A Night Without Stars (56 page)

“So someone's going to join them, that's why they need more food. Where in Uracus are they planning on going?”

“And why?”

“Hey, where was the
Gothora
when we were on Hawley Docks?”

“Already thought of that,” she said with a smirk. “They had just left Prawle, so no, they didn't ferry the Warrior Angel out of Opole. Still, we need to put another watcher team together, see when Florian goes on board.”

“We can't do it,” he said reluctantly. “It was tough enough for Fajie to get five officers out of the building without Director Husnan realizing. If we mount another observation, the PSR office will find out. That'll tip off the Eliters. Possibly even the Fallers. Then we'll never know.”

“Get a section seven team down from Varlan.”

“I can ask, but
Gothora III
is due to leave at the end of the week.”

“Stonal will fly them in. This is important.”

“Right.” He looked over at her, but she was already busy with more paperwork. She was in a strange mood, which piqued his interest. Admittedly, she had stranger moods, but the last couple of days had seen her wired even tighter than usual. “We do need to check out the ship.”

Now
she gave him her full attention. “You're talking about me checking it out, aren't you?”

“I can't go, and you're fully trained to infiltrate.”

“Active infiltration has a minimum of three in the lead agent's backup team.”

“For nest infiltration, yes. This is the Warrior Angel. She'll get cross, but she won't eat you.”

“Big comfort.”

“I'll set up a sniper rifle on the lighthouse, give you covering fire if it goes hot.”

“You?”

“I got my marksman grade. Don't worry, I can do this.”

“Is your eye better? You still use drops every night.”

“I have two eyes, and both are just fine. We just have to work on giving you a plausible cover story.”

“Crud.” She picked up an invoice and waved it at him. “There's another stores delivery scheduled for this afternoon.”

“Good idea. You're too small for a stevedore, but I suppose you could pass as a supply company employee.”

The look she gave him was toxic.

The Decroux Café was halfway along the glass-roofed Maidstone Arcade, where Port Chana's more elegant and pricy shops were congregated. It was a long room with tiled walls and a single row of tables partitioned off from one another by tall wood paneling. Chaing ordered a hot chocolate from the counter at the front, then walked past the tables carrying a leather case that contained the sniper rifle. Jenifa was due to launch her infiltration attempt in another forty minutes.

Captain Fajie was sitting at the third table from the end, sipping peppermint tea from a glass cup. Chaing eased himself in opposite her.

“We found their base,” Fajie said in a low troubled tone. “Number Forty-Six Larek Street.”

“Good work.”

“It wasn't too difficult; we just followed the Faller from warehouse five.” Fajie slid a folder across the table. “Photos of the ones we've identified. I didn't realize—” She broke off as the waiter delivered Chaing's hot chocolate.

Chaing smiled up at the lad and tipped him. “Realize what?” he asked mildly, stirring the pink and green marshmallows into the foam.

“There's at least nine of them at that house. Nine! And that's just from one night's observation. How could we have missed them? And what's on that ship,
Gothora III,
the one the nest's watching from the warehouse? Is it bringing more Fallers? Or their food?”

“Listen to me carefully. You are not to show any interest in the
Gothora III.
Understand? Don't send any of your team to look it over, don't request paperwork. Nothing.”

Fajie leaned across the table, lowering her voice. “It's the Warrior Angel, isn't it? You've found her.”

“Drop it.”

“Okay, comrade, but I think I deserve a little appreciation for the help I've been giving you. When you go on board, I want to be part of your team.”

Chaing nodded as if he were actually considering it. “If and when, I'll take you with me.”

“That's all I'm asking, comrade.” She sat up again and gave him a nod. “I'll get back to my people. We can't keep track of all of them, you know. Only two at the most.”

“I know. Do the best you can.”

“How much longer? Husnan will start asking questions soon.”

“Couple of days, probably. No more than three.”

“All right.” She got up and left.

