The Shadow of Saganami

all about the benefits Frontier Security brings. That's why over ninety-five percent of the voters here on Pontifex favored annexation by your kingdom, instead. And it's also the reason our delegation to the Constitutional Convention is working so closely with Joachim Alquezar.'

'With all due respect, Mr. President,' Karlberg said, 'I'm still not comfortable about tying ourselves so closely to the Rembrandters.'

'Emil,' Adolfsson said patiently, 'what happened to us here wasn't Bernardus Van Dort's fault. It wasn't even the Rembrandt Trade Union's fault. Damnation, man! There's only been a Trade Union for the last fifty T-years! Rembrandt and San Miguel certainly never 'looted' Pontifex's economy. It's past time we stopped being envious and started emulating them! Although,' he added in the tone of someone making a grudging concession, 'I suppose we won't have to be quite so... assertive in our business negotiations with our neighbors.'

' Assertive! ' Karlberg snorted. Ragnhild was still surprised by the comfortable, casual way the commodore addressed his President. She tried-and failed-to imagine anyone talking that way to Queen Elizabeth. Yet despite the comfort level, there was nothing disrespectful about Karlberg. It was almost as if his familiarity was an indication of the true depth of his respect for the President.

'I realize my ship and I are new to the Cluster, Commodore,' Terekhov said. 'But I've spent quite a few hours reading over the intelligence briefings Admiral Khumalo and Governor Medusa have made available. From what I can see, Mr. Van Dort must be a remarkable individual, and I understand he and Mr. Alquezar are close personal friends, as well as business and political associates.'

'You understand correctly, Captain,' Adolfsson replied. 'Oh, he didn't organize the Trade Union solely out of selfless humanitarianism. But I've never subscribed to the theory that the entire RTU was conceived of simply as a means to fleece the other star systems in the area. And whatever else may be true, I'm convinced Van Dort-and Alquezar-are deeply committed to driving through this annexation.'

'So am I, Uncle George,' Wexler said. 'But they could be fully committed to doing that simply because of all the opportunities they see to get even richer as part of the Star Kingdom. Altruistic concern for the rest of us may run pretty far second to that.'

'No reason it shouldn't,' Adolfsson said with a shrug. ''Rich' isn't a dirty word, Alberto. Especially not when the difference between rich and poor for a planet is also the difference between prolong and its absence, or the chance for a decent job and housing for all our citizens.'

'Point taken, Mr. President,' Karlberg said. 'I guess it's just reflex. I've spent so long envying the Rembrandters every time one of their freighters came rumbling through that it's hard not to go right on doing it.'

'The President is right, though, I think, Commodore,' Terekhov said. 'Even without the annexation, the Cluster's simple proximity to the Lynx Terminus would have tremendous economic implications for all your star systems. Assuming, of course, that somebody like Frontier Security didn't move in on you as soon as you became prosperous enough to be worth grabbing.'

'I know,' Karlberg agreed, nodding briskly. 'And we've already seen some signs of those economic implications of yours, Captain. Not that much so far, but we've had three freighters stop over here in Nuncio in just the last month and a half. That may not sound like much to someone from Manticore, and one of them only stopped on spec, to see if there was any reason the owners should make us a semi-regular stopover in the future. But that still represents a huge jump in local traffic for us, and I expect it to continue to increase. Unfortunately, it looks like there are some liabilities coming along with the good news.'

'What sort of liabilities, Sir?' FitzGerald asked.

'We're in the outermost tier of the systems of our so-called 'Cluster,' Commander,' Karlberg said. 'We're more exposed than other systems-like Rembrandt and San Miguel-which are basically pretty much slap in the middle. I suspect we're also going to attract less of the new investment everyone is visualizing, unless the President's hopes of luring investors into sinking capital into developing the resort potential of Basilica bear fruit, of course. But even so, we're undoubtedly looking at a major increase in our prosperity and in the amount of merchant traffic in the area. Which is what concerns me most at the moment.'

'Why, Commodore?' Terekhov asked, watching Karlberg intently.

'Because it's going to make us more of a target, especially given how exposed we are, and I don't have the available assets to encourage the ill-intentioned to stay the hell out of my star system,' Karlberg said bluntly. 'Especially not if they have modern vessels available.'

'Modern vessels?' Terekhov leaned forward, and his eyes narrowed. So did FitzGerald's-and both midshipmen's, for that matter. The pirates operating out of the Verge in the Talbott Cluster's vicinity tended to be among the less technically capable of their ilk. In many ways, they were the equivalent of the rowboat-equipped pirates who'd haunted prespace Old Earth's shallow coastal seas, and they made the average Silesian pirate look like first-line naval units in comparison. Against that sort of opposition, even Karlberg's diminutive, obsolescent light attack craft should have made a good showing.

'Yes,' the commodore said, and there was no longer any trace of levity in his voice or expression. 'Someone's intruded into the system here at least three times in the last two weeks. Whoever it is isn't interested in introducing himself, and the only one of my LACs that's gotten close enough to try for a solid sensor sweep failed completely. Now, admittedly, our electronics are pretty much crap compared to yours, Captain, but we ought to be getting at least some useful data. We aren't, which suggests that whoever we're up against has considerably more modern electronics than we do. Which, in turn, suggests they're probably much more modern and capable generally than we are.'

'You keep using the plural, Commodore,' Terekhov observed. 'You're fairly confident you're dealing with more than a single intruding vessel?'

'I'm ninety-five percent certain there are two of them,' Karlberg said. 'And, whatever they are, they're bigger and, presumably, tougher than anything I've got. And they're arrogant buggers, too. They're waltzing right into and through my star system because they know damned well that nothing I've got could hurt them, even if I could manage to track them accurately.'

'I see,' Terekhov said slowly. He glanced at FitzGerald, and Ragnhild finally allowed herself to glance at Paulo, as well. She could see from his expression that he was thinking the same thing she was. If Karlberg was correct (and Ragnhild was impressed by the man's obvious capability) about how modern these intruders were, where had they come from? What were modern vessels doing playing pirate in such a poverty-riddled portion of the Verge? This was the sort of area that attracted chicken thieves, not the sort that could pay the operating costs of modern, powerful raiders.

'Well, Commodore, Mr. President,' Terekhov said after a few moments of silent thought, 'if you do have somebody wandering in and out of your system with less than honest motivations, then I suppose we ought to see what Hexapuma can do to discourage them.' He smiled thinly. 'As permanently as possible.'

* * *

'Mr. Dekker?'

'Yes, Danny?'

'Mr. Dekker, I think you'd better see this.' Daniel Santiago's Montana accent was more pronounced than usual, and his brown eyes looked worried.

'What is it?' Dekker pushed back his chair and rose, walking across to Santiago's desk.

'This e— mail just came in.' Santiago pointed at his old-fashioned display. 'The system says it comes from an address that doesn't exist.'

'What?' Dekker bent over his subordinate's shoulder, peering at the screen.

'It used to exist,' Santiago continued, 'but this provider shut down over two T-years ago.'

'That's ridiculous,' Dekker said. 'Somebody must be playing games with his mail origination.'

'That's why I think you should take a look at it, Boss,' Santiago said. He reached out and tapped the message subject header, and Dekker's eyes narrowed.

'Re: Reasons to evacuate... right now,' it said.

* * *

'I do not believe this!' Oscar Johansen said. 'What did I do? Kill one of this guy's