Chapter Forty-One: Negotiations
Mark followed Alerak along the halls. On either side of them were armed guards, and Mark could sense their power. He had the feeling that if it came to direct violence, he would not stand a chance against any of them.
Eventually, they came to a set of red doors was opened. Beyond was a bridge of gold metal and red crystal. A window overlooked Earth far below.
"Welcome to my bridge. Don't touch anything," said Alerak.
Mark let his persona run wild, looking at what he judged to be a pilot. "Fascinating? What is this strange device?
"You seem to be controlling the ship with it, yet there are no discernable means of inputting data."
"You place your hand here and channel your will into it," said Alerak, pointing to a red sphere of crystal.
Mark let out an affirmative. "Ah, so psychic power is used as a means to interface with computer systems?"
"How do you do it?" asked Alerak.
"We have manual controls," said Mark. "Although in recent years we've developed touch screens and voice-activated."
"Meaning?" asked Alerak.
"We have a series of buttons on the console," said Mark. "Pressing a given button corresponds to a command. Certain sequences of buttons has different results. Touch screens are where you have a digital interface you use your fingers to interact with. And voice activating is based on sonic.
"I don't believe you would be able to use the latter. Since you speak with psychic impulses."
"How do you even record information with your pitiful levels of power?" asked Alerak.
"Oh, well, in the old days, we'd make marks," said Mark, quickly drawing out a pen and paper. "See, let me demonstrate." He scribbled a letter on it and turned it around. "This is the letter A. I represent a given sound in the English language. So, what I do is I write down a series of other letters that correspond to other sounds. And you can use them to represent all kinds of different things.
"Of course, that's a very simplistic explanation. And there are a lot of other languages."
"And there is no psionic element?" asked Alerak.
'None whatsoever," said Mark. "Other than the interpretation of the viewer, of course. You can create entire logs with them. But, of course, you need you to be versed in the language in question."
"The Juraians have similar techniques, I have heard," said Alerak. "We protoss rarely use such pedestrian methods. Our hands are not as useful for fine motor, and we have no need."
"Actually, that reminds me," said Mark. "Why are you so deadset on having these gems anyway? I mean, aren't you risking war with Jurai."
"A calculated risk," said Alerak. And he raised a hand to reveal a red gem on the one hand. "This gem was seized by my father, Malrath, before I existed. When I was in my mother's womb, my parents attuned the energies of the gem into Mother. Thus I naturally gained attunement to them.
"Through this gem, I wield far greater power than any Tal'Darim before me. Except, perhaps, Mal'lash. I have not yet tested myself against him. Once I have all three gems, no one will be able to stand before me."
"How much control do you have over the gem you have?" asked Mark.
Alerak let a pause before speaking. "A great deal."
"Well, I guess all that makes a reasonable amount of sense, but why do you want the gems?" asked Mark.
"For the sake of ultimate power," said Alerak.
"Yes, that's what you said," said Mark. "But I don't see how getting the gems gives you ultimate power."
Alerak paused and looked at him. "...You aren't stupid.
"What are you getting at?"
"You want ultimate power. That makes sense," said Mark. "But how does getting the gems give you that power?"
"I will be more powerful than anyone before me. With their power harnessed, I will be a god," said Alerak, acting as though it were obvious.
"And how are you going to harness them?" asked Mark. "Ryoko has had two for most of her life, and she's never been able to figure out how to use them. She went to Washu in order to learn to master them fully."
"It may take some time before I am able to use the power fully," conceded Alerak. "But it will be only a matter of time."
"What if they kill you before you master them?" asked Mark.
"What?" asked Alerak.
"Well, surely, you must understand the nature of the balance of power?" asked Mark.
"Balance of power?" asked Alerak.
"Yes," said Mark. "It's a human theory. Whenever one entity gets powerful, the other factions coordinate to bring them down. If you were to get all three gems, Jurai would know. After all, your whole plan is to use me as a hostage.
"So the Emperor of Jurai would immediately decide to have you removed. And, in addition, any members of your people who don't want to join you might join in. You'd be facing a coalition of many different powers."
Alerak shifted, and his guards looked at him. Something passed between the protoss. "I would defeat it."
"Can you?" asked Mark. "And what about the one that comes next?"
"What do you mean?" asked Alerak.
"You don't really think that the universe will just give up because you win one battle, do you?" asked Mark. "At best, you'll force them to retreat and get concessions. But they'll come at you again with a different strategy.
"What if they use tactics that cannot be fought using the powers of the gems?"
"There is no such power," said Alerak.
"Are you willing to bank your life and legacy on that assumption?" asked Mark. "Because once you have all three gems, you are committed. If you defeat Jurai, you will create a power vacuum. If you cannot fill it, someone else will.
"And even if the Jurai Emperor is killed, others will want to take his place.
"Maybe Tsunami has others blessing to bestow in case of just such a situation? After all, she is supposed to be an omnipotent goddess."
Alerak eyed Mark with clear suspicion. He now was aware that Mark had his own agenda and probably knew what it was. But he could not help but ask now; doubts had been planted in his mind about his plan. "...Just what are you suggesting?"
