Part 23 (1/2)

”To complete it,” Kranath said, sitting beside him and materializing a mug of chovas. ”I ended the clan wars, to begin the current cycle of history; a human must end this war, with our help, to begin the next.”

The rest of the Lords, except for Sepol and Carle, vanished. ”It all ties together, Steve,” Carle said. ”I taught you Language so you could complete the Ordeal quickly, and so you could communicate easily with your n'ruhar. We did not teach you forestcraft, because there was something you had to learn for yourself while Hovan taught you that.”

Tarlac nodded almost immediately. ”How to open up,” he said. ”Even . . . that I could open up, to love a whole clan and not be ashamed of it.”

Kranath nodded. ”Yes, and you learned it quickly, despite your human conditioning. I had to learn to be alone, you to be close--even the most minor of G.o.ds must know both.

”Someone subject to external limitations, as a Ranger or ruler is, should have no bias. We are limited only by our own feelings, though; everything we do must be tempered by love for our charges.”

”External limitations?” Tarlac chuckled. ”I'd say I didn't have many!”

”You had the ultimate limitation, Steve. Mortality.”

”Huh?” Tarlac found that his coffee had remained at the perfect drinking temperature, and took another swallow.

”You could give almost any order and have it obeyed, granted. But if someone disliked what you did or commanded intensely enough-- You have a saying that n.o.body is safe from a truly determined a.s.sa.s.sin, not true?”

”I hadn't thought of it like that, but you're right. And you--no, we--can't be killed.” Then Tarlac frowned. ”G.o.dhome gave you a choice, Kranath. It said you had to be willing--why didn't I get that option?”

”Did you need it?”

”I don't understand.”

”Did you need it?” Kranath repeated. ”It seems to me that you had already made the choice.”

”Ruhar,” Carle said gently, ”you have been both Ranger and Cor'naya, earning high status in both societies, and Daria was right when she told you that was vital to peace. Tell me, though: would that have been enough? Were you persuasive enough to convince two star-spanning civilizations to cease ten years of hostility just with words? Is any mortal?”

Tarlac shook his head. ”I'm an operator, not much of a diplomat-- Linda's the expert at that, and I don't think even she could bring that one off.” He looked at them speculatively, then nodded. ”I guess I do understand, at that. I did choose this, didn't I? Twice, and without realizing it.”

The three other Lords smiled proudly at him. ”Yes,” Kranath said.

”Once when you accepted Ranger Ellman's invitation, once when you accepted the Ordeal. That you were persuaded into both decisions is irrelevant; none of us chose this without persuasion, neither I nor any of the others.”

”And I think I know why you need a human Lord, too. We're going to have to work on both sides to end the war. The Imperials would hardly listen to one of you--in your own form, anyway--where they will listen to a Ranger.”

Kranath smiled. ”Exactly. And as you have correctly surmised, we do not take on each other's forms. Not only would it be dishonorable, it would be unwise; those who hold great power, those to whom we usually need to appear when Speakers' words are insufficient, have enough psionic ability to tell us apart.” Kranath projected mild amus.e.m.e.nt.

”Humans included, though they have not as yet developed that ability consciously.”

”Which means I'll have to go back to my body. That's the only way to keep intervention to a minimum.” Tarlac thought for a moment. ”With any luck at all, I won't have to do anything obvious enough for humans to notice. The Empire doesn't need a new human religion to cope with at the same time it acquires a new Sector--if things work out the way I'm hoping.”

”You will allow the respective rulers to make the final choice, then.”

”I'll give them the information they need to choose intelligently, but I won't tell them what to do.” Tarlac sensed approval, and this time knew where it came from; he smiled. ”Thanks.”

”None necessary, Ruhar,” Sepol said. ”We are merely pleased that you grasp the necessities, even before your full maturity. Go on.”

”Well, I won't be able to avoid open intervention with the Traiti; I'll have to tell all of them what I saw in Kranath's Vision. I don't like showing off like that, but at least they're accustomed to Lords manifesting from time to time.”

”I did not like it either,” Kranath agreed, ”when I had to intervene so to end the clan wars. We all do what must be done, though.” He put an arm around the man. ”If you are ready, Brother, we should begin.”