Stunned and benumbed, Walker was not the only one present to object to the unexpected and startling announcement. Visibly shocked, Saluu-hir-lek stepped out of the circle of dignitaries and into the center. Behind him, Viyv-pym looked more confused than Walker had ever seen her.
“What foolishness is this?” the commander of the forces of Kojn-umm demanded to know. He was so angry his ears were quivering. “I, Saluu-hir-lek, defender of Jalar-aad-biidh, have overseen every military advance since first pursuit of Toroudian attackers! Nomination of alien advisors as heads of Kojn-umm forces was for show only. Any dominant position is rightfully mine.” Though utterly alien in appearance, Walker noted, the general made noises like any outraged sentient seeing a lifelong dream evaporate before his eyes. The irony was that of all those notables assembled under the great dome, none supported the general’s assertion more strongly than did the lone human present.
“It’s true what Saluu-hir-lek says. My friends and I were ‘made’ heads of the army of Kojn-umm for certain reasons that need not be detailed here. The general was the one who was really in charge throughout.”
Though he made mollifying gestures, Deeleng-hab-wiq did not back down from his declaration. “All of us, most certainly those whose traditional forces have been defeated, recognize the skill and experience of Saluu-hir-lek of Kojn-umm in directing combat operations. But careful study has shown from whence the original strategy comes that has allowed for the establishment of such unusual combinations of forces. Did not arise from you, Saluu-hir-lek.” The representative of Charuchal-uul looked back to Walker. “Is not difficult for the interested to assess that unnatural proposals arise from unnatural sources.”
“It not matter!” Saluu-hir-lek was livid. “I the one who directed combined armies. I the one who oversaw movements of forces as well as actual assaults. Besides, is madness to give actual as opposed to sham ability to make operational decisions at such a level to this . . . this . . .”
It was fascinating to watch a Niyyuu sputter, George observed. At such rare moments their round, muscular mouths resembled leaky hose spigots. It reminded him also very much of angry cats, though the Niyyuu were only passingly feline. Standing next to him, Walker was handling it rather well. There was something to be said for being stunned speechless. But if you couldn’t talk, you couldn’t say something foolish. It was hard for a mute to be imprudent.
“This non-Niyyuu?” the commander of great Charuchal-uul’s forces finished for the general. “That precisely the reason why agreement to do so was so swiftly reached among affected governments. Biranju-oov, for example, give every indication of balking if someone like youself named to such a position of power. Same true for commanders of traditional army of Toroud-eed. And I may say with some confidence, of Charuchal-uul as well.” His attention fixed on Walker.
“But this creature from who originate distinctive military strategy that lead to unprecedented consequences among the Niyyuu, he not Niyyuu. His advisors not Niyyuu. Not even Sessrimathe. All are complete strangers to our society. Furthermore, have no external interests beyond the immediately personal.” Deeleng-hab-wiq did not look at the irate general of Kojn-umm as he said this. He did not have to.
“Alien Walker person not act on behalf of some hidden, unknown power waiting to take advantage of new and confusing situation here. So he not favor any local faction above another. Not Divintt-aap over Dereun-oon. Not Biranju-oov over Charuchal-uul.” Now he turned and stared hard at the apoplectic general. “Not Kojn-umm over Toroud-eed.”
Anxious to maintain harmony, Walker stepped forward. “Listen, nothing I and my friends did or said or advised was for personal gain. At least, not in the sense your people generally think of such things. We just want to get home.”
Deeleng-hab-wiq gestured understandingly. “All who decide this matter know that. Such knowledge contribute to our decision appoint you key position.”
Walker spread his hands helplessly. “But I don’t want it.”
The voice of the commander of Charuchal-uul’s forces fell slightly, sounding like two steel screws being rubbed against one another. “You not consulted,” he replied quietly but firmly.
“Actions have consequences, that cannot be foreseen, every time,” Braouk intoned solemnly behind the anxious human.
