Between Darkness and Light (5 page)

“We recompense them!”

“Have you spoken with Children, Hkairass?” asked Kuvaa silkily. “Or are they beneath noticing by Isolationists?”

“They not our equals,” said Zaimiss, getting up. “Are mere workers. You do not notice insects that pollinate flowers, why notice them?”

“Without insects, no crops,” snarled Shvosi, rising again. “You made Children, but we saved them from solar flare when Isolationists in majority and too busy causing friction in Camarilla for disaster to be noticed! I say Children give more to us than you!”

“Phratry Leader Shvosi!” rebuked Khassiss. “Insults not allowed here.”

Shvosi dipped her head in contrition to the female TeLaxaudin, but remained unrepentant. She turned to look at the whole gathering, throwing her forelimbs wide in appeal. “See what Isolationists do? They divide us! They offer nothing but criticisms of any but their own kind, and mad schemes to destroy the sun and us in attempt to move Ghioass!”

Hkairass looked at Khassiss for support but none was forthcoming. “Skepp Lady,” he appealed.

She stirred and looked up at him. “Sadly, Phratry Leader Shvosi is correct. Cannot remember your last positive input to Camarilla sessions, Hkairass.”

Watch Isolationists all crawl to bushes now,
Azwokkuss sent to Shvosi.

“What of Reformers?” Hkairass countered. “Always they apologize for agents' misdemeanors. Reality is agents go native. Working with other species corrupts them, makes them put others before us! The younger species drag us down to their level by contamination!”

“You discredit agents and younger species,” said Azwokkuss. “Forget they
live
in situations we only see through watching potentialities. They actually influence and change situations so best possible future can evolve. Forget historically that we protect younger species!”

“Camarilla started to protect us!” said Shumass, standing briefly.

“Was it?” asked Aizshuss gently. “I ask Unity to provide the answer from our records.”

“Do it,” ordered Khassiss. “We will hold this discussion for answer.”

Hkairass began to hum angrily.

“Will have you removed if continue,” Khassiss warned him.

He stopped abruptly and folded himself into a sitting position on the floor, obviously in a huff at her censure.

Khassiss stood and addressed the gathering. “Unity cannot lie. Is clear what original purpose of Camarilla was—to protect younger species from themselves.”

“Hkairass has had his say,” said Azwokkuss, standing up. “I wish to Speak now.”

Khassiss looked at Hkairass. “Step down, Skepp Lord,” she said in a tone that brooked no argument.

Hkairass rose to his feet and stalked back to his place. As he passed Azwokkuss, he pointedly ignored him.

“I Speak for the younger races and our agents,” said Azwokkuss when he was standing on the Speaker's dais. “Have two choices before us. We ignore them and isolate ourselves—I not advocate trying to move Ghioass through gateway to another part of galaxy. Erecting a stronger energy nimbus than currently used is enough to conceal this world. Other choice is admit we belong to same space as younger races and work to avert disasters affecting us all—like current one involving possible reunification of remaining three sand-dweller worlds.”

“Are risks,” said Htomshu, one of the moderate TeLaxaudin females, getting to her feet. “Discovery of what we are and do not wanted by any of us. Are vulnerable if attacked. Have technology to defend ourselves, but not physical form.” She sat down again.

Azwokkuss nodded. “True. But we have our Children. We have the Prime sand-dwellers. They will come to our aid. When they come, the hunters and their Alliance will come. We have allies among younger races. By aiding them, they do not weaken us, we strengthen each other. One day, they will sit with us in Camarilla, enrich us with their talents as Cabbarans do. This what Reformists believe.”

Kuvaa rose up to speak. “Also believe time to admit debt we owe them, especially Children here. We rely on them, trust them with our lives and property, yet they have no status. Cannot vote at elections of Assembly, cannot sit on Assembly, yet Assembly decisions on Ghioass affect them as much as us.”

“Decision on citizenship of Children not ours to make,” said Khassiss. “Must be made by Assembly who govern Ghioass.”

“Recommendation from us would carry enormous weight. Guarantee success,” observed Aizshuss. “I Speak for it.”

“Is insanity to suggest it!” said Hkairass, angrily getting up.

“Sit down, Skepp Lord. Your views made clear already,” ordered Khassiss. “Two issues to vote on, then. Hkairass Spoke for Isolationists, for using sun's energy to open gateway and move Ghioass. Because so serious matter, I ask those in agreement, please stand.”

There was silence as everyone looked at each other, waiting to see who would stand with Hkairass. Hesitantly, only Zaimiss got to his feet.

Two for the motion,
said Unity.
No abstentions.

“Let Unity record only two for motion and that it failed. Next issue is recommendation that Children be granted citizenship by Assembly. Again, those in agreement, please stand.”

This time, throughout the chamber, people began to slowly get to their feet. In the main, it was the Cabbarans, but there was a good smattering of TeLaxaudin, too.

Majority of five,
Unity informed them.
No abstentions.

“Let Unity record this motion is passed by a majority of five,” said Khassiss, “and let Unity now inform the Assembly of our decision.”

With a sigh of relief, Shvosi dropped down to her cushion.
We won,
she sent to Azwokkuss and Kuvaa.