"You seem to be under the impression that you came here seeking the gems," said Mark. "But you're actually seeking power. The gems are merely a means of attaining that.
"I suggest that the gems are a false hope.
"A means by which those who desire to become God will come into the open and be destroyed."
Alerak stared openly now, and his guards made psionic murmurs. Already they were talking among themselves. "Bait?" asked Alerak.
"Why not?" asked Mark. "If I were an all-powerful deity, what is the one thing I have to fear? Losing my power. And how can you lose your power except if an even greater existence comes into play?
"Perhaps these gems were created as a lure."
"Why create the universe at all, then?" asked Alerak.
"We can speculate on that for all eternity," said Mark. "Perhaps for amusement. Perhaps life independent of the gods was an accident.
"Or perhaps God simply desires only a certain kind of person to grow stronger. And the gems naturally draw out those who he wishes culled."
Alerak eyed him hard. "What do you want, William Mark? Shall I release you and return empty-handed?"
"Why not?" asked Mark. "You are already more powerful than you were before you came here."
"What do you mean?" asked Alerak.
"Knowledge is power," said Mark, adjusting his glasses, so they reflected the light. "The more one knows, the closer they are to understanding a thing. And to understand a thing is to be able to control it. We humans have almost no brute strength of our own, and so we had to understand our world at the most basic level.
"Through that understanding, we gained knowledge and ability beyond our physical abilities.
"Imagine what the protoss could do with such understanding?"
"What are you offering me?" asked Alerak carefully.
"Release me now, unharmed and without bond. Then I'll offer you some basic elements of the knowledge we humans have collected," said Mark. "You may find some of it enlightening, or you may not. But even if it is not, you will be wiser for having come here."
"And what if your... suggestions prove less than useful," said Alerak.
"Aren't you looking at the world a bit differently, after all this talking?" asked Mark. "The very fact that you are even considering this means my arguments hold some merit."
Alerak paused. "They may be well-phrased lies."
"In which case, you will know that what I have said is not how reality operates," said Mark. "And that in itself is valuable information. And, at the very least, you will not have made a game-ending mistake.
"It's a very simple choice, Alerak.
"You can pursue the gems and become one more defeated enemy of Jurai.
"Or you can let go of false hope and learn."
"Highlord, we are detecting Ryo-Oki coming toward us!" said a man.
"What?" said Alerak. "How did they bypass our cloaking field?"
"I don't know, but-" began the soldier.
And then a viewscreen emerged, and an enraged Ryoko appeared onscreen. Her hands were crackling with energy, and her eyes were narrowed. "Listen up, you punks! You let Mark go right now, or I'll blow you out of the sky!"
Behind her, Kiyone came forward, looking very worried. "Hang on, Ryoko. Mark is still on that transport we're trying to negotiate not-"
"As you wish," said Alerak.
Dead silence.
Ryoko halted. "...I'm sorry, what?"
"I will do as you request. I've no more use for this planet anyway," said Alerak.
"Hang on, what?" said Ryoko. "You kidnap one of our own, and then you just give him back!"
"Oh, um, sorry for the inconvenience, Ryoko," said Mark, coming forward. "We've been having a fascinating discussion on philosophy. See, there was this big understanding.
"Alerak thought that he was pursuing ultimate power by being here.
"I convinced him that he was better off looking elsewhere. I also took the chance to do an exchange of information between cultures. I'm really hoping to get intergalactic diplomacy off to a good start."
"...You negotiated with a Tal'Darim?" asked Kiyone in obvious shock. "How did you..."
"Is there some kind of mind control going on here?" asked Ryoko suspiciously.
"Why would I mind control an ordinary human?" asked Alerak. "If I wanted to use him, I'd put a blade to his throat and demand concessions."
"...Be that as it may," said Kiyone. "I am Officer Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police. Your presence here is in direct violation of Juraian Space. As such, I must demand that you return Mark immediately to Earth and leave immediately.:
"You may teleport him out at any time," said Alerak. "However, I will only leave when Mark has given me the information he spoke of."
"Unacceptable," said Kiyone. "You are in direct violation of international law. Earth is a colony under the protection of Jurai. Therefore any such arrangement must be cleared with the appropriate authorities."
"Hang on what!" said Mark, breaking character. "What do you mean 'colony?' Jurai never colonized this planet. Everything that was built here was built by us!"
"Mark is this really the time?" asked Kiyone.
"Of course, it's the time!" said Mark. "I just successfully bartered passage off this ship in exchange for history texts! You can find the books I want to give Alerak in any store at all!"
"Then how is it valuable?" asked Alerak suspiciously.
"It's not the book," said Mark. "It's what's inside the book. I was going to try and translate it into something that protoss could read."
"You know, Washu could put something like that together in five seconds," noted Ryoko.
"That is not the point!" said Kiyone. "As a Galaxy Police Officer, I have an obligation to maintain galactic law! If I let this kind of deal pass, it would be...
"Well, it would be like if a general negotiated the end to the war without consulting the government. This kind of thing has to go through proper channels—your talking about giving valuable information to an enemy of Jurai.
"It would be like appeasement."
