Jerry Pournelle - King David's Spaceship

Suppose he’s right, they approve David’s application and bring Samual into their Empire. What happens then? What have they done with Mary?

The door opened and a large man, formally dressed, came in. “Colonel MacKinnie? I am Dudley Boyd, First Secretary. His Excellency will see you now.” MacKinnie stood, remembering that it was in this room that he’d first met the Imperials. That seemed like a long time ago.

And it is interesting, MacKinnie thought as he followed the diplomat down the hall. The First Secretary for escort. I’ve come up in the world …

Mary was in the High Commissioner’s office. He went to her without waiting to be introduced to the Commissioner, but then he stood self-consciously. He wanted to hold her, but old habits die hard. “Are you all right ? You look pale.”

“I’m fine-”

“The Navy’s surgeon says she will recover,” Boyd said. “There was internal bleeding, and perhaps an intestinal adhesion may need minor surgery.”

“Was it bad?” Nathan asked.

She grinned lopsidedly. “No worse than the carts on

Makassar.” Her reserve broke, and she stepped toward him. He opened his arms and held her.

Boyd cleared his throat. “Your Excellency, may I present Colonel Nathan MacKinnie. Colonel, High Commissioner Sir Alexei Ackoff.”

“Your servant,” MacKinnie said automatically.

“Hardly,” Ackoff said. “Have you any idea of how many man-hours of planning you two have wrecked? No, I wouldn’t suppose you would. Sit down, Freelady, Colonel. We have much to discuss.” He led the way to the comfortable couches arranged at the far end of his office. “Would anyone care for a drink? This will be quite informal.”

“Informal but official,” Boyd warned. “Colonel, you and Freelady Graham have been charged with interfering with the orderly development of a primitive world, to wit, Makassar.”

“But we didn’t interfere,” Mary protested.

Ackoff waved impatiently. “Don’t be nonsensical, There’s always interference when an advanced people move among primitives.”

“I see,” MacKinnie said. “You were embarrassed by our ship, and you’ve chosen us to pay for it.”

“Pronouns,” Dudley Boyd said.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Wrong pronouns,” Boyd said. “You said ‘you,’ meaning us, and that’s not true. You’ve been arrested by Navy orders, not ours.”

“Makassar is under Navy jurisdiction,” Ackoff explained. “There is no civil government there. Captain Greenaugh is within his rights, and he could try you by court martial. You would then have the right to appeal to civil authority, which is to say, to me. We’re trying to save time by dealing directly with you.”

“But what did we do?” Mary asked.

“Captain Greenaugh is still building his case,” Ackoff said. “But as it happens, I can put one precise specification to his charge. Horse collars.”

“Horse collars?” MacKinnie frowned. “I hadn’t thought the Empire concerned itself with trivia.”

Ackoff laughed. “Trivia? Colonel, the horse collar effectively ended slavery on Earth in pre-atomic times. I see you don’t understand.

“Consider that if you harness a horse by fastening a strap around its neck, the poor beast can’t pull very hard because when it pulls it strangles itself. Improperly hitched horses can do about five times as much work as a man. But a horse eats five times as much as a man. Given the choice between a horse and a slave there isn’t much in it.

“But. Add the rigid horse collar so the load goes on the shoulders, and the horse can do ten times as much work as a man — and it still eats only five times as much. Horses are then clearly preferable to humans for heavy work. Prior to the invention of horse collars there were as many slaves as free people on Earth. Afterwards, slavery became fairly rare and only imposed on people thought inferior. And I see I am indulging my tendency to lecture.

“My point is simple. I know from the reports — from your own admissions — that you introduced rigid horse collars. Probably a lot of other seemingly minor innovations will have a profound impact. Privately, I expect you did them far more good than harm, but if we want to charge you, we have all the evidence we need.”

“And you can’t say you weren’t warned,” Boyd said. “Captain Greenaugh is adamant on that point. He warned you himself.”

“But—” Graham protested.

Nathan shook his head. “They’ve obviously got more to say. Let’s hear them out.”

“A good attitude,” Ackoff said. “Colonel, you know very little of Imperial politics. I can be certain of this, because it’s true of everyone on this planet. That’s going to change, of course. Once Prince Samual becomes an actual member world, there’ll be travel and trade. And intrigue. I doubt that King David and Lord Dougal have any suspicion of what’s in store for them, of how hard it will be for them to maintain control here when new technology begins to flow unrestricted.

“Have you any place in that struggle?”

“Not much,” MacKinnie said. “I thought of that already. Even that Dougal might see us—” He took Mary’s hand. “Might see us as a threat.”

“Discerning,” Ackoff said. “And actually — the situation is more complicated than I described it.” He pointed upward, out the arched window above his desk. “Out there in Trans-Coalsack Sector they’ve discovered aliens. The fleet’s being sent there. Sparta’s attention will inevitably follow. There won’t be a lot to spare for Samual. My staff will remain, and we will bring in our intelligence people, but this will be, after all, a rather minor provincial world for some time to come. You two have won King David the right to a measure of independence, and he’ll have to endure the consequences.”

“I don’t see where we come in,” MacKinnie said.

“Think upon it,” Boyd said. “The contest for power on this planet is hardly over. You two will shortly be the best-known people on Prince Samual’s World. You cannot avoid being drawn into politics.”

“That’s not my game,” Nathan said.

“It is tempting, “Mary said. “We could-”

“To be blunt,” Boyd said, “you can work with Dougal or be killed; and it will be difficult to fit into Dougal’s plans. Also, understand that there’s no way we could protect you even if we wanted to. Pardon the interruption, but were I you I would think of few less tempting alternatives.”

“Nor could we allow you to raise an army of your former soldiers for protection,” Ackoff said. “We will not permit a civil war on this planet.”

“You’re working up to something,” MacKinnie said. “Make your offer.”

Ackoff nodded. “You are admirably direct. But then you’re a soldier, not a diplomat. There is one other point of background you ought to be quite certain of. Captain Greenaugh does not like you.”

Mary Graham laughed. “We hadn’t expected him to.”

“The matter is serious,” Dr. Boyd said. “The Navy has great influence, and Captain Greenaugh is adamant. Someone must be punished — visibly punished — to assuage his embarrassment.”

“And we’re elected,” Mary said.

“It seems that way,” Boyd said.

“The Navy arrest warrant is quite genuine,” Ackoff said carefully. “It cannot be ignored. But we would very much prefer to avoid a trial.”

“Why?” MacKinnie asked.

“No one would win,” Ackoff said. “Your King David would defend you, but I doubt his heart would be in it. He’d want us to win, and thereby prove that we are tyrants. We, on the other hand, would prefer to lose the case and thus demonstrate the fairness of Imperial justice. If Greenaugh insists on a court martial, then you will appeal. If we grant that appeal, Greenaugh will insist the case be opened at a higher level. A waste of time all around, with no profit for anyone — and unpleasant for you in the bargain. Fortunately, there is an alternative. You can plead guilty and ask for Imperial clemency.”