing change. Masss Azhzh's opinion of you has improved.

Presumed personal opinion of you: +100 (completely trusting)

The ten-foot-high black praying mantis gave a deep bow before me, and chirped out a long message. Bionica translated readily:

"Five-Star Admiral Georg, you shall now have: The fully restored Diho reconnaissance squad, composed of three hundred light ships; the Ayho assault fleet, with its five hundred ships currently stationed in the Sivalla system, including eleven landing
Trias
; the heavy Virho fleet, here in the Dekeye capital system, composed of seven hundred ships, including twelve
Meresh
battleships; the Yuho reserve fleet, in the Arite system, with one hundred fifty starships of Arite Iseyek production; and the Yayho border fleet, currently concentrated along the border with the Aliens and your Unatari State."

"Excellent," I said, weary. "I will hold a council with the other Swarm fleet commanders on the topic of preparing for a counter attack tomorrow on board one of the
Meresh
battleships. As far as I understand, all of them should be able to reach Dekeye in one day, except the Yuho fleet commander. He should stay in the Arite system. I have a special mission for him. Other than that, I ask that Ambassador Triasss Zess be present at Admiral Masss Azhzh's meeting and, also by that time, I want the rehabilitated Kheraisss Vej, and my former associate General Savasss Jach. And now, Queen Nai Igir and everyone present, allow me to bow out and go back into Dekeye orbit. I'm having a really hard time with elevated gravitation on this planet."

I
was lying face down on a stiff cot. The only clothes I was still wearing was a thin pair of long underwear. My artificial assistant was sitting on my back with her uniform sleeves rolled up, and was kneading my back with her surprisingly strong mechanical fingers.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Likanna, wearing a beige-white bathrobe after taking a shower, entered my cabin and stopped in indecision.

"Don't worry. You can come in. Bionica's just giving my tired back a massage. With my weight, spending an hour and a half in elevated gravity is very hard on the spine."

The girl walked into the cabin and hoisted herself up onto a wide, spinning stool in front of a large data screen. She ambivalently slid her gaze over the tables and graphs on the monitor, gave her chair a couple of spins and turned to me.

"Dad, my friends and I rock-paper-scissors-ed for star systems. I got Yal."

"Not a bad system. It has a population of eleven billion. There is a huge insect megalopolis spread out over the whole continental part. You're lucky, Lika. The other Swarm Princesses are starting out from much worse positions."

Likanna smiled in satisfaction, then admitted honestly:

"Dad, I don't even know where to start."

"You're not the only one," I said, reassuring her. "For eight months, the four Iseyek-populated systems were hanging over my head like a dead weight, and I also had no idea what to do with them. And now, I've given three of them to the Swarm Princesses. Only the Fia system remains with me. But, I feel that I'll have to really dive into it in order not to fall-face first into mud before you little Crown Princesses."

Lika clearly stiffened up and said in dismay:

"But, dad, don't try too hard! I want to win the competition and get the special title."

I smiled to my daughter, but didn't rush to answer, as a message had just come in from the captain of
Warhawk-4
, saying that the head of the Purple House, Duke Takuro royl Andor would like to speak with me. Likanna must have been embarrassed at her bath robe and uncombed hair, so she nimbly rolled her chair into the corner of the room where the camera couldn't see her. Bionica also leapt into action, jumping up from the cot, and offering to help me put on my ceremonial uniform quickly. But I stopped her:

"It doesn't need to be too official. Duke Takuro and I have become fairly close acquaintances. For our last meeting, I was sitting in a hospital bed. So I won't be standing up, all the more so given how bad my back hurts. Put him through."

The screen lit up. The man, in full accordance with Murphy's law, was in the full ceremonial attire of an Imperial Duke. I saw the old man's brows shoot upward when he saw me in my skivvies.

"I beg your apologies for my appearance, Duke Takuro. It's my turn to be unwell this time. My back didn't hold up to the high gravity here, and I'm having a hard time getting it back into the right shape. Your long distance call caught me, as it were, in the middle of a massage, and I decided it would be rude to keep a man as respected as you waiting."

