in J'chabi's home. This time I was alone. As I sat up, my arms became translucent. Alarmed, I concentrated until they solidified.
J'chabi appeared in the doorway, holding the laser carbine. "You are back."
I spoke in a rasp, my throat dry. "How long this time?"
Concern shaded his face. "You were gone half a decadar."
Five Opalite days. Twenty hours. It was taking longer and longer to re-form. "The Traders?"
"We sent your message to them." He entered the room, moving with the careful courtesy he always used around me. "They have made no more hostile moves. But they haven't left either. They seem to be waiting."
I could guess why. They had probably surmised that ISC had little presence here aside from its orbital defense system, which was in tatters now. With the destruction of the port, no functional base remained on the moon. And apparently Opalite had only this one city, an outpost intended for scientific research. Soon the Traders would call our bluff.
"Did you reach anyone?" J'chabi asked.
"I don't recall any contact." I wished I had a more encouraging answer. Desperation suffused his mind. Without ISC intervention, we would become slaves or die. And more was at stake than most anyone knew. For the Traders to capture any member of the Ruby Dynasty would create a crisis. If they seized the Pharaoh, it would be a disaster.
I shuddered, trying not to think of pain and fear. My brain had neurological defenses. They blocked me from answering questions that would compromise ISC security or hurt my family. If interrogation became impossible to bear, the implants would erase my memories by disrupting neural links. But no defenses were foolproof. The Traders could learn enough from me to cripple Skolia. I would rather die than betray the people and family I loved.
J'chabi was watching my face. "What do you want me to do?"
I took a steadying breath. Then I indicated his carbine. "If the Traders come… I mustn't go with them."
His face paled, but he didn't look surprised. "I understand."
Gods willing, he wouldn't have to kill me. The longer this standoff continued, the greater the chance that help would reach us.
A more optimistic thought came to me. "I have another idea."
His face brightened. "Yes?"
I grinned. "It's time to confuse our Trader guests."
* * *
Natil scratched her chin. "Why do you want to send pretend messages?"
We were standing in an alcove off the city's web room. Two of the security officers, Natil and the man Zinc, had joined Hajune, J'chabi, and me. With the starport destroyed, the communication console in this alcove offered the only way for us to talk with ships in orbit.
Today J'chabi translated my Iotic into Shay for the others, and their Shay in Iotic for me. Although I was learning the language, right now I couldn't risk a mistake due to my stumbles with its nuances.
"I will make the messages sound like ISC chatter," I said. "Both outgoing and incoming. It will all be in ISC code. But I'll use a code the Traders have broken. If this works, then when they pick up the messages, they will believe ISC ships are on approach to this system."
"But they are not," Zinc pointed out. "Obvious this soon will be."
I paused, considering what to reveal. During the war, our naval research labs had figured out how to hide ships in giant antimatter fuel bottles. They weren't "bottles" in a physical sense, but rather containment fields in the shape of a Klein bottle. A normal bottle twisted the fuel out of normal space; a giant bottle could twist out an entire ship. Soz had used it to sneak an invasion fleet into Trader territory, so by now the Traders probably knew we could hide ships. That might fool these into thinking ISC forces lurked nearby, at least until they began to question why these concealed forces did nothing to assert their
J'chabi appeared in the doorway, holding the laser carbine. "You are back."
I spoke in a rasp, my throat dry. "How long this time?"
Concern shaded his face. "You were gone half a decadar."
Five Opalite days. Twenty hours. It was taking longer and longer to re-form. "The Traders?"
"We sent your message to them." He entered the room, moving with the careful courtesy he always used around me. "They have made no more hostile moves. But they haven't left either. They seem to be waiting."
I could guess why. They had probably surmised that ISC had little presence here aside from its orbital defense system, which was in tatters now. With the destruction of the port, no functional base remained on the moon. And apparently Opalite had only this one city, an outpost intended for scientific research. Soon the Traders would call our bluff.
"Did you reach anyone?" J'chabi asked.
"I don't recall any contact." I wished I had a more encouraging answer. Desperation suffused his mind. Without ISC intervention, we would become slaves or die. And more was at stake than most anyone knew. For the Traders to capture any member of the Ruby Dynasty would create a crisis. If they seized the Pharaoh, it would be a disaster.
I shuddered, trying not to think of pain and fear. My brain had neurological defenses. They blocked me from answering questions that would compromise ISC security or hurt my family. If interrogation became impossible to bear, the implants would erase my memories by disrupting neural links. But no defenses were foolproof. The Traders could learn enough from me to cripple Skolia. I would rather die than betray the people and family I loved.
J'chabi was watching my face. "What do you want me to do?"
I took a steadying breath. Then I indicated his carbine. "If the Traders come… I mustn't go with them."
His face paled, but he didn't look surprised. "I understand."
Gods willing, he wouldn't have to kill me. The longer this standoff continued, the greater the chance that help would reach us.
A more optimistic thought came to me. "I have another idea."
His face brightened. "Yes?"
I grinned. "It's time to confuse our Trader guests."
* * *
Natil scratched her chin. "Why do you want to send pretend messages?"
We were standing in an alcove off the city's web room. Two of the security officers, Natil and the man Zinc, had joined Hajune, J'chabi, and me. With the starport destroyed, the communication console in this alcove offered the only way for us to talk with ships in orbit.
Today J'chabi translated my Iotic into Shay for the others, and their Shay in Iotic for me. Although I was learning the language, right now I couldn't risk a mistake due to my stumbles with its nuances.
"I will make the messages sound like ISC chatter," I said. "Both outgoing and incoming. It will all be in ISC code. But I'll use a code the Traders have broken. If this works, then when they pick up the messages, they will believe ISC ships are on approach to this system."
"But they are not," Zinc pointed out. "Obvious this soon will be."
I paused, considering what to reveal. During the war, our naval research labs had figured out how to hide ships in giant antimatter fuel bottles. They weren't "bottles" in a physical sense, but rather containment fields in the shape of a Klein bottle. A normal bottle twisted the fuel out of normal space; a giant bottle could twist out an entire ship. Soz had used it to sneak an invasion fleet into Trader territory, so by now the Traders probably knew we could hide ships. That might fool these into thinking ISC forces lurked nearby, at least until they began to question why these concealed forces did nothing to assert their
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