Shades of Gray (57 page)

“Are you suggesting that I have less experience than yourself, General Raiban?” Kezule asked, his tone silky. “You may have noticed that we’re sitting inside the Palace of Light that was so recently occupied by K’hedduk. We took it back without your help and with very little damage to either the Palace or the surrounding town. Had we followed your advice, we would still be battling it out today, and the collateral damage would have been considerable. We achieved what you personally said was impossible.”

“I wasn’t aware the Touibans had sent you one of their warships,” she snapped.

“You should have known,” drawled Kaid, lounging back in his seat. “It was no secret the Touibans helped get us off Shola. You’ve become complacent, Raiban, seeing only what you expect to see.”

“Impudent! I demand these two be removed from the room or these talks will cease!” she snarled, ears flattening to her head in anger.

“If I may break in here,” said Kusac. “Shyadd, I suggest you take Falma and the necessary papers down to your office, where the two of you can get on with your business undisturbed.”

Shyadd smiled broadly as he looked at his opposite number. Seeing he was in agreement, he looked at his King for permission.

“Go,” said Zsurtul, with a slight smile. “We’ll stay here and discuss important matters, like who is the scarier General.”

Amid the chuckles, they beat a hasty retreat while Raiban glowered at everyone.

“You don’t seem to realize that I cannot command the Ch’almuthians, General Raiban,” said Zsurtul, this time getting his glass of water. “They are an independent world, I do not rule them. Also, this shipment, as you call it, is a cull of the young females of egg-bearing age. They are being stolen from their families as breeding stock for the M’zullians. I will
not
let that happen. And finally, we need their ship to mount a rescue for one of General Kezule’s daughters.”

“I heard she’d been taken captive,” said Raiban. “A regrettable casualty of war, but it would be foolish to try to rescue her and put both Ch’almuth and K’oish’ik at risk.”

“The war will come here whatever we do,” said Kezule. “K’hedduk’s honor demands he retake the Palace or his generals will turn on him.”

“I disagree. He’s far more likely to annex Ch’almuth first as a staging post and for its produce—an army needs to be fed. And I don’t see why you’re so anxious to bring this war about so soon! No one is prepared to face them when they have the weapon that wiped out all life on our two colonies!”

“He can’t use it against us,” said Kezule. “His Generals won’t let him, even if he was foolish enough to want to do so. That is, if they still have the weapon after their main battleship was destroyed at J’kirtikk.”

“What do you mean?”

“It was destroyed at J’kirtikk. K’hedduk can’t rule a dead world,” said Kusac, smiling slightly. “We’ve got him where we want him, in a neat trap of his own making.”

“Exactly,” said Kezule. “He’ll be forced into a conventional war with the same constraints we had when we retook the City—he cannot destroy the Palace of Light.”

“We don’t know for sure their weapon was destroyed at J’kirtikk,” objected Raiban.

“We saw, like you, I’m sure, footage of their largest warship being destroyed. Agreed the other ships also dropped that cloud of whatever it was, but most came from the main ship. I’d say their ability to destroy on a large scale is compromised.”

“Do we have any idea yet what it was they used on J’kirtikk?” asked Kusac.

“There’s speculation,” said Raiban reluctantly, “but nothing concrete is known. It was too dangerous for the
Watchers
present to even think of collecting samples at the time. Besides, would you go near something that eats its way though the hulls of ships?”

“Maybe there are two weapons, one they used against ships, the other against living matter,” said Kaid.

“Possibly, but the vids show it falling down onto the planet below,” said Kusac. “The fact that they are hauling salvage off J’kirtikk suggests that it isn’t doing the same damage to metal structures on the planet as in space. As on our two colonies, it probably killed only living tissue, plant or animal.”

“Decisions on how to deal with M’zull will be made at Alliance Council meetings, not here,” said Raiban firmly. “Everyone will be affected by what you do here, Kezule. We cannot allow you to act independently.”