At Walker’s feet, George whispered upward. “You’re stuck with it, Marc. When a dog’s made the leader of the pack, he’s got no choice but to fight to keep it. Otherwise some subordinate will rip him to bits at the first opportunity, if only to protect his or her own status.”
At this, Walker glanced reflexively in Saluu-hir-lek’s direction. But the general of Kojn-umm was not looking at him. He continued to glare at Deeleng-hab-wiq as if Walker himself was wholly unimportant to the disagreement at hand.
But not Viyv-pym. She was watching her human charge closely. If she was seeking evidence of deception on his part, she was looking in the wrong place.
“This is a thing settled.” Deeleng-hab-wiq was not to be moved.
Eying the other assembled dignitaries, Saluu-hir-lek saw that their resolve was no less strong. Enraged, frustrated, and full of fury at having had his supreme command usurped not only by an alien, but by an alien who did not even want the honor, he whirled and pushed his way through the crowd. Viyv-pym hesitated. But she was Kojn-umm. Irrespective of any personal feeling she might hold, she owed her allegiance to her realm. Also her enviable position. Turning, she hurried to catch up to the rapidly departing Saluu-hir-lek.
The commander of the traditional armies of Charuchal-uul, now a part of the seething mélange of realms and forces that continued, on a much lower level, to fight among themselves so as to avoid the stigma of being considered formal allies, turned back to Walker.
“The soldier from Kojn-umm has ambition. Perhaps too much ambition for a traditional Niyyuuan fighter. Our species has found a way to let us aggressively settle disputes between different traditional territories without adversely impacting overall planetary development. Yous’ successful alien tactics have cast new and confusing ideas into ancient cultural mix. This making many uncomfortable. But new ideas, even uncomfortable ones—especially uncomfortable ones—cannot be ignored. They must be dealt with.” Taking a step back, he wrapped both long arms around his upper torso.
“We of the assembled traditional fighting forces of Toroud-eed, Biranju-oov, Divintt-aap, Dereun-oon, Charuchal-uul, and perhaps even Kojn-umm await you next advisement.”
Having stood openmouthed for so long, Walker became aware that his palate was drying out. He swallowed again, licked his lips. “I—I’ll have to consult with my . . . advisors.”
“Of course you will. A suitable residency has been prepared for yous here in capital.” Dropping his arms, Deeleng-hab-wiq once more approached the human, coming very close. “Is hoped yous will find Charuchalan hospitality as satisfactory as what yous have experienced elsewhere.” Lowering his head, he brought it close to Walker’s own and whispered.
“Perhaps also you might be persuaded prepare special meal for uppermost level of capital government? Is said that you performances with Niyyuuan cuisine are quite remarkable.”
Not knowing what else to say and utterly overwhelmed by the unexpected events that had overtaken him, Walker could only mumble a response. “I’ll see what I can do. I don’t have my trained assistants here, and I’d be working with unknown instrumentation, and—”
“Whatever is required will be provided,” Deeleng-hab-wiq declared importantly as he straightened. He did not elaborate on the request. “Until yous have a proposal for all to consider, yous must relax and regain yous’ energy.”
Raising one hand, he gestured. A small but well-armed escort appeared. As he and his friends were led away, Walker wondered at the need for it. Was Deeleng-hab-wiq worried that a disgruntled Saluu-hir-lek might react violently to the decision that had been made on the aliens’ behalf? Or was it simply the Charuchalan way?
Exiting the enormously impressive traditional building, they were bundled into a transport large enough to accommodate them all, including Braouk and their armed escort. Rising above normal traffic, the huge craft settled into an altitude reserved for travelers on official business and accelerated.
While George kept his nose pressed to the transparent shell of their craft to better enjoy the passing view of the imposing capital city of Charuchal-uul, Braouk sprawled his bulk in the back, massive tentacles pressing up against the sides and floor of the vehicle. That left Walker to tread in the turbulent pool of his own thoughts until a wandering tendril crept across his shoulder. Turning in his typically too-narrow Niyyuuan seat, he found the glistening, argent, horizontal eyes of Sequi’aranaqua’na’senemu staring back into his own. As she clung firmly to the supports of the seat behind him, another of her ten tendrils snaked forward to join the first.
