A Matter of Oaths (5 page)

Even Fadir forgot to blush in the stunned silence that
followed. Rallya opened her mouth and closed it again.
“
I never actually fainted,
”
she said eventually.
“
But only
because somebody else reminded me to breathe.
”
She looked Rafe up and down slowly.
“
Of course, the provocation wasn
’
t
quite as intense,
”
she added.

“
Of course, ma
’
am,
”
Rafe agreed seriously, taking the mug of alcad that Joshim handed him and
raising it in salute.

Rallya returned the salute with a single eyebrow.
“
Did you enjoy your introduction to
Bhattya’
s web?
”
she asked sweetly.

“
Thank you, ma
’
am, yes. I
’
m grateful for the opportunity.
”

“
Good. Good.
”
She turned to Vidar, who had finally
stopped choking silently.
“
Is Jualla
going to be free for my tactics workout, or do you need her to finish
installing the mass sensors?
”
she
inquired.

“
I need her,
”
Vidar said firmly.

“
Then you shall
have her,
”
Rallya said happily.
“
It will give Rafe another opportunity
to enjoy
Bhattya’
s web. You can join
my workout, can
’
t you, Rafe?
”

Joshim made a warning noise but Rafe smiled cheerfully.
“
It will be a delight, ma
’
am,
”
he claimed.

“
It will,
”
Rallya agreed readily, refilling her
mug and beaming at the web-room in general.
“
A
delight.
”

Rallya stepped out of the riser and looked happily around
the web. Ten of the wet-web places were filling with shub, ready for the
workout. All that was missing were the eight juniors and Rafe, and by the
sounds coming out of the changing-room, they were well on the way to being
ready too.

Somebody came out of the riser behind her; she knew without
looking that it was Joshim.

“
I may not pass
him fit,
”
he said flatly.
“
He burnt himself this morning.
”

“
That
’
s what happens when you play with fire,
”
Rallya remarked.
“
Don
’
t worry. I
’
ll be gentle with him. Don
’
t you want to know what he
’
s like at tactics?
”

“
You
’
ll be lacking your usual advantage,
”
Joshim commented.
“
He isn
’
t afraid of you.
”

“
I
’
d noticed. Insolence as the last refuge
of the desperate,
”
Rallya jibed.

“
Tell me that if
he beats you,
”
Joshim challenged.

“
If he beats me, I
’
ll take him as First,
”
Rallya said confidently.
“
Staying to watch it happen?
”

“
It
’
s too crowded down below,
”
Joshim confirmed.
“
If anybody else wants to watch the monitor screen, they
’
ll have to sit in Jualla
’
s lap. On top of Rasil.
”

Rallya chuckled.
“
Time
I was changing. Wouldn
’
t do to be
late for my own workout.
”

The changing room was its usual tangle of bare skin, dark
and pale, brown, yellow and red. Rafe was an even hazelnut brown, with a light
dusting of grey and brown body hair. Near-human blood in there somewhere,
Rallya decided. All sorts of skeletons in his aristo family
’
s cupboard. And if Fadir was allowed in here, he would definitely
faint. She swatted Lilimya out of her way and started to strip.

“
Two teams,
”
she announced as she pulled her tunic
over her head.
“
Lilimya, Rasmallya,
Churi, Ajir: you
’
re in Rafe
’
s team. The rest of you, with me.
”
Joshim could not accuse her of being
unfair; she had given him the pick of the bunch.
“
Rafe, we use extended tens. You do know them?
”
She flung her breeches in the direction of the hook behind him.

“
If I don
’
t, I soon will.
”

Rafe caught the breeches one handed and hung them up. His
hair was tied in a short bunch of curls on top of his head. Rallya pinned up
her own plaits and shook her head to be sure they were secure.

“
Want a few
minutes in the web alone with your team?
”
she offered.

“
I wouldn
’
t get them in a real battle situation,
”
Rafe said easily.
“
But ask me again afterwards,
”
he said over his shoulder on his way out.

When Rallya emerged into the web-room, Joshim was checking
Rafe
’
s contacts and muttering something
that sounded suspiciously like advice. Rallya ignored it; she could afford to
be generous.

Vidar had suspended work on the mass sensors to be present.
“
Anybody making a book on the outcome?
”
Rallya called across to him.

“
Why? You want to
bet next year
’
s pay?
”
he answered.

Joshim finished his inspection and nodded his consent for
Rafe to web. There had been no real chance that he would refuse; he knew as
well as Rallya that the encounter would not last long enough to do any real
damage. Except to Rafe
’
s pride.

She gestured to the members of her team that she wanted a
conference and quickly assigned them their roles. From the corner of her eye,
she saw Rafe doing the same. That was probably what Joshim
’
s advice had been about: a summary of the strengths and weaknesses
of webbers Rafe had only just met. The young scut should have taken her offer
of time in the web with them. So, you wouldn
’
t
get it in a real battle situation, Rallya scoffed. In a real battle situation,
you take every advantage you can.

She stepped up to the nearest wet-web position and checked
the level of the shub. High enough to support her.

“
Webmaster
’
s permission?
”
she called as a courtesy to Joshim.

“
Granted.
”
He stepped through the circle of
wet-web places to take his position at the central monitor.

Rallya tucked her web-bands into the niche below the rim of
her chosen position and dangled her feet in the shub while she positioned her
links. It was colder than she liked, but she would not complain to Joshim; her
fault, for not checking it earlier. A glance at the screen to check her links
before climbing down the ladder into the shub and triggering her ready-light,
then the wait for Joshim to activate her links.

