Ammonite Stars (Omnibus): Ammonite Galaxy #4-5 (13 page)

Her mother gave her a grateful look. “And then the other donor apprentices you brought back have stepped up. Most of them are doing research work now, and trying to get our industry up to scratch, but they find the time to give some classes every day. It is of vital importance that the younger generation should become more knowledgeable. Otherwise, all the effort to get Kwaide out of the dark ages will have been for nothing.”

“And what is happening with the Elders?” asked Six.

Cimma grimaced. “They still haven’t come around to the idea of a New Kwaide. They sit in Benefice lamenting and scheming how to overthrow us, determined not to learn anything new, and adamant that what we are teaching here is in some way heretical. I don’t think they will ever accept what has happened.”

“They will have to,” said Diva flatly. “What other options are open to them?”

Six looked dubious. “They can plot our downfall.”

Diva gave a snort of derision. “What can a few old men do to change things now? Anyway, they surrendered. They signed an armistice. They can’t go back on that now.”

“Hmm. I wouldn’t put it past them.” Six remained unconvinced.

“Bah! You worry too much!” Diva turned to Cimma. “Is there any Mesteta wine left? I really need a bath.”

Six looked heavenwards, and was heard to mutter something about waste, and the benefits of standing under one of the natural waterfalls that formed torrents from the black peak.

Diva gave him a look of disbelief. “Only you could think standing in water known to petrify objects is better than a warm Mesteta bath!” she scoffed, with a shake of her head. “Honestly!”

Six ignored her. They had been joined by many Kwaidians who were pleased to see Six – he was still something of a hero to them. He was soon deep in conversation with a group of them, and fell behind the rest of the group. Diva scowled, noticing that quite a few of those who fell in with his party were girls.

“… don’t you think, Diva?”

“—Err, sorry, Grace. I wasn’t paying attention. What did you say?”

Grace looked hurt. “How lucky we are that Vion is on Kwaide just now.”

“Is he? Fantastic. That means that Ledin will get the best attention straight away. I’m glad.” She forced herself to drag her eyes away from the excited band of followers around Six. “It will be great to see him again.”

Grace looked happy. “It will! I wonder how he and Mercy are getting on.”

Diva raised an eyebrow. “Why? Is there any reason they shouldn’t be getting on perfectly?”

“No-o-o. Of course not. I just meant … no, nothing.”

Diva grinned. “Regretting something, Grace?”

Grace turned a fierce shade of red and looked most indignant. “I am NOT!” she said.

Diva began to laugh. Grace looked like a Cesan tomato fruit. “Are you sure?” she asked with a wicked grin.

Grace threw Ledin’s pillow at her, leaving Ledin’s head bouncing around uncomfortably on the stretcher. He smiled stoically, which made Grace hang her head in shame, and forced her to scuttle in search of the pillow, dust it down and replace it gently under his neck. Diva fell about laughing.

“Oh, shut up, Diva!” said Grace crossly. “You know perfectly well that there is nothing between Vion and me.”

“Good old Doctor Nice!” Diva wasn’t done teasing yet. “You and he were
such
good friends.”

The red tinge extended hotly to Grace’s ears. “That was ages ago,” she muttered, wishing she could wring her friend’s neck.

Diva suddenly gave in. She had the feeling she had already gone too far. “Sorry. Ledin, don’t take any notice of me. Grace is right – it was a long time ago.”

Ledin nodded happily. He hadn’t heard a word.

At the entrance to the base camp, they were met by the doctor in person. He questioned Grace carefully about what had happened and then called to Six to leave the admiring group and come to give an eye-witness account.

“It sounds as if Ledin narrowly escaped a direct strike,” he said. “He was extremely lucky, because with his hands and feet so far apart on the rock face, he would have been a prime candidate for a step voltage strike. Either of those could have killed him outright. I think Arcan is correct, and that this was a shockwave which simply knocked him off the cliff. We have quite a well-equipped hospital up at the black peak now; it should be an easy matter to check that he has suffered no permanent damage.”

Ledin relaxed. He seemed to sense that Vion was not unduly worried about his condition. He nodded, and then pointed to his ears.

“The deafness? I am not very worried about that. Headaches and temporary deafness are common side effects of lightning blast. All that should disappear within a few more days.”

They all smiled. With that prognosis it was easier to watch Ledin being carried away on the stretcher. Grace slowly began to relax. Maybe she would try that Mesteta bath, too.

WITHIN TWENTY-FOUR HOURS it was clear that Ledin was on the way to recovery. All of the tests Vion had submitted him to had come up negative, and he was already feeling much better. He was even able to sit up in bed, although his hearing still hadn’t come back.

