Inheritor

“Trust every local youth to have been onthat beach,” Cenedi said. “Nandiin, we had not relied on holding Dur, because its beaches are too broad and it’s a wooded, populated island rife with smugglers’ caches the locals don’t want found. We believe a landfall on the Aidin headland would be far safer for the rebels. We do not have sufficient resources in Aidin to prevent a landing at village airstrips or movement at train stations or other routes that might bring Hanks-paidhi into friendly hands. If she comes by air she could possibly come in at the city airport at Wiigin and leave by train without our people being able to prevent her. But if she comes by boat—and we hope our heavy air activity up over Wiigin has discouraged an air route and forced her to that—we know now it will be a small boat, and thatcan’t reach Wiigin. There’s been a diplomatic snag in clearance for freighters, ours or theirs, to leave Mospheiran ports: the aiji has withdrawn permits as of yesterday. They’ve been warned, and they’re a cautious breed. The last freighter in transit turned back to Mospheira this morning. If another leaves port, we can spot it. A small boat, however, has a good chance of getting through the net unseen, and they know that.”

That freighter ban was very serious, Bren thought. Extremely serious, following the pattern of the attack on Mospheira the rebel radio had foretold. Atevi would be using surveillance planes out over the strait, probably overflying the harbors and provoking more alarm. The aiji did have customs boats, a number with guns of a range and power sufficient to sink another ship.

Mospheira also had such boats. There was a danger of confrontation if this state of crisis went on too long. “What does the presidentsay?”

“There is a protest from the Trade Office regarding the aiji’s action,” Banichi said. “If they’re officially aware of Hanks-paidhi’s provocations, they’re being very quiet about the matter. There’s no signal they’re willing to correct the problem.”

“One suspects they areaware,” Bren said, and was conscious he now contemplated treason; his stomach knotted up—but so did his nerves, from years of coping with the administration. “But they’re not very brave, dowager-ji. They’ll please their contributors until the first consequences show up where the voters can find out. Then their attention will be on keeping the voters from finding out and keeping their contributors from being exposed. They’ll pull back. The main thing is keeping the customs boats away from each other. That’s where people at lower levels could worsen the crisis.”

“If they link up with Direiso,” Ilisidi said, “she’ll lead them on much more precipitate courses.”

Or she’ll be driven mad with frustration trying to deal with the Mospheiran government, Bren thought. Unless Direiso pla

Which was not a joke. Direiso might indeed have such a notion. The island was ill-prepared to resist, precisely as it had been ill-prepared and ineptly led in the War of the Landing. It was, potentially, the same situation: a mushrooming crisis and most of the human population in slumberous disregard of the danger of a rebel ateva seizing power and ru

The same way one decree from Tabini’s pen had swept away all debate, all studies, all partisan delays in relocating Patinandi Aerospace and reconfiguring the space program, so events around them now could replace Tabini, who tolerated humans, with Direiso, who would wipe them off the face of the earth.

Bad news multiplied and Mospheira blamed the Foreign Office which told it things that didn’t match its expectations; Mospheira then refused to listen to the paidhi in the field and, rather than face down human agitators who now thought they were wi

He’d seen it coming. He’d watched it barrel down on them like a train headed down the tracks.

Thistime there was a strongly centralized power in Shejidan. Thistime the Edi and Maschi atevi of the peninsula weren’t raiding the Padi Valley. Thistime they had a ship over their heads that was definitely a player, but which couldn’t reach them or get its people out. This time atevi were verywell advised on human habits and internal divisions, and thistime there were paidhiin.

All of which might—or might not—tip the scales.

Outside, he heard the sound of the plane starting up.

The boy was on his way. With the means to take the island of Dur for their forces. That was one stretch of beach, if the lord of Dur was on their side, they were relatively sure they could win.

And one of the men outside the glass walls came in and handed Cenedi a note. Cenedi’s expression changed as he read it.

“Nand’ dowager,” Cenedi said, “the warehouse down in the town is moving its trucks out. Down the harborside road to the west. Do we stop them, or allow them to clear the harborside?”

Ilisidi frowned and looked down at the maps.

“Maintain the peace,” Ilisidi said. “For the next hour or so.”

So now atevi forces were moving. Bren didn’t know where, or how many, but the consoles out there were ma

Jase came into the little nook with a cup of tea. He had a worn, grim look, and found even the padded chair uncomfortable—at least he’d winced when he sat down, and Bren would have done so when he’d sat down, if he’d had the strength left. He eyed the arrival, muttered to indicate he didn’t mind Jase being there, and shut his eyes, thinking that in Shejidan it would be about bedtime.

Their company was getting the little rest they could. Not all of them: Banichi and Jago were in close conference with Cenedi, and the dowager had taken possession of the director’s office to rest, having taken a map with her.

He’d rather, personally, have stayed in the briefing; but it was Guild business in there, not the Messengers, but the Assassins, and when Banichi said in that very polite tone, “nand’ paidhi, you need to rest,” he supposed even aijiin took that cue and went to nurse their headaches.

And watch over their other responsibilities.

Mospheira didn’t care so much, Bren told himself, if it let both its Ragi-speaking paidhiin, him andDeana, travel out of its grasp; there were other students in the University. Someone’s son or daughter could replace either of them. Of course.

Jase shifted. Bren heard the creak of the other chair. Jase was worried about Yolanda. Justifiably so.

As Mospheira’s allowing Deana Hanks to cross the water meant risking her life. If Mospheira lost her, that meant they had no translator who’d actually been in the field advising them, and their maze of security precautions was going to operate very slowly in giving anyone outside the State Department access to documents: the aiji’s blockade order, which hehadn’t translated, must either have come in Ragi and sent them scurrying for advanced translation, or in atevi-written Mosphei’, which wasn’t supposed to exist. He did wonder which.

But the readily obvious fact was, the government didn’t give a damn whether it talked to atevi so long as it thought the ship up there would deal with them.

It would, however, panic at the thought of Yolanda Mercheson leaving its shores or the ship aloft cutting them off cold from the flow of technology that was coming to the atevi. There was a level of self-preservation in the President’s office that hated adventurous doings, and that wouldn’t letDeana Hanks take Yolanda with her. He reasoned his way to that conclusion.