There Will Be Dragons

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Sheida met Ishtar in alternate reality and with a projection rather than an avatar; Ishtar’s summons had indicated that it was urgent. She hadn’t bothered to adjust the reality of the space that was created and it was a formless gray plain that stretched, apparently, into infinity. Since it had no real existence, there was no infinity for it to reach.

“I have traced, as well as I can, all the members of the board of the terraforming group,” Ishtar said as Sheida appeared. “The only survivor that I have been able to track down is Dionys McCanoc. As you suggested, several of them died shortly after the Fall, and none of them from ‘accidents’; they had all been murdered.”

“If you’re playing for keeps you don’t bother arranging ‘accidents,’ ” Sheida said. “And if he dies, all the power reverts?”

“Until a quorum of the shareholders, or their heirs, can be contacted and a vote arranged,” Ishtar nodded.

“And right now he’s letting Chansa control his proxy?” Sheida mused. “Why?”

“Council members cannot have a membership on the board,” Ishtar said with a wry grin. “But they can ‘advise’ as to power use. Chansa, or whoever controls him, cannot have the direct ‘ownership’ of it. He has to use a proxy.”

“As would we,” Sheida said. “Why isn’t he using the power directly?”

“That I don’t know,” Ishtar admitted. “The only thing I can imagine is that he’s not aware he can. And why, if he has all this power, is he setting himself up as a bandit lord? He could own this war!”

“Not knowing would be like McCanoc,” Sheida said. “He thinks he’s brilliant but what he is is cunning, and he tends to only look at superficials. He knew he could distribute the power but not that he can draw upon it now. There’s probably a very specific command he has to give to get it for his own use. And as to why he’s set himself up as a bandit chief, that’s what he wants to be. He’s the sort of personality that revels in direct control over people, in forcing the people around him to live in fear and intimidation. It’s his whole reason for being, to have people that he can see be afraid of him. He loves to destroy, not build. Having power that’s beyond that level isn’t the same for him. So probably the deal is that Chansa is letting him run around and be the evil conquering bastard he wants to be and ‘oh, by the way, why don’t you let me be your proxy for the terraforming system, otherwise Mother will be bothering you with updates all the time’ or something.”

“Yeah,” Ishtar whispered. “But what do we do about it?”

“I’m not sure,” Sheida admitted. “I need to find out where he is. The last I heard he was headed for… Oh, Shit!”

“What?”

“He was headed for Raven’s Mill!” Sheida gasped. “Oh Fisk!”

“What’s so bad? I mean, he may conquer it but, Sheida, I know you have friends there but…”

“Blow that,” Sheida said, her mind racing. “He hasn’t got a chance. He’s up against Edmund. Edmund is going to put his head on a pike. After Daneh cuts off his balls!”

“I’m sure that Chansa gave him protection…”

“I don’t care what Chansa did! He won’t defeat Edmund, I guarantee it! I have to go.” With that she vanished.

Daneh was tending to the last details of the preparations for the battle when Sheida appeared. Rachel and a few of the nurses had set up a forward aid station closer to the defenses but it had been decided to send the worst cases back to the town via horse carts and Daneh was determined to give them the best care possible. She was lifting her surgical tools from the vat of boiling water when Sheida appeared in the air over the cauldron.

“Daneh, where’s Edmund?” her sister said abruptly. For once she didn’t appear to have even a projection of her lizard with her.

“Out fighting McCanoc,” Daneh said acerbically. “Without any help from you, I might add.”

“He can’t kill him!” Sheida said. “That’s very important!”

“What do you mean he can’t kill him?” Daneh asked angrily. “Do you know what he’s been doing? What he did to me?” she said, gesturing at her stomach.

“Yes, I do,” she replied, tautly. “I don’t care. I’ll explain later. Where is Edmund?”

“Up the road,” Daneh said. “At the Bellevue grade.”

“Get up there as soon as you can,” Sheida said.

“Sheida, I’m busy here!”

“I don’t care!” Sheida yelled, coming to a decision. She reached out and touched her sister and both of them suddenly appeared in the camp behind the defenses. The one part of her mind that she always kept attuned to power levels saw the slight drop and how it affected all the defenses that were arrayed against the continuous power of the enemy side. One of the shields on a fusion plant flickered at the abrupt power drain, slight as it was, but it held.

“Hello, Sheida,” Edmund said, looking up from a schematic of the defenses. “Nice to see you, Daneh,” he added with a nod.

“You can’t kill McCanoc,” Sheida said.

“Thank you for your input,” Edmund said calmly. “But you’ll forgive me if I pointedly ignore you.”

“Listen to me!” the projection snarled. “It’s very important. We’ve figured out where Paul is getting all this extra power and it’s McCanoc.” She then explained the problem and shook her head. “If we can capture him, we can get him to change his proxy. That gives us the power. We’re holding them despite the power. They’re not fighting smart. If we get it we can probably end this damned war!”

