Hell's Gate

Chapter Twenty-Four

Andrin's head was throbbing by the time her father called a much-needed break. She sat, rubbing her temples, and watched servants carry an early luncheon into the Privy Council Chamber. Despite her father's forceful personality and Shamir Taje's skill as an organizer, they'd managed to accomplish only a fraction of what they really needed to do in the time they had. Hopefully, it was the most important fraction, and her father was undoubtedly correct about the need for all of them to eat before launching into a Conclave which would undoubtedly run for many hours.

And so they ate, sitting at the inlaid table, covered protectively with a crisp white linen cloth, while they continued to cover critical bits and pieces of business in side conversations. When they'd finished, the servants whisked away the remnants, then refilled wine cups and served hot tea, New Farnalian coffee, and steaming mugs of the New Farnalian cocoa Andrin and several other Councilors enjoyed. They also re-stoked the coal fire on the hearth, which Andrin appreciated. The heat at her back was as delicious as the rich cocoa in her mug.

She listened to the side conversations and realized how little she truly understood about what the Councilors were saying. It quickly became clear to her that she simply lacked the critical building blocks of known facts to tie the other conversations together in any comprehensible fashion. Unfortunately, she couldn't exactly break into the discussions and request explanations and definitions?certainly not under this sort of emergency time pressure. Yet if she didn't ask now, how would she be able to remember the proper questions later?

She pondered the problem for a moment, then asked one of the servants?a girl perhaps three years older than she was?to find her a notebook and a pen. She also asked for a filled inkwell, in case the pen's internal reservoir ran dry. The servant hurried back with the requested items, and Andrin thanked her sincerely.

"That be my pleasure, Your Grand Highness," the girl murmured, almost too low to hear as she swept a deep curtsy that took her nearly to the floor. She glanced up, needing Andrin's eyes for just a fleeting instant, then looked down again, almost fearfully.

"You see," she said, speaking in a rush as if it took all her courage for one hurried burst of words, "it's just forever I've been wanting a chance to serve you. If you be needing anything else, I'll be waiting just outside. Just you open that door a crack and ask. I'll go and fetch anything you'd be wanting."

She rose with a surprising grace and retreated from the room. Andrin watched her go in mild astonishment, then pulled her attention back to the ongoing discussion, sipping cocoa, listening, and jotting down occasional questions or ideas. At length, the mantle clock chimed the half-hour, and her father signaled for silence and turned to Alazon Yanamar.

The Privy Voice sat in a waiting attitude, eyes closed, clearly Listening for the incoming message from First Director Limana. Or, rather, from the chain of Voices between Tajvana and the Privy Council Chamber. The arrangements and coordination required for Voices to relay over truly lengthy distances could be unbelievably complicated, especially at a time like this, when individual, totally secure links had to be maintained between the Portal Authority in Tajvana and every national capital on Sharona. Not even the EVN could maintain a real-time link to the various colonial governments, since no Voice could communicate with another through a portal. But Andrin knew that there were other chains of Voices, stretching down the transit chains between universes, to provide the fastest message turnaround humanly possible.

Then Yanamar's eyes opened so suddenly Andrin actually twitched in shock.

"Your Imperial Majesty," the Privy Voice said, in a deep, rich voice filled with subtle tones, one so beautiful Andrin would have given all the silly baubles in her jewel box to possess its equal. "First Director Limana has begun the Conclave. The Portal Authority's Head Voice, Yaf Umani, is transmitting what he sees and hears."

Her voice shifted suddenly. It took on not simply a different timbre, but a different rhythm and accent as she repeated the words of a man a quarter of the world away. That was remarkable enough, but what stunned Andrin was the projection that abruptly appeared at the far end of the room. It was a three-dimensional image of a man standing at a podium in a room she'd never seen. There were others present, seated between themselves and the speaker, and a map of the newly discovered portals hung behind him. The man at the podium was looking right at them, even though he couldn't possibly have actually seen them.

Andrin had always known Voices could receive and transmit detailed images of actual events, but less than one Voice in ten thousand could actually project those images for non-telepaths to see. Despite her birth, she herself had seen that particular Talent used exactly once, when the universe-famed Projective Falgayn Harwal had visited the Imperial House of Music here in Estafel. She still shivered inside when she remembered how Harwal and his dozen highly-trained, powerful assistant Voices, had filled the entire Opera House with a projection of the New Tajvana Chior's eight thousand singers and voices.

