"You are stalling. You are withholding property that was stolen. Trying to learn secrets, perhaps. Or hoping to get us to offer greater rewards for the return of the object stolen from my ship. And for my son," Talese Groveen added quickly. She began speaking in a formal cadence. "In accordance with the laws of the many states of Earth, Mars, and all other governments within the Solar System, I hereby invoke the right to self-defense and protection of individuals."
"Do not do anything that we will all regret," Mari said. "Watching us are representatives of the librarians of Altis. They will send a report of whatever you do back to Urth using our Feynman unit. We have means to transmit that report to Altis so it can be sent even before your ship could reach the island and attempt to prevent it."
"You have no idea what my ship is capable of," Talese Groveen said. "Your barbaric technology cannot even conceive of its power. But I have no intention of taking any action that would create legal problems back on Earth. I will act only in accordance with our rights to employ force majeure. In this case, that means taking involuntary custody of you, interrogating you under scan to find out the truth, and extracting sufficient genetic samples from you to meet our needs in programming our drones to be able to spot your daughter as well as my son."
Mari shook her head, her expression hard. "You've picked a very poor place to threaten me."
"As I believe you once said to me, that was not a threat," Talese Groveen said. She gestured to the two Urth people standing just behind her.
Captain Hagen barked orders and his squad ran forward to stand between Mari and the people from Urth, not drawing weapons but linking arms to form a solid barrier. Alain saw the honor guard on the wall bringing their rifles up, canted forward, not yet aimed but ready.
But he saw no sign that any of these measures had bothered the Urth people in the least. The two continued walking forward as if they had no care in the world, the same slight, superior smiles on their faces.
One raised the object in her hand. Light flashed. The line of police officers guarding Mari jolted as if struck and fell limply to the ground.
Captain Hagen jumped in front of Mari and fired. Alain saw the Mechanic bullet stop in mid-air a hand's breadth from the woman, as if it had run into an unbreakable barrier, then drop at the feet of the Urth woman.
Hagen was firing again when the woman, smiling wider, pointed her device at him and he also fell.
The second of the Urth people raised his hand, pointing at Mari, who was watching him with the same determined expression but had not moved.
Alain, wishing not for the first time that he had married a woman with less stubbornness and more caution, had his spell ready. Whatever self-protection the Urth people used stopped anything from going through it. But his heat spells did not travel from place to place. He created them above his hand, then sent them to appear wherever he could see. They were in one place, and then another.
He focused on the hand of the man pointing his device at Mari. He could not directly harm that hand, but he could put his heat on the device.
The air above Alain's hand suddenly glowed with heat. An instant later the same intense heat was around the device pointed at Mari.
The Urth man shouted in pain. His device was glowing hot, parts of it melting, sparks and smoke flying from it. He went to his knees, trying to free the object from his badly scorched hand.
The woman turned a startled look on Alain, but he had already prepared a second spell. She staggered back with a scream, her device and her hand also burnt and useless.
It had taken only a few of what Mari called 'seconds.' Alain, trying to mask the weariness caused by using two such spells within a very short time, relaxed his Mage powers completely, making no preparations for another spell.
Talese Groveen stared at the other Urth people, then at Alain. Shaking herself out of her surprise, she focused on Alain. Her fingers moved before her, but whatever she belatedly sought to do instead provoked a grimace of frustration.
Alain heard commands called from the wall. The rifles there were now pointed at the three people from Urth.
Mari finally moved, but only to cross her arms as she gave Talese Groveen a warning look. "That's only a sample of what we can do to defend ourselves. If these men and women were harmed," Mari said, nodding toward the police before her, "I will be very upset. If any are dead, you will be guilty of ordering murder and will be held accountable."
"They were only rendered unconscious," Talese Groveen said, trembling with anger. "But you…you have attacked and seriously injured two of my crew!"
"Self-defense," Mari said. "Protection of individuals. We are willing to overlook your unprovoked aggression as long as these men and women were not harmed and such actions are not repeated." She pointed to Alain, who was keeping his expression Mage-blank and Mage-menacing. "Anything he can see can be dealt with." Mari looked toward the smaller flier, then up at the large ship on the cliffs above. "Anything."
"You would not dare. An attack on our ship—"
"Will only happen if we are forced to defend ourselves again," Mari said. "In case you are wondering, or planning to use some long-distance weapon, Master of Mages Alain is not the only Mage capable of such spells. There are others. They are spread out, and they are watching your ship. No matter where you go, they will be watching. Mages do not have to wear robes. Many do not. You will not know who they are until they act. I would advise you once again not to force us to take action in self-defense."
Alain watched Talese Groveen glare at Mari, but while her anger remained, it was joined by calculation and caution. Whatever else she was, the woman from Urth was not a fool.
"I have underestimated you," Talese Groveen said. "Apparently the stories were not as exaggerated as many believed. My…apologies for…overreacting. I assume you are aware that hostilities between us are not in the interests of anyone."
"I am aware of that."
"I have a right to have my son and the object he took returned to me."
