The Wraeththu Chronicles (36 page)

"You have means of summoning us if necessary, my lord," Attica explained.

"All the same; I think it would be better," I said.

The rest of the morning was spent investigating my rooms. Vaysh assisted me, looking into every drawer and cupboard.

“It’s amazing," he said. "You have everything; it's almost as if someone lived here before."

Thiede's apartments were similar to my own, except rather untidy. At lunchtime, I was conducted to his dining room, nervous and wary; I had no idea what to expect. Thiede obviously had his own reasons for not briefing me more thoroughly. Perhaps he believed in throwing people in at the deep end. Half a dozen Gelaming hara were already seated there and all went quiet when I entered the room. Thiede, at the head of the table, stood up, dressed simply, looking breathtaking, as usual. "Tiahaara," he announced grandly, "May I introduce Pellaz to you." This was met with stony silence. They all stared at me, but not one of them smiled. Thiede was not discouraged. "Pellaz, you must get to know these hara. They shall be working very closely with you." A prospect that was not greeted with pleasure on either side.

He introduced them as Cedony, Tharmifex, Dree, Eyra, Glave and Chrysm. No Ashmael. I sat down, braced for a trying meal. It was obviously not going to be an easy task winning acceptance from this lot, that was clear. More than likely, they were all supporters of the absent Ashmael.

"How much do you know of governmental procedures?" the one called Tharmifex asked me. He had long, pink and black hair which contrasted lather strongly with his taciturn expression.

"Nothing at all," I replied, thinking honesty was the best policy. Thiede was watching me through slitted eyes (what was he up to?), his head resting on his hand. Was he praying I would not let him down? This was a test of lire, which he could have made easier for me if he'd wanted to. Perhaps he realized his confidence in me was premature.

"Nothing at all, eh?" Dree remarked, throwing a weary glance at Thiede.

"He shall learn," Thiede drawled, not moving his position. "None of us came into this situation with vast knowledge, but we've coped. We need fresh minds, and this particular mind is of the finest quality.

"Being your own?" someone asked; I didn't notice who. Thiede laughed theatrically.

"It gives you such sport to inject my motives with cunning, doesn't it!"

"I shall try to fulfill my purpose," I said, realizing with shame how small and young my voice sounded.

"But do you know what it is?" This was Cedony, leaning forward over the table. I appealed to Thiede with my eyes, which he would not meet.

Tharmifex was seated next to me and turned in his seat to speak. Kind-hearted, he appreciated my difficulty. "We have no end of problems to solve," he said, taking the chance to assess me without appearing impolite.

"Thiede has told me a little about the outline of your plans," I said. "To unite Wraeththu into one nation. Is that possible?" Thiede's servant poured me wine, which was livid purple, and I sipped it nervously.

"The scale of this thing is vast," Tharmifex admitted. "But with cooperation from other tribes, not impossible. As a race, we desperately need organization. If something isn't done soon, it may be too late. We are a young race and for that reason, no-one has really become set in their ways. The way must be outlined as soon as possible."

"I have traveled around a little," I said. "So I can understand some of the problems you're likely to encounter. I should imagine some tribes won't be that enthusiastic about the idea."

"Mmm," Tharmifex murmured eloquently. "One thing I must stress though, we are not advocating mere oligarchy. The trouble with the world, or the civilized world as we know it, which at this time constitutes Almagabra and Megalithica, is that as throughout time, a few individuals of unscrupulous nature have seized power. They do not realize it, but they are a threat to Wraeththu existence. The Gelaming do not believe that we were put on this Earth to continue in the same way that mankind did."

"It is time wasted," Dree put in, "that spent on pursuing selfish ventures. This world has been neglected. It needs attention, not further abuse." During these words, visions of the Varrs kept flashing before my eyes, but it was obviously not just of them that they spoke. "What we wish ultimately to initiate," Tharmifex told me, "is a world council of tribes, although that term is a little deceptive. Our own country and the continent west are what we mean by that. That is where the strongest Wraeththu tribes exist. At the moment, we can plan no further than that. It will require more than enough diplomacy and planning to achieve results in these two countries. But if we succeed, we will have something to build on."