But Harwal was unique, the sort of Talent who arose perhaps once every two hundred years. Although Andrin had always known there were others with the same ability, if only on a far smaller scale, she'd never actually seen it done. Not this closely and intimately. No wonder Alazon Yanamar was her father's Privy Voice! Her Talent must be indispensable to a man who governed an Empire that covered several major islands and most of a continent.

She wondered if the Portal Authority's Head Voice could do this, as well. Probably, she decided. Then Yanamar's voice dragged her attention back to the meeting underway.

"Honored heads of state of the sovereign nations and colonies of Sharona and the various advisory councils and board members with you. For those of you who have never personally met me, I am Orem Limana, first Director of the Sharonian Trans-Temporal Portal Authority. In that capacity, I thank you for joining this Conclave. May we have a roll call of official members of the Conclave, please?"

Yanamar' recitation didn't quite match the movement of Limana's lips, but it was incredibly close. It was almost uncanny watching the eerie projection and listening to Yanamar's voice repeating the words of the man speaking in a room three thousand miles away.

The Privy Voice repeated a seemingly endless list of names as First Director Limana proceeded alphabetically down the official roster of nations and colonies. Andrin watched the map of Sharona as he spoke, trying to fix the names of various heads of state in her mind, but she had to give up within moments. She uncapped her pen once more and made her first note of the Conclave: Memorize the names of every head of state on Sharona and our colonies. She looked down at it, and, after a moment's consideration, added, And their heirs, if they're monarchies, and their seconds in command, regardless of what form of government they have.

She managed not to groan as she contemplated the size of that task, but it wasn't easy.

Once the First Director had completed the daunting task of merely determining that everyone was listening, he turned to the reason he'd summoned the Conclave in the first place.

"I'll begin by reminding every person participating in this Conclave that the news of this attack is to be considered a level-one secret under the Portal Authority Founding Charter, at least until such time as the family members of those killed, wounded, or captured in it have been notified about what's happened to their loved ones. Official Portal Authority representatives are en route even now, taking word to each of the survey crew's members' immediate families.

"I would further ask that this news not be made public until such time as this Conclave has formulated a plan to ensure Sharonian security in the Karys Chain and its approaches. The more we can do to reassure the public at the same time we finally break the news, the less panic is likely to ensue. Are we agreed on that point?"

Andrin's father nodded, and the Privy Voice transmitted his response. Again, a lengthy delay ensued before the Portal Authority's director spoke again.

"Thank you. I deeply appreciate your promised discretion in this matter."

He cleared his throat. It was the first sign of nervousness?if that was what was?he'd displayed, and Andrin was deeply impressed by his apparent sang froid.

"Very well," he said, "the purpose of this Conclave is to meet the current emergency. The Portal Authority will be intimately involved in that process, but the Authority is primarily an organizational tool, one which was never designed to handle this kind of emergency. Bearing that in mind, I'll begin the Conclave by bringing you up to speed on my responses and decisions to date. Once I've done that, I'll request specific guidance from the members of the Conclave on the best course of action until we can convene a face-to-face Conclave.

"And before anyone protests, please let me assure you that we will need a second Conclave. We must devise a permanent, long-range structure of governance to effectively mobilize, organize, and deploy Sharona's military and civilian resources. That's going to require lengthy, direct, pragmatic, and flexible decision-making, and we can't do that in a meeting format like this one. I would suggest Tajvana as the place to hold that face-to-face meeting. The Portal Authority is headquartered here, and Tajvana has been a world capital in the past. As such, the city is well equipped with the infrastructure to handle large diplomatic and security delegations.

"If there are no objections to Tajvana as the site of the second Conclave, I'll have my staff contact each of you to arrange a date on which as many of you as possible can attend. We'll work out the details, schedule the meeting, and arrange appropriate meeting space?perhaps in the old Calirath Palace?as rapidly as we can. I'll inform you of our final arrangements, work out travel schedules, and make Voice arrangements to give any of you who simply cannot personally attend the best access possible. Are there any objections?"

There were none, to Andrin's considerable surprise, and her father glanced at her and quirked one eyebrow.

