Proposal
Morning sunlight slanted through ten-foot windows, causing the polished table and walls to glow a deep golden mahogany-a product of more than expensive veneer and thorough polishing. There were also the window fields. It had been years since David MacDonald had been exposed to advertising, but he recalled the trade name: Rich Light. Because you have to be rich to own them, he thought wryly. The light itself was free though: sunlight. But altered to order. The window fields controlled the intensity and wavelengths transmitted.
A gavel tapped lightly. The president had gotten to his feet. "We have asked you here," he said, "to help us through a dilemma. A situation much preferable to yesterday's, but… We have a choice to make that on the one hand threatens humanity with centuries of trouble and grief, and on the other, a burden of guilt very difficult to bear. We need a third alternative, one that avoids both.
"Under our Emergency War Powers, the prime minister and I have the authority to make that choice ourselves, and in fact there is no time for parliamentary debate and clearance. So we especially want and need your counsel now."
Chang Lung-Chi scanned the assemblage: Admiral Fedor Tischendorf, Admiralty Chief; Dr. Arthur Shin, Minister of War; Melani Honghi, Commonwealth Minister; Dorje Lodro Tulku, Chaplain of the Office of the President; and Ambassador Qonits. With their principal aides, including David MacDonald.
Just now it was Qonits at whom Chang looked. "Mr. Ambassador, last night a great battle was fought in the Eridani System," he said. "A decisive battle. Analysis of battle recordings indicates that none of your warfleet survived, or even undertook to escape. They fought till the last was destroyed."
The words stunned Qonits; it was Quanshuk's vision realized.
"But that was the warfleet," Chang went on. "Your armada's noncombat ships-estimated at more than three thousand-still sit parked in warpspace, neither fleeing nor able to defend themselves. Experience suggests they even lack force shields. And we have the task of deciding how to deal with them."
He sipped honeyed tea, allowing Qonits a moment before he continued. "How many of your people do they carry? Ten million? Call it ten million in stasis. And their crews number what? Another quarter million? Along with the colonists you've set down, they are all the Wyzhnyny that exist in this galaxy."
His gaze was on the mahogany table now, but his attention was on his thoughts. "Do we destroy them? If not, what do we do with them? A month ago, when the question was rhetorical, I would have said destroy them. Said it regretfully. But alive in this galaxy-certainly in this sector of it-they pose a threat to the human species. Already they've murdered some twenty million of us. Given another week or two, they'd have killed more than a billion on Eridani Prime. A billion! Why should we feel compassion for them?"
Why indeed? thought Qonits.
"The answer," Chang said, "is that you are a sapient species. And in our various philosophies, almost without exception, the destruction of an ensouled life-form is a grave crime. We call it genocide. The word itself is considered obscene.
"And to commit it against your people is ugly to contemplate, although they-you-intended it for us."
Again he scanned his audience. "I will ask all of you to comment, but first I would like to hear Ambassador Qonits' thoughts. If you will, sir."
There was a long silence-twenty seconds at least-then Qonits swayed his head, a negative. "There is nothing I can say now. Perhaps after others have spoken."
David MacDonald exhaled softly. Having Qonits here makes it harder to say "kill them." He wondered at his own calm, his objectivity. Yukiko was lost to him, at least until he died himself. Probably, he thought, it was Tualurog who killed her. Tualurog himself was surely dead, and while that didn't lessen the loss, it had quenched the thirst for vengeance.
Chang's gaze moved to Admiral Tischendorf. "What do you have to say, Admiral?"
Frowning, Tischendorf pursed his broad mouth. "To stand off and fire torpedos at unarmed ships…? If I order it, our people will do it. And for the life of me, I can't see any way around it. But doing it will… leave a scar on everyone's soul, even beyond this lifetime. As you said, we would carry it forever.
"On the other hand, if we start firing, I suspect that those not in the first target set will generate hyperspeed and leave. Then we'll have the long job of hunting them down; a long, unpleasant, unpromising job."
He sat back, finished.
"Dr. Shin," Chang said, "what do you have to say?"
"At this point, Mr. President, I can only echo Admiral Tischendorf. Perhaps next round." Shin knew Chang's style. The rounds of comments or questions would continue until he'd heard all he felt was needed.
"Ah. Ms. Honghi?"
"Mr. President, my concern is for the evacuees, and freeing their worlds of Wyzhnyny occupation so they can go home again. Those who want to. Considering all the relatives and friends who died, and the farms and towns destroyed, many may not want to."