“M’zull is our world, General, our people. You cannot predict how they will react in any given circumstances; I can,” said Kezule. “That knowledge is vital when planning any campaign against them.”

“
You
will not allow us to make our own military decisions?” said Zsurtul. “And just how do you plan to stop us, General Raiban?”

“Let’s stop right there,” said Kusac. “King Zsurtul, despite how it seems, General Raiban is only one member of the High Command of the Alliance, and her words don’t necessarily reflect what they think. I very much doubt she’s here in any official capacity, or she’d have shown us her orders at the start. Besides, you haven’t yet signed the Treaties, so the Alliance has no jurisdiction over you.”

“Yes, where are your orders, General?” asked Kaid. “Remember, I still have the rank of an Ambassador of Shola, and we still have our own Ambassador here.”

“This is a military situation which needs . . .”

“Your orders, if you please, General Raiban,” said Zsurtul, sitting up straighter. “The Captains are correct. I would never send any delegate to a foreign ruler without giving him or her orders to hand to them.”

Reluctantly Raiban reached inside her uniform jacket and drew out a slim envelope, which she slid across the table to King Zsurtul.

The young King took his time opening the package and reading the contents. As he did, Kusac could sense the youth’s mood lightening.

When he put them down, he smiled slightly. “It seems, General Raiban, your visit is a short one, meant to convey the good will of Shola and a promise to aid us if possible. Commander Raguul and the
Khalossa
will remain to aid us in any way we need it. In which case, I thank you for meeting with us.” He got to his feet, forcing everyone else to do the same, then extended his hand to Raiban.

“Good day, General. I hope your visit to our world was a pleasant one,” said Zsurtul, shaking her hand.

A quiet scratch at the door, then M’kou entered to escort the General back to her shuttle.

“Majesty,” said Raiban through clenched teeth. “Do consider well what I’ve said.”

“I will keep it in mind, General,” said Zsurtul, resting his hands behind his back.

When she’d left, everyone relaxed again.

“Since I’m among friends,” said Zsurtul, sitting down and pressing the buzzer again, this time to ask for refreshments for them all, “how do we manage this situation? Delay signing the Treaties?”

“There should be no need to delay,” said Kusac. “Shyadd knows your mind on the important issues; let him negotiate them into the contract.”

“It will take several days anyway, Your Majesty,” said Kaid, nodding his agreement. “There are always loopholes. If a golden opportunity presents itself, you’ll often find you have no time to discuss a plan with the Alliance. Then you have no option but to act instantly.”

“Most of the Alliance Treaty is concerned with not acting against Alliance members without due recourse to arbitration and promising aid and troops to common causes. There’s nothing really that should prevent you mounting this mission to save Zhalmo,” said Kusac. “I know, I studied it in my training for Alien Relations.”

“And chemical weapons?”

“Yes, there is an undertaking not to use them,” Kusac admitted. “It’s defined, roughly speaking for now, as not using any substance that will temporarily or irrevocably alter the perceptions or body chemistry of any person to their detriment.”

“Then how do you justify your drug in the pellets and the spray?” asked Kezule, frowning.

“I have no idea,” he said honestly. “I only know, on reflection, that they were left rather conveniently for me to find in Stronghold. I assume it’s a Brotherhood development.”

“What compound is this? It’s the first time I’ve heard it mentioned,” said Kaid.

“A la’quo-based one. It’s delivered in either a pellet that dissolves when shot into a Prime or Valtegan or in a small spray. It knocks them out for several hours while it destroys the glands they have that give the Warrior caste their extra speed and the ability to heal themselves faster,” said Kusac.

“They’ve kept this very quiet,” Kaid murmured. “I picked up nothing of this, but, then, when we saw Rhyaz and Lijou last, I was not in the best of moods.” He grinned slightly. “I socked Rhyaz on the jaw for the way he’d treated you, actually.”

