Cobra Slave-eARC (17 page)

“Not all that surprising, I guess,” Harli said. His eyes, Jody noted, were on his father. “As far as the Dominion of Man is concerned, we have to be the most out-of-touch backwoods group of worlds they’ve ever seen.”

“Interesting,” Omnathi said thoughtfully. “I would have assumed that with your more open attitudes—” he inclined his head toward Jody “—they would be more accepting of your differences.”

“I didn’t see any such acceptance,” Rashida said. “But I’m not a trained or experienced observer.”

“True,” Omnathi said. “In some ways, it’s a shame we arrived too late to see them ourselves.”

“That’s one of the things about life, Your Excellency,” Uy said, his voice suddenly grim as he put away his comm. “Sometimes missed opportunities sneak back up behind you.” He gestured toward the sky. “They’re back.”

“The Dominion?” Harli demanded. “But that’s—” He broke off, his eyes shifting to Jody. “Oh, hell.”

“We have to hide her,” Siraj said, standing up. “Where would be a safe place for her to go?”

“Let’s not be too hasty, Ifrit Akim,” Omnathi said calmly as he gestured the Djinni back to his seat. “It might be instructive to see their reaction to her presence.”

“Before they take her away?” Siraj countered, still standing.

“No one’s taking anyone off my world,” Uy said, sounding equally thoughtful. “But His Excellency has a point.”

“Indeed,” Omnathi said. “Especially if her presence before them is combined with mine.”

“What?” Harli demanded, standing up beside Siraj. “Not a chance. I mean, not a chance, Your Excellency.”

“Your concern is appreciated, Cobra Uy,” Omnathi said dryly. “But I have nothing to fear from them. I have no idea where my world is located, and never entered the control areas of the Tlos’khin’fahi ship that graciously brought us here. I have nothing to fear, for I have nothing to offer them.”

“Except possibly yourself as a hostage,” Harli said ominously.

“A hostage?” Elssa said, staring at him. “You can’t be serious.”

“You didn’t see as much of them as I did, Mom,” Harli said. “The way they talked to the people out there… Look, I may be overreacting. But I’ve read the Dominion’s history, and after their last visit I wouldn’t put anything past them. Better safe than sorry.”

“I have to agree, Your Excellency,” Siraj said. “Your safety is our first priority.”

“Incorrect, Ifrit Akim,” Omnathi said mildly. “Our first priority is to gather knowledge of this possible new threat. That will be my task.” He gestured to Rashida. “Your task will be to protect Rashida Vil. She, who has actually guided a ship between these two worlds, is far more of a danger to our people than I am. You will therefore find a place to conceal her where she’ll be safe from discovery.”

“Understood,” Harli said. “Kemp?”

“I have just the place,” Kemp said, nodding. “Come on, Rashida. We’ll grab Smitty and a couple of others along the way and have you buttoned up before they land.”

“And take this,” Jody said, suddenly remembering her recorder. “Keep it safe.”

“I will,” Rashida promised, tucking the recorder into a pocket of her combat suit.

“Where are you taking her?” Elssa asked. “No, wait—don’t answer that. We shouldn’t know, should we?”

“No, because you can’t tell what you don’t know,” Uy confirmed. “We’ll set up in the main conference room downstairs, Harli, make sure any staff down there is cleared out of the way. I’m guessing our visitors may arrive in some force, and I don’t want anyone overreacting. And you, Kemp, get back as soon as you have Rashida hidden.”

“I will,” Kemp promised as he, Rashida, and Harli headed for the door.

“And don’t let them say anything interesting until we get back,” Harli added.

#

The rest of the group followed directly after them, heading downstairs to the conference room. Jody elected to stay behind for a few more minutes, both to help Elssa clear away the remains of their impromptu meal, and also for the better view the third-floor windows afforded of the landing area a couple of kilometers to the south.

Jody had seen plenty of holos of the Dominion warships orbiting Aventine, and she’d seen several of the landing shuttles Santores and his people had used getting back and forth between their ships and the Dome.

But the ship now settling to the ground was entirely different from either of those two types. It was much bigger than the landing shuttles, maybe half again as big as the Hoibie freighter she’d arrived in, with a sleekness that probably allowed it to be as maneuverable inside an atmosphere as it was in the vacuum of space. It had a pair of blister-like bulges on both sides about halfway back from the bow, but whether they contained weapons or sensors Jody couldn’t tell. The ship’s underside was curiously shaped: slightly curved, in a way that reminded her of a slice cut from a melon.