“So the bumbling, primitive human is given nominal overlordship over the decisions of a powerful cluster of alien forces. Truly, the universe is replete with wonders.”
“I don’t want it,” he mumbled by way of response. “We weren’t looking for anything like this, and I don’t want anything to do with it. Let Saluu-hir-lek have the control.” He grew thoughtful. “I bet I can talk Deeleng-hab-wiq and the other commanders into reconsidering. I mean, I understand their line of reasoning, but if I object strenuously enough, if I show them that I’m really not the individual mentally and emotionally equipped for the kind of task that they—”
“That does not matter.” As was her manner, she did not hesitate to interrupt before he was finished. “Do not trouble yourself with concern over everyday decisions involving military matters. What is important is that these forces that have gathered more or less together regard you as an honest broker of opinion. What matters is that, despite individual misgivings, they are likely to respond positively to any request you might care to make.” Glistening a deep red that was almost black, tendrils writhed. Light flashed from the shards of metal and plastic and thin slivers of gemstone that decorated the sinuous, flexible limbs.
“Regarding specifics, do not worry. As always, I am here to proffer advice and good counsel. I have some small notions on how best we should proceed given these most recent developments.”
He smiled at the utterly alien shape that clung to the superstructure of the seat behind him. “I’d be surprised if you didn’t, Sque. You’re always thinking forward, always one jump ahead of everybody else, so I’m sure you’ve been—” His words faded away and his eyes widened ever so slightly as he gawked at the eternally cool, utterly composed K’eremu. “My God. You saw this coming, didn’t you? All of it. You’ve seen this coming right from the beginning, when we pushed Saluu-hir-lek to pursue the army of Toroud-eed right after their retreat from Jalar-aad-biidh.” His voice rose perceptibly. “And all the time, you didn’t say anything. You kept it to yourself.” His hand moved sharply as he gestured first toward the dog staring at the window, then at the muscular alien mass sprawled in the rear of the transport.
“You’ve been using us, manipulating us, right from the start of this. Just like you manipulated us to get free of the Vilenjji ship.” He slapped his forehead and rolled his eyes. “What could I have been thinking? Or not thinking. I’ve been so wrapped up in surviving our time here and trying to think of ways to move on that I forgot to pay attention to what you’ve been doing, to how you operate. You’re a scheming little bag of worms, Sque.”
The K’eremu bore the human’s outpouring of anger and angst in silence. When he finally ran out of steam, her two extended tendrils lightly stroked his shoulder in the Niyyuuan manner.
“I applaud you. Realization of reality never comes to some. Better to achieve enlightenment late than to forever dwell in the darkness. You are correct in your assumptions—but only to a certain extent. Yes, I did foresee certain possibilities and work to bring them about. For them to have the best chance of success it was required that you assume center stage. You are the one who came to Niyu with the lofty reputation, and your body shape and size is far more agreeable and familiar to the natives than is that of the K’eremu. You are also more diplomatic and self-effacing than I. I can recognize the usefulness of such qualities in lesser life-forms even when I do not possess them myself.
“You loudly decry my maneuverings. Let us consider for a time-part how damaging the results have been to you. They freed you from Vilenjji captivity, assured your good treatment on Seremathenn, and most recently have seen you anointed the chief of strategy for a powerful, possibly unprecedented consortium of the natives who are our present hosts.” The slender pink speaking tube danced and swayed. “Yes, you surely have done badly from my maneuvering, human Walker. The misery you have suffered as a result must know no bounds.”
“Dammit, Sque, it’s not that, and you know it!” Taking note of his shouting, George finally turned from the transparent side of the speeding transport. With one hand, Walker removed the pair of caressing tendrils from his shoulder. “It’s this not telling us what’s going on, what you have in mind, that’s so infuriating. If you wanted me to end up as the tactical head of this bad-tempered coalition of traditional Niyyuuan forces, why didn’t you just say so? Why didn’t you tell me what you were planning?”
“Look inward, Marcus. Take a good look inside your being, if your kind is capable of such candid introspection. If I had apprised you of such intentions back on the old stone walls of Jalar-aad-biidh in Kojn-umm and you had not panicked outright, what would have been your most likely reaction?” Startling him, she proceeded to perfectly mimic his voice. It was yet another ability she had not previously demonstrated. “‘Oh, Sequi’aranaqua’na’senemu, what a clever idea! Oh Sque, I can’t wait to put my life on the line in multiple attempts to fool the Niyyuu as to our true purpose! Oh, yes, Sque, I will be able to portray myself as totally uninterested in the outcomes of all subsequent conflicts!’” Her voice returned to normal.
“It was vital to the success of the enterprise that your innocence as to its ultimate potential objective be at all times preserved. I think you will agree that such has been the case, and that events have developed propitiously. We are now in a position to demand, as opposed to filing polite requests for, assistance from the Niyyuuan astronomic community in locating our homeworlds. This would not be possible without our successive military triumphs, albeit on the low-grade traditional level. One squad of Niyyuu equipped with modern weapons could disperse all the assembled armies of all the six realms we have brought together. But that, fortunately, is not the Niyyuuan way.”
He was quiet, trying to digest everything she had said. As usual, no matter how fervently he detested her manipulation of him and his friends, no matter how much he hated being used, he was finally forced to admit that the results just might have been worth all the sneaking and subterfuge. They now found themselves in a position that should greatly enhance their chances of finding a way home. And she was right about something else as well: despite not wanting to admit it, he had to confess to himself that if she had clearly and unambiguously laid out her intentions back in Kojn-umm, he would automatically have rejected them. Not only because he would have believed in their ultimate failure, but because of the potential danger.
At that thought he performed what could only be described as a follow-up double take. “I could have been killed! At any time since we left Kojn-umm, I could have been killed. Or Saluu-hir-lek might have figured out what was going on and had me assassinated. Or the forces of one of the realms we were opposing could have had me killed.” Rising slightly, he leaned toward her over the back of his own high Niyyuuan seat. “That’s why you didn’t want to put yourself forward as the promoter of the eventual strategy that was devised. That’s why you’ve stayed in the background and out of the way. You figured that if anything went wrong with your scheming, as the public face of it I’d be the one who’d get killed.” His head snapped sharply to his left. “What are you laughing at?”
Off to one side, George had fallen off his narrow seat and was rolling back and forth on the floor, teeth exposed, his feet pawing at the air. “Slickly snookered by Sister Seafood! And not for the first time, either. Humans never learn. You’re so wrapped up in your own vanity and glory, that—” The dog dissolved in laughter.
Having hoped for at least moral support from the canine quarter of the quarrelsome quartet, it was fair to say that Walker was less than pleased with his companion’s ebullient response.
“You are of course correct in your assessment.” His accusation found Sque as serene and unruffled as ever. “Surely you must admit that for any of us mismatched fellow travelers to have a chance of returning all the way home, it is imperative that I, of all of us, must remain whole and unharmed.”
With an effort, Walker controlled his anger. “I do apologize if my desire to go on living conflicts with your overall assessment of how best to deal with our present situation.”
The K’eremu was as immune to sarcasm as Braouk was to flung stones. “There is no need to apologize. You are not responsible for responding according to base instincts over which you have no control. It is the same with all the lower orders.” Then, perhaps relenting slightly, possibly realizing she might be stepping over a line she could barely perceive, she added, “I am of course directing all my considerable mental energies to seeing that all of us, and not just myself, complete that much-to-be-desired voyage.”
Turning away from her and ignoring her gently probing tendrils, he folded his arms over his chest. “Don’t knock yourself out,” he muttered crossly.
Transparent lids flicked down over silvery eyes. “I am afraid my embedded translator is having difficulty with your last comment.”
