The Galaxy Game (30 page)

In another matter, he managed to have the last word over me, pointing out that for a son who had complained and resisted taking over the family business, I had somehow managed to turn my act of independence in going to Punartam into an accidental display of complete filial obedience and loyalty. I wasn’t sure whether to be horrified or amused at myself, but then he formally named me a full partner and I really didn’t care how many laughs he had at my expense. He gave me a platinum pin with a green diamond as an accoutrement to mark the occasion. I wore it on a thin band like a Wallrunner, because whether I made my next transit naked in a mindship or stripped-down in a passenger module, I was never taking it off. Never.

But I digress. We had returned! We were once more in Tlaxce City. Once an insignificant lowlister in the annals of galactic cities; now, by process of elimination and a fortunate history of blended heritage, the host of its first Galactic Consortium Meeting, albeit one that was hastily done up and ragged around the edges. Tlaxce’s Halls of Parliament had been reserved for the purpose and the spectator galleries of the Primary House were massive. We plebeians of Punartam found ourselves a comfortable corner and settled in to hear the deliberations of our rulers and betters. Rafi was nowhere to be found. He had muttered something earlier about keeping a low profile and I hadn’t seen him since. I decided I would wait until the end of the day before sending out the search parties.

Ixiaral gave me a few details and I was curious enough to look up the rest. The only full delegates were those who had come from Punartam and Ntshune. There was, surprisingly enough, a delegate from the planet Zhinu A – well, not entirely a surprise considering they’re the only one of the Zhinuvian home planets and associated colonies to have anything approaching a planetary government, but they usually sent their local Consul or Ambassador to attend the proceedings in whatever city the Meeting was held. To spend money and time on a ship from Zhinu was within their means, but they had never demonstrated such interest before.

The rest of Zhinu was loosely represented, if you can call it that, by a group of Tlaxce-based Consuls who insisted quite happily that they were only there to observe. Sadira-on-Cygnus was there, of course; the pilots appeared to have formed some kind of space nomad free state, whatever that meant; and the New Sadira Consul spent a long hour blathering out his complaint concerning the unseemly haste with which the Meeting had been convened, such haste having prevented him from either bringing in a full delegate or obtaining accreditation from his government to be their delegate. The sidelong looks and narrow-eyed glares he got from both pilots and Cygnian-Sadiri were a joy to behold.

The real excitement came not from a delegate but an observer. Revered Bezhtan of Academe Nkhaleëngomi had lived several years on Punartam but was originally from Ain. The murmur that ran through the crowd of delegates, observers and spectators was thrilling. Bezhtan was registered as academic rather than governmental representation so there was no reason to bar her, but you could feel the air go prickly with unresolved emotions as the Sadiri eyed her uneasily. Bezhtan sat and calmly bore the stares of curiosity and hatred with an expression that looked more like resignation than contrition.

That was only the morning session, everyone having their own little introductory piece to say, but it was already exciting. Ixiaral had to attend to the Patrona so I went to find Rafi, desperate to talk about the possibilities from this Meeting. Before I saw him, I noticed another familiar face, one that made me forget any memory of embarrassment or awkwardness when I saw how it lit up at my presence. Serendipity! We all but ran to each other and gripped arms in a cheerful mockery of the old Lyceum greeting.

‘Ntenman, so good to see you!’ she cried.

I laughed and only said, ‘Serendipity!’ but with enough fondness that she could decipher the rest.

Were we finally old enough to forget about pettiness? I can’t tell you what changed, whether I had finally found my place in the galaxy or she had become more settled and secure, but we were simply glad to see each other alive and well in an unpredictable time.

‘I was looking for Rafi,’ I told her.

Her expression changed to wry amusement. ‘Don’t. He’s with Delarua and she hasn’t finished with him yet. Why didn’t you let us know you were here?’

I stammered out my truthful but somehow inadequate-sounding explanation that we’d arrived separately and we’d both been very busy. ‘Regardless,’ I concluded, ‘please keep me away from Grace Delarua. I’m convinced she dislikes me, and if she thinks I kept Rafi from her, she won’t like me any better.’

We went to get a snack and sat outside in a small park nearby. I told her briefly and incompletely what wonders we had seen and perpetrated on Punartam, and she told me about her time in Grand Bay, swimming with baby mindships.

