Frays In The Weave

He expected to handle an endless string of tavern owners demanding rest.i.tution for broken furniture come tomorrow. With a bit of luck, he would be among the guilty—if the evening"s reports allowed him any time to carouse around the city.

He turned in his saddle and waved again. Then he had to bend sideways to accept a few flowers from a girl. Her mother stood a bit away blushing furiously and around her the rest of her family laughed at her temporary discomfort.

Right now it was a good time to be a general, and Trindai knew de Markand enjoyed a similar attention elsewhere along the column of returning soldiers.

Flowers in hand he picked up speed raising his fragrant sword to the sky and listening to the cheers of uniformed men and expectant audience alike. They"d come back. Now it was time to give the people, and themselves, a good show.

At the head of the column he rode past the Krante gates and entered the boulevard. Due west he saw the great stables and the surrounding barracks. He"d return there later, but first they"d march through the streets where people stood waiting to cheer on their heroes.

To the north west he noticed the ruins of several blocks of buildings, but the sight didn"t fill him with dread as he had expected. Scaffolding climbed the surviving walls, and even though he didn"t see anyone working on them it was clear the citizens of Verd had already started to rebuild their homes, and that thought itself was enough to gift him with a feeling of grat.i.tude.

That feeling was soon accompanied by one of warmth as roars of appreciation rolled over him from the cheering people. He wished the outworlder soldiers had joined them for the celebration. They had deserved every bit of it.

#

Heinrich grinned as they climbed the ridge separating the planted fields from the launch port. Not long now. Cresting it he"d be able to see the closest thing to home he"d known for a year. One year this time. Last time it had been home for three of them.

He reached the ridge and paused. Body walkers were no more tiring to use uphill than on flat ground. He merely wanted to rest his mind before he descended the other side and crossed the fields.

Almost home. New Sweden resided here now after Goodard put a permanent blemish on Federation reputation. Well, it couldn"t be helped. TADAT were more of an international force than just another arm of the Terran Federation anyway.

He stretched in his walker, shut it down, climbed out of it and stretched once more. Behind him he heard another walking making ready for shut-down. Liz or Abreas he didn"t know. Heinrich mentally changed Abreas to Panopilis. That first name was a touchy matter and had always been.

"Just taking a rest," he said without turning.

Footsteps came closer. "Good idea," Panopilis replied. "This is a place as good as any other."

Heinrich sighed. "We"ve deserved it," he muttered.

"Sure as h.e.l.l have not!" That voice came from down the slope somewhere.

That"s Tayserajd, but that"s impossible. He"s...

"I"m not quite dead yet if that was what you thought," came the cheerful voice.

"How the h.e.l.l? I saw you go down!"

It was Tay climbing up the slope from the launch port side. "No, you saw Tanaka and Syuie. They didn"t make it. I did, and so did Philippa, even though she"s convalescent still."

"How?" Heinrich knew shouts of joy or at least a proper greeting would have been more in order, but he was just too stunned.

Tay reached the crest and exchanged hugs with Liz and Panopilis before sitting down beside Heinrich.

They stared at each other in silence for a while.

"It wasn"t easy, you know," Tay began.

"Don"t you even dare," Heinrich growled.

"Even for one with my G.o.dlike resourcefulness," Tay continued unperturbed.

"go there."

"divine intervention requires me to stretch my imagination beyond mere human limits."

"Come on!" Liz and Panopilis shouted in chorus.

Tay just grinned back. "You want to hear the story or not?" he pretended to sulk.

"Yes! So get on with it!" all three of them demanded in almost perfect unison.

Another twisted smile spread over his face, but then he apparently decided enough was enough. "Camouflage," he offered.

"Camouflage?"

"Yes, I switched on the camouflage, full force when we dropped to the ground. So did Philippa."

Heinrich stared in incomprehension. "But that film gobbles energy like mad? Even sensors on Orbit One would have picked it up. It"s useless outside heavy industry."

Tay looked back but said nothing.

"Oh h.e.l.l!"

"What is it?" Panopilis asked.

"Sensors, that"s what it is," Heinrich answered.

"I don"t... oh h.e.l.l!"

"Yes," Heinrich threw Elisabeth a glance. She hadn"t reached the conclusion yet. "We"ve been too smart," he said. "Those riders didn"t have sensors. We could have marched south in functional invisibility. As long as we kept the distance to Goodard"s goons no one would have been any wiser."

"But..."

"Yes, I know, but we could have switched them on before those hors.e.m.e.n charged us."

Elisabeth sighed, but Heinrich cut her off before she could begin any recriminations.

"We don"t know for certain. Those battlemages could probably find us if they tried. Remember Gring?"

Elisabeth sighed again, and this time he joined her. During the long days spent on the eastern fields he had grown to like the giant mindwalker very much.

"You could have joined us," he said.

Tay shook his head. "They searched for us. As soon as darkness fell we ditched the walkers and started trekking north."

Heinrich cringed.

"I made sure both walkers were fused shut. Takes a plasma cutter to open them without destroying them totally. Goodard won"t find them in this state."

"Good work. Don"t worry about Goodard. He"s dead."

Tay smiled. "Good work," he acceded.

They sat in silence for some time, and the late afternoon had turned to dusk when Tay suddenly spoke.

"Sorry, I almost forgot. There"s a Mrs Kirksten or something waiting for you at the port."

Heinrich scratched his head and frowned. He didn"t know anyone by that name. Unless...

"Kirchenstein! You"re an a.s.s!"

"Yes, yes, one of the new desk riders anyway."

Heinrich groaned and rose. "Time to move." Then he turned to Tay. "Anita Kirchenstein-Yui is New Sweden here. She"s their d.a.m.n Admiral Radovic." He started down the slope. "And you kept her waiting for hours."

Tay shrugged and fell in line.

The sun had set by the time they reached the small town that had grown up outside the terminal. Summer"s warmth still clung to the evening though.

They were just about to turn around a corner and head for the concrete sheds that functioned as the administrative centre when something caught Heinrich"s attention. A sign.

"Välkommen till Stjärnhamn," it said.

He pa.r.s.ed it through his computer. "Welcome to Starport," he read aloud.

"Welcome indeed! You have to be Major Goldberger.!"

The voice came from a door opening, but Heinrich wasn"t very surprised when an ethnic Chinese walked down the stairs to meet them. Body walkers weren"t exactly inconspicuous.

"You are Mrs Kirchenstein-Yui?"

"I am, and you are indeed welcome to Starport."

Heinrich looked around him. "I never thought of it as a place," he said.

"You Federation people are funny that way. So utilitarian. Orbit one. Launch port. Where"s the soul in that?"

That outburst finally brought laughter to him.

"What"s so funny? Makes sense it got a proper name."

Heinrich returned her look. "She," he said. "The locals would call her a she, not an it. You want to give her a proper name you"d better use her proper gender."

Anita stared back.

"Arthur Wallman can explain better," he said and laughed again.