Chaing sat there finishing his hot chocolate. It was a five-minute taxi ride to the harbor. Twenty minutes from there to the top of the lighthouse. He'd be properly established by the time Jenifa arrived with the marine supply company. He opened the folder and looked at the first black-and-white photo.

A girl slid onto the bench seat opposite, carrying a tall glass of iced peach tea. One of Port Chana's ditzy youths, wearing a long cobalt-blue skirt and a sleeveless white blouse, several buttons open at the front to show off a lot of cleavage. Which was all Chaing focused on for a couple of seconds. Then he looked up. Her long red hair was woven through with small purple flowers. A lot of kids were following that style—boys and girls. They all listened to that modern electric band music rubbish, too. “Don't sit there—” He stopped. The floral hair arrangement had fooled him for a moment.

“What kind of welcome is that, Captain?” the Warrior Angel asked with a taunting smile.

“You!”

“Were you expecting someone else? A fellow officer, perhaps?”

He desperately wanted to know if she'd overheard him and Fajie. “Why are you here?”

“Because we need to talk.”

“Where's the girl, Essie?”

“She's called Paula.” The Warrior Angel took a sip of her peach tea. “And she's doing everything she can to help this world.”

“You mean cause chaos.”

“Don't be so childish,” the Warrior Angel snapped. “We're long past point scoring.”

Chaing was abruptly intimidated by just how much antagonism was being directed at him; that pretty, youthful face was the flimsiest façade for the ancient personality it contained. “Sorry,” he mumbled. “But you have to tell me what's happening.”

“We both know the Fallers are about to begin their Apocalypse. Paula and I are going to do what we can to stop them, but it might not be enough.”

“Crudding Uracus.” He knew his anger was just a cover for fear. Having her confirm the Apocalypse was close was something he didn't want to hear.

“Grow a pair,” she said. “Worst-case scenario, if they are going to win, Paula can open the wormhole.”

“What wormhole?”

“The wormhole under the palace; the one Laura Brandt used to reach Ursell. It's still fully operational.”

“It is?” He wanted to know how she knew that. There'd never been so much as a hint in any PSR office he'd ever been assigned to.

“Yes. Laura codelocked it, but Paula can probably open it. We can evacuate a group of children.”

“To Byarn?”
That
he did know about.

“No. Byarn is a cruddy alternative. If your dumb-arse Operation Reclaim nukes Lamaran enough to wipe out the Fallers, it will poison all of Bienvenido. You'll turn this planet into another Macule.”

“Where, then, can we go?”

“Aqueous.”

“You're crudding kidding me!” he exclaimed.

“I wish I was. It's not like we've got much choice; it's the only planet left capable of supporting human life. So that's the deal. We save a core group of human children—both normal and Eliter—and a few of you government people.”

“I'll think about it.”

“No, you won't. You'll call Stonal and tell him. People in authority will make the decision.”

He glared at her. “You could walk into the palace if you wanted to. I know that; I've seen what you can do.”

“Yes, I can do that. But it would be easier with your cooperation. And we're going to be busy defending Bienvenido.”

He nodded, knowing he had no choice. In fact, he almost played his full hand. It would be so easy to say:
Did you know the Fallers are watching Gothora III?
Gain her trust, maybe even her sympathy—enough sympathy to be included in the evacuation. But he just couldn't bring himself to do that. He was PSR. And that had to
mean
something, even now. Besides, if the
Gothora III
was alerted they might spot Jenifa. “All right. I'll call Stonal.”
How strange; this is what Stonal wanted, too.

“Good. I need someone who'll actually listen.”

“How are you going to defend us?”

“As best I can.” That enchanting girlie smile returned. “How's the leg? I can detect the metal pins they put in. Must be painful. Would you like me to cure it?”

Oh, crud, yes, yes, yes.
“I'm fine, thank you.”

“That's my captain,” she chuckled. “Stupidly stubborn to the end. So here's my parting gift: Don't trust the people you think you can trust.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means: Watch your back.”

