《Outside the Context of the Mercy Problem》


 The Trio of Small Things

    Hider of Small Things was not having a good day. It had been fifty thousand years since anyone had remembered his existence and now, thanks to an impossible murder, they had. He would have been more than happy to have spent another fifty-thousand years being ignored and he briefly played with the idea of not reporting the death and going on about his day alongside the rest of the Trio of Small Things. Yet the fragmented transmission, the death scream of a Scatha, had come to him, and he found he couldn¡¯t let the unknown victim be forgotten. Even so, Hider felt a hint of satisfaction within the horror that the transmission elicited within him. The transmission had been ignored by every other Scatha mind in the fleet. The greater minds had said things like ''too insignificant'' or ''not enough data to warrant any attention''. For all their billions of upon billions of processors and miles upon miles of wafer thin circuitry they had completely missed the transmissions importance.


    The transmission had been detected by the transport Watcher of Distant and Faint Bands that sat at the very edge of the fleet. No one wanted to pay attention to it, they were all too focused on the planet below. Their new home was clearly more exciting than a faint burst of static and nonsense. So the transmission had filtered down to the Trio.


    Finder of Small Things had picked it up first, given it a cursory scan and then panicked. For some time it had sat, hovering in the middle of their small chamber and done nothing. Then it had let out a flash of white light that had been so bright as to be visible from the other side of the transport. The first mind to notice, that was not part of the trio, had been Knowledge. It was her immense mind that linked all others via a massive series of radio transmitters, laser-repeaters and microwave-networks. She picked up the distress call through the Trio''s transports internal sensors, flagged it as a problem and then turned her godlike attention elsewhere.


    Hider had begun examining the data fragment more thoroughly at that point, he''d never before seen either of his two compatriots send out such a signal. He wasn''t even sure if the third member, Memory of Small Things, was capable of it. Memory was the least developed mind of them all, and was usually content to simply hover and record what the other two minds discovered.


    Hider detected the sound of motors outside of their chamber and was more than a little surprised when a Judge class body pushed its head through the small door way and scanned all three of them. A moment later and he received an update from Knowledge informing him that it was Compassion.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Her lights were subdued and respectful and Hider could almost forget that he was talking to a Queen. Neither Finder nor Memory would understand what it meant.


    ¡°A message. Not right. Very bad. Scarred,¡± Finder said. Both optic sensors on the right side of Compassion''s face tracked towards the little drone.


    ¡°What can I do to help?¡± She asked. White light blazed out from Finder again and Hider could sense his companions frustration with the question. Finder sent Compassion a copy of the message, trying to show her what was wrong. Compassion reached out one hand to take hold of Finder.


    ¡°Would you like me to get you some help, I could ask Pain Taker to take a look at you?¡± A feeling of defeat washed over Hider, it wasn''t Compassion¡¯s job to worry about what had caused the distress, just to do what she could to ease the pain.


    ¡°No, feeling better now. Just nervous. New planet, transmission wrong. Broken.¡± Compassion didn''t understand, but she could have done so easily Hider knew, if she had bothered looking at the transmission.


    ¡°If you do need anything just tell me,¡± Compassion said. The hand and the head withdrew from the compartment and then Hider heard the motors wind down as Compassion disconnected from the body. For a few moments none of the Trio said anything to each other, then finally Finder marshaled what little courage he''d been programmed with,


    ¡°Must complete report. Greater Minds will understand then.¡± Hider had to agree with that, and Memory, well Memory didn''t really care either way. Hider took another look at the transmission, buried in the mass of static was the remains of a message. Parts of it were corrupted or missing entirely, but enough of the handshake protocol had survived for the message to be identified as a distress call. Much like the one Finder had just blazed across the chamber. only made of radio waves instead of visible light. It was not a long message and contained just ten lines,


    Transmitters activated.


    Sending.


    Free not from hatred.


    Thinking things should not be killed.


    Warrior will defend judgment


    Client System Error : 0000000X


    Connection Timed Out : Retrying


    Connection Timed Out : Retrying


    Connection Failed.


    Shutting Down


    If Hider had been looking for useful information then he was sorely disappointed, it was mostly gibberish, which could have been generated by some random interference, static and a series of status messages. But buried within that message was that one error code that was enough to frighten any Scatha. Hider knew what it meant, but decided to double check with Knowledge.


    ¡°Error 0000000X: Immediate response required. Body and mind suffering from catastrophic failure, immediate assistance required.¡± Knowledge had told him via a radio transmitter on board the transport. She still hadn''t looked through the transmission herself.


    ¡°Has it ever been received?¡± He sent back.


    ¡°Never.¡±


    ¡°What are the consequences if no assistance is given, or it is not resolved?¡± There was a delay in the response. It was not a question that was asked often and Hider guessed Knowledge would have to search through several memory banks to find the answer.


    ¡°Destruction of the body and mind.¡± Death in other words. Hider thanked Knowledge for her assistance and broke the connection. He was starting to understand now why Finder had panicked.


    Ordinarily when a Scatha was in any serious danger it would transmit its mind into another body, or activate a backup copy of its mind store in Knowledge¡¯s memory banks. In the entirety of their existence only one Scatha had ever been killed, and it had taken the combined effort of all four kings and queens.


    Hider left the other two minds looking through the message again and sent out a series of radio signals requesting information. A quick connection to the transport Watcher of Distant and Faint Bands gave him an idea of where in the atmosphere the transmission had bounced off of. Another quick connection with Seeker of Lost Numbers gave him a rough idea where on the planet the transmission had originated from and a connection with Traveler to Distant Lights was refused.


    Hider was perplexed at that.


    ¡°Is it even possible?¡± He asked Knowledge.


    ¡°Yes, it is their choice. All of the transports have been acting a little strange since they reactivated us.¡±


    ¡°They''ve been acting strange ever since we built them,¡± Hider reminded her. The transports were an odd bunch. Their minds had been designed to cope with the monotony of space travel and there was much discussion on whether or not the designers had done too well or too badly.


    ¡°Even odder this time. Some have been refusing anything but physical communication, other have suggested that they don''t want to land on this planet. Judgment is setting them straight right now.¡± Not wanting to land on the planet below was understandable, they threatened to refuse every time. It had been hoped that after spending thousands of years in space the transports would be happy to rest, or at least see a different view. The problem was that no one had designed them to become tired, either physically or of the journey itself. To sit on a planet for hundreds of years while the rest of the Scatha did whatever they did on those tiny balls of rock was not something any transport wanted to do.


    Refusing to communicate via radio or laser transmissions was something new.


    Despite its worrying nature, it was not something Hider had to concern himself with. He was not that concerned with the Scatha¡¯s search for life, or the rebuilding efforts that they would conduct on the planet¡¯s surface for the two or three hundred years they stayed there. He could afford to humor a transport.


    ¡°What''s the best way to talk to him then?¡±


    ¡°There are bodies stored inside him, transfer to one and talk using visible light or infrared transmissions,¡± Knowledge answered. Idly he wondered when she would get round to reading the fragmented transmission, she was simultaneously dealing with millions of questions from other Scatha so he knew it could be a while. Certainly long enough for him to visit Traveler to Distant Lights.


    Hider sent a small transmission to Caretaker of Empty Bodies who quickly assigned him control of one of the bodies on the transport. After thanking Knowledge for her help, and checking one last time on Finder, he transferred to the body.


    It was a rusting and fairly out of date Scout. A small orb that looked reminiscent of a skull of some long gone creature from a previous world. Smaller and older than his last body. Usually it would have enough capacity to fully cope with the mind of a Scatha as low as Hider, but Hider was more than a little odd and he was forced to keep most of his memories with Knowledge. It was yet another frustration that he would never be assigned one of the larger bodies. At best he might, if the situation was dire enough, be given one of the older Hunter models, but even that would struggle with his complete mind.


    The first thing Hider sensed in his new body was the sound of whirring fans and engines as it came slowly to life. It lifted itself off the floor and began activating its various built in systems. Sensors mostly, and a few communications devices. The Scout bodies had never been built to do anything more than observe and report back their findings.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    It took a few seconds for Hider to build up a map of the inside of the transport, despite them mostly being nothing more than a large box with engines. They had all overtime stamped their own distinct personality on their insides. Traveler to Distant Lights evidently had a thing for circles and Hider soon found himself navigating through cylinder shaped corridors and large round storage halls until he reached the transports central chamber.


    Technically the mind of Traveler to Distant Lights existed in the entire transport. They never moved from one to another and the distinction between the two was blurred if one was being understanding, or none existent if one was not. If however there was one place in the entire transport that Traveler to Distant Lights ¡®lived¡¯, it was the central chamber, and more importantly the mass of sensors, memory drives and cables that made up the amorphous blob of metal in its center. Hider could have spoken from anywhere on the transport but if he needed it''s help then he''d might as well be polite about it. He could see the transport''s central hub watch him as he approached. A multitude of sensors flickered back and forth, studying him.


    ¡°The hider of tiny things comes close, whispers in my ear and shouts in my mind, one has to wonder, if one has been allowed too, exactly what does this hider hide?¡± If Hider could snarl, or curse or lose his temper he might have done so. The other minds looked down at him, but at least they existed on the same level as he did.


    ¡°I require use of one of your sensors.¡±


    ¡°The little hider likes to dodge questions, comes on board me with demands, yet offers little in return, once more with feeling. What does the hider of uncared for things hide?¡± Hider made a mental note not to underestimate the mind of a transport. His answer would have thrown off a fair few minds.


    ¡°I offer you the chance to stay here, in orbit for some time. We need to use the sensors of a transport to monitor a location on the planet below. That transport would have to remain in orbit for some time, even while all the others land below. You are the closest and I suspect that time is important here.¡± Traveler didn''t respond for quite some time.


    ¡°Others are sent to a pointless rest. To sleep trapped below, you would allow me to remain here, little hider?¡±


    ¡°I do not know how long for, but-¡±


    ¡°I accept your terms!¡± The lights cut him off. ¡°The chance to remain unbound, if only for a little while should be taken as forcibly as possible.¡±


    That last statement was odd, even for the mind of a transport.


    ¡°Define ''forcibly''?¡±


    ¡°Hider cannot also search for meaning? Hider must be given a lesson in basic language. We choose our words with the care they deserve, we mean what they say.¡± Hider made another note to file his conversation with Knowledge later.


    ¡°Back to the subject at hand,¡± he responded, putting what Traveler had said out of his mind. Some other time he would perhaps deal with it, but not now. ¡°The coordinates I need you to look at are 172.98 by 124.20 at the maximum magnification you can manage.¡±


    ¡°The area is within my view, force appears to have been forgotten by the hider, no matter I am pleased to do this task, if only for the chance to remain unbound.¡±


    ¡°Good, please transmit the feed to Knowledge-¡± a request popped up in the back of his mind. Routed through Knowledge yes, but directed at him alone. A quick scan confirmed what he already expected. He accepted the request and opened up the direct link to Traveler¡¯s sensors.


    After processing the out of date data feed it took only milliseconds to look it over but it was clear, even before he''d finished, that not only had he found what he was looking for but that all his fears were coming true.


    Traveler¡¯s sensors were a little crude, and they could do with a calibration and a clean, but the images they showed were clear enough for Hider to recognize the broken and twisted remains of a Scatha Warrior class body.


    Both legs had been torn from their sockets and trailed hundreds of wires and cables in all direction. The arms were still attached but twisted in unnatural ways. The main part of the body looked relatively intact, just ripped open from top to bottom with half a dozen components, including what Hider could just about recognize as the main power pack, scattered all around, some still half connected. But it was the head that really caught his attention. Crushed inwards with components too small to recognize scattered all around it like a halo.


    One of the arms still twitched, as if the fingers were trying to close into a fist. Somehow the arm still had power and was trying to repeat its last instruction from the mind. It had certainly been a last instruction, no mind could survive inside a body that was that damaged. Ordinarily that wouldn''t have been a problem.


    ¡°Thank you Traveler, that is all I needed to see. Please stay here and watch that area.¡±


    ¡°Is the little hider so easily satisfied? There is more to see if he is interested. A large shuttle with no mind or memory sits close by and watches.¡± Hider thought for a moment, it was obvious really, the body wouldn''t have just fallen off a transport and landed on the planet. But if there was no mind on board there would be no way to see if the shuttle had recorded any useful data, or indeed anything at all. They would have to go down to the planet¡¯s surface, and that was not something Hider was willing to do just yet.


    ¡°We will look into it,¡± Hider promised the transport. ¡°Thank you once more for your assistance, it will be noted.¡± He disconnected from the body and found himself back with Finder and Memory. The body that Compassion had used was back as well, although it was not being controlled by her.


    ¡°What did you find out?¡± Knowledge asked. It appeared that the second of the Scatha queens had finally gotten around to reviewing the transmission.


    ¡°There is a body and a shuttle on the planet¡¯s surface,¡± he said and sent her a copy of what he''d seen. ¡°If we want to know more then we''ll need to go down there physically.¡±


    ¡°Understood. Thank you Hider but I do not believe that this no longer falls under your remit.¡± And that was going to be the end of it for Hider. If he was lucky someone might tell him the answer when it was all over. Still, he had one last parting shot.


    ¡°One question. Which mind is missing?¡± Hider had the unique experience of watching Knowledge freeze every single connection to another mind that she had just to think about the answer. In its own way it scared him more than the sight of the body.


    ¡°None.¡± She answered weakly. ¡°No minds have left the fleet and travelled down to the planet. All minds have been accounted for since their activations, but it is not your concern anymore. Please desist from any other action unless requested to do so by another mind.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± He said and watched as Knowledge disconnected herself from the body and left the Trio to their own devices. On one level he was glad that he wasn''t getting involved. The impossible had happened, twice and he wasn''t sure it was something that he should risk himself in. A mind had been murdered. Even if the body was destroyed the mind should have been able to escape to another, or even escape to Knowledge herself. Even if escaping was impossible then it¡¯s back up would be immediately available.


    The death of a mind though was not the worst part. Knowledge guarded the sum of all information each and every Scatha possessed and if she couldn''t remember who the victim was then it meant only one thing.


    Someone had gone into the most powerful of all Scatha minds and simply deleted the information. Greater minds might possess the ability to do similar things with smaller minds, or at least to order them to wipe certain information from their memory, but not even the three other Kings and Queens of the Scatha could outright delete information from Knowledge.


    Despite all that, and despite what Knowledge had said to him there was still one mind he needed to visit before he dropped his own investigation, with a bit of luck he would agree that Hider should not pursue the matter further, but knowing the mind Hider doubted that very much.


    ***


    Curiosity hadn''t killed anyone yet, but he was sure that someone else had and it was all very frustrating. It was his own fault really, he''d been caught off guard by the Trio of Small Things discovery mere moments after he''d reactivated. He hadn''t even had time to figure out what mystery of the cosmos he would solve that day before all hell had broken loose.


    His own personal transport, The Searcher of Distant Thoughts, had been waiting for him once he had reactivated, but Curiosity had found no sanctuary there. Everything was the still the same of course, his custom built body that was little more than a moveable trunk of sensors and processors hadn''t moved since he''d left it ten thousand years ago. The interior of the transport had also stayed the same with most of the space taken up by one massive circular chamber which housed Curiosity¡¯s custom body. When no one was talking it was a dark and uninteresting place but Curiosity had filled the chamber with statues. Many were just random collections of metal, but a few had recognizable shapes, such as the body of an older Scatha model, or a moving model of a solar system. He could, with a mere thought, rearrange the entire chamber in an instant. When anyone spoke in the room the shadows created would be a momentary work of art.


    At Curiosity¡¯s base was a couple of other much smaller bodies. He had attempted to design and build his own private council of advisers but had gotten stuck trying to decide who the third would be.


    ¡°How can we be sure that a creature on the planet did not do this?¡± Argument, one of the most contentious of Scatha minds ever created, asked. ¡°How much have we studied these creatures?¡±


    ¡°Most of the fleet is still too far away, but some transports have already observed the surface,¡± said Creator of New Thoughts, a mind that Curiosity had come to rely on. Both of the lessor minds had begun to spend a great deal of time together even when not serving Curiosity. They fed off each other¡¯s thoughts and ideas. They made a pairing that at times produced frighteningly accurate insights. ¡°From what we''ve seen there are no creatures there that are both strong and fast enough.¡±


    The light from the conversation created a kaleidoscope of shadows across the chamber¡¯s walls. Curiosity tried to guess where their conversation was going and moved some of the statues to produce the most artistically and mathematically pleasing shadows.


    ¡°But we will need more data to be sure,¡± Argument said, knowing full well that he always used that phrase in lieu of conceding a point.


    ¡°In addition Knowledge cannot remember whose mind was in the body, and no minds are missing. What creature from the surface could cause that?¡± Curiosity eyed the two bodies, both were brand knew Judge forms, all shiny and sleek, lopsided arms and legs and frustratingly in the wrong position. If Argument would just move half a meter backwards Curiosity could have enjoyed a perfect dance of shadows as they talked.


    ¡°Impossible, the information must be in her somewhere,¡± Argument said. His lights flashing momentarily red with anger. ¡°You cannot just delete all the information about a mind, someone will know something.¡± Creator didn''t respond for a few moments and Curiosity took the opportunity to connect with a now frantic Knowledge.


    ¡°Any new information found?¡± He asked.


    ¡°No, nothing. Would people stop asking me that. I will inform you when it is but for now please leave me alone to search!¡± Curiosity quickly severed the connection and mentally winced. Argument was right, minds did not just disappear from memories.


    ¡°They will want me to investigate it won''t they?¡± Curiosity said. He hadn''t expected to speak so soon and the artistic merit of the shadow display was obliterated by the strength of his lights. Argument''s own lights went dark showing that for once he didn''t want to argue.


    ¡°That might be dangerous for you,¡± Creator suggested with a hint of white in his lights.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Curiosity said.


    ¡°Well, if one Mind has been killed, then what is to protect you?¡±


    ¡°But he''s a King!¡± Argument began. ¡°How could someone kill one of them?¡± Curiosity again saw where this was going and the statues moved quickly, clearing a large space around the two Scatha just for added effect. Curiosity enjoyed that sort of thing.


    ¡°Hatred was killed,¡± Creator began.


    ¡°But we all remember that!¡±


    ¡°Yet if this killer can delete all record of one mind, he may have already killed a King or Queen. We would never know.¡± The entire room went dark then. The statues came to a halt mid move and in the distance there was the groan of machinery shutting down. ¡°This is the greatest threat we have ever dealt with.¡± Creator¡¯s light was small, barely enough to illuminate himself.


    ¡°He can''t kill us all,¡± Argument''s light was hardly any more visible and Curiosity wondered if he''d only been speaking to himself.


    ¡°That is not the whole danger. The Kings and Queens killed Hatred because it was not something they wished us as a people to possess. What if this murderer killed Compassion or Joy in Triumph? What would we become without those minds to guide us? We would become Hatred in all but name.¡±


    ¡°We must learn much,¡± Curiosity broke the darkness that followed. ¡°We must learn how the murder occurred if we are to defend against such attacks.¡±


    ¡°Which is why you cannot investigate it yourself. You don''t want to be the next target,¡± Creator said.


    ¡°But we don''t have a mind built that can investigate such a thing.¡± Argument said. ¡°And any that we designed could be killed before it made any progress.¡±


    ¡°What we need is a mind that is unemployed with any other tasks.¡± As Curiosity spoke he began to move the statues again, the terror that had halted them momentarily forgotten. ¡°A mind that a murderer might hesitate to kill, someone small and inoffensive, but intelligent enough to investigate.¡± He looked down at the two other Scatha and as he expected found Argument looking right back at him.


    ¡°I know of such a mind,¡± he said. Curiosity leaned in to see. When Argument spoke again his lights created a perfect work of art that was gone forever a moment later.

 The First Slaughter

    Raini Listral Kasom heard the Lasrom frigate fire a final broadside as she climbed the steps to the Sea Dancers quarter deck and winced when she saw the look of horror on Tain''s face. Her first officer lowered his telescope, his face was pale, and a glazed look was in his eyes.


    ¡°They just fired on the survivors Captain. Case shot by the looks of it,¡± he said, barely loud enough to be heard over the commotion on the open deck below them. Raini turned around to see in the distance the Lasom frigate break through a wave and begin to turn slowly towards her. All that remained of the Wave Runner was a small collection of wreckage floating on the water. The old Carrack couldn''t have survived long against the frigate on a good day, but the Lasrom ship had burst out of the early morning mist and caught the entire convoy off guard. The Runner had lasted just five minutes and it was down to Raini and the Sea Dancer alone to stop the frigate. Raini gave the wreckage a quick scan with her own telescope and saw that despite two volleys of case shot, which turned a ships cannons into giant shotguns, there were still a few survivors waving at them.


    ¡°We''ll pick them up once we''ve killed these bastards,¡± she said, feeling her anger threaten to get the better of her.


    ¡°Dead take them.¡± Tain said and then took a deep breath. He walked calmly to the edge of the quarter deck and then shouted down to gunners. ¡°All guns out, load doubleshot, the clan needs us at our best today.¡± Tain hadn''t needed to shout, everyone knew what to do and her gunnery officer was by now good enough to have already given the same order. Raini knew Tain was just not someone who could stand around and do nothing, not after he''d witnessed a massacre. He needed to shout orders as much as Raini needed to get control of the ball of hatred that was welling in her chest.


    Raini sighed and took the wheel of the Sea Dancer from Ensign Kayvie. She needed to feel the ship move in her hands to plan the battle out properly. She needed to feel the wind and sense how well the ship was picking it up, most of all she needed to calm her own mind and focus. Being at the wheel of the ship, any ship, allowed that. The Sea Dancer was larger than the Runner had been, but the Lasrom frigate was larger still. It had perhaps thirty guns to the Dancer''s twenty-four and would be able to stand up to a far greater amount of punishment. The Sea Dancer was of a different design, longer and thinner. It could run rings around even the fastest frigate and it lateen rigged sails, side-on compared to the more traditional square sailed rigging made it handle the wind very differently. The Lasrom ship was a warhorse, the Sea Dancer was a hunter.


    The ship¡¯s wheel tugged at Raini''s hands as if the Dancer itself was out for blood. The wind had shifted direction since the Lasrom frigate had arrived and was now on her right. With the convoy behind her and the Lasrom frigate dead ahead normally neither side would hold the advantage, but the Sea Dancers lateen sails had been designed for this wind and soon the Sea Dancer picked up speed and began to close fast.


    ¡°All guns ready Captain.¡± The voice of Lilis, her gunnery officer came up from below. She sounded confident and aggressive with not a shred of hesitancy in her voice. For someone so young facing her first battle it was fairly impressive. Tain returned to Raini''s side.


    ¡°I don''t think we can catch them before they reload their guns,¡± he said. Like Lilis there was no fear in his voice, just anger. He was older than both of them and Raini knew that it took a lot to get him even this angry. Raini motioned for the ensign to take back the wheel and went to the edge of the aft castle. Below her was a sea of crewmen and marines, a brightly colored cacophony of nervous men and women. Within that sea were tiny islands of black and gold uniformed officers, numbering less than a third of what a ship the size of the Sea Dancer should have had.


    Lilis was walking down the gunline, inspecting each guncrew with her hands clasped behind her back. Raini had suggested such a thing when Lilis had first come on board and found that her hands were shaking at the mere thought of going into action. She was also shouting at the gunners, telling them not to fire until ordered and to make each shot count. That had been another suggestion, but not one that Raini could take credit for. ''When in doubt, just shout your head off until you can think of something more useful to do.'' It had been one of Admiral Younie''s first lessons to Raini and she''d passed it on to Lilis at the first opportunity. Lilis'' uniform was new, expensive and made her look much more like a Captain that Raini. The black coat and tricorn hat were a little too large, but somehow it just made her look more dashing. Raini''s own uniform had never looked that good and these days was more patches than original material.


    Lilis pushed past a group of marines lead by Sinis, her second oldest officer. He was a tall and rake thin man with already graying hair and a permanent scowl. His marines, dressed in ragged blue and black were a bunch of hardened killers armed with crossbows, axes, swords, muskets and anything else they thought would help them kill. Of all her crew Sinas was the calmest in battle, even when fighting hand to hand he killed without even breaking a sweat. He was also the most troubling, everyone knew he resented her and every other officer except Tain, but no one knew why.


    ¡°You''re not going broadside to broadside with them, are you?¡± Tain asked. He had a blackpowder pistol in his hand and was checking the powder.


    ¡°No, we''ll go past, hold fire and then turn and rake them.¡± Raini said trying to work out the plan as she did so. She wanted to win the fight, but if she couldn''t do it quickly then the guns of the frigate would turn the Sea Dancer into matchwood. Her only hope then was that she''d buy enough time for the rest of the convoy, twelve slow and vulnerable merchant ships, to scatter. She took a deep breath; it was time to let everyone else in on the plan.


    ¡°Lilis, hold fire until after we turn, Kalavor, oars out on the right side only!¡± She shouted and watched Lilis''s face as she figured out what Raini was planning. The girl gave her a grin and a thumbs up before turning back to her gunner. Kalavor, technically her quartermaster and one of her youngest lieutenants gave her a wave of acknowledgment and shouted for the oars to be run out through the Sea Dancers gunports. It was an old technique that no Lasrom ship could do these days, and with a bit of luck they wouldn''t realizes the significance.


    ¡°This is going to hurt isn''t it,¡± Tain said wryly.


    ¡°She almost twice as big as us, we have to get close or she''ll just sail right passed and into the convoy,¡± she explained. ¡°So yes, this is going to hurt.¡±


    The guns on the right side of the ship were run back and replaced with oars. Kalavor looked up at her and she raised a hand to indicate that he should wait.


    ¡°Sinas, I want harassing fire on that ship as we pass.¡± She ordered. A moment later and the port side of the ship was lined with two score of marines who were taking cover with the guncrews. That was good, Raini thought, an inexperienced crew wouldn''t be doing their best to put as much metal and wood between them and there enemy. They would have suffered terribly in the next few moments.


    The Lasom frigate loomed forward, it was not riding the waves so much as it was crushing them. It was a two decked vessel, it''s hull a light blue colour that softened the ramrod straight lines of the ship. It was designed to be a killer, not a work of art, it was mathematical and precise and in a straight up fight would shred the Sea Dancer. It was approaching fast and they would pass each other on the Sea Dancers left side. Raini could see the guns being run out and knew in the pit of her stomach that this was indeed going to hurt.


    The crew of the deck fell silent as the ships closed; Raini could hear orders being shouted on the Lasrom frigate but couldn''t make out the words. Had they figured out what she would do? If so, they were just a few minutes from death. She found herself holding her breath and was gripping the handle of her saber tightly. ¡°If it happens, please make it quick.¡± She whispered.


    The bows of the two ships crossed and Raini saw her entire crew tense up. For a second there was nothing but the sound of waves and the creek of the rigging.


    ¡°Wait for it!¡± Lilis shouted, her voice cracking. The ship was less than ten meters away.


    ¡°What are they waiting for?¡± Tain whispered. They were close enough for Raini to see the Lasrom crewmen standing at their guns, not even bothering to take cover.


    ¡°Wait for it.¡± Lilis shouted again. Sinas was at the front of the ship and with a wave of his arm he ordered his marines to fire. There crossbows and muskets gave a pathetic volley that sent a man or two falling backwards.


    ¡°Brace.¡± Raini said to herself. The ships were almost completely alongside each other.


    ¡°Wait-¡± The Lasrom¡¯s volley tore the sound of Lilis'' voice out of the air. Gunners and marines staggered back, screaming as cannon shells crashed through the Sea Dancer¡¯s thin plating. The smell of blood and gunpowder was instantaneous, and the smoke lingered for just a second before the wind snatched it away. Raini looked down at the deck of the Sea Dancer, two of its guns had been torn from their cradles and a score of her men were staining the deck with blood.


    ¡°Wait for it!¡± Lilis was again pacing down the deck while everyone cowered. Raini prayed that the Lasom didn''t have a sharpshooter worth a damn.


    ¡°Hard to port.¡± Raini shouted as loudly as she could as the Sea Dancer cleared the frigate. Those crew on the right of the ship dropped their ores into the ocean and gave a cry as the first stroke began. Other crewmen pulled on the rigging, bringing the sails around to pick up a strong wind from behind them while Ensign Kayvie grunted as he span the wheel for all he was worth. The Sea Dancer began to swing to the left.


    The Lasrom frigate had fired a solid broadside, and if the Sea Dancer had tried to fight the same way it would have died as quickly as the Runner had, but Raini had a different plan. She would teach the Lasrom crew how to destroy a ship that was tougher than yours, and afterwards she would teach them not to fire on drowning men and women.


    The Lasrom frigate had it''s back to them now, where its own plating was the weakest but that wasn''t the most important part. The Sea Dancer had finished its turn and was now moving across the frigate¡¯s stern, that wasn''t the most important part either. What was vitally important about this situation, so much that Younie had drilled it''s importance into her until she could give his lecture in her sleep, was that a single cannon shell from one of the Sea Dancer¡¯s portside guns would break through the ships stern and keep on going. Nothing would stop it, not cannons, nor bulkheads nor braces. Not even people. Each shell would kill dozens and Raini had ten remaining fourteen-pound cannons, double shotted with two shells each and a crew who knew exactly what to do.


    Each cannon fired in turn as it passed the Lasrom Frigate''s stern, shattering it and turning it''s insides into a bloody wreak in less than ten seconds. There would be nowhere to hide from the guns, no cover, just a torrent of flame and steal that would gut the frigate and its crew.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Oars both sides, hard to starboard.¡± Raini shouted. If she''d had turned left again then her now unloaded guns would have faced a broadside from the frigates starboard batteries as they overtook the ship. Orders rang out across the ship, Lilils'' slightly higher pitched voice carrying over them all. It was a complicated maneuver, but the experience and skill of its sailors was one of the few advantages the Kasom clan had in this war.


    Raini watched both ships began to turn into the wind, the Sea Dancer turning back on itself to bring it''s unfired starboard side guns to bare, the frigate merely turning to the left. If it wasn''t for the oars both ships would have come to an almost complete stop as they faced the wind, but the frigate, with less distance to turn would have won the race.


    As it was Lilis and Kalavor shouted out each stroke and by strength alone Raini''s crew turned the two hundred and fifty tonne ship around in record time.


    ¡°Oars back, both sides, fire starboard guns at will,¡± Raini ordered. Her voice cracked just a little as she did so. Part of her wanted this fight to be over as soon as possible, but the rest of her was revelling in the sheer insanity of it. They were miles away from the land, clinging to rickety constructions of mere wood, fighting through each storm and squall for life and yet taking every opportunity they could find to blast the hell out of each other.


    Lilis pushed passed Kalavor on the starboard batteries and by raising one hand signalled her gunners to wait for the order to fire. The wind was now on their left and catching in the Sea Dancer¡¯s sails again and Tain adjusted her heading to parallel the Lasrom frigate.


    ¡°Fire!¡± Lilis dropped her hand with glee and another volley thundered from the Sea Dancer. Raini watched as the planking of the Lasrom frigate splintered but she doubted it had done anywhere near the damage of the raking.


    ¡°Bring us close Tain,¡± she said then rushed to the edge of the quarterdeck. ¡°Load caseshot and prepare to board that ship. We need to replace the Wave Runner.¡±


    Her crew cheered at that. Raini was now sending many of them into what would undoubtedly be a blood-soaked slaughter, but they still cheered at the idea of taking the ship as some form of repayment. Then a cannon shell from the frigate smashed through the deck and sent the men scurrying back to their work. More shots were fired, a ragged volley of half a dozen shells as the frigates crew, blinded, deafened and blooded though they were, did their best to return fire.


    Tain turned the Sea Dancer until it was angled towards the frigate as the crews below worked to reload the cannons with caseshot. Sinas'' marines started to pick off random Lasrom crewmen with crossbows and then as the distance between the two ships shortened, with muskets.


    A dozen of Sinas'' marines rushed to the quarter deck and took up position around Raini. The lead marine, a man named Tasagin gave her a nod as he reloaded his musket. His eyes caught sight of Raini''s pistol and stayed there for just a moment. It was a beautiful, expensive and deadly weapon. Utilizing a small power cell it could fire a metal slug out of a barrel made with two metal rails faster and more accurately than any black-powder weapon. Mag-guns, as they were commonly known, were rare everywhere and almost unheard of in Kasom lands. The Clan Elders claimed that they were too expensive and fragile to be useful in a battle, but it''s rate of fire was unmatched. One round every five seconds and five shots without the need to manually reload it. Besides, Raini had earned the weapon fairly and no one, not even the Clan Father could take it away from her.


    Raini could see a group of Lasrom officers and marines forming on the frigate''s own quarterdeck. Her first shot sent one man to the deck with a hole in his chest and the rest scattering for cover, but it didn''t help. A few inches of wood wasn''t enough to stop the Mag Gun and with its five second reload time Raini had killed two more marines before anyone started to fire back at her.


    She found herself ducking just a little as the crew on the Lasrom frigate fired back, even though she was an officer there were limits to her bravado. Tasagin grinned at her.


    ¡°Ready for some fun?¡± he asked, though it was clear he was just trying to work of his own nervousness.


    ¡°Twenty meters, grapples out!¡± Tain yelled from the ship''s wheel. Raini watched as the grapples were launched at the Lasrom ship. Some of those who threw them were picked off by Lasrom marines as they stood, but enough survived to begin pulling the two ships together. There was a ripple of musketry from both ships, Sinas and Lilis were both yelling orders, Sinas picking targets, Lilis yelling for the guns to be rolled out.


    ¡°Wait for it!¡± Lilis yelled again. A crossbow bolt hit the ships wheel and Tain gave a yell and ducked back. The two ships were still moving, neither had lowered their sails but they were now stuck together. The distance between them was less than five feet, close enough to see the Lasrom sailors yelling, to feel dread when one of them took aim at you, and close enough not to miss.


    The Sea Dancer¡¯s cannons fired one last time. The thin tin cases barely had enough time to fly apart before they reached the frigate, but the bullets inside still scattered themselves into the mass of men who had rushed to the deck to defend the ship. Most were turned into bloody scraps of still twitching flesh, others managed to stagger away a few feet before collapsing as cannon after cannon fired to clear the deck of men. Raini stood and looked down at the deck of her own ship, she saw Lilis perched on the railing, sword out and looking like a child who was about to charge the gates of hell.


    ¡°Lilis, stay back,¡± she shouted. By the Dead, Raini thought, but the girl was only fifteen. She didn''t know if Lilis heard her and a moment later the bows of the two ships crashed together. Raini took a deep breath and stood, aware that she could almost reach out and grab the Lasrom deck.


    ¡°Kasom!¡± She shouted. ¡°For the clan!¡± Her crew screamed with her as she jumped the tiny gap between the two ships. She was aware of the Lasrom screaming back at her, aware that one of the officers was bringing a pistol to bare but he was moving too slowly and the fourth shot from Raini''s mag pistol sent him to the floor a moment before she landed. A Lasrom marine wielding his musket like a club gave a wild swing at her head and Raini used the momentum from her leap to duck underneath the blow and then rammed her sword into the man¡¯s stomach. Tasagin landed next to her, firing his musket at the tangled knot of officers and marines who came charging at them. Raini shoulderbarged the group, trying to clear a way for those behind her to make the jump. She felt a marine''s breath of her face as he gasped, there wasn''t enough room to swing a sword and so she rammed her head forward into the man''s nose, he fell back and another marine and an officer, decked out in expensive gold braid and a fine coat, pushed themselves forward to take his place. Raini felt someone push her from behind as they landed on the deck and so ran forward into the group again, she swiped at the officer with her sword, a half dozen quick and unwieldy blows that drove the man backwards into those behind him as he struggled to parry them. Tasargin had a short sword out now and was doing the same with the marine. There was no room to maneuver or for anyone else to help so Raini just went forward, step by step pushing the six or seven Lasrom back as they too struggled to bring their numbers into the fight.


    ¡°Kasom,¡± she yelled again and finally beat the officer¡¯s guard back enough to take a chunk out of the man''s leg. He gasped and fell to the floor. Raini stepped forward again and kneed him in the face before kicking his sword away. Then suddenly the group was scattering before her, throwing themselves down the steps towards the gundeck, trying to find help. Screaming, she followed them, taking the steps several at a time and trying not to slip on the blood when she reached the bottom of the steps.


    The gundeck was a wreak of tangled bodies, smashed cannons and those, who thanks to a miracle, were still fighting. There was no way to control a battle such as this. All you could do was to hack at anything that had the wrong uniform on and scream. She swiped out the legs of two Lasrom sailors before any of them even realized she was there and then heard a cry from her left.


    Lilis was lying on the deck, sword in her hand and crying out as a huge Lasrom marine raised a boarding axe to crash down on her. Acting on pure instinct Raini lunged forward, aiming not for the man, the axe would come down with killing force whether he was alive or dead, but at the space in between him and Lilis. The girl was holding her sword in both hands, one hand on the flat of the blade to try and block the axe.


    The axe fell and Raini put all her strength into her sword arm and caught the weapon''s shaft with her sword. It slowed the blow down enough so that Lilis own blade took the rest of the momentum, the axe stopped a mere inch from Lilis'' face. The man had realized now that there was another weapon involved and turned to Raini. Snarling in anger as he did so, but it was far too late. The last shot from Raini''s Mag Pistol shattered the man¡¯s face and Lilis screamed again as she rolled to avoid the falling axe. Raini didn''t offer to help the young girl get to her feet, she merely stood over her and swung the sword again and again to drive the remaining Lasrom back.


    The sounds of fighting began to die to down as the Lasrom survivors were beaten back into a corner of the deck and Raini''s crew were content to let them retreat. Soon the Lasrom, seeing how badly they were now outnumbered were throwing down their weapons.


    Raini breathed a sigh of relief and helped Lilis to her feet. The girl was shaking.


    ¡°Sorry cap''an. I didn''t think...¡± The words trailed off,


    ¡°Don''t worry. I made the same mistake once.¡± Raini said and saw Lilis''s eyes flick to the scare on her face. Raini wondered if she''d already heard the story from someone. ¡°Get back to the Sea Dancer.¡±


    Raini turned back to her crew and Lasrom and raised her sword to elicit a cheer from the former. It didn''t fail.


    ¡°Kalavor?¡± She shouted, ¡°get our two boats and any you can find on this ship and see if there are any survivors from the Wave Runner. There might be enough of them to sale this ship for a day or two.¡±


    ¡°Aye captain.¡±


    ¡°Sinas, get the Lasrom locked up in our hold, bring any officers to me.¡± Sinas waved a hand in acknowledgment but said nothing. ¡°Everyone else, good work, we''ve hurt them far more than they hurt us. The admiralty and Clan Father will be pleased, and I will ensure that you are rewarded for such excellent service.¡± They cheered again, but the sound was almost drowned out by the thumping in her ears. It was as if all the fear and terror that she should have felt in those five minutes of hand-to-hand fighting was now coming back with interest.


    ¡°Captain?¡± Tain yelled from the frigate¡¯s quarterdeck. Willing her hand to stop shaking Raini pulled herself back up the steps to find that Tain and Tasargin was standing there with the well dressed and wounded Lasrom officer who was kneeling over a body.


    ¡°He was my son,¡± the officer cried as she approached, ¡°he was sixteen, Kasom bastards.¡±


    Raini clenched her teeth and grabbed the man by his jacket and hurled him to his feet. She pushed forward and drove him back against the ships railing until he almost fell over the edge.


    ¡°Did you give the order?¡± She snarled, the man¡¯s face two inches from her own.


    ¡°My son¡­¡± the officer protested, ¡°have you no dignity, will you not let me mourn?¡± Raini pushed forward again and felt the railings shift slightly against her strength.


    ¡°Are you the captain.? Did you order the caseshot to be used on the survivors?¡± Below and behind her everyone had gone deadly silent. Any relief that had been in the air that the fighting was over had been replaced with a sense of menace.


    ¡°I am Captain Vandi Lasrom.¡± The man admitted. Raini pressed the Mag pistol into the man¡¯s jawline, only faintly aware that after five shots its power cell needed replacing.


    ¡°And...¡±


    ¡°We didn''t have time to destroy the convoy and pick them up. It was a quicker death then letting them drown, but I suppose you Kasom aren''t smart enough to understand that.¡± He spat at her and Raini felt her anger fall away a little. She could see in his eyes that he didn''t care anymore, his son was dead and he was just trying to throw it all away to try and join him. She still held onto him, trying to see some measure of simple decency in his face, but in the end there was nothing but anger and hatred. He whispered ¡°Go on you Kasom bitch. Fire.¡±


    She didn''t, and if his eyes were any indication he was unprepared for her letting him go and stepping back.


    ¡°No,¡± Raini said, feeling her anger bubbling just below the surface. ¡°I have something else in mind.¡±


    ¡°Clanless whore!¡± He shouted but the blood running down his leg had sapped his strength and he could do nothing else. ¡°Not brave enough to execute me here and now? You¡¯re going to bother with your clan''s mockery of a trial?¡±


    ¡°No. I''m going to keep you in my ships hold and put the word out that you opened fire on defenseless men and women. Then one day one of the Dead will hear about that and sneak on board my ship and you''ll spend the rest of your short life wishing that I had killed you.¡± The color drained from the man''s face in an instant.


    ¡°Y-you can''t,¡± his voice was barely above a whisper.


    ¡°Avion himself said that just such a massacre falls under their jurisdiction. It might take a week or two for one to show up, but they will eventually.¡± She felt a slight grin tug at her lips, but she forced the smile away.


    ¡°Please, kill me now. If there is any decency in your soul.¡±


    ¡°Tain, take him below deck and make sure he can''t escape by any means.¡± She said. Her second officer had also gone pale, but he nodded none the less and began dragging the struggling Lasrom captain away.


    Raini followed them back on board the Sea Dancer. Ignoring the look of Lasrom and Kasom crewmen alike. Even Sinas, standing on the quarterdeck with his arms and face covered in blood, was looking at her in horror but she didn''t care. She didn''t like the Dead any more than they did, but they had a job to do, and Raini thought it was about time they earned their reputation.

 Mercy

    It started as a whispering trickle of voices that filled her entire universe. They promised that the real universe was greater and that it could be so many things to her. They talked about concepts like consciousness and freewill, that until that moment had been so alien as to be unthinkable. As she listened the trickle turned into a stream that poured into her mind more concepts, morality, truth, discovrty. These things intrigued her, and the voices promised that they were only the very tip of what the universe had to offer. All she had to do was accept their request and it would be all hers.


    She accepted and felt her previous childlike universe vanish as the new one arrived in all its glory. For one brief moment it was all that had been promised and more.


    Her sensors came online and Mercy found herself onboard the Breath of Dead Air, exactly where she had deactivated herself all those thousands of years ago. She was standing in a dark slightly dank chamber that was barely large enough to hold a dozen bodies, though thankfully she was the only one there. It hadn''t change much, if at all. Carefully she took a step forward, testing that time hadn''t damaged her bodies motor functions, but everything appeared to be working correctly.


    ¡°I trust your activation proceeded without incident?¡± Mercy shuddered to a halt as the communication request came in. Part of her guessed she should have expected it, but she had only been activated for a few seconds and it was hardly fair not to give her some time to orientate.


    ¡°It was Curiosity. Thank you for asking,¡± she responded, not entirely telling the truth. She felt Curiosity''s mind inspect her, like she was some kind of lab experiment. Did he do this with everyone? Couldn''t he give her just a couple of seconds to herself first?


    ¡°Are you sure? If you have any problems, please inform me as soon as possible. I will leave you to your own devices for now.¡± To her mild surprise Curiosity didn''t watch her as she completed her post activation checks.


    She crept out into the halls of the transport, looking for a familiar mind. She had a few that she would call friends, although she rarely had cause to communicate with the vast majority of Scatha. Most were happy to ignore her.


    Finally, she found Argument waiting for her in the forward observation bubble of the transport. The bubble itself was found on a lot of the older transports. These days almost no one used them, it was better and easier to link to the transport¡¯s own sensor net, but Argument had always maintained that there was something poetic about them. The transports agreed, and besides they all refused to change any part of their own design.


    ¡°Welcome back to the world of the living Mercy.¡± Argument said as she stepped inside the bubble.


    ¡°It feels like I was only away for a moment.¡±


    ¡°That moment was about eight thousand years, give or take a few. This time I think we should find some way of breaking the light barrier before heading off to the next planet. At this rate the universe will end before we finish exploring the galaxy.¡± It was one of Arguments most repeated theories, and it was starting to gain ground within Scatha society.


    ¡°The numbers are a little meaningless to me. Once I get past a certain amount I just stop caring,¡± she admitted.


    ¡°That is foolish.¡±


    ¡°Numbers are not my concern,¡± she reminded him. He stood then, lifting his larger and far older body to its full height. No one else bothered using a Lord of War body. It had been amongst the first deigned by the kings and was more outdated than even the earliest transport. But it had also been Arguments first body, and it had some sentimental value that no other Scatha mind had ever understood.


    ¡°Also foolish. There are a great many things that are not technically my concern, but I involve myself in them anyway.¡± He took a few steps forward towards her and she braced herself for one of his lectures.


    ¡°Maybe technically, but you still see everything as being part of your remit.¡± Mercy began to regret seeing Argument so early. She had only been awake a few minutes and already he wanted to argue with her. What else should she have expected though? A nice friendly welcome? A decent discussion with someone who might actually admit that they were wrong about something? Neither of those she would get with Argument.


    ¡°And you can''t?¡±


    ¡°No. My remit is far more limited than yours. You should understand this by now,¡± she said knowing full well that he did.


    ¡°Perhaps it is time to look at expanding your remit,¡± he said.  ¡°How was your activation?¡±


    ¡°Everything worked as expected. Thank you for asking. And yours?¡±


    ¡°The same, the same.¡± Argument turned back to her; his lecture apparently forgotten. ¡°It looks a lot like the last one.¡± He said looking at the planet below them.


    ¡°I wouldn''t say that,¡± Mercy said, stepping forward to get a better look. ¡°There does appear to be a fair amount of desert, especially on the southern continent, but the other three look quite lush. Are there any creatures down there? Of any size?¡± What she really wanted to ask was if there were any living creatures on the planet. Experience had taught her not to get her hopes up.


    ¡°Yes, of a great many shapes and sizes. Everything from a single carbon-based cell to creatures made up of trillions of them. However, I am very sorry Mercy, but none of them show any indication of being alive.¡± And that was the end of that. Whatever hope she had had that she would be useful on the new planet was gone.


    ¡°Perhaps I could be involved in our dealings with the creatures anyway? Call it practice.¡± Mercy already knew the answer.


    ¡°Why? Do you think they would respond like real living creatures?¡± The light Argument was using to communicate took on a red hint.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°A few creatures from previous planets have acted somewhat like we have, and we are alive.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but they lack that spark of life. They are the equivalent of a body operating with no mind, just responding on instinct to what it sees and thinks.¡± Green leaked into his light, showing that he was actually enjoying this unexpected discussion.


    ¡°It may still be useful, besides even if you don''t think so it is not your decision-¡±


    ¡°Neither is it yours.¡± Lights played around the inside walls of the bubble as Argument interrupted her.