The president nodded gravely. "I'm sure that's true." His gaze paused on Qonits, then moved to Dorje Lodro. "Your Wisdom," he said, "what guidance do you have for us?"
"Guidance?" Her tone was mild. "You and the prime minister are quite able to make your decision on this without my input. But since you ask… Consider. The Wyzhnyny are dangerous only if armed. Presumably they have weapons and munitions aboard their troopships and ordnance ships. If you can collect those, and launch them by gravdrive into the sun, the Wyzhnyny are no longer dangerous."
You hope! David thought.
"Of course, if you spare them, you must decide what to do with them. They cannot go home. And if you do not spare them… " She paused. "As has been said: they are ensouled. You will bear great karma." She looked at Qonits. "Ambassador, within the Commonwealth boundaries, has your armada colonized planets which had no human occupants?"
Qonits looked at Dorje with the first glimmer of hope. "Three," he said.
"Ah." She turned to Chang. "If all the Wyzhnyny in the armada were landed on one of them-perhaps the most favorable, or that nearest Terra-they would be relatively easy to monitor and police. Then the Wyzhnyny colonists on other planets could be offered tranportation to that world."
She bowed slightly. "I have said enough."
Chang nodded, then looked at Qonits again. "Mr. Ambassador, you were sent to negotiate with us. Could you speak for us? Talk your people into surrendering, and settling on a world of their own? We of course would dictate the terms, but if those terms are not punitive… " He paused, waiting.
Dorje Lodro's words had revived Qonits. "I can try," he said quietly, "but I cannot guarantee success. It depends on who has taken command of the colonization fleet, if anyone has.
"The colonization fleet has no admiral of its own. It was commanded by the grand admiral-Lord Quanshuk and then Lord Tualurog. Each of the colony tribes had a commanding general and a governor, both of the master gender, but-"
Foster Peixoto raised a hand and interrupted. "What do you mean by master gender?"
"Let me first finish answering the earlier question. Those generals should all be in stasis, and at any rate are unqualified to command a ship, let alone a fleet. It is unlikely they've been revived, but the possibility is worrisome: We could find ourselves dealing with a commander strong in pride but weak in understanding.
"Whomever I must negotiate with will probably, hopefully, be a warrior, not a master, and normally my status is superior to a warrior's. But they will distrust me. And with Lord Quanshuk dead, my status is… " He groped for the word "ambiguous," and settled for "unclear."
"On the other hand their situation is desperate, and I expect they will listen." He puffed a Wyzhnyny sigh before finishing. "There is little more I can say about the prospects, until I know more about the terms you have in mind."
He gestured a shrug. "And now, Mr. Prime Minister, I shall explain the genders for you. It is important that you know; they are central to understanding us."
There are, he told them, four genetic genders and three nurture-actuated, "exalted" genders. One of the exalted genders-"matrons"-develops functional breasts, and if assigned a newborn, nurtures it. As a result, this "nurtured" infant develops distinctive anatomical, morphological and mental traits. That is, it becomes "exalted." With nurture, a genetic warrior becomes a master; a genetic artisan becomes a scholar; and a genetic nanny becomes a matron. Each quite distinct from the unnurtured phenotype.
Frowning, Chang said: "We were told by-another source that both sexes nurse the young."
"That requires clarification. We have only one parent gender. Each adult of the parent gender alternates between male and female sexual phases, and only the parent who carried the child nurses it. But the nonsexual nanny gender, which is larger, will also nurse any unweaned young in its care."
"You told us the matron gender nurses selected young."
"In a sense. But what the matrons produce is not what you might call `milk.' They provide something quite different, and in smaller quantities."
"Seven genders," Tischendorf mused. "What percentage are warriors?"
David had asked the same question while they'd waited aboard the scout, to be picked up, so Qonits recognized Tischendorf's problem. "About twelve percent," Qonits said, "but the parent gender, and the nannies and artisans are also trained to fight. Masters, as exalted warriors, are physically the largest and most powerful, and well able to fight. But they are seldom called upon to physically participate in combat. Their command powers, and sense of responsibility, are too valuable."
The admiral regarded the information thoughtfully. "And only the parent gender has sexual intercourse?"
"Only the parent gender is appropriately equipped and hormonally inclined."
"What is the difference between a warrior and a-parent in uniform? On the battlefield that is?"
"Warriors are larger and stronger, and have more appropriate reactions. In fact, they are bolder and more aggressive in all matters, and in war, more ready to put their lives in danger. In peacetime, warriors both accept and seek responsibility more than any other gender excepting masters. In the military, the great majority of commissioned officers are warriors, but they do not attain the higher ranks. All elite units are made up of warriors."