"Well, it seems you were right, 'Drin," he said very quietly. "We will be traveling to Tajvana."

She nodded, rubbing her arms in an effort to smooth down the prickling sensation under her gown's sleeves, where the downy hair was trying to stand on end. She wasn't surprised, so much as unnerved by the swiftness with which her Glimpse had proven itself accurate.

"Once I've listed the specific areas in which I need interim guidance," Director Limana continued, "I will call for discussion by the members, asking that each of you bear in mind possible answers to those specific points. Both during my initial assessment of the current situation, and during the open discussion, we will observe strict parliamentary rules of order, simply to keep the discussion from becoming too unwieldy for the Voices to transmit.

"If you want to ask questions or share comments, ideas, or solutions?and I hope you will have solutions for various aspects of this crisis?please send your request through the Portal Authority's Head Voice, Yaf Umani. He will relay it to me in the order in which it was transmitted, so that you may speak in your turn. I realize this may be inconvenient, given the awkwardness of holding a meeting of this size through the Voice network. Indeed, that awkwardness underlines the necessity of direct, face-to-face meetings. For the moment, however, I can't think of a fairer way to handle the discussion. Is that clear to everyone?"

Andrin's father nodded once more, and the Privy Voice's eyes lost their focus for a moment as she sent out the response.

"Very well," Limana said again. "I'll begin with a review of the tactical situation and my decisions and actions to date.

"The situation, as it now stands, is both unclear and alarming. We've received two follow-on messages since the initial one arrived approximately four hours ago. Please bear in mind the extensive water gaps which have to be covered in several of these universes. Frankly, I'm astonished that we've received even these two messages so quickly.

"The first message was an expansion of Company-Captain Halifu's original report. As the commander of the nearest portal fort, here in New Uromath," Limana indicated the newly named universe on the map, "he dispatched a rescue party to do what it could. Due to the large number of portals recently discovered in this area, he?like all of the fort commanders in the vicinity?is badly understrength, and he was able to field only a single cavalry platoon.

"The second message, which was relayed to us simultaneously, was from Company-Captain chan Tesh, in command of the reinforcing column which was already en route to Company-Captain Halifu. He was also accompanied by a Petty Captain Traygan, the Authority Voice assigned to Halifu, who received a relay of the original contact report while he was here, in Thermyn." Again, the First Director indicated the universe in question. "chan Tesh reported that he was moving immediately by forced march to reinforce Halifu with several platoons of cavalry and infantry and at least some of his artillery.

"That's all the additional news we have at this time, and it will probably be at least several days before we hear anything else."

Limana paused again, looking up from his notes at the faces of those physically present, then continued.

"What we know right this moment is simply that our survey crew was attacked and that most or all of its members were killed. Company-Captain Halifu and Company-Captain chan Tesh are clearly acting as quickly and decisively as possible, given their resources, the distances involved, and the lack of improved communications. They have reported that they consider their immediate primary responsibility to be the location and rescue of any survivors. Although their messages and reports carry an undeniable undertone of great anger, they do not appear eager to provoke a general war. However?" Limana paused very briefly, sweeping his visible audience with his eyes "?it's quite evident from their dispatches that they intend to use deadly force not simply in self-defense but to compel the other side to release any prisoners they may have taken. By this time, they have almost certainly already made contact, which means it would be far too late to issue orders not to use deadly force under those circumstances, even if we desired to do so. Which, speaking for myself, I do not."

His voice went grim and harsh on the final sentence. Alazon Yanamar's beautifully trained and expressive voice transmitted his tone perfectly, and Andrin saw cold approval on the faces of at least half of her father's Privy Councilors.

"We're fortunate that Company-Captain Halifu has both a qualified Whiffer and a qualified Tracer, which will give us the best possible forensic analysis of the site of the attack," Limana resumed after a moment. "Nonetheless, it may be weeks or even months before we have any definite information on the fate of our civilians.

"In the meantime, we have to be aware of the enormous challenges Halifu and chan Tesh face. All indications are that the Chalgyn Consortium crew's latest discovery is an entire cluster of portals in close geographic proximity. There's no way of knowing at this time which portal?or portals?of that cluster have already been explored by our opponents. In addition, the entry portal here?" he tapped the bland circle of a still-unnamed universe from which no less than six additional, question-mark-tipped transit lines extended "?is enormous. According to Chalgyn's measurements, it is thirty-seven miles in diameter."