"It's not your information," snapped Mark. "We figured all that stuff out by ourselves. And anyone on Earth could learn it if they just put the work hours in."
"Just talk to Ayeka," said Ryoko.
"What?" said Kiyone.
"Ayeka is the Crown Princess of Jurai," said Ryoko. "She's a royal representative. If she gives her authorization to hand over some textbooks, is anyone going to care?"
"No," said Mark. "Don't talk to Ayeka, teleport me over here and let me give the textbooks."
"Your kidding," said Ryoko. "It's just a phone call. Who cares who authorizes this thing if it fixes the problem?"
"It's a matter of national sovereignty," said Mark.
Kiyone raised a phone. "Hang on, I'll make the call."
"If you call Ayeka, I'm not going," said Mark flatly.
Kiyone stopped. "What?"
"I refuse to acknowledge Jurai's sovereignty over Earth," said Mark. "We have never formally acknowledged Jurai as an overlord. If I concede that Jurai has sovereignty over Earth, I'd be betraying the entire planet."
"You realize that I'm perfectly willing to kill you as a hostage," said Alerak in deadpan.
"That's a sacrifice I'm willing to make," said Mark, and his true self came out. "I'd gladly give my life before I betray my planet."
"Mark," said Kiyone. "You are making this way more difficult than it needs to be."
"Oh, on the contrary," said Mark. "You are making this far more difficult than it needs to be. All you have to do is let me fulfill my end of the original agreement, and everyone goes away happy."
"He's right," said Ryoko. "This isn't your planet, Kiyone. Quit standing on principle and beam him over."
"But... I could get in serious trouble," said Kiyone. "This is a breach of the law. And I've sworn an oath to uphold that law."
"This is ridiculous," said Alerak. "We have no reason to continue this conflict. But you are arguing incessantly over semantics."
"Principle!" snapped Kiyone and Mark at once.
"...Principle, fine," said Alerak. "Perhaps, Officer Makibi could contact Princess Ayeka. From there, she could request permission to delegate to Earth's representative. That would leave things ambiguous."
"...Fine, let's do that," said Kiyone. "Mark, are you willing to accept that?"
"In the circumstances, it is acceptable," said Mark, adjusting his glasses.
"Fine," said Kiyone. "Now, let me get her on the line."
Several conversations later, William Mark was on top of Ryo-Oki. The inside of the vessel was one of black crystal with red orbs. As soon as he landed, Ryoko glomped him, and Mark felt her breasts pressed against his back.
"Alright, let me see..." said Ryoko, poking him.
"Hey, let go of me," said Mark, feeling his persona blush.
"Yeah," said Kiyone. "We've got to get back."
"...I am seriously impressed, Mark," said Ryoko into his ear. "Tenchi never would have been able to get out of this without help. Let alone threaten Jurai into submission."
"I uh... get bullied a lot in high school," said Mark. "Talking my way out of problems is sort of a skill. Wait, do you really mean that?" Why was he double-taking here?
"Oh yeah, I mean, he's really nice. But I can't see him smooth-talking a Tal'Darim," said Ryoko.
At that point, Kiyone grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back. "And that's enough of that. How did you do it anyway?"
"I convinced him that his goals were not attainable by the methods he was utilizing," said Mark. "See, he wanted the gems for himself. But I pointed out that even if he got them, he wouldn't have time to control them before everyone crushed him."
"How do you figure?" asked Kiyone.
"Remind me to give you a history of Europe some time," said Mark.
"What's Europe?" asked Ryoko.
"Meet me in my apartment tomorrow, and I'll tell you," said Mark. Wait, what was he doing? Why had he invited her over?
"I might just take you up on that," said Ryoko.
"Where did you get the ship, anyway?" asked Mark, looking around.
"Oh, Ryo-Oki can regenerate as long as I'm alive," said Ryoko. "I've had her back for a while and only called her up now."
"Why not?" asked Mark.
"Well, Kiyone's whole thing is kind of getting me arrested," said Ryoko. "I figured it would sort of crush her to know I'm here by choice."
"You thought wrong," said Kiyone. "The others wanted to come as well, but, well, I insisted it only be Ryoko and me."
"That was probably wise," said Mark. "If hostilities were to break out, Ayeka's death could lead to full-scale war. Washu is an unknown element, and I presume Ryoko can pilot this ship alone.
"You, Kiyone, however, could act with authority on behalf of the law to the facility to negotiate. Very shrewd."
"Oh, thank you," said Kiyone, looking away. "I just, nevermind."
Was she... crushing on him? And why had Ryoko's behavior shifted all of a sudden? This was getting problematic. "Please drop me off at my apartment; it's been a long day."
It was, perhaps, the understatement of the century.
Author's Note:
Okay, it's been a while.
I'd just like to say that I'm really glad, so many people seem to enjoy this fic so much. If you have any suggestions for this story, feel free to leave your ideas in a review.
Also, if you've enjoyed this fanfic, you may enjoy some of my original stories on Wattpad. My profile is called Lord22. I recommend you start with the Dreaming Goddess, or the Heir of Kings, since those are chronologically first.
