Time flowed glacially, yet swiftly, according to where Valerena concentrated her attention. Came the moment when she knew XII Fulminata's cries had been heard by XXVIII Fretensis and IV Trajana. Came the moment when their indignant replies returned and it was certain they were accelerating toward the action as violently as their frames could stand. And XII Fulminata would not give a millimeter, though its destruction was assured if it did not.
Tawn came out of his fugue momentarily. "I've done the hard part. I've beaten XII Fulminata. The other two have nothing left. I can take them, too."
They were all insane. Tawn wanted to fight. Tawn wanted whatever laurels there were from a triumph over three Guardships.
Damn!
"Why are they coming if they can't win?"
"They have to. And what they know isn't what they believe. My love, I must leave you for a while. I must preside over the execution of Fulminata." He smiled. "I never liked Fulminata."
Valerena watched briefly. She saw no evidence that XII Fulminata was beaten, awaiting a coup de grace.
She summoned her Others. "This isn't shaping up good. He wants to fight even if he gets the chance to run. Ready the Voyager. I'll join you in a few minutes. We'll pretend to be a rider moving out to attack XII Fulminata's wounded side. When we're over there, we'll run for it. Get going. Casual."
She watched XXVIII Fretensis and IV Trajana on a split screen. Half showed what actually could be seen, which lagged reality by the time it took light to bridge the intervening gap. The other half presented Adjutrix's estimate of what the Guardships were doing in realtime.
They were coming up on turnover, where they would begin deceleration and launch secondaries.
They began decelerating.
Moments later, observation proved estimation incorrect.
Both had begun deceleration, but XXVIII Fretensis was pulling ahead of IV Trajana, as though planning a high velocity firing pass.
Something was wrong. Bad wrong.
Valerena began walking, betraying no emotion. But she did not sustain that false calm long. She ran.
Her run ended within sight of the Voyager lock.
Tawn stepped into her path. "Why are you trying to leave me, my love?"
"I don't want to die."
"They are the ones who will be destroyed. Come." He grabbed her wrist. She could not break his hold. "You were going to your homeworld? Yes. I see. We will go there when I finish this. I will need refitting again."
She tried to hang back. He dragged her. "For you I turned upon my own. Though it takes them a thousand centuries, they will hunt me down. They will hate me more than any mortal foe." More gently, "I have abandoned immortality for you, Valerena Tregesser. You will spend the rest of your life with me, be that ten minutes or ten thousand years."
Insane. Raving insane.
He began laughing as they approached the big hall. She had not heard him laugh before. It recalled Simon's crazy laughter. He said, "Fulminata is dead. Shells reached the Core."
He dragged her into the hall.
XII Fulminata did not look dead on screen. Erratic, yes, but still very much in action.
Did Guardships have reflexes, like killed animals?
XXVIII Fretensis and IV Trajana were sufficiently close that the split screen went to one view. XXVIII Fretensis was not leading the charge now. IV Trajana had pulled ahead. Neither should be able to slow enough to engage.
There was something bad wrong.
IV Trajana began accelerating.
Valerena saw it coming but did not believe it. Not till Tawn came, eyes moist, sorrowful. "I was wrong, my love. You were right. I'm sorry. Hold me. Please?" And a moment later, "We had so little time."
IV Trajana rammed VI Adjutrix at sixteen kilometers per second, flinging VI Adjutrix back into the remains of XII Fulminata. Three Guardships perished in a nova of violence.
So much did they hate and fear one of their own gone rogue.
XXVIII Fretensis slid by and clambered onto the Web, headed for Starbase with all the information VI Adjutrix had transmitted during its final seconds. VI Adjutrix had not turned on the fleet out of hatred and did not leave that final duty unfulfilled, though the fleet was casting it into oblivion.
Not a word about its lover did it betray, though.
Seconds before impact, the Valerena Others gave up waiting and flung their Voyager out of its rider bay. Gas and debris buffeted the vessel, tossed it about. They regained control and limped away, climbed onto the Web only minutes behind XX VIII Fretensis.
A debate began. They did not want to die. But their Prime was gone. Their lives might be forfeit. Yet they were Valerena Tregesser genetically and by conditioning. They had her sense of obligation to the House. And the House could not be kept ignorant of this disaster.
— 89 —
The survivors among those who decided on the gas giant did not understand what had happened. They did see that the siege had lapsed and that three Guardships had perished. There might be fragments that would yield Guardship secrets.
Their world had been devastated. They could not investigate themselves.
They took hold of the Web and sent word vibrating across the strands of that otherspace.
— 90 —
Lupo glanced from the woman to Two and back. "Lieutenant, you're the most singleminded woman I've encountered since last I saw my mother."
"You've stalled me five days. I'm out of patience. Deliver those people."
It would be amusing if she was not so serious. "And if I can't?"
"I'll take them into custody myself. Using whatever force is necessary."
"Just four of you. I admire your confidence."
"Are you a moron, Provik?"
"I try not to be. Why?"
"There are four of us here. There are thirty-two Guardships out there."
"And you wonder why we love you." Lupo glanced at Two. She nodded. She, too, thought the woman serious.
"Lieutenant, I don't have those people. I doubt they exist. You won't believe me, so you're welcome to look to your little stone heart's content. As for Blessed Tregesser, Cable Shike, and Nyo Bofoku, the Chair says go screw yourself. Bring in thirty-two thousand Guardships."
That startled her. Then she shrugged. "They're of no consequence. You have till sixteen hundred hours to produce the aliens and the artifact." She walked out even though she needed a guide to get out of his office alive.
Lupo said, "That woman has balls that drag on the floor."
"She raised the stakes as high as they get."
"If we don't give in, we get wiped out. If we do, we get it anyway."
"So?"
"We've got nothing to lose. They've made their plan?"
"Yes. Shoot out the gravs on the north and east side of the High City so it'll crash into the Pylon. A diversion to cover them heading out. Where they'll go I don't know, and neither do they. The only one of them who gives a damn about staying alive is their alien."
"They're not putting that on? They don't suspect we see and hear everything?"