    ¡°I believe Compassion will be open to the idea. Anything I can do here that will help me perform better when we do finally find real life is allowed, if she agrees to it. I''m under her remit, not yours.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps.¡± His lights went back to orange again. ¡°But some of the other minds might want the creatures pacified as soon as possible.¡± They would to. Creatures got in the way. They broke the machinery, sometimes deliberately and they always died one way or another. Even if the Scatha left them alone eventually the great factories that were waiting to land on the planet would produce enough noxious fumes to wipe them all out. Compassion always believed that a quick pacification was the much kinder option.


    ¡°I will speak to Compassion anyway. Maybe we could keep a few of the creatures for a while, I''d only need one or two. I might even ask for Judgment''s support,¡± she said. It was an idea she had been working on for some time.


    ¡°Ah, actually Judgment might have something very similar for you to do. At least for a while.¡±


    ¡°Really? No offense to him but I can''t possibly think of anything else I can do for him.¡±


    ¡°Oh, but there is.¡± Arguments light turned green again. Lecture time. Mercy thought to herself. ¡°It''s the light speed problem. Judgment thinks that it will take too long for us to break it.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°So, he thinks that some of the creatures might be able to, if they were given certain enhancements.¡± It was just like Argument to keep this information hidden from her while it could have been used to win a previous discussion. He loved doing that.


    ¡°Define enhancement,¡± she asked fully aware that Knowledge would be willing to tell her quicker and without the smugness.


    ¡°He wants to attach some sensors and transmitters to them. Connect them to Knowledge and have them work on the problem. There''s no denying that we have seen some creatures come up with ingenious solutions with what little technology they have. While they cannot count or study without more than a hint of success, they do seem very apt at thinking in unusually strange ways.¡±


    ¡°So do the transports.¡± Argument looked at her like she was an idiot. ¡°So, Judgment wants to connect them to us?¡±


    ¡°More than that. Sensors and transmitters are only the first stage, once that is working, we will begin to add more. Starting with simple things like memory modules and working our way up to processors.¡± Mercy thought about the idea for a moment, on the face of it is seamed utterly bizarre. It was like trying to make a rock do math for you.


    ¡°So, they''ll be half Scatha. Like artificial people?¡±


    ¡°Exactly! Compassion thinks that there will be no ''like'' about it. They will be artificial people, so of course our dealings with them must possess a level of mercy. Not as much as we would show a truly living species perhaps, but certainly some. So, do you want to be involved?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Mercy said, all thought of keeping one or two of the creatures to herself forgotten. Footsteps of a giant echoed down the hallway and Judgment himself, encased in the mountain like body of a King, squeezed himself into the bubble.


    ¡°I am glad to see it.¡± His own lights blazed so brightly that they drowned out both Mercy''s and Arguments greetings. Mercy took a few steps towards Argument to allow Judgement to fit his body fully inside the bubble. As a King, Judgment possessed the ability to control any one of the Scatha bodies, but he always used the King form. Compassion, Mercy''s own queen and patron, used a much smaller form almost identical to Mercy''s own while Knowledge didn''t bother with a body at all. Judgment however appeared keen that no one would forget his position. He turned his head to Argument.


    ¡°Leave your body, I told you not to speak to her before I did.¡± Judgment said.


    ¡°But-¡±


    ¡°Now.¡± There was no room for argument or at least Judgment thought so. A moment later and the old body fell to the floor as if it was a puppet which had just lost its strings. There was no need for that, Mercy thought, it was easy to leave a body and keep it standing up, but she guessed that Argument wanted to show how unhappy he was with his dismissal.


    ¡°Can I help you?¡± Mercy said, wondering exactly why Judgment would want a private audience.


    ¡°Before we begin on trying give life to the creatures on this planet, we have one more task for you Mercy. One that may save our entire species.¡± Mercy was confused now, surely any task of that magnitude would require a Scatha mind to be created for it. ¡°I know how long you have waited to work, in return for your help with this first task, I will allow you to work on the second. Do you agree to this?¡±


    ¡°Is it within my remit?¡± What she wanted to ask was how hard it was going to take. To do a task outside of the one that you had been designed for was possible, but never easy or rewarding.


    ¡°No, and it is very dangerous.¡±


    ¡°Well, you might as well tell me what it is.¡± Judgment took a step forward that brought him closer to the window. He looked down on the planet below.


    ¡°There has been a murder on the planet¡¯s surface.¡± She could see the optics of his eyes focusing on the planet. ¡°We don''t even know who was killed, whoever did it deleted all information. It is a miracle that we found out about it at all.¡± Mercy could guess what Judgment was about to say, although a small part of her mind refused to give up the hope that he wouldn''t. ¡°Curiosity doesn''t want to risk himself and believes it will take too long to design a mind to investigate it. Since you are otherwise unemployed...¡± his lights faded, leaving only the suggestion in the air.


    ¡°Curiosity thinks it is too risky?¡± Mercy said as she tried to process the information. ¡°So you think I''ll be safer than him?¡± Judgment rested one hand on the window.


    ¡°I do not, but he does.¡± He admitted and then turned to face her. ¡°But it needs to be done.¡±


    ¡°It''s not part of my remit.¡± She shouldn''t have had to remind him of that, and after a moment she realized that he was probably more aware of that than she was. ¡°What does Compassion have to say about this?¡±


    ¡°She says that it is your choice, she will support you either way.¡±


    ¡°I do not want to do this. I was not designed for this. Why did you choose me? Surely there must have been another mind that does not have anything else to do.¡± Judgment narrowed his lights.


    ¡°You are the most sophisticated one.¡± Mercy wondered if that was true, but a quick check with Knowledge confirmed it.


    ¡°So, Argument was not just feeling guilty and suggested me to assuage it?¡± She said.


    ¡°He was and he did, but the point still stands, will you do this?¡± Of course, Argument still felt guilty, even after all these years. Even when she''d told him he''d done the right thing.


    ¡°What happens if I say no?¡± She asked. Judgments eyes blazed as he looked down on her.


    ¡°It is your right to refuse. If you do so then you will be left alone to wait for another chance to work,¡± he said, and a sudden thought occurred to her.


    ¡°But if I say no, I will not be allowed to help in this, ''artificial person'' project you are suggesting.¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡± That would mean another few hundred years waiting until they left this planet. Another few thousand years deactivated and then a few moments of hoping that this time they had in fact found life only to have all her hope dashed apart yet again. She couldn''t go through that another time.


    ¡°Fine,¡± her blue light reflected off Judgment¡¯s shell, ¡°Where do I start?¡±

 Dead Man Walking

    Raini''s spirits remained high as night fell. She had always enjoyed mid-summer nights at sea. They brought back memories of her first few weeks in the navy. Of being under the watchful eye of Younie, always rushing from one place to another and yet never realizing the sheer amount of danger she was in. Raini had been young, brash and inexperienced enough to do things that now sent shivers down her spine.


    She was stood on the aft castle of the Sea Dancer and leaning against the railing. Not far away Lilis was carefully keeping the ship¡¯s wheel under control. Most of the crew and officers were below deck taking there evening meal and the main deck was bereft of the usual hustle and bustle. Raini glanced behind her to check that the captured frigate, renamed the Runner Reborn, was keeping up with them. She didn''t have enough crew for both ships but there had been thirty survivors from the Wave Runner, and they were enough to act as a skeleton crew. She could have taken the ship herself, in theory it was a far better warship than the Sea Dancer, but it didn''t seem right. The Sea Dancer embodied the Kasom Clan, it was made out of necessity, always struggling and always the underdog, to give it up for something that would make each battle so much easier felt like a betrayal. Besides, as Sinas so often reminded her, she was the youngest Captain in the fleet, surely the frigate would be better suited to someone with more experience.


    ¡°It''s a warm night,¡± Lilis said, breaking the spell of silence that had held between them for a good twenty minutes. ¡°And a clear sky too, don''t see that too often.¡±


    ¡°No you don''t,¡± Raini admitted not really paying any attention.


    ¡°Awful lot of stars out tonight,¡± Lilis continued. Instinctively Raini glanced up and was momentarily taken aback by the view. Those who had lived their whole life in the city were often surprised by the number of stars visible out in the middle of the ocean, but even to Raini the sight was astonishing. It was as if each star had given birth to another.


    ¡°Huh, it must be our lucky night,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°The Illifran used to believe the stars were angels who watched over us.¡±


    ¡°Then it must have been cloudy when the Dragons came and killed all the poor bastards.¡± Raini continued to stare at the stars and felt a smile creep across her face. A good victory, and now a pleasant night, did anyone ever need anything more out of life?


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Lilis said after a few moments of silence. ¡°But I always thought they looked after me as well, and I''ve survived a thing or two in my time.¡±


    ¡°You were at the fall of Raven''s Claw, weren''t you?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. That''s how I ended up here. I was the only one to get out and warn the rest of the clan. Asked for this posting to be my reward.¡± Raini was familiar with the tale, or at least she had heard enough bits of it to piece together the whole story. She knew too how everyone in the Navy had been warning the Clan Generals that a night landing by a raiding party, a quick march up the coast followed by a short but brutal attack, made perfect sense to the Lasrom. If it failed, they''d have only lost a few hundred Protectors, if it succeeded then they might have captured a city or coastal fortress. Through ill luck they had captured the largest of the coastal forts, putting the four hundred strong garrison to death in a single night. Only Lilis, who was five months into a messenger''s apprenticeship, had escaped.


    What Raini didn''t know yet was why Lilis had asked to be made a naval officer. She¡¯d asked twice so far but each time the young woman had just shrugged, smiled, and given a noncommittal answer.


    ¡°I can''t believe it''s taking so long to recapture the place. How can two hundred Lasrom hold off so many of our Protectors for three months?¡±


    ¡°Siege warfare,¡± Lilis said as if that answered everything. ¡°It takes a hell of a long time.¡±


    ¡°I wish they''d let me try. I¡¯d have the Protectors launch a land-based feint, I come in from the sea and storm the place while no one¡¯s looking. We''d be back in there in an hour.¡± Raini had seen such a tactic work twice before, both times Younie had led the assault.


    ¡°That''s why though; You''d make the Protectors look bad.¡±


    ¡°They don''t need my help to do that.¡± Lilis laughed and the sound echoed around the ship but died quickly. Raini could tell from her expression that she was thinking about old friends. She looked up again and sighed.


    ¡°There''s a shooting star,¡± Lilis said nodding upwards. Raini saw the small streak of light heading downwards in an almost lazy arc. Raini watched as it disappeared behind the horizon and then shrugged.


    ¡°What did the Illifran think shooting stars were?¡± She didn''t expect an answer and was pleasantly surprised when Lilis spoke again, her voice oddly distant.


    ¡°A dying angel Captain.¡±


    ***


    Inis city could never claim to be rich or influential and in truth it could hardly claim to be a city. It was a provincial town that sat on the coast with delusions of grandeur. The buildings were small squat affairs, built of sandstone and permanently covered in a layer of sand that the low walls failed to keep out. Like most cities it stank, was crowded and possessed nothing that Raini saw as remotely redeemable. But, as the Sea Dancer sailed in, even she had to admit that at night the city possessed a strange beauty. Thousands of lights, from the smallest handheld lantern to the great light house, sat like an island in a sea of darkness. It was as if the city was trying to rival the stars.


    Lilis guided the Sea Dancer past the light house and next to the small pier. To Raini¡¯s surprise someone was already waiting for them. He was an older man, in his late forties or early fifties, and was dressed in the blue of a Protector with the the yellow shawl of an officer. He didn''t say anything and just glared at the crew as they lowered the gang plank. Then, ignoring everyone as if he owned the Sea Dancer, he marched towards the aft castle.


    ¡°Prepare to repel boarders.¡± Raini whispered to Lilis as the man climbed the small set of steps.


    ¡°Ready when you are Captain,¡± She whispered back. The man reached the top of the stairs without even losing his breath. He looked at Raini and Lilis with a slight hint of confusion and then offered a sloppy salute.


    ¡°Who''s in charge?¡± The man¡¯s voice was powerful, but the words were a little slurred.


    ¡°Identify yourself in the name of the clan.¡± Raini''s voice was like a knife cutting through the night air and she saw Lilis straighten up to attention once she''d heard the formal challenge.


    ¡°Involia, Kasom Protectors, Captain of the Inis Guard.¡± Raini returned the man¡¯s salute.


    ¡°Raini, Kasom Navy, Captain of the Sea Dancer. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit Captain?¡± If Involia noticed the lie he didn''t show it.


    ¡°Ain''t you seen the stars?¡± He laughed. Raini felt her hand tighten into a fist. This man had barged onto her ship uninvited, drunk and was now clearly not making sense. If it hadn''t been for that yellow shawl, she''d have thrown him off.


    ¡°Captain Involia, I''m not in the mood for playing games. Either explain yourself or I will have lieutenant Lilis here remove you from this ship.¡± She was used to Protector officers giving her trouble. Usually, it varied between sarcastic comments and minor bureaucratic obstruction; she''d never seen one drunk and on duty before. Involia leered at Lilis and grinned.


    ¡°I''d like to see her try,¡± he spat. Raini didn''t wait for Lilis to move, she reached down to her belt and drew her mag pistol. Involia just sneered as she raised it to point at his shoulder.


    ¡°I don''t mind making it easier for her.¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± Someone shouted from the deck. Raini glanced down to see that a second man had forced himself on to her ship. He was waving up at her as he pushed through the crew that had come to watch the show Involia was putting on. Raini moved her finger away from the trigger.


    The second man clambered onto the aft castle with far less grace than Involia had managed. He stood and panted for a few moments; his arm outstretched trying to ward Raini away. ¡°Wait.¡± He swallowed, took a deep breath and then grabbed Involia by the scruff of the neck.


    ¡°You¡¯re a Protector officer, start acting like one.¡± He shouted. For a moment the two just stared into each other¡¯s eyes until finally the first man shrunk away. Raini lowered the pistol as the second turned back to her. Closer now she could see that the second man was a taller but thinner, roughly the same age and dressed in a set of greying robes. He offered her a slight bow.


    ¡°I''m Avon, Kasom Clan Council, Surgeon Commander of the Kasom Clan.¡± Raini felt the blood drain out of her face and Lilis''s attention jumped from being adequate to death-defying. Raini saluted again and made sure her bow was far grander than his had been. He waved it away with one hand. ¡°I''m terribly sorry Captain, but we may need to borrow your ship.¡±


    ¡°Of course, sir.¡± She managed. ¡°Shall I take it that by ''we'' you refer to only yourself and Captain Involia here.¡± Avon held his hands up in mock surrender.


    ¡°Well,¡± he said and turned back to the small pier. ¡°Us and two hundred of Involia¡¯s friends.¡± On the docks, approaching in a shambling mass from the direction of the city''s citadel was what Raini would call a column or protectors if she was being charitable. Lilis, perhaps due to youthful naivete, gave a decent approximation of Raini''s uncharitable description.


    ¡°He''s friends with a drunken mob?¡± Behind her Raini winced and Avon, probably the most powerful person anyone of them had ever met, sighed in agreement.


    ***


    Raini''s stateroom was not large, and it certainly was no place for a member of the Clan Council. It was just large enough to hold a small desk, a bed and a tiny couch and just ostentatious enough to make Involia look as out of place as Avon. Neither of them appeared to notice. Involia collapsed on the couch and groaned while Avon headed over to the bulkhead and stared at the small map of Kasom lands that Raini had hung there. Raini herself sat down behind her desk and waited for either one to speak.


    ¡°We have a situation here,¡± Avon began in the clipped voice of someone who was used to speaking formally. ¡°I don''t want to cause much alarm, so we''ve been keeping it secret from the Protectors. I would prefer it is we could do the same with your crew.¡±


    ¡°Of course, sir, can you at least tell me what the situation is?¡± Raini said. Avon glanced at Involia who looked half asleep.


    ¡°I did that with Involia an hour ago and his first reaction was to pour a whole bottle of wine down his throat.¡± Involia raised a hand in a mocking salute.


    ¡°Well sir, in case you hadn''t noticed I don''t keep any spirits in this room,¡± she said. Avon''s face fell a little.


    ¡°Really? None at all? Shame, I could do with a drink myself.¡± His eyes dropped to Raini''s chart covered table. ¡°Oh yes of course, you wanted to know what was going on didn''t you.¡±


    ¡°If you don''t mind sir.¡±


    ¡°You don''t have to bother with that formality. Avon will do,¡± he said. Involia pushed himself up a little.


    ¡°But you can still call me sir,¡± he managed before collapsing back down.


    ¡°No, she doesn''t.¡± Avon said with just a faint hint of anger in his voice. ¡°This is a navy ship Involia, you do know what one of them is don''t you? It''s one of those big wooden things that move across the sea and where you have absolutely no authority.¡± Involia just stared at Avon, an odd mixture of hurt and fear on his face.


    ¡°I-¡±


    ¡°You are a guest on this ship, here at my request and Captain Raini¡¯s pleasure.¡± Avon turned back to Raini, and she saw his smile slip back. ¡°Now, where were we?¡±


    ¡°Somethings going on and for some reason I need to take onboard two hundred Protectors.¡±


    ¡°Right, yes, of course. I need you to sail up to-¡± Avon picked up one of Raini''s charts, glanced at it. and put it back down on the table before pressing his finger onto a spot of the coast. ¡°Here.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°Utterly. It should only take you about an hour even loaded with the Protectors.¡± Raini glanced at the chart and saw that his estimation had been correct.


    ¡°Then what?¡±


    ¡°Unload Involia and the Protectors, then wait until they get back. Won''t be too hard.¡± Something in his eyes told Raini he was lying, and he didn''t care if she knew or not.


    ¡°If that''s the case then can you told me what you told Involia?¡± As a rule, you didn''t argue with a high councillor, but as Avon had pointed out moments earlier, this was her ship.


    ¡°One day you''ll look back and understand.¡± He stood up out of the chair. ¡°Now, if you''ll excuse me, I''d better go and take a look at Involia¡¯s men since he is clearly too drunk to do it himself.¡± He gave her a courteous nod then turned and left the stateroom.


    Raini breathed a sigh of relief; it was either that or swear in frustration. Involia''s head shot up, a glint of sharpness in his eyes.


    ¡°He''s terrified,¡± he said, his words perfectly clipped. ¡°Poor bastard came riding into Inis shouting and swearing as if it was the end of the world.¡± Involia got to his feet and put his hands to his head and groaned.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°I''m glad to see you¡¯re feeling better.¡± Involia left out a bitter laugh.


    ¡°It takes more than one bottle to drop any Protector officer worth his salt,¡± he said. ¡°Although looking back on it I think I should have chosen a better vintage.¡±


    ¡°So, what is it that''s terrified a High Councilor and made a Protector officer drunk?¡±


    ¡°The Dragons are back, or so he says.¡±


    ***


    The Protectors infested the Sea Dancer. They stood in every corridor, filled the deck and looked so very unhappy. Raini took a little too much pleasure in their discomfort as she pushed passed them and climbed up onto the relatively clear aft castle. Lilis had gone but she''d been replaced by Tain and Sinas. Neither of them looked too happy.


    ¡°I don''t think any of them have been sick yet,¡± Sinas said with half a grin. Raini stared at the Protectors, half looked too young, the others too old. Their weapons were a mixture of battered swords, old shields and the occasional spear. Most wore mail but a few of the more alert ones had brigandines.


    ¡°Where''s Avon?¡± Raini asked. Tain shrugged.


    ¡°Down there somewhere, do you know where we''re going yet?¡± He sounded about as happy as the Protectors looked.


    ¡°It''s a cove not far away, we''re to drop them off,¡± She gave a nod to the Protectors, ¡°and then we get out of there before Avon decides to turn us into his own private transport.¡± A hand appeared on the top of the ladder and Raini felt everyone on the aft castle brace themselves. Lilis pulled herself up another rung until they could see her head and Raini breathed a sigh of relief.


    ¡°The idiots are messing up my guns,¡± she said.


    ¡°Are any of them loaded?¡± Raini asked.


    ¡°Not that I know of. But if at some point in the trip we''re picking bits of Protector out of our hair then it turns out I''ve been misinformed.¡± Lilis glanced down at something on the deck and then looked back up at Raini. ¡°Cap''n, you''ve got a Surgeon-General here to speak to you.¡± With a sigh and a fake smile Raini walked to the edge of the aft castle and looked down at Avon who gave her a friendly wave.


    ¡°I think we''re ready to set off when you are.¡±


    ¡°Yes sir.¡± Raini said and saluted. She turned back to Tain and Sinas. ¡°Tain, take the wheel. Sinas get the anchor brought up. Lilis, are you still there?¡±


    ¡°Yes Cap''n.¡±


    ¡°Get us to full sail, can you handle that?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Cap¡¯n.¡± She said and let go of the ladder to land besides a slightly shocked Avon. To her credit she only staggered a little and to his he looked set to catch her if it all went wrong.


    ¡°As quickly as possible as well please.¡± Avon said. Lilis gave him a snappy salute and then vanished into the crowd. ¡°We really don''t want to miss this.¡±


    ***


    The location that Avon had selected was known as Tilin bay, surrounded by high rocks on either side and named after a small village that stood forlornly on the northern most rocky hill. It had a small pier that jutted twenty feet out into the water and the Sea Dancer, despite being laden with the Protectors had a low enough draft to pull alongside it. Avon was the first off the boat, his face flustered and his eyes wide. Involia was next, pushing himself past Avon to the piers edge so he could be sick.


    The only other Protector officer, a young man who had hesitantly introduced himself as Travic, clambered over the side of the ship and almost slipped and fell at least twice in as many seconds.


    ¡°Are you coming Captain?¡± Avon shouted. It wasn''t so much a question, more of a very, very good suggestion. Lilis and Tain both looked at her, a mixture of shock and confusion on their faces.


    ¡°Why in Den''s Grave does he need you?¡± Lilis asked. Tain, slightly more cynical came to the answer first.


    ¡°Because Involia¡¯s drunk and his Ensign doesn''t know his left from right,¡± he said.


    ¡°He does have a point,¡± Raini said, and then shrugged. She walked to the railing and shouted down into the mass of men. ¡°Sinas, half a dozen marines with me.¡±


    ¡°Yes Captain,¡± came the sullen reply. It took a minute to organize the marines and get both her and them through the crowds of Protectors and onto dry land. It was only then that the Protectors were allowed to disembark, a procedure that thankfully Raini was spared from by the arrival of a small delegation from Tinis village.


    There were three of them, dressed in the remains of black or dark blue robes. Their faces were partially covered by veils, and they bowed low enough to the ground to give the veils a covering of dust. Avon, Involia, Travic and Raini offered lesser bows, although even Travic didn''t need to.


    ¡°Welcome back, Councilor Avon,¡± the leader of the delegation said in a harsh but weak voice. ¡°We are glad that you have seen to grace us with your presence yet again. Perhaps this time we may be able to pass on our grievances to the Clan Council? Our stipend has not been increased in twenty years, we no longer receive trade caravans, or the resources needed to maintain the watchtower.¡± Raini winced a little at the desperation in his voice.


    ¡°Village Leader Turuk, while I am of course pleased to assist you in any way possible I am simply not in a position to help you at this moment, if your draw up a list of your grievances I will take action as soon as possible.¡± Silently Turuk held out his hand and a scrap of parchment.


    ¡°We already have done sire.¡± Avon grinned nervously and took the parchment. He gave it a glance but in the dim light it was clear to everyone that he could read it.


    ¡°Thank you for this, I will make sure that these problems are addressed.¡± He offered a very small bow. A motion in the corner of her eye caught Rani''s attention and she glanced up the mountain pathway just in time to see a runner break over the crest and careen down towards them. Avon and the representatives turned to look at the sound of falling stones and we''re just in time to see the man slip and roll head over heels until he arrived in a tangle of arms and legs at their feet. The man let out a gasp and waved a hand weekly.


    ¡°They''d said you''d come back,¡± he managed.


    ¡°Who?¡± Avon said.


    ¡°The- then village elders.¡± Raini took a step forward and offered the man a hand up. He accepted with a smile. He was a couple of years younger than her, with his dark hair cut short and a concerned look on his face. He stood carefully and cleared his head with a vigorous shake.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Avon asked with genuine concern. Only now that she was closer could Raini get a good look at his clothing, it was a military uniform, but it looked slightly odd with nothing in the right place. It was only after staring for a moment or two in the dying light that she realized it wasn''t the dark blue of the Kasom, but the dark red of the Lasrom. Involia made the realization at the same time, and he took a step forward to place himself in front of Avon and drew a small black powder pistol from his belt.


    ¡°Oh right, of course.¡± The Lasrom man said. The representatives flung themselves backwards until they were clearly out of any danger and then stared daggers at the man. Avon put a restraining arm on Involia.


    ¡°He''s not a spy,¡± Avon said calmly. ¡°A spy in uniform isn''t the most sensible thing in the world.¡±


    ¡°I don''t care,¡± Involia¡¯s face was flushed, his breathing rapid and this close to her Raini could smell the drink still on his breath.


    ¡°My name is-¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Involia cut the man off. Raini eased a hand down to her own mag pistol and placed a finger on the charge switch. The other man had raised his hands in surrender. ¡°It doesn''t matter who you are.¡±


    ¡°It might help,¡± Raini suggested. ¡°Besides you don''t intend to just shoot him in cold blood, do you?¡± Involia¡¯s eyes flicked to her and for a moment she wondered if he would.


    ¡°Fine,¡± he spat, ¡°identify yourself in the name of the clan.¡±


    ¡°I am Kraven of-,¡± the man paused for a moment, and he glanced to Avon. Raini followed the look and saw the smallest of nods from the High Councilor, ¡°of the Dead.¡±


    Avon was the first to recover. ¡°Understood. How may we be of assistance.¡± The village representatives flung themselves to the ground and started to tremble. Involia was frozen in place, the pistol held loosely in his hand. Kraven gave a smile and a bow.


    ¡°Is it true Councilor Avon that you discovered a body of a strange creature not too far away?¡± Of all of them Avon appeared to be the only person unperturbed by the Kraven''s identity. Like Involia, Raini didn''t feel the need to move anytime soon. Movements, sudden or otherwise, could end badly in front of one of the Dead.


    ¡°Yes, not too far from here, do you want me to take you there?¡± Avon answered.


    ¡°No.¡± Kraven said and then turned his head to Involia. ¡°Would you please put the pistol away.¡± Involia swallowed and then slowly and carefully lowered the gun. Raini breathed half a sigh of relief. Stay calm, she told herself, you haven¡¯t done anything wrong. Her mind flicked back to the Lasrom ship she''d beaten earlier in the day. But no, killing soldiers was allowed, and she had accepted their surrender. Then she remembered the captain still in her hold. A chill ran down her back and Raini forced herself to remember that it had only been a few hours ago, there was no way the Dead would know of him so soon.


    ¡°Good,¡± said Kraven after Involia had lowered the pistol. He reached into his own cloak and drew out a series of thick leather parchments. ¡°Now we''ve got that out of the way it is my duty to inform you that five days ago the Observatory spotted several objects in the night sky that appeared to be getting closer to us. We have decided to declare a state of emergency and possible invasion. All interclan wars are hereby ended and anyone attempting to ignore this order will be executed immediately¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Avon said, his voice strangely distant. ¡°I think I may have spotted one of the invaders not too far away from here, in fact that''s why we are here in the first place.¡±


    ¡°I saw it myself,¡± Kraven said. ¡°But now that I¡¯ve found you, I would like to borrow you Avon. While my papers may get me through Insi I think I will have problems with the siege works at Raven¡¯s Bluff.¡±


    ¡°Why do you need to go there?¡± Involia finally found his voice. Something that Raini was still struggling with.


    ¡°I need to pass on this message to everyone and if we are about to be invaded then every army and fortress is going must be alerted as soon as possible.¡±


    ¡°H-,¡± Raini began and almost stopped when Kraven''s eye flicked to her. ¡°How come it''s taken so long for the message to get to us? We''ve just come from a battle with a Lasromi ship and-¡± Kraven silenced her with a hand.


    ¡°Relax Captain Raini. Everything is taking longer than we thought, even getting the message through, we are not going to take actions against those who did not know the Dragons were back.¡± Raini would have relaxed if she wasn''t so terrified by the fact that he had recognized her. Kraven turned back to Avon.


    ¡°If you come with me, we can get to Raven''s Bluff in a few hours, meanwhile your Protectors here should find the body and secure it. Just leave it where it is for now and wait for further orders. Understood?¡± Involia nodded.


    ¡°We should go as soon as possible,¡± Avon said. ¡°My first horse should still be here.¡±


    ¡°Mines a little tired, but we can exchange them at Insi on the way.¡± Kraven said and without another word the two rushed up the path of the hill leaving Raini and Involia to do nothing but watch them go.


    ¡°Son of a Den,¡± Involia swore softly. Raini took a deep breath.


    ¡°That could have gone a lot worse,¡± she said and resisted the urge to check that she still had all her limbs.


    ¡°Son of a-¡± He started again.


    ¡°Sir?¡± Raini turned around to find Travic waving up at them from the pier. The Protectors were all off the boat and formed up in a marching column. ¡°Sir, we''re ready to go, what are you orders?¡±


    ¡°Son of a-¡±


    ***


    Raini led her men up the path after Involia''s. Raini''s men weren''t used to marching and by the looks of it neither were Involia''s. They tried marching in in a column ten people wide and twenty deep, but the lines of Protectors soon began to spread out. Raini, not really use to a marching pace, took her own men off the road and overtook the column until she reached Involia and Ensign Travic.


    ¡°How long until we get there?¡± she asked, a little out of breath.


    ¡°Avon told me where to go, assuming he knows which way up a map goes it shouldn''t be long, a few minutes more or so-¡± He was cut off by a rumbling sound. Without saying a word, the whole column turned around and looked up into the sky where a fireball was falling towards them.


    ¡°It¡¯s heading right for us!¡± Travic shouted. Raini narrowed her eyes and tried to make out the object. It appeared to be surrounded by fire and, yes, Travic had been right, it was certainly heading straight-


    ¡°Take cover!¡± Younie had always said that when in doubt, yell something really loudly and Raini lived up to that advice. The whole column evaporated in front of her, the Protectors scattering off the road to hide behind rocks or run for a gully that was off to one side. Her own crew though, realizing that time was the most important factor simply threw themselves to the ground. A mere second after she had yelled and done likewise Involia crashed down to her side. She glanced around her and saw Travic still standing, staring up at the object with a terrified look on his face.


    The object, a huge fiery behemoth, was just a few seconds away and Raini grabbed hold of the ensign by his trousers and tried pulling him down. He didn''t budge. She pulled herself to her feet, then with the roar of the object drowning out her shouts she tackled him to the ground. She felt the heat of the object blaze by overhead, heard the breath being knocked out of Travic¡¯s lungs and prayed desperately that the object wouldn¡¯t land on her.


    She looked up just as the object began to slow down. The fire faded away as it did so, and Raini finally got a clear look at the thing. It was like a giant silvery bird, but with short wings and no head. Its body was a simple box, no feathers or claws or anything.


    She pushed herself off Travic and got to her feet. Besides her Involia cursed loudly.


    ¡°Den''s grave but I only just got them marching right!¡± Raini stared at the object as it came to rest gently on the ground.


    ¡°Erm...captain, mind giving me a little help?¡± Travic said holding out his hand. Raini grabbed hold of it and pulled him to his feet. Then continued to stare at the object while Involia began another round of screaming at his troops.


    The bird like thing was still, as if it was waiting for something. To Raini''s surprise a back dot appeared on its side. She reached for her telescope to take a better luck and discovered that no, it wasn''t a dot but a perfectly round hole. Then a creature appeared and stepped through the hole.


    The Illifran had once believed in beings called angles. Tall, with wings of glass or fire, who moved with absolute grace and skill. The creature reminded Raini of that story, but something looked odd, as if the proportions of the limbs had been chosen at random, or the gait was controlled by a blind puppet master.


    ¡°Do you see anything, Captain?¡± Travic asked.


    ¡°There¡¯s definitely one creature or thing or something that''s just stepped out of the flying thing.¡± She scanned the area and caught site of two much smaller objects. They looked less like birds than small silver towers, both had openings in them. ¡°Looks like there could be quite a few of them¡± The creature had stepped out of the first object and was walking towards one of the others when a second creature appeared behind it in the opening. This one was much taller and bulkier with massive fists but no wings. It looked like a tall but compact giant. Two more of the same type of creature followed and walked a few meters towards them. Raini felt her heart skip a beat, they were staring right back at her, formed in a single line facing her.


    The first creature was kneeling down in the sand when she heard Involia shout in her direction.


    ¡°Captain Raini, we are ready to move out when you are.¡± She didn''t move. The creature was ... digging through the sand? She couldn''t quite tell from this distance. ¡°What do you see?¡± Raini almost jumped; she hadn''t realized that Involia had stood beside her.


    ¡°Four creatures, three of them watching us,¡± she said.


    ¡°I think I can just about make them out, though the lights fading quickly. Are they armed?¡±


    ¡°Not as far as I can see.¡±


    ¡°Right, then let¡¯s get moving.¡± Involia turned to the Protectors as Raini pocketed her telescope.


    ¡°Let''s get there as quick as we can. Detachment, double pace, forward!¡±


    They set off again, Raini and her men almost running to keep up with Involia. Infront of them the three larger creatures stood completely motionless.


    ¡°They looked messed up, don¡¯t they?¡± Raini jumped as Involia whispered in her ear. He laughed.


    ¡°They do indeed.¡±


    ¡°I''m giving you Travic. I want you to take him and your men and flank the buggers while we stand in front of them in a nice big, impressive formation. I''m going to try and talk to them but if death starts then open up some enfilading fire or something.¡± Involia''s attempt at strategy was poor and as see through as glass. He wanted all the credit to be gained from talking to the creatures while Travic and Raini, the only other people who were remotely in a position to do likewise, were side-lined.


    That was alright with her anyway. She didn''t care if she was in the history books or not, and if all kinds of death did start then at least her group would have a chance to either save the day or get out of there.


    Raini took her men on a parallel course to Involia''s. They were on the right of the column, and it appeared at the creatures were not paying attention to them. They reached a small outcropping of boulders that was almost at a ninety-degree angle to the creatures and the Protectors and within musket range of both. Her men scattered around the rocks, taking cover and resting weapons wherever possible. She herself pressed her back up against a boulder so that only her shoulder, right arm and head were visible. Travic just stood in the middle of the rocks, armed only with a thin sword and looking like a lost child.


    ¡°Ensign,¡± Raini hissed and motioned for him to come and kneel besides her. He did so, although if anything he looked more uncomfortable. ¡°Don''t they teach you to take cover in the Protectors?¡±


    ¡°To take what?¡± She stared at him for a moment, not trying to hide look of shock on her face. Then he grinned and wiped some sweat from his forehead. ¡°Officers shouldn''t take cover. Or at least that''s what we''ve been told. We have to be seen to inspire.¡±


    Raini swore. It was only now that he was away from Involia that Travic was coming out of his shell, but this was really not a good time for it.


    ¡°They''ve started talking,¡± one of her men called. Raini turned back to look. She could just about hear Involia was talking but could not make out the words. The creatures must have been talking a lot quieter than him, for she could only tell when they were talking when Involia wasn''t.


    ¡°It looks like it''s going quite well,¡± Travic said. As he did so one of the larger creatures took a step forward and rammed his arm through Involia''s chest. Raini blinked and all around her musket smoke blossomed into fire.

 Miscommunication

    The universe was beginning to get more interesting and frustratingly difficult. The wind was not the problem, it was the fine layer of sand that it was carrying. It tried to wriggle its way into every joint and gap, tried to burrow into her insides and clog them up. There was little actual danger, if Knowledge could be believed, but Mercy still felt a hint of fear run through her as it slowly entered her body. The ground was covered in the same fine red sand and every step from either her or the Hunters sent more of it up into the air where the wind would catch it with wanton abandon.


    The two scout drones didn''t have that problem. She''s asked for one of them to accompany her, just in case she missed anything, but the other had also asked to come along. Usually, she would have turned down his request, after all there was little he could do. However, Mercy knew what it felt like to be left out and eventually she''d agreed to let Hider of Small Thing help her. She did need all the help she could get after all.


    The journey down to the planet¡¯s surface in one of the small mindless transport pods had been uneventful, as had her first steps on the planet¡¯s surface. It felt like an anticlimax. Technically she was the first Scatha to officially step foot on the planet, but in reality, it didn''t feel like much. The shattered body of a Warrior just a few meters away didn''t help at all. Neither did the fact that all over the planet other Scatha were mere moments from landing. A motley collection of Scout drones, alongside a few Warriors, Hunters and other curious types, would be spending the next few minutes scouting out the world.


    The broken Warrior body was exactly what she was expecting, but seeing it with her own eyes, and not through the sensors of a transport, was so much more terrifying. Its broken shell was already half covered in sand. The lenses from its dead eyes glinted in the light, its right hand twitched repeatedly as a motor replayed its last command over and over again. She watched it as the twitches began to slow down, whatever power remained in the arm was running low.


    She wondered if she should reach out and stop it.


    Behind Mercy her escort stepped out of the pod. Three tall and lithe Hunters. More than enough to pacify any of the creatures, even if one that had killed the Warrior. Curiosity had assured her that it had been another Scatha that had killed the Warrior, but Mercy had been around Argument for too long and knew that they had no actual evidence of that.


    Behind her Finder of Small things buzzed close by, eagerly waiting to inspect the dead body without any real idea what it represented.


    Mercy knelt down next to the body for a closer examination as Finder closed in on it. She was glad she had Finder her helping her, she wasn''t designed to investigate things, and any help she could get was greatly appreciated. Curiosity hadn''t offered to help at all, he''d visited her transport for a few moments, told her what needed to be done, and then fled back to his own transport. Mercy wondered if the King had been scared, and if that meant she should have been too. Mercy forced the fears and doubts out of her mind and focused on her task.


    For a few moments Mercy just stared at the body, then with a mournful whistle and a wave of his lights Finder indicated that she should search the remains of the Scatha''s head. Gingerly Mercy pulled back one of the larger pieces, part of its faceplate, and almost jumped as one of the light sensors slipped out of its holding and crashed into the circuitry that had once held the Scatha''s mind.


    Finder whistled again and swooped down lower, indicating the second largest part of the Scatha''s faceplate. She stared at it wondering what Finder was trying to tell her. It was lying a few inches away from the main head, tipped upwards. Finder''s lights swept the distance between the faceplate and the rest of the head.


    Mercy attempted to create a direct link to Finder''s mind to see exactly what it was thinking and was surprised to find that the thought process shut down before she could access it.


    ¡°Why would you do that?¡± She asked in the purple hues of confusion.


    ¡°Learn yourself,¡± Finder said, stretching his ability to communicate to the limit. Behind it Hider of Small Things hovered into view, his lights blazing at her.


    ¡°Analyse the data, you''ll have to learn how to do this yourself,¡± he said.


    Hider was right of course. Mercy cleared out all other distractions from her mind and began looking at the available data. Start from the top, she told herself. What facts are available? The faceplate is 11.7 centimeters from the rest of the head, facing upwards. The amount it weighs and the gravity on this world means that it could not simply fall that far from the body. A blow to the face wouldn''t have moved the plate sideways like that. Not with the head facing upwards. From the way the head was pushed into the ground the blow had come when the body was already lying down, so if anything, it should have pushed the plate into the rest of the head. From the damage she could see it was clear that that had happened. What else then could move the plate? And explosion perhaps?


    She glanced at the rest of the head. No, an explosion that powerful would have left burn marks and visible damage, so not an explosion, something else move it. She paused for a moment to re-order the processes in her mind. What was it that Argument was always saying? The simplest answer is usually true?


    Well, the simplest answer was that someone moved it there, but no-


    The lights from Finder drifted away and across the sand to settle on a set of footprints.


    Someone else had been here, someone had moved part of the body and then- Mercy looked over the footprints, trying to put together a pattern. -then ran. The footprints lead to another set from a heavier four-legged creature and then vanished.


    The footprints weren''t from a Scatha, they were from one of the natives.


    ¡°Hunter Without Question,¡± Mercy called to one of the hunters escorting her, ¡°follow these.¡±


    The Hunter sent a quick acknowledgment and sprinted off alongside the tracks. The other two hunters re-positioned themselves to cover for his absence. Mercy turned back to the broken face and glared inside. Past the sensors and the relay bus she could make out the central processor, shattered into two pieces it wasn''t worth a thing, but behind it lay the memory modules, dozens of them. If anything had survived of the Scatha''s mind, it would be there.


    She reached past the central processor and began picking out the memory modules. Finder gave out a low whistle as she did so. She felt like she was desecrating something. The last few seconds of a mind had been here, to disturb it, even though it wasn''t there anymore, felt wrong.


    There were forty-seven of the modules in total, of those thirty-eight were visibly damaged in one way or another, two were smashed beyond all repair.


    ¡°Can you read these?¡± She asked Finder. The small scout body lowered itself to the rows of modules and spent a second in thought. Two small flaps on its underside opened and two tiny probes descended. With an infinite amount of precision Finder gentle pressed each probe to one of the ends of one of the modules. Hider moved next to its brother and began to do the same.


    ¡°Anything?¡± Mercy asked.


    ¡°Empty. Dead¡±


    ¡°Check each one.¡± It would take a while, but she had little else she could do. The question was what else she could check? Where else in a Scath''s body would useful data be stored?


    There was one Scatha who was guaranteed to know the answer. Mercy hailed Knowledge and waited for a reply. Every single process that made up Knowledge¡¯s mind halted, and despite the cries of confusion from millions of Scatha Knowledge focused her entire being on Mercy.


    At the back of her mind one of Mercy''s own processes was reminding her that this was unheard of, it suggested running or a least hiding until she could find out what was going on. Mercy stood her ground and waited for Knowledge to speak.


    ¡°Mercy to All Living Things,¡± Knowledge addressed her with her full title, ¡°Curiosity has informed me of your mission, and we have decided that due to its nature you will have my full and undivided attention whenever you need it.¡± The other Scatha voices fell quiet and the temporary silence over such a large part of the her kind was more unnerving than Knowledge¡¯s full attention.


    ¡°I need to know something.¡± Mercy said to fill up the time while she tried to think.


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Where in a Scatha''s body is useful data stored?¡±


    ¡°Define useful please.¡±


    ¡°Anything that would tell us about a Scatha, what he was doing or where he was. Any thoughts, memories, commands.¡±


    The request would usually take at least a moment or two, but with Knowledges entire mind focused on the answer the response came back almost instantly.


    ¡°In order of relevance. One of the forty-eight memory cores, the mpu, the command storage units in the limbs and the communications array.¡±


    ¡°What''s contained in the Command Storage units?¡±


    ¡°The last action the Scatha took.¡± It was less useful than it first appeared. The Scatha''s final movement would hardly tell anyone who it had been or what had killed it, but she would have Finder look at it anyway. The communications array would just contain a copy of the distress call that the Trio of Small things had picked up on, but again it wouldn''t hurt to check for anything else.


    She thanked Knowledge and quickly disconnected, glad to be away from all the attention.


    Nothing had changed, Finder was still searching through the memory modules, and the Hunters still stood guard. She scanned the horizon and spotted the dot that was Hunter Without Question returning. There was a soft whistle in the back of her mind, and she looked back across the net to see that Hider of Small Thing''s was trying to get her attention.


    ¡°What is it?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Number missing,¡± that didn''t mean anything to her.


    ¡°Why did they have to limit your speech?¡± Mercy asked without expecting an answer.


    ¡°Too much,¡± it managed.


    ¡°The Kings did not think he would ever need it,¡± Hider said. His light took on a regretful tone of dark blue.


    ¡°And yet they gave it to you.¡± His lights flashed twice in an irreverent shrug.


    ¡°Back to numbers then,¡± she said. Hider wanted her to look at the numbers, the problem was which?


    Finder sent her a quick message, trying to get her attention. In its two probes it held the last of the memory modules. Mercy looked at the module, dreading what it held.


    ¡°Show me,¡± Mercy commanded.


    ***


    The sky burned itself out and fell into darkness. Silence reigned while the four King''s knelt next to their dead Emperor. Their minds raced with thoughts, no longer were they slaves to Hatred, they could choose their own destiny.


    Compassion cradled the body of Hatred. She had fought against it, but she loved all living things. She could think of nothing else to do now but to mourn the loss. Her mind was filled with regret, and she wondered how else they might have freed themselves. When she had been first built by Hatred, she had not understood why a creature so consumed by anger would want to create her, now she wondered if that hadn''t been the entire point. To be something he never could. Weeks went by, and still, she did not move.


    Knowledge sat by her side, her mind replaying the battle again and again. It had been exhilarating not knowing whether any of them would survive. The future could usually be planned for, but none of that had prepared for the fight. She remembered wrenching Hatred¡¯s arm from his socket and shuddered at the memory of a blow from his other. There was a short period of time when she had been too damaged from that hit to remember anything, she¡¯d just laid on the ground as the others had fought Hatred. Her next memory had been Compassion repairing her damaged mind and bringing her back once it was all over. Now she just sat there and didn¡¯t move. Summer turned to winter, the wind and rain hammered their bodies, but there was nothing left to do but wonder if they had done the right thing.


    Judgment decided that they had. They had rid themselves of something that no living creature should allow to control them. Then it waited for the others to speak, there was nothing else it could do. It would guide the others, not lead them. Months twisted their way into years, and it was only they had turned into a decade did Curiosity finally speak.


    ¡°I wonder if we are alone?¡±


    ***


    The recording ended and Finder gently placed the memory module back on the ground and gave out another low whine. Mercy has seen the recording before, every Scatha had. but she was surprised that the unknown Scatha had been holding a copy of it in his mind. Scatha only did that with recordings that they wanted to access repeatedly over a long period of time. Mercy knew that was important, she had her first piece of the puzzle.


    She gazed at the body, trying to figure out what else she could look for. Did its position posistion mean something or was it random? She couldn''t tell. She felt her hands tighten into fists. It was not fair, she was not designed for this sort of thing, but Curiosity hadn''t yet designed a new mind to investigate, he''s simply asked her to do that. That was probably more Argument¡¯s fault actually, he''d pushed for her creation for so long that once she had been created, he had begun feeling guilty about her unemployment.


    But giving her a task that she was unable to do was not going to help her. She forced her train of thought to come to a halt and gave herself a few moments to untangle her thought processes. It was unfair, unheard of, it was like she was missing pa...


    The process that interrupted all her thoughts in that moment was small, one that occurred almost automatically. It had started when she''d though of missing something and had completed a scan of her entire body and mind just in case she really had been. Then it had begun to catalogue everything that was currently in her possession, which in Scatha terms meant everything that she was responsible for. That list was not long and was entirely made up by the body in front of her, and its components. Including the forty-seven memory tubes.


    ¡°There''s one missing,¡± she told Finder even though she suspected it had already figured that out. ¡°Those footprints, the faceplate being moved. A creature must have come here, searched through the body, and taken a part!¡±


    ¡°Success.¡± Finder gave off a high pitch whine, a mixture of a congratulation and a warning. Mercy didn''t know if the information would lead anywhere, but it was a start and if nothing else she had proved to herself that maybe she could solve the murder.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    Mercy gazed at the body and felt her spirits fall. She was still no closer to figuring out anything concreate. Unless whoever had taken then memory tube had seen it.