By way of response, an irate Walker supplied a follow-up whose meaning her translator had no difficulty whatsoever conveying unequivocally. The questing tendrils promptly withdrew. No more was heard from the K’eremu for the remainder of the journey.
From the capacious rear of the transport, verse floated forward borne on the wings of alien melancholy. Braouk was reciting.
“Cast adrift here, fighting and killing daily, empty actions. How I long for the endless fields of Tuuqalia, for its vaulted skies and waving fields of surashh, for its dense forests and cool plains, for its—”
Necessity overcoming the need to visually display his displeasure, Walker uncrossed his arms and pressed his palms tightly against both ears. George used his front paws to press his own ears firmly against the sides of his head. For her part, Sque simply ignored their massive companion’s latest interminable recitation. Unequipped to translate it, their Charuchalan hosts remained blissfully ignorant of the content of the alien drone, however much it sounded to them as if the largest of their honored guests must be feeling vaguely unwell.
The most honored commander of the expeditionary army of the traditional forces of the righteous realm of Kojn-umm was in an ill humor. He had been ever since the startling anointment of the ungainly human as the chief strategic planner for the nonalliance of quasi-cooperating military forces of six territories. It was outrageous! It was insupportable!
It was also, however uncomfortable, a fact, and one that he was going to have to deal with. In order to do that, he needed information. Believing he possessed enough of the latter, he had been taken by surprise by the unity of the other realms’ decision. He would not make the same mistake again.
Hence his impatience when the citizen he had summoned to his presence finally appeared before him.
While she was not intimidated by the prospect of a private conference with the general, neither did Viyv-pym have any idea what Saluu-hir-lek wanted of her. She found out very quickly, as Saluu-hir-lek addressed her directly and in no-nonsense tones.
“What does this alien Marcus Walker mean to you?”
Her tails twitched involuntarily, a clear sign she did not understand the question. “Mean to me? There no meaning attached to relationship. I his appointed guide on and to world and culture of Niyyuu. Same functioning applicable to his three companions. If relationship has any meaning, takes the form of what I am paid by government of Kojn-umm.”
His words contradicted his gesture of understanding. “I have had abundant time to observe the alien Walker. Also to observe the alien Walker observing you. Is more there than simple diplomacy.”
Initially confident upon being sent for, his guest found herself increasingly bemused. “I confess I not follow the general commander’s line of reasoning.”
Her unfettered bewilderment was answer enough for his purposes. “Never mind. I’ve learned what I need know. You are blameless of participation in this betrayal.” Coming close, he lowered his rasping voice. “You must understand, Viyv-pym: I had to find out. Do not carry any concern with you now that clarity in this thing is restored.”
Having been accused and then found innocent of something without ever once having been informed of what it was, she was understandably bewildered. Her trial was apparently over without her ever having been brought before a court. Given her initial perceptions, she ought to have felt relieved. Instead, she was more confused than ever.
“You are upset because of the human Walker’s elevation,” she hazarded.
“Upset!” Once again he had to lower his voice. “Upset, yes. This whole matter is absurd, ridiculous, and unreasonable.” His flexible arms snapped in the air of the room like whips. “The alien is a cook, not military strategist. But I not fooled.” His large, alert eyes gleamed. “I see what being done. Charuchal-uul, Biranju-oov, and others wish marginalize me and influence of Kojn-umm on future actions. Better they not relax. When time come, I will deal with their deceit.”
“And the human?” Viyv-pym was not entirely sure why she should care, or why she asked. She knew only that she did, and she had.
“Eehgh, the human! It strange, but I not mad at him. It clear to me that he being manipulated for the ends of others. What others, I still not certain. No doubt good cook is ignorant of how he being used. No, the alien food preparator is harmless. I more fear the actions of his companions, especially the small rubbery being with many limbs. She says too little, sees too much. I repeatedly reproaching myself for my neglect of her.”
Viyv-pym gestured supplely. “I am Kojn-umm. You my superior. I will do whatever you deem necessary to advance best interests of our realm.”