Forty-five remain to be convinced,
replied Kuvaa.

Is more than a beginning this time,
sent Azwokkuss.
You did well, Shvosi. The next session will not be so bad now you've countered Hkairass successfully once.

“We will suspend this session for an hour then reconvene to examine Phratry Leader Annuur,” said Khassiss.

“You can relax for a while,” said Kuvaa, patting her on the shoulder. “The vote surprised me, Azwokkuss.”

The TeLaxaudin hummed gently. “Time is right for change. Hkairass' mad suggestion frightened many—me included,” he said frankly. “It only served to aid us.”

 

When Annuur next woke, it was midafternoon. On the floor at the side of his bed, Naacha lay curled up on one of the formfitting heated pads developed for the Primes. Naacha stirred, beginning to sit up on his haunches. Immediately, Annuur felt Unity return and knew that the mystic had stayed by his side during the last day, refusing to move, while the other two took it in turns to keep guard outside his door.

Why? What would I need guarding from here?
he sent.

Reaching out along the mental network of his sept, he found access beyond blocked by Naacha. Reluctantly his navigator let the protective barrier drop and Annuur was once more part of the Unity of the Camarilla.

Unity was maintained by a combination of the Cabbaran mystics and the technology of the TeLaxaudin. It was a mental communication and data network that allowed the two species to work together at the speed of thought, and to extend their reach far beyond what was physically possible. For Cabbarans like Annuur, it enhanced their natural abilities, allowing them the skills of their mystics. For the TeLaxaudin, it gave them through technology a form of the abilities they lacked.

His first priority was to update himself on the current situation with the Alliance and the M'zullians, but he'd no sooner begun than he sensed Shvosi.

Greetings,
she sent.
Pleased I am at your recovery. You have accessed the records of the Camarilla's decision to retrieve you?

He could feel her shrug in his mind's eye.
They knew you'd waken now, they know what you will say, and what their reply will be.

Then why bother to even see me!
he grumbled. Sometimes, like now, the ability of the Camarilla to see all the probable futures of events annoyed him, but that was a product of being outside Unity. When he'd worked within the Camarilla like Shvosi, he'd . . .

Been just as irritated by it,
Shvosi supplied dryly.
That's why you chose to leave and work in the field, so you could really influence events.

He couldn't deny the truth of that, he admitted, his update now complete.
What of our U'Churian family? Have their memories been erased? And those of the crews on the other
Watcher
ships?

Yes. Only you and your sept will be aware of what happened. I will see you in an hour, Phratry Leader Annuur.
With that, she was gone.

“Your decision brought us to the attention of all
Watchers
!” snapped Hkairass. “Energy expended twice to bring ships here! It cost us dearly! Were only just able to keep remote viewer on J'kirtikk to monitor situation. Had further action been required, we could have done nothing!”

Annuur leaned his forelimbs on the lectern in front of him. “Didn't expect to be hit. Intelligence on M'zullian sand-dwellers' fleet tracking systems wrong, more advanced are they,” he repeated yet again. He was getting tired of the TeLaxaudin's attempts to make a political advantage out of the debacle at J'kirtikk. “I get faulty Intelligence, not much I can do.”

“What is point you are making, Hkairass?” demanded Skepp Lord Aizshuss, unfolding himself from his cushion. “If had gone according to Annuur's plan, modified shields would have hidden him. Only his Child crew would have known it was them, which they'd have known anyway if he'd taken the whole ship and not only his lower section.”

“My point is his actions drained energy, left us vulnerable. Nimbus hiding Ghioass had to be dropped. We should learn from this—mess—he created, and pull back to this world, hide it completely from other species to ensure our own survival! And they have all still to be returned to Anchorage at even more energy cost! We are reaping the harvest we sowed when we helped the hunters break the sand-dwellers' Empire! Neither species will ever attain our level of evolution, never join us in the Camarilla—they continue to fight endlessly among themselves. They are a wasted effort, a lost cause!”

“Enough,” said Phratry Leader Kuvaa, rising up to her haunches. “Doubtless this was said about us long ago—maybe even by you, Hkairass. Our continued existence is not assured if the sand-dwellers reunite, we all know this. They will enslave not only every species in the hunters' Alliance, but venture beyond, till their technology will eventually find and destroy even us.”

A movement to his right drew Annuur's eyes—Khassis, one of the very few female TeLaxaudin on the Camarilla, had risen, her scent sharp with righteous anger.

“Kuvaa is right. Intervention was needed, and regretfully we must accept that allowing the J'kirtikkian sand-dwellers to perish has halved our problem. Annuur does what few of us have the courage to do,” she said, looking round the assembly, fixing her dual-lensed eyes on them one by one. “He risks his life for us, as do his crew and all Camarilla trainees and operatives in the field. He nearly died, one of his sept did. Forget not that if the whole ship had gone, we'd have had more lives to save at the expenditure of more energy than was used. And to what purpose? Nothing would have been altered. I support Annuur's actions—and his accusation that some among our Skepps are too ready to spend our Children's lives. Let us not forget what we owe them. We restructured them millennia ago to be our interface with the less advanced species. They pursue matters we cannot, provide the strengths we lack. We have obligations to them, Hkairass, as has already been debated.”