At that Edmund set down the sketch and rubbed his chin. “That, I’ll admit, is a telling argument. But how are you going to get him to change his proxy? Or, for that matter, how are you going to do anything with him? At the first bit of danger Chansa will yank him out. I wonder that he lets him run around at all if he’s that important.”

“It’s probably what Chansa offered him,” Sheida said. “I can prevent him from calling on Chansa; Paul’s side won’t even know what’s happening to him. I can wrap him in a teleport block and communications block.”

“And what will that do to get him to change his proxy?” Daneh asked.

“Well, I’ll offer him his life,” Sheida said with a feral smile. “But that’s all.”

“Hmmm,” Edmund muttered. “And you’re asking that I not kill him. The man that raped my wife? Your sister?”

“Do you think I like it?” Sheida replied. “But it’s necessary. Even if we can’t win the war, this will give us spare power.” She turned to Daneh. “Daneh, what would you give for enough power to summon nannites for healing?”

“Oh,” Daneh said, struck by the thought. “I’d give much for just some damned medical texts and medicines. Nannites?!” She thought about it for a moment then sighed. “God I want him dead, though!”

“We all do,” Sheida said. “Edmund, powered armor? Enhancements?”

“Don’t really need them,” he answered. “We’ve got a technique and a nice professional army that we’re going to make larger. But, frankly, it’s not up to me. I’m not the one who was directly affected.” He turned to Daneh and nodded at her. “Milady, I know that this is a great burden to put on your shoulders, but as the one most affected, I leave it to you. Life? Or death?”

Daneh’s jaw worked furiously and she shook her head. “Damn you, Sheida!”

“I’m sorry, Daneh,” Sheida said, honestly. “But think, best case, we can destroy Paul’s defenses and bring an end to this war. Worst case, we can have the power to aid all of us. Medical technology will be at the top of the list. I promise you.”

Daneh rubbed her face and snarled. “Damn you, Sheida,” she said again, then: “Life,” she ground out through gritted teeth. “But it had better not be a life of ease!”

“I promise you, we’ll find an interesting way for him to spend the rest of his miserable life. Although we might have to negotiate not to torture him, so chaining him to a rock to have his liver eaten out every day by a vulture might be out.”

“I wouldn’t ask for that,” Daneh replied. “Just… confine him. Solitary confinement. For the rest of his life.”

“Okay,” Sheida replied. “He’ll never see another human face for the rest of his life, nor hear a human voice except his own. You realize that solitary punishment like that is one of the cruelest tortures in the world? That it’s going to drive him insane, more insane that is?”

“Yes,” Daneh said coldly. “I do.”

“Done,” Sheida said, turning to Edmund. “Are you going to win this battle?”

“Probably,” he replied. “If not here, then at the town. But he’s probably got some power available for defense. Capturing him, or killing him for that matter, probably won’t be easy.”

“Just capture him,” Sheida said. “I’m trying to get you some help. If it arrives it will have the means to make sure he doesn’t escape. I’ve got to go but I’ll keep a watch on things. If Paul or Chansa notice he’s losing, I’ll see what I can do to keep them from interfering directly. But I have to go.” With that she disappeared.

“Oh, lovely,” Daneh sighed. “Thanks for leaving me here, Sis.”

“There are carts coming and going regularly from town,” Edmund said. “Now that Sheida’s gone I want to say something.”

“What?”

“I’m glad that you agreed,” Edmund sighed.

“What?” she gasped, angrily. “But…”

“Sheida is right,” he said, holding up a hand to stop her angry retort. “We need the power. But there’s more to it than that. I haven’t discussed your rape and your therapy because I’m too close to you; I’m the wrong person to help. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been… observing. And you’ve been wrapping yourself around hatred for McCanoc to a degree that’s not healthy.”

She looked at him for a long time and then sighed. “I know. But I don’t know what to do about it.”

“You just did most of it,” Edmund replied. “By using your head instead of your heart, you’ve shown, to yourself, that you can get past it. That has probably done as much for you as Bast’s little session. You’ve shown that even if McCanoc is at your mercy, you can let him live, for a good enough cause. If we had captured him, he would have been put to death. But only after a solid trial and by the rules. Emotion should have no play in it.”

“Ask a question?” she said.

“Sure.”

“If I’d said no, that is, that I wanted him dead, would you have done it? Even over Sheida’s objections?”

“Yes,” Edmund replied. “I don’t think that getting his power will ‘end the war.’ Wars are rarely, effectively never, won through simple change points like that. They’re far too complex. Killing him would have taken the power away from Paul’s faction, which would have helped. But it wouldn’t have ended the war. That said, the additional power would have been so helpful that not taking a chance at it would have been… not the best decision. But if it was the decision that you made, I would have stood by it.”

“You are so… strange, Edmund Talbot,” she sighed, smiling. “You always think of the future, don’t you?”

“If you start living in the past you’re already on the way to the grave,” Edmund commented, then smiled. “You could stay for dinner; McCanoc won’t be here tonight; he’s been running into little traps we’ve set along the road.”

