Spirit of Empire 4: Sky Knights (18 page)

Food came, food which took Havlock by surprise. He had expected a sumptuous meal, wonderful food such as they had been eating on the road with the caravan, but each of them received only a large bowl of gruel with a few pieces of meat stirred in. Havlock tasted his and admitted to good flavor, but the food was definitely not a high point of the day.

Atiana noticed, as she seemed to notice everything around her. “The food is not to your liking?” she asked.

“Actually, it tastes good,” he said sheepishly. “We had more variety with the caravan.”

“I expect you did. My kingdom is on siege rations until you have completed your work.”

“Our work—yours and mine,” he replied instantly.

She nodded. “As you will. The food before you is better than most here receive. My fighting men need and deserve a few morsels of meat each day.”

Havlock nodded. He had not sensed the same issue with King Tennisol, but that did not mean it was not there. He decided the whole planet was on short rations. He shook his head in partial defeat. There was just no way he could help the whole planet. Not yet, and maybe not even when the rest of the marines arrived. A thousand shuttles would barely dent the problems this planet had ahead of it.

“I hope we can have your farmers back in their fields in a few months,” he said.

“We’ve already missed this season. They’ll be ready for spring planting.”

“We’ll do our very best, but I can’t promise complete safety for them.”

She stared hard at him, her mind considering what he’d said. She looked to Captain Turmae in frustration, then back to Havlock with hooded eyes. “You raise our hopes, then dash them? I had thought better of you. It’s clear you do not see the problem in its fullness.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“No, I do not offer pardon. Open your eyes, Sky Lord. My kingdom is not just the homes and businesses and roads within the city. I need my farmers and craftsmen back in their towns, not here in the city. I need my sailors and traders transporting goods. The towns and farms and boats are the true wealth of my kingdom. Without them, we’ll starve. Worse, sickness will consume us. Already, the city is severely overcrowded. Illness spreads like wildfire under such conditions.”

He had known he would eventually have to clear the smaller towns of gleasons, but so soon? No, he had not known that at all, and he now saw that he should have seen it. Galborae had hinted at the issue. He needed to pay closer attention to the man. Some sky lord he was turning out to be. He truly felt overwhelmed at the magnitude of the problem here.

“I stand corrected, Your Majesty,” he said, rising to his feet and bowing his head to her. “It’s true, I do not fully appreciate the natures of your daily lives, but I believe you’re a leader your people are lucky to have. I’m counting on you to teach me, to lead me in the right direction.” He looked around at the rest of the room but kept his voice low, addressing only her. “Together, I believe we will prevail. In the short term I can offer assistance with healing and eventually food, but in the long term it will take all of us acting together to get through this. I believe the first step is one you have to take on your own. You have to manage your injuries. Your people need you to be well and strong. So do I.”

“And to do that I have to leave,” she stated.

“You do,” he said, nodding. “Tonight would be a good time to get started. You have far to go. I am told you might be gone for several days.”

“And what will you be doing during that time?”

“With your permission, teaching your men how to use our weapons, how to kill gleasons more efficiently. And I hope to organize caravans to the other three kingdoms in your province.”

“And what of other provinces?”

“Do they matter?”

Her forehead creased. “Of course they matter.”

“I had thought them your enemies.”

She rolled her shoulders uncomfortably. “We have our disagreements, but no one deserves what the demons have done to us. If it is as you say, that all the provinces suffer the same fate, then yes, they matter to me.”

The two of them stood face to face before a room of people who had become silent. He turned and looked at his marines, then along the long row of local knights. The small portions of food had long since disappeared. Everyone was focused on the queen and the sky lord.

Looking not at her but at her men, he said, “I can’t speak for what went on here before we came. I get the impression Queen Atiana is new to the throne. You men are lucky to be blessed with such a fine leader. It’s the job of everyone in this room to make sure she has many more days ahead of her to lead us. My men stand with you. In time, when we have proven ourselves to you, I believe you will call us allies. Until then, I ask that you give us a chance to prove ourselves. We bring strangeness, but we bring fighting tools we will share with you. If we stand together, we will defeat the demons.”