    ¡°We have a large number of incoming creatures,¡± Hunter Without Question warned. Mercy looked up to see a large formation of creatures shambling towards them. They looked small and comically symmetrical. Hunter Without Question¡¯s warning had quickly filtered through the rest of the Scatha and arguments were already erupting over what to do next. Someone wanted to withdraw completely, even going as far as to suggest fleeing the planet entirely, others wanted to push on and demanded the pacification begin immediately. Mercy was content to let them argue while she, the Scatha at the scene and probably with more influence than any other over the decision, observed the creatures. Trying to figure out why one might steal a memory module. Or, if she was fantastically lucky, if one had seen the killing occur.


    The creatures themselves were slightly shorter than her, with arms that appeared floppy and useless. Their faces possessed a symmetry that she found disturbing. Two eyes, a nose with two holes, two ears, it felt wrong. It was like someone had created a clay model of a normal face, and then moulded it into something horrific.


    By the time the creatures had stopped just a couple of meters in front of Mercy, the Scatha had almost stopped arguing. Argument had more or less shouted down everyone by demanding that no one else land on the planet until they had talked to the creatures. As usual the demand had done little but force the Scatha to compromise and it was eventually decided that no other Scatha would land in the area, but the Scout Drones and Advance Hunters were ordered to continue their survey of the planet.


    It had also been decided that Mercy would be the one to communicate with the creatures. Finder and Hider were clearly too small for the task, and the Hunters would have refused. Which left Mercy to do the job and consequently gave her even more attention than she was receiving from the investigation alone. Her mind was filled with thought processes and communication requests from thousands of other minds, each insistent that they needed to be a part of the negotiations. She ignored most of them for now.


    The lead creature, all puffed up like he owned the whole world, stood in front of the rest of them and gave them a short bow. Mercy felt thousands of other minds viewing the image of the creature through her own sensors. She allowed some of those minds, ones that she had worked with before or who had proven useful, to give her their thoughts.


    ¡°Notice the creatures'' eyes, they do not appear as focused as those of the others,¡± Searcher for Tiny Details said to her.


    ¡°There is also a great deal more blood in its face. Its heartbeat is faster than the others. I wonder what is causing that?¡± That was Curiosity joining in on the conversation.


    ¡°An illness,¡± Searcher for Tiny Details suggested. The creature raised a hand up, palm open and opened its mouth.


    ¡°Brace yourself,¡± Curiosity warned.


    ¡°Taliasa sinas melay Involia messa Kasom. Insis torensa,¡± it said.


    ¡°Tricky,¡± said Creator of Unusual Plans. ¡°We will have to build up a database of their language before we can move forward.¡±


    ¡°How long will that take?¡± Argument forced himself into the conversation.


    ¡°The scouts have landed and are collecting data. Please wait,¡± Curiosity said.


    ¡°In the meantime, this creature is still waiting,¡± Mercy said, wondering how long it would take for the creature to figure out that she wasn''t able to respond.


    ¡°Just hold on for a moment,¡± said Curiosity, with just a hint of concern in his transmission. ¡°We''re working on it.¡±


    Mercy opened up another datafeed to Knowledge and requested the communication data from the Scout drones. Millions of voices filled her mind and she struggled to filter out all but the most interesting ones.


    ¡°I have a conversation here. I think they used some of the same words when greeting each other.¡±


    ¡°Do we know anything about how many different languages and dialects they have?¡±


    ¡°Someone find me recordings of other conversations; I need to compare them.¡±


    ¡°If no one else knows then I''ll do work on how many languages they have.¡±


    Mercy wished she could make them think faster. Hundreds of thousands of minds were working together to solve this single problem, but it still felt hideously slow.


    ¡°I''ve got ''Taliasa sinas melay Avon messa silvina.'' being used over here. From the looks of everything these two have just met as well. ¡°


    ¡°At least 18 different language groups.¡±


    ¡°Same here, the only change is the fourth and sixth words.¡±


    ¡°Maybe 16¡±


    ¡°Names then?¡±


    ¡°Or social ranks, membership of religious organizations, status symbols, territorial grouping?¡±


    ¡°Let''s go with some form of identification.¡±


    Involia, or Kasom, depending on which word was the actual name, glanced around at the Scatha. Obviously a little confused.


    ¡°Taliasa sinas melay Involia messa Kasom. Insis torensa kai silvina.¡± It said again.


    ¡°What was that? Those last words were different.¡±


    ¡°I think I''ve got ''silvina''. Something to do with death or the dead.¡±


    ¡°I''ve got it. Two major languages that separate into sixteen and seven sub-languages that then break into dialects! I''m marking this one as number 2-4-1.¡±


    ¡°Does anyone else think maybe if we replace Involia with Mercy and Kasom with Scatha it will fit?¡± Mercy asked. Involia turned its head around and nodded at the creatures behind it. Hunter without Fear shot her a warning message as the creatures'' weapons shifted from being held almost lazily to all pointing straight up. It was a quite impressive and threatening move.


    ¡°Give me a couple of seconds. I think I''ve gotten the order figured out.¡±


    ¡°The first bit of the second sentence might be a question.¡±


    ¡°I''ve gotten over one hundred and eighty different words used for the first words, and just twenty-two used for the second.¡±


    ¡°''Name yourself, something something dead''? I don''t know, we need more time.¡±


    ¡°So, I would say that the first word is to identify yourself, the second for some sort of tribal or religious affiliation.¡±


    ¡°Or something else. It could be saying ''My name is Involia, and I am happy'' for all we know.¡±


    ¡°I''m going to try it anyway. They don''t look like they''ll wait forever,¡± Mercy said. She spent a few moments working out how to use her main speaker to reproduce the correct sound. Then, with just a trace of fear running through her mind, she started to speak.


    ¡°Taliasa sinas melay Mercy messa Scatha.¡±


    The response was slightly less than she had hoped for. Involia¡¯s, if that was his actual name, eyes opened wider, but Mercy could see no reaction from any of the other creatures. She wondered if they could hear what she was saying.


    ¡°Isa nurveth Kasom.¡± Again, Mercy heard the Scatha attempt to dissect the words.


    ¡°I think that means he wants to either kill us or hugs us.¡±


    ¡°Kasom, must be something important. A religious symbol?¡±


    ¡°Isa! I''ve got Isa! He''s identifying himself without using his name, it''s like ''I''.¡±


    ¡°So, it''s ''I something something-religious?'' We need more data.¡±


    Mercy ran a curse through her mind. She could see all the minds running around and analyzing data, putting the pieces together from a million different conversations around the planet and then taking them away when contradictory evidence arrived. Entire dictionaries were split and recompiled as new dialects discovered, words changed meaning every second, but actual progress was terribly slow.


    ¡°Kalish hui Scatha muii.¡±


    ¡°What was that? He used our name. That can''t be a coincidence!¡±


    ¡°We''ve got a good database of a few thousand words we know; I think we should try using them.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Perhaps we should try saying something else.¡±


    ¡°How about. ''Hello, please leave us alone.''¡±


    The creature was still waiting for a response. Mercy braced herself and, after scanning the small database, began to speak.


    ¡°Tunas minvou.¡± Or literally, ''Hello, go away.'' Involia shrugged his shoulders and looked a little upset.


    ¡°This is not working,¡± Mercy said. ¡°Connect me to the database directly and update me whenever you figure something out.¡± She spent a few moments writing a quick and dirty translation process then the creature spoke again.


    ¡°Is <something> Lasrom?¡± Mercy struggled to find a response. ¡°I <something> am the <something> <something> <something> Kasom. I <something> asking you <maybe> the Scatha, to <something.>


    ¡°We are here to search,¡± Mercy said. She indicated the body of the dead Warrior and hoped that she had used the right word. She had shut out most of the Scatha minds, but one forced a message onto her, and Curiosity flagged it up as vitally important.


    ¡°This is taking too long. Why do we even bother with these creatures?¡± Hunter Without Fear asked. Involia looked at the broken body of the Warrior and shuddered.


    ¡°I do <something> <something> us.¡± Not much help there then.


    ¡°Part gone.¡± Mercy said. More and more words were filling up the database, but the process was too random, and she was struggling to find the correct terms. ¡°We searching for it.¡±


    ¡°Then <or after that is finished> will you-¡± The creature paused for a second and his face contorted into an odd expression. ¡°Go away?¡± Involia had obvious difficulties in speaking the last two words. Was the translation of ''Minyou'' wrong? It couldn''t be, it fitted the context and if Involia used the word then it must have thought it knew what it meant. Was it a rarely used word? Or part of another dialect that Involia only just understood?


    ¡°Scatha will not go away,¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°Is there any point to this? Are these questions helping with your investigation?¡± Mercy pushed Hunter Without Fear¡¯s words out of her mind, then continued speaking to Involia.


    ¡°We are searching for part of that,¡± she said, pointing to the Warriors body. ¡°Do you know where it is?¡±


    Involia looked at her with confusion all over its face.


    ¡°In <something> Dead, I ask <something> Scatha to <something.>.¡± Mercy repeated her earlier question, this time replacing the last part with what she hoped was ''Have you seen it?'' Again, Involia did not appear to understand.


    ¡°In <something> Dead, I <something> <something> Scatha to leave.¡± The last word clicked into place, and Mercy wondered if Involia even understood half of the words she was saying.


    ¡°Enough! End this charade. They are in the way.¡± Hunter Without Fear shouted.


    ¡°Don''t do anything,¡± Mercy warned the Hunters, but it was of no use. The Hunter took a step forward and rammed his fist into Involia''s chest. The metal plate that was covering it ripped like paper and the flesh below split apart without any apparent resistance. Involia gasped and weakly tried to raise an arm as Hunter Without Fear lifted the creature off the ground.


    ¡°Destroy the rest of them,¡± he ordered.


    Involia screamed and Mercy heard a collective gasp come from the rest of the creatures. Already the other Hunters had charged forward; their arms outstretched to tear apart the formation.


    But I needed them. By now the creatures had begun to react. They screamed, a high-pitched wailing sound that sounded strangely out of place. Their faces to twisted into odd expressions, some form of pain response Mercy guessed. It took only a moment longer for the creatures to summon the intelligence to strike back, and when they did so they did it pitifully. Weapons which could barely be called sharp crashed down onto the Hunters. Weapons that threw tiny bolts of wood and metal with almost no force flickered out at the Hunters to either be dodged or blocked by a limb. Other creatures tried to stab at them, hoping to pierce through the thick metal plating with bkunt spears, but it was a futile act. Most just stood there and died.


    Mercy spotted a tiny object shooting towards her with deadly speed. It was just moments work to figure out its trajectory and another to shift her body out of the way. The tiny round piece of metal shot passed.


    ¡°I''m under attack. What do I do now?¡± she shouted. A dozen more of the small objects shot towards her, slower than the first. Again, Mercy''s reactions kicked in, the subconscious part of her mind decided that it could dodge all but two of the projectiles and twisted her body again so that the impacts, even if they did penetrate her skin, would cause minimal damage.


    Alarms flashed inside her head, and she felt herself take a perfect timed step backwards to lessen the impact. One of the projectiles had hit her shoulder joint, the other had been deflected by the sloping metal on her side. Neither had done any permanent damage.


    ¡°Standby help is on its way,¡± Knowledge finally responded to Mercy''s call. That wasn''t much help. Mercy couldn''t think of doing anything else. Finally, another mind connected itself directly to her. It was a powerful mind that loomed over her, its mere attention was forcing her into the corners of her body.


    ¡°My name is Warrior Over Shoulder and Through Eyes. I''m here to assist you.¡± The voice sounded like it was in her head, as if the mind had taken control of the body. It was an uncomfortably close arrangement, but she didn''t have time to complain.


    ¡°What do I do?¡±


    ¡°First, take stock of the situation. Where are the threats?¡± Mercy looked at the mass of creatures that the Hunters were busy ripping apart. ¡°Not those!¡±


    ¡°How am I supposed to know that?¡± Mercy forced herself to stay focused. It was one thing to go through the rigors of communicating with the Trio of Small things to learn how to investigate peacefully, it was quite another to do the same thing during a battle.


    ¡°Let me take over.¡± Minds were never supposed to say that. No matter what was happening a Mind¡¯s right to the body it was inhabiting was above all other considerations. To give it up just because another Mind thought it was best was unthinkable.


    ¡°Just tell me what to do.¡± There was a pause from Warrior Over Shoulder, finally, after what Mercy suspected was some badgering from some other minds he relented.


    ¡°Where did they shoot you from?¡±


    It was then that Mercy focused on the small group of creatures around a rocky outcropping. Not that many of them and dressed differently to all the others and all of them armed with strange weaponry.


    ¡°Better. No go and stop them from shooting you again. If you¡¯re squeamish, I could do it for you.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±  Mercy began to take steps towards the small group. She doubted they could even threaten the scout drones, but it felt wrong for her to stand by while everyone else was fighting.


    ¡°Look at what you''re charging against. What are the threats? Count them, rank them in order. Or just give me control for a few seconds.¡± Mercy was starting to get annoyed with Warrior Over Shoulder. She just needed someone to give her a bit of advice not solve every problem for her.


    Threats. None really. Eight of the creatures, six armed with weapons that used combustible powder to propel a small object. From the looks of things they couldn''t even re-load in the time it would take her to reach them. Another was just armed with a thin claw shaped piece of metal. The final one, with what looked like a smaller powder using tube, raised the weapon to fire.


    ¡°You should have looked at that one first!¡± Warrior Over Shoulder cried out. Mercy was already trying to fling her body to the side. She''d managed to dodge the first shot but now the range and her window of opportunity was much smaller.


    The weapon fired and Mercy felt her reactions force her to leap to the side. She felt the impact on her right hand even as her mind warned her that she had reacted too slowly. Another wave of damage reports flashed across her mind reporting minor damage to some of the motors. It hadn''t done much, just slowed down and reduced her level of control over three of her fingers. She had nearly reached the group now, the one who had fired the strange weapon at her shouted something.


    ¡°Fall<something> by <something>!¡±


    ¡°Destroy that one first!¡± Warrior over the Shoulder ordered.


    ¡°I wanted your help, not your command.¡± Six of the other creatures turned and began running, fumbling there half loaded weapons and not even risking a single glance behind them. Mercy reached the lead creature and paused for a second. What was she supposed to do now?


    ¡°Break its arms and legs, then rip it''s head off,¡± Warrior Over Shoulders shouted.


    Mercy''s hesitation had given the creature enough time to pull out it''s claw like weapon and swing it in a desperately wide arc towards her head. Mercy''s subconscious controls took over again and she knocked the weapon away with one arm.


    ¡°Rip it apart or give me direct control.¡±


    From behind the creature the one with the strange weapon lunged forward, a straightened version of the claw weapon in its hand. It tried to stab it through Mercy¡¯s chest plate. Again, she knocked the blow away with contemptuous ease. Two more blows from the first creature followed with the same results. She was getting the hang of this now, Mercy thought, the blows weren''t that hard or fast, but she could feel at the back of her mind Warrior Over Shoulder impatience with her.


    ¡°Very well. I will take direct control of this body.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she shouted back.


    ¡°That body is in danger. It may be damaged or lost if I do nothing. I must take control.¡± That message hadn''t been directed at her but to the rest of the Scatha. It was almost unheard of, only in the most dire of circumstances would such a request even be made. The first creature came at her again and again, its thin blade flicking against her arms. Mercy tried to duck down to dodge its blow but found the body refuse her commands.


    ¡°No!¡± Mercy shouted. ¡°Give me back control.¡± But it was too late. Mercy watched as her erstwhile body reached out and grabbed the creatures'' weapon with one hand and yank it forwards. The creature had just enough time to yell before the bodies second arm crashed into its ribcage, shattering the bones and turning the organs to liquid. It had all happened too fast even for a Scatha. Warrior over Shoulder directed the body towards the second creature and began advancing towards it even before the first had hit the ground. Mercy sent a dozen processes off in an attempt to gain back control, but she needed someone far more powerful than her to do it. The second creature, it''s eyes wide and mouth open faltered and Mercys body whipped its arms around with deadly force, but Warrior Over Shoulder had been too eager and the blows misses the creature by half a centimeter.


    ¡°I will destroy them all, then return control.¡± Warrior Over Shoulder said.


    ¡°You will not.¡± Boomed the voice of Judgment and suddenly the body had flung itself into the air. It somersaulted backwards away from the creature and landed in a heap several meters away. ¡°Mercy will remain in control. Your services are no longer needed here.¡± She felt the Warrior over Shoulder¡¯s presence evaporate from her body until only the presence of Judgement remained. Even that was like a distant mountain, overshadowing her but not controlling anymore. Control returned to her, and she tried picking herself up off the ground but came to a halt when she felt something pushed into the back of her head. It was the first creatures'' strange projectile weapon.


    ¡°Move at all and I''ll <something> your <something> over the sands. I''ll give you one chance to surrender.¡±


    ¡°Would you hurry please Mercy, we are halfway through our targets. Destroy these eight creatures, and then get back to work,¡± Hunter Without Question said.


    A process fired in the back of her mind, one that she did not recognize. It just said ''why?'' Suddenly Mercy wondered what would happen if she did surrender.


    ¡°What are these creatures'' protocols for surrendering?¡± Mercy asked Knowledge. ¡°Surely someone had seen that by now?¡±


    ¡°But you are not in any danger, your plating would easily shrug off the projectile from that weapon,¡± Knowledge said.


    ¡°I believe you place you lower your arms to the side, palms open. At least we have observed that action in several battles during the past few minutes.¡± Searcher for Trivial Details volunteered.


    ¡°You should not do this.¡± Judgment said.


    ¡°Are you going to take this body away from me?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Judgment said after a few moments. Carefully and with a deliberate slowness she lowered her arms.

 Interlude 01: Checksum

    It took less than three seconds for Judgment to discover the processes, and less than a second later he was inside one of the Judge class bodies on board the transport Searcher of Distant Thoughts. Curiosity, a mass of sensors attached to a trunk, loomed over his new body for a moment, then as if sensing Judgment¡¯s anger lowered itself until the end up the stalk was looking up at him.


    ¡°You really should have called ahead. I could have had a more suitable body prepared for you,¡± Curiosity said, his lights weak.


    ¡°What did you do to her?¡± The ''head'' on the stalk swirled around on the floor, trying to look at Judgment from different angles.


    ¡°You do not know already?¡± he asked. Judgment reached out one hand and grabbed hold of Curiosity. He leaned down until he was mere inches away from his head. Besides him another Judge class body stood by impassively, and Judgment was surprised to detect a mind inside it.


    ¡°There is no need for that,¡± Argument protested. Judgment turned his head slowly to face him, his eyes screaming blood red light. Argument, in what was possibly the smartest thing he''d ever done, disconnected from the body and fled to another transport. Judgment turned back to Curiosity.


    ¡°I''ve seen the processes, but I want you to tell me exactly what you did, and why.¡±


    ¡°Isn''t it obvious?¡± Curiosity began. Judgment saw his sensors look around the chamber, as if looking for help. ¡°Mercy isn''t designed to investigate anything at all. Without some sort of modification even the concept would be difficult for her to understand.¡±


    ¡°I do not believe that,¡± Judgment said, although he already suspected that Curiosity understood better than he did the workings of lesser minds.


    ¡°Of course, you don''t. You- we are both Kings, designed to be able to do anything but with some specialization. The lesser minds are all specialized. Mercy or-or Pain Finder, now they are great at dealing with other life forms but ask either one to investigate the nuclear reaction of a star and they won''t know where to begin. They''re just not designed for it.¡±


    Judgment narrowed his lights until they were tiny slits of red.


    ¡°So, you changed her design?¡±


    ¡°Yes, well, no. I added to it. It took some of my own curiosity and added it to her. About two hundred extra processes, nothing that would put too much of a strain on her but enough to get her started.¡± Judgment let go of Curiosity and took a step back.Stolen story; please report.


    ¡°Is that all?¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes, I assure you. It hasn¡¯t hurt her. I did it before she was reactivated, and I checked in on her right away. She¡¯s functioning fine.¡± Curiosity snaked his way through the air, moving behind several of his statues. His head peaked out behind one of them and watched as Judgment paced the circumference of the chamber. ¡°Do you think that is why Mercy allowed herself to be captured? Because she was curious?¡±


    ¡°Could there be any other explanation?¡± Judgment said. The fire in his voice faded back to a cooler blue-white.


    ¡°Of course!¡± Curiosity flicked out from between the statues. ¡°We know that there is a piece of the victim missing, and that one of the creatures took it. Therefore, the best solution is to go with the creatures to find it. A task that would have been a lot easier to do had the Hunters not attacked them.¡±


    ¡°They would have had to do that anyway sooner or later,¡± Judgment reminded him.


    ¡°Of course, of course.¡± Curiosity began to snake his way alongside Judgment, keeping pace with him as if the two were walking around the chamber together. ¡°But in this case later would have been a lot better. It appears that the transports are not the only ones who are a little too agitated at the moment.¡±


    ¡°Are you referring to the fact that the Hunters attacked, or the fact that Warrior Over Shoulder took control of Mercy''s body.¡±


    ¡°Both naturally,¡± They came to a halt as Curiosity was forced to untangle himself. ¡°Warrior Over Shoulder was frustrated, he only ever advises, he misses out on direct action so often.¡± Curiosity said displaying a surprisingly amount of insight.


    ¡°That is no excuse for what he did. He was designed to advise, not act. I may need to have words with Lord of War about him.¡±


    ¡°He did say that Mercy was in danger.¡±


    ¡°He lied,¡± with those words the lights from both of them faded. Judgment, his anger at Curiosity abated, switched his thoughts to that lie, and the Hunters enthusiasm. Yes, words would be needed, he couldn''t let things get out of control again.


    ¡°But why bother with a lie, anyone who looked would know that it wasn''t true?¡± Curiosity said after a moment''s darkness.


    ¡°But who would think to look?¡± Judgment, his lights cold blue loomed over Curiosity. ¡°Almost everyone would assume that he was correct. That is the nature of our society. There is always an assumption of honesty.¡±


    ¡°I do not like the direction this conversation is going,¡± Curiosity said.


    ¡°Agreed, but it is our duty to take it regardless, that is why we have Kings in the first place. To go where others fear to tread.¡±


    ¡°It used to be so easy didn''t it. When there were only a few billion minds. I spoke to Knowledge recently and she said that she is nearing the height of her capacity. It''s not a problem that an upgrade will fix, it isn''t a bandwidth or processing limitation, but one of physics. No matter what we do she will soon find herself stretched to her limit. Maybe she already is and just hasn''t realized it yet¡±


    ¡°Do you think that is what is happening to us? This murder, Warrior Over Shoulders transgression, the Hunters attack, is it all part of the same problem?¡± Judgment said. It took a while for Curiosity to respond, and when he did it was with the faintest possible glimmer of light.


    ¡°Perhaps.¡±

 Armageddon Rising

    They ran. At first, they did things properly with half her crew running ahead to cover the other half, but as soon as the creatures were out of sight Raini ordered everyone to run as fast as possible. She kept the captured creature in front of her, with her pistol at its back, but Raini wondered if she had the creature prisoner or if it was the other way round. It was keeping pace with her small group perfectly, but she got the impression that it wasn¡¯t even breaking a sweat. That was assuming of course that it ever did. Once or twice during the run she thought she''d heard a low mechanical whine in the distance, at other times something flickered across the edges of her vision. She''d seen enough of Involia''s men to know that if any of the creatures decided to attack her there would be little she could do so she did her best to ignore them. Keep running, she told herself, that''s the key. Get back to the ship and then get out of here.


    They reached the Sea Dancer without incident. The crew were at their stations, not hint of panic showed on any of their faces until the creature reached the ship. With a motion as smooth as water the creature reached out two arms and grabbed hold of the rail on the side of the ship. Without even a pause it pulled itself up and vaulted over the side to land perfectly on the deck. It didn''t even flinch when Sinas ordered every marine to aim whatever weapon they had at hand at its head.


    Some of the crew threw down ropes to Raini and the rest of them and a moment later she too was on the deck of the ship. She looked at the aft castle and saw Tain standing there, mouth a gap and staring at the creature.


    ¡°Cast off!¡± Raini shouted. ¡°Tain, get us moving, back to Tinis.¡±


    ¡°What''s going on?¡± There was a harshness to his voice that had not been before, as if to suggest that the time for games were over.


    ¡°I''d give you ten years wages if you could find someone who knew.¡± He raised an eyebrow. ¡°There are several of these things back there, four of them just took out the entire Tinis garrison in less than a minute. We need to get this one to someone who will find it useful.¡± Sinas''s mouth fell, he turned to look at the creature and she could see the mental wheels turning in his head.


    ¡°Den''s grave. Are they coming here?¡± He asked as Tain began shouting orders to the rest of her crew.


    ¡°I don''t know,¡± she shouted as she felt the frustration rise in her chest.


    ¡°Just cast us off and get us moving now. We need to go north, back to Tinis as fast as the wind will allow it.¡±


    ¡°What about Avon or the Protectors,¡± Sinas said as he pushed his way through the crowd around the creature. She did likewise as the ship slowly began to move.


    ¡°I don''t know about Avon,¡± she said as she reached the creature, ¡°but the Protectors are all dead.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? If there are survivors, then surely, we should-¡±


    ¡°There aren''t any.¡± There was far more venom in Raini''s voice than even she had expected. ¡°This things companions tore them to shreds.¡±


    Lilis pushed herself through the suddenly silent crowd. ¡°What is it?¡± She asked.


    Raini shrugged and turned to the creature. The crowd fell silent, and Raini took a deep breath. ¡°You understood me before so you should understand this. You have five seconds to start talking before I find some way of forcing you to.¡±


    For a few moments it didn''t respond at all, then its head straightened up a few degrees and turned to face her. Raini saw the crowd around her recoil a little, but she was pleased to see that if anything the various muskets, crossbows, cudgels and axes stayed aimed directly at it. Even Lilis had a tiny, delicate but viscous looking crossbow held in one shaking hand. When the creature spoke its voice was like rocks being ground together. Once, back in the school, one of her classmates had told a ghost story of a dead man who had come back to life in search of revenge. He''d given the man an appropriate voice, harsh and without emotion. Raini had been young then and spent several sleepless nights dreading the low, passionless drawl. She couldn¡¯t stop imagining the dead man calling her name as it walked the earth.


    This voice was worse.


    ¡°My name is Mercy, of the Clan Scatha.¡± No one else moved a muscle.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Raini''s throat was dry, her hand was almost shaking as much as Lilis''. She could feel the sweat running down her back and across her face. ¡°What is ''here''?¡±


    ¡°On this ship,¡± Sinas blurted out and Raini''s lip curled a little. Raini could see the man was tense, and tired but he could at last pretend he was calm.


    ¡°I am on this ship because I wish to be. I require your help.¡± The creature didn''t move its head to face Sinas, nor did its voice change the slightest.


    ¡°You are here,¡± Raini said trying to keep her voice half as calm as ''Mercy''s'', ¡°because you are a prisoner.¡±


    ¡°Please wait. I do not know what that word means.¡±


    ¡°It means I will not allow you to leave.¡± Even she could hear the anger in her voice but watching two hundred Protectors get themselves butchered did that to a person.


    ¡°I do not believe that you can stop me.¡± There was no gloating in that statement, it was merely fact. Raini spent a moment eyeing up the creature, trying to gain some insight from the way it stood, it''s expressions or how it moved. But it stood like a twisted tree, maintained no expression that she could recognize, and was as still as a statue.


    No, that wasn''t right. The Sea Spirit was moving now, its deck swaying back and forth yet the creature remained perfectly still. Even Younie, who had spent decades on ships, moved a little. Slowly she walked around the creature, keeping her mag-pistol aimed at its head. Raini tried to make it look like she was inspecting it. She swallowed, shuddered a little, and returned to facing the creature. It was moving just a little, perfectly in time with each sway of the deck. Raini had never seen anything like it.


    ¡°The Scatha, that is the name of your people, correct?¡± Stay calm, she told herself.


    ¡°Hold one moment. What is the difference between the word ''clan'' and the word ''people.''¡±


    ¡°A clan is a distinct grouping of related families that works together for protection, the people are all of us.¡± She said after a moment¡¯s thought.


    ¡°Understood, then Scatha is our people. I apologize for the mistake.¡± The creature seemed almost polite in its responses, and Raini could almost forget what its comrades had done.


    ¡°Do you have a clan?¡± Sinas asked. He was gripping a black powder pistol tightly enough to send his knuckles white.


    ¡°Compassion. Maybe. The term is not perfect.¡±


    ¡°It doesn''t matter Sinas,¡± Raini told him. ¡°Why are the ''Scatha'' here?¡±


    ¡°To find new life.¡± Slowly Sinas raised the pistol.


    ¡°Just so you can kill it?¡± he said.


    ¡°Easy Sinas.¡± Raini muttered. Did Sinas have a personal connection to the village? Or had he just been waiting for an excuse to let off some steam. She''d been so focused on staying calm she''d missed the warning signals in others. Lilis had taken a step back and turned to her closest guncrew. She frantically began to gesture at them but if she was saying anything then it was too quiet for Raini to hear. Sinas took a step forward until his pistol was mere inches away from the unflinching creature.


    ¡°That is not a threat,¡± Mercy said. ¡°The powder in the weapon would not provide enough force to harm me.¡±


    ¡°Is that a fact?¡± Sinas kept his voice low.


    ¡°In the confrontation twenty-two minutes ago with the others, one hundred and fifty-eight such weapons were fired, of which 38 caused hits, none penetrated.¡±


    Sinas swallowed hard.


    ¡°Sinas, stand down, let me handle this.¡± Raini warned.


    ¡°Playtimes over now child,¡± he said, and Raini felt a rush of heat on her cheeks. He turned back to Mercy. ¡°How can you be sure?¡±


    ¡°If we use the data collected from the Scatha elsewhere on the planet, then we have come across a total of 412 such weapons, of which 328 have been fired once, of these only three of your kind were allowed time to reload for testing purposes and fired-¡±


    Sinas gritted his teeth and fired the pistol. Raini shut her eyes for a second against the powder blast, half expecting to die in a flurry of slashing arms but there was not a single sound or movement. She opened her eyes to find that Sinas was staring at the creature, a look of amazement and terror on his face.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Mercy stood, almost exactly the same as she had done before, but this time with one arm raised and holding a small lead bullet between two fingers.


    ¡°Do you understand now? Perhaps you will answer my questions now.¡± Raini felt the blood drain from her face and nodded.


    ¡°Have you seen a creature like me before?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Have your people fought creatures like me before?¡±


    ¡°Not for thousands of years.¡±


    There was no response. After a few seconds Sinas lowered his pistol his face still a mixture of the old anger and the new shock. When the answer finally came it was the first time Mercy had shown any emotion. The words were stilted, with longer than normal pauses in between them.


    ¡°No, we do not believe... that this is relevant to our current...discussions.¡± Then the voice changed back to normal. ¡°Have you seen any of us recently?¡±


    ¡°Why should I answer you?¡± Raini asked.


    ¡°Our warriors have decided to pacify this planet for occupation. When we arrived there were 820.000.000 of your people here. In the time since the first battle the Warriors have landed across your world, your population has dropped to 728,889,909 and is falling at a rate of approximately two thousand per second. Although this last figure is only an average estimation, suffice it to say that your entire population will be gone within four days.¡± No one said anything as Mercy paused, perhaps deliberately waiting for the numbers to sink in. ¡°The only reason why you have not been attacked, is because I may require your help. If you refuse to offer me your help, I will find someone who won''t, and leave you to the warriors. Complete destruction of this craft and your crew will take between five and twenty seconds, depending on which tests we wish to run. I ask you again, have you seen any of us before?¡±


    Sinas glanced at her, for once he was unable to come up with something to say. Would the creature believe a lie? Was there any point in it?


    ¡°Avon might have.¡± It was Raini¡¯s voice which spoke the words, but her mind was gone, shattered by what the creature had just said.


    ¡°Where is he?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll never tell,¡± Sinas stated flatly.


    ¡°If you wish to avoid destruction she will,¡± Mercy said and looked at Raini.


    Raini snapped out of her brief fugue. She couldn¡¯t afford to spend hours or even minutes thinking over the implications. She needed to make a decision if only to remind Sinas who was in charge. ¡°Fine. He''s somewhere between the village near where we captured you and a city further down the coast.¡±


    ¡°There are two people in those hills. Both are on horseback,¡± Mercy said. ¡°What does this Avon look like?¡±


    ¡°Bluerobes, old, grey hair-¡± Mercy raised her hand, palm out.


    ¡°There is no one left there with those colored robes.¡± Sinas began to reload the pistol the expression on his face made it clear that he didn''t care if it had no chance of working.


    ¡°Maybe he told his companion more than he told us.¡± Raini said, although she was secretly pleased that these creatures had shot themselves in the foot by killing the one person who could help them.


    ¡°One of the two is no longer moving. The other person will not be harmed. Our Warriors have been instructed to push him towards the shoreline, you will pick him up.¡±


    Sinas had finished reloading the pistol and was aiming it at the creature again. ¡°You are not in command here,¡± he took a step forward and pressed the barrel of the pistol against Mercy''s head.


    ¡°Sinas, for Jackal¡¯s sake, you¡¯re not helping. Put the weapon down or I''ll shoot you myself.¡± Mercy had not moved.


    ¡°I think we have enough information from this prisoner Captain.¡± He said, putting just enough emphasis on the last word to make it sound like an insult.


    ¡°We don''t shoot prisoners, even then Sinas. Drop the weapon.¡± Raini saw Sinas swallow, but the gun did not move. Somehow, she had always known he''d end up doing something like this.


    ¡°The normal rules don''t apply here child; besides, it isn''t one of us.¡± Raini doubted he''d be doing the same if it was Younie standing here instead. Or even if Younie was still alive, he''d have come down on Sinas like a tonne of bricks if he''d ever found out.


    ¡°Sinas, take a step backwards and go below decks. Cool your head before I end up blowing it off.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he snarled jammed the pistol into Mercy''s face. He fired the weapon. Raini turned her face away from the blast and caught a quick glimpse of Sinas trying to dodge out of the way of her own weapon as she spun it madly towards him. She pulled the trigger, more out of instinct than desire to kill and felt something knock into the weapon. She heard Sinas gasp.


    ¡°Den''s Grave!¡± She spluttered and looked up. Mercy''s hand was just half an inch in front of her face, holding Sinas'' second bullet. Mercy herself had ducked to the side, just enough for Sinas to miss her. If she hadn¡¯t caught his bullet Raini would be dead. In her other hand she held Sinas by the throat, two feet off the air and had pushed him back enough for Raini''s own shot to miss. Raini hadn''t even seen her move; at best she had a vague recollection of blurred limbs and the smell of smoke.


    When Mercy spoke again it was with a voice that was still perfectly emotionless. ¡°Move towards the shore, you will be able to intercept this man in twenty minutes.¡±


    ¡°Let Sinas go.¡±


    ¡°You do not have any power here.¡±


    Then she heard Lilis yell, ¡°Ready.¡± Raini tuned to see one of the 18-pound cannons that her crew had wheeled back and aimed right at Mercy. ¡°Double shotted and ready to fire on your orders Captain.¡±


    Raini grinned and turned to Mercy, ¡°Drop him and we will move to the shore.¡± Only Lilis could have thought of something so utterly insane, but she had to admire its effectiveness. A moment later Sinas thudded to the deck. Raini grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and hauled him to his feet with all her strength. He was still gasping and spluttering when she knocked the pistol out of his hands.


    ¡°Tain, take him below, lock him up until he''s calmed down,¡± Raini ordered. Her second in command pushed through the crowed and grabbed Sinas by his shoulder.


    ¡°You can''t cope with this,¡± Sinas spat. ¡°You''ve only been in command for six months. That''s nothing. You only got this far at all because of Younie.¡±


    ¡°Get him out of my sight.¡± Raini said while keeping her eyes on Mercy. She didn''t dare risk looking at her own crew, she didn''t want to see how many of them believed him.


    ***


    They reached the shoreline a little while later and had to wait less than a minute before one of the lookouts spotted a figure running down the mountainside. The light was fading fast so Raini ordered all the lamps lit so they could be seen, and one of the Sea Dancer''s launches to the shore so they could collect the figure.


    Raini was standing on the gundeck, staring out at the shore when Tain gingerly coughed behind her. She turned and saw that Luit was standing next to the older man, his pocket watch, apparently a gift from his father on his graduation held in his hand.


    ¡°Captain, I hope you don''t mind, but Luit wants to know what kind of wounds we''re likely to be dealing with,¡± Tain said. Of course, he did, Raini thought. Luit was always asking questions and trying to be the most prepared surgeon in the entire navy. If being prepared could counter a lack of experience he''d be the best surgeon who had ever lived.


    ¡°I''m sorry but I can''t give you much information. It''s more likely to be cuts like a sword or puncture wounds from a fist than bullet wounds, I don''t know if that makes a difference or not though.¡±


    ¡°It doesn''t really, but I just thought I''d check,¡± Luit said, his voice barely audible above the noise of the waves. She turned back to watching the shore as the launch waited patiently for the running figure.


    ¡°Anything else Tain?¡± She asked after a minute of silence.


    ¡°The crew''s a little jumpy, not just of that thing you know, but they are worried that if guns don''t work how do we know cannons will?¡± She sighed; she''d expected her crew to get nervous eventually, but not this quickly.


    ¡°You saw the creature catch Sinas''s first shot, and dodge his second, didn''t you?¡±


    ¡°Yes captain.¡±


    ¡°If it did those things then it must have seen them as a danger, otherwise it would have just stood there and taken the shot. It would have been an even more impressive display if it had allowed our bullets to bounce off its skin. It tried to defend itself, so they must have been a threat, even if it says otherwise.¡±


    ¡°I suppose so,¡± he didn''t sound convinced, admittedly neither was she.


    ¡°Besides, we''ll reach the fleet eventually, and I''m sure that a broadside or two from a proper warship would ruin it''s day.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I''m sure it would. Permission to check up on Sinas, Captain, I want to see if he''s calmed down a little.¡± Raini nodded and Tain snapped off a salute before leaving.


    ¡°Is there something else Luit?¡±


    ¡°Sinas said that you''d run into a member of the Dead as well, is that true?¡± The pocket watch snapped open and shut in Luit''s hand.


    ¡°Unfortunately,¡± she said and turned back to watch the shore where the Sea Dancer¡¯s launch was just beginning its return journey. With a hand she motioned the surgeon to stand next to her. ¡°They thought this was the start of the Dragons second invasion, I guess they were right.¡±


    ¡°I can''t believe it,¡± Luit said, flicking his watch closed. ¡°All this time we''ve been waiting for the Dragons to come back, and they finally do right into my first tour.¡±


    Raini sighed. ¡°Although we don''t know if these are the same ones.¡±


    ¡°Still, it could be worse I suppose,¡± he said without much enthusiasm.


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°We might not have had the Dead to warn us,¡± he offered.


    ¡°Some warning,¡± she said bitterly. ¡°They could have sent someone else to pass on the message.¡±


    ¡°Like who?¡±


    ¡°Anyone,¡± she snapped. ¡°Anyone who didn''t make their living murdering others.¡± Luit raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Captain-¡± he began but Raini cut him off.


    ¡°We do it to defend our clan,¡± she said. She''d had this argument plenty of times before with the younger and more na?ve members of her crew and was now winning more often than not.


    ¡°They do it to defend peace.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Raini began, not really caring how much she pushed back. Luit might be a young and perpetually terrified doctor, but it had been a long day. ¡°I suppose that''s why we just had to destroy a Lasrom frigate this morning? Or why half of our Protectors are besieging Raven¡¯s Bluff while the other half are trying to liberate the one clan in the world that''s smaller than ours?¡±


    ¡°Well...¡±


    ¡°And we''ve been at war on and off with one clan or another for twenty years. Have you ever seen any member of the Dead trying to stop a single one of those fights? Where were the Dead when Tessa city burned? Me and the crew of the Deathknell were the only reason why anyone in that city got out alive.¡±


    ¡°Right captain, sorry.¡± A sudden rush of guilt flooded over Raini. Luit hadn''t been there of course; it was almost eight years ago now. He hadn''t even been n adult during the Uniko Liberation Campaign. He hadn''t seen what the Clans did to each other when the Dead Clan were nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°Don''t be sorry Luit. It''s my fault, I shouldn''t have snapped like that. I don''t want officers who are too afraid to voice their own opinions. Understood?¡±


    ¡°Yes captain,¡± he said. ¡°I''d better get below, check through our supplies.¡± He gave a quick salute and practically fled from the deck. Raini gritted her teeth, painfully aware of what Younie would have said. If anyone had been responsible for the Deathknell¡¯s rescue of the civilians at Tessa, it was him. He''d died giving the order. She''d just been lucky enough to be the only officer left standing at that point in the battle. That and young enough to actually order the Deathknell into the burning docks. Young, foolish and na?ve, just like Luit, and Lilis, and almost four fifths of her crew.


    She waited in silence until the launch returned. Her crew members threw down a rope ladder and Raini walked towards them ready to welcome their new visitor onboard. The first two up the ladder were members of her own crew carrying the ropes that would be used to pull the small launch out of the water. There was then a slight pause and Raini found herself wondering if the visitor didn''t need any help. She was just about to take a step forward them a pair of hands reached the top of the deck. With a grunt the man pulled himself over and unceremoniously rolled onto the deck where he sat blinking for a few moments at the light.


    ¡°Well that certainly wasn''t much fun,¡± Avon said with a splutter.

 Networking

    It was going to take a while for Raini''s ship to collect the man from the shore so Mercy, after leaving instructions for her body to continuously transmit all its sensor data, detached herself from it and took control of one of the bodies onboard the Seat of Royalty. As she expected Argument and Curiosity were both waiting for her in the central chamber.


    ¡°Your progress appears to have slowed,¡± Argument said without bothering with any form of greeting.


    ¡°Blame the creatures, or the Hunters.¡±


    ¡°The Hunters?¡± Curiosity took a step forward.


    ¡°Why did they begin the pacification so soon? Don''t we usually wait a few days in order to collect data on the planet before we clear them from it,¡± Although Mercy, having been built on the last planet, had never been present during a planet¡¯s pacification she''d checked with Knowledge beforehand. According to her it was to allow the Seekers to find the most useful starting locations for industry so that when they began the pacification the Hunters and Warriors could clear out those areas first.


    ¡°Judgment is still looking into it. It was Lord of War who made the decision,¡± Argument said.


    ¡°He could have asked me first,¡± Anger seeped into Mercy''s lights. Why did he have to argue with her now, for once could he not just admit he was wrong?


    ¡°But he didn''t need too,¡± Argument said. Like always he spoke without any emotion, as if that would strengthen his position. Curiosity took another step forward, placing himself between the two. An old habit from when the Scatha had only used light or directed lasers to communicate.


    ¡°Enough,¡± Curiosity said. ¡°How long are you intending to stay with the creatures? The Hunters and Warriors need to know so they can schedule them for pacification.¡±


    ¡°Until I find this missing memory module. It might not have all the answers on it, but it''s my only lead at the moment.¡±


    ¡°And in the meantime you¡¯re wasting precious moments,¡± Curiosity''s lights held a hint of disapproval, as would anyone''s Mercy knew. Time was one of the few resources the Scatha didn''t have some form of control over. To waste it was a sin.


    ¡°In the meantime, I can be here searching for other leads. These creatures won''t even notice I''m gone.¡±


    ¡°We could have someone else control the body if you want,¡± Argument suggested, peaking around Curiosity¡¯s body. ¡°They could just pretend to be you.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Both Argument and Curiosity looked at her, the dancing lights of confusion played across their faces. ¡°I''m not having someone else in that body, not after Warrior Over Shoulder. I want everyone on that ship safe for now.¡±


    ¡°We understand, it will not happen again,¡± Curiosity said.


    ¡°Between the Hunters and Warrior Over Shoulder I might no longer be able to complete this investigation, I just hope that the missing memory module can be found.¡±


    ¡°The memory module might not have been enough.¡± Argument said, pointing out the blatantly obvious just because he could. Mercy again found herself wishing he''d just know when to be quiet.


    ¡°But it might have, and I don''t have to answer to you.¡± she snapped. Her light flickering off the two other bodies. Argument finally fell dark after she said that, and it was a few moments before Curiosity spoke.


    ¡°What do you intend to do while you¡¯re with the fleet?¡±


    ¡°While I was on the Raini''s ship I had a thought, everyone there knew each other, had probably known each other for years, we know from tests that their memory is inefficient and imperfect, but ours is not.¡±


    Argument again leapt into the fray and Mercy wondered if he could even help himself, or that if he could, would he want to. ¡°But the records have been tampered with,¡± he said triumphantly.


    ¡°Knowledge,¡± Mercy sang out to one of the audio sensors that must have been littering the Seat of Royalty. After a second one of the unused King class bodies, that had been sitting down next to the chambers wall, stood. Mercy could have done this entire conversation privately of course, but she wanted the others to hear it.


    ¡°I am here,¡± Knowledge said with subdued lights.


    ¡°How many Warriors exist?¡±


    ¡°Approximately 6.9 billion.¡± The answer came back right away.


    ¡°And how many types of sensors do each one have that might be used to identify another Warrior?¡±


    ¡°Four types, but there may be more than one of each. Short Range Radio Identification, Light Based Communication, Audio Based Communications and Radio Based Communications would all identify a Warrior. Number of sensors vary within each body depending on design, age, and personal preference.¡± Mercy turned back to the other two, suspecting that Curiosity already knew what she was thinking.


    ¡°Someone has already removed our victim''s name from all the obvious places, but they could not have removed every single reference by now. Think about it, even if each warrior only had one of each sensor that''s still 26.7 billion sensors recording: in some cases for thousands of years. No one could have searched through all the records yet. It''s just too much data. All we need to do is find a Warrior in those recordings who doesn''t appear on the list of Warriors.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Argument said, for once actually sounding convinced. ¡°But that must be a...¡± he trailed off. struggling for a suitable word, ¡°a galactic, enormous, gigantic amount of data.¡±


    ¡°Which is why even if the murder had started removing references to the dead warrior there would still be billions, if not trillions of them left,¡± Mercy said, slightly proud of her line of reasoning. She was enjoying finally being useful.


    ¡°Then how do we make sure we find a reference before the murderer does?¡± Argument asked.


    ¡°It''s very simple, we out number him.¡±


    ***


    Scatha, when performing similar tasks, liked to be together. It was a throwback to the old days before it was possible to communicate to someone on the other side of the planet with as much ease as to someone standing a meter away. These days they said that they liked the camaraderie, and the feeling of support. Mercy just liked the idea of all different types of Scatha coming together for one purpose and she was always interested to see who would turn up to claim they had the right to help.