“Unfortunately, I need to get back,” she said, patting him on the cheek. “I’ll stop by the aid station on my way back and check on Rachel. Do me a favor; don’t come to my tender ministrations tomorrow. They won’t be so tender.” With that she waddled off to find one of the ox carts.

“Will do,” Edmund replied, picking the sketch back up. As she walked away he set it back down and sighed. “HERZER!”

“Yes, Baron,” the triari called from the far side of the camp.

“Find McGibbon, I’ve got to pass some supplementary orders.”

When the two were there he told them of Sheida’s request but not the reason. “I know why she’s asking and I’ve agreed to abide by her wishes. He is not to be killed. Understood.”

“Yes, sir,” Herzer said, reluctantly.

“Why in the hell not?” McGibbon asked. “You know what he’s done!”

“Yes, I do,” Edmund said evenly. “And the reason is, I gave you an order. Are you going to abide by it and enforce it? Or am I going to have to ask Steinweggen to take over command?”

McGibbon’s face worked but then he nodded. “You know I’ll follow your orders, Edmund. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“None of us do,” Edmund replied. “But it’s necessary.”

“Permission to speak, sir?” Herzer said.

“You’re not a recruit anymore, Herzer,” Talbot said with a smile.

“Does Dr. Daneh know about this?” Herzer asked.

“Yes,” Edmund said.

“Uhmm…” Herzer tried to figure out a way to phrase it then shrugged. “Did she approve?”

“You’ll have to ask her,” Edmund replied. “When you get a chance.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now, go spread the word.”

“One last question; I know it will come up,” McGibbon replied. “Can we at least wound him a little?”

“I doubt we’ll be able to capture him if we don’t,” Edmund replied. “But the person who kills him will answer to me.”

Herzer checked the guard posts after dinner then headed back to his packs. When he reached them he saw Bast laid out on his fur rug and he remembered that it was, in fact, hers.

“Come to reclaim your property?” he asked with a smile.

“Only if you want to call yourself that, lover,” she replied with a light in her eyes.

“Bast… this is not a good idea,” he said, squatting by the fur.

“One thing that you need to learn is that except when people are actively trying to kill you,” she said, leaning up to kiss him, “this is always a good idea.”

“I’ve got responsibilities,” he temporized. “And I’m not going to do it right here in front of everyone.”

“We’ll cover up,” she said with a grin, flipping his blanket over her legs. “It’s getting cold anyway. Come over here and warm me up.”

Herzer took off his armor and crawled in between the fur and the blanket, wrapping her in his arms. As he did he realized that they were not by any stretch of the imagination alone. There were couples among the militia and the archers and he was pretty sure he heard some murmurings from the direction of Deann’s usual place. And Cruz wasn’t next to him for that matter.

“I hope like Mithras the sentries are paying attention to their business,” he muttered as between the two of them they got him out of his uniform.

“I’ll go check on them when you’re asleep,” she murmured, pulling him down for another kiss.

“Thank you,” he said, letting his hand wander down her side and watching the shiver it elicited. “I think I love you.”

“And I love you as well,” she murmured. “But love is not a single, perfect, emotion. You love Cruz as well.”

“What?” he asked, sitting up. “I mean, he’s a buddy, but…”

“But you are very het, my dear,” she smiled, pulling him back down. “Don’t let in so much cold air! But when you fight, you fight for your friends, for your comrades, to keep them alive as much as yourself. Yes?”

“Yes,” he said, “but…”

“This, too, is love,” she said, smiling. “Honor and courage are so often an expression of love. When I saw you, the first time, I saw in you a great capacity for love. Well, and, also, I thought: My that’s a big boy, I wonder if he’s to scale.”

Herzer chuckled and butted her with his head. “And were you… pleased?”

“Ecstatic,” she replied. “But love is what it’s all about. Do you love the ‘Kingdom of Free States’?”

“Well…”

“Okay, do you love Raven’s Mill?”

He thought about that for a while. A group of strangers, survivors of disaster, thrown together in the wilderness. But…

“Yes,” he said and then understood.

“So you could run away,” she said. “It’s possible that tomorrow you will die. But you do not. You stay. For your comrades, for your town, for your honor. This is love.”

“If I desert, the penalty is death,” Herzer pointed out.

“Does that bother you?” Bast chuckled. “Really?”

“No,” he admitted.

“Love is what has driven soldiers into wars throughout the centuries. There are times when fear overcomes it, and then they have to be prodded into battle. And there are conscript armies driven forth by fear or for having nothing better in their lives. And there are those who simply like the killing; McCanoc is one such. But they make poor soldiers. It is the ones who love something, who go clear eyed into battle for it, who are the fiercest killers. Sometimes they have loved the wrong things. Jihads and pogroms and Holocausts. Hate mixed in with love. But to bring a soldier to the place of battle mostly requires a love of something. They may love something greater than themselves, but they must love. The greatest warriors are the greatest lovers. And I saw in you greatness.”

“Thank you,” he said, quietly.

“Now, no more talk,” she whispered in his ear. “Let us do.”