Christ. All that time he’d sat in YZ/I lab, being worked over.
“Only Mission Command knew,” Fre’geel said, making a hissing sound that approximated a clearing of the throat. “There was no reason to share that point with my other officers.”
“And were you,” YZ/I said, almost too softly to hear, “planning to share the rigging data with us once you had extracted it?” His eyes had a deadly sparkle to them now.
“Of course,” Fre’geel said calmly.
Of course…
“But I’m sure you understand why we wanted to ensure our own access to the data,” Fre’geel continued. His Narseil eyes blinked slowly.
YZ/I slammed his fist down on the arm of his chair. “You amphibian bastards! You got that information on MY SHIP, flying MY MISSION!”
The Narseil commander made a side-to-side gesture with his right hand. “Come, Yankee-Zulu/Ivan. We were merely protecting our interests. After all, our riggers were instrumental in effecting the rescue. Do you deny our rights?”
YZ/I’s skin rippled. “I do not deny that your riggers were an asset to the mission.”
“If I’m not mistaken,” Tracy-Ace interjected, “the Narseil riggers were indispensable. In fact, all of the participants were indispensable.”
“That is correct,” Legroeder said. “The Narseil. The Kyber. The Centrist. All of us.”
“Damn it,” YZ/I hissed furiously at Tracy-Ace. “You know what’s at stake here. What are you trying to do?”
“One thing that’s at stake,” Legroeder said in a soft drawl, “is our future ability to map the hazards that your fleet will face when it travels to the Well of Stars. And it would seem that that depends on your cooperating with us.”
For a moment YZ/I looked as if he had stopped breathing altogether. Finally he whispered, as though speaking to some demon dwelling deep within himself, “I’ll be a goddamned sonofabitch…”
In the discussion that followed, Lanyard/GC hovered close to YZ/I, and it was clear that a sharp conflict was playing itself out beneath the surface between them. YZ/I was asking the Narseil commander, curtly, just what he expected in exchange for sharing the information.
“Not too much,” Fre’geel said. “Safe passage for all of my crew. An unconditional end to raiding on our shipping—”
“All of our shipping,” Legroeder snapped. “Centrist as well as Narseil.”
Fre’geel looked nonplused. “Well, I can only speak for the Narseil Navy—”
“Well, I’m speaking for the Centrist worlds. In case you’ve forgotten, the data’s in my head,” Legroeder said coldly.
Fre’geel bobbed his head in acquiescence. He had no reason to object.
“One other thing,” Legroeder said. “Impris goes home first, to Faber Eridani. From there, we can request her loan to the Narseil Rigging Institute.”
“Now, excuse me, Rigger,” Fre’geel began.
“Excuse me, my ass, Fre’geel. You’re the best equipped to study her, so Captain Friedman should agree. But if not—were you thinking of replacing one form of piracy with another, and just hijacking her?”
Fre’geel stiffened, puffing air through his gills. “We were intending no such thing. But let me ask this. Do you trust the Faber Eridani authorities?”
Legroeder swallowed hard. Touché. “I guess we’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. But in any case, I’m the one you need, more than the ship.”
Fre’geel didn’t contradict him.
YZ/I gazed at Legroeder for a long time, with what seemed a new degree of respect. He shot a glance at Deutsch, floating in silence. “How much did you know about this?”
“Not a thing,” Deutsch said. “I’ve been learning a lot, listening to this conversation.”
“And so have I,” Lanyard interrupted icily. “YZ/I, it’s starting to sound as if you’re giving away the whole store here.”
YZ/I turned to Lanyard with an expression of calculated calm. “Not at all, my friend. And if you are thinking to put out false claims on that score, you had better think very carefully indeed.”
“I make no false claims,” Lanyard said rigidly.
“Let us be clear, then,” YZ/I said. “You know my position on strengthening Ivan and the Kyber Republic—through self reliance. Perhaps we’ve taxed the outworlds enough, eh? My position is that anything we can do to aid the colony fleet, we will. Now, you tell me a better bargain than one that will gain us a map of the quantum flaws that can ensure the safety of our fleet.”
Lanyard’s mouth grew tight; he was clearly taken aback. Legroeder could only marvel at the way YZ/I worked to turn what a few moments ago was a setback, into a political triumph. Lanyard strained to protest, “But what about the others? Carlotta…?”
“Ah,” YZ/I said. “There, you are right. There is Carlotta to be considered.” He turned back to Legroeder. “You met our friends from KM/C.”
“Yes. We met them. Including a couple of old colleagues of mine,” Legroeder replied grimly.
YZ/I nodded. “I did not know that you would actually meet your old shipmates. I am sorry. But you found our response satisfactory?”
Legroeder shrugged. “The escort squadron saved our lives. But it seems you took a big risk, provoking one of your allies.”
YZ/I glanced in amusement at Lanyard, who seemed startled to find himself in agreement with Legroeder. “You mean, why didn’t we negotiate with them beforehand?”
“Well, yeah.”
“They would not have agreed. Sometimes they just can’t seem to see what’s in their own best interest. They really didn’t want to see Impris rescued. Or revealed. You, Legroeder, may be the only person ever to have escaped from one of the KM/C outposts, much less to have taken word of Impris back to the Centrist Worlds.”
Legroeder shook his head. “But I wasn’t captured by KM/C. I escaped from—”
“DeNoble—a KM/C satellite.”
Legroeder blinked. “Oh.”
“So, KM/C had great visions of using Impris for the last four years of her term of exclusive use.” YZ/I shrugged. “They were going to be annoyed, no matter how we cut it. I probably would have been, too, in her place.”
“So now what?”
“So now I persuade Carlotta that she needs this map even more badly than she needed Impris. And you know what?” YZ/I glanced back at Lanyard. “I think she’s going to see the wisdom.” When his gaze came back to the others, it was full of fire. “Especially if this information of yours is as valuable as you’ve been claiming. Eh?”
“It is,” Legroeder said. He looked inward, in vain, for reassurance on that score. “I’m sure of it,” he said.
YZ/I ignored Lanyard’s obvious doubt, behind him. His face split into a mirthless grin. The room darkened, and around him and through him, images blazed up of the Kyber colony fleet, making ready for the pilgrimage. YZ/I’s voice reverberated. “Oh, it had better be. Because we’ll know where to find you. And, I might add, so will Carlotta.”
“I’m sending Freem’n Deutsch with you, as my personal representative,” YZ/I said, three days later. “He will be authorized to carry back the data, as it becomes available. And he will be capable, I think, of conveying my needs.”