“This we already doing,” Naneci-tok replied, “and not because of human directive. Is presently much confusion among my people.” Raptor eyes flashed. “Real danger is that young ones are swept up in fervor and excitement of upheaval. Fighting is to Sakuntala what breathing is to others. Spirit moves body; body forgets brain.” She looked genuinely uncomfortable. “At such times is hard to speak reason to young ones. When mouth is wide open and screaming, makes hearing difficult.”
“I know that the Hatas will do their best.” Matthias found herself sympathizing with the visibly distressed female. No such sympathy flowed from the furious Deyzara as they rose to depart and communicate the results of the meeting to their people.
Alone again in the office, Matthias turned to watch the rain falling outside the window. For the moment, she had done all she could. Despite what she had told the Deyzara, she doubted authorization would be forthcoming from Earth or Hivehom for the use of weapons in support of the Deyzara and against the Sakuntala. If hundreds were being slaughtered it might be different. But in the absence of mass killings, cautious bureaucrats would want to avoid at all costs being seen as taking sides in what was inarguably a local dispute. She knew how the system worked. They would agree to provide only humanxitarian aid.
Which meant that if the Council of Hatas proved unable to control the radicals, the extremists might well succeed in their aim of getting a large number of Deyzara permanently expelled from Fluva. Could she allow that to happen? What did it matter to her? First and foremost, her job was to oversee the Commonwealth presence on the Big Wet, not to get involved in local fighting.