“Now you and I can go to Coriolis,” determined Diva.

Six blew a sigh. “Do we
have
to?”

“You said you would.”

“I know, but there are so many things to do here. They still could do with our knowledge, you know.”

“Yes, I’ve noticed how keen some of the girls are for you to advise them,” said Diva dryly. Six formed his expression into one of reproach to hide the inward surge of triumph he felt.

“Are they?” he managed, in a nonchalant tone.

Diva regarded him quizzically. “You didn’t notice?”

“I might have done,” he said blithely. “Why? Is it important?”

Diva’s face was a picture. “Of course it … isn’t. What do I care if you go around with some of the local girls?” She was definitely not amused.

“I can hardly put up a sign telling them all to stay away, now can I? I mean, half of Kwaide is female.” He tried to sound totally uninterested. “Couldn’t we put our trip off for another week or so? Ledin may not be out of the woods yet.”

“No we can’t. The longer we wait to perform the ceremony, and announce the rights of first-born, the more chance there is that one of the meritocrats will interpose a counterclaim. We can’t hang around here any longer, however much you would like to.”

“All right. Pity, though, I had promised Kaileen I would help her with some of her homework. She is a bit confused about quantum mechanics.”

“Surely she can find someone else to help her? Why should she pick on you?”

Six gave a shrug. “Perhaps she thinks I’m the best choice. Just because
you
don’t, doesn’t mean somebody else won’t.”

Grace held her breath and watched Diva’s face as a range of expressions galloped across it. The Coriolan girl opened and closed her mouth twice before coming up with an adequate reply.

“I never said I didn’t appreciate you. Of course I do. You are the father of my children.”

“Yes, but Kaileen seems to like me for no reason at all.”

They stared into each other’s eyes and Grace could have sworn that she saw flames leap between them. Finally, Diva looked down.

“Will you come to Coriolis, then?”

Six examined her thoughtfully. “I suppose we
could
go over now,” he said. “As long as I can come back here afterwards.”

“Of course,” said Diva politely. When Almagest freezes over, she thought.

“All right, then. As long as you don’t expect me to dress up like all your Coriolan meritocrats. I am not doing that.”

“Of course not. You can wear whatever you like.”

Six looked at her with suspicion. That dulcet tone was a sure sign that something was not quite right.

“You are not going to get me into one of your Coriolan Ceremonious Robes!”

“Only for the ceremony.” She held up her hands. “Your palace staff will expect you to.”

Six’s mouth dropped open. “My palace …
what?
”

“Staff. You know … people who look after you. Dress you, bathe you—”

“Nobody is going to bathe ME!” he said, apparently feeling this was motive for celebration. “I’m a Kwaidian.” There was a pause. “And anyway, how many staff will I have in this palace of mine?”

Diva began to count on her fingers, until a disbelieving snort from Six made her purse her lips deliberately and start again. Finally she seemed to reach the correct total, for she turned back to him. “Forty-two.”

“Forty-two?
Forty-two
? What? Is that a magic number or something?”

Diva had had enough. “Look, Six. It is bad enough for my parents to have to put up with you as my consort. Please don’t make it any worse. Do you think you can possibly manage to get through a week on Coriolis without causing any trouble?”

Six moved his head from side to side, looking up. “I
might
,” he hazarded. “But I am making no promises, mind.”

Diva drummed her fingers against Ledin’s bedstead. “Surely even you can go for seven days without rewriting history?”

Grace and Ledin exchanged meaningful glances. They weren’t so sure.

SIX LOOKED AROUND him, and gave a deep sigh. He knew he ought to feel pleased to be back on Coriolis, or at least pleased for Diva’s new acceptance on the planet, but in fact all he could feel was a prickling sense of discomfort which told him that he was not in the right place.

Diva turned to him with a beatific smile. “Home!” she said, closing her eyes momentarily to savour a long breath of the warm air. “Can’t you just feel that extra oxygen fizzing through your veins?”

Six muttered.

“—Six!
Don’t tell me you can’t see that this is the most beautiful planet in the system?” She started off along the straight road from the spaceport towards Mesteta, a walk of some five kilometres.

Six fell into step with her. “Kwaide is the most beautiful planet in the system,” he said loyally.

“Kwaide is a freezing block of icy rock populated by boneheads,” she told him severely. “No comparison with here at all. Look at the architecture! Look at the greenery!”

Six raised one eyebrow. “Do boneheads like me have the capacity to appreciate architecture?”