"I understand. There are many searching for them." Mari left it at that, and if the Urth woman noticed that she did not promise to return either boy or object she was smart enough not to make an issue of it.
"Is my ship allowed to continue its research?" Talese Groveen asked.
"Yes. However," Mari continued, "such activities must be open and visible. We will not permit further spying on us. Alain."
Alain turned and called. "Mage Saburo. Tell Hunter that the thing is prey."
The Roc hove into sight, swooping down in a swift strike, its huge claws closing on seemingly empty air over the harbor. Hunter flexed its claws, shrieked, and acted as if hurling something invisible.
An object appeared and fell toward the harbor, its outer shell rent and dented. It hit the water with an eruption of steam as energy suddenly vented.
"You have badly damaged valuable property," Talese Groveen said, eyeing the Roc.
"Feel free to recover it and repair it. But if it flies again, Hunter will seek it out. Rocs do not like sharing the air with things they cannot see."
"I understand. We will not leave until we have what is ours."
"I understand," Mari said.
The other two of the people from Urth had already staggered back to their flier. Talese Groveen turned and walked back to join them. The opening closed and the flier rose into the air before heading directly back to the large ship perched on the cliffs.
Mari finally relaxed, walking to Alain. "That was hard."
"You should have dodged their attack," he said.
"Alain, I told you that I had to stand firm against those people. Our people needed to see that."
"Perhaps they will build another statue of you on this spot," Alain said, still put out at Mari risking herself that way.
"Ouch. You must be really upset. I'm sorry," Mari said. "It's the daughter thing."
"There are times I like the daughter thing even less than Kira does," Alain said.
"I'm sorry," Mari repeated.
Healers had come running to examine Captain Hagen and his police. "It's like they're asleep," one told Mari. "They don't seem to have been hurt, though."
"Let me know the moment they awaken," she said. Mari turned away from the Urth ship, eyeing Alain. "It looked like that woman wasn't able to scan you."
"She revealed only frustration."
"We'll soon know if we're right. If they were able to scan your Mage work, and they're worried about what we might do to their ship next time, that ship might leave without Jason. But if they still need the information on the drive Jason took, they'll hang around despite any other worries."
"But they will act more cautiously," Alain said.
"I think so." She looked toward the large ship looming on the cliff. "Do you remember the first time we talked to Urth? Right after the Great Guilds fell? We thought it was so wonderful."
"It was wonderful," Alain said. "It still is."
"I guess so. We'll keep trying to make things work. There'll be other ships someday." Mari smiled at him. "You saved me again."
"We are not keeping score," he reminded her.
Hunter had settled onto the breakwater protecting the harbor, preening and looking immensely pleased with itself. "Hunter is a mighty Roc," Alain said to Mage Saburo.
"Hunter is…happy," Saburo said. "He did not like the thing that followed us. Hunter wonders if the larger flying objects we can see are prey."
"Not yet," Alain said.
"Hopefully never," Mari said. "Talese Groveen is not a stupid person. I don't think she's going to do anything else that would seriously risk losing her chance at getting back what she wants. Get your rest, Sir Mage," she told Saburo. "We're going to need you, Mage Alber, and your Rocs the moment we hear something else about Kira and Jason."
* * *
Seven days after leaving Dorcastle, the first mate sought out Kira.
"The captain believes that you've earned your passage," the first mate told Kira. "You and J'son will be allowed to leave when we reach Caer Lyn tomorrow."
"Caer Lyn." Kira looked across the water, her stomach suddenly tightening. "May I make a request?"
"What is it?"
"Can J'son and I work our way to your next port of call?"
The first mate crossed her arms and eyed Kira. "That would be Kelsi."
"Kelsi? That would be great!"
"Is there something about Caer Lyn you wish to avoid," the first mate asked, "or something at Kelsi that draws you?"
"Both," Kira said.
"You told us you'd broken no laws. If there's a warrant out for you—"
"No," Kira said. "There's no warrant. But…there are a lot of Imperials at Caer Lyn. And we do need to reach the Free Cities. We will work just as hard as we have so far. We'll work harder, if that's what's needed."
"Girl, the first rule of bargaining is not to let the other know how badly you want something." The first mate studied Kira again. "I'll ask the captain."
Jason came by while Kira was waiting for the first mate to return. "What's up?"
"I asked them to let us stay on the ship longer."
He stared at her. "Us? Shouldn't you have asked me first?"
"I'm sorry. I didn't have time. Jason, it is important that I not be ashore at Caer Lyn. If we do end up there, we'll need to get out again as fast as possible. But it would be very risky."
"Why is it riskier there?" Jason asked.
"The Imperials. They have a lot of influence in the Sharr Isles. And they want me."
His gaze grew puzzled. "Why?"
"Because…" She gritted her teeth, embarrassed to have to talk about it, and looked around to ensure no one else could hear them. "They want me to marry one of their princes. And even though I'm underage, the emperor could make an exception to that law in a heartbeat."
"But if you don't want to marry one of them—"
"They'd drug me, Jason, or threaten Mother, or something. The Imperial court is a vicious place where the princes and princesses are in constant competition, which means everything from spreading nasty rumors about each other to assassination attempts."
