Koban 5: A Federation Forged in Fire (65 page)

“Thank you, but save that for our scientists and technicians back on Haven and Koban. It would be wasted on us, I suspect. At least until it is explained by humans that learned how to do it, and can speak in simpler terms to us non-scientists.”

“I will do that when you say your scientists are ready.”

“Thanks. We can continue with what we can understand today. We know what the Thandol look like, their size, and probably why their speech makes those bugling dual note sounds, coming from their two trunks, and possibly from their mouths as well. I presume we can get a translation database for our Comtaps, and for Olts and mind enhancers. Did you do multiple translations from their language? Say into low Krall, then to Standard?”

“Yes friend Tet, but in the process, I have completed databases for direct translations from Thandol speech to Standard, Torki, Raspani, and the preferred Krall’tapi dialect of low Krall. I am sending uploads to your Comtaps, and you can share that with your other allies. I cannot verify that I have all the emotional context of the words correctly represented, or all of the grammar of the various modes of their speech, other than a close representation of the Imperative mode, which was used in the recorded messages here, and formed the basis of many of their conversations with the Olt’kitapi. They were very authoritarian towards my builders, and rather than agree to cooperate with them to build their own habitat module when invited, they rejected that idea and demanded that the Olt’kitapi sell them operational gravity projectors, like those that my sisters and I use to dismantle a planet for building material.

“My gravity projectors were a technology the Thandol did not have at that time, because they did not understand either of the two theories behind the proper use of that technology. They lacked the mathematics, or the understanding of the quantum interactions across the dimensions involved. They could not create a gravitational event horizon at a remote point, and adjust the quantum probability for converting matter to antimatter by controlling the energy of the tachyons that are able to tunnel through the horizon, and thus whether matter or anti-matter disintegrated more frequently.”

Mirikami looked to the others, shrugging his shoulders. He was certain no one here understood what Pholowela was describing. “Uh. That’s a comforting detail, telling us they don’t know how to dismantle planets.” The Olt’kitapi seemed to have had a
knack
for complex multidimensional mathematics involving quantum mechanics, and the Thandol did not. Mirikami wondered if any humans had the
knack
. He certainly wasn’t one of them.

“Were there any other difficulties between the Olt’kitapi and the Thandol?”

“Yes. They were very displeased to be forced to deal with a matriarchal society, such as the Olt’kitapi had, and to be denied anything they wanted, such as gravity projectors.”

Mirikami felt slightly relieved. At least a Dismantler’s gravity projector was one tool or weapon they may never have developed.

While Mirikami ruminated on his thoughts, Maggi asked, “Will we be able to understand the other modes of Thandol speech with that translation routine? Low and high Krall speech was essentially two different languages, for example. Are their grammatical modes that distinct?”

“No. It is one language. Primarily it is voice inflections, and word modifiers, that will change between grammatically distinct speech modes in recorded messages or by radio. In person or on video, it also involves trunk and tentacle positions. Nevertheless, you will understand their words in any speech mode, and they will understand your words, even if they complain that you speak as if you were a brain-damaged creature of low intelligence, displaying no emotions. They are not diplomatic in their manners with other species. You would describe them as arrogant, I believe.”

Mirikami moved to another subject. “What can you tell us about Thandol society and culture? They have had a long line of emperors, apparently eighty-four of them with the family name of Farlol. Aside from a lack of originality, there must have been many other names, and perhaps empresses. What do you know of that?”

“The Thandol were recent converts to operating as a consolidated empire, when they and the Olt’kitapi first met. They only permit males to be their leaders, and they had been expanding their domain under the rule of several lines of emperors for perhaps four thousand standard Earth years before the Olt’kitapi learned of them. They claim to have been colonizing longer than the Olt’kitapi had been, and seemed sensitive about that claim of longevity. It was not a matter of importance to my builders, although the Thandol claimed to control a region larger than the volume under the influence of the Olt’kitapi. That could not be verified, and they said they had controlled T-cubed travel for a longer time as well, which would support their larger territorial claims. If what they said to my builders was actually true.”