She was wondering if he would dare to activate Rafe before
her when her contacts warmed, catching her off balance. She recovered quickly
and flared out through the web, easily identifying her team and Rafe
’
s, and locating the single unfamiliar
presence. She kept a fraction of her attention on her team, enough to be sure
they were following instructions and keeping the opposition too busy to help
Rafe. The rest she focused on him, not attacking, just waiting pointedly for
him to try something before she jumped on him and cut him out of the web.

Lilimya and the others were acting without coordination,
just managing to retain their places and no threat to their opponents.
Disappointing; even without a leader, Rallya would have expected better. Even
as she thought that, Caruya was separated from the web without warning, leaving
Rallya
’
s team without its strongest
member and Lilimya free to help Ajir. The pair of them ejected Khisa before
Rallya could help her and then turned to help Rasmallya and Churi.

Furious, Rallya lashed out at Rafe and found nothing except
a resonance construct. Almost simultaneously, Shayoni and Magred lost their
uneven struggles, leaving Rallya alone to face Rafe
’
s team and an invisible Rafe. Curse you, she told him silently,
digging herself into the heart of the web. Come to me if you want to finish
this, or we
’
ll be here until
eternity.

Lilimya and the others were holding back. My usual advantage
still holds against them, Joshim, she mocked herself, setting herself to locate
Rafe in the web. Forty years against a few hours? There was no place he could
hide from her, not now that she was looking for him. The construct had been
good, and it had won him the first round, but not the battle. Never the battle.

Churi was getting nervous. Good. Good. Soon he would start signalling
for reassurance, for instructions, and then she would know where Rafe was. She
had only to dispose of him and the others would crumble. Come on, Churi.
Commander Rallya is going to lose her temper and throw you out of the web soon.
Do you remember how it feels to be thrown out of the web by Commander Rallya?
Why not ask pretty boy what he wants you to do next? Churi, if you don
’
t do something soon, I
’
m going to jump on you so hard you
’
ll end up in tomorrow. Pretty boy won
’
t watch while it happens. If he
’
ll stand up for Fadir, he
’
ll stand up for you.

She pounced. She came up hard against a solidity that was
not Churi. Lilimya and the others were piling into her before she could
retreat, including a Churi who oozed out of the signal circuits with
uncharacteristic determination. Emperors, two slick tricks in one workout was
two too many! She might be going to lose, but she was going to take pretty boy
out of the web with her. She grabbed for his core circuits and pushed as much
power as she could through them, determined to break his grip on the web before
Lilimya and the others forced her out. He resisted her for a moment, then
crumpled frighteningly fast. Only then did she remember his web-cramp and try
to cushion his way out of the web, but it was too late. Lilimya and the others
drove her out as Rafe disappeared.

She dragged herself out of the shub and tore her links away
without bothering to check that they were inactive. Joshim was already bending
over Rafe
’
s position, pulling him out
with the aid of Rallya
’
s dejected
team. Just conscious and breathing, Rallya saw with relief.

“
Jualla
’
s on her way with your drug-pack,
”
Vidar reported, leaving the central
console to join Joshim.

“
What
’
s wrong?
”
Lilimya climbed out of the shub with a smile on her face that
faded quickly as she saw the cluster around Rafe.

“
Go get dressed,
”
Rallya said without ceremony.
“
All of you.
”
She swiped at the excess shub still clinging to her and pulled
her web-bands out of the niche, strapping them on as she crossed the circle.

“
You didn
’
t have to jump on him so hard,
”
Joshim accused, looking up for a
moment when she halted beside Rafe.

“
I
’
m sorry. I forgot your web-cramp.
”
Rallya addressed Rafe directly. The
youngster had an unhealthy yellow tinge to his skin and was still twitching
involuntarily, but he was in no danger.

“
So did I.
”
He grinned wearily.
“
A pity. Now we
’
ll never know who would have won.
”

Rallya crumpled up the last flimsy and flung it in the
general direction of the others littering one corner of the Three
’
s small rest-room.

“
He
’
s got no patrolship experience at all,
”
she complained to Vidar.

“
Didn
’
t seem to worry him this afternoon,
”
he said maliciously.
“
Do you want this last mug of alcad or
will you leave it for Joshim?
”

“
I
’
ll have it. If Joshim wants some, he
can fetch it from the web-room.
”

Rallya dragged herself out of her seat and emptied the pot.
The first time in forty years that she had been thrown out of a web and every
part of her seemed to know it. At least Rafe was feeling as bad, she comforted
herself, and he deserved to. Nobody but a fool went into a tactics workout with
web-cramp. Still, he had done well, considering that he had wasted the last ten
years in a surveyship.

Joshim came through from the web-room.
“
Sorry I
’
ve been so long,
”
he said, lifting the empty pot and
putting it down again with a shrug.

“
Web check out all
right?
”
Vidar asked him.
“
There was some unusually rough play in
it this afternoon.
”

“
Which will not be
repeated in future,
”
Joshim said
firmly.

“
No point in
having a workout if it doesn
’
t hurt
to lose,
”
Rallya muttered.
“
Keeps people sharp.
”
She sat carefully back in her seat.

“
I noticed,
”
Joshim said drily.
“
Rafe looks like death warmed up. And so
do some of the other participants.
”

Rallya stared him down, defying him to name anybody else. Or
to mention the careless promise she had made before the workout.

“
Where is Rafe?
”
Vidar asked.

“
He left nearly
two hours ago.
”
Joshim looked unhappy
about it.
“
His nervous system checked
out within the normal limits for everything — just. I couldn
’
t justify ordering him to stay.
”