He turned back to Atiana. “Your Majesty, we will teach your men how to use our fighting tools and we will do our best to heal the many wounds I see here. We might be able to help with other wounds and illnesses among your people, as well, but all this takes time. I think your men would agree with me that more than anything else we need you alive. Let us take you to our special healer, and let us do it tonight. The sooner you go, the sooner you return.”

“I cannot leave tonight. Maybe in the morning. I’m told you will stay here.”

Nodding, he said, “I am a willing hostage.” With a grim smile, he added
,
“In truth, my men know what to do without my guidance.”

Her lips firmed, and she turned to Captain Turmae. She did not need to speak the question in her mind.

He took a deep breath and lifted his head. “A hostage serves no purpose against the power of his weapons. Let him accompany you. I will stay by your side, as well.”

“As you always have, my friend.”

When Havlock, Queen Atiana, and Captain Turmae boarded a shuttle, Sergeant Kori waited for them with another medic by her side. They continued up to sick bay, but Kori held Havlock back.

“Sir, I have to sedate them before we reach the transporter.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Really? Why?”

“Because they’ll be exposed to nonhumans of every description there. That’s asking too much of them.”

Working with different species had become so commonplace within the Empire that he had given it no thought. He had made certain only humans showed themselves on Tranxte, but that meant a higher percentage of nonhumans remained aboard the transporter. Sergeant Kori was right. As much as he admired the quickness of Queen Atiana, this would be asking too much of her, and as for Captain Turmae, well . . . there was just no way.

“I see what you mean. Do you have a plan?”

“She trusts me, so I feel a little guilty, but I’m going to tie her sedation to her surgery. We can put her out for the whole time she’s with us. As for Captain Turmae, that’s a much harder call. If he’s out for the whole time, he’ll never forgive us.”

“You’re right. He won’t. He needs to feel like he’s protecting his queen.” Havlock’s lips thinned. “Put him out for a day, and I’ll deal with him when he wakes up.”

A quick brush by each of them with an injector and both went out. Kori returned to her work in the city with Milae while the other medic monitored both patients.

Sergeant Hawke stepped up to him as they headed toward the transporter in orbit. “Sir, it’s not my place, but I’d like to make a suggestion.”

“I’m open to any and all suggestions, Sergeant. What is it?”

“I’ve been giving this a lot of thought. The queen is in a position to make a lot of difference for us.”

Havlock nodded. “Agreed.”

Hawke took a deep breath, then said, “Give her the full treatment, sir.”

Havlock’s brow furrowed. “The full treatment?”

“She’s quick, sir. We all saw that. In her mind her world is flat, and it ends at the nearest ocean, but despite that she absorbed everything we threw at her yesterday. Give her a view of her world from orbit and you’ll open doors in her mind that we’ll all benefit from.

Havlock considered, then looked back sharply at Hawke. “It could just as easily turn her against us.”

Hawke frowned. “Do you really believe that? After how she just took everything in yesterday? Do it, and I think you’ll not just gain an ally, you’ll gain a partner.”

“She listens to you. Do you want to do it?”

Hawke shook his head. “I would, but it needs to be the Sky Lord, sir.”

* * * * *

Atiana went into immediate surgery aboard the transporter, and Turmae went to a treatment room. When he awoke the following day, Havlock was by his side.

“What happened?” Turmae demanded, waking up fully as the sedative wore off.

“A slight deception, truth be told,” Havlock answered. “Queen Atiana’s wounds have been sealed, and she is now undergoing a special healing treatment. I’ll take you to her when you’re ready.”

Turmae sat up carefully and put his feet on the floor, then inched his way to a standing position. He struggled initially with his first steps, and Havlock went to his side and took an arm, concerned. He had been assured that the sedative would wear off completely.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

Turmae took a few steps, then stood taller. “I’m an old man and have not been kind to my body. I go through this every morning.”

Havlock felt like he’d been slapped. How could they have forgotten to check the man? He made a mental note for Sergeant Kori to check all the fighting men. They were not exactly the type to complain about wounds and illness.