Andrin inhaled sharply in surprise. That wasn't simply "enormous"?it was stupendous!

"It would take many times the troop strength Halifu and chan Tesh have to defend a portal that size," Limana continued grimly. "I've sent instructions, on my own authority as First Director, to reinforce them as quickly as possible with all of the troops available to the PAAF in that vicinity, but current indications are that everything available amounts to little more than a few battalions. We certainly don't have sufficient troop strength to hold what would amount to a seventy-four-mile front against heavy attack.

"Moreover, the lack of rail communications means troop movement will be slow as our personnel approach the contact universe, so I've also contacted Gahlreen Taymish at the TTE. He's been brought fully up to speed, and I've activated the emergency clauses of the Trans-Temporal Express' right-of-way agreement. As of this moment, the TTE is under the direct control of the Portal Authority, and will remain so until released. Director Taymish has already sent out instructions to redeploy all available TTE construction crews to the Hayth Chain, but it will take some weeks for him to get additional equipment and workers into place."

Limana paused again, as if for punctuation, then shook his head slowly.

"I'm sure most of you hope, with me, that this tragic and, yes, brutal attack will not lead to all-out war with another trans-universal civilization of unknown size, power, and capabilities. Unfortunately, we dare not assume that will be the case. Regiment-Captain Namir Velvelig commands Fort Raylthar, covering the outbound portal from Failcham." Limana indicated the universe in question. "Fort Raylthar is the closest properly-manned portal fort, although even its garrison is more than a little understrength thanks to the sudden expansion along this chain. As you can see, Fort Raylthar is within two universes, and about eighteen hundred miles, of the point at which our crew was attacked. The Regiment-Captain has already sent some reinforcements forward, and?"

The first Director's voice disappeared into roaring chaos as sudden, wrenching terror swamped Andrin. She jerked upright in her chair, the breath frozen in her throat. Regiment-Captain Velvelig was Janaki's commanding officer, and something dreadful?formless and black and horrifying?was going to happen out there under Velvelig's command. There was fire everywhere, men were screaming, guns thundering, lightning stabbing and strobing impossibly, and something ghastly was in the air, rushing down upon them and?

Andrin bared her teeth, snarling in defiance and fury and terror. Something had seized her, was shaking her whole body, and she gasped and struck out with both fists, trying to fend off the attack. Then someone truly did seize her. Hands closed on her flailing forearms, capturing them with huge yet gentle strength. They immobilized her, pushed her arms down by her side, held her, and her eyes snapped abruptly back into focus.

She stared wildly into her father's face. The Emperor gripped her arms, holding her, and his face was white as death, except for the large dark spot on one cheekbone which was already beginning to bruise. She stared at the mark, feeling the memory of the blow which had created it in the knuckles of her own right hand, and realized she was on her feet with no memory of when or why she'd stood up.

"Papa?" she whispered, shaken to the bone. Then she realized she'd disrupted the entire Conclave, distracting her father from the First Director's critical report, and her own cheeks blazed. She wanted to crawl under the table and die of sjame.

"Andrin," her father's voice was low but iron command echoed in its depths, "tell me exactly what you Saw. Everything you Saw."

"I-I don't know." She began to tremble. "There was fire?fire everywhere. Fire in the sky. Raining down on us. And lightning. And something huge and black, diving down. I couldn't see what it was, where it was coming from. Men were shooting, people were screaming, burning … "

"Where?"

"I don't know! Director Limana was talking about Regiment-Captain Velvelig sending reinforcements, and it hit me like a runaway train." She was shaking violently, now, no longer trembling. "I'm sorry," she whispered, unable to dredge up anything more from the Glimpse. "All I know is Janaki is out there, but I don't know when, or where, or even if he'll be there, and?"

"Hush," her father said gently. Her teeth were chattering, and he drew her close, enfolding her in his powerful, infinitely comforting arms. He eased her back down into her chair and dragged it closer to the fire, then knelt beside her, chafing her icy hands.

"Send someone for brandy!" he snapped over one shoulder.

"It's already on the way," Taje said, just as the door crashed open. The serving girl who'd brought Andrin the pen and notebook skidded through the doorway and rushed forward, brandy decanter in one hand, cut-crystal tumbler in the other. Her eyes were huge with fear.

