Part 18 (1/2)
”Apparently so, and he's being held not too far from here,” Grant replied. He was glad to be able to deliver the news to t.i.tan. The large ex-Violent and the chunky engineer had formed a tight bond-one that had been apparent from the first time Grant saw them together. They were an unlikely duo, but he could understand how being stranded together on a strange planet for years might have that affect.
”Grant, that's the best news I've heard in a long time. What about the others?”
”Aal and his buddies are going to help us get Gee back. Helping the others is going to be a tad more difficult. They're being held inside a large military compound near the governor's quarters. According to the Waa, they have a few hundred soldiers surrounding them at all times.”
”So we're just going to leave them there?” Conway asked, her voice quivering with emotion. Quiet until now, she was suddenly very interested with the conversation. Her fists clenched and unclenched at her side.
”Hold on a minute, Sergeant.” Grant put up a hand to try to calm her. ”No one's leaving them there. But we can only do one thing at a time.”
”And this Violent's engineer-buddy takes priority? That's-that's bulls.h.i.+t!”
t.i.tan sprang from the chair he had dropped into and advanced on the soldier. The scowl on his face matched the anger in her voice, and Grant quickly leaped between the two.
”Knock it off,” he snarled, looking at each in turn. ”We've got enough ... stuff ... to deal with already. It's not a matter of anyone taking priority. It's about our chances of success. There's no way we can take on several hundred Minith without getting ourselves killed in the process, and I'm tired of getting folks killed. This is about taking an action that has a reasonable chance of success.”
The large man and the relatively small woman glared at each other, but neither tried to fight their way past Grant. He caught t.i.tan's eye and nodded his chin toward the chair. With a grunt, the big man turned his back and resumed his previous position.
”And you,” Grant tipped his head toward Conway. ”Where did you learn the word 'bulls.h.i.+t?'”
”I wonder.”
Grant wished he had never brought any of his words or mannerisms to the future. They could only cause damage to the Peaceful citizens of Earth if they became widespread. Despite arguments to the contrary, it wasn't only sticks and stones that could cause hurt. How many past a.s.saults, murders, and wars could be attributed to words? Too many. For the thousandth time, he reminded himself to watch his language more carefully.
”Well, it's not a Peaceful word, so stop using it.”
”Since when have you cared about Peace? General.” Her tone did not pa.s.s unnoticed, but Grant ignored it, released a heavy sigh. He was so tired.
”I've always cared about peace, Conway, just a different kind. The peace I care about is not capitalized,” he explained. ”And it's certainly not forced on everyone through societal law. The peace I care about can be defined in very simple terms: the absence of war.”
”Forgive me for saying so, General, but your response is ... bulls.h.i.+t. One moment you tell me that saying a word is not Peaceful. In the next breath, you tell me that Peace means nothing more than 'the absence of war.' You can't have it both ways.”
”The woman has a point, Grant,” t.i.tan added.
But Grant's conscious had already processed the point-recognized it as having merit. In fact, Conway's response highlighted the real issue of peace, regardless of whether it was spelled with a capital ”P” or not. It was an epiphany for the ancient warrior-a moment of enlightenment that he had felt only a few times in his life, and he looked inward. He gave himself over to a pressing need-a desire to uncover as much of the answer gnawing at the fringes of his mind as he could before it disappeared.
Peace is a concept that seems simple only on the surface. Plat.i.tudes, cliches, and ba.n.a.l considerations are whitewash behind which the true complexities of peace hide. Peace is not merely the absence of a negative force. To be real, peace must also include the presence of a positive force. A cease-fire alone does not const.i.tute peace. To be real, peace must include genuine amity and goodwill. Otherwise, it is merely a lull in the conflict-a brief pause before the next bullet flies.
The concept of Peace, as practiced by the current citizens of Earth, was false. But for the first time in his life, Grant understood that his concept of peace was just as false. Peace is not merely the absence of war. There are too many other factors and conditions that contribute to the concept. Unrest, turmoil, disorder, conflict, strife. None of these are ”war,” but all affect the ability to achieve and maintain peace.
