Ammonite Planets (Omnibus): Ammonite Galaxy #1-3 (56 page)

LEDIN AND THE other Kwaidians who had been left to defend the orbital platform were thirsty for information.

“We have been sitting up here like Xianthan turkeys in a cool pen,” he said, “and absolutely nothing has happened at all. Then your ship suddenly appears, First Six, with obvious signs of combat and no sign of you. We didn’t know what to think. I am glad to see that you have suffered no harm.”

Six touched fists with him in greeting, and gave one of his rare broad smiles. “Me too! There were a couple of sticky moments back there.”

“What about the nuclear missiles?”

“Safely destroyed. For the time being we don’t have to worry about a nuclear attack.”

Ledin’s face illuminated. “That is great news!”

Six tilted his head to one side. “Although they still have their conventional weapons, as I found out to my cost, and they are hard to evade.”

“How many ships are there altogether?”

“We tagged ten.”

“TEN?”

Six held up a hand. “I know,” he said, “we only have one and a half ships up against their ten. It isn’t going to be easy.”

“First Six, it is suicide!”

“Is there another way?”

Ledin and the others looked down. They knew that there was little else they could do.

“Then we must refuel as fast as we can, and patch up the Resistance so that she can fly.”

Ledin straightened up. “That is done, First Six. We need only refuel and replenish stocks on this ship. Two hours, and we will be ready to fly.” He looked at the console on the wall nearby, pushed a couple of buttons, and then gave his verdict. “The Sellites will be in range of conventional weapons in twelve hours.”

“Some are bound to get through,” mused Six. He looked up, and met Diva’s gaze directly. There was an unspoken question in his look.

“I will go down to the planet,” she said immediately.

“Thank you. Grace?”

“If you want, but wouldn’t I be of more use piloting, this time?”

Six shook his head. “Not this time, Grace. You and Diva …” His eyes met Diva’s once more, “will be of more use down on Kwaide. If you don’t mind …”

Grace nodded her acquiescence, and she and Diva prepared to take a shuttle pod down to the planet’s surface.

Then something occurred to her. “Six?” she said.

“Hmm?”

“We can fire weapons from the shuttle pods.”

There was a long pause. Grace got the impression that Six was thinking about more than just the logistics of her statement.

He gave a sigh. “Yes, but only fairly light calibre.”

“They might be enough to explode a missile?”

He gave a reluctant nod. “It is unlikely, but possible.”

Diva chipped in. “And if not we can use the pods as decoys. The heat signature might just confuse the missiles. I know they are intelligent, but not that intelligent!”

Six felt a dropping sensation inside his stomach. The other men were listening curiously. He was sharply aware that his decision could cost lives – and lives of people that he cared for.

“How many pods are there on the station?” he asked sharply.

Ledin raised his eyebrows. “Five.”

“How many men are there in your detail?”

“Eight – including myself.”

Six thought rapidly. “We have to leave at least three on the orbital platform, five would be better. You and I will go as pilots in the space traders, Ledin. If we leave four on the orbital platform to defend, that means we could man all five shuttle pods. It is a slim chance, but they may be able to do something to help down there.”

Ledin nodded, and gave the pertinent orders. Three of his men moved across to Grace and Diva, and stood there to attention, jaws angled up showing that they were proud to serve their newly adopted country.

Six gave a brief nod. “May Lumina watch over Kwaide!” he told them.

Grace ran over and gave Six a hug. “Good luck!” She smiled around at the other men who were not going with her and Diva. “May the heavenly triangle protect you all!”

Diva’s eyes were fearless. They scanned the company and then she inclined her head regally. “May Sacras guide you home!”

They separated then, each to his or her own mission.

DIVA AND GRACE led the pods down to the planet beneath. Re-entry was quick and easy – the pods were designed to withstand the heat without problems. The two girls spent the time considering their options, and checking out what little ammunition they had.

They landed safely at the spaceport which had been hastily built near the base camp, and left the other three pilots to refuel through the makeshift fuel lines and cram as many pyrotechnics as possible into the shuttle pods. The two girls went to find Cimma. They had a four hour respite before they could get the personal shuttles back up in the air. They needed to brief Cimma and the rest of the camp about the situation.

Cimma was worn and gaunt. Although she didn’t need the orthogel support any more she was slightly bent. She looked as if she hadn’t slept for days.

She greeted both of them with great relief, even more so when they told her that the nuclear weapons had been destroyed.

“We have evacuated as many refugees as we can,” she said. “And many of the sycophants have decided to come over to our side, so our army is stronger than it was. Even so, we simply don’t have the armament to fight back.”

“We think they will deploy conventional bombs,” said Grace, “but we are going to do all we can to stop them. Six and Ledin are taking the space traders up, and there are five of us here to try to mop up what missiles do get through.”

Cimma closed her eyes, and for a moment they thought that she would faint. Then she pulled herself physically upright and raised her chin. “Good,” she said. “May Almagest go with you! I know you will do well. New Kwaide will be safe if you two are there to protect it.”

“Thank you Magestra!” Grace leant forward to give her mother a hug. “Be good!”

“We have done all we can. The sycophant army will not attack while there is a missile raid underway. Our only job for the time being is to dodge the bombs.”