"Here it be, Your Majesty!" she gasped breathlessly. "I ran as fast as ever I did in my life!"

"Bless you, child," the Emperor said, and took the decanter. He splashed brandy into the tumbler and held the rim to Andrin's lips.

"Sip it, 'Drin. Yes, that's good. No, don't push it away?sip it again. That's right. All of it, dear heart. You need it."

Andrin gulped again, choking on the liquid fire, as the dreadful shudders began to ease.

"Better?" he asked gently, and she nodded, surprised to discover it was true.

"Yes," she managed. "Much better."

"Thank Marnilay," he said reverently. Then he wrapped his own coat around her shoulders and told the hovering servant girl to fetch a blanket. As the girl ran from the room, the Emperor turned back to his Privy Voice.

"Alazon, please send an urgent message to Director Limana. Ask him to warn Regiment-Captain Velvelig to expect trouble in the near future. I can't say when or where with any precision, but Grand Princess Andrin has just experienced a major Glimpse. Ask the First Director to relay all the details of what she's just told us to the Regiment-Captain."

One or two Councilors looked a bit skeptical, and Andrin's cheeks heated again. Her father noticed, and his swift response stunned her?and his councilors.

"Let me make something perfectly clear," he said, in a far colder voice than Andrin had ever heard from him. "This was not a case of a girl's overactive nerves. If any of you doubt the validity of my daughter's Talent, I advise you to remember the Kilrayen forest fire. Moreover, I will remind you?all of you?that Andrin is heir-secondary. Given her youth, we have not, perhaps, made that status sufficiently clear in the past. But should anything happen to my son, Andrin will replace him in the line of succession. You will accord her the respect due her rank and station. And should any of you continue?unwisely?to cherish any doubts about the validity of her Glimpse, let me add one clarifying fact. I just experienced exactly the same Glimpse, but hers was clearer and more detailed. My daughter is strongly Talented, and a valuable asset to our war effort and this Empire. Does anyone on this Council wish to … debate that point?"

No one spoke. Those whose glances had been skeptical now looked at her with contrition and apology, and, quite unexpectedly, Andrin felt sorry for them. It must be difficult for someone as highly placed as a Privy Council to take any schoolgirl of seventeen seriously, however imperial her blood. The thought gave her an unanticipated insight into them, and she found herself smiling back at them. Several gave her sheepish return smiles, which defused the tension so thoroughly that even her father was left blinking for a moment.

Then the Privy Voice cleared her throat.

"Your message has been sent and acknowledged, Your Majesty. Word will be passed to Regiment-Captain Velvelig."

"Thank you, Alazon," the Emperor said quietly. He drew Andrin's chair back to the table, gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, and resumed his own seat.

"Very well, I suggest we return our attention to the Conclave.

Andrin was astonished to discover that Director Limana had halted the entire Conclave to await Ternathia's return. She was mortified by the thought that her outburst had kept every other head of state on Sharona waiting, yet at the same time, it gave her a major insight into the importance the First Director placed on Ternathia's participation. Which meant on her father's participation, which gave her something else to mull over as Limana resumed his system report.

"As I was saying, Regiment-Captain Velvelig is two universes away. In my opinion, sending forward any greater numbers of reinforcements would weaken his own command unacceptably. I believe it would be wiser to draw the additional troops we'll need from universes further up the line. The entire chain, from Hayth to New Uromath, is overland, with the exception of an eleven-hundred-mile water gap here in Salym. The rail line is well-established as far forward as Traisum, so troop movements from universes further from the scene can be executed fairly rapidly."

Behind Limana, a dark-haired young woman had appeared beside the transit chain map. As Limana began discussing specific PAAF garrisons, where they were stationed, and how rapidly they could be moved further forward, his assistant marked their positions on the master map.

As she did, it became painfully evident to Andrin that the authority's multi-national military forces were even thinner on the ground than she'd feared.

Well, of course they are, she told herself scoldingly. The PAAF is primarily a peacekeeping force! If you hadn't known it before, you certainly should have picked up on that from Janaki's letters!

The thought of her brother sent a fresh, cold serpent of fear slithering through her, but she thrust it firmly aside. It didn't go easily, but it went, and when she looked back up, she saw Privy Voice Yanamar cock her head in a listening posture.