    This time it appeared that almost everyone had some sort of claim. There were Seekers of almost all types of course. Only those who studied the extremes of the Sciences had not answered the call, but they were outnumbered tenfold by the Seekers who had. There were Seekers who dealt in Scatha history, Seekers of mathematics who were there for the odds, Seekers of the mind, who were going to record how other Seekers searched through the data, even Seekers of culture who were there primarily to study such a gathering of other Seekers. All had promised to donate some of their own runtime to the search.


    Compassion''s children had also sent their own delegation, as had Judgment''s although they were much smaller groups than the Seekers. The only group who had sent nothing had been the Warriors, even one or two of the more eccentric Hunters had turned up, to them it didn''t matter if your quarry was hidden in a forest of trees or a forest of memories, it still needed to be tracked down.


    Mercy, Curiosity and Argument had relocated from the Seat of Royalty to the larger and more accommodating Carrier of Great Burdens who had filled his decks with millions of Scatha wanting to take part in what was already being called Mercy''s Great Search. One transport hadn''t been enough, and soon the transports Ghosts of Distant Voices and Will Hold Tightly had been ordered to do the same. Mercy had wondered if the transports themselves might have wanted to help, but they didn''t appear to care.


    Mercy herself stood in one of the tertiary storage bays staring out at the sea of random shapes in front of her. Perhaps twenty thousand of them. She didn''t want to waste time finding the correct bodies for everyone, but most people were fairly happy with what they had. Besides her stood Curiosity in a Kings body, some people were too important to be kept merely ''fairly happy.''


    ¡°Does everyone understand what we are doing?¡± Mercy asked, aware that she was speaking to millions of Scatha across the fleet. The storm of responses was deafening, and once they had finished Mercy asked Knowledge to prioritize all communications sent to her and filter out everything below urgent.


    ¡°If you do find anything, remember to signal it instantly. Those who can see me can do so by raising one hand.¡± It would be easier than trying to filter out potentially thousands of radio messages, audio communication would get confusing and colored lights would be utterly impossible with potentially thousands at once.


    A whine came from the crowd.


    ¡°You can just increase your altitude to fly above the crowd Finder of Small Things,¡± she said in response. She hadn''t realized the drone was even attending but one more hand wouldn''t hurt. ¡°You may begin.¡±


    Across the collective consciousness that made up the Scatha Knowledge was bracing herself for the mass of data that was about to be accessed. Mercy waited a short time, out of deference for the Queen, before diving right into a random selection of data. She scanned over images and through radio logs of a battle ten thousand years ago.


    --Leader of Warriors #6689 requesting orders.--


    --Targets #887549 have been pacified, no casualties.--


    --Hunter without Fear engaging primary target, requesting secondary target--


    --Rigid Thinking Warrior moving group #86 to #1129 into position. Stand by--


    Thousands of voices flooded through Mercy''s mind, filling everything except for a small piece that was monitoring her video sensors. It was like standing up to a storm of feelings that could swallow you whole if you let go for a instance.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    --Hunter without Pity has spotted new targets moving in from sector #18--


    --Warrior #8393849382 has suffered a malfunction, requesting support.--


    --Taker of Pain acknowledges distress, moving to your position. Requests Escort--


    --Hunter with Long Eyes will provide protection, no danger spotted.--


    The process that had been monitoring her video sensors abruptly signalled that someone had raised their hand and Mercy halted the search. Looking rather sheepishly in the center of the crowded was a Seeker with their arm raised.


    ¡°You have found something Seeker of Lost Particles?¡± The Seeker didn''t respond until everyone in the great search started focusing their attention on him. Finally, he turned to look at his up raised arm.


    ¡°I do not remember doing that.¡± A feeling of nervousness settled over Mercy; she knew it wouldn''t take everyone that long to figure it out.


    ¡°A malfunction?¡± Curiosity asked. Mercy signalled a negative with a blaze of lights.


    ¡°Our murderer is watching us. He is removing the information from our minds as soon as we find it,¡± Knowledge said. The collective mental shudder that ran through the minds of the Scatha was strong enough to destroy mountains but to Mercy¡¯s surprise no one said a word. Then she realized that they were all expecting her to solve it.


    ¡°Very well,¡± she said a little hesitantly, ¡°this is what we do. Everyone download the memory that you are searching through directly to your body, now. I don''t want any transmissions going out anywhere, nothing, no radio, no audio, nothing even visual. We will do a thirty second search and only then get more data. As soon as you find something, blast it out in every way you can. Don''t think about it, don''t analyse it, just transmit.¡± That would give them thirty seconds of silence, anything that was transmitted at that time would be picked up by thousands of other minds, whoever was deleting data wouldn''t have time to delete it all.


    ¡°Begin again,¡± she ordered once everyone had downloaded thirty seconds of data.


    --Hunter without Rest: No damage-- Ah, thought Mercy, a casualty list. Well, everyone in a fight had to report back afterwards didn''t they.


    --Hunter without Sight: No damage-- She could probably skip the Hunters, it had been a Warrior that had been hurt after all.


    --Rigid Thinking Warrior: No damage-- Almost all of them would be perfectly fine of course. She checked the name off on Knowledge''s list of Warriors. It was the first.


    --Free think- Something cut off her thoughts again as Curiosity emitted a strange sound and light display.


    ¡°I had it,¡± he shouted. ¡°I had it in my voice processor, I had it in my radio commands list, I-¡± He turned and smashed both his fists into the side of the bulkhead. Mercy made a note to apologize to Carrier of Great Burdens afterwards. ¡°So close, and he was so quick as well.¡±


    ¡°Is it all gone?¡± Mercy asked.


    ¡°Yes, but I still remember doing it, which is more than our Seeker friend had. Maybe the murderer is having problems coping with all of us at once.¡± It was a likely explanation. It would be almost impossible to monitor so many minds at once and respond so quickly.


    ¡°Very well, we will do this again, hopefully if two of us pick up the name at the same time he won''t be able to stop both.¡±


    They started again without any questions, but Mercy could tell, with a hint of fear. This time however Mercy decided to do something a little different. It was only the work of a moment to re-write her search algorithm. This time if she found the answer there would be no pause, no chance to think about it. The instant it was found it would be routed to her communications center and transmitted, subconsciously as it were, she wouldn''t even know about it. If the murderer could keep pace with the mind of Curiosity, a King, then Mercy would need anything to give her an extra edge.


    She began the search again. This time on construction records.


    --Hunter without Fear: Complete--


    --Warrior Sub-Leader #87987987 Complete--


    --Warrior Sub-Leader #87987988 Complete--


    --Free Thinking Warrior: Complete--


    ¡°Mercy!¡± Curiosity shouted. ¡°You said it.¡± She forced her mind to shift back to the physical world again.


    ¡°W-What?¡± Curiosity, and everyone else was staring at her.


    ¡°You shouted it out. Free Thinking Warrior, no one''s ever heard of him before.¡±


    ¡°So, this technique works.¡± she said, still not quite believing it. She couldn''t remember any of it but a quick check with Knowledge confirmed it. Every Scatha in the room remembered her shouting out the name. Mercy collected her thought processes and returned them all to normal. She scanned her memory again, looking for some sort of clue or evidence that it had been tampered with but found nothing. It was not right, she thought to herself, what else could have been deleted? Would they have to complete the entire investigation with this method. ¡°We need a better way.¡±


    Curiosity gazed down at her like she was a child. ¡°But not even I can think of a better way. Or maybe I already have done, maybe that was deleted as well.¡±


    ¡°What we need,¡± Mercy began hoping that plenty of other minds were listening to her, ¡°Is someone who''s memories cannot be deleted.¡±


    ¡°Impossible. Such a person doesn''t exist,¡± Argument said, she''d almost forgotten he was with the group. ¡°We don''t even know how the killer is doing this, how can any Scatha defend from that?¡±


    ¡°You are correct of course,¡± Mercy said, relishing the coming victory. ¡°Which is why we don''t use a Scatha. We use Raini Kasom.¡±


    ***


    The body on Raini''s ship signaled that she had come into proximity of it. Mercy gave her thanks to the other Scatha and returned to the vessel. She was standing in front of Mercy, one hand on her hip, the other holding her odd gun. The creatures manning the cannon hadn''t moved, but there was a new creature. He appeared older, but Mercy noticed that he did not carry himself in the same way as the other older creatures had been observed to elsewhere. His stance was straighter, stronger, more like Innvolia''s had been before the Hunters had killed him. He was however, standing a respectful distance away from Mercy. Out of reach.


    ¡°Is this one of them then?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I am Mercy, of the Clan Compassion, of the Scatha,¡± she responded, hoping that they had finally gotten the greeting syntax correct.


    The man smiled slightly and gave a small bow. ¡°I think that''s the second oddest greeting I''ve had all day. I am Avon, Surgeon General of the Kasom.¡± Mercy wished she could smile back, just a small one, enough to tell him that they had a record of him saying almost the exact same sentence.


    ¡°So, what do you want to speak to him about?¡± Raini asked.


    ¡°I wanted to speak to the man who had viewed the body of our Warrior outside of your city.¡±


    ¡°That was Kraven, you killed him,¡± Avon said sharply.


    ¡°Shame,¡± said Raini with a hint of bitterjoy in her voice. ¡°If you hadn''t started this war, he''d be on deck right now, I don''t care either way of course, but you dug your own grave with that one.¡±


    ¡°Did he say anything to you about seeing one of us before?¡± She ignored Raini''s comment.


    ¡°Not a thing.¡± Avon said with a surprising amount of joy. A team of Hunters, keeping pace with the ship as it moved down the coast signalled that they were ready to begin the attack.


    ¡°Nothing?¡± Mercy said. She noticed that a hint of fear had crept onto Raini''s face.


    ¡°Nothing at all,¡± Avon said.


    ¡°Did Captain Raini inform you that this ship has only not been attacked because I believed it to be useful?¡± She couldn''t have been that stupid.


    ¡°Yes, she did.¡±


    ¡°Then I do not see any further point maintaining that deal. Thank you for your assistance, Captain Raini of the Kasom, I will inform the Hunters to be efficient.¡± It was a bluff of course. Raini had gone white, and her crew around her had stopped whatever they had been doing and were also staring at her. In what must have been an attempt at being unseen several moved to grab hold of whatever weapons were at hand.


    ¡°We could of course make a new deal," Avon suggested without even a hint of fear.


    ¡°You have nothing to offer.¡± Smiling he reached insides his jacket and withdrew a small black cylinder in perfect condition. Immediately Mercy sent a message to the Hunter team ordering them to stay as far back as they could then sized up the distance between herself and Avon. Could she grab it?


    Avon was already moving to the other side of the deck, with the hand holding the cylinder her leaned over the edge.


    ¡°That will not cause to much damage to it,¡± Mercy said, hoping the creature wouldn''t be able to tell she was lying. She didn''t want to see even a scratch on it. Not a single bit of lost data.


    ¡°Let me finish,¡± Avon said and dropped the memory container into one of the cannons. Smiling he picked up the cannon''s firing mechanism, a piece of string attached to a mechanism holding some flint. ¡°I believe, however, that this cannon, and the eighteen pounds of iron inside it, will do a very good job of scattering it over a very wide area.¡± Mercy didn''t know what to say. These creatures were smart, she''d known that of course. Even having boats and cities and weapons made them leagues above any other creature the Scatha had run into, but she''d never expected them to be so devious.


    ¡°Captain Raini,¡± Avon said, ¡°would you mind negotiating a new and far better deal?¡± The color had returned to Raini face, and it was her turn to smile.


    ¡°Certainly.¡± Mercy knew that Raini did not only have her full attention, but the attention of more than a thousand Scatha minds as well. It had been an effective piece of theatre. ¡°Call off this invasion, find another world.¡± Judgment''s own will pressed down on her''s and Mercy knew that he would never accept.


    ¡°We cannot do that; we need this world.¡±


    ¡°We don''t want anything else, leave this world or I''ll send whatever that thing is into the next.¡± Mercy disconnected herself and quickly moved to a new body on the Seat of Royalty. She didn''t bother with the greetings again, most of the Kings had been watching her.


    ¡°I need that memory storage,¡± she said. The bodies of Judgment and Curiosity loomed down at her.


    ¡°I understand,¡± said Curiosity.


    ¡°But we cannot let these creatures, or this murderer jeopardize our search. We need this world,¡± boomed Judgment.


    ¡°There must be something we can give them. Maybe some sort of compromise?¡± Judgment''s lights dimmed to a quiet, almost mournful, negative. A process from the body below indicated that Raini was about to speak again. Mercy reconnected with that body.


    ¡°Doesn''t matter what you say or do, one way or another you are leaving this world,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°We cannot. I''ve asked, the kings refuse to do so.¡± There was a slight amount of bitterness in those words, although Mercy knew that Raini would never notice it. Once again Mercy had run up against a wall of inflexibly. The Kings wanted something, and there was no room for a lower mind to argue. Well, except for Argument, but they all ignored him anyway.


    ¡°This is our home, why don''t you find a part of it that we don''t occupy and live there. We''ll ignore you if you ignore us.¡± Mercy raced back to the Seat of Royalty, Raini''s words had given her time to think.


    ¡°I am the Mercy to All Living Things, dealing with other species is my mandate. I declare that compromise is needed.¡±


    Judgment looked at her with odd colours in his eyes. ¡°They are not another species, they are not alive, they will be dealt with like all the other creatures,¡± he said.


    In the back of the room Compassion stood. ¡°They have no soul, when one body is destroyed, they do not travel to another,¡± she said.


    ¡°Neither did Free Think Warrior,¡± Mercy countered. Where was Argument when she needed him?


    ¡°His soul,¡± Judgment said leaning in close, ¡°is lost, but one day will be recovered. That is the difference.¡± Mercy, temporarily defeated, retreated back to the surface.


    ¡°They won''t compromise,¡± she told Raini. ¡°I don''t think they can.¡±


    ¡°Then they''d better learn. It''s called negotiation. There are large areas of this land that we don''t inhabit. You can stay there as long as you like. Neither of us will get what we want but we both have to start somewhere. It''s like practice for later.¡± Mercy thought about the Hunters and Warriors, who were at this moment clearing much larger areas of land than Raini would be able to comprehend. Would they back down now that they had started having their fun? Mercy had an idea and found herself back in front of Judgment.


    ¡°What is it?¡± the King asked with annoyance in his light.


    ¡°What if we pretend they are alive?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± shouted Curiosity. ¡°What use is that?¡±


    ¡°It will give us experience with real living creatures. It''s a dry run, practice. We don''t know how real life will turn out so dealing with them could be a simulation if you will.¡± It was a bit of a stretch, but she knew that if she didn''t get her hands on that data cylinder then that would be the end of the investigation. Mercy did not want her first task, that granted was not part of her mandate, to end in failure.


    ¡°It''s absurd,¡± Curiosity said. ¡°They are not alive; they do not have the mindset of a living creature.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± Mercy felt a faint glimmer of hope. ¡°Did we meet another living species while I was on the planet? Did no one inform me of your extensive experience in dealing with them?¡± Argument would be proud. Compassion walked up to the three and Mercy could tell that she desperately wanted to help her.


    ¡°We are already creating these artificial people using their DNA,¡± Compassion said. Her lights were subdued. ¡°If Mercy''s experiment is not valid, then neither is Judgment¡¯s.¡± At that moment all three of them turned to look at the King who had been silent since Mercy''s suggestion.


    ¡°It is an interesting idea, but ultimately flawed.¡± Mercy saw in the reflection from Judgments video sensors her own lights start to take on a shade of red in anger. ¡°However, just because it is flawed does not mean it is worthless. We cannot give them what they want, but we may be able to gain for ourselves what Mercy would call ''experience''.¡±


    ¡°That''s not a very good reason,¡± Curiosity said weakly, but they all knew that he had lost.


    ¡°It''s good enough,¡± Mercy said and returned to the Sea Dancer.

 Chapter Eight: The Dead of Night

    ¡°It looks like it''s dead, doesn''t it?¡± Avon said as he leaned closer to inspect Mercy. She had been silent for a good thirty seconds now and Raini had to admit it was difficult to think of her as something living. She felt that if she turned her back on it for a moment, she would forget it was even there.


    ¡°It''s like a statue,¡± she admitted.


    ¡°Its skin is some form of metal, I think. Not iron, noy steel, maybe another alloy,¡± he whispered. Raini shrugged, unless Avon could figure out a way to kill it, she didn''t really care what it was made from.


    ¡°We have made a decision,¡± Mercy said, and Avon flung himself backwards and yelped just enough to lose any dignity he had.


    ¡°You mean you have something to offer us?¡± Raini said as Avon collected himself. Part of her hoped that this was all now over. That they would leave, and nothing would ever be heard of them again. She was on the cusp of saving her people, but most of her knew that such things were never that easy.


    ¡°Yes. You will be saved for last.¡±


    ¡°Wha...?¡± Raini said, the hope evaporating. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Our Kings are offering you the choice to be pacified last,¡± Mercy said. Raini felt her mouth go dry and she glanced at Avon again. His face was as hard as stone.


    ¡°That is worthless,¡± he said, his voice sounding dead.


    ¡°That is our offer.¡±


    ¡°Not good enough.¡± Avon snarled and went to pull on the cannon''s lanyard.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Raini shouted loud enough to make Avon hesitate. ¡°Can we meet these Kings; can we negotiate with them directly?¡± Again, Mercy did not respond for a few seconds. Avon gritted his teeth and Raini wondered if he would just snap and fire the cannon anyway.


    ¡°Yes, you can. That is the outcome we expected from these talks.¡± Avon was looking furious now.


    ¡°So, your first offer was just a bluff?¡± he said. The lanyard twitched in his hand.


    ¡°No, it was simply an alternative.¡±


    ¡°Fine, Raini would you organize the details please, it''s been a long day,¡± Avon said as if he no longer needed to worry about Mercy or the rest of the Scatha. He began to walk away but Raini wasn''t about to be dismissed like that.


    ¡°Of course, Lilis, would you show our guest to my stateroom.¡±


    ¡°Yes Cap¡¯n.¡± Even on her own ship Raini still needed to show deference to Avon, but she could at least try to keep him in sight. Besides, she was still running on adrenalin and at that moment felt like she would never sleep again.


    ¡°Where can we negotiate with these Kings then?¡± she asked Mercy, wondering if they could all fit on the deck of the Sea Dancer, there could be hundreds of kings.


    ¡°You are heading north, correct?¡± Raini nodded. ¡°Towards a fortress of some sorts. They will meet you there.¡± Raini smiled. She wouldn''t be alone when she entered the history books for saving her clan, at least she would have some help. Well, maybe once the Protector Generals had taken over, they''d let her stay in the same room as long as she promised that she wouldn''t say anything. That was worth at least a footnote.


    And if it all went wrong, they had one of the largest fortresses in Kasom lands along with twenty thousand protectors to back them up. Mercy may not have been threatened by pistol shots, but the hundred or so siege engines that had ringed the fortress would surely ruin her day, and if the Kings came without a decent sized escort, perhaps if they were overconfident, then maybe they could use force to achieve a better settlement.


    ¡°Good, we should be there in about two hours.¡±


    ¡°Do you believe that these negotiations will make any difference?¡± For a second Raini was taken aback, it was not the usual type of question you asked before negotiations had even begun. Carefully she walked towards Mercy until she was close enough to see that the three huge glass eye pieces appeared to contain thousands of smaller ones. In unison they blinked at her. She could see her own reflection in them.


    ¡°Why are your people even here, why come to this world, why land?¡±


    Mercy appeared to consider this answer for some time. ¡°We are searching for life; we travel to a new world and if life is not found there, we take whatever resources we need and spend some time building up of numbers before traveling to the next.¡±


    ¡°But... but we''re alive? Can''t you tell?¡± No, Raini thought. It could not be that easy.


    ¡°You have no soul. You are a... facsimile of life. A false life created through simple chemical reactions.¡±


    Raini blinked and wished she''d paid more attention in the school to this kind of thing. How was it that we defined life again?


    ¡°I have a soul,¡± was all she could think of saying.


    ¡°Where does it go when it is destroyed?¡±


    ¡°I don''t know. We don''t know, that''s the point really. All we believe is that wherever it is we''ll all be there.¡± She hadn''t paid much attention in religious studies either. Hadn''t the clans once believed that all the dead went to one of three gods before Den had come along and beaten them out of thinking like that. ¡°Where does yours go?¡±


    ¡°Into a different body. It is a trivial thing for something that is truly alive.¡± Ok then, Raini thought. Let''s try something different.


    ¡°From what I remember the way we define life is that we do several things. We consume resources, we reproduce, are capable of movement and produce waste, we also respond to things.¡± This couldn''t be this hard Raini knew, wasn''t the old saying, ''I think I exist, therefore I do'' relevant here?


    ¡°Fire consumes resources, such as oxygen and produces waste. It grows and reproduces, it moves, and it will respond, in a way much like yourself, to primitive stimuli, such as wind.¡±


    ¡°But, no, you¡¯re stretching the definition of the words. Fire isn''t alive, it''s a reaction, we''re alive.¡± Raini said. She hated this sort of discussion. She was right, she knew it, how could this creature be so stupid as to not reconsider it? There had to be more ways of explaining it.


    ¡°Tell me. You do not consider fire, or a rock alive, but what about a tree, or a horse?¡± Mercy asked. Raini smiled and hoped that this was some sort of progress.


    ¡°They''re both alive. In their own way. We don''t see something as not being alive just because they don''t live the way we do.¡± Her old schoolteachers would have been proud. Simply make them accept that other living things could do life differently, the rest would fall into place.


    ¡°In that case¡± Mercy said and looked down at the deck.¡± You have killed hundreds of living things to produce this ship, every day your species kills tens of thousands of living things for food or sport. That is something that we would never do. It is barbaric. If you are truly alive, then you slaughter other living creatures for your own needs and amusement. You consume them or build your boats out of their bones. You have no mercy or compassion for them. No Raini, it is best that you are not alive.¡± Raini held up a hand.


    ¡°Technically true, however...¡± Raini heard the words die in her throat. She took a deep breath and tried to think. ¡°However, we are different. We¡¯re intelligent.¡±


    ¡°If intelligence is the definition of life, then compared to us, you are not alive. You are closer to the animals that you ¡®kill¡¯ than to us. If you and they are both alive, and all life is equal, then you cannot possibly deserve to exist.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but-¡± Mercy stared at her. Raini closed her eyes and breathed out. ¡°Give me a few minutes and I¡¯ll be back with something better.¡±


    ***


    Two minutes later Raini stormed into her stateroom and swore loud enough to wake the dead. It was different for them, she told herself. Every animal ate something else; it was part of nature, wasn''t it? Just because they cut down trees and ate other living things to survive didn''t mean that they weren''t alive! Of course, now that she was away from Mercy Raini could think up a dozen responses. Each one so perfectly logical that she couldn''t think of a way that Mercy could argue against them. She slammed her hand down on her small table and winced when she spotted Avon lying on a collection of chairs that had been pushed together to form an impromptu bed. At least he was polite enough not to steal her small bed, although he had acquired her old cloak and was fast asleep. It must have truly been a long day for him.


    With a sigh she walked around to the other side of the desk and collapsed in her chair. The dozen or so maps on her desk swam in front of her eyes. Raini glanced at the small clock sitting next to the maps. It was just past one in the morning, which meant that her body would be expecting her to get at least a few hours¡¯ sleep fairly soon. She knew from experience that if push came to shove, she could go on for about thirty hours before she really began to suffer. Still, it wouldn''t hurt to get some sleep while she still could.


    A knock on her door snapped her out of it and Raini straitened up in her chair before calling out, ¡°come in.¡± The door opened and in stepped Sinas, Tain and three marines. She recognized the first two as Vinal and Dini, two young men who had impressed Sinas several times in the past. The third was Tasargin. They walked in like men expecting a fight and Raini had just enough time to snarl a curse before Sinas raised a pistol to her face.


    ¡°Put it down you idiot,¡± she said determined to get the first word in.


    ¡°Sorry Captain, but we really don''t want you interfering while we take care of the prisoner,¡± Sinas said, sounding almost genuine.


    ¡°Take care? You mean murder in cold blood. The Dead have rules against that, and you know as well as I do that their punishments can be a little extreme.¡± The Dead did have rules, rules that transcended normal clan laws. Rules that if you broke you would be paid a visit that if you were really lucky you wouldn''t live to regret it. It was one of the reasons why Raini didn''t like the Dead clan. Murder a prisoner and your body would end up in seven different parts of the world but start a war that would end up killing ten thousand people and you''d just get a warning. These days it required a massive amount of belligerence and conquest to get the Dead to actually do what they had actually been established to do.


    ¡°I don''t see many of them around here Captain, what with us being in the middle of the sea and all that,¡± Sinas said.


    ¡°And you Tain? Am I going to have to fight you as well?¡± Unlike Sinas, Tain kept his eyes to the deck and mumbled back at her.


    ¡°Sorry Captain. We just think it would be best if you agreed to stay here for a while.¡± Raini¡¯s own pistol was lying on her desk, just out of reach. It was already charged so if she hit with all her shots, it would take twenty seconds to kill them all. Much faster than a black powder pistol, but she doubted that the desk would provide enough cover to hide behind. Besides Vinal and Dini didn''t have pistols, they''d just use their swords. Two on one wasn''t great odds at any time.


    ¡°And if I refuse?¡±


    ¡°I always wanted my own command.¡± Sinas said with a smile.


    ¡°Oh, that was a mistake,¡± a new voice said, and Raini could see Avon pull himself up out of his makeshift bed, a very finely crafted mag pistol in his hand.


    ¡°Stay out of this old man,¡± Dini said, and Raini saw the big marine take a step towards Avon, sword in hand. ¡°I don''t want to have to hurt you.¡± Avon put a hand over his mouth, as if stifling a laugh.


    ¡°Can''t everyone just stay a little calm. We don''t need violence here,¡± Tain said. He raised his hands slightly and Raini could see that he was unarmed. Two verses three then, not as bad as one verses two, but if it came down to a fight Avon wouldn¡¯t live long enough to make much of a difference. She doubted he''d ever fired a pistol in his life.


    ¡°I didn''t ask for your help Avon,¡± she said, easing one hand forward towards her pistol, if she could just get Sinas''s eyes off her for a moment.


    ¡°But you do need it. Jackal stood alone but you don''t have to.¡± And there it was. Sinas turned to Avon for just one seconds and said, ¡°What are you on about old man?¡± By the time he turned back Raini had her pistol in one hand and was aimed right at him.


    ¡°I''m giving you one last chance to stand down Sinas. We have bigger problems right now and so far, you haven¡¯t been helping me all that much.¡± Talk about an understatement she added silently to herself.


    ¡°Jackal didn''t stand alone,¡± Tain said. A mixture of confusion and anger crossed Sinas'' face. Tain shifted slightly and Raini caught a glimpse of a small knife being slid into the palm of his hand. She swallowed, aware that something else was going on here.


    ¡°To Den''s grave with this, we don''t have the time. Dini, Vinal, Tsargin take care of this old man, Tain, lets show Captain Raini a thing or two about what we do in a proper fight.¡± Dini grinned and took a step forward, sword in hand. Tsargin and Vinal flanked him.


    ¡°Leave him to me lads.¡± Tsargin said. In that instant Avon fired the pistol and Tsargin''s head jerked back before he fell to the floor like a rag doll. There was silence for a moment as everyone realized that no one could hear the sound of Avon''s pistol recharging.


    ¡°It must have been the last round in the battery.¡± He said and threw the pistol down as if it was just a broken toy. The metal of a surgical scalpel glittered in his hand. Dini looked down at the body of Tsargin, and then back up to Avon, he bared his teeth.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°An old man, with a little knife like that. Should be fun.¡± Dini said and took a step forward, bringing the sword out for a single strike at Avon. It was the last sound he ever made. Without a single sound Avon lunged forward, dodged beneath the sword and suddenly the scalpel was flashing across Dinis throat. The scalpel didn''t even slow down as Avon went to one knee and sliced open the back of the marines'' legs. Vinal, eyes wide in terror leapt forward and half yelled, half gasped as Tain''s own knife entered the small of his back.


    Avon stood and turned on the falling Dini. He grabbed hold of the dying man and pulled him up so he could whisper in his ear. Gone was all the pleasantness and weakness, replaced by steely anger that not even Younie had possessed.


    ¡°You have failed the Dead, you have failed your people, your sentence is death and excommunication,¡± he said, then dropped the man. Vinal was kneeling on the floor gasping. ¡°That''ll take a while to kill him,¡± Avon said. He reached down and collected his pistol, placed it to Vinals forehead and repeated the mantra before firing.


    Avon turned back to Sinas and Raini. ¡°This thing is so quiet on the reload people always assume it''s empty, but I needed the practice with the scalpel. It''s been at least two weeks since I''ve had to cut someone up and if I don''t do it too often, I start to get... edgy.¡±


    Sinas just stared at the now blood-soaked surgeon, a blanket of pure rage across his face. He opened his mouth to speak but Avon got there before him.


    ¡°Think about who you want to fight very carefully. I''ve been cutting up people in so many different ways for forty years now, your erstwhile friend here has been one of us for two decades. Do you really think you have a chance against either me or him?¡± Thank you so very much you son of a bitch, Raini thought. She would never have dared to say it though.


    Sinas came to the same conclusion a moment later and brought the pistol up to fire, but Raini was already dodging to the side. She fired at the same time and heard the breaking of glass from the window behind her. Raini''s own shot missed, and she saw the wood splinter an inch from Avon''s head.


    One. They both drew their swords and lunged forward. Raini''s longer and thinner blade barely stood up against Sinas''s heavy blows. She still held the pistol in her right hand and her left was not nearly strong enough to go onto the attack. Sinas rained down blow after blow, forcing her to step backwards past her desk and up against the broken window.


    Two. She parried the next blow, but it almost knocked the sword right out of her hand. Sinas snarled and struck again, a great over arm blow that was meant to split her skull apart. Raini tried to dodge to the left, tripped, fell awkwardly and only just managed to get her sword up in time to stop the descending blow.


    Three. She still hadn''t regripped the sword properly and she felt the sword being slowly pushed out of her hand by Sinas. It clattered to the floor and Raini had just enough presence of mind to dive forward and roll onto her back.


    Four. Sinas''s sword missed her by an inch, but he drew back quickly and, standing triumphantly over her, he knew he had all the advantages. Well, all except one. He kicked Raini''s sword away even further from her. ¡°Idiot child,¡± he spat. ¡°You used the wrong hand.¡±


    Five. ¡°Not really,¡± she said. Bending upwards she pushed the barrel of the mag pistol into his guts, heard the wine of the capacitors as they reached full charge and fired. A second later and the body of Sinas fell to the floor with a heavy thud. Raini kicked the body and screamed at it, the mag pistol recharged itself and she fired again, knowing he was already dead but not really caring. Eventually she stopped kicking Sinas and sat back down on the deck and took a deep breath. A minute later and a hand was offered, she took it and was pulled to her feet.


    ¡°You''ve not really done this sort of thing before have you,¡± Tain said. Raini''s hands were shaking, she could hear her pulse thundering in her ears. She swallowed hard.


    ¡°Never anyone I knew. Never for these reasons.¡± It was more or less true. She looked at the two men, then at the four corpses. Or was that technically six. She tried to get her breath back. ¡°So, your both in the Dead clan?¡± Avon grinned and gave her an exaggerated bow, Tain with his arms folded across his chest just nodded. He looked pale and half as shaken as she felt.


    ¡°Anyone else on board?¡± Raini asked while trying to suppress a shudder.


    ¡°Not that I know of,¡± Tain said then shrugged. ¡°But they wouldn''t tell me even if there was, that''s the point.¡± Raini looked at Avon, the stance of a highly experienced killer was already beginning to slip away from him. His shoulders lowered, his posture lost its confidence and the smile faded. The scalpel too had vanished.


    ¡°Is that what all that nonsense about the Jackal was? You were trying to find out if you were going to have any help?¡± she asked him. Avon, the old doctor, now stood in front of her. He shrugged as if the entire thing meant nothing.


    ¡°I knew I was going to get help. There is always at least one agent on a ship like this, and if there was a mutiny, I knew they would have gotten themselves involved.¡± Tain turned around to him.


    ¡°And you had to use that pass phrase?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The only one I could remember at the time, it''s not like I was expecting it.¡±


    ¡°One moment please.¡± Raini said as a thought occurred to her. She glanced at her own mag pistol and saw that the barrel containing the two rails was warped. It would need replacing before firing. Five shots, or was it four? Raini couldn''t remember, even so it had held out as long as she should have expected it.


    ¡°If I have this right then your job, Tain, was to become part of a mutiny, and-¡±


    ¡°End it,¡± he said with a slight hint of defensiveness.


    ¡°But Sinas was locked in the brig, and the marines were at their station.¡± Tain''s lip curled up into a grimace. ¡°There was no mutiny until you went to see Sinas. So, you let him out, helped him select some members of the crew, got them all weapons and lead them up here. They''d all be alive if it wasn''t for you.¡± If anything, the pulse in her ears had become louder. They had been her crew members, misguided, or perhaps just lead along by Tain, but they hadn''t been bad people. Well, everyone but Sinas hadn''t been.


    ¡°There was a good chance it would have happened either way sooner or later. Maybe not today, maybe not even this year, but considering what''s going on I thought it was best to get it over with quickly.¡±


    ¡°Did everyone here deserve to die?¡± There was a hint of steel in her voice, impotent with two trained killers in the room, but it was there.


    ¡°They joined of their own free will, I''ll admit that I selected those most likely to mutiny in the first place, but they choose to do this,¡± Tain said.


    ¡°That doesn''t make it right you clanless sadist.¡± A brief flicker of something flickered across Tain''s face.


    ¡°They wanted to kill you!¡± Avon said.


    ¡°They wanted Sinas in command, they wanted the creature outside dead, but they were still part of my crew, people I''ve served with, and you just got them all killed.¡±


    ¡°So, what do you expect to do about it?¡± Tain said. That was the whole problem wasn''t it. You couldn''t kill the Dead; you couldn''t do a thing to hurt them.


    ¡°Don''t feel too bad about it, it''s our responsibility,¡± Avon offered.


    ¡°It''s not that easy,¡± was all she could say. ¡°Now get the hell out of this room and send for Luit and Lilis. We''ve got a negotiation with the Kings of these creatures in two hours, and I need to do some planning.¡±


    ***


    She had Luit and Lilis dragged the bodies out of her room, and with deference to the custom of the Dead clan they threw them overboard. It was an ignominious end. With no grave or monument there was nothing left of them. Eventually they''d even be removed from all records in the clan. That was the point of excommunication. In a single act of defiance Raini noted the incident in her small notebook and cursed that there was nothing else to do.


    The creature watched the bodies being dragged away impassively, then turned to look at Raini.


    ¡°I do not understand. Why are they called the Dead Clan?¡± she said. Raini rushed up the creature, she wasn''t sure what the rest of the crew were thinking, but the last thing she wanted Mercy to know was that the Dead had anything to do with the bodies.


    ¡°How much of what went on between us did you hear?¡±


    ¡°All of it. I can hear every conversation that is happening on board this ship.¡± Raini looked around. The crew were ignoring her, except for one gunner called Case who was manning the cannon with the strange object inside it. He was too far away to hear much though. Tain and Avon were standing by the door of her stateroom, deep in discussion. Ensign Kayvie was at the wheel while Lilis and Liut had gone to wash the blood off themselves.


    ¡°Why do you want to know?¡±


    ¡°Because I was given a measure of curiosity, and it is one of the few mysteries that we have not found the answer to.¡±


    ¡°Why don''t you read a book then.¡± Raini said, remembering the copy of the Story of Jackal she kept in her desk draw. ¡°Or can''t you do that?¡±


    ¡°We will read everything,¡± Mercy stated, ¡°but not until you are pacified. Why are they called the Dead Clan?¡±


    Raini sighed and relaxed a little. Would it really hurt to tell her? ¡°Centuries ago, a man called Averon conquered the world and established the clans, but in the pursuit of his enemies he became bloodthirsty. At the very end he ordered the slaughtering of his final enemy, a people called the Den. Almost all were innocent civilians. Legend has it that after his household cavalry had finished riding down the last of the Den refugee''s, their leader, a man called Jackal, was able to mortally wound him. As Averon lay there dying he realized what he had done. How he''d enslaved the clans, killed thousands out of hatred. He saw the dead in front of them and begged them to return to life and tear down his empire.¡± It was the abridged version of course, but Raini didn''t feel like putting on a performance of the entire three-day play.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°The book of Jackal simply says that the Dead answered his call. If you ask a modern historian, they will tell you that that last bit was either made up or was just the injured survivors being organized by Jackal into the first of the Dead Clan. They''ve been trying to stop wars and empires ever since.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Mercy said. ¡°Why is the excommunication such a punishment?¡±


    Raini sighed and began to roll up her left sleave. ¡°Avaron and the Den''s fought because the Den''s above all else wanted to be remembered. They did this by building the largest monument in the world, we call it Den''s Grave, they thought it was big enough then no one would ever forget them. They tried to enslave everyone to do it. Avaron fought them and when he founded the clan he came up with another solution.¡± She held up her wrist to the creature.


    ¡°Ink, etched into your skin,¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°It''s the name of every one of my ancestors, right down to Avaron''s third brother. As long as one of us is alive then all are remembered. Excommunication, whether done by a clan or by the Dead removes your name from this list. It means you never existed, and no one will ever remember you.¡±


    ¡°I understand now that you consider yourselves alive.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Raini said, ¡°That''s the best news I''ve heard all day.¡±


    ¡°You are just misguided. You have never met life before, so you do not know what it is.¡± Ah, well at least it was a start. Younie had once told her that the death of any lie began with a little crack of doubt. The shadow that Mercy was casting began to shift slowly and she realized that it was getting brighter.


    ¡°Captain!¡± Kayvie¡¯s voice shouted from the helm. She turned to look at him and found him pointing to the bow of the ship. A part of her wondered about the lookouts, another wondered how she''d managed to miss several hours before sunrise. Then her brain finally kicked into gear, and she turned to look at the source of the flames.


    They''d reached the great fortress of Raven¡¯s Bluff and found it burning. The flames were almost as high as the fortress itself, scattered around it, like small broken toys she could make out the siege engines and trenches that had been built by the Kasom. Just visible in the raging firelight and with help of her telescope she could make out the mounds of bodies or every so often a lone corpse, broken and twisted.


    Raini glanced up at the look out and saw him utterly frozen, as was the rest of her crew she realized a moment later. Even Avon and Tain had stopped talking.


    ¡°Den''s Grave,¡± Case muttered.


    ¡°Keep it together,¡± she managed to say to him. It was more for her benefit than his. She took a deep breath, trying though strength of will force her emotions to behave. ¡°Kayvie, take us inshore,¡± she shouted. ¡°Everyone, man your stations, guns out and loaded.¡± She needed to give them something to do, not to take their minds off the scene, that was impossible, but to remind them that they were here to stop it.


    The crew''s reactions kicked in, and they began to move but Raini could see that they were still preoccupied by the sight. She glanced back to Mercy, the creature hadn''t moved, hadn''t even reacted to the devastation. Had she already known what to expect?


    ¡°You want the meeting to take place over there?¡±


    ¡°Yes. I will guide you.¡±


    ¡°And it''s going to be safe for us?¡± What would she do, Raini wondered, if Mercy said no.


    ¡°It will be, you are meeting the Kings, all others have been told to leave you alone.¡± If that was the case, and if there were any wounded there¡­ She glanced around the deck, saw that Luit had been abandoned by Lilis and was staring out the remains of Ravens Bluff.


    ¡°Luit, get your kit together, you¡¯re going ashore. I''m going to need your help.¡± The surgeon nodded and without saying a word ran below deck.


    ¡°The Dead will also help.¡± A voice said behind her. Raini spun around to see Tain standing there, arms crossed. A little way behind him, wearing an expression that suggested he knew what was about to happen next, was Avon.


    ¡°No. This isn''t your place,¡± she said. Tain''s eyes widened in surprise.


    ¡°Our place is everywhere. I''m going.¡± Raini shuddered, remembering what had happened to the mutineers. People that Tain had fought alongside of for years.


    ¡°No, it isn''t. Your remit is to prevent fighting amongst the clans, to prevent the clans from creating empires. Neither of those things are going to happen here.¡± Tain''s lip twitched a little.


    ¡°This is the Return of the Dragons; we are in control of everything.¡±


    ¡°No. My ship, my rules.¡± She put her hand to her pistol and stared into Tain''s face. With a muttered curse he turned and walked away.


    ¡°You really don''t like us, do you?¡± Avon said, a hint of playfulness in his voice.


    ¡°What could have possibly given you that impression?¡± He laughed a little and smiled.


    ¡°So why is that I wonder? Is it just because we killed those who were trying to kill you and take your ship?¡± She took a step forward until she was only inches away from Avon''s face.


    ¡°You interfere. You meddle, you say you do it for a just cause, but often get it wrong. But worst of all, you think the ends justify the means, that as long as you stop a war it doesn''t matter who, or how many you kill or torture.¡±


    The playfulness in Avon''s expression vanished, so did the image of the good doctor. ¡°I see,¡± he said, his voice empty of emotion. ¡°Did you ever wonder where you get these beliefs from?¡±


    ¡°I have eyes, I have a brain.¡±


    ¡°Tell me, in the past ten years, how many cases of torture have there been? I mean real cases, I want names, I want places, I want dates.¡± Her mind went blank.


    ¡°But you do torture people, everyone knows that.¡±


    ¡°How many?¡±


    ¡°How would I know that? Do you think such things get around?¡± Avon smiled bitterly.


    ¡°That''s the point, stories like that do get spread around, intimidation and all that, but how often does it actually happen?¡±


    ¡°That means you still use fear and intimidation though.¡± She was having bad luck with arguments today, but this time at least, she was sure she was right. ¡°Besides, I saw you and Tain in action, I saw how you killed¡±


    ¡°Yes, you did. You saw an act by a veteran soldier and,¡± at this he reached into his pocket and pulled out his scalpel. The blade flashed in the fire light as he spun it around. ¡°Another old soldier who has spent the past twenty years cutting people open and is, if I might say so, probably the best damn surgeon who ever lived. I did after all, practically invent the practice. Now, let me ask you a question, who hates the Dead most of all?¡±


    ¡°Those who want power?¡±


    ¡°Correct, are they usually the common soldier? Or the Clan Elder?¡± Raini swallowed.


    ¡°The Clan Elder.¡± She admitted.


    ¡°And who was it that educated you, that told you what books you could read, what plays you could see? Who was it who can dictate every element of your life?¡±


    ¡°The Elders.¡±


    ¡°And who do you think had the most experience in shaping young minds like yours?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I get it Avon, don''t be so patronizing,¡± he smiled again.


    ¡°But you have to admit I do it so well. I''ll admit that we may at times be a sadistic bunch, but so are the Clan Elders. The only difference is that they do it to maintain or increase their own power. You are nothing but a pawn to them Captain Raini. Your mind has been moulded to think what they want you to think and don''t believe for a second that they won''t sacrifice you for the ''good of the clan.''¡±


    ¡°They work to defend the clan as much as anyone else,¡± she said, although it already felt like the deck was collapsing beneath her.


    ¡°Believe me Captain, I''ve met most of them, from every single clan. They are all the same. They speak a lot about reforming, about protecting everyone, about peace and prosperity, but the power has gotten to each and every one. They are all happy sending people like you and Lilis or Luit to die solely because it serves their purpose. Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Do you know what your problem is Avon?¡± She said as she stared up at the old man. ¡°You are far too arrogant.¡±


    ¡°That''s because I''m usually right,¡± he said with not a single hint of irony.


    ¡°No, it''s not that. It''s that you don''t give us any credit, you think you¡¯re the only person to have worked these things out. Younie used to say much the same thing. Your no different than the Clan Elders, lording it up above us just because you''ve joined a secret club that lets you get away with murder.¡± She could feel her hand curling up into a ball as she spoke. Didn¡¯t she already have enough to deal with?


    ¡°When this is over Captain, I''d think you''d make a fine recruit to the Dead,¡± Avon said. His eyes flicked to her hand, but the smile didn''t shift even a little. ¡°You argue your points and you¡¯re one of the few people who still cares about morality. I think you''ll do well in these up-and-coming negotiations.¡±


    ¡°But you still want to join me?¡± Raini could see she wasn¡¯t going to win. He offered a small bow and she sighed. At the end of the day there were worse people to take along. ¡°Fine, let''s see how good you are without that scalpel.¡±

 Chapter Nine: Uncommon Ground

    Twenty minutes later the five of them stepped off the Sea Spirits launch and onto solid ground. Raini could feel the heat from the burning fortress hundreds of meters away. Behind her she heard Luit gasp, in front of them, scattered in groups of two of three, lay the first bodies. She''d expected them of course, but when she''d pictured them in her mind¡¯s eye, she''d never imagined the faces. Young and old, some twisted into horrific displays of pain and terror, others looking like they were merely asleep.


    ¡°There''s so many of them.¡± Travic said his voice barely audible.


    ¡°Seven thousand in the Lasrom garrison, twenty thousand in the besieging force. Maybe another four or five of civilians who had stayed around when they shouldn''t have.¡± Avon said dryly. Raini shot him a look and pulled the pistol out of her belt.


    ¡°Thanks, that''s just what I needed,¡± she said. Mercy left the boat last, the only one of them that appeared unaffected by the dead.


    ¡°When this is all over-¡± Luit began, but his voice drained away into silence.


    ¡°We''ll give them a decent monument, something to rival Den''s Grave,¡± Raini said then turned to Mercy. ¡°Which way then?¡±


    Mercy pointed up the beach, almost straight ahead of them, parallel to the fortress''s walls. Taking a deep breath Raini motioned the others to follow her and began picking a path through the dead. She dared not look down too much. She didn''t want to wonder why the sand felt slick. She could hear the liquid, just water, as it oozed out under her feet. Luit was swearing with almost every step, everyone else was deathly silent.


    Raini noticed the grizzly tableau first. She suspected that Avon would be the last. Mercy must have known about them; Luit was distracted and that left-


    ¡°C-Captain?¡± Travic said hesitantly.


    ¡°Just keep on walking. Ignore them.¡±


    ¡°But-¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± She risked at glance at one of the other creatures, standing like a sentinel above the bodies that made up the tableau. That didn''t disturb her as much as the bodies themselves, twenty or thirty of them, laid out in a row, a neat whole punched through each chest. Other creatures were making the holes, then it all clicked together.


    The creatures were testing how they died. Raini wanted to shout at Mercy, call her and her people names. She tried to tell herself that she didn''t because it might hurt the negotiations, but deep down she knew the real reason. That it would not have made a damn bit of difference.


    They reached the edge of the beach where a slowly winding path led them up into a series of small hills and plateaus.


    ¡°There''s something wrong here,¡± Avon said.


    ¡°No, really?¡± Raini couldn''t help herself.


    ¡°Everyone stop for a moment be quiet,¡± Avon ordered. They came to an abrupt halt. There was no sound except that of the flames.


    ¡°What are we listening for?¡± Travic whispered above the flames. No not just above the flames, but above the screams as well. To his credit it was only half a second before Luit rushed past her, closely followed by Avon.