‘What?’ I demanded in shock. ‘Does this mean you’re a pilot now?’

‘No.’ She laughed, but there was a little wistfulness in it. ‘I’m only a passenger. I’m a pretty good one because I do have a connection with them, but becoming a pilot takes years of training and a certain kind of biology that Cygnians don’t have.’

She sounded a little in love with them. I knew enough not to scoff. Communication and intimacy but also privacy – that was all Serendipity had ever wanted. I smiled and showed her I was happy for her but felt at the same time slightly guilty that my crush had subsided enough that I could do this with complete sincerity.

‘Come sit with us for the next session.’ My invitation was offered with impure motives. Of course I desired the pleasure of her company, but another thing I greatly desired was the opportunity to watch her reaction to the coming revelations. Rafi would have done as well, but it sounded as if he was going to be busy for some time. To be honest, I wasn’t exactly in the know myself. I was aware that certain options were being explored. I had my own guesses as to which way the decision would swing. It could have been fun to make a bet on it, but I preferred to say nothing of my speculations and instead enjoy to the fullest Serendipity’s amazement when the time came.

The afternoon session went directly to the reason for the Meeting being convened. I knew that some spectators thought it would be about the cartels taking over the Academes, or the pilots’ general shift in allegiance from New Sadira to their own sweet selves, but it was a mundane, almost banal request. Ntshune was requesting permission to implement a galactic transportation system. I glanced at Serendipity out of the corner of my eye, just in case she’d had any hints from pilots and might be less shocked than I hoped, but she was leaning forward and frowning, almost biting her nails.

Cygnus Beta had no objections. Sadira-on-Cygnus had no objections. New Sadira grudgingly offered no objections pending later authorisation by their government. The pilots applauded the move and pledged their support and assistance. After that, Zhinu A promptly offered no objections but the other Zhinuvian observers looked a little nervous, as if they were not sure what it all meant.

Then the Ntshune delegate explained the basis for the transit system and the huge hall rang with voices of alarm. I exhaled slowly, trying to control the urge to giggle. Serendipity’s face was a picture of bewilderment. I sighed. I wanted shock but she was clearly out of her depth.

‘Don’t you remember that the airspace over Sadira-on-Cygnus is restricted?’ I hinted. ‘Why is that, do you think?’

‘Because surface-to-surface transit isn’t permit— Ohhh.’

‘Exactly. Since the Great Galactic War, we’ve only allowed spaceships to come as close as orbit. We screen and process everyone before bringing them to the surface using our own transportation. The Ntshune want to resurrect the old surface transits.’

Finally some order was returned to the cacophony. One of the Zhinuvian observers had passed from mere nervousness to outright panic, seizing the floor to inform everyone what an incredibly dangerous and terrible idea it was. I smiled and watched him rant, and was more than satisfied when the Punarthai delegate, our own dear Patrona, took the floor next to inform the gathering that the technology and data the Zhinuvian cartels had taken by force from the Academes would inevitably allow said cartels to construct their own surface transits, with predictably bad results for everyone else’s commerce and security. Everyone looked at the Zhinuvians suspiciously, and the delegate for Zhinu A took the opportunity to calmly state that their position had not changed. Zhinu A would not offer any objections and, like the pilots, was willing to offer support and assistance. Splendid confusion amid the Zhinuvian observers! Smug insouciance from the Zhinu A delegate! I caught myself rubbing my hands together in glee, like a villain in an
opera rustica
. Serendipity gaped at me as if I was going mad, but it was pure entertainment!

The Ntshune delegate then spoke again, accepting the concerns raised and stating that to mitigate those concerns, they wished to make the new transit system a truly galactic project with input and oversight from every planetary government. To that end, they were inviting Punarthai academics, Sadiri pilots and the transportation specialists of Zhinu A to come to Ntshune and establish a base there which would be neutral territory, a true galactic port.

The Primary House buzzed again, less loudly than before but with a telling intensity as one by one delegates spoke their agreement and acceptance with such speed and equanimity that it was obvious pre-Meeting negotiations had taken place. The Consul of New Sadira and the Zhinuvian observers were helpless to intervene as they lacked any authorisation. I think they had assumed the Meeting would be all about the cartels. Ntshune was light-years ahead of them.