"A question from Emperor Chava Busar of Uromathia," she said. "He says, 'We have a large force of cavalry in the field for defense of our colony in Camryn, which is only four universes from Traisum. We could divert a thousand men?possibly as many as fifteen hundred?for duty at some of the new portal forts without leaving our colony unacceptably vulnerable. I would be honored to make those men available in this emergency, and my General Staff would be prepared to work with the Portal Authority in an advisory capacity to make most effective use of them."

Shamir Taje swore aloud. Andrin didn't believe she'd ever heard the First Councilor use profanity before, and the sizzling intensity of the one short, pungent phrase he permitted himself was an eye-opener. Then he glanced quickly at her, blushed, and shook his head in mute apology before he looked back at his older colleagues.

"I'll just bet Chava would be willing!" he said sourly. "Give that man a foot through the door, and he'll put an army in your bedroom!"

"Patience, Shamir," her father said gently. "Fifteen hundred extra men that close to the danger zone is nothing to sneeze at, whatever the source. And Orem Limana knows how to deal with heads of state who overstep their authority. Especially those who try to tread on his. Besides," he gave the First Councilor a cheerful grin, "under the provisions of the Founding Charter, no head of state may assume direct command of the Portal Authority's military forces without an authorizing majority vote by the rest of the Conclave's members. Do you really think Uromathia is popular enough to win that particular contest?"

Rather than the chuckles or smiles Andrin had expected, the Privy Council greeted their Emperor's droll assessment with grim scowls and mutters of "Thank Marnilay." That was interesting. There had always been a certain traditional wariness on Ternathia's part where Uromathia was concerned, but the Council's reaction appeared far more pointed than she would have expected, and she made another entry in her growing list: Find out why Uromathia isn't trusted.

"Your offer is greatly appreciated, Emperor Chava," First Director Limana said. "I'll put Division-Captain Raynor in touch with your General Staff. And that brings up precisely the point I wished to discuss next. I'm a civilian administrator, not a military officer. Division-Captain Raynor is currently Commandant of the PAAF, and he has plenty of field experience, as well as a thorough familiarity with our current troop dispositions, forts, and supplies. His appointment, unfortunately, is due to expire in two months, at which time he will return to the Republic of Tadewi in New Farnalia. Division-Captain Inar Alvaru of Arpathia is scheduled to hold the Commandant's post for the next two years. I mean no offense to Division-Captain Alvaru, or to the Septentrion, but it seems to me that replacing a man who is thoroughly familiar with our current military strengths?and weaknesses?with someone new, right in the middle of a major military crisis, would be … unwise. I believe Division-Captain Alvaru would add valuable voice to our planning, but I strongly recommend keeping Division-Captain Raynor in place as Commandant, at least until Division-Captain Alvaru can familiarize himself with our current troop dispositions."

"An extremely wise suggestion," Andrin's father murmured. "Orem Limana's no soldier, but he obviously understands the realities."

Captain of the Army chan Gristhane nodded his agreement from his place, table, and Yanamar cleared her throat once more and continued Limana's transmission.

"And that brings up another important point," the First Director said. "I'm not at all comfortable making military or political decisions that may affect the very survival of Sharonian civilization. I don't have the training to deal with this kind of emergency. I'm an administrator. I run portals. That's a demanding enough job as it is, and it's going to get immeasurably tougher, trying to move enough men and war materiel to guard our frontier across thousands upon thousands of miles, through portals that will bottleneck our efforts, and through universe after universe of total wilderness.

"I hate to see the Portal Authority militarized, but there are some decisions I'm simply not qualified to make. I need your guidance, so that we don't fumble and open ourselves to the enemy's guns, or whatever it was they were using to blow our people to hell. Tubes that threw fireballs and hurled honest-to-gods lightning balls. We must decide which portal forts to strengthen first, which universes may be safely left unguarded, what kind of equipment to move first, what our construction priorities should be?building railroads to transport weapons and men, building troop transports to cross the water gaps … or freighters to haul raw materials and freight across them. Felling timber or building cement factories to construct emergency forts. The list is endless, and, frankly, I have no idea what we should concentrate on as our immediate and long-range priorities.