“Tskk! I never said
you
were a bonehead. No need to take offense.”

“I don’t go about criticizing your fellow countrymen, now do I?”

Diva gave a small frown. “All right,” she said, surprising him, “I apologize.” She put her head on one side as Six answered her with a mumble of words. “What was that you said?”

“I was just wondering if Sacras has collided with Almagest.”

“I am not incapable of apologizing, you know!”

“Well, you don’t exactly make a habit of it either!”

“That—” she gave him a look of earnest conviction, “—is because I am hardly ever wrong.”

Six gave a disbelieving laugh. “You are wrong at least fifty percent of the time.”

Diva stiffened, and her chin came up. “Says who?”

“Says the bonehead standing in front of you.”

“Well don’t. Who gave you the right to criticize me?”

“Excuse
me
, your haughtiness. I thought that would be a husband’s privilege.”

“Well, you are wrong. Husbands don’t have that privilege on Coriolis.”

Six muttered again, resulting in another sharp look. He grinned. “I don’t know why, but – having met your mother – that doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.”

“Now you are attacking my mother!” Diva raised her eyes towards the blue sky of her home planet. “She saved your life not so very long ago.”

“Yes. Big of her. You know, I have always had the feeling that Grace and I were just part of the package, and that if she could she would have left us to be cat-food.”

“You can hardly expect her to feel very much for—”

“—a couple of foreigners! … Diva, be careful. If you aren’t, you are going to end up thinking and feeling just like she does. And you aren’t that person.” Six looked pensively at the shape of a distant Mount Palestron in front of him. “At least, I hope you aren’t.”

Diva bristled again. “What do you mean? Take that back!”

Six turned to look her straight in the eye. “I think you should be very careful not to feel too comfortable here, is all. I know having the children was a … a huge change, and means your acceptance back in the fold, and I know that is very important to you, but don’t lose sight of who you really are, will you?”

“I know perfectly well who I am! I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“No, I guess you don’t.” He shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, I think if anybody should be careful of how they behave it is you.”

“What? Scared I’ll use the wrong fork?” Six’s brows had come alarmingly together.

“No-o-o, but you are Kwaidian, and that means … that means …”

Six stopped, and went very still. “Yes,” he said in a silky voice, “what exactly
does
that mean?”

“Well … you never had my … advantages …”

“You are right. Of course, whether they were advantages or not might depend on your viewpoint. Some people might think that you grew up pampered and spoiled.”

“How dare you! Of course they are advantages! You never lived in a civilized country.”

Six, not without effort, managed to stop himself from grinding his teeth together. The odd, out-of-place feeling was intensifying by the minute, and they hadn’t even got to the palace yet! “Then you will be able to show me what it is like.” He forced his voice into a pleasant tone. He was at least going to do his best to try to conform while he was here. He thought he probably owed that much to Diva.

“Honestly Six, I think you are determined not to like Coriolis. It is as if you don’t want to live in a luxurious palace or enjoy all the things that will go with it as my consort.”

“You know me, Diva. Too much richness makes me sick. I haven’t the stomach for it. But I will try to get used to a life of privilege, at least for a while.”

“You never know. You might end up enjoying it.”

Six remained unconvinced. “I
might
, I suppose.”

WHEN THEY FINALLY reached the opulent one-storey palace, it was just as Six remembered. He was surprised. So much had happened in his own life in the last couple of years that it was strange to see that other things had remained static. He found himself looking around with some interest.

A servant guarding the gate had sent minions in all directions when he spotted their arrival. One raced to a huge bell and began to toll out the news of the return of the prodigal daughter. One ran to the main entrance to the palace, to let Diva’s parents know of their arrival. And yet another hurried over to a large barracks which housed the guards. There, he presumably gave the alarm, for files of heavily armed soldiers began to pour out and line up on both sides of the main path up to the palace entrance. There was jostling between them, and much interest in the glances they gave Six. With his long experience, Six was easily able to detect a certain degree of disbelief and of disdain in those glances. He took a deep breath and did his best to look haughty, but it was not a trait he had been bred to. A sideways glance at Diva showed him what he already knew; she was in her element.

They made their way up to the palace entrance in state, and by the time they reached the main door, which was an enormous block of magmite, embossed in gold, Diva’s parents were standing there to welcome them.

“Welcome, Daughter.” They both inclined their heads slightly – an enthusiastic greeting, in Coriolan terms.

“Mother. Father.” Diva returned the greeting. Then she extended one arm, so that her hand indicated Six. “This is my consort, Six.”