“I know that you will, Viyv-pym. For moment, though, nothing can be done. Is better more useful watch and wait.”
“For what?” she asked him as she lowered her arms.
He was staring ferociously, but not at her. “For opportunity.”
Their rooms were admirable, overlooking just one of the great sweeping harbors for which Charuchal-uul was famed throughout Niyu. If the level of technological sophistication was not up to that of highly advanced Seremathenn, it was at least the equal of Kojn-umm. As honored guests, they had no cause for complaint.
At least not against their hosts, whose attitude toward them continued to reflect a mixture of admiration, suspicion, and a curiosity that bordered on the fawning. Among two of the visitors, there was still some internal dissension.
Walker was pacing back and forth in front of the floor-to-ceiling transparency that overlooked the view. If he closed his eyes almost shut and let his mind drift, he could imagine that he was standing in a skyscraper looking out over Lake Michigan. Then he would open them again, and his sight and mind would be confronted by alien architecture, alien transport, and a sky that was just a shade too greenish.
“You can’t keep interfering in local affairs like this. You’re going to make a mistake and get us killed.” He halted close to the K’eremu. “Look how your actions have offended Saluu-hir-lek. I’ve become familiar enough with Niyyuuan expressions and reactions to know that this whole experience has changed him from a friend to someone who wouldn’t be sad to see us disappear.”
As she listened to the human, Sque was lolling on one of the narrow padded benches that were the Niyyuuan equivalent of a comfortable couch. While her tendrils sprawled loosely around her, her body stayed, as always, upright in the center of the ropy mass.
“What I am going to do, Marcus, is get us home. You do still want to get home, don’t you?” He said nothing. “As for offending the ambitious general Saluu-hir-lek, I cannot function effectively if I am forced to waste time concerning myself with the possible personal disenchantments of representatives of the local dominant life-form.”
Nearby, George had been running nose patrol over a section of the peculiarly resilient flooring, absorbing and cataloging smells for future reference. Now he looked up briefly at Walker. “You sure, Marc, that it’s Saluu-hir-lek you’re so concerned about offending?”
Walker’s brows drew together as he regarded the busy canine. “I don’t follow you, George.”
“It’s been awhile since we had a visit from our lean and trim original minder, hasn’t it? Maybe you’re worried our activities might have offended her?” He bared his teeth. “Maybe you miss her a little?”
“Viyv-pym is our most active and knowledgeable conduit to the Niyyuu,” Walker snapped crossly. “She is our connection to this world and this culture and has been ever since Seremathenn. I miss her because of that, yes.”
“Uh-huh.” Cocking his head slightly to the right, the dog sat down and began scratching himself behind one ear. “Tell me something, Marc. When you kiss her, is it like sticking your tongue down a vacuum cleaner hose?”
A furious Walker began chasing the dog around the largely unusable Niyyuuan furniture while the agile canine toyed with him, remaining just beyond the human’s reach. Sequi’aranaqua’na’senemu did her best to ignore them both as she contemplated their immediate future. Despite a nagging conviction that doing so was a waste of time, she was still determined to do her best to save them both, along with the oversized versifier who was presently sleeping soundly at one end of the large room.
How she missed the reasonableness of K’erem! Of home, of her own kind, each individual secure in the knowledge that he or she was the epitome of evolution. She missed the soothing solitude of her own quiet, carefully landscaped residence, the chance to communicate with others of like mind—over a secure distance, of course—the opportunities for advanced intellectual discourse. None of the latter were to be found here, where she was forced to act always as teacher and never as student.
For all that, for all the inherent physical and mental deficiencies for which they were not responsible, she rather liked her companions. Braouk, with his melancholy manner, ever eager and ready to recount the passionate sagas of his world to any who would listen. If only he would shut up more often. The small quadruped George, whose tail never seemed to stop moving, an appendage as close to achieving perpetual motion as any she had ever seen attached to another intelligent being. Even Walker, forever unsure of himself but unafraid to do whatever was necessary to improve their situation.