The first course of the meal was brought in to us; savory soup made of shellfish, and fresh, warm bread.

"How do you anticipate beginning this campaign?" I asked Thiede. "Well, that depends on how long it takes us to get properly organized. Naturally, I have other matters to attend to as well . . . Dree, where is Ashmael?" There was an uncomfortable silence. "Oh, I seel" Thiede said archly. "He is punishing me by his absence. If I was more suspicious, I would doubt his faith in my authority."

"Thiede," Dree cajoled. "You know Ashmael, always a law unto himself!"

"Yes," Thiede remarked drily, "his contrived waywardness has not escaped me." Thiede looked at me. "Unfortunately, the Ashmael we speak of is a brilliant strategist, a fearless warrior and a cunning diplomat. You will need his talents, Pellaz despite the fact (which I regret), that he may not be too willing to let you use them."

"I know about that; I've heard rumors," I said.

"Already?" Tharmifex grinned. "Something tells me it will be quite entertaining when you two come to cross swords.

"Metaphorically speaking, I trust," Thiede observed. "I will speak to him."

"Again?!" This was Chrysm speaking. Of all of them, I found out that he was the least sympathetic with Ashmael. "He is an infernal egotist! Because he had proved useful to you in the past, Thiede, he imagines you will condone all the absurdities of his behavior!" Chrysm was younger than The others. They looked at him with mild displeasure; his face was red.

Thiede stared at him for a moment and then smiled at me. "Ah, well, enough of that," he said to change the subject. "I've got some news for you, Pellaz; good news. An old friend of yours will be coming here to join your staff."

My stomach lurched, but I should have known better. "Who?"

"Seel, from Saltrock. I've always admired him. He has an enterprising spirit and these last few years have planed the edge off his temper."

1 had never thought him bad-tempered, but I was surprised at Thiede's choice. "Seel? That's odd, I thought Orien, from Saltrock, would have been more suitable, if anyone."

Thiede took a deep breath and looked down at his plate. "Yes, you are right of course. Unfortunately . . . Orien is no longer with us; he is dead."

If you have ever received news like that, unexpectedly, you will appreciate how I felt;

breathless and cold.

"How?" I demanded. "What happened?" Visions of a smoking Saltrock blackened my mind.

"Well, I ... I'm not exactly sure," Thiede said, still not looking at me (that alone should have alerted me.) "Seel will be able to tell you."

What I thought he meant was, "I'm not exactly interested; Seel will be able to tell you."

"Why does Seel want to leave Saltrock?" I asked, my voice too urgent.

"He doesn't. I want him to. He's wasted there. We need hara of his caliber here in Immanion. Anyway, he won't be here for a while yet..."

"We have to improve communications," Tharmifex put in, impatient with what he thought were personal matters. Obviously, communication with Saltrock had proved a problem.

"Our technologists are working on it, Thar, as you know," Thiede drawled wearily, as if he had said that a hundred times.

Tharmifex flashed him an irritated glance. "I was about to explain things to your protege actually, our proposed Tigron. I believe he will need to know about these things?"

Thiede inclined his head, smirking at the sarcasm. "Please, carry on." He leaned back in his seat and gazed out of the window. Tharmifex stared at him for a few moments before turning back to me.