"We need the sort of military expertise which can identify and assign those priorities. But that's only a portion of what we need, and this Conclave?or the next one?must decide how to operate the Portal Authority on a full wartime footing. Who will have the military?and political?authority to make the necessary decisions? Who will direct me?or whoever ends up running the Authority?in prioritizing the Authority's tasks? Who will give militarily and politically appropriate orders for the defense of our people in the field? Nothing in the Authority's existing charter or any of the enabling treaties which created and authorized that charter gives me or any of the Authority Board the power to exercise that sort of authority. Yet someone is going to have to do it, so I'm asking you to implement an emergency chain of command, as well as to suggest long-term solutions to the problems of command and control."

"My gods," Shamir touched muttered, running both hands through his silvered hair, and Andrin's father whistled softly.

"Now there's a can of worms, if ever I saw one," the Emperor said.

"You're not just kidding," Taje growled. He's talking about a fuc?"

The First Councilor caught himself?this time, at least?glanced at Andrin, turned even redder than before, and cleared his throat loudly. Someone chuckled softly further down the conference table, but Taje carefully didn't notice that as he returned his gaze to Zindel.

"He's calling for an honest-to-gods world government," he said. "And who the devil is going to head that?"

"Not Uromathia," Captain of the Army chan Gristhane growled. "I will be dipped in sheep sh?"

It was his turn to break off mid-sentence and glance sheepishly at Andrin, who tried very hard not to giggle at the harassed expression on the grizzled old warrior's face.

"I'll go to my grave before I take orders from the likes of Chava Busar," he said after a moment. "And I'm not exaggerating, Your Majesty. I won't tolerate that man giving orders to put our soldiers under his command."

The Emperor's lips quirked.

"I rather imagine this exact same conversation is being repeated in every throne room and president's office in Sharona. 'Nobody but us, by the gods!' That," he added in a voice as dry as winter static, glancing at Andrin, "is why it's such a can of worms. As to the, ah, reluctance to swear in front of my daughter, a lady who stands in line for Ternathia's throne will certainly hear a good deal worse than a few off-color remarks. We do her no favors trying to shelter her, or by treating her as though she were delicate. It won't be easy for her, but she's a very strong young woman. I have every confidence in her ability to survive the occasional … burst of colorful self-expression, shall we say."

Several of the Privy Councilors chuckled of this time, and that gave Andrin the courage to ask her first question since the Conclave had begun.

"Thank you, Papa. But may I ask why everyone distrusts Uromathia so intensely?"

chan Gristhane barked a humorless laugh.

"Give me about twenty years, Your Grand Highness, and I ought to be able to give you a fair basis for it."

"Now, now, Thaylar," her father said mildly, "just because Chava VII has violated every treaty he's ever signed, attempted to confiscate Ternathian shipping while trying to enforce illegal import duties and outrageously inflated harbor fees, been caught red-handed trying to bribe Portal Authority officials, and been linked repeatedly to shady business practices by Uromathian survey crews in half the universes so far discovered, is no reason to threaten suicide. You have my word that Ternathia will decline to sign any treaty on world governance if the nations of Sharona are temporarily insane enough to elect Emperor Chava as Sharona's military or political commander during this?or any other?crisis."

Someone snickered further down the table. Captain of the Army chan Gristhane glowered for a moment, then relented and gave his Emperor a sour grin.

"Oh, very well, since you put it that way, Your Majesty." He met Andrin's wide-eyed gaze. "Young lady, if Chava Busar ever offers you a gift, do whatever it takes to politely decline it. His gifts have a way of attempting to destroy their recipients."

"I see," she said faintly. "Thank you for the warning, Captain."

chan Gristhane gave her a tight smile, and her father leaned forward.

"I want to add one further, important point, Andrin. For the most part, Uromathia's subjects are honest, hard-working people who simply want to make a decent living and give their children a good legacy. Uromathia's banking industry has been utterly critical to the development of new universes, and on the whole, Uromathian banks are aboveboard and scrupulously honest. They use fair business practices, they don't discriminate against non-Uromathians, and they don't favor Uromathians over other clients. It's almost always a mistake to blame a whole society for the bad decisions of its rulers."

Andrin thought about that for a moment. Then?

"Even the society that slaughtered our survey crew?" she asked quietly, and her father frowned.

