Starhammer (41 page)

"You lack vital fluids? There is medical emergency!" Rhap Dimp turned to the Keeper who opened a small cabinet set into a wail. Inside were some modular boxes and a spherical water container.

Jon held the sphere up to his face. Water spurted out, straight into his face. He opened his mouth and took a drink. When he lowered the sphere the flow stopped.

In turn, he held the sphere to Owlcurl Dahn and Eblis Bey and bathed their faces in a little water.

The Keeper reached the end of a long interior dialogue between levels of programming. It decided to turn over command to the control chamber to the mote and the still functional comrade biped. The Keeper had a nagging housekeeping problem that might at last be attended to.

Light flashed from its eyes to Rhap Dimple, bathing the mote in code.

"The Keeper is turning over control of the Hammer to this unit. The Keeper is going out to deal with enemy cells."

"Enemy cells?"

"The machine is infested with them."

"Like the things that were inside M'Nee and Chacks and the rest?"

"Enemy cells!"

The iris door opened and the Keeper, protected in armor of flexible eternite, went out to end forever the energy drain in the engineering section.

Another screen brightened. A collection of wide-eyed humans in the ceremonial robes of the Congress of Diktats. At their center was a sturdy fellow with a red face and massive jowls. "I, Borgis Belan, speak on behalf of the Diktats of Earth. Who are you and what is all this about?"

Jon explained.

Belan's eyes grew wider still. "You have turned the Kbark nova? There is no life left on Laogolden?"

"The cult gave me no choice, they garrotted the Heir to the Imperiom right in front of us."

"But, what are we to do? How will we keep order?"

Another Diktat, a slender, brownskinned man wearing a narrow hat with no brim, spoke up in a sing song voice. "Diktat Belan does not relish the idea of a world without the laowon to back him up, you see."

The voice caused Eblis Bey to stir uneasily, but not enough to bring him round.

"I am the Diktat of Sumatra, I believe I know one of the members of your expedition. Is the man called Eblis Bey among you?"

"He is indeed, although he's resting for the moment. We have been traveling for many days."

"Incredible," the Sumatran Diktat said.

On another screen Battlegeneral Plezmarxsh reappeared. He announced that the new Heir to the Imperiom had been proclaimed and that he would be in communication in just a few seconds.

Jon waited breathlessly. Finally, the screen brightened with Innoo of Firgize's face. He stared at Jon Iehard's reciprocal image in obvious shock. Jon guffawed.

"Lord Innoo? Can it be you? The new Heir?"

"How?" Innoo was dumbfounded. "How has this happened? How have you perpetrated this terrible tragedy?"

"There are a number of things you will have to learn, Innoo of Firgize. Firstly, you will have to accept a radical reordering of the balance of powers between our peoples."

"They tell me you have destroyed Laogolden. That I have no choice but to negotiate with you, a feral slave! What have you done?" Innoo was distraught. Jon thought the young laowon lordling was doing rather well considering the circumstances.

"First Innoo, you must learn to call me Lord, I'm tired of being called a feral slave. Then you can begin with a proclamation of immediate freedom for all humans now held in bondage in laowon systems. Do you understand me, Innoo of Firgize? The days of laowon rule of humans are over!"