“I’ll take you to her, then it’s your turn with my healers,” he said.

“We’ll see. No more sleeping on duty for me.”

Atiana was in a tank, the exterior opaque except when medical staff needed to examine her. All Captain Turmae could see of her was her head. The whole room and its surroundings frightened him, and when she remained unresponsive to his calls he turned angry eyes on Havlock.

“She’s just sleeping, Captain.”

“Wake her up.”

“No. Our healer made repairs to her body that went deep. We’re making her sleep until they heal. She would be in too much pain to wake her now. Trust me.”

Turmae looked around at the whiteness of the room, the sterility. “How can I trust you? You tricked me into sleeping. How long was I asleep?”

“Only a day.”

Turmae’s eyes widened. “A full day? I have never slept for a full day. No wonder I’m so stiff. Why did you trick me?”

“Because I would not see a leader forced to show fear in front of his queen.”

“A strong word, fear.”

“It is. We have brought you to a place you can’t even imagine. There are creatures here who would frighten the most hardy soldier. I’ll show you as much as you want, but it has to be done carefully. I know how difficult it was for you on the sky boat. Here, it’s far worse.”

“Few things are worse than falling from a great height.”

“But some things are. You are on a sky ship that is much, much larger than the last one. It’s like a city in the sky. It’s much, much higher in the sky as well.”

Turmae looked around the room. “Where are the windows?”

“There are no windows. It’s a ship of war, completely armored.” He changed the subject. “It’s clear that you’re close to Queen Atiana. She listens to you.”

“She’s like a daughter to me.”

“Well, you and I are warriors. We should not waste time while she heals. My time is your time. What would you like to do?”

Turmae scratched his beard. “An open-ended offer like that? Let me think.” After a time, he said, “I’m old and fixed in my ways, but Atiana forces me to learn like a youngster. She’ll want your weapons, and she’ll want your methods of fighting the demons with them. I can’t offer her guidance until I learn to use them myself.”

“We’ll teach you. We have a place for training with weapons on this sky ship, but getting there is not a simple thing. It’s a long walk, and you will see things that frighten you.” Turmae started to object, but Havlock cut him off. “I, too, would be frightened. You and I are warriors. We know fear, and we know how to deal with it. Nevertheless, we do not seek it.”

“You say we’re on a sky ship. How long a walk can it be?”

“This ship is larger than the great wall that surrounds your city. Size is not the problem. The problem is that the ship is full of demons.”

Turmae’s brow furrowed as he shook his head.
“What?
You make no sense.”

Havlock nodded, understanding the man’s confusion. “They are not the same demons we’re fighting. I use the word demon only because you will believe them demons. They are, in fact, my friends. Every single one is a fellow warrior, but some of them are not men. Where I come from there are many kingdoms, and the people in some of those kingdoms are not men. They are intelligent and civilized, and they have come here to help you, but it will take you a while to know that.”

Turmae reached a hand out to Atiana and brushed stray hairs from her face, then he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. When he looked back to Havlock, he said, “For her I will do whatever I must.”

“Very well,” Havlock said. He spoke into his communicator, then lifted his eyes to Turmae. “I have called four warriors: the captain of this sky ship, Atiana’s healer, and two soldiers. All of them are my friends. None of them look like you and me, but they are some of the smartest and best fighters we have. Keep reminding yourself that they are my friends.”

A little while later a voice sounded from outside the door. “Welcome aboard, Captain Turmae. I am Captain M’Kind, captain of this fine ship.”

Turmae turned questioning eyes to Havlock. In response, Havlock said, “Does he sound normal to you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“He is not human, but he is intelligent and very, very civilized. Prepare yourself.”

An enormous insect who looked like a four-foot long overcooked sausage entered walking on ten hands. Two multifaceted eyes saw in all directions at once, though Turmae did not yet know that. Two long antennae protruded from the creature’s head, antennae that at the moment were undergoing a rapid preening by the creature’s two upper hands. Sharp, nasty looking mandibles protruded from both sides of its mouth. The forward segment of its body lifted, freeing two more hands.