"That remains to be seen. Sharona's own past includes societies that were guilty of rabid xenophobia, which led them to commit what we would consider atrocities by today's standards. I regret to say that some of the worst examples of that xenophobia occurred long after the emergence of the Talents, too.

"We won't know what we're dealing with out there until we learn more. I've always tried to keep an open mind, but I have to admit things look pretty damning at the moment. Whether they remain so is a question only time and additional contact with them can answer."

His face tightened for just an instant with what she knew was an echo of the Glimpses of war and slaughter both of them had Seen. Then he inhaled deeply, harshly.

"My personal gut reaction is to wade into them, guns blazing in retribution." His voice was iron, yet he shook his head at the same time. "But that's precisely why I distrust that reaction. A ruler responsible for hundreds of millions of lives who indulges a personal desire for revenge is a disaster. That sort of response is a surefire recipe for killing a lot of our own people, and squandering the lives of courageous men?and women?selfishly, often for no good or justifiable reason, makes you a mass murderer."

Someone down the table hissed through his teeth.

"If, on the other hand, I believed, really believed, Andrin, and had the hard evidence to prove to my total satisfaction that the only way to ensure the survival of Ternathia?or Sharona?was to wage genocide, I would do exactly that. It would rip my soul to shreds, but I would, by all the gods, do it. Just as I would fight to the death to stop others from committing genocide, if I believed them to be wrong morally and politically. That is what it means to rule. Don't ever forget it, Andrin."

His gaze was so intense she felt as if she were on fire. She met it through sheer willpower, scared to the bottoms of her stockings. Scared of the man inside her father's clothes?a man she'd never met before. A man capable of ordering the deaths of millions … and implacable enough to stand up to anything and anyone under the gods' heavens who opposed any decision he made.

I can't fill those shoes! her mind gibbered in terror. I don't even understand the man wearing them!

Then the blazing intensity in his eyes gentled, and he gave her a sad smile.

"I hate frightening you, 'Drin. But it's better for you to know the truth, however brutal, now, not months or years down the road, when a misstep on your part could bring catastrophe to the Empire. Janaki has already faced the weight of the crown I wear?that one of you will wear in the future. Would to all the gods that I could have let you remain a child just a little longer."

The terror in her breast turned into an ache that made breathing impossible and clogged her throat. The tears she couldn't hold back broke free, filling her with shame for letting them show, for her lack of control … for making her father's pain even worse. She wanted to say "I'm sorry," but her throat was too tight, too raw. So she only nodded, hoping he would understand, or at least stop looking at her through eyes filled with remorse she couldn't bear. It cut like a blade, that remorse, yet it came without a hint of apology for the necessity of what he'd said. He couldn't have not said it and continued to be worthy of his crown. She understood that, too … and couldn't find the words to tell him that, either.

She had never felt like such a wretched failure in her entire life.

Without a word, he pulled a handkerchief from a coat pocket and passed it down the table. She clutched the square of white linen as though it were a lifeline, drying her eyes and ordering the faucet behind them to stop leaking. Fighting her whole body, which ached with the need to put her head down and bawl like a lost child. Instead, she stiffened her spine, gulped several times, and got herself under control. She very carefully did not look at the distress and sympathy in the faces of the Privy Councilors, for her emotions were too precarious to risk seeing it. Instead, she met her father's gaze head-on once more, and as she did, she felt a new and special kinship with him.

He had experienced exactly this same moment, she realized suddenly, seeing the Emperor inside the father … and the boy who had become the man so long ago. He knew exactly what he was doing to her, what she was enduring?must endure?because his father had done the same thing to him, and that understanding made it infinitely worse for the father who loved her. And as she looked into his eyes, saw that memory and that pain merged in their depths, she loved him more deeply than she ever had before.

"I'm sorry for disrupting the Conclave yet again, Father," she managed to croak. "It won't happen again."

He didn't embarrass her further by assuring her that it was quite all right, because she knew it wasn't. She desperately wanted her mother … and knew, without hope of regaining what she had lost, but she would never again be able to hide her face in her mother's shoulder and pretend the world wasn't waiting to hurt her again. In a roomful of people, she felt more alone than she had ever felt in her life as her father nodded and asked the Privy Voice to continue transmitting Director Limana's address.