"There's no need to explain yourself, Georg. Feeling bad is nothing to be ashamed of. We aren't young anymore and body troubles are to be expected. Sometimes, I get such bad radiculitis that the best doctors in the Empire can't help. But I wanted to talk with you about some more pleasant matters. Half an hour ago, my granddaughter Joan called her parents, calmed them down and told them where she was. And lo and behold, our Crown Princess was part of the first human delegation to visit the capital of the intelligent insects! Now, the Purple House is like a shook-up bee hive. All our news channels are showing Crown Princess Joan royl Reyekh ton Andor's visit to the Iseyeks. The only things getting any coverage now is that and the contest that put her in control of the Oort system. Even my son and I are getting congratulations. Joan herself, though, will have a triumphal reception when she returns. But, Georg, tell me more about this competition between the Crown Princesses. What exactly is it?"

I gave Duke Takuro a fairly detailed explanation of the conditions the Swarm Queen and I had agreed upon:

"If one of the Swarm Princesses is able to rule an Iseyek-inhabited planet competently, she will receive it in perpetuity. The best of the three Crown Princesses will receive the unique title Swarm Duchess as well. Sure, it may be just a title without much meaning now but, in the future, that could all change drastically. Humanity and the Swarm will still have to co-exist one way or another, and it’s hard to say what could become of our peaceful neighborly relationship. Some of the Iseyek, those capable of thinking independently, already want to assimilate into human society. Meanwhile, at negotiations last year, the option of a joint government of humans and Iseyek with two co-rulers, one of each race was also mentioned. To that end, it is very possible that the Swarm Duchess, who would already have the right to vote in the Swarm, could become a key figure in space politics in the future."

Duke Takuro listened to me carefully and declared:

"Georg, to be honest, I would very much like my granddaughter to win this competition. Not even so much for the unique title, as for the prestige it would bring to my House. I understand that your daughter Likanna is also participating, so I won't ask you to cheat for Joan, just tell me, do you already know what kind of help the Orange and Blue Houses are giving their Princesses?"

"In terms of the Orange House, I have no idea. My Unatari Government is at war with them, so there is, in fact, no line of communication there. But as for the Blue House, I can answer no problem." Here I remembered my recent conversation with Duchess Ovella at the exact right time, so I barely had to bend the truth at all. "Crown Princess Natalie royl Cruz was promised five billion credits, though this promise was not made by the Head of the Blue House herself, but by her Truth Seeker."

"That's basically the same thing, Georg. Krista is officially young Duchess Ovella's top advisor, and has the authority to make such promises. The Blue House speaks through her. So then, Natalie will get five billion... Which is about as much as I was expecting. Then my granddaughter will get twice that from the Purple House and, beyond that, I will send a team of the greatest designers, architects and engineers I can muster to the Oort system. Though I am disconcerted by rumors that the new Head of the Orange House, Duchess Silva royl George is planning to renew the transportation blockade against Unatari. I'm afraid that my people will run into issues. The only way to reach you now is through Sector Nine, but I've heard that that way is also blocked..."

The Head of the Red House, Duke Claudius royl Michael ton Sid has died at age 162.

ATTENTION! The new head of the Red House will be Duke Robert royl Claudius ton Sid (85.3% of votes)

The system message popped up unexpectedly, and Duke Takuro and I shuddered simultaneously. The old man read into the lines of text, shook his head and said thoughtfully:

"Of the five Great Houses, four of them have changed leaders in the last year. I am the last of the old-timers. This is truly a time of chaos and change..."

The news was quite worrying. A change of leaders always brought some commotion with it. Meanwhile, the Red House was already on the retreat from the Alien onslaught, and losing the war. I was also on edge over the fact that the route into the Empire through Sector Nine would be closing soon. I had no doubt that the Head of the Purple House was well informed. His tips had never been wrong before. That meant the Orange House would block off Sector Nine...

"Duke Takuro, I will have a talk with the Iseyek in the very near future to make sure they will allow your people passage through their territory. If Sector Nine is still closed... What can I say? I am currently involved in negotiations on an alternative route. I have received information that there is a way around Perimeter Sector Nine through Arite and Mechanoid space. That is precisely the path I plan on taking with my diplomatic mission. If I can talk with the Mechs on exchanging information and opening up transport lines, the Orange House's blockade will lose all meaning."

The Head of the Red House, Duke Robert royl Claudius ton Sid has died at age 66.

ATTENTION! The new head of the Red House will be Duke Albert royl Claudius ton Sid (58.7% of votes)

Another system message. What exactly was going on over in the Red House?!

