Startide Rising (The Uplift Saga, #2) - David Brin Page 0,162

chimera of the Earthlings? Are the volcanoes that fill our instruments with static mere trickery?”

The crew tried to look simultaneously busy and attentive. No one wanted to risk the ire of the fleet mother.

A Paha warrior strode from the office of detection.

“Mistress,” it announced. “We did not notice before because of the volcanoes, but there has been a launching from the planets surface.”

Krat felt a turn of glee. This was what she had been waiting for! Though she had sent ships of her own to the site of the radio messages, she had kept the core of her fleet together.

“Diversions! They were all diversions! The radio calls, the psi attacks, even the volcanoes!”

A part of her was curious about how the Earthlings had managed the last two. But that question would be solved when the humans and their clients were captured and interrogated.

“The Earthlings waited until much of the battle had moved near the planet,” she muttered. “And now they make their attempt to escape! Now we must …”

Cullcullabra came up to her side and bowed. “Mistress, I’ve done a deep search of the Library, and I think I know the source of the psi and the …”

The Pil’s eyes bugged out as Krat stabbed him in the abdomen with her mating claw. Krat stood up, carrying the Librarian in the air, then flung his lifeless body over to the wall.

She stood over the body breathing deeply of the death odors. No trouble would come over this killing, at least. The idiotic Pil had actually interrupted her! No one would deny that she had been within her rights this time.

She sheathed her claw. It had felt good. Not quite like mating with a male of her own race, who could fight back in kind, but good.

“Tell me about the Earthling ship,” she crooned to the Paha.

She noticed it waited a full second after she finished speaking to begin. “Mistress,” it said. “It is not their main vessel. It appears to be a scout ship, of some sort.”

Krat nodded. “An emissary. I wondered why they did not try to work out a surrender agreement before this. Move the fleet to intercept this vessel. We must act before the Tandu notice it!

“Have our new Thennanin allies take the rear. I want them to understand that they are junior partners in this enterprise.”

“Mistress, the Thennanin have already begun preparations to leave us. They appear to be eager to join the chaos at the planet’s surface.”

Krat grunted. “Let them. We are even with the Tandu again. And the Thennanin are almost used up anyway. Let them depart. Then we proceed after the scout ship!”

She settled back onto the vletoor cushion and hummed to herself.

Soon. Soon.

The masters demanded too much. How could they expect the Acceptor to report specifically when so much was happening!

It was beautiful! Everything was going on at once! Sparkling little battles over the planet’s surface … bright hot volcanoes … and that great psychic roar of anger that had poured out of the planet itself only a little while ago!

The anger still steamed and spumed. Why were the masters so uninterested in something so unique? Psi from below a planet’s surface? The Acceptor could tell the Tandu so much about that angry voice, but they were only interested in shutting it out. It distracted them and made them feel vulnerable.

The Acceptor witnessed it all in bliss, until the punishment came again. The masters applied a neural whip. Its legs Jerked at the unpleasant sensation that coursed through its brain.

Should it let the “punishment” alter its behavior this time? The Acceptor considered.

It decided to ignore the “pain.” Let them cajole and shout. The Acceptor was enthralled by the angry voices that churned below, and listened with all its might.

105

The Skiff

“What the devil …?”

Dennie was rolled off the dry-shelf to splash into the water below. Sah’ot squawked in confusion as the tiny ship’s hold tipped.

Then, in addition to the physical tossing, a rolling wave of psychic discomfort began to fill their heads. Dennie coughed water and grabbed a wall stanchion. She wanted to cover her ears.

“Not again,” she moaned. She tried to use the techniques Toshio had taught her … focusing on her heartbeat to drive out the grinding static in her head. She hardly even noticed when Sah’ot shouted, “It’sss them!”

The fin pressed the hatch button with his beak and sped out into the hallway. He streaked into the tiny control room.

“Creideiki!” he began, forgetting for a moment that the captain could