MADE PEACE WITH RAO STOP VINDHYAS THE NEW BORDER STOP BHARAKUCCHA
TO BE FREE CITY STOP NEED AXUMITE TROOPS FOR GARRISON STOP
"Smart," said Belisarius. "Very smart. Calopodius, Antonina's still in Barbaricum with Ousanas, isn't she?"
"Yes. They weren't going to start up the Indus until tomorrow or the day after."
"Good. Send her a message immediately telling her to stay there until she hears from me. Better use the telegraph rather than the radio, though. No reason to let the Malwa overhear-"
"They won't anyway," came Justinian's voice from the entrance. Belisarius turned and saw the former emperor moving into the bunker. "Don't you pay attention to anything I tell you?"
He didn't seem more than mildly aggrieved, though. Justinian always enjoyed explaining how clever he was. When it came to artisanship, anyway, if not politics.
"I designed this system so that we wouldn't be intercepted."
Lousy old braggart, grumbled Aide. He didn't design the system. I did. He just followed my instructions. But he's right. The position and length of the antennas-everything-were set up so we could send signals without the Malwa overhearing us as long as we do it right. They'll intercept anything we receive, of course. No way to prevent that. But we can transmit in secret.
"Explain," Belisarius commanded. "Explain clearly, so a dimwit like me can understand it."
Justinian snorted. "Such unwonted modesty! It's like this, my not-so-stupid general." Justinian began moving his hands, as if he were shaping a cat's cradle with no string. "With directional radio, the signal has two strong… call them beams. The strongest, by far, is the forward signal. But there's also a back signal that can often be picked up. The side signals, however-the lobes-are undetectable."
By any technology either we or the Malwa have, anyway, Aide agreed.
Belisarius thought about it. "In other words, any signal I sent to Damodara in Bharakuccha would probably be picked up by Link."
"Yes. The monster's radio tower, our radio installation, and the Malwa tower in Bharakuccha are almost in a direct line. Not quite, but close enough that we don't want to risk it. Barbaricum, on the other hand-"
"Is off to the side, yes. Far enough?"
Yes.
"Yes," said Justinian simultaneously. "Link won't hear anything you send to Barbaricum. And they, in turn-"
But Belisarius had already figured it out. "I understand. We can't signal Damodara in secret, but Barbaricum can with their radio. So we set up a triangle of communications-and the only part of the leg Link can pick up is what we receive. But not what we send."
Yes.
"Yes."
Belisarius scratched his chin. While they'd been talking, the radio had kept up its beeping and whooping.
Bring me current, Aide, while I think. What's Damodara saying now?
Most of it's pretty pointless, in my opinion. A lot of grandiose declarations about the sterling character of the Ye-tai-talk about a pile of nonsense-and even more stuff-really grisly, this part-about the penalties to be meted out to mahaveda priests and mahamimansa.
The jewel sounded more than a little miffed. I don't understands why he's taking up so much precious radio time just to specify what order in which to tear off their limbs and what animals are permitted to feed on the corpses. That last business started with jackals and he's been working his way down from there. Right now he's talking about how beetles should be used to finish up the odd bits and ends. Do you think he's a sadist, maybe? That could be a problem.
Belisarius chuckled. Even after all these years, Aide-who was vastly more intelligent than humans when it came to many things-could still fumble at the simplest emotional equations.
No, he's just very clever. Since he decided to launch his rebellion openly-and that's interesting, right there, don't you think?-he's taking advantage of the opportunities as well as the problems. First, he's making crystal clear to the Ye-tai that if they acquiesce to the new regime, they won't be penalized. I'll bet he's been sprinkling Toramana's name all through, yes?
"Showering" his name, more like. All right, I can understand that. But why The business with the priests? They're hated all through India, to begin with, so it's another way to rally popular support. What's probably more important, at least immediately, is that the mahaveda and mahamimamsa are Malwa's first line of enforcers.
Along with the Ye-tai. But… oh.
Belisarius smiled. I know you can feel 'fear' yourself, Aide, but it's always a fairly calm thing for you, isn't it? Almost an intellectual business. No trembling, no sweating, no bowels loosening.
Don't be silly. Protoplasmic nonsense, that is. You're saying he's trying to panic the mahaveda?
Scare them shitless, Belisarius agreed. Don't forget that the mahaveda and mahamimansa, unlike the Ye-tai, aren't a different race or ethnic line.
Yes, you're right. Most of them are Malwa, but not all-and Malwa aren't racially distinct from any other north Indians anyway. So?
So what's to stop a priest or torturer from throwing away their identifying garments and paraphernalia and just vanishing? Worse comes to worst, even a beggar in a loincloth is better off than a dismembered corpse feeding beetles.
Oh. True. "Dismembering" is the least of it, really. He spent more time talking about the red hot tongs that are to be used to pull out intestines. I still don't understand the point of it. He's obviously doing this in the open because he thinks Link is receiving the radio transmissions directly.
Yes. That's got to be the explanation. Belisarius had to suppress a little shudder, remembering the one time he'd met Link himself. No way to fool that monster, even over a radio transmission.
No, there isn't. Even human radio and telegraph operators, with experience, can recognize who's on the other end. Everyone has a distinctive "fist," as they call it. But…
You're thinking that if Link is at the receiving end-here in the Punjab, if not in Kausambi-it'll simply suppress the transmission. No one in Malwa India will hear it.
Of course, it will! Even in Kausambi, that radio station has to be under iron control.
Belisarius was smiling broadly, now. And why do you think Damodara is only using the radio? I'll bet you-if you had anything to wager-that this same message is going over every telegraph line in India. And, by now, there are far too many telegraph stations for Link to be able to keep them quiet. The only reason Damodara is using the radio at all is to communicate with us.
Silence, for a moment.
Then: Oh.
Then: It's not fair. I'm just a crystal. Lost in this protoplasmic scheming and trickiness. A lamb among wolves.
Aide started to add another complaint, but broke off. He's starting to say something to us again. Here it is: