astrologer?'
''P’ for plaster.'
She laughed and he beamed, his green eyes warm with pleasure.
'May I ask you a question, exalted?'
'You may.'
'How long have you been a decatur?'
'I've been a decatur for a little over a year. I was elected to the Council after Decatur Neuillan was… released from duty.'
Of course. She should have guessed the newest member would be Neuillan's replacement. The older decatur had been caught selling programs to the Alzanan government. Most of the city had demanded his execution, but Ondinium law reserved the death sentence for murder. Instead, the decatur had been stripped of his caste, blinded, and flogged out the city gates as a traitor.
'Is there a reason you ask?' Forlore gave her a curious look. 'Do I seem different from the other decaturs, somehow?'
He did, but she wasn't about to tell him that.
'I was just wondering why I've never delivered a message to you before.'
'Oh. I'm afraid that's because I spend a great deal of time down at the University with my programming team.' He grimaced. 'I've come to the conclusion that the Council keeps its new members in line by assigning them so much work that they're unable to find the time for any potentially disruptive pursuits, such as framing legislation. But my team has just finished a major project, so I'm free now to attend meetings.'
'Is attending meetings better than programming?'
'It is different, at least. I'm afraid my job must seem quite dull, compared to yours. Now, tell me about the accident. What happened?'
Taya recounted the story a second time, gratified by his rapt attention. When she was through, Forlore gave a long, low, and very un-exalted-like whistle.
'Astounding. I'm relieved you were there. My cousin Viera is as close as a sister to me. I'd be devastated were I to lose her.'
'She was very brave,' Taya ventured.
'Viera has always been brave. She's also honorable; she won't forget she owes you her life, and neither will her husband. Caster Octavus is a very traditional man in matters of caste and honor.'
'What are his politics?' she asked, eager to learn more about the man. Forlore blinked, looking surprised by the question.
'Well… that's rather difficult to say. Caster's enemies call him an Organicist, but it's a misnomer. He depends on the Great Engine as much as the rest of us, at least in matters of industry and agriculture. But he doesn't care for programs that simulate human behavior, so he's objected to a few of the trade and policy calculators that the Council has adopted.'
Taya studied the decatur's face, trying to see if he were joking.
'You have programs that act like humans?'
'Not precisely.' Forlore smiled. 'I imagine you saw that play down in Secundus last year, didn't you? The one about the analytical engine that goes insane and orders the city's lictors to kill anyone that challenges its calculations?'
Embarrassed, she nodded.
'You needn't turn so red! I was among the exalteds who went to see it, myself. I found it very imaginative, but its playwright didn't have any idea how analytical engines really work. What we call a human-behavior simulation program doesn't give an engine any capacity for independent thought. What happens is that programmers like my team collect a great deal of data about how one person behaves, or about how many people behave, under certain circumstances. They boil the data down and develop a behavioral model, code it onto cards, create a program, run it, and the Great Engine uses the program's parameters to calculate the most statistically likely behaviors a hypothetical person sharing the same traits might adopt in a given situation or over a finite period of time.'
Taya gave him a dubious look. He smiled.
'You've taken loyalty tests, of course.'
She nodded. Icarii took a loyalty test each year, on the anniversary of their Great Examination.
'Your answers to each test are fed into the Engine, and it compares your new responses to your old responses, notes any changes that have occurred over the years, compares them to established risk factors, and predicts whether or not you're a threat to the city or the Council. If there's a reasonably high probability that you're becoming a security risk, you'll be summoned before a Board of Inquiry that determines the truth of the matter.'
'Isn't the Engine always right?'
'Many people make that assumption, but it isn't true. If the Engine has a well-tested, reliable program and enough data, its predictions can be have a high level of validity. But it's impossible to collect enough data to cover all the potential variables. That's why humans make the final analyses.' He smiled. 'If the Great Engine were infallible, Ondinium wouldn't need a Council.'
Taya thought of Pyke. 'I know someone who always criticizes the Council, but he's never been called up to a Board of Inquiry.'
'Criticizing the Council doesn't automatically make a person a security risk.' Forlore paused, taking a sip of his wine. 'In fact, Council members criticize each other all the time. A group that doesn't question itself usually makes bad decisions. Your friend may not be happy with Ondinium's government, but apparently he hasn't shown any inclination to sabotage it.'
'He wouldn't do that,' Taya hastened to assure the decatur. She didn't want to get Pyke into any trouble. Forlore looked amused, as if reading her mind. 'Do decaturs take loyalty tests, too?'
'Yes, but…. 'the exalted paused, glancing at her. 'As I said, the Engine isn't infallible. If it were, it would have caught Decatur Neuillan.'
His moment of hesitation was enough to remind Taya that she wasn't chatting with a friend; she was talking to an exalted. Why was she dawdling here, anyway, when her sister was getting married tonight? She stood.
'I'm sorry, exalted. I've been taking up too much of your time.'
'Not at all.' He reached out for her glass. She faltered, then handed it to him. Exalteds weren't supposed to take dirty dishes. 'I've enjoyed talking to you, Taya.'
'Thank you. And thank you for the wine.'
'My pleasure. I look forward to seeing you again.'
'I'm sure you will, exalted.' She began strapping on her armature again.
'Yes. I'm sure I will, too.'
She glanced up. He was watching her with a thoughtful look, the lamplight glittering off the gold clasps in his dark hair and burnishing the smooth copper of his skin. But even without the ornaments, it would be obvious that he had been born exalted — his Ondinium coloration and features were flawless.
Taya smoothed her short auburn hair, the all-too-apparent sign of her mixed heritage. To her chagrin, she took after her Mareaux-descended father more than she did her Ondinium mother. Then she blushed and looked down to check her harness once more.
Lady, there's a reason exalteds wear concealing masks and robes!
She had no right to notice Decatur Forlore's face. The only features that mattered between them were her wings and his castemarks.
Think of this as a diplomatic test
, she advised herself.
Act like you would if you were already in the corps.
'Is that everything, exalted?' She took a deep breath and looked up, smoothing her expression into one of calm professional interest.