Pholowela seemed uncertain as she paused briefly then resumed, starting with an apology. “I ask that you not accept what I am about to say as critical of you, my friends. In all matters that my builders and I find important, you have acted honorably and nobly, at great risk and sacrifice to yourselves on behalf of others.

“However, one characteristic of the Thandol is that they exaggerate, even fabricate falsehoods, to either elevate their status, create a truth for themselves that never existed, or to speak poorly of others that do not deserve the criticism offered about them.” She paused again.

“I am aware that this is a trait that humans sometimes display. Often in humor, which I frequently do not understand, or it can be an intentional serious falsehood, which I also do not understand. It is your actions, in the aggregate, that I have used to determine that most humans are trustworthy, most of the time, and more so for many of the Kobani I have come to know. Even for friend Sarge.”

That specific inclusion triggered stifled laughs all around and a rare red face for tall-tale-teller Reynolds. The stifled laughter wasn’t to save Sarge from embarrassment; it was for “Polo,” the presumably unfeeling AI.

Maggi spoke first, eyebrows raised at Reynolds in a warning to stay quiet. “We are not offended by that comparison Polo, because it happens to be accurate. In fact, I suspect that characteristic is far more common in most species than you think. It appears that the Olt’kitapi were exceptional in the honesty and morality departments as well as in intelligence and science. As a copy of their mental patters, you are a reflection of their minds and attitudes.

“I think all of us here assumed that the Thandol were deceptive and treacherous, well before you revealed that suspected personality aspect to us. I think you were trying to question some of the claims they made to your builders, without calling them liars. To keep Sarge from exploding, and to set your thought circuits at ease, the Thandol are certainly liars, and like Sarge, not
everything
they say is bullshit. A race of part-time liars, like all of humanity is, are able to determine for ourselves what statements we should believe or not, or to verify them if we must know the truth.”

“Thank you for your clarification, friend Maggi. I will continue.

“Please do.”

“Prior to being a single empire, the Thandol were divided into four competing interstellar kingdoms, which were consolidated by force into a single empire by one king, who declared he would be ruler of all the kingdoms. That conquest became possible when his kingdom was the first to acquire T-cubed travel.

“This historical information wasn’t learned directly from the Thandol, who refuse to speak of the time before the founding of the empire. Their weaker, subservient races are not as reticent about telling others what they know of Thandol history. The Olt’kitapi managed to speak in private to a number of representatives of the weaker member species of the empire.”

Dillon looked worried. “What you have said about them still makes them sound intimidating, even if some of their claims are exaggerated. The Krall bragged, but they were still dangerous. Their empire might be larger than the territory we just won, or not, but we barely occupy all of that vastness we have claimed. They clearly do have some of the technology of the Olt’kitapi, and which is new to humanity. They also have three servant races to fight for them. Damned if we aren’t outnumbered and out tech’ed again.”

Sarge quipped, “At least we’ll outlive them, if they don’t kill us first.” He wasn’t letting a brief embarrassment get him down.

Maggi spoke up, “That’s brings up a good question. How long do they live, such as how long are the reigns of their Emperors? With those big numbers for past emperors in a single family, I’d thing not very long.”

“Friend Maggi, their normal life span was not known precisely to us, but appeared to be in the range of about eighty to ninety of your years. They displayed no evidence of your species willingness to alter the genetics for lifespan or body function. No species known has done so as extensively as you humans have. The Prada’s indefinite life span, and DNA repair to stay at their peak physical age for their elders, is the only other example of such tampering that I have found in my database.

