“Yes, hakkikt, I will tell her.” Arrogant son. But thank the gods they were talking about safe retreats now. In her guess, Ha’domaren was trying to figure out what to do, and what it had left, and whether a fight to the death right now was in Paehisna-ma-to’s interest.
Or if there was a way to recover the initiative. Not that this hani could see. Not from the moment that son had realized he’d let No’shto-shti-stlen and the Preciousness get together.
She eavesdropped on the passenger cabin. There was a great deal of stsho ooohing and warbling going on. There were numerous people in there. “What are they up to?” Chihin asked. “Weddings breaking out all over,” Tiar said, not without a thought that, by the gods, the han had not a word to say: and Meras clan, remote and rural, and probably old-fashioned, was going to find itself in alliance with powerful, now solvent Chanur-Counting a can full of what was beginning to draw a curious crowd out there; and a franchise.
Sahern was not going to say a word else on the Meras affair, by the gods not, unless they wanted an active feud with Chanur, which didn’t look like a smart bet for anyone at the moment.
So a few more years for the enemies to regroup. But it didn’t mean Chanur would be sitting still.
She didn’t let her guard down, didn’t stop paying attention to the screens. Chihin and Hallan took over watching station scan, and eventually reported outward movement out of the mahen ships that were now clearly identified on scan.
“Leaving him, they are.” That was worth a call belowdecks. “Captain.”
“ Problem ?”
“Mahendo’sat appear to be leaving system, not real organized. Gtsta holiness has drawn a crowd out there around the rock. No apparent trouble on the docks. I think the hakkikt’s going to stay where he is until he’s sure what Ha’domaren’s doing, but he’s offered Haisi a safe passage, I’m supposed to tell you that.”
“Haisi take it?”
“He hasn’t budged. Hasn’t made a move. —No, wait.” There was a change on the station schema.
“Son’s just appeared as in count for departure. He’s going.”
“Ha!”the captain said. “We got him. “
Chapter Twenty-one
It surfaced like a diver in an upside-down ocean, breached near the system buoy, and dived again— up—into the interface and perhaps deeper. It was there long enough to have gathered a system map: the buoy output one; and to sing a message of its own, in its harmonic voices. This one was simple. tc’ a stsho kif mahendo’ sat hani hani hani hani hani hani peace peace peace peace peace Chanur Chanur Chanur Chanur Chanur Meras Meras Meras Meras Chanur peace peace peace peace peace
“Well, look at that,” Tiar said.
“How did it know my name?” Hallan asked.
“Famous, I suppose,” Chihin muttered. “The kif certainly know you. They set you up. And I’m beginning to wonder about the tc’a.”
“I wonder where that son’s headed.”
“Same place The Pride is,” Chihin said.
“Or maybe they don’t have to,” Tiar said. “I’d about bet you cousin Pyanfar knows what’s just happened. I’ll bet you that son just transmitted.”
Chihin shook her head. “If we start talking through the tc’a, gods save us. It’s no way to run a trading business.”
“Back to trade and thank the gods,” Tiar said. “Enough of politics. We got the wedding party off our deck, the Preciousness and all, we got Tlisi-tlas-tin for governor, No’shto-shti-stlen’s a happy bride, and we’ve got a can of exploding rocks to sell,”
“Another Kita run, to nail down that franchise,” Chihin muttered. “The stsho love the idea. I’ve a notion we can sell it to the mahendo’sat—“
“Kif might have an interest. To each their own uses.”
Tiraskhtiwas in. The rest of the kif still hovered, firmly under the hakkikt’s command, one could trust, since the effort was a success. High-level stsho turned out to welcome the hakkikt, to bid him to the intimate offices, along with Chanur. This was, perhaps, an unusual reception, kif and hani at once. Possibly it was unprecedented. Or perhaps not.
“Honor to you,” Hilfy said, with her escort, Tarras and Fala; and Vikktakkht with his dark-robed crew, meeting at the lift.
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