“Be careful, then!” Diva raised her fingers up to touch Cimma’s. “New Kwaide needs you.”

“More than they know. These rebels are very keen, but they have absolutely no idea of organization. They don’t understand the concept of teamwork. If somebody doesn’t instil in them a sense of belonging then this new republic will be doomed from the start.”

Grace grinned. “Things have changed a lot, Magestra, since last year.”

Cimma nodded. “I’m afraid I went a bit crazy for a while after your father died. I’m sorry.”

“You were in mourning. I understand.”

“You know, I feel alive again here. They really do need me, and they accept me exactly as I am. They don’t care if I sleep in a sarcophagus, if I occasionally speak to my dead husband. They respect me for teaching them how to wield a sword, and how to work together, and how to value their freedom. You don’t have to worry about me anymore, Grace. I am … content here. I miss your father, but I know that he wouldn’t have been able to fit into this life. It’s probably a good thing he died when he did – it would have killed him to see what has happened to Valhai. And now you have brought me his sarcophagus to keep me company. What else could I ask for? It is as if I have been blessed with two lives to live, instead of one. I intend to make the best of it.”

“I am glad to hear it. You are not cross with me for having been the cause of all the trouble on Valhai?”

Cimma smiled in Diva’s direction. “The donor apprentices would have died if you hadn’t. I am glad we do not have their deaths on our conscience. By the way, did I tell you that two of the Kwaide donor apprentices have presented themselves here?”

Grace opened her eyes wide. “No! But they were all sycophants! Surely the Elders would have offered them lucrative advisory positions?”

Cimma nodded. “I know. I was surprised too. But they said that they couldn’t stand to see how the Elders were perpetuating ignorance, so they came to ask if they could start a research facility here. We took a vote on it, and of course the majority were all for it.”

“That is great news!” Diva said. “It will give New Kwaide something else to export – knowledge. Plus, it may eventually break the monopoly the Sellites have on all technology.”

“Where did you send them?” asked Grace.

“To the black peak camp. I thought they should be sent to the safest place we have. They have already taken on seventeen volunteers to train up as assistants. They say that they are hopeful more of the donor apprentices will turn up.”

“I wonder if Coriolis will do the same thing?” mused Diva.

Cimma laughed. “Your mother is no fool,” she said. “I hear from Vion that she has already contacted all the donor apprentices and offered them huge incentives if they produce new technology for Coriolis. Word filtered down to her about the new research facility here, and she clearly didn’t want Coriolis left behind.”

“Nobody will be able to put the genie back in the bottle now,” said Grace.

“So long as they don’t have any bombs dropped on them,” agreed Diva. “We had better go. I don’t want to miss all the fun.”

“I will save some sweetfruits for you when you get back,” promised Cimma, “or would you rather have some before you go?”

“What I would really have liked before we leave is a bath of the best Mesteta wine,” the Coriolan girl told her. “A long soak in antioxidants would do wonders.”

“I think a short encounter with a missile might spoil the effect,” Grace informed her. “Seems a bit pointless lengthening your skin’s lifetime if you are going to be blown clean out of it a couple of hours later.”

“Bah! Spoilsport!”

“The only bath you’ll get here is a natural one by standing under the waterfall up at the scarred crag, and I don’t think that would be much good for you, because if you leave things hanging in it for long enough they get petrified into stone!” said Cimma.

“Talk about hard water!” Diva blew a disgusted sigh. “What a planet! Goodness knows why the Kwaidians want to live here.”

“I don’t think they have had much choice up to now,” said Cimma dryly.

Diva wasn’t listening. “This place should have fallen into Lumina a few hundred thousand years ago. That would have made it easier all round. Water that turns you into stone! I ask you!”

“Wouldn’t need your rexelene blocks, would you?” said Grace, a little mischievously. “You could just hang your villains under the waterfall. Much cheaper.”

Diva gave her a most suspicious look. “Are you poking fun at Coriolis?”

“A little.”

“Well, don’t. It may have its drawbacks, but it is about a million times better than this unenlightened place.”

“That’s what you think …”

“ANYBODY would think so. It has baths, and pies, and culture and … and it is
civilized
.”

“I’m sure the Tattula cats are
very
civilized,” said Grace mildly, “perhaps they ask your permission before eating you?”

“Huh!” Diva turned her back on the two Sellite women, who were exchanging amused looks, and strode off in the direction of the spaceport. Grace waved a sketchy salute in her mother’s direction and scurried after the Coriolan girl.

THE TWO SPACE traders were as ready as they were ever likely to be. Ledin had taken the Variance behind Lumina, and Six was hovering near the orbital station in the damaged Resistance. There was not much hope of stopping many of the bombs, but they were both determined to do their best.

The Sellite ships were loud blips on the screen now. They may have lost their nuclear armament, but there had been no wavering. They were already within range of Kwaide. Six gave a sigh, and moved his finger towards the console. They could only hope to divert part of the fleet. He took careful aim at the two nearest ships, and fired off a couple of his small calibre missiles. It reminded him of a fly buzzing around a vaniven, but still. He saw the missiles track off in the direction of the Sellite ships. At almost the same time Ledin fired off two rapid sallies at the other side of the fleet. They waited, hardly daring to breathe. Would the gnats in their side entice any of the ships from their target?