It was only as the ship sprouted landing gear and settled onto the grassy plain that she suddenly realized where she’d seen the underside’s distinctive gridwork pattern before. This vehicle was designed to fit into a cutout slot in one of the warships, its underside actually functioning as a section of the warship’s curved hull.

Offhand, she couldn’t see how that design could possibly make sense, given that once the ship had been launched it would leave a gaping and presumably highly vulnerable opening in the warship’s outer skin. But it obviously made sense to someone in the Dominion’s ship design department.

Briefly, she wondered if the passengers would head across the open ground on foot, which on Caelian was an engraved invitation to get yourself killed. But the advance group that had checked the place out five days ago had apparently filed the proper warnings. Even as the glow of the grav lifts began to fade, a small hatch on the top of the ship opened and a long aircar appeared. It floated upward about fifty meters, gave a casual three-sixty as if doing a quick survey of the area, then straightened out and headed toward the city.

For a moment, Jody considered just staying where she was. It was only an assumption, after all, that the Dominion was here for her. If they didn’t actually know she was on Caelian, but were just here for another survey, they might not even ask about her. And if they were looking for her, there was something to be said for not making their job any easier than she had to.

But on the other hand, it sounded like Omnathi was planning to announce himself to them. There was no way she was going to miss that.

She was in the conference room, seated between Harli and Siraj and trying not to fidget, when Kemp opened the door and announced the arrival of their guests.

Considering there were only five of them, it was quite an entrance. They strode past Kemp into the room like they owned the entire planet, or else were preparing to take it in a quick and bloody battle. There was one senior-looking officer, his blazing blue and gold dress uniform visibly brightening the room, and four Marines dressed in muted outfits of burgundy and black that made his uniform look even brighter by comparison.

And all four Marines had handguns holstered at their sides.

Jody felt a shiver run up her back. The Marines she’d seen parading around Capitalia had been in fancier dress uniforms and hadn’t been armed, at least not so obviously. Someone was expecting trouble.

“Good afternoon, citizens of Caelian and the Dominion of Man,” the officer said briskly as he stopped a meter from the end of the table. He was tall and handsome, his face an exotic combination of dark skin, short-cropped black hair, and piercing blue eyes that would have looked perfect on a recruitment poster. “I’m Lieutenant Commander Tristan Tamu, fourth officer of the Dominion Cruiser Algonquin and currently in command of the Algonquin’s courier ship Squire. Which of you is Governor Romulo Uy?”

“I’m Governor Uy,” Uy spoke up. “Welcome to Caelian, Commander Tamu.”

“Actually, sir, I doubt I’m all that welcome,” Tamu said, his voice flat.

“And why would you think that?” Uy asked.

Jody had thought Tamu was as stiff and straight as humanly possible. She was wrong. “We’re here, Governor Romulo Uy, to place you under arrest,” he said, his voice suddenly clipped and formal. “I’ve been ordered to escort you back to Aventine for trial.”

His eyes flicked once around the table, then returned to Uy. “The charge,” he added, “is treason.”

CHAPTER NINE

In other places, Jody thought distantly, and with other people, a statement like that would have been followed by gasps or shouts of outrage and disbelief.

Not in this place. Not with these people. All that Tamu got for his verbal bombshell was a dead, dark, ominous nothing.

Uy broke the silence first. “I presume you have a warrant?” he asked calmly.

Tamu gestured, and one of the Marines walked around behind Jody and the others to the head of the table. He pulled an envelope from his sleeve and handed it to Uy, then took a step backward.

Uy opened the envelope, and another silence settled onto the room. Jody looked furtively around the table, noting with uneasiness the hard look on Harli’s face.

Even more ominous, while the Marine had been delivering the warrant two more Cobras had stepped silently into the room and were now standing in a loose line beside Kemp, the three of them blocking the door.

“And while we head back to Aventine to deal with that,” Tamu continued, “my men will be organizing and directing the construction of new defenses for you. We have the plans and equipment aboard the Squire.”

“What do we need defenses for?” Harli growled. “The war’s over.”