Serendipity laughed behind her hand, finally catching the adrenalin of the moment. ‘Has no one realised that the Ntshune delegate just got near-unanimous approval to create a galactic capital?’

I gave her a wide-eyed stare. I had not realised, and she had shocked me, not the other way around. We leaned against each other, giggling ridiculously as if the entire caper was some Lyceum prank we had cooked up ourselves. Giddy with our new camaraderie, I wondered whether I could persuade her to come with us to the new centre of the galaxy, to Ntshune.

*

Delarua raised her hand to touch the door, paused and let it drop. ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’

Rafi folded his arms and nodded firmly. ‘Yes, I’m sure.’

She examined his face for a long moment and sighed. ‘Very well.’

She pressed her hand to the door. Maria had disposed of the welcome mat – Delarua wasn’t sure why – and programmed the door to announce a very narrow range of visitors. She hoped she was still on the list.

Maria herself opened the door, already looking at her sister with a tired expression, but her eyes widened in shock as she noticed Rafi. For a moment she simply froze and stared at him as her eyes grew shiny with unshed tears.

‘You’ve grown so tall,’ she whispered at last.

‘Please—’ He stopped, swallowed. ‘Will you let me in?’

*

He had come back to say I love you and goodbye. Delarua understood that. It had taken her a while to forgive him for not using the comm to contact her, and for timing his message so badly and addressing it so vaguely that it had arrived days after they left for Tlaxce City and was probably still sitting at the Grand Bay clearing house in a general pile for ‘the Dllenahkh homestead’. But when she calmed down enough to seriously consider what kind of future he would have on Cygnus Beta, she understood that he could not and would not stay.

Delarua watched Maria gazing at Rafi as he played a game with Gracie and swiftly, painfully realised that Maria did not understand.

She spoke a little louder than usual, to catch everyone’s attention. ‘When will you be leaving for Ntshune, Rafi?’

He was startled. ‘Ntshune?’

Delarua softened her voice. ‘Yes. Didn’t you know? Or . . . will you be staying here?’

He bowed his head. Maria looked bewildered, then distressed. Gracie glanced fearfully from face to face, understanding nothing.

‘If that’s where my friends are going, then yes,’ he said. Before Maria had time to react, he said to her, ‘You could come with me, both of you. Please?’

Delarua saw the moment when Maria’s yearning towards her son met her antipathy against all psionically gifted societies. The opposing desires struggled briefly, then the antipathy won with a visible recoil. ‘It’s not a place for people like us,’ she said stiffly.

Rafi’s face fell.

Delarua felt a pang and knew it was partly guilt for raising the topic, standing aside and seeing what would result. She rushed to tell the rest of the story. ‘Don’t worry, Maria. He’ll be travelling a lot in his job, and I’m sure we can expect to see him occasionally.’

‘Of course,’ Rafi agreed hastily, looking at her worriedly.
What travel in what job?
his eyes asked her frantically.

If you paid attention to things you would know
, her exasperated expression replied. She had seen him sitting near the Patrona and the Dean for a short while during the morning session, which had led to her finding him minutes later in the corridor and taking him by the scruff of the neck, to the amusement and bemusement of various onlookers. She had been present for part of the earlier negotiations with Ntshune delegates, Punarthai academics and the pilots of Grand Bay. He had enough time to tell her about his training as a nexus and how that related to transits. For a young man with direct access to a lot of information, he was incredibly bad at connecting the pieces.

‘
I’d
like to visit Ntshune,’ Gracie said suddenly.

Rafi laughed, his face brightening with relief. ‘You will, Gracie. Sooner than you realise. Soon everyone will be able to go anywhere they want to, faster than any Zhinuvian transport.’

‘Don’t get carried away,’ Delarua muttered, but she could not help smiling.

Chapter Fourteen

‘The modern ice age on Ntshune has been of such intensity and duration as to rival anything that the worlds of the civilised galaxy, crafted or bioformed, has seen. Ice covers the entirety of our planet’s land mass. Even at the equator the ocean remains oozy with slush and crowded with icebergs. Nevertheless, Janojya, our capital city, stays warm and lively within the shelter of a massive biodome. We are located several metres under ice at the base of a tamed shield volcano. A steady outflow of water is heated by the city’s excess energy and poured into the nearest sea where it keeps a channel ice-free for mindships and orbital shuttles to splashdown.