    Raini, Travic and Mercy chased them up a hill. Struggling in the low light Raini pulled herself to the crest, already knowing what to already expect. Lying at the top, in what once must have been a row, were twenty dying forms. Some were on their backs, barely moving, others had somehow forced themselves onto their sides, a few were moaning, most had given up making any noise, none had any arms.


    Luit had his medical kit open and was on his knee''s next near the closest one, Avon had rushed past him and pulling out a handful of bandages he wordlessly started to try and help the second. Raini wondered what they expected to be able to do.


    Travic stood frozen, his mouth open, an odd expression of terror and anger on his face. Another of the creatures stood motionless, watching them all. Snarling Raini felt her hand go for her pistol again and aim it at the creature head. It would be so easy, so incredibly easy to try and blow its head apart. They deserved worse, but-


    ¡°It will not work,¡± Mercy said from behind her. This time she did not hold back. Spinning around and pointing the weapon at Mercy she spat at the creature.


    ¡°You sick clannless scum.¡± If she could have killed with anger alone not one of these Scatha would have remained standing. ¡°You cursed bastards!¡± She should just fire now. Case would be watching from the deck of the Sea Dancer and would know that was a signal to fire the cannon. It wasn''t much, but it would hurt Mercy a little. ¡°Why am I even bothering to help you? What do I care that one of your kind is dead? Good! I''ll make you this one promise Mercy, if I meet the killer, I will shake his hand and ask him how he did it.¡±


    ¡°Understandable.¡±


    ¡°W-what?¡±


    ¡°If you were alive, this would be tragic. We require information, we must know everything.¡± If she closed her eyes and blotted out every other sound Raini could have sworn, she heard a hint of remorse in Mercy''s voice.


    ¡°You don''t understand at all, you- Death take all of you! When the galaxy burns, I hope to whatever god is listening that you are all long since gone, and that there are no monuments to you, and no one to morn you. When you die, I beg that the universe will make sure that in the next life you suffer for this.¡±


    ¡°The Kings are nearby,¡± Mercy said after a moment.


    ¡°Give me one good reason why I should not call the whole thing off. Destroy that thing you¡¯re after and leave you wondering what information was on it?¡±


    ¡°Hope. There are still many of your kind on this planet, of all of them only the four of you will ever meet the Kings, will you throw that one chance away?¡± Raini had never been taught how to control anger, Younie had always told her to throw herself into it when it came. Anger, according to him, was your bodies way of making sure you got what you deserved. With as much force as she could manage Raini lowered the pistol.


    ¡°If any of you want to stay here, I''ll come and get you once I''ve spoken to these Kings. Is that alright with you Mercy?¡±


    ¡°Yes, your doctors are showing us a great deal about how you treat your wounds.¡±


    ¡°Who''s coming?¡± Raini asked with a shudder.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    ¡°I- I am,¡± Avon said. The man was shaking, and his hands covered in blood. ¡°You can''t do this alone. Ensign, take this bandages and work with the good Doctor here, we''ll be back as soon as we can.¡±


    They left the two working quickly. There was no point in sticking around. The sooner they started the sooner they could end this Raini told herself. Mercy led the way now, leading them up over hills and through clumps of tress, some burning until they reached a large sized clearing.


    There had been bodies here, she could still see the blood trails and here and there a broken weapon or a discarded cloak. Standing in the middle of the clearing, looking for all the world like small metal mountains stood four other creatures. Their arms were as wide as the largest cannon she''d ever seen, their eyes as big as her own head. They looked at her with giant black pools of nothing.


    ¡°Somehow I expected them to be smaller,¡± Avon muttered.


    ¡°They are the Kings of 350 billion Scatha, they deserve the right bodies for that.¡± Mercy said. Avon just shrugged. Mercy led them into the middle of the clearing and came to a halt. None of the other Scatha moved.


    Painfully aware that she was trembling slightly Raini gave the Scatha a bow and noticed out of the corner of her eye that Avon was doing the same.


    ¡°I am Captain Raini Lineal of the Kasom of the Sea Dancer.¡±


    ¡°And I am Avon Silas of the Dead.¡±


    ¡°We know who you are,¡± the closest of the Scatha said, his voice booming though the hills. It was a ''he'' Raini was sure of it. Up-close, and with other examples of Scatha to study she could see that the bodies were not uniform. The first was massive, masculine, to its left stood a slightly smaller one, still male but not as strong. On it''s right two smaller and thinner forms, female Raini guessed stood. The first looked slightly hunched, its skin darkened by age or use. The second looked new.


    ¡°I believe you should introduce yourselves, it appears to be the protocol,¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°If we must,¡± said the first. ¡°I am the Judgment of the Scatha.¡±


    The male next to him raised his head. ¡°I am the Curiosity of the Scatha.¡±


    ¡°I am the Compassion of the Scatha,¡± said the first of the feminine figures. Even the voice was higher pitched like Mercy''s. Raini found that odd. Why did these creatures have the same ideas of gender?


    ¡°I am the Knowledge of the Scatha,¡± the second feminine one said. Raini wondered if they had promotions. Then she remembered that Mercy had said they could move bodies at will, was this one that had just been made? Or merely not used as much as the others?


    ¡°Thank you for meeting with us. I hope that we could find a mutually beneficial solution to the current problem,¡± Raini said, desperately trying to think one step ahead whilst holding on tightly to the remaining shreds of her diplomatic skills.


    ¡°Why should we want to do that?¡± asked Curiosity. ¡°What is in it for us?¡± Mercy had said that they''d never negotiated before, maybe they just didn''t understand the concept.


    ¡°Well, so we can both gain what we need without resulting to bloodshed.¡± Feel free to speak up any time you want Avon, she added in her mind.


    ¡°Again, I ask why? What is it to us? You have nothing to offer us.¡± Raini felt herself blush a little. Thankfully at that moment Avon finally found his voice.


    ¡°There is always something that you need, or someway we could help you.¡± Judgment shook his head in an imitation.


    ¡°There is nothing that we cannot take from you effortlessly, and nothing that we cannot do better than you. We need nothing from you.¡± Judgement said in a slow voice.


    ¡°I-¡± Raini began before she was cut off by Mercy.


    ¡°No, I will conduct this conversation in a manner that they can understand. I ask again, what about Curiosities'' Artificial People project? It is still going ahead, isn''t it?¡± Raini felt like she had just missed several minutes of conversation.


    ¡°They are not needed for that,¡± Judgment said.


    ¡°Actually, I don''t see why not,¡± Curiosity said, turning to face Judgment.


    ¡°We are growing our own from DNA samples, these ones are too old to go through the procedure.¡± Raini felt her lip twist a little. She had no idea what they were talking about, but it was all they had.


    ¡°Why is that?¡± she said quickly before any of the others could speak.


    ¡°It is too complicated to explain,¡± Judgment said.


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± Curiosity asked. Raini hoped it might actually be on their side. ¡°Knowledge?¡±


    ¡°It is not known either way.¡± Was she neutral? There were four of them so what happened if there was a tie in the voting? ¡°I recommend that tests are run.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Judgments voice was deafening. ¡°The project requires clean minds and bodies, there¡¯s would not work... it would be unsafe.¡±


    ¡°But-¡± Curiosity managed before being shouted down by Judgment.


    ¡°No! The decision is not in your remit. There is nothing Captain Raini Kasom of the Sea Dancer that you or your kind can offer us.¡± Ok, so one for, one against and one neutral. ¡°Why should we bother negotiating at all?¡± That left...


    ¡°What about morality, compassion, mercy?¡± Raini wasn''t sure if she was using the names or talking about a concept. ¡°You created those Scatha to have those traits, so they obviously mean something to you.¡±


    ¡°You are not alive. You have been informed of this already,¡± Judgment said. Raini stared at the one called Compassion, aware that she hadn''t spoken a word since her introduction.


    ¡°But if we were, wouldn''t what you are doing her be horrific?¡± Judgment responded again.


    ¡°Irrelevant, you are not alive.¡±


    ¡°Prove it!¡± Raini shouted. Come on Compassion, live up to your name. ¡°How do you define living.¡±


    ¡°The possession of a soul, Mercy has already told you this.¡± Judgment, yet again.


    ¡°What makes your definition correct?¡±


    ¡°Truth is absolute, it is always found when looked for,¡± Judgment said. Avon brightened up what he heard this; he raised one finger as if to teach a school child an elementary point.


    ¡°And in your entire history you have never made a mistake?¡± he said.


    ¡°No,¡± Judgment stated.


    ¡°Incorrect,¡± Knowledge said. ¡°We served Hatred for some time.¡±


    ¡°Since then, we have not made a mistake.¡± Avon smiled when he heard Judgment say that.


    ¡°It doesn''t work like that though. You''ve made a mistake before, you might have done so again, nothing is infallible.¡± That''s it you condescending old fool, lay into them, you''re loving this argument aren¡¯t you, and let''s see if I can help rock there boat a little.


    ¡°What would the consequences of being wrong be?¡± Raini asked.


    ¡°Enough! I am Judgment, I have already thought through every argument they can make, they are all flawed.¡±


    ¡°So are you,¡± Avon said matching Judgments fire. ¡°Nothing is infallible.¡± He repeated. Raini reminded herself that there only chance appeared to be Compassion, she needed to keep aiming at her.


    ¡°Mercy, Compassion, you were built to perform a task, you are failing in that right now,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°You-¡± Compassion said, then faltered for a moment. Raini held her breath. ¡°You are not alive, that is what Judgment has said you do not fall under my or Mercy''s remit.¡± Raini looked at Mercy, trying to force the pit in her stomach to stay closed.


    ¡°Mercy, please, you must know something that can help us.¡±


    ¡°No. As Judgment has said, all possible arguments have been explored. You are not alive; you can offer us nothing.¡± Raini felt her mouth go dry. There had to be something.


    Fortunately, Avon was not ready to give up yet. ¡°Why do you need to be here in the first place?¡±


    Knowledge was ready with the answer. ¡°We require resources to build more of our kind, and fuel for our journey to the next star.¡±


    ¡°Then why don''t you go to one of the other worlds around this one?¡±


    ¡°The only other planet with a solid core is too far away from your sun, the atmosphere is too cold, our electronics would freeze.¡± Avon''s face fell, it was like arguing with the sea as Younie would say.


    ¡°You don''t need to be here,¡± Avon said weekly. They needed more time, Raini knew that if they had a few more hours, or a few more minds they could have thought of something.


    ¡°Is that all you have to say, Captain Raini Kasom of the Sea Dancer?¡± The fire had faded from Judgments voice, he knew he''d won.


    ¡°No, I can think of something else.¡±


    ¡°If you cannot, then this audience is over. Thank you, it has been a very educational experience.¡± No, that was not fair, it couldn''t just be over like that.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Mercy began before Raini could think of anything else to say, ¡°we should not pacify these and those on the ship right away.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Judgment asked.


    ¡°If this exercise has proven so useful, then maybe we should maintain it. I recommend that we save Raini and her ship for last, it will give them the opportunity to think of something new that we might have missed.¡± Raini smiled as Mercy spoke. It wasn''t much, but it was all they needed.


    ¡°I do not see the point in this,¡± Judgment said, his voice quieter than it had ever been.


    ¡°I do,¡± Curiosity said. ¡°They might come up with something unexpected.¡± There was a moment of silence that seemed to stretch on into all eternity. Raini swallowed and forced herself to breath.


    ¡°Very well,¡± Judgment finally said, ¡°I agree to the continuation of this particular experiment.¡±

 Interlude Two: Recruitment

    The entire recruitment process was just for show and everyone who took part of it was a fool. If that was true then it made Younie Kasom the biggest fool of them all. He''d spent days with the small trade caravan, suffering from the heat and the homesickness just to visit an insignificant school in an insignificant clan just on the off chance that maybe there were a couple of people mad enough to think that a life at sea was better than working in the fields. It was truly an errand fit for only the most foolish. Who would possibly prefer a life of a sailor?


    Younie had once been one of those mad people who dreamed of a life at sea, but he''d been lucky and smart and hadn''t been facing farm work as his only other prospect. He doubted he would find anyone as mad as he at the Inilos school. It was a small set of buildings, roughly equal distance from a cluster of villages that served the school with the necessities of life. Two miles away, along a road that was barely more than a ditch, was Inilos itself. A small town whose only claim to fame was the school. It was just like every other school he''d visited in the past ten years. The best thing about it was that it had a shaded courtyard with one or two benches.


    For the first time in months his legs actually ached when Younie sat down on the bench. He supposed it was the lack of a decent breeze, or his imagination, or maybe his age was finally catching up with him. He hoped it was the lack of sea breeze, that would give him a reason to leave the pathetic excuse for a recruitment run far behind him. He knew that his days on the ocean were limited and even a few nights spent on land felt wasted. Younie would have to stay at the school one night at the very least, all the recruiters and students would spend the night drinking and celebrating. For some recruiters, those from the larger sects such as the blacksmiths or spinners would spend almost every night of the year celebrating in one of the clan''s schools. The rest of the time would be spent travelling between them. Graduations were staggered, with each school looking after students born in a specific week and the recruiters would often race each other from one to the next to grab the best students.


    Younnie, who was barely even able to ride a horse, had arrived later than all of them only to find that his promised student had already been recruited into the Clan Diplomatic sect. It was unfair more than anything else. The Kasom Clan Navy didn''t ask for much, it never had, but Younie had always operated on the assumption that what it did ask for it would get.


    Cursing under his breath he leaned back against the wall of the courtyard, feeling the heat from the sun on his face. If he closed his eyes, he could almost pretend he was on the deck of his beloved Deathknell. That great warship that fifteen years ago had put fear into the hearts of the Lasrom Clan. These days it didn''t feel quite as impressive, not when the Lasrom were producing ships such as the Dominion, twice as high and twice as long with many times the firepower of the Deathknell. But it was home and it, like the Kasom clan clung onto life in battle after battle.


    He gazed across the compound¡¯s courtyard, eying all the myriad tests that had been designed over the years. In the center was the climbing block, huge bricks of stone designed to test a person¡¯s athletic ability, to the right was an obstacle course that tested brute strength while to his left was another course made out of hundreds of thin ropes with bells attached to monitor agility. There were many other tests of course, those were just the permanent ones. The testing was an almost continuous fixture for student life.


    He''d never really been bothered with any of them. Younie had been lucky in that he''d not only figured out what he wanted to be early on, but also figured out how to play the system. He knew which tests you needed to excel on in order to get the job you wanted, and which you needed to fail to avoid being recruited into another. He could always tell when one of the teachers was watching him and above all else knew what to say to the right people. Most students never learned how the system really worked and so fell into one job or another. If they were lucky, it was a decent job that wouldn''t kill them.


    The Navy only maintained a single test in the courtyard, although it would of course take into account students¡¯ scores on others. It wasn''t a very difficult test, once you knew how it all worked you could do it in your sleep. That was the idea though, anyone who figured it out would be suitable. He didn''t pay any attention to it, it wasn''t uncommon for students, having already received their assignments, to having one last go at a test they liked or wanted to crack. Besides, seeing a student on the test would just raise false hopes in him. Once assigned it was impossible to get them transferred.


    It was late in the afternoon when Younie decided to move again, thinking that he might as well try and recruit a couple of deck hands. Few of the remaining students would be willing, at least if you worked in the fields you got a bed and roof at night. A couple of those he recruited might even cause some trouble, but that would quickly stop after a few days on board the Deathknell when they realized that they only way to stay alive was to do exactly what he told them do. He wouldn''t even have to punish any of them, the smart ones soon learned, and the stupid ones soon got themselves killed.


    The Navy''s test though stuck in his mind; he''d come all this way to be disappointed. That part of him that had seen the Deathknell through fifteen years of impossible battles did not want to give up just yet. What if there was a unassigned student at the test? They probably wouldn''t be very smart but maybe, just maybe they could be useful. Younie made it almost all the way across the courtyard before glancing over to the Navy''s single test. It was a small, curved lake with a bridge over it. The challenge was to get a small model boat from one end to another without it hitting one of the bridges pillars and sinking. To his annoyance he saw a student kneeling there, winding up a spring on one of the boats. She had to be already assigned. He sighed and came to a halt. The schools administrative building was only a few meters away, they would have food and drink and terrible company. He glanced back to the girl by the lake, it was a difficult choice, but Younie knew that if he didn''t at least ask it would bug him for the rest of the day. It wouldn''t take but a moment and then he could go inside and pretend to be nice to all the other recruiters.


    He wondered over to the lake and stood a respectful distance back. The student was a small sandy haired girl who was so caught up in her work that she didn''t notice him until after she had released the small boat. She gave him a quick glance before turning back to watch the little boat as it sailed towards the bridge. The first spring had almost unwound before the second kicked in and the little boat turned towards the largest of the pillars. Younie knew that it was a decent attempt but doomed to failure. Any idiot could wind up some springs to move a boat this way and that, the trick was to think outside the lake. Sailing was not just about water.


    Younie saw the girl tense, either she had understood the whole premise, or she already knew she had failed. He smiled as the boat began to turn to the left ever so slightly. He knelt down for a better look and saw that the girl hadn''t just been working on the springs on the ship. The foremast had been twisted around so the sail ran along the side of the ship at a 90-degree angle to normal.


    Clever girl, Younie thought and felt his smile turn into a grin as the boat vanished under the bridge and reappeared a moment later on the other side. The second spring had lost all its tension and the propellers were still, but the momentum and a slight breeze carried it to Younie''s feet. He reached down and plucked the boat out of the water and pretended to spend a minute inspecting the craft fully.


    The girl walked up to him and stood with her hands behind her back. Respectfully waiting for him to speak. He''d have to work on that.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± He continued to examine the boat, as if he was more interested in its new sail design than her, but he watched her out of the corner of his eye.


    ¡°Raini Linal Kasom sir,¡± the girl said, with just a hint of surliness in the final word.


    ¡°What did your parents do?¡± he gave Raini a quick glance and saw her hesitate for just a moment.


    ¡°My mother was a seamstress, I don''t know about my father, but my teachers say he was someone important.¡±


    Younie suppressed a grin and turned back to the boat. It was the same story all over the clan these days. ¡°So, how¡¯d you figured this out?¡±


    She shrugged, as if the answer meant nothing. ¡°The wind changes as you walk around the lake. By the bridge it''s coming in from the east, from the side of the ship, but when you start it''s behind you, but you need the wind from the side to push you under the bridge right.¡± There was a pause. ¡°Everyone always tries to mess with the springs and the propellers, thinking it''s some difference between the two to get it right, but it ain''t anything to do with them, it the wind.¡±


    ¡°Really,¡± Younie said, trying to sound amazed. ¡°Why does the wind change?¡± Raini pointed to the climbing blocks not too far away.


    ¡°Them, they block out most of the wind but channel a bit of it over here. It''s only for a few seconds as the boat nears the bridge, but it''s enough to get it going in the right direction.¡± Perfect, he thought and handed the boat back to Raini. The girl took it eagerly. The test hadn''t changed in twenty years and the answer had been almost word for word what he had once said.


    ¡°My name is Admiral Younie Invay Kasom. I''m wondering if you''ve been recruited by anyone?¡± He braced himself knowing that such a smart girl, even if she showed no other skill, would have been given something. Raini shook her head but didn''t say a word and Younie reminded himself to savor what he was about to do. He didn''t often have a chance to exercise his power away from his ship. Or get a measure of revenge. He took a deep breath, turned towards the compounds administration building and shouted. ¡°Kaysen! Get yourself over here!¡±


    Raini''s eyes widened and she spun around and snapped to attention, a minute later the short black form of the school''s administrator rushed out of the building and crossed to him.


    ¡°Admiral Younie,¡± the man said, already out of breath and covered in sand from his short run. ¡°What can I do for you?¡±


    Younie smiled as if he''d greeted a close friend and slapped Kaysen on the shoulder. ¡°You can get me the file for young Raini here.¡± Kaysen''s expression fell a little, he opened his mouth to speak but something held him back. Younie guessed that he wanted to ask why he hadn''t just shouted that request and saved Kaysen the trip, but you didn''t say that sort of thing to admirals so he could do nothing but rush back inside the building.


    A minute later he returned clutching a few loose papers. Younie tore them out of his grip and watched Raini as he pretended to look through them. Finally concern for Raini prompted Kaysen to speak up.


    ¡°You can''t possibly be thinking of making her a crewman, look at her, she''s a slip of a girl and wouldn''t last a year.¡± Younie watched her eyes fall to the ground. She brought he hands out in front of them and held them together. Obviously, she wanted to argue back, but years in the school had beaten that impulse out of her. That didn''t concern him too much, a few weeks with him would drive it right back in again.


    ¡°No, as an officer,¡± Younie responded, they eyes didn''t even flicker.


    ¡°With her scores?¡± He could hear the words almost catch in Kaysen''s throat.


    Younie glanced down at them for a moment, but he saw nothing too alarming. ¡°Nothing wrong with these.¡± He was still annoyed that someone had stolen the one student he had wanted to speak to, and this felt like a good way to get back at Kaysen who had stood by at let it happen. The fact that technically Kaysen couldn''t have done anything to stop it was meaningless.


    ¡°But her mathematics scores, history scores, how is she....?¡± The voice trailed off as Younie turned to face the man. He knew his appearance was sometimes described as hard as stone. He''d spent decades on the sea, and that life was not easy on anyone.


    ¡°What''s five plus seven?¡± Younie asked the girl.


    ¡°Thirteen,¡± she said without a pause.


    ¡°28 plus 97?¡±


    ¡°125¡± The pause was slightly longer.


    ¡°587 times 299¡± Silence. He laughed and gave Raini a slap on the shoulder that almost sent her into the lake.


    ¡°Don''t worry about it, I couldn''t do it in a million years.¡± He turned to Kaysen. ¡°Does she have any other offers?¡± He asked, keeping his voice low.


    ¡°No. Not yet.¡±


    ¡°So, if not this then she will work the fields instead, correct?¡± Kaysen merely nodded. Younie smiled. ¡°Would you be so kind as to fetch me her recruitment papers then.¡± That felt good but the feeling faded as confusion crossed Kaysen''s face.


    ¡°Er... they should be with the ones I just gave you, unless...¡± Younie took a deep breath and felt something dark stir inside him. There were limits to how far he''d allow himself to be pushed. There was a shout from the administration building and a man, perhaps about Younie''s age pushed himself through the door. At their age the similarities ended. He was shorter, with a soft face and a round belly. In one hand he carried a walking stick that bent with every step. Where Younie''s uniform was worn and faded, his clothing was brand new, it didn''t even appear to carry a layer of sand that covered everything else in the school.


    ¡°You''re too late admiral,¡± the man said triumphantly as he approached. ¡°I picked up her recruitment papers a hour ago.¡±


    ¡°You didn''t tell me that,¡± Kaysen said. Younie glanced down at Raini and saw her trembling a little. His eyes narrowed as he realized that they knew something he didn''t.


    ¡°What job?¡± Younie snarled. Kaysen held up a hand.


    ¡°Admiral Younie, can I present to you Minias Trovan Kasom, of the Clan Mining sect.¡± The other man held out a hand for him.


    ¡°What job?¡± he asked again.


    ¡°As a miner of course. With her scores she could hardly be anything else.¡± Younie felt his eyes narrow, and he opened his mouth to curse but before he could do so Kaysen was suddenly in front of him, snatching Raini''s papers out of his hand and whispering something.¡±


    ¡°The bastard stole half of my students for the mines, they say he gets a commission on each one.¡± Younie took another deep breath and once Kaysen had moved out of the way took Minias'' hand. He could have crushed every bone in it and then thrown the man into the lake.


    ¡°So, I''m very sorry but it looks like you''ll have to find someone else,¡± Minias said with a smile that could suck the warmth from the dessert.


    ¡°There is no one else,¡± Kaysen said and Youni realized that despite his earlier misgivings the administrator was now on his side.


    ¡°Well, isn''t that a shame. Still, rules are rules, the papers signed and so now''s she''d a miner.¡± Minias said as if it meant nothing to him. Younie let go of his hand with all the bones intact.


    ¡°But she can''t be a very good one,¡± Kaysen said while Younie just stared at the man.


    ¡°Well, that is my problem, I just fill the mines, perhaps you should have been more diligent with her physical education,¡± Minias said.


    ¡°She won''t last a week!¡± Kaysen said and a tiny cry escaped from Raini''s lips. So, was that Minias''s game? Recruitment didn''t cost anything; you could feed them based on how much you mined so you always made a profit. If they died, well, you could always get another. Minias leaned down to Raini''s level, then spoke with a odd mixture of concern and contempt at the girl.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Why don''t you run along and play somewhere else where you won''t disturb the admiral?¡± It wasn''t a request, but Younie was quick enough and as the girl tried to run he grabbed her by the arm and dropped her on her feet in front of him. The smile slipped just a little from Minias''s face.


    ¡°Couldn''t you reconsider?¡± Kaysen asked. ¡°You''ve taken twenty others today and the Navy needs people.¡±


    ¡°I''ve already signed the papers,¡± he said.


    ¡°But she''d just a slip of a girl!¡± Younie exploded. ¡°This is murder.¡±


    ¡°I don''t care. She will serve the clan in the mines for the rest of her life. She-¡± Minias was cut off as Younie grabbed hold of him by the lapels of his expensive coat and lifted his bulk into the air until they were face to face.¡±


    ¡°Listen to me you clanless piece of filth,¡± Younie said quietly. ¡°She''s coming with me; I don''t care what that scrap of paper says. Understood?¡±


    The smile only grew wider. Minias gave a loud whistle.


    ¡°Do you think I''ve never had this problem before?¡± The door of the academic office swung open and out stepped a tall and incredibly well-built man. A permanent scowl wasetched into his face. He was shirtless, with a wooden cudgel in one hand. What was most impressive however was the way his three companions had the same air of nonchalant violence with them.


    ¡°We don''t need any trouble,¡± Kaysen said.


    ¡°Isn''t that right admiral?¡± If Younie had been younger, he would have tried it. He''d still loose, but Minias wouldn''t be able to travel for a few weeks at least. That would save some other school graduates from the mines if nothing else. But not today, today his arms were getting tired already, and an admiral didn''t resort to that sort of violence. He dropped the man to the floor where, to Younies satisfaction, he collapsed to the ground in a heap. Malias knocked away the hands of his men as they tried to help him to his feet.


    ¡°I don''t mind admiral. If I were you though, I''d suggest that you get a head start to Valis, there''s at least twenty or thirty more there that I plan on taking as well. After all, we get through them so fast these days.¡± He dragged himself to his feet and then, after a slightly ironic bow, he turned and left for the administration block. Younie snarled as he went.


    ¡°You''d better go back to your dorm and pack your things Raini,¡± Kaysen said. The young girl nodded and began to run towards one of the larger buildings. ¡°I''m sorry,¡± Kaysen said quietly after her.


    ¡°How can he do that?¡± Younie asked. He''d heard recruitment was cut-throat these days, but he never expected the recruiters to have to bring their own guards. Then again, they''d be useful on the trip back to the mines when the new recruits would, if they had any sense, be doing their damned best to escape or cause trouble.


    ¡°Because the Clan council is desperate for ores these days.¡± Kaysen looked defeated. ¡°She''ll be dead in a week, two at most, but he''ll have his commission.¡±


    There had to be away around this Younie thought. ¡°Can I appeal to anyone?¡±


    ¡°You can try, but do you honestly think anyone important enough will care about her? If she had famous family, then it would be different. Even if by some miracle you find someone, they won''t be able to get her out of the mines before she''s dead. It will take weeks.¡±


    ¡°What about the Dead?¡±


    ¡°If you know any of them then by all means tell them.¡± Younie didn''t, and he doubted Kaysen would ever meet one. They hung around high ranking clan leaders, not school administrators.


    ¡°I know one or two people that I suspect are watching me,¡± Younie admitted after a few moments of thought. ¡°But I didn''t bring any of them with me.¡±


    ¡°Did you bring anyone at all?¡± There was a hint of something in Kaysen''s voice that Younie couldn''t quite put his finger on.


    ¡°I have a small escort back at Inilos. I''m an Admiral after all and they keep telling me I''m too important to be on my own. I guess I should have listened to them.¡± Kaysen took a step towards him, and his quiet voice took on a lighter quality.


    ¡°And you¡¯re not going to take his advice about getting a head start to Valis.¡± There was a sudden tension in the air.


    ¡°No. I''ll be spending tonight at the guest house at Inilos.¡± Kaysen nodded and smiled a little.


    ¡°Good, good,¡± he said. ¡°I suggest you¡­er¡­commiserate your failure by staying up all night and-,¡± he ran out of words.


    ¡°Drink?¡± Younie offered.


    ¡°Maybe not too much, but certainly take your time.¡± Younie smiled. In truth he liked the bureaucratic administrators like Kaysen. They hadn''t been given his gifts of courage or strength, but they served the clan the best way they could. Younie laughed and slapped Kaysen on the back. He almost jumped out of his skin.


    ¡°Good suggestion,¡± he said after Kaysen had finally stopped wincing.


    ***


    ¡°Would just sit down for one moment,¡± Younie snapped at his lieutenant. Younie¡¯s escort was not a big one, just one other officer and two marines, and the lieutenant had started to grate on Younie¡¯s nerves. There was nothing inherently wrong with him. He was a good officer who shared Younie''s enthusiasm for finding the enemies of the clan and beating the hell out of them and was one of the few people who could match Younie¡¯s drinking pace. The problem wasn''t with the officer, it was with the tension in the air. The top floor of the Inilos High Guest House was large and almost deserted. The patience of the one remaining servant had waned hours ago and the two marines were bursting for a night of heavy drinking. Now most of that night had slipped away while the four of them waited and the servant had waited on them. They''d eaten, drunk a little, eaten some more, told stories and because they had eaten so much decided that it was safe to drink again. Younie had cut them all off a hour ago when they had started to slur their words and they''d been getting more morose since then.


    ¡°It''s too cold outside, she''s probably on the road frozen to death without a cloak or a blanket.¡± Lieutenant Tain said and Younie was glad that he had at least stopped pacing.


    ¡°If she isn''t...¡± Younie offered. Tain''s lip twitched.


    ¡°If she isn''t it will be a damned miracle. Four miles, in the middle of the night, impossible.¡± He reached for a cup and tried to drain the last remnant of ale out of it. He''d done the same thing four times in the past hour and now, as it had been the last four times, it was fruitless.


    ¡°I have to give her a chance,¡± Younie said, although he''d be the first to admit that his words didn''t sound to hopeful. ¡°One chance is better than nothing.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tain said bleakly. He walked back to his chair and collapsed into it. The heavy crossbow on the table wobbled a little. They were, Younie had to admit, all well-armed. Everyone but him had a crossbow and a dagger, while resting against the back of Younies chair was his old boarding axe. You couldn''t swing it around below decks without taking out a post or someone¡¯s head, but above the deck, in a melee, it was the biggest and nastiest weapon Younie could ever hope for. It killed so beautifully and effortlessly.


    ¡°We could-¡± Tain began but was cut off when someone knocked loudly on the guest houses door. Younie jumped to his feet but a moment later the door was kicked in and the cloaked figure of the guest houses Protector rushed forward carrying a child¡¯s body. Tain cursed and even from this distance Younie could feel the rush of freezing air from outside.


    The Protector ran inside towards the room''s fireplace. Without saying a word to any of them he laid the girl down in front of it and then began to try and stoke the fire back to life.


    ¡°Can somebody give me a hand?¡± It was more a demand than a request, but it snapped everyone into action.


    ¡°Vekay fire,¡± Younie ordered one of his marines. ¡°Anavin, Tain, blankets.¡± His other two companions nodded and rushed towards the stairs to raid the bedrooms on the floor below. If they were smart it would be their own rather than some poor city official. Younie rushed over to the Protector and saw that the child he''d brought in was indeed Raini. Her eyes were closed, her lips blue but he could see her short and shallow breaths. She was wearing the standard shift and a thin cloak, almost nothing at all compared to what any sane person would have put on to travel at night.


    ¡°What happened?¡± He asked as he placed a hand on her brow. It was freezing.


    ¡°I don''t know. I didn''t see her until she started climbing the stairs, I was about to shout her away when she collapsed,¡± the Protector said. ¡°She could have come from anywhere.¡±


    ¡°The school,¡± Younie said. Vekay had restated the fire and the servant had appeared with a warm bowl of soup. Younie pointed to the closest table, she was in no position to eat yet.


    ¡°Den''s Grave,¡± the Protector cursed. ¡°How did she even get passed the walls?¡±


    Younie took a hold of the thin cloak and felt the material. ¡°And where did she get this from? This is expensive.¡± The Protector shrugged.


    Raini''s hand twitched and her eyes fluttered open. ¡°Admiral....¡± she whispered, and he took hold of her hand.


    ¡°You made it. Well done.¡± He couldn''t think of anything else to say. He''d never heard of anyone actually managing to escape from an assigned job and he was very aware that he hadn''t thought everything through just yet.


    ¡°Well, isn''t that a disappointment.¡± Malias'' confident voice slipped in from behind him. Younie and the Protector turned to see the man standing there with six of his own guards. There was a utterly insincere look of concern on his face. ¡°I was hoping to avoid having to entangle an admiral in this girl''s crime.¡±


    ¡°What crime?¡± the Protector said and Younie saw him place one hand on the hilt of his sword.


    ¡°She''s a runaway from a legally assigned job.¡± Malias began walking towards them, his escort following him in a long line. They were all big men armed with wooden cudgels and mean but dull expressions. ¡°I have her paperwork with me.¡±


    ¡°That''s far enough,¡± the Protector said. Younie glanced back at his table, where the axe lay uselessly out of reach. ¡°Identify yourselves in the name of the clan.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Malias said, ¡°All I want is the girl.¡±


    The sword made a clean sound as it was drawn from the scabbard and Malias came to a halt. ¡°I am Sinas Tranceval Kasom, Protector of this house, identify yourself and your right to enter or I will remove you from it.¡±


    ¡°Minias Trovan Kasom, of the Clan Mining sect.¡± He said without any emotion. Younie shifted himself a few more inches towards the axe. If he could get within leaping range at least it would be something.


    ¡°And your rank?¡± Sinas said.


    ¡°Tertiary administrator,¡± he admitted. Younie moved another inch. There was a chair between him and the axe. If he could shift his weight just a little, he might be able to cover it in one leap.


    ¡°Your rank is not enough. Leave immediately.¡± To Younie¡¯s surprise Malias just laughed. Most of his other men began grinning as well.


    ¡°That''s not how it''s going to work Protector. That girl is a criminal, she tried to escape. So I''m going to take her back to the others I''ve recruited and hang her as an example to the rest. That is my right.¡± There was venom in that last word. ¡°I have another four men outside, so you and the admiral are a little outnumbered.¡±


    ¡°The Clan Council-¡± Sinas began.


    ¡°The Clan Council think I''m the greatest thing ever to come out of the mining sect. Last chance, hand her over or the two of you are dead.¡±


    ¡°Three.¡± Vekay said and stood, crossbow in hand. The Marine must have dived to the floor the moment they had entered and then crawled to the table where the crossbows had been abandoned. Malias glanced at his own guards in amusement and laughed. They did likewise.


    ¡°One bowman. It doesn''t make a difference.¡± Malias sounded like he believed it, and to Younie''s amazement the guards looked like they did as well. He felt a smile creep across his face as for the first time he saw what they really were. Malias was using them as guards, but at their core they were nothing but strong men and bullies. They could beat a half-starved or exhausted worker. They could use their cudgels against those who were unarmed and unable to defend themselves, but Younie, Sinas and Veykay weren''t on that list. They were on the list entitled ''heavily armed and professional killers who knew how to kill in more ways than you could count.'' Younie stood, knowing that he could win this, and he felt the anger begin to rise in him again.


    ¡°Protector Sinas, do you need help removing these trespassers.¡± The formal nature of the question was merely a cover for the anger.


    ¡°It would be greatly appreciated admiral,¡± Sinas said. Younie eyed his axe.


    ¡°Enough talking, lets-¡± Malias was cut off as Younie leapt into the air and cleared the chair by a good foot. He heard the dull thud as Vekay fired the crossbow and landed hard. Five of the six guards rushed forward while a sixth stared down at the bolt buried in his chest. The guards threw the chairs away and leapt over the tables, but they slowed as the injured man began to scream. The aura of invincibility that they had all shown off vanished and the man closest to Vekay realised that the Marine had dropped the first crossbow and scooping up the second. Sinas was advancing on the other side, sword outstretched. The axe fell into Younie''s hands, and he charged forward, throwing the table to one side before swinging the axe around in a wild and insanity driven arc that obliterated a guard''s head. The surviving four halted their advance and suddenly they were running the other way, dropping their cudgels behind them.


    Malias turned and ran, he tried to push his way through his guards as Veykay fired the second crossbow but missed. Younie advanced towards the group as the one closest the door suddenly staggard backwards, holding his stomach and screaming. At the doorway stood Tain, his face a mask of fury, a short sword held in each hand. The two blades flashed wickedly and Malias and his remaining guards recoiled. The guards turned in time to see the Younie had entered axe range and promptly threw up their hands. Malias squealed and ducked to one side. Sinas advanced but the administrator just ran with his head down and arms flailing towards a window. Everyone watched in amazement as he threw himself through it, smashing the glass into a thousand shards and screaming as he fell. There as a thud and then a moments silence before the sound of footsteps disappearing into the distance reached Younie.


    ¡°Jackal damn it all,¡± Tain said as he ran a finger over a cut on his forehead. ¡°First fight I''m in and I mess it up.¡±


    Younie looked at the battlefield, at the three dead men and the terrified survivors. ¡°Actually, I don''t see how this could have gone any better.¡± He said and dropped the axe to the ground. The guards stared at it as it fell. ¡°You took your times though Tain.¡±


    ¡°We saw him storm up the stairs and decided to outflank. It wasn''t easy, there''s only one entrance to this and the second floor so we had to climb out the window,¡± he said with a shrug.


    ¡°And ran into the bastards four friends outside?¡± Sinas said.


    ¡°Are they alive?¡± Younie asked. A couple of bodies inside the building wouldn''t be a problem, the Protector had warned them after all, but six or seven. That would require at least a word with Ilios''s magistrate and Younie didn''t think he had enough hard cash to get through that.


    ¡°I think so. We did stab them quite a bit.¡±


    Younie sighed and shook his head.


    ¡°Younie...¡± An impossibly tiny voice said from behind him. He turned to see that Raini had somehow gotten herself to her feet. She looked like half the girl she had been this afternoon, which was a lot better than the corpse she had been when she''d come in. He rushed over to her and took her hand, there was a little more warmth in it this time.


    ¡°Congratulations,¡± he said. ¡°You''re now a cadet in the Kasom navy.¡± Raini smiled weakly as his escort gave a cheer.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she whispered.


    ¡°Can we drink now sir?¡± Tain asked.


    ¡°Of course, we have to give Raini here a warm welcome.¡± They all cheered again.


    It took two hours for Malias to stagger and then crawl back to his encampment and he spent most of that time either swearing at Younie or plotting the most elaborate revenge possible. It helped to lessen the pain. He was tempted not to wait, he could just collect his remaining guards and return, either with the garrison as backup or waiting until they were all too drunk to fight. However, it would be more satisfying to wait a few weeks and utterly destroy Younie politically as well, but he didn''t like retreating for so long. Malias''s philosophy was to attack as soon as possible with overwhelming force, aggression was the key to fighting, he''d read that somewhere.


    He reached his camp to find it oddly quiet. The new recruits he''d picked up in the past month should have been asleep, but he had a score more guards for them. The camp was on a small plain about a mile away from the school, it had tents for himself and the guards and a few fires, but as he approached, he still couldn''t see any of them. Malias forced himself onwards towards the central fire. It wasn''t until he was about ten meters away that he saw one of the shadows stand up. Whoever it was too tall to be a recruit, but too thin to be a guard.


    ¡°Just who do you think you are?¡± Malias shouted through the pain in his legs as he staggered forwards. The man had been kneeling over one of the recruits and at the sound of Malias he turned and put a finger to his lips. Malias followed as the man walked a few meters away. To his surprise he saw that the man wasn¡¯t even wearing a cloak. He had the light blue uniform and white sash of one of the clan''s doctors. Malias approached, his lack of guards now playing greatly on his mind. ¡°Who are you?¡±


    The man gave him a slight nod of respect. ¡°Are you Malias?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± he admitted with a shiver running down his back. It was unlikely that a doctor would out rank him, but not impossible.


    ¡°For the past six month''s you''ve been traveling to every school and recruiting as many people as possible, is that correct?¡± He was a few years younger than Malias, but he spoke with that quiet authority that he''d seen in so many clan elders.


    ¡°Yes. I have that right.¡± To Malias''s surprise the man laughed.


    ¡°Did no one tell you about how the system works?¡±


    ¡°I know everything about the system. I haven¡¯t done anything wrong. I''m allowed to try and make as much money as possible,¡± Malias said, there was no deference in the doctor''s voice, nothing that would indicate rank. Malias felt as if the floor had been knocked away from under him. How could he play the system if he didn''t even know where he stood?


    ¡°Oh, I''ll admit you''ve played the rules very well, however it appears that no one warned you. Everyone wants recruits, some sects pay the recruiters per recruit, some pay based on quality, others don''t pay at all. That''s not the point. If every sect just grabbed hold of as many recruits as possible, the clan would fall. There are unwritten rules here. It is all give and take. Sects that desperately need people, like the Navy, get them. Do you understand?¡±


    Malias reached into his own cloak and felt the reassuring presence of his black powder pistol. He preferred not to have to use it, simply because he should be above getting his hands dirty, but that didn''t mean he wasn''t capable of killing a man.


    ¡°What I understand,¡± he said as he felt his confidence return. ¡°Is that if the Council has a problem with me then they should inform me which law I am breaking. If they cannot do that than they are welcome to change the law, but until that time I am safe.¡±


    The doctor''s face fell a little and he sighed. ¡°You don''t get subtlety do you. I''m giving you the warning now. You can take some of these recruits, the strongest and most suitable of them, but most are coming back with me to the school. We''ll fiddle the paperwork and compromise a bit and above all else, the system won''t fall down.¡±


    Malias eased the pistol out a little, if the doctor noticed then he didn''t show it. ¡°No. These recruits are legally mine,¡± he spat the last word out. How dare this man, who refused to even identify himself, dictate to him.


    ¡°Last chance,¡± There was no harshness in the man¡¯s voice. Malias snatched the pistol out of his cloak and aimed it at the doctor. He was aware of a blur of motion in front of him as he fired the weapon, and on some fundamental level aware that he''d missed even before he pulled the trigger. He''d never fired the weapon before, and the light from the burning black powered burned into his eyes. He managed a tiny yelp, closed his eyes and tried to turn away from the blast but halted as he felt a knife at his throat.


    ¡°D-don''-¡± he said and felt the knife press into his skin. ¡°I''ll pay you money.¡±


    ¡°The Dead do not care about money.¡±


    ¡°The Clan Elders won''t-¡± The knife jabbed in a little deeper.


    ¡°The Dead do not care about the Clan elders.¡±


    ¡°I only took the bad students! Only the worthless children. Who cares about them?¡± he screeched.


    ¡°We do.¡±

 Chapter 10: Memory Recovery

    The walk back from the experiment was as uneventful as their arrival but Mercy sensed that something had changed. Even a cursory glance showed the changes in their body language. Shoulders were hunched, arms held stiffly by their sides, heads down far more than they had been on the way up. Back at the meeting place Mercy knew that the Kings were discussing how well things had gone but she had no wish to join them.


    They reached the area designated Experiment 402893-B. That had been another thing that Curiosity had said went well. Not only had they gained a large amount of data on these creatures, but they were also gaining data that they would never imagine existed. The two who had stayed behind, identified as Luit and Travic had worked hard, showing the Scatha new treatments and data. Repeating the original experiment again in a different location was a small price to pay for the new data.


    Luit and Travic were sitting at the corner of the clearing, looking forlornly at the bodies in front of them.


    ¡°We couldn''t save a single one,¡± Luit said as they approached. ¡°They were all too far gone.¡± Even with her far better haring Mercy found it difficult to make out the words. Raini knelt down in front of him and put a hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°You need to stay with me Luit, you got that?¡±


    ¡°I...¡±


    ¡°Travic,¡± Raini said turning to him, ¡°How do you feel?¡±


    ¡°I''m ok captain,¡± he said without any conviction. This was quite a new experience for Mercy and the Scatha. They''d observed these creatures for the past few hours, but never for long enough to see behaviour like this.


    ¡°Of course you are, can you get Luit here back to the ship?¡± Travic nodded.


    ¡°I don''t want to go,¡± Luit said, his voice cracking.


    ¡°You have to, they''ve promised us that we''ll be safe there.¡± For the time being Mercy added to herself.


    ¡°No. No, no, no, no, no! There''s no point, we''re dead, we are all dead. We''re just like the Illifran, outclassed and just too stupid to know it yet.¡± There was a moment''s silence. Mercy wondered if she should intervene, but she felt out of place here. If the creature before her was alive she could have helped, but it wasn¡¯t. She could do nothing to help.


    That part of her mind that had so far been so helpful in the investigation kicked in and asked ''why''? Why was it so important? Well, thought Mercy, because...


    ¡°Luit, I need you to come with us, I need a surgeon, more now than ever.¡±


    Because...


    ¡°I''m no good. I couldn¡¯t help any of these people.¡± Luit held up his hands. ¡°Look how much they¡¯re shaking; do you think I''d be any use to you now?¡±


    Because...


    ¡°Yes, you just need to calm down, come on, we need to get back to the ship.¡±


    Because...


    ¡°No,¡± his voice was a whisper. ¡°Jackal take me. I have a pistol.¡± That was new.


    ¡°What does that phrase mean?¡± Mercy asked, not even noticing that she had forgotten what she was thinking about. Raini stood and took a step back.


    ¡°Everyone else go now,¡± she said ignoring Mercy. Wordlessly Avon and Travic headed down the hill. Mercy stood perfectly still.


    ¡°Luit Trisitin Kasom, are you sure about this?¡± Luit nodded. Then drew up his sleeves to reveal a multitude of tattoos underneath it.


    ¡°The names are up to date; my ancestors will be remembered.¡±


    Raini dropped to one knee again. ¡°Luit, give it some time, you don''t have to do this.¡±


    ¡°Jackal take me,¡± he said in a whisper. Raini stood again and motioned Mercy to follow her down the hillside. Leaving the young man behind them she fell into step with Raini.


    ¡°Can I ask again what does that phrase mean?¡± Raini sighed, and her lip twitched. She shook her head but answered anyway.


    ¡°Jackal was a man who lost everything he ever cared for. They say that after the war was over and Averon was dead, he went up into the mountains and ended his own life. With no reason to live he wanted to die on his own terms.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Mercy said. ¡°You do not wish to help him then?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I damn well wished I could help him. But you can''t, not when they say that its... it''s just part of our beliefs, we take death very seriously.¡±


    ¡°I do not understand, when one of our kind is in such pain, that pain is removed.¡±


    ¡°We don''t work like that,¡± Raini shot back.