She wondered if any of them actually liked her, or if they only pretended to do so in order to keep her superior intellect focused on the business of getting them all home. Not that it mattered. No K’eremu needed to rely on the approval of lesser life-forms to sustain a feeling of self-worth.
On the other tendril, it was doubtful any peaceful, solitary K’eremu had previously found itself in her position. To her discomfiture, she found that she did care if her companions liked her or not. Her tendrils drew in more tightly around the base of her body. No doubt, with time and proper meditation, the unnatural feeling of caring what a motley lot of lower life-forms thought about her would go away.
When the human, out of breath from chasing his smaller but much quicker companion, finally halted, she confronted him. “What difference should it make to you, Marcus, or to any of us, if we intervene in local affairs? Our hosts are barbarians who dwell under the slimmest veneer of civilization.” Tendrils rose and fluttered, describing distinct patterns in the air.
“They slaughter one another under the pretext of restraining themselves. The fact that they forbid the use of modern weapons in these bloody ritual exercises between individual tribes shows only that they have an interest in preserving their species, not in improving it. Then there is the obscenely ubiquitous media coverage. No other marginally civilized race of my acquaintance views intraspecies warfare as an excuse for crass entertainment.”
His quarrel with George forgotten, Walker looked uncomfortable. “One other does,” he muttered uneasily. “Except that it doesn’t restrict its use of weapons to the archaic.” He did not have to elaborate.
Sque’s speaking tube emitted a succession of small bubbles. “I might have suspected as much.”
He waited for inevitable indictment, the twist of the verbal knife, the perfectly minted coin of sarcasm. When it was not forthcoming, he blinked and peered down at her. “That’s it? You don’t have anything else to say?”
Tendrils bobbed and weaved, like an anemone preparing for a prizefight. “What could I add that would embellish the depressing reality of your kind? If your culture is not so unlike that of the Niyyuu, then I should not have to explain why I feel no compunction at manipulating the latter. There is no beauty, no entertainment, no satisfaction to be found in the killing of one’s own kind. It is an abomination that all sentient species should have shed. Yet it lingers on in remote, out-of-the-way places.”
He found himself nodding slowly. “You’re correct, Sque. I have no right to criticize your actions here. The K’eremu, I take it, don’t fight among themselves?”
“Only with sharp phrases and pointed words. These cut deeply enough.” A knot of maroon-hued coils, she dropped off the couch and slithered past him, stopping at the transparent wall. George trotted over to join her in gazing at the busy metropolitan harbor below. A silence ensued during which the only sounds in the room were the barely audible whisper of the air recycler and the somewhat louder breathing of the dozing Tuuqalian in the back.
“If Fortune is with us, we will not have to concern ourselves with the affairs of this wayward world and its argumentative folk much longer.”
Walker looked down at her in surprise. “You’ve heard something!”
The upper portion of the K’eremu’s body arced back, and metallic eyes gazed up at him. “Learning things is as much a matter of listening well as it is of cultivating sources. One picks such bits of possibility out of a society even while its majority is occupied with an activity as wasteful as war. All I am saying is that in the near future there may occur a development or two favorable to that end which is of interest to us all. Should these eventuate, we will need to act together, with one voice.” She drew herself up to her full four feet.
“That means my voice, of course, but I am certain you both already understand that.”
“I don’t understand it,” George objected out of principle. “But I’ll go along with anything that’ll take us a step closer to home.”
“Everyone needs to be prepared to fulfill their part.” She looked past them both, straining to see past the high, uncomfortable furniture. “Stir that lump of sensitive Tuuqalian flesh from its extended slumber.” With several tendrils, she gestured in Braouk’s direction. “I will advise you.”
“What if these developments you’re referring to don’t pan out?” Walker asked her.
Glistening eyes turned back to him. “Then your intelligence level will have been raised up an infinitesimal fraction from having paid another time-part’s attention to me. Go wake the brute.”
Not having anything better to do, Walker did as she requested. Carefully, as always. There were occasions when the Tuuqalian had a disconcerting tendency to wake up swinging.