“A particular war may end,” Tamu said. “The institution of war never does. If the Trofts tried to conquer you once, they’ll try it again.”

“And if we don’t want to waste our time playing fort-building games?” Harli countered.

“I would hope you wouldn’t take that attitude,” Tamu said coolly. “Since in that case Commodore Santores would have no choice but to place Caelian under martial law.”

“What?” Harli turned to his father. “Dad?”

“Yes, that’s in here, too,” Uy said mildly, gesturing to the papers in his hand. “We’re to give Commander Tamu our fullest cooperation, or else he’ll have it by other means.” He raised his eyebrows at Tamu. “The Dominion seems to think we’re vulnerable to threats here on Caelian.”

“Then the Dominion needs to take a closer look at the Troft warships we took out,” Harli said.

“I don’t make these decisions, Cobra Uy,” Tamu said. “I just carry out my orders, and expect you to do the same.” A faint smile flicked across his face. “Oh, yes, I know who you are, Cobra Harli Marco Uy. I know who all of you are.”

He looked over his shoulder at Kemp and the other two Cobras, and Jody noticed his left eyelid give a small twitch. “Cobras Popescu, Tammling, and Kemp. I’d stay back if I were you, gentlemen. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”

He turned back to the table, his eyelid twitching again. “Elssa Onella Uy, the governor’s wife.” He paused as his gaze shifted to Omnathi, his eyelid twitching twice this time. He frowned slightly and moved on to Siraj. “You are…” He stopped, his eyelid again twitching. His eyes flicked to Siraj’s scaled gray combat suit, then turned to Jody. “You—”

He stiffened. “Jody Broom?” he said. “But you’re—” His eyes flashed briefly to Uy, then back to her. “I was informed you were taken to the Hoibe’ryi’sarai demesne.”

“Obviously not,” Jody said. “Why? Is that a problem?”

“No, not at all,” Tamu said. The brief surprise was past, and he was back on balance again. “In fact, it’s extremely convenient that you’re here. Commodore Santores is most anxious to speak with you. As I’m already tasked with bringing Governor Uy to Aventine, you can travel with us.”

“I don’t think so,” Harli said. “You’re not going to be taking anyone anywhere.”

“And why is that?” Tamu asked.

Pushing back his chair, Harli rose dramatically to his feet. “Because there’s something you don’t know.”

Abruptly, there was a multiple flash of light from somewhere behind Jody, followed by a muffled curse.

She twisted her head around. Tammling was staggering back, clutching at his arms and chest where a dozen black spots had suddenly appeared in his silliweave tunic. Two of the three Marines had half turned to face him and the other Cobras, one of them with his forefinger pointing warningly at Kemp. The third Marine, along with the one still standing behind Uy, still had their full attention on the group at the table.

“You mean that one of your Cobras was attempting to sneak up behind me?” Tamu asked, his voice heavy with contempt. “If that was his idea, Cobra Uy, it was extremely foolish. If it was your idea, it was criminally foolish. Consider yourselves lucky that our backstab systems were set on riot control. His fresh collection of burns are painful, but not life-threatening.”

He looked back at Tammling, standing in stoic silence now beside Popescu, his eyes boring into one of the Marines as Popescu helped him ease out of his tunic. “Also be aware that riot control is stage two. There are six more stages above that. The next time one of your men tries a stunt like that, it may not end so well.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Harli said, his voice under rigid control. “I suggest you do likewise.”

Tamu turned back, his eyebrows raised. “Is that a threat against the Dominion of Man, Cobra Uy?”

“Take it any way you want,” Harli said. “Just take it as truth that you’re not taking my father or Ms. Broom away.”

Tamu snorted gently. “Words of emptiness,” he said scornfully. “I’ve already proved you can’t harm us physically. Do you really think anyone on Caelian will deliberately open themselves to their own charges of treason by interfering with our lawful duties?”

“Your words carry an emptiness of their own,” Omnathi spoke up calmly. “Not everyone on Caelian is subject to the laws and pretentions of your Dominion.”

“Really?” Tamu asked, his eyelid doing another twitch. Accessing some kind of personnel databank? “And how precisely do you compute that?”

“Truth does not need to be computed,” Omnathi said with a sudden diplomatic weight and strength that sent a shiver up Jody’s back. “I am Moffren Omnathi, Shahni of the sovereign world of Qasama.”