The old Duke on the screen thought for a long time, or perhaps he was consulting with his assistants mentally. Finally, the Head of the Purple House rejoined the conversation:

"My sources are saying that the Red House has undertaken a counterattack against the Aliens with the Sector Thirteen, Fourteen, and Fifteen Fleets. The Sector Thirteen Fleet was led personally by Duke Claudius royl Michael ton Sid. Clearly, his older son Robert was also on one of the combat starships. I am now getting a message from my secretary. It would seem I am getting many calls right now from Red House aristocrats who want to change their allegiance and join the Purple House. Clearly things are have gone south for the 'reds.'"

I had also received a number of personal messages during my meeting with Duke Takuro, though I hadn't yet taken the chance to look at them. By the way... Bionica was in the next cabin over from mine, so I ordered my android secretary to deal with the mail I still had piling up. The Duke, though, returned to our conversation.

"Georg, you mentioned the Mechanoids. My servants have already checked. The Mechs are old allies of the Empire and should be no obstacle. Our scout teams use a sliding scale from one to ten to evaluate the aggressiveness of every species they come across. The Mechanoids were recorded as a zero. And that evaluation has only been further proven in the centuries that have followed. Their little five-star-system cul-de-sac was searched up and down by Blue House scouts, but was deemed uninteresting. The Mechanoids do not undertake any kind of trade. Their space contains no inhabitable planets, they do not allow embassies or bases built there and, what's more, there is no reason for us to do so. My people got ahold of some curious information in the archives stating that, two hundred years ago, the Imperial Joint Chiefs considered the possibility of war with the Mechs, but couldn't find anything there worth going to war over. There is, in fact, information that the Mechanoid system farthest from the Blue House, Pritta, does contain some kind of anomaly, which causes ships to disappear without a trace. Some sort of devilry. Mysticism."

I began laughing, as I had very recently had a long conversation with the Arite, who had told me in detail about this "devilry."

"There's nothing mystical or mysterious in it. It's just that the Arite Iseyek consider Pritta theirs, though they do not inhabit it permanently. Approximately every seventy hours, the warp beacon in the densely-Arite-populated star system of Dumo, their second capital, can be seen from Pritta. That's how the Arites make their occasional raids on Pritta. They'll destroy any ship they see in order to prevent any colonization from taking place there. But the Arites assured me that they are prepared to end this aggressive practice and normalize relations with the Mechanoids. There will be an Arite with the delegation I send to the Mechanoids so, soon, these long-time neighbors will have their historic first meeting..."

The Head of the Red House, Duke Albert royl Claudius ton Sid has died at age 34.

ATTENTION! Insufficient votes to determine new Red House Head. New election attempt underway.

ATTENTION! Insufficient votes to determine new Red House Head. New election attempt underway.

ATTENTION! The Red House has ceased to exist.

Duke Takuro and I exchanged surprised glances. The Red House had fallen. Was that even possible? The old man on screen bid farewell quickly and signed off. And I understood him perfectly. There was no time for talking when God-knows-what was happening in the Empire.

* * *

My daughter, having rolled back over to me on her chair, said thoughtfully:

"Natalie royl Cruz is getting five billion credits. Joan royl Reyekh is getting ten. Dad, how much will the Orange House give me to develop Yal-II?"

Not knowing the answer to that question, I suggested Likanna that she herself ask the Head of the Orange House, Duchess Silva royl George ton Mesfelle. My daughter nodded and left to get herself in an appropriate outfit for a conversation with the Duchess. I was feeling significantly better after my massage. I thanked Bionica and put on my uniform. And it was good that I did so at that very moment. Not a second too soon, a timid knock came at my door, and the little Blue House Crown Princess came in. Extremely embarrassed, Natalie asked me a question:

"Georg, I heard the Blue House would give me five billion. But when I tried to call my cousin Duchess Ovella, Krista answered instead. The Truth Seeker told me to ask you about the money."

I had long been preparing for this conversation, and had even had a number of consultations on it with my cousin, thinking through all the possibilities. On my request, Katerina royl Unatari had gathered detailed information on the political situation in the Blue House. Now, just a quarter of the population supported little Natalie in her ambitions for the throne. Two months earlier, over forty-five percent had been on her side. Duchess Ovella had done quite a good job bringing that situation under control. The graphs and tables on the screen that Lika found so boring, were actually calculations of the possible ways events in the Blue House could unfold. The only thing that left Crown Princess Natalie's allies with any chance in the conflict was direct military intervention by Unatari. In all other scenarios, they would lose the war in no less than six months.