Part 26 (1/2)

”The Race, I would say, is too optimistic,” Anielewicz answered. ”But I thank you for the information. It confirms other things I have learned. We may have been very lucky there.”

Nesseref asked a question of her own: ”And if we had not been? What would you have done with your explosive-metal bomb then?” She still didn't know if he had one, but she thought he might.

”Do you know the Tosevite story of Samson in the, uh, house of superst.i.tion?” Anielewicz asked. When the shuttlecraft pilot made the negative hand gesture, the Big Ugly said, ”Count yourself lucky.” He added an emphatic cough.

Atvar turned an eye turret toward Ps.h.i.+ng with more than a little annoyance. ”Must ”Must I see the accursed Tosevite now?” he said. I see the accursed Tosevite now?” he said.

”Exalted Fleetlord, it is is a scheduled appointment,” his adjutant answered. ”Having conceded these not-empires their independence, we seem to have little choice but to treat them as if we meant it.” a scheduled appointment,” his adjutant answered. ”Having conceded these not-empires their independence, we seem to have little choice but to treat them as if we meant it.”

”I am painfully aware of that,” Atvar answered. ”If you will recall, I recently suffered through a harangue from the American amba.s.sador, who seemed shocked we would presume to swing an eye turret in the direction of what his not-empire is doing with its s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p. Truculent, arrogant... Maybe I should retire and let Reffet see how he likes taking on this whole burden.”

”Please do not do that, Exalted Fleetlord,” Ps.h.i.+ng said earnestly. ”You would leave us at the mercy of the colonists. They still show little true understanding of the realities of Tosev 3.”

”Well, there you have spoken a truth,” Atvar said, flattered. ”But it is a temptation, nonetheless. I have done too much for too long. Kirel might manage as well-or as poorly-as I have.”

In Atvar's opinion, the thing most likely to limit Kirel's effectiveness was Kirel himself. He kept that to himself; he would not cast aspersions on the senior s.h.i.+plord of the conquest fleet to amuse his adjutant. ”Send in the Deutsch amba.s.sador,” he said. ”The sooner I have heard his absurd, outlandish complaints, the sooner I can dispose of them.”

”It shall be done.” Ps.h.i.+ng went out into an antechamber and returned with a Big Ugly named Ludwig Bieberback.

Atvar preferred dealing with Bieberback to trying to deal with his predecessor, Ribbentrop. This Tosevite had some elementary understanding of the world around him. He also spoke the language of the Race; going through interpreters had often been enough to give Atvar the itch.

”I greet you, Exalted Fleetlord,” the Deutsch male said now, a.s.suming the posture of respect.

”And I greet you, Amba.s.sador,” Atvar replied. ”Please be seated.” He waved the Big Ugly to a chair made for his kind.

”I thank you.” After Bieberback had sat down, he said, ”Exalted Fleetlord, I am here to protest the arrogant and highhanded way in which the Race's amba.s.sador to the Reich Reich presumed to pa.s.s judgment on our movements of soldiers within our own territory.” presumed to pa.s.s judgment on our movements of soldiers within our own territory.”

”He did so at my express order,” Atvar said; he had learned from painful experience that rudeness worked better with the Deutsche than tact, which they took for weakness. ”If you try to attack Poland, we will smash you flat. Is that plain enough for you to understand?”

”We deny that the Reich Reich intended to do any such thing,” Ludwig Bieberback said. ”We have a legitimate right of self-defense, and we were exercising it in a nonprovocative manner.” intended to do any such thing,” Ludwig Bieberback said. ”We have a legitimate right of self-defense, and we were exercising it in a nonprovocative manner.”

”No, you were not, or I would not have had my warning delivered to you,” Atvar said. ”And we do not find your denials credible. The Reich Reich has carried on a covert conflict with the Race since the fighting stopped. To have that break into open war would not surprise us in the least, and you would not find us unprepared to take the harshest measures against your not-empire.” has carried on a covert conflict with the Race since the fighting stopped. To have that break into open war would not surprise us in the least, and you would not find us unprepared to take the harshest measures against your not-empire.”

”This presumption of yours is intolerable,” Bieberback said. ”Is it any wonder so many Tosevites seek to be free of your rule?”

”Nothing Tosevites do is much of a wonder,” Atvar said. ”Is it any wonder that the Race has to keep both eye turrets toward all Tosevite not-empires at all times, to make sure we are not treacherously a.s.sailed?”

”That is not how the Race operates in practice,” Bieberback answered, a whine coming into his mushy voice. ”In practice, you persecute the Reich Reich more than all others put together.” more than all others put together.”

”You have spoken an untruth,” the fleetlord told him. ”And if we do keep a particularly close watch on the Reich, Reich, it is because the it is because the Reich Reich has shown itself to be particularly untrustworthy.” has shown itself to be particularly untrustworthy.”

”Now you have spoken an untruth,” Ludwig Bieberback said, a discourtesy no one from the Race except Reffet would have presumed to offer Atvar. ”If we cannot live in peace, we will have to see how else the Deutsche can obtain their legitimate rights from you.”

”If you try to take what you imagine to be your legitimate rights by force, you will discover how easy your not-empire is to devastate,” Atvar said.

”What gives you the right to make such threats?” Bieberback demanded.

”The power to make them good,” Atvar replied. ”You and your not-emperor would be wise to remember it.”