"Wow." Jason nodded to her. "I'll do anything I have to so that won't happen."
"Thank you. You'd have every right to complain."
"Somebody warned me that if I kept complaining she'd hurt me," Jason said, grinning.
Kira laughed. "Sometimes I'm not very subtle." She turned as the first mate returned, straightening to attention as she saw the captain was there as well.
The captain frowned at her and at Jason. "You wish to remain aboard as crew until Kelsi?"
"Yes, sir," Kira said.
"There's a problem. I could in good conscience work you without pay on the way to Caer Lyn, because you were stowaways. But from Caer Lyn to Kelsi you would be crew, and deserving of crew pay. We already have a full crew, so it would be a stretch for the ship to afford that."
"That's all right," Kira said. "We would work for passage again."
"All right with you, perhaps," the captain said. "But I have ever insisted on paying an honest wage for honest work. It would not sit well with me to not pay you the wages you have earned. Nor would the crew be happy, worrying that perhaps I was planning to short them on pay if I could find the likes of you willing to do the same work for little or nothing."
Kira glanced at Jason, who shrugged helplessly. What would her mother do if faced with this kind of thing? Try to find some way of satisfying the captain's worries. Queen Sien had talked about the need to balance the ledgers, so she could understand the need to— "Oh. Sir? You know I brought money aboard."
"Aye," the captain said. "It'll be returned when you leave."
"What if we pay for our passage? What if we pay you the same amount that you'd pay us as crew? It would be a fair exchange of money. That way we get where we need to go, make sure the ship is not shorted, and ensure that our labor is justly compensated."
"'Justly compensated,' she says," the first mate commented.
The captain gazed steadily at Kira for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Aye. That could be done. If you regard it as a fair deal."
"I would," Kira said, looking at Jason.
"Me, too," Jason added.
The captain exhaled heavily. "Done, then. You'll be crew as far as Kelsi. But still you've cost me five crowns. Serves me right for betting against the mate."
The first mate held out her hand, grinning, as the captain gave her a coin. "I told you I could make sailors of them."
The Son of Taris worked her way into the harbor of Caer Lyn the next morning. Kira took quick glances around as she helped with the sails, remembering that her mother had once lived here, had spent her years as a Mechanics Guild Apprentice here, and had married her father here. Her grandparents had lived here before choosing to move to Altis so they could avoid Imperial pressure on the parents of the daughter. Kira wondered if she would ever have a chance to actually visit and see the places where her mother had grown up.
The ship was brought in to a pier to offload cargo. As soon as the lines were sent over to the bollards on the pier and tightened, the crew went to work shifting cargo, bringing crates and barrels up from the hold and moving them to shore. It was backbreaking work, but Kira told herself that the quicker it was done the quicker the ship could leave.
The only pause in their work came about noon, when they were eating a quick lunch. "Look at that!" another one of the crew called out.
Kira looked along with the others, seeing a sleek shape entering the harbor of Caer Lyn, coal smoke belching from a large funnel amidships.
"It's all metal," someone said. "Like that old Mechanics Guild ship, the one the daughter sank."
Kira watched the Imperial ship cruise majestically to another pier, trying to make out the flags flying from a single mast. 'There's an Imperial prince aboard. I can't see the flag well enough to tell which one."
"If there's an Imperial prince here," the first m
ate said, spitting over the side, "then the sooner we're clear of this port the better. Back to work! We won't be able to get done in time to catch the evening tide, but we can sail first thing in the morning."
As Kira and Jason manhandled a crate, he nodded toward the Imperial ship. "Coal. This planet may have been mostly barren when the colony ship arrived, but it must have had a lot of vegetation once."
"How do you know that?" Kira said, wincing as she struggled with the weight of the crate.
"That's where coal comes from, ancient vegetable matter that's been buried underground and compressed." Jason looked around the harbor. "Something must have happened. Maybe a really bad solar flare or a really big meteor impact that nearly wiped out life. And then long after that, but before the planet could recover, humans came with a new ecology."
"What does that mean?" Kira asked.
"It means we're all part of a story that's been going on for millions of years," Jason said. "Cool, huh?"
"And a little scary," she said.
"Yeah. That, too."
Then they were among the rest of the crew again and worked together silently for the rest of the day, until the sun had sunk below the horizon in the west and the last of the cargo had been off-loaded, on-loaded, shifted about, and secured to the satisfaction of the first mate.
Kira and Jason were sitting at the table in the crew's quarters when the first mate entered with a lit lantern and an expression even sterner than usual. "You and you," she said, pointing to Kira and Jason, followed by a crooked finger demanding they come with her.
Worried, Kira followed the first mate down a ladder and into the small forward lower cargo hold. "Move that crate over here," the first mate ordered her and Jason. "Fast!"
As soon as that portion of the deck was clear, the first mate knelt, knife in hand, and began prying at one of the planks in the deck. It came up, along with two others fastened to it, revealing a hidden space beneath whose dimensions were too much like that of a coffin for Kira's peace of mind.