That surprised him. “Thanks, I think. I have my own score to settle with him when I see him next.” There was the beginning of a low growl under his words. “The Brotherhood acts outside the laws of Shola, Kezule, which is why we so often get the jobs that skirt close to breaking laws or treaties,” he explained. “Plausible deniability.”

“I see. Doesn’t that end with the perpetrators thrown to the wild carrion eaters?”

“Occasionally,” said Kusac, glancing at Kaid. “But not often.”

“When that happens, we do take unofficial appropriate action to mitigate the circumstances,” said Kaid. “It often results in a complete new identity as their previous life is lost to them.”

“So we just lie about any chemical weapon we decide to use?” asked Zsurtul.

“No, Majesty. You give your orders to go ahead with the research then leave it to Kezule to handle. He in turn passes responsibility down the line so that if asked, you can both claim no knowledge of it,” said Kaid.

“It sounds dishonest to me,” said Zsurtul, frowning.

“It’s sometimes the only way hard decisions can be made for the good of many.”

“It’s good advice for you to follow from now on, Kezule,” said Kusac.

“This is all so much more complicated than I thought,” said Zsurtul, looking at them each in turn. “I want to be a good and an honest ruler—it seems as if you are saying that no ruler can be that honest.”

“You can and will be, King Zsurtul,” said Kaid reassuringly. “We’re talking about extreme circumstances here.”

“How can I be sure I know all the facts about any given situation if my counselors don’t tell me the full truth, as you’re advocating Kezule should do? How can I trust them? This is what caused K’oish’ik to fall into such disarray in the first place.”

“I will keep you fully informed on all matters except those on which we agree you don’t need to have full details,” Kezule reassured him.

“So we can in all honesty sign the Alliance Treaty, and the one with Shola?”

“Yes, King Zsurtul,” said Kusac.

Zsurtul nodded, obviously less anxious about the whole matter.

Kusac exchanged a glance with Kaid as both forbore to mention that in signing the private agreement with the Brotherhood, some, like Raiban, would say he was already well on the way to running downwind of the hunt.

 

“Allies they are now, as potentialities confirm,” said Zaimiss from the Speaker’s lectern. “No need now to interfere; let them deal with Warrior Sand-dwellers alone. Enough resources on them have we wasted.”

Shvosi rose on her haunches. “Second part of matter transformer still on their world. Still capable of being programmed to make nanites. All they need is delivery system, which is easy if placed in capsules. It must be destroyed.”

“For generations trouble has been over this unit. Now is time to leave be. Unlikely are they to understand such advanced device,” said Zaimiss.

“Learned how to operate it and use it for destruction, didn’t they?” countered Azwokkus, rising up from his nest of cushions. “While doubt exists, we must destroy it. In hands of any race but us is dangerous, even Hunters.”

Aizshuss also rose. “Who lost the device? Whose error is causing all this trouble? Your Isolationist party responsible, Zaimiss! When last in majority, you lost it, you pushed through belief it vanished in hyperspace!”

“This is untrue! You shift blame to us unfairly to blacken our party,” countered Zaimiss angrily.

On her cushions at the front of the chamber, Khassis stirred. “Unity, confirm who responsible for missing matter transformer.”

“I protest,” said Zaimiss. “Facts do not reflect actual happenings at time!”

“Isolationist party in power when matter transformer went missing on the ship carrying it,”
Unity intoned.
“Their majority in the Camarilla was then 70%, and they used it to push through a decision not to pursue and recover the unit despite protests from the Moderates, the only other party then. They justified it by claiming such activity would draw attention to the Camarilla.”

“Perhaps wrong decisions made that day,” muttered Zaimiss. “If retrieving unit so important to you, suggest we use it to program nanites to destroy itself and the Warrior Sand-dweller world. Two problems solved at one stroke. Use Hunter to do this when he visits their world. That be his mission, not retrieving a useless female captive!”