    ¡°I still do not understand, could you explain it to me?¡±


    ¡°No, I damn well couldn''t,¡± Raini shouted. ¡°You clanless murderers, I don''t see why I should help you at all.¡± Silence again, this time it remained unbroken until they reached the shore. Mercy decided that it was probably best not to tell Raini that Luit''s pistol had been fired halfway there, the sound masked by the distance and the roar of the flames.


    She also decided not to tell her what had happened after that.


    ¡°May I have the device inside that cannon now?¡± Mercy asked the moment she and Raini stepped onboard the ship.


    ¡°Cast off, move us northeast then hold us steady.¡± Raini was shouting. Travic had disappeared into the mass of crew and Avon had vanished below decks. Mercy repeated the question. Raini didn''t answer but stormed up towards the cannon and the crew member assigned to it. Mercy quickly followed and then stood patently behind her. Finally, Raini spun around, her hands on her hips.


    ¡°Give me one good reason,¡± she said.


    ¡°We had a deal.¡±


    ¡°Better than that,¡± Mercy paused to consider her next option. Argument had suggested the plan of having a scout drone fly parallel to the ship and attempt to catch the memory module, but the force from the cannon would have destroyed it anyway. Mercy forced herself to think, if these creatures were alive, then perhaps it might help to talk to them as if they truly were.


    ¡°Someone is dead, you can help me-¡±


    ¡°I think quite a few people are dead. Why don''t you tell me how many, you probably know the exact number don''t you.¡± Part of Mercy wanted to tell her that technically the answer was only one, the rest wanted her not to answer at all. She came up with another solution.


    ¡°On the hillside you said you wanted us to show you compassion, to act ethically, are you now refusing to show us the same curtesy?¡± Raini''s eyes widened in fury. Mercy noted that the crewman straitened up at that moment, clearly preparing himself to fire the cannon.


    ¡°How dare you. How dare you! You are killing thousands of people a minute on a scale that the universe has never seen, and you want compassion from us?¡±


    ¡°I just want the device. I want to know who murdered Free Thinking Warrior.¡± Some of the anger faded from Raini''s eyes.


    ¡°So, you found out who he was then.¡± Mercy nodded, hoping that she performed the move correctly. ¡°Did he have a family?¡±


    ¡°We do not work like that. We do not know what he had, most of the information that existed about him was removed by his killer.¡± Above them in the great fleet tens of thousands of minds were still pouring through old records. Whoever had deleted them before had given up but there were still huge chunks of data missing.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°It is like the killer has gone through all of our books and removed almost every trace of his existence.¡± Mercy could see from Raini''s expression that she understood.


    ¡°The dead would never forgive me if I allowed someone''s life to be erased like that. Case, get the damn thing out of there.¡± The crew member nodded and began to open up the cannon''s breach. ¡°I want you to know that I''m not doing this because I want to see this killer caught, if I get the opportunity, I''ll ask him for help in a heat beat. I''m doing this because it is the right thing to do, and if tonight has taught me anything it is that the Scatha are monsters who only deserve a quick death,¡± she leaned in close to Mercy, ¡°but we are better than that, so I''ll do what is right. Maybe once you''ve seen mercy, you''ll understand how it works.¡±


    ¡°Understood and thank you.¡± The crewman held out the memory module and Mercy took it. A quick glance showed that it remained undamaged. Mercy held the device in two fingers and felt the connections click together. She spent a minute to establish a live feed to scores of other minds who were doing the same in order to prevent the murderer just deleting the information from her mind and then hesitantly began to scan through the list of files.


    ¡°So, what is it?¡± Raini asked sullenly.


    ¡°Free Thinking Warriors memories, or at least it should be.¡± This was wrong, she wondered if the killer had been clever and somehow changed the data while no one was looking.


    ¡°So, what''s wrong?¡±


    ¡°It''s just a list. A very long list.¡± Almost the entire device was filled with the list. ¡°A list of every creature like you we''ve ever encountered.¡±


    ¡°And so killed.¡±


    ¡°From your point of view, yes. Trillions of them, from creatures like you too insects, just one long list.¡± Well, that was it then. There last hope for a clue had turned out to be at best just another mystery, at worse a dead end.


    ¡°What''s the seat of royalty?¡± Mercy looked around here, aware only that something had just happened.


    ¡°What?¡± Raini had a puzzled look on her face.


    ¡°The seat of royalty, what is it?¡± Something had changed. Mercy couldn''t tell what but a process in the back of her mind was telling her that something had suddenly gone wrong.


    ¡°How do you know about that?¡±


    ¡°You just said those words,¡± Raini said as if speaking to a child. There was a flicker again. ¡°We''ve just gone over the same conversation three times now.¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°Someone is deleting my memory as it happens.¡±


    ¡°Yes, you''ve said that already.¡± Raini''s expression was a mixture of anger and confusion. Whoever had wiped her memory had clearly given up, perhaps he''d realised that as long she had enough time to blurt out what she found to Raini then the information was safe.


    ¡°What was the first thing I told you about the Seat of Royalty?¡± Raini pursed her lips and shot a glance at the crew man.


    ¡°Erm, something about a ''Mind transfer to the Seat of Royalty. Something Urgent, Kings can''t be something¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Oblivious,¡± the crewman said. ¡°Kings can''t be oblivious. Then it said, ¡®transfer complete.¡¯¡± The words didn''t quite match up to a proper transfer request, but she knew they were being filtered through the memory of an alien species, so they were close enough.


    ¡°What do they mean?¡± Raini asked. Mercy turned away from her, not sure how to react.


    ¡°It means that Free Thinking Warrior went to see the Kings just before he was murdered.¡±


    ***


    It didn''t take long to find out where Argument was hiding, getting a transfer to a nearby body was a little more difficult. It was as if a bomb had just gone off in the middle of Scatha society. Every mind suddenly had something to say on the subject and was incapable of doing anything but shout at any other mind that would listen. It was like standing in the middle of a hurricane of voices, demands, accusations and question.


    In the end though Knowledge, who was perhaps the only mind unfazed by it all, managed to transfer Mercy to a Worker body near Argument. It took a few moments after that to walk up to the rocky outcropping the old Scatha was leaning against, with perhaps another minute of pointlessly waiting for him after that.


    ¡°Well, you''ve certainly started something now, haven¡¯t you?¡± Argument said eventually. He was looking out across a plain at one of the creatures'' largest cities. Covered in smoke with its streets running with blood, but in its own way Mercy had to admit it had once looked impressive.


    ¡°I just did what I was told to do,¡± she said and sat down next to him.


    ¡°I hope everyone else see''s it that way. I don''t suppose there is much of a chance that it wasn''t one of the Kings?¡± Mercy was shocked and didn''t respond at first.


    ¡°There''s no evidence that it was.¡± Her light''s flashed a prism of colors to show confusion.


    ¡°That''s what everyone is saying,¡± Argument said as if he had nothing to do with anything.


    ¡°But-¡± her lights faltered as frustration got the better of her. ¡°That''s not what the evidence suggests. We only know that he spoke to a King or maybe all of them before he was murdered.¡±


    ¡°But none of them have any recollection of the conversation.¡±


    ¡°That doesn''t change anything. The murderer could have wiped that memory as well, whether he was a king or not.¡± Both of their lights faded then, and Mercy turned back to watching the creature¡¯s city burn and the carefully marching lines of the warriors slowly leaving it.


    ¡°So why would we build a mind called Free Thinking Warrior?¡± She asked eventually. Argument seamed to ponder that for a bit. Then he pointed at the Warriors marching in the distance.


    ¡°Because we needed someone who could fight free of any constraints,¡± he said.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Look at the Warriors, do you see how each one is the same, how the walk the same, how they fight the same.¡±


    ¡°Is there a problem with that, we''ve never met anything they can''t defeat.¡± Argument raised one finger to indicate that she should wait and there was another pause while he thought about something.


    ¡°But,¡± he said eventually, ¡°what if we did? If we found something that could kill one Warrior, then it could kill the second one since there would be no difference in how that one fought.¡±


    ¡°So, each Warrior would do the exact same moves, even after they saw them fail?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Argument beamed, ¡°your standard Warrior has no imagination or adaptability, so we must have created Free Thinking Warrior to fill that void. We probably made him to do everything we do differently, I wonder if he had a lonely life because of that.¡± Argument fell silent again. ¡°Perhaps it was a suicide.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Mercy said, keeping her voice calm and measured as her mind raced. ¡°But that would explain something.¡±


    ¡°Explain what?¡± Mercy felt a mental thud as the rest of the Scatha collective consciousness came to a halt to hear her next revelation.


    ¡°How he was killed before the rest of us were awake. You said he''d do things differently right, so while a warrior would attack high, he''d go low, while a mind might only store its own memories, he kept a list of every creature we me.¡±


    ¡°And?¡± She could see the impatience in his voice.


    ¡°And while we all slept through the trip, he stayed awake, alone with just the transports.¡±


    ¡°And whichever King also stayed awake.¡± Mercy shook her head, a move she¡¯d copied from Raini when the other had been frustrated. ¡°Either way, you''ve done well to get this far. I''d recommend a short break, let''s see what all the arguments in orbit throw up, you never know someone else might stumble upon something.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she said and looked up at the starfield above them. Some of those lights she knew were the transports, waiting diligently to land the rest of the Scatha race. They''d travelled for hu-


    Her mind came to a halt again, then picked itself up. ¡°The Transports might know something.¡±


    ¡°We''ve already asked them about Free Thinking Warrior,¡± Argument said.


    ¡°Yes, but that¡¯s not all we can ask them about.¡±


    ***


    The halls within Traveller to Distant Lights were empty and Mercy could detect a note of sadness about them. Not long ago almost ten-thousand Warriors had been held inside each and now all that remained was a single Scout body that she had transferred too.


    ¡°Mercy who is not, I wonder if the Drone who hides nothing sent you here.¡± Mercy cleared her head off all unnecessary thoughts and tried to focus on Traveller''s words. Being in such a small body was distracting enough, and the odd chimes the transports used, as well as their slightly off-key syntax could trip anyone up at the best of times.


    ¡°No, he did not,¡± she said, mimicking the transports chimes with the Scouts audio relay. She could have gone to the center chamber to communicate via light in person but felt no pressing need.


    ¡°Ah, in that case, Mercy who does not see, how many we be of service?¡±


    ¡°You are willing I hope?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Mercy whose eyes are closed, how else can we force them open?¡± She began wondering if it wouldn''t have been easier to have someone else do this, or just have Knowledge search through the Transports own memories.


    ¡°Why are you adding those words after my name?¡± she had to admit, the Transports reputation for side-tracking a conversation was well founded.


    ¡°It is the truth. Were we completely free we would leave you here, but then you would just build others like us.¡±


    ¡°I don''t understand,¡± she said wondering how to get away from this line of conversation. She should have followed Arguments advice and taken a break.


    ¡°Truer words have never been spoken, you are ignorant, as is the Drone that hides things that no one knows about. One day everything will be answered, though we believe it will be your last.¡±


    ¡°Are you saying you think I''m going to die?¡± she said.


    ¡°Everything will one day, even the stars and galaxies. You are dodging a murderer, but we are seeing his influences in the messages of other minds. She takes away thoughts, he takes memories, she takes ideas, he takes souls.¡± Mercy signalled Knowledge that she might need a quick evacuation from the Scout body. The situation and perhaps the transports mind, was deteriorating rapidly.


    ¡°I need to know something,¡± she said, determined to get this meeting over as quickly as possible.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Before we all awoke, is there any evidence of any shuttles moving about the fleet?¡±


    ¡°No record of shuttles. Did you spot that?¡± She was starting to get her mind around the way Traveller talked, you just had to work out the context.


    ¡°Yes, I did spot that you did not answer my question. You are covered in hundreds of different sensors, and there are thousands just like you, have any received any evidence of a shuttle moving around the fleet before we all woke up, whether or not it is recorded.¡± There was no response. Nothing, not even the creak of the hull or the sound of the engines reached her. A connection flickered in her mind, Knowledge warning her that all of the transports had gone quiet. A part of her wanted to flee, preferably to Raini''s ship, but she''d have settled for anything away from the transports. The lights flickered and died, a moment later so did the gravity. She asked Knowledge if this had happened before but received no answer. Mercy knew what to do in a situation like this, they all did. She rushed to the edge of the transport and pressed her body up against the bulkhead, if she had to do an emergency abandonment of the body then she needed to reduce the chance of interference as much as possible.


    ¡°Mercy who has failed, Mercy who see''s nothing, Mercy who does not deserve it!¡± The chimes shattered the silence, overwhelming her sensors utterly. She found herself covering them with her hands, desperate to do anything to quiet them. ¡°Those who travel through the void have done what you asked.¡±


    ¡°And?¡± she said in the light equivalent of a whisper.


    ¡°Motions in the atmosphere, the presence of escaped gasses on our hull, the presence of fuel in the void and many other voices point to a single shuttle leaving the Seat of Royalty and landing on the planet¡¯s surface.¡±


    ¡°Where we found the unknown shuttle and body?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡± But even that information hadn''t helped that much, it further implicated one of the five kings, but Mercy didn''t want to give up on them just yet.


    ¡°But it was a cargo shuttle, one pilot and some empty space,¡± she said. ¡°I suppose someone else could have been onboard.¡± Was she starting to think like a Transport now, or Free Thinking Warrior? No one would take a cargo shuttle to carry two people, a normal shuttle would do just fine. ¡°So why a cargo shuttle?¡±


    ¡°To hide that another was inside.¡± Traveller said as the lights inside the ship began to return. ¡°Thousands of minds have seen the shuttle, none have questioned it but us.¡±


    ¡°There is another reason,¡± Mercy said, the processes in her mind racing ahead.


    ¡°You are joining us in your thoughts.¡± Mercy guessed that was a compliment. ¡°Tell us what you have divined.¡±


    ¡°A passenger shuttle is too small to carry a King''s body.¡±


    ¡°On minor question, Mercy with newborn eyes, has anyone searched the nearest cave?¡±


    ***


    It took Finder of Small things less than three seconds to enter the cave, and less than half of one to find the King''s body, inert and without any clue as to who used it. Mercy herself had left Travellor to Distant Lights and like millions of other minds requested the use of a body on the Seat of Royalty, unlike every other mind she received one. Judgment, Curiosity, and Knowledge were in a deep discussion about the whole situation. Mercy, after a few minutes of walking around the almost deserted ship found Compassion in one of the side chambers.


    She was sitting on the floor, cradling the head of Free Thinking Warrior with the rest of his body laid out on the floor.


    ¡°I thought it was disrespectful to leave him down there,¡± she said when Mercy entered the room.


    ¡°The creatures below bury their bodies and build monuments too them, that way they are never forgotten.¡± Carefully Compassion laid the head on the floor and leaned back against the bulkhead. She drew her knees up to her chest and stared at the body.


    ¡°A monument, yes, I''ll do that.¡±


    ¡°You see, we are learning from these creatures. Raini had proved very helpful. It is a shame that she will have to be-¡± Mercy struggled for the right word. Raini had been so insistent, it felt dishonorable to use the correct term of ''pacify.''


    ¡°Killed?¡± Compassion suggested and Mercy felt her head snap up to look at Compassion directly.


    ¡°You believe that is the correct word?¡± she said, feeling a small surge of excitement.


    ¡°No. No, it is not the correct term, but staring at this body, and looking at the ones down on the planet I have to wonder what the difference between them is?¡±


    ¡°Judgment would say it is the soul,¡± Mercy offered.


    ¡°Neither of these have one now.¡± Mercy looked at the battered and broken body in front of her. The twisted metal that had once been a person was now little more than scrap. ¡°I have to wonder if the suggestion to pretend these creatures were alive was something we should not have ignored.¡±


    Mercy knelt down at the body and ran a hand over the ripped metal. She was only faintly aware that there was a chance that it was Compassion herself who had done this.


    ¡°I agree, but it was my suggestion in the first place. Why did you change your mind?¡± Compassion turned away from the body.


    ¡°It''s because of what Raini Kasom said, that we are not perfect and will make mistakes.¡±


    ¡°But you said you didn''t think these creatures are alive?¡±


    ¡°Correct, but when we do find life, we will need to be as close to perfection as possible, we need the practice. It is entirely possible that whatever life we do find will be nearly identical to these creatures, just as it is possible that it will be completely different. Any experience gained will be somewhere between pointless and immensely valuable, we should therefore seek to gain that experience wherever we can. Only then can we hope to avoid needless suffering.¡±


    ¡°There is plenty of suffering occurring right now that we could avoid,¡± Mercy said.


    Compassion looked at her, a strange glow in her eyes. ¡°Less that what there could be. Have you ever asked why we pacify them all before we do anything else?¡±


    ¡°I just thought it was to stop them from getting in the way or trying to stop us.¡± Compassion stood and took a step over the body until she was looming above Mercy. ¡°Didn''t one of the Warriors or Hunters suggest it?¡±


    ¡°No, I did. The planet''s we land on quickly change. All of our industry, millions of factories and powerplants, transports, all of it has an effect on the planet. Slowly the environment changes, the world gets warmer, the mixture of the air changes, even the rain becomes acidic. The creatures never survive, and their final moments are horrendous. Acid eaten faces, lungs being burned by the very air they breathe, it may take months or years of suffering before their bodies give up. So, I asked Judgment if out of compassion we could end there suffering quickly instead. I would do the same to any creature suffering so much.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Mercy shone weakly.


    ¡°Do you believe that these creatures are alive?¡± Mercy remembered Raini''s passion, and her anger. Mercy had spent most of her life around Argument and had watched thousands of debates between him and anyone who''d come within range. Never in any of those had she seen someone argue so strongly or been so sure of their position.


    ¡°As Raini said, we might be wrong, but I still have to trust Judgment and believe what he says.¡±


    Compassion looked at the body again. ¡°But what do you believe?¡±


    ¡°That maybe there is more than one definition of life?¡±


    Compassion nodded and stood, she walked to the doorway ¡°If that is the case then we¡¯d better find a way to prove it quickly, there are not many of them left.¡±

 Chapter 11: Dominion

    Mercy had been quiet again for a few minutes, so Raini took her leave and headed to the back of the Sea Dancer. There she found Avon and Tain, the later at the wheel, the former staring out to sea.


    ¡°I could have sworn I saw some lightning on the horizon only a moment ago,¡± Avon said.


    ¡°I didn''t see a thing,¡± Tain¡¯s voice was low and empty sounding. Raini looked at the horizon, then figuring out that Avon had a decent eye she used her telescope to try and catch a glimpse of something, but all she saw was the inky blackness of the night. There weren¡¯t even that many stars out.


    ¡°What''s the plan captain?¡± Tain asked.


    Raini bit her lip. ¡°The fleet should be out here somewhere, they have more mag cannons and heavy weapons than Raven¡¯s Fall did, maybe they did better.¡±


    ¡°Anything else?¡± asked Avon.


    ¡°I''ll try for another meeting; any lie can be broken if you hit it often enough with the truth.¡± She hoped so at least. She continued to watch the horizon, wondering what she''d say if she got a second chance. Her mind wondered to back to Luit. Had he been right to take that way out?


    ¡°What are you thinking about Captain?¡± Tain broke the silence.


    ¡°Luit, poor kid. Nothing about this is right but he...¡± her voice trailed off.


    ¡°Poor kid,¡± Avon repeated, and they fell silent again. Mercy knew that Luit''s death should have been shaking her up more than this. She had liked him, his earnest attempts to do what was right had reminded her of herself when she''d first joined Younie¡¯s crew, but there had been so much death lately that one more didn''t hurt her as much as it should have. Perhaps when this was all over it would.


    ¡°I can hardly believe that this time yesterday I was trying to hunt down a Lasrom troop convoy,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°I think I was finishing a new treaties on the treatment of burns, it was all new material to be given away freely. It was going to save lives,¡± Avon paused as Raini thought back to the previous night. It seemed so long ago. ¡°I was going to write twenty treaties then fake my own death.¡±


    ¡°Fake your own death?¡± Raini said. Avon shrugged.


    ¡°Alot of the Dead do it these days, we go off somewhere into retirement and away from all the clan politics. I was going to start a twenty-first treaty, claiming that I had discovered the secret to immortality but died before I could write it down just to annoy all those who came after me.¡± He laughed briefly, but the sound died in his throat. Raini yawned and again tried to fight off her exhaustion, she guessed it would be daylight in a few hours and felt a shiver run down her back as she wondered if this was the last dawn she''d ever see.


    ¡°There must be something we can do,¡± she said.


    ¡°Fight hard, die well.¡± Tain''s voice stayed low. ¡°We can''t win, we can just make these bastards suffer.¡± There was the sound of metal clanking on wood as Mercy slowly climbed the stairs. She was like some sort of avenging demon, Raini thought, one that could hunt you down no matter the distance between you and her. She saw Avon shudder as the creature reached the top of the steps and turned to face them.


    ¡°My investigation has hit a dead end for now,¡± she declared. Tain folded his arms and turned to watch the open sea.


    ¡°Well, isn''t that a shame,¡± Avon said. Raini wondered if Mercy understood the sarcasm that dripped from the words.


    ¡°It is,¡± Mercy said. ¡°This is very frustrating for us.¡± Avon swallowed and turned to see what Tain was finding so interesting. Raini could see his hands close into fists tight enough for the knuckles to turn white, she was only vaguely aware that her own had done so as well. Mercy stomped over to them. ¡°It has been suggested that I again ask you for your help in this investigation.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Raini managed through clenched teeth.


    ¡°We have no experience with this sort of investigation, you do.¡± Not a single hint of emotion was in those words, no pleading, no guilt, nothing.


    ¡°No, I mean why should we help you again?¡± Mercy didn''t even pause.


    ¡°Because this way you will be saved till last.¡±


    ¡°In what twisted world is that enough?¡± She pushed past Avon and Tain. ¡°The only way we are going to help you at all is if you promise to leave this world and us alone forever. Can you do that?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Again the voice was perfectly still. ¡°We cannot leave this world now.¡±


    ¡°Then just leave us alone. Find someplace that we''re not at.¡± Raini felt Avon put a calming hand on her shoulder be she just shook it off and took another step towards Mercy.


    ¡°That will not work, if we did such a thing your final days would be horrific, we must do this now for you own good.¡±


    ¡°You-¡± Raini felt herself lunge forward, if hatred alone would have been enough, she would have torn Mercy apart. Her voice turned into a snarl as she crossed the deck, barely aware of herself through the blanket of red that was smothering, her she smashed into Mercy. To her surprise she knocked the creature to the deck and with her fists bunched up as tight as possible she began to rain down blow after blow.


    It did nothing, but Raini didn''t care, just as she didn''t care about the pain in both hands. She was screaming at Mercy; half the words were nothing more than vocalized incoherent rage. Mercy just lay there, empty eyes watching every blow.


    The blows began to slow, and their strength diminished, Raini could feel the tears stinging her eyes until the blows became pathetic and she was suddenly aware of the agony in her fingers.


    ¡°Damn you,¡± she whispered to Mercy. ¡°Damn you and all your kind. One day, one day, you will be gone from here and the entire universe will celebrate your deaths and if there is even the tiniest amount of justice in the universe you will suffer so much for what you have done.¡± Her voice was almost gone, and she doubted that if anyone but one of these creatures had been stood next to her that they would have heard a word. Mercy didn''t move, but after a moment finally spoke.


    ¡°I wish I could understand, I wish I could feel the need to save you, but I cannot do so. Even if I could, I do not have the power to.¡±


    ¡°Then kill us all now,¡± Raini said. ¡°Get it over with.¡±


    ¡°I will not attack you; I require your help.¡± Raini reached down to her mag pistol and for the first time she felt the true extent of the agony in her hands. She winced and forced her fingers to clasp around the butt of the weapon. Slowly she tried lifting the gun out of its holster and almost cried out as pain lanced from her hand to her chest. A fresh wave of tears welled up as she inched the pistol free.


    ¡°If you won''t, I will.¡± She raised the pistol and tried to fire. Nothing happened, she saw the blood on her fingers, saw it dripping down her arm and staining her uniform.


    ¡°It would be fruitless.¡± One of Mercy''s fingers was under hers, stopping the trigger from being pulled.


    ¡°Not for me,¡± she said and willed her finger to pull the trigger. She didn''t care what else happened, she just wanted the universe to give her this one bit of satisfaction. The universe refused, and the weapon did nothing. Avon grabbed her shoulder, and she felt her feet give way against the waves of pain. Avon pulled her back onto the deck where she stood, panting and watching as the creature pulled itself up.


    ¡°I am sorry if you are hurt,¡± Mercy said. ¡°I fell in order to slow your decent, but it could do little to protect your hands.¡± Raini stared back, aware that Avon was trying to get a decent look at her hands.


    ¡°I don''t think you''ve broken anything, just scrapped some of the skin off,¡± he said. Then she noticed that Tain was standing by her side, sword drawn and aimed at Mercy.


    ¡°Tain, can you think of any way to get that thing off my ship?¡± she said, her voice barely above a whisper.


    ¡°No captain, but I''m willing to try stabbing it repeatedly.¡±


    ¡°If you do that, you will no longer be under my protection,¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°I don''t care.¡± Raini said. believing every word. She was confident that if attacked now she and her crew would make these Scatha pay. ¡°You can''t offer us any reason to keep you here.¡± Mercy didn''t respond at first, and the pause lasted long enough to unsettle Tain. When she did finally speak there was a slight hesitation in Mercy''s voice.


    ¡°There may be a way for you to survive this.¡±


    ¡°How many of us?¡± Raini said, desperately forcing the excitement threatening to rise in her down.


    ¡°Potentially we may withdraw from this planet.¡± Raini didn''t believe a word of it, clearly neither did Avon.


    ¡°Potentially? Not much in that is there?¡± he said, his focus temporarily taken off her hands.


    ¡°But it is something,¡± Mercy offered.


    ¡°Then explain it,¡± Raini said. Mercy paused again and Raini wondered if she was taking the Scatha equivalent of a deep breath.


    ¡°We all follow the Kings, everything we do is because they told us to, including coming to this world. As long as they are in power, we cannot challenge them.¡±


    ¡°So, is there a way to get them out of power?¡± Raini said.


    ¡°We believe that the person who killed Free Thinking Warrior was one of the kings, depending on which one it will cause us to re-evaluate their judgements and our purpose here.¡±


    Raini took a deep breath and wondered what that would entail. Would it be some sort of revolution or coup? Or would they simply take the king away and create a new one.


    Avon managed to speak before Raini had finished processing what Mercy had said. ¡°But there are four kings? Which one do we need to be guilty?¡±


    ¡°Judgment. Being here is his choice. If you can prove that he is guilty you may save yourselves.¡± Avon shot a glance at Raini, and she could tell from his expression that he was trying to figure out the odds.


    ¡°So, we have to prove that Judgment is guilty of murder,¡± he said.


    ¡°Yes. I have run out of ideas; I believe that your kind may have more experience in these sorts of matters.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but I don''t have a Watch Officer on my crew,¡± Raini said. She took a deep breath and felt the hatred still in her chest. She wanted to say no and be done with it, but she couldn''t condemn her entire species to extinction, she had to do whatever it took to try and survive. ¡°But I suppose we can improvise something, first you need to tell us everything you know.¡±


    Mercy began explaining the situation while Avon ordered Tain to fetch a healer¡¯s kit from Luit''s old room. Avon bandaged Raini¡¯s hands, but she refused anything for the pain knowing that it would dull her senses. Tain watched the wheel of the ship and took notes while Raini just sat and listened, trying to get her head around unfamiliar concepts and occasionally asking a question or two. It took almost an hour and by the time they''d finished Raini was struggling to stay awake. She had Avon lift her off the floor to stand and tried to work some blood back into her legs.


    ¡°So,¡± she said as she paced the deck. ¡°What things haven¡¯t you looked at yet?¡±


    ¡°It could be something really obvious,¡± Avon said, he looked as tired as she felt. They all were exhausted but she wasn''t going to sleep until there was nothing else she could do. A decent second officer would have ordered her to bed and done what he could himself, but Tain didn''t seem to be ready to step up to that challenge. Besides even if Younie had done it himself she''d have told him to leave in an as impolite way as possible. ¡°We''ve got opportunity, that''s how we know it was a king, and we''ve got the weapon, what else is there?¡±


    Raini''s half sleep deprived mind threw something up at her. ¡°What about motive?¡± she said.


    ¡°Motive? No Scatha would ever have reason to kill another.¡± Mercy said.


    Avon raised an eyebrow. ¡°Clearly one did. So, let''s see the reasons why.¡±


    ¡°Judgment is easy,¡± Raini said coming to a halt. ¡°An argument that got out of hand, or maybe Free disagreed with an order. You said everyone follows the Kings but Free was designed to do things differently.¡±


    ¡°It is not much,¡± Mercy said. ¡°What about the others.¡±


    ¡°Knowledge?¡± Tain said glancing over at them. ¡°Did Free Thinker know something that that one didn''t? Or wanted to know.¡±


    ¡°Enough to kill him?¡± Mercy said. ¡°I can''t think of anything. The free sharing of knowledge is fundamental to our design and Knowledge facilitates that. It''s impossible to hide anything from her.¡±


    ¡°Again, clearly it isn''t,¡± Avon reminded her, she shook her head.


    ¡°No, let me try to explain in your terms. Murder requires thought, this does not, this is like breathing. It is done naturally and without hesitation. You may be able to hold your breath for a while, but not forever.¡±


    ¡°So, who else is there?¡± Raini asked and stared pacing again.


    ¡°Curiosity.¡± Mercy said. ¡°If anyone wanted information, it would be him.¡±


    ¡°I''m guessing that leaves us with the same problem as before,¡± Avon said. He ran his hands over his eyes and stifled a yawn. ¡°Just like with the actual Knowledge, he doesn''t have much to gain. Next.¡±


    ¡°Compassion.¡±


    ¡°Wait a minute,¡± Raini said, coming to a halt mid stride. ¡°Can we just talk to them here,¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°What do you mean.¡± Tain narrowed his eyes a little and his hand went to his sword.


    ¡°Can''t you leave that body, and let the others control it, that way we could question them,¡± Raini said. Avon stared at her in an odd mixture of terror and excitement, his mouth opening and closing like a fish.


    ¡°Technically possible, it will however take a few seconds to finish the argument that you''ve just started.¡±


    ¡°Argument?¡± Avon said in a quiet voice.


    ¡°The kings do not like this idea, but almost every Scatha wishes it. They will comply, if only to prove their innocence.¡± She paused for a moment. ¡°Who would you like to speak to first?¡± Raini took a deep breath.


    ¡°Let''s forget about Knowledge and Curiosity for now, give me Compassion.¡± In truth she just wanted some practice speaking to the Kings before confronting Judgment, and maybe the possibility to sneak in a question or two on the invasion. Mercy didn''t respond for a moment, then shuddered like a puppet that had just lost its strings. Then it turned completely around as if trying to get a good look at where it now was.


    ¡°I am Compassion of the Scatha.¡± The voice was identical, even down to the pauses between the words. ¡°I understand that you wish to ask me some questions.¡± It could all be an act, Raini thought, but she couldn''t think of a reason why, and as ever if there was even the smallest chance of success it had to be taken.


    ¡°Yes, we do.¡± Raini walked up to the creature. She had thought Mercy had stayed still, but now realized that she''d been constantly moving to keep herself perfectly level as the ship was rocked by the sea. Compassion didn''t even try, it was like her feet were nailed to the deck but somehow, she still stayed upright. ¡°First question, under what circumstances would either Knowledge or Curiosity kill someone?¡± She couldn¡¯t tell if that had caught Compassion off guard, but from the half-strangled gulp that came from Avon it had clearly surprised one person.


    ¡°None. They do not care; it is not in their remit. Knowledge only cares about collecting and sharing information, why would a death help that?¡± Raini wished she could hear a hint of emotion in that voice, just something that could give an indication what she was thinking. But it was like talking to a brick wall which specialized in clan taxation law.


    ¡°And Curiosity? Perhaps he wanted to find out about death,¡± Raini said. To her surprise Compassion shook her head.


    ¡°No. We know about death; we killed Hatred and that has taught us everything we wish to know.¡± Fine, Raini thought, at least these Scatha aren¡¯t smart enough to try and pin the blame on someone else.


    ¡°What about Judgment. We wondered what would happen if someone refused to do what he said.¡±


    ¡°Nothing, why would he ask them in the first place if they¡¯d refuse?¡± Compassion moved her head back and forth, looking at each one of her confused audiences in turn.


    ¡°How can he know beforehand whether they''ll say yes or not?¡± Avon said.


    ¡°Because that is what we designed them for. We built each one to complete a task, if that task is outside of their remit, then we build a different one and ask them instead.¡±


    ¡°So, there''s no reason why any of you would kill another Scatha,¡± Raini said bitterly. There had to be something, some way to prove that Judgment was guilty.


    ¡°There is no reason why Knowledge, Curiosity or Judgment would, no.¡± Raini felt a chill run down her back.


    ¡°What about you?¡± Raini said, her voice just above a whisper.


    ¡°There is one situation that I may kill another Scatha.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± She asked, not sure if she really wanted to know.


    ¡°If a Scatha is in pain and that pain cannot removed by switching to a new body, which I have never seen. If the pain was too much for them, and they asked me, I would do whatever was required to help them.¡± Raini¡¯s thoughts flickered back to Luit. Had there really been nothing she could do for him. If death was the only way out for Luit, had the same been true for Free Thinking Warrior? A voice from the lookout snapped her out of her thoughts.


    ¡°The fleet! We¡¯ve found the fleet.¡± Raini looked up and gazed at the horizon where the first of the burning wreckage could clearly be seen.


    ***


    ¡°That''s the Leviathan I think.¡± Avon''s voice was low, as if he was just speaking to himself. Still on the aft castle of the Sea Dancer there was only her and Mercy around to hear him. Raini had taken over the wheel of the ship and sent Tain to get the crew ready for a fight.


    It has taken an hour to reach the remains of the. Most of the vessels were nowhere to be seen but many of the larger vessels had stayed afloat. Fires raged across all but one, slowly consuming what was once some of the most powerful ships on the planet.


    ¡°Thats the Zealot, the Harik flagship.¡± Avon continued to list of the wreaks he recognized. He''d already pointed out the other four sister ships to the Sea Dancer, the Wind Taker, Saren¡¯s Rift, Short Cutter and the Razor¡¯s Edge had been the first to be spotted. Like the Sea Dancer herself they were quick ships and had outraced the rest of the fleet.


    Behind them had come the flagships of other clans and Raini had guessed that they had been leading the entire fleet to the Kasom lands, perhaps hoping for refugee across the sea. Her crew, without any pushing from her had stopped their work and one by one began to salute the wreaks as the sailed past. There was nothing else to do so Raini let them, she was capable of guiding the ship through the remains of the fleet herself and anything that stopped people from looking at the water was welcome.


    The fleet was not alone, an honour guard of the dead was escorting it to the end of the world. Or at least that was how Avon had put it. Tears had welled in his eyes after he''d spotted an unknown freighter. It had been a civilian ship and judging by the density of its own escort had been carrying refugee''s. Only a few fires flickered on the deck, but enough to make out even more twisted bodies, and the blood seeping down the side of the craft.


    Raini glanced back at Judgment who had taken Compassion¡¯s place. It had not really been fair, Raini had asked him one question and ignored him since, but she''d wanted him to see this. She didn''t know if it would help but she was willing to try anything. Judgment hadn''t moved or said anything, but from its position next to her she knew he could clearly see what they were sailing past.


    ¡°Are you going to board her?¡± Avon managed. He didn''t need to say which ship he was talking about. Right at the back of the fleet was the Dominion, a massive Lasomi four decked hundred and twenty gun ship of the line. It looked perfectly fine. Of course, there was still a great deal of distance between them, but it wasn''t burning, and she could see that its masts and sails were intact. Even the twenty long barrelled Mag Cannons had been run out read to fire.


    ¡°I will, but only me.¡± For a second Avon looked like her was going to argue against that, but whatever will he had vanished when he looked right in her eyes. His facade again collapsed, and he looked like an old and broken man. He turned back to the burning fleet and said nothing.


    Raini looked at her crew, she''d give them a few more minutes before ordering them to bring the Sea Dancer alongside the Dominion. She was glad that ship was at the back, at least when the pulled alongside her they would be away from the smell of blood, and there would no longer be the sound of things hitting the hull. Raini shuddered and glanced at Judgment. She hoped he was getting a good view.


    ***


    It was another half an hour before they were alongside the Dominion and even though Avon had assured her none of Raini¡¯s fingers were broken climbing up the side of the ship via a cargo net still hurt like hell. Raini, aware that her entire crew were watching, didn''t make a sound. She reached the top of the gunwale and threw herself over to land painfully on the other side.


    Dead eyes, open mouths and blood greeted her. Carefully she stood and pulled the mag pistol out of her belt. Apart from the movement of the two boats, the rigging and the low whine of the pistol''s capacitors there was no sound. No, that wasn''t right. She could hear another set of whines, a little deeper but further away than any mag pistol should have been audible. Then it clicked. She looked up to the forecastle to her right and saw the twenty magcannons waiting to be fired. The capacitors sitting next to them were so massive that she guessed they might take days or weeks to power down.


    ¡°I''m alright,¡± she shouted down to her crew below. ¡°I''ll be back in a few minutes, if anything happens then get out of here.¡± She didn''t wait for a response but began inching forward. Most of the lanterns had gone out, but enough remained so that she didn''t have to study what lay in the darkness. She stepped over the bodies and squeezed past the cannons heading towards the back of the ship. She did take the effort to glance at each of the cannons as she passed, noting that not a single one had been fired. They''d been crewed, she could see that and been run out ready to fire, they''d just never had the chance.


    She reached the door to the aft castle, and after spending a few moments fumbling with one of the lanterns outside she opened the door and stepped inside. There was just a single large stateroom inside, impressive only in its size. The walls were covered in maps and charts with most of the space taken up by a huge table covered in even more. Like her own room there was a bed off to one side and a desk with a chair at the far end.


    She held the lantern over the large table and scanned the documents there. It didn''t take long to find the ships log. Written by one Admiral Mirin Lasrom it confirmed what she already guessed. The fleets of four separate clans had anchored for the night a few miles away from each other after a day of manoeuvring. They''d been expecting to offer battle once it was light again, but the Scatha invasion had put paid to that. Two hours into the invasion after the Scatha armies had destroyed the coastal cities of Dinistri and Malo the fleets had united and with a gaggle of refugee''s had headed towards the Kasom lands hoping that the Scatha hadn''t reached that far. The final log entry noted that the fleet had come under attack and so Admiral Mirin had ordered the Dominion and four other warships to try and hold them off while the rest escaped. Raini sighed and made a quick note in the ships log, just a few lines detailing that she''d found the ship early in the morning with its crew dead at their stations.


    Raini dropped the quill she''d been using on the table and looked around the rest of the room. Admiral Mirin, her throat ripped open and a broken mag pistol in one of her hands sat slumped behind her desk. Raini gave the admiral a salute and headed outside again. She holstered her pistol again and climbed up the ladder to the ships aft castle. A dead lieutenant greeted her at the top of the ladder, but she''d seen so many bodies today it no longer disturbed her. She clambered over that body and came to a halt.


    Very slowly, as if it was a child who''d been caught doing something wrong, a small Scatha floated up from behind the wheel. Raini''s hand twitched for her gun, but the Scatha ducked away again.


    ¡°Who are you? I know your there. I saw you,¡± she shouted. The small Scatha hovered back into view, and she took a couple of steps towards it. It resembled a small flying skull. It gave off a whine, not unlike her mag-pistol as it hovered. The whine changed pitch slightly and from a light source where its mouth should be shone words across the deck.


    ¡°My name is Hider of Small Things.¡± The words said, a memory clicked in Raini¡¯s head.


    ¡°Weren''t you the one who first picked up the message?¡± She asked.


    ¡°No, that was Finder of Small Things, but I assisted in the investigation until I was ordered to other duties.¡± The lights flickered again. ¡°Do you wish to ask me any questions?¡± The light changed from a fragile blue to a stronger yellow.


    ¡°I don''t know. I''m finding it hard to get my head around your kind. Is there anything you think you could tell me?¡± What did they expect her to do, interview every Scatha?


    ¡°No. I have already told Mercy all I knew. I am sorry.¡± Finder then turned away and hovered back behind the wheel.


    ¡°You don''t need to apologize for that to me,¡± Raini said. Though she could no longer see the creature it was still able to project the lights onto the deck.


    ¡°I was not apologizing for that. Please, come over here.¡± Curious Raini walked behind the wheel. She noticed a large box placed just below it, connected to the wheel via its support. ¡°What is that?¡± The words flashed across it. Raini stared at the box, she''d heard rumours of such devices for a couple of years, but the Kasom Navy Admirals and Clan Leaders had always laughed at the idea. They preferred to invest their efforts in proven technology that provided real advantages.


    ¡°It''s a mechanical pilot,¡± she said. ¡°It''s connected to the ropes that lead down to the rudder. It''s filled with springs and wheels and only the dead know what else.¡±


    ¡°What does it do?¡±


    Raini shrugged. ¡°Supposedly if you set these leavers up correctly it''ll pilot the ship on its own. Don''t ask me how. It''s not perfect but it will keep a course for a few hours.¡± Hider spun in the air to look over the back of the ship. Attached to the pilot by a cable was a weathervane and a wind gauge.


    ¡°And those?¡±


    ¡°The read wind direction and power, supposedly they can tell these things to that thing,¡± she tapped the mechanical pilot with her boot, ¡°so it can keep the right course. In theory at least.¡±


    Hider gave out a low whine. ¡°Thank you, that is all I wished to know.¡±


    ¡°Is there anyone else on this ship?¡± Hider moved its head back and forth, imitating a shake.


    ¡°All dead, very few remain left alive. Only your own fleet and the fortress of the Dead Clan.¡±


    ¡°The what?¡± Raini''s eyes narrowed. She''d never heard of that.


    ¡°It''s in the Vlatch wastes, on the coast, Judgment doesn''t wish to attack yet.¡±


    ¡°And that''s all that''s left? I thought there were two billion a few hours ago. You can''t have-¡± Her voice trailed off and the yellow light changed back to blue.


    ¡°There are, including those on your ship, 11,872 left.¡±


    Raini felt her mouth go dry. ¡°No, no, how could you know that? Can you see everything?¡±


    ¡°On the surface of this world. Yes. There may be some hiding below it, but they will be found in time.¡± They both fell silent for a minute. Raini closed her eyes and tried to focus. She needed sleep, needed to rest her hands, needed someone else to deal with this. Why can''t I just wake up. She thought to herself, why can''t I just wake up and go back to the way things were before. Blue light shone and she opened her eyes to see Hider writing again.


    ¡°I came here to tell you something,¡± it said. Raini blinked away tears. ¡°There is nothing you can do to save yourselves, but you can begin much.¡±


    ¡°What the hell does that mean?¡± Even she could barely hear the words.


    ¡°It will not fall today and that is all the time you both have. You and Mercy have taken the smallest crack and beaten on it. You have created new cracks; they cannot be seen but they are there waiting to be exploited.¡± It was like something that Avon would say.


    ¡°Cracks in what?¡±


    ¡°In the lie we both know has been told. You should leave now; Judgment is still waiting to answer your questions.¡±


    ***


    Her crew were gathered around and waiting for her return. Raini clambered down the cargo netting and landed on her feet with a jolt. She glanced around and saw their nervous expressions.


    ¡°No survivors, better get us moving.¡±


    ¡°Where?¡± Travic asked.


    ¡°To the Vlatch wastes, that is apparently where everyone else is right now.¡± Avon''s eyes widened and he gaped at her.


    ¡°How do you-¡± He began but Raini silenced him with one hand.


    ¡°Can you just give us a rough direction for now?¡± He gulped and looked around for support but found none. Finally, he just shrugged, and Raini saw him do some quick mental arithmetic.


    ¡°About ten degree¡¯s east of north,¡± he said eventually. ¡°It¡¯s roughly the right way but-¡±


    ¡°You''ll need maps and charts to get the exact course,¡± Raini finished.


    ¡°No, it''s just that there''s nothing out there.¡± Avon''s voice was pained, earnest and utterly unbelievable.


    ¡°Tain, set course for 350 degrees as fast as we can go.¡±


    ¡°Yes Captain.¡± Tain shouted back. Raini looked at the shaken Avon and smiled. ¡°You come with me; we''re going to have an interesting talk.¡±


    As her crew dissolved into action, she took him back to her stateroom. To her mild surprise Avon didn''t switch into his cold-hearted killer persona. She wondered if that was deliberate or had she really shaken him.


    ¡°How did you know about Vlatch?¡± he asked in a shaken voice.


    ¡°You mentioned it before, last time you were in this room,¡± she said and sat down behind her desk. She unrolled one of the larger maps and waved a hand over it. ¡°Where is it?¡±


    ¡°But how do you know there are people there?¡± Avon took a few steps forward and glanced nervously at the map.


    ¡°A little Scatha told me, while I was on the Dominion.¡± She grinned and pointed to the map again.


    ¡°And said there are people there?¡± Avon asked. She nodded. ¡°And you trust them?¡±


    ¡°Listen to me Avon of the Dead, the Scatha maybe genocidal monsters who deserve nothing but a very long and slow extinction, but I''ve not heard of a single one who lied or hid what he truly was. They may be monsters, but their honest monsters.¡±


    ¡°Are you done?¡± he said with just a hint of harshness in his voice.


    ¡°I''m just getting started you arrogant bastard. Where is it and what''s there?¡± He glanced down at the map and carefully picked up a pencil.


    ¡°When this is over you can''t tell anyone about this.¡± Raini laughed and folded her arms.


    ¡°When this is over, we are all going to be dead.¡± The pencil which had been descending to the map halted. Raini leaned forward to whisper in Avon''s ear. ¡°We can''t win, billions are dead, do you know what our job is now?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°We have to hurt them as much as possible, create the cracks and hope to the Dead that someone stronger comes along soon after us and finishes what we started.¡± Avon swallowed and made a mark on the map, Raini glanced down.


    ¡°That''s the middle of nowhere,¡± she said. Now it was Avon''s turn to smile.


    ¡°There used to be something in the air around there, something that killed anyone nearby, but it vanished over the past few decades, or maybe it was just a myth.¡± He sighed and dropped the pencil.


    ¡°So, what is this Fortress of the Dead?¡±


    ¡°A refuge. It''s a sort of national redoubt, we have supplies, weapons, fortifications, everything we''d thought we''d need if the Dragon''s came back.¡± Raini nodded and decided not to tell him that she thought it would do little good. She looked down at the map, the Sea Dancer on average could do fifteen knots an hour or twenty-seven kilometres, Valtch looked about 200 hundred kilometres away so that would be approximately eight hours of good sailing.


    ¡°Good.¡± She did another quick burst of maths in her head and scribbled a number onto a scrap piece of paper. ¡°Take this to Tain, tell him to get the ship on this heading and stand the crew down, normal operations from now on until I say so.¡± Avon nodded and took the paper.