Maximus Senate of Coriolis stifled a grimace. “Yes,” he said, “I know.” Six noted that in this case there was not even the slightest inclination of the head.

“Six. You are welcome.” Indomita did manage the tiniest of forward movements of her magnificent head, though Six would have missed it if he hadn’t been watching closely. He returned the honour, to exactly the same degree. Indomita’s eyes narrowed; she had been expecting a deeper reverence. She half-opened her mouth, thought better of it, and then indicated that they should precede her into the palace. Diva swept inside, and Six spent a few seconds exchanging polite hand signs of who should go first, before following.

Once inside, they were shown to a plush divan, richly covered with silk throws, and next to a table which was loaded with sweetfruits, and also held a bottle of the best Mesteta wine.

Six’s eyes brightened. Things were beginning to look up.

“Why is there wine on the table?” Diva demanded.

Six, who had already extended one hand to pick up a glass, withdrew it with an internal sigh.

“We thought that your consort … being a foreigner …” began her mother.

“He is a foreigner but not an infidel. He will use his Mesteta wine for bathing, not for drinking, thank you very much. I’m sorry, Six, did you say something?”

Six shook his head.

Indomita nodded. “As you wish, Daughter. We will issue the appropriate orders. But you must understand that this is the first time that a Coriolan meritocrat has married a Kwaidian.”

“Do you have a problem with that?” Diva demanded.

“Not per se, no. We are delighted to have grandchildren to sustain the current family hegemony in the politics of Coriolis.”

Six shifted in his seat. Why couldn’t this woman ever use normal words when she spoke?

“I have given you fifty grandchildren. That has never happened before either,” said Diva.

“I am aware. One, however, would have been adequate for our needs. Two could be considered a prudent contingency provision. Fifty seems a superabundance which might appear exorbitant – indeed, extravagant – to some compeers.”

Six found himself wishing that Grace had decided to come with them on this trip. At least then he would have had somebody to look at, somebody he knew would share his amusement at this walking dictionary. He tried to catch Diva’s eye, but his wife was glaring at her mother.

“You think forty-eight of my children are superfluous? What does that mean?”

“I was merely elucidating an estimation which many citizens of Coriolis may share.”

Diva frowned again. “Why should the citizens of Coriolis care how many children I have?”

Maximus gave a sharp laugh, and Indomita looked pained. “All your children will be entitled to superior category living here, will they not?” he said. “It is only to be expected that such a drain on the exchequer might raise … uncomfortable … questions amongst other meritocrats. Especially since your husband is a … err …”

“… a no-name,” finished Six.

“No offence meant.”

“I am not ashamed of being a no-name. In fact, I think it gave me rather a good start in life.”

Maximus stared at him in total disbelief, and even Diva’s mother raised one slim eyebrow. Their prejudice made Six prickle all over, but Diva broke in before he could elaborate.

“You are acting on a false assumption. Our children will not be brought to Coriolis to live. Only one will be chosen as an appropriate heir, and even he or she will not be allowed to live here in Mesteta until they are fourteen.”

“Then where will they live?”

“They are Xianthan citizens, and will live there.”

“Impossible!”

“Nevertheless, that is what will happen.”

“But … but all heirs to the meritocracy have always been brought up here, in Mesteta!”

“Then the customs will have to be changed. You should be glad. There will be no reason for our … compeers … to complain about the funding, will there?”

Indomita considered that for a moment. “True,” she said. Her husband gave an exasperated cough, but she held up a hand to quieten him, and he subsided after subjecting her to a long look. “That may well turn out to be to our advantage. I will, however, need to travel to Xiantha each year to supervise the progress made.”

Six shot Diva an ‘I-told-you-so’ glance. He fidgeted uncomfortably on the divan and wished he had gone to Kwaide instead of this place. Diva’s mother caught the movement and raised her eyebrow again, clearly finding him irritating.

Diva got to her feet. “Then we will retire to our chambers. I assume the heir’s palace has been prepared for me, and the consort’s for Six?”

“Naturally.” Indomita stood too but made no move to touch her daughter. “We will see you for the banquet this evening.”

Diva inclined her head. “That will be acceptable.”

“Your cousin, Tartalus, will be here.” Indomita paused for a moment. “He was most anxious to see you again. I think he was hoping to offer you an alternative proposal.”

Diva tossed her head and curled her lip. “My second cousin, you mean! Trust that opportunistic skunk! Just the sort of thing he would do. Hasn’t anybody been able to get rid of him yet?”

Her mother shook her head. “He set his sights on becoming part of the ruling family of Coriolis when he was little. I don’t think he will give up all those dreams now.”