Grant resurfaced to find t.i.tan and Conway staring at him. He did not know how long he had been under, but he had definitely been s.p.a.cing out. He still did not have the answer to peace-the complexities were simply beyond his ability to decipher. But he did possess a new awareness.
”Sorry,” he said, shaking his head. ”Just thinking.”
”Don't hurt yourself, Little Man,” t.i.tan taunted. ”But I hope you were thinking about how we're going to get Gee.”
”No,” Grant admitted with an embarra.s.sed smile. ”But that's next on my list.”
CHAPTER 29.
Patahbay and one of his warriors led the way; the other two Telgorans tailed behind. Grant simply followed along as the Waa sent mind-directions that would take them to the stairwell which would eventually take them up to the surface. He could not help but marvel at the extent of the underground labyrinth they pa.s.sed through as they made their way to the eventual exit point. He had thought the underground caverns of Patahbay and his people were impressive, but even those were nothing like this. Even though they saw none of them, more than a hundred million Waa lived in these pa.s.sageways, if Aal was telling him the truth.
And the Minith believed fewer than three hundred of the planet's natives remained. Incredible.
An hour after they started, Patahbay halted before a nondescript door and looked at Grant.
”We are here.”
Grant nodded.
”Everyone, check your weapons. According to Aal, Gee's thoughts don't indicate any presence of soldiers,” he informed the others. ”On the other hand, the Waa have not made direct, formal contact with Gee, so they can't be certain. We need to be ready for anything.”
”How far do we have to climb?” t.i.tan asked his Telgoran friend. ”I remember it being a long climb down to get here.”
”Still a long climb,” Patahbay replied, his words accompanied by the now-familiar nods of the four dindin warriors.
”Just great.”
”It didn't seem that bad to me,” Grant chided. They all knew he had been unconscious for most of the journey down from the surface.
”General, you're gonna need those legs of yours before we're through,” Conway said, indicating the scientifically modified appendages he had been given. She then pointed to t.i.tan. ”h.e.l.l, you'll probably have to carry this guy most of the way up.”
”Ha,” t.i.tan replied. ”I'm twice your size. I'll be carrying you before we're through.”
”Not likely. I remember your wheezing and coughing after that little run we had a few months back. I don't think your endurance has improved since then.”
”Let's save our breaths for topside, shall we?” Grant asked, interrupting their back-and-forth. ”We'll know soon enough who's in shape and who isn't.”
An hour and more than three thousand steps later, Grant and the Telgorans reached the top. Grant was winded and his legs ached; the Telgorans looked ready to go another three thousand steps. The veteran soldier sat on the top step and waited for the other two humans.
Conway arrived ten minutes later, gasping for breath and with sweat pouring down her face. She collapsed to the landing with a groan and lay unmoving.
When t.i.tan showed up twenty minutes later, Conway was leaning lazily against the side of the landing with her arms crossed. She nonchalantly whistled a tune Grant did not recognize, but that obviously wasn't the point.
t.i.tan spared only a moment to glare daggers at the sergeant before collapsing to the deck. It was the same thing Conway had done when she reached the landing, but Grant wasn't going to tell t.i.tan that. She had earned her small victory.
”Twenty minutes to let 'Mr. Big' here regain his legs and wind. Then we move out,” Grant announced.
Gee was bored. It was a growing problem for the engineer, who was used to having too much to do, not too little. After nearly three months of captivity, his only real activities involved spending time with his warden's sons, Arok and Teng, and eating.
Of those two activities, he had to admit that being with the two young Minith was the preferred. Although Minith and humans are both omnivorous and can usually digest similar foods, finding a suitable meal that was pleasing to all his senses had proven a challenge. Fortunately, Rala had been patient, and seemed to care enough about his well-being to be concerned with his needs. After a week of trying various foods, he had settled on his top three or four choices-all vegetables native to Waa-and had learned to enjoy them almost as much as his Earth favorites. Through the course of the effort, he had somehow managed to lose the extra ring of pounds that had always fleshed out his waistline. For the first time in his life, he was actually slim.