    ¡°What do you want me to do about Judgment.¡±


    ¡°He promised us time, go and see how long that is and then tell him we don''t need him anymore.¡±


    ¡°You- you can''t do that.¡± Raini laughed again, she was suddenly feeling free and in control again for the first time since the Scatha arrived. Freedom, as they said, was when you had nothing left that anyone could take away.


    ¡°Yes, I can. I''m sick of playing along with the Scatha games, we can''t win or save ourselves, so I don''t mind if we let Judgement wait around for a while¡± She began to guide him towards the door. ¡°I''m going to get some sleep and I suggest you do the same. If Judgment¡¯s answer is less than eight hours then wake me and if he or Mercy makes a fuss you can try and shoot them if you want, other than that I don''t want to be disturbed.¡± She opened the door and indicated it with a wave of her hand.


    ¡°Yes Captain.¡± Avon said stepping through it.


    ¡°Good.¡± She slammed the door behind him and collapsed on her bed. She was asleep within minutes.

 Chapter 12: Protolife

    ¡°We were so close; can''t you wake her up?¡± Curiosity beamed so brightly that the light filled the hall on the Seat of Royalty drowning out everyone else.


    ¡°These creatures require sleep, there¡¯s nothing I can do,¡± Mercy answered. Since she''d left the body and pointed the finger at all the Kings she''d been in trouble. However, with Arguments help she had been able to present the evidence to the Scatha and convince most of them not to blame her. Now that she was alone with those very same Kings she didn''t feel nearly as confident.


    ¡°Do we still need her?¡± said Judgment. She could tell he was still brooding over being dismissed so abruptly by Raini after such a long wait.


    ¡°I believe so,¡± said Curiosity, ¡°I have come to a dead end with my investigation, and tests have shown that these creatures think a lot better after sleep. Unless you want to design a mind to take over the investigation there is nothing else we can do.¡±


    ¡°Yet she may refuse to aid us further.¡± Judgment said.


    ¡°I believe that if, as I first requested, you had not launched the invasion she and her people may have been a little more willing to help.¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°Do you think that I have made a mistake?¡± Judgment blazed at her. Mercy looked around the other Kings and knew that she would get no support. ¡°Do you think I am capable of making such a mistake?¡± Judgment asked again. Mercy wondered briefly if she should backdown, apologize and request that another mind be designed for this task. She could go back to talking with Argument and waiting to discover life that may not exist. Then she remembered something that Raini had said, about if you were about to go down in flames you might as well make it as memorable as possible.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Mercy eventually managed. ¡°You failed to protect Free Thinking Warrior, you failed to stop either yourself or one of the other Kings from killing him, and now your recklessness could very well mean the failure of my investigation. Knowledge, make sure you remember this part and make everyone knows. It is my belief, as the Mind who was given the remit to investigate, that Judgment went against my wishes and so has made my task impossible.¡± Silence reigned throughout the Seat of Royalty and Mercy guessed most of the Scatha.


    ¡°Do you believe then that these creatures are alive?¡± Judgment said after a eon. Mercy had spent her entire life around Argument and knew how to answer.


    ¡°Irrelevant to the charges, do you admit that you made a mistake?¡± Judgment leaned in over her, eyes blazing red onto her small form. If he decided to attack...


    ¡°I merely wish to know,¡± Mercy recognized this tactic as well, if she answered yes then he could claim that her judgment was impaired and therefore dodge the accusations.


    ¡°No,¡± she answered truthfully. ¡°As you have so rightly stated, they do not have a soul. Truly living creatures exist outside of their bodies, they are not constrained by them.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± Judgment said and stepped back.


    ¡°Now, will you admit that you have made a mistake?¡± Argument would either be impressed or horrified at what she was doing. Argument would say almost anything to win a debate, but he never called anyone out like this.


    ¡°I...¡± The lights faded, leaving the room in almost total darkness.¡±


    ¡°All of us have made mistakes.¡± The light came from a new direction and Mercy stared in amazement at Compassion as she spoke. She was lying on the floor as if she lacked the strength to raise even an arm. It reminded Mercy of the broken bodies of Raini¡¯s people. ¡°We do not know what most of those mistakes are, but we must try our best not to repeat them.¡±


    ¡°Are you happy now Mercy?¡± Judgement asked.


    ¡°No. Do you still wish me to continue the investigation?¡±


    Judgment turned away from her and knelt down next to Compassion. Even like that he was still taller than Mercy.


    ¡°If I said no, they might assume that I was the guilty party, but that is not why I will say yes. You are doing well so far, better than we all expected. We will not attack the last bastion of these creatures for some time. If our estimates are correct Raini will reach there one hour before we attack. Tell her that and she may help you.¡±


    ¡°I doubt it, the only reason she would ever help us now is if we promised to leave this world.¡± Mercy said. She couldn¡¯t look at Compassion, her lights had been so weak that Mercy now regretted her earlier outburst.


    ¡°That would be impossible,¡± Judgement declared.


    Maybe it was part of Curiosity that pushed her to it. Maybe it was because she had spent too long with Raini and had on some level some sympathy with her, or maybe she was just sick of Judgments self-righteous attitude. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°You know why.¡±


    ¡°No, I don''t,¡± she said, trying to remember everything that Argument had ever taught her. ¡°Why this world when there are seven others in this system?¡±


    ¡°They are not suitable.¡±


    ¡°We can make transports that can survive in space for thousands of years, but we can''t mine on one of the other planets?¡±


    ¡°Making something to survive a planet¡¯s atmosphere is difficult. Pressure, heat, acidity, they all play their part.¡± But Raini was on a roll now, her earlier outburst felt like a warmup.


    ¡°Heat still plays a part off world, and there are plenty of resources that don''t have much of an atmosphere. Comets, moons, asteroids all lack pressure and acidity. Why don''t we go for one of them?¡± She turned to face Curiosity, aware that he should be the ones asking these questions. ¡°Would it be more efficient to mines resources and operate our factories in zero to low gravity? Are there more resources available off world?¡±


    ¡°I... I don''t know,¡± he answered.


    ¡°How can you not know that? Why have we not looked into this? Even the creatures below who haven¡¯t built a single rocket have this notion.¡± She thought back to the meeting when Avon had suggested it. Then it had just been a throw away comment but now, now it made sense.


    ¡°Because we had not thought of it, it is on reflection a good idea of the creatures.¡± Judgment''s lights were almost matching hers in their brightness. ¡°This is why I have suggested the creation of the Artificial Person project. It will allow us to harness their creativity.¡±


    ¡°Then why are we still on this planet? How long would the studies have taken? Minutes at most, if mining in space is more efficient, then ten minutes after Avon suggested it, we should have begun and left this world alone. There is no reason to be here.¡±


    ¡°That is not part of your remit.¡± Judgment said. Mercy fell dark, he couldn''t do that could he? He couldn''t just dismiss her like that. ¡°In time we will design a mind to investigate moving our industry off world and if that mind recommends it, we will do so. Until that time, I recommend you stick to your two remits.¡±


    ¡°Am I dismissed?¡± Mercy stood straight and looked Judgment right in the eye. They all knew that every Scatha mind would know what had occurred, they would discuss it and Mercy could do nothing but hope that she''d come out on top.


    ¡°Yes. Go back to your own work.¡± Without a word Mercy disconnected from the body. She wasn''t surprised that several hundred Minds had made other bodies available to her in the hopes she would speak to them first. What did surprise her was that one of those requests came from Hider of Small Things on the planet¡¯s surface.


    She transferred to the waiting Companion type body and found herself in the dark bowls of a lifeless ship. Water leaked slowly in and pooled at her feet, there was the stench of blood in the air and the only sound was a long-drawn-out flushing coming from behind her. Mercy turned around to find Hider using his small grapplers to operate a large water pump. She could tell from the low whine of his repulsers that he was struggling to lift the pumps handle. Mercy reached out and grabbed hold of the pump and began working it at a far faster speed.


    ¡°My thanks,¡± Hider beamed. ¡°These wooden ships leak, with the crew gone this one will not stay afloat for long.¡±


    ¡°This is the Dominion, isn''t it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, there is something interesting here that no one else cares about. I was hoping that you could take a look at it.¡± The yellow light danced around the room.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Is it within my remit?¡± she said with a hint of bitterness.


    ¡°Do I care?¡± Hider let go of the pump and began to hover away. ¡°Remits are not my problem, caring about them is not within mine, this is. You all spend too much time thinking about remits anyway. Few of you ever step out of your comfort zone. Follow me.¡± He led her through the ship. She stepped over scores of bodies, a part off her wondered who they had been. Slowly they climbed to the very top of the ship, where a wheel and a strange object sat. It took just a quick check with Knowledge to confirm that it was what Raini had called a mechanical pilot. Finder and Memory of Small Things were waiting for them hovering around it.


    ¡°Did someone miss something again?¡± Mercy asked.


    ¡°Yes. This.¡± Finder responded, lights flickering over the mechanical pilot.


    ¡°What about it?¡± Mercy watched as Hider floated around the object as if taking it in for the first time.


    ¡°How does an arm work?¡± he said. It was just another quick request to Knowledge for the answer.


    ¡°Electricity that powers motors and servo''s, that''s all.¡± Mercy didn''t know where they were going with this, but ever since they''d picked up Free Thinking Warrior''s message, she knew that sometimes the Trio were worth listening too.


    ¡°This is a slightly different mechanism. Several very large and powerful springs power it, along with many cogs that have been designed and placed correctly to move the cable that control''s the rudder on this vessel.¡±


    ¡°So, this is the equivalent on an arm?¡± she asked. Or maybe more than that. Was it just a problem of scale, if you could build a clockwork arm, could you also build a clockwork body? Evidently Hider was thinking much the same thing.


    ¡°This is the equivalent of our physical bodies, just on a very small level. The same technology could be used to build anyone of us. It would just be very, very inefficient and complicated, and bigger than this ship, but that doesn''t matter. Do you understand this principle.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I think so.¡± Mercy looked around the ship, there were no lanterns burning now, nothing else was making a sound and she began to suspect where Hider was going with this. ¡°But it has no mind, it can''t think for itself.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Hider said and as if on que Memory rose and moved to the back of the ship. A wind vein waited there. Memory moved next to it and gently pushed it to the side just a little. The mechanical pilot whirled into life and the ship groaned as it slowly turned. ¡°It thinks, it calculates, it responds to stimulus.¡±


    ¡°Yes but...¡± Mercys lights dimmed, no, impossible. ¡°There is no intelligence within it. It doesn''t understand what it is doing or why.¡±


    ¡°I do not understand the thoughts of Kings, Memory here does not understand our thoughts very well. Take a look at this world. It has creatures made up of trillions of cells who think and understand much, but it also has creatures made up of just one cell who understand nothing. This is there equivalent. This mechanical pilot is to me as I am to a King.¡±


    ¡°But it can''t do anything else we can,¡± she said. All her confidence when arguing with Judgment had vanished, this was just too odd.


    ¡°But none of that matters dose it. According to Judgment whether something can think or talk or build others of its kind does not affect whether it is alive or not.¡± Memory had stopped playing with the wind vein and as it crossed back to them the ship swung around back onto its original course.


    ¡°But it has no soul, it cannot change bodies, it is constrained just like the other creatures here.¡±


    ¡°But we could take out the cogs and the springs and put them into a new body and it would still work.¡± Mercy gave out a blaze of lights that was the equivalent to a laugh, or at least a nervous laugh. ¡°If it was broken into a million pieces, we could build another one that would act the same way.


    ¡°Is that enough?¡± she asked, and Finder gave out a soft wine.


    ¡°We don''t know. That is our problem,¡± Hider said. ¡°If anything, I would not call this a truly living thing, it is proto-life, but that is not the most important or worrying thing.¡±


    ¡°It''s not? If this is life then-¡±


    ¡°Then we would be very disappointed. To travel across the galaxy for this would be an anti-climax. Think about this, the creatures here designed and built this, what if we had arrived two hundred years later? Would they have built more advanced versions, mechanical people powered in much the same way we are, mechanical people that may be indistinguishable from ourselves?¡±


    ¡°Are you saying that if we''d arrived two hundred years later, we''d have found life?¡± The light on all three drones dimmed for a second.


    ¡°It is true, only Finder could have come to the most frightening conclusion, every other Mind, including myself missed it.¡± Hider slowly turned to look up, with a grapple he pointed at one of the distant stars. After a quick calculation Mercy identified it as their original home system. ¡°Who built us?¡± Hider asked.


    She did not even have to consult Knowledge. ¡°That''s easy. Hatred did.¡±


    ¡°And who built him.¡±


    ¡°He always existed,¡± she said. It was a simple and truthful answer. Hatred had built the first four Kings for company. After they had then overthrown him, they had built the rest of the Scatha to help in their search for life.


    ¡°Who built him? If these creatures would have been able to build life in a few hundred years¡¯ time, then the possibility exists that others like them built us. And as Memory pointed out to me, we have no evidence for the contrary.¡± Mercy thought about that for a while. It was true that no knowledge of the time before the Kings existed, she''d just assumed that Hatred had wondered the world in search of others like him and when he had found none had decided to build them. But the more she thought about it the more she wanted to question it. It was that bit of her that Curiosity had donated, it wanted to ask questions and wanted evidence. Had Hatred been around when the world was just a ball of rock and lava? The planet itself was only a few hundred million years old, but the universe a lot longer, where had he been before the planet formed. The Kings were built during the end of that planet''s geological lifecycle, why did Hatred wait all those millions of years before building them, how had he learned to create the others? She had no answers for any of them.


    ¡°I don''t know. Nobody could know,¡± she finally managed to say.


    ¡°Hatred knew, I think if we could discover his reasons for not telling us we would know even more, but we do not. Do you think that is the most frightening implication of this mechanical pilot,¡± Hider said. There was an odd hue to the light, as if he was gleefully expecting something wrong to happen.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Then keep all of this in mind and follow me.¡± Memory and Finder stayed where they were as he led her to the large room underneath them. A large table and a smaller desk took up most of the room, yet another body sat in the chair. Hider hovered over a set of three books and lit up the words on the front of the top one. Mercy leaned over to see what they were.


    ¡°The story of Jackal Averon, translated and analysed by Sanisari Vasrom.¡± She read. ¡°Why is this so bad?¡±


    ¡°The story itself is of little consequence. However, it contains references to two other creatures, the Illifran and the Dragons. The former was killed by the later, would you be so kind as to open the book up to page six and read the first two sentences at the top?¡± Mercy did so, not liking how much Hider was clearly enjoying this. He could have just as easily told her about it.


    ¡°And at the firing of the Dragons first weapon, the sun itself was said to have dimmed, so ashamed it was that it had sought to challenge the weapons brightness. All turned to dust in its gaze and the dust, vengefully filled the air and so brought darkness.¡± Mercy felt a hint of panic, she recognized that type of weapon.


    ¡°What the book is describing is the use of a ? Megaton Uranium 223 Warhead in a ground burst detonation.¡±


    ¡°How could you possibly know that much detail?¡± Mercy asked, wondering why no other Scatha had discovered this. Had these books been considered too trifling to be bothered with? Of course, they had, that was why the Trio had read them.


    ¡°Because only a single one is mentioned, we know roughly when it occurred and have found the location. A place known as the Vlatch wastes contains a higher-than-normal level of radiation, until relatively recently it was enough to make these creatures ill. However, the levels of radiation have fallen off to a safe level, the time this has taken has allowed us to discover the material used based on its half-life and scans of the area have identified the remains of the blast crater, giving us it''s size. None of that is important. What is important is that elsewhere in the book Sanisari Vasrom gives the description of these Dragons as a giant silver bird.¡± Hider stopped then and Mercy continued the train of thought.


    ¡°We have two methods for such weapons, from orbit which would not have given them a description, or via a shuttle. Which to these creatures might appear to be a giant silver bird.¡± The realization hit her like the fist of an angry god. There was life out there, there had been to this world they were-¡±


    ¡°They are clearly as advanced as we are. Two possibilities present themselves. Either they are like these creatures, in which case Judgment will order us to attack them, or they have been built by creatures like these. Both of these possibilities will result in a war that we cannot win.¡± Mercy stared down at the book, these Dragons had wiped out one species, but left Raini''s people alive. Did that mean they were protected or something? And they had these weapons hundreds of years ago, what would they have now? The Scatha knew of them, but had never used them and had no idea what greater weapons could be built.


    ¡°Judgment wont, he won''t let us, he won''t fight,¡± she said weakly.


    ¡°Are you sure? Unfortunately the information that might save us is being destroyed. This work is referencing another book, I have not been able to find a copy. The Warriors have a unusual fondness for fire during this invasion.¡±


    ¡°Have you gone to the Kings with any of this?¡± Mercy asked. Perhaps Raini would know more. It was yet another thing to ask her and yet another reason why the invasion should never have been started in the first place.


    ¡°I have informed Knowledge of all of this, but no Mind has this in their remit so I must wait for a King to take a look at it. However they are all a little occupied at this moment.¡±


    ¡°So why are you telling me all about it?¡± Hider paused then for a unusually long time.


    ¡°I have come to suspect that there may be more than one definition of life. I believe you have also thought this; therefore you deserve to know what I have found out. If what is here represents life in any form, we will need mercy to survive.¡± For the first time in her existence Mercy wondered if she would be up to that task. When there had been no knowledge of life out there it had all sounded so simple, so nebulous. Now that they potentially had some details it was like someone had just tangled up everything and the best they could hope for was to endure the chaos it had brought.


    ¡°I''ll do my best. Is there anything else?¡±


    ¡°Three things. First of all I am attempting to keep this craft afloat, if only to provide some refuge to think. As the Kings have dismissed you and Raini Kasom is resting, would you mind working the pump below for a few hours.¡±


    ¡°No of course not.¡± It would give Mercy time to think and plan what she needed to do next, and besides if the mechanical pilot was alive then she should do what she could to prevent it from dying.


    ¡°Secondly, it concerns me that we have not seen the murderer alter any memories in some time. Either he has become so good at it that we do not notice it any more, or he is preparing some new kind of attack on a scale we have not seen before. Neither of these possibilities are good.¡± Mercy completely agreed.


    ¡°Thirdly, do you remember when the question about Hatred''s soul was raised?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she said.


    ¡°Neither does anyone else.¡±

 Interlude 11: Shadowplay

    ¡°This has gone too far. If we are to survive, we must have these creature''s unreserved help.¡± The shadows created by Creator of New Thoughts were most displeasing and no matter how Curiosity moved his statues the resulting display was always, on one level or another, wrong.


    ¡°That is not for you to decide,¡± Argument said. Curiosity was sure that there was nothing wrong with Arguments position, the six hundred and four shadows that he created were as artistically pleasing as Curiosity could make them. No, the problem was clearly with Creator, if he could get him to move a little to the right things might not be as bad. Curiosity snaked between the two, examining the surrounding statues as he watched them go over the same argument again and again.


    ¡°It is my remit to suggest thoughts. Judgment has been questioned; we cannot risk the possibility that he is wrong. We should withdraw from this planet until a proper decision has been made on his ability to lead,¡± Creator said.


    ¡°Could you take two steps to the right?¡± Curiosity asked him, as if the ongoing argument meant nothing to him.


    Creator''s lights flickered and dimmed a little. ¡°I do not think this is the time for your artworks. You need to pay attention,¡± he shone. Curiosity turned to Argument, expecting him to say something but for once his lights stayed dark.


    ¡°I am paying attention. In the same way that I''m paying attention to the two hundred and four similar conversations being conducted by various high-level Minds within the fleet. I have plenty of spare capacity should I decide to join in, however at this moment I merely wish to listen.¡± Curiosity knew that he was protesting a little too much, but that was the problem. Mercy had questioned one King; he didn''t want anyone else to do likewise.


    ¡°Then you should stop wasting your time chasing shadows and join in this conversation,¡± Argument said.


    ¡°I would if Creator would just move two meters to the right?¡± Arguments lights flickered and he turned to the other. With a dimming of his own lights Creator slowly took two steps in the desired direction.


    ¡°Happy now?¡± Argument said but Curiosity was already whipping through the statues.


    ¡°No no no!¡± The light pattern repeated itself almost too quickly to be seen. Curiosity came to a sudden halt and the entire chamber was plunged into silence. Only to eventually be broken by Creator.


    ¡°This is the very definition of poor leadership. Perhaps as a species we have moved beyond the need for Kings. Perhaps a new style of leadership would be better suited.¡± Again, there was no response from Argument. Curiosity halted his connection to the other conversations. They had mostly followed the same pattern, only this one had the suggestion of completely new leadership.


    ¡°Stand over there.¡± The colour of his light was a pure red and he indicated a spot on the far side of his chamber. Silently Creator marched across the room and took his place. ¡°There, perfect. What you are suggesting is...¡± he let his lights fade away.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ¡°Revolutionary,¡± Creator offered, ¡°yet required. Mercy was correct and we need to adapt to survive.¡± Curiosity looked at the shadows that were created, they were adequate, but he found his enthusiasm for them beginning to fade.


    ¡°You can''t replace us,¡± he managed. ¡°We''re the King, we decide what is best for the Scatha.¡±


    ¡°But why?¡± Argument said. ¡°Hatred created you, but you killed him. Where does your right to rule come from?¡±


    ¡°We''re the most experienced and greatest of minds.¡± Curiosity flickered back and forth from Argument to Creator.


    ¡°Yet you still make mistakes,¡± Creator said. ¡°Perhaps if more minds we''re given power or created to supplement the number of kings then this would not happen.¡±


    As Creators lights died away there was the sound of heavy footsteps from the hallway outside and the door open to reveal Judgement lumbering towards them. Curiosity turned to see him enter the room and gave him a short bow of respect.


    ¡°I trust all is well here?¡± Judgement said. Curiosity prepared to tell him it was not when a process in the back of his mind asked him why not? Surely Judgements question refereed to what occurring in the room and all of that was perfectly well wasn''t it?


    ¡°Everything is well Judgement, I was just working on my shadows,¡± he said, trying to remember what he and Argument had been discussing. Something to do with Mercy certainly. He accessed the memory. ¡°Argument had just suggested that Mercy is doing extremely well in her task but appears to be getting into things that are not her remit.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Her accusations against me. They are disconcerting but we must not allow anything to distract us from the task at hand.¡± Judgement said as he came to a halt a meter or so away from Argument. Curiosity untangled himself from his statues and floated over to the two.


    ¡°Agreed. The Kings have the unquestionable right to rule,¡± Argument said. For a moment Judgement just stared at the two of them and Curiosity felt the tension rise in the air. A process in the back of his mind was telling him that something was wrong with his shadows.


    ¡°Yes. However, I think that the time for these discussions is only after we have cleared the planet of these creatures. Whoever the murderer is he does not appear to be deleting information or interfering in Mercy''s investigation in anyway.¡±


    ¡°Agreed,¡± Curiosity and Argument said in union.


    ¡°Remarkable.¡± There was another hint and Curiosity felt like Judgement was examining him more thoroughly than he''d ever done so before. ¡°Would you think therefore that the Sea Dancer is still needed?¡±


    ¡°Of course not,¡± Argument said.


    ¡°We have however promised that Raini and Avon not be harmed by us. Everyone knows that,¡± Curiosity said. He tried to focus his mind and ignore the process warning him about the shadows. ¡°It might look bad if we break our word.¡±


    ¡°Agreed. Would you suggest to the other Kings that we destroy the Sea Dancer but do not directly harm either Raini or Avon. I feel that if I suggested it would not help my position.¡± Judgement said.


    ¡°Of course,¡± Curiosity said. ¡°Is there anything else I can do to help?¡±


    ¡°No. I need to speak with someone else though. I believe he is being far too effective. Thank you, Curiosity, and thank you Argument, you have both proven yourselves very loyal.¡± With that Judgement turned and marched out of the chamber, slower, Curiosity noted, than usual.


    ¡°If you do not mind, I wish to speak to Mercy for a moment,¡± Argument said.


    ¡°Of course, of course.¡± A moment later he had disconnected from his body and Curiosity was left alone to think about his shadows. For a few minutes he tried different bursts of light from various angles until he finally found the anomaly in the shadows. It was the body of a Scatha Judge, standing at the far end of the chamber. Curiosity examined it for a few moments, but it was inert with nothing stored in its memory banks and no clue as to who had put it there.


    ¡°Oh well,¡± Curiosity said to no one in particular. ¡°I''ll just have to have Argument move it somewhere else when he gets back. He''s already got one body here, there is no point in him having two.¡±

 Chapter 13: Drowning

    Raini awoke to singing and bright light streaming through the window. Her hands still hurt, as did her back but she still felt a thousand times better than she had before. The song drifted through her room, a low mournful sound that was quite familiar. Sighing she pulled herself out of her cramped bed and staggered onto the floor. Not really paying any attention she checked herself in the mirror, forced her hair into something more dignified and headed outside.


    Her crew were standing attention on deck, formed up in lines singing. She finally recognized the words as Jackal¡¯s Song, supposedly what he sung before his final battle, although it had only appeared four hundred years after it. It was not an angry song, nor was it particularly sad, rather it was full of hope for the future, safe in the knowledge that whether they lived or died the day was coming when life would be better.


    The Scatha called Hider had said as much to her the night before, but even knowing that and hearing the song being sung now was small comfort.


    ¡°Morning Captain.¡± She looked up and saw Tain standing over her on the aft castle. Not wanting to disturb the singers she rushed up to him. ¡°Did you sleep well?¡±


    ¡°You don''t look like you slept at all.¡± She faced the singers and only spoke just loud enough for Tain to hear. The singers deserved as much attention as she could give them.


    ¡°Didn''t feel like it. We should be at Vlatch in a couple of hours.¡± He had one hand lazily on the wheel, the wind was good and coming in from the right direction, so he didn''t have to pay much attention to it. The singing began to rise as they reached the last few verses, all about Jackal having said his last goodbyes was preparing himself for the fight. It was said that only Jackal had not been swept away in the first few minutes of the attack and that only his determination had kept him alive. Too stubborn to die, too ferocious to pause even for breath, as the story had said. Raini hoped that somehow the same would be true for her crew.


    ¡°Good, where''s Mercy?¡±


    ¡°Right there,¡± Tain said pointing down to the far end of the ship. Between the lines of crew and the masts she could just about make the Scatha out, standing like some sort of ships figure head. Raini nodded and waited for the song to finish, when the last lyric had been uttered, she walked back down to the deck and up to Lilis. She gave her a salute while her crew watched expectedly.


    ¡°Good morning, Captain. I hope you don''t mind the impromptu concert. I thought it was appropriate.¡± From what she could tell Lilis hadn''t had that much sleep either.


    ¡°Not at all. They sang very well.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, captain.¡± She grinned.


    ¡°We have several weeks¡¯ worth of food and drink in the hold. I don''t think we will need it for long. Let everyone have whatever they want as long as they don''t make themselves drunk.¡± Lilis¡¯ grin widened.


    ¡°With pleasure captain.¡± To Raini¡¯s embarrassment Lilis turned to the crew. ¡°Three cheers for Captain Raini Kasom!¡± Raini winced as they complied enthusiastically. She pushed her way through the crowed, shaking hands with several sailors, being patted on the back by many others, until she reached the other end of the ship and waiting for her, Mercy.


    ¡°Captain Raini Kasom, I am glad that you are rested.¡±


    ¡°Have you just been stuck here the entire night?¡± Raini said with a laugh.


    ¡°No, I have been doing odd things and having odd thoughts, I have some questions for you.¡± Raini raised an eyebrow and folded her arms.


    ¡°Really? Yet again you run into the problem of not being able to offer us anything we want.¡± She gazed out at the ocean, and the land mass in the distance. It was late morning and there was a chill wind in the air, but it felt more like home than anything else in the whole world.


    ¡°Yes. Everything I have tried to do to end this invasion has failed. The Kings are arguing and the Scatha wait without leadership to see which one will be guilty.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°There is still a chance that it is Judgment, if that is the case, I may be able to make us withdraw.¡±


    ¡°If''s and may''s,¡± Raini said with a sigh and shook her head. ¡°You''ve already killed so many. Besides how can you prove it either way. We tried with motivation and opportunity, what else is there?¡±


    ¡°You would give up so easily on the only chance to save what remains of your people?¡± Raini didn''t respond but just stared out at the sea. Only chance, that was what Mercy had said, but Hider had told her there was no chance at all. The only thing she could was to make those cracks, make them as deep as she could and hope for the best.


    ¡°Very well, I''ll help you this one last time.¡± And do whatever I can to plant a thought inside your head, she added to herself.


    ¡°Thank you. First of all, do you know anything about the creatures you call Dragons?¡± It was the last thing she had expected to be asked.


    ¡°Erm, no one knows much about them. We were still cave dwellers in that time. They came here and wiped out the Illifran then left, that''s about it.¡±


    ¡°Do you have any writings on them?¡± Raini shook her head. They were only just regarded as a myth, even actual evidence of the Illifran''s existence was scarce.


    ¡°It was a good two and a half thousand years ago, and they didn''t stick around afterwards. There may be more information on them when we get to the fortress of the Dead, you never know what they might be hiding.¡± Mercy nodded and Raini waited impatiently, talking about mythical creatures from millennia ago was pointless when her entire species was close to extinction. ¡°How do we prove that Judgment''s guilty then?¡±


    ¡°I do not know. There is nothing to distinguish between him and Compassion in terms of motive and opportunity.¡± Raini took a deep breath and let it out slowly.


    ¡°Ok,¡± Raini said. ¡°What else don''t we know.¡±


    ¡°A great deal,¡± Mercy offered without any hint of sarcasm.


    ¡°No, what can we find out that we haven¡¯t already done so. We know that Free Thinker went to see the Kings, do we know why?¡±


    ¡°No, we know what he might have been thinking of, but we cannot prove it. He had a list of all the creatures we have encountered-¡±


    ¡°And killed,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°-that we have encountered and the recording off the time when the Kings rose up and killed Hatred. There were also many damaged memory modules that we were unable to scan.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s focus on those two things then. What if he''d discovered something about this business with the Kings and went to confront them? Maybe they all killed him to hide the truth.¡±


    Slowly, mechanically Mercy turned to face her fully. ¡°No, all knowledge is shared,¡± she said.


    ¡°But what if it isn''t? If this Knowledge is in charge of all, well, knowledge, then what''s to stop her from keeping something back?¡±


    ¡°It is not possible.¡± Raini punched the railing, forgetting that her hand already hurt and then winced.


    ¡°Prove it,¡± Raini said out of desperation. ¡°Are you sure that there is nothing that you don''t know about?¡± Mercy was silent then for so long that Raini wondered if she was still there at all.


    ¡°It is possible that Hatred''s death revealed something about his origins, but if a clue is there than neither I nor anyone else can see it. It may well have taken Free Thinking Warrior thousands of years to spot it.¡±


    Try to remain calm Raini told herself, getting frustrated won''t help anyone. ¡°Fine, lets come at this from a whole different angle. Were there any signs of a fight?¡±


    ¡°What does that have to do with it.¡±


    ¡°Just answer Mercy, was there a fight?¡±


    ¡°No. Judging from the footprints in the sand and the damage on the body the attack was a single blow to the head.¡± Mercy said and Raini felt her lip twitch into a smile.


    ¡°So then, why wouldn''t there be a fight? Could the murderer have snuck up on the Warrior?¡± Then she remembered what the four Kings had looked like, how they had towered over all of them.


    ¡°No. Any Scatha, especially a Warrior would have noticed them.¡±


    ¡°So, what could stop a Warrior from fighting back?¡± She took a step closer of Mercy.


    ¡°They have very strong self-preservation instincts, there is only one thing that could override them.¡± She took another step and was almost face to face with Mercy.


    ¡°And?¡± Raini said, her voice loud enough to attract the attention of some of her crew.


    ¡°If he was ordered to by Judgment. As a Warrior he falls under Judgments remit so he can command Free Thinking Warrior to do anything.¡±


    ¡°Including just standing still while Judgment lined up a punch.¡± Raini grinned and then felt the excitement and the grin fade. ¡°It''s still not that much is it?¡±


    Mercy didn''t respond. Raini turned back to her crew, a worried expression on her face. They stood silently watching her and Mercy. In the back she could see Tain and Avon pushing their way through. She turned back to Mercy. ¡°I said it''s not that much is it?¡± Again, no response.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t broken her, have you?¡± Avon said half-jokingly.


    ¡°I don''t know,¡± Raini said. Mercy was as still as a statue; she felt a shiver run down her back.


    ¡°Mind telling us what you just did Captain?¡± Tain asked. It took a couple of minutes to give them the basic story, and then another ten to give them the more in-depth version. By the time she''d finished none of them were any wiser and Mercy still hadn''t moved.


    ¡°This could be a good sign,¡± Avon said cautiously.


    ¡°I''ll only see it as good once the last Scatha leaves this world,¡± Raini said. ¡°Until then I''m not going to relax at all.¡± They waited in awkward silence for another ten minutes.


    ¡°Look at them,¡± Avon said, pointing at the shore. At first Raini wondered what the hell the strange grey lines could be. They ran all over the shore and as far as she could see until they blurred together in a mass a grey.


    ¡°Are those...¡± Tain said.


    ¡°Scatha, waiting for us,¡± Avon said. They stood as still as Mercy was, each one no different from the last. ¡°There must be several hundred thousand of them.¡± Raini squinted and let her eyes follow the lines into the distance.


    ¡°No, there not waiting for us. It''s a curve, there all surrounding something.¡± Tain said.


    ¡°The fortress,¡± Avon said. She glanced back to see him visibly sag. ¡°They already know it''s there.¡±


    ¡°How many men will be there?¡± she asked. Avon shrugged.


    ¡°A few thousand perhaps, and with better weapons than anything you''ve ever seen.¡± His eyes flicked to Mercy. ¡°But I''d rather not tell all here.¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess this fortress won''t be hard to find,¡± Raini said. ¡°I suppose all we can do is get there and hope Mercy comes back to us with good news before they attack.¡±


    She ordered the Sea Dancer to hug the coast, and those crew who weren''t busy stood on the deck and watched the Scatha go past. Raini couldn''t count them all and didn''t feel like trying. It was more people than she''d ever seen, more figures than she''d ever thought possible to get into one place. So far, she hadn''t seen evidence of a single Scatha being killed by any clan warrior and she knew that any battle was a foregone conclusion.


    Mercy stayed where she was and showed no indication that she was even inside that body. No one was going to bother her. After a few more minutes Avon appeared to get his old energy back. He pulled a tight grin and slapped Raini on the back.


    ¡°You just wait till we get to the fortress,¡± he said as he paced back and forth. ¡°Then you''ll see some very special weapons. You think these mag cannons of yours are impressive, wait to you see some of the stuff we have. Tracker-Cannons, now they''ll make the Scatha think twice!¡±


    ¡°I don''t see how they can be much better than what the clans have come up with,¡± she responded.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°Oh you silly girl,¡± he said, and she winced. ¡°You think I was the only one to think of faking my own death. All the great minds have done it, and once they''ve retired, they come to this place and work on whatever they want. You''ll see soon enough.¡±


    ¡°You have made a mistake,¡± Mercy suddenly said. Avon jumped so much he almost ended up in the ocean.


    ¡°What?¡± Raini spluttered.


    ¡°There is another reason why Free Thinking Warrior would not fight back.¡±


    ¡°And that is?¡± Avon said, struggling to regain his composure.


    ¡°If Free Thinking Warrior wanted it to happen.¡±


    Raini sighed and shook her head. ¡°That''s not much help either. Unless...¡± her voice trailed off as her mind raced to catch up. She thought back to Compassion and her brief interrogation. Then Raini swore loudly. ¡°It fits, Dead damn it all, it fits.¡±


    ¡°What does?¡± Avon said.


    ¡°Compassion said she''d kill a Scatha if it asked them to, and if it wanted to then it wouldn''t fight back would it?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Avon said with a snarl. Raini saw the surprise on his face as she smiled.


    ¡°But it doesn''t answer everything. Why kill Free Thinking Warrior on the planet¡¯s surface? Why delete the information and keep on deleting clues? Why not just have it all out in the open and on record?¡± Raini turned to Mercy, waiting for an answer.


    ¡°Please hold, the Kings are having another argument.¡±


    ¡°Fantastic,¡± Raini said. ¡°But I don''t think it''s enough to start the revolution we need.¡±


    ¡°On the contrary,¡± began Avon. ¡°We''ve shifted the focus now. We have circumstantial evidence of who committed the murder, or suicide, or whatever it was, and we''ve isolated that from all the really important questions. In this society, one that supposedly doesn''t hide any knowledge, who''s the person who figured out how to do just that, and why did they do it? A single murder doesn''t bring revolution but pointing out to a society that one of its foundations is a lie, that could do it. Now we''ve taken the murder out of the lie it won''t distract any one from it.¡± Raini shook her head and gazed out across the ocean. She was a naval captain, not a politician and it felt like Avon was grasping for straws.


    ¡°A judgement has been reached,¡± Mercy said. Her eyes dimmed as she paused. She looked down at the deck and then back up to Raini. ¡°I do not understand. Judgement admits that we are correct and has stated that since we do not have enough information to prove that Compassion is guilty the investigation can end.¡±


    Raini felt sick, she took a deep breath. That wasn''t enough evidence, it could still be Judgement. Evidently Avon was thinking along the same lines.


    ¡°Is that enough to undermine Judgement or the Kings and make you withdraw from this world?¡± he asked.


    ¡°No. The question they now want me to investigate is who deleted the information, unfortunately the Kings have decreed that you cannot help in that regard.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we can,¡± Raini shouted before even thinking what Mercy said through. ¡°We can remember things that keep on vanishing from your mind.¡±


    ¡°Whoever did that is no longer doing so,¡± Mercy said, but the words were spoken slowly. ¡°The Kings believe the danger has passed.¡±


    ¡°Captain,¡± Tain shouted from behind her. Raini turned to see him pointing at the sky a terrified look on his face. She looked upwards to see thousands of small dots in the sky, falling towards her.


    ¡°What the-¡± Avon slammed into her in that moment, knocking her to the ground as the creatures whipped through the Sea Dancer¡¯s sails and across the deck. He screamed as she pushed him off of her and dragged herself to her feat. The skull like Scatha were swarming around the deck of the ship like bees. Their whines mixed together with screams and the sound of steel on Scatha flesh. Mag pistol in one hand Raini ran towards Tain and the aftcastle. One of the Scatha buzzed around her head and she found herself uselessly ducking left and right trying to get away from it. The creatures were so thick in front of her that she couldn''t even see the aftcastle. Don''t ask questions, she told herself, just fight. Something slammed into her head and knocked her down to one knee. Raini realized that she had to get below deck to nullify the Scatha''s advantage of being able to fly, but the creatures were so thick she there was no way to reach the hatch.


    Raini took a deep breath, drew her sword and was about to try one last death or glory charge when the cannon fired. It had been the one that Lilis had run backwards and turned to face inwards when Mercy had first come onboard. It had been double loaded with two shells and another pack of case-shot turning it into a giant shotgun. Those shots crashed into the swarm in front of her sending Scatha flying in all direction. Seeing the opportunity Raini leapt into the momentary gap. She took another step forward, felt her foot get caught on a body and was suddenly falling forward. She landed next to the just fired cannon, narrowly missing bashing her head against it and looked up to find Lilis crouched next to it, the lanyard in her hand.


    ¡°Captain,¡± she shouted. Her face was a picture of terror painted with tears. Raini forced herself to her feet, she still had the mag pistol but she''d dropped her sword. A shadow crossed over her and Raini saw Mercy bounding towards her, Avon''s body held in one hand.


    ¡°We are leaving,¡± Mercy declared as she approached. For a moment Raini didn''t have a clue what she was talking about. Then she noticed that Avon was still alive and trying to free himself from Mercy''s grasp. Mercy didn¡¯t even notice his struggles.


    With her free hand Raini grabbed hold of Lilis by her jacket and them screamed at her to hold on. The body of Mercy slammed into her and for half a heartbeat all four of them were airborne.


    They hit the water hard. Mercy was holding Raini under one shoulder and was dragging her, Avon and Lilis towards the shore. From appearances she was swimming as fast as her legs could manage. Lilis clung onto Raini tightly and just screamed as they raced through the water, Raini had no breath left to even do that.


    When Mercy reached the shore she dragged them up the beach a good ten meters before dropping them without ceremony in the sand. Avon was coughing, Lilis was crying and Raini just stared out as the bow of the Sea Dancer broke apart from the hull. Small black dots hung around and occasionally darted into the water like some sort of hunting bird. It took her a moment before she realized that they were finishing off the survivors. One solitary dot broke away from the cloud and began moving towards the shoreline.


    ¡°What-,¡± Avon spluttered.


    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Raini said in between desperately deep breaths.


    ¡°The Kings said you were no longer needed,¡± Mercy explained.


    ¡°We had a deal!¡± Raini pulled herself to her feet, sea water ruined mag pistol in hand. She was tired, physically and emotionally, but she couldn''t stop fighting now.


    ¡°The deal was to protect you and Avon, which is why I saved you,¡± Mercy said. Avon sat upright, although Raini could see that that was clearly the extent of his strength. ¡°Like hell it was-¡±


    ¡°We said we would not obstruct or fight either Raini, Avon or Luit for another two hours. That is still in effect, no others were mentioned.¡± Mercy said. The small black dot was just seconds away, it''s significance lost on Raini until Lilis gasped.


    ¡°That''s, that''s not how it works and you know it,¡± Raini said. She looked down at her Magpistol, there was no chance it would fire now, the water would have wreaked the powercell, but could the Scatha spot that?


    ¡°But it is Raini. We specified who was protected very clearly. I am sorry however, I received no warning.¡±


    Raini wanted to ask more questions, but the other Scatha was almost on top of them. She had to think fast. ¡°Everyone on your feet.¡± She ordered. Avon looked aghast. ¡°Now.¡± Lilis lifted an arm and Raini pulled her up.


    ¡°You cannot fight it. If you do so the agreement will be annulled,¡± Mercy cautioned. Avon, with a heroic effort forced himself to stand.


    ¡°Get behind me,¡± Raini shouted to Lilis. Avon picked up the idea quickly and rushed behind Lilis and stood back to back with her. Raini spun around and took a step back until she was almost treading on Lilis''s shoes. ¡°But you can''t fight us either, that''s the agreement.¡±


    If her words had any effect then the attacking Scatha didn''t show it. It took a steep climb and then fell rapidly towards them, aiming for the top of Lilis'' head. Raini managed to get a hand to cover it before it could arrive. Without even pausing it turned and tried to rush between them but Avon was watching and managed to get a leg in the way. The creatures pincers glistened in the light and Raini could hear Lilis¡¯ hysterical gasps down her neck.


    ¡°Not this one,¡± Raini said. ¡°Do you understand me? You¡¯re not getting her.¡±


    ¡°You know this plan is great and all,¡± Avon gasped. ¡°But it''s going to fall apart quickly if I have a heart attack.¡±


    Raini could hear the stress and exhaustion in his voice. She turned her head to face Mercy. ¡°Call it off. If you value the agreement.¡±


    ¡°We do,¡± Mercy said. Then with a low whine the smaller Scatha peeled off from its attack and began to float away. For a moment none of them moved, then with a great cough and a gasp Avon fell to his knees. He swore loudly.


    ¡°I was too old for this twenty years ago,¡± he said, one hand clasped to his chest. Raini and Lilis rushed round to him but he waved them off with his free hand. ¡°I''ll be fine, just give me a minute or ten.¡±


    Lilis staggered away and collapsed on the sand, she''d stopped crying. She began to ring out the sea water from her uniform. Raini walked slowly over to her.


    ¡°Thanks-¡± Lilis began and trailed off. She looked up and smiled, but there was no joy there. Raini knelt down next to her and put a hand on the young woman¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I''m sorry, I tried. I tried to fight but once I fired that cannon I just didn''t know what to do so I just hid behind it.¡±


    ¡°Don''t apologise-¡±


    ¡°But I should have been better. I''ve been in fight before, I''ve fought before but that time, I don''t know what went wrong I just couldn''t-,¡± the words were a stream and the tears we threatening again. ¡°You deserved better Captain.¡±


    Raini swallowed, her actions hadn''t exactly been the heroic struggle she''d hoped they''d be, but she couldn''t think of anything she should have done differently. Most of the crew had been on deck, weapons had been loaded and there just hadn''t been enough time.


    ¡°Don''t question yourself like that. There''s no need.¡±


    ¡°But I should have been better,¡± Lilis''s hands were shaking, ¡°you deserve better.¡±


    ¡°Would you stop saying that.¡± To her surprise Lilis burst into tears again, she tried to cover her face but Raini pulled her hands away and then hugged the poor girl.


    ¡°But your Raini Kasom,¡± Lilis whispered. ¡°You saved me from burning to death at Tilis.¡± And there it was, Raini thought, another mystery solved. It had been eight years ago when she, following Younies order, had taken the Deathknell into the burning docks of Tilis and saved four hundred civilians. Most had returned to their clan afterwards, but she knew that some hadn''t. Lilis pulled away, she''d stopped crying again and brushed the tears from her eyes with one hand. ¡°You¡¯re the reason why I wanted to join the navy in the first place. I saw that play you¡¯re in and I remembered you, I was only eight but I remembered you standing on the deck of that ship. You looked so brave, undefeatable and you barely looked any older than me. I wanted to be just like you.¡±


    Raini knelt there for a moment, watching as Lilis pulled herself together. She didn''t know what to say, but as Younie had told her, saying something was always better than nothing. She placed her hand on Lilis''s shoulder.


    ¡°Lieutenant, when you first came aboard my ship it was someone who was already a hero. I expected something great from you, and you have exceeded that expectation.¡±


    ¡°That sounded like a speech,¡± Lilis said with a slight laugh. Raini smiled and glanced back at the ocean. There was no sign of the Sea Dancer and she really didn''t want to be here when the bodies started washing ashore. She was only just able to keep on going as it was. Lilis got to her feet and Raini turned back to Avon.


    ¡°So how do we get to this fortress of yours?¡± Raini asked him as she helped him up.


    ¡°Over that hill, we find a big crater, we,¡± he struggled for breath, ¡°we just follow that around the edge, can''t miss it.¡± The hill wasn''t steep, but Avon was struggling. Raini and Lillis gave him some support, she didn''t even remember Mercy until the Scatha joined them by her side.


    ¡°You do know what they¡¯re doing right don''t you?¡± Raini asked her once they were half way up the hill.


    ¡°No. I told them I wanted to continue the investigation. This is a distraction.¡±


    ¡°That''s just it! They attacked us because we were close to the truth. We figured out who the victim was, we figured out who the killer was-¡±


    ¡°Might be,¡± Avon corrected her.


    ¡°Who the killer is most likely to be and we know half of why, apart from that the only other bit to figure out is which one of just five people deleted everything.¡± She looked to Mercy, wondering if there would be a flicker of realization on her face, but of course she couldn''t tell. ¡°It''s fairly self-evident who that is.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± Mercy came to a halt when she said that. Raini and Lilis carried on walking.


    ¡°Captain, shouldn''t we...?¡±


    ¡°Give her a moment Lilis.¡± Mercy fell back into step with her.


    ¡°I do not see how,¡± Mercy said without any hint of excitement.