Bieberback rose and bowed, the Tosevite equivalent of a.s.suming the posture of respect. ”I think there is little point to continuing these discussions,” he said. ”The Reich Reich will act in accordance to its interests.” will act in accordance to its interests.”

”Yes, the Reich Reich would be wise to do that,” Atvar agreed. ”It would also be wise to bear in mind that antagonizing the Race is not in its interest. Antagonize the Race enough and the would be wise to do that,” Atvar agreed. ”It would also be wise to bear in mind that antagonizing the Race is not in its interest. Antagonize the Race enough and the Reich Reich will abruptly cease to be.” will abruptly cease to be.”

With another bow, the Big Ugly said, ”We shall defend ourselves against your aggression to the best of our ability. Good day.” Without waiting for the fleetlord's leave, he walked out of the office.

Atvar let out a long sigh. Ps.h.i.+ng came in a moment later. The fleetlord said, ”We shall have to keep ourselves at increased alert against the Reich. Reich. Plainly, the Deutsche have belligerent intentions.” Plainly, the Deutsche have belligerent intentions.”

”Shall I prepare orders to that effect?” Ps.h.i.+ng asked.

”Yes, do so,” Atvar answered. ”So long as these Big Uglies see they cannot take us by surprise, they are unlikely to attack us. If we ignore them, we put ourselves in danger.”

”Truth,” Exalted Fleetlord,” Ps.h.i.+ng said. ”I shall draft the orders for your approval.”

”Very good.” Atvar made the affirmative hand gesture. ”And when you transmit them to the males of the conquest fleet in Poland and in s.p.a.ce, do not do so over the channels with the greatest security.”

His adjutant let out a startled hiss. ”Exalted Fleetlord? If I follow that order, the Deutsche are only too likely to intercept our transmission. Much as I hate to say it, they are beginning to gain the technology required to defeat some of our less sophisticated scrambler circuits.”

”Yes, so I understand from some of the reports reaching us from the part of the Reich Reich known as France,” Atvar replied. ”In most circ.u.mstances, this is a nuisance-worse than a nuisance, in fact. But here, I want them to intercept the order. I want them to know we are alerted to the possibility of unprovoked attack from them. I want them to know that they will pay dearly if they make such an attack.” known as France,” Atvar replied. ”In most circ.u.mstances, this is a nuisance-worse than a nuisance, in fact. But here, I want them to intercept the order. I want them to know we are alerted to the possibility of unprovoked attack from them. I want them to know that they will pay dearly if they make such an attack.”

”Ah.” Ps.h.i.+ng a.s.sumed the posture of respect. ”Exalted Fleetlord, I congratulate you. That is deviousness worthy of a Big Ugly.”

”I thank you,” Atvar said, even if the form of the compliment was not what he might have liked. ”The Deutsche will feel they have genuinely important information if they think they are stealing it from us. If we give it to them, on the other fork of the tongue, they will think we want them to have it, and so will discount it.”

”Ah,” Ps.h.i.+ng repeated. He turned an eye turret toward the fleetlord. ”No one from the colonization fleet could possibly have such a deep understanding of the way Big Uglies think.”

That was a compliment Atvar could appreciate in full. ”And I thank you once more,” he said. ”By now, we of the conquest fleet have more experience of the Tosevites than anyone could want.”

”Even so,” Ps.h.i.+ng said with an emphatic cough. ”In aid of which, have you yet decided what we ought to do with the rabble-rouser named Khomeini now that he is finally in our hands?”

”Not yet,” Atvar said. ”By the Emperor, though, having his hateful voice silenced is a relief. He is far from the only fanatical agitator in this part of the main continental ma.s.s, but he was among the most virulent and the most effective.”

”His followers are among the most virulent, too, even among those who follow the Muslim superst.i.tion,” Ps.h.i.+ng said. ”If he remains imprisoned, they are liable to stop at nothing in their efforts to free him.”

”I am painfully aware of this,” Atvar said. ”We have, to our sorrow, seen too many such efforts-and too many of them have succeeded. I have made matters more difficult for the Big Uglies by ordering Khomeini transferred to a prison in the southern region of the lesser continental ma.s.s. The Big Uglies there speak a different language and follow the Christian superst.i.tion, so his influence among them should be much less than it would were we to have kept him incarcerated locally.”

”This also shows considerable understanding of Tosevite psychology,” his adjutant remarked.

”So it does, but I cannot take full credit for it,” Atvar said. ”Moishe Russie suggested it to me. This Khomeini is almost as ant.i.thetical to the Big Uglies of the Jewish superst.i.tion as he is to us, so, as against the Deutsche, Russie was able to make the suggestion in good conscience.”

”Excellent,” Ps.h.i.+ng said. ”We do our best when we can turn the Tosevites' differences among themselves to our advantage.”

”The only trouble being, too often they abandon those differences to unite against us,” Atvar said. ”They might even do that in the case of Khomeini, which is the main reason why I am considering ordering his execution.”

Both of Ps.h.i.+ng's eye turrets swung sharply toward him. ”Exalted Fleetlord?” he said, as if wondering whether he'd heard correctly.

Atvar understood that. The Race had not used capital punishment since long before Home was unified. But he said, ”This is a barbarous world, and ruling it-or ruling our portion of it-requires barbarous measures. During the fighting, did we not match the Big Uglies city for city with explosive-metal bombs?”