Jo Clayton - Shadow of the Warmaster

“Genetic, I suppose.” Aslan got to her feet, brushed her hands against her trousers. “I thought that might happen, so I begged some cold meat and rolls from Prismek, a minute, I’ll fetch them.” She pushed past the double tarp they used as a door and tied taut once they were in for the night, came back with a basket, its contents wrapped in old soft cloth. “He had some krida he was frying for breakfast, there’s a sackful of those tucked under the rolls. And he threw in some green meelas and some cheese to go with them.”

“I love you forever, Lan.”

“So tell me what it is you didn’t want to say out there.”

“Remember I said we were still arguing?” Xalloor pulled a box across the slippery mat to her pallet and began laying out the feast.

“So?”

“I didn’t exactly mean we, not when Elmas came in; there was some peculiar tea going round and it got me in the gut, I was out back in the facilities listening to my insides grumble and wondering if my knees were going to work right when I finished dropping my burden. Well, I don’t need to go into that any more, but what happened was, when I came back Churri and Holz had gone off along with most the others. I was ticked, let me tell you, I could’ve used an arm to lean on right then, I was moving slow and careful. That must’ve been why they didn’t hear me and stop talking.” She popped a krida in her mouth and crunched happily at it, rolling her eyes with pleasure at the taste.

“Loorie!”

“Dearie dai, im pay shunt,” Xalloor scooped out a handful of the krida and sat with her fingers crooked about the succulent fishlets, “pay and play. Outside’s in. Here and now. Not Bolodo.”

Aslan closed her eyes. After a moment, she heard a hissing as the water boiled and a few drops landed on the coals. She kicked a cushion across to the box, hooked the kettle away from the fire. As she made the tea, she did her best to not-think, not-feel. Behind her she could hear Xalloor eating steadily and was grateful the dancer didn’t feel like talking right then. She left the tea steeping, stood leaning against the crate, her elbows behind her, resting on the top. “Outside’s in?”

“You hear what Elmas ’n the isyas were after?”

“My students said she was going to blow the Brain. Get rid of the Sech’s files. Make as much trouble as she could.”

“Yah. That’s where she ’n the isyas ran into ’em.”

“Hmm.” Aslan lifted the strainer, inspected the tea and decided it was ready. She carried pot and bowls to the box, folded herself down onto the cushion and poured tea for herself and Xalloor. She cradled her bowl between her hands, glad of the warmth and the heaviness, it gave her something to hold onto. “Exactly what did you hear, Loorie?”

“Le’ me see, I’m supposed to be good with dialog. You been in the depot, you know how it’s laid out; we were in the big room so we could walk through a scene whenever we fixed something and see how it played. There’s tarp hung all over, makes it hot sometimes, but no one fusses about that,” she held up one of the krida, “frying’s all right for fish, but me, I’d rather not, eh? There’s a couple of old minecars in there, lot of junk, you had to navigate it in the dark, you’d end up with two broken legs and your face pushed in. What I mean, we don’t try to light the whole place, so there’s lots of shadows and it’s easy to get lost round the edges. Well, I wasn’t trying to get lost, it was just I wasn’t making much noise and walking along like I was my grandmother after she outwore her ananiles. I fetched up by one of the cars and decided I’d better lean against it for a minute. Felt nice and cool against my face. I started to feel better. They were talking all that time, but I wasn’t listening until I heard outsiders in that tone of voice, you know, when someone’s about to be shoved head down in shit and it won’t be the locals. Being it was Elmas speaking and considering how the Council crawls around her, I got interested fast. I thought she was talking about us.” She broke off to sip at the tea.

Aslan moved one hand carefully from the cup, pressed her heated palm against her mouth. When the heat was gone, she lowered the hand. “Who was there?”

“Um, Elmas, that pilot what’s his name, it’ll come back to me in a minute, one of her isyas, the one that’s living here all the time now, Lirrit I think’s her name, Evvily and Ylazar. Pilot, ah! I knew I’d get it, Karrel Goza, yah, he didn’t say anything, he doesn’t talk much anytime. Ylazar said something, I didn’t hear it, his back was to me and you know how he mumbles. The woman warned us, Elmas said. We had to get Skimmer undercover, she said. Or lose her, she said. Ylazar Falyan, we need a boat and yoss pods and enough fuel to fill Skimmer ’s tanks, we need it tonight , she said. Ylazar said something I didn’t hear that time either, didn’t need to hear it, you know him, if there’s anything he hates worse than moving, it’s moving fast. Do it , she said, now. She gave him the mean eye and he got to his feet and went out, muttering to himself.” Xalloor grinned. “She say hop, they jump and don’t bother asking how high. The pilot, he got up and went out after Laza, said nothing, just left. Before they were out the door, Elmas started on Evvily. Get word out , she said, the woman jigged the Brain and set up open corridors for anyone who wants over the Wall, in or out. No melters, no alarms, no defenses at all. I’ll get time, place and duration at the meeting with the outsiders, give it to you for distribution soon as we get back here. Evvily wasn’t about to be tramped on like Ylazar. Do you trust her? she said. It’s your word going to guarantee this , she said. She makes a fool of you, it hurts us all .” Xalloor jumped up and danced over to the storage crate; she got out the stone bottle with the rix brandy they kept for celebrating small triumphs, came back more soberly, her face and body shouting her nervousness. “Give me your bowl,” she said.

“Why?”

“Always asking questions, aren’t you. Just for once do what I say, eh?”

More apprehensive than ever, Aslan swallowed the last of the cold tea and passed over the bowl.

Xalloor poured in enough brandy to cover the bottom. “Drink that. Now.”

“Yes, Mama Loor.”

Xalloor gave herself a scant teaspoon of the brandy, pushed the cork back in and settled on her pallet. “Where was I?”

“Evvily was saying do you trust her.”

“Right.” Xalloor sipped at the brandy, eyes closed. “Elmas laughed. I don’t need to trust her , she said, I have two good locks on her. The outsiders want trade with us. They cheat us now and that shuts down on them fast , she said. Rosepearls , she said. They want them like most people want air to breathe , she said. And they’ve come to take back the slaves Bolodo sold Pitapat , she said. The woman more than the others. Her daughter is a slave , she said. She’s here to get her back.”

Aslan felt sick. She bent over until her forehead was resting on the box.

“Cha! I knew this was going to happen.” Xalloor came round the box on hands and knees, lifted Aslan against her, held her with her face tucked into the curve between neck and shoulder. She held Aslan until her shuddering stopped, stroking her back, smoothing a gentle hand over and over her short dark hair.

Finally Aslan sighed and pushed away. She filled her bowl again and drank the brandied tea for its double warmth. “Go on,” she said.

“Not much on to go. Soon as she said that, I thought of you and what you told me about your mum. Then I thought, hunh, don’t jump so fast, Loor, lots of daughters hauled off here, I’m one myself though my mum wouldna crossed a street to fetch me home. Evvily was still being hard to convince. She might have lied , she said, she might have been playing games with you. No , Elmas said. The daughter is here now. At the Mines. Aslan , she said. We’ll hold her, that way we can be sure the mother does what she’s promised . Just then that idiot Mustakin came slamming back in, forgot his overcloak. They stopped talking. I suppose Elmas thought she’d said all she needed to, anyway they went out after Musti. By that time I’d forgotten the shakes and I took off as soon as I was sure no one would land on me. So there it is, your mum is here, looking for you.”