Turmae’s sword cleared its scabbard of its own volition. Havlock stepped forward, partially blocking Turmae. “Captain Turmae, please meet Captain M’Kind.”

Turmae could not speak a reply.

Havlock waited until it looked to him like Turmae might be able to focus on words again and said, “We call his people the Schect. Let me point out a few things about our captain. Notice the ten hands. Each of them is capable of wielding a weapon or of writing or crafting, but since the arms are not very long, they do not have your strength.”

He saw that Turmae’s eyes were following his words, so he continued. “To compensate for that lack of strength, his people learned to think before engaging their enemies. They are exceptional battle planners, and I am lucky to have him. Captain M’Kind, in addition to captaining this great sky ship, is monitoring the performance of my fighters on the ground. If and when he sees room for improvement, he lets me know. I might also point out that his eyes are special. They see in all directions at once. It’s impossible to sneak up on him. He is truly a warrior in every respect.”

The Schect scurried forward a few steps and stopped. The preening stopped, as well. “I know how I appear to you, but I am not offended,” M’Kind said. “We’ll get to know each other better in time. Know that I am a warrior just like you, and know I have come to help you fight the demons.”

M’Kind paused, giving Turmae time to absorb his words, then added, “Your generation has been tested as no other before you. Your stand against the demons will be remembered by your people through the ages.” The center of his body rose up and he curled his head down, a schect’s way of bowing. “I am honored to assist you in any way I can.”

Turmae’s eyes rose to meet Havlock’s gaze, imploring. Havlock stepped over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “It only hurts for a little while, Captain. He is just as much a person as you or I. He has family and friends, fellow warriors and enemies, and he bleeds when wounded. See beyond his looks if you will.”

Turmae looked over to Atiana. “I . . . I will try,” he forced out.

“Let me introduce Atiana’s healer. But first, will you put away your sword?”

Turmae stared at him, then sheathed his sword. M’Kind scurried off to the side as another voice sounded from the corridor.

“I am Healer Jaffey,” the voice said. “I am honored to meet a warrior of such distinction. I have never personally stood against a gleason, and I hope I never will.”

People from Earth would have instantly recognized the creature who stepped around the partition: a devil if ever there was one. Bright red from head to toes, its wicked, narrow face with glaring eyes and sharp teeth fulfilled every child’s nightmare. A bony, jutting chin ended in two short tusks, one angling out from each side. Curved horns on the top of his head and a long forked tail completed the picture. At first glance, the only civilized thing about the creature was the lab coat he wore.

Turmae’s hand went to the hilt of his sword, but after a short, internal struggle he dropped it back to his side.

Jaffey held out a hand with long, delicate fingers. “I know what you see in me and I know what you believe, but know this: I am a healer, and I am a warrior like you. Everyone on this ship is a warrior.” Red eyelids over equally red eyes blinked slowly. “Your queen is doing quite well by the way.”

Turmae was being tested as never before. The words coming from the creature seemed appropriate, but his mind screamed at what his eyes beheld.

Jaffey took one more step forward. “With your permission, I need her for three more days. Her healing will be nearly complete then, and the rest of her healing will not need my attention. Can her people be without her for so long?”

Turmae struggled with the words but finally said, “They will wonder. Less time would be better.”

“Maybe in the short term, but considering the many years ahead of her, three days is minimum. Your fingers hurt, I see,” he said referring to the swollen knuckles on Turmae’s hands.

Turmae blinked, the subject throwing him completely off balance. “They are what they are,” he said gruffly. “I am not a young man.”

“And I have spent too many years around warriors. All of you abuse your bodies, and the ravages of age make it worse.” He carefully lifted an arm and moved it from side to side as if he had a sword in his hand. “Follow my arm with your sword,” he commanded.

Turmae’s sword came out and smoothly cut the air as it mimicked Jaffey’s motions.

“Now with the other arm,” Jaffey commanded.

“Uh . . . no.”