Chanur's Homecoming

And from the earplug. “Mekt-hakkikt, I have all these ships in my hand, praise to you. We will strike at your order.”

“Who am I talking to?”

“Mekt-hakkikt, to your faithful Skkukuk. I have carried out all your orders. I will deal with all your enemies. Name them to me.”

“Right now, Skkukuk, I’m just real glad to hear from you. You keep those ships of yours under control and you don’t make a move without my direct order. Hear me?”

“/ will give you your enemies’ heads and hearts.”

“I’m real fond of you too, Skkukuk. Just do what I said. You get your com linked up to mine and you stay in constant touch. Anyone twitches, I want to know about it. These hani with me are allies. They won’t cause any trouble.”

“And these mahendo’sat and these invaders?”

“Wait for my orders. That’s all.” She punched the contact out. She was trembling. She set her elbows on the counter and dropped her head a second time into her hands, wiped her mane back. Haral was still by her. Someone else was moving about. It was all distant. She had no wish to talk to anyone.

“Captain.” It was Sifeny Tauran holding out a sandwich and a container of something liquid with a null-cap. The sight of it turned her stomach and attracted her shaking hand. Gfi. She took a sip of it, and felt another urge unbearably strong.

“I got to take a break,” she said to Haral. “We got the gods-be kif, don’t we?”

“Go,” Haral said.

She spun the chair about and took her own way to the galley corridor and the head. The air everywhere seemed stagnant. Three days and we’ll have the whole gods-be lifesupport in a mess. We can’t go that long. Crew’s got to get that system up.

She passed Tauran crew in the galley, one with wrapped ribs, sitting white-nosed at the table, the other capping up food as fast as she could. “We got a while stable. Get the slinkers out of the godsforsaken filters, get that lifesupport up.”

“Aye,” the Tauran said, a distracted, exhausted look till she realized who was talking to her. Then the ears came up. “Aye, cap’n.”

She made the trip, into the closet of a head, came out and shouldered past Tirun on the same mission.

“Captain,” sounded in the com-plug in her ear. “We got Mahijiru. They’re indicating that they want us to pull back to Gaohn. They’re waiting for reply.”

“In a mahen hell,” she muttered, and went through the galley, down the corridor with a hand to either wall, onto the bridge where she had sight of Hilfy and the rest. “Tell them hold that perimeter. We’ll accept Mahijiru only. That ship can come in for conference, and we’ll draw back to Gaohn. We’re not having any others.”

“Aye,” Hilfy said. “We’ve got query from Vigilance” Sirany said. “Ayhar is telling them shut it down.”

It was one more thing than she wanted to know. She hand-over-handed herself back to her own post, fell into it and sat drinking at the gfi in minute sips that did not agitate her stomach.

It was a long wait for messages. Goldtooth and the humans were a long distance out.

She drank. She wiped her blurring eyes and leaned back against the seat in as much relaxation as she could take. While The Pride slewed on, inertial. The hani formation was spreading itself around the kif. Vigilance was far to nadir now and out of her way. Ayhar was considerably off to sunward and beginning to take some of the way off. So were others of the merchants, trimming up. Kifish ships were in hard decel, those going in both directions until they could take the speed off and achieve a coherent pattern.

But The Pride was going where it belonged. Out into the open. Where it formed no part of any group.

One of the calls Chur had handled, listed on monitor three: from Rhean: Do you need assistance? Reply: Negative: fully operational; thanks.

Another, from Ehrran: Query, query, query. Reply from Fiar: All queries deferred. Your patience appreciated.

One more, from Ehrran: Protest lodged. Reply from Hilfy: Sink it in your own datafile; advise you kifish allies are monitoring your transmissions and misunderstandings are possible. For your own safety and safety of those near you maintain com silence.

Tully’s, through the translator: This is # # Tully # # # call # # # # do not # # this is # # hani # # with # #. . . . No reply listed.

From Shanan’s Glory, far to the rear of the combat: Shall we come in or hold position? From Banny Ayhar, monitored: Hold relative position. Maintain full-sphere surveillance.

From Gaohn Station: This is Gaohn Central: general inquiry. From Banny Ayhar, monitored: Firing has stopped. Situation uncertain but improved. Harun’s Industry will be making return to Gaohn with casualties for medical assistance and will courier details. Possibility of strike in your vicinity still exists but is less probable. Reserve other inquiry for Industry. Chanur remains in contact with various allied ships. Ayhar is directing hani ships in the zone of contact. . . .

From Ayhar: We have computed trajectory on missing ships. All vessels along these lines be alert to evade or assist as needed. . . .