"Clearly, in order to achieve any kind of union between the tribes of Wraeththu, we have to establish a reliable, far-reaching communication system," he began. "War, rioting, inexplicable dissolution; these factors have all contributed to virtually destroying those systems used by man, and as some areas no longer have access to the power supplies needed to run them, a completely new kind of communication network is called for. I'm sure I don't really need to tell you that we've not yet had the time to assess what may be salvaged of the world's technology and resources. It is a sad fact that many of the newly-incepted hara neglected their education; events conspired against them. Their belief was what use is knowledge of the old world when they are full of the fire of the new. It was an exciting and frightening time when Wraeththu first stepped out into the light, so to speak. Anyway, the situation now is that we believe all the finest, most capable minds Wraeththu have to offer are being summoned to Immanion. The Gelaming have been scouting around for some years . . .

"Second to communication then, is education," Dree put in. "But that will have to come later, of course."

Tharmifex nodded. "Mmm. Fortunately, we think it will be possible to use our natural powers, those things that most Hara have been eager to explore and develop, to achieve things that Mankind had to carry out through science and machinery. Namely, our innate gifts for telepathy and telekinesis. Our technologists are working on an idea for communication involving the amplification of thought, the main problem being that over a long distance, this may not be effective for hara of lower caste. We shall arrange, as soon as possible, for you to speak with the technologists, so you may understand more fully."

"Representatives from Olopade, Unneah, Sulh, Colurastes and Smalt will be arriving here soon for talks," Thiede said to stem Tharmifex's enthusiasm. "Once we have outlined our plans and are confident of their co-operation, we can begin to devise a program for world domination!" He laughed. I suppose that was a joke.

"At no time, Pell," he continued, pointing a curved claw at me, "underestimate the scale of our proposal. It is vast, it will take time, and doubtlessly, lives as well. As Gelaming, we scorn the taking of life, but it would be naive to think we won't have to fight for our beliefs. Therefore, as with everything Gelaming put their minds to, our army is the best; the finest, fittest, fearless hara you could hope to gather under one banner."

Tharmifex laughed, unexpectedly. "If our Lord Thiede could remove his tongue from his cheek for long enough, I feel sure he could impress upon you that we will be well prepared for what faces us when the time comes. I wish we had more time to educate you, Pellaz; we need years really, and I fear we shall have only months ..."

"Are you joking?!" Thiede exclaimed. "You'll have your years to indoctrinate him, Thar, you know that."

"I only know that we anticipate having years of preparation; we have no way of ensuring that the Varrs and their kind will allow that."

Thiede made a dismissive gesture. "Trust me, Thar, we'll hold them off for as long as it takes. Don't be frightened of Megalithica because of its size; it's a mess."

Tharmifex was clearly anxious not to continue this conversation in front of me, I had a feeling it was one that he and Thiede had had many times before.

"You must be able to talk to the other tribes' representatives as if you know what you're speaking about," Tharmifex said to me. "I'll give you a couple of days to settle in. After that, your education must begin in earnest.”

As we ate the meal, I assessed what I had learned. Of the hegemony of Immanion, Tharmifex and Chrysm seemed the most inclined to assist me.

The others barely spoke at all, but I was aware of their scrutiny. Chrysm reminded me of Seel; the same eyes, I think. Tharmifex probably disapproved of me in principle, but was prepared to wait for me to prove myself, one way or the other. I discovered later that he was Thiede's oldest friend and was, therefore, obliged to agree with him to a degree. The others were all staunch followers of Ashmael. The Gelaming had long since got their own country in order and Ashmael had been mainly responsible for that. It was not a large country, Almagabra (as I had learned it was named); bordered to the north, east and west by mountain ranges, the south open to the sea. Being an old race, and therefore sensitive to the true nature of Wraeththu, Almagabra's human population had not struggled too violently to maintain a hold on their lands, discouraged more by superstitious awe than anything else. Ashmael had organized the survivors (and there were many), giving them control of land to the north. They were councilled, naturally, by Wraeththu, but governed fairly and left, for the most part, to their own devices.

"Their women are barren, however," Tharmifex told me. "So we envisage a time when their aging population will become something of a burden.

"How come the women are barren?" I asked.

"Well," Tharmifex replied. "That is something that rests only in the hands of God."