A Deepness in the Sky

Ezr went down the crew list, explaining the roles of the different members. There had been twenty poor souls in coldsleep, Ritser's special toys. Clearly,they were victims, but Underville didn't want to give up the equipment. One by one, Ezr got Underville's permission for release, contingent on access to specialists who could explain the ruins that her agency now owned. Finally, they were down to the toughest cases. "Jau Xin. Pilot Manager."

"Jau Xin, the trigger man!" said the general. Ezr had pumped up the amplification in his huds. His view was not as dim as before. All through the conversation, Underville had sat very still, the only movement being the ceaseless play of her feeding hands. It was a posture that Zinmin represented as face-forward alertness. "Jau Xin was charged with initiating the actual attacks."

"General, we've looked at the records. Your interviews with Jau's Focused pilots are probably even more complete. It's clear to us that Jau Xin sabotaged much of the Emergent attack. I know Jau, ma'am. I know his wife. Both wish your people well." The ziphead analysts, Trixia among them, thought that such family references might mean something. Maybe. But Belga Underville might be much more the classical "national interest" type.

Zinmin Broute tapped away on his tiny console, putting Ezr's words into an intermediate language and then guiding the audio output. Ghostly hissing came from Broute's soundbox, Ezr's thoughts as a Spider might speak them.

Underville was silent for a moment, then gave forth a shrill squeak. Ezr knew that counted as a disdainful snort.

But this interview could ultimately be shown to other Spiders.I'm notletting you off the hook, Underville. Ezr reached into his pack and held up Rita's tiny box.

"And what is that?" said Underville. There was no hint of curiosity in Broute-as-Underville's voice.

"A gift to Jau Xin from his wife. A remembrance, in case you still refuse to free him."

Underville was sitting almost two meters away, but even now Ezr didn't realize just how far a Spider's forearms could reach. Four spearlike black arms flashed out at him, plucking the box from his grasp. Undervile's arms flickered back, held the box close to first one part and then another of her glassy carapace. Her stiletto hands made little scritching noises as she pried at box's top and thumb lock.

"It's keyed to Jau Xin. If you force it open, the contents will be destroyed."

"So be it then." But the Spider stopped pressing the pointed tips of her limbs into the box. She held it a moment more, then gave a screeching hiss, and flung it back at Ezr's chest.

The ugly screeching continued as Zinmin Broute began translating. "Damn your cobblie eyes!" Broute's voice was tight and angry. "Take back this gift for a murderer. Take back Xin and the other staff."

"Thank you, General. Thank you." Ezr scrambled to recover Rita's gift.

The Spider's voice tumbled into silence, then resumed more quietly, sounding somehow like drops of water spatting off hot metal. "And I suppose you think to rescue Ritser Brughel also?"

"Not to rescue him, ma'am. Over the years, Ritser Brughel has probably killed more of our people than ever he did of yours. He has much to answer for."

"Indeed. But there is no way we will give that one up to you." Now Broute's voice was smug, and Ezr guessed this was one point where there were no divisions on the Spider side.

And maybe that was for the best. Ezr shrugged. "Very well. It is for you to punish him."

The Spider had become very still, even unto her eating hands. "Punish? You misunderstand. This silly negotiation has left us with only a single functioning human. Any punishment will necessarily be incidental. We're learning much from dissecting the human corpses, but we desperately need a living experimental subject. What are your physical limitations? How do you creatures respond to extremes of pain and fear? We want to test with stimuli we don't see in your databases. I intend that Ritser Brughel live a long, long time."

Ritser Brughel is about as weird a human type as you can find.But somehow that might not be the wisest thing to say here and now. Instead, Ezr simply nodded. And for the first time he saw how Ritser might find a fate to match his crimes. The Podmaster's nightmare of Spiders would be the rest of his life.

SIXTY-FIVE

Ezr Vinh returned a hero to L1. It was possible that no owner or fleet partner had every been greeted with the enthusiasm he saw at the rockpile. He brought with him the first of the released prisoners, including Jau Xin. He also brought with him the first of their new partners: The first Spiders to fly in space.

Ezr scarcely noticed. He smiled, he talked, and when he saw Rita and Jau together he felt a distant pleasure.