“I don't trust you.”

She got up and winked. “Yes, but you never have.”

“If Stonal has an answer, how do I get in touch?”

“Give me your hand.”

“What?”

“Hand.”

Very reluctantly, he held out his good hand. She took it and pressed a small rectangle of what looked like clear cellophane to the skin. It fluoresced with minute green lines for a couple of seconds, then faded away. Chaing could have sworn they sank into his skin.

“Your own personal telephone line to me,” the Warrior Angel said as she peeled the rectangle off. “To activate, press your thumb on the knuckle of your index finger. I'll get to you as soon as I can.”

He held his hand up in alarm, trying to see the green lines. “What is that? What have you done? I'm not an Eliter, I told you that.”

“Chill out, Captain. It's just a monofunction OCtattoo.”

“I don't know what that is.”

“Organic circuitry tattoo. It's like having a little radio in your flesh.”

“Crud.”

“Get Stonal to agree to talk. It's important.” And with that, she was gone, striding down the line of tables to be swallowed up by the midafternoon glare outside.

Hot, intense sunlight was streaming in through the big windows of the state office like the start of some kind of invasion. Stonal walked through the thick beams, trying not to squint each time. Overhead, the fan blades were a blur as they tried to stir some freshness into the stifling air.

Adolphus was waiting behind the desk, his suit jacket draped over the back of his chair and his shirt collar undone. There was no sign of Terese.

“I appreciate you seeing me on short notice,” Stonal said.

“It'd be a fool who doesn't listen to his security chief,” Adolphus grunted, waving him into a chair. “What is it?”

“I've just come from the advanced science division. They've made progress with the machine, sir.”

“Really? That's not something I expected to hear. Those crudding Commonwealth relics are adept at keeping their secrets.”

“Yes. But up until now, we haven't had one that's alive.”

The prime minister's bushy eyebrows shot up. “Alive?”

“It claims not, but it is sentient. I have talked to it.”

“What did it say?”

“First, the Commonwealth woman is called Paula; she's some kind of diplomat. Nigel brought her along in case he needed a skilled envoy to negotiate with whatever government he found in the Void.”

“Pity he didn't use her.”

“Quite. However, the machine believes she will help Bienvenido, without prejudice.”

“What does that mean?”

“She'll treat everyone equally, including the Eliters.”

Adolphus scowled. “Oh, will she, now?”

“Equality is the goal of Commonwealth society. We've always known that.”

“Very worthy. Someone should tell the Eliters. So how big a danger is this machine?”

“In itself, not at all. How we use it, however, is a different matter. It describes itself as a life support package with a built-in medical system, which was part of Nigel's mission, and it also claims to be storing the memories of Joey Stein.”

“Is that a joke?”

“No, sir. From what we know of Commonwealth technology, it may well be possible.”

“A medical system? Like the Captains used to have?”

“I don't know, but it certainly kept Paula in suspension as an infant for two hundred and fifty years. But it contains a huge amount of knowledge about Commonwealth technology. It even knows how to build starships, it says.”

“I don't want starships. I just want something that'll kill the crudding Fallers.”

“It can give us that, too,” Stonal said. “That's why I came to you. It's offered to teach our advanced science division people how to build Faller detectors. That would give us a phenomenal advantage. If our regiment troops can identify Fallers at a distance, we can wipe them out once and for all.”

“What does it want in return?” Adolphus asked suspiciously.

“It wants to survive long enough to see us contact the Commonwealth. That way, Joey Stein can be brought back to life.”

“Can we build enough of these detectors in time, do you think?”

“We'd need thousands, and we don't know what time we have left,” Stonal answered equitably. “And by releasing Commonwealth technology, we will be instigating change. That is inevitable.”

“Yes, of course,” Adolphus leaned back, staring at the ceiling with unfocused eyes. “But Paula is going to bring change anyway. And if an innovation like this were to work, we would be Bienvenido's saviors, not her.”