“Which is why you showed only mild enthusiasm for Yiithrii’ah’aash’s offer of providing the technology for detecting their markings.”
“Vraiment. So the estimable Yiithrii’ah’aash provides us with the detection systems and biological guidelines he promised: what of it? How do we know that these are truly the only ones we require? Can we trust that he will not withhold those which are necessary to screen for agents and organics to which we have not yet been exposed, or have not yet detected? No, our quarantine administrators would rightly insist upon developing the machinery and protocols themselves. And that could require years, even decades.” Gaspard cut the air with a decisive hand. “Non; we must cement this alliance now. And what the quarantine administrators do not know — and which has no traction upon their science, only upon this political moment — is that if the Slaasriithi had wished to make us plague carriers of one form or another, they have had months of opportunity to do so. Which we knew at the outset. And the only mitigating factor that would protect the entirety of the legation from an extended, or even lifelong, quarantine was the measure of genuine good will and mutual enlightened benefit that the Slaasriithi’s own actions portended. This was the barometer we were forced to trust from the very beginning.”
“In short, if the Slaasriithi really need us, then they aren’t trying to poison us on the sly.”
“Exactly so. And perhaps Yiithrii’ah’aash anticipated these very reservations. Perhaps that was why he insisted that we see their biospheres, their way of life, and their biological imperatives: so that we might understand the full significance of this mission he sends you upon now. For it is clear that without this indagator added back into their polytaxon, they lack not only the skills to protect themselves adequately, they lack the instincts.”
Riordan nodded. “Those were my assessments, too.” He sighed, leaned back into a posture not too different from Gaspard’s own. “But even with your authority behind me, this mission is still going to be a tricky dance. I don’t actually possess your authority personally, and I’m likely to be trying to bluff and bluster my way past colonial and military authorities. Particularly at Delta Pavonis.”
Gaspard shook his head. “It may not be as difficult as you expect, Captain. I have official prerogatives of which you have not been made aware.” Etienne obviously enjoyed the surprised look that Riordan was unable to suppress. “Oh, yes, not even you know all the provisions and entitlements of my appointment as the ambassador plenipotentiary to the Slaasriithi. For instance, I am able to confer upon you a limited measure of that plenipotentiality: you have a measure of authority equal to my own if you are tasked to carry out initiatives that I authorize but for which I cannot be present. So, in instructing you to undertake this mission, you will enjoy my power and authority in matters directly pertaining to its execution.”
“I could see no small amount of debate arising over the question of whether any given action ‘directly pertains’ to the execution of my mission.”
“Naturally; that is the nature of diplomacy and diplomats. We dwell in a world where there is no black, no white; we navigate among shades of gray. However, I have been conferred broad powers — and the latitude to employ them — in order to secure an alliance with the Slaasriithi by the end of this journey. Furthermore, I am fully within my rights to transfer that aegis of authority to you for this special mission. So you may exercise the same broad latitude of action, and expect the same congenial interpretations of your prerogatives and authority.”
Riordan smiled. “That’s nice to know. It will be even nicer having a document that spells it all out for anyone who might be less than fully cooperative.”
“With which I shall provide you, of course. I shall also provide you with a means of being on more equal footing with most of the civilian and military authorities that you are likely to encounter. Monsieurs Sukhinin and Downing solicited and received a special writ from Admiral Lord Halifax on the day of our departure. It was to be employed in the event that I was killed, incapacitated, or that I was compelled to have you pursue legation business on what they term ‘detached duty.’” Gaspard removed an envelope from the breast pocket within the liner of his duty suit, handed it to Riordan.
Who, frowning, opened it and discovered papers assigning him a brevet rank of commodore “for the duration of any detached duty to which he has been duly and officially assigned by Ambassador Plenipotentiary Etienne Gaspard, Consul of the Consolidated Terran Republic, in the furtherance of the objectives of the first legation to the Slaasriithi.” Caine stared at the paper, the signatures and seals for a very long time. “This is wrong.”
Gaspard glanced at him. “I beg your pardon? Everything is in order; I made certain of it.”
Riordan shook his head. “No, I’m not referring to the legality of the document. I mean I’ve been boosted up the ranks far too quickly. Even if this is just a diplomatic convenience to give me necessary authority, I don’t have the command experience or training to warrant this.”
Gaspard frowned, folded his hands, thought for several very long seconds. “I am not eager to share this with you, Monsieur Riordan — it is not my way — but I must be frank: I consider your concerns largely unfounded. Firstly, I have worked with many flag rank officers who have never seen combat at all — or worse yet, with others who have commanded contingents with dire results. You, on the other hand, have distinguished yourself on this mission, and earlier, in the battles for both Barnard’s Star and Earth itself. Have you commanded large warships? No, but neither have most of those so-called admirals.”
Gaspard’s frown deepened. “But that is merely the formal part of my argument. I must add my personal observation as well, and it is this: your innate abilities will more than compensate for the unevenness of your professional preparation. I do not pretend to be an expert on military matters, but as a diplomat, one of my most important skills is to be able to assess the character and capabilities of the individuals around me. Yours are beyond reproach; you are, as the American expression has it, the right person for this job, Captain — no: Commodore—Riordan.”
“Well, I guess we’ll find out if you’re right.” Riordan shook his head. “But I’ll never be much of a diplomat.”
Gaspard’s smile widened. “So you keep claiming, in blatant disregard of all the evidence to the contrary. What you mean to say is that you do not wish to be a diplomat and that you have never claimed that as your career. But it has apparently chosen you. With enviable clarity, it would seem to me.”
Riordan discovered that he was smiling slightly. “If I didn’t know better,” he commented, “I’d say that sounds like a compliment.”
“I suppose it does.” Gaspard almost smiled back. “Come; we must inform the others of what roles they will play when the legation is divided.”
Chapter Fifty-Four. THE THIRD SILVER TOWER and OUTER SYSTEM BD +02 4076 TWO (“DISPARITY”)
After Gaspard left the room with the members of the legation who were continuing on to Beta Aquilae, Riordan sat in silence, letting the others absorb all that they’d been told. The entirety of the surviving security contingent — Bannor, Tygg, Peter Wu, and Miles O’Garran — had received the news with the disinterested detachment of professional soldiers. So much of their life had been defined by getting unceremoniously shipped from one strange place to another that it hardly made any impression on them now.