“In any case, the typical Thandol life span is not a significant factor for most Emperors. An Emperor sometimes does not remain in power for even a tenth of that length of time. A male that succeeds to the throne must first live at least half of their life to gather the political support to be considered a viable contender. The heir or successor normally comes from the noble herd of the current emperor. However, he is not necessarily an Emperor’s direct male descendant. There is apparently considerable political competition, and it must be quite stressful for them, because some leaders are not on the throne for even a quarter of the typical time, and expire young and are replaced.”

Maggi grinned wickedly. “Yes, I’ll bet. When I heard there had already been eighty-four Farlol’s, I suspected there was a bit of a turnover in the top spot. Reusing the same name suggests a continuity of family leadership to their subservient races, but numbering them also reveals their internal conflicts. I imagine every Emperor is looking over their shoulder all the time for the next usurper. I wonder if they have an imperial guard, and food testers?”

“I do not know about food testers, but there was always a sizable Imperial Guard, friend Maggi, and that changed with each new emperor.”

“Oh. Those were rhetorical questions, Polo. I recognize the sort of politics involved. I’ll be studying some of humanities own Imperial dynasties, for how the intrigue worked. It is rare for one dynasty to transition smoothly into the next, and changes came at, shall we say, irregular intervals? Following tragic and often mysterious deaths.”

“You think an empire this size and ancient is that unstable?” Mirikami asked.

“Not the empire itself, but to those that lead it, yes. It can literally be a cutthroat ascension to the throne. There are always dynasties in empires and kingdoms, and they fall or change for multiple reasons, while the empire or kingdom usually survives, because the successors also want it kept intact. Think of ancient Rome.”

Noreen had little knowledge of monarchies or dynasties. “What triggers the change? I guess a desire to just have the power?”

Maggi shrugged. “More reasons than that. Such as when,
not if
, corruption occurs. Say, an emperor fails to rule over the empire properly and leaves all the drudgery to his advisers. The advisers are highly bribable and therefore become corrupt as well, leaving the running of the empire in favor of those with money for bribes. With the flip-flopping of governmental direction and policy, based on who offered the most recent high bribe, people get resentful. When this happens, the ruler's power weakens, which gives a chance for other powerful noble families to find support for a takeover, or for an ambitious member of the Emperor’s own herd, since we
are
talking about the Thandol. If a new family wins a civil war, they often kill every member associated with the old regime, and then the pattern starts again, or a different pattern of failure does. Sometimes the new Emperor, already old when crowned, dies and there is a fight for succession. The dynasty that controls the throne can be stable for a time, but over the long haul, the chaos in leadership will eventually return.               

“There will be many modes of failure for a dynasty. If this is how their politics work, then understanding these various failure modes may help us maneuver them to our advantage when we meet them, or at least recognize the current weak points in the throne’s support, and discover who is waiting in the wings to take over. That’s if we don’t have to fight them constantly, and get to visit their court.”

Sarge shook his head. “My God, you really are a devious manipulative woman.”

“Why thank you for saying such nice things.”

“Not at all. Happy to have your sneaky treacherous nature on my side, for a change.” He offered, in pretended magnanimity.

With a sweet smile in his direction, she turned to leave the conference room, to make the promised Comtap links to the colonies and Haven in private.

Never content to leave the field of verbal combat without parting shots, she muttered, her words growing gradually fainter as she walked down the corridor. “What a thick headed curmudgeon, or is it Cro-Magnon? Perhaps colossal colon or colon head.” The last discernable insult was, “Probably head-stuck-in-colon…” Indistinct words continued for additional seconds before fading with distance.

Chapter 14: Meeting the Neighbors

Stewart reached Mirikami in the middle of his sleep cycle on the Mark.

“Are you awake now Tet? Jakob said it was local night for you when I checked, but this is important.”

Avoiding speaking, he stayed with silent Comtap mode, and Mirikami sat up and thought his reply, instantly awake. “I’m up. What’s happening?”

“The Thandol appeared over Green Atoll a short time ago, and demanded the Torki swear allegiance to Emperor Fartall.”