Tischendorf nodded thoughtfully. "So then, all-citizens?-are trained as soldiers?"
"All but matrons. Matrons have seriously limited intelligence. Also they are very precious to the species, unique and uncommon. All the exalted genders are; nurturing a newborn for exalted status commonly results in the infant's death. We have a saying, half serious: `Death by deranged morphogenesis is God's way of helping us appreciate the occasional success.' "
David wondered how such an odd system had ever evolved. And Qonits had mentioned God. Had he said it to mislead them, or was the proverb genuine?
"That is why," Qonits continued, "the exalted genders are exposed to actual combat no more than necessary. But matrons are especially precious. A warrior is most fierce when protecting a matron."
He bowed then, and the president reclaimed the floor. "Tell us about scholars, Mr. Ambassador."
"Ah, scholars. I have slighted my own kind, have I not? Scholars are exalted artisans. The artisan genotype in general absorbs information more easily than other genotypes. And artisans tend to apply information in practical ways. Scholars excel artisans in their affinity for information, but are less focused on its practical applications. Also we look more deeply, and analyze with greater facility."
He displayed what David knew was a grimace. "Unfortunately those strengths are not always accompanied by wisdom. They can give rise to overconfidence and vanity." He paused. "And it is a scholar weakness to become so engrossed in some area of interest-learning your language, for example-that we lose track of relative importances."
Chang regarded Qonits for a long moment. "Thank you, Mr. Ambassador," he said. "You've been very enlightening."
Chang led his de facto council through two additional rounds before he and his prime minister thanked and dismissed them. The last thing he said was that he would consult next with Charley Gordon, then perhaps talk further with them.
Leaving the council room, David felt relief at the direction the meeting had taken. For despite the death of Yukiko, he did not want the Wyzhnyny eradicated. Qonits, who had become his friend, was a Wyzhnyny. Also he remembered the pastry chef on the Meadowlands, who out of goodness of heart had been friendly to him and Yukiko and Annika. And who now was dead.
After lunch in their suite, Qonits napped, while David sat in one of the small roof gardens and read the Kunming Daily Reporter in detail. Later, Qonits also came up, accompanied by Lance Corporal Shaughnessy, who removed himself a dozen yards, as if to give them privacy. Nonetheless, David supposed the marine was bugged-surely something was-and that everything they might say would be recorded.
"Tell me about Wyzhnyny history," he said to Qonits. "Not the details, but the broad features."
"The broad features? That is feasible, yes. I will begin at the beginning." Qonits also believed they were being recorded, and that David was leading him. Nonetheless he talked frankly, almost till supper.
Via Ramesh, the president and prime minister tried to consult with Charley Gordon after lunch. Admiral Soong, however, asked that they postpone it a couple of hours. Charley was still sleeping off the nervous exhaustion of the long battle. And the colonization fleet showed no sign of leaving. There was constant warp radio traffic between Wyzhnyny ships, but while no one on the Altai had any idea of what was being discussed, it sounded desultory, rather than intense.
Chang and Peixoto gave him half an hour, then eavesdropped on the ambassador and David MacDonald, gaining useful insights.
Forty minutes later they called the Altai again, and counseled with Charley, and Alvaro Soong. When the armada had arrived in the system, Charley told them, the colonization fleet had obviously been ordered to park where they were, and wait. But they wouldn't wait forever. Their commanders were surely aware that their warfleet had been destroyed. His impression was, they'd been discussing the dangers of fleeing-of being dispersed and isolated, with the separate units lacking adequate technical-industrial equipment for long-range survival. Along with the probability that many would be torpedoed when they booted their drives. They were aware that a human fleet was standing by, also in warpspace, with target locks on Wyzhnyny ships. And that survivors would almost certainly be hunted by the humans.
But they wouldn't wait forever. Unless something intervened soon, they'd leave, unless a peace proposal changed their minds.
An hour's discussion resulted in a plan. Half an hour later, Qonits, using a bottled savant in Cee Ministry, sent the basic features of an offer via Charley himself, who forwarded it using the Wyzhnyny command frequency. The vocators of the bottled savants provided a much better approximation of Qonits' Wyzhnynyc speech than any human vocal apparatus could.
The Wyzhnyny commanders could expect an "imperial" ambassador in two Wyzhnyny shipsweeks, to confer with them directly. Qonits would leave in a cruiser the next day, with David as his companion.