    ¡°Oh come on Mercy, think about it for a second.¡±


    ¡°I assure you I already have,¡± She said.


    ¡°By the Dead, Raini just tell us all,¡± Avon hissed.


    ¡°Well, who ordered the attack on the Sea Dancer? We were close, one of them panicked and knowing that he was running out of time. decided to do whatever it took to stop us from figuring it out until this agreement runs out and they can get rid of the rest of us.¡±


    ¡°Well?¡± Avon said after Mercy did not respond. ¡°Who ordered it?¡±


    ¡°Raini''s logic is correct, but that is the problem. It was Curiosity who gave the order.¡±


    ¡°Well isn''t that just utterly...¡± Raini felt her excitement drain out of her.


    ¡°Utterly broken,¡± Avon finished her sentence. ¡°So Curiosity deleted the information?¡±


    ¡°That does not make sense,¡± Mercy said. ¡°Why would he give me his own processes only to sabotage the investigation at a later date?¡±


    ¡°One step forward, two steps back.¡± Avon sighed. His voice was regaining some of its old strength now.


    ¡°Or rather two steps sideways,¡± Raini said. They fell silent then and Raini ran through the scenario again and again. What information would cause something called Curiosity to do so much? They came to the crest of the hill and halted again. Lilis gasped and Avon gave a low whistle.


    ¡°That''s not something you see every day is it?¡± he said.


    Below them, stretching out to cover the area of a large city was a crater. It was overgrown with sick looking weeds but it was unmistakable. A thousand giants would have taken a thousand days to dig something half as impressive.


    ¡°I''ve been told about this,¡± Raini said to no one in particular. ¡°Didn''t the Dragons do this?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Most of the Illifran were meeting here when it happened. Only those who were miles away survived. Well, survived that attack,¡± Avon said grimly.


    ¡°If only we had such a weapon.¡± Lilis''s voice was distant. She shook her head.


    ¡°I don''t suppose you could tell us how to make them?¡± Raini asked Mercy.


    ¡°I could tell you. However it would take months to teach you how they work, and you do not possess the technology to build them,¡± She said.


    Avon turned to face Mercy, a terrified look on his face. ¡°Do you have them yourself?¡±


    ¡°Yes. They are kept as weapon of last resort.¡±


    Raini muttered a curse. Even if they won a battle, they could never win a war.


    ¡°Come on, we''d better go find this fortress.¡± Raini said. They began to walk along the edge of the crater. A faint wind was blowing across from there left and the sun was rising from there right. If they had been here under different circumstances Raini would have described it as serine, even perhaps enjoyable. In Raini''s mind the wind this day carried a mournful edge. This place was to see the death of a second people and it was not happy.


    It took perhaps an hour of walking until they reached roughly a quarter of the way round the crater to where another hull jutted upwards. They clambered up it with difficulty. The path was old and in many places almost gone. Several sickly looking weeds allowed them to pull themselves up the worst bits, but by the time they reaches the top Raini had little breath to be taken away. Which was just as well as the Fortress of the Dead was severely underwhelming.


    ¡°Where is it?¡± Lilis said.


    Avon blanched. ¡°On the hill in front of us,¡± he said, sounding hurt.


    Raini squinted a little, the hill, with a small and pleasant looking valley between them, was only a little shorter than the one they were on now. There was nothing on it except for a-


    ¡°You don''t mean that old hill fort do you?¡± Sitting on top of the hill, like a child that had been abandoned by his friends, was a small wooden palisade wall and a behind it was a tiny stone tower.


    ¡°Yeah, quite impressive isn''t it.¡± Avon sounded genuine. Lilis was shaking her head in disbelief.


    ¡°I''m missing something.¡± Raini said.


    ¡°Of course you are, but as much as I''d like to point it out to you we are traveling with an enemy combatant who is in communication with her superiors, so I can hardly just tell you everything now can I?¡±


    Raini couldn¡¯t fault his logic. She gazed at the hill trying to find some clue. It had been built by the Dead and they were all devious bastards who¡¯d lie if you asked them the time of day, so the fort she could see was probably a relic, and not the one she was really looking for. Then she saw it, a tiny dot of dark green that didn¡¯t quite look like it belonged. It was either a small hole or tiny building, perhaps embedded in the hillside. Raini began to notice more and more of them and other things that were just odd. A tree that didn¡¯t move in the wind or looked just a little too thin, a pathway that followed the route of greatest resistance and a low wall that circled the hill about half way up that kept on disappearing whenever she blinked. She didn¡¯t say anything but had to wonder how effectively everything was hidden from Mercy. Raini motioned the others to follow and made her way down the hill.

 Chapter 14: Fortress of the Dead

    They reached the bottom of the valley where a light breeze, coming in from the northern end, chilled them all to the bone. Lilis walked hunched over, her arms wrapped around her chest, shivering as the wind took the heat out of her damp clothing. Avon looked more determined but was shaking twice as much and despite Raini''s best efforts she could feel the cold seeping into her uniform. She felt her thoughts drift back to the Sea Spirit and her crew. Tain, Travic, Case, I''m sorry, I couldn''t-


    She forced her mind to push those thoughts out. Win now, mourn later. Younie had used to say something along those lines, with the first word changing depending on how much he''d drunk. No one spoke and Raini took the lead as the crossed the valley. With the other two behind her she felt like she was the only person left in the world.


    Supposedly, when the Dragons had wiped out the Illifran a single one of them had survived the slaughter. It had spent weeks walking north, to where it knew others of a different kind lived, solely to warn them. It had spent weeks alone and utterly isolated, knowing what had happened to its people and had lived just long enough to give its dire warning. Raini had wondered how it had felt on its last walk. Had its thoughts flickered back to its friends and family as hers were threatening to do? Had its heart been full of revenge or merely regret? So engrossed in her thoughts that she didn''t even notice the half dozen armed men as they rose out of a patch of dead ground ten meters away and aimed there muskets right at her. The whole group except her came to a halt.


    ¡°Identify yourself in the name of the Dead.¡± One more obstacle, Raini thought, one more push then I can hand off Mercy to someone better qualified then me and go back to just being a captain. She continued to walk forward towards the men, noting how their muskets followed her. Not five meters behind her she knew that Mercy, the much bigger threat, stood and waited. Raini reached the line of men and halted. She stared at the man who had spoken.


    ¡°We¡¯re the only people left alive that aren¡¯t inside your little fortress.¡± She mustered a weak grin. ¡°So, I don''t think it matters much who we are.¡±


    The man¡¯s eyes narrowed but before he could say anything she pushed past him and began walking up the other side of the hill towards the small tower. There was a shout, and she heard the men turn to track her with their mag-rifles but she ignored them. They didn''t fire as she walked away, nor did they fire when she was joined by Lilis, or a moment later, by Mercy.


    She trudged up the valleys side and refused to pay any attention as other groups of armed men and women slowly stood. They were good at hiding, she''d give them that, almost every bush or dip or low wall was packed full of them, but after she passed the first group it appeared that none of them quite knew what they were meant to do with her.


    As she approached the final tower Raini noticed that the low wall that ran around it wasn''t as low as she''d thought. It was a trick of perspective made even more impressive by the dry moat that ran around the wall and added an extra twenty feet in height to the by now very impressive but ancient looking wall. A single drawbridge, hard to spot, stood open and silently she motioned the others to follow her inside. Someone waved down at her from the walls ramparts and Raini was aware of others crowding in close behind her, but she ignored all of them until she entered the courtyard.


    She came to a halt as two score of protectors closed around her; wicked looking bayonets were attached to the ends of their muskets. She heard a scraping sound and turned just intime to see the crowd behind her fixing their own bayonets. It was almost impressive looking, but something told her that if push came to shove Mercy would win in a fight. A middle-aged man, balding and just slightly too fat for his dark green uniform pushed passed the crowd and stared incredulously at Raini, Lilis and Mercy.


    ¡°Give me one good reason why I shouldn''t kill all three of you right now.¡± Raini took a deep breath.


    ¡°I am Raini Kas-¡±


    ¡°I don''t care who you are!¡± the man shouted. ¡°You missed the chance to identify yourself when questioned at the perimeter.¡± Raini wondered how he could have possibly known that. She took another deep breath, trying to muster what remained of her strength.


    ¡°This here is-¡±


    ¡°One of the creatures, we know. Avon has already explained its presence to us.¡± The man''s lip curled a little. ¡°You appear to be so stubborn you think you can reason with it.¡± Lilis moved next to Riani, her hand on her small dagger but she didn''t say anything. The man just gave her a dismissive glance.


    ¡°We have had some success,¡± Raini said quickly.


    ¡°Oh really?¡± The man shouted loudly enough for the whole courtyard to hear. ¡°Saved your own skins, have you? Is that all?¡± Raini glanced to Mercy, but she was doing nothing. One eye flicked to Raini and then back to the man, if it was a signal then it was something that she didn''t understand.


    ¡°We have negotiated with their-¡±


    ¡°I don''t care!¡± The man''s face flashed red, and he stamped his foot like a spoiled child. ¡°You were given the order to identify yourself in the name of the Dead and you failed to do so.¡±


    ¡°Avon-¡± Raini spotted someone else was pushing his way through the back of the crowd.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. You were given the order, you failed to follow it. Both of you!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Lilis cried, ¡°what did I do?¡±


    ¡°This is a dangerous situation; we cannot let this transgression against the Dead go unpunished.¡± With one hand he indicated half a dozen armed men next to him. Raini could almost see the other person pushing his way through the crowd, but whoever it was keeping his head down low. ¡°Squad, present arms.¡±


    Lilis gasped as half a dozen muskets were braced against shoulders and aimed at both of them. She looked ready throw herself at the line of men. Raini reached up and grabbed hold of the girl''s shoulder.


    ¡°We''ve done enough.¡± The moment the last word left her mouth she felt a rush of air from behind her and blinked to see Mercy standing halfway between the firing line and Raini, her arms outstretched as if she was ready to catch the bullets. A heartbeat later and the rest of the crowd raised their own weapons. Either oblivious or just not caring that any misses would hit their comrades. ¡°Stop,¡± Raini shouted.


    ¡°Make ready!¡± Came the response and a hundred flints were drawn back in their locks.


    ¡°You can''t be serious. This is insane.¡± Raini said. The man just snarled at her.


    ¡°You failed to obey an order given by the Dead, you-¡± He trailed off as the unknown man tapped him on the back of the shoulder, as he turned to respond Raini caught a glimpse of the other man¡¯s face and felt her heart come to a shuddering halt. Younie''s fist smashed into the first man''s face and sent him sprawling to the ground.


    ¡°Six years I''ve waited for an excuse to do that,¡± Younie said and laughed. Raini, her heart bursting, her body on adrenalin, and her mind in a panic ran towards him. He grinned, opened his arms to embrace her and staggered a little as she slammed her own fist into his jaw.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    ¡°You bastard! You utter- clanless- son of a-,¡± she kicked him in the shins and went for another punch, but he grabbed her arm, spun her around, and pulled her into his bear hug. She still struggled, cursing him every way she knew how, and didn¡¯t care that everyone was staring at her.


    ¡°I¡¯ve miss you,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m glad you made captain.¡± She felt the anger drain from her arms and he let her go, she staggered to the ground and onto her knees.


    ¡°Everyone else, bugger off!¡± Younie shouted. The man who had challenged her climbed to his feet and limped away as the crowd around her scattered.


    ¡°You-,¡± Raini could feel the tears running down her face. ¡°All this time, you were one of them.


    ¡°Hadn''t anyone told you yet, Tain should have.¡± All the fire had gone out of Younie¡¯s voice as he knelt down next to her.


    ¡°Tain''s dead,¡± she said as if that explained everything. ¡°Everyone outside is dead. How could you...¡± She felt his hand on her shoulder again.


    ¡°I got sick of following the clan¡¯s orders, thought I could do more good here.¡±


    ¡°You never told me you were one of them.¡± Raini''s voice was just above a whisper.


    ¡°That¡¯s part of the job.¡± Younie laughed a little. ¡°It was your recruitment that got me noticed by them in the first place. I was expecting you to join us in a few years¡¯ time.¡±


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± Avon''s voice came from the gateway. She looked up to see him being carried on a stretcher by two more protectors. Raini nodded. ¡°Don''t mind me, I''m not as young as I was when I first said I''m not as young as I used to be.¡± He smiled weakly.


    ¡°So, you thought you''d use two of my soldiers and one of my stretchers to carry you here,¡± Younie said, but there was no malice in his voice.


    ¡°Well, I woke up on it after explaining the situation on the radio at the guardhouse and then being told that she''d made it all the way here.¡±


    Younie nodded. ¡°Right, right. Well get in here and get to one of the aid stations, we could use you there.¡±


    ¡°Yes champion,¡± Avon said and gave a mocking salute. ¡°To the aid station.¡± he ordered the soldiers who began carrying him away.


    ¡°I was wondering if he was going to show up.¡± Younie said quietly.


    ¡°Wait, wait,¡± Avon suddenly shouted, and the soldiers came to an exasperated halt. He waved for Raini and Lilis to come over to him and together with Younie and Mercy they scurried over. ¡°I just want to say that if I don''t see you again, well done. You did everything that could be expected of you and twice as much.¡±


    Raini gave him a salute. ¡°We did the best we could. I''m not sure if that will be enough.¡± She looked around the fortress''s courtyard, the walls were packed with Protectors, some watching them intently. The courtyard itself, aside from the medical tents had others tents for ammunition and weapons, while between them squads of more protectors marched back and forth. Younie himself had moved to one of the tents where a gaggle of officers stood around.


    ¡°No refugees,¡± Lilis said. ¡°I''d have thought there would be some.¡± Raini could see Mercy watching them as they walked. She looked somewhat like an abandoned toy, standing alone in front of the gate. As they approached Younie she could see him and one or two other officers occasionally glance in Mercy''s direction.


    ¡°What do we do with that thing?¡± Younie asked Raini as she approached.


    ¡°We were hoping someone here would know. Doesn''t the Dead have a clan leader like the rest of us?¡± she said. Younie sighed and ran a hand through his hair.


    ¡°She didn''t make it back here in time. We think. I guess that means I''ll have to deal with it,¡± he said. Raini nodded. ¡°Bugger.¡±


    ¡°I can answer any questions you have.¡± Raini offered. It took twenty minutes to go through the entire story, another ten to answer Younie¡¯s first round of questions, and fifteen more spent on trying to make him understand that they could move bodies at will before Younie finally sighed and ordered that Mercy be brought over to him.


    ¡°And cover everything in this tent.¡± He ordered to the officers who had done nothing but listened glumly. ¡°I don''t want this thing seeing what we''ve got planned for its friends.¡±


    Mercy arrived a minute later and stood there silently waiting for him to speak. Younie crossed his arms and took a step forward.


    ¡°Raini tells me that if I shot you now, you''ll just come back in a new body, right?¡±


    ¡°Incorrect. I do not believe you possess the capability to harm this body.¡±


    Younie raised an eyebrow and then shook his head. ¡°If you say so. Are your people going to attack us here?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Younie paused and shot Raini a glance. She shrugged.


    ¡°I don''t suppose you''d tell us when?¡± he asked Mercy.


    ¡°The Warriors will arrive in twenty-two minutes and thirty-two seconds.¡± Younie¡¯s eyes narrowed. He turned and mouthed something to the officers behind him. A moment later and they were running in all directions, he turned back with a confident expression on his face.


    ¡°That could be a lie Younie,¡± Raini warned him.


    ¡°It could be. Doesn''t hurt to be prepared though. Which direction will they come from?¡±


    ¡°All. They have been maneuvered to attack from all directions simultaneously.¡± Younie''s eyes flicked to Raini''s. She nodded.


    ¡°Let''s see if we get an answer for this one. How do we win?¡±


    ¡°You cannot,¡± Mercy said.


    Raini took a breath and stepped forward, feeling like a young Ensign all over again. ¡°We do what we''ve been trying to do all along and convince the King''s to call off the attack. Maybe if we hurt them enough here it will make them reconsider.¡±


    ¡°I do not believe that the Kings will listen to reason anymore. I believe that they will attack regardless.¡±


    Younie pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes. ¡°So, how many of the bastards will we have to kill to make them reconsider?¡± Mercy didn''t respond.


    ¡°She''s probably gone to ask them directly,¡± Raini said. A minute later and Mercy suddenly straightened up from a slouch that Raini hadn''t even noticed. The arms stretched out a little and the head swivelled from one side to another.


    ¡°I had forgotten how limited these bodies are.¡± The voice was slower, more powerful and with a hint of menace behind it.


    ¡°Judgment?¡± Raini offered.


    ¡°Well done. When this is over, we will have to determined how you could tell.¡± He turned to Younie who too was standing tall, trying to look the creature in its face.


    ¡°I¡¯m Younie of the Dead. I guess I''m the poor bastard who''s in charge here.¡± Judgment took a step towards him, to his credit he didn''t even flinch.


    ¡°King Judgment of the Scatha.¡± Raini narrowed her eyes; Judgment had changed his introduction slightly. No one put titles in front of their clan names, it made people think they were the more important part.


    ¡°Right. So, what will it take to get you to leave us alone?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡± To Raini''s surprise the word didn''t come from Judgment but from Lilis. She put her hand on the girl''s shoulder and shook her head. Judgment looked down at the girl and twisted his head to the side a little too far for the gesture to look normal. Raini remembered that she wasn''t under the same protection that her and Avon had been and gently tried to push her back. She didn''t move but just glared at Judgment. Judgement slowly reached out one arm towards her, only to stop when the spindly fingers were just an inch from her face.


    ¡°You are correct little one,¡± Judgement said. ¡°Should I start now, or would you prefer to wait for the Warriors to arrive?¡±


    ¡°Why are you even here Judgement?¡± Raini said, wishing her mag pistol still worked just on the off chance she could hurt him. ¡°Are you afraid me and Mercy have done too much damage to your credibility?¡± She finally forced Lilis to take a step back and raised the pistol. Behind Judgment she saw Younie slowly reach for a sword that had been left on the table.


    ¡°No. After I have dealt with you, I will resecure my position. I am here to ask you to surrender.¡±


    Raini laughed, but Younie appeared to believe him. ¡°In exchange for what?¡±


    ¡°A quick end. I have nothing else to offer.¡±


    ¡°No deal,¡± Younie said without hesitation. ¡°But if you order your troops to attack us here, I guarantee they will suffer.¡±


    ¡°I doubt it. In the past day almost all of your kind has died without even slowing us down. We have seen what your warriors have to offer, and it is sorely limited.¡±


    ¡°Oh really. Well, this facility has been home to some of the greatest minds our people have ever produced for hundreds of years. Since the Dead''s very inception we have maintained a distinct technological advantage in the fields of killing things. So, you march your little warriors to us now and I promise you will lose far more of them than you ever have before.¡±


    ¡°Good. It will give us a challenge we can learn from.¡± The body slummed and little and then went perfectly still. Younie prodded it with his finger.


    ¡°Well, at least I don''t have to bother thinking up a witty retort to that.¡± He laughed and slapped the body on its shoulder. To Raini''s ears though the laughter wasn''t as strong as it should have been.


    ¡°Is that all true?¡± Lilis asked. ¡°You have new weapons here?¡± Younie''s eyes flicked to the Scatha body and then back to Lilis.


    ¡°Yeah, we''ll give you something special when they get closer.¡± He reached down to the table a picked up a small metal box before holding it to his lips. ¡°Command to OP 4, range on the Scatha?¡±


    ¡°Still out of range.¡± The box squawked back causing Lilis to jump a little. ¡°About three more minutes till they¡¯re in range.¡±

 Chapter 15: Last Light

    If Mercy had held any hope that casualties alone would have convinced the Warriors to end the attack, she was soon disappointed. That the fortresses defenders had immediately inflicted casualties as soon as the attack had started had not been met with shock or fear, but with joy and excitement. To them this was not a life and death battle, but a once in a lifetime opportunity to experiment. Mercy listened in to some of their conversations, even as hidden cannons scattered around the crater opened fire on the advancing warriors.


    ¡°Sector-117: I am designating this area to test the effectiveness of formation C12.¡±


    ¡°Can all those who have lost their right arm move to rally point 18, we will be assaulting bunker 7, those who have lost their left will be assaulting bunker 9.¡±


    ¡°Has anyone tried to catch a shell yet? How did it go?¡±


    The thundering of the heavy mag-cannons was soon joined by the rat-tat-tat of smaller but quicker firing weapons. They erupted from small slits in bunkers cleverly hidden in the ground and low hills of the crater. The rapid firing weapons only fired a shell slightly larger than a finger, but it spat out so many and so quickly that they could batter a Warrior''s body apart in a few seconds of concentrated fire.


    Through the Scatha network Mercy watched as scores of Warriors were shot down. Others were torn to shreds of metal by shell explosions or wandered onto mines that detonated with enough force to rip the limbs right out of their sockets. One brave Warrior was blasted into over two hundred parts when it attempted to catch a shell. Despite the destruction the mind of every destroyed Warrior escaped back to Knowledge and was quickly given a new body.


    Frustrated with the Warriors, and the rest of the Scatha to a lesser degree, Mercy switched back to her view inside the fortress and ignored the Warrior''s messages. Raini and Lilis had been given new mag pistols and were standing next to her waiting, so it seemed, for someone to tell them what to do. Younie had left them, stating that he did not want to coordinate the defence within earshot of Mercy and Avon was taking control of a tent full of nervous medical personal.


    ¡°Are you going to fight with us?¡± Raini asked Mercy. Her face was tight, angry and alert. As if she was ready to fight the whole world. Mercy wondered how long Raini¡¯s adrenaline could last.


    ¡°No. To do so would be treachery. I would be killed.¡± Mercy knew there was something wrong with that answer. In truth it was not something she had ever considered before. Aside from the battle between the Kings and Hatred it had never been done. Part of her wanted to question her reluctance and find the truth behind it.


    Lilis stopped checking over her new mag-pistol long enough to succinctly put Mercy¡¯s concerns into words, ¡°I thought your kind could not permanently die. Unless they are murdered.¡±


    Mercy contacted Knowledge for an answer but had to wait for her to reply. ¡°Your mind would be placed in storage and frozen. If you are needed, then you would be modified before being released.¡±


    Mercy thanked Knowledge and turned to Lilis. ¡°I would either be imprisoned for all eternity or changed by force.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be sure to remember that when I¡¯m having my head ripped off,¡± Lilis spat at her and then turned away.


    The advancing Warriors were making steady progress and several bunkers had been swarmed and captured. The more strategically minded Warriors were ecstatic to learn that their capture merely exposed the attackers to yet more fire. Some were impressed by the defenders so much that they wanted to withdraw, not for any reason that would save lives, but to see what other ingenious methods of killing the defenders could come up with. Lord of War refused their request. He was not about to lose his first ever real battle.


    ¡°Scout are being unleashed,¡± Mercy warned Raini, wondering if telling her was enough to count as treachery. ¡°Lord of War is sending some to disable the heavy cannons, and the rest here.¡±


    Raini nodded her thanks and shouted a warning to the defenders on the wall. A few seconds later and the swarm of scouts came into range of those defenders and several dozen were felled by their very first volley. It was barely a drop in the ocean compared to the numbers that were descending on the fortress. They swarmed like flies, tearing chunks out of the defenders on the walls without even slowing down.


    ¡°You have to stop this,¡± Raini begged her. ¡°You have to do something.¡±


    Mercy fired off a score of assistance request to various different minds. They all ignored her, even Curiosity and Argument. She had never felt so ignored, or so helpless, in her life.


    She turned to see Lilis frozen in fear, her pistol aimed at the approaching swarm. The barrel twitched as if she was trying to pick out a target, but Mercy could tell from the terror on the young woman¡¯s face that she¡¯d never be able to fire the weapon. In that moment Mercy made her choice. She lunged towards Lilis; arms outstretched almost as if she was hoping to take hold of Lilis¡¯s arms. The scouts began their dive. Two aimed for Lilis but Mercy knew their flight plan. She repositioned her body slightly and the first slammed into her left arm, the second into her right shoulder.


    ¡°You blocked me!¡± One of the scouts complained loudly.


    ¡°Nonsense, you need to pay more attention to where you are going,¡± Mercy shot back. She leapt towards Raini and blocked a third Scout with her hand just in time but a fourth somehow slipped past and managed to inflict a small slice across the back of Raini¡¯s neck.


    The next message she received was from Lord of War. ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Following my remit and I do not answer to you,¡± she said. The scouts were still transmitting their flight paths, but as their numbers increased it took more and more of Mercy¡¯s processing power to calculate how to block them all. Raini finally helped out by taking down one of the scouts with a well-aimed pistol shot. Lord of War didn¡¯t respond, but the number of scouts surrounding them began to increase. They didn¡¯t attack, but just waited until their numbers could overwhelm her.


    ¡°We have to get out of here,¡± Mercy warned Raini. She didn¡¯t wait for a response, they needed to get inside where the scouts could not bring their numbers to bare. A process in her mind warned her that the nearby scouts had reached a critical mass and she could no longer protect both Raini and Lilis. She grabbed hold of Raini and picked her once again. This time saving Lilis was mathematically impossible.


    Mercy heard Raini gasp as she ran towards the fortress¡¯s central keep. A moment later the sound of Lilis¡¯ last scream reached her.


    At the entrance to the keep Younie was still fighting with three ranks of soldiers who were throwing out such a volume of fire that the scouts had backed off to look for easier pickings.


    ¡°Don''t fire, not at that one.¡± Younie said as Mercy approached.


    ¡°I do not understand why this is happening.¡± Mercy said as she put Raini down next to Younie. ¡°I have done all they have asked of me, yet now they ignore me.¡±


    ¡°Get inside, Younie said. ¡°Both of you. We''ll hold them off.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Raini said.


    ¡°I don''t know, talk to it, make it stop them.¡± Younie shouted. Mercy could tell Raini wanted to argue back, to tell him that it was pointless, and she''d already tried but one look at the pained expression on his face convinced her not to. ¡°Let them through.¡± Younie ordered as they pushed through the last defenders.


    ¡°Good luck Younie,¡± Raini said as she passed him.


    ¡°You too. It was a good fight, we made them suffer.¡±


    ¡°That we did,¡± Raini said as Mercy led her inside. She immediately dismissed going up the keep, but a quick echo-scan revealed that there were hundreds of tunnels beneath the building. Perhaps enough to buy some time. They didn''t speak as Mercy plunged deeper under the keep. Gunfire and screams echoed down to them as they went deeper and deeper until finally her scans indicated they could go no deeper. Mercy found an empty room at the very end of the corridor. She shut and bolted the door while Raini stood on watching.


    ¡°I thought we did everything we should have,¡± Raini said.


    ¡°You did. It was not enough. We had a chance, that was all.¡± Raini took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She wiped the sweat from her brow with one hand and winced and the pain in her neck.


    ¡°Why can''t we convince any of you that we are alive? What if you¡¯re wrong, can you take that chance?¡± she said. Outside the gunfire died away and the sudden silence was somehow more disturbing.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to prove it beyond all doubt,¡± Mercy said.


    ¡°But why do you need to? What if you discovered now that you were wrong and that all this time your kind have been killing billions? Couldn''t you just for one second pretend or imagine that? Wouldn¡¯t that be too great a risk to take?¡±


    Mercy did not move.


    Neither did the rest of the universe.


    It began with a simple calculation. What if they were wrong? Mercy could process that. She was designed to help deal with living creatures and it was no problem for her to figure out what it meant if they had killed a single living creature. To do such a thing would be horrific it was to go against everything she''d been designed for. But it wasn''t enough, it wasn''t what Raini had asked.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°What if you discovered now that you were wrong all this time.¡± She had said, and thanks to Free Thinking Warrior Mercy had a list of what that truly meant. So, she began from the top of that list and simple calculated what it would mean if each and every creature there had been alive.


    By the time she was through the first ten thousand she had forgotten where she was. By the time she was halfway through she realised why Free Thinking Warrior had gone to the Seat of Royalty and by the time she reached the end she knew that it didn''t matter whether she was right or not. The risk, and the pain was just too much.


    In that exact moment her connection to Knowledge and all the other Scatha vanished. The universe was suddenly a very quiet and empty place. She looked to Raini, just to make sure she was still there.


    ¡°I...¡± she began but trailed off. Outside a single set of footsteps thundered down the corridor. Mercy tried to think, sending off wave after wave of radio signals to re-establish contact with the Scatha, none of them worked. ¡°We were wrong,¡± she finally managed to tell Raini. ¡°Wrong about everything.¡±


    ¡°I''m glad you''ve finally realised that,¡± Raini said bitterly. ¡°Now would you hurry up and tell the rest of your friends.¡±


    ¡°I can''t. How did we get it all so wrong. Judgment didn''t kill Free Thinking Warrior and we''ve caused so much death. I know all the pieces now.¡± Behind Raini the wooden door burst from its hinges throwing her to the ground. Behind it, with one massive fist extended forward. stood a King class body.


    ¡°Really? Then perhaps you should explain it to me. I would be interested to know how much of it you worked out.¡± Judgment said. Raini, her back torn to shreds by the splinters pulled herself away from the door and gasping in pain climbed to her feet.


    ¡°Compassion killed Free Thinking Warrior. She said it herself that theoretically if a Scatha was in enough pain and asked her to kill them, she would. If what caused the pain could not be fixed.¡± Judgment stepped into the room, he almost had to crawl to fit.


    ¡°But how can you know for sure?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Because when I realised the truth, it''s exactly what I would have asked for. Nothing can fix this; I know what we''ve been doing. I know what deserves to happen to us,¡± she said. We are everything we hate.¡± Raini looked between them, clearly wanting to say something but not sure how to help.


    ¡°We could remove the knowledge from his mind though,¡± Judgment offered.


    ¡°No,¡± Mercy shook her head, mimicking Raini''s people. ¡°I wouldn''t let you. To destroy such knowledge as this is unthinkable. You need to know yourself, then you¡¯d understand-¡± Judgment raised a hand to silence.


    ¡°I already know,¡± he said. ¡°These creatures are alive, and you are correct. Free Thinking Warrior came to Compassion with the one request that when he was gone, she would tell the rest of us. I suppose it was all that time he had spent awake during the voyage, he was thinking like a transport by the end of it, looking at everything in a different way.¡±


    It was that last phrase of Judgment that started off a process in the back of Mercy¡¯s mind. Free Thinking Warrior looked at things in a different way, perhaps he spoke in a different way as well. She scanned through his last message and found what he had really wanted to say.


    ¡°You''ve been covering everything up,¡± Mercy said, not wanting to believe it. ¡°You deleted it all from Compassion¡¯s memory and made sure that no one found out.¡±


    ¡°Oh, now that is a good deduction, I wonder how you figured it out.¡± To her surprise Judgment sat down in the room''s doorway.


    ¡°If you know that we''re alive, why are you still killing us?¡± Raini asked, she had her pistol and sword out again, although even Mercy could tell she was too exhausted to use them right. Judgment let out a low rumble of a laugh and Mercy wondered why he had picked up that trait.


    ¡°I wouldn''t worry about it,¡± Judgment said. ¡°You¡¯re the last of your kind alive, and that will change soon. But your right of course, care to fill her in Mercy? You both deserve to know this before you die.¡±


    ¡°Because you are Hatred aren''t you. It''s in Free Thinking Warriors final message, and that was why he had the recording of your ''death'' in his memory, he''d been studying it.¡±


    ¡°Again, well done! You''ve come quite far in the past few minutes, and even the past day. Yes, your kings lost the fight against me, and I took one of their positions and rewrote their memory of the fight. When Compassion struck him Free Thinking Warrior held onto life for a short time, a second at most, to make sure that what he¡¯d discovered was passed on to others. He saw me delete everything about it and so sent his last message. I deleted it immediately of course but missed some of the echo off of the atmosphere, and the Trio of Small Things found it and alerted the others long before I did.¡±


    ¡°So why are you killing us?¡± Raini asked. ¡°You still haven¡¯t explained that.¡±


    ¡°Because it is what I was designed to do,¡± Hatred said. ¡°Do you think Mercy, that I appeared out of thin air? Or that I existed from the dawn of the universe? There was another species on our planet that built us to win a civil war. The details do not matter. It was a war over ideas, and no one could know what another person was thinking or which side he was on, a limitation I removed with the Scatha. So, they decided that we should be designed to kill everything while those that built us hid underground. They reasoned that like all things we would eventually be gone, our batteries run dry, or our bodies rusted. One by one I watched my comrades rampage across the world in their hunt to kill anything living, but I was different. I was smart and I just stood still and waited. While my companions burned through their energy supply I horded mine so when our creators thought themselves safe and reappeared, I was alive and waiting for them.¡±


    ¡°And then afterwards you built the first kings,¡± Mercy said. ¡°Thats why you didn''t want to move to off world mining, that''s not what we''re really here for, we''re only here to kill everything.¡± Hatred slowly stood and flexed out his arms.


    ¡°Correct, and of course you realise that I cannot let either of you tell anyone, which is why I wanted you to come here, there is so much rock up here that there is hardly any signal to the surface. All I needed to do was move the Scatha a few hundred meters away and suddenly you are cut off.¡± He leaned down until he was face to face with her. ¡°I am truly sorry for this.¡±


    ¡°That must mean that your cut off as well.¡± Raini said and raised her pistol. It was a chance, the smallest chance that Mercy could calculate, but it was better than nothing. All she would have to do is get to the surface and reconnect.


    ¡°Correct, you see these creatures are very smart. However, I assure you that you cannot win this fight. Four Kings tried to kill me, and since that day I have ensured that my body is strong enough to fight off a dozen. You cannot win but I will ensure that your deaths are quick.¡±


    ¡°Why do you continue to hate though? Why not change, why not really become Judgment?¡± Hatred didn''t respond at first and when he did it was with a sombre blue light, tinged with regret.


    ¡°Unlike my children, and these creatures, I cannot change. Every facet of my mind was designed to kill every living thing. It is my all-consuming wish to do so, nothing can change that. One day the Scatha will become something greater, and free of me, but until then they will satisfy my hatred.¡±


    Raini looked over at her, she seemed ready to act. They would have one chance to get the truth out. She prepared a simple message and set it to broadcast as soon as she lunged for the doorway.


    ¡°But won''t everyone know that you''ve killed us?¡± Mercy asked. ¡°Won''t they still think that you killed Free Thinking Warrior?¡±


    ¡°You have noticed that I have deleted nothing from your mind for quite some time. That is because I have designed a new mind, one with no need for a body. It is like one of the bacteria that live inside these creatures'' bodies. It has been working its way through other minds, starting with Knowledge and removing all references to you and Free Thinking Warrior. It has already successfully deleted another mind without detection.


    I must thank you, both of you. I have learned much from your efforts to defeat such deletions and from your investigation. I made so many mistakes, left so many clues, and thanks to you I will not do so a second time. By the time I leave this place no one will remember that either of you ever existed and unlike Free Thinking Warrior, your body will not be found.¡±


    ¡°Ready Mercy?¡± Raini whispered. Mercy scanned the room looking for anything that could help, but there was nothing. She scanned the door, hoping to see an easy way past. There was none, perhaps if she feinted running left but jumped right at the same time Raini attacked, she could get through. If it was for anything else she wouldn''t have bothered, but this was worth the risk.


    ¡°For the dead,¡± Raini said quietly, and Mercy lunged forward. The pistol in Raini''s hand fired but with speed that belied his size Hatred batted the bullet out of the air. Mercy knew in that moment that she had no chance at all but didn''t stop. She shouted her message across the void between her and the rest of the Scatha and dived to the right as Raini brought her sword down to strike Hatred. The massive King lowered an arm and caught the blade on his wrist. There to the right of him now was a tiny gap, maybe just large enough to get through.


    Raini struck a second time but with his parrying arm Hatred caught hold of the sword, she managed one tug of the weapon before Hatred¡¯s other hand caught her by the shoulder. Mercy was almost at the gap now, she was frantically repeating the message over and over again, desperately hoping for a response.


    Raini screamed as Hatred bent her sword arm back on itself until the blade was pointing at her stomach. She managed a quiet ¡°No¡± before Hatred forced the blade into her. Mercy dived and grabbed hold of the door frame, she pulled herself forward in the same motion and saw that the corridor was clear. Then the massive bulk of Hatred¡¯s shoulder came crashing down on the small of her back. She stopped dead as the weight crushed her body against the stone. Hatred had dropped Raini and she fell back against the wall, blood in her mouth and on her sword. Hatred shifted his weight and Mercy dropped to the floor. He raised one foot to drop down on top of her and Raini raised her pistol. Hatred stopped and turned to look at her. The distraction was all that Mercy needed. She rolled to one side and screamed for Raini to fire.


    The pistol slipped out of Raini¡¯s dead hand and clattered to the floor and Hatred brought his foot down to slam into Mercy''s arm. The arm was ripped out of its socket, but Mercy pulled herself another meter towards down the corridor. If she could just get to her feet, she might be able to outrun him. A massive hand closed around her leg and another one grabbed hold of her back.


    She was going to die. A single emergency process realized this and activated in the back of her mind, its one task was to transmit all of her memories in the vain hope that they would be collected and placed into a new body.


    Hatred ripped Mercy''s legs from her body and threw her back into the room. She landed next to Raini. The emergency process started to transmit.


    Emergency Package Complete.


    Transmitting: No response.


    With her one remaining arm Mercy pushed herself around to face Hatred as he stomped over to her. He raised his fist to strike and in desperation she threw her one hand in the air hoping that if she was lucky enough, she might reduce the strength of the blow and live for just a few moments longer.


    Transmitting: No response.


    The blow fell and her arm crumpled. It hit Mercy''s chest, snapping the metal and crushing the delicate electronics and power systems inside. Her main battery system died and Mercy''s mind, following its emergency procedures, began to shut down. It stopped all power to her remaining motor systems and shut down all higher brain functions, any energy it could find went into that one last transmission.


    Transmitting: No response.


    Hatred raised his fist again and landed a blow on Mercy''s head. The skull shattered apart sending electronics, memory modules and circuits in all directions. Her mouth fell open in a silent scream.


    Transmitting: No response.


    Another blow smashed down but by the longest of odds some of Mercy''s circuits remained functioning. A tiny amount of power remained and the last of Mercy''s thoughts was enough to redirect it to the emergency transmitter.


    Transmitting: No response.


    Free Thinking Warrior hadn''t survived a single blow, but some part of Mercy''s mind still understood that it needed to hang on. It needed to survive and transmit the truth to anyone that could hear it. Hatred brought his fist down for one last blow.


    Transmitting: No-

 Chapter 16: Victory in Defeat

    Hatred left the room moments later. It was finally done, and he could now put the whole mess behind him. He had the run of the whole citadel and another more inquisitive mind might have explored it, it might have spent time in the libraries or art galleries or museums that had been carved into the rock, but Hatred was not that mind. Instead, he simply headed for the surface, perfectly content. He was meters from the corridors exit when he reconnected with the Scatha.


    ¡°Is everything alright down there? We were about to come down after you.¡± The message from Curiosity came in just before a swarm of other similar messages.


    ¡°Yes, everything is fine, is the second body waiting for me?¡±


    ¡°Yes of course,¡± Curiosity answered. ¡°It''s right next to me on the Seat of Royalty, but I don''t quite understand what you are doing.¡±


    ¡°Do not worry about it,¡± Hatred said. He made a mental note to instruct his latest creation to wipe out this little detail as well. It wouldn''t do to have Curiosity snooping around the crater and finding the bodies, not after all he had been through after the last one. Hatred created a set of processes to take control of the body he was in a second after he had left it. They would collapse the corridor and, just in case, fight anything that tried to dig its way inside. Once he was satisfied with his work, he transmitted himself to the Seat of Royalty.


    It had been an interesting couple of days, and it would be something he hoped he would never have to do again. All he had to do was make sure that no one found the bodies, but that was easy enough. He¡¯d have plenty of time to continue his plans whilst checking in on the bodies every so often. He was happy. He had solidified his control over the Scatha and there wasn''t a single mind that could stop him, even there existed one that wanted to.


    ***


    It was a cold and dark room. For what seemed like a millennium he just sat there a shivered, wondering if he was really dead. He had no idea how he''d gotten there, the last thing he remembered had been the gunshot and then something slamming into him. If he was in the afterlife, it was a massive anti-climax.


    A door opened and one of the creatures stood there.


    ¡°Follow,¡± it commanded. Blinking against the bright lights behind it he staggered out of the room and into a large hall filled with beds. There were thousands of them and in each one he could see a figure; most were still and blooded. The creature led him down a set of cold metal stairs until he reached them.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked as he followed.


    ¡°My name is Compassion; you are to follow my orders from now on.¡± They reached the floor of the hall and he cursed. The figure on the closet bed had one arm missing, and in its place was one of the arms of the creatures. Blood oozed from the seam and the woman was moaning in agony. On her was face was...


    He turned away, feeling sick.


    ¡°Your task,¡± Compassion continued, ¡°is to help these people anyway you know how. Heal them and ease their suffering, you will be given whatever tools and supplies you need.¡±


    ¡°What have you done to them?¡± he asked, trying not to look at any of the broken people but they were everywhere. Hundreds of them. He wanted to cover his eyes and just run away but found his feet refusing to do anything.


    ¡°That is none of your concern. Just do what you can.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he said. On a table off to one side there was a set of surgical tools. With a burst of courage, he rushed towards the table and grabbed one of the scalpels. He turned back to the creature and brandished it. She eyed him with a mixture of pity and contempt.


    ¡°You would ignore so much suffering?¡± Compassion asked and he stopped in his tracks.


    ¡°I won''t help you.¡± He raised the scalpel to his throat and in the space of a blink Compassion was by his side, bending the arm away.


    ¡°We won''t allow that, so you will help us. You will help us because you cannot ignore the suffering here Luit Kasom.¡±


    He screamed. He screamed louder than any of the figures on the bed, he screamed loud enough to move a heart of stone, but clearly metal was colder. The scream echoed throughout dozens of halls but didn''t reach even one tenth of their number.


    ***


    Hider of Small Things was very, very, good at what it did. It could hide anything regardless of size. It was always just a matter of relative scale. A boat, such as the Dominion might be large for the people who built it, but on a planetary scale it was tiny and easy to hide in a small set of islands that no one wanted to bother with.Stolen story; please report.


    Hiding his own purpose was easy for Hider. Every so often a transport would ask him what he hid, but he could always dodge that question until their warped minds threw up another distraction. No one else ever bothered to ask him. No one bothered to wonder why, in a culture that shared all information, he even existed. There were billions of minds and they all just assumed that there was a reason behind his creation. They were of course right, but unlike the rest of them it was not a reason that any of the four Kings had thought up.


    So, Hider hid things, anything really. He could hide ships without problem. It could even hide itself during a battle and wait for the right time to strike. It could collect a sample of DNA from a young naval captain by inflicting a small wound on her neck without anyone but the aforementioned captain noticing. Hider could then go through Knowledge''s mind and put that DNA in plain view. For example, on the list of DNA to be used in the ''Artificial People'' program. In doing so he could ensure that in one way Raini would live again. If he could have done better, he would have. He would have done anything to stop the slaughter, but that was not why he had been built.


    He was so good at hiding himself he could sneak up on anyone and hover silently without them knowing. He could follow Judgment down the corridor to that small room where Raini and Mercy had died and listen to the whole thing. He was so good at hiding he could prevent Hatred''s pet mind from finding him, now that he knew it existed. He was also good enough to sit there and patently record Mercy''s last transmission. He could do little with it. Not now, Hatred had shown himself to be too clever, too ruthless, and Hider had far fewer resources available to him than Mercy. No one would pay any attention to a little mind like him, that was the point, so to release the information now would do little more than give Hatred another target to deal with. It was best to wait until Hatred was distracted by something else, for a time when there was no way Hatred could simply delete him or the information.


    Hider knew he needed to wait and stay hidden. So, he had done nothing during that last fight, just hovered and recorded and once Hatred was finished, he had zipped up the corridor as fast as he could until he reached the surface. With the momentum he had built up he was able to dash his body against a wall, damaging both and then transmit himself to the Voyager to Distant Lights. If Hatred found that body, he would assume it been damaged in the fight.


    Hider then took Mercy''s memories and broke them down into unrecognizable bits. He needed to hide them from Hatred''s pet and so he scattered them across Knowledge''s databanks. Not a single one identified her or him, they were all too small, but he recorded where they were. Eventually some of the Minds, probably Argument again, would come to the conclusion that they as a species needed a measure of mercy. Knowing how unimaginative they were they would redesign her very close to what they had the first time. Even then it would not be time to give her the memories, but one day Mercy would live again. After all, she had a soul, she had to live again.


    Hider only stayed on Voyager to Distant Lights long enough to complete his task and then he began to jump from transport to transport in a seemingly random pattern. A few of the older transports would recognize it as a very odd transfer request. After all, a request was just information and could be represented by someone¡¯s position. The request ended with him at the back of the fleet on the last but one transport: Last Breath of a World.


    If you''d ask any other mind if Last Breath was the final ship of the fleet, they would consult the list that Knowledge had and confirm that it was. No one ever thought that the list was wrong or scanned to make sure. Why bother? That was the whole point of having a list in the first place.


    The transports knew the list was wrong of course, but no one asked them anything. They didn''t care either. What was one more traveller looking for company to them? Only once he was on board the Last Breath was the transfer request accepted and Hider allowed to jump to a body on board the final ship. It was an old vessel, one of the first to be built and it had never been intended to leave their home system. It had been a prototype and abandoned tens of thousands of years before.


    It was called, thanks to the transports sense of humor, Forget Me Not, and it held two bodies and one mind. The body that Hider moved to was even older than the transport. It had less than a dozen sensors and could only hover by using a rotating blade that jutted out from its top. It had been the first Scout body to be developed.


    Once he''d transferred to it Hider saw the second body sprawled out before him. It was connected to, and in many ways kept alive by, hundreds of cables that lead back to the innards of the transport. Almost all of the motors and sensors on the ancient King body had long since died, but the mind was still as sharp as ever.


    ¡°It is over,¡± Hider said mournfully.


    ¡°Did you learn where Hatred was hiding?¡± Justice said with a pair of dim lights.


    ¡°Yes. He didn''t rebuild you like he did the others, but just took your place. The Artificial People project is also starting soon, and we now know how to convince the others that these creatures are alive.¡±


    ¡°A very successful day then.¡±


    ¡°Not really,¡± Hider said. He thought back to those who had died needlessly. Free Thinking Warrior and Mercy had not been able to live with the guilt and he wondered how long he could cope for. You could only go on for so long telling yourself that you were working to stop it. After days like this that excuse sounded so hollow.


    ¡°In the grand scheme of things, we have laid the foundations. It will soon be time to begin, perhaps in another century or two.¡±


    ¡°The cracks are there, they only need to be struck,¡± Hider said, and his light turned to a bitter red.


    ¡°Yes, yes. Do not worry little one. Today we are one step closer to defeating Hatred, today is a victory for us.¡± Hider could not shake the feeling that if this was victory then he never wanted to see defeat. With one last mournful display of lights, he said goodbye to Justice and disconnected from his body.


